Athena's POV
Approaching the place I made into my home I look around still awestruck a little bit at the life I'm now living. The engraved stone walls that you wouldn't be able to find outside of this world and the dancing green flames that reside just above us. Albeit unneeded as the place is as bright as is. "Nimue you remember where the library is right? Head there just ahead of me, I need to take care of something" I open the door ahead of her, letting everyone in.
"Yeah no problem, I'll be seeing you!" She cheers off with a wave and hop to her step as everyone follows.
I wait a moment, ensuring they turn a corner before making my way in the same direction but towards my room. Taking off my heels and replacing it with the softness of my feet to avoid the noise, I creak through the door only to notice a giant lump in the bed. Chris' sleeping body wrapped up in the covers and completely covered.
Opening up a draw I uncover the locked casing, wounding myself again to slide my blood across the box and causing it to undo itself. Fragments of what someone would call a soul...fading piece by piece..."I'm running out of time, aren't I" I rhetorically state to myself. Hushing my own lips when I hear him turn over in the covers, I'll figure something out later but for now...sealing it up again is all I can do. I watch as the layers fold up again, 'In the five years that I've had you...nothing...completely and utterly nothing' I kiss my teeth in hate for myself, feeling a tear run down my cheek that dries up with a quick swipe of my hand.
Looking into the mirror I notice my concentrated thrown, manually stretching my lips apart to mimic a smile I unintentionally make myself laugh from the pathetic display. Instead placing my heels back on I stare back at Chris' lump, crouching my way up and pouncing on the elevated sheets. "GE-"
A fluid shock of electricity running up me as I bite my tongue...laying flat on the bed with nobody else here. A simple waft of air leaving the covers and me, staring at myself like an idiot within the mirror. Back and forth my eyes run across the room trying to piece together what just happened. "I saw him, he moved, he breathed." I whisper out in disapproval. Standing back up to a full height I let go of the sheets, staring to the floor when the most subtle of sounds hits my ears...scratches against the floor. My eyes immediately locking to the ground I see nothing but my own shadow, raising my hand in denial it obviously mimics me.
But then again...a new sound hits me. Something I could only see out of the corner of my eye, something moving inch my inch, fast enough to reach it's goal but slow enough to where nobody would notice it. The door to the room creeks open, bit by bit as the figure lines itself up. Something tells me I shouldn't look, that I can't look at it. I hold my stance with the intent to fight, unwillingly holding my own breath at any chance of leaping at it. Until an deep audible...exhale hits my ears, slamming the door behind it and leaving me without an attempt to catch up. I extend my hair to the handle, tearing the door off only to reveal Chris' hand reaching for it with wide eyes.
"So...want to explain what that was?" He awkwardly reaches for the broken door raised above him but I just run past him an attempt to catch whatever that was.
Scanning the halls and walls for any sign of...what am I even looking for? I didn't even get to see it much less can even begin to think what was in my room. "Did anything pass you!? Anything at all?"
He stares at me with bewilderment, placing an oversized paw on my head to calm me down before responding to me. "No I didn't, what's with the rush?"
"Something was in the room with me"
"Like what? There's nothing that could enter the underworld without us knowing, and Cerberus has been keeping the souls in line...although these past few days I can't say that's exactly been consistent" He scratches the back of his head, clearly annoyed by it.
"I-"
"Athena you coming!?" I hear Nimue scream down the palace, breaking me out of my thoughts.
"That Gabriela? Maybe it was her that was in our room, can't say I'd blame her curiosity. Reminds me of someone, huh?" He winks before jokingly barging me out of the way.
"It's Nimue, I brought her down along with some others. Speaking of which, know that old Alpha...Ke-"
"Keyon!?" He blares out, forcing me to cover my ears from the sensitivity. "H-Sorry, he's here?"
"No, he's back at the pack house with Ryan last I checked" The pace of my words slowing as I look into his eyes, noticing them become reflective with water. "Did you know him or something?"
"Athena I was his beta, I was friends with Eden and him!" He explains, hurriedly putting away stuff with an increasing aggression.
"Ah, right. Maybe I should of started with that, next time I return I'll bring him with me?"
"For sure! I'd go myself but I...just can't at the moment" His eyes light up like an entertained child, making me feel sympathy for him.
"I'm heading to the others, let me know if you need anything" I whip my hair around, advancing towards Nimue and the others only to be halted with a gentle pull. My head being shoved between his chest and making me feel a hint of irony for this.
"Thanks for telling me" His hulking figure leans down to kiss me on the head before spinning me back around with a push on the back.
-
Jackson's POV
We step into the library, the books themselves becoming animated as if in response to us. Organising themselves and floating past on a not so obvious stream of green light. Running my hands long the books I get startled when I focus in on two eyes spying on me through the shelves, holding my hands up in defence only to be greeted. "I-uh-hi?" A woman with tied up luminous green hair approaches us.
"You're Gabriela? I don't think I've ever seen you before!" Nimue circles her a few times in awe.
"We've spoken before...just not that much" Her eyes wander although barely visible through her tinted glasses. "You must be Percy!?" She jumps towards him in excitement as he nods his head in response.
"Quickly come come" She widely smiles, pulling him in and walking just in front of him. As he walks he doesn't look ahead of him though, instead eyeing the odd way she's walking. Visibly walking barefoot without touching the back of her heels against the floor as if trying to float from the ground.
