Divination
Page 17
They stared at her.
“Don’t act too surprised.”
“This type of behavior, she learned from you,” Ayden snapped at Remy.
“Hey, I did no such thing. I didn’t tell her to eat her. Anyway, she has to obey her rage. It’s part of our make-up. She isn’t the little Deamhan I met years ago. She’s fully aware of what she can do.”
“Lamia Deamhan,” Sia scorned the title with a hiss in her voice. “You’re not thinking of the consequences. You just do.”
“Relax. You’re making this out to be more Armageddon-ish than it really is. You sound as if you mourn Ruby or something.”
“Now isn’t the time to point fingers. We’re all a little shaken… well, some of us are as much as our nature allows us to be,” Maris interrupted them. “Where is it now? Does Anastasia have it?”
“Krerina has control of her,” Hallie replied. “She made Anastasia attack me and Remy.” She pointed to the study. “Before I went upstairs, Nathan was in there with them. I think he’s still in there.”
“Krerina tricked us,” Maris whispered.
“No, she tricked you,” Remy whispered back. “Anastasia knew she wasn’t who she said she was and yet, you all still believed her anyway.”
“Stop arguing,” Sia ordered. “Maris, we need to get you out of here. That’s our main priority.”
“Not before we get Nathan out of here.” Remy pushed Ayden away from him. He swayed back and forth, trying to regain his balance. “Once we do that, I’ll personally gut Krerina.” He stepped forward but immediately fell back against the wall.
“You’re in no condition to fight,” Sia said. “I’ll get us as far away as we can. Just hold onto me. I don’t want any of you to get lost in my shadows.”
Just then, the doors to the study violently exploded. Fragments rained down on them and they took cover to avoid the shards. All it took was one small piece of wood to make any Deamhan immobile, regardless of their age. This sent them into shock and on edge.
The study stood in shambles. Scattered journals littered the floor. The tablet and other furniture rested on their sides. Anastasia held Nathan by his neck and had him lifted several inches from the floor. Her clothing was splotched in red and for a moment, Hallie feared that the blood belonged to him.
Krerina sat on the table, flipping through the Journal of Blank Pages. She swung her legs back and forth over its edge. “No one is allowed to leave. Our Mother hasn’t arrived yet.”
“Let Nathan go,” Hallie demanded.
She closed the journal. “No.” She slid off the table. “No more telling me what to do. That ship has long since sailed. Now, you’ll all do what I want you to do, what Mother wants you to do.”
“It’s not too late.” Sia didn’t take her eyes off her. “You can still break free from Amenirdis. You can regain control of your life.”
“Sia, I’ve been serving our Mother longer than most of you have been alive. The only way to live is to serve her. Tell me, how has your life been since you’ve left our Mother’s side?”
“My life is in my hands. That’s how it should be.”
“Ahh, yes. Those same hands that killed Anzuna.”
Sia jerked her body toward her and in response, Krerina smiled. “I wouldn’t try anything unless you want to face her,” she said in reference to Anastasia.
“Use others for your own gain. Just like Amenirdis.”
“Revelation is a gift for Deamhan. Our Mother offers us power and respect. Yet, you all disrespect her. She knows what’s best for all of us.” She held out her hands to Sia. “You no longer have to be alone. Accept her and maybe Mother will show you mercy.”
“You’ll need my blood for Revelation.” Maris spoke up. “And I won’t hand it over to you or to that witch.”
“Oh Maris, always so brave,” Krerina replied. “But you’re really not, are you? Mother has given me the ability to make Deamhan do whatever I want.” She lifted her right arm in the air. “You’d be wise to not forget that.” As she lifted her arm higher, Anastasia mimicked her movement. “I have complete control over the same magic that makes you what you are.” When she dropped her hand, she followed.
“I advise you to carefully rethink what you’re doing.” Sia stepped forward.
“And I advise you to remember who you’re up against.”
Suddenly, Sia stumbled back with her hands covering her face. Blood seeped from between her fingers and ran down her hands.
