Indignation (26 page)

“I’m going to help you.” She presses her forehead to his and lets him see all the love she has for him through her bright violet eyes. He looks so torn. “You’re going to be okay.” She assures him, but she says it to assure herself.

Annalisa

Miranda has her mind set. Annalisa is the only one who can locate the lost transcript. She might also be the only one who can stop the war that has been predicted by the Oracle of Delphi. The prediction of Julian’s true death. If only Annalisa appears out of thin air it would make everything so much easier. What if Annalisa is not even living? No, that can’t be possible because Julian has come back from the land of the dead as an immortal. Annalisa is connected to Julian so that would mean that she alive as well.

There’s a whole in everything though. Gabriel had given Alyssa to the Keepers whole she was a child, but Alyssa only remembers her mortal life and the Keepers only has had her for eighteen years. How is it possible for Alyssa to be over four centuries old and be a child for so long, and then age like a mortal when given to the Keepers? It doesn’t make sense. Can it be some kind of spell or enchanted created by Selene? No, that can’t be it as well because that would mean that Selene is alive when that’s not the case. But it could mean that maybe there’s another descent alive that is hidden from everyone.

 She paces back and forth in the cheap hotel room. The heat is killer. She has been sweating like a pig since her arrival. She’s waiting for a call from her informant. Before she can go and discuss her findings with Alyssa she needs to at least find the Dagger of Selene, the same dagger that Alyssa once used to kill Julian. If she finds that dagger, it could awaken the old Annalisa if she proves to not be correct. Miranda can feel that she is correct though. He suspicions have validity. That would be a great fear and relief. If she finds that Alyssa is not Annalisa, then Julian will be free to love without any resentment, but it will also mean that Annalisa is alive and in hiding.

The Adviser Elim just hopes that the Oracle of Delphi is mistaken by her vision of a war approaching. Her hopes will fall too short though. The Oracle of Delphi is never wrong. She can’t let Julian die in a useless war that she still has no idea what is the cause for it.

 A loud chime interrupts her thoughts. She answers her new blackberry phone. The caller ID has unknown written across the screen. That’s him. The call she’s been waiting for.

 ”Hello?” She greets in a rush.

“You can locate it.” He whispers too low for any mortal to hear, but she can hear him perfectly fine as an immortal.

Her eyes widen with anticipation. “Tell me what you have found.”

“I found someone who knows for a fact that the Dagger of Selene is hidden beneath the dirt where King Julian fell.” That would mean that she would have to go to the land where Julian once died four hundred years ago. That is her advantage. She already suspected this so she flew out from the states to across the continents to be close to the kingdom that no longer stands. She just needed the confirmation.

 ”Is your source reliable?” She asks him as she runs out of the small hotel and into her rental car that has seen better days, decades ago.

 ”Very reliable. Apparently, my source was there at the time of King Julian’s fall and has confirmed it. My informant is in hiding and is out of the eyes of King Julian. Apparently they have debts to be paid.”

She nods to no one with understatement. “I understand. Do you exactly where the dagger is located?”

“King Julian’s fall was in his chambers.”

 ”I think I know where it is. Well, thank you. You will receive your reward in thirty-two hours. Disappear. Throw the phone away and move out of the continent you’re in. That’s an order. Goodbye.”

Miranda clicks her phone and disconnects the call. This warlock may be a good informant, but he is injudicious. He has a loose tongue and if he so much as speaks about his findings he will be as good as dead at Hade’s realm. That was one of the conditions she put on him. He had to swear an oath on Hades and ask for death if he so much as opens that dirty mouth of his.

Luck is finally one her side. Now she has to see if the dagger can be found. She pulls out the international map. She doesn’t have the ability to appear and reappear wherever she wants like Gabriel so she will have to do this the old way as always. This will be a long drive.

One hour later, Miranda arrives at the fallen kingdom. It’s just outside of where once the Athens used to take residence. The ruins are that of other kingdoms that came after Julian. She slowly makes her way to the well-structured temple that has been built on top of the ruins of Julian’s castle. The temple is still standing even after its abandonment. There are ruins all around, but there is no form of survival for anyone here. The sand is as dry as it can be. There are not good for crops to be grown. The sky only shows the bright sun that will never fade. That means that there is no water coming in. The kingdom has turned into a deserted desert.

