Split Blood: The Ancient Codex - Part One (Book #1 in the Split Blood Series)

By Louise Herman

When Faith’s mother starts organising the second stage of her arranged marriage to wizard, Damien, Faith knew she needed to escape, so she used her school as a place to retreat.

Throughout her after school duties, she meets the intense, alluring Rohan, who changes her life forever.

With his ice cold skin, transfixing eyes and enchanting voice, Rohan took hold of Faith’s heart and soul as soon as they looked at each other.

She knew it was wrong.

They were from two different circles and if the Elder’s found out, the consequences would be catastrophic for all involved, but the more time they spent together, the stronger they’re love grew, until one day someone sees them...

Will their love be strong enough to combat their conflicting mythical needs? And what will they do when Faith is dealt a life threatening blow that forces her to make a heartbreaking decision?

INTENSELY PASSIONATE WITH EXTRAORDINARY TWISTS AND TURNS, SPLIT BLOOD IS A LOVE STORY WITH A DARK MYTHICAL DIFFERENCE

• Language: English
• Publisher: Louise Herman
• Release date: Mar 16, 2013
• ISBN: 9780957296930

Louise Herman

Louise Herman is a North London Fantasy author obsessed with pear drops sweets and 80s Fantasy films.In between reading James Herbert novels and drinking too much coffee, she writes Young Adult Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance novels.Louise Herman has currently written five YA Fantasy books to date (December 2015); The Orcus Games Prequel Trilogy and The Split Blood series, which take the reader on a journey of magic, mystery, obsession and forbidden love with seductively dark consequences.For more information, please go to: www.louisehermanauthor.com

Book preview

CONTENTS

~ Chapter One ~

The Satus – 3

~ Chapter Two ~

Forbidden Love – 46

~ Chapter Three ~

Congratulations it’s a… – 129

~ Chapter Four ~

The Sacrifice – 167

~ Chapter Five ~

Finders, Keepers – 229

~ Chapter Six ~

The Blood Doctor – 286

~ Chapter Seven ~

Survival of the Fittest – 333

SPLIT BLOOD: THE ANCIENT CODEX - PART ONE

A Novel by Louise Herman

eBook Edition

Copyright © 2012 by Louise Herman

http://www.louisehermanauthor.com

Published by Mystical Media Publications

All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-9572969-3-0

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

******

Books by Louise Herman

~ The Orcus Games Trilogy ~

The Orcus Games: Blood Moon

The Orcus Games: Mistress V

The Orcus Games: New Awakening

~ The Split Blood Series ~

Split Blood: The Ancient Codex – Part One

Split Blood: Rise of the Wolf

SPLIT BLOOD: THE ANCIENT CODEX – PART ONE

Louise Herman

CHAPTER ONE

THE SATUS

Running through the forest, with only the moon as my flashlight, I could hear his determined footsteps close behind me.

The branches ripped through my shirt and the warm, red liquid coated the leaves as my white shirt became stained with the blood from my wounds.

I tried to run faster but I had no more energy.

Quickly, Faith, hide here, he pleaded as he pushed me into a ditch, where we watched the hordes of men on horseback ride past with passion for their prey.

We waited there for what seemed like hours; until we were satisfied they were gone, before we emerged to assess the previously deadly situation.

The night was damp and there was an eerie chill in the air.

Nothing seemed familiar - every turn led to a dead end.

Fearing the men would come back and lead me to my doom, I followed Rohan as we began our journey into the fatal unknown.

******

Growing up in Farrago (a small village in the north of England) in the 1980s certainly had its advantages, but was not without its downfalls.

Especially with my life!

As I watched the other children play outside with one another and get invited to amazing parties, I could only play with my sister, Raven, and my other family members; we were never allowed to play with the ‘Namuh’s’, as my mother called them.

Even in our own family circle, we always found it hard to play with the other children.

I stood out like a sore thumb with my long, jet-black hair and piercing, teardrop-shaped, icy blue eyes, and Raven continued our family’s trend of unusual features with her own flowing, black locks and striking green cat-like eyes. Many of the other children laughed at our striking appearance - most of them were either blonde, redhead or brunette:

You and your sister are one of a kind. You are at your strongest together, so protect each other and don’t let anyone take away your inner power, my mother always used to tell me when I complained to her about the others" attitude towards us.

