by Suzy Turner
He thought he caught sight of a slight smile before she turned back, rocking back and forth, "I'm sorry daddy, I'm sorry daddy, I'm sorry daddy..."
Jack flinched. He'd fallen asleep. Opening his eyes to the darkness, he heard Zalea and Eric's gentle sleeping breaths and so he closed his eyes once again. It wasn't a dream, it was a memory. And Jack knew that poor girl was saying sorry to her daddy because she was refusing to put up a fight. She was starving herself. She was killing herself. She succeeded.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
An interesting discovery had been made. Not only had Jack, Nickolaus and Tiffani disappeared during the phase of the full moon, but many others who had gone missing throughout the world had done so during the very same period.
The Nephilim had somehow managed to tap into something that was connected with the moon, creating an opening when it was full.
And there would be a full moon that night.
"I believe Calliope has erected the pyramid to coincide with the full moon this evening," said a very serious looking Michael. "She is going to open the floodgates to allow her brothers and sisters to come to the surface, this very night."
"We don't have much time," said Gabriel a little while later, putting on his winter coat and scarf, topping it off with a warm hat. "Do you really think your plan is going to work?"
Michael smiled, "All we can do is try, Gabriel. And I wouldn't want a better bunch of people working on it."
"Are you ready, everyone?" he asked as they all gathered in the living room, those that would feel the cold, wrapping themselves up.
"I still can't believe we're going to actually do this," whispered Lilly to December as they hooked arms and walked outside.
"I think it's the right thing to do, hon. Don't worry, they'll understand, given the circumstances," she replied with a slight tilt of her head.
#
Powell River Community Centre was full of every woman in town, old and young. They all sat waiting, whispering among themselves.
When Gabriel took to the front, standing on a pedestal, they all gasped and began talking loudly.
"But... but Gabriel. How are you here? All the other men have been taken by that woman," shouted Janice Harbinger, the owner of Harbinger's Drug Store.
"Now, now, calm down everyone. Please. All in good time. We are here to sort out, for once and for all, that woman who is known as Calliope."
There were more cries of disgust at the mere mention of the name.
"Calliope has put a kind of spell on the menfolk of this town," he said before he was interrupted again.
"But you're here... what's going on Gabriel?"
"Yeah, what's going on?"
"Why are you here?"
"A spell? Whatever are you talking about?"
Gabriel lifted his arms, trying to quieten down the angry mob.
"Please, ladies. Let me speak...."
But they just wouldn't sit quietly and so the Elders had no choice.
Moira stepped forward, along with two other witches, and began to whisper a few words:
"Ladies of Powell River. Sit still, be quiet, listen. For the safety of this town, you must sit still, be quiet, listen. Ladies of Powell River. Sit still, be quiet, listen. For the safety of this town, you must sit still, be quiet, listen."
Silence spread throughout the centre as Gabriel turned and thanked the three witches before turning to face the women. He watched as the expressions on their faces turned from shock to fear.
"Please do not fear these women, they have just gotten you to quieten down so I may tell you the truth. And.. I'm sorry to add, the truth is a painful one, a shocking one and for some, possibly just downright unbelievable, but I ask you, for the sake of the menfolk of this town, our friends and families, I ask you to be open minded," he said loudly as his eyes scoured the room and once he was happy they were all with him, he began.
"As you know, my name is Gabriel Tulugaq. My ancestors are from Newfoundland but my great, great, great grandfather moved to Powell River where our family has lived in peace, and very happily, for many years. My name, Tulugaq, literally means raven. I, and all of my immediate family members, have a secret which involves the raven... we all have a special gene which enables us to," he stopped for a moment to take a breath before continuing with a glance to his family, "enables us to... transform into ravens."
The women's faces dropped. Some of them giggled, although no sound came out, but they all sat staring at Gabriel.
"Gabriel, perhaps you should show them?" suggested Millicent, "We brought you extra clothes, just in case," she smiled.
He nodded, looked directly at his audience and seconds later, they were being watched by a raven on the podium.
"Their heartbeats are increasing," whispered Lilly. "Do you think we need to calm them down?"
Moira shook her head. "They'll be all right, the spell will keep them relatively calm."
Gabriel flew into a small room, where Millicent took him some clothes before he walked back out and stood back on the podium.
He held his arms out before speaking, "I am sorry to shock you but it is important you know the truth, the whole truth. Lilly, Tabitha..."
Lilly, Tabitha and Rose walked across to him, they turned to face the crowd and then, seconds later they were two Mountain Lions - one black, one white and an Iberian Lynx.
The women's eyes shot wide open in fear before the girls quickly walked away and returned moments later dressed in different clothes.
Moira moved forward to get rid of all the ripped clothes that were piling up on the podium before Gabriel continued.
"We are not here to strike fear into your hearts, ladies. Far from it. We have lived among you for many generations and we are good friends with many of you. But, alas, I am far from finished... there is much more you need to know about us. Sammy?" he asked as a tall figure hidden beneath a long hooded cloak appeared beside him. Sammy carefully removed the hood from his face, before taking off the cape altogether, turning to reveal his beautiful black wings.
