Chosen: Book 1 in the Ancients of Light series (4 page)

A short time later, an enraged Myrrdyn did
arrive to claim his family and launched a tirade at Vevila and
Elfred over their foolishness at putting his grandchild in
jeopardy. Before he could gain the full story of their rescue, his
anger was stemmed as Kaitriana stumbled into the great hall. Yet
another spider in tow, she beamed at him, “Grandpapa…I have a new
friend.”

He made way to her, still piqued enough to
offer her wayward parents a glare over his shoulder as he scooped
the lass into his arms. Looking pointedly at the brown spider
cradled calmly in her palm, he softened his demeanor immediately
and questioned fondly, “And what is this fine friend’s name, my
princess?”

Her eyes met with his as she proudly
announced, “Lorcan…and he is good
good
Warrior. She whispered her secret to Grandpapa, her most favorite
person in the whole Realm, “Lorcan is a good good Vampire…he
not
bad bad bad.” Myrrdyn, rarely shocked
in his ancient existence, nearly dropped the girl as realization
dawned that the spider pet was not her ‘new friend.’

He whirled on Vevila, fixing her with a
killing glare, “As soon as I return you to your home, you will be
answering for this.”

Sensing the tenseness of the situation and
the upset of her Grandpapa, she patted his face with her free hand,
soothingly, “Grandpapa, tis okay…Lorcan no chomp chomp chomp
witches.” She smiled as she imparted the news, “And, he is
Mine
.” Kaitriana was certain she was a
good good witch to been given such an important warrior and she
affirmed, “Lorcan is
mine
, he say so…‘Yes’
he say.” She nodded as she proudly divulged that fact.

Myrrdyn let her wiggle free. As he watched
her scamper off in search of more ‘friends’ he mulled over this
latest revelation, wondering with glee how Lorcan felt about having
been claimed by a Witch. The Warrior of Light had no idea he had
today held his own destiny, literally.

Chuckling outloud, his disposition was
greatly improved. Myrrdyn rubbed his hands together with delight
before turning to face his daughter and her husband. His voice was
stern, though a tiny sparkle remained in his eyes, “I will be
having full account of this. We must return my grandchild to the
protection of her Caste.”

CHAPTER 4
522 Years later

Kaitriana awoke abruptly; the disorientation
from doing so nearly overwhelmed her ability to remain upright in
the bed. The return of her senses, now heightened, made everything
that much more intense after her extended slumber. Her limbs were
shaking and she could not keep her hands still as she attempted to
straighten herself further. Every part of her was having trouble
readjusting to an awakened state. Her throat felt parched and an
ache was beginning to find home in the base of her skull. Memories,
given to her through the magic of Myrrdyn during the past five
centuries were whirling in her head doing naught but causing the
ache to build.

The rushing play of the visions was making it
difficult for her to ascertain exactly where she was and her
condition. She fell back to the pillows of her bed with an
anguished moan, spying a large chalice at the table to the side of
her bed…cup; her fostered memories brought the proper name to her.
Her still trembling hands eased across the silken material of the
coverings draping her. The coolness of the same helped calm her as
she attempted to regain some sense of herself and composure to go
along with it.

The recollections that were not her own had
filtered into her subconscious during the time of her slumber,
telling her the story of the happenings within the Realm as well as
within the human world. Kaitriana felt as if she had lived them,
felt as current with the times and the history of the Light and the
Dark as though she had played a part.

She had not...she had been confined, powers
bound for her own sake and the sake of the Realm, in a magically
induced coma-like state. Kaitriana remembered vividly her
grandfather’s eyes, filled with tears, as he had done this to her.
His promise echoed through her head as if he had spoken the words
just yesterday, “Kaitriana when you are strong enough to control
the magic that has risen in you, when you can master it in your new
form, it will be time. You will awaken and fulfill your destiny,
the prophecy as the Chosen.”

Her mind wandered back from there. Her own
memories and those of Myrrdyn encroached; unbidden and unwanted,
she tucked her legs into her chest at the onslaught. She began
rocking with the pain unleashed on her, tears forming and falling
unchecked.

