Chapter Four:
The Welcoming Committee
Nicodemus
Mom more than insisted that the Gods join us for dinner that evening, since she was just as eager for a break in the stressful day as they were, and Dad begrudgingly agreed. He had been completely on edge since Galaxy’s proposal, but tried to swallow his discomfort for my sake. Mom brought everyone into the kitchen to give me a moment to collect myself, so I took the time to wash my face and cool my nerves. I could hear Deveraux’s contagious laugh echoing up the steps, and Mom groaning about whatever he was teasing her for. I smiled at the thought of them all being able to enjoy our home, and though I was definitely the odd one out, I would try my best for my parent’s sake to blend in.
I took the extra time to pull Dad’s clothes out of the dryer and hang them up, just so I could prepare to face the crowd again, and made sure all three dogs were suction cupped to my hip with every step I took. When I came down the steps to join the party, Dad was settled against the counter with his face buried in a coffee mug, a popular coping mechanism, while Mom and Elizabeth were gushing over dinner ideas. All eyes subconsciously floated to me as I squeezed by the dogs and reached into the cabinet beside the fridge. My hand fell flat to the bottom, and a hiss crawled up the back of my throat, “Did you move them on me again?!” I roared, making Dad set his mug down suspiciously.
“Move what?” He echoed curiously.
“My books!?” I groaned dramatically.
“I didn’t…?” He smacked his forehead, “Damnit, you’re right, you’re right! I’m sorry buddy; here, I left them on top of the fridge while I was making coffee.”
I ripped the books away teasingly with a coy smile, “I have a system, old man, and you constantly love to screw with it!”
“I like to keep things interesting for you,” he chuckled as I flipped to the page I had left off on in my copy of the Lex Deorum.
The Gods watched my fingers run over the words steadily; Galaxy cleared his throat slightly before sitting up better, “The Lex, eh? Is that for one of your classes?” He asked kindly.
“Oh, no; I’m filling some spare time with religious studies. I want to know how Humans perceive the world through the eyes of Gods and entities; I’ve always had a fascination with folklore and myth. I just finished The Bible and The Quran, so this was the obvious next step.” I explained casually as I read.
Zephyrine crooned excitedly, “What a smart cookie this one is; I can’t wait to have you in my biology class! Be thankful you got your mother’s brain.”
“Shut it, Zephyrine,” Dad laughed before nudging me, “Think you can put your book down for five minutes to entertain our guests?”
“You mean wash dishes?” I mocked, slapping the book together with a playful glare.
“Hey, it’s not like I was the one who made them!?”
I grabbed a newspaper and rolled it into a cone, placing it to my mouth and jamming the other end to his ear annoyingly, “Ladies and gentlemen, have we been blessed by the almighty Atlas Crawford himself!? His presence is coveted, and yet he has chosen us mortals to spend his mere moments of leisure with!”
“Knock it off, smartass,” he laughed, smacking me away as I dramatically fell into his side and threw an arm over my face.
“Mr. Reaper, please, a word for your loving fans!? Your presence is so rare that we are all just in awe to see you in the flesh!” I bawled, and my jokes made Blaine and Deveraux hiss giggles.
Dad kept trying to push me away from him, but he was laughing too hard to actually back the motion up with strength. “Would you clean your dishes, please!?”
“But of course; how could I not oblige, oh mighty God of Death!” I sarcastically cackled, bowing gracefully. He went to swing but I duct and bolted for the sink, which made the Gods laugh amongst themselves at how fast I started scrubbing my leftover plates.
“How have you handled these two alone all these years?” Blaine teased Mom.
“It’s a good thing you guys showed up when you did, or I was going to snap,” she snorted.
“You’re just jealous that he’s as glorious as his papa!” Dad cheered, grabbing my neck to shake me wildly, “My wonderful prodigy child…!”
“Choking, choking your prodigy!” I wheezed, but that made him tighten his grip.
He finally let go, then paused to listen for something before chuckling. “I think someone may be looking for you?” He sang in a teasing tone.
