The Rise of Lunar's Light (The Story Before Mateless)

Timothy’s Pov:

I kept my eyes glued to Thyst as she left, with Joseph and Madeline in tow. Frustrated with recent events, I stared at the last remnants of her blood sinking into my skin. “You outlawed this magic, mother,” I snapped. “You are right, I did. It’s not just her blood that she used, but mine as well, so don’t worry about your beloved. Her soul will remain safe,” she whispered. Instantly, the air in the room took on a chill.

“Even you can’t control choice,” I growled. Mother turned and glanced out the windows as the last of the day’s light faded into the calm of twilight. “You are right. I can’t control the choices that she makes, but I know her heart and I know her soul. You must forgive her the things she feels she needs to do. Even you would defy us if it meant keeping Amethyst safe. Why should she not do the same with both you and Joseph?” Mother asked me with a victorious grin plastered across her face.

Together, we sat in silence for a long time. “There is far more going on than what meets the eyes. Timothy, please forgive what is about to happen,” she finally spoke before fading from the room. Her words made my hair stand on end.

“Thyst?” I linked. My worry grew as I received nothing. “Thyst?” I tried again. “What?” she growled back. “I was having a wonderful dream,” she grumbled, annoyed I woke her. “Just worried, that’s all. Sorry that I woke you,” I replied, becoming more at ease.

Suddenly, the ground shook, and the air filled with the foul stench of rotting flesh. Loud and menacing shrieks haunted the cool night air. Quickly, I stripped down in order to shift. Amethyst’s suspicions were correct. They brought the nest and were looking for a fight. My eyes were on the door, waiting for the beasts to force their way in.

Without warning, the window shattered behind me as two of the beasts forced their way in, only to be incinerated by Amethyst’s trap. Cries of shock rang out from the witches behind them, unsure of what it was they walked into.

The runes from the window glowed purple in their shattered state. To my surprise, the eyes of countless witches glazed over the same hue as they walked in, as if something enchanted them. In the air, the sweet and heavenly scent of Amethyst lingered, enticing more of the nest to flood in through the broken window.

I peered around the room. Nearly two dozen of the slimy beasts filtered in. As the beasts reached the rune placed on the floor, it began to hum and spin, giving off a slight purplish hue. Amethyst’s blood rune on my hand forced me to shift to my human form.

Unable to control the rune, it raised my hand over the one on the floor, entrancing the beasts. The humming grew as the rune on the floor spun faster. The blood rune regained its shape, and Amethyst’s white hair glowed silver around my wrist.

One witch’s eyes returned to their dull greyish glaze just as the rune halted abruptly. Both of us, startled by this, peered down at the rune on the floor. Just as the haze turned into a purple blaze, which incinerated all in its path. The heat which radiated from it made it impossible to breathe. Now I understood. Amethyst created the blood rune so I could withstand the Goddesses’ moon fire.

“Timothy, have you heard from Amethyst? I checked your room. She’s gone.”

Amethyst’s Pov:

“Thyst?” Timothy’s voice pulled me from a deep sleep. “Thyst?” he repeated, a little more urgently. Sensing his worry, I glanced over at Joseph, who was comfortably fast asleep. “Must be nice,” I muttered.

“What? I was having a wonderful dream,” I snapped with more force than I intended. “Just worried, that’s all. Sorry that I woke you,” he replied. The hurt in Timothy’s voice made me feel guilty.

The mate bond was driving me closer to Joseph every moment we spent together, while Timothy was stuck with his affection for me. Joseph stirred before I could apologize. Perhaps it was the Goddesses way to remind me I needed to remember I have a mate.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as the putrid stench of the foul witches permeated throughout the halls. I glanced over at my sleeping mate. They were here for us. “Wake him, Amethyst,” the Woman’s aura dominated the room. “If they sense me, they will assume it’s Timothy and not you. Worry not. They cannot hear what is being spoken in this room,” she explained.

“Joseph,” I whispered. The last thing I wanted to do was to alarm him. His beautiful icy blue eyes greeted me, still clouded by sleep. “What’s wrong, my love?” he asked, seeing the distress on my face. “They are here, and it seems as if they may have brought the entire nest,” I explained. “No time to waste. Take my hand and I will take you where you need to be. Hurry,” the Woman commanded.

Joseph jumped up, taking my hand, allowing our sparks to calm the fear he harbored. Together we walked to the Goddess, and I took her outstretched hand. Without so much as a flash of light, we found ourselves in dense brush, which neither of us recognized. “Your time with us, Amethyst, must end for the time being. As much as I understand, Timothy will not be happy with this decision. This is a road you and Joseph must walk alone. You are close to a village, travel north at first light and you will find it. For now, take rest. As you are safe. As long as you refrain from using magic too often, those that hunt you will not find you,” the Woman explained.