It had been the beginning
of the Festival of the Moon, many years had passed since the Witch
Castes had all gathered to celebrate the event. It would be her
first experience, her entrance fully into the world of the Witch.
Though twenty-six, her parents and Myrrdyn had kept her interaction
with the Castes a rare occurrence, seeking to shelter her until her
powers were fully realized.

At her insistent pleading,
they had agreed it was time for her to take her place in the Witch
faction and to come to this celebration. Her powers were peaking
and she had been training hard with her Papa to perfect the Warrior
magic passed to her from her father’s Caste. Elfred and Vevila
thought her strength was limited to the powers of that Caste, that
the Fire and Light abilities from her youth were too weak and
unpredictable to use.

Like so many of the Witch
breed, they also believed that the other born in the year of the
Chosen would actually fulfill the prophecy. Kaitriana and Myrrdyn,
a secret between the two, had known otherwise. In his presence she
had mastered her other powers, near perfecting her control of them.
Yet the magic had continued to rise in her, the extent of her
strength astonishing even her ancient grandfather. She had been
exhibiting powers from every Caste and even Myrrdyn had not
realized the Prophecy would give rise to such greatness.

Given that she had been
kept from the Castes, the assumption within the Witch order had
been that Myrrdyn’s grandchild was a disappointment. Rumors
abounded that she was hidden because she was weak and that the
Sorcerer of Light was embarrassed. The natural inclination was to
afford the title of Chosen to the other born in the same year,
Cordelia. The young witch was a stunning beauty and she showed
promise in mastering the magic from three of the seven
Castes.

Given that Kaitriana had
been kept from them, the few that remembered encountering her could
only describe her as unremarkable in appearance and power. The
consensus was that only a witch possessing both the power and the
beauty blessed on Cordelia could invoke the full prophecy and lead
a mighty warrior within the Vampire clan to forget the animosity
between the two factions and take the Chosen as his mate. Some even
were bold enough to offer that the beauty of Cordelia would tempt
even the mighty Warrior of Light to forget the supposed treachery
of his mother and take the Chosen for his own.

None had been aware that
the power of Kaitriana’s magic was already near strong enough to
surpass Myrrdyn, nor were they aware that the lass had blossomed
physically as well. The mouse brown hair that had been untamable in
her youth had developed into midnight black, a gloss of curls that
danced down to her waist. Her ice blue eyes, the most remarkable
thing about the witch, were now framed by thick sooty lashes that
enhanced the beauty of the unique color. Though still plagued by
the freckles painted on the bridge of her nose, an extremely rare
occurrence for an immortal, they now served to highlight her pert
little features, the sweep of her high cheekbones, and the creamy
texture of her pale skin.

She had grown to the
height of her mother, nearly five and a half feet. Kaitriana’s
hours of warrior training had kept her body slim and taut with
muscle, though there was a lush curve to the form of her hips and
chest. Although Myrrdyn focused only on the beauty of her magic, he
was aware that his grandchild was fine enough to tempt any vampire,
especially the Warrior of Light.

The arrival of Myrrdyn and
his family at the Festival of the Moon had been eagerly
anticipated. Nearly all of the Witch Castes milled about in order
to catch glimpse of the group as soon as they might arrive. None
would ever be brave enough to speak in the presence of Myrrdyn
about the dissatisfaction that must plague him over the
unacceptable offspring his line had produced, but all had been
eager to witness and gossip about the same.

Even Cordelia had been
impatient to see the girl that had been her rival, so that all
present would officially acknowledge her place as the Chosen and
shower her with the praise and benefits that she expected would
come with it. She was not true of heart as most of the Witch had
been fooled to believe by her beauty and easy smiles. Her own Caste
well knew her for her temper and spite, caused much by the doting
of her parents and the elders within the Nature Caste.

