Sacred Moon: Book 2

by Alejandro Marrero

  “Pahaliah is the Angel of Virtuosity and Healing. He’s an excellent person to be acquainted with, Jeremiah,” Azrael chimed in.

  Well, I couldn’t think of anything better for Jeremiah. As long as he doesn’t drink from him. Or wait, does that even matter anymore considering the Angels were free now? Will, Kindred in the circumstances with an untethered Angel, be okay? Or would the power of being star-coursed also serve as protection from his mind being washed away?

  “He is. Paha is incredible. Actually, this is the first time I’ve been apart from him since we were helping the Emerald City citizens, and it’s really challenging being apart from him. It’s taking a lot of strength and mental fortitude to not flash to his side and see how he is doing right now. I don’t understand it,” Jeremiah confessed with a slight reddening of his cheeks.

  “Do you find him attractive?” I asked because, well, I wanted to know, and yes, I’m nosey. It’s not like I have a stack of People magazines here with celebrity gossip.

  “Yes. Paha is the most handsome and beautiful being I’ve ever seen. If he so much as puts his hands casually on my shoulder, it lights me up inside like his touch is energizing. I feel he’s interested in me romantically as well though I don’t really know myself very well. What if I’m not the best person for him?” Jeremiah asked inquisitively while appearing a bit distraught.

  “Well, Jeremiah, to me, it sounds straightforward. He is your star-coursed one. When you speak of him, your whole demeanor lights up, and your radiate happiness. When he’s not around, you’re missing him and thinking about when you’ll be close to him again. You are also absentmindedly touching your heart center. These all point to having met or interacted with your star-coursed one. There is no doubt in my mind he is also touching his heart center at the moment and missing your company. Why don’t you just invite him up here to dine with us? If he’s indeed your star-coursed one, all you need do is direct your thoughts, or mind-speak to him to join you for dinner in the western spire. Just be wary, he is an Angel. Though he is untethered and maybe your star-coursed one, there is still the possibility of losing your memory should you drink his blood as you’re a Kindred. However, you have and are currently our friend. You’re welcome to invite him here. If he’s important to you, then he’s important to us,” Donovan said with sincerity.

  I looked at Jeremiah, and it was clear he was conflicted, or something was going on as he had a pinched expression on his face.

  “Dude, you look like you’re trying to hold back a huge fart,” Donovan directed at Jeremiah with a laugh. We all, including Jeremiah, giggled too.

  “Sorry, I was trying to do the mind-speak thing and didn’t realize it could show on my face how much I was concentrating,” he said with mirth.

  I guess toot jokes are always funny. Then in a flash of light and a ruffle of wings, an Angel I can only assume was Pahaliah appeared. He had long brown hair that passed his shoulders. Pahaliah had a simple copper halo braided delicately to his hair, and he had four auburn wings instead of two. He wore a long tunic style robe with a braided fibrous belt on his narrow waist. He was handsome indeed and dressed modestly. He had a bow on his person and a quiver of arrows on his back.

  Jeremiah then jumped out of his chair and embraced the over a foot taller Angel. Pahaliah, I assume, smiled and returned the affectionate hug. Looks like they both missed each other.

  “I heard you call for me, Brennus. I’m here,” Pahaliah said with a smile.

  “I didn’t think my mind-speak was successful. I tried really hard to tell you to come, and here you are! I’m so relieved!” Jeremiah confessed while laying his head on Paha’s chest. Yup, somebody’s swooning.

  “I’ll always come when you call Jeremiah. You’re my star-coursed one,” he said with a smile.

  “You are! Yes, you are! I thought you were simply kind to me. However, my heart ached to be apart from you, and now I’m overjoyed. Are you well? Are all the citizens that were injured before they made their way into the city healed?” Jeremiah asked while Donovan was watching the whole commotion while stuffing food into his happy face like popcorn at a movie. Abbadon was eating some fruits, but everyone was still watching the scene unfold in front of them between Jeramiah and Pahaliah.

