I knock on Orm’s door and lay his plate beside it. Judging by the noise drafting up from the first level, I guess we have a full house.
Elizabeth joins me in the hall. “That sounds like a robust group.”
“I’m glad you’re here. I take her hand.”
She cups her fingers around my cheek. “It’s amazing to see the woman you’ve become.”
Orm’s door opens, and he eyes the plate.
“I made some human food for you,” I tell him.
“Anything will be fine. Thank you.” He lifts the plate, steps back into his room, and closes the door.
“Will your tribe accept him?” Elizabeth asks.
“I’m not sure. Will wonders if he’s a spy. What do you think?”
“What does your gut tell you?”
“That he’s being honest. But, I don’t know what witches are capable of, what his powers are. I’ve heard some can affect your feelings. What if he’s being true, that he wants nothing to do with the old-world hierarchy, then he could be of use to us.”
Growing impatient, I rap on his door. I hear his sock-padded footsteps on the wood floor, and he opens the door. “I’m sorry to hurry you, but my people grow impatient downstairs.”
“That’s okay. I just finished the meal.” He turns and lifts the empty plate from his desk. “Thank you.”
“You look much better.”
“Your hospitality is much appreciated.” He follows me down the hall. “What can I expect in this meeting?”
“Just be honest.” I start down the stairs.
The crowd falls silent as we weave between the bodies to the fireplace. I jump to the tabletop and offer my hand to Orm. “This is Orm. He’s a witch we found starving in the forest. He fled Salem, where his mother was unjustly hanged for witchcraft.”
“I’m confused. His mother wasn’t a witch?” a voice calls out.
“We only need be sired by one witch and initiated into a coven to become a witch,” Orm answers him.
“So, you have the powers of a regular witch?”
“All witches have different powers, and some are stronger than others, but yes, once initiated, we are full witches.”
Conversations break out through the group, and I call for order. I entertain each question, and Orm answers. Since many in the tribe lived in remote areas, few are familiar with witches. I glance at Jacob, who rolls his eyes as if he were bored.
“How do we know you’re who you say you are?” Will challenges.
“I guess you don’t. I must earn your trust. I’m not sure how though.” Orm’s eyes find mine.
Gregor jumps to the tabletop beside me. “We have the crystals. I say if he agrees to wear a crystal and never take it off, never do magic unless allowed by us, then he can stay. We can assign a watch to him like we do our borders. He should never be left unattended, even when we believe him to be asleep. If we also wear crystals, we will be impervious to his magic.”
Shouts of agreement go up, and I turn to Orm. “Is this acceptable? Do you want to stay with us on these conditions?”
“Do I have a choice? What will become of me if I say I wish to leave?”
My eyes drop. “I’m sorry. I don’t believe we could let you go, knowing what you know of us.”
“I will lose my magic if I do not practice it.”
Jacob climbs to his side. “We could all do for some sparring with a witch. We want to be prepared if we meet up with the likes of Sonia again. What say you, tribe?”
Battle cries ring through the room, and I pat Orm’s back. “Welcome, friend.”
“I’m not sure whether to rejoice or be afraid that you’ve chosen to spare my life.” His eyes dart around the room.
I wink at him. “Most of the time we don’t bite.”
Our metal smiths work through the night to produce settings of the crystals we brought back from Mexico that can be hung from leather strings. Orm’s necklace holds a piece of crystal as large as his thumb. By the time the sun rises, all on the plantation own a crystal piece, and extras are formed for the sentinels to acquire as they return.
“You must be exhausted,” I say to Orm as we make our way to the main house.
Orm nods. “It’s been a long night.”
“Sleep as long as you need. I will watch until you wake.”
“You do not trust the others?”
“No, I trust them completely. But all are tired, and my warriors need rest more than I do.”
We enter the main structure and start up the stairs. When we reach his room, Orm hesitates. “I believe our paths were fated to cross. I had several dreams during my fitful sleeps in the forest of a vampire and two warriors.”
