Ascension: The Rising Son

by AP West

  "It's not about trust, it's about hunger."

  Apollo gets up from the bed and walks toward the image of the woman. A grin comes across her face as she tries to put him at ease, "Just eat the food, Nephilim. I promise its safe." Apollo questions her again, "Why did you call me that?"

  "Because that's what you are."

  A wink accompanies her last comment and Apollo begins to understand the situation, but he still doesn't trust her completely. He decides to hold out as long as he can. If they are adamant I eat their food. I'll know its poison. Antonia says one more thing to him before vanishing from the wall, "Well, if you change your mind or need anything, like food or water, just ask for it and it will appear on the table." When her face disappears, so does the plate of food. I'm still not going to fall for it, Apollo thinks to himself as he lies back down on the bed, trying to stifle his appetite that's suddenly eating away at his determination.

  He wakes up sometime later in a cold sweat. Any sense of time has long left, leaving him disorientated. He tries to ignore the empty ache in his stomach gnawing away at him, as he looks around the tiny room. He comes up with a quick strategy to at least quench his dry throat. He speaks out, "Can I have a cup?" And in an instant, a short grey cylindrical vessel materializes on the table. Apollo holds it out and closes his eyes filling it with a clear liquid. After taking his first alleviating drink, he lets out a long sigh, trying to mock whoever may be listening.

  Something begins to rattle his brain. It summons to him, but he can't quite get a grasp on. Apollo. He sets the cup on the table and takes a seat in the chair. It feels like a piece of some dream, like something that plagued him only ten minutes ago in his sleep, but now eludes him. He reaches over to get another drink of water, but the cup isn't there. He looks around the floor as if somehow it fell off without him noticing, but finds nothing. He calls out, "Can I have another cup?" but his words are returned with only silence. He tries again, "I need another cup." but nothing. His patience begins to drain rapidly, "Antonia, you said I could have food or drink whenever I wanted!"

  More silence makes him burst into a quick rage, so fast, it alarms even him as if he doesn't control it, "I am not playing games with you!" He yells out, and a large swirling mass of ice comes together in his hands, resembling a giant broadsword. He swings it around toward the wall behind him. Spinning his sight to match the direction of his weapon, he cries out in sheer terror as it's not the wall his aiming at.

  It's the girl of his dreams.

  He wails in agony as he tries to stop the momentum of his force. Grace winces at the incoming impact and screams at him, "You said you would protect me!" Just before he makes contact with her, a flash fills his eyes. He jerks in the chair and find himself staring at the very gray mug that he searched for only moments ago. What just happened? I know I wasn't dreaming." He yells out, "Antonia what did you do to me!"

  Still more silence, but now he's unsure of what to do. For the moment it seems they have gotten the best of his wits. He doesn't see the harm anymore, so he decides to soothe the beast that dwells in the pit of his gut, "Can I have that food now?" In moments, a steaming hot plate of fish and vegetables appear on the table, and Apollo doesn't hesitate to gorging himself on the generous helpings. After he eats, he sits on the bed wishing he still had the book his father gave him. He tries yet again to reach out to the man, then to Grace and his brother, but it's all in vain. It's surprising how easily and quickly they broke him. He just lies there, crumpled in his bed and tears begin to fall on the sheets as he cries.

  He wakes up later, seemingly the next morning, to utter surprise. His walls are no longer covered in mirrors, but are made of just plain, white bricks. Except for one, its entire surface is a large window, and on the opposite side is a room that matches Apollo's, exactly. He's astonished as every detail is the same. He looks to the bed, and notices a mass buried underneath the sheets. Moving to get a closer look, Apollo stares with wonder as he sees it is, indeed a person.

  A teenage girl.

  Chapter Fifteen

  My Friend in Misery

  Apollo watches the mysterious girl sleep. He can't get over how pretty she is. Her short, jet black hair is cut above her ears. It's perfectly straight and shines in the dull light. The pale pigment of her skin is a nice contrast to the light touches of pink that highlight her full cheeks. Their soft hue matches the color of her full lips perfectly, and her whole appearance reminds Apollo of a porcelain doll.

