CHAPTER ONE
At the end of January, the Carpathian Mountains were covered in snow and fog. As the car drove up the abrupt cliff, Sophie could see the peaks of the everlasting green firs throwing themselves up to the sky at her right, while at her left they were rolling down into an abyss of rocks and bushes. Half an hour ago, they had crossed a small village, and Hebe, who was seated next to her, had told her it was the last one they would see until they arrived to their destination. Sophie was now eager to reach the tall towers of Lure Academy, which she had seen from far below.
The flight from Paris to Bucharest had lasted a little over three hours, and the car ride from the airport to the Academy two more hours, but Sophie was far from tired. She did feel a bit overwhelmed by everything that had happened in the last two days, but this only increased her excitement. Two days ago, she was just a 23-year-old who wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do with her life. Her mother had encouraged her to finally go to college and leave their small town behind, after she had postponed this plan for four years in favor of working at the local library. But the thought of moving to Paris terrified Sophie. Yes, she knew she had to leave her hometown because it had nothing to offer her. She wanted to leave. But Paris just didn’t feel like the right choice. She felt like she wasn’t cut out for a life in the overly expensive and overly pretentious capital. And it wasn’t about money. It was about her. She felt like she wasn’t pretty enough, determined enough, independent enough. She simply wasn’t enough. “No friends, no plans for the future, no idea where to start… The only thing that’s waiting for me in Paris is failure,” she used to tell herself. That was until Hebe showed up on her doorstep and threw all her worries out the window.
As the tall fir trees ran before her car window, Sophie turned her gaze away from the impressive landscape and looked at Hebe. The succubus was studying a dossier, casually taking notes in a notebook she was balancing on her knee. Strands of white hair had escaped her messy ponytail and were now framing her beautiful face. Sophie couldn’t see her eyes from that position, but she knew they were of a translucent, unreal turquoise, framed by long, white lashes. Even after spending the entire day with Hebe, she still couldn’t get used to that intense gaze which almost hypnotized her. It had been those eyes that had made Sophie listen to the surreal creature when she walked into their house, sat down in the leather armchair, and started telling Sophie and her mother what she was there for.
At that moment, Sophie had been shocked. She could hardly process what was happening even when her mother confirmed Hebe’s words. “I’m so sorry. It is true… It happened one night, when your father was away.” Her mother’s confession still echoed in Sophie’s head, and the woman’s words hurt even more because she knew that her father – her supposed father – had died without knowing of his wife’s betrayal.
But all that was in the past. Now, after hours of staring at the beautiful succubus and thinking of everything, things were starting to become clearer: Sophie was the daughter of an incubus. What had Hebe called her? A cambion. Half human and half demon. More or less, give or take. Those were Hebe’s exact words. Once she was deemed ready, she was accepted at Lure Academy, a place where all cambions went to learn about their history, their purpose, and how to become what they were truly supposed to be: guardians. Hebe’s words were etched into her brain: “We, the succubi and incubi, are often sorry that we cannot let our children live normal, careless lives, but these are hard times we live, and we need all the weapons we can get. Once you step over the threshold of the Academy, you will be able to look around you and see the true face of this world: a place roamed by dark creatures, by higher and lesser demons who feed off people’s suffering. Kings, princes, counts and dukes of hell. Your purpose, all cambions’ purpose, is to destroy evil through evil. Lure Academy will teach you everything you need to know, and when you go out there again, no one will dare stay in your way.”
There were so many implications to the little information Hebe had time to give her before they left for Romania. Sophie had never been very interested in mythology, but she did know that incubi and succubi were demons who fed off human energy, which they harvested through sex. Did cambions do the same? She wasn’t sure. At that thought alone she could feel her pulse rising and heat growing between her thighs. As if on purpose, Hebe busied herself with files, reading and taking notes all the way from France to the Carpathian Mountains. So many questions swam in Sophie’s head, but she couldn’t bring herself to disturb the succubus to try and get some answers.
“The Academy was founded in the 1500s, during the Inquisition and the Witch Trials, by the Pantheon of the Alluring Ones.”
Sophie realized she had been spacing out because the fairy-like demon had closed the dossier and was now looking at her, amusement dancing in her bright eyes.
“Oh... The… the Alluring Ones,” stammered Sophie. “Succubi and incubi.”
“Yes. We were created by the dark forces with a clear purpose: to draw mankind further into sin. Our nature was built in such a way that only by mating with mortal men and women we could satisfy our cravings. We feed off other creatures’ souls by draining their energy through mating.”
Sophie was finally starting to piece things together.
“By other creatures you mean… not necessarily humans.”
“Exactly. This is what they’ve overseen.”
“So, what happened? How did you decide to turn against your purpose and protect humans?”
“We got closer to them,” Hebe was now looking straight ahead at the narrow road she could see through the windshield. The chauffeur, a middle-aged man with strands of gray hair at his temples, didn’t seem to pay attention to their conversation. “Having a permanent connection with them, we began to understand their feelings and sorrows. Maybe we even started to feel a little. Something strange and scary, but exciting nonetheless. During the Inquisition, the fight against humankind worsened. The Alluring Ones, who began to feel compassion and pity for their victims, decided to take their side.”
Sophie felt her heart grow with excitement and impatience. She squeezed the key pendant which was resting on her stomach, attached to a long silver necklace. It was a gift from her father and she had the habit of holding onto it whenever she felt stressed. Hebe had
turned to face her, and her turquoise eyes were now pinning her in place, making it impossible for her to avert her gaze. She couldn’t understand why, but she felt the overpowering need to raise her hand and touch the succubus’ perfect features. Her presence made her feel warm inside, but when Hebe turned her gaze back to the front of the car, the spell was suddenly broken. Following her movement, Sophie saw they were approaching the end of their journey.