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8|Trance

Author: Val Sims
last update Last Updated: 2022-05-10 21:56:44

Cadence was nodding off to sleep in her room when she felt the slight tremor, followed by a deafening bang in the living room. She leapt out of bed and grabbed her witch's broom just inside the door in case trouble was waiting for her on the other side, and reluctantly made her way to the source of the noise.

It was pitch dark, since all the lights in the house were out, and she could barely see a thing. So she fumbled along the wall for a few anxiety-inducing seconds, as she frantically ran her hand along the wall, blindly searching for the light switch, cursing when she tripped and almost fell over something soft.

After a few tries, Cadence finally flipped the switch, flooding the living room with brilliant light. She burst into tears when she saw her mom on the floor.

"Mom, what happened?" she asked as she picked her up from the floor and helped her onto the sofa. 

"I had to teleport from the hill. They were after me, Cade. They wanted my piece of the star!" Sonja rambled incoherently.

"You're not making any sense. Who's after you? What piece of the star?"

Before she could reply, Sonja's eyes rolled back in her head, her body convulsing as she slipped into a trance, and she began chanting, switching between ancient languages.

Throughout her babble, Cadence picked up some lines in English, but none of it made any sense.

As much as she hated leaving her mom alone in her state, she had to. So, she dashed to the altar room and gathered up the reagents she'd need for the spell to break her mom's trance. But she was sleeping soundly on the couch when Cadence returned moments later with the reagents. She placed the ceramic bowl on the floor and knelt in front of her mom, wondering if she should take her to a hospital or call a doctor. But what would she say? Where would she start about teleporting and the rest of the weird stuff in her life?

Cadence sighed as she draped a throw blanket over her mom's sleeping form. She sat there awhile and watched her sleep, silently praying she hadn't suffered some head trauma when she landed. When she was sure her mom was out for the night, Cadence headed back to her room and took out her journal. She had to jot down the stuff her mom had said in her trance and see if it made sense. She couldn't remember everything, and most of it was in an ancient language, but she'd caught a few lines in English.

"They live among us

Walk-in our dreams

And see right through

Our deepest desires

They hear our thoughts.

And prey on our fears

Their soft voices

Echo in our minds

with promises of forever

Darkness falls

They heed the call of thirst

The night belongs to them

Eyes burn red with hunger

It's our blood they crave

and it's our bloodline 

They wish to enslave

When the birth of a new day

Peaks over the horizon

And our shadows rise to meet them

They retreat to their sanctums 

And seek solace in dark places

In the sun, we find comfort

In the light, they disappear

They are The Forsaken..."

Cadence said the words out loud over and over, trying to make sense of them. After a while, though, she stopped trying. She rushed to the altar room and leafed through her grimoire, looking for any creatures or beings known as the forsaken. She wasn't really surprised when she came up empty. She'd gone through her grimoire back to back a million times in the past. She would have known if there was such a creature.

When Cadence finally put her grimoire down, it was 3:00 AM, the witching hour. She was exhausted, her eyes were heavy with sleep, and she wanted to hit the covers ASAP, but she darted to the living room to check on her mom again, shaking with relief when she found her still fast asleep on the couch, with her arms crossed on her chest in a prayer-like pose. Cadence kissed her cheek, tucked her in again, and returned to her room. As tired as she was, though, she couldn't sleep. Her mom's words kept her awake and got her thinking.

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  • The Forsaken   62|A New Dance

    Luca reached up and caressed her cheek.Cadence closed her eyes, wishing he wouldn't, but at the same time, she didn't want him to stop. He was her own little pill, her addiction, one she knew was bad for her, but couldn't give up or refuse all the same."Luca," she whispered as he pressed her body close to his.They didn't say anything for some time as they stood there, revelling in their heated embrace.Soon, though, just having Cadence in his arms was no longer enough for Luca. He had to have to her. So he picked her up and placed her on the altar bed.It was cold and hard, but Cadence didn't notice. All she was aware of was the heat between them as he covered her body with his.Their kissing was tentative at first, but grew more heated and urgent as he greedily pried her mouth open, demanding more of her while removing their clothes, stripping them of everything standing between their desires.Cadence was stunned by how easy it was to put aside all her uncertainties and give in to

