Chapter 34: A Taste of Armageddon

New Orleans

[Marcel's POV]

Six years of peace between the factions within New Orleans has gone to shit. My rules are creating resentment throughout New Orleans. The rule about not practicing witchcraft in the Quarter is sacrilege to the practitioners that have to maintain Natures balance and help heal the populous. The night walkers all resent that I have control over which vampire can have daylight rings. I just don't hand them out to anyone. Yes, I expect service and loyalty from those that I allow to wear daylight rings in my city. They know that vampires that have opposed me have gone missing.

I interfered in the Harvest ritual of the witches and they are out for blood. I saved Davina from being killed, but in doing so the back lash is wrecking magical havoc all over New Orleans. Davina is powerful, but the forces of nature are unbalanced due the disruption of their ceremony. Vincent Griffith has warned me more than once that this destruction could have been avoided if I had not interfered with the Harvest ritual and because of that Davina's magic is becoming more unstable. Davina has to die to complete their ritual. The well-being of New Orleans depends on it.

There is a category 5 Hurricane brewing in the Gulf of Mexico and the eye is headed directly over New Orleans. A tornado hit along the North edge of the city an hour ago. There have been a series of small earthquakes each one getting stronger, more frequent and doing more damage. Frogs falling from the sky is a sign of the apocalypse according to some of the Voodoo Priests. I have issued a batten down the hatches and evacuation orders to the supernatural community. If the Hurricane brewing in the Gulf hits; it will be worse than Katrina.

The werewolves are about to stage an uprising against me for banishing them to the bayous outside of New Orleans.

According to my intelligence sources the Original sires: the unholy trinity of Tristan, Aurora and Lucien are in New Orleans to wreaking havoc. My policies are interfering with their plans to be the rulers of all vampires: added to that they want revenge on the Originals. The Werewolves are starting to fight back against Lucien Castle and Kingmaker Industries. There are dead from all of the factions and the tensions are building fast.

The humans have armed themselves and put Vervain in the Municipality's drinking water reservoirs. Wolfsbane has been added also. Shops are putting up the herbs over doorways. They are pulling out dark magic objects to counter act the all of the supernaturals. I'm not sure where they got their arsenal. I have my people looking for their sources.

There is a rumor that an ancient evil called the Hollow that has been awakened and the warding spells have been removed. Armageddon is about to be unleashed in New Orleans and I don't have a clue how to prevent any of it.

With all of this going on, I am still reluctant to ask Elijah and Niklaus to help me restore some kind of order. Asking for help from the Originals requires a price to be paid.

Salvatore Boarding House

[Damon's POV]

Everyone has gathered here after our little trip to confront the Cold One contingent in Italy. Charlotte and Elżbieta called everyone home: seems that we have business to attend to in Louisiana. I am on the settee massaging Bella's feet. Angela and Elijah are sitting across from us going over a map of Louisiana. They are looking for a clue as to where the 'dark shard' is located there. Everyone agrees that it needs to be neutralized before the Hurricane Karla hovering in the gulf comes ashore.

Charlotte walks into the room carrying a tray of freshly made cinnamon rolls and Jacob follows her carrying two thermoses: one of hot coffee and the other hot chocolate. "Everyone with the Astral ability needs to help find the location of the Dark shard."

Niklaus suggests, "We also need to know what is going on with the factions in New Orleans. My sources say that there is a supernatural rebellion of all the factions going on there; which could be the forerunner of the Hollow coming back to life. The Hollow needs to be destroyed: if it has awakened."

Elijah responds with, "Lucien Castle and his company Kingmaker Industries are doing experimentation on living werewolves." This is another factor we need to take into account, when we temporarily relocate to New Orleans. Marcel Gerrard will not be happy with us being in 'his' jurisdiction.

Silas and Amara enter the room. He points out, "We will help with the family with the situation in New Orleans. I recommend we recruit more help to go up against the Hollow. It will absorb all the Witch magic and Dark magic to fuel its need for more and more power. If we are lucky the same schools of magic that helped us contain the Dark Shards will help us contain the Hollow."

Amara looks around the room. "We will also need protection magic for all of us; this conflict with the Hollow will be extremely dangerous. Freya, we need to make amulets with protection and detection spells on them for Dark magic, from each school of magic available to us." She suggests softly.

Charlie requests: "While you are making twelve amulets for us, make twelve out of jade with red silk chords and add our magic to them also. I have a plan."

Jacob responds with "On it!" Freya, Bonnie, Henrik, Silas and Amara rush out of the room after him to create the twelve of each amulets we will need.

Caroline and Rebekah enter the room at the same time. "Stefan is at the Gilbert house with Sarah trying to smooth things over with Elena. I feel sorry for Stefan, but hiding things in his past keeps Elena from trusting him fully. She feels she is being blindsided all the time with these 'new' developments. So I can't really blame her for being mad at him," Caroline huffs.

"Trouble in Paradise?" Caroline shoots me a dark look and goes over to see what Niklaus and Elżbieta are looking at on the computer screens.

Salvatore Estate: Back Garden

[Charlie's POV]

I am in the back garden of the Salvatore estate. I have a gift for the Guardians of Magic. Twelve jade pendants on silk chords, all of them blessed with our families schools of magic. I carefully place them apart in an outer circle. I place the twelve amulets I want blessed in an equal distance around the circle closer to where I will be meditating. I calmly center myself into a meditative state.

"I am Charlie Swan. I call to the guardian spirits here. I bring tokens for you to help defeat the darkness called the Hollow. All I asking in return is that you bless the twelve amulets I laid out in the center circle, with your magic. With your blessings we have a better chance of defeating this emerging evil."

"We hear you Charlie Swan and accept your tokens. Yours are now blessed also. We will be at the reckoning of the Hollow. It will not be allowed to exist on this plane any longer."

I blink. I didn't know if contacting the guardians of magic would work or not. They are the overseers of magic, that some call Fae, Elven, Dwarven, Mermen, Wizards, etc. and maybe even ours. I am glad they responded positively to my offering.