I raised an eyebrow, then turned towards the backdoor. I was able to make out the outline of a blonde set of pigtails that popped up over the window frame ever so often, which made a giggle slip from me. “I wonder if I forgot something today?” I called, which made the pigtails freeze before the door creaked open.
No one besides Dad and I could see the little girl that peeked inside, so it kind of creeped them out to watch the door open on its own, but they understood relatively quickly what was going on. “Psst… Nick...?” She whispered.
“Psst…. Molly…?” I replied, which made her laugh like a bell before running full speed into my arms. I tripped backwards and flopped onto the floor as she screamed excitedly, which made Dad laugh and shake his head. “Molly, Molly, relax!”
She popped up and smiled over me, her hair brushing my cheeks as her cold little hands gripped my arms, “You’re late, you big idiot! I waited all afternoon for you!”
“I know, I know, I kind of forgot. Thank you for being so patient.” I said sweetly.
Her black eyes filled with sadness all of a sudden, “Can you come to the graveyard with me? There’s something scary there, and the other’s don’t know how to make it leave. I was able to hide behind a few trees and sneak away, but she’s not very happy. We can’t see what she looks like, but we can hear her moaning all night.”
“Scary? What’s she doing?” I sadly asked as I sat up to pull her into my arms better, while Dad bent down beside me to listen as well.
She wrung her hands out before blushing slightly, “She’s being mean to everyone. She’s trying everything she can to keep everyone locked in, and she hurts the ones who try and get out. She chased some of the other kids back to their graves the other day, and they haven’t come out since. I don’t know how to make her leave on my own!”
“Well, let’s go see this scary woman and hopefully get her to calm down,” I stood and held my hand out, which she took with a big smile.
As soon as she took my hand everyone around the table was able to physically see her, which made them whisper in awe. Molly skipped alongside me through the kitchen and out the back door, humming happily as we walked down the hillside towards the graveyard opposite the back of our house. Dad allowed the Gods to follow, since they were intrigued to see me in action, and he himself was curious as to how I would handle the situation. He commented that this would be a good time for Blaine to see where I was training wise, and for him to take notes so they could plan my soon Valyce schedule accordingly. Blaine had already procured a notebook before Dad even hinted this to him, and raced down the path after me at lightning speed.
Molly paused in front of the main gate and took my hand in both of hers, trembling like a leaf though she tried to keep a brave face. “She hangs out at the mausoleum in the back corner, near the big sign. She’s really tall and scary, Nick…?”
I crouched down and poked her cheek, “Why don’t you stay with Atlas while I handle this grump? I’ll make sure she leaves you alone, ok?” She nodded wildly before running to hold Dad’s leg, her eyes wide as she watched me slip through the gate and close it tightly behind me. Dad twirled her big curls around his fingertips to keep her calm, but eventually let her sit on his shoulders so she could see me better, as that was the only thing that was helping.
The graveyard was empty of Humans, but the dozens of spirits roaming around were sure to fill in the gaps. From the nineteen hundreds to present day, ghosts waved and smiled as I passed by them, carrying out their usual business such as chess games or a walk past the gravestones. I had come to know many of them throughout the years, so many were familiar faces. I nodded to them casually as I moved through the graves, holding my hands outward so I could attempt to feel the oppressive energy Molly spoke of.
“Gladly; May, why don’t you join us too, just in case?” I called out.
{Thought you’d never ask!} She giggled as she manifested and slid an arm around my shoulders. I always felt tremendously calmer to have at least one of them with me, and May’s cold arms brought me an incredible warmth despite her constantly bitter temperature.
I paused halfway through the graveyard to stare at a spot a few yards ahead, where a hazy black outline was shimmering towards the far left. It was hunched in the corner, hiding behind some kind of stone I couldn’t see. It’s fingers were long and wrapped around the object tightly as it stalked a few of the smaller spirits floating by. The sounds it made were inhuman, though I could tell right away that this soul was not Gehenna born. I was thankful to not have to ward off a demon, but that didn’t mean her dense energy was going to be easy to fight.
