10. Necos
10
NECOS
I watch my anima nexum carefully from the moment I enter the room. She’s drained, panicked, and yet, her magicae is still ready. I know her, and I know that an explosion is imminent.
She didn’t do enough when it came to rescuing Etrix to appease the magicae within. She’s still running on adrenaline, still not used to absorbing her magicae back inside of her.
Considering she also matured yesterday, the amount of magicae at her disposal is immense.
“How did she react?” I ask, slowing the time down around Anomus and I. It’s not slow enough that anyone will notice—well, Zoe might have, if she wasn’t so focused on Etrix—but it gives us the cover to talk without being overheard.
Even by the meddling air witch.
“Barely phased her,” he says with a small smile. “She’s perfect.”
I nod, holding in my own feelings. “How much does she know?”
He sighs. “Not as much as I’d like. Etrix’s almost death ruined our introduction.”
I smirk at that. “You should punish him for it.”
Anomus laughs at me before sobering up. “What kept you and Ryes busy?”
“Theran.”
Anomus’s gaze darkens. “I take it he’s not to be trusted?”
I shake my head. “I think you need to have another word with him.”
“Trust me, I’ll have plenty.” Anomus cracks his knuckles, his eyes not straying from where Zoe’s standing.
It’s understandable. He’s waited over twenty years for this moment—to be reunited with his daughter. Sure, biologically, Zoe is Caedos’s daughter, but magicaelly, she’s the child of their bond.
He’s as much her father as he is her uncle.
Although, I don’t think my anima nexum is aware of that fact just yet.
“Etonik is going to be a problem,” I mention.
Anomus laughs darkly. “He’s been a problem since the day he was born. We’ll handle him like we’ll handle everything else. Elzora’s not going to pay the price for the sins of those who are beneath her.”
I roll my eyes. “You think everyone is beneath her.”
And honestly, he’s not wrong. She’s one of the purest people I have ever met, and I still have no fucking idea what fate was thinking giving me someone so… precious .
“Well, I never asked for my daughter to go mating with nine men,” he says bitterly. He crosses his arms, letting out a sigh. “How do you think this is going to go down? Vexus already had to put Zohar to sleep when he found out.”
“Knowing these men, I think their reaction depends on Zoe,” I say, looking over at my anima nexum . “You’re lucky Etonik pulled this shit today, as it gives them a greater enemy than you.”
Another dark laugh, another shadow appearing across his face. Until he blinks, and it disappears. “They’ll be back soon, and I’m worried.”
I can understand it, to a degree. Zoe is… everything. She doesn’t know the depth of my feelings, not really, and she can’t until the danger I pose to her is dealt with.
But Zoe, Elzora , is the one good thing in my life, and I must protect that. Our relationship is not like the one she shares with the others—even Jasper—but despite that, I’m still completely hers in a way that her men cannot ever complain about.
We share the same bond, even if we’re not yet in the same intimate position.
But her father isn’t going to be as easily afforded the same luxuries, and it’s going to break him if he loses her when he’s gotten this close to finally being in her life.
Every move he’s made.
Every single decision.
It all leads to one thing.
Her.
“Elzora,” I call, and her eyes dart to me, her breath growing unsteady.
I hate that tone of voice.
The panicked echo of her thoughts have me internally cursing, but before I can correct it, the stupid air witch pipes up.
“Don’t talk to her like that. She’s not something for you to bark at,” Ryes snaps, giving me the dirtiest look he can muster.
As if not even an hour ago the fucker thanked me for saving his life and offered to return the favour, should it be needed.
Then again, just like Elzora is Anomus’s reason—she’s all of ours. If Ryes was going to stab me in the back for anyone, I can’t argue that it’s for her.
“Yeah, fuck you, Necos,” Etrix adds, sounding almost drugged. I roll my eyes, not even bothering to engage with the high as fuck light witch.
“Maybe not now, but once Zoe’s in bed, we could have some fun with him.”
I smirk at Ryes. “Did you hear how that sounded?”
He gives me a puzzled look, and then cackles as he gathers my meaning.
Anomus glares up at me, and once more, I slow down time, giving us the privacy he needs to lecture me.
“What was that about?” he demands, his eyes flickering between black and blue as he tries to control his temper.
“Zoe didn’t like my tone,” I mutter, and the anger in his eyes causes me to stand a little bit taller.
The rumours about Anomus killing his anima nexum and brother might be incorrect, but that doesn’t mean he’s not completely and utterly worthy of being the number one most wanted man in Mitagus.
