Immortal Bite

Chap 18: Darklings' Truth

"Princess." Pop greeted me with a bright smile on his face and I quickly snuggled into his side sighing happily. "Where's Donovan? I have yet to see you leave his side for more than three minutes." Pop stated with a gentle note in his voice and I closed my eyes tightly feeling the fear for his safety in my chest. But I constantly reassured myself that he has the best protection around him.

"I left him in the capable hands of his two grandmothers." I informed Pop in amusement thinking about the sheer joy on their faces when I asked them both to watch him. It was memorable.

"Ah, yes; the love of grandparents." Pop mused with a knowing smirk on his face and I giggled happily at him.

Silence settled over us while we both enjoyed the sounds of nature and the shrieks of laughter that filled the air around us. But my curiosity eventually won out.

"Pop, can you explain it to me?" I asked him softly lifting my face towards him with wide, wondering eyes. Eyes needing of information. Of truth. Pop frown down at me in confusion before he relaxed slightly and gave a dry laugh.

"You're exactly like your mother; eager for knowledge." Pop commented proudly with a gleam in his eyes and I gave him a wide, childish grin in return. "Alright, Princess, let's start with the basics." Pop began in a hardening voice before motioning to the set of seats on the porch. We claimed one each and I turned towards him eagerly while Pop closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "The Gods you need to learn individually to understand their significance, but I can skim over two." Pop told seriously folding his arms behind his head and relaxing back in the seat. "Selene and Lorraine. Twins. Born from the stars and the moon. Powerful, they are." Pop said wistfully with his nose twitching at the thought of the women he spoke of. "Selene is the true Goddess; respected, all-powerful, true, and pure. The moon is her soul." Pop explained to me with a small smile on his face and I tilted my head to the side at the expression on his face. "Lorraine, on the other hand, is the opposite of her twin. With a short, dreadful temper -nowhere near the likes of her sister if she breaks- and minimal powers, Lorraine is forever envious of the respect and admiration the other Gods bestow her sister with. When Selene suddenly began to create creatures under the night, Lorraine's envy took a turn for the worst. She began experimenting with different powers; corrupted and dark, dark powers. That's when she stumbled upon the powers to create yours truly." Pop explained to me with a sadistic smirk on his face as he explained the tension and rivalry between the twin Gods. Even they cannot escape the troubles of sibling rivalry.

"I don't understand; why can one sibling have that much power but not the other?" I asked Pop in confusion leaning forward waiting for his answer and Pop sat up then turning towards me.

"Their mother was one of the Empresses of their world. But when she died, her power –rich in purity and something otherworldly- her power would only touch the one who could handle that responsibility. Selene was the only one who could withstand the temptation of what her power offers and wield it for good. Lorraine's will is weak." Pop explained with a deep frown on his face and my lips parted in surprise before I blinked a few times to understand him.

"So, Lorraine wanted what her sister had?" I asked Pop for clarification and he nodded in confirmation. "Did she get it?" I asked him nervously and Pop let out a bark of laughter shaking his head.

"No. She did use her soldiers to destroy most of the Gods' homes, though. And for that she had her powers stripped for a thousand years. In that time she managed to convince Selene that she had rehabilitated. Once she had her powers again, she started creating the Vampires." Pop explained to me with a deadly glare on his face and I felt myself flinch subconsciously so he gave me a worried look. I just smiled lightly at him to tell him I was alright. That he can continue. "Back then, those Vampires are not what you have among you today. Their skin peeled off their bodies they were robotic monsters that poured in through towns and killed everything with a heartbeat. They felt nothing and Lorraine could not control them." Pop explained to me with a tight expression on his face and I leaned back slightly realising what had happened. Even without him needing to say it, I knew what her monsters had cost.