by Maya Daniels
“Sis, please tell me you’re okay,” one of the women says, and I turn to her, but she gasps and takes a step back.
I frown. Is she scared of me?
“Your eyes are glowing.” She lifts a shaking finger to point at my face, her green eyes showing her fear more than anything else.
“You find this undesirable?” I ask Lucifer, my eyebrows pulling down my forehead. I’m not sure I like to have a trait that he finds undesirable.
“Do you know who I am? Who they are?” he asks, not answering my question.
“I said leave or die!” the man with the apparition screams and spittle flies from his mouth.
He takes two steps and reaches towards the glowing ruby to take it. I flick my wrist and he freezes in place, looking at me with shock on his face. His eyes are too big for his head and I chuckle. Does he think I am stupid? That stone will give him power over me, and no one will touch that. The apparition attached to the man starts hissing and twisting, becoming more solid by the second. I can’t remember if I know what or who that is, but I know that I need to get rid of it. I’ll just banish it now and when I remember, I will find it and deal with it. I lift my hand and send pure energy like lighting, hitting the connection I see between the man and the dragon-snake. They both scream, hurting my ears, but the dragon-snake disappears in a puff of yellow smoke. I ignore the man’s screams.
“I am the Gift of the Sea, and you are Lucifer. I’m aware that I know you, but I don’t remember how. I don’t remember them as well, but I feel like I should,” I answer Lucifer and wait to see what he will say while I’m gazing at his beautiful dark eyes. They are ancient, just like me. They hold secrets no one can understand. My body shivers but I still just wait.
“You don’t remember your sisters, witch?” He frowns at me. I don’t like his tone, so I freeze him too.
By the look of surprise on his face, he isn’t expecting it. Good! That will teach him not to frown at me. I want his smiles and for him to keep saying my name. I don’t like his frowns. He said sisters. I check the women. They are watching me with pleading eyes. Are they really my sisters? Do I even have sisters? How is it possible for me not to remember that?
“Am I your sister?” I ask them.
“I don’t know what he did to you, Alexia, but you must try to remember. We are sisters in everything but blood,” the dark-haired one in the embrace of one of the men says, extracting herself from his arms. He looks familiar too, but I still can’t remember.
“A-Ma, please, you must remember,” one of the other two women reaches a hand towards me as if she can’t help herself.
“Meda, don’t move,” Lucifer tells her.
I frown at him. Does he think I will hurt her? Why will he tell her not to move otherwise? I don’t think I could hurt those women if I tried. With that revelation, I understand that he must be telling the truth. Just the idea of freezing them twists my heart painfully. No, I don’t think I can. He called the woman Meda. That name stirs emotions inside of me.
“What are your names?” I ask them, but they just stand mutely with tears in their eyes.
It makes me want to cry, too, but I can’t do that. Another thing I know I shouldn’t, or can’t do, without understanding why. Everything is very confusing. Shiver slithers again through my body. I’m so cold, as if I’m frozen inside.
“Remi, Jezzinta, Meda, and Faith.” Lucifer indicates each of them with his eyes since he can’t move and no one else answers my question. “And that’s Philip, Will, and Archie,” he adds as an afterthought.
“Can we get rid of that arse-hole and then talk?” the green-eyed woman asks with a thick British accent, pointing at the man behind me. Jezzinta is her name. Why can’t I remember?
“He can’t do anything right now, just like me,” Lucifer says angrily, and I smile at him. I don’t understand why this is amusing, but it is. My amusement dies abruptly when we hear a woman speak.
Chapter 26
“I think you finally met your match, Angel,” a husky woman’s voice echoes and startles us all. Two women step closer. I don’t hear them approach, like they just appear out of thin air. They are both so beautiful it hurts to look at their faces for too long. The four other women all drop to their knees and say, “Mother,” in unison. I have a need to do the same, but I lock my knees and force myself to stand. I don’t remember any of these people; maybe they’re trying to trick me. The woman on the right smiles proudly at me, like I’ve done something right.
