Lucien's Confusion
POV: Lucien
I woke up the next morning after having spent a good part of the night with Alexandra and then for a little while with Aphrodite and Apollo. I don’t know if I had appreciated being dragged along to Eden since after Apollo came back, I got grilled on whether or not I was making eyes at his child. I had always thought of Apollo as being this massively strong God but he was really just a goofball. He had been hands-off with his soul children always but for some reason, after having met Alexandra, it was like he wanted to know everything about her. Thus, we were stuck in Eden until he was satisfied with having spoken to her enough but she had to promise that she would visit him in Helios (his domain) sometime soon. He had given her a massive hug and while doing so shot me a glare as if to say, “don’t hurt my child.” What he didn’t know was that I would always be the very last person who would ever do so, I had saved her more often than not. As I got up from my bed I noticed a note on my table, I got up to pick it up. As I did so I had wondered who it was that was able to sneak in my room undetected. I was quickly given the answer when I read the note. It simply said, “I’m watching you, semi-mortal. ~ Apollo” I sighed and placed the note back in the envelope and put it in my desk. I got dressed for the day and headed over to the banquet hall for breakfast where afterwards we would determine who would go out with who tonight on the second round of dates.
After breakfast we had all gathered to do the fire draw just like before. Alexandra’s ember fell into Derek’s hand and the look of elation that came over his face drew frustration from me and I would imagine Blake was feeling the same way. Litha’s ember fell into Meldon’s hands which drew a sigh from Alesha. Her ember fell into my hands which left Blake and Jess to go out. I announced that Alexandra and Derek would go on a hike up a nearby hill and a zip line down to the base. Alexandra spoke, “That sounds like a lot of fun.” To which Derek said, “I can carry you up if you want. I don’t want you getting hurt.” She shook her head, “Don’t you dare, I want to hike. I haven’t been since leaving Terre and that was one of my favorite things to do there.” I looked over at her, “Were there many hills and mountains where you lived?” She nodded, “Colorado is famous for having a lot of places to hike. I wish I could show you the mountains there. They are absolutely beautiful.” I nodded, “I have no doubt about that.” I announced that Litha and Meldon would take a mediation class from a master of Zen, Alesha and I would go for a swim in the lake and the Blake/Jess coupling would do pottery in the crafting shop in another building beyond the meadow. Jess smiled at the idea of being able to create something and learning how to do so while Blake tried to fain interest in the activity to keep up the illusion that he was interested in Jess should Alexandra no be available.
Alesha and I went to the gym where the master of Zen was waiting for us. He was setting up the environment to provide relaxation. We sat and slipped into a meditative state. I know that one’s mind needed to be clear to meditate but I found that my mind had immediately wandered to Alexandra, thinking that she would benefit from this activity. She had been through so much since she moved to Vellum and I had wondered if she would have been better off staying in Terre. Then I heard a voice in my head, “Don’t think that young Lucien. She was tormented there and her only support was her birth parents.” It was Aphrodite’s voice and I wondered how she was able to contact me since I thought that she could only contact Alexandra. She giggled, “You don’t realize but your consciousness is in a higher plane right now which opens your mind up to communication from me.” It kinda made sense but it still startled me nonetheless because I really didn’t want to be able to communicate with Apollo since he didn’t seem to like me. She spoke, “He doesn’t hate you young Lucien. He just suddenly wants to protect one of his soul children is all. He has had his reasons for being hands off but let’s just say that he can see a little of himself in her.” I asked, “Going back to Alexandra and Terre. What do you mean she was tormented in Terre?” She sighed, “That child was lost with no purpose. Her deepest thoughts are about how she finally found purpose in her new home and a support system with lifelong friends who support her and love her. That in and of itself is valuable to her.” This was something that was invaluable to know the insights into her heart which immediately prompted me to wonder that, if she wasn’t cursed, would she even fall in love with someone like me. She was such a fun, vibrant and witty person that I thought my personality was so dull in comparison. Aphrodite made a tsk noise and spoke, “You berate your personality. Some of the greatest love stories in the past were from opposites. You should look to your own parents as an example. As a matter of fact, that love story was one of my greatest in recent history. This curse is interfering with me doing so with my own child so I’m quite furious. Her path was always a forked path though, I put a few quality men whom she could love and would love her equally in her path. She alone gets to choose to love. That is if we ever find out who did this to her. Trust me young Lucien, you are one of the men that I chose for her.”
I had wondered who the other men were that she had chosen. She laughed, “She has a choice of five men. Three of whom are with her there at your retreat: You, Blake and Derek. I suppose you want to know who the other two are, hm?” I thought that that would be nice to know so I knew who I was up against. She sighed, “I wouldn’t look at it as a competition but I will tell you that Mordred had a son during his time in Terre, his name is Zayne. The other is a shape shifter that lives near Dorothea. He’s a wild child orphan but from what I understand from Brigit is that some day soon, Alexandra will take him in and give him a name. He doesn’t have one yet.” I thought that it was pretty interesting that these men would some day soon would manifest in front of Alexandra. I wasn’t thrilled at being one of five who she would have to choose from. It was bad enough that she had to choose between my brother and I. I wondered what it would be like if she chose one of the two of us. She sighed again, “That’s the problem. When I worked my magic, you five souls were the best fit for her. I never wanted this to bring animosity towards brothers. Unfortunately, I cannot predict what will happen in the future. I can only tell you that you five men are most compatible with Alexandra.” I had wondered why Meldon wasn’t among the men that were chosen to be put into her path. She spoke, “Oh well they are compatible but it is weird but my magic tells me that they absolutely cannot be together.” I thought it was curious that Meldon, who got along so well with Alexandra, was forbidden from being with her. I wasn’t complaining because I didn’t want to her to have another choice.
Just then a snap rung into my ears and Aphrodite simply said, “That’s your queue to wake up young Lucien.” I opened my eyes and was looking at the deep brown eyes of the master of Zen. He smiled at me, “You must’ve had a deep mediation. I couldn’t rouse you from it until just now. The young lady was out for a good fifteen minutes before you came to.” He guided us to a different part of the room where he asked, “Now this is the part of the session where you share how you feel and what it is that you gained from the session.” Alesha spoke first, “I gained mental clarity on what I need to do with my life and I believe that I will now accept a position in the Citadel alongside my sister. I had been so resistant to the idea until now but I believe my purpose was to use my strength and talent in service of my realm.” I smiled over at her, appreciative to have another strong woman from House Baltilliard with the ranks of those defending Vellum. The master smiled at her, “And how are you feeling now?” She closed her eyes and smiled, “Fulfilled.” The master nodded, “It is the most enlightened state that one can get from this session. How about you, Your Majesty?” I sighed, “I’m feeling lost.” He looked startled, “That is rare to have in these sessions. What did you gain from this session then?” I looked him in the eyes, “Insight into my love life. I was not given as clear an answer as I had hoped. I only know now who it is that I am in love with but I don’t know how to tell her or even if I should.” The master nodded, “Love is often the center of many bouts of confusion. It is best to reach a higher plane of consciousness over several sessions to gain more clarity. This makes more sense. I would like to talk to you alone in this case. If the lady wouldn’t mind.” She shook her head, “I’m weirdly tired after all of that.” She got up and left the room as quietly as possible. The master, who had walked her out, turned to me with a smirk on his face, “You are in over your head Lucien. She is mine despite what that Goddess says.” With that the master’s face had turned pale and he staggered. I got up to hold him up and he asked, “What happened?” I looked at him, “I think you might have been possessed by a God.”
