The Vaga (19 page)

My eyes widen.

‘And this,’ he says, pushing forward a small book titled “
The Birds
”—a play written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes.

It reads: “At the beginning there was only Chaos, Night, dark Erebus, and deep Tartarus. Earth, the air and heaven had no existence. Firstly, black-winged Night laid a germless egg in the bosom of the infinite deeps of Erebus, and from this, after the revolution of long ages, sprang the graceful Eros with his glittering golden wings, swift as the whirlwinds of the tempest. He mated in deep Tartarus with dark Chaos, winged like himself, and thus hatched forth our race, which was the first to see the light. That of the Immortals did not exist until Eros had brought together all the ingredients of the world, and from their marriage, Heaven, Ocean, Earth, and the imperishable race of blessed gods sprang into being.”

My heart jumps into my throat.

He pushes another book forward, watching me
closely.

I glance down, trying to remain calm but failing, the hairs on my arms rising with each new piece of information being revealed.
The Blood Moon Prophecy
stares back at me and my mouth dries up.

‘Read it,’ he says.

The Blood Moon Prophecy
is a theory stating that an ongoing tetrad—four consecutive lunar eclipses, separated by six full moons in between, with the fourth lunar eclipse being the Blood Moon—is a biblical sign of the end of times. It appears in the Bible in
Acts
2:20 and
Revelation
6:12. The
Book of Joel
says, “The sun will turn into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.”

The orange glow around the Moon the other night. The feeling of foreboding as I looked upon its cold outline
.

‘Is the Blood Moon starting now?’ I ask, resisting the urge to release the magic that is slithering its way up my spine.

His gaze amplifies. ‘Three lunar eclipses of the tetrad have already passed. The fourth is due to occur ten days from now.’

‘Ten days?’ I exclaim. ‘I don’t—’

He grabs my hand. ‘Ellie, I have to ask you something. It’s not something I want to ask, but I must if we are to know whether you are related to this prophecy or not.’

I swallow the lump building in my throat. ‘Me?! How could I be related to this prophecy? It could all be just a lot of mumbo jumbo for all we know.’ I point to the book and my voice rises. ‘This stuff talks about the return of the Lord, as in
Jesus Christ
. How in the hell does it relate to me?’

Shaking his head he says, ‘The
Book of Joel
doesn’t clarify that the Lord
is
Jesus Christ. It’s only implied. What if they misinterpreted? What if Lord meant something else?’

Lord, master, king…god.

‘Erebus,’ I breathe.

His eyes narrow in acknowledgement.

My hand does a flip. ‘Wait. So let me get this straight. In these books you’re saying that Erebus is like Hades, ruling the underworld?’

‘I’m saying that in these books they all point to Erebus as being the
gateway
to the underworld. He
is
the darkness that lives between our two worlds.’

‘And you think the
Blood Moon Prophecy
is predicting his return to Earth? Like some sort of apocalypse?’

‘Not exactly. Julian said that there has never been an account of him ever being here, and I haven’t been able to find any proof of that either. In all of these books,’ he splays his hands across the table, ‘there isn’t any proof to say that he even possesses that ability, but then we don’t really know what we’re dealing with here. Now when you say
apocalypse
that is something that does bother me. Christianity states that the return of the Lord will be the Second Coming.’

Those words shock me to my core. The Second Coming sounds too much like the New Coming. I learnt long ago that coincidences are rarely an accidental force of nature. Could they be connected? Is it even possible?

‘The Second Coming is referring to the Lord’s return to Earth to rid evil and establish His reign of justice and peace. Now, this belief is completely subjective, but it does raise the apocalyptic question.’

My heart picks up speed. ‘Isis said that the New Coming was a spiritual awakening for the planet, that the child I’ll eventually carry will be the savior of humankind, bringing new hope and peace to the chaos that has overtaken the planet. Is there
any
chance they could be the same thing?’

He looks out into the library and I can see that all this new information has bothered him. The lines of his face deepen. ‘It’s possible.’

I don’t even know what to say. Learning that I was a descendant of Isis and destined to be the vessel for her resurrection was mind-blowing enough, but
this
is beyond comprehension. Could the New Coming really be the same as the Second Coming? Could centuries of scripture and prophecy have known this all along?

When they were referring to “Lord” maybe they meant someone who had a devout following, who had influence and power? Maybe they meant that an
enlightened soul
would return to Earth to rid evil and establish justice and peace? Isis was an enlightened being who looked after the poor and the weak, showing kindness and mercy to thousands. She was a beacon of light. The mother of the people. Isn’t that similar to what Jesus had done?

A heavy knot forms in my stomach. ‘Do you think that Erebus intends to find a way to walk the earth when the Blood Moon occurs? Is that why this is happening?’

He nods, and I can tell that something big is going on inside that head of his.

‘What aren’t you telling me?’

His jaw clenches and I know that whatever he about to say is not good.

‘I need to determine where you sit in all this, and to do that I need to ask you a question that I would normally never ask.’ He shakes his head if he doesn’t want to say the next words aloud, but then he does. ‘Are you still a virgin?’

Holy Mother Mary
! He said it alright.

Heat rushes into my cheeks and I squirm restlessly, looking away.

‘Damn it!’ He sighs loudly, running his hand through his hair, knowing the answer without waiting for me to say it.

Embarrassed is an understatement. Right now I want to crawl under a big rock, hiding my virginal face from the world. Why would he ask that?

My voice comes out a little defensive. ‘I’m not sure what my…personal experiences have to do with all this but—’

His tone softens. ‘I wouldn’t normally ask you, Ellie. It’s none of my business what you do…in that area, but this is important. I believe, and at this point it’s just a bad feeling, but I think that Erebus has found you for a reason.’

