“It’s the truth, Nikolai!” She came to kneel next to me, “You have no idea how special you truly are. You are a gift from the gods.”
“Mother, stop!” I yelled and pushed up from my chair—away from her. She sat on the floor in despair. The look of defeat across her face melted my heart. She was such a beautiful and loving woman, with a childlike naivety that I feared would lead to her execution.
I dropped to my knees in front of her and put her hands in mine. “Mother, please,” I begged, “I’m sorry for yelling, but I don’t want you talking like this. I promise I believe you, but it’s dangerous to speak these blasphemies.”
As I tucked her under my arm, I stroked her hair that were a golden brown and felt like silk. The front door burst open and two men walked in—swords in hand. “Nikolai, son of Mammon?” one of the men asked.
Startled, I stared at the two men without saying a word until the other one nudged me with his sword, causing a sharp pain down my arm. “Y-yes,” I stuttered.
“You are hereby recruited into the Roman military and ordered to come with us at once,” the soldier said as he grabbed me from under my armpit and lifted me up. In my stupor, I didn’t fight him and let him drag me outside my home. I looked around my village and saw I wasn’t the only man being taken from their home. Women and children were in the streets, screaming and crying as soldiers dragged their husbands, brothers and sons to their deaths. Because that’s what our future held. We all knew the Romans only had the city of Corinth to conquer to have total and complete control of Greece. The battle was inevitable, but I never truly believed they would take men from my village. We lived in the outskirts of Athens, a very secluded and quiet island. No one ever travelled here.
I was lined up behind men I’ve known since my days as a young boy, when I heard my mother yelling at my side. She was pushing herself against one of the soldiers, who was holding her in place. “You don’t know what you’re doing! He is the son of a god! You have no right to take him!” She yelled. I closed my eyes at the horror that was sure to come from her confession. The warrior who was restraining her gasped and pushed her away. His hand raised and he backhanded her; sending her to the ground. Without hesitation, I strode over to him, anger clouding my judgment, and my arm went around his neck. With strength I’d learned to hide, I snapped his neck, causing his body to slump down and lay limp on the ground. There was a momentary silence as I watched in dismay his prostrated body at my feet—twisted in unnatural ways.
“Murderer!” One of the warriors yelled from behind me. I slowly turned in his direction, where he pointed an accusatory finger at me. A new found hatred formed in the center of my soul. I watched my mother on the ground with a hand cradling her redden cheek. I took a step toward her, but she flinched and I stopped my pursuit. My eyes roamed the village and watched as a cloud of insecurity crossed everyone’s face.
“I refuse to fight for the Romans against my people!” I yelled. My fist slamming onto my chest. It was enough to wake up my fellow villagers as their demeanors changed from fear to courage. “You will not come into our homes, you will not take our men and you will not touch our women!” I said as I charged the nearest soldier and chaos erupted.
Everyone fought for their lives and the lives of their loved ones. I picked up a sword that had fallen to the ground from a fallen soldier, slashed at the nearest enemy and I turned around to thrust the sword into the next one.
“Nikolai!” My mother’s shrieks distracted me and I turned toward her screams. She was on her knees as one soldier held her down by her arms while the other held her by her hair—a sword against her throat.
In my distraction, a warrior came from behind, his arm wrapped around my neck, forcing me down to my knees in front of my mother. Everyone stopped to watch.
“Isn’t she pretty?” The soldier with the sword to her throat said as he leaned over her, his tongue gliding up her cheek. She shuddered from the intrusion and trembled with fear. “Look what you’ve done, boy. You think you’re the son of a god?” He laughed and the other soldiers did as well. “You can’t even protect your mother! You’re nothing but a worthless human,” his sword slashed against her skin and crimson spilled everywhere as he released her and she dropped to the ground, in a pool of her own blood—her eyes permanently wide.
“NO!” I yelled and my body convulsed in anger. My head slammed back against the soldier, who held me and made contact with his head. His grip loosened and I pushed away. “I’ll kill you all!”
