Kirtanta's POV

When Stella returned, I instantaneously saw that something was wrong.

"Stella?" I asked. "What's wrong?"

"And where's Ceris?" Devon demanded.

Stella sighed, her eyes full of grief and shock. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but no words came out. Eventually, Stella gave up and just sadly shook her head.

Such a simple gesture, and yet it meant so many things at once.

And I knew instantly what she was saying, and so did Dev by his reaction.

"No! She can't be dead! Not Ceris!" He screamed.

"I'm sorry, Devon," Stella whispered. "But..."

"How did she die?" He asked, before accusing her. "Did you kill her?"

Stella recoiled in anger.

"DEVON!" I gasped in horror.

Devon's body sagged. "I'm sorry," he said. "I... I shouldn't have said that. You're better than that."

Stella nodded. "It's fine," she said.

"Maybe it was a natural cause?" I suggested.

"That could be true," Stella replied. "I saw no wounds on the body."

"We should warn the Frostbourne," Dev suggested.

"Good idea," I agreed just as an Enderman burst into the room.

"We're in the middle of a crisis!" Devon shouted in an exaggerated tone.

"Something is wrong with the portal!" The Enderman screamed.

"You're kidding me, right?" Stella asked in a tone that said this better be a joke.

"NO, I'M NOT KIDDING!" The Enderman screeched. "NOBODY CAN LEAVE! WE CAN'T EVEN TELEPORT OUT OF THE END!"

The three of us looked at each other in horror, and Stella quickly dismissed him with a thank you for that additional horrifying news on top of an already horrifying news.

"Now what?" Dev asked.

"We need to calm the Endermen and people down," I replied. "Right now, I'm pretty sure everyone is panicking. And once they learn that Ceris is dead, it'll be a full blown pandemonium. So, they'll need to be calmed down before people end up running off a cliff or something."

Devon and I both turned to stare at Stella, and I found it kind of amusing that Stella wasn't sure why we were looking at her.

"Why are you both looking at me?"

"Stella..." Dev reminded her. "You're the new ruler of the End."

"And your point is?" She asked, before realization dawned on her. "Oh no, you guys have got to be kidding me."