Epilogue

  The skies darkened over the seaside town of Hirono. Winter was approaching, but it was still too early in the day for the sky to darken.

  Shari had been walking near the calm waters of the sea when she heard the first crash of thunder.

  “How is this possible?” Shari asked. Moments prior when she had left her house the skies had been clear and there was not a single cloud.

  More thunder began to crack in the sky. It sounded closer and more violent. She looked to they sky and saw a large dark shadow moving fast through it.

  “It can't be.” Shari said.

  She turned to look at the sea. The calm waters had turned violent. The sea churned fast as if powered by an infernal engine.

  “No, no, no!” Shari ran back to the town.

  “A clash is incoming!” She shouted. “Titans! A Dragon! A Leviathan! A clash! A clash!”

  Shari yelled as she ran trying to get the entire town to flee.

  The first person she encountered was Leo, the neighbor's young son. He kept looking toward the coast.

  “Shari!” The young boy cried out, tears streaming down his face.

  “Leo, you need to come with me.” Shari said as she grabbed the young boy's hand.

  “No!” The young boy cried. “Daddy! Where is Daddy?”

  Shari looked at him.

  She turned to look back to the sea. The last place she had seen him was on the reef near the sea. The turbulent waters continued swirling. The waves that crashed into the coast were massive now. Soon they would be coming into the town. In the distance she could see a large wake moving.

  “Leo, your dad will be fine.” Shari lied through her teeth. She hated lying, but she had to get the young boy out of there.

  “But he-” Leo began but was interrupted.

  “BANG!”

  A loud crash of thunder roared through the entire town. The impact hit near Shari and Leo. A house caught on fire.

  More thunder began falling around them.

  In the distance Shari could see the townspeople begin to run away. They were scattering everywhere.

  “ROAR!” An angry voice could be heard booming from the sky.

  A high pitched scream came from the sea. Shari turned to look back. Far in the distance she saw a large serpentine body moving through the water. Behind it a colossal wave followed. It would engulf the entire town and sweep it away.

  “Leo, I spoke to your dad right before coming here!” Shari continued her lie. “He told me that he had to find old man Rengen before coming to town. He told me to take you and run!”

  The thunder continued crashing and the roaring from the two beasts intensified. Far in the sky Shari could see the dark shadow taking shape now.

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  “Come!” She said as she grabbed Leo and ran with him.

  “Daddy! Daddy!” Leo kept crying as Shari ran with him.

  Lightning began to crash around them, vortices of large air masses began to accumulate around them, and the air began to cool down very fast. In a matter of moments the peaceful town of Hirono had completely transformed.

  A bolt of lighting crashed in front of them, hitting the large town granary and throwing blazing logs all around. Their way ahead was blocked. Shari had to look for an alternative.

  As she turned Shari heard loud bangs overhead. Massive chunks of ice were flying from the sea into the sky and exploding.

  Shari looked back to the sea. She saw the black scales of death. The sea serpent Antares had appeared. Shari had only ever heard tales of him. Behind him the colossal wall of water followed.

  “No.” Shari muttered. She began sobbing at the sight.

  It did not matter how fast she ran. The wall of water would consume her and the entire town. Erase their entire lives in mere moments. Shari knew death was coming.

  “Daddy! Daddy!” Leo continued screaming.

  “Leo,” Shari said as she turned the boy away from the sea. Behind him she could see the black serpent Antares roaring towards them. “Leo, what was the name of your favorite song?”

  Leo kept sobbing and calling out for his dad. As Shari tried to calm him down she too could not help but sob.

  “That's right ‘My house fell into the sea’!” Shari said as Leo kept sobbing.

  “Oh-oh the sea, the sea

  It swallowed my home

  The sea, the sea

  It's ruthless and cold

  The sea, the sea-”

  “Who is that?” Leo asked in between tears.

  Shari turned to see who he was talking about. She saw her instantly. A woman walked through the flames unharmed. She walked past Shari and Leo as she focused on Antares. As the lightning crashed around them, it seemed to completely avoid her. A single bolt came down straight at her and she held her hand upwards. The bolt crashed right into her hand. Shari thought the woman must have been killed, but she looked again and she stood there unflinching. The woman waved her hand and an explosion of red lightning streamed above them.

