Deep down Nathaniel knew his mother would not succeed. A coven of outcasts, many, including himself, lacking training beyond the blood magic required and natural affinities, and an impossible illegal task, was a recipe for disaster, and disaster soon came.

The boy traced lines in the dead wood that made up the desk in his cell. Strygadom had never been his home, and now its bowels had become his prison for weeks already. The island had been warmer than expected (courtesy of the protective magical barrier, no doubt) so the thin blanket offered on the day of his arrival had not been begrudged, and the box-like room matching his few neighbouring criminals' was little different to the tiny flats he had lived in with his mother throughout his eighteen and a half years. Exile was not kind to them, but it was preferable to living among the liars and the corruption of the Court.

He would have endured the discomfort without complaint if he could at least see his mother again. He was all he ever had.

A rattle and a clunk of iron startled Nathaniel but he did not rise to his feet. His blonde brows lowered as Lord Mathius sauntered in.

"Nathaniel," he said. "Mind if I come in?"
"I don't seem to have a choice... but alright."

Nathaniel had never spoken to Mathius directly, but stories from his mother had told him enough. He was like a father to her, she had said. He trained her to unlock her full potential then ostracised her for utilising it. Another betrayal. Not unlike his own father.

The Lord gestured to the bed, asking for a seat, and Nathaniel nodded. Springs shifted, and Mathius pondered Nathaniel before saying, "You're a strong witch for being without a coven your whole life."
"Mum trained me," he answered. "She's a powerful witch. You lost a good one the day you expelled her from your coven."
"I did not want to expel her," he replied with a sigh. "She gave me no other choice."
"You had a choice! You cared for her! She told me."
"I did. I do. But the other leaders, they... they demanded I let her go. My duty to the wider coven came first. It was either that or her execution. I could not bear to let her die then but..." He choked and looked away, tears springing in his old eyes.
Nathaniel frowned. "But... what?"

"I had no say in this, son. The Hunters' Council demanded her death for the pain she caused them and the other Lords agreed without question. I fought to protect her, but her life was not worth losing relations with the hunters, as it seems."

Body like stone, Nathaniel crumbled from the inside then out. "She... she's dead?" He wiped a tear from his cheek, unaware they had even begun to fall. "No, she can't be dead! I'd know if she was gone, I--" Words hitched in a sob and his head fell in his hands.

Mathius grew serious. "However, the Lords are willing to overlook your involvement based on the belief that you were manipulated by your mother. You are free to join a coven, if they choose to accept you."
"Manipulated?" Nathaniel hissed, baring his teeth. "She never manipulated me! She told me what Chimera stood for and I believed her. What could a coven do for me now? I'd be an outcast without a purpose. Just let me leave this place if you pity me so much."

Mathius stilled... then smiled. "You truly believe the cause of the Cult of Chimera?"

Nathaniel should not have said that. His outburst was that of anger entwined with grief. He was only young, still in shock at the recent discovery of his mother's demise, and let his foolishness take over. He had a chance at a life again if the Lords believed him to be manipulated -- he may have just thrown it away. "I..."
Mathius stood and placed his hands on the boys shoulders. "My coven will accept you. And I will train you personally to help you master your abilities."
After what he just said? "Why... Why do you want me to...?"

He knew what he meant. That smile... that vulpine smile from the Lord made him realise he was not the only cult member left in the walls of Strygadom.

"You will be out of here soon, boy, don't you worry," said Mathius. "Then we must begin our work. Quietly, I might add. The return of our queen is just the beginning and we must try again."
Nathaniel blinked. "What do I have to do?"
"For now, grieve your mother. Tomorrow we work, and we can start with everything you have learned about the Lupine family."
"The Lupine's?" Nathaniel frowned. Florence, Erika and Alfie were a means to an end for his mother's plans. He never wanted them hurt -- especially Florence -- but unfortunately Pete Martin had taken a fatal blow Nathaniel had not intended. Forgiveness was not on the table for him, he realised, on both parts.

The Hunters' Council had signed his mother's death warrant. Florence, Erika, Alfie, and even Alex had their future's set in stone with those people. They were natural enemies now.

"What do the Lupine's have to do with all of this?"
"Time will tell, young one," the Lord assured. He stood from his uncomfortable seat at the bed, and drifted towards the cell door.

He muttered under his breath, "Time will tell for us all."

***

Lord Mathias took a deep breath at the sight of the locked iron door to the most isolated cell on the island. Most prisoners possessed only a single guard to keep them in order, but this particular inmate warranted two, both possessing magic on hand and daggers at their belts.

They nodded to their Lord. "You are dismissed."
"But sir, the Lady Valeria has ordered constant guard," one protested.
He knew that. Valeria was no fool. "The prisoner is due another interrogation and I cannot risk the leak of crucial information. You may return in one hour."
The other tapped his partner's arm. "Come on. Good luck, my Lord."

He nodded a goodbye, and waited until their footsteps died out before unlocking the cell.

A figure of red hair spun around, wide-eyed and relieved. "Mathius! Thank god you're here. Where is my son? Is he safe?"
He crossed arms behind his back. "He is to join my coven. I'll protect him, Kate. Don't worry about him."
She blew out a sigh. "That's all I needed to here." Scarred hands rubbed her tired eyes. "I'm sorry, Mathius. I'm sorry I failed again."
"Dammit, Kate, this is twice now! Every time you fail it grows more and more difficult to bring her back, do you know that?"
"Not this time," she retorted. "A few of the hunter's were killed in the clearing. The flames grew, did you see? Part of the ritual has already been completed. The containment spell has been weakened."
"We've lost Horizon's Edge! Don't you realise how hard it'll be to get it back?"
"You can leave that to me."

