by Sam Ryder
I nodded. “Good. Then it’s settled. I’ll speak to Vrill.”
“Can you spare a few minutes?” Eve asked.
I chastened myself for being so heartless. After everything we’d been through together, I’d just found out she was alive and I was going to run off two seconds later? “Of course,” I said.
“We’ll give you some privacy,” Persepheus said, ushering her sisters into the other room. Once more, my mind was blown. The sea goddess had finally turned a corner and learned all about that famous Aretha Franklin song, RESPECT.
Eve slowly made her way over to the plush feather bed the Three often lounged on. I gripped her hand and helped her ease down to a sitting position. “Thank you,” she said.
“I thought you were dead,” I said, unable to hold back any longer.
She smiled grimly. “I did too. Thank the Three Airiel didn’t give up on me.”
“I did,” I admitted.
“You didn’t,” Eve said, stroking my hand with her forefinger. “Even if it feels that way. You couldn’t do anything for me, so you did something else, something better. You protected the Warriors and in doing so protected me. You helped free Vrill and the dragon from the Morgoss’s bonds. You gave us a glimmer of hope in the darkest of nights.”
“Well if you put it that way I guess I did alright,” I said, squeezing her hand. “I played the role I needed to play.”
“You always do, Sam,” Eve said. Again, she managed to make my ordinary first name sound anything but. “But I didn’t ask you to stay just to recap the past few days.”
“Then why?”
“Back on Primo, I shared things with you that I haven’t shared with anyone in a long time.” I said nothing, giving her time to gather her thoughts. “It freaked me out a little, because I don’t do that. I am a closed book, even to those who gain my trust. But with you, it was easy. I don’t know why. It just felt…right.”
“To me too,” I said. “Why should we close ourselves off to each other when every Black could be the last we see?”
“I get that now. Still…it’s hard for me.”
“You have more to tell me,” I guessed. I wanted desperately to hear the rest of her story, to understand how this woman was formed, why she became such a cruel monster before returning to what I believed was the true person who had been locked inside a hardened exterior for so long.
She nodded. “My mother was…human,” she said. She hadn’t told me that before, though she’d implied it. Plus, Eve had always seemed more human to me than any of the other non-humans on Tor, although she’d consistently alluded to the fact that she wasn’t human, at least not entirely.
Maybe I should’ve waited patiently for her to continue, to tell me the things that she wanted to tell. But my curiosity was a volcano with only one setting: eruption. “And your father?”
She flinched and I almost regretted having asked. No, I chided myself. No more regrets. I deserved to have all the information available, and that included Eve’s history. “He was a…a god.”
“What?” I couldn’t help the surprise in my voice.
“It’s true,” she said.
I gaped at her. I remembered another story, one told by Airiel when she was still on her death bed. About another half-human, half-god who’d owned the magic boomerang I’d recovered from the depths of Annakor. The goddess had referred to him as a demigod. “But that makes you a…”
“Demigod,” she confirmed. “Yes. The Three are my half-sisters.”
“Whoa,” I said, which wasn’t the most eloquent response, but which summed up my thoughts pretty well. Something else struck me. “Wait, is that—are you—Level 5?” I’d always thought that Eve wasn’t on the same Level-up scale as us, her position as Finder carved out in a separate screen in this game we played. And no one had ever said what Level 5 was. “Is Finder Level 5?”
“To answer both your questions: Yes, I am Level 5, and no, Finder is not Level 5. Demigod is Level 5. I was born a Level 5. The rest of you must earn it. We haven’t had a Level 5 in many years.”
“Then how does Finder fit in?” I asked, my mind trying to clamp around all the new information, visualize it the way I would on my screen while playing A-Civ.
“Finder is like a specialty within Demigod. It has its own sub-levels within the specialty.” Things were clicking into place in my mind. Vrill would need to be Leveled up to Demigod before she could be Leveled up to Finder.
“So you were already Level 5, which is why it made sense for you to succeed your mother as Finder.”
She shrugged. “Pretty much.”
