A lot has happened to her before that one incident and I feel helpless that I couldn’t erase it all. But nevertheless, I can see that she is strong, that she pushes through all those horrific acts of violence done against her and she is persisting. She is determined to help anyway she can in the upcoming battle, so she is going to be our healer. Anyone who gets injured they will go to her, get healed and come right back to the fight.
Another thing I just can’t stop thinking about is what Fern told me after she dreamwalked into my head. Ecbert.
Ecbert is alive.
Somewhere deep inside I always hoped but I never knew. Not with the way Soraya is. I am honestly shocked that she didn’t kill him out right…hell, I’m shocked she didn’t kill me that night so long ago. I wanted to find him, to figure out where he has been for so long, but we have more important priorities right now, things that cannot wait, like how to close those fucking veils from Xeha.
We’ve been waiting for the rest of the High Order to show up and alas…they are here. We need to discuss a plan of action, how we are going to find Soraya because honestly, I have no fucking clue where the hell she could be. She’s stayed off my radar for so long, even when I tried to find her a few years after adapting to Darkness being inside of my body I couldn’t find her. She was nowhere. Poof… gone. It pissed me the hell off. It was like she didn’t even exist, but I knew the truth. She has been hiding, biding her time, making her devious plans.
Just thinking about her makes my hands shake, anger radiating through my body. She is mine to take my vengeance on and no one, I mean no one is going to take that from me.
***
I stand outside the war room, staring at the doors. Everyone is in there, most likely waiting for me to make my appearance, but I just can’t bring myself to enter. It doesn’t feel right, not without Ecbert at the head of the table. I start pacing, running my fingers through my hair.
If Ecbert is alive and locked up in some dungeon inside his own head…it’s my fault. That blame is mine, and mine alone. I didn’t save him. Regret lays thick in my mind. I didn’t go back to the castle after Darkness was cast inside of me. I just took off to try and understand of all the new emotions and feelings going on inside of me. It was a whirlwind, one that I didn’t understand so easily.
I hear the chamber doors creek open to the room and stop in my tracks and look towards that direction. Haven peeks her head out and just gives me a concerned look. Like she can see all the turbulent thoughts racing through my head, she walks over to me and gives me a hug. I just hold her in my arms, resting my chin atop her head. How she knew exactly what I needed, I have no idea but it sure as hell makes me feel so much better.
I let out a breath as she untangles herself from my embrace, looking up at me.
“You ready?” She says so caringly. I’m not used to this, she normally is a bit crass. I can get used to it, though.
I give her a little nod and she moves to stand right by my side. I glance over my left shoulder, looking down at her and she has this radiating smile on her face. She nods up and me and then takes my hand into hers, giving it a little squeeze.
With Haven by my side, hand in hand, I grab the door to the war room and pull it open.
As soon as I take a step into the room an abundance of memories come forth from within my mind. It’s been so long. So long and everything is exactly as it was centuries past.
The tapestry hanging on the walls remains the same, gold and blood red. On the banners there is both a lion head and an eagle head staring at each other, getting ready to face off. I never understood why Ecbert picked this to be the emblem for the kingdom but I’m sure he had his reasons.
I look to the center of the room and see that horrendous large rounded stone table. I always hated that thing. It remains way too low to the ground. I always felt hunched over when I sat at it. In the center of the table there is a rectangle carved out of the stone with sand placed within. There are these little figurines all lined up in the inside of both Ecbert’s kingdom and the enemies’ we once were battling way back when. It was when we were facing the enemy that we couldn’t see, that only came out in the darkest of hours…no wonder we couldn’t see them...they were fucking demons.
The formation of this army was in a circle surrounding the little down outside these castle walls. A pain radiates through my chest at the thought of every single one of these troops that were killed in action, killed by the command of Soraya, and I wasn’t there to fight side by side with my men. Yet another thing that weighs on my conscious.
I look up and see the missing pieces to the High Order. Gunther is the first who I notice. He’s a large man who’s as big as a bear and very intimidating. He has blonde hair, shaved close to the skin on the sides. His doppelganger could be a character from Vikings. Once he had his hair in a long dreadlocked ponytail. He must have chopped it to blend in a bit more, not that it was possible being a man of his size.
Before this insanity with the demons taking hold of our bodies he was a Berserker. A Norse warrior, a champion in his own right, who would fight in a trance-like frenzy along with fury. Nothing could best him, still I don’t believe he’s met anyone that can take him down to this day. He’s the only person I have ever met who has never worn any sort of chainmail or battle armor while fighting, instead he prefers to wear a pelt skirt of the animals that he has hunted.
When his demon took ahold of his body, it made his already formed Berserker nature come forth even more. His possession carried the demon of vengeance. When he transforms into his full self, spikes come out of his spine like a prehistoric dinosaur. They go from the back of his neck down over his tail. I’d think that the tail would be bothersome, however I’ve seen him use it to his advantage many times in battle, knocking enemies down with it and them piercing them with the spikes. His strength is damning, one of the toughest men I have ever known. I don’t know everything that his demon has given him, as I don’t know everything about everyone in the High Order. We’re all private about certain issues, and I guess we’re all a bit private when it comes to our full abilities.
