"Why not send Chanler and Saul? Are they not Fleet, the Council's military and friends to the order?"
"We need them because they know the layout of the castle," said Druce.
"And, Kris?" Ciaran asked.
"Kris is no fighter," said Starr. "Sorry, Kris."
"For what, making me sound incompetent? I'm not going anywhere!"
"Okay, it is agreed, then," Aine said, sounding disappointed.
Misaki stepped to the front of the group. "Starr, come back with us."
"I'm sorry but I can't. What kind of person would I be if I let Credenza hurt a child? Besides, that child is, in a lot of ways, me."
"Don't worry, Misaki," said Ciaran. "She'll be fine. Starr always manages to bounce back somehow."
"Yeah, but for some reason, I have this feeling you might not, this time," said Marla.
"Cheer up, guys!" Starr tried to sound positive. "If there is one thing we've learned, it's that this life is not the only one. We'll be together, now and again in the future."
Marla and Mica leant in and gave her a hug. When she turned to hug Shane, she put her hand up and said, "I'm coming with you. You'll need me."
Starr looked at her, thinking she were absurd. When she saw she was serious, she pulled her off to the side of trees and whispered, "Shane, you have to go back. You're the strongest of us all. If I'm not there with the kids, then you should be."
Shaking her head, she countered, "We worked well, together. Remember how the Queen held you with her power, and I stabilized you? And how I helped you find the room to burn down? Well, I can do it again. Maybe I'm not a fighter, but it felt so good to put my power to use."
Starr shook her head and looked away.
"For the last few years, all I've done is sit and stew with this power, and the struggle of the world's emotions and thoughts ravaging my brain - leaving me miserable and drained and looking for seclusion, but now, I've discovered a use for it and I feel great. I feel like I've expelled energy, and it has left me in a state of rest. Right now, I can't feel you or hear your thoughts without making a conscious effort, whereas before, I had to work to push your energy - and everyone else's - away."
"I don't get it: What are you trying to say?"
"I think the remedy for my debilitating kinesis is to exercise it. I can't explain it any better than that, but I've got to see if my theory is correct. If it is, then you'll have me, there, on your side no matter what. We'd make a great team, don't you think?"
Great team was an exaggeration. Starr thought back to their difficult past, one where they were always at odds. Shane had even tried to kill Starr multiple times, but there wasn't time to argue.
"Okay, let's give it a shot, but you gotta realize that I'm in charge. You'll do what I say, but even more, I demand your respect. There's a chain of command, here, and I'm at the top, with my fellows to advise me. If you can't handle that, then you'll have to go. Now, if you agree to that, then I'm willing to try, at least for the time being."
"I understand."
They walked back to the group, and after a round of hugs, they parted.
Rays of yellow-gold slashed down across the forest floor, causing the tops of their heads to intermittently sizzle and smoke as they stepped in and out of the sunlight, between trees.
"Do you think it's wise for us to go there now? Shouldn't we wait until night?" asked Druce as he skipped over a large rock in their path.
"No, we don't have time to waste," Shane replied. "I felt the Queen's intentions: she plans to do the ritual as soon as possible."
"Why, what's the rush?" asked Ikael.
"Us, of course: she wants to eliminate us."
They reached the edge of the forest. Once more, Starr felt the familiar warmth of being near her soul.
"I can feel Meghan, the baby; she's speaking to me."
She glared up at the tallest tower, atop which hung a bell. Behind it was a platform where they planned to do the rite.
"So you'll be watching?" Starr asked Shane.
"Of course, I'll be with you the entire time."
She sighed. "Okay, let's go."
Starr and Seth walked fast across the clearing, to the castle wall. As before, bats clung to the space under the rims that divided the floors of the castle. Starr beat them away as she climbed the old cold stones. Seth followed closely behind.
They reached the bell tower, climbed over the railing and walked across the platform, past a long table to a large door in the floor. Starr pulled it up, breaking the lock, and hurried down the stairs into a dark, empty hall.