Before our eyes, a small cabin took shape from behind a veil of trees the Woman pointed to us. As we entered the cabin, the welcoming warmth of the hearth greeted us. The flames had a tinge of purple, giving the entire cabin a hint of home. “You don’t think someone lives here, do you?” Joseph asked, breaking the silence of the room.

“No, this is for us from the Goddesses. It’s their flames which light the fire to keep us warm. Come, we don’t have long before first light crests the sky.” I motioned for him to follow me as I lay down on the bed.

It felt as if it was only moments since I closed my eyes when the warmth of the morning sun kissed my cheek, stirring me from a peaceful sleep. I glanced around, allowing my eyes to take in the world. We were no longer in the cozy cabin, but back in the lush forest. I looked at the foliage that enveloped us; it hid us so well.

Next to where we slept, the Goddesses provided us with a meal. It consisted of fresh fruits and still warm bread; the steam still rose from the basket in the cool dawn air. “Joseph, time to wake up, the morning sun has risen,” I whispered, leaving a kiss on his cheek to wake him. “So, it has, as beautiful as it is, it’s nothing compared to you,” he smiled. I blushed at his words as I handed him our breakfast.

With the dew still fresh on the ground, we made our way north to the village. Even though we were unsure of what it was, we would find. Joseph was quiet for most of the journey. He learned to cut off his mind from mine, which wouldn’t be such a bad thing if he wasn’t so nervous. I tried to suppress the emotions he was currently feeling as they only added to my own, and those were hard enough to deal with.

We walked for most of the day, looking for the small town. My mind frequently drifted back to Timothy and Madeline. While the Goddesses would ensure their safety. Still, I could not shake my curiosity about this new God these beasts currently worshiped. Would the Goddesses still be able to defend not only Madeline and Timothy but themselves as well?

“You worry too much Thyst, once he was a formable threat, one to be feared, but my father weakened the monster before locking it away. For thousands of years, he was cast away, to be forgotten. Now, with the centuries which passed, he is nothing more than a parasite feeding off the sick and dying. While he has given them an unnatural life, you have seen firsthand the rot which soon affects them. It is that rot which will also keep him weak. Their souls are too stained to sustain his lust for power,” the Girl explained, springing up as the town we were searching for revealed itself.

“Not all those who left the coven took the dark path. Those who have not, still have yet to take another God or Goddess. Their prayers still reach our ears, and we still honor them. Their path was not our path any longer,” she explained, before vanishing once more.

The closer we made it to the quaint town, the more I noticed a magical veil which hid it. The rich aroma of potent magic danced in the air. As we approached, it was quite clear it was a blood veil. Only the blood of those who belonged there would open it.

“What kind of magic is this?” Joseph asked. Somehow, he saw the veil. Normally, this would be impossible for most to see without some sort of invite. The only reason I could see it was because the Goddesses revealed it to me.

“It’s called a blood veil. Only those who belong here can enter. Their blood will open the veil and allow them through,” I explained. He stared at me; confusion washed over his face. “Why would the Goddesses send us here if we could not cross?” he asked. Clearly, he did not understand the implications of his ability to see not only the town but the veil as well.

All we needed was something, anything to pierce skin, to draw blood. Finally, my eyes caught sight of a piece of jagged flint stone. While it will not make a pretty cut, it should draw enough blood to allow us to pass. “Joseph,” I breathed. Every fiber of my being praying my assumptions are correct.

“Your hand please,” I demanded. He obliged, giving me his hand. Without informing him of my plan, I took the stone and sliced a deep gash into his palm. “What in the name of the Goddesses, Amethyst?” he yelped in pain.

“Uhm, paying the blood toll,” I shrugged. Once a small pool formed in his hand, I wiped his blood over mine before his wound could fully heal. As I forced our hands on to the veil, a loud crackling erupted from the veil itself. A small slit formed just wide enough for us to walk through. I shoved my very confused mate through the opening before it sealed.

“I, I don’t understand. How did you know?” he asked. “Easy, you could see the veil,” I shrugged. My explanation only seemed to deepen his confusion. Murmurs erupted from all around. While we may have fooled their veil, the occupants, however, noticed our presence. Almost instantly, the towns’ people flooded the streets confused by our arrival. They whispered among themselves, almost as if they were afraid of us.

“I am Amethyst, High priestess of the Temple of the Moon. I am looking for a woman, she would be a new arrival, and her daughter.”