Chapter 209

209 Between Gods And Man

While Peggy went to sleep at around two or so, Maevis and Skye stayed awake until some time after four in the morning. They’d written down any and all legends they could remember. Some were from the ancient cultures, some were from more recent times. Anything that mentioned a world-ending event.

Based off of the ancient religions and cultures, the two surmised that catastrophic prophecies all had the same underlying point: the world would end no matter what. What happened afterwards varied text to text.

Some said that the world would literally be destroyed. The legends ranged from the planet being swallowed whole or destroyed by galactic-sized entities, to more simplistic scenarios like the planet being unable to support life after. Some were more optimistic; calling the aftermath ‘heaven on earth’ or a ‘utopia’ once the chaos settled. Either way one looked at it, the bottom line was that the world that everyone knew would cease to be.

After Peggy had gone off to sleep, Skye was contemplating the final dream she’d had on their honeymoon. She’d seen everything from the Great Shift, to her current time. One specific thing had been bothering her since then: what caused the rift in space/time to begin with?

The voice had mentioned the ‘hubris of man’, which led Skye to believe that humans had caused the catastrophe themselves. ‘Maevis and Nicolas had mentioned that the Fae world was on the other side.. But how did it happen in the first place? What were the ancients tryin’ to accomplish? Were they tryin’ to go to the Fae world?! Is that what caused the rift?!’

“Mae, what do you know about the Great Shift? Has the Empress ever talked about it? Does she know Why it happened? What the ancients’ goal was?”

Maevis put her hand up to her chin in contemplation; “Hmm... I know we’ve had several conversations about it. Nicolas was even part of them on occasion. One of his theories as to why there are magical hot spots scattered about is that they’re the pieces from our world. Titania agreed with him, and also suggested that the southern continent was mostly from our world. It explains why the southern continent is like one giant magical hot spot; albeit fading..”

“Do ye know why it’s fading?”

Maevis sighed; “Time, dear.. Everything fades with time. The key is to figure out how to replenish it. Nicolas thinks you’re the key to that.”

.....

Skye quirked an eyebrow; “Me?! How? Does it have to do with me bein’ the Catalyst?”

“We think so.. It would be nice if we knew What choice you’re suppose to make. It can’t be as simple as life and death; the choice would be too obvious.. You’ll most likely be given two options or more that represent life and death. The gods love their riddles and stories..”

“Do you think that the gods are affected by existence? Or us?”

Maevis took in a sharp breath; “That’s a loaded question.. I like to think they’re at least interested in us, especially with that mysterious voice earlier. If they didn’t care, I don’t think they’d send us prophets and legends.”

Skye exhaled in exasperation; “I wish they’d be more straightforward about it all..”

Maevis chuckled slightly; “Really? Because I don’t think it can get much clearer. All religions tells us the same things over and over; be kind and love one another.. At least to me; that’s all that matters. The rest is trifles.”

Skye smiled at Maevis’ sentiment. She’d never been religious, but respected those who had commitment to their beliefs. It wasn’t her place to judge others; their gods would do that when the time came. All that mattered to her was how one acted towards others. Respect has to be given for it to be received, so as long as her boundaries were respected, Skye found it hard to think of people she disliked.. Excluding people like Jacob Fowler and Marco, Skye honestly liked everyone.

“Why do you bring it up dear?” Maevis inquired.

“I just can’t wrap me head around why Ima the one responsible for, eh-all of Existence?! What crazy being decided that a shut-in like me should decide?! Ima no saint! I’ve literally killed people! And I don’t feel bad about it either! Am I really fit to make a decision like this?!”

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Maevis narrowed her eyes at Skye; “Did you enjoy it?”

“What?”

“Killing? Did you enjoy taking life?”

“Of course not! I didn’t want to-Well, Jacob I kinda did, but the Bastard didn’t deserve to live after all the lives he’d destroyed and taken.”

Maevis clapped her hands together; “Then there’s your answer. You don’t seek out people to kill, and I know the lives you’ve taken were in defense of yourself or others. You spared Petrie in the heat of battle; do you know how many could’ve done that? In my opinion: I don’t think there’s anyone better to make the call than you. I know that whatever choices you’re presented with, you’ll make the right one. I have faith in you..”

Skye smiled softly at her friend; “I wish I had yer faith..”

Maevis laughed; “That, I think, will come with time lass. You need to learn as much as you can, even after the trials. Your journey won’t even truly start until after that.. Now! Back to work, dear! Regardless of how I look, I am quite old, and it is Far past my bedtime.”

Skye smiled and nodded. Maevis made her feel a bit better, but the anxiety remained. It was overwhelming whenever she actually thought about her situation. Being responsible for the fate of existence with no idea of how, when, or why.. ‘The why!’

