Part XVI: The Ceremony III

 

Lucian took a deep breath. His hands could feel the silky white cloak hanging from his shoulders. He stood at the back of the hall and in front of him was a walkway with a red and white carpet that ran down the center of the room. On either side of this walkway was a crowd. Lucian shot glances at either side. He could see his siblings and his friends, who all gave him supportive looks. While all the adults of the Great Houses stared at him coldly, their eyes obscured by their masks and top hats. Lucian had underestimated how eerie and unnerving the blank stares of those horned masks looked when they were worn. And now he was surrounded by them, which only made him more thankful of the fact that only the initiated got to wear them. So then at least, he had the true faces of his uninitiated friends to look upon for comfort.

He felt his mother’s hands slide down is arms as she straightened the cloak. She too wore a mask, but Lucian could tell she was smiling from beneath it. “Remember to be head strong, Lucian,” she whispered in a voice with a softness akin to the feeling given by newly weaved cotton. Lucian nodded but did not take his eyes off the walkway. Once she was finished she took a step back and walked away. Lucian then looked over to his father Henry and his uncle David, both of whom stood firmly behind the pedestal. Lucian took another deep breath and, with as much confident and self-conviction he could muster, took his first step onto the carpet.

For a moment, Lucian felt a rush as the world around him went silent. But once that moment had gone by, the world came rushing back and he felt…normal. He took his second step and felt no nervousness or doubt. It was as though he had finally accepted his fate. He walked the rest of the carpet with as a stern a posture as possible. And once he reached the foot of the pedestal he looked up and saw Henry looking down on him from behind the stone. The silence in the room was almost unnerving. Henry then took the dagger and chalice held it over Lucian's head.

“On this day!” he shouted loudly. “The 168th Day of the 634th year since the Flight. I, Henry Demon, Baron of Demonum hereby give you, Lucian Demon, Baronet of Demonum, the dagger with which you shall undertake our rite of passage, this Trial by Blood!”

He then lowered the hand which held the dagger and Lucian took it with both of his hands. He looked at the dagger for a moment, its golden hilt shone in the light that came from window behind Henry. He gulped and placed the edge of the blade on top of his palm.

“With the blood of the Old Folk do we light the Flame, to take us back to whence we came, with our joined souls of flame do we proclaim, that you, scion, are of our name,” the others began to chant. Lucian closed his eyes and braced as he pressured the knife-edge onto his skin.

“With the blood of the Old Folk do we light the Flame, to take us back to whence we came, with our joined souls of flame do we proclaim, that you, scion, are of our name,”

Then, with one swift motion. He slide the blade across his hand and let out a painful grunt as blood began to pouring out from the wound. He then let go of the dagger and let it fall to ground before using that hand to hold his bleeding one. Henry then held the chalice under the wound and watched as the blood came pouring down with Lucian breathing heavily and moaning in pain. Once the chalice was half-full, Henry took away the cup before gently holding Lucian wounded arm and placing it on the top of the pedestal. Lucian’s fingers were starting to become numb, but he knew what to do. He used whatever strength his finger had left and slowly drew the symbol of House Demon on the stone. Every moment stung with pain, but he fought it as much as he could.

Henry took chalice and held it above his head with both hands. He then concentrated and, within moments, the chalice erupted into bright blue fire. He then slowly brought the chalice down and held it in from of Lucian. He could hear the chanting getting louder yet more ominous. He took the chalice with his unwounded hand. Part of him still felt hesitant but now there was no turning back. He placed his lips on the cup, the fire touched his face but it did not burn him. He closed his eyes once more and with all his courage, he drank the blood.

Lucian had barely drunk a full sip when he suddenly felt as though something around him had change. Lucian opened his eyes. And the first thing he saw was that the chalice was no longer in his hand and that his hand was no longer bleeding. He looked around and saw that he was no longer standing in a room. He was outside. Tall and thick trees surrounded him. He touched the ground and all he felt was grass. He soon realized that he was alone, all the people who had been in the hall were now gone and what was left in their place was a silence that was only interrupted by the sound of chirping and humming.

“Where am I?” Lucian wondered. Was this what Lira had mentioned earlier? He was thoroughly confused yet on second glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was just a forest.

Then he saw something. He saw a light emanating from behind one of the trees. A blue light, bright and constant. He narrowed his eyes and he saw it…move? Lucian took one-step closer. He saw the light vanish and then appear behind a different tree. Lucian walked closer and closer until finally, he saw something peek its head out from the tree. Lucian saw that it had a body the glowed blue with eyes that were whiter than anything he had ever seen. The more he approached it, the more it revealed itself. Finally, when Lucian was only a few feet away from it the creature jumped out from behind the tree. It glided a few inches above the ground like piece of cloth swaying in the wind. Lucian took a step back but then tripped in a rock and fell to the ground. The creature came closer and closer.

As Lucian got a look at this strange being, he realized it looked…human. In shape, it’s head, limbs and body resembled that of any regular person, but it’s entire body looked like it was a made of fire, burning and flowing endlessly in spirals and currents. It had too especially bright patches on its cheeks and its hair shifted and swirled like a large candle.

It looked at Lucian with a confused and curious look. He looked at it the same way except with a hint of fear. It then slowly extended one of its hands towards him with its palm open. Lucian looked at the hand with wide eyes, his curiosity then overwhelmed as he almost instinctively held his own hand out. Both hands slowly approached each other and when they touched, Lucian was shocked to realize that the creature’s hand felt as soft as flower petals. He did not burn in the blue fire and his hand did not simply pass through the creature’s hand. To his amazement, the creature was as solid as he was despite its appearance.

The creature seemed as amazed as Lucian was, and he saw it smile cheerfully. Lucian himself grinned and closed eyes before looking down and sighing in relief. But once he opened his eyes again he realized something had changed. The hand he was touching was now rougher; Lucian looked up to see what had happened and what he saw made him freeze on the spot. For within the moment it took him to close and open his eyes, the creature had disappeared. And in its place was something different. Lucian stared at it with horror; it had a face with no mouth and two large black eyes, it had a top hat and branch-like horns with more points than he could count. It’s body was vast and undefined, and it’s arms were long with many joints, bending and contorting in ways Lucian never knew possible.

Lucian frantically shuffled as he tried to get as far away from the beast, which stood only a few inches away. He was too terrified to stand. The beast then grabbed his outstretched hand and Lucian shrieked as he felt its long needle-like fingers pierced his skin. The beast pulled his closer and examined his bleeding. Lucian was panicking, but no matter what he tried, the monster was too strong. He held his hand out and tried to use his power, but nothing happened. The monster pulled him to the point where Lucian’s face was mere inches away from the beast’s gaping abyssal eyes.

Then, to Lucian’s utter shock and terror, the beast spoke. At first, it was in a tongue that he could not understand but it soon shifted into one he could. “Blessed child,” it said in a voice that was deeper and more intimidating than the deepest pit. Lucian whimpered and breathed heavily. The monster then grabbed his other arm. Its fingers once again piercing the skin. Then, to his continued horror, a third arm appeared from within its body and it held out one of its fingers towards Lucian forehead.

“Fate waits, Blessed Unholy Child. Home awaits,” it said, Lucian did not understand what it meant. But as he sat there, helpless, trapped and in great pain, he felt the ground shift beneath him. He turned his head towards the ground and he saw it slowly crumbling from underneath his feet. The dirt and stone parted and shattered revealing and endless void beneath it. Strangely, the beast seemed confused by this. It too diverted its attention downwards. Lucian saw this and he felt its grip loosen. He saw an opportunity; he thought fast and took a deep breath. He then swiftly took his leg and reached for the beast’s face. He then gritted his teeth and, with all his might, kicked the beast’s head with his leg. The beast’s, whose attention had been elsewhere, was taken off guard. It was so surprised that it let go of Lucian before letting out a blood-curdling screech.

Lucian fell on the ground. But before he could get on his feet. The ground beneath him fell through and he went plummeting down into the abyss. The monster screamed and tried to grab him again, but it couldn’t reach him before he fell. Lucian briefly saw the monster jump in after him as he went barreling down a world made up of floating pieces of land; it looked almost exactly like the Mirror. Lucian’s consciousness began to fade as he fell. He closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was the monster getting closer and closer as he fell through endless void.

For a moment, the world went silent. Lucian then felt a sudden rush as his ears flooded with noise. He opened his eyes again, and the first thing he saw was the dim light that emanated from the large circular window. He found himself on his knees with his head looking up and his hands drooping down. The dagger and chalice lay on the ground with blood slowly seeping onto the carpet from the chalice. Lucian felt dazed and confused. His eyes were blurry but they slowly regained focus. He then felt a sharp coming from his hand, and when he looked at it, he saw that it was bleeding again. Lucian took a deep breath and gave out a heavy sigh as the dazed feeling slowly subsided.

As he regained his composure, it took him a few moments to realize that the hall had gone completely silent. He turned his head and stared at the people standing on either side of him. He could see them all standing still whilst staring at him intently. He read the faces of his friends and they all appeared… frightened. He Benjamin look at him with his mouth open with posture that looked as though he wanted to take a step back. Lucian looked over to his father, but even Henry looked at him with an undertone of fear.

