by C M Thorne
Evelyn swooped into the room then, heels clacking on the dark hardwood floors. A satin maxi dress fluttered around her, which went from a pale champagne at the bust and burned down into gold and a burnished bronze along the hem. Her strappy white heels peeked out, showing off her red-orange painted nails. Her golden hair fell in voluminous waves around her shoulders and as Diane returned to the room, the thought crossed Thea’s mind that her family were a bunch of model glamazons. Guess that's what it was like to be a literal goddess.
Her half smile faltered as she felt her confidence drop. She did not compare next to these women. These goddesses. All of this was too surreal and her own lifetime of humanity told her she did not deserve this. A mistake had been made. She had used up the power in her blood and now she was merely mortal, doomed before these great beings. She swallowed hard against the lump which formed in her throat and took the glass of scotch from Diane’s outstretched hand.
A woman dressed in a knee-length black dress stepped into the room from the hall. She gave off no awesome power like the other women near her and Thea assumed the woman was in fact a woman. A mortal. Her brown hair was pulled back into a severe bun, and she cast her eyes downward as she entered the room. “Several of the guests have arrived, ma’am.” She spoke in a thick, less refined accent, bowing slightly after she finished speaking.
“Thank you, Molly,” Adella answered, not actually looking up at the woman.
A moment later a man walked in, flanked by two dark haired women. The man was on the taller side, dressed in a cobalt blue suit and fine plaid dress shirt in multiple shades of grey and blue. His dark golden curls were pushed back from his face, perfectly waving and curling back around his ears. He had golden olive skin and shocking bright blue eyes. Adella motioned to him, “Thea, this is one of our half-brothers, Harry.”
Her brother nodded to her, reaching out and delicately taking her hand. “Enchanted,” he spoke, voice deep and rich. “A new sister, then?” Harry turned to Adella. “You are full of surprises.” He winked at her and stepped to the side.
“And these lovely sisters are Patricia and Helena,” Adella motioned to the dark haired women who stepped closer. “They are also our half-sisters,” she added.
“Helena, dear,” the shorter woman with dark auburn hair stepped forward, taking Thea’s hand in her own petite, shocking cool hand. She was wearing a tight fitting metallic black long-sleeved gown. The neckline plunged down to nearly her stomach and she wore a silver necklace that swept across her clavicle and had a fat diamond dangling down a chain to rest between her breasts. Her eyes were grey, but more blue hued than Thea’s or Adella’s. She could see the resemblance though.
Helena’s sister, Patricia, raised a fine black eyebrow at Thea and simply nodded to her. Her black hair was thick and straight, swinging half way down her back as she turned at the sound of others coming down the hall. The silver of her wrap dress flared out a little and Thea thought the multiple panels of different fabrics were interesting, some silver white, some a textured silver, and others a fine knit grey. Patricia’s thin body pulled it off, though Thea doubted she would have looked as good.
What seemed like a horde of women in various pastel hued chiffon dresses floated in from the hall. They were sun-kissed and willowy, all with flowing fair hair. There had to at least be fifteen of them, perhaps more. Thea wondered if they were goddesses as well, or nymphs. They reminded her of Greek descriptions of nymphs. Are nymphs even a thing? She thought to herself, making note ask one of her sisters later when there was less of a chance to potentially offend or insult someone in her newfound family.
Adella nodded to them, voice rising above their excited murmurings, “Thea, this lovely group of women are also our half-sisters. You can learn all their names eventually, but most call them the Hondros sisters.” Some of the sisters smiled at her while others rolled their eyes at Adella’s remark.
They moved off to congregate near three sets of glass doors that Thea had not noticed on the far wall. It looked like a large conservatory lay outside the doors and she noticed that several of the Hondros sisters slipped out into the glass room, leaving the doors slightly open behind them. She looked back in front of her as eight more women came into the room. “Let me guess,” Thea dropped her voice as she turned to Adella, “more half-sisters?”
