The Celestial Rose BoxSet

by Annalee Adams

  Lawrence noticed my curious look.

  “Ah, the journals. Let’s just say I am older than I look.” He chuckled.

  Lucian laughed too.

  “Aren’t we all!”

  “Speak for yourselves,” I joked, as they both laughed louder.

  “Up here, Taylor,” Lucian said as he gently lifted me on to a counter top and then fitted a blood pressure cuff to the top of my arm. “It’s okay, trust me.”

  And I did. I don’t know why, but I did.

  I watched as Lucian took my blood pressure.

  “A little on the low side, but nothing too frightful.” He smiled.

  “Now for the blood,” Lawrence insisted. He moved over to me and asked me to cough on the count of three. “One... two... three.” And with that, I coughed. As I did, he inserted the needle, which did not pain me in the slightest.

  “Why the cough?” I asked.

  “It helps to block the pain receptors, so you wouldn’t feel the needle. We did say it wouldn’t hurt,” he explained.

  “That’s quite clever!” I said, intrigued.

  “Okay, let’s take your blood on a journey, shall we?” he mumbled as he waltzed over to his microscope. “Well, well,” he sounded curious.

  “Where were you born, Taylor?”

  “London Royal, why?”

  “Hmm, were you adopted?”

  “Pardon? No, no, my parents would have told me,” I said.

  “So, per your blood, you are human, but... there is something else. Your cells are shielded, our blood cannot engulf yours as it normally would.”

  “So, she is not changing?” Lucian asked.

  “No, well, not into one of us. She’s something more. Something I’ve not seen before. A new beginning, perhaps?”

  I stood listening, wondering what I was.

  “A beginning to what?”

  “That I don’t know,” he replied, “An angel perhaps,” he laughed. “You’d know if you were one of those. That type of power doesn’t just ‘turn on’ at sixteen, in the body of a mortal. But do not worry, we can run further tests. And I’ll send your blood off to our own labs further afield and they can run more in-depth blood work than we can here. Hopefully we may be able to find out sooner rather than later.

  But from what I can tell, when the shadelings attacked you in London you gained part of their abilities. Perhaps it’s part of your gift, like an inner defence mechanism.”

  “What gift? The light?”

  “No, that’s all you, my dear. It would be something else,” he said. “Lucian, have you heard anything from the shadelings since what happened with Taylor?”

  “No, but we removed all of the ones that targeted her from existence.”

  “Damn, I would have liked to have tested one. Maybe next time.”

  “Next time?” I asked nervously, and with that, Lawrence smiled. He pottered about in the lab for a few moments longer.

  “Hmm, I wonder if you can dissipate?”

  “Yes, that I’d kill to see,” Elisha said, walking in on the conversation.

  Lawrence looked at her.

  “Yes, Elisha, I believe you would.” He smirked.

  “Well, Taylor, when something happens, do let us know. And if at any time you feel ‘different,’ you must come to me immediately.”

  “Different, different how?”

  “You will know, Taylor, you will know. Now, I must take my leave, my dear girl. I hope you come back soon. Especially since we need to train your abilities and work on your knowledge of our side.”

  “Erm, okay. Thanks, Lawrence.” I said smiling.

  “Anytime. Well, it is getting late. Not all of us can last without sleep,” Lawrence said, eyeing Lucian up.

  “Yes, of course. Thanks again, Lawrence,” I said.

  “He has a valid point, Taylor. You’ll be needing your sleep, too. I wouldn’t want to keep you up all night.” He smirked. “I’ll take you home.”

  “Okay, thanks for a lovely night!”

  “By the sounds of it, you have made quite the impression with all of us.” Lucian smiled, walking off to fetch my coat. Luckily, he missed my obvious blush. Elisha, however, didn’t, and sat laughing to herself.

  “Ready?” he asked, helping me into my winter coat.

  “Sure.”

  The ride home was a quiet, comfortable silence. I felt at ease with him being there, sat next to me in the front of his Camaro. When we pulled up, he turned and smiled.

  “See you tomorrow?”

  “Yes, thanks, Lucian.” I left, closing the door behind me.