Mathius startled at the vampire's declaration. From the shadows of the corridor he emerged, smiling, with his blonde hair drifting behind him like a ghost.

"Gods, Ambrose, I did not hear you enter."
"I keep my appointments on time," he replied. "I'm curious to see how you have been getting on with the sentencing of the little witch." He nodded at Kate. "I see you've made little progress."
The Lord's gut twisted. "It will be done. And what about the blade? How will you get it?"
"I'm owed a debt I intend to cash in. I will retrieve the artefact, don't you worry. Better than this one, anyway. You couldn't even manage what four children could."
"Four children?" Mathius asked with a frown.
"The hunters," Ambrose replied. "I met them while investigating the dagger at The Collector's gathering. Lupine's girl, Arwood's boy and a set of twins -- more Lupine's."

That family... there was something about them Mathius could not quite place.

"My son spied on them for days," Kate replied. "He's been to Oblivion's Watch. He's clever."
"You had to get your son to do your work, too? How tragic." Ambrose rolled his eyes. "Get on with it, Mathius. I have a schedule to keep and you're not my only appointment."

Mathius' eyes turned to a sombre blue, and a shaking hand slowly reached for the leather dagger hilt strapped to his belt.

Metal flashed in the poor overhead light. Kate blinked. "What's that?"

The Lord sighed. "I am sorry, Kate, truly I am."
She stumbled back into the wall. "No, you... No."
Ambrose crossed his arms. "You've become more trouble than you're worth, witch. This Cult has been kept a secret far too long for you to go exposing us now. You failed us."
"No..." She let out a whimper, looking to her father figure, pleading him, begging him with her eyes to save her. "Mathius please... Please!"
"I failed you first, Kate. I am sorry."

She impulsively outstretched her arms to cast, but no magic came. Instead, the dagger dug deep into her abdomen, reaching up into her chest, stabbing the heart beneath her ribs.

Mathius choked out a short cry when he pulled the dagger back, scarlet blood coating his hands.

Ambrose rolled his eyes and handed him a handkerchief. "Do cheer up, Mathius. Despite the circumstances, we might have a chance at making progress this year."

Mathius swallowed. Now was not the time to grieve. "You've been in this cult for over a century, Ambrose. Have you really never seen so much progress as of late?"
"The day you revealed the prophecy was the day my faith was restored. I did not want to trust the witch with the same task again, as I stated before, but your Queen is not the only piece of the puzzle revealing itself."

Mathius raised his brows to ask for clarification. "I started my research on the Daywalker."
The Lord nodded. "Any luck?"
"None yet. But my new clan member is proving resourceful."
"Could they be it?"
"I'm not testing it out. If he so wishes, he can."
"And the hybrid?"
"Nothing. We don't have enough wolves on board to get considerable information from them."
"But we know he, or she, exists?"
"In a human lifetime, we will find the hybrid, if the prophecy is correct. It's been almost two decades. We have to be close."
"We only have to wait. Keep researching on daywalking for now and cash in your debt for Horizon's Edge."
"And what will you do?"
"The Court is tense as of late. If I can sway some witches to my side, maybe damage the reputation of some of the Lords, we can crumble their leadership. Abolish the Coven system in preparation for the return of the monarchy."
"An all-out rebellion?" Ambrose grinned. "I like the sound of that."
"If I can afford to avoid chaos, I will."
"Chaos is an opportunity, my friend. Among the destruction of your leaders, you will emerge a hero. We can turn others to our side and reset the species entirely."

Mathius's head fell low. And as he watched blood stream from Kate's abdomen, a thought struck him.

"I'm concerned about the hunters."
Ambrose almost laughed. "Why? They're weak. Little more than humans who bothered to open their eyes two centuries ago."
"That's a foolish outlook and you know it." Ambrose rolled his eyes. "The hunters earned their place among the rest of us. They have trained and fought for centuries."
"They're humans, Mathius."
"Which makes it all the more outstanding that they killed seventy-five percent of the witches that work for us. They may be weaker than us. They may posses no magical entity whatsoever but they have more knowledge on the history of every species than any other. We could use some of them."

Ambrose sighed. "Fine. I'll make a contact."
"Do you have an idea of who?"
"Not yet. But I'll find someone. Not all hunters are so obsessed with their Council, I assume."

Mathius locked hands behind his back and whirred out the room, letting out another low sigh.

"What is it now?" Ambrose quizzed, bored.
"What do you think of the Lupine's?" Mathius asked.
A laugh. "I think Chris Lupine has been the most washed-up hunter of the last century since his wife left him."
"Left him?"
"Or went missing. There's been a few rumours circulating for years."
Mathius frowned. "It's not Chris that bothers me. It's the girl. She bothers me. There's something about the family that seems... off. And that feeling is centred around her."
"All hunters are 'off.' But there is one thing that... oh, it's probably nothing."
"What? What is it?"

Ambrose grumbled, unsure of what to say. "One of my contacts told me that Lupine has a son as well as a daughter. He's of age for hunting but I heard he wasn't present at Bekker's."
"Don't they have to be initiated to hunt?"
"Not really. Besides, his nephew and niece are untested and they still turned up. It doesn't sit right with me. Why keep the boy a secret?"
"We should dig deeper."
"It's just a feeling, Mathius." The vampire tilted his head. "Why are you so interested in this family?"
"I've seen their faces before. I can't say where, but... I know them from somewhere."
"You could visit the Oracle again."
"If she would have me in. It's been a while since the prophecy was foretold but this family..." He shook his head. "This family has a part to play."
"For which side?"
Another unsure movement. "It could be either. Which means we have to get them onside."
"And if we don't?"
The Lord raised his chin. "Then we eliminate them."

THE END.
FOR NOW.