A middle-aged woman dug a hole with a small trowel. She planted a tiny seed inside the indentation, covering it with a rehearsed tenderness. Alina worked in her Garden from morning until night, saving the rare plants destined for extinction. The Garden had many names, Eden, Alcinoos, and the Garden of the Sun Gods. It could grow and regenerate certain living things as long as they remained inside the divine boundary.
This Garden had been her home since the very beginning. She lived in a simple drystone hut covered by a thatched roof of water reeds. This place was nestled at the base of Mt. Mashu, hidden within an enchanted cedar forest. Alina was secure and safe within the naturally occurring walls of an ancient impact crater, the remnants of Samael's explosion caused by his deliverance to Earth.
One of the first children born with the gift, Alina's birth was rather complicated.
As the origin story goes, two angels descended from the heavens and mated with the existing primitives. These angels created a new form of hybrid offspring named Adam and Lilith.
These two beings were meant to be a mating pair. Their children would become modern humanity.
Yet, this plan went terribly awry.
The new humans were ill-suited, and Lilith refused to procreate with Adam. She was equal to her mate, yet he was a demanding, overbearing tyrant. Heaven was forced to send in an overseer to counsel the young couple, and Samael came to earth with a mighty blast of blue.
He, unfortunately, made things much, much worse. Samael fell in love with the wild creature that was Lilith, and in turn, she found herself captivated by the dark angel. Lily transformed into a horrific beast, escaping into the night with her lover at her side.
Adam was furious at his loss.
He ravaged the planet, searching for his errant wife.
Soon vast forests were nothing more than petrified deserts, the sky rained molten ash, and the seas boiled with brimstone. Adam's power knew no bounds and would plunder until he knew his own extinction.
Duty-bound Lily hatched a plan. Using seduction, she lured her ex-husband to her warm and awaiting arms. Lily had a secret ability Adam had not yet experienced. She could absorb the divine energy of other creatures and use it as a weapon against them. Lily sealed Adam's power with a simple touch, taking his life force.
However, despite her good intentions, it was not enough to kill him. Lily could only level the playing field for earth creatures, but Adam's evil remained.
Sadly, Lily's human body could not withstand the influx of Adam's power. She saved the earth from disaster, but the flame of her soul flickered out.
Within Sam's grief-stricken embrace, Lily died peacefully, her final words a profession of eternal love for him and his kindness to her.
The dark angel was condemned forever to pine away for the woman he lost and feel guilt over his failed mission...
Then, Sam became a full-fledged demon, letting malevolent darkness touch his heart.
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Adam, now without a spouse, refused to fornicate with primitive humans. He captured a young woman and transformed her, forcing the girl to drink his blood. Adam's divine ability was all in his blood. His plasma was a unique elixir, permanently altering human genomes.
He created a new mate, partially inbred from himself. She was an unholy assimilation; he named her Eve: The Living One.
Yet Samael would not allow him a happily ever after...
In despair, he seduced the naive woman with the worst intentions. He would make Eve suffer as Lily suffered and punish her as the abomination she was.
But when Sam touched her, he felt a soul that was nothing at all like Adam's.
It was pure...
With great remorse, he decided to help Eve. Samael presented her with the valuable gift of knowledge, and they became lovers. This union sullied Adam's lineage with gifted children to fight against and keep the demon in check. Then, humanity became a Petrie dish of divine DNA, and Samael had a method to enact his revenge.
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Eve lived for many years, forming the first pagan societies of Gift wielders. History refers to them as devil worshipers and witches, but they were much more than that. They lived symbiotically with the land, understanding and worshipping nature as the closest link to divine realms. They balanced the world from the patriarchy that wasn't meant to be. Eve left a legacy to combat Adam's evil long after she died.
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Alina, the first bastard child of Samael, inherited many gifts. One was the safe passage into his mysterious realm, which she named the Garden. Unlike her brothers and sisters, who went off to explore the world, Alina was content to stay hidden, guarding the sanctuary. Her extending habitation prevented her from aging, and she became a steady companion for her melancholy father.
