The Unicorn 2020 | Page 30

Lux jumped back and spun to his right. The same woman was standing directly next to him holding the book, surprisingly calmer than she had been moments before. He took it from her and she once again disappeared into the shadows.

“I don’t have all day, Lux.”

She was back on the catwalk now, leaning on the railing and staring at him.

He opened the book, flipping through the old and worn pages. Eventually, he reached a section with a folded corner. The page’s text was in both Latin and English that read:

The 12th Child

There will be twelve offspring in the Cosmos tree

Each one stronger and lead by the three

When the twelfth is born and the crown is made

Their power will grow and their debts will be paid

When the stones are put back in their place

And the light is shown on the chosen’s face

He becomes the strongest in all the land

The lives of his enemies in the palm of his hand

Lux was confused at the text. His mother had never mentioned a prophecy, but then again she never mentioned his sisters either.

“What does this have to do with Rei?”

“You think I would let you have the superpower of the Cosmos family?”

Lux looked at the woman above him. She looked familiar now like he had seen her before. He couldn’t think of where. He felt his memory failing him as he looked at her. Her voice no longer sounded foreign to him, but he wasn’t sure if it was just because he had been talking to her for a while.

“What makes you think he would listen to you?”

She scoffed at him and pushed away from the railing. She paced along the catwalk, clearly angered and upset.

“You think that you’re the only one of the three he would listen to? He may not remember me, but he can’t ignore the prophecy!”

Lux thought about what she said and then looked up at her.

“Nyx.”

She stopped pacing and turned to him, a smile evident on her face. She looked pleased with him, a direct contrast to her feelings a few moments earlier.

“Would you look at that! He knows my name. Didn’t think it would take you so long to remember your sister.”

Lux stood frozen in the center of the room. There in front of him was his sister he never knew existed. Or maybe he did? His memory was failing him.

“I didn’t mean to break you, Lux. How’s the family? Does Mother miss me?”

“She’s dead,” Lux felt his voice catch in his throat and he felt the need to drink water.

“Oh, what a shame. I would have loved to see her again.”

Lux felt no pain in her voice. Nyx didn’t care about his - their mother.

“Where’s Echo?”

Lux felt a new sense of confidence as the question clearly through Nyx off. She stared at him before the smile returned to her face.

“She’s well, terribly sorry you couldn’t meet her. Oh, I would have loved to get all the triplets in one room again. She missed all of you so much more than I ever did.”