“Yes, I think it is time for the whole story. Paden, would you mind gathering the rest of our group? They should be here for this as well.” Sophie smiled at Paden when he didn't move. “I promise she will be safe with me. Never would I allow anything to harm your Alastriana.”

He merely grimaced before walking quickly out the door. Ree watched him, confused.

“Already, he is fiercely protective. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. The gods have pulled out all of the stops this time. I hope they weren’t too late,” Sophie said quietly as she stared out the door after him.

“Why do you refer to me that way? As if my name is a title?” Ree focused on one of the things she thought Sophie might actually answer.

The dark haired woman shook her head and turned to look at the young woman sitting on her bed. Ree had shifted again, her emotional agitation making her physically uncomfortable. She tucked her knees under her chin and brushed at the hair that had escaped from her ponytail. There were soft spots of color in her cheeks, a peachy tint that still remained from her nap. Sophie watched her for a moment without saying anything.

“That would be because your name is a title. Alastriana means savior of human-kind. You were named for the job you were sent to do.”

Ree couldn't help the widening of her eyes and she swallowed hard. “My mother made up the name. She said that as she held me in her arms it was as if someone had whispered the name to her, but that’s not real, she just made it up.”

Sophie smiled. “Yes, it would most likely seem that way. Your mother is a very open individual. I’m not surprised she found your name so easily.”

“But, when you use it like a title, you make it sound as if there are more of us. More saviors,” She said the last with distaste. “I’m no savior. I’m just the same as every other person, even if I do have a weird family.”

Sophie didn’t say anything for a moment. She took a long, deep breath and looked out the window, her eyes dark with memory. Without turning around, she spoke quietly. “There have been many Alastrianas. Some have won. Some have lost. Each was special in her own way. All of them were important.”

Ree wanted to get more answers, but the Professor did not turn back around until the others entered the room. They all looked much more refreshed than they had before she passed out. Melanie came and sat down on the bed next to her. She leaned into her friend’s shoulder and smiled. “How ya feeling?”

Ree gave her a weak grin. “Much better, now. I’m sorry you all had to wait for me to wake up to get answers.”

Juliette sat on the other side of her. “I guess it makes sense for you to be awake when we find out. It all seems to be centered around you.”

Ree sighed and looked at her friends. Bryce and Paden had taken spots near the fireplace, and Weylin was lounging on the chaise in the corner with a large sub sandwich in his hands. Ree’s stomach gave a large growl when she saw the food. When was the last time she had eaten?

When he saw her staring, Weylin saluted her with the sandwich and smiled around a mouthful. “We might not know what’s going on, but wait until you see the kitchen!”

Ree chuckled and shook her head. Well at least Weylin didn’t look as stressed as he had been in the car. Bryce and Paden, on the other hand, both looked tense. And in Paden's case he even looked angry. Juliette looked intense, her energy excited, as usual. Melanie wore her usual look of calm, but there was an undercurrent of excitement that made her eyes even larger than normal.

Sophie looked at each of them in turn. Her eyes lingered on Paden and then Ree. “There are a lot of questions from all of you; some that you are beginning to figure out on your own, and some that will need a great deal of explanation. I think the best way to start would be at the beginning.”

Chapter 7

She took a deep breath. “A long time ago, somewhere far away, there was a planet whose people were dying.”

“Cool. Like Star Wars,” Weylin chimed in.

“I knew it. We're all aliens. Not the illegal kind, but the Roswell kind.” Juliette groaned.

Sophie laughed but shook her head. “No, you aren’t aliens. You are all of this planet. Born here, with your roots entwined with the normal people of this planet.”

“Normal people of this planet?” Bryce arched an eyebrow.

“Yes, as you are all finding out, none of you are what you would deem ‘normal’. You are all special. But it is much easier if I tell you the whole story rather than parts for you to piece together.”

“So, what happened?” Ree leaned forward a bit.

