Chapter 4: Revelations: Part Two
“Y’know that you're being strung along, right?”
The casual voice almost made me jump out of my skin. Behind me my wings went stiff, tensing up in readiness for a fight. I winced as one of the sharpened feathers dug into the plaster of the wall behind me, but most of my attention was on the figure casually leaning back in the corner next to the door.
“Emma?”
There was no mistaking her, though this time I was seeing her in the light of day, rather than the darkness and shadows of night. She was still the same, dressed in battered old clothes, almost hiding in that oversized hoodie of hers. I still could only make out her mouth and chin.
“Keep it down!” Her voice was little more than a whisper as she waved one hand at me. “Do you want to let the others know I’m here? I told you what’d happen if they found me!”
Oh yeah. Memories of our last encounter came back in a rush. I still didn’t have a completely clear picture of her past, but she’d given me helpful advice and helped me when I was in danger, so I was willing to keep listening to her.
“It’s good to see you again,” I kept my voice low but allowed a grin to spread over my lips. “Your advice worked great, I was able to spark my magic and get it working!”
Her red lips curved into a pleased smile and she stood a bit straighter.
“Well, I couldn’t just leave you to stumble about in the dark.” She declared. “Getting your magic up and running wasn’t something I could just leave to those two. It woulda taken them ages to work out what was wrong.”
I could only grin in reply, but that faded as I recalled what she’d said.
“What did you mean, about me being strung along?”
Her own lips flattened as she became serious.
“Athena, you do get that she’s got her own agenda here, right? I mean, they both do, but she’s the one that you’ve got to worry about. Kali’s dangerous, but she’s sworn t’you, so you’ve got less to worry about there. Athena though, y’can see that she’s got her own game going on.”
I took a few steps back and sat down on the bed as I kept my eyes on her.
“Okay, you’ve got to give me a bit more than that! What do you mean?”
“D’you think the Greeks got to be one of the most famous and influential pantheons in the world by being nice? By being soft? You lit up the world during your Awakening, you think they missed that?”
“So, what do they want?”
“Same thing anyone in power wants. More power, control, security, maybe to get rid of a threat before it grows.”
That made me sit up straighter, the thought that Athena might be a danger was not one that I felt comfortable with. Not in the least.
“You’re saying she’s a threat?”
Emma’s hooded head shook, one hand coming up to gesture as though brushing away invisible flies.
“No, not yet anyway. Look, you're powerful or you’re going to be. She’s here to watch out for the Olympian’s interests, you get me? Yeah, she’s going to train you, she’s going to help you, but if she thinks that you’re a threat, that you might move against her family or threaten their interests, then she’s not going to hesitate to cut you off any way she has to. Do you think that Zeus sent her here because he pulled her name out of a hat?”
“What do you mean?”
I didn’t like where this was going. When Athena had told me she was going to be an ally I might have been intimidated and nervous, but I’d also been elated at the thought of the sort of power she’d be able to put in my corner.
“If he was really set on helping you then he’d have sent someone else. The best choice Zeus could’ve made would’ve been to send you one of his kids, the half mortals ones that got immortality. Heracles or Perseus woulda been best. Both of them used t’be mortal, so they know what it’s like. They’ve also been heroes, so they know what it’s like. They’d coulda walked you through growin’ into your power, stuff like that.
“Athena . . . she’s never been mortal. Hell, she’s never even been a child! She’s smart and strong and competent, but she’s not the one Zeus woulda sent if he was trying to give you firepower. She’s never been a partner or companion t’heroes before. Yeah, she’s been a patron, the one that gives them advice and magic weapons, but she’s never fought shoulder t’shoulder with them, y’know.
“She was sent because she’s one o’ the ones he can be sure is loyal to him, understand? She’s strong enough to be useful, smart enough to help, but her first priority is always gonna be Olympus.”
“What do you mean?”
I was getting the shape of what she meant, but I didn’t want to misunderstand.
“Look, both those sent to help you are goddesses, beautiful and powerful goddesses. With Kali that’s just coincidence, she got sent because she was the strongest and closest ally Shiva had with him that he could trust, y’get me? With Athena though, her gettin’ chosen was more . . . calculated.”
