by S. A. Carter
‘You’ve killed ones like Sam?’ I ask.
He looks down at his hands. ‘You mean, were they good like him?’
I nod, unsure as to whether I want to hear this or not.
I remember seeing some of the creatures Julian had killed. I also know that he was trained to obey. But does that justify the taking of lives?
‘To be honest, I don’t know whether they were innocent or not. I followed orders, pure and simple.’
My stomach does a flip.
He turns away from me, as if sensing my disapproval. ‘I can see that makes you uncomfortable.’
Yes, it makes me uncomfortable. It makes me sick to my stomach to think the Puritans are just taking out anyone who stands in their way. Their arrogance knows no bounds. How many have to die before they’re stopped?
‘Didn’t you ever question them?’ I ask, my voice hardening as my anger rises.
He scoffs. ‘I didn’t grow up in your world, Elena. I was raised to obey and to hunt. I’ve never known anything else.’
‘Yeah, well try being the hunted for a change,’ I blurt out, and as soon as the words are out of my mouth I regret it.
Julian’s jaw hardens.
‘I’m…I’m sorry. I don’t know where that came from.’
An awkward silence follows.
‘I do,’ he says a few seconds later. ‘It’s the place that holds your anger. I have one of those to.’
His energy shifts, and I don’t know how, but all of a sudden I know that he’s thinking of his parents.
I realise Julian has his own demons to bear, just like I do. I don’t think any of us escape the clutches of pain or loss in life.
‘So Sam is a shapeshifter huh?’ He whistles, diverting off an obviously sensitive subject. ‘Didn’t see that coming.’
‘Neither did I.’
‘I suppose he’ll want a thank you for saving us back at the museum?’ he says, picking at his food.
‘I already thanked him. Besides, I think you guarding Phoebe back there has made up for some of it.’
He rolls his eyes. ‘I doubt that somehow.’
My phone tings. It’s from Sam.
Have spoken to Jenkins. All good. Phoebe ok but still dealing.
‘Everything okay?’ Julian asks.
‘Yep. Sam said Phoebe seems okay with everything… for now.’
He stands up and starts packing away. ‘I wouldn’t want to be a witness to that conversation.’
‘I second that.’
I’m not sure how she does it, but Phoebe has clout, and apparently it doesn’t matter if you’re human or not, she’ll take you down if she deems it necessary.
By the time I text Sam back Julian has already cleaned up everything.
‘You have domestic skills as well?’
He smiles at me. ‘I have many skills you haven’t seen yet.’
I blush at the thought of what skills he actually does possess. I know in my dreams he had a few good ones. The one where he trails his finger down my neck while nipping on my ear runs through my mind, and as his fingers reach the top of my jeans I—
‘Elena?’
‘Huh…what?’ I respond, a little breathless.
‘I said, are you feeling alright? You look a bit flushed.’
I grab my bag. ‘Yeah…uh…totally fine. Thanks for lunch.’
He cocks his head. ‘Uh…you’re welcome.’
My phone goes off again.
‘Uncle Jo wants me to meet him in the library,’ I say flipping it shut.
Julian’s left eye twitches, as if the sound of Uncle Jo’s name has given him a nervous tic. ‘Okay. Shall I just meet you out front after?’
‘Whatever he has found, and trust me he’s found something, it’s probably best if you hear it too.’
He throws me a look. ‘Alright. Not sure that’s what your uncle would want, but…’
Shaking my head I move towards the library, and after throwing the rubbish in the bin he follows me.
The library is one place Magi isn’t allowed and I tell her to have some time to herself for a while. She licks my hand and pads away, heading in the direction of who-knows-where.
Walking into the three-storey building the first thing I always notice is the heightened smell of human distress. Libraries would normally evoke a calming, soothing effect on people, but at college it is a place of anxiety and deadlines.
