"So…" Dan began, timidly breaking the silence, "how are we supposed to get this portal to work?"
I exhaled in a rush of relief. Did this mean they were at least willing to try?
A glimmer of hope caught fire once more in my chest, the tiny flame struggling hard to stay lit amongst the harsh winds of uncertainty.
We all stared at the Eye in the center of my hand. It wasn't doing anything. Not vibrating. Not heating up. Not glowing. Nothing.
"What if," Ben began with narrowed, disconcerting eyes, "the magic is simply contained within the shell of the pearl, and the way to access it is to simply set it free?"
"Set it free?" Rob's gray eyes went wide, and his plush lips tugged into an incredulous grin. "I'm sorry, but did you just suggest that we should shatter the Eye of the Sea on the off chance that that's how we get it to work?"
Ben rolled his warm brown eyes. "Essentially, yes. Conclusively, no. I think there's more to it than that. The magic is also likely to be user-loyal, so whoever breaks the shell and releases the magic should also be the one to direct it where it should go."
Cal scrubbed a hand down his face but worked valiantly on not saying a word.
Criss, on the other hand, had questions.
"I wonder how that'd even work? I mean, can you open a portal to a place you've never been?"
Suddenly everyone's eyes went wide and locked onto Ash.
He raised and waggled his brows. "I've been to the realm of the gods."
Dan frowned. "No one ever said you had to have been to the place in question in order to make the magic work. I mean, King Thane had never been to the Underworld, but he was still planning on ripping that baby wide open."
Ben nodded his approval at Dan's observation. "True, however, for all we know, King Thane's plan may never have worked. I think it'd be prudent to have Ash do it, just in case."
I was feeling nervous again. It seemed to be my new state of being lately. "I don't like this idea."
"Sweets, it was your idea." Asher gave me that same loving smile that had made me weak in the knees since I was sixteen years old.
And now, he was my husband.
Love fluttered through me like a gale of butterflies, making me tremble. I loved these men so much. I'd do anything to keep them safe.
"Yeah, well," I said, hedging around my fears, "I changed my mind. I don't want to risk you getting hurt."
But… if I didn't want them excluding me and leaving me behind on death-defying missions, then I shouldn't try to do that to them either.
So, I physically stepped forward and crunched through the snow until I was chest to chest with my newest husband. "I love you, Asher Storm. Are you sure you want to do this?"
He grinned, but instead of replying, he took my face in his hands and kissed me like crazy. It was a kiss that told me everything I needed to know. That he loved me fiercely and that he was confident as hell in his abilities.
When he finally pulled away, he whispered, "Yeah, Sweets. I got this."
I had faith in Ash. I had faith in them all.
I nodded slowly, not because it was difficult for me to give in to him, but because he'd just kissed me senseless and I was having a hard time piecing together my thoughts.
"Then do it," I eventually allowed, dropping the pearl into his hand and taking a few steps backward until I joined the line of Storms behind him.
Ash looked down and studied it intently, possibly looking for a spot of weakness.
Then, without a second thought, he threw the pearl as hard as he could into the rocky wall of a short mountain ledge. It shattered like glass, scattering shards of opaque rainbow colors atop the snow beneath. A vortex of swirling magic erupted at the same time, loud and whooshing, with a gravitational pull that literally tugged us all forward.
"Now, Ash!" Ben shouted as he grabbed onto a tree to keep from sliding any closer.
The rest of us clawed at the snowy ground, trying to gain traction, but we were being pulled in further and further with each passing second.
Ash closed his eyes, hopefully imagining a place in the god realm, and shouted, "I want to open a portal to the mansion in the god realm!"
And just like that, the magic exploded, revealing a big, black hole in the shape of an oversized archway.
Before I could so much as gasp, we were sucked completely in.
Chapter 28
I opened my eyes to a sideways world, a cold marble floor resting beneath my left ear. Sitting up, my vision straightened out, but it was no less confusing.
