[Firenze]: 56.Sharman - The New Beginning: Chapter12

CHAPTER TWELVE – A FAMILIES SIN

The stone house that is the High Sharman’s home looked less inviting as Kerrin walked down the beautifully scented cobbled pathway. A feeling of dread came over her like a whirlwind. Fear. Morea knew what he was about to tell her would, even show her would terrify her and he doubted that she would see Sharman the same way ever again. They both sighed, a gentle sigh together as they reached the front door. Danu always knew when the High Sharman had returned and was always there to open the door for him, “Welcome home High Sharman, welcome home Novice Kerrin” he said with a polite bow to them both, “High Sharman, Sharman Domitri awaits you in the living room” he added as Kerrin and Morea walked in, “Thank you Danu, will you please bring some bread, cheese and wine to the living room for me please” Morea said as Kerrin gracefully walked into the leaving room leaving him and Danu alone, “Also do not cook the evening meal, get an early night, I will have Kerrin cook, she needs to learn to use her powers” he said smiling. Danu nodded, then vanished into a dark passageway that led to the kitchens and Morea went into the living room.

Domitri and Kerrin sat next to each other. Kerrin curled up underneath Domitri’s fur cloak leaning on his arm, Morea thought to himself, ‘they would make a good couple if they were not related so closely to each other’. Domitri wrapped his arms around Kerrin lovingly as she smiled showing a hint of worry in her eyes. Morea sat down in an arm chair opposite them both and sighed, “I guess, I had best tell you the entire story of our family Kerrin, Perdhro’s secret, Perdhro’s legacy so to speak, something that your children which you will need to have, will undertake to if Sharman are to remain as they are, as they appear anyway” he said looking down, then looking to Kerrin, “I will tell you of the sickness first, then myself and Domitri will take you into the city to teach you Tel’nariod for Tel’nariod is something you must feel, it is not something you just learn” Morea said solemnly, Kerrin nodded and Morea continued on, “Well before the Guild was formed, nearly two thousand years ago all sharman were inhuman so to speak, they were not like you see today, they were in truth demons who would take on any human as a student if they had the potential to be a strong demon, once they had chosen the student, the students soul would be taken from them and…” Morea paused for a moment looking to the ground, “And were put in a box, the soul would be kept till what was called Tel’jahjihu, the day they become full demon, on that day the student would be forced to eat their own soul thus completing their transformation” he said sighing as if he were made to do it when he was young. Kerrin looked to him as Domitri hugged her tighter,

“What does that have to do with me? I mean us” Kerrin said as she wriggled to get comfortable.

“I was getting to that, patience child or you will never learn anything” Morea said half-heartedly, “The student was only made to eat the soul in Tel’jahjihu if they were not born into a demon family, if the student was born into a demon family which was extremely rare they would not have to go through Tel’jahjihu instead they were taken to Fehu where the great demons held council over what the child was to be called and it was put through many tests to test their worth for honour to a demon was key to survival” he said smiling, “During a council where a child’s name was being decided, Thurisaz came from Algranay to speak, he said that it was time to end thousands of years of custom and tradition and begin a new, of course the demons all laughed in his face bar Perdhro, you see Perdhro was actually a demon, not an actual family, all current families, like your uncle for example, his name is Kenaz, Family of Elarador, the demon his family originated from was called Elarador but ours was Perdhro” he paused as Danu walked in and set on the table an array of cheeses, crackers and wine, he bowed to Morea and Kerrin but not Domitri, Danu did not respect Dagda for his own personal reasons and left the room as swiftly as he entered.

Morea waited silently for a while leaning into the armchair, “I suggest you eat and drink, you will hurt Danu’s feelings” he said with a chuckle as he leant over, took a glass of wine and leant back comfortably in his chair taking small sips of the wine, as Domitri handed Kerrin some cheese and crackers as well as a small glass of wine, “Well where was I, ah yes, well Thurisaz noticed that Perdhro did not laugh at his suggestion to the council but noble Thurisaz did not embarrass our ancestor it was Tir a servant that did, Tir has always had to be one better than Perdhro even though he was just a servant” Morea shook his head, “Anyway, Tir pointed out that Perdhro was not laughing and Elarador who was head of council at the time, said to Thurisaz that it seems that one demon agrees with you why doesn’t he stand, so Perdhro did and walked to Thurisaz’s side, the demons laughed at him and Thurisaz thought to himself, why laugh at one who agrees with me? So he struck down every demon making them human with magical abilities. The demons were fuming with anger all were human apart from Perdhro, he was alone in the world, he turned to Thurisaz and asked to be turned to human also but Thurisaz denied him and said that all their spirits still live within them but need keeping at bay but Perdhro did not want to be a demon if all the rest were not so Thurisaz cursed him and his family, to have to keep all the demon souls that lived in the former demons at bay to be demon but never show it, and Thurisaz proclaimed him the first true sharman and leader of sharman’s for eternity, thus the guild came into being” Morea finished his glass of wine and placed the glass on a side table beside him and opened a drawer reaching in it, pulling out a picture and sending it over to Kerrin.