Samael visited whenever possible, and they often discussed the development of humans, the links to the past, and their potential future. It was clear that the memory of Lilith haunted him, and he believed firmly that his meddling had ruined everything.
Even though Samael cared deeply about Eve, Lily never left his heart.
He should have protected her from Adam...but he failed. Failed miserably.
Samael wondered about his mission. Was he meant to let Lily suffer? Allow the humans to be born both powerful and hateful? Was he meant to be a heartless foot soldier? For many thousands of years, he walked the earth searching for answers. Answers that continued to evade him.
Alina planted flowers on Lilith and Eve's graves to ease her father's pain. It was the least she could do for a creature destined for an eternity of loneliness.
Lily's tomb occupied a remote corner of the caldera and was covered in a blue crystallized stone, leftovers from the higher realms when Sam first appeared.
For many years, nothing happened.
Yet, about 8000 seasons ago, Alina's life had drastically changed.
She soon found out that the garden regenerated more than just plants.
Alina heard a strange gurgling noise as she toiled in her vegetable patch one morning. This sound strangely emanated from the old tomb. Alina raced to the site and dropped to her knees, quickly digging through the cerulean rubble. Much to her shock, a newborn baby lay curled inside a rocky hollow, surrounded by a delicate spray of light.
Alina lifted the child into her arms, and a small chubby hand tentatively touched her face with curiosity. It appeared to be nothing more than an average human. But how on earth did it get here?
"What is this!? Who is this child!?" Alina shouted toward the heavens. "You give us no guidance, word, or hope, but send a child?"
No response.
"Peri, you WILL SPEAK!!!!"
The wind whipped suddenly around her into a stinging eddy of ice and snow. Alina heard many nervous voices like a cacophony of tiny ghosts buzzing within her mind.
"Please!" She shouted, straining to hear. "I don't understand!"
"The Goddess has returned!!" They answered in unison.
"The Goddess!?" Alina was incredulous, "But! That's.....impossible!"
Or was it? Alina considered. Lilith wasn't entirely human after all---what if she could come back?
"Uh, okay. What the hell should I do with her!?" She questioned with growing panic. "Helllooooo!?"
Silence.
"Shit! Dad is going to freak." She hissed, pacing with worry. "What does it all mean!?"
With a loud crack of lightning, the sky suddenly opened with a blinding snap of wildfire. Rolling thunder soon followed, with the ground shuttered from his impact. A dark and foreboding creature knelt within the crater as the dust settled into shards of glass. As he straightened his body, Samael folded back large raven wings.
"Oh, this will be awkward," Alina whispered under her breath. "Thank you, Peri, you rotten little fucks!"
"Alina!" He approached, eyes darting about the Garden. "I can feel Lily's connection...but how!?"
"Father, I can explain...."
"I keep calling out to her...!!" His words came out in a frantic rush. "But she won't answer!"
"Father..."
"We must hurry. We need to find her!"
"FATHER!" Alina barked with irritation, finally claiming his attention. "I have something to show you! And you aren't going to like it."
"Wha...what?" His voice betrayed utter confusion.
"This!"
Alina produced the cooing bundle from under her cloak.
"Uh." Samael raised a skeptical eyebrow. "That's not Lily; that's a baby."
"She needs to grow up, I guess," Alina answered lamely. "The heavens sent her back, and we must raise her."
"Raise her!?" Sam backed away like a vampire melting in the sunlight. "Listen, I want no part in that!"
"Huh!?" Alina growled. "But what it it's God's will? What if he's giving you a second chance to redeem yourself."
"Listen, Alina! We were lovers!" He ran his fingers through his hair with increasing anxiety. "You need to understand. Eve is gone, and I am all alone!"
"Ah, you mean your dating pool is non-existent." Her voice betrayed evident distaste. "I get it."
Sam crossed his arms in dismay. "Do you expect me to spend forever alone? All of humanity is either Adam's children or mine."
"Oh? And whose fault is that." She muttered under her breath. "Yours."