When it felt me enter it’s space, the mass slowly turned and locked it’s black eyes with mine, letting a hiss crawl up the back of its throat menacingly. I folded my arms and stood still, raising an eyebrow sarcastically. “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes? Having fun spooking little kids behind a wall, freak?” I called.
The figure lurched up and darted at me like a bullet, pausing a measly two inches from my body to tower over me. It was as Molly had described; an incredibly tall, slender, black mass that permeated hatred and darkness like it was its chosen cologne. The huffs of cold air hitting my face chilled my bones, and though it’s eyes were absolutely petrifying, I did not move a single muscle. “Pwy wyt ti’n….” It snarled maliciously.
I tapped my chin, then smirked, “Welsh, eh? Huh, I take it you’re probably a Cyhyraeth, then? I don’t know many Welsh folks in the area, so maybe you’re a bit lost…?”
“Dominika… Dominika…?” She moaned brokenly, with a voice that sounded strangled.
“Dominika? Is that who you’re trying to warn? We’re the only family out this way, so take your business elsewhere. This is our graveyard, and our friends, and I don’t take kindly to you torturing the souls of little kids.” The mass shifted slightly, then brought a clawed hand up to wrap around my neck. May shrieked as I choked off slightly, but I didn’t move a single muscle. Showing any kind of fear to these spirits was a big no go, and I knew better than to give this thing an ounce of hope that it would win. Mom freaked out beside Dad when she saw me begin to be lifted, but he held her back even though his eyes were wide with worry.
The mass brought me to eye level and scanned every inch of my face, puffing cold breaths across my skin. I admittedly couldn’t breathe, and it’s hand was clutching everything but my soul as tightly as possible, but that didn’t mean I was going to give in. “Wyddoch chi ddim, blentyn…” She whimpered, her eyes growing wider and wider with pain, “You know, nothing… I need her… I need her to return…?”
“If you could kindly let me down, I may be able to help?” I hacked. She instead tightened her grip, which made blood spill down my collarbone from where her nails were digging into my skin. I sighed painfully before raising a hand and placing it on her chest, which made the mass freeze. “This is your last chance to let me down?” I warned. She didn’t loosen her grip whatsoever, so I shrugged before tilting my head back.
My eyes turned pitch black, and a moment later, the mass was being ripped from the air and funneled into the sky. The screams she let out made the neighboring spirits cringe wildly; as soon as my legs hit the ground again, I began to inhale the mass as deep into my body as possible. The mass clawed violently at my insides, squirming around my throat and stomach as it tried to escape, but we both knew that this not only didn’t bother me, but that she wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Once I had swallowed the spirit, I sealed my lips and draw a symbol into the air, which illuminated white before a portal to the Shadow Realm manifested. May and Jackson took each side of the portal edge and held it tightly, nodding to signal they were ready.
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When I opened my mouth and leaned forward, the spirit trapped inside me violently expelled into the portal, screaming so loudly that the other Gods could now hear it as well. As I released her, black gunk swam up my throat and coated the ground, but this was nothing new; anytime we ingested oppressive energy like this, it came out as this type of substance to prevent it from clinging to its previous host, otherwise known as the Reaper vomiting it up.
As soon as the last drop of her soul purged itself from my body, May and Jackson joined the two sides of the portal, sealing it before she had the chance to claw back into the Human Realm again. I hacked up a few more chunks of the black gunk before wiping my mouth, cringing slightly, “Those things always taste like rotten eggs!” I scoffed before burping a little louder than planned. May and Jackson exploded into laughter, shaking their heads teasingly as I shrugged and wrapped the sweatshirt around my waist over the wounds in my neck.
When I came out of the graveyard, Mom was already rushing over protectively to heal the gashes, grumbling about how dangerous I could be sometimes as I rolled my eyes. “You can fight demons and reap souls?” Galaxy asked in astonishment.
“I guess so,” I said with a simple shrug.
