by Thawer, Tish
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CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Damarius woke up holding Aryiah in his arms. As he kissed her lightly on top of her head, he glanced at the clock that read 4:24 p.m. and realized they had an entire evening, plus the following day before Aryiah was expected to appear before the Goddess. He thought about kissing her awake so he could make love to her again, but with as much as she'd been through, he decided to let her rest.
Damarius slowly peeled himself away from her and rose from the bed. As he bent down to retrieve the blanket they kicked to the floor during their love-making session, he noticed the edge of a suitcase sticking out from under the bed. He looked at the luggage tag and saw Aryiah’s full name for the first time. ARYIAH DE DELOS. Huh. Something nagged at the back of his mind but he couldn’t quite put a finger on it. A smile spread across his face. Aryiah de Delos, soon to be my wife.
Damarius didn’t have a last name and soon Aryiah would forego hers as well, since after she completed the death and initiation rites, she would be a citizen of Ovialell and no longer a human of Earth. With these thoughts in mind, Damarius got dressed and made his way out to the living room. He needed some time to contemplate how to tell Aryiah exactly what was involved in her becoming one of The Witches.
The death rite was simple enough. After the prospective Witch completed her training, which included her shamanic journeys as well as her Wiccan studies, she would meet with Diana to receive her blessing in the form of a kiss…the Goddess' Kiss of Death. And just like that, the Witch died and was reborn as a true citizen of Ovialell. It wasn't painful, but telling someone they had to die was never an easy task.
Disbelief always set in, then shock and refusal, usually followed by panic. Some potential Witches had tried to run from him, some had tried to fight him, but most had simply shut down. But in the end, they all accepted their rightful place in Ovialell and completed the rites. He hoped it would go smoothly with Aryiah.
After the death rite, the Witch continued to train in the arts of shading and other powers that could only be accessed while in Ovialell. Once these final skills were mastered, it was time for her to accept her place among The Witches.
Every Witch has a different level of power, and therefore is placed accordingly within their ranks. Once a new Witch accepted her position, she was led into the Goddess' private chambers to complete the initiation rite. This was a private ceremony, and only The Witches and the Goddess were allowed to attend. Perhaps this was when the seal of power between The Witches was completed.
He never considered the possibility that The Witches could have a weakness. They were strong, brave, and caring. Their presence in Ovialell had maintained health, peace, and prosperity for many centuries. But then Ingrid had been killed about six months ago, and all four potential Witches who'd been triggered to take her place had been murdered. It was now obvious that someone had indeed discovered their weakness and planned to exploit it fully.
The Goddess' answer had left Damarius shaken. The idea of another Great Rift was unthinkable, especially now that he had so much to live for.
Damarius looked up from his musings and found Aryiah standing in the doorway of the bedroom. She was wrapped in a sheet, pale faced, and looking utterly distraught.
"What's wrong, my love?" he asked, as he raced to her side.
With eyes wide and body trembling, she replied in a whisper, "I…I have to die?"
Oh shit. Our bond. How could he have forgotten?
Damarius was used to the fact that for centuries he and his Goddess were the only two citizens in all of Ovialell who had the ability to read others' thoughts. The only exception was when someone found their mate and completed The Bond.
"Aryiah, I’m so sorry. I was trying to think of a way to explain all the elements of becoming a Witch to you and forgot that our bond now allows you to hear my thoughts." Dropping to his knees and hanging his head, he reached for her hand. "I’m doing a horrible job as your guide, and an even worse job as your mate. Can you forgive me?"
* * * * *
Aryiah stood there frozen in fear, but as she looked down at Damarius she could feel the emotions radiating from him: sadness, regret, and strongest of all, the overwhelming sense of love.
"Damarius, you are not doing a horrible job as my mate. In fact, it’s our bond that makes all of this tolerable for me. If I didn’t have you, I truly don’t think I could handle any of this, and I definitely know that I wouldn't be standing here contemplating my own death!"
With a sigh of relief he stood and pulled her into an embrace. "Aryiah, I know this isn't easy for you, but I will do everything I can to help you through it. We’ll start your training tomorrow, so you can have a better understanding of your magick, but tonight, I'll answer any questions you have regarding the rites."
Enjoying the feeling of his strong arms around her, Aryiah returned his hug. "I would like that very much, but first...I need food." Wiggling out of his embrace she continued. "I’m going to shower and get dressed, and after that, I’ll cook while you talk. I'm pretty sure it's going to take mass amounts of food and wine for me to understand all of what’s coming next."
She reached up, took his face in both hands, and kissed him before heading to the bathroom.
* * * * *
As Damarius watched Aryiah gather her sheet and head towards her bedroom, he could literally feel his heart expanding in his chest. Damn that's one incredible woman. How did I get so lucky?
I was thinking the same thing, Aryiah responded in his head.
He laughed out loud, again surprised by their mental communication. Maybe putting up mental shields would be the first lesson they'd work on tomorrow.