"I know. None of this is your problem." His face fell with sadness."But Alina, you are the only person I trust. You know all the teachings of your mother, the magic."
"Father." She smiled tensely. "You're leaving me with this child, aren't you?"
"Lily can't know me until she's grown," Samael replied hastily. "I will not groom her. I cannot raise my own lover!"
"I don't like the sounds of this..."
"You and I will meet in secret." Sam continued. "I will provide everything you'll ever need. You are a steward of the earth and the best person to raise Lily. Your knowledge far exceeds my own."
"What about Adam?" She queried. "Will he sense her return, also?"
"Lily has no powers, as far as I can tell." Sam closed his eyes and touched the child's forehead. "He can't track her until she turns back into herself. Maybe it will never happen."
"And If it does?" Alina asked with growing solemnness. "I am not prepared to train a monster."
"I will come for her when she is grown." He nodded, turning to make his leave. "You will leave this place and give Lily a well-rounded childhood. We cannot deny her the outside world; she needs the knowledge to understand the Earth she is destined to protect.
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Lily texted David and told him she'd arrive at 2 pm. He told her not to keep him waiting. He was a very important person, after all.
She waited on the front stoop of Sam's castle as he went to "pick out" the car. When he finally pulled around in the circular drive, Lily gawked at the vehicle in bewilderment. Sam opened the dihedral doors and grinned.
"Do you think this one will do the trick?"
"What the hell is it?"
"Great," He chuckled wickedly. "This is perfect."
Lily slid into the passenger seat of Sam's silver Bugatti Divo. She'd never been in an expensive car like this before, and she was typically overwhelmed by anything with more than two cup holders. This thing was more like a rocket ship.
Sam revved the engine, shifting into gear like a professional, and soon they were ripping up the lonely lane. Lily gasped at the sudden acceleration, pushing her back into the soft leather seat. Despite herself, the rumble of a fast engine was a total turn-on. She grinned with a guilty rush of pleasure.
"What if a cop pulls us over?" She queried.
"I'm a demon. Why am I afraid of the police?"
"True." She mused. "But wouldn't it blow our cover?"
"Hmmm." Sam considered with a wry smile. "The pigs would have to catch us first."
Lily snickered. "And I guess we could just fly away."
"Now, that would blow our cover." Sam winked. "We are pretending to be humans today, remember?"
"Right."
Strangely, Lily realized she was enjoying herself. For a moment, she forgot that she was a terrible monster under the control of another awful monster. Would it be okay? Could she pretend this was an actual date with Sam Colman?
The car approached a stretch of the road, and a thick foreboding fog lay just ahead.
"Wow, that weather looks a bit ominous...WHOA!" Lily shouted as the car thundered through the mist. She felt a strange disorientation, causing her stomach to sink. Seconds later, with a sudden blast of light, they broke through the other side into bright morning sunshine.
"You, okay?" His eyes slid to her.
"Fine." She swallowed nervously. "That was weird, right?"
"Very weird." He smiled disarmingly. "Almost like magic, I'd say."
"Was that....a portal?"
"It was."
Lily stole another glance at her "date." She had to admit; Sam looked every bit the part of a magazine model or pop icon. He wore an expensive wool suit jacket, pants, leather shoes, and a heavy designer watch. A hint of cologne wafted through the air with a very intoxicating scent--sandalwood. Lily mused inwardly, Yep! The Prince of Darkness was pretty fucking hot today.
Sam grinned inwardly; he could sense that Lily was warming to him. He knew sandalwood was an aphrodisiac to the demon, so he wore the Tom Ford. Sam would win her back, for certain. He had grandiose plans to shower his former mate with expensive gifts and treat her like a queen. If he played his cards right, they could find the love they once shared.
But first, he had to earn her trust and make up for his damn lustful actions the first night. Sam had to take his time, or else the beast in Lily might eat him.
"So, uh, those clothes look high-end. You most likely don't shop at the discount superstore?" She whispered awkwardly, trying to make idle conversation.
