Styxx

Sophia De Luna, a close friend of Styxx's, shows up to join their cause.

I was slightly surprised that Merlin had declared himself Ryder's mentor as well. Merlin had sworn off having apprentices shortly after we had decided that I had learned everything he could teach. He had said that he was too old to teach. I couldn't say for sure what had changed his mind but I figured it had probably been meeting Ryder. The two had hit it off pretty well. Usually, when Merlin first met someone, he didn't even mention Arthur's name. He only talked about Arthur with someone he was absolutely certain he could trust. Hell, he hadn't even talked about it with me for months after we'd met. And even after he started talking about Arthur, it had only been little things like the story of how they'd once defeated a Griffin by themselves with no help. He definitely hadn’t told me how they'd met until we'd been traveling together for a few years. It meant, of course, that Ryder and Merlin were going to have a very different relationship than the one Merlin and I shared. It kind of made me happy, really. Ryder deserved a real mentor, someone who wasn't weirdly attracted to him. 

 

That, of course, was another reason I was glad to have Merlin's help teaching Ryder. In the last few days, I'd found that I was...attracted to Ryder. It wasn't just that he was insanely good-looking. Which he was. But...he had a personality that just shined. He had a sense of humor and yet he was quiet and studious. My attraction to him was eventually going to make things a bit difficult for me, though, because I was most definitely not going to be acting on my feelings. Ryder deserved someone younger than I was, someone who hadn't been damaged by life experience. Normally, I was fine...but there were nights when the nightmares took over and I couldn't sleep for weeks on end. Weeks where it was hard for me to even talk much less hold a relationship. He deserved someone whole and undamaged. Someone that wasn't me. I hoped that I wouldn't fall in love with him because that would only make things a million times worse for me...but I wasn't holding my breath because I most likely would fall in love with him. He was the kind of person that made it easy to fall in love with. 

 

I sighed, leaning back in my office chair. Merlin was down at his house on the island setting things up the way he liked and Caden had gone to talk to Ryder. It left me alone with my thoughts which, at times like this, could be a bad thing. A very bad thing. I'd only recently realized my attraction for Ryder and now it was driving me nearly insane. I wanted to scream in frustration. Instead, I settled for throwing a pencil across the room. Tossing a pencil across the room wasn't very mature, of course, but I wasn't feeling very mature. I was feeling like an idiot for being attracted to someone I could literally never have. Ryder would never fall for someone like me. He'd fall for someone who was a whole person not some half-alive creature.  

 

For years, I'd felt as though I were only half alive. Ever since the death of the only lover I'd ever had, my life had seemed incomplete somehow. Cameron had been murdered by my father. Father had caught us in bed together and he'd murdered Cameron right in front of me, to show me what would happen if I dared have happiness. I could still remember the pleading look in Cameron's eyes as my father slit his throat. I tried using Magick to save him but my father bound my Magick and kept it bound for months after Cameron's death. I still had nightmares about the event, nightmares that woke me up screaming and crying and begging for a dead man's life. I kept up a Silence Barrier around my Suite so that the servants and guests didn't hear me. So far, it had worked. My servants truly believed that I was fine. That I was whole.  

 

Oh, it wasn't that I still loved Cameron. After all these years, I'd gotten past my love for him. If I wasn't so afraid of pushing them away, I could move on. I could find love again. But I was terrified that my nightmares would push the right person away. So I stayed locked in my little shell, afraid to come out and really live my life. It left me half-alive and broken in ways that I didn't believe could ever be fixed. I would never be okay again and I'd learned to live with that. I'd learned to accept that this would be my life. Solitary, alone, I would never have anyone to love and cherish me. it hurt...but it was the truth and I had to face it. 

 

As I turned back to my computer to finish working on the paperwork I'd needed to finish, a servant knocked on the door. I turned my head and told the young girl to come in. She stepped inside and told me that a woman named Sophia De Luna was here to see me. I smiled and descended the stairs to meet with Sophia in the Sitting Room. Sophia was a good friend of mine and had been for at least two centuries. She was a Curse Breaker for the Eternal Order and was incredibly good at what she did. She knew some of the highest War Magicks out there. I entered the Sitting Room and saw Sophia standing in the middle of the room waiting for me. She looked exactly as she had the last time I'd seen her. Her waist length red hair was loose around her shoulders and her green eyes were bright. She wore a black tank top with a pair of jean shorts and flip-flops. Sophia was one of the most beautiful women I knew and also one of the kindest. Yet her face was set in an angry line this time. Whatever she was here for had pissed her off. 

 

 "Sophia. It's nice to see you again." 

