There was no word for the powerful emotion that speared her. Shock. Sorrow. Agony. Rage. Nothing could describe it. But there was another emotion that followed, not quite as strong, but just as moving. She wanted blood.
"Oh, Axel..." She pulled him close, unable to say anything else under the force of the emotions. She clenched her hands into fists against his back, hoping to stop the new tremble that shook them, a tremble of anger.
What she wouldn't give to see Apollo and Artemis right now; her bloodlust now eclipsed any sorrow and depression she'd ever suffered, shattered the fears she'd had to bear for so long. All she wanted now was to land at least one good blow on each of them, even if it meant her death.
Axel clenched his eyes shut and pulled her closer, a silent sob of relief that she wasn't throwing him away shaking his body as he held her.
Countless thoughts and ideas ran through her mind, not the least of which was finding someone who would be willing to let her kill herself and still bring her back. Axel was in no state to even consider, and Gemina had already made her position on the subject clear. The only people left who would understand her were Acheron, Tory, and Simi.
Simi was out of the question; as much as Sinsa loved the girl... well, the demon, she didn't trust Sim to stay with it long enough to bring her back.
Acheron might be an option, but from what she knew of the man, he wouldn't approve of the idea in the least.
That left Tory. As a woman, she would be most likely to understand her feelings anyway, and even if she didn't have the ability to bring her back herself, she'd know how to figure it out. If necessary, she might even be able to talk Acheron into helping.
But that's a last resort, Sinsa thought. She wouldn't try something with such a limited guarantee, especially when Gemina had warned her against it.
So what other options were there? She could try summoning them-was it even possible to summon gods like that?-or she could find someone to take her to them.
Sinsa ran through several other possibilities while she held Axel, trying to comfort him as he had her. Each one was dismissed in some way or another, except one: finding a god or goddess, or someone more powerful, who had a grudge against the sibling deities and pleading for their help.
It was certainly a better option than committing suicide on the off-chance that she could be brought back to life. And that one had a definite starting place. Acheron.
"Are you hungry?" she asked gently, rubbing Axel's back. "I'll make you some breakfast if you like... I know I always enjoyed a home-cooked meal when I was upset."
Axel shook his head. "I don't eat regular food." He explained. "I only get any sort of nutrition to survive by drinking blood. Food won't do anything for me." He loosened his hold as he slowly sat back against the headboard of the bed while he closed his eyes and worked on slowing his breathing. "There should be a few blood packs in the fridge in the bottom drawer."
Sinsa hesitated; she didn't really want to leave him alone right now. There was an alternate option.
Instead of standing, she shifted closer, pulling her hair to one side and tilting her head to bare her neck.
"Drink mine," she offered.
His liquid silver eyes opened to meet her dark green. "You sure?" He asked even as he felt his fangs lengthening in his mouth.
She nodded without hesitation, closing her emerald eyes and taking a breath. With a barely noticeable prick, she felt his fangs slide into her neck, cool needles against her flesh despite the wet warmth of his tongue against her skin. She shivered, but it wasn't in fear. It was delight.
Then a warm feeling started to flood her body. She braced her hands against his stomach more for support as a low moan spilled from her lips. Her cheeks starting to turn a rose pink.
Axel felt her body react to the pleasure of his bite and gently started to suck on the wound, occasionally running his tongue over her skin which caused her to shiver and moan louder. After a few more moments, he slid his fangs out to her neck and ran his tongue over the wound to heal it closed.
"Y-you did that on purpose, didn't you?" she asked, giving him a mock glare as she sat back and absently ran her hand over the spot on her neck.
Great, now she was all hot and bothered and the only guy around would probably see it as a pity fuck so soon after sharing his secret. If he didn't just freak.
He shook his head. "Unfortunately, that effect is something I can't control." He brushed her hair out of her face and placed a soft kiss on her temple. "Though I will admit, you taste good."
A warm blush ran through her, and she bit her lip, wondering if that would really be a good idea; he was a god, after all.
Thankfully, Gemina saved her from a decision by sending her thoughts to Axel and letting him know she was coming in, whether or not he liked it. Almost immediately, she appeared in the room.
