House of New Gods

House of New Gods Page 7

by S.A. Geary

  ***

  Though my vision was blurred I could make out the dim shape of a fire crackling in the corner. The heart monitor chugged along. My eyes fluttered open more and I looked up to see the IV dripping slowly. I could actually hear it. Weird. My skin prickled and I shuddered as my sore eyes continued to search the hazy room.

  “Hello?” My voice cracked and the vocal chords and tissue surrounding were raw.

  “We’re here love,” Isis moved out from the corner. Her form was obscured but I knew it was her.

  “Isis,” I said through tears.

  “We thought you’d left us for good darling. We were so worried for you,” she murmured. Her icy lips were over my eyes then; her long hair grazed my chest, a chest that was no longer ravaged and exposed.

  “What happened?” I asked, trying to clear my throat. It was barely operable.

  “You remember nothing?”

  “No,” I told her.

  “Best to leave it alone then,” she said.

  “Tell me, please,” I begged her.

  “I’ll show you.”

  In one succinct thought she delivered the entire scenario, from the moment Etiennette escorted me from the dinner party and after as I lay sleeping in my bed. What happened next was a bit distorted. It was strange to watch myself leave my bed, walk to the patio and exit. Though they hadn’t actually seen me drift away, like a spell had been placed over them, or the entire mansion, Isis was able to show me now. She took the memories of my attack straight from the minds of the black wolves. They’d lured me to them, and done so successfully at the behest of their leader. I gasped from the inside when I saw Ankh-sut’s face, twisted, hissing and snarling at Isis. After my aunt cast out words to the ancient woman, she disappeared into the mist. And then back in the library afterward, everyone’s faces had been so severe with worry. At one point Etiennette wished to take me to a nearby hospital in Keswick fifty miles away. Isis of course had refused. There would be no explanation for what had happened to me and no way for any human to have saved me. Leaving the safety of the coven wasn’t an option.

  “That was her, wasn’t it?”

  “It was.”

  “And she sent them, to kill me?”

  “Not to kill you then, but to lure you away from our protection.”

  “If she’d succeeded, if I went with those monsters…I’m alive because of you,” I wept. I couldn’t stop. There were no words.

  “You were very lucky,” she answered quick, almost rote, until I reached a pinkie to hers. The sensation sent her to Anchille who held her tightly. He soothed her as the rest of the coven bowed their heads, in observance of the queen’s momentary need for privacy. All had been privy to her previous wrath and judgment, but no one was accustomed to her humility. I felt sorry that it was me who’d brought it out in her. From the moment I entered her life, I made her weaker. Anchille released Isis to come to my side. She wiped her bloody eye nonchalantly with her finger, then licked it, pondering. She brought her hand to my brow in reflection.

  “You don’t make me weak, you make me, human.”

  “They were able to get onto the property undetected,” I heard someone mutter to another. Then more whispers of query followed before Anchille silenced them. He came to my other side and smoothed wet hair from my face. I could still see the rim of red tears in Isis’ eyes.

  “I never meant to hurt you, or put anyone in danger.”

  “It wasn’t your fault. You were beckoned by those devils Lina, manipulated out of our arms, and worse they used Will to do it. It’s the very reason I’ve forbade your friendship, because it will unknowingly draw out enemies.” Anchille came to her side. “The trials you both face have begun. You will forever be marked by this. You are both vulnerable.” I looked at Will with regret. So did Isis.

  “And yet, what’s done is done. For now, the issue of yours and Will’s, relationship…are on hold. William understands that he must be on watch and he knows the reasons why,” she said.

  “You’re on probation?”

  Will winked me. “And you’re grounded.”

  “This is no laughing matter. She’s been marked, and you tainted by the Black Wolves. How long do you think before more of them descend here?” Aeolian hissed.

  “We killed them,” Thomas argued in his brother’s defense.

  “Yes, and when they don’t return, their kin will come looking, and they will target Will. His being anywhere near her, endangers us all. They are connected to Ankh-sut, banished as she is. It won’t be long before that devil unleashes her fury in the flesh. We haven’t the time to waste on this small indiscretion!” Aeolian interrupted.

  “For fuck sake Vitto, contain your wife please!” Thomas roared. Aeolian rushed at him but her mate held her back, giving her a stern reprimand to be quiet and content. She continued simmering at his side. After a silent moment she turned to Isis.

  “You know I’m right. We should separate again. Forget the revelation. We’ll have a better chance.”

  “We’re not all cowards,” muttered Charles to which Vittorio did take offense.

  “It has nothing to do with cowardice, it’s about survival. We’ve lived centuries in this state, even grown accustomed to it. If the revelation never happens we will go on living as we are now, but another war, with her,” he shook his head, “too many lives were lost the first time. Aeolian only means that perhaps this new quarrel, is needless.”

  “Needless?” Thomas repeated, narrowing his eyes. “Did the slaughter of innocent women and children not move you to fight? Because whether Lina ascends or not, this war will arrive at our doorstep. It already has. Hiding in your precious mountains won’t stop that and if we know anything of the witch queen, she has eyes everywhere. She will find you, and, she will kill you.”

  “Right, so you might want to re-think that whole defection thing,” Charles told them.

  My aunt stood with her back to the covens. Anchille held her shoulder and then he addressed the room. “We only wish for Lina’s full recovery. We will deal with how they found her later. The disclosure must continue as planned. No one is to leave until that is complete. After Lina is given the stories, you all will be free to decide if you will stay and see this through, or if you wish to leave. Isis and I will not stand in your way; it will be your choice.” There was more Isis wished to add to the subject but she resisted. She also had plenty to say about Will and I, but would she refrain on that topic as well? Isis turned to look at me.

  “You’ve made it quite clear you won’t give this up, even if it means our ruin. I would say my child, that we are at an impasse.” I flushed. “Could we for the present time, finish what we started these evening?” she asked me. Will squeezed my hand.

  “Yeah, I said I would listen to anything you all had to tell me. I’m still willing, especially now that I’ve seen proof,” I told her. “Before we do, what day is it?”

  “It’s Wednesday.”

  “I’ve been out for four days?” I started hyperventilating at the thought of my poor mother, having not heard from me. She must’ve been going out of her mind.

  “Technically you were dead, Lina,” Ahkmenotep corrected and I gasped. “If not for Isis, you might not have come back to us at all. Do you remember anything?”

  “Always the scientist Ahkmen; the girl is back, let us celebrate in that!” Vittorio smacked Ahkmenotep’s arm. Aeolian was still sulking in a corner, visibly annoyed at her husband’s acceptance and everyone’s reprimands.

  “But, not one of us has experienced the world beyond, I am only curious as to what she saw,” Ahkmenotep explained himself.

  “You will see home one day Ahkmen, but it is far from your time yet. Let’s not rush death, shall we?” Vittorio gave him a light clap to the back.

  “Yes, true.” Both men grinned at one another and half embraced. Aeolian rumbled under her breath.

  “My mom,” I said more to myself. “Oh my God she must be going crazy,” I worried, ignoring Ahk
men’s request that I relive in detail my experience with the afterlife. I didn’t want to remember. It was cold. It was dark. It was not a place I ever wished to return to. I hoped it wasn’t what the other world was really like. If it was, we all had a reason to fear dying.

  “Lina, don’t worry about your mom. I’ve taken care of it,” Avati announced.

  “But I was dead!” I shrieked.

  “Yes,” she answered, “but Constance of course knows nothing of that.”

  “My mom and I talk, every day. If I don’t call her she thinks I’m lying in a gutter.”

  “She’s totally fine Lina. You’ve been extremely busy that’s all. She understood.”

  “I doubt that very much,” I muttered.

  “How did you bring me back?” I wasn’t certain I really wanted to know.

  “Isis gave you some of her blood mixed with Sek-met’s, from your locket. It took some doing to extract it but we were finally able to make the tincture right. Isis performed the incantation and then we waited,” Ahkmenotep said calmly.

  “So, I’m still…human?”

  “Of course. What else would you be?” asked Isis. I shrugged meekly, my eyes panning the room of the un-dead.

  “Like you.”

  “No, no, not like that, not for you,” she said shaking her head. I didn’t think I frowned but that she rose a brow. “You seem disappointed.” I didn’t say anything, and Isis smirked. “Your time will come, but that is between the gods and you.”

  “Thank you, for saving me.” I squeezed Isis’ smooth cold hand. She kissed the top of my head.

  “Lina, I may have performed the rite, but it was you that struggled and fought your way back,” she praised me highly. “In such void it is mostly improbable for the human spirit to survive, but somehow you were able to separate yourself from all that. It was more miracle than magic my dear.”

  “I believe it’s time we cleaned this up, Lyon, Charles,” said Anchille, grabbing towels and soiled sheets. Lyon helped Ahkmen and Anchille clean up the last of the left over spilled blood that had made it to the corners of the room. Etiennette and Aeolian kept their noses plugged as the sting of bleach hit the air. Avati walked back into the library—Ashmolean and Khan were at her sides. Isis turned to them, a bit stunned.

