See How She Awakens (23 page)

“Am,” I muttered.

“Pardon?” Confusion etched Aberto’s brow.

“I am part demon. It’s still there. It’s different now than it was, but it is still there.” Suddenly, my hands seemed very interesting. Okay, so in truth, I was afraid to look at the faces of the people I loved. I didn’t want to see revulsion or fear staring back.

“I don’t believe that to be true,” Eleanor piped up.

“I was there. I’m pretty sure I absorbed the darkness into me. My flames went all wonky, turning from red to blue then purple. If I’m not part demon, then what am I?”

“There was a line missing from the prophecy. We found it while trying to figure out why you weren’t burning in the funeral ceremony.” It should’ve bugged me that Eleanor was so flippant with the whole burning my body thing, but it didn’t.

“Of course there was a missing line.”  If I had a nickel for every time there was something left out of the prophecy, I would be a rich woman. Okay, so I might only have like a dollar, but still. That’s quite a few nickels. “What does it say?”

“When the time dawns, the Seer will Awaken. She will reign as the balance incarnate all the days of the earth,” Eleanor read off of the page in her lap. Where had that paper come from? She was like a book ninja.

“So I’m the balance incarnate? What does that even mean?” I looked around the room, hoping someone had an answer. 

“I believe you are two equal halves, dark and light,” Aberto supplied.

“Does that mean if the good guys are winning too much I’m going to stir up the darkness?” I really didn’t want to play both sides.

“No, it means you will be able to anticipate the darkness in ways we’ve never been able to before. The darkness always presses forth more on our plane than the light,” Mona answered.

“That’s because the light doesn’t care,” I grumbled. The memory of my conversation with Uriel left a bitter taste in my mouth. 

“Or, perhaps the heavens have faith that we are strong enough to handle our own affairs. Did you not prevail?” Mona asked.

Anger flooded my veins as the words left her mouth.  Had I prevailed?  Was this really winning? 

“His words were that he cared not for humanity. What was meant to come would come. Tell me, do you believe we must fall to the whims of fate, or are we capable of steering destiny on a course which we set? I, for one, am sick of being a pawn. This game will have no victor if it continues to play out according to these rules.” Anger roiled within me as I spoke.

“Um, Izzy, maybe take the anger down a smidge,” Molly whispered.

I looked around the room, a strange purple glow reflected off of everyone’s eyes. It finally dawned on me that the glow was coming from me. I’d gone all flamethrower again.

With a bit of concentration I was able to reign in my temper. The darkness had added some whammy to my anger. Every emotion I felt was ten times more potent now. Stupid prophecy. I wanted to go back to sleep. Could I be un-Awakened? Was that a thing?

“I’m sorry. Not for what I said, but for the whole flamey-anger thing.” 

“I believe she is right.” Conall stepped away from his perch beside the mantle. “If we continue on this path we will never win. I grow weary of this fight. Something must change.”

An overwhelming din of noise followed Conall’s words as everyone erupted at once. Some in agreement, others in dissent. Seers and Guardians all talked at once, struggling to have their voices heard until one voice rose above the rest.

“SILENCE!” Molly shouted to the crowd. She’d climbed atop the desk at some point. She probably wouldn’t have been seen otherwise.

The room stilled as every face turned toward the source of the command. 

“My entire life I’ve been bounced from one place to the next; never settling. First the lab, then the Council, then the Order. Enough is enough. Our world—our future—depends on us fixing what was broken.  Somewhere along the way we lost our purpose.  Petty arguments split us apart, breaking what should be a strong and united front into weaker factions.  It is time to put an end to that.  We must mend the ties that were broken, bridge the divide, and unite the two halves once more. Izzy is right, we are the last defense of humanity.”  Molly stood staring out over the Seers and Guardians, her face a stony mask of resolve. She was truly frightening.

“What are you saying?” Mona asked.

“I’m saying it is time for the Council and the Order to be reunited. For us to come together and fight the ever pressing darkness together. A day will come when the darkness will resurface, it always does. When that day dawns, we need to be stronger, better than we were this time,” Molly replied.

“Who do you suggest lead?” Eleanor asked, leveling me with a gaze.

“Oh, no, not me. My ruling days are over. Besides, I’m part darkness now.  I think that disqualifies me.  Or maybe the whole ‘me fulfilling the prophecy’ thing gives me the right to put in an early retirement from supreme leader.”  I paused looking around the room.  No one seemed to be amused by my joke. “I nominate Molly. She is empathetic, which means she will know the heart of every situation. She will have a better understanding of things than most anyone else would. Plus, she is young, so she will have time to unite the two halves and set a precedent for future generations to follow.”  As the last of my words left my lips I looked up to find Molly staring at me, aghast.  I smiled brightly, probably a little maniacally, at her. 

“I un-nominate myself,”  Molly shouted quickly.

“I think Izzy is right,” Mona supplied. It hadn’t occurred to me to give the position to my aunt. Rightfully, she had far more experience leading than Molly did, but she’d led the Order, which meant those that fell under the Council wouldn’t trust her to have their best interests at heart.  Molly was the daughter of neither faction.  She was the best choice.  “All those in favor of Molly leading us into a new era?” Mona raised her hand looking around the room for a second.

She didn’t have to wait long. Hands shot up quickly around the room as Molly leveled me with a death stare. The last time I’d seen her that angry was when Ian had given her hair a makeover. Oh, how I missed the rainbow cheetah look.

“What say you?” Conall asked Molly.

She looked over to Ian to see both of his hands were raised, a huge smile plastered on his face.  “I guess that means I accept.” Ian swept her off of the desk into a tight embrace.

“Shouldn’t we take a much larger vote, though?” Molly seemed uncertain.

