“I know.” Laken takes his hand. “I really get that, Coop. I promise. It’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. What happened? What did you stumble upon?”
He dips his chin. “Laken, you opened up the library in the Transfer to Skyla and me. There were a few forbidden texts hidden in the wall. You were kind enough to share them with us. One was in need of translating.”
Skyla gasps. “It was one of the Hallowed Tomes. They outlined what was to be done with the Factions and how to delineate battle orientation. The illustrations were amazing.”
Laken nods. “Written by our Nephilim predecessors. Wesley showed them to me, and I willingly shared them. Cooper, you said you’d have it translated.”
“By Ezrina,” Skyla adds in an accusatory tone.
Coop nods. “And both she and Marshall helped me crack the code. They got me going as far as the translation went, and I was able to read it on my own.”
Logan lands his elbows to his knees. “And you’re sure about what you read?”
Coop takes a breath. “As sure as I’m sitting here.”
“Let them have it, Coop,” I say. “Unleash the genie from the bottle.” My palms start sweating as if I were about to blurt it out myself. “This is big. It’s life-changing,” I say to both Logan and Skyla. “Brace yourself. Nothing will ever be the same.”
Cooper kisses the back of Laken’s hand. “This particular text spoke of the feud between the Fems and the Sectors. It detailed that it began in Ahava. There was a Fem who fell in love with a Caelestis—they had a falling-out. It was hers alone to decide what the role of the Nephilim would be. They were not created by the Master but by angels who took human women for themselves. Fun side note; it was the head Fem that enticed the angels to go after the women. We weren’t even an afterthought. We were brought to life by sheer desire—spurred by a Fem. The Caelestis then had new destinies to form, and she had to find a place for them in the kingdom. She bound Celestra with the Sectors. And she gave the Counts to the very Fem her heart had grown hard toward. Only one of the pairs could rule alongside her in the heavenlies, starting with the millennial reign. The losers take on the role of angels of death, escorting those who pass away—on to their eternal home.
“She allowed the Sectors and Fems to duke it out on Earth—only they can’t actually duke it out themselves.” Cooper pauses for a moment. “Their fate lies in the hands of the Factions they were dealt with. Unless, of course, there’s a fracture within the Faction. So long as the Sector or the Fem had an army of willing Nephilim beneath him, or a designated leader that carried their lineage, they’re still golden. And that’s why she granted them both the gift of breeding with the Nephilim. Not just with any of our kind—she needed to be as close to pure as possible, and through her they would not only create a super breed of Nephilim, they would gain dominion.
“The head Fem in question was and is bent on ruling alongside her,” Coop says as he nods. “He’s not interested in scooping up dead human souls and leading the charge to eternity. That’s not where his heart is. He wants the golden ring, and that ring is directly tied to the Caelestis he’s obsessed with. Not only is she nobility as far as the heavenlies are concerned, but taking on the lesser task would mean having almost zero interaction with her.” He scratches the back of his head. “When the Sectors were at the helm, they were essentially the masters of the Fems. The Fems couldn’t go to the throne room without a Sector escort. In the heavenlies, they were servants to the Sectors’ every whim. Now that the Fems are at the helm, you can reverse the curse.”
“Wow.” Skyla holds up a hand. “And are you suggesting that my mother and Demetri…?”
“I don’t know.” Coop pumps his shoulders. “But I do know what I read next. The Caelestis offered the Sector a lineage, one that would begin in the seventeenth century.”
Logan tips his head with amusement and Coop nods. That’s precisely where Dudley began his lineage thus resulting in the two of them.
“The Fem asked for a lineage and received permission to create one as well. But apparently, the Fem felt as if he needed a leg up in the game. He felt the Caelestis was showing favoritism to the Sector. It sounds as if he was right. The Caelestis agreed and asked the Fem to name his price. The Fem said he wanted the gift of creating a grand delusion.”
“Oh my God.” Skyla grips Logan by the arm. “Gage knew that if he pledged to the Fems he would be subject to a grand delusion—that his heart would skew toward wickedness. We knew that years ago. Coop, is that what this is about?”
“Exactly that.” Coop offers a short-lived smiled. “The grand delusion is as follows. The Fem would make his offspring believe that he and every Fem along with him would spend eternity as a guardian in the pit of Hell if they weren’t victorious in dominating Celestra. Hell bound. No exit. No hope of ever seeing your loved ones again for all eternity.”
Laken’s head jerks in my direction. “Wes?”
I give the hint of a nod. “I couldn’t live an eternity without you, Laken. It wasn’t even on the table.”
She lets go of Coop’s hand and takes up mine. “And you turned yourself and everything inside out to ensure that wouldn’t happen.”
Skyla closes her eyes and lets out an injured moan. “And so has Gage.”
16
The Grand Delusion
Candace
The air in Ahava is especially sweet as I lose myself with thoughts of my most precious daughter. She’ll need a father, of course—a fine man—handsome, Celestra, noble, and loyal. He will love me fiercely and I him. Nothing will be spared in my search for this man, nor in the search for my daughter’s suitor. I’ll rearrange both destinies and timelines of the living if need be to accommodate this spectacular feat.
Now what to name her… Andora?Aurora? Aurora Borealis, child of the light. Now that would be fitting.
I lean against the Boulder of Contemplation, gazing upon the Falls as I think of my beautiful daughter.
The neighing of a horse catches my attention, and I turn to see Demetri riding up on his stately steed.
“Shaddai,” I say the beast’s name as I walk over and run my fingers through his flowing silver mane.
