Excerpt from Soul Thief ©2009 DARK - RCWK

Below is an excerpt from a book that my oldest daughter and I are writing, for fun. It gives us something to do together =)



Prelude: Introduction
Don’t ever trust a woman…especially one that is a Soul thief.


Archaeden paced the length of the parlor as he studied Raen, not sure how to take her news. Quietly he stroked the stone in his hand. “Raen, you don’t want to do this. Are you even sure this will work? This soul is different from the others and you know that Raen.” Arc studied her face, looking for a small clue in Raen’s eyes….but yet he couldn’t find even a hint of what was really in her mind. It always made him uneasy when he couldn’t break through the barriers of her mind. It meant only one thing…..Raen was pissed and she was out for blood. Neither were ever a good thing when Raen was involved. He had learned long ago, that Raen Da’nal was not the woman you wanted to piss off and she sure wasn’t the one you wanted to be on the wrong side with. Raen, was ….different, she had a charm that surrounded her, making her irresistible to all. Her eyes a cold, hard silver, they never betrayed her intentions. Raen was deadly in all sense of the word and he knew what awaited the poor soul she was tasked with taking this time. This was going to be a messy one and he knew it.
“Arc, I’m a Soul Thief, I was created with one single thought in mind, to steal the souls of those who prey on innocents like Danae. If you want to take that issue up with Zeus then do so, but I have to protect her, and if that means using the deadliest of my skills to lure him out of hiding and away from her….I will. Don’t give me grief over my tactics, you know I dislike having to employ such means to get the job done.” Raen fingered the lightweight cloak that covered her slender frame. “I will do what needs to be done, that bastard’s soul will be mine and he will never prey on another innocent as long as I have any say in the matter. He’ll realize he pissed off the wrong woman Arc. One he underestimated, and one he never should have trusted in the first place. I knew what my purpose was when I was sent after him. I did what I had to do to get him to trust me. And to answer your question Arc….yes I’m sure this will work. It’s never failed me before and it won’t this time. You know I don’t lose at the game. I don’t intend to start now.”
Arc stood silently, unsure of how to take the mental back lash Raen gave him as she walked from the room. He was never sure of how to take the strong emotions Raen was prone to. He understood all too well the struggle she faced on a daily basis. He knew she was angry over Drimgorrion and the fact that he was preying on Danae. He understood that but why was Raen suddenly beyond her own threshold for anger. What had Drimgorrion done that had caused her to make the decision to use her deadliest skill to deal with him? It had to be bad, and whatever it was, he would be there to ensure that Raen was safe. May the Gods have mercy on that soul, because he knew Raen would hold no mercy for it when she finally managed to take it. Arc put the stone back in his pocket and grabbed his hooded cloak as he strode thru the doors and silently followed Raen, making sure to stay hidden in the shadows.

Raen cursed under her breath. How the hell had Arc managed to keep track of her movements? She thought she had thoroughly confused him with all the twists and turns she had taken. Damn him for being so good at keeping her in his sights. Athena was right, never think you can give a night walker the slip, they use every sense and gift that Artemis ever bestowed upon them. If she couldn’t lose Arc, she’d have to delay him as best as she could. Raen admired the fact that he only did it because he loves her, but she needed to do it alone this time. She didn’t want him getting hurt, because this time…..she would stop at nothing. Drimgorrion’s soul would be her’s, but not before she tortured him some first.


- Chapter 1 -

The Goddess of Destiny always has a way of sneaking back in on you when you least expect it, especially if she is pissed and holds onto memories of injustice.

