Page 49 of Obsession

“I would assume.” Aris shrugs. “She was noble, and obliging. I requested some of her magic to give to the humans, and she offered it without question.”

So that’s how he did it. I’d always wondered.

“Killing someone doesn’t seem very… neutral of Jaegen,” I say after a moment.

I suddenly realize that I said Jaegen’s name aloud and tense, waiting for him to snap, but Aris only shrugs again. Instead of feeling relief, his informal, relaxed demeanor aggravates me—doesn’t he see how important this is?

A neutral being did something violet and chaotic. The three of them might not be constrained to their assignments; maybe they can diverge. Make choices.

Change.

Maybe I was wrong in my prior assumption and Aris isn’t evil. Maybe Aris doesn’t have to be this way.

Something tells me not to push him on this point, at least not now, so I swallow the thought; it tastes sour.

“Well, if the three of you were created for singular purposes, and Jaegen broke that rule, won’t your creator punish him?” I ask.

“Maker put every thought and feeling he had into the three of us. What is left is, essentially, a husk,” he tells me. “As of now, he doesn’t care what we do; he doesn’t feel, or act. That is our job.”

My brows furrow. God’s out of the equation, then, and my options are back to two devils—brothers, apparently.

“So Jaegen killed your sister for power,” I say. My brain feels fuzzy from trying to put all of this together. I haven’t had answers for so long, and now, he is offering them freely. “Does that mean he’s stronger than you now?”

Aris gives me an exasperated look. “For shame, Mary! All you do is try to find ways to kill me.”

I flush. Too much wine. I didn’t even think before saying that. “I’m not—I just wanted to know,” I say, sloppily trying to recover. “I mean, he has two of you inside of him. Doesn’t that… double the power?”

“It doesn’t work like that.”

I’m not sure if I believe him, which he picks up on. Aris’ mouth twists to the side, half-amused, half-annoyed. “If Jaegen is so much more powerful, why is he not here?” asks Aris, gesturing around the candlelit room. “Why not come and strike me down in his almighty wrath?”

I pause, considering Aris’ point. If Jaegen was stronger than Aris, why turn to me for help? Maybe the two are evenly matched.

Well, then. Back to square one.

Again, I run through everything he just told me, considering the puzzle. It’d be easier to solve if I could zoom out and see the box, to know how things are meant to look, but the picture stays out of sight as the pieces continue to grow before me.

“That is the beginning of the story,” says Aris.

My brows raise. There’s more that he’s willing to share?

“You’ve asked several times why I came here,” he says.

I lean forward with my elbows on the table, manners forgotten in my eagerness. “Yes?” I push.

Aris smiles and leans forward, too; he loves a captive audience.

“I found this planet, and your species—products of a cosmic mistake. Of course,” he says, rolling his eyes, “my sister forged the elements and bacteria, but the universe made mankind on its own. I was intrigued by this immaculate conception, and I stayed.”

“Babylon,” I say, recalling the historical texts. “Egypt.”

Aris nods, then clicks his tongue. “I interacted with mankind for a bit—you know my lovely little followers—but I grew bored. When I left, Jaegen arrived. Apparently, he was also interested. In my absence, he stayed, doing… whatever he does. Making wars, starting religions.” Aris waves a hand like this is child’s play, something he is too old for and which no longer interests him.

At this point, I’m used to his flippancy when talking about humans, and his disregard for our wellbeing. It’s not worth the waste of energy chastising him—instead, I try to read between the lines, staring at the tightness on Aris’ face.

Jaegen and Aris seem to really hate one another.

“So, you came back because Jaegen’s here?”

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