The room was dark, save for the sporadic flashes of muted purple, green, and blue lights. The flashes seemed to match the rhythm of a tune, the sounds of which echoed all through the room, but I saw no instruments or musicians anywhere. And honestly, tune was a loose word for it—I wasn't actually sure if it was music. It had a beat, one that made my body want to move, but I'd never heard instruments that sounded so strange.
I glanced around, trying to see through the darkness and distorted lights. There were rugs on the floor, but their design was complicated and softer than anything I'd ever felt—even Eristani silk. There were huge picture frames on the walls, but the images freaking moved.
It was trippy. Like some fucked-up dream. I pinched my arm, because I'd read in a book once that it would help you decide if you were awake or asleep. False. All it did was hurt and leave me just as confused as before.
The music was loud but not so loud that I couldn't suddenly hear a set of footsteps approaching.
I scrambled backward nervously, gasping as my hand hit something soft and warm. A body. I spun around, prepared to run, then heaved a huge sigh of relief as I found my guys lying next to me on the floor. Thank the gods it wasn't something sinister—like the dead body of a stranger or some shit.
"Guys!" I whisper-shouted, shaking the nearest Storm's shoulder. Cal. "Wake up!"
He sucked in a long, slow inhale and opened his eyes. "Huh?"
"Someone's coming!" I whispered. "We need to… I don't know, hide or something."
Cal sat up straight, and the two of us scrambled to wake the others.
Not in time though.
The owner of the footsteps entered the room before we could get Rob and Dan completely awake—damn them and their heavy sleeping. But to our unbelievable luck, it was Dion who entered the room. Just the man we needed to see.
He looked stunned as hell to find us there. He even dropped the miniature picture frame thing he'd been holding. It didn't shatter, simply thumped hard and bounced to a stop maybe a foot or so away.
"You," he stuttered. "You're… here."
I smirked. I wasn't sure what I thought of this little predicament. Perhaps Dion wasn't trying nearly as hard as I imagined he'd been. Maybe he'd just fed us a line of shit then come home to lounge around in his magical mansion and forget about us and our tribulations entirely?
"Yes," I retorted with a sassy smile. "We're here. Where's Zeus? Where's Ares? Where's the help you promised us?"
"Easy, Peach," Cal cautioned me quietly.
We were on the gods' turf, and we had no idea what this place was like. I was in no position to be making accusations or demands. But still, I felt we deserved them.
"I just came back from Zeus's Palace," Dion told me, hooking a thumb over his shoulder. "Like, literally, ten seconds ago."
I crossed my arms, trying damn hard to keep any snide remarks to myself. "And what did he say?"
Dion sighed, bent down, and picked up his frame thingy without saying a word.
"We've been waiting for days," I told him in frustration. "Weeks, maybe. We're out of time. Zacharias has kidnapped Tia and has summoned us to the Temple of Hera for a final showdown in three days' time. We can't put it off any longer. If you don't remove Ares right now, then you're all but sentencing Blackwood to death."
Dion's lips thinned in frustration. "I tried to tell him it was urgent, but he insisted he needed to talk to the council about it before he could decide. H
e sent me away without another word."
"Do you think he's had time to talk to them by now?" Cal asked.
Dion raised a brow, his tight curls bouncing slightly as he did so. "In the last minute? Hardly. I wasn't kidding when I said I just left. I snapped, arrived here, and found you guys."
I sighed, feeling impatient. "Then we're just going to have to talk to Zeus ourselves."
"I wouldn't recommend that," Dion said, running his thumb across the screen of the little frame before tapping it and pocketing it. "Zeus can get pretty cranky when he's interrupted."
"Interrupted?" Dan asked with an incredulous smile. "What the fuck could he possibly be doing that's more important than this?"
Dion smirked and shook his head. "Y'all are cocky enough to give me a run for my money, you know that? Zeus is the king of the gods, bro. Virtually everything he does is more important than your shitty little world."
I couldn't help the incredulous look that tore across my face, and Dion didn't miss a millisecond of it.
"Don't look at me like that, Lex," he said. "You know damn well most of it is a shithole."