Domitri smiled as it wafted over and caught the picture in the air drawing it down for Kerrin. He held it for a moment, looking at it and sighing, “Where did you get this picture then Morea?” he asked as he handed it over to Kerrin. Kerrin looked at the picture, the man in it looked a lot like a cross of Domitri and Morea but he looked more like Morea in the dim light of the room.

“Papa, he looks like you but why does he have two odd eyes? And what are those blue markings? I have seen them before in dreams but what are they?” Kerrin said studying the picture in depth.

“That my dearest daughter is Perdhro, I see him in you a lot of him in you in fact” he said with a grin, “I will show you what you really look like if you want” Morea said rising from his chair looking at Domitri and Kerrin. Kerrin turned to Domitri as if looking for an answer. Domitri simply nodded at her. Morea noticed this and wondered why she kept looking to him for answers and shook his head, ‘must be trying to look as if she trusts him’ he thought to himself and sighed.

“Yes, Papa, I would like to see what, I would look like as a demon” she paused and looked down before looking into his eyes, “I guess, I should face my inner demon” she said jokingly.

“This is no laughing matter Kerrin; it can mean life and death for you and chaos for all of Nied if the sharman become demons again, would you like to see your uncle a demon? He would not be a very pleasant person” Morea said scolding her.

“I am sorry Father, please forgive me” she said bowing to him, “I should not have put my answer so jokingly” she said as she stood. Morea walked over to her and hugged her.

“Forgiven” he said lightly as he kissed the top of her head, smiling he took her hand and led her out of the living room. They climbed the stairs, Domitri followed them close behind. Kerrin rubbed her arm gently when they reached the end of a dark hall. Morea opened a door, inside the room stood a long, golden rimmed mirror on a stand, “The Mirror of Truth, it will show you all truths of who you are” he said grimly, “It will also show you that I am not the only black sharman in this room, that there are in truth three black sharman in this room” he held his arm out to allow her to enter, “Go, take a look but be careful some truths become reality” he said as she walked in, she looked to him with a worried look but he just ushered her in. Both Morea and Domitri were prepared for the worst if it came into being.

Kerrin walked over to the mirror and stood there, looking deep into the mirror. At first she saw nothing, yet she kept looking to see what she was supposed to look like. A voice in her head began to speak to her as she watched the mirror, telling her to concentrate on herself and stop thinking about other things. She did as she was told and there in front of her appeared a girl, dressed in the same clothing as her one eye green like her own the other yellow with a blue pattern entwining around her yellow eye and on the palms of her hand a intricate pattern in the same blue as around her eye. Kerrin looked at Morea and Domitri who were both standing behind her; they looked the same, just like her. The voice spoke to her again.

- I see you like your appearance my child, it is a shame the old ways have died, you would have made a good demon.

- Who are you? I am a sharman, I am no demon.

- Not a demon eh? Look at your father and uncle, let them decide, they will tell you whether you are demon or not, even Arramay will tell you, it is a shame Elarador is not here, it would be good to see him again, I still cannot believe that you are of his blood also, pathetic swine, well what are you waiting for look at them!

Kerrin did as she was told; she turned to look at her father and uncle, “We look the same in the mirror, same markings and all” she said nervously, Morea put his hand under her chin to look at her closely and shook his head.

“It seems you have changed in reality also, you bear the marks in reality as well, Perdhro must be strong in you, you will have to fight him with every last bit of strength be strong my daughter and fight him” Morea said kissing her cheek. Kerrin was astounded at what he said and staggered back from him.

“I am not a demon, I am a sharman, and I am not Perdhro and… and… these markings on me, the colour of my eyes this can’t be real, I must be dreaming it” Kerrin said.

