AIDAN

I found it a lot easier to sleep once the headache from slamming into the wall finally subsided. A tornado could have ripped through the house and I would’ve never noticed. With Lana staying over, I woke to find her and Nadia running practice drills in the living room. I walked in to see Lana narrowly dodge a bolt of electricity and a ball of fire. The craziest part was when both, the fireball and the bolt, didn't hit anything. They turned and flew back to Nadia’s palms.

I stretched while yawning. “The house thanks you. At least one of us is getting a handle on their powers.”

Lana threw the extinguisher over her shoulder. “Would any of your powers jump-start mine, preferably without ripping my throat out?”

I scratched my stomach and lied on the couch. “Like that’s a good idea.”

Lana shook her head and took a deep breath. “Screw this. I’m getting a taser, and maybe a gun permit.”

Nadia gave me an obnoxious smile. “On another note, we tried waking you, but you were dead asleep.”

I rolled my eyes and yawned again. "So clever."

“It's a good thing you got plenty of rest,” Nadia said. “We only have today to finish training your monster mode.”

I vigorously rubbed my face to wake up all the way. “Yeah, well, we have some bullshit to deal with first.” I told Nadia and Lana everything about the previous night, and they surprised me by not cracking any jokes or interrupting.

Once I was done, they both quietly contemplated for a few minutes until Lana finally finished thinking. “If you, or I guess, Enoch, look the exact same, then that means you weren't in either trip to the past,” she contemplated. “Not the one with Nadia’s past self in the forest, nor the one where Lucy connected the warriors to the necklace.” Lana's gaze shifted back and forth showing her mind at work. “So, why is the necklace connected to you if Enoch wasn’t one of the original warriors?”

I stared at the red jewel hanging from my neck. “I know, right? It begs the question, why did the necklace come to me in the first place?”

Nadia was wide-eyed next to me. “And this Amara chick said you were not only not Zagon, but you were his son? And Zagon was her son, making this Amara your grand-mama.”

Lana sat on the love seat and stirred her Bloody Mary. "I'm actually really curious about your skin turning white, or the past version of you, I mean."

I shrugged my shoulders at her. “Not for nothing, but it's only been a week. Enoch had his whole life to practice. It's just one of the many things I'll bring up when Mr. Serious drops by later.” I jumped from the couch and took my time stretching. "Right now, we need to tackle my monster mode problem because there's still going to be a ritual tomorrow. However we feel about Mr. Serious, we definitely know Sophia, Ava and The Prodigy, not to mention the frickin’ Asuwang, are planning on releasing that virus. If we don't do anything, the whole city, state, or even the country will turn into, at best, homicidal killers and, at worst, monsters.” I pointed between the girls, and myself. “That including us.”

Nadia waved at me from the couch. “I'm hearing you loud and clear, but, please, remember tomorrow won't matter if you kill me and Lana practicing today.” Nadia locked eyes with me. “Last time you tried jumping right into it, you almost killed our only valkyrie. Try going at it a little slower."

I gave Nadia a reassuring look while taking three deep breaths before sitting in the center of the living room. “Okay, I can do this. I’ve visited the past, read minds, levitated, teleported, and moved things without touching them. I can handle this.” I recalled each time I had produced my claws, trying to produce the same frame of mind. I didn’t feel anything until I remembered overpowering the Prodigy, and then the black knight. There was a spark of euphoria at remembering the way their terror built. I pursed my lips to keep from smiling.

I opened my eyes to look at my claws. They were black and jagged, manifested all the way to my shoulders. As I took stock of how amazingly in control I felt, a rip came from the back of my t-shirt. It shocked me enough to look at Lana and Nadia.

They were standing further back. Lana looked ready to cry as she covered her mouth. I could hear the blood pumping through her heart, and the hairs on the back of her neck stand. Then, I tasted something mouthwatering. I knew it was her fear from the familiar savory taste. A few feet from her, Nadia stood holding a ball of electricity in her hand, staring at me.

