The One Awakened Read online

  Ar’ch had agreed with the group, but he still felt bad about leaving. “I wish Sofia could have joined us,” he said.

  “You know we couldn’t risk it,” Kai said and accepted his drink from Z.

  “Yeah, but I feel bad about leaving her.”

  Z rolled her eyes and placed a drink in front of him. “Oh, gag me! She’s perfectly fine. Rafe is with her.” Ar’ch gave her a look that made her laugh. “You aren’t jealous of him, are you?”

  “Absolutely not. They are blood-related. I couldn’t be happier,” he said and gulped his drink down with a smile.

  Everyone laughed, knowing that although it was true, Ar’ch still felt uneasy about being away from Sofia. He rolled his eyes and shook his head. He knew they were laughing at him, but he couldn’t be angry with them. After all, they were right. He no longer cared about being a ladies’ man; he just wanted to be home with his one lady. Nothing else mattered to him.

  Z looked past them and stop laughing. She became serious so quickly that he knew something was wrong. Ar’ch turned around and stood up to protect her. Immediately, the rest of the group also turned and took the same protective stance. He had not felt his tattoos warning him of danger, so he hoped that there’d be no trouble.

  He looked back at Z just in time to see her roll her eyes and hop over the bar to stand in front of all of them. She turned around and gave them all her I-can-take-care-of-myself look and then faced forward again just as Khameel reached them.

  Khameel looked at all of them and said, “How interesting to find you all here instead of preparing for war.”

  Ar’ch touched his tattoo and a sword immediately appeared in his hand. Z touched his forearm to indicate that she would deal with Khameel. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kai stand a little bit in front of Mel but not so much that he made her appear weak or incapable of protecting herself. It said a lot about not only Kai’s feelings for her but also his trust in her abilities.

  Ar’ch turned his attention back to Khameel. He saw Z glimpse quickly at his hands, which made him proud of her. He knew that she liked the guy, but she kept her guard up. “Have you come to join the winning side?” she asked.

  Khameel laughed. “I’m already there, though I’d love to take you with me,” he said. Ar’ch could tell that he meant it with every fiber of his being, but he smirked to make his comment seem sarcastic.

  Z faked a smile. “It’s a shame that you aren’t smarter. We could have had great fun.”

  “Really?” Ar’ch said.

  Z had tried to match Khameel’s sarcasm, but she had failed. Ar’ch knew her better than anyone, so he knew that she really meant it. She rolled her eyes at him and then focused back on Khameel.

  Khameel turned his attention to Mel. His shield faltered, and Ar’ch read his thoughts loud and clear. Khameel had figured that Mel had helped them release Sofia from Damiana’s cell, but it still hurt him to see her at their side. After all he had done to try to keep her safe, she had gone and betrayed them all. It thrilled Ar’ch that their enemies knew that they had been outsmarted.

  “So, you did get captured by the enemy,” Khameel said.

  “I wasn’t captured. I was rescued. You know that Damiana is crazy and would have killed me. I don’t know how you can support her,” Mel replied.

  Khameel ignored her and handed Z the notice. Ar’ch almost wanted to laugh. Technically, he should have handed the notice to either him or Angel, since their father sat on the High Council, but Ar’ch guessed that he wanted to not only insult them but also wanted to cut ties with Z in the process. Khameel stood proudly and announced, “By the laws of Caelagios, I hereby summon the Diasodz to engage in war for the ultimate control of our kind within ten days’ time.”

  They all stood still for a moment and then Z took the notice from his hand. She squared her shoulders, knowing her duty. “On behalf of all Diasodz, I accept your summons. Notice will be given within a week’s time. You may now go in peace.”

  He nodded and began to walk away. “Hey, Khameel,” she said, stopping him in his tracks. “From this moment forward, you are no longer welcome at Angel’s Anarchy.”

  Khameel smiled sadly for a moment and then smirked. “See you on the battlefield, sexy.”