We were a spiritual family, often undertaking spiritual journeys with others close to us. However, there was always a division between the adults and children at these gatherings - we youths never got to see what happened after nightfall.

Raven had her theories, at which we all laughed, but one night our curiosity got the better of us and we decided to sneak out of the children’s camp. Following some smoke, we saw above the treetops and crept to an open area, five minutes away from our party.

We were hidden behind the cover of some bushes when we saw the streams of light firing from the circle of people gathered around a fire.

On closer inspection, we saw that the light was not actually coming from the fire, but from the individuals who were holding hands and chanting around a black cauldron, contents bubbling intensely.

Sharp bolts of red, green, yellow, white and blue shot from those chanting and as the mantra gained in speed and volume, so did their motions.

Maintaining this weird circle of energy, they gripped each other’s hands tighter and tighter, guiding droplets of blood into engraved silver cups between each person in the circle.

Curiosity got the better of us; we decided we needed to see more.

Batting back the leaves from the path, we edged closer, figuring our presence would not be noticed - the deafening noise drowned out any other noise for at least a mile around. We concealed ourselves behind a large boulder to get a clearer inspection and couldn’t believe what we saw.

With her eyes rolled into the back into her head - like the rest of the women - and wearing a long, feather- and jewel-encrusted charm necklace just covering her nipples, our mother was part of this insane ritual.

Fighting every emotion not to grab her and pull her out of this incomprehensible ceremony, I was held back by my sister who noticed a tall, willowy woman coming out of the bushes just opposite us.

Although the women did not seem to be in a conscious state, they did appear to sense this new addition to their party - their piercing chanting was reduced to a quiet hum. With this decrease in volume, a transparent swirl of beautiful light appeared, pulsating around the cauldron.

It was mesmerising.

No longer were we witnessing explosions of energetic colours being expelled from these women’s bodies (for they had disappeared into the night, as had their previous wild aggressive sways); we were now instead hypnotized by the pinks, lilacs and mint green shades which danced around the fire, as though welcoming this new, mysterious woman to the fold.

She slowly glided over to the circle of women - as if she was floating just a few centimetres off the ground - bent underneath their arms and entered the animated circle.

Dressed in only the long, gypsy-like brown and gold skirt; with drooping chains of unusual flowers, uncut gems and what seemed like animal parts, she joined in with the group’s swaying motion.

She floated around the circumference of the circle and collected the blood-filled silver cups and, one by one, she poured the contents of the nearly overflowing beakers into the cauldron and touched the simmering pot with her slender, milky white finger. White sparks flew from the bubbling pot as she connected with it, and the liquid rapidly changed colour.

Gone were the angelic pastel hues; instead, bright yellow sparks flew from the concoction which bubbled, fiery red. The chanting and swaying motions stopped, the mysterious woman’s head was thrown back as though pushed by an unseen force, before she concluded,

"I draw upon my sisters here, to throw their powers into the air. Swirl around and blend into one, then come back to each, with more power than the sun."

With that, the women of the circle were lifted from the ground. Still in their seated positions, they hovered a few inches above the earth, and all was still.

This remained so, until the mysterious woman slowly twisted her head back round to the crowd to reveal her now piercing red eyes.

She picked up one of the silver cups - still with some traces of blood remaining - and slithered around the circle. We watched intently, wondering what she was going to do with the blood, as she stopped at our mother and began to paint symbols with the blood, very deliberately, onto her face, chest and stomach.

The circle began to repeat the spell, but this time, instead of steadily increasing in volume and pace, they were immediately piercing with their mantra, hysterical in their motion and determined to achieve their success.

As the woman finished painting our mother with the blood, she floated away to pick up a gold goblet, which was by the side of the cauldron, and proceeded to fill it with the liquid from the thrashing pot. She then began to feed it to each woman in the circle.

Once the last woman had drunk the fluid, the leading lady finally spoke and the rest of the gathering fell to the ground.

Welcome, my sisters, on this wondrous night. I thank you all for coming to help sister Heather become stronger, so that she has the strength to fulfill her quest to bring her daughter, Faith, into our family. Be as one as we share our light, with her, to make this a smooth and easy transition for them all! she announced.

All present seemed to voice their agreement with the statement by chanting,

Yes, Mim, in their still trance-like state.

Raven looked at me with her mouth wide open, only to be greeted with my equally petrified and confused expression.

