Renwar Vallée The Battle for the souls of Néarbi Town

Prologue 3 Meeting Zamora

Later that evening . . .

As the sisters continued walking in this strange, new place, surrounded by cobwebs and spiders of various colours and sizes, they screamed whenever they walked past a hideous demon.

“Where are we, Sáphire?” Anna asked as she held on to her sister’s hand.

“I don’t know. I don’t think we are in Néarbi Valley anymore, though,” she said, continuing to look up at the sky, or what was supposed to be the sky, which was only black with specks of blinking lights and a purple moon that seemed to provide little light.

“W-Welcome H-Hitchcock ch-children, w-welcome,” a hideous six-eyed demon appeared before them, startling them with her presence.

“Who are you? And where are we?” Sáphire asked as she tried not to show fear in front of her sister.

“I-I am Z-Zamora, r-ruler of this dimension and s-s-shape-shifter. Your p-parents awarded me guardianship over yous. I-I will teach yous the art of d-demonology and w-witchcraft. You m-must help carry on your f-father’s work, and t-together, we will rise with Lucifer,” she said as she flicked her tail.

“I don’t understand why we couldn’t go with our parents, Zamora. Why did those people take Father away?” Sáphire asked, looking at Zamora.

“I-I am s-sorry, S-sáphire, but you are no longer able to s-see your p-parents at this time. They will c-contact you when they c-can. You don’t have to worry ch-children, you are in good h-hands. I-I will continue to guide you now that your p-parents are no longer on t-this earth.”

“What do you mean? Where did those men take Father and Mother?” Anna asked, keeping her eyes fixed on Zamora’s flashing tail.

“The church killed your p-parents. They burnt them alive b-before the town. They did not give them any ch-chance to live as they are j-jealous of your family.”

“No! You are lying. The town loves our parents. They would never hurt them,” Sáphire wailed.

“Children, your beloved town l-leaders scattered and did not come to aid your parents as the p-priest and their army came and took your p-parents away because they were trying to bring Lucifer on earth.”

“Lucifer! Are we not children of God?” Sáphire said as she squashed a spider that crawled on her.

“B-blasphemer! That m-must never be u-uttered out of y-your mouth. You are the d-daughters of Lilith, heir to the demon realm. You will be ruler over all d-demons one day. S-s-sáphire, both yous and your s-s-sister will control a legion of a-armies at your d-disposal to take revenge for your p-parents and to let Lucifer reign. You and your s-s-sister m-must watch and learn.” Zamora slithered.

“I don’t like you. You look hideous and sound funny,” Anna said as she hid her face in her sister’s shirt.

“How do I look and sound now?” Zamora asked.

“Wow, you look just like her. You look like Mother,” Anna said, trying to touch Zamora’s face.

“And you sound like her too,” Sáphire said as she stared at Zamora, wondering if she was seeing and hearing things.

As Zamora took on a human form before the children while in her dimension, she wondered how she would raise a child, not just one, but two. All she knew was how to rule her land and to rule with an iron fist. If she did not like what you did, you were punished or, worse, destroyed. She would need to ensure they’d conform to her rules and that they would quickly learn to adapt to their new surroundings. She knew she couldn’t destroy them herself if they did not conform, as they would be her ruler when they’d get older.

Shaking her head as she directed Anna and Sáphire to their room for the time they would be there, Zamora asked, “Do you prefer this look, little one?”

“Yes!” Anna said. “Does this mean you are our mother now?” she asked.

“For all intents and purposes, yes, little one. I will teach you both all that you need to know, and in one hundred years’ time, your prophecy will be fulfilled.”

“What prophecy is ours, Zamora? And if it takes that long to be fulfilled, won’t we wither and die already?” Sáphire asked.

“No, little one. Time passes by slowly here, but on earth, time flies quickly. What will seem like days to you will be mere hours on earth, and what will seem like years are just months passing by, so while you are here, you will not age as you would on earth,” Zamora explained. “Did your father not show you the scroll and give you both a family heirloom belonging to the Hitchcock family from when you were born?” Zamora asked.

“No. He always said not to come down here. It was not safe for us,” Sáphire explained.

