I, or should I say Belyssa, was now being controlled by the Shadows. I figured it would be peaceful, and I could just drift along and not have to put any effort into doing anything, since he was in control. I was very, very wrong.

Every time I wanted to do something other than what the Shadows wanted to do, a burst of pain would shoot through any moving body part. For instance, if he wanted to put his right foot forward to walk, and my mind wanted to stay in place, my entire right leg would suddenly sting. I was constantly making small gasping noises whenever it was particularly painful, but Bella didn't make a sound. It was incredibly depressing that she was so used to this pain that she didn't even flinch.

Now girls, the Shadows thought to us, I was originally going to keep you here for much longer, and set up defensive lines. However, things are moving much quicker than I anticipated.

What does that mean? I thought back, my mind filled with terror.

Silence! I'm doing all the talking. Pain shot through my head, and I winced. Redbeard, Jeriah, and Spark all did as I told them. They shall not be harmed. They have left the gods to face the demise they deserve. But we can't kill them yet. We have other work to do.

Other work? I couldn't stop myself from thinking. I mean, when it comes to talking, you could stop yourself from saying something out loud, but how were you supposed to stop thinking? Bella seemed to have gotten good at that, but I was a beginner.

We must revive Dianite. We will join with him to destroy the gods, and I can let him rule a large portion of my land. It's the least I can do for forcing him to do my dirty work.

Like hooking up with Jeriah? I thought back. I laughed to myself, until a much larger burst of pain shot through my entire body.

Dianite's a weakling. He fell for a ridiculous trap, but I forgive him for it. He's a necessary part of my plan. Now stop talking, stupid girl, and let's get going.

I did my best to stop thinking, so as not to feel any more pain. The Shadows forced us to fly into the air, and take off across the sky. I had always wondered what it would feel like to fly, but it was difficult to enjoy the sensation under these circumstances. We soared over a vast sea for a minute or two, and finally made it over to the priest's house.

The gods have fled, the Shadows thought to us. The idiots forgot I could track their every move. They're over in Aethoria right now, attempting to escape. At least they're out of my way while we bring Dianite back. He sensed a jolt of fear rushing through me, and laughed.

Our hands flew into the air, and blocks of obsidian appeared in them. With one swift hand motion, the portal reconstructed, and lit up. We stepped back, and the purple part shimmered.

"IT'S ABOUT TIME!" a voice boomed from behind it. I held my breath in fear as Dianite, looking exactly like he had the day Jeriah had killed him, emerged from the center of the portal. He looked outraged, and he narrowed his eyes when he saw me.

"Don't worry about her," the Shadows spoke through us. "This is Belyssa, who's fully under my control. We have more important things to do, now."

"What have I missed?" Dianite asked, continuing to look uneasy, despite his father's words.

"Mot has abandoned this realm," the Shadows said, knowing that those words would hurt me internally. "And Redbeard rebelled against the gods. They've fled to Aethoria, but that's a problem for later. I've allowed Redbeard, Jeriah, and Spark to live, since they surrendered to me. I believe the priest and Champwan are under the gods' protection for now, but we'll kill them once we have the chance."

"Wait a second." Dianite's worried gaze turned to one of pure disgust. "You allowed Jeriah to live? After what he did to me?"

"Yes, I did. He surrendered to me. I'd like him to live, since he's under so much pain from the trauma already, but can't bring himself to end his life. It's entertaining, shall we say?" the Shadows cackled.

"No. I don't care how much pain he's in now, and if it would be better for him to be dead," Dianite snarled. "Jeriah will die."

The Shadows sighed. "Son, your problem is that you won't stop worrying about puny mortals who..."

"JERIAH. WILL. DIE."

"Fine!" the Shadows sent a burst of pain to the god, who barely flinched. "You're wasting our time with your childishness, but I will agree. However, Jeriah comes last. We kill the gods first."

"That's fine with me," Dianite said, flames appearing in his crimson palms. "All I ask is that he end up dead eventually, and by my hands."

"Very well. Now, we must go and find the gods." We turned to leave.

"Wait!" Dianite yelled suddenly. "I'm still incredibly weak, Father. I was barely able to make it out of the portal. There's no way I can fight both gods, the priest, and Champwan. They must possess the god-killing weapons, after all!"

The Shadows sighed impatiently. "Fine. I'll transfer some of my energy to you." I felt the black fog slip out of Belyssa. The two of us were in control again, but we were still unable to move. The fog had us pinned up against the wall.

Alyssa, I've changed my mind, Bella thought to me, panic in her voice.

What do you mean? Had something gone differently than she had planned? I had been relying on her judgement this entire time!

If the gods are really about to be killed now, we can't wait until later to split. When we make our way to Aethoria, and are about to kill Mianite and Ianite, I'll say "NOW!" and we'll have to split. Got it? Her words were rushed, but for good reason. We didn't have a lot of time.

Got it! I was filled with terror, but I knew I had no other choice.

"Is that good?" the Shadows asked Dianite.

"Much better!" Dianite hollered, his eyes lighting up with fire. "Now I can attack them!"

"Perfect." The black fog took control of Belyssa once more, and we took off toward the portal. "This is the moment I've been waiting for."