Chapter 96 Origins

*Eric Lockwood *

I stopped at the traffic light and checked if my main phone was switched off so I wouldn't be tracked. I took out my burner phone so I could connect it to my bluetooth earpiece. I only had ten black sapphires including mine which meant the nine others whom I would give a sapphire to had to be wolves I could trust as well as wolves who can assist me with my plans.

Because of all the terrible things I have done to become what I am now, I knew if the black wolf would come back, I would be punished and all the things I had worked so hard to achieve would vanish in a blink of an eye. My grandfather and father, fortunately, thought the same. I had read the research my parents had compiled when they were still alive and had found why my father mated with my mother. She was a descendant of the wolves of the Black Resistance. I found a small journal among their things which narrated the origins of the Black Resistance and how these sapphires became their prized possessions.

My mother's ancestors were from a pack of wolves who practiced dark magic passed on to them by their elders. During the time of the black wolf, they rebelled against her. At the start, many of their pack members died mysteriously in their sleep so they decided to move away from the black wolf's territory near the border of Mexico in Arizona. However, the black wolf knew wherever they were and could hear whatever they thought.

Their dreams had become nightmares so out of fear, they refrained from sleeping during the night when the black wolf was at her strongest. Yet, her power was so strong that they would fall asleep when she willed it, leaving wounds on their bodies when they woke. Some of the wolves succumbed to their injuries however, the rest of them still did not yield to the black wolf.

As the days passed, they began hearing voices in their heads, condemning them for their mistakes, tormenting them with their guilt. It drove them mad. While others decided to bend to the will of the black wolf, many of them, including the leader of the pack, had stopped eating, had practically stopped living, and just waited for the inevitable...their deaths.

But luck was on their side. Native American Indians took pity on the leader of the pack and gave him a rock with black sapphires to ward off evil spirits. They believed whatever was happening to them was because they had angered an evil spirit. The Native Americans said the black sapphires came from their ancestors who crossed the Bering Strait during the Eurasion Migration and brought the precious gems to deflect illness and negativity.

The Alpha was skeptical at first, but when the rock with the black sapphires was placed in his hands, the voice of the black wolf stopped. For the first time in a very long time, he was at peace.

He then decided to seek out more of the black sapphires to save his pack members. The rock of black sapphires he divided into six and gave a piece to five of his strongest wolves. They then set off to the Native American tribe who made the grave mistake of pitying a wolf near the brink of death.

They shifted into their wolf form and massacred the tribe members leaving the Chieftain alive so he could give them whatever black sapphires they had left. Unfortunately, the Chieftain said he gave them the only rock they had. If they wanted more, they would have to visit a tribe living along the East Coast of the country and look for a man named Aranck who was said to possess magical powers.

They decided twelve would leave. The leader and his five strongest wolves with their mates. They divided the six pieces into twelve so each wolf would have a piece of black sapphire. Before they set off on their quest, they instructed their pack members to follow the bidding of the black wolf in order to survive. They promised when they returned, the revolt would begin.

They travelled to the East Coast as winter set in, braving the snow and freezing temperatures. To earn money for their travels, they would hunt animals for food especially bears and sell the fur to the humans who would pay them nicely for them. They found Aranck in a sprawling tribe in one of the mountain valleys in Virginia. Since there were too many of them, they decided to buy the black sapphires with all the money they had earned from the fur trade, yet they were not allowed to enter the tribe's territory. The guards said they smelled 'different'.

Fortunately, Aranck had a weakness and that was moonshine and gambling. They waited for him to visit his favorite tavern and when he appeared, they waited until he lost big so they could negotiate to give them whatever black sapphires he had left or they would kill him.

That's when they found out Aranck was a half-breed magus and knew the black wolf was killing off the wolves who were against her. He believed that wolves were superior and the humans were pitiful beings who should submit to their master, us wolves. He also believed that it was nonsense for wolves to mate with humans saying it was abomination even if he himself was a half-breed. He agreed to give them all the raw black sapphires he possessed just as long as he could come back with them. The Alpha agreed, believing the addition of a mage to his pack would make them stronger.

However, when they arrived, Aranck magically took the black sapphire while the Alpha slept, allowing the black wolf to punish the Alpha in his dreams. His mate woke up to find herself covered in blood. When she looked beside her to check on the Alpha, she discovered he was dead and was missing all four of his limbs.

Aranck rose to power as the Alpha of the Black Resistance taking the dead Alpha's mate as his Luna. He then provided each member a small, marble shaped black sapphire which he extracted from the rocks.

I could not find how the Black Resistance wagered against the black wolf. The journal which spoke of the origins of the Black Resistance did not contain any other information.

