Poseidon (The God Chronicles) (20 page)

“When my husband died, I would wish I’d see him drifting in on a log or something. I kinda feel the same way now. It’s silly, to think of the God of the ocean floating in all helpless like that.”

“I don’t think so,” she said, placing a hand on my shoulder.

“Did you say your name was Karly?” I asked, turning to look at her again.

“Yes.” She smiled and put her hand back in her lap, tears in her own eyes.

“You’re Zeus’s wife.”

“That’s right.”

“Sy’s sister.”

“I loved him very much,” she affirmed, nodding her head sadly. “He was always so level headed. He saved my life as well, before I was a Goddess.”

“Level headed,” I laughed, another tear rolling down my face. “That doesn’t sound like Sy at all.”

“You brought out a new side to him,” she laughed in return.

“He’s not coming back, is he?” I asked, my tears falling in rapid succession.

“I don’t think so,” she said, crying freely herself.

I looked back out to the sight before me. I didn’t think I ever wanted to see the ocean again.

“Will you take me home?”

“I was only waiting for you to be ready.”

I stood at the end of my bed, John’s picture in hand. If only I’d had a picture of Sy to keep as well.

It was as if he’d never been here. Even the damage caused by the earthquake had disappeared. Karly had told me it would be taken care of quickly, but I hadn’t realized that included everyone seeming to forget it happened at all. While I was relieved that everything was fixed, I partially wished it wasn’t. Everything about Sy was dissolving away, joining him in the land of
the non-existent.

I
was lost again. My entire year’s worth of healing was being undone. I felt good about John, yes. Sy was still a touchy subject.

I guess all I can do is try and move forward again. If I was okay again before, I can do it now.

I set the picture down and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch with Talley.

“What do we do now, girl?” I scratched behind her ears before laying my head back.

My eyes prickled as I thought about all of the good memories I’d had in this apartment. How do you move on from your soul mate?

“How are things with Sy?”

Amy clicked away at her keyboard, her pregnant belly looking perfect as always.

“He moved back home about three weeks ago,” I
answered vaguely, not looking up from my own computer.

“Oh no! I didn’t realize moving back home was the same as dying.”

My head snapped around, mouth gaping open, but it wasn’t Amy I was looking at. The office had miraculously become empty, Athena sitting in my friend’s chair, looking exactly as she had before.

“Come on,” I moaned. “Why can’t you leave me alone? I’m done with God stuff.”

“Unfortunately, that choice is not up to you,” she said shortly, her owl flying through the open front door and landing on her shoulder.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means you have to come with me.”

“No thanks,” I
declined standing up and retrieving my purse from under my desk. “We all know how that turned out last time.”

“This is important,
Audrey,” she said sternly, rising to follow me.

“That sucks for you,” I
replied walking outside.

Thankfully, it appeared she’d only taken over the office—all was at it should be outside. I hurried to my car, repeatedly looking over my shoulder to make sure she wasn’t following me. Only when I was buckled in and driving away did I breathe easy again.

I joined the traffic on the main road and turned the radio on, hoping to lose myself in a good song for a few minutes. The disk jockey was giving away tickets to something, asking listeners to call in and answer a question about a movie. The first caller got it right and he had to spend the next minute telling people they were too late.

“Well, that was entertaining.”

I looked in my review mirror and yelped, Athena suddenly appearing in my back seat.

“Leave me alone!” I yelled,
swerving off the road and into a gas station parking lot.

“Come with me,” she sighed, reaching out and touching my shoulder.

With a bright flash of light, I was once again in a place I’d not consented to go.

“Great. Where are we now?”

“You’re on Mount Olympus, Audrey.”

I recognized Karly’s voice and spun around. She was standing next to a grand throne, wearing a white gown fit for the Queen of the Gods.

“We’ve run into a problem,” she explained. “I’m so sorry to have to disrupt your life, again. I hope you can forgive us for our rudeness.”

“What problem could you have that possibly involves me in any way?”

“It appears that Poseidon has given you his powers,” Athena piped up.

“That’s not possible,” I
argued, looking back and forth from each of them in shock.

“I’m afraid it is,” Karly
confirmed apologetically.

“But I can’t do anything with water,” I
pointed out. “I don’t feel any different.”

“You wouldn’t,” Athena said. “You don’t know how to use them. They aren’t bonded to you yet either.”

“Fine,” I said, frustrated. “How do I give them to one of you?”

“You can’t,” Karly explained. “The only time a God can transfer power is if they are about to die.”

“The only time other than that is if a God has died without passing on their powers. Then the powers are given to someone else by Zeus,” Athena added.

“
Where is he then so I can give the powers to him?”

“I don’t think you understand,” Karly said, walking to me, her dress swishing across the marble. “He can’t give them to someone else because a God already has them.” She laid an arm over my shoulders and hugged me to her. 

“I’m . . . I’m not a God.” I was starting to get a headache trying to wrap my mind around what they were saying.

“That’s what we’re trying to tell you,” Karly
explained with an understanding smile. “You are the new Goddess of the land and sea.”

“But I don’t want to be!” I pushed away from her, shaking my head. “I don’t ever want to be around the water ever again.”

“That’s a bit impractical since you’re the Goddess of it,” Athena said. “You wouldn’t want someone trying to take it over like Amphitrite did, would you?”

I stared at her, wondering how she could be so smart and so stupid at the same time.

