Immortals Of Byolla Bay

“Trygve is Kinsley’s biological father.” That statement made my blood boil as I said it out loud to my family. They were wondering why Kinsley suddenly asked about who her father was as well. When Kinsley went to put the picture back in the box I quickly swiped it before she put the lid down. I had every intention of putting it back of course, but I needed Gene and my parents to see it.

Mother gasped, father cursed and Gene shook his head silently. “At least now we know what the missing link is. This whole time we thought they were after Kinsley because of us, but apparently they have been targeting that family since before we met her. All to get their hands on that ring. That ring has got to hold the key to their demise or else Drakkar wouldn’t want it so bad. But I still don’t understand something. Drakkar gets his way no matter what he has to do, so why didn’t he just take the ring by force?”

Gene brought up a good question. Drakkar is not a patient man, so why make Trygve endure living a human life and put up with insults from Kinsley’s grandma all those years? Why not just use magic and get it?

Father seemed to be thinking, then after a moment he answered, “I believe the Oracle that made the ring of the four clans imbued the ring with magical qualities. Only that king’s family could wear it, and only the women for that matter, so it’s safe to say just the women in the family could use it when the time was right. Kinsley’s grandma was the last woman to have it and for some reason never passed it on to her daughter. That one book said the stone chooses who it’s passed down to, so maybe the ring knew the daughter wouldn’t be an ideal candidate because she would be courted by an evil man, so it skipped a generation and chose the granddaughter. Magic couldn’t have located it nor could it have made the ring work for Drakkar. He would need the female in possession of the ring to make it work for him.”

My blood turned cold, “And what better way to ensure it would end up with him than by making sure the ring’s bloodline shifted in his direction? Erin didn’t get pregnant on accident, it was on purpose. He knew the ring would be passed along to his second in command’s daughter!”

All my senses were on red alert and my body reminded me with a sharp stinging in my chest that I had been away from my angel for too long. “In that case, she’ll never be out of my sight ever again. I must return to her. Surely her mother is asleep by now. If he thinks for one second Kinsley is going anywhere with him then he is dead wrong, with an emphasis on dead.”

Kinsley was waiting by her window when I arrived. I jumped through and pulled her into my arms, “I’ve missed you, my beautiful lady.” She smiled and stood up on her tip toes to close the space between us with a kiss. I cannot live without this woman. I can live longer without air than without her.

I scooped her up and laid down with her in the bed. She rested her head on my chest and I ran my fingers through her hair. Just then, it started to pour down rain. “It’s raining,” she whispered, “We should sleep good listening to it fall.”

I grunted, “You go ahead. Now I’ll be awake all night.” She picked her head up and looked at me. “You don’t like the rain?” I shook my head,

“I hate the rain. Everyone loves it for one reason or another, like it’s peaceful, it has a cleansing effect or whatever. Not me. I woke up to the sound of rain when I realized we’d been banished. It was raining the day I took my first life back home in combat between us and another clan. There was a flash flood the night Drakkar found us in the first city we moved to. There’s been pop up showers all night since I jumped off the cliff and pulled you out of the water. I swear when I find them I’m going to... Anyways, the rain does not soothe me, no. It only acts as a precursor to a disaster in my life.”

As if to further drive home the meaning of my speech, thunder rumbled in the distance and lightening flashed, quickly illuminating her bedroom in the process. Kinsley put her head back down, “Oh. Well I guess I would hate the rain, too. I’m sorry, Rikki. It’s not fair you and your family has been through so much.”

Her words touched my heart, “You have such a caring and loving soul, my beautiful angel. You only think of the plight of others. I have not heard you mention yourself tonight at all. Have you even considered what you have been through and unfair that Is?”

She just shrugged and smiled up at me, then she yawned. I kissed her on the forehead, “No matter what, I’m overwhelmed with happiness that we have found each other. Now get some sleep. You’ve had an eventful birthday, that’s for sure.”

Tapping on the window two hours later made my heart drop. Maggie promised me she wouldn’t come unless something happened. I gently pulled Kinsley off of my chest and laid her down on the other side of me. I covered her up and rose from the bed.

Maggie wasn’t at the window though, it was Gene. A bloody-nosed Gene. I threw the window open, “He’s coming. Father and Maggie headed him off, but he knocked them out and Trygve was engaged in combat with mother. I quickly came to warn you. Get Kinsley out of here.”

Gene then disappeared to get back to the fight. My heart was pounding in my chest as I picked her up off the bed. “Rikki? What’s going on?” I stopped walking and quickly informed her of what’s happening and she wrapped her arms around my neck.

“Rikki we can’t leave my mom. She don’t know anything about any of this and they’ll kill her!” Just then her room was illuminated again, but not by the lightening. It was her ring. She looked up at me, panic lined her face, “They are here, aren’t they?”

Just then the window in her room busted and I jumped down on the floor, covering Kinsley with my body so she wouldn’t feel the impact of the shards of glass flying around her bedroom. I felt a hand on my shoulder, then I was torn away from Kinsley and thrown through her bedroom wall, landing in the hallway. I struggled to get up just as I heard Kinsley screaming. I dashed into the bedroom to see Trygve struggle to hold a thrashing Kinsley.

