I had been deceived. Desperately I struggled as Alpheus smiled down at me, seemingly unworried about my attempts to escape. My ex-fiance had lured me to the observatory and I did not realize his evil intentions until it was too late. Now I was trapped here, held prisoner as Alpheus prepared for the completion of his spell.
"Release me!" I cried, pulling against the magical bonds that held me to the table.
Alpheus reached down, gently pushing a lock of hair away from my face as he shushed me. "Now, now. It will all be over soon."
"What are you planning?! Why would you lie to me?" I yelled. With my burst of emotions came a surge of lunar powers which were immediately dampened by the spells on my restraints.
"I don't believe I ever lied to you, my dear," Alpheus said with a chuckle. "Hm, maybe I did. But it was all for the greater good, trust me."
I let out a frustrated scream as he laughed, walking out of my field of vision. I felt so foolish for believing in him. Why didn't I realize?
Alpheus had changed since I last saw him, no longer the awkward but brash boy I knew. I cursed my luck, wishing I had just left as soon as I had cured Casimir of the darkness clouding his memories. I had just gotten my Casimir back and we were going to leave. Tears began to fill my eyes and I shook them off.
I finally had a chance to be with him and I let it slip through my fingers once again.
I glanced around at my surroundings, desperate to find some means of escape. All around me the giant elemental crystals began to glow and I could feel their power surging. They were larger than any other crystals I had seen previously and I was terrified as to what kind of spell they were used for. Alpheus was now outside the ring of crystals, standing on a platform with a sacred protection seal carved into the ground. He wasted no time in starting his spell, a dusty old book in his hand as he began chanting in an ancient language. I wished I had paid more attention in my lessons, perhaps then I would know what he was plotting.
The air around me grew thick and as I tried to yell for help I found my voice strangled. The elemental crystals were shining now, vibrating with unseen energy. A strange humming noise filled the room and Alpheus' voice grew louder as the wind picked up around me. I was growing sleepy and I struggled to stay awake, afraid of what might happen if I let myself succumb. All at once, a pain overtook my body and I screamed, my voice lost in the rush of the wind. Such agony I had never known before and it felt like my whole body was being ripped apart. I felt hot and cold all at once, my senses were set ablaze. From my body a strange silver mist began to rise, climbing high above me, swirling until it formed the faint image of a woman. I felt bereft, as I stared into her face and tears began to pool in the corners of my eyes. She seemed so familiar, like a long-lost dream. I wanted to reach out to her, to become one again.
Alpheus' chanting subsided and the winds died down. The spell was over yet I was still in pain. He returned to my side, eyes locked on the silver mist above me. I felt like my own eyes were deceiving me as his once silver eyes were now a bright blue. I was almost sure I was going mad with pain.
"Soon," he whispered, reaching up towards the mist. It recoiled from his touch, swirling almost angrily but never traveling far.
"What did you do to me?" I whispered. I could barely speak and each word felt like a knife stabbing the back of my throat. Alpheus just smiled coyly at me before returning his gaze to the silver mist.
"I won't bore you with the details. It would take too long to explain," he said quietly. "Only know that the spell is done and soon you will be as you once were. Soon everything will be right again."
I was shocked as a wave of sadness rolled over me. I had no idea what Alpheus meant by his explanation and could only cringe in agony as the pain increased.
Alpheus raised both arms upward, his hands beginning to glow a faint blue as he spoke. "Not much longer n-"
A dagger came from nowhere, stabbing Alpheus directly in his right eye. His head flew backward as blood rained over me and I gasped in shock. The prince stumbled away, screaming in anguish as he ripped out the dagger. Blood now soaked his face and shirt and I watched as Alpheus struggled to pull a small vial of potion from his pocket, cursing loudly before he managed to get the cap off. He drank it quickly, and a magical glow covered his body briefly. The bleeding stopped and he tossed the empty container to the ground. I could sense Casimir's rage before I saw him. He shot out of the shadows, sword drawn, ready for battle. Alpheus wasted no time in drawing his own sword, scowling heavily as Casimir reached him. They were already trading blows when I heard another voice call for them to stop.
"Please, cease your fighting!" Ratimir cried.
The pair didn't listen, their battle taking them out of the crystal circle towards the edge of the observatory. I was screaming in pain as I felt more of my life force leave my body. The pain and the rage were almost too much. I had to get free and help Casimir, I had to bring him back before he lost himself to his war god blessing. Ratimir appeared before me, mumbling to himself as he unlocked my bindings. Once I was free he helped me up but I felt so weak.
"Uncle," I whispered. "I-I'm sorry..."
"Hush, please save your strength," Ratimir said. "What did he do to you child?"