“You are both safe. I will show you your prophecy. It has been foretold that there are two prophecies, but it was later discovered that it was one prophecy torn in two. It states, ‘As darkness overtakes the world, a town would be saved when the seven planets align, seven stars burn bright, and the moon turns blue. The seven stars shall fight against the dragons, and one will lead the world to the true light and the Savior of the world, Je-Je-sus Chr’—that name cannot be mentioned here. ‘Two young dragons shall become one and shall open the portal for Lucifer to rise, and the world will be for him to take, burning in flames of destruction as demons, witches, warlocks, and all foul creatures of the earth rule its inhabitants. There will be only one god—Lucifer—and he shall cast Christians and anyone that opposes him to be destroyed in the lake of fire. Néarbi Valley will be Lucifer’s headquarters, and the world will be his for the taking. A war for the souls of man will be in the balance as Satan and his demons try to e*****e the town and the world. Trials and tribulations will be burdened on man. The balance rests on the shoulders of the church and eight souls, the travellers, the reborn, the Nephilim, and the stranger who must—’”

“Where is the rest of it? It seems to be missing the end,” Sáphire said, turning the paper over in her hands, expecting the end to magically appear.

“The end is not important. What matters are that we must find and destroy the saviours so we can secure our victory,” Zamora advised.

“Why did those bad men take our father, Zamora?” Anna asked, still trying to understand how she could be happy one moment with friends and family and, in an instant, she and her sister were orphans, having a monster for a guardian.

“That is what Christians do. They kill for no reason, or they claim that we are evil, and they are good,” Zamora ranted.

“Anna, they killed our parents. They cannot be forgiven. We must get stronger and take revenge on the town and claim what is ours,” Sáphire said with venom in her heart as she reflected on the loss of Tommy, Girda, and her parents.

“That is exactly what we need to do. We have time on our side, so the world will be ours for the taking,” Zamora said with an evil grin. “You girls need to rest. We can discuss the rest in another time.”

“I can’t sleep. Will we stay here forever?” Anna asked as Zamora tried to put her in bed.

“No, little one. We need to establish a new life for you when the time is right, and you both will have new friends. You will remain young while you are here in this dimension. But you both must wear this medallion when you go back in the world,” she replied.

As they took the medallion in their hands, they noticed it was shaped like a star with a star and a moon on either end. When they turned it over, it had the star inside the moon. Sáphire took the star, and Anna took the moon. As they placed it around their necks, it glowed, but when they were joined together, they felt a powerful surge of power flow through them and quickly pulled their pendants apart. Looking at each other, they turned to Zamora and wondered if they just imagined the surge of power they felt. It didn’t seem like Zamora saw what just happened, and they decided to keep it to themselves and work on the secrets of the medallion on their own.

“But we can’t go back. The bad men will be looking for us. They will kill us as they did our parents,” Sáphire cried as she closed her eyes, trying to blink the tears away.

“They will not know who you are. We will change your last names and your facial appearance. You will be the same as you were, but everyone will see someone new living in the town for the first time,” Zamora explained.

“Do we have to change our names too?” Sáphire asked, trying to fight the sleep that threatened to overtake her as she yawned.

“You can retain your same first name, but the name Hitchcock cannot be used again, at least not until we have fulfilled our destiny,” she warned as she walked to turn the light off in the girls’ room.

“What will you call us then?” Anna asked as she sat up in her new bed.

“How about my name, Anna Zamora and Sáphire Zamora?” she asked.

“Don’t you think having two first names are dumb? And aren’t you supposed to feed us first before sending us to bed?” Sáphire asked as she too sat up in her new bed.

“Okay, Sáphire. Are you girls hungry, and what do you suggest your last names be?”

“Yes, we both are,” she said, looking over at Anna, who nodded in agreement. As Sáphire tilted her head, searching her mind for an appropriate name, she jumped up and said, “I want it to be fitting for what we are—Darkstorm, as we will be the storm that destroys this world.”

“Hmmm, I like it. Sáphire and Anna Darkstorm, and I will be Mrs. Darkstorm. We will leave this dimension and return in 2005 to earth. At that time, most of your enemies would have died, and we can strive for a new earth,” Zamora continued.

“Are you sure we can live that long? It seems a far way off,” Sáphire asked.

“Don’t mind the year, child. Just ensure that you do as I say when I say it and you shall be fine.”