I'm back. Here's the long awaited chapter. Enjoy.
Chapter Twelve
When Endy awoke, it was dawn and he was on his yacht instead of Atlantis. He pushed back the heavy brocade blankets covering him and absently reached for his robe. His hand brushed across something soft and silky. Endy turned quickly and found his angel. In her arms, their son was held tightly.
The picture the two of them made warmed his heart but quickly brought back the thought of their two other children who were most likely on the ship.
"They are in galley," Serena mumbled in her sleep.
Endy smiled at her. "And where are you, my love?" he whispered as he bent to kiss her.
"My spirit is on Mars, continuing my training with King Ares, but my body is here." She smacked her lips. "I'll talk to you when my body fully awakens."
Now that was different, he thought. Endy lightly brushed his lips over hers and then stopped a moment to study her face. She was truly beautiful but more so now, in a distinctively alien way. With a slight glow to it, her pale skin was luminous. Her hair was much longer, softer too, like a feather and just as weightless. His light breathing caused her locks to float up. When the sun struck her pale hair, it was infused with light and became iridescent. The angles of her face were sharper, kittenish. Yet, she was ethereal.
"So, this is what an angel looks like when she transcends her human form?" He asked softly.
She opened her eyes and for a moment they just stared at each other, losing themselves in each other and finding that part which made them one. Endy brought his right hand up and tenderly stroked her face with his forefinger.
"Marry me, Serenity," he said softly.
She smiled slightly, "Always, Endymion."
He kissed her again. This time, he poured in all his love and passion for her, transcending time and all the dimensions. For her, he lived and would die a thousand times and more. For her, he decided to follow his first path and restore his kingdom. For her, he gave up his humanity and accepted his place as Helios' heir. And it was for her that he would live and continue to do more.
"Je t'amour, toujour tu." She whispered. "Always."
Nodding, Endy looked into her eyes and smiled. "Ditto," he kissed the tip of her nose and then sat up. "I don't want to spend another day without you, Serena."
She reached out and took his hand. "Patience, Endy. This will all be over soon and then we can be together, for all eternity."
He raised her hand to his lips and closed his eyes. "It seems as if I have been waiting an eternity for us to finally be together."
"Then what are a few more meaningless weeks?" She giggled when he bit her knuckles. "Endy…"
"I know, I know," he let her go but swooped in for another quick kiss. "Shall I have something sent up?"
"No," she yawned, "I will be leaving shortly. But take Darien, it is time for him to wake up."
This was not good.
Eros looked at the two Senshi sitting across from her. With a great sigh, she leaned forward and rested her elbows on her thighs, one hand falling limply between her knees and the other supporting her head.
"Tell me again, Patricia—I mean Dirae, what the—how did Beryl's mother Nephrenia…" She still could not bring herself to believe it, much less say it. "Bright Goddess, Beryl's mother is still alive?"
"And from the way it sounds, she's working for the Dark One," Kore said thoughtfully. She looked at Pluto, her dark eyes questioning. "But you are Scathach?"
Pluto nodded.
"That, I can accept and believe." Eros said. "But Beryl's mother? Where the hell did she come from and why the hell is she here now?"
"She was before your time, Eros," Dirae said with a slight smile. "She was also an internal problem for Terra. My queen, Gaia, concealed many of what she considered insignificant problems from the solar system when she chose to open her world to the Silver Alliance."
"Alright, I can understand that, no ruler would expose her nation's faults, but what I want to know is what does she want from you?" Eros demanded. She did not like surprises and this was a big one.
"My guess is that Nephrenia was sent to tempt me." Dirae said with a slight smile.
Kore frowned. "Were you tempted?"
She shook her head. "Not in the slightest. Nephrenia betrayed our Queen and tried to overthrow the throne. All affection I had for Nephrenia died the day she attacked Queen Gaia. But that will not stop Chaos from coming to me. If Ananke is really dead, the Dark One has lost her ability to move through time and dimensions. She will not stop until she has me in her power."
Kore and Eros exchanged a look. Eros sat back and groaned. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, and fuck." She grumbled.
