The heiress is born

1945 Words
5 years later in a suburb of Melbourne Eva saw James and exclaimed, “What happened son? Who did this to you?” He had returned from his evening playtime with a bloodied lip and bruised knuckles. The 5 year old looked terrible with all the grime and blood on his tiny body. “Mum, those guys made Ira cry, so I fought with them,” said James in his baby voice. “But son! You are just a baby!” said Eva, exasperated. Ira was her sister-in-law’s 7 year old daughter. On Sarena’s demand, they had moved to Melbourne and had started living amongst the humans after James was born. She had helped them create a new identity and had also helped John get formal vocational training at the Tafe. He now worked as a plumber. It gave him good money while Eva worked as a carer in a daycare centre. John’s sister Myra and her Indian husband Roy had also settled in the same suburb. Their daughter Ira and James studied in the same school. Myra was a witch but she too was staying amongst the humans, hiding her identity. Myra and Roy ran a restaurant that served Indian food. It was one of the well-known restaurants in that suburb.  “But mama, they said mean things to her. She was crying. One boy even pushed her. I am her brother! I could not let that happen, could I?” James said, shaking his head indignantly. Eva hugged him. His innocence and courage were both endearing. She cleaned and dressed his wounds and gave him hot chocolate with marshmallows as a treat. Once James was tucked in, that night, she called Sarena. Sarena was expecting her call. It was sometimes annoying to speak to Sarena as she knew almost everything but Eva was patient with her. She knew that Sarena’s experience and knowledge made her aware of many things even before it reached her.  They exchanged their pleasantries. “He is only 5! But he fought with boys older than him. They were bullying Ira,” said Eva. Sarena chuckled, “the boy has his father’s power and righteousness! Moon God chose your soulmate well.” Eva rolled her eyes, “But I am scared for the boy. He is just a preschooler and fighting already!” Sarena went quiet for some time. When she spoke again, she was very serious, “Eva my child, I did not know that it would be so early but the time has come. Your son is destined for great things. His training for witchcraft should begin.” Eva frowned, “He is only 5!!” she said almost shouting into the phone. Her crazy old aunt was suggesting something completely unheard of.  For boys to become witches they had to go through rigorous mental, physical and spiritual training. They had to balance their 5 elements and their feminine and masculine energies. When a boy showed potential, this training started at 10 years of age. The nature of training was arduous and many boys left it, incomplete. The few who completed would have to go through tests formulated by the Keeper of the Orb. It was only when the Keeper deemed them worthy would they be granted the status of witches.  How would a 5 year old go through this? “Don’t you let your mommy's heart cloud your judgement,” chided Sarena. “He is the one! It is my duty to equip him with all that is necessary.” “But how?” “You leave that to me. We begin 2 days later from the day of the wolf moon. Let him know that I will meet him every fortnight after that. He will need to accompany me.” she disconnected. It was like this with Sarena. She could be very abrupt sometimes. It came with the reclusive lifestyle that she led. In fact, she had bought a phone only after James was born, so that she could get regular updates about him. She believed that James was going to be the witch from the prophecy. Everyone knew the prophecy,                           “A witch with royal blood,                            born on the blood moon,                                          in the year of the horse will usher in                                          a new era of accord and end the tyranny!” Everyone automatically believed that it was a woman who would save them. But the day when James was born, Sarena had explained their lineage to Eva and John.  Eva’s mum Rianna was a descendant of the most respected elder of a tribe of witches from South Australia and dad, William was a descendant of a Royal Witches family of Ireland. John’s mother Maria was a descendent of a Royal Witches family of Scotland while his dad hailed from a dynasty of rulers in a country in Africa. The mix was just right. With such a strong lineage, the saviour from the prophecy had to be James. No wonder Sarena did not want to take any chances with his training. *** Next 5 years he worked with Sarena to understand and connect to his inner self. His assignments were physically draining and mentally exhaustive. Sarena would take her out into the outback, out in the arid lands for his training.  