Chapter 375: Preparation For The Ritual

Day two.

The last day before the transformation.

Victoria stood in her room surrounded by forbidden texts and components she should not possess and felt the weight of what she was preparing to do settle onto her shoulders like a burial shroud.

On the desk: a map marked with Thalia’s last known locations. Red circles indicating places her cousin had been spotted. Black X’s marking territories where dark magic had been reported.

On the floor: three vials of Lilith’s blood, drawn yesterday while her niece slept. Fresh. Potent. Carrying Lilith’s magical signature in every drop.

On the shelf: the dead necklace Elena had given Nicholas. The crystal was dark now but it still held traces of Lilith’s essence. Enough to serve as an anchor point if resurrection became necessary.

And in her hands: a worn leather journal containing research Victoria had been conducting in secret for the past twenty-four hours.

Resurrection rituals. Death magic acquisition. Underworld portal construction. Component lists. Entity names.

Everything she would need if the transformation failed.

Everything she was not supposed to be preparing.

Victoria set the journal down and looked at the clock.

Six hours until sunset. Twelve hours until the transformation attempt tomorrow morning. Thirty-six hours until she potentially watched Lilith die and had to execute the most dangerous plan of her life.

Stop, Victoria told herself. Don’t think like that. The transformation will work. Elena knows what she’s doing. Lilith is strong. It will work.

But she could not make herself believe it.

The curse was too strong. Too ancient. Too absolute in its purpose.

And if it consumed Lilith during the transformation attempt, if Victoria had to watch her niece die in front of her, Then she needed to be ready.

A soft knock at the door made Victoria’s head snap up.

She quickly covered the map and vials with a blanket and shoved the journal under a stack of ordinary books.

"Come in," she called.

Elena entered, closing the door quietly behind her.

"How much have you gathered?" Elena asked without preamble.

Victoria gestured to the concealed components. "Lilith’s blood. The necklace. Salt blessed under the last dark moon. Silver wire I’ve been soaking in protective oils. And I’ve mapped Thalia’s likely locations."

Elena moved to the desk and lifted the blanket to examine Victoria’s work. Her expression was approving.

"Good," Elena said. "You’re being thorough."

"I’m being paranoid," Victoria corrected. "The transformation is going to work. Lilith is going to survive. And all of this preparation will be wasted."

"Maybe," Elena allowed. "But if it doesn’t work, if the worst happens....you’ll be glad you prepared."

Victoria sat down heavily in the chair by the window. "How do you do this? How do you prepare for someone’s death while simultaneously hoping they survive?"

"You compartmentalize," Elena said simply. "Part of you hopes. Part of you prepares for the worst. You don’t let the two parts talk to each other or you’ll go insane."

"I think I’m already going insane," Victoria admitted.

Elena pulled up a chair and sat across from her. "What are you most afraid of?"

Victoria was quiet for a long moment. "That the transformation will fail. That Lilith will die. And that even with all this preparation, even if I successfully track down Thalia and make deals with Underworld entities and gather every component, the resurrection still won’t work. That I’ll do all of this and still lose her."

"That’s a valid fear," Elena said.

"How do I live with it?" Victoria asked.

"You don’t," Elena said. "You just keep moving forward anyway. One step at a time. Do the next thing that needs to be done and don’t think about all the ways it could fail."

Victoria looked at the covered components. At the map hidden under the blanket. At the evidence of her desperate planning.

"What else do I need?" Victoria asked. "What am I missing?"

Elena considered. "You need to actually locate Thalia. Not just guess where she might be. You need solid intelligence on her current location so you don’t waste time searching after Lilith dies."

"How do I get that intelligence without revealing what I’m planning?" Victoria asked.

"Scrying," Elena said. "Use Lilith’s blood to create a tracking connection to Thalia. They’re family. Their blood resonates. You should be able to pinpoint Thalia’s general location."

Victoria nodded and made a mental note. "What else?"

"Components from the Alphas," Elena said. "You’ll need their blood. Hair. Something physical that carries their bond to Lilith. Get it today while you still have access to them. After Lilith dies, they’ll be too broken to cooperate."

Victoria felt her stomach turn. "You want me to take their blood without telling them why."

"Yes," Elena said bluntly.

"That feels wrong," Victoria said.

"It is wrong," Elena agreed. "But it’s also necessary. Victoria, if Lilith dies and you need to resurrect her, you won’t have time to convince the Alphas to voluntarily give you what you need. They’ll be grieving. Potentially feral. Definitely not rational. Get the components now while they’re still functional."

Victoria knew Elena was right but it still felt like a betrayal.

Taking pieces of the Alphas without their knowledge or consent. Preparing to use them in a resurrection ritual they did not know was coming. Keeping secrets from the very people who loved Lilith most.

"How do I get their blood without them noticing?" Victoria asked.

"You’re a witch," Elena said. "Be creative. A healing spell that requires blood donation. A protection ritual. Something plausible that they won’t question."

Victoria absorbed this. "And if they ask why I need it?"

"Tell them you’re preparing contingency protections for Lilith," Elena said. "Which is technically true. Just not in the way they’ll assume."

The moral compromise of it made Victoria’s chest tighten.

But she nodded anyway.

Because if the transformation failed and Lilith died, Victoria would need every possible advantage to bring her back. And that meant gathering components now while she still could.

"What about the Underworld portals?" Victoria asked. "Have you given any thought to which entities I should approach?"