“And that also explains your long life. Are you immortal?”
She laughed. “Not quite, but close. By the time I die of old age I’ll be more than ready for it.”
All the new information was like a seed planted in my mind, sprouting a trunk and then a million branches, each of which represented another question. I needed to focus. For now, time was on our side, but soon the Morgoss’s new shadow army would be ready to attack. There was so much to do. My next question was a cruel but necessary one. “When will you be ready to Find again?”
She didn’t react negatively, her gaze clear steel. “Three days. Four at the most.” A Finder was what she was born to be. Falling off the horse was part of life for her and she unflinchingly got back on each time. It was a quality I admired in her.
“Okay,” I said. “Is there anything you need from me right now?”
She lifted a hand to touch my cheek. “Thank you, Sam, but seeing you has been a bright spot in this damned dark cave. Airiel will complete her treatment of me today and then it will be up to my body to do the rest. I’ll return to the camp tomorrow at first light.”
“The camp?” I said, surprised. Eve never really spent more than a few fleeting hours in camp. Now she sounded like she might actually move in with us.
She nodded. “It’s about time I started acting like we are all on the same team.”
I nodded back, feeling warmth infiltrate my chest. “Took you long enough,” I joked. Then I remembered Vrill.
Though I was glad Eve was going to stay in camp with us, I hoped the two women wouldn’t kill each other.
SIXTEEN
LEVEL 5
I found Vrill sitting by herself, staring at the mountains. The dragon was resting nearby, its long tail curled around its scaled body.
Beat was working with her Warriors. She spotted my approach and started to break off to meet me but I waved her away. There was nothing to explain. I knew Beat probably tried her best to talk to Vrill without success. It was on me to try to fix things.
I sat down next to her, the ground warm against my skin.
“How’s Eve?” she asked, not trying to hide the disgust in her tone.
“Alive,” I said.
“I figured that much out all on my own.” Her voice was full of scorn and anger. As much as she hated Persepheus, she hated Eve even more. I couldn’t blame her. The Three were goddesses, used to feeling—and being—superior to the rest of us. Yes, Eve was a Demigod, but she should’ve been more—not less—relatable to the Warriors she brought from the Eight Planets.
“You don’t need to be BFFs and hold hands and celebrate birthdays together,” I said.
Vrill narrowed her eyes in confusion. “BFFs?”
“Sorry. It’s a human acronym. Best Friends Forever.”
“Why would mortal enemies be best friends?” she asked.
I was going about this the wrong way. “I was joking. I just mean you two don’t have to like each other, but if we are going to survive what is coming you need to be able to work together.”
“No fucking kidding, Sam,” Vrill said. I’d never heard her curse before, mostly because where she was from, Lri Ay, most words were taken quite literally. I was guessing it was something she’d picked up from Darcy, a long time ago.
“I don’t understand,” I said. “You walked off like you were done.”
“I was
done. Done with being in the same room as Eve. But I get that it’s better that she’s still alive. It’s better that the Three are alive. Why do you think I didn’t stab Persepheus when I had the chance? Out of the goodness of my heart? Why do you think I haven’t exacted revenge on all of them already? I’ve chosen to use my energy for good in this world, fighting them by saving Warriors in the Circle. If I’d wanted to hurt them, I would have.”
I’d been a fool. For some reason I always believed Vrill hadn’t gone after the Three and Eve because they were too well-protected in their canyon fortress. Of course they weren’t, especially against the likes of Vrill, who was a one woman army. No, she hadn’t hurt them because she was too good for something as basic as revenge. It was a stark reminder that she wasn’t human. No, she was far, far better. “I’m sorry. I assumed something I shouldn’t have.”
“It’s fine,” she said. “And I’m not angry at you, even if it seems like it. I’m just…angry in general. Tired of all the pain. The violence. The bloodshed and death. I’m just tired.”
My heart broke for her then. She’d been through events that would’ve destroyed almost anyone. But not her. She was an enigma for just having survived the ordeal. “The Three agreed to make you the second Finder.”