  • The Forsaken   61|Things Changed

    Long after she'd called Sonja and asked to hitch a ride with them to Bridgetown, Cadence was still in her room, sobbing in her hands, crying over the Origami swan Luca had left for her on her desk at some point during the day.Like that first time, his message was short and to the point. 'We need to talk'."Oh, Luca!" Cadence thought sadly. He'd picked a hell of a time to want to talk. She honestly didn't see how talking would change anything. Her father was right. She had to go to Bridgetown for Emme, if not for herself. She had to honour her mentor's memory. And she knew in her heart that Luca would never leave his brother, especially when he missed twenty years with him."It wouldn't have worked out anyway. Long-distance relationships hardly ever work out," Cadence consoled herself as she got up from the bed and wiped away her tears. She stuffed her music box in her backpack and took one final wistful look at her room before she headed out. She was going to miss her home and Shado

  • The Forsaken   60|Out Of Love

    Warwick took small sips from his mug as he stared at Sonja. He knew his unwavering gaze was unsettling for her. But for the life of him, he couldn't look away."You are staring," Sonja admonished quietly, unable to take his scrutiny any longer."I'm sorry." Warwick smiled, showing his fangs briefly as he crossed the room and took her hands. He turned them over and kissed her palms like he used to back then, before that night all those years ago. His simple gesture reminded Sonja of how much she'd missed out on. All the little things she'd forced herself not to think about until now made her want to cry."How is it possible? You haven't aged a day," he murmured as he brushed a loose strand of hair from her face. "It's like time stopped the day I left, and now it's picking up right where we left off."Sonja wept harder at his words. They were absurd. As much as she loved her daughter and didn't regret a single moment with her, Cadence's existence was a painful reminder of how much time

  • The Forsaken   59|Your Dream

    Luca hated to break up the reunion party, but the newly freed vampires had to feed and get ready to clear out of Shadowbrooke. So while everyone prepared for their departure, Cadence and her father went to the crypt to talk.Cadence sat on the altar bed, and he joined her and took her hand."You did nothing wrong, Cadence.""I locked you away." Cadence shook her head. She knew he was trying to make her feel better. But nothing would change the fact that her blood had sealed him in and robbed him of twenty years of his life he would never get back."And your blood has freed me now," Warwick reminded her.Cadence gave him an incredulous look. "You read my thoughts?""I can, but I didn't have to. I can see it in your eyes, the guilt you feel. It's time you forgave yourself."Cadence didn't say anything after this. There was so much she wanted to say to him, though, but she barely knew him, barely knew what he liked and didn't like."There'll be plenty of time for that," Warwick smiled and

  • The Forsaken   58|Freed

    The anxiety in the cellar had mounted to an unbearable point. It was so intense that Luca could almost taste it in his throat. He swallowed hard, unable to believe that in just under an hour, it would all be over. All the years of tireless searching for the star and hoping for a miracle had finally come to this moment.April tugged at his arm and led him to the corner of the room, away from the ritual space.Rudolf, now awake, looked subdued as he sat on the cot with his back pressed against the wall and silently watched the excitement in the centre of the room."Do you think it will work?" April asked, her voice barely audible. But Luca had heard her. He gave her a sidelong look to reassure her. "Of course, it will!"April tried to smile. But her eyes clouded up with tears as she played with her hair.Luca pulled her close and asked, "what's wrong?""I am terrified." April bawled on his chest. Her sniffling drew the attention of the witches, and they stared at them for a bit before r

  • The Forsaken   57|Closure

    They all took Emme's death hard, but none of them had the luxury to grieve. They still had a lot more to do. And Sonja gave them just the distraction they needed. She got everyone to work as soon as they returned to the manor.While the three younger witches prepared the cellar for the ritual, she went to her house to pack a few things and close off the place.She was surprised to find her sister and Romulus waiting for her."What do you want now?" she asked impatiently."That was a hell of a risk you took." Luann rose and stretched her limbs. Romulus also stood up and moved aside to let Sonja through.Sonja knew her sister was referring to Ethan, and she didn't want to get into it with her. "It worked. That's all that matters.""And we are grateful."Sonja was about to turn the key on the door. She stopped and looked at Luann, surprised to see something close to sincerity, or maybe remorse, in her eyes."So, what's the plan? You're going to open the door?" Luann asked."Nothing will

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