Ragini extended her hand and summoned a new bow, different from the one she had wielded earlier. This bow, crafted from gleaming black wood and intricately adorned with silver, bent under the tension of a thin black string. No quiver appeared with it. Instead, when she pulled the bowstring back, a luminous white arrow materialized at her fingertips.

She fired a single arrow at the Great Devourer. Those watching from the mountain saw a shooting star arching through the sky, a mere pinprick of light aimed at the Primordial Beast.

At the apex of its flight, the arrow brightened and split into hundreds of shooting stars. The arrows cascaded down like a wall of light. Each one burst into a shower of white sparks upon impact, unleashing jets of molten lava against the Devourer's hide.

And not a single arrow missed its target.

The Devourer bellowed in fury. It whipped around with shocking agility, lashing its long tail toward Ragini.

She sprang into the air to evade the tail, summoning another arrow into her bow. But before she could release it, she saw the Devourer's eye glint.

It turned its gaze upon her and opened its jaws wide. A deep rumbling echoed across the plains as a ball of crackling energy formed between its fangs.

Ragini realized too late she had fallen into the Primordial Beast's trap. She crossed her arms and summoned a shield, fearing it would be too fragile to repel the Devourer's lightning bolt.

One moment, the bolt was hurtling toward her; the next, Ragini felt arms wrap around her back and under her knees. The searing heat of the lightning streaked past her and her rescuer, sizzling into the sky before dissipating and leaving an acrid tang in the air.

"Rudra!" Ragini gasped. "What are you doing here?!"

Rudra's eyes sparkled with a small smile. "Keeping you safe," he replied.

He carried them to the ground far from the Devourer. As they landed, the Primordial Beast turned and roared, enraged by Rudra's interference. Rippling with fury, it charged.

Calmly, Rudra set Ragini down and pressed a palm to her cheek, scanning her for injuries. Finding none, he sighed in relief. Ragini smiled up at him before turning her attention past his shoulder to the rampaging Beast. “Um…Rudra?” She nodded in its direction.

The Devourer roared again, and Rudra glanced over with a hint of irritation. He conjured a thin crescent moon in his palm. Ragini watched as it spun rapidly, transforming into a radiant halo. Rudra drew back his wrist and flicked it dismissively toward the Devourer.

The disk grew smaller in the distance until it struck the Devourer squarely between the eyes. The impact sent the beast tumbling to the ground as if Rudra had taken a massive mace to its head instead.

Ragini's jaw dropped. "I take it back. What took you so long?" she teased.

Rudra glanced down, suppressing a smile, though his eyes twinkled with amusement. Despite the gravity of the moment, Ragini felt a comforting warmth seeing him so at ease.

Ragini stepped back, gripping her bow. "Can we defeat it together?"

Her husband nodded.

Ragini's smile widened. She plucked her bowstring, enjoying the sound. "Then fight by my side."

***

Cheers erupted from the mountain as the refugees watched the Devourer fall back. Their hearts swelled with hope, daring to believe the legends were wrong—that, together, Lady Ragini and Lord Rudra could banish the Great Devourer to the Primordial Ocean without further sacrifice.

But that hope wavered when the Devourer regained its footing and attacked again. The entire mountain fell silent, holding its breath.

The Devourer unleashed torrents of fire and gusts of ice, whipped up tornadoes from the gray clouds above, and bombarded the fields with hail.

Ragini and Rudra countered its attacks and retaliated but gained no ground.

The battle reached a deadlock. Even with Ragini's ascended might and Rudra's power verging on fracturing the very fabric of the realms, the Great Devourer held its ground.

But Queen Chandika wasn’t paying attention to the battle. She sat beside her husband, holding Shanti close to her chest and keeping her gaze on his face.

However, her head snapped up when she heard Ravindra say, "Queen Chandika, they need a single opportunity. Just a moment to rid us of this blight once and for all." She turned to find the Demon Prince gazing intently at her. Even Shanti, sniffling, peeked over her arm.

"You conceal your power, Your Majesty," Ravindra said. "If ever there was a time to use it, that time is now."

Chandika tightened her grip on her daughter. "I am no queen now that my husband is dead."

"Then I will call you Lady Chandika," Ravindra amended. "Lady Chandika, Master of the Moon and Stars, are you truly powerless? Or will you help them?"