“You are the first member of this family to go through the changes that have occurred tonight, it seems you may be Perdhro reborn Kerrin, we will help you to the best of our abilities but I think now you should rest, we can talk about Tel’nariod tomorrow, you need your rest, classes begin tomorrow for you and you Domitri had best sleep as well, I do not want my new Head of Tutors to fall asleep on the job, you will be immensely busy tomorrow as we will have to settle you in your new home and introduce you to the sharman here” Morea said with a sigh. He had hoped that what had happened to Kerrin, wouldn’t happen, his suspicions about her were correct, she was destined for great things but the question that plagued his mind was ‘Will she be able to fulfil Thurisaz’s dream?’’ He walked to the door and opened it again, “Well come on, to bed both of you” he said half asleep. Kerrin and Domitri nodded as they began to walk out of the room. Morea walked over to the mirror and placed a piece of silk over it, cover the delicate glass, stopping anyone looking at it. By this time Kerrin and Domitri had both left the room and were in their own private rooms. Domitri was in the room across from Kerrin, Morea sighed as he walked out of the mirror room closing the door and went to his own room and went to sleep.

Kerrin undressed herself and slipped into a nightdress that was placed at the end of her bed; she smiled to herself as she blew out the candle and climbed into bed.

- Seems your father is suspicious of you now, he thinks you are a demon, he will try and purge you whilst you sleep, you must not let him do this, you will die if he does and what you are prophesised to do will not come true. You need to be a demon, I am sorry to have chosen you but you were the strongest born in my name, I have watched over you since a babe, unleashed your powers and all.

- Who are you? That is all I ask is who are you? I am Kerrin, what is your name?

- I am Perdhro at your service and you will not have to perform Tel’nariod if you allow me to extend my full power unto you. Normally when the signs that have appeared on you, my family decide that they are to be purged of all evil and of course they class myself as evil. I am not evil Kerrin, the evil in this world is those who perform Tel’nariod to keep the demons as humans with magical abilities but I have to appease Thurisaz as well as prove to him that demons can do what he proposed. That is why I chose you; I felt an… attraction to you when you were born. Not an attraction as in looks but in heart and spirit, something I had not seen in my family since well me.

- What about Tel’nariod? Papa said I have to learn it, to keep the demons quiet, to keep evil appeased.

- I do not wish you to perform it; your father and uncle only need to add an extra two people each to appease. Kerrin, do not doubt you are becoming a demon because you are slowly but surely you are. You certainly do look like your mother as your father says but you have Morea’s strong eyes and sense of direction always questioning and thinking on your toes, making stupid decisions that work pretty much all the time but you are so much like myself. I am going to teach you something now, it is called Ji’ju’gradeen, you will be able to talk to me face to face then once learnt.

- I will learn, tell me what I have to do.

- Well lend me a little bit of your power and I will imprint what you have to do in your mind, it is a technique I used on my students when they were to become demons and teach afterwards.

Kerrin closed her eyes and left her power defenceless so that Perdhro could touch it. As she closed her eyes she felt a sudden drain of energy, her eyes snapped open and there stood in front of her was a man very much like Morea but with her markings. She could feel a surge of knowledge enter her mind. Arramay appeared as well sat upon the end of the bed shaking his head. Kerrin just sat up in shock at the two.

“Your father would not approve of this Kerrin and I do not approve of this either, you have said yourself, you are not a demon” Arramay said in a displeased tone, “You are a sharman student and a sharman you will be, you are not a sa’nefia and you will not become a demon, I have the right-mind to go to your father now and tell him of this!” Arramay was furious with her. Perdhro just looked at him and waved his hand making Arramay vanish.

“Go tell Morea then you pompous dictator” Perdhro said shaking his head with a smile, “Well, this is me, your ancestor, well one of them and as for what Arramay said, you will be a student of three peoples, mine a sa’nefia, your fathers a sharman and your uncle Domitri’s a Dagda” he took her palm, looking at it intensely, “I don’t know if it is worth me making take the sa’nefia vows, you are already full demon but untrained” he drew he eyes from the length of her hand to look deeply into her eyes, “But I believe from looking into your heart and living in you, you won’t disobey me, will not use what I teach unless told to by me” he smiled as Morea barged in the door with a powerful force, “It is good to see you Morea” Perdhro said as he turned to look at Morea.

“Let her live how she is suppose to Perdhro, she is not yours, she is human” Morea said walking slowly up to him, until finally he was towering over Perdhro, “Go back to whence you came Demon, you are not welcome here, not now, not ever!” Morea said calmly.

