“I was being pulled another direction—the entire time we were in the cave, it was as though the ritual was calling me back,” I say. “It was powerful.”
Suddenly, memories from the full moon ritual with Demetri flood my consciousness. I see the circle we cast, the Violet Flame of Transmutation, Morgan and Gabe and her map to find her final five guardians. I didn’t think it had worked for me—but I was wrong. The intentions of how we manipulated its magic to transmute and transform the energy surrounding my memories—it had worked all along. It just needed to guide me to my path so I could fulfill its purpose. Time had to run its course and free will had to play its roll.
“So, you…went hunting for something? Is that why I couldn’t find you?”
“Yes—I know I should have been focused on the girls, but when you’ve spent millennia trying to unlock your mind—and you realize you might be close—”
Overwhelmed by the intense desire to bring him current, to explain myself in a way that can’t be explained by words, I take a breath and allow the full capacity of my God-granted gifts to flow through me. These abilities—they’ve always been more than just a simple psychic ability—they’re powers in their own right and I’ve never even given them the attention they deserve.
Placing my middle two fingers alongside Blake’s temple the way Morgan did for me, I close my eyes, summoning the power to relay some of the details I’ve lived through these past few weeks. The hunt for Esther, the realization there were other girls. I show him the ritual with Demetri, Morgan, and Gabe—the Violet Flame. The insights to Mnemosyne’s symbol and the ritual of drinking from the River of Lethe. My heartache as I found him dead in the cave and the way I feel now that I know.
The memories rush through me, flooding from me into his consciousness. I show him the thread tying his soul through the ages—directly to back to Anastasios. I gift him the years of memories we shared together—our childhood. The time we spent together by the Gulf of Corinth—first as young children. Our first kiss by the water’s edge. Our moonlit wedding and the gifts granted by Apollo. Everything I feel and have felt throughout the long, lonely existence of my life.
Blake pulls back, his eyes wide, but dazzling in amazement.
He takes my outstretched hand, placing it over his heart.
“I—I don’t even know how to describe—” he begins.
“You don’t have to. I just, I needed you to see and feel what I do.”
I search his eyes, wanting to see at soul level what impact this may have had.
After a moment, he licks his lower lip and takes a deep inhalation. “That was—an experience I will never forget. Well, obviously. I mean, I had no idea—no clue something like that was possible, let alone everything you’ve been through. I mean, I was following you. I heard what you were saying about being the reincarnation of your husband and while I understand and felt something, I dunno, resonate in your words…I guess—it’s nothing like the experience of it.”
A slow smile slides across my lips. “Tell me about it.”
His eyes fall to the ground, as he clutches my hand to his body—his eyes going distant and far away. We sit in silence for a moment, taking in the moonlit sights and sounds.
“I think I hold a missing piece to your puzzle,” he whispers.
“What do you mean?”
“When you—whatever you just did knocked some things loose for me. Memories of my own. At least, I think that’s what they are.”
His eyes narrow as he stares at the rocky ground, trying to recollect.
My heart hitches and I lean forward. “Can you explain?”
“I remember you—us. I remember our connection and my side of the exchanges you sent me. But…I was never gifted immortality, Diana. Or should I say, Amara?” he says, grinning.
Hearing my birth name—or rather, his nickname for my birth name, Amarantham, pulls me up short. It’s been eons since I last went by that name. Tears brim at my eyes and my forehead crumples as I deal with this proclamation.
Blake’s eyes are wide and sympathetic as he waits for the news to settle and his hands refuse to drop mine from his heart.
“But we were told—” I sob.
“We were only told I would be by your side forever. That’s all,” he says, raising his eyebrows.
“And how is that not immortality?” I say, splaying my other hand out wide in front of us.
“Because the only way a human soul can walk alongside an immortal is…”
He holds the silence, waiting for me to catch up.
My eyes widen. “Reincarnation. Oh my God. I’m so stupid. How did I not know? How did I not pick that up?”
