by Lola StVil
“I’m sorry. I know about losing the ones you love. I grieve for your mom every day. Every day. It would have been easier to lose my damn wings than to have her taken from me. But I found some good in this world too.”
“Really? And what would that be? Because from where I stand, this is all shit! All we ever get to experience is death, blood, and more death. So tell me, Dad, what’s good about it? Because I can’t see the good. Since Mom died, what has made your life worth living?”
“You.”
I start laughing ironically. The weight of everything comes down on me—hard. I drop to my knees and cry out in utter despair and frustration.
“Dad, just go…let me be gutted and miserable by myself.”
“You can be as down and out as you want. You can even set the world on fire if that’s the shit that needs to happen. But you will never be by yourself,” he says as he sits beside me on the ground silently as the forest burns around us. He smiles sadly and mutters something to himself.
“Summit Case, she would have been something.”
A short while later, I make my way back to the clinic. I enter the room with the busted door and find the team gathered around Pryor. When I enter, all eyes are on me. I turn to Dylan and address him.
“About what happened earlier…” I begin.
“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it. The body processes anger and disappointment in a myriad of different ways. It’s totally normal,” Dylan replies.
Okay…
“Yeah, well, it was a crappy thing to do and I could have hurt you, so…sorry,” I reply.
“I can take it,” he says, trying to add bass to his voice.
I turn to Pryor, who is looking out the window and has been ever since I came in.
“I need a minute alone with Pryor,” I announce.
“Yeah, we’ll go ahead to the location of the demon and look around, make sure there are no nasty surprises for us,” Swoop offers.
“No, I don’t want you guys going without us. We have to do this as a team in case things go wrong. Hang out in the hallway. We’ll be out soon,” Pry says.
“Got it, boss!” Swoop says as she leads everyone out of the room.
Pryor and I are officially alone. I walk over to her, and although she’s only inches away from me, I can’t read her face. I have no idea what she’s thinking and that troubles me.
“I shouldn’t have taken off like that. It was…stupid,” I admit.
“Is anything left standing in the forest?” she asks.
“Some…”
“I think the demon we’re headed to meet is a strong lead, but I don’t want us to put all our hopes on him. We should also seek out the demon’s friends and associates. That way we have options,” Pry tells me.
“That’s a good idea. Babe, can we talk now?”
“We are talking,” she reminds me.
“No, I mean can we address what Dylan told us?”
“Yeah, it sucks.”
“That’s it?” I ask.
“What else is there to say?” she asks.
“I don’t know…I just thought you’d want to discuss it.”
“Well, you took off before Dylan finished telling us everything. The virus latches itself onto the part of the soul that is responsible for creating Sibs. So when we had sex in the car, if a Sib was forming, the virus would stop it from reaching the point of growth needed to get Alexi to come to us. So…I guess that’s it. No baby. It’s okay, they can be kind of a time suck, actually,” she says casually.
“Pry, why are you saying that?”
“It’s true. I mean, I wanted one, but…hey, it’s no big deal. Now, let’s go kick some demon ass, okay?” she says as she races for the door.
I stop her and turn her towards me. “Pry, you don’t have to do this with me. I know how hurt you are. I am too. Don’t shut me out.”
“I’m not. I’m just choosing not to be a wreck about this. That’s all. The girl was just an idea and it didn’t pan out.”
“Summit.”
“What?” she says, confused.
“Her name would have been Summit.”
“Oh, yeah. Right. Okay, let’s go,” she says as she exits the room.
I follow her out into the hallway, where we find Diana and Bex waiting in the center of a crowd full of Healers and the team. But the being the crowd is interested in is not Diana, it’s the baby angel she holds in her arms—Nix.
Phoenix Cane looks exactly like his father, or what I picture Malakaro must have looked like as a kid. His big dark eyes are full of life. And as he looks at the world around him, they light up with glee. He has plump chubby cheeks, just ripe for squeezing. And his stubby little fingers point to everything with fascination and wonder. He’s wearing a white onesie with gold trim. On the front of his outfit, it says, “I rule. No, seriously. I do.”