“She’s gorgeous, one of the great beauties of the Olympians. More than that, she’s one of their virgin goddesses. Zeus might be a horn dog, but he knows how t’use a pretty face, and a daughter that won’t go fallin’ for one. So here she is, with her looks and gifts, all ready t’help you and distract you and give you a good impression of the Olympians. Have I got t’paint a picture for you?”
She didn’t have to, a picture was already forming, and I didn’t like it all that much. Still, I felt like I had to offer at least some defence on Athena’s part, if for no other reason than that she seemed to be my ally for the time being.
“Okay, I get where you’re coming from, but the Olympians have been pretty generous so far. The stuff they’ve given me is going to be useful, especially that armour. I mean, Kali didn’t bring me anything. Neither did Hadriel.”
I spoke that last bit more to myself than to Emma, knowing it was unfair right after the words were out of my mouth, but it wasn’t as though I could take them back.
“Really? Please don’t tell me that you can’t see it? Fine, lemme spell it out for you; Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts, is that clear enough for you?”
“Yeah, I know the saying. Troy, the wooden horse and all that. But what does that have to do with me? It’s not like they’ve hidden a small army in that helmet, right?”
It was a weak joke, and Emma just waved at me again, an almost dismissive gesture.
“Yeah, they sent a helmet of invisibility that they’ve probably got a way to see though, an invulnerable chest piece that I bet they know the weakness of, and a bunch of cards that lead to accounts that I bet they can track. And they sent you a goddess that said she was here to be your teacher, but did you notice what she didn’t say? She didn’t make any promises about loyalty or allegiance, did you notice that?”
What had Athena actually promised me?
She was my teacher and advisor, and she’d suggested that she’d stand by me in a fight if needs be, but . . . there’d been hints that this was based on family ties, but again, nothing concrete.
“The Hindu gods didn’t send you gifts, but they’ve sent you Kali. And she’s sworn that oath t’you, an oath that’s backed up by Shiva’s word as well, and there’s no way she’ll be breaking it, no matter what! D’you have any idea how amazing that is?! Kali’s one of the most feared goddesses in any of the pantheons, even the angels and demons are scared of her. You think what you saw her do was bad? Try and imagine that times a thousand and you’ve got a good idea of what she can do when she really gets going! The Hindu Gods have practically handed you your own private nuke with this, that’s how strong Kali can be!
“On the other hand, you have the Greeks, who’ve given you some useful treasures, ones they can get around if they really want to. They’ve also sent you a goddess who hasn’t promised not t’move against you, or promised her loyalty in any way. A goddess who’s known for her smarts too. Are you starting to see what I’m getting at?”
“But . . . why?” I was honestly bewildered. “I get that I’m meant to be powerful and stuff, but isn’t this a bit much? I mean, this is Athena, isn’t sending her to keep an eye on me overkill?”
“Okay, here are the cliff notes for you. The Greek gods have got a pretty united front. There’re the Olympians are at the top of the heap, other strong gods like Hades and Heracles attached, more minor gods like Nemesis, Eros or Hebe, plus allied Titans, older powers, spirits and others. From the outside they look tough, all standing together like a fortress.
“They’ve also got a pretty decent rep, as far as organization and strength go. Sure, lots of the other powers might see them as needlessly decadent or undisciplined, but they aren’t seen as harmful t’humanity in general, and hold off worse than them.
“The thing is that that’s all on the surface. Under it they’ve got problems. Pan, Dionysus and Hera’re each of doing their own thing. There’s the chance that the locked up Titans’ll use the opened Paths t’escape Tartarus. There’re all the other pantheons that’re also coming back. And on top of all that there’s all the demigods and legacy inheritors that’re popping up too. And not all are being loyal to their bloodline. Olympus, and Zeus especially, have a lot to worry about.
“And then you come along, some new demigod who lights up half the freakin’ planet when you Awaken! And to top it off, you’ve got their blood in you! D’you think that has them jumping for joy? D’you think that they’re cheering for you?! Hell no! You’re the guy that might well end up tipping over the whole applecart, you get me?!”
“No,” I said the word with all the bewilderment growing within me. “Athena said they don’t even know who I’m a Legacy of, but they thought it might be a titan. Is that why they’d be scared of me?”