  I couldn’t help but look back, want more. I didn’t know what he was, who he was, or hell, what I even was. But one thing I knew, I felt safe beside him. As I walked up the pathway to my front door, I missed him already.

  “Taylor!” I spun around, a flustered Lucian stood before me. “I couldn’t leave without seeing you in.”

  My cheeks flushed, hands were clammy as he took my hand and led me up the pathway. We stopped just under the porch light and he turned to me.

  “I don’t know what it is about you, Miss Lane, but I just cannot stop thinking about you.”

  I smiled nervously, body tense, breathing heavy, and waited. He leant forward, brought his hand up to my hair and smoothed it down with his icy features. Delicately kissing my cheek, gripping my hand one last time, he let go and sped away before my eyes.

  The speed he ran was inhuman. Quite magnificent, really. He had the super speed of a hero, and the looks of one, too. I touched my cheek, still feeling the freshness of his lips caressing the side of it. Smiling, I ventured inside. Caleb was already sound asleep, and Dad was just about to lock up.

  “How did it go?” he asked as he finished locking the front door behind me.

  “Good. Thanks, Dad. They were all eager to know everything about me.” I laughed.

  “He’s nice, angel, a good one. Your mum used to always have good instincts. She would have liked him,” he said, pausing for a moment. “But if he ever hurts you, he will wish he never lived!”

  He said clapped a fist between his hands laughing. My dad the protector, I chuckled to myself, if only he knew Lucian wasn’t really living, in fact, I wasn’t quite sure exactly what he was.

  “Of course Dad, don’t worry," I fought to keep a straight face, "and you’re right, Mum would have liked him.” I kissed him on the cheek and headed up to my room.

  CHAPTER 7

  “Morning, sunshine,” Dad said, opening the curtains as the sunlight streamed through.

  “Dad,” I groaned. “What time is it?”

  “Time to get up.”

  “What time's that, then?” I asked.

  “Seven. Remember, you said Lucian's picking you up today. I have that meeting and he’s taking you and Caleb to the academy.”

  “Oh yes.” I jumped out of bed smiling.

  “Caleb!” I shouted, “hurry up!

  “Jeez, sis, I’m up. What’s with the yelling?” he said as Dad laughed.

  “He’s been up and ready for the last half an hour. It’s you that’s behind. Good to see you sleeping, though,” he said, hugging me before he left the room.

  After my shower and usual morning routine, I headed down for pancakes.

  “Here, Taylor, take this for your boyfriend,” Dad said.

  Caleb laughed as I blushed.

  “He’s not my boyfriend, Dad!”

  “But you want him to be.” Caleb smirked as my cheeks reddened further.

  The Camaro pulled up outside, and then Lucian was standing by its door.

  “Shush, Caleb, come on,” I said, pulling him along.

  “Have fun you two!” Dad closed the door behind us.

  “What’s with the red face?” Lucian asked as we walked up the pathway.

  Caleb laughed.

  “Nothing,” I groaned, getting in the car.

  “Hey Caleb,” Lucian said, ruffling his hair.

  “Man, get off the hair!” he gru
mbled as I laughed.

  “Right. Belt up, we’re heading out.” Lucian smiled patting his hand on mine, and then speeding off into the distance.

  When we arrived, Caleb ran off to meet his new friends and Lucian interlinked his arm with mine, pulling me away from the entrance.

  “This way, Taylor.” He smiled, heading down the back of the academy.

  “Where are we off to?” I asked.

  “The perfect place for a fight.” He grinned.

  Walking across the pebbled courtyard, we entered a hidden garden. Just behind a mass of evergreens stood an old rickety gate.

  “This way,” he said, pulling me along.

  The gate creaked as it opened, and I came face to face with a beautiful garden full of roses, with a gallant fountain and fish pond in the centre. Sitting beside the pond I wondered, how could we train here? Surely it was too peaceful and delicate?

  “This is a sanctuary. Not many people know about it as its well-hidden. Which means we won’t be disturbed.”

  In the corner stood an old apple tree with a pile of raked autumn leaves underneath.

  “How do we start?”

  “Close your eyes, Taylor,” he said.

