“No, not yet they aren’t, but I can feel it in you, the desire to finish them off. You’ve grown darker, and you desire death.”
Stepping away from my meal, I allowed him to slump to the ground. “Who are you? Why do you keep yourself hidden? What are you afraid of?”
A laugh echoed along the walls of the silent alley. “Am I hidden? Funny, I thought you were the one who kept yourself hidden. Why don’t you reveal yourself?”
With blood in the corners of my mouth, and the metallic taste still coating my tongue, I stepped away from the three bodies that now littered the floor of the alley. They were still alive, and would remain so unless I decided to finish them off. The paralyzing effects of my saliva would wear off eventually. They would stumble back to their pathetic little lives, no memory of what had occurred within the cement and brick of this dank smelly alley.
Just as it had the last time I’d conversed with this voice, warmth spread across my back, as though the solid form of someone embraced me. I knew better than to turn and look. There would be nothing there except the dim alley behind me. Still, the feeling was difficult to shake. I will admit that my mental state was not what it should be. I was slowly walking down the spiraling path of destruction and insanity. I denied it, of course, believing I was still in control, and that I could fight the storm raging inside myself.
“Valkyrie, you can fight it, and you can overcome what’s happening to you. Change doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”
The voice whispered near my ear, causing a shiver to course down my spine as though the fingers of a lover followed that trail. Something about this voice, it called to me, beckoned me. It was familiar, but I suppose that made sense. If this voice was a figment of my imagination, then it made sense that I would choose a voice so achingly familiar, so important to me.
“Get out of my thoughts. You don’t exist anyway. You are something I made up to deal with my problems.” I began a brisk walk toward the outskirts of town. A new scent floated on the air, and I knew it well. It was the scent of Witches.
“Valkyrie, you did not make me up, although, I’m flattered you’d do such a thing to keep from forgetting me.”
I sighed. That was just great. Even the Aeron of my imagination was conceited. “Go away. Don’t flatter yourself. Leave me alone.”
The voice chuckled, and the sound was so bittersweet, so real and just the way Aeron would have sounded it made my heart flinch. I tried shutting this imaginary person from my mind. I didn’t want the heartache it brought or the truth. He was gone and no amount of imagination or hope was going to bring him back. I didn’t fully understand why his casket had been empty, but whatever the cause, I needed to move on, and put him in the past. When he tried speaking to me again, I took to the air in a rapid leap, my giant raven-like wings unfurling around me.
Gliding through the air, with the wind whipping through my hair and stinging my eyes, I took a deep sigh of the fresh air. The city below me was rank with pollution and the stench had begun to overwhelm me. Freeing my mind, I put Aeron and thoughts of him as far from me as I could. It hurt too much to think about him, let alone have unrealistic conversations with his memory. I was already hanging onto my sanity by a small thread, and all of this was certainly not helping me.
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Hovering in the air, I peered down on the building I had no doubt belonged to this rogue Witch Coven Rafael had spoken of. Magic glistened in the air around the steel fortress. The building was made completely of steel, and I found this intriguing. Perhaps this Witch, Niada, had known it would be fire that came for her in the end. Rafael had warned me to tread carefully. He’d said these dark Witches were powerful, and wise. I bided my time, watching. Witch lights decorated the exterior, lights which to the human eye would be undetectable, but to the un-human, obvious.
It was a downfall in Witchery. You could shield easily from mankind, but no so much from others like yourself. I noted two large men pacing opposite perimeters of the compound. They walked in a military fashion, and I knew this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park. Inside, I could see nothing as the place seemed to have not even a single window. Fortunately for me, I had an internal grid at my disposal. Closing my eyes, I willed it to the surface. Like a grid placed over the compound below, it locked into place. Small lights popped up in my mind, the heartbeats of those I hunted.
