Chapter 40 | D(evil)

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This Chapter has been split into two parts because it was too long. I will upload Chapter 41 (the second part) shortly. 

Enjoy the prelude to chaos 
Love Daisy xox

__________________________



Chapter 40 | D(evil)

*

You
are
so
b e a u t i f u l
to me.

- Elvis Presley

*


Zeus Gold stood silently in the middle of the cavern, the bodies of the fallen littered around him like broken dolls.
In one hand he held a collection of chains from which two fat jewels dripped, swaying gently in his grasp. Holding his hand up a little higher, he admired the way the gemstones caught the light, appearing impassive as he assessed each the blue and red stone in turn, before running his fingers delicately over the golden gemstone embedded in the skin of his chest. His equally luminescent eyes keenly noted the deep crack that ran jagged across the otherwise flawless surface and then, just for a moment, his hard gaze seemed to soften.

"Ophelia," he murmured, "My heart."

The confession that whispered from his lips was spoken too quietly for anyone else to hear and even as he spoke the last word, his face became expressionless once again.
There was movement in a corner of the cavern and his head snapped around to focus on the source. His hand dropped back to his side abruptly, the bloated gemstones dancing frantically on the ends of their chains.

It was only then that Aranel opened her eyes.
Her eyelids felt heavy, as though they were made from lead, and a bright light flaring in the immediate vicinity made her wilt in protest. Her ribs hurt. That was her first thought. But as she rolled over onto her back, she realised that actually, her whole body ached.

She groaned.

"Now do you understand the enormity of what you've done?"

The cool voice came from above her head and she was startled into alertness, rolling her protesting body over onto her knees where she lifted herself into a defensive crouch. A wave of nausea suddenly hit her, and she was forced to drop to one knee, her hand reaching to her forehead in a pointless attempt to relieve some of the pain.

The voice huffed once, before lapsing into silence.

"Uncle?" She guessed, her vision still wavering, "You're alive?"

"Yes, I'm alive," Zephyr answered frigidly, "somehow."

A dark chuckled emitted from the space in front of her and this time Aranel really did come to her senses, her head whipping around to find the source of the noise. Her gaze paused over Zephyr's incapacitated form, resting against the wall of the prison, before swooping in the direction of the light source.

Her view of the light was fragmented by shadow, and it was then she realised she was in a cage, Zephyrs cell, to be exact. Beyond the criss-crossed bars of the prison stood a figure, silhouetted by the glare behind him. Aranel felt her blood run cold as the person approached lazily, leaning against the bars with a clang, his predatory eyes observing her situation in amusement.

Zeus smirked cruelly. "Who's the one in a cage now Princess?"

Her hackles rose "let me out," she snarled, curling her fingers around the bars. They were made of diamond, just like the ones in her Palace dungeons, just as she had suspected them to be. Her air blade could cut through everything but diamond.

His answering was filled with mockery. "I got myself out," he taunted, "so let's see you do the same. I won't be as kind as you were to me though." Tapping the pendant set into his skin, he continued to provoke her, "Obviously you know about this stones ability to some extent, but you see ..." he smiled darkly as though holding a secret, "no-one knows them like I do."

A second passed and suddenly his sinister expression seemed to lift slightly. He held up the red gem, and when he spoke, this time he sounded thoughtful. "You know Princess, I would have rather thought that, instead of mine, it would've been Daddy's crystal you were after." He glanced at her slyly. "Or perhaps you didn't want to see him again?"

Aranel's mouth ran dry. "What?" She croaked, her eyes flickering from the man to the stone he held.

"Aranel, don't listen to him," From behind her Zephyr hissed in fury. She heard his chains rattling as he tried to sit up, "It's just another trick."

Zeus laughed, "Oh, a trick is it Zephyr? For you and I maybe, but for Princess here," he stared at Aranel with a slow smile, his tone calculating, "it's a once in a life time to see her precious Father again."

"What do you mean?" Aranel pressed angrily. "Tell me!"