Lucian then stood up; he took a deep breath and once again approached the pedestal. He saw that the symbol he had drawn on the stone had partially dried. That then sparked a glimmer of worry and confusion in his mind.

“How long did I have that nightmare?” he wondered to himself. He then placed his hand on the pedestal. By that point, he just wanted the ceremony to end. He closed his eyes and concentrated. The partially dried symbol then erupted into flames. And when he opened his eyes saw the wall behind his parents shift and move, revealing the Flame Gateway. Then, to everyone’s awe, the door opened in burst of light, revealing a reflection of the Mirror and its chaotic landscape.

All faces turned away from Lucian and towards the door, watching it with awe. Lucian saw David and Janice turn towards Henry before both of them nodded. Henry looked at both of them before turning around and facing Lucian. He then cleared his throat as Janice presented him with a mask and a top hat with a small golden branch stuck piercing its corner. He then held the mask over Lucian’s head as Lucian knelt down in front of him.

“Here, on this day, I, Baron Henry Demon of Demonum, declare you, Baronet Lucian Demon of Demonum, a true scion of the Moor and a true descendant of the Folk!” he shouted as he lowered the mask towards Lucian, who then took the mask slowly with both hands before putting it over his face. Yet he did not stand. Henry then took the hat and once again held it over his son’s head.

“And with that honor I now pronounce you a senior member of the House of Demon and a newly appointed statesman of Hatlynshire and the Circle!” he then lowered his hands and placed the top hat on Lucian’s head, who then stood up slowly and faced his father. He could see both Janice and David looking at him and, though he could not tell what David was feeling, he almost certainly knew his mother was beaming with pride. He then once again placed his hand on the pedestal. Lucian closed his eyes one more time and concentrated for a moment. And when he opened his eyes he saw the stone wall behind Henry shift once again, concealing the Flame Gateway as its light slowly faded.

Lucian stared directly at Henry and Henry stared directly at Lucian. Henry then extended his hand towards Lucian.

“I hereby welcome you into our hallowed ranks,” Lucian gave a nod and Henry nodded back. He then shook Henry’s hand. And with that, the ceremony concluded.

Lucian barely felt the next few minutes as they passed by. Slowly everyone in the hall walked out whilst Lucian’s mother directed him towards Mr. Venshire. When Lucian approached him he gestured for him to show his bleeding hand, which still pained perpetually. He then held Lucian hand with both of his, he then closed his eyes and Lucian saw his hand give off a blue glow. Within moments, the pain disappeared and when Mr. Venshire let go of him, he saw that the wound had completely healed as well. He thanked Mr. Venshire, took his mask into his hands and went to the hallway where he could hear shouting echoing through the walls.

“Now remember, we’ll be leaving in thirty minutes! So everyone go to your rooms and change!” he heard Mrs. Morning yell as he entered. He managed to catch a glimpse of his father Henry disappearing into the hallway leading to the stairs ahead of everyone else with half the adults including Mrs. Morrow, Mr. Hatly, Mr. Bernstein, Mr. Angelmore and Mr. Venshire following closely behind. Lucian barely had time to stand still when suddenly his mother appeared from behind him with Lily and the twins in hand.

“Why are you standing there? You heard Mrs. Morning!” she said as she nudged Lucian into the crowd. Lucian barely had time to stop as the crowd of people slowly pushed him up the stairs, slowly getting smaller with each story they climbed. He tried his best to stay close to his family. It was only when they got to the third floor that Janice pulled him and his siblings out of the crowd.

“Now Lucian and Lid can go to their rooms and get their coats. Lily, you can help your sister,” she said before gesturing them to go. Lucian walked down the hallway to his room, and as he did, Lily came up walking from behind him.

“Did you tell everyone?” he asked hastily.

“More or less, we told them all to come to Luin’s room on the fourth floor; hopefully they’re all smart enough to come up with believable reasons to remove themselves from the adults,”

Lucian gave Lily a nod before he reached his bedroom door. Inside his room, Lucian swiftly removed his cloak and placed it on the bed along with his mask and his top hat. He then reached for his coat which hung by the door. He then took the top hat off the bed and put it on his head. But as he was about to leave his room he heard a knock on the door, the door then swung open and Janice peeked her head out from the door frame.

“All prepared?” she asked. Lucian nodded, “Yes, all prepared, mother.” he said in a subdued tone whilst looking in the distance. Janice paused; she then frowned and entered the room. It was clear that she could see that Lucian’s mind was somewhere else. She titled her head as Lucian kept looking on into the distance.

“Is everything alright?” she asked softly. Lucian did not answer. Janice then sat on the bed directly in front of Lucian’s face. “You know, for moment we were all worried when you fell to the floor and didn’t get up. I must admit, it was quite terrifying and it was certainly not normal,”

Lucian raised his eyebrows out of intrigue. “What do you mean? Lira said it’s normal to see visions during the ceremony,”

“Oh it is,” said Janice quickly. “But it usually lasts no more than fifteen minutes. Lira lasted ten if my memory is correct,”

Lucian was starting to get concerned. “Well then, how long did I last?” he asked hesitantly. Janice then held his arm with both of hers before looking at him directly in the eyes. “Well dear, you knelt at the foot of the stone for more than half an hour,”

Lucian’s eyes widened, “Half an hour?” he thought to himself. Janice kept talking, “Hence why we’re in such a hurry. Your father came very close to shaking you until you woke up, but your uncle and Mr. Bernstein convinced him not to,”

Lucian took a step back. His mind came close to bursting as all his fears and insecurities used this revelation as fuel to rise once more.

“Half an hour?”

“Did the Morrows know it would last this long?”

“Did I jeopardize the future?”

Janice saw Lucian breath heavily. She stood up from the bed and approached him. “Is there something that’s’ troubling you?” but before Lucian could say a word she let out a small gasp as she realized the answer to her own question. “Is it about what the Morrows said?”

Lucian stayed silent, but even that silence was a confirmation to Janice. He looked off to her side, seemingly disappointed in herself. “Damn it, I should never have told you that. I should’ve known it would worry you,”

“It’s fine, mother,” Lucian reassured. “I promise I’m not scared,” he said confidently despite knowing that Janice could see right through him. For in truth, he was scared, he was worried. Janice the came closer and smiled at him kindly. “You know, I too was once scared of something that seemed insurmountable at the time. But I had someone with me to help me along,”

“Really?” asked Lucian curiously. “What did you find so insurmountable?”

“That does not matter,” Janice said swiftly. “But what does is that I might not have conquered my worries of it wasn’t for that person. And that day I learned to never face things alone,”

Lucian thought about it. The more he thought, the more he realized the truth in his mother’s words. He thought about everything that had happened in the past two days, how he had broken into his father’s safe. He remembered his confession, the arguments that followed and how they all made amends. He remembered dinner, when his friends stood up to vouch for him. Indeed, it was true, he did feel less worried and less sacred when he knew his friends were by his side.

“I understand, mother,” he said with a smile. Janice looked at him with pride. “I can see you have many people standing beside you. The Hatlys, the Bernsteins, Lily,”

Lucian scoffed upon hearing Lily’s name. “Oh please, mother. You know Lily would gladly trade me more a box of oranges without hesitation,” Janice chuckled. “I suppose you do have a point,”

They then embraced each other lightly. Lucian then heard a knock on the door, followed by someone muffled shouting. Lucian could tell immediately that it was Lily. “Well, speak of restless spirits and they shall come forth,” Lucian thought.

“That must be your sisters,” said Janice turning her head towards the door. She gently pushed Lucian aside in order to reach for it, but before she did, Lucian asked her one more question.

“Who was it?”

Janice turned around and blinked. “Who was what, dear?” Lucian took a deep breath. “Who was it that helped you?”

Janice’s face suddenly went dim. Like all the joy had simply vanished. Her smile wavered but stayed intact, yet her expression became somber. “Well…” she began before sighing. “Her name was Bea, and she was to me what Luin is to you,”

Lucian raised his eyebrow. “And…where is she now?” he asked rather hesitantly.

Janice’s face became gloomier. But she still kept her smile. “I wish you could’ve met her, dear. You all would’ve loved each other,”

Janice then swiftly turned around and headed to the door before Lucian could ask anything else. Janice opened the door and found Lily and Lucy standing on the other side with their coats and hats on. Lucy wore a boater hat with a few rose made of silk while Lily wore a simple brown cap.

“We’re ready,” Lily said with a feigned enthusiasm. “Good,” said Janice before turning to Lucian again. “The girls and I are going ahead whilst your father gets ready with Lidian; you should join them. Your father may have something to say to you,”

Lucian saw Lily raise her eyebrow at him. Lucian himself was confused and slightly nervous. He nodded at his mother. Janice then nodded back before she swiftly shoved Lily and Lucy into the hallway and disappeared. Lucian then waited for a few moments before he peeked his head out of the hallway to see whether they had left. Once he saw that they had, he straightened his collar and pressed his hat against the top of his head one more time before he stepped out onto the hallway and walked in the direction of the stairs. As he walked, he thought of ways he could get to the fourth floor without attracting Henry’s suspicion. He was also not very keen on hearing what Henry had to say to him. He hoped he could get to the stairs before his father and his brother came out yet unfortunately, before he could get to them. He saw the door closest to end of the hallway on his left side open. And from it walked out Henry with Lidian, who looked small compared to him, following closely behind.

