Within the Cards (34 page)

We began our procession to the large opening in the forest floor just beyond the large waterfall. The witches were ready to cast their magic. Ellie moved closer to her grandfather. She had a task she intended to carry out. Ultress followed suit. Ellie's persuasion was as she intended. At least that was what she thought.

We continued walking in the direction of the large opening as Ellie, her grandfather and little Graylee walked to the security of the waterfall. The little girl named Graylee ran beside Ellie and grabbed Ultress’s hand pushing Ellie out of the way. He smiled at this new generation of witchyres. The last thoughts I read of Ellie’s was that the little girl was a brat, and I heard her hiss. I couldn’t help but laugh.

The witches looked in Elizabeth’s direction and then broke off from our group. I knew their intentions. Ellie would hate me in just a few minutes, but I hoped she would understand my intentions.

The jungle was quiet. There were no sounds from the animals that normally brought the jungle to life. They remained silent for fear they would be extinguished. They hid in the green camouflage that concealed their watchful eyes, chameleons of the jungle. The scene they watched would play out its intended monolog. The Gods that viewed from the heavens only knew the ending. We would have to wait to find out if our existence continued.

Ellie’s thoughts were now silent as were Ultress’s. They both lead the other into a trap of security unknowing the trap was for two prey. Elizabeth knew she completed her intentions. She bowed her head in hopes her loyalties to concealed Ultress wouldn’t infuriate his anger. We both made the decision to protect the ones we loved.

The moon rose its new form and darkened the sky with only the light from the stars that filled the heavens to make out the lurking enemy. I directed my thoughts toward the Lords. They were near. The deep scent of death was in the air. The large opening in the jungle filled with the immortal bodies of destruction. Humans were our normal prey, but tonight our hunt was for the abolishment of one side or the other.

Ultress sent Thomas to lead several of the villagers ahead to the eastern side of the jungle to watch for our enemies’ arrival. He knew he could trust Thomas because he saw the fear in his eyes when he thought he was about to be extinguished. As we sat waiting for the signal from Thomas, Elizabeth spoke through her thoughts to one of the witches that held Ellie and Ultress. She informed Elizabeth that Ultress was calm while he sat talking to little Graylee, but Ellie was angry and fighting against the restraints. Elizabeth smile, but I feared the wrath that would follow this war.

Elizabeth was now in the leader’s position. I was at her side. I hoped Ultress would know I was now her protector. Lauren stood on the other side of her mother ready to follow her to hell. Dee was directly behind me. She was now my security and ally. The signal came from Thomas, and Lauren called out to the Lords to let them know we were aware of their arrival.

As with all immortal wars, the leaders pulled forward to the middle of the battlefield. It was the meeting of the gentlemen. This would be short because there were no gentlemen among the immortals. Three large figures descend from the forefront of the opposing group as Elizabeth, Lauren, Dee and I moved toward their decent. The three figures were tall, muscular and of the same build. Their hair dark as were their eyes that stared back into their mother's. Their faces were stern and strong with no concept of the ability to love. They were blank as the darkness they carried in their non-beating heart. Each of these men looked to be no older than eighteen, but their years of experience with hate and torture marked their faces. The figure in the middle spoke.

“Mother.” His voice had no emotion for the one that gave him existence. He looked over the ones that stood in front of him and glared at each of us.

“Alexander” she returned his greeting without showing any emotion.

Alexander was the oldest of the sons and the leader. His brothers followed his command. Ellie told me of their names and their rank in command last night as we lay in each other’s arm. Behind Alexander were Patrick and Lucas. The two younger maintained the same rank, which held very little differences from that of the elder other than respect for his age. He was Ultress and Elizabeth’s first born.

To look at each of the three brothers you would think they were teenage bullies at some teen event trying to insight a fight.

“I see the other hybrid vampire has left you to fight on your own.” His tone remained black. He turned to his brothers and laughed. He turned back to our directions. His address was to Elizabeth, but he turned and looked in my direction. I withheld my hiss. I knew this would lead to a quick annihilation. Dee began to speak, but Alexander held his hand up to halt her speech. She stopped without saying another word. I knew Dee stood with us, but I heard the fear of them in her silence.