"Hey!" she grinned. "It worked! Still new to this teleporting thing; I was worried I'd end up in China or something..." Then she seemed to realize Axel and Sinsa were in the same bed, the former shirtless. She smirked. "Oh my bad; did I interrupt something?"
"Gem!" Sinsa protested, flushing horribly and scooting away from Axel.
"What? I'm not the one in bed with him."
Axel rolled his eyes. "Did you need something Gem?"
Gem just seemed to stare at him for a few seconds till he raised a brow. "I'm not blind you know, they're just naturally this color."
"Oh... It's... Pretty," she noted. "Unnerving, but pretty."
"Gem, purpose?" Sinsa prompted.
"Oh right!" Gemina beamed. "Do you need her today, Ax? I wanna spend the day reestablishing our sister-bond."
"Ah, I have something I need to do this afternoon," Sinsa said quickly. The sooner she talked to Acheron, the better.
"Okay," Gemina said amiably. "Then can I steal her just for the morning?"
Axel shrugged. "I don't see why not. Just please stay in town where I can get to you easier if something happens."
"Okay!" With that Gemina grabbed her sister's hand and ran out the door.
Axel let out a sigh as he sat back against the head board again.
Sinsa didn't even have time to register Gemina's hand on her wrist before they were running down the street, dodging through the crowd.
"Eh? Gem, wait!" she protested. "I need to change!"
"No problem, Sin," Gemina grinned, tugging her into a side-street and snapping her fingers. Instantly, Sinsa's rumpled sundress changed into fitted gray jeans and a slim plum sweater. Her hair felt odd, and when she reached up to feel it, she discovered it had been pulled back in a half-ponytail, tied with a long silky ribbon.
"Your make-up's fixed too," Gemina winked. "Perfect for a day of window shopping and gossiping!"
"Wai- what about Demetrius?"
"Ah, he had things to do," she shrugged. "It was a one-night-stand, anyway. Come on!" Sinsa had to admit, however crazy her sister was, it was definitely good to have her back.
Axel decided to take a shower. So he got up and headed into his bathroom. What he wasn't expecting was a damn toy snake to be in the shower. His eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "So they want to start this up again?" He picked it up and easily sensed Emily's magic on it. "Then let the games begin." He smirked before he left the bathroom to prepare for war.
By lunch, the girls were thoroughly exhausted from scouring the town. They took a table at an outdoor cafe and ordered burgers, though Gemina tasted hers and decided she wasn't interested.
"I'm pretty sure only blood will satisfy me now," she noted, sliding her food over to Sinsa, who gladly ate both. "So what are you doing this afternoon?"
"Ah, just a business meeting," Sinsa shrugged. "Nothing major; I just need to do it as soon as I can."
"Gotcha." Gemina sighed in content and leaned back in her chair. "It's so nice to be out in the sun again. Daimons burn to cinders in sunlight, so they couldn't go out during the day, and I had to stay with them, so it's been a while since I last saw the sun." She tilted her head back and drank in the rays gleefully, not noticing Sinsa's expression turn sour. The sun was Apollo's domain, and even thinking about the god made her blood boil.
Abruptly, she stomped to her feet.
"Sorry, gotta go," she said quickly, grabbing her purse and heading inside to pay.
"Wha- Wait, Sin!" Too late; Sinsa was already out of sight. Gemina huffed and sat back down. "Flighty as ever, Maxie..."
Sinsa arrived at the Parthenopaeus household within an hour, opting to walk instead of taking a bus so she could clear her head and calm down. Tory answered the door and greeted her warmly.
"What can I do for you, sweetie?" she asked, gesturing for Sinsa to come in.
"Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to Ash," Sinsa answered, entering but staying in the entryway.
"Oh, Ash is... busy at the moment," Tory said evasively. "You can wait here if you like, or leave a message with me."
"No, I need to talk to him in person," Sinsa said, shaking her head. "And soon." She bit her lip, hesitating, and then pushed herself to continue, blurting it all out at once. "I know about the Dark-Hunters, and the Daimons. I know Ash and Axel are gods, and I need Ash's help with something."
Tory froze in shock for a few moments before she sighed, but relaxed. "Come on in. I'll call him here." After Sinsa entered, she closed the door and sent a thought to Ash.
