My voice rose at the end of my question. I assumed this guy was one of the gods, because what else could he be? I could feel the power vibrating from him.
“Anna,” he said in a low voice, savoring the syllables as he stared at me.
“Yes,” I nodded as I waited for him to explain what was going on.
“I am the only god left,” he said slowly, as if words didn’t come easily to him. “I’ve been asleep for too long, and the others have left this world.”
I swallowed and tried to hide my disappointment. “I’m honored to meet one of the gods,” I said as I tried to think of the best way to approach him with a plea for help.
I needed another god to battle the Morrigan, but this god might not be up to the task.
“You are here to ask for a favor,” he said as he tilted his head to one side. “I’ve dreamt of your arrival, the event that brings about my end.”
My jaw dropped. “Your end?”
A slow smiled stretched over his face. “I sense your dismay, but take comfort. I tire of this world, and I’m ready to pass my mantle of godhood onto my successor.”
“Um,” I stammered. “I wasn’t expecting this.”
The god nodded. “You have passed my trials, and only your sacrifice remains.”
“Then you’ll tell me who your successor is? So that I might find him?”
The god gave a dry chuckle. “My successor stands before me.”
I tried not to look as horrified as I felt. Was this my fate? To morph into a tree-like creature and spend my days slumbering in a magical grove, hidden from the world?
“I’m not sure-”
The god rose his arm to stop me from speaking. “I’ve watched you, and I’ve seen how you cling to your idea of humanity. You hide your true nature from those around you, you’re hesitant to embrace the magic that imbues your very soul, and you fear becoming who you were meant to be.”
I looked at him in surprise. “I’ve been working hard at learning how to use magic.”
“You hold it at arm’s length instead of welcoming it into your heart,” he replied. “You think of it as a tool and repress it unless you have a use for it.”
I swallowed back my arguments. He was right, in a way. I did fear letting magic corrupt me, or change me into something that I wasn’t. But the idea of becoming a god was crazy.
“I came here for help,” I told him firmly. “I have no desire to become a god.”
He let out a loud sigh. “And that is why you shall become one.”
Faster than I thought he’d be able to move, he appeared in front of me and wrapped me in a tight embrace.
I cried out and struggled to get away, but it was an impossible task. His arms locked around me like iron, and I was helpless in his hold. He opened his mouth wide, and golden light streamed out and into my own. I choked on the rush of power and squeezed my eyes shut to protect them from the blinding light.
Magic rushed into me, more than I’d ever felt before. It poured into my body until it felt like I was going to burst, and then it still kept coming. My mouth was open in a silent scream as pain swept through me. Whatever he was doing was too much. I wouldn’t survive this.
Desperately, I reached for my mate bonds. The golden threads were stretched thin from the distance, but I could still sense a connection with each one of my guys. I opened the bonds between us and let some of the excess power bleed through to them. But even that wasn’t enough.
I couldn’t breathe, and every single one of my nerves were on fire. I let my body go limp and closed my eyes. I couldn’t win this fight, I needed to find a way to allow the magic to flow out of my body if I wanted to save myself.
“Accept my gift,” the god whispered into my mind. “And save your world.”
Gift? It felt like he was trying to kill me.
Hope sparked inside me when I felt the life force of the god in front of me fading. I was desperately fighting just to stay alive, and I couldn’t think clearly through the agony.
A sudden burst of magic exploded within me, and the god in front of me dissipated into dust. I fell