Proven (Daughters of the Sea #1) (16 page)

"The elixir," I ignored her warning stubbornly. "It'll save me some time, too."

"You're not going alone," Finn established firmly. "You need protection. I'm coming, along with my strongest fighters."

"We're going with you, too," Olivia said at the same time as Carmen and Phoebe; each exchanging resolute glances.

"As am I," Amphitrite added. I nodded to them all in agreement.

"How do I find the crux?" I inquired.

"No Nereid has ever laid eyes upon it." Psamanthe shook her head with disagreement.

"Except your mother, Thetis," Amphitrite added quietly. Psamanthe's shocked face told me she wasn't aware of Thetis's find as Amphitrite continued with sadness. "She described it to me once, saying its power brought tears to her eyes. She said it was greater than all of us...something that we weren't meant to understand. She placed a protective veil around it, for this very reason."

"Did she tell you where it was?" Psamanthe prompted carefully.

"All she disclosed to me was that it was near the Azores, in the Atlantic, and that the only way to find it was to follow the ocean's song; her essence. But if that song is already weakened, Anastasia...and if your essence is to become weakened, it will be incredibly difficult to find."

"But not impossible," I clarified. "And the longer we wait, the weaker we all become. We need to act. Now."

"I have a feeling we'll be able to recruit some Atlanteans," Sebastian implored. "Since she banished Atlas and Luna centuries ago, she doesn't have many friends on the island," he added with a smirk and raised his chin with smugness. "The good news is...I happen to know a few people."

"Yeah, yeah." Olivia raised an eyebrow; unimpressed by his show of arrogance. "We're all impressed, Mr. Popular. Now run along and find your 'people'," she insisted with air quotes and an eye roll, but I didn't miss the smile in her sparkling brown eyes.

"My Paradigms arrived at the Metropolis yesterday," Finn apprised us. "They'll join us." Finn's Paradigms were nothing short of the fiercest and most talented of the Sons Order.  Although I had never seen them in action, I surely hoped they lived up to the hype.

"You will need more support descended from the Nereid essence itself." Amphitrite looked at Finn pointedly. "As I mentioned before, the protective veil put in place by Thetis ensures only Nereids are allowed access.  So, although your Paradigms will be of help apart from the crux, Stasia and Olivia will require support within the crux itself."

"Then how has Selene gotten access to it?" Olivia brought up a good point.

"We don't know," Amphitrite revealed. "Thetis's veils are extremely powerful and have never before been destroyed, but it is quite evident she has found a way to penetrate it."

This realization left everyone silent, until Olivia came up with the worst idea I'd heard in a long time.

"The Captains."

"Yes!" Finn's blue eyes lit up and my heart filled with dread. "That's perfect."

"No." I put my hands up to stop them from going down that road. "No. I'm not putting innocent lives at risk."

"It could work," Amphitrite considered. "They have our essence, though not wholly."

"The elixir!" Olivia's face lit up. This was getting out of hand.

"No!" I asserted once again, but Olivia ignored me.

"It could fill their essence for a little while!" I could tell her mind was reeling with the possibilities. "It would be long enough to get them into the crux with us!"

"It could work," Amphitrite repeated. "It just might work."

"Which means we could drink it too!" Phoebe celebrated and I watched the same realization flash across Carmen's features as a smile crept its way onto her lips.

"You guys are on my Council," I reminded them with disapproval. "That's completely different! I'm not going to take the Captains to the crux and get them killed!"

"I think you should leave that decision up to them," Olivia retaliated almost harshly.

"I'm not giving them the chance to make a decision," I retorted to everyone in the room.

"Anastasia," Psamanthe spoke. "There comes a time when you must allow those who believe in you and your visions to step up and fulfill their own destinies. You will need help; that is a fact. Whether you agree or not."

I ground my teeth and shook with anger as I began to feel ganged up on. I sighed in defeat, shot a glare at Olivia, and channeled my inner six year-old as I tossed up a wall of defiance. "I'm not talking to them. If you want to send them to their deaths, that's on you. We leave in the morning. Without the Captains," I declared and spun on my heel.

"Stasia, wait!"

I continued walking at the sound of my name. I knew I was acting like the teenager I was, but I didn't care.

"I need to talk to you." Olivia gripped my arm with urgency and I turned to face her. The desperation on her face and something resembling fear in her eyes told me she knew something I didn't, and that something was important. My anger lessened slightly, replaced by concern.

"The library," I answered simply, torn between easing the anxiety tugging her expression down and strangling her. We headed to the main floor of the castle, where a library that would contest the Library of Congress was located. Its extravagance was breathtaking and I could only imagine the depth and age of the texts held within. At three stories tall it required several sliding ladders, multiple spiral staircases, and two full time librarians. It smelled of antiquated pages and worn leather, and felt as welcoming as a roaring fireplace on a cold winter night.

"I saw your name," Olivia confronted me blatantly. "In the Book."

I contemplated whether or not to tell her I had as well. I didn't want her to think I was keeping things from her, although to be fair, I had planned to do just that.

"So did I," I admitted. I felt my body language sag and suddenly felt like I needed to sit down.

"Someone wants to make sure you aren't around much longer."

"I know. Selene will stop at nothing-"

"Selene wasn't the one who wrote your name in that book." Olivia moved closer. "Persephone is the only one who can scribe someone's name."

"Selene must have found a way," I argued. "Persephone already pardoned me once...why would she change her mind so quickly and with no reason?"

"There's more." She chewed on her lip pensively. "Your prophecy as the world knows it...is incomplete."

I was right. Suddenly, I felt extremely claustrophobic and my legs were threatening to give out on me. The air in the library thickened and the walls felt as if they were pressing on my mind like a vice. I grabbed Olivia's hand and headed for the back veranda.