My fingertips graze my lips and I sit in horror at the revelation. Sure, it would have sucked to locate him again, to have to go through years of childhood and adolescence before he could be with me again—but my gifts would have easily brought him to me. Instead, I forced myself into two millennia alone. I forced him into two millennia reincarnating without me. All that time lost…
“You weren’t meant to know. It was my burden to carry and a promise I made to Apollo in exchange for his approval. He knew we’d continue to find our way to one another and he wanted the timing to be right for you to learn the truth.”
“Why would timing even matter?”
Tears stream over my cheeks, dropping to my lap.
“I don’t know, beautiful. It wasn’t my place to question a God,” he says. “Holy shit—I’ve dealt with a God.” His eyebrows tug in and he shakes his head. “Until now, I’ve been 100% atheist.”
“I’m sure under the circumstances, Apollo will forgive you,” I say swiping at the tears and chuckling despite myself.
“Sure as hell hope so. I mean, wow—how many people can say they’ve had that sort of interaction? Well, and not been locked up for it?” he says, scratching at the back of his neck with his right hand.
“Not many,” I laugh. “I thought for sure you’d have me committed after this conversation was over.”
Blake shakes his head, “No way. We’re in this together.”
My heart lightens, as my burden of loneliness is lifted from my being. For the first time in forever, I feel light as air and smile with the light and love of Apollo.
“Besides,” he adds, “we can’t have our first true ‘official’ date at the coffee shop when you’re strapped down to a bed. Well, okay—that could come after, if you’re into that sorta thing now.”
His grin is infectious, and his lopsided dimples emerge in a way that instantly melts my heart.
“You’ll have wait and find out,” I say, pushing at his shoulder playfully.
“For you—I’ll wait forever and then some.”
His right hand slides beneath my hair, tugging at my neck and drawing me closer. I close my eyes, feeling his lips as they press against my own in a strange mix of memory and magic. I breathe it all in—embracing the present moment and all the beauty it has to offer.
At first, all I perceive is his fragrance of grapes hidden in the depths of his cologne—but it twists into something else.
Mnemosyne’s scent of jasmine and rose floods my nostrils, taking over everything.
“Pythia—it is time. Are you ready to resume your role as the rightful Oracle of Delphi?”
THE END
Get Another Glimpse of Diana…
To get a different take on Diana, be sure to check out Carissa’s novelette, The Final Five. It’s a bridge novelette going between both the world in Oracle & the world in her upcoming novel, Awakening. It’s available exclusively in the Angels & Magic Boxed Set. Now available!
Click here to snag your copy!
Also by Carissa Andrews
The Pendomus Chronicles
Pendomus: Book 1 of the Pendomus Chronicles
Polarities: Book 2 of the Pendomus Chronicles
Revolutions: Book 3 of the Pendomus Chronicles
The Final Five: An Oracle & Awakening Bridge Novelette (Angels &
Magic Boxed Set)
Nonfiction
Author Impostor: Getting Over Impostor Syndrome So You Can Reclaim Your Author Power and Start Writing
Coming Soon…
Awakening: The Rise as the Fall Unfolds
About the Author
"An author emerges from the depths of Minnesotan waters. Sci-fi/Fantasy is my pen of choice."
Carissa Andrews is a genre-bending author who writes a combination of science fiction, fantasy, and dystopia. For 2018, she's also ventured into the world of nonfiction to give the advice she teaches in person to her fellow authors. When not writing her own books, she's busy reading them.
She lives in central Minnesota with her husband and brood of five kids. When not engaging in the literary world, she loves adventuring with her family, enjoying the Minnesota outdoors (when the wind doesn’t hurt her face), and meditating when she needs to find her om. She’s also an unapologetic progressive, volunteering her time to causes that help the environment, equality for all, and healthy living.
You can learn more about her or her upcoming books on her website: www.carissaandrews.com and be sure to sign up for her weekly newsletter for exclusives, book deals, and occasional ramblings.
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