by V Domino
Shaking myself from the memories, I focus on Drac. Out of us brothers, Drac was closest to our mother. I wouldn't say he was a momma's boy but he was always quick to do her bidding and make her special gifts like the carving of a bird he once made her. Draven carved a buck for her, antlers and all, while I carved a miniature tree with a hollow.
We all loved Mother, more than anything in this world but for Drac... this news is like losing her all over again.
"We will avenge her, brother. I promise you here and now. Merelda will suffer for our mother."
Drac's face is stoic and completely blank of any hint of the raging inferno beneath his surface but when he speaks it shows.
"Each bone will be removed from her body."
"She will need to be tried by the Elders," Darren says like his word is fucking law.
Mine and Drac's growls echo around the room in response but Ronny speaks up.
"Hell no she won't, Dar. She killed our parents and theirs, not to mention the countless True Bloods she murdered to save her hide. There's no way we can leave justice to the very people who work side-by-side with the cunt."
My embers heat at my Black Bird's words. There's no one on this planet who can understand what my brothers and I are feeling except these sisters.
"Dare Bear, if you fight us on this I will never forgive you," Roxy says as she stands and rounds the couch to Drac's side. "We're doing this with or without your help but we'll have a better chance if you're with us."
Darren drops his head for a moment before nodding. "Fine but you three girls need to work on your magic first."
He picks up one of the books and flips it open. The book is aged and looks as if it'll fall to dust if you handle it without care but Darren flips through it with ease. All of the scents in the air remind me of Merelda and I have to keep myself from tossing hellfire at them.
"This book states that the Blood Crows must have a talisman to keep their magic from becoming unpredictable. Has anything new begun to happen with you?"
Ronny blushes and clears her throat, "Uh, yeah. I think I have levitation abilities. They're chaotic though and come when I'm surprised or... when my mind is otherwise preoccupied."
She tosses a glance at me and bites her lip. I reach behind her and lightly pull on her hair. Why is she suddenly shy? Ronny doesn't really give a shit what anyone thinks.
"Oh! So when you guys are fu-"
"Stop! Don't say any other word, Roxy! I do not want to know." Darren’s eyes are glowing brightly as he looks right at me.
I'm most definitely not afraid of this man but Black Bird seems to care for him so I'll indulge him. For now.
"Listen, I know that you have become bonded to my daughter but let me warn you. I know how to break a bond and if you break her heart in any fucking way, I will cut the ties and feed you to the gators. I don't give a shit if you're a hellhound, I will do it. Same for you, Drac. I will not hesitate."
My respect for this man just shot up some. He's protecting who he sees as his little girl and I can definitely respect that. Drac nods and bites back a smirk.
"Yes, sir. I understand." I'm able to cover my smile much easier. A Fairy will never be able to harm us but I wouldn't doubt he would leave us with some everlasting marks.
"Listen pops, I appreciate you getting all protective of me but I've recently learned that their hellfire doesn't harm me so if one of these puppies hurts me or my sisters, I will turn them into floor rugs myself. Now let's focus on how to control our powers."
"I'd dye your fur pink and purple, that'll really tie up my room." Roxy whispers to Drac. It only makes him smirk and throw his arm around her shoulders. She's trying to make him smile, I appreciate her for that.
"The writer of this book says the talisman will be hidden in three places. Each place will have been significant to the witch who cast the curse. In this case, Merelda. It also says that once your powers are grounded with the talisman, you three can join together… whatever that means.”
Three places that are significant to her? I hated the woman so I never took the time to learn her favorite places. I can only imagine what they'd be. A cave surrounded by rotting corpses or maybe in a pit with venomous snakes as friends perhaps?
"The script is the same for all these books, who is the writer?" Black asks looking through the pages of one. They're all written in French and the movements of each letter say it's been written by one person.
"I'm not sure, they're all signed at the back with the number five."
Darren is right, they're all signed with the number. We spend the next hour going over everything in the books including the curse itself. If what we're seeing is correct, it seems werewolves are a created race as well. A witch from long before I was born cast the dark magic upon a family from ancient Russia.
The family was known as Neuri and they somehow pissed off a clan of witches. The Neuri home was cursed and forever changed but as with the Vocem Sanguinis, the Elders at the time broke the curse enough that the family and their offspring could have their human forms back and the ability to change at will.
Suddenly there's crackling in the air like electricity breaking through a barrier. Black jumps from her spot on the couch and teleports to a bookshelf by the fireplace.
"Weapons! Someone is trying to cross our wards!"
Immediately Drac shifts while Roxy and Black ready for a fight as Darren transforms into his demonic looking Fairy self and runs out the door.
"Find Draven, make sure he's on the property, I'm sure it's Merelda."
I shift and follow Darren while the girls are on my heels. Instincts beg me to tie Ronny up somewhere safe but I'd only be doing us more harm than good. Ronny is a damn good fighter and she knows what she's doing. Having her is an asset not a hindrance.
Fly the perimeter, Black but don't be reckless or I'll make some crow soup with your ass later. My telepathic threat to Ronny is met with a wicked little chuckle.
This little birdy needs a spanking later but right now, the whirling wind at the front of the property has my full attention.