“Of course. As I was saying, the people of that planet were dying. A war raged in their heavens, and the gods that stood for evil looked to win through deceit and dark manipulations. In a misguided attempt to keep the evil ones from gaining more strength, a horrible plague had been released on the inhabitants by the immortals that were supposed to be caring for them. The first ones infected noticed odd symptoms: they developed an aversion to bright light, and a thirst that was never quenched. The longer the thirst persisted, the angrier and more dangerous that person became. Eventually their bodies developed a way to satiate the thirst. They developed the means with which to acquire that precious liquid; the very one their bodies had stopped producing. They developed fangs that allowed them access to the blood of the unsuspecting, and most often the unwilling. It was a painful experience, and the victims often fought hard. But as the diseased ate, they grew in strength. They became faster and capable of doing things the normal inhabitants could not.” She paused and took a sip of water, letting what she had said sink in.

Ree swallowed and noticed how dry her throat had become. Vampires. She had joked earlier that vampires were one of the things that scared her. Things she thought didn’t really exist. Her eyes sought Paden’s and she saw that he was watching her. His eyes were dark and she wondered what he was thinking. They had all seen his fangs. She turned and looked at Juliette and saw that her eyes were wide. Bryce stood up and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m not thirsty. Not like you’re saying.” Jules’s voice was quiet as she looked at the tall Greek woman.

“Nor should you be. You are an entirely different creature.” Sophie's eyes were warm and comforting. “But the people of that planet were not so lucky. As the disease spread, most people began to fear it. Others, though, wanted to be infected. Power hungry, they craved the special abilities: they wanted to become Dark Ones. So called, for their reaction to bright light. At first the dark gods were thrilled with this situation, for they feed off of fear, hate, greed, and pain. They thought the other gods had made a fatal mistake, giving them a way to grow in strength. But the true gods had been much sneakier. They knew that, for a while, the dark ones would grow and prosper in their sport of hatred. But their goals had been long-term, and they were willing to start over.

“As the disease spread, as the greed and hatred took effect, wars began in earnest for 'grazing rights'. Strong as these Dark Ones were, they still needed blood to stay alive. They needed uninfected humans to sustain them. But non-infected citizens became scarce. They became a commodity to trade, like cattle. Some of the older Dark Ones began to see the problem that was sneaking up. Soon they were going to run out of the sustenance their bodies required-- blood. So, they petitioned their gods for advice. After all, they had unleashed this fate on the world.

“The dark gods saw the problem and tried to find a way around the food issue. They spent many years working to save their planet, for they needed the energy of its populace to keep them alive. They tried to create new untainted beings to feed their dependents, but the gods lacked the tools that creation required. It takes love and self-sacrifice to give life, and the hollow shells they created could not sustain the Dark Ones of their world. It took many years for the gods to realize they had been beaten by the very disease they had celebrated.” Again she stopped for a moment and walked to the window and looked out at the trees swaying in the early morning light.

Ree looked down and bit her lip. The Dark Ones she had encountered earlier that night had been vampires. They were walking among the people of her home town. She shuddered in disgust and fear. They were walking among her family and friends. Ree shook herself away from those thoughts as Sophie continued.

“When the dark gods turned their attention back to their subjects, a great deal of the population was dead. Without food, they had begun killing each other, and occasionally themselves, for the thirst would drive them to insanity. The only ones that survived were the oldest, wisest ones. The ones that had stockpiled food and were so strong no other Dark Ones could stand against them. But even they would perish soon if they did not get more food.” Ree imagined the people that had been herded into cages to be kept as food. Her stomach quivered for the terror they must have felt.

“The dark gods knew then that they would need another planet, a new place to feed their 'children'. They took their strongest, most cunning Dark Ones and began to search the universe for a new home. They came to Earth. But there was resistance here. Our planet has its own hierarchy of gods: gods that already ruled here, and liked their position. These gods also cared for the humans they helped create and were not willing to hand over their home. A fight among the native gods and the invasive gods was brewing, but both sides knew that would probably destroy Earth, as well. A council of the wiser Earth gods convened to address the problem and thought to make a deal with the dark gods. They would fight on a smaller scale, so the world would not be completely destroyed. After all, if Earth was destroyed they had no reason to fight.

