Divine Wind
Hello everyone! So, I am only going to be guessing with this, but hopefully you all don't completely hate the start of this story and perhaps you guys want to see what happens, so why not read on or I don't know. Go to another story I guess.
Chapter One
Start of it All…
England 2017
Darkness. Night had befallen the Dowling's small house, it's old stone gripping to its roots and holding the many secrets that was secured within its walls. A young woman staring out its old window, her dark brown locks flowing from her, halting at the middle of her back. Her grey eyes looking out over the field of grass that her home was placed upon. Her own thoughts breaching to the end of her tongue but not daring to burst in fear they would invite anger from another one in the grand hall with her.
Kyla Dowling, born to the Dowling family in the early nineties, along with her older brother, Thane Dowling, who was closely approaching her from behind. Thane, tall and we'll structured, with his own brown curly hair engulfing his head, only to his ears, and his silver eyes were more concerned with her and how she felt. Her clothes not different from any other young adult running around. Simple brown tank top and blue jeans to complete her look, makeup covering her many freckles she tried so hard to hide from the world. That and her own pale skin that seemed to shine under low lighting lamp that was holding next to her.
Thane Dowling, born to the Dowling family first before Kyla, kept his attire the same as his own sister, accompanying only with his own grey shirt that fit his form well. He over shadowed Kyla, his height scaring many around his own sister, standing at 6'2 compared to her own height of 5'8. Their own heights brought both awe and concern in their family and friends.
Kyla refused to look to her brother, knowing all too well what he wanted from her, converse on the same subject as they always did. She, instead, looked out over the grassy field, watching it bend to the wind in all directions, until she realized, when she looked upon her own reflection in the old window, her brother was looking at her still.
"We are still waiting to hear from Father." Thane spoke finally.
Kyla still refused to respond, not liking the situation at all. A mere two hours, their own father had told them that their enemy had done it. They had reached their old vault and had made off with their family secret. They were not a big family, not anymore. Their enemy had seen to that, killing off any surviving members or relatives that lead normal lives outside of this crazy crusades that was thrown upon them.
"Kyla, he will find the them. You know that, don't you?" Thane asked, cautiously, seeing both of their worries were brimming to the surface.
"I know, Thane. Father has been waiting for a chance to use it. No doubt we will be used to fix what he should have done himself." Kyla said, sneering slightly at her own reflection. Her own thoughts were nothing short but concerning of blood from their enemy.
"We will find them, Kyla. They will not get away with this." Thane spoke, trying to quell his sisters rage, being his was close to bursting, like hers.
"This was not supposed to happen. Everything. Our family, friends, everyone around us. Ever since that damn Miles made a mess of things. Now, our own enemy has stolen our precious secret!" Kyla said, controlling her anger very poorly. Though, she spoke truthfully.
No one was meant to know of them in this way, not even their closest and dearest friends knew. Kyla had brought her own concerns to father when all hell broke loose from this Miles, his actions invited more death upon them and they were running out of time.
"If that is what we must do, to undo the damage that was made then we will do so. We do what we can for the family, for Father, and for those that we have listed as well." Thane said, wisdom flowing from him.
Kyla knew better than to argue with her brother, he was more calm and intellectually controlled, seeing all side of the problem, rather than just raging from the events that were thrown to them. She knew, rage and anger would not solve the problem and her vocalizing them would only bring matters to fester worse than what they already were.
Her father on the other hand, has spent their entire life, molding them into the perfect weapons, each skill refined and tuned to perfection. Any interest they took in was hounded on till it became a chore and joy sucked out until he seemed they were perfect at it. All the while his own hobbies were the reason for their families down fall and complete destruction.
'Perfection? This is not perfection!' Kyla thought, harshly. Feeling that her father was the one responsible for the entire mess.
"Kyla, you can not blame him for this." Thane took one step towards her, trying to give her anger another direction. Knowing full well what she was thinking. He couldn't read her mind, but he always knew where her thoughts of anger always came from.
"How is this not his fault, Thane? He has always pushed us, demanded perfection in every weapon, skill, even in our god damn missions! And now, our family is to suffer for his mistakes, with their lives, and we are the ones to clean it up!"
Kyla had let out her anger, knowing full well that her own words would not change how Thane felt about him. She watched as his expressions changed from calm to slight irritation. His brow furrowed slightly, his eyes giving way to his own temper as he tried again to calm Kyla.
"Our father is trying to fix this, Kyla. He was not to know they would take it."
Thane grounded out, pushing back, giving Kyla more than enough fire to continue if she wanted to and she did not wish to take on her own brother. Above everything she had been through, fighting Thane was the last thing she wanted to do.
"Thane! Kyla! That's enough!"