Diane laughed, peeking around Adella at her and nodding, “Yes, the Megalos sisters.” Diane giggled a little before Adella shot her a look and she bit her lower lip to restrain herself. She winked at Thea quickly and turned her attention to the sisters that swept into the room.
“Yes, sister Thea, these are our sisters, the Megalos family,” Adella picked up her voice and motioned to the women who stopped before them, faces mostly serious, but some kind.
Unlike the Hondros, they did not wearing matching gowns, each in different styles and colors. One of them, who had her dark wavy hair cut into an asymmetrical A-line, was actually wearing a tailored black suit and pumps which had colorful nebulas printed on the shiny fabric. “As before, I will not burden you with a host of names.” Adella glanced to her, “But, one day, you will know them all.”
Thea bowed her head towards them and they moved out of the way for a group of four that had come up behind them from the hall. Two men and two women. “Ah, our cousins now,” Adella spoke. Thea wanted to crack a joke towards Diane, but thought it best to not make a bad impression.
“Zachery,” Adella’s hand floated over to point out the man who nodded to her introduction. He had short black hair, golden-brown skin, and almond shaped, rich amber colored eyes. He wore a traditional black suit and looked amazing in it.
“Nikki,” Adella continued, the woman next to Zachery bowing her head in response. She had dark brown hair, pulled back against the base of her head, gelled so that no hair was amiss. She had the same coloring as her brother, but her eyes were hazel, green-brown flecked with gold, accented by the burgundy, long-sleeved velvet cocktail length dress. She had strappy black heels on, studded with golden spikes along the front.
“And Rebecca,” Adella continued.
The woman next to Nikki cleared her throat, interjecting, “You can call me Becca, please.” She smiled, her amber eyes lighting up with more gold than her brother’s. Her thick dark brown hair was chopped just above her bare shoulders. She was wearing a dark sage green, silk halter dress with a golden embroidered neck. Despite the fact that she was wearing rather small golden heels, she was taller than her sister and nearly as tall as her remaining brother next to her.
“And finally, Karl,” Adella filled in his name as Thea’s gaze landed on him. He looked like Zachery, but with dark eyes, a mop of curly black hair, and he was easily the tallest. He was wearing a navy, velvet blazer open over a grey button-up and dark slate trousers. As a family, the four of them looked like a couture advertisement for some high-end brand. Thea smiled and nodded to them all, hoping that more people were not coming, seeing as how, even with some of the Hondros sisters stepping into the observatory, the room was getting quite full.
“I’m glad you’ve all come tonight to meet our sister, the lost daughter of Zeus!” Adella’s voice was firm and loud, speaking from a place of power. The other’s around the room clapped lightly, as Molly, the woman from before, and two men in tuxedos moved around the room with trays of various drinks. Thea surveyed the room, making it look like she was tracking the drinks on their path amongst those gathered. There were a lot of women in the room, most of them her apparent sisters. It felt strange to go from an adopted, only child to one of many. Many, many. She shook her head lightly as she took a flute of champagne from the man that came up to her left and she focused back on Adella’s words.
“I want to thank you all for believing in me and my claim. My uncle,” Adella paused, sucking in a breath through her teeth, eyes flicking to Thea, “Nigel, moves to divide our family and deny the order of things. I plan to challenge him, as I have done before. I know, as he knows, that my intellect
will best him no matter what he tries. I worry that he will try to work around such a challenge.” She looked around at her assembled family. “I will not ask you to fight. I will not allow him to tear our great family apart.” She raised her glass, “I just want to thank you for your support. I know that others will look to you and join us, proving my uncle wrong. Here’s to all of you! My beautiful family!”
The family raised glasses of wine and various hard alcohols, toasting Adella with a word Thea thought must be Greek before they all tossed their drinks back. She drained her champagne, which had a sweet, but pleasantly dry taste. The whole glass should have gone straight to her head, but she only felt it bubble up around her head. Maybe that was a new thing she had to look forward to, a higher tolerance. She swapped her glass quickly as the man walked back by, sipping champagne and turning to look around. Her newfound family had begun to mingle while waiting for dinner, Adella walking into the throng of supposed sisters by the doors. Diane was chatting with Zachery, Nikki, Becca, and Karl, who all seemed to move as a unit. One did not move without the other three noticing and adjusting.