Did that woman just say my name? I whispered to my sister, who was now wildly scrambling for an escape route.

Yes and we need to get out of here! Now! she gasped.

Mercifully, the moonlight highlighted a small path to the left of the opening, so we decided to slowly crawl towards the entrance as they continued their low humming chant.

We managed to make it halfway, before Raven snagged her knee on a sharp rock and let out a yelp.

Our prayers that the crowd would think it was an animal were in vain, as I turned back and saw the now very conscious circle staring back at us.

Run! I screamed, as I dragged Raven off the ground and sprinted back to the camp.

We ran as fast as our legs could carry us, and escaped the few women Mim had sent after us. Luckily we had a small hut to ourselves, so we locked ourselves in, knowing no one would try to let them in.

Expecting them to break down the door and capture us, we waited for an hour but nothing happened,

I think they’re just preparing - planning how to kill me I guessed nervously as we huddled together under a blanket, sat in the middle of the room, making sure we could see all possible entrances and exits.

The fear acted as my adrenaline, keeping me awake. But at long last, after three hours of waiting and speculating with Raven on how I would be killed, I unconsciously drifted off into a deep slumber.

******

The light pierced my eyes and the warmth of the sun gave me an instant feeling of security as I woke up from my deep slumber, to see Raven sitting on her bed with mum.

What are you doing?! I shrieked as I jumped to my feet and headed for the door, without waiting for an answer.

Wait! You need to listen to this, Faith! Raven shouted after me, but I was already through the cabin door.

Without having a clue where I was going, I’d just burst past the other children playing in the central area where we usually ate, and out of the campsite.

I had no extra clothes or provisions, but I knew I was in danger. With one glance over my shoulder, I ran down the dust path and hoped I would be lucky and find the ever-friendly camp warden.

However, that look back (to ensure I was not being chased) was my downfall - I crashed into a burly figure and fell straight to the floor.

It was my father.

The men and women usually get separated at these retreats; however, the male camps were only usually a few minutes’ walk away, so we could always see dad when we needed to.

He picked me up from the ground and assessed my shaking disposition.

I have to go dad, let me go! They’re trying to kill me! I shrieked as I fought to shake myself loose from his powerful grip.

What are you talking about, Faith? my father questioned, becoming increasingly apprehensive at my wild temperament.

After a few calming words, he was finally able to sit me down so I could explain the bizarre goings-on of the night before.

Are you sure it wasn’t a dream? he asked, as though just humouring my story to avoid another episode.

I’m telling you the truth dad. Why do you think I need to go now? I begged as I began to get anxious again.

He vowed to find out what was going on and escorted me back to the camp, whilst promising not to let me leave his side.

Within moments, we got back to the camp to find the group of women (from the previous night) assembled once again, this time around a large wooden table in the centre of the campsite.

Dad, it’s the women from last night! They’ve come to kill me! I screamed as I tried to run again, only to be stopped by my father’s mighty hand on my shoulder.

With my kicks and screams draining his patience, he fought to carry me to the table, as his words of reasoning were drowned out by my determination to wriggle free from his tight hold.

Listen! he shouted, as he sat me down at the table.

My mother came to my side and tried to soothe me with a loving embrace, which was unsurprisingly not reciprocated - visions of her from the previous night tainted my mind.

I realised my time had come to stop fighting to escape and conserve my energy; the woman they called Mim came to the head of the table and addressed me coolly.

We’re not trying to kill you, Faith. We’re here to help you, she stated as the others nodded in agreement.

I don’t need help. I’m fine. I just want to go home… I cried, as my mother tried to comfort me again. Once more, I pushed her away as I was sure she was in on this charade.

Another woman with long, brown, bushy hair stood and chirped up:

You’re different, Faith - we’ve come to help you in your transformation, she continued in a soothing tone.

I started to get a headache, confused and overwhelmed by each woman standing up as the other finished to have their say. I began to calm down, though, as Raven soon joined the table. I saw she was unhurt and smiling.

Let me tell her cos she won’t believe any of you," she blurted out bravely, as she stood up and raised her hands above her head.

We all watched in silence and my mother and father, as the archetypal proud parents, encouraged her with this strange display.

