by Lola StVil
“I think we really need that info. Please, can you go find out for us?” she says gently.
“Okay, but we’re not done,” he says with a sly smile as he leans in and gives her a quick kiss. He takes off and tells us he’ll come back as soon as he finds something. Once he’s gone, we all turn to Swoop.
“What? C’mon, we don’t have enough going on? Do we need to plunge into my love life?” she says.
“You’re right. It would be childish to stop in the middle of this mission and ask you what’s up with you two. But guess what? I’m feeling very immature,” East says with a big grin.
“Me too! Immature all the way!” Diana replies.
“I can’t marry him,” she says.
“Why not?” Pryor asks.
“Because…I just can’t,” Swoop says, shifting her weight.
“So you want to, but something’s holding you back. What would that be?” East pushes.
“Yeah, Swoop, out with it. Tell us why you’re pushing him away,” Diana says.
“He’s so sweet and he knows just about everything. And did I say he was yummy? Because he is,” Pryor adds.
“And he saved our asses on the mission, Swoop. He’s perfect,” East says.
“Say yes to him,” Pry says.
Diana quickly chimes in, “Oh, it would be nice to have a winter wedding. I have the perfect dress—”
“There isn’t going to be a wedding,” Swoop snaps.
“Bird, what’s wrong?” I ask.
“What’s wrong is we all live together, work together, fight together—that’s fine—but once in a while, we need our space. I need my space, a part of my life that’s just mine. So please, just back off,” Swoop says, and she starts to storm off when Diana shrieks.
We all turn and look at her in total confusion.
“What is it?” I ask.
“Nix! He’s ready! I mean, I’m ready. He is—I’m—OHMYOMNIS!” Diana says as she holds out her palm. We look at the markings; they are complete. Her son is ready to come out of his protective shell and join the world. The Healer, having heard Diana shouting, enters the room.
“Come, we’ll take you to the Original who will help you match the pattern on your hand to your son’s cocoon,” she says.
Diana gets out of bed and beams back at us.
“Do you want us to go with you?” I ask.
“Yeah, but you guys should stay and finish getting Pryor checked out. And also we need to stay on track and find the Architect,” she says.
“You shouldn’t be alone,” East says.
“Yeah, and we want to see Phoenix as soon as he opens his little eyes,” Swoop says.
“You will. Bex and I will get him and be back here as soon as we can,” she promises.
The Healer takes her hand and the two of them start to walk out. But just as she passes through the doorway, Diana turns back. She looks at me with a sad smile. It’s like she thinks this is all too good to be true. I know that feeling very well.
“Hey, it’s okay. You did it. You protected Nix. He’s all yours now. Yours to love and take care of. And Sparks would have been so proud of you,” I whisper as I lean in. Diana and I had always been close, but after losing a child together, we formed a bond that could not be put into words. I hug her and congratulate her. The next time we see the former Kaster, she will be someone’s mom.
The news of Nix’s impending arrival is all anyone in the room can talk about. But given what still needs to be done, we are forced to contain our excitement and get back to business. Pryor orders Swoop and East to scour the streets for information while Dylan is looking over past journals in his penthouse.
I want to hit the street and see what I can find, especially since nearly an hour has passed since we have been here. But I have a feeling my wife would leave the clinic as soon as I turn my back. That can’t happen. We need to be a hundred percent sure that Ever’s virus is really nothing.
Pry doesn’t share my concern. She keeps rolling her eyes and sighing dramatically. I ignore her and continue with what I’m doing—looking at her arms and legs in search of any marks. Finally she has had enough and pulls my hand away from her.
“There are no marks on my body. I am fine. Maybe the virus Ever sent me failed because she was dying. Maybe I’m too strong to be affected. Or maybe Omnis cut us a break,” she says.
“Were you always this impossible to take?” I ask.
“No, I had to grow into this. It took time,” she teases.
“Okay, okay. I will stop, but you can’t leave that bed until Dylan comes back and says he didn’t find anything,” I reply.