Anomus Myxere is dangerous, deadly, and just as obsessed with his daughter’s health, happiness, and heart as every other psychopath in her harem.
I don’t want to be on his shit list for hurting her—especially when it truly was accidental.
“Then don’t use that tone with her.”
“Trust me, you’ll fit right in with her men, as soon as they get over you being a criminal,” I mutter, dropping the time lapse, as he grins.
“Elzora, how are the others doing?” I ask, trying to use a nicer tone whilst keeping my distance from her. I’m the one facing the most scrutiny from her dad right now, and I refuse to be an obstacle in their relationship.
“They’re fine,” she says quietly. I hate the feeling of her sadness inside of me, and I know that this entire situation is wearing on her.
After maturing yesterday, her emotions are completely dysregulated. She’s got to adapt to the biological changes her body has gone through, and it’s rough.
But adding in the death threats, the tension, and the high-emotion situations, it’s no wonder she’s struggling as much as she is. You’re meant to take it easy after a maturing, at least for the first few days as you regulate… and Zoe’s been thrown in the deep end with no life raft.
My poor, poor, precious love.
Cor meum, anima mea, vita mea.
“They’re together, mostly having fun. Zohar’s tired but amused, but Jasper and Mael are having a very good time. They’re competing, maybe. Ciar’s furious but using whatever he’s doing as some kind of therapy, and Eirik is calm.”
“They’ll be handling the situation I got entangled in,” Etrix says, sounding far less drugged up as the healers all finally move away.
They’re drained, and after a nod from Anomus, they leave the room. We’re alone now, and the light witch is safe, but Zoe still won’t let go of him.
She’s making me nervous, her energy haywire as her anxiety takes hold of her.
“Your dad trying to kill you isn’t really a situation you got yourself entangled in, son,” Anomus says, giving him a wry look.
Etrix moans. “Don’t call me son when I want to—” I wave my hand, cutting off the inappropriate thought I just know he was going to say.
“You should’ve let him hang himself,” Ryes says, shaking his head at me.
“And how would that have gone when Anomus got frustrated? He and Zoe deserve the chance to have a relationship.”
“She deserves the chance to have a dad,” Ryes says, and I nod in agreement.
Zoe asks how Ryes is doing, and I take that time to relax ever so slightly. I’ve expended a lot of power tonight, and I don’t think I’m going to have the time I need to recharge properly.
Tonight has been extremely risky for me when I’ve got so many covers that I’m trying to —so many lies and personas that I’m upholding.
Sometimes, it’s hard to remember why I’m doing this shit, when all it seems to be doing is keeping me from my precious Zoe.
My metamours are all completely impulsive and don’t seem to give a fuck about the roles I’m playing and helping me keep those secrets, as was shown tonight by Ryes’s intrusive behaviour. He nearly blew my cover three times tonight, and the torn shoulder was the only way that kept my life with Theran intact.
Etonik has sent me a message to contact him, likely regarding the truth bomb that Eirik has dropped about Zoe’s lineage, meaning that’s another situation I need to navigate, and tonight, if possible.
Secos, Etonik’s time witch advisor and my mentor, has been pestering me for a few days now, and I know that he’s going to be furious if Etonik tells him about Zoe before I have the chance to, so I need to visit him before I can get to Etonik.
Anomus has outed himself to Zoe, and so I need to be here to rein him in and make sure everything runs correctly. Vexus is far too indulgent, and after nearly dying, Etrix isn’t going to be of any fucking use.
And, of course, my fucking sister has reached out, demanding my support for her latest shit show idea that I know will cause me too much shit to refuse.
I’m playing up the position each person expects of me, but it’s not going to last much longer if the other players in the game refuse to play, too.
I tune back in as Zoe shrieks at the appearance of Ciar. He’s healthy and unharmed, which is another good sign. Zoe tries to interject in the teasing between the two equilstrilax but it stops when the rest of her bonded arrive.
They’re a little more roughed up than Ciar, and I’m not sure where the team is that would’ve been sent to go with them. Vex probably sent them away if they weren’t hurt, but the protocol is that they should be checked over by a healer.
Anomus won’t be pleased—when he remembers the rest of the world exists outside of his daughter.
“Did anyone see you?” Anomus asks, giving Vexus a concerned look.
The soul witch cockily nods but reassures Anomus anyway. “Don’t worry, though. Dark witch over there killed them all.”