“Oh that is where you are wrong, you knew the instant my markings on her appeared that she was no longer human! You could not face that your daughter is so unlike you and so like me” he chuckled, “You wonder why you never remember when you bedded Kerrin’s mother, it was because you never did, yes it was your body but it was me who bedded her, I took over, you were always so weak, I always wondered why old Prederius made you High Sharman after him instead of Domitri but now I see it, he knew I would take over you and make sure that any child of yours became like me” Perdhro smiled, “It hurts doesn’t it, to know the truth, she will fulfil Thurisaz’s dream with my guidance” he said with a bow, “Kerrin, I would like to leave now, your father and you have much to talk about” he said still smiling. Kerrin nodded and Perdhro vanished whilst Arramay appeared by her side. She sighed a dreamy sigh and laid down.

“Kerrin look at me, look at me now” Morea said taking her by the shoulders and making her look to him but she made no response, she was still in a trance. He blew a cold breath of wind at her face and she awakened fully.

“Papa, I am not Perdhro am I? I am not him am I? Please I am not a demon am I?” she said with such sorrow in her eyes, “You aren’t going to purge me of him are you?” she asked watching him intently.

“Kerrin, we’ll have to purge you of him, to protect you” he replied sternly, “And yes given your current appearance and what you have been able to do, you are my dearest daughter a demon” he said sighing.

“You cannot purge me of him, I won’t allow it, you’ll kill me if you do, ask Arramay he will tell you, please I do not wish to die” she said climbing out of bed and going to her knees in front of him, holding the hem of his robes as if kissing them. She looked like a beggar more than a Sharman in the state she was in, Morea sighed and lifted her up and put her on his knee holding her lightly closing his eyes wondering how he could get out of this predicament, he needed to purge her of Perdhro so she could live a normal life and not be ridiculed for her appearance it was going to be bad enough for her when students found out that she was raised on the streets but was his daughter. He paused for a moment and then came up with an idea.

“I won’t purge you of him yet, do not worry your head about that but you will need to be careful around the guild, people will ask why they have never met you, you will say what I tell you to say, you won’t tell them the truth for they will shun you and treat you poorly, you will tell them I was teaching you in private until now, I am sure Perdhro will teach you much whilst you sleep to get you up to the standards you should be, as for your appearance I will prepare a vial of attanamer, which will keep your appearance from them, they will see you as you once were without the markings or different eyes” he sighed and sat her on the bed as he moved away from her, looking at her with his weary eyes before kissing her head.

“Father, I am not the only one who has changed tonight” Kerrin said running her finger across his face where the Perdhro markings were, “He has affected you to, maybe it is the beginning of the end for Sharman” she said taking her hand away from his face slowly.

“It won’t be because I know you won’t allow it, I know you will fight to keep things the way they are and will do it in a peaceful way” Morea kissed her cheek, “Now be a good girl and sleep, you’ll need your strength tomorrow to fend off other novices even fully trained sharman if they choose to challenge you, goodnight” he said standing and leaving her in the dark once more with Arramay sat at the end of her bed, sighing to himself as he watched her fall asleep.

Morea walked to his brothers room, went to the side of the bed where Domitri was sleeping peacefully. He gently shook Domitri’s shoulder, “Domitri wake up! We need to talk!” he said urgently.
“Whaaaaat?” Domitri said sleepily as he sat up and looked to Morea and then looked in shock at him, “What in the hell is happening to you?” he asked.

“Not just me dear brother to all of us, Perdhro has awakened in Kerrin and has taken such a hold on her she is fully demon, stronger than all Sharman in our world” he said sitting in a chair opposite to Domitri.
“We must purge her then” Domitri said sternly.

“I fear we are too late for that Domitri” Morea said as he rubbed his face, “It would kill her if we did that, we will just have to bear with it and teach her still just make sure her powers remain to my strength as I fear she will be stronger in the morning” he said looking darkly and sighed, “Come, we will have to perform Tel’nariod to appease the demons now that Perdhro has come forth” he said standing.

“What at this hour? Morea…we will never find anyone…not unless we go into peoples homes and I don’t really wish to do that again after the last incident with the old woman who turned out to be a banshee” Domitri groaned.

“You could visit Adala and spend the night with her, she is still unmarried Domitri” Morea said seductively and Domitri smiled mischievously and stood.

“Adala eh? Haven’t seen that vixen in a long, long time, maybe it is time I spend a quick night with her” he said putting his boot on, “What herb are you after now then?” he asked.

