Blood Oath (A Gabby Girls Adventure Novel, Book Two) Read online

  Blood Oath

  Blood Oath (A Gabby Girls Adventure Novel, Book Two)

  Copyright © 2011 by T.L. Clarke. All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the Author, T.L. Clarke. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law.

  Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

  Copyright © 2011 T. L. Clarke. All rights reserved

  ISBN-13: 9780984499335

  Visit the author’s Web site: http://www.tlclarke.blogspot.com

  Cover design by: Nimbi Design

  Blood Oath

  A Gabby Girls Adventure Novel

  T.L. Clarke

  2012

  Dedication

  For my mother, thanks for the faith

  Gabby Girls Adventure Novels

  The Secret of the Scarlet Stone

  Blood Oath

  Acknowledgments

  For all their amazing encouragement:

  The Incredibly Awesome Motivator, Robbie

  K.E.W.—thanks, you are the realist…

  Robbie Girl—stay awesome, baby girl

  Barbara C. from Tennessee!

  To the Elements it came from, everything will return. Our bodies to earth, Our blood to water, Heat to fire, Breath to air.

  —Empedocles on Etna

  THE ETERNALS

  PART I

  INTRODUCTION

  Welcome to the dark and powerful world of the Eternals

  Before I discovered that I was born into a secret society called the Eternals, blood-oath Warriors sworn to track and slay the dark and evil creatures that walk the shadows of the earth, the only major thing that I, I mean we—that’s me, Jessica, Rosalinda, and Zora—cared about was starting our freshman year at Vineswell Academy, the prestigious boarding school for girls.

  But that was way before the blinders were cruelly ripped from our eyes and cold reality slapped us on the back of our heads with a chain of not-so-nice realities, like the fact that everything we knew about our mothers was all lies, essentially smoke and mirrors designed to hide their very secretive lives as Circles, women Warriors inside the very deadly world of the Eternal Warriors.

  Cold reality number one: the scarlet pendant that we all received on our thirteenth birthday was not just any ordinary pendant, but a crazy weird talisman and lifeline to our supernatural powers. Cold reality number two; we were all on some evil death wish list, created by expelled Circle Hannah, who planned on killing us just like she killed our mothers.

  Mind-boggling, I agree, my reality amped to the tenth degree, absolutely, and the fact that it’s only been a week since our lives flipped from "normal" to crazy bizarre only makes me feel even worse. It’s way too soon to be shipped off to start official Eternals Warrior training at Transcendence Hall tomorrow morning. We just started secret Eternals 101 cram sessions. Sessions taught by the Eternal Warriors sent to protect us while posing as lame Vineswell professors. Besides lecturing us on the basics of the Eternals, the only cool thing that they taught us were some basic combat moves, and that was after some pitiful begging on our part. It’s like they thought we were delicate flowers or something—I mean, I’ve seen more kick-butt combat moves on the animal channel.

  And even though I hated some of the lame Eternals 101 stuff, I was smart enough to take heed to some of the obviously important stuff, like:

  The Eternals are kick-butt supernatural Warriors. The women are Circles, and men are Ares Warriors, and all are born with a blood oath to serve as protectors against the Daemons and the Banished, who are essentially the foot soldiers for the Underworld.

  The Elementi are powerful wielders of Element Magic. Yes that means, fire, air, water, and earth magic…and without the Elementi, the Eternals would not exist.

  The Banished and Daemons are the crazy scary foot soldiers for the Underworld. The Banished = expelled Eternals and Elementi; Daemons = evil monsters created from the pits of the Underworld. The Banished + Daemons = foot soldiers for the Underworld, and their goal—kill all Eternals, Elementi, and humans (or what we call Normals).

  *Extra Special Note: the Banished and Daemons smell like week-old garbage left out on a hot summer day, and if you smell them coming, run, don’t walk.