  “I’m sorry. I heard them and knew they were awake,” she apologized.

  “It’s alright,” said Anchille looking at Isis. “Come here children,” he called them. Thomas and Charles sat on a corner couch and Anchille ushered the boys there to be still. Khan escaped and before Thomas could catch him, the baby was gone. He came to the side of the hospital bed; his honey coiled hair had fallen over his smooth face. He swiped at it and peered up at me. Thomas moved to reach him and Khan feigned a fierce snarl in his direction. Thomas stopped. He rose his hands mid-air at the baby, letting him know he wouldn’t stop him. Khan edged toward me closer. His lip quivered and his nose wrinkled. I knew he smelled the trauma. He gave me such a look before furrowing his brow.

  “Are you sick?” he asked, touching my fingers and assessing the drip of the IV.

  “Not anymore,” I told him. “Thanks to your mommy.” Khan swiveled around to see Isis. He studied her face hard. Then he focused on me.

  “Can I be by you?” he asked. Isis started to object.

  “I don’t mind,” I said, despite my breathlessness and exhaustion.

  “Khan, be very careful with her,” she warned.

  “I will mummy,” he pledged. Then agilely, Khan mounted the bed and before long he was nuzzling into my side. I leaned in to kiss his hair and had almost forgotten how lovely he smelled. The chilly curls caressed my lips offering a sweet musky perfume.

  “Everyone, a moment in private if you will?” Isis motioned for the rest of the coven to go out into the hall. “Could he stay with you?” she asked me. Suddenly Ashmolean jumped from in between Thomas and Charles and snuggled in behind me as well.

  “I guess they both will.” It hurt bad to smile, to even move, but I was happy.

  The room emptied and for a short while it was the three of us, lying together, their small arms draped over my body protectively. Will was right. They were strong despite their size. I tried hard not to think about what else he’d said. I didn’t want to imagine anything happening to these two precious angels. They were two wide eyed, perfectly lovely creatures that’d never hurt anyone or anything in their short existence, and while some of their kind had lived a life of violence and decadence, possibly earning their grotesque deaths, Ash and Khan certainly didn’t. Immediately, I thought of Aeolian and Ahnri, and, Marija. They were sending her back to the human world, after nearly killing her. She would forever be traumatized. It made me sorry, and angry.

  “You don’t think we’re evil like that, do you?” Ashmolean leaned up and over my shoulder, pressing his chin over my chest, and staring at me through his cold grey eyes. I looked at him surprised, realizing, he was either reading my thoughts or at the very least, hearing bits of it.

  “I can’t hear everyone, only you, and only a little bit. It’s bumpy in there,” he said, pointing to my forehead.

  “Bumpy?”

  “Mm, messy, I can’t understand most of it. It’s like when the TV is fuzzy and you can only see bits of pictures.”

  “Oh. I didn’t know you had a TV.” That was true, I’d yet to see one in this huge place.

  “We don’t,” said Khan, circling my fingers. “He saw the staff’s once, and one of the men was hitting the side of it.”

  Must have been really old, I thought. And then I laughed. “It’s not good for you anyway. It’s better to live life, then watch it.”

  “That’s what daddy says.”

  “To answer your question, no, I don’t think you are evil. You’re innocent.”

  “Lina?” said Ash.

  “Mmm?”

  “We see them, the elders, we see them kill, sometimes,” he informed me in a low voice. I looked at him and then Khan who confirmed.

  “I don’t like it,” said Khan. “It’s scary.”

  “The staff kids stare at us, like we will hurt them.” Ashmolean’s lip was quivering though he tried to mask it with his innate strength. “Once they asked to play with us. We had fun, until...”

  I looked down at him. “What happened?”

  Khan lowered his head in shame. “I was hungry,” he replied, rubbing his nose and shrugging.

  Ashmolean took his brother’s hand over my belly. “They saw his fangs.”

  “They screamed at us, called us monstas, and run away,” added Khan. “We don’t have any friends now.”

  I couldn’t help but feel sad for Ash and Khan but also sorry for those poor human children, who rightfully feared the unknown. “They don’t understand you is all. If you show them you won’t hurt them, they’ll be less afraid. Maybe they’ll play with you again.” Ash cocked his head. “Would you like that?”

  “I would. I still like them,” said Khan, twirling his fingers in my hair.

  “And you?” I asked Ash.

  “I guess I like them too,” he added earnestly. “It doesn’t matter now. Mummy sent their parents away, right before you came.”

  “Oh?”

  “It’s only the elders now, and the kitchen staff. Rinalde plays with us if he’s not too busy. He tells us jokes, and gives us treats, but the others, they’re don’t talk to us much if they come here. They go into London when they aren’t working. They don’t have any children for us to play with.”

  “I see,” I said softly. “Well then, you’ll make new friends, somewhere else. In the meantime, you have my friendship,” I told them both, giving them kisses.

  “Yes!” he giggled and they both snuggled in even tighter. My heart was broken for them. Childhood was already such a rocky road, full of physical bumps and emotional bruises along the way, without adding these complications to the mix.

  “Lina?” said Ash.

  “Yeah?”

  “Do you think m
y brother and I are going to die?” he asked. I looked at his face, the smoothness tightened revealing his fear. A ring of crimson lined his lashes and before the tears could fall I caught them with my finger.

  “Listen to me, you and Khan aren’t going anywhere do you hear me? You’re going to stay right here with the people who love you the most and nothing is going to happen.” I hugged him as tightly as my torn body would allow just before the others returned.

  “Come children, Sitre and the girls are waiting for you out at their cottage. They’re excited to play with you both.” She winked at me. “Spit spot!” she ordered. “I should think there will be lots of chocolate and games and fun,” Avati took Khan from my arms.

  “Mummy, I don’t want to leave,” he whined, but as they passed, Isis kissed him once and he obeyed. Ashmolean followed behind slowly. He looked back once.

  “Feel betta,” his lip quaked as his tiny shoulder slumped. The monitor sped exponentially as I reached my fingers to my mouth to blow him a kiss. I winked at him and his chest swelled with pride as he walked to the doorway, giving Will a high five as he left. I melted.

  “Isis, you and Omri did amazingly with her, take a look at this.” Ahkmen signaled for her to examine the print outs of my tests and also at the most recent x-rays. “Lina is almost completely healed. She’ll be up and moving in no time,” he announced encouragingly. Isis was very quiet.

  “That is wonderful to hear,” she added thankfully. She pulled my hand up to her lips and kissed it twice. Then her face changed from serene to drawn and troubled.

  “Then it’s time,” she said. The others looked on sort of bewildered. There were a few silent rebuttals.

  “Isis, she’s only come back to us and now this fever is weakening her heart. We’ve determined she didn’t have enough of their blood to make a real impact, but shouldn’t we wait,” Ahkmen asked while several others nodded in agreement.

  “We haven’t the time,” Isis spoke and her order hushed the room. “We must prepare. The sooner we release the past as the prophets stated, the closer she will be to transitioning.”

  “What do you mean about their blood?” I inquired, ignoring her. “I didn’t taste their blood…did I? Anchille, did I?” I anxiously searched their eyes for answers.

  The last of whatever medicine they’d switched me to after the Morphine, was definitely wearing off. Before I’d finished the thought, Ahkmenotep was there, taking the first bite of pain away once more. Relief washed over me again as my eyes, legs and arms grew heavier and heavier. As the invisible bricks weighed my body down I felt relaxed again.

  “Another shot of Demerol should do the trick.”

  “Probably doesn’t matter, but why do you even have all this medical stuff?” Thomas asked, as he pulled a few cords to examine them.

  “For this,” Ahkmenotep responded, taking it out of Thomas’ hands.

  “Where do you get it all?”

  “I have a lab in London. We are immortal, but those we come in contact with generally are not. We must always be ready, to heal conventionally, should the need arise. We can’t risk sending a human to a hospital after they’ve seen us. In their inhibited state they could put us in danger.”

  “Makes sense,” said Thomas, fidgeting with the drip line. Ahkmenotep grumped at him so he moved away.

  “Ahahhh,” I giggled and felt my tongue roll backwards.

  “Lina, dear?” said Ahkmen. “It wasn’t too much,” he professed to the others. “Darling, can you hear me?”

  “I’m fine,” I tried to sit up but the rush to my head sent me falling back. “Whoa.” A string of giggles followed.

  “She must be coherent if we’re going to do this,” Vittorio stated.

  “Ahkmenotep, you did that on purpose! You are as bad and as disobedient as Thomas sometimes!” Isis growled.

  “Hey, hey, leave me out of this. It’s not my fault the doctor over here drugged up your patient!” Thomas said defensively. Isis snarled at him too.

  Lyon and Etiennette stood hand in hand closest to me. They placed their cool hands to my skin and it helped to ease the swoon. Their eyes flamed bright sterling, their lips parted slightly to reveal snowy white smiles. Etiennette’s lucent skin was gleaming beneath her golden hair.

