"Because she needs you to free her and if they kill you, she has no hope."
"I don't understand."
"You must have pure Atlantean blood in your ancestry. I think that's why you can hear her when most can't. It's the only thing that makes sense... Before it was destroyed, there were two races who inhabited Atlantis. The natives who were born of the Atlantean pantheon and the Apollites who took refuge there after they were thrown out of Greece. Apollymi needs the blood of an Atlantean to break her seal and to summon her out. Because of that, she would protect you for all she's worth."
Geary had to straggle to raise her hand to her necklace so that she could see the writing on it. "I thought this was only a coin."
"No. That is the medallion that was worn by her priestesses. Whenever they were in danger, they would do as you did, place it in their mouths, and she would protect them."
Wow, hell of an insurance policy. There weren't many people who could have a goddess at their beck and call. Made Geary wonder what Apollymi would do for a false alarm.
Then again, given how easily Apollymi had fought the Dolophoni off, Geary didn't want to even think about it. With that kind of power, Apollymi could easily turn on the person who wrongfully summoned her.
"Why didn't our attackers just pull it out of my mouth once I started fighting them?"
"They're from the Greek pantheon. I doubt they knew that trick or I'm sure they would have." He slid her slowly down his body until she was on her feet.
It took Geary a full second before she was able to stand again. And even then, her legs were so unsteady that she held on to Arik's arm for support. The warm smell and strength of him steadied her even more, and she was grateful for his presence. "How is it you know the trick?"
He gave her a devilish grin. "The benefits of being an ex-Oneroi. Since we can trip through anyone's dreams, we know a lot of tricks the other gods don't."
"But not how to fight those guys in human form," she reminded him.
He looked a bit sheepish, which she found intriguing and endearing. "Well, not and win. But in my own body and in my realm... I'm lethal."
Geary could feel the muscles of his biceps working under her hand as she stared up into those clear eyes. In her dreams, she'd kissed that mouth a thousand times. Had run her tongue over the stubble of his chin and had licked every inch of him. It amazed her that he'd been as captivated by her as she was by him. But more than that, she found it almost impossible to believe.
"Did you really come here for me?"
He nodded, his eyes scorching her with their heat. "Yes."
"And are you disappointed?"
One corner of his mouth lifted into a seductive smile. "Only that you don't rip off my clothes and have your way with me... in chocolate."
Geary shook her head at him as she went over everything she'd discovered in the last twenty-four hours.
She should be horrified and on one level she was. But on another she was actually relieved that he was a god on the human plane. At least now she understood part of what had been happening to her.
Though it didn't make it better, the explanation went a long way in saving her sanity.
She took a step back from him as she tried to comprehend everything. "I don't really get all of this. How did you first find me in my dreams?"
He took her hand in his and held it while he explained. "We have rooms that are like chambers where I live. We don't have to use them, but they make connecting with humans a bit easier-they can amplify our powers, and it gives us someplace to rest undisturbed while we're doing it. The only drawback is that it allows the powers-that-be an easier way to monitor us while we're at it. Whenever we're in the strobilos , we hover about and drift in and out of dreams. Whenever we find someone who is having a vivid dream we're drawn to them."
"And you were drawn to mine."
He nodded.
Incredible. She couldn't imagine being able to do that. To spy on people and participate in their sleep.
"So what's it like to be in someone else's dreams?"
"It's like bathing in Jell-O. It feels kind of thick and at times can be overwhelming. You never know what you're going to find. Many of the Skoti I know prefer nightmares, since they get such an adrenaline rush from it."
That didn't sound like what she'd read about the Oneroi. "From my research, it says that you guys channel and direct the dreams, that you cause them."