 

She gave me a small smile. 'You as well, Styxx." 

 

"Let's sit down." 

 

We sat down and a servant brought a tray of raspberry lemonade to us. We both poured ourselves a glass and took a long drink. Sophia was silent for a moment, staring at me quietly. Whatever she had to say, she was very nearly afraid to say it. I raised an eyebrow at her and she blushed, looking at the floor. She spoke a moment later, her voice quiet. 

 

 "I have left the Eternal Order. Helena Sullivan has seemingly lost her mind. She plans on declaring war against you and all those who support you later tonight."  

 

I rolled my eyes. "Of course she does. Because I didn't give into her demands this afternoon." 

 

Sophia frowned. "What did she want from you?" 

 

"I have offered her second-born son an apprenticeship. Ryder accepted. When Helena found out about it, she came here and asked that I give Ryder's apprenticeship to his older twin brother. Not only did she insult second born sons but she told lies about Ryder himself. I refused to give into her demands and things got a bit ugly."  

 

"She said you threatened her." 

 

"We all did, actually." 

 

"Who is we?" 

 

"Merlin, Caden, Ryder, and myself." 

 

Sophia's eyes widened. "Merlin came?" 

 

I nodded. "I was surprised as well, trust me. That isn't the most surprising thing by far, though." 

 

She raised an eyebrow. "What is, then?" 

 

"Merlin declared himself Ryder's mentor during the argument with Helena."  

 

Sophia's eyes widened. "He did...wow. That hasn't happened since...well, you." 

 

"I know. Which was why I was so surprised."  

 

'Maybe he only said that so Helena wouldn't cause trouble." 

 

I shook my head. "I thought so too at first but...the way his Magick reacted to the statement proved that he was being serious. His Magick wrapped around Ryder when he said it. Like it did when he first became my mentor." 

 

"Had he even had a chance to talk to Ryder at that point?" 

 

I nodded. "He spent all morning with Ryder." 

 

"How did they get along?" 

 

"Sophia, he told Ryder within the first ten minutes of knowing him, how he met Arthur. He doesn't tell that story unless he's a hundred percent positive that he can trust you. They're going to have a very close relationship. Possibly closer than the relationship Merlin and I share." 

 

"Does that make you jealous?" She asked, a hint of teasing in her voice. 

 

I rolled my eyes. 'Not in the slightest. Makes me happy, really. I'm glad Ryder will have that relationship with Merlin."  

 

"At least they get along. What are you going to do about this war?" 

 

I shrugged. "We're going to fight obviously. As soon as she declares war, we will release our own statement saying the true reason that we are going to war with the Eternal Order and it's Head. She'll most likely lie about it.' 

 

Sophia nodded. "She's planning on telling the world that you and your supporters threatened the Eternal Order. Many people look up to the Order so it'll be enough to convince them that she's doing this to eliminate a viable threat to our safety. Once you release your statement, however, you will have your own group of supporters.' 

 

"That's what we're hoping happens. We don't, of course, need many supporters but more support would be good." 

 

"If you stick to the truth, you'll get supporters. If you'll have me, I will stick around as well. I believe I've chosen my side. Helena has lost every last bit of her mind if she thinks she can win a war against you and Merlin. Besides that, she wants her own son dead. Ryder is only twenty-one years old. He has an eternity left to live. I do not condone the murder of innocents." 

 

"You're most welcome to stay here. I will have your usual Suite set up for you. In the meantime, would you like to meet Ryder?" 

 

"I believe I've met him in passing before...but yes, I would like the chance to talk with him." 

 

I stood. "I will go ahead and go get him, then." 

 

Smiling, I left the room and walked up the stairs to Ryder's Suite. He was sitting at his laptop, working on a set of notes when I walked in. He glanced at me, electric blue eyes curious, before going back to making his notes. Next to him on the desk, The Ancient Arts was open and he was making notes about the page he was on. I smiled at the sight. I had done the same thing when I'd read it, though I'd done it with a quill and a piece of parchment. He at last had the advantage of working on a computer which meant he could do twice the notes in half the time.  

 

 "What's up?" Ryder asked as he finished his note taking. 

 

"An old friend is here. She would like to meet you." 

 

"Okay. Who is it?" 

 

"Her name is Sophia De Luna." 

 

"She works for my mother. She's a Curse Breaker. Mom's best." 

 

"Not anymore she doesn't. She quit the Eternal Order when your mother announced to the Eternal Order that they were about to go to war against us." 

 

"Smart move." he said as we descended the staircase.  