Seth remained silent, with sword drawn, behind her. Starr pulled her single sickle from under her cloak.
As before, her soul sensed her and talked into her mind, like a whisper, telling Starr how to find her.
At the end of the hall they spotted stairs, and descended several flights before stepping into a long, dark corridor, and paused in front of a door at the end of the hall. She placed her hand on the cold, tarnished knob: it was unlocked.
Gently, she pushed the door back, revealing the witch, Gwen, who sat holding a bottle to the baby's mouth.
She merely stood up and walked toward her.
"Her things are in that bag." Gwen nodded her head toward a large black bag that sat on a desk.
"Why aren't you fighting us?" asked Seth.
"Because, Seth, I've been forced into this. I know you and others like to think the worst of me, but the truth is, I've only ever done what I was compelled to."
She carefully handed Starr the baby while keeping the bottle in her mouth. Gwen walked to the table and picked up the bag, and carefully placed it on Starr's left shoulder.
"Now, get out here."
"Thanks, Gwen," said Starr. "For some strange reason, I'm sorry I never got to know you."
"The parents are in Boston, still. They're unharmed. You should go there tonight."
She nodded her head and walked toward a pane of glass right behind her.
"Does this open?"
Gwen walked over and released a Victorian style window latch that Starr had never seen before. She pushed the glass outward. Starr stepped onto the desk that was before it. Just as she was to take off, in flight, the window slammed back, shut.
Starr spun around and found Credenza standing in the doorway. Seth launched his sword through the air.
Calmly, Credenza stepped aside. Seth's blade landed right between the eyes of a servant who stood just behind her. The man stumbled back into the wall. His body slackened and he dropped to the ground.
"Gwen, how could you do this? After all we've been through?" asked Credenza.
"Because I'm tired of being used."
She sighed and said, "No matter, I don't need you anyway."
"Why do this to a child? Are you really so evil?" asked Starr.
"I do it because I want to live again, to feel again."
"I won't let you harm her."
"I don't want to harm her. If all goes well, I'll return her to her parents."
In came Emil. His eyes flashed at Starr and back to Credenza. "Everything is ready," he said.
"Thank you, Emil. You're coming with us, Starr. You, too, Sirius; oh sorry, it's Seth, now, right?"
Starr refused to move. Then there was tightening feeling in her brain, like the time Credenza killed Levi, she felt her skull and brain threatening to boil beneath. From her side, she heard Seth groan, too.
"Let's go."
Rite Time
Chapter 4
Wind blew through the tower, causing the cast iron bell, which hung in the middle of the ceiling, to hum lowly, sending vibrations through the floor. Sun light glared between the four corners of the tower, which had no walls but was, instead, connected by wrought iron railings.
In the middle of the room, below the bell, was a long oak table that was covered with a black cloth. Chunky black candles were placed in a row to either side of a large light colored stone basin. One of Credenza's men prog
ressed down the rows, lighting them.
Credenza, still holding Starr by the force of her will, removed the baby from her arms; then guided her into a standing case that looked similar to an iron maiden, only with a larger window space for viewing.
A moment later, the same man who lit the candles came over, with a large piece of black chalk in his hand, and drew a circle around her case. He was Credenza's brother. Starr remembered him from her dreams. Then in an informal Latin, he said a blessing:
"Mistress of the Earth, your protection I seek.
Let no other-natural energy pass into this circle; let no good or harm come to all that lies within."
As she heard his muffled prayer through the glass of her cage, she felt the presence of something or someone ancient nearby. Whispers, like wind, tickled her ear; a heat warmed her chest. She reached up and was momentarily surprised by the feel of the Abatha Crystal, which she forgot about, that hung down her neck.
Credenza still held Seth with her power.
Someone handed her a bulk of something heavy, and with an evil grin, the Queen unraveled it, revealing a wire braided rope. She slipped one end, a noose, around his neck; then spun the opposite end of the rope to the clapper of the bell. She caught the rope as it swung around and pulled it, which tightened around the clapper, slowly drawing Seth, by the throat, into the bell until he was gone from sight. Then she tied the roped to the iron railing behind her.
