When my day began like any other, the last thing I expected was for it to end with my blood soaking a crying child and a glowing gem.
....…
Earlier that Day
"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!"
The painfully familiar sound of my phone's alarm failed to get me out of bed the first seven times I pressed snooze, but I awoke sluggishly when the eighth was followed by the screams and pounding of my 72-year-old neighbour above.
"Stop that fucking racket, Ambroise. I have had enough of you setting hundreds of alarms and waking me up this early every day!!" She yelled whilst pounding the floor with a broom. "Don't make me bring down the Schoola and show you some fucking manners!!"
The infamous Schoola of course is an acronym for her broom of choice, aptly named - Spring Cleaning Honed On Obliterating Lazy Ambroise-
"Sorry, Daphne, I had another late night at the restaurant when closing; I'll make it up to you tonight with that risotto you love so much." I answered in response, stretching to get rid of the knot in my back and the chronic ache in my left knee, face and hands. In reality, I had stayed up to binge the third season of 'The Boys', torturing myself to watch the show that would've made my career and falling in love with the character my old mentor Jensen Ackles was playing.
"Fine, but you have to stop that dreadful alarm." She spoke back in an annoyed but appeased tone.
As I jumped up to prepare for my 6:00 am start, which was now a 10 am rush, my leg gave out, making me fall. I quickly caught myself, grazing my head on the bedside and gritting my teeth at the familiar sharp pain spiking in my hands.
'Damn it. They don't lie when they say a blow to the knee stops your adventures. Though, they should include the whole fucking body in that saying. A few years ago and my days would've been a breeze without a fall in sight, now I fall with even the smallest sudden movement and can barely hold a bottle.'
Bitterly picking myself up, I carefully made my way to the mirror leaning against the wall of my modest London apartment. Fortunately, the only damage seen was to my ego. I had long grown accustomed to hiding from the shell of the man I used to be. What was once a handsome, 6ft, muscular, mixed-raced man with emerald green eyes and a posture straighter than a ruler had devolved into a thin husk with scars all along his face and body. The eyes that were once vibrant, now dull and full of pain.
'I have changed so much in only four years; who knew that Ambroise Lefort would let himself fall to such a low level.'
Four years ago, I was an up-and-coming actor and self-proclaimed chef prodigy at the budding age of 26. Now I was a 30-year-old nobody who was stared at in public like a monster and required hours to make the simplest dish. My idealistic past self only saw a bright future and a path that would have led directly to being an A-list celebrity and an owner of a Michelin-star restaurant. All of that fell apart when I went against the industry. I was unwilling to play the game of kissing ass and letting nepotism win. I was too arrogant in my abilities and didn't feel the need for any backing in what was just the world of playing pretend.
But the life of stars and fame isn't as bright as it seems; pretend is real when money and power are involved. A few weeks after bagging a significant Tv role from a nepo baby on the then-upcoming "The boys" tv show, I was grabbed by masked men and beaten in a side alley. I only remember hearing one whisper in my ear, "You should've just played the game, kid." before the pain made me black out. They left me lying in a pool of blood, having shattered both my body and my dreams. I was lucky to survive, if living scarred and in pain even counts as survival. My colleagues, friends and mentor all tried to support me, but I wasn't going to place them in possible danger or take their pity. The funny thing is the nepo baby didn't even get the role in the end. No one was ever caught, and I'm sure money had a part to play in that.
"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!"
My alarm once again went off, waking me from my daydream.
'Shit, there's nothing I can do about the past, and I need to leave as I'm nearly 3 hours late. I'm probably going to get fired.'
I wobbled as quickly as possible to grab my phone and get dressed, ignoring the messages and missed calls of people in my past. Once ready, I left the apartment building and made my way to the restaurant down the road.
Opening the door of what I had come to see as my personal hell, I was greeted with the cartoonish red face of the owner, Robert " You have some fucking guts, coming here at noon. You are over three hours late, I should fire your ass on the spot!!" he screamed, spitting on my face in the process. "You are lucky that I even let you help Carlos in the kitchen with those useless hands of yours".
Feeling a need to stand up for myself just once, I snapped back at him. "Look, Robert, the only reason this restaurant is even open is that I help you with every single detail, from the menu to the accounts. You couldn't do half the shit alone, and I'm sick of working my ass off just so this third-rate restaurant can get the few customers it does".
His face reached a level of red I never imagined humanely possible, with what seemed almost like steam coming out of his ears, appalled I even dared to speak back. "Get out and don't bring your mutilated, self-righteous face into my restaurant again, you arrogant prick," Robert squawked at me with absolute fury.
I didn't bother to say anything in response and just left, not caring where I ended up.
'He will be begging me to come back by the end of the week.'
Though nothing he could say would make me come back, I was sick of how I was being treated and just wanted the world to finally give me a win.
Sorry for the delay in the first chapter, I had problems figuring out how to cut down on the stuff that happens before he is reborn. Please give me any criticism you can think of. I am really trying to improve.
I don't know how long I walked the streets or even where I went, with the past occupying my present mind.
'What did I ever do to deserve losing everything? What cosmic being did I piss off.'
