" Guys! I found her , I found mirabel." Eamon called out . Drawing the attention of some students and teachers." But I think something is wrong."
Sunmi immediately came running and hugged Mirabel." Oh my God! What happened to your clothes and why are you wet ?" Sunmi asked . Taking Mirabel off Eamon's hands.
" Who are you ? And why do you keep calling me Mirabel?" she asked . Sunmi looked at Mirabel confused. "What do you mean ? Your name is Mirabel. Don't you remember?".
"Yeah , that's what is wrong " Eamon added as he walked behind the two girls ." She said she can't remember how she got here or anything at all. all she said was, her name is Adunni and not Mirabel."
"We have to take her in , so the school nurse can run a proper check up." Sunmi said , as they took her into the hostel.
After waiting outside the nurses office for what felt like forever, the nurse finally came out with a troubled look." I'm not sure what her problem is , she's fine physically but mentally I can't say . We will have to take her to a hospital for proper examination. But for now she's fine to return back to your dorm." The nurse said. As Sunmi lead Mirabel to their dorm.
The students were asked to pack their things in preparation to leave the next day due to disappearance of a student. Some teachers would be ask to stay back to look for Emeka while the rest would accompany the students back.
Sunmi was preparing , and was packing her stuff. but she couldn't help wondering what might had happened to Mirabel causing her to loose her memories.
"Mirabel , sorry, Adunni . What was the last thing you remember?" She asked . Hoping to get answers that could help her.
Adunni was quiet at first but then spoke . "I'm not really sure", Adunni said making a thinking face. "But all I remember was being pursued, I can't remember who or why I was being pursued . I ran and jumped off the a cliff into the river to escape . I couldn't swim,so I blacked out .and that's all I can remember:" Adunni sighed.
Sunmi hugged Adunni." Don't worry. We will figure this out together." Sunmi said." But for now let's go to bed.
They turned off the light and went to bed.but Adunni stayed awake for a while. " where am I? why can't I remember anything ? And why do they keep calling me Mirabel, who is Mirabel? I need to find a way to get my memories back . But for now I have to play along, that's the only way to keep low until I get my memories." Adunni said to her self before drifting to sleep.
The following day all students and some teachers returned to school leaving a few teachers behind for the search of Emeka.
Meanwhile in a hidden chamber beneath Emeka's compound, a tense meeting was in session. The participants were from different factions of the supernatural world. The vampire Elders, the werewolf alpha and Mr Thompson who presides over the meeting as the president of the council of magic.
"We've called this meeting today due to the mysterious disappearance of one of our supernatural kind" Mr Thompson began , his voice firm.
Before he could continue, Mr Williams the alpha of the werewolf's and Emeka's father slammed his fist on the table. "Enough with the pleasantries Thompson! We all know the vampires are behind these, they've always been jealous of the werewolves influence and power. Now they've stolen my son, And I'll make them pay." His said , his voice as laced with pain and fury.
The vampire elders , their faces pale and composed , immediately rose to their defense.
"This is absurd we have nothing to do with the disappearance of Emeka and we certainly won't gain anything if we did." They shouted their defense across the room. The room descended into a cacophony of accusations and denials , the long-lasting animosity between the vampires and the werewolves threatening to erupt into violence.
Mr. Thompson, rose his hand ,silencing the room with a sharp look. "Order!" He commanded. His voice laced with a warning. He needed to creat order and use this order to implement his own plans.
"We need to be civilized about this , We are adults of for christ sake , we need to hear from someone who was present during the incident. Tolu." He said. Turning his gaze to her. "You were the last person who was with Emeka before he went missing. So please tell us what happened."
Tolu stepped forward, her body trembling, her face pale , her eyes downcast.
"Emeka and I were taking a walk through the forest when we were suddenly ambushed and attacked." She started. "I was knocked unconscious and when I woke up I couldn't find Emeka. I tried doing a locator spell but my magic wasn't working, so I had to alert the school that Emeka was missing."
"You see , these undead bastards took my son." Emeka's father said, slamming his fist on the table.
"And why would we want to take your incompetent son." A vampire shot back.
"Watch your tongue Obasi or I'll reap it off." Emeka's father threatened.
Another vampire elder stood up. "You can't lay such accusations over a little girl's testimony. I mean , it could be an act for all we know. Unless you have proper…". before the vampire could finish her sentence ,the doors of the chambers were pushed open.
All heads turned to see a tall,imposing man in a dark black suit striding into the room. He was carrying a black briefcase. He moved with an air of silent authority, ignoring the chaos that was in the room. This was David Adam. A figure known to the council as a neutral human party, a powerful being who deals with artifacts and specialized item.
He walked directly towards mr Thompson, his steps precise and deliberate. Without any word he placed the briefcase in front of him.
He then turned around , and walked out as quickly as he came in. Leaving the room in an intense silence.
Mr Thompson looked down at the briefcase , his face unreadable before opening it. Inside nestled in a velvet lining was the chronoscape . A device use to to extract magic from an environment and replay past events that happened in the said environment.
The room watched as the device whirred to life ,a soft glow emanating from it's core. As the device began to replay the event . Tolu discreetly channeled her magic , using an illusion spell to subtly alter the device output .
The chronoscape's image showed a vampire swooping down, attacking Tolu , and rendering her unconscious , then Emeka engaging the vampire. Then the image shifted . The vampire overpowered Emeka and and pulled him away .
But before going it placed an ornament on the floor. A magic negating device which would render any form of magic null and void.
Mr. Williams , his face contorted with rage and grief , his body trembling. "Enough! I knew you blood sucking bastards were behind the disappearance of my son." His voice laced with anger. "I've been too kind , if my son is not provided ,I'll make sure no vampire is spared ."
The meeting quickly escalated into chaos , with accusations flying between werewolves and vampires. The ancient hate between werewolves and vampires were in full display.
Tolu stood in the middle of this . Her head spinning, her heart pounding in her chest , she felt utterly overwhelmed. She looked around , her vision blurring , the noise becoming a muffled roar. Then , in the moment of disorientating clarity , she saw him. Emeka , standing there,across the room , in the middle of the chaos.
He was exactly how she last saw him in the forest.
His chest had a gaping hole where the magic had pierced him. His skin pale and lifeless, black veins creeping under the surface like a grotesque road map of death.
But something was wrong . Emeka began to clap, slowly and deliberately. The sound echoed eerily in the chaotic room .
As the clapping continued , a twisted smile spread across his face . Tolu stumbled backwards , her heart filled with dread, eyes wide with shock.
"Emeka , I'm sorry " she said . As she watched him approached her.
"Oh no! Poor Tolu, Emeka is long gone , maybe if you're lucky you can catch him on the other side ." He said as he laughed manically ." I'm not Emeka but simply a manifestation of the book fused with your intentions and emotions." He stopped and tilted his mockingly.
"Well isn't it iconic ? you wanting to be free of the books grasp , now that you are , you are back to using its power. Girl pick a lane !." He said as he took a step forward. "Well I'll leave to your little meeting. But we will be seeing more often than you think . And who knows we might even become best friends.! It's boing to be so much fun. Chao!." He said as he snapped his fingers and disappeared . Bringing Tolu back to reality.