  I obliged, listening to his movements as he moved behind me. He placed his hands on my shoulders, the aroma of his aftershave tingled my senses as he drew in close.

  “Now listen,” he whispered. “Breathe, listen to each breath.”

  I counted one to ten, slowing down my breathing.

  “Now listen,” he said, letting go of my shoulders. In an instant, he moved in front of me. I could feel the air swirl as his body phased to the left. But then he disappeared.

  “Lucian?” I called out. Nothing, so I opened my eyes.

  I jumped. He was right in front of my face still.

  “Now that’s cheating!” he said as he took my scarf, gently placed it over my eyes, and tied it tight. “Let’s try again.”

  “You have to breathe, though, Lucian. You’re too quiet.”

  “And you’re too clever. Use your light, I’ve seen you do it.”

  “But how?” I asked.

  “Just listen.”

  Silence. Silence can be deafening. How could I listen if there was nothing to listen to? "Relax, Taylor, count to ten," Mum would say. How did she do it? Meditation was so hard! I needed to quite my mind, lose myself in the moment, relax every part of me piece by piece. Feel the energy flow through, drive that energy, control it. Breathing, that was how I started. I slowed down my breathing, felt the pressure release from me, felt the quiet. How does it feel? How does it act? Slowly, then nothing. Just silence. Calm, the flow of air fluctuated around me. I could feel it, a slight breeze on the right. He was moving. I reached out, nothing. Concentrate again, listen, breathe in his scent, woody sandalwood. That’s it, where was it coming from? Follow it. Treading carefully, remembering my surroundings, I stepped to the right, turned a little, stepped again, and reached out, grabbing hold of Lucian as I tripped, pulling him down with me.

  Leaves flurried around us as I yanked off the blindfold. He sat with leaves in his hair laughing.

  “Well done!” he laughed. "You may be a fighter after all. Maybe not a blind one, but it’s a start!” I laughed with him.

  “Dinner tonight?” he asked.

  “Surely it’s my turn to invite you in?” I said, smiling, covered in leaves.

  “That would be perfect. How about I bring a few bits and we can picnic under the stars?” he asked. I smiled in agreement.

  Dropping me back home, he gripped my hand, looked at me and smiled.

  “I look forward to later, Taylor.” And with that he opened the door for me, kissed my cheek, and departed for his family home.

  My brother found it amusing to tease me about my gentleman suitor. My dad exclaimed that he quite liked the young fellow that brought his daughter home without the harassment of anything more. The two of them laughed as they wandered over to the kitchen, ready to cook dinner, and I went upstairs to freshen up and prepare for the picnic under the stars.

  It wasn’t a date, was it? Surely it was a get-together. You know, when two friends come together to find out more about each other? Okay, so it sounded like a date. What if it was? Could it be?

  “Lucian” I exclaimed, a little shocked to find him in the kitchen helping my dad prepare vegetables for dinner.

  “Ah, there you are,” Lucian said, “I thought it polite to wait until you were ready.”

  My dad laughed.

  “Yes, he did. And he makes an excellent chef's assistant,” he smirked, “anyway, you kids go and have fun. Take a blanket, it’s getting a little chilly out there tonight.”

  “Thanks, Dad.” I smiled as I caught the blanket Dad threw over.

  We sat outside under the autumn night sky, wrapped in a blanket, eating sandwiches and talking about the day’s training. The conversation was light, pleasant in fact, and easy to come by. There were no awkward silences or uneasy moments, it all came naturally between us.

  Looking over at Lucian, I realised he appeared to have paused during the conversation. He was interested more in an area in the tree line before us, where he stared into a darkened space. I followed his gaze and attempted to focus in on whatever had his hairs stood on end. Before me, an abyss of trees stood tall. Nothing there, nothing at all.

  Then came the deep gut wrenching growl, a dark throaty grumble in the darkness before us.

  "Lucian?" I quivered, but he did not speak a word.

  His gaze was fixed on whatever was in front of us. I looked again but there was still nothing there. Then, with a force of deep concentration, the bark of one of the trees came into focus. The trunk glared out at me, following each ripple and grain, the bark wrapped itself around the tree's body. How was it so clear? It should just be a speck in the distance, but for some reason it was as clear as day. It was beautiful.

