The Fall of Witchcraft

by Claudia Silva

  “What if it isn’t?” Rebecca didn’t slow down. She walked with a purpose. “It has to be Crys trapped in that building, counting on us to get her out. Besides,” she heaved, “she told me her grandmother knew no one would die. No one.” That was a lie, but it was what she needed to hear.

  “And you believe her?” her partner asked.

  “Everything she predicted so far has been a reality. So, yes, I believe her. It must be her, and I’m going to get her out.”

  There were no more words spoken. The two vampires and the werewolf followed the sound of the beating heart. They climbed on top of the fallen building, moving big pieces of concrete with their bare hands. One by one, they moved the rocks and beams until the heartbeat became louder and clearer. They worked diligently side by side until they spotted something.

  It was Crystal’s light brown hair. It looked dirty and disheveled, but it was there. On top of her head and around it, the building seemed to be floating, levitating, but not touching her.

  “It’s her!” When Rebecca shouted, the girl turned her head to look above her; a big smile appeared on her face. She remained in the fetal position as she waited to be released from her coffin. All the time Rebecca cheered her on and reminded her they were there for her. She told her not to worry because they would always protect her; they would make sure she would always be safe.

  The telekinetic shield disintegrated once Crystal felt free from anything dangerous. The first thing she did was jump to Rebecca, holding her tight. It was until that moment that she began to cry; sobbing loudly, finally letting everything out. The loss of her grandmother, the exploding building, the fight against the evil witch. It was all over and she’d survived and everything she’d been holding back as she kept trying to succeed in the task her great-great-grandmother had assigned, exploded out of her tenfold.

  “I knew you’d come,” she said between sobs.

  “It'll be all right,” Rebecca said, turning to look at Dylan as she brushed Crystal’s hair.

  Dylan smiled, reaching for her free hand and holding it tight. Will stood there, happy to have survived another day. Happy for them all.

  Part Four

  Epilogue

  CHAPTER NINE

  Later

  October 20th, 2000

  5:47 P.M.

  They took Crystal to Will’s room in the agency’s second floor to freshen up because taking her back to the old apartment she shared with Emilia Black was out of the question. Now that Lily knew Crystal existed, they needed to be careful. The vampires were sure the evil witch and her werewolf friends were already looking for clues to find her. They couldn't risk exposing her to any danger. Not for a while, not until they came up with a plan.

  Rebecca, Dylan, and Will waited for Crystal to come out of the shower. They were quiet, avoiding each other. Truth was, they didn't have much to say after the events of the day. Escaping a building minutes before it exploded hadn't been part of their plans and it had left them exhausted.

  The day the Crimson Building exploded was the day The Twelve American Covens fell. The witches and their organized society were gone, leaving a twelve-year-old girl, who didn’t seem to understand her new powers, behind. The road in front of them wasn't easy. None of them knew how to help her develop her magic. None of them knew how to teach her how to delete minds or control the weather. With no one to learn from, Crystal would need to figure it out all on her own, and the sooner the better. Surviving that day was only the beginning of her adventure.

  With the Twelve Covens gone, the vampire agency would be unprotected. Apart from Crystal, there weren’t any witches left to erase the memories of humans who saw vampires, werewolves or other superhuman creatures face to face. They had sent home the seven humans who'd been in the Crimson Building, those who witnessed incredible events, with a warning. There wasn't much else they could do. They told them they shouldn’t tell anyone about them because people would think they were crazy. That was all. A verbal suggestion that wouldn't help their nightmares. Who was to know if they would heed these warnings? No one knew. Until Crystal learned to delete minds, there weren’t many options left. In the meantime, whatever a human remembered of what they saw was something they could no longer control.

  Yet, perhaps what worried them the most was the ever decreasing force that had once protected their organization. A spell that confused outsiders that got close enough to the vampires’ underground compound. If they didn't discover how to strengthen this barrier, it would fade away and all the werewolves would have to do was follow one agent back and they would learn the agency’s location. It would be that simple.

