Page 7 of Darkening Truth

I glance at Hades and Khaos, “Did you know this? Is this one of the things that you knew, but couldn’t say?”

Hades shakes his head, “No, but now that she’s mentioned it, the information is there.”

I interrupt him, “Remeus and Crem. How the fuck could I have forgotten about them?”

“You didn’t, it was a spell,” Khaos points out. “A really fucking strong one if it’s managed to change the memories of so many supernaturals, and gods too.”

Verena nods, “Many of the gods and goddesses still don’t remember.”

“Why do you remember?” Reaper asks her bluntly.

“Because of who I am,” Verena replies, somewhat vaguely, but she’s giving us so much information right now, I don’t really care that she won’t share that bit.

“Of fucking course there are more princes, five would never have made sense. Seven, there are supposed to be seven, the seven deadly sins,” Rival exclaims, clearly not happy that he didn’t remember something so basic even though it was entirely out of his control.

“We need to find Crem and Remeus. If everyone was made to forget them, then it was for a reason, and I want to know what that reason is,” Storm growls.

Verena levels everyone with a look, “You need to go to the Dragon Realm.”

Chapter Three

Farren

“That’s where they are?” Kill asks.

Verena shrugs, although she looks as frustrated as Hades does when he can’t say something that he wants to and she replies, “I cannot say.”

“Understood,” Zev replies before anyone else can, as his eyes briefly flash white.

My mind is spinning. Remeus and Crem both loved torturing me, and yet, the memory of them had completely disappeared.

“Remeus was the one who was controlling Temperance,” I mutter as the memory comes back.

“Fuck, you’re right,” Kill frowns. “I really don’t fucking like this.”

“No one does. The only silver lining of the situation is that it was a one-time spell. Some of the ingredients needed in order to cast it no longer exist, they used the last of them,” Verena replies.

Rival nods, “Well, at least there’s that.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t have long. You mustn’t forget that you also need to find and secure the last key fragment,”

“It’s in the Dragon Realm?” Rival asks for confirmation.

Which is smart really, because gods and goddesses like to speak in riddles, and she could have quite easily switched the conversation without thinking that it was necessary to tell us.

Verena nods, “Yes, it is. It will not be easy to attain. The Dragon Realm isn’t a hospitable place at the best of times.”

We all nod, we knew all of this.

Well, the stuff about needing to go to the Dragon Realm, not the changing fate thing, or the fact that we had all forgotten that there are actually seven princes, not five, which means there are two more that I need to kill.

That thought shouldn’t send a thrill through me.

After the pain they caused me the first time I was in the Underworld though, my excitement at getting to return the favour is justified, at least in my mind it is.

Hades frowns, anger darkening his eyes as he crosses his arms over his chest and asks, “Why does this God want my realm?”

Verena’s expression becomes severe, “Because your realm has the most souls.”