"Mama?" Shanti looked up, her eyes filled with the same question.

Chandika smoothed her daughter's hair and kissed her forehead. Well? Would she stand by and do nothing and risk the realms’ destruction? Make it so that her daughter never got a chance to grow up?

No. If there was even a single chance, then Chandika knew she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she chose to do nothing.

She released Shanti and stood tall. Turning in the direction of the battle, Chandika summoned a long, elegant white staff topped with a large opal. Small orbs of light orbited the gem like celestial bodies.

The crowd watched as the former queen raised the staff high. Chandika closed her eyes and a swirling wind enveloped her. Her hair and sari fluttered enchantingly in the air. Far above their heads, the clouds began to swirl and part, revealing the darkening sky. The sun had inched toward the horizon, and the first stars had begun to appear.

As Chandika cast her spell, the clouds split in a straight line, racing toward the plains before spreading apart. The glow of dusk filled the plains as the sky above cleared. New stars emerged, shining larger and brighter, glittering in every color imaginable.

The stars fell from the cosmos, revealing themselves as glittering meteors that blazed as they hurtled through the atmosphere.

Chandika opened her eyes and swept her staff downward. The meteors accelerated, shattering into thousands of shards, each aimed at the Great Devourer.

The final Primordial Beast roared under the onslaught. The burning shards pierced its failing armor, temporarily incapacitating it. The Devourer crashed to the ground.

Rudra and Ragini flew clear of the meteors and watched from a distance.

"Where did that come from?" Ragini asked, wondering if Rudra had cast a spell when she wasn't looking.

Rudra nodded toward the mountain. "That spell is unique to Lady Chandika: the Prismatic Meteor Shower."

Ragini gazed at the multicolored meteors and tilted her head. "It's beautiful," she murmured.

"It is," Rudra agreed softly. They watched the Devourer fall, knowing it wouldn't stay down for long. But this was the respite they needed.

"Where did all the legends come from, I wonder," Ragini mused, "if this is the first time the Devourer has ever attacked our realms?"

"Visions," Rudra replied. "Dreams given to mortals and immortals alike."

"Sent by you?" Ragini asked.

Rudra shook his head, his brow furrowing. "More accurately, sent through me. But not by my choice."

"Are they memories or echoes of past incarnations?"

"Perhaps." He seemed troubled. "But so many legends have grown from different echoes. There's no way to predict how this world's legend will end."

"That means we get to choose our ending." Ragini lifted her chin, braving a smile. "And right now, we have only two choices, right?"

Rudra turned to face her. "Ragini."

"Two choices," Ragini repeated, turning as well. "Three realms, three sacrifices, and the world continues. Or..." She reached out and touched his cheek. "...it all ends and begins anew."

Instead of answering, Rudra turned his head, leaning into her hand and closing his eyes. He placed his hand over hers, holding it there.

"I won't let you forget," Ragini declared, and Rudra's eyes opened in surprise. "You're mine for the next seven lifetimes. Promise me."

Rudra's lips parted, but he didn't speak. He bowed his head, and Ragini stepped closer. She dropped her bow and placed a hand on his other cheek, urging him to look at her.

"Rudra, promise me. Please," she pleaded. "I promise I'll find my way back to you."

Rudra hesitated. "You have endured so much in this life. You will suffer no less if you stay with me."

Ragini pouted. "And you speak as if you have not suffered just as much. I care nothing for hardship."

Rudra shook his head. "Stubborn," he murmured, but a smile tugged at his lips, and his tone carried a hint of surrender.

Ragini smiled, then blinked as Rudra grasped her hands and placed his palms on either side of her head. "Rudra?" she asked curiously.

"I love you," he said. "In this life, I have loved you. In all future lives, I will love you." He leaned down and kissed the seven-pointed star on her forehead. Ragini swallowed, her eyes stinging with tears as he continued, "And I know you love me. You don't have to say it. You never do. I feel it in every word and action."

Tears slipped from her eyes, unbidden. Why wouldn't they stop? She couldn't leave Rudra with the image of her crying. But they flowed, and she realized she was trembling. She didn't want to leave him at all.

A low rumble echoed across the plains. They were out of time.