The Sanctuary
Rowan really did love hugs. Everyone in the Adamson family could literally not survive without hugs. It was one of their basic human needs, because of who they were all descended from.
"I know," He said softly. "I could sense it. You are always welcome for hugs."
Now that he was blind, he could actually see what he needed to see much better.
Cilantro had no idea where Eden just ran off to. That energetic kid was probably going to get in trouble... or not. This place was blessed by Cilan's father Luno, and besides, there were plenty of mature people to supervise the kids.
"That sounds fun!" He told Mallory when she suggested trying a brother. He had a ridiculous grin on his face. "We could go skydiving together... but I'd have to bring him a parachute!"
Gavotte smiled and nodded in agreement. He wished he could be a bit more talkative, but he still wasn't fully recovered. He held up his hand at Jen's offer.
"One moment," He whispered as he took deep breaths. It was highly uncomfortable, but after a while it got easier. He sat up, then rose to his feet.
"I'd love to come exploring with you. Just as long as you handle the tasks involving physical strength..." He chuckled.
---
Capital City
Ivana honestly loved Amber. They did make a perfect team. Despite having mostly the same power, they somehow balanced each other out. "Alastair's guards have horrible fashion sense," Ivana quipped. "Dark green and dark red... like Christmas during a power outage!"
As usual, Solara obviously did not get the joke. "... There is someone in the prison who called for me," She told Amber.
A prison? Ivana could certainly negotiate them inside. She didn't have as much destructive power as the others, but she sure could use everything to her advantage. With her high status, she could manipulate the guards. Ivana secretly wanted to ask Solara to walk a little faster. The Timekeeper heiress couldn't wait to order more people around.
"I believe we need a plan, Alpha puppy," Ivana commented. She looked to Amber, since 'rip off the door and tear the bars off the cells' would not be a good strategy. Probably effective for their ridiculously strong companion, but not for the Timekeepers. It was better to be safe than sorry. Besides, Amber knew the most about both her comrades. Ivana used to be the smartest in her school until she showed up!
---
Celestial Tower
Clotilda was just lounging on the couch when some idiot barged in without knocking. She leaped to her feet, ready to throw the nearest dangerous object at the rude intruder. When she found out it was Jonah, she decided not to attack right now. He was too busy freaking out about something.
"Hey!" She yelled as he ran out of the room. "You can't just..."
He had already left.
"Ugh!" Clove shouted as she ran after him.
---
Celestial Spire
Juniper was entirely aware of the issue at hand. He was locking down the upper floors of the tower, and preparing to head to a meeting at the top. Just as he locked the last door, Jonah surprised him from behind and started shouting about Conlan and Agatha. Juniper simply listened to the horrified teenager, then hugged him.
"Shh," He murmured. "I know."
Before he could continue, Clotilda ran up the stairs and burst into the hallway. "What's going on? You left without me, you big churlish oaf!"
Juniper closed his eyes for a moment, focusing. He then let go of Jonah.
"I think you two best come with me."
---
Celestial Pinnacle
Vulcana had finally arrived after a life lesson involving her daughter, which she wouldn't elaborate on. The council was almost fully gathered in the white room atop the tower, where Solara had stayed before her revival. Now the floor had been newly renovated with wood planks, and the walls were painted blue like the sky. A few soft patches of white remained, like fluffy clouds. Obviously someone did not like boring pure white rooms. And that 'someone' had crazy artistic skills. The clouds on the walls were actually moving. Zelkova was honestly very impressed.
Albina stared distastefully at the colorful room. "I preferred the old look... this is too jarring. The brown does not go well with the blue-and-white." To punctuate her point, she made a disgusted expression at the wood floor.
"THE FLOOR IS A PROBLEM," Vulcana commented. She was wearing the most embarrassing bunny slippers... except they were made out of metal. She had to create them herself, since no other shoes would fit her feet. She was obviously not allowed here without proper protection. Not for her, but for the floor. If she touched it, she would immediately ruin the new wood planks.
"Father spent much time renovating this room," Mariana scolded. "Show some respect and stop complaining."
"Evan is not my mother," Albina retorted.
"You don't have to be so cold, you old geezer!" Aeliana burst out laughing in her face. "How do you think Papa would feel!"
"No more fighting." Terentia stood up and placed her hands firmly on the table. This, fortunately, got the other elemental sisters to stop nagging at each other. Zelkova and Livius looked at one another, and breathed a sigh of relief. Terentia sat down and shot a stern look towards her sisters.