He bounces up and down excitedly as he meets the team. He longs to be set free so he can explore everything around him. He pouts when he realizes he won’t be able to escape his mother’s hold. The only thing cuter than this kid’s smile is his angry face. He scrunches his forehead, determine to show us he’s upset, but doesn’t quite make it.
“I know, Nix, I know. But I can’t let you go. Your wings aren’t strong enough yet,” Diana reasons with her son.
Nix points at two birds flying just outside the window. He summons them to him and they enter, ready to do his bidding. We laugh as we watch Nix try to figure out a way to use the birds’ wings to support his efforts to fly away from his mom.
“Okay, okay. Here, play with this,” Diana says as she hands him a glass box with a small orb. If you focus enough, the orb will turn into various shapes.
But Nix is not ready to give up his dream of flying away from his mom’s hold, so he tries to get more birds from outside to join us. When he can’t see them through the trees, he points his finger at them and turns the trees into dust. Now he has full access to the birds that were hiding there.
“Nix! That’s not nice. Leave the birds alone. They have to play too,” Diana says as she kisses her infant’s forehead. She gently blows on his face, and he starts giggling. While he’s strong enough to reduce timber into sawdust, he’s not strong enough to maintain his displeasure with his mom. In fact, he soon gives in and is in full laughter mode.
Diana passes Nix around and the team are instantly in love. When Diana hands him to Pryor, she declines but smiles and says he’s adorable.
“You don’t want to hold him?” Diana asks, sounding wounded.
“I just…yeah, sure. Of course,” Pryor says as she opens her arms and Diana places Nix against her chest. He is fascinated with the color of her hair. He runs his fingers through it and starts cooing with excitement. He reaches out for her, trying to get higher and closer so he can get a good look at the main attraction—Pryor’s purple eyes.
She holds him closer like he wants and his mouth opens wide in shock. Pryor’s eyes seem to offer the biggest surprise for Nix. He puckers up and kisses his auntie and then beams at her. Tears begin to well up in Pryor’s eyes. She rushes over and hands him back to Diana.
She takes off out the window and I follow her. She lands somewhere in New York City. We’re only a few miles from where Malakaro and the Alago are being held. Pry scours the area, looking for something or someone. When I ask her what she’s looking for, the pain in her voice is undeniable.
“My mom. I know she’s here somewhere. I have to tell her—”
“Pry, what is it? What happened?” Death says as she lands near us.
“How did you—”
“Fate. I think he’s trying to make up for what happened with Ever. He said to be here at this time. Talk to me, honey, what’s wrong?” Death asks.
“I’m sorry I was such a jerk to you. I didn’t get how much you could love someone and how awful it would be to lose them. I took it for granted that my mom saved my life. And now Omnis is punishing me. He won’t let me have babies. But I already
saw her, Mom, I saw her in my head. She’s beautiful. She has pretty eyes like you and long hair and she loves me…Summit loves me and I will never get to meet her,” Pryor says as she sobs in her mother’s arms.
I knew it bothered her to hear the news about not being able to have children. And as hard as she tried to act unaffected, it’s killing her. I step far enough away that the two of them can talk but stay close enough in case she needs me.
Pryor explains everything to her mother and confesses that she’s shocked by how much the news hurts her.
“It’s stupid, I know. I mean, it’s not like I have to have a kid to be valuable,” Pryor says.
“No, you don’t,” Emmy says.
“Then why do I feel so…empty?”
“Motherhood is a gift. But not having children doesn’t make you any less important.”
“I just keep seeing her out in limbo somewhere, waiting for parents she’s never going to have. A family she will never know…it wasn’t supposed to go this way. What did I do wrong?” she cries.
“You didn’t do anything wrong. This isn’t a punishment. Sometimes things just…my baby, come here,” Death says as she holds her weeping daughter tightly.
