Awakening

Chapter 23

A Ring and a Promise

Caliope's eyes widened, she looked at Pronab and gasped "My mother?!"

"I didn't know until recently, that is why I never told you anything, nor mentioned it to Amra and Elaine."

"...but how? Why? I don't understand!"

"You must believe that we never planned you to meet Amra, we never planned anything when it comes to how you both met... We are still surprised how you came into our lives, Elaine followed her instinct, hiring you to take care of Amra and the apartment... and then things just happened..."

"But how... what does that have to do with the fact that you met my mother? And when was this?!"

"You saw them hunt me..."

"Yes, two dark Angels were behind you, one of them hurt you with his spear..."

"That was your father... The Great General Andras..."

She gasped and put a hand towards her chest. She could not believe what she was hearing yet she wanted to hear more, and Pronab continued "...at first I did not understood why, but then it hit me... how would he know I was doing my time before I was finally set free? Kuan gives sentence but only the Great General would be the one to see the sentence being fulfilled. I was in one of his lands... and his loved one found me as she was visiting the field... By then they had not met yet... He found her one day singing to me and fell in love of her... her voice was sad but beautiful... He should have punished her for being in that place but he didn't... He was curious as to why she did not do anything to set me free, and why she was not scared of me or him. She said she witnessed when I got punished, and that made her believe there was a world she knew nothing about... she was scared at first but after months she got the courage to return to the same place... and then she found me... She even made up the song to try to keep me company..."

Caliope started to cry and smile, hearing what Pronab was saying about her mother made her heart beat faster with joy.

"He told her I was being punished, but when my time was due, I would be set free. When she heard that, she smiled and hugged him, and he almost fell to his knees... I could see how it shocked him, he knew he found his Asteria. He made her promise not to visit me again or it would jeopardize her safety and my freedom. She nodded, kissing my cheek as a goodbye... I never saw her again after that..."

"But that means this was not long ago!"

"That is why I could not believe you were her daughter until recently... Caly... my memories are over three thousand years old..."

Again another gasp, and this time she shook her head and closed her eyes, rubbing her tired and watered eyes.

"He must have claimed her the way Amra wants to claim you..."

Caliope smiled, this was one of her greatest fears. To know Amra was so eternal and she could only survive a fraction of his existence made her sad in a way only she could understand, yet she pushed that thought aside many times. But now Pronab was telling her that her mother was over three thousand years old before she died, which meant that her transformation would give her the gift to endure the passing of time as well, and she would be with Amra until time stopped existing.

"Can I see my mother? In your memories..."

Pronab took a deep breath and held silence for a moment. Caliope was looking at him pleading with her eyes. He finally nodded and she slowly moved her hand towards him. He took her hand and she felt nothing. "You are too anxious, relax..." He squeezed her hand gently as she took a deep breath and nodded, and then everything went dark.