The Unknown God/Goddess

She's Back

Austin's P.O.V

For the sake of formality, I reverted back to Austin. We found ourselves sitting on my sofa, inside the apartment. I didn't forget about the three that found us, so I sent a gust of wind to tell them that we're leaving. Athena is, again, right before me, kneeling, asking for forgiveness to something that I don't know. 

I racked my entire brain, thinking what she was talking about because as far as I've remembered, she has no misdeeds done to me, or that could harm me. 

"Your Highness," she repeated since I didn't say anything. 

"I don't know why you're here, Athena." 

"I've come not bearing Zeus' permission." 

Well, that's a first. She came here, which is a surprise since there is no war that's going to happen here. Then she asked for forgiveness, which is also a surprise since she's a proud goddess. And now she's saying father doesn't know that she's here? How did she slip? Or is she lying to me? 

Pharsa sat beside me, looking at Athena's bowed down head. She must be curious too. 

"Why are you here?" 

"Please, Your Highness." she pauses. 

Ah, I hate unnecessary pauses. It just prolongs the thrill, which is also something that I don't like. Like they're two of the things that I don't like put into one. That's super gross. 

"My daughter," she continues, yet another pause so I just had to ask. 

"What about Mine?" 

"Please forgive her and me," 

What did they ever do to me? Mine was good to me. Mine was the best friend I could ever ask for. She was always there and I took advantage of her being present. I was the one who did her wrong. So why is she asking me for forgiveness? Did they slander my name in Olympus? Was she the one who sent Ares and Mine to get me? Is her asking for forgiveness a warning of some sort? 

I keep asking her but she doesn't tell me. She just keeps pausing, pushing me to the brink of annoyance. 

"Please, just spill it out, Athena." 

She stops breathing and she stayed still. I'm not sure if she's doing this on purpose to add more suspense or if she's contemplating whether to actually tell me or not. But she'd be an i***t to come here and not tell me. 

"Please take Mine back." 

Ah, so it is Mine after all. For a second there I thought it was something else. 

"You don't understand." Athena looks up to me in horror, afraid that I was going to oppose to her. 

"Your Highness?" her voice cracked in pain. The dejection on her face was too much for me that I just had to rap my reasoning. 

"I was the one who did Mine wrong. You don't have to apologize." 

Her face stiffens for a moment, analyzing what I just said. It wasn't that hard to understand. That was pure english. Does she not understand english? Or is it the fact that there's something hidden behind what I said? The problems that only Mine and I know. 

"That wasn't my intention, Your Highness." 

"Intention?"

"When I heard from Hades that Pharsa took your side even though it was relatively dangerous, and objecting his very own order, it made a huge impact on me." 

This was what I was waiting for, but it turns out that it was Athena realizing this first. I had always prayed for Mine to know her worth, her freedom, but she's always followed her mother around. I had wished to see the day that she'd cut the chains off herself, but to see that happening from the very root is also worth it. 

My heart jumped in faith. 

"I want her to make her own decision. I told her all about this and I had to tell you." 

"Tell me what?" 

"She says she'll live here again, for a week, and if things won't go back to the way they were, she wont' ever step foot in the human realm again." 

I could feel Pharsa's head turn to me. I know what Pharsa's saying. If I were translating this right, it would be, 'well, you better shape up and make up with her or else you'll lose her forever'. It was pretty convenient how that sounded so right to me and how on point that was. 

I huff out breath. 

"When does she start?" I feel like I'm recruiting someone. 

Athena's face lit up and stood up with a smile on her face. 

"As soon as possible, Your Highness." 

After we were settled, I escorted Athena outside as she was to deliver the good news to Mine. Athena turns to me with a smile, bigger than ealier.

"Thank you, Your Highness." 

It was now or never. 

"Athena," 

"Yes?" 

The courage that was scattered all over me started to build themselves up. Surely Athena knows something. She is closer to Father than the others. They were seen frequently discussing something when I was still in Olympus. It was always these two that makes a good tandem, so it's really impossible if  Athena doesn't know anything. They're too close.

"You are father's daughter, correct?" 

Her smile slowly starts to fade. They didn't tell me that Athena is father's offspring as well. They told me that they were siblings, that's why I call her Aunt from time to time, when there's no status involved. They fed me with lies and they made sure that the entire Olympus knows this as well. They told Olympus to call Athena and the others the same as they told me; my Aunt and Uncles. 

If I were the Prince of Olympus, father's other children should be called with those titles as well. Father only has two siblings. That's Poseidon and Hades. At least, they didn't lie about that to me. 

"Your Highness," her voice sounded so unsure when she called me. 