“You think my sister is the only one who can make you bleed? Well, you haven’t seen what I can do.”
“Okay, we get it. You’re in control,” Remy said. “You have the two pieces of the tablet and you can hurt us. So just stop, okay? Please stop and let Anastasia go.”
Krerina withdrew from her attack. Sia wiped it from her face and forced to take a backseat in confronting Krerina, she went mute.
If she can do that to Sia, I don’t want to know what she can do to me, Hallie thought.
“So, what now? You’re just going to hold us prisoner?” Remy asked.
“Mother will be here shortly and she’ll decide what to do with the rest of you.”
Hallie saw it in Remy’s eyes. They couldn’t wait around for Amenirdis and Krerina’s maniac sister to show up and at the same time they couldn’t leave. It was midday and she could see hints of sunlight through the shades covering the windows.
“We know what she’s going to do with us.” Ayden moved forward. “She’s going to use us to replace the Pure Deamhan in Limbo.”
“Ayden… stand down,” Remy spoke.
He didn’t listen.
Hallie felt her hair lift from a gush of wind as he ran, full speed, at Krerina.
“Ayden!” Maris called out but it was too late. Before he could get any farther, Anastasia manhandled him with ease, sending him airborne. His back collided with the wall, creating a long, jagged crack on its surface.
Krerina made Anastasia increase her hold around Nathan’s neck and his face flushed red.
No! Hallie took a deep breath and with the thought of saving Nathan on her mind, she too ran at Anastasia. With Ruby’s essence still inside her, she moved faster than she’d ever before, but she still didn’t have the strength to hold her own. She’d seen Anastasia move before when attacked, but never so gracefully as she did now. She avoided every encounter Hallie threw at her and at the end, Anastasia easily pushed her back into the others.
Now on his feet, Ayden growled and headed back in again. One second, Hallie saw him take a swing at her and the next, she saw Anastasia blocking his punch. Eventually, she let Nathan go and he fell to the ground.
Ayden hurled a flurry of punches and she dodged each one. He screamed at the top of his lungs at her, like a wild man who couldn’t control his emotions. Eventually, she pushed her palm into his chest, sending him sliding back and across the floor. Then she grabbed Nathan around his neck again and held him like captured bait.
Hallie felt her mouth twitch. “Please, let him go. Please.”
Sia summoned a dark cloud which appeared behind them but Remy stopped her.
“Would you all stop attacking?! We can’t take her.” He eyed Ayden to stand down. No heroics. Anastasia will kill you faster than I could save you.
His telepathic response made Hallie grovel with its searing call. Someone has to do something! A cold hand grabbed her wrist and she looked over her shoulder at Maris.
“You’ll let them go.” She pulled out her magical amulet. “Or I will use this against you.”
“Really?” Krerina squealed in delight. “You think you can stop me with that?”
The amulet singed her palm and she had no choice but to let go. It dropped to the floor.
“That protects you against Deamhan. I’m not a Deamhan. But if you had this,” she reached around her back and pulled out the magical knife from her gold etched box, “…then I might be a little open to your demand.” She curved her head to the left. “She’s here.”
“Anastasia, listen to me,” Nathan coughed. “Take control of yourself. You’re stronger than this.”
For a mere moment, Hallie thought she saw the darkness rush out of Anastasia’s eyes.
“Please, don’t throw that all away, especially not for someone who’ve fought so hard against.”
Ayden crept quietly toward her.
“What are you doing?!” Remy whispered to him. “Get back over here!”
“Get Maris out of here,” Ayden whispered back. “I got this.”
Krerina suddenly snapped back into reality and snapped her fingers. Cold darkness rushed back into Anastasia’s eyes and she regained her hold on Nathan. This didn’t prevent Ayden from standing down. Instead, he jumped toward them.
The sound of bone crushing made everything come to a standstill.
