Where The Dead Ones Go Book 1 -Magistracy-

Chapter 9

"Thanatos: Defying Demise!"

I looked up and saw Morris being electrified by lightning before an earthen spire pierces his stomach that made the audience scream in horror.

But as expected of the firstborn of the god of death, his body just became like a soul, and for a split second, all attacks on him pass through him as if he is made of air.

As planned, he is just acting as a bait so that our terracotta soldiers can breach their defenses, which is, as expected, a very tough nut to c***k.

While bitter rivals, if Zeus and Poseidon work together, they are nigh unstoppable.

Terrible wind storm trying to blow us away while an indomitable earth fortress made of bedrock and soil.

Zeus and Vaski are easily deflecting our futile advances and attempts to break through their blockade.

"Zeus: Supreme Turbulence!"

"Poseidon: Raging Tremor!"

A jaw-dropping tornado appeared from the heavens, and the moment it touched down the ground, great chunks of land and boulders. 

They were combined with it to create a moving and unstoppable force of nature.

"Thanatos: Pitch Black!"

From Morris' majestic black wings, a dark smoke appeared and engulfed the whole surroundings in absolute darkness that absolutely no light can be seen at all.

I can hear the terrified screams of fear of the audience and the demigods behind all around us.Even I can't see my body or hand at all...

"Do you think there's hope in death, Vivet?"

I smiled and raised my staff that suddenly glowed in the dark, "Only one way to find out, Morris."

"Elpis: Revolving Lanterns!"

From the end of my glowing staff erupted dozens of light lanterns that floated serenely to the skies, serving as the only source of guiding brilliance in this suffocating darkness.

As expected, I was seen by the sons of the gods of the heavens and seas. 

They sent the gigantic howling tornado straight to my direction posthaste.

"Zeus: Lightning Jolt!"

I saw the electricity in Zenith's hands illuminated his handsome and angry face before unleashing countless streaks of lightning towards me.

"Elpis: Benevolent Light!"

I felt as if someone punched my gut as I summoned once more for the third and possibly the last time the brilliant barrier of my mother to defend me.

"Poseidon: Reigning Turrets!"

As if the electric strikes are not enough, gigantic spears made of rock and earth rained down from above to batter my weakening shield.If this continues, it's all over.

 They are clearly trying to overwhelm my defense so that the tornado can easily blow me away with impunity.I tried my best to hold on, and after a few long moments that seemed to last a lifetime, the relentless assault suddenly weakened.

I opened my eyes, and to my shock, the earthen soldiers of Morris are using their body as a shield to absorb some of the attacks from the son of Zeus to ease some burden on my already breaking apart barrier.

But the relief is only temporary as the gigantic tornado crashed into my defence with so much force it shattered into dust motes.

"Morris!"

"Now, Vivet!"

I summoned all of my remaining power and unleashed my last resort. 

I raised my radiant staff in front of me, defiantly, "Elpis: Promised Hope!"

My wings spread as far as it can as it glowed brightly. The lanterns of light earlier exploded in a blinding brilliance that chased away the darkness and even the enchanted night itself.

The mayflies converged behind me, and I cried when I saw that it took the form of a winged woman in a flowing dress with giant wings made of ethereal light.

"Mother..."

The tornado, the lightning strikes, and spires raining down from the heavens suddenly stopped. 

Even the fighting of other demigods behind me came to a halt.I looked above, and I saw the clear blue skies above us all. 

"Zeus: Electric Sword!"

"Poseidon: Piercing Trident!"

To my shock, Zenith is divebombing me with an electric sword in his right hand. 

Vaski is surfing through the ground like riding the ocean waves with his trident pointed at me.

"Checkmate."

I looked at the direction of the throne fo the headmistress, and I saw the son of the god of death standing face to face with the woman I've been longing to meet.

"Thanatos: Soul Transference!"

I felt my entire being pulled in a different place existing somewhere between time and space. 

In a blink of an eye, I am now facing a lovely woman that looks so prestigious, formal but exudes a gentle and welcoming aura.

"Do what you've got to do, Vivet!" Morris shouted in my head, and I quickly pulled out the rainbow-colored parcel and offered it to her.

"I am Vivet Viviere, a delivery girl of Iris Delivery Service. I am tasked to make sure I safely give you this from the god of time," I said respectfully as she just smiled and nodded as she took the parcel and hold it close near her heart.

"You have done well making it all the way here, Vivet," she said in a calm voice. Her piercing purple eyes gaze upon me, "Nothing short of what I expected from your illustrious company. I, Ruth Saikos, Headmistress of the Hellenic Citadel, accept this delivery with gracious gratitude."

Suddenly, I feel weak.

 The pain of the numerous injuries that I didn't notice earlier is surging back to my body.

As if I am finally feeling the recoil of the magic spells and abilities I have used in desperation earlier.

