| Supernatural Fiction posted September 29, 2020 | Chapters: |
...30 31 -32- 33... 
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A Chapter of THE IMMORTAL/A Novel of the Breedine series
A chapter in the book THE CURSE
The Mysterious Visitor
by scongrove
| Background Thanks for reading my chapter. While I'm working on the sixth series, here is a sneak peek chapter of the fifth series. Enjoy & stay safe! |
Jena was eager to absorb herself into Nicolas’s story once again. As she slipped back into bed, she reached for the journal. Before she began to read, she noticed there seemed to be several pages missing, as though, for some specific reason, someone had torn them out. How strange, Jena thought. Regardless, she continued to read.
The night before I would say my final farewell, I went to bed as usual, feeling overcome with sorrow and despair, but after hours of staring at the ceiling, I finally fell asleep.
As I lay in bed, something alarming roused me from a deep slumber. I sensed a presence looking down on me. My eyes rounded in fear when I opened them. For a moment, I doubted if it were real or just a dream. The room was the same, unchanged in any way since I fell asleep. I could see the brilliance of the moonlight shining through the thin drapery covering the windows. It was then I began to rub my eyes to see if I were truly awake. It felt like a nightmare to me, and I expected that I should suddenly awake and find myself alone in my bed, but my eyes were not to be deceived. I was indeed awake but found that I could not move. My body felt as though it was frozen in place. I could barely manage the effort to breathe.
I was not alone.
It appeared to be a man standing above me. A tall, older man dressed in a black hooded robe. He loomed over me in a manner that made me fear for my life. Strands of long, white hair flowed from the inside of his large, loose cowl and past his wide shoulders. As he lowered himself closer, his abnormal and unearthly features rendered me speechless. His ghostly complexion was almost translucent, and his eyes were as black as coal. It looked to be the angel of death coming to claim my soul.
When the hooded stranger reached out his hand, I quickly shut my eyes and shuddered in terror. The instant he placed his palm against my arm, it was cold as ice, more like the hand of the dead than the living.
I was afraid to raise my eyelids but peeked out from the corner of my eye and saw perfectly as he bowed in a courtly way. I remember his words all too clearly as he said, “I’ve come to ease your soul.”
His intriguing words brought my head around and my eyes to meet his pale-skinned face.
My mouth fell open as a stutter escaped, “H-how?”
When he removed his hand from my arm, he then extended it out to me. “Take my hand, Nicolas,” he said, “so that I may show you.”
Although peculiarly sharp white teeth protruded over his lips when he spoke, his soothing and spellbinding voice seemed to have dissipated all my fears. Then, I wondered, how did this ghostly visitor know my name? As I debated my decision, I noticed his nails were long and filed to sharp points. Who was this stranger, I feverishly asked myself, and what did he really want? I found that I could no longer hold my tongue and asked, “Who are you?”
His lips took on a cruel curve. “I am... the Master.”
“Why are you here?” I hesitated to ask, but my emotions were on edge, and I refused to continue to cower at the face that would frighten most men.
He stepped closer, narrowing his haunting eyes on me that seemed to be almost red when they contrasted with the pale, yellow moon. “I have the power to bring your brother back to the living.”
A weighted pause fell between us as I deliberated over the meaning of his words. “But how,” said I, “is it possible to bring back the dead? Tell me, I beg you!”
The Master smiled, and his long, sharp teeth peeked out from beneath his lips. “Take hold, Nicolas,” he murmured, bringing his hand closer. “The answers you seek are just within my grasp.”
As he awaited my decision, inviting me to join hands, somehow his soulless eyes spoke to me as though they were daring me to seek what I desperately wanted. I remained silent, staring at him in anticipation. It was with some weakness in my heart that I finally reached out and took hold of his icy-cold hand.
Then his mind meshed with my own, relaying things that were impossible and unimaginable. In that instant, an agreement exchanged between our minds and swept through me as quick as lightning.
While looking at my face attentively, the Master said in a soft whisper, “You are, and will forever be... the immortal.”
I instantly became weak and feverish, but it faded as quickly as it came. I realized at that moment what was transpiring. I was dying. From then on, my body grew stronger and I experienced things that I cannot put into words. It was as if I had been reborn, looking at everything through a new set of eyes, eyes that could see beyond the human eyes I once possessed. It was as though all my senses awakened for the first time.
Then the Master went on to explain in detail of how I was to resurrect Ashton. His instructions were chilling and seemingly unforbidden, but I later followed them with perfect precision.
If only I’d known what was to become of my brother, I would have never brought him back from the dead. Gifted with eternal life and heightened perceptions were what I sought for my brother and me, although Ash was entirely something else, something derived from hell itself.
To be continued. . .
The night before I would say my final farewell, I went to bed as usual, feeling overcome with sorrow and despair, but after hours of staring at the ceiling, I finally fell asleep.
As I lay in bed, something alarming roused me from a deep slumber. I sensed a presence looking down on me. My eyes rounded in fear when I opened them. For a moment, I doubted if it were real or just a dream. The room was the same, unchanged in any way since I fell asleep. I could see the brilliance of the moonlight shining through the thin drapery covering the windows. It was then I began to rub my eyes to see if I were truly awake. It felt like a nightmare to me, and I expected that I should suddenly awake and find myself alone in my bed, but my eyes were not to be deceived. I was indeed awake but found that I could not move. My body felt as though it was frozen in place. I could barely manage the effort to breathe.
I was not alone.
