“Darling, I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll move us into our own house. We belong there. It’s our home, Lia,” I pleaded. She could be so stubborn and now was a perfect example.
I wanted her to understand that her happiness was very important to me and that she would be happier living out in the open as she should be – a beautiful demigoddess. At some point Evander had left the lantern room. I guess the boy couldn’t take her heat.
“How can you say that, Vic?” Lia asked and I thought I saw tears in her eyes. “It’s not our home and hasn’t been for more than ten years. Nickel City stopped being our home ages ago. I don’t want to go back there.”
Lia turned her gaze back to the shimmering waters of the sea. She took a deep breath, taking in the strong smell of the salty water. I loved my sister with all of my heart. Somehow, I had to get her to understand that this was the only way we could survive. I was willing to do anything in order to make the transition as easy and as painless as possible.
“You can go to her. I won’t be mad at you,” Lia said over her shoulder. Her words hurt. I would never abandon my sister. Suddenly, the feeling of guilt swirled around in my gut as if I’d eaten bad fruit. I could never be asked to make a choice between Lia and Delia. Why couldn’t I have them both?
“Don’t do that. You know this is about us and only us. Nevertheless, there won’t be an us without them, all of them. I want this. We are very much a part of the empire. We are Ischero, Lia. It is all we are. The members have embraced me and they will do the same for you. Our parents were not at fault and the empire is aware of that fact,” I explained, brushing her cheek. I couldn’t take it when Lia cried, which wasn’t often which meant that she was terrified.
“I want you to be happy Vickie. You won’t be until you have her. That’s why I said that you should go to her. You love her. You always have. Even when we were just children. It was Delia this, and Delia that. Nothing about that has changed. She is the center of your universe and you are hers,” Lia said, sniffling.
While I listened to Lia reminisce about my childhood crush, I realized that she was the real grown-up and that she was the most selfless person I knew. The guilt was beginning to overwhelm me and swallow me whole. How could I have taken such a risk? She was much too important to me.
“And Evander is yours,” I said, raising her chin up and wiping her tears with my handkerchief.
“I don’t know how I feel about that,” she said shyly, as her face flushed with color.
“It’s what the gods always intended and the only way we’ll be blessed by them.”
“I don’t know if I trust the gods. They have yet to prove themselves as far as I’m concerned and so has he. He loves Delia very much. I can feel it,” Lia said, motioning to the door.
“Don’t worry about that. He loves you more. He just doesn’t know it yet. He’ll choose you,” I promised, what I had no right to, but I did it anyway. I couldn’t help being a bastard at times. That trait had been passed down by one of the most vicious gods there ever was.
“I’m just not sure that I’m ready to live amongst a bunch of members, whom I don’t know.”
“It’ll take some time, darling, and I won’t pressure you. Just give it some time and if you still feel out of place amongst our own then we’ll make arrangements for you to reside elsewhere.”
“Really?” She beamed, and for the first time in the last twenty-four hours, she looked happy. Then she looked sad again. “What about you? Will you come with me?”
“We’ll see. But for now will you try?”
“Yes.” Lia smiled timidly, and her eyes sparkled.
“I promise Lia,” There I go promising again. “and Evander isn’t that bad. Actually, his devotion to those he loves is unparalleled with any other Ischero I’ve come across, not including myself, of course.”
“So now you and Evander are chums?”
“Chums? Never.” I sneered, and then chuckled lightly. “However we are on the same side and will fight for the same cause. Plus there’s a bonus,” I said, chuckling. “he has to address me as his Lord.”
“Really? He agreed to that?” Lia asked.
“He has too. It’s like an Ischero law,” I said, and winked at my sister.
“He has to call you Lord at all times?” Lia asked quizzically, and then she let out a contagious giggle. I loved to hear her laugh. She reminded me so much of our mother when she did.
“Well, maybe I’ll give him a break on the weekends,” I said, as Lia’s laughter rippled down the long flight of stairs to the shore. Evander was waiting at the foot of the stairs, looking at us both with a questioning eyebrow.
“My sister will be joining us after all.” I couldn’t control the muscles in my face and grinned.
“If that’s what Evangelia wants, Vickie,” Evander chuckled. It was a good time as any to knock his teeth out of his mouth.
“Very funny. That’s Lord Victor to you, water boy,” I scolded.
“Call me Lia,” she said. Evander gulped and nodded. I watched how Evander looked at Lia and it was as if my baby sister reached into his chest and wrapped her delicate hand around his heart. He was all hers.
Evander turned around abruptly, and headed to the exit door of the lighthouse. Lia went for the door at approximately the same time and noticed Evander heading for the door as well. She anticipated them bumping into each other – a chance of touching – something she desperately wanted to avoid. Suddenly, she jolted back hard. I slammed into her from behind, just as Evander turned around, and Lia landed right in his arms.
It was the longest three seconds of their lives as they both realized, for the first time, the true power of the gods.
Time. All we needed was a little time.
Thirteen - Cordelia
Time
The warriors swore not to breathe a word of what they found. In fact, I told them to say that my parents weren’t found, if they were ever asked. After the meeting and my disciple had gone, I summoned my parents. After a few moments, I realized something was wrong. Their hearts never appeared, just the emergence of empty domes floating in the air.