Risk let her mind wander as she watched Raen silently, taking her back to a more contemplative moment, a harsher memory. A moment in time that she wished she could erase. Her eyes clouded over in pain as she recalled a much unhappier moment of her existence, a time when she was known as another.
Being the goddess of destiny and being as pissed as she was, she could easily rip my head off in no time, Daera thought to herself. Even though Daera was the goddess of force and was powerful, Ananke was pissed and when she's pissed anyone who messed with her had a death wish. Daera slowly approached Ananke's cold, dark holding chambers, she felt the powerful presence of the goddess and she was extremely pissed.
"To what do I owe this presence? Come to torture me same more? Or maybe you're here to kill me over and over again." Ananke said in a harsh tone. Daera stood here. She actually felt sorry for her. After everything Ananke had been through, she understood why she was so pissed and wanted revenge on the gods and goddesses, including herself, who had betrayed and abandoned her.
"No, Ananke, That's not why I'm here." she tried saying in her softest tone. "Then why is the almighty Goddess of Force standing before me?" Ananke said sarcastically. Daera looked down at the goddess. Ananke was always beautiful even when she had been beaten. She stood 6'2" with black hair and sparkling blue eyes. She wore an old torn, black gown. She was chained to the back of the dark cell to keep her from attacking.
"To free you." she whispered. "Don't tell me you're going soft, Daera." Ananke said sarcastically. "Why are you going to help me? Remember, I'm the one who betrayed and abandoned you and the other gods. And in all reality you and the others betrayed and abandoned me. I don't want your help." she said harshly. The moment those words left her mouth, images, voices, and visions came through her mind. "Oh, so that's why you were going to help. You honestly thought they wouldn't turn on you too? You're such a fool."
"I was a fool, and I'm sorry." Daera said softly.
"You honestly think you can say sorry and everything will be okay? Because you know what, it won't! It won't bring back my child! It won't get me my revenge," she said hatefully. "Of course I know that, but I'm so sorry for what I did, for what they did." Daera said hopefully.
"I thought you were my friend, but instead you turned, betrayed and abandoned me. You held me down, While I watched them kill my child. I don't need your help, I'll get out myself and when I do you better watch your back." Ananke said as she turned her back.
"I was your friend, Ana. And I still am. I swear it."
"So you made me watch as my child died because you were my friend? You're such a bitch. Get out of my sight." Ananke's eyes turned to a blood lust red.
Daera slowly turned to leave and then turned to face Ananke "I will prove to you I'm sorry, I swear it." Daera turned and left Ananke to cool down. She tried to keep the tears from falling but it was no use. It was horrible seeing Ananke like that. She was being beaten everyday for an innocent act of love for a child who was her life and soul. But if she ever knew the truth it would make her even more pissed. Give her some time to cool down, Daera thought to herself.

----------------------------

Ananke tried to stop the tears from falling as all the emotions cut through her heart, but she couldn't. She remembered the precious, innocent face of her daughter, how she giggled, how she used to come to her when she got hurt, how she would read her stories about the wonderful princess who one day would find her Prince Charming every night before bed.
"I'm so sorry, Sweetie" Ananke hoped her daughter would hear her and tell her everything was going to be okay. "Damn you, Zeus! No, damn all of you!" Ananke yelled. How could they do this to me after everything I did for them? Ananke asked herself. That day was the worst day of her life. She felt the pain every minute. As the pain from that day rushed through her, the memories danced in her broken heart.
"Momma, Look at what I found." Adrastea said cheerfully. Ananke looked down at the precious face and smiled. She was holding a small brown kitten in her little hands, trying not to drop it. Adrastea stood there smiling up at her mother with those big blue eyes that would make you melt and give her anything she wanted, all she had to do was look at you. Unlike Ananke she had blond hair. She was only five years old but she acted a lot older. "Aww...Sweetie, it's adorable, but don't you think it's mommy misses it? I know I would if I lost you." Ananke said softly. Adrastea gave her a puppy dog face but then she smiled. "Yea, I think it misses it's mommy too, I go put it back." Adrastea said innocently. "I love you, Adrastea. You know that right?" Ananke gave her a quick kiss on her forehead. "Yea, I know and I love you too mommy, more than anything." Adrastea smiled before skipping off toward where she had found the kitten. "Ananke?" a familar voice asked. Ananke smiled after her daughter before turning to the familar voice. She smiled as she saw the messenger of the gods, Hermes. Hermes was the shortest of the gods. Standing at 5'8" he still had a powerful presence. His short brown hair waved in the wind as he stood. His leafy green eyes twinkled with trouble. He wore a white tunic and a silver helmet with wings which allowed him to fly. He held his winged sapphire staff in his right hand as he floated over her head. "Hermes, what brings you by?" Ananke asked.

Risk's eyes blurred with tears as she pulled herself back to reality and out of her memories. Furious with herself for reliving the memories, she stood up and dusted off . The time would come when those who had betrayed her, would pay for what they had done. Risk turned her face up to the black night, watched as the chase took place yet again. Eventually the thunder would catch its prey, and like the thunder, Risk would catch her prey. those who had betrayed her....would pay the ultimate price for that betrayal.

Another year....has come and gone

Behind the mask, lies tears of pain.....

Another day...another year. Every moment has been counted and documented in my mind. Every second locked up in my heart, in that special place that only you will ever hold the key to. Anger, sorrow, tears, broken, emptiness but yet a smile creeps in at times, a smile that comes with the knowledge that you are watching over me, protecting that special place within me.

Every image I have of you in my mind, I treasure and cherish even more each time I go thru them. Thoughts that consume me at times, give me solace that I briefly, for a moment.... held an angel. I can't deny that it hurts, because it does...greatly. No mother should ever have to feel the pain that I do every year in October. Its a pain that is beyond imaginable for those who have never had to let go of their child. They try to understand, but can't quite do so. I would and could never wish this pain on anyone, not even my worst enemy. Its crushing. At times it makes you feel like you can't breathe. Everyone told me that as time slipped on, that the pain would lessen, that I'd be able to accept the fact that you were gone. How very wrong they were. That pain....never lessened. Its still as strong today as it was that fateful day that I lost you.

