Twelve

The air was cold as the group of us walked through the dark forest. The sun hadn’t touched the sky yet, stars still twinkling across the black cosmos.

I brought my gaze down to my mother and aunt leading us through the woods. Dana and Beth were at my sides. We were bundled in thick jackets to keep us warm. My mother and aunt wore their almost sheer dresses, unaffected by the cold. Between all of us, the two hunters walked side by side, their bodies barely clothed. They didn’t seem affected by the cold either. They were topless and still coated in dried blood. They made strange, happy sounds as they followed along, like two children in a new place.

The trees soon parted and a dark cave stood open by a small hill.

I smiled. I remembered this cave. I used to come here to play all the time growing up. It was my hideaway place from the world. I also brought Dana and Beth here. We used to laugh, play, and talk. Sometimes we touched each other because we could. It was a magical memory and my heart lifted in my chest.

The group of us entered the cave and walked deeper in. My mother lifted a hand and snapped her fingers. Torches glowed to life along the stony corridor.

“Gerald, I hope you like what we’ve done with it,” my mother said over her shoulder to me.

We made our way deeper until the corridor opened into a larger cave. My mother and aunt stepped aside as I stepped in. I was smiling as I drank it all in.

The cave was decorated with tapestries and torches. Each tapestry had our family sigil and a symbolic image of Draygon, and the other dark gods. They were red, with gold symbols. The air was filled with a scent of Muir. To the back of the cave was an altar with a small statue of Draygon on it. Small cabinets and shelves were to either side of the chamber.

Rose and Aunt Lily moved to each side of the altar. Wide smiles bloomed before my mother spoke.

“A blood coven would not be complete without a place for worship. It saddens us that we must leave soon, but we wanted to show our gift to you, Gerald.”

I smiled. “It’s impressive. Thank you both.”

Rose and Aunt Lily nodded.

My mother spoke again, “Now, we must share our knowledge before we perform the rite.”

The hunters wandered to the side, looking at everything like child-like zombies. Beth and Dana stayed by my sides.

Rose’s eyes widened and an evil grin formed. “To assist our dark gods, we must help bring their influence to this world. When we perform the rite, a thin rift will appear. Its invisible influence will spread out and cover tens of miles in every direction. The dark power will seep into dreams and bring more followers to the true side of knowledge and power.”

Aunt Lily spoke next, “It has been decreed that we must open sixteen rifts across this world. That will be enough to shift the balance of power in our favor. It will take hundreds of years for the dark influence seep into the fabric of reality, but that is for our masters to use. We are only the tools of their will.”

Rose nodded. “The rite requires blood and pain. After it has begun, only Gerald, I, or Lily can open a rift. Our High Priest is the key, and we are vessels of the dark gods.”

My aunt looked to me with kind eyes. “Rifts cannot be opened too close to each other. We will have to travel to many places to open each one. We will not have the safety of the mansion and the town any longer.”

“I understand,” I said as my curiosity grew at the possibilities.

“We understand,” Dana and Beth said in unison.

My mother kept her smile. “After we are finished here, pack your suitcases. The hunters will try again and we cannot give them a chance to succeed. Once the rift is opened, it will be next to impossible to close. The town will protect this place, but we must move to different locations so we can perform the rites.”

Rose turned to her sister, “We can begin.”

Aunt Lily nodded before turning her attention to the pair of bloody hunters. “Open the cabinet and each of you pull out a dagger.”

The hunters obeyed. They opened the cabinet to see several gold daggers on a shelf. They each took one and lifted them to look at it like they never seen one before.

Before we left the mansion, my mother explained what my Aunt Lily did to them, destroyed their memories and their minds. It was useless to extract information from them in this state, but I was correct to gather it before they were changed. Aunt Lily and my mother wouldn’t have been able to get anything from the hunters through their own means. They needed one skilled in manipulation magic to make that happen. After last night, my confidence grew and I felt I could do it as many times I needed to ensure my family and coven were safe.

Aunt Lily beckoned with one finger to the hunters. They stepped easily to the middle of the chamber, right before the altar.

“Face each other,” Aunt Lily said in a soft voice.

The pair did as they were told.

Rose looked over to me with deadly, serious eyes. “When it happens, you will feel it, know it. Let the power guide you and we will do the rest.”

I nodded.

Aunt Lily bowed her head, shadows covering her eyes. “Now, show your love and devotion to me.”

The hunters nodded to each other as if they knew exactly what they needed to do.

My cousins and I watched as the two hunters lifted their golden daggers and attacked each other.

Laughter filled the cave as daggers stabbed and sliced at naked flesh. The laughter was maddening as blood spurted. The two hunters were mindless, giggling like unhinged lunatics. Flesh was sliced and hung in tatters as they continued to attack each other. Blood dripped, followed by chunks of flesh. The laughter, giggling, and howls faltered as the bloody carnage continued.

I watched with dispassionate eyes. I felt nothing for the them. They invaded my home and tried to hurt the people I loved. They deserved every drop of pain.

The male hunter missed his wide swing and was rewarded with a dagger thrust to the side of his head. There was a wet crunch and blood spilled. His eyes rolled into his head as he smiled and slumped to the floor.

The female hunter turned to me, her body covered in a mixture of her own gore and that of her fellow hunter. Her wide eyes and manic grin shined through the blood covering her. She lifted the dagger high.

“I do this for you with all my love!” the female hunter shouted before driving the dagger into her stomach and twisting it.

She made a wet gurgling sound as she continued to twist the dagger. The huntress fell to her knees. She let out a small giggle and a wet sigh. The light of life left her eyes and she fell face first to the ground.

In that moment, I felt the energy in the air. Their deaths released their living mana and I lifted a hand. I took hold of the invisible strands. My mother and aunt did the same. The three of us connected, feeling the deluge of power between us.

My mother’s smile disappeared as she focused. I felt the pull from the three of us. A ball of invisible energy pooled in the middle of chamber. My mother hissed a word of power.

A thin crack carved into reality. I watched in stunned amazement as the crack was hair-thin, but it pulsed with a deep and dark power. Energy came off it in waves and washed over all of us. Nerves tingled along my body. Dana and Beth reached out to touch my shoulders. I glanced at them to see their eyes lost in a dreamy ecstasy.

We did it. We created the first of sixteen rifts. I could feel a small ebb along the cosmic stream of the world touching me and the dark gods were pleased.

I stared at the rift floating in the air. It was black with purple veins of light. It was so thin and jagged, one could walk past it and not notice, unless they were gifted or skilled in the dark arts.

“Take in this moment. This is just the beginning,” I said darkly.

The coven nodded to me.

“When we are finished here, lets gather our things. We have dreams to bring to the masses,” I smiled.