Hidden Runes

by G. Bailey

  "Did you feel that magic?" Hali asks me, and I feel her shiver through our joined hands.

  "Yes, I'm surprised you could though," I admit, eyeing Hali as she shouldn't have supernatural senses until she gets her witch powers at eighteen. Though she shouldn’t have supernatural healing so early, but here we are.

  "This way," a female voice calls out to our left, where a door suddenly opens and there is a warm light on the other side. Shrugging at Hali, I walk to the door and push it open, walking into the cosy living room where an old woman is sitting in a rocking chair, a glowing purple cat on her lap that is purring as she strokes it and rocks the chair. The woman has long grey hair that is shiny and smooth. Her body is small, hidden in a cloak, and though she is old, she still has a beauty to her—an almost youthful, magic glow to her pale skin. The cat lifts its head, eyeing us for a second before going back to sleep like we aren’t here. There is a glass coffee table right in front of the woman, and near it, a sofa. The rest of the room is empty bar the large fireplace with a hot fire burning inside of it.

  "Hello," Hali awkwardly says, waving a hand at the woman who lets out a little laugh but keeps her eyes on me.

  "Hello, death-marked witch. Why don't you and your guardian sit down?" she asks, pointing a hand at the flowery couch opposite her.

  "I'd rather stand and so would Hali," I reply, tugging Hali’s hand to stop her sitting down.

  "Standing is rude, at least it is to me. How else will you drink your tea and eat your biscuits?" she asks and clicks her fingers. Suddenly, there are two mugs with steam coming out the tops of them and a plate of biscuits in the middle of the coffee table in front of the sofa. I eye the cup of tea and biscuits before returning to observe the woman. They may be Hali’s favourite biscuits, and I love a cup of tea, but that isn’t going to make me sit.

  "If you could make that a plate of bacon, I will sit down," I barter, and the woman laughs, clicking her fingers again. A plate of crispy bacon appears next to the cup of tea, looking and smelling perfect. I wink at her before going to sit down, nearly forgetting the reason we are here as I eat the bacon and wash it down with the tea. Bacon really is my downfall at times.

  "Evie can be lured into any trap with a plate of bacon," Hali states, rolling her eyes at me.

  "This isn't a trap though, because I trust Azi with my life more than I trust myself," I say. "But I would like your bacon appearing power, Lamia."

  "It's not meant to just make bacon appear, Salvatore, and neither can you ever harness my power. You are struggling with an ancient power as it is," she replies, eyeing me carefully.

  “How do you know Azi?” I ask her, changing the subject before we talk about something so dangerous. I need to know why he trusts her.

  “Azi and Seth are children of dear friends of mine, who we lost many years past. I do not have friends, never needed them, but Azi’s parents where important to me as the only ones I’ve trusted in my long life. They helped me survive when I was hunted, and Azi showed me the same kindness as a child when he did not need to. I owed him a debt for the kindness, and it was paid not so long ago. That’s how I know your demon…you can say I am a family friend of sorts,” she explains to me, her accent unrecognisable and distant like she is imagining a story I couldn’t understand.

  "So, family friend, the black magic...you know of it?" I ask her, and she smirks as she rests back in the chair, letting it rock.

  "The magic is very similar to my own, but uncontrollable, hostile and never should be held by a Protector with angel blood," she replies. “It was not made for angels or Protectors or anyone that walks this Earth. Ancient magic has one owner, and it can only be held by them. Cex was always a jealous child, one I warned my friends would be a problem when he was older. They loved him nonetheless, like any parents do, and could not stop his anger when he grew up, and now he has a way to control a deathly magic. Only it has taken his soul and any trace of good in him to do so.”

  "My angel blood is why the black magic is rejecting me?" I ask, not wanting to dwell on Cex and how he was always evil and apparently more so now. That doesn’t surprise me.

  "Killing you, Evelina. That is what the magic is doing. It cannot be held by anyone currently alive, and it can only be destroyed by the death of an angel. Even a half like you would take the magic to death with you," she explains. “The other half of the magic is still deadly enough to destroy the world, and the only person who can take that half from Cex is you. You must kill him and absorb the power before it tries to attack the world. It would be like a storm, the red dust would wash out human, Protector, angel and demon alike. Witches and reapers would fall to it as well, and there would be nothing left.”

  "No, then we need to get it out of her!" Hali exclaims. “Not pour more of the deadly power into Evie. Tell us how to get it out.”

  "The power cannot be taken unless Cex decides to take it, and the same vice versa. Either way, Evie will die," she states, the word die seems to plunge the room into silence.

  "I am here, and I can hear you. Is there no way to survive it?" I ask her.

  "I do not know many things, but taking magic that is not yours comes with a price," she says. "I invited you in here alone because Azi cannot understand it, and he would die for you."

  "I don't understand it!" Hali exclaims.

  "That is why you will forget this part of the conversation the moment you leave my house. It is for only Evie to remember," she says, and Hali shakes her head, staring at me.

  "How long?" I ask, knowing I need all the information I can get.

