My hands shook as I covered my mouth with one hand and gripped Kesstel tightly with the other. “It worked. Oh my god, it really worked.”

Even when I gave the cure to Jonovan, there’d been a part of me that believed I’d sentenced my family to death. Hearing that they were awake seemed too good to be true.

“They woke up,” I whispered, still trying to process it. My gaze locked on Earth below, where Eden would be, as if I looked hard enough I could actually see them. Wishful thinking.

Goddess nodded. “Your mother is still going through physical light therapy, but she can walk and maintain a normal life. Your sister has completely recovered. She’s going through nursing school and plans to intern in Jonovan’s hospital. He’s made quite an impression on her.”

I looked up sharply. “Intern in Jonovan’s hospital? But Aliya’s a human.” Now that Goddess powered the energy crystals, I wasn’t worried about Aliya getting hurt by magic. Well, not the kind that put her in a coma.

Goddess nodded. “Yes. Now that the Gates are gone and Hunters are weakening, the two societies are merging back together and creating a new normal. The strong caste system that Hunters followed has lessened considerably as a result, since they have to consider humans who outnumber them now.” She paused. “Without Gates, a lot of Hunters were displaced. Especially since normal weapons now work on monsters, not just Hunter weapons. Most of the powerful monsters near civilizations have already been hunted. Now Hunters can either get a normal job, join the military, or leave the cities to reclaim the lands taken over when the Gates first fell.”

I bobbed my head, listening to her and not listening to her at the same time.

They were okay, I thought. Excitement bubbled in my stomach and I couldn’t hold back the laughter that burst out. “Mom, Aliya … they’re okay!” Giggling like an idiot, I hugged Kesstel tight. Ah, I wish I’d been there to see them open their eyes. Still, it was better that they woke up then, rather than wait for me to get home.

But it wasn’t just that they were awake. Kesstel, Goddess, and I were still alive. We did it. We survived, and Earth sounded like it was on the upswing.

Brimming with happiness, I let go of Kesstel with one arm and reached out for Goddess, initiating a group hug. It didn’t matter that Kesstel and Goddess were like water and oil, and I wasn’t a touchy person, I squished us all together anyway. All the while, laughing like a broken record.

“We won!” I yelled, my voice echoing in the bubble that surrounded us.

Goddess chuckled softly and hugged me back. Gently, she kissed my hair like I was a child. She tapped Kesstel between the eyes once with the tip of her middle finger then disappeared from my arm and appeared sitting next to me.

Kesstel’s eyelashes fluttered.

Instantly, all my attention was locked on him. I touched his face, gently tracing his cheek bone. “Kesstel?”

His eyes opened, revealing glassy blue eyes. As out of focus as they were, I couldn’t be more excited that they were his normal baby blues. No more glowing, no more dead, glazed expression. He blinked and I could see his consciousness waking up, focusing on me. “Jyn.” His husky voice cracked, out of use. It was like his whole world hung on that one word.

An almost painful smile spread across my face as my heart squeezed so tight I could barely breathe. There was still a wealth of guilt plaguing me from almost killing him, but I was just so happy to see him back to normal, I couldn’t resist leaning down and pressing a hard kiss on his mouth.

Since there was an audience, I pulled back way too soon. “I’m so sorry I hurt you,” I whispered and pressed my forehead against his. “I didn’t want to. I just couldn’t figure out how to make you stop.”

He reached up and threaded his hand through my loose hair, cradling my head, as he wrapped his other arm around my waist. “I hurt you first,” he whispered, regret thick in his voice. “After I promised to never do so. I’m sorry, too. I could feel my body moving, and no matter how hard I tried to stop it, it wouldn’t obey. Even … the energy crystal. It’s true, there is always that insecurity, but I’d rather die than inflict you with the same thing that I’ve gone through.”

“I know. You’d never intentionally hurt me,” I agreed, smiling into his eyes. I was too happy to do much else. Besides, Goddess was sitting right behind me. “And neither of us will ever have to be lonely again. Because I’m never going to leave you and you’re never going to leave me.”

His worried expression smoothed out to a smile. He kissed me again, his lips clinging to mine. “Jyn. My Jyn.”