“Jeez, alright. Everybody chill.” I finished with a smile. Nadia relaxed a little by lowering her hand but didn't put the electricity out. “Why are you guys so freaked? I'm still in control.”

Lana tried to control her shaking by downing the rest of her Bloody Mary. “You might want to rethink how in control you are.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked with a laugh. "It's the claws. You’ve seen them a bunch of times."

Nadia's voice cracked halfway as she spoke. “Lana, go get the full-length mirror from my closet.”

My face twisted in confusion. “What are you doing? You know my reflection triggers my change and I’m trying to get a handle on it.”

Nadia shook her head, keeping her gaze on me. “Pretty sure we’re past that.”

Lana ran up the stairs and was back seconds later with the reflection facing away from me. Nadia powered off her electricity before Lana handed her the mirror.

She took a quick look at herself before showing me my reflection. “Aidan, stay calm.”

It wasn't just the claws. "Oh, god, no!" I looked like I was stuck somewhere between myself, and my demonic form. The skin had blackened across my entire body. Two large black bat wings protruded from my back, and my eyes were completely black except for white pupils. My mouth dropped open from shock, and something detached in my jaw. I opened wider to look further, but as I did, bones shifted inside. Sharp jagged teeth pushed their way forward, overlapping my lips.

Lana was full-on hyperventilating and clutching her stomach. Nadia trembled while electricity crackled in her eyes and on her skin.

My jaw didn’t feel strained or stretched. I had more room to open. So, I did. As my mouth grew wider, my cheeks detached themselves and produced more jagged teeth. Lana tried to muffle her shrieks, while Nadia dry heaved. Every time Nadia gagged, the lights in the house flickered.

Unable to handle anymore, I started to close my mouth before my cheeks reattached and the extra teeth retracted. "Oh—oh, my god." The deep guttural voice from me was unrecognizable. I shut my eyes, willing everything away. After a few minutes of taking deep breaths to relax, I looked in the mirror and watched myself change back to normal.

Lana walked towards the liquor shelf and took two huge gulps from a bottle of vodka, not bothering to hide her panic.

Nadia sighed and set the mirror down before sitting next to me. "Well, that was pretty terrifying, but you did it, girl." Nadia slapped my shoulder, but I was too confused to care.

I glanced at Lana, but she wouldn’t look at me. "What are you talking about? I didn't transform all the way."

Nadia stared at me like I was stupid. "You was trying to change all the way? Like with the knight?" Before I could respond, Nadia shook her head and waved her hands in my face. "Girl, no. What you was supposed to do was figure out how to change without losing your shit."

My eyes widened at the realization. "Oh. Well, I mean, I definitely did that, mostly. I guess I just needed to see it for myself." The corners of my mouth turned up into a small smile.

Lana dropped her head. "You guys, I peed a little.”

***

By the afternoon, we had trained a little more and even found the time to go shopping for new clothes. I didn't bother to buy anything for Jackson’s party. The girls and I had agreed it wouldn't end well for me emotionally to attend. After returning home, Nadia and Lana began their long endeavor to get ready for the glamorous party. I opted for a nap to rest my mind in preparation for confronting Mr. Serious later.

It only seemed like a minute, but I knew in actuality, it had been hours when Nadia came to wake me. Her tone was ominous. “Hey, Aid, let’s rock ‘n’ roll. Mr. Serious is here.”

I opened my eyes and my breath instantly caught. Nadia was majestic with her simple yet exotic make-up. Most of it was emphasized around her eyes using black and gold, giving her a touch of mystery.

Nadia stepped back and smiled at my stunned face. “Thoughts? Comments?” Her white tulle cocktail dress had a beautiful Queen Ann neckline and capped sleeves. Gold sequins and beads even covered the bodice and sleeves. What blew my mind were Nadia’s rather classy six-inch gold stilettos.

I nodded at her. "I'd do ya."