By the time I came out of my thoughts of self-pity, the sun had set and was about to rise. I had somehow wandered into an area of abandoned warehouses I didn't recognise. As much as I hated my life, I'm not naive to think walking around the stabbing capital of England at this time was smart, especially in an area like this.
As I turned on my phone to navigate my way home, I suddenly heard sobbing from one of the warehouses.
"Uncle Samuel, please, I don't know where they are. I promise I don't have the gem or my daughter," a young male voice begged whilst crying. "I have nothing to do with this. You have to believe me, Samuel. I only left because I was scared you would think I was the one who had taken my daughter. I would never go against you or the Golden Dawn. My family has been in your service for generations; please, you have to believe me."
"Jack, my boy, you disappoint me and my intelligence if you think I will fall for this charade. You truly believed we wouldn't find you here and that you could lie to me?" an older male voice said with laughter hanging at the end of every word. "I have lived in this disordered world since 1854. I have been betrayed and lied to in more ways than your primitive mind could ever invent. Don't presume to be on a level to even inconvenience my plans."
There was a pause before the older voice, who I presumed was Samuel, addressed another man. "Joseph, make sure it hurts and be quick. We need to find the Drop of Dawn and the child for the ritual to work. We can't afford any more delays as it is almost first light. Tell the men to search the surroundings. I know Jack; he wouldn't have hidden them far. Do not harm the child, but you have permission to kill anyone who may get in our way. Soon, the culmination of over a hundred years of breeding and our most prized possession will allow the hermetic order of the golden dawn to come out of the shadows and control all within the light. Our dreams will be reality, Aurora Aurea!!" Manic laughter followed by screams of pain and 50-plus people chanting "Aurora Aurea" flowed out of the warehouse doors.
I quickly moved behind a broken-down car I could see in a side alley. With the distance gained, the chanting faded to an almost chilling whisper.
'What the fuck is going on? Did that guy say he was born in 1854? What the hell is the golden dawn? Are they torturing someone? It's probably just some weird cult, right?'
Hundreds of different questions were rapidly firing through my brain. I was so confused and shocked at what I had heard.
'I can't do anything. I need to get out of here as quickly and quietly as possible before those nut jobs see me. This has nothing to do with me.'
As I turned to carefully leave the area and get as far away as I could, I suddenly heard movement coming from the boot of the car.
'It's none of my business; just leave it alone Ambroise, and carry on with your life; maybe you can finally move on and reach out to the people that care.'
That's what I should have done, but I'm an idiot filled with curiosity. I moved to the boot, and with a heavy push on the rusty handle, it opened. Only to have a small child jump out and punch me in the nose.
"Ouch!! What the fuck, kid? That hurt. What is your problem?" I whispered harshly in pain whilst holding my nose.
I looked up from my hands to give the offender an additional bollocking but quickly calmed down when I saw that the child in question was shaking with cuts and bruises and had wide golden eyes filled with fear.
I had surprisingly received a broken nose from what seemed to be a 3 or 4-year-old half-Asian girl. She was dressed in beige monk-like robes covered with holes and grim. That would've been the most noteworthy part of her ensemble if not for her glowing gem necklace that eerily matched the colour of her eyes.
Instantly I knew that the necklace and the girl were what those freaks were after.
'Shit, I can't leave her alone to be some form of sacrifice to a weird cult. Why does my life have to be so complicated? I'm a fucking cripple; give me a break, universe.'
"Hey, kid, I'm sorry for scaring you. I'm not a bad guy, I promise; I just wanted to see what was making that noise." I said gently to calm her down whilst cleaning up the blood on my face. "That was one hell of a punch for a three-year-old, who taught you to hit like that."
"My daddy showed me, and if you come near me, he'll beat you up." the young girl whispered with false bravado hiding the apparent fear on her face.
"I'm sure he would. Do you know where your daddy is?" I asked whilst looking around to ensure the freaks hadn't come out.
"N-N-No but-t-t he said-d-d he would be back, and d-d-daddy never lies." She replied with hesitation and a trembling lip.
I had a feeling that the man I heard screaming was her father. But I wasn't going to tell her that.
"Why don't you come with me somewhere warm, and we can leave a message for your father here." I said quickly, noticing the sounds of people in the distance.
"Ok-k-k, but if you hurt me, I'll hit you again." she said hesitantly.
I was a bit worried at how easy she agreed but decided to ignore that for now and held out my hand to help her get down from the boot. "So what's your name, kid." I asked her once she was on solid ground.
"I'm Dawn, and I'm four, not three!!" She said grumpily with a smile in reference to my earlier assumption.
"My bad, Dawn; it's nice to meet you." I chuckled whilst surprised that she didn't seem fazed by my scarred visage.
"My name is Ambro.."
A loud bang and a sudden sharp pain in my chest stopped me from finishing my sentence.
I looked down to see a spot of red growing in size on my shirt.
'Huh, did I have ketchup today?'
Fun Fact: The Hermetic Order Of The Golden Dawn is a real life defunct “Magical Organisation” that was active in London during the late 19th and early 20th century. The organisation is a large influence on the concept of magic today and even had the infamous Aleister Crowley as a member.
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