Not the time for humor. I couldn’t help it, I let out a whimper at the first sting. Then, a foreign feeling filled my body. Then another sting, and another, as he gave me more doses of the serum. I wasn’t looking forward to the pain I knew would come.

“That was the last one,” Sevril spoke softly and I opened my eyes to see his sad but grateful ones looking at me. “Thank you,” he whispered.

The sound of the cot being pulled and scraped across the floor as it was scooted over to the machine made me curious enough to turn my head and look. Numerous needles and small tubes led from a table filled with bottles to my right arm, but half of the tubes led off of the table and just out of eyesight. I couldn’t see where they led, but I could hear Xiven moving around.

Finally his voice came out strong and clear. “Are you ready, Thalia? To save us from our past, you must become the future.”

“No,” I whimpered out, barely audible. “I don’t want to do the saving. I want to be saved.” Oh Kael, please forgive me. I prayed that I would have the strength to survive this for both Kael’s sake and my own. My mind started to flip out and flash forward and backward as Xiven started the machine. I felt a jolt of electric current shoot into the bands and into my spine. I spasmed and started to scream, and it wasn’t even that painful yet. My mind spiraled into a nightmare as I relived every session on the machine at once. The currents began to pulse through my body in a steady stream and each one made my heart flutter faster and faster, until I swore it stopped on more than one occasion. Then the next current would feel like it jumpstarted my breathing again.

My blood was on fire and a burning pain seared through my stomach. I could only open my mouth in a silent scream as I was rocked with pain through my very core. It hurt so bad I wanted to die. I wanted them all to die. I wanted every person that ever hurt me to die.

Then there was such an intense pain it was if my soul was being cracked in two…and then I was free. Truly free. I could feel the darkness, the monster that was inside of me—my fury—reach out and relish the freedom. I saw fire, death, and destruction. I knew it was the future I was envisioning, my future as the Siren part of my soul came into full power.

It was terrifying. I could see myself with dark wings flying over the army, raising my arms and destroying every one of them. Killing them, greedily draining their very lives away and still being hungry for more.

“No!” I breathed out. “Kill me. Don’t let me become that.” Sevril never let go of my hand and I could feel myself start to reach out to him, to pull at him for help. Instinctively, I reached for his life force and I heard him gasp. I recoiled in horror, releasing his hand. “I don’t want to become that. They were right. The Sirens’ fury should have been sealed away. We don’t deserve this kind of power.”

The power rushed through my veins and it was addictive. My head rolled to the side and I felt drunk and I needed more. My body began to crave more power, and I knew that if they let me go now, with the seal broken, I would destroy the world.

A throbbing started in my head, and I first ignored it, thinking it was another side effect of the machine and the crowning glory.

But it was a familiar pain and one that made my heart soar. Kael!

Kael was near. He was in the castle, floors above me. KAEL! My heart and soul cried out, and I could feel him and almost see him. He was fighting and he stopped. He turned and began to search for me.

But then I lost him as the fury and anger once again took over and my heart burned for revenge. Sevril yelped in surprise when the candle on the table next to him alit on its own. Followed by the next candle, and the next. I was trying to fight my instincts to light everything on fire, so I was staying focused.

“Okay, Xiven,” Sevril called out. “Now.”

The pulsing continued, but instead of a burning feeling, it became a cold, soothing pain. I would go hot then cold, then hot then cold. My visions went from destroying the world with fire, to bringing about a famine by a never-ending winter. My teeth started to chatter, and I swore that I could see my breath in the room.

The soothing ended. This time, the pain felt like I was being not just ripped in two but broken and shattered. Someone was going to have to pick up the pieces of my soul. I bit my tongue and tasted blood. I began to thrash against the bands and scream out my anger. I wanted to die, but then I didn’t. But I couldn’t survive what was happening to my very essence.

My head slammed against the metal brace and I flashed back to the past. But I was somehow omnipresent. I saw Raven leaning over me. In my dream state, I was able to pull back and gaze around the room from a greater distance. I saw the Raven leave the room with another taller member of the Septori. My subconscious followed them through the heavy wooden door. I don’t know how I did it. Maybe I was dead. I was able to move to easily, and right now I was seeing my life flash before my eyes. I don’t know how, but I was free to follow.

The Raven stepped into a small room adjacent to the machine and waited as his companion took off the robe and hung it up. I recognized Adept Cirrus and hate raced through me.

Then, the Raven stepped back and adjusted the hood. Deep red locks spilled forth. I wasn’t expecting long hair to come from beneath the folds of the hood. How had I not seen that before? The Raven was female. Then she opened up a small wooden box with a velvet interior. She took off the silver hook-nosed mask, set it on the velvet pillow, and closed the lid. She turned to Adept Cirrus and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him deeply on the lips.

I released a mental scream in fury at the deception. Not only by Adept Cirrus but the Queen of Calandry—Lilyana.

The one person whose total goal was to help in the survival of the Denai race played with their very lives, throwing them away for tortuous experiments.

The door to the room opened and Talbot’s short figure ambled in toward the queen.

“Good evening, my queen,” Talbot intoned politely. “Are you pleased with the results so far?”

Queen Lilyana shot him a condescending look. “You said this one came from the Valdyrstal clan, did you not? And she has the right heritage.”

“Talbot pulled out a piece of crusted paper out of his pocket. “Yes, I have it on good faith from her uncle that she’s Bearen’s daughter.”

Cirrus touched his chin in thought, his eyes alight. “She is showing progress with the treatments, getting stronger, not weaker like the others. So it looks like we found a Siren. If that’s the case, we should stop with the treatments and use her for harvesting to make the portensi serum. You want your army, Lily. I will give you an army,” Cirrus crooned and gently rubbed the cheek of Queen Lilyana. “Then we will control the Denai and wipe out Sinnendor and all of that feral bloodline for good.”

“You, my dear Cirrus, will make a fine King of Silandry when we are through,” she laughed.

He continued with the caress and gently followed it with a kiss. “Silandry? I thought we had agreed on Calendor,” he teased.

“Either one is fine with me, as long as we rule it together.”

Talbot moved aside and bowed respectfully as Cirrus and Queen Lilyana passed and went up the underground passage to leave. Talbot sat at a table continuing to write notes in a book, when time began to fast forward. In my vision, I saw Xiven hours later knock on the door and enter. He looked tired and worn out, but excited.