"Please answer the question," 

I heard these things in class. This was one of the reasons why I want to quit school. The more I actually listen, the more I know about things that I didn't know before. If only I had listened well every time, I wouldn't be this late in knowing. If only Rafaela wasn't in my mind all the time. 

It was because I was so love sick that I didn't know of this. Does Mine know about this too? Does Mine know that Athena's not my Aunt, but a sister or something? 

"Yes." she answers with guilt written all over her face. 

I needed intake of breath was what I did. The family I knew was somewhat broken into specific pieces. I grit my teeth and clench my chest. It has been hurting for a while now. Every time I think about the possibilities, it would always hurt and then I would cry, but hearing the actual truth resurfacing, it was much worse than I could imagine. 

Tears run down my cheeks. Fresh and hot tears. Athena couldn't look at me in the eyes. She must've known by now that I've caught up with most of the lies that they've created. 

"Can you, can you tell me why?" Athena kept looking down, never sparing me a glance. 

The first tat was clenching my chest got tighter as it got harder to breath. I wasn't even sobbing. Tears just ran and ran without my control. My body already knew what it was doing without approval. I'm not blaming my body, in fact, I was thankful. 

Somehow, crying made me feel light, like I'm not suffocated anymore. The heaviness on my chest starts to lit up as the burden of lies did so too, from my shoulders.

"For everyone's interest." 

I wipe my streaming tears away but they weren't letting up. They continued to pour, like a heavy rain on a raging night, filled with anger and rawness. 

"Thank you," my lack of interest made Athena look to me. 

When she saw me crying, she immediately hugged me. 

"Agnostos, I still love you as you are. Not only me but Zeus as well."

I couldn't find the words to say anything and hugged her back until I finally calmed down. She waved at me goodbye and told me to 'take care'. My eyes stung from all the crying, but no matter. I went back inside and saw Layla with Pharsa. They were sitting in the living room, waiting for me. 

Layla notices me first so I gestured for her to keep quiet. They must've heard everything. I'm not ready to hear it from them yet. I need to accept it myself. When Layla got the gist, she calmed down and stayed still. 

I teleported to my room and locked myself there, which I know is of no use since Pharsa can just teleport here. But Rafaela could come and I still don't want to talk to anyone, and including her. I am quite mad about her leaving me at the party, but that was minor. 

"What am I?" the question kept popping in my head. 

Agnostos, I still love you as you are. Not only me but Zeus as well. 

Was what she said. I keep repeating it, and again, and again. I closed my eyes. What am I? She made it sound like even if I'm the most scoundrel most person in the world, she still loves me and father. Am I allowed to call the king that? Am I still the prince? 

No. I stripped myself off of that title the moment I decided to live here in the human world. What's my number one priority? It was Rafaela at first but then this happened so I had to adjust. Knowing who and what am I is first. I can't proceed like this with Rafaela if I don't know who I am. 

I lift both of my arms and brought out a ball of darkness and a ball of light. The room immediately looked all white on the other and all black on the other. 

"What am I?" 

Prepare to embrace something unexpected, and you'll find it easy to accept it when it comes. I remember Pharsa's words. I was anticipating this and I readied myself for what answer comes. I admit, I should've prepared myself more as it hurts still but it isn't as hurting as I thought it would at first. 

"I need a sword." 

I made one in an instant. It was a shabby one but no matter. I infused both dark and light on the sword, sending waves of celestial properties in a second to everyone that was near me. The waves felt like a needle tugging in my heart in an instant. It wasn't exactly a nice feeling. I couldn't breath in a second because of the wave. 

Before I could look at the work that I did, the door busts open, breaking the lock. Pharsa and Layla came to me, panting and worried but their expression was immediately replaced with caution and amazement.

"What's that?" Pharsa asks, looking at the sword on my hand. 

"Oh, uh." 

I look at the sword and I wasn't sure what it was. It was both glowing white and black aura on its ends, radiating like the sun. I couldn't understand what I was seeing. The inner radiant ray of the sword portrayed white and holiness while the other ray portrayed darkness. It was emitting such a confusing aura that I couldn't comprehend what I just created. 

"Great heavens," Layla utters and slowly walks to me. 

"I don't know if this should hurt me or empower me." Layla tries to touch the sword but as if on instinct, I threw the sword on the wall. 

I felt an impulse. The sword was asking for her blood and it wanted her. The impulse was so great that I thought for a second that it was me. I look at my hand, wondering if I was really ready to take my companions life. Am I a murderer? Did I want to kill Layla?

