Rise of the Goddess (****All proceeds from the Rise of the Goddess anthology will go to benefit the Elliott Public Library**** Book 1)

by Catherine Stovall

  Their embraces had lingered as they bade each other goodbye. Kel had taken her place on the cold stone table once designed to hold Nia’s body while she transcended from her fleshy shell to commute with nature. Enneth had placed a wreath woven from pale white flowers on Kel’s head as Nia asked Wade to open itself up to her daughter’s spirit. The Keep had shaken and rumbled, causing thick layers of dust to fall from the roof. Kel’s last glimpse of her parents had been through heavy lids and a curtain of dirt.

  Her memories broke the final vestiges of sleep. Her body shifted and her eyes, the color of freshly-turned soil, opened onto the shadowy depths of her crypt. Kel rose and began to peel away fifteen hundred years of cobwebs.

  The goddess pushed herself to her feet and traveled through the stone temple. Each footstep brought life back to The Keep. All things living had laid dormant inside, while no goddess had sat on the throne. With Kel’s return, the spirit of nature was revived. New life sprung into the dried out fountains and the thick green moss that had once covered the stone walls began to grow once more.

  Trailing out behind her, the pulse of life filled the hollow and darkened place. As she walked her domain, Kel let her fingers run across the surfaces of everything she could reach, feeling the powerful vibrations of magic. The Keep had always been a symbol of the nature goddesses’ ancient gifts. Before she began her campaign to right the wrongs in her world, she wanted to see it awaken to its full potential.

  Making her way through the sanctuary doors, she blinked rapidly in the brightness of the sun. Stripping away the tattered filth of her dress, she waded into the river at the base of The Keep. The fountain that once again erupted from the snake’s mouth washed away the layers of dirt and grime, and she allowed her gaze to linger on her childhood home as tears filled her eyes.

  Nia had been a great ruler, and her people had betrayed her. Kel’s heart broke as she looked upon the image of her mother carved in stone. Yet the splendor of the mountainous statue gave her strength and steadied her resolve. She could feel the power of Wade all around her, and though the spirit of the land was weak, she knew there may still be hope.

  Kel walked slowly back to the entrance of The Keep. Her journey was peaceful as she let the warm sun dry her body and the cold fingers of the spring breeze tease her skin. She reflected quietly on all she had seen as her sprit had traveled the world. In the seclusion of the statue, it was hard to believe such oddities and horrors existed. She dreaded having to face the ugliness of Wade in order to save the people from their own choices.

  Stepping into the cool dampness made her shiver and sent her in search of clothing. In the room where she had slept, Kel found a wardrobe. Opening the double doors, she felt a smile spread across her face. Her mother had left several outfits hanging inside with preservation spells wrapped around them to prevent rot. She selected a long shift made from flowing, blue material and slipped it over her head.

  Still lost in thought, she nearly missed the feeling of an intruder in her lair. The odd sensation pummeled her heart with fear. She entered the hallway, her body tensed and ready for battle. A strong hand snaked around her face before she could react. Her scream was muffled as she struggled against her assailant. Only when she heard the familiar voice in her ear, did she calm. Panting heavily, she leaned against the boy who held her.

  Feeling her relax into him, Kore embraced the goddess, and whispered into her ear. “It has been too long since I have seen you.”

  Kel whipped around to face him. Elation filled her as she took in his dark hair and eyes, his striking features, and the stern line of his mouth. As if more than a thousand years hadn’t passed, her mind instantly recognized the boy. Her heart beat with a new assurance. Everything inside of her acknowledged him as hers.

  “There were times when my consciousness floated near the surface, but something would shift in the outside world, and I would not wake. During those fleeting moments, I thought I felt you. I didn’t think it was possible.” Tears stung her eyes.

  “I had your mother cast the same spell on me. When you woke to take your place on the throne, I knew you would need a warrior, and I feared you would be unable to find one suitable.” His strong chin rose, challenging her to defy the wisdom of what he had done.

