The Antithesis- The Complete Pentalogy

by Terra Whiteman

  Mistakes?

  He stood and moved to my side. My eyes remained ahead, looking at the giant bloodstain in the moss beside the statue. Something was missing from that picture.

  Leid was gone.

  I scanned the courtyard, but didn’t see her. It was like she’d vanished. The demons were too preoccupied with me that they hadn’t noticed her disappearance. I was confused and frightened, unsure of whether someone had moved her body or she had snuck off when no one was looking. If there was a chance she wasn’t dead, I would take it.

  “You’re with the Sanguine Court,” I slurred, trying to keep his attention. My mouth felt heavy and I could barely speak. “You talk of treachery yet you’re betraying your own Commander.”

  “I’m not associated with those derelicts. I’ve been loyal to Commander Raith since the Obsidian Court began.”

  “Well, I’m sorry to have to break it to you, but Samnaea is one of those derelicts.”

  “Yes, I know. In my defense, I only found out several days ago when she told me herself.” He leaned on his axe, grinning. “But she gets immunity since she’s my wife.”

  “… Well, I’m sorry to have to break it to you again, but your wife spent the better part of an hour riding my cock on Belial’s balcony last week.”

  I expected Caym to kill me, but all he did was knock me in the face with the handle of his axe. “Yes, I know that, too. Samnaea’s very honest with me. Why do you think you’re here?”

  I said nothing, spitting blood and teeth.

  “My job is done,” he announced, nodding to his lackeys. “Kill him. We’ll leave their bodies here, so their friends think—”

  Laughter.

  It swept in with the wind, surrounding us. It sounded faint and innocent, yet was anything but. Caym heard it, too. He spun, finally noticing Leid’s body wasn’t where he’d left it. His lackeys’ grips relaxed on my arms, their alarm making them forget about me. I was too drugged to do anything except watch the horrified look on Caym’s face.

  The laughter came again, and this time it did something to me. Fear raked across my chest; instinct screamed at me to run. Even though I had a pretty good idea that it was Leid, it sure as hell didn’t sound like her. Maybe she was trying to scare them, but that wasn’t her style.

  Caym looked at me, his lips curling into a snarl. “Where did she go?”

  Even if I’d known, I wouldn’t have told him. All I did was smile. The smile was hard to achieve, because my head was being savaged by a migraine. My skull felt crushed, and my chest felt tight. I couldn’t breathe. I fell forward, catching the ground in my hands. The demons didn’t pull me back. I hung my head and vomited again.

  Caym was shouting at his people to spread out, that Leid couldn’t have gotten far. They planned to kill me first. A shadow hovered over me, and I didn’t need to look to know Caym had his axe raised again. I could see its shadow on the ground.

  Then I had a thought.

  It wasn’t really a thought, more like a daydream. Actually I had no idea what the hell it was, but I saw another version of myself in practically the same situation, except the people surrounding me had armor and pulse rifles. Their wings were white. Something snapped inside of me; I could feel it break.

  I looked at Caym with a sneer. He froze with the axe held above him, and then he screamed bloody murder. His head exploded not a second later, showering me with blood and brain matter. Another dismembered body fell sideways, and I noticed that all the demons behind me were dead, too. Decapitated.

  As I sat there staring at the bodies, the group that Caym sent to look for Leid were backing up, moving away from someone walking through the courtyard.

  No, not someone. Leid.

  Except it wasn’t Leid. It looked like her, but intrinsically I knew it wasn’t. Her pupils had swallowed her eyes; pitch-black pools, reflecting rays of light from the red stars overhead. She was still covered in blood and her skin was near-translucent. Leid looked like she’d died last week. I was so horrified by the sight of her that I actually started backing up with the demons.

  She hummed a song that sounded familiar, but I couldn’t think of where I’d heard it before. It was soft—a lullaby, sort of—but it scared me. How the fuck had she regenerated so quickly? It took me at least ten minutes to get my hand back after a scythe. It’d taken her less than that after being hacked in two. Something was very wrong with that equation.

