I noticed that everybody had their eyes on us. A blush crept up my cheeks. As carefree as I was, I wasn’t one for public displays of affection. I liked my make-out sessions private.
We continued the journey in relative silence. I had so many questions to ask Aphrodite, but I wished to do so in confidence, and not when we were surrounded. Sometimes, I focused my attention on Ares. I was certain he had a lot to tell me too. He was my father, after all. But compared to Aphrodite, he was a lot less open. Quieter. There was a wall between us. I couldn’t tell whether it was one he’d erected himself, or if it had been there all along.
The path got increasingly narrower as we climbed. I noticed my vassals staying closer, ensuring that I didn’t accidentally slip and fall to my death. Gingerly, I raised my finger, gesturing to Medusa’s ring. “You guys don’t have to act this worried,” I said. “I have this.”
“Thanks to me,” Devon said, eager to claim credit.
“Yeah, yeah,” Liam replied, waving his hand. “Must we throw a celebratory party in honor of that?”
Devon puffed up his chest. “That’d be appreciated. Well deserved, even. I fixed Cara’s clumsiness. Quite a feat.”
“And almost got us killed in the process,” Theo muttered.
“I like this ring,” I said. I held it out in front of me, admiring the snake carvings and intricate detail.
Devon straightened. Were my compliments getting to his hea—
“Whoa!” I shouted. I’d taken a misstep and almost fallen. Devon wrapped a hand around my arm. He pulled me back to a standing position before hugging me close to his chest.
“Clumsy,” Theo said.
“You were saying?” Liam asked. He turned to Devon.
Devon thrust his nose up, ignoring Liam’s goading. I scowled, hating that I’d proven Liam wrong with my incompetence. I flicked the ring. It hadn’t done its job properly. I really ought to start paying better attention to my surroundings.
We stopped in front of a dark cave at the top of the climb. My limbs weren’t hurting as much as they should. I wasn’t the fittest half-blood around, so my newfound strength took me by surprise. I glanced at my legs and scrunched my toes. I couldn’t see them properly past my weathered sneakers. “I’m not tired,” I said.
Aphrodite looked at me, eyes bright. “You’re adjusting.”
“Adjusting?” I asked.
“A lot of your goddess abilities come from the chiasma’s link, and because that part of you is closer to its main source, you’re becoming stronger. You’re not exactly a half-blood, Cara. You’re more. Not a goddess, either. But definitely powerful.”
“I don’t know what I am,” I said, more as an observation than a complaint.
“You are my daughter,” Aphrodite replied. “That’s all that really matters.”
I wanted to trust her. With all my heart, I did. But in that instant, her statement lacked conviction, and she was looking away from me. Instead, she gave all her attention to the chalice, filled with my blood.
Maybe I should have listened to my vassals.
Should I prepare myself for betrayal?
I should give my mother the benefit of the doubt. Belief was better than negativity. I shunned my distrust and followed Aphrodite into the cave.
It wasn’t a long trek in, even though the temporary total darkness did give me the fits. Whether it was in Haven or the Otherside, the gods sure did like to hide their important stuff in caves.
I trailed my newfound family closely. They no longer paid any attention to me, fully drawn to the remnants of the chiasma that lay waiting for them.
“You promise that you’re not going to start any wars?” I asked Aphrodite, but my mother ignored me. Our footsteps made an uneven staccato on the damp ground, and at the end of the cave, I heard it. The chiasma. Or, at least, a stolen piece of it. It looked like a miniature version of the giant entity that hovered in the middle of Haven—a black orb that pulsed with threatening power.
It sounded angry.
Like a child.
The soft cry from it reminded me of tired wailing, like a voice that came from a throat that didn’t have any energy left to expend. How long had this piece of the chiasma been sitting here?
I stared at it, wondering why I was so drawn to it. Was it because I had part of the chiasma in me? I took a step forward, but Hansel grabbed my hand. “Stay back,” he said. “Don’t want you to get hurt doing something stupid.”
“Do I really look like I might do something dumb?” I asked.
He cocked his head.
