The End of Innocence: Book 3 of the Kinstone series

The sound of clapping soon echoes off of the trees.

My eyes scan around to see a figure stepping out of the shadows. My vision blurs from my lack of air, but the figure soon comes into focus, an amber-haired man, whose eyes flashed a deep emerald.

“Well…good evening,” he greets, “it would seem that the long-awaited reunion is going rather, splendidly.” The man grins as he walks towards us.

I knew who he was, the same off-putting feeling I had the moment I met him in my home nearly a year ago. A man who nearly everyone I talk to despises wholeheartedly. I drew what little breath I could.

“Regulus?” I whisper.

The man steps beside Diana, striking my face with the back of his hand, “That’s Lord Cromwell to you little girl.” My head rings from him hitting me. “You appear to possess the inability to show proper respect. No doubt something you inherited from your mother.”

The stranglehold around my throat tightens, “I am this child’s mother.”

He shook his head, “As I have told you many times before, my dear. This child is no longer same as you once knew. In many ways, she has been reborn, while still retaining the fact that she was indeed born as a man once. But she now stands as a girl, in both mind and body. Gone are the days of your son. Now only a child remains, an irritatingly annoying child at that.”

Regulus then raises both of my arms over my head and presses them against the tree trunk above me. He then pulls something from under his long coat and drives it into the tree, clasping my arms in place. It felt cold and hard, metallic and smooth.

“There…that should keep you in place while have a nice little chat.”

He steps back and gently forces Diana to release her grip from my throat. I rasp heavily, taking in a much needed breath, feeling the warm moist air stingily fill my lungs, coughing a little. My body dangles and swings from the tree.

My shoulders and arms burn, now carrying the full weight of my beaten and bloodied form. I look up at him, vision blurring from the slow trickle of blood loss and surging pain, “Why?” I rasp.

A sardonic smile stretched across his lips, “Firstly, let me state that you truly are something, apart from becoming a truly beautiful young girl. I couldn’t help but smile when I saw you up close last autumn. I thought to myself, ‘my plans are truly beginning to come to fruition after a century of planning and scheming’.”

The muscles in my shoulders strain under my weight. I try to move my legs in an attempt to wrap them around the trunk for support, only to yet again find it unwilling to respond to my wishes.

“But besides that,” he continues, “you have a truly gifted mind. Again I knew you possessed one, but now it seems to have flourished greatly under the tutelage of your new mother. A terribly powerful mind which also seems to have been enhanced due to your ability to transform into a kitsune, beings highly known for illusions and mental games.”

He shook his head, “Detestable beings yokai are,” he grits. “While they do possess a ‘proud’ and ‘illustrious’ history, they truly are nothing more than second-rate beings from a backwater nation. Not worthy of status amongst the world at large.”

His words spewed so much venom it would make a rattlesnake blush.

My eyes narrow, “I have a pair of aunts, who if were here, would love nothing more than to rip you apart for that alone. And they’re both worlds more powerful than I am.”

He stares back, eyes flared with curiosity, “Oh…and who might those be?”

I smile softly, “Yukari Tsukino and Asharyume-no-Inue.”

He crosses his arms, lowering his head as though in thought. “I see…so those two claimed you as their niece. Troublesome, truly troublesome, both are untouchable in more ways than one,” looking to me, “I would have to agree with you on that sentiment my dear.” I give a soft defiant smirk.

He strikes me once more across the face, “It seems you inherited more than merely contempt for authority from your mother. Even in the midst of danger, you truly are defiant as the kitsune you are.”

A haggard chuckle escapes me, “I’m a teenager, goes with the territory, shit-for-brains.”

A low growl exudes from him as he raises his hand to punch me, only to take a long breath to calm himself, “And teenager you are, young lady.”

I feel the muscles in my armpits burning even more which each passing moment, some I knew were starting to tear from the strain. If I wasn’t already still dealing with the injuries from not only the battle, which apparently happened a week ago, but those I received from Diana’s merciless assault.