It appeared to be a man standing above me. A tall, older man dressed in a black hooded robe. He loomed over me in a manner that made me fear for my life. Strands of long, white hair flowed from the inside of his large, loose cowl and past his wide shoulders. As he lowered himself closer, his abnormal and unearthly features rendered me speechless. His ghostly complexion was almost translucent, and his eyes were as black as coal. It looked to be the angel of death coming to claim my soul.
When the hooded stranger reached out his hand, I quickly shut my eyes and shuddered in terror. The instant he placed his palm against my arm, it was cold as ice, more like the hand of the dead than the living.
I was afraid to raise my eyelids but peeked out from the corner of my eye and saw perfectly as he bowed in a courtly way. I remember his words all too clearly as he said, “I’ve come to ease your soul.”
His intriguing words brought my head around and my eyes to meet his pale-skinned face.
My mouth fell open as a stutter escaped, “H-how?”
When he removed his hand from my arm, he then extended it out to me. “Take my hand, Nicolas,” he said, “so that I may show you.”
Although peculiarly sharp white teeth protruded over his lips when he spoke, his soothing and spellbinding voice seemed to have dissipated all my fears. Then, I wondered, how did this ghostly visitor know my name? As I debated my decision, I noticed his nails were long and filed to sharp points. Who was this stranger, I feverishly asked myself, and what did he really want? I found that I could no longer hold my tongue and asked, “Who are you?”
His lips took on a cruel curve. “I am... the Master.”
“Why are you here?” I hesitated to ask, but my emotions were on edge, and I refused to continue to cower at the face that would frighten most men.
He stepped closer, narrowing his haunting eyes on me that seemed to be almost red when they contrasted with the pale, yellow moon. “I have the power to bring your brother back to the living.”
A weighted pause fell between us as I deliberated over the meaning of his words. “But how,” said I, “is it possible to bring back the dead? Tell me, I beg you!”
The Master smiled, and his long, sharp teeth peeked out from beneath his lips. “Take hold, Nicolas,” he murmured, bringing his hand closer. “The answers you seek are just within my grasp.”
As he awaited my decision, inviting me to join hands, somehow his soulless eyes spoke to me as though they were daring me to seek what I desperately wanted. I remained silent, staring at him in anticipation. It was with some weakness in my heart that I finally reached out and took hold of his icy-cold hand.
Then his mind meshed with my own, relaying things that were impossible and unimaginable. In that instant, an agreement exchanged between our minds and swept through me as quick as lightning.
While looking at my face attentively, the Master said in a soft whisper, “You are, and will forever be... the immortal.”
I instantly became weak and feverish, but it faded as quickly as it came. I realized at that moment what was transpiring. I was dying. From then on, my body grew stronger and I experienced things that I cannot put into words. It was as if I had been reborn, looking at everything through a new set of eyes, eyes that could see beyond the human eyes I once possessed. It was as though all my senses awakened for the first time.
Then the Master went on to explain in detail of how I was to resurrect Ashton. His instructions were chilling and seemingly unforbidden, but I later followed them with perfect precision.
If only I’d known what was to become of my brother, I would have never brought him back from the dead. Gifted with eternal life and heightened perceptions were what I sought for my brother and me, although Ash was entirely something else, something derived from hell itself.
To be continued. . .
Book of the Month contest entry
A reference for terms and cast of characters in the chapter, especially for new readers:
BREEDLINE - A species of humans that have the ability to change from human form into wolf form if they are born an identical twin. They are not like the old legend of the Lycanthropy myth. The Breedline species can shift into their wolf at will. The moon has no power over them. They do not pass their ability to other humans. Although they live among humans, their species is secret. In wolf form, they have super-strength, speed, and heightened senses. Compared to humans, Breedlines have tremendous advantages when it comes to health. Their bodies heal fast and are not subject to illness or diseases. The only thing that slows their healing process is silver. It is their kryptonite. Besides old age, a silver bullet to the brain is the only way to kill a Breedline.
All male Breedlines change into their first wolf at the age of eighteen. Female Breedlines do not go through the change until they make love to their Breedline bonded mate.
Jena McCain - An artist with an odd gift to speak to the dead. She is in her early twenties and has been bitten by an old age creature. She is cursed and has one hundred and one days to resist the urge for human blood. If she succumbs to the bloodlust, the curse will be lifted. If not, she will become the creature who has cursed her.
Nicolas Ratcliff - He is from the 1800s and Ashton's younger brother.
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. BREEDLINE - A species of humans that have the ability to change from human form into wolf form if they are born an identical twin. They are not like the old legend of the Lycanthropy myth. The Breedline species can shift into their wolf at will. The moon has no power over them. They do not pass their ability to other humans. Although they live among humans, their species is secret. In wolf form, they have super-strength, speed, and heightened senses. Compared to humans, Breedlines have tremendous advantages when it comes to health. Their bodies heal fast and are not subject to illness or diseases. The only thing that slows their healing process is silver. It is their kryptonite. Besides old age, a silver bullet to the brain is the only way to kill a Breedline.
All male Breedlines change into their first wolf at the age of eighteen. Female Breedlines do not go through the change until they make love to their Breedline bonded mate.
Jena McCain - An artist with an odd gift to speak to the dead. She is in her early twenties and has been bitten by an old age creature. She is cursed and has one hundred and one days to resist the urge for human blood. If she succumbs to the bloodlust, the curse will be lifted. If not, she will become the creature who has cursed her.
Nicolas Ratcliff - He is from the 1800s and Ashton's younger brother.
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