"My friend, I am afraid that I may sleep so long that in some ways I shall never again arise, so before I drift into my living bed, I will create once more, though you must watch over these children yourself."

Nyx was confused for a moment, and then she understood what Mother Earth intended. "You will create more like her!"

"I will, though their creation will be more difficult than was hers. She is not truly a new being, but rather a mortal made more. I will sow humanity with the seeds of what she is. I do not know how many of them will be able to become more."

Nyx clasped her friend's hands. "Thank you, Mother Earth. Thank you for making sure my daughter will not live her life alone."

"Do not thank me yet. I do not know how many like her will survive."

"Humans are strong and brave. There will be many who survive," Nyx said. "And I will be their G.o.ddess of Night!"

"Yes, my friend. Yes," Mother Earth agreed. "Now, embrace me again, and take your leave quickly. I want no sadness or regret between us."

Nyx hugged her tightly. "Sleep in peace with no worry and no regret. I will visit your children, and I will watch over that which is eternal within them for eternity."

"Watch over yourself as well," Mother Earth said. Then, still embracing the G.o.ddess, she whispered for her ears alone: "And watch Kalona. If he begins to change it will be because his anger has grown greater than his love. If he allows anger to consume him, it will also consume you and your realm." Then she released Nyx and stepped back. "Go now, and may you all be blessed-"

Heartbreaking trills erupted from the group of Fey that cl.u.s.tered around Mother Earth. Nyx saw that there weren't only dryads there, but coblyn, naiads, and even a few skeeaeds had appeared on the prairies, painting the night with bright colors that reflected their anxiety.

"No, little ones, do not despair. You belong in the Otherworld-that is your home," Mother Earth said.

"Oh, my friend, please tell me that the Fey may continue to visit your earth," Nyx said.

Mother Earth looked surprise. "You would allow it?"

Nyx smiled warmly at the Fey. As long as there is Old Magick, ancient, rich and true, there you shall find the Fey, and there they shall find you.

"So your G.o.ddess has spoke, and so mote it be!" Mother Earth cried, enlivened again as the Fey formed a circle around her and began to dance in celebration.

Nyx wiped away a tear, and then took Kalona and Erebus by the hand. "Let us leave her now, happy and surrounded by those who bring her such joy," she said softly, guiding them into the darkness of the gra.s.sy prairie. When they were out of sight of Mother Earth, Nyx let loose their hands and said, "Follow me." The G.o.ddess lifted her hand and a slender silver thread appeared, as if the moon had lent her a beam of light. She grasped it and smiled at the winged immortals who were studying her with twin looks of apprehension. "Don't worry. If you know the way, the journey is not far. And I will show you the way, so that ever after you will never be far from me." Then the glittering ribbon went taut, lifting the G.o.ddess into the night sky. Kalona and Erebus unfurled their wings together, and took to the sky after her.

Nyx didn't let loose the glittering silver thread until, out of the complete blackness that exists between realms, a patch of hard-packed earth suddenly appeared. She stepped on it and turned to face Kalona and Erebus.

"Is it a piece of Mother Earth here?" Erebus asked, bending to touch the ground that looked so very much like the red dirt from the tall gra.s.s prairie.

"There's more of it in there," Kalona said, pointing at a seemingly endless grove that stretched before them.

"No, there is nothing of Mother Earth here," Nyx said. "Though you will see many sights that will remind you of her."

Nyx thought Kalona looked relieved. Erebus only looked curious. "What is that tree?" he asked, starting to walk forward toward it.

Nyx stepped before him, blocking his way. Both immortals were now looking at her curiously.

"That tree has many names in the mortal realm, Yggdrasil, Abellio, and the Hanging Tree are but three of many reflections of its Old Magick. Here, I call it the Wishing Tree, as I have filled it with ribbons of Divine Energy in which I have woven wishes and dreams, joy and love. It stands at the entrance to my realm, the Otherworld. I intend to share my realm with both of you, but before I allow you entrance I ask each of you to make me one promise-that no matter what the eternity to come brings, you will never again speak of the events of this night. My daughter, and those who come after her, must never know that they were mistakes created because of superst.i.tion and madness. Do you agree?"

"I do, and you have my promise," Kalona said.

"As do I. You have my promise as well, kind, loving G.o.ddess," Erebus said.

"Then I gladly bid you enter the Otherworld, and wish that together we will all blessed be!"

Mother Earth left the Fey to their endless dancing. She had one last task to perform before she could sleep, but first she approached the body of the Shaman. She knelt beside him and closed his sightless eyes; then she waved her hands over his body, and the rich earth of the prairie parted, gently making an opening in which to cradle the old man.

"You did well, just as I asked. I know it broke your heart to follow my edict and sacrifice the maiden, but by doing so you have given Kalona his only chance at redemption, for he has, indeed, been tainted by Darkness. Nyx does not see it, but I see it as clearly as did you. You did as I commanded. Now I will keep my word to you, old one." Mother Earth touched his forehead, and drew from within him the glowing orb that held his eternal spirit.

Come to me, mighty beast of the gra.s.s sea!

