The Rede Breaker

Chapter 5: Nanoki Li

The arrival of the witches lingers throughout the afternoon.

I neglect to tell Eric or Sierra about my encounter with the Witches of Prophecy Cove. The less they know about witches and the council, the better. It also seems unnecessary to mention it when they wouldn't understand the significance of their visit.

I report what little I know to Aria using an ignis parchment. Aria insisted I use the ancient ways to communicate. It must be nice to live in a fully magical world.

The ignis parchment is a parchment in which you write down what you need to communicate and burn it. The magic of the parchment sends it to the recipient without delay in a blaze of glory.

Sierra and I keep our promise to watch old 90s movies and binge on popcorn. We order takeout and hunker down in our best footie pajamas. Eric joins when he arrives from work, just in time to catch the tail end of a soapy teen retelling of Taming of the Shrew with a long-deceased actor who still sets my heart aflutter.

It feels good to relax with the two. It feels like forever since I've had the chance to unwind with them.

I blame Ambrose.

I cannot help but notice the differences between my brother and me. He takes after my dad with a darker shade of my skintone. His latest trip to the barbershop has left him with a fresh fade. The barber also trimmed his mustache. The only thing we share is our dark eyes.

When the movie is over, I tell them I will clean up the mess in the morning. We all head our separate ways and I eventually fall asleep staring at the ceiling.

A tugging sets off an alarm in my mind as I open my eyes to find myself standing in the middle of a weather-worn playground. The merry-go-round beside me slowly, and creakily, turns, startling me. The rusted swing set follows the lead of the merry-go-round, moving on its own.

"Holy shit. Not this again."

A scream pierces the air not too far away and I stumble backwards. A labored breath comes from a nearby bush. The bush rustles. I take a deep breath and approach the bush, stretching my hand out to it. Another scream in the distance stops me in my tracks.

A figure shouts out for help, hobbling towards a row of houses. A larger figure follows the first, albeit more slowly. The second figure stops in the middle of the street and I feel terror fill my body as its head turns slightly, as if it senses me.

My mind nearly explodes as a hand reaches out to me and pulls me down into the bush. I am face-to-face with the girl from the top of the stairs. The girl peers at me, wide-eyed, as she cups her hand over my nose and mouth. She shakes her head, cautioning me not to make a sound.

The terror is replaced by a darker, more malevolent feeling as something moves outside the bush. It makes no sound, only inciting the feeling of utter dread. A buzzing sound accompanies the feeling. Seven seconds pass before the buzzing disappears and the girl finally removes her hand from my face.

"It's going to come back." The girl says.

"It? What's coming back?"

"Fear." The girl pants. "You can leave. I've seen it. Take me with you, please!"

"What's going on here? Is that thing hunting you? How long have you been here?"

The girl is perplexed by the question. It appears to stump her the more she thinks about it. "I don't know." She says.

"Fair, I guess. One last question for the whole enchilada. What's your name?" I ask.

"Nanoki."

The name sparks recognition. Nanoki is the name of the missing girl. Nanoki Li is crouching right in front of me. She is no longer missing.

But she may as well be.

The buzzing sound returns as Nanoki's breathing increases. I reach out and grab her by the shoulders, urging her to be calm. A claw reaches through the brush and grasps my shoulder, pulling me from the bush. The claw slams me against the ground with a thud.

The force of my body hitting the cold, hard ground sends a shockwave through my body. I force my eyes open to find Eric shaking me awake. He stares at me with concern, the same concern that was etched into Sierra's face.

"Hey, little bro, it's me! Relax." Eric says.

As I realize it's him, I stop thrashing against him. My heart rate decreases as I settle. Eric watches me.

"What's going on? You were speaking in Latin." Eric says.

"What was I saying?"

"It was in Latin. I don't know. Something about timeo. Non timeo." Eric says. "Your nightmares are getting worse but what in the Hell is that?"

I feel horrible. Eric's concern is misplaced. He believes, much as I did, that I was having nightmares. Nothing could be further from the truth. I am astral projecting to demonic realm in which a terrifyingly strong demon is stalking me like prey.

I can't tell him. The last time I brought my friends into my supernatural issues, Ambrose almost killed them.

I promised I wouldn't bring Eric or Sierra into dangerous situations again.

"I'll be fine."

"Will you?" He asks.

"I always am. It takes time. What we went through doesn't just go away." I say.

"There are support groups for things like this. Ambrose was an abusive, toxic asshole. Sierra found this support group for people like you." He asks.

"Like me?"

"Strong people that got lost in toxicity. I know you're not interested but maybe it could help."

"Jesus, you're not going to let this go, are you?" I sigh. "Fine. I will check it out."

It makes Eric happy. He hugs me, to my surprise. I tell him I'll be okay and send him back to his own room. When he is gone, I scoot to the chest at the edge of my bed. I rummage through the chest until I find a large tome wrapped in blue silk.

The large, brown leather-bound tome is my Book of Shadows. I stashed most of the magical supplies in the basement when we moved, but I kept the book with me.

I need to find out all I can on this demon and his realm before I can find a way to get there.