"You really are ignorant, aren't you?" Zeus sneered. "What, did you think that the Earth pendant was the only stone capable of storing life inside? Any of these pendants has the ability to do so, but your stone," he winked at her, "your stone is far more than that. Why don't you ask your Mother if you're so curious. I am surprised you didn't know already. But then I suppose," he inserted cruelly, "perhaps Airocei just didn't think you were important enough to be trusted with the information."

"Don't you dare speak her name!" Zephyr roared as Aranel sagged against the bars of the cell, her eyes fixated on the blood red stone. Her gaze flickered to the space beyond Zeus and her horror grew as she suddenly realised the source of the light that had blinded her upon waking.

It was the golden cages that Zeus had created to hold the dragons. They stood as strong as they had been when they were first form, but in contrast, the beasts inside no longer raged against the bars.

Aranel felt the fire in her chest reignite at the sight of Nelonimi's unmoving form and she forced her aching body to stand, her hands shaking the bars of the cell to no avail.

"Nelonimi," she screamed out, "Nelonimi, wake up!"

The black dragon did not move from her position on the ground, her scaled body coiled into foetal position, regal head turned away from Aranel.

"What have you done to them!" She howled, noticing that in the golden cage beyond, Lorcān was motionless in a similar position. "How dare you! Let them out!"

Her pale eyes burned; her earlier anxiety forgotten. Her Uncle was right, anything that came out Zeus's mouth was just a cruel trick, meant to manipulate and deceive her. What she should be concerned about, was what was happening in front of her.

"I haven't done anything yet, don't be so dramatic," Zeus answered mildly, "and naturally I can't let them out you stupid girl, I don't want to be eaten." He gently shook the chains in his hand, making the light from gemstone dance across the walls, "However I do have a plan for them, so I would prefer if you stopped giving me orders."

The knife he had stolen from Katarina appeared in his hand and he balanced it delicately on one finger, playing with it idly for a moment before, with a flash silver, he threw it.
Aranel inhaled sharply, reacting just in time to catch the weapon as it whizzed through the air towards her. The hilt vibrated in her hand from the speed with which it had been thrown, the blade hovering an inch from her eye.

She breathed out shakily as he paced up and down the bars like a wild beast, his expression deadly. "People who think they can order me around," he uttered, coming to a halt, "tend to die rather quickly. However, unfortunately it is not time for you to die just yet."

She glared at him, forcing her racing heart to calm down. When it had, she forced a smirk, and waved the knife in his face. "You should know that I'm not giving this back," she spat out.

There was a split second of silence before his calm mask cracked and it was just long enough for Aranel to regret the fleeting satisfaction at her small triumph. That had not been worth it.

Her eyes widened as she watched him become unhinged before her. She wanted to look away, but she was stuck, fluttering weakly under his gaze like a pinned butterfly. And at any moment, this demon of a man was going to pull off her wings.

"You-" she stammered out, her throat clogged with fear. Had he only been playing till this moment? Was the difference between them truly so wide?

The insanity in his bloodthirsty gaze told her yes. The rage that radiated from his body like the heat from a dragon flame told her yes.
This was what she had felt before, and what she was beginning to realise she only had a taste of. She had thought Kronos was disturbing, with his mood switches and endless personalities, but he was nothing compared to the monster looming over her now.

Zeus advanced towards her as though the bars were not an obstacle and Aranel realised with dread that they weren't. She raised the knife to defend herself, but before she could act, the man in front of her had vanished, only to appear behind her a second later, his hand shooting out to grip her throat precisely, fingers squeezing tight.

She felt as though her blood was boiling under his gaze as he watched her choke, but she refused to lift her hands in an attempt to pry his fingers away. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"I thought I made it clear, that it was time for you to stop talking," he articulated smoothly, the coolness of his tone at odds with the death in his eyes.

"Go fuck yourself," she managed to gasp out, black spots dancing across her vision. She felt the hand around her neck tighten and then she passed out.

*

Zeus watched the woman fall limp in his grasp before he reluctantly loosened his grip and let her drop to the ground carelessly. In an instant the monster Aranel had seen was nowhere to be found in the man's expression, his face instead adopting the disdainful façade from earlier.

