by Noëlie Frix
“I’m surprised they reached us,” she replied as they were currently exploring the wild and uninhabited tropical forests of the equator, staying in a tree house they’d built.
“I’m pretty sure they asked Venthae to get them to us,” said Jason, “They sort of blew in with the breeze.”
Heka opened the king’s letter first and read it out loud:
My dearest friend,
It’s hard to believe that it has only been a year since our victory. I assure you, it feels like it was ten years ago. Perhaps that might sound strange; time usually passes more quickly it seems as we grow older. But I have a theory as to why time for me has slowed to a creeping crawl, nearly a standstill…And it is partly your fault (no offense meant) for there is one person you have not killed that I have begged of you more than once.
Désirée is still here!!! And she is tireless and relentless and her insistence is cruel. There are so many whispers behind my back, so many ridiculous affairs and love triangles going on that I feel my court is deteriorating into little more than a joke: a place full of bickering, flirting, and decadence.
Help me. I beseech you. I plead, I beg, I pray, and anything else I might do or say to make you force her to leave. I’ve even prayed for death, but she tells me that I am in extremely good health and still have several years ahead of me.
Oh for god’s sake, I hear her coming! I have to be quick about this.
Heka, stop hiding and come to my aid! Send me War, send me Death, but rid me of Love!
Sincerely,
Damien
Jason and Heka looked at each other and burst out laughing.
“Oh god, poor him,” Shadow exclaimed, wiping away a tear.
“I feel bad, but there is no way I am going to go there and face Désirée. Thank god she’s miles away from us and the only one who has to worry about her is poor King Damien.”
“His health really is excellent.”
“He must be the only man his age who regrets having such vitality,” Warrior nodded.
“What does Electra have to say?”
Heka opened the letter and began reading,
Hi Sis,
I hope this letter finds you, you are a bit difficult to locate. The weather here has been amazing recently—by which I mean rainy and stormy, of course—and I have some news to go along with this amazing weather. As you know, since the war, Trélig and I have been dating. And last week, he asked for my hand in marriage. And I said yes. We’re not making a huge deal out of it, but we’d love to have you and Jason over at the ceremony (which will be quite small but should be fun, nonetheless…especially since I’m pretty sure that, with or without invitations, Juan, Brandy and Party will wander in at some point).
I hope that, wherever you may be, you’re enjoying yourself. I’ll send you (or at least try to) an invitation later.
In the meantime, have fun wherever you are.
Love,
Electra
“I can’t say I’m surprised,” admitted Jason.
“Me neither. It’s great, though. They’re quite good together.”
“Do you ever think about us getting married?” he wondered.
“Sometimes. Although the word marriage still makes me cringe and smile simultaneously,” she added, thinking about Chaos. “But I don’t need to be married to you to know that I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. I am happy and that’s all that matters.”
“I agree,” Jason decreed, walking over to her, lifting her up out of her chair and into his arms. She kissed him and he set her down.
“I love you,” Shadow said.
“I love you too.” Heka nestled her head against his shoulder. They stayed that way for a long time.
Epilogue
Naoma hid behind the chair, holding her breath and closing her beautiful brown eyes tightly. Her black curls brushed against her face, tickling her nose. She tried to make herself as small as possible so he wouldn’t find her. Naoma heard his footsteps getting closer and she tensed.
“You can’t hide forever,” came the deep voice. Though you’re pretty damn good at it.
Suddenly, Naoma realized she couldn’t hear him anymore. She breathed a short sigh of relief and he reappeared in front of her, “Got ya!” he yelled making her scream.
“Dad!” Naoma protested. “You scared me,” she pouted.
“Sorry, Angel,” Jason apologized, lifting his eight year old daughter into his arms, marveling at how beautiful she was and how quickly she was growing up.
“Can we play Assassin?” she asked.
“You’re unbeatable at that game.”
“I know,” she smiled, the same smile as her mother’s.
Immortals’ second names were usually discovered around their older child years, often around their tenth birthdays, but it had been clear for a while now that Naoma was destined to become Assassin, though her parents took great care to instill the values of life and peace; they would avoid her becoming like Marcus at all costs.
Heka came into the doorway, grinning at the two people she loved more than anything or anyone else in the world.
“Mom,” Naoma cheered, jumping from Shadow’s arms and leaping into Warrior’s. “He found me again,” she frowned, making her mother laugh.
“Of course he did! But it isn’t a very fair game, now is it?”
“Will you play a game of Assassin with us?”
“Only if we can team up,” Jason interjected.
“No! Not fair!”
“Alright,” he capitulated. Then he noticed the briefest of frowns crossed Heka’s face. “Just give us ten minutes, okay, Angel?”
“Okay. I’ll get ready!” she ran outside, a gleeful look across her face.
“Are you alright, Heka?” he asked when he was certain Naoma was out of earshot.
“Mostly. Marcus and I just had a lovely discussion.”
“Is he still mad about Augoro?”
“A little, but we both know that sometimes you come out of battle victorious, other times defeated. It’s the shifting pendulum of war.”
“As you say, some battles you win, others you lose.”
“Yeah.”
“So he’s not the problem?”
“Well, he’s always a problem, but like I said, nothing that scares me.”
“So what happened?”
“Myegi just came over with some news.”
“I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Apparently Demon activity is increasing. And I dreamed of Chaos last night,” she grimaced. “I don’t think we have to freak out right now, but…”
“Then we’ll worry about it when the time comes. There really isn’t anything you can do about it now.”
“It’s Naoma I’m worried about. You know she’s the one Seth will go after first when he comes.”
“Yes, though you also know that, by then, she’ll be capable of taking care of herself. She’s already strong and wants us to train her. Plus it’s in her blood.” He paused, “Any good news?”
“I think Ele—”
A happy squeal cut her off and Naoma ran back inside, “Electra’s here!” she yelled. “And Trélig!”
“Now four of us can get out butts kicked at Assassin,” Heka whispered to Jason, a smile rising to her lips.
“Can we all play?” Naoma asked quickly.
“What did I just tell you?”
Electra and Trélig walked in, hand in hand, laughing at the girl’s excitement. “Hello, Heka,” Storm greeted. “Jason.”
“I don’t think anyone can make us feel more welcome than your daughter asking us, knife in hand, to play Assassin,” Trélig grinned.
“What are you all waiting for?” Naoma complained.
A chorus of laughter answered the girl and they ran after her.
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