"Don't call her Lex," Cal said, his tone borderline threatening.
Dion turned to Cal and smiled. "Don't worry, bro. I'm not interested in your girl. I'm just saying. Our father's a busy man. We should wait until he summons us to the throne room with his decision. I'm sure Blackwood will be fine until then. It can't get much worse, right?"
I slammed both hands to my hips. "Yes, actually, it can. We already told you, Zacharias and Ares are planning an epic battle in three days. Who knows how long that equates to in this world? We can't afford to waste a single minute. Now, where is Zeus's palace?"
I stormed forward, looking for a door as I glanced out the windows. Endless clear blue sky, vibrant green grass, and a handful of mossy trees were all that met my gaze from beyond the glass. Still, there had to be something out there, some other building or maybe another portal?
"Lex, seriously," Dion protested, "you're going to get us all in trouble."
"You scared of him?" Rob asked. His eyes looked to be sizing Dion up, but his tone was more curious than taunting.
Dion chuckled, but there was a note of nervousness to it. "Are you kidding me?"
Rob raised a brow but didn't reply.
Dion laughed once more and ran a hand through his ombre curls. "Yeah, man. He's the all-powerful king of the gods. He can do whatever he wants, to whoever he wants, whenever he wants for any reason he wants. He sent Seff and I to a planet called Earth for almost a hundred years because we were arguing over who's magical aim was better and it annoyed him."
I smirked. As much as I feared Zeus having so much unnecessary power, it also kind of made me happy that Dion had been put out for a bit. It was petty I knew, but damn it, I was still irritated at him for not helping us sooner. Though, I guess if he really distrusted his father that much, then he definitely wouldn't want to push.
"How'd you get back?" Ben asked, his lips curving in humor.
Dion shrugged. "He forgot about us. By the time he finally remembered he'd sent us away, he decided it was about time to bring us back." Dion shook his head. "I was cursed to live a lifetime as a snail once. Thankfully, that lifetime didn't last long."
"Oh, snails are the worst," Ash agreed.
Because, apparently, he'd turned into one before.
"Right?" Dion asked with a grin. "Anyway, come on. I'll get you guys a drink or something while we wait."
My guys and I shared a glance but none of us moved to follow him.
Dion sighed, not even bothering to turn around. "You're not following me, are you?"
"Just take us to Zeus, man," Ash said, holding his hands out slightly. "The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can go home and reduce the risk of getting you in trouble."
Dion turned around to face us once more and nodded, clearly seeing the merit in Ash's suggestion. "All right, fine. I'll take you there, but I'm disappearing after. I don't want to be blamed for that shit. It's all gonna fall on you guys."
I smiled triumphantly. "Sounds perfectly fair."
Dion cocked his head almost nervously to the side. "All right then." He clapped his hands, and we were gone.
I blinked, and though my body still felt the exact same, my surroundings were different.
The light around us was muted and rose tinted, and harps and pianos played from somewhere far off in the distance, giving the whole place a vibe of intimacy and enchantment. Giggles sounded to the right, and I found tiny faerie-like creatures splashing in a fountain. Their size was misleading though. By the looks of their full breasts and hard nipples, they were definitely full grown… whatevers. And of course they wouldn't be clothed whatsoever. This was Zeus's palace, after all.
Speak of the devil… he sat in an impressive stone throne at the end of the room, staring at us in as much awe as I imagined we were staring at him with. I spun around, finding my guys staring back at me with unsure expressions, but as promised, Dion was nowhere to be found.
"Welcome," Zeus said, spreading his arms wide as he stood and strolled closer to us. "You must be the Storms of Blackwood." He eyed us each in turn, head to toe, as if that initial scan would tell him all he needed to know about us inside and out. "Dion was just here talking about you. I admit, I'm a little surprised to see you here."
What the fuck was the proper protocol for addressing the king of the gods?
I had no fucking clue, but thankfully Cal at least had enough practice in politics and social etiquette to drop to a knee and bow his head. Taking his lead, the rest of us did the same.
