Sun God Seeks…Surrogate? (Accidentally Yours #3)(59)
Author: Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

I was a bit rusty on my sci-fi lingo. Space-time continuum, tachyons, set fazers to stun; those were concepts I grasped. But this…?

“I have witnessed the same fluctuations when observing vampires sift,” he continued. “And I can tell you from sifting myself—”

“When? When have you sifted?” asked Bees.

“When we were battling the Maaskab the night I captured Chaam. The black jade pyramid functions as an amplifier of sorts. I merely had to think of moving and my body followed.”

I really didn’t understand what they were getting at. “So they’re hiding in some other dimension?”

Guy nodded. “Everything in the universe is made up of atoms, which are merely tiny particles of energy held together by their positive and negative charges. They form a bond. Similar to how gravity holds the moon to Earth, but on a much, much smaller scale.

“However, between each particle is space. In fact, the entire universe is mostly space. When vampires sift, they slip between these cracks. But they cannot remain there. It is these bonds, these charges that bind the atoms together, that propel the vampires as they are pushed out of the atoms’ spaces like a foreign contaminant. It creates enormous momentum and speed.”

Alrighty then, it’s official. Life is stranger than fiction.

“That is not all,” Guy stated. “I returned to their encampment and found another mine. There is a large vein of black jade underneath the location. And I believe,” continued Guy, “that they’ve somehow used its power to create enough of a force to allow them to remain inside the spaces.”

The gods held a frantic sidebar for several moments.

God of Eclipses spoke up. “It explains why they’ve joined forces with the Obscuros; they needed the vampires to teach them how to sift.”

I shivered. For some odd reason, an image of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup flashed through my mind. The Maaskab were the sinister chocolate and the Obscuros were the malevolent peanut filling. Put them together, and you got a whole new treat. Except, they weren’t really treats. More like festering sores on the ass of humanity. Okay. Maybe the peanut butter cup was a stupid analogy.

I remembered this was where I was supposed to propose a Call to Action that would include rescuing my mother.

I made the motion. Verbal fights about what to do next quickly broke out among the gods…

“We attack! Head-on.”

“No, we wait until we learn more.”

“Where the hell is Cimil? She’s never present when we truly need her.”

Gabrán gently gripped my shoulder. “Lass, it is time for you to use that power inside o’ya to reign them in.”

I cleared my throat. “Ehh-hem!”

No one paid any attention to me.

“Ehh-hem!” I said a little louder. They still ignored me.

“Penelope, you will need to tap into your strength. Make them respect you. Zac was right when he said that you control my power. You can do this.”

I didn’t want to hear any pep talks from Kinich. I just wanted to make this nightmare end and rescue my mother.

I stood up and closed my eyes, taking a deep breath before I slammed both fists on the table, releasing two enormous flames. “Enough! Stop fighting like children! Because if we don’t figure this out, there’ll be nothing left to fight about!”

The gods stared with looks of astonishment. Zac smiled and tilted his head. “My apologies, Sun Goddess, it will not happen again.”

I was really starting to like Zac.

“I call an Order to Action. I start with addressing how we will rescue my mother.”

Then it hit me. “Didn’t Emma say there were more Payals, but you couldn’t find them?”

Everyone quickly came to the same conclusion; the Maaskab had to be hiding them inside this other dimension.

“So, how do we get in?” I asked.

The gods looked at each other, then Fate spoke up, “Our vampires will enter. It is why our army is meant to be led by Niccolo. It is…”

Let me guess, Fate?

“Fate,” she said.

Hey, these gods were actually pretty predictable.

Then Fate added, “If the vein of black jade enables the Maaskab to stabilize inside that dimension, then we can assume the same for the vampires.”

“Why can’t the gods go in?” I asked.

“Under normal circumstances, our energy is far too dense to pass through the spaces,” Guy replied.

“But you said you did it before?” I argued.

“Yes,” Guy replied, “And given that there is a high concentration of jade I hope I might do so again. This is why I will go inside with Niccolo if possible. We will use the vampire army to extract any prisoners and flush out the Maaskab. The Uchben will be waiting with the other gods outside of the zones where they frequently create portals.”

Well, dang. That sounded like a pretty great plan to me! “I’m going too.”

“No. You will not,” Kinich objected.

“With all due respect, I didn’t ask you.”

“When the meeting is over, you and I will settle this argument.”

I held my breath, and then released it.

I turned toward Gabrán. “Can I do the wrap-up? Sounds like we have alignment to attack.”

“There is still one more topic to address,” Fate spoke loudly to overcome the noise in the room.

I looked down at the agenda on my deity Etch A Sketch. “Oh. Yeah. Kinich.” We were to discuss his and my predicament.

Fate stood up, and I noticed how the gold trim along her neckline and golden laces on her knee-high, white moccasins matched the color of her hair.

Snazzy.

“Penelope,” she said, “you and Kinich have performed the Prayer of Loyalty and Protection.”

Where was she going with this? “Yeah.”

“Have you yet attempted to break the bond?” she asked.

“Break the bond?” I questioned. “No. Why?”

“I believe that when the Maaskab released the jar into the pool—a jar meant to immobilize him so they could get to you—Kinich’s light separated from his humanlike body, leaving behind a mortal shell. But his immortal essence did not return to the cenote, as one might expect. Instead, it was drawn into you. Perhaps because he recited the prayer at the exact moment his light abandoned his body. Perhaps the Maaskab bespelled the jar in some way. Who knows? But nevertheless, the solution is clear. You must sever the bond.”

Why did I think that this absolutely made sense and was so darn simple that someone, even I, should have come up with this answer before?