The Quest

Chapter Forty Six - Matera

The sirens huddled together. The priestess was only good to them if she wasn't against them. Matera stepped forward, turning Tess' attention to her. "Priestess-"

"My name is Tess," Tess spat out. She felt her power growing, which made little sense to her. She was told she'd only gain her power if she completed the ritual. Her eyes hardened on Matera... another lie.

Matera paused for a moment before continuing. "Tess," Matera continued. "I was the one who killed your father and ate his heart."

"Why?" Tess asked after a pause. She felt like all the air had been knocked out of her.

Matera gestured to the surrounding room, an enormous smile plastered on her face. "Why, the same reason as you... power!"

Tess stopped as everything came crashing down on her. She didn't want this power. In fact, she had gone for years wishing she was powerless. This woman, whether or not she was her actual mother, was nothing like her. "We are nothing alike," Tess whispered, her hands clasped into fists as she shook with rage. "I never wanted power! I never wanted to rule over a species! I just wanted to be normal!" Tess shouted. She didn't know when, but she was currently floating in the air. A powerful wind was picking up around her as her power surged.

She saw Tom's lifeless body beneath her, enraging her more. "You said my powers wouldn't come in if I didn't complete the ritual." Tess lifted an energy ball that had formed in her hands. This was the biggest one she had ever made.

Matera was now joining the other sirens, cowering together. They hadn't expected her to turn on them. "I said that, so you'd become a siren," Matera called to her. "You were going to receive your powers, whether or not you did the ritual. We need a powerful priestess so-"

"No!" Tess spoke, several voices surrounding her own. "For as long as I have been here, you have done nothing to make your way in the new age. The old age is dead, and nothing you do will change that!"

Tess threw the energy ball at a wall in a fit of rage. It tore through the stone like it was paper. It landed in the forest near the mountains almost thirty miles away. She floated to the ground near Tom's sword. She looked at the blade, reading the inscription. True love never dies.

"Now Tess, you need to calm down," Matera tried to take control once more.

"I need you to be truthful," Tess yelled, picking up the sword and swinging it towards her mother.

Matera waved her hand to the side, deflecting the sword, catching Tess off guard. "This is the destiny of the High Priestess." Matera walked towards Tess. "I was a High Priestess. Your grandmother was High Priestess. Her mother was High Priestess. You must accept your duty."

Tess slowly backed away from her mother, dragging the sword with her. It was much heavier than she had expected. She was becoming drained of energy after everything that had happened so far. Her bracelets hadn't been taken off yet. "They didn't become sirens," Tess whispered.

"No, but they would have if they had known the power granted with the transformation. You only have a little bit of time left before you can no longer perform the ritual," Matera continued. She used her own magic to propel herself to Tom's body. She lifted her hand in the air, preparing to rip the heart out and force feed it to Tess. "It's time to take your place!"

Matera's hand shot down to Tom's body, making Tess scream in horror. Tess felt energy build up on herself as she grabbed her mom's wrist before she made it to Tom. "You will not touch him," Tess commanded, her voice taking on the sound of many voices once more.

Matera backed away. She couldn't ignore Tess when she used this voice. Tess looked at Tom, then back at her mother. She took a deep breath, then straightened. There was only one way to end this. "As High Priestess-"

"You didn't finish the ritual," Matera tried interrupting before getting cut off by Tess.

"I am High Priestess regardless of finishing the ritual!" Tess silenced her mother, who backed away, her arms covering her eyes as Tess began glowing with power. "And I have decided you will not be allowed to hurt anyone else."

"And what do you plan on doing?" Matera scoffed, doubting that Tess would have the courage to kill her. She couldn't even finish the ritual with Tom.

"I will make sure you can find no one else to hurt." Tess' voices echoed throughout the room. She walked up to her mother and reached a hand towards her. Matera took a step back, not sure what Tess was planning.

"Be still!" Tess commanded, making Matera stop in her tracks. Matera looked up at Tess fearfully, as she was now planted where she was standing. Tess reached her hand out and touched Matera's chest above where her siren's broken heart was. "You will no longer be on this plane of living. For the rest of eternity, you will roam this earth. You will cry out, but nobody will hear you. You will try to be seen, but nobody will see you." Tess looked into the eyes of her mother, as her face was drained of color. "As I say it, so shall it be." Tess finished, removing her hand.

Matera stood stock still for a few moments, then began laughing when nothing happened. "You! You, child! You think you can destroy me with a few words?" She cackled. Stopping only when she saw Tess looking towards the ground. She followed Tess' gaze to see her body on the ground, staring off into nothing, a silent scream etched on her face.

Matera looked at her hands, trying to see if her eyes were playing tricks on her. "No, no, no," she whispered to herself. She rushed over to the group of sirens that were staring toward her body. "Sisters, you see me?" Matera waved in front of the faces of her found family.

None of them reacted to her. Matera fell to the ground in a sobbing mess. The remaining sirens made their way out of the room while Tess was still distracted.