My words echo in my mind first.“I swear this oath in my own blood, that should I survive my fall to mortality, I shall claim the Nether from the one who has corrupted it. I will tie mine and my quintet's souls to that plane of existence to cleanse and reign over it until the end of our days. This I swear, and seal in blood.”
Oh, shit.
I agreed to rule the Nether? I even sealed my quintet’s souls to it, along with mine? That’s insane. What the hell could I have asked from Arati that would make this permanent exchange worth it?
Arati’s powerful voice booms next, her gleaming ichor dripping into the bowl.“I swear this oath in my own blood, onbehalf of all gods and goddesses and with the approval of fate itself, that should you uphold your oath sealed this day in blood, I shall lift the entirety of the Legacy Curse from the face of the mortal realm to free all living and future legacies from this antiquated burden. This I swear, and seal in blood.”
“Holy fucking gods,” I exhale aloud, blinking back to myself in utter shock.
I asked Arati to break the Legacy Curse.
She agreed.
And I just fulfilled my end of the bargain. Which means…
“Blaspheming in our presence! Why, I never,” someone laughs on the opposite side of the table.
I realize that while I was lost in my Paradisical memories, the rest of the pantheon walked into this room. It’s disorienting to look at someone and feel like they’re both a stranger and familiar at once, but that’s what it feels like as I take in Arati, Koa, Galene, Raan, and Pheli.
Pheli is the one sitting across from me, smiling cheerfully. He’s the god of the skies, change, happiness, hope, and many other things. His skin is sky blue, and he’s shorter than the other gods with a robust build, sky-blue eyes, and a curly blond beard to match his hair.
His smile is blinding as he raises his goblet like a toast. “Well done down there, my dear!”
My attention drifts to the god beside him. This one is taller and beautifully graceful. His dark midnight blue skin is striking against his solemn moonlight-colored irises. The white robe he wears drifts slightly as if he’s underwater, as does his long, dark hair. Everything about him is slender and delicate as he offers me a kind, soft smile.
I remember him. Raan, god of the oceans, moonlight, serenity, and a bunch of other shit. With his dominion over water, he was the one who hand-blessed Everett as a babywith his ice abilities. I even remember Raan telling me months ago that he favored Everett because of his gentle spirit and bestowed on my elemental a more mild curse than his powerful capabilities would otherwise demand.
Koa lifts a goblet, as well. “To Maven.”
“To Maven,” the rest of the gods echo before downing their goblets.
“Fate divine, that’s good ambrosia!” Pheli hiccups, going to pour more from one of the goblets. Raan waves his hand, and no matter how Pheli tries to pour it, the liquid won’t go into his goblet. The sun god huffs, looking at the moon god. “Just another sip. We’re celebrating!”
Raan shakes his head with a small, affectionate smile.
“Well, my niece, you’ve done it. You defeated Amadeus and freed the Nether,” Arati announces, popping some kind of Paradisical fruit into her mouth at the head of the table as she, too, raises her goblet.
The others are chiming in to congratulate me more, but I’m distracted as more important memories re-emerge.
I remember the day I finally found that the golden corruinum flower had bloomed. I hadn’t hesitated to turn it into a poisonous potion to drink so I could give up my divine status and return to my quintet.
I remember downing the golden liquid and feeling pain unlike I’ve ever known as I fell careening from the heavens, unsure if I would live or die.
Shaking off those memories, I tune back in and look at Arati. “So?”
“Sois not a full sentence,” she says, sipping her ambrosia again.
“Sothen use your brains and read between the fucking lines,” I shoot back.
Whoa. That response came like a knee-jerk reaction, and now I feel bitchy. Did I really argue with my aunt so much in my time here in Paradise that it’s become like second nature?
Koa does a spit-take with his ambrosia, clearing his throat and shooting me a chastising look. “You may not recall fully, but we’ve been over this many times, Maven. You cannot insult the queen of the gods. Have some decorum, if only for your mother’s sake.”
“As if I mind,” Syntyche says without missing a beat, setting down her goblet.
Arati rolls her eyes at her triplet before she stands at the head of the table, towering and beautiful and fierce all at once. She smiles down at me.
“Pheli is right. You did a good job. It’s time for us to finalize the second part of your oath to me, and then I shall fulfill my oath to you.”