"Well, this is just a persona," Sam explained. "But I do like the occasional well-made item. Humans have made some spectacular things."
Lily stared down at her thin cotton tights and battered Converse running shoes. "This outfit I'm wearing is very cost-effective." She joked with a crooked smile. "I got these tights at the Big Tiger Flea market, six pairs for 40 bucks. If I happen to rip a hole in the ass, it's no big deal."
"They look very comfortable." He replied without a hint of judgment. "There are clothes for every occasion. You don't wear a Dior suit in Jen's studio. Right?"
"Right," Lily affirmed with a nod. "You'd get paint on everything. I have three types of clothes: paint-covered rags for the studio and clothes with minimal paint stains for everyday wear. Clothes with no paint stains are officially formal attire..."
"So those must be your good pants, then?" He teased.
"Hell, ya." She poked him in the ribs. "I spent $49.99 for these bad boys."
"Lily, would you be offended if I took you shopping?" He inquired politely. "I thought it would be fun if we played dress-up. You know, to piss off your ex-boyfriend. Mr. Capitalism?"
"What?" Lily laughed outright. "That's crazy!"
"Is it?" Sam mused. "Or, would it be fun?"
"Okay, Sam." She raised a curious eyebrow. "What have you got in mind?"
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Alina emerged from her hut with an old metal watering can. As she approached a patch of Middlemist Camellia, she paused. She felt a strange foreboding in the air; something wasn't right. Someone was coming...
"Arrrrggghhh!" Alina dropped to her knees as a painful buzzing infiltrated her mind. "What now? You little Pricks!!!"
"WE ARE THE PERI!! The heavens need your assistance!!"
Hundreds of tiny voices lamented.
"WhatEVER! You come here to bring me hell!"
Alina gasped as the oxygen was sucked from her lungs, the hair prickling on her arms. Seconds later, a lightning bolt crashed into the ground before her, turning sand into chunks of molten silica. The sheer force of the blow sent Alina tumbling backward into a thick bramble of thorny vines.
"Was that necessary!?"
"You must hurry!" They urged. "Get up!"
Alina took to her feet and ran to the impact crater.
"Oh, no!" She cried, seeing a limp female form lying broken in the dirt. "Lily!? But it cannot be! She has barely been trained! What happened to her!?"
Alina slid down into the sandy pit and flipped the body over. She was met with the blank eyes of a stranger.
"Who is she?!!" Alina backed away from the body. "This is not allowed! It's not Lily!"
"You must wake Lily!" The voices pleaded. "Save her! Her time runs short!"
"There is no Lily here!" Alina stomped her foot. "I cannot put her into the tomb without Sam's permission!"
"HE CANNOT KNOW!!!" The Peri wailed, the buzzing sound causing Alina to hiss in pain.
"What do you mean? Why not!!!?"
"Do not question us! We are the word of God!"
"Are you?" Alina shook her head. "I won't take part in a sinful act of this magnitude. I don't trust you, little bastards. The best I can do is give her a proper burial."
Alina grasped the woman's forearm to yank the body from the hole, but something strange caught her eye. A peculiar silver marking of two interwoven snakes on her wrist and Lily's bracelet clutched in her cold, dead fingers.
Lily's lost bracelet.
"How did she get this? This tattoo, it's the mark of Scion...but...." As she carefully touched the woman's skin, a silver, glittering residue jumped from the pale, lifeless flesh, meeting her fingers with scorching heat. Jerking back, Alina gasped in horror.
"A blood blade!? But that's impossible!!"
"NOW, DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?" The Peri mocked. "HURRY, STUPID WOMAN!"
"Ah, Shut-it!" Alina's voice was now panicked. "Why didn't you speak plainly!?"
Alina grabbed the girl, dragging her to the tomb.
"Sam can't know. He can never know!!!"
Alina placed the body into Lily's coffin and sealed the lid.
"Child, how did you come to be, and how did you end up with Adam?" She wrung her hands with worry.
"I can't tell Sam, but I need help with this..."
This was a job for only the most powerful witch.
She needed to call Narissa.