They were scattered about the grid, showing me that at least two more guards stood watch over one particular area inside the complex structure. Smiling, I knew that was likely the entrance. A group was gathered in a room deep below, and something instinctual told me that was where I would find the one I sought. Dropping silently from the air, I landed about a hundred yards from the steel wall surrounding the structure. My skin shifted to the darkness of soot, and my wings receded back into my body. To the untrained eye, I would be invisible in the murky half-light of the eclipse.
With the blood of the men I had made a meal of coursing through my veins, I was energized, and powerful. I feared nothing, and I knew my enemy lurked here. I was prepared to do whatever was necessary to gain answers. About to step forward and begin my attack, I froze. My senses picking something up. I was not alone. How had I missed this heartbeat? I could feel them, mere feet from my back. The animal in me raged at being caught off guard, and it was a struggle to contain the flame that itched to erupt across my skin.
Very slowly, I rotated half of my body, searching the darkness behind me. For miles, all I could see was the gloomy desert as it lay in the shadow of the eclipse. Nothing moved, nothing stirred, but I could hear their heartbeat. I could feel it in my veins. Taking a breath, I inhaled deeply, seeking the scent I hoped would alert me to my adversary. Sure enough, I was not disappointed, but I was surprised. Tilting my head to one side, I allowed the shock of the discovery to wash over me.
Stepping forward exactly two steps, I threw my arm out, sending the solid body flying backward. “Valkyrian, what in the hell are you doing here?”
He didn’t materialize before me as I expected, but I didn’t need to see him to envision the cocky grin that would be plastered to his mouth, or the sparkle of mischief that would glisten in his green eyes.
“Val, you didn’t think I would allow you to go and have all the fun, did you?” he chuckled in his youthful boyish way I had so missed all this time.
I would have laughed too, but my attention was quickly diverted by a snap of electricity on the air. It was there one moment, and gone again. In its wake, stood one large panther, his glowing yellow eyes glaring daggers at me. The fur along his shoulders ruffled, but it was the wrong way-like static caused it to fluff up. Narrowing my eyes, I allowed the power of my senses to come forward. When her smell hit me, I shook my head. Rosemary and redwoods and I knew who else had come. Tamyra would forever remind me of Oregon. I knew immediately it wasn’t just Valkyrian and Damien who had come.
“How the hell did you do that? You never told me you had the power to shift from place to place like that!” I was a bit put-off. That knowledge would have been very useful not so long ago.
“I’m sorry Darling. I am not able to use those powers when concealed by the amulet. It was something I was forced to give up.”
Frowning, I couldn’t help wonder why she and my brother were both here. “What are the three of you doing here?” thinking, I asked, “And a better question, how are you and Valkyrian able to be invisible?”
Tamyra laughed softly. “Tis an old Witch’s trick, a very old one. In fact, there is only one Witch who was ever able to achieve invisibility. He taught the three of us.”
I frowned again. I had little doubt as to the Witch she referred, but she had said the three of us. “Why only the three of you?”
“The Fiddler said only Valkyrian, myself, and Belladona would be worthy. I think he mistrusted others with such a powerful spell.”
I mulled over this new information. I was glad to note that other Witches could not become invisible, but I couldn�
�t help wonder why Rafael had chosen not to teach this spell to his apprentice. Shaking off the thoughts, I faced, well, I tried to face my friends and brother. Even for me, it was difficult holding a conversation with someone you couldn’t actually see.
“Okay. So, what exactly are the three of you doing here? I’m going to throw out a wild guess, the Fiddler told you what I was up to?”
“Yes, we confronted him when we noticed you were missing. When he told us who you had come looking for, we knew we couldn’t let you go alone. This Coven you are about to confront is a dangerous one, Valkyrie.” I could hear the sincere concern in Tamyra’s voice, and I knew to heed her warning.
Shaking my head, I threw up my hands. “All right. I guess I’m out voted. Let’s do this then.”
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10
Dark Witches
With my invisible brother and the Witch Tamyra, as well as the black-as-night Panther, I snuck silently through the thick soft sand of the desert. I had shed my high heels after the first couple of very awkward and unsuccessful steps, and now I trod barefoot along the silt. The smooth coolness of the course sand was welcome as I could all too easily feel the fire rising within me. I struggled to keep it at bay, refusing to allow it to control me. It was pivotal that nothing give us away until the exact moment we were ready to expose ourselves.