She made him meditate in the coldest of the desert nights and the hot dry peak summer days. Sometimes without any protective gear, the sun blinding his eyes, shining through his eyelids even when he would close his eyes. He was given extensive chants and hymns to learn. All his training was done inside a safe bubble that would conceal them magically. By the time he turned 10, he had already learnt to control the 5 elements and use the basic powers of smell, taste, sight, touch (feel) and sound. His five senses were super developed and he could distort the perception of those senses in other people. He could create hallucinations for others but he was forbidden to use them unless it was to save himself or others. One evening he was returning home from his swimming lessons. His next lesson with Sarena was going to be on the day of the wolf moon, coming Friday. He was a little annoyed with the idea of working over the weekend, yet he looked forward to meeting his nana, Sarena. That’s when he heard blood-curdling scream of a girl. It came from the bushes near the playground. “IRA! Is that you,” he shouted. He ran in the direction of the scream. He could smell Ira’s fear and something else. He could hear her sobs. As he got closer to the bushes he heard her pleading, “Let me go! Let me go, please.” He reached there and saw his sister lying on the gravel behind the bushes. One young boy had pinned her down by holding her shoulders, another boy was trying to remove her pants, as she struggled to free herself. The boy slapped her, “stop struggling you b***h or we will hit you until you pass out and then do what we want to. No one can save you! Your pathetic parents are in the restaurant right now.” He guffawed.  James got angry! Very angry. He knew he was outnumbered and the 2 guys were almost double his age. So he did the next best thing that came to his mind. He crouched by the bushes, closed his eyes and started the incantations that he was good in. The ground began to tremble. The boys got scared, “Oh s**t! Is that an earthquake?” Said the one who was holding Ira down. “It’s alright mate. Nothing’s going to fall on us here. Let's just do the b***h,” he laughed maniacally while his partner continued to hold Ira down. James carried on with the chants. The shrubs slowly grew thick tendrils and twirled around the laughing boy's legs. He stopped trying to tear Ira’s clothes and instead began fighting with the bushes. The other guy saw the scene and ran away. Ira couldn’t believe that she was free. She swiftly got up and ran to her house. The more the guy tried to wriggle out of the bushes the tighter they wound around him until they reached his neck, cutting his breathing off. Once he stopped struggling and grew still, James returned home. Sarena was waiting for him. “What have you done boy!” she bellowed angrily. He knew he was in trouble seeing his nana come over before their scheduled time. “He was going to hurt Ira.” “He would have died! You or Ira would have gotten exposed” “I did not let him die. I controlled the bushes. And he won't remember a thing when he wakes up. He will only remember fear!” said James with a twinkle in his eye. “You could have lost control!” “But I did not.” He stomped off to his room. Sarena looked at Eva and John stunned, “I don’t know how a 10 year old could control his spell so well. I sure am a good teacher.” She chuckled. John looked at Eva and rolled his eyes. *** That weekend in the Blood Moon territory near Myponga 31 year old Grace lay writhing in pain in the werewolf hospital. Her fragile human body was carrying a big werewolf baby. Against her wishes, her husband had left to follow his dad’s command and murder 2 witches in a village inside their territory.  Jiemba was her mate. By the grace of the moon goddess, she had met him last year and they got married after a whirlwind romance. It was only a month since they had set eyes on each other. He was the best thing to have happened to her and she couldn’t live without him. She knew he loved her too, yet he could never defy his dad’s command. Even today, while his wife lay thrashing in labour pains, birthing their firstborn, he was out killing innocent witches. She hated this life of killing and blood bath. She cried out in pain as one more contraction rocked her body. She felt a searing pain in her neck and screamed in agony. That wasn't connected to the contraction. The sharp pain scared her and left her weak. "Is Jiemba okay?" She asked in a feeble voice. Being a human had its disadvantages. Although she was mated to the Alpha’s son, she could not mindlink with the other wolves. “Sorry Grace, I cannot tell you. Please have patience. Concentrate on the birth of your child.” More pain ripped through her body, both from the contraction and from the neck. Her breathing started to get shallow. The nurse called the doctor. They took her into the operation theatre as she passed out with a fresh bout of pain in her lower back. The last thing she heard was the nurse telling the doctor, “She is experiencing the pain of Jiemba’s injuries too. That is a lot for her human body to take. Do you think she will survive?” “I don’t know. But we are to save the child at all costs!” The darkness engulfed her. Kirra was born as her mother breathed her last on the day of the wolf moon. ***
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