* * * * *
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Devin woke feeling groggy. She was face down on her couch and her body felt weak and just a little cold. She rolled over and stretched like a waking cat. Taking a moment to glance at the large clock on the wall, she realized it was almost 8 p.m., just after sunset. She had to be to work at 10 p.m., so she headed to the shower, flipping the stereo on as she walked past. "Christ," she cried out, covering her ears. "Why is that so fucking loud?" She reached to turn the volume down but saw it was only on level three. That’s weird. She shook her head and lowered her hands to test the volume again and stared at the stereo as everything returned to a normal level. "Man, I really need to get my head checked out," she said to herself.
The hot water of the shower felt good on her cold skin. She had just enough time to linger and enjoy the relaxing effect as she contemplated what to wear to work. As she started rinsing the shampoo out of her hair, she felt a slight sting as the bubbles ran down the side of her neck. She raised her fingers to examine the area; it was definitely a little tender.
Devin stepped out of the shower, wrapping herself in her favorite fluffy towel. She wiped the condensation off the mirror and gasped. "Holy hell!"
Her skin was pale and her eyes looked like she was coming off a serious bender. As she wiped her hand across her cheek and down her neck, she felt the tender spot again. Leaning in to take a closer look, she saw two dots, kind of like bug bites. Oh shit, I’ve been bit by a spider! That would explain the pale skin and the small puncture wounds.
Devin raced to her computer and opened the page for WebMD and typed in "How to treat a spider bite." After searching the links, she followed the directions and washed the bite with soap and water. Then she'd need to placed a cold compress on it and take some ibuprofen.
As Devin headed to the kitchen, she was reminded by her growling stomach that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast. Figuring she better have something in her stomach so the ibuprofen wouldn't make her queasy, she opened the fridge. "Wow, I really need to go shopping."
She started at the bleak contents of her refrigerator, then felt her attention being drawn to a white paper package all the way in the back on the second shelf. It felt like it was all she could see, like her eyes were camera lenses that had suddenly zoomed in. Sh
aking it off, she reached for the item. "Oh, yummy…steak!"
Running short on time, Devin popped the steak into a baking pan and shoved it in the oven. While the steak was cooking, she prepared a quick salad and poured herself a glass of red wine. Yum...Wine makes everything better. As she watched the clock creep past nine, and knowing she needed to leave in a half an hour, she reached in, grabbed the steak, and set the pan on the stovetop. It wasn’t her usual medium-well T-bone, but it would have to do, and right now she was starving and it looked and smelled delicious.
After gathering her food she carried it and her glass of wine to the dining room table. As she started cutting the steak, she watched it bleed out onto the plate. She stared at the oozing steak and felt her heart speed up and beat heavy in her chest. Suddenly all she could think about was getting this tender piece of meat into her mouth. As the meat hit her tongue and the blood slid down her throat, a sense of euphoria overwhelmed her. In that moment she didn’t care if she made it to work or if she ever worked again.
Devin tore at the steak, feeling like a ravenous beast. Wow, I really needed to pay more attention to my eating schedule, I’m absolutely starved. Once she devoured the delectable meat, she took a couple of deeps breaths and felt her heart rate slow to a normal pace. She finished her salad and sipped her wine, once again able to focus on the task at hand. She put her plate in the sink and swallowed two ibuprofen with the last sip of wine. Checking the clock again, Devin realized she needed to pick up her pace if she hoped to make it to work on time.
After racing back into the bathroom, she hesitantly looked into the mirror again. Stunned, she turned her face from side-to-side. She already looked better than she had before; her skin color was normal and her eyes didn’t look so sunken.
Energy coursed through her, making her feel like she was supercharged. She started applying her makeup, following her usual routine, then took one final glance in the mirror and realized that her eye shadow and liner were a little darker than usual. Wow! Guess rushing gave me a heavy hand, but damn..I look good!
She ran back to her bedroom and threw open the closet doors. "What to wear, what to wear?" She usually wore jeans, a bright colored crop-top, and her black wedge shoes to show off her great curves. But the idea forming in her head was definitely not the norm. Instead of her usual attire, she grabbed a pair of black leather pants from the hanger in the back of her walk-in closet, then snagged the open-back, black sequined halter, and then pulled out her spiked leather boots to complete the look.
Devin stared in the mirror and liked what she saw, even though she didn’t really recognize herself at first glance. The image of a sexy redhead, gothed out in black leather and sequins stared back at her, looking good enough to eat.
Feeling sexy, powerful, and full of life, Devin headed to the living room to grab her keys and took one last look at the clock in order to gauge just how fast she'd to have to drive so she wouldn't be late. The clock read 9:18 p.m.
"What the hell?" She had only left the kitchen eight minutes ago? No fucking way could she have gotten ready that fast. Make-up, clothes––that always took at least twenty-five minutes. "Whatever, damn clock probably needs new batteries," she said as she headed out the door.
She figured if she did end up being late she would just use the over-the-top sex appeal she had going on tonight to talk her way out of another ass-chewing from her boss. Licking her lips as she strutted towards her car she thought, Sounds like a plan to me.
* * * * *
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
After showering, dressing, and cooking, Aryiah felt fantastic. She and Damarius had shared a delicious meal and talked all night about the rituals and rites that she would be facing in order to take her place among The Witches.
