by Jamie Ott
He said nothing. Vidar put his arm around her and drew her into an embrace that was so warm, despite the cold temperature of his stone-like body.
"Why does no one answer my questions, here?" she asked, as she wrapped her arms, unquestioningly, around his waist and sighed.
A few moments they stood there, holding each other. He gently nudged her chin upward, and kissed her lightly.
"That was nice, but it's not me you want; it's Lyssa."
She pulled away from him, and went back to her room.
About midnight, there was a knock at her door. She climbed out of bed, and opened it.
Kris and Shane walked in, bursting with energy.
"How are you guys?" Starr asked concernedly.
Their faces were rosy, and their eyes were bright. Around them, a certain aura glowed hazily.
"I take it, you guys got your serum?" she asked.
"I can fly, now!" Shane said with the widest smile ever.
"Why, Shane, I've never ever seen you smile before."
"I know! I'm feeling emotions like I haven't felt since I was turned."
"And you, Kris?"
"I haven't felt so good in years. I just looked in the mirror, and my cheeks are pink. Can you see it?"
"Actually, your skin is rosy all over."
"Oh it's sad that you can't feel this! It's amazing!" he said. "The moon; it's so full tonight, and the craters are so clear. Surely, I'd normally need a telescope to see such things! Come here and look!" he said excitedly, motioning to Shane.
Shane jumped off the bed and said, "Let's watch the moon outside!"
She bolted out of the room, followed by Kris.
Starr sat there a moment, and then decided to go after them. They ran through the streets, past a group of Primordials lining an alley. They appeared to be in prayer, and didn't flinch as they ran, noisily, by.
Shane leapt into the air and flew through the buildings; Kris and Starr followed. They touched down in the front of the city, where Starr watched them continue to jump and fly about, as if they children. They flipped and did cartwheels across the lawn, and laughed hysterically. Then, out of the blue, Kris swan dived into the koi pond.
Shane, giggling, followed. Amazingly enough, the fish were not new to such behavior, for they swam confidently, even leaping in the air, side by side, with Shane and Kris.
Starr watched them from the bridge, until she heard something in a building at the very back of the castle. It was the clinking of glass, no jars, she corrected herself.
Stelar was sending her visions of the clock tower, in which there was a basin and many shelves cluttered with colorful things she couldn't make out.
Leaving Shane and Kris behind, she walked back down the city lane, past the Primordials and up to the clock tower.
He was there, still in his ceremonial robe, and he was sifting through dusty orbs and stones of every color.
"So are we gonna talk?"
Without looking at her, he said, "Yes, but, first, I need to find something."
He rummaged through a few different shelves, tossing things on the floor; some breaking and others just rolling a way.
"You want to tell me something?"
He stopped rummaging a moment, and said, "Although it isn't my right to interfere, I do feel that in this war, I'm on your side, more so than Lyssa. We all do, in fact. We discussed it earlier."
"Soo?"
"So, I want to give you something to help you fight. It's something she's been looking for. Gwynna left it, here, a long time ago, before she went to rest," he said, turning back to the shelves.
Looking down at the color crystalline stones, she thought back to what Kris said in jail, and asked, "Are these witches' powers?"
"Yes. I see, from your mind, that Kris explained somewhat about them. You see, the witches view consciousness and death differently than Primordials do," he said as he moved down the shelf, still rummaging. "Rather than go into unconsciousness, which sometimes - and like us - they do, they kill themselves by rite. You see, witches aren't what people think they are, today. Real witches were descendants of sentient beings, those who like gods didn't need bodies. They were spirit, and as the world evolved, so did the witches, although some would say they devolved, that the spiritual world is where we should all be, without body or limitations. However, that is another matter altogether," he said, huffing on a particularly dusty red marble. "My point is when they died, they and their consciousness returned to the abyss beyond, or heaven as some would describe, but, sometime, at the end of the Stone Age, a witch named Abatha separated her magic from her body, killing her, but saving the power in an ancient amulet. Ah ha," he said.
From the top shelf, he pulled down a brilliant green emerald. Its surface was so clear and smooth that it might have been glass.
"This is what Lyssa was is looking for. This, supposedly, belonged to that witch, Abatha, one of the first and most powerful of her kind - in human form. She was the distant mother relative of Gwynna's. Power to these old witches is like blood in a human's veins; they can't live without it."
He handed the green orb to her.
"It's supposed to be very powerful," he said. "While there were lots of witches to come after, she was the last of those born from the arcane. More than a pure blood witch, but born from the chaos, from the gods, as the Greeks would tell you. And this is her power, though I don't know how it works. How you would use it. For that, you're on your own."
"What about the talisman that she has now? Whom did that come from?"
He looked at her, and shook his head.
"I don't know that which you speak of; although there are many dwellings where powers lay. In caves, in the Earth, some are lost at sea. Mostly, in the Stone Age, witches were cave dwellers. Whatever she has, I assure you that it didn't come from here."
They fell silent a moment, as she turned the stone over in her hand. Warmly, it glowed, making her feel calm relaxed, and in control.
"I see you're feeling the effects of having someone's life force in your hand; it influences you. So be careful when making choices."
