Siren's Song, NaNo 2008, Chapter Five

“And she's watching him with those eyes
And she's lovin' him with that body I just know it
And he's holding her in his arms late late at night
YOU KNOW I WISH I HAD JESSIE’S GIRL
I WISH THAT I HAD JESSIE’S GIRL
WHERE CAN I FIND A WOMAN LIKE THAT!?”

Henry was singing along at the top of his lungs in the passenger seat. Paul had his fingers in his ears, and Senga had to drive. And was thinking dark, dark things. Like justifiable homicide. Henry rolled the window down and shouted the lyrics of the song out at random passers by, while Paul leaned forward and tugged at his seat belt to get him back in his seat. 

“Guys, chill out!” Senga finally said, turning the volume down on the radio. “We’re almost there.”

They headed to a dark, abandoned warehouse at the edge of the city. The ceremony wouldn’t happen there, but those involved needed to meet without arousing suspicion. Senga sighed, and adjusted her hair in the rearview mirror.

“Paul, you’re going to do just fine. Henry, behave yourself. Senga, don’t freak out.” She said out loud, as her little peptalk. Henry snorted and got out of the car. Paul sat in the back seat, and stared at his hands. “Hon, it’ll be fine.”

“I know. But I won’t see you guys again. Not as Paul. I’ll be a god.” He whispered, his voice catching.

Senga sighed again, and leaned over the back seat to kiss his forehead. “You’ll still be my best friend. “

Henry let out a loud sigh. “Okay guys, cut the sap, and let’s goooooo and get this crap over with.” Senga got out of the car and promptly kicked him in the backside. Paul got out, and leaned his head against the roof of the car for a moment, and nodded when he was ready.

Inside, there was an archway, lined with Dorian pillars. “We walk through those.” Paul whispered, leading the pack. He walked between them, disappearing in the black. Henry was next, then Senga.

It was an odd sensation, like falling. Only there was still ground underneath her feet. It was like her eyes had closed, and she had vertigo.

She had, in fact, closed her eyes. When she opened them, they were in another chamber, lined with people. The whole place was lit with candles, giving the whole room an ethereal glow. Paul had made his way up to the altar in the center of the room, the Three Fates standing around him, his brother standing at his side.  The ceremony was beginning.

Senga took her place with the others who hadn’t been called. They didn’t have a part in the ceremony, but they needed witnesses. She looked around, looking for her mother. They hadn’t seen each other for a year and a half. And she wanted to keep it that way. She didn’t want to face her mother after running away from her life in Boston.

“A thousand years ago, the mortals stopped believing in the Gods and Goddesses, and the secret of immortality was lost. A promise was made, and a circle was formed. Their titles continued, the powers granted, so that one day, they may rise again and their immortality will be regained. However, that day has not come. When one dies, another takes their place. Tonight, two of us will ascend to their thrones, and take their place on our Olympus.”  Lachesis said, intoning in the old language. She picked up a ewer of water from the River Styx, while her two sisters helped the two men to their knees and in shedding their robes.

“Do you, soon to be Poseidon, promise to fufill your duties as the Lord of the Seas, and shed your old, mortal skin and ideals for your new life?” Clotho murmured, forcing his palms to face up, while Atropos pulled a dagger from her robes.

“I do.” He said, his voice barely a whisper. Lachesis nodded to her sister with the dagger. Atropos then slid the blade across his palms slowly.

“That is mortal pain. A pain you will no longer feel until your life is done.” Lachesis intoned, as Clotho took the ewer and poured the water over his wounds.

Senga had to close her eyes as he screamed when the water cleansed his wounds. Henry beside him turned a sickly shade of white as his brother collapsed on the ground as the enchanted water took its hold on his body.

Lachesis turned to Henry. “Do you, soon to be Hades, promise to fulfill your duties as Lord of the Underworld, and shed your old, mortal skin and ideals for your new life?”

He paused, his eyes still on his brother writhing on the ground. Then he looked up, and straightened his back and held his hands out.

“I do.”

Lachesis nodded, and Atropos cut his palms quickly.

“This is mortal pain. A pain you will no longer feel until your life is done.”

The water was poured again, and he hissed, clenching his teeth. His skin had turned whiter than the robes that clothed Senga’s body as he tried to stay upright. Senga bit her lip, she could almost feel their pain in her own hands. Her time would come, and a sense of dread filled her belly with heaviness. She’d endured so much pain at the hands of another, and the thought of pain at the hands of her people made her feel sick. It was more than she could bear.

Paul, now Poseidon , rose to his knees. He glowed like the god he now was, and took a deep breath as the Fates helped him to his feet. Henry, now Hades, did the same. They held up their hands to show all who were present that their wounds had healed.  The room broke into applause and cheers at the men, now Gods. Senga looked up, practically shaking. Poseidon caught her glance and smiled broadly.

The Fates wound the Thread of Life around each of the new gods’ hands, and stepped back into the shadows to let them greet the crowd and receive their glory.

“All of those here, greet the new generation. May they prosper.”