My vassals needed more faith in me. Then again, knowing myself, I didn’t blame them for having doubts.
“There, there,” Aphrodite cooed in a sickeningly sweet tone. She raised a hand, halting us. We stopped in our tracks, watching the puzzling spectacle play out. Aphrodite was talking to the chiasma, coddling it like she might a child. “There is no need to be mad.”
Abruptly, a face flashed in my mind. It belonged to a man with bright orange hair, tied in a braid that swung over his shoulder. He was beautiful, with tan skin and eyes that were so white they reminded me of two big moons. A symbol was painted on the top of his head, one I couldn’t read. He drew me in with his exotic look.
Abandonment.
Separation.
I sensed those emotions coming from him. I wasn’t sure how, but his broken image made me want to bathe him with love. I related to him, strangely. I shouldn’t have such thoughts. He was just a face, after all, perhaps a hallucination. Or maybe I was projecting my childhood loneliness on him. I thought I could relate.
“Do you see him?” I asked.
“Who?” Deimos replied.
I glanced at my vassals, and they all shook their heads.
“Nobody saw him,” I murmured.
“Are you all right, Cara?” Hansel asked. He stepped forward and placed a hand on my forehead. “Is the energy around this place too intense for you?”
“No,” I said, pushing him away. “I’m fine.”
I shouldn’t have pushed him away. There was a brief a look of dejection on Hansel. I regretted my actions immediately. I drew him closer to me and wrapped an arm around his waist. I needed his touch as much as he longed for mine. This situation with the stolen chiasma made me wary.
The image of the face disappeared from my thoughts soon after, and I was back to watching Aphrodite work through her ritual. She raised both hands in the air and began chanting. She sounded completely different when she spoke those foreign words. Her usual delicate tone dropped by a few octaves. A magical quality infused her voice. Her baritone was an enrapturing tone that demanded attention. My chest tightened, not out of fear, but out of awe.
But perhaps I should have been afraid.
What happened next shouldn’t be real.
Aphrodite offered the chalice to the chiasma. A tendril shot out from the supernatural orb. It wrapped around the edges of the chalice and pulled it away from Aphrodite’s hands. The chalice tipped over. I thought blood might spill and splash all over the ground. Instead, another tendril caught the blood, sucking at it, taking it in with rage-filled hunger.
I grew cold at the sight. Somehow, I knew that the blood of the chalice was not enough to quench the chiasma’s thirst.
Aphrodite’s dark voice took on a life of its own. It blended with the wails from the stolen chiasma. They coalesced, turning into a force to be reckoned with.
And somehow, I knew that the force was aiming for me.
“Mom?” I called. It was the first time I’d decided to call Aphrodite that. Even Lydia didn’t deserve the title.
I didn’t know why I’d said “Mom”. Wishful thinking, maybe. If I asked for her attention like that, then maybe she would give me the love I knew she did not have for me. With the spectacle playing out before us, I already knew that she was using me, and that she was only a very good actor.
I had no time for self-pity.
The stolen chiasma came for me. It thrust
one of its tendrils at my torso. Though I tried to avoid it, it was too fast.
My vassals jumped in, trying to protect me, but they weren’t as quick as the chiasma, and I was swept up in the tendril’s grasp before Hansel or anybody else could do anything. My legs were forcefully pulled off the ground. I gasped as the tendril cinched tightly around my ribcage, pushing air out of my lungs. Tears gathered in my eyes as I struggled, and it felt like blood was getting trapped inside my head, refusing to leave. I opened my mouth to gasp for air, because it seemed like the only alternative was to suffocate.
As soon as my lips parted, a tendril pushed its way through my teeth and plunged into my esophagus. It dug my life essence out of me. I felt my blood draining from my veins as the chiasma sucked it out. I convulsed from the pain. There was only so much a body could take.
“Cara!”
I heard my vassals shouting for me from behind. Could my parents stop this? They were powerful gods, after all. Surely they should try everything to keep their daughter safe.
But that was more wishful thinking.