Nadia laughed before becoming deadly serious. “You’re damn right you would, 'cause it wasn’t easy making all of this happen. A lot of moving parts, if you know what I mean. Now, come on. It's about to get real up in here.”

I followed Nadia to the living room and found Lana in a stunning backless indigo bodycon mini-dress with lace sleeves. The open back plunged down to her lumbar, showing off her tattoo.

I snapped my fingers approvingly. “Someone looks ready to get pregnant.”

Lana’s face paled. “Please don't put that in my head. I, so, don't have it in me to change.”

Standing near the door was the ever-mysterious Mr. Serious. He kept his gaze on my maneuvering around the makeup, clothing, and hair appliances scattered around the living room.

Keeping my composure, I sat on the couch’s arm. “We need to have a little chit-chat about something."

Mr. Serious dropped his blasé demeanor. "If your concern is for the ritual’s location, I have procured a lead I intend to follow this evening."

My head slowly shook at him. "No, it's not that." I stood and the girls flanked my sides. "I have to ask you something and I don't want to mess around. No side-stepping the answer, or trying to change the topic. Straight honesty."

Mr. Serious crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Proceed."

"I had an incident last night. And while I'm still not a hundred percent sure what exactly happened, I do know what I saw." I paused to breathe. "The gist of it is, I went to the past and saw myself. My past self. Like every other time, I couldn’t be seen, but I finally got a good look at my previous incarnation."

Mr. Serious didn’t blink as he shrugged and used a hand to wave me along. "And?"

This time, I raised an eyebrow. "I know about Enoch."

Again, Mr. Serious shrugged. "Who is Enoch? What does any of this have to do with your previous self?" His stoic presence was cracking.

Nadia stepped forward between Mr. Serious and I. "Okay. This 'softening the blow' shit ain't taking." She turned to Mr. Serious. "Look, Aidan saw his past life self. He knows he looks the exact same as he did before and he knows his name was Enoch." Nadia looked around expectantly and sat on the couch.

Mr. Serious pursed his lips, seeming to hide a smirk. "I’m not entirely sure I understand what is going on. All of your abilities confirm you are the cambion, Zagon."

I took a deep breath from my own irritation building. "Well, the woman I saw in my vision, or whatever, called my past-self Enoch. She also said Enoch was Zagon's son."

Mr. Serious took a minute to look at me, and the girls before chuckling. "Alright. I’ll play along. And who was this woman who said you were Zagon’s son?

"Amara," I said flatly. "Zagon's mother. She said Zagon was her son and Enoch was Zagon’s son. One big happy family."

The grin dropped from Mr. Serious' face and was replaced with a scowl. “No.”

Confused, I glanced at the girls for a moment. "What do you mean no?"

"No!" He shouted before the girls and I jumped back. "It is not possible!" Mr. Serious headed for the front door.

"Wait, hold on." I rushed towards him and grabbed the sleeve of his suit. “What’s the mat--.”

Mr. Serious swung his hand back and connected hard with my face. I flew through the air and slammed into a living room wall. After landing on my face, I slowly pushed myself from the floor before Lana helped me to the couch. I looked at Mr. Serious and saw him screaming as Nadia gripped his face. Electricity was pouring from her skin and coursing through Mr. Serious.

I was still in a partial haze when Mr. Serious reached behind his neck. The panic in me skyrocketed at the unsheathing of his sword. "Stop!" With a rush of adrenaline, I stood. For a moment, it seemed like time had paused. With a pulse that shuddered through the room, the red jewel hanging from my neck expelled a scarlet-colored liquid. “Is--is that blood?” The crimson-colored substance flew from the necklace and floated over to Nadia and Mr. Serious.

I tried to reach Nadia, but the red liquid consumed them, and then they were gone. Vanished into thin air. I quickly shared a look of shock with Lana until the blood-like substance hovered towards us. I wrapped my arms around her and shouted, "hold on to me." She clung to my torso as the crimson liquid encircled us before the world around us disappeared.