"What do I do with it?"
"Protect it with your life. Don't let her get it, or she'll kill you. I hate to put it this way, but the fate of the world does rest on your shoulders. Stay away from her, don't go near her."
She jerked her eye upward in surprise.
"You're telling me to retreat?"
"Have you read the grimoire?"
"What does that have to do with it?"
"Start there, but, whatever you do, don't go after Lyssa. Go home, to the kids. Lyssa will come for you when the time has come. I can see from mind that you aren't prepared to fight, just yet. Don't rush, or you'll lose this war. She's still more powerful than you, by age -millenniums - something we can't give you."
Search On
Chapter 5
Several days later, Shane and Kris having returned to a state of normalcy, they stood in the town center where the other Primordials ceremoniously bade them goodbye.
She thought about Stelar's words over those couple of days, but was decided that there was no way she'd wait for Lyssa. People were dying, now.
As they stood outside the city walls, Vidar presented a sheathed sword to Starr. The sheath was encrusted with rubies, the likes of which she'd never seen before.
"I don't need it anymore, and I heard, from Lucenzo, that you're quite good with weapons. I'd like to add one more to your collection, because I know you'll either use them, or value them."
He drew the sword, which gleamed under the light of the sun. The color of the blade was pale yellow.
"Before the blood," he said, "You would've never been strong enough to wield this, for its forged from the finest gold, what we used to fight with. We'd blend it with titanium, the strongest natural metal in the world, making it fine for a king, but strong enough for battle."
Speechless, she nodded to him and stepped to the side. He understood her complet
ely, and pulled his own sword from his belt, and followed her.
Starr didn't know how, but her instincts told her that she knew how to sword fight. She spun the handle in her hand, swinging the blade in a warm up fashion. It was perfectly balanced, perfectly smooth, unlike anything she'd ever touched; although she'd never actually touched anything like it before, she reminded herself.
Once more, she wrote off her strange feelings of nostalgia, as being Lyssa's.
They circled each other a few times, before he stepped in and thrusted her. After blocking several lunges and near cuts, she was pleased, even the sound of the striking swords made her smile.
She opened her mouth to thank him, but he interrupted her.
"It's not necessary. My time's at an end, and yours is just beginning. You don't realize what kind of battle you're getting into. You're gonna need the best weapons. We, last remaining Primordials, have faith in you."
"Will we see other ever again?"
"Maybe."
He leant in and kissed her on the cheek. Putting his arm around her shoulder, he guided her back to her friends.
More Questions
Chapter 6
Underneath the cloak, she buckled the sheath around her waist. Then, one by one, they leapt off the cliff and fell, down, through the cloud blanket.
Kris and Shane caught up to Starr, as they descended.
"I think you should know that the Primordials are planning to go into permanent rest. Like, that's it, fully extinct kind of thing," Shane shouted through the icy layer.
"I know, Vidar told me."
She noticed they both wore medallions made of gold.
"What are those?"
"Gifts. You didn't see them because you were with Vidar," shout Kris.
"What are you gonna do now?"
"I'm gonna go find Lyssa."
"Stelar warned us that you were planning to do that. We agree with Stelar; we think you should come home. We'll have a look at the grimoire together. We'll find a secret place for the emerald."
"I can't. What kind of person would I be? Leading danger back to the kids?"
"You can come to my house," offered Kris.
"No, I don't like Fernand hanging around."
"So you're just gonna go to Romania, to the Council, find Lyssa and fight? Not much of a plan. She's just as strong, and stronger than you. She's also got an army behind her. You need a plan. You need to take time and figure this out."
After thinking about it, Starr agreed. She needed to figure how she was going to fight Lyssa. It wasn't just a simple matter of going to her and putting her in her place. She was old, and if Starr opposed her, they'd fight to the death. Lyssa wouldn't have it any other way.
But at the bottom of the mountain, they heard a panic somewhere. There was the ultimate feeling of something wrong.
"Do you feel that?" asked Starr.
"Yeah, I think we need to get home as fast as we can. It's a psychic cry out."
Starr, Shane and Kris flew all night, only landing on the banks of Lake George the next morning.
The ground was blanketed with a foot of snow. They ran up the hill to the mesa top where they'd spent the summer.
The windows were shattered and the gate was broken in. Drag marks and glass was everywhere. They ran into the house and looked around.
Starr ran upstairs, and through each and every empty bedroom. Everything was smashed up, and on the lamp table in her room, a hand written note laid.
"Bring the book, and we'll release the kids. Signed, the Council."
"What?" Shane spat, back down in the kitchen. "The Council is behind this?"
"I saw her and Dracus, her brother, in the Council castle, but I just can't believe the Black Fleet has anything to do with this. It just isn't their style."
"Let's have a look at that book," said Kris.
"I already read it; there's nothing there. Stelar was mistaken."
"He was not mistaken. You must've missed something. And even if he was wrong, Lucenzo told you the same thing: start with the grimoire. Now, we look again."
He held his hand out to her, beckoning with his fingers, to bring forth the book.
She pulled it from her pocket and handed it to him.
~~~
It was torture waiting there while he read through it.
