The Blessed

It had been a week since I asked my mother to get my things from the attic for me, but when it completely slipped her mind, again, I decided to get them myself.  Sarah and Damion just happened to be over at my parent’s house the day I decided to get all my stuff so I had them both go up with me to find everything.  I figured it would be less creepy and a lot more fun to have people with me.  I didn’t want mom and dad to find out I was going into the attic, so I waited until they left to go upstairs.

“We’ll be back in a couple of hours and we’ll all go out together,” mom said to me.  “Damion and Sarah, you come to.  We would be delighted to have you come along.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Concord,” Damion said politely.  Secretly he had a crush on my mom, but he would never actually say it aloud.

“I would love to, Mrs. Concord,” Sarah piped.  “But, I have a lot of packing of my own to do tonight.  I am planning a small getaway vacation.  Thank you anyway.”

“Well, I hope you have a safe and fun vacation.  Be careful.  I don’t want something happening to you. You’re just like a daughter to me.”  Sarah smiled at hearing this.  “We love you, Amara.  And we will see you in a little while.”

“Love you, sweetie,” my dad said, kissing me on the forehead.  “Don’t get into too much trouble while we’re out.”  He looked around at Damion and Sarah.

Just as soon as the front door had closed I rushed up the stairs and to the attic door.  “Are you sure we should be doing this, Amara?” Damion asked.  “I mean, didn’t your parents tell you to not go into the attic?”

“So what, Damion?  Do you think they are hiding a dead body or something in there?”  Sarah made gurgling noises at Damion and he stiffened his nose at her.

“Alright, you guys, stop it.  Yes, they did tell me that, but I need my stuff and seeing as how I can’t get my mom to do it I am going to have to myself.  Now, come on and try not to be too scared, Damion.”

“I-I’m not scared.  I just don’t like dingy places.  That’s a phobia, you know, not a scared thing.  Anyway, I’m right behind you.  You know, in case you ladies get scared.”  He smiled at Sarah and winked.  She rolled her eyes and followed me up the staircase I had just pulled down from the ceiling.

The attic was piled with boxes and dust covered everything.  It looked as if my parents hadn’t touched it in years.  Some of the boxes looked as if they had sat in the attic, untouched, for at least fifteen years.  Each box had its own special marking and some were crates, nailed shut.  I stared around the room in amazement at the size of it.  I couldn’t believe how big the room was.  I could barely remember what the room had looked like the last time I was in it, but I don’t think it looked the same.  Across the room, near the window, were some old lamps and a large sofa.  Next to the sofa was a pile of dark crates, all of which were also nailed shut.  I wanted to open some of the boxes, but I didn’t want it to be too obvious that I had been in the room.

“Hey, Amara, look at this,” Damion shouted from cross the attic.  He was standing over by the sofa, digging in one of the old boxes.  He pulled out an old statue that resembled a witch from a fairytale or something.  The statue was golden and the witch was holding onto an old necklace.  She looked angry and on her nose was a wart.  She was covered in dust and I wiped my finger across it to see if their was any writing on it and on the base of the statue the words “Amoria Lives” were engraved on it.  “What is it?”

“I don’t know.  It looks like an old witch.  You think my parents bought for a fairytale collector’s item, or something?”

“Some people do, but it isn’t the prettiest thing in the world to collect, is it?” Sarah added.

“No, not really, but my parents are very strange people and it is hard to tell what you are going to find in this attic.”  I walked around the attic, hoping to find my boxes, while Damion and Sarah continued to rummage through everything.  “I wonder why my parents never wanted me to go through any of this stuff.  There doesn’t seem to be anything bad up here.”

“Amara, check this out,” Sarah shouted from a corner.  “This must be ancient, but it looks so cool.”  I went over to see what she was talking about and she was holding up an old piece of clothing that looked like a cloak or cape.  “Is this like one of those old witch’s cloaks?  You know, like the ones they would use during rituals and cult meetings?”

“I wonder who it belonged to.  I really hope it wasn’t my mom’s.  That would be way too weird to think about my mom being in a cult or something.”  I took it from Sarah and put it around me.  It was midnight blue with little white stars on it.  It was decent looking and I could see myself wearing it if I was into that kind of stuff.  When I tied it the cloak came down to my ankles and I didn’t think I could wear it without tripping over it.  “This must be from before I was born, because I don’t remember my mom ever having something like this here before.  I think I am going to ask her about it.  I mean, she is going to know we were in the attic anyway, considering we have gone through just about everything.”