  “Are you an angel?” I asked her, still laughing uncontrollably. My guffaws turned to hiccups.

  “Ahkmenotep!” Isis fumed.

  “I, it’s affecting her peculiarly,” he tried to explain. “Perhaps it is her changing?” he asked Anchille, who too, was grinning with his hand over his mouth.

  “Do something!” Isis bellowed.

  “What can we do? She’s had too much,” Vitto offered buoyantly until Aeolian smacked his arm. Beneath his cool demeanor there was a slight smirk.

  “We could drink it out of her?” Aeolian suggested with a sadistic grin. “I wouldn’t mind a little opiate therapy, especially being with you people.” Will had his hand around her pale throat that instant, a low bear-like rumble ripped through his chest.

  “You’ve had quite enough!” he told her through his sharp teeth.

  Anchille grabbed hold of his arm and gently pulled him from her. “Easy, easy now. No one would dream of hurting Lina.”

  “Isis?” said Lyon, waiting for her directive.

  “She must be sober,” she commanded. “Drink it back.”

  Will recovered and went to her side. “She’s been through hell, don’t do this. The reveal can wait!”

  “As Anchille stated, this won’t hurt her,” Isis told him with confidence, though she did keep a keen eye on Aeolian who glared back in defiance. “Don’t cast at me so, you brought my judgement on yourself the moment your lips parted to that poor girl’s neck. Unless you feel inclined to allow your mate do this task in your stead, I suggest you proceed, cautiously.” Aeolian muttered and moved in with the others.

  And then I felt the first nip.

  It was like the pressure of a bee sting, but as their mouths invaded my exposed skin, pulling out the medicine with excellent precision, it began to feel nice. When Isis called them off they obeyed instantaneously, even Aeolian who backed away wiping her lips. Will stalked her back to the wall, like she’d stolen from me and she snarled at him.

  “I did what I was told, leave me be!”

  He grinned at her and whispered, “I won’t forget.”

  Aeolian scoffed, “Remember all you want. I’m right here waiting, whenever you’re ready.”

  “Woman, hush yourself, you’ve done your chore, now be quiet!” Vittorio ordered her and she for once obeyed. Thomas put his arm around Will as he laughed.

  It hadn’t been too terrible, their bites, but as soon as they’d retreated, the pain of my attack returned with a vengeance. I let out a blood curdling scream that sent Charles wailing into the corner of the room like a recoiling dog.

  “I can’t stand it Anchille! Please make it stop, make it stop! Oh my God it hurts, it hurts so bad!” I burst into sobs and clutched the bedclothes between my cold fingers. I was re-living every detail of my attack in color and the color was red, bloody red pain that was shooting through my entire body. “It’s feels like fire! Please, help me!”

  “Lina,” Isis called over my shrieks. I shook my head violently at her; my feral eyes filled with blood from the pressure. As my body convulsed I felt her hands cover my belly; they began to twist and snake in a wide pattern over me. She muttered some cryptic words and I became numb. The awful pain deadened to a tolerable degree. I couldn’t move, and I couldn’t speak. I blinked at her because I didn’t understand and I was afraid. I hated not being in control.

  “I’ve immobilized you, like your coma, only now you can hear and you can see, and that is all we need at this time. Understand?”

  I blinked again to let her know I did.

  “When we’re through, Ahkmenotep will make you comfortable, I promise, only right now human drugs are more headache than they’re worth.”

  I blinked.

&
nbsp; Will grunted from the far wall, his golden eyes flaming. Though he made no attempt to come to me, I knew he wanted to. I wished I could speak to him in private; I wished that we could touch once more. For some reason my brain was mush, I couldn’t remember anything except that I was to listen. I blinked once more to let them know I was ready for them to begin.

  “Mon Dieu,” Lyon exhaled. “You’ve certainly been through more than any human should ever have to my dear.” He tugged gently on the end of the sheet where my toe protruded. If I could have flinched I would have, but I was basically a statue. He started straight in after that. “The past, our beginning, and…your beginning is where we must start.” Etiennette sat on the edge of the bed; she scooted her body against my legs and smiled at me.

  “So strong you are, a fighter, like the Achaiins,” she praised.

  “Achaia was the birthplace of all immortals. There the rich soiled land is where we first made breath, and Isis,” Lyon glanced at my aunt, “who we once called Ahmose I, was the most ethereal queen in the world. We all knew that she was much closer to a god than woman and all who lived under her reign respected her immense power.”

  “Still do,” added his mate.

  “Her kingdom and all its glorious temples once existed over the stretch of desert that is now, Deir El Bhari. Buried beneath rock, sediment and the great sands of Egypt, it is merely a mystery, an imaginary place that no longer matters to the race of man. We have not forgotten. And you my child bear a proud and noble name,” Lyon smiled down at me. “Ahmose, Uset, Benona and many other names have been used in association with Isis, but she has always been only queen to us. She is the living goddess of motherhood, of magic and fertility. She controls the spirits, the elements, the seas and she is the primordial child of time. There are none in our world who do not know her and most fear her agelessness, and her power. There was only one other like her—one whose name is etched into every wall of every tomb and on every sunken piece of meteoric iron in the Aegean Sea, and that ancient one is Hekate. She is the warrior queen who conquered her enemies with such merciful valor. Hers is a story of the greatest tragedy and is where you began.”

  I kept my attention on Lyon as he began to tell the story of my origin.

  21. Legacy

  “Hekate wasn’t human, nor was she beast, at least not at first,” he continued. “Hecate or Hekat, like Isis, like many of her fellow goddesses and gods, reigned in the cosmos long before her earth soul became bound to Egypt.”

  Earth soul? I was confused. The lives of the Gods were transient—they interchanged so frequently through the millennia, morphing into different persona, different beings all together. It was hard to keep up.

  “Sek-met, an original god and presence to the first seeds of our world, fashioned Hekate from her own hands. She gave her to the womb of a mortal woman who was half god, her father too, and when she was ready, set her out to prevail over the sands of Egypt. Many ships had launched from lands across the sea, in hopes of acquiring Egyptian kingdoms for their own gain. Hekate was to lead her men into battle and secure the future of the empires. And she did, many times over,” Lyon attested.

  The Hekate that was worshiped in Greece, Rome, Macedonia…

  “The same, but remember, we existed thousands of years before Hesiod would put pen to paper for Theogony. And Hekate is still worshiped across the land, to this very day.”

  It was nice to think of my fore-mother that way, adored by nations, revered and prayed to, like Isis. But she had enemies and apparently so did I.

  “Pre-dynastic Turks, Serbians, and raiders from the north beyond Macedon, made several attempts on her life, but to no avail. Hekate was invincible. She was a force. William,” he broke momentarily, “bring me the book that I might show her,” Lyon asked. I could feel the vibrations of Will’s feet upon the floor. My heart raced in response.

  “Are you comfortable?” asked Etiennette. I blinked a yes.

  “This is your mother Lina, your true birth mother,” Lyon exposed a face to me. It was only a drawing of course but very detailed. She stood in armor, cuffed at her arms, knees, and ankles. Her ash brown hair was drawn back from her face, the rest falling in a side braid, and she had a shield, and what looked like an antediluvian crossbow. There was this fierce gleam in her eyes.

  She’s beautiful, I thought.

  “And this is your father, Agmenon, who was also fashioned of the gods and protected the land at the mouth of the sea in what is now considered Lower Egypt.”

  Agmenon was a formidable man, a giant, with a giant’s hands and a menacing stare. His hair was a chestnut red, half braided along the sides and all combed back, and he had a long beard to match. There was a golden flame in his gaze and also determination. He was suited in metal armor, like Hekate, with his weaponry at rest at his sides.

  I stared at their faces. Had I been able to move, I would have touched them. They both appeared strong, and magnificently larger than life. In their eyes was the resemblance of a soul and I wondered, could it be true? Were they my real parents and if so, what did that say about my past, about my own mother, Constance? How did it all work? How could I live now, if I, ugh, I didn’t understand it. My thoughts were swirling and I was beginning to feel thirsty. Will responded. He turned just as Avati presented him with a glass. “Thank you,” he told her carefully, knowing he was on thin ice, but if anyone was going to aid in my recovery, it would be him. I couldn’t smile, but I was on the inside. Will smiled small as he bent the clear straw toward my lips. I didn’t know how I would swallow, being immobile, but I didn’t care, I was dying. It mostly dribbled down my chin which was mortifying, but like a devoted partner, he gingerly wiped it away.

  “Let’s get back to it, shall we,” Isis proposed. “We haven’t a spare moment.”

  Thank you, I told Will, ignoring her. I miss you, followed. His eyes bulged but that didn’t stop him from responding. With his free hand he caressed my cheek.

  Me too, he sent. The monitor beeped again. Everyone tried disguising their grins, all but except Isis and Aeolian.

  Avati shook her head. “I don’t think we can keep you down, at least not with Will in the room.”