A deep chuckle sounded from above our heads as Zeus told us to stand. He didn't look particularly unpleasant before, but now he looked downright jovial. He must've loved being worshiped and admired. I had a feeling flattery might get us places with this one.
"Your Majesty," Cal began reverently, "it is our greatest honor to—"
Zeus laughed again, a deep belly-rolling thing, and waved the rest of Cal's sentence away with a careless hand. "Nonsense, son. Please, call me Father. How is your mother anyway? Caroline, I think her name was?"
Cal's smile was torn. He seemed mildly pleased that Zeus had remembered his mother and that he knew Cal was his son, but at the same time, talking about the shitty life his mother lived was never his favorite subject.
"She's—" He paused and shook his head. "—doing the best she can. She's still alive, which is more than we could say for some of the others."
At least, until a couple weeks ago.
Zeus nodded, his brows furrowing slightly. "I see. And this state of being has something to do with your brother Ares?"
Cal nearly choked on his tongue. "My brother?"
Zeus grinned. "Yes, your brother. I have many sons, Calvin, though I usually only claim the best of them."
He winked at my Sky Prince, and it annoyed me for some reason.
Cal forced a chuckle. "No, Ares is no brother of mine. These guys, though—" He gestured to Dan, Ben, Rob, Ash, and even Criss. “—they are my true brothers."
Zeus laughed. "You don't share parents with any of them. You may have grown up with them, but they're not your brothers. If anything, they're more like your cousins."
"Riiight," Cal agreed half-heartedly. "Listen, we don’t want to waste your time. We just want Ares removed from Blackwood. Well, our whole world, really."
"Giterra." Zeus nodded.
"What?" Rob asked, drawing Zeus's attention.
"Giterra," he repeated. "It's the name of your planet. It's been ages since I've been to that place. Well, except for answering the queens' prayers all those years ago. I'll tell you what, don't let anyone try to convince you your prayers go unheard. If you pray loud enough and long enough and pitifully enough, your gods will, in fact, hear you and will eventually get annoyed enough to do something about it."
I crossed my arms and sneered at him. "So, you only answered their prayers to shut them up? You didn
't care that they were being abused by a tyrant? A tyrant influenced by your own deranged, war-loving progeny?"
Zeus raised a brow, and the smile dropped right off his face. "Are you judging me, Alexis? As if you know anything about anything."
He lifted his thumb and forefinger and…
Snap!
I was suddenly a quarter of an inch tall, staring up into the slitted eyes of a fanged snake.
I tried to scream, but it came out as a chirp, and when I tried to run, I hopped instead.
A cricket. I was a godsdamned cricket.
Smack!
I suddenly plowed straight into an invisible barrier. Glass. I hopped left and then right, taking stock of my surroundings as quickly as I could before the snake caught up with me. It appeared I was in a terrarium of some sort with a violent black snake that clearly wanted to eat me. Lovely.
I hopped my ass off, darting underneath leaves and between sticks and around rocks, each time just barely missing the hissing jowls of the serpent on my tail. My heart hammered, and I could barely breathe. Cardio had never been my strongest suit—apparently, being a cricket didn't change that.
Then smack!
I rammed face-first into another glass wall. I fell to the ground on my back and looked up just in time to see the snake strike.
Boom. Dead.
I opened my eyes, surprised to find I was still in the glass cage.
The snake was curled up in the corner swallowing down the legs of a little black cricket when he noticed me.
Shit.
I made to run away, but low and be-fucking-hold, I found myself hopping once more. A cricket. Again. I'd died as one cricket and come back as another just in time to watch my previous body get completely devoured. How fucking pleasant.
I darted off, zigzagging through the flora with the black snake hot on my trail. I glanced up, thinking that maybe hopping up would be smarter than hopping away, but no. I jumped up, and…
Bam! Eaten right out of the air. Dead. Again.
I opened my eyes and found myself hiding under a leaf, peering out at a snake swallowing a cricket in midair.
Perfect Storms (Storms of Blackwood Book 4) Page 24
