The Children

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I mutter under my breath, kicking the obnoxious orange basket by my feet, rattling the stacks of canned meat. “No hot sauce again. Why the hell do we even shop here?”

I sigh in exasperation, aware of my heated breath. I should be careful, I think silently. They always said even the bluest flames were incomparable to the heat of my anger.

I reach down and grab the wobbly basket, eyeing its contents and mentally checking off my grocery list. Looks like it’s pasta again. I briefly turn my head toward the rattling windows, watching the winds beat against the cracked glass. A fire brews in my gut, as white power begins to fill the dimly-lit streets.

I huff, shuffling towards the next aisle in haste, mildly bothered by the chill of this creepy place.

-

The light above me flickers as I scan the rusty grey shelves, hunting the sparse rows of dented cans for some decent carbonara. 

“Of course! Why would they have it?!” I yell, this time kicking the battered basket halfway across the narrow aisle. I could feel the heat in me expanding, engulfing my face and arms as I take in a shaky breath.

“Everything okay back there?” A guttural voice – presumably belonging to the cashier – calls out from a distance.

“Yeah, just dropped our basket is all!” I hear a voice from behind me. I turn around to meet Amara’s piercing gaze. “Cool it,” she commands in a sharp whisper. “You’re gonna get us kicked out. Again.”

I laugh sarcastically. “Oh yeah, by the excessive amount of staff that work here?” I snap, staring her down. “It’s 3 in the fucking morning, Amara, I haven’t slept in 2 days, we’ve made close to zero progress, and the snow’s falling three times faster than it should.” I point at the windows, shuddering as if they were responding to me. “The signs are here yet we’re picking nothing up.”

My twin sister holds her gaze, her amber eyes cold and devoid of emotions. “And throwing a hissy fit is going to help?” She retorts. “I know you hate the snow, but we don’t have a choice, Aiden. We have to scout this area. We’ll be back home soon enough.”

She reaches towards my clenched fists, prying the burnt can of diced tomatoes off my fingers and sending a wave of calming energy through my arm. “Guess we won’t have to worry about cooking this one, since you’ve already seared them.” I open my mouth to apologise, but she cuts me off. “I’m used to your shit. Go grab a couple more cans and we can go. I’ll clear a path and get the car.”

Amara turns toward the door, beckoning the grocery basket with her fingers. It slides over obediently, leaving pale scratches in its wake.

My ear twitches as the bell dings, signalling her departure. I study the hole on the palm of my left glove, before removing and shoving it in my pocket.

-

I ring the bell by the cash register, tapping my foot and wiggling my toes. “Hey!” I call out, leaning over the dusty counter. “Payment!”

The air was still, and I felt an icy chill caressing my nape. My fire awakened in response, forming a protective barrier around my exposed skin. I breathed in deep, looking left and right for any sign of human life. I slammed my right hand on the bell repeatedly, as my glove began to smoke.

I yanked my hand back, clasping the other over it. I leaned backwards and peeped through the entrance door as I tried to sense Amara. My eyes caught sight of the snow, already six inches thick. A deep dread began to form, mixing poorly with the fire in my gut.

‘Amara,’ I call out in my head, activating our mind link. ‘We’re leaving. Now.’ I fished two twenty dollar notes from my jacket pocket and tossed it on the counter, bending over to grab the abused basket.

‘What’s wrong, Aiden?’ She tunes in, voice thick with concern.

A soft cry interrupts my thoughts.

I freeze as I spot a baby under the counter, draped in black satin sheets. A thick scar stretched from his right brow bone down to his cheek, taking the shape of a waxing crescent moon. His lids flutter open, revealing ebony orbs that consumed the whites of his eyes. He stretches his arms as he coos, exposing the ancient symbols on tiny triceps that branded him as the Child of Prophecy.

‘He’s here.’

-

Amara bursts through the sliding doors, covered in snow. Her eyes glowed like molten lava. “Your eyes,” she says, knowing that mine were mirroring hers. “And your jacket.” My gaze shifts to my torso. Jagged holes were forming at an unprecedented speed, consuming the threads of my clothing and revealing the gleaming olive skin beneath.

“The blizzard’s sending my system out of whack.” I beckon towards the baby, his eyes wide with innocent curiosity.  

A subtle sienna aura begins to encase Amara, as she lifts herself off the ground and flits towards us. She gasps as she catches sight of him. He stirs, sensing her presence, lips breaking into a big, toothless grin.

“This doesn’t fit, Amara. Look at his eyes. And the cashier is missing. It could be a trap,” I warn, tugging free from the burning remnants of my thrift store attire.

She pulls him into her arms as he makes baby noises. At her touch, the blackness in his eyes retreats into rich pools of golden honey. Amara and I exchange nervous glances. “No, Aiden. He’s real this time. The tremors, the black rain, this blizzard…” she trails off, looking down and tightening her grasp. “He bears the mark of the moon, and the mark of our Father.”

