We Bent Fate

Chapter 18.

I linger a moment longer than usual as Martha talks to one of her friends. Margo, I think her name is.

Both of them shoot glances at me and then smile at each other knowingly, amusement glinting in their eyes. I let my eyes trail over Martha longer than she would want and I see Margo nudge her. Martha blushes. 

"I'll go." I hear her say softly and the two part their ways. After a minute, I fall a step behind Martha following her outside the college campus. 

"What was going on there, baby?"

"Nothing." She says softly, tugging a few strands of her dark curly hair behind her ear and her face comes into view. Her face had suddenly become sullen. 

"What happened?" I ask, my body stiff. 

"I have been thinking. Even this girl, Margo knew about tapestries. Apparently, I asked her about it when one of them got lost." She said.

"Yeah, one of them did. Someone who looked exactly like you, stole it from you and gave it to me. That is how we sort of came into a relationship."

"Someone who looked like me?" She frowned. 

"Yeah, that is what you told me. Before that, I thought it was you. But you told me it wasn't you." I confirmed. "So?"

"I don't know, I just felt like someone had eyes on me all the time and when I tried to look, I didn't find anyone. I just hope that Margo didn't tell anyone that I am a demigod."

What if it's someone who has been plotting against us all this time?

I felt myself nodding despite the stiffness in my throat. "It is okay. There's nothing you can't handle."

She nodded again. "Maybe. Now that you have mentioned it, it could be that the person who tricked you with my resemblance is the same person who was watching me. I don't know."

She shook her head this way and that frantically. "Maybe I am just being paranoid."

"Don't worry." I put a hand on hers and gave it a little squeeze, before returning my hand back on the wheel as we hit the road. 

She turned on the radio even though the drive was pretty short and bobbed her head along with the music. I grinned absentmindedly as I felt her sea green eyes on me. Her words suddenly caught me off guard when she asked, 

"What do you know about the tapestry workshop?" 

"Yeah, you once told me a little about it. You and your sisters own that tapestry workshop and you told me something about a life thread. You said that it symbolizes our fate. Then you all create a tapestry for each one's life." I said carefully.

"Interesting." She said, her eyes glinting with excitement. After a few minutes, I heard her say, "Maybe I can read my own tapestry and see if I can remember any of it?" 

Her voice rang in my ears like ripples echoing in a pool of water. Even I wanted to read my tapestry. I want to know how I end. 

"Is something wrong?" She asked and I shook my head. 

"No, I was just thinking that this is a good idea. But do ask your sisters first before they can spell illegal." She smiled at herself and I pulled up in front of her house. 

The doorbell rang and both of the sisters came out in a second. "We'll go now."

Chloe said and inclined her head towards the car. Martha and I shared a look as we quickly race towards the car, into our seats. 

Something did not feel right. Suddenly the air had shifted into a mist of seriousness and tension. I did not dare to look into the backseat and question them about it.

Chloe and Lila both sat very still in their places and their faces, though calm, were riddled by something I seldom see in their expressions. Fear. 

I gulped audibly in the stillness and drove away in the darkness. The entire ride was spent in silence except a few chants escaping from Lila's mouth. I flickered my eyes to the backseat for a few minutes and saw Lila's eyes closed, her lips moving as if in prayer. We stopped near the ancient workshop and quickly slipped out of our seats. 

I have never seen this old building from inside. The door opens with a creaking sound and a pigeon flutters outside with a flapping sound.

We entered the threshold of the workshop and I ran my eyes everywhere possible, looking suspiciously at the walls surrounding me. The paint was peeling off the sides from cracks and it seemed to me that this fragile place would fall apart if you sneezed on it. 

"How old is this place?"

"As old as we three are." Chloe answered emotionlessly.

"How old are you?" I flick my gaze towards Martha and she shrugged with a smug smile on her face.

"Don't hold your breath, Austin. We need to deal with something more important than this." I heard Chloe say as she moved forward.

"Well, good to know that at least you've finally learned my name." I grin at them, trying to subside the tension.

Dust collected everywhere as far as the eye could see, spider woven webs hang loosely around books, dirtied shelves and stands. Another corner was huddled with row after rows of neatly lined up beautiful tapestries drawn from white, black and golden threads. 

A sillage of old paint floated lazily in the air causing me a difficult time breathing, and every step put more of it in to the air. All that was heard were the faint chirps of birds outside, the scurrying feet of invisible rodents, and the rustling of papers catching the draft. I took it all in with thirst in my eyes and ears, my heart thumping loudly against my chest. 

Out from the side of my eye, I could see Martha fingering the pages of a very old and huge book. I peeked inside to read but couldn't fathom a word.

"It's all Greek to me. Do you understand any of this?" I ask Martha.

"It is written in Greek." She mumbled softly, her voice still audible in the ever silent place. 

"It is a real life documentary." Chloe said and I was about to ask a few questions about my own but Lila's voice cut mine off, her voice just above a whisper and almost undecipherable. She too was reading a book. 

"Fine armed bearer of shears, daughter of Nyx will hearken to the prayers of those who share death and of those who don't, all alike. Lawful terrible goddess, the harbinger of death will right and crown the peace of the unfortunate city of the living by losing herself against the great Gods like herself alone."

"What?" I ask. 

"It is a prophecy about Martha that I learned today while I was envisioning Martha's future." Lila's face was expressionless as if it was made of stone.

My breath hitched and Martha almost stopped breathing. 

"What does it say?" She asked slowly. 

"That you will succeed in creating a power that will bring peace to the world but-"

"But?" I asked, my patience slipping out of my hand like sand. 

"But in the end she will lose herself against the Gods." Lila finished her sentence and I felt all of the blood draining from my body, making me feel lifeless. 

"Does that mean...." I trailed of. 

"That Martha will die."