MARIBELLE
Atlas crashes through glass right as June falls out of my body. I don’t bother with her as I run straight for Atlas. Iris is suddenly beside me, hurling acolytes far across the room. I push past the destroyed relics to reach Atlas. He has never been this still. I scoop up his neck.
“Atlas, Atlas. No, come on, my love.” His eyes are half open, and blood is soaking up his shirt. “Please see me, please see me.” I slip my hand underneath the vest that was too damaged to protect him and his heart isn’t speaking to me. But this doesn’t make sense, because this is Atlas and he has to be around because I wouldn’t be alive without him and we’re supposed to one day have kids who will fly through the air with us and we will live, live, live until we grow old.
I press my forehead against his and beg him to keep his promise. When that doesn’t work, I scream in his face, and that doesn’t wake him up either.
I shot him.
June made me.
My teeth clench, and I fight back this urge to vomit and my arms are shaking and a cold shiver runs down from my head to my heart. Then I’m warm like when I was sick in bed, always waiting on Mama’s tea with honey, lemon, and garlic. The fights around me continue, and June staring me down sets me off. I rise and scream, and my body feels so hot I swear I’m inside the sun. There’s pressure on my eyes, especially the left, and I hear a roar that comes out of nowhere. A ring of dark yellow fire explodes around me and collides into everyone twenty feet from me. I’m the last one standing.
Flames run up to my elbows.
How?
Everyone is looking up at me. Luna is watching me in awe by the exit when an acolyte takes her by surprise and punches her in the face. The acolyte snatches the egg and runs. He glows gray the closer he gets—Ness.
I don’t care about the phoenix or the elixir. I look back at Atlas, lifeless, and I want to put this fire to use before it goes away. A flow of dark yellow flames blasts from my palm, but June sinks through the floor before it can reach her. Dione has already charged away and I’m lucky enough to strike Stanton down, even briefly, before they all reach Luna and flee.
The flames vanish, and I feel faint, the emptiest I’ve ever felt. I stumble back to Atlas and fall on top of him, cuddling against his chest, and even though he doesn’t wrap his arm around me, I fall asleep.