Bending down, Zeus swooped the weapon from the ground, flicking the blade between his fingers as though he had never thrown it in the first place. He glanced at Zephyr from the corner of one calculating, golden, eye.

"Don't get any funny ideas old man," he said curtly.

In the next second he was back outside the bars, knife balancing on one finger. He smiled fleetingly, surveying the room and the collection of people gathered.

"I guess we should get on with it then."

*

NATHANIEL


Nathaniel had lost track of the turn in events somewhere after the second time he had been rendered unconscious. When he came to, he was aware he was lying on the ground, the stone was cold beneath his body and he suppressed the urge to shiver.

The last thing he remembered was the man that had materialised in front of him without warning and Aranel's frustrated cry as he had been struck unconscious. After that ... he was unsure.

Forcing himself to remain still, he slowly tested his body, twitching each limb, one at a time. He seemed to be uninjured, but the ache in his head had returned ten-fold, throbbing incessantly behind his brow. Gritting his teeth, he opened his eyes slightly, looking out from beneath his lashes.

There was a bright light off to one side and he figured out quickly it was emitting from the golden cages Zeus had created to trap the dragons.

Nathaniel's heart-beat picked up at the acknowledgement of the name. Zeus Gold. Nate felt sick at the mere thought. He had had his suspicions with Kronos's appearance, but would have never imagined such a twist in events could occur. It must have had something to do with the gold pendant, but there were too many gaps in Nathaniel's information for him to connect all of the dots.

What was clear to him though, was that this was exactly the worst-case scenario. He had no idea if he could even make it off this island alive, let alone warn Circe and the others. And if he could warn them, how the fuck was he supposed to explain what had happened?

He felt someone shift beside him and tensed instantly. A second later a hand descended down onto his head, slender fingers feeling gently until they located a lump. Nate flinched, unable to help the reaction – that hurt.

"It's stopped bleeding," Nate heard Tobias murmur, "are you awake?"

Nathaniel threw caution to the wind. He had no allies on this goddamn nightmare island, if he wanted any chance of getting out alive, his brother was his best bet.

"Yes," He responded, shifting his head slowly until he was looking at Tobias. The boy was staring at something in front of them.

"Good, sit up slowly. He is busy at the moment, try not to draw attention to yourself."

Quietly Nate obeyed, moving to lean back against the stone wall of the cavern. His head ached more now that he was upright, and Tobias looked at him in concern.

"Try not to move from now." He ordered quietly, "Do what I tell you to do and nothing else."

"Alright," Nathaniel winced, lifting a hand to find the lump on his head. His fingers came away sticky with blood. He sighed heavily. He was beginning to feel like a damsel in distress. He sighed again and Tobias sent him a strange look.

Nate ignored it and focused on the man moving around in the centre of the cavern.

"What is it with these people and drawing weird things on the ground," he grumbled quietly as he observed the symbol Zeus was busy constructing, "this one looks even worse than the first one."

"It is a different magic," Tobias commented quietly, "Faerie magic."

"Faerie?" Nathaniel's eyebrows rose with surprise, "that's a new one."

"The Faeries disappeared a long time ago."

Tobias didn't feel the need to say any more so the two watched Zeus in silence. Contrary to his size, the man was surprisingly light on his feet and he stepped with purposeful grace, his golden eyes narrowed in concentration as he focused intently on his task.

On occasion, he would pause in his steps, and Nate could see his lips moving quickly as he either recited an incantation or spoke to someone Nathaniel could not see. He was inclined to think Zeus was talking to someone as the man's head suddenly twisted around to glare into thin air, the terse reply he gave short and abrupt.

Nate's eyes wandered carefully around the cavern, taking in the situation. It seemed that the tables had turned completely from before, with the person previously imprisoned now the one holding all the cards.

Nathaniel picked out Katarina's crumpled form lying motionless on the ground and darted to the two cells behind her, one of which was now obviously empty. The other held Zephyr, Nate could see the man watching Zeus carefully from between the bars. Noticing the other body that had joined him in his cell, Nathaniel inhaled sharply.

"Aranel?" He hissed incredulously.