  So, as you can clearly see…the Eternals Warriors’ world, my new world, is straight out of some off-the-chain blood-and-guts horror movie—minus the delicious buttery popcorn, of course. You know the kind of movie that, while you’re watching, you’re weirded out of your mind, you scream, you even laugh at some of the obviously stupid things, like the fake blood, the girl running then suddenly tripping over absolutely nothing as the evil killer approaches and then slaughters her without mercy, or the ridiculously crazed, ugly-looking monster who slaughters a whole town and then mysteriously disappears right before the cops show up? And when the movie ends, you’re like, Um…yeah right, that was so unbelievable. That stuff never happens.

  Well, I’m here to tell you that it does happen, every day…

  chapter

  ONE

  Awkward smile equals trying way too hard, and that was me smiling, trying to pretend that everything was okay in my world as I looked around the room that I shared with Jessica, Rosalinda, and Zora, my roommates and new friends. Sweat trickled down my forehead from the sheer effort of smiling like a clown. You see, I’m not one of those girls who smiles all the time; I’m actually a kick-your-butt kind of girl with no trace of perky cheerleader pep in my entire body.

  But yet, there I was pretending to be cheery, hoping that if I faked it, then no one would realize that I was stressed out of my freaking mind about finally being hoisted off to Eternals Warrior training at Transcendence Hall…like, unbelievably "I really want to puke all over the beautiful, shiny hardwood floors" stressed. It wasn’t that I wasn’t happy to be finally leaving Vineswell after sitting defenseless for a whole week—okay, well, almost defenseless. Grandma Celeste did make sure that the Eternal Council sent Eternal Warriors to watch over us before leaving on her emergency meeting with the Eternals. But the truth be told, I was actually anxious about maybe not living up to her expectations and failing out of Warrior training with a big L for "Loser" carved in bold letters on my forehead. I gritted my teeth with determination. No, failure is not an option ever… and maybe if I kept repeating that over and over, then it would ease my stress, maybe a little.

  I scooted further down into the comfy window seat, sighing loudly as I looked out the window, taking in the quiet darkness that spread across the courtyard now empty of Vineswell girls. Pulling my knees up to my chest, I tucked the binder crammed with Eternals information between my chest and knees and just stared into space. And then I heard the most unthinkable thing that just set my teeth on edge.

  "Twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty," Rosalinda muttered importantly as she brushed her silky long black hair.

  My gaze snapped over to her quickly, taking in the ridiculous pride gleaming in her eyes over something tha
t was so absolutely frivolous and stupid that it made me want to rip her throat out like a rabid animal.

  "Seriously, Princess Rosalinda, some of us are actually trying to study here." I glowered at her. I was already on the edge, and now everything around me sounded like fingernails on a chalkboard, case in point, Rosalinda and her annoying hair-brushing ritual every night.

  Rosalinda’s eyes flashed heatedly. "We’ve already been through this, like, a million times, so let me repeat this, like, really slow. This… is…the…only…thing…that…relaxes…me. So, back the heck off already." She swiveled quickly, looking mockingly at my disheveled, long, curly brown hair that was twisted into two dog-eared ponytails. "Besides, maybe if you took more time to get that together"—she looked pointedly at my hair—"then you would understand how important it is to get your hair right."

  I stared at her hotly. "And maybe if you would take more time to concentrate on real important stuff, like studying, then you wouldn’t be so clueless."

  Jessica rounded on both of us with blonde hair flying wildly like a cornered animal. "That’s it. That’s really it. If I have to hear you two go at it again, I’m seriously going to hurt one of you. And Gabrielle"— she looked at me with hurt baby blue eyes—"what happened to all that ‘Gabby Girls Adventure, we’re friends forever’ stuff?"

  With mouths hanging open, Rosalinda and I just stared at her with shock. Mild-mannered and nervous Jessica had just morphed into angry "I’m going to kick your butt" Jessica. And under a less stressful situation, this would have been real hilarious but now, it just shamed me into silence because I knew that she was right. We shouldn’t be arguing. We had way more important things to worry about, like the monumental issue of our mothers’ magical legacy weighing on our shoulders.