  He stares at her for what seems like hours. He's finally snapped to attention by her arms stretching out. Rubbing her eyes, the girl looks around her room. Her eyes instantly widen and her hands drop as Apollo is pleasantly introduced to the most beautiful smile he's ever seen. He's instantly drawn into her eyes. You couldn't really call them blue, they look more like silver. A naive look inhabits them that puts him directly at ease.

  He has to literally shake his head out of the bewilderment when she laughs. It occurs to him he could hear it, so he asks the obvious question, "Hey, can you hear me?" his voice bounces off the glass and echoes behind him, but she answers, "Yes I can hear you. What is your name?" It sounds as if there is nothing separating them at all, and Apollo almost tells her the truth before remembering the arrangement he made with the Corsair brothers,

  "My name is Solomon."

  "Really? That's like my name."

  Her smile really radiates at him now, illuminating inside of him like sunshine. The nervousness catches him off-guard as he's truly mesmerized by her. Apollo is also embarrassed when he realizes he's been staring at her this entire time. She lets out another alluring laugh,

  "My name is Misery."

  He didn't expect something like that to come from such an exquisite creature, "What kind of name is that?" She notices his confusion and returns it with a puzzled look of her own, like the answer should be obvious.

  "You know, like your name, Solemn. Solemn and Misery."

  "Not Solemn, Sol-o-mon."

  "Oh well excuse me, Sol-o-mon."

  "Hey I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that I...um..."

  Apollo hated how the apology sounded the minute he said it. He hated it because he wasn't sure he even meant it. He hated it because of what it took from her eyes, but most of all, he hated it because it confirmed what he felt for the girl, this other girl.

  "..I just hate being here."

  As Apollo finishes his thought, Misery's head drops toward her lap, "You mean with me." Her dark bangs hide her face from him, so he leans down, trying to search for it, "No, I mean this place. And why would you think that? You're really..I mean you're so..." Apollo stops short of saying it. Even though he knows it's the truth and his heart told him to say it, he had only said that to one other girl and it seemed sacred to him. He gets up, trying to walk off the guilty feeling when Misery says something that reminds him of why he's here and what's at stake.

  "It's okay Solomon; they'll be coming for me soon anyway."

  He turns to look at her, "What?..Who?"

  Misery doesn't answer him. For a brief second her head remains hung, like she's mulling over her dilemma, but then she raises it, smiling at him. Taking one side of her hair, she tucks in behind her ear and rolls her bottom lip between her tongue and teeth right before she goes to speak. The subtle action attracts Apollo even more, captivating his attention as he hangs on every sweet word.

  "It's not my real name, but I've been calling myself that. I'm not allowed to tell anyone my real identity because that would reveal my secret. That's the only thing keeping them from killing me."

  "Your secret?"

  "Yeah, my secret."

  Suddenly, Apollo sees the cell door behind the girl swing open, but before he can react, the glass between them completely darkens and Apollo hears Antonia's voice, "Be weary of what she says, Nephilim. Misery is a liar and a prisoner. This girl is guilty of serious crimes and it's imperative we know who she really is. We're certain you can reveal her real name. Once you've done
that, we can free you."

  The room grows quiet so Apollo cries out, "What about Grace and Solomon? Are they safe? Answer me!"

  But Antonia's voice doesn't return. The blackness of the glass flickers before returning transparent. Apollo immediately peers into the other room looking for the girl, but there is no sign of anyone. He tries searching for her with his mind before finally calling out, "Misery!" The hollow emptiness that follows, swallows him as he holds out for an answer. Not knowing what else to do, Apollo sinks into his bed.

  Hours later, the door to Misery's cell opens and two Corsair guards shove the girl into her room. She falls on the floor and Apollo is shocked to see her bruised and bleeding, her left eye is swollen. Without looking up she tries to speak in between sobs.

  "Don't let them... break you... that's... what they're... trying to do."

  Apollo slides down the corner of his cell with his palms pressed firmly against his ears, trying to stifle the girl's cries. He closes his eyes to hash out his inner chaos. When he reopens them, he's shocked to see everything around him has changed. Instead of white cinderblock walls, he's surrounded by books, thousands of them. Apollo realizes he's sitting in a corner of the library at the Acropolis. He jumps up and runs to the front to see that the helpful lady at the desk has been replaced with a young, attractive woman with brown skin and long black hair. Antonia, Apollo thinks to himself as he gets to his feet. To his amazement, she looks up and answers him. Hello, Apollo.