“That’s curious. What else did you dream?”
“It’s all jumbled. I shall need rest to sort it all out. And perhaps a pen and paper when I wake.”
As soon as Orm finishes the morning meal, I begin to question him. “You don’t believe the vampire in your dream was me?” I struggle to comprehend his words. “But you said you dreamed about a vampire and two warriors for weeks before we found you. Did you have another dream about the vampire last night?”
“I did not.” Orm shakes his head. “But I was very tired. The female vampire I kept seeing had red hair and two others were female and male. The female vampire held a gold dagger in her hand. A winged serpent-like dragon rose out of a fissure in the earth before them. Each time the dream ended with that scene.”
“Dragons aren’t real.” Will shrugs his shoulders and stands. “I have fantasies of battles and witches and such when I rest. They could just be dreams.”
“But I had two warriors with me in the woods when we found you.”
Orm rubs the rock hanging from his neck. “I won’t have visions while wearing this crystal.”
“So, now you’re saying the dreams were visions?” I pace the room.
“Perhaps, or maybe they were just fascinations to occupy my mind while my body wasted away.” Orm stands and stretches. “I should like a walk and then some sparring time.” He looks to Jacob and then Will.
“I shall join you too. I haven’t trained since before our journey.” I grab a broomstick from the closet.
“Are you forgetting the incessant punches you and Will were trading all the way up to New England?” Jacob looks between Will and me, rolls his eyes, and backs out the door.
Will, Jacob, and I give Elizabeth and Orm a tour of the property, pointing out the borders.
“I won’t remember this. If you insist that I not stray from your boundaries, you’re going to have to mark them,” Orm admits.
“I forget, you do not smell as well as we do.” I make a mental note to come up with some barrier markers.
“Nor do I have a memory like you. We witches must write things down to remember them all our years. Think of me as a human with special powers. Physically, I’m human.”
Having walked ahead, Jacob spins to face us. “But you have long life spans, like us.”
Orm nods. “Because we’re part angel.”
“Part angel?” Will chuckles. “You want us to believe all that witch-Bible-heritage stuff. Next you’re going to tell us you believe that rubbish about us being sired by some demonic devilish creature.”
“The Devil was actually an angel that fell out of favor with God. He sought to be as powerful as God and was stripped of his soul and forbidden to enter the Kingdom of Heaven ever again. So, he created his own Kingdom, the Abyss, or Hell, as the humans call it.”
“That’s superstition and myth created by you beings to explain why you think your race is better than ours,” Jacob grumbles.
“It’s true. Many of us believe we’re given certain rights as children of God. But we’re just as cursed as you are. While you’re soulless and lives end with your physical body’s death, our souls pass to Sheol forever.”
“What’s Sheol?” I ask.
“It’s what the humans call purgatory. Except witch souls may never escape.”<
br />
“Haven’t we walked enough? I’m ready for some fighting.” Will smacks one fist into the other palm.
I head in the direction of the main building. “But Orm, we don’t feel we’re cursed. We’re grateful for our long lives and thank Mother Earth for all our days.”
“You have adopted positive spiritual principles. Not all of your race believe as you do. Many of them feel damned, like cursed soulless beings, and behave as such. Surely you have run across tribes of wild, lawless vampires with no regard for life?” Orm asks.
I nod. “It’s interesting that you give that reason for their behavior. I would say they do value their own lives.”
“Are you surprised the spiritual being looks at everything through that bias?” Jacob asks and shoots ahead of us.
Orm raises his index finger. “But doesn’t every animal have a survival instinct? These vampires are like the beast of the land because they do not believe their lives mean anything beyond the present. They know their place in the universe.”
I shake my head. “It’s their tradition, how they have lived for centuries. It doesn’t have anything to do with being soulless. We have no proof souls exist.”
“Some of our kind, like Sonia, draw power from dead ancestors. It would be foolish to disregard what you do not know or understand.”
