I peeked through the door at Nokomis as she stepped into gray pants and matching doublet. I stepped away in fear of being caught. I desired Nokomis more than I had ever wanted any woman. I wouldn’t allow my desires to cloud better judgment, though.
I went back to my rooms and shed the practice daggers for real ones and waited for Nokomis in the parlor. The world above had become confusing during the first few months after the coronation. The commotion made little time for work, but I still managed the seldom offered job.
Nokomis walked in, and I looked up from my ponderings. The grays and blacks she had dressed in fit her. This person was not the same girl I saved half a year ago, Nokomis was truly a new woman. She was beautiful and deadly. I led Nokomis up the stairs and into the cottage. There on the table was a light blue flower, a night rose. I grabbed the flower and threw it out the window. My blade in my hand instinctively. I turned to see if Nokomis had seen the flower, her eyes on the window.
“Was that the same type of flower the ladies gave me before I began training?” Nokomis asked.
I wanted to lie to her but I couldn’t.
“The very same. Every time I come up there is one here waiting,” I said looking out the window. “Only on the days that I come up. I’ve had people check on the place. Never do they leave them unless it is on a day when I will be leaving.”
“What do they mean?” Nokomis asked. She looked worried, but not frightened.
“They are from a guild, an assassin’s guild. No one knows them, though. All my contacts, all the guilds contacts have failed to make contact. We have no idea where they come from or who they are.” I told Nokomis.
“I know where they come from and who sends them,” Nokomis said. I doubt I could have hidden my shock even if I had wanted to.
“Where Nokomis? Tell me who and I’ll end this,” I said stepping closer to her.
“I will take you,” Nokomis stated in a voice that brokered no arguing. I wanted to argue with her, but I knew there would be no victory from the argument. Nokomis led me into the Temple District, refusing to answer any questions.
We entered a large worshiping chamber with moonstone tiled floor and cushions instead of pew seating. Overhead the phases of the moon were displayed in an arc that traveled from one side of the room to the other. Across the chamber, a moonstone statue glowing with the beams of sunlight coming from a window high above it towered over the few patrons of the Goddess. The Canon, dressed in sheer robes of pale luminescence, stood off to the side holding chalices.
“This is the place,” Nokomis whispered, and I stepped closer to her to hear her.
“Well, what now then?” I asked a bit testily; I did not like the feel of this place and if this were the night flowers were coming from I did not want Nokomis here.
“We pray,” Nokomis answered, and a cold chill went down my back. I was afraid she would say that. I’m not scared of gods and goddess; it’s their clergy I disliked. So many people’s lives have been ruined over the years by one religion or another.
“You pray, I’ll stand,” I said in response as she knelt on one of the cushions. I continued to search the room for danger as Nokomis sat in silence, but nothing happened. “Are you sure you are doing it right?”
“Do you know another way to pray?” Nokomis responded, and I could hear the testiness in her voice. I didn’t ask any more questions but let her kneel foolishly. “Let’s go,” Nokomis finally offered after nothing had happened.
“Gladly, I’ll have Johnathon and a few other friends look into this place,” I said as Nokomis stood. I looked around again and saw no one paying us any particular attention. As we neared the door, a sexton wearing only a sheer dress of pale blue stepped in front of us.
The topless temple woman held a small silver chalice with a luminescent fluid. Her nipples were pale and small. I checked her over to ensure she hid no weapons, but that wasn’t the way of these people. Poison would be her weapon of choice, of magic. Her blonde hair was tied back and fell between her shoulder blades, between her legs she was shaven and bald.
“Sister, would you drink of the Goddess?” she asked and offered her chalice to Nokomis.
“Touch nothing, she offers Nokomis,” I said in warning. Nokomis looked at me angrily.
“Excuse my teacher, he is wary of strangers,” Nokomis answered but did not take the offered chalice.
“He is more than your teacher,” the woman said and meant to say more but was did not have the chance to.
“We have come to see the Oracle,” Nokomis interrupted.
“Then drink, Sister,” the woman offered again.
