The Prophecy Of The Wolves I - The Beginning
~ Chapter Twenty-Four ~

They had been riding on Cerberus’s back for a while when Liliana let out a soft groan as she slowly lifted her head. “Where are we?” She asked in a rasping voice.

Jacques rubbed her back. “We’re almost to the barrier,” he said reassuringly.

Liliana let out another groan as she sat up. “What happened?” She asked as she rubbed at her face.

Jacques sighed heavily as he gently played with her hair. “You managed to keep the water apart just long enough for Cerberus to get us to this side of the river. But, as soon as you let go of the water, you collapsed. You’ve been unconscious ever since.”

Liliana rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. “The sooner we get out of here, the better. I’m so exhausted.”

Jacques rubbed her arms soothingly. “We’re just about there. If you look closely enough, you can see the barrier.”

Liliana finally opened her eyes and blinked a few times at the brightness. “Good. I can’t wait to get home.”

They went quiet as Cerberus walked up to the barrier. When they got there, Cerberus lay down. Jacques easily slid down Cerberus’s side and landed on his feet.

Liliana looked down and grumbled to herself. She moved to copy Jacques’s movements but stopped when Cerberus started moving. He moved one of his heads to right beneath her feet. She slid onto his head, and he carefully lowered her to the ground. When her feet were firmly on the ground, she hugged Cerberus’s head in thanks. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Jacques chuckled. “He loves you,” he said in awe.

Liliana giggled. “Well, I love him too,” she turned to the barrier with a sudden frown. “Okay. Watch my back. I’m not going to be aware of my surroundings while I do this,” she said without looking away from the barrier.

Jacques kissed her forehead. “We have you covered, little one.”

Liliana smiled at him. “I love you. You know that, right?” She asked.

Jacques chuckled. “I know. I love you too.”

Liliana walked up to the barrier and took a deep breath. She rested her hands on the barrier and closed her eyes, sending her very essence into the barrier to learn how to break it. It took her a few minutes, but she finally figured it out. She pulled away and raised her voice just enough for Jacques and Cerberus to hear her. “I’m going to need one of you close to me. What I’m about to do will make me pass out.”

Jacques moved to her side while Cerberus took a protective stance in front of them.

Liliana gave Jacques a nod before placing her hands flat against the barrier. She closed her eyes again but went further into her mind and body this time. She found that unknown power deep inside of her. An ability that was so strong, and she knew she hadn’t been able to tell anyone about it yet. She may not have known what it was or exactly what it could do, but it didn’t matter at that moment. The only thing that mattered was that this newfound power would be able to break a massive hole in the barrier.

Liliana focused solely on that power and pulled it to the surface. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She did that a couple of times before her eyes snapped open. She took a final breath before unleashing that new power on the barrier. She used every drop of that power to shatter the entire barrier. As the barrier fell to the ground around Tartarus in shards her world turned black as Jacques caught her.

Jacques stared at Liliana in awed amazement. Shining as brightly as the sun in her eyes was a power he thought was gone for eternity. The last person gifted with that power was the last of her bloodline. Or so everyone had thought. It had been a time of war and death. He wouldn’t be surprised if she had a child and hid that child away from the world. At the time, that would have been the only way to save any children that may have had.

For Liliana to have that power was an honor and a gift. Yet it could also be a curse if anyone knew that she possessed the old, ancient power because the power thrumming through her very being was a power of the gods.

Jacques could do nothing but watch as she unleashed that magnificent yet terrifying power on the barrier. It attacked the barrier, shattering it into shards.

As soon as that ancient power fully shattered the barrier, Liliana fainted. Jacques was quick to catch her but hissed at her ice-cold skin. He took off his jacket and wrapped her in it. He glanced at Cerberus. “Are you coming with us?” He asked, even though he knew where the kind-hearted beast would stay.

Cerberus walked closer to them and gently nudged Liliana. He let out a low whine at the feel of her skin. “We’re going to get her help,” Jacques promised Cerberus as he carefully picked her up.

Jacques held her close as he walked toward the place they were supposed to meet Roman. He didn’t have to look behind him to know that Cerberus was following him.

As Jacques passed where the barrier had once been, Roman appeared in front of him. His eyes widened as he watched Liliana work on the barrier. “What the hell happened?” Roman glanced at Cerberus. “And how the hell did you tame him? Hades can barely contain him. Let alone tame him enough for him to look like a concerned mother hen.”

Jacques chuckled. “Liliana,” it was all he had to say. “We need to get her home. Now.”

Roman nodded. “How am I supposed to take Cerberus?” He questioned. “I don’t think he’ll let me touch him.”

Jacques turned to Cerberus. “We need to get Liliana home quickly. You’ll have to let Roman touch you if you want to come with us,” he explained softly.

Cerberus let out a grumble before he lowered one of his heads to Roman. “I can’t believe it,” Roman whispered.

Jacques just shook his head with a small smile. “Anything for Liliana.”

Roman touched Cerberus’s head and Jacques’s shoulder. Then, he teleported them to Cayden’s home office. When the darkness faded, they found Cayden already standing with a dagger in his hand.