“No, there were members of both factions present today to decide. In the days to come you will choose your own governing body. I suggest you do so wisely.” Mona smiled gently at Molly.

The room was abuzz as everyone talked over the possibilities of what a united front might be.

But I wasn’t satisfied. I wanted more.

“What happened here? I know I left, or died, or whatever, but what happened? No one’s told me yet.”  I spoke more loudly than was probably necessary, but it quieted the room all the same. 

“Izzy, maybe you should recover some before trying to jump back into the fray?” Sena had been quiet up to this point, and quite frankly it had been freaking me out. When did she become the voice of reason?

“I just spent two months floating in darkness. I think I’ve rested enough.”  Frustration was starting to get the best of me.  Something had happened in this room, and no one wanted to tell me.

“This is a discussion best had in private.” Aberto’s jaw clenched as he looked me straight in the eyes. 

“Was I that bad?” I thought back, trying to remember if I’d really been so horrible, but I couldn’t think of anything that would make them not want to talk about what had occurred.

“Not you. Never you,” Aberto promised, squeezing my hand in his. “If you will excuse me for a moment.”  And poof, he was gone. I’d just come back from the dead, and not even that could get him to stick around and talk about the hard stuff.

“Ian, Bruce? Would one of you please just explain to me what happened?” I looked between the two of them, hoping one would be brave enough to tell me what was going on.

“Let me,”  Ian said to Bruce.  He made his way to the door, motioning for me to follow.

I stood, my legs still unsteady. Molly slowly made her way to me, putting her arm around my waist to support me. Maybe they were right. Maybe I should rest. But I knew myself. I wouldn’t get an ounce of sleep if I didn’t find out what was happening; what had happened.

“I’ll go with you guys,”  Molly said, as though she hadn’t just come to keep me from face planting on the floor.

“Thanks.” I leaned on her strength as we made our way out of the office and down the hall to a small room. 

Ugh. This room. The stupid shrink’s office. So, they thought I was crazy again? I’d spent enough time in there after my time at the lab. It was the last place I wanted to go today.

“Don’t worry, Izzy. No shrinks.”  Molly laughed, leading me into the empty office. The furniture all remained, but it looked as though no heads had been shrunk in this room for some time.

“So, why is everyone being so tight lipped? You were there Ian, what did you see?” Sitting down on the couch was the most welcome relief I’d had all day; well that, and coming back from the great beyond. 

“Izzy, what I’m about to tell you is only known by the ten and the Seers that were present.  And Molly, but only because I can’t keep things from her.” Ian smiled at Molly.  The warmth in that one look squeezed my heart.  I’d been looked at like that once.  Though the unbearable agony of grief had been lifted, the sadness still remained. 

“So?” I prompted, hoping to get my mind off of Kennan.

“I will tell you what I saw from the other side of the veil as we waited, then I will tell you what happened after you died, for a lack of a better word.”  Ian paused. I wasn’t sure whether he wanted my permission, or he was waiting for me to interrupt with more questions. I probably deserved the latter.

“Go on,”  I grumbled.

“When we arrived, you were gone, Izzy. Well and truly gone. But you told us not to act, to wait until we knew for sure. So we did. I watched as the darkness used you like a twisted puppet. Then they brought in the Seer for you to transform. I could see the change in your eyes, the battle raging inside as you struggled to regain control.”  Ian waited a moment, seemingly trying to gather his thoughts.  “Perhaps you should just sift my memories, it might be the easiest.”

“I’d rather hear it from you, Ian. I’m not quite ready to have another person’s memories in my head again.”  Every time I’d sifted people’s memories in the past, they’d stuck with me, as if they were my memories. I didn’t want to remember what had happened from his point of view, seeing the monster I’d become.

“Okay. This is just hard for me.”  Ian scratched his head, visibly uncomfortable. “So, you switched. Then everything started to happen quickly. Only, on our side of the veil something else began to happen. Aberto changed. When Eric charged you, something snapped inside of him.”

“What do you mean?”

“One moment he was the Aberto I’ve always known. The reserved Old One that patiently waits until the time is right. The next, he was something more. Something I’ve never seen before. It was as if he were made up of pulsing frenetic energy. I think the thought of you being in danger pushed him over the edge. We told him to wait, that you’d said you wanted to do it on your own, we were only there to intercede if you failed to conquer the darkness.” 

“Stop stalling! What happened?”

“Izzy, I don’t know how to explain what my eyes saw. Please let me show you this part, the rest I will explain, I promise.”  Ian reached his hand out, questioning.

“Fine.”  I clenched my teeth as I reached for his hand, unsure of what I was about to see.

Aberto stood there, surrounded by the ten looking on as I confronted Damali.  A motion to the left caught his attention as Eric began to move.  Everything stilled as he began to change.  Gone was the even tempered mask he wore. 
He
’
d become wrath incarnate. Energy surged through him, sparking pathways along his arms as he pushed himself through to the other plane, where I
’
d been.  Vengeance consumed him as he tore into Eric, pulling the soul from his body. Tossing it aside and disappearing through the veil once more.

The fight kept playing out.  Unable to stop myself and pull away, I let the memories carry me. 

Aberto stood to the left, the energy crackling along his skin as he struggled to keep his word.  I could see it all play out as if I were nothing but a mere bystander.  With each blow, each strike, Aberto grew more terrifying to behold. 

I understood what Ian meant now. It wasn
’
t that Aberto
’
s appearance had changed, or that he
’
d morphed into something inhuman, it was how his mere presence made any bystander feel.  Ian wanted to run, to be as far from Aberto as possible.  I could feel his fear as though it were my own, but he stood fast, focused on me as I fought.