"Moira? Can you release part of the spell, so the ladies can at least speak. I believe they may have questions?"
Moira nodded and the three reversed part of the spell.
"Sammy Morton?" whispered several women at once.
Sammy nodded and smiled.
"He's a murderer!" yelled another.
"No... please," he gulped turning to Gabriel.
"Ladies, Sammy is no more a murderer than any of you. Sammy was the victim of a horrendous spell by an evil, cruel witch. She was the one who murdered my daughter-in-law and granddaughter. Not Sammy. He is entirely innocent, forced to hide and live in the forest up until we discovered the truth over a year ago. I ask you to look at this man's face, ladies, and tell me what you see? Because I know you will not see a killer."
Every woman sitting in there looked at him, scrutinising his face until their expressions changed completely.
"It is true," said Deborah Ashby, a cashier at the local supermarket, "He is innocent," she whispered and the rest of them nodded.
"Thank you," said Sammy as he turned to walk away.
"Wait..." said Deborah, "Where have you been hiding this past year?"
"I live with Lilly, Tiffani, Tabitha and Zoltan at Gabriel's house," he answered shyly.
"I know of Tabitha and Zoltan but I've not heard of anyone called Tiffani. Who is she?" she asked kindly.
And then another hooded figure stepped tentatively forward. When she removed the hood and cape, the entire room gasped.
The young faery swallowed and attempted a smile, but instead tears began to fall down her delicate cheeks.
"Oh don't cry, my dear," said a gentle voice from the back.
Tiffani lifted her head and smiled.
"Tiffani is a faery. She's not from around here but she has lived with us for a while now," said Gabriel. "I will tell you more about where she is from shortly. But first, there is more you need to know."
Th
e women's eyes turned to Gabriel while he continued to tell them about the strange supernatural world they lived in.
"What I am about to tell you is going to shock you even more, but it is important you are aware of everything that surrounds us. I know you are probably very frightened right now but please hear me out. There are also vampires and werewolves. The ones that can survive on the blood from animals live among us but those that need human blood to survive live elsewhere. We have always tried to keep this community as safe as possible. There have been times when we've had to deal with evil vampires intent on destroying our lives but we've always managed to destroy them..."
"Oh dear," said an elderly voice hidden from view. "I assume you're talking about Mrs Murray and Mrs Ormond?
Gabriel nodded, "Sadly, yes. And there have been a few other tragic cases but, at the moment, evil vampires are the least of our problems. But, just so you know who the good vampires are in our community, you should meet Chris here. He was transformed into a vampire by the same posse responsible for the deaths of Mrs Ormond and Murray. Let me hand you over to Sonya for a moment..."
Sonya, with her long shiny white hair and beautiful features stepped forward and smiled at her old friends, colleagues and neighbours.
"Hello everyone," she began, "Last year, we managed to capture the witch who was responsible for Serena and Neleh's deaths, the one who made Sammy into a half-human. Her name was Vivian and she kidnapped my brother-in-law Jack and niece, Lilly, many years ago. After her capture, and before her judgement took place, she managed to very nearly kill my only daughter. Jo's only saviour was transformation and so Jo came home to me a vampire. It was tough, of course it was tough, but she's my daughter and I love her and so I accept what she has become. Thank you for listening," she said before she stepped back into the rest of the group.
"I did wonder why she suddenly appeared to be so much more beautiful," said a voice from the crowd, "Oh, don't get me wrong, Jo has always been an absolute stunner. I thought it was impossible for anyone to become more beautiful and lo and behold, she did," chuckled the voice.
"Aye, you're right, Alexandra, I always thought that was a bit strange. Makes sense now, of course."
Gabriel stepped forward and walked among the chairs looking for someone. When he eventually found her, he asked Moira to release the binding spell so she could stand up.
"Mrs Dickson, I'm going to need you to come up here with me," he said, very gently helping her to her feet.
Fear shot through her eyes and didn't go unnoticed by him.
"Please don't be afraid," he said, leading her to the group before turning his attention to the crowd before him. "We recently had to make a terrible decision in order to protect our kind. We had to tell a lie to you all. An awful lie that involved you, Mrs Dickson. I hope you'll forgive us," he said as he turned her slightly so she faced yet another person hidden beneath a cape and hood.
The person turned, very slowly dropping the hood to face her mother who collapsed in a heap on the floor.
"Mom!" screeched Jemima.
"She's okay, Jemima. She's just passed out, that's all. She'll come to in a moment. She'll be fine," reassured Rose.
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
It hadn't taken long for the young girl to succumb to starvation. Jack could do nothing but look on as she wasted away, refusing to eat or drink a single thing. He didn't eat the bread she'd thrown him until she was gone. When he heard the clattering of the chains as the shuffling feet made their way through the tunnels beneath him, Jack watched as the slave next to him tried to wake her. When she made no movement at all, the slave, a woman probably in her forties, looked over at him. Jack wanted to say something but no words would come. He looked down, ate the piece of bread he was given, drank the tepid water and handed the bowl back to the same male slave who had been there the past few times.
No-one uttered a word.