“Almost everything,” Damion corrected me.  He pointed to an old crate that said, “Amoria” on it.  “What is Amoria?  I wonder what is in it.  Do you think we can open and close it back without your parents knowing?”

“I don’t know, but I’m curious about what’s in it too.  Let’s open it.”  I took the cloak off, but kept it wrapped around my arm.  I was going to hold on to it and maybe use it for Halloween or something.  The three of us huddled around the old crate and pried at it with anything we could find until we popped the lid off.  Dust flew all around us when we opened it, causing us to cough and sputter.  “Wow, this thing hasn’t been opened in years.  Something interesting must be in here.”

Inside the box were foam pieces that are used to pack up valuables.  We took out the foam pieces and laid them in the floor and searches around the bottom of the box.  I felt around until I found a dusty book.  I pulled the book out and blew the dust off it.  The cover of the book said, “Amoria Charms”.  I opened it and the entire book was filled with spells, charms and potions.  “Wow,” I said, “my mom must have been a witch or something.  I wonder if any of these spells work.”  I sat back and put the book on my lap.  Sarah and Damion sat with me and looked through the pages.  We flipped through until we found a simple spell that said, “Enlighten the amulet”.  I read it allowed:

                        “Light the way, light the world

                          Lead my path, lead my heart.

                          Give me the power, rightfully mine

                          Give me the strength to take it on.

                           Light my amulet, light my life

                           And guide me the way, the right.”

            When nothing happened I put the book on the floor and went back to rummaging in the crate.  I pulled out some incense and candles of different colors.  But, nothing in the old crate fascinated me as much as what I found on the bottom of the crate.  I dug my hand deep in the box and pushed away all of the foam pieces.  There in the bottom of the box was a necklace.  The necklace had a long gold chain and at the end of the chain was a large blue diamond.

I placed my hand on the necklace lying before me.  I can’t believe my mother would keep something like this in our dusty old attic.  “What is it, Amara?” Sarah asked me, her eyes full of curiosity.  “Is it some kind of amulet or something?”  I wasn’t sure exactly, but that is precisely what I was thinking it was.  I had seen pictures of family members before me, but very few, and in every picture of my grandparents and great grandparents they were wearing amulets similar to this one.  As a matter of fact, I think my grandmothers had been wearing this exact one.  I lifted the necklace in my hand and turned it over.

“I think it might just be an amulet, Sarah.”  I looked at Damion, who had been entirely silent about the subject.  He seemed very uninterested and was looking at me as though he wanted nothing more than to leave and quickly.  I looked at the back of the necklace and read aloud the writing.  “The first of the seventh survive the break.”  What does that mean?  Who is the first of the seventh and what is the break?  I stood up and put the necklace around my neck, only wanting to wear it for a second.  Suddenly, I felt a gust of wind around me a light surrounded my entire body.  I felt very different, as if a current were running through my veins.  I closed my eyes as I felt myself lifted off the floor.  Sarah and Damion gasped and stepped back away from.

“What’s happening to her?” I could hear Sarah asking.

“I don’t know, Sarah…” Damion’s voice trailed off and suddenly I felt myself being set back down on the floor.  I opened my eyes and looked around the room.  Everything looked the same, but I felt much different than before.  I started to take the amulet off my neck, but was stopped by my mother’s voice screaming, “no!”.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” I asked through a quivering voice.

“Y-you p-put on the a-amulet?  Why d-id you put in, Amara?  You may have just cost us our lives.”  My dad came barreling through the door behind my mother and nearly slipped as he came into the attic.

“She put it on?  Was there no way of stopping this, Melinda?  How could you let her find it?  I thought you hid it.”  He grabbed my mom on the shoulder and it was the first time I had ever seen such fear and anger in his eyes.  “I can’t believe you allowed this to happen, Melinda.  We are probably all dead now.”  Then he turned to me and held my shoulders.  “Amara, I love you.  You know that, right?”  I almost started to cry as I nodded my head.  “Then, listen to me very carefully.  Things might get very bad here and if it does you need to stop him.  No matter what, you have to stop him and protect everyone.” 

“Protect who, dad?  And, who do you want me to stop?”  My dad was talking so fast that I could hardly understand what he was saying.  “Dad, what are you talking about?”

“You’ll find out very soon, trust m-” My father’s voice was interrupted by sound coming from downstairs.  He looked through the door and, in a whisper, said, “They’re here.”