“I understand it’s a lot to take in at once,” Karly said.

“A lot to take in?!” I
gasped in disbelief. “A lot to take in! No! This is a whole different level! First, my husband is a reincarnation of an ancient Greek hero. Then, Poseidon, who murders him in vendetta that has lasted thousands of years, is also apparently my soul mate. Then, I get forced into Hell to talk to my dead husband, only to be rushed to an island where I get to watch my soul mate die. Oh, and he gave me all of his God powers, so now I have a higher calling that I must attend to, no matter how I feel about it!”

“
Audrey, please, I know it’s hard—”

“No, you don’t Karly! You got to marry the God you were in love with. You didn’t go through anything like what you’re trying to force on me now!”

“Enough!” Her voice cracked through the oval throne room, authority saturated in every syllable, freezing me instantly. “I am not forcing anything on you. I’m trying to help you understand what has happened so you can move forward in peace. I’m sorry that Poseidon has done this to you, but I cannot change it. The main point I needed you to know is that you cannot continue to live as a mortal with these powers. You will need to swear an oath on the River Styx in order for your position to be complete. Every God must. If not, you will die. Two powers can’t live in one body.”

“So I have to pick between doing this
and dying?” I began to pace back and forth, nervousness and nausea about to overwhelm me.

“It is a regrettable decision you have been challenged with,” Athena
added softly.

“We would love you as our own,” Karly
offered. “Our family never dies unless extreme measures are taken.”

I stopped in my path and thought about what she was saying. Surely life as a Goddess would be better than dying now?

“What about my mom?” I asked, taking a deep shaky breath as I waited for the answer.

“You could see her whenever you wanted,” Karly affirmed. “I still see my own parents often.”

“This isn’t a curse,” Athena said.

“Where would I stay?” I asked with a dry mouth. “If Amphitrite gained power because Sy was away from the water I obviously can’t stay in Arizona.”

“The island you were on is where Poseidon spent most of his time. If you wanted, I’m sure it could be restored to its original state,” Karly said.

I bit my lip, thinking it over again. I would live forever by myself, but I would have the reminders I’d wished for.

“I have to do it?” I asked with a trembling voice.

“It does seem the most logical choice,” Athena said.

I looked at both of them again and then at the room around me. The magnificent blue sky shimmered above me, a painting set to match what conditions were outside. Beautiful marble pillars lined the oval area, matching the floor. As I looked back at Karly, I admired the throne behind her, flowing seamlessly from the tiles beneath it and forming several lightning bolts. I was literally in the place of myths, speaking to those who shouldn’t even be real. And they were insisting that I was one of them!

Would it be so bad, living on that island for the rest of forever? I could still visit Mom. I would have family here as well. As time went by, I could make new friends to spend time with. The powers would give me something to master as well.

John appeared in my mind. If I were to die, wouldn’t I end up where he was? It wouldn’t be the same though. He’d told me himself that he was with his soul mate, Penelope. If I died, I would be just as alone there as I would be here. I’d lose my memories in the Underworld though.

Ideas of what I could do for the world began to form in my head. Sailors could be saved. Earthquakes would be avoided at all costs. I would do my very best to ensure that natural disasters were put to an end. Life would be much easier for all of mankind if I was there to regulate the environment the best I could.

“If I agreed to do it—and I’m not saying I am—what would happen next?”

“You would take part in a ceremony at the River Styx, in Hades,” Karly
explained. “Once that was over, you would be a full-fledged Goddess.”

“Amphitrite said she only needed to kill Sy to get that,” I said.

“She didn’t know about the rule,” Athena spoke up. “It was put in place after our battle two years ago.”

“Kronos tried to take ultimate power,” Karly explained. “Several laws were put into place after that to try and dissuade any others from following suit.”

“So just the ceremony and that’s it?”

“Of course someone would have to help teach you how to use your powers,” Karly said. “That would be figured out once you decide what to do.”

I sighed, turning away from them again and ran my hands through my hair.

“Al
l right,” I said, facing them again. “I’ll do it.” 

Chapter Nineteen

I stared at myself in the mirror, practicing my deep breathing.

After I’d decided to take what Sy had given me, I went home. A strange sense of calm had followed me ever since then, my own confirmation I was doing the right thing.

It only took a few days to get my things in order. October break was days away so I informed the school I wouldn’t be coming back after it was over. They were very gracious about it, as I’d suspected they’d be. I’d felt like I was leaving a family I hadn’t realized I had.

Mom believed me when I told her I’d gotten a job in Florida, working with children. I told her I wouldn’t be able to visit often, which she took a lot better than I’d expected.

I boxed everything I owned up and somehow, with the help of a few burly Gods, got it to the island. True to Karly’s word, it looked as it had before the tsunami—a fantastic, tropical paradise. Further into the jungle was the entrance to the house, which sat under the earth and could also be reached by a water tunnel.

When I first walked in, Talley at my side, I cried. Sy’s few things were still there, arranged perfectly and accenting his own style. I decided to leave them all there in his honor. My heart felt a little lighter with the pieces of him as well.

Tonight I would swear my vow on the River Styx and be fully realized as a Goddess. Karly and Athena had both warned me that it might be an emotional night since I would officially be tied to the sea and my emotions would be dictated by it. I didn’t even know how to prepare myself for something like that. It already felt like my life was ordered after the waves.