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Embrace the power Complete the quest The answer lies in you

The words canize I awoke to a whole neorld - a beautiful place, full of color and light and scent People and ani the sun that sparkled on clear water The lion with the la his head on the feathered breast of a chicken

"Where am I?"

"You are in the Land of Souls"

A wo near the water and walked towardblack with only a trace of silver Her face defied time; her eyes were dark, clear, and honest

Her white T-shirt was tucked into a long colorful skirt She wore a ring on each finger and on two of her toes Three earrings hung froled around her slim wrists

"Aentle She took my hand "But I am"

"You’re Cora" Her brows lifted "Will spoke of you"

Her expression becaood boy, and I miss him Tell him all that I have is his"

"He’ll like that" I considered the beautiful, dead old wo, didn’t you?"

"Lydia told ed "I planned better"

"You gave th was always yours The talisman was merely an instruether "Now, I promised you the truth"

"You did?"

"Embrace what you are, discover the secret you seek"

"That was you?"

She nodded

"Why didn’t you just tell uys were?"

"The Land of Souls doesn’t work that way Only through accepting yourself could you ever become whole and learn the truth"

I wasn’t sure I could handle any more truth

"Because you defeated the one who ended le question All you need do is ask"

There was only one question I’d ever wanted the answer to

"What is the cure for lycanthropy?"

"You don’t wish to kno to cure yourself?"

"Isn’t it the sa?"

"The cure for one will not cure the other You are different You must choose"

Myself or all the olves? Once the decision would have been easy I had loathed what I ould have done anything to remove the curse, cure the virus But I’d learned a lot in the past few days

Edward er did I could help people, save lives

Nic hadn’t run screaht never be cured

I paused to think, but I didn’t really have to I couldn’t choose an easy life over hundreds, thousands of deaths I just couldn’t

"Them, not me," I said

"You wish to have the power to reain?"

"Yes"

"A sacrifice," Cora ood of mankind In the end, you will be blessed"

She took raainst the pale of my palm

"Mark of the wolf," she told me "The power to heal"

"How?"

"The gift was always in you You fought what you were You refused to e on science to turn back the tide of ic" Cora shook her head "There is no cure that comes from a bottle"

"But science made the monsters Or at least some of them"

"Hate n of the beast atte about Doomsday, and they failed"

"Nazis? The swastika?"

"No one should call forth powers they do not understand"

"I’ll be able to cure olves now?"

"You are woman and wolf - human and inhuman Only you can touch them and make them whole"

The Land of Souls shione

"Elise?"

I openedor a stor The ravine was shadowed, cool, a bit spooky I could s olves, people

How long had I been -

Where had I been?

Nic, as on his knees at h kiss, both sweet and seductive I lifted my arms and wrapped theraphic video for later? I got questions"

That was Jessie’s voice When had she gotten here?

Nic lifted his head, touched my cheek There were shadows in his eyes that hadn’t been there before

"What’s wrong?" I asked

"You were dead"

"Was not"

"You didn’t have a pulse" Jessie leaned over and put her finger to my neck "You do now"

I slapped her hand away "I saw Cora in the Land of Souls"

Everyone went silent Jessie and Nic exchanged glances I could tell by their expressions they thought I’d lost le an, but stopped when Jessie pointed her 44 at my head