The black Jeep commander pulled into the courtyard driveway in front of the Mikaelson mansion and screeched to a halt as the driver's side door flew open.
"Misha!" Damon called out through the passenger side window as he watched the warlock jump out and sprint around the hood of the car, then up the front porch step and through the front door.
When he reached the foyer, Misha immediately made his way toward the front stairs, bounding up them two at a time and when he reached the top landing, turned and sprinted down the hall to the room he and Kaspar had occupied during their short stay at the mansion.
As he entered the room, he quickly made his way toward the bag on Kaspar's bed and quickly began rifling through the necromancer's things, tossing clothes and belongings askew onto the bed and floor.
After emptying the contents, but not finding what he was looking for, Misha picked up the bag and held it upside down for a moment, but nothing came out.
"Come on Kaspar…" he whispered under his breath as if in a prayer, "Please…please, still have them…"
Turning it right side up again, he shook it and heard a light rattling noise from somewhere inside the leather bag.
"Bingo…" Misha smiled and, setting it back down onto the bed, reached his hand down blindly inside to the bottom of the bag.
He felt around for a moment, but feeling nothing but the stiff board bottom, moved his fingers up to the sides of the bag, grabbing one side, then the other…
It was then that his eyes widened as he found what he was looking for.
Quickly, he reached his free hand into his back pocket and freed his pocket knife, releasing the blade and moving blindly inside, cutting the side lining swiftly.
Soon, he heard the contents of the bag's hidden compartment spill out and Misha quickly peeked inside, squinting into the darkness of the bag as he rummaged through the small pile of contents—an amulet, a small book of spells, some herbs and finally, what he desired.
Taking the small flat gold-plated box swiftly into his hand, Misha threw the bag aside just in time to turn and see Damon, Rebekah and Kol appear in the doorway.
"What the Hell Misha?" Kol asked, studying the warlock
"I'm with Kol," Rebekah added, taking in their surroundings, "What are we doing back at the house?" then her eyes fell on Kaspar's belongings strewn about the room, "What exactly were you looking for?"
"I found it," Misha smiled, holding up the small gold box for them to see
"What is it?" Damon asked, cocking his eyebrow skeptically, studying the box, "A magic cigarette box?"
"Nope," Misha said, walking past them through the doorway, "Tarot cards. Im glad I remembered that Kaspar had them. Come on…"
Damon, Rebekah and Kol shared a curious look for a moment before Damon led the way out of the room as they all followed the warlock.
"Hold on, Miss Cleo!" Damon quipped, grabbing Misha's shoulder in the hallway and turning him back to face them again, "Exactly how are tarot cards going to help us find what we're looking for? I thought Klaus 'Identical Memory' thing or whatever was going to help us use the map to find the portal."
"That could take too long...and Klaus is still weak," Misha replied, "Its better this way and besides, if you're superstitious, its not the cards themselves that we need. We won't read them to find the portal..."
"What?" Kol asked, then looked to Rebekah and Damon, "Now, I'm confused…"
"The sorcerer whose soul is trapped inside them that will lead us." Misha finished
# # # # # # #
Vivienne gently set the teacup and saucer filled with Earl Gray down in front of Elijah before taking a seat next to him as the original vampire lifted his tear-stained face from his hands and took in a deep breath.
"I'm so sorry, Elijah…" Vivienne whispered, putting a hand on her employer's shoulder
Elijah looked at it there for a moment before smiling sadly, his eyes meeting the witch's for a moment as he put a hand on hers where it rested, then bowed his head, his face crumbling as he fought back another wave of tears.
"How is she doing?" Vivienne whispered, leaning in toward him
"Not good…" Elijah said in a trembling voice, "She locked herself in her room an hour ago and won't talk to me. Her face when I told her, Vivienne—I'll—I'll never forget that look on her face as long as I live…"
"But, I'm also guessing that it's not just her pain that's wearing on you…" Vivienne added as she watched Elijah pull back suddenly and quickly get up from the chair.
"Elijah wait…" she sighed, quickly reaching out and grabbing his forearm, stopping him as he looked away, avoiding eye contact, "Tell me."
Elijah sighed and he looked sorrowfully down at her hand on his arm, before he turned to pull away, but she just held tighter.