The door opened, and Evan entered the room. Aeliana began applauding until Mariana tugged on her arm to get her to stop. Evan was fidgeting with some kind of Hesenian technological device. It was flat, and it mostly consisted of a big screen. Below the screen was a single circular button, with a rounded square symbol on it.
"Ada's not coming," Evan laughed as he took his seat at the table. Now almost all the spots were occupied. Ada's spot at the far end of the table was empty, and there were still three unoccupied seats in the middle. The five elemental sisters sat on one edge of the long rectangular table, and Livius was on the same side. Across from him, Zelkova sat alone on the other edge. The five seats to Zelkova's right were unoccupied, since nobody wanted to sit with Death. Evan pressed some kind of button on the device's edge, and the screen lit up. It read 'Grapefruit iPad'. The logo was a big grapefruit with a bite taken out of it.
"My favorite fruit," Livius said brightly. He was always so proud the Grapefruit company named itself after him. The symbolism was that their devices would someday be incorporated into everyday living.
Zelkova chuckled. "I prefer pomegranates."
Of course, no company named itself after her. They did not want their brand name to 'die' since their products would stop selling. Apparently Zelkova was considered very unlucky by living Hesenians.
"And blackberries!" Livius added. "Don't forget blackberries! Remember last week, when I threw them in the air and you caught them in your mouth?"
Everyone at the table burst into laughter then. Vulcana's laugh made the entire room shake, and Albina's giggling was barely audible. Aeliana was pounding her fists on the table and there were tears in Mariana's eyes. Zelkova just stared at them, and then at Livius, her cheeks starting to burn. He had actually joined the laughter too. He just loved to embarrass her!
Someone opened the door. Zelkova recognized the brown hair and bright green eyes of Tacet Tenuto, the First Gentleman of Windwoods Village.
"Hello," Tacet said brightly. "Thank you all for inviting me."
Aeliana, Mariana, and Terentia just laughed harder. They had been the ones to invite him to the meeting, when Evan asked them to invite a mortal. It was their inside joke, because they made a bet against Vulcana and Albina. The triplets' hopes were riding on Tacet hero-worshipping Solara during this meeting. Whoever lost the bet would have cleaning duty in the Underworld.
"A pleasure to have you here," Zelkova told him with a smile. "Come sit down beside me."
Tacet looked very nervous. "Thank you ma'am, but I will have to decline." He went to the far edge of the table, and sat down in the seat closest to Ada's unoccupied chair. Now he was four empty seats away from Zelkova. She didn't blame him. She had only recently come to claim him.
"There we go," Evan said as he turned the device around. It was attached to a stand, and now it was upright without him having to hold it. The screen displayed a live video of General Ada's furious face. She was sitting on her throne, and Zelkova could hear the background noise of condemned souls groaning.
"That is an awful noise," Albina sighed.
"Agreed," General Ada said. "Give me a moment."
Evan turned the screen around. Zelkova could hear Ada shouting at someone, "SHUT UP OR EXTRA DISHWASHING FOR EVERYONE!" And Evan made a very concerned face. He turned the screen around. Ada was back on her throne, looking as grumpy as ever.
"When is the meeting going to start?" Aeliana inquired impatiently.
"When all the chairs are filled," Mariana told her.
Zelkova shook her head. She had asked about the meeting ahead of time. "No, Mariana. Juniper is the last member we are waiting for. Three of these chairs will remain empty, because Solara, Luno, and Conlan are in the living world-"
WHAM!
The door flew open as a furious Conlan stormed inside. "You were saying?"
"ZELKOVA!" Everyone groaned. "You jinxed it again!"
Zelkova stared at him in utter confusion. Since he was one of the legends, she didn't have to pick him up herself. So it was all the more surprising when he did show up.
"What happened?" She asked the enraged warrior.
"Agatha dropped him off a cliff," Mariana explained. "She won the fight, since he was so tired."
"You knew about it..." Zelkova squinted at the trident wielder. She was beginning to grow exasperated...
"I know we knew," Aeliana snickered. "But we love to blame you anyway!"
Zelkova shook her head in disbelief. Livius gave her a sympathetic look, even though he was hiding a laugh.
Conlan scowled at the triplets, then looked at Evan. "Where should I sit?"
