Read The 13th: Destiny Awaits Online
Authors: Ela Lond
The 13th: Destiny Awaits (25 page)
“He's trying to feed on us,” Nan said, the voice coming from Kate's mouth.
“You are not a man.” Kate thrust the wide blade into the mass before her and wheeled it around.
The gaps she made closed as soon as they were made.
It was frustrating to see them, but it didn't stop Kate from making new ones, from twirling her shaft around just like Ethan had taught her.
The Eater laughed at her, taunted her, the strain slowed her movement and the rod became heavier. They were not going to make it.
But then she noticed a rip that didn't close, not the way the others had. She thrust her blade deeper into the whiteness and it was thinner than before. It was like watching the world through gauze. She could see the shelves and the soldiers rushing toward her and being repelled back. The plunges and slashes of her blade became faster and deeper as the Eater's taunts became quieter and less frequent until he fell silent, and she could hear only his harsh breathing and the clamour coming from beyond the whiteness.
A few slices and they were outside.
The Eater was now a white rag with tattered edges skittering in the circle made by the soldiers. He was trying to find a way out.
They couldn't allow him to escape, not when there was an abundance of souls on which he could feed to regain his power.
Kate sprang after him; he was quick, but her shaft was a long one and with a thought it could become even longer. She swung it around, not minding the soldiers the shaft passed through like they were air.
Her blade cut the Eater in half.
He shrieked.
Another slash. And then another, each one accompanied by a cry of pain and vexation. Now he was just a small ball of white, just one more strike and he would be gone. In a way she might have pity for him, if not for everything that he had done to her. Because of him, she would never have the chance to feel her mother's arms around her again.
She brandished her blade with vengeance. It went right through the middle of the white mass.
A dot of white light flashed, then he was gone.
Kate tiredly drew the rod against her side. It vanished and two silhouettes twisted out of her spiritual form.
“You did it.” Ethan wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against him.
“Yes, I did it.” But it would never been possible without him by her side. Or without Nan. And Mandy and Tyler. She looked up at him. “I just figured out something.”
“What?”
“That life is so much easier and better when friends are by your side.”
“True.” He tousled her hair. “Especially when you stop pushing them away.”
Kate walked with Ethan and Nan down the cobbled path to the main square, where a statue of a person in a cloak with a hood over its head and a scythe in its hand stood in its centre. The city still seemed as deserted as before, with a silence covering it like a blanket, but they had passed a few residents on Nan’s guided tour of the city. Most of their auras were coloured, but a few of them had auras as black as Nan's.
Nan explained that when souls were ready to leave the circle of reincarnation, they were offered two choices: to become part of the Entity or to become a member of the 13th. For Souls who chose the latter, the higher they rose in the hierarchy, the darker their colour got, until it became black. When that happened, they could become a Keeper if they wished. There was a lack of Keepers; there were only seven of them, which was why Nan was going to go to one of the other worlds.
“But I need you.” Kate stopped under the statue, trying to gauge whether it was a woman or a man, but the shadow of the hood hid the features of the statue's face. “Tyler needs you.”
“You will all do just fine. There still some things you need to learn, but --”
“I have this covered,” Ethan said. “I’ll teach her everything she needs to learn.”
“Yes, you have this covered.” Nan patted Ethan's shoulder.
“What are we doing here anyway?” Kate inquired.
“Saying goodbye,” Nan said.
“You will visit, right?” Ethan pushed his hands into the pocket of his jeans.
“It depends on my new charges,” Nan answered.
“What charges?” Ethan and Kate both asked simultaneously.
“Ah, here they come now,” Nan turned toward the alley west of the statue.
Kate followed Nan’s movement, and when she listened, she could hear steps drawing near.
Two teenagers, a boy and girl, shabbily dressed, walked into the square, hesitatingly, their eyes darting around. The closer they came, the more their progress slowed until they stopped, staring at them. They seemed scared.
Ethan's mouth fell open with a short gasp. He pointed at them. “They look like us.”
“Yes, they do. Sometimes the mirrored souls have the same abilities, but that's not always the case. I will have to say goodbye now.” Nan gave both Ethan and Kate a tight hug. “We will keep in touch, with butterflies. And if you can’t reach me, you can now send a butterfly to the 13th and they will refer it to me.” Then, after a wave to them, she approached the two teenagers.
“Did you see that?”
“Yes, I did.” Kate hooked her arm with his.
“Well, that's a change,” Ethan commented.
“What is?” Kate lifted her gaze.
“You, for the first time, making a move on me.”
“I would never.”
“What's this?” Ethan lifted their arms.
“This is a ‘move on you’?” Kate smiled.
“It is if you’re the one making it.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
“Hey.” He pushed her in front of him, his chest touching her back. “After we get home, would you go out with me? Not today, of course, but on Friday? Or Saturday?”
“Maybe.” She narrowed her mouth in an attempt to suppress the stupid smile that wanted to bloom on her face.
“I have no ulterior motives.”
“I know.”
“So?”
“Yes, I would love to go out with you.”
“Great.” She could hear the joy in his voice.
He really, genuinely liked her and she was pushing him away all this time. So stupid. She looked at him over her shoulder and her breath hitched at the mega-watt smile that shone on his face.
“Ready to go?”
She nodded.
He moved closer, his energy tickling her. “Mandy's room?”
“No.” She shook her head. “My room.” She had learned from Nan that using the 13th portal they could appear anywhere they wanted; that was how Nan managed to train Ethan without leaving the neighbourhood for longer periods of time.
“Your room, then.” He immersed into her. They concentrated on her room and the blackness slid away to expose the beige walls and white furniture of her room. They stepped into it.