  The boy in front of her was the only one who had ever held her heart. They did not share a conventional kind of love. There was no romance, no lusting feelings. Their connection had always been platonic and always would be. Kore’s heart belonged to a young man named Xavier. The two had been a lovely pair. In the time when Nia had ruled, men could openly love men without condemnation. Their choice to choose a mate of the same sex was not one that rendered a warrior effeminate or unworthy.

  Recalling Kore’s relationship, Kel let the tears slip from her eyes. “You left them all behind to stay with me? You left Xavier?”

  His hand was warm on her cheek as Kore pressed his palm to her skin and wiped away a trickling tear with his thumb. “I knew those you loved would not survive the wars between the gods. Your father told me that Goddess Nia had seen their fatal end in a vision. I could not leave you here to wake alone. We were boys, Kel. A love that was fun and frivolous was all that we could have ever shared. He was not the great love of my life, only a happy memory to hold in my heart. I knew he would understand and be proud that I was a true warrior.”

  Nodding quietly, Kel took in the painful honesty that shined in her warrior’s eyes. He had always been the practical one in their duo. As long as she could remember, Kore had been the voice of reason inside her head. Even when he hadn’t been physically present during her escapades, she had often thought about things in terms of what he might say. The trick had frequently quelled her insatiable zest to experience everything the world had to offer—no matter how dangerous her adventure might be.

  A strange sound whispered through The Keep, and Kel gripped Kore’s arm tightly. “There’s someone here.” She waited, listening, as he tensed, ready for battle.

  Her words were all the warrior needed. He called in his battle gear, a touch of magic that all warriors of the world had been blessed with. From nowhere and everywhere at once, his heavy leather tunic encased his skin, a golden shield emblazoned with the symbol of Wade appeared in one hand, and a shining blade of steel manifested in his other.

  Giving her a no-nonsense look, Kore commanded, “Stay behind me, Goddess.”

  Kel did not protest. A warrior, a right hand, was born to protect. He and his goddess could be friends, even lovers. Regardless of the type of relationship the two shared, the warrior was proud to be a servant. However, when the warrior addressed his or her sovereign in that tone and with formality, it was best to obey. The relationship was a careful dance between love, respect, and propriety. Each party must bend to the other’s will in equal ways.

  Kel’s whisper was urgent, “The throne room!”

  Afraid to leave her unattended and unprotected, though she had plenty of her own power, Kore motioned for Kel to follow him. He led the way up the wide staircase in stealthy movements with his sword held at the ready. The inky darkness, once comforting, seemed to press around them as they neared their destination.

  Kel’s fingers grabbed his upper arm in a powerful grip, and Kore turned to her. Kel’s whisper was not as frightened as he had expected. She spoke with awe, “Do you hear that? The humming? Listen.”

  The deep sound of a man’s voice drifted down the stairs. The light string of melody floated on the air like a nearly invisible thread. Though barely audible, the tune was unmistakably there. Familiar and heart wrenching, the intruder’s song sent waves of longing through both Kel and Kore.

  Stepping through the open doorway, Kore held his weapon drawn, but he was less suspicious of one who knew the songs of the old world. A man, no a god, tall with light hair and blue eyes, stood with his back to the door. He did not turn to face the warrior and goddess as they entered the room. Kore thought he was unwise, but Kel recognized the stranger’s arroganc
e.

  “State your business here, or prepare to die in the name of the Goddess Kel.” Kore’s voice held a quality of fearlessness and steel that would make most would-be combatants second-guess their decision to present a challenge.

  The man faced them, and his hulking mass seemed to fill the room. “Warrior, I mean neither you nor Goddess Kel harm. I have come to investigate the disquiet I felt shift within my world. The winds brought me here, for they are mine to command. You are trespassing.”

  “Who are you to speak to a warrior that served the goddess that built The Keep and to a goddess who will rule this world?” Anger flashed through Kore’s eyes, shifting them from the deep brown of rich soil to liquid amber.

  Before the man could answer, Kel gracefully swept in front of Kore. “Warrior, stand down.”

  The strained tone of her voice worried him. He knew the fake lightness was merely a ruse to deflect from the fact that the intruder posed a real threat to them. “Goddess?” The rest of his protest fell silent on his lips when he saw the tightness of her mouth and the narrowing of her eyes.