“Now back to the topic at hand,” he resumes. “You truly are a child of Shyair, a fact that both excites and enrages me. I have spent the last century planning for Dewloura’s return. Painstakingly and meticulously setting into place certain pieces, gathering allies, some of whom are now dead thanks to the actions of the Court and your Coven, and searching for the artifacts I need in order for my plans to succeed.”

“You want the throne…don’t you?” I rasp.

He shook his head, “Not entirely. Power and wealth I already possess, it’d merely be a bonus. The loss of Dewloura did indeed marked the end of the era where true empires ruled over the world. Its presence was soon largely forgotten by the world at large. A truly awesome power lies buried and sealed away. I wish to restore Dewloura to its proper place, to see the labors of its rulers bear fruit.”

Regulus smiles, staring up at me, “So no, it’s not merely the throne I seek, but the knowledge to hold mastery over life and death itself.”

I stare back at him, “You’ll destroy the world if you do that.”

He chuckled, “My dear, the world is already set on a course for destruction. I shall merely be restoring order to it.”

“Narcissistic ass.” I took in another long breath. Pain still surged throughout my body, feeling worse with each moment. “How do you even plan on doing this? You said you were gathering allies, which means you needed someone to help you unlock Dewloura. Something I don’t know how.”

“I believe that is where I come in,” hearing a new voice.

This new person brought a smile to Regulus’ face, “Ah there you are my dear, so glad of you to join us.”

Suddenly my stomach begins to churn violently, becoming extremely nauseous. The heavy stench of rotting corpses fills the air, causing me to gag heavily. I let out groan after groan of pain as I hear another set of footsteps make their way towards us.

I peer up to see a figure gradually coming into view, a person I had met before, “Mrs. Elliston? What are you doing here?”

The woman smiles, “I did inform you that we would be seeing each other again rather soon, didn’t I?”

Her presence felt wrong…unnatural, nothing like the first couple of times I met her. I stare up at her, my face felt hot and puffy, like I had thrown up a few times.

“So it would seem that I have kept my word, and it is quite lovely to see you again my dear. I will admit to truly enjoying having you over that night with us.” Her smile then lowered into a thin scowl, “Although it sickened me somewhat in having to pretend to be nothing more than a common housewife. An utter farce if you ask me.”

Regulus smiles to her, holding out his hand, “My love, since when are here, why don’t you drop your façade to show her you true self? Surely you desire to feel relieved of your mask?”

She happily takes his hand, “A splendid thought beloved, I do believe to have grown quite tired of mimicking the ‘charade’ of life.”

My stomach gurgles and churns as her skin begins to pale into porcelain white, silver pours down her brown hair, with finally her hazel eyes turning a deep red.

She lets out a gleeful sigh of relief, “Ah…yes, much better. I never thought I was every going to feel such ecstasy and elation from merely assuming my true form.”

The sickening presence I felt from her explodes many times over. The uneasiness, the unnatural off-putting aura which surrounded her, the utter revulsion I was feeling told me what she was…and why.

“You’re a wight…aren’t you?” I ask rasping.

She turns to me, forming a devious grin across her face, “My, my. You truly are well-read my dear. Yes…I am a wight, someone of nobility brought back to life. A being with command over the undead, very much in the same way as a necromancer. Apart from the obvious that I too am undead.”

I pant heavily, trying not to throw up. This explains why I had such a weird off-putting feeling from her. I was starting to get Night of the Living Dead vibes from her, serious ones. Her aura was sickening to me, for several reasons. One being that I hate zombies, really only enjoying a couple flicks due to either them being really funny, or part of a franchise I like.

She smiles to me, “Well, I do believe a proper introduction is in order,” letting go off Regulus’ hand and steps forward.

“My name is Selene Rythulan Nethune. Last daughter of House Nethune, and former confidant to his Majesty the king,” bowing to me.

She chuckles, standing up, “Well, not quite last daughter. For when we resurrected your dear mother here, I used a bit of my own essence in reanimating her, making her my daughter. Much like how Rivenfeld did the same for you.”

