The Nextworld Invasion and the Death of Magic - 40. Chapter 40 - The End and the Beginning

Everyone succumbed to their emotions in unison.

Othri dropped beside Tigath and embraced him.

Alydrael was weeping, and Dorjin had her pale arms around the green-skinned woman.

Kilial started to sob as she turned toward the door to the room that had served as her home for many years.

Illiop scurried out of the captain’s chamber and past her to Lestralin.

“It’s finished, little buddy,” he choked out as he also began to cry.

As Kilial approached and laid her hand on the wood of the doorframe, the tiny remaining portion of the ship let out a creak, and its words made Kilial laugh through her tears.

“Yes,” she choked out, “you are tougher than me.”

Tigath rose away from the body of Nuji, but knees wobbled, and he staggered where he stood.

Othri caught him and helped hold him upright. “What is it, Tigath?”

The words Tigath whispered hurt Othri’s heart.

“I killed so many people.”

Othri pulled Tigath close and held him as he wept.

When they eventually separated, and Tigath looked down at Nuji’s lifeless body, he could not stop a few more tears from flowing down his cheeks. He knelt again, brought his hand to Nuji’s forehead, and closed her unfocused eyes.

“Thank you, Nuji,” Tigath said quietly. He took a breath to settle himself, and he stood again. “We need to go through the portal and close it.”

“Wha-what about Uall and the Mer-Mermonster?” Kilial stuttered. “Won’t the Humans eventually find this spot?”

“I’ve been working on an idea,” Tigath replied, “and I think I’ve figured it out. Once we’re in Nextworld, I’m going to use the magic of Earth to encase the remains of Uall Island and the Mermonster in crystal, a shell to make it inaccessible to the Humans.”

Kilial bowed her head as fresh tears filled her eyes. “Thank you, Tigath. And there’s something I want to do.” She walked over to the dying ocria tree and removed a broken branch that she brought to the remains of the Mermonster, and she placed it in the final room.

The group said their goodbyes to the ship and island, and they walked through the portal into the hidden refugee camp on Nextworld.

Tigath turned, and the sight through the opening filled all who saw with wonder. Sparkling gemstones began to grow from the Earth, and they reached up and over the last remnants of magic in that world. The captain’s chamber of the Mermonster, the mound that remained of Uall Island, and even the broken ocria tree were encapsulated in crystal.

“Now the portal.” Tigath reached forward, but it did not close. He cocked his head to the side and tried again.

The opening remained.

“Why won’t it seal?” he mused to himself. Tigath tried to shut it a third time, but nothing happened. “Why can’t I close it?”

“What’s wrong?” Othri asked.

Tigath turned back to the others. “I don’t know.”

“I know you’ve sealed it in crystal,” Kilial said, “but if you can’t close the portal, how are we supposed to stay safe here in Nextworld?”

Tigath tried again and again, but the gateway between worlds stayed open. He could feel the Earth’s magic in him, but it would not close the mystical doorway.

“Maybe we can just hide it,” Dorjin suggested, and everyone looked at her. “Well, erm… I know a frost charm that might be able to cover the crystal and area in ice.”

“But won’t it just melt?” Alydrael asked.

Dorjin was confused. “Your ice melts? In Nextworld, once our water is frozen, it doesn’t melt. I think it takes thousands of years to thaw.”

“It takes time to thaw water, not temperature?” Kilial questioned.

Dorjin nodded to her, and she looked through the crystal at the snow-covered peaks that towered above where the remains of Uall Island now lay. “That ice isn’t permanent?” she asked.

“I think there are going to be a lot of things in Nextworld that we’re gonna need to get used to,” Tigath commented to the others, “things which are very different than Earth.” He turned to Dorjin. “The portal is hidden in these remote coastal mountains, which are snowy, so your idea of ice ought to work and blend in the crystal shell with the background and help keep it hidden.”

“And if the ice I use is permanent, like what’s here in Nextworld,” Dorjin added, “maybe it’ll keep it hidden forever.”

The others conceded that Dorjin’s idea seemed like a good one, and using the innards from a fish they were going to eat for supper, Dorjin performed her magic. The spell passed through the portal and beyond the shell of crystal, and she could feel that her ice was beginning to form.

The group watched as the Earth appeared to get darker. The layer of ice grew and expanded, slowly blocking out more and more sunlight, until those in Nextworld could no longer see anything on Earth.

“What about this side of the portal?” Othri asked. “Should we hide it so even our own people can’t locate it?”

Tigath looked up at the green sun and pink sky. Then he focused on the ground beneath his feet. “There’s a wall of ice on the other side. What if we cover this side with earth… or I guess, with nextworld?” He reached forward, and the ground bulged into a small hill, entirely engulfing the opening that led to Earth.

Tigath leaned toward Othri, kissed his beloved, and he knelt with the others standing around him. Tigath brought a palm to the forest floor, and like the enclosures Nuji had magicked into existence during the group’s time in the wilds, a flower now grew.

“Nuji,” Tigath whispered, and he raised his hand from the dirt. He stood and declared to the others, “We’re going to heal Nextworld.”

Othri did not like that idea. “We can’t. If we change even part of this region, we’ll attract the attention of the remaining Humans.”

“Nextworld needs to be healed; the Humans who are still here need to heal. We are going to make things better in our new home, and we’re going to make it better for all the inhabitants of Nextworld.”