“Yeah? Well, I don’t know who you’re descended from, but I’m willing t’bet you copper t’gold that she’s lying through her teeth about that, and that’s not a good sign.”
“What?!”
“Look, I told you they know you’re powerful, right? I mean, if you were a Legacy of one of the big Olympians then you can bet your ass that they’d rushing t’claim you. If you were one of Zeus’s kids he’d probably be trying to marry you into the family if he could, that’s how much of an impression your Awakening made. Understand? The same goes if you’re the Legacy of one of the titans who made peace with them, like Helios or Prometheus.
“The thing is . . . they didn’t. Instead they’re sending Athena to watch you. Don’t kid yourself. I bet they know who you're descended from in their family, and I’m betting that they’re scared.”
The smile I could see on her face wasn’t happy or gentle. Instead, it looked like a predator that had spotted bleeding prey.
“None of your bloodlines are weak, have you noticed that? Bath Kol is one of the strongest angels in the Heavens, Shiva was a god that other gods prayed to, and Nüwa wasn’t someone you messed with, not if you wanted to walk away in one piece.
“So, who do you think you’re descended from in the Greeks? It’s gotta be someone strong, someone like the others you come from.”
Okay, I could see what she meant.
“That means that if you’re not the kid of Zeus, one of his brothers or a big-name child, like Heracles, you’ve got someone else as your ancestor. And that’s where things are getting complicated!”
“If you’re descended from a maybe you’re descended from one of his enemies, like Atlas. Or worse, maybe from his own daddy, Chronos. Maybe it’s even worse, you could be a kid of Uranus, or even Gaea herself!
“Y’see why they’d be worried? You might be a demigod, but if your ancestor’s one of their enemies then you might be a real threat. But because you’re tied to a bunch of other serious powers they can’t just off you and cut you off before you get started. If they kill you without cause then they’ll have a whole bunch of pissed powers coming down on them, and they need that like they need rusty nails in their eyes.
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“So, what have they done? They’ve sent the best combo of loyalty, looks, brains and killing power that they could t’get close t’you. Athena’s here to be a sword of Damocles, you step out of line, you become a threat, swish, chop, thud! You understand?!”
Yeah, that made things pretty damned clear!
“So . . . what should I do?”
“Well, do you plan t’do anything that’s gonna threaten Zeus and his lot?”
“No.”
I had only the vaguest idea of what I was going to do, and I really didn’t plan to try and tick off a pantheon that was quickly rising as a major power over in the USA. Seriously, I even owned a few shares in their company, having bought them on a whim.
“Well, that’ll be enough for now,” She said as she leaned back. “Yeah, they’re worried and Athena’s gonna be watching you like a hawk, but they’re not going to jump the gun either.
“They can’t just kill you outta paranoia,” Emma explained. “If they push it too far then they’re not just killing you, they’re disrespecting every one of your divine ancestors.
“I know Bath Kol can carry a grudge for centuries if you push her enough and she’s strong enough even primordials don’t want to face her if they can help it.
“Kali’s got your back, and even if it’s just her that gets pissed at them then she’ll be enough to hurt them on her own. If Shiva joins in then it’ll be even worse.
“And then you’ve got Nu Wa, and it’s the second verse, same as the first. She’s powerful, she’s connected, and she’s vengeful when you piss her off. As in ‘Zeus might wake up to find his latest bed warmer getting ready to cut off his stick n’ balls with a rusty knife’ bad.
“Zeus and Athena won’t move on you without justification, got it? And they won’t move without a good reason. You worry them, but as long as you’re not an active threat t’them it’ll cost them too much to have her take your head off. If they’ve got proof though, something they can hold up and say ‘yeah, he was moving against us despite us treating him well’, then that’s a different story.
“Your ancestors have got your back, but they’ve also got other duties and responsibilities. They can move t’avenge an honoured descendant, but a disgraced or over ambitious idiot that gets himself killed . . . that’s another matter.”
Great.
I let out a groan of frustration and leaned back on my bed’s pillows.
“What the hell? Don’t I have enough problems? Don’t they have enough problems?”
