Ovation (Galaxy Circus #9)

Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Lila

M y grandmother’s last words leave me shaken and distressed, and I feel tears well in my eyes as I shake my head. “But why me? Why can’t you give it to Phillip or Fiona?”

“Oh, honey…” My grandmother tries to get out of bed, but she’s still weak, and Zeydan jumps up to stop her. “Well then, you go and hug her,” she snaps at him, almost making me smile as he rolls his eyes and resettles her before scooping me up. He returns to his chair and settles me in his lap, stroking my hair and whispering words of reassurance to me.

“But I’m only a quarter divine as well,” I argue. “I’m no more divine than them.” I feel Zeydan stiffen underneath me, and not in the fun way.

“Well, actually, you’re a little more divine because you’re mates with Zeydan and now hold a small sliver of his divinity within you.”

“I’m sorry,” he whispers and presses a kiss to my hair as I mull over the bomb they just dropped on me.

“But between the two of them, they are like half divine. Can’t you split the power between them?” I know my words are selfish. Phillip and Fiona would like to start over on Earth far away from the trauma that has been inflicted on them over the years, but I still voice it because hell, I don’t want it either.

“Are you really sure they are in the right head space to be divine? After everything they experienced at the hands of their grandmother, maybe they might be a little twisted inside,” my mate remarks as he continues to try and soothe my distress.

“I think about how Viggy always flinched from their attention. I know they said it was because they had to push their will to get him to respond, but I don’t think it’s just that. I think the cattle prods probably didn’t help either. I guess it would take strong personalities to withstand the kind of treatment they have without letting it change them, and I really don’t think Phillip and Fiona are all that strong. No, it would probably be better for them to be on Earth far away from any kind of divine power.” I slump even further into Zeydan’s arms, feeling completely defeated. “What will I have to do?”

My grandma shrugs. “You get the power to cause or stop death and all the creation power involved with being a divine being, although I’m almost certain you have some of that power. Zeydan told me you can use the powers of different forms without changing into that form. I think that comes from your divine power. It shouldn’t be possible.”

“Does that make me responsible for all the beings she created?” I ask, thinking about the Aaz’axians. I should be able to correct their curse. That makes me sit up, and I feel a little spike of excitement at the thought.

“I mean in theory, yes, but they survived these last seven hundred years without any interference from the divine creator.”

“How come you didn’t reincarnate immediately?” I ask, voicing the question that has been floating around in my mind.

My grandma smirks at me. “How old do you think your grandpas are?” she asks, and I shrug. I haven’t really thought about it, but then I gasp.

“Don’t tell me they are seven hundred years old?”

Zeydan chuckles, and his body shakes beneath me. “Stop teasing the girl,” he scolds, and my grandma giggles like a schoolgirl.

“No, you’re right, we aren’t quite that old. I guess it took five hundred years for us to recover from the blast that killed us, and even then, our memories and past lives were forgotten. We were reborn on Skarr a little over two hundred years ago.”

I gape at this information. I knew they were my grandpas, but I assumed they would be in their seventies, not in double centuries.

“Skarrians are a long-lived race. It’s why our birth rate is so low. It’s a trade-off to keep the population controlled. You can only give birth once every twenty to fifty years. The female has a fertile period, and during that time, she must have sex with all members of her mating circle to fertilize her egg. Mating circles will disappear for weeks at a time to make sure they conceive during that period, because it’s a long wait between cycles, and it’s heartbreaking if it doesn’t take.” Her eyes are sad, and I’m assuming since my father is their only child that she has experienced this disappointment before.

“Then how did I get knocked up with Cas’s eggs? Then there is Nikos as well.” I’m confused.

“Because they are a different species, it can be circumnavigated. The Skarrians who have other species in their mating circles tend to have more children than the ones that are pure Skarrian.” She claps her hands together, and her eyes brighten. “I can’t wait to meet all my great-grandbabies. The boys tell me I have five now. I just wish Marcus and Alina were here. They would be so excited to be grandparents.”

A wave of sadness washes over me, and we’re both quiet for a moment, lost in our thoughts. Zeydan just holds me, giving me comfort through his touch, but then Liliana shakes her head and claps her hands together, making me jump. “Okay, enough sadness. I am so happy for you both, but I noticed the bond is only one-sided. Lila, why didn’t you claim Zeydan like he claimed you?” She cocks her head to the side inquisitively. It’s almost animalistic, and I kind of blanch. Her stare is so intimidating. I can definitely see the divine inside her even if she only has a drop of her former powers.

“But, um, ah…” I stumble over my words, reluctant to mention we haven’t fucked five times.

Her eyes sparkle, and she grins. “Ah, okay, but that is the Skarrian way. You don’t need to do it like that. All you have to do is take a sliver of your own divine power and push it into him.”

“Divine power?” I ask, still not sure what she means.

“Yes, that ball of power sitting deep inside your core. You may think it’s your Skarrian power, but I can assure you, it’s more than just that. At the moment of release, grab a pinch and thrust it into Zeydan, and you will be fully bonded in only the way a divine being can be. I plan on doing it to your grandpas as soon as I get my power back.” I scrunch up my nose and shudder at the thought of them having sex, and she giggles again. Her laughter makes my heart soar, knowing the four of them have another chance at life. I understand now why they are choosing to retire.

“Go take care of that. I need to rest a little more, and I know the ship leaves tomorrow on a rescue mission to Earth. One of your mates has a child that needs their parent, and Smith needs to die. Another grandbaby to spoil, even if she isn’t so small.” Her eyes turn hazy, and she stares vacantly for a moment.