Sinsa's here and says she needs to talk to you about something. And she knows. Tory knew her husband would understand what she meant. He almost immediately flashed into the room.
"Ash!" Sinsa felt relieved, but almost immediately it turned to anxiety.
"What is it?" Acheron asked, frowning. He could see her worry, but with her so close to Simi, he couldn't tell anything else.
"Er, it's about Axel..." She hesitated, remembering that at some point Acheron had loved Artemis enough to have a child with her. Did he still love her, or care for her in any way? It would make her request increasingly difficult to ask if that was the case. So, start with the worst. "Um... Tsoulos..."
Immediately, the room temperature seemed to drop ten degrees and Acheron's expression darkened.
"How do you know that word?" he snarled. Sinsa flinched away, stumbling back against the wall as fear consumed her. Bad choice! Even Tory cringed and stepped away from him.
"I-it was A-Axel..." Sinsa stammered, shaking. "H-he... He was one..." Just as quickly as it had come, the threatening atmosphere dispelled and Acheron stared at her, stunned.
"...What?" he breathed, horrified.
"H-he told me was a tsoulos..." Sinsa repeated, still shivering. The darkness returned to his expression, but this time she could see it wasn't directed at her. Didn't stop her from swallowing hard against the lump of terror in her throat.
"Who bound him?" Acheron demanded, his voice low and thunderous.
"...Ah..." Sinsa almost couldn't form the words. "F-first, I need a f-favour..." He eyed her for a long moment, as though deciding whether to just rip it from her mind.
"...What favour?"
"I... I want a chance at them," she managed, clenching her fists. It was more to give herself courage than anything else, but it gave her a more confident look, too. "I can't do much of anything against gods myself, which means I need a god backing me." Acheron's gaze narrowed; he had a sneaking suspicion now who was responsible, and rage boiled inside him for it.
"Fine." Sinsa swallowed; it was now or never.
"Apollo... And Artemis."
Just out of nowhere, Miss Emily popped up and shoved a small rectangular package into Sinsa's arms. "Trust me, you'll need those." She grinned. "And don't worry, they're magically enhanced to send a god through a few brick walls and not hurt your hands. Have fun!" Then she flashed away.
Sinsa blinked in confusion. "That... was odd." She looked down at the package in her arms and sighed before opening it. Inside was a pair of white leather gloves with plates of metal on the back of the hand and up to the second knuckle on each of the fingers, so if one were to clench their hand with it on, they wouldn't touch the metal. On top of them was a note.
Be careful with them. They give quite a nasty shock.
~Em
Acheron sighed, exasperated. "Emily..." He promised her they'd be talking later about her eavesdropping and then flashed Sinsa and himself to Olympus.
"Put them on," he ordered, gesturing to the gloves. "And don't speak to anyone else; I can easily take on all the gods here, but I'd rather avoid an inter-pantheon incident." Sinsa filed the new word away to ask Axel about later, and quickly obeyed, slipping the gloves on carefully. Almost before she finished, he flashed them to Artemis' temple. As much as she wanted to admire the stunning building and beautiful gardens, she was too angry to focus on anything but the tall, gorgeous redhead lounging on a white settee. Pretty women were tending to her, but the moment they saw Acheron, and the dark threat in his eyes, they squealed in terror. The redhead winced and flicked a hand, making all but one vanish.
"Katra..." Acheron began.
"Just don't kill her, please," the woman said calmly. Then she vanished as well.
"What do you want now, Acheron?" the redhead asked, sounding bored and annoyed.
"Your head on a platter, Artie," he growled. "Kamali." That word was enough to bring the redheaded goddess to her feet, boredom changing to wariness.
"...What about him?" she prompted.
"You know what," he snapped. "This is revenge." Artemis's gaze narrowed.
"You swore not to use your powers here, Acheron," she warned, though there was a touch of fear in her voice.
"I'm not going to," he said, almost gleefully. "I'm just backing the person taking my revenge for me." Artemis frowned, until Acheron shifted to the side, out of Sinsa's way. The goddess turned as red as her hair.
