Inescapable (Eternelles: The Beginning, Book 1) (21 page)

She had to fight.

But as her heart gave up its last beat, the sigh poured from her lips.

She had to save her daughter....

But who would save her?

THE END

***

Want to know what happens to Sera?

Get Book 2 of the series, INDOMITABLE, at
http://amzn.to/1kkyese
.

Also, thank you for reading this book! We hope you will take a moment to post a short review at
http://amzn.to/13UwYCw
(US) or
http://amzn.to/10yRjt7
(UK). Authors depend greatly on
reader feedback to grow creatively and raise awareness for our work.

To receive notifications when subsequent books are released, please subscribe at
http://eepurl.com/povjf

We kindly note your email address will not be sold, shared or used for spam.

A baro seréskeri sharkûni
– sacred shell of shells, precious to the Gypsy people

Aberrations
– offspring of a supernatural creature with a human; happens one in a billion, always with a human involved since inter-sup-species mating is barren

Air
– strongest element of all 4 Elements; used to seal the lock keeping the Twins beyond the portal

Angels
– remain mostly in Heaven where they were called back after the War; allowed to walk the Earth every morning at dawn; asexual, self-righteous creatures who see everything as black or white

Ares
– Greek god of War, and foster brother of Adri who trained her in the arts of war and combat. Also taught her how to survive on Earth after Adri was banned from Olympus. The only one in the know about Sera’s origins

Arles Bronze
– bronze statue of the Egyptian goddess, Sekhmet, found in Arles, France in the nineteenth century, but its real provenance unknown—a woman’s body with a lioness’ head, sparkling rubies for eyes, and an amber, flame-shaped stone set into her chest; speculations that it may have been brought to Europe on the same ship occupied by Mary Magdalene, who left from Alexandria, Egypt for what is now France after the crucifixion of Jesus; missing Sekhmet’s trademark sun-like crown, denoting her heritage linking her with the sun god Ra; instead has thick, carved bronze waves and curls for hair; statue’s face and neck streaked with red paint

Black Magic
– magic (usually spells) used for evil purposes

Bridge
– prominent structure of the town of Shadow Bridge; a tourist attraction; a derelict structure in the ‘human’ world; to the supernatural eye, the bridge shows the lay where the portal keeping Evil at bay starts

Demons
– evil creatures bent on getting their ways. Few walk the Earth, but where they go, they spread mayhem and chaos. Most demons are locked away in Hell

Dionysos
– Greek god of wine and revelry, and the biological father of Adri

Earth
– 3
rd
strongest Element. Plane where humans/mortals exist, and where supernatural races live, mostly in Shadow Bridge.

Elementals
– Faeries who wield the utmost power over the 4 Elements

Eternelles
– the name given to Adri and Sera, meaning “the eternal ones (feminine, in French)”. They are the only immortals who cannot be decimated (or so it appears...)

Faeries
– magical creatures in tune with Nature and the 4 Elements; live in their own community away from modernity. Most of the Fae race thrives on their own plane of existence which is not of Earth

Fallen angels
– angels that fell from grace during and prior to the War; a race that has been wiped from the surface of the Earth after the portal was closed and the War ended

Familiars
– kindred spirits or highly intuitive entities that assist witches in the practice of magic. Often appear in the guise of felines

Fire
– the weakest Element (because it needs Air to exist, and can be put out by Water and Earth)

Fleur-de-Lys Society
– a society started in 1578 by Veronica Franco and Adri as a champion of female empowerment and liberation. The secret side of the society puts them as a regulation authority in the supernatural world, to ensure that humans and sups live in harmony on Earth

Fleur-de-Lys Academy
– housed in the Shadow Bridge castle, to the world it appears as a finishing school for gifted teenagers. The truth however has the academy as the place where the crème de la crème of every sup race sends their future leaders to master their powers and study to become leaders

Gypsies
– half human, half magical creatures from Ancient Europe who can wield Elements and also work magic across time and space. All clans have been decimated, or else the remaining gypsies have mated with gadjos (non-Gypsies) and lost their gifts over the centuries

Half-breed
– child of a were and a human; derogative appellation by weres

Heaven
– the realm of angels and humans who have died after doing Good in their lives

Hecate
– Greek goddess of Necromancy; at the heart of the birth of the vampyre nation when she went on a necromancy rampage after Dionysos toyed with her, bringing to life again souls of ancient vampires

Hell
– realm of demons, and the place where sup creatures go after their death if they have been evil or plied Black Magic during their lives. Governed by a King

Immortals
– creatures that do not die a ‘normal’ death or cannot be killed by usual ways. Usually live for centuries.

King of Hell
– supreme ruler of Hell, usually a demon who has risen to such a post

Lycans
– race of werewolves evolving predominantly in Europe (Old Europe territory like Budapest and Prague). Can morph at will. Slightly evil and usually stick to themselves.

Maenad
– a female follower of Dionysos, usually a human who acquires power through her devotion to the god. Maenads are barren to Dionysos’ seed, except for the one who gave birth to Adri in 900BC

Maker
– a vampyre who turns another; has dominion and claiming rights over the new vampyre until he/she decides to release the new one from their command

Muses
– daughters of Zeus on Olympus, they inspire artists and creatives the world over; foster sisters to Adri who grew up among them on Olympus.