“…and are we going to see the Moor too?” Lidian asked whilst grabbing the end of Henry’s coat. Henry sighed, it was clear that he was annoyed. He then looked down at Lidian with a halfhearted grin. “Yes, yes don’t worry, son. Where we’re going you’ll be able to see the Moor from your bedroom wind…” he began, but he paused before he finished. He then looked directly at Lucian, who simply stood there in silence. It was clear that had just noticed him.

“Oh…Lucian. I was just going come and get you,”

Lucian gulped. He was about to say something when Lidian came running up to him seeing his full attention. “Lu! Lu!” he said until Lucian looked at him. “What do you think?” he asked before tipping his small white boater hat with a black stripe. He then held the two ends of his black coat before looking at Lucian with a very wide grin. Lucian smiled at Lid and patted him on the shoulder.

“You look positively dashing, Lid. A real charmer!” he said. Lidian’s face lit up with joy. Henry then walked up to them both and held Lidian gently by the collar. “Why don’t you wait for me by the stairs, son? I have something to say to Lucian,”

Lidian raised his eyebrow out of intrigue. Then Henry gently shoved him aside. “Go along now, and no listening!” he said playful. Lidian seemed to suspect nothing, for he simply rolled his eyes, put on a childish frown and walked away with his arms crossed whilst grumbling rather loudly.

Henry watched his youngest son walk away and sighed rather sincerely. He then took a deep breath and turned to his eldest son, his expression now notably more serious. Lucian waited anxiously for him to speak. Luckily, Henry did not keep him waiting.

“I know you know what is really going on,” he said in a clam voice. “I assume Lira has instructed you on what you have to do if the time comes?”

Lucian nodded and kept his head down. Henry then took a deep breath and looked out into the distance. “The Morrows informed me that our window of time has narrowed rapidly, so I shall keep this brief while I have you alone,”

Lucian raised his eyebrow and looked directly at his father. To his surprise, he could tell that Henry was desperately trying not to sniffle.

“I saw the way you looked at me during dinner,” he said calm whilst maintaining his composure. “I know I haven’t been very close to you in recent times, despite the fact that you are my oldest. Perhaps it is something I inherited from you grandfather,”

Lucian widened his eyes in surprise, for this was far from what he was expecting. “What are you saying, father?”

Henry took a deep breath, “All I trying to say is, in this time of uncertainty, I just wanted you to know that what I said during dinner, I meant every word of it. And I do not want you doubting any of it,”

Lucian’s eyes lit up as he felt his heart race. He did not know what to say to that. It was truly something he had never expected to hear. Henry then placed his hand on Lucian’s shoulder. “I know I’ve made some mistakes I swore never to make. I may have gotten lost in resenting one man and trying to live up to another. But no matter how distant I may be, I will never stop regarding you as my son. I just hope you bare no resentment or anger towards me,”

Lucian paused. He did not know what to think about what he had just heard. Part of him knew that he was only hearing this due to the dire nature of their current situation. But the other part of him could tell that Henry was being sincere. And at that moment, it was all that mattered to him.

“I bare none, father. No resentment or anger,”

Henry stood still, he then looked at Lucian with eyes half soaked in trapped tears and grinned. “Thank you, son,”

He then sniffled before grabbing the ends of his coat and straightened it. His expression then changed to a worried and surprised look as he glanced around the room looking at the tops of the walls. He then reached into coat pockets and pulled out a golden pocket watch attached to a golden chain. He stared at it for a moment before putting it back into his coat.

“We do not have a lot of time to spare, best we get to the cars now. We can’t keep your brother waiting either,” he said as he turned around towards the stairs.

“Actually, father,” said Lucian as he took one-step forward before stopping. Henry stopped walking and turned his head back. Lucian gulped before deciding to take a risk, “I need to go upstairs… to see Luin,”

Henry raised his eyebrow, “Well you’ll see Luin before we board the cars,”

“Yes, but…” said Lucian, but he then ran out of words when he saw Henry look at him suspiciously. “I just need to see him upstairs at this very moment,” he said with a hint of desperation in his voice.

Henry narrowed his eyes at him. And Lucian couldn’t tell whether Henry was convinced. It was at times like these that envied the Hatly’s mindreading, “We don’t have the time, Lucian,” Henry said sternly before turning around and walking away. “I do say, you’ve been acting quite odd ever since I saw you outside my study,” he bantered is rather casual manner as though he didn’t think much of his son’s ‘odd’ behavior.

Lucian was starting to get impatient. “The others might already be there by now,” he thought. He knew Henry wasn’t going to excuse him and his inability to sway him with words made him frustrated. Finally, in a moment of restlessness and desperation, he let his frustration shine through, “How do you know how I usually act when you’re never here?” he said quite loudly. Henry froze, he then turned around and looked Lucian directly in the eye. “What… did you say?” he asked in disbelief.

Lucian took a deep breath. And once he did the true meaning of his words began to sink in. His face turned pale. It was clear he had captured his father’s attention, but it was not in the way he had wanted to.

“Uh…nothing!” he stuttered. “Forget it, father. I didn’t mean it,”

Henry’s somber expression did not change, for it was clear that what had been said was snow set forever in stone. “Is there something you’re keeping from me, Lucian?” he said as his expression and voice became darker and more serious. “For if there is, do not take me for a fool and hide it!” he said with his voice being a mixture of sadness and anger.

Lucian’s mind raced, he did not want to argue with his father, but at the same time he knew the clock was ticking. “It’s nothing, father. I swear! I just simply wish to go and see Luin right now,”

Heny took a deep breath and sighed whilst looking at the ground. He then gave Lucian a side eyed glance as he thought. “Please, father,” Lucian pleaded in one last desperate attempt. Henry once again looked at the ground and sighed. Henry then took out his pocket watch and glance at it. It was clear that the weight of their limited time rested heavy on his shoulders. He then put the watch back and looked off into the distance before finally facing Lucian again.

“You have ten minutes,” he said in a subdued and deeply serious voice, as though he was both sad and disappointed in himself. “So make haste and do what you wish,”

Lucian did not wait for him to say another word. He quickly began walking towards the stares whilst avoiding looking at his father’s sorrowful face. “Perhaps I am just another spoke in my father’s wheel,” he heard Henry whisper to himself as his voice slowly faded amidst the echoes of the hallway. But Lucian had no time to dwell on his father’s words, for his attention was fully directed towards getting to Luin’s room.

He entered the lobby and darted for the stairs. But as he approached them he saw Lidian leaning against the banister, his expression displaying nothing but pure boredom. His face only lit up once he saw Lucian approach him.

“Are you and father done already?” he whined impatiently. “Can we go now?”

“Well father will take you. I have, somewhere to go,” he said in a calm and positive manner. Lidian’s face dimmed and he frowned at his brother with a look of betrayal. “What? You can’t go. I need you to sit next to me in the car! I can’t sit next to Lucy and Lily! They’ll partner up on me!”

“Oh don’t complain! I’ll still come back before we leave,” Lucian said with a grin. Lidian however, wasn’t a convinced. “Can’t I just come with you? Where do you have to go that’s so important?”

“Just don’t worry,” said Lucian finding it exhausting to keep up his feigned positivity. He intensified his exaggerated demeanor and patted Lidian on the shoulder. “Do not fret, dear brother. For I swear I shall return!” he said with the voice of a mythic hero.

Lidian’s frown lessened. He then sighed and stepped aside. “Thanks, Lid,” he said with a gleeful smile as he hastily climbed up the stairs leaving Lidian by the banister with an expression of longing on his face.

Lucian marches his way to the fourth floor. By the time he reached the hallway, he was practically running. As he jogged across down the hallway he heard a small sound coming from behind him. It sounded like creaking wood and footsteps. Lucian assumed it was the sound of his own feet echoing through the walls so he paid it no attention. As he approached Luin’s room he saw one of Benjamin’s shoulders peeking out from the door and into the hallway, he could even see Maurice the raven perched atop it.

“I’m here,” he said running over to Benjamin and tapping him on his other shoulder. He then nudged past him whist staying as far away from Maurice as possible. He went into the room only to pause before he could take more than two steps. For inside, he saw that everyone had already arrived. He saw the Hatlys, the Mornings and the Morrows sitting on Luin’s bed, Joe sat on a chair by a window looking out onto the street while the rest of them all stood close to the walls. Even Lily seemed to have arrived before Lucian as he saw her standing next to Benjamin, looking off into the other side of the room with frustration.

“I am late.” Lucian thought to himself as he quietly shuffled his way into being between Lily and Benjamin, who closed the bedroom door once Lucian had made his way inside. Lucian then looked over towards Luin, who was kneeling on top of his desk with his hands running up and down a large bookcase.

“What’s happening?” asked Lucian watching with confusion as Luin hastily took out and opened each book before putting it back.