It just seemed so unfair. I’d had demon things trying to kidnap me during my Awakening, I’d had to deal with that parasite creature, and then there’d been Etienne. I wasn’t really even looking for trouble and I’d ended up dealing with stuff that belonged in my nightmares. Now I was hearing that even the gods that should have been on my side, since I was hoping to keep the world from going down in flames, might be looking for an excuse to see me dead!
“Did you think this was all going to be easy?” Emma asked. “Welcome to the real world, your enemies aren’t always going to be demons covered in hellfire and wielding pitchforks while cackling evilly. Everyone’s out for themselves, everyone has their own angle, don’t forget that.”
“Like you?” I asked. “Do you have an angle?”
“Why else do you think I’m here?” Her reply came so easily that it caught me by surprise since I’d thought she’d have tried to hide it, to evade or hedge, not outright admit it. “But I’ve been upfront about that. I’m helping you so I can get into the good graces of the ‘good guys’. Yeah, I’ve got an agenda, but it’s one that means you can trust me. If I screw you over then it only works against me. If I help you, if I prove valuable and useful, then it works for me.”
“Only if you’ve been telling me the truth,” I countered. “If you’ve been lying to me from the start then maybe you’re just setting me up for later. I’m not saying you are, only that you could be.”
Emma nodded in response, then waited for a moment before answering.
“Yeah, I get how you could worry about that,” She allowed. “But come on, I found you even before the saint! If I meant you any harm I could have had you snatched up before she ever turned up, before you even knew you had any divine blood in you. If I mean you any harm then why would I wait until after you’ve got all your powers, until after you're on the radar with all the powerful pantheons? Right now you’ve got Kali as a bodyguard! Kali! The goddess that destroys the invincible! There’re less painful ways to commit suicide than going up against her in a fight, like jumping into a volcano, that’d be way easier to deal with!”
She paused for a moment, taking a moment to calm down after having worked herself up into a rant.
“Look, I might have some crazy complicated scheme going on that takes all of this into account, or maybe I’m just being honest with you. I’m not asking you to blindly trust me here, just keep giving me a chance. I’ve helped you so far, just give me some more chances to prove myself, okay? That’s not too much to ask, right?”
She had me there. There was being cautious, and then there was being paranoid. So far Emma hadn’t done anything that went against me. She’d saved me when we first met, then told me how to get my magic sparked when she’d snuck into the Hallowed Sanctuary. Yeah, she’d been evasive about her past and just who she was, but each of our interactions had been a gain for me.
“Okay, fine, I can trust you a bit,” I allowed. “So . . . where do we go from here?”
“Oh, that’s right! We’ve gotten so caught up on Athen and her family that I haven’t told you the main thing I came here about.”
Emma’s words caught me by surprise, I’d thought we were more or less finished.
“What’s that?”
“The Hallowed Sanctuary, it’s not going to last as long as you think it will. I don’t know why, maybe it’s because you left it, maybe it’s because those goddesses came in, but something’s gone wrong. It should still have almost a week left, but you’ll be lucky if it lasts two days!”
Crap! I’d known there’d been something off about it when I got back from the mess with Etienne, but between meeting Kali and Athena, getting the gifts and just been totally exhausted it’d slipped my mind. Then when I woke up there’d been more to deal with, and there’d been getting to know actual goddesses. Somehow it had just . . . stayed slipped.
“I’ve got to tell Joan,” I said, thinking aloud. “No, wait . . . I can’t, can I? If I tell them then they’ll want to know how I know it, and then I’ll have to tell them about you . . .”
“None of them’ll think of me as a decent source,” Emma finished my thought. “Hell, if they work out who I am they’ll think that I’m lying just t’get you into position for an ambush, or something.”
That was less than ideal. I still didn’t know exactly who Emma was, but she seemed pretty sure that any of my allies would immediately identify her as an enemy. Okay, so if I couldn’t tell them, what did that leave me with?
“I could just tell them I sensed it myself,” I suggested. “Magic’s looking to be kind of my thing, so they’d believe me, I think. Actually, I should try and probe the Sanctuary, see if I really can sense anything.”