  “Warrior.” Kel did not allow Kore to see her fear before she turned to address their guest.

  The blond stranger gave a nearly imperceptible nod of his head in acknowledgment. “I am known in this world as Vulcanus. I am the ruler of the land once known as Wade. I am the God of Fire and the God of War. You, pup,” he pointed a long finger at Kore, “are no more than a faded memory in these lands.”

  Kel felt her warrior stiffen behind her, his temper rising to the killing edge. She knew that if she did not act quickly, blood would be shed.

  “Well, Vulcanus, you may command this world, but you do not command The Keep. I rescind your welcome here. These doors are forever closed to you and your ilk.”

  Vulcanus’s striking features twisted into a grimace of rage. He screamed out a denial even as his body convulsed. “You do not have that power. I will slay you both and feed your bones to the wolves and your meat to the starving retches.”

  Kel took a single step forward, a movement that was mirrored by her warrior. Her voice vibrated with the power she drew up from caverns of rock. “If you challenge me, I will destroy you. I will consume your heart as my mother should have done. I am no child, nor am I some quaking human. I am the Goddess Kel, ruler of Wade. Be gone!”

  Though Vulcanus clearly tried to defy her command, he could not prevent the compulsion to leave the sanctuary. His last words hung on the air as his image faded from sight. “Consider this my challenge. You shall never rule Wade.”

  Once they were alone, Kel stormed. The pent-up rage and abundance of power she embodied flowed out of her as she paced and raged against what had become of Wade.

  “You didn’t see them or hear them, Kore. The human men now rule. Their women are nothing more than cattle to be bred, branded, and sold on the bloody auction blocks. The whole world has been poisoned by the bloodshed and the innocence lost to the sword.”Her lips pouted, and tears flowed down her pale cheeks. On her, the look was frightening.

  Kore tried to calm her, but she was like a cat that had been dunked in water and then caged. Prowling the room, Kel gestured with her hands and glared at everything as if it were the devil himself. When she had finally exhausted most of her anger, she slumped down onto the decaying crushed velvet seat of the marble throne.

  Kore ventured as close to her as he dared. “What is it that you plan to do? How will we right these wrongs?”

  Her lips formed a thin line of concentration, and her irises turned to hard black gems. “We will destroy them all.”

  Shocked, he tried to argue, “Kel, if you are doing this for revenge—”

  Her outrage filled the room with an air of uneasy tension and her words cut his short. “Revenge? Yes, Kore. I am doing this for revenge. This evil has destroyed my family, mutilated everything that is good in this world, and left us both orphans. I will annihilate everything the taint has touched in order to avenge that loss.” Her voice took on a steely tone, “But, I assure you, it is not just for that glorious justification. I will do this because it is what a goddess should do.”

  ****

  Kore buried his head in his hands as he knelt by the arm of the throne. He wanted to protest, but he knew Kel would not go to such lengths unless she saw no other way. He lifted his head and began to speak, but the first of the eerie battle calls came before he could utter a sound.

  Leaping to her feet, Kel drew so much power into herself that her hair lifted and fell with crackling wisps of lightning. Moving faster than a human’s eyes could have traced, she flew out of the building. In the far distance, on top of the hill where The Keep’s gardens had once stood, death looked down on her. She had known that the battle would come, but she had never imagined it would come in such frightening multitudes.

  The sun glinted off of the chrome of the horses’ body armor and the golden winged emblems emblazoned on the flat black of the soldier’s chest plates. The mighty hooves of the ebony colored Friesian steeds pawed at the ground in anticipation, causing a cloud of dust to rise up. The horde looked as if it were rising straight from the mutilated earth to drag its enemy into the pits alongside them, but Kel stood her ground.

  Kore skidded to a stop a step behind her, taking in the sight of his fearless goddess as she stared down the Vulcan army. Standing with her fists clenched at her sides and her chin raised in a blatant challenge, Kel was a nucleus of righteous power. She took a step forward and spread her feet into a fighting stance as if she were preparing to battle them all with only her bare hands.

