Ulterior Motives

An Unfortunate Change of Events

Sorry, it took me so long. Life has been crazy. 

Happy Reading.

Love
NJ Kuhr
XOXO

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Oliver had appeared on the rooftop of the New York City Public Library. He could see the court yard below them with its square fountain and perfectly groom landscaping. On the opposite side the glass dome and below it floors and floors of books. It was still dark; the edges of the world had barely even started to soften. The air had a bite to it and the goosebumps on his arm rose. They still had enough time to prepare. Everyone was there, Sealey in the center of the group huddled in the corner.

"Oliver." he said when he saw him walking towards them. "I tried to reach them, they are no longer at James's estate. I searched a few other locations they may have used but my efforts provided nothing."

Oliver wasn't surprised. "We need to get inside, start the reincarnation rituals."

None of them wanted to enter but they all knew it was something that had to be done. It was the first thing that had to be done. Their brothers had laid in their own gore for long enough. They turned to face the arched windows spaced along the peaked gable that stretched the length of the library. One by one they walked up to the wall between two of the windows and through the gate; invisible to any onlookers. The gate merely formed around them like a mold as they stepped through.

Oliver couldn't look right away so instead he averted his eyes to the ground and turned away from it, he watched as the last of their party walked through the vail. The gate was stunning from the inside; a massive arbor that towered above them. The first time he had seen it he imagined it was what gold would look like if it was made into smoke. The intertwining tendrils moved and flowed forming a trellis; producing its own glow from within, a glow like burning coals, alive and dancing. This place was once sacred and now it was a tomb.

He never thought that gate could make him sad, it was once proud. It had made him feel important; being allowed to walk through that doorway was an accomplishment, an honor. A constant declaration of how important his work is. But, he didn't see that anymore, now it resembled the arches of a fence surrounding a cemetery, cold, foreboding. Reminding him of what had happened here. Reminding him of the loss they have suffered. Turning to face it he recognized the same pained expressions on his brothers, a shared grief.

An eerie silence filled the hall. The same golden mist formed the boundaries of the alter room like a glass vault, almost transparent as if there was a world beyond just out of focus but there wasn't, it was just an illusion. The alter room didn't exist in space. Time wasn't a factor here. The fallen wouldn't decay or change if left in this place. The floor was stained with blood. Burn marks tarnished the mosaic in the center of the gold marble. An elegant five point star etched into its surface and the symbols of their craft strategically placed could still be seen beneath the horror.

Zachariah was the closest to the gate. His black robes in disarray, vacant brown eyes stared at the exit. His dark hair matted in blood, he must have known he wasn't going to walk through it again. He died looking at his only salvation.

Pain and anger raced their way through Oliver's blood. His face blanked and he locked his emotions down. He didn't want to look at the next body; the body of the man who had taken the spell for him. He walked toward Zachariah instead and closed his eyelids before he started preparing his body for the service. Warlocks aren't buried in the ground or cremated. The magic that flows in their bodies is returned to the earth and Magic accepts their death. Then, based on their true nature, their magic transforms their physical bodies. Most are gifted with new life. They don't come back to life but they may be reborn into this world or sent onward if they are worthy enough. It could take many lives before a soul can move onward to the land beyond the sun. If their true nature is dark then they are sent back and tested again until they have redeemed themselves.