The Warrior, Fire and
Light Castes were considered the most prestigious within the Realm,
as they were the most effective in combating the evil Vampire
forces. The rise of the potential Chosen within the Nature Caste
had been a source of much pride for the elders. They were so often
easily dismissed by the other Castes given the perceived lack of
strength in their magic. Cordelia’s birth had instantly elevated
their status in the Realm and her parents had been quick to
capitalize on the newfound glory. The Caste had given rise to a
beautiful witch, but one with a dark heart and that realization was
just now coming to her own kin. None would dare speak against her
now, not even the elders, as her powers continued to rise and
foolhardy few risked the girl’s ire.

Cordelia had held court in
what she assumed was a her rightful place in the center of the
gathering, making jests about her rival to her circle of friends.
She was oblivious or pointedly ignoring the stares of censure being
directed her way over her poor remarks. Her disparagement even went
towards Myrrdyn, and to disrespect the Sorcerer of Light was great
arrogance or foolishness personified.

As they approached the
gathering, Myrrdyn had cautioned Kaitriana to show great restraint
in exercising her powers, but her excitement as they grew closer
had blue light dancing at her fingertips and an unnatural wind
picking up. Myrrdyn shot her a look of disapproval and Kaitriana
quickly subdued the magic. No power had been evident in her as they
had made the rise of the hill, meeting with the expectant faces of
thousands of Witch. Upon seeing the crowd and the singularity of
their gaze directed to him and his grandchild, Myrrdyn conceded to
his own arrogance and made use of his magic to transport them to
the very center of the gathering. His ancient frame nearly knocked
Cordelia out of her chosen spot, his tone as dismissive as the look
her gave her, “Excuse me, girl.”

Myrrdyn smirked and
Cordelia instantly had the uneasy feeling that the Sorcerer knew
every word that she had been proffering to her crowd of friends
prior to his arrival. She was indignant over his remark though,
girl indeed. Even he must realize she would be assuming his
position as the most feared and respected witch in the Realm. She
had given him a patronizing look in return.

Cordelia had been nearly
oblivious to the growing murmurs of the crowd around her. Kaitriana
had pushed back the hood of her cloak and was smiling with shy
warmth to those within her view. It had not taken long for Cordelia
to realize that the attention of the crowd had been focused on
another and she had shot the other female a scowl before she could
school her features otherwise for the benefit of her audience.
Cordelia had been shocked to see the enchanting beauty on Myrrdyn’s
arm, the witch’s dark looks were in total contrast to the golden
hair and green eyes that were common to Cordelia’s Caste. This
one’s appearance was common to none within the Realm, Kaitriana was
unique.

It had ruffled Cordelia
before she recalled that the beauty of the witch mattered not,
Cordelia had established herself within the Realm. Myrrdyn’s
grandchild had done neither that, nor proven any skill with magic.
If the rumors were true, and Cordelia held great respect for the
power of rumors, the young witch possessed only the power of a
single Caste. Nonetheless, Cordelia had refused to tolerate the
presence of the other in her own circle and she had offered
Kaitriana a pitying smile before turning rudely in the opposite
direction. Her devoted friends trailed in her wake.

Through Myrrdyn’s
teachings, Kaitriana had grown not only in the strength of her
magic but also in character. Though she might offer the appearance
of a tiny beauty that would require the strength and protection of
a Warrior, she was capable of protecting herself in all manners,
even from spiteful, jealous witches. She had categorized Cordelia
immediately as such but had easily dismissed her upset over it.
Kaitriana was not to let the wonder of the night be ruined, nor
would she have deigned to act any lower than the right of her birth
required as Myrrdyn’s heir.

Her smile had grown warmer
and unchecked mirth affected her words, “Well, that did not go
quite well at all.” Her statement had been for her grandfather, but
had been picked up on by those close and quickly bandied about by
the crowd. Despite the birthright passed to her by Myrrdyn, she had
not appeared the haughty bitch that her rival was. The belief had
been fostered throughout the first night of the festival, as she
made her way through the crowds at the side of the
Sorcerer.