Painted Moments

16 Purged Seal

Chapter 16
Purged Seal
    Luc is now on the island where I was last night. Stretched out face down like a starfish with his lower half covered by a sheet.
    Mason was coming back from his room to set up different ink jars he had selected from his collection. While I stood beside Luc preparing the seal on his very low lower back. I painted the iodine across his skin in smooth circles making sure to give a wide margin for the quarter size emblem to be extracted.
   The story we came up with was that the seal was damaged in the fight last night and had to be removed when it threatened Luc's sanity.
    This is where things get a bit hairy. The story will be that we just tried to cut it out of his skin as we were at our wits end, but finally gave in and used my abilities to remove it. My gifts are used very little because they are highly unstable. No one would wish the use of my ability on their worst enemy.
    They are mostly just a weaker, less versatile version of my moms I guess. Mom keeps telling me that I will find a way to be useful; that I would find a way to control it without it being destructive. I didn't see that happening anytime soon. I don't understand why it never seems to work out like Mom's.
    I have followed her instructions and examples to the letter thousands of times. My attempts always cause damage somehow. I just can't focus on the image well enough to enforce my will on the person, place or thing to get it to work without leaving disturbing results.
   Now I'm racking my brain to figure out how the heck I'm supposed to do this in the least painful way. I don't want to hurt him, but I know I can't avoid it.
   As Mason said though, if our story is checked, it's best if there is a scar, if a scar was even possible with Luc suddenly achieving Nephilim status.
   I still don't know how to feel about this. My whole world has suddenly been turned on its ear. I'm silently panicking about Harrace having taken my parents, and having control of the Inner office. I'm freaking out about this surreal war that has blown up in our face. Then on top of that I'm preparing to do the equivalent of setting my boyfriend on fire!
    Not to mention, like Mason said, will he still be my Luc once he goes through this literal trial by flame. I'm so confused. Mason isn't really giving me any time to sort this out though. He already has everything set up.    
    I've decided I'm going to use Egyptian hieroglyphics. It works better for some reason than just drawing from imagination. There are many rituals that involve purification of forced influences through flame. I've picked one of the least complicated combinations, but it's still going to hurt Luc like hell. Depending on how deep the seal is embedded in his skin; he will have to endure this burn out for minutes or hours.
    Thank goodness the seal is small. It seems mom was thinking ahead towards a future in which she and dad convinced the council to remove their influence over Luc's life. I can feel her life force coiling through the symbols within the seal.
   "Cori? You okay?"
    Luc was looking at me in concern. He was the one about to have his back purged by my wonky self destructive talents. He should really be worried about himself, not me.
   Mason walked in at that moment with more supplies. The ropes making it hit home that I was about to put the guy I'm in love with through real live torture. I wish mom was here. She would probably have come to the same conclusion we did by this point. If she was here she could simply paint the seal right out of his skin painlessly aside from the mental recovery pain and slight bruising. Now Luc will have to deal with the information retrieval, and his backside set a flame.
    Having heard Luc's question Mason spoke up for me.
   "She will be fine, Lucas. Just let her get in the zone."
   He didn't skip a beat as he threaded the ropes through the drawer openings where the drawers in the island had been removed and put on the countertop out of the way. He started to whistle an out of tune melody that I couldn't pinpoint even if I tried. He tied Luc down with all the creepy amount of experience he has. Luc wasn't going anywhere.
     "Now that I've got you secured let me explain what's going to happen in more detail."
     "Wait, you didn't tell him what was going to happen?"
    "Of course I did, you heard me tell him. Hence he dropped his pants."
    "Mason that was in no way clear enough!"
    "That's why I just said, here's more detail. I doubt he would have been so docile while I was tying him down if I told him beforehand."
    "Mason!"
    "What? He would have made more work for me if he had struggled with cold feet."
    "You're a jerk Mason."
    "No, I'm practical."
    "So he is a practical jerk. Can you guys just get to the point. I'm tied to a table in my boxers over here with half my rear hanging out. There has got to be a better time for us to fix the broken switch in Mason's head."
   Mason looked from me to Luc as if wounded by our words. When neither of us showed any signs of retracting his face melted into a sneaky grin.
    "Right. Well, on that note I don't feel half as bad about the fact that my sister is about to set your butt on fire."
    "What..? You're kidding right!"