“That could work,” Emma allowed. “Maybe tell them, or don’t. It’s up t’you really. You needed t’know, but you’re not in too much danger. Not anymore. With Kali and Athena as backup, Heaven’s agents here and you getting stronger . . . well, unless a whole pantheon comes at you together then anyone trying anything is just sticking their hand in a mincer.”
The smile that touched her lips wasn’t a nice one. In fact, it was full on creepy.
“Just be ready, okay?”
I nodded in response, offering a smile of my own
“Thanks for the heads up on this. Just knowing it’s coming will be a huge help. I’ll do what I can.”
“Well, you're going to be leaving soon, one way or another” Emma commented, leaning back against a wall. “Soon you're going to be going out into the big wide world.”
Her hands came up to press on each side jaws, an exaggerated parody of a woman framing her face like in an old movie, her voice was heavy with false excitement and enthusiasm.
“You’ll be off to the big cities to seek your fortune, and you’ll be dragging along your new retinue. Or they’ll be dragging you along, it’s all the same thing in the end.”
Then her tone got serious.
“There’s plenty going on that could use your help. Monsters showing up, new demigods looking for help, demons stirring up trouble, and gods making a mess. Hell, there’re probably plenty of normal people screwing things up, trying to keep control or trying to find a way to cash in.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got options, you can find what you’re good at and get to work. The thing you’ve got to remember is to watch your back, okay?”
She paused, and I could see her soft red lips curved in a smile.
“Anyway, I didn’t come here just to tell you to be careful. I’ve got a present as well.”
That caught me by surprise. I’d been expecting cryptic advice, maybe some helpful coaching, not something more material.
“Thanks?”
“Well, it isn’t up there with the armour of Achilles, but I’m hoping it’ll be useful to you.”
As she spoke Emma reached into a pocket and pulled out . . . honestly, it looked like some sort of miniature hand crafted modern art piece. There were lots of copper and silver wires wrapped around a core that I couldn’t fully make out. Threaded through the wire were feathers, beads and short black strings. It should have been a mess, unsightly and disorderly, but somehow there was a weird harmony to it, as though everything was right where it had to be. The end result was kind of organic, as though it had been grown rather than put together, every limb and organ where it had to be for the whole to function. Actually, it did kind of resemble a torso, though one without a head, and the limbs cut off at the knees and elbows. Somehow it still managed to look nice, even with that image in my head.
She tossed it to me and I caught it with an ease that would have been foreign to me a few months ago.
“So . . . what is it? It looks cool, but I’m guessing you didn’t give me a pretty art piece.”
“Thanks for the compliment,” Her smile widened. “It’s a protection fetish, the best I can cook up as things stand.”
Okay, that wasn’t an opening I could let pass.
“I’ve already got my own fetishes thank you, I don’t need any more.”
I took some pleasure in seeing her mouth part to speak, then freeze up, then bow in confusion before finally spreading into a grin.
“Okay, that was a good one. You do realise you look like an angel, right? And you're talking about fetishes?”
“Hey, you’re the one trying to give me one more. Do you think I collect them? I’m happy with the ones I have.”
We were both grinning now, the shared joke helping to lighten the mood after our earlier serious talk.
“I had no idea you had so many, is my gift threatening to overburden you?”
“Oh, I think I can handle one more, just for you.”
“That’s so kind of you, thank you for taking on my fetish.”
I could have kept it going, but I didn’t want to run the joke into the ground. Instead, I held her gift up and took a closer look.
“So, what does this thing do?”
“Basically, it’s a sort of reverse voodoo doll,” Emma explained. “It’s meant to take your place if you get hit by a curse or something like that. It’ll only work once though, then it’ll get consumed by whatever curse it’s hit by, but that should buy you important time.”
Okay, I could see how that would be valuable. Still . . .
“Do you think I’ll be getting hit by curses soon?”
Emma grimaced, then shrugged exaggeratedly.
“Look, one way or another, you're going to be leaving the Sanctuary soon. You made a big splash when you Awakened, and there’re already plenty looking for you. I know for a fact that some of them aren’t looking to give you a bunch of flowers and welcome you to the demigod scene.
“You’re getting stronger, you’ve got decent allies and some decent equipment. So, if someone wants to hurt you they’re going to have to use loads of firepower or do something tricky. Hopefully, this’ll give you some protection there.”