I scoff. ‘Yeah, to kill me!’

He shakes his head, his greying hair catching the light. ‘No. I don’t think so.’ He pulls his hand back. ‘I think he knows about your future—bringing forth Isis, the child having the power she will supposedly have…’ He looks down at the table. ‘I think he plans to use you for his own end.’

I’m coming for you
. Those were the words Erebus used back in the swamp. Warning courses through me.

‘Taqôq Wiyon said that Erebus wants war. That he wants to use me as a weapon.’

Uncle Jo’s head shoots up. ‘He did? Why didn’t you tell me this?’

I shrug. ‘I don’t know. Sometimes I feel that if I reveal too much it’ll just worry everyone unnecessarily.’

Frustration lines his features. ‘Ellie, you
can’t
keep things from me. I have to know so I can help you, do you understand? This isn’t just about you.’

His words sting, but they speak the truth. I keep telling myself that I’m protecting them, all of them, but really I’m just scared. Scared of getting them involved in something that could see them hurt, or worse than that, losing them like I lost Mum. She was just trying to protect me, and I don’t want anyone to do that ever again. But it’s not fair to them. They have a right to know what’s going on and to make their own choices. I can’t take that from them.

‘You’re right, it isn’t just about me.’

He sighs and I feel weariness wash over him. Before he even has to ask I tell him what Taqôq Wiyon said, and then I tell him about my vision of Erebus.

‘So what do you think? Does it have anything to do with your theory?’ I ask, avoiding his disturbing glance in my direction.

‘It’s not a theory, just a hunch,’ he says, rubbing the back of his neck.

‘And?’

‘I think your virginity is the reason why Erebus wants to capture you and not kill you.’

‘What? That’s ridiculous. What does my virginity have to do with it?’

Another
shhh
echoes out from the depths and Uncle Jo gives me one of his looks, the one that tells me to piece together what we’ve just uncovered.

My stomach drops as the pieces fall into place, finally understanding why Erebus wants me so badly.

‘You think Erebus wants to…
mate
with me?’ My voice comes out uneven and I feel like I’m going to throw up.

Uncle Jo cringes at my words. ‘In
The Birds
Aristophanes says that Night laid a germless egg in the bosom of Erebus, of which Eros was finally born. Eros mated with Chaos and they brought forth a race of Immortals that could walk in the light.’

My heart shudders. ‘You think Erebus wants to have a child that can walk in daylight?’

‘Not just a child, no. He wants an Immortal to rule the world. A dark power that will do his bidding, wreaking destruction and carnage on the planet.’

‘The apocalypse,’ I whisper, shocked and terrified at the prospect.

‘But the only way he can do that is if he mates with another formidable, untainted being who possesses the power of light.’

‘Oh my God…Isis?’

He nods. ‘In the play, the germless egg refers to the untainted vessel, the virgin. Immortal refers to the undying soul or reincarnation. The mythology of Isis says that she gave birth to Horus
via
Immaculate Conception. She also believes wholeheartedly in her own resurrection, namely in the child that you have agreed to carry. She fits all of his needs.’

A surge of bitter energy floods my senses. ‘But…but this is just a play. It’s not real. It’s just from someone’s imagination. It can’t be real. It’s not possible.’

Uncle Jo shakes his head sadly. ‘Do you know how many things that seemed impossible at the time, were created by someone’s imagination? Nuclear weapons, cloning, space travel, you name it. They all had to come from somewhere. Maybe Aristophanes had a gift? Maybe he was a seer? Point being, I think this hunch is worth evaluating, even just a little.’

I push the books away from me in disgust. ‘Point being?! So you’re saying that this evil mythical lunatic, that we are assuming exists in the void between here and the underworld, is wanting to mate with me so he can produce a child that does his bidding here on Earth as…as an apocalyptic minion? Is that it?’

‘In a few words, yes.’ He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms.

‘And the Blood Moon will allow him to do this? Are you freaking kidding me?’ My voice rises and the table starts to levitate.

Uncle Jo’s eyes widen as he reaches towards me. ‘Ellie, calm down.’

A bubbling cauldron of hot, bitter, venom laces through me. Isis screams from within as the truth of what Erebus plans to do hits her as well.

Within an instant the whole library is shaking and someone yells out, ‘
Earthquake
!’ Books topple to the floor and the fire alarm is triggered, the sound ringing out in a painful wail.

Uncle Jo grabs my arm, trying to hold me still against the trembling of earth beneath us. My eyes start to lose focus as the energy around us intensifies. The colour red comes into view.

‘No, Ellie. Don’t let her in! Stay with me,’ Uncle Jo cries out.

And then warm arms are around me and I hear his voice. It sounds like the soft rustle of leaves as the wind whispers through its boughs. ‘I’m here, Elena. Let her go.’

Isis pulls back slowly, exhaling at the sound of his voice. I release her completely and my body falls into Julian’s chest. As he rocks me back and forth, soothing me with his words, I feel safe and protected. But for how long?

If Uncle Jo is right and Erebus wishes to use me to start an apocalypse then he’ll have to be ready to fight. I will not let him use me to start a war.

I will never let that happen. Ever.

We walk back into the house and Magi is hot on my tail. She met us halfway across the grounds, having obviously felt my distress. Julian pulls the kitchen chair out for me and I take a seat. Uncle Jo’s phone has been going off repeatedly for the last ten minutes. He flips it shut after another complaint about the computers going haywire.

‘I have to get back to campus,’ he says, throwing me an apologetic look.

Forcing a small smile I say, ‘It’s okay. I’m fine now. I won’t go anywhere, promise.’

‘Julian?’ he says, finally acknowledging the six foot two hunter behind me.

‘Sir,’ Julian replies evenly.

‘Look after my niece.’