10 years ago...

Virgil

"Mother?" I peeked through the wooden door. She had a knife in her hand.

"What is it, Virgil?" Her low tone screamed urgency, even at low volume.

"Locke forced me to wrestle with him again." I was bruised from where he slammed me onto the floor.

"Not now. Mommy has to go."

"Right. Your weekly meetings. How come Locke gets to come?"

"Your brother is strong. I wanted him to get stronger."

"I wanna get stronger! Please take me with you! Please!"

"I suppose it's time you knew," she sighed. I grinned.
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My grin faded as I saw hooded Disciples with knives on their belts gather around a circle. Mother joined them.

"What're you doing here, runt?" Locke sneered.

"I told you a hundred times, Locke. To get stronger!"

"The great Bloodra will only accept us when we're worthy," he replied. "We have to earn our strength at ten years old. In a rite of passage sacred to the Disciples."

"We have gathered to give tribute to the great Bloodra who will give us salvation upon arrival!" Mother's voice echoed through the warehouse. "We present thee with the Tribute of Blood! Come and accept our token of devotion!" They all took out their knives and raised their wrists.

Then they cut their wrists.

I watched in horror as their blood dripped into an intricate circle with a red pentagram in the middle. And yet it echoed in my head that it wasn't even affecting me. As the circle glowed in the moonlight, I felt my strength being sapped from my body. And yet...

Nobody came.

They finished in a minute and started to walk home. Yet one, an Englishman, stayed.

"Dammit!" he cursed, accent ever present. "Thought we had it this time."

"There is one thing we haven't trust yet." Mother grinned. "Shall we try next week, Aaron?"

"Fine," he huffed. "But if we're arrested for this, you'll have all the responsibility." Aaron stomped off.

I was starting to get worried.
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"Why are you disagreeing with me?"

"I'm disagreeing with the cult. Bloodra is an old wives' tale meant to 'justify' murder."

"He exists, Dante! He exists, and I'll prove it to you. I've seen the Circle glow. I've seen the great Bloodra try to come to our world! He just needs more!" Mother's words made Father freeze before he walked out.

"When this goes off the rails, I'll intervene. Until then, I'll stay out of your way." Father shuffled past me, and I felt Mother said something wrong. That she was wrong. As I followed him, I heard Mother.

"The fool will never understand that this is the only way..."
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One week later...

We were back at the warehouse. Mother had told us to wait while she got something. We heard a scream outside, but Locke told me to ignore it. To ignore the flames that grew with each log tossed in. Yet I couldn't.

And it's a good thing too.

Mother brought in a young man about eighteen. Tied up.

She took out a knife.

She grinned and put it to the unconscious man's throat.

She cut it.

The skin opened, and the wall as well as her cloak was dyed red. I watched in horror as she raised the corpse, her amber pendant glowing.

"Behold, our sacrifice to you, oh great Bloodra!" she declared before tossing the just slain man into the fire. His skin immediately caught fire and burned, illuminating my pale-white skin.