  “You mind-spoke successfully and very loudly. You need only direct your thoughts effortlessly with the intent for me to hear, and I will always hear them clearly. Even if it is merely a whisper in your mind sent my way. The citizens are all healed as well, my love. I helped a young Elven woman give birth right after you and your friends followed the King and Queen, which took some time. I’m sorry to of been delayed. Though today was a hard day and no doubt hard fortnight for the citizens of this realm, a beautiful elven baby was born in safety provided by everyone assembled here. The mother Enya and father Estyus named their beautiful new son Enyus, a combination of the boy’s proud parents’ names,” Pahaliah explained to all Jeremiah, and all of us assembled.

  “Awe, a baby! That’s welcome news indeed! We’ll have to go visit the parents when we can and offer our blessings,” I squealed in delight. I love babies. Oh my goodness, I’m getting all the gossip without any of my magazines or the internet. Life is good right now. Also, hot tamale Jeramiah has found his star-coursed one, and he’s a looker! Nothing could have been better news to hear!

  “Congratulations to you both, Jeramiah and Pahaliah! Come dine with us and let’s toast to the good news of finding each other, and all the healing help you provided the Emerald Elves and, of course, to baby Enyus!” Donovan said while his face sported crumbs of bread on it. Right now, we couldn’t care less about his stomach. The good news was welcomed. Pahaliah and Jeramiah untangled themselves from each other, and they both returned to sitting with us at the table.

  Azrael got up, and using a decanter in the center of the table, filled up all our glasses to the brim with Elven wine. We then all held up our glasses and said, “Cheers.” Each of us expressing our joy in Jeremiah and Pahaliah meeting each other as star-coursed ones and, of course, the new baby Enyus. We then focused on eating, joking, and laughing for a while until miraculously, all our plates were picked clean. Donovan then magicked them all into being clean and stacked perfectly. He guided us all to the seating area of couches and wing-back chairs. Our stomachs were full of Elven delights and our spirits high from the good news.

  “Alright, everyone, that was delicious, and welcome Pahaliah to our growing tribe. My awareness shows me we have spacious rooms available for all of us upstairs, and we can retire shortly. However, let us debrief a bit,” Donovan stated, which was so not what I wanted to hear as I cuddled up with Leona on this comfortable couch.

  “That’s actually a good idea, Dawnyboy. This may be the only time we can discuss things freely and make plans for tomorrow. We’re going to have to take care of things,” Leilah chimed to my slight annoyance.

  Don’t get me wrong, they were right. We did need to prepare for things, but wouldn’t it be nice to just sit down and drink, enjoy being cozy for a while before things got all earth-shatteringly serious? Well, Donovan hasn’t steered us wrong yet, so it was best we prepared for everything and anything.

  “Alright, privacy shield incoming. As above so below.” Donovan gave me a wink while he conjured a perfect privacy sphere effortlessly above and below us. It immediately became quiet with only our own selves making sounds.

  “Okay, we may speak freely now. So here’s what we know. Please feel free to correct me at any time. Our shield-craft is perfect, but it’s not enough to shield this city. We need to defeat the malicious invaders porting from the Shadowlands to the Elven Lands. Once we do this, we should ward the whole continent. I think we should do this to all of the Isle of Mu as well. If we continue shielding and warding with the intent that nothing that intends to harm or is unwelcomed comes into the land, realm, or city, that will stop Lilith from conquering more people. It will, in effect, limit the growth potentiality of her power and armies to what it is currently
. We cannot afford for her to enslave and tether more beings to her will. This will only make our goal to restore Lunaria and defeat her harder if we don’t act preemptively. Does everyone agree?” Donovan said while giving us all an inquisitive glance. An easy tell ‘cause he always arches his left eyebrow when wondering.

  “It sounds like a good plan, that’s certain. We remove Lilith’s ability to increase her powers and the size of her armies. That is a smart strategy. However, ponder this.

  “What about the realm of Madera, the Wood Elves? Or Draconious, the Realm of the Dragons and Wyverns? Or Iron Sky, the realms of the Dwarves. Or Sunyata, the realm and land of the Light Elves. There’s also Shangrila, the Realm of the Illuminated Ones, Dakas, Dakinis, Dewas, and Snow Lion shifters? There are countless realms for Lilith’s retinue to invade and increase her army’s size and her own well of power.

