Under The Blood Moon

Theban Alphabet

The sun was rising by the time they got back to Riverdale. As they walked through the doors of the diner the bell dinged signaling their arrival. Moments later they were in a booth ordering breakfast. Both of them were covered in layers of dirt and sweat, basically sleeping as they walked.

"Can you tell me why we just buried a body and you implied that's just the tip of the iceberg?"

"It started when I was in New York..."

The sun was setting behind the buildings giving the whole area a golden glow. Veronica focused on the directions flowing through her head. She wasn't lost just... confused. She'd circled the area about six times wondering what she was missing.

She leaned against the cool brick thinking back to what they had told her. She was right on top of where she needed to be but the only thing in the ally was a back door to a rundown shop she wasn't even sure was still open.

She grunted in frustration before dropping to the ground. Normally she'd never sit on the dirty New York street but after almost an hour of nothing she needed a break. She looked up and right above her on the ledge of the roof was the symbol she knew all too well. It was just mere feet from her.

Of course, a witch coven would hide their secret cult hideout. She flicked her fingers in a weird pattern and within seconds the door was clicking open and Veronica was stepping in.

"Nice one guys. You call me here for an emergency meeting and hide the entrance from me." The metal stairs clicked under her heels as she made her way into the meeting room.

The walls were lined with bookshelves all sorts of shades of black and brown. She had read a few of them in her time being a part of the cult. There was a table at the far end of the room covered in more junk than she could count. In the middle stood all twelve senior members, hands clasped in front of them, like a mother who is scolding their disobedient child.

"Veronica Cecilia Lodge. Your crimes against the coven will not go unpunished."

As the oldest woman spoke the others pulled out viles from their pockets. Each of them wore long cloaks that covered much of their face and all of their body. She could only tell the difference between them by the color of trim on the hoods.

The room darkened and their hands started to light up and the viles filled with a dark red liquid began to bubble. Veronica's skin began to burn and her head throbbed.

"We find you, Veronica Cecilia Lodge, guilty of treason in the highest order." The woman paused as Veronica's mouth fell open in agonizing pain. "Your punishment is to live between the realms for all eternity. You will no longer be alive but not yet dead. The sun shall burn and the night will be your only companion. You must never set foot in the sacred temple again for you are dismissed of your title."

The words mixed with the pain was all too much. The sounds around her began to slam together. She could hear a spell coming from their mouths but couldn't focus on what they had said. Veronica began to drag herself to the stairs and climb until she could no longer hear them chanting. It was too late though. She knew the spell had taken hold and soon she would fully transform.

"So you're a witch? A cursed witch?" Jughead asked through a mouthful of fries.

"Kind of. I was born a witch, it's a part of my lineage. All the women before me, my mother, my abuela, my bisabuela, and so on. I had joined this group of witches back in New York but they were horrible people that hurt more than they helped. I had tried to stop them but I was only fourteen. I was confident and naive and thought I could stop them by myself but I was wrong. They found out and they cursed me but..." Veronica looked at her hands intertwined in her lap. Jughead didn't move except to chew. "It's called the curse of the night walker but you know it more commonly as Vampirism."

"Just give me a second." Jughead had put down his food and stared straight at Veronica. It felt like an eternity as Jughead stared. "So you're a vampire witch? Yeah, that makes total sense. Veronica stop fucking with me."

"I'm not a full witch. Not anymore. I ran out before the ritual could be finished. I only have some of my powers anymore. It's what helps me walk around during the day. Please Jughead you've seen what I can do."

"I know it's just all so..." He trailed off

"Crazy? I know."

"Why me? Why'd you tell me?"

"In this whole town, you're the only one I knew would not just believe me but I know you won't think of me as a monster."

"What makes you so sure?" Silence hung in the air at Jughead's question. Veronica stared into his eyes before responding.

"You're here... After everything you saw, you stayed. After everything we did, you stayed. And you're still here now."

Veronica could see the gears turning behind Jughead's eyes. She patiently waited as he perfectly crafted his thoughts.

"You said the ritual was never finished. What does that mean for... you?"

"It means I'm dying. If I don't complete the ritual eventually the Vampirism will take over and my body will begin to decay as if I was truly killed. The more blood I consume the longer it will take but it won't last forever. By this time next year, I could be dead." She looked down at the table top ignoring Jughead's eyes.

"What do we have to do?" He spoke certainly.

"We?"

"We."

*****

Jughead scanned the books lining Veronica's shelves. So many classics sat beside spell books. The complete works of Truman Capote filled two full shelves. He ran his fingers across the leather-bound spines of the dark spell books. He admired the way she had organized her collection. When you look at it you just feel Veronica seeping through the pages.

"So..." Jughead started, sliding a book out of the shelf and began to flip through the old pages. Veronica's beautiful writing annotated the edges of the spells. "Do we need to find these horrible New York witches to save you?"

Veronica turned away from her desk as Jughead spoke. "No, I don't think so. I've been doing research in the past three years and believe I found the spell they used. I just can't do it alone."

"Show me." Jughead walked to the book Veronica had open on the desk. Her writing stood out against the yellowing pages and faded words.

"The thing is... I don't know the Theban alphabet that well and it will take weeks to translate."

"I'm sorry? The theban alphabet? What is that?" Jughead took a closer look at the pages and realized nothing was in English besides what Veronica wrote.

"It's an old witches alphabet used to hide the true meaning of spells. Many of the old books I acquired use this alphabet to keep their content hidden from the people who could go against the coven. It's hard to translate when you don't know it because it's not a perfect translation. Many letters we now have in modern English have no direct translation. But if we start now we could have it done by the end of the month."

"What are we waiting for? Let's get to work?"