Was it really going to be like that? Was the Sanctuary going to go down and then I was going to get swarmed? My thoughts must have shown on my face because my late-night visitor spoke again.
“Hey, don’t think you’re screwed! Yes, you’ve got people against you, but there are also plenty that’ll welcome you. plus, you’ve got a lot of firepower backing you up, nobody with a brain is going to mess with you without a damned good reason. I’ve said that before, but you’d better remember it. Going out there you’ve got a real chance to make a difference, don’t let yourself get lost in the details.”
Before I had the chance to properly process it I heard the sound of feet on the stairs.
Emma must have heard them too because she tensed up and in the blink of an eye I saw her inch her way back, sinking into the shadows. She didn’t disappear though, instead, she waited, half submerged as we waited to see what happened.
The footsteps drew closer . . . and then passed as whoever they were moved on past my room. Was it Joan? Kali? Athena? I knew it wasn’t Hadriel, since she floated everywhere rather than walking. Well, it didn’t really matter, that had been too close for comfort.
My late-night visitor seemed to think the same thing, because when I looked back to her only her hooded head was left poking out of the shadows. The rest of her was indistinct, as though the shadows were swallowing her up.
“I’d best get going before I push my luck any further,” She declared. “If any of them find me now it’ll be a case of ‘shoot first, shoot some more, shoot the twitching corpse to be sure, then set in on fire to be on the safe side, ask questions never’. I need to build up a hell of a lot more credit before I’m comfortable introducing myself.
“You do what you think is best, you got me? You’ve got power, allies, and you’re a good guy, what else do you need!”
I wanted to say ‘More power! All the power!’, but that seemed a bit too much like whining. She was right. Yeah, I wasn’t in a perfect spot, but it wasn’t like the whole world was out to get me! If I sat around and waited until things were perfect then I was going to be waiting until the sun winked out, at the earliest.
“Okay.” I paused for a moment, then decided to go for broke. “Look, I don’t know what you’ve done, but you’ve helped me. I . . . when you want to introduce yourself to the others, I’ll try and be in your corner, you got it?”
Emma paused, almost half her head had sunk into the shadows she was using.
“That’s sweet Adam,” She sounded pleased, not smug but happy instead. “I . . . I hope that when you find out who I really am you’ll still feel that way.”
The shadows covered her completely, then faded away, revealing an empty corner, no hint that there’d ever been anyone other than him in the room.
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This time Emma was unable to miss it, the sudden sensation of a red-hot poker being jammed into her shoulder. It was all she could do to bite back a hiss of pain as she unzipped her hoodie and pulled her t-shirt aside.
Yeah, just as she’d expected, another patch of white scales, this time almost as big as a bottlecap.
The curse she uttered probably hadn’t been spoken by the mortal tongue since before the Hangings Gardens of Babylon were planted. How many patches were there now? Three? Four? The seals and ointments she’d been using on them left those areas numb, so it was all too easy to forget. Too many, that was the simple answer.
Centuries of self-restraint, and it was all starting to fall apart. Every new patch only served to highlight how much she was slipping. She’d been using more and more power since she’d started looking out for Adam. Sure, she’d been doing her best to only use external power, to limit herself to reagents or basic rituals, but clearly, it hadn’t been enough.
Running interference during his Awakening, slipping in and out of the Hallowed Sanctuary, any number of small things on the side, they were all adding up, and the price was coming due!
Damn it! It was too soon! She had anticipated something like this, eventually. Proving herself was going to take effort, that was something that she’d always been expecting. The thing was that she’d thought she’d have more time. Time to convince Adam that she really was on his side. Time to get on the good sides of his companions, build up some credit, some reputation she could cash in on. These scales were only small patches now, if she kept pushing then they’d spread, and then it would only take a glance for someone to connect the dots.
Damn it! Damn it, damn it, damn it!
Stumbling into the small room she’d been calling home for the last few weeks Emma collapsed onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. So many thoughts were whirling through her head that it was getting hard to keep track of them all. Hopes, fears, memories, they all blended together, the warped and stained plaster seeming to shift from one image to another along with her thoughts.
She was going to have to do something, things just couldn’t continue like this.