Chapter 108 - On the other side of the void

**Ambrogios pov**

Centuries had passed since I last walked this way, but it might as well have been yesterday. Although the trees and bushes have changed, the impressions were the same. I slowed my steps and stopped when we passed the cave. The last time I stood here with Zandra in my arms, my intentions were something completely different. My fingers closed a little tighter around her limbs and I pressed her further against my body, as if I was protecting her from my past self who would drag her into the cave to tear her apart.
About ten bats came flying out of the opening. Heirs of those who previously had it as a home. I couldn’t help but wonder, did they inherit stories from their parents exactly like we did? Had they gotten the story of the evil that destroyed an innocent human girl in their cave? In that case, could they feel that I was the evil their ancestors talked about?
The witches had gone ahead and the wolves of the warrior pack of Great Falls passed me in groups, I’m sure some didn’t care about me...they had seen Hope’s acceptance, they knew I helped with her rescue so they were sure at least a little grateful..but there were those whose hateful looks burned my back when they passed. Did they know? Did they know what I did in this cave or did they hate me for who I was now? The father of vampires whose children of the night most likely killed someone close to them. And now I stand here with Zandra in my arms, Zandra who has been here since they were born, and if I understood correctly named their wolves. The Witch of the Pack, their compass.
“Hey, do you want me to take over?” To my surprise, Callum came up to me. Hope was the only one who had really integrated with me, the others had been more or less talking around me.
“Hey...no, it’s okay , just old memories...”
“I know your memories Ambrogio...” Callum looked me hard in the eyes but still not in the way that he wanted to tear my head off but more that he knew what happened, he hated it.. .wholeheartedly…but he was willing to give me the chance to make amends.
“Alpha Callum…Callum…Fuck! I’m not good at emotional things, I’m just learning to reacquaint myself with my own heart, I just want to say..Man to man or monster to monster...please trust me, I will never hurt her again... and I will never hurt Luna or Hope...I don’t expect you to belive me, but I still hope you can try.”
“Taking the plunge and fully trusting you...hmm...I don’t necessarily want to rip your head off when I see you, that must be a step in the right direction right? “
“Yeah..right back at you...hrm...we better go.” I think we both felt a little uncomfortable, sharing feelings.
By the lake, symbols were drawn in the sand, several people from the pack stood in the water with torches, forming a large ring, the witches formed their own ring inside. In the middle was a small float decorated with plants and flowers. Hope joined us as me, Callum and his sister waded into the water and made our way towards the middle. Tatiana showed me how to place Zandra on the flotation device, then lead me the head end and placed my hands on Zandra’s head. Hope stood across from me with her hands on Zandra’s feet. Callum and Cathy stood on each side, holding one of Zandra’s hands each while their other hand touched one of the witches in the ring, forming the bridge.
“Now, remember, if we manage to break her barrier and get her back she will probably be exhausted, she will need to rest, as I said before it takes strength to do what she has done.”

*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
As soon as we all had taken our positions the witches started chanting
*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
Suddenly the torches had their own life, the flames shot up in the sky, the scribbles in the sand almost started to glow, the wind picked up and made the calm surface of the water ripple.
*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
*Murus lucis illustratur, murus lucis obumbratur, rescinditur*
Their voices got stronger and Tatiana moved in the circle and stopped in front of each witch and drew a sign on their forehead.
“Hope, Ambrogio, touch the bridge!” She shouted before joining their chant. We moved one of our hands to touch Cathy and Callum and immediately everything around us disappeared, everything went white.
I don’t know how long we stood in the white void, all I could see was Hope.
“Ambrogio! Look!” Hope looked at something behind me and when I turned I could see dark spots in the light behind me.
“They are doing it! They are tearing down the wall!” We moved towards the spots, one of them was as big as a grown man. I took Hope’s hand and we pressed against it, it didn’t take much for us to step through but we were very surprised by what we found on the other side. We had expected to get back to the lake, and in a sense we did. But it wasn’t the lake in our time, I don’t know if it was in any time that ever existed but it was the same lake.
The first thing I thought about was that it was daytime, the sun was high in a cloudless sky and I felt its warmth on my skin. My reaction was to crouch behind Hope, trying to avoid the sting I know is inevitable.
“What are you doing?”
“The sun!” At the same time as I said the words, I noticed that it did not hurt me.
“What the fuck?”..
“Hey, it’s not a real world, so, not a real sun..” I felt a little embarrassed when she rolled her eyes at me.
“Hrm..I know that...”
“Come, this way!” She took my hand and pulled me with her. I noticed the untouched nature, no trodden paths, no felled trees...birds chirping, flowers, sounds of rabbits and small animals in the bushes but no sign of people.
I recognized the little croft as soon as I saw it. The thatched roof, the whitewashed stone walls, the rose bushes that had closed their flowers for the night last time I was here and only the scent of honeysuckle was in the cool night air. Zandra’s childhood home.
“It looks so different…” Hope stopped outside the small gate at the front of the house.
“Do you think? It looks like I remember it."
“Maybe because you were here several hundred years before me.”
“Perhaps…are you ready?” I opened the gate and she responded by taking a step into the blooming garden.
“Listen!” Hope brought me to an abrupt halt.
“Do you hear it?” I swallowed the irritation I felt about that she didn’t rush forward to find Zandra, something my whole body was screaming at me to do. Instead, I concentrated on listening.
Voices! The sound of voices came from the back of the house, we couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it was definitely more than one. We moved slowly towards the sound and as we rounded the short side of the house we both dropped our jaws. A very old woman was crouched over a garden plot, she had a cane she was leaning against, I suspect she would fall otherwise. Next to her were what I could see two hares.
“Is this the thanks I get?...You get dinner every night, right? Breakfast in the morning? All I ask is that you leave my vegetable fields alone! Look what you’ve done!”
“We apologize, it’s the little ones, they’re getting new teeth right now, they’re itchy, you know, they gnaw on everything they can find.”
“So, show them the sticks in the forest, there are any number of them!”
She talked to the hares! And they answered!
“If you want, we’ll bring the whole family over tonight and get the vegetable patch ready for you again."
“Ha! You’re not fooling me, I may be old but I’m not stupid. No, make sure you stay away or I’ll be serving nothing but daffodils for a long time to come.” The hares responded by wrinkling their noses, nodding slowly.
“Ma’am! Please Ma’am, I’m about to burst, it’s way past milking time!” Hope and I both jumped when we saw the cow, it was talking too. The woman sighed and stood up carefully. She was still very crouched, but it was probably the age, she seemed very old. Could this be one of Zandra’s childhood memories? Maybe a great grandmother or grandmother in a twisted interpretation in a child’s brain? When she turned around, both Hope and I could see it…there where no parent or grandparent…it was her, It was Zandra.