I pepper Orm with questions of Sonia and the witch lines. While he can retell what he knows of his own coven, he admits he knows little of others.
“Too bad you can’t channel any dead witch souls, because I’m ready for a good fight.” Will launches himself to the porch.
“I’ve got enough power to give you enough exercise. May I?” Orm lifts the crystal from his chest.
We wait as Jacob and Gregor finish sparring. I hold out my hand to receive Orm’s necklace. Will jumps on his toes. Orm points to the broom, and it flies across the room. Will catches it in his palm. Snapping the bristles from the shaft, he tosses it to Orm. He holds it in his palm, and the handle begins to spin. Swirling through the air, it hops between us. We jump and roll to dodge the makeshift weapon.
Quick as a flash, Will launches the stick at Orm. Orm straightens his arm, and the stick freezes an inch from his hand.
“You’re fast too,” Will notes.
As they spar, the others line the room and watch from the windows. Jacob pushes Will out of the way and takes a turn, as do Gregor and John. I keep my eyes trained on Orm, watching for strain. As John heaves the broomstick at him, Orm drops to the floor, and the shaft sails over his head.
I kneel next to Orm. “I believe he’s had enough.”
Helping him up, I offer him the crystal. He hangs it around his neck and thanks me, taking a seat offered him by Will. As the others spar, he, Jacob, and Gregor question Orm about the state of his strength, his abilities relative to other witches, time in the old country, and the coven there.
Orm sucks hard breaths into his chest, and I bring him a glass of water as he answers their queries. Then, I take my turn sparring with the others. As the sun sets, battles continue as hunters bring animals in for our dinner. Seeing Orm flinch at the sight of the blood pouring from the deer’s necks, I lead him into the kitchen.
“We must seem like savages to you.”
“I haven’t ever been around vampires. Only heard stories of how they suck humans dry. Your tribe does not feed on people?”
“No.” I set a loaf of bread, glass of milk, and bowl of berries on the table for him. Then, I go to the front room, cut a chunk of rib meat from the closest doe, and hang it over the fire.
“You’re too kind to me.”
“I believe you pushed yourself too far today.”
“It was fun. I hadn’t used that much power in a while, made me feel young.”
“Four hundred years is middle age for a witch, right? Do you age like we do?” I sit beside him at the table.
“I don’t know how you age.”
“At eighteen, we reach maturity and are almost frozen in that state till eight hundred or so. It’s different for all, but we slowly age from then till our bodies are spent.”
Orm summarizes how witches age over time, like a human, but slower. He describes his powers and how they will grow stronger with use. I tell him how I prolonged Emmett’s and Theo’s lives and offer him my blood to preserve his health.
He chuckles, and his eyes cut to the door leading to the main hall where the others are gathered. “Probably not a bad idea.”
Making him some tea, I stick my finger and drop a couple of drops into the hot liquid. “A few drops a day will suffice.”
1698
Days, months, and years pass, and we detect no use of magic from Orm outside our training sessions. Will worries he could be using some of his powers to spar with us to mask another action. Although I feel it unnecessary, the others insist on keeping him under surveillance day and night.
With talk of further suspicions of witchcraft and vampirism, we debate moving west.
“What of the growing unrest in the Old World? Our sentinels report increased witch activity throughout the continents,” John notes.
“Perhaps Orm can help our people form alliances, or at least peace agreements with the witches,” I put forth. “Elizabeth, can you bring him to us?”
Elizabeth climbs the stairs, and Will whispers to me. “Are you sure we can trust him?”
“He has been with us five years. He has given us no reason to doubt his intentions.”
Will shakes his head. “But, he has not been tested.”
“Well, he will now.” I stand as Elizabeth and Orm enter the room. “Orm, our informants in the Old World tell us the witches are on the move. Can you imagine why?”
“What would he know? He’s been locked away here for five years, and in the colonies for a century,” Jacob huffs.