“I need the petals of the yaconet flower, we have none of them here, against our rules to have them here and I know Adala will have them at the price of you for the night you were always her favourite” Morea said playfully, “And you can perform Tel’nariod on her, that will be one of the few we have to perform it on” he said sighing ‘Perdhro I know you are there dominant when she sleeps, how many do we need to appease?’ Morea thought and waited silently for the demons reply but no reply came to him, Morea began to become agitated and stormed out of Domitri’s room and into Kerrin’s. He was surprised to see that instead of Kerrin lying in her bed, he found her in the form of Perdhro himself and looked confused, “No she can’t have learnt that already” he said shaking his head, “Perdhro, I need to speak with you” he said nervously and her eyes snapped open and she sat up.

“You called for me Morea? Can’t I have a moments peace without you wanting me out of her body and gone, or even teach her what she needs to learn for her sharman studies” he said with a shudder, “I hate what demons have become, I just wish they listened to Thurisaz” he said sighing.

“Enough of idle chat, how many do me and Domitri need to perform Tel’nariod on?” he asked.

“Four people, two each, not a lot really but personally I would just let them return to demons now, it will be less painful for them all later” Perdhro said smirking at Morea as he watched the high sharman tremble before Kerrin’s new transformed body, “I am half tempted to just take her entirely but that would be unfair on her soul, it is so calm, like a placid lake with snow bound mountains peering into its still waters on a cold sunny day but she also has the beauty of her mother even though she was of Elarador’s birthing, by Thurisaz I do miss being a demon and being able to live and breathe the air of the worlds around me, I wish to be free of this curse one day Morea and I wish for my family to be free of it, I should never have begged Thurisaz to be human for the pain it causes is unbearable, I pray that one day my family can forgive me for the pain I put them through on a nightly basis when I know in the depths of my soul I should never be forgiven” Perdhro sighed with deep remorse, his words were full of meaning and sorrow, he just wished for all to be normal once again and for Thurisaz’s dream to become reality. Slowly he wrapped a blanket around his shoulders and crossed his legs, wrapping the blanket tighter around him and rubbing his arms, “I am really cold, never before have I been cold, I have always had a warm home” he said with a shudder, “I am like a lost little boy in this new world, you will have to show me all there is Morea as Kerrin protects her mind more than any other demon or Sharman I have met she is extremely powerful and learns quickly as you can see” he said as he stood and walked to the window on the far side of the room and gazed upon the landscape of the Sharman’s guild before him, breathing lightly as he looked upon everything before him, “I will teach you and Domitri also the ways of the demon later, well I say me when I really mean Kerrin, she will lead all worlds into a new era of magic” he said as he rubbed his arms to warm himself up.

Morea walked behind Perdhro and gazed out of the window with him, “Life will be hard for both you and Kerrin, perhaps if needed you could both combine your souls and become one being, she will be immensely powerful as will you but at least you’d both be free from one another in one perspective” he said and rubbed Perdhro’s arms a little, “To me at the moment I still see Kerrin and not the male form before me, you look like a male of her age so perhaps you could teach her how to split with you, two bodies, I will say you are twins, my son and daughter, at least then you’d both have freedom in the day and at night you can join as one again but I am not sure if that would work” he said simply.

“It is a good idea but she is not yet strong enough nor disciplined enough for such a task, perhaps later on such a task will be possible for her but not now, she is not yet practised enough in transformations of flesh and blood, that is deep demonic arts, nothing for a mere Sharman or Dagda” Perdhro replied not moving his gaze from the grounds, “This all to be hers when she heirs after you?” he asked.

“Yes this will be hers when I pass away into the Sharman nex and into a eternal slumber until summoned again to serve a Sharman as their spirit” Morea replied sadly as he did not like talking about his eventual death.
“You will not die Morea, you will live forever as an immortal as will all Sharman and Dagda in time, you will step down from your position after you fail in a duel against your daughter without my help, the Sharman will lose confidence that their current leader will be able to protect them from the darkness within that they will witness in a few months they will all see their demon sides for a few days not by our families doing so do not worry yourself there, Thurisaz will orchestrate this unfortunate event and the demons will come to council not in Fehu but in the guild itself to discuss what is happening and the demonic ways will come back for a time, however Elarador will not be residing over the council, I will and I will make them see that the way to end all of this is to follow Thurisaz’s dream and make this place into the way he wanted it to be in the first pace, old customs will be brought back into the world and sa’nefia will begin to come in again and new demons created, it will be a hard time on the people in the guild that is why I said it would be better if you just didn’t perform Tel’ nariod and just let them change naturally, the change otherwise will be painful and some may die” Perdhro said sadly, “I hate being Thurisaz’s messenger…makes me feel bad and when I feel bad Kerrin does as well…our souls are too close together, almost one in fact” he said simply with a sigh and turned to look at Morea then hugged him lightly, “For the first time in two thousand years I am fearful for the consequences of what Thurisaz is going to do” he said in a worried tone.