 

Back in the Sitting Room, Caden had joined Sophia on the couch. He sat, drinking a glass of Raspberry Lemonade, discussing what Helena had said the previous day at our meeting. As he spoke, Sophia's eyes widened. When he told her that Helena had attempted to attack Ryder, she nearly gasped. In our world, we protected our children. We didn’t attack them for no reason.  

 

 "I thought I knew her..." Sophia whispered, looking shocked.  

 

Ryder sat down and grabbed a glass of lemonade. "You knew the person she wanted you to know. You never knew the real Helena. My mother is a cold-hearted, manipulative b***h. I didn't know that she hated me enough to want me dead, though. Maybe that'll be enough to convince Ryan to stand up for himself and leave." 

 

Sophia frowned at him thoughtfully. "Ryan would be your brother, correct?" 

 

"Yeah. We're twins but he's ten minutes older. Helena favors him...but he hates her for the way she treats me." 

 

"You two are close?" 

 

Ryder nodded. "He's my best friend. I'm worried that she'll hurt him to get to me." 

 

I frowned. "I thought you said she favored him. Why would she hurt him if she favors him?" 

 

"It doesn't matter who is her favorite. If she thinks it'll get me to do what she wants me to do, she'll hurt anyone."  

 

Sophia gave Ryder a slightly shocked look. "She...she would do that?" 

 

Ryder gave a choked laugh. "Of course she would. Helena doesn't give a s**t about anyone but herself. If it'll help her cause, she'll do it no matter how dirty or underhanded it is." 

 

Sophia frowned. "I can't believe I never saw that side of her before." 

 

Ryder shrugged. "She didn't want you to see it. She can be pretty convincing when she wants to be." 

 

As we sat, discussing Helena Sullivan's many character flaws, Merlin entered the room behind us. He took a seat next to Ryder and placed a piece of paper on the table. It was the front page of our nightly newspaper, (we had two newspapers that went out daily) and Helena's face was on the front page. Above her face was the headline, "Eternal Order Goes to War with Styxx Lancaster." I read through the article, finding that she had indeed lied about whhy she was declaring war against us. She said we had threatened the safety of the Eternal Order, that we had made death threats to her and her family. Most people who read this article would immediately be on her side. Which meant we had to retaliate quickly. We had to get an interview in before the morning edition of Daily Mage News. If we didn't, we would have no supporters at all.  

 

 "What do we do?" Ryder asked. 

 

I stood. "I am going to contact the newspaper. If they're willing to do it, we will give an interview tonight. It'll be in the paper in the morning. Not only will it put the truth out there but it will most likely piss Helena off. And if we're going to war with this woman, I'm going to have fun with it." I said.  

 

Ryder nodded. "I don't blame you." 

 

We went our separate ways then. Ryder headed upstairs to his Suite while I headed to my office to write an email to Leroy Jackson, the Lead Reporter for the Daily Mage News. We were old friends and I knew he'd want to interview me personally. Honestly, I hoped he would interview me personally. Not because him being a friend would give me an advantage - which it wouldn't because Leroy wasn't biased in any way - but because he was among the best reporters I knew. Not only would he do a good job but he would get the information right as well. A few minutes after I'd sent out the email, I got a reply from Leroy. He said he'd be more than happy to do the interview with Ryder and I and that he would be arriving on Blackwater Isle within the hour. Excited, I went to tell Ryder to put some nice clothes on for the interview because they would no doubt want pictures with us.  

 

Thirty minutes later, as I was finishing up an email to my older brother Shia, a servant came to alert me that Leroy had arrived on the island. Ryder and I headed downstairs into one of the more private Sitting Rooms to meet with him. I didn't order any refreshments because I knew Leroy would want to get right to business. And he did. He sat down in front of us and began the interview almost immediately. The interview lasted an hour and we went over everything from how the fight with Helena had started to our plans in the coming war. We told the truth in everything we said, explaining that we didn't want to kill or destroy anyone. We just wanted to be left alone. But, if Helena wanted to declare war against us, we would have no other choice but to participate to protect ourselves and those we cared about. Leroy's final question, to Ryder, was if he regretted taking the apprenticeship. I was not surprised when Ryder admitted that he did not regret taking the apprenticeship because he did deserve it, regardless of what his mother thought. 

 

After we showed Leroy back to the boat he'd road in on, we went to bed a little early. It had been an admittedly long day and we were both tired. I was asleep almost before my head hit the pillow. When I woke up the next day, it was nearly noon and Ryder had been awake for hours already. After telling him where I would be, I headed off to my office for a day of research and paperwork. Oh what fun I would have...