From Gods (Descendant Prophecies Book 1)(39)

"I know you can't hurt me, Amanda, just like Everett. But Nick and Mason, on the other hand, can. Their blood is stronger."

"Tell her, Nick. Tell her, Mason. Tell her you won't hurt her," Amanda pleaded desperately.

"I won't hurt you-" Nick started to say, "-I'll just annihilate your  face and crush your body beyond anything you can imagine. Zap you with  my volts, fry you from head to toe, and feed you to your ugly pets."

Alena hissed like an untamed wild animal and jerked back, projecting  eyes of evil. "After I kill all of you, I'm going to kill the others.  There are more of you out there, hiding. We're sending the vultures  after them until every one of you is dead."

"So you are the one who sent the vultures?" Amanda blared with fury in her eyes.

Alena laughed out loud. "You think I sent them? You have no idea. You  hide yourselves in a little town, oblivious to the war around you. Now  I've enlightened you. I take my orders from someone else. You really  need to open your eyes."

Alena was distracted by the conversation. Too busy being proud to have  the upper hand, she didn't realize Skylar was eyeing her dagger.  Swiftly, Skylar twisted her body as pain jolted from the roots of her  hair. She positioned herself in front of Alena and snatched the dagger.  Skylar nicked Alena across the arm just before Alena gripped her wrist,  causing Skylar to drop the dagger. Blood trickled down Alena's wounded  arm as she reached to retrieve it.

"Too bad I can't kill you with my blood," Alena sneered.

Skylar didn't know where her courage was coming from, but she could feel  the adrenaline pumping through her veins. All that was on her mind was  that she needed to help her friends, and at this point she was their  only hope. Her strength and speed were not comparable to Alena's, but it  didn't matter because she knew if there was a will, there was a way.

Tangoing back and forth, Alena banged Skylar into the tree. Pain rang in  her head, vibrating to the rest of her body, making her see double. She  could see Mason's worried face and somehow that gave her strength.  Remembering a move from a self-defense class, she kneed Alena in the  stomach. Alena curled inward as she cursed and lost her grip. Without  anything to defend herself with, Skylar ran, but Alena was faster.         

     



 

"Where do you think you're going?" Alena placed herself in front of  Skylar, making her gasp sharply. "You think you can outrun me?"

"You know what your problem is?" Skylar retorted. "You talk too much."  Just the way she had been taught, Skylar swiped her right leg across the  ground to knock Alena down, but it didn't happen. Alena jumped and let  Skylar have it with her boot, contacting her face. Skylar flew back and  her body whacked against the tree. Blood trickled down from her nose and  the left side of her temple, some of it dotting her shirt.

"How convenient. All I wanted was a few drops of your blood. We didn't  have to go through all this trouble." Alena leaned down to Skylar who  looked unconscious. With her dagger, Alena cautiously swiped blood from  her temple. "There. That is all I need to eliminate your friends. I said  you would be the one to kill them."

Pain shot through Skylar's nose, her head, and down to her feet. Her  skull felt like it was split into two. Drained and out of it, she lay  still with her eyes closed. It was all she could do at that moment. Her  thoughts were reeling, trying to figure out what to do and how to save  her friends.

With her eyes barely open, Skylar watched, anticipating Alena's next  move. While Alena's back was to her, Skylar attacked her from behind,  clasping her arm around Alena's neck.

"Release the barrier. You do know what happens when you touch my blood,  don't you? Would you like to find out firsthand?" Though she had stopped  bleeding and had wiped the blood away as much as she could, Alena  didn't know that. As far as she knew, Skylar was still bleeding and a  drop of her blood would kill Alena.

"Okay, I'll do it," Alena said through gritted teeth. "But you'll have to ask the Oracle. This was her idea."

All eyes flashed to the Oracle who was now close to the tree, her home.  The Oracle extended her cane in defense, mumbled a few words releasing  the shield, and vanished with a flash.

Skylar was unaware her grip on Alena had loosened. Alena taking  advantage of that moment of weakness, jabbed Skylar in the gut with her  elbow and flipped her over. "Your strength is no match for me. You're so  lucky I was told to keep you alive." Then she fled.