The Gods were quiet for a beat before Blaine whispered, “No Death Elementals are supposed to be able do both…?” under his breath.
Dad huffed in approval and crossed his arms, leaning on the gate with a sly tone to his voice, “Correct classification, correct removal; I’m impressed. Why did you choose to swallow the soul?” He prompted, radiating pride and also showing off a little bit to his awe struck friends.
“Anything that causes physical harm to a Reaper isn’t going to go down without a fight, and is automatically marked to be sent to the Shadow Realm to be sealed until it calms down. If I can contain her within my body, it’ll keep both myself and neighboring spirits safe from any oppressive attacks. If I had tried to fight her, we would have worn each other down too much, and not only caused collateral damage, but she probably would have escaped.” I answered simply.
He clapped rhythmically with a chuckle, “That’s my boy! I am quite impressed, especially that you classified it so simply. I’m not entirely sure myself why a Cyhyraeth would be around here, let alone attacking innocent spirits? Don’t think I know a Dominika myself.”
“If it’s important, Magnus will make us investigate. I need to brush my damn teeth; I can’t stand the after taste of those things.” I hacked, which made the group laugh lightly.
╪
“Who burnt my good pan?” Mom snapped as I came down from the bathroom. I paused mid step and spun to try and race upstairs, but she shot her arm out to direct a ray of light through the living room. It snatched my hood and dragged me into the kitchen, where the Gods laughed at the look of shame I wore. “Nicodemus Crawford, what have I told you about burning my pans?!”
“It was Alice?!” I cried exasperatedly.
[In my defense,] Alice popped up beside me, [Your son is incapable of baking a pizza without burning the house down.]
Mom slammed the pan down on the counter so harshly that both Alice and I jumped out of our skin, “So you burn my pan instead? This is the fourth pan you two have ruined this month?!”
Alice audibly gulped before making a motion like she was about to run, [Oops, gotta go!]
“ALICE?!” I roared as she saluted me and whisked away as a cloud of smoke. “Traitors, all of them! I’m over this mutiny!” I sobbed, yelping when Mom tried to whack me with some unknown object. I heard it move through the air, and before it made contact with my arm, I ducked under her swing and bolted towards the fridge. She let out a snarl of defeat as I peered around the open fridge door with an innocent smile to try and win her back over. “I love you soooo much, Mommy!” I tried to sing, but she wasn’t having it.
Elizabeth reached out to tug on my shirt, “Why don’t you come sit with us, Nicodemus?”
“You’re lucky your aunt is here to protect you…” Mom hissed, growling like a dog as I scampered by to sit between a laughing Galaxy and Elizabeth.
“Thank you for saving me!” I hiccuped with a giggle.
“I know all too well what that woman is capable of,” Elizabeth joked before squeezing my cheeks, “Do you prefer Nicodemus, or Nick?” She asked as she smoothed my frazzled hair.
“Either is fine, but Nick is usually easier to say.” I offered, smiling at her warm energy.
Galaxy leaned forward so he could talk to me head on; his voice was layered with so much affection that I couldn’t help but soak it up entirely. “Good to know. What elements are you Shadows? I want to make sure we pick a house that will be within good distance to the elements you need to charge up?” He continued.
I kicked my legs shyly under the table, “Claude is Electricity, May is Water, Jackson is Earth, and Alice is Fire.” I said, innocently unaware of what their reactions would be. The room froze over the moment I answered Galaxy, so much that I even felt the tension within the air. I brought an arm up to clutch my shirt sleeve, and blushed under the intense wave of discomfort, “Um… Did I say something wrong…?” I peeped.
Mom mouthed something to them dead seriously, thinking I wouldn’t notice, but I could hear the sounds her mouth made as she did this. The Gods were quiet for a moment to process what she said, but hid their surprise for my sake. “No, of course not. I was just taking a moment to think is all.” Galaxy’s lie was smooth, but I didn’t bother pestering him. He scrawled down my answers before rolling his lips, “I think I know a great spot for you guys; nice and quiet, just like your current house, but not far from the lake. Mind walking up a hill, though?”