"Tell me…please, Elijah…" she whispered, "Let me help you."
Elijah stiffened for a moment.
He could use his vampire speed and strength to pull away, but didn't.
They had been friends for too many years for that.
"I hate to admit it, but you're right…" he said in a low voice, "I am sorry for the loss of Stefan Salvatore and feel my own deep pain at his passing. I truly meant what I once told Elena—that when he and his brother weren't planning the ultimate demise of my siblings, I liked him…both of them…"
The original's face screwed up in pain as he trailed off
"But, that's not all…is it?" Vivienne said, reading him
Elijah shook his head then moved his free hand to his jean pocket, from which he pulled a folded standard letter envelope and handed it to her with a shaking hand.
Vivienne slowly removed her hand from his arm as she reached for it, and after lifting her eyes to study the original vampire for a moment, took the letter from him and read the elegant inscription to him on the front.
"Katerina Petrova is dead…." Elijah breathed as he lowered himself limply back into the chair
Vivienne's eyes widened as she looked from the envelope to her employer
"I'm sorry…Elijah…" she responded after a moment's pause, now realizing that it was her letter to Elijah that he had handed her
"Why?" Elijah retorted quickly, then looked down in a nonchalant whisper, "We were not exactly friends. She meant nothing to me—"
"That is not true," Vivienne interjected, her voice soft and her eyes imploring, "We both know that. She may have been the cruel and manipulative Katherine Pierce, but she was also once the sweet, innocent Katerina Petrova, the sweet maiden from Bulgarian under Klaus' roof and the doppelganger of your lost love—the girl who woke you from your five hundred year slumber and made you hope again, made you smile again…made you want to live again, if only to help her. I was there, Elijah…I remember that and I always will."
Elijah wiped under his eyes quickly then spoke
"You know, I saw her last year when I arrived in Mystic Falls and again in Chicago when I was looking for a way to defeat my mother. We took a road trip together—I think we may have even sowed our old wounds a little. I got my ring back...Liliya's ring. And it was almost like…" Elijah stopped a moment as he gave a small smile, "It was almost as if we had gone back to England in 1492 before everything happened—before she escaped, before her betrayal…"
"I'm glad," Vivienne said, "For your sake."
"And then she came to see me again... Katerina I mean," Elijah continued, "She came to visit me here at the house not long after Elena and I arrived. She said she wanted to warn me that Dominic had risen and that the others were in danger. She kissed me…"
"Really?" Vivienne mused, raising an eyebrow, but Elijah ignored her as he continued, picking up where he trailed off
"It was when I thought she was Elena…." Elijah answered her question, shaking his head, then went on, "But long story short, we discussed Dominic and I sent her back to Mystic Falls to keep me informed as to what was going on. She must have left this letter for me before she left town…God, I should have known something was wrong when she didn't call to check in…"
Elijah's eyes suddenly saddened
Vivienne closed her eyes, "I'm sorry…"
"Now she's dead because of me—" Elijah choked out, looking down to his hands where he folded them on the kitchen table as his voice trailed off for another moment before he continued, "I made this all happen. I set it in motion when I didn't return to Mystic Falls as I should have. Dominic was after me—not Stefan and not Katerina and not Kaspar…me. He was after me. I'm the one that killed him a thousand years ago and if I had just gone home when this all started instead of choosing to hide out a while longer with Elena—"
"Elijah, don't ! Don't do that to yourself…" Vivienne consoled, reaching a hand out to comfort him, but he just shook his head and refused to say anything else, pushing his chair back to avoid her touch.
"Katerina said that she never knew me to walk away from a fight...Well, I walked away from this one," the Original said in an angry, trembling voice, clearly disappointed in himself, "I was selfish and let others fight my battles for me in this instance and it has brought those I care about nothing but pain and misery…"
"No…" Vivienne insisted again, "You're not weak and you're not selfish, you're just not the person you used to be. Maybe the Elijah a thousand years ago, or even five hundred years ago, would have sprang into action, rushed home and plunged into a fight without a rational thought, but the Elijah I see before me now is not so reckless. Just remember that you didn't do this…he did. This all started with him and with magics you can't control. You're not to blame for this, remember that. And you didn't hide, you decided to wait and choose your battle. There is a difference. Your siblings and your friends...they know that."