"Are you done?" Kore asked coolly.
Eros glared at her. "I have yet to begin," she ground out. "All we've managed to accomplish so far is the liberation of Charon. Xanthe and Apollo are fighting skirmishes on the borders; these so-called Sins are slipping into the heart of the Solar System and attacking Endymion and Terra; and Cosmos is out of the picture until her training is over. Now, Beryl's mother is up and hassling my Senshi."
"It could be worse," Kore said nonchalantly.
Eros looked at her strangely and then she laughed, "You are absolutely right, Kore. It could be worse. Ananke could still be alive and running through time, trying to kidnap the rest of Serenity's children." The tension seeped out of her shoulders just a bit and she relaxed somewhat. "So what can you tell us about this Nephrenia?" Eros asked.
Dirae sat back in her chair and folded her hands in her lap. "Nephrenia was a lesser member of Tuatha De Danaan, she was a distant cousin of Queen Medb but Nephrenia's family was without significant political power or connections other than Medb."
"She was a nobody," Eros said.
Dirae nodded, "She was sent to Asgard when she was a girl. I was there myself, training with the Valkyries. She and I met there and became friends."
"Were you close?"
"As close as sisters," she told them, "We became blood sisters, very much like Serenity and Athena Diana."
Kore pursed her lips in thought, "So she is a warrior?"
"She had some training," Dirae told them. "However, Nephrenia was not able to prove her skills and gain a rank within the Order. Freyja ended up sending Nephrenia back to the Isles and Medb. The next time I saw Nephrenia, she had gone to court in Atlantis and served as one of Gaia's ladies-in-waiting. She looked happy there, she was one of the most sought after women in court because of her beauty, charm, and grace. I never once thought she was conspiring with the Darkness to take Gaia's throne."
"She had conspiring against your Queen for a long time?"
"Since she had been at court if not longer," Dirae said darkly. "I think she, like many others, saw the Queen as weak. Queen Gaia was a free spirit, very innocent and childlike in so many ways. It's difficult to describe her without saying that my Queen had a great capacity to love everyone and everything."
"The trait of the Mother Goddess," Kore said with a frown.
"For many in court, those things were seen as weaknesses, not ideal traits in a ruler, especially the ruler of an entire planet." Dirae looked away, "I respected Queen Gaia. When I came to Atlantis after leaving Culann, she met with me personally and we talked about Culann, the people there. She wanted to know if I had any ideas about how to improve the quality of life there, who the elders were in my tribe—We did not talk about war or strategies. That day I learned whom my Queen was and I was proud to serve that woman. If you knew Queen Gaia, she inspired loyalty, but then it wasn't true for everyone as we found out."
"I take it you all had the same life-span of the planets in the solar system?" Eros asked.
Dirae nodded.
"Why was Nephrenia banished?" Kore asked.
"She tried to take over Terra."
Eros whistled. "That's a good reason."
"But why didn't Gaia just kill the traitor?" Kore demanded. "Terran Law supported the execution of rebels who tried to over throw the Monarchy. Why didn't Gaia just kill her?"
"When Nephrenia was finally captured, she was seven months pregnant," Dirae told them. "Queen Gaia could not bring herself to kill an expectant mother."
"Then she should have done it once the baby was born," Eros snorted.
Dirae shook her head. "You did not know my Queen, for if you had, you never would have made that statement." Her plum colored eyes darken as she remembered the woman who had been both her friend and Queen. "Everyone knew Gaia wasn't a warrior, much less a killer. She hated violence, and at that time, you must remember that Gaia herself had just become a mother. It broke her heart to have banished Nephrenia and Prince Helios was of the same mind. Lord Odin wanted Nephrenia's head removed from her shoulders but the Queen could not live knowing she had killed an innocent babe's mother."
"I can see Beryl as many things," Eros said coldly, "Innocent is not one of them."
Kore nodded. "I met your Queen just once," she said to Dirae, "I felt that she had a very good heart. She was very open and smiled a great deal, leaving me in a bit of wonder. How could someone so sweet and gentle rule a planet as savage and harsh as Terra?"
