Supernova (Renegades, #3)

by Marissa Meyer

Besides, peace and acceptance wouldn’t bring back the family she had lost.

“Dey ad feaders,” Max said through his full mouth. “Velociraptors?” Max nodded and swallowed. “Don’t you know that’s where birds come from?”

Why am i learning about dinosaurs in my fantasy books now too?

Danna’s face crumpled apologetically. “I’m so sorry, Adrian, but … it’s her.” Her voice was barely a whisper. “Nova is Nightmare.”

At least a teeny, tiny part of Adrian still cared for her. It changed nothing. And it changed everything.

His smile was wide and a little crooked. “Means we’re united,” he said. “Villains to the end.”

He didn’t care about any of that. Hope and clarity swelled inside him. Nova was innocent.

“Flowers or weaponry?” said Adrian, holding his gifts toward her. “I wasn’t sure which would make for a better apology.”

“It was always real for me, too,” he finally said, his voice barely a whisper. “I hope you know that.”

But it felt different now, staring into the uncertain future. What if the lines weren’t so clearly drawn? What if she wasn’t either a hero or a villain? What if she was both?

“Yeah, I am afraid that I’m going to fail again,” she said, still peering into the nothingness of Phobia’s face. “But one cannot be brave who has no fear.”

And also, it doesn’t explain how I ended up with her power.

This is literally the biggest piece of evidence how could they doubt this?

“He created Phobia,” she whispered, taking the child’s drawing from Narcissa and inspecting it with mounting dread. She was startled to find her vision misting as she tried to imagine what Adrian would feel if he knew the truth. “He created the monster that killed his mother.”

Oscar groaned. “Not a big deal? I’m trying to tell the girl of my dreams that she’s, you know … the girl of my dreams! That’s the biggest deal of my life!” He shook his head, his brow creased with anxiety. “And I’m worried I’ll screw it up.”

She thinks the criminals should be given a chance at rehabilitation instead.” “Imagine that,” said Danna.

Nova spotted a flicker of movement from the otherwise motionless stands. She did not need a close-up view to know that it was a small paper crane, crafted from the most delicate pink-and-gold paper. She smiled.

Taking hold of a steel safety cable, she glanced over her shoulder. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” The Sentinel was perched precariously on the scaffolding,

“I’m no longer sure … I was meant to be … a villain.” His gaze softened affectionately as he squeezed her hand. She wasn’t sure when he’d started holding it. “I’m not sure you are, either. Maybe … none of us…”

She realized that Callum was watching her from behind the face of Ace’s helmet, and she knew, beyond a doubt, that he recognized her. He saw her. He knew her. And still, somehow, he did not look at her like she was the enemy. What would have seemed impossible moments before now seemed not only possible, but inevitable. Life was full of second chances.

This was what she had fought for. But not anymore. She had a vision of her own and, for the first time, it did not align with Ace and his ideals. Not entirely. And so, she raised her voice and declared, simply, “No.”

“Everyone has a nightmare,” she said. “I guess I’m yours.”

Dizzy with the rush of adrenaline, Nova pushed herself onto her elbows and gaped at Adrian. He stared back at her, seemingly as surprised as she was. Honey Harper laughed. “What was that? Did you just save her life? Oh, darling, if you weren’t so disgustingly noble, I’d be half in love with you myself.”

She couldn’t kill him. She couldn’t do it. And she couldn’t stand there and watch him be killed, either. Not this boy, who had given her a quiet, dreamless sleep. Who had given her a star. Who had given her hope. Not him. Not Adrian.

Everyone has a nightmare.” He pressed his forehead against hers. “Maybe I want you to be mine.”

Fears might change, but they never go away.

But in all the tumult of her raging thoughts, she had a flash of clarity. This moment was what she had been working toward her whole life. Vengeance.

He stood as still as the gargoyles that surrounded them, his face shrouded by the helmet, his arms stretched out like offering a gift to the world. The star hovered a few inches above his cupped palms. He looked like the statue. The one she had once conjured in a dream. The one who had held a star in its hands. The star brightened, and for a moment, she saw the flash of energy lines again, the coppery-gold strings her father could manipulate, the remains of a supernova that had brought superpowers to humanity. The lines were still there, but more sparse now than she’d ever seen before and—unnervingly—they were all flowing in one direction. They were all flowing into Max.

The shock wave rolled across the wasteland, washed over the city, filled the rivers and the bay and tinted the water coppery gold as far as Nova could see. It was destruction and creation at once. It was a supernova.

“What would you think if … if a villain happened to fall in love with your son?” He stared at her, a twitch at the corner of his mouth, though he fought to remain serious. “To be honest, I’m not sure there are such things as villains anymore.” He shrugged. “Maybe there never really were.”

Nova smiled, hoping that Hugh was right. Maybe there were no villains. But watching Adrian and Max, she knew there were heroes. She was beginning to wonder if she might be one of them.

WE WERE ALL heroes in the end.

If everyone is special … then no one is.

Some people were always meant to be heroes. Just like some people were always meant to be villains.