Valkyrie's Sacrifice (Academy of Immortals 3)

Armin glances at me and says, “I think I could use a little stability too. A familiar bed to sleep in.”

He’s come a long way from the warrior who slept curled-up on a pallet on the floor.

“Fine,” Marshal says, “But I’m not playing a student this time. No more games.”

“That includes spin the bottle,” I tell him.

He leans over and kisses me on the cheek. “Only with you, Valkyrie.”

“I suppose you’ll need a training instructor?” Agis asks, focused on me.

“Why are you asking me?” I ask.

“You’ll be the headmistress, right? Keep all of us in check?”

I can’t help but smile, especially when no one argues. “I like that idea, and yes, we definitely need a good training instructor.”

He nods, and it’s like I can see the tension lifting from his shoulders.

“We’ll need Darius and Elizabeth,” I say, thinking out loud. The fairy had gone back to her realm, and Darius was with his uncle. “I don’t think it will take much to convince them.”

“Excellent,” Professor Christensen says, rubbing his hands together. “Sounds like we have a plan.”

“No,” I say, looking at each of my Immortals, my friends, and lovers. “We have a destiny.”

Epilogue

From the outside, the Academy looks the same, as if I didn’t see and feel the structure collapse into rubble.

One difference is the blue sky overhead. Oh, and no six-eyed monsters lurk outside the walls. We’re surrounded by a clear blue sea. Protected, but not completely isolated. There’s no apocalypse impending, at least not that we know of.

Another difference is the large statue in the middle of the quad. It’s new and arrived this morning, carved by the hand of a master sculptor. When I first came to the Academy, I’d been fascinated by the mythological battles preserved on canvas, in tapestry, and on murals.

Now I’ve been captured as well.

The central figure is a fierce warrior surrounded by her allies. The God of Death is in the air, scythe in his hand. On the other side is another set of wings, smaller but still fierce; Elizabeth. The artist captured Armin’s intensity, Marshal’s smirk, and Rupert’s intelligence and flowing hair. Miya’s expression is serene, his sword deadly. Behind them all is an expanse of wings and the face of an angel.

“I’m surprised you included me.”

The voice sends a shiver down my spine.

“You were there, every step of the way,” I reply, daring a glance over my shoulder. Luke stands behind me, dressed in an all-black suit, hands tucked in his pockets. His beauty is jarring. “You’re part of the legend.”

“Where are the others?”

“Around.” I turn, facing him head on. “Setting up their classroom or tucked in the library. I suspect a few are down in the training room. Maybe in another hundred years they can prove who’s the best.”

A smile lifts his lip. “You’re probably right.”

My hands itch. I shove them in my own pockets and ask, “What are you doing here?”

He grins again, this time rueful. “Did you know that if you overthrow the King of Hell, you take his place?”

“I did not know that.”

“And that if you become the new King of Hell after instigating the apocalypse and a takeover of other, more peaceful realms, you’re banned from visiting them?”

“I didn’t know that either.” That information answers a lot of questions. “You couldn’t follow us to the Upperworld.”