"We were never savages, Persephone." Dirae said stiffly, "For many, it was a difficult transition from Daghda Belenus' rule to that of his youngest daughter. Nearly all of Terra had assumed that Lord Odin would rule Terra or Hercules or Prince Lugh. From what the elders used to say, it was a shock that he chose Gaia over all his older, wiser, and stronger children."
"Well she made up for all her weaknesses when she had Endymion," Kore stated. "He was savage, rude and arrogant to a fault."
"Still is," Eros muttered.
"He looked down upon everyone," Kore went on. "He came to my world and treated me as if I had the mind of a child."
Trying not to laugh, Dirae smiled and said, "That must have been Endymion's first intergalactic tour."
Kore snorted, "The rotten little bastard. I was older than he was, too. I had been Queen since I was a week old and an Eternal Senshi serving under Eros and her mother for years. Then I have this arrogant little piece of crap walk up to me and address the captain of the guards before speaking to me."
"That's why you banned the terrans from Saturn?" Eros asked quickly.
Kore nodded, "I was also the one who led the movement to keep Princess Serenity from marrying that jerk. I was pulling every unattached nobleman from my planet and moons out of the woodwork and sending them to Silver Millennium in droves. Every two days I had someone before Queen Serenity as a possible choice for the Princess."
"And she chose the arrogant little piece of crap anyway," Dirae laughed.
"You would not be laughing if Endymion had insulted you." Kore dropped back into her chair and sulked. "I had forgotten about that."
"Does Serenity know?" Eros asked her.
"I don't know," Kore told her, "Nor do I care. I was going to tear that terran Prince down and put him in his place. I did not care who knew it and I still don't."
"That's good to know. I want to be there when Sere decides to kill you for the hell you put her through." Eros chuckled. "I was there at the Silver Millennium, I saw how harried Princess Serenity was. She was under the impression you were trying to drive her mad by sending all those suitors to Court."
Kore shrugged, "She was just an unfortunate victim in my dislike of Prince Endymion."
Dirae raised a hand to her mouth to hold back her laughter.
"Now that we have gotten that out of the way—And Kore has vented, I think we need to plan for the Dark One's next move against you, Pat." Eros asked, "Is there anything in your past that we need to know about? Something that Nephrenia can take to the Dark One which they could use against you?"
The Guardian of Time nodded once. "I have an idea of what the Dark One will attempt to seduce me with," she said coldly.
"And what's that?" Kore asked.
"My soulmate," was the flat reply.
"That's bad," Kore said. She looked at Eros worriedly. "Since a majority of our powers are bound within our hearts and our hearts control our crystals, anything that would cause you to suffer is a true danger to you and all of us."
Eros nodded. She looked back at Dirae, her expression unreadable. "Pat, do you have any idea of who he is?"
She nodded. "I do, a version of him is our enemy," she said. "In our past he was Balder, Lord Odin and Lady Frigg's son." She looked away slightly.
"I remember Kunzite telling me of him," Eros said thoughtfully. She frowned, "Wasn't he married?"
Dirae blushed but she met Eros gaze. "He was."
"And you and he…?" She let the question trail off.
The former commander of the terran forces nodded. "We loved each other," she said plainly. "We never wanted to hurt Nanna and Balder only betrayed her once throughout their marriage."
"Once is all you need," Kore told her.
Dirae said nothing.
Eros was frowning. "You'd better tell us the rest of your story. If these bastards have knowledge of your past and know about Valder—"
"Balder," Kore corrected.
"Whatever," Eros said dismissively. Her shoulders were tensing once more, "I want to know everything, Patricia, and you best not leave anything out."
********
The exploration trip to Atlantis continued with Endy back among them. It had been hard for him to leave his yacht while Serena was still there, but he did so. After much debate and threats from his beloved, Elios had joined their little group.
Serena had altered the Sun Senshi's appearance slightly. With a wave of her right hand, Elios' hair was changed to black and his pale gray eyes to a dusty light blue. He said he now looked like his brothers but he had an uncanny resemblance to Endy, putting fear in Terran who wandered off while mumbling and saying strange prayers. Since he joined them, Elios kept close to Endy as the group cut its way through the palace proper.