I was shocked and felt paralyzed where I stood in my library. How could this be? Surely they weren’t stolen. I was under the impression that they only could be summoned by me. Obviously, I was wrong. It was then that I truly believed what my disciples reported. I would have never guessed in a million years that my parents were to be buried in the future.
Of course, the shock of learning their whereabouts had not faded. I guess their missing hearts was the answer to the question of how they were resurrected. I needed to know who resurrected them. As far as I knew, I was the only Ischero with the power to resurrect another being. Now that I knew where they will be, I had to figure out how to bring my father and mother back home.
I needed air. The lush garden was one of my favorite places to think. I sat on the polished stone bench beneath the Linden trees. I found the information impossible to fathom. This is not how I had expected things to develop. I pictured the warriors returning, and me, bringing my parents back to life. Simple as that. Now everything was complicated.
I would have to go into the future to bring my parents’ home. I had to make the council aware of this. I could go into the future on my own, but I rather not. Why had Thaddeus chosen the island of Manhattan? He had been a very clever yet destructive deity and I couldn’t waste any more time trying to decipher his tactics.
My thoughts drifted to Evan. He should’ve been here by now. Everything wasn’t as it should be and I needed my rock. Several times, I attempted to feel Evans’ aura but he was too far away. Moon Rose said that she hadn’t seen him since Victor paid him a visit this morning. My heart plummeted because I knew that his disappearance had everything to do with Evangelia. Finding her had been more important than meeting with me.
Of course, it was.
She’s an Ischero and needs protection. She is as much a member of my empire as I am. I will t
ry to make her feel welcome. As the empress of this great empire, I had to set the example of compassion, although I was deathly afraid of her. I didn’t fear her exactly, just what she meant to the love of my life. I couldn’t help wondering if he would still consider me his. I washed away the painful thoughts of Evan rejecting me, and focused on another troublesome notion, my parent’s burial site.
Unexpectedly, a shadow fell on the gravel path that divided the hyacinth and lilies. My mind had drifted too far. I wondered how long I had been sitting in the garden before noticing the murky shadow’s growth in proportion. It moved slowly, sort of slithering like a snake. It seemed unsure of its discovery. I waited as several more serpent-shaped shadows slid into the larger mass’s path and then joined the dark mist. The Apolluon kept altering its form, transforming from the coiled contour of a python to a winged creature with several necks.
I was surrounded.
I continued to control my breathing. The flowers to my immediate left took on darker shades of their pastel hue as the Apolluon formed a dome over them, as well as where I sat. The dense and murky fog began to twist upward as if it prepared to snatch me right off the bench. I stood up slowly, taking in the figures that stood, as if paralyzed, at the entrance doors to the sunroom.
Evan was transfixed as was Victor, who stood a few inches or so behind Evan. She was there too, and those crystal-like eyes bulged in what could not be confused with anything other than acute fear. Her brother threw his hand over her mouth, snuffing the shriek that could end their existence on earth. The Apolluon would attempt to devour all three of them, but would probably only succeed in smothering one of them. I had to work fast.
As my pulse raced, so did the rise of stifling heat and currents within my veins, bones, and soul. My hair spread out on its ends and I threw my head back. The shadows continued to twist maliciously within a few inches of my body. My bolts ignited and the sparks sprang out from my fingertips in long crooked branches, sending the swirling, black mist back to wherever it came from. They will return, again and again. They have found a source of power. It was their main directive as instructed by their heinous creator.
“Delia,” Evan whispered harshly, as he stepped out into the garden, followed by Victor and his sister.
“All three of you…in the house, NOW!” I whispered, knowing that they heard me, although I was twenty feet away.
Teleporting required the use of power, so I walked at a snail’s pace. The truth was that the Apolluon could devour me and seal my fate as well as they could my disciples. If I moved to swiftly and couldn’t form my bolt fast enough, or my bolt failed to ignite, or if I was as foolish as I had just been – daydreaming and not focusing on what was taking place just a few inches from the tip of my satin shoe, I could be smothered and on my way to the Underworld.
I continued to glide slowly down the path. By the time I reached the French doors, which secured my disciples in the sunlit room, their faces exposed their fear. I closed the doors behind me, knowing that the shadows couldn’t pass the threshold.
I took a moment before looking either of them in the eye. I knew that I had been careless and way to leisure while trying to relieve my stress. I could never allow that to happen again. Yet being careful may not prevent another altercation with the shadows. The Apolluon were overly aggressive now. and they had found a power source. They would camp out around this house for as long as it took to finally overwhelm me when I least expected it. In addition, I had to admit that perhaps Lucien was right. It was indeed time to make a change.
“Please don’t look at me like that,” I directed my statement at Evan, but it was meant for all of them. They stared at me as if I was a ghost. “I’m fine.”
“They’ve never come that close, Delia. They were only an inch or two from you. The shadows could have…” Evan’s voice broke off as he grabbed my hands and then released them.