Elijah sighed reluctantly and crossed his arms over his chest as he looked away
Vivienne's face solemned as she turned her attention to the envelope for a moment, then lifted her eyes to Elijah once more.
"Have you read it yet?" she whispered
Elijah just bit his lip and shook his head, not looking at her
Vivienne smiled sadly as she pulled her eyes back to the envelope and set it down on the table before gently pushing her chair back and moving to stand up, suddenly sensing that the original just wanted to be left alone.
"Wait…" Elijah suddenly said in a soft voice that stopped Vivienne in her tracks and caused her to lower herself slowly back into her chair, her eyes focusing on Elijah
The original took in a ragged breath, then lifted his wet brown eyes to gaze at the envelope, then shifted them to meet hers, the hazel meeting the chocolate brown.
"Would you read it to me?" he asked
# # # # # # # #
"Alright…" Misha said under his breath, stretching his arms and rolling his shoulders, then nodding to Bonnie as she stepped forward and closed the distance between them before taking they both took a seat on the Persian rug in the middle of Klaus' office on the first floor of the Mikaelson Mansion.
Rebekah, Kol, Klaus, Caroline and Damon gathered in perspective positions around the room as they watched Misha carefully open the gold box in his lap and remove a number of small, square cards from the box and carefully begin laying them in the space on the floor between himself and Bonnie.
"Are those…faces?" Kol asked as he studied the black and white cards with an image of a human face etched into each of their fronts.
"Not faces," Bonnie said, looking up to him where he stood over them, "Face…as in just one. Each card is a different expression of the one face—sadness, worry, joy…"
"It is the face of the sorcerer, Extus Blackwell," Misha said, "As Kaspar once told it, centuries ago, he was a Druid who sold his soul to the dark spirits to become the most powerful sorcerer in his kingdom. The spirits elevated his powers and he got all he desired, but much like the devil at the crossroads, with such dark magic there was a price to pay. He was only allowed his powers for a span of twenty years, after which time, the spirits would come for his powers and collect his soul to drag it to Hell for all eternity. But, selfish and conceited, Extus Blackwell, on the night of his impeding death, did a spell that would allow him to keep his power for all time. And just as he approached his final hour on earth, and sensed the spirits coming for him, he channeled all of his knowledge and power, along with his soul, into a deck of cards..." the warlock finished, gesturing towards the cards on the floor, "These cards. Trapping him and his powers forever, where he now shares his knowledge and power and gives guidance only to those who dare ask the right questions."
"Well…that's just creepy…" Kol mused
"Agreed," Caroline added
"Indeed..." Misha replied with a small smirk, "But, it may be the best way to locate the portal Luka told Klaus about. The one we need if we are to finish off Dominic once and for all."
"I still don't understand how a stack of cards will guide us to a portal of dark magic?" Damon asked, then pointed toward Bonnie, "Can't you and the 'witch wonder' here just do some sort of locator spell or whatever…"
"Didn't you hear a word Misha said about this sorcerer?" Rebekah interjected, "He dealt in dark magic. Misha is on the side of light, not dark and so is Bonnie. Only dark magic can breed dark magic and only dark magic can find it when no mortal can. With Kaspar gone, there is no witch or warlock around with the dark magic necessary to located the portal we need to send Dominic's soul back through. Misha's right. This Blackwell bloke is our only hope, really."
"So, what do we need to do?" Bonnie said, bringing Misha's attention back to her, anxious to get started
"First, we need to concentrate our energies and give Blackwell an offering-magic to feed off of, so to speak…" Misha said, holding out his hands over the cards and Bonnie followed suit, watching Misha close his eyes before she closed hers as well
After a few moments, Misha spoke out loud in a clear voice without moving his hands or opening his eyes
"Sorcerer Blackwell, great leader of darkness and all knowledge thereof—keeper of the highest of sacred magic…" Misha said, "We call upon thee and seek your council. Hear us."
Suddenly, one of the cards in the center of the pile flipped over, landing face down then quickly turned over face-up again.
It was the card of laughter.
