Elias awakens to find himself - and eight other thirteen year olds - trapped in a strange cursed house somewhere in West Africa. Jakob must uphold the century old tradition of the occult entrusted into his care and reawaken the entire nine members of his tribe to begin the 'dawn'. Each must find a way to survive in the six hours or lose all they hold dear.
"Darkness hides from light.As raving mortals, we never wonder why, then we die too, sane lunatics"
"In ancient times, long before our own fathers were born, a story is told of a woman who had fallen in love with a comely man. So taken was she by his charm that she desired nothing else, save his affection." The frail gray bearded man coughed and shut his eyes. Obviously, the cough hurt his throat more than he had expected, but no one would offer him any water. Clutching his stick ever so tightly, he continued his story.
"She loved him dearly, and so she had confessed her love for him as alluringly as she could, tenderly coercing him with her sonorous voice and even softer appearance."
He coughed again, this time rattling the chains that loosely clung to his frail wrists. His hands groped in the near darkness as though asking for something, water, but then o one could give him any.
"Old one" one of the young men that eagerly waited for his story offered, "You do realize we are in a prison, and these guards outside would not offer us any water"
The others nodded, each one appearing even dirtier and more unkempt than the other. After waiting a while, the 'old one' finally regained his breath and sought to continue his tale.
"Where was I?" he asked.
"She told him how much she loved him" the one that had reminded the old one of their current prison predicament offered once again.
"Aha" the old replied, punching the air with a balled fist as much as the chains would let him. "But alas, this tale is not to be a beautiful love story, Jakob"
The countenance of the one now referred to as Jakob dropped ever so suddenly, but the old one would not end his story just yet.
"Her would be lover would not be swayed as her heart willed. How could he love her? She had two sons already. His heart was his, and her sons, hers - and he had told her just that." He paused and cleared his throat once more. A quiet hush fell over all seven men in the prison.
"She had wept streams, refusing to be consoled as she implored him even further, but even all the rivers of Africa could quench his fiery resolve." The old one suddenly stopped talking, and as so many old ones before him had done in these parts of Africa before him, he pretended to be asleep.
"Old one" the one called Jakob tapped at the old one's hand, hoping to rouse him from the strange slumber that had consumed him. "Are you awake old one?"
"Oh I am, Jakob" the Old one offered a wane smile. "Where was I again?"
The other prisoners appeared somewhat disinterested in the tale that was coming forth in scattered bits and pieces. They would rather hear the entire tale without further breaks from the Old one. Jakob did not mind. With eager eyes, he reminded the Old one where he had last ended his tale.
"Some say she had seen him share laughs and then maybe a little more with another lady that same night" the Old one continued, "but don't ask me, I do not know - but whatever it was that happened, this heartbroken lovebird had raced home and in a bid to win his affection, or was it resentment toward her now estranged lover, got rid of those who seemed to stand in the way of her happiness. She drowned both her sons."
The gasp among the prisoners echoed in the stone walls of their prison cell.
"As most tales of his sort go," the Old one continued, "she never did find the happiness she sought. She was scorned by Wiccan and non-wiccan folk alike, cursed to forever roam the earth, seeking her murdered children."
"But where is she, Old One?" Jakob asked.
"She roams amongst us, even now she listens to this very tale." Looking around, he signaled for Jakob to come closer, and in a rather loud whisper, told him, "Whoever traps the woman, controls the nine"
13th, June 1880
In a thick, fecund forest somewhere in the western coast of Africa, Jakob and his eight companions trudged on quietly in a single file, through the dense undergrowth, in the stillness of the darkness that threatened to blind them. They neither heard the occasional calls of yawning bird-folk nor the unmistakable warnings from prowling animals. Even the eternal chatter of forest insects presided over by the nocturnal orator, the cricket was nonexistent on this very night. An eerie calm had spread and the forest slept.
Jakob was not surprised; the old one had warned him already. He remembered the very night when the Old One had told them the story of the strange woman. That same night had been the night of his awakening. He had somehow discovered his purpose in the words the Old one.
That very night, he had become illuminated. The Old one was no longer to be addressed by that title. He was now Master. Every one among them had gone on their knees and had sworn their allegiance to a cause greater than their previous life of crime. This was a calling higher than any of them could have ever imagined. They would band together in this newfound flurry of faith and overpower the guards that had for long kept them locked up this far into the North. Thus began their journey to the Western coast of the country.
Jakob and his eight companions trudged on wordlessly through the dense dew-kissed undergrowth, all bare bodied with their heads shaved, their only 'clothing' being animal skin skirts wrapped around their waists. On their bodies were diverse markings of varying patterns, each symbolizing their 'identity', as their Master had told them. The patterns were neither drawn nor were they painted onto the skin of their skin.
Master had carved it in himself, deep into their skins, even to the top of their shaved heads on the very day of their initiation. He had doused the wounds with sacred ash from the bronze altar at the temple until they had finally healed.
As he walked on behind Master, mute as they had been commanded, he held his head high watching master's every step and strenuously matching his long strides. An unseen owl, the royal night-guard of the African fauna, hooted its greetings not too far off and they all nodded in solemn response. She was an ancient too wizened to be ignored.
He held the trap in his hand gingerly, careful not to dislodge any of its coils. This 'trap' was a contraption made of a black thorn stave and pure copper wire, which no electricity had passed through before. The thorn stave, sleep thorn as Master liked to call it was carved from balsa wood with the tip pointing about a foot downwards like a half 'v', the end curving outwards like a sickle like a hook. There were three horizontal extensions at the center. Then copper wire was wound about it, while they had all chanted in unison.
Someone stifled a sneeze.
"Silence" Master might have said, but he didn't. Repeating warnings spelt cowardice, or love, or compassion, and none of these foul distractions were welcome amongst them.
