Dark Is Her Nature

by Judith Berens

  Dark Is Her Nature

  School of Necessary Magic Book One

  Judith Berens

  Martha Carr

  Michael Anderle

  Dark Is Her Nature (this book) is a work of fiction.

  All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.

  Copyright © 2018 Judith Berens, Martha Carr and Michael Anderle

  Cover by Fantasy Book Design

  Cover copyright © LMBPN Publishing

  LMBPN Publishing supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact support@lmbpn.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  LMBPN Publishing

  PMB 196, 2540 South Maryland Pkwy

  Las Vegas, NV 89109

  First US edition, June 2018

  The Oriceran Universe (and what happens within / characters / situations / worlds) are Copyright (c) 2017-18 by Martha Carr and LMBPN Publishing.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Author Notes - Martha Carr

  Author Notes - Michael Anderle

  Other Revelation of Oriceran Universe Books

  Books by Michael Anderle

  Connect with The Authors

  Dark Is Her Nature Team

  Thanks to the JIT Readers

  James Caplan

  Kelly O’Donnell

  John Ashmore

  Micky Cocker

  Peter Manis

  John Raisor

  Larry Omans

  If we’ve missed anyone, please let us know!

  Editor

  Lynne Stiegler

  Dedications

  From Martha

  To everyone who still believes in magic

  and all the possibilities that holds.

  To all the readers who make this

  entire ride so much fun.

  And to my son, Louie and the wonderful Katie

  who remind me all the time of what

  really matters and how wonderful

  life can be in any given moment.

  From Michael

  To Family, Friends and

  Those Who Love

  To Read.

  May We All Enjoy Grace

  To Live The Life We Are

  Called.

  1

  The sparking red fireball lit up the dank alley, making shadows bounce off the stone walls. The heat and malevolent aura of the dark wizards saturated the air around Izzie and her parents. They hadn’t seen the attack coming, not at all. They were walking home after seeing a movie during the last bit of Izzie’s summer vacation before she started high school. Her mother pushed Izzie behind her as she deflected the fireball. She fired a return shot and knocked one of the wizards off his feet.

  “Not here,” her father growled, his long silver hair blowing back from the force of magic. “We don’t want trouble.”

  The dark wizard cackled from the shadows. “Trouble? Too late.”

  The fight began in earnest and clouds of smoke rose from the crushed stone along the walls, and the smoldering ashes of the magical fireballs. Izzie brought her hand to her mouth to cover the stench, then determinedly put her hands out in front of her. If there was going to be a fight, Izzie wouldn’t back down just because she was a teenager. Her chest warmed as she pulled the light to her. The magic rolled from her fingertips into her palms and she swirled it around, collecting more and more energy.

  “Find your target,” she whispered before jumping out from behind her mom.

  She threw the fireball as hard as she could and it struck one of the wizards in the chest. The man flew backward and crashed into a wall. Pieces crumbled down from above, covering him in dust as he groaned, his shirt smoldering and smoking.

  “Good hit, Izzie.” Her dad looked back at her as a stream of light clashed with the oncoming blows.

  “No! She could be killed,” her mother cried desperately.

  “She knows how to fight for her life, just like the rest of us.” He gave her a comforting look and reached out for her hand.

  Her mother nodded, then pulled her long dark hair behind her and secured it at the nape of her neck. The three stood facing the onslaught as the dark wizards shot magic from their wands. Izzie stood between her parents, her shining arms stretched out in front of her and her beams of light mixed with theirs. The light and dark streams collided and rained down, but suddenly the attack stopped. Izzie lowered her hands and squinted down the dark alley.

  A tall man, his hood pulled low to shadow his face, cackled loudly as he stepped forward. Izzie’s father sent a fireball toward him, but the man swished it away with his wand and ignored the explosion behind him. He moved slowly forward, deflecting every attempt they made. He and the other wizards raised their wands and sent dark streams down the alley. Izzie and her parents dove to the side, rolled across the ground, and pressed their backs against the walls.

  The wizards cast a torrent of fire that crashed over their heads, barely missing them. Izzie tucked her head as her father stared at her mother. He nodded and the three of them stood up, dodging dark magic by mere inches. Izzie remembered what she had been taught, brought the energy into her stomach and forced it through her hands. Bolts of white light whizzed past the wizards, catching their cloaks and sending white flames up their backs. Izzie’s mother followed up with a spray of sparks, causing some of the wizards to scream as they ripped their cloaks from their backs.