Both siblings looked over to see their father had entered the main hall, now hearing his steps, shallow and weak with cane tapping down onto the ground with every other step he took. His figure had changed drastically over the past few months, with their enemy hot on their trail and having his own kids argue over the situation.
"Father, Kyla is out of line. She doesn't know." Thane spoke honestly, as his father stopped before them.
Their father sighed deeply. She could feel disappointment from a simple sigh. Her sneer was gone and replaced with a saddened face, but quickly returned to her neutral, somber appearance. Her own reflex if her father was ever in the room.
Seeing his old eyes look to her, questioning her own in turn at her reflexive response to him. Anger gone, all emotion gone, her hands and knuckles no longer piercing white with tension, but relaxed and now folded, her arms giving way in this manner. Her shoulders postured perfectly, back straightened, her legs brought together and straightened as well, locking her knees in place so not to give way to her own clumsiness.
"Father," Kyla began, "I did not wish to insult you. I am only concerned with how the situation seems to be becoming worse." Kyla may not show it, but her voice did have the same push that she had with her brother. It was controlled, calm. Truly showing that in all honesty, she must respect her father, no matter what he was or what he had done.
"Both of you, in my study, now!" Their father barked, wobbling with cane back through the door, slowly as the two siblings followed behind him.
Their footsteps echoed through the old house, filling their own minds with more worry, believing they would not love long enough to enjoy the once laughter filled home they had known long ago. Paintings and trinkets decorated the walls and shelves they passed, holding memories of the old and what may come. To Thane and Kyla, they were reminders of how far they come and what they were striving for in the end. Peace for their own.
Kyla wished for nothing more for her family to return, her small nephew and niece, sent away for their safety, her sister in law, Carol had mentioned they had gone to their old abandoned home in Ireland, with their grandfather with them as well.
Wishing to hear their muffled laughter behind closed doors, having their mother tell them stories of old times and how the world was more beautiful than before, awaiting them to adventure it. She wished to hear her grandfather, resting in the living room, the fire roaring next to him, keeping him warm on a night like this. But, it was not meant to be and it will not be until this 'problem' was dealt with.
As she watched her father and brother enter through the studies door, she could feel her own doubt become strong. What if they could not fix it? What if they were defeated? They couldn't fail, could they? She stared into the cracked door, hearing her father and brother muffled arguing and concerns, stealing herself of these emotions, she moved forward with her conviction once more.
Her father's study, dark and secluded, gave her no room for her fear, deep down. The fire glowed dimly, the lights turned off, thinking light would expose them in their safe heaven. His books lined the walls and creating a mess as they were misplaced upon each other in terrible order. His desk, of old and strong oak, covered in mismatched papers. One of the many, however, stood out to them. A tarnished wrapping, lined with many holes and loose string on it's edges. Her brother stood before this small wrapping, silent before it as he studied it, as if knowing what was but still puzzled by its own presence.
Kyla moved to close to the door, before finally joining her brother and father. She was not confused, not entirely, but she wondered if Thane knew of what was in the small wrapping already. Before she could inquire what it was, she heard her father grunt softly.
"It seems our enemy has stolen the family secret, Connor confirmed an hour ago, the vault entirely was turned over. The only thing gone were the small compartments hidden in the wall." Her father spoke clearly. His voice sounding more and more hoarse through his lips.
"Not to be disrespectful, Father, but did they take anything else?" Kyla asked, cautiously hoping that he would provide her with some good news. He shook his head slowly. His eyes fixed away from them, staring into the fire.
"It will not take them long to figure out how to use it, but we will know when they do. Connor has been following their trail back to their hide out. The minute they do, we can follow them." His tone becoming tough, controlled anger flowing from his lips.
"I know that ever since I started training you two, I was looked at as somewhat of a dictator in your eyes." His eyes looking to them both finally, seeing their reaction not change.
Kyla nor Thane opposed him in this. Her own eyes holding truth to his, having more rage contained within them. She heard her brother speak first, his voice echoing through the room.
"You are a dictator, Father."
Kyla looked to him, slightly shocked by his statement, though wishing she could say it. Though more shocked by her father's response, his deep laughter replaced her brothers echoed statement.
"Yes. I suppose I am. But, for a reason. I could not uphold the promise I made to your grandfather. And I suppose, in a way, I took it out on you and your sister. But, I wanted you and Kyla to be ready for this day, should it ever come." Kyla stared at her father, waiting for him to finish.
"Father, why are you telling us this now?" Kyla asked. Her father smiled at her, keeping close to the fire as he gesture to the small wrapping.
"Do you remember the story that your mother told you about the ones that came before? How they were powerful beings that twisted the very fabric of life, to only try and save the people among them?" Her father looked to her, questioning her memory of her own mother.
