We decide to go back to the palace first because they'll be quieter than the ones at the nannery that will probably be celebrating. The palace is a long trek away, I fold my arms as we walk over the hill.

"I'll talk to them," Christian says. "Just get whatever you need and I'll meet you at the door."

Most of the humans are already outside, looking out at the sky in confusion. The things that I packed from my cabin were brought here with the others but there's a lot of other stuff that we need to take with us.

"I'll get them to pack up as much as food and water as they can," Christian says. "I'll tell them to hurry. Hopefully we'll be at the nannery in a couple of hours."

I look up to the towers that stretch to the sky. It's so odd not seeing the creatures up there, guarding the palace roof in their hundreds. Everything about this feels odd. We reach the crowd of humans that are waiting for us on the path, I walk right by them as Christian remains behind to explain and tell them to pack up.

I enter the palace slowly, being met with a weird silence. I walk straight to the staircase and I climb it. It's only when I reach the top of the staircase that leads to my bedroom door that I stop.

My hand reaches out for the handle and I open the door. I look inside first, my eyes falling on the table that I ate dozens of my meals on. I enter with my arms folded, feeling a small draught coming through from the hole in the wall that Cain caused. I smile as I remember it and then I look towards my bed, walking over to it slowly.

I run my hands over the dusty covers. Many memories are suddenly in my mind. I smile as I recall the time when I was sick with a virus and Cain made me soup that he tried to force feed me. The memories keep flashing like I'm reliving a long dream. The way he kissed me against it, when he undressed my clothes and our bodies moulded together for the first time. It was magical.

I turn my attention to the shelves and I start grabbing items, packing them into an extra bag that I find in my wardrobe. I spent weeks in this room, trapped and lonely, but in a strange way it always felt a little bit like home.

It suddenly hits me that I am going to leave it for the last time. That I'll never return. This is the one place that reminds me of Cain the most, and losing it is like losing the last connection to him. But we can't stay here. The humans can't stay here. It's tainted by too much loss and pain.

I pack some things from the bathroom and I ready myself to leave. I turn around one final time, stealing one last glance at the prison I am finally free from. "Goodbye," I say.

I join the others outside and we wait for the remainder of the humans to finish collecting all of their things. The joy from their lips is infectious. Some of them are in shock but others are bouncing around and hugging each other excitedly. There are fifty-eight of them all together. There might have been more of them yesterday but I try not to think about that.

"Is this everyone?" Christian says, he places a hand above his eyes as he stares up at the palace windows.

"Yes," an older boy confirms. "It's everyone."

"Follow us."

I swing my bag over my shoulder and I start walking first. They remain a distance behind me but I can't deal with their conversations. They are asking questions like 'where are we going?' and 'how are we going to survive?' and 'where did you guys even come from?'

Some questions we can answer but there are some answers that we're still unsure of. We need to meet with everyone else at the nannery first before we start making plans on moving out of the valley.

We cross the field and I see Jackson waiting for us in front of the door. He shouts into the building before he breaks out into a run. I crash to my knees as he swings his arms around me.

"I'm okay," I assure him. "It's over."

I see the others over his head, including Jase. I make it to the door a few minutes later and he is the first to embrace me. Holly drags Christian towards her and looks over his face before smacking his chest and grilling him for carelessly staying behind.

"Is it true?" Jase asks me. "Are they really all gone?"

I nod, pulling back. "We should stay here tonight and make a plan for the morning."

"Go inside," Christian says to the crowd that are waiting for instructions. "We're resting here for a while."

I rub my head as I watch them enter the building. The world is going to be full of confused humans right now, there's no way to assure them that they're safe but I hope that they can somehow start to rebuild their lives as best they can.

It's going to be hard for a while. For all of us.

"What now?" Holly says. "With how many people there are, the food here is probably going to last us a week at most."

"We could ration," Jase says. "But ideally we need to look at moving into something like a city or a town, places that might have supplies."

"We're officially scavenges," Christian mutters. "I like it."

"Our main priority is hitting the nanneries close to here and making sure that the children are okay," I say. "I don't trust the teenagers to look after them."

"Agreed," Jase says.

I look down as a young boy on his way to the door tugs his hand against my shirt. "Excuse me, lady. I thought the creatures were gone?"

"They are," I say. "You're safe now."

"No they're not."

Christian and Holly both gasp at the same time as the boy points behind me. My whole body tenses as Christian's eyes widen in disbelief.

"Holy shit," he says. "How is that even possible?"

I turn my head to see a tall man with dark hair standing in the clearing underneath the strong sun. I place a hand above my eyes in confusion, squinting at the familiar face of Cain. I don't know how it's possible, I don't know if it's even real. Am I hallucinating? There could be side effects from the bell. Maybe my guilt is haunting me. But then how can the others see him too?

I drop my bag from my fingertips and I start walking across the field, keeping my hand above my eyes because the sun is blocking me from seeing clearly. I keep walking until we're standing just a short distance from each other.

"Aurora," he laughs. "I'm real."

But it can't be real. I take a few steps towards him, blinking harshly. He doesn't vanish. He really is there. My walk turns into a run and he opens his arms wide as I dive into them.

"You're alive," I say, leaning back to study his face. "How? I thought you were dead."

"I thought so too," he says. There's something different about him, his eyes are green but they're not as green. The blue tint is gone, his hair is less vibrant, his skin is thinner and easier to feel, it just falls through my fingers. I graze my finger against his jaw like I've done a million times, his jaw is softer, the bone easier to locate. "I guess my creators believed I deserved a second chance." I lean back, he studies my shock. "I'm human, Aurora."

"How?" I whisper.

"I was given a choice," he says. "Follow the rest of my kind into the abyss or live one last lifetime with you."

"You chose to be human?"

He smiles. "I chose you." His fingers wipe away my tears and it takes my breath away. "Sorry, I would have gotten here sooner but human legs are annoyingly slow. How do you even get anywhere?"

I laugh out which turns into a cry against him as our lips meet. I pull against his shoulders, feeling his body tug in the direction that I tug them. He's still strong but not as strong, he's human in every sense.

"What do you say?" he says against my lips. "Will you have me?"

"I'll have you." I smile until his kiss breaks it. My heart is racing, my body is trembling, my mouth wants to scream with joy.

"Being human isn't easy you know." I grin at him as I take his hand. "You can get hurt now."

He looks over my head. "And there are a lot out there that might want to try."

"We'll face them together," I say, gently pulling him towards the nannery. "I'll protect you, don't worry."

He laughs and pulls me closer to him, kissing the side of my head. I know that the world can never fully heal from the damage that his kind caused. I know that there will be humans out there that will not hesitate to come for him if they discovered that he's still alive. I know that for the rest of our lives we will never be safe.

But just for today, we can believe whatever we want. We can believe that we love each other, that we will live a long life together, that our souls will protect each other in this world and the next. And that is enough to shield us from whatever comes our way.

Our love was strong enough to cross boundaries of worlds. It brought us together in a dark and confusing time but, ultimately, we are the product of something unexplainable. Something so powerful and rare that even we haven't quite understood it yet. I can't wait to explore it further, to see where it can take us. Hopefully it can lift us high enough so that nothing bad can ever touch us again.

"Are you ready?" I say, taking a deep breath as we get closer to the door.

Cain's fingers curl around my shoulder nervously. "I'm ready."