Ch 353 - The Sacrifice

Some distance away, two people struggled together to cross a vast field covered in snow. From time to time, the howling sound of the lone wolf echoed over the plains.

"We'll be home soon," Orion said breathlessly.

"You don't think this weather will be a problem, do you?" Jax asked. He held a walking stick in his hand, his beard covered in snow. On his back, he carried a big cloth bag, which held Debbie, the holy daughter of the Black Orchid cult. "If something happens to the saint, we'll be executed when we return to Canada!"

"I've passed on some of the Black Orchid magic to the holy daughter to make her more resistant to the cold," Orion replied. "Don't worry, even if we freeze to death, she won't be in danger."

"Well, let's hurry up." As they walked, Jax coughed fiercely. They were both suffering from serious internal injuries. If it had not been for their extreme loyalty to the Black Orchid cult, they would have collapsed on the roadside a long time ago.

**

Back at the Clifton manor, Jessop finished telling Alex everything he knew. Now Alex knew everything about Debbie: her past, everything that had happened to her in the present, and the location of the Black Orchid group. That was where he must go.

Without any delay, Alex got up to make his way to Canada, taking the Phoenix with him. Jessop offered to send a party with him to rescue Debbie, but he refused, requesting that Jessop keep his mission a secret. The journey would be dangerous, and time was pressing. Alex needed to leave now, and it was best that he go alone. Bringing others would only slow him down.

**

After their difficult journey, Orion and Jax finally arrived at the Black Orchid headquarters. Cassius listen to their reports, but he was not satisfied:

"So, the white jade Phoenix is also in the hands of the Clifton family?" he questioned.

"Yes, Master, be we had no time to retrieve it. Escaping was critical. Priests Zeke and Neo had fallen, seriously injured, and they were captured by a young man named Alex. We did everything we could to bring back the saint."

It was a miracle that Orion and Jax had been able to bring Debbie to Canada. If they had stayed at the manor, they would either have been killed by the angry Clifton family or taken away by the police.

But Cassius was not happy with them at all. He stood up from his seat and raised his eyebrows.

"It's pointless for me to get angry over such a small matter," he said dismissively. "What I know is that when the situation became difficult, you both ran away. Have you no dignity? Go, repent to the gods."

Orion and Jax both grew pale, but they knew there was nothing more to say. They slowly got up from the ground and retreated. A moment later two heavy thuds were heard outside the door and the moonlight hovered over two figures, grimacing quietly before becoming silent and still.

In the Black Orchid's religion, repentance meant death. Under Cassius's leadership, these rules would never change.

With a disgusted wave of his hand, Cassius silently ordered a servant to drag the bodies of the two priests away. The moon hung in the late-night sky, dotted with glimmering stars. It was a rare sight to behold.

Out in the open air, a ceremony was beginning.

On the mysterious altar, a torch was burning, and a strange woman was beating a drum in her hand. She chanted and jumped back and forth on, around, and under the altar.

At the bottom of the altar, there were huge stone pillars, with Debbie locked in iron chains to the middle pillar. Her skin glistened under the firelight. She woke up, pain and confusion in her eyes as she looked at her surroundings, wincing painfully at the chains.

"The real saint is different from other women," Cassius stood respectfully aside and expressed his sincere admiration. "I think the ceremony will go much better this time."

"The gods have been waiting for this moment for too long. So have the disciples. After the ceremony is completed tonight, the gods will protect all the disciples, giving them good fortune and long life, and the Black Orchid group will spread the gods' word to the world."

The rhythm of the drum sped up, and the witch danced wildly to the beat. She started to chant the spells faster and faster.

"Soon it'll be time for the festival to begin," said Cassius.

Two attendants emerged from both sides of the stone pillar. They were dressed in the solemn black clothes of the Black Orchid group and held two huge torches in their hands. They stood on either side of Debbie.

She finally realized what was happening. She struggled with the iron chains wrapped across her body, but she knew it was futile. She knew that the end of her life was coming. The members of the Black Orchid cult merely regarded her as a sacrifice to their gods. They had shamelessly lied to her about her mother, assuring her that Cynthia was in Canada. But it was clear now they had only wanted to use her for their gain.

As Debbie stood there, images of her life flashed before her. She imagined she could see her mother's tearful face. She thought about her lovely grandfather and Alex. She looked back on their time together, and her heart stirred as she felt the intensity of her love for him.

"Alex, I love you. We'll be together in the next life!" she suddenly yelled. There was no sadness or fear in her voice. She felt as if Alex was by her side.

"Look, do you see that? The brightest star? That's me! I will always be with you, right there in the sky," she cried, looking up at the stars.

"Alex, can you hear me? Do you hear me calling to you?" she yelled out with all her strength. She closed her eyes and cried. She didn't want to leave Alex.

"Hey, crying again? I want you to know, my love, no matter how far you go, I'll always appear when you call my name."

Next to the stone pillar came a man's bright voice. A magical voice. Debbie was shocked and looked around. Suddenly, the man she loved more than anything dropped down from the sky beside her. This can't be, she thought. I must be hallucinating. But she knew this was real.

Alex had managed to reach the ceremony in record time. It had taken a great deal of trial and error as he travelled, but finally, he found a way to tap into his internal power to speed his progress, sending him flying to Debbie. He glowed with power, lighting him up as brightly as the moon.

Her eyes brimming with tears. Seeing Alex appear out of nowhere surprised her, but she couldn't help but smile. She felt no need to question how he had done it. In her eyes, Alex could do anything.

"Alex!" she broke down, the tears now flowing incessantly as she laughed. He was finally here. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

"Don't be silly," Alex said, smiling. "We're going to be together for the rest of our lives. We'll have a family, travel the world, and do everything we want to do."

"Oh Alex," Debbie choked out, overcome with emotion once again.

They completely ignored the ceremony occurring before them, causing the woman to stop and disapprovingly watch the young lovers as they talked to each other.

"What is this?" she hissed.

"This is a blasphemy against the saint, and a violation of our order," Cassius thundered. As the leader of the Black Orchids, he would not allow anyone to interfere with their most sacred ceremony.

A strong wind circled him, his hands trembled, and he rose and raced toward Alex like a rocket.