Fate of the Blessed
Chapter 16

Amara

The small, rickety jetty came into view as Charon expertly guided it to the side, grunting as he hopped off the boat agile for his age. With deft hands he tied the rope around a post, securing it. After helping me off the boat, he turned around and walked towards the old rundown shack that I presumed passed as his house. 

“Orphne, my girl, we’re back!” he bellowed. As he reached the gate, he turned back around and motioned wildly with his hand for them to join him. Tae-Seong had also exited the boat. He brushed past me without so much as a sideways glance.

“Stop,”

He turned around and looked me dead in the eye. His own held no emotion, and it was hard for me to determine what he was thinking or knowing. He was becoming an enticing enigma. My hand went over my heart, feeling the heavy thudding in my chest I swallowed hard, not knowing what to expect next. I didn’t know the person in front of me, his reactions, his personality.

I inhaled one deep breath, closing my eyes I let go of my fear as I had a goal to accomplish and shying away would help nobody.

I strode up to him with renewed purpose. He was going to listen to me, I would make sure of it, yet he still stood his ground when I stopped inches from him. He tilted his chin upwards, but held my gaze with cool indifference. I ignored his subtle attempt at intimidation. We had to save our souls, and the only way to do that was to defeat Aeron.

As much as it pained me to admit it, I needed Tae-Seong’s help to do it. A sense of empowerment overcome me as I realised it wasn’t a weakness to ask for help. My chest became lighter as the realisation hit me hard like a speeding train. All these years thinking I didn’t need anybody but myself. I’d wasted so much energy thinking I was a failure.

My thoughts shot to Shanti when I shook my head. I had to put away my own feelings for the moment. We needed each other to survive, but if I couldn’t save my soul, I had to at least try for hers.

“Tae-Seong, I need your help.” 

Tae-Seong

“Stop,” was all she said to me, but behind it lay a command that made me turn around and take notice. I stood looking at her, the air thick with unsaid emotion. To my surprise, she matched my gaze, something I wasn’t used to. Her brow knitted together with a worried expression, a look on her face I decided I did not like to see. 

“I know you don’t like me.”

It wasn’t entirely true, but I wouldn’t admit that to her. Instead, I stayed silent, realising she was fragile but not weak. 

“We need to go back.” 

I looked at Amara, raising an eyebrow in question. We had just made it out alive the last time in the knick of time. She couldn’t be serious, but by the look on her face she was deadly. I wasn’t sold on the idea; I needed to replace a way home, even if it was without Shanti and Amara. 

“Aeron is preventing people from moving on they’ll end up trapped forever. We need to help them.”

“This isn’t our problem; we need to focus on replaceing a way home.”

“These people need help.” She looked at me in disbelief.

I didn’t reply instead we just stared at each other for what seemed like forever before she broke away from me.

“I guess you’re not the person who I thought you were.”

With that Amara swung back around and then stormed off back to the house. I let out an enormous sigh, sitting down on a large crate as I did so; she didn’t even know me. I placed my head in my hands. I’d only just met her, but was she getting to me on a level nobody else ever had? In all my 25 years, not one person had ever questioned or answered back to me. Not once. It was the advantage of having a powerful father. 

As I sat up straighter, it occurred to me at that moment. Why was I in such a hurry to return home? What did I have to go back to? An overbearing father who expects too much? Here there was a little girl who had depended on him and a girl that was desperately asking for his help, something he wondered if she ever got? Here, I felt more needed than I ever did at home.

“Ah, fuck.” I said, jumping up from the crate and following her. 

Amara

I reached the dilapidated gate and stopped. I wanted to see Shanti, but I couldn’t face going in just yet. Instead, I slid to the dusty floor with my back to the fence that surrounded the shack. I knew would be safer within the fence but I couldn’t resist the slight flirt with danger. 

“You’re pushing your luck, Mari.” I said as I wrapped the delicate dress around my legs, conscious that I was probably showing something off. I picked at the dried blood on my knees causing the wound to ooze fresh blood. 

“I need to think of a plan. Perhaps I could take Charon’s boat and go back by myself?” That wouldn’t work I wouldn’t even be able to untie the rope. Plus, it would be foolish to navigate those waters by myself.

I hadn’t even rowed a boat before.

I pulled my knees closer to my chest when I felt a warmth beside me. Looking across, I found Tae-Seong sitting next to me with his legs outstretched. 

“Do you often make a habit of talking to yourself?”

My breath caught in my throat. It was the most beautiful, smouldering smile I’d ever seen. It almost made me choke. He raised his eyebrow in question and then looked away in embarrassment. Aware that I was staring with my mouth agape, a blush crept into my cheeks.

Get a bloody grip, you moron.

“You’re right, we need to go back.” He said, changing the subject. 

“It could also be our only way home?” He cocked his eyebrow in question. 

“This is all Aeron’s doing, he must know how we can get home.” 

Tae-Seong shrugged his shoulders, but I continued on anyway “Nemesis said, this is the Midgard or the Otherworld, it’s where we choose.”

“Yeah, Charon said the same.” 

I looked at Tae-Seong with sorrow in my eyes; I wished he would turn around and tell me everything was going to be okay. An uncomfortable silence fell between the two of us as we each became lost in our own thoughts.

“You’re bleeding.” I said, breaking the silence. He placed his fingers gingerly on the gash on the top of his arm.

“So are you.” He pointed towards the cuts on both of my knees. I smiled and looked away. 

“We better speak with Charon.” He said.

As he rose to his feet, he held out his hand to help me up, which I accepted gratefully. A slight fluttering resounded in my stomach as my hand touched his. I blushed, but I don’t think he noticed. He walked in front of me as we made our way back up to the shack with a plan in mind.