  Rosalinda’s eyes taunted me as she pursed her pouty lips and liberally applied lip gloss smacking them annoyingly.

  Taking the bait, I narrowed my gaze and waved my skinny binder in the air wildly. "Hello? We’ve got to cram a gazillion pages of worth of Eternals info before tomorrow morning, and you’re sitting there pasting on lip gloss like you’re getting ready to audition for some reality show. Get over yourself already."

  Rosalinda rolled her cat-shaped green eyes with exasperation. "Really, I can’t read another word. Ya es suficiente—enough is enough."

  I rolled my eyes. Every time Rosalinda spoke, it was like a Spanish lesson with every other word peppered in her native language.

  Jessica shook her head at us, then threw her hands up in the air with defeat. "Okay, I give up. Just kill each other already and be done with it so that Zora and I can study in peace."

  Zora looked up from reading, her lightly tanned face pinched with tiredness as she snatched off her black wire-rimmed glasses. "You all may not want to study, but I do. There is no way that I’m going over there unprepared. If you just focus on the fact that the other Neophyte Circles probably have already mastered what we needed to learn, like, months ago, then you would just settle down and study."

  Rosalinda smiled smugly. "Not only girls."

  I looked over at her suspiciously. "What are you yapping about now, Princess Rosalinda?"

  Rosalinda slammed her antique silver brush onto the dresser. "You know how I hate it when you call me that. Drop the ‘Princess,’ or I’ll keep what I know to myself."

  Jessica shot me a "you better apologize because I want to know, like, real bad" look.

  I rolled off the window seat and walked over to Jessica quickly. "Okay, relax, will you? Now spill the info," I responded grudgingly.

  In typical fashion, Rosalinda got up, giving them her best runway walk over to her ton of brown-and-gold monogrammed designer luggage stacked in the middle of the room like a pyramid. She looked at her well-manicured nails importantly. "Well…" She looked up at us with a twinkle in her light green eyes. "I kind of overheard that Transcendence Hall has both girls and boys," she squealed excitedly.

  My hand shot out, preventing Jessica from toppling off her bed in a heap. "Boys?" Jessica’s voice squeaked. "I mean, are you sure?"

  Rosalinda bounced up and down excitedly like she had won some sort of beauty contest. "Yes, I’m sure, chicos—boys! Aren’t you so excited?"

  Jessica’s pale face flushed as she looked at her like she was crazy. "Duh, do I look excited, Rosalinda?" She tugged at her duck-printed pajama top and bottom self-consciously.

  We all knew how self-conscious she was about being a little chubby, a problem only heightened by her stepmonster’s constant guilt trip about dropping weight via nasty weekly text messages. Jessica didn’t need this added pressure of being around hormonal guys looking for stick-thin Neophyte Circle perfection.

  I gave her a playful push. "Jess, there’s nothing wrong with you. Curvy is way in," I replied playfully.

  She looked at me incredulously. "Are you serious? Look at you!"

  My eyes widened as I dug into my treasure trove of candy and popped a piece in my mouth. "What are you talking about?"

  "You are ‘perfect’"—she did air quotes—"according to society; you’re ridiculously fit, you’re the perfect height, you’re gorgeous, and you’ve got rocking curly brown hair."

  I choked on my candy. I didn’t view myself like that. In fact, I always thought of myself as average and a little tomboyish. Tall, not so much, I was shorter than everyone in the room. Slim, yes, but that’s because I was a classically trained dancer. Rocking curly brown hair, uh, my unruly shoulder-length hair was the bane of my existence. That’s why I always wore it in two dog-eared ponytails. Out of curiosity, I walked over to the mirror and actually stuck out my tongue at my reflection as I examined my face. Almond-shaped hazel eyes, check. Pouty heart-shaped lips, check. A light sprinkling of freckles over my nose, yuck, but check, and tonight I actually didn’t see any dreaded pimples on my cappuccino-colored skin, double check.