“You have a strange sense of humor, sister,” the woman on the left tells her. Her voice carries around us with power and it, too, makes me want to drop to my knees. My wrist pulses, like someone has attached a heartbeat to it, so I lift my hand to see why.
“She will be fine, Lilith. That idiot thought I wouldn’t anticipate him trying to steal her light for his own agenda. Pathetic worm. He only managed to make her stronger,” the woman on the right says, still smiling at me.
The men, hearing the name of the second woman, drop to their knees too. How interesting. Lucifer seems more relaxed now, and that’s strange. Who are these women?
“It was about time, Inanna. You’re not taking care of your charge as you should,” he tells the first woman. Inanna. My heart speeds up and warmth prickles my icy skin. That name means something to me.
“That’s right, love, you’ll remember. Keep trying,” Inanna says as she comes closer to me.
“Please keep talking,” I beg her.
Her voice is slowly warming me. Maybe I will not freeze where I stand. She is almost two steps away from me when I remember the ruby.
No one touches that until I remember what is going on.
I snatch it fast from where it is sitting next to me. My wrist with the apple branded on it pulses harder and I grind my teeth.
“Calm down, love, everything will be fine. Put the ruby on the column. No one will take it.” Inanna talks to me like I’m a child, and that makes me angry.
“No!” I tell her stubbornly.
“Alright. Hold it and suffer the pain. It is painful for you to hold it but not for the keeper,” she says simply.
“Forgive my forwardness, Mother, but we want her back, please. What did he do to her? Is there anything we can do?” Remi asks Inanna, her voice pleading.
Somehow, hearing that tone in her hurts me more than anything. Maybe I don’t remember many things, but I remember that. It’s more proof they are telling the truth. I know these women. I just have to try harder to remember.
The second woman, Lilith, comes closer too, a strange expression on her face as she focuses on me. There is pride and sadness in her black eyes.
“You have made sacrifices, child, now it is our turn,” she tells me.
“Lilith, what are you doing?” Lucifer scowls at her back as if she can see him. “Stay away from her.”
“Awww, come now, love, don’t tell me you feel something for this child,” she tells him without turning around, her eyes still locked on me as if she expects me to do something, or maybe say something.
I frown at her. I have no idea what she wants from me, but I’m not going to wait to find out. Flicking my wrist, I freeze her, too, and push her back so fast her body slams into the cages lining the sides of the place ten feet away. Dust and plaster rain from the side, and metal clashes on metal from the impact. No one moves for a second, as if everyone is frozen, until we all hear chuckling from the wall. Lilith walks out like nothing has happened. Not even her hair is out of place.
My jaw drops, how is that possible?
Chapter 27
“Are you trying to protect him, child? From me?” she asks quietly, but it sounds like she screamed it.
I lift my chin defiantly. I will not answer her questions. Something nags at me in the back of my mind, like an alarm bell telling me to stop doing stupid things before it’s too late, but I ignore it. I have no time for that now.
Lilith is still chuckling, and Inanna joins her. Inanna is preening, mo
re proud by the second. These people are weird.
“You have grown in your power, love. I’m so proud of you,” Inanna says for my ears only.
“Well, it’s not thanks to you, now, is it? It’s thanks to Lucifer,” I hiss at her, then my eyebrows hit my hairline.
Why did I say that? How is it thanks to Lucifer? My head spins and a lightheadedness swims in my mind. The pulsing pain in my arm from holding the ruby is not helping, either. I sway on my feet and Inanna grabs my arm, holding me up like I’m light as a feather. Lilith is standing in front of me now, eliciting a deep growl from Lucifer as he tries to free himself.
“No!” Jezzinta screams and pushes herself through Inanna and Lilith to stand in front of me. Before anyone else can say anything, the other three do the same and circle me.
My breath gets stuck in my throat. They will stand up to the ones they call Mother to protect me. I don’t need it, but seeing it warms my heart. No matter if I remember it or not, I have no doubt these women are my sisters. Lilith lifts a delicate eyebrow.