To his friends and others, Endy seemed fine as if he had not been affected at all by the curse that was laid upon him, but Kris and Terran were worried. Endy never fainted, he had the kind of will power that would keep him conscious while leading a charge halfway dead. When Kris saw his brother collapse in the arms of the blonde kid, he felt true fear for the first time in his life.
He had never thought of it before, of Endy being seriously injured in this lifetime or worse. Endy was stronger than in the past, he was one with his crystal and connected to their planet and Elysium… But the enemy had gotten to him and would have killed him because they failed to protect him. Endy assured everyone that he was not upset with them; he shouldered the blame and was angry with himself for allowing the enemy to catch him off guard and helpless. He would not accept that he had been almost dead and weakened by Zirconia when Cosmos reached him and the twins. It pissed him off to know that his children had saved him, children who had not even been born yet and who would be only newborns in Darien's time.
Princess Serenity had healed Endy and it put her on the brink, but she did not want Endy to know or he would have never allowed her to leave Terra in her weakened state.
Artemis had sent Umino to bring Darien back to the mansion and King Ares sent Deimos to assist in protecting him. Gigi, whose real name was Serenity Gaia Georgianna, was not what anyone expected Princess Serenity's daughter to be. She was outspoken, arrogant to a fault and rude. Kris had found her offensive and she was. She was Endy in a skirt. She derided her twin brother constantly, cutting into him any chance she got. But Elios was an affable sort and seemed lazy to Kris. Possessing the patience of a saint, he was easy spoken and relaxed. He meandered after them, letting Kris carry Endy back to the yacht. The twins were as different from each other as night was from day. Gigi was loud and argumentative; Elios was not. Depending on which parent you were to ask, Elios was christened Halcyon Edward Laurence or Lugh Ian Odin (Queen Gaia's half-brother and Endy's favorite uncle who died before the Fall) Satoshi (just to be different) Shields. He preferred the nickname Helios but, after an intense fight with Emmanuel when he was five, it was shortened to Elios (meaning he lost that fight). All the sons had a name starting with E like Endymion, Emmanuel and Elios. Little Serenity III escaped being called Erin by fighting dirty since she possessed extremely deadly steel tipped roses, which she could pluck from the air and throw with near perfect accuracy for a five-year-old.
They spent an hour listening to Elios tell them his name. As a bonus, they got his life story and assorted anecdotes. Gigi just stated her name and went to bask in the moonlight.
Kris did not know what to make of the two, but he would be glad when this was all over and he could stop learning about his future. Elios could talk. He might be lazy, slow moving and a general waste, but that boy could talk the paint off walls. Kris now knew that he was going to have three children (two daughters and one son), each of their names and who they would be marrying. Jamie learned that he'd have two sons. Troy and Athena were the proud parents of six daughters while Mike was father to a goddess. Elios did not seem to care that he was upsetting the future by telling them this; Kris had a horrible feeling that Elios was not even aware of it. And that thought sent a distinctively unpleasant chill down Kris' spine.
Endy looked at the kid ambling along beside him, just yammering away a mile a minute, and again wondered what had he done to deserve this? Elios just wouldn't shut up. He said it was excitement but he wasn't rambling rapidly, he was just talking; now he was telling Endy about his sixth birthday and how he and Gigi had to share a gift, a pony or something. Their mother did not want either to learn to ride at that age, but their father thought they were at the right age, yadda, yadda, yadda…
"We're here!" Jamie exclaimed excitedly, a tad too excited, but after three hours of listening to Elios, they were all ready to get away from him.
Elios removed his sunglasses and looked up at the walls of the palace. "Welcome home, Father," he said. "Welcome to the Golden Palace."
*******
The gates of the palace were sealed. Endy could sense the magical barriers keeping the gates hidden from all eyes, but it shouldn't have had this effect on him.
Elios had moved off into the shade and was stretched out on his back. "The Silver Millennium seems so far away in this time," he said to no one in particular. "Back home it hangs so heavy in our sky, sometimes it looks as if it's going to just fall into the Terra's atmosphere."
