Chapter Three

“Naddie!” Amy exclaimed, embracing Nadia tightly.

She brought Nadia and Gabriel over to the living room, where Ray and Eli waited. As soon as he saw Nadia, Eli leapt to his feet and enfolded her in a large hug. Nadia closed her eyes and buried her face into his shoulder, relishing the feeling of comfort she always got when near him. She vaguely was aware of Amy yelling at Gabriel, and the tall, sullen man ignoring her as he put on a fresh shirt.

“Are you okay?” Eli asked without letting her go.

“I’m fine,” Nadia assured him.

She pushed away from him and gazed at her friends. Eli’s eyes were shining with unshed tears as he smiled at her. Ray stood with his arms over his chest, but his green eyes were full of concern. Amy was fussing around, glancing over at Nadia every so often with hesitant eyes. Gabriel, once again dressed in a pale yellow shirt, leaned against the wall with his eyes closed and his arms over his chest. They were all acting rather suspicious, far from their usual behaviour. Nadia could tell they all knew something she didn’t.

“I’m a little confused,” Nadia said. “Why were the priests of Kaos so concerned with my birthmark, and how did Gabriel bring me here so fast? Or even know where I was?”

They all avoided meeting her eyes. Nadia stared at them all with growing realization and turned to Eli, the one she knew would tell her the truth.

“This was all planned, wasn’t it?” she asked. “You knew I would be taken by the priests once they saw my mark. How long have you known them, Eli? Longer than me? Did you meet me because of this plan?”

Eli looked hurt. “I’ve known you all for countless years.”

“Countless years?” Nadia replied. “We met Amy, Ray, and Gabriel three years ago, when we started at this university. I was with you when they introduced themselves to us!”

“I’d met them before,” Eli admitted softly.

Nadia stared at him in horror and took a step backwards. Eli looked as if he had been struck and hung his head.

“How much of our friendship has been a lie?” Nadia demanded. “Are you really Elias Cain? Did you really grow up in my town?”

“This is going well,” Ray muttered.

“Let me explain,” Amy interrupted, saving Eli from answering. “Sit down, Naddie. This might be hard to take.”

Nadia sat down and waited expectantly. Amy took a deep breath and glanced at her companions for support. Ray shrugged and Eli was staring miserably at Nadia, who was ignoring his pleading glances.

“Where to begin,” Amy sighed. “Let’s start with your birthmark. Every few hundred years, someone is born with a star shaped mark on their body. This marks them as the reincarnation of Noctis.”

“Ridiculous,” Nadia said. “The immortal goddess cannot die. How can a god be reincarnated?”

“Noctis has been dead for quite some time,” Gabriel said.

“She was turned mortal thousands of years ago when Kaos absorbed most of her powers,” Ray said angrily. “Kaos and all those lousy traitors killed her.”

Nadia shook her head. “Kaos is worshipped with Noctis. She is his divine consort.”

Ray snorted in laughter. Amy shot him a dirty look.

“Just pretend, for sake of argument, that was we’re saying is true,” Amy sighed.

“Okay, fine,” Nadia agreed with growing irritation. “I’m the reincarnation of an immortal goddess whose powers were stolen by a god a thousand years ago.”

“Noctis wasn’t just any goddess,” Eli piped up. “She was the goddess, the one who chose the gods of dark and taught them everything they know.”

“Wow,” Nadia said without conviction. “So if I’m the goddess, what does that make you guys?”

“Ray, Eli, and I are all gods of light, taught by your sister, Lucis,” Amy explained. “When Kaos made you mortal, we sent Lucis away and swore to protect you.”

“Why didn’t Lucis chase Kaos away, if she was one of the goddesses too?” Nadia asked, becoming interested in the story in spite of herself.

Gabriel shook his head. “She could not.”

“Kaos stole three of her disciples, along with three of yours,” Ray said bitterly. “They scattered us, and Lucis didn’t have enough power to stand against seven of them armed with your stolen powers.”

Nadia shook her head. “That’s a great story, guys, but I don’t buy it. I’ve been worshipping Kaos and Noctis my whole life, and now you’re telling me I’ve been praying to my enemy and myself?”

Amy shrugged. “Kind of.”

“And now the priests of Kaos want to kill me so I don’t resurrect my powers?”

“Seems that way.”

Nadia laughed. Amy looked shocked and Eli surprised. Ray rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Eli is a god?” Nadia giggled. “Of what? Tripping?”

Eli straightened , his pride injured. “I’m a sun-god. Helios.”

Nadia raised an eyebrow. “Sorry. Never heard of him.”

“That’s because Kaos won’t allow any god to be worshipped except himself,” Ray explained.

“Okay, then who are you?” Nadia asked her red haired friend.

“Ra,” Ray said, “god of the sun and life.”

Nadia grinned and turned to Amy, raising an eyebrow inquiringly.

“Amaterasu,” she said, “also a sun-goddess.”

Gabriel opened one eye as the room quieted and all eyes turned to him. He closed his eye again and sighed. “Gabriel.”

“No, your god name,” Nadia insisted.

“That is my name.”

Nadia shrugged and rose to her feet, the unbelieving smile still on her face. “Well, my divine friends, I don’t know how you thought up this crazy story, but I’ve had enough excitement for one day. I need to go to the temple and do my penance, and apologize to the high priest.”

“No!” Eli exclaimed. “You can’t go to the temple anymore.”

“You can’t stop me from worshipping,” Nadia snapped. “I don’t believe this ridiculous story, Eli, and I’m sad that you do. I thought I knew you.”

“It doesn’t matter if you believe or not,” Amy said. “We believe, and the priests believe. Kaos believes, and that puts you in danger.”