Cayden stared at them in shock before dropping the dagger on the desk and rushing to Jacques. Cayden moved Liliana’s hair out of her face with trembling fingers. “We need to get her into a hot bath,” Jacques said as Cayden caressed Liliana’s ice-cold face.

“Why is she so cold?” Cayden demanded in concern.

“I’ll explain everything after she’s taken care of,” Jacques promised as he let Cayden take Liliana from his arms.

Cayden held her close to his body as he said. “Okay,” he let out a rough exhale. “Jacques, you’re with me. First, Roman, can you teleport Cerberus outside with Orthrus? Then replace Kaine and Axel.”

Jacques chuckled as Cerberus let out a low, echoing growl. “He isn’t going to leave her side. He’s been with us since she saved him from a group of phantoms,” he explained.

Cayden shook his head with a small smile. “Of course she did,” he sighed as he studied the three-headed hound. “Okay. He can stay, but I have no idea how he will get through the doors.”

Before anyone could say anything else, a flash of light momentarily blinded them. Then, after their vision recovered, they saw Cerberus. He had somehow made himself smaller. He still had his three heads but was now the size of a great day.

Cayden shrugged and started heading towards his room with Liliana in his arms. “Jacques, with me. Roman, replace Kaine and Axel quickly.”

Cayden rushed up to his room with Jacques and Cerberus at his heels. Once he walked into his room, he went straight to the bathroom. He turned the faucet on and let it run until it was hot. He plugged up the tub before sitting on the floor with Liliana. Cayden moved her around until her back rested against his chest. He carefully pulled Jacques’s shirt over her head. He couldn’t get enough air into his lungs as he took in the wounds on her back and arms.

Tears shamelessly slid down Cayden’s face as he pulled her bra off. His breath shuddered as he moved to her pants. He unbuttoned them and carefully lifted her enough to push her pants and panties down her thighs. Cayden tossed them aside and wrapped his body around hers as he stood up. He was setting her into the tub of steaming hot water when Jacques finally walked into the room. “I know how bad she looks,” Jacques said as he slid to the floor next to the door. “She looked worse when I first found her in Tartarus. I couldn’t heal her. I barely had enough blood to survive myself,” he sighed as he leaned against the wall and closed his eyes.

Cayden frowned as he carefully started washing Liliana’s body. “How are her wounds partially healed then?” He asked.

Jacques chuckled. “Artemis,” he said. “Liliana prayed to her for help, and she had Asclepius heal her just enough to be functional. He also made sure that she had enough blood to help me.”

Cayden moved on to Liliana’s hair as he asked. “Why is she ice cold?”

Jacques was silent for a few minutes before he finally started speaking. “It’s a new power,” he said as if speaking too loud would attract the wrong attention. Even in the safety of Cayden’s own home. “Yet it’s as old and ancient as the gods themselves,” he shook his head. “Long ago, before the war with Atlas, there was a kingdom to the west of here. On the throne of that kingdom sat the most powerful couple in the world. At that time, anyway.”

Jacques watched as Cayden carefully picked up Liliana and drained the tub. He had her wrapped in a towel while the tub filled again. “Give me just a minute, Jacques,” Cayden set Liliana back in the tub with fresh hot water. Then he cleared his mind and spoke to Sebastian through their mind link. ‘I need you to get the doc and come to my house right now.’

Sebastian didn’t ask any questions. ‘Be right there.’

Cayden looked at Jacques. “The doc is on his way. He’ll look you over and help in any way he can.”

Jacques shook his head. “No need. Now that we’re out of Tartarus, I’ll heal in no time,” he ran a hand through his hair. “Now, back to this new power of Liliana’s,” he clicked his tongue. “I was young at the time and didn’t care, but legend says that the king was a powerful fae and the queen was a demigod. Her mother had been a goddess, and her father had been a powerful warlock. Both gifts would have made her a powerful being, but they made her almost invincible. She had gifts from both of them. And she also got something else. She got a power that was a combination of them both. It was light, and everything was good in the world. Yet it was also quite terrifying. It could heal any wound, no matter how close to death a person was. Or it could level an entire city in a single devastating wave,” he shook his head. “There had been a war. It wasn’t enjoyable. So many lives on both sides. The war lasted for years,” he sighed as he closed his eyes. “At the beginning of the war, the queen had gotten pregnant. No one knew about it. She kept herself hidden for the duration of her pregnancy. Everyone thought that she was sick. They prayed for her health and never questioned it. So when she finally died protecting her beloved city, the world thought she was the end of her bloodline. Only a very rare few knew of the child by the time she passed away. And it seems that Liliana is a descendant of the queen.”

Cayden sat in astonishment for a minute. Then he shook his head and washed Liliana up again. When Cayden was sure she was clean, he carefully pulled her out of the tub. He wrapped a towel around her before holding her close to his body. Cayden grabbed another towel as he walked into the bedroom. He sat down in front of the fireplace. He kept Liliana on his lap as he started drying her hair. “Could you get a fire going?” He asked Jacques. “She’s still freezing.”

Jacques started a fire as quickly as he could.

Cayden held Liliana close as the fire roared to life and Cerberus and Daemon lay at his feet.