“Where are my dear father and this assault on our kind that you call a granddaughter?” He spoke to Elizabeth, but sneered again in my direction. I knew I was his intended recipient. He was trying to insight a response from me so he could get on with this intended reason for his journey.

“I give you one last chance to step down from your reign or face your fate.” Elizabeth’s speech was cold and condemning. The three laughed at her demands. This meeting of leaders in the middle of this battleground ended. Neither side was going to move from their intended task. His eyes turned cold and his expression went black. He faced Elizabeth and uttered the words that sent us in a flash back to our lines of battle.

“NEVER.”

With that word spoken, the sides were determined and the last hand had hit the top of the bat. Neither side would back down from this impending war. It would be a battle of this family for power. This meeting was over. We parted from the middle of this clearing that would house the ending of one side or the other. Once both sides leaders were back to their assigned side, Alexander held his arms high into the air to charge his followers. They roared letting him know they were ready for battle. Elizabeth did the same. Our bodies tensed waiting for the first sign of aggression, the first to blink, the first to launch their weapons. Alexander dropped his arms first.

The battle began with lightning bolts of energy thrust at each side. The sounds of the thunderous roars that crashed trees and blasted the earth from its home woke the jungle and sent every living creature to find deeper shelter from this grave expression of hate.

At first, there were just a few, but then multiple flashes passed between the two sides. All stood to see what the other side would throw in their wake. Arms rose to detect and counter the other’s movements. The silence of the jungle rained down with thunderous roars and flashes of lightning deflected to hit the targets of the hiding place of those creatures watching in fear.

Humans from far way would see these spectacular flashes of light followed by loud roars as a hurricane of bad weather rolling in the distances to soak the jungle floor. Immortality was this hurricanes name. These immortals came together and stood on the battlefield in the middle of a South American jungle. They were at war. It was a time for the annihilation of the weakest of this family of immortals.

Alexander's thoughts were directed toward Elizabeth. She heard his thoughts as he stood far across the opening in the jungle. He stood proud. His brothers stood on each side of him. He pointed far into the distance and smiled an evil grin. I turned to look where he pointed. I felt the non-beating heart in my chest fall to the ground. It was Ellie and Ultress. They found them, and we were finished. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Their keepers had not told Elizabeth of their capture. Elizabeth smiled and glared into the eyes of her eldest son. With a quick thrust of her hand, she threw a bolt of light in the direction of Ultress and Ellie. I heard myself scream “Ellie,” but my voice didn't amplify. The sounds of the battle obscured my warning. I fell to my knees, and I threw my hands over my eyes. This was the end. My Ellie was no more.

There had been times in my life when changes made me look and wonder why my life ever began in the first place. I’ve had many of these times, and this was one of them. Why would I want to exist if I had no reason? I now had no reason to walk the face of the earth because my reason was now gone in a flash of fantastic lightning.

When people closed their eyes at night to rest their weary soul, they hoped to dream. To dream of sweet scents: roses, lilac and lavender, and the comfort of love, but when sleep catches them they fall in a world of nightmares. My nightmare had started, and my existence was over. I held my head down, and I watched no further.

Dee touched my arm, and she pointed in the direction of the image of Ellie and Ultress. I didn’t want to look, but I controlled my resistance and raised my head to look in the directions my Ellie once stood. The light had passed through their forms and connected with a large tree behind them. Elizabeth knew this was just a hologram. She could feel there was no life in the forms of already nonexistent soul. The three lords laughed at my reaction. They mocked my love for Ellie and laughed at my attempt to stop Elizabeth from harming the forms I thought were real. The flashing lights continued with falling trees, and jungle greenery clearing from what was once dense with thickness. My hatred for these three immortals grew. I wanted them extinguished.