An enormous bison trotted up to Mother Earth. The muscles of his wide chest rippled as he bowed before her, his muzzle resting by her knee. She stroked his thick pelt, murmuring her appreciation of his majesty. Then she completed her promise by saying: Joined for a lifetime you and he shall be!

She pressed the spirit glob against the bison's forehead, and it disappeared within the beast. Mother Earth smiled up at him. "Go, old one made young! Roam the prairie and have a long, fertile life."

With a snort, the bison obeyed her, and as he trotted away he kicked the air in a joyous dance of freedom.

THOUGH IT WOULD CREATE A WOUND WITHIN HER THAT WOULD ACHE FOR ETERNITY, NYX KNEW KALONA MUST BE STOPPED ...

And so the eons pa.s.sed. At first, all was well in the Otherworld. The G.o.ddess was no longer alone. She had warrior and lover, playmate and friend. Nyx thrived, and thus did the Otherworld.

Nyx's children, created by Mother Earth before she retreated to sleep within herself, thrived as well, though both immortals had been right. Many were not strong enough to survive the Change, but those who did were the best of humanity-the bravest and strongest, the brightest and most talented. In solidarity, they named themselves vampyre, the children of Nyx, and they evolved a society that honored women as G.o.ddess, and valued men for their roles of warrior and lover, playmate and friend. Nyx was so well pleased by her children that she sometimes pa.s.sed along gifts to them based on the five elements over which her friend had granted her dominion. But no matter how much they pleased her, or how many times Nyx granted the vampyres gifts, the G.o.ddess made quite certain that she did not meddle too often in their lives. Mother Earth had taught her a valuable lesson. Love cannot thrive if it is too closely controlled. Nyx vowed that she would not control her beloved children, that they would always have free will, whether they chose to use that freedom wisely or not.

Though she was sometimes sorry she had made that vow, the G.o.ddess never broke her oath.

Nyx was also sometimes sorry that she had vowed never to speak of the night the first of her children had been created. The vow had been well intended-made to protect her children. What the G.o.ddess had not realized then was that by cloaking that night in silence, she had also lost the opportunity to explain many things to Kalona, and in return to ask him for an explanation for many things as well.

They never spoke of what had happened when Kalona had appeared at the geyser, or of the strange superst.i.tion that had caused the Shaman to make blood sacrifice to Kalona.

In her mind Nyx often replayed the chant the Shaman had sung before he sacrificed the girl.

What I do, I do for two One for her And one for you ...

What had the old man meant? Nyx believed the "you" of which he had chanted was Kalona. Could the "her" not have meant the maiden, but instead have been referring to the G.o.ddess herself?

The not knowing haunted Nyx, especially as, bound by her own vow, she could speak her questions to no one, especially not Kalona, who seemed increasingly not to want to speak to her about many things.

Nyx tried to talk with Kalona about Mother Earth, whom she missed terribly. Kalona avoided the subject of his symbolic mother and grew silent.

When Nyx wondered aloud what could have happened to little L'ota, who disappeared the same night Erebus and Kalona entered the Otherworld, Kalona had only silence as reply.

Kalona's silence began to lengthen and spread, until there was little he and Nyx were able to speak about, and the only thing that was not awkward between them was the flame that burned when their bodies joined.

But Nyx needed more than wordless pa.s.sion to be happy, and she found herself more and more often turning to Erebus for companionship. The golden immortal was not her lover, but he served the role of Consort more fully than did Kalona. Erebus spoke with her easily; there was nothing hidden between them. Erebus truly listened to her, without pride or jealousy, and Erebus had the ability to make her laugh.

The more Nyx turned to Erebus, the more withdrawn Kalona became, until he stopped seeking even the solace of joining his body with the G.o.ddess. In the malignant silence that grew between them, Kalona was filled with a jealousy that had never truly been reconciled, and the anger created by that jealousy.

It was then that Darkness began its attack on the Otherworld.

The first time it happened, Nyx had been sunning herself on Erebus's balcony, taking in the morning light. She remembered that Erebus had made a feather toy for the wildcat that followed Nyx throughout the Otherworld, and that she had been laughing like a girl at the cat's obsession with the feather when something dark and terrible had slithered over the edge of the balcony and wrapped itself around the cat's hind leg, causing it to yowl in pain.

Nyx had screamed in fear, and Kalona had suddenly appeared like an avenging G.o.d, wings spread, eyes glowing amber. He had skewered the slithering creature with his obsidian spear. Nyx had scooped up the cat and run into Kalona's arms. He had held her, stoking her hair and whispering rea.s.surances to her, until she had stopped trembling.

"What was that?" Nyx had asked him.

"Darkness," Kalona had said in a voice filled with anger.

"How did it gain entrance here?" Erebus had asked as he gently bandaged the cat's bleeding leg.

"You tell me, brother. It was you who was alone with the G.o.ddess when it struck."

Erebus had had no answer for his brother, and neither had Nyx. But what had begun that day continued to spread until almost every day Kalona battled some kind of Darkness.

In the beginning the attacks brought Kalona and Nyx together once more. They became lovers again for a brief, beautiful time. The G.o.ddess sought his company, and they found a way to speak to each other. Kalona even happily agreed to visit the mortal realm with Nyx while she made an appearance to her favored children, the vampyres, as they christened the first House of Night after their G.o.ddess of Night.