The culprit already knew what fate awaited him, he had dropped to his knees among the forest debris, obviously contemplating he means to his end. Master stared at the culprit, his eyes unblinking. The latter returned the stare, captured as though unwilling to break his gaze.
In truth, Jakob saw had futility of even trying. Master's eye had turned yellow - the evil eye. In split seconds, the culprit was writhing on the floor, clutching his throat, choking on his own spittle. They all watched on as expressionless as they could be, mustering courage not to look away and incur the master's wrath on them too. For Jakob however, it wasn't an act. He didn't bother to hide his smile at the beautiful spectacle. To him, this only meant one thing; power.
They soon continued their journey once the sneezer was done transitioning to the death. They would not come back for his body after their hunt - there wouldn't be any. They hadn't gone any farther when Master stopped. The air about them suddenly grew chilly and the smell of tobacco filled their nostrils. The woman was here. Master retrieved the trap from Jakob and wordlessly stuck it in the debris below. A foot away from the trap, he placed a candle. This would lure the ghoul he had told them earlier on.
Jakob's hair tinged with excitement as he smiled at himself. This was not his first hunt, no, but it was the first time he, or anyone of them, was hunting an entity as powerful as this.
Elias is a thirteen year old Nigerian who dies mysteriously on his birthday. He awakens as a ghost to realise that all is strange in the house - The house haunts the ghosts. He finds eight other thirteen year old ghosts in the same house with him, all claiming to have died under similar circumstances on their birthday. Jakob, a faithful needs to harness the power of these nine ghosts to reawaken his resting Master and other faithfuls of the temple. Elias must find a way to undo the curse place on the house and find his body in less the next six hours or be dead forever.
Rumors claimed that Fernanda, newly back with her family, was nothing more than a violent country bumpkin. Fernanda just flashed a casual, dismissive grin in response. Another rumor suggested that the usually rational Cristian had lost all sense, madly in love with Fernanda. This frustrated her. She could tolerate gossip about herself, but slander against her beloved crossed the line! Gradually, as Fernanda's multiple identities as a celebrated designer, a savvy gamer, an acclaimed painter, and a successful business magnate came to light, everyone realized they were the ones who had been fooled.
Eliana was framed by her best friend and her fiance into sleeping with a boy toy in the club and getting impregnated by him. Five years after she had given birth to twins, she returned home and worked under the Moran Group, where she met the CEO-- Maurice. Maurice was a brilliant businessman who did his job well. But in order to stay under the radar, he lived a double life. One as Maurice, and one as Preston. Fate brought the two together again, roping them in on an exciting love story. It all became more complicated when Eliana faced Preston, the man she had slept with before, once again. Now that she was being pursued by two men, how could she ever choose? When would Eliana uncover the secret of Maurice's identity? When was Maurice going to know that he already had two children of his own? How would Eliana face this man when the truth came to light one day? Come and find out.
Katie was forced to marry Dillan, a notorious ruffian. Her younger sister mocked her, "You're just an adopted daughter. Count your blessings for marrying him!" The world anticipated Katie's tribulations, but her married life unfurled with unexpected serenity. She even snagged a lavish mansion in a raffle! Katie jumped into Dillan's arms, credited him as her lucky charm. "No, Katie, it's you who brings me all this luck," Dillan replied. Then, one fateful day, Dillan's childhood friend came to her. "You're not worthy of him. Take this 50 million and leave him!" Katie finally grasped Dillan's true stature—the wealthiest man on the planet. That night, trembling with trepidation, she broached the subject of divorce with Dillan. However, with a domineering embrace, he told her, "I'd give you everything I have. Divorce is off the table!"
Kaelyn devoted three years tending to her husband after a terrible accident. But once he was fully recovered, he cast her aside and brought his first love back from abroad. Devastated, Kaelyn decided on a divorce as people mocked her for being discarded. She went on to reinvent herself, becoming a highly sought-after doctor, a champion racer, and an internationally renowned architectural designer. Even then, the traitors sneered in disdain, believing Kaelyn would never find someone. But then the ex-husband’s uncle, a powerful warlord, returned with his army to ask for Kaelyn’s hand in marriage.
Bailey seems to be never destined to fit in, a little geeky, but under it all, a hidden beauty that so many seem to miss, but still not what her pack Alpha is looking for in a fated mate... so he is determined to reject her and make her life hell. Bailey, knowing her life will likely never be the same focuses on what she can control, her future, and heads off to study; becoming a teacher. Asher is the Beta of Autumn Valley Pack, a neighbouring pack. A broken man having suffered the loss of his mate after a rogue attack, Asher is slowly crumbling. Falling to pieces. A shadow of his former self, and not a man that anyone wants to be around anymore... Until, Autumn Valley Pack require a new teacher, and Bailey finds herself there and pushed together with the Beta. Is there a connection building or is that in their imaginations? And what will happen when Bailey's mate comes back to claim what is his?
[Cute Baby + Secret Identity + Powerful hero and heroine!] Caroline loved Damian with all her heart for five whole years. She devoted herself to him and lived humbly for his sake. However, when the couple faced a crisis, she hoped that the news of her pregnancy would fix their marriage, but what she got in return was just a divorce agreement. And to make things worse, while she was about to give birth, she had fallen into someone's trap and her life was in danger. After managing to survive such a harrowing experience, she was determined to cut all ties with the man. Five years later, she re-emerged with her head held high, being the CEO of a famous company. Those who used to bully her now got a taste of their own medicine. And the truth about the past gradually surfaced... Dazzled by Caroline's newfound confidence, her ex-husband wanted to get back together with her, but she just turned a blind eye to his advances. Damian pleaded desperately, "Honey, our baby needs both his parents. Please remarry me!"