The Ragnix Circle

“What happened?” my mum asked me. We were seated in my parents’ room. The late evening sun rays were gloriously streaming through the open roof to floor windows. Ben had just taken Ash to another room after my mum had used some sort of restoration spell on her. I had walked in, Ash in my arms and drew no questions from my mum. All she did was bring us all here, help Ash as best she could before sending for Ben. I stood with my back to her, facing the setting sun. The time of the old world is setting for good.

“Tyler,” my mum said insistently. “What happened?”

“They tried to use blood magic on Ash mum,” I replied. “I killed Mrs. Ming.”

“You did what?” My mum could not help the shock that crept into her voice.

“She would have killed Gina and Ash, before dealing with me.”

“You did all this in the presence of the other council members.”

“Yes.”

“You are not safe here Tyler,” she said quickly getting up. “The time has come for you to know some truths.”

“This is the safest place mum.”

“No,” my mum snapped. “They will come here once they regroup and trust me, they will not want to talk. The safest place for you and Ash to be is as far away from here as possible.”

I did not understand what she meant by that. “Mum…”

“You have time to rest and then you must go alright, Ben shall accompany you and Miss Naira.”

“Why?”

“The Ragnix council will kill me as they did your father Tyler,” my mum said. “It is what they do to any threat and right now, I’m a bigger threat.”

“They killed dad?”

“Yes I know it and felt it deep in my bones.”

I could not believe my ears. I was torn in two. I wanted to protect Ash, but also stay with my mum. I could not do both things. There was no way for me to even try and do it. My mum gave me a long hug stroking my hair, just like she used to do when I was much younger and had some nightmarish dream.

“We both know that this day had to come Tyler.” Somehow, I believed her. I felt somewhere deep in my heart that this day was actually long in waiting.

“I guess we did.”

“There’s something else Tyler,” she said suddenly drawing away from me. She moved back to her bedside table and opened one of the drawers. She came back holding something within her clenched fists. “This is yours Tyler.”

She opened her fist revealing the finest ring my eyes had ever seen. The smooth and shiny round band with thinly encrusted diamonds of the deepest green shone in the light. I looked at it more closely and nearly jumped back as I saw the pattern of a dragon resting its mighty head on its front legs, mouth open and the eyes shining greener than the other diamonds. The diamonds round the band actually looked like dragon horns.

“What is it?” I asked.

“The blood of Merlin.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Every family has an heirloom,” my mum said. “The Aperdian family was usually headed by a witch that is why my ear rings are the heirlooms.” She pushed her hair behind her ears and the sun rays glistened off the red and black diamonds in her ears. “All mages, wizards, witches and simple magicians, who belong to a certain bloodline, return the power to the bloodline through the heirloom. When the family head wears the heirloom, it is like he has the power of millions with his own. Since you are the last of the line of the great Merlin, all the power of any with a tie to that family who are dead, is yours.”

“No way.”

“It is,” she pulled my little finger and placed the ring on it. I felt the cold band adjust itself to make a perfect fit. “It will only get off at the right time.”

As soon as the ring matched my finger perfectly, I felt power. Power I had never before felt in my entire life. It was like looking through the ages and lives of a thousand people at once. Spells, incantations and tricks all stamped themselves on my mind. I could feel it growing in me and settling like never before. All my fear seemed to become greater but just like it grew, so did the determination and daring. All the power of mages and witches past comforted me as I realized what I had to do. I thought accepting the power in me was new, but this was totally something different.

“It is a rush feeling, isn’t it?” I nodded. “You’ll need it Tyler.”

“I can destroy the council,” I said.

“Don’t be stupid and immature Ty,” my mum said harshly. “Even though the magic of Merlin is complete and the darkness of Aperdian governs you inside, you can’t fight eight pure bloods alone. You will need help and that brings me to my other choice.”

“What choice?”

My mum did not bother answering me with words. She just removed her ear rings from her ears and placed them in my hands. “Teach her to use magic. Find a way Tyler and maybe when she can try, the Aperdian line shall help her.”

“Do you mean Ashlan mum?”

“Yes.”

“She’s a pleb, there’s no way that she can actually have magic in her.”

“There was a time magic was for everyone, even the plebs Tyler,” my retorted. “They might have lost that part of themselves, but I believe and so did your father that there is a small trace of it left in them.”

“But she won’t accept!”

“You won’t know until you ask her.”

“I know her mum,” I sighed. “Magic is the very thing that she hates and to learn it, will destroy her.”

“It won’t Ty,” my mum pleaded. “Unless you find others who can help you, there is no way for you to fight the council. Your father and I have known that for a very long time now. Promise me you’ll try and teach her Tyler.” I hesitated in answering scared at what my heart was telling me. “Promise me Tyler.”

“I will try.”

“Go rest, you have barely a few more before they come here.”

“Benjamin,” Emily Bennett stood with her back to the old pleb. He had served them so loyally and she had one final task for him. They were in the kitchen. She was looking out the window at the vast green fields glazed in the dim silver rays of the moon. Ben was putting away some of the china that had been brought out for the evening cup of tea.

“Yes ma’am.”

“I want you to go with them,” she said. “The girl is barely able to walk or even awake for that matter. You must guide him in the task he will give himself and her.”