The face on it laughing almost sadistically.
"Whoa!" Kol cried, grabbing hold of Rebekah's arm as his sister just rolled her eyes, unamused
"I think we got our answer," Klaus smirked from where he sat with Caroline on the couch, still weak from their earlier exploits
"Sorcerer Blackwell," Misha continued, ignoring the comments, his eyes still closed, "Lead us to the portal of dark souls. Gives guidance…we will heed you."
For a few moments, nothing happened. None of the cards moved.
Finally, Bonnie slowly opened her eyes and Misha did the same as he watched Bonnie pull her hands back.
"I don't think it's working…" Bonnie whispered as she watched Misha's nostrils flare, still holding his hands intently over the cards
"Sorcerer Blackwell…show us the way to the portal of dark souls…" The warlock commanded again
Bonnie took in a breath and looked down to the lifeless cards.
Again…Nothing.
"Misha…" she said, in a defeated voice
"Please…"Misha implored, closing his eyes again as he held out his hands intently once more, "Sorcerer Blackwell, hear our call…"
"Misha…stop.." Bonnie spoke again, then after another moment, reached forward to collect the cards
"No!" Misha cried, grabbing hold of the witch's arm as he opened his eyes broke his concentration, "Leave them."
"Misha, Bonnie is right," Damon interjected, stepping forward, "I don't think this sorcerer guy is going to help…at least, not without some reason or incentive it seems. Maybe we should threaten him…rip up one of the cards or something."
"Oh… that's helpful, Damon, thank you…" Bonnie said to the vampire, narrowing her eyes, "As always, your manners and civility are without equal."
"No, he's right…" Misha said suddenly, pulling his hand from Bonnie's arm in realization, "I can't believe I didn't realize it before. The cards do need a reason. Blackwell need an incentive or payment of sorts. His dark magic won't feed off of our powers alone—he needs something darker…"
"I don't think I like where this is going…" Klaus said, sitting forward
"No," Misha said in a steady, adamant voice, "It has to be this way."
Then, without wasting a moment, Misha closed his eyes and brought his hands forward over the cards again
"Sorcerer Blackwell, I summon thee. I ask thy guidance to the portal of dark souls. I ask thee not for thyself or for thy friends—not for us, but for one whose soul rests in the balance just as yours once did," Misha said, his voice trembling as he summoned visions of his life a thousand years ago and memories of his twin brothers before and after they became vampires, allowing them to flash through his mind and bring forward grief and pain to show the sorcerer, "You see, I failed my brothers great and powerful Blackwell. I failed them many years ago. I am the guilty party. I should heeded the magic of my mother or I should have protected them from it—helped them keep their mortal souls and worked harder to prevent them from turning into what they became—but I could do neither. I was weak and selfish and I chose my friends—vampires and werewolves— over my own kin. I believe with all my heart that Dominic blames me and hates me for my hand in his fate, not just the vampire who killed him and sent his dark soul out into the ether. In the end, I sided against him…more than once…as I do now. And for that I have always felt grief and guilt and pain…and it is yours if you will have it."
Then Misha suddenly leaned forward and rested his hands on the pile before him, allowing his grief and pain to flow through him into the cards.
After a few moments, he leaned back and his eyes opened as a single tear fell from his right eye and landed on one of the outlying cards.
Suddenly, one of the large plated glass windows in the room flew open of it's own accord and a strong gust of wind brought the cards up from the ground, the faces of the sorcerer Blackwell coming to life as they whirled like a cyclone up and around the room like a flock of birds, weaving in between the humans and supernatural creatures in it, who could only stare and gawk.
Only one of the cards stayed behind, floating in mid-air in front of Misha, the face on the card, coming to life.
"The price is paid..." the sinisterly sorrowful face of Extus Blackwell said in a thick English accent, "Follow me to find what you seek."
Then, without delay, the single card flew above the Warlock's head and joined the flock as the cards whirled up in formation near the peak of the ceiling then sped off through the open parlor doorway and out in to the foyer toward the front door.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Damon said, as he looked around the room to the others, then quickly looked down to Misha, offering the warlock a hand up with one hand before pointing after the card swarm with the other, "Follow that sorcerer!"