  "The black magic is unpredictable. I will give you this to help your control and hide you from Cex, your knight," she says and holds out her hand. A necklace appears out of nowhere, with a dark red, glowing stone on a long chain. "When the colour is all drained in the stone, Cex will be able to find you, and the black magic is no longer controlled."

  "Thank you," I say, standing up and walking to her, looking down at the necklace, which she closes in her hand.

  "It comes with a cost," she says when I stop in front of her.

  "Azi suggested you like to charge for your help," I mutter. "What do you want?"

  "Nothing from you, a queen soon to not be one. Even then, there is nothing you can give me. I want a debt owed from Hali," she says, moving her gaze to Hali. “I see a bright future for you and a time in which I will need your help.”

  "Hell no," I angrily snap. "Forget your help. Hali, we are going."

  "I promise you a debt," Hali says, and the words magically echo around the room as I glare at her.

  "Hali! She is a dangerous demon and could ask anything for that debt!" I shout at her as she stands up, nods once at the demon before looking at me. Not that anything she could say could make this any better in the slightest. A debt is a debt. In the end, I wouldn’t be able to stop Lamia from collecting it. I can hear and sense the magic wrapped around Hali’s last words.

  "Pick the necklace up, Evie. You kept me alive, and I owe you a much bigger debt I want to pay back. That necklace will give you time with your guys, with me and your family you just found. That time is worth any debt, and I owe you," Hali tells me, acting so strong and so much older than she should have to. “Let me give you this, Evie. Please,” she pleads with me, tears falling from her big pale grey eyes. I hate it when she cries…because all I want to do is fix the world for her.

  "Hali..." I whisper, sighing.

  "For once in your life, listen to someone and pick the necklace up," Lamia tells me, and I pull my gaze to her. I step closer, slowly picking up the necklace and lowering my voice.

  "Thanks for the bacon and the advice," I say. "But if your debt hurts her in any way, then I will find a way to end your existence. Even if I'm dead, I will find a way from the other side. Hali is my world, understood?"

  "Your adoptive child will not be hurt by my debt. I do not wish a war with the Salvatore," she replies. "Even if I did not care, I respect your past actions too much to betray
you. I have only ever helped or interfered with good people. Azi is one of those, you are another, and Hali will be another when she is challenged."

  "What are you?" I ask her, wondering who this strange demon is and how she has so much power. Demons usually have red, orange or blue skin or hair. Something that makes them appear less human. This woman looks human to me, even when it’s clear she is anything but.

  "A time keeper demon. The last of my kind, and that is a true curse you could never imagine," she says, putting her cat down as she stands up. She is a little taller than me as she waves a hand over the plates and cups on the table, making them disappear.

  "Maybe it is a curse because you keep yourself locked away in here. All alone," I reply. “You could come out into the world.”

  "I'm not alone, I have my familiar and memories of family that will keep me alive for many more years yet," she tells me.

  "Demons can have familiars like Protectors?" I ask. Never heard of that before.

  "As you well know, demons, Protectors, angel, witch, reaper or whatever. We are all similar in the way we share the magic of this world," she says, winking once at me which is creepy, but I don't say that. I agree with her statement though. "Time for you to leave. Your people do need you at this time."

  "I won't remember this conversation, will I?" Hali asks, coming to stand next to me as Lamia goes back to her chair.

  "No, but I will remind you of it when I collect my debt, death-marked witch," Lamia replies.

  "My name is Hali," she sarcastically states, walking to the door and out into the corridor.

  "Good luck," Lamia whispers to me, though I hear her loud and clear from the other side of the room.

  "Same to you, Lamia," I reply, nodding once in a respectful way before walking out to the corridor. I slide the necklace over my head before tucking it into my vest.

  "I won't let you die from this magic. It won't happen, Evie," Hali says. "Even if I don't remember why I feel sick and sad from how scared I am to lose you. The demon can't get rid of that feeling, and I will know only one person in this world can make me that scared to lose them."

  "When did you get so smart...and well, older?" I ask, placing my hand on her shoulder.

  "Around the time I was taken hostage, then rescued by strangers, then lost you. Then you came back and, well, I could keep listing," she says, “but this mark I have…it means life will never be easy for me.”

  "When this is over, you can have a normal, protected life," I tell her, meaning it. “We can find a new Chinese place we love, and catch up on the Catfish episodes we have missed. We can have our normal back.”

  "Not without you though, and you can’t promise me a future right now. You are my family, and I have nothing without you," she says, letting tears stream down her cheeks, and before I can reach for her, she walks out of the door, letting the magic take her memories. I follow her out next, seeing her stand on the steps looking confused as she wipes away a tear.

  "Should we go inside?" she asks, looking at the door in confusion as it slams shut, and suddenly the busy streets of New York burst back into life.

  "No, we already have and you have forgotten. We have to go now," I explain to her, offering her my hand to hold.

  "Why am I so sad?" she asks.

  "I don't know," I lie as she takes my hand, because telling her the truth will only hurt her more, and I won't do that. I can't ever do that to her because it's my job to protect her, and that is what I am going to do. I'm going to protect everyone.

