Chapter 14
“Hell, yeah, master!” Akira was the first one to squeal with delight. “That was fucking awesome!”
The rest of my women nodded, and once everyone realized it could be done, I noticed other witches preparing to morph with their shadows as well.
“Finally!” Professor Luna cried out with satisfaction. “Why does Cole always have to be the one to finally push you ladies into doing what you’re supposed to do? Satan… maybe he should run the class.”
“No, professor!” Circe called out. “We love you, don’t worry!”
“Err, well… thank you, dear,” Professor Luna chuckled as she regarded the students. “Easy does it now… be sure to free your heart from any fear. Yes, that’s it! Well done!”
I watched with fascination as witches began to morph with their doubles, and their transformations were similar to mine. However, instead of red mist emitting from their skin, their bodies were surrounded by ebony smoke, and their eyes turned completely black. And like mine, even their scleras had changed. Now, each witch possessed pitch black eyes, and once again, I was the only one with red smoke and eyes, but I wasn’t surprised.
“Wow,” Vesta marveled as she stared at her purple hand surrounded by thin black smoke. “I feel… wide awake… as if all my senses have been placed into overdrive or something. It’s a glorious sensation!”
“I second that!” Circe added with wide black eyes, and it was unusual to see her without her snake-like orbs.
“Yeah… I’ve never felt so powerful in my life,” Beatrix mused aloud. “I don’t feel any self-doubt or fear.”
“Neither do I,” Morgana added as she floated above the forest floor.
“This is cooler than helix powder,” Nyx giggled as she waved her smoky hand in the air as if she were waving to someone.
“It may be super fucking cool,” Akira said with her black eyes darting around the forest, “but it’s also making me strangely hungry.”
“Yeah, I’m fucking starving,” Faye growled as she licked her wispy lips, and I caught a glimpse of her protruding fangs.
“So, go off and hunt, for Satan’s sake!” Professor Luna urged with wide lavender eyes. “Gooooo! Find something to tear apart and devour!”
“You heard the woman,” I said with a wide grin. “Let’s fucking do this!”
I flew upward through the trees and gracefully dodged the cluster of branches in my way, and as I did so, I could hear the women right behind me as they screamed with adrenaline and joy. The air whipped past my shadowy face, and it was like every nerve was on fire as I sped through the woodland.
I knew at this rate, we’d never be able to see anything down below, so when I saw a tree with multiple branches, I decided it would be a fantastic place to hover and scan the floor for food.
“Follow me!” I ordered.
“Yes, master!” I heard my women call back.
I floated toward the towering tree, and with my half-shadow, half-flesh hand, I grasped the branch and took a seat. The others also situated themselves on the tree limbs, and when we were comfortable, we began to scan the ground for some game.
Blood pumped through my ears as I sniffed the air and then marveled at everything around me. All my senses were on high alert, and I could feel the entire forest flowing through my veins as I hovered above the ground and sniffed the air. Then, after a minute or two, I thought I could smell blood and fur.
“Do you smell that?” I grinned as I looked at the others. “I think I can smell meat.”
“Me, too!” Faye gasped, and when I looked into her black eyes, a pleasant shiver ran up my spine. “I cannot wait to sink my teeth into some warm, raw flesh and rip the meat off the bone.”
“Just like the sirens did!” Circe chuckled as her black orbs wandered around the woods. “Oh, I can practically smell the blood already! We must be close to a herd of antelope… or maybe elk… possibly unicorn?”
“Wait, I think I hear something,” Akira snapped as she turned her shadowy head in different directions. “Listen!”
“I hear it, too,” Morgana added as her ebony eyes glanced up and down. “It sounds like a stampede… down below.”
My improved vision scanned the forest floor as we remained high above the canopy. I strained to listen for any signs of prey, and again, it felt like my shadow double was trying to merge his thoughts with my own.
Indeed, it is a herd, his deep voice echoed inside my mind. It sounded exactly like my own, and it was unnerving and strangely entrancing at the same time. Why don’t we fly down there and take what is ours? Let us stain the earth with fresh blood and fill the forest with the dying screams of our kill! You know you want to… you’ve always harbored a thirst for blood and violence. Together, we can cause unwavering chaos and glorious destruction. Let us wreak havoc upon these pathetic beings, rip their hearts from their chest, and drink the blood from their thin veins! We’ll do it together… you and I… we will become death itself and drain the life out of the woodland.
