Chapter 23

In a weird castle which seemed like it could be floating or simply just hanging by a thread, Amiya woke up and found herself inside there. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a painting, it was blue and displayed a warrior holding an arrow and pointing it towards a wall.

She was a bit confused by it, the message was not clear and the idea of throwing an arrow towards a blank space felt unusual to her.

"You are awake!" she heard a voice and when she turned her attention to her left hand side, there sat Lunara sitting on a couch while reading a book. She was startled at first to finally lay eyes on the witch she had spent past few months scared of.

The descriptions she was once given by her granny matched, they were the same, but one thing she never expected to see was Lunara being a young woman because she created an image on her head, that she ought to be an old woman and when she looked around at the place. She asked "Am I dead?"

Lunara giggled softly and then she replied "No you are not, be steady" then she closed her book and moved to the bed. Amiya moved back, clearly she was so afraid of her.

"You are scared, of me?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You plan to release hell on our world…"

"It was my world too, why would I want to destroy it?"

"By releasing your evil creations of spectators, you plan to kill us all…"

"I heard you made a map, with your little witchy friend what's her name again?" Lunara asked but Amiya didn't reply, it was meant as an offense "Oh, Regina…"

"You should stop, stop everything and let us live in peace"

"I want peace Miya. I want to get rid of my own creation, my own doings. I turned Nazar because I loved him. I was a young stupid woman with deep vengeance and not even once did I think about the consequences, the hell that vampires had brought on Earth" said Lunara and then she stood up, two witch servants brought them drinks on white color glasses.

She handed one glass to Amiya and kept one for herself. Amiya hesitated to take a sip "I wouldn't poison you" she said.

"I don't believe you"

"Believe me. I need you Amiya, you are a Salem witch. The last of your kind and you have potentials way better than being friends with some vampires. I can help you reach your full potential, grab all that energy left by your ancestors"

"I don't know my ancestors; I don't even know my real mother"

"I can show you to her, do you want to see her?" Lunara asked, Amiya remained silent for a moment. She kept thinking about her mother, how nice it would feel to finally lay eyes on her real mother and not the one who she was made to believe by a grandmother who wasn't even her real granny. "She's here Amiya, serving a lifetime sentence for what she did to you"

"What? She's in prison?"

"Yes"

"Take me to her" Amiya said quickly and got out of the bed, with excitement to see her real mother. Lunara smiled at her, and then she raised her arm to her.

When Amiya took Lunara's arm, they descended downward towards the prison where dead witches who once committed crimes were kept. This place was dark and had no ounce of light inside it, Amiya's eyes were blinded by the darkness. Then three male witches came to them with fire.

"Take it." Said Lunara and Amiya looked at her.

"Where will I find her?"

"You need not to look further, just follow your instincts and the blood bondage will do the rest"

Amiya grabbed the wood which was on fire and Lunara took a step back as she took one forward. Then she called "Mother, mother it's Amiya, your daughter, where are you?" and all she heard was the voices of other imprisoned witches trying to confuse her.

The voices of their growling and hovering were loud till they confused her. She tried to keep it steady, avoiding the hands which were trying to reach her and focus on one thing and that's finding her mother who she didn't even knew how she looked like. But then she heard a voice, it was faded and seemed like coming from a very far distance place "Miya, Miya..." it said and for sometime she was scared of it until it well went black.

She woke up on her bed at ten am in the morning and Nina was beside her, she was holding a trey of sandwiches and cup of coffee. She had a look of concern, "Are you alright?" she asked but Amiya didn't say anything rather she wanted to sit first and then she opened the cup of coffee and took a sip.

"You slept for a while, what's going on?"

"I wasn't sleeping Nina. I was taken"

Nina's face expression changed suddenly "Taken?"

"By her"

"Who?"

"Lunara, she had me on her world. The witch realm"

Amiya stood up and started spinning around, then she walked outside. Nina followed her there. "What did she want?"

"She has my mother..."

"I thought..."

"I thought so too, but it turns out she died and now Lunara is holding her captive in the witch realm. In some place...it was...so dark and..."

Nina stopped her "Amiya, that can wait. Alice is being held ransom by Nazar, Regina called and she's going there right now. We must leave, turns out she turned into a vampire"

"Alice?"

Nina just nodded silently and they both sighed. They were clearly exhausted and needed rest but didn't have any, they hugged each other for comfort and then packed all their things getting ready to leave.

While they were on their way, things weren't going so good for Hawaii who was kidnapped by Nazar just when Antonio left him outside of that house where Jasmine was doing the healing spell to purify Alice of her vampirism.

When Nazar snatched him, he snapped his neck and killed him then flew with him to another abandoned museum just a bit far from town. So when he woke up his hands were tied on a chair as so was his legs by tight shackles. He tried to struggle his way out with no luck until he gave up.