My eyes open more, “Nethune. You’re part of the house which started screwing things up for the empire.”

She sighs, shaking her head, “My house stood on the verge of greatness on many occasion, only to be stopped by your ancestors equally as much. All of them were such fools.”

Selene looks to me, watching as the moonlight caught my eyes. The wight steps forward, gently cupping my chin. I spend whatever little strength I had to prevent me from puking all over her. She gazes deeply into my eyes; her thumb stroked my cheek, “Interesting.”

Regulus tilts his head, “She looks like ‘her’ doesn’t she?”

The woman holds my face, examining it, then peers back into my eyes, “She does in the eyes, but there is something else about this child that is vaguely reminiscent of someone else I once knew.”

I look to her, “Who do I look like?”

She smiles, “He is referring to Celestine, the last princess of Shyair. She was once very much like my younger sister, someone I truly cared for outside of my family. I even tried to persuade her to have Shyair end their meddlesome ways on more than one occasion, but Celestine proved to be far too stubborn and loyal to her house.”

Heh…chalk up another thing to my family. We’re stubborn as hell if pushed. Plus I was already told I looked a bit like her.

Selene continues to examine me, stroking my cheek, “No…I believe there is something else to this child that I simply cannot place.”

“She can transform in a kitsune,” added Regulus.

The woman looks at him and then back to me, smiling, “Does she now? How many tails does she possess?”

“Eight as of now.”

She smiles, continuing to stroke my cheek, “So young to have so many. But…” leaning in closer, “her aura still seems…similar and yet not, compared someone I knew and yet another I fought against.”

I again resist the urge to throw up. The smell of death is just far too overpowering.

Her face then twitches, “If I hadn’t been for that fox spirit, I would not have been killed,” pulling down her top, revealing a large gash over her chest. “Whoever that being truly was, I will never know, but if she hadn’t been there, much would have changed.”

She shakes her head and smiles. The wight pats my cheek and steps back, “A lovely child, although…give her just five years, I fear she would grow into a truly beautiful young woman.”

I stare down at Diana who was seething with anger, gritting her teeth. She didn’t like hearing the idea of me growing up into a woman. I turn back towards the pair.

My body feels as though it's both of fire and numb at the same time. The wounds had somewhat ceased to bleed, but started to feel a little lightheaded. I didn’t have much strength and what little I had, is devoted to staying awake.

“Well, to continue our little chat,” resumes Regulus, “I must say how difficult it was to track down your family line. Given how I kept losing allies and assets over the years, I had to redirect my efforts in to reestablishing everything. This caused me to be delayed for a couple decades. But after I finally had everything in place, it was when I devoted myself into discerning any potential descendants. Since Nethune had been completely lost, apart from the Lady Selene here of whom I brought back to life somewhere around a century ago when I discovered her tomb while in Bulgaria, I knew I had to find the descendants of House Shyair.”

He sighs, shaking his head, “Fifty years, I spent fifty years searching throughout the world. Naturally most of the branches had slowly died off over the centuries. That all ended over twenty years ago when I stumbled upon one final line, one singular family whom had survived into the modern era.”

He smiles, “Your family, my dear,” coming closer, “you see…I was able to locate you in St. Louis. I even found you personally. Nothing but a small child, and yet possessed exactly what I had been searching for all these years.”

I near-exhaustedly stare at him. “However, I soon lost track of you. Something was shielding you from my searches, often redirecting me into dead ends or false leads. I never truly gave up searching for you. However then two years ago, I learned that Rachel had acquired an apprentice. So this naturally garnered my attention. And there you were, strolling through a mall in Tokyo. A young girl, yet…I knew for certain you were the very same child I had discovered all those years prior.”

My eyes fly open, “Wait…that was you at the mall?”

He grins, “That it was, my dear. You truly possess horrifyingly sharp eyes. I was barely there for but the briefest of moments and yet you nearly caught sight of me. A remarkable feat which deserves commending. And yet this still was before you had awakened your magic.”