  -o-

  Rafe and Sofia walked peacefully through the labyrinth of hedges. Everywhere he touched, the leaves brightened in color and seemed to swell with pride. She smiled at how peaceful he became around nature. They walked in silence for a while, not needing words to fill the space.

  “What do you want to do for your birthday?” he asked.

  “My birthday?” she questioned, remembering her birthday party at Angel’s Anarchy with Angel and Ar’ch. “I’m sorry that we were not together for my birthday. I did miss you not being a part of it. It was our first birthday apart.”

  He focused on the branches that were reaching out to him. “No, I mean your real birthday, the real day that you were born before our pretend mothers switched us.”

  “Oh. I never really thought about that. So then, I’m not 18 yet?”

  “Nope,” he said and shook his head.

  “Wait. So, then, you are older than me?”

  He smiled. “Yep.”

  “Aw, man. I liked being older,” she whined.

  “Too bad,” he said and smiled before getting serious again. “It makes sense, though.”

  “Why? Because you think you are wiser,” she teased.

  “No, because I had my death day close to my real birthday.”

  “Oh,” she said and then thought back to that awful day when she had thought that her decision to leave Earth had caused his death. “I guess that also explains why I’m still just a human. At least, that means there is nothing wrong with me.”

  Rafe stopped walking and looked at her. “Wrong with you? Are you kidding? That’s what you thought?” He laughed. “You are our savior, Sofia. You are perfect.”

  She frowned. “I hate that title.”

  He chuckled. “You’ve always hated praise.”

  She shrugged. “So, what do you think of Sarah?” she asked to divert the subject away from her.

  “Good redirect,” he said and stuck out his tongue. He started walking again while running his fingers over the branches. “She’s great.”

  “Was she able to help you?”

  He nodded. “I’ve got all of my real memories now.”

  “How bad is it?”

  Rafe took a deep breath and told her about all the memories that he recalled. He left nothing out. He could always count on her to accept all of him, so he wanted to share everything with her so that she could help him make sense of it all.

  When he finished, Sofia said, “Wow. That doc really messed with your head. You okay?”

  “I guess. It just makes me angry because I can remember sometimes acting a certain way and not understanding why, but now it makes sense. I just feel like I don’t know if I can trust what I’m thinking or feeling anymore. Is it the real me, or is it the programmed me?”

  Sofia thought for a moment and then said, “When I first realized that my whole life had been a lie, and then again when I realized who my true parents were, I questioned who I really was. Everything I grew up believing felt like a lie, so how could I be real? Ar’ch and Angel helped me to see that I am who I am right now because this is the only moment that truly exists, so I just need to be true to my thoughts and feelings. We can’t change our past and the future hasn’t been written, so the real me is right here.”

  Rafe sighed and nudged her shoulder. “And you say you are not wise.”

  She laughed. “Rafe, you are you, and I love you, and I’m not the only one.”

  “Sofe -”

  “Look, if you aren’t into Angel because he’s not your type, then fine. But if you aren’t sure, then don’t you owe yourself the chance to find out?”

  “I can’t think about that right now.”

  “Okay,” she said and sighed. “Just don’t
shut him out. He’s a great guy, and you two would be great friends, if not more.”

  He focused on the hedges. “I was a real jerk to him the other day.”

  “Why?”

  He shared with her his conversation with their dad and how he had gone to the training center to blow off steam. He told her how Angel had tried to comfort him, but he had been so angry with his situation that he had ripped into him. He left out the part of Ar’ch knocking him flat on his face.

  “Ouch. I’m sure he has forgiven you. Angel never holds a grudge.”

  “Yeah, but still…”

  “Just be you, Rafe. We are all under stress, and we have to cut one another some slack.”

  “And there you go again…my little sister acting all big,” he said and put his arm around her shoulders.