"They were of more powerful beings, endowed with knowledge and gifts that we only have a sliver of. Such as the Piece of Eden." Thane retorted to their fathers question. Seeing him shake his head in frustration.
"Pieces of Eden. More like Pieces of Shit! The minute they came into play, our war became more difficult to fight. Our ancestors saw through these 'wonders of the world'. Giving them something a bit more powerful." Kyla pressed her hands upon the old desk, stepping closer to her father, attempting to get to the point.
"Why are you telling us this, Father? Why are you bring up this history?" Kyla asked, her irritation returning, slightly.
Her father merely smiled slyly at her, giving rise to her irritation more. He simply tossed the corners of the wrappings away, revealing two small gold rings, engraved with lines similar to the description of one of the Pieces of Eden they had heard so much about. They glowed softly, holding a single blue gem, gleaming of color and light.
"These are the result of what our ancestors did to one of the pieces. With a little something else thrown into the mix. Three were made. One to play as decoy to protect the rest. Although powerful, dangerous all the same. Our ancestors melted down one of the Pieces of Eden, worked on the material for years, until they finally finished them. Our own banished us from the Brotherhood, seeing the fruits of our labor was rejected." He picked up one of the rings, seeing it pulse slightly.
Kyla stepped back, seeing why her father was no longer worried about their problem.
"These rings have the power to control time. To travel, stop, intervene, and change the fabric of life. Our ancestors wanted an edge over our enemy, when they found the Piece of Eden, they wanted the power to change what they were given. This." He held closer to himself, admiring that the metal did not rust or decay for so long.
"They wanted to give their enemy more to fear, but our Order were too skeptical of this power. They tested it and succeed. But, at a cost. When they returned they found that a few things had changed, so they deemed it too dangerous to use. They banished our ancestors for years, until they bargained for return. If they were to hide this creation, keep it hidden from all man kind, could they return?" Her father placed the ring back, placing it next to its partner.
"They accepted the offer. On one condition: the artifact must be under lock and key in a vault somewhere not even the Dowling's could get to. And it did, until now." He shoved himself into his leather chair, seeing that both his children were speechless.
"These rings can control time? They look like trinkets you would give to Emily!" Kyla exclaimed, her irritation rising more and more at her father, not letting him see all that she held for him.
Thane placed his hand on her shoulder, pulling her gently back towards him, her own frustrations now turned to him. He merely shook his at her. Her eyes calmed slowly, giving in to his resolution behind his eyes.
"Do you remember Uncle Fredrick? Why do you think he was gone for so long during our summer to America? Would you really think he would miss such an adventure with his own family?" Thane asked her, now looking to their father to confirm his own suspicion.
He in turn nodded, making Kyla freeze, one of their own had already used one of the rings? She faltered in her shock, remembering him coming back, looking older than when he left. He was only gone for a few months when they returned home from vacation.
"He used one? Why?" Kyla asked.
"Because one of our own turned against us, we wanted answers for why they did. He went back, saw the moment of betrayal and corrected it. The consequences were small, a bridge in London fell." The old man's eyes looked over the rings again.
Kyla balled her fists, slamming one on the desk, her rage becoming unhindered, the cage door opening to him.
"Hundreds of people died! A betrayal was worth them dying?!" Kyla yelled, her eyes burning into the man's own. She forced her respect away and gave into her temper, she was no longer looking upon a man of respect, but a man of deceit and of no honor.
He, in turn, sat in his chair, not returning the fire in his eyes she wanted to see. Instead, seeing regret and sorrow in them.
"It was because of that decision that we are in this predicament. And why your uncle is gone. But, there is time." He again grabbed one of the rings, grabbing her balled up fist, forcing her hand open and lightly placing the ring in her palm.
"When Connor calls, he will know when they go. Our job will be to take the other ring back to where ever they decide to go. This is your mission. Travel to the time they go to, find them, kill them, and retrieve the ring." Their father rose and grabbed the other ring and offered it to Thane.
Kyla stared at him, amazed at his shame and desperateness. She placed the ring back in the wrapping. Her fingers lingered though, feeling the pulse become strong before it left her skin. She could feel it calling somehow.
"I will not be the cause of other innocent lives perishing for your mistakes. Whatever they do, we can fix in this time." Kyla looked to Thane, who had already grasped the ring their father had offered to him.
"That is where you are wrong, Kyla." Her father once again picking up the ring, placing it in her hand.
"When they use it, it will be an intent to change all of history, not just a small page of their story, but the entire series. They will go to the key point of history where they had the most power and lost. They want change the fabric of their history to destroy us. Connor has already confirmed this. They will want to travel to the point of time they can change in their favor." Her father turned again to the fire.
His hands shaking now, looking to them in fear now. Kyla moved by her father placed it on her right ring finger, again feeling the pulse become stronger and stronger. It was become sting to her own being. Her brother already place the finger in the spot of his wedding band, placing the other on his father's desk.