“You see! I told you I chose well.” Inanna laughs.
“What are we, monkeys in a circus?” I snap at her. “What the hell is going on?”
“You carry my mark, child. I have to see if you are worthy,” Lilith points at my wrist.
“Let me guess. You need the ruby for that,” I tell her dryly.
She nods.
“Alexia, release me,” Lucifer growls, and unconsciously I do it.
The next second, he is in front of me and all I can see is his perfect back. His shoulders stretch his shirt so I can see every muscle outlined in it. I want to touch him so badly my hands tingle. He peers over his shoulder at me with a frown. To my horror, I realize I am running my hand all over him, so I snatch it back and stare at my feet like a child caught stealing from the cookie jar. What the fuck is wrong with me? Faith giggles and I frown at her. It only makes her wink and grin at me.
“No one is hurting her, Lucifer. Are you out of your mind?” Inanna snaps from somewhere in front of Lucifer. I still can’t see anything but his back.
“Step away so we can merge. If she lives, you can play the hero,” Lilith tells him flatly.
Something about merging triggers memories, and I remember my merge with Inanna. I was a passenger in my own body. She had full control over me. The idea makes me shiver and it has nothing to do with the coldness spreading inside me. I stick my head from behind Lucifer and peek at Inanna.
“I remember our merge. You want me to do this?”
I don’t know why I’m hurt. Then I gasp. I remember everything from the merge, including the betrayal and rage I felt for Derik and Tiamat. Slowly I turn to look at him still standing frozen, playing dead in hopes we will forget about him. When his eyes meet mine, I give him the cruelest smile I can muster. He must have seen the crazy in my eyes, because he starts blabbing incoherently about Tomas and Tiamat making him do things. How he never wanted to hurt me, but they would’ve killed him otherwise. It’s just a background noise. I don’t care what he says.
“Time for you to pay,” I tell him sweetly.
“Careful of the ruby,” Inanna says. “Put it on the column so it doesn’t get damaged.”
“I don’t think so,” I tell her, and without thinking, I open my palm towards the four women.
It may take a while for me to remember what is going on, but I know deep inside that I trust them. To my surprise, Remi picks it up, takes Lucifer’s hand, and places the ruby in it. I scowl at her.
“He will keep it safe, Alexia, we will make sure he does. Go get rid of that asshole. We’ve got your back,” she tells me firmly, and the rest of them nod. I believe them.
Spinning to face Derik, I zone in on the beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He is also shaking so much I can see it from this far away. Good, he should be after everything he’s done.
I release him and he stumbles back his jaw hanging open in shock.
“What? You thought I’d kill you like a coward while you’re frozen?” I ask him, venom dripping in my tone.
He recovers from the shock quickly and, as fast as a snake, throws a green fireball at me. It bounces off me without touching me. Whatever the hell he did with that crystal made sure the green flames couldn’t hurt me. I don’t understand why or how I know this, but I don’t care.
I give him a wide smile. “Try again,” I tell him.
He does. For a while, he throws fireball after fireball at me with no results. Then, in a blink of an eye, he throws another but misses me. I think he must be getting tired until I hear the hiss behind me. He tried to hit my sisters. Luckily, Will pushed Meda aside and the flame only grazed her hip. She nods at me, letting me know she’s okay.
“Can you get any lower, you weasel?” I snap at him, but I put a shield behind me to cover everyone just in case. “I’m going to enjoy slicing the skin from your bones.”
He tries to run, bolting for the back of the warehouse, but I uncoil a fiery rope and wrap it around his leg. He screams and drops to the ground. The smell of burning flesh permeates the air. I drag him back slowly, letting his screams echo around us. I know I should just kill him quickly so he can’t hurt anyone ever again, but I want to make him suffer, at least for a while. When he is close enough, I make smaller whips, one out of fire and one out of ice, hitting him with them. Only his screams can be heard, and it’s like music to my ears. I revel in it. Everyone else is deathly quiet. I pause to look at them and my arms drop to my sides. My sisters, Lucifer, and the three men are staring at me with gloomy, haunted eyes. Inanna is watching like she is waiting for something, and Lilith is grinning from ear to ear. My eyes move to the people who did everything to protect me, even when I couldn’t remember them. I can plainly see the men are terrified, while my sisters look sad, though determined to watch and stand witness. But Lucifer is disappointed, and that gives me pause.