He floated to his body lying on Kate's bed while she went to the hallway. There was something she had to do. Through the wall, she passed into the empty guest room.
“Kate.” A pink shape rose from the chair beside the window that overlooked the front yard.
“Mum.” Kate flew closer. She wasn't ready to say goodbye to her mother, but she never would be, so she might as well do this now, when she felt strong -- like she could save not just a world, but a whole universe. Which she had, actually.
“I’m so sorry for everything,” Mother said.
“It wasn’t you.”
“I never stopped loving you and I never meant to hurt you.” Her mother spread her arms.
“I know that.” Kate rushed to her mother. She wrapped her arms around her mother’s middle and rested her head against her mother’s shoulder. The need to weep had just begun to overpower her when her mother’s arms closed around her and her hands started to draw soothing circles on Kate’s back.
Golden light appeared in the corner of the room.
It was too soon, she needed more time to be with her mother, more time to say everything that lay in her heart, but the light refused to go away.
They exchanged rushed words of sorrow and love, and then Kate tightened her hold on Mother, before she hesitantly released her and stepped away. Her mother would be just fine; death was only a beginning -- Kate knew that better than anybody, even though that didn't lessen her pain and sorrow or dampen her desire to hold onto her mother as long as she could. The ones who were left behind were the ones who hurt the most, but she had friends to back her up and to wipe away her tears. With their help, she would manage, somehow.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this story, please consider leaving a review.
* * * * *
* * * * *
Other Books by Ela Lond:
NOVELS:
Moon’s Reflection Series
tells stories about Lueeshareteers (Bloodeaters), powerful creatures old as time itself, who split into three clans live in seeming peace and rule the world from shadows.
Red Moon’s Reflection:
After Tina crosses paths with Damon Blackdart, she discovers that her soul houses another, dormant soul, Trinity, Damon’s Beloved, who died centuries ago.
Damon tries to draw Trinity forward and when he succeeds, Tina befriends her and learns that Damon is part of the Lueeshareteers (Bloodeaters), powerful creatures old as time itself, whose three clans live in seeming peace and rule the world from shadows. After she is swept from Damon’s grasp by the Dumes, Trinity’s children, she also learns that vampires are not at the top of the food chain.
Blue Moon’s Reflection:
Tina lives with the Dumes on the edge of Bloodeater society. They are travelling across Europe searching for clues that will bring them to Damon, Tina’s Beloved, before his nightmares swallow him completely. But the only lead they have are Tina’s dreams.
Silver Moon’s Reflection:
Tina, now accustomed to life as a member of the Bloodeaters' world, sets out with the Dumes on a pilgrimage to the Resting Circle. When Damon joins their mission, she must confront her feelings for him, and her fear that surrendering to him will cost her Uriel and the family she has come to love.
SHORT STORIES:
Fall Vol.3
is a short (7,000 words long) surreal story:
Eira, a girl without memories and knowledge who she is, on her journey to the Dayyan River with her saviour Blaidd discovers that things are never what they seem to be, and that love has a high price.
Hegira
is a (11,000 words long) fantasy romance set in Victorian London.
Amanda believed she was alone in the world and afraid of never being able to escape her uncle's greedy clutches, especially after he betrothed her to a complete stranger. But then three men burst into the house, interrupting the wedding, and take her away. The intruders call themselves Elementals, and she begins to rediscover her forgotten connection to them.
The 13th: Ineluctable Fate
(Pre-Destiny Awaits) is a short (15,000 words long) paranormal romance set in Victorian London.
As the Awakener, Ashton Godwill eased ghosts’ passage into the other world and obliterated Soul Eaters -- ghosts who have lost their auras and feed on the spirit energy of others. When the number of Soul Easters suddenly increases, Ashton’s guardian employs the help of the Reaper. Unfortunately, the Reaper is the boy who broke Ashton’s heart, the boy Ashton would rather never see again.
Precocious
is a short (13,000 words long) fantasy inspired by Cinderella story.
In the world of fairies, seventeen-year-old Rue's days consist of farming, cleaning, selling her crops at the local market or in the human world above, while her stepmother and stepsister attend dances, parties and any society event her stepmother manages to get invited to. Rue never cared for dances and never wished to go to one until Andrew, one of the Prince's friends, invites her to a ball that Rue's stepmother doesn't want her to attend.
SHORT STORY COLLECTION:
Heart Strings
is a short (5.000 words long) fantasy:
Faith is a Controller studying at the Academy for Alchemists, Controllers and Mages to secure a successful life after graduation. Until the boy she secretly always thought of as her hero endangers her scholarship and with that her future.
For your entertainment
(Destiny Awaits Side Story) is a short, 8,000-words long, slow-building contemporary high-school romance:
From the first moment Mandy Hill saw Tyler Webster shooting hoops she wanted to get close to him, but for that she would have to become popular. Not an easy task for a girl with adjustment problems and a brother who liked to play weirdo. And becoming friends with the school outcast didn’t help either.
This Feeling
is a 7,000-words long urban fantasy:
Alex, a high school student, has entered the Year of the Change, as Werefelines call the stage of life in which their transformations into cat form begin. Alex hates it, though, and soothes the pain of metamorphosis with drinking and denial -- until a mysterious black panther crosses her path.
Lost
is a 5,000-words long fantasy:
Hope, a trained assassin, only had one goal in life, to kill the General, a childhood friend who broke her heart when he sided with the oppressive and despotic ruler of their nation.
Together Forever
is a 9,000-words long horror story:
Leah and Adam, survivors of the plague that all but wiped out humanity on the Fourth Continent, are on a dangerous journey to Assembly, the only way out of the zombie-infested continent. Can their love survive death, and all that comes after?