Before we had begun our tactical descent toward the fortified steel structure, I had told my three comrades something very important: if you think I’m losing control of my fires, get the hell out. I hoped it did not come down to that, but the truth was, I was not infallible. I made mistakes, I lost control, and sometimes, I didn’t want to stop it from happening. It was the ugly reality of my new nature. I had a darker side, and whether I wanted to admit it or not, I was not always in control.
Reeling my attention back to the matter at hand, I focused all of my senses on the guards ahead of us. I had my mental grid locked down, and I knew where there were people in this seemingly impenetrable building. Waiting just outside the wall, I glanced at Tamyra, indicating to her the shimmer of the magic force field that stood between us and entrance to the home of this dark coven. Tamyra, who I couldn’t even see, brushed past me, and a moment later, the slight hint of the magic protecting this place vanished.
Surrounding the front gate, the others waited while I took to the sky. Dropping down behind the first guard, I landed softly on my bare feet. Stepping close to him, I reached forward, grabbing his face, and twisting. The sickening pop of his neck did little to ease my already fluttery stomach. I felt nothing in regards to what I had done. This was war, and I was a creature who killed. It was what it was.
The ease in which I was able to dispatch this first guard told me he must not have been a very experienced Witch. More likely he was here for the muscle. Glancing over my shoulder, I beckoned to my comrades. Moving toward the doorway, I knew there would be two men inside just beyond the door. There really wasn’t an easy way to gain entrance without alerting them to our presence, so I decided to lure them out instead. Using my most sultry voice, I called out from where I stood, and allowed my skin to once again become alabaster.
“Is there anyone there? Please, I need help. Please, anyone…” my voice was soft, delicate and pleading.
I had to work hard to keep the terrified expression on my face when the door opened in mere seconds. I wanted to laugh at the simplicity of men. The two guards were built similar to the last one, big, brawny, and probably not so bright. They stared at me, confusion and lust written all over their faces. Reaching a hand down to the very short hem of my skirt, I allowed my lip to twitch as though I was going to cry.
“Please, he bit me, just there,” looking down at my thigh, I began pulling the leather skirt upward, giving the two men a look farther up. The expressions on their faces were comical. One dashed forward, and the other was quick behind, trying to shove him out of the way. I allowed them to kneel down, getting a good long look at my exposed skin. Without their knowledge, Tamyra and Valkyrian snuck behind them, and a moment later, the two witless men lay on the sand.
Stepping over their bodies, I pulled my skirt back down, and made a bee-line to the open doors. With the others behind me, I referred back to my grid, passing halls and doorways. I knew where she was, and I needn’t waste time with the others. She was my reason for coming here, and it was her I sought. Racing noiselessly down steel corridors, I quickly found myself walking down the stairs I knew would lead me to her. There were six others in the room with her, and the air was thick with magic. It clung to the steel walls and hung in the air like a shroud.
Judging by the heartbeats within the room, I knew they were completely ignorant to my presence. I lingered in the hallway just outside, on the opposite side of the heavy looking metal door. I can’t really say what held me in place, what caused me to hesitate. I felt as though an invisible hand held mine, applying pressure to draw me away from the doorway. Glancing over my shoulder to where the panther stood beside my brother and Tamyra, I frowned. For a second, the air around them shifted and I could just begin to make out their shapes.
They were several feet behind me, separated from me by the massive form of the Panther. Still, I felt the nearly physical presence there. A warmth caressed my cheek, and I closed my eyes briefly. I may not have wanted to admit I was conjuring Aeron’s voice in my mind, but I cannot deny that the almost realistic touch of heat across my check brought me comfort.
“Valkyrie, be careful…” his voice was the softest whisper in my mind, like lips brushing my skin in a feather-lite touch.