Her eyes snapped to mine. I’d finally surprised her. “Truly?”
I nodded. “With the caveat that you and Eve coordinate your Finding missions and check in with the Three first.” Her eyes narrowed again and I rushed on. “Not to take orders, but to ensure they have the energy to support you both. Airiel is getting stronger by the day but Finding requires substantial energy and the last thing we need is for one of you to get trapped on another planet with no way of returning.”
Her scowl vanished. “Sorry, I’m just used to being defensive around them.”
“Understood. No problem. But we’re not going to fall back into the same patterns. I won’t let that happen. I promise.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I said, smiling now. “Whatever you do to help the Warriors helps us all. The enemy of our enemy is our friend.”
“I wouldn’t go that far…” Vrill said.
I laughed. “Neither would I.”
“C’mon,” I said. “It’s time to get started. Your Leveling up is set to occur before the next Black.”
She stood without further question, resting a hand on Mrizandr. Then she began to walk toward the hill.
~~~
Before I’d left the Three’s cave, Airiel had asked me to bring Beat, Lace and Millania to the Leveling up ceremony to assist with the process of wrapping Vrill’s body. All the Three were there, which I knew was a monumental effort, at least for Min and Persepheus. They looked worse for making the short journey, even though Airiel had flown them the length of the canyon.
They stood in a semicircle around one of the stone slabs on which Leveling occurred. A pile of cocoons stood ready for the wrapping, a pot of ooze beside it.
Vrill strode right up to the Three in her usual no-nonsense way. “Let’s get one thing straight,” she said. “I don’t work for you. I work for the Warriors. And I won’t bring anyone here against their will. Understood?”
“Understood,” Airiel said gravely. Min and Persepheus each offered a single nod. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Vrill said. She pressed the buttons on the sides of her armor and each plate released with a hiss. She handed her breastplate to me and let the bottoms fall away completely. Naked, she climbed onto the slab and lay down on her back.
“Sam,” Airiel said, and I approached with the fruit containing the juice that would render Vrill unconscious for the duration of the Leveling up process. I stood over her. She looked up at me with eyes so deep I could fall into them and never reach the bottom. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
“Only you could’ve made me come back here,” Vrill said.
“Yeah,” I said. “Me, a dragon, and the demon overlords that enslaved you.”
She chuckled. For once one of my jokes hit home with her. “Go ahead,” she said. “I’m ready to taste that nasty fruit.”
I nodded, held the fruit over her face and then squeezed. Glowing white liquid dribbled onto her skin and she closed her eyes. She licked it off her lips, tasting the bittersweet mixture that, despite her words, was actually quite delicious. And then she was gone—mentally that is—falling into a dream that would sustain her throughout the process.
Her expression serene, she looked breathtakingly beautiful.
I gestured for Beat, Lace and Millania to approach to assist with the wrapping and oozing, but Persepheus said, “No.” It wasn’t the kind of sharp rebuke that I was used to from her, but a soft suggestion that was every bit as effective. “We will do it. All Three of us.”
If Vrill was still awake, I would’ve suggested they not touch her, not if they wanted to keep all their limbs intact, but she was long gone. And, in a way, this was the chance for the Three to do something they should’ve done a long time ago—respected those who protected them.
I wondered why any of us were here if the Three were going to handle the Leveling up themselves. I sat on a stone and watched as, quite tenderly, the Three worked together to prepare Vrill’s body, covering her nakedness with the cocoon, encasing her in the material. Airiel then picked up the clay pot and dribbled it onto the cocoon, filling every nook and cranny.
When they were finished, they each placed their hands on Vrill and whispered something under their breaths. A spell, a prayer, something. The cocooned body began to glow with the same bright white aura that coated the vines and fruit growing down the canyon cliffs. Even when they lifted their hands from Vrill, the glow lingered, eventually fading, seeming to seep inside the cocoon.
“This is good,” I said.
“Yep,” Beat said casually. “Now let’s get some grub. All this Leveling up made me hungry.”