“Terms were negotiated for years. The dark gods wanted to introduce all of their dark children to the new world and let the citizens fight for themselves. Our gods knew that was not fair; the Dark Ones had strength and abilities most of the humans couldn’t fathom. The dark gods would only be allowed to send one of their 'children' to Earth for the battle. After all, it seemed the dark warrior would be able to create its own help. To counter the Dark One’s abilities, plans were made. Several different human lines would be gifted with the ability to touch powers most humans were unaware of. They would be given the gifts of the gods. Intuition, precognition, telepathy, and the ability to tap into the very energy that surrounds them and links all humans. The descendants of those lines would be protected until they were of an age to fight, able to fully tap into their potential.

“The dark gods demanded that the chosen one must be a human; they felt humans needed to prove their worth. Our gods are not fools though, and, knowing humans are much frailer and slower than the Dark Ones, they insisted the human savior, the Alastriana, would need a protector, a guardian. The Dark Ones insisted the Guardian be born to mortals. Our gods had bred with mortals before and were happy to generate blood lines that would have the ability to become immortal. If one of their descendants is touched by the magic of the Alastriana, it instigates a change, a shift that awakens dormant immortal genes. Thus, Guardians have the strength, speed, agility, and healing abilities that all immortals possess.

“The first battle was fought, and the Alastriana and her Gaurdian were able to win, but at great sacrifice. Both of the defenders died in their efforts, but the Dark Ones were stopped. The dark gods, however, refused to back down. They insisted that because the defenders had died in the process, they only won in default. After more battles, and more arguing between the two factions of gods, a well-respected goddess suggested a set number of battles. The best of those battles would be named the victor. The Dark Ones agreed. Starting from that decision, they began the count, and a secret war was set upon the humans, with only a select few to fight.”

When Sophie finished speaking, quiet rang through the room. Ree's mind seemed to be moving a million miles a minute. A large jumble of half-formed thoughts were whisking through her brain. She looked at her friends to see how they were handling this story, unsure of their responses. Juliette and Bryce were looking at each other, quietly sharing some form of couple telepathy. Weylin was still looking at Sophie, his sandwich raised halfway to his mouth. He looked down at the food in his hand, gave himself a shake and took a slow bite before letting his eyes return to the woman. His expression was somewhere between doubtful and reluctant. Ree continued her surveillance of her friends and looked at Paden. How would he handle this story?

His eyes were even darker and more shadowed than they had been before. He seemed to be wrestling with something as he stared past Ree's shoulder. She wanted to go to him and ask him what he was thinking, but at the same time she was frightened of the answer. She wasn’t sure she could handle the questions he was considering. She still had too many questions of her own. How did this magic work? How had Sophie known she would have the gift, or that the others were immortal? Why had she been sent so many protectors, and would that negate the careful bargain between the gods? Were the gods watching them right this second? Waiting to see what her response would be?

Suddenly she felt like the walls were too close. Her throat was tight, like she couldn’t breathe. She was trapped. Trapped in this room, and trapped by responsibility, a responsibility that would most likely kill her.

Chapter 8

Rushing from the bed, she threw herself at the windows and wrestled with the lock until she was able to swing the large glass pane open. The cold wet air was a welcome shock as she gulped it in greedily. She leaned against the window sill and closed her eyes. Get a grip, Ree. Freaking out is not going to get you anywhere. She counted to ten slowly in her head, taking deep breaths as she did. When she felt a little more like herself, she opened her eyes and turned around to the room. Everyone was staring at her. She shivered and pulled the window shut behind her.

“Sorry. I needed some fresh air,” she didn’t move away from the window after closing it. Better to be close, just in case. Sophie was watching her with a neutral expression. Her eyes were guarded, as if she was waiting for something to happen. “What? Are my eyes glowing again? That can't be good, can it? They’ve only done that when a Dark One has been near.” She looked nervously over her shoulder through the window into the dark. She shuddered, but couldn’t see anything outside.

“No, there are no Dark Ones on this island. It is a sanctuary. A safe place set up by the gods to allow you to regroup and learn. That is why I didn't just have you come to the shop.” Sophie gave her a small, embarrassed smile and shrugged. “I was waiting for you to freak out. The others either ran away or refused to talk to me for hours. Sometimes they would ignore me for days. Some of them thought we were crazy.”