Lucian took a deep breath. His hands could feel the silky white cloak hanging from his shoulders. He stood at the back of the hall and in front of him was a walkway with a red and white carpet that ran down the center of the room. On either side of this walkway was a crowd. Lucian shot glances at either side. He could see his siblings and his friends, who all gave him supportive looks. While all the adults of the Great Houses stared at him coldly, their eyes obscured by their masks and top hats. Lucian had underestimated how eerie and unnerving the blank stares of those horned masks looked when they were worn. And now he was surrounded by them, which only made him more thankful of the fact that only the initiated got to wear them. So then at least, he had the true faces of his uninitiated friends to look upon for comfort.

He felt his mother’s hands slide down is arms as she straightened the cloak. She too wore a mask, but Lucian could tell she was smiling from beneath it. “Remember to be head strong, Lucian,” she whispered in a voice with a softness akin to the feeling given by newly weaved cotton. Lucian nodded but did not take his eyes off the walkway. Once she was finished she took a step back and walked away. Lucian then looked over to his father Henry and his uncle David, both of whom stood firmly behind the pedestal. Lucian took another deep breath and, with as much confident and self-conviction he could muster, took his first step onto the carpet.

For a moment, Lucian felt a rush as the world around him went silent. But once that moment had gone by, the world came rushing back and he felt…normal. He took his second step and felt no nervousness or doubt. It was as though he had finally accepted his fate. He walked the rest of the carpet with as a stern a posture as possible. And once he reached the foot of the pedestal he looked up and saw Henry looking down on him from behind the stone. The silence in the room was almost unnerving. Henry then took the dagger and chalice held it over Lucian head.

“On this day!” he shouted loudly. “The 288th Day of the 634th year since the Flight. I, Henry Demon, Baron of Demonum hereby give you, Lucian Demon, Baronet of Demonum, the dagger with which you shall undertake our rite of passage, this Trial by Blood!”

He then lowered the hand which held the dagger and Lucian took it with both of his hands. He looked at the dagger for a moment, its golden hilt shone in the light that came from window behind Henry. He gulped and placed the edge of the blade on top of his palm.

“With the blood of the Old Folk do we light the Flame, to take us back to whence we came, with our joined souls of flame do we proclaim, that you, scion, are of our name,” the others began to chant. Lucian closed his eyes and braced as he pressured the knife-edge onto his skin.

“With the blood of the Old Folk do we light the Flame, to take us back to whence we came, with our joined souls of flame do we proclaim, that you, scion, are of our name,”

Then, with one swift motion. He slide the blade across his hand and let out a painful grunt as blood began to pouring out from the wound. He then let go of the dagger and let it fall to ground before using that hand to hold his bleeding one. Henry then held the chalice under the wound and watched as the blood came pouring down with Lucian breathing heavily and moaning in pain. Once the chalice was half-full, Henry took away the cup before gently holding Lucian wounded arm and placing it on the top of the pedestal. Lucian’s fingers were starting to become numb, but he knew what to do. He used whatever strength his finger had left and slowly drew the symbol of House Demon on the stone. Every moment stung with pain, but he fought it as much as he could.

Henry took chalice and held it above his head with both hands. He then concentrated and, within moments, the chalice erupted into bright blue fire. He then slowly brought the chalice down and held it in from of Lucian. He could hear the chanting getting louder yet more ominous. He took the chalice with his unwounded hand. Part of him still felt hesitant but now there was no turning back. He placed his lips on the cup, the fire touched his face but it did not burn him. He closed his eyes once more and with all his courage, he drank the blood.

Lucian had barely drunk a full sip when he suddenly felt as though something around him had change. Lucian opened his eyes. And the first thing he saw was that the chalice was no longer in his hand and that his hand was no longer bleeding. He looked around and saw that he was no longer standing in a room. He was outside. Tall and thick trees surrounded him. He touched the ground and all he felt was grass. He soon realized that he was alone, all the people who had been in the hall were now gone and what was left in their place was a silence that was only interrupted by the sound of chirping and humming.

“Where am I?” Lucian wondered. Was this what Lira had mentioned earlier? He was thoroughly confused yet on second glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was just a forest.

Then he saw something. He saw a light emanating from behind one of the trees. A blue light, bright and constant. He narrowed his eyes and he saw it…move? Lucian took one-step closer. He saw the light vanish and then appear behind a different tree. Lucian walked closer and closer until finally, he saw something peek its head out from the tree. Lucian saw that it had a body the glowed blue with eyes that were whiter than anything he had ever seen. The more he approached it, the more it revealed itself. Finally, when Lucian was only a few feet away from it the creature jumped out from behind the tree. It glided a few inches above the ground like piece of cloth swaying in the wind. Lucian took a step back but then tripped in a rock and fell to the ground. The creature came closer and closer.

As Lucian got a look at this strange being, he realized it looked…human. In shape, it’s head, limbs and body resembled that of any regular person, but it’s entire body looked like it was a made of fire, burning and flowing endlessly in spirals and currents. It had too especially bright patches on its cheeks and its hair shifted and swirled like a large candle.

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It looked at Lucian with a confused and curious look. He looked at it the same way except with a hint of fear. It then slowly extended one of its hands towards him with its palm open. Lucian looked at the hand with wide eyes, his curiosity then overwhelmed as he almost instinctively held his own hand out. Both hands slowly approached each other and when they touched, Lucian was shocked to realize that the creature’s hand felt as soft as flower petals. He did not burn in the blue fire and his hand did not simply pass through the creature’s hand. To his amazement, the creature was as solid as he was despite its appearance.

