Page 31 of Last Gift: Supernatural Battle

“You’ve been trusted with this task,” I pointed out.

“Only because my sister is the person who deserved my faith from the get-go. She decided not to give up on me.” Rhona held up the letter. “Thank you.”

I glanced around the dimly lit bar that smelled of stale cooking oil and wet carpet. “Don’t thank me. You earned it.” I rose. “If you need to return, come straight to the barrier through the forest. You’ll be safe, and you’ve spent enough time in this place.” I joined the others.

“Is it done?” Sven asked, watching as Rhona strode out of the bar, slipping into her leather jacket on the way.

I’d invited Vissimo and Luthers to the coven for what I’d expect was the first time in the coven’s history.

I nodded. “Sure is.”

For better, or for worse.

9

Supernaturals, various teams and efforts, Frond’s table of dissenters, the ritual with Wild, and my demon’s disappearance. My mind was filled and frantic, a sure sign that I’d neglected downloading information into my quipu for too long.

And a coven of over three hundred magus waited for me to talk, watching as I tried to order my thoughts after the quick meeting I’d just had.

You look crazy.

Wild sent me courage, and I held on tight. This moment was the same as many others in my life where I’d felt stuck.

“Where do I start?” I asked my mother, standing in the middle of the magical trap she’d formed to help me practice.

She smiled, blue eyes glinting. “At the start, Tempy. Always at the start.”

Ryzika’s robes settled around me as I stood from the table of my advisors up on the stage. “Mother,” I said, closing my eyes and raising my palms to Varden and Winona, who sat either side of me. I felt their palms against mine as they stood also, and after a brief lull of surprise, I heard the shift as the entire coven mimicked me. “From your energy are we born. From your lessons are we taught. By your mercy do we live. By your hammer do we fall. Into your open arms do we slip unto our end. Peer into our hearts and ambitions and guide us from falseness to truth, to oneness, and to prosperity in your world. Mother be.”

“Mother be,” echoed the coven.

In control of myself once more, I looked at the magus. “You have been very patient while waiting to gain understanding of what happened last week. I thank you for that. I thank you because there were things I had to understand first with help from my advisors.” I gestured to the six magus at the table, three either side. “While I cannot answer everything, I will impart what we have made sense of.”

No one spoke. Not even Frond’s gang who liked to fall silent after everyone else. He wanted more ammo, that was all, and he’d get it from this speech. I wasn’t fooled into believing what I said next would change his mind.

“Firstly, you are aware that the council is disbanded and an advisory team is formed. I would like to acknowledge the huge efforts of the council in their work while Caves was being played. That is not something I take lightly, that anyone should take lightly, and our history books will reflect as much. Thank you to all of those magus.

“Onward to coven matters, there are several new teams that are forming this week. Esteemed Advisor Astar”—I gestured to Wild—“is working with our sentries to ensure our defenses there are honed. He will work with our lead strategist, Sage, who is putting together a team of the best minds this coven has to offer. Esteemed Advisor Cyderh”—I gestured at Delta—“will soon be organizing training sessions geared toward defense and offense against demons. This will trickle across the affinities as we gather information. Esteemed Advisor Leif”—I nodded at Huxley—“has formed a team of grimoires with this need for information in mind. Thank you to everyone who has joined one or more of those teams already. This is where we start in order to make our coven safe.”

I paused to let them absorb that. “To that end, if you are not part of those teams, then you are crucial to our future safety. One week ago, demons attacked this coven. That the demons were able to leave their realm showed that they had amassed considerable strength. We have put together that a demon feeds on negative emotion—things like anger and pain and sadness and hurt. Demons feed on this for as long as is needed to gain strength and eventually step out of their realm. A demon is driven by the need to expand territory and make any new territory—and the creatures within—a part of their realm and therefore a constant food source.”

More than a few looks were exchanged.

“Yes,” I said. “I can see many of you understand what that means. The demons seek to claim the knolls. And use us as their permanent food source. That is the danger that stares us in the face. But how did an army of demons enter so close to our realm without our knowledge? That is where our minds need to be. The answer seems clear, to me and to my advisors, and maybe to some of you who were relieved to see the end of our three-hundred-year-old game. I believe the answer was Caves.”

Loud conversation broke out, and I listened closely to the general emotions through the chamber. Some disagreed, some felt shocked, and some didn’t dismiss it out of the gate. I heard their fear and nerves.

I let the conversation come to a natural end. “Whether or not that’s the case, we can say with certainty that a demon grows strength via feeding on negative emotion. To that end, you are aware by now that we have started a centering circle initiative to operate three times daily. For those in a team, or not, our objective is to limit those negative emotions to what is normal. For too long our coven has existed in two teams. That ends now. That must end if we are to avoid the fate the demons have in store for us. I want no one under the illusion that this threat is something to make light of. You do so at the risk of your life and of those around you.”

The mood was solemn. Good.

This was no joke.

Now to lay some groundwork.

“For three hundred years, our rooms have depicted our position on a gameboard. Tomorrow, the esteemed will adjust to new quarters based on their power ranking alone. The strongest will room closest to the entrance of our cave and to my quarters—which contains the only internal demon gate. The day after, proven will do the same. The day after that, novices will rearrange also. We are no longer Fertim or Vero. We are the Buried Knolls coven. Esteemed Advisor Hyatte”—I settled a hand on Varden’s shoulder—“is in charge of rolling out incentives to counter the demons’ influence within the coven. Until then, be aware that if you’re feeling high levels of negative emotion, then this could be our enemy’s influence. Demon magic is at play in the coven, trying to push us toward that which makes them stronger and us weaker.

“I’m not telling you that you can’t feel. Many of us feel afraid of what happened and what may happen. We all feel a lot in this moment, and the last week. But let us hone these emotions into a weapon that can’t be used against us. Tell someone you trust if you feel that the level of what you feel is unusual. Ask for perspective. If you notice someone is acting out of sorts, then please open that conversation with them. If you have questions or concerns, then please come to me or my advisors. I will answer any that I can, and I hope to answer any I can’t in time.”

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