My vision had blurred, but I thought I saw Aphrodite’s shadowy figure touch the chiasma. She chanted something else then siphoned the chiasma’s power, using it to open a gate behind her. The gate pulsed with blackness, similar to the chiasma. Lightheadedness came over me. I fought against the giddiness, but my eyelids were too difficult to keep open.
“Aphrodite…” I tried calling for her, but my body was too weak and my throat too hoarse.
I heard a thump. It took me a second to realize that it had come from my own body hitting the hard ground beneath me.
“Take her through!” Devon shouted.
I watched the portal with blurry eyes. The stolen chiasma had lost its orblike form and disappeared through it, together with the three supernatural beings meant to be my family.
“Aphrodite…” I said. Denial had taken me over entirely. I simply didn’t want to believe that she’d betray me like that. Of course, there was always a chance of this happening. I’d known that and chosen to ignore it. Liam had warned me clearly, but I was just too stubborn, too hardheaded. Too optimistic.
I tasted bitterness on my tongue as I watched them slip through the portal.
“Stay with us,” a man said.
I felt an arm wrap around my torso. He dragged me with him, toward the portal my family had disappeared through. Vaguely, I saw Devon carrying me, a determined frown on his face. He was keeping me safe. Devon, a man who had few ties to me, except for being forced to serve me, was trying his best to keep me alive. Conversely, my blood mother had used me as a sacrifice, throwing me to the chiasma for her own gain.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
“Stay with us,” Devon repeated.
I clutched the fabric of his shirt, hugging tightly to his chest. Slowly, my senses returned. He walked through the portal, and just like that, we were back in Haven. We were nowhere close to the Sanctuary, however. Vines and the musty smell of swamps surrounded us. Aphrodite and Ares were nowhere to be seen, and I was alone with my vassals again.
“I’m here,” I said to Devon. “I’m okay.”
Physically, I was recovering, but my heart had shattered, and faith leaked out of the deep cracks in my belief.
Seven
Fenrir glanced up at me with concerned eyes. I peered at the wolf-dog, questioning why it was showing me such familiarity. Hadn’t it given its allegiance to Liam?
“If you’re hungry,” I said, “I don’t have any meat to give you.”
Fenrir flattened its ears against the back of its head. A whiny sound rumbled from its throat. Guilt crept its way through my chest. I didn’t mean to hurt the poor pet’s feelings.
Liam ran a hand down his long ponytail. It was messier than usual, with little strands sticking out from the rubber band. Our trek through the swamp hadn’t treated him well. It wasn’t easy for any of us, since this was completely foreign territory, and we had to wade through too much mud to find a proper resting spot. “Don’t push him away like that,” Liam said. “He’s starting to warm up to you.” We’d found a treehouse in the middle of the swamp. It must have belonged to some adventurers who’d traveled through this area some time ago. Judging by the state of the structure, however, it’d been neglected for far too long. Space-wise, it could fit all five of us, but I wasn’t certain how long the treehouse might hold up. The vassals had decided to leave me here while they went scouting for clues on our location. We needed to get back to the Sanctuary and report what had happened. I’d tried calling for Clotho a few times using her necklace. It hadn’t worked. Liam and Fenrir had stayed behind to watch me.
Fenrir nudged my hand with its snout.
“Go on,” Liam said. “Don’t leave Fenrir hanging. He’s a sensitive one.”
I gave Liam a disbelieving look. “You hated Fenrir when I first cast the spell on him.”
Liam shrugged. “He’s proven his worth. People change, like I did.”
Warily, I scratched the back of Fenrir’s ear. The wolf dog slackened its shoulders and took its spot next to my leg. It snorted, then rested its head on his forelegs, making himself comfortable.
“Hm,” I said. “Wonder why he’s doing this. Maybe it’s getting bored of you.”
Liam rolled his eyes. “Not possible. Fenrir likes me the most. I think he trusts you because he sees how much I like you.”
“Oh, you like me?”
Liam harrumphed. He turned his head away and, failing at hiding his grumpy expression, said, “Fishing for fucking compliments. Don’t make me change my mind, you little minx.”