  This was one more ability they needed from Crystal Black. Unfortunately, no one knew the workings behind this magic. There was no one to guide the girl through the process of casting such a powerful spell. She would have to do it on her own.

  But, not all was lost. At least Crystal had a natural attachment to Rebecca and Dylan. It had begun with a mandate from the nullifier, Emilia Black, but their connection turned out to be natural. The old witch had seen visions of everything that had happened in the last three days, warning her great-great-granddaughter of what was to come. In her instructions, she had been clear Crystal needed to stay close to Rebecca and Dylan. Emilia Black had told her enough about them to ensure she would trust them. She'd even explained they weren’t just ordinary humans. The way she'd talked about vampires, the vampire agency, and their mission to protect humanity from any supernatural threat helped. She'd told Crystal they would protect her and she would protect them. They would help each other. They would become a family.

  “Agent Torrence? Agent Sawyer?” The two of them looked up to find Josh Watters standing by the door. It could only mean Lucius demanded their presence.

  Both Rebecca and Dylan walked to follow Agent Watters, while Will walked to look out from one of the room’s large windows. Outside, the woods awaited. After the ordeal in the Crimson building, Will couldn’t wait to run around in wolf form, to feel the freedom of the wilderness, the scents of nature. For now, he would be Crystal's companion.

  “Is there something else Ms. Black needs at the moment?” Josh asked them.

  “She needs clothes,” Rebecca began. “A place to sleep for tonight, perhaps.”

  They knew only vampires could access the underground complex, and Crystal, as a human, would need to stay above ground. She would need to join Will in one of the rooms on the second floor.

  Behind them, they heard Will say, “She can take this room. I can sleep in Dr. Stevens’s office. He has a very comfortable sofa.” Dr. Hugh Stevens was the agency’s psychologist. Every member of the vampire agency was required to have frequent appointments with him. It was a necessity when dealing with these powerful creatures.

  Josh nodded in agreement, “Very well.” He then turned to the two agents, “Are you guys hungry? You had a long day and we know what happens if you don’t have enough to eat.”

  Both Rebecca and Dylan fidgeted. It was true, a vampire needed to feed on something - blood or otherwise - to keep their dangerous side under control. If the body didn’t receive sustenance, then it would look for it no matter what.

  “We stopped to eat on our way back from the Crimson Building,” Rebecca said. “Or, what’s left of the Crimson building.”

  “The little girl was the hungriest of us all,” added Dylan.

  Josh couldn’t help but smile. “Well, if everything is in order, then the director would like a word.”

  The vampires turned to look at each other in understanding. Dylan turned to the window where Will waited. “Can you stay here with Crystal, Will? This will only take a moment.”

  They could all see his face brighten up when trusted with the responsibility. It seemed it had taken a day trapped in a building with a bomb about to explode for Dylan to finally trust him. “Yes,” Will said. “Of course.”

  “Perfect,” Josh said. Then, to Rebecca and Dylan, “Follow me.”

  Oct
ober 20th, 2000

  5:52 P.M.

  “Come in,” they heard the director say from inside his office.

  Rebecca and Dylan entered the room. The same three monitors stood in front of Lucius' office. To the right, two television screens played the current news on mute. To the left, a wide canvas with an abstract painting giving life to the room with red, blue, and yellow quadrilaterals had replaced the painting of the leafless tree.

  “Sir?” greeted Dylan as both Rebecca and he sat down opposite him.

  “I see you survived,” was the first thing Lucius said. Rebecca could see an underlying happiness behind his cold gray eyes. She knew the director cared for Dylan more than anyone at the agency. As detached as he had sounded before, he was relieved Dylan’d made it back in one piece.

  “We did,” Dylan replied. He, too, couldn’t hide a smile.

