Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign (Worlds of the Crystal Moon, Book 1) (55 page)

George rolled his eyes. “You sound just like these people. You fit right in.”

Shalee chuckled. “I told you Sam insisted that we talk like them.”

“That’s because it’s rude not to adapt,” Sam responded.

“Sure. Whatever, man,” George dismissed. “I haven’t got all Peak so quit wasting my moments, and get on with the conversation.”

Shalee had to smile at George’s sarcasm, but Sam was not amused.

George grinned. “Look, man ... I don’t even know who this Lasidious character is. I woke up outside of town, and I’ve been here ever since.”

Shalee responded, “Apparently, Lasidious is the one who brought us here.”

“She’s right,” Sam added. “Lasidious was directed to retrieve us, but he was only supposed to bring Shalee and me. For whatever reason, he brought you as well. From the way it sounds, the gods don’t understand why, and Mosley is also clueless.”

George gave Sam an inquisitive look. “Shalee said that name earlier. Who in the heck is Mosley? She said he took the place of this supposed God of War, Bassorine.”

“George, I told you Mosley is the new God of War,” Shalee defended, “not the supposed God of War. I’ve seen Mosley’s power.”

George looked at Shalee. “Whatever!” He turned to Sam. “What else can you tell me about this joint?”

Sam shook his head. “You’re the same old George, that’s for sure. Anyway, Shalee and I were supposed to create an empire and be the example the other worlds were to follow, but it looks like that is going to be put on the back burner now that the Crystal Moon is missing.”

George grinned. “You two ... an example? Now I know everyone around here is smoking crack. What else can you tell me?”

“Shalee was brought here to be my mate,” Sam replied.

Shalee grabbed one of the pillows off the bed and threw it across the room at Sam. She used the opportunity to act as if she did not know. “You never told me anything about that.”

“Maybe we could talk about it later,” Sam replied as he threw the pillow back across the room and grinned as it hit Shalee upside her head.

George shook his head. “You poor girl. You’re the one who has to sleep with this big lug? What a tragedy.” The jerk moved to the window and looked down at the torches lighting the cobblestone streets as Sam moved to the table and took a seat. “I don’t know anything about this Lasidious, but maybe I’ll meet him one of these Peaks. If he has plans for me, he’d better say something before I find my way back to my daughter.”

Sam looked at Shalee and frowned. “Shalee and I have been so overwhelmed; we lost sight of your disappearance. We’re grateful you’re okay.”

George placed his hands on the window sill. “Are we still dwelling on that? Shouldn’t we be figuring out a way to get home?”

Shalee sighed, “If there was a home to go to, I’m sure we would be trying.”

“What the hell do you mean?”

Sam’s face turned somber. “Okay, okay. George, I have something I need to tell you. You already know about the worlds and the Crystal Moon. But what you don’t know is that the gods created a book after the God Wars destroyed the cosmos. They call this book the Book of Immortality, and it literally holds the souls of every dead being inside the page that their name has been inscribed on.”

“You’re screwing with me, aren’t you?” George responded. “You think that you can make me believe stupid crap like that.”

Sam shook his head. “Not at all. I don’t think you’re simpleminded. But I’m not finished. There’s more. From my understanding of the God Wars ... the battles were all consuming, and they even destroyed Heaven and Hell. It no longer matters if a person is good or bad, everybody ends up inside the Book. They stay there until it is their moment to be reborn.”

George’s brow furrowed. “Sounds like bull crap to me.”

Sam nodded. “It’s hard to argue with you, but it’s the truth.” Sam reached up to scratch the top of his head. “Bassorine said that the gods of Earth sent the souls of their followers to Heaven or Hell before they were destroyed. But that’s no longer possible.”

“You don’t really expect me to believe you,” George responded.

Sam nodded. “I do.”

“You’re telling me what the Bible said is true? You’re saying I would’ve gone to Hell for the things I’ve done?” He paused for a fair series of moments. “Considering the way this world is, I’m inclined to believe anything right now.”

Sam held up his hands to stop George from continuing. “Okay, okay. If you were worried about your soul, you’re lucky Hell is gone.” Sam stood from his chair. A grave expression appeared on his face. “There’s something else you need to know.”