Endy was still poking at the area where the gates were supposed to be. "Does someone have a bottle of liquor or something?" he growled.
Troy pushed the brim of his hat back and wiped at his sweaty face. "Isn't it kind of early for that, Endy?"
"It's not for me, it's for that damned chatterbox back there," Endy said absently. He looked at a particular patch of greenery and frowned. "Greg, come over here and look at this ivy," he called to Troy's assistant. He looked up at the wall; Endy removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Elios, shut the hell up," he snapped irritably. "I can't hear myself think with you running your mouth."
Elios was quiet, but it did not last long. "You know, Father, there are four sets of gates. Each stand in the direction of the winds and supposedly face the four hemispheres and cradles of human civilization."
"I know that," Endy said testily. "We should be at the western gate. Mike, are you positive we followed the exact line going west?"
"I'm positive, Endy," Mike told him. "We came due west from the beach." He tapped the wall thoughtfully. "This magic is very strong and vibrant, almost like it's…"
"Alive," Endy finished for him. He nodded. "I thought I was imagining it but not anymore."
"I don't recognize it." Mike turned away and went to where his people had set up his computer and typed in a command. "It's terran magic."
"It is but it isn't the Hellenic magic used by the former Queen's chief advisors." Jamie told them, "It's more Nordic, I think."
"I don't want guesses, James, I want answers," Endy told them. "Can you or can you not get a positive identification on the magic's origin?"
"It's going to be a few minutes, but by then I will know for certain."
"Do that." Endy turned away from the work crews and his men. He looked out at the forest; he could feel the cleansing effect from his grandmother's temple all over the planet.
"I love the sounds of the sea."
He looked up at the tall, elegant woman. Her long black hair was caught in the breeze and floated about them both like feathers caught in the wind.
She held him close as she walked into the gently rolling surf. He giggled as he clutched at her shoulders. He looked up at his mother and she smiled down at him. "It tickles, doesn't it?" She kissed the tip of his nose.
Young Endymion scrubbed his nose.
Gaia raised her face towards the sun and closed her eyes. The white foam of the sea danced around her legs and brushed the soles of his feet.
"Mama." He laid his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes too. He could feel the earth in her soul; he could feel the breeze in her touch and the wisdom of the ancient trees in her soft voice.
"Endymion?"
He did not turn around but looked back at her over his shoulder. "I am not a child anymore, Mother."
Gaia stopped, "I only want you to be safe, my love."
He turned to her then, his face angry. "I want to marry Serenity."
"No!" Gaia screamed. She wrapped her arms around herself and doubled over as if she was in pain. "I can't let you," she cried, "I will not let you die."
"The future is not written in stone, Mother," he said grimly.
Gaia shook her head stubbornly. "The Senshi of Pluto told Queen Serenity that you and the Lunar Princess would not survive this life. You will die if you marry. Please, Endymion. I can't let you, you are my life, and you are my son. I cannot bear the thought of anything happening to you."
His expression softened. Endymion went to her and knelt before her. "I love her, Mother," he said quietly. "I love her with my whole heart and soul. I can't imagine living the rest of my life without her. Please, Mama, give us your blessing. Please."
With a heartbroken wail, Gaia threw her arms around his neck and cried. "You have my blessing. I pray that the elders will protect you both and may your love survive even through the darkness." She kissed his cheek. "May you both always find your way back to each other."
Endymion hugged his mother. "Thank you, Mama."
"Darien," Georgianna smiled down at the little boy with unruly night black hair dressed in the blue pajamas. "I believe that you will always be my little boy."
Endymion frowned at that. "I have a mother," he said coolly.
She nodded and looked out at the ocean. "I know," she said softly, "But is it okay if I pretend that you are my little boy? Just for a little while?" She smiled down at him.
Endy shrugged his shoulders as best as he could. "I guess that's okay." He hesitated for a moment and then looked at her. "Would it be alright if I called you Mama instead of George?"
She nodded. "I would like that very much, Endymion." He smiled. Georgianna swung him up in her arms and hugged him tight. "I would love to be your Mama."