The ground floor is the computer station, filled with wooden cubicles that weave up and down the room in snake-like formation. The sounds of fingers typing across keyboards and pens tapping against benchtops echoes out into the immense space, while the large glass windows overlooking the manicured campus gardens acts as a nice backdrop to the chaos going on inside. The exposed circular stairway stands in the centre of the room, giving you the option of going up—into the loud epicenter of college library interaction; or going down—into the eerily silent study section where the smell of old books overrides all other senses.
Knowing Uncle Jo as well as I do, he’ll be downstairs looking through the old books with a keen researcher’s eye. After our conversation earlier I know he’ll be wanting to know more about Erebus and the Vaga. The bonus of this library is that it holds a large collection of historical and biblical books, dating back centuries. He should have been able to find something.
We pass the librarian station, or as we call it “the vault”. To get past Mr. Arnold—the head librarian slash The Dictator—it takes subtle body movements that don’t draw his attention, or in any way elicit a down the nose response. You must avoid eye contact at all times, and if perchance he does look directly at you then the easiest thing to do is lay down and play dead. Phoebe has done this multiple times and it never fails to enrage his already stuffy demeanour.
‘He’ll be downstairs,’ I whisper back at Julian, leading him to the staircase.
Julian’s phone rings as we reach the first step and I automatically cringe, feeling the eyes of The Dictator bearing down upon us.
He pulls out his phone and his face drops. ‘I have to get this,’ he says. ‘I’ll meet you down there in a bit.’
Before I can respond he answers the call and makes his way quickly towards the entry, ignoring the death stare emanating from the librarian station to his right.
The Dictator looks my way, and I quickly turn and make my way down the stairs, into the library’s underbelly.
The whole area is empty, and even the low whirring of the fluorescent lights overhead can be heard against the deafening silence. I search the aisles for any sign of Uncle Jo, finding him in the back section at a round table strewn with books.
He looks up as I approach. ‘Glad you could finally make it.’
‘Sorry, I was held up,’ I respond, ignoring his tone and sitting down.
He scans my face, his features shifting. He places the book down on the table. ‘What happened?’
There is no use denying what occurred. If I’ve learnt anything it’s that keeping things from Uncle Jo will only result in further torture when the truth finally does come out.
I tell him about Sam.
His epic frown makes an appearance. ‘Are you being serious?’
‘Of course I’m being serious. I wouldn’t joke about this.’
He exhales loudly, and from somewhere in the library I hear a shhh.
He draws in closer, keeping his voice low. ‘You didn’t pick up on him?’
Why does everyone think that I can pick up on every living organism out there?
‘No, I didn’t,’ I hiss. ‘I don’t have the ability to power sense the entire world you know.’
He scratches his chin. ‘It would be handy if you could.’
I roll my eyes. ‘And here I thought you’d be more concerned with the fact that another supernatural being exists on campus.’
‘Ellie, you and I both know they exist. It would be naive to think that our family are the only ones on the whole planet that possess different abilities.’
Smirking he says, ‘How did Phoebe take the news?’
I shrug. ‘Not sure. I haven’t spoken to her yet.’
An eyebrow goes up. ‘That should be an interesting conversation then.’ His gaze softens. ‘Is Sam alright?’
Picturing the horrible scar that runs down his back I say, ‘He’s okay. It was close though.’
He nods thoughtfully. ‘I’m glad you were there to help him. I’m also very thankful that he showed up at the museum when he did.’
‘Me too.’
‘Seeing Taqôq Wiyon again must have shocked you a bit?’ he says.
Shocked, surprised, warmed me to my core.
‘Yeah, it did. I wasn’t sure I’d ever see him again.’
He smiles. ‘I had a feeling you would.’
‘You did?’ I ask, surprised.
He nods before turning serious. ‘These events are unlikely to be just coincidence, Ellie. Especially considering the new threat.’
My skin tingles. ‘What do you mean?’
He moves forward, lowering his voice even further. ‘Julian’s return, Isis making an appearance, the Vaga, and now Sam and Taqôq Wiyon? I have a bad feeling. I don’t like this at all.’