“Let’s fucking do it,” I answered in a low growl that sounded like a starving wolf. “Whatever is approaching, I’m ready to taste blood.”
“Me, too,” Nyx giggled. “I must say… this shadow bonding makes me feel even higher than dragon breath.”
“I’ll bet it does!” Circe laughed. “Satan, I feel incredible… like three times more powerful and feral.”
“True, but I wouldn’t want to stay like this forever,” Vesta said as her black eyes wandered around us. “I think my silver eyes are far more attractive than these lifeless black ones.”
“Of course, that’s your only concern,” Akira mumbled.
“Guys!” Penelope snapped. “Pay attention… the meat we desire lies just below us… I can sense a herd of antelope approaching, so if you’re hungry, you need to be quick when we make a dive for it.”
“And try to aim for their arteries and veins, too,” I added. “One quick bite to the jugular and bam… you have yourself a meal.”
“He’s right.” Morgana nodded. “It will be an easy kill if done properly.”
“So, what are we waiting for?” Faye demanded with sleek black eyes. “Let’s goooooo!”
We all laughed as the shadow-bonded redhead swarmed down through the canopy and toward the forest floor, and in seconds, we could see her misty body speeding toward a herd of galloping antelopes.
“How the hell did she do that?” Akira asked in a surprised voice. “She was totally right… it was a herd of fucking antelopes!”
“Are you really surprised?” Morgana giggled. “It’s Faye! She’s practically made out of the forest.”
“Hey!” I clapped with my new hands. “Do you want her to have all the fun?”
“No!” they all gasped at once.
“Then let’s snatch our kills!” I chuckled before I dove down and followed the bloodthirsty Faye. “Come on!”
I could hear the others laughing as they headed after me, and soon, we were all flying in a straight line behind the massive herd of galloping and terrified antelopes. Faye was already hot on their tails, and as she sped up, the antelope began to cry out in fear and instinct.
They knew death was literally behind them.
As we drew closer to their heavy hides, I found myself licking my lips and extending my shadowy claws. With each passing second, I envisioned myself bringing down the creature, digging into its flesh, and ripping out its intestines and thick, juicy heart. I couldn’t wait to tear their furry bodies apart, drink their blood, and feast on their warm, red, soaked meat.
After a minute or two, I was just above a large antelope, and when I glanced down at its moving body, I could feel my eyes focusing on the pulsating veins in its neck. The blood vessel thumped through its thick fur, and I could practically see the warm, titillating blood coursing through its neck.
Dive down and bite his neck, my shadow’s voice urged. Do it! Drain him dry!
Without another moment of hesitation, I swarmed downward, wrapped my wispy hands around the thick, furry neck, and squeezed it with all my strength. It felt as easy as squishing a piece of soft fruit, and I watched with feral anticipation as the animal’s terrified eyes bulged out of its head. The antelope tried to cry out in pain, but I was holding it so tight, it couldn’t scream or make any noise at all. As I kept my fingers wrapped around its neck, it quickly came to a halt, and as it did so, I swiftly bent down and sank my elongated teeth into its warm pulsating neck.
A cry of pain reverberated in its throat, and its eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. As I dug even deeper into its fur, its body crashed down into the earth and tumbled forward with my teeth still in its neck. The other antelopes were running off, but I began to feast upon my prize. I tore its neck wide open and started to drink the blood from its flowing, open wound like I hadn’t had a drink in weeks.
“Nice work, Cole!” Faye shouted.
When I looked up, I saw the redhead on the back of an antelope, and I watched in fascination as the redhead gouged the animal’s neck out and nearly decapitated the thing with one swift bite.
Her meal also came crashing down, and Faye quickly began to dig into its swollen belly and pull out its stomach, intestines, and other organs. As she ate, the sound of her chewing and slurping echoed throughout the forest, and it reminded me of a lioness feasting on a deer for the first time.
“That was hot, Faye!” Akira called out before she grabbed an antelope and snapped its neck with one quick turn, and then it fell to the ground with a loud crash. “Fuck, yeah!”
As I ate my meal, my eyes wandered between Faye and Akira while they both ripped their kills into bloody ribbons and devoured their rewards until there was nothing left but bones and bloodstained earth.