“Fine. Hey, I’ve been calling your dad and he’s not getting back to me. Is he okay?” she asks.
“Yeah, but he’s really pissed at us for getting married without him and your mom present.”
“Did you tell him it was all your idea and that the blame is yours?” she asks.
“What? Why would I do that?” I ask.
“Honey, your father is already mad at you. Do we really need him to be mad at me too? C’mon, take one for the team.” She laughs.
I shake my head and smile at her. “I think we should get married again—just for them. That way they don’t, you know, kill us,” I suggest.
“That sounds like a good idea. It’ll be nice,” she says.
“Okay, I’ll tell our parents and hope that gets us off their shit list.”
“Speaking of parents, I’ve been thinking about us having kids,” she says carefully.
“Really?”
“How can I not? I’m surrounded by new moms.”
“Okay, so what are your thoughts on the issue?” I ask.
“We just got married. We have so much going on. And demons don’t ever stop. It would be totally illogical to even think about having a kid right now,” she says.
“Oh…yeah, well, that makes sense,” I whisper. Her words make my chest tighten and my heart sink. I was only a father for a short time, but it changed my life. I want to feel that again as soon as we can. I think we would be good parents. Pryor and I are almost always on the same page, and we’ve known each other all our lives.
“Aaden, I’m kidding. Let’s be illogical,” she says with a sly smile.
“Seriously? You want us to have a kid? I mean, I know we’ve talked about it before, but you’re saying you really want to?”
“Well, we already had sex with no Tam. Was that an accident?” she asks.
“I wasn’t thinking about it; turns out seeing you naked makes it hard to focus. So blame your breasts,” I reply.
She laughs and places her hand in mine. She tells me that she remembered the Tam and that it was okay not using it. In fact, she was more than okay.
“So we are really gonna have kids?” I reply with a stupid grin.
“Yes, right after we save the world and Randy. And if we happen to get a visit from a certain bird before then, we will deal with it. With our luck Alexi will come right in the middle of a battle,” she jokes.
“I could see that happening. You’d have a Powerball in one hand and Alexi in the other,” I reply.
“I know it’s crazy to do it so fast, but we got married fast. And well, it’s always going to be something. The fact is all we have is now. And right now, I want to have your Sib. She’d have your smile and my eyes. She’ll joined an all-boys sports team and crush it! She’ll be amazing,” Pry says gleefully.
“Why do you think our first kid is going to be a girl? It could be a boy,” I remind her.
“Nope, us girls are stronger. We’re warriors. And that’s what our child will be. I’m good with a boy too, but I gotta tell you, I’m thinking our first will be a girl.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter if we have a boy or a girl, I just know one thing: our baby will have to face a difficult, unreasonable horror,” I warn her.
“Yeah, I know. Demons at every turn—”
“I’m not talking about demons; I’m talking about something f
ar worse—Comic-Con. Randy will force our kid to go with him every year. How can we put a kid through that?” I tease.
She laughs and vows that she will not let Randy dress our kid up in anything with a cape. “I can see Randy now—‘Pry, Wonder Woman is an icon. We have to let your daughter wear the cape,’” Pryor says, doing her best Randy impression. We laugh together. But then she grows quiet.
“You okay?” I ask softly.
“Yeah, I just really miss him. I want him to be in our lives, Aaden. I want him to give our child the same thing he gave me: an indestructible friendship. I want our daughter to run to him when she thinks we’re being unfair—which, if she’s anything like me, will be all the time.”
“She’s going to have that because we are going to save Randy. I have no doubt about that at all. He’s gonna have keys to the house and insist on taking our daughter to get her very first gaming system. I can see her jumping up and down, excited. Destroying everything in Roslyn because Uncle Randy is gonna take her out,” I reply.
“She’s going to wreck the house and crash into things as she learns to fly. Only Omnis knows what her powers will be, but whatever they are, it will be a major headache. I can’t wait!” she tells me.
