Chapter 37

*The Ritual—Part 1*

**Nerissa POV**

Seeing Reynard standing there on that podium made panic rise inside of me.
He stood there shirtless, in black pants, barefoot, waiting with a huge grin flashing upon his lips as his eyes looked down at Hilda and me, approaching the podium.
I looked around me and could see many unfamiliar faces of dark Fae as they looked at Hilda and me as we passed by them.
‘Dear Goddess, please help me get out of this mess, I don’t want to lose my mates.’ I prayed silently to the Moon Goddess all the time being dragged towards the podium.
Finally, reaching the center, we climbed up onto the makeshift podium as Hilda led me to the center.
She looked up towards the sky, smiling as she said, “It is time.”
My heart raced hearing her words as I searched around for any way to escape this mess but couldn’t seem to find any way out.
Hilda stood in between Reynard and me as she turned towards the crowd and said, “Welcome my dear friends of the Dark World.” She started speaking as the crowd listened carefully, “Tonight we have a special event, a rare one to be seen and performed but luckily you all are blessed to withstand this happening. The Red Moon is rising up signaling that the dark force’s magic is growing stronger and with the help of the Red Moon’s powers, the sacred ancient ritual known as Phoenix orientem, can be and will be performed tonight.” She finished talking, making the whole crowd cheer loudly while my body froze upon hearing her words.
“The Phoenix orientem for those who do not know what it is, it is a ritual of breaking a given mate bond and creating a new one.” She added with a huge grin on her face, continuing, “Though such ritual combined with dark magic, it requires sacrifices as the name to it comes as Phoenix, the one who rises from the ashes.”
Many heads nodded, hearing her speak as I tried to force my brain to work, to think of any way out of this.
With a determined voice, she said, “Let us begin as it is time.” The last part she said looking directly at me and I saw her eyes grew even darker as she walked to the back, meeting halfway with a female Fae.
I watched her closely, seeing her take two cups in her hands as she walked back towards us.
She gave one cup to Reynard, extending her hand giving me the other, saying, “Drink this.”
Not wanting any part of this ritual, I stood there watching her, with my narrowed eyes, saying, “No!”
Gasps escaped a few of the Fae that were watching our exchange, but if I thought her reaction would be different, I certainly didn’t think it would be her laughing darkly at my defiance.
“You will drink this one way or another little girl, so you have two options here, one is you will do as I say willingly or second I will force you to, and trust me you do not stand a chance now against me. Now, which way will it be?” Hilda asked me with a dark tone of her voice, and I knew without my phoenix still I had fewer chances to win against her but I was not giving up.
Raising my chin up, I spoke to her, “I will never willingly submit down to you and your demands.”
I heard her chuckle while Reynard took a step towards me but was halted in his place by the raise of her hand, “So be it.” In a low voice, cold as ice, she spoke the words and in a second I saw dark lines appear around her eyes, making a cold, chilly air to blow around us when she said, “Totalis submissio imperium!” (Total submission control.)
In a moment, I could feel like thousands of iron hands held over me, controlling my body while all I could do was stand there and watch.
She smirked at me, giving me the same cup she tried a moment ago, saying, “Let’s try again, shall we? Drink this.”
The force inside of me was strong, and I saw my hand reaching out to grab that cup, so I tried with my whole spirit to fight against it, not wanting to do anything that she wanted me to.
It was useless to fight against the dark magic as I wasn’t strong as I usually was, and more than ever I missed Bellania, knowing if she was awake she would fight to get us out of this live prison.
Using my last hope I could possibly think of, I tried to dive into my connection with Bellania, screaming her name, trying anything that might wake her up, “Bellania!!”
“Bellania!! Wake up!!” I tried once again, as I saw my hand taking the cup, raising it slowly up, reaching my lips.
I couldn’t move my head away as my eyes fell down to see a dark greenish liquid, with steam coming out of it, making me panic as the cup pressed on my lips the same moment I screamed in my bond for my phoenix, “Bellania!!!”
The bitter taste of the greenish liquid filled my mouth as I swallowed it down, making me start coughing as Hilda gave me a dark smile.
She turned around, raising both of her arms up, saying slowly, “Videtur!” (Appear!)
A large, thick shadow appeared, wrapped around something, disappearing away and leaving behind what looked like a stone table and a book standing on a stand.
I watched her silently as she took off her black robe I didn’t even notice she was wearing before, giving it to the young female Fae as she slowly turned around and I could see her wearing a black fabric that looked like a dress, held in the middle with a silver belt that looked like larger size coins, following along her slim waist. 