  As I made my way through the line of trees with my new-found sight I came across a terrifying close-up of something dark, hairy, and grizzly. Not grizzly like the form of a bear, but grizzly with the grumbling sound that echoed through the night, coming directly from the creature.

  It didn't look like a bear. It had a longer face and more agile body. Its eyes looked like those a wolf would have, but it wasn't a wolf. It was bigger, much bigger and broader. It stood on two feet, like we do, glaring at me with its fanged teeth that glistened in the moonlight.

  I gripped Lucian's hand, and as I did, the creature assumed a wolf-like position on all fours and gashed at the tree with its long claws, taking flight and disappearing into the darkness of the night.

  Lucian looked at me, waiting for my expression to change from fear to something more calming, something perhaps that would listen to a rational explanation. But no, there was no changing that. I know what I saw. I didn't know what 'it' was, but I saw it, somehow.

  A few moments later Lucian spoke.

  "What was there, Taylor?"

  He knew what I saw, he saw it too. Was he waiting for clarity, perhaps? Was he as afraid as I was? He certainly didn't look afraid.

  "I don't know what it was, it doesn't make sense."

  "Life rarely does."

  "It sounded like a bear, but it wasn't a bear. Its eye's looked like wolf's eyes, but it wasn't a wolf. It was much larger and on two feet like a human, but then it ran off on all fours!"

  Lucian was silent

  "Tell me you saw it too, Lucian. I'm not going mad, am I?"

  Lucian looked concerned.

  "Not at all. Don't worry. It was there.”

  "But what was it?" I asked.

  "A Lycan.”

  “A what?”

  “What you joked was a werewolf yesterday.”

  “Oh, are we in danger?”

  He laughed.

  “No, not at all. It wouldn’t dare attack when I’m nearby.”

  “What about when you’re not nearby?”

  “I’m always nearby. Don’t worry, you’re sa
fe with me.”

  Lucian wrapped his jacket around my shoulders as we looked out at the night sky, relaxing once again. He told me about the constellations the stars formed, the Ursa Major and Minor, with Virgo to the west and Leo caressing the side of the moon. The Hydra and Draco were his favourites, perhaps due to their nature in mythology. It was interesting listening as he talked about his dream of travelling through the stars one day, after travelling the rest of the world, of course.

  "Perhaps we could continue this conversation another day? I fear that after all that has happened in this last few days, you need your rest."

  "Yes," I said, yawning.

  Lucian walked me to the door and, after watching me enter and close it behind me, he left knowing I was safe.

  Sitting alluringly on my bed lay a package. It was a stack of books wrapped in traditional brown paper and twine, adorned with a single white rose and a note written in calligraphy. 'To symbolise the purity within oneself' signed L.

  The books appeared to be quite old, some dating back to the early 1800's. I began to read the first one, which described a great battle of good and evil between two ancient supernatural beings, Lilith and Eve. Their disciples fought to the bitter end, threatening to destroy the land around them. Reading deeper into it, the book foretold the rise and fall of mankind through the hands of the disciples as they fight to restore the balance once again.

  The next page went into more detail, describing a love story between Lilith and Adam, and then Eve and Adam. Betrayal at its finest. The two goddesses battle eternally, but neither can be triumphant without the other. Like two sides to one coin, yin and yang, good and evil. Without good there is no evil, and without evil there is no good. One must exist in union with the other.

  The timeline showed how God created the immortals, Adam and Lilith, from Earth's fallen dust. However, God demanded that Lilith bow down to Adam, submitting herself as a lesser being. Lilith would not submit, as she saw herself as an equal, as they were made from the same substance. So Lilith left God’s paradise, leaving Adam alone, as she birthed her children as demons on Earth's raw land.

  Lilith became hunted on Earth. Three of God's angels found her and threatened to extinguish one hundred of her first-born children. With the threats God’s angels made, Lilith became bitter and distrusting of others. She remained in the wastelands seducing mankind to bear her demonic children. Her children, sadly, remained under threat, and because of this, they fled to the depths of Hell.