I study her face. She’s glowing with happiness at the mere suggestion of being a mom.
I’ve watched her grow from an emotional little girl to a strong-willed leader. There were times I wasn’t sure she’d be able to handle all the heartache that came with being Noru. But she did it. She endured losing her baby brother, a member of her team, and now her father, the light of her life. But she fought so hard to come back from all of that. She worked to get past the pain, no matter how much there was of it. If our kid is a tenth as strong as her mother, I’ll be happy.
Speaking of Marcus…
“Hey, I have the perfect name for our kid,” I inform her.
“Oh really?” she says suspiciously.
“Yeah, I think you’ll like it.”
“And it works for a girl or a boy?” she asks.
“Yup, got you covered.”
“Okay, Noru. Spill it. What will you name our first child?” she pushes.
“I thought we could name her something that has a special meaning to you, something to honor Marcus. Our first child’s name will be…Summit.”
Tears spring to her eyes in a matter of seconds and she reaches out for me and wraps her arms around my neck. She’s shaking as she cries in my arms.
“Does that mean you like it?” I ask as I wipe away her tears.
She nods, too overcome to talk. I give her a few moments so she can collect herself. Soon, she’s beaming.
“Aaden, Summit is perfect! It’s just absolutely perfect. My dad would love that we’re naming our kid after a place that meant so much to him,” she says.
“Your dad said summit represents ‘quiet strength.’ I can’t think of a better message to send our kid into the world with than those two words. She’ll have her father’s rage and wrath, but her mother’s heart and courage,” I reply.
She places her hand on the side of my face and pulls me into her all-consuming kiss.
“Hey, hey, stop that. If I can’t get some because we’re stuck on a mission, then neither of you can,” East playfully informs us as he enters.
“Sorry, we’re just celebrating being parents,” Pryor says.
“OHMYOMNIS! Where is she? Where’s Alexi? We need to get ready!” East says in a panic as he looks for the silver bird around the room. We lovingly laugh at him.
“Calm down, East. Alexi is not here. We’re just thinking ahead,” I reply.
“Oh, please, you two can’t keep your hands off each other. It’s a wonder Alexi isn’t perched on top of Pry’s skull right now,” East replies.
“We haven’t been that bad,” I counter.
“Are you kidding me? The only way I’ve been able to practice my new power is by working on blocking your attraction to Pry. Silver, if I wasn’t exercising some serious control over my powers, I’d be tapping into your hormones. If that happened, you’d need the Omari to pry me off your wife.”
“Hey!” I warn.
“What? I’m just saying I’m mastering my powers and you two—need to get a room,” East jokes.
Swoop enters the room, excited. She starts speaking right away and can barely contain herself. “Guess what? I know where to start looking for that creepy designer bastard! But first, I’m sorry about yelling at you guys before. I was just stressed out,” she says.
“It’s okay, Bird. We get it. Tell us, what did you find out? Did Dylan come across something?” I reply.
“I haven’t heard anything from him yet, but one of my other contacts did come through,” Swoop says.
“Does your contact know who he is?” East asks.
“No, but he told me about a demon who was hired to get materials for the Center. And that’s what he called his boss—the Architect. He told me where I could find the demon,” she replies.
“Yes! This is our first good lead. Let’s go,” Pry says as she hops out of bed.
“We still don’t know if you’re okay,” I remind her.
“Aaden Grey, look at me. I’m fine. We need to go. Now,” she says, sounding official.
“Okay, but when this mission is over, we’re coming back here to make sure you’re really fine and that the virus didn’t take,” I assure her.
Dylan enters the room, looking concerned. He tells us he didn’t find anything that would help us find the Architect.
“Don’t worry, Swoop has a lead,” I tell him.
“That’s good,” he says, sounding preoccupied as he walks closer to Pry and focuses all his attention on her.
“Dylan, what’s up?” Pryor asks.
“I didn’t find out anything about the creator of the White Room, but I did find out about Ever’s virus,” he says.
