Chapter Ten #2
She glanced around in stunned silence, trying to make sense of everything that had happened.
Somewhere beyond the thick wall of pale pink clouds was the prison where Mordecai had been held captive.
She knew it was still there, concealed from view just as it had been before.
However, there was no sign of the shoreline, so they must have been far away from land.
She heard Mordechi exhale as he was released from whatever trance he’d been under, then she let out a squeak of surprise when his arms tightened around her, and he lifted her off her feet.
She felt his big body trembling against her as he buried his face against her neck, and she moved her hands over his back in soothing strokes.
“What the fuck, Lana? I thought I’d lost you. I fucking felt you stop breathing, then…the magical source—”
“It chose us,” she cut in. “I don’t know how or why, but it transformed us into gods.”
“That makes no sense.”
He pulled back enough to glare at her, then his expression changed to one of absolute reverence. Slowly setting her down on her feet again, he reached up to brush the backs of his fingers against her cheek.
“You are glorious, mate,” he said softly. “The same, yet different.”
She knew exactly what he was talking about because she could see just how much their magical upgrade had changed him.
His bronze eyes glowed as bright as twin suns, and his short black hair was now long enough to spill down his back in a silky waterfall.
Her eyes widened as she noticed her own long locks were now a shimmering white blonde color that was as luminous as a pearl.
“Are my eyes glowing?”
He nodded. “The loveliest shade of blue I have ever seen.”
Stroking a hand down his chest, she admired the set of purple and black robes he was wearing.
It looked the same as in their shared dream, but the color and silver threading seemed more vibrant as it glittered in the moonlight.
She was dressed in a similar set of robes.
The only difference was her were mostly purple, while his were mostly black.
“So, we are gods now?” Mordecai asked. “How the fuck is this even possible?”
“I guess you could say it was destined.”
Lana gasped as the sound of a familiar voice came from behind them. She spun around to see Gildor, Consort to the Queen of Fairies, standing a few feet away. His lips curved in a slight smile, and he bowed his head slightly in greeting.
“Welcome to the Fairy Realm, Goddess and God of Justice.”
Mordecai fought the urge to shove Lana behind him as they turned to greet the male who had spoken. His mate was now a powerful goddess, but that didn’t change his need to protect her. Then, the male’s words finally registered.
“What did you call us?” Mordecai asked incredulously.
“You don’t seem that surprised to see us,” Lana commented.
“You are now the Goddess and God of Justice,” Gildor explained. “And I am not that surprised since we have a seer who foretold this night. It was difficult to believe at first, considering who your mate is. However, once you showed up for the meeting with the council, it started to make sense.”
“Is that why you agreed to allow me to visit the prison?”
“Yes and no. I believed it was worth exploring if your secret-extracting ability could help people who are wrongly convicted. Whether or not you met your mate while you were here was left up to fate. Thankfully, everything worked out as intended.”
“Did your seer foretell the prison being destroyed tonight?” Mordecai asked blandly.
Gildor delicately cleared his throat. “Raziel’s visit was not part of the vision. My mate, Mara, is currently working with Kingston, Braxton, and some of the other gods to fix what was broken. I came here to greet you since we assumed you might be a little confused.”
“More than a little,” Lana confessed.
“There will be time for explanations later. I am just here to welcome you, and to inform you that as a god, the prison can no longer hold you.”
“He is innocent anyway,” Lana stated with conviction.
Gildor nodded sadly. “That is an injustice that will have to be addressed. Although nothing can make up for what you have lost, we will find a way to prove your innocence so we can announce it throughout the six realms.”
Mordecai waved that away. Now that he was free, the rest of that could wait. He was more focused on what had just happened to him and his mate. “How were Lana and I transformed into gods? Since we are both demons, that shouldn’t be possible here in the Fairy Realm.”