“Luin appears to have lost the note. He can’t seem to find it anywhere,” said Lily in a slow and bored tone. “What?” asked Lucian in a surprised voice.

“Don’t fret yet. I’ll find it!” said Luin with panic and embarrassment in his voice. “I swear I put it between my book about Fire Puppets and The Adventures of Bucklesworth Finstein!”

He frantically took out both of the books he mentioned before reaching his hand into the empty space, He shifted his hand from side to side in a frustrated fury. His face then brightened when he seemed to catch ahold of something.

“I think I got it!” he exclaimed proudly as he pulled out a piece of folded paper. He unfolded it before getting down from his desk and sitting on the small cushioned chair next to it. The rest of the room all their heads slowly towards Luin as he stared into the paper.

“Well, what does it say?” asked Alice.

Luin cleared his throat. “Traitors among us. Spying for the Order. Mayor’s death foiled. Planning insurrection. Suspecting the Guilds. Retreat to Safety,”

The room went silent. But Luin wasn’t done. “It says its signed by someone called ‘Julius’”.

There was a pause. Perhaps everyone had expected Luin to say something more. But he didn’t. “Is that it?” asked Charlotte. Luin shifted his eyes back and forth I confusion. “Ummm…yes?” he asked in a high-pitched voice.

Whispering and murmuring followed, as it was clear that no one in the room seemed to know what to think about brief and somewhat disappointing message. “Well this tells us nothing!” said James. “You dragged us all the way here for this?”

“Well it does tell us something,” said Charles. “The Circle has been compromised! The Mayor from Lucian’s newspaper isn’t dead! There is a grand conspiracy afoot in the Circle!”

“Yes, but none of those statements really aid us at this very moment now do they?” said Evelyn. Charles paused. “But with the Mayor’s death foiled, that would mean the Order of Man is involved. Perhaps they might be threat that the Morrows have been warning us against!” suggested Arthur. There was a collective murmur and an exchange of fearful glances among the group.

“And who is this ‘Julius’?” asked Benjamin chiming in, for the thought of Hunters appearing at their door was not a thought any of them wished to entertain.

“That is also something we have yet to answer,” said Luin. “Well, I don’t recall our parents every mentioning anyone by the name of Julius,” said Willow. “Ha. Since when have any of our parents discussed anything about the Circle in front of us?” Joe argued. “That is the entirely the reason why we are all here,”

“Well whoever this Julius person is, they clearly have to important; one does not simply send a letter to the Great Houses,”

Lucian watched as the others argued. But in his mind only one thing kept echoing. “The Circle has been compromised…” the words filled him with a sense of deep fear. Was the ‘worst outcome’ coming from the Circle itself? “Planning insurrection…,” he remembered hearing. Was the insurrection the worst outcome and not the Order of Man as they had previously assumed? If so, was it about to happen now?

As the others argued Lily, who had stayed quiet up until that point, spoke up. “What if it’s not a real name?” she said loudly in order to get the attention of all the others.

All heads turned to her, “What do you mean?” asked Benjamin, raising his eyebrow curiously. “I meant what if ‘Julius’ is a made-up name. Concealing the name of some else?”

“A CODENAME!” Luin exclaimed. “Of course! How typical, in every book I’ve ever read about the spies have always used a codename. It’s a clever but cliché strategy,”

“Well then that only makes it harder. Since now it could be anyone with a high ranking role in the Circle,” said Willow. Luin paused and put his hand on his chin, deep in thought.

Willow then took out her pocket watch and glanced at it before putting it back in. “Well, at this rate we are no closer to answering any questions and as much I would like dwell on this for an eternity I think it’s time we head back to the cars,”

“No doubt our parents are incredibly suspicious, I know mother is,” said Lily nudging Lucian’s hand. “Admittedly my excuse wasn’t the best. I told her I had to change my hat because this one was giving me some ‘trouble’,”

“What does that mean?” sad Lucian with a grin. Lily shrugged, “I don’t know,”

“Well I could say the same, father gave me just ten minutes,” said Lucian. Benjamin overheard him and let out a chuckle. “How lucky, my sister gave Maurice and I only five,”

Their light conversation then seemed to set off another wave of chatter across the room. But it barely lasted more than a few seconds before Willow cleared her throat loudly, causing the silence to return. “Now then,” she said with an excited grin. She then walked over to Lucian and reached into her coat. Then from one of her pockets she pulled out a golden pocket watch that looked similar to hers. “I think now may be a good a time as ever to give you our presents,” she said before holding the watch up to Lucian’s face.

“What?” Lucian said almost instinctively as he was completely taken by surprise. He lightly nudged the watch away with his finger. “What presents?”

“Well you must take it. It is a tradition. At least, according to my aunt it is. The closest peers of a new initiate may provide them with gifts as gesture of good faith and good luck,”

Lucian slowly took the watch into his palm and examined it. It had engravings that ran around the cloak face, branch-like patterns that were all connected by a letter M, a letter that was marked four times in the four corners of the watch.

“It’s a special edition made only for those we deem worthy,” said Willow in a dramatically. “My father gave your father one just like it,”

“Uh…Thank you!” said Lucian with a nervous smile, still not entirely sure of what to make of the situation. He looked over to Charles, who smiled and nodded. “It can be very useful!” he said hastily, feeling as though he needed to say something. “If you ever happen to find yourself in a vision you can always look at it and know. Clock hands never move in any vision,” Lucian did not know how to respond to that information thus he smiled slightly in response and nodded back, which appeared to satisfy Charles.

“Anyone else have anything for the newly initiated?” asked Willow from the group. At first, there was nothing, but then to Lucian’s continued surprise Benjamin raised his hand. All eyes turned to him as he too reached into his pocket and pulled out a quill made from long back raven feather. Maurice let out a screech as Benjamin proceeded to give the quill to Lucian.

“Here. I was planning to give you this right before we got into the cars but it seems Morrow took all the glory of being the first gift giver,” he said whilst glancing at Willow, who replied to it by staring smugly at Benjamin. “It’s made from one of Maurice’s own feathers. He was very generous in providing it as well!” Benjamin said. Maurice however seemed to disagree, for he pecked and screeched into Benjamin’s ear the moment he said it. Benjamin simply ignored his feathery companion and pretending as though he had heard nothing.

“Anyone else?” Willow asked again.

“Thank…you,” said Lucian. While he wasn’t very fond of ravens he saw no issue with a quill that used a raven feather. Yet he still took it hesitantly for he could not think of where to put it. So he simply shoved it into his coat pocket for the time being.

“Well you should consider yourself lucky, Lucian,” said Willow. “I heard Lira only ever got one present for her initiation, now you have two!”

“Indeed I do,” Lucian said agreeably. “Three!” someone then shouted. Lucian looked and saw that it was Arthur. He walked up to Lucian and opened his palm to reveal a steel lighter, polished to the point where it acted like a mirror. It was a gift Lucian found very fitting, seeing as it came from the Mornings.

“What do you think?” asked Arthur nervously. “It looks quite amazing,” Lucian answered enthusiastically. Arthur sighed with relief. “Good! Cause it was either this or a necklace fashioned from old train parts,”

Lucian laughed, for at first he thought it was a mere joke, but once he saw that Arthur walk away without chuckling he began to think whether he had meant that statement quite literally.

“I would give my brother something, but I feel like my mere presence is the greatest gift I can bestow,” Lily said lazily. Lucian frowned at her, but she purposefully took no notice.

Just then, Luin got up from his chair and approached him. “I think I may have something worth giving,” he said. He then reach into the back pocket of his pants and pulled out a small piece of wood. Lucian recognized it as the piece of wood he used to open the lock in his father’s study.

“You? But you’re too young to be a peer,” said Benjamin.

“I know, think of it as a lone gift from your spare cousin,” said Luin casually, yet he did not look Lucian in the eye. He took the thin strip of wood and Luin walked away and sat back on his chair.

Lucian then looked over at the Hatlys. He glanced at Laura, who looked him in the eye before looking away and tilting her head. Lucian then swiftly looked away, assuming the Hatly’s had nothing for him. He instead turned his attention to the Venshires. However, Alice and James simple raised their hands shrugged. “Apologies, Lucian,” said James. “We didn’t know we had to bring you anything,” said Alice. Lucian smiled at them, for he did not mind it in the slightest. He then looked over at Joe, who hadn’t move from his seat next to the window. Everyone then looked at Joe, whose attention seemed to be focused firmly on the street outside. It took him a few moments to turn around and realize that all the faces in the room now stared at him, perhaps he had sensed the weight of their eyes. He shrugged and rolled his eyes at the crowd. Lucian expected as much from Joe.

Willow then looked at her pocket watch again, “Time seems to be running short, I suggest we take our leave now if none of us have anything more to add,” she said in a cheerful yet increasingly impatient manner.

“Wait!” shouted Laura suddenly, her abruptness made Willow flinch. Lucian looked over at Laura. He saw her look down at her hands; he could see her fingers rubbing something very small between her palms. Charlotte then nudged her in the shoulder and nodded. Laura then got up from the bed and approached Lucian. She held out her closed fist and opened it, revealing a shining gold ring that glistened in the moonlight that poured in from the window. It was broader and thicker than all the rings Lucian had previously seen and Laura held it with a smile that displayed both sincerity and a little hesitation.