The creature seemed as amazed as Lucian was, and he saw it smile cheerfully. Lucian himself grinned and closed eyes before looking down and sighing in relief. But once he opened his eyes again he realized something had changed. The hand he was touching was now rougher; Lucian looked up to see what had happened and what he saw made him freeze on the spot. For within the moment it took him to close and open his eyes, the creature had disappeared. And in its place was something different. Lucian stared at it with horror; it had a face with no mouth and two large black eyes, it had a top hat and branch-like horns with more points than he could count. It’s body was vast and undefined, and it’s arms were long with many joints, bending and contorting in ways Lucian never knew possible.

Lucian frantically shuffled as he tried to get as far away from the beast, which stood only a few inches away. He was too terrified to stand. The beast then grabbed his outstretched hand and Lucian shrieked as he felt its long needle-like fingers pierced his skin. The beast pulled his closer and examined his bleeding. Lucian was panicking, but no matter what he tried, the monster was too strong. He held his hand out and tried to use his power, but nothing happened. The monster pulled him to the point where Lucian’s face was mere inches away from the beast’s gaping abyssal eyes.

Then, to Lucian’s utter shock and terror, the beast spoke. At first, it was in a tongue that he could not understand but it soon shifted into one he could. “Blessed child,” it said in a voice that was deeper and more intimidating than the deepest pit. Lucian whimpered and breathed heavily. The monster then grabbed his other arm. Its fingers once again piercing the skin. Then, to his continued horror, a third arm appeared from within its body and it held out one of its fingers towards Lucian forehead.

“Fate waits, Blessed Unholy Child. Home awaits,” it said, Lucian did not understand what it meant. But as he sat there, helpless, trapped and in great pain, he felt the ground shift beneath him. He turned his head towards the ground and he saw it slowly crumbling from underneath his feet. The dirt and stone parted and shattered revealing and endless void beneath it. Strangely, the beast seemed confused by this. It too diverted its attention downwards. Lucian saw this and he felt its grip loosen. He saw an opportunity; he thought fast and took a deep breath. He then swiftly took his leg and reached for the beast’s face. He then gritted his teeth and, with all his might, kicked the beast’s head with his leg. The beast’s, whose attention had been elsewhere, was taken off guard. It was so surprised that it let go of Lucian before letting out a blood-curdling screech.

Lucian fell on the ground. But before he could get on his feet. The ground beneath him fell through and he went plummeting down into the abyss. The monster screamed and tried to grab him again, but it couldn’t reach him before he fell. Lucian briefly saw the monster jump in after him as he went barreling down a world made up of floating pieces of land; it looked almost exactly like the Mirror. Lucian’s consciousness began to fade as he fell. He closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was the monster getting closer and closer as he fell through endless void.

For a moment, the world went silent. Lucian then felt a sudden rush as his ears flooded with noise. He opened his eyes again, and the first thing he saw was the dim light that emanated from the large circular window. He found himself on his knees with his head looking up and his hands drooping down. The dagger and chalice lay on the ground with blood slowly seeping onto the carpet from the chalice. Lucian felt dazed and confused. His eyes were blurry but they slowly regained focus. He then felt a sharp coming from his hand, and when he looked at it, he saw that it was bleeding again. Lucian took a deep breath and gave out a heavy sigh as the dazed feeling slowly subsided.

As he regained his composure, it took him a few moments to realize that the hall had gone completely silent. He turned his head and stared at the people standing on either side of him. He could see them all standing still whilst staring at him intently. He read the faces of his friends and they all appeared… frightened. He Benjamin look at him with his mouth open with posture that looked as though he wanted to take a step back. Lucian looked over to his father, but even Henry looked at him with an undertone of fear.

Lucian then stood up; he took a deep breath and once again approached the pedestal. He saw that the symbol he had drawn on the stone had partially dried. That then sparked a glimmer of worry and confusion in his mind.

“How long did I have that nightmare?” he wondered to himself. He then placed his hand on the pedestal. By that point, he just wanted the ceremony to end. He closed his eyes and concentrated. The partially dried symbol then erupted into flames. And when he opened his eyes saw the wall behind his parents shift and move, revealing the Flame Gateway. Then, to everyone’s awe, the door opened in burst of light, revealing a reflection of the Mirror and its chaotic landscape.

All faces turned away from Lucian and towards the door, watching it with awe. Lucian saw David and Janice turn towards Henry before both of them nodded. Henry looked at both of them before turning around and facing Lucian. He then cleared his throat as Janice presented him with a mask and a top hat with a small golden branch stuck piercing its corner. He then held the mask over Lucian’s head as Lucian knelt down in front of him.

“Here, on this day, I, Baron Henry Demon of Demonum, declare you, Baronet Lucian Demon of Demonum, a true scion of the Moor and a true descendant of the Folk!” he shouted as he lowered the mask towards Lucian, who then took the mask slowly with both hands before putting it over his face. Yet he did not stand. Henry then took the hat and once again held it over his son’s head.

“And with that honor I now pronounce you a senior member of the House of Demon and a newly appointed statesman of Hatlynshire and the Circle!” he then lowered his hands and placed the top hat on Lucian’s head, who then stood up slowly and faced his father. He could see both Janice and David looking at him and, though he could not tell what David was feeling, he almost certainly knew his mother was beaming with pride. He then once again placed his hand on the pedestal. Lucian closed his eyes one more time and concentrated for a moment. And when he opened his eyes he saw the stone wall behind Henry shift once again, concealing the Flame Gateway as its light slowly faded.

Lucian stared directly at Henry and Henry stared directly at Lucian. Henry then extended his hand towards Lucian.

“I hereby welcome you into our hallowed ranks,” Lucian gave a nod and Henry nodded back. He then shook Henry’s hand. And with that, the ceremony concluded.