Home again
I watched as Arron paced back and forth, figuring out how to tell me what he wanted to tell me. Everyone else seemed tense, as well.
“First, you should know that you have been gone for nearly four months. Ashley searched for you all over the place for as long as she could. Then we found out that your goddess was still here. No one knows what she has been doing, but we know that the true villain is her,”
“The guy who “kidnapped” me, only done so to try to find the keys. Your goddess destroyed the planet he was safeguarding to get the keys. What she didn’t know was that she had already had one of the keys. You,” Maddison said. Her eyes filled with regret.
“That can’t be right. If the goddess is no longer with me, why do I still have my wings and my looks?” I asked, confused at everything I was being told.
“I can answer that,” I heard from a familiar voice. Turning around, I found my dad standing behind me. Without another thought, I ran over and hugged him tightly. I felt real tears falling as I buried my face in his chest.
“There is no need to cry, my sweet girl. I am sorry for the things you have endured, but everything will soon be alright. But right now, there are secrets that I must tell you. I am not from this planet. I came here long ago when I heard about the cosmic energy about to hit the earth. I was sent here to investigate the anomaly. I didn’t expect to meet your mom or fall in love,” dad said. I didn’t fully understand what he was talking about.
“But if you aren’t from the earth, where are you from, dad?” I asked. My head was spinning. It couldn’t be true, right? I looked around the room. No one else seemed confused in what he was talking about except Taylor. I was guessing that he had already told all of them what was going on. That just left me sitting in the dark.
“I am from a planet much like earth, but unlike earth, there are different species, not just races. I am what you would call a Seraph, though people of faith believe us to be angels. Long ago, my kind came to earth to watch over it when certain historical events happened. We stepped in when we were needed, and because they didn’t know what we were, they thought us to be creatures of their creator,” dad said. I took in what he was saying to me. If what he was saying was true, this meant that I was half Seraph. Then a thought hit me.
“Wait, does that mean….” I started to ask before dad cut me off. He smiled and turned behind him. Following his gaze, I saw my sister holly standing there, silver wings extended from her back. I briefly wondered where she had been hiding.
“Yes, that means that your sister is half Seraph too. Unfortunately, she decided to go outside during the second emergence. You will be surprised at what it allows her to do, but we can get into that another time. There is more that I need to tell you,” dad said. My head was still spinning. I guess he noticed because he shook his head.
“I know that this is a lot to take in. There was so much your mom, and I had to keep from your girls, hoping that you would never have to worry about these things. This was why I was so worried about you going out to be a hero. Now, for the bad news. The goddess who inhabited your body left once she used you to gain a lot of her strength back. That fight you had with the obsidian giant was enough for her to be able to materialize. Still, she waited until you were out of the picture,” dad said, sighing as he readjusted himself.
“We haven’t been able to track her. She has done well to hide. And now, with both of the keys on earth, it is only a matter of time before she will show up,” Ashley said from her perch on Esme’s thorax. I hadn’t even noticed that she had taken the necklace off. I was so wrapped up in what my dad was telling me.
“What we do know is, the god who had kidnapped me is not the bad guy we had hoped he had been. Actually, once he finally explained what he was doing, things were better. He even taught me how to focus my powers,” Maddison said, smiling. It didn’t make sense. If he wasn’t the bad guy, why did he do all the things that he did?
“Everything he did was to ensure that he would be able to protect the keys. What no one, not even the goddess herself, had counted on was that one of the keys was already here. You. I don’t know how you became one of the keys, but you are,” dad said. The bad part was that I had already known that. The woman in that one dream told me that I was.
“So, where is this other key?” I asked, confused. I didn’t see anyone else in the room. I am sure that they weren’t hiding behind a corner just listening to the conversation.
“She is with Mr. Carver. Aside from you, he is the second strongest player in the game. His powers outshine mine, and I was born like this. I don’t know exactly what that storm had done to him, but I wouldn’t want to end up in a fight with him,” dad said. It was then that he laid eyes on Aliona. “Who’s your friend here?”
“This is Aliona. She is a harpy from another world. She was being hunted down and was shunned by her clan. So instead of leaving her there alone,” I said. Aliona bowed and waved at everyone.
“Now, I know you must have more questions, but for now, I think it would be wise for you and Taylor to shower, get some sleep. I know that you would probably like to argue, but I am not asking,” dad said. I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. Reluctantly, I found the bathroom and stripped all of my dirty clothes. It was amazing to be able to take a hot shower.
After my shower, I found a place to lay down. It wasn’t my bed, but it would have to do for now. Stretching, I closed my eyes and pictured mom. I thought about what I would tell her today if I had the chance to tell her about everything going on. As exhaustion set in, I found it harder and harder to keep my eyes open. Finally, I couldn’t fight it anymore, and I let sleep take me.[