“I just want to meet her, Mom. Even for a few minutes.”
“I know. And there was nothing that could be done?” Emmy asks.
“No. The virus latches onto my soul. We can’t pull it out of me—wait! I have an idea!” Pry shouts.
“What is it?” Emmy says.
“Aaden, gather the team at the warehouse. Moments after we execute my plan, we’ll go look for the demon,” Pryor shouts to me.
“Wait! What plan?” I shout as she takes to the air.
“The plan to save our daughter!”
On our way to the warehouse, Diana reluctantly drops Nix off with Mrs. Maybelle. It’s hard for her to fly away from him, but Swoop takes her hand and assures her she’s doing the right thing. Mrs. Maybelle has looked after a bunch of kids and she’d give her life if it meant saving one of them: angel, demon, whatever. Mrs. Maybelle loves kids.
By the time we land in front of the warehouse, I’ve called and texted Pryor three times. She says she’s on her way and not to worry. But the fact that she has to tell me not to worry…worries me.
When we enter the warehouse, a figure appears from the corner and walks towards us. We are all on high alert and ready to strike, when we realize the being in front of us is a friend. He’s one of the most powerful angels of our time. He’s an Original angel. I’ve always liked him; he isn’t as rigid or stuffy as the others. In fact, he’s a die-hard gadget lover.
“Raphael, what are you doing here?” I ask.
“I came to see the Kon,” he says.
“What is it?” Bex asks in a commanding voice.
“It’s about your son—the one who isn’t really yours,” the Original says.
Bex and Diana look at each other in a sudden state of panic. Bex walks up to the Original with certainty and claims Nix as his son. Raphael smiles a little but says nothing.
“If you have an issue with my son, then say it,” Diana says protectively.
“Not at all. I saw the little Toren. I can see why he’s worth all this trouble,” he replies.
“What’s a Toren?” Swoop asks.
“That is what the angel world is calling the children of the Noru. Although to be honest, we didn’t think we’d need to find a name so quickly. You know there’s no shame in waiting to become parents,” he says.
“You’re right. It’s not like life is short or anything,” Swoop says, rolling her eyes.
“You’re right, and life will be even shorter for your son if the angel world learns who his father really is. But that’s exactly what will happen once the demon Kador gets done shouting to the world that Phoenix belongs to Malakaro.”
“Who’s Kador?” Bex asks Diana.
“He’s a friend of Kill’s. He threatened to expose the truth, so I killed him. But he said he had an accomplice that would tell my secret,” Diana replies.
“Why didn’t you tell me about that?” Bex says.
“I thought he was lying. I had no idea his friend was real or that he would really expose Nix. Are they out to get him? The angels? Do they want my baby? What’s gonna happen to him—I have to go!” Diana says as she prepares to take off.
“Wait!” Raphael says as he takes her arm and gently brings her back towards the team.
“Kador approached the Originals with his claim that Nix doesn’t belong to Bex. It’s easy enough to prove. Since Nix would be a Kon, there is an internal mark that will shine from within him, proving his royal bloodline. Nix will not have that mark,” he replies.
“What do we do? Can we replicate the mark at all?” East asks.
“You would need a special pendant called a Lure. And it’s been like a hundred years since anyone has seen one,” Dylan says.
“Maybe we can find it,” Swoop says.
“But we don’t have time for that,” East reminds her.
“So, what? Let the Paras do what they will with Nix?” Diana says.
“You know I won’t let anything happen to Nix. Why don’t you trust that by now?” Bex asks.
“Because I don’t know how far your desire to stick it to Pryor really goes,” Diana says.
“What are you talking about?” Bex pushes.
“You’re keeping me and Nix safe because you want to show Pryor that she picked the wrong guy. That you’re the good guy. But how far is that desire going to extend?” Diana says.
“You really think that’s why I’m helping you?” Bex says.
“How could I think anything else? Everything you do has to do with her. I figured this did too,” Diana adds.
