She laughed, and then in front of us, she shapeshifted into the last thing I’d have ever expected.
There was no explanation before all our worldviews completely changed. The impossible happened, and adrenaline coursed through my veins as it took everything in me not to let all of my magic explode from me, like the last time we’d encountered one another. Standing directly in front of us was the Marung. The very same Marung we had commissioned to be our mascot of sorts for thePax.The Marung who wasn’t supposed to exist,who we all thought was myth in every legend told throughout time.
She stood there, lookingjustlike the statue in the situation room. I made the connections. The Marung was gifted to us by an anonymous donor. We had let her stand in the most secure room in thePaxfor decades, and not even one of us had ever detected an ounce of power roll off her. Even now, I couldn’t sense her energy. She just felt inanimate, like wood and stone.
The Marung turned to leer at us, atme, and I tried to take another step forward. Vada and Mayari held me back. “So, all those leaks over the years have been you. How the fuck did you get past our wards? How did we never see you leave that office on any camera? When did you go to take a piss or eat?” I seethed.
Marung just laughed at the shock on all our faces. “You all had some stories right, but not all of them. My power is in illusion and duplication. Like your world-building magic, Adaela, I can create scenes that appear as if nothing has changed. I’ve played the long game, and none of you have been the wiser for it.”
I slowly snuck my shadows out, demanding they stick to areas where shadows already existed as I shrugged the hands of Vada and Mayari off me. “So, you survived my death magic because you weren’t there?”
Marung laughed again. “You’re starting to catch on, you stupid bitch. I’ll let you in on a little secret. No one was there. You didn’t kill anyone. They were all my creations, and I provoked you into it.”
All hell broke loose as my entire worldview completely reshaped itself right in front of me. The ghosts of my past weren’t real. Well, they were, but they were manufactured by the woman who I thought loved me. All along, the woman right beside me, who remained and allowed me my autonomy, toldme who she was, and I hadn’t believed her. She took care of me when I was recovering and wouldn’t let me think any less of myself. She loved me through all of it.
Remembering back to when Sabine and I were together, I thought about how in almost every instance when she was with me, she was always encouraging me to commit atrocities. Almost as if she were gleeful about it, but just manipulative enough that I hadn’t ever caught on until she was out of my life. I always figured the orders were coming from my father, but I wondered how many of those thoughts came from her having his ear. I’d have time to question this later.
“Daughter, enough taunting. Let’s end this once and for all,” Typhon said, turning his attention on the Gods, but specifically Athena. “Niece, you can either surrender now or face the destruction of the worlds. This is your only warning. My children have been awaiting my return. They’ve been shifting the puzzle pieces for millennia. Humans hate each other, and everyone outside of your small town has been itching to rise to the top because of my children,” he chuckled to himself, mirth in his eyes.
“I had wondered, dear uncle. I’ll admit that I hadn’t seen this coming, but I had a feeling that someone was manipulating the worlds around us for power. It’s why we started theCatervae Paxin the first place—to show that what you believe is power is only a representation of misdirection and greed. I still believe that the worlds are mostly good, but there are bad actors like yourself whose beliefs in inequality and self-hatred are the glue that holds inequity and scarcity to account. This world, and the worlds we no longer inhabit, were built to provide. Fear and parochialism will be the death of us all,” Athena said.
Typhon’s head was higher than the clouds that were quickly enveloping the sky. Ma’at, along with the other Godsand creatures who could manipulate the weather, worked in tandem against Typhon’s powers. Portals opened in multiple places around us, bringing in some beings I recognized asPaxmembers, and others I didn’t recognize, which led me to believe that Typhon and Marung had the same ideas.
War was upon us.
Earth
Istood helpless in this moment, knowing that there wasn’t really much I could do to make this right. War was inevitable, but I hadn’t necessarily believed it would start here. I figured it would start on the banks of the Mississippi. I had to think quickly—there wasn’t enough time to strategize our way out of this one.
I recited the prophecy to myself one more time, hoping that it would bring me some clarity now that it was coming to fruition. The fight had begun. OurPaxmembers were battling the masked and highly militarized people on Typhon’s side. I didn’t have much time, but Adaela and I were now surrounded byPaxmembers who protected us as we worked through this.
“When love prevails and all is lost
The driven must now pay the cost
The lovers lost to ruin and fate
A dream desired, that cannot take
‘Til one and one make three again
The world is lost to hate and sin
The worlds collide on a direct path
The portals’ strength will then collapse
So on and on the great war must begin again
To purge the worlds of what has been stolen
A hero must not take the bait
There is still hope within this fate
A mountain will divide the weak
From gaining strength against the meek
