Lights

I follow her down the corridor, she says nothing more to me but her hand is still firmly gripping my own. She seems to be linking them, as we ascend the stairs and continue down the corridor.

Artemis and Cynthia seem to descend from rooms joining us as we walk towards the end of the corridor other of them say a word but they seem as equally focused as Selene on getting. At that moment I realise where we are heading, I have been here once before.

I try to focus on feeling my breathing getting a bit heavier, why are they being so secretive? Perhaps this prophecy is more complex than I realised.

As we enter into the library Selene motions for me to sit and Cynthia heads towards the balcony locking the door and closing the curtains tightly.

They all then take the seats around my own, Artemis sitting next to me closely. The air in the room is thick with tension, between both me and them.

Without saying a word Selene pulls a box out from underneath the table and places it on the table, she lifts the lid off and it's just full of papers.

They keep looking between one another not speaking, I can tell they are linking from the way their eyes are widening every so often.

“So what’s going on ?”

I try to make it sound casual but it comes out squeaky and weird.

*” Well after what you said about the prophecy I thought it would be best to have this conversation with the people who know the most about it “*

She looks at Arti and Cynth and they just smile in agreement.

“Okay.. and the box?”

It’s full of what looks like torn paper and some old-looking books.

*This is what I found when I was looking for answers “*

“What do you mean looking for answers? What was it that you didn’t know?”

They look between each other before Artemis finally speaks.

**” Answers to .. well everything Sekreta. When Selene turned 21 our whole lives were flipped upside down for a second time. It was filled with uncertainty and things started to happen to us that was beyond our control”**

“You mean you didn’t know what you were doing ?”

Selene scoffs loudly before responding.

*” We still don’t know what we are doing. We got left with cryptic pieces of paper, gifts that in reality, we couldn’t control and when I turned 21 they slapped a bunch of new ones on us, so we are all able to do more things”*

I’m pretty sure I heard her right, she said they had more than one gift like me but there’s didn’t come until Selene reached 21. I try to think back to my gifts, did I have some before others ?.

I’m feeling a mix of emotions at this point, Artemis begins to pull out the pages and lay them flat on the table. Some of the drawings look like the ones from my book and some of them I swear I’ve seen before in the library back at the house.

*” I found these in my parent’s house after Arlo had burned my pack down”*

She points to the pages that were torn as if they have been hurriedly ripped from its book.

*” And these I found here in the Calders library. Although I’ve never really worked out why they are here “*

“So you had to search for all of this yourselves ?”

**”*Not all of it *”**

Cynthia leans forward as she scoops her white-blond hair up tying it in an elegant bun on the top of her head. I'd never realised until now just how similar she looks to my mother, she has the same nose and soft eyes.

**”*We had a message from our parents that Artemis delivered on each of our birthdays and then finally when Selene turned 21 we heard the prophecy*”**

This must be the prophecy my mother told me about, it looks as though they may tell me this before I have to ask.

**”*There is something important in our story through something these two seems to have forgotten. We were born out of love sure, but we were born out of a desperate need and an exchange with the moon goddess.*”**

As if they too are remembering Sel and Arti both nod and smile, Selene even reaches forward and grips Artemis hand tightly.

“What do you mean and exchange ?”

Staring at the three of them it is as if they cannot decide who should tell this story so instead none of them are saying a word.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me.”

It’s a tough sell, I really want to know but I can’t force them to tell me the story of their parents, after all, it probably is private.

Cynthia Sighs deeply as if she has drawn the short end of the straw.

**”*It's not that. It’s just not a particularly lovely story I guess. Our mother and father were unable to have children originally, when Arlo attacked them our mother fled but she was injured, her abdomen torn open. She was eventually found by fathers pack and nursed back to health by her mate. They then fled and hid in the pearl moon pack to keep her safe after his pack was attacked too*”**

“I’m so sorry I didn’t realise, I mean I always knew they had been attacked. My mother also fled and found her mate and was safe until... Well you know the rest “

**”*Our parents tried to have children and when they got desperate about a year after they married so much so that she begged the moon goddess to take away her gifts in return for children. Eventually, the moon goddess answered them. She told them both she would give them daughters we would be Alphas and we would all have gifts. And then*”**

*” And then she told them that we would hold the powers of all the first and that we would be the last in our family line. She told them that one day we would be called upon to maintain the balance and we would be the last of our kind then she gave them the prophecy,what was it again Artemis ?”*

**” She told them that The last will restore the first and then the line will end. “**

“That’s your prophecy ?”

**” Yes and up until we found out about you we thought we had fulfilled it”**

It takes me a second to understand why but I assume they mean me.

“Because of me ?”