“Here,” she said softly. Lucian took the ring into his hand and examined it. He could see words etched deep into its good surface. “It would feel a bit wrong to leave you empty-handed. I hope this will suffice. It’s all I really have to give,”

Lucian stared at the mirror-like surface of the ring. He could see face reflected clearly on its surface. He felt a strange connection to it. Perhaps because he knew it was a last minute gift, hasty and unplanned yet more genuine. Perhaps it was because it was from Laura, as Lucian could see Lily raised her eyebrow, the moment Lucian took the ring into his hands.

“The words, what do they say?” he asked whilst squinting at the engraved letters. “It’s a poem,” Laura said plainly. “You have to really look if you want to read it; I suggest you not do it now lest you want to hurt your eyes,”

Lucian inserted the ring into his index finger, where it fitted almost perfectly. He could feel its weight pushing his finger downwards as its broader size meant it was slightly heavier than a regular ring. Lucian smiled at Laura, who smiled back in an equally affectionate manner.

“Is that all then?” asked Willow suddenly, breaking Lucian and Laura’s moment. Then, in the corner of his eye, he saw Charles freeze for a few seconds before a wary and concerned expression enveloped his face. “Would anyone else like to add something?” Willow asked in a very impatient and even slightly jittery tone as she turned to the rest of the room. There was no answer, which in itself was an answer. Willow grinned. “Alright then, I think we have all but concluded our evidently pointless discussion. So what’s say we leave now?”

“You seemed to have gotten rather nervous all of a sudden,” said James. “Mind telling us what you saw in your vision?”

Willow opened her mouth to speak but, to Lucian’s surprise and worry, she closed it again. It was as if she was hesitating, as if she had something to hide. “It’s…nothing!” said Charles coming to his sister’s aid. In truth even he looked equally as nervous and jittery as Willow “It’s just our parents might come looking for us if we stay up here any longer,”

Lucian saw Laura narrow her eyes at the Morrows. A look that he did not take lightly. “Well that is no reason to panic; it’s not as if we are in any real danger, are we?” said Benjamin with an optimistic shrug

The Morrows both went silent. Which made Benjamin’s prior optimism falter and crumble. “Are we?” he repeated in a much more serious tone.

“All I know is uncertain peril is nothing to take lightly,” said Willow, in a calm yet serous voice. Something Lucian hadn’t seen her do often. It was as though whatever she had seen had made her usual snarky and tongue-in-cheek attitude disappear. “So I suggest we all leave this…”

“HOLD ON!” Joe then screamed at a volume so loud it made Lucian jump up in surprise. He watched as Joe got up from his chair and walked slowly to the middle of the room while narrowing his eyes at the door suspiciously.

“I hear something,” he whispered, as he got closer and closer to the door. Suddenly, Lucian saw Joe’s eyes widen. “Footsteps,” he said pausing where he stood.

Seconds later, there was a knock on the door. The sound was so abrupt that it made almost everyone in the room jump. All eyes turned to the door, their faces stricken with wary looks as Lucian saw the doorknob turn.

“No, it can’t be. It doesn’t make any sense,” he thought as he felt dread pulsing through his bones. He saw Joe and Benjamin take a step back. He saw Luin slowly push his chair in front of his body. Lucian gulped as an arm stretched out as the door swung and in an instant, a tall figure came in from the dark hallway.

Looking back, Lucian wished it were the mysterious insurgents. For what entered through the door was arguably worse.

“What…IS…GOING ON IN HERE?” boomed Lira’s voice with a fury that seemed to rattle the very walls of the room. No one stepped up to answer as Lira made her way to the center to the room with her raven perched on her shoulder, her imposing shadow looming over everyone below here. She then paused as she looked around the room, waiting for an answer.

“Nothing,” said Benjamin suddenly in a rather confident manner. He, to Lucian’s amazement, took a step forward and faced his sister with a head held high and a casual grin. “We were just…talking, before we leave,”

Lira’s raven then let out an ear-piercing caw directed at Benjamin, it was so loud that it forced Lucian and the others to shield his ears with their hands. Benjamin’s own raven Maurice then replied with an equally loud screech as Benjamin looked at Blackfeather as though the bird had said something deeply insulting. Lira then scratched its neck, making it calm down before swiftly turning her attention back to her brother.

“Nothing, eh? Well, one does not simply gather frivolously during a time sensitive operation for NOTHING,” she scolded, yet to Lucian’s awe Benjamin’s posture and expression remained relatively unchanged. Perhaps he was used to Lira’s fury.

“Oh really?” said Lily all of sudden, which made Lira’s head jerk upwards. “And why would this operation be time sensitive? Hmm?” she said boldly taking step towards Lira. “It is not as if going on a holiday to the countryside is something that is of utmost importance? Is it?” she said raising her eyebrow at Lira and shrugging.

Lira paused. She looked Lily with a frown, for she was at a loss for words. Lira looked around the room; she could see all the eyes of the room staring directly at her. She then turned her iron gaze towards Lucian, who shivered and gulped at the sight of her fiery eyes that glared at him with intense suspicion. Lucian tried to avoid direct eye contact, but that only seemed to convince Lira of her assumptions. A wave of shock then seemed to wash over her as she came to the realization Lucian had prayed she would avoid. And it did nothing to sooth her inner temper.

“You,” she said in a voice deeper than any abyss. Lucian saw both the Hatlys grab their foreheads and stagger backwards as though they had both had a sudden headache. She then took a step towards Lucian, only for Benjamin to step in front of her and block her path. Yet it did nothing, for Lira just shoved Benjamin aside with a roughness indicating that she was holding back a more violent approach. Others tried to stop her, but none could. She marched in front of Lucian and grabbed him by the collar with both of her hands. “You FOOL, YOU TOLD THEM? YOU DISCLOSED THE SECRETS I TOLD YOU TO PROTECT. YOU UTTER IMBECILE! YOU…” she shouted as she shook Lucian violently by the collar. But before she could do anything worse Willow stepped in, she grabbed Lira’s and pried Lucian from her grip, she then pushed Lira back with her hand. Charles then held out his hand and twisted his palm. One of the rose-colored curtains in Luin’s bed then reached out and wrapped Lira’s arm. Try as she might, Lira couldn’t free herself.

“Don’t you dare blame him! You all were the ones who were planning to hide life-threatening secrets from us. Did you really think we’d not find out?” said Willow. Lira snarled. “You cannot fathom what you have just done. How you have compromised the future! And you!” she said staring directly at Willow as she tugged away at the curtain wrapped around her arm. “You of all should know, you should’ve seen what is to come and why all the secrecy was of such great importance!”

“It’s rather funny then,” Willow snapped back. “Because neither I nor my brother have seen any vision that justifies your lies!”

Lira stopped tugging. Her face riddled with confusion. “What? That can’t be! Who did you see?”

“Neither my father nor my aunt can perceive any future that Charles and I are part of. Hence, they cannot see what we and by extension, what everyone here will do! So how do they know?”

Lira then closed her eyes and sighed deeply. “Who did you see?” she asked in a much more subdued tone. Willow looked confused, “I saw all of us, and we were all fine. In every future we saw where the calamity came we all get to out safely!”

“And who did you see in the Mirror specifically?” Lira asked again. Willow then stared at her with a bewildered expression. He then turned to Charles, who looked equally clueless. Lira sighed again. Charles then put this hand down, making the curtain unravel and let go of Lira’s arm. Lucian looked at Willow with a look of concern.

“What does that mean?” he thought. “You only yourself, didn’t you?” said Lira whilst rubbing her shoulder. Willow looked like she was at a loss for words as all eyes now feel on her. However, neither she nor Charles would back down without a fight.

“Well that’s not fair!” Charles argued. “Of course we can’t see anyone else. Willow and I can’t perceive each other’s futures. That is why we cannot see how we get to the Mirror, we only know that we do get to it!”

“So what? All this time we’ve been putting our faith in a flawed vision?” asked Joe suddenly. Charles turned to him, now slightly nervous. “It’s…not like that! If Willow or I make it out. Surely that means we all do, right?”

“And that’s only if this so called catastrophe even happens!” Willow added. “That is what we put our faith in! In all the visions, we saw the chance of any outside attack was minimal, minuscule even! Our parents just trumped it up to be something bigger than it for the sake of the safety of the Houses!”  

The room went silent. “Well your parents are right to worry,” Lira remarked. “To the Great Houses even a small threat cannot be treated lightly!”

“Oh stop it, sister!” Benjamin shouted whilst rubbing his palm against his face. Lira looked over to her brother with a look of confusion. “What did you say?”

“I said stop it, you spout that Gratousy rhetoric every time there is even a slight problem. And through it you’ve become nothing more than a puppet soldier to your own family,” he said raising his voice out of frustration.

