“Ammon also said,” I argued back, “That the ones he is guarding are power-hungry, human-eating monsters. So, when they come awake, they will be looking for world domination and gods help anyone who stands in their way.”
“And we won’t be in their way,” she explained in a condescending tone. “We’d be beside them.”
“What?”
“It is our birthright to be here, or have you forgotten that our ancestors died for this secret?”
“Oh, I haven’t forgotten anything, but you on the other hand...” I didn’t know how to finish that sentence. I was agitated and scared and nothing made sense.
She came to me and placed her hands on my shoulders.
“Everything will be all right, Phoebe. This is where we are supposed to be. It’s destiny. I am Izzara and you are my fierce protector. I am sure of that, and so is Ammon.”
She actually delivered all that with a smile. I shrugged her off. “Sara, Ammon is completely deranged. How are you forgetting that? Just because you felt sorry for him?”
Her eyes blazed then. “What is wrong with you? Why do you always have to ruin everything? Can’t you just be happy for me? For us?”
“There’s nothing to be happy about, Sara.” I waved my hand in front of her face. “Snap out of it. We are prisoners in the hands of a lunatic.”
“You are just jealous. You’ve always been jealous of me.”
“Sara, that is not—, “I tried to explain but she cut me off.
“Enough, Phoebe. Instead of finding flaws in everything, take a good, hard look at yourself. And be grateful Ammon wants to take care for the both of us. If you’re lucky, he might even find a husband who can overlook your flaws.”
My chest and throat tightened. She had never spoken to me like that before, every word cutting and cruel.
She scooped the red dress from the floor and threw it at me. “Now get dressed. He will be here any minute now.”
“You’re being a complete idiot,” I snapped. Being angry was better than being hurt. And Sara had hurt me deeply.
“Why?” she demanded. “For actually performing my sacred duty? For accepting my destiny and everything that was foretold? No, Phoebe, the only idiot here is you.”
I wanted to remind her how in sync she was with me only a couple of hours ago, before Ammon put his hands on her, but the psycho in question interrupted us. He came in without knocking.
He frowned at the mess I made, and his disappointment only increasing when he noticed what I was wearing. “Why are you not dressed? There are clothes waiting for you,” he said, harshly.
I wanted to argue, I was still worked up from my fight with Sara, but he seriously scared me.
“I told her to hurry up, but she’s being stubborn,” Sara said.
He was a man transformed when he looked at her. It was obvious he approved every inch of her. He began to shower her with small kisses and compliments, and to my fear and disgust, Sara giggled and nearly melted from delight.
Please, please. Let her be acting for some reason of her own.
When they reluctantly parted, he glanced back at me, the annoyance was back on his face. “Get ready quickly. My beloved and I will be waiting for you in the dining hall.”
“I don’t want to—”
“Be quiet and do as you’re told, he ordered. “Someone will come to escort you shortly.”
And with that, they walked out, Sara blissfully attached to his arm. I wanted to trash the room all over again.
I couldn’t believe what she said to me, or what he said and she let him.
I could have kicked myself. I shouldn’t have let my fear and anger conquer my logic like that. I should have played along and found an excuse to check her neck if there was something that caused this change in her. Something that could be removed.
I put on that stupid dress and the rest that came with it, but that was the extent of my getting ready. I still wanted to find a way to get out of here.
Now that I had a moment alone, I considered all that I had seen and done.
Caleb and I had raised some serious power earlier. Ammon had hinted that I had power, and I’d been feeling it for a while. Could it really be that what in the back of my mind I’d considered just a bit of fun rebellion against gran, was also real? I mean, there were giant cannibals, ancient…what to call him? Cyborg? I wasn’t sure what Ammon was, really. Other than nuts. And apparently an ancient being who looked about twenty-five.
Why not witches?
Caleb had just seemed to appear and disappear. Could he really ‘Bewitch’ himself in and out of places? It was probably too far-fetched. Besides, if he could, it seemed he would have found us again by now.
Then again, who knew half-snake/half-women existed? What if Caleb used his powers to stay hidden and move about without anyone noticing? That could explain why he hadn’t “popped” back in, or why no one had come running when he came to us in the first place.
I hugged my arms around my waist. Maybe he was just still looking. I hoped he was still looking. And meanwhile, could I mimic what he’d done?
I was still on the fence regarding magic, but was desperate enough to try anything. Besides, I did help him heal Sara. Now I knew I had it in me. I closed my eyes and concentrated. Doing everything exactly the same as before.
And there it was. A soft glow inside of me, a feeling of pure overwhelming warmth. I concentrated on that part alone and tried to make it grow. Then I pictured the two guys.
“Can you hear me? Nathan? Caleb?” I whispered, trying to connect with them wherever they were, but nothing happened. The only thing that greeted me was silence.
Maybe I was doing something wrong?
I searched my brain, trying to remember an actual spell of any kind to test my theory. Maybe if I had enough magic I could escape.
I knew a pretty solid and simple scrying spell so I rushed to the bathroom to try it out. I needed water if I wanted to use it to locate Caleb and Nathan.
Running to the sink I cranked it open, after I plugged the drain. I cleared my mind of anything but their faces.
My head started to tingle but I pressed on and almost broke the connection when I noticed the water started to swirl and change.
It was working.
The image started to flow in the center of it. I could see a strange looking room and it felt like someone was there.
“Nathan?”
A face appeared and he looked straight at me. I couldn’t tell who was shocked more by this connection, it all happened so fast, but I recognized him instantly. It was the guard that let Nathan and me here in the first place.
He murmured something and my head pounded like it had been kicked by a horse. The pain spread throughout my body. I got a pretty solid kick in the stomach. After that, the water turned black and exploded in my face.
I collapsed on the bathroom floor.
Seventeen
I picked myself up from the floor on the second try.
“What in the name of Artemis was that?” I grumbled, shuffling to the room where I decided to go face down on the bed. Not out of pain but sheer frustration.
It muffled my screams.
None of it made any sense to me. I had done everything as I should. At least, I thought I had, so why didn’t it work? And why did I see the guard? I wasn’t even thinking about him but of my friends. And should magic hurt so much? It passed quickly but still.
Sara was right about one thing, I realized. It was wrong to dismiss my heritage as nonsense. If I trained as Caleb obviously did, I could help us properly instead of wasting time trying to figure it out.
And speaking of wasting time, I guessed I should finish dressing up. I had no idea I’d how long I’d been lying on the floor. Some of Ammon’s minions would be here shortly, no doubt, to escort me to the dining hall.
I looked down and grimaced. The red dress was ruined from the water and wrinkled from my time on the floor.
I hurried to the wardrobe and
pulled out another dress at random, then went to the bathroom to splash clean water on my face. I steered clear of the sink and went for the tub instead. My wig was still a rank mess, but all I could do for that was try to tie it back in a low ponytail that still partially hid my face, and hope for the best. Lacking an elastic band, I made do with using a piece of the wig itself to tie it in place over the front of my left shoulder.
I quickly changed into the new gown, which was a silky, white ankle-length piece similar to Sara’s, but with silver embroidery instead of gold. I dug around and found a pair of silver sandals that were slightly too big—Sara’s feet were a size larger than mine—but there were laces that I could pull tight to hold them in place. I was a bit uncomfortable with the sheerness of the dress. I went to the jewelry box to try to find a necklace similar to the one Sara had worn that covered her whole chest.
Damn. Nothing.
Back to the wardrobe, and I found a length of cloth whose purpose I wasn’t sure of, but for tonight, it was going to be my pashmina. I wrapped it so at least I wouldn’t flash anyone.
Not thirty seconds had passed when there was a knock on the door.
“It’s locked,” I yelled cheerfully, wondering if someone on the other side could appreciate my joke.
The door opened and Sara stepped in with the guard I had just seen while scrying.
I skidded in my tracks. Had Ammon sent them to punish me for doing something I shouldn’t?
But Sara smiled at me and the guard looked bored.
That puzzled me. Had I imagined the whole thing? But it felt so real, and I would definitely have a bruise or two from when I fell on my behind, so something had happened in there.
“We came to escort you,” Sara said taking me by the arm.
“I need just a minute,” I blurted, lying. I was trying to buy some time, but for what, I didn’t know.
Maybe I could pretend to use the restroom, then try the spell again. With the guard here, my chances of seeing him again decreased, right?
He shook his head. “We go,” he said. “We go now. Ammon waits.” He shoved me in front of him as Sara stood by with that fatuous smile.
Sighing, I left, wondering what fresh hell waited.
I peeked at our escort while we walked, trying to determine if he was just playing me. But then I started to doubt myself. Was it really him that I had seen? It all happened really fast, maybe I was mistaken. Besides, why would I see a guard while I looked for Nathan and Caleb? It just didn’t make any sense.
Well, there was one way I could think of, to try and sort this mess.
Ask him.
But I wasn’t a complete idiot. I knew I couldn’t just outright ask him.
‘Hey, earlier while I tried a spell was it you I saw in the water? And could you, please, explain to me why that happen? You know, I’m new to all this.’
Yeah, right.
I settled for something else. I stopped and bowed slightly, remember the fuss this guy had made over protocol before.
“Excuse me, sir, do you know where my friend Nathan is?”
He ignored me. Then it occurred to me that maybe he didn’t know Nathan by his name.
“You know, the boy that brought Sara and me here,” I clarified.
Still nothing.
“Do you even understand what I’m saying?” I yelled in frustration.
He looked at me with narrow eyes and pointed at the hall ahead of us. “We go,” he commanded.
“All right,” I grumbled.
Sara ignored our little exchange completely. Happy in her little world. I didn’t know if I was more worried, frustrated, angry, or simply envious that she had that. Was it really a nightmare if you’re not aware of it?
Yes, definitely.
I decided to try something new.
“What is your name?” I asked the man after a while. I noticed we were walking a great deal, passing along tunnels and caves I hadn’t noticed before.
That didn’t surprise me. We were underground, and this whole complex undoubtedly stretched for miles. Though I had to wonder why, for advanced humans, they didn’t believe in escalators or anything to ease the way.
My legs were killing me. These sandals apparently weren’t made for walking over hard stone for any extended period of time. Especially when they didn’t fit right. The blisters were going to be brutal.
Naturally, the guard continued to ignore me.
But if I was right, which I’m pretty sure I was, he knew magic, so cracking that nut open was imperative.
“You don’t know your name?” I tried to provoke him. “Or have your parents chosen one of those weird ones, like ‘Majestic’ or ‘Elmo’, and you’re embarrassed by it?”
Silence.
“That’s okay,” I continued conversationally. “I can give you one.”
I pretended to ponder. “You look like a George to me.” I stopped and outstretched my hand. “Hello, George, my name is Phoebe. Nice to meet you.”
He stopped and looked at my hand as if I’d offered him a snake. I let it drop and smiled. “So, tell me, George. Are we lost? Because it looks like we’re lost. I’m pretty sure are walking in circles.”
I continued chatting his ears off until finally, his brow twitched.
He turned. “Quiet. We go.”
I grinned. “So you do understand me, Georgie boy.”
He turned again, teeth showing in what was not a smile.
“I know,” I replied innocently, putting my hand up in surrender. “We go,” I mocked him.
I was so wrapped up in goading him while also trying to keep my eye on Sara that I nearly missed our turn onto some stairs.
We ended up in another palace-like area, near a portico that led to vast courtyard. We walked out, right smack in the middle of a party, it seemed.
There was music playing and people—male and female—were mingling around, dancing, talking and laughing and eating. I looked up at the sky—the actual sky—and breathed in deeply. The night air was fresh and balmy. Just to be certain, I turned to my buddy George.
“Are we outside the caves?
He nodded. “Here, surrounded by mountains. Here, no one finds.”
I tucked that information away. For just this second, I wanted to gulp in the fresh air and look at the stars. The smell of food drew my attention back to earth. To one side were large tables set with a dazzling display of goods. Foods of all types were piled on golden plates and drinks shimmered in crystal goblets that were adorned with precious stones. The smell of food and flowers—flowers everywhere in white and yellow—were intoxicating.
Then my good friend George escorted us toward the center, people parting to make way, until we reached our host.
Ammon stood, proud and laughing, wearing red shendyt adorned with white and gold thread.
So glad I didn’t wear the red gown. One of us would have had to change.
Impressive pieces of golden jewelry circled his arms, forearms, and ankles. A bizarre, feathered headdress completed the look. But even though he looked spectacular, something else drew my attention almost immediately. Next to him, to his right, was a golden dais. On top, was someone I wasn’t so glad to see.
The altar held the preserved corpse of Izzara, now surrounded with flowers. She too, was wearing a fresh set of clothes.
Identical to Sara’s.
It would seem Ammon’s madness had no bounds.
In front of the corpse, placed at each end, were two massive stone pits.
The one on the left looked like an ordinary barbecue pit, with people keeping the coals red hot, but the other was strange looking. An unfamiliar bluish fire burned within it, and I noticed that people kept their distance from that one.
That scene was enough to make any normal person uneasy but the next thing I saw really froze the blood in my veins.
Tall pillars outlined the courtyard forming a circle around us. On every single one of those pillars was a Sleeper, strapped and bound to hang at mid-height.
It appeared that even though they were out of their machines, they were somehow kept in slumber. Completely defenseless and unaware of their predicament.
I shivered within my makeshift shawl.
I already knew Ammon had a few loose screws but this was completely and totally certifiable. I looked around at the chatting, laughing crowd. Glasses clinked, sparks crackled in the barbeque pit, and everyone went about as if dead bodies, or sleeping bodies, hung around them all the time. As if business as usual.
And given Ammon’s propensity to feed people to snakes, I feared it was.
My horror only increased when Sara blithely walked up to Ammon, smiling as he embraced her.
I tried to yell for her, run after her, maybe even slap some sense into her, but George started chanting and I literally lost my voice. I screamed from the top of my lungs but only air came out. I tried to move, propelled by instinct and fear, but was frozen in place. I tried to at least communicate with my eye, beg him to let me go, but his expression never changed. To him, I was nothing. He didn’t even look at me but through. And the more I struggled, the more his magic bound me, like a massive and invisible snake, coiling around me, preparing to completely devour me.
From where I was bound by magic, I saw Ammon clap. A couple of scantily-clad females appeared in front of him and started to dance. Sara’s mouth dropped open and Ammon grinned down at her, whispering something in her ear. Even from here, I could see her blush as she ducked her head and playfully smacked his arm.
My insides were liquid fear now. If ‘George’s’ magic weren’t holding me, I might have fallen.
As the dancers continued to amuse Ammon and Sara, I realized this was first time I had seen any other women, and briefly wondered where they had come from. But I was too preoccupied with other things at the moment to actually care. I couldn’t move and I couldn’t speak, yet no one seemed to notice.
No matter what I tried, I couldn’t break the spell. I looked at Sara, silently pleading her to look my way, to do something, but she never did.
And as my confinement progressed, it reminded me of that dark tunnel at the start of our hellish journey. How I couldn’t move or breathe. I was on the verge of another panic attack but this time, there was no Nathan to save me.
Reluctant Gods (The Awakening Book 2) Page 17