The Aurora Stone (15 page)

Jericho paced, while Eve explained the best she could what had happened to her, she once again omitted her rebirth, for the time being, they did not need to know and Eve was not ready for the questions that would follow such a revelation. Eve seemed to be in a state of transformation; every now and again her eyes would flash a spectrum of colours. This did not go unnoticed by Jericho, though for the time being he held his tongue; there were more pressing matters to discuss. Eli stood by his sister holding her hand, Caleb couldn’t take his eyes off their joined hands, his jealousy was ridiculous, and he knew it.

“I would like to introduce myself; I am Eli, it is a pleasure to meet you all and I thank you for accompanying Eve on this journey.” Eli bowed to Caleb and Jericho. Caleb didn’t like him, but he knew his judgement was clouded so kept his council.

There was so much to tell them all, so much to learn about her brother. Eve was overwhelmed and would rather like a rest, but there was no time for that now. The darkness was readying to battle. She had seen so many awful things while her soul had been held in limbo. Though the place itself had been beautiful, clouds for as far as the eye could see, their frothy whiteness bathed in rainbow light. Eve had marvelled at such vibrancy, surely she was on her way to another realm where souls travel to find everlasting peace. Then the clouds had parted and she had seen the monsters devouring the chained prisoners. It was a sight that was burned into her memory; blood had coated the walls and floor, the creatures disembowelling their prey, while they still lived, and then devouring their organs.

The one who had injured Caleb and Bobby was there, the one who had taken her. He had picked a girl similar looking to herself, the torture that demon put the girl through was horrific. A single tear rolled down Eve’s cheek at the memory. There were other things she had seen, like the copper doors, the ones in her nightmare. Behind the doors lay a great power that must never be unleashed, it had to be destroyed.

Caleb needed to tell Eve now what he knew about the prophecy, gazing at her, he could see she was remembering something painful, however much it pained him to have to do this now, no more time could be wasted. Clearing his throat, he knelt before Eve and took her hand.

“Eve, I have something I have to tell you, about the prophecy, and it cannot wait.” Stroking her knuckles Caleb went on, “I know where the aurora stone is, and more importantly I know where it must go to restore the balance and banish Nimayaorin the Defiler, forever.”

Jericho was livid; Caleb had known all along where the stone was and hadn’t said anything! In one bound, he was on top of Caleb raising a meaty fist, he was about to knock some sense into the witch when Eve spoke.

“Jericho stop! Telling me before would not have made a difference; I was not able to fulfil the prophecy until now.” She explained. Looking put out that he was not going to get to hit anyone, Jericho dropped Caleb and returned to pacing.

“What do you mean, it wouldn’t have mattered?” Caleb asked, rubbing his shoulder. Sighing, Eve looked at her hands knowing this was going to shock them all.

“Something needed to have happened for me to be able to complete this quest, I had to unlock my gift that was bestowed on me on my eighteenth birthday and there was only one way for that to happen… I had to die and be reborn.”

Unaware of Eve’s resurrection, Nimayaorin gathered his generals. The legions of darkness had assembled in the great hall, these creatures were the most feared, they were the fiercest warriors Nimayaorin had at his disposal. Grimmer was now among them, his ruby proudly on display, glowed blood red in the flickering candle light.

“Generals, now we have celebrated the destruction of the light!” Nimayaorin paused to allow the great cheer to quieten before continuing. “Now it is time to finalise our assault on all of Orea and cast them into the void.” Taking an onyx pointer from his robes, Nimayaorin laid its diamond tip over their first target. Lervirion, take your thousand legions of dark murmurs and ghouls through the portal to this location. Once there, I want every feeble mind infected by the ghouls, let madness reign in the homeland of magic. Clear Water Valley will be the location of our first strike. The witches are the easiest to control and with some persuasion, I believe they may join the legions of darkness and assist in the destruction of Orea.”
And sweet revenge against the council members will finally be mine
Nimayaorin concluded, smiling at his secret thought. He cast his scarlet gaze around the gathering. No one dared meet his eyes directly. However, a murmur of agreement rippled through the generals. Satisfied, Nimayaorin continued to dictate the battle plan.