I screamed into the air, my fists clutched tightly at my sides, my stomach contracted. I hadn’t inhaled and my vision went black.
As my eyes refocused, I took in the sight before me. I was on my knees and fell backwards in terror. I crawled away from the destruction before me until my hands landed on something. I looked behind me and my mother’s lifeless gaze stared back at me. I sat there frozen in time, in a pool of blood and empty bodies. I was surrounded by dead soldiers and villagers. I’d killed them, I’d killed them all.
15
Maximillion
Come out, come out, wherever you are…you can’t hide from me, Maximillion. I will always be here—reminding you of what you did to me.
My mother’s voice faded into the abyss as I groggily sat up from the plush bed and yawned loudly. No matter what conditions I slept in they would never stop me from getting these nightmares. I wanted to believe that since I was sleeping in a nice and private room with a bed fit for a king, I was going to be in a soundless sleep coma. I guess not.
“Didn’t sleep well?” the question was asked from across the room. A dark figure was seated statuesquely still in an armchair by the curtain window. The room was too dark to see nothing more than a silhouette, but I recognized the voice.
“Isn’t it kind of creepy to watch someone sleep,” I said.
Nikolai chuckled. “Most likely, but I haven’t been here too long. I had trouble sleeping as well.”
“How long have I been out?”
“A good twelve hours. Your guardian is still knocked out. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for us to talk—Nephilim to Nephilim,” he said as he adjusted his posture. I shrugged, not really understanding where he was going with this. “I’ve been alone for much of my existence—which has been a very, very long time—so bear with me if I am not as trusting. With that being said, I think it’s only fair if you tell me what you know. That way, we can compare notes,” he said.
Did I have stupid written across my forehead? I laughed after ten seconds of silence. I wished I could have seen his expression in the dark because it would have been priceless.
“Dude, please don’t insult my intelligence. Thanks for the laugh though, it’s been a rough couple weeks,” I said as I rubbed my eyes awake. I swung my legs over the side of the bed—my back to him—and got up, stretching loudly. “I might be young and naïve but I have caught on to some things through this process. If you seriously think I’m going to bear my heart out to you and spill all my secrets because I need your help, then you’re trippin’.”
“Well at least you’re just as cynical as I am,” he said. I turned around to see him stand up and reach his arm over to the lamp. With a click, the room was enveloped in a dim lighting that made Greed’s expression much clearer. A smirk covered his face. “Or maybe you’ve become that way. Either way, it just goes to show you’re not as young and naïve as you think you are.”
“Possibly,” I whispered. He made a point, I wasn’t always like this. If anything, I’d been too trusting.
“Tell me about your mother,” he said and I jerked my head to meet him eye to eye.
“What about her?” I wouldn’t be surprised if he noticed the storm brewing inside me, but it was too soon to bring her up. Not after just seeing her not too long ago in my dreams—my nightmares.
“She was very dear to you,” he said and it wasn’t a question. I didn’t answer. “I can tell. Your eyes are the window to your soul—and they’re
wide open.” He walked across the room and to the door. “Some advice? Keep a lock on it. I don’t know how strong you are, Maximillion, son of Xavier. But if you’re not strong enough, you won’t be able to fight the threat that is coming your way,” he said and left me standing by the bed in silence.
By the time I showered and got ready for the day—or evening—Jones was just getting up from a deep sleep. He walked around the apartment like a zombie, but I knew he got the rest he needed for his body and mind to restart. Jones, whether he wanted to admit it or not—was walking around on fumes for the pass twenty four hours and I don’t know how he had managed.
I went into the kitchen where Nikolai was pouring a cup of coffee in a yellow happy face mug. I quirked an eyebrow at his choice of kitchenware. His whole apartment looks like it came out of a HGTV show. The mug contrasted with his rich bachelor pad and seemed out of place.
“What?” he questioned with sincere curiosity.
“Where’d you get that, Walmart?”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m entitled to be fond of mundane items. Anyways, I love Walmart, that place has everything,” he said with enthusiasm.