He returned her hug a hundredfold.
His mother never allowed him to get this close but George was not Caroline. George liked to play in the sand and swim in the ocean. She let Endy play in her studio and even paint when he wanted to. She ate hamburgers and hotdogs and insisted that he be treated like other children. She often said that when his father introduced them, it was love at first sight. For him, it was like coming home, as if he were waiting for the day of his reunion with her. As a child, Endymion did not know that was what he was feeling. But as the years went by and he became older, Endy finally understood and when he learned who his father and stepmother really were, he mourned her as if she had been his real birth mother in this lifetime.
"Endy," Kris' voice brought him out his memories. Endy shook his head and turned to see his brother. "We've got a fix on the magic."
Endy dropped his arms and joined Kris at Mike's workstation. "Well, what does your genii think it is?" he asked. Mike moved back to allow Endy a clear view of his screen. The young King looked at the readings and whistled. "So that's what happened to them?"
Mike nodded, "The thermal scans picked up thirty-four heat signatures."
"And now we know why," Kris said.
Endy looked puzzled. "There were forty Valkyries serving my uncle."
"Apparently, six did not make it to Atlantis before it was sealed." Mike shrugged.
"It is possible that a few died while trying to defend the palace," Kris suggested. "Scathach had her head ripped from her shoulders while trying to protect the Queen and your father. And my mother, Sigrun, she died at the outset of the battle," Kris told them, "She was a Valkyr."
Endy, to his embarrassment, had forgotten. He wasn't the only person to have lost his family and home when Metallia attacked. Endy rotated his shoulders to shake off the gloom that suddenly enveloped him.
"Odin put the Valkyries in the Golden Palace before Atlantis sank." He said briskly. "Why would he have done that?"
"To keep Beryl from possessing them." Kris shrugged.
Endy looked at the people who were working and saw Elios wandering aimlessly around. "Elios?"
"Yes, Father?" The youth called back.
Endy groaned. "Tell me again, why didn't we bring the girl with us?"
"Because he was aggravating Terran and you thought it would be fun to watch Terran suffer," Kris told him.
"It seemed like such a marvelous idea at the time." Endy waved the kid over. Elios ambled over to their little group; a broad grin was plastered on his face. "Kid, are there any Valkyries in your time?"
Elios, with a very serious face, said, "Father, you know I can't tell you about the future. It goes against the Laws of Cronos."
The three men looked at Elios as if he just fallen out of the sky.
"You what?" Kris all but shouted at him.
The now raven-haired youth looked at them completely guileless. "You know, Dirae's rules?" They still had vacant looks.
He was going to strangle that little punk. Endy stood up, his hands reaching for the kid's neck. Kris and Mike reacted quickly. They managed to get Endy to back down but murder was still in the King's eyes.
"You vapid little ditz," Endy shouted. "What the hell do you think you were doing while we were in the forest?"
Elios looked thoughtful for a moment. Then, his light blue eyes lit up. "Oh, that," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I just a let a few things slip out."
"You told us your damn life story," Endy growled.
"Oh, well, I wanted you to know that I really, really want my own horse when I'm six and I don't like training on Neptune, and I did not mean to put that frog in Endy's bed. It was all Manny's idea." Elios said nonchalantly. "You should write down that part about the horse, Father. I would not want you to forget something as important as that."
Endy hung his head in defeat. If having Caroline for a mother wasn't bad enough, he was going to have this flake for a son. "Why couldn't we stop with Darien?" He muttered to himself. "The Gods must hate me."
"The Gods do hate me." Eros turned away from the majestic view of the sun setting over Magellan.
Kore touched Dirae's arm, "Patricia, are you certain?" she asked softly.
Dirae nodded. "He is Baldur reborn."
Eros closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. "Endymion is not going to like this. Damn it, I do not like this." She was close to becoming hysterical. "What was Ananke thinking?"
"How do you think I feel?" Dirae looked at her commander, her dark eyes burning with anger. "Ananke tampered with more than time, she changed his and my fate when she stole him from his proper time and abandoned him in that cruel future world."