  The sky began to darken and the wind howled. Over the eerie sound, the booming thunder growled as if it were an ancient monster awakening from sleep. From the angry shape of the blackened clouds, a warrior appeared. He rode the skies on the back of a white stallion, lightning striking out from the tip of his raised sword as he plummeted toward the ground. He wore no armor. Only the winged V, permanently etched into the tan flesh of his chest, marked him as the enemy.

  His men parted to form a landing strip down the center of their ranks without seeming to ever take their eyes off of Kel and Kore. When the powerful horse tore to the front of the legion, the soldiers maneuvered back into place with graceful and unerring precision. Their presence was so great that they blended in with the darkening horizon.

  Vulcanus reigned in his high-spirited beast and stared down at his enemy, a single goddess and her warrior. “Kneel to me now, Goddess Kel, and save yourself a fate that shall destroy you. The dying won’t be sweet or blissful. I shall make sure you suffer long and hard for your defiance. As my men enjoy the pleasures of your succulent flesh, I will taste the delicacy of your power.”

  Kore was torn. The warrior in him wanted to storm up the hill and destroy the bastard for his mistreatment and threats against a goddess. The friend in him wanted to grab Kel, no matter her protests, and run until she was safely inside The Keep where the sadistic Vulcan army could not harm her. Tapping every ounce of his restraint, he did neither. He would battle if she asked, run if she would allow, or he would surrender if she so desired. Until her command was clear, duty staid him.

  Kel tilted her head back and laughed. Using her magic to intensify the sound, her voice floated on the air to drift subtly through the rows of bloodthirsty men. Her tone was full of sticky sweetness as she raised her arm and swept it in front of her to indicate his battalion.

  “What a display of power to face down a mere girl and her warrior.” The insult hit her foe like a slap in the face, but before he could counter, her tone turned dark. “Vulcanus, you are the one that has a choice. Take your men and your influence from this world, and go back from whence you came. If you do not, my wrath will crush you.”

  Kore could feel the waves of power as she continued to draw all that she could from the soil and atmosphere. Creating a vacuum around them, she poured what strength that was left inside Wade, into herself. The crackling energy formed a shield, growing brighter as i
t pulsated with things deeper than he cared to think of.

  Vulcanus words proved he was a fool.“As you wish, Goddess.” Raising his sword above his head, the god released a war cry that would have reduced many chiefs to sniveling children. The soldiers stampeded toward them, the knights of a god’s army bent on destruction.

  In an instant of clarity, Kore saw their downfall. He would be hacked to pieces in seconds and his body left to rot as his spirit sank into the ground around The Keep. A warrior who was lost in battle, with no lover or mother to sing him home, would be imprisoned between the worlds and tied to the blood-soaked piece of land on which he died.

  His vision saw The Keep, overrun with human men, fouled by the darkness that ruled in the name of the Vulcans. Worst of all, his mind’s eye showed him the ruin of his goddess. Witnessing her being raped, broken, and falling into a death that did not offer comfort, Kore could no longer hold back. Grabbing her arm, he tried to pull her to safety.

  The blast of power hit him in the center of his chest, knocking him off his feet. Kel’s deep brown eyes turned to radiating gold embers as she stared through her fallen friend. The sound of the war horses’ hooves bore down on them. Paralyzed from the friendly fire, Kore watched in fearful awe.

  Kel stooped to pluck a dandelion that had gone to seed. The smile on her face was both saddened and cruel. Unable to move, Kore whispered her name, but the plea fell on deafened ears. He could see the horde looming down on them, they had closed the wide gap faster than he expected. He wanted to close his eyes, but a warrior, even one that has been struck down, would never shy from the face of death.

  The riders were close enough that Kel could see Vulcanus’s blue eyes and triumphant smile. She waited, counting the seconds, holding back the magic that swirled through her every fiber. The molecules that made up her fleshy form quivered and shifted as she drew the last drop of living spirit from The Keep’s grounds. Needing more strength, more energy, she pulled from beyond the boundaries of her childhood home.