I waited a few seconds but always kept my focus on the others around the table; I expected this to be a distraction, merely biding them time to slit my throat and use my blood in their sacrifice. I was distracted by a particular woman who was swaying, as they had done the night before, and I began to fidget anxiously in my seat. Slowly swaying from side to side, she suddenly raised a finger to the sky. My gaze followed her gesture. And there it was.

Butterflies circled my sister’s body.

They came in their hundreds, as I watched on in amazement.

Dancing around her silhouette, she seemed to be guiding them with a soft pink light radiating from her hands; she was their maestro, conducting this beautiful orchestra of nature around the table. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

I got up to make sure she wasn’t drugged. I tapped her face and touched her hands, but she appeared to be perfectly healthy.

The third time I made contact with her hand; I felt a strange tingling sensation rip through my body. It started at my feet and pulsed up through my head, shaking each organ with a vibrating palpitation which caused me to twitch uncontrollably.

As I tried to steady myself on the table, I could see a strange green glow coming from my hands. The mysterious light grew in intensity by the second. I started to panic frantically as I tried to get the alien substance off my hands - I could not get rid of it.

The women round the table began to get nervous and tried to calm me down.

Don’t wave your hands, Faith, one woman shouted.

Stay calm or you’ll put us all in danger! Mim shrieked as she came towards me with open arms.

Seeing her charging at me filled me with terror. I threw my hands out to stop her coming any closer. With a deafening ‘BANG’, a flash of dark and intense red was expelled from both my hands and Mim went flying towards an old tree at the other side of the camp.

Exhausted, I fell to my feet as my parents came running over.

FAITH! my mother wailed as she held my head in her arms.

You should have told her earlier, dad added unhelpfully, as the others went to find Mim.

Raven ran to get some water as my consciousness slowly came seeping back to me.

W-w-what happened? I stumbled as I tried to get back to my feet.

Come and sit down, sweetheart, and all will become clear, my mother assured me as she helped me back to my chair. We waited for what seemed like an age for the others to come back.

Eventually, they returned with a wounded Mim. They all appeared wary, scared and somehow less confident than before. With a bleeding wound to her stomach, Mim hobbled over to me and sat down.

No longer did I feel scared of Mim. As she put her hand on my own, I actually felt scared for her.

You are so special, Faith, she declared, as the other women busied themselves, finding weeds and herbs to ease her injury,

You have all this power inside you … I think you could be the one, she continued, as I tried to interrupt.

My mother silenced me, before explaining:

I couldn’t tell you before; there are rules about when you can find out - this is one of them. I had to wait until you reached the age of twelve before we could bring you here for the initial stage of your new life. I began to feel dizzy again.

Mim lifted my hand to her wound.

Don’t think about what I’m going to ask you to do - just do what is in your heart when you touch my blood. You will see that I am not here to hurt you. Go through my blood and your questions will be answered. She didn’t wait for my response before forcing my hand straight onto her open wound. Suddenly I was no longer in the campsite. Transported into her memories, I travelled through her life, like a hitch hiker.

With flashbacks to every year, from the 1700s to the present, I seemed to get stuck in the Dark Ages, where I experienced one of the most disturbing scenes I had ever seen. Pungent aromas of old meat, smoke and sewage filled my senses. Holding my breath, trying desperately not to be sick, I almost failed to see the hallucination of this most important moment.

As I strained to see the images clearly, the smoke finally dispersed and I watched this old, grainy scene play out.

The flashback mainly consisted of women being isolated and damned, exiled to the outskirts of the village without provisions; people saw them as ‘different’. However, I quickly realised that being different in this way resulted in loss of life, as I watched them being burnt at the stake. It sent shivers down my spine.

Not only was it emotional to witness the deaths of all these innocent women, but I was simply overwhelmed by one of them - I could feel the fire blistering her skin and as I got closer to the murder, I could see why.

She looked so familiar. I tried to hide from the mob with the torches for fear of being spotted, although I soon realised they couldn’t see me, so I edged closer.

The heat was excruciating and her every scream pierced my ears, but I had to get closer in an attempt to free her myself. I didn’t realise how close I was until I looked down and found myself on the bonfire.

Losing my bearings, I slowly began to walk towards her as she struggled to get free. Suddenly she turned and looked at me - straight in the eyes, pleading for help.

No longer was she screaming with sheer agony. She was staring at me and I began to untie her from the stake.

The ropes were tight but I loosened them