    Just as Mason predicted Luc started to struggle just a bit. I decided it was best to explain quickly before he gave himself a panic attack.
     "I have to purge the seal from your skin Luc. As Mason said before, it's going to hurt."
     "Yeah so I was thinking more along the lines of tattoo removal. What do you guys mean, set my butt on fire?"
     Luc looked really nervous as he craned his neck to pull his head out of the pillow I gave him and looked at us out of the corner of his eye. That's when Mason jumped into the explanation of my talents and how they work so pitifully in comparison to Mom's.
    I just stood there like a fool. As I listened to my brother make it sound like what I was about to do was normal. Like I'm doing this kind of crap all the time.
I understand the need to convince him that I have all this under control so he won't freak out too badly, but Luc was starting to eye me like you do the surgical drill in a dentist office while you hope the doctor used enough novocaine.
     "So you ready for this Lucas? I need to know if you're really willing to go through with this. If so I snatched the silk tie rope from your living room curtains for you to bite down on. We wouldn't want you to bite your
tongue."
    "Okay I think I'm ready. As long as it means we get this over with quickly and I can get out of these ropes.
How did you learn to tie people down like this?"
     Luc looked at Mason with a knowing smile that bordered on smug.
    "You have a twisted side don't you?"
    "Eww Luc that is not an image of my brother I ever needed in my head."
   I slapped Luc's calf for good measure to get his mind out of the gutter. It didn't help much though as he just continued to chuckle.
    However, Mason had the last laugh.
    "No Cori he is completely right. Remind me to let you borrow the instructions I found for this particular knot. It comes with a centerfold."
   Now grinning ear to ear he shoved the silk curtain ropes into Luc's mouth, that had dropped open in stunned shock, expertly knotting it behind his head.
   "I'm just kidding, restraining escapees on hunts is basic training for all of us. Cori knows these knots too."
   Born to protect me, yeah right. Mason was born to embarrass me and make my life miserable. I know Luc probably feels the same because he isn't picking his head up out of the pillow where Mason shoved him so he could tie the makeshift gag. However, his ears and back of his neck are blazing red. Probably realizing how immature his previous comments are now. Good he deserves to be embarrassed.
   "Alright Cori he is all yours."
   Mason stepped back, chuckling at the havoc he caused, and leaned against the opposite counter. He immediately started to fuzz out of my peripheral vision. His silent way of saying there was nothing more he could do, but he would have my back.
   Slowly I walked towards the island. I surveyed the four ink jars set up on the TV tray next to Luc's hip. Mason had chosen well. Each one was a different color from one of the calligraphy sets I grabbed last night.
    My onyx stone pen that my dad carved for me himself for my fourteenth birthday was sitting innocently on a white linen. My tool of choice when I had to resort to doing something like this.
   This will be the third time I've ever done it on human flesh. The first time I did it I was called to the Med. Corps to remove a demon curse mark on a fellow huntsman's arm. The mark was slowly driving him insane. Dad couldn't wait for Mom to wake up from her injuries, and he didn't want to lose his friend. The hunter now wears his burn scar wrapped three times around his bicep proudly, after the hours I spent ripping the curse from his skin.   
    The second time it was used to stop blood loss after a hunter under my command caught a spike to his femoral artery. Cauterizing the wound was imperative since bleeding out is one thing we don't come back from.
   The spike that hit Briant was from the same plague demon that got my back. He was septic and almost too weak to heal by the time I got across the room to him. Only minutes had gone by. He got sicker the longer we left the spike in. That left me with very few options.
    Now I'm about to do the same to My Luc. I have to admit my stomach is feeling a little queasy at the thought of it. I have to push through though. I can't leave Luc in such a vulnerable state.
   Slowly I began picking up each jar to open them and return them to the tray while I spoke to him.
   "Alright Luc, at first this will feel no different from me just drawing on your back. The more complete the pattern becomes though the more pressure in your skin you will feel from me forcing my will into it. I will do my best to warn you the moment I complete the pattern. Because once I do, it will ignite, and we will not be able to stop it until it has finished purging the seal. Nod your head if you understand."
    His head nodded up and down in quick movements giving away his nervousness. I gently smoothed my hand down the tense muscles in his back.
   "Try to relax at the start of this at the very least. The cleaner I can get my lines the quicker this is over."
   Luc began taking deep breaths. Trying his best to loosen up and relax.
   "Alright Love let's begin."