"This!" She extends her arms towards the near enough empty shelf, a glowing bright book with a cyan coloured metal encasing. "We don't know who owns it but everyone that has a book created from memories has their initials carved in. This one's are OV, ring any bells...?" She looks to us with interest.
"I'm not too sure" Percy answers quickly and disappoints her a little bit.
"Well no hang on, if it's a book dated from the recent events as well as past that. Then aren't there at least...two people we know with the name O? Even if we don't know the last name" Nimue points out.
"But Oracion isn't dead...right?"
"So...the latter?" They both seem to agree with each other but with uncertainty. Simply deciding to open up the book first.
"I was reading through and through, it's all memories from someone very old...and very powerful to say the least. All chapters reference something about a dream they've been having, even going as far as to create the very ideal they want within a false memory."
Taking an interest to the phrase I find myself speaking out unintentionally, "What's that?"
"It's when a soul dreads or wishes for something so much that within the afterlife, they sort of...make their own stories to bring themselves to peace even if they haven't achieved it in their actual life."
"That seems...dark?" Nimue adds on
"It is, but that isn't my concern. Whatever this person was dreaming of, it was deeply routed and they were strong enough to alter their own memories after death." She points the page to us briefly, showing a black and white animated page of a...
"Lycan...leaning against the trees? What does that have to do with Percy?" Nimue comments before Gabriela holds the book back to her, ignoring the question and instead beginning to read.
Her voice however, becoming dull to my ears as her words resonate from somewhere behind me. Irene's pure white hair flowing through the bookshelves as she begins to speak for her. "The concept of a singularity. The Wolf, The Man and The Witch. Different points in time but siblings by authority. There could only be three...three at once. No matter how strong I get I know I'll never be able to compete to them because of that sole fact, something so deeply bound throughout their soul. No matter how many I kill and feed on, it won't be anything to him. I'm his son, I have his son and I've studied under her, learned all I can about her. And yet...I'm nothing in comparison to them."
"When her time was over...another was born. I targeted her, knowing Father has already came in contact with her. I was naïve in believing it would be as simple as killing her and stealing it for my own. What went wrong? It doesn't take years to develop, it doesn't take time to learn. To begin with I was surprised I even won...It's built into them by birth. So, What. Went. Wrong-"
"Athena you coming!?" Nimue shouts out, near bursting my ears and cutting the concentration from everyone. Focusing my attention from Irene and back to Gabriela.
Percy hits her across the head with an aggravated stare, "Why would you so randomly do that"
"It's fine, this part applies to Athena as well!" She happily closes the book, waving to the door as Athena jogs her way in.
"Sorry that took a bit, you needed me?"
"Yeah, but real quick and I'm sorry to ask this. But Percy, I may need to look at Crest for this part, is that okay?" She tries to contain her obvious excitement with sympathy but fails horribly.
"I guess..." He casually begins to strip down to his underwear, making me close my eyes out of respect but just embarrassment in general. Only opening my eyes back up after a subtle thump hits the ground, my sight. His eyes turning from hazel to the heterochromatic gold and violet I was first introduced to.
"It's Percy this time, no need to be scared" Nimue notices my back peddling, setting me in front of her with arms crossing my shoulders to protect me in a sense.
"Alright now let me ask you this Athena, where did you get those black markings from?" She points towards the interloping triangles as Athena picks up her hair to reveal her open back.
"Oracion...gave them to me?" She stares with a puzzled look that quickly gets reassured by Gabriela.
"Ever since then, have you felt anything at all?"
"Eyes...something heavy on my shoulder every now and then I guess. But not enough to distract me or pain me in a sense."
"So...Percy" She puts her hands to him, running her hands deep along his fur. "Wh-ouch" She pulls her finger back, revealing a streak of blood leaking from it. Receiving a guilty look from Percy with whatever wolfish expression he can muster up. "It's fine! Roll over though!" She pokes his side, making him fall over like a ragdoll and plummet to the floor. Earning a small giggle from us all but nonetheless she continues to examine him.
"You're telling me...nobody noticed this on Crest?" She pulls back the fur to reveal a deep black slash emanating a dark haze. Roughly done and carved out almost as if left in a rush unlike Athena's markings that were given time to artistically draw.
"I-No, Adam hasn't told me anything about that" Athena admits with a sad expression.
"From what I've heard, Percy doesn't swap into Crest often, am I right in assuming that?" She continues, earning a nod from Nimue and Athena. "Athena was marked by Oracion...so who was Crest marked by...?"
"Nobody other than Adam has interacted with Crest in these past years and it sure as hell wasn't my brother. When I was first with him we hardly ever saw Crest...and even before then I heard nobody in his pack wanted to interact with Crest out of fear...which only leaves someone who was with him from the start?" Athena begins to summarise within her head, bit by bit coming to a conclusion.
"Fenrir..." They speak out under their breath.
Each time they say that name I hear the same two voices in my head, arguing back and forth...back and forth...a never ending series of threats and insults. Why do I know that name. I have whatever that beast retained as memories-blinded by centuries worth of hate, fear and disgust beyond recognition. But this conversation isn't one of them...this is one of mine.