  But I stopped thinking about that when every statue in the courtyard lifted off the ground, levitating in mid-air. Leid held her hands up, like she was reaching for something. The demons and I watched, torn between running for our lives and seeing what she’d do next.

  One of the statues flew at us, hitting the demon on my right. They collided with the iron gate and the statue exploded. Bloody salt splattered across our clothes.

  The demons scattered. I just stood there, gaping.

  The courtyard turned into a blast zone and I ran to the other side of the field with my arms covering my head, as if that could have helped. My heart throbbed in my ears, drowning out the sounds of screams and exploding rock.

  I reached the gate and the first thing I thought to do was leap over it and run—anywhere, just away—but as soon as my fingers wrapped around the cold iron bars, guilt clenched at my insides. I couldn’t leave her, no matter what she was. No matter how scared I was.

  Leid was saving me, wasn’t she? I was pretty sure she was aiming at the demons, since none of the statues had hit me yet and I didn’t believe she was tossing them indiscriminately.

  No, I wouldn’t leave. I had nowhere else to go, anyway.

  The screams and explosions stopped, and I turned around. Leid was in the middle of the aftermath, gazing at the statue we’d come to destroy. Ironically enough, she hadn’t touched it in the fray. It was the only thing left standing, other than us. She reached for it, but her hand stopped inches away. The air rippled between them, and then the statue exploded into grains of black dust, hovering in place for a second before they were carried off by the wind.

  Then she looked at me.

  I didn’t move, didn’t say a thing.

  “You,” Leid said, sounding surprised. She tilted her head with a crooked smile. “You’re one of us now?”

  I had no idea what she was talking about, but kept my mouth shut.

  Leid started to laugh, hard. Her laughter turned into a fit of wet coughs.

  I took a step closer. “Leid?”

  She collapsed on a bed of broken statues, and I ran to her. She was looking at the sky with a bewildered gaze. I could see my reflection in her ugly, black eyes. I was terrified. “Leid, look at me.”

  She did, and then she closed her eyes. When she opened them, they were normal. Violet. Beautiful. My shoulders sagged with relief.

  Leid seemed tired and confused. She staggered to her feet, looking at the carnage. I stayed on my knees, watching her.

  “How did you do that?” I asked. She didn’t respond. The tired confusion on her face turned into something else, like she’d just figured something out. “How did you survive getting cut in half?”

  “What did she say to you?” Leid demanded, completely ignoring me.

  “Who?”

  “What did she say to you?!” she screamed, her little hands balling into fists.

  “What did who say to me?!” I screamed back. “What the fuck are you even talking about!?”

  Leid hung her head, put her face in her hands, and sobbed.

  I sat there, at a complete loss for words. She kept crying until I couldn’t take it anymore and pulled her into me. As always, I had no idea what was going on.

  “Alezair, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” she whispered into my neck.

  I didn’t know what she was apologizing for. All I did was hold her. There was a noise in the sky and I looked up, but couldn’t see anything.

  Clap, clap, clap.

  Wings beating air.

  Two figures broke through the thin haze of
starlight, descending on us. I squinted, trying to get a better glimpse. They were angels, their white wings shimmering in the darkness. Seyestin and Cereli Trede. I should have been relieved, but the only way the angels could have been here was if they knew.

  Out of the frying pan and into the fire.

  “Leid, the Archangels are here.”

  She pulled away and wiped her eyes, cursing under her breath.

  They landed side by side near the gate, marveling at the carnage. Seyestin was the first to speak. “Are you two alright?”

  “We’re great, thanks,” I said. “What are you doing here?”

  “Rescuing you.”

  “You’re a little late to the party. How did you find us?”

  “Justice Trisyien,” said Cereli. “He came to our Commander. Said you’ve been gone for days.”

  So instead of coming to help us himself, Adrial snitched on us. Awesome. “I guess we’re under arrest?”