Jacques sighed heavily as Kaine, Axel, Sebastian, Roman, and Nathan entered the room. “I see Lily brought home another stray,” Axel said with a smile as he studied Cerberus. He tilted his head slightly. “I thought he’d be bigger.”

Jacques scoffed. “Cerberus has some magic that allowed him to shrink down so he can fit through the doorway.”

Axel chuckled. “I take it he didn’t want to leave her side,” he said as he sat next to Cayden.

Jacques shrugged. “Well, she does have a way with creatures like him,” he laughed. “Not to mention she saved his life in Tartarus.”

Kaine looked at Cerberus with wide eyes. “How did that happen?” He asked.

“Jacques will tell us everything that happened while they were in Tartarus as soon as we know that Lily is okay,” Cayden said firmly. He looked between Axel and Kaine. “I want one or both of you to check on her with magic,” he looked at Nathan. “I want you to check her medically. Though there’s something, you all should know. For now, it stays in this room. This information does not leave this room until she’s awake and we talk about it. Does everyone understand?” He demanded.

Everyone nodded their agreement.

Cayden gently moved Liliana’s hair out of her face. “Lily’s pregnant,” he said in a soft voice. “We’re having a baby,” he said in awe.

Jacques frowned. “Liliana told me that she’s pregnant with twins,” he said in confusion.

Cayden’s forehead creased in confusion. “That doesn’t make sense,” he gently lifted Liliana as he grabbed the sonogram. “There’s only one baby in this sonogram,” he said as he showed everyone the picture.

Jacques’s frown deepened. “Why would she tell me that you’re having twins?” He asked rhetorically.

Kaine snapped his fingers. “I think I know why,” he knelt in front of Cayden and Liliana. He lovingly rested his hand on her belly and closed his eyes. He sent his magic seeking through her and was surprised at what he found. He pulled his magic back into himself and opened his eyes. He leaned back on his heels. “Oh yeah. She’s pregnant with twins. For sure.”

Cayden sat there in wonder. He couldn’t even form a coherent thought as he stared at Liliana in adoration.

Jacques crossed his arms as he looked at Kaine. “How is it possible for the second child not to appear in the sonogram?” He asked as he looked between Axel and Kaine.

Kaine chuckled. “The child in the front is protecting the other. I can tell she’s not that far along, but the first child is mighty already,” he shook his head as he stood up.

“I’ve never heard of an unborn child having magic that powerful. Especially this early in the pregnancy,” Jacques said in astonishment.

Axel clicked his tongue. “You know what?” He said as he sat forward in his spot on the couch. “I’ve heard a myth about this,” he said as the doctor started his check-up on Liliana. “It was eons ago. I was just a young boy at the time. There was this princess who was loved by all. She was a witch. She was not the most powerful, but she could hold her own against most enemies. After many years she had finally found her beloved. They were together for quite some time before they decided to have kids.”

Kaine let out a small laugh. “Of course. I remember her,” he said as he shook his head and continued the myth. “It had been quite difficult for them to conceive. Once they did, though, it was the same thing as now. The sonogram showed only one child, but there were two. The first child somehow used magic to hide the second from everyone except the mother.”

“That explains that, then,” Jacques muttered sarcastically.

Kaine shrugged. “No one ever discovered how it was possible, but once the children were born and old enough, they were the most powerful beings ever known. And that was when they were alone. Together,” he blew out a breath. “They could demolish the entire world.”

Axel scoffed as he ran a hand through his hair. “If I remember correctly, they almost did once.”

Kaine nodded. “Yeah. They had just turned seventeen, and some kingdom enemy somehow managed to kidnap their mom. When they found out, they completely lost it. Their father kept them calm just long enough to learn about who took her. Once they knew there was no stopping them. Their mother got to them just in time to prevent the world from ending.”

Sebastian let out a low whistle. “Sounds like you’re going to have your hands full,” he said with a chuckle.

Cayden shook his head with a small smile. He looked at the doctor. “How is she?” He questioned.

Nathan sighed. “She’s okay considering everything she’s been through the last few days. I already mind-linked my assistant. He will bring me ointments, bandages, and IVs for blood and nutrients. She’s going to need both, especially with the pregnancy,” he ran a hand through his short blonde hair. “Then, when she wakes up, I want to see her in my office for an ultrasound. We don’t know what kind of effect this whole ordeal had on the twins.”

Cayden waved him off. “The twins are healthy. I got Eiltheyia to put a protective shield around Lily’s womb. They’re safe and healthy,” he explained as he held Liliana a bit closer.

Everyone was surprised, but no one said anything as he tenderly rubbed Liliana’s belly, even though she wasn’t that far along yet. Then, finally, Nathan’s assistant arrived with everything he needed and stood by the bed. “Could you move her to the bed, please?” Nathan asked him politely.

Cayden stood up with Liliana in his arms and carried her to the bed, with Daemon and Cerberus following behind him. Cayden gently laid her on the bed and ensured the towel covered her. He gave the doctor a nod as he moved to the other side of the bed. He tenderly ran his fingers through her hair as the doctor got to work.