I purse my lips and nod in silent agreement. “Bind him,” I command, pushing myself off the floor. Amara turns him over gently, focusing her energy on a spot directly above his elbow. In a split second, a crimson symbol appears, instantly sending him to sleep and connecting his energy with Amara’s.

“He’s out. He’s in deep sleep for the next three hours, and he won’t be able to move. The nearest gate is 15 miles south.” A crease forms between her eyebrows. “Aiden, the Serpents aren’t far behind us. I can feel them.”

“That, you are completely correct.”

I turn around just in time to see the cashier ramming an iron pipe onto Amara’s head. In a flash, I shove her behind me and swing my arm above us. Fire explodes out of my forearm, instantly melting the pipe as it collides with the scarlet flames.

“Fasssst,” he hisses, licking his lips in delight. “Shall we begin our dansssseee?”

His beanie and dark green trench coat falls to the floor as his body begins to contort into a snake-like form. A second head sprouts from its neck, and they hiss simultaneously in cunning malevolence. I snarl in response, holding the gaze of its yellow eyes.

‘A second head. He’s in the higher ranks.’

‘I don’t care. I’ll take him on.’

‘Don’t be stupid, Aiden. He’ll kill you.’

‘Do you have a better plan, Amara? Get that god damn baby to the gate, and I’ll grill this snake before his friends show up. Now!’

I sense Amara leaping into flight, disappearing into the snowy abyss.

“Where do you think you’re going, misssssy?”

The Serpent opens his mouth wide. A mist of green poison rolls out of his throat, and he sets his sights on Amara, ready to strike her with a form of ranged attack.

Searing anger begins to coat my bones. I load my right fist with a ball of flame, and fire it directly into the Serpent’s mouth. It hisses in anguish as the impact sends it crashing into store’s wall, reverberating in protest as the ceiling crumbles in a steady stream.

“I’m your opponent, ugly,” I bark, this time firing from both my palms and scorching holes right through the wall.

It dodges with ease, positioning itself to strike me with its venomous fangs.

I take a deep breath and allow my flames to leak out of my skin, taking the shape of ten inch talons on either side of my fists.

“Ah, the twin talonssss. Let’sss ssee how you fair againsssttt my twin headssss!” As if on cue, it lunges towards me in agile grace, aiming directly for my legs.

I prance backwards, barely dodging its nimble attacks when I fall onto the bed of snow. It moves way too quickly. It hisses before diving at me once more. I direct my flames to the bottom of my feet, building the heat before propelling my leg towards its jaw. I beam in satisfaction as I hear its scales sizzling. I spring off the ground and extend my talons towards its bile coloured eyes, ready to brand them with an eternal darkness.

I howl in agony as an excruciating pain shoots through my veins. I turn my head towards the source, meeting a pair of cloudy eyes, mocking me as it buries its fangs deeper into my forearm.

A deep growl escapes my lips as I battle with the paralysing venom, clenching my fist and concentrating all my firepower onto the fractured area. Fear engulfs its irises as vehement flames burst from within me, consuming the second head’s fangs and dissolving it in mere seconds.

I barely feel the palms pressed against my shoulder blades. Amara sends a surge of electrical energy through me. I channel the energy into my solar plexus, compressing it before releasing a circular ring of fire in a mile-wide radius.

I collapse in the melted snow, feeling the throbbing exhaustion down to my bones.

Amara hoists my uninjured arm over her shoulders, telekinetically lifting me off the ground. I catch a glimpse of the Serpent, submerged in flames beside the collapsing grocery store.

“A-Amara…” I call out weakly.

She shushes me through our mind link. ‘I set a diversion for the other Serpents. If we cut through the woods, we’ll be able to make it to the gate before they can get to us. We don’t want to stay for this, I caught whiff of a Hydra. Let me contact our father.’

I nod mentally, closing my eyes as Amara expands our mind link.

‘Father,’ she calls out, careful to keep her voice levelled.

‘Amara, Aiden. Where are you?’

‘We’re in Viscont Village, heading towards the Southern Gate. We found the baby, he’s bound to me and asleep on my back. Aiden is badly hurt from a dual-headed Serpent. I sent the others on a wild goose chase, but they have a Hydra with them,’ she reports. ‘We’ll tell you the details later. Right now, I need you to open the gate. We’re almost there.’

‘Hollis,’ Father summons our advisor.

‘My lord, Lucifer.’

‘Prepare for a battle with the Serpents and a Hydra. Send a battalion to the Southern Gate in Viscont Village. Get the Hellhounds and the Destroyers, they’ve faced the Serpents before. Leave Fiend and Fletcher in command. As for you, Hollis, open the gate and escort my children back to Hell, in complete safety.’