Tobias's voice was scathing. "Surely you didn't think she would win did you?"

His brothers tone confused Nathaniel somewhat and he sent him a sharp, probing glance. "I thought you were on her side?"

"I never claimed to be on anyone's side," Tobias replied smoothly, his gaze still focused on Zeus.

Nathaniel followed his line of sight, "What is your relation to him?"

Tobias's reply was simple but flooded Nathaniel with dread, "He is my Master."

"Master?" He whispered, eyes wide with shock, "Tobias, do you have any idea who that man is?"

"I have the best understanding of who he is," Tobias replied, a little irritably. "He did raise me after all."

Suddenly Nathaniel understood, "He didn't raise you," he said, feeling sick, "he stole you. Tobias, if Zeus hadn't taken you, you would have grown up with us. You would have grown up with Circe. How can you still call him Master?"

"Master needed to help me control my power," Tobias replied doggedly, "if I had remained with you, I would have ended up like Kronos. I would have been out of control."

"So, are you telling me that that thing, the thing you said is your magic, is you being in control?" Nathaniel grabbed his brothers' arm, giving it a light shake, "Tobias he trapped you here!"

Tobias looked at him blankly, "He didn't trap me here. I helped him. He needed me to help him, Kronos didn't want to. If Kronos had agreed to help in the first place, then perhaps I wouldn't be here. But I only lost control once Master died."

His jumbled explanation made absolutely no sense and Nathaniel stared at his brother, frustration rising like a lump in his throat. It was useless. It was like talking to a stone wall. Nathaniel didn't know how old he had been when Tobias was taken, he couldn't remember anything from when they were younger, and his adoptive parents had never mentioned the existence of a brother.
Therefore, Nathaniel could only assume that the reason his brother sat in front of him now, so oblivious and uncomprehending of his own situation, was because he had had never known any different.
If Tobias had been raised in such isolation, with only lunatics for company, why would he question the motives behind the actions of the one who, in his eyes, cared for him and kept him alive?

"Did you know this would happen?" Nathaniel asked helplessly.

Tobias looked surprised, "That Master would be resurrected? No, I did not," he looked away to where Aranel was imprisoned, "however when that woman showed up here and made her intentions clear, I thought that perhaps there might be a chance for hope. And she brought information," he continued, "about you. She recognised me because I look like you."

"And she traded this information with you for your help?" Nathaniel guessed, his eyes flicking back to Zeus.

"Yes," Tobias sat back against the stone wall and let out a light sigh. "And now I have got what I wanted. And soon, Master will get what he wants too."

"What will happen once he is finished?" Nathaniel whispered referring to the symbol Zeus was drawing. He watched as Zeus rolled up the filthy sleeve on his shirt and grimaced as, with a flash of a silver knife, the man sliced the skin of his forearm coating his skin red with blood. Now that he looked, Nate realised that the man's other sleeve was already stained black with the gory shade.

Zeus dipped into his blood with the brush Aranel had used before and continued to paint. The symbol that was forming under his hands was harsher than the delicate lines Aranel had painted earlier. And Nathaniel realised that it was not a perfect circle either, that the outside edges squeezed together to create a diamond, each point elongating towards the edges of the cavern.

"He will succeed in achieving that which he has dreamed of doing since discovering this island," Tobias murmured, his blue eyes following Zeus in his every movement.

"And what is that exactly?" Nate pressed, shifting against the uncomfortable stone pressing into his back.

"Raising the Nyx."

"Nyx?" Nathaniel murmured quietly, feeling perplexed, "What's a Nyx?"

"Your standing on it," Tobias replied curtly, his cryptic answer only adding to Nathaniel's confusion. Instead of expanding, Tobias leant to the side to tap at the motionless form of the woman Nathaniel had first noticed upon entering the cavern. Only now did he remember her presence, glancing at her curiously as Tobias felt for her pulse.

"She hasn't woken yet, that's good," Tobias muttered to himself.

Nathaniel looked at the woman's tight blonde curls and again felt a tug of familiarity. However, Tobias sat between him and her and Nate was unable to see her face. "Who is she?" He asked,

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