  “We will have to visit all those realms to shield them from Lilith’s attacks or invasion to really stop her from amassing her army. What’s prudent about doing this preemptively is that we’ll also build up our own allies and army. They may be needed to defeat her in the Shadowlands. Her current seat of power where the Key of Fates resides. Regardless of our actions here, we need to protect all the realms to indeed have a chance of defeating Lilith and restoring Lunaria for the Unicorns,” Leona explained quite logically. I hadn’t even thought of that.

  “Well said and good point. I’m glad we had the foresight to set up a privacy shield. The reality is that no matter where we go, it hasn’t mattered if it’s a realm dominated by one type of being. All realms are usually pretty diversified. When we engage in conversations like this, we must also not be caught unaware that Lilith may have her own spies in all the realms you mentioned. Are we in good terms with every one of those realms? Are they all amicable to being helped, Leona?” Donovan asked my incredibly wise and beautiful girlfriend. Leave her to think of absolutely everything with her keen mind.

  “Actually, yes. We have free trade with all of those realms except Draconious. We’ve not seen a dragon in eons. They’re notoriously neutral and hoard their goods, so they don’t trade. They can also go into a meditative slumber for millennia and are very untrusting of humans. We’re not humans. These are only things I’ve heard, I’m not confident of their accuracy. However, if Lilith has a Shadow Dragonkin, then it merits that we should befriend the Dragonkin or, at a minimum, try to seek them out. Their realm is near the Nordic Terran areas,” Leona concluded.

  We all just sat silent for a while, thinking about this information, sipping our wine, and generally being deep in thought. Till, of course, Donovan snapped us out of our introspection by cutting the silence with his words. He was our leader for a reason.

  “Pahaliah, do all the free Angels know where these realms are?” Donovan asked him.

  “Yes, all angels know where each realm is. Though not all have interacted or made their presence known in them,” Pahaliah replied while keeping Jeremiah snuggled close to his chest.

  “Alright, then. Here’s what we are going to do. Pahaliah, send ten angels in pairs of two, to port to Madera, Draconious, Shangrila, Sunyaya, and the Iron Sky realms. They’re simply to port there to assess the situation. See how their realm is fairing, in conflict or if there are any of Lilith’s retinue there and have them report to Azrael. You are not going.

  “Furthermore, make sure before any report that a privacy shield is erected. Don’t send any angels that are star-coursed. Fated ones cannot be separated from their intendeds, and if one is hurt, the other suffers not just from the loss of separation but from the wounds or death of their mates. I will not put anyone’s heart in jeopardy.

  “Is this something you’re okay with doing, Pahaliah?” Donovan concluded by asking him directly.

  “Yes. I’ll go do that now and return in ten minutes. I have the gift of seeing virtue inside any being. I’m confident I can find a reliable and trustworthy ten to pair off and go briefly to visit and report back the state of the other realms. I’ll also order them to report back within the hour and pick appropriately what pair goes to which realm, so if they’re late, we can make haste and see what the delay is. I’ll leave at once. I’ll be right back, Jeremiah, my love. I’ll meet you in your lodging chambers. Once I hear back from the Angels an hour later, I’ll tell Azrael. Regardless of the news. Good or ill, I’ll have us all meet up and discuss our Angel brethren’s findings. Till then, all of you should take a nap. I’ll be back in a few moments, and word won’t reach me for an hour regardless,” Pahaliah concluded. He then gave Jeramiah one smoldering kiss and winked out only to wink back immediately.

  “That was fast!” Kendra exclaimed.

  “Actually, it is the privacy shield. I can’t teleport out of it. Can you dissolve it, and everyone can just speak generally till my return?” Pahaliah asked.

  “Wow, sorry! Guess our weavings are a bit over the top! At least we learned it blocked porting as well now. It’s awkward but good news for us. Our shield-craft is indeed being strengthened. Alright, everyone, I’m dissolving the shield. Let us talk casually for a while. Then I’m taking a cat nap right after I eat some of that pudding that I see on the dessert tray. Thank you, Pahaliah. You may port now with ease.”