“Not yet,” Airiel said. “We are not finished.”
“This better not be a joke,” Lace said, catching on before Beat and I, who pretty much wore the same confused expression. Millania, as usual, was silent, but a small smile had crept onto her lips.
“It’s not,” Airiel said. “Not for Sam, Millania and you, anyway.”
It clicked. Beat was getting left behind. She understood too. She punched me. “It’s fine, champ. I would make a sucky Seeker anyway. And I like being a Protector. I’m fucking good at it. Millania and I will hold down the fort, don’t you worry.”
I laughed. “Yes, you are. The best. And Lace did kind of suck at it.”
The cat-woman fired a glare my way. “Watch it,” she warned.
I raised my hands. “I’m just saying you’ll make an awesome Seeker.” She showed me her teeth, but at least she seemed placated by that response. “And Millania will be an excellent Protector.” Millania offered a shy smile, but I could tell the lanky ocean dweller was pleased by the compliment.
As for me…
Holy shit, is this really happening? Was I really going to be Leveled up to 5 with Vrill? I remembered what Min had told me back in the caves, about how I was eligible because of my pesky Syrene bite. Thank you, Vampire Mermaid, I thought, wondering whether I should send a card and a note.
I stood up, feeling like I was flying as I made my way over to one of the remaining stone slabs. Lace did the same, unabashedly plucking off her loin-bikini and tossing it aside. Her perky breasts barely moved as she slid onto the hard surface, her wolverine claws wicking out and then back in.
Millania had moved toward another slab, easing her clothes down her body and stepping daintily out of them, her lean, greenish body revealed.
“Drop your loincloth, turn your head to the side and cough,” Beat said, slapping me on the ass. I obeyed, minus the head turning and coughing. I hopped up onto the stone, which was cool on my bare skin.
My head flopped to the side so I could look at Beat, who was cutting open another of the glowing white frui
ts. “Don’t take advantage of me while I’m unconscious,” I said.
“I won’t,” Beat promised, winking. Her fingers were crossed, which made me laugh. “You ready?” She held the fruit up, juice dribbling down her fingers.
Lace muttered, “Of course you’d do him first.”
“Can it, kitty,” Beat said. “Level before beauty.”
That silenced her. Lace loved compliments. “Ready,” I said, opening my mouth wide and feeling, strangely, like I was at the dentist, only the dentist was a hulked-up woman holding fruit rather than a drill.
Beat squeezed her fist and a waterfall of bittersweet liquid fell onto my tongue, coating it. I closed my mouth and swallowed. “See you on the flip side,” she said, her voice sounding unusual, muffled, like she was speaking through a gag.
“Ba-bye,” I said, the world already fading.
And then the Black came early.
~~~
“When did it start?” a voice said somewhere beyond the edges of my dream.
Everything was dark, and yet I felt like a thousand flashes of light had gone off in my head, providing a measure of clarity beyond anything I’d ever experienced before. A truth I’d known for a while but had never been able to understand appeared, but I forced it from my mind, the feeling of claustrophobia setting in as I felt the sides of the cocoon pressing against me.
“Halfway through the Leveling up process,” a second voice said. The first had been Persepheus. The second Minertha.
“The time has come,” a third voice said. Airiel. What time had come? I wondered. What are they talking about? I needed to get out, hated the feeling of breathing the ooze, the wet, sucking sound of each breath like nails on a chalkboard.
I pushed against the sides of the cocoon, feeling my biceps, triceps and forearms bulge. My abs clenched and I felt the material balloon out and then begin to tear, parting like wet paper between the force of my efforts.
“We can discuss this later,” Persepheus said. “He’s awakening.”
I slung the cocoon material away from my face and chest, hearing it flop wetly to each side. The first thing I did was retch, dispelling the ooze from my lungs, coughing out chunks until there was room for a single ragged breath to pass through my throat. My legs were still pinned by the bottom half of the cocoon, and I took a moment to wipe the slime from my eyes, clearing my fuzzy vision.