“Kaos wouldn’t hurt me,” Nadia insisted. “I’m a loyal follower, and Noctis would intervene on my behalf.”

Ray rolled his eyes. “You are Noctis!”

“I can’t stop going to church,” Nadia cried. “I won’t! I always feel better after the service, revived and energized.”

“Because all those people are praying to you,” Amy explained gently. “If you must go, go in disguise. Pray to your former disciples to forsake Kaos and join you once more.”

Nadia blinked in confusion. The other light gods all nodded in agreement to the plan.

“Who could she pray too?” Ray asked. “Not like any of them will listen, anyway.”

“Hodur?” Eli suggested.

Amy smiled broadly. “Hodur was always a softie for Noctis, wasn’t he?”

Gabriel shook his head. “Hodur was the first. He will not return.”

“What about Artemis?” Amy suggested. “She was the last to turn. We never did figure out why, either.”

“Artemis?” Nadia repeated. An image of a smiling young woman with brown hair and a crescent shaped tiara on her head appeared in her mind. The woman was laughing and running through a field, a few hunting dogs on her heels.

“I’ll go with her,” Ray offered.

“I can go alone,” Nadia assured them. “I don’t need to be babysat.”

“Yes, you do,” Gabriel said. “You must always be with one of us.”

“It’s our duty to protect you,” Amy agreed.

“I’ll join you for next week’s service,” Ray insisted. “I’ll pick you up.”

*~*~*~*

Eli walked Nadia home in silence, feeling uncomfortable with her for the first time since they had been children. Having Nadia accuse him of lying, accuse him of falsifying their friendship, hurt him deeply. He was forced to admit that it was partially true. He had been placed in her town to guard her originally, going through yet another lifecycle in order to find Noctis. As they grew older, becoming her friend had come so naturally to him that he often forgot who they both really were. He sighed deeply.

“How long has this gone on?” Nadia asked suddenly.

Eli was taken slightly aback. “What?”

“You said you knew everyone for countless years,” she repeated. “How long have you been doing this? Looking for Noctis, I mean?”

“Ever since we sent Lucis away,” Eli replied sadly. “We hid, regained our strength, and started searching for the mortal Noctis. Her original form didn’t last long after Kaos took her power, but Lucis made sure her spirit would not die.”

Nadia digested this information silently. “So, how many times has Noctis been reborn?”

“You are the fourth that we’ve been able to find,” he answered softly.

“And they’ve all fought Kaos?”

Eli sighed. “The first tried to fight. We got the farthest with her. She was captured and tortured by Kaos, sacrificing her life to keep him from getting her powers. The second died of an illness before our quest could begin.”

He paused for a moment, tears coming to his eyes. Nadia stopped beside him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“You watched them all?” she asked gently.

He nodded. “I lived in their villages. It was easy to convince the first to fight, we were all so happy to have found her, we never even considered defeat. The second died when she was twelve. She was like a sister to me.”

Nadia could not fathom passing through lifetimes in search of a single person, only to have them die. It seemed even more strange that these forgotten women would be remembered, and hundreds of years later, a god would shed a tear for them.

“And the third?” Nadia asked, hating to push further but needing to know.

Eli’s face grew hard, the tears on his cheeks were angrily wiped away and he began to walk briskly again. Nadia hurried to match is long stride.

“She turned on us,” he replied shortly.

Nadia decided not to press the issue. The silence grew around them again as they hurried down the deserted street. Eli was lost in memory, his expression softening as he revisited the past. They stopped outside Nadia’s door and Eli smiled at her. She was instantly reminded of a fifteen year-old Elias, standing up to his knees in a swampy pond, triumphantly holding her lost hat. The joy of the image stabbed cruelly in her heart as she realized it was not the same memory for him. She was just another Noctis to protect.

“Good night,” he said simply. “I hope you can sleep after all this.”

Nadia grinned and rolled her eyes. “I’ll be fine. Tomorrow’s Saturday, so I can sleep in if I have to.”

Eli took her hand in his and held it tightly. She lifted her dark eyes to stare into his light ones.

“Trust only us,” he said urgently. “Trust your instincts and stay on guard. The church will want to stop you before your powers awaken.”

“My powers?” Nadia repeated.

Eli smiled and pulled her into a tight hug. “Stay safe,” he told her. “I’ll come by tomorrow morning.”

He let her go and walked down the path leading to the street, pausing at the sidewalk. Nadia had not moved from the spot, watching Eli intently.

“I loved growing up with you,” he said after a moment. “I don’t want you to think otherwise. I wanted to spare you this task if I could. I hope you can forgive me.”

He waved and continued down the street. Nadia stared after him until he was lost from view, raising her own hand once he was gone. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and slipped into her house, locking the door firmly behind her.

*~*~*~*

Eli walked swiftly down the dark road, his thoughts wandering deeply into his past. He remembered Sarah, the girl with the midnight black hair always tied in twin braids trailing down her back. He had not wanted to put her through the strain of becoming the goddess, anymore than he wanted to expose Nadia. She had been so eager to play the roll of Noctis that they had all be certain Kaos would fall. Then there was Katherine, who had died as a child without realizing her potential. Finally Rachel, who had been the most eager of them all.

“Mr. Cain?”

Eli glanced up and noticed two burly men in black suits standing in front of him. Behind them was a black car that sat with its lights off and engine idling.

“Come with us,” one of the men ordered.

“Sorry,” Eli told them, stepping back, “but it’s late and I need to go home.”

The man smiled. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Mr. Cain.”

His companion had struck Eli in the stomach before the sentence was completed. All the air rushed from his lungs and he crumpled to the ground. Eli rolled onto his back, gasping, and had enough time to notice the crescent moon before a foot connected sharply with his temple and the world shifted quickly into darkness.