Smoldered Flames: Part I of the Edonia Series
Chapter 27

Cassius

I stand at an old abandoned building outside of the small town of Balendros. It’s cold stone structure held an ominous feel. Yellowed eyes lurk from within the shadows. The dilapidated building stood at one story tall with wood that boarded up broken windows. A male wielding an assault rifle stands outside the main entrance.

He points the rifle at me with a nod of his head. “Strip.”

I didn’t object. I stripped down to my bare skin and another male stepped out to go through my clothes. I rode Celune to Balendros when I found out about a male that could take care of certain situations that arise in people’s lives if you pay the right price.

The second male seemed satisfied and the one with the rifle points towards the doorway. “Follow me.”

I fall in line between the two men while another takes position at the main entrance. The abandoned building looked to be an old warehouse of sorts. We walk through a dark vast room filled with old machinery lying in a disarray. The musty air assaulted my nostrils as we continued our trek to a small hallway. Here, I’m led to a wooden office door. The male in the front knocks on the door and no one responds.

I almost sigh exasperatedly until a faint “come in.” sounds from the opposite side of the door. Once inside, the interior opens to an elongated room. I school my face to a cold indifferent expression as muffled cries echo off of the white brick walls. A couple covered with dirt and grime are locked in a small cage. There’s a man standing over a bleeding woman with a bloodied serrated knife in hand. He’s a tall and broad shouldered brute with a mask made eerily like skin over his face.

I shiver internally at the visual that will be stuck with me for ages. Sirus Smith, a known sadistic and violent psychopath who enjoyed the pleasure of exploring bodies of species before disposing of them. Their cries excite him... in other ways. Even Hunters quake at the prospect of pursuing him.

“And how may I be of service, young wolf?” Sirus asks, his baritone voice barely audible over the whimpering female in the chair.

“I have a pest that I need to be rid of.” I throw out various photos of said pest.

He takes the photos in his hands, and they light up with interest. My stomach clenches, but I keep a straight face.

“Who is she to you? Not that I care, but I would like to know... Why send her to fate worse than death? Why not hire an assassin?”

“I’m calling in a favor owed. You know which one.”

His head snaps up. “Like calls to like, I see.”

“Are you able to do it or not?”

He gives a dark chortle. “Yes, yes young wolf. I’ll do it.”

“Make it quick and painless. She isn’t to be another...trophy.” I growled.

Sirus stalks slowly towards me, the serrated blade running against the wall. “I’ll take care of this little problem of yours, we can seal it with a blood oath.”

Sure, whatever. I need this situation handled before the Winter Solstice.”

*****************************************************

Valeri

After the little fiasco, life at SU was rather tense. Pods, including my own, were sent out to investigate the disappearing wolf packs. What’s worse was that fellow students were missing...hybrids specifically. No one seemed to notice or care. My heart wrenched for them as if they were my children. My soul cries out to the parents who have to wake everyday and ask the question “why?” “Why did it have to be my child?” “What could I have done to prevent this from happening?”

Sadly no one can foresee darkness. And that’s when it dawns on me, there’s a darkness going about that everyone seems oblivious too. There’s something bigger occurring than just the kidnappings. But what? So I decided to look deeper into the history of Edonia.

I already knew that the Apocalyptic War happened in 2015. But what took place before that? Nerissa became tightlipped when asking her.

I found the library after asking a few reluctant students. It’s dark cherry oak doors open quietly under my hands. My mouth drops in wonder. Double-height sleek wooden bookshelves reach a high vaulted ceiling. Rows of smaller bookshelves line the center of the library with ligneous study tables and lounging areas in between the bookshelves.

“Can I help ye?” an old, croaky voice asked.

A woman of undefinable age comes up to my left side. She was short in stature with a subtle stooped posture. Her graying hair was frazzled and every wrinkle held a story of it’s own.

“Are ye deaf?” she asks again. Her voice held a slight lilting brogue.

“No, I don’t need any help. But thanks.” I responded.

She wanders off rambling on about how rude each generation seems to get. I walk through the bookshelves aimlessly, not really knowing where to start. I close my eye and sigh. I have a sudden urge to remove my eyepatch. I turned around to see if anyone was close by, and it was oddly quiet. I take another deep breath before taking off the eyepatch. I close my normal eye as I do. Suddenly, my vision is immersed with darkness and light. A Kaleidoscope of color streams through my field of sight like dancing rainbows. The books seem to come alive, and I gasp with wonder.

A rivulet of snow white light dashes across the enormous library towards me. It draws me towards the topmost shelf at the back of the library. The illumination of the book blinds me temporarily before I put my eyepatch back on. I reach for the rather thick book and gasp in admiration. It felt warm under my fingertips. It was a dark emerald green in color and the title read “The mysteries of Aetheia” in scripted longhand.

I quickly climbed down the ladder in excitement. I felt like I was finally getting somewhere.