  “Oh please!” Aeolian grumbled. She and Khala held the same contempt for Will.

  “Careful brother, you’ll give the poor girl a heart attack,” sniggered Thomas.

  “William,” Isis cautioned, hinting without words that she could remove him if need be. Neither of us made another peep. I tried to smile and drink at the same time—unfortunately I ended up losing all the liquid this time. The front of the clean nightgown they’d dressed me in was soaked in the process. I hadn’t any time to be further embarrassed before Will wiped my neck. He bent forward to kiss my head but I made a sudden move to meet his lips. He retracted clumsily, trying not to look over his shoulder where others looked on, and also trying to figure out how I’d done it. He wasn’t the only one. The rest of my body felt numb, cut off, but my mind and my head were more, present. Lyon cleared his throat and Will stepped away. I felt myself frowning inside, first because his lips were gone, and second because I immediately tried moving again and I couldn’t. Isis gave me a look of disapproval.

  “Shall we go on?” Lyon asked, quickly diffusing the situation. I coughed, taking one more drink of water before Avati placed it on an iron nightstand beside me. I was regaining more self-control and while Isis appeared ready to drain me of it for my own good, I wouldn’t let her.

  “Hekate and Agmenon became, friends,” Lyon lilted at the word, casting a side-glance at Will. “Having been forged from the fires of Sekmet and Wepwawet—they were one in the same, both mortal and immortal, both strong, and fearless. Perhaps it was their courage and strength that drew them closer. One thing is clear from the stories—they loved each-other. Many times they met on the battle field to take down those that sought to kill them. Their alliance brought them closer, as did their allegiance to the OverGods they’d been sired by. After a night spent in bl
ood, it was clear to Agmenon if they continued, Hekate would die. He refused to lose her and so, the great king, your father, asked Wepwawet for permission to take Hekate for his bride,” Lyon explained. “But the god refused him. It was never about procuring a pure bloodline; it was about containing dominion over the landscape of Egypt. Agmenon would stay in the Lower, always guarding the mouth of the sea from foreign invaders, and Hekate would remain in the Upper, where legions would fall to their knees in worship. As time went on evidence of their ongoing affair grew in the whispers of the people. The gods were in awe of their creation, of Hekate and Agmenon’s shear will. They had no need for an oracle to see the connection. If the two lovers ever realized how truly powerful they were, how utterly miraculous, they might become the new supreme, and what would that mean for the world?” said Lyon. “You bare the mark of them child.”

  I looked at Lyon, in surprise. Isis twisted my ankle around toward the inner side, and there beneath the bone was the faint shape of a rounded bow and directly behind it was a pale disk. I’d never noticed its definition before. For years it was this ambiguous birth mark—nothing special, nothing unique, but now…Isis proclaimed that they represented the two gods, one Blood, one Wolf—their duality that was within me.

  “My grandma...” I swallowed.

  “Lina, please, speak with your mind if you must,” Isis begged. “You need rest.” She was scratching her head trying to figure out how I was coming out of her spell.

  I didn’t listen and forced my voice to cooperate. It hurt but I was determined to talk and to be in control of my body. “She used to trace her finger over it,” I sighed, feeling frustrated at my lack of strength, “at bedtime.”

  “It must have been a huge burden, for her to keep such a secret,” Lyon raked his finger over my ankle slowly too. “Hekate and Agmenon were the first immortals Lina, the very first. They were punished after Agmenon dared to negate the law. The moment the king stepped toward Hekate and took her hand, they were cursed. One would walk the earth as wolf and the other would live in the cold, alone. She’d have no beating heart, no pulse.”

  “And no way of making a child,” I exhaled hard, dropping my head to the pillow behind me.

  “But there was a flaw in the plan. Unbeknownst to the gods Hekate and Agmenon had already consummated their forbidden marriage moons before that council. Hekate carried you in secret inside her womb and in case Sek-met and Wepwawet upheld their punishment, she also used her powers to cast an incantation over your soul, to protect it for eternity.”

  “Did they kill them?” I choked.

  “Not, exactly,” Lyon said. “Hekate and Agmenon are bound by magic, wrapped, sealed and guarded by statues of Wepwawet, whom you call Anubis now. They were not killed, but spared. Their bodies, drained, are in a state of sleep. Hekate delivered you into the mouth of Agmenon moments before soldiers were called to hall him away. But in a last minute of mercy, Sek-met ordered all of you to be buried together. Of course, the magic surrounding your spirit carried you throughout the ages and you have come to us in this time, as you were destined to.”

  “But my body, the body of a baby, still lays with Hekate and Agmenon?”

  “Technically? Yes.”

  Weird. Everyone laughed, nodding their heads in agreement. “What would happen if someone destroyed our bodies? Would I not exist anymore?” They stopped laughing at that. I was totally freaked out. “Isis? What happens if the tomb’s raided?”

  Anchille touched my knee. “It is your soul that has survived,” he replied. “Your soul, came to this body, in this world. Nothing can hurt you.”

  “Good,” I said, without confidence. I felt the urge to go find my fetus and safeguard it just in case.

  “By breathing life into you, Hekate and Agmenon saved us all from eternal damnation. Because of their sacrifice we are able to live and because of the great sacrifice you will one day make, the immortals will have a new god to serve, as well as the freedom and prosperity our kind deserves. It is written that every thousand years after Hekate and Agmenon were forced apart, the Nile River flooded the homes of the Egyptians. It was said to be the tears of Sek-met.”

  “But she was the one who condemned them?” I argued brusquely. “It was her fault.”

  “Sek-met is both malicious and kind, loved as she is feared. She is the world’s strongest hand, the lap which tired men rest their heads after battle. She feared the hybrid child of the king and queen yes, but she also grew to love it. Sek-met spared our mother and father because she believed the prophets, and so she too awaits our salvation,” Lyon flipped a few pages in the book. “Perhaps Sek-met is tired. Hekate and Agmenon’s forbidden love served as the catalyst which has kept both species apart all these years, but it has also joined us, not as some prefer, but we are joined all the same.” Lyon, Etiennette, Vitto, and Aeolian all stood on the left side of the hospital bed, staring across to the wolf brothers on my right. The rest remained at the foot, listening.

  “We are no longer merely the fall out of this terrible circumstance,” Lyon added hopefully.

  “If that’s true then you should encourage me to be friends with, anyone,” I said, taking Will’s hand, “no matter who they are. If you’re so moved by the prophecy, and what it means, why not forget Sek-met and Wepwawet’s archaic rules,” I grumbled, more than suggested. “It seems like change’s been long overdue.”

  “You misunderstand,” he said sternly.

  “I don’t think I do. I think the rules only apply to me?” I pulled my hand from Will in irritation, and crossed my arms. I was ecstatic that I was moving well, but suddenly pissed off with the conversation.

  “Right or not child, what you propose is anything if not complicated,” said Lyon.

  “It’s only complicated, if you make it that way.”

  “This house has come together for many reasons, Lina. My contention is that we all look to celebrate our smaller victories.” Lyon extended his hand to Isis and Anchille. Etiennette followed his lead and beckoned for the wolf brothers to join them. They did without hesitation, though when their fingers met there was certain disquiet in the room. “It is rare for us to live together, but we do it with civility and also, in your honor.”

  “What about love?” I asked. Their faces twisted over the word.

  “Our laws are as such Lina. We are bound for many reasons which I am sure have become more obvious to you now. Our place is here with you, to protect and guide you through your journey. It is not to blur the lines or to indulge, in fantasy.”

  “Fantasy?” I snorted, gaping at everyone in the room—a room full of the fantastic and surreal. “You already exist. You’re already powerful. Why not make the rules be what you want?” Anger and frustration certainly aided in my ability to sit up. I guessed I was really changing. Soft chuckles rang in my right ear, and Will pressed his thumb to my elbow. It tickled and I momentarily forgot my tirade.

  “Your age and your innocence beguile us all,” admitted Lyon humbly, making full pardon to our stalemate. “Perhaps we’ve grown, comfortable, after the fall out of war. Perhaps our past prejudices should no longer cloud our judgement.”

  I shrugged though the action wasn’t nearly as pronounced as intended. I conceded as well. There was no point in arguing even if I was doing so selfishly for my own gains. “On to my journey?” I opined for a new focus.

  22. History Lesson

  “The day of your ascension into immortality approaches and we will be here, every step of the way,” said Lyon. I couldn’t help but shiver at that.

  “There’s no need to worry Lina. The prophets have assured us that your transition should go smoothly,” offered Anchille.

  “Should go smoothly…you don’t sound very confident.”

  “He is, we all are,” Etiennette stepped in her husband’s place. I couldn’t take my eyes from Lyon who retreated a few steps, his golden features grimacing.

  “Won’t go off without a hitch, why, because I care for Will?” I a
sked Lyon. He pursed his lips.

  “Please tell me the whole of your immortal world isn’t resting on my shoulders, and worse, that I spend all my days alone; please tell me that’s not the case, because if it is,” I paused, glancing at Will my throat pinched, “that sucks!”

