by Mindy Majors
“That is a common misconception Logan. Vampire bats prefer to feed on livestock. Besides, the zookeepers supply their food so there's no reason for them to feed from us,” Conner explained.
“Are you sure?” Ella asked timidly.
“There is a thick pane of glass between us and them, there's no way they’re getting through that. Besides, bats are nocturnal and it's still day time. Don't worry Ella, I won't let anything happen to you, I promise,” Conner answered reassuringly.
“How do they know when it's night time?” Ella asked.
“They have an internal clock just like we do, their bodies tell them when it's night and when it's day,” Conner replied.
“Hey look, they're flying,” Logan said excitedly.
“What?!” Conner and Symarah said in unison. As they turned toward the glass, they saw that Logan was right. The bats were flying around the enclosure.
“Something is not right here, bats don't fly like that and especially not in the middle of the day,” Conner pointed out.
“Come away from the glass,” Symarah said, staring at the bats' odd flight pattern. “I want you to back up against this wall.” She had a very bad feeling about this. Conner was right, something was definitely wrong.
“Do you think this has something to do with Vaiden?” Symarah asked.
“He can't come out in the day, but I wouldn't put it past him to send the unden,” Conner answered. “Animals can sometimes sense the poisoned blood of the unden.”
“They’re headed right for the glass,” Gracee said, pointing her finger at the enclosure.
Symarah and Conner turned just in time to see the bats fly right through the glass as if it wasn't even there. Screams erupted from the back wall as the bats flew over their heads. Symarah watched in horror as one of the bats turned into Farkas and then one by one the other bats turned into demmic as well.
“Get the kids out of here!” Conner yelled as he lunged at Farkas.
Symarah headed toward the door only to find it blocked by two demmic.
“You’re not going anywhere eino,” one of the demmic said, using the Atlantean term for human as if it were an insult.
She looked for another way out but it was no good, the demmic had all the escape routes blocked. She turned back to Conner for help but he was being beaten by half a dozen demmic. She tried to run to him but the unden grabbed her.
“Why are you doing this, you know you don't want to,” Symarah said to the unden.
“I do as thaison commands.”
“You don't have to do what he says. I know you can fight it. If you weren't stronger than the blood tie, you wouldn't have apologized for stabbing me before.”
“I am sorry,” was all he said.
“Fight it Euenor!” Symarah commanded, calling him by his Atlantean name.
The unden staggered back a few steps, a flash of recognition on his face. “I know that name,” he said, trying to remember where he had heard it from, but before he could fully recall, Logan jumped on his back.
“You leave her alone!” he screamed at the unden, hitting him in the head with his fists.
“Logan, no! Symarah yelled, as she lunged at the unden, but before she could pull the boy to safety, one of the demmic grabbed him.
“You wanna be the hero?” the demmic snorted in derision. “Well, in this version all the heroes die, boy.”
“He has fangs and his breath stinks, he's a demmic!” Logan yelled.
Everything was happening so fast; Conner was on the ground under a pile of demmic, the kids were screaming and the demmic that had Logan was preparing to sink his fangs right into the boy's throat. Symarah ran for the demmic but before she could get to him the unden had snapped the demmic's neck.
“You will not kill children!” he yelled as he ran toward the back and grabbed the last demmic blocking the door. The unden put up a good fight but he was no match for the demmic. The demmic grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up off the ground. Just then Jake jumped on the demmic's back.
“Here, it's silver,” Jenna said as she threw her necklace to her brother. Jake wrapped the necklace around the demmic's neck and pulled as hard as he could. The silver cut through his flesh like butter. The demmic dropped the slave and fell to the ground.
“Get outside in the sun!” Logan yelled and the kids all ran for the door.
Symarah turned to see several demmic feeding from Conner.
“Daire!” her mind cried out to him. In an instant he was beside her.
“What's wrong?” he said anxiously, but he knew the answer before he even finished the question. Daire ran to the spot where Conner lay motionless, and flung the demmic against the wall. A second later Jareth was there fighting alongside him; then, as suddenly as they had appeared, all the demmic disappeared. Daire ran to Conner and knelt down beside him.
“Can you heal him?” Jareth questioned.
“I'm not sure, he may be too far gone.” Daire put his hands just above Conner's chest and closed his eyes. A pure white light emanated from his hands and in an instant Conner was bathed in the same white light. After a moment, Conner's eyes fluttered open and he groaned.
“What the hell happened?” he asked.
“You almost died fighting off the demmic but Daire saved you,” Symarah answered.
“Are the kids okay?”
“Yes, they're outside. Thank God you told them that story about the demmic or we would all be dead,” Symarah said.
“What do you mean?” Jareth asked.
“There was a demmic blocking the door. The only reason they got out was because Jake and Jenna killed him,” she answered proudly.
“Two kids killed a demmic by themselves?” Daire asked. “Impressive.”
“That is impressive, but we should definitely erase their memories of this.”
“I'll get them.” Symarah headed for the door. “Oh no, I forgot about the unden. He saved Logan and the demmic tried to kill him. Can you heal him too?”
