Nebula

Twenty Three

[absentis est quos non anhelo]

When Tessa was younger, she'd seen a movie where in the climax of the battle, a large group of people was placed under a spell. It was up to the small group of heroes to save what they knew, and in the end, they did. The aftermath of that battle was calm, dotted with reunions between families, and everyone went home okay in the end.

Tessa would have given anything to have that aftermath be her own.

The Battle of New Orleans had been a taxing one, there was no doubt about that in Tessa's mind. As she wove her way through the crowds in the center's vast halls and rooms, she oversaw members of the Regiment fight against being turned, and as soon as their bond to Orion had been broken, she witnessed just how damaged these people—these kids—really were. They'd been taken from their families, from their respective camps, from the Hunters, from just about every safe haven these demigods and nymphs and minor godlings would have been protected. They'd been stripped of their happiness, of their identities, forced against their will to submit to an ulterior cause and thinking it was for their own gain or to protect their loved ones.

Each story that Tessa heard made her glad that Reese had punctured just about every immortal vein in Orion's body.

Oh gods, Reese...

Tessa stood up after listening to another story and scanned the sea of black and gold for the head of blond hair. Sure enough, she found it, and there was Reese slouched at the foot of a wall, his eyes vacant, his hands clenched into fists. Imogen was crouched beside him, no doubt trying to calm him. She glanced at Kaden on Reese's other side and nodded, and the son of Venus stood.

Tessa took a deep breath and walked towards her boyfriend. Just like everyone else, Kaden had his fair share of battle wounds; his bicep was bandaged heavily, there were slashes dotting his clothes, and he had a small cut on his forehead that he had refused to touch up. His green eyes were dim, and as he stopped before Tessa, she could feel the weight he was carrying.

"How is he?" Tessa whispered.

Kaden pressed his lips into a thin line. "He's holding up," He decided at last, meeting Tessa's gaze. "But I don't think he's going to be back to himself anytime soon."

Tessa glanced over at the son of Apollo, and in doing so, she could only imagine the rage and sorrow at war with one another within him. Reese had witnessed the death of his twin brother, he'd watched as Flynn was ripped from doing what he loved—helping those in need—and plunged into the flames of the combusting portals. The world had stood still in that moment, and as it slowly had begun to revolve again in the aftermath, it still was halted for Reese.

Tessa didn't realize she was crying until Kaden had pulled her into his arms, embracing her tightly. She sobbed into his shoulder, allowing all of the emotion she had forced herself to lock away in the heat of battle to come rushing out like a dam had been burst within her. With each sob, Kaden did all that he could to comfort her; hugging her tighter, playing with her hair, rubbing her back, kissing the top of her head. But with each tear that fell, Tessa knew that he was feeling just as much as she was.

"I hate this," Tessa sniffed, pulling away slightly from the embrace. "I could have helped him. I could have done something, stopped Orion, I could have—"

"Tessa," Kaden interjected, brushing her tears away. "It happened too rapidly. Please don't beat yourself up over this. Flynn...he wouldn't have wanted this."