"They aren't going to come out sweetheart..." He heard Nazar's voice from outside and then he came inside. It was still afternoon hence the sun was shining and it penetrated inside that museum. Nazar was holding a blood bag on his left hand and a bottle filled with vervain on his right one.

"Coward! If you are man enough release me and let's fight" Hawaii shouted at him.

"Fight for what? I don't fight with young and weak vampires like yourself. Matter of fact, why should we even fight at all. We do want the same thing now don't we?"

"What do you mean want the same thing?"

"Purify your girlfriend, admit it you hate her like that even if it's been just days. I mean, the constant hunger and cravings might have bored you, and there comes Regina..."

Hawaii struggled his way out again, Nazar opened the vervain bottle and unexpectedly he moved closer to him. Forced Hawaii's mouth open and then poured half of the water filled vervain inside his oesophagus. He screamed with pain as the plant burned his insides but Nazar didn't stop and when he did he pushed the chair and Hawaii fell down heavy grunting in pain.

"I'm done playing nice" He shouted and placed the bottle down. Then picked the chair up while Hawaii was still tied. Hawaii's face was red and he was bleeding internally from the poison he was just forced to consume, his breath was short as his heart was failing slowly from the poisonous plant ever known to vampires.

"Who's Gladys and how can I get to her?" Nazar asked him breathing on his face, he held him tight.

"You...can go to hell..."

"You see I've spent all my life in hell, it doesn't scare me. But you will tell me who this bitch is or I'll kill you right now!"

"Go ahead..." Hawaii struggled to get words out, he was slowly fading.

"I am going to kill you and then have Antonio come collect your body. I know he was with you on that house where my witches are now performing a spell, I'm not stupid"

Nazar took out a wood stake and he was serious about killing him. He even placed it high so that to stab him, but Hawaii gave up. He slowly tried to speak "She's Amiya's granny..." and then he passed out and fell down with the chair.

A smile escaped Nazar's lips, he returned the stake in his coat. Took out the vervain water but leaving the blood bag beside Hawaii, he didn't untie him. He left him there dead as he vanished into thin air with all the answers he was looking for.

Regina arrived at the location she was given by Hawaii to find an abandoned house. There was neither Hawaii nor Antonio on sight and she was left stranded and alone, "Where are they...?" she silently murmured while looking around but still to see nothing.

She took out her phone, dialed Hawaii's number but the phone's ringtone could be heard just a few metres from where she stood meaning he didn't take it. She walked to it and picked it up. It was covered by dirt and there was only one answer to that, he must have been taken against his will and by none other but Nazar.

"Hello, are you looking for something?" Jasmine greeted her as she stood in front of the house. Regina turned back quickly still holding Hawaii's phone.

"Where's he?" She asked Jasmine.

"Who?"

"You know who. If you hurt him..."

"Sweeties I don't know who you are talking about"

"Lies!" Regina shouted at her and then walked towards where she was standing. "Who are you and who do you work for?"

"Does that matter Regina? You see, we've met"

"I don't recall"

"Of course you don't, you were too busy chasing a man who will never love you. That vampire of yours, Julian is it?"

"Where's he?"

"Nazar has him and until he gets what he wants, all you could do is pray that he lives. But you can join us inside, your friend is chocking up right now"

Regina was confused with the word chocking up, but she didn't say anything. And then she heard Alice crying inside as she vomits. The spell was meant to purify her, cleansing her of any human blood she's ever fed upon. But it was painful and she couldn't control it, the blood choke her and she was barely breathing.

She tried to crawl outside, with no luck as she kept falling down. Regina saw her struggling and she raced to her but the seal bounced her back. "Invitees only..." Jasmine said to her and smile. Then she grabbed Alice by her right hand and picked her up roughly then walked with her inside. Before she closed the door, she looked back at Regina "I can sense the tombstone in you, meaning you have come in contact with it. Bring it to me and she'll live"

"You can't kill her. Nazar needs her to awaken his werewolf gene"

"Indeed but after that...who knows" She smiled and shut the door.

Regina tried every spell to break the seal with no luck. "Sangream pa liral!" she chanted the spell multiple times but no luck. She stayed outside of that house until it was dark, with her grimoire trying to figure it out how to get inside. Later on appeared Nazar holding Lunara's tombstone and he found Regina practicing spells in front of that house, desperately trying to save Alice from the hands of that evil witch Jasmine.

He smiled and said "I have to admit, you are feisty"

"Where's he?"

"Oh, your boyfriend? Well, I fed him vervain and he died. He's very weak, I guess running for years instead of stopping and putting up a fight will do that to you" he said and moved closer to Regina who was sitting inside a bounded circle, but Nazar could pass inside and she didn't expect that. They locked eyes.