But that visit ended in jealousy and anger when Nyx remarked joyfully, "Look, Kalona, there are so many cats here! They are such loving familiars of my children."

"Yes, I am sure Erebus will be thrilled at the joy his gift still brings you," Kalona had quipped, and then fallen silent.

Nyx could say nothing-not about the gift he had given her that night, and how that gift pleased her more than any mortal creature could. No, Nyx could say nothing. Her own vow silenced her. She could only watch as jealousy and anger warred within Kalona.

As they returned to the Otherworld, a great horned creature of many heads and with teeth like daggers, had attacked them. Kalona destroyed it, escorted Nyx to her chambers and then, without speaking, he left her there, alone, while he searched for more enemies to slay.

That night Nyx wept bitterly as Mother Earth's warning echoed from her memory:... watch Kalona. If he begins to change, it will be because his anger has grown greater than his love. If he allows anger to consume him, it will also consume you and your realm.

Nyx realized it was happening. Kalona's anger was consuming their love and the Otherworld, as well. Though it would create a wound within her that would ache for eternity, Nyx knew Kalona must be stopped.

"You summoned me?"

Nyx had dressed carefully, choosing the gown she had worn that day so, so long ago when their love had been new and Kalona had created the waterfall for her, and they had first shared their bodies with each other. At the sound of his voice, Nyx turned to face him, filling her smile with all of the love she would eternally feel for him, and wishing desperately that he would answer her smile in kind, take her into his arms, and put his anger aside.

"You should not be out here alone, especially so close to the edge of our realm," Kalona said, striding around the Wishing Tree to stand on the patch of red earth that was the Otherworld's entrance. When he finally looked at her, his amber eyes were hard.

"Has my warrior completely defeated my lover?" Nyx asked him.

He blinked in surprise. "I do not know what you mean." He approached her, obviously meaning to guide her back to the palace.

Nyx shook off his hand and walked purposefully to the hard-packed dirt at the edge of her realm. Kalona simply crossed his arms over his chest and watched her.

"Do you understand that I love you?" she asked him.

Again, surprise flickered through his amber gaze. He nodded, not speaking.

"No. Let there be no more silence between us. Answer me, son of the moon. Do you understand that I love you?"

"Yes," he said. Then he added in an emotionless voice, "You love all of your subjects."

"And you truly think there is no difference between what I feel for you and what I feel for others?"

"Which others are we speaking of? Your vampyres or your Consort?"

"I see my answers in your questions. You do not understand that I love you, and that my warrior has defeated my lover." Nyx bowed her head, steeling herself.

"I do not understand you at all anymore," Kalona said.

Nyx lifted her head and met his eyes. "Kalona, my warrior and lover, I have not changed. You have."

"No! I am as I always have been!" He almost spat the words at her. "I have never wanted to share you with Erebus."

"He is not my lover!"

"So you have said, over and over again. Yet you always, always turn to him over me."

"Kalona, your mind is so filled with jealousy and anger that you can no longer think clearly."

"Have you ever considered that perhaps I have only begun to think clearly?"

"Oh, Kalona, no. Can you not see yourself? Where has your joy gone?"

"You killed it when you chose him over me!"

"I have never done that," Nyx said. "Tell me what I can do to help rid you of the anger that is destroying you and to find your joy in our love again."

"Get rid of Erebus."

Though she had been expecting Kalona to eventually ask that very thing of her, still Nyx felt the shock to the core of her being. "Your brother was created to be my friend and playmate, as you were created to be my warrior and lover."

"I cannot bear this any longer. I will not share you!" Kalona went to Nyx and dropped to his knees, his emotion overflowing as tears washed his face. "As your warrior and lover, I beseech you. Choose me. Banish Erebus so that you and I can spend eternity together without this Darkness between us. If you do not, I vow that I will leave this realm and the despair it has caused me."

Nyx stared down at him with equal measure of sadness and resignation. "Kalona, I will not banish Erebus. Not now. Not ever."

Kalona's tears dried and his expression went to stone. "If you think I merely threaten, you are wrong."

"I believe your vow. I know you have made your choice," Nyx said. "Know that wherever you are, whatever you do, I eternally will love you, but I have made my choice as well. I will not banish Erebus. By your own vow, Kalona, you must go."

"Don't do this! You are mine!"

"I do nothing, Kalona. You have a choice in this. I have given even my warriors free will, though I don't require them to use it wisely." Tears coursed down Nyx's cheeks, soaking the gown she'd picked with such loving care.

"I cannot help myself. I was created to feel this. It is not free will. It is preordination," he said, his voice spiteful.

"Yet as your G.o.ddess I tell you what you are is not preordained. Your will has fashioned you." Though her shoulders shook with the force of her heartbreak, Nyx was filled with the unflinching power of a G.o.ddess.

"I cannot help how I feel! I cannot help what I am!"

Nyx's words were choked, but the command in them was not diminished. "You, my warrior, are mistaken; therefore, you must pay the consequences of your mistake."