"Take my seat," General Ada said over the audio before Evan could respond. "You have much to give to this meeting. So give us your all."
"Yes, Grandmother. Thank you." Grumpily, Conlan marched over to the head of the table and sat down, now facing Evan. He looked a little uncomfortable to be in that position. Zelkova didn't blame him.---
Mayne's Room
Timpani looked down at Mayne with an expression of both contentment and concern. There was something about him that made it impossible to get angry. Without her typical anger, she felt much different. It was a good different. She thought of her mother, and unexpectedly was plunged into a memory that wasn't her own.
The rhythmic clanging of metal against metal rang throughout the great volcano. The dark figure of a giant was hunched over a forge which glowed with blazing light. Brows furrowed in rage and effort, the blacksmith brought her hammer down upon her creation, over and over again. With each strike, the fiery glow from the surrounding magma dimmed and brightened; the volcano's depths seemed to pulse like a heartbeat. Day and night, Vulcana devoted herself to this one project. She considered it her greatest undertaking.
Yet it needed something more to make it complete.
Above, the mouth of the volcano opened to the dark sky. It was nighttime, but the moon did not shine. This was a time before the sun and the moon ruled the skies.
A figure emerged at the edge of the volcano. At his arrival, Vulcana set down her hammer.
"COME IN."
He nodded silently, then climbed over the side. Vulcana sent a plume of lava towards him. It cradled the visitor, then lowered him to the floor gently. Juniper was immune to fire; it was his element too, although he embodied none of its destructive powers. Only its comforting warmth and light.
Vulcana let the volcano's glow brighten, so she could see him better. The firelight illuminated the bruise beginning to form around his right eye. A rumble sounded from deep within the volcano as her anger flared. That had not been there at his last visit, which was only two days ago.
"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?" She demanded, taking a step forward.
He limped towards her, clearly favoring his left leg. It seemed to pain him whenever he took a step. Vulcana was about to erupt with rage, but she kept it together for his sake. The rumbling from the volcano stopped. She took a deep breath in and out, then gathered him into her arms. She held him like she would hold a fragile clay figure, created by Hesenians with their cold hands, not yet fired in Vulcana's forge.
The mortals would throw their clay creations into the volcano sometimes. If she approved of them, she would heat the clay to strength it, and leave it outside to be collected again. If she disapproved she would simply melt the clay down for her future projects. But never for this project. Only the strongest metals could go into this creation, for Juniper's sake.
"Conlan got into a fight with Agatha again and ran away from home," Juniper confided quietly. He pressed himself into her embrace, trembling despite her warmth. "I tried to go after him-"
"SAY NO MORE." She already knew what had happened. That dastardly Agatha. Trying to prevent a father from searching for his son. There would be punishment for her cowardice. Agatha had never challenged anyone more powerful than herself, because she was thoroughly despicable.
Vulcana picked him up, very carefully. She had to control her strength around him. No matter what, she would not allow herself to harm him. She brought him to her forge, where the creation had finally taken its shape. It was the rough figure of a baby girl, made from the strongest metals in existence. Bronze from the bottom of the Underworld and gold from the leftover materials used to build Celestial Tower, blended with steel painstakingly created in Vulcana's own forge.
"I MADE THIS FOR YOU," She told him. "OUR DAUGHTER. I CALL HER SOLARA: 'THE SUN'."
"She's beautiful," Juniper murmured.
He stepped forward and stood by the anvil's side, closing his eyes in concentration. After a while, he finally spoke again. Vulcana loved to hear his voice.
"Will you let me hold her?"
Vulcana nodded. "I WISH YOU WOULD."
She watched as Juniper gently picked up the motionless girl made of metal. He cradled her so tightly that she was completely hidden in his arms. "She is very warm, just like you," He commented fondly.
"YES," She told him. "I MADE HER TO PROTECT YOU WHEN I CANNOT."
Juniper looked down at the ground wistfully. "Vulcana, I don't know what to say but... thank you."
She smiled, her normally-stern features softening. But the moment was quickly gone as she remembered her error. "SHE IS MISSING ONE THING."
"What is that?" Juniper asked her.
"LIFE."
Juniper only smiled, and held out his arms. Now he held a living daughter, plump and rosy-faced. She opened her eyes, and light illuminated the volcano, brighter than any fire. She had deep russet eyes which matched her father's.
Babbling, she reached her tiny fingers up at her father.