  “I’m glad. I’m glad,” the director nodded. He then turned to Rebecca, “I have a lot to thank you for today, Agent Sawyer. You are in part responsible for the success of this mission.” Shifting her weight, Rebecca felt the blood rise to her cheeks. “You did everything you were supposed to do. Your initiative got you out of the Crimson Building to go search for Emilia Black. There, you found the witch, Crystal Black, who you recruited to help you.”

  “Well,” Rebecca interrupted without meaning to. She didn't want them to remember the story as some made up fiction where she’s the hero. She didn't act alone. “It was more like Emilia Black recruited me to take care of her child and help get those trapped in the Crimson Building out. It feels as if it was all pre-planned and I just followed a script.”

  The director stared at her for a moment, deciding she may be right. “Perhaps,” he said. “Regardless, you brought Crystal back to the Crimson building, where you directed her powers efficiently to help save our people. For that, I thank you.”

  Rebecca was about to protest to add she'd let a werewolf escape, to tell them she'd put a little girl in danger by bringing her to a building where a bomb may have exploded any minute only because she was the key to saving her loved ones. Instead, she said, “Thank you, sir.”

  Once everybody was satisfied with each other’s answers, Lucius began anew. “I must be candid with you now.” Both Dylan and Rebecca glanced at each other. “I’m afraid what I will ask now is the most important mission I will ever ask of you. One that I must urge you to undertake.”

  “Sir?” Dylan wondered out loud.

  Lucius took a deep breath, letting it go dramatically. “As you are well aware, the Twelve Covens have fallen.” He let that sentence sink in, giving them time to process what it meant to no longer have the support of a hundred witches working to help them in their mission to protect mankind. He gave them time to understand things would never be the same. “Without them, we must survive. Without them, we must continue to do our work.” Once more, he paused for effect. “But, not all is lost. You have brought with you, thanks to Rebecca’s efforts, the last surviving magic user. A witch, I might add, more powerful than many combined.”

  Before he said anymore, Rebecca protested, “And a child. Sir, you can’t possibly ask-”

  The director stopped her with the palm of his hand. “All I am about to ask is that you take her in. To treat her as your own child.” He leaned forward, his fingers interlaced in front of him. “Rebecca,” he called her by her first name, “even before you came to us, you could not have children of your own. What I offer is for you to take a daughter to love and to care and to raise.”

  It wouldn't be as easy to persuade her, “You want me to make her care about us in exchange for her services, don’t you?”

  Sighing, Lucius leaned back on his chair. “Would you rather I sent her to some human family? Someone who won’t understand what she is nor what she can do? Some couple who won’t be equipped to protect her? Because she will need protection. Liliana Porter knows of her existence and I can only see two outcomes coming from this knowledge: She will either try to kill her or recruit her.

  “Which one do you think it’s best for her?” the director asked.

  “But, sir,” Dylan intervened, “Rebecca is a vampire, and this child is still human. Rebecca will forever be as she is now, while Crystal will grow old, and may one day want to start a family.”

  The director studied him for a while. “It won’t just be Rebecca. Dylan, I want to ask this of you both. I want you to become a family.”

  “The… what?” Dylan was surprised to hear such a request.

  “Let’s give this powerful young witch stability. You have spoken to me many times about your love and care for Rebecca. Rebecca, I believe you feel the same way towards your partner.” He then asked, “Do you deny this?”

  They both sat there, confused. “Sir, are you saying you want us to get married?”

  “And why not?”

  “Well, because,” Rebecca started. Soon she was at a loss for words. “It’s not that simple.”

  This brought a genuine smile to the director’s lips. “No, becoming a vampire is not that simple, and yet you did that in a heartbeat. Getting married is merely a formality.”

  “But, to have a daughter?” Dylan exclaimed.

  “It will do you good,” Lucius said. “It will do you both good. No, forgive me… It will do all three of you good. It will provide this young woman with a family and it will give you something you’ve been missing. Something few of us can have.”