“All of them?” Anomus asks, raising a brow at Ciar, who doesn’t even bat an eyelid at the tone.
“Didn’t I tell you not to act like you’re in charge?” Mael sneers, but nobody replies to him. Mael has a temper, but he’s easily convinced and moves on.
Ryes never really cares and probably already knew from one of our minds. Zohar will follow Eirik’s lead, and Jasper will probably demand answers but not be too concerned.
Anomus’s real problems when it comes to injecting himself into his daughter’s life are: Ciar and Eirik.
“All of them,” Ciar says, and his tone is so calm it’s almost chilling. “If it wasn’t for Zoe, Etrix would be dead. If it wasn’t for those dark witches, then neither of them would’ve been in that position.”
He stares Anomus down, his eyes darkening as he pulls on his primordium . “You know what it’s like, Anomus, don’t you? We’ve got to protect what’s ours.”
Ryes interjects with a joke as the group start to tease each other, but Anomus and Ciar don’t break from their stare down. I don’t know what’s going on between them, but it’s building, and I know sooner or later?—
Fuck .
What seems like a gold flash bomb fills the room, and I’m launched back from where I was standing. My body slams into the wall, holding me there.
I’m not the only one hit if the groans are anything to go by.
“Zoe,” I shout, slowing time to try and give Ryes the chance to catch her, but it’s too fucking late. The gold disappears, and I’m dropped to the ground. It wasn’t because she regained control of her magicae.
No, it’s because my soul mate has split her head open and is laid in a pool of her own blood on the floor.
“Fuck,” Anomus gasps, as Ryes gently lifts her from the floor and places her onto the examination bed next to him with his magicae. He bends down and takes her glasses off, putting them in his pocket.
Etrix jumps up, but Zohar’s faster as he makes his way to her side.
“Clean that blood up,” I command, and Mael moves to do it without being explicitly told. “Vex, do your job and calm the place down. I don’t know what, if anything, anyone outside of this room felt, but we want it kept under wraps.”
He’s pale from seeing Zoe laid out like that, but the moment he pulls on his magicae, he gains some of his colour back. The thing about soul witches is that, for them to replenish their magicae, they’ve got to connect with other souls.
For a fire witch, they need to engage with fire.
A light witch spends time in the sun, a dark witch with the moon.
We’ve all got ways in nature that rebalance us and rejuvenate us.
For Vexus, he’s got the biggest power source ever: Elzora.
“She’s fine,” Zohar reassures us, brushing her hair out of her face. “Her magicae is already healing her.”
“She’s full of energy,” Eirik comments, his icy grey eyes not moving from where Zoe’s still body lays.
“You know how she reacts to us and how it’s been more intense since the maturing,” Ryes says, giving Ciar a warning look. “Get over your shit with Anomus, or?—”
“He’s not the only one with a problem with Anomus,” Eirik says darkly. He spins around and gives the dark witch a dirty look. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing here?”
Anomus rises from the chair, not backing down to the elemental prince. The air thickens, the tension rises, and my eyes rapidly dart between Anomus, Eirik, and Zoe.
Even unconscious, I have no doubt that she’ll sense the disturbance in the room, and she’s my priority.
“What do I think I’m doing here?” he asks, rolling his eyes. “We all know I’m the founder of this organisation. Where would you expect me to be?”
“As far away from my anima nexum as possible,” Eirik replies, cracking his knuckles.
“But as we all know, little princeling,” Vexus drawls, moving over to Anomus’s side as he makes it clear where he stands in this show down, “Anomus has every right to be around his daughter .”
“Daughter?” Mael demands, fury filling his face.
Eirik’s nostrils flare, as Ryes’s eyes widen. I don’t know what he’s hearing or from who, but he relaxes, immediately unbothered about the situation, as expected.
Jasper uses the commotion to move over next to Zohar and to sit down beside Zoe’s bedside. I wish I could do the same, that I could let my guard down and be there near her, but I’ll just have to trust that she’s in good hands.
“A child from a bonded union is the child of everyone in the bond,” Eirik says slowly, piecing together the context. “You never killed them.”
“I never killed them,” Anomus says with a firm nod. “Elzora is the one thing that kept me sane the day that Exsern died, and she has been the entire reason I’ve kept growing this operation.”
Eirik lets out a heavy sigh, shooting Etrix a dirty look. “Your secrets really are the bane of my life.”
