Fallen (Book 1: Descendants of Azreal Series )

Prologue

Prologue

          Evelyn raced past the trees in the dark forest, clutching the red velvet box and leather bound book to her chest. Her long black hair was sticking to her neck as it billowed behind her in the humid summer air, her gray eyes intent. Her feet crunched the branches underneath her and she prayed that he would not hear. She had to make it to the Gates of Morlow before he caught her. Looking over her shoulders, she saw the red light blazing in the trees behind her and hastened her pace.It would not take him long to find her if she did not do something fast.

        Lifting her hand above her head she motioned her hand in a circle and chanted, “Spiritus ducentia protego me.” Lowering her hand around her body and the objects, she continued to chant, “Protego me, protego me, protego me.” A light colored, almost translucent, glow surrounded her and her precious cargo. Evelyn knew this protection spell would not last long, but she only needed it to last until she made it to the hallowed gate.

        Stumbling down the undisturbed path, she braced herself on a large oak tree to catch her breath. Behind her, she could hear him faintly calling her name, “Evelyn, darling, where have you gone to? Come out and give me the key and the prophecy, and I might let you and your precious daughters live.”

        Evelyn knew that he was nothing but sinister, and to even think about trusting him was out of the question. This was her only chance to save her daughters from what fate had in store for them, and she could not let them down again. She gripped the book and the box tighter, and continued on,  keeping her eyes trained on the gate. She could make it out in the distance, if she could only get there a little faster.

        A red light shot past her face, and she turned around to see Alistair about three-hundred feet away, hands outstretched in her direction. She knew that he could not see her, but that did not mean that he could not sense her powers. “Ah, Evelyn, I can feel your aura close by. That protection spell will not last much longer though, will it?” he prodded as he continued to fire the harmful spell in her direction.

        Facing back towards the gate, Evelyn could sense that the door was closed to Morlow. The only way to open it was to insert the key and cast the incantation. It was terribly dangerous, but seeing that she had no other choice, she prayed that the protection spell would last long enough for her to get past the gate safe and sound.

        Coming upon the lodging for the key, she pulled the pendant out of it protective casing. Sensing that it was near its resting place, the key glowed golden. Circular around the outside with three interlacing stars in the center, it was everything that her daughter’s lives now depended on. Placing the key into its place and turning it counter-clockwise, Evelyn started to chant the spell, “Gate ad alterum saeculum pertinet, aperi mihi. Hoc unum cadere necesse est, donec iterum. Aperi mihi.” Evelyn could sense that Alistair was coming upon her, and knew she had very little time to finish the spell and escape him.

        Sweat gathered on her forehead as she concentrated on the spell. She moved her hand over the key that was now placed and repeated the spell. “Gate ad alterum saeculum pertinet, aperi mihi. Hoc unum cadere necesse est, donec iterum. Aperi mihi. Aperi mihi.”  At the end of the last phrase, the gate started to crack apart and reveal a light. There would be no way to hide her location from him now. He would know exactly how far away she was.

        If the gate could open up just enough for her to get in, she could remove the key and close it to him so that he could not follow. She heard him coming upon her as he said quietly, “Evelyn, my queen, I have found you. Although I am not sure where your beautiful daughters are, I will find them, and slit their throats, just like I am about to do yours.”

        Evelyn crouched down low and slid the objects through the gate. She could not wait any longer, or he would capture her and all would be lost. Raising her hand to the pendant’s chain, she grabbed it from the gate and placed it around her neck. As she slid her upper body through the gate, she felt nails digging into her skin as his fingers wrapped around her ankle.

        “Hello, dear queen. Where do you think you are heading off to?” Alistair asked as he tightened his hold on her ankle and pulled. The sneer on his face made her cringe as she tried to yank her ankle free. “I do not think you are going to be going anywhere,” he spat. “Et reditus proxime. Et reditus proxime,” he began to as the gate started to seal. Evelyn knew she had mere seconds to find a solution, or all would be for naught.

        Stretching her hand above her ankle, she braced herself as she said, “Succidamque et adolebit.” Evelyn screamed out in pain as her skin began to lacerate and blister. Alistair recoiled as he started to feel the effects of the spell. Evelyn took that as her chance to pull herself the rest of the way into the gate and seal it. She lay there panting with labored breath as she clutched the book and the box to her chest.

        As the gate closed the last bit, she heard Alistair yell, “This is not over. I will find a way to your daughters, and when I do, I will kill them.”

******Sooo, tell me what you guys think. This is my first book on wattpad, so I want to make sure that you guys find the story line appealing. Thanks for reading, and I can't wait to update you on the next chapter!