When the cages were lifted back up to the ceiling, the young girl with the lovely big eyes stayed on the ground below. Her cage had been opened, left there waiting for someone, or something, to come and dispose of her lifeless body.
Jack wanted to cry for her, but there were no tears left within him. For what seemed like ages, he merely sat and watched, waiting for them to take her away.
Eventually, a long low howl filled the cavern, the echo bouncing off of each wall before a massive winged beast appeared from a large tunnel about halfway down. It hopped down, swooping to the ground where its spindly arms reached out and pulled the corpse out onto the damp cold ground beneath its feet. Suddenly, another creature appeared from another tunnel, then another and another, until there were at least ten of them.
Jack didn't want to watch but he just couldn't help it. His eyes were glued to the horror that unfolded beneath him.
"Jack?" asked a voice from above him.
"Hm?" he murmured.
A soft hand touched him and shook his shoulder gently, "Jack? Wake up," said Zalea.
"Zalea?" he cried, rubbing the tears from his cheeks, where he'd been sobbing in his sleep.
"We should go," she said, not wanting to mention both she and Eric had heard.
Standing up, he stretched his arms and legs and tried to put the terrifying scene out of his mind, but it wasn't easy. When a person is ripped apart like that, right in front of your eyes, it's not something that can easily be forgotten. No wonder he had blocked out his entire past from his consciousness.
"Okay," he whispered, "let's move," he added, his words a little shaky.
After they walked a few paces, Jack's shoulders hunched forward and his cries began. Zalea took him in her arms and stroked his back until the sobs began to slow and his breathing returned to a normal speed.
"There, there," she said, "It's okay. It's over."
But he knew it was far from over.
"Zalea, Eric. I think I need to tell you the truth about what's in these caves..."
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
When she finally came to, the look of pure shock, followed by utter relief and love, on Mrs Dickson's face said it all. It had taken some doing but eventually the women of Powell River began to show some understanding towards their unusual friends and neighbours.
But they still didn't know everything. They didn't know the truth about Calliope or the other Nephilim creatures. Gabriel was keeping the worst until last.
Before he continued, Moira released the binding spell so the women could stand and stretch their legs. Apologising profusely as she did so.
But not all understood. There were two women in particular who felt strongly repulsed by what they'd learned. One was a religious lady, Ms Hathermere, who believed all supernatural beings were spawns of the devil, brandishing a bible she'd taken out of her handbag.
"Oh nonsense, Teresa and put that book away. If you want to brandish anybody with that thing, keep it for this Calliope woman. We've known these people for years. These folk are good people. Perhaps a little too secretive, but they're good people. They've never done anything to harm any of us. So put it away," said Mrs Dickson, holding on to her daughter's hand tightly.
"This ain't God's work, I tell you. This is the devil's work."
"I'm with Teresa," said another woman who sat with a floral scarf tied around her head and her hands holding on to her own copy of the bible, "Clearly, you're evil doers. You, your wings and your terrifying spells and so on. I'm in no mind to believe you," she hollered, standing and going over to Ms Hathermere.
Before they could utter another word, Michael stepped out from the back of the hall where he had been standing quietly watching the proceedings. Walking slowly towards them, all went quiet as his warm aura filled the room and the women turned in wonder at the handsome stranger.
"I am Michael," he said, "and I assure you that these people have nothing to do with the devil. These are good, honest people, just like you Teresa and you, Phoebe. The only difference is they have somewhat different capabilities than you do. Teresa, I know you are a
fine seamstress and can produce a dress so beautiful in a single day. Phoebe, you do wonders to that garden of yours that, to some, would seem to have been created by an angel. Now tell me ladies, how does that differ from what these fine folk are capable of? Jemima, Jo, Chris and the other vampires have super human speed and strength and will live for many years to come. Lilly, Rose, Gabriel, Wyatt and some others can change into animals. December, Moira and the other witches can cast spells. But it matters not because you are all God's children. You must remember that," he said, very gently taking each woman's hand and squeezing ever so slightly.
Teresa and Phoebe both blushed and immediately sat down. "Please carry on, Gabriel," said Phoebe quietly, placing the bible back in her floral handbag.
"Now that you know the truth about who we are, I must tell you the most frightening truth of all. The truth about Calliope. This is no ordinary woman. In fact she she is no woman at all. The fact of the matter is she is..." Gabriel cleared his throat, "she is a Nephilim."
One woman raised her hand and Gabriel nodded, "But what is this... Nephilim?" she asked innocently.
"Well, you could liken them to devilish creatures. Many, many years ago..." and Gabriel went on to tell the ladies of Powell River all about the Nephilim and all they knew about Calliope.
Tears flowed as they realised what they were up against but all of them were willing to do everything in their power to get their men back and return their town to the place it once was.
#
They'd been trapped for hours, watching in silence as Calliope danced with many different men, feasted on more raw meat before drinking what looked like blood and watched as the men fought each other with swords. But not once were any of them harmed.
"I don't get it," said Jo, standing up from the ground where she had sat for so long, stretching her legs, "all this time, and she hasn't done anything nasty. I thought the Nephilim were evil beasts?"