Grimmer stood and listened; this was his first time in such a meeting and the sheer scale of the gathering was quite impressive. He watched as his master organised his legions with such cunning and ruthlessness, it was like a macabre dance of death which Grimmer realised, was quite an apt description. The Ruby on his chest glowed with scarlet fire, its presence a constant reminder that the light was destroyed, and by his own hand no less., His chest swelled with pride once more. The red head he had tortured at the feasting had been most enjoyable, no latent magic running through her sweet blood to taint his enjoyment, just the weak magic of a common witch, which had no effect. Saliva pooled in his mouth as hunger began to claw its way into his thoughts. Glancing around the room, Grimmer realised that sustenance was not going to be offered anytime soon, forcing the memories of the witch’s organs, melting in his mouth, still warm with her blood, he forced those tantalizing memories from his mind and tried to concentrate on what Nimayaorin was saying.

It was long after the moans and screams from the pits had quietened that the meeting finally concluded. The plan for conquering Orea was now complete. Nimayaorin stalked the halls leading back to his chambers.
My plan is guaranteed to succeed; now that the light is destroyed, there is nothing to stand in my way.
He thought while gliding, silent as a shadow along the arched corridors of his fortress. Without realising it, Nimayaorin found himself outside a chamber he never, ever entered. Tonight, however, there was no longer anything to fear from this room, his control over Orea was all but complete. The darkness had won, the contents of this room was no longer a weight hanging around his neck. Raising a clawed hand, he chanted the incantation to unlock the ivory door.

The chamber’s black tapers were lit, the blue flames cast eerie shadows off the objects, throwing grotesque shapes onto the blood red walls. Gliding further into the room, Nimayaorin considered the contents. For many years, this room had been a form of torment for the great Nimayaorin, laying bare his true identity and how far he had truly fallen. Casting his scarlet gaze over the boxes of books and frames which held faces he was still not able to look at. He made his way to the larger traveling chest, its brass stud work glinting in the candle light. This one item was by far the most personal he owned, one he shied away from. Too many memories and memories were dangerous. They led to feelings and feelings were not something Nimayaorin wanted to ever experience again. So far into the darkness he had fallen, his depravity completely absolute that Nimayaorin no longer saw in colour, his sense of smell was dulled and he felt no pain. Any sense of touch he had, had been lost long ago. This suited him just fine; feelings were for the weak.

Running a claw over the elvish carved lid, Nimayaorin considered opening the chest and casting light on the contents that he had locked away so many years ago. Minutes passed, Nimayaorin didn’t move, indecision flickered in his eyes. Letting out a screech of rage, the great dark tyrant snatched his claw back as though burned and fled the chamber, making sure to relock the cursed room and all its memories. Storming back to his chambers, Nimayaorin ordered for three slaves to be brought to his chamber, he paced while he waited. Surely a spot of torture, followed by glutting on blood and warm entrails of his victims would better his mood.

The screams that emanated from the grand chamber were those from nightmares; they continued for hours. Nimayaorin took his time with each victim, the first a woman of vampire decent fought back which added an extra element to the proceedings and allowed the tyrant to exert himself more than usual. All traces of vulnerability he had felt earlier, vanished once the vampire’s heart was cupped in his hand.
I am invincible; nothing can stand against me now!
Nimayaorin thought, licking his claws clean of blood. The feasting had been enjoyable. Now fully sated and feeling more in control now, he left the pile of skin and broken bones for his attendant to clean away. Stopping to pick up the three sets of eyeballs, he had carefully removed from his victim’s skulls, he took his gruesome trophies to his study, Nimayaorin placed the fleshy orbs into a crystal jar. Placing it along with the other jars he kept as a macabre record of his murders, he turned to his Book of Shadows and poured over the dark spells while awaiting news from general Lervirion.

Lervirion and his dark legions entered Clear Water Valley. The ghouls were under orders to only infect the minds of the witches; there was to be no partaking of the flesh here. Hissing their displeasure, they turned to mist and targeted high-ranking witches throughout the Valley. The plan was to possess the leaders and the rest would follow them, just like sheep. Ghouls would never be suspected, as they were believed by all to have been eradicated in the last magical war.