  “It’s difficult to explain,” he said.

  “Try,” I told him.

  “Any saturated emotion, be it anger, despair, or love, any heightened sense, could thrust you in the opposite direction then what has been intended for you.”

  “Jibberish,” I crowed.

  Lyon sighed. “The prophets laid out plainly that you should ascend, uninhibited by anything, or anyone of the earthly realm, because when you ascend you will no longer be of this world but of ours. Your attachments, your sentiments, your desires, all must fall in direct line with our salvation. If you are clouded from that journey under any circumstance, you may not make it to the other side.”

  “And. Then what would happen?”

  He turned to Isis and Anchille. My uncle stepped to me and sat down. He took my hand. “If you don’t ascend, as the spell was cast, we will all remain here, as we have, in our vampiric, or wolf states, no afterlife, no peace…”

  “And?” I pushed.

  “And you, will die.”

  I laid my head against the pillow. “Well, damn.”

  Anchille lowered his head. “I’m sorry.”

  “Me too,” I said.

  “You see; we aren’t trying to keep you focused because we’re unfeeling. Everyone here can fully recognize the bond the two of you have formed, but it’s that very bond, that, distraction that could push you in the wrong direction, and,” Anchille said glancing at Will, “he knows it.”

  “And, what does my ascension mean for you again? Is it Heaven, or, Aaru?”

  Lyon smiled and took over. “We hope. Whether we Dam Ilah are allowed to enter the Reed, is not up to us. It’s merely our hope. We never belonged on earth Lina. We were all gods, or angels, whatever applies, and that is where we should be. That will be decided when the time comes. We all feel we’ve more than paid our dues, more than suffered the burden of the curse.”

  “Who’s decision is it, to send you home?”

  He glanced over at Isis and Anchille. So did I. “We’re not really positive. It’s always been outlined for us that you would be the child that is born, that ascends, and that through your own sacrifice we will atone.”

  “But you don’t have faith that I can get you there?” I asked.

  “It’s not that at all. We’ve all resigned ourselves to the reality that, given our nature, and the bloodshed we have inflicted, however warranted, binds us to this world.”

  “Heavy hearts?” I proposed. He only nodded. “But,” I tried to interject.

  “Lina,” said Lyon, “If we are allowed paradise, we will take it. We are, like Sek-met and Wepwawet, tired. But, if we are not granted entry, we are happy to live out eternity right here, so long as it is in peace with each-other, and that is why you must continue your path, and why you must ascend. The child of Hekate and Agmenon, the cursed ones, can only rise and move on when that is complete.”

  “And what about Ash and Khan?” I aimed the question for the other coven members. There was a short lull with many sighs and an overall reluctance to answer. Maybe they were of the mindset that Ash and Khan’s existence was somehow wrong as well as my friendship with Will? “They’re only babies. They haven’t lived. You can’t just take them from this world.”

  “They are threatened Lina, the sooner we move on, the better for them,” said Lyon. “It isn’t that we feel their existence is wrong or even that it is an abomination, as so many others have expressed.” Isis wavered at Lyon’s words. Her visage hailed of contempt, not for him or anyone else in her coven, but for those nameless faces, the traitors in their midst who sought to tear her family apart, starting with her precious children. Lyon nodded to her that he understood. “I believe many of us have grown fond of the little ones and perhaps even envy Isis and Anchille’s happiness,” Lyon came back again, taking hold of Etiennette’s wrist and giving it a loving tug. “But that remains irrelevant in the face of our rogues and our followers, many of whom do not want you to ascend. They want nothing to do with the afterlife and are quite content staying on earth, most of them killing at will, taking innocent life after life. So you see, there is much more at stake than the inner squabbles of our covens or even the children. These others I’m talking about, we rightfully fear that old enemies of ours may use them against us, that’s all. In the same way that your friendship with William, will garner unnecessary attention, so will any others catching sight of two small immortals. That is why Isis set this revelation the way that she did. That is why you were not summoned sooner.”

  “Oh.”

  “When we were made aware of Ash and Khan, many of us were in a state of shock, that’s true. Isis, who was once beloved, revered and protected, quickly became the hunted and that was our first taste of the children. It was not hate we felt, but concern.”

  “I understand.”

  “Our queen has brought into our dark world, something new and —we worry for her, and for Anchille’s safety. We worry for the children’s safety. To the rest of the Dam Ilah, Ash and Khan should not exist. They cannot without putting us all in danger. Our existence mustn’t be revealed. The Blood Gods fear for their own necks and that is the cause of the agitation, which you see as bigotry. If you’d lived through even one punishment of the Over Gods Lina, you would quite sympathize with their panic.”

  “You can’t tell me Sek-met doesn’t already know about Ash and Khan, and besides, where do the rules say the immortals can’t have children? And, you said she spared Hekate and Agmenon, the first two to mix the lines. If she spared them then you all should be running around being together, right?!”

  Lyon and Isis smiled. “It’s a long standing rule, to be generally understood, and accepted, on both accounts. Youth are unable to provide for their sustenance, they cannot purchase land, cannot in any sense of the word, assimilate to human life. Because we do not know what will happen to Ashmolean and Khan, it is yet another great unknown, one that many feel is a further punishment. They fear retribution. They fear mixing the species for that same reason.”

  “I’m aware of how the gods punished those who disobeyed.” Will and I stared at each-other, and I wondered again, would we one day face that torture too. “But, they’re only little boys,” I shrugged, shaking my head. “It’s insane to think of them being cast into the abyss, without ever fully living. It’s unfair, and terrible.”

  “Agreed,” replied Lyon. “And yet, these are ancient creatures Lina. The delicate balance of our world hangs but by a thread. To them, Ash and Khan are more we could suffer for. Many feel we have suffered enough at the gods’ hands. For Isis and Anchille to expose us in such a way, to make our vulnerabilities open, it is simply an un-necessary risk in their eyes,” he clarified. “Not to mention the contempt they feel for Isis, having put us in the position, knowing first-hand what punishments have been carried out.” What he meant was she’d carried them out herself, at least, she’d partaken at Sek-met’s behest. It didn’t make sense why she would disregard the past to the detriment of those she was responsible for. “Taking them with us now is their only real protection.”

  “Why don’t they come for them? Where are they, all the covens,” I asked bitterly.

  “Many live among you without your knowledge. And they may come for them, but there is more for them to dread than the immortal children or the fallout.”

  “What?” I asked keenly.

  He smiled big and looked at the others before answering. “You. You are a legend. Many would fall at the mere sight of you, beg you for forgiveness despite previously wanted nothing more than to stay earthbound. It is a war the rogues have raging on amongst themselves—those who would seek to destroy you, and us, and those who may have wanted to in the past but at a moment’s
notice, upon looking at you, would swear their allegiance.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Your ascension ensures their place beside their creator, to finally move on from this time as the new gods. If they risk your life for two children, it could mean the end of everything. They would search deeply inside themselves, giving pause. That would be enough time for you to control them.”

  “I see, so that takes care of your kind harming Ash and Khan, but what about the three that attacked me?”

  “That brings us to the last of the story,” offered Anchille. “When Isis ruled Achaia she rarely met with opposition, thanks due to Agmenon and Hekate. The land was untamed but free. Still, when the opportunity arose and when their numbers were great, her enemies jumped at the chance to conquer. A Turkish king, Dekmaten, had long been banished for unspeakable crimes against his own people. Soon after, he was exiled to Macedon by King Lycion, for once attempting to overthrow him. It was only a threat, but the great king took it seriously. During his sentence Dekmaten escaped and united with a ruler from Assyria, took the king’s daughter, Aurya, for his mate. He convinced her to take the name Ankh-sut, in favor of the Egyptian territories he felt he would soon conquer. Dekmaten’s insatiable thirst for war and domination was met equally with the Assyrian, who was feared by the people for his sorcery and true evil. When Dekmaten learned of this he knew that if he were ever to overthrow Ahmose and take Egypt, he’d need that kind of power. Apart from granting Dekmaten his own immortality and his child Ankh-sut too, the king also fashioned them a diabolical army.”

  “Of black wolves, like the ones that came for me,” I surmised.

  “Yes. Many sons Dekmaten and Ankh-sut were bestowed, thousands upon

  thousands in fact; quite literally enough to exterminate us all,” Ahkmenotep continued on, as he tapped the IV. They all took turns in retelling the details.

  Vittorio shook his head angrily. “Mostri dell’inferno.”

  “Monsters from hell is right,” Charles added. The others looked at them in agreement. Anchille retrieved the Book of Menaan and handed it to Lyon who pulled it over my lap and pointed to a drawing of a kingdom besieged by legions of demon faced creatures. I trembled, remembering the three that nearly crushed me to death. The monitors began to sound off erratically and soon my body reacted. The seizure began. I could see myself, could feel my soul hovering over my convulsing body. I had no way of getting back inside.

  “Anchille!” Will shouted.

