Crescent Bound

Copyright
©
Karli Rush 2012

ISBN
:
978-1-4783-9310-8

Cover
photo
by S. Borsov

Published
by Karli Rush

Kindle
Edition

License Statement

This
book is licensed for your
personal enjoyment only. This
book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to
Amazon.com a
nd purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This book is a work of fiction.  Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.  Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Please note this book is intended for mature readers 18+ due to adult content.

Dedication

To
Tom
and
my
family for supporting and encouraging me to reveal the hidden gem inside;
without you this story would be
untold.

Acknowledgements

Special appreciation to
some wonderful ladies,
Isabella Macotte,
Lisa Monaghan, Amy Brownell,
Jenny Marie, Mayra Arellano, and Raven Anger
,
for taking the time to navigate
me
through this
very personal
journey. 
The emotional voyage I set off on alone was soon filled with your
everlasting
support, encouragement, and brilliant input. 
Each of
you
captured
perfectly
the essence of my vision and helped bring it into
realiz
ation.  Your help set free
the heart of the story with a clarity that I am so proud to share with all
of
the readers. Lastly, to my
audio
muse
Kerli with her song, “Walking On Air” really encouraged the story further.

Know Thyself

Close my eyes and it begins

The world unfolds with hope within

Captured by the hidden rhapsody

Of which I wish I could always be

Ensnared in the feeling of hope

No longer needing to just cope

A circle cast amongst the star

From which my heart is never far

Calling upon the five elements
’
grace

Feeling as though I
’
m finally in place

Air, I call, come to me

The wind lifts me up and sets me free

Water, I plea, come to me

Comforting sounds of the ocean and sea

Earth, I shout, come to me

I taste sweet gifts from fruits and honey

Fire, I summon, come to me

Heat surges through and gives me energy

Spirit, I say, come to me

Suddenly- I know who is this
‘
me
’

Author
,
Unknown

Chapter 1

“
Please, tell me just one more story?
”
  I beg in an insisting tone while staring up at him with my big blu
e eyes
, that
I know he can
’
t deny.

“
Alyssa, it
’
s getting late my little girl, but if you promise to close those bewitching blues and go to sleep, then one more story, okay?
”
  He grins at me as I snuggle down under the covers and wait for him to begin. 

M
y father has this mesmerizing way of making stories come to life.  I am still not sure if it is his
voice which changes into a
softer trance-like tone
, or the feeling of his magick tingling through the air.  I can listen to him for hours while he spins his mystical stories.

He scoots back and begins,
“
In the ancient times before Merlin, the world was r
aw with magick and our kind was
the true
stewards of the natural world.  It was during your great grandfather Donavan
’
s journey through parts of
Europe
that he met a beautiful young woman named Avonna. 

She was a great healer and filled with magick.  All that met her felt at peace and she was greatly loved by her people.  Donavan fell hopelessly in love with her and would do anyth
ing to have her become his life
mate.  Avonna loved Donavan with a strength that has held through time itself. 

Donavan vowed to quest in search of something as rare and mythical as her.  He would present his treasure to the village council in hopes that they would agree to
allow Avonna to become his life
mate.

He departed the woodlands of the west where her village stood.  He searched by instinct alone, letting only his heart lead him.  Donavan traveled far and found many treasures
,
but nothing that was worthy. 

One day while walking up a trail leading into a great precarious m
ountain range, Donavan stumbled
upon a
rather small man with yellow skin and narrow glistening eyes.  The man had been caught in
an
uprooting storm and was trapped by a fallen tree.  Donavan used his magick to set him free and took him to a nearby cave where he helped the man recover from his wounds. 

Neither of them spoke a language the other understood
,
but they attempted to communicate.  After spending eight days together Donavan came to call the little man Ash, because that was the tree that had trapped him.
  Ash soon came to call Donavan,
Pinyin
, which he learned many years later meant ally or sworn friend.

On the morning of the eighth day Donavan awoke
with
a rabbit roasting over the fire and a small fold of rabbit skin.  Inside the wrap of leather was a gemstone so full of
magick
and beauty that Donavan knew his quest was complete.  He returned with haste to the village and presented the rare stone to the village council.

He held the blazing blue gemstone up to the sunlight and a brilliant light of energy burst forth.  The gemstone
’
s energy brought health, peace, and abundance to the village for many years.

Donavan and Avonna became lifemates and traveled the world, healing and learning magick.  Their knowledge and love are the foundation of the Worthington Coven today.   The stone seemed to find
its
own way through time, drifting into coven legend
, because no
one knew exactly where it was until one day, not too long ago, there was a harvesting celebration. 

During this celebration gifts were given.  One of the gifts was a small box.  Inside this precious box was a piece of rabbit skin, folded within the worn thin leather was the brilliant blue gemstone. 

Until that day it had not been seen for more than eight hundred years.  Your mother had the gemstone set into a ring of Egyptian gold and it has been with us
ever
since we knew you were on the way.
”

“
What kind of m
agick does the ring hold, father?
”
I ask yawning with heavy eyes as sleep began to immerse me.

Fading deeper into unconscious
ness
I hear
a
sound, music and a woman singing a familiar tune
“
Bad Romance by Lady Gaga.
”
What is that?  Oh, I must have been dreaming and the relentless sound is
a
wake up call from my cell phone.
I reach for it
,
but the annoying noise finally stops, thank the gods.

I roll over in my bed with my hands tucked under my pillow thinking
,
Father
use
d
to tell me that our time to learn the things we need will come when we are ready
.  Well, I certainly feel ready to learn about my fire element and this
magick
al world I was born into, sighing quietly.

I did not, however, want to get up this morning
, tossing
and turning in bed not wanting to leave my solitude,
and then
as if it
prolongs
the inevitable
,
I
toss
the white comforter over my head.  The very thought of attending another mundane high school turns my stomach.  I know this is my
last year, my senior year, prom
and all the good things that go with it.  It
’
s just this is the
non-witch world. 

After I graduate from high
school I
’
m off to the Arcane.  The one place where I truly can
’
t wait to be, the Arcane is a private, elite university for my kind…
witches
.

My cell phone rings annoyingly yet again,
“
Bad Romance
”
sings louder this time and I moan out,
just five more minutes of peaceful sleep
,
“
Yes Megan, how can I help you?
”

“
How can you help me?  Have you lost your mind, ah, school, today, like now!  Lisa and I are waiting and
you
’
re
the one with the
“
low profile
”
thing going on and being fashionably late on your first day is not the way to do it, babe.
”
  Her voice is full of amusement since I am
usually
the sensible one.

“
Alright, thirty minutes and I
’
ll be there,
”
I rumble into the phone
.
“
I know I need to hurry,
”
I say to Megan with
her laugh echoing through the cell
as I hang up and jump out of bed. 

Megan and Lisa are my best friends and have been since childhood.  They are also, in part, my safety net.  Keeping us out of the s
potlight and unwanted attention
helps all of us prepare for the witch world. 

Megan is
the best
suited for learning all the details of the
“
Who
’
s,
who
”
meaning who is the most popular
and
who is the most gossiped about.
  Well, we are suppose to keep a low profile by keeping the drama down, but for her to fit in
“
unnoticed
”
is another matter.  When you look like
“
Megan Fox
”
it
’
s a bit difficult.  She
’
s also quite promiscuous which makes it even harder for Lisa and
me
.