Chapter 5
Carter
Well, fuck me.
So the Nephilim might have been right and the whole world had somehow forgotten about the “legendary Astrals.” Dragons were only one of the three species that fell from the stars and learned to adapt as the earth evolved.
Stars that shattered the earth and killed the Dinosaurs, remained dormant for millions of years before emerging and roaming the earth.
According to one of the books, Dragons, Phoenixes, and Chimeras had played a part in human evolution, even learned to take on a human form to blend in and live with them.
It said that there were originally only one of each kind, and they were Immortals.
So how did they reproduce? The very first book I got from Lola said that “no one knows how they lived and reproduced, as their number grew larger over the years, but some have reported that they picked Maidens from their villages and they were never seen again.”
Did it mean that the first Astrals stayed alive from the moment the Dinosaurs went extinct until the first evolved humans walked the earth?
Another book said that Astrals couldn’t reproduce within their own species and made a theory about them helping humans evolve to use them as a way to expand their own numbers.
Which was creepy as fuck.
But also explained the Maiden thing I’ve read and heard from Lola.
How was their existence collectively forgotten even among the Immortals? Dimitri did remember but Arc, who wasn’t that much younger, didn’t seem like he did. The strange Warlock—Nomin—seemed to know about it too, but said that it was better left forgotten.
I released a deep sigh, surveying the cluttered floor of my bedroom.
What was the Archives’ ghost trying to tell me?
To tell Lola, when she first let the small book fall?
My eyes drifted to the small leather volume, Tedregon’s journal, written in old Korean, I haven’t read yet.
Not that Tedregon sounded like a Korean name…
My phone buzzed on the floor next to me and I had to push some loose paper sheets filled with notes to retrieve it.
Aymeric.
“Hello?” I asked hurriedly, straightening up and ready to run out of the house. Aymeric never called me. It had to be because of Lola. Was she hurt? Was she—
“Wow, no need to yell boy,” Aymeric's calm voice said. “You left me a message a couple of hours ago, rambling about weird books and the Archives lady, and if I knew anything about firebirds and Dinosaurs’ extinction? It didn’t make a lot of sense, so I thought I’d call and make sure you were alright. ”
“Oh.”
Right. I did that. I could have called anyone else who once had ties to humans, but as I read, I remembered that Aymeric had told us stories about birds of fires. Maybe he read about Phoenixes.
I checked the time on the clock above my desk. Nearly 7:00 a.m. A quick glance outside showed that the sun was up behind the thick dark curtains.
I read all fucking night. No wonder I felt exhausted.
“I’m sorry I didn’t call you back earlier, but some people do sleep at night.” He chuckled warmly. “Now what’s going on? You sounded frantic in your message. I’ve been worried you were overdosing on that disgusting plant you sometimes smoke.”
Shit. My use of datura was well known. But the voices have been strangely quiet ever since I had Lola’s blood, and I didn’t smoke in a week.
“Yeah, sorry about that,” I mumbled. “I didn’t realize it was the middle of the night. I—I’ve been going through some strange books recently, and I remember you talking about birds of fires once and…I don’t know. I thought you might be able to tell me more.”
There was a long pause and the faint rustling on his side of the line stopped, like he was trying to open something but my request had distracted him from his task.
“Firebirds, yes,” he mused. “It’s old legends, I’m sure you’ve heard of Phoenixes before, right?”
I hadn’t. Not as them being more than myths, anyway.
“I…not really.”
He hummed under his breath. “Alright, prepare some tea, I’ll be there in five minutes.”
I jumped to my feet, looking at the mess around me. “Oh, no, I didn’t mean—It’s not urgent. I was just—”
“Carter,” he interrupted, voice kind but firm. “You left me a message in the middle of the night about this. I’m not opening the bakery for another two hours and you obviously haven’t slept yet. Right now is the perfect time for a little bedtime story.”
He hung up, not letting me refuse or even argue.
My eyes roamed over the mess once again.
Was I even allowed to show these books to someone else?
They were hidden in the Archives for a reason.
So well hidden that I never even knew they were here.
The last thing I needed was for Margaret to come after my ass.
“You know I brought them for you to eat too, right?” Aymeric grinned at me from the dark red armchair facing mine, the coffee table between us filled with pastries and our cups of tea, the books and notes placed next to them in a neat pile. “Whatever is it that has you so preoccupied?”
I scoffed. “Where should I start?”
His warm smile widened, unnerving deep blue eyes glinting.