Hallie felt cold droplets of blood pepper her face. She stood witness to Anastasia’s left arm, extending through Ayden’s chest and out his back. His black heart rested in her hands. Like two sculptures on display, they stood still. It was as everyone found themselves frozen in time.
It took Maris’ screech to crank everything back to motion. She collapsed to her knees and reached out for Ayden as his body shriveled and deteriorated right before their eyes. His skin fell like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to the floor, followed by bits of flesh, and finally, small pieces of bone. Soon, nothing remained except for Anastasia’s arm, which still held onto his heart. That soon transformed into a chunk of flesh.
“Dear God,” Nathan cried out. “What have you done?!”
Scared, Hallie snapped out of her hypnotic stance. Running as far away as she could from Anastasia became the only thing in her mind. She’d risk having the sunlight burn at her skin rather than await the Dark Mother’s arrival.
“She’s done what the Mother commanded,” Krerina answered. “Now, she needs to feed.”
Anastasia opened her mouth and burrowed her fangs into the side of Nathan’s neck. She pulled back and then went in again, feeding more. Blood oozed from the two puncture wounds. She sucked as hard as a Ramanga Deamhan could, slurping the red liquid straight from Nathan’s veins.
After she finished, she snapped his neck with just one quick jerk of her wrist.
His body fell to the floor and she stumbled back in euphoria, licking her lips free from his warm blood.
“Nathan!” Hallie ran to his side. She cradled his head while staring into his opened, lifeless eyes. “I can’t hear his heartbeat.” She placed her head to his chest. “He’s not breathing! Remy, he’s not breathing!!”
“Dead humans don’t breathe,” Krerina spoke in a monotone voice.
“No, no.” Her bottom lip trembled. “Nathan, please don’t go.” She caressed his face. “Don’t… don’t leave me. Please.” Anger and rage filled every part of her being.
“She’s here!” Krerina exclaimed. “Now it’s time to bow down to your goddess—” she pointed to the front door. “—and demean yourselves at her feet.”
Hallie’s anger increased and no longer willing to stand by and let Krerina harm anyone else, she went into a full-blown rage. She fought through her fear and lashed out at her. She moved fast enough to snag onto her neck and she pulled her other arm back with the intention of punching straight through her chest.
But her attack was short lived. Her body grew warm at a rapid rate and her throat instantly filled with blood. Krerina whispered a low chant and Hallie felt her blood poured from her mouth and her eyes, just like Sia a few minutes before.
Her forehead pulsed at a rapid pace. The source, which felt like pins and needles poking at her flesh, moved toward the center of her brain. It then spread throughout her entire body. She released Krerina and leaned over in pain. She’d never felt anything like this before and when she limped toward the others, she saw that she wasn’t the only one suffering. Both Remy and Sia also experienced the same pain. Only Maris, on her knees in shock, remained unaffected.
“You’ll learn respect, littlest Deamhan,” Krerina mocked the title Remy gave her. “Get on your knees!”
The front door blew open. Scattered leaves twirled on the ground in mini tornadoes and sunlight seeped in, almost creeping its way into the study. Although her eyesight failed her, Hallie could still see a barefooted woman with shoulder-length, brown hair, dressed in a black-leather jacket, walk through the door. Behind her, she saw another tall woman, barefoot, also enter. She wore a sleek, red dress. A crown of thorns adorned her ensemble.
How the Dark Mother moved during the day boggled her already confused mind. Deeply spooked, she grabbed Maris’ amulet from the ground and made her way to Remy with the urge to leave the manor.
Krerina straightened her clothes and told Anastasia to sleep and with those words alone, she fell to the ground, next to Nathan and what remained of Ayden.
Amenirdis, the Queen of Limbo, the Dark Mother, glided her way into the study. “My child.” She embraced Krerina while the Defiler grabbed the two pieces of the tablet from the table. “Ahh. Finally! I have what is mine.”
“I’ve killed the human, like you demanded.” Krerina pointed to Nathan’s body.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better servant.” The Dark Mother held out her hand to Maris. “My descendant. You’ll help me bring forth Revelation.”