  The head of the group shouted and threw one large orb down the alley, but Izzie and her parents stood ready to deflect. As it hit the center, it burst into hundreds of smaller orbs. Izzie slowly backed up in alarm as the dark magic plowed toward them. Her parents stepped forward and lifted their hands, their light shifting in front of them and spreading out like a translucent wall. As the orbs hit the light wall they burst and sparks sizzled to the ground. Izzie looked at her father, whose hands shook. He had blood trickling down his arm from his shoulder. One of the orbs had broken through and hit him, but he held firm.

  “They are tiring,” her father called, “but this will only hold them for a moment. Be ready to run.”

  The light made by her parents glowed brighter and the wall turned into a thick fog and blew toward the wizards, knocking them back. The fog hid them for the moment, but it was already starting to dissipate. Izzie’s parents grabbed her hands and rushed her out to the sidewalk. The people walking past looked at them strangely since her father was grasping onto a bloody shoulder.

  “Move fast,” her mother whispered.

  They moved at almost a j
og, taking corners quickly and passing through different alleys to try to throw the wizards off their trail. When they reached the house, her mother sent an orb through the window to check for someone who might be inside waiting for them. When it returned clean they rushed inside.

  Her father pulled off his torn t-shirt and her mother began to heal him, the magic brightening the room. Izzie’s father grimaced.

  Her mother turned her head. “Izzie, go to your room, get your duffel bag, and pack as much as you can carry. We don’t know how long we have. We have to hurry. They will be coming for us.” Her mother turned back, finishing the spell on her father’s shoulder.

  Izzie nodded and bolted up the stairway and into her room. She flipped on the desk light and paused, staring at her room, the place she had spent almost all her time. It hit her then that she was leaving, and without all of her things. She shook her head and raced to the closet, pulling out the duffel and opening it on her bed. She shoved her clothes inside, then grabbed a couple of her favorite books and squeezed them on top. She sighed as she looked back from her doorway. She didn’t understand, but she knew that if her parents wanted to leave it was serious.

  She switched off the light and headed back downstairs, where her mother and father waited. Her mother handed her a long black cloak. They had bags as well, and her mother had tears in her eyes, but was trying to hold back for Izzie’s sake. Her father went to her mother and pressed his forehead against hers, closing his eyes.

  “It will be okay, but we have to go,” he whispered. She nodded and looked at Izzie, then grasped her daughter’s hand tightly.

  The three walked swiftly down the street to where the car was parked, searching for any signs of the wizards. Izzie had never seen her parents so frightened, but she knew it would be okay because they were together. When they reached their SUV, Izzie threw her bag in the back and climbed in and her mother and father took the front seats.

  They headed down the road and took the ramp for the highway, her mother finally pulling her hood down. She looked at Izzie’s father and grabbed his hand, and he looked at her and sighed.

  “We have to hide her.” Izzie’s father sounded panicked.

  “I know,” her mother replied. “But where? These wizards won’t stop, not until they know it’s taken care of. We might do better if we stick together.”

  “You know that’s not true.” He squeezed her mother’s hand tighter.

  “What are you guys talking about?” Izzie asked frowning.

  “Just sit back and relax,” her father advised, looking into the rearview mirror.

  “No!” Izzie shouted. “You are talking about me; about taking me somewhere and leaving me. I won’t do it.”

  Izzie shook her head and tears formed in her eyes. Her mother let go of her father’s hand and sighed, then nodded at him. He pulled off the highway and stopped, and her mother got out and climbed into the back with Izzie. She took both of her daughter’s hands in hers and looked at her comfortingly.

  “Sweetie, we will always make the best choices for you.”

  Izzie shook her head. “Being with you is the best choice. I’ll go wherever you’re going and fight with you. Don’t leave me behind!”

  “Izzie!” Her mother snapped, then grabbed her shoulders and softened her tone. “You have to go somewhere safe, somewhere you can be protected. We can’t do that for you, not in the best way. This will be the best thing for you.”

  “You don’t want me to slow you down.” Izzie’s tears were a flood now.

  “That’s not it at all. We want you to be safe, even if it means we aren’t together for a while. We will see each other again, I promise. Come here.”

  Her mother pulled her into a hug and looked at her father. He let out a deep breath and started to drive again, putting as much distance between them and the wizards as he could. Izzie laid her head on her mother’s shoulder, and looked out into the darkness. Everything was happening so fast, and she didn’t understand most of it. She didn’t want to be away from her parents. They were her best friends; the three amigos. They were the only people she ever felt safe with.