“I guess you do learn something new every day,” I mumbled and took a seat on one of the barstools at the kitchen counter.
“Coffee?” he asked and I nodded in response. I was awake and probably didn’t need the caffeine, but deep down, I think I have a little fear of possibly falling asleep. Not until I really have to at least. “Our flight is at midnight so we still have a couple of hours until we leave. The red eye flight was the best I could do on such short notice,” he said and placed a black mug that said in white letters, ‘Like A Boss’ on the front. I chuckled.
“Want to start training early?” he asked and I finally took notice at his attire. He wasn’t in a suit anymore but a pair of ratty sweat pants and t-shirt.
I smirked. “Hell yeah.”
We left Jones a note telling him we’d be at Sunset Park. He was in the shower when we left and I knew he was going to be upset with me for not speaking with him or waiting for him to come with us. But I was excited to start training with someone like me and it was not something I wanted Jones to be a part of. His overprotectiveness would get in the way of me learning everything I needed to know.
A few dozen laps around the lake later, we stopped at a bench for a water break where we had left our bottles and towels.
“How are you not tired?” I said breathlessly as I laid on the concrete walking path.
“Many years of practice, Max. You’ll get there soon, don’t fret,” Nikolai said as he casually sat down. “You didn’t start running out of breath until around the thirtieth lap, which is not so bad. You don’t give yourself enough credit.”
“I just need to be better,” I said, my chest heaving. “I can’t let Abbadon get the drop on me. He did once and it won’t happen again.”
“Max, from what you’ve told me, you didn’t. There’s nothing anyone could have done to prevent what happened with your mother,” he said. It was spoken with good intention, but it didn’t stop me from getting upset.
“Yeah, tell her that,” I mumbled as I sat up and brought my knees to my chest.
“Who?”
“Nothing,” I said, not remembering he could hear me even when I whispered.
“No Max. I’m not asking you to trust me unconditionally, but you do have to tell me if something is going on. You’d be surprised at the things I can help you with. So who are you talking about, your mother?” Nikolai asked. Even if I wanted to tell him, the answer was stuck in my throat. It’s like that fear when you want to raise your hand in class, but you’re not sure if you have the right answer and don’t want to sound stupid. That’s what that choking fear that keeps me from expressing my thoughts feels like. And aside from the fear of sounding stupid, it’s the fear that those nightmares might actually go away. Twisted right? It is but it’s the only place I can still see my mom.
“Max, is she in your dreams?”
“Yes damnit! Every time I close my freakin’ eyes she’s there. Haunting me and blaming me for her death and she’s right! If I didn’t hesitate, if Angela hadn’t stopped me from killing him, I could have—”
“Angela?” Nikolai interrupted.
“My other guardian. Abbadon is her father,” I said in defeat. I felt depleted of all energy and powerless at how little I could actually do.
Greed choked in mid sip of his water. “Wait a minute. Abbadon has a daughter?! And she’s your guardian?!”
“Dude, you sprayed your backwash on me, what the heck,” I said as I wiped off the water droplets that landed on my arm.
“Maximillion pay attention, Abbadon has a daughter?!” he asked again and I nodded in exasperation.
“Why? Does it matter?” His eyes were bulging out of their sockets and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d swallowed mosquitos with his jaw hanging open the way it was.
He cleared his throat. “No, no, it doesn’t. Just took me off guard, no big deal,” he said with a tight smile. I didn’t believe him, but I’d worry about it later. There was already too much on my plate to go digging around other problems. “Do you still have the ear plugs in?” Nikolai changed the subject.
“Yeah, I’ve been too scared to take them out. When we were underground I had tried to pull one out to listen to the fights but it was too much.”
“It can be overwhelming at times, you just have to learn to turn your senses on and off. It’s a real pain so be prepared to work on this for many years. Eventually you’ll need to take those plugs out and deal with the occasional boost of hearing,” he said. I touched the gel in my ears and saw Greed nod. I pulled out the right one followed by the left. My ears popped and I had to work my jaw to clear them. I winced as a breeze blew by and the whooshing was louder than Nikolai’s voice.