“I’m listening.”

A long silence filled the room. “Earth is gone.”

George laughed. “Yeah, right! Whatever, dude!”

Sam’s expression did not change. “I swear ... I’m telling you the truth.”

George looked at the floor. “This is all too farfetched. It’s like you’re playing a game with me. If everything was destroyed ... including Earth, and nothing remains ... and the only worlds in existence are the ones the statue spoke about, then that means—”

Sam’s heart sunk as he saw the light turn on behind George’s eyes.

Shalee stood from the bed. She kept her eyes focused on George as she walked across the room, stopped next to Sam and then grabbed Sam’s arm and held it tight. She remembered how she felt when she learned her world had been annihilated and that her family and Chanice were no longer living.

George reached for his wallet and started to open it, but he remembered the picture of his daughter was missing. He crumbled to the floor. Under normal circumstances he would never have shown weakness, but the loss of his daughter was not a normal circumstance. He started to cry as the realization of what the destruction of Earth meant. It was more than he could bear. Sam’s revelation was too overpowering.

Shalee tried to rush to his side, but George held up his hands and screamed for her to stay back. “Don’t come near me! I’m dangerous!” He pushed himself up against the wall and balled up below the window.

George’s grief was hellish as the memories of his daughter flooded his mind. The pain of knowing he would never see her again was tormenting. “She was so young,” he sobbed. “I loved my Abbie more than anything. She was perfection, and she loved me, too ... no matter what. She didn’t judge me. She loved me because I was her dad. Oh, God...”

George wailed as he remembered that there was no Heaven. “How can Abbie’s soul find a safe place to rest if there’s no place but a book for her to go to?” He rose to his knees and peeked out the window. “My baby won’t know Athena.” The dreams of his little girl going to the park with Athena would never come true. This thought amplified his pain. “My heart hurts!”

George stood and made his way to the door. “I need to go. I need to go now.” Before he opened the door, he turned to face Sam and Shalee. “This is where we part. I need to find a place for me now. Don’t follow me.” He slammed the door behind him.

Lasidious stood from his chair. He maintained his invisible cover and walked across the room. The god passed through the wood of the door to see where George was going. The Mischievous One did not want to lose sight of his work-in-progress.

Shalee tried to follow, but Sam grabbed her arm. “Don’t! He needs to figure this one out on his own.”

“What if he kills himself?” Shalee rebutted. “I can’t imagine a child of mine dying.” Shalee fell onto the bed. Her sympathy for George’s pain was pulling at the core of her heart. “If he kills himself, I couldn’t deal with that kind of guilt.”

“Would you stop?” Sam chastised. “Pull yourself together. He isn’t going to kill himself. He’s a better man than that. Something tells me that he’ll fight back and land on his feet. He mentioned a woman. Perhaps he has a shoulder to cry on.”

George was devastated as he walked down the hallway with the invisible god following close. The manipulator became more enraged with every step. His hate was enough to fuel the whole of Grayham twice over.

His mind questioned.
How could the one thing good in my life be taken from me? How could these “so-called” gods destroy everything I consider precious and dear? Why did my baby have to die?

His mind screamed this agonizing cry again and again until he was lost in tormenting sorrow.
Why did my Abbie have to die? Why did my Abbie have to die? Why did my Abbie have to die?

He stopped at the top of the stairs and looked out across the dining area of the inn. People were sitting and drinking, unaware of the danger lingering at the top of the stairs.

George removed his gloves. “The gods have taken my baby girl, now it’s my turn. I’ll kill your followers. I’ll have my vengeance. I’ll kill ’em all,” he hissed under his breath with a reinforced evil. “An eye for an eye … just like the Good Book said.”

His eyes grew dark with hate. The baby-blue of his irises faded and was lost to his resentment as he scanned the room. His eyes were now black like the darkest night, and the last piece of goodness in George vanished.

Lasidious watched with concern. In all his seasons, he had never seen a revulsion so intense. Even he could not believe that George’s emotions could cause the color of his eyes to change. The god knew this was not good for his plans. He would need to follow George until he could find a way to fix the problem.