“I don’t mind!” I cheered, in a tone that made Galaxy chuckle lovingly.
“Good luck making that kid exercise.” Dad called from the living room.
I smacked the table with an embarrassed blush, “You’re the fatso who sits around drinking coffee all day!?” I yelled back.
“Boys, behave,” Mom warned as Dad stuck his head into the kitchen to cackle at me.
“Speaking of boys…” Elizabeth slyly hissed as she leaned closer to me, “How would you like to meet your cousins, Nick?”
“Yes please!?” I screamed automatically before Mom had a chance to testify, “Please, please, please…! I really want to meet them!”
“Now wait just a minute…?!” Mom roared over me.
My shoulders slacked in defeat, “Mom, come on! Please, please, please…!?”
“It’s not that we don’t want you to meet them, Nick; we just don’t want Soren burning down our house.” Dad said, snorting a giggle at Galaxy’s ferocious snarl.
“That was one time, Atlas, one time?!”
“And you’re still repairing the cabinets.”
“Come on, Atlas…?” Elizabeth smooshed my cheeks together and turned me towards my parents, “How could you deny your sweet child a chance to meet his own family? AGAIN, might I add,” she shot, layering the guilt deep.
“Yeah, how could you deny me that? You’re poor, innocent, favorite child?” I pouted, bugging my eyes wildly until Dad sighed in defeat.
“One flame, one single flame, and you all go home…” before Dad could finish Galaxy was already at the back door, and when he opened it, a portal was on the opposite side instead of our graveyard. Galaxy whistled twice before proudly coaxing his two sons forward, who peeked into the kitchen. Their energy was extraordinary; their elements beat like drums as soon as they entered the room, and made my skin physically tingle. Unlike Galaxy, his first son’s electric current was so intense that I had goosebumps, but not necessarily in an unpleasant way. His brother’s pounding soul radiated such an intense glow and warmth that he had to be a Fire Elemental, and was an energy I had never encountered before. Dad couldn’t help himself, and shook his head with a soft chuckle, “Look who it is; trouble and maker!” He teased.
“Hi guys!” The electric one cried excitedly as he rounded the counter to hug my parents. Mom and Dad greeted the boy lovingly, since they’d obviously met before.
His brother stayed frozen in place, but must have been looking around based on the way the fabric of his shirt pulled. I heard him shift before the feeling of being stared at incredibly intently enveloped me. I cleared my throat awkwardly and scratched at my hand, “Er, nice to meet you?” I attempted nervously.
The older one turned and smacked his brother’s arm, which made the boy yelp and swing back in a frenzy. “Hey, who are you hitting?!”
“Don’t you know it’s not polite to stare, you freak!?”
“Ahem?” Elizabeth snapped, which made the boys pause to turn to their mother, “How about instead of fighting, you properly introduce yourselves?”
“I love that idea, Mom!” The older shoved his brother aside to march up to me, reaching out to gently take my hand from off the table. “I’m Griffin! It’s nice to finally meet you?”
“And, and I’m Soren!” Soren bolted around the table to excitedly bounce up and down beside Griffin, and take my hand as well, “You were so awesome with that Cerberus!”
I was smiling so hard my cheeks hurt, but was incredibly excited to meet people my own age, let alone my own family. “Ha, thanks? I’m Nicodemus, but you can call me Nick.”
“Why don’t you show the boys around the house while I finish dinner up, Nick?” Mom offered, obviously trying to push me out of my comfort zone.
“Oh, sure. Do you guys like board games?” I awkwardly tried.
“Nerd-McGee wins every game no matter what, but that sounds like fun!” Soren laughed, nudging me playfully, “It’ll be nice to have someone on my team for once!”
“And who says he gets to be on your team?” Griffin snorted.
Soren laced his arm around my shoulders and shook me once, “I say so!”
“Well, let’s go upstairs then,” I coaxed, giggling in excitement as I raced into the living room. Soren and Griffin trailed me, our voices echoing through the house as we got to work getting to know one another.