“I've got it, just get those kids back in here before they tell anyone what happened,” Jareth replied.
It took some convincing, but Symarah managed to get the kids back inside and their memories of the event were erased. Jareth healed the unden, who thanked him and then ran off looking very confused. Once all the kids were picked up by their parents, Conner and Symarah returned to the nocturnal house where Daire and Jareth had been patiently waiting to flash them back home.
CHAPTER 10
“How could I be so stupid?” Daire scolded himself.
“Don't be so hard on yourself, it was the middle of the day, and the field trip was outdoors. There was no reason to think that Vaiden would send his minions out in broad daylight,” Jareth pointed out.
“I should have been more prepared, I shouldn't have let her go.”
“You know good and well that girl doesn't do a damn thing she doesn't want to do,” Jareth reminded him.
“She is very stubborn,” Daire agreed.
“Exactly; if you hadn't let her go, she would have found a way on her own and then she wouldn't have had Conner there for protection.”
“A day walker is no match for a demmic, he is lucky to be alive,” Daire growled in frustration.
“Yes, he certainly is.”
Daire's blood ran cold at the sound of the voice coming from behind him, he knew that voice well.
“Why have you come?” Jareth asked, as if he didn't already know the answer.
“You almost get one of my day walkers killed and you ask why I've come?” Athena said with a calm she didn't quite feel. “I thought that the two of you could handle this, you are my best suriens. Instead you almost get Conner killed, not to mention the innocent children who almost lost their lives, and the risk of exposure as well.”
“You know?” Daire was shocked.
“Yes, of course I know. The truth is, I should have intervened long ago. I did not think Vaiden would get this close.”
“It won't happen again,” Daire
promised.
“It should never have happened in the first place. You should not have allowed her to go,” Athena scolded.
“I can't exactly force her to stay in the house,” Daire pointed out. “She's a grown woman, it's not like I can ground her.”
“You are an Atlantean god and she is just a mortal; I'm sure there must be some way for you to keep her under control.”
“We've tried, nothing works.” Daire said.
“She is very stubborn,” Jareth agreed.
“You will find a way. The humans do not leave this house until Vaiden is dead, do I make myself clear?” Athena ordered, in a voice so commanding that even Zeus himself would not have disobeyed.
“Like hell! You're not putting us under house arrest lady,” Kassie snapped from the doorway. She and Symarah had come back down for a midnight snack and overheard them talking.
“How long have you been standing there?” Daire questioned.
“Long enough to know that I'm stubborn and need to be controlled,” Symarah chided.
“Leave us, mortal.”
“Excuse me?” Symarah said, trying hard to control her temper.
“This does not concern you, human,” Athena admonished.
“Considering the fact that you are talking about me, I think it most certainly does.”
“You caused this problem, now be off and let us solve it.”
“I am the victim here. My life was great until you people came into it. I was happy. Now I'm being hunted by a psychotic vampire god who wants to kill me to get revenge on someone I just met, for killing someone I never met, before I was even born. How the hell is this my fault?”
“If you hadn't made an Atlantean god's life public knowledge, we would not be in this mess, mortal,” Athena said in that same commanding tone.
“First off, I have a name; it's Symarah, not human, nor mortal, just Symarah,” she said, with her head held as high as any goddess had ever held theirs. “I don't call you judgmental goddess of arrogance do I? And by the way, if you would have kept a tighter leash on your so called gods, I wouldn't have been able to write about his whole life story now would I?”
“And just how exactly did you come to dream of him in the first place?” Athena asked accusingly.
“How the hell should I know, you're the goddess of wisdom, you figure it out.....Bitch,” Symarah muttered, as she headed to the kitchen to get a snack.
“You're lucky you're a goddess or she'd have knocked you on your ass,” Kassie said, as she stormed out and headed for the kitchen as well.
“I like them. They are brave and honest; honorable characteristics, especially for a human.”
Daire and Jareth exchanged looks of bewilderment.
“Did you think I was going to banish them for standing their ground? I am not my father.” Athena smiled. “Now tell me, how did she come to dream of you?”
Daire told her everything that had happened so far, about the necklace, the attacks, the dagger being real, and Symarah being his reincarnated soul mate, Meissen.
“Have you seen this dagger?” Athena asked.
“No, but the shauri said that he took it from her shop,” Daire answered.
“The shauri are deceitful by nature, they cannot always be trusted,” Athena pointed out.
“She only cooperated because she wants him dead. I trust her information, if not her motive,” Daire assured her.
“Very well, we will assume the dagger is real and in Vaiden's hands.”
“Do you think Symarah is Meissen?” Daire asked.
“Let us ask the fates, shall we?” Athena closed her eyes and in an instant she and Daire were gone.
“No, you go, I'll stay here with the girls,” Jareth said sarcastically to himself, as he headed toward the kitchen.
When he entered the kitchen, he noticed that Symarah was alone.
“Where is Kassie?”
“She grabbed a carton of milk and a whole package of Oreos and headed off to her room for a movie marathon.”
“She does that a lot,” Jareth observed.
“Yes she does,” Symarah laughed.
“You're not joining her?”