“Well this ‘rhetoric’ is what has been keeping us all alive!” said Lira. “The only thing keeping us all safe from things we cannot come back from,”

“Well I want my sister back!” Benjamin said with a look of desperation. For the first time, Lucian saw Lira’s disciplined demeanor falter. “We cannot live in fear of off chances! And you cannot expect us to!” Benjamin continued. He then stopped and breathed heavily, waiting for Lira’s response.

“I am your sister,” said Lira softly, her face trapped in a state of shock and disbelief. Benjamin gave Lira a somber look.

There was moment of silence. “I think it’s time we take our leave,” said Willow looking around the room. “What we came to discuss has been discussed, there is no point in staying here any longer,”

“She’s right,” said Arthur. “Whatever is left to say can be said on the trains, I say it’s best not to push our luck,”

Several people in the room nodded. And as he turned towards he door he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Some thing that came from the window, he turned around saw a light shining through the glass. A light that seemed to get brighter and brighter every passing second. He glanced towards Laura, who seemed to hear his thoughts as she too then glanced back at him. Charlotte then turned towards both of them.

Suddenly, the attention of both Hatlys were diverted by something from the other side of the room. Lucian looked over and saw that they were looking at Joe, who himself was staring at the door.

“Does he hear something?” Lucian thought and Laura shrugged in response.

“I suggest you all go ahead, I have something I wish to say to the guard outside,”

Lucian looked at Lira, confused. Moreover, it was clear that everyone else in the room shared that feeling for what followed was a wave of subdued chatter and confused glancing. “What guard?” asked Alice. Lira looked at Alice, puzzled. Lucian suddenly felt a strange yet familiar sense of uneasiness creep up his spine.

Meanwhile, in the street outside the house. Henry found himself standing by the door, looking at a window on the second floor with only the visibility granted by the street lamps and the faint glow of the moon near the horizon, hoping to see a glimpse of someone walking by, preferably someone on their way downstairs.

“Why is it taking so long? I thought Lira would be more effective than this!” he said impatiently. “Just wait, dear. Perhaps they are on their way down at this very moment. Besides, we have time,” said Janice, who was instructing the twins to get into the car.

“Where is Lu?” asked Lidian, refusing to climb into the car. “He’ll be along shortly, dear,” said Janice hastily. Lidian huffed in angrily. “But he told me he’d be here! I can’t sit next to Lucy!”

“How manly indeed,” Lucy scoffed sarcastically. Lidian turned around, frowned and then stuck his tongue out at his twin sister mockingly, to which Lucy gasped as though she had been greatly insulted. Janice closed her eyes and pinched her nose with her hand before sighing.

“But that’s just it, we don’t have time! Eustice’s predictions could happen any minute now!” said Henry impatiently.

“Don’t you dare doubt my daughter, Henry!” said Leonard who stood by the car to Henry’s right, instructing the driver as he loaded his luggage. “Her sharp gaze is bound to get them all to fall in line. For Moor’s sake, it even scares me sometimes!”

“I don’t doubt your daughter’s…persuasiveness, Leonard. But as you can see we are running out of time!”

“Then maybe you can make our leave swifter by helping me!” said David, who was by the front door. He had one of his hands wrapped around Wren’s shoulder. “Father is not getting any faster!”

Henry sighed; he then went over to his brother and wrapped his hand around Wren’s shoulder. Wren seemed to be too busy looking around the road, bewildered and clueless. It was as if he was walking on another planet. “Where are we?” he asked.

“We are still on Allison Street, father,” said Henry loudly so Wren could hear. “We’re taking a little trip over to the country,”

Wren looked around the road, confused. “Allison’s Street? Don’t be daft!” said Wren in a rather offended manner. “This looks nothing like Allison Street! All the street lamps are the wrong shape and all the houses are the wrong color! No, we are definitely somewhere else entirely,”

Henry groaned. David rolled his eyes smugly. “It seems you’ve forgotten to tell him about the renovations you made,” he whispered jokingly. Henry frowned.

As the brother got their father down the steps and onto the sidewalk Henry once again looked up at the window and still he saw nothing. “And why are we going to the Baronies, eh?” said Wren. “You running from something, son?”

Wren then turned to David. “David, what has your brother done this time? Come on now, don’t protect him! No son of a Baron runs from danger!”

Henry groaned again but it seemed as though Janice had noticed his discomfort. For she quickly walked over and took Wren’s shoulder from Henry’s and onto hers. “I think I’ll handle it, dear,” she said cheerfully. Henry gave Janice and relived and grateful smile before walking over to the middle of the road where most of the Gratousy and the other soldiers had gathered to wait. They were all talking to Jeanette, perhaps the only member of the Great Houses who could truly understand them. He leaned on the door of one of the passenger cars, which were parked in a rather unorganized manner behind a row of neatly parked protection vehicles running from one side of the road to the other. He watched as Jeanette and the other guards conversed. He could see them smile and laugh. He wished he knew the subject of their conversation. Surely, it was something more lighthearted than the things that burdened his own mind.

“Pondering something?” said a voice to his left. Its soft and ominous nature almost startled Henry. He turned and saw Marilyn leaning against the car alongside him. Marilyn chuckled at Henry’s surprised look. “It appears as though some things never change,”

“It appears they never do,” said Henry rolling his eyes as he turned back to the men.

“Is it about the children?” Marilyn pried further. “Cause I feel too feel it is quite strange, all of them excusing themselves at once,”

“Well it is to be expected. They know nothing about what’s happening here,”

“Lidian!” Henry then heard Janice shout from behind him. He turned around and saw Lidian run up the stairs and through the front door. “Come back here, Lid” he then heard Lucy shout. Lidian stuck his tongue out at this sister one more time before disappearing into the house.

“Hmm, interesting,” muttered Marilyn. She then immediately went back to their previous topic of discussion without a second thought. “But I do say our children’s antics are much milder compared to what we used to do, eh?”

“I wouldn’t say that,” said Henry. He then sniggered to himself as he recalled memories from his childhood. “Really now? Tell me, how many times did you and David try to run away from this street under your father’s nose, hmm?”

“That was different matter entirely!” Henry said quickly as he glanced over at the house. “I didn’t want to leave home for the world outside; I wanted to leave home because of what was in it,”

“And you think Lucian doesn’t feel the same way?”

“He has his sisters and his brother AND his cousin. I only had David. It’s quite a big difference,” Henry replied swiftly. He knew Marilyn would not stop prying. Trying to find certain memories Henry did not wish to relive. “So tell me, at the dinner. What made you and Eustice believe that this threat is coming sooner than expected?”

“I don’t know,” said Marilyn with a shrug. “It wasn’t very clear earlier; even with our utmost concentration we could see only glimpses of smoke and the masks of Hunters. But suddenly during dinner it all became rather clear, all the alternate situations went away. It is quite odd,” she said whilst pondering. “But then again, even I do not fully comprehend the nature of how the future decides to reveal itself,”

“Perhaps it was because we are so close to it, perhaps there are no more choices left to make,” Henry suggested.

“Perhaps indeed,” Marilyn replied. “Although the possibility of it not happening at all is still very present. There is no possible way the Order could’ve found this house.”

Henry took deep breath. “Here’s hoping that that is the fate the future decides to bestow upon us,”

Just then, Meredith and Harold came walking up to him. “The men have finished prepping all the cars. The little ones are all inside. All we need are the missing passengers,” said Harold raising his eyebrow at Henry.

“They will be along…any time now,” said Henry glancing away becoming more frustrated by the second.

There was moment “Although I have noticed a rather strange string of odd behavior ever since we arrived here,” said Meredith.

“What sort of odd behavior?” asked Marilyn. “From the children, I mean,” replied Meredith. “I noticed it first when Henry, the others and I returned from our jaunt over to the Great Hall this morning. Henry’s son along with your niece and Carlyle’s daughters were all awake in the living room. They were even having tea if I recall correctly,”

Meredith stopped speaking and Marilyn blinked, as though she had expected something more. “Is that all? Some early morning tea party?”

“Perhaps they were all consoling him about his initiation. After all, we did far rowdier things back in our days,” Harold suggested.

Marilyn laughed. She seemed to be reminded of a particular instance of rowdiness. Henry may not have been a mind reader but he could tell which specific instance she was had thought of. For it appeared clearly in his own mind, the day before Harold’s initiation. He recalled him and Leonard stealing a bottle of absinthe from the old Baron Venshire’s cellar. He remembered becoming blind drunk along with everyone else inside the attic of Venshire Manor. He also recalled never taking another sip of absinthe ever since that day.

“I suppose, but stranger still was how they all seemed to lurk around Henry’s study whilst we were discussing that strange letter he received,” Meredith continued.

“You mean that encoded piece of paper? Why would the children be interested in that? Even we can’t read it!” said Harold.

“I do not know, frankly I don’t know whether it was the letter they were after. But now, combined with their collective absence here. I cannot say it is not somewhat strange,”

“Oh it is probably nothing! I would wager they were trying to pull some kind of joke on you all this morning. I’d even wager it was Willow’s idea. After all, neither she nor Charles is as fidgety as their father!” said Marilyn, she lower her volume during the last part of her sentence as she shot a glance at her brother. “And besides, she has the Morrow sense of humor! They both do!” she said in an almost proud voice. Henry rolled his eyes, for he did not think of such a thing as a compliment.