╪
“Bingo!” Griffin sang, holding his card up with a huge smile, “I’m unstoppable!”
“Come on, again!? What’s the point in seeing what’s going on if I keep losing?!” I roared, throwing my hands up in defeat as Soren laughed hysterically at his brother’s blush. “That’s six games in a row?! Are you a magician!?”
“I’m an Elemental?” Griffin tried, which made me inevitably laugh at his corny joke. He slid forward to poke my arm, “Also, how do you see? Are you using your Shadows?”
“Oh, yeah…” I tapped my forehead with a grin, “Claude’s currently rumbling around in there so I can borrow his eyes. He and I have the closest spiritual connection, so he tends to let me use his blinkers most often. It’s kind of hard to play a game that I can’t see.”
“That’s pretty cool!” Griffin exclaimed before puffing his chest out, “How well can you see us? Do you, like, see perfectly?”
I shrugged lamely, “It’s kind of like looking through fogged glass. I can make out colors and shapes pretty easily, but it’s always murky…” I squinted hard to focus on Griffin’s face, “Like, I can tell you have really yellow eyes, and brown hair, but I can’t make out many of your facial features well. I have to be really close to stuff to see better.” I nodded to Soren, “Does anyone else in our family have really red hair like you, Soren?”
“Nah, just little ole me!” He declared, scrunching his fiery locks wildly, “Dad says we have a great uncle with red hair, so that’s probably why I have it, but I’m one of a kind! Most of us look like our dads. You definitely look like your dad for sure.”
‘“You think so? I’ve never really seen my reflection, so I don’t really know what I look like, fully.” I said, shoveling the remnants of our latest game back in the box.
“That really sucks. Hopefully, once you’re back in the Elemental world with us, we can find a way to fix your eyes!” Soren offered as he scooched closer to me to see what I was pulling out of my shelf next.
I continuously jammed the spinner down on my old gameboard, cackling evilly when it eventually behaved properly, “Maybe, but I’m not too worried about that right now.” I handed Griffin the rest of the game board so he could set it up, as punishment for winning so many times, “We should all train together once I’m settled in; two of my shadows can control Fire and Electricity, so it’ll be really helpful to train with living Elementals that match their own.”
“Two of? How many do you have?” Griffin snorted as I plopped down between them.
“Four,” I nonchalantly replied, flicking the spinner to make sure it moved the way it should. They were quiet for so long that I looked up questioningly, “Is that a bad thing?”
Soren shook his head fast and gnawed his bottom lip as he thought of a way to answer me, “Oh, um, no, not at all; that’s really cool! It’s just, yeah, a lot more than anyone else ever has, but that just means your special!” He awkwardly chuckled, then changed the subject again. “What other elements can you control?” He stammered sheepishly.
I tried to push down my burning curiosity about what they had said, as it obviously was something they didn’t want to talk about, and I didn’t want to ruin the fun we were having. It was growing increasingly difficult to do this, though. The more I interacted with the Gods and their children, the more questions I had about why everyone was reacting so oddly to me. I never thought anything of my powers, never thought having four Shadows would be so astonishing, but apparently it was a big deal. Why they were hiding this from me was beyond my comprehension, but I figured I’d get my answers so enough. “My other Shadows are Water and Earth, but I’m best with Electricity and Water. You’ve got to teach me a few tricks sometime, Soren; Alice and I are always trying to improve our bond, and I can’t seem to connect with Fire as well as I should.”
“Tricks? That moron burns down everything he touches!” Griffin snorted childishly.
“I do not!” Soren cried, but abruptly, he threw his arm up before violently sneezing. Griffin and I screamed and flinched back as flames shot from Soren’s nose, almost hitting my bed, but I threw a water ball at them before they came in contact. Soren sniffled, then turned as red as his hair, “Woops, sorry about that, Nick.” He hiccuped with an embarrassed smile. Griffin and I looked at one another in horror before exploding into hysterical laughter, which made Soren sigh in relief and inevitably join in.