Epilogue

They stood poised at the base of the long rise of white, stone stairs that stretched into the early morning sky. Damian looked down at Amber, his chest expanding in pride and love.

Her long, midnight hair shimmered and glowed in the soft light of the breaking dawn, subtle hues of red and yellow dancing over the silken mass from the line of torches that lit the courtyard. She lifted her golden eyes to meet his.

“Ready?” he asked.

She nodded. “It’s almost time.”

He looked around at the gathered group, meeting the eyes of Cronus first then his father’s. His mother stood regally next to his father. Even with the distance, he could see the tears that shimmered in the firelight before she blinked them back. He would ease those tears soon.

Flanking them were his brothers.

Phelix stood tall and somber next their father, his face a mask of hardened pain that was lightened slightly by the gentle depths of his eyes. Phelix had been but a boy when the events had started a millennium ago, having to endure the fallout and live with the burden for as long as Damian. There was much they needed to work through, but he hoped one day they could reconnect that bond that held brothers close.

One he’d had with Khristos and finally wished to establish with his other brothers.

Loukianos stood strong and assured next to their mother, his arm around Airiana. They were another surprise in the list of revelations that Damian would need to unravel. They would be powerful weapons in the war to come. But first, Louk was his brother, one he wanted to know.

The families from each of the Houses were also gathered within the courtyard. He quickly caught the gaze of Xander as he stood with his family, the House of Fire and then Ladon with his family, the House of Water. Two friendships he hoped to reestablish.

“When this city was built thousands of years ago,” Cronus said, his deep voice vibrating through the dark and ringing with authority, “measures were put in place to secure its safety. The shields have held strong, forged with ancient power and pure energy. But the threat that looms before us will be greater than what we have ever had to face. Gog will come for us, and the people of earth are primed and ready to follow him.” Cronus looked solemnly around at the gathered group. “Damian and Amber hold the key that will unlock the last level of defense that we can erect to protect this city. The Sacred City.”

Cronus looked to them. In unspoken unity, Amber lifted the hem of the long, white robe and placed her foot on the step in time with Damian’s. He kept his back straight, his eyes locked on the small platform one hundred and forty-four steps above them. He knew the number without counting.

A light breeze swirled around them, pushing at his hair, tugging at the silk of the robe. On its wings, it brought the warm scents of spring and the hint of new beginnings.

Of forgiveness and blessings to come.

They reached the top and stepped up on the small dais as the earth slowly revolved into place, the incremental movements indiscernible to man, but so significant in the daily passage of life. In the center of the platform rose a stand, its top the size of a large platter with a sculpted design that was divided into four quadrants, each section separated by long channels that ran from the center opening to the outer ring. The etchings within each quadrant represent the blending of elements as they merged with each other and aligned to the four navigational directions.

Damian looked up from the center compass point and took a second to absorb the sight before him.

“Home,” he murmured, warmth blanketing him in an open presence of welcome.

“Tell me about it,” Amber encouraged as she followed his gaze to the shadowed outlines of the city that lay quiet in the pre-dawn light. “Share your world with me.”

 “The Energen lands stretch five miles in each direction,” he told her. “The compound built within a protective circle when man was just beginning to inhabit the continent. This is the exact geographic center of what is now North America. A centering of navigational energy and a source of the very power we pull our strength from.”

He turned and pointed. “To the East resides the House of Air, in the South is the House of Fire, West is the House of Water, to the North lies the House of Earth, and here, in the middle, is the House of Spirit. Each direction pulls on an elemental power and every Energen possesses one of these powers.”

“Some of us more,” Amber said. The light danced in her eyes and he almost laughed despite the seriousness of the moment. She turned away and pointed to the east. “That’s where we entered last time? You had said we were at the eastern entrance to the enclave.”

Of course she would remember that. “Yes. There is a gate in each direction that allows entrance to the enclave. The energy shield allows for Energens to port in and out, but I had been exiled, my permission to enter revoked. Xander had to verbally sanction our entry into the city in order for us to cross the shield gate and enter the enclave through the house.”

Damian exhaled as he looked to the direction of the rising sun—a symbol of new beginnings and reawakening. A long worshipped entity of life and rebirth.

It was also the object they waited for.

For its alignment with the earth. The exact time when day equals night, light equals dark and the energy is balanced as it can only be twice each year. And in the center of the city, the center of the power, the compass awaited its key.

“Soon,” he said with a tip of his head towards the lightening eastern sky. “The vernal equinox is almost here.”