There was another journal, however, which spoke of the adoption of the pup of Aranck by a pack in the north and the dissolution of the pack which practiced dark magic. The pup was said to bear the mark of the inverted triangle, the symbol for a hanging man, a traitor. The journal said a group retreated deep into the forest near the territory of the pack who adopted Aranck's heir. They knew the group was near, however it was impossible to find them.

Well, I don't care about them anyway. I care about myself and getting that ring my granddaughter had. That ring is my ticket to becoming invincible.

I called One. I had to give him a sapphire including someone he could trust.

"One, don't say anything. Don't even think of my name. Meet me at the parking lot of your building. I'm turning into the entrance of the parking lot as we speak," I told him, then I hung up.

His parking space was on the first level of the basement parking. While I waited infront of the elevator so he could see me as soon as he came out, I took out two small black sapphires and placed each one on a pendant of a necklace. When the elevator opened, he saw me immediately. I raised my finger to my lips, telling him to stay quiet then gestured for him to enter the car.

"Here, put this on," I handed him the necklace.

"Not really my style-..."

"Put the damn thing on!" I showed him the contents of the chest. He finally figured out why it was so important. He placed the necklace on and hid it under his shirt.

"Happy?"

"Yes. Finally we can talk without the black wolf listening in. What you have on is a black sapphire used by the Black Resistance who fought against the black wolf. It makes us invisible to her. She doesn't know what we are thinking or where we are," I explained. "Now, I want to know what's being planned."

"The Chief is planning to gate crash the ceremony tonight and my men will be rescuing Second," he answered.

"Okay. I will go see the Chief and his men and hand out some of the black sapphires to them. As for you, you can't tell all your men your plans. You can only tell one other." I handed him the extra necklace. He took it from me and placed the necklace in his right pocket.

"E.L., I need more if you can spare more for my men," he said.

"Sorry, One, I only have nine to give away. One is mine, the other is Chase's and you get two. I only have six left to give to Chief and his men," I explained. I saw the disappointment in his eyes.

"Do all black sapphires have the same effect on the black wolf or is it just these?" He asked.

"I actually don't know. The leader of the Black Resistance was a mage who probably casted a spell or did some ritual to make these black sapphires magical. You can try out the theory if you chance upon a black sapphire in a jewelry store," I replied.

"How will I know if it works against the black wolf?"

"How do you feel right now?" I asked him.

"Well, my ass has stopped hurting and the voices I have been hearing in my head, they've stopped," One said realizing what this meant. "I feel like my old self. I'm going to buy all the black sapphires in the country and test them. Thanks, E.L." One was about to exit the car when he  paused and turned to face me. "I have one final question though. Are there any repercussions for wearing one of these? I do know if I stop wearing this, the black wolf will probably bite a huge chunk of my ass when I next see her in my sleep. If there is a consequence for wearing this black sapphire and it's worse than the black wolf, you better tell me now, E.L., so I can at least take my chances and make a choice." I raised my eyes to look at his, bewildered he would ask such a thing. I averted my eyes from his gaze and stared outside at the parking lot. I never thought there may be something of consequence from wearing the black sapphire.

"I have not come across any issue regarding the  black sapphires in my readings," I answered. "Is it not enough that it makes us invisible to the black wolf?"

"I'm not used to this magic stuff. The only magic I know is the elixir and to tell you honestly, it's more chemistry than magic. It's just that I remember the mage had this small gem collection in this really nice display box in his safe. I saw it when I came to visit him at Minerva Allen's Rhode Island estate, but when I reached for the box, he grabbed my hand to stop me and he told me not to touch them in this really cold tone... like the gems were poison." He threw a hand up in the air and shook his head like it was a bad joke. "Like you would wear something, uhm, poisonous, right E.L.? Don't listen to me. I'm just rambling nonsense." He looked at me apologetically. I understood what he meant. "By the way, do you know where the mage is? I need him so I can continue my operations.

"He's at Wolf Penitentiary, One. I'll see what I can do to get him out of there. Remember, you can never tell the others of your plans except for the one you will give that necklace to. Tonight, my granddaughter will be anointed Alpha. I can't let that happen. So, I'll leave it up to you to save Second while I retrieve what was mine. Now, I have to go before Lucas and Michael have a chance to follow me here." I turned the ignition of the car signaling One to leave.

"Sure E.L. Give me a call when you guys finish with the details." One exited the car and I drove out of the parking lot as soon as he closed the door. I needed to drive to see the Chief and make a small detour of my own. Good thing I only had to drive in one direction.

I had to speak with the mage and find out what he knew about gems particularly a black sapphire like mine and see what I can do to get him out of his confinement.

I know the black wolf will know where to find me when I talk to the mage, but it's a risk I had to take.