“I will kill you for what you did to Nathan.” Hallie’s obscured and shallow eyes narrowed in on Krerina and the Dark Mother took notice.
“This Deamhan actually cared for the human. I can see it in her black eyes. That and her desire to end your life. I can feel the rage inside her.”
“She’s perfect for the ritual, is she not?” the Defiler asked.
“No.” The Dark Mother pointed at Sia. “There is no need for Limbo to remain as is. We’ll destroy it.”
“And the other?”
She smiled at Remy. “He’ll serve me. They all will serve me.”
Remy placed his hand on the back wall. “I’d rather not.”
The Dark Mother placed her hand on her chest. “Behind the veil, in Limbo, I watched the world change. New languages, new machines, new explorations… but there are things that remain the same. Dark magic, those who practice it, and those who want its power never change. Soon you will want that power and I will give it to you. You’re all my children and you’ll serve me.”
“We aren’t your children.” Remy eyed her carefully.
Being burned to death wasn’t how Hallie envisioned herself dying. The thought of it turned her frantic and she moaned, knowing that soon she would have to face that risk, whether she liked it or not. She forced herself to push those fears to the back of her mind. She grabbed Remy’s hand and bolted to the front door.
Just then, she felt something strong attempt to pull her back. It felt like every muscle in her body turned against her.
“Let them go, Krerina,” the Dark Mother spoke. “Once they realized that I’m the only way, they’ll return to me.”
The pull stopped. Hallie regained her speed and ran through the front door.
The visible sun in the horizon made quick work of her skin and it bubbled. She desperately wanted to run back into the manor to escape the deadly rays, but she couldn’t. Instead, she ran toward the shade of a nearby tree.
White smoke billowed from Remy’s body into the air. She heard his body pop and sizzle. The smooth skin on his face contorted as he huddled his already battled body next to the tree.
“We can’t stay here!” he spoke through the pain.
A dark cloud appeared on the lawn, in front of them. Hallie saw Sia within the shadow and she held out her hand to them.
“I can’t hold this open for much longer.” She urged them to jump into it and without thinking twice, they obeyed.
As soon as she entered,
the pain ceased. Now safe within Sia’s shadows, Hallie dropped to her knees and stared in horror at the charred skin on her forearms and hands. She couldn’t imagine what the rest of her body looked like, but she got an idea by seeing Remy’s face, which had blackened and peeled, partially revealing the flesh on his cheeks and his beautiful, brown hair that had been burned away.
“Get up.” Remy helped her to her feet.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what else to do.” She felt a sense of danger lurking in the shadows and she heard muted screams coming from within it. She didn’t want to stay there.
“It’s okay.” His body shook uncontrollably.
“It hurts.” Frightened, she couldn’t take her eyes off her hands. “Remy, it hurts so bad.”
“I know, I know. Hang in there, okay, my littlest Deamhan? Hang in there for me. We’ll get through this.”
She viewed the front of their sanctuary from a large, circular opening in front of them which soon began to close.
“Get us out of here!” Remy yelled to Sia.
The shadows closed.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
ANASTASIA
The skin on Anastasia’s left cheek stuck to the hard, concrete floor. When she turned to move, the pressure of stretching it beyond its max forced her to wake. She yanked and it pulled back.
Freed, she sat up and saw Maris sitting in a semi-dark corner of the basement with her knees up to her chin. Her offspring looked mortified and disturbed and her half-opened eyes turned to her.
“What happened?” Her memory escaped her. She couldn’t remember anything after tasting just a drop of Krerina’s blood. It must have caused her to black out. No blood had ever done that to her before. She inspected the area again. “How did we get down here?”
“What do you mean?” Maris spoke in a soft voice. “Krerina put us down here.”
She saw that Kenneth also had a concerned look on his face. He continually pulled at his chains in an attempt to free himself.
“How did she put us down here?” she asked. “Maris, where is everyone?”
“Gone.” She shrugged. “Dead… I don’t know.”