Byzantium

Stage 15

"Is everyone here?" Rayna asked, pushing the petals of the flesh rose in her hand apart to make the plant look prettier. She didn't mind the blood staining her fingertips. "All of the totems set so the more acute can manage?"

"A few are still making their way here, but they should arrive within a minute or so. And yes, the totems are in their place." Carmen nodded, fixing her ceremonial robes. "Everything is set."

"Good," Rayna said. "Good. Our special guests?"

"Freshly arrived."

"Subdued?"

"As specified."

Just then, Savvy forced her way into the room. She looked from Rayna to Carmen, then back to Rayna, the clear superior. "Why didn't I get to bring her here?"

Rayna set down the flesh rose carefully, and only then did she even bother to look at Savvy. "She doesn't like you."

"Yes she does!" Savvy stomped her foot on the floor like a petulant child. "It's that ugly Ivy. I know she did something to her brain."

Carmen chuckled behind her hand. Rayna shot her a look, but smiled, too. "Maybe so. That's why we're doing this, remember? When the ritual is over, Elise will love as you as before."

Savvy brightened. She liked the sound of that. "Definitely?"

Rayna nodded. "Definitely."

A dazzling smile on her face, Savvy left the room in a flourish. Rayna shook her head and cursed. "Stupid girl."

Carmen raised an eyebrow. "Is she going to be a problem?"

"No. She knows the routine. Stay back and out of the way until the ritual is done."

"What if Elise convinces her of otherwise?"

"Then we kill her."

Carmen didn't flinch away from the answer. "It was dangerous of you to bring her into this. It's bad enough that she's human, but she's stupid too. You should have killed her a long time ago."

"She had her uses." Rayna collected her flesh rose and stood. She had a few more things to prepare for and she wouldn't be deterred, not when the time was so close. "Make sure everything is perfect for Her," she told Carmen. "She will be here."

Carmen bowed her head slightly. She left the room and made the long trek down, down, down, far below the Earth. She hummed softly to herself, singing the song of old in completion. Down below, so, so far, she arrived at her destination. Hundreds were already gathered in the underground cave, and many more were arriving. Women of every breed were present, their faces grinning, their magic dancing at their fingertips. They laughed and talked and planned. Planned for what was to come, what they would do, how they would do it. They shared their secrets, spilled their tales, absorbed the ideas of their fellow women. They were one in objective, their minds set to change the world as they saw fit. No one disagreed and no one fought. Everything was perfect. The night was ready.

They moved aside as more of their kin arrived, their numbers swelling, the cave changing to accommodate them. A raised altar sat in the middle of the crowd, dominating the space not by size, but by presence. No one was standing on the altar, but everyone knew it would soon be full. Carmen placed a foot on the bottom step that led up to the altar and watched the magnificent space with a loving eye. Soon she would take her place up there, along with a few others, and she could not wait to take part in what was to come. Her face shifted as she watched the last of the invited arrive. They were welcomed like family, and in some cases, they were just that.