Ghouls were known for their mind control, so it was imperative that not one of the foul creatures were discovered. It was hard to kill a ghoul but not impossible. Gliding like ghosts through the houses, the ghouls hunted for the most influential of the witches. They were able to do this using their ability to ‘taste’ someone’s will, the stronger the ‘taste’, the more influence the creature had over its peers. For the ghouls, this was child’s play. Within an hour, they had possessed every witch of influence in the realm.

Phase one was complete; now the dark murmurs were on standby to help stir up the population and guide their thoughts towards the darkness. Chaos was about to have rein throughout Clear Water Valley.

Sapphire was becoming concerned; she had not yet found a portal into Gloria. As she swooped down to catch a tree cat for her supper, she pondered once again over the intense pain she had felt not long ago; this had been followed by…nothing. This disturbed the great owl. A mental numbness was never a good sign when one mind was connected to another; it usually meant the connection had been permanently severed. Making the kill swift and clean, Sapphire delicately ate her meal.
Evangeline cannot be dead; the prophecy is tied to her life force. If she has indeed passed to the realm of the dead, then all of Orea shall perish in the void.

After cleaning her beak and talons in a nearby brook, Sapphire once again took to the skies, the Olia landscape was indeed beautiful, though she hardly saw the russet treetops or the golden grass fields.
I must find another gate into Gloria if only to have my darkest suspicions confirmed.

Silence filled the room; Eve looked around at the three shocked faces before her and sighed.
Maybe I should have kept that to myself
, she thought. Picking at the hem of her robe, Eve wondered who was going to break the deafening silence, it was torture sitting here, waiting for her companions to reanimate and react to her words. Finally, Caleb spluttered

“Wait…what?”

Rolling his black eyes Jericho sighed and turned to Caleb.

“Has your mind become muddled she said…”

“I heard what Eve said thank you, Jericho. I still am as sharp of mind as I was an hour ago, I should have been more articulate in my reaction that is true, it is such a blessing to have Eve back with us that I did not think before speaking.” Caleb rushed as he smiled at Eve and continued. “What I meant to say is how is it even possible that you have been resurrected, the Goddess must favour you and for that, I for one shall be forever grateful.”

Eve blushed and looked at her hands. Now that she knew how Caleb truly felt about her she was unsure how to react. Even though she felt the same way, it was surreal to know that he was indeed sincere in his feelings. Glancing at Caleb, Eve clearly saw his aura glowing a bright yellow, although she was not sure what all these new colours meant, she was sure that a yellow aura like a green one was a good sign. Making a mental note to find out how to interpret these colours. Eve smiled and took a breath, she needed to know where the Aurora Stone was; time was running out. They needed to get moving while Nimayaorin was unaware of her return to the life.

“We need to leave Gloria at the soonest opportunity, I know where we must go to find the Stone,” Caleb announced to the group. It was of the utmost importance that they reach the stone before the legions of darkness, who no doubt, were being dispatched all over Orea at that very moment.

“Where is it we must travel to, Caleb?” asked Eli, his cool blue gaze assessing the witch. Jericho was not at all happy with how familiar Eli was with them all; he had just met them. Glancing at Eve, he saw how happy she looked now, though her eyes continued to change colour, which if he was honest, was quite unnerving. Everyone turned to Caleb to discover the next leg of the quest.

“The Aurora Stone is with a princess,” he began trying to leave the actual location out for as long as possible, Caleb knew for a fact that Jericho was not going to like where they must travel to next.

However, the Miscurt was not falling for Caleb’s delaying tactics, flexing his impressive biceps, Jericho stood right in front of Caleb and very quietly asked.

“Where exactly are we going, Caleb? Time is wasting, spit it out.”

“Mieron. We must to go to Mieron and speak with the princess of the Blood m

Moon Coven.” Caleb blurted out, all the while eyeing Jericho’s bulging muscles. Eli, who was well schooled in the realms of Orea, was not happy about Eve venturing into the Coven. Everyone knew vampires were blood drinkers. Paling slightly, he turned away to hide his worry from his twin. A memory of Reena looking over the map came to Eve; she knew what creatures lived within that realm, but she also knew that they had nothing to fear from the vampires. Sitting there was not going to get them to the border, they needed to act. Standing, Eve explained to the men that she was going to retrieve her clothes, and they were to be ready to leave within the hour.