“Mae, what do ye know of the Warrick bloodline?”

Maevis visibly flinched, which drew Skye’s scrutiny. She’d reacted similarly before, when she was withholding information from her and Tidas. Her demeanor became apprehensive, and she wouldn’t look Skye in the eye. All tells that she knew something.

Skye crossed her arms over her chest; “Spill it, Mae.. I know that when ye get shifty like that, that yer hiding something. What is it?”

‘Damn it.. What do I tell her?! Lucas and Lidia Begged me not to tell her about her true mother..But she knows I know something.. Crap! Crap! Crap! What do I say?!’

As Maevis inwardly panicked, her exterior was all poker face as she stared back at Skye. A few silent moments passed before an idea popped into her head. Maevis wouldn’t tell her about her mother, but she could still discuss the Warrick bloodline.. after a few exploratory questions first; to see what she already knew.

“First, why do you ask?”

Now it was Skye’s turn to fret. She wasn’t supposed to discuss what her and Magnus had spoken on, but she wasn’t left with much choice. Maevis was cunning, and most likely figured she must have some knowledge to ask about it in the first place. Against her better judgement, Skye decided to divulge her conversation with the king.

“I will tell ye, but ye Have to SWEAR not to tell another soul. If Maggie finds out I talked, he’ll never trust me again, and I won’t ever trust you.”

“Who’s Maggie?”

Skye sputtered a moment; I-Ah, umm.. It’s me nickname for Magnus, but don’t EVER say it! Tis from when I was a wee lass and couldn’t say his name right..”

“That’s adorable! Are you sure I can’t? Just once-”

Skye uncrossed her arms and slammed her hands down on the table; “No! Can we get back to the point please?”

“Can I discuss it with Nic?” Maevis inquired with an almost pouting expression.

After a moment to think on it, Skye replied; “Aye, that’s fine so long as ye take responsibility for him. If either of ye two blab, I’ll never speak to either of ye again, understand?”

After several more promises from Maevis, Skye explained her discussion with the king. Maevis was surprised at the extent of Magnus’ knowledge, even though she probably shouldn’t have been. He was highly intelligent, just like his ancestors. All the MacArthurs she’d ever met were naturally gifted at retaining information. It really shouldn’t have surprised her that he knew of the original betrayal between the nobles and the Warrick king.

What did shock her was how he’d pushed at Skye to question her parents about her heritage. From what Lucas had told her, Magnus supposedly didn’t know Skye’s true patronage. Based on the story she knew, the story she’d heard, and the one being told to her now; Magnus knew who Skye’s real mother was.

‘Poor Lucas. All that effort and Magnus had known the whole time.. Wait: did he know Sorcha was pregnant? He knew ‘Lucas’ lover’ was pregnant. Did he connect the dots before or after Skye’s birth? If he knew of the Warricks, did he know about what they protected?’

As Skye talked, nothing was ever mentioned about the Warrick’s secret. It made Maevis wonder if the king had withheld the information intentionally, or if he simply didn’t know about it. Considering who Magnus was, and that the Warricks were honorable, trustworthy people; he most likely knew and chose to not tell his daughter-in-law. Using her knowledge to lead the conversation away from the actual family; Maevis began to tell Skye a bit of Nicolas’ backstory..

“Nic told you of his brother Krampus, correct? Well.. I won’t tell you the whole story; that’s Nic’s choice. But there’s a part that pertains to the here and now..”

After he and Krampus fought in a certain battle together, they realized that the power of the Northen Star was too much to handle. It was slowly corrupting his brother, so Nic tried to come up with a solution: Break the Star. He broke off a small piece off of it, and entrusted itt to the family that had been protecting us and our home for generations..”

“The Warricks?! Is that why the Sanctuary is in the forest?”

Maevis smiled; “Sort of.. A few years after the kingdoms had settled down, the capital was moved farther south. That was when the Fae brought the remaining Warrick heir back to their lands. As thanks for protecting him, the boy swore to protect the Fae of the Northen Sanctuary. It had been a family tradition until..”

“The fire..”

Maevis went silent a moment at Skye’s solemn answer, then continued; “Anyway; to save his brother, Nicolas entrusted a shard of the Northen Star to the Warricks. They had guarded it, and continued to protect the Fae for generations. After the fire, we didn’t know what had happened to it.. Until your wedding day.”

“What?! Why? I don’t under-”

Maevis stood up from her seat, and fluttered over to hover in front of Skye’s face; “I didn’t know it, but Nicolas recognized it as soon as he saw it. It’s why he got so drunk so quickly at your wedding..”

Moving as close as she could without literally being in Skye’s face, Maevis pointed to the supposed moonstone on her choker necklace and said; “That stone right there is a piece of the Northen Star.. What I suspect is the Celestial Key..”