Rise Of The Nephilim
Chapter 20

Maxine had had enough after an hour of frolicking in the pond. The others did not even notice her getting dressed and finally leaving the sanctuary.

She walked with high spirits down the dimly lit hallway toward her room. The Epochs’ presence did nothing to instill fear in her this time. She was becoming accustomed to having them nearby, especially after her battle earlier in the training room.

She opened the door to her dimly lit room and found Zeda sprawled out on her bed, crying, blood bubbling from both her wrists.

“Zeda!” Maxine cried out. She turned to the Epoch across from her room and yelled for help. However, the Epoch did not respond. It stood still, staring out at the wall.

“Help!” she yelled again before running to Zeda. She took Zeda’s hands in her own. “What did you do?”

Zeda mumbled words. As she spoke, her tears flowed profusely.

Maxine tore two pieces of cloth from the sheets on her bed and immediately began to wrap them tightly around Zeda’s wrists. Zeda mumbled and moaned as her breath began to weaken.

Maxine tapped her cheeks, trying to keep her conscious, “Don’t leave me.”

“What happened?” Silla asked as she abruptly entered the room. “I heard you yelling for help on my way back to my room.” Then she noticed Zeda. She stared down at her.

Maxine yelled, “Well, don’t just stare at her! Go get help!”

“What did she do?” Silla asked, looking down at the bloodstained strips of cloth wrapped tightly around Zeda’s wrists.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“Father will not take this lightly.”

“What do you mean? She tried to kill herself, surely he’ll show a little compassion.”

Silla gave no response, for she knew it wasn’t the first time that one of them had tried to take their own life.

An eerie silence fell between them.

Without warning, a gust of air flung the unlocked door open. Both women sharply looked toward the entry of the room.

“Father!” Silla pronounced.

“What happened here?” Āmand asked, a grim look on his face. Maxine and Silla looked blankly at each other, both afraid to reveal the truth.

Āmand walked farther into the room and looked down at Zeda’s arms. He grabbed her left wrist and listened to her faint pulse.“Epoch!” he commanded.

The Epoch who had been standing guard outside the room was now standing at the threshold, waiting for orders. “Take this coward away,” Āmand said.

A wave of anger rolled straight through Maxine. “How can you be so awful?”

Āmand’s face tensed, the muscles seeming to protrude above the base of his skin. His eyes widened, steady on Maxine. “How dare you?”

Silla stood frozen next to Maxine, hoping that Āmand would not turn his anger upon her as well. Maxine did not recoil. “No. How dare you treat us as if we are worthless scraps of meat? Numbers to discard at will.”

She felt her breath stop when Āmand’s hand squeezed tightly around her neck, lifting her up off the ground. Her face washed almost white. He could have killed her, and would have, had she been anyone else. He gazed upon her and remembered his love for Maybie. He remembered the moment his entire being changed. The moment he felt warmth. It was the moment of Maxine’s conception and the birth of his soul. It was then he’d known that he would always love and protect her.

After her birth, he stood for many nights, hidden in the shadows, watching over her while she slept. In fact, he’d never been far behind. Always hidden. Always silent.

His hand began to tremble, losing its grip; he lowered her gently to the ground and quickly retreated from the room.

Maxine held her hands to her neck, violently coughing, grasping at air. Silla stood directly in front of her and held her by the shoulders. “What were you thinking? Are you crazy? You’re lucky Father didn’t kill you.”

“Where did they take Zeda?” Maxine asked, her hands massaging the sinews of her neck.

“Probably to the crematory.”

“Crematory!”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“What difference does it make? She wanted to die anyway.”

“How can you be so cold? We have to save her.”

“What? Are you crazy? Father will have the Epochs take our heads.”

“Not if I have anything to do with it.”

“You really are crazy. Besides, the crematory is several levels below us, where the Dungeon Demons live. We call them Imps.”

“What the hell is an Imp?”

“Trust me; you don’t want to replace out. If you think the Epochs are bad, then you should know that Imps are ten times worse. Not even Father has the strength to fight them. Why do you think he sent the Epoch instead of taking her himself?”

“I don’t care. We have to try to save her.”

This time Maxine grabbed Silla’s hand. “Come on; we have to hurry,” she said as they headed out the door, being careful not to make the Epoch guards suspicious.

“Let’s ask Gaden and Haman for help,” Silla suggested in a whisper as anxiety plagued every nerve in her body. “They should be back from the sanctuary by now. Besides, it will be better if there are more of us.”

“Good idea, but do you think they would be willing to help us?”

“I’m not really sure. They could just go to Father and we could lose our heads, but the more I think about, I think we must try to help our sister.”

They looked at each other and smiled nervously.

“All right, let’s go then,” Maxine said. She let out the deep breath she had drawn to calm her nerves, not to mention the sweltering pain she felt pulsing through the veins in her neck.