  “Calm,” Anchille warned him as Isis worked her hands over my thrashing arms and face. Avati put her steel finger under my chin and very quickly the episode ended. I floated back inside but I was still terrified.

  “That’s right, shh,” she said while Ahkmenotep checked the lines.

  “I’m sorry,” I told him, realizing my IV had been pulled out from the struggle. A drop of blood surfaced and quickly pooled fresh and bright around the sight.

  “Don’t be sorry, none of this is your fault,” Ahkmenotep affirmed.

  Avati wrapped her tiny cold arms around my head for support and Isis had Thomas and Charles warm my feet. I reached my hand over the bed for Will. I stretched my fingers to meet his. Will’s eyes were darker, his expression devastated. I knew he felt responsible, knew that seeing me like this was almost breaking him in half. I wanted to be brave for him. I wished I could be strong like him, like all of them, but I was only human. No person should ever have had to go through what I had and live to tell about it, let alone try to heal from it. I was traumatized, truly scarred for life and I didn’t need to see my face or acknowledge my broken body as evidence to that fact. I’d been killed, I had died, and I wasn’t about to feel it all over again.

  “Better?” he asked.

  “I am now,” I breathed the words, unsure if I actually said them aloud. This time, when we touched, no one protested.

  I looked at Lyon and asked him to finish where they’d left off. Though his face was skeptical of my health, he continued. I couldn’t help but wonder if my dying had somehow opened a door, marked a pathway between earth and beyond. The thought made me uneasy and I prayed that if it were true, I wouldn’t unknowingly let something from that netherworld into this one.

  “Dekmaten’s army was unrecognizable. There was no longer even a trace of the men inside, only wretched beasts. That early breed was never able to phase back into their human forms and they could hardly be controlled.”

  “I remembered the three that came here for me. I never saw their human faces, but it was them,” I admitted, suddenly feeling a flush at my neck and a twist in my gut. Avati held my hand in hers, acknowledging her memory of the stalking as well. “They could definitely shift to human form.”

  “The later changelings were able to perfect the Syrian’s spell and that makes them even less predictable, makes us, ever more watchful,” said Lyon.

  “They’re horrible, no matter what form they take,” I said with a frown.

  Lyon agreed, sighing. “Dekmaten would act fast.” He paused when my fingers traced over their picture. Their blood red eyes popped off the page in a gruesome and intimidating way.

  “The werewolves,” Lyon reflected, “were ready to follow out with Dekmaten’s orders as soon as he dictated them. Unfortunately, their attack would be ill timed for Ahmose had long relinquished her ties with the sons of Asyut. Lycion, king of her allies had too often allowed his sons to take Achaiin women or guardians for their brides.”

  “Again with the rules,” I said contemptuously as I pulled Will’s hand closer to my heart. That action did bring on a few silent whispers of judgment but no one said anything aloud.

  “We take our laws very seriously Lina, else we all perish,” Lyon’s voice was firm, nonnegotiable. I heard low snickering from Thomas, who seemed to share my distaste for the Dam Ilah’s commandments. I would wear them all down on the tired topic if it killed me. Lyon dismissed our interruption with a wave of his pale hand.

  “Ahmose decided to call on her neighboring allies, hoping that they could declare truce long enough for her to save her land and people. Lycion would comply. They shared the land after all, and it was in both their interests to secure it. The soldiers complied as they always had in the past. Several began guarding the temple and many more on the outer perimeters. Despite that, Ahmose still felt they might need more help. Dekmaten’s army were too many, thousands strong to her hundreds. She knew it foreshadowed the death of her people,” Lyon said. Etiennette joined him. He ran his hand over her hair, kissing her forehead lightly. Then he turned back a few pages of the book, showing me a painting of Ahmose, standing in a tower over the Achaiin city. The picture depicted her vision of bloodthirsty hounds in droves, overtaking her kingdom. It showed their black forms and blood red eyes scouring huts and tents. Several had taken down civilians, their huge teeth tearing at the flesh of the innocent. On the next page Ahmose was seen, arms outstretched to the sky as the goddess Sekmet gazed back.

  23. Fulfilling Prophecy

  “Sek-met raised her golden hand of fire and as lightning riveted the sky and the deep red and black clouds swirled amid thunder, the Blood Goddess changed Ahmose,” said Lyon.

  “You had no idea what would happen to you?” I asked Isis.

  “I knew, or from Hekate, I had an idea. I at least knew that Sek-met’s gift would come with a price. Sovereignty over the land, takes all of one’s soul, their blood. Your parent’s paid that debt three fold. Stood to reason Sek-met would evoke the same for me, but, what choice did I have?” I nodded to my aunt that I understood.

  “Maybe Sek-met wished for a way to make things right between her and Hekate. Maybe she felt that to heal those wounds this was the time and the place,” Lyon hypothesized, and then he grimaced. “That is not likely of course. She merely sought to destroy our enemies which she harbors as her own, plain and simple. By bestowing her curse upon Ahmose, she could reign supreme, and we could continue serving her, thereby, her aid becomes a gift.”

  “S
ome gift,” I muttered.

  “In many ways Lina, immortality is,” Anchille replied humbly.

  But I read many things in Isis’ face: sadness, regret, shame, hatred, bitterness—mostly there seemed a profound sense of duty and of action. It was a war she would always regret but one that she would never have lost. I wasn’t like her, not in any way. I knew then, I never would be.

  “I can’t imagine what that felt like to you, to all of you,” I said softly, still holding the page open to the Achaiin city.

  “Lina, would you permit me to touch you,” Lyon asked. When I nodded he said, “It will be easier if I show you.”

  “How do you mean?” I asked but before he could speak I was hurled through space and time, with each year of life passing in a white flash until everything simply stopped.

  “Where am I?” I called out to nothingness. It was Lyon’s voice I heard.

  The Achaiins are there Lina, beyond the obelisks at the entrance to the city. Walk child; walk forward so that you may see. Don’t be afraid, no one and nothing can harm you here, he promised. And then I watched in horror as the Achaiin’s stood hand in hand, some even fell to their knees to pray. There was Isis but as Ahmose I, their beautiful god-like queen, writhing in pain and hovering several feet from the ground, her voice screaming in agony to Sek-met, like Hekate had so many years before. As light from every orifice of Ahmose’ body exploded, filling the night with bright red flames, she reached her hands to the sky. But Sek-met didn’t touch her,

  she watched as Ahmose’ body continued to convulse in the air. She listened to the cries of Ahmose’ people; they fell hopelessly to the bitter wind. Every strike of lightening to the earth rippled more through the queen’s floating body until finally leaving her slumped to the ground. She stood then and as she looked upon the agonized faces of her people, the men and women that were more like her children, she smiled. The light of the very moon had fallen from the heavens into her eyes. They were silver with a streak of Sek-met’s blood dancing within them. Ahmose thanked her guardian and soon the goddess retreated, leaving the queen to save her people and secure Egypt once more. She was now Dam Ilah, capable of changing all those in her path by simply opening herself to them and letting them drink. Everyone moved in fast as lightning, gripping any part of her exposed skin they could, and when one finished another would latch on, to suckle like a baby to its mother. When all had finished, the pattern continued, leaving Ahmose free to bend down before Ahkmenotep. He lay with knees in the sand. He lowered his head and she raised her palm to him and soon he rose, no longer mortal but radiating with her magic, as did the rest of her people. Each man and woman was bestowed the curse of the goddess and soon they were ready for the fight of their lives. Those who guarded the queen in armor, brandished their bows and shields, and the rest, with only their magic and their bared teeth, headed out to meet their enemies.

  The sons of Lycion soon phased into their true forms in preparation for battle. With Dekmaten at their flank on horseback the wolf demons descended upon Achaia like a six-mile black fog. As the evil king came into view I could see his cruel dark eyes from behind his helmet. Only two long strands of raven hair fell out from his armor, the rest of him was hidden. As the vampires continued to grow in number with each change, the wolves of Asyut assembled at every post and half a dozen surrounded the queen in order to protect her. Ahmose moved to the front of the line, standing just a few yards beyond them. The monstrous dogs ran at lightning speed, some of them stopped a few feet from the gate to shake out their obsidian fur. Though I was well hidden inside the mirage of the palace I was still afraid to look at them. Every part of my bruised body remembered the attack, remembered their sheer power and strength. These beasts that I looked at now were the same, but in such mass—it was truly devastating. Despite their numbers, it didn’t take long for the first of Dekmaten’s wolves to be taken down. One by one the creatures fought their way through the gates, their horrid shrieking and howling alerting each son of Lycion and soon hundreds lay dead at the entrance. But more continued to come, their speed was treacherous and then there were more losses on Ahmose’ side. Some were humans who hadn’t drank or had time to phase, and some were immortals too. I tried not to look at them, it was too terrible. The vampire’s bodies crumpled in the mouths of the black wolves; instantly turning to grey ash where they lay. There weren’t many casualties though and soon Ahmose and her allies overtook Dekmaten’s army, seizing each and every one and leaving their lifeless bodies in a large heap in the center of the city. Seeing that his company was being annihilated Dekmaten tried to escape, but Ahmose quickly rose above him, landing on his back with the full force of her steel body. He and horse fell to the ground where she tore his arms and legs clean from his torso. She snapped his head from his shoulders and tossed the dying thing to the sand. It was grotesque and I cowered beneath my arms. Amid a slow building cry, I heard Lyon’s voice.