"Where are we going?" she protested.

"I need air," I explained vaguely. "Now." My legs sprouted a mind of their own as I pulled her down the cliff and finally onto the beach below. I fell to my knees and soaked up the feel of the cooling sand supporting me. I flattened my hands and buried them beneath the surface of the sand. It trembled with acknowledgment and I closed my eyes as I felt its welcoming essence rush into me.

After a long moment, I felt as if my lungs had been untied and I sat back with relief. Olivia, who was watching the golden Metropolis shine in the fading light of the sun, turned her attention to me expectantly.

"I had a feeling," I admitted quietly, "...about my prophecy."

"Your mother ensured the ending was destroyed," she disclosed, sending my heart into a downward spiral.

"My mother?" I prompted in shock. I should have known. She was always trying to protect me, even from the Underworld. "But why? Wouldn't that be something I needed to know? It is my prophecy, after all."

"I think she was afraid," she asserted. "My mom told me that it was to be preserved to avoid falling into the wrong hands."

"Preserved?"

"In memory," she explained simply. "Our mothers memorized it, and then destroyed it. Several years ago, when I found out you were to be my Elysian, my mom passed it down to me."

"And no one thought it was important enough to let me in on the secret?" I fumed. I was tired of everyone else knowing more about my life and destiny than I did. Did I not deserve a little bit of control over my life? Did my decisions mean nothing? Was the rest of my life truly scripted no matter what I did? Were none of my choices my own?

"I hoped that by destroying it, it would somehow make it go away." She pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees.

"But now you think it's going to come true," I finished for her.

"It would appear so," she mumbled. I sat up a little straighter and took a deep breath.

"Tell me what it said."

Of golden city, whilst antiquities dream

A scripted promise, its requiem gleans

Sinister chants, of moon and hell

a crux to mourn, her song will tell

Of ancient balance, the whirlpool wanes

A devil's reflection, the dagger hath slain

Left to the ages, her legend shall grow

Our goddess descends, a calling bestowed

"Hard to argue with destiny, I guess," I said with a shrug; a failed attempt at remaining calm. "On the bright side, you'll be off the hook as my Warrior."

"I never would have guessed it, but I love my new life," she admitted with a smile. "What with being immortal, and whatnot. And I guess being attached to you hasn't been the nightmare I thought it would be."

"Nothing like being 'not a nightmare' to build up a girl's self-esteem," I joked.

"That's what I'm here for," she replied with a chuckle. We both turned quiet as we considered our uncertain futures. Or, in my case, the lack thereof. But before my thoughts could turn down an even darker road, I was overcome with a warm essence and a soothing voice in my head.

"Where are you?" Finn implored within my thoughts.

"On the beach with Olivia," I divulged.

"Everything okay?"  I could hear the worry, even through his thoughts.

"Yeah, just needed some air."

"Finn's crashing our little party, isn't he?" Olivia eyed me knowingly.

"How'd you know I was talking to him?"

"Easy," she answered evenly. "I can read your thoughts."

S
TASIA

"You can?" I gasped. Had she been reading my thoughts all this time?

"You are so gullible!" She shook her head with a laugh. "I figured it out by that goofy, lovey-dovey look on your face. Plus he's coming down the stairs." She gestured behind us where Finn was, in fact, coming down the stairs. I pushed her over in the sand, which only made her laugh even harder.

"I hate you." I deflected a shove from Olivia and sent my energy into the sand, hitting her in the face.

"You're supposed to protect her, Olivia, not beat her up," Finn laughed at us.

"She started it." She spit sand out of her mouth with a grunt.

"She's not beating anyone up," I argued stubbornly. "I could take her with my eyes closed."

"I'd like to see you try," she challenged me. I conjured up a wave from the lagoon nearby and stood before moving out of the way just as it crashed over Olivia's legs and into her lap.

"That was a cheap shot!" she yelled at me; pulling at the wet clothes now clinging to her. "And why do they insist on making us wear white? Don't they know what water does to white clothes?"

As she gushed over her clothes, Finn put his arm around me and promptly covered us in a veil; making us invisible to Olivia and the rest of the world. She glanced up at us and her face contorted in anger.

"Also not fair!" she yelled in our general direction. "You can't just sucker punch somebody and then make yourself invisible!"

Finn quickly unveiled us long enough to ask smugly, "What happened to your clothes? They look all wet," he feigned concern before veiling us once more. I was laughing too hard to add anything.

"I hate you both," she growled as she stood and headed to the castle for dry clothes. "Cheaters."

Finn unveiled us and I tried to stop laughing. Olivia made it to the stairs before turning and putting in her last word. "I take it back - you are a nightmare!"

"I love you too, Olivia!" I yelled back at her. It was way too easy to get her riled up.

"She's calling you a nightmare?" Finn gawked.

"She can't help but love me," I proclaimed.

"I know the feeling." He pulled me close and I folded into his strong arms like I'd never left. "The Paradigms are already getting ready. Sean already had a bloody nose when I talked to him a minute ago."

"You guys are gluttons for punishment." I gave him a cynical grin. It amazed me the pain they put themselves through in order to train. The amount of times I'd seen Finn beaten to a pulp were many, and it never got easier. Thankfully he healed much quicker than his brothers.

"Hard to argue with that," he snickered. "No one ever said we were smart; just good fighters."

He playfully jabbed me with his fists, sending me into a fit of giggles as his subpar attempt quickly morphed into a quite effective tickle torture.  I decided to throw out a question; allowing me to talk about what was on my mind without actually talking about it. I knew disclosing my true thoughts wouldn't be a good idea.