The elderly woman appeared before me. “Ye hav’ to check that out here, youngin’.”

I leap back a little at her sudden appearance. “Do you always scare students like that?!”

Her eyes alight with mischief, but she says nothing while heading to the check-out area near the front entrance.

" “The Mysteries of Aetheia” eh? Now why does a land of desolation and sorrow sparks the interest of a vampire? Mhmm?” she asks quizzically, but with slight humor.

“Curiosity.” I say simply.

The librarian opens the cover of the book and stamps the due date on the inside. She then hands the large book to me. I grab it, but she doesn’t let go. I look up and her sea blue eyes seep into my soul.

“Ye feel it too, don’t ye? That cold abyss seeping deep in ye bones.”

“I do... What is it?”

“I’m afraid ye will find out soon. But ye must be strong to withhold the storm, young warrior.”

I head towards the Keep. My pod has been rather terse with one another, so I avoid everyone like the plague. I’ve only conversated with Stanley, and there’s a weird air about him. Don’t get me wrong, I love basking in the way he treats me like a queen, but it’s like he’s trying to distract me from something. Or rather, prevent me from seeing him. I know there are those who find satisfaction in pleasing others, but he... was different. I want to investigate that further, but at the moment my main focus is on the past.

Stanley stands at the end of my bed awaiting my arrival. That’s all he ever does...is await my every command. I’ve become rather short with every demand I make of him.

I don’t remove my necklace, avoiding his monotonous voice. “No need to wait for me, you are free to leave my room.”

His eyes are questioning, not quite believing me.

I sigh heavily and hold the door wide open for him. I didn’t want to be disturbed. “You may leave. Sleep on the couch. You know where the food is.”

Stanley nods his head once before leaving. I close the door behind him and take a quick shower. Afterwards, I lay comfortably against the silk sheets and caress the gigantic book curiously. It’s warped edges show a history of water damage, but the golden etchings entrance me further.

I peel off the eyepatch to watch the book through the Eye of Ayla. The book thrummed with otherworldliness. I open it slowly and the pages crinkle under my hands. I’m overwhelmed with the blinding radiance of the page that I have to put my eyepatch back on. The pages yellowed with age and the passage was titled “Aetheral Dimensions” and the passage began like this:

Have you ever wondered why the magician is able to pull a bunny rabbit out of a hat? Or how suddenly, they are able to bring flowers out of thin air? It is because they have mastered the meaning behind Aetheral Dimensions.

Picture a vast void. Now fill this void with your worldly possessions if you must. Imagine a lock that only you may access and secure. In simple terms, this is what an Aetheral Dimension is, a safe place to store the most sacred possessions.

But in the long term, Aetheral Dimension is just that. An area that one can access if they possess an ounce of magic in their bloodstream. There are multiple dimensions throughout the globe. Many of which have yet to be discovered by man and worlds within have been created by the Fae.

I glanced over to the brown leather drawstring bag and my mind began to process what I read. The bag did have a vastness to it when I put my hand in it. But how do I summon items from within?

I skimmed over the next few pages until I found another passage regarding how to summon what you need.

Now that you have mastered the art of Aetheral Dimensions, you are ready to learn how to summon your items from within. Clear your mind of all distractions. Picture the item that you desire to have in your hand at this time. Now call out to it and it should appear in the palm of your hand.

That seems easy enough. I climb out of bed to get the bag. I feel the abysmal depths and try to summon a weapon. Something jumps into my hand and I yelp in fright.

I release the bag from my grasp and gasp in shock as I hold a rather large golden pistol. The grip was black in color with a rough texture. I reach for the barrel of the gun and groan in pain. I pulled my hand away and it smoked slightly. I felt woozy suddenly. Like a force consumed the vitality from within.

It seems I’m allergic to gold. Go fucking figure.

I put my hand back into the bag and tried to summon any information I could gain. Something small is placed in the palm of my hand. I pull my hand out and see a wallet.

I’m giddy with excitement as I open it. A few thick credit cards stick out, but a clear one catches my eye. It was smooth and cool to the touch. A small button sticks out towards the bottom and I click it. A holographic image appears and my eye bulges when it shows a rather large number with a tiny italicized “V” at the front.

I see an old ID with a picture that looks oddly like me, but with two eyes. It read:

KENTUCKY DRIVER’S LICENSE

DLN: K161-345-719 EXP: 04/20/2022 ISSUED: 02/04/2015

NAME: HELENA TAFARI DOB: 3/27/1997

ADDRESS: 100 MAIN STREET, HENSONVILLE, KY 42433

SEX: F EYES: BROWN HEIGHT: 5′3"

My eye widened in shock. Not only was I old as shit, but I was around when the Apocalyptic War took place?

A/N:Happy New Years! I want to thank each and every one of you for reading the first installment of the Edonia series! It means so much to me <3

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