“And?” I ask.
“First, just give me a second,” Dylan says as he takes Pryor’s hair and lifts it off her neck, allowing us to view a small mark embedded there. It’s a small wavy line with three slashes going through it. Dylan looks at it and sighs deeply.
“What is that?” I push.
“That’s the mark of a very rare and very powerful virus, one nearly as old as time itself. It’s called Sheba’s kiss, named after the vicious demon who invented it,” Dylan says.
“Is it—I mean, is she…” I can’t bring myself to finish the thought.
“No, this virus won’t kill her,” Dylan says.
“Okay, that’s good,” I reply, relieved beyond belief.
“Will it hurt Pry in any way?” Swoop asks.
“No, there is no physical pain to Sheba’s kiss,” Dylan says.
“Then why do you look so stricken?” Pryor asks.
“Um…it doesn’t give you any pain, but it does something else,” Dylan says.
“Dylan, please! Just come out and say it! What does Ever’s good-bye virus do?” Pryor demands.
“It prevents you from having children—ever.”
“Aaden, let him go!” Swoop screams frantically. It’s only after hearing Bird’s voice that I realize what’s happened. In a blind rage, I tackled Dylan and pinned him to the wall by his throat. My face is inches away from his; the fury that swells up inside me is more than enough to destroy him.
“You’re lying! You’re lying!” I shout as I squeeze him even harder. His face is pale and his eyes are bulging out of his head. He struggles to move his head and signal to me that he’s not mistaken. But he has to be wrong; he has to be wrong.
“Silver, he’s not lying. I can sense him. He’s sorry. He’s very sorry, but it’s the truth. The virus does what he said it does,” East reasons.
I look into Dylan’s eyes and see that he is sincere. This is really happening. I let go of him and back away.
I can feel the flames rising from every inch of my body. Blue fireballs spring to my palms and threaten to engulf everyone around me. I pull the do
or handle with such force the concrete around the doorframe starts caving in. I storm out to the hallway, and by the time I get to the window, I am engulfed in blue flames. I take off into the sky with absolutely no idea where I am going.
I end up somewhere in Russia, in the middle of a dense forest. I can’t remember burning so many things down so quickly. As I set the forest on fire, I curse Omnis to hell. I hurl my anger out into the heavens above. I vow to Omnis that I will hate him so long as I am alive.
“This is bullshit! This is complete bullshit!” I shout to the bastard in the sky.
“YOU TAKE EVERYTHING FROM ME! EVERYTHING! ARGH!” I yell as I kick, stomp, split, and smash everything in sight. I load up to incinerate another acre of land, but before I can strike, I spot a demon land a few feet away.
“Dad, go away!” I order him.
“I can’t. You need me,” the Akon replies.
“No! What I need is a way to get to Omnis. That sick fuck has taken so much from me, from Pryor. From all of us!”
“I know, son.”
“You don’t know. You have no idea.”
“Pryor texted me, said it was an emergency. I called her back and she explained what happened.”
“Really? Then explain it to me. Because I really don’t understand this shit. All we do is try to help people. Why does he keep punishing us for it? Huh? What kind of sick fuck is Omnis? He only gets off when he’s taking things away from us.”
“Yeah, I’ve gone a few rounds with those same thoughts. I get it, Aaden, you know I do.”
“I just need to know why. Why does he hate me so much? What did he get by taking Sparks from me? Why did he take my little girl? And now that I finally put my life together, now that I finally get to be with the girl I love, why would he take away the possibility of having another child?” I demand as I set a trail of flames blazing through the woods. I can’t break or set anything else on fire. I’m exhausted. But I don’t know what else to do. So I keep destroying things, the same way Omnis keeps destroying me.
“I don’t know why this crap is happening. But you can handle it. I know you can. You’re my son; that means you can handle anything. Don’t forget that.”
“We named her—Summit. Pryor and I we were just talking about…we named her.”
