3.71 You'll Soon Forget

         Orius was easier to capture than Nolan, all the gods had to do was inform him that Nolan had been imprisoned for his crimes and that he was to go up to the tower and talk some sense into him. Like Sapparu, the King of Solaria, Orius and Nolan suddenly found themselves dethroned and locked away, kept alive for their minds, their knowledge and procreation. From kings to slaves without a drop of blood shed, they had fallen victim to the Firmary wrath, yet still lived a life of luxury compared to the struggling lives in Lemuria. And unlike Sapparu they were living above ground, awarded a private turret at the corner of the palace, a room with a view, each day they could marvel at the beauty of the world of which they could no longer be a part of. Only Nolan's success would grant them freedom once again and hopes were running out fast.

         "There's only one individual who could have taken it" Nolan was sure he knew where the gold had ended up, irritated by the pressure he was now under. Learning that the freedom of the lofty god he once worshipped so highly depend on him, only added to the stress he was already under.

         "History is repeating" Orius taunted, bitter, he was having trouble adjusting to his new life as a prisoner without a crime, not to mention being at the mercy of Nolan's intelligence.

         "It's in Kergal" Nolan insisted. "It was Vikkar, I know it was! He's the one who knew about the secret gold shipments to Ebar, they knew what was going on, his Nefilim stole it while we were all distracted by the Lunies! I’ll bet they carried it down to the ship in their gravel carts! In plain sight!!!"

         "The Lunies?"

         "The Farewell Celebration!" Nolan was convinced it was Vikkar the more he thought about it. "That's why Vikkar's savages crashed the party, didn't you see his Nefilim with their gravel carts going up and down Main St all day? That's how the heist took place! Right in front of our distracted eyes!"

         "I wasn't there" Orius reminded. "Look on the bright side" he offered. "Doctor Seton's got your back, even though he keeps you locked up. Look at you! You’re not dead! He's obviously giving you a second chance!"

         "Sending me to Lemuria is hardly giving me a second chance" Nolan hissed.

         "Dell thinks it will launch your career as king."

         "And whose side is Dell on?" Nolan was overwhelmed in general, even without the gold heist, his arrival in Ebar had revealed levels of deception above and beyond his comprehension, he was in over his head. "First we risk our lives to save his life, then he turns on us like this? What happened? I missed the turn off for fuck's sake!"

         Orius knew the truth. "He used us both. Why do you think you were even selected to be a god? Do you really believe it was because you were so... Desirable?"

         "Fuck you!" Nolan snapped. "I'm not stupid, you know."

         "You forgot to inspect the cargo ship before your fleet left the airport" Orius reminded. "That's pretty stupid."

         "I did that on purpose!" Nolan wasn't calming, he was growing more upset, now convinced that Mel was somehow involved. "I didn't forget!"

         "You deliberately didn't check the cargo?" Orius was lost, he couldn't believe that such an intelligent mind could be so stupid at the same time. "And how about all the cool things we made, the machinations I spent my whole life inventing? Not a single thing was sent here for backup in case things went wrong with your exponential potential bomb? No books, no prototypes, mighty Medel Nolan, after coordinating such a potentially destructive operation, you display a rare form of stupidity if I may say, you'd better start praying those storage bunkers held out!"

         The god of Death had brought joy once more to the Crystal Temple. Inspired to celebrate, the survivors cleared the stage and set up to play once again, their instruments, battered and bruised, still made beautiful harmonies and their sounds together, still filled the hall with feelings of hope and love, inspiring reason to keep fighting. Battered and bruised, the gods of Music paled in comparison to the magical musicians they were at the Farewell Celebration, yet even still, their music was powerful, even more powerful than before, filling aching hearts with passionate feelings, giving them the words to say so that they could go on without their lost, loved ones. Late into the night the survivors celebrated, chasing the longing and sadness away. The dance floor sprung to life, love and laughter was contagious, Moonwine was plentiful, even in these treacherous times, through music and love, joy could be revived.