Again, Alexander pointed toward the distance, but this form was real. It was Suzi. The same restraints bound her that bound the vampire held in the dungeon. The vampire Dee ripped apart after Ellie and I escaped. I saw fear in Suzi’s eyes. She pleaded for us to save her. She had come to the realization her Lords were no more than evil slave traders that punished their followers who didn’t yield to their intended demands. Suzi hadn’t been annihilated. She was being used as a pawn to ensure Elizabeth’s surrender. They were using the one thing they felt weaken our side. They were playing on our love for each other. Dee froze. She read Elizabeth’s thoughts, and I, in turn, read them as well.

I saw Elizabeth’s hesitation. She too knew Suzi wasn’t a hologram of trickery. Alexander’s laughter was deafening. He knew Elizabeth wouldn’t be able to abolish her. It wasn’t Ultress’s weakness that would be our downfall. Elizabeth couldn’t bring herself to abolish her lost grandchild. The sounds of war stopped and everyone stood frozen with their eyes on Suzi. Alexander with his laughter of evil along with his brothers saw our defeat was eminent. Elizabeth hung her head. She knew she failed Ultress and Ellie. The creatures of the jungle came out of their hiding place and peeked through what remained of their concealment of greenery. Every eye was on Elizabeth. They waited to see what her reaction was going to be. Alexander boasted of their certain victory. My rage built.

“Bring us our father and the young one as well as her creation. If you comply, we will let you continue.” Patrick spoke above his brothers roars of laughter.

My mind went to Ellie. I knew I would never allow them to touch her. This couldn’t be the end. I looked to the sky as if some magical sign would fall out into my hands. Dee touched my shoulder. She knew I wasn’t going to allow Ellie’s capture. She held my shoulder tight.

“Grandmother, Mother stop this” she pleaded.

They stopped and froze. Elizabeth and Lauren knew if they made any move to save Suzi that Alexander would extinguish his prisoner. Their thoughts were empty as the last words of the Lords were to order Elizabeth to bring Ultress, Ellie and myself to them. They would let everyone else survive. Otherwise, we would all die.

Elizabeth’s thoughts were to obey in hopes that Ultress, herself and I would survive. She made the decision to save everyone else. She knew a day would come the others would rescue us. I could not let this happen. Ellie could not endure the punishment the Lords planned to enact on her. Their plans would require her to extinguish me or make me watch the vile acts put upon her. I knew their plan. Ultress and Elizabeth would be annihilated.

Dee pulled me close to her side. Her words were forceful and stern.

“Remember what you put in your shirt, Daught. It’s time for you to believe in your abilities,” she insisted. I looked in her eyes, and I reached in my shirt. I felt the bouquet of roses, lilac and lavender. I could smell the scent of Ellie. I looked at her, and she smiled. I knew what she meant when she gave me this bouquet. Her thoughts and mine were the same. They were on the key. I closed my eyes and thought harder than I had ever in the past. I took in the scent of Ellie. I held out my hand and with every aspect of my concentration. I focused on the key. My eyes were tight and my concentration was stern. I felt something cold in my hand. It was cold metal. I had done it. The love of Ellie and the fear of her capture strengthened my thoughts. The key materialized. Dee clapped once and opened her hands as the box appeared. I put the key in the box and unlocked its content.

The three brothers looked in my direction. Their faces told the story of their fear. They knew what this box held, and they knew the evil I would unleash. Dee separated the waters of the fall, so Ellie could hear my thoughts.

“The wind Ellie; blow it in the direction of the Lords.” I sent my thought to her.

Without questioning me, she pursed her lips in the air, and the winds started to move in the eastern direction that the Lords had made their stand. I opened the lid and the contents of the box swirled in the wind like a swarm of locus. It unleashed itself on our enemy. The night sky grew darker from the mist of a black cloud of plague that drifted east to engulf our enemy. There was more evil, misery and sorrow than one could imagine. The black magic of horror unleashed on the immortals caused them to turn on one another and extinguish each other where they stood. We watched in amazement. The battle was no longer against us, but they fought against each other. Flashes of lightning and roars of thunder revealed the grand finale of this spectacular display of hatred. Dee and I shielded our eyes from the horror that took place before us. I knew Ultress was shielding Ellie and little Graylee’s eyes. Lauren and Elizabeth shielded each other.