Her feet were bare with an ankle silver bracelet on her left ankle and I could see her leg showing from a slit of her black dress.  
The top was revealing as two silver pins, hooked in the middle of her dress, and held the sides together, letting the fabric fall over her shoulders, leaving her arms bare and her back on display and tucked under the belt, leaving little to nothing to the imagination.
Snapping her fingers, the black shadows wrapped around me, blinding me for a moment when I felt a cold, hard surface underneath my body.
That heaviness of the dark magic I was feeling earlier, pressing down onto me, controlling me, was gone now.
I turned my head to look where I was, only to find myself chained to the stone table.
I tried to pull onto chains but there was no use and I couldn’t help the feeling of panic and fear that wrapped around me.
With the edge of my eye, I saw a movement, making me look that way only to see a dark silhouette growing larger and larger.
Fear shining from my eyes, I kept my eyes on the approaching silhouette when suddenly as it took a step into the light that was lightened by a torch burning near the edge of the podium; I saw a hand grab at it, lifting a large, muscular body up on the stage.
Stormy silver eyes found mine as they examined me, making my body burning under his gaze.
The moment he noticed chains wrapping over my wrists and ankles, a frown appeared on his face, making him lift his eyes to look at me, making me see the wild, dark look, shining through his eyes as a growly slowly reached my ears.
His head snapped towards Hilda and as she could sense his hostility that was radiating off of him in dangerous waves, she took a step towards him, reaching next to him as she rises on the tips to whisper something into Randall’s ear.
His eyes went back to me, and towards Reynard, scowling for a moment. But it seemed like whatever she was telling him, he agreed to.
Hilda walked away as the female Fae approached Randall with a cup in her hands, making me scrunch down my eyebrows in a silent question as I looked at him.
Like he could feel me looking at him, he turned his head towards me, and I couldn’t see any emotion showing anymore in his eyes or features.
I watched him reach for his shirt as he slowly unbuttoned it, now taking his eyes off of me for a second as he slowly peeled it off of him, giving it to the silent female Fae as she gave him the cup in return.
He walked towards me, silently looking down at me, and as he could see the panic and fear that I tried so hard to hide, boiling up inside of me, he took my hand into his, squeezing it lightly, whispering only for my ears to hear, “It will be ok, Nerissa. Don’t be afraid.”
My eyes widened at his small affection and encouragement and before I could deny I was afraid, the warmth of his hand disappeared, making me wish it came back again.
I saw the silent Fae walking on my other side, holding something as she gave it to Hilda who stood in front, facing Reynard.
She placed her hand inside what appeared to be a small chest that the Fae was holding for her. Pulling her hand out, I noticed her fingers were covered with something like black paint.
In a low voice, she started to chant words I could barely distinguish as her hand drew lines all across Reynard’s chest and arms.
Reynard’s eyes found mine and I could see determination and excitement shining inside of them.
I watched Hilda’s every move as she finished painting over Reynard and motioning with her hand she called out for Randall.
My eyes watched his every step as slowly he approached her, letting her draw different shapes all over his chest and arms.
I could feel the bitter taste in my mouth as anger started to boil inside of me, making me pull hard on the chains, but they still didn’t break.
Everyone had their eyes on me, but I didn’t care. I wanted out of these chains, so I tried to fight them off of my wrist, struggling with every movement.
As soon as she was done with Randall, she moved towards me and pressed her cold fingers onto the boiling hot skin of my forearm.
I tried to move my arm away, but she grabbed me and pressed hard, making it impossible for me to move as she continued to paint all over my skin.
Soon as she was done, she did the same on both of her arms.
The silent female Fae walked again towards Hilda and gave her an item then.
I could see it was a knife that she used on her own palm as she cut slightly drawing blood that she let drop down into the second item that the Fae female was holding, a small golden cauldron, covered on the middle with strange markings, almost same looking ones I saw Hilda just painted over Reynard, Randall, herself and me.
When she was done with filling the cauldron with her blood, she walked towards Reynard and Randall, repeating the same process she just did a second ago.
I noticed she continued to chant the words as she cut into each other the male’s palms and didn’t stop, not even when she reached over to me.
I felt the tip of the knife pierce into my palm, making tiny drops of blood fall into the same golden cauldron.
When the last drop of my blood dropped inside it, a puff of black smoke appeared as a chilly wind started to turn around the podium with electric bolts shining all around us.
Then I could feel it starting.