“That is what most people believe, but they would be wrong about that. Whether it is here in the Fairy Realm, in the Hell Realm, or in the Celestial Realm, the magical source is the same. Godhood isn’t determined by race, but by whether or not the magical source deems you worthy.”
“Are you saying that supernaturals could become gods in any realm?” Lana whispered. “So, the lake in the Fairy Realm is the equivalent of The Merit of Godhood Trials in the Celestial Realm?”
“You could call it such. Although there is no trial and error. Either the Sea of Glass deems you worthy, or it doesn’t. There is no second chance. And you may speak freely here. This island is our private retreat. Only a few people are allowed to come here or even know of its existence.”
“If the Sea of Glass can transform people into gods, why aren’t there any fairy gods here?” Lana asked.
Gildor grinned at them. “There are a lot of us. We just don’t like to announce it to outsiders.”
Mordecai chuckled. “Fairies and pixies can be a secretive lot. I’ve never heard of two individuals becoming gods at the same time before. Does this mean Lana and I share powers?”
“Possibly.” Gildor shrugged. “Or more likely, your abilities are able to work together in tandem. I am sure the answers you seek are somewhere in the information provided by the magical source, though that might take decades to sort through it all. I suggest the two of you experiment together using your new god powers and see what you come up with.”
He paused and glanced out toward the glassy lake.
“I must go. You may stay here as long as you like, or you may return home. The palace usually holds a banquet for whoever is blessed by the Sea of Glass, but I figured you might not be comfortable with that.”
“You’re right about that,” Mordecai agreed.
“If you change your mind, just let me know. We will be in touch soon. Enjoy your freedom, and congratulations on your mating and your godhood.”
With that, he disappeared.
Once they were alone again, Mordecai frowned. “So, we’re just free to go?”
“I guess so,” she said with a shrug. “I mean, who is going to stop us? We’re gods now. Bloody hell, that sounds strange. Anyway, where would you like to go? We can go anywhere within the six realms that you can think of.”
“I haven’t been free for a long time. Now that I am, it is sort of daunting,” he admitted softly. “Why don’t you decide?”
Wrapping her arms around him, she rested her head against his chest. “Don’t worry, mate.
We’ll take things slow. Actually, my friend, Ava, just mated a dark angel who is helping some reapers who just woke up from a magical coma they’d been in for centuries.
While your situations are different, he might be able to help us.
Perhaps we should at least speak to them to see if they have any tips on how to get you acclimated to the modern world. ”
“Who is the dark angel?”
“Castiel Stormborn.”
That made him laugh. “Yes, we should seek him out.”
Her eyes went wide with surprise. “You know him?”
“I do. Castiel even owes me a favor or two. What was it you said about the supernatural community? It really does seem quite small at times.”
“I seem to have lost my phone in the death pool, so we might as well just pop over to Ava and Castiel’s place. They have a house in Mystic, close to the university, that is connected to their main residence in Italy using a portal. That way, they can live in two places at once.”
“That is a good idea.”
“We’ll have to do something similar once we get your family’s property back,” she said. “We could get a place in Mystic, then create a portal that connects both properties to cut down on teleporting back and forth all the time. That way, I can still finish school while we live at home.”
Home.
The word struck him with unexpected force, quiet and devastating in its simplicity.
For a moment, Mordecai could only stare down at her, unable to speak past the sudden tightness in his throat.
Home had become a foreign concept after centuries of being locked away behind the stone walls of the Supernatural Prison.
It had been so long that he’d nearly forgotten what the word was supposed to mean.
But when she said it, the impossible suddenly seemed within reach. Not because of a restored estate or reclaimed domain, though he wanted those things for the sake of justice. Home was no longer a place buried in the ruins of his past.
It was her.
It was the warmth in her gaze when she looked at him, the strength of her hand holding his, and the way she spoke of their future as though it already belonged to them.
Overwhelmed by a tenderness he had not allowed himself to feel in centuries, he leaned down and brushed his lips over hers in a kiss as soft as a vow.
His home was wherever his mate was.