I was consumed with worry, confusion. I had been overwhelmed during the cultist ritual, but of one thing I was sure: that I loved him, that I had said it out loud, and that he reciprocated. I knew he did. I felt it. It was as though my connection to him—our synchronicity—gave me special insight into the greater machinations of the universe, a sixth sense that no human had ever felt before or would again, because no human had a connection like I did with a Great One.

The thought chilled me; as I watched the trees go by in darkness, I started to wonder, perhaps no human had ever had such a connection with a Great One, because no human could.

But no, that couldn’t be the case. Not after all this. Not after everything we had been through together. Not after him taking human form, rising from the deep to find me, to confront me, the only living human that could stop his dark destiny. Not after finding out today that, as the human of prophecy, I would stop him in the most unexpected of ways: I was born to make him feel love.

That was my power.

That was my life’s purpose.

When Riley pulled up to my house’s driveway, he finally broke the silence. “Get out,” he said.

I obeyed.

The air seemed cooler as I stepped out of the Beamer, the autumn chill finally descending upon our small New England town. It felt so calm, so familiar, so normal that I could almost forget that I stood in the presence of the Great Priest.

“My time with you has been pleasant,” he said. His voice was strained. “But I must depart.”

I looked at him. I knew something was terribly wrong. “When will I see you again?”

His face grew hard. “I cannot say.”

“You cannot say?” I demanded. “After all we’ve been through? After Phantom?”

Riley took a deep breath, and his cool green eyes found my mud grey ones. His eyes were like a knife in my heart. “Please tell me what’s going on,” I whimpered.

He stayed silent, and looked forward.

“I… you’ve opened my eyes so much,” I said. “There is so much more of the universe that I understand now. Because… because of you.”

“And so much you will never understand.” I caught a sneer as he said it, and it pierced my heart like an arrow.

I put my hand to my chest, as though holding it would keep my heart from spilling out all over the place. “What… what are you saying?”

His lips spread into a thin line. He stayed silent. I started to get irritated.

“Tell me what’s going on!” I demanded. “If there’s something wrong with me, or if there’s some other woman in the picture, I have a right to know!”