Prologue

Two Hundred Years Ago

A white rose stained with blood from earlier sins laid ruined in the remains of recent tellings no one was willing to share. Shuffled alongside the broken mess of shattered glass and spilled wine rested regrettable proof that moments once lived, had in fact occurred and no amount of magic or power would be strong enough to retract it. Sure, before the night ended and the morning star peaked over the distant horizon, the building holding this truth would cleaned and deserted. However residual nightmares and haunted memories would not be as easily destroyed. If history is to be learned. Evil actions have the tendency to develop into wicked tales with desensitized origins best described as fiction. The truth becomes moot and either feared or respected.

A sad feeling of future sorrow rippled a disconcerting tided within the two remaining witness: the horrors of tonight were going to live forever.

Without saying a word and barely keeping his shaking breath leveled, Thomas Hummel numbly stared at the fallen rose as if its purity was not spoiled. As long as the fifteen year old boy concentrated on the beautiful flower, then he could pretend that the ugly truth was not real. From now on everything about the Hummel lineage would be different and all future decedents would become nothing more than ordinary.

A false sense of security cradled around the teenager as he continued to stare at the flower - telling him that everything was going to be alright and his family and magic were still perfectly whole. Of course this faint form of comfort was a lie. Once he finally looked away from broken rose, everything special about him would be lost.

"Thomas." A womans voice lightly echoed in the young boys disinterested ears. "Thomas." The same voice loudened and soft hands pressed against his shoulder. "Thomas we have to leave before people discover the truth and come after us."

The first of many tears threatened to escape Thomas blue eyes speckled with hints of gray and green. Within moments the image of the bloody rose clouded behind fat tears - shielding him from sight and completely freeing him of the heavy weight on his shoulders and the magic inside him.

"We cant leave him behind."

"But we cant stay, sweetie." Guided by the loving nature of his mothers arms, Thomas regrettably turned away from the horrid scene he wished never had happened. Magic was not the only thing lost. A father was also taken.  

For several generations the Hummel family were good and decent people who would never harm another person. Unfortunately as destiny would have it, they were constantly the target for other peoples wicked thoughts and nefarious intentions. As the decades passed the Hummel family was able to protect themselves and keep their magic safe and generous to those in need. It should come to no surprise that such wonderful gifts quickly became the desire of rich men and women who wished to possess it. The more civilized of individuals offered a hefty price for a touch of magic that would bless them with immortality. However, greedy and angry men with sharp weapons and charming smiles tried to steal the beautiful gift that their dark hearts would never be able to understand.

After three hundred years of different thieves and crooks, a single man proved himself cunning enough to tricked a Hummel and steal the family treasure. His name is Blaine Anderson.

"What if he come back?" Thomas mumbled as if he was still a child and not the newly appointed head of the family. "We cant leave papa behind."

Anna Hummel brushed away her own tears and tightly held onto her son. She could not afford to lose another piece of her heart and soul. "Papa did what he had to do to save us. We have to leave baby."

"Why do we have to leave?" Thomas stopped walking and tightly clutched the tiny treasure chest in his hands. The special box was crafted in rich gold and decorated with red rubies. "We did not do anything wrong."  He did not remember walking out of the master bedroom and entering the dark hidden passageway. "We are innocent. Papa was defending me. Master Anderson...no hes just Anderson, he is the bad person. We did not do anything wrong. We were protecting ourselves." Thomas carefully cradled the box to his chest and pointed to himself. "Anderson is a very bad man. Why would anyone be mad at us for...doing what we did?" The firm look on Annas face convinced the fifteen year old to redirect his words to something vague. In fragile times like these, one can never be too cautious. "People should be thanking us for what we did...for what we gave up. Papa, he..." The blinding tears prevented Thomas from looking back at his fathers altered and fallen form. "He saved me, he saved us all from Anderson. Anderson is evil...the things he wanted to do to me..."

"Sweetie," Anna gently cradled her sons pale cheeks. Maybe it is the product of motherly bias, but Anna would be lying if she denied her son from being anything less than beautiful. Thomas was growing taller each day and his flawless skin amazed anyone who seen him. As fate would have it, he inherited the best genes their family had to offer. He received his grandfathers recessive blue eyes, his great-grand mothers porcelain skin and his mothers cute button nose.  Watching her son grow into a young man Anna never once considered the possibility that Thomas beauty would be the familys fatal flaw and Blaine Andersons perverted fantasy. "Sweetie, you did nothing wrong. Master Anderson never touched you like that. You are safe now."

"Papa did what he had to." Thomas complexion was paler than normal. "He...we did nothing wrong. Why do we need to run away?" 

"Be that as it may, we cannot stay here. Master Anderson is well respected and he has far more authority than we do. He may be gone, but we are still servants in his household and second class in this town. If we were to stay, then it would only be a matter of time before the truth was revealed. People will already be asking about Master Andersons whereabouts." Anna placed her hand over the box her son was holding. Every inch in her body screamed words of warnings - reminding her that they did not have time to talk and mingle. It was too dangerous, however the guilty look in her sons eyes left her legs feeling weak. "Master Anderson may have taken our magic and destroyed our family for his own selfish immortality and earthly sins, but papa ensured our protection beforehand."

Both sets of eyes paused for a moment to appreciate the mysterious box in the young boys hands. A disturbing aura of mystery settled around the box of gold. Despite complete knowledge of the item inside the chest, an unsettling feeling of dark curiosity tickled the tips of Annas fingertips - telling her to open it. Such thoughts of curiosity were dangerous and hopefully nothing more just that. She could not allow her mind and heart to linger further on the notion.    

"For so long Hummels used their magic to help others. From now on our job will be to protect the world from the evil inside this box. Someone like Master Anderson does not understand how to balance magic and power. He will abuse it and inflicted his sins onto innocent people." Anna instructed herself more so than her son. "At the expense of his life papa trapped Master Anderson inside this box." Words fell into a watery silence. "As long as we and future Hummels protect this box and never allow anyone to open it, then we will be doing a great service to the world."

"Anderson is a bad person who does bad things." Adolescence reason mulled over. "We cannot open this box and allow him to escape. He hated our family before we trapped him for all eternity. What would happen to our family if he ever escaped?"

Anna paused for a moment and picked up the fallen rose her son was staring at earlier. The blood on the flower did not concern her. "Your father locked Master Anderson is a world without hope and beauty. There is no saying how dark that mans heart and mind will become. We shall count ourselves fortunate if we do not live to see the day where our warnings are not respected to and he is free to spread his filth."   

Scared, confused and deeply lost in bitter grievances, mother and son gradually descended down the long dark passageway that lead from the master bedroom to an escape exit to the backside of the manor. With each footstep they took Thomas Hummel did his best he could to remind himself of the simple truth: he was now the man of the family. As the man of the house he promised himself he would never allow another person to witness the horrors he and his family had seen this very night. Blaine Anderson was a horrible man who did horrible things. He gained immortality through the most wicked of acts, and it taxed every ounce of magic in Hummel blood to lock him away as a prisoner in a timeless capsule.

If Blaine Anderson were to ever be free from his eternal prison, then who knows what would happen. However one thing is certain, all living Hummels would be in standing in the path of his vile wrath and all his many sins.