"He said I'll be as I once... was..." I replied slowly. Each word was a struggle, all I wanted to do was sleep.
"Come let us leave this magic circle," Ratimir commanded. "That might stop the spell." I nodded my head and slipped off the table, my bare feet barely touching the ground when a wave of anger hit me.
"She's not going anywhere!" Alpheus hissed, appearing suddenly beside us. The prince lashed out, backhanding his father across the face to send him flying out of the way.
"No!" I cried, reaching out helplessly as Ratimir's body crumpled to the ground.
There was a blur of action, Casimir attacking, Alpheus defending and myself struggling to get out of the way. A red aura or fury surrounded Casimir and I was certain I would be overwhelmed if it wasn't for a strange calm sensation coming from Alpheus. He was laughing as he parried all of Casimir's strikes, amused by the former assassin's frustration.
"CAS-" I was screaming, trying to get his attention when I felt the blade go through my stomach. I wasn't sure what happened, but it seemed Alpheus had dodged while I remained in the path of Casimir's sword. Our eyes met and I could feel his fury subside, cold remorse taking its place.
"Casimir...?" I choked, blood now spilling from my mouth. My voice seemed to snap him out of his stupor. He looked down at my lifeblood, now dripping down onto the floor.
"TAYA!" He cried, pulling the sword from my stomach and throwing it to the ground. I collapsed into his arms, all my strength gone. He cradled me close to his chest, moaning softly as he touched the wound on my stomach. "No, Taya no... please."
"Casimir," I whispered, enjoying our closeness despite the terrible situation. I could feel the darkness coming, wraiths were hungry for my blood. "They're coming..."
"Taya, please don't die, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry-"
"Just go, run away and save yourself," I begged. "The wraiths are coming." I was trying so hard to hold them back, but I could hear them whispering, calling for my blood. Casimir was crying now and he reminded me of his old childhood self. He was always crying when he was younger.
"I won't leave you, I'll fight."
"You'll die," I choked, blood filling my mouth. Nothing had ever hurt so much in my life. I reached down to touch my stomach, shocked at how warm my blood felt.
"Then I die, I don't care," he whispered.
I glared up at him, my tone serious. "I command you to live, Casimir Ren."
"Taya..."
"Live and find me again," I insisted, closing my eyes. I was so tired. "Just like before, I will be reborn."
I began to slip away, the pain too much. Voices began screaming my name and the darkness, the darkness wanted to tear me apart.
Let it take me, I thought. I no longer fear the darkness because I can make my own light.
--------------------------------------
I let out a small gasp as I awoke, my stomach ached where my last dream had ended, with me once again stabbed in the belly. The details were hazy but I would always remember the pain, sorrow, and fear I felt as these emotions had haunted me all my life. It had been a while since I last experienced that particular dream and I wasn't exactly pleased to see it returned. I glanced around, confused because I was not in my bed or anywhere else familiar. I realized quickly from the feel of the starch white sheets, and strange antiseptic smell in the air that I must be in a hospital.
"Diana."
I looked to my left to see my Grandfather sitting in the chair next to me and my face broke out into a soft smile.
"Grandpa!"
I moved to sit up, but my grandfather reached out, gently keeping me down in my bed.
"Take it slow," he said, concerned. "You've been out of it for a while."
I nodded slowly, just taking in the details of his face. He was in his human form, the same green eyes, deep wrinkles, bright silvery hair, and beard I had grown up with. His large hand reached out to hold mine and I grasped his fingers tightly, smiling as I stared into his eyes. My left arm felt tight and I realized it was bandaged, I'm sure from the fight with Zachary. My eyes widened as the memory of the fight rushed back to me. I tried to sit up again, only to feel woozy and laid back down.
"What did I just say?"
"I'm sorry, I just remembered Grandpa..." I trailed off, looking around my room for anyone who could overhear. Grandfather noticed my wandering eyes and he looked over his shoulder.
"We got you into a private room, you can speak freely," he reassured. "Still, be a little careful, they like to leave the doors open around here and the nurses come and go quite often."
"How long have I been here? What happened to Zachary, what did you all tell the police? Oh my god the police, did they let you go? You're not going away for murder are you?"
Grandpa let out a laugh at my string of questions. I was bursting at the seams, wanting to know all the details.
He took a deep breath, smiling as he answered. "You've been here a week, Zachary has been arrested for assaulting both you, the police officers and-"
I opened my mouth to make a comment and grandpa raised his finger to stop me.
"I have been released from custody. The police, for some reason, lost the evidence they had on me, so they had to drop all of the charges. The DNA they found on the scene didn't match me anyway," he finished, a somewhat smug look on his face.