The wings in my back let out one final glow before exploding into countless feathers made of light.

After that, everything went black, and I fell down in a seemingly bottomless abyss of nothingness.

"Thank you, Morris..."

-0-

"How is she?"

"Everything is normal and stable."

"Then why is she not waking up?"

"She should regain consciousness soon though."

"The other one already responded to stimulus earlier."

"Wait! Her temperature is steadily rising."

"About time!"

"Call the doctor, hurry!"

I still thought I am dreaming or hearing voices as my mind is slowly coming to life after seemingly a long time of forced hibernation or something.

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I see is the clean white ceiling of a rather small room.

It looks like I'm inside a hospital ward or something.My eyes turned into my right hand, which is resting on my stomach and bandaged heavily.

"Good morning. Are you feeling any discomfort?"

I looked at my left and saw a beautiful and serene woman wearing a pristine nurse's uniform and holding a clipboard while looking down on me worriedly. 

"Where am I?" 

I asked in a pained voice as my throat seemed to refuse to fully open.

"You are in the private room of the Hellenic Citadel Hospital," she answered quickly as she checked my pulse, "I am Phym Solace, your attending nurse. Please, tell me if there is something that is ailing you."

The only noticeable painful part of my body is my back, "Nothing worth worrying about. Well, except my back. It is still aching a bit."

"Duly noted, the doctor will be here any moment now. I am sure he will have something to help you ease your burden," she said assuringly as she smiled a little, "Do you have any questions? I will try to answer to the best of my ability."

I took a deep breath and tried to get up by it seemed I am too tired to even sit on my own before laying down again with the help of the kind nurse, "How long have I been here?"

"Today is your eighth day here in our care."

My eyes widened in shock as my blood ran cold when I heard what she just said, "No! What happened? The last thing I remembered is the examinations. My delivery. Wait! Ms Irene! I have to inform her of my situation."

"Please, calm yourself," the nurse said as I tried in vain to get up on my own only to fall down on my bed once again, "You have absolutely nothing to worry about. The daughter of Iris, your foster mother, Lady Irene Iridis of Iris Delivery Services has been here several times to check on you with her assistants. She already settled the bill for your stay here and instructed me to give you this letter the moment you regain consciousness."

 accepted a piece of folded paper that looks very familiar.The moment I opened it, familiar handwriting welcomed my waiting eyes...

Vivet,

First of all, I want to commend you for successfully delivering the parcel entrusted to you by my mother. She is absolutely delighted and pleased by your perseverance and courage to face seemingly impossible obstacles and overcome it to get the job done. 

As your employer, I am delighted that you managed to finish your delivery successfully. However, as you foster mother and legal guardian, I am absolutely appalled that you are willing to risk your own life for your duty. 

From this moment on, I want you to remember that if something happened to you, I would be the one who will have to face Lady Elpis' judgment.

Henceforth, I am now relieving you of your job as a delivery girl of my company. I just couldn't bear to send you on another errand, knowing now how far you are willing to go to finish your task. But don't fret, even if you are no longer on active duty, you are still part of my company as one of its brand ambassadors. 

You are still my foster daughter, and that will never change. The hospital expenses are fully paid in advance, so you have nothing to worry about.Since the day I found you, you have loyally and diligently followed my lead. Now, it's time for you to decide for yourself what you will do from now on in your life.

The doors of the company and my home will forever be open to you should you decide to come back after waking up from your slumber.Just always remember that whatever path you may take, I will always support you with all of my company's resources at your disposal.Take care always, my child.

 Irene

P.S: I have taken your old nameplate and instructed him to hand you the new one.

I didn't realize I am crying while reading her letter.

This letter is the confirmation of a job well done, and I upheld my duty until the very end.

But it also contains words I do not understand.

I am no longer a delivery girl but a brand ambassador?

 Why does it sound like I would not want to return to my foster mother's company?Also, about my nameplate...

"Thank the deities you're finally awake!"I looked up and saw a young man dressed in a doctor's coat, entering my room and smiling at me in relief."I am Axel Prior, your attending physician," he introduced himself as he gave his right hand. I take it before shaking it once, "According to Phym's findings, your vital signs are all in the clear. Only your back is bothering you?"

I nodded and smiled a little, "Yes, Doctor Axel."

"Excellent! I will prescribe you some pain reliever medicines before I discharged you," he said happily as he writes something on the clipboard given to him by my nurse, "I guess growing a pair of majestic wings is not as glamorous as it seemed to be, right Vivet?"

A rush of memory suddenly flooded my brain, and I blushed uncontrollably. 

My nurse sighed as she looked down on me, "You are so amazing back then. Your light, your decisiveness, your faith and bravery. Finally, we, at the medical profession are vindicated?"

"Vindicated?" I asked in confusion as my doctor sat on the edge of my bed.