Heartily, the men in the room laughed as Seth struggled with the wire that cut into his flesh. Repeatedly, he bumped into the clapper, making the bell hum even more.
Credenza placed a fluffy white blanket, followed by the baby, into the stone basin.
A crowd of men and a few women walked in, wearing black hooded robes; one of them was Emil. They filed into a long row facing the altar. Lereux, an old friend of Seth's, stood beside Credenza while Gwen stood in the corner of the room, next to Lily, where they both watched in silence.
Credenza's muffled words barely made it through the glass of her stone cage.
"Okay, everyone," said the Queen. "As you know, this is going to take a while; as our first, and maybe even our tenth, attempt, might not work. This is a trial and error process, and we've noted several possible ways to get this done. So if you can bear with us, you'll receive gifts for your time contributions - and we have a bonus treat waiting for you all below, in the dungeon."
She, then, gave a speech about the time they'd shared together; it seemed that they'd endured many trials over the last century. "Through vamp outs and rogue villains, the Celtic revival and Black Sunday. We've worked hard, and we deserve a new world, and honor. I'll take you all there with me. Join with me, now."
Credenza lifted an old gold chalice that had a foaming liquid. Instantly, Starr recognized the cup as Primordial. She took a drink, mumbled something and passed it to Lereux, who passed it to the others in robes.
The Queen continued to mumble her own prayer, and as she did this, a strange light emanated from the ruby red jewel that hung around her neck. Starr recognized it from her visions of the Queen. Although she didn't know the name of the stone, she knew it contained the power of a witch, as when witches died, they often preserved them in stones before crossing over into the heavens, so they could benefit those they left behind.
Credenza held a dagger and traced five points in the air, and then threw some salt over her shoulder.
When the cup passed the last pair of lips, the people in robes joined Credenza in prayers. She'd say a passage, and they'd repeat it with her.
After a few moments, the ruby jewel around her neck glowed more intensely. She seemed to expect this, and it was then that Credenza held her ceremonial knife to the sky, said something, and then pressed her hand to the baby's bare chest. The touch of her cold hand must have taken Meghan by surprise because she started to cry.
Credenza looked up in disappointment; the light in the jewel died after a few moments. She glanced at Gwen who stared, blankly, back and shrugged her shoulders.
"Let us begin again."
Soon, Starr grew sleepy, listening to their voices as they performed the rite over and over. The baby, in its basin, cried off and on. All the while, she wondered where Shane and the others were.
Why weren't they attacking while Credenza and her allies were occupied?
Finally, she slid down onto the floor of her cage and nodded off.
~~~
Starr didn't open her eyes again until dark. She stood up and looked through her window: Moonlight now shone through the four sides of the room. The candles were nearly burnt down to their holders.
Credenza and her allies were still chanting; they looked tired and frustrated. Aggressively, she flipped through the pages of the necro-grimoire, and beckoned that Gwen should interpret the passages, seeing as it was her journal.
Starr slid back down to the floor and tried slamming her boots into the wall, but it was solidly bolted to the ground; it neither shook nor cracked under her strength. All the while, their voices mumbled from the other side of her cage.
Then at long last, it got extremely quiet. Curious, Starr stood up again and looked through her window pain. Credenza, with a determined look on her face, said, "I have no choice."
Starr didn't know what that meant, so she watched on. They began the ceremony again.
The baby started to scream worse than ever. Gwen looked tense, as did Lily and Emil.
"Let us begin again."
This time, they seemed to rush through the rite passages.
Once again, Credenza lifted the knife, but this time, she didn't touch the baby; rather she readied herself to make the plunge.
"NOOO!"
Starr banged on the glass, but they ignored her.