I look over from Gunther and see the beautiful Mist sitting on his left. She is a water nymph. Long blackish blue hair, and these penetrating lavender colored pointed eyes, with the body of a porn star. Yes, I know exactly what a porn star is, I don’t live under a rock. She can control the elements of water at her beck and call. Nymph’s also rely on sexual energy to power themselves. If they go too long without it, they could become too weak and wither away becoming one with the type of nymph they are. Meaning, Mist would turn into the water she once could command. Having a demon as a female is much different than a male. Where-as men have two beings inside of one body fighting for control, for some reason a demon becomes one with a woman almost as if they are their own species in a right. I’m not sure how it works, all I know is that her and Bhellatrix are different than the rest.
As far as I can tell, Mist doesn’t shift like Gunther and I do. There is one small change, her ears turn into something elf like, transforming from her normal rounded ears into that. Honestly, I have no freaking clue what her demon is. It’s not like she’s told any of us over the years, either. I can tell you she’s terrifying in battle though, with one snap of her fingers I’ve seen ten men drop down to the ground in excruciating agony. Personally, I think she’s a reaper, or maybe even the mistress of death but that’s not based on facts, just my own assumptions.
Lastly, there is Bhellatrix or as we like to call her Trix. I am grateful Mist sat in the middle of Trix and Gunther. They would have been bickering the whole fucking time we are in this room. Trix is a tall, thin woman with medium length muddy red-brown hair but her eyes, they are glowing red, blood red.
Now, Trix is a complicated one.
She was once human like I was and instead of getting ahold of her demon she let it control her. I don’t specifically know what kind of demon she has. All, I do know is that the demon has an uncontrollable d
esire for blood, like the likes of a vampire. Trix was once a mother, had a family she doted on, a husband and two kids. When we first met, she told me how she tried to control the thing inside of her and it worked for a time until one night, she went to put her son to bed and the demon kept insisting that she needed to feed. It put thoughts of her killing her son, draining all his blood to the forefront of her mind and she wanted it as much as the demon. That’s when she knew she needed to leave. To get away before she hurt anyone that she loved. I never judged her for it. How could I? I went through something so similar.
I see Trix staring in the direction of Sapphire, not paying attention to anything going on around her and vice versa, that is until I clear my throat and Sapphire looks towards me and then look down at her hands resting on the table. I see a rose stained blush over her cheeks. Something is going on there, but I’d have to get to the bottom of that when we didn’t have such pressing matters to discuss.
I walk over towards the head of the table with Haven following in tow. I pull out a chair and gesture for her to take a seat with my hands. She does without uttering a peep which is odd for her. I’m amazed she doesn’t throw her two cents at me for being a gentleman, but I accept it with stride. I take my place next to Haven and rasp my knuckles on the smooth stone.
“First let me just start out by saying it’s so good to see you, it’s been far too long.” I direct to my fellow Order members. They all nod in my direction.
“You all know why you’re here. We’ve all first-hand witnessed the phenomenon going on around us. There is no one in this world capable of stopping these demons or Soraya except for us. The portals need to be closed as soon as possible or we’re going to have the start of the apocalypse. We need to come together, find people who want to join our cause and for fucking Christ sake - we need to find Soraya!”
I slam my fist down on the stone in frustration. Everything that I’ve learned as of recent bothers me like nothing else. How could she be alive? How could Ecbert? So many thoughts weigh heavy on my mind in this moment.
I see it formed a slight crack and the anger isn’t just from me, but from Darkness as well. He has some unfinished business with a particular sorceress, maybe as much as I do. He didn’t want to be inside of me anymore than I wanted him there. Thrown together is what we were, without a say in the matter.
I take a deep breath to calm myself and look at Sapphire.
“You have any contacts that are willing to join us?” I ask her that question because she’s been around for a long time, possibly longer than I have but I dare not ask, the last thing we need is a pissed off dragon shifter on our hands. Only, she doesn’t know what I know, or rather what Darkness had allowed me to see. I understand why she hides what she is, however there may be a time where she is more useful in this fight as a shifter and not a woman hiding from her past.
“After we’re done here I’ll make some calls. This is just as much their fight as ours. These demons…they can jump within a supernatural as well as human?”
“Yeah…you’re looking at one.” I hear Mist snort and raise her hand in the air, gaining everyone’s attention.
Sapphire nods to her.
“Then yes, I will work my damn magic and convince all my contacts that joining us is in their best interests.” I see her face go from determined to a cheeky smile, mouth full of sharp teeth “Or I’ll make them.”
“Next thing we need to address is how in the world we get those portals closed. The only thing I can think of is going back to Xeha and closing them from within.”
“I’m not going back.” Gunther says but it’s not Gunther, it’s his demon. I can tell but the smoky accent spoken.