“It is understandable, so many years of being in one way and then the sudden return of another set of customs and traditions it would be hard” Morea said sympathetically towards his ancestor, “How much has she learnt already?” he asked simply.

“Kerrin has almost learnt all that she would have as a Sharman in her third year of high sharman training, I learnt much when inside of you Morea but sometimes too much is too much and I must learn not to pursue deeper into a magic that I won’t be able to return from” Perdhro said closing his eyes as if in pain, “I and Kerrin learn much when we both sleep…we are both more powerful than we want to be this power is being forced upon us by Thurisaz and the other Gods and Goddesses as we rest” he said as he fell to his knees and bent over in pain, “Thurisaz please stop!” he called into the night, “Please, or are you wanting to kill both me and Kerrin” he growled as he fell flat on the floor and sprawled around as a faint glow appeared around him and tears of pain rolled down his face as he began slowly turning back to Kerrin as he lost control over the magic that was inside of them both, “Noooooooooooo…THURISAZ FOR THE LOVE OF FEHU PLEASE STOP DOING THIS TO US!” he called his voice deep and demonic as ever before and soon turned into Kerrin’s cries then back again to Perdhro’s. Morea just stood and watched this happening not knowing what to do or what was happening to his daughter and Perdhro. The crying and wailing continued for a few minutes and then suddenly stopped and the body on the floor was that of Perdhro again, he breathed heavily as he calmed down and Morea knelt beside him.
“Perdhro, what just happened?” Morea asked simply as he shook Perdhro to wake him as he had his eyes closed.
“They tried it again…tried making us one of them, tried making me and Kerrin one so they could…so they could…so they could make us immortal, make us one as a God” Perdhro said in between his heavy breathing, “Neither of us want that…we don’t want to be…a God in this world…we want…we want to be like…everyone else” he said as he slowly sat up to look at Morea, “Soon…me and Kerrin will not be able to fight them anymore and they will win…” he said simply and stood up.
“That is an honour to be made into a God!” Morea exclaimed happily, “You two should be proud of yourselves and not fighting it, why fight it? What is the reason for you two not wanting to be one and being a God or a Goddess?” he asked looking a little confused.
“None of us wish this apparent honour as it would mean Kerrin not fulfilling certain prophesises in the demon world and if those prophesises are not fulfilled then Nied as we know it will perish and the land will be a barren wasteland where people will die of famine and numerous other things, basically the apocalypse will occur on this land” Perdhro said simply as he looked to Morea, “But there is also the chance if we became of Godlike status we could stop this from happening , then there is the chance if we do we’d forget who we are as they are trying to force a new soul and new magic into us, the soul is what hurts the most…” he sighed lightly, “The soul is that of a God of War at least that is what Kerrin sensed” he said.

“Seems like a great conflict for you both but you have our strength and the strength of the ancestors magic to help you just call for it and it will come” Morea said simply and nodded to himself thinking calmly about who Kerrin loved the most before speaking again, “I think it is best you both rest and Kerrin continues learning” he said and Perdhro nodded approvingly and moved back to the bed, climbing in quietly and closing his eyes he whispered a thank you to Morea. Morea smiled and left the room in one swoop.

Domitri stood outside the door awaiting his brother to come out of Kerrin’s room and nodded to him in a respectful manner, “How many each?” he asked his voice cold and indifferent as if he knew he was about to commit a crime worse than death to a few people.

“Thirteen, we have to perform it on thirteen people my dear brother” Morea replied sorrowfully as he closed his eyes breathing heavily.

“So from eleven to thirteen, damn the demon number” Domitri growled and shook his head, “So I guess we’d better move quickly, it will soon be dawn und I’d rather not be caught performing Tel’nariod” he said with a sigh.