I take in a deep but haggard breath. My ribs ached with each breath; one even broke from simply dangling in the air. I winced, but didn’t show much more than that. I still remember that first full day in Japan.

Rachel had to attend a surprise business meeting which left me alone in the penthouse. I had planned to just go to the mall near our hotel. While there, I saw something dash out of the corner of my eye. At the time, I thought it might’ve been a yokai.

“Well after your return to America, I knew I had to devise some method of separating you from Rachel. But…over the past two years you have proven to possess an uncanny ability to escape death.”

My blood froze, “What...why would you want to kill me?”

He smile, “One, it would have dealt Rachel a devastating blow, and two, because it is easier to control those whom have been recently killed.”

I tilt my head, “Why do you hate my mother so much?”

Diana then walks up and jabs me in the gut, “I am your mother, you ungrateful brat.”

I cough up more blood, spewing it onto my chest and the ground beneath me.

Regulus shook his head, “No, my dear Diana, once you passed on, her attachment to you ceased, as is with all family deaths.”

He then took a step towards me, “My dear Aria. I never once cared for Rachel, even when the two of us were in a relationship. I considered asking her to join my cause, but I knew her strong ties to her coven would easily prevent her from doing so.”

He grunts, “Such a tiresome bore, your coven. Colburn possesses far too many individuals whom even I dare not confront. They sought to drive a wedge between us. But your mother was far too swayed by my charms.”

I remembered Elizabeth talking about how the coven really hated Regulus, partly not trusting him, the other part worried for Rachel’s sake.

“However, back to the topic at hand. Yes…I recognized the need to retrieve you anyway possible. So I set about trying to kill you. First it was the hotel you were employed at, but I regrettably did not know your work schedule. This resulted in you not being caught in the explosion.”

My eyes flare, “That…that was you?”

He smiles, “Indeed, my dear. I also knew you lived nearby, but again…something was protecting you.”

I smirk, “That was Rachel.”

He sniffs angrily, “As I am aware. With that failure, I again had to rethink my strategy. I let slip of your existence to the Court. I knew the news would cause a stir amongst the other members. But Beltrok himself took up the standard and paid you a visit. He was meant to drag you away from Rachel, shaming her in the process. However he allowed his vampiric prejudices to override his original mission, to where he challenged you to Seraskor. Even I find the ancient ritual to be utterly barbaric. But once more you proved to be as wily and resourceful in your victory over his daughter. So yet again I had to rethink my plans.”

So yet another problem caused by him. I am really starting to hate him with every word he spoke. I guess I know who to blame for being dragged into the spotlight of the Court. Asshole.

“I finally learned of your impending trip to Georgia to visit your beloved family. I knew I truly had a chance to claim you right then and there. I was yet again however met with failure as the spell which killed your family, went off two weeks early. I couldn’t understand why or how it happened, only that it had. I threw myself into a rage out of frustration.”

My heart sank into my stomach, looking on at him in horror, “You…you’re the one that killed my family?”

He sighs, “Indeed, my dear,” shaking his head, waving his hand, “utter failure. A complete and utter failure.”

Soft tears run down my cheeks, looking down at Diana. She simply stood there, unfazed and unmoving. I stare back up at him, “You knew I had an older sister, right? So if you were looking for descendants of Shyair, why not go after her or her children?” I rasp. “They would’ve been much easier targets.”

He shook his head, “While it is true that they were descended from Shyair, they lacked the qualities which qualified them. Neither your sister nor her children possessed any affinity for magic, if at all. You on the other hand possess it in great quantities. Magic often chooses its own path through bloodlines, even if diluted after centuries of breeding it out. You also possessed an extreme affinity for foxes. Something none of your family did. These factors alone made the rest of your family…disposable.”

Again I peer to Diana, who sighed, “It was such a lovely evening too. Nathaniel and Marleen we both upstairs playing, while your sister and I were planning out Christmas with you. Your grandfather and brother-in-law both were watching TV. But…then we died. Funny how that happens.”