Etrix shrugs. “Don’t worry, brother, your existence is the bane of my life.”
“Right now, you’re both the bane of mine,” Jasper says dryly. I smirk at the earth witch, but he’s not looking my way. I frown at the tightness in his face, the darkness in his eyes.
There’s something wrong with him.
“You left her,” Ciar says, crossing his arms in front of his chest, completely unbothered by Anomus’s declaration.
“I protected her.”
Ciar snorts, stepping around Mael to come toe-to-toe with Anomus. “No, you didn’t. You left her. You abandoned her. You?—”
“Both need to calm down,” I interject, giving the dark witches in the room warning looks and gesturing to where Zoe’s lying. Her hands are glowing gold as she feeds off the tension in the room.
Her magicae is likely warring between protecting her anima nexum and protecting the last living member of her family.
Fuck, my heart has been dealt a rough hand.
“I did what I had to do so she would have a future.” Anomus’s protest seems weak, and Eirik and I exchange looks.
“If this goes south…” He trails off, his eyes flickering to Anomus. I nod firmly. Vexus is the problem.
“I’ve got Vexus,” Ryes promises, and both Eirik and I give him a dirty look.
Ciar sneers, tendrils of dark smoke surrounding him. “And in the process, Anomus , you abandoned her. The only person Zoe had in her life was Margaret, and now she’s all alone. You left your child in a fucking alien world where she was alone —it doesn’t matter why.”
Anomus’s face drops, but he nods his head. “And I don’t expect her forgiveness for that, Ciar. I know that her suffering was my failure.”
His voice cracks, and Eirik’s gaze softens. It’s easy to see now that the elemental witch is not going to oppose Anomus’s relationship with Zoe.
Everything else they’ll probably clash on, but in this area, they’re safe.
“Oh, you won’t even need to ask for that,” Ciar scoffs, stepping closer, and I can feel how evil the energy from him is.
We’re all on edge, nobody sure how to intervene, and the only one who could—other than Zoe, of course—is the drugged out Etrix. He’s floating through the fucking atmosphere it seems.
Ryes snorts.
“She’s too fucking kind,” Ciar says. “She’d never even consider that forgiveness is something you’d have to get. She’d never blame you for it.”
The ‘even when she should’ is left unsaid.
My eyes are once more darting between the three of them, scared Zoe’s power might explode out of her once more. So far, she’s settled.
“He loves her, too, Ciar,” Etrix says, and the dreamy tone has me snickering into my fist, alongside Ryes. Eirik’s lips twitch in amusement, but Mael’s staring stony faced.
“You can shut your mouth on this topic,” Ciar warns, not looking away from Anomus. “This is between Anomus and I.”
“Well, sorry, Big Daddy, but I tried,” Etrix says with a shrug as he lies back down on his bed. Jasper laughs this time, and I wasn’t even aware he was paying attention to us.
“I won’t be calling you Big Daddy,” Ryes warns, and he manages to crack Vexus into the joking. “But I can see your side of things. I’d make sure you talk to her properly, though, because she’s been really confused about how you didn’t go crazy like Grius did.”
“She’s worried about my mental health?” Anomus asks, his tone showing his surprise.
“Who is Grius?” Mael demands, giving Anomus a dirty look for speaking.
Eirik and I both give Mael the same ‘back down’ look that gets ignored. Hm. I quite like being on the same side as Eirik and being able to work as a team.
“Some random witch whose mate died,” Ryes says as delicately as he can. Which is not even a little bit.
“His anima nexum was murdered in the field,” I say calmly. “And Grius has been struggling. Zoe’s helped him massively by not only relaying messages for him and his mate but by identifying their third.”
“Our soul-finding soul witch,” Ryes says cheerfully. “If I had that ability, I’d have so much fun.”
“Imagine the shit we could cause,” Mael adds with a laugh.
“And that’s why you’re not soul witches,” I say dryly. “Neither of you have souls pure enough.”
“Don’t worry, Vexxy Baby, we know you’re not of pure soul,” Ryes taunts, and the soul witch laughs.
“Thank you for the warning. I’ll make sure that my daughter and I are on the same page with that,” Anomus says, directing his words to Ryes, and I can hear the pout in his words. I have to hide my smile to not enrage the already frustrated dark witch.
Anomus adjusts his stance, meeting every eye one by one. “I know that you’re all unaware of what we truly do here and that today has been dramatic, but I’d like to welcome you to our place and to get you caught up to speed.”
