Meeting Aggie

20.

"I finished it last night," Ares said, placing a blue sword in my hands.

I gripped the handle and lightly swung it around. It felt light to hold but was sharp to the touch.

"Let's begin." Ares took on a fighting stance.

Apollo patted my shoulder and took a seat. "You got this, Aggie."

Ares beat his chest. "First sword lesson. Land a hit on me."

"Won't I hurt you with this?" I waved my new blade cautiously.

"It's totally capable of hurting a god. I would definitely create a weapon that could kill me for you to practice with." He spoke rhetorically, slitting his eyes at me.

I rolled my eyes before taking a stance. I swung at him from the left, but he moved out of the way before it could touch him.

"Try again."

I swung again, this time faster and from a different angle. Again, he dodged.

"Your stance is shit. Fix it. Stand upright with your arms out and try again."

Ares nodded at me to proceed. I swung again, but as he dodged it, I accelerated my movement using my powers and cut his shoulder.

"Whoo!" I grinned.

"Now we're getting somewhere," he said as his shoulder healed. "Again!"

"Go, Aggie!" Apollo cheered from the side.

The training persisted for another three hours; the passing of time indicated only by the gradual shift in the surroundings.

When we finally concluded, darkness had fallen, and the enchanting expanse of the starlit sky embraced us, its shimmering beauty within reach on Olympus.

Ares and I were drenched in sweat, while Apollo snored with drool trickling from his mouth, looking endearingly adorable. "You're actually very good at handling swords. It's impressive," Ares said.

I smiled at the compliment. "My father was in the angel army. He taught me a thing or two."

"Who did he battle against?"

"The witches, along with some vampires and wolves who wanted them liberated."

"Disgusting. Making him fight against his own kind."

"Kind of why I hated the gods at first. I don't think we deserved that. There are always bad supernaturals everywhere, but we were specifically targeted."

"God was mainly to blame. Along with Hera. You can really blame God for making everyone cast out Hecate and anything she did when they got into a heated argument."

"About what?"

"God created the strongest creatures and the weakest creatures—the angels and the humans. Hecate created the witches in the likeness of humans but as powerful as the angels. It was friendly fire, but he had a hissy fit." He shrugged.

"That's stupid. God was mad because he couldn't stand competition?"

"Yeah. That's literally how it works on Olympus."

I rolled my eyes so hard. Why were the gods so petty with each other? It was so childish.

"Don't worry. Once you defeat your brother, you'll have the power to mend everything. But for now, you need to rest," Ares said softly.

"I feel undeserving of this, Ares. I've spent my entire life hiding, fearing the consequences of who I am. No one should ever have to hide or face death for their true nature."

"Then change it, Your Highness." Ares took the sword from my hand.

"I will."

"Good. I'll give this back for our training in two days."

"Why not tomorrow?"

"You're not feeling the aftermath training yet because you're a tribrid supernatural. Give it a few minutes and you'll ache like a bitch."

He chuckled and walked away. I approached Apollo and nudged him lightly. He snored loudly, completely unaware. With a muttered curse, I hoisted him onto my back, struggling under his weight.

Staggering back to the palace, Isidore commented with sarcasm, "You know, you could've just levitated him. No need to carry the dead weight."

"I can't always rely on magic," I replied, slightly out of breath. "And losing Eris taught me that. Plus, I need to work on my strength."

As I walked past the ancient ancestral tree, my necklace shimmered with a faint glow. "Come forth to me, child," the tree said.

I laid Apollo in the leaves and approached the tree, kneeling before it. Its branches transformed into a benevolent woman's face.

"I glimpse a magnificent destiny awaiting you, but I also foresee a perilous downfall if you fail. Agatha Youngblood, it is of utmost importance that you vanquish your brother. Prince Sven's ascension to the throne will bring about the annihilation not only of the witches, but of the entire dark species."

"Wait, all of them?" I asked, my voice filled with astonishment and concern.

"Indeed," the tree replied, its ancient voice resonating with gravity. "Prince Sven, along with a multitude of others, staunchly maintains the conviction that the complete annihilation of all dark species is an imperative within the supernatural realm. Their ambitions extend far beyond the mere exclusion of witches."

"Only the light species will rule," I answered, my voice heavy with the weight of realization.

The tree's branches rustled, its response laden with solemnity.

"There are indeed supernaturals than dark, dear girl. Ever since Olympus and the Underworld forged the supernatural realm, the scales have tipped in favor of the light. The balance has shifted, resulting in an increase in the light and a dwindling of the dark."

"So, it was always the plan to give the supernatural realm to the light species. But they planned on slowly eradicating the dark species as a whole."

"Precisely, wise one. If you do not become the empress, all the dark species will be killed. At the rate they are going, I would give it ten to fifteen years before they cease to exist in recoverable numbers."

"None among the dark know anything?"

"The dark species don't even have their own class system. Everything is in disarray and neglect. How can they save themselves when they couldn't even create their own monarchy to do it?"

"I never knew any of this," I murmured.

"Few know. Even the gods themselves are likely oblivious to the widespread extermination of the dark species."

"Ancestral tree, why bring this up now, and not when I had Eris within me?"

"You were untapped, dear girl. You're still untapped, just less."

"What do you mean untapped?"

The face in the tree was about to speak but looked around as though scared and dropped the topic.

"All you need to know is that time is of the essence. You would be keen to remember that."

The face disappeared and the tree went back to humming. I looked behind me and saw Apollo stirring in his sleep before waking up.

I wondered how far the hatred of the dark species went as a whole.