She looks to me, “My last thoughts were of you, and now all I feel for you is contempt and hatred.”

Regulus smiles, “Well, I couldn’t move while Rachel accompanied you. So I figured I had to wait until you returned to your home. But that wait took longer than expected as you remained on the Estate. Then you unexpectedly bonded with an Uldulvan wolf, which again derailed my plans. Once you returned home, I was hoping your depression would drive you to completely pull away from Rachel and withdraw from the world as a whole.”

He then frowns, “I nearly was set to pick you up, only to yet once more be thwarted by your decision to move in with her, and subsequent adoption. Both acts put you well out of my reach. So you my dear, are either blessed by providence or just that lucky in your timing.”

He struck me in the face, “You cannot begin to imagine the frustration of having to yet once more rethink my strategy for obtaining you. To make matters worse the Xur’canah was to be delivered into my hands, but it mysteriously slipped out of my grasp, hence why I needed you. Somehow I knew it would make its way to you. And so it has.”

I cough, feeling my lungs burning from having to breathe with broken ribs. How did he know I had it? The only people who did were those the day I learned about all of this and Master Andriy. But even he was horrified that I had it and told me to seal it away. So if not him…then who else knows I have the damn thing? My gaze switched between the three of them. All bore a gleeful grin, something was coming.

“So…with you out of my reach, and the Xur’canah tucked deeply away somewhere in your home, I once more had to devise a plan in order to retrieve it.” Regulus folds his arms, “I had to find some way in order to get you away from your mother.”

I stare up at him, “Why bring my birthmother into this? Why bring her back?”

He smiles, “Well…I needed to create something that would force you to lower your guard. I knew your former mother would be perfect for the task. So I exhumed her remains and resurrected her. But then we took it a step further and transformed her into the young lady you see before you. I knew you couldn’t resist making friends. She also has been infused with a great deal of magic, something only known to House Nethune, of whom Selene has happily supplied with.”

The wight smiles, pulling Diana towards her, and wrapping her arms around the girl. She didn’t like the outward show of affection. But I don’t think she really cares at this moment.

“Why did it take you so long to bring her back and if you have her, why need me?”

Regulus sighs, “Necromancy is an art which takes a great deal of preparation in order to perform properly. Months are needed to gather the supplies, the materials to alter her appearance, to train her. Infusing magic into a person, who previously had none, is a difficult and dangerous procedure. Often resulting in a great of pain and suffering in an individual. You merely had your magic awakened, which is a completely different set of circumstances from what we had to do. Then in order to keep your mother’s soul encased into her new body, she needed an anchor, something to hold her in place. Something equally as dangerous as performing the resurrection spells itself.”

He shook his head, “I swear…summonings of any kind can be more trouble than their worth at times”

I remember my mother’s lectures on necromancy. The act of ripping a soul out heaven was among the darkest and vile acts a person could ever do to another. It taints and corrupts both the caster and the soul. Twisting either into something far worse than what they used to be.

A few of her lessons spoke of mass outbreaks of zombie-like creatures during the Black Plague, when vengeful necromancers banded together and attempted to storm the Vatican. Rome was nearly destroyed if weren’t for a flight of dragons swooping and cleansing the city with help of the Clergy.

This was still during the time when magic and world were as one, but in many ways a secret. The incident was cleared up, but left Rome defiled for couple years until it could be cleansed. I never felt any trace of the taint due to how thorough the cleansing was through both fire and prayer. As for those who set loose the hoard, they were instantly executed for their crimes. One of the few times magic users everywhere agreed with the church.

“Now to answer your other question,” he adds, “I still have ‘other’ needs of you my dear, other tasks that only a daughter of Shyair can accomplish. Sadly your dear, dear birthmother won’t simply cut it. But with you, I can achieve much more.”

I take another haggard breath, what else do you want me from me?