**” Yes because of you. We should be the last, we didn’t know if it meant our powers would disappear or if we just wouldn’t pass it on or what “**

Selen sniggers and then laughs.

*” Yeah and then sissy here gave birth to a magical baby, you sister showed up also with powers. So as you can imagine we are pretty much back to square one. We have no idea what it means “*

“You mean Frode has powers”

**”*Selene is exaggerating a little, Sigi and I don’t know if he has actual powers or if he has just one. All we know is that he is capable of things no one expected*”**

They have shared so much with me these past few hours, It feels selfish of me to not tell them what my mother said about the boy.

“So tonight Selene when I came to you and asked about the prophecy or if there was one you bought me right here”

*” Yes. If I had a clear answer to that I would have said but the truth is we don’t know anymore”*

“I have something else to tell you, something my mother told me tonight that I left out. I didn’t think it was important but now I’m second-guessing that “

**” Your mother ?”**

Artemis asks with surprise her eyes have rounded and widened.

*” Yes her mother came to her when she was knocked out but that’s not important right now, what did you leave out, Sekreta?”*

“Well when I saw her she told me about her brother and how he was born powerless and then she said something I found odd until now. She said he was the last boy born until recently, she told me to ask you all of the prophecies and she also told me that there are people who need my help to protect the boy from what’s coming, I think… After hearing you all that she means Frode”

Cynthia jaw drops as she stands abruptly from her seat.

**”*Protect him from what? what’s coming? How could Frode have anything to do with this? *”**

“I’m sorry I don’t know, that’s all she said”

**”*I knew this was a bad idea I knew letting you in was a bad idea. Now my baby is in danger more than likely from your sister and you’re on the inside*”**

“Cynthia I..”

She’s about to say something else, her eyes glowing yellow as her anger builds.

*” Cynthia that’s enough”*

Selene's voice booms throughout the room snapping Cynth out of the trance of worry she has put herself in.

*” She has told us all she knows. She helped repair the tear Salvi created and besides she also said there would be people that need her help to protect him. You know as well as I do she is not here to harm him”*

It's weird hearing her stick up for me once more between her being nice to me and defending me. It has been a weird day when it comes to Selene. It’s easy to forget that at my age I am older than her.
Finally, Cynthia takes a seat focusing on her breathing, she even manages to apologise between each deep breath.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen and I for sure don’t know why but when I came to find you and ran into Selene I was looking for answers in my book”

I hold it up for them to see.

“Our grandmother wrote this it might help us figure out what’s coming”

They all agree and we dive into the pages they have and my book, Selene tells me about the book that shone in the moonlight and the voices that she heard coming out of it.

She rummages through the box and pulls it out immediately flipping to the last pages.

*” These ones are missing we don’t know where they are or what they said, we hopped when we found all the other papers at our parent’s house it would find it but I think maybe they have been lost”*

I take the book from her scanning my hand over the front, I have seen this before, seen the scriptures and similar pictures I’m racking my brain for.

And then it hits me like a brick to the face.

“I have seen this book before or at least one like it.”

*” What do you mean you’ve seen it? Where ?”*

They have all stopped what they were doing, eyes fixated on me.

“Not this one exactly but it looks like the book of lights “

*” The book of lights ?”*

“It’s this book I found was pretty battered but the writing and pictures look almost the same, moreover grandma wrote about it in this diary. She said she looked for answers for help with Marels condition”

**” Marel?”**

“That was our mother’s brothers name”

**”*What if whatever happened to him is going to happen to Frode?*”**

Cynthia’s eyes start welling with tears and you can see the panic in her face still.

**” Hey we are not going to let anything happen to him, they have to get through 2 crazy aunts and a mother wolf as well as his dad before they even get anywhere near him”**

Artemis pulls her in for a hug to stop her from crying.

*” Do you remember what the book said about Sekreta ?”*

“No I don’t, it wasn’t what I was looking for at the time so I cast it aside”

I am internally cursing at my own stupidity, I should have tried to take more with me when I left.

I can see Selene’s disappointment, in fact, all of them seem disheartened.

“I’m sorry”

*” You have nothing to be sorry for, however, I don’t know about the rest of you but I think we need to get that book”*

**” We have just fought that maniac off and now you want to go walking into her house ?”**

Selene grins widely, her eyes glowing purple.

*” Exactly right. The moon goddess gave us these gifts for a reason and now there are four of us. If finding that book is going to help us protect Frode then I’m going to get it”*

Her determination and stubbornness resonate in the room and no one says anything to counter her.

*AN
Apologies for they delay in getting this one updated. I hope to be back on track with regular updates this week.
I hope you enjoy this next installment.
Kendra Summers*