"Well?" asked Starr, an hour later.
"Well, it's a book of spells."
"I know that," said Starr irritably.
"Well, it's got an old rite in it, a step by step, if you will on how to call a departed soul. How could you have missed this?"
"I just?" she stuttered. "Had a lot going on. What's so important about that spell?"
"There's a whole month, here, where the author writes about the problems with necromancy, and calling a soul. One: you need to have several types of blood. Two: you need a ring of witches. Three: you need a powerful amulet."
"Okay," she said, getting impatient.
"Okay, so there is a foot note with extra asterisks. Apparently once the soul departs, it's no longer attached to the body; therefore, it moves onto new hosts. The soul can't be in someone else's body; otherwise, the spell won't work."
"So she's looking for someone: the new host," Starr said, the sound comprehension in her voice. "I dreamt she was looking for someone and something. I just assumed it was me, but it must be someone else. I'm dead, technically. My soul is gone."
But he remained silent, looking at an invisible point in the room, contemplating.
"What?" she asked.
"Well, you said Lucenzo said you're the only person keeping her from getting a soul, right?"
"Yes."
"What if you had her soul? I mean, think about it, you've been having all these nostalgic feelings; more than just your blood connection. You've been confused as to why she's paid such close attention to you. What if you had her soul, and, for some reason, she saved you because she needed you?"
She thought back to all the strange things, all the feelings, she'd been having.
"It makes sense, and, to tell the truth, I've considered this before. I just didn't think it was real. Still, I don't have a soul anymore, Kris. So it can't be only me she's after; it's got to be some girl."
"A baby," said Shane. "You've been a vampire two years now."
"Oh man, this sucks. So, now, we not only have to protect someone, but we have to go after a baby?"
"Your attitude is surprising. Remember," said Kris. "The baby is, basically, you. You're the empty shell of that child."
"Just thinking about it makes my head hurt."
"Okay, well, we need to figure out how we're gonna get the kids back," said Shane. "I know it's shocking, Starr, but let's try to stay focused."
"Yes, you're right. What are we gonna do?"
"Not we, but you," said Kris.
"Huh," they asked together.
"None of us are strong enough to take Lyssa or her men. So one of us needs to hang back, in chase she double crosses us somehow. I think that person who hangs back is to be you."
"I don't like it," she said. "My life is on the line, anyway. Let me go, and you, two, hang back."
"She is you; you are her. I don't believe in destiny, but Stelar told me it's yours. Your destiny is to fight her and win. And if she double crosses us, we'll be with the kids, making sure they're okay. If Stelar was right, you'll come back and save us all, in the end," he said.
"And remember," said Shane. "You've got the Abatha crystal. He told you to protect it. Lyssa can't get it, or the world is done for."
Waiting
Chapter 7
Quickly, she descended from the sky. She was unable to believe what she was feeling. It was alive, and it, too, was terribly familiar to her; tears welled up in her eyes. Her soul; it was nearby. It was angry, it was hungry, and it was confused.
Using remote viewing - a form of telepathy, she looked into the condo on the top floor. Inside was a normal, but cramped home. A woman rocked a baby while a
man made dinner for them.
They were a young, normal couple; no more than mid thirties. The baby sensed Starr's presence, for, as soon as she looked at the baby with her consciousness, it looked up and stopped crying.
The baby reached out its tiny fist, and tried to touch her.
From nowhere, and for no reason, tears well up in her eyes. Her soul was so pure. She wondered if other vampires had met their soul counterparts before, and found them so emotionally unstabling.
Now she just needed to figure out what to do. She couldn't stay there, standing in the street, shrouded in her ancient cloak and armed for a Roman battle.
In the third condo over, she sensed that it was vacant. Quickly, she ran into the condo hallway, and up the stairs to the fifth floor. She pushed the knob just so, breaking the lock.
Inside, she sat on the carpet in the living room and watched the family, remotely, wondering if Kris and Shane were okay.
If she hurts any of them? She muttered to herself.
Even though Starr knew she and Lyssa might be one in the same; that Starr might share the heart and skill of the warrior Queen, she still worried. Yes, she felt like she'd lived through battles before, but that was only through Lyssa, which was like a distant memory. Sure, Kris said to trust in the power that they shared, but she wasn't sure that it would help. Lyssa was a thousand times stronger, and had an army of vampires behind her.
Her throat clenched, as did her fists. How could she be so stupid as to think the Black Fleet was really on her side. And what really happened to Emil? Back in Grindewald?
Starr stood and sighed, long and hard. Walking to the window, she noticed the partial moon gleaming brightly, reminding her of how Kris and Shane leapt into the koi pond and swam with the fishes. She leaned her forehead against the cold glass.
There was a strong warming against her leg, coming from her pocket. She pulled out the palm sized emerald and looked it over.
Suddenly, she felt confident, more so than she had in days. She'd be ready for her when she came, Starr told herself. Now, she was Primordial, too; now, they were equals. Lyssa might have millenniums on her, but she had the Abatha stone.
Syncing Essences
Vampin Book Series #15
By Jamie Ott
Copyright 2012 Jamie Ott. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used without written permission.