Olympus
– mythical plane of existence for Greek gods and their mythical offspring; governed by Zeus

Order of Sekhmet
– rebel faction as old as the human race; gained prominence and respect during Egyptian times. Their goal is to bring Sekhmet back to life in order to open the portal and release the Evil barred there

Phoenix
– a very rare mythical creature that can control fire and clothe itself in the flames; once dead, births again from its own ashes

Portal
– a magical barrage behind which Evil has been imprisoned to prevent it from raging on Earth

Purgatory
– in reality the ‘heaven’ of supernatural creatures; barred to humans

Second Sight
– ability to see the future across space and time through visions

Sekhmet
– known as the heart of carnelian; offspring of Egyptian sun god Re/Ra; bringer of destruction and healer in one; destined to rule the vampire race after the portal has been opened

Shadow Bridge
– town where the portal is located, on the east coast of the US some 2 hours away from both New York and Washington D.C; heart of Shadow Bridge County; mostly populated by sup races that all have their ‘territory’ on the grounds; governed by a Council regrouping the leader of each race present in the town. Home of the Fleur de Lys Society and Academy; established in 1578 by Adri and Veronica Franco

Shell charm
– Gypsy charm found on Sera when she fell into Adri’s arms out of thin air; remained intact despite Sera being in flames; consists of a tough shell made of seemingly indestructible material and with natural markings displaying a phoenix on fire; considered a fount of protection for Sera, which she wears every time she leaves Shadow Bridge

Spelled stake
– a wooden dagger spelled by White Witches a long time ago; the only weapon that a vampyre overlord alone can wield to kill his own kind should he feel justice needs to be served. Vampyres cannot kill others of their kind, otherwise

Soul Stealers
– evil, soulless creatures brought into being when a vampyre bites a supernatural creature and feeds him his own blood; responds to the bidding of their ‘maker’; sometimes, humans survive this turning to become soul stealers, too

The Kindling
– scroll that can unlock power in the blink of an eye, for example, power that usually takes a race centuries to master

The Twins
– identical twin daughters of a royal faerie couple destined to rule the world; one pure Evil, the other pure Good. Placed in a locked cloister sealed by Air and all the other Elements behind the closed portal to prevent them from destroying Earth. Their death would bring on the Apocalypse; prophesized to return when the seal will be broken by the blood of one of their descendants.

Turning
– vampyre bite followed by drinking human blood within an hour to emerge as a new vampyre

Underworld
– Hell for humans; realm guarded and ruled by Greek god Hades

Vampires
– original blood-drinking race intent on enslaving humanity and destroying all other sup races; the Evil that has been locked beyond the portal

Vampyres
– born from Hecate’s necromancy of the original vampire race; though powerful, they are still pale shadows of the original vampire race; eternal hedonists who preside over the thriving nightlife in Shadow Bridge

Vampyres (Born)
– offspring of the vampyre race; for their first twenty years, age as a human; then age akin to a human decade for every century lived

Vampyres (Turned)
– humans that have been turned after a vampyre bite and fed human blood within the hour to prevent them from dying; do not age and remain eternally at the age/appearance at which they were turned

Vampyre Federation
– governing body of the vampyre race with territories regrouping the whole world; overseen and ruled by old, born, vampyre families since the time they have come into existence

Vampyre Lord
– No3 in the hierarchy of the Vampyre Federation; no special power granted despite having more authority over a territory and its vampyre occupants

Vampyre Overlord
– No2 in the hierarchy of the Vampyre Federation; able to astrally project and physically appear and disappear across space thanks to a pendant (black oval onyx in a silver setting with a red ruby pyramid in the middle, and a yellow diamond above the ruby. Thick leather ties morph into the overlord’s neck muscles and disappear into his being to grant him the power). Can bid to overthrow the Supreme Ruler at any time

Vampyre Supreme Ruler
– The head of the Vampyre Federation; in a precarious position with his overlords as they can overrule him at any time

Virgilio Manera
– vampyre overlord for the Middle East territory; Rafe Harcourt’s maker; deceased with no biological offspring. Has willed Rafe his territory and position as overlord in the Vampyre Federation

Veil
– magical shields that protect realms and territories from prying eyes or outside intrusion; can be breached only if the ones behind the veil grant access

Veronica Franco
– renowned intellectual courtesan from Italy in the 16
th
century; tried for witchcraft. Founded the Fleur de Lys society with Adri after leaving Europe following her acquittal in the trial

War
– the battle that raged between angels and demons on Earth. Demons were winning, aided by vampires. The portal was set up to stash away the vampires, and after that, the angels won. Since then, peace has thrived on Earth with no outward war between Heaven and Hell

Water
– 2
nd
most powerful Element

Water Stone
– a unique, teardrop-shaped pendant gifted by Zeus to Adri; retains the energy of water once dipped into the liquid; provides her protection and strength as long as it remains blue

Weres (werewolves)
– big, buff human-lookalike creatures that turn into wolves (only males) on nights of full moon; gifted with superior sense of smell; usually occupy the position of lawmen in Shadow Bridge