She was kicking, screaming, biting and punching whatever she could get a hold of. That’s my girl. I lunged at Trygve carefully dislodging Kinsley so she wouldn’t end up being hurt. Kinsley landed on her bed and ran into the hallway.

I heard her mother screaming along with her, obviously woken up by all this. Trygve’s palm touched my forehead and I was instantly immobilized. I fought against it with every fiber of my being, but it was to no avail. I couldn’t move.

Trygve laughed then turned to Kinsley, who looked angry, and her mother, who looked awestruck. His eyes then trailed down to her ring, “Ah there it is. The old woman did keep it safe to pass on to you after I left just like I thought. She was smart. Too smart to be human, but I could never prove she was anything otherwise. Well then, the time has come daughter, flesh of my flesh, to let me show you how to use it. You were destined for greatness. Destined for far better than to be a bride to a would-be king.”

He looked at me as he said that last part. Suddenly father came running in and knocked Trygve outside into the rain. I was loosened instantly and ran to Kinsley’s side. Her mother was clinging to Kinsley, clearly in shock.

An explosion sent us flying into the living room as debris and rain swirled around us. I used my body as a shield to protect the two of them the best I could. The whole right side of the house was gone and before us stood Drakkar and Trygve.

A wind storm of red and black dust particles circled around us. Father was at my side in an instant, “Son, take the girls. I’ll hold them off as long as I can.”

Drakkar laughed evilly, “Oh that’s a good plan, my former friend, except surely you don’t think me so foolish as to give you a chance to escape again? You know I’m not a man of little intelligence. It’s time to end this Tyr. The girl is coming with me, the rest of you will die.”

He backed up out of the dust circling us, just as it picked up speed. It looked as if we were in the funnel of a tornado. Trygve started walking towards us and that’s when I noticed Kinsley at my side holding her hand with the ring up at him.

“What are you doing, love?” I reached out, but she stopped me, “I don’t know how I know, but there’s something about my grandma’s message she left me that is making sense to me now. ‘When it glows, you will know’.” Her ring glowed bright and light circled her hand.

Then she said the rest, “The time will be right, when you see the light.” Rays of light shot out from the ring and rotated around Trygve. He stumbled and looked around, “That’s impossible. You do not know how to use that! The power of the Oracle should not be available to you yet! Kinsley, please, I’m your father! Please wait a moment!” But Kinsley looked determined and did not try to stop the light. The light rays engulfed Trygve as he cried out for Drakkar, who was watching this transpire with wonder and curiosity clearly written on his face. The light rays circled faster and faster until a silent explosion of light blinded us all momentarily.

The light cleared. Trygve was gone and in his place was a tiny ball of red and black. That’s when we noticed a white shadow, which transformed into a hooded figure in a pure white cloak standing in front of us. The ball drifted to Kinsley and it got smaller and smaller until it was as big as the garnet stone. It then lowered onto the stone and absorbed itself into the ring.

Drakkar growled, “This isn’t over! My Oracle is stronger, still. She will bring him back! I don’t know how you managed to release her after I trapped her inside it 18 years ago, but mark my words Kinsley, du blir min ved valg eller force, you will be mine by choice or by force! It doesn’t matter who you have protecting you because the end result will be the same!”

With another cloud of red and black, he disappeared. The hooded figure turned to us, “He’s always been a big mouthed jackass who ran away when the fight got tough. Now that Trygve is trapped for now he’s going to have to find someone else to do his dirty work for him.”

The figure held out her hand and touched the garnet stone on Kinsley’s still outstretched hand, “It’s okay child. The danger has passed for now. Trygve cannot harm you, your mother or anyone else while he’s in there. His soul is trapped inside the ring, but unfortunately, while we are in this world it is not a permanent fix.”

Erin whimpered, “That voice... No, it can’t be. I thought you were dead. Oh, this has got to be a dream.”

Tears started flowing down her face. Kinsley went to comfort her mother, but was stopped by the hooded figure, “It is okay, child. I’ll do some memory work that will make her not remember any of this. I knew her fragile mind couldn’t handle this world and that’s why the ring didn’t choose her. Besides the fact that Drakkar had plans to wriggle Trygve into the family tree. But when you were in her belly I used to talk to you and the ring shined bright every time you kicked. That’s how I knew it was you that was meant to have it. And now I finally get to hug you outside your mother’s tummy!”

The figure hugged a very confused looking Kinsley. “Excuse me, as grateful as I am for your help... Am I supposed to know who you are?”

The hooded figure laughed, “Well some call me the Oracle who created the ring of the four clans, one person calls me mom, I used to be called a wife by my deceased human husband, but I’m sure you call me something else.”

She threw the hood back to reveal a white headed, beautiful older woman. Kinsley gasped out loud with her hand over her heart. “Grandma!”

END OF BOOK ONE