“Yes, yes we had better move” Morea sighed, “Meet you at the normal place” he said and vanished on the spot reappearing in a dark alley and waited for his brother to arrive. It had begun to rain a sign of cleansing to all Sharman, a time to wash away all fears and sins committed in the world towards others, a time for prayer to the ancestors to watch over them and their child of past and future. Morea looked around him as he breathed in the cool air brought forth by the rain as Domitri appear beside him, “First we get the thirteen each, then we shall meet at Adala’s, or do you wish me to accompany you after the banshee incident?” he said coolly.

“Accompany me, I barely made it out alive after that” Domitri said as he looked to his brother with a worried look, “You are bothered by something, pray tell what it is” he said.

“Kerrin…I fear for her life but the reason I will not tell you for it is a fathers duty to worry about their children and not their Uncles” Morea replied and began walking, “What do you fancy tonight?” he asked.

“Something happy, perhaps newly weds, there has been too much sorrow that I have taken from people and I am beginning to feel oh so morbid now because of it, what about you?” Domitri said looking to his brother even more concerned that he would not tell him why he was worried for Kerrin but he knew in his heart that in time his brother would tell him the truth.

“I need something sorrowful perhaps loss and such, I have been taking too much happiness from people of recent and it has been hard to hide the happiness” Morea replied in one swift sentence as Domitri nodded as Morea stopped outside a house, “Great joy resides here my brother” he said as he sniffed the air and his eyes rolled and a simple pair of fangs appeared in his mouth and he looked to Domitri, “Brother…enjoy the pleasant emotions of the family inside” he said with a smile as his fangs glistened in the moonlit rain.

Domitri smiled as his own fangs glistened in the moonlight rain and vanished into the shadows of the house, he travelled along the shadows through each individual room making sure none stirred the darkness in which he travelled like a phantom. He slipped and weaved among the shadows as a thief does when stealing from a home till he reached the bedrooms of where a husband and wife were sleeping. Domitri smiled at them both and looked to the ceiling and closed his eyes whispering a small prayer of sorrow for having to do this to the young couple and their children. Silently he knelt beside the woman and sunk the fangs into her neck but no blood seeped out just a current of emotions of which Domitri fed on gleefully. ‘Tel’ in demon tongue means emotion and ‘nariod’ means vampire, thus you have Tel’nariod, emotion vampires, this was the Family of Perdhro’s curse, to be cursed with having to perform Tel’nariod for others to live was a great burden but Domitri lived for this curse, he embraced it as if it were his life and if given the chance he would forget his Sharman heritage but Morea was there to always stop him from taking that route for he could upset the balance of their families work if he did. As he finished draining the last bit of happiness from the woman he stood and healed the wound on her neck before moving over to her husband and did the same as before and drained him of his emotions and did the same to their two children before leaving the house as swiftly as he entered it. He saw Morea waiting for him and gave a devilish smile, “ Four down and nine more to go for me before I see my vixen Adala” he said with a light hiss.

“Remember Domitri you are not a true vampire, you are a Sharman, best remember that or I will have to take action against you like father did when you first had to perform the task, just remember the pain you were in brother and how I spent the night healing you because you could not restrain yourself” Morea growled as he looked at Domitri.

“At least I embrace the damned curse unlike someone who keeps fighting it” Domitri retorted angrily, he hated his brother on many levels but knew he should just accept he is the youngest and was not likely to be treated any better than a child.

“You should fight it also brother but no you embrace anything that is dark and unpure that is why you fled and became a foolish Dagda, you could not stand that you were unable to practise darker arts further within the guild, you were a pathetic Sharman and you are a weak Dagda that is why they treat you like a messenger boy and not like one of the leaders as you are supposed to be, that is why father never choose you, you were weak and easily seduced Domitri!” Morea snapped and then put his hand over his mouth and looked to the ground shaking his head, “Damn my infernal mouth, I am sorry Domitri forgive me, a brother should never say those things to his sibling especially if they are twins” he said swiftly after.
“You are the one who is pathetic dear brother, we are what we are, we are not Sharman, we are demons but because of our imbecilic idiot of an ancestor we have become Tel’nariod! Just accept you my brother are a emotion vampire, a rare breed, blessed by the gods and not cursed and the same will happen to your daughter whether you like it or not!” Domitri shouted back loud enough to wake the street as small glimmer of fire appeared in his hand, “Embrace what you are brother and then you will know what it is like to be me and to be more powerful than the great High Sharman of Nied” he said in a threatening tone, “Then we shall see who is pathetic.”
“Domitri this is childish and you know that I accept what I am, I do not deny my heritage but I restrain myself on how I act because of it, I do not wish to become like a Dagda for I am the High Sharman of the Guild of Nied and I need to be there for my daughter who will be raised as a Sharman, you need to be there for your niece too, you need to be prepared to train her as a Dagda Domitri” Morea said simply, he was not intimidated by his brothers approach to things especially when he had just fed on peoples emotions.