“I heard that.”
“I wanted you to.”
I knew that I’d hooked Liam—his feelings for me weren’t going anywhere. The feelings were mutual: I loved him, just like how I cared for the rest of my vassals.
I only wished that Aphrodite hadn’t lied. I wanted to love her too.
“Still thinking about it?” Liam asked.
“Yeah,” I replied.
The self-blame got to me the most. How silly I’d acted with Aphrodite was something I couldn’t get over.
So trusting.
So gullible.
I thought that growing up alone had taught me to stop being like this. I wondered what Danna would say if she saw me now. I smiled when I thought about the spritely cheerleader. She’d probably slap me on the back and tell me to get over myself. There were better things to do in life than dwell on mistakes.
“Don’t let it get to you,” Liam said. “You were being open to the idea of love, that’s all. Can’t fault yourself for wanting a mother.”
“But I should have been more cautious.”
“Probably.” Liam rested his elbow on his knee. “Don’t be so stupid next time. It’ll save us a lot of trouble. Better to consider the situation carefully than jump into it and leave both realms subjected to the whims of tyrants.”
Liam wasn’t babying me completely, not like Theo or Hansel would, but then again, that was why I needed him on my team. Someone had to keep me grounded and smack some sense into me. I used to not doubt myself so much. What had changed me?
Love?
A future?
It wasn’t just myself I was fighting for anymore. I had my vassals to think about.
A knocking noise sounded from the bottom of the treehouse. Liam tensed. He pulled his dagger from his sheath and, hunching his shoulders, prepared for a fight. Fenrir raised its ears. It looked ready to pounce, too.
But they didn’t have to be alarmed. Devon showed up shortly after, carrying a flower. As soon as Liam saw Devon, he allowed himself to relax. There was no knowing what awaited us in the swamps. So far, no monsters had shown up, much to my relief. The only thing that tormented me was the pain in my chest.
I’d get over it quickly.
“What’s that?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at the flower in Devon’s grasp. It was purple, with giant petals that looked bigger than his hands.
&nbs
p; “The dawnclove flower,” he said. “It’s supposed to help with your healing.”
“I feel fine.”
“I don’t.”
“You weren’t the one who was injured.” It didn’t make any sense. There was not a scratch on Devon. The tendrils might have done a number on me, but Devon had escaped that situation perfectly fine.
“I wish I were.”
I couldn’t comprehend what he meant. Why would he want to be injured?
He knelt in front of me. With his golden eyes and tan skin, he looked like the perfect prince, tainted with smears of mud on his unkempt shirt. Devon took my hand in his and placed a kiss to the back of it. “I’d rather I get hurt instead of you.”
My ovaries wound up.
Fuck. Any girl would melt if a man as amazing as Devon said something like that to her, and I was promptly turning into a useless puddle. I hoped I didn’t look too silly with my dazed look. Devon broke my momentary stupor by lifting the flower and shoving it at my face.
“Now, eat this.”
“It’s a flower.”
“And?”
“Nobody eats flowers.”
“It’s said to cure all ailments.”
“I did mention that I feel just fine.”
“Can’t be too sure.”
I narrowed my eyes and clamped my mouth shut. Tentatively, I leaned forward and took a sniff of a large petal. I screwed my nose up. “Why does it smell like piss?”
“That’s simply how it is,” Devon replied with a shrug.
“I’d rather not eat piss flower, honestly.”
“It’s called the dawnclove. A rare species. Not the piss flower.”
“That’s what I’m calling it from now on.”
Devon sighed. “Are you going to eat it or not?” His princely persona slipped away, and now he was a nag. I stretched, pushing my chest out, then cracked my neck, demonstrating to Devon that I was in good condition.
My lazy display of fitness failed to convince Devon, however. He looked at Liam. “Hold her down.”
My eyes widened. “Hold wha—”
Liam moved so quickly that I didn’t have time to react. He took position right behind me before hooking his arms around my shoulders, keeping me in place. Devon grabbed my face.
Goddess Academy: The Complete Reverse Harem Collection Page 47