His words wreak havoc on my nerves. ‘I know you are making a point, Uncle Jo, but can you spell it out for me?’
The intricate webbing of his irises capture the glow of the overhead lights, turning them a nice shade of lime green.
He turns the heavy leather bound book in front of him around to face me. ‘This is an earlier version of Hesiod’s Theogony. It is a large-scale collection of poems and stories that encompass the Ancient Greek mythical cosmogony of the universe, and how it came into being.’ He points to the page. ‘In here it speaks of Erebus.’
My eyes widen as I take in the page, reading the passage in front of me with apprehension. “The initial state of the universe, or the origin (arche) is Chaos—a gaping void (abyss) considered as a divine primordial condition, from which appeared everything that exists. Then came Gaia—Earth, Tartarus—the cave-like space under the earth, then later-born Erebus—the darkness within Tartarus, and then finally Eros—representing sexual desire and the urge to reproduce, devoid of the emotion of love.”
My eyes widen.
‘And this,’ he says, pushing forward a small book titled “The Birds”—a play written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes.
It reads: “At the beginning there was only Chaos, Night, dark Erebus, and deep Tartarus. Earth, the air and heaven had no existence. Firstly, black-winged Night laid a germless egg in the bosom of the infinite deeps of Erebus, and from this, after the revolution of long ages, sprang the graceful Eros with his glittering golden wings, swift as the whirlwinds of the tempest. He mated in deep Tartarus with dark Chaos, winged like himself, and thus hatched forth our race, which was the first to see the light. That of the Immortals did not exist until Eros had brought together all the ingredients of the world, and from their marriage, Heaven, Ocean, Earth, and the imperishable race of blessed gods sprang into being.”
My heart jumps into my throat.
Chapter 15
He pushes another book forward, watching me closely.
I glance down, trying to remain calm but failing, the hairs on my arms rising with each new piece of information being revealed. The Blood Moon Prophecy stares back at me and my mouth dries up.
‘Read it,’ he says.
The Blood Moon Prophecy is a theory stating that an ongoing tetrad—four consecutive lunar eclipses, separated by six full moons in between, with the fourth lunar eclipse being the Blood Moon—is a biblical sign of the end of times. It appears in the Bible in Acts 2:20 and Revelation 6:12. The Book of Joel says, “The sun will turn into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.”
The orange glow around the Moon the other night. The feeling of foreboding as I looked upon its cold outline.
‘Is the Blood Moon starting now?’ I ask, resisting the urge to release the magic that is slithering its way up my spine.
His gaze amplifies. ‘Three lunar eclipses of the tetrad have already passed. The fourth is due to occur ten days from now.’
‘Ten days?’ I exclaim. ‘I don’t—’
He grabs my hand. ‘Ellie, I have to ask you something. It’s not something I want to ask, but I must if we are to know whether you are related to this prophecy or not.’
I swallow the lump building in my throat. ‘Me?! How could I be related to this prophecy? It could all be just a lot of mumbo jumbo for all we know.’ I point to the book and my voice rises. ‘This stuff talks about the return of the Lord, as in Jesus Christ. How in the hell does it relate to me?’
Shaking his head he says, ‘The Book of Joel doesn’t clarify that the Lord is Jesus Christ. It’s only implied. What if they misinterpreted? What if Lord meant something else?’
Lord, master, king…god.
‘Erebus,’ I breathe.
His eyes narrow in acknowledgement.
My hand does a flip. ‘Wait. So let me get this straight. In these books you’re saying that Erebus is like Hades, ruling the underworld?’
‘I’m saying that in these books they all point to Erebus as being the gateway to the underworld. He is the darkness that lives between our two worlds.’
‘And you think the Blood Moon Prophecy is predicting his return to Earth? Like some sort of apocalypse?’