  Eighty-Six

  Trex

  "Star, come on. You have to eat something, girl," I say, stroking Star's back as she sits by the window, hearing her huff once more at me. I'm not surprised to find her waiting once again, like she has done since we had to let Azi take Evie away to keep her safe even if none of us wanted that to happen. It feels wrong not to be at her side when the world is going to shit, but if I trust anyone to keep her safe, it is Azi. I stroke a hand down Star's back, hearing the slight whine she lets out as I look out of the tiny window at the demon underground. This place shouldn't exist in such peace, but here it does. When Evie passed out, she sent out waves of red magic that were so powerful, it killed demons like they were nothing more than paper in the wind.

  The demon underground is made of old shipping containers that rise high in the sky, and the demons have made their own little streets lined with everything from nightclubs to food markets. The demon underground Evie took us to was destroyed by yellow demons, and this one in the south of France is one of the last two demon undergrounds left, according to the demons we have spoken to. The fact they opened their doors to hundreds of Protectors tells me all I need to know. They are kinder than we Protectors are, because we would have never let a demon into the city.

  I don't think I will ever get the image of watching the gold buildings of my home burn down. The screams of the people we couldn't save still haunt my dreams as well as the knowledge the city is gone. There is nothing but ash, dust and pain in the place I loved and grew up in. Evie was always right about the demons though; they are just like us. They have families. They fall in love and fight for what they believe is the best thing for the world.

  "Star, Evie would be upset if you turned down the bacon-covered steaks I made you," I tell her, knowing bribing her to eat might be my only chance. "And you need to be strong for when Evie comes back to us." Star looks at me like I'm the devil before huffing and walking into the kitchen on the other side of the room. I pick up my sword from where it is resting by the front door, clipping it onto my back before walking out the container, onto the metal panels outside.

  "Trex!" I hear someone shout, and I walk to the edge of the panel, holding onto the bars and looking down at Connor who is at the bottom of the stairs. "We have a problem!" I don't need him to tell me anything more as I sprint down the path and to the stairs. I quickly run down the steps, jumping around the corners until I get to the bottom. Connor nods his head to the side, running down the alleyway and into the crowds of people. There is cheering, swords clashing, and I look up as a fireball flies into the air.

  "What's happening?" I ask as Connor pushes his way through the demons in the crowd, and the sound of fighting gets louder.

  "One of our people is fighting a demon. I don't know the details," Connor shouts back to me as we continue to get through the people who are not interested in letting us pass. We finally push through the crowd just in time to see Nix jump into the battle. He grabs the demon that is on fire, lifting him in the air and throwing him across the dirt floor before spinning to face the blond Protector, placing a hand in the air and warning him not to bother.

  "What the fuck is going on?" I ask, walking into the now silent space and over to Nix's side. He nods at me before looking back at the demon, who seems to be calculating the odds of trying that again. The Protector is a young man, one I don't know, and he is covered in burns and blood but stands his ground while facing us. He looks behind his shoulder once, holding a hand out, and a young demon woman with orange skin, black hair and big eyes runs to hold his hand. She clings to him as he kisses her forehead.

  "She is my sister, and mine to care for until she finds a mate," he spits out.

  "I choose him," the girl says. "I know we only met a few days ago, but sometimes you just know who you are meant to be with."

  "Then he dies for touching you. He is a dirty Protector, not even a demon! He cannot be trusted!" the demon shouts, and there are hushed whispers following his words. I go to speak when a hooded figure walks right into the middle of the circle. I know who it is instantly from the way she walks and how she holds herself.

  "When is everyone going to learn that demons and Protectors have more in common than their differences?" she says, lowering her hood and letting her long blue hair be revealed. The crowd instantly bows their heads as she locks eyes on mine, and I see the relief in her gaze. It matches my own. I'm fucking glad to see her alive and well. "I should know this fact bec
ause I was brought up around you, and I am a Protector. I am also your queen, and I will not tolerate us fighting each other. You can trust my words when I say that there is a fight coming our way, one which most of us will not survive, so save your strength for that. Save it for the overlord demon called Cex who wants to destroy every world, and I am going to stop him. We are going to stop him because this is our home. Protectors, humans, demons and every other creature that lives in this world need to stop him. No more fights, no more petty arguments. Save it for the real enemy."

  The crowd murmurs their agreements before the words Salvatore and queen are whispered instead. She has returned.

  Eighty-Seven

  "Blue, damn it is good to see you. I was worried," Connor states as the crowd disappears into the streets and, most of all, their eyes are no longer on me. Connor kisses me as he wraps his arms around my waist, and I lose myself in the feel of his lips against mine as I slide my hands into his soft hair. Someone clears their throat and a hand rests on my back. I pull away from Connor to see Nix at my side, smirking down at me. He purposely leans down and seductively kisses me while Connor holds me, reminding me of that one time he watched Connor and me together, before he pulls back.

  "We all missed you, and you have an audience I presume you don't want," he says, and I nod in a little bit of a haze. I forget how they make me feel when I’m around them. I forgot how much I missed them and feel complete with them near. Everything feels just a little less terrifying when they are here.