"Hi, Sunny," Juniper cooed at her. "Say hello to mommy."
"GOOD MORNING, SOLARA." Vulcana greeted her newborn daughter. She was alive, so full of life. That was what was missing, and Juniper had provided exactly that.
The baby looked at her in awe.
"What is a morning, Vulcana?" Juniper asked her.
She smiled. "COME WITH ME."
A current of magma slowly lifted them up to the surface. Now that she was above the mouth of the volcano, she could see the sky. Vulcana stood beside Juniper as the eastern horizon began to brighten.
"What is happening?"
"I CALL IT SUNRISE."
A golden light emerged from the edge of the world, and gradually climbed up the sky, illuminating all of Hesenia. It brought light to everything it touched, turning an once bleak grey landscape into a colorful paradise. Vulcana smiled with pride as the light fell on them, too.
Still holding Solara with one hand, Juniper reached his hand out. "Light from the sky- and it is so warm," He breathed. In his arms, Solara yawned.
"Don't-" Juniper started, but due to his superhuman empathy, he couldn't help but yawn too.
Vulcana looked at him with furrowed brows.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Juniper smiled. "I was trying to tell Sunny not to yawn in your presence."
"WHY?" Vulcana was completely perplexed.
"I just thought it would be impolite."
Vulcana laughed, a sound that made the ground itself shake. "RIDICULOUS," She told him. "NOW TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK OF MY GIFT."
"No words can express how much I love this," Juniper told her. "If you don't mind, can I name sunrise the 'dawn?' It is a combination of the words 'don't' and 'yawn'. It will make much sense as a name; this light makes me have much more energy. So I am not tired and have no wish to yawn. The humans must feel the same."
"YES," She told him with a chuckle. "AND THINK OF ME WHEN YOU SEE THE DAWN."
With his free hand, Juniper leaned in and gave Vulcana a hug. She wrapped her arms around both him and the tiny girl in his arms, who was now peacefully asleep. He only responded when she had released him.
"I will," Juniper promised, gently breaking free from her side. "But now I must go."
She paused.
"GO?"
"I wanted to tell you, but you told me to stop," Juniper said. "I found Conlan last night. He is safe with your sister Albina, in the north. Agatha will be coming home soon, and I should make her the first meal after sunrise. I will call it 'breakfast' because I must leave this place quickly."
"NO. DO NOT LEAVE ME," She told him.
"Agatha will find me eventually," Juniper whispered.
The rumbling from the volcano began anew. "BUT I WILL PROTECT YOU FROM HER."
Juniper shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry. She... can defeat anyone. Even Governor Evan."
Vulcana was running out of time- he had already stepped off the magma flow and was backing away. She looked him in the eyes, no longer angry, only heartbroken. "BUT I LOVE YOU. STAY WITH ME FOREVER."
"I am sorry, Vulcana. I love you too, but Agatha is my soulmate." Juniper bowed his head, but the tears had already begun to fall. "We were created for each other, just as you were created for your forge."
Vulcana held out a hand. "I WILL LEAVE MY FORGE AND COME WITH YOU."
"I could never do that to you," Juniper told her. "But I really must go. Goodbye, Vulcana."
He turned his back and walked away, and she watched him until she was gone. And then she let the lava lower her back into the depths of the volcano, where she sat by her forge in silence.
The sound of metal striking metal was not heard from the volcano for a long time.
"Why are you showing me this?" Timpani asked her mother once she regained her senses. "And why now?"
ANSWER THAT QUESTION YOURSELF, Vulcana told her.
She looked at the boy in her arms. The boy who had apologized, thinking it was impolite to yawn in her presence. The boy who she felt so protective over. It was him Vulcana was speaking about.
NOW YOU KNOW WHO JUNIPER IS, Vulcana said.
TIMPANI, YOU HAVE A CHOICE. YOU CAN BE LIKE AGATHA AND BREAK HIS HEART. YOU CAN BE LIKE ME AND FAIL TO PROTECT HIM.Fury kindled in her heart- the same rage she shared with her mother.
And what if I refuse either of those choices, mother?THEN YOU HAVE RIGHTED WHAT I HAVE DONE WRONG.She thought about it for a long time.
That is what I will do, Timpani said.
Thank you, mother.With that, Vulcana's voice in her head was gone. But Timpani could feel her approval. She wouldn't let her down.
She looked at the boy she still held in her arms.
She wouldn't let
him down.