NOELLE’S POV,
“Where is she? Where is she?” I hear Gabriel shout. Just hearing his voice already makes my heart explode. Everyone quickly gets out of the way and then I see him. He is running towards me but as soon as he sees me, he stops. We just stare at each other for a moment and then he runs towards me and swoops me in his arms. I can’t even begin to describe how good it feels to have his arms around me and smell his scent. He sits down on the floor holding me and I can hear his heart beating really fast. I take his face in my hands and put my forehead against his, tears of joy travel down my cheeks. I look into his beautiful blue eyes and sigh with happiness. He softly strokes my cheek brushing the tears away and puts his lips on mine. I lean into his embrace and enjoy the sensation of his lips on mine again. I wish this moment would last forever.
I look into his eyes again and I hear him say in my head, “I have missed you so much, Noelle. I was a mess without you. You have no idea how much I have thought about holding you again. Not knowing or you were okay drove me crazy.”
I put my hands through his hair and answer through the mind connection, “You have no idea how good it feels to hear your voice. I wanted nothing more than talk to you and be in your arms. I love you so much.”
The others can’t hear what we say but I think our eyes speak for themselves. I can read all Gabriel’s love for me with just one glance. I get up with a smile because I finally feel complete again. I can’t wait to be alone with him and I can tell that he feels the same way. However, I also need to catch up with the rest of my friends. So, I listen to all the adventures of Holly, Zeus, and Nolan in Liberum and all the weapons they made. I hear about the difficulties Gabriel and Julias faced in Dandion and how Luna evolved into the powerful woman she is now. They tell me about the preparations in the city and the defense plan. I must say I am impressed by everything they have prepared and strategized. I am mostly happy though to see Julias so deeply in love and happy. Luna truly seems a great woman for him. I also never saw Holly and Nolan as loving as tonight. For the first time, they seem to act as a healthy couple in love. I guess many things have changed in the time I was away, but I am sure I will hear about it sometime. They all seem relieved to hear that I learned the magic in time, but I don’t go too far in detail about everything.
After some time, Faith apologizes but says she has to leave to study the spellbook further. Zeus joins her to help because 2 smart minds can do more than one. Gabriel sends me a longing look and stands up saying, “If you will all excuse me, I would like to return to my room for some alone time with my wife.”
I smile at him and take his hand to help me stand up. Holly teases, “Don’t forget we still have a battle tomorrow so don’t be too exhausted.”
Doubt rises in my mind; I would like nothing more than spending the last peaceful hours alone with Gabriel but maybe we should be preparing for battle instead. I look at my friends and ask, “Is there something else we can help with?”
Luna stands up fiercely and states, “No we have all prepared and done as much as we can the last few weeks. So, spend these last hours wisely with the one you love. That is what I am going to do at least.” She takes Julias his hand and they both walk out of the room.
I look at Gabriel relieved and follow him to his room. As soon as we are inside, he takes me in his arms again. I lay my head against his shoulder and enjoy the warmth of his embrace. I look up and let my hand go over his beard. I have never seen him unshaved before and now that I have some time to look, I can also see the dark circles under his eyes. I give him a worried look, “You really had a tough time here, didn’t you?”
He softly strokes my hair, “I just felt miserable being apart from you. It drove me crazy that I wouldn’t be able to help you in time if something went wrong. I couldn’t talk to you so the worst scenarios played through my mind every day. But I guess it was better that I didn’t know about Faith leaving. I would not have liked knowing that you were alone.”
I feel a bit nervous when I say, “I was never alone though.”
Gabriel looks at me confused and I put his hand on my stomach. He stares at me and then his eyes get big and he stutters, “You mmm.. eee…. aaan? You are pregnant?”
I laugh and nod, “Yes we are having a baby.”
Gabriel his eyes fill up with tears and he falls to his knees crying. He puts his head against my stomach and holds me tight. “That is amazing news, Noelle. I am overjoyed. I can’t believe it.”
He softly kisses my stomach and says, “Our little miracle in dark times.”
I put my hands through Gabriel’s hair and enjoy this little moment of happiness and light. He slowly gets up and kisses me. “You are going to be a great mother,” he whispers full of emotion. I put my arms around him and reply, “We are going to be great parents together and give this little one all the love it deserves.”
Then I lean in and kiss him with all the passion I had bottled up. His body immediately reacts to mine, and he answers my hungry kisses with the same passion. I want to inhale everything I missed over the past weeks. I want to have him as close as possible and feel him everywhere. I push him on the bed and rip his clothes off. I want him and I want him now, so I skip all the foreplay and position myself on top of him. He moans hard when I slowly let him slide inside of me. His mouth is slightly open as I start to slowly move my hips in circles. His hands are on my breasts teasing them with just the right amount to make me go crazy. My breathing quickens when I pick up the rhythm and he suddenly sits up so he can explore me with his mouth. I don’t even know who the moans are from when I feel his warm tongue explore my breasts and my neck. He puts his hands on my hips and urges me to go faster by digging his fingers into my soft flesh. I put my arms around his neck and kiss him hungry while moving my hips back and forth faster. We are a mix of sweat, moans, and raspy breathing while we look into each other’s eyes and move together to reach the high. We both explode into a wave of pleasure and release.
He softly kisses my shoulder afterward and I lay in his arms for a while before his body wakes up again. That night we try to still our hunger by taking in as much of each other’s lust and passion as we can. After we explored each other’s bodies many times, I fall asleep in his arms exhausted. Gabriel wakes me up just before sunrise and we quickly get dressed. I put on my parent’s amulet for good luck and then I am ready to go.
We meet the others at the front gate of the castle. The mood instantly becomes serious, and the city seems to be simmering with anxiety. Everyone I pass has a stern look on their face probably wondering if these are the last hours of their lives. Everywhere I look are armored soldiers, men, and women alike. They all carry shining weapons. On top of the buildings, armored dragons are waiting for the command of their masters. On the highest level, I can see the army of angels from the Sky Realm. On the outer walls of the city are magicians doing protective spells to keep a protective dome intact. My heart drops to my stomach realizing this is it. This is what we all have been training and preparing for. The fate of the world will be determined in the coming days. We walk to the front wall and stand there. Thorn and Dagahra fly over and take a place on the wall with us. Faith is still in the castle trying to figure out the spell. I stand there with Gabriel, Holly, Nolan, Zeus, Julias, and Luna. At that moment I feel grateful and strong being surrounded by friends.
We look at the sun slowly rising when black spots start to emerge in the distance. The spots multiply by the second and soon everywhere I look there are black spots. They just keep coming and coming and as they get closer, we can also hear the dark war drums. They march closer to the city walls, and I see more dark humans and demons than I knew existed. At the front rides a horned figure on a massive rhino. I immediately know it is Hades because the air around him just seems to radiate darkness. He is still far away but I swear I can feel his eyes piercing through me. I swallow a nod in my throat because I can already see ten thousand dark army soldiers. I realize we are going to be heavily outnumbered.