Thea did not notice Harry until he was at her side. He held his wine glass with both hands, bright eyes tracking around the room. “Interesting group this, don’t you think?”
“Big family,” Thea breathed out in response.
Harry snorted, putting a hand on her arm, “Oh dear sister, this isn’t even half of us. These are just the ones who have pledged themselves to Adella so far.”
“Oh?” Thea sipped her champagne.
“Has she not told you?” Harry’s voice piqued, but it sounded insincere. “Our dear uncle vies for the throne following our father’s death and Adella’s assumed ascension from most of us. Nigel and her are gathering support, as she said. You are new piece to the board, one that will hopefully bring in more of the family so as to beat out Nigel before civil war.” Harry raised an eyebrow as he took a drink, turning away from Thea. “This dinner is a ruse to show you off.” He chuckled forcibly without humor and walked away from her. Thea stood there by herself, not knowing what to think.
CHAPTER 11: CEREMONY OF SPRING
TOKYO WAS NOW a city of technology, but Asuka knew it as one of deep history. A forest of towering steel and glass skyscrapers broken by parks and ancient buildings. It was always abuzz with life, never sleeping and always moving, changing. Asuka Oshiro had called the city her home for nearly a hundred years. Japan had changed a lot in her long life and she had come to love Tokyo even more than her previous seats of power, Kyoto and Asuka, the city from which she had taken her current name.
Asuka was the head of the Oshiro family, which she had turned into a business giant throughout the eastern world. Oshiro Shipping and Oshiro-Nakamura Industries were her main money makers and sources of power, turning the entire modern world into her shrine. Many still offered worship to her and various members of her family in this country. And for that, she was grateful. The west had forgotten their gods, but the east had a long history, and an even longer memory.
Asuka sat at her desk on the top floor of a particularly high sky rise in the Marunouchi district. There were no offices per se on this floor, though a folding glass partition on tracks did allow for Asuka to close off her space. She pressed a button with her left hand that changed the glass from clear to opaque and she spun her chair away from her sleek, oversized desk, golden brown eyes scanning the city below. She could see the imperial palace from her vantage point, a place that she had once frequented, answering the prayers of the imperial family. She had even revealed herself, to some small extent, to certain rulers in the past. Those days were behind her now, however, and she realized that she had not been to the palace for nearly sixty years.
Her thick black hair was cut to chin length, a trendy, slightly asymmetrical and blunt cut. She was wearing a tight black pencil skirt, a matching fitted blazer and a silk blouse in a rich, golden honey color that she had been unable to resist, with its floppy tied bow at her throat. She had a weakness for shoes and was currently sporting classic black Louboutin pumps with the signature red bottoms. Her full lips bore a deep red lipstick and she wore no other makeup, her power alone keeping her face clear and full of rosy warmth. She caught her reflection in the window for a moment, finding herself pleased with how good she looked.
Today was the day of the first cherry blossoms. Asuka could feel it dance across her skin like a chill that raised the flesh on one’s arms. She could smell it in the air, sweet and faint, but unmistakable. She had a meeting, a ritual, planned at one of the city’s many parks later so she would watch the buds open to the warmth of the sun.
It would provide a nice distraction to the tedium of business issues and the weight of the apparent gathering storm. The death of any deity sent shockwaves around the world, but two? And a king at that? Her family was practically down her throat, calling for action. What kind of action? Even they did not know. But, something had to be done.
Asuka agreed with them, but she had yet to work out what to do. No one knew who had made such a major political move. As of yet, no one claimed the kills. That led Asuka to believe that the play was all to be shadow business for now, secret attacks and consolidation of power before making themselves known. It was a tactic one used when they were unsure of their odds. Or, possibly, were getting revenge and planning a coup of sorts.