“My Jyn,” Goddess interjected, her soft voice like a cold bucket of reality.

Kesstel’s smile thinned a little. He sat up, still holding onto me like I was a life line. “My Jyn,” he corrected, tipping his head in a challenge. Unlike before, he wasn’t straight up hostile, like he was facing an enemy. Probably because he wasn’t influenced by the parasite anymore. But it was still an argument that he wasn’t willing to let go.

I sighed, trying to gather enough energy to care about their ridiculous spat.

“Well, technically, both of you are mine. So there.” Goddess lifted her chin into the air as if she had won.

Kesstel stared at her in utmost confusion.

For a second, I was lost. Then it dawned on me what she meant. My hand spread over Kesstel’s left side, where I’d almost killed him. The wound was gone, but I could still see the tiny glow where his energy crystal was.

“Kesstel’s life is tied to his energy crystal. Even though that horrible being is gone, there’s no way to take it out without killing him. However, I’m the owner of energy crystals now,” Goddess announced, a gentle, playful glint in her eyes. She smirked right into his face. “Which means that you are now mine. My child.”

His lips parted, but even he looked at a loss of what to say.

I turned my head to hide the snicker that threatened to erupt. I wanted to ask him how he felt about that. If he felt the same instinctive adoration I felt for Goddess. I could tell that he wasn’t as on guard as he was before with her, but did he feel anything else? However, I didn’t think he’d answer that question in front of her right now. Not that it mattered, really. Since she could hear everything around the energy crystals, she was going to hear his response when I asked later anyway. But he didn’t need to know that right away.

“Your … child?” Kesstel asked.

She nodded. “Right. My child. Jyn is my first child, my Warrior of Mist. You, Kesstel, are my child as a human with an energy crystal inside him. One of a kind. The only one that will ever be so from now on. Your energy crystal and life span has been tied to hers,” Goddess explained to him. “You’re still an S Hutner, with her, but you’re no longer living outside the times of the Earth. Meaning, you will start to age as a normal S Hunter now. As powerful as you are, when Jyn dies, you will die.”

He nodded, accepting her decision without so much as a tiny pause.

I was the one who had the hang up. “Why? I don’t think that’s fair.”

Goddess shook her head. “He might start aging now, albeit very slowly, but it doesn’t change the fact that he’s a being that shouldn’t even exist.” Her tone was naturally soft, but she didn’t even try to soften the blow of her words. “No matter how he ages, his energy crystal will prevent him from dying. This is the best solution, in my opinion. It’s just as well, since you will need his help in the future.”

I frowned. “With what?” I was strong enough, I didn’t need a babysitter or bodyguard.

Goddess laughed, like she knew what I was thinking about. “It’s actually something he was naturally gifted at, before his planet was destroyed.”

Kesstel’s arms tightened around me for just a second, revealing the shock that didn’t show on his face.

Goddess waved her hand in the air. The side of the bubble that surrounded us and kept out space — and provided us with air, most likely — swirled and shimmered, but mist caught in sunlight. A rainbow of colors flashed before they merged and created an image. It took me a second to figure out I was staring at a picture of a cave somewhere in the mountains on Earth. It didn’t seem all that exciting, it was just a rocky cave surrounded by green trees, probably about ten feet tall, twenty feet wide, and pitch black inside.

“The energy crystals on Earth are not everlasting,” Goddess explained. “Just like the original ones, the power inside them will run out after use. Like a battery. Since the Gates are gone and the monsters that possess energy crystals are lessening, Earth will run out of energy crystals in a matter of ten years. Humans have adapted to using them so much, I expect them to have another energy crisis.”

My eyes widened in understanding. Kesstel nodded, easily accepting her explanation.

“Since my children will be living on Earth until my new planet is finished, I refuse to let them go through that suffering. I have implanted a large vein of energy crystals in this cave. It’s for your — my children’s — use. You can distribute it for income. Keep it for your own convenience. Whatever you do, it’s your choice. As long as my children are in control of it, I will continue to replenish it forever.”

My eyes widened, finally understanding why I’d need Kesstel’s help. I knew absolutely nothing about business. When I was growing up, most of my attention was on odd jobs and studying to be a Hunter just in case. The idea of being part of a business was laughable. Never mind heading a billion-dollar business.

