Miles

Katrina hasn't said a word since we left my parents' home. We've driven for nearly an hour and are almost back to campus. I want to ask her what's on her mind, but I already know what, or should I say who it is. Kek. My father believed in Kek. It was absurd. His existence is impossible. Everything originated from the stars. First came the stars, next the brothers- Jehovah and Braham, then came the angels, the humans, and the Titans. Kek is said to come from the darkness. He would be older than the stars, born before anything else existed, but surely if he was real, there would be evidence of his existence. Would there not?

"Tell me about Kek. He isn't mentioned in the book my parents left me. A lot of the Gods aren't mentioned, actually. Why the hell did they even leave me the damn book?" She asks angrily, hot tears streaming down her face.

I grab her hand and circle her palm with my thumb, wanting to soothe her. "Maybe they wanted to leave a part of your history for you. Their way of sharing with you a lineage they couldn't tell you about?"

"But they could have Miles." Katrina croaks, her voice rough, "They could've raised me. They could have told me stories about all the Gods and Goddesses. They chose not to. They chose to leave me at that orphanage."

"They chose to protect you from an evil they've never encountered before. Your parents are the most powerful angels of their kind, and whatever was chasing them terrified them. They gave you up so you could live a better life instead of one where you would have to grow up hiding and checking your back, scared all the time."

"So you would give our child up?" Katrina asks, glancing up, her blue eyes tinged red and still shimmering with tears.

"Child?" I ask, feeling my heart skip a beat. Fuck. Was Katrina pregnant? Is that why she's been so emotional?

"I'm not pregnant, Miles." Katrina chuckles, sniffling and wiping away a tear. "It's more of a what if."

"I wouldn't have to, Kitten. We have the entire realm backing us. Our child will be the heir to the Divine Kingdom. The entire world will protect our children. Your parents, they were runaways. They only had my parents backing them; it wasn't even full backing. My parents could only do so much."

Katrina lets out a loud sigh; I know it's not what she wants to hear. I know she wants me to tell her that her parents were wrong in giving her up, but I can't lie. "And if your parents hadn't left you at that orphanage, you might not be here beside me. We can't second guess what happens in our lives. Every second of life has played out how it was meant to be. You can regret things that happen in your life, but don't dwell on them. You'll waste your life dwelling on the past. What happened has happened, and it'll never change."

Katrina adjusts in her seat and wipes her eyes once more, clearing away the remaining tears. "You know, sometimes you could join me for my pity party." She pouts.

"Nah, Kitten. You're too strong to pity. To smart. If the time ever comes that I feel like pitying is needed, I'll throw the damn party for you."

"It better be kick ass." She smiles, unclasping her seatbelt when we pull into the garage. "So you want to share what you know about Kek with me?"

"I'll leave that to the Professor. I only know what I was told growing up. That if I lingered in the shadows too long, Kek would consume me. It's what parents told their kids that were misbehaving. Kek was used to instill fear into us so we would behave."

"How odd." Katrina remarks, scrunching up her nose.

*********************************************************************

"Princess, your back. Finally." Aphelion shouts, ripping open the dormitory door before I have a chance to turn the knob, pulling me inside and pushing me out of the way so he can take Katrina into his arms. "I missed you." He murmurs into her neck, inhaling her scent.

"It hasn't even been an entire day." Katrina giggles, tightening her arms around Aphelion, and embracing his hug.

"A second away from you feels like an eternity."

I can't blame him. I feel the same way when I'm apart from Katrina. Since the moment we met, being away from her has killed me. She's a permanent part of my soul now, and I ache to be near her when I'm not with her. Its a feeling I'm hoping goes away with time. I know I'll miss Katrina dearly no matter what, but this feeling goes beyond missing. It's as if the very oxygen I've been breathing has been stolen from me when I'm not with her. Looking over at Beckett, Samael, and Luka, I can tell that they have it just as badly too.

Katrina takes a few minutes with each of her mates, giving them her undivided attention while they shower her with love and affection before we all sit together in the living room. Instead of everyone on opposite couches, we've all come together on the floor, encircling Katrina, so each of us can hold her in one way or another. She's sitting in between Aphelion's legs; he's claimed the majority of her, and from how frazzled he looks, no one is going to challenge him. Samael sits beside her, his hand encaptured in his, and Luka sits between Samael's legs, his hands on Katrina's thigh, stroking it. Beckett sits opposite Katrina; he has both her legs tucked up onto his, her feet encircled around his back, and I'm sitting on her other side, running my hands through her hair. We're a puddle of human limbs, but no one is complaining about personal space; everyone just happy to be near their mate.

"So, Becks, why did you want us all here?" I ask, deciding to get this meeting started, knowing if we delay any longer, Katrina will be naked, and we will be devouring her body.

Beckett leans forward and plants a kiss on Katrina's forehead before clearing his throat to begin. "Yeah, some shits going on in the Water Kingdom, and I figured we could share what we found out today."

Katrina's curiosity piques while we wait for Beckett to share his discovery. "I think the Etir has made its way into the water. There have been sea monster sightings all around the world. And there's something dark lurking in the water, something that's afraid of our fated. The darkness retreated when Katrina entered the water and spoke to its creatures."

Katrina shudders, and I know she's thinking of what my parents said about Kek. Could there really be truth behind the rumors? Or had the story of Kek originated from the tale of Etir? I realized I was lost in my own thoughts when Aphelion piped up that there had been a Michael spotting.

"My...my father's been spotted?" Katrina questions, her upper lip trembling, turning her head behind her slightly so she can look up at Aphelion.

"It hasn't been confirmed that it's him, Princess, but the Angels are almost certain that it is him. His brother is going to Egypt to try and find him." Aphelion replies, hugging Katrina around the waist, a worried expression on his face, making me wonder if he regretted sharing the information.

He shouldn't regret it. We all promised to share everything and not keep anything from one another. It's the only way we can continue trusting and relying on each other. Me, myself, I felt a churning in my stomach of anxiety. Egypt. Yet another indication that Kek exists. That he's not a figment of nightmares but an actual being, someone unnatural who'll stop at nothing to get his hands on my mate. This emotion inside of me, the one feeling me full of dread and worry, that has my heart thudding in my chest. I'm not used to it. Fear. It's something I've never felt in my life. Something I've never had to worry about.

"You said he was spotted in Egypt?" I ask calmly, my outward emotion not displaying what I'm feeling inside as I try to keep up a strong facade.

"Yeah. The alert said Egypt. Why?"

"Ever heard of Kek?" My cousins draw in a. sharp breath, and Luka looks at me with intrigue.

"That old legend?" He asks, "What does that have to do with Michael?"

I tell them the news that my parents shared with me tonight, the fact that they knew Michael and Lilith, and knew of what Katrina was. When I get to the part about Kek, I watch as their expressions change, mimicking the turmoil I'm feeling inside. Will we be enough to protect Katrina?