"How dare you bring a human to Olympus!" she shrieked. Acheron didn't reply, glancing at Sinsa, who shook with adrenaline. She was terrified, but furious. This woman... This bitch had made Axel suffer. Before Artemis could react, Sinsa lunged forward, bellowing in rage, and slammed her gloved fist into the goddess' cheek, making her topple over the settee.
Emily silently flashed in next to Ash and held a hand up before he could say anything. "You can yell at me later. But just FYI, she's gonna be too tried after killing PMS Queen to take on sunny boy. I know cause I just got a vision on it. So you get him." Then she smirked wickedly. "Apollo's the one you really want anyway, he had his claws in him the most since Artie occasionally got you." She turned to watch how Sinsa was doing and whistled. "Remind me not to piss her off in the future."
Acheron huffed a quiet chuckle, the corners of his mouth turning upward. "Imagine what she could do if she and Kamali bonded." Emily grinned.
"Now that would be a sight to see."
Sinsa stepped back, panting. Artemis groaned and moved to get up again. Digging into the last reserves of energy and fury, Sinsa drew her leg back and kicked the goddess as hard as she could, sending her sprawling again. The redhead didn't dare retaliate; she couldn't chance Acheron making his presence on Olympus known. This time she stayed down, plotting her revenge for when Acheron wasn't around to protect the little human bitch.
Exhausted, Sinsa stumbled back to Acheron's side and promptly passed out.
Emily crouched down and picked up Sinsa. "I'll take her back to Ax's." Then she pinned the redheaded bitch with a lethal glare that promised her eternal demise. "You try touching her, I'll personally laugh when Kamali takes your head!" With that she disappeared with her new found friend in her arms.
Horrible images filled Sinsa's dreams. Dungeons, garishly decorated rooms, cells that were more like cages... Even worse were the sounds; groans of long-lasting pain, a woman's scream of agony that was cut short by a gurgling splutter, a man's voice pleading for reprieve. The last sent icy tendrils down her spine; it sounded like Axel. She ran, trying to find him, calling out for him, but was only answered with cries of pain and hopeless begging. Just when she thought she'd found him, the dark-haired man she'd seen with Daimons in her dreams the night before suddenly appeared in front of her.
"Going somewhere, Sinsabaugh?" he purred cruelly. "You're mine. And when I have you, the first thing you'll do... is kill Kamali Parthenopaeus!"
"NO!" Sinsa screamed, bolting upright.
Emily let out a yell and fell flat on her ass from where she had been sitting on the side of the bed she laid Sinsa on. "Don't scare me like that!" She put a hand to her heart to try to slow the harsh beating. "Bloody hell, you scared the crap out of me." Her British accent was more pronounced now.
"Sorry..." Sinsa said softly in a whisper. She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered.
"I'm sorry it's cold in here, but it's better than the blazing heat outside." Emily sat down next to her and pulled out what looked like an iPad. "Wanna watch Apollo get his ass handed to him?" She offered as she switched it on to show Acheron just come marching out of Artemis' temple and start for Apollo's which was actually right next to it.
Sinsa watched curiously as the door to the temple slammed open.
A couple of women screamed and either ran for cover or just plain vanished; Apollo began to protest, furious, but was cut off as Acheron, livid, threw him against the wall with out touching him. A blast came from Apollo that struck Acheron squarely on the shoulder, but he didn't even flinch under the attack, absorbing it instantly. Apollo cursed and threatened him, but Acheron didn't reply, shifting to his god form instead, which made Sinsa's jaw drop. The Atlantean god hadn't moved an inch from the doorway of Apollo's temple, but the Greek slammed to the ground. As he tried to stand, a shock of power rippled through the ground from where Acheron stood, ruffling his clothes too. The shockwave knocked Apollo off his feet.
For a while, that's all that happened; Acheron stayed rooted in place, and Apollo was batted back and forth by his power like a cat playing with a ball of yarn. Finally, both were still, the Greek sun god huffing and groaning on the ground.
"...You're not even worth the time it takes to crush you," Acheron rumbled, striding across the room to stand over him. Lifting his boot, he pressed it against Apollo's neck. "If I ever see or hear of you near my son again, Zeus will have to find a new sun god." He pressed harder, making the Greek god wheeze for air. "Understood?" Unable to speak, Apollo managed a small nod. Acheron stepped back, and vanished.