  Lina, come back, he encouraged from the outer world.

  I turned back to the Achaiin city as the smoke of Dekmaten’s army rose into the sky. The endless mounds of their bodies were scattered over the ground, each one set on fire. The animals’ blood spilled over the sand and stone in such a macabre way that I nearly retched. Ahmose and those of Asyut stood over the dead, bowing their heads in silence for what they’d been forced to do. There lingered an overwhelming sense that the battle would not bring peace. The flames turned to wide streams of blue and there was only the silence of innocuous victory. Ahmose stood before the last bodies to be thrown to the fire, and far into the desert came a voice, a woman was screaming. Her raging was full of great anguish and despair. All who stood at Ahmose’ feet could hear it plainly: Wallah, wallah Ahmose, anti satalqa mawt!

  I turned from their faces but before I could reach for the sun’s rays I saw something shimmering in the desert sand. I cupped my hand over my eyes to see more clearly; surprised to discover two small children, boys, and they were naked and angelic. They were all alone and out of instinct I looked back at the mass of people, and thought, why doesn’t someone come for them? Why are they alone? I looked back and they were still there, side by side, untroubled by the horrendous scene behind me. They watched me in silent wonder as I watched them, totally engrossed, mystified even. Who were they? The children didn’t smile really but there was life in their features, life and such immense light. They reminded me of Ashmolean and Khan—they had the same exotic look and countenances, but they were also different. Their hair was longer, to the middle of their backs, and their skin lighter, more like crème, rather than brown. I wanted to stay. Even as Lyon and the saffron light continued to beam down and I felt the tugging to come back, I wanted to stay. The little boys pointed skyward, casting their small chins to the heavenly dawn. One last time I heard Lyon’s melodic voice. When I opened my eyes I was crying in the hospital bed.

  “Oh Lina,” Isis said, gently thumbing away the tears.

  “I don’t know why I’m crying,” I sobbed, “I feel so sad!”

  “It’s a lot to take in,” she said. I knew I was upset about what I saw, but I couldn’t stop thinking of the children. I felt like I knew them, even though I’d never seen either of them before. It was like a dream, one that I couldn’t place or remember fully, but that I knew was real. I didn’t know if I should tell them what I saw. I decided not to until a later date.

  “Isis, the woman’s scream,” I said, sitting up more in her arms. Everyone stared at me. Etiennette and Lyon came nearer.

  “What about that Lina?”

  “I know what she said,” I told them. “I don’t know how but I could understand her. I wiped my eyes, sniffling. “I swear it Ahmose, you will find death!” I repeated Ankh-sut’s words in English. Isis grabbed my arms and lifted me into hers. She cradled me there for so long that I almost forgot we weren’t alone. “That was her, in the clearing, wasn’t it?” Everyone assumed I didn’t remember the attack, or that I’d blacked out which I mostly did, but I knew that wo
man in the distant clouds wasn’t my mother. Coma or no coma, I would never forget the wrath in her eyes, the contempt aimed at us. “She’ll come for me again, and for you.”

  “Do not think of it,” Isis cooed, rocking me harder. She beckoned for Anchille.

  “You are with us and safe,” he told me. “We don’t know anything about the assailants, we killed them too quickly and as for Ankh-sut and her king’s mirage, it was a trick, certainly no indication of her coming in the flesh. The wolves could very well have been rogues but from what we seen and heard in your mind, it is likely their allegiance lies farther than the coasts of England.”

  “Exactly Anchille, they lie with her,” I argued.

  “If that’s true,” he added firmly, “if more return, we’ll be ready.”

  I couldn’t believe that in such a short amount of time all the things that I’d been feeling, suffering from, worried about had vanished. My deepest feelings of iniquity were gone, deadened, replaced with a deep sense of humility. I was no longer concerned with being the frail innocent human caught inside this elaborate maze. Now I was a wanton participant, a follower of their doctrine. I believed every word of it no matter how incredible the story was. But, there was a deeper, more solid part of me that knew, without a shadow of doubt, I would fail. My shoulders slumped.

  “Your expectations of me are so high, I just don’t think any of you should bank on my ability to stop whatever is going to happen here,” I sat up then and removed my arms from Isis. I wiped my eyes again. “I’ve spent my entire life falling under the radar of excellence, trust me, I’m a classic underachiever, or hadn’t you heard?” Everyone laughed despite the mood and hour.

  “You’re special Lina and probably one of the most unique beings anyone of us has ever read about in all our history.”

  “You shouldn’t believe everything you read,” I sniveled.

  “Lina, when you do finally realize what and who you truly are, and what you are capable of, there shall be none who will stop you, least of all Ankh-sut,” Lyon added determinedly. He tossed a long coil of my hair over my shoulder playfully but something in his longing chilled my blood.

  “The spirit of Sek-met and Wepwawet rest in you Lina. The eternal spirits of Hekate and Agmenon runs within your human veins. Soon the two halves of your heart that have always felt detached will join together,” Isis smiled at me, her beautiful silver eyes blazed as she tilted my chin to look up at her. “You shall become mother to all, Goddess of Immortals and the light to show the way.” I heard my father’s voice in Isis and my throat began to sting. I needed my dad more than anything now.

  “That cannot happen, especially now that we may have been breached. Until we find out where those wolves came from, it’s too dangerous for you and Ahmenos to see one another. Continued walls and anonymity, that is the only way this will work.”

  “When?” I asked with bated breath.

  “He awaits our confirmation,” Lyon answered. “Ioade, Janas and Eurelios, the prophets, are keeping him at an unmarked location outside London. That is where Avati traveled after your plane landed and you were escorted by Anchille to the mansion. That is also where Anchille traveled days ago before you were attacked.”

  “Did he ask about me?” my voice shuddered.

  “My darling, of course he did. Ahmenos’ life has been on hiatus since the day he left you and Constance, though he did so to protect you. Had he not faked his own death, and yours, you both would have been killed, long ago. Ahmenos keeping you in the states, far away from this world was the smartest thing that he could have done, Lina. Despite the difficulties he faced as a Halfling in a mortal’s world, he knew there was no other choice,” said Anchille.

  “It was your destiny to live as a human child, to grow up slowly, unaware of your true identity. It wouldn’t have been fair to take you away from the only mother you’d ever known, and the only child she’s ever known.” Isis pressed her lips to my hand.

  “Until now right?” I asked.

  “Until now,” she repeated.

  “What happens next?” I exhaled.

  “Now. You know everything, all our secrets, the truth of your parentage, the prophecy. That part is finished, and the next phase begins,” she informed me.

  “Can’t I do that in Chicago?” I sensed Will cringe when I mentioned leaving.

  “I’m sorry but that is not possible, more so considering recent events,” she said. “Up till now the one advantage we had over our enemies was that they thought you are dead. So you were for a time, able to enjoy a normal life. Your father conveniently made them believe that not only had he perished in Egypt but you and your mother as well.” Isis sighed. “Lina, all of that is over now. If Lyon is correct and the Black Wolves were unable to communicate back to Ankh-sut prior to their death, if the vision of them was only that, a trick, then all will be well, but if not…”

  “I know,” I said. “I’m safer here.”

  “And Constance is safer if you are here as well,” she added emotively. The last thing we want is our enemies converging state-side.”

  “We must be more careful,” Anchille agreed.

  The last thing I would ever want would be for my mother to suffer unnecessarily. The thought of losing her was unbearable. But as I looked back at this new coven, a family I’d just learned existed, I knew that the time had come for me to let her go. And there would be no easing in, no extended vacation for which we could say our goodbyes; it would have to be as abrupt as the slamming of a door, the severing of a limb. I wondered if it would stay locked forever, this door. Not one person in the room with me moved or spoke to that.

  “What my father did was the most selfless and most loving thing he could have done. I didn’t always feel that way, but I do now. I believe every word you’ve told me, every single word and I’ll agree to do anything that is required of me, or at the very least, I will try.”

  “The elders would be proud of you Lina. You’re very brave, but…are you sure?” asked Anchille, as though I really had a choice. He held my hand in such a way that left me pondering if he’d actually consider letting me go. I knew he couldn’t—his whole life, and the lives of his children were tied up in my fate. It was a nice, silent gesture though.

  “I’m not positive of anything, but I can’t deny what I’ve seen, and you saved my life. No matter what happens to me now or how much I change, I at least want to continue living. If that means I have to become an immortal to do it, if it means protecting the people that I love, I’m in,” I said courageously. I hoped my doubt was well concealed.