“Nope, not happening. Not with chance of never coming back and being stuck there… forever.” Trix states, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Well I sure as hell can’t go. Can you imagine a water Nymph stuck in the fiery pits of hell? Where the heck would I get my energy? I sure as hell am not sleeping with a demon. Ewe, gross.” Mist says while shivering. “No offense,” she then says looking at me.
“None taken,” I say back to her and what she said didn’t bother me in the least, I have Haven and it seems like she likes both Darkness’ demon form as well as my human one.
We must go, Jett, Darkness says inside my head.
Welp, I guess I’m headed into Xeha.
“I’ll go,” I state.
“No fucking way. You are not going,” Haven yells, standing up from her chair.
“You don’t have a say. Darkness and I are going…it needs to be done.”
“Fine, you wanna play that game with me?” She gives me a smirk and I have a feeling I know exactly what she’s going to say next. “I’m going too. Try and stop me, I swear you will regret it.”
Chapter 19
I don’t have an attitude problem. You have a problem with my attitude and that’s not my problem. -Anonymous
Haven
The second I yelled out to Jett that I was going with him, oosh, he gave me the nastiest look, but Darkness roared at me. I’ve never heard a noise like that come from him—er, them before. The big guy and the redhead started screaming at one another and the next thing I knew I was being tugged out of the room by Sapphire. I guess she wanted to leave them all alone to deal with their shit together.
“Where did that tattoo come from?” Sapphire questions, staring at my chest. Damn, she’s known I have quite the rack but never has she stared like she is right now.
“I went through my awakening and it kind of showed up.” I shrug, not wanting to talk about the fact that I’m half demon, half who knows what else. I hate that I’m a crossbreed, and not knowing what the other part of me is will slowly kill me. I can’t tell you how much I hate not knowing shit. It eats at me over and over.
“Don’t you recognize the symbols?” she asks, and I look to my chest. Parts of it look like something I’ve seen before, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is.
“Oh, Rajgi. Come with me, now,” Sapphire curses. I’ve heard her say that word before. I guess it’s the equivalent of fuck but I’m not sure in what language. There are so many languages amongst the paranormal races, just like humans we have different languages for different cultures, and even species. She grabs my arm and takes me with her further into the castle. She opens a door and brings the both of us in a room. I guess this must be where she’s been sleeping. “C’mon girl, I know you’ve seen these symbols before. You stare at the damn crossbow any time it’s out and fuck...I didn’t realize it until now.”
“What are you going on about? Tell me,” I grumble, annoyed as I watch her walk to her chest and pull out the crossbow. She’s careful as she handles it, making sure that her hands are covered so she isn’t touching the wood. She flips it over and I’m met with the same symbol that is tattooed on my chest. “What does this mean?” I ask, knowing all too well that this means I’m somehow connected to this crossbow...but I need background information. I need to know more.
“You said you went through your awakening last night. What did you figure out?” She asks, staring directly into my eyes.
“That I’m a crossbreed, a demon and something else,” I mumble, diverting my eyes to the corners of the room so I don’t have to face her. I don’t know if I feel ashamed that I’m a crossbreed...but I feel lost, as I always have throughout my life.
“Well, I think it’s safe to say that I know what you are, besides the demon that is. You’re lucky I’m old and have lived through many centuries.”
“Yeah, yeah. Can you get on with it?” I grumble. Not knowing what I am, is eating at me. It has for a long time, but more so now.
“You’re part of the Vale,” she spits out, and as I stare at her she continues. “But that look on your face tells me that you don’t know what that means. Let me give you a brief synopsis on what the Vale is. You can only be part of the Vale if you are a woman, from one of the oldest bloodlines in history. It’s rumored that w
hen the earth was created, the women of the Vale had transported here from another realm. To the accuracy of that I do not know, however it is said this way in the scrolls. This means that your mother had to be a huntress. Your father must have been the demon...but the likelihood of a huntress and a demon...there must have been more to their story.”
“Why do you say it like that?”
“Women of the Vale hunt evil things, a demon is considered evil in many ways, even if they aren’t. Every demon is not evil, just as every angel is not good. It would have been unheard of for a huntress to be with a demon. Their job is to kill them, not to bed them. I haven’t seen a huntress in many, many years. I didn’t even know that they still existed, not until I saw your mark...you have joked many times about this crossbow being your baby, but alas it is. I now understand why it had spoken to you so much. It was meant to be yours.” Sapphire hands me the crossbow and smiles as she does so.
No lie, it weirds me out a little bit. We’ve always been on good terms, but nothing has ever felt as this does. While it’s genuine, it feels as though she respects me and all I have ever felt is like a barmaid….to be considered something else is amazing. Now I just need to learn more about the Vale.
I set the crossbow back into Sapphire’s chest. “I’m going to keep it here because I know it’s safe. I’ll grab it when I need it,” I tell her, as the two of us walk out of her room and back towards the war room.
“You sure as hell better be kidding, Haven!” I hear Darkness’ roar as the doors to the war room come blasting open, he starts to transform and comes right up to me. “You do not go to Xeha. I won’t allow it”
Darkness (Darkest Nightmares Book 1) Page 11