Domitri chuckled darkly at his brother and shook his head, “My, my, my, is that all you care about my brother is your gods damned daughter? Perhaps I should take her as the thirteenth, she is very happy it seems, yes, yes, she will learn tonight how it feels to have her joy taken from her” he said grinning like a madman and then vanishing into the night left Morea alone in the street. Morea just shook his head and left into the night seeking out his next few to feed upon as the rain fell upon his head.

The night drifted on as the two brothers completed their daunting task of draining peoples emotions, Domitri never kept to his word in draining Kerrin of her emotions for Perdhro and Arramay protected her as she slept. Domitri appeared outside Adala’s home, and seconds later so did Morea, both brothers looked tired and weary but knew they had a task at hand to conceal their families appearances from the world. A gentle breeze blew across the forlorn brothers as they entered Adala’s home. A sun kissed tanned woman stood in the entrance of the house, she smiled as she saw them both and nodded, her dark hair and eyes full of mystery displayed a playful invite to intrude further and they followed her up a stairwell and to a room full of various jars of all shapes, sizes and colours. She turned to look at them as a soft and airy voice spoke behind her, “Is it the twins?” the womans voice said as a woman of similar appearance came from behind her, the young woman nodded respectfully and the elder woman gestured for her to leave, she did as she was told and left the room closing it behind her, “So Domitri and Morea what are you in need of this time? For it has been a long time since you last visited together” she said as she moved into the light and began inspecting their faces, “Hmmmmm…so the demons are coming out to play I see, the cause of this?” she asked.

“My daughter, Perdhro has come forth in her, he says it is time for change and is using her as a vessel” Morea politely with a sigh, “She is to begin her lessons tomorrow and she is worse off than myself and Domitri” he said looking at the woman directly in the eyes.

“So you’ve found young Kerrin, that is good news that the guild will have a woman to lead it next, it will prove that women are not as weak as men think” The woman said chuckling to herself, “So pray tell what is it that you want?” she asked again.
“Adala, we need enough petals of the yaconet flower for three vials of attanamer , we need to hide the demon markings from the citizens of Nied as well as the other Sharman” Domitri said with a devilsh smile, “Also we need a price” he added on the end.

Adala smiled sheepishly, “What you ask for is rare and very hard to attain but you are in luck that I get a stock of yaconet petals every other week, as for price, I wish for a night with Domitri and to be able to teach herbalism and potions at the guild, Morea I have foreseen your guilds future and you will need your medical sharman to be well prepped they are weak in all areas at the moment and need to be trained properly, for soon they will be magick less for a short while whilst Thurisaz puts his plan into place” she said simply.

Domitri looked at Morea and Morea nodded, “For the second part that is up to my head of tutors and if you are to attend the guild Adala, you will need to be married to a Sharman as you have no magickal potential except for foresight and divination which will not get you far” Morea said simply.

“Who in Nied would marry me? I am nothing more than a commoner to a Sharman and who is this head of tutors? I heard the last one died!” Adala replied half shocked.
Domitri stepped forward and smiled dangerously at Adala, “I am the new Head of Tutors Adala and since you are so much fun in bed, would you care to be my wife?” he said simply, he knew what Morea was thinking and knew it would be for the greater good overall.

“Then I accept your offer of marriage” Adala said nodding with a light smile, “Do you accept me as a tutor?” she asked.

“Of course, why did you think I offered to marry you other than being good in the bedroom?” Domitri replied smiling, “Also keep your imports coming we will update rules about certain plants” he said looking to Morea.

“Yes indeed we will, now could I have the petals?” Morea asked sternly as he grew impatient.

“Yes, yes” Adala said as she knelt on the floor and moved a simple carpet and lifted a floor board up, “Keep them in the dark or they will be useless” she said as she pulled out a black bag and handed them to Morea, “There is enough there to keep making attanamer until you die” she said as she put the board back and covered it again, then smiled at Domitri, “Now my dear husband to be let us to bed and have some fun” she said and motioned Morea to leave, he nodded and vanished on the spot leaving Adala and Domitri to have their fun.