Fallon was barely coming to his senses. I worried about him. This wasn’t the first time that a Hermessi had taken him over. His fae side was still dominant, unlike Taeral, whose jinni nature seemed to have prevented the elementals from toying with him directly.
I understood then what Death had meant when she’d said it would only get harder. The Hermessi’s power was growing, as was their ability to come after us, Devil’s Weed on or not. We were in for a world of trouble, and still, after having gotten to know someone like Raphael, I couldn’t bring myself to surrender to any form of despair.
Raphael laughed, taking his breathing mask off, and breathed a sigh of relief, beaming at me with the joy of someone who’d found the will to live, once more. Without caring about anything else around us, he took my breathing mask off, swiftly put his hand on the back of my neck and pulled me into a kiss. His lips crashed against mine. Fire and ice danced around in the pit of my stomach, and I showed no resistance to this endeavor.
I welcomed him completely. He tasted like the ocean breeze, his masculine essence permanently embedded in the delicate skin of my lips.
“I won’t apologize for this,” he said, his voice low and husky. My hands had settled on his broad chest as we floated closer to the edge of the pool.
“Not looking for an apology, anyway,” I whispered, my tongue still tingling.
I had every intention of surviving this, because Raphael and I clearly had something going on between us, and, just like my mother had once said, there was nothing more powerful than love to pull us out of the darkness. I had a feeling that Raphael was going to be the one who would keep me going, in light of what lay ahead.
And, as he climbed over the edge of the pink water pool and helped me out, I had to admit… I was perfectly okay with that.
Varga
I held Eva close once our feet touched the hard ground of the pink water cave. Fallon was back and loaded with newfound energy, though he’d yet to shake that startled look off his face. Acantha and Nethissis flanked him, caring for him and checking his vitals and making sure everything was okay, while the rest of the crew made their way out, laughing and cheering, thankful to have survived a most harrowing encounter with the Hermessi.
Our relief would be short-lived, and we knew it. But we’d earned the right to enjoy this little snippet of time. We’d fought hard for it.
“Is everyone okay?” Lumi asked, squeezing pink water from the edges of her sleeves.
“Yeah, I think so,” I said, one arm wrapped around Eva’s waspy waist. I’d caught a glimpse of Raphael and Amelia kissing, but, much like everyone else, I’d kept my mouth shut about it. They deserved that moment. Frankly, I’d thought it would take Raphael longer to crack the shy nut that was Amelia, but she’d really come into her own during these missions. Fighting the Hermessi had brought out a side of her she probably hadn’t even known she had. “Fallon, buddy, how are you?”
“All things considered? Just glad to be alive.” He sighed and gave Acantha and Nethissis a faint smile. “Thank you both.”
“Boy, you are lucky Brendel didn’t eat you up,” Eva said to him. “How was she able to take you over like that?”
“The same way Kabbah could,” Riza replied, reminding us of our encounter with Nevertide’s Earth Hermessi, who was as old as Brendel herself. “He resonates with them on a level similar to that of the cultists, if not deeper, even.”
“That might make me a liability, going forward,” Fallon said, his brow furrowed.
Lumi walked up to him, placing her hands on his strong shoulders. “As long as you’re with us, we won’t let anything happen to you,” she said. Looking at us, she exhaled sharply. “The only reason we were able to escape the Hermessi down there was thanks to Amelia’s quick thinking in opening up another destination. We need to be better prepared next time. Their attacks are getting more vicious and brazen, now that they know what we’re after.”
“What was that light spell you gals pulled to distract the Hermessi?” Herakles asked.
“The Word helped us,” Acantha replied. “It spoke to all three of us at once. It whispered the chant, and we merely repeated it.”
I sighed deeply, feeling Eva’s heart beating close to mine. “I wonder why the Word can’t stop the Hermessi, given that it’s a cosmic power, much like Death.”
“They probably have different abilities and limitations,” Lumi suggested. “Either way, it doesn’t really matter right now. We should focus on what we can do, and that is finding Thieron.”
“We should get out of here, though,” Raphael replied. He glanced at me. “Think your parents might put us up for a couple of hours while we regroup? Persea is obviously compromised, and surely the Hermessi must’ve figured out where the second opening would lead.”
“You’re right,” I said. “They’ll be down here soon, one way or another.”
“Can I just take everyone to Ash and Ruby, then?” Riza asked. “Taeral needs a break from all the teleporting, at least for a while.”
We agreed and linked hands. A moment later, we were in my parents’ throne room. My mother gasped, dropping the cup of blood she’d been sipping from. My father jumped to his feet, eyes wide. A smile stretched across his face. “Varga! You’re back!” he said and hurried toward me.
I didn’t even get to open my mouth before he caught me in a tight hug and held me close. “Good to see you, too, Dad,” I croaked. His embrace was tighter than expected.
“Honey, what are you all doing here?” Mom asked, eyeing us all carefully. Her concern didn’t stop her from coming over to hug me on top of Dad’s arms, though. I felt her soft kiss on my temple, and for a second, I thought I might as well kick back and spend a week or two here, with my parents—until reality dragged me back.
“We had some issues getting to Persea,” Taeral said.
Mom frowned. “I heard the updates about you and Death. At least you walked away with something, right?”
We were all inclined to agree. It was certainly a step forward—a shaky one, but forward, nonetheless.
“The Hermessi came after us,” I said and proceeded to tell her about our escape to Nevertide. Mom noticed the way Eva and I were practically inseparable. A faint smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, but she patiently listened to my account of the most recent events. “Amelia thought about Nevertide, and a pink water tunnel opened up. It brought us here.”
“You’re safe, and that’s all that matters,” Dad replied. “What do you need from us? How can we help?”
“We need to find another meeting spot with the GASP leadership.” I sighed.
“Maybe we should head back to The Shade. It’s infinitely safer than the Supernatural Dimension or the In-Between. At least, the Hermessi there are still friendly, if I remember Harper’s story right,” Raphael said.
Mom nodded. “It’s a good idea. My mom and dad are headed back there as we speak. Derek and Sofia are about to have a council meeting about the Hermessi’s influence and your mission progress.”
“We were going to meet with Rose and Caleb, Draven and Serena, and Field and Aida on Persea,” Amelia replied. “We might as well let them know that we’re jumping dimensions instead and going to The Shade.”
“Sounds like—” Mom was interrupted by a startling earthquake, followed by a series of thundering booms that rumbled through the palace.
We all froze, glancing at one another, as the ground shook beneath our feet. Glasses clinked on a table nearby. The ceiling lights clanged, swinging left and right. Cracks burst through the stone walls and traveled upward in an uneven pattern.
“What the hell is going on?” Taeral asked, his voice trembling.
