The Fate grimaced when everyone looked at him in question. “He was the one I called when I went to quit. But the one who answered happens to be the person currently terrorizingthe North American Headquarters, Brom Grimm. And I haven’t tried reaching my uncle again since.”
Once more, the name was drawing a curious blank in his mind, yet he was sure he recognized it in some capacity. Again, it wasn’t as if he was drawing a blank because he knew nothing, it was more that the information was just not where it should be. Which did concern him, as it wasn’t the only time this had happened recently.
I should talk to Soren about it.
Ender’s frown deepened when the thought brought a wave of dizziness, and just an urge to suddenly not do it.The fuck…Something was obviously off here. And whatever, or whoever, had done what they did to his brain, they did not want him digging. So, of course, he was going to dig. But after he had these eggs, because if it was going to make him feel sick, he at least wanted his hormones to be normal first.
“So you haven’t spoken to him at all?” Severo mused.
Cyrus shook his head. “When I initially called, Brom informed me that Etholus was on an extended break, and that he was in charge now.”
“In charge now, or for now?” Ender pushed.
“I’m not sure which way he meant it. I did try my uncle’s private numbers before calling the office, but never got through.”
Severo groaned. “Then we can assume, everything that is happening, your great uncle, or whatever the heck he is to you, Etholus doesn’t know about it?”
A laugh forced its way out at that. “No, no, there is nothing that man doesn’t know.”
“If he knows, then why is he letting it happen?” Seri asked.
Cyrus sighed. “Likely for the same reason I said nothing about what I knew would happen to you…because the outcomeis what he’d prefer to happen. The only question is…what outcome.”
That was one possible reason. But there were others that were a bit more concerning. One being that the ancient Fate wasn’t sure what the best outcome was, so had decided to do nothing. Or worse, that the outcome was horrible, no matter what he did, and Etholus was doing nothing over actively participating or putting in the effort it took to change it.
Their differences aside, and they definitely fucking had them, Ender knew Etholus, while often fair, could be a very all or nothing type of man.
When Seri yawned, with Severo following right after, he smiled and said, “Why don’t you two go get settled and get some sleep. Later today or even tomorrow, I’ll have Toddles show you around. It’s been a while since you’ve really been here, Severo, and it’s not like Seri really had the chance to look around the last time he was here.”
Severo yawned again. “Sounds like a good plan.”
“Congratulations,” Seri said, before the Dweller prodded him out.
His smile widened at how sincere it was, and he murmured, “Thank you,” right before the door closed behind them.
Ender’s smile dropped a bit as he eyed the other two men when they came into his nest, his mind going straight to the conversation he’d overheard—well, more that he'd secretly listened in on. Feeling awkward or not, he didn’t protest when Cyrus pulled him onto his lap, with Killian cuddling against him, because they were warm. In the Siren’s case, warmer than him at least.
Ender couldn’t help but tense when Killian asked, “Could you…tell us about them?”
While ‘them’ could literally mean anyone under the sun, he already knew who the Siren was asking about. Even so, he asked, “‘Them?’”
Killian cleared his throat awkwardly. “Your children…? Your husband…”
“Ah…” Ender swallowed. “Feel like digging, huh?”
Cyrus slowly ran a hand over his baby bump. “You don’t have to tell us anything, if you don’t want to.”
Sighing, Ender forced himself to relax in the Fate’s hold, and as detached as he could be, he summarized, “I met Cooper ‘Coop’ Imorus at eighteen. He was a Gorgon, and he’d moved into the valley earlier in the year. I came across him while running. He was older, and I’ll admit, I was instantly infatuated with what one would consider back then a ‘city boy’. My family, of course, hated his ass with a passion for those first few years.
“Ten years later, we married, and nearly a hundred and seventy years after that, after many failed attempts, we had our first child, Kovo. Kovo was an energetic—” Ender took a shuddered breath as tears started to fill his eyes against his will. “—little boy, who never seemed to be able to sit still. Five years after that…only a few months before exposure and the war started, I had Nyla.
“She was…laid early, and was high risk as her shell had hardened too quickly and cracks had begun to form in the womb. Through those two months of incubation, I barely left the nest, too afraid something would happen. But it didn’t. She was the sweetest little girl you’d ever meet, and would talk to anyone she’d come across as if they were her best friend…
“They, along with my parents, died when the house collapsed. Nearby explosions were my best guess… Kovo was ten, and Nyla was just…five… I, uh…I unburied them all…” Ender trailed off, and swallowed hard, a few tears breakingfree. Each word he’d spoken seemed to have zapped a bit more warmth away.
He wasn’t sure what else there was to say. He certainly wasn’t going to admit that he didn’t know if they’d suffered or died instantly. Ender had gotten there an hour after the bombing started, and it wasn’t as if any of those who died had a chance to be examined…or even buried in some cases.
Ender flinched as visions of their bodies flashed in his mind. He couldn’t help but think it had to have been instant. There’d been too much damage. Even if they were still alive after the initial hit, they surely had passed out without ever feeling any pain before they died… At least, that is what he’d prayed to Medusa to be true each time the thought had crossed his mind.
