CHAPTER 239: THE SHOW MUST GO ON

(...continued)

"No! You are wrong! I do have an invite..."Selene’s teeth ground together, her lips peeling back into a defiant snarl. Her hand shot into the folds of her gown fishing out the scroll urgently, like her life depended on it ( she wouldn’t admit but she could feel that power was overwhelming).

"Here...here it is! Have a good look at it." She held it out for everyone to see before turning back to the source of the chorus."Wrong?" she spat, her voice trembling but still venomous. "You dare call me an intruder? Look carefully..." She raised the scroll high above her head. "This is my proof. My invitation. Even you can not deny it!"

Gasps rippled through the crowd. The parchment with that bluish glow was unmistakable...the seal was burned into the wax, etched with that perfect crescent.

Murmurs started rising...

"She really has one..."

"This is fucking funny!"

"Did they truly just falsely accuse and abuse her?"

" We truly must practice caution..."

For the first time since her arrival, Selene’s smirk flickered back into place. Her crimson lips curved, her eyes glimmered with dark triumph.

She held the scroll even higher now, shaking it at the glowing brilliance as though she had gained the upper hand.

"Do you see now?" she hissed. "Even the crowd acknowledges me. So spare me your sanctimonious thunder..."

But her words were cut off.

The scroll jerked from her grasp as though yanked by invisible hands.

Selene gasped, spinning on her heel, her arms flailing as her balance broke. The impact made her knees strike the glass like floor with a resounding thud. A ripple pulsed outward like water disturbed, echoing her fall.

The scroll hovered in the air above her, suspended. Slowly, it unrolled in front of all. Its parchment crackled as though fingers dragged it open.

Every guest craned forward, eyes glistening, whispers swelling into an audible tide. Selene scrambled to her feet, her face pale with disbelief.

"How dare you? " she shrieked.

Her scream died in her throat as the scroll ignited.

Blue fire licked up its edges, crawling hungrily across the parchment. The flames burned silently, too bright, too controlled. Each ember floated downward, scattering like glowing dust before fading into nothingness.

The guests gasped, some even stepping back as if they themselves might be seared by the unnatural blaze.

Within moments, the parchment had crumbled into a trail of ash that drifted upward instead of down, dissolving into the radiant light.

The voice spoke again."That letter was not yours to wield."

The chorus reverberated like a thousand storms contained in stone.

"It was meant for the Head of the RavenAsh Coven. Tell me, since when does an outsider lead that house?"

The question split through the chamber like a jagged spear.

Velor’s lips parted, his brows knitting together.

A heavy silence pressed on the crowd.

The voice cut deeper still, words curling with dangerous mockery. "I thought the Ravens were very particular about bloodlines..."

The last word stretched, sharpened, like a blade drawn slow across flesh.

Selene froze.

The fury that had animated her drained into something else...embarrassment...burning humiliation. Her cheeks flushed red under the blue light, her jaw trembled despite her clenched teeth. The audience’s stares were knives in her back.

Murmurs rose again, harsher this time:

"She is a nobody?"

"A lesser blood? I thought she was some true witch! "

"An outsider pretending to be the head of a coven?How pathetic!"

Selene hissed, her eyes darting left and right, her hands curling into claws. "Shut up! All of you...shut your filthy mouths!"

But the radiance gave her no reprieve.

A violent gust tore around her, lifting her from the ground with invisible force. Her body shot upward, arms thrashing, her hair flaring like a dark banner as she dangled helplessly before the blinding light.

The voice rose, stronger, commanding every breath of air.

"Now go back to your masters..."

Selene spun in the air, her crimson eyes wide with something that finally looked like real fear.

"...and deliver this message...nice and clear..."

The glow pulsed, shaking the floor beneath everyone’s feet.

"The Ravens are not welcome inside my premises ever again!"

The silence she left behind was deafening.

No one dared move.

" Did I make myself clear? I believe I did...now get going...we don’t have all day to bother with insignificant disturbances..."

Before Selene could retort, her body was shot further up through the air like a ragdoll.

"No! Fucking get off me!Let me go! What the hell are you doing?!" Her scream cut short as her back slammed into the invisible wall of the sanctuary’s barrier.

The impact rattled her teeth, left her gasping, and then...just as violently...she was flung outward, hurled back towards the place from which she had entered... tossed above everyone’s head.

Her flock of ravens circled, their wings blotting the sky yet something was... wrong.

The birds, once wild extensions of her will, jerked and fluttered as though resisting some unseen force. Their beady eyes gleamed white for the briefest instant...then filled with the reflection of that rippling blue light still pouring from the parted waterfall.

Selene raised a trembling hand. "Come! Catch me, damn you!"

But the flock did not swarm to break her fall.

They wheeled and shrieked, keeping their distance, their wings faltering mid air as though recoiling from her.

She landed hard on the forest floor below. Dignity smashed along with her tail bone.Before she could push herself up, the commanding voice boomed once again...so calm, yet so powerful it rattled bones.

"Take her back. Deliver the message exactly as it has been spoken."

The ravens screamed as one. Their cawing chorus somehow sounded like assent.

The entire flock dove in a sudden, unnerving synchrony. Dozens of claws caught the edges of her cloak and her hair.

"No..NO!Let go of me...have you fucking gone all crazy...hey...let go...Ravens!!!Let go..." Selene shrieked, thrashing against them. "Let go of me, you ungrateful petty birds! I made you! You are MINE!"

Her protests turned shrill, almost childish, as the ravens yanked her bodily across the stones, mud and dirt... jerking and pulling with all that they had.

Back inside, the waterfall sealed itself once more in the midst of the stunned silence. The chorus spoke once more as if nothing extraordinary had happened.

"Sorry for that mild inconvenience! Enjoy the party, esteemed guests. The music is about to begin. You may even take to the dance floor. Eat and drink to your heart’s content—the spread has been prepared especially for your tastes. Every drink has been infused with essences from the Eternal Stones. So, indulge yourselves. Enjoy however you wish. The host will be joining you in just a few moments!"