A hazy white essence emanated from the skin of the baby. Credenza looked surprised. She hurriedly placed her hand on Meghan's chest, but something went wrong, judging by the look of horror on her face.
Right at that moment, the Abatha Crystal around her neck grew hot. The haze lifted up past Credenza's shoulders into the air and appeared to evaporate.
Starr swayed on the spot as a feeling smothered her like a blanket. Her core body temperature shot up, and it was suddenly too hot in the stone case. Her mind tingled as if it was waking up from a long sleep. At that moment, she felt fear and sadness, anger and ill at being confined in such a small space.
Credenza hadn't realized what had happened, for she plunged the knife downward.
At the same time, Gwen, Lily and Emil jumped over the table, at Credenza, pushing her back into the railing and wrestling to get the knife away from her. Like swatting flies, Credenza threw, both, Lily and Gwen away, and stabbed Emil in the chest and flung him over the railing.
She looked at her crystal, which still glowed brightly, and said, "There's still time."
Credenza mumbled the last words of the rite and ran at the baby.
Scared, Starr tried to blast the knife, telekinetically, from her hand; instead, her stone confinement blasted into pieces.
Everyone's heads snapped in her direction. Several of the robed figures pointed at her with opened mouths. Gwen looked at her with amusement in her eyes.
"The Abatha Crystal!" shouted Credenza. "They lied to me! When we're done, the first thing on my list will be to kill every last one of the Primordials!"
Wondering why they gazed at her so, Star looked down and saw that, not only was the green crystal hot and glowing, but that she, herself, had a light gold haziness about her, like her aura was visible.
Then it came to her: "I'm human," she said to herself.
"Not for long!!" screamed Credenza.
She flung the ceremonial blade at her head, right as she leapt over the table.
In that very brief moment, between the knife and Credenza flying at her, Starr was taken by surprise, for many emotions struck her in just that instant. But the emotion that gripped her the hardest was also responsible for her quick movement; like fli
nching, fear instantaneous made her lunge out of the way.
Credenza landed, and the knife hit the floor. She looked at Starr in surprise. It was true, what she was told, that emotions can increase power, for there was no greater fuel than fear, panic or love.
Still, the Queen wasn't ready to give up, and ran at her with her sword drawn. Starr's heart was warmed; she found she didn't need to fight back. It was also true, what they told her: emotions made her instinct sharpest. The fight couldn't go on, however, and they were wasting time.
And where were Shane and the others?
Starr caught Credenza's wrist, swung her around by the arm, and flung her off the tower into the night. The sound of her screaming, as she tried to get her balance, echoed back to her as spun away into the sky and over the trees, landing somewhere in the forest.
A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, for although she knew she had to return the soul, she loved feeling alive, and she loved the feeling of satisfaction she got, from knowing she'd beaten her opponent.
Then all of a sudden, shadows moved across the lawn: it was Shane and the others, but there were more people, with them, than before. They flew up to the tower, and Starr saw that the others were Primordials. They were tall and majestic as usual, with their millenniums old perfect skin and features.
"What are you doing here?" asked Starr. "And nice, guys," she added sarcastically. "I'm so glad you could finally make it to the fight!"
"Don't blame them," said Vidar, a Primordial warrior with red hair. "We told them to wait with us."
"Why would you do that? A child almost died, and now has no soul. What if Credenza got the soul instead of me? And you were down there, just watching instead of helping?"
"That never would have happened," said Stelar, a scholarly Primordial. "There was a reason I gave you that stone; it was to be used in the ceremony."
"What do you mean?"
"The witch's power," Gwen cut in, "in that crystal belonged to my great grandmother. She was born of the chaos, could walk both worlds: heaven and Earth, and it was she who gave souls to the humans, as legend has it."
"That legend was true, as we've seen," said a golden haired Primordial Starr had never seen before. "She was a goddess, a mother of souls, and in her presence, all souls are drawn. We knew whoever had the Abatha Crystal would naturally draw the baby's soul, and that is why Stelar was instructed to give it to you, Starr."