"She needed him there," Eros reached up and massaged her drumming temples. "She needed someone who had not been touched by the cleansing as a catalyst for the destruction."
"That's reaching pretty damned far, Eros," Kore told her.
Eros turned to them. "I think I'm looking in the right direction, Persephone," she said coolly. "And I don't like it any more than you do." She walked over to her desk and sat down. "Damnit, why couldn't Ananke just let destiny run its natural course? Why couldn't she just leave everything as it was?"
"She saw her future," Kore said softly, "She saw her place in the Silver Millennium and she could not bear it."
"Then she should have told the Queen." Eros slammed a fist down on her desk. "If she couldn't stand the solitude of being the Guardian of the Underworld and Time, Ananke could have come to either you or myself. We were her leaders, she could have trusted us enough to confide in either one of us." Her voice shook with the raw emotion she felt. "But she did not have to do this. I asked her if she could handle the enormous sacrifice of being at the Gates. I asked her, Kore, I swear on my mother's sword that I did. Bright Goddess, I would have never left her in there if I had known she was that weak."
"Ananke was not weak," Kore said firmly. "She never was, Eros, and don't you dare try to delude yourself into thinking Ananke was. She had a hard life on Pluto, we both knew that when she was sent to join us. Your own mother and Hera were meticulous in reviewing Ananke's life and soul. They even had Eris do a more than thorough psychological evaluation on Ananke before she entered our sanctuary. No one who was to be among our ranks --to stand with our brothers and sisters in arms-- could have gotten in without showing the mental & physical strength, courage and fearlessness necessary to becoming an avatar of an entire planet and race of people. She had what it takes to be one of us. I will not allow you to disrespect yourself or any of us living or dead by saying Ananke was weak." Kore swiped viciously at the tears that had gathered at her eyes. "Listen to me now, Eros. Ananke betrayed us, she did so of her own free will. She chose to abandon the Codes that govern us and ignore the chains of command. Through lies and insubordination, Ananke took it upon herself to destroy and recreate our Kingdom in a manner she saw fit and in the process, she assassinated our Queen and Princess. And in this time, it looks as if Ananke feared terran rule and sought to destroy a member nation of the Silver Alliance. She would have continued to do so until you cut her head off. That's all it ever was, Eros. It was not weakness, it was her lust for power."
Eros released her fist. "I am so angry with myself," she told them. "I feel as if I have let you all down. I should have known."
"We all feel the same way, Eros," Kore smiled sadly, "But it's different for you, because you are our leader. But we don't blame you, the fault belongs solely to Ananke."
"I should have known," Eros said stubbornly. "I used to take great pride in the fact that I knew everything about my Senshi. And now it turns out that I knew nothing."
"That's not true."
"Is it?" she asked, "Look at Lana and Ananke and tell me again that it's not true? I failed you all as well as our Queen and Princess. I was supposed to protect everyone."
"No, we were supposed to protect everyone." Kore told her. "It was and still is our mission. Eros, we will defeat Chaos. We will stand by our Princess when she delivers the final blow. We will pour our magic and hearts, honoring our fallen Kingdom and our Queen. All of our Queens." She touched Dirae's shoulder. "We will save your soulmate and avenge your Queen, Scathach."
Eros nodded. "The Dark One is not going to know what hit it until it's too late." She stood up and stretched. "But now, I have to go to Terra. I need to run over a few things with Artemis and find out what's going on with those twins. I really don't like having things like them sprung on me."
*******
The sun was setting on the island when Endy's team finally located the western gate. Acid was sprayed to clear the ivy from the gates. The doors were sprayed again with a solution that ate through the hinges before they were blown.
The gates collapsed in a pile of lumber and steel. The band of intrepid explorers looked for the first time in eons at the once fabled home of the Gods of the world. Endymion was the first to step through the fallen gates and gaze upon the place of his birth, the home of his parents and the place where the end of his world began.
"Endymion." Kris came to his brother's side.
Endy's hands were clenched into fists. He looked very intent, his brows drawn down, violet eyes narrowed.
