Treasured Secrets (The Coveted Saga 1)

"In the beginning of magic, Isis Bradbury was granted the first gifts of magic and true immortality. She was the mother of all magic. However, there was another woman who was chosen as well. Women were natural conductors for magic in the beginning, before it evolved. The second woman chosen was Allora Selan. Her light was just as pure as the light of Isis.

"Several centuries passed and magic evolved. Allora found her soul mate, Dramus Craymon. Allora never let Dramus or anyone else know of her true powers, which were the same as Isis's abilities. She could control every bit of magic she had come into contact with.

"She claimed to only be a blinder, so she could stay back in the shadows and live her life without the high expectations that people had for Isis. Allora was a little more reserved and timid than Isis. She also did not bear the confidence Isis had. She enjoyed getting to hide in the shadows while Isis shined like a bright star.

"Dramus was light at first, but then he started becoming different. A young witch who was close to transformation had tried luring Dramus away from Allora. Dramus was a powerful enforcer with a prestigious name, a pillar among magical community, so plotting girls had ulterior motives quite often.

"He originally had no intention of leaving Allora; however, he was happy about how badly the young witch wanted him. His vanity knew no bounds.

"Her essence was strong, so he pondered if she would make a better mate than Allora, his blinder. He knew soul mates were irreplaceable, and he could never truly love anyone else, but his most passionate desire was to be more powerful than Isis and Merlin.

"He was in second place, and that wasn't good enough. Sometimes power in the wrong hands can cause one to be greedy. Sometimes, with someone who has malicious intentions, greed even outweighs love.

"He kissed the mortal witch with the intentions of simply being promiscuous for a while, waiting to find out her true powers. He suddenly found himself inhaling her essence. He could feel himself getting stronger with each drawn breath.

"He could see that he was killing the young witch, but he couldn't have cared less for her wellbeing. His light turned dark as he slowly killed the witch, the first one to ever do so. Magic had been tarnished and a new era began.

"Soul mates were more connected than most people understood at the time. Allora, who had no intentions of ever stealing another's essence, suddenly found herself with the same dark light as her bonded mate. It was nothing she could control. She was weaker than Dramus because she had never laid full claim to her power.

"Magic had evolved in an unexpected way. At the time, all lights were white and pure, just as magic had intended for them to be. At the time magic chose her soul mate, Dramus was light, like her. Nowadays, you never have soul mates on opposing sides - magic adapts.

"Allora worked for decades trying to exercise the gifts she had left dormant. She practiced anytime Dramus was away. She just wanted to reserruct her light, her purity. She didn't want his tainted magic invading her. To break free and destroy him, she needed to be stronger.

"She knew if she let him know about her hidden powers, he would use her to rule with darkness. She was trying so hard to be stronger than him, desperate to free the world from the monster in her bed.

"Soul mates are linked, but Isis and Allora could control what Merlin and Dramus knew, because of their incredible gifts. It was a secret clause that magic had given them, just in case.

"Allora was able to keep her thoughts secret from Dramus and she projected his mind with the things she wanted him to believe. She had seen Merlin and Isis coming to kill her. She knew it was the only way destroy Dramus and end his reign of darkness when she failed to ever grow stronger than him on her own.

"He was becoming stronger everyday, and more and more started to follow him into the dark. He quickly found himself crowned king among his devil worshipers. Such praise only fed his ego and fueled his lust for more power.

"Allora and Dramus had three children that no one else in the magical world knew about, and the majority still don't.

"Graven was the eldest, Aylana was the middle, and... Allaysia was the youngest."

I gasped, not really meaning to. Tallis loosened his grip on me as his body got tense. Desmond's jaw clenched while his eyes glared into mine, daring me to say the wrong thing.

"You're safe, Aria, but if you decide you don't want to hear any more, I understand," Allaysia said softly, careful not to spook me.

I could feel the anguish in the room. They were tortured souls atoning for the sins of their family. I couldn't very well abandon them. I didn't want to. I didn't feel threatened, and I was safely tucked in Tallis's arms.

"I'm fine. Sorry. Please continue," I murmured softly, smiling lightly when Tallis's grip tightened again.

She nodded and took a deep breath before readying herself for the rest of the story.

"No one knew of their existence because of what evil plans Dramus had in store. Graven chose the dark and began following in his father's footsteps. Aylana chose light, insulting her father with her insolence.

"Dramus was furious. He didn't even know they really had a choice. She had chosen her side and awaited her transformation. Dramus planned to force her light to change by locking her up until she drained an essence after her transformation.

"To keep her safe, Allora sent her away to be hidden from Dramus. However, Dolian, the leader of the changers, hunted her down. He and Dramus had been planning an attack of unimaginable proportions. Every human and every light eternal would be destroyed. Only evil would prevail. Only some of the stronger families would be kept imprisoned to produce future witches.

"He was mad with power, and Dolian was just as dark. Allora had betrayed him by sending away Aylana. He decided to punish her in a way that would devastate her the most. He planned to make her too terrified to ever cross him again. There was only one way to accomplish such a feat.

"When Dramus found Aylana, he drank her essence and left his daughter's body somewhere in Egypt, where Allora had sent her to be safe. Allora felt the pain of her daughter's death as if it were her own. It was worse than dying herself.

"Allora's hatred for Dramus grew immensely after that. She hated him for what he had done to her light. She hated him for what he had done to their daughter. She hated him for not even letting her bury her daughter properly. She had seen the future that he had planned to create, and how he had planned to use their children in his dark circle. Graven had chosen dark already, and Aylana had died for choosing light. There was only one child left.

"Dramus carried a bodyguard with him at all times. Their power is limited though. They can only hide you for a maximum of three weeks. He would swap out guards here and there. He kept himself cloaked at all times so he could hide his plans from Isis and Merlin. They only saw bits and pieces of his plan when he would change guards. Dramus was always prowling for new essences to steal and never remained behind the protective crests of his home that blocked the seers from their visions.