He pulled me into a tight embrace and I buried my face in his neck. When I looked up, Victor met my gaze and I could hear his thoughts. He wanted Evan banished from the empire if that’s what took to have me in his arms as Evan did. He believed that if the Apolluon had devoured me, he would have died the next moment. My knees were weak with the severity of Victor’s thoughts.
I couldn’t help it, and tuned into Evan’s mind.
There were many thoughts fighting for space in his cerebrum. I combed through them to get to the ones of me, which had been pushed to the far end of his mind. He was worried about me, which wasn’t a surprise. He kissed me gently on the forehead. The kiss was tender, sweet, and impossible to believe how different it felt from the last time he had graced me with his lips.
I licked my lips and was captivated by the rosebud like lips from across the room. A shiver ran through my body as I watched him. As Victor parted his lips, I swallowed any hope of staying away from him. His eyes beckoned and I was forced to shut mine. I looked over at Evan, and my near death experience was just a discarded memory as he stared into Evangelia’s sparkling, grey eyes. She turned away shyly, which somehow looked seductive. Could I blame her for giving off what she naturally had no control of?
It was happening. The mighty god had full reins on us.
I had to have time alone with Evan. I was so desperate to save what I believed saved me at some point – his love. I took his hand and it was as if he just realized that I was still in the room. As I was about to pull him away, Victor stepped in front of me. My gaze fell on his lips as I tried desperately to not look into the silver pools of his eyes. If I did, I knew I would drown in them, willingly. I blocked any notion running through his head from entering mine.
“Delia, did the warriors find your parents?” Victor asked. He was sincere in wanting to know of the results of the mission, but I was also aware that he didn’t want me to be alone with Evan.
“Yes and no.” I said as his mouth stiffened into a thin line and a wrinkle formed above his brows.
“I want to explain it to everyone at the same time. I plan to address the issue later with all of the members.” I said.
Victor cleared his throat and said, “Very well. May I have a moment alone with you, please?” I glared at him, pissed off by what he was doing.
“I need to speak with Evan first, if you don’t mind.” I said, turning away from him and tugging at Evan’s arm.
“But I do mind.” Victor said stiffly.
“I’m sure that you do.” I said, and walked out of the room with Evan by my side.
We finally left the sunroom. Suddenly the room felt like it was suffocating me with its tall, fanning ferns, which stood watch of the unfolding spectacle of demigods, from every corner of the room.
“Darling, are you sure that you’re alright?” Evan asked, as I stroked my medallion.
“I’m fine, really. Why don’t we talk in the library?” I said, leading Evan down the main hall.
I sat on the leather sofa and waited for him to take a seat beside me. He placed his hand gently on the satin fabric over my knee.
“Evan, the warriors have found my parents alive.”
“Yes, I know.” He said nodding. “Bethany briefed me this morning before coming over here.”
“So then you understand what I have to do.” I looked up at him.
“Delia – I”
“Evan, please just hear me out first.” I said and took a deep breath. “I’ve already made my decision and I need your support. It can’t be the way it was before when you went to the council about how I wanted to restore Victor’s powers.”
“I thought that we were over that. What’s your decision?” He asked, taking my hand. He squeezed it – grasping, unclenching, and grasping again as if he were waiting for something to happen – some significant sign.
“I’ve decided to go into the future.”
Fourteen - Cordelia
The Lost
Everyone gathered deep in the Tieron silver mine. The quarry was quiet except for the faint sounds of the mule trains hauling silver
and the low murmurings of the members. The vast and hollow space was brightly lit and I could see that all the members were present and accounted for. I called the meeting to notify the council of my intentions. I wanted everyone to know how my strategy will affect the entire empire.
The elders looked on with curiosity, although their minds projected anxiety. They had no idea what I was about to say and feared that I was about to send their offspring on another irrelevant mission. I heard them praying to the gods. They didn’t want me to put them in harm’s way once again. I shook my head and tried not to get aggravated. I walked to the center of the space. The member’s robes swayed as they formed a circle around me. I found Victor amongst the crowd, but strangely, Evangelia was nowhere in sight.
“My disciples, I’ve pulled you away from your tasks today so that we can all welcome the Iptian’s back into our family.” I said beaming from ear to ear, as Victor walked to the center of the semi-circle of members.
I made eye contact with him, sending him a message telepathically, regarding the whereabouts of his sibling. Victor’s eyes darted from one end of the pit to another as a worried expression washed over his handsome face. Evan raised a brow at Victor and Bethany sent me a puzzling glance.
Without warning, Evangelia emerged from a dark corner of the pit. Her exquisite beauty held everyone’s attention. I had no time to wonder why she had not been in the mine before now due to the murmurs and shrieks of shock that erupted. Victor held his sister’s hand and then raised both their arms high into the air. Evangelia averted the member’s gazes and looked to her brother for support.
“Dear Gods,” Everyone screamed in unison.
“How can this be?” Lucien asked, astounded.
Lucien took a few steps toward Evangelia, stopping about a foot away and nearly scared the poor girl to death as he took her in with his eyes.
Evangelia’s crystal-like eyes widened as she stared back at him.
“Did you bring her back to life, Empress Cordelia?” Delilah asked, incredulously.
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