Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
REVELATIONS
“Maya! Maya!” Orion sings my name like a chant while shaking the bed so enthusiastically, I nearly bounce off his mattress.
“I’m awake,” I groan, refusing to let go of the mountain of blankets. “What time is it?”
“Time for us to get ready.”
I don’t need to open my eyes to know he’s amped, as I feel his excitement pulsing off him.
“For what?” I ask, shuffling backward so he can sit-down, hopefully calm down too.
He scoffs, but at least he climbs onto the bed, so his mood tones down a little. “Don’t give me that. You know what I’m referring to.”
I smirk before wiggling deeper into my pillow and letting out a contented sigh.
“I brought coffee.”
I sit straight up, my hand extended. “You could have led with that.”
And then Orion’s status as best friend ever is cemented when he also passes over bacon and egg muffins. “How did you get these?”
I can’t remember the last time I had one. Not even when I was on the other side of the wall.
“Benefits of the full moon: the shifter’s diet increases tenfold.” He points to another bag on his desk. “Extra protein today, and a party tonight.”
The coffee turns sour on my tongue. Orion might be excited about attending the full moon party, but apparently no one else in Nomina is, including me.
“You know I’m only going because I have to, right? That as soon as my attendance is marked off, I’m leaving.”
He sighs before answering, like he’s frustrated by my answer. “It’s a party, we could stay for a while.”
“Nope. Not happening. No chance.”
He stares, searching for something, before he grins. “You know I’d never push you to do anything you don’t want to do. At the same time, I was triple-checking you’re not simply saying you don’t want to go when really you do. We could go simply to kick Arlan where it hurts.”
“Between his legs?”
Orion takes a sip of his coffee, his smile growing bigger. “We’d be less likely to miss our shot if we aim for his ego. Then we can go for Emrys’ too.” He grimaces. “Not Bael, though. Demons scare the living shit out of me. You know they can possess with a simple touch?”
I scoff, driven by my first-hand experience of Bael, and his touches. “Doubtful.”
We stop talking while we eat, both of us making some really obscene noises, but the muffins are just so damn good.
Once finished, Orion scrunches his wrapper and shoots it into the trash.
I try, but my aim is off, and it falls on top of the books I borrowed from the library.
None of the titles are on fated mates, because supposedly anything published on the subject was destroyed by Council a long time ago.
“Hey, Orion, why doesn’t the history of Quin-state go back further than a few hundred years? It makes no sense.”
He hums, unwrapping his next muffin. “No one really talks about what happened before the Great War. Afterward, every fucking minute was documented by each of the five.”
“The Great War?”
“Yeah. It happened two or three hundred years ago.”
“How can you not know the exact date?”
“Easy. No one speaks about it, there’s a serious lack of literature from before the war, and it was a punishable offense for a long time to discuss it.”
“What? That’s censorship.”
“Yep, it is. The strategy worked. You won’t find any books on it because supposedly any references to the time before the Great War were destroyed. And there’s still a stigma attached to those who talk publicly about any time predating the formulation of Quin-state.”
“That’s horrible. No matter what happened in that war, those who lived before that time deserve to be remembered. There’s nothing left?”
“Not in Quin-state.”
I struggle to reconcile the consequences of their actions. For the life of me, I can’t fathom what they’ve done; turning their back on history and all that happened before the races united. It’s heartbreaking to think of the way they’ve disrespected all those who came before them.
“What could have been so horrific that the five basically restarted history?”
He leans so close that his breath warms my skin. I can barely catch the word he whispers. “Gods.”
I move slightly, confusion twisting my face, a hundred questions filling my brain.
“Once upon a time, they walked among us.”
“Seriously?”
“As serious as the Great War was deadly.”
“That war was against them?” My heart is racing as quickly as my thoughts.
Orion nods.
Holy shit. Literal gods? I’m shocked by that revelation in itself, but the way the others have eradicated any reference to them makes my breakfast sit like a block in my stomach. I close my eyes, inhaling slowly through the rising nausea as sadness takes root.
“Are you okay, Maya?” Orion asks after a few quiet minutes.
I shake my head. “I shouldn’t be surprised, given my own experience, but I am. No matter the reason, I feel terrible for all the culture, art, and history no one remembers. And for what?”
Orion doesn’t answer, and I’m not sure I want him to either. I don’t think there’s enough time in a week to unpack what the others did, but their actions are also not my burden.
I force myself to think of tonight’s party, which invariably makes my mind turn to Arlan, Emrys, Cane, and Bael, which then jumps to Magikster Ballin and Alpha Roberts’s rousing speech regarding alignments and their vehement ridicule of anything outside of that framework, like fate and destiny.
Huffing out a humorous laugh, I mutter, “Now it makes sense why they push alignment so hard. It’s Quin-state’s version of fate.
It’s insane though, how egotistical would those in power have to be to think they can control destiny?
No wonder the gods left. There are certain things in your life and mine that no one has the power to change.
Surely, they know that? What’s next on their agenda? Love?”
“You can’t be surprised Council already tries to control matches, although love gets pushed to the wayside for stronger genetics. They’re building an army.”
“Against what?”
“Anyone or anything that doesn’t agree with their vision.”
I shake my head at the irony of escaping one controlling government for another.
“Enough talk about depressing shit,” Orion says as his arm snakes around my shoulder.
I give myself a precious few moments of his comfort before climbing out of bed. “I’ll have a shower and then we should figure out how we’re doing the party thing.”
He nods eagerly. “And what we’re wearing.”
I snort out loud as a flash of us arriving in full prom gear appears in my mind, which would be absurd until I realize the others at Thales are exactly that, and more.
Even if I had packed a ballgown or two when I ran out of the city, I still couldn’t wear it because all my things are back at their place.
“My clothing options are pretty slim, actually. Unless you’ve got something hidden in your wardrobe.”
Orion grins, and it reminds me a lot of how Bugby looked at me when I announced we were going to the library. I’m pretty sure I just unknowingly walked myself into a situation he’s been planning for a while.
“Well, now that you mention it, my sister left a few things here from her last visit…”
Ignoring him and walking into the bathroom is the safest option. There’s no way on earth I’d manage to strangle him, despite my inner voice whispering encouragingly.