But Kesstel was raised as the heir to a duchy. Before he became the deadly Hunter he was today, he was trained to juggle businesses and manage lives. Even when he was planning on temporarily staying on Earth, he’d still set up an information collection gig.

Kesstel hummed in interest. “That vein is the only energy crystal source in the whole world? There will be a lot of people who want it.”

Goddess waved her hand in dismissal. “The moment someone other than my children takes control over it, I will remove it from Earth and let the humans suffer their original fate. The energy crystals aren't there for humans, they’re there for my children. Even a thief sneaking in at night will leave with a pocket of empty air.” She smiled at Kesstel, as if challenging him. “I trust that you can maintain control over it. After all, there are no Hunters higher than a C on Earth right now. If you can’t watch over a little hole with such an advantage, I chose the wrong helper for Jyn.”

He lifted his chin, accepting that challenge. “There will be no trouble.”

I grabbed his hand and held it tight. I was a little overwhelmed with the daunting task ahead of me — it wasn’t going to be as easy as poking something with a pointy sword — but I wasn’t going to back down. Especially since I wasn’t going to be doing it alone. I’d always done well in school in the past, so I should be able to learn what to do. “We can handle it.”

Goddess nodded, satisfied. “Remember, this vein will be the backbone income for all my children to come. It is there to sustain you financially. Your power, which I have not lessened, is there to protect yourself with. But my children are not meant to be the dictators of Earth,” she stressed. “Anyone who tries to become a tyrant will be reprimanded by me. We are simply visitors until I’ve finished remodeling this planet to sustain life.”

She motioned to the diamond-like planet behind us. Even though it was all the same color still — white diamond — on closer inspection, the beginnings of oceans and mountains were forming. Massive cracks divided the surface, creating massive sections all over that collided and pushed against each other, forming those dips and rises. Tectonic plates?

Even with the slow aging of an S Hunter, I was never going to live long enough to see what it will look like when it was done. It was a little sad, but not crushing. I’d probably be too busy in the future to even think about it. After all, I had no idea what would happen when we got back to Earth. I instinctively knew that the energy crystal vein wasn’t near Garden City. Just a vague, general knowledge that I will know exactly where to go to find it. Now, whether it was liveable around it, well, I’d like to think Goddess wasn’t mean enough to send us to the middle of nowhere.

Still, I was itching to get back to solid ground. I did like talking to Goddess face to face. I could tell that something was different about me now. Goddess wasn’t in the back of my mind anymore. The System was still there, just like the Pearl embedded in my temple, just without her in it. Even so, I believed I could talk to her anytime I wanted.

But what I wanted most was to see my family. I had Kesstel back; now I needed to hold my sister and mother too. Check on how my aunt and uncle were doing.

Goddess smiled like she knew what I was thinking. “Well, that’s all the instruction you need for now.” She placed her hand over our joined one.

A blinding light flooded my vision. Instinctively, I closed my eyes and held Kesstel tighter. His own arm tightened around my waist, anchoring me to his side and smothering what little space there was left between our bodies. For a moment we were weightless. Then my feet touched the ground. I stumbled forward a couple steps as gravity finally grabbed me for the first time. If it wasn’t for Kesstel, I might have tripped and fallen. Instead, I blindly followed his stride forward.

My eyes cracked open and I looked around just as we stepped out of the bright light. It took me a second to figure out where we were. Gate Square. I knew that’s where it was, because I recognized Eden’s hospital and the Hunter’s Association Building. The square was the same as before, a very large open expanse of pavement, only there there was a plaque to my right with a bunch of tiny writings on it — a memorial. All of the other buildings around were different from the last time I was here, probably because they were ruined in the last battle.

Directly behind me was a fifty-foot tall white arched Portal — the thing we just walked out of. Unlike when the parasite’s Portals or Gates appeared, the area didn’t show any damage from when it appeared. But the hundreds of people walking around the buildings, whether shopping or visiting the hospital or Association Building, stopped and turned our direction. Sounds of shock, despair, and wonder filled the air. Some people, obviously Hunters although they were dressed in casual or business clothes, drew weapons and got ready for battle. Other people, with less survival instincts, pulled out phones and started to take pictures.