  “Hurry back, Pahaliah,” Jeramiah chimed in.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll not be gone long, and you can mind-speak to me the entire time.”

  “Awe, young love. It’s so beautiful!” I cheered.

  “So is the pudding I’m about to shovel into my face and the nap after.”

  With Pahaliah gone, everyone except Donovan and Abbadon went to their chambers on the floors above. We left Donovan to finish stuffing his face with pudding. At the same time, Abbadon waited patiently to port him, I imagine to their chamber for their nap, though I somehow doubted they’d nap at all. I certainly couldn’t nap on a dime, no matter how breathtakingly beautiful Leona and my chamber turned out to be. All the news had me rattled. I’d have to consult the Runes.

  I took the rune pouch out of my void-clutch. Then gave the bag of runes a shake and spilled them on the table by the chairs and deciphered the cast. My first thought was “dammit.”

  Chapter 15

  Leona

  “What do the runes say, Kendra?” I asked.

  She seemed surprised by the results of her runic divination. That only left me to wonder what information her divinations provided. She acknowledged my question by holding her index finger up to which I nodded. I understood she was trying to recheck and decipher her findings with accuracy. I decided to sit opposite of her on the table she cast her runes on. I looked at all the Futhark letter engravings in each of the highly polished, flattened, and oblong amethyst stones with interest. To me, they were letters of a forgotten culture and language. However, something in their arrangement must mean something significant to her.

  She then got up and threw up a privacy barrier with a wave of her hands. She then pointed to me, and I took my cue and added another layer of my own magick to it. The utter silence was proof enough we’d gotten to the point where we learned Donovan’s privacy casting methods with ease. “OM TARE TUTARE TURE SVAHA,” we both chanted thrice as green and gold sigils of our mantra syllables anchored themselves to our shield. Neither of us was a modern-day Buddhist, but we understood the power of their ancient incantations.

  “Thank you for your patience, Leona. I’m just shocked at how accurate my readings are now. I can see several potentialities, including our past actions in this casting with ease. We’ll definitely need to fortify, ward, and shield several realms. It looks like there is a plan in motion for Lilith’s retinue from the Shadowrealm to enslave other realms before we repeat what we’ve done here to the Emerald City. She also plans to corrupt the Emerald Realm’s continent, making it no longer fertile for its citizens. I’m afraid we’ll indeed need to go to Madera, and the Wood Elves' main city, then head to Draconious. However, we’re going to need to work quickly to defeat her retinue here and ward this
realm accordingly. There are also indeed some of Lilith’s spies in Madera and Shunyata. I also divined some disturbing information about Lilith. It’s best shared with our friends. Also, Pahaliah’s Angels have reported back to him and Azrael. They have news. We’ll need to skip our nap love and head to the main chamber,” she spoke with conviction.

  Kendra may be nervous at times when things get overwhelming and are unknown. Yet, when my dear one uses her own growing goddess abilities, she gains confidence and conviction that is brave and focused. I got up. As did Kendra. We both then dissolved the shielding sphere of privacy. She put her runes away in their purple velvet pouch then added it to her void-purse. We both then started the walk down two flights to the common area on the first landing. Already, our friends were assembled.

  Pahaliah was speaking with Azrael, Abbadon, and Donovan. This much was clear, but we couldn’t hear anything they said. Leilah was having a cup of tea, sipping mindfully, no doubt waiting for Azrael to finish being debriefed. Jeremiah was reading a book on the wing-back chair, waiting to be filled in while seemingly content with whatever he was reading. Jeremiah is undoubtedly quite bookish. Though, how he could forget everything of consequence yet, remember how to read was even a surprise to me. Guess his primary talents or habits were indeed not all lost.

  I waved to catch their attention, but the four of them must have been deep into whatever it was they were speaking about within their private sphere. Therefore, I summoned a sphere of water and threw it at the shield. It hit the barrier with a wet splash, and Donovan, Abbadon, Azrael, and Pahaliah looked our way. I pulled the water back to my hands, and they dropped their sphere.

  “Hi, there, Leona and Kendra. That’s one quick way to get our attention! Sorry, we didn’t wake you, but we were getting an update and just about to call for everyone,” Donovan admitted.