“So once more getting back on topic. With the announcement of your lineage, I knew it would only stoke the flames of hatred within the daughters of Drakthul and Laevatain. They simply needed the right opportunity to strike against you. But alas I knew their mission would be an utter failure from start.”

So it was Lana and Mistral who drew away my mother. I knew something wasn’t right about the summons.

He smiles to me, mixed with a strange sense of pride or indignation, “You are far too well-trained and your defenders too powerful. So I needed an insurance policy. A way to get to you without anyone foreseeing it.”

My heart sinks deeper into stomach, feeling tears once starting to well up in my eyes, “You got to Marron.”

The man grins darkly, “Well, not I per se. Selene handled that little detail.”

I look to her, “When?”

The wight smiles, “The very evening she returned. I traveled to her little show and had a nice little chat with her. I sowed the seeds of this very encounter that night.” Her grip around Diana tightens.

My heart sank terribly. I…I should’ve gone with her. If I had…then I might’ve been able to have prevented all of this. If I had just declined the rest of the evening with Diana, then this night never would’ve happened.

“Now for the reason why this plan came about,” he resumes. “I knew I couldn’t get to anyone from your Estate. For one, they are far too deeply loyal to you, and two, they never were even considered in my plans. That left your dear beloved sister. We needed something, something we could use against you, something precious. Given your noted love of lore, I knew you possibly possessed a record of some kind, a dairy perhaps. We had Diana here steal the item in order to rekindle the flames of jealously within her. We then further enticed her with the opportunity to be with you forever. The stupid woman never truly realized what she had agreed to.”

My mouth hung open, shaking my head as tears flow down my cheeks, “You were going to kill her.”

He smirks, “Why yes. I will admit the world which we had you both inhabited was quite lovely. A simple life between the both of you, just merely living together as actual sisters. Utter nonsense if you ask me.”

He held his head, “A powerful thing the sub-conscious. Place a mind into a near-perfect illusion, one where you aren’t able to discern fiction from reality, and yet the sub-conscious will retain the truth, if only metaphorically or at best fragmented. Although with you I must take into consideration your kitsune nature, beings that revel in illusion and bear an innately strong resistance to illusions cast by others.”

“Did she know it was a fake from the start?”

“No…not at first,” he replies, “but in time she woke to the truth. That crystal, which you woke up next to, is of Dewlouran and Nerazoni origin. A useful artifact which I doubt anyone alive today is aware it ever existed. Difficult to locate, and equally as such to acquire, but you just had to go and destroy it. You truly are a nuisance.”

Part of me is now glad Marron had escaped. But she still left me here. I wanted her back, but couldn’t muster much strength to try and call for her. My body had grown weaker than before, still just barely able to stay awake.

My arms feel as though they would simply rip out from their sockets with the slightest touch. My muscles again become numb, my vision stayed clear, meaning my mind wasn’t slipping all that much for the time being. I’m alone, more alone than I had ever felt in my life.

“So,” perked up Selene, “what this is all leading up to is the reason why you are here, my dear. We are going to kill you and then bring you back. You will then be returned home and retrieve the Xur’canah for us, in the process cause a great deal of damage to your dear mother and those living there.”

She grins broadly, “Oh how sweet it would be to witness the looks of horror on the faces of your loved ones as you rip them apart.”

Regulus chuckles, “Yes, I agree. You truly have been a thorn in my side for far too long. I still have no idea who you survived the assassins I sent to kill you. While you truly did put up a valiant effort, you still were going to die. But again you didn’t. However,” he pauses, “I still have not the slightest clue how you survived that encounter. Again saved by the guiding hand of providence?”

Selene sighs, “Those soldiers were the last of ones we secured from Dewloura before it fell.” She then looks to me, “I personally despise you for their loss.”

He unfolds his hands, “That being said, this lucky streak of yours ends tonight, for I shall deal with you personally. Long have you and others denied me my destiny, a century’s worth of planning and setbacks. It shall be worth it after tonight and so much more after you return with the Xur’canah.”