  They walked out of the hedges just as the sun set and ran into a grim looking Ar’ch. Rafe dropped his arm and Sofia went to Ar’ch and kissed him.

  “Why so serious?” she asked.

  “The Raizyns have officially called for war.”

  She blanched. “So now what?”

  “The High Council will now meet and determine the day and location.”

  “Seriously?” he asked. “Why don’t we just attack?”

  “That is not our custom.”

  “Well, custom wasn’t used when my father’s family was slaughtered.”

  “Rafe!” Sofia said, shocked that he would say such a thing.

  Rafe took a deep breath and shook his head. “Sorry.”

  “Maybe the rules were created because of those times. I don’t know. What I do know is that Khameel officially served us with a summons for war.”

  “What if I’m not ready?” she asked, fear creeping into her heart.

  “You’re ready,” Ar’ch and Rafe said simultaneously.

  “I pray you are right,” she said.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Nolan waited for Lucas to sit before taking his own seat. He looked out at their audience. This was a closed session, so only the leaders of each community had been invited to meet with the High Council members. Since he had now taken back his rightful place on the High Council, Valerie now sat in his place to represent the leader of their community.

  “We have called this session to order because an official summons to war has been received. The Raizyns will fight to rule us all. We must determine the location and day of this war before we leave today. We have been given a ten-day window, and today has already been wasted, so let us begin,” Lucas said.

  “Are the Altorus in your communities ready for war?” Nolan asked the leaders of the communities.

  They all stood and nodded in unison. “Yes, your Highness,” they said and then sat back down.

  “I expected no other answer. You have all always taken your duties as Diasodz seriously,” he said with pride.

  “Has the savior had her death day yet?” one of the community leaders stood and asked.

  Nolan shook his head. “She has not.”

  “Will she still be a youngling for this war, then?” Felyse asked.

  He nodded. “Her birthday is still ten days away, so the date we choose for this war is of the utmost importance. If we wait too long and she has her death day, she may not awaken before the war, which will give the Raizyns the advantage because our savior will not be able to help us. I think we all need to accept that she will stay a youngling for this war.”

  “Then, her mother will control her,” Alexandra said. “Maybe we should wait the full ten days and hope that she has her death day and resurrection before then.”

  Small discussions began among the group leaders before Lucas called them back to order. “I do not believe the timing of this is a coincidence. I believe it is a test of our Goddess. If we wait the full ten days, then we are saying that we do not trust in our Goddess’ ability to protect our savior or us. If we wait the full ten days, then it is my belief that we will be defeated. I believe our Goddess means for our savior to be a youngling during the war. I believe She wants us to have confidence in Her ability to protect us all, even if it means putting our faith in a youngling of our enemy.”

  Silence filled the room; each leader searched within himself for answers. Valerie stood when no one else did. No one knew Sofia as well as she did, so she felt that her word would have the most value.

  She looked at the High Council and said, “How blessed are we that our Goddess has not abandoned us, even when we, as a people, turned away from our Goddess-given duty to protect and heal humans? How blessed are we that She found it in Her heart to love us unconditionally and continue to look after us for all these life years? How blessed are we that She has chosen to give us a savior to bring us back into our full powers? She must believe in us so much to be willing to give us another chance at doing right by Her.”

  She looked around the room at her fellow leaders and continued, “The Goddess chose the daughter of our enemy to be Her savior for the Diasodz. In that one decision, She is challenging us to doubt Her choice. And yet, the Goddess made sure that Sofia was raised with love by placing her with Liana for her upbringing. Now, the Raizyns have chosen to have the war before Sofia’s death day because they believe that it will benefit them.” She shook her head and looked at Lucas. “I agree with Lucas. I believe in our Goddess, and I believe in Her decision to choose Sofia. I suggest that we choose a date that is sooner rather than later, so that our savior is as far away from her death day as possible.”