"Endy," Kris snapped. Endy blinked, his eyes refocusing to look at his brother. "What the hell got into you?"
Endy shook his head slightly. "I was just remembering the last time I saw the courtyard. I should have been the one to slit that bitch's throat."
Kris understood. Every night since that battle, he had dreamed of ending Beryl's life to avenge his family, his Prince and Queen.
"Endy," Jamie called, "You want to call it a day and make camp out here?"
"No," he called back. "Tonight, we stay in my palace."
Gigi looked up from the chessboard when Artemis and Umino entered the room. Darien had used her distraction to capture her knight.
"Your turn," he said proudly.
Gigi glanced at the board and made a face. The little runt had beaten her again. "You won, Endymion," she said coldly.
Darien stuck his tongue out at her. She did the same and crossed her eyes
"Children," Artemis scolded, "I know your parents have taught you better manners than what you are now exhibiting."
"We are just having fun, Artie," Gigi smiled at him. "By the way, have you heard from our father or my idiot brother?"
"Troy just sent word that the team has entered the palace," he told her. "It's livable, but for security reasons, they will be staying on the ground floor."
Gigi nodded. "Have they killed Elios yet?"
Umino's lips curved slightly. Artemis had to fight hard not to laugh himself. From Troy's transmission, all of Endymion's guardians knew what their lives were going to be like, from how long each had been married to number of children each were to have. Things almost turned ugly when Endy had asked the addled-brained Prince a direct question.
Artemis shook his head. "No, Elios has been the soul of civility. The men seemed to enjoy his company."
Gigi laughed, "Artemis, don't try to lie to me. I am Elios' twin and I still want to kill him. He never shuts up, he won't move faster than a crawl and he's lazy. Our father was damned happy to send Elios off to school but then he came home two days later." She sighed. "Even the Priests of Elysium can't stand him."
"Maybe he's just misunderstood." Umino said.
One of Gigi's ebony brows went up, "Yeah and I'm the Queen of Mars," she said sardonically. Darien's stomach grumbled loudly and Gigi's echoed it. "Oh hell, I'm starving. What's to eat?"
Artemis paled, "I hope the kitchen staff was warned and they prepared enough for the both of them."
"I don't think there's enough food in the Western Hemisphere to feed those two."
"Well if things get desperate, we could always set them loose on the farm." Artemis smiled, "I don't think either of them would object to having their meal fresh off the hoof."
Deimos' gaze jumped from her book to Artemis. She stared at him as if he were mad. Umino could not help but laugh. He could see the two young royals doing just that.
"Let's just hope they spray it off first," he chuckled.
*******
It was a fine line between the light and darkness. But eventually one would have to surrender to the other and the victor would dominate all.
The Accursed One drew her hand away from the dimmed light and withdrew further into the shadows. Even with a few particles of light, she could feel the call of her enemy. Cosmos.
Even thinking her name caused Chaos pain.
This was not how it was to have been. She should have resided in a host until Cosmos faced that host in battle. Then she would have abandoned that host, splitting her essence with one part going into the star seed of Helios' heir and the other into Cosmos. But that was not how it happened.
"Worthless Senshi," she hissed. The cadence of her imperfect voice reflected off the walls. "Useless world. I know you hear me, mine enemy, my mother. I will have all that should be mine. This star system will quake and tremble with fear as I walk through the cursed Elysium and face your pitiful Gods. And you will not stop me."
Cosmos opened her eyes and stared into the sacred Flames of Ares. This could not be put off much longer.
She and Chaos would face each other and soon, she promised herself.
"You will never succeed," the Guardian of Order said to the shadows. "Never. Not as long as Elysium and Endymion live. I will defeat you."
Credit for Balder and Scathach goes to Ame. Serenity, my editor. Thanks.
Later.
Remember: NO FLAMES. IF YOU DON'T LIKE THIS, DON'T READ IT.
Side note:
The little scene between Serena and Endy,
"Je t'amour, toujour tu."," She whispered. "Always."
Endy nodded, he looked into her eyes and smiled. "Ditto," he kissed the tip of
Sere was just saying she would love him.