While I finished my meal, Beatrix, Morgana, Nyx, Circe, Penelope, and Vesta had conquered their own kills and proceeded to dig into the fresh meat without hesitation. Once we tore the flesh and muscle clean off the bone with our teeth and hands, we hovered in the air and wiped the blood off from our lips.
How did it taste? the voice inside my head asked. It was delicious, no?
“I think it was the best meal I’d ever had,” I answered under my breath.
And it was true. I’d eaten freshly killed meat before, but something about the raw, warm, salty blood seeping down my throat set every nerve on fire. I knew the others had enjoyed themselves as well because they’d moaned and slurped when they tore the juicy, bloody flesh into shreds. It was like every bite was an orgasm, and now we were relishing in the aftermath of the mind-blowing sensations.
“Fuck…” Akira grunted as her black eyes met mine. “That was fucking amazing.”
“I second that,” Penelope moaned as she licked her bloody lips.
“Mmmm, indeed,” Vesta purred. “Truly, darkly divine.”
“Err… but what now?” Beatrix asked in a tense voice. “I mean… we made the kill like Professor Luna suggested, but now what do we do?”
“That’s actually a good question,” I said as I sucked the blood off my shadowy fingers. “Perhaps we should just fly around until we find Professor Luna again?”
“She didn’t morph into her shadow, did she?” Nyx asked in a lethargic voice. “I can’t even remember.”
“No, I don’t believe so,” Morgana responded as her black eyes wandered around the woods. “We’d better do as Cole suggested and try to find her.”
“Yeah, I think that’s the only option.” I shrugged. “Come on, let’s go!”
In the next second, we all drifted away from the cleaned bones of our meals and soared up into the blue sky, way above the canopy and just below the wispy, white clouds.
“We can search through the gaps of the trees to try and spot them!” Penelope suggested. “It’s easier to fly up here than to keep dodging tree trunks down there!”
“And with our improved vision, I’ll bet we’ll be able to see them!” Morgana added.
“So, let’s gooooo!” Akira screamed with delight as she sped past the trees’ tips and through the clear blue sky. “This is fucking awesome!”
“She’s going too fast,” Morgana sighed in irritation. “How will she be able to see anything at that rate?”
“It’s fine,” I chuckled. “Let her have some fun.”
“Yes, master,” Morgana huffed with impatience. “I suppose you’re right.”
I also wanted to take a moment to enjoy this marvelous sensation, because with a full belly and heightened senses, I felt like a demon flying high above his domain.
Amazing, isn’t it? my shadow’s voice asked. It feels like you hold all the power in the universe, doesn’t it?
“It does,” I whispered.
“Wooooooo!” Circe cried out as she soared up into the clouds and then dove back down. “This is so much fun!”
“We need to find the others, though!” Morgana insisted. “I want to make sure we get a full grade for this assignment.”
“If it’s causing you so much worry,” I said, “then let’s start searching more carefully for them. Everyone keep your eyes peeled as you cover the ground.”
“Yes, master!” my coven yelled back.
As we continued to fly above the trees, I thought I could spot other flying witches with dark mist radiating off their bodies down below. They were weaving in between tree trunks and gliding just a few feet above the forest floor.
“Look!” I called out. “Down there! I think I can see some students.”
“Nice one, Cole!” Akira called back. “I see them, too!”
Then Akira made a quick dive before we could lose them, and I swiftly followed her lead. As we flew downward, I could hear the others whipping through the wind right behind me, hot on my tail.
When we finally reached the forest floor, we spotted the shadowy witches just a few feet ahead of us, and we sped up to meet them.
“Hey!” I called out. “Wait up!”
The group of witches came to an abrupt halt and turned around to face us. There were three of them, and each one had a different hairstyle and color. One was a bright redhead, the other had a black pixie cut, and the third had straight lime-green hair that grazed her shoulders.
“Hi!” The pixie-haired witch grinned. “Did you manage to make a kill? I got a rabbit.”
“That’s it?” Akira snorted until Morgana nudged her in the ribs. “I mean… nice work.”
“Whatever.” The witch rolled her black eyes.
“Anyway, the reason I stopped you is because I wanted to ask you something,” I began.
“Sure.” The green-haired witch shrugged. “Shoot.”
“Did Professor Luna ever mention where we’d have to meet up?” I asked. “I wondered if she might still be back where we started--”
“Nope,” two of them replied as they shook their heads. “She’s not there. We’ve been flying around trