“Please don’t say that.” Lear’s face grew a worried look.
“It’s true. Everything happens for a reason. Brooke somehow made me a goddess for a reason. Call it fate, the Universe, whatever. I’m not going to let anything happen to her.”
* * * * *
“A body tattoo, you say?” Rigel’s brow lifted. “Of a snake with wings?”
“Feathered wings. I can send you the images the surveillance team took if you like.” Brad’s smooth low voice was always calm, calculating.
“Indeed. I should like to see them.”
Brad nodded to the tall woman in his office that was already in the process of transmitting the data from her tablet.
“You’ll have them in a moment.”
“Exemplary work, as usual, Brad. My compliments to your teams and their—oh, my, the young woman is intriguing. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Neither have we.”
“This is beautiful. How incredibly intricate. No Human artist could have envisioned such a masterpiece as this design. It must have taken months.”
“It did. Nine to the exact. Apparently it’s natural.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“The tattoo—is natural. She was born with it. Would you like the audio as well?”
“Well—” Rigel was still recovering from the notion that something like what he was looking at would be ‘natural’. “Indeed, of course.”
The woman in his office prepared the files for sending.
“What is the status of our renegade goddess now?”
“She’s still with all the others. They were arguing over who should be awakened. We should probably move in sooner than later if you still want Humans instead of gods.”
“I’ll take either at this point. A newblood is still a newblood.”
“They’re less of a challenge to take if they’re still Human.”
“Agreed. Continue with your surveillance, but stand down your teams for now. This development is quite a bit above my pay grade. I shall need to confer with the Seven directly. I’ll be in touch.”
The transmission ended.
“Exactly as you anticipated,” the tall woman offered.
“Of course. Retool the teams. We’ll be going after gods now.”
42
I ncredible.” Athena viewed the images of the beautiful young woman. “She looks Norse.”
Solis admired her feminine form much more than the tattooed image that decorated it. “Or Tellarian, perhaps?”
“If she’s Tellarian, how did she get here?” Aphrodite scowled at the image. The woman could stop time as beautiful as she was.
“How do any of them get here,” the handsome Hades still hadn’t pulled his eyes from her curves.
Hera clicked off the screens. “Boys,” she fumed, glaring at both Hades and Solis.
“Regardless,” Athena interrupted the banter, “she’s here. And she obviously has the stigmata. Our battles with the Sentinels have been escalating. The Ma-Ra halfbloods will soon enter the conflict. The prophecies are on track. This is obviously another sign of one of the ancient masters’ waypoints executing. They are drawing us into their snare.”
“We have been within their snare, as you say, since the day we joined the Sentinels, my dear,” Solis reminded. “Long ago.”
“That was before our time, Solis. We have the power to break free of it now.”
“So you keep saying.” He didn’t agree, but the council was the council. Their collective word was law.
“What about the girl?” Hades asked.
“She is a sign, nothing more,” Hera assured.
“A sign of your getting into trouble, no doubt,” Solis quipped privately to the ancient god.
Hades smirked.
“She is of no concern to us.” Athena agreed.
“She is if she’s a newblood,” Artemis spoke up.
“Agreed. We should fetch the godlings before our adversaries realize who they are.”
“Oh, I concur.” Hades switched the monitors on again revealing the images of the newbloods splashing like teens in the shallow pool.
* * * * *
Romero walked with Wynn well away from the others. Both held hands as they moved through the illuminated and brightly colored silica that grew like flora all around them.
“You looked really surprised about Bryn,” she offered.
“I was. She hid herself well.”
“Do you still want her awakening you?”
“I don’t know.” Wynn pursed his lips. She’d not actually lied to him, but she had deceived him in a few ways. He’d fallen hard for the girl and now he knew why. A goddess. No wonder he’d been so attracted to her. “Everyone else seems to want her to.”
“I wonder if Brooke’s blood would have the same effect us?”
“I guess Parker will find out. He seems to fuck her more than he does Brayden now.”
“Dade!” Romero scowled.
“Well—he does.”
“We’re all attracted to Brooke. Even you.”
“I don’t know, Cierra,” he sighed. “My hormones are so jerked around hanging out with all of you. Now I know why the gods kept their distance from each other.”
“Dade?”
“Hmmm?”
“Maybe you could awaken me, I mean, after you are.”
“Really? I would love to. But, why me?”
“The gods don’t marry.”
“No, they don’t.”
“You, awakening me, I think that’s about as close to a proposal as I’m going to get with you.”
“A proposal, huh?” Wynn stopped and took both of her hands. Then dropped to one knee. “Cierra Romero, will you allow me the pleasure of awakening you?”
Romero smiled with her eyes misting a little. He looked so sincere. She nodded. “Yes!”
Wynn rose, took her into his arms and kissed her with everything he had.
43
W ynn and Cierra woke in each other’s arms to what sounded like a small commotion. Not far from them, like someone shouting. Both jumped up from the top of the sleeping bag and moved still unclothed to where the shouting was coming from. Others stood around, some half dressed, some not at all, watching Parker writhing in pain with Lear hovering over him. “It’s okay, shhhhh,” she calmed, moving her fingers over his forehead while his body seemed to alternate from convulsing to drawing into fetal spasms. His hard rod was still pulsing, splashing all over his skin. After a long minute the seizures and convulsions quieted and seemed to pass. Parker dropped off quickly into an unconscious sleep.
“I’ve never seen that before—” Wynn marveled with worry.
“Everyone’s a little different,” Lear assured, stroking his hair. “He’ll awaken in a few days.”
“Bryn,” Romero looked at her. “Is that what happened to you?”
O’Brien nodded. “It’s not painful, if that’s what you’re thinking. Just the opposite. You can’t stop coming. The ecstasy is that intense. I’m sure I screamed just as loud.”
“So, this is the turning point,” Wynn began. “There’s no turning back now.”
“What are you doing, Brooke?” Tyler asked.
“Looking at his eyes. The color of his irises.”
“They change color?” Brayden asked, kneeling by Parker’s head. He’d not had the chance to dress either after snuggling with O’Brien all night.
Brayden peered into his eyes as Lear gently pulled back his eyelids. “They look silver!” He looked up a Lear. “How do you have silver eyes?”
She watched him carefully as the irises changed again and deepened in their metallic color. “Not silver—platinum.”
“Is that good?” Brayden asked.
“No. It’s not good,” Romero said flatly. “The metallics never wake up.”
“WHAT?” Horror flushed across Brayden’s face.
Lear touched his arm. “Be still.”
“But she just said they never w
ake up!”
“Shhh,” Lear calmed. “Mine do.”
44
H ow come your eyes aren’t metallic, Bryn?” Brayden asked warming part of his MRE breakfast on the crystal fire. “Brooke awakened you. Your eyes are amber, like your hair.”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged.
“It’s not just me that determines eye color or ability, Bray. It’s also what’s within you.”
“So Parker would have had metallic eyes even if someone else would have awakened him?”
“Most likely. I didn’t give Bryn metallic eyes, but Winter has them.”
“Brayden, you should prepare yourself. The metallics almost never wake up. They just don’t.” Wynn still wasn’t buying what she’d told Brayden.
“You shouldn’t keep saying that, Dade. I’m not—oooh.” She fumed. Dade was right, they didn’t normally wake up. The operative word was ‘normally’.
“It’s a death sentence and you know it,” Wynn continued. “Parker’s gone.”
“I’m not—” she sighed. “Never mind. I’m not going to argue with you.”
“You’re not what?” Romero asked. “You’ve started to say something twice now. Tell us what it is.”
“It’s not important. I don’t want to argue. He’ll awaken. I promise.”
“You can’t promise something like that, Brooke. You don’t know. None of us knows. You’re giving Brayden false hope,” Wynn groused. “Even if he had normal colored eyes, he might not wake up. Nothing is for sure when someone is awakening.”
She said nothing, but just ate her meal slowly.
“I didn’t realize awakenings were so dangerous.”
“Very. Especially if you’re not attracted to someone.”
“But we’re all attracted,” Brayden reminded.
“Which means we all have probably a ninety-percent chance of awaking. Unless your eyes turn metallic, then its game over.”
“What makes them turn metallic?” he continued.
“Uber genetics.” Tyler chimed in with his mouth half full.
“Uber genetics? What’s that, besides the obvious?”
“He’ll be powerful when he awakens, Brayden,” Lear offered. “As powerful as Zeus, maybe more so.”
“Wow.”
“Zeus has blue eyes, and they’re not even metallic.” Wynn offered. “I’ve seen his pictures within Dominion.”
Brayden smiled. “I can’t believe we’re having a serious conversation about Zeus.”
“That’s not is real name, Bray,” Romero offered. “He’s part of the Sentinels, what’s left of them anyway. His real name is Rion. Rion Steele.”
“You mean he’s not parked on Mount Olympus in a toga?”
“Hardly,” Romero quipped. “No one knows where he conceals himself from the Seven. And they conceal themselves from him.”
“She’s right. If Zeus knew where the Seven were right now, Solis, Hades, Hera and the rest, this whole conflict would be over in a heartbeat,” Wynn assured.
“So, they work from the shadows,” Brayden surmised.
“Always. Every now and then someone from one side or the other slips up and gets killed by the other side. The Sentinels have been on the losing end of that game for the past century if not longer. No one knows even how many are left now. It wouldn’t surprise me if Rion was the only one.”
“Don’t say that, Cierra,” Lear chided. “The Sentinels are good people.”
“But not good enough to defeat the Seven,” Wynn countered. “They got their asses kicked. That’s why Rion allied himself with Dominion and the Dark. The gods weren’t satisfied getting themselves killed; now they need to drag the halfbloods into the war as well.”
“You have a lot of anger toward the Sentinels, Dade.” Lear could see he was upset.
He nodded. “It’s not the Sentinels, more like the Dominion. I don’t like being lied to. Who knew Elizabeth Connor and some of the other apostles were gods and demigods running the church?”
“I knew,” Lear offered.
“Whoopee for you. I grew up being taught and thinking the Dominion was Christian, like Catholics and Protestants are, worshiping Jesus and the Trinity. I don’t like being lied to.”
“I’m sorry. They should have told you the truth, Dade.” She set down her unfinished breakfast. “So, I’ll tell you the truth. I want all of you to trust me.”
O’Brien’s eyes grew wide. “Brooke, no!”
“They deserve to know, Bryn.”
Everyone looked at Lear.
“My name isn’t really Brooke Lear. My true name is Lyris. And I’m not from your world.”
* * * * *
“Looks like they’ve mobilized for Iwo Jima down there.” Julia watched the activity through live battle-satellite imagery as thousands of armed paramilitary moved in and around the base of Mount Logan at the southwest tip of the Canadian Yukon.
Carissa moved around the three-dimensional imagery that was being holographically displayed in real time. “Do you think Parker and the others could be down there?”
“All this for your long-lost boyfriend?” Denton’s hand moved over his chin. “Yea, I don’t think so.”
Julia agreed. “We thought they might be trying to hide awakened in natural frozen zones, your Highness,” Julia moved up beside Carissa, “glaciers, the Antarctic.”
Carissa nodded. “Makes sense.”
“Then a Dominion satellite spied this. They tried to camouflage it, but the detail of our eyes is a lot better than their stealth.”
“But you think our people could be down there?” Carissa asked. “Under the glacier?”
“At this point I don’t know what’s down there. It could be worth a look.”
“There’s been a lot of seismic activity in the area over the past couple of weeks, Julia,” Denton offered. “Then this shows up. It could be another of the Seven’s mining expeditions, looking for more artifacts. Silverthrone’s not that far from Logan.”
Julia nodded. “Who knows what they’re up to.”
“That’s a lot of activity, even for a handful of newbloods. Mundane or awakened. It must be something else. What does Carson think?”
“He’d like to know more as well, but as fortified as that basecamp is right now, we can’t go near it without letting them know we see it.”
Denton agreed.
“What about spies?” Carissa asked.
“It’s risky,” Julia warned. “They’d be expecting something like that.”
“But you have the knowledge of the Ra.”
“The Seven are growing stronger with each passing day, your Highness. I don’t know how they get their intel, but it’s like they’re half omnipotent now. Even with the power of the gods, we have to be careful.”
“I’ll do it,” Denton offered. “I’ll check it out.”
“I can’t let you go in there, Denton; it’s too dangerous.”
“I don’t recall needing your permission, Julia.” Denton half smiled at her. As the brother of the Queen, Denton outranked her, sort of.
Julia turned her attention toward Carissa. “Your Highness, this is unnecessarily dangerous. I have to advise against this. I can’t stop Atlantica from doing what it wants but we need to work as a team.”
“We are working as a team. Carson orders our people all over the globe. Tell Carson he’s taking an order from me, for once.”
Julia sighed. Carissa had a point. Carson wasn’t going to like it, but she nodded.
* * * * *
“You’re right, Julia, I don’t like it.” Carson stood in his office with her and Dark.
“It’s too dangerous,” Julia continued. “We don’t know what’s down there.”
“What do you think, Dark?” Carson rocked back in his chair, a pen in his hand, his brow lifting at the Admiral.
“Julia’s right. It’s risky. Still, we’re flying blind. After what happened with Leavenworth, we can’t have the Seven walking in on a cache of Kir knowledge.�
��
“I agree.”
“Denton’s good,” Dark assured. “I think he’ll be okay.”
Julia scowled.
“You still have a problem with this, Julia?”
“I have a problem with the chain of command.”
Carson dropped his pen onto his desk, getting up out of his chair, a smirk crossing his face. “I assume you’re talking about the new princess? Or I guess she’s technically queen now that her father passed away a few years ago leaving her with the throne of Atlantica.”
“It’s the 21st century, Carson. Why we’re stuck kneeling to a royal family is still beyond me.”
“No one’s kneeling, Jules,” Dark assured. “Atlantica has always had a monarch.”
“You command the Dark, Mitch, not some—” Julia frosted but never finished words.
“I didn’t realize you were this ambivalent toward your own royal family, Julia?”
“She’s not ambivalent at all, Carson,” Dark chuckled.
“I can see that.” Carson smirked.
“I command our clan, Jules. The rest of the Dark clans, like Atlantica, have their own. Besides, the people love the royal family. Carissa has hardly been a problem.”
Julia scowled again.
“Under the circumstances, I don’t mind accepting an ‘order’ from the royal family, Julia,” Carson assured. “I’ve been relying on the resources of the Dark clan—or clans as the case may be for decades now. In many ways, Denton and his sister have been instrumental is keeping the Dark clans working as one.”
Dark nodded. “I agree.”
“You take orders from Kari, Julia.”
“That’s different.”
“How? Kari’s Dominion royalty—an Apostle no less. She’s even worshiped by some in the Church.”
“Don’t remind me.” Julia folded her arms.
“I’m not disagreeing with your perspective, Julia. I agree, we need a cohesive chain of command. But we also need allies. Sending Denton into this mess will ultimately strengthen our commands. Dark?”
Mitch nodded. “No doubt.”
Julia pursed her lips. She agreed.
Prism (Awakened Chronicles Book 3) Page 18