“What do you mean, Pip?” I ask, and continue, “If it makes you feel better, we can call it hellionite.”
He chuckles, “Leave it to you to nickname the stuff.” Sighing, his next words are not above a whisper, “Luc knew, he’s been cultivating … hellionite for ages in secret in various places across the realm. Very few know that it has begun to thrive again. I found the patch that you found when we first got here. Luc asked that I harvest it just in case we need it.”
“Are there any more secrets that you are keeping, Pipperton?” I ask and then gesture around us. “Is there more than meets the eye to these stone statues, maybe?”
“Naw, Lillie. That’s all I got. As far as I know, these are just ruins.”
Daxell shakes his head discounting Pip’s statement, “These are the ancients.”
Poppy springs to life, leaping into the air and pointing at a large fallen stone statue, “Ancients? What are you talking about, Daxell?”
Daxell looks around the campfire and gestures for everyone to grab a bowl of stew before he starts, “Remember when we were talking to Jillisandra? She said that the primordial deities are beginning to awaken. Well, it's long been believed that these fields hold the ancient beings that went to sleep ages ago.”
“Why are they so big?” I ask in between mouthfuls of the hearty stew, my interest piqued.
“The ancient deities were giants among mortals. You know? Like how the Fallen can appear to be larger than everyone else around them? They were large, and this is where it is said that many of them went to sleep or became petrified as they settled into their slumber.”
“Why do you think they went to sleep? I can’t imagine …” I trail off.
“I think that at the beginning of time things were slow. As we all know, time is relative and in the beginning, it probably took forever for even the smallest of things to happen. I don’t think that any of us here have even the slightest perception of what those times were like. The realms were not developed. From Chaos or the Void came everything else with the unknowing help from the creator. The primordial deities representing earth, the abyss, love, darkness, day, and night. Things were evolving. In the beginning, they had a purpose and as their purpose evolved, so did other deities.”
I think about my memories of Eve and how quiet the earth was, how very lush and beautiful, how very new it felt compared to today. Now the earth and even Faerie feel ancient. The Mortal Realm and it’s hustle and bustle, the never-ending comings and goings, the internet and the constant exchange of information and technology. It’s almost too much to contemplate compared to how things were in the time of Eve, which was long after the Primordials came into being. “No wonder they became bored,” I mutter.
“What was that, Lillie JoBug?” Poppy is at my side in an instant.
“Well, I was just thinking back to my memories of my time as Eve. It’s no wonder they chose to sleep, but why now? Why are they beginning to wake now? But, maybe the better question is why take a form born of flesh?” I muse.
“Why not now?” Rhynik asks, “When would be a better time? The Mortal Realm is busier than it has ever been, something that they have never experienced.”
“But why choose to be reborn of flesh?” Poppy asks my question again.
“I would think that would make them more vulnerable. They were ancient deities born from Chaos and then from her children. Why not take up their original form?” I ponder.
Daxell is quick to answer, “Look around you, LJ. Maybe their original form was no longer an option. Maybe they have heard something within the realms, the universe at large that has intrigued them enough to wake from their slumber.”
“I have so many questions. We can sit here all night and deliberate over what we think is happening and why, when what we really need to know is this: of all the primordials who went to sleep, who are waking? We also need to know who did not go to sleep, and can we track them down? Of those that slept who have been reborn, what is their objective? We know that Nemesis has been reborn in me, a more tolerant version of what she was before, willing to take a back seat to me so that she can fulfill her purpose. It stands to reason that Lachlan will also assume a role and if I’m Retribution then I’m willing to bet that he will become Redemption, but what primordial will be reborn in him?” Everyone ponders my question for a bit and the quiet of the evening washes over us.
Daxell looks at me and says, “If Lachlan is Redemption and his purpose is to carry souls to The Overworld, then it stands to reason that the primordial that he has been paired with will be Aether, the personification of purity and upper sky. Just a theory at this point. As to your other question, I know of one primordial that we can seek out once we are able to leave The Underworld.” Daxell’s face is grave.
“I’m afraid to ask, demon boy,” I utter the words that no one else is willing to say aloud, “Tell us.”
“Thanatos, your brother from another mother,” Daxell jokes with a sly smirk, trying to break the tension.
“Very funny, laugh it up, demon boy. So Nyx was a busy deity when it came to propagating. I’m not laughing by the way.”
“Yes you are, your lips are twitching. You need to work on your poker face, honey cheeks.” Daxell grins back at me.
Grinning at his playful side, I continue, “Seriously, Daxell. Why do you think that Thanatos never went to sleep?” I ask looking around our little group. The firelight casting odd
