Chapter 81

**Avery**

I had just had sex with two of my three mates when my ring glowed and opened a portal. Out of that portal walked two people who I hadn’t seen since they never returned to Naga from a diplomatic mission. Conner gasps, “Mom...Dad. But how?”

Naga’s former King and Queen were now standing before me in astral form. I tried to cover up my nakedness with my hands. The Queen giggled as she raised her hand. “Here, let me help,” she said. Swimsuits appeared on our bodies. “I don’t know how long they will last because where we are they don’t last long.”

“What happened to you both, and where are you now? Maybe I can bring you back.”

They both smile, but it is the King who speaks first, “Dear sweet Avery, if it were possible you could, but we are dead and the dead must remain so until the Goddess deems us worthy of reincarnation.” He looks at my engagement ring. “We have been watching and once that ring was given to Cassius we knew that you would give us this opportunity to speak to our sons one last time. So thank you, Avery.”

“But I didn’t do anything.”

The Queen smiled at me almost reverently, “But you did. No matter how badly my sons treated you, you still took care of them. Now you made them into men by giving them the ultimate gift of pure unconditional love. So we owe you.”

“We were jackasses, Mom. You and Dad just disappeared. What happened?” Cassius asks as he tries to touch them. Their images ripple like the surface of a pond does when you throw a rock into it.

The King shook his head, “Sons and new daughter, we are dead and this isn’t an illusion. It is a gift from the Goddess who will see you one day.”

“But she’s been non-existent for so long,” Conner interrupts.

The Queen adds, “Not non-existent, just dormant because her powers were greatly weakened trying to preserve her treasures.” Why is she looking at me like that? The Goddess never touched me and if she had, would I have been tormented as I was? I don’t think so because surely she would want the best for her most prized creations, wouldn’t she?

“We can’t stay long, but we will always be watching. We came to explain what happened to us and to deliver a warning.”

The King nodded, “We never got to deliver or message and ask for help. You see we had suspicion that there were rats in Naga. However, we were trying to get to Talos to ask for help from the King Of Kings, James Balans, but were killed by the Corra Tribe. That tribe has since been disbanded, but the rats are still among our tribes.” He looks at us for a moment, “You have not gotten to them in your history classes, have you?”

We all shook our heads no, so he explained, “The Corra Tribe was created by Corra, the serpent goddess of the Celts. She is a dragon and a demon. She is known as the “devil mother.” She is a menace and a monstrosity. Corra formed a tribe of dark magic users and fierce beings seeking power. Corra wants to rule all dragons so she started with Sty, the King of the Skye tribe. Eventually, Talos sent aid to the Skye tribe causing the Corra tribe to disband or risk death. Corra will never admit defeat, so she had any who aided her glamoured. That glamour came at a heafty price which eradicated the majority of the coven that aided her. Those wearing the glamour are the rats, the very ones who murdered us.”

My eyes widened in sudden realization, “Draven told us of the curse on Blackbriar. The Hoity Hags used him for his magic just like Corra did that coven. What if it is all linked? Those rats have been under our noses this whole time.”

Cassius looks at me and asks, “What are you trying to say?”

I take in a steadying breath, “Jessica thought she could weasel herself into being Queen of Naga. I think her and the rest of the Hags still plan on it. Lenore most of all. They aren’t done trying to take me out. That Dragon Blade should be all of the proof you need. What if the Hag’s parents are the original rats and now they have brought in their children? Also, we don’t know what tribe murdered my parents but what if it was the Corra Tribe?” They looked at me in stunned silence. I kept thinking out loud. “Balans? You said James Balans was the King Of Kings you were trying to reach, right?” They nodded. I looked at my mates, “Tim! Tim is a Balans!” Before I could say or ask anything else, the King and Queen waved goodbye as both them and the portal faded into nothingness.

I hugged my mates, “I am sorry that you couldn’t hug them goodbye. We will see them again and we will get to Altima too. But first, I need to speak to Tim and we need to finalize our plan to take out the Hags and any who ally with them. I don’t care if it is half of the school because their greed and lust for power will not take another innocent life!” I feel even more fueled than I was before, but there’s something else that I need to know. I need to know who murdered my parents and tried to kill me when I was little. I have a distinctive feeling that it is all linked. I just don’t know how yet, but I will