Drac, Draven, the intruder is at the gate. Make sure no one is trying to break in through the back while we’re focused up here.
South and west are empty. Drac’s voice is winded like he’s running full speed.
East is clear too. We’re heading to you. Draven says as he rounds the east end of the property with a large black crow flying beside him.
Rory's crow is the same size as Ronny's but instead of black eyes, her crow has white irises. I don't have time to compare the two similar yet different familiars because a voice of my childhood screams from the front gate.
My memories did not do justice for the hair raising cackling of Merelda Hound. There's not a single voice in this realm or any other that can make your skin crawl and your teeth grind.
The wind is causing all the dirt and leaves to fly about, almost like she's creating a vortex but then everything stops. The wind stills while the leaves settle to the ground and once the dust clears, there stands Merelda.
She wears a long black robe and her hair is black with grey streaks throughout, showing signs of her true age, older than the fucking telephone. Her face and skin though show her to be young and youthful. Magical Botox no doubt.
She looks like the female version of our father which is a stain to his greatness if you ask me.
The old hag sneers at Darren and her green eyes blaze with mockery, "Did you think I wouldn't see past the weak block you put on my books, Darren Ignis? The simpleton you used paid dearly for your foolishness."
I notice the strap she has around her torso from shoulder to hip. She grabs the strap and pulls the bag off flinging it across the ward.
Still in my Hellhound form, I can smell death as the bag lands with a thud and rolls haphazardly. When it stops the flap opens and the face of a person peeks out. What the fuck!
“I tasked you, Drug! Kill the Crows and be reb
orn!” Merelda screams as Darren runs to the bag with a roar.
"Nooo!" Darren screams like his heart was ripped from his chest.
He runs over and opens the pouch further, exposing the decapitated head within. Whimpering, he pulls the head out and caresses the face with a mournful howl while the evil bitch cackles with glee.
I run over to Darren and wrap my arms around him as he begs this to be a nightmare. The head he's cradling is that of a woman. Through the gore I can see she was lovely with ginger hair.
Darren kisses the woman's forehead and whispers his love before laying her down on the grass. He uses the elements to open the ground and swallow his lover's head before standing up and facing the wicked old bitch.
"I will kill you, Merelda. I will do everything in my power to end your selfish life. Today you made an enemy out of the Fairies." Darren's fires burn brightly and his eyes drip liquid flames. I've never seen this emotion from him. We never got to meet this woman. She took his heart and loved him and this bitch killed her.
"You're a foolish fairy if you think you can do anything to me." Her voice makes the ground tremble but Darren is not moved at all.
"We shall see, Merelda," Darren hisses with dual voices of rage.
The witch's gaze darkens at Darren's promise but she can't hide the fear written in her features and the man's threats.
Trying to brush off Darren with false bravado, she turns to Drug and his brothers, "Stupid boys think you can protect these little Crows? They will die just as their parents have. And their parent's parents and all the generations of the True Bloods before them!" She raises her hands to the sky and with every word her voice mounts higher.
"Uh, lady, can you like... shut the fuck up for a moment?" I say with exasperation.
"For real, right? Her theatrics are lacking," Roxy says with a giggle.
"More like her voice is fucking annoying," Rory says while rubbing her ears, "Did you ever think to use magic on those vocal chords? I'm pretty sure you could at least make them match the Botox in your face."
"Silence!" Merelda yells like the entitled Elder she is.
Drug shifts and stands beside me, "No, my mate is right. Shut the fuck up. You sound like a cat that gargled rocks and glass, then drowned itself but survived. It's truly annoying. So how about I speak and you turn on your hearing aid." Drug steps closer to the gate and it makes me fucking nervous as hell.
Smoke pours from his nose as he stares at the sneering old bitch, "You forget one thing. We are the keepers of Hell and soon I will watch your skin burn from your bones while I dance amongst the flames to the melody of your screams."
Okay, that was pretty fucking dark and it totally turned me on.
I'm watching Drug's back flex with the way he rolls his head and I'm practically drooling. He's walking sex no matter the situation. I just want to reach around him and dip my hands into those jeans that hug his ass so good…
Stop it, Black Bird. This is not the time for a boner.
I should just keep going with my dirty thoughts but I don't.
"The day you were born is a day I loathe, your sister is the only one who is worthy to breathe." She screeches at Drug before looking at me. "You think that because you've somehow gotten your talons into my grandsons that you are safe?" Ensue her fucking cackling again.
Will she ever get to the point?
"You aren't safe, just as your mother wasn't safe. Do you know how she begged, how her bones snapped with each word from my mouth? You will have the same fate and your sisters will watch helpless as I carve out your abomination of a heart."
Just before her voice is done renting the air, I teleport myself behind her and bring my short sword down in an arch. Her screams pierce the air as my right sword slams hilt deep into her shoulder, cutting through the bone and tendons with brutality. Holding onto the sword's grip, I pull her back as I swing my left sword over her chest, aiming for her heart.
Before the point touches her skin, she bursts into hundreds of black moths the size of my palm.
"Get out of there, Ronny!" Drug screams as he runs for the gate.