“Gigi…” I push out of Zeydan’s arms, but he catches me before I can get far.

“Wait, she’s having a vision. Don’t disturb her.” He doesn’t haul me back to his lap, but he does hold my hand as he stands up as well.

It doesn’t take her long to come back to us, but as her eyes clear, she nods decisively. “Yes, we have much to do before our lives can return to normal. Your mates will fill you in on everything else.” She turns her attention to Zeydan. “One of our brothers is about to make a reappearance. Be kind to him, he has missed you as much as you missed him, and you have all suffered alone for too long. It is time for our family to reunite.”

After those cryptic words, which we don’t quiz her on, she settles down to rest a little longer as Zeydan and I make our way back to the main living area of the mansion. I’m all kinds of shaken up over everything I have learned and need a moment to process it all before I can even think about shoving some of my divinity into Zeydan.

I make myself coffee, and I feel his eyes on me although he remains silent while I run over everything in my brain. I bring my coffee over to the sofa and throw myself onto it, taking a sip of the hot beverage. “That was all… Wow, just wow. I’m kind of speechless,” I mutter as Zeydan steps in front of me, his bushy tails fanning out behind him as he looks down at me with concern.

“I can imagine you’re feeling a little overwhelmed,” he says, and I scoff.

“You think? I don’t know where to start or what to do to fix it all.”

He crouches down and spreads my knees, pushing between them, his eyes locked on mine. “I think you need to let your mates help you. Don’t take this burden on by yourself.”

“Oh, I wasn’t planning on it. It’s too much for me to even contemplate keeping to myself. It’s time for a family meeting.”

“Also, your grandpas made it sound like they have an idea on how to deal with Smith and the Syndicate. We should probably talk to them.”

I look around the room and groan as all the other things that need to be done before the ship can leave flood my mind. Before I can voice my worries, Xavier stumbles out of our wing, his hair in disarray and eyes watery with sleep. He’s wearing a pair of sleep pants and nothing else, and my mouth waters at the sight of him, but I stuff that down. He grunts a greeting at us before heading directly to the coffee machine. My eyes widen with surprise as he pours a big mug and takes a sip. Xavier usually avoids coffee. He doesn’t need the artificial stimulation because he gets that from absorbing emotions.

“Are you okay?” I ask him, and he screws up his nose, looking grumpy. “ Phoeall , you are a loud projector, and the last hour has been quite uncomfortable, as everything you have been feeling has bombarded me.”

I wince and open my mouth, but he just waves an impatient hand. “Do not apologize for feeling all of those emotions. It was a lot for you to discover. It’s my own fault. I was so tired, my normal shields slipped.”

“Are you going to be okay?” I ask him, and he nods. “Yes, I need to feed. My stores are unusually low. When I heard your grandmother’s story last night, I shielded the house. I didn’t want Vivian returning and ambushing us while we were asleep or distracted.”

Link appears before I can thank my warlock mate. He doesn’t look quite as disheveled as Xavier, and he managed to dress himself. He’s wearing his circus uniform and has brushed his hair. “Where is everyone?” he asks, giving me a kiss on the cheek before he, too, helps himself to the coffee. I think I’ve been a bad influence on my mates, since all of them seem to have picked up the habit.

“Finishing off all the jobs we have to do before the ship leaves tomorrow,” Zeydan tells them. “We need to meet them up there this afternoon. All the performers should have arrived by then, and your grandpas are announcing their retirement and you taking over, and they want a full show of support to push down any dissenters,” Zeydan explains, and my eyes widen. He and my grandpas are obviously making plans without me. I’m okay with that as long as they keep me in the loop and don’t spring shit on me.

Xavier puts his coffee down on the table. “Sounds like we have a plan then, but if that isn’t until this afternoon, then I can think of a good way to spend the next couple of hours.” He beelines directly to me, tugs me to my feet, then throws me over his shoulder. My mug goes flying, as does the coffee in it, and a loud screech leaves my mouth.

“Xavier!” I scream, but the mug and coffee pause mid-flight, Zeydan having stopped the disaster. The coffee flows back into the cup, and the mug settles on the coffee table as Xavier strides toward my bedroom. “Are you two coming?” he asks. “I need a top up, and I can’t think of a better way to do it.”

I lift my head and see Link smirking at us. He gives me a little finger wave. “I’ll take a rain check. I’m meeting Mark and Susie on the ship to give them a tour of the med bay and introduce them to the anatomy files of all the new species they will be seeing. Both of them have a lot of work to do.”

“Wait.” I smack Xavier’s ass. “Just put me down for a moment.” He pauses but doesn’t lower me. “Are they really going to travel with us?”

Link nods. “Yes, it looks that way. I think they will probably travel back and forth from Celestia regularly. His parents aren’t ready for him to disappear again now that they have finally found him, but they also understand he needs to spread his wings, so to speak.”

“But what about Aura and their family?”

Link shrugs. “I’m not sure, Lila. You’ll have to ask Susie about that. I didn’t feel like I could pry since I only really just met them.”

I huff out a little breath of air, and Xavier takes this as his cue to keep going. “Come on, god man. You can come play. I’ll be as full as can be if you fuck her,” Xavier calls over his shoulder, and I watch as Zeydan stands up and follows us at a slower pace. I would think he was reluctant, but the heat in his eyes says the opposite. Hopefully I can shove a bit of my own divinity into this man and lock him down tight.