2Moons - Dark Moons

Prologue

When will you come Beloved? What did I do so wrong that you still make me wait? Is a handful of human life time's not enough?

How many more times will I need to walk this path? How many before I find what I lost so long ago? This journey carries a small ember of hope as I make my way to her hidden caves. And a painful disappointed walk back when she has no news.

You promised me P'Pha, you promised you would come back to me. How much more must I endure before you keep your word? Do you know while I wait for you my time has stopped moving? The heavens, the world, the people move but I stand still in this abyss, nothing will move, until I find you.

Pebbles shift underfoot with every step, I can hear the waves on the shores not far, smell the sea air and my chest aches as I remember a conversation from so long ago.

"P'Pha, I want to go on a ship."

"Don't pout Yo." P'Pha laughed. "I will take you, but you can't be a pirate."

"Of course I can P'Pha!"

"I'm going to be the pirate." He laughed and kissed me. "And I'm going to kidnap you and keep you as my personal slave on a ship."

As I reach the side of the mountain the mist clears and the small entrance becomes visible. The lanterns hanging on the walls begin to light the way, giving permission to enter. The Soul Witch lives here, an ancient being who can see and find souls.

She is waiting as I enter the large room, a shiver of cold running down my spine. It's always cold here, even being one of the undead I still feel it. The mist moves as I make my way to the small pedestal holding the swirling white orb, it's light dancing around the room and making the ceiling high, coloured glass panels swim with life.

The murals move, telling the stories of races long gone and forgotten. It makes me wonder how old she is, that some of these stories are new to me. She is clothed in a purple velvet robe, it sweeps the floor as she walks towards the orb, a hood covering her face. No one has ever seen her, it's forbidden to ask.

"Welcome Young Master." She hand's me the dagger.

"My Lady."

I Wai, before taking the dagger and slicing my hand over the bowl placed near the orb. Payment for her services, always in advance. I slice my hand again when it heals, when the bowl is half full, I stop.

She takes the dagger and stirs the blood, before pouring half the contents onto the orb. The light changes from white to red before the blood is flawlessly absorbed into the orb and it glows white again. Her left-hand hovering slowly over the ball, every finger has a ring, each one carved with old runes of power.

Finding one soul among so many is an impossible task, only one tribe carried that power. But they were betrayed and hid in the mists, never to join the magic or human worlds again. Only she stayed. I try to fortify myself, prepared to hear the words she utters every time I come. The heavens are dark, and the soul you seek has not returned.

"The stars are moving."

I look up, that isn't what she normally says.

"The soul of your Beloved is returning."

My heart races. He was coming back, finally.

"Where?" My voice trembles.

I will find him the moment he is born, I will take him home and I will...

"You must wait."

"No..."

"You have no choice." She replies.

"I will take him the moment he takes his first breath." I snap. "He is mine."

"The soul has connected with others..."

"He is already born?"

"Yes." Her voice changes as the orb throbs and changes to blue. "His destiny has now linked to others..."

"My ...Beloved..." He was here, I would not wait...

"Remember this. The soul is pure but every birth leaves a mark." She warns. "You must wait for the right time."

"I can find him." I shout. "I will..."

"If you do not obey my rules, you will lose him."

"Is that a threat?" I snap.

"Foolish child." She sighs. "There is a time and a place for everything. I see souls and destiny and the movement of stars themselves. If you take him now, he will never be yours."

"He promised his soul to me." I whisper, like I promised mine.

"Our lives are intertwined with many others, every meeting leaves a mark, you have yours and he has his." She answers calmly. "How many people have you helped Young Master? How many of them would have survived without your help?"

I understood what she was trying to imply, but my heart ached. He was here, finally reborn but I couldn't hold him. I would have loved him and watched over him from the first day. But I can't anger her, she could hide him from me forever.

"How long must I wait?"

"Nineteen years." She answers. "I will send instructions."

I walked away dazed, even though I couldn't see him but he had returned. I waited lifetimes, the nineteen years would pass quickly. And I never promised I wouldn't try myself to look for him. I would watch every face, listen to every voice, look at every picture, gaze through every window if I must. No matter what name or new face, I still remembered the rhythm of his heartbeat. I would find him.

~~~~~~~

Soul Witch

I watch the young vampire leave with a heavy heart, he would still look. It may sound cruel but it had to be done, there was more at stake. The moment the orb turned blue I had a vision, the soul needed time on this earth. He needed to live and meet people he was destined to meet.

Not only that but this soul... it carried something from its last birth. Not a grudge but something, and if the vampire took him now it would place a seed of doubt, even hate and he couldn't have the love he waited for, not in this lifetime.

Every soul has its own radiance, its own energy, its own strings that connect it with many others, and destinies cannot be changed lightly. I know you have waited so long, but I hope you are ready when you find him. Turning him is not the end of your long journey Master Wayo. It is not the happy end you believe awaits. Turning him is where the story begins, anew. It's chapter one.