Just then, Amos Angelmore come walking towards them, his hand point towards the road ahead of them. “Did you send for any extra transport, Demon?” he said in his rough and confused voice. Henry raised his eyebrow at him. “No I did not. Why do you ask? Is the luggage too much for the ones we have?”

“Don’t try to be funny now! I hear the sound of wheels in the distance. And they appear to be getting louder,” he said looking back into the road behind him. Henry felt the small ball of dread bubble up inside him. “How far away are these disturbances?” asked Harold. “Three hundred meters at the farthest, and closing as we speak,”

Meredith gave Henry a worried glare. Upon hearing Amos’ words, Henry’s initial dread grew exponentially and reached its climax when he saw lights appear in the distance, large glowing white dots on a slowly darkening sky. Henry watched, as the lights grew larger and larger. Once they were close, enough he could see that they were indeed vehicles, black cars with silver trimmings. There were about five of them, and they came to a sudden halt less than fifty feet away from Henry and the others.

The soldiers standing next to Henry immediately leapt into action. They assumed defensive positions whilst standing behind the row of protection vehicles. They pointed their guns at the strange cars, from whom no soul stepped out. Henry narrowed his eyes at the plates displayed at the front of the car. He could see that they were blank, just plain white with no letters or numbers.

Suddenly, the door to the passenger’s side seat in one of the cars swung open. Moments later, all the doors of all the cars all opened in a desynchronized pattern. From the cars emerged men wearing black cloaks, their faces obscured by large black top hats that blended into the dim atmosphere.

“STAND FIRM AND READY!” he heard Jeanette shout from behind him. Henry stood behind the nearest car as Carlyle walked up to him, a look of worry stricken across his face. “Can you see into their thoughts?” Henry asked. “Indeed I can, and all I see is conviction and disdain,”

Henry gulped as he turned his attention back towards the strangers. They too took positions behind their vehicles, which were parked like a front facing wall of steel. “Do you sense any fear in them?” he asked. Carlyle titled his head and raised his eyebrow. “I do, in some of them. But it is buried deep within their minds. That means they are trained and disciplined,”

Such words did not ease Henry in the slightest; he took a deep breath and sighed. He then saw the one of the strangers tilt his head. Which revealed a white mask that covered his face.

A mask shaped like the face of an angel.

“Hunters? Impossible,” Henry thought. The sight of the angle masks sent him into a state of shock so deep it made him take a step back. In his mind, there was no conceivable method in which Hunters could’ve found them. It went against the very existence of Allison Street and all its security precautions.

“It cannot be,” said Carlyle, who seemed equally confused and stunned. The others seemed to feel the same. A moment later, Meredith shouted. “Well that doesn’t matter now! It’s clear we’ve missed Morrow’s deadline. Now it seems we have a fight on our hands,”

Henry cleared his throat and calmed himself, realizing that Meredith was right. He then watched as the members of the Gratousy and the regular soldiers lined up side by side. He then noticed Marilyn look very confused and distraught.

“It doesn’t make any sense,” she muttered to herself. “This was not supposed to happen…not like this!”

“What do you mean?” asked Henry. But Marilyn ignored him as she clutched her head with her hands in an almost panicked manner, her face riddled with bewilderment. “There is something missing. I must see Eustice!” she said before swiftly walking away. Leaving the rest of them very confused.

 “What about the children? They haven’t returned yet,” asked Harold hastily. “I think its best they stay in the house,” said Meredith. “I suggest we move the little ones inside as well!”

“We cannot do that,” Carlyle argued. Henry gave him a glare. “It seems to me that we’re in a standoff of sorts,” he explained. “At least, that’s what they seem to think. If we try moving inside they might take it as a signal to attack,”

“Well we cannot simply stand here indefinitely!” said Amos. “I can hear them whisper amongst each other. They do not intend to say in this standoff for long,”

“No need to say that to me, Angelmore,” said Carlyle. “Their thoughts tell me they are waiting for something. Some sort of signal or sign,”

Henry gulped once again. The weight of the situation was slowly starting to crush him. “I need to see Janice,” he said before he too swiftly left the group. He made his way over to the car closest to the front door. There he found Janice leaning against the open back door where Lucy was sitting with a fearful look on her face.

“Why are they all pointing their guns at the road, mother?” she asked with a shiver.

“It’s probably nothing, dear” said Janice calmly whilst crouching down on the sidewalk so Lucy could see her face. Janice then turned her head towards the Henry the moment she saw him appear. She then turned to Lucy; she patted her on the head and smiled before swiftly standing up and walking over to her husband.

“What in MOOR’S NAME IS HAPPENING?” she whispered with panic before grabbing Henry by both his shoulders and pulling him closer to her. Henry shuddered at Janice’s intensity. “How are there Hunter here?” she continued. Henry then took a deep breath. “I don’t know. But it appears we’re in a standstill. I suggest you and Lucy get inside the car. It’s safer that way,”

Janice wavered. “When are we leaving?” Henry then heard another voice yell. Henry looked back at the car behind him, which was parked facing Heny. There he saw Wren peeking his head out of the back seat window, waving in angrily at David, who stood outside.

“I have been in this infernal steel box for ages! When are we departing, David?” Wren asked angrily. “We seem to have hit a bit of an obstacle, father” David replied calmly whilst glancing at the row of armed men ahead of them. Wren seemed to find that fact unacceptable. “Are you going to let a bunch of street hooligans stop a Baron’s car? That is quite disappointing of you, David,”

David groaned but kept his composure. Henry pitied him. But as he watched David deal with their father he noticed something in the corner of his eye. He saw soldier in a brown cloak break from the defensive line. Henry watched as he ran a few back before pointing his revolver in the air and firing into the sky.

The sudden gunshot made Henry and Janice reel backwards and hide behind the hood of the car. And as the sound of the bullet rang in the air every soldier who wore a brown cloak diverted their gun and pointed it at the Gratousy and the other Great Houses, the Gratousy in return pointed their guns at the soldiers. Henry couldn’t believe his eyes. He then heard a high-pitched scream in his left ear. He looked to see Lucy huddling in her seat, screaming whilst covering both or her ears. Janice tried to reach for her, but she froze when the man who had fired the bullet in the air turned his gun on Henry and Janice. They both raised their hands in the air; Henry’s mind still was still reeling from shock. He looked over to David, who too stood frozen as he watched the man point a gun at his brother. Henry then saw another soldier wave his hand in the air before doing a gesture he didn’t recognize. When he did so the Hunters blocking the road slowly broke away from their positions and began to walk towards them.

Henry’s mind was made of questions, but he knew he needed to focus. “Not so high and mighty now, are you, Baron?” the soldier said with a smug grin whilst he switching between pointing the gun at Henry, Janice and David. Henry managed to appear calm on the outside, but inside he was drowning in fear and panic.

“You fool! You don’t know the treason you’ve committed!” David said bravely. The man remained unaffected by his words. He smiled at David as he pointed his gun at him. “Oh I wouldn’t worry about that now, sir. We are under orders not to shoot you. So I suggest you be thankful for that,”

“Whose orders?” asked Henry swiftly and with an authoritative voice. The guard glanced at him, but said nothing. David spat at the man’s face, but it only landed on the man’s shoe. The soldier seemed to be far more insulted by that, for he then walked directly in front of David. Then, without warning, he took his gun and hit David on the side of his head with it. The blow was so painful that it made David fall to the ground whilst clutching his cheek. The man then leaned down and looked at David with amusement. “Be careful now, sir. Our orders are to take one able-bodied member of each House as a captive. Which means you are as expendable as any common man now,”

The man took his gun and placed it directly on David’s head. At that moment, Henry’s calmness reached its limit. He glanced at the closed front door of the car that the man was standing next to, a door knew was unlocked. Upon seeing an opportunity his mind decided it could not wait any longer. “DO NOT POINT YOUR GUN AT MY BROTHER!” he shouted as he instinctively swung his arms downwards diagonally. The soldier barely had time to look back before the car door flung open by itself at an incredible speed. It hit both David and the soldier but it was clear that the soldier had taken the brunt of the blow. For as they both flew down onto the sidewalk David managed to stagger back up faster than the soldier did. David then hastily grabbed the soldier’s gun hand and wrestled the gun out of his grip before wrapping his hands around the man’s neck before pinning him down on the stony pavement.

The other soldiers turned their eyes away from their targets and onto Henry. One such soldier stood with his gun pointed at Leonard and Jeanette. The moment the soldier took his gaze away from Jeanette Henry saw her reach for the man’s gun. She immediately grabbed it and pulled it to her side. The soldier recoiled and tried to fight back. He pulled the trigger but Jeanette directed the man’s gun onto the road. What followed next was loud bang and the sound of glass shattering at the bullet ricocheted off the road and into the window of one of the surrounding facades. Jeanette struck the man in stomach with her fist before wrestling the gun out his hand and hitting him over the head with it.