  Apollo continues the telepathy with her. You can communicate like this? But she doesn't answer, just gets up and walks seductively over to him. Leaning over, she whispers ever so slightly in his ear Apollo can barely make out the words, "I can do anything you want me to do. It's our little secret." Her words and actions confound him on so many levels, he hardly knows which one to address first. Turning to her so their faces are so close they almost touch, he glares intently into her brown eyes and sends out a thought. If it's a secret, then why don't you just speak to my mind?" Antonia again ignores his attempt and turns around, heading back to her station. She gets about half way to the desk before turning back with her eyes locked on him, speaking loudly this time,

  "Figure it out, my son. The world is waiting."

  And instantly, Apollo's back in the corner of his cell. He jumps up and finds the defeated, miserable girl full of dangerous secrets and lies, still crying on the floor. He rubs his eyes in frustration. Between her warning and Antonia's constant cerebral bombardment, Apollo's not sure of anything anymore. He's torn between whom to believe, the friends who are pretending to be his enemies, or the enemies acting as his friends. Apollo's head spins with the thoughts, crisscrossing his mind, contradicting one another.

  "You have to help me! Do you hear me?" Something pounds the glass and Apollo looks over to see Misery staring at him. "You have to help me! We have to help each other! They might kill me next time!" While she punches the glass wall, Apollo tries to concentrate on her and reach through. I won't let them hurt you. Apollo abruptly falls to the floor, strangely fatigued from the brief effort. Exhaustion consumes him when something like a whisper, flurries across his mind, thank you, Apollo.

  The soft voice is enough to draw Apollo back to full attention. He realizes it didn't come from the girl in front of him. It's the feminine voice that haunted him the first night he dreamt of Grace. He tries to regain his bearings and sit up, "What do you mean they're trying to break me?" he asks Misery, and at the same time, tries to reach the ghostly voice that spoke to him, thank me for what?

  "We both have secrets, Solomon."

  As soon as she speaks, he hears the soft voice again in his mind, find me. He looks to Misery for any sign that she was the source but she seems oblivious to it, as she speaks to him again, "You never told me why you are here."

  He's not sure how to answer, so he decides to counter her questioning, "Neither did you."

  "I thought Antonia filled you in on my circumstances." Misery crosses her arms and the look on her face demands honesty. Apollo finds her smile is just as magnetic as ever, even if it's full of suspicion.

  "I was sent here to break you. To figure out who you really are."

  She scoffs at him, "Don't be a fool, Solomon. We are both here for the same reason, and it's only a matter of time before they finally have what they want."

  "And what is that?"

  Misery's reply to him is simple, but it sends Apollo's mind running through a labyrinth of its implications.

  "Everything."

  He can only look at her sheepishly and murmur, turning to the relative solitude of his bland bed covers. Apollo's world twists inside of him as he lies there, trying to figure out what to do next. He always felt like a loner, but for the first time in his life, he truly felt lonely. He had finally found his family, only to lose them again. But this time they weren't lost, they were taken from him. Simply snatched away so his enemies, his father's enemies, could claim their prize. He decides to keep his distance from the girl in the window.

  After another round of restless sleep, Apollo awakens to a hopeful, but dreadful sight. Misery is already up, readily eating something from a bowl at her small table. She tries to smile at him as she chews. Her eye is still swollen shut and it's purplish-blue. A small cut lingers on her lower lip, but other than that she is back to the glowing girl. Once she finishes her bite she speaks to him, "I was hoping you would wake up soon, I had the most incredible dream. I wanted to tell you about it." She crawls across her bed, trying to get as close to the glass as possible. Apollo joins her on his bed but cowers at the idea of what's coming.

  The girl goes on to tell him about how she was in the usual prison interrogation room, and the Corsair were grilling her again. This time they were telling her how she was of no use to them anymore, and about how they had the Nephilim. They were about to execute her when Apollo stormed in and fought the guards, yelling over and over how he wouldn't let them hurt her.