Ciar looks him up and down, the disdain clear to see, and it is obvious that he’s still not backing down. “You owe me a conversation, Anomus. You don’t have my respect, and trust me—you will want to earn it.”
I watch as the darkness seems to fade from Ciar, the smoke and shadows disappearing, as he moves to Zoe’s side. He takes her golden hand in his, and I’d kill to have access to her magicae to see how his soul looks right now.
Anomus watches with intrigue, seeing the difference in Ciar with his daughter, and I know that he’s impressed.
“He’s not,” Ryes says and shrugs at my shock. “He’s sad about his dead mate.”
“Our soulmate’s mother,” Eirik cuts in with a stern reminder.
“I personally think you’re an asshole,” Mael says, probably to dispel some of the tension. “But I think that about every man in this room, so, you know. When do I get the tour of this place?”
“Well that was not what I expected, fire witch,” Anomus says before getting cut off by Jasper’s excitement about the training rooms. They dissolve into a conversation, and Eirik moves to my side, gesturing towards Anomus.
“Privacy?” the royal asks, and I don’t hesitate in surrounding us in another time bubble. This one is more targeted so that we’ll look like we’re trapped in time whilst we can easily see what the others are doing to keep track of Zoe.
“Don’t worry, Eirik, Ciar and I will find our balance,” Anomus says. “I understand his point, and it’s something that only dark witches will truly be able to understand. We’re jaded in a way that others are not.”
Eirik rolls his eyes. “I’m glad, but Ciar’s not the problem I care much about right now. He’s obsessed with Zoe and won’t ever risk damaging her happiness by ruining the relationship she could have with you.”
“Oh.” Anomus looks quite pleased.
“Once we make sure that the castle is safe, we’ll be taking Zoe back home. She needs time to process, and…” he trails off, and I can sense his embarrassment.
“Be with her bonded,” I supply, trying to ignore the smirk from Anomus. It’ll be a fun thing to try and navigate.
“Let her recharge, and we can talk tomorrow,” Anomus offers. He looks at me. “What can we do to help with your workload?”
“Priority should be visiting Secos tonight and filling him in before dealing with my dad,” Eirik says, and I sigh, knowing he heard my thoughts. I focused on blocking Ryes, not the elemental witch. “They both need to be done tonight.”
I sigh, looking over at Zoe with a hint of pain. Once again, I can’t be here for her.
“I know.”
Eirik turns to Anomus. “Tonight, you need to figure out what you’re going to tell Zoe. We’ve got so much she’s still unaware of, and she likes the drip feed approach.”
“No, she hates the drip feed approach,” I correct. “But she needs the drip feed approach to stop her getting overwhelmed.”
“The drip feed approach?”
“Little and often. She’s a fiend for knowledge,” Eirik says with a grin. He almost softens as he takes in Anomus’s longing look. “Zoe’s smart, kind, and pure. All she has ever wanted to do is to help people and be the best person she can. She loves to learn just for the sake of learning.
“She’s curious about the world and all the things it can offer and brings such a unique perspective to it. She’s dedicated and focused. You’ve missed out on her life, and it’s going to be hard, but know that she will put that same energy into you .
“She’s anxious, a little awkward, and might struggle to process it all, but she will accept you as family. Ciar was right when he said that Zoe won’t expect you to earn forgiveness or to apologise. In her mind, you’ll have done exactly what was right, and that’s that.”
Anomus nods, keeping up the strong facade, but I know he appreciates Eirik’s words.
I grin. “Eirik’s correct about all her positive qualities. But she’s also stubborn, a perfectionist, and has a terrible habit of peacekeeping, even if it means ignoring her own wants.”
“That’s true,” Eirik says with a nod. “She’s also pretty hard on herself.”
“Terribly hard on herself,” I say with a sigh. It’s endearing to a degree, but it’s hard to watch how much pressure she puts on herself when it’s not needed.
“I want to know my child,” Anomus says quietly. “And I will take into account the drip feeding of information when it comes to her.”
“You mentioned the prophecy,” I say, giving Eirik a concerned look. “Are you worried about it?”
“I think that the time for it is coming and sooner than we had thought.”
And on that ominous note, I drop the time bubble because our attention was called for. Eirik guides the group into doing their tasks so that they can make sure the castle is secure for getting our mate home, and I prepare myself for going to deal with Secos.
Zoe’s maturing has changed things, and fast, but the good thing about being a time witch is that the future is literally in my hands.