“Wow, thanks so much for letting me know what kind of angel you think I am,” Bex says angrily.
“You have helped us so much. I am grateful. But it’s like you only think about Pryor and not about us. By that I…I mean Nix,” she says, avoiding his eyes.
It’s then that Bex finally gets it. Diana hasn’t been pretending at all. Being with Bex has been real for her. Real in ways he never even thought about until now.
“Diana, are you…” He doesn’t finish. He just looks at her, not sure what else to say.
“Hey, I’m sorry to cut short our weekly episode of ‘things everyone realized but Bex,’ but how are we going to protect Nix?” East says.
“When do they want to test him to see if his markings are like that of a Kon?” I ask.
“It’s already been done. They got an Original to officiate the process at Mrs. Maybelle’s the moment you dropped him off,” Raphael says.
“What did they do to him? Is he hurt?” Diana demands.
“No, he’s fine. It’s not painful,” the Original swears.
“Who did the procedure?” Bex asks.
“I did. That’s how I know he’s not really a Kon,” he replies.
“You told them he’s not a Para?” Bex says.
“No, the pendant I referred to has been in my family for some time now. Once I saw Nix had no markings, I distracted everyone and used it to simulate the symbol. Kador was killed for lying to the Originals and trying to cast doubt on the Kon,” Raphael explains.
“You did that? You saved my son?” Diana asks.
“The Noru have dealt with a lot. You guys don’t ever get a break. I know what that feels like. I’m a gamer; I know pressure,” he says proudly.
“Thank you for helping Nix,” Diana replies.
“There’s always going to be rumors about Nix not belonging to the Kon, but nothing that can be proven. In fact, I’m guessing the Toren will have a whole new shit storm to face,” Raphael replies.
“Raphael!” Pryor shouts as she flies into the warehouse.
“Carrot!” he says as he embraces her. Pryor’s family has always been fond of Raphael because he helped out the Guardians when they desperately needed him. In fact, without him, they would never have been ab
le to save the world.
The very same world we are in danger of losing yet again.
Raphael heads back to help the rest of the Originals fight a band of demons who are attacking in the Middle East. As soon as he’s gone, Pryor turns to us and we give her an update. As soon as she’s caught up, she takes my hand and addresses me with newfound excitement.
“I think I got it!” she says with a big smile.
“Got what?” I ask.
“What did Raphael call the next generation of Noru again?” she asks.
“Toren,” I reply.
“Well, there are two Torens now: RJ and Nix. But if this works, someday, hopefully soon, there will be a third Toren.” She beams.
“What are you talking about?” I ask.
“I found a way to beat the virus,” Pryor says as she wraps her arms around me.
“How?” Dylan asks before I can.
“So this Sheba virus latches on to part of my soul and that stops it from creating any Sibs. And there’s no way to pull it off me, right?” Pryor asks Dylan and Diana.
They nod their heads in agreement.
“But what if we don’t pull it out, what if we destroy it by sending something after it?” Pryor says.
“You mean a mixture to dissolve it somehow?” Dylan says.
“Pry, there are no mixtures that can do that. I checked after I learned about your condition,” Diana adds sadly.
“Not a mixture—a creature,” Pry says carefully.
I have no idea where she’s going with this, but I’m sure I won’t like it. I walk closer to her and look in her eyes.
Yeah, I’m sure as hell that I will not like this.
“Pry, how do you plan to get rid of the virus?” I ask.
She takes out a glass vial the size of her index finger. Inside it is one of the most lethal weapons ever created—a Sive. It’s a chrome-like spider that eats through flesh and bone to get to the soul. Once released, it’s unstoppable.
“And what do you plan on doing with that thing?” I ask.
“Swallow it.”
I look at my wife, fearing that she has truly lost her mind. The Cane women have been known to do crazy, risky things; Emmy once leaped off a building with no powers at all in order to help on a mission. But this, this is insane.