"What the heck, Layla? You see that it was a holy sword!" Pharsa's screaming brought me out of my trance. I look at Layla, wondering why she reached out too but to my surprise, she was in a trance just like I was. 

Pharsa shook her body hard, knocking her back to reality. 

"That sword," Layla started and talked to me. 

"Wh-what?" 

"It was calling for me. It whispered sweet things to my ears." 

Wait. That sounded like what teamwork would do between two opposing properties. The one sweet talking was probably her side, the dark side and the white would be the one wanting her blood since white is her enemy. What about me? What came over me? 

Am I.. dangerous? I've known that a side of me is holy and that holiness is me being a deity but what about the other? What kind of darkness am I? I don't think vampires, such as Layla, can do what I did. Orcs are only physical. Golems? No, physicals. Am I a demon? No, I don't think demons can use light. But what if I really am a demon? Was my mother a demon? 

Was I that kind of hybrid? Am I really dangerous? Sweat started to form on my forehead as I try hard to think about it. 

"I've never seen any one doing that kind of thing." Pharsa tells me, probably to help me calm down. 

"I agree." Layla says. 

"That was, that was me. Who am I?" I look at my hands.

What lies underneath me? What lies inside me? I'm a killing machine at this point. I craved for blood that isn't hostile towards me. I craved for something so devastating, so appalling and so, so gruesome. I hated the thought of blood before but at that moment, blood was the only thing that seemed delicious to me. 

I stared horrified of my own hands. 

"Austin?" Pharsa's voice sounded so far, unreachable. 

I hugged my own body, gripping my own shoulders. I closed my eyes shut, thinking of something positive to drive away bad ones. I could almost taste the blood earlier. Did I want it? No! But a part of me is saying 'yes'.

I growled. And growled again. Like something was burning inside me. I felt hot inside, like a flame ready to explode. I tensed and I stiffened, remaining in the same position I was earlier.

But then I felt pain on my cheek. I opened my eyes and saw a concerned looking Pharsa. The flame inside me suddenly disappeared. I got my  senses back and I felt normal again. I didn't feel so dangerous, unlike earlier. The ravaging thoughts in my head were gone. 

"Wha..?" 

Layla looked at me with caution. 

"Are you okay?" Pharsa asks. 

"You're asking someone you just slapped that question?" she glares at me. 

I inhaled and blinked for a few times. I look at the sword that was impaled on the wall. It was still infused with both properties. I stand up and went to it. Layla immediately went to battle stance and in front of Pharsa. I grabbed the sword's hilt and broke it, thinking that that was enough to make it go away. But it wasn't. 

Both the broken blade and the hilt were still glowing. 

"What the?" 

I absorbed the properties infused with it and finally it was done. The sword looked ordinary. Layla loosened up and breathes out. 

"What was that?" Layla asks me. 

"I tried infusing the two together. I don't even know what came over me after that. All I know is that I just got slapped." 

"What can I do? You were groaning and grunting incomprehensible words." 

"Did I?" I wasn't sure. I just felt like I was in a trance, and I was lost and it was hot. 

"I think you need to have a talk with your father, Your Highness." 

Ah, right. Before I decided to do that, I was asking myself if I was still fit to be Olympus' Prince. Pharsa saw my look and elbowed Layla's side, making me appreciative for the initiative. 

"It's okay. I plan to do that anyway. He holds all the answers that I need." 

"Are you okay?" 

Layla rubbed the sore spot that Pharsa elbowed. Pharsa sits next to me and gently rubs my back. I feel safe knowing that I have a trusting friend. Speaking of friend, I still need to make sure that I'm forgiven by Mine. I owe that to her. I did promise her that I'm going to apologize. She adjusted for me. Even Athena adjusted for me by sending Mine here. They know I can't go back to Olympus so they decided to do that instead. 

I was actually worried about what was going to be Mine's reaction when she sees me wielding both dark and light at the same time. She has missed so many things, how Pharsa is into Sarah. How I'm already with Rafaela and how I'm quitting school starting next week. 

I wonder how she is. 

"I'm all good. Don't worry." I give Pharsa a reassuring smile. 

"Still, that was very powerful, Your Highness." my smile disappeared and I stared at my hand. 

"Yeah, I could feel it even though it was just an impulse." 

It was so powerful that it could trance two entities at once even though it was just an impulse. I need to be cautious. I don't know how dangerous I am yet and what that was all about. I don't think I want to infuse them both at the same time for now. 

What will Rafaela think once she knows this side of me? Will she still accept me as I am? Ah, but first, we still need to talk about that party. That was extremely rude. But I can't stay mad at her for too long. I can't handle it. I miss her already. 

"We need to be careful."