  Seyestin frowned. “Not yet. Commander Telei would like a word with you.”

  “Of course he would.”

  “Alezair, enough,” Leid whispered, squeezing my arm. She was too tired to sound stern.

  I conceded and glanced away. Leid approached the Archangels and Cereli stepped up to meet her. She swept my noble off her feet, carrying her into the clouds. Seyestin and I watched them disappear. Then we eyed each other, frowning.

  “You’re not carrying me like that,” I said.

  He smirked. “Would you rather walk to the portal?”

  Someone kill me.

  XXI

  ALL THINGS FALLING APART

  ADRIAL AND ZHEVRAINE WERE WAITING for us on Cerasaraelia’s veranda. Seyestin and Cereli left for the cephalon after informing us they would be back with Commander Telei in an hour.

  Leid pushed past her guardians with her head down, retreating silently into our manor. They watched the door close, and then looked at me.

  “Welcome back,” Adrial said.

  Although it felt great to be back, I was more than a little pissed. All I did was glare at him.

  Adrial sighed. “Zhevraine, can you give us a moment?”

  She nodded, moving after Leid. When the door shut behind her, Adrial took a seat on the steps. “You were gone for five days. Five. We thought something happened.”

  “Something did happen, but we were handling it.”

  He sized me up. “You look like shit.”

  I wouldn’t let him bait me. “What did you tell the Argent Court?”

  “Let me start from the beginning. Belial Vakkar came to the court, informing us that Caym had been MIA since Samael’s death. Considering you two took so long, we thought he’d come after you.”

  “He did.”

  Adrial’s eyes widened. “What happened?”

  “Nothing. He’s dead.”

  “You killed Caym Stroth?”

  “No, his head exploded.”

  Adrial stared at me. I shrugged.

  “Commander Raith is going to be livid.”

  “Why?”

  “Both of his generals are dead. We wouldn’t have been able to keep up this charade for much longer, even if I hadn’t told the Argent Court.”

  “Samnaea sent Caym after us. You were right; the demons were waiting.”

  “I’m always right.”

  “Whatever. So what happens now? Are we getting arrested?”

  “No one is getting arrested. Yahweh just wants to talk to us.”

  “Yeah? And how much does he know?”

  Adrial looked away. “He knows about the affair.”

  “What?! What the fuck—”

  “I was cornered!” he cried. “When I told him you two were missing, he mind-fucked me into confessing everything else!”

  “You got hectored by a kid in a suit?”

  “He’s more than that, Alezair. You’ll see for yourself when he gets here.”

  I was too tired to stand anymore and sank to the steps beside him. My neck was itching; I scratched it and marveled at the grime wedged under my nails. This was gross, even for me.

  Adrial offered me a malay cigarette. I took it. We smoked in silence for a minute.

  “Tell me about Calenus Karim,” I said.

  Adrial looked over, arching a brow. “Where’d you hear about him?”

  “Pheros D’Ilgua.”

  He blinked. “Leid took you to Alatonia?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Wow, I’m surprised. She usually avoids anything related to her past.”

  “So who is he? Pheros told me he’s the King of Exo’daius.”

  “He is, in a sense. Usually Exo’daius is a queendom but Leid rejected the throne. He’s the noble of the silver line. Kings usually serve as a ruling partner and mate to the queen. They’re selected in early adulthood. Each noble is betrothed to another. If a noble female becomes queen, her betrothed is selected as King.”

  “And our line is violet, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Who’s Aipocinus?”

  Adrial stared, frowning. “He was the King before Calenus. Well, a king before Calenus. I never met him; I became a Vel’Haru much later, during the Ivory Queendom.”

  “He was Leid’s noble?”

  “Yes. She began as a scarlet guardian.”

  “How did she become a noble?”

  Adrial laughed to himself, exhaling smoke. “I was avoiding this conversation for two reasons: one, you’re going to freak out and two, it isn’t going to make any sense.”

  “Nothing makes much sense around here. Go for it.”