The barrier had been broken. Mason rushed to Skylar, helping her up,  careful not to touch a drop of her blood. As expected, her wounds had  already started to heal.

Standing before Mason's family, Skylar confessed the events of the  dreadful night when Remus had died. After she told her side of the  story, Everett and Amanda seemed forgiving, but they weren't any more  welcoming than before. They kept their distance from her as if she had  the plague. She didn't blame them though. One touch of her blood could  kill them. The only reason they even tolerated her was for Mason's sake.  Thankfully, Nick was the same as always-carefree and friendly.

From what Skylar could recall, there had never been a real brotherly  bond or affection toward Remus. Regardless, living with Remus and  knowing he was their half brother must have meant something. Though she  knew it wasn't her fault, she couldn't help the guilt consuming her  soul, and she was unable to look them in the eye when she spoke. She had  taken a life-their brother's life. Though it was an accident and Remus  had done wrong by her, she could never forgive herself.

From what they gathered by Skylar's story, Remus had died due to  swallowing her blood, not from being in contact with it, but Alena  thought otherwise. Skylar's account of the events, with the information  relayed by Alena-if she was telling the truth-brought them to the  conclusion that swallowing Remus's blood had caused her to absorb his  power of healing. It triggered her body to be more god-like so she was  able to heal faster, but that was all. She didn't move like them or have  their strength and speed. The biggest question remaining was how the  Oracle was involved. Unable to find her, they decided to head back home.

Finding their way back to the campsite was not a problem, but they were  faced with how to get back down the mountain, until Skylar reminded them  she had a car. She just had to remember where she had parked it. Though  there was light on Olympus making it look like it was daytime, it was  still the middle of the night in the real world.

Without a flashlight, it was difficult to see. Then light appeared.  Nick's and Mason's bodies glowed, making them appear as if they were the  center of the sun, but not as bright. Awestruck, Skylar's jaw dropped.  It was the first time she had witnessed such a phenomenon. Mesmerized by  this wonder, she tried hard not to stare and looked elsewhere.         

     



 

"Oh God. Must you shine so brightly, Rudolph?" Everett mocked, covering  his eyes with his hands to block the intensity of the light.

"Are you color blind? Do you see red on my nose?" Nick snorted.

"I'll give you a red nose." Everett wrapped his arm around Nick's neck  and ruffled his hair. Everett jumped a few feet when sparkling lights  zapped out of Nick's fingers, shocking him on purpose.

"Show off," Everett murmured under his breath, rubbing his arm.

"Only when we don't have a flashlight," Mason said to Skylar, ignoring Everett and Nick.

"I see why," she said, smiling. "Are you as hot as you look?" She rethought her question, blushing. "I meant-"

Mason chuckled. "Awesomely hot." He winked. "I know what you meant."

Nick jumped into the conversation. "I'm the hot one. Hotter than Mace."

"Walking flashlights don't talk," Amanda teased. "You should get one,  Skylar. You'll never get lost. It follows you wherever you go."

"Shut up," Nick laughed. "You're just jealous."

"What? That I'm not a torch like you?"

"No, that you can't light up someone's life like I can."

"Ouch." Mason nudged Nick. "Little harsh there."

Amanda scoffed. "Shut up, both of you, and find Skylar's car."

Skylar remembered she had placed Alena's instructions in the back pocket  of her jeans. "Here." She handed the piece of paper to Mason, and by  backtracking they soon found her car. Mason offered to drive and two  hours later they were at Nick's house.

Instead of driving back to her college dorm in the middle of the night,  Mason convinced Skylar to spend the night and head back to school in the  morning. Exhausted, she agreed, knowing she couldn't make the trip in  her condition, and her body ached from battling with Alena. She was glad  the self-defense courses had come in handy. It was too bad she couldn't  tell her mom about it.

Mason excused himself from his room so Skylar could take a shower. He  placed a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt on his bed for her to change  into while he took her clothes to the laundry room to be washed.