According to her gathering of information, the Dagger of Selene can only be found by a bloodline which means Alyssa or Annalisa are the only ones to locate it. Miranda can’t help but give it a try. Maybe she can find the dagger and get it herself. Her information can be proven false.

Her sneakers glide above the sand. She makes her way to the temple. The tall building seems to be glowing from power.  She cautiously moves forward into the temple. The Adviser Elim can see the concrete walls screaming to collapse but the construction is too strong to let that happen. Her immortal heart remains silent, there’s no beat to it. She can feel the sting on her skin. Miranda looks down on her arms to notice red marks appear on her skin. Her senses are telling her to leave. That’s when she knows that the temple is cursed. The energy is so strong that she, as an Elim, can feel herself growing weaker with each step. She knows that she needs to save her energy in order to make it out of the temple alive. She’s too far inside now to turn back. The Elim now realizes what she’s gotten into.

“Dias, protect me.” She whispers to herself. Her mind begins to focus on Gabriel. If she really needs it, she can channel his strength into hers. Their connection makes that possible. Miranda won’t do it until she really needs it though. She doesn’t need Gabriel to appear from thin air and find out where she really is. No one but her can know her theories on the Dagger of Selene. She needs to find that dagger so Alyssa can find the transcript of the curse. If Gabriel finds out he will stop at nothing to stop her.

The sound of multiple rocks falling catches her attention. She leans on the walls trying to keep her heavy breathing to a minimum. She’s losing her energy too quickly. She can feel her body cringe at the lack of energy radiating through her. She’s growing weak with each step. The curse is too powerful for her to fight. She forces herself to go in deeper. She needs to see what made that noise. Then she hears the running of footsteps making its way towards her with rapid speed. Her ears pick up on the deep murmur of a chant. The voice so familiar.

“
Dagger est mei, quondam iterum, quondam iterum, carus sanctimonialis, ego mos animadverto vos iterum
.
”

The chant grows louder as voice comes closer. Miranda knows Latin perfectly to know exactly what the chants means. The words frighten her. She falls to the grown with a thump. Her heavy breaths are becoming heavier. Her lack of energy is making her vision start to blur. She can hear the chants becoming even louder.

‘The dagger is mine, once again, once again, dear sister, I will see you again.’

The footsteps stops right in front of her. Miranda looks up with the small energy she has. She looks up to see a woman with brown hair, and dark violet eyes. She’s covered in black material. “Annalisa?” The Elim’s voice is barely a whisper. Annalisa bends down with a devilish grin spreading across her face. A small dagger is in her hand.

“
Dagger est mei, quondam iterum, quondam iterum, carus sanctimonialis, ego mos animadverto vos iterum
.
”

The chants disappear as Annalisa runs off. Miranda pants. Sweat is covering her entire body. The little clothing that covers her seems so suffocating. She doesn’t even have the energy to channel Gabriel’s energy.

Rocks begin to fall one by one around her. The small pebbles slowly are replaced by bigger ones. The temple is finally falling. She’s trapped. Annalisa is leaving her to her own death. At this point Miranda is paralyzed to be able to move. She whispers for help, but the destruction of the sanctuary roars above her low whisper.

Her vision blurs until she isn’t able to see anything. Before she feels herself slipping to unconsciousness, a thought runs through her mind. Annalisa is not in possession of the Dagger of Selene. And she’s after Alyssa.

<><><>

Gabriel stares at Miranda’s unconscious body on his bed. It’s been three days since he’s found her. He gently brushes her strawberry blonde hair away from her eye lids. She’s so beautiful, but she’s so out of his reach. Her hatred for him has grown more and more throughout the years. His need for her is second to the God himself. She needs to understand that his has no choice when it comes to the God. He has to do everything he is ordered. The price is high to pay when it involves her. If he just could have a choice he would choose her over and over again.

He never wanted to have Julian trapped in the Underworld with the lost souls. The God ordered for him to not stand in the way. Only when his daughter was in danger did he order him to interfere. Dias is a good god, but he has many faults. Gabriel would never trap anyone willingly. If he is to fight, he will fight with honor. Honor is sometimes forgotten in Dias’s eyes. Whether the fight is fair or not, as long as he wins, he doesn’t care.