She ran one of her manicured nails across her throat and sighed. She did not loathe war, but she did not welcome it any longer either. The Old Wars had wrought a terrible price, and for what? Sure, those that remained were the strongest, only made stronger by the deaths of the others. However, it had made little difference to the mortals.
All she wanted was balance, a sense of harmony on the earthly plane. Her brother, Shinobu, thirsted for war, that much he had made clear. He had been a war chief of sorts to her for hundreds of years and while she appreciated his work, she felt that those days were mostly behind them. She allowed him to oversee his various syndicates and whatnot, but outright war was different. Especially wars amongst gods, which had a tendency to overlook the well-being of humanity. She was wary of the stirrings amongst her family and around the world. The Old Wars had been devastating to the world and its inhabitants.
Her desk phone buzzed and the quiet voice of the receptionist down in the lobby came through, speaking clipped Japanese, “Miss Oshiro, your sister is coming up to you. I thought you would want to know.”
She pressed the button, answering, “Thank you.” She clicked the phone off and wondered why Aiko had not informed her of her visit. She waited for her only daughter to come up to her office. Mortals knew her as her sister only because Asuka did not like to look too old in her mortal dealings. She found that it garnered respect, but also hurt her. So, she stayed youthful, and thus, could not reasonably explain barely looking ten years older than her own daughter.
Aiko pushed into the office space without a knock. Her long black hair was piled up on her head with hair clips and ties, forming an intricate hairstyle where pieces of her hair stuck out and hung down slightly. She was wearing an oversized, double breasted black coat by a popular Japanese designer, sleeves hanging down past her hands. The coat was open, revealing her soft white button-up, buttons intentionally miss buttoned, half tucked into her bright red wrap skirt. Asuka peered over her desk to look at her daughters shoes, which were white ankle boots, designed to look like there were knee-highs with the excess leather bunched down to her ankles, kept together with a white strap in the front and perfectly draping back over the heel. Her daughter had always loved art, and modern fashion was one of her favorite outlets. Asuka swore Aiko spent half her time shopping, or at fashion shows.
“Are you not ready?” Aiko asked, voice melodic, but slightly whiny as her head lulled and body shifted around with a petulant impatience.
“I am,” Asuka retorted. “Why would you think I am not?”
“You are wearing that?” Her daughter’s voice dripped with disdain
. “You have been wearing that all day. Change!” Aiko demanded, petulant as ever. The many millennia had done little to mature her daughter. Asuka shook her head, unable to be angry with her daughter’s natural temperament and inherent proclivities.
“We don’t have time to change,” Asuka asserted as she stood, grabbing her bright red faux snakeskin purse. “We need to go to the park.”
“There is always time to change, mama,” Aiko insisted, following her out into the communal office space.
“Watch it.” Asuka glared at her daughter as they walked through the open space full of desks, couches, and tables with her employees busily working. Many bowed their heads to her as she drifted towards the elevators. She acknowledged them slightly, wanting to leave as quickly as possible. Once in the elevator, she glared at Aiko. “You need to be more careful.”
“What?” Aiko’s voice was whiny once more. “You are my big sister, I could call you mom. It is less weird than you think these days.”
Asuka made a guttural scoffing sound in response, but said nothing else. She fished her phone from her small purse, absently checking messages on the long ride down. The elevator stopped several times, but only three people actually got on. Several of the men had stopped, noticing the glamorous Aiko and just staring dumbfounded as the doors slid closed on them. It was a common occurrence and Asuka knew that daughter partially encouraged it, pushing others with just a taste of her power. She smirked at her daughter’s actions as the elevator opened on the ground floor and everyone allowed them to walk out first.
A black car waited for them out front. Aiko hopped into the car first, sliding over for Asuka to follow. The car pulled away and entered the swift current of Tokyo’s traffic. Her daughter whipped out her own phone and became instantly absorbed, checking some blog or posting. Asuka turned her golden brown eyes out the window, unsure of the feeling that grew in the pit of her stomach.