“Yes. She was beautiful and powerful. I think … My memory is spotty, but I’m sure that she is the one that sent me here and landed me in the Fields of Punishment.”
Both princes of The Underworld pace back and forth, “This is not good. Tell us more about what you remember.”
“Not much, just the impression that Nyx is the daughter of Morríganna and although she is her daughter there are no warm and fuzzy feelings for her fallen mother. She …” I pause remembering our conversation. “She wants to raise Morríganna so that she can drain her of her power. Has Nyx somehow been reborn, do you think? What exactly are we dealing with?” Daxell’s hand holds mine firmly before pulling me into his hold.
“Nyx was powerful. She was one of the Primordials. So much more powerful than, well most of us.” Levi imparts.
Now I’m scared, “What do you mean?”
Dez sighs, “She was around at the beginning of creation.”
“Explain,” I demand.
Asmodeus continues to pace as Levi pulls Seraphina into his hold, gently caressing her as if to soothe his agitation. Dez stops and turns to address us, “The mortals have so many myths and legends born from the many different cultures. Most of them are remarkably similar because they all stem from the same deities. Are you following me?” He pauses to give me a chance to understand where he is going with all this and I nod waiting for him to continue. “If we are indeed, dealing with the reincarnation of Nyx then we are dealing with an entity that will be way more powerful than her birth mother from this day and age, that is once she is at full power.”
“Dax has said as much,” I say, eager to learn more.
“Good, then this little history lesson can be shortened a bit. You see, our creator, in the beginning, created original deities, Primordials. The originals were not angel born. They were fashioned to further creation, but he soon realized that they were flawed. These deities held no compassion, no sense of right or wrong. They simply existed to fulfill their baser tendencies. In the beginning, there was Chaos. She was alone in the universe, her dark majesty was left to build, to multiply and propagate her negative influence. Or so she thought. Our creator lead her to believe that she was alone. You see there had to be balance in the universe before creation took place.”
“So he created Chaos, and she created a realm that was the exact opposite of The Overworld?” I ask, trying to grasp the concept.
Levi speaks up, “Not really The Overworld. You see, in the beginning, well before the beginning, actually, our creator was full of light and he realized that he could create many worlds, but in order for his creation to experience free will, there had to be an opposite. Good versus evil, right versus wrong, yin and yang.”
“Wow, I always thought that Lucifer and the Fallen, no offense, were the ones that … I don’t know …”
Dez laughs, a deep throaty laugh, “It’s okay Lillie, we played our own role but that was much later in the grand scheme of things after our Father created mankind and all the many Fae. We were jealous. So very jealous that they were gifted free will and we were created to serve our Father without question. As you know, there was a divide and a battle took place in The Overworld. Only then did we fall. That was many eons after Chaos was inserted into the universe, but still very early as far as creation was concerned.”
“Okay, let’s get on with this. Chaos was created, yadda, yadda, yadda … We need to know about Nyx. How does she play into all this?” Poppy quips.
“All right, little one, we’ll get on with it,” Levi and Dez both grin. “From Chaos was born Nyx the personification of night, along with Erebus, Gaea, and Tartarus. Nyx is the embodiment of night and she, in turn, bore several children, one of which was Nemesis, also known as Retribution.”
I suck in a breath, retribution is what I overheard Lachlan say to Daxell about me. That I’m supposed to become Retribution. I’m still not sold on that yet, but it’s looking more and more like that is entirely possible. Daxell, sensing my unease wraps his arms around me more tightly. I lean into him and whisper, “I’m okay, I think.”
“Lillie, Nemesis was before my time. All of the Primordials were, but I feel as if there is a reason why Nyx has come into play at this point in time, and I think it has something to do with you. You, my dear, may have been the catalyst that put all this into play many, many years ago.” Dez says quietly and the room goes utterly still.
Taking a deep breath, I ask, “What do you mean?”
“I believe that you are here to take Nemesis’ place in the grand scheme of things. Can you deny your pull to deliver souls to this realm? Can you deny your calling to the cycle of life? You are a Keeper of Souls and it would appear that the souls you keep, are destined to be delivered here for their retribution.” Levi says what everyone is thinking.
“No. I can’t deny my calling, that’s why I went to Tarron for answers.” My reply is quick. “But … I’m not certain of my path. I still need help to navigate and I have yet to embrace my role.” I hesitate before blurting out, “I’m scared. I’m scared of what it means. I don’t want to fall. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to offend, but …” I trail off not certain of how to proceed. I whisper uncertainly, “I’m sorry.”
Seraphina comes forward, “My dear child, you will not fall if you embrace your calling. Anyone can see that you are a child of the light, your soul shines bright for all to see. You