  "And you called me be my real name. How crazy is that?"

  But Apollo has no answers. The dream was all hers, none of it his. It makes him think of what Antonia told him in his own vision. That there's something he is suppose to figure out, and somehow Antonia is there to help. He remembers she called him her son which was baffling at first, but then the pieces started fitting together. Oriah, this all started with him. Apollo's convinced it had to, he could feel it. Thinking back to a lot of what his father told him, and it all made sense. Never let your opponents know when you have the advantage. But then, something catches his attention. What Misery says that both ignites his anger and curiosity.

  "I know who your father is. Doyen's the only one who knows my real name."

  Apollo's anger has been passive ever since he had his first enchanted meeting with the pretty girl, but now that all eroded in mentioning of his father.

  "You don't know my father! How do you know him?"

  Misery then sends another white-hot spark of rage up his spine, exploding into his conscious.

  "I know him because, he too, is my father."

  This sends the boy pummeling into rage. Apollo tries to evoke his fists into icy blocks, but nothing happens. He feels nothing happen. He tries again to coerce ice from the air again only to fail. He screams with fear and frustration, grabs the chair in his room and sends it toward the window. It bounces off the glass creating a massive crack in its center. Apollo's ferocity flat-lines as he notices the window isn't a window at all. It's a monitor. He gapes at a jagged fracture, going straight through the image of Misery's face.

  It finally hits him. The solution to his problem stares him in the face, literally. The girl's last statement was enough of a clue to make the final connection in the boy's mind. He remembers how she said they were coming for her but also trying to break him. He also remembers how Antonia said Misery was accused of crimes against the Corsair but yet, they couldn't identify her. They needed him to expose her real identity. It's clear now she is not what she appears to be, and
only Oriah and Apollo know her real name.

  It's ARIES.

  Suddenly, the glass darkens and Antonia's ethereal tone sounds off in the room, "Thank you again for trusting us. Our mission is now complete. We now have all the keys, all thanks to you Apollo. Paulus and I will never forget your contributions. We will always remember you, Nephilim. Goodbye, your sacrifice won't be in vain."

  Apollo feels a hand on his shoulder and a prickling shot of pain needles through his right shoulder. He feels his legs grow numb the second before he crashes to the floor. The deadening sensation travels up his body, as he hears Antonia speak again. This time right behind him, and in a flat tone that destroys any notion that they'll ever let him go, "We're done with both of them. The experiment was a success and we got everything we needed. Send word to Paulus and initiate the End Game."

  Thoughts chase each other in Apollo's mind as he wakes up, sometime later, to more uncertainty. The room is pitch black and the boy feels submerged in nothingness. The only sounds are his own sobs as the prospect of dying alone in the dark settles on him. Images of all the people he would never see again play over and over in his head like some cruel slideshow. Then suddenly, Antonia's voice clamors once again through the air, breaching the boy's senses.

  "They're all gone, Nephilim, but you will be reunited with them soon enough. The injection should take its effect in moments. I asked them to make it as painless as possible."

  He feels everything implode, His spirit dims until he feels nothing but a frigid void, like a black hole in the center of him devouring his soul, pulling its essence through his heart. His thoughts bounce off the walls as he desperately searches for anything left in his life to hold on to. They've taken everything from me. His mother and father are dead. His brother, uncle, and now his love, all taken from him. The hum of the electricity fades and Apollo now realizes he trapped and helplessly alone. Apollo concedes to himself, there's nothing left to do but die. The boy accepts his dark, cubic coffin. He visualizes in the bleakness, his bright blissful reunion with all of his loved ones in the afterlife.

  Apollo is standing in the Great Hall of the Acropolis. There are people everywhere and the atmosphere suggests a festive mood. He sees Oriah and Sabrina standing before him with Solomon and Viceroy on either side. They all have huge smiles on their faces but Apollo instantly inquires, "Where's Grace?" As soon as he speaks two arms embrace him from behind and she spins around him, a planting her lips to his. Apollo feels her warmth and he whispers to her, "I love you." Her breath tickles against his ear and a delightful tingle shoots down his neck. He laughs to himself, anticipating her sweet response, but what she says to him isn't what he expects.