“Ninety-eight.” Orm rubs his chin. “It’s 1698.”
“I hope that’s not your prediction, oh wise one,” Gregor laughs.
“No,” Orm continues. “They’re preparing for the Children of Light.”
“What? Who?” Dumbfounded, I stare at him.
“You don’t know?” Orm’s eyes pan the room. “None of you have heard of the prophecy of the dagger? With your vast reach, I thought you would know.”
Will strides towards Orm. “You should get to the story faster.”
Orm’s eyes cut to Will and back to me. “We always assumed other races knew of the prophecy.”
I raise my palm. “How important is this information? If those gathered here have never heard of it, then I doubt anyone in our race does. What are the consequences of knowing what you’re about to tell us?”
Orm blinks and then stares into my eyes. “A war between our species, I would guess.”
I order Will and Jacob to run the perimeter of the building so that we aren’t overheard. When they return, I motion for Orm to continue.
He transfers his weight from foot to foot. “I believe that’s why Sonia attacked your tribunal in 1599. She assumed you were gathered to sire the Children of Light.”
“Who are these Children of Light? Start at the beginning.” Will growls at him.
Orm clears his throat. “There was a dagger, wielded by Longinus, that proved Jesus to be the son of God. It’s prophesied that if three Children of Light use the sword to defeat evil, the curse on the witches will be lifted, our souls will be restored. Some believe”—Orm’s eyes meet mine—“that if other beings break the curse, they’ll be granted eternal life.”
“But where did the curse originate?” I ask.
“Who else?” Orm shrugs. “God. God placed the curse on the witches because he was angry with the angels for siring us.”
“This is foolish spiritual rubbish. I will not listen to more.” Will starts towards the door.
“You asked me why the witches may be on the move and now you disregard my answer? I have betrayed our most sacred secret, and still you doubt me?” Orm stands.
Will rushes to him,
stopping an inch from his chest. “What business is it of ours? Why should we care? I’m fine without a soul.”
“Because vampires are in danger. Any movement on your part will be construed as action against witches.”
“But why are they more active?” I inquire.
“They’re looking for perfect pairings. The Children of Light must be conceived before the turn of the century. Three children—one of the spring equinox, one of the summer solstice, and one of the fall equinox—must find each other, find the dagger, and obliterate evil in their eighteenth year of life.”
Head spinning with the enormity of his revelation, I pace the floor. “What’s the evil?”
“If you’re a witch? Vampires.”
“You’re kidding.” Jacob laughs. “These three children can use the dagger to end all vampires?”
“That’s the prophecy. The witches must defeat evil, which many of our race have construed to be you soulless creatures. Some think that if the Devil himself is killed, you all will die.”
I halt my motion. “And all witches believe this?”
“Most do. That’s why the group I was with fled. We wanted nothing to do with the pairings.” Orm takes a step back from Will.
“Is there anything else?” I ask Orm.
“No, that’s all.”
“Never speak of this to anyone else. Thank you, you may leave us.” I motion to the stairs. “Elizabeth, escort Orm back to his quarters.”
“I don’t even begin to know what to do with this information.” Jacob stands and then sits again, running his hand through his hair.
I put my finger to my lips and whisper. “It’s more crucial than ever that we make peace among our tribes and with as many covens as possible. Elizabeth.” I approach her as she descends the stairs. “You’re the oldest here. Have you ever heard of this curse or prophecy? Do you believe him?”
“Now that I know this information, I see patterns in history. Violence against vampires has always been heightened before the turns of the centuries,” Elizabeth speaks in hushed tones.
We huddle in a circle, and several share their opinions. Then, we decide Will, Jacob, Elizabeth, and I will take Orm and a quarter of our tribe to the Old World to gather representatives for another tribunal. Gregor and John will lead the rest west, to build a fortress where we will be safe.
The Kingdom Journals Complete Series Box Set Page 96