  “In the absence of noble females, a guardian female will ascend to nobility.”

  “Okay, you were right.”

  He smiled. “It’s a biological failsafe in case we’re unable to reproduce.”

  “Yeah, like ants.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “When a hive doesn’t have a queen, the drones will fight to the death until one is left standing. Then she morphs into a queen.”

  “Why the hell do you know so much about insects, by the way?” marveled Adrial.

  “It gets pretty boring in the library sometimes.”

  “We don’t fight to the death or anything. That sounds morbid.”

  “Nature is morbid.” I paused, letting his story sink in. “How many times has this happened?”

  “Only once, Leid being the first guardian-turned-noble. Her circumstances were… special. We never had all of our female nobles die off all at once before.”

  Whoa. “How did they all die?”

  Adrial looked at the ground, sucking on his cigarette. “I’m afraid we’re venturing into areas that I’m not at any liberty to discuss. Nor do I want to.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because the past is passed. Let’s keep it that way.” Before I could say anything else, he threw down his cigarette and mashed it under his shoe. “Are you hungry?”

  “Yeah,” I muttered. “I’m also in desperate need of a shower.”

  “Probably a good idea to get on that before Heaven shows up. There are some leftovers in the fridge, though they’re not very good so consider yourself warned. Zhevraine had to cook in Leid’s absence.”

  I bet it was still better than the shit I’d eaten lately.

  ***

  I had half an hour to eat and shower. After that I threw on some clean clothes and headed downstairs. Just as I reached the bottom step there was a knock on the door.

  Yahweh, Seyestin and Cereli stood there, staring at me.

  “Good evening, Justice Czynri,” Commander Telei said with as much expression as a piece of cardboard. “Have we given you enough time to get comfortable?”

  Leid appeared behind me, freshly showered and dressed as well.

  “Yes,” she said with a smile, acting completely fine after an hour-long stint of manic depression. “Please, come in.”

  I eyed her, moving out of the way as the angels entered our house.

  She led them to the d
ining room and they took their seats at our table. Zhevraine lingered in the doorway.

  “Would you like anything to drink?” she asked the angels.

  The twin generals shook their heads. Yahweh, however, considered her offer.

  “What kind of wine do you carry?” he asked.

  “Too many to stand here and name.”

  “What kind of dry wine, then?”

  Seyestin and Cereli exchanged looks. Their Commander ignored them.

  “Chardonnay, Pelo Segua, Frosia, and Pinot Blanc.”

  He pouted. “I haven’t heard of those.”

  “They’re extramural.”

  Seyestin sighed, leaning in. “Sir, there are more important things to do at this moment than mull over wine selections.”

  Yahweh waved a hand, dismissing him. “Yes, I know. I’ll take the Char-don-nay.”

  Zhevraine nodded, disappearing to fetch the wine.

  The dining room fell silent. We all just looked at each other.

  Yahweh turned to Adrial. “How have you and the Jury been lately? With so much going on I haven’t had the chance to ask.”

  Adrial blinked. “Uh, terrible.”

  Leid’s eyes never left her lap. I wanted to ask if she was alright, but when it came to Leid, any attempt at comfort usually made things worse.

  Zhevraine returned with the wine and a set of glasses on a silver tray. After everyone who had opted to drink had their first sips, Yahweh dove right in.

  “Commander Koseling,” he said, and Leid looked up. “Is it true that you had sexual relations with Samael Soran?”

  Sexual relations, said the teenage boy. This was unreal.

  “It is,” she said, coolly.

  Yahweh reclined in his chair, taking a moment to stare at her. He didn’t seem angry, or sad. He seemed nothing. And for some reason he shot me a glance while he replied, “I can’t tell you how disappointed I am to hear that.”

  Leid propped her elbow on the table, fingers combing through her hair. “I had to get that ledger. Without it, your hearing would have been a failure.”

  Yahweh smiled, but it was sad. “If you thought the only option was to violate the code and destroy the integrity of another person, it’s safe to say we have a problem.”