“Who is here?  What are the two of you talking about?  Mom, this is a terrible joke!”  But for some reason I didn’t think my parents were joking anymore and I began to feel a sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach.  Who were the “they” my father was talking about?

            “Sarah, Damion, get behind anything that will hide you and don’t make a sound!  I don’t want to risk the two of you.  If they don’t see the two you they can’t hurt you.  Melinda, be ready the moment they get up the stairs.”  My dad pulled something out of his pocket I had never seen before. It looked like a- it was!  My dad was pulling out a wand!  He pointed it directly at the door and waited until the stairs began to creak.  He watched the door until a figure came through and he held me behind him.  A deep voice from behind the door spoke.  The voice was cold, but soft.

            “It is I, Thamos, Gideon.  I mean you no harm.”  My father seemed to know this man, because he let down his guard.

            “How do I know it is really you, Gideon?  I have not seen you in nearly twenty years, since the downfall of our beloved home.”  My father’s voice was trembling.

            “And for that, your highness, I am sorry.  I have been in hiding, as many from our home have been.”  The man came through the door and showed himself to us.  He was very handsome.  He was tall and tanned.  His shoulders were broad and his hair was a wavy black.  His eyes were a misty grey and his face was hard.  He looked as though he had been through something terrible.  He was wearing a torn black outfit, covered by what seemed to be a cloak.  “Are you alright, Thamos?  I felt the presence that I haven’t felt in years tonight.  Do you think he knows, Thamos, where we are?”

            “I hope he doesn’t, but I fear that I am wrong, Gideon, which means we must flee.  He can’t have her and I won’t allow it.  Melinda and I have fought too hard to lose her now.”

            “Thamos, do you know how your people, our people, are suffering because of her?  Everyone is in grave danger.  Those who know your hiding spot are being tortured and murdered.  While you and Melinda hide here, in this mortal realm?  How do you think that makes you look to your followers?  Of course we are all still loyal to you, Thamos, but how can you allow this to happen?  Why have you done nothing?”

            “You think I have been sitting back and allowing my faithful friends to die for nothing.  I have been working, Gideon, but if I am caught or Melinda is caught and we are killed what do you think will happen?  She knows nothing, Gideon!  She will die and everything will have been for nothing.  Do you want everyone to die for nothing, Gideon?  Now, this is not the time.  We have much more important problems to worry about.  Amara has found the amulet and as you can see she is wearing it.  We now are bound to tell her everything and if we do no-”.  My father stopped again and listened for a sound that was coming from the ceiling.  “Oh no, Gideon, get over here.  Amara, hide somewhere now!”  I ran and hid behind a large trunk my parents had stored close to the window.  I ducked down and hid my body just as a group of men in black robes popped into the room.  They were all holding wands and they looked very angry.

            “Where is she, Thamos?  We know she is here and we know she is wearing the amulet!  Give her to us and you will be spared.  However, if you decline, you will meet your fate.”  Were they talking about me?  Was I who they wanted?  What did they want with me?  I couldn’t tell who any of them were.  They all had their faces hidden and it was impossible to tell who any of them were.  I watched my father’s expression change from scared to angry.

            “You will not get her!  I won’t allow you to hurt my daughter.”

            “You cannot stop me, Thamos.  You have tried before, have you not?  Tarmon will not stop until the girl is dead and you know that!  So, why not give her up now?”  Tarmon?  Wasn’t that my dad’s brother?  “She will die, Thamos, and I will kill you if I have to.”  I felt Sarah and Damion move over close to me.  They had been hiding behind another crate close to where I was.  Sarah and Damion put their arms around me, but kept silent.  “Thamos, this is your last chance.  Give me the girl!”

            I heard my dad shout, “no,” as a blast hit the suitcase in front of me and exposed the three of us.  “Get out of here now, Amara,” my father said, as the man in the cloak shouted a word I did not understand.  A light hit my father in the chest and he fell to the ground.  Lights shot around the room, blowing up things as I ran past them.

            “NO!  Dad!”  I screamed so loud my ears rang.  I started to run to his body, but my mother put out her hand and I felt like I hit a wall and I fell to the floor.  My body felt as if a thousand pounds had been set upon it.  I stared at my mother.  She mouthed the words I love you and I began to cry.  What was my mother going to do?  She lifted her hands and I could see her mouthing words at the men.  The room began to spin and Gideon was running for me.  He yelled for Sarah and Damion to put their arms around me.  Gideon grabbed us and I felt a pulling sensation on my body and the room disappeared just as it exploded.