Moments after Jeanette grabbed the gun the other Gratousy soon followed, taking the soldier’s distraction to their advantage. Some of them, like Jeanette, grabbed onto their attackers while others swiftly reached into their cloaks pulled out their spare revolvers and knives. This sudden change of action was swiftly succeeded by the sound of several guns going off at once. Henry watched as the Gratousy opened fire on the soldiers while the soldiers did the same. Henry and Janice both quickly crouched behind the car and got out of view. Henry looked to his side and saw David still strangling the man who had hit him in the head. David pinned the man’s hands into the pavement and with his power, he made the stone melt and rise like a liquid until it completely covered the man’s hands, encasing them in stone. David then let go of the man and punched him the face before standing up and walking over to the gun. He then took it from the ground and, with a tired pant; he shot the man in the head. Janice let out a short scream had David pulled the trigger and Henry himself flinched and shuddered. David then hid behind the car next to Henry with the gun in his hand.

“WE NEED TO GET TO SAFETY!” David shouted amidst the sound of guns and screams. Henry was about to respond when he noticed that row of Hunters who had started to approach them were now falling back and running behind their own vehicles. Henry knew things would only get worse. He glanced at the front door of the house, which was less than ten feet away. He then turned to Janice.

“Take Lucy and run!” he said. Janice paused for a moment. She glanced at the scene unfolding behind her, with bullet ricocheting off every surface and bodies falling onto the cold ground. She then stared at   Henry and gave him a nod. Henry nodded back at her. He then swiftly turned to David and held out his hand. David immediately took the hint and handed him his gun. Henry took the gun and gave it to Janice. “Be safe,” he said softly. He and Janice momentarily embraced each other and touched foreheads. He then let go and watched as Janice slowly crawled her way to the back seat and opened the door to find Lucy huddled in the corner, whimpering whilst keeping her eyes and ears closed. Janice quickly grabbed Lucy by the hand and took her into her arms. She then hastily stood up and ran to the sidewalk with Lucy huddled close to her.

Henry didn’t wait to see them get into the house. He peeked his head out at the road knowing that he couldn’t hide behind a car forever. He put his hand on the car’s chassis, making part of it melt from the iron exterior and into his hand. He then shaped the iron into a point before looking back at the road for an opportunity. He then saw a soldier come running up in front of the car, his attention heavily diverted. Henry thought fast. He flicked his fingers, making the road beneath the man rise up, swallowing the man’s feet and trapping them in asphalt. The man tried to move only to realize he couldn’t and while he stared down in utter confusion Henry exchanged glances with David before leaping forth from his hiding spot and ran at the man. The soldier saw him coming and tried to pull his gun on him. But Henry caught his gun hand and put it over his soldier before taking his pointed piece of metal and stabbing it deep into the man’s side. He then twisted the man’s arm and grabbed the gun from his hand. He took a step back; the man wailed and grabbed the piece of metal with his hands and pulled it out of his body. He swung it at Henry desperately but he was too far out of reach. Henry hesitantly pointed the gun at man and pulled the trigger, shooting him the chest. The man bent towards the ground, dead, with his feet still rooted to the ground.

Henry took a deep breath as his gun hand shivered and his ears rang. He had held a gun many times but never had he fired one before. Pulling the trigger had made him black out for a few moments. He then saw something out of the corner of his right here. He turned his head and saw another soldier point a gun at him from point blank range. Henry froze, knowing he did not have time to defend himself. But before the man could shoot the door of car name to him came flying off its hinges and hit the man from the side. The man went barreling onto the ground and Henry saw blood come oozing out from his corpse. He leaned closer and saw that the surface of the car door had been molded into several rows of conical spikes. Henry flinched in shock and disgust at the sight of the man’s body, which the spikes had partially shredded. He then turned around to see David standing behind him with his arms outstretched, breathing heavily. Henry sighed in relief. He then glanced at the now three-doored car before glancing back at David.

“I’ll pay for the repairs,” said David whilst cracking a small smile. “I think its best if we replace the car entirely!” Henry exclaimed, exhausted.

As Henry turned back to the fray, he saw Jeanette and the remaining Gratousy shoot down the remaining soldiers. As the last man laid bleeding on the road, Jeanette came up to him and shot him in the head. Just then, from the corner of his eye, Henry saw Eustice come running up to him. He seemed to be in poorer form that he was. His coat was dirty, his arms were bruised and he too had a gun in his hand.

“Henry!” he exclaimed in a panicked voice. He then placed both his hands on Henry’s shoulders. “I…I need…” he stuttered, as he seemed to be in a state of shock from all the violence.

“No need to apologize now!” said Henry not wanting Eustice to overexert himself. “Its fine, we’re alright,”

“No…Not that!” Eustice stuttered. But before he could say anything else Amos Angelmore let out a shouted from behind him. “WATCH OUT!” he screamed pointing to the line of cars blocking the road. Henry looked over and saw that the men who had previously retreated had now hid behind their vehicles, forming a line of rifles directed at Henry and the others. Jeanette and the other Gratousy saw this too. Henry only had moment to see Jeanette’s eyes widen in horror before she yelled, “EVERYONE GET DOWN!”

Henry almost instantly crouched down onto the ground behind a nearby protection vehicle. Eustice hid alongside him. The moment Henry did so he heard the sound of several guns firing in unison. What followed next was the sound bullets piercing through metal and the sound of glass shattering. Henry closed his eyes and covered his ears, waiting for the noise to stop. He could feel sharp burst of pain along his arms as glass shards bounced off his skin. When it did, he uncovered his ears. The first think he heard the sound of painful moaning coming from his left. He turned and saw Eustice sitting next to him, bruised and scared but otherwise unhurt. He then looked beyond him and saw David leaning up against the car next to Henry. He saw him shuffle around in agony with his hand covering his left eye. Henry saw blood stains on his coat. It took a few moments before Henry fully realized what and happened. As he looked at the ground him, he could see hundreds of glass pieces scattered across the ground. It was at that moment he felt his heart beat so fast that it he thought it come ripping out of his chest.

“TAKE POSITION!” he heard Jeanette shout as the moment their enemy’s fire stopped. Henry saw the Gratousy take a defensive position behind whatever car was closest to them. “Fire at will!” said Jeanette as she pointed her own gun at the enemy. Less than a second later the Gratousy opened fire upon the enemy vehicles. Henry once again had to cover his ears. But as he looked at the scene in front of him it filled him with nothing fear. He could see Marilyn and Meredith all couched down behind the Gratousy, looking on with terror. Carlyle and Harold were bot holding out there weapons and firing alongside the Gratousy while Amos was leaning down against a car, covering his ears as though the sound of gunfire was causing him great agony.

He looked to David, who was still in great pain. Henry tried to reach for him by extending his hand across the gap between their cars. But before he could reach his brother Eustice swiftly pulled him back moments before a bullet came flying through the gap, embedding itself into the road next to them.

“Don’t! It’s too dangerous!” shouted Eustice. Henry sighed. At that point, the pain, fear and panic had completely numbed him. “Tell me, was this event ever avoidable?” he asked in a high pitch. Eustice stared at him for a moment, and then frowned before looking away. “No, no it was not,” he said somberly.  “We were tricked. We were so preoccupied with searching for an outside threat from the Order that inside betrayal seemed like nothing but a non-variable. I just cannot understand how I could not see it,”

He covered his face with his hands, ashamed. Part of Henry wanted to blame him, but the other could not help but feel sympathetic towards him. Another part also wondered how their enemies had known and whether the angel masks were a purposeful part of this elaborate ambush. However, he didn’t have time to ponder. He leaned his head against what remained of the car and took a deep breath. “Perhaps your own visions betrayed you,” he said. Eustice sighed in distraught. “I was blind, I didn’t consider every variable. I brought doom upon us all with my ignorance! Moor knows my father would be disappointed to know he taught a failure!”

Henry stared at Eustice for he understood that feeling very well. “Do not fret now, Morrow. We can still come out of this,”

Eustice glanced at Henry. He then took deep breath and calmed himself. He grabbed and his pistol from the ground whilst Henry pulled the hammer back on his.  Henry reached his hand over the car hood and fired in a random direction, praying that he hit something. He then placed his other hand on the car door, made the metal melt into, and cover he holes left by enemy bullets. He even saw Meredith and Marilyn pull one of the street lamps out from the sidewalk before making float over the Gratousy and towards the enemy line. Henry did not dare peek his head to see it fall but he did hear a large thud followed by shouting. But even with that the enemy fire did not stop.

After firing a few, more times Henry took back his gun and checked the barrel, only to see that he had only two bullets remaining. His hope was slowly beginning to fade way. He tried to think some way he could escape this. Some way he could save everyone. However, nothing came to him; his mind was too cluttered and lost to think clearly. At that point he was completely helpless.

Suddenly, the chaotic noise of gun firing came to an immediate halt. Henry saw Jeanette raise her hand in the air, a moment later the Gratousy stopped their firing and their faces all watched in awe. Henry was confused, but realizing that there wasn’t any gunfire he swiftly stood up and pointed his gun at the attackers. But at the moment his eyes widened and his jaw dropped in utter disbelief.

For in front on him stood a lightly bruised Wren, standing sternly with his cane on the ground. His right hand was outstretched and in front of it was a barrage of bullets suspended in midair.

 

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