"At one time we did. The Oneroi were extremely active in granting dreams and using them to manipulate
both the gods and humanity. Then one day one of my brethren made the mistake of making Zeus crave a goat... sexually. He did it as a joke, thinking it would be funny and that the head god needed to be brought down a peg or two after insulting him. Zeus, once he came to his senses, was so outraged that he had our insistent friends, the Dolophoni, round us up and bring us to him. A small group, including the one responsible, was killed. Another group was heavily punished, and the rest of us were cursed to have no emotions of any kind."
"Why?"
"Without ambition, envy, humor, and the rest of the emotional gamut, Zeus thought that it would keep us from messing with him or any of the other gods ever again."
Geary could understand his reasoning, but it seemed a bit cruel to punish everyone over the actions of one stupid being. "And it worked?"
"Not exactly. Without us there to direct dreams and inspire people, certain humans and other creatures began to lose their minds. Zeus learned that we were needed to help channel pent-up feelings and to help humans and other beings determine what they desired in a contained environment. Dreams provide a necessary outlet for everyone. So the Oneroi were charged with helping others in their dreams. It worked for a time, until we realized that in a dream state we had emotions again. Fear, love, passion... they were all there, and whenever we found a special class of person they were extremely amplified. But once we leave the dreamworld, the borrowed emotions evaporate and leave us vacant and cold again."
She could see where this was headed. "So some of you became addicted to emotions. Like a drug."
He nodded. "Those who crave it are called Skoti."
Geary remembered Zebulon calling Arik Skotos. "You say that like it's a bad thing."
"In my world it is. Skoti are deemed uncontrollable, and if they fail to heed the warnings of the Oneroi they're hunted down and severely punished or killed."
She frowned. "Why?"
"The gods fear us and therefore they want to control us any way they can."
"But if you have no feelings, how can punishment matter?"
"Because that is the one emotion left to us."
"No," she corrected him. "Physical pain isn't an emotion. It's a biological response to negative stimulus.
No wonder you still have it."
"You know, the rational explanation really doesn't help. Either way, it sucks to be one of us."
"Sorry." Geary reached up to brush a lock of hair from his forehead. It was inconceivable that he was here with her and real. That he was flesh and blood and for all intents and purposes human. How strange.
She didn't know if she should be angry or flattered or both that he'd come here just to meet her.
She tightened her grip on his hand. "And what about Solin? Is he really related to you?"
"Yes. He's my cousin, but we dream gods consider ourselves brothers and sisters whether or not we share parents. Solin's father was Phobetor and his mother was human. He didn't know he was a demigod until he hit puberty and his powers manifested. Then his mother cast him out and the Oneroi began to hunt for him. He's hated all of us ever since."
Now she was beginning to understand. "Which is why he said initially that he didn't have a brother."
"Exactly."
Geary fell silent as she digested that last bit. God, this was all so complicated. Unbelievable, really. How did a woman who only wanted to redeem her family name find herself in a situation like this? "So where does this leave us?"
"Confused?"
She laughed. "You have no idea."
"True, I didn't understand confusion until I found myself floating in deep water."
She let out a small laugh at his reminder of how they'd met. "Since you're being so honest now, how did you happen to get there?"
"Hades. After he made me human, he threw me out and put me in your path. I guess I should be grateful he didn't dump me on a busy street somewhere, under a truck."
Geary shook her head at his humor. "Hades." Bitter amusement filled her. "And to think I used to mock my father for his belief that the ancient gods were real. I thought he was insane and I told him that on many an occasion. But he was always insistent that they had to have lived." She sighed as she remembered the way he'd described them and the quirks he'd invented for the pantheon. "So what is old Hades like anyway?"
"He's a cranky bastard who hates everyone not Persephone."
Well, that made sense. She was his wife after all. "So what's she like?"
Arik's features softened. "She's kind and dainty. Petite and shy. Very unassuming. She actually reminds me a lot of your cousin Tory."
"Really?"
"Yes, and Thia is a dead ringer for Artemis, right down to the red hair, height, selfishness, and bitchy attitude."
For some reason, that didn't really surprise Geary. "No kidding, huh? What about me? Am I like any of the gods?"