  “We only hope that as you continue to learn you will begin to understand your importance to us Lina. Perhaps, that, in the end will be the very thing that sparks your confidence.”

  “We need you,” Lyon said with a nod to the others.

  “And we know that you need us,” Isis affirmed.

  I momentarily toyed with the idea of possessing even half her power in one hand, and in the other, the dominance of Sek-met, the strength of Wepwawet, all their magic at my very fingertips. Not to mention, I was fairly certain my grandmother’s bloodline had blessed me with some abilities too—latent as they were, I was sure they could be awakened. I couldn’t really comprehend what that would mean, but a rueful smile played on my lips.

  “Good God, look at that face, she’s already thinking of taking over the world!” teased Thomas.

  “Women in power,” snorted Vittorio.

  I settled on the icy beauty of Aeolian, and for one who’d been damningly silent until now, she finally made a motion in my favor by slapping him across the knee. She glanced back at me and for once a slight look of faith lit her menacing grey eyes. I couldn’t bring myself to accept her endorsement, not yet, anyway. Instead of snarling about that or making a fuss, she took my discernment with class. It would take time for everyone, especially Isis to trust her after Marija.

  I realized that what I’d been searching for, what I’d thought had been missing, was
staring back at me. Their love, their need, and their loyalty came from an ancient place, deeply rooted in the belief that I would become their leader. Beyond that, I would serve as their gateway to eternity in peace. My acceptance wasn’t because I was fully ready, but more that I felt proud to even play a role. As my mind grasped this new reality a veil lifted. There was no guilt, no pressure and suddenly no words; all that lingered were the heavy sighs of relief on their part for having released the truth into my hands. I’d given my decision, my word of honor and it wasn’t something I would go back on, not ever. My father had taught me that lesson as a child and he had gone before me, selfless, to fulfill his own part in our story.

  “I’m going to need your guidance,” I admitted.

  “You will have it,” Anchille avowed.

  “You’ve all had infinite time to get use to this life, I haven’t,” I said firmly.

  “Yes.”

  “One more thing?” I asked.

  “Anything my dear,” answered Anchille.

  “I’m going to need someone to watch over my mom.”

  “It shall be done.”

  I’d made the choice to come here and now I had a job to do, granted it wasn’t the one I’d been hired for, but out of this new deal I felt I would gain so much more. I only prayed I would survive long enough to see the end come full circle, but I wasn’t holding my breath. First things first, I needed sleep.

  “Ahkmenotep,” I asked in a lulled tone, my sleepy eyes rolling up to the IV. I drifted then, pondering the delicate balance of each of their lives and also the joining of their worlds—their future was my responsibility. A person could get swallowed up by the pressure of the situation. I winced away from those feelings with my eyes closed a tad tighter. I began to dream of little Ash and Khan. I watched as they played, running around with their guardians, their giggling, joyous faces bright as the sun. Though it was my dream world they stopped to wave to me, and I waved back. I also dreamt of those other heavenly boys, the ones from Lyon’s vision. We observed one another in silence, them on one side of a long silver stream, and I on the opposite. They never spoke but they didn’t need to. One day, I would understand.

  Many hours later I woke to glowing rays of warmth kissing my face through the shear canopy of my bed. I smiled as I got up, throwing on a robe, I headed out on my veranda. The early morning light was just peeking over the misty fells. I inhaled slow and deliberate, in a way I never had before, because everything was different, everything, including me. I felt keener to the changes and knew that the universe had opened its secret doors to me—how could I not listen and be receptive to it? I felt inclined to get myself ready for the day and I dashed into the bathroom, washed my face, brushed my teeth, and tried fingering through my hair. When it proved hopeless I threw it in a ponytail, and rushed to grab a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Afterwards I headed back outside. I jumped as soon as I heard his voice.

  “Don’t do that! Jeezus!” I said, stopping to catch my breath. Will was perched over the balcony. “What are you doing here?” Not that I minded, but if what the elders said was true, I could fully admit, I chose myself, over him. He gave me a funny, somewhat hurt look.

  “I only came to check on you. That’s not interfering, is it?”

  I scowled. “Do you really need me to answer that?” I asked. He had only a pair of faded grey khaki’s on and no shirt, or shoes for that matter. Please, he was the epitome of distractions! Will leapt off the wall and the action made me hop. He pulled his hair back and secured it while walking over to me. All six feet something of him stood blocking me from the stairs, his arms folded over his chest. He was so pretty that it actually made my stomach hurt.

  “Will please,” I begged.

  He leaned down closer to my face, flashing his golden irises at me. “Please, what?”

  I put my fist to his bare chest, gently stopping him. “If I’m going to do this, if I want to succeed, and I do, then I can’t, okay. I just can’t.”

  “Alright,” he said, shrugging a shoulder. Will opened the way for me to pass but right when I stepped to the landing he held his arm out.

  “I thought you were letting me go?”

  “Lina, I won’t ever let you go.”

  “You’re making this harder than it has to be.”

  “Then you make it easy,” he suggested.

  “How?”

  The corner of his lip turned up and he licked them and smiled. “Kiss me.”

  My face flushed and I felt tingly all over but I couldn’t give in. I kept repeating to myself, my own desire wasn’t worth it; his face, his smile, his skin, not worth it. I told myself that ruining thousands of immortals’ lives was not worth this insanity. I also stated, matter-of-factly to the inner me, that my death, was also not worth indulging each other. I wished my body believed all that. I wished I could force my arms, my legs, my breasts, and my lips, to run from this man, run, far and fast and never look back. Only, I couldn’t. I couldn’t do that. I was stuck, my feet deep in cement. Will ran his free hand along my jaw and around the back of my neck. I tried not to look at him, tried to fight but it was no use. And then, I stood up on my toes, wrapped my arms around his shoulders and kissed him. When I realized what we were doing I tried to pull away.

  I muttered beneath his wet mouth that, “Isis’ struggle as queen, and my dad, if I fail it’ll all have been for nothing, Will, stop!” He wouldn’t; he only held me tighter and I surrendered. When he’d had his fill he released me, planting a last kiss to the side of my face, he removed his arm from the wall to let me pass. I stared at him not knowing if I was really pissed at him for tempting me, or just mad at myself. Probably both. I started to descend the stone stairs, hating that my legs felt so shaky.

  “I’m sorry Lina,” he offered to which I whirled around on the landing.

  “No you aren’t.”

  “I am. I know how difficult this is for you, and for that I am sorry.”

  “Fine,” I said, rolling my eyes and turning around.

  “I’m also not sorry.”

  “And there it is,” I said, stopping, but keeping my back to him. “It’s a pretty damn rocky alliance between your small pack of wolves and these dozen vampires. I’m their only shot, their only chance. After serving them all this time, you can’t tell me they aren’t your friends, your family, your blood. Are you sure we’re worth destroying that, destroying them?”

  He thought a moment and then he made his way down to me. “I think that you and I, can do anything, accomplish anything. I want to help you; I don’t want to hurt you. I’ve never wanted that.”

  “What do you mean, never wanted it?”

  Will looked off in the distance, then he kissed my forehead. “My brothers are here. I have to go.” He jumped over the wall and I heard his feet hit the ground. I went to the edge to look down at him. Will stood in the grass, backed up to the tree-line of the forest. Behind him were Thomas and Charles, shifted and ready to run with their brother.

  “I love you Lina. I can’t help that, and I don’t even want to try. No matter what they do to me, or how much they keep me away, my feelings won’t change. Will yours?”

  My lips parted and my chest expanded. I brought my hand there, feeling, tasting and smelling him on me and in the air. I cupped my fingers to my mouth. Thomas and Charles gave small barks to encourage Will to come away but he was waiting, waiting for my answer.

  “No, my feelings won’t change.”

  Will grinned. “That’s all that matters then.” He ducked into the shroud of the trees and disappeared leaving me alone with my harried thoughts and worries.

  I soaked in the beauty of the sun and thought about the miraculous opportunity that seemed to have been written in the stars especially for me. I didn’t feel quite so small in this world after all. As three familiar wolves howled in the near distance, I knew I was where I should be. It wasn’t so much that I had a lot to learn, or that I still didn’t completely understand my life or what I
was in for—it was the excitement I felt whirling in my belly. For the first time in my life, I was totally un-prepared, had no idea what the outcome would be. The new horizon opened its arms to me and I realized, I didn’t need to know the ending…I only needed to breathe in, the beginning.

  End.

  About the Author

  S.A. lives with her pack in sunny San Antonio, Texas, where she writes, home-schools her two small boys, does photography, paints, and tries to come up for air when she can. Readers can visit the website, www.sageary.com, for news, photos, blogs, trailers, updates on future projects and more. Connect with the author online.

  Facebook: SAGeary

  Twitter: @1cherie1979

  Instagram: lunadsun

  EmailSA

  Discover other titles in this series

  House of New Gods-Ascension (Book 2)

  House of New Gods-Dominion (Book 3)

  House of New Gods-Book of Gates (Book 4)

 

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