  I looked back at her quirkily as I chomped on another piece of candy. "Uh, I’m average, my friend."

  Rosalinda chortled, "As much as I would love to agree with you, average you are not."

  Zora looked up from reading. "And you have a crazy fast metabolism. I’ve never seen anyone eat as much candy as you do and not gain a pound. It’s borderline freaky."

  "Exactly, plus"—Jessica’s bright blue eyes were bright with unshed tears—"I don’t know how many times I’ve told you that I’m not curvy, I’m chubby. There’s a difference. Curvy is hot, and chubby is not, but thanks for trying to make me feel better about the whole situation." She smiled at me wobbly. "It’s just that I’m not prepared for all the drama of being around Neophyte Ares. Besides, we’re going to training to be kick-butt Warriors, not be distracted by the stupid pressure of who’s the cutest Neophyte Circle around," Jessica added stubbornly.

  Rosalinda flicked her black hair over her shoulders. "Which I’m sure that I will be…the hottest Neophyte Circle ever." I shot her a dirty look. "Really? You’re not helping here."

  Trying to break the tension in the air, I snickered. "Um, now you’re acting crazy, Jess. I mean, where else are they going to train hot Neophyte Ares Warriors? Besides, there’s nothing wrong with a little teen Ares eye candy." I wagged my eyebrows playfully.

  Jessica shot me a very dirty look. "As always, I can count on you for adding crazy to an already crazy situation," she responded sarcastically.

  I held up my hands. "Hey, I’m just stating the facts. So, don’t hate the messenger."

  Zora sat up quickly, her glasses slipping to the tip of her nose. "Teen Ares Warriors? Now that could get very interesting."

  Even geeky Zora was interested in the whole teen Ares Warriors scene, which made Jessica grumble louder. Zora smirked and buried her head back in the binder and continued reading.

  I gave Rosalinda a distrustful stare. "Hey, hold on a minute. Why should we even believe you? They’re keeping almost everything about the academy so secret squirrel."

  Rosalinda spun around dreamily with her nightshirt twirling like a ball gow
n. "You don’t have to believe me, but it’s the truth, and I’m so glad that I packed all my pretty clothes."

  Zora snorted loudly as she closed her binder with a loud snap before snuggling down in her bed. "Did you forget that we are going to the academy to learn how to use our gifts?"

  "And to protect ourselves from getting killed by evil Hannah," Jessica snapped quickly.

  I snorted loudly. "Which is, like, the most important thing, since we practically have a bull’s-eye on our backs screaming, ‘Shoot here!’"

  Rosalinda pouted. "You’re all way too serious. Just take it for what it is, the possibility of hot boys making an otherwise lame experience fun. Case closed."

  All of their mouths dropped open in shock because she totally didn’t get the seriousness of it all.

  There was a soft knock on the door before it swung open and Thallo quickly stepped in, closing the door behind her with a soft click. She looked majorly distracted and a tad bit worried, but as usual, not one strand of her shoulder-length shiny auburn hair was out of place. It still amazed me how young she was, only eighteen and already an up-and-coming member of the Circles. That’s why the Eternals had given her lead on protecting us and getting us safely to Transcendence Hall, her biggest assignment to date.

  She smiled, quickly taking in the huge mound of luggage stacked in the middle of the room. "Great, I came to check on how you all were doing with the packing, but I can see that it’s done."

  Zora looked worriedly at Oscar, who was crawling all over his glass tank like he had no worries in the world. "I left Oscar in his glass tank. Do you think that he’ll be okay? I mean, sometimes he can get a little agitated while traveling."

  Thallo smiled. "No worries, Zora. I think that we can handle the safe transport of your pet tarantula with no problem." Her eyes gleamed with excitement. "So, are you all excited to be finally leaving for training?"