I straightened up. Kesstel’s arm slid from my waist around my back until he could lace our fingers together.

Goddess floated behind Kesstel and me, her long hair and white dress fluttering, and looking breathtakingly beautiful. She rose until she was ten feet in the air, a gentle smile on her face. “I am Goddess.” Even though she didn’t raise her voice, I knew without a doubt that everyone in the whole city, if not the world, could hear her soft words.

She opened her arms then lifted them, drawing gazes to the sky. The white moon hung in the blue afternoon sky. Behind it, the bright blue sky shifted and warped until another moon appeared behind, a little whiter and bigger.

The people around us gasped.

Even my own eyebrows lifted at the sight. I knew it was going to happen, I just thought she was going to wait longer before she revealed her planet body.

Kesstel glanced at me and I knew exactly what he was thinking. Things just got a little more complicated.

“I am the owner of the energy crystals that power your civilization,” Goddess explained. “And I come in peace.”

People spilled out of the buildings, running to get a good look at what was going on in Gate Square. People in suits from the Association Building pushed to the front of the crowd, I even recognized some of them, but no one dared to cross the line into the square. Those that were in it before we appeared had retreated back.

Whispers flew through the air.

“Look at her! She’s gorgeous! Am I seeing things?”

“I think she might actually be a real goddess!”

“Wait! Isn’t that the Noble?!”

“Hey, I know that girl! She’s from that video from five years ago! I thought she died!”

Under so many gazes, all I could do was hold my head high and hold onto Kesstel’s hand. As much as I hated being the center of attention, I couldn’t hide from this.

Goddess lowered her arms, presenting me and Kesstel. “You owe my children a great debt. It was their actions, along with mine, that vanquished the monster and collapsed the Gates that were ripping Earth apart five years ago. They have now returned, and I would have you treat them with the respect they deserve.” She was polite, but it was clear that she also wasn’t going to be a pushover.

She didn’t wait for anyone to respond to her words. Both she and the white Portal behind us dissolved into mist and dispersed, leaving me and Kesstel in the middle of all the attention. Overhead, the second moon gleamed in the blue sky. As soon as she disappeared, the Association President standing in front of the crowd stepped forward, his eyes locked on us. He looked cautious and determined at the same time.

I completely disregarded him. There were more important things I needed to take care of. I angled my body slightly behind Kesstel and took out my cell phone from my Items Bag. It was exactly the same as it was when I last put it in. Even the battery was the same, since it was powered with an energy crystal and frozen all this time.

It was a long shot, but I dialed my family’s phone number. It had been five years. Anything could have happened by now. This was the number to their old apartment. If they moved to the new condo, it might not be the same. Or maybe they weren’t even in that condo at all anymore. There were so many things I didn’t know.

But this was the only number I had right now to check on them. I had to try.

My body trembled with each ring that echoed in my ear. I could hear the president politely insisting on an explanation and Kesstel responding, but that was all background noise.

“Hello?” a woman answered on the other side.

My eyes widened. It wasn’t Aliya’s or Aunt Mina’s voice. It was a voice from my past. The one that used to chase away all my fears. The one that made home feel like home. One I’d been waiting ten years to hear again.

“M-Mom?” My voice broke.

Kesstel glanced at me out of the corner of his eye and shifted to block me from view of the people talking urgently in front of him.

I ducked my head against his back, hiding my red eyes from people taking pictures of us from all directions. “Mom, it’s Jyn,” I said, hugging the phone in one hand and clutching Kesstel’s fingers for dear life in the other. “I’m back.”

She gasped then let out a huge sob. “Baby doll?”

On the other side of the phone, I could hear Aliya’s voice. “Mom! What’s going on?”

My mouth wobbled into a smile as my chest swelled in joy. I leaned forward until my forehead rested on Kesstel’s warm back, feeling his soothing breath. There were so many unknown things in the future, but for now, I felt happy. Whole. I closed my eyes and listened to my mother’s joyful sobbing on the other side of the phone, tears leaking through my own closed lashes. “I just wanted to say ... good morning, sleepy head.”