I was glad Arc was a neat freak; I barely had to tidy up the room before Aymeric got here.
The books were all on the shelves, the furniture free of dust, his favorite whiskey bottle replaced and no trace of the broken one.
The potted plants scattered around the room had seen better days, though…
Lola had taken up the habit of watering them in the few days she spent here.
Too bad they were cactuses and succulents and now looked like they’d been water-boarded.
“You mentioned birds of fire a few months ago,” I started, still ignoring the treats on the table. My stomach was too knotted to eat anything for now. “Were you somehow referring to Phoenixes?”
He nodded. “I was.”
I waited, but he didn’t add anything. Great.
“Do you know anything about them?” I continued. Maybe he had the answers I was seeking. “Apparently, Phoenixes and other things—Astrals—were a big deal a really long time ago. I don’t—I don’t know how I never heard of it before, it’s all—”
“Because they were a tale, and the stories have been forgotten,” he says calmly.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I was brought back by the Divines, but the legends say they did a lot of bad things to get the power they hold now.
” My shoulders sagged, head tilting to the side slightly.
“One of those things was allying themselves with the Hellrisers to weaken the Astrals, slowly erasing them and their influence from the humans’ memories. ”
I frowned. How did he know about them if people had forgotten? He seemed to notice my confusion as he resumed.
“One of the ways they did it and that had worked for centuries was to make humans worship them. Of course, Christianism and any other religion started way earlier, but it took time to spread, especially in the areas where each Astral camp had settled.” He paused, leaning to grab the small leather book I had yet to read and looked at the title.
“I can’t read old Korean, but that’s where the Dragons were rumored to be. Where did you find this?”
“The Archives.” My throat bobbed. “How do you know all this? If most humans have forgotten and Divines don’t speak of it…”
“I wasn’t always a chef.” He shrugged, opening the book to look over the content distractedly.
“I studied anthropology and my mother, even though a Catholic, was obsessed with old myths and legends. As a child, she told me stories about the Chimeras and their ever changing appearances, their involvement in developing the land to make it more welcoming to humans, how they reshaped the mountains with fire at whim. About the Phoenixes and their regenerating magic, and how they made humans more and more resistant to sickness and age. The majestic Dragons and their commitment to increase people’s strength and riches…
She had an old thousand-page book she used to read to me at night. ”
I drank his words, storing each information in different boxes in my mind.
“My mother read that their combined strength gave powers to humans or turned a few to animals.” He gave me a pointed look.
“And she also thought that something terrible must have happened to each of the three species as they stopped reproducing or being seen centuries ago, right as their blessed humans started to change for the worse.”
Corrupted Warlocks. That might have been what Dimitri meant.
“The Maiden,” I whispered, eyes drifting between his. He leaned back in his chair, bringing the cup of tea to his lips, hiding a slight smile. “Wait, what do you know about the Maiden?”
“Not much, unfortunately. Only that it’s a special woman meant to marry an Astral and give him his heir.”
So it might have been why they were extinct now…If Lola was the Maiden and she escaped, there could be no heir.
“They can’t select another one?” I asked.
Aymeric shook his head. “The Maiden is special. Astrals can have as many children as they want, but there can be only one heir. One child with genes strong enough to become the new leader of each clan. The child the Maiden must carry, and the offspring was always a male. Without that special woman, the line weakens.”
“But what if there are no Maidens? What if she dies? What if she escapes?”
He seemed to ponder that for a while, fumbling with the leathery notebook on his lap.
“For the latter, I guess the Astral would get in an undying rage and chase her until he gets her back. After all, their urge to pass down their powers to the next generation must be strong after the first ones were stuck in their positions for millions of years.”
My eyes widened. So everything I read before he showed up, he already knew. And here I thought it was secret knowledge…
“Why are you suddenly so interested in the topic? It’s only tales, nothing has never been proven about their existence.”
Was it? Because a lot of things started to make sense and clicked into place since I first found that book in Lola’s hand. Since her damn tears stained the paper.
“These books started showing up unexpectedly in the Archives, and it feels like Margaret is enjoying playing with my head.”
Aymeric chuckled, the sound warm and deep. “Maybe she’s not a spirit,” he said. “What if she’s actually an elemental Sprite?”
What? What the Hell was a sprite?
“That would be hilarious. And it would explain why she tries to make you read about the beings that brought them to our planet with them.”
Fuck, I’d need to go back to the Archives and get more books, because everything Aymeric told me I either already knew or raised more questions. And maybe Margaret—or whatever her name was—could give me some answers.