The Authority Elim can’t fix the errors he’s done in the past. He forced Miranda into the life of immortality for his sick obsession to live for eternity. It seems like century after century the memory haunts him. She cried and begged him to give her mortality back. He couldn’t. They both died on the day that untied them. To everyone they were dead, but they only became immortals. They had to say goodbye to their friends and family in their small town without their acknowledgement. The couple gave up so much, but at the time he found it all worth it. That was until Miranda witnessed the death of the younger sister she raised. That was the day he opened his eyes to reality. Miranda had accepted her life as an immortal, as an Elim, but she never forgave him for the decision he made.

“I love you.” He whispers softly to her. Her face is paler than usual and her hands are cold. She’s lost so much energy that he doesn’t know how long it will take for her to open those beautiful clear blue eyes of hers.

In order to save her from the loss of energy, he gave her most of his. He doesn’t feel as strong as he should, but he would do anything for her that is in his reach. He remembers how close he was to really losing her. The temple was cursed, so if the temple fell completely to the grown it would mean the death of those stuck inside. The curse had been repeatly written on every square inch. Miranda was the only one he cared about. 

Something happened in that temple though. She wouldn’t go there unless there was importance in it. What has she done? Or what is she doing?

<><><>

Miranda can feel a presence next to her. She slowly opens her eyes. Gabriel is sitting on the chair beside the bed she rests, but is too deep in his thought to notice that she has awakened. She scans the room. Her last memory is of being trapped in the temple, but she’s not there anymore? The room is neat and plain. Her eyes stare around in confusion. Why is she in Gabriel’s room? 

“What am I doing here?” Her voice is barely a whisper. She can feel his energy running through her veins. It’s taking an effect on her. In just a few seconds she’ll be able to stand and talk well enough.

His dark blue eyes of night snap to clear blue ones with worry covering them. “I had to bring you here. You were on the verge of death. If it wasn’t for my energy, you would be in Hades’s realm right now. How are you feeling?”

“Better.” She whispers a little loud now.

“Good. Now tell me what were you thinking of entering a cursed temple on the forsaken dirt?” His anger clearly shows.

She can feel her body returning back to normal. Her anger fires back at him. “It’s most definitely none of your business.”

“Everything you do is my business! Your safety is my business.”

“I don’t belong to you, 
Gabriel
.” She spits his name. When she feels Gabriel’s energy coursing throughout her body, she gets off his bed. She rushes toward the door, but he blocks her exit almost instantly.

He crosses his arms. “You’re not leaving until you tell me what where you doing in that temple.”

“I don’t answer to you. Now, let me past. I have to go.” She tries pushing him away, but that backfires when he grips her upper arms with both of his hands. He begins to walk with her until her back hits against the wall. He’s not planning on letting her go until she tells him what her business was in that temple. She knows him too well.

“Three days. I’ve seen you stuck in my bed for three days. I was worried sick that you wouldn’t wake. Now tell me, what did you do?”

Her eyes widen. “Three days?” He doesn’t answer her rhetorical question. “Oh, God. No. No!” She shakes her head as she uproariously yells to herself. Her panic is suffocating her.

She can hear Annalisa’s words fill her head.

‘The dagger is mine, once again, once again, dear sister, I will see you again.’

“Give me your phone.” She commands Gabriel. He confusingly hands her his phone.

She dials Julian’s number. Don’t let it be too late.

He picks up after the first few rings. “Hello?”

“Julian, Alyssa is in danger.”

<><><>

 Alyssa smiles when she breathes in the fresh scent of her home. It might be only a few days since she has moved in with Julian, but she misses her house so much. She misses the feel of home that brightens the house. It was always her personal sanctuary. Julian’s condo is beautiful and has uptight security, but it just doesn’t feel right. He told her that she can turn it into whatever she wants, but it’s not her house to redecorate, even if she has his permission. The last few days seem so hectic with controlling Julian, easing her friends’ worries. She can’t even communicate with Miranda. The Elim has not visited her at all which is strange.