Page 103 of Blood Sacrifice

“What happens if Luna opens the door?” Maia asked, and I felt her stepping close behind me.

The flame witch shook her head, a faint smile on her face. “I will be reunited with my body. I remained here as a guardian, and when the doorway closed I was separated from my physical form. I slumber on one side of the divide, and live a half-life here, protecting the gateway.” She moved toward me, studying me. “You are not the same as the last time. That girl was innocent and naïve. The woman who stands here today has wisdom and pain in her eyes, a lifetime of weariness in her soul, but a connection to the etheric that will allow her to challenge an army of mages.”

I blinked but didn’t reply because I didn’t choose this life, I had spent years doing what I could to survive. I learned to fight to protect those who were unable to defend themselves. It was the reason I had formed the Chimaera Foundation, showing that we all had more than one beast inside us. We accepted any creature into our organisation, and operated in secret across the globe for decades, offering safety to anyone who needed it.

“Luna had a hard life,” Maia said from behind me. “She suffered and bled for those she cares about, giving them hope in the darkness.”

“She bridged the divide between creature species,” Owen added. “Creating sanctuary for all of us.”

Flames flared around us but I stood my ground, refusing to be intimidated even though I was quaking inside. I felt the magic in the air reach out to touch me, but I still refused to move. Instead, I pushed my feet into the ground and closed my eyes, not acknowledging what was happening around me, because I could see more clearly when looking with my third eye chakra. Throughout my life, when the storm of persecution or betrayal raged around me, I combated it by centring myself and finding the power to survive inside.

A vision flared in my head. Salvator surrounded by creatures I had never seen before, dark beings of shadow and mist crawling from deep in the ground. They weren’t hellspawn, as I had encountered them in the past.

“They are wraiths,” the flame witch said. “Tormented souls that cling to the last vestiges of life. The veil between Purgatory and this realm grows thin, and the dead are rising.”

My eyes flew open to find her standing in front of me. She wasn’t testing me, merely showing me what was coming.

“People fear the demons, but the true enemy is those who can hide in shadows and possess the living,” she continued. “An army stands ready to walk this world, and natural magic cannot defend against them.”

“Void magic,” I whispered, finally realising the reason we were here.

She nodded once. “It isn’t the person who is a witch or warlock who controls magic, it is their soul. The slaves rings in Purgatory bartered in their value for centuries, locking souls into enchanted items, and using the last of void magic to contain them.”

“How are we supposed to unlock this place?” Maia asked, her hands raised in the air as she spun around.

“A sacrifice,” the flame witch replied. “A blood sacrifice.” Her gaze dropped to my stomach, and I placed a protective palm over my unborn child.

“No! Fuck no!” Owen exploded. There was no way of hiding a pregnancy from a vampire since your blood changed and they could hear the extra heartbeat. “Nothing is worth the life of an innocent.”

The flame witch flung her hands up and Owen was sent crashing into the wall. “The sacrifice is not yours to make.”

“You are asking her to become dark,” he screamed, his limbs stuck to the wall as he struggled to release himself. “The taking of an innocent life will turn her magic black!”

I felt the blast of magic as Owen revealed his true power, landing in a crouch on the floor to stare at the flame witch.

“He is strong,” she said, her head canting to the side. “One born of two creatures, the unification of dark and light.”

Owen slowly stood, his eyes glowing silver. “There are few sanctities I hold in this world, but the preservation of innocent life is one of them. The purpose of me being here today is to ensure Luna doesn’t lose herself.”

I felt the draw of the void magic calling me forward, the seductive energy of it wrapping around me. My head screamed no, but it felt like a drug thrummed in my veins and prevented me from escaping from this terrible situation. My fingers twitched as I fought for control, to find my voice while this hurricane of emotions paralysed me. The image of Salvator in danger flashed through my mind again, another image of a little boy who looked just like his father. Each of those images were possible futures, and yet the one that overrode them all was looking into the face of my daughter and knowing she was a miracle because she possessed a rare and ancient gift.

I slowly shook my head, my fingers stretching to activate my magic, the magical symbols on my body growing warm as I prepared to fight.

Owen pulled me back, his hands strong on my arms, and Maia moved forward.

“I am here to ensure that Luna is not forced into doing something she will regret,” Maia said, her hair twisting around her as she created a magical storm. I felt the strength of the two people who had walked this path with me seep into my body, awakening me from whatever enchantment had been seducing me. “We’ll consider your offer, and let you know.”

Maia threw a small potion bottle to the floor, breaking it to release whatever was held inside. Owen grabbed one of my hands and she took the other, and I felt the dizzy sensation of us being sucked into a portal as the flame witch screamed and tried to reach us.

We landed on the ground, the stars above us telling me we had been in that place hours instead of minutes.

“What the hell,” I gasped, trying to sit up.

“Not exactly, but somewhere very close,” Maia replied, brushing the dust off her purple velvet skirt. “I spent a lot of time in vision quests while you were unconscious and some very wise witches gave me some good advice. Owen has always been a powerful absorber and shield to energy, and not many beings can visualise what is happening when he is close by.”

“There was still truth in her words. Void magic needs to escape, and a blood sacrifice is required,” I said, my hands landing on my knees as I bent over since the world was spinning around me.

“She wants her people released, and the quickest route to that goal was to make you open the veil there and then, but I refuse to believe that either Fate or Destiny would permit you to take that path,” Owen added. “We’ll find another way.”

---