“I’ll drink,” I answered and took the chalice. “if I die, kill this bitch.”
“No!” both Nokomis and the woman said at the same time, but it was too late. The liquid felt cool on my lips but turned to fire on its way down my throat.
I withheld my scream as long as possible, but my stomach twisted as if a spectral hand gripped my innards. My knees felt weak, and I could no longer support myself. As I fell, I saw Nokomis draw a dagger and then my vision blurred. I didn’t understand, the necklace I wore should have made inert any poison I drank and let me know what it was.
I watched through teary eyes as Nokomis shoved the woman against the wall. Their words were foreign to me. The room began to darken until there was only black. ‘Was this what death would be then?’ I fought it for only the briefest moment in eternity. Then thought, ‘why I should fight any longer? I have done everything I have ever wanted to in this life. Everything but one,’ I reminded myself. I felt a moment of despair. I cried into the darkness.
“Why do you fear, son?” a voice called to me in the darkness.
“I am alone,” I answered and was shocked to hear my voice as if it had come from someone else.
“You are no more alone now than you ever were,” the warm, strong voice answered.
“I have always been alone,” I replied.
“Untrue. As a child in the orphanage, you had the Abbess, even though she was harsh and cruel. You had the other kids, you still to this day are friends with two of them,” the voice said and I thought of Johnathon and Drexel, my fence. We had grown up together and then run away from the beatings of the orphanage and joined the thiefs’ guild.
“They were brothers of convenience,” I answered and knew that my words were only part of the truth. Johnathon had risen to be the leader of the guild. We had not remained as close but did not mean there wasn’t still a sort of friendship, a caring there.
“I see within you and know the truth, Jack,” the voice said “let loose your fears, give in to temptation. Feel what is inside of you.”
“I don’t believe in gods and goddess; it’s all phony. Just people finding another way to subjugate people,” I called to the voice.
“Liar!” the voice screamed, and I felt the lies inside me dissipate. I did believe. I always had, but that didn’t change that the leaders of most churches used their power to rule over their parishioners.
“Don’t be so hard on him,” another voice cooed.
“Who are you?” I asked into the darkness.
“We are the Mother and the Father, the Moon, and the Stars, the distance in between. We are everything in the night and the nothing in the night. Open your eyes Jack!” they said in unison, two voices becoming one. ‘Why did they sound panicked? Were my eyes not open in the blackness?’ I shrugged and tried to open my eyes, but there was only blackness.
“My eyes are open,” I called into the nothingness. No one answered. I looked around, but there was nothing, only darkness. I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself. Panic was pounding on my chest. I took another breath to calm myself and opened my eyes again.
The world jumped into focus so fast it was startling. I jumped up from the table I was on and fell. Slowly, as my muscles regained blood flow, I stood up. The tingling sensation causing warmth and pain the flood my limbs.
“Jack, you’re alive, you idiot,” Nokomis cried hugging me. I looked around and saw an altar, not a table. Around us were women in sheer clothing and men in robes of midnight. None spoke.
“What the fuck happened and where are we?” I asked looking at Nokomis.
“You acted like an overprotective fool and drank a potion meant for daughters of the Moon, Nokomis scolded “You are lucky you didn’t die.”
“You almost did die,” another woman said, “we almost could not call you back, son.”
“Who are you?” I asked looking at a beautiful aged woman with pearlescent white hair. She was nude as well. Although she had the bearing of an ancient, her body was still firm and attractive. Everything about her radiated beauty except her blank eyes; white spheres missing the pupil and iris.
“I am the Oracle. Speaker for the Moon, High Priestess of the Temple and I have waited a long time,” she said as she stepped closer.
“What happened to me? What do you want of Nokomis? Waited for what?” the questions poured out of me. The people encircling us broke apart and left in groups.
“You foolishly drank from the chalice of the moon. The Daughter of Moons has been named; she now walks the earth and that answers all your questions,” she explained calmly.
“That was only two answers,” I corrected her.
“The second answer answered both questions,” she replied smiling.