 

Amber inhaled a deep breath of freshness and renewal with the rising sun. It seemed so appropriate for the vernal equinox to occur at this time, just before the sun made its appearance on the land.

“The people of the first light,” she said quietly. “That’s what Wampanoag means. This time of day has always been sacred to my people.” She smiled. “I spent my whole life wanting to belong somewhere and now I find I belong in more places than I could ever imagine. It’s rather ironic.”

The energy hummed around them. Not an auditory sound, but a physical vibration that pressed against her. The air around them felt thick and humid with anticipation for the coming moment.

Releasing her tight hold on his hand, Amber slipped the long pendant chain over her head. The stone slid against her skin, a streak of heat slicking a path across her chest as she pulled it from under the white robe. The loss was profound, but it had served her well, protected her while awakening the latent genes within her. It had opened the door to her Energen powers and guided her as she discovered the power of the energy.

Now, it had a larger purpose.

She laid the stone in her palm and admired its beauty one last time. Within her, she felt the earth shift. She looked to Damian. “Ready?”

 “Yes. You?”

“There’s no going back after this.”

“And now even more so.” He smiled placing one hand over hers and the other over her stomach. “There’s been no going back since we started.”

“So you know?”

“About the new life growing within you?” He smiled, his love flowing into her. “Yes, I know.”

“Right.” She inclined her head and inhaled again, this time a deep breath of preparation and fortification. Of course he’d feel the energy of the new life just like she did.

Damian let go of her hand, and she stepped forward to stand beside the ornate carving in the center of the platform, shifting until she was aligned with the quadrant that depicted the blending of air and fire. Damian moved to stand across from her, aligning with the quadrant of water and earth.

Power pulsed from the stone, the life within it aching to serve the purpose it was created for. Dropping the chain to the floor, she extended the ringed stone until it was positioned over the center of the sculpture. Damian clasped the other side of the ring then he lifted his head and held her gaze.

The energy pulsed, the earth shifted—the time had arrived.

Together, they lowered the stone into the center of the sculpture, the diamond shape fitting perfectly into the hollow opening in the middle, each corner aligning with the open channels that headed in each direction.

They each released the small clasps on the corners of the stone holding the ring in place, then Amber lifted the ring away.

The stone shimmered in perfection, the colors flashing and lighting as the power grew. Sparks of electricity danced upward from the stone, the small show a visual display of what she could feel. The energy was building within the stone, firing up as if it was pulling power from the pedestal itself.

Without warning, light shot out of the four channels, visual beams fired in violet, gold and white that extended into the waning dark, piercing the South, West, North and East with its light and power.

Instinctively, she reached across the pedestal to clasp Damian’s hand over the stone. At their touch, a last beam of light shot straight up to meld around their hands and infuse them with one last boost of power and knowledge.

With it came clarity, revelations of old and visions of new. The images flashed through her mind quick and hot to linger within her subconscious for later dissection. In the far distance, at each gate, towers rose, reaching into the sky in replication of the one they stood on. The image appeared in her mind, the distance too great to for her to see all that happened.

The foundations of the pillars were layered in precious stones: jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, emerald, sardonyx, ruby, peridot, beryl, topaz, chrysoprase, jacinth and amethyst. The twelve levels rose in color from the base along a staircase that wrapped around the towers allowing access to the top.

She met Damian’s gaze, the blue of his eyes matching perfectly with the skyline behind him. With the towers raised, the beams of light extending from the center stone faded away. The center stone, her stone, still glowed with power. There it would remain, the conduit for what was to come.

Damian walked around the pedestal until he stood beside her. Together, they turned to face the city below. With the lightening of the sky, Amber could see the thousands of people gathered in each direction.

Hands still linked, Damian used the element of spirit to communicate to all within the compound. The words flowed smoothly into the minds of all.

The time has come for us to rise. To protect the humans whose energy keeps the world in balance. It is our call, our duty. My thousand years of exile have ended, and so have Gog’s. This is the Year of the Dragon. By its end, the dragon will be free. The crowd shuffled below, but the silence hung heavy and still across the air. Damian inhaled, then called out to the city, his voice carrying far and wide.

“Our city is sacred in the war to come. We must defend these walls and hold the gates, for within these walls is the power Gog needs. The four towers have risen—now their keys must be found.”

He looked to her, then as one, they jumped, shifting in mid-air to fly over the crowd below.

The words of Cronus drifted through Amber’s mind: When the dragon soars with the phoenix at his side, the people will enjoy happiness for years, bringing peace and tranquility to all in the energy.

She could only hope that would be true.

But only time would tell.