"DNA?" I pressed. "What would your DNA even look like to our computers?"
"Well, the words inconclusive kept popping up," Grandpa muttered.
I snickered lightly, just overjoyed that my guardian wasn't going away to prison. I stared down at the IV in my arm, sighing slightly.
"I've really been here a week? Just for a cut on my arm?"
"You passed out Diana, and nothing we did could wake you," Grandpa explained. "In addition to that, the cops couldn't just let you go after seeing everything that happened." My worried face caused my grandfather to sigh slightly, answering my next question. "No, they didn't tell the other policemen about the magic. I think they were too afraid."
"Oh, that's good."
"Where was I? Oh yes, backup arrived shortly after you fell asleep, then the ambulances to help all the people at the scene..."
"How were all the people?" I asked, suddenly nervous. The memory of that one man being stabbed replayed in my mind.
"They're fine," Grandpa said with a shrug. "The gentleman who was stabbed is in for a long recovery but-"
"But he's not dead!" I finished, smiling.
"No, he's not dead."
"So Zachary..."
"Hmph," Grandpa muttered as he released my hand, crossing his arms across his chest. His face grew cloudy with discontent.
"I feel kinda bad for him," I remarked, watching my grandfather's expression carefully.
"You are a kind soul, my dear," he replied, his tone still stern.
"He was possessed by a wraith, I mean, who knows where Zachary's bad behavior and the wraith's influence begins or ends?" I pleaded. I had been thinking about that a lot when Mr. Burke died.
"Wraiths only possess people who are, how you say, less than moral," Grandpa insisted.
"That doesn't mean he deserves to go to prison for everything that happened."
"Isn't this the boy who harassed you and your fellow female students? Cheated on all his homework and bullies so many others?"
"Grandpa! How do you know all of that?"
"Casimir told me," Grandpa grunted. "I had him watching the boy. Especially after the incident with him breaking your painting."
"Oh, here it is, the real reason you hate him, because he broke one of your beloved paintings," I joked, grinning at him broadly.
"There are other reasons," he replied, not wanting to look me in the eye. He was pouting slightly. I laughed at his reply, stopping mid-chuckle to groan slightly. Grandfather looked over at me in concern.
"It kinda hurts to laugh," I admitted with a grimace. I let out a sigh, my eyes closing for a moment and I almost drifted off. I shook my head, glaring slightly. "Ugh, if I slept for a week then why do I still feel tired?"
"You used a lot of lunar power that night in the club," Grandpa mused, his hand pulling down on his beard. "Your body is most definitely exhausted from the effort."
"Lunar power? So that's what that light was?"
"We assume."
I raised an eyebrow at my guardian, laughing dryly. "So you don't know?"
Grandpa shrugged his large shoulders, glancing over at the TV affixed to the ceiling. The news was on, but the television was on mute. "From what Azar told me it stands to reason that's what it was."
I smacked the bed lightly, drawing his attention back to me. "Grandpa, give it to me straight please."
"I'm sorry," he said. Grandfather was silent, his eyes closed as he processed his thoughts. I could feel his discomfort, his unease, but most of all his sadness.
I looked over at the window, admiring what little foliage I could see from my bed. The sun was shining and it looked like a bright and clear autumn afternoon. The memories of the fight in the nightclub seemed so far away now.
"He called me his queen. I felt his grief when I killed him," I whispered sadly.
"Diana," he said and I could feel his heartbreaking for me. I let my words sit for a moment, the silence stretching between us. As I pondered our predicament I decided such conversations could wait. There was so much more I wanted to talk about, this sadness could wait.
"You know what, I'm going to drop it, for now," I blurted out, causing my grandfather to look up at me in surprise. I turned my head to smile at him. "Because right now I am feeling just so darn happy to see you."
Grandpa laughed his mood brightening immediately. I wondered how he felt, locked up in that police station, unable to help me. It must have been terrible.
"Can I get you anything?" he asked, rising from his seat. "I guess I should probably tell the nurses you're awake. The police have been wanting to talk to you."
"Ugh, please don't. Just sit with me for a while," I groaned, reaching out for him. He sat back down, shaking his head slightly. "Ooh, tell me how the apples are doing!"
"The apples are doing great."
"You think I'll be out in time for the harvest festival?"
"We'll make sure," he replied, his voice determined.
I smiled at my grandfather, content at this moment to put aside my dreams, my worries, and any other drama relating to magic or Dark Kings from another planet. My grandfather and I talked together for the next hour and as he held my hand I found myself drifting off to sleep, safe in the knowledge that he would be there when I woke up.
END OF BOOK 1
To be continued.