  “I am perfectly content with my life, sir,” Dylan said. “I don’t think…”

  “Then, don’t think,” Lucius stopped him. “You are not only doing this for our agency, but for yourselves.” He stressed, “Become a family. Take Crystal as your own. Love her and raise her. Protect her. The return won’t just be a witch who will learn to love our kind, but also two vampires with a purpose for living.”

  “Sir,” Dylan insisted.

  “Think about it.”

  At that very moment, the phone on Lucius’s desk rang once. The director picked it up with his wrinkled hand. “Is she ready?” On the other side, they all heard Josh tell them she was. “Bring her in.”

  The door opened and in front of Josh, Crystal Black stood. It was clear the sight of the director frightened her, they could tell. The girl walked between the two agents, taking Rebecca's arm with both hands, as if she was all she needed to feel safe from the old man. Her shield.

  “You’re also a vampire, aren’t you, sir?” were the first words out of her mouth.

  “I am, child,” he offered his most gentle smile. “I have been for a very long time.” Then, “Are you frightened of me?”

  It took a moment, but soon Crystal was shaking her head from side to side. “Not really. Rebecca and Dylan are also vampires and they are the good guys.”

  “I am a good guy, as well,” Lucius said. “Now, child, we were discussing your future.” Crystal looked puzzled. “How would you like to be part of a new family?”

  It was almost as if Crystal knew what the director of the vampire agency was referring to. She turned to look at both Rebecca and Dylan. With one hand, she reached for Dylan’s, taking it firmly in hers. “You mean, they will be my parents?”

  “Would you like that?” Lucius said.

  “My Mimi said they would be,” she confessed. “I didn’t believe her, but… yes, I would like that very, very much, sir.”

  Rebecca smiled. Dylan covered his eyes with his free hand and cringed.

  October 20th, 2000

  8:24 P.M.

  Dylan was taking a long shower after having accompanied Crystal and Rebecca shopping for new clothes. It had been amusing to watch the best werewolf hunter in the country wait for a twelve-year-old tween go from one outfit to the next. Not that Crystal Black - soon to be Crystal Torrence - cared about her new father’s attitude. She'd never looked happier.

  After coming back to the agency, Rebecca and Dylan left Crystal in her new room on the building's second floor before heading back to the apartment they sha
red on sublevel five. She wouldn't be alone, Will would sleep a few doors down to make sure she was safe. Soon other arrangements would be made, but the day had been long and they were all tired and needed to sleep.

  Rebecca logged into her computer. Once in, she accessed her private email.

  Her account listed a series of emails from her childhood friend Coleen Anderson. They communicated often, usually when Dylan wasn't in the apartment or while he took his long showers. Rebecca wanted to keep in contact with Coleen, but wasn't sure how Dylan would feel about it. For now, she kept it a secret. There was a new message on the list, waiting to be opened.

  Coleen was the only contact she had with her past life and she’d gone to great lengths to acquire a secure connection to email her. Rebecca never told her the truth in her messages, but she told her enough to let her know what was going on in her life, and at the same time, keep a connection with her past. It was nice to know she could always count on Coleen no matter what - even when she had to distort the truth a little.

  Coleen may not know Rebecca had become a vampire, but who cared about the little trivialities in life.

  For now, she had a lot to tell her and she was eager to learn how Coleen was doing.

  Hey, Becca. Bad news. I think I’m getting a divorce. It’s Bob. You were right, he’s an idiot. He’s been having an affair with this client from work for a while now and I just found out. I’m devastated, to say the least. I’ve been crying a lot. You can imagine.

  Needless to say, I’ve never missed you more. I’m not sure where you are, but whenever you have a chance, you should consider coming for a visit. You must get some days off or something, right? I moved back with my parents; I don't know how long I'll stay here but if you visit, they'd love to see you again, too. Especially my mom; she misses you, I can tell. You’re welcome to stay with us anytime.