  Nolan looked at his wife and beamed with pride. He knew that she meant every word, and that brought him immense joy. She had had such difficulty accepting Sofia at the beginning. Between feeling that her child was a boy and then seeing the red specks of Drake’s eyes within her eyes, Valerie had had doubts about Sofia being the child of the prophecy. She had felt disconnected from her, which was perfectly understandable now that they all knew that she was not her child. Yet, Valerie had grown to love her as if she were her own, just as he had. He knew that the Goddess had chosen Valerie and Liana for this journey because She knew that the two of them would give Sofia unconditional love and acceptance.

  Nolan looked to his fellow High Council members and said, “I suggest that we choose four days from today, August fourth, for our war. August is the eighth month in the calendar. The number eight turned sideways represents infinity. It is perfect because we are fighting for our immortality. The prophecy states that three brothers will assist the savior, so that equals four Diasodz working as one. The fourth will represent the four of them working together.”

  After a moment of thought, Lucas looked to his council members, “What say you?” They all nodded. Then, he turned to the community leaders. “What say you?”

  They all stood and said, “Yes, your Highness,” and sat down.

  “Very well,” Lucas said. “August fourth will be the date of our war. Now, what should be our location?”

  Valerie rose once again. “If I may speak once more, I’d like to make a suggestion,” she said and paused to see if there were any objections. When there were none, she continued, “We have many places on Caelagios where a war could be held, but I believe it should be a place where Sofia would feel most comfortable. She feels at ease around willow trees. She somehow has a connection to them. In fact, you all know of the only golden willow tree to exist. It became golden with Sofia’s birth, and when Damiana drained her energy, the golden willow turned silver and began to break apart. Once she was rescued, it turned gold again. I believe that this is a sign from our Goddess that our war should be held at the Elemental Fields.”

  “It makes perfect sense,” Katarina said, smiling. “The Elemental Fields represent the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. The three brothers and Sofia also represent the four elements. I also believe that the Goddess has blessed that location for our war.”

  Katarina looked at Lucas who looked at Nolan, Felyse, and Alexandra. “What say you?” They all nodded. He looked at the leaders. “What sa
y you?” Again, they stood and gave their consent. “Then, let it be noted that we have chosen our war to take place on August the fourth at the Elemental Fields.”

  “Who shall be chosen to inform the Raizyns?” Felyse asked.

  Lucas spoke to the crowd. “I believe that everyone in this room believes in our Goddess. I also believe that we all want there to be peace amongst our kind. I believe that some of us may try to reach that peace in different ways, and this is one of the reasons we have been led to this war. Having said that, we have all come to a crossroad where we must choose a side.” He turned to Alexandra. “I would like to appoint you to be the deliverer of our decisions. What say you?”

  Alexandra licked her lips and swallowed before nodding. “I will accept this mission with honor.”

  Lucas nodded. “Then, let it be noted that Alexandra will deliver our notice of location and date to the Raizyns tomorrow. We will meet again on August fourth to fight for peace amongst our kind. Now, go back to your communities and inform them that time is of the essence. Go in peace and blessed be,” he said and then stood.

  Nolan and the other High Council members stood and left the room. There was very little conversation among them. Felyse, Alexandra, and Katrina said their farewells and then left to inform their families. Once they were gone, Lucas sat against the ledge of his desk and sighed.

  “What troubles you?” he asked.

  Lucas looked toward the door from which the women had just exited and shook his head. “I believe I may have offended Alexandra by choosing her to be our messenger.”

  Nolan nodded in understanding. “It needed to be one of us, and it certainly could not be me, given our history.”

  “I agree, but maybe I should have done it myself, or I could have sent Katarina or Felyse.”

  “Would you be second-guessing your decision had you chosen one of them?”

  “No, of course not,” Lucas admitted and then smiled sadly, understanding his silent argument. “I chose Alexandra because I doubt her loyalty. You and your wife have shown me that there have been one too many coincidences lately. I fear she has already been sharing information with them, so she might as well be our official messenger.”