         The transformation was incredible. Bell was beginning to understand what happened at the Farewell Celebration, no doubt this music thing was real Sorcery, this was exactly why it was regulated in the Atlan Empire! Music had the power to ignite all kinds of things! He scanned the room, they all fell for the spell the same way.... Even Adon was swaying like a grass in the breeze...

         Full of good vibrations and brand new dreams, Adon was finally learning what all the fuss was about as he danced in Min's arms, trying to discern whether it was the music or the female that was filling him with tingly feelings, feelings he had never felt before. Was this sensation marketable?

         As the night wore on, the dance floor thinned out and tired, happy bodies slipped away for some sleep. Mina and Neter took a seat by the fire to watch the last band play. From the hearth they had a perfect view of Min and Adon, intertwined on the dance floor.

         "They're inter-breeding, you know"  Mina finally raised her concerns, Min's selection had raised an unpleasant debate inside. Adon had shown little remorse for what he had done and it troubled her very deeply, even more so that it wasn't bothering Min. "Do you think they will be okay?"

         "I'm sure they'll be fine" Neter replied. "Why wouldn't they be? We haven't had any problems with interbreeding Gens before. We need to rebuild the tribe."

         "I don't mean that, I mean the mixing of the minds" she clarified. "These refugees never had to face Aquilla, there are as many of them as there are Lemurians now, how many of them are Archonic? They're bonding with us in family ways and we have no idea who they are."

         "They are our nieces and nephews!" Neter reminded, passionately, he knew what was troubling her. "They'll adjust to our ways" he assured, "buried in their genes they remember this place like home, buried in their minds they know bloodshed is wrong. Here, their Archons are still outnumbered and will eventually be snuffed out."

         Mina knew it was probably true, the refugees had come to Anur because they had chosen to, they were grateful to be alive, they had to have some element of a Phoenix Flame inside. She let out a heavy sigh.

         "I'm sure they just need some time" he put his arm around her, took her hand and kissed it tenderly, gazing into her beautiful eyes he could see Forever. "They're playing a ballad... Would you care to dance with a lame old man?"

         Dena watched Nina tending to Europa, wondering now if she was actually enjoying all that work or just pretending to. There was no doubt in her mind, she was carrying a child and the reality was a much harder pill to swallow than she had given thought, she was beginning to regret her haste. Troubled, she made her way to the kitchen, only to pass by Zara, tucking Cane into his bed. She had tried to picture herself caring for a child, it made her nervous just thinking about it. Struggling with the mounting fears, Zara was suddenly a source of comfort for her, assurance that she would be okay. She paused by the makeshift crib for some assurance.

         "Does it hurt?"
         "Does what hurt?" Distracted by her boy, Zara barely noticed her troubled friend.

         "Childbirth. You were a Cow Goddess, weren’t you?"

         Zara had worked hard to forget the horror her childbirth experience had been, but Dena's questions made her think again. Surely Dena was contemplating it, if she wasn’t already pregnant, why else would she ask? She glanced around the temple, there were lots of goddesses hoping to start families, she tried to translate her own personal experience and picture it here, even in this wretched world it couldn't compare to the horrors of the Moha Lab.

         "Oh, I'm sorry Sugar Cheeks, I guess you had a bad experience at the Moha Lab? Oh gosh that must have been just awful! I remember now. Actually, it was twice, wasn't it?"

         Broken into so many pieces, it was impossible to break any more. Zara let Dena's painful words float past as she gazed into Cane's eyes, he was so beautiful, so innocent. Why did he fall into her life? She couldn't help but wonder about the coincidence, the magical blessing he had become. Somehow throughout all this devastation she had been blessed with a child that needed her love, she had been given a second chance, a chance to fill the empty void in her heart. She pulled the covers close around him, stroked his head and kissed his forehead, already loving him as if he was her own.

         "Trust me" she assured with a smile. "You'll soon forget all about the pain!"