My wish was granted.
I opened my eyes in the conference hall.
Dixon and Cast stood beside me.
Alive.
Real.
I turned to them, grinning.
"Let's surprise Jax."
They both smiled. "Okay."
I teleported us to my house.
"Stay here," I said. "I'll bring her."
They nodded.
I stepped outside to find the others—but ran into Flake first.
She grabbed me immediately.
"What happened?! Where were you?!"
"The first entity came," I said. "It helped me. We trapped them—Satan, the Devil—sealed in Hell forever. They can't escape. It's over."
"How?!" She was breathless. "How is that possible?!"
I explained everything. Every detail.
When I finished, her eyes were wide.
"And the wish?"
I smiled. "Follow me."
The Reunion
We walked into my house.
Flake stopped in the doorway.
"Oh my God—how are they—"
"I wished to bring them back," I said. "And the entity granted it."
Dixon and Cast waved from across the room.
Flake covered her mouth, tears forming.
I touched her shoulder. "I need to find Jax. Do you know where she is?"
"Yes." She wiped her eyes. "I'll get her."
She ran.
I walked over to Dixon and Cast.
"She's going to lose it when she sees us together."
Dixon nodded. "Indeed, she will."
Cast's voice was soft. "It's been so long since I've seen her with my own eyes. Real eyes."
I looked at them both.
"When you died... she went through a dark time. Depression. For a long time."
Dixon's expression tightened.
"I helped her climb out," I continued. "But it wasn't easy."
"I hope she's healed," Dixon said quietly.
"She will be now."
A knock on the door.
I waved my hand—magic opened it.
All the leaders stood outside.
Jax was in the center, Flake's hands covering her eyes.
"You can let go now," I said.
Flake slowly lowered her hands.
Jax's eyes found us.
All of us.
Together.
Her face crumbled.
She ran forward, threw her arms around us, and sobbed.
We held her up as her legs gave out.
"How?" she choked. "How are you here?"
"I brought them back," I said gently.
"But how?"
"Before I vanished—I pulled out the pyramid. Trapped the Devil inside with me. The first entity saw what I did... and rewarded me. One wish."
I looked at Dixon and Cast.
"I wished for them."
Dixon frowned slightly.
"Three," he said.
I smiled.
"Yes. Three."
A figure stepped around the corner.
A young woman.
She looked at Dixon and said softly:
"Hey, brother."
Dixon's face went pale.
His mouth opened. Closed. Opened again.
Then he ran.
He wrapped his arms around her and held on as she might disappear.
Samara.
His twin sister.
The one who had died during the trials—before any of us became chasers.
"How?" Dixon's voice cracked. "I didn't see her when we came back."
I grinned.
"I brought her first. Then went back for you two."
"Double the surprise."
The Price
A sharp pain stabbed through my chest.
I winced—tried to hide it.
A memory surfaced.
"This kind of wish comes with a price."
The entity's voice echoed in the clouds.
"You will not be normal in the end."
"What's the price?" I asked.
"Your spirit will belong to the heavens. You will feel every pain of every soul that passes through. Their suffering will become yours."
I didn't hesitate.
"I accept."
"Are you okay?"
Cast's voice pulled me back.
I forced a smile. "Yeah. Just some after-battle pain."
I straightened.
"We have to celebrate."
The Festival
I made a public announcement that evening.
A festival—to celebrate the return of people the city had lost.
The citizens embraced it.
They decorated the streets. Prepared feasts. Built games for children and adults alike.
Music filled the air.
Laughter returned to Forsaken.
I stood on the balcony of the leaders' building, watching it all unfold below.
Footsteps approached.
Dixon.
He leaned against the railing beside me.
"I know something's wrong, Zero."
I didn't look at him. "Nothing's wrong."
"Don't lie to me." His voice sharpened. "What did you do to bring us back?"
I stayed silent.
"Zero."
I exhaled slowly.
"I sacrificed my soul."
Dixon turned sharply.
"Why would you do that?!"
"To bring you and Cast back... the entity only wanted my new power. But to bring Samara too—it needed more."
I finally looked at him.
"My spirit was the price. Now I feel the pain of every soul that enters the heavens. Every moment. For the rest of my life."
Dixon stared at me.
"Zero..."
"It doesn't matter." I turned back to the festival. "I chose this. So we could all be together again. So there would never be another missing piece."
"But you'll suffer forever."
"That's the price I'm willing to pay."
I met his eyes.
"Not for my sake. For ours."
Dixon didn't speak for a long time.
Then he sighed.
He didn't accept it.
But he understood.
We watched the festival together in silence.
The Future
That night, I tried to picture the rest of my life.
I saw my friends. My city. Peace.
And I saw Flake.
I couldn't have her then—not yet.
But someday, I would try.
Epilogue — Many Years Later
I am thirty-one now.
Life is... normal.
And normal means something different to everyone.
Dixon married Jax.
They live near the waterfall—the place where we all met as children.
They're happy.
Cast found someone. His ideal partner, he called her.
They have two kids—a boy and a girl.
They live in the southern territory, far from the wars we once fought.
Cole and Cedric sought inner peace.
They travel together now, training the next generation of sword-chasers.
Passing on what we learned.
Jack became the new leader of Forsaken.
I don't know if he ever found love. He never talked about it.
But the city thrives under him.
And me?
I'm with Flake.
We live on a new land in the western territory—a village we built from nothing.
We call it the Second Forsaken.
We have a son.
He's ten years old now.
He has her smile. And my stubbornness.
All of our lives have changed.
The choices I made—the sacrifices, the pain, the fire—shaped the paths of everyone I love.
For the greater.
Or for the good.
I don't know which.
But I'd do it all again.