“It hurts. It’s like I just got off a plane or something,” I said.
“It’s going to be uncomfortable, but you can’t be dependent on those plugs. It was a good idea, don’t get me wrong. But now that I’m able to help you, it’s better if you meet this obstacle head on. Luckily for you, it’s only your hearing. Your other senses can go into overdrive at any moment, most likely if you’re around other Nephilim.” He stood up and helped me to my feet. “Now this is going to be the tough part. The switch to your senses is almost the same as the one to your fire. You just have to learn to access it. Not control it, but access it at a moment’s notice. Are you ready?” I quirked an eyebrow. Ready for what?
“Ready. Set. GO!” he yelled and started sprinting down the walk path around the lake.
His scream nearly knocked me off my feet and I felt like someone rang a church bell in my head. I ran at full speed to catch up and I realized what he meant. The whooshing of the wind that we produced from running was so loud I almost couldn’t run next to him. But that was the whole purpose. I need to find a way to shut it down. My eyes squinted as I concentrated on a spot ahead of me and popped my ears until they no longer did. They burned and I wanted to reach up and see if I was bleeding again. But eventually, it all just became a dull roar.
Twelve laps around the lake and I couldn’t hear the whooshing of the wind or the ripples of the lake water. The night was silent, aside from our deep breathing. I slowed to a jog and Greed followed suit. “It stopped,” I said out of breath.
He clamped a hand on my shoulder and steered me back towards our bench. “How’d you do it?” he asked with a smile.
“I just concentrated on the sounds and popped my ears until they couldn’t pop anymore,” I said, reaching for my water. He handed me a towel and motioned towards his ears. My hand went up automatically and touched something wet. Blood. I still bled from my ears. “How?” I asked with a shrill in my voice.
“It’s normal, don’t fret. You’re forcing your eardrums to accommodate to your sensitivity. It’s like trying to stuff clothes into an already full luggage. You might be able to fit those t-shirts in, but you have to
push what’s already in the bag some more to make it all fit.” His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “I hope that makes sense. It sounded better in my head,” he said with a chuckle.
I laughed. “Yeah, I get it.”
We got back to the apartment—which I actually learned is a penthouse—to a fuming Jones. He sat in the living room with the TV on, flipping furiously through the channels.
“Easy there tiger, you might break my remote,” Nikolai said as we walked through the foyer.
“The remote should be the last of your worries. Where the hell have you guys been?!” Jones stood up at an inhuman speed and was on us within seconds. “It’s Friday night and Emily’s funeral is tomorrow at noon!”
“We just went to the park to train for a while. Nikolai got us on the red eye tonight. Don’t worry Jones, we’ll make it on time,” I said but it wasn’t enough to calm him down. Jones glare was zeroed in on Greed.
“You might be coming with us, but it doesn’t mean you’re equipped to protect him. Don’t go roaming around without telling me again,” Jones said.
“I’m plenty equipped to handle whatever threat comes our way. You’re not his babysitter, relax. The kid is probably stronger than you anyways,” Nikolai said nonchalantly as he walked to the kitchen. “Water?” I nodded and followed him with Jones right on my trail.
“He may be stronger, but he doesn’t know how to control it yet. I’m not going to risk him on pure speculation from someone who pays for protection.” My gaze turned to Jones and then Greed who looked like he swallowed a lemon. Uh-oh. That struck a chord.
“You think you’re better than me, because I had a team of hellhounds to protect me? Well Guardian, let’s see, I’ve been alive for thousands of years. Far longer than you have or ever will and I appreciate my eternity. Sorry for wanting to stay alive,” Greed said with enough sarcasm to piss Jones off even more. While I’d love to know how old this guy is, I can’t have them fighting, not now at least.
Greed (Sins of the Fallen Book 2) Page 8