“What task might that be Mrs. Michaels?”

“To restore the old world.”

“Is he ready?”

“No Ben,” she turned to look at him. “That is why you must go with them. Sam would have wanted it that way. I would want it that way.”

“That means Mr. Damian is coming.”

“Yes.”

“I should stay and help you fight.”

“No,” Emily had had enough fights today. She dint want another one. “He is the last of two blood lines. He needs to stay alive and the only way he can do that, is if you are with them. That pleb girl will help but I doubt she will continue to fight her true feelings.”

“Its master Tyler I would be worried about,” Ben said as he placed the last of the china away. “He’s the one with your blood and master Samuel’s in him.”

“Will you go?” Emily asked.

“I will protect him,” he said. “Your families treated me with more respect than I deserved ma’am, this is the least I can do.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes ma’am.”

“One more thing,” Emily looked deep into his ancient and wise eyes. “Make sure they know the entire truth.”

“I will.”

Emily left the butler in the kitchen, saddened at the fact that this might as well be her last night. At least I’m going to see you all again. The sadness she had felt, the moment she felt Sam die had begun to take its toll. She needed her strength to face some of her old friends long enough for Tyler to get out.

She walked all the way up to Tyler’s room and watched him sleep. He looked so much like his father and that saddened her even further. Would her son be strong enough? Would he be like his father and grandfather before him? Standing up to others that misused the great power they had. She could only hope. But then again, there was the enigma called Ashlan Naira. Would she be the anchor Tyler needed in his darkest flood? All I have is hope.

It was soon time for Tyler, Ashlan and Ben to leave the house so that she could wait for Damien. She helped Ben carry a limp and quickly recovering Ashlan into the back of the five sitter Rover that she had had Sam purchase a few months ago. The black vehicle looked inconspicuous to anyone who would be bothered to look. The most they would think was that it belonged to some broke low end magic user.

Emily walked to her son and gave him a long motherly embrace as he was about to enter the passenger side of the car. “I love you my son, remember that always.”

“I will mum.”

Emily kissed him on the forehead and ushered him into the car. “Look after them Ben.”

“I will ma’am,” the butler smiled. “Give them hell.”

Emily stayed in the same spot watching the black Rover disappear down the street. She had stayed there even when the car had long disappeared waiting and pondering. She sensed them coming just like an eagle feels the change in the winds. Emily went inside to prepare a ripe warm welcome for the council.

She headed towards the large sitting room and chose the most comfortable of chairs to sit in. The plain caramel walls helped calm her nerves. She heard the sound of rubber on gravel and anticipated the obvious end for her. She had given away the ear rings of the Aperdians. It was the right time.

Damian was the first to walk in, followed by Thendel, Vladimir and Kendra. Yusuf and Craig followed next with the three women; Amber, Taylor and Aisha. Tyler did kill Monica then. They all sat down in the sofas and armchairs and looked at Emily.

“We thought you were dead Em,” Damian said.

“It was a miracle I survived.”

“Along with the baby, indeed a miracle,” Damian giggled.

“Tyler is gone and he will do what Sam and I failed to do.”

“Which may be what?”

“Restore the true order of things.”

“He killed Monica Emily,” Aisha said. Her large blue eyes sparkled with malice.

You killed Sam. “To protect one he cares about.”

“Such a waste.” Damian clapped his hands together. “Aperdian and Merlin blood in him. It would have been better in someone else and not a pleb loving mongrel.”

“That mongrel is my son.”

“We shall kill him and send him to join both you and Sam.”

It was time.

“Stop here Ben.” I wanted to look at the house one last time. We were so far away from it now, heading towards one of the poorer districts of the capital. The glass road we were on was a few kilometers away from my father’s house, but the one advantage it had was that it was on a higher level. I could see the house from here. I had seen it a million and one times since I had moved here almost a year ago.

Ben accepted and stopped the car. I tumbled out to view the house. My thumb rubbed the ring on my right little finger bringing a hollow smile to my face. I knew no cars would come this way at this hour of the night. I took a deep breath and projected my eyes towards the house to see it more clearly. I don’t know where it all came from but I just knew it could work.

As my focus cleared, the house became more visible. It was at that moment I saw them all walk out. The remaining members of the Ragnix council. They all had wide smiles on their faces. Damian turned back to the house and looked at it curiously. With a small twitch of his finger a white flame engulfed the house.

“No!”

“Come on Master Tyler,” Ben was at my side. I shoved him off and fell to my knees as I continued to watch the white flame engulf and destroy the one place in Nodrid I could call home. All the knowledge and history stored in that house was being destroyed and so was the last evidence of my mother’s dead body. I knew that they had killed her but to burn the house up was evil.

I clenched my fists knowing what I had to do. It has to start with me. I felt a lighter and gentler touch on my shoulder.

“Come on lets go,” Ash’s voice was still weak. I knew she could see the fire. It was visible even without magic now.

“I will have my revenge.”

“What are you going to do on your knees?”

I got up and looked her in the eye. I could see some of the old Ash returning but something had been injured or changed when Monica had tried killing her with blood magic. “Start a rebellion Ash, that is what we are going to do. Start a rebellion against Ragnix.”

……………………………………………To Be Continued………………………………………..