MAGE CHRONICLES: THE BEGINNING

5. Cold Curse.

I lay Blue down on his bed, but he refuses to let go.

"You want to sleep with Mama today?"

He clutches tighter and I'm quite grateful, I didn't want to sleep alone either.

"OK baby, whose turn is it today?" I ask, pointing at the plushies scattered around his bed.

"RJ for me and Tata for Mama," he answers sleepily.

"OK."

I grab them and move over to my bed.

Laying him down, I curl up next to him clutching my plushie and then I'm out like a light.

                                                                               ********

"Whatever she is, she must be something important. That's why they all want her."

"Who else wants her?" asks Mama.

"The light mages cornered her today before we got to her," Mor continues.

"Why was she at the bar today," my Papa muses, "She only goes there after a session with Melinda or after a routine goes awry."

I had been heading to the kitchen for a glass of water, but I had stopped once I heard voices.

"That doesn't matter, she is not safe here. You guys could protect her from the Supe community here before because her power was buried, and she appeared human," Nona says.

"Yeah, but that is going to change. She's going to blow up, I can feel it," this comes from BH.

"Killian has a talent, he can detect magic or magical residues that's why he works in recruiting," explains Nona Ellie.

How does she know them so well, do they work together is she also a recruiter? Maybe their boss?

At this point, I just walk in because I'm pretty sure they'd sense me either way.

"Good morning child?"

"Morning Nona, what time is it? And why are you guys still here."

"It's a little past three o'clock. We stayed here to chat and since it was already late it seemed pointless to move to the main house."

"Where did you get that mark?" Mor asks staring at my thighs which were peeking through the oversized tee I had woken up sometime in the night to change into.

I move behind the couch, suddenly self-conscious.

"What mark, my birthmark?"

"That one, come here child, how have I never seen it before?" says Nona Ellie waving me towards where she's perched.

"Because she dresses like it's winter all the time," grumbles Mama.

"That's because I'm always cold," I counter, fighting a shiver as I move closer.

Nona Ellie and Mor examine the mark I had always thought was a birthmark. It sort of looked like a moon; a crescent with three feathers around it, which were pretty, but then a jagged line crossed through them.

"Come here, Killian," Nona calls.

He moves over and examines me, cursing after a while.

"This might really be a birthmark signifying your lineage, but there is a repellent spell in it, supposed to make your body uncomfortable when you are near supes."

Uh, what the what now?

"You said you were always cold while living in the streets, and that's the one thing you couldn't stand before, so the magic used that as the punishment when you got close to supes."

"That is why you are always cold," Nona concludes.

"Oh dear!", Mama says, moving to hug me only to halt, looking guilty, "We've been hurting you for so long."

"That's not all."

"Please, no, I haven't even eaten yet, I didn't even have supper, Have mercy Killer."

He glares at me at the name.

"Say it, Killian," my Papa demands.

"Whoever put that mark on you never wanted you to be near supes, but it was also used to camouflage something."

"I detect a binding spell underneath it too. That's what must be keeping your abilities at bay."

"Well, can you get rid of it?"

"It's ancient magic, really ancient magic," Killian answers looking at Nona who looked pale, which was a feat since her skin was milky white.

"We can't break it here, we need to do it in Faery for it to at least work," she hurriedly concludes.

"That's not all." the Grinch adds.

"Fates, boy, are you my damn grim reaper?" I grouch.

"They designed the binding in a way that killed you slowly and, if tempered with, you die with it," he continues ignoring me.

"What do you mean, slowly?" Papa asks menacingly.

"It has been tampering with her physically, mentally, and emotionally till it kills her or she gives up and does it herself," Killian says finally looking at me.

"But something has been helping you, you should have been dead before you hit eighteen. There's a blue aura added to yours that has been nurturing yours, now that I think of it, that aura is your son's." The man goes on like he's not reading out my sentence while I stare at him incredulously.

Mama is now in Papa's arms breaking down. Meanwhile, I'm just wondering what I did to go through all this. Must have pissed off quite a number of people in my past lives.

Ignoring everyone, I head to the kitchen in a daze and start making breakfast. I'm pretty sure it's just muscle memory, because my mind was nowhere close to the kitchen.

I feel someone move behind me and I'm certain it's Mor. I was getting good at this Supe thing.

"You need help? I make some pretty mean pancakes."

"Uhm, sure."

Moving over, I grab an apple and start munching. Once I'm done, I turn for the stairs but I don't make it a couple of steps before darkness envelopes me.

All I think before it's completely dark is that at least it's quiet.