   I didn't say another word as I picked up my style. Dipping only the tip in the metallic gold ink I began the grueling work of forcing my will into the ink as the first symbol for purity began to take shape.
   The tiny hieroglyphs in alternating gold, blue, red, and hunter green slowly began to encircle the seal. The suggestion to use the ancient script was Aspen's idea. He was the one who taught me how to write it. I had been fascinated as a child by the artistic combination of the written word and the simplistic pictorials.
    Before he taught me I truly had no control at all. I can paint an object into being, or open a dimensional pocket easily. However, If I try to combine the two to create a new reaction like any other main family member in our history, boom! So I am probably the only main family child that can't successfully combine the two abilities without hurting anyone.
    Mason was lucky. His gift has always been on the surface for him. He says it's as easy as breathing. Only two others in our history have had Mason's talent of control over life force. He is a rare bird indeed.
    I on the other hand can feel my gift just under the surface. I know I need a medium to draw it out, but there is a wall there between my consciousness and my gift.
    Mom says the same happened to her as a kid. It's not the same though. She figured out she needed bio matter. I've tried everything! Boom! Boom! Boom! It all sets on fire and burns no matter what I visualize. I'm only good for destroying things at this point. Like this seal.
    I am close to done now, and I'm dreading it. I've been explaining each step to Luc as promised. The last step is to simply draw a circle in gold around the glyphs and seal; locking them in together to minimize the damage.   
   Then I have to watch and be ready to repair the boundary line if for some reason the purging fire breaks through during the battle.
   "Alright Love, this is it. Remember to do your best to focus on what I've drawn. See it in your head just as I have described it. Put your will behind it. The more you fight and reject the seal while accepting the purge the easier it will be to destroy it and get this all over with."
   "Ready?"
   A quick nod was his only response. Luc had his eyes clenched shut. His face was red. Probably from the stress and pain from dealing with the great amount of pressure my will subjected him to.
   It was time though. I couldn't put it off any longer.   
   The last circle is always the hardest to draw. I do my best to keep my hands from shaking. The amount of life force I've already put into this to counteract Mom's seal is staggering for one sitting. My head is pounding from the exertion as I fight to close the circle, and trap both opposing wills inside it.
   The moment the two ends of the circle meet I can only breath in relief as the ache leaves my body. Mom is definitely the better enforcer. I thought I was going to pass out.
   There was no time for those feelings though as my brother's arms caught me when I wobbled, and pulled my onyx style from my hand before I dropped it. 
   Luc's body has flushed with fever.
A quick look at his face reveals his eyes have rolled completely into his head as he starts to convulse. Foam builds around the rope and corners of his mouth as his teeth hold their vice grip.
    The finished product is about the size of my palm. The different colors of ink standing bright and glowing against what now looks like bubbling flesh and blood roiling within the golden circle.
   Rest Cori, and keep watch on the circle. I'll take care of him now.
   I watched in a daze for what seemed like hours. Luc's moments of lucidity were filled with screams that tore my heart. Disassociating and making my world nothing more than that border line circle was the only way I could cope with the reality of this.
   The border only broke once. Even then it only gained centimeters in diameter before, with my brother's donated energy, I closed it with a thick new circle of gold woven with red.
   The center point where the seal was located has turned black with crack-like veins reaching out through the area. A sign that things are coming to a close. The seal went deeper into his skin then I thought it did. This would definitely scar.
   I could feel the heat leaving his body. His convulsions and screaming reverted to moans and whimpers. The glowing lava red fades completely to coal black as the seal and cracks in his skin start to flake and turn to ash. The last of the process is done.
   "Sissy, he passed out from exhaustion. Let's get him cleaned up and untied."
   I just nod my head as I move through the kitchen gathering supplies to clean his wound. Removing all the
burnt dead skin and ash was important. You can't leave anything behind that could possibly retrigger the seal.
   Luc didn't even twitch when I cleaned out the plug of ash in his back. The seal was gone. The Information retrieval was violently accomplished. Now he just needs rest. Once his wound was clean from all the gunk; I left it to air out, and turned to wiping down the rest of his sweat soaked body.
   By this time Mason had completely untied him. The last rope pulled from his mouth revealing that it was beyond repair as he had almost bitten straight through it. I don't think he would really miss such a minor decor detail in the long run.