  A loud pained roar could be heard from the skies and the lightning subsided.

  The woman continued walking to the sea, Antares was not stopping. He was upon the shore and the colossal wave crashed on the shore. It raced towards them, moments away from swallowing the entire town whole. But an invisible wall held the water at bay. The water crashed into it and could not move forward. The town was saved from it.

  Antares roared in anger. Large spheres of ice formed all around him. Within moments of their forming they began flying towards the lone woman. She did not move as the boulders of ice came at her. Before hitting her the ice shattered, exploding into harmless mist and leaving her unscathed. Now it was her turn. Her hands moved in quick succession and a large spire of ice shot out from near Antares and speared him through his body. The Leviathan cried out in pain and beat a hasty retreat.

  Within moments the storm clouds around them dissipated, the furious sea calmed down, and the chilling temperature began to rise.

  “Impossible.” Shari muttered.

  This must be a dream. Or am I dead already?

  “No my fellow furtive.” The woman said as she turned to face them. “What you have seen is just the beginning of what is possible if you join me under the banner of our Goddess, Jokasta.”

  “Who are you?” Shari asked in a low voice. Leo clung to her, sniffling, staring at the unknown woman.

  Without hesitation the woman began to douse the flames that raged within the town. The townspeople slowly came back to the center to see what had occurred. None could comprehend what had transpired. They were all certain of their impending deaths, but within moments a series of events unlike any they could comprehend had spared them from such a fate.

  Once she was done dousing the flames the woman turned to the crowd.

  “Who are you?” Selene, one of the townspeople asked her.

  “My fellow furtives! I am the Onsiel Zhi!” She announced.

  “I have been sent here by our Goddess Jokasta, to announce the dawning of a new age!” Her voice reverberated through the town. It seemed impossibly loud, but it was also soothing.

  “Goddess?” “Onsiel?” “Is this the afterlife?”

  “My fellow furtives! All of you who have all lived under the fear of Titans for your entire existence need not fear them anymore!” She announced.

  “Jokasta has sent me here to deliver unto you and all other furtives a message.” She continued. “For too long furtives have suffered under tyranny of the Titans! For too long have furtives been forced to hide, to live an existence unbecoming of our kind! That ends now!”

  More townspeople continued to arrive to listen to their savior speak. Shari and Leo were both in awe at the powerful furtive.

  “Jokasta offers all of you a place in her new world! A world for furtives! But Jokasta needs you! In this time of reckoning we require all furtives to come together to fight as one against the Titans!” Zhi announced.

  “If you are so inclined to fight for your fellow furtives, join me! Join Jokasta as we march against the Titans and reclaim this world for us” Zhi’s voice boomed through the town.

  The townspeople all stared in awe, it did not take long for one to speak up.

  “I'll fight on your side!” Daigo was the first to speak up. “The Titans, they, they destroyed all that I loved! I’ll join you and the Goddess! I’ll fight the Titans until my dying breath!”

  “Come here brave furtive.” Zhi said and Daigo followed. He stood next to Zhi.

  “You all saw it with your own eyes!” Daigo said his face a wild mix of emotions. “Our entire town was about to be destroyed!”

  The townspeople were still in shock. Another furtive stepped up.

  “Horus!” Daigo shouted. “Yes! Come! Just like they took my Gail they took your Abby! Come! Join!”

  The man rushed next to Zhi.

  “I’ll fight! I’ll fight for this Goddess!” Horus said.

  Zhi smiled.

  With Horus joining them, other townspeople began to join in. Soon the majority of the town stood next to Zhi. All pledging their allegiance to her, to their new Goddess.

  “I will fight for you!” Shari herself shouted as she stood up.

  “You have taken the first step towards your freedom!” Zhi proclaimed, “The first step towards the end of Titan Supremacy! Join me as they face the combined wrath of the furtives! Join me in the War of the Furtives!”

  END

  Greetings all! I hope you have enjoyed the first book in the Furtive Saga! If you did, I would really appreciate, a comment, a review, or a follow.

  I am already more than halfway done with the second book, and I still plan on making it a trilogy. You can read what is available of the second book right now!

  I’m always eager to engage with readers so feel free to reach out at any time. Thanks for sticking around and I hope you are excited to see where the story goes!

  -C.D. Acosta