He'd explained the different species of Ovialell and where each resided, which had been a little confusing at first. He tried to draw her maps to show her where each city was located, but she just couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that Ovialell had three different levels.
Damarius had labeled three different pieces of paper: one marked "Lower World," one marked "Middle World," and one marked "Upper World." He then layered them on top of one another, holding them just a few inches apart between his spread fingers.
"Now imagine this is what it looks like," he'd said. "The Goddess, the werewolves, and The Witches all reside in the city of Dalestri on Upper World, while the Amazons live on the island of Themiscyra off its northern shore. The Seelie Fae court reside in Inlavey, and the Unseelie Fae court reside in Karistan, both on Middle World. And lastly, the vampires reside in Obsidian, and the demons reside in Hel, both on Lower World. But when you put all three levels together they make up Ovialell."
She'd shaken her head at the concept, but listened as he'd continued. "While you're still human, the only way to access the different levels is either through your journeys or by using the portals, but once you become a citizen of Ovialell, you'll be able to shade through the Shadowlands just like me."
This piece of information had Aryiah smiling from ear to ear. The idea of being able to "disappear" like Damarius had was exciting, and something she couldn't wait to learn.
"The Goddess has a castle on each level and we will be living in the one that resides on Upper World in my private quarters."
At the mention of their living together, she took a deep breath and snuggled close to her mate. Aryiah fell quiet as she tried to process exactly how she would fit into this new life. She'd listened to everything Damarius had told her and it sounded fantastic, especially since she knew that they'd be experiencing all these things together. But as she thought about magick, mates, training, and the fact that she'd be meeting a Goddess tomorrow night, Aryiah was suddenly very tired. As Damarius wrapped her in his arms and kissed her goodnight, she realized this was the most content and the most unsettled she'd ever felt.
* * * * *
The next morning, after breakfast and coffee, Damarius and Aryiah officially started her training.
"Take deep breaths and clear your mind. Then try to recall anything you can from your journeys," Damarius instructed.
Aryiah did as he said, closing her eyes and breathing deeply, she let herself sink into a relaxed state as she thought about everything that had happened over the last few days. But even though she was now remembering bits and pieces, she couldn’t willingly seem to pull them all together.
Her eyes snapped open as she exhaled a sharp breath. "It's not working. Maybe you should put me under or do whatever it is you do so that I can go on another journey and see if that helps."
"That's a good idea," Damarius replied. "Now that your memories are starting to flow, maybe taking you back to Lower World will free the rest." Easing her down on the couch, Damarius continued, "Okay darling, just lay back and relax."
As Aryiah laid back and closed her eyes, she could feel the tingle of magick as Damarius transformed into his wolf. It had to be a good sign that she was becoming more sensitive to the magick as it flowed around her.
She felt content and relaxed as she began to think of the last memory she had of Lower World. It didn’t take long before she fell into a deep trance, waking to find herself on the cliff’s edge in front of the cave mouth just like before. Damarius was there waiting for her, and she was thrilled at how fully aware of everything she suddenly was. This is going to work, she thought to herself.
Aryiah felt the magick buzzing in the air, and a sense of peace and power settled over her. She didn’t need Damarius to tell her that this would always be the same place where she entered Lower World, she just knew. Just like she knew that the sparkling lake was more dangerous than it appeared, and that the woods were full of creatures that were there to help and hinder her along the way. This was all a part of her lessons and trials. Lessons and trials she could now remember fully.
Unfortunately, all this clarity brought up another problem, one that left her confused and wary. "Damarius, what does this spell do?" she asked, and p
ulled a piece of parchment out of the pocket of the dress she now wore.
Damarius shifted back to his human form then took the paper and stared at the writing. Inhaling sharply, he looking up at her with wide eyes. "Where did you get this?"
"I don’t know," she answered, as she took a step in his direction. "I just know that I need to read it before I leave here. What does it mean?"
With a furled brow and piercing eyes, Damarius backed away from her. "It’s a forgetting spell, Aryiah." His reply was cold.
"What? Why would I have that?"
Damarius crushed the piece of paper in his palm and replied, "I don’t know, but we are certainly going to find out." He quickly turned away and disappeared before Aryiah even had a chance to blink.
Back in Aryiah's apartment, Damarius shook her awake and immediately asked, "Do you remember anything?"
She simply stated, "Yes."
* * * * *
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Gage sat in his cell, fuming and freaking out over how his escape attempt had ended. Not only was he annoyed by the feelings he was obviously starting to have for Devin, but right now, the larger concern was whether or not she was still human.
He'd been so caught up in the moment that he hadn’t paid any attention to just how much blood he'd been taking from her. When she slumped to the ground and disappeared before him, he knew she'd left the dreamscape and woken up in the real world. The problem was, he had no idea what happened after that. It wasn't hard to put the facts together; he'd drank from her while having sex, which for any other vampire meant he'd just become a new Sire. But for him, since he was unlike any other vampire in existence and especially since he'd done those things while using his dream-walking power, he was unclear as to whether it had worked the same or not. Hence the freaking out. Maybe it's not even possible at all.
