Fall of the Spectrum

Chapter Eight

When they arrived, Gwen didn't take in the splendour of Mount Olympus as she might have under different circumstances. Instead, she took advantage of what she couldn't while in Horus's home. She turned to Phenex and gripped him tight, her tears dampening his shirt.

She felt him stiffen in surprise, and then his arms were around her, comforting warmth flowing from his body and into hers. It was only a second before she felt another form join them, Forneus slinging his arms over their shoulders so that they formed a sort of triangle with Gwen at the centre.

They were silent for a long time, Gwen's tears flowing freely down her cheeks as she reached up to take his hand in hers, holding onto them both.

You're alive...I can't believe it. You're really here. The words repeated through her mind in a constant refrain, echoing softly at first, then raging like a storm. All of the words unsaid, all of the quiet moments and subtle gestures, the shared jokes and smiles, the commiseration in times of uncertainty... All of the things that had passed through her mind when she had thought she'd lost the feather forever—then filled with despair—were now overflowing with a joy too enormous to hold. It bubbled in her chest, the taste of her tears coating the back of her tongue.

Too soon, the tremors of shock took joy's place, settling in the pit of her stomach until she was certain she'd be sick. Emotions warred within her, rising and swelling like a summer storm. It was a long moment before Gwen was able to catch her breath, and she had the distinct impression from the subtle trembling of Forneus's hand in hers that she wasn't the only one.

When they finally parted, Phenex pulled the feather necklace from his pocket. With a brief tickle to Gwen's nose that made her smile despite her tears, he slipped it over her head, the feather soft and warm at the base of her throat.

"I guess it's safe to say you missed me, eh?"

Gwen suspected he'd meant for the words to be teasing, but the rawness in his voice belied them.

Blushing, she was just in the midst of coming up with an answer when Forneus gently took the feather in hand. Energy crackled the full length of the cord, making her gasp as the hairs at the nape of her neck stood on end. When she looked at the feather again, it was to see that though it retained its shape, it was encased in crystal.

"Diamond?" The word was out of her mouth before she had time to consider it, Forneus confirming with a nod.

"To protect it. So that you can keep it with you always," he explained. "Quartz and agate, beautiful though they are to behold, can be broken. This, on the other hand, will last forever. There's a charm on it, as well. If it should ever become lost again, it will find its way back to you." There was something in his tone. A gentleness that, if it were possible, was even greater than Forneus at his most gentle.

Wonderingly, she glanced from the diamond-encased feather to Forneus, and then to Phenex, her cheeks warming until she was sure she resembled a neon sign. "Thank you."

Desperate for anything that might make her embarrassment less obvious, Gwen averted her gaze, finally taking notice of the scenery around them. Near as she could tell, they were in some sort of Great Hall. Judging from the large, rectangular table laden with gilded platters, it must have been where the Olympians had entertained themselves and their guests with food and song.

If not for the state of disarray—overturned platters with heaps of uneaten food and spilled wine littering every square inch of what must have once been a pristine white table cloth—Gwen wouldn't have been surprised to see the gods making their way down the marble steps at the far end of the room, preparing for an evening of music and idle chatter.