   With the seal gone his healing abilities were no longer held back. His body was already making quick work of the splits in the sides of his mouth. The wound from the seal would take a day or two, but it had already stopped bleeding.
    Now we just need to get him comfortable. I guess I started focusing on little details I could control at this point. The nerves were getting to me. My head aches from fighting against my mother's will woven into that stupid seal.
    I can't help but be angry with her. How could she do it? Give into the council and steal all of My Luc's gifts from him. It just didn't make any sense.
   "Mason, we should move him. I know we had to get the process done here cause he couldn't break the metal, but he really needs a bed. He is going to be sore enough without sleeping on a hard table as well and..."
   Mason quickly made his way over to me. Shushing me as my blabbing finally gave way to tears. The first time I have cried from the start of this mess. My sobs were wretched, and I hated myself for them. I could almost hear Luc screaming again underneath them. It's all just too much.
    How could he not hate me when he wakes up? My family did this to him. I hurt him so badly to undo it to him. How am I supposed to face him when he wakes up from this with all the knowledge of what was stolen from him.
    "He is never going to forgive us Mason... not really. How could he?"
   Mason froze. He presents fading around me as it did when he got nervous.
    "Do you really think that? I mean yeah he might be mad at the council and Mom and Dad for a while, but as soon as we found out we came clean right? He can't hold it against us if it's us against the world now."
    There was truth in Mason's words. We had found a way to bring him in just as we always have. When I really thought about it. There was always the feeling that My Luc belonged with us in the thick of it all. He never felt out of place. It's like I've been waiting for the excuse, or the permission, to finally spill everything and bind him to us.
     "You're right. He is home. Finally he is where he belongs, and we succeeded in bringing him here. He belongs with us."
     "You got it Sissy, the three of us are going to get Mom and Dad back, win this war, and reestablish a new council that won't even think twice about the fact that the three of us are in charge."
     Mason solidified around me holding me in a comforting brotherly embrace. With every word he said, I could feel his confidence grow bolstering mine.
     "Now let's get him comfortable and deal with things slowly, step by step, after he wakes up. Okay?"
     I nodded my head as I slowly pulled away from him feeling much calmer.
    "Yeah, okay."
    It was pretty easy getting Luc upstairs into his bed laying gently on his side. I just drew life size stick men and a simple stretcher on the wall with charcoal. Once they came to life, they set to work quickly moving Luc onto the stretcher then carting him gently up the stairs to his room. Happy to follow the scenario I had imagined them doing as I drew them into our reality.
     I was bone tired at this point. The entire afternoon has been spent and it's actually getting closer to dinner time. I'm glad I insisted everyone eat before we started this process. It definitely took longer than my optimistic brother thought it was going to.
     Once I'm sure Luc will be comfortable, and I've bandaged the wound lightly so it's covered in case he moves, I decide I should at least order some food. I'm too exhausted to cook right now.
I made my way quickly down to the kitchen again. There I found Mason with a menu in one hand and his Smartphone held to his ear. Sounds like Italian for dinner tonight. Good I need something heavy and carb loaded after draining myself so much. The dull ache in my head throbbed as if to say hurry up and eat something.
    I went to the fridge for a snack to tide me over. A bucket of leftover potato salad from the local market caught my eye. I immediately grabbed it before shutting the door and heading for the silverware drawer, ready to eat it straight from the bucket.
    "Yes, thank you, that completes my order. What time should I look for arrival? Yes, thank you, goodbye."
    Mason was eyeing me as I moved around the kitchen with a spoonful of potato salad in my mouth and the bucket under one arm as I pulled down a glass for some of that sweet tea I saw behind the milk in the fridge.
     "Want some tea?"
     I finally asked around the spoon in my mouth as I ducked behind the fridge door to hide from his gaze.
    "Sure, and I'll grab my own spoon. I want some of that."
     I had half a mind to get possessive over my newly found treasure, but I know I'm just food crazed from using so much will and life force. The last thing I want to do is tip my hand and let Mason know how drained I was.
    "Okay, take it and I'll meet you at the table."
     I held out the bucket behind me around the door for him to take without looking at him. As soon as I felt he had a good grip I let go and listened to him make his way to get his spoon and a glass from the sounds of it. Good that's less I had to carry. Now just holding a glass and chewing on my spoon, I moved things around till I could reach the jug of sweet tea, then grabbed the jar of dill pickles for good measure.