  Izzie knew her mother believed they would get back together, but the wrenching feeling in Izzie’s gut made her think otherwise. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye to them and go out on her own, but she feared she wasn’t going to be given a choice. Things weren’t at all how Izzie had thought they would be, but she could only follow her parents’ instructions and hope for the best.

  2

  The SUV turned down a dirt road and Izzie could see fireflies in the distance shimmering over the fields. Her father slowed down as they approached a wide iron gate with the Oriceran crest on the top. The headlights reflected against the metal, bringing a tall dark-haired woman into view. As he turned the car off and Izzie’s mother looked at her with a gentle smile.

  “Come on, we’re here,” she whispered.

  Izzie climbed out and looked at the gates. She recognized them from the pictures her father had shown her of the School of Necessary Magic. The school year hadn’t begun yet, and the grounds were dark and quiet with only the sounds of crickets in the air. The woman stepped through the gates and waved her wand, sending an orb of light down the path they had just driven up.

  “Izzie, this is Ms. Grant. She teaches here at your new school.” Her mother’s voice cracked, but she held it together.

  “So nice to meet you, young lady.” Annabelle forced a smile and gently patted Izzie’s shoulder. “It looks as if no one has followed you. Let’s get you all inside and dried off from the rain. Mara is waiting for you inside.”

  Izzie took her mother’s hand as the three of them followed Annabelle Grant. A tall redheaded man stood close by. He shut the gate behind them and followed them up the path. When they reached the school Izzie paused, staring up at the massive Georgian mansion in front of them. Izzie’s mom tugged on her hand.

  “Come on, sweetie, you’ll be safe here.”

  They entered the huge foyer and Izzie looked around at the pictures and artifacts on the walls. The lamps flickered, throwing shadows across the floors, and a chill went up her spine. She wrapped her arms around herself and a hollow place began to build in the pit of her stomach. Annabelle Grant looked at Izzie’s mother and father, knowing they had something to ask. Annabelle looked at Izzie and smiled.

  “Why don’t you follow our caretaker up to the guest bedroom and get changed into dry clothes? I just want a moment to speak to your parents.”

  Izzie looked at her mother, who put her hand on her shoulders. “We’ll be right down here, okay? Go get changed.”

  Izzie nodded and looked at her father, who smiled. Her mother had tears in her eyes once more as she kissed her on the forehead. Izzie walked with the caretaker, looking back over her shoulder as her mother and father disappeared down the hall with Ms. Grant.

  The headmistress, Mara Berens stood in the doorway of her office, holding out her hand to wave the parents into her office.

  “I’ll take it from here Ms. Grant. Thank you.” Mara followed the parents into her office, lighting the lamps, which cast a soft glow. She waved her hand to shut the door behind them and squeezed the mother’s hand as she went past her. Izzie’s mother turned to her husband and shook her head in exhaustion. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead.

  “Everything will be all right.”

  She swallowed hard and the two sat in the tall-backed armchairs in front of Mara’s desk, watching her closely.

  “I am glad you brought her.” Mara put her hands in her lap. “She will be safe here at the school.”

  Izzie’s mother looked at her husband and back at Mara. “She will never really be safe, not with what she knows. They will keep coming for her, even here at the school.”

  Mara lifted an eyebrow. “What do you propose?”

  The two sat quietly for a moment, then Izzie’s father spoke up. “We want you to do a spell; an ancient one that will remove our memories. You
know the one; I know you do. We want Izzie to forget us, and for her safety we will retain no memory of her either.”

  “That’s too dangerous. You will cut her out of your life, and vice versa. She’ll think she’s an orphan. You could all be permanently damaged.” Mara rattled off every reason she could think of, but she already knew what they would do.

  “Better that than dead.”

  Mara leaned back in her chair and looked at the ceiling. She didn’t want to do it; it was too risky—too out there. At the same time, she had come to know Izzie’s parents and they weren’t the kind of people who would suggest something like this unless they felt it was necessary. She shook her head and leaned forward to stare at the two of them.

  “Are you sure there is no other way?”

  “They will always be hunting us.” Izzie’s father looked at the floor. “Please, Mara! We would never ask if it weren’t absolutely necessary.”

  Mara paused before nodding. “I’ll do it, but she will stay here under my care until she graduates.”

  Tears rushed down Izzie’s mother’s face. “Thank you,” she whispered.