‘Not exactly. Julian said that there has never been an account of him ever being here, and I haven’t been able to find any proof of that either. In all of these books,’ he splays his hands across the table, ‘there isn’t any proof to say that he even possesses that ability, but then we don’t really know what we’re dealing with here. Now when you say apocalypse that is something that does bother me. Christianity states that the return of the Lord will be the Second Coming.’
Those words shock me to my core. The Second Coming sounds too much like the New Coming. I learnt long ago that coincidences are rarely an accidental force of nature. Could they be connected? Is it even possible?
‘The Second Coming is referring to the Lord’s return to Earth to rid evil and establish His reign of justice and peace. Now, this belief is completely subjective, but it does raise the apocalyptic question.’
My heart picks up speed. ‘Isis said that the New Coming was a spiritual awakening for the planet, that the child I’ll eventually carry will be the savior of humankind, bringing new hope and peace to the chaos that has overtaken the planet. Is there any chance they could be the same thing?’
He looks out into the library and I can see that all this new information has bothered him. The lines of his face deepen. ‘It’s possible.’
I don’t even know what to say. Learning that I was a descendant of Isis and destined to be the vessel for her resurrection was mind-blowing enough, but this is beyond comprehension. Could the New Coming really be the same as the Second Coming? Could centuries of scripture and prophecy have known this all along?
When they were referring to “Lord” maybe they meant someone who had a devout following, who had influence and power? Maybe they meant that an enlightened soul would return to Earth to rid evil and establish justice and peace? Isis was an enlightened being who looked after the poor and the weak, showing kindness and mercy to thousands. She was a beacon of light. The mother of the people. Isn’t that similar to what Jesus had done?
A heavy knot forms in my stomach. ‘Do you think that Erebus intends to find a way to walk the earth when the Blood Moon occurs? Is that why this is happening?’
He nods, and I can tell that something big is going on inside that head of his.
‘What aren’t you telling me?’
His jaw clenches and I know that whatever he about to say is not good.
‘I need to determine where you sit in all this, and to
do that I need to ask you a question that I would normally never ask.’ He shakes his head if he doesn’t want to say the next words aloud, but then he does. ‘Are you still a virgin?’
Holy Mother Mary! He said it alright.
Heat rushes into my cheeks and I squirm restlessly, looking away.
‘Damn it!’ He sighs loudly, running his hand through his hair, knowing the answer without waiting for me to say it.
Embarrassed is an understatement. Right now I want to crawl under a big rock, hiding my virginal face from the world. Why would he ask that?
My voice comes out a little defensive. ‘I’m not sure what my…personal experiences have to do with all this but—’
His tone softens. ‘I wouldn’t normally ask you, Ellie. It’s none of my business what you do…in that area, but this is important. I believe, and at this point it’s just a bad feeling, but I think that Erebus has found you for a reason.’
I scoff. ‘Yeah, to kill me!’
He shakes his head, his greying hair catching the light. ‘No. I don’t think so.’ He pulls his hand back. ‘I think he knows about your future—bringing forth Isis, the child having the power she will supposedly have…’ He looks down at the table. ‘I think he plans to use you for his own end.’
I’m coming for you. Those were the words Erebus used back in the swamp. Warning courses through me.
‘Taqôq Wiyon said that Erebus wants war. That he wants to use me as a weapon.’
Uncle Jo’s head shoots up. ‘He did? Why didn’t you tell me this?’
I shrug. ‘I don’t know. Sometimes I feel that if I reveal too much it’ll just worry everyone unnecessarily.’
Frustration lines his features. ‘Ellie, you can’t keep things from me. I have to know so I can help you, do you understand? This isn’t just about you.’
His words sting, but they speak the truth. I keep telling myself that I’m protecting them, all of them, but really I’m just scared. Scared of getting them involved in something that could see them hurt, or worse than that, losing them like I lost Mum. She was just trying to protect me, and I don’t want anyone to do that ever again. But it’s not fair to them. They have a right to know what’s going on and to make their own choices. I can’t take that from them.