“Jack, I was born on the rarest of Moons. Millenia, the Moon Goddess, took human shape and walked this world. She breathed life into the creatures of the night. The VoidMan, God of the In Between, watched the life the Goddess created and fell in love with her. As a gift, he created the stars and filled the void between the worlds,” Nokomis told me as I leaned against the altar.
“What does any of this have to do with us?” I asked confused.
“Let me finish Jack. They had a daughter, but she was stolen away by the sun who fear the union of the other two gods. The Sun is stronger than either of them but their power combined could overpower him. The Goddess’ tears flooded the universe and created a river of white that wanders through the sky. The Sun eventually told them he was sorry for what he had done and agreed to release their daughter.” Nokomis said to me and I listened but this didn’t explain what was going on.
“Again, what does this have to do with us?” I asked, annoyed at the sermon.
“I am the Daughter of the Moon, Jack. So named at birth by my mother. Named again by myself when you saved me.” Nokomis said and caressed my face. “You Jack, sweet Jack, drank the essence of the moon and had become a Man of the Void.”
“I am a god,” I said laughing.
“No sweet love, you are mine and a now the essence of the Voidman runs through your veins. You should be dead, yet your love for me gave you the strength to return,” she said and leaned in to kiss me.
I wanted to argue and deny my love for her, but the truth was I had fallen for her months ago. There was not a moment that went by that I did not think of her or want to hold her. I returned her kiss and scooped her up in my arms. I wanted to take her then and there, make up for all the times I should have been making love to her.
“Good. Now that all of that is settled,” the Oracle said interrupting our reunion “May I tell you why you have been born?”
“Yes, Mother,” Nokomis said and released me from her arms, and I reluctantly did the same.
“We serve the Night Goddess and God. Since your death and rebirth, the kingdom has undergone several changes. These changes may seem minute but will have the dramatic impact on our world. Your uncle, the King, has officially taken a religion. This in itself is not unheard of in the past, yet he has claimed the realm to be of his religion. Your aunt has been, in not so many words, banished to her country estates.” the Oracle told us.
“Sorry, but what does this have to do with Nokomis?” I asked waiting for the hook which we would sink into us and drag us along.
The Oracle continued as if I had not interrupted her. “The mistress of your Uncle, Ziusudra, is a cleric of Sol, the Sun God. She seduces the King and drives him to ban all other religions. This in itself is annoying, but not so bad. Moonlites, as we call ourselves, have gone into hiding before. Ziusudra has already issued a decree through the king allowing the Temple of Sol to construct a part of the church to focus on recruiting and training defenders of the faith. These defenders, the Knights of Sol, will be allowed to hunt down creatures of the night, now deemed evil to eradicate them. All creatures of the night are evil in their eyes.”
The Oracles words fell over us, and I understood. No church was allowed to have a military branch for this exact reason.
“You want us to kill her, don’t you?” I said, figuring her plan out.
“We are guardians of the night and sometimes that means we are assassins. Why do you think we have allowed you to train Nokomis?” the Oracle asked.
“Allowed me to train her?” I said, shocked that she thought she had that much control over us.
“Yes, we could have kidnapped the Daughter of the Moons any time we wanted. She would have been angry with us, but she would have understood.” The Oracles words were proved, when in a blink of an eye she disappeared and reappeared, moving about the room from one spot to the next.
“I am ready, Mother,” Nokomis whispered.
“Simple as that? She does a little magic and moves from one place to the next, and you are convinced?” I asked, flabbergasted that Nokomis could be so easily persuaded.
“No Jack, she has had me since I heard the that this mistress of my uncle’s is destroying my kingdom,” Nokomis answered.
“It is not your kingdom anymore! The Princess is dead, you are free,” I shouted at Nokomis.
“Jack, this was why I was born. I know that now. I’ve always wanted to be free of the burdens and restrictions. You and my uncle have given me that freedom. Now I am choosing to serve my kingdom.” she said and I knew I was indeed trapped, a hostage of love.