I'm not hearing him though because I'm swinging my swords through the air at the cloud of moths. Their disgusting little wings flapping around my face and hears giving me the fucking creepy crawlies. Their fat bodies fall to the ground and turn to dust.
Drug is ten feet from the iron gate entrance when the moths all form together again creating Merelda. Even though she's bleeding from her shoulder, she has no problem cackling and moving.
She lifts her hand and weaves her fingers and suddenly I can't move. My body is trapped like a cartoon character who has been frozen by ice, only much scarier.
Drug begins to pass the threshold of the gate when suddenly he's airborne. He lands with a bone breaking thud on the ground fifty feet back while I scream his name.
"Your puppy can't save you, little oracle." She grips her fist tighter and the invisible rope around me squeezes harder. I shift into my cobra but the ropes are still coiled around me so I shift back.
If I'm going to die like this, I'm going to curse this motherfucker before I go.
"Such a shame to have to kill you. Your parents were worthless but you and your sisters could have been magnificent under my tutelage. I can smell the magic laying latent in your veins..."
She continues to circle me as she mocks me but my mind focuses on one word, magic. I have new abilities, granted they're not very consistent but they're there nonetheless.
I see everyone trying to break out of whatever barrier Merelda threw up but it must be something crazy because they haven't been able to break through.
Darren has ripped up the ground around it but so far he’s been unable to find an opening.
Brothers get your girls back and let's throw hellfire at it as one. Drug's orders come through our mental link.
No! Stop, she can easily kill me. I'm going to throw hellfire at her from here. As soon as I'm free we port back to the house, grab the books and teleport out of here. Got it? I mentally shout my orders to Drug who I'm certain passes the message onto his brothers because they all nod.
Hold on to Darren and your men, sisters. I have an idea. When I'm free, get them to the house quickly.
I don't wait for them to reply, I keep my focus on Merelda's magically youthful face as she continues to mock how weak my mother and father were.
I bite back my anger as best I can and focus on how her eyes are the same shade of green as Drug's. Of course, his are much more captivating.
The way he watches me, even now, with admiration and appreciation. They burn bright when he's in throes of passion and battle. The way his body moves as he fights and the fierce protectiveness he has for his brothers.
I focus on him and the way he controls his Hellfire with ease. I picture it running through my veins like slow moving lava until I feel the heat in my hand. When Merelda gets closer to me, snarling in my face, I smile.
"You talk too much." I wiggle my fingers and feel the heat of Drug's flames dance along the tips. She notices the black flames and her eyes widen with unfiltered fear. She jumps back just as I flick one tiny flame in her direction with a mocking cackle of my own.
In her hast to escape the deadly element, her hold on me slips and I immediately teleport inside our barrier.
My sisters grab their men and Darren and vanish to the house while Merelda screams like a child throwing a tantrum.
Drug grabs me and slams his lips to mine for a quick but punishing kiss before turning to his grandmother, "We're far from over, old hag. Soon it’ll be your head in a bag."
Then we're gone.
Once we're standing in the house, I'm bombarded with everyone yelling at me at once.
"What the hell were you thinking, Ron?"
"You could have been killed!"
"What do you think would happen to my brother if you had died?"
"You risked yourself needlessly."
"Crow soup, Black." Drug rumbles next to me.
Everyone screams and tosses their hands around in exasperation as I stand there and wait for them to chill out. I mean, yeah I could have died but the bitch threatened my sisters, I was going to let that go. Plus, I proved the bitch could be hurt with weapons and she's terrified of Hellfire! Those are useful things to know, right?
"Did she smell like onions?" Roxy's yell is last and she screams it just as everyone quiets down so it was the only thing everyone heard clearly.
We all look at her and she shrugs, "I thought we were just yelling our thoughts."
With the chaos and adrenaline still running through our systems, we all bust up laughing at the sheer craziness of it all. Roxy and Rory wrap me in hugs and toss more threats but quickly go back to whatever it was they were doing before.
"I'll keep watch, you guys pack or whatever the fuck you're going to do. We need to get the hell out of here now," Draven says stoically before passing by Rory without a second glance. She watches him for a moment before turning away and grabbing three duffels out of the hall closet.
I want to use our sister-speak and ask her but I don't know if she has built a block strong enough to keep Draven from hearing her reply to my nosy ass questions. We can block each other perfectly but I can't seem to completely block Drug, it might be the same with her and Draven.
Rory goes into mother hen mode, ordering her little chicks around, "Grab the books, Ronny. Roxy, go get every potion already made. Darren, where do we start looking for the talismans? Roxy says they're located in three separate places?"
"Yes, they are separately hidden. I don't know what they could be. You will need to split up and cover as much ground as possible. Brothers, you three will know what the talisman is when you see it and if you dig deep enough into your memories, I'm sure you can find the locations. It's your past, you will succeed."
Darren reaches into his bag and pulls out three twine necklaces. Each of the necklaces are braided like tribal bands and they have a moonstone in the center.
"Wear these at all times. If you guys get lost while separated and can't teleport to one another, rub the stone and say this chant, 'If you get lost, rub the moon. Close your eyes and I'll find you.'"