Inhaling deeply, I shoved him from my mind. I couldn’t allow even the slightest distraction right then. I needed all of my focus. Getting my emotions under control took a moment, but I accomplished it. I nodded to the others, and shoved the door open. It took the Witches gathered within the large room several moments to realize what was happening. In short, precious time, Damien sequestered two of them into a corner whilst I advanced into the room.
Relaxing my body, I became once again the beautiful ivory skinned Vampire. I watched with glee as the expressions on the faces of the Witches in front of me changed from surprise to fear. I couldn’t deny it. I fed off of their fear. It sent a thrill down my spine to see the terrified look in their eyes, to see the moment of clarity in their minds when they realized that this may just be the moment of their deaths.
My eyes were drawn instinctually to the farthest corner of the room. She stood there, small and petite, her unusually slanted dark eyes staring at me. Her face too registered shock and a healthy dose of fear. She knew I was here for her. As my brother and Tamyra advanced on the other Witches in their undistinguishable forms, I alone stepped toward the one called Niada. Her eyes flashed around the room, assessing her situation.
“I knew this day would come. I knew one day you would come after me, you with your blackened soul and your appetite for death.”
I ignored her words. She had herself pressed against the back wall, trapped. She and I both knew it. I doubted she would go easily, and I was right. Smoke rose from the floor around her, and she sent me a vicious smile. Before my very eyes, she began to change, becoming something else entirely. Her neck elongated, and her hands formed into long tentacle-like fingers with claws where her nails had been. Her skin faded from pale ivory to a putrid green. Her already slanted eyes slanted further, and grew as her face enlarged as well.
Behind me, I heard Tamyra’s quiet voice next to my ear. “She is a Niamph. A forest one, if I’d have to guess. Best be careful, Val.”
Staring at the absurdly ugly creature before me, I tried to wrap my head around what I had just seen. She was easily twice the height she had been, and her eyes blinked with a third eyelid. It was somewhat clear with a murky appearance, but incredibly distracting to me. The thought that Desmond had been sleeping with a woman who morphed into this half tree, half insect creature turned my stomach. Inside of me, I felt the stirring of my dark power as it roared
to life, begging to be released against this enemy.
I wasn’t sure releasing that part of me was such a good idea. I needed this Witch…creature alive for questioning, not dead and burned to ash. Not to mention, I was a little afraid of using the dark power within me. Afraid it might consume me and take over as it had in the past. I did, however, call forth the wings of my reaper side. They emerged with the usual popping and cracking of bones, and it brought me some small pleasure to note the sheer shock and disbelief on Niada’s face.
Shaking her head, she said, “That is not possible. He told me nothing of this!” Without warning, she lunged at me, wrapping a green root around my leg. Immediately, the fires beneath my skin flared to life. Niada jerked back with a scream, her skin charred and burned. Her dark eyes snapped back to my face, and she shrieked. Roots began growing all around the room, heading my way. They were quickly overtaking the walls and ceiling. I ducked past the first one that came at me, sliced the next with my sword, and burned another. Electricity crackled in the air where Tamyra and another Witch dueled it out using elemental magic. All I could see was bright colors, flashes of fire, and swirls of wind.
Leaping toward the giant tree creature the Witch had become, I sliced at her with my sword, watching as the blue flames sizzled along her bark- like-skin exposing sap that smelled faintly sweet as it boiled. She shrieked again, tossing something at me, and I found myself in a cloud of dust. It swirled around me, like the funnel of a tornado. My fire burst from me, igniting across the entirety of my skin. My defenses were rising with or without my command, and I feared that soon I would lose control of my already darkening soul.
Vines and roots sped toward me, wrapping my feet and seeking to hold me in their clutches, but luckily for me they were not immune to fire. Niada was enraged. I could see it in her face, in the jerky angry movements she made as she cast her tentacle-like roots at me again and again. Her black eyes were narrowed, and even in them I could read her desperation. I knew this Witch had secrets she didn’t want me to know, and I knew I needed to capture her alive.
Valkyrie Divided (Pyralis Book 2) Page 11