"Your uncle changed a sliver of outcomes that happened and the consequences were small. If our enemy travels back further, changes more than intended, everything will change. The consequences will be astronomical." Kyla was conflicted upon her father's words, her heart felt for him but her mind was cruel, thoughts upon refusal crossed and she wanted to act on them, until a melodious ring echoed in the room.
The phone sitting on the edge of the desk rang, prompting her father to press the speaker button, hearing Connors voice on the other end. Her fear had come true.
"They left." Her father now turning to his many books and grabbed three particular that looked torn and tattered at their spines.
"Where?" Her father asked quickly, fumbling with three of the books he had picked out. Kyla stepped away from him, looking to Thane to make sense of it all.
"Italy. Florence, Italy. 1476 is the year they jumped to. They should learn better to not keep their systems opened for so long." Connor rasped, evident that he was running some place.
"Thank you, Connor. Get back here as soon as you can." Their father now placing two books back and then handing the blue torn book to Thane, who in turn took it after their father ended the call.
"That is where you must go. Follow what is in there. It will help you. Keep the timeline as it is in there. After our ancestors put the rings in hiding, they stayed in touch with our American team and sought the history of the great ones. We have records of what must happen in that book. It will not change or divert. All that is of the timeline is in there. Key points of course. All that must happen is in there." Their father rummaged through his desk, searching violently through the old drawers that began to creak more and more with each rummage.
Kyla looked over to her brother, who began to skim through the book, his face contorting in confusion.
"How are you so certain these are the events that must happen? How can you be so sure that this is what we must follow?" Thane asked, seeing the old man pause when he finally found what he was searching for.
His wrinkled hand extended to Kyla, feeling a cold piece of metal placed in palm once again. She looked upon it and realized it was their symbol, representing their freedom and responsibility they had to uphold.
The curvature of the metal gave way to the strict lines that stroked downward and then curved inward slightly. The engraved seal was given form and the symbol emphasized from the design.
"This will allow you to approach our brothers in the past. Any of them will offer their assistance with that. Carry it with you. Do not lose it. Also," He paused as he offered two wrapped weapons to them.
"You will need these. They will be seen on you but they are easier to hide than any weapons I can give you." Kyla reluctantly took her father's offering, feeling the weight of the small blades and knowing already where they were to be placed. She removed the small cloth and revealed two mechanized blades, ready to be used.
She looked over to her brother, who was already placing the straps on his arms, latching them tightly and flexing his wrists, testing the reaction of the blades, that released the blades instantly and retreating back to their holster.
Kyla quickly placed them on hers as well, not wanting to be behind him in her equipment. She was still in misgivings of the 'mission' her father was placing upon them. Her feelings on this matter now were conflicted, but she knew that their enemies were quick and she had to act fast. She would have her brother, that was all she needed, knowing he knew more than what he was leading her to believe.
"You will know who to follow when it points in the right direction. Feel for it and it will bring you to it. Do not fail me, my children." Kyla looked over to her father before standing next to her brother, holding the book tightly in his arms.
Thane looked down at her, nodding softly to her as he offered his hand to her, his ring visually glowing from it. Kyla instinctively grasped it, seeing her own glow more. She felt the small sting grow from a small nuisance, to a thousand bee stings rage from her hand up her arm and quickly to her shoulder. She darted her attention to her father, shouting at them.
"Whatever you do, do not take off the rings when you arrive! They will send you back if you do not complete the mission upon removal. Come back only after you have finished the mission."
Kyla then looked to her brother then, still feeling the pain travel to her chest and stomach now, seeing the glow radiate more. Thane kept hold of her hand still, seeing him in the same pain and glow. Her thoughts becoming harder to contain through it.
The light radiated brighter and brighter until it engulfed the ground around them, feeling a pull from the rings, her thoughts becoming more scattered, history began to flow through them, seeing events and figures pass before them. Senses becoming over whelmed, hearing a small voice whisper in her ear, teasing her.
"Where?" It asked, daring her soul to answer. She swallowed hard and allowed her thoughts to filter the information quickly. Hearing the voice giggle, her anger was turned towards the voice.
"As you wish."
The pain now spread to her feet and finally radiated to her head, filtering through her memories and thoughts as she could no longer see her brother, as the glow blinded her eyes, forcing her to shut them tightly. The pain then replaced with a warmth and then feeling nothing as she and her brother were then pulled into darkness. Having one phrase echo through her mind before fading to nothing.
Nothing is true. Everything is permitted.
There is the first chapter. Whether it is for the best or not. Maybe post the next one tomorrow. All I know is that this is the beginning of a long story for not only you, but for me as well. Given that it took me a long time to prepare this one. See you in the next one or not.