When Heaven meets Hell

Chapter Twenty Two

Quiet chatter echoed around the hall as candles were lit and windows draped with dark curtains. The dimly lit place bustled with activity as dark silhouettes moved to and fro, some settling down on the rows of benches while others finished up the final preparations for the night's rituals.

The church door opened suddenly, letting in the October chill. Many pairs of eyes under the cover of hoods turned in the direction of two people. One was a young lady with fair, almost white hair; the other was an unconscious little girl who hovered a few inches off the floor.

Joan ignored these curious gazes, her eyes sweeping beyond the rows of seated Amaki members. One hooded person stumbled forward, a look of uncertainty crossing his face.

"Miss Hale– you are here!" He exclaimed and Joan could sense the relief in his voice. "Please, the Elders wait for you in the meeting hall. You should make haste, we shall be starting soon."

Joan nodded, but did not say anything. The Amaki member failed to notice the strange fire in her eyes as she waved her hand, causing Heidi's unconscious body to drift after her. She walked down the familiar corridor that led to the hall, stopping in front of the door to the meeting hall.

Stepping into the room, it seemed she had just walked in on an argument. The five Elders were at their seats, dressed in fine robes with their masks lying on the table top, disgruntled and apprehensive looks on their faces. They were all talking at once and that too very loudly, so that in the end there was only unintelligent babble that filled the room. But the moment she made her presence known, their voices died and they turned towards her with expressions of shock and outrage,eyes drifting from the young woman before them to the unconscious girl and then back. Alastair instantly got to his feet, looking thunderous.

"Madam Hale!" He said loudly. "What is the meaning of this? –"

"Whatever do you mean?" Joan said, amusement ringing in her voice. "Are you not pleased to see me?"

"You were supposed to have delivered the girl to us a week ago!" Alastair exploded. "Not an hour before the rituals! And how dare you cut off all connections with us? You did not even bother to attend our meetings, much less answer my summons. Explain you–"

Joan's laughter cut across the remainder of Alastair's sentence, making all the Elders stare at her disbelievingly. Alastair too instantly went quiet. There was something inhuman and deeply unnerving about that laugh.

"What am I, your slave?" Joan asked with a raised eye brow, a smirk on her face. "Do you think I would come running every time you call me like some sort of dog? Just because I worked  for the Amaki, doesn't mean I have to concern myself with the likes of you all the time. I have more important things to do than attend your ridiculous meetings and ceremonies."

"How dare you–" One of the Elder's stared by Joan instantly cut across.

"Oh shut up." She said in an offhand manner. Waving her hand, she moved Heidi's hovering figure towards the table. At once, all eyes settled onto the girl before the, "You should be glad I did as you asked. Here is your sacrifice."

At that moment, all the Elders seemed to have forgotten about Joan's disobedient behavior, their eyes glued onto the girl again with looks of fear and triumph mingling together. However they did not dare come any closer to the girl, all of them looking wary.

"You brought her!" An Elder exclaimed. Alastair threw him a look, as though warning him to keep his mouth shut.

"Yes, I did." Joan said silkily. "But I have to say, all this excitement for this one girl? A sacrifice, is she? No, I'm sure she's more important than that."

Alarm clearly registered on their faces as the Elders turned back towards her. But before they could speak, Joan held out both hands, forming a strange hand sign.

The effect of her spell was instantaneous. The five men became suddenly rigid, standing stock still. They tried to struggle, as indicated by the strain on their faces, but it was in vain. Joan took a confident step forward, her eyes flashing as she observed her prisoners. Heidi, or what appeared to have been her, had vanished.

"You are now under my control." The girl said. "Kneel!"

The five men complied, doubling over stiffly and getting down onto their knees before her. Joan laughed, the sounding filling the room .Her features seemed distorted, a wild, insane grin gracing her face. With every step she took towards the kneeling men, the crazed expression became more prominent, until she was barely recognizable.

But Joan didn't care. Finally, she was close to reaching her goal. Tonight, she would triumph. There would be justice.

"Let us go!" One of the Elders demanded with difficulty, his voice coming out in series of grunts.

"Silence." Joan's command was instantly obeyed. Five mouths snapped shut, and no matter how much the men tried to unglue them, they stayed as they were.

"You thought you could keep the truth from me." The girl said quietly as she began circling around the crouching men. "You thought you could play your silly little games and keep me under your control. How foolish of you. I know everything now. Everything. You five gave the orders for my parents to be eliminated. You were the cause behind their deaths, while Colton simply acted as a tool. He got what he deserved, and now you shall suffer the same fate. Tonight I shall complete the task I set out to do a year ago."

Fear flashed in the eyes of the men as she stopped before them. At her command, their mouths zipped open, although none of them dared to make a sound, knowing that the end was near.

"You will repeat everything I say." She said .The men nodded against their will. Then, as she began to speak, they chanted after her like school children.

"I humbly give up my soul to the demons that plague the earth..." She started, confidence ringing in her voice, knowing that no harm would befall her. The Elders repeated what she had said, their own voices blank and devoid of emotion. But it was their faces that gave away their terror.

"...and may the fires of hell reach up and engulf my essence..."

The men were no longer struggling against the bonds that held them, resignation lining their faces as they recited the last word that would seal their fate.

"... Forevermore."

Flames leapt up, rising tall and fierce, licking the roof. The men were instantly consumed. Now that Joan's spell had broken the men were free to scream with agony as their souls were ripped from their body by Avander. Joan's insane laughter filled the room once more carrying above the crackle of the fire. When the inferno finally died down, there was nothing left of the five Elders.

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A short Chapter,but very important one.  I know,there are a lot of things that went unexplained here,but give me time and i'll get to those things in later chapters (Which will be up soon in a hopefully large update.)