“I'm not really in the mood,” she said.
Jareth could see that she was troubled. “Don't worry about Athena, she can be a bit stern at times, but she is fair.”
“It's not that,” Symarah said, “it's just, today at the zoo I felt completely helpless. I couldn't save Conner, I couldn't save the kids, I couldn't even save the unden. It's my fault that this happened. I put all these people's lives in danger and I couldn't do a damn thing to save them. I almost got them all killed.”
“It's not your fault, it is Vaiden's. He is the one who is putting their lives in danger and yours as well. You can't blame yourself.”
“I know you're right, but I still feel like a wimp, I got saved by a bunch of twelve year old kids.” She smiled a little. “If I ask you to do something, will you promise not to tell Daire?”
“That depends,” Jareth answered, “I won't do anything to compromise your safety.”
“Will you train me to fight like a day walker?”
“I'm not sure that's such a good idea, Symarah.”
“How would you feel if you had to sit by and watch everyone you care about get hurt trying to protect you?”
“It is very dangerous training.”
“As dangerous as being stabbed by an unden or drowned by a vampire god?”
Jareth really didn't like the idea of keeping anything from Daire, and he hated the thought of either of the girls going up against the demmic, but Symarah was right, it was not fair to expect her to sit defenseless while the people she loved were in danger.
“Please. Come on Jareth, please.”
“Alright, I'll do it. May the gods help me when Daire finds out.”
“Yay, thank you!” Symarah hugged him.
“We can start training tomorrow,” Jareth said, hoping he wouldn't end up regretting his decision.
“Where are we?” Daire asked, still trying to adjust to his sudden change in surroundings. They were standing in front of a large door at the top of a stairway. Both door and stairway were made entirely of white marble with a beautiful silver inlay, the intricate design was delicate and flowing, like a lullaby.
“We have come to ask the fates about Meissen,” Athena replied, as she opened the door with a wave of her hand. On the other side of the door was a large courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard stood three beautiful women, all dressed in white.
“Come, we have been waiting for you,” one of the women said.
“I thought the fates were supposed to be three ugly old hags,” Daire whispered to Athena.
“A viscous lie, born of jealousy no doubt,” another of the fates retorted.
As they approached the three women, Daire couldn't help but notice that they were floating a few inches above the ground. They were very similar in appearance, but not identical.
“I am Lachesis,” the woman in the middle said, “and these are my sisters, Atropos and Clotho.” Lachesis had wavy brown hair and beautiful brown eyes whereas Atropos, who was standing to the left, had straight hair as black as onyx and emerald green eyes so cold it was scary. Clotho on the other hand had a much warmer, more approachable appearance. She had curly golden blond hair and beautiful blue eyes.
“Ask your question or be gone,” Atropos ordered.
“Why must you always be so cruel?”
“Cruelty is in her nature Clotho, just as kindness is in yours,” Lachesis reminded her.
“And what is your nature?” Daire asked.
“I am here for balance,” she answered. “Ask me what you wish but be forewarned, the answers I provide may not be what you hope for.”
“I want to know if Symarah is Meissen,” Daire stated.
“It is true, they share the same soul,” Lachesis answered.
“How is that possible?” Daire asked.
“We bro
ught her back.”
“Why would you choose to end her life only to bring her back again and again? It is beyond cruel,” Daire admonished.
“When Atlantis sank at the hands of the gods, it was Atropos who chose to cut their life thread short,” Lachesis replied.
“Who the hell are you to make that kind of decision?” Daire was outraged.
“I am the inevitable one, I choose when a life is to end,” Atropos said in a tone that was as deadly as her eyes were cold.
“Was it your cruelty that brought her back as well?” Daire asked in a contemptuous tone.
“It is Clotho that brings them back, for she is the spinner of life, she decides when life begins,” Lachesis said.
“I thought it unfair for the humans to die for the sins of a handful of corrupt Atlantean gods. They died and you suffer for something that was beyond your control. I bring them back so that they may find their soul mate and be reunited once again,” Clotho explained.
“Then why have I not found her till now?” Daire demanded.
“I have no control over such things.” Clotho smiled warmly. “It is Lachesis who decides a man’s destiny.”
“Why do you allow them to live entire lives without finding their soul mate? Why not just lead them straight to us?” Daire asked Lachesis.
“It is true, I determine a man's destiny, but I cannot control his actions, free will prevents it. I can lead him in the right direction, but if he takes the wrong path there is nothing I can do. It takes many lifetimes to fulfill a destiny, not just one.”
“What happens when they finally find their soul mate?” Athena questioned.
“They are destined to die, one last time,” Atropos answered coldly.
“That is their gift,” Clotho smiled.
“How the hell can you consider death a gift?” Daire growled in frustration.
“You will understand everything in due time,” Lachesis said calmly.
“Enough with the cryptic bullshit, I understand perfectly, the three of you are twisted and sick, sitting up here playing with people’s lives.”
Athena placed her hand on Daire's shoulder, and in an instant they were back in Symarah's living room.
“Why the hell did you do that? I wasn't done with them!” Daire yelled.