Sometimes, I sit in the darkness, alone...and think about you. I think about everything that should have been. I think about what it would have been like to watch you take your first steps, hear you say Mama, watch you smile...to dry your tears when you were hurt....But I will never know because you were taken from me and given wings to fly....before I ever got the chance to see any of it.

I loved you from the moment I knew you were coming and I loved you the moment you slipped away and passed on. Not many can say they have seen an angel...but I can say.....I held one briefly. And I cherish each moment I had with you.

Fifteen long years will have passed since you died, come October 24th. Fifteen years without my little girl, fifteen years without being able to see you, hold you, comfort you. In those fifteen years, I have thought of you daily, wished that you were here...daily. In those fifteen years I have learned fifteen things about myself that center around losing you.
1- I learned to forgive.
2- I learned to live.
3- I learned what passion was.
4- I learned what it was like to lose something so precious.
5- I learned to give all that I have when I do things.
6- I learned to GIVE chances.
7- I learned to TAKE chances.
8. I learned to let go of certain things.
9- I learned what makes me stronger.
10- I learned to help others.
11- I learned to accept others.
12- I learned that not everything is in our control.
13- I learned that life can often times be cruel.
14- I learned that when we learn to love another, so completely, without abandon, no fear, for who they are, not what or who we want them to be....That we can get thru anything in life. That it makes us a better person. I learned to not be selfish and condemming of others. I learned that no matter what others think of me, that its what I think of myself that matters the most. We have to learn to forgive ourselves before we can expect others to forgive us. We have to learn to LOVE ourselves before we can even begin to expect someone else to love us for WHO and WHAT we are. There are things in life that we have no control over and nothing we do will change that. I learned that while we may not agree with it, nor want to accept it, its just how fate works, its just how it is.
and the biggest lesson I learned.....
15-I have learned to cherish every moment, every chance, every breath, every dream. I learned to cherish every touch, every person who comes into my life. I learned to give my heart and soul to another and cherish the one who holds them.

I will go thru my life with my angel in my heart. I will always remember the brief moments I held you, however brief they were...you left footprints in my heart that will never fade.

I love you Elizabethe-Ane Maree....and remember that mama has never let others forget who you are and who you were to ME.

October is upon us again.....

October has come upon us again....sneaking in quietly and gently. This year October is cold and the weather has changed sooner than usual. Solitary thoughts elude me this time. Moments of solace and quiet are nowhere to be found. dreams and visions of what should have been haunt me more than usual. I see her standing there, smile upon her face, wings spread fully.....ready to embrace and comfort. I find the tears cloud my eyes, and memories of her flood my mind. A breeze, a kiss...a dream, a touch...she haunts my memories, my heart, my soul....every image in my mind is of her. i can feel her breathing and whispering upon my ear. I remember every moment of that day, every emotion, every thought. Even now I am still searching for the reasons and the why of it all. Even now I can't make any sense of it, or understand it. I try so hard to understand it, to be at peace with it. I can't seem to do so. Every year I find myself spiraling during the month of October, makes me feel out of control and lost. Why me? Why my little girl? Why was she chosen to become an angel before she had even lived her life? I have so many questions that remain unanswered 15 yrs later. I realize I may never get the answers that I seek but I can still search for them and hope. I miss her every day of my life, every moment. There isn't a day that goes by, that I don't think about her.

Thoughts swirl thru my mind randomly, triggering memories and emotions that I thought I had buried long ago. Maybe one day i can rest my head in peace and accept the fact that she is gone. Its been 15 yrs since that fateful day....yes I have counted, right down to the moments. I have counted every moment, every empty space, every memory has been documented in my mind. I always tell myself that things are okay that its normal to grieve....for 15 yrs. No mother should ever outlive their child....ever. Its not natural, and it sure as hell is not normal. Am I a freak? Am I not "normal" simply because i still mourn the loss of my daughter, 15 yrs later? I relive every moment, every heart breaking second, as if it were fresh and new. I feel exhausted, I feel.....lost and a part of my heart is empty without her in my life. Haunted dreams and memories are no fun to live with, trust me when I say that. Even now I cry myself to sleep....simply because I miss her so much and its not fair in any sense that I have to live without her. Its not fair that she didn't get the chance to grow up and become a beautiful young woman. Those who have never lost a child, can't understand, but some do TRY. I admire those who try to understand my pain, my grief, my sensitivity. I really do and I appreciate it to the deepest depths of my black heart. Am I jaded? I suppose I am when it comes to a child loss. Its heartbreaking in every sense of the word. Its a pain that is deep and spirals you out of control. You forget how to keep your emotions in check and have to relearn how to do so all over again.

-To be continued-