The fact that JC had always seemed different from everyone else.
Ava turned toward him.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
JC shook his head.
"Because I didn't know."
Kael smiled sadly.
"You were never supposed to know until the crown awakened."
Ava looked at the golden crown.
"What happens when it awakens?"
Kael's expression became serious.
"It reveals the next great threat."
Ava frowned.
"But Tyler is dead."
"Tyler was never the greatest threat."
The torches suddenly went out.
Darkness swallowed the chamber.
Then a deep sound echoed from beneath the floor.
BOOM.
Ava grabbed JC's arm.
"What was that?"
Another explosion shook the underground chamber.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Kael looked toward the corridor.
"They found us."
"Who?"
Kael's face became grim.
"The people who created the Black Order."
Ava drew her sword.
"How many?"
Kael looked at her.
"Enough to destroy both kingdoms."
JC raised his sword.
"Then we fight."
Kael shook his head.
"No."
Ava stared at him.
"Why not?"
"Because they don't want the kingdoms."
He looked at JC.
"They want him."
Ava stepped in front of JC.
"Then they will have to get through me first."
JC looked at her.
"Ava..."
She didn't move.
For the first time since becoming queen, Ava felt something stronger than fear.
Determination.
She raised her sword.
"Nobody takes him."
A violent crash came from the corridor.
The ancient wooden door exploded inward.
Black-clad soldiers flooded into the chamber.
But they were different from the soldiers they had fought before.
Their armor carried no Black Order symbol.
Instead, each soldier wore a silver mark.
Kael whispered:
"The Silver Council."
Ava looked at the army.
"Who are they?"
Kael raised his weapon.
"The people who have secretly ruled this world for five hundred years."
Ava's eyes widened.
"Five hundred?"
The soldiers attacked.
JC moved instantly.
Steel collided with steel.
Ava fought beside him.
The chamber erupted into chaos.
One soldier attacked Ava from behind.
JC blocked the strike.
Another came toward JC.
Ava struck him down.
They moved together perfectly.
As they fought, the golden crown suddenly began to glow.
Kael looked toward it.
"No..."
Ava heard him.
"What?"
"The awakening has begun."
The crown released a burst of golden light.
Every soldier froze.
JC looked toward it.
The light grew brighter.
Then a voice filled the chamber.
Not Kael's.
Not Ava's.
Not JC's.
An ancient voice.
"The heir has returned."
Ava looked around.
"Who said that?"
The crown answered.
"The war you ended was only the beginning."
The entire chamber shook.
Ava grabbed JC's hand.
"JC!"
He looked at her.
"I heard it."
The voice continued.
"One kingdom will fall."
The soldiers slowly stepped backward.
"One ruler will betray the others."
Ava's heart began pounding.
"And one of you will die before the final dawn."
Silence.
Then the crown went dark.
Ava stared at JC.
Neither spoke.
Kael slowly lowered his sword.
His face was filled with fear.
Ava looked at him.
"What does that prophecy mean?"
Kael swallowed.
"It means..."
He looked toward the entrance.
"The future has already begun."
Then a horn sounded above them.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
JC looked at Ava.
"The palace."
Ava ran toward the stairs.
"What happened?"
Kael followed.
"The attack was a distraction."
Ava stopped.
"For what?"
Kael looked at her.
"While we were underground..."
He pointed upward.
"They captured the queen."
Ava's blood ran cold.
"I am the queen."
Kael shook his head.
"Not you."
He looked toward the palace.
"Queen Zyane."
Ava's eyes widened.
"Berry's wife."
Kael nodded.
"And they left something behind."
Ava stared at him.
"What?"
Kael's voice became barely audible.
"A message."
"What message?"
He looked at Ava.
"Bring us the Crown of the Future—or Crunk City burns."
Ava clenched her fists.
The war was not over.
It had only changed its face.
And somewhere beyond the mountains, someone was already waiting for her.