"Yes, vindicated. For ages upon ages, those who work in our field are being ridiculed by believing in hope. That it helps save lives of countless mortals and creatures. They say your mother is not real, that she is a mere legend, a myth. A goddess whom only a few knows about and only mentioned in scant few times in ancient scrolls and texts. That is why we have used everything that we have learned to the best of our abilities to save you and him."

"Him..."

My doctor and nurse turn around as the door to my room once again open, and another nurse entered with the boy I almost forgot that spoke in my mind."Ouch, I'm hurt, Vivet. Did you really "almost" forgot me? It hurts my heart..."

I cried again as I saw him smiling at me even though his body is covered in bandages, "Morris!"

"We meet again, Vivet. As you can see, I'm a bit messed up but thankfully wearing more presentable clothes than the last time," he said happily as he pointed at his brand new boxer shorts, tank-top and slippers, "Heh, you didn't mention that your foster mother is loaded to the brim. Oh, here, she told me to give one to you."

He quickly walked beside me and took something from his pocket and showed it over to me, "Here, get a load of this."

I looked down on his hand and saw two new nameplates issued by our company. It bears our names on it.

Vivet VivierCorporate Ambassador Iris Delivery Service

Morris MortheoCorporate AmbassadorIris Delivery Service

"Corporate Ambassador?" I asked in confusion to the son of the god of death, "Ambassador to where?"He looked at my attending nurse and physician, who both shook their heads at him.

Morris looked again at me before talking slowly and carefully, choosing his words, "To the Hellenic Citadel, Vivet."

"The military school? What the hell will we do there?"

"I suggest you just tell her directly," Doctor Axel advised and glancing at me happily, "She will know soon enough either way. Might as well it came from her close friend rather than other people's mouth."

My companion took a deep breath and nodded before facing me again and looking at me straight into the eyes, "We passed the entrance examinations, Vivet. Ms Iris is expecting you to study here with me as her assurance that you will be safe during your stay here. She had already paid in full our school fees and provided generous allowances for us."

"What?! But how in the underworld did we pass in the first place?!" I asked in confusion, but to my surprise, he raised his shirt and showed me his terrible wounds in his stomach.

"When we switched places, I was promptly skewered with an electric sword and an earthen spear in my guts. The moment you lost consciousness, your body released a blinding light that inexplicably stopped the fighting completely. When I woke up, it's already a week since then and your foster mother gave me our acceptance papers."

I just shook my head in disbelief and laughed, "That's a joke, right? What will I ever do in the Hellenic Citadel?"

"Well, you could accompany me, Vivet," Morris said seriously, which made me stop laughing, "After the fight, I was suddenly curious about the lives of students here. Can you come with me?"

I was about to object, but then I remembered everything he did for me when we barely even know each other, now he is suffering from severe injuries meant for me. 

I'm not that selfish.

 "Vivet?"I looked at his face, which is still covered in a matt of shaggy hair, "You already know my answer, Morris."

"Yes! Thank you very much!" he then jumped at me and gave me a hug that made me cry in pain.

"Damn you, my back!" I complained as he quickly let me go and apologize profusely, "Those wings might look magnificent but it sure is painful."

We looked at the doctor and nurses who smiled fondly at us and handed over a piece of paper containing the medicines we need to buy.

"You two are now officially discharged," the doctor said. He stood up and bowed in front of us, "Seeing the two of you conscious and talking is payment enough for a grueling week you have all put us into. However, it was all worth it. To be of service to the demiurges of Thanatos and Elpis is something we will take as an accomplishment for your parents are always with us in our profession. We wish you a fruitful school year and welcome to the Hellenic Citadel!"

We waved goodbye as they left my room as Morris helped me get up from my bed carefully.My eyes rested on his annoyingly thick hair that still has dirt on it. 

"If you are going to school we have to do something with that disgustingly long and grimy hair of yours, Morris," I snarled that made him smile lopsidedly and scratch the back of his head, "What time is it anyways and when is the start of the school year?"

"The time is ten minutes before eight in the morning," he answered quickly as he pointed at the two large boxes at under my bed, "There will be a welcoming ceremony around two in the afternoon and a homeroom meeting with our adviser after."

"What?! Today?!" I shouted in shock as I try to numb the pain of my back, "Then we have to fix that hair of yours as fast as possible."

He just laughed and looked at me as if I am getting crazy, "Seriously?! You are being thrust to go into a school and the thing you are worried about is the state of my hair?"

"Yes, Morris. You got that right. I want the two of us to attract less attention as much as possible. Your hair will not help us with that," I retorted as I pointed at the sofa, "Go and sit there, I will just take a bath then we will head out as fast as we can. Maybe we can do some shopping for necessities as well."

He just followed my orders and heaved a sigh of relief as he fondly looked at me, "I'm done leading, Vivet. Now, it's time for hope to lead death."

"Then I will, Morris. I will do my best to be the one who will help you. That, I promise."