SURVIVE (THRIVE: Book Two)

Chapter 108- An Ancient Ceremony

 The late afternoon air is humid, but the breeze feels amazing as we wait in the shrine for Rynn and my parents to arrive. Aurora and her sages are all prepared and waiting, and the anticipation is killing me. My attention is drawn to the wooden bowl and the dagger carefully placed on the altar, and I can't stop rubbing my palm with my thumb at the thought.

"They're here," Kai says as he comes in and takes his place beside me. I can see the mix of fear and excitement on Rynn's face as she sees all of us waiting, and we all respectfully bow our heads as Aurora begins.

"Welcome to the Talon Cliff Shrine brothers and sisters, parents, and lovers. Long lost to time, this island was once home to a great empire. Somehow hundreds of years later, we all narrowly avoided death in order to return here. In another turn of events, others were stranded here with us, and we rose above tragedy to provide them with the best lives we could. The empire was reborn, and we have fought for our home, once again proving that fate favors those who know love." she explains thoughtfully, taking the knife and cutting into her palm "Over eight hundred years ago, I performed a ceremony to ensure the leading families' souls' reincarnation. Today, in blood, we recognize from which we came in order to greet those who have long been lost to time." she states, squeezing her hand and letting her blood drip into the bowl as she passes the knife to Roxie.

"Scara," Roxie says as she grips the knife, letting her blood run down the blade.

"Lily," Nanea says, lightly slitting her palm, and squeezing a small amount out.

"Jake," Brendan states as he twists the blade in his hand, letting it drip.

"Mark," Jasper takes a deep breath as he quickly slices his hand.

"Dante," my father states, casually sliding the knife across his hand and watching the blood run.

"Veronika." my mother says confidently as she slices her hand, making a fist and watching the blood ooze between her fingers.

"Scarlett," Desire says as she intricately cuts into her palm, passing the knife to me.

"Breeze," I say, carefully cutting into my skin "and Shade," I state, passing the knife to Kai.

"Malakai," he grins as he holds the knife in his fist, squeezing it before passing it over.

"Magnus," he says nervously, wincing as he slowly makes an incision.

"Rowena." she smiles at Kai as she quickly slices herself, passing the knife back to Aurora.

"Thank you," Aurora says as she passes the knife to one of the sages. Nervous, Rynn lays on the altar and stares up at the opening in the ceiling, and I can only imagine how much her mind must be racing. Aurora begins to trace the familiar pattern on Rynn's forehead with our blood, and I glance over at Magnus and Rowena. Despite them having been through reincarnation rituals to join us, they've never seen an awakening before.

"Rynn, daughter of Eliana and spiritual successor of Joey, I need you to relax your mind. Think about your family, think about the places you've been and what you have learned. Think about what may have seemed familiar to you, or maybe things you've never quite been able to understand. Focus within yourself, and you will find what you've been looking for." Aurora explains "Don't be afraid, I'll be here to guide you should you find yourself lost along the way." she explains as she grips the sides of her head and begins to focus. Within a moment, they both go silent and their breathing begins to slow.

"I wonder how long she'll take." my mother asks curiously as she takes my father's hand.

"She only has one life before now, I can't imagine it'll be long," Nanea explains, leaning on Brendan.

"Is this what it's always like when you go inside the Gate the first time?" Rowena asks inquisitively as she stands on her toes.

"Only when we don't figure things out on our own first," I state, leaning against the wall.

"Breeze didn't get a 'proper' awakening this time, so the last time we've done a dive like this was when my brother came of age." Desire sighs.

"That makes me think, who has taken the longest when we've done this the right way?" my mother asks curiously, seeming to ponder the thought.

"Probably when Mateo got reborn as Tyler this time around," Roxie states bluntly "I don't know what happened, but he was being stubborn as hell in there."

"That bad?" Brendan asks curiously.

"Hours." she chuckles "If the bastard didn't want to see me, he could have just told me."

"God, I miss that asshole." my father laughs, looking up at the ceiling "How long has it been, nine years now?"

"Yep," Desire sighs, kicking at the ground "He died the year before Aunt Destiny."

"Which one of you was Destiny again?" Rowena asks curiously.

"Valentina," I answer, and suddenly Aurora opens her eyes and starts to smile.

"She did it," she says excitedly as she takes her hands off of her head, carefully standing up. We all watch in anticipation, and suddenly, Rynn jolts up and starts hyperventilating.

"Easy, easy," Aurora says as she takes her hands "You're back, you're okay." she says calmly as Rynn looks around at all of us. Nervous, I take Magnus' hand as I watch her frantically try to snap back to reality.

"I...she..." she mutters, catching her breath "She was me," she starts to smile, and I start to feel warm and fuzzy. Aurora looks pleased as she squeezes her hands.

"Welcome back, Joey."