The Darkest Eternities

XII.Silver,brass,obsidian.

Xolem Ignim - The fire of the sun.

Locum Sacrum - Sacred place.

The Old Language is very close to Latin and is actually one of the sources of some Latin words, in the book that is.

Jasper

Ivan twisted around. He was fast and graceful both at the same time. Surprise flickered across the young warrior's face as the Alpha's foot connected with his face.I winced at the sound.

That must have really hurt.

The 'warrior' should have known better than to challenge a beast like Ivan.

The impact of the kick sent the young one staggering into a tree. At what point had they left the centre of the field? That's what happens when you try to fight Ivan, at some point you think you're here only to find that you are elsewhere.

Lucky enough for the boy, Ivan did not maim him. Usually those who spar with the beast were left in a bad state, taking long to heal. That's how Volk fights, hard, tirelessly and mercilessly. There was no beast as strong as Volk. Thankfully for the rest of us, they had all...died out save for one.

This time though, he had shown mercy and left the boy just a little bloodied.

His mood had changed. Ivan was not one to kiss and tell but I had a feeling things were going well with his mate, extremely well.

It was funny actually, such a beast would be mounted by one considered weak and powerless. The Goddess surely has a sense of humour, pairing him up with that small human girl. But I had a feeling that the girl was stronger than she looked. She had to be, how else would she be able to handle Volk such as Ivan.

It'd been less than what immortals considered actual time since they had crossed paths yet she was already getting a hold of him. No one had noticed but I had and it made me laugh.

I felt someone's presence behind me and I knew exactly who it was."What is it Gray or are you just going to stand behind me and waste away?"

"Have you told him yet? About the witch."

"No. And I won't, you will."

"I certainly won't."

"Fine then. My serving boy will. Then Ivan will kill him...and I will lose a pretty damn good serving boy. Oh well." That struck a nerve. My serving boy was actually Grayson's...grand nephew or something, basically he was the son to his nephew. Yes, Gray was that ancient.

Since the poor boy was of age and too weak to be a warrior he was made a serving boy -my serving boy. This meant that he had to do whatever I told him even if it could get him killed. As a man of honour I was not to exploit the power I had over him, else the Goddess strikes me down.

"Damn you Hale. We'll both tell him. At least he is in a good mood."

***

"The troupes in the south uncovered something. Three Xolem Ignim witches have been completely drained,"I informed. Ivan, Grayson and I all stood in Ivan's office.

Ivan's demeanour had changed. He was now more serious, more focused.

"Of blood?"He queried.

"No...Of power. They still have magic but it's weaker. Apparently magic is extracted from one's being in such a way that their life force is being drained away. The extraction process can only be done by a witch and a powerful one at that. In fact, very few witches have that power."

It was true. The ability to syphon magic power from another life form was a rare talent among witches. Some covens even regarded those with the talent as cursed, banishing them immediately their abilities were discovered.