“Her humanity was stripped by the wizard, so she doesn’t see right and wrong the same way you do anymore. She only knows righteousness now,” Inanna says quietly, addressing my sisters. “Betrayal is punished. It’s her right to be the judge, jury, and executioner. It’s the way of the gods.”
“Is she a goddess now?” Meda squeaks.
“Oh, no, dear. Not at all,” Inanna replies, waving her hand dismissively.
“Not unless she’s worthy,” Lilith adds, excitement clear in her voice.
Moaning behind me makes me turn and finally see the bloody mess that is Derik. I want to continue flaying him but I don’t want to disturb my sisters. Forming an icepick, I throw it so it pierces his back where his heart is and, with one last scream, he goes still and quiet. His body freezes in seconds, the ice spreading everywhere there is flesh, and then it shatters like a crystal dropped on concrete. In less than a minute, there is nothing left of him or his treachery. Taking a deep breath, I turn to everyone behind me. Before I say a word, a massive cobra springs from the place that Lilith was occupying a moment ago. No one gets a chance to react before she opens her mouth and swallows me whole. Before everything goes dark, I focus on Inanna, her eyes filled with sadness. All sound and light is cut off from me before the pain starts.
Chapter 28
My skin is melting off my bones. That’s how it feels. Someone is pouring acid that covers me from head to toe, and as it slides down, it’s taking skin and muscle with it. Have I been born in this life to only be in pain and to suffer? What is it with everyone? Whether they are the good guy or the bad one, it seems they all want to cause me pain? I don’t think I can go on like this. I need peace because my soul is tired. I have the body of a woman in her prime, but it’s as if I’m thousands of years old and the only thing I wish for is to erase all emotions. It doesn’t matter if it’s a good feeling or a bad one. At this very moment, I just want it all to stop and for me to fade into nothingness. All the fight has left me and I don’t mind that; I welcome it. With what little energy I have left, I clear my mind and go to my safe place in my woo
ds.
The next moment, I open my eyes and I’m sitting in a clearing. Tall ancient trees sway in a light warm breeze. Birds chirp in the distance, and an elven song is humming in the background, feeding my soul. I’m sitting cross legged on thick grass sprinkled with tiny flowers in different colors, and my back is pressed against a boulder. Taking a deep breath, I inhale the sweet, wonderful smells from the nature that surrounds me, lifting my face to bask in the warmth of the bright sun above. Its rays caress my face and arms like a lover’s fingers. I smile. There is no pain or suffering here. It’s just me, at peace. I think I will stay here for eternity.
“What do you think you are doing, child?”
I open my eyes to see Lilith standing behind me, her hands fisted on her hips as she glares at me. Her black hair flows around her face like she’s underwater, her porcelain skin glowing from the sun above us, and her red dress looks like it’s painted on her body, emphasizing her breasts and hips perfectly. Her red-painted lips are pulled into a firm line and her perfectly-sculpted eyebrows pull over her eyes, which are staring at me with anger.
“How did you get here?” I ask dumbly.
No one has ever come here, not even my grandmother when I’ve tried very hard to bring her with me. This was my safe place; I created it, down to the smallest detail. It’s as much a part of me as my essence. No one should even be able to know about it, little less show up here in all her perfect glory.
“You can’t hide here! Get back this instant. I need to see that you are worthy. Or did you forget you carry my mark?” She arches one eyebrow.
“What made you think I care? I never asked for your mark, or for any of it for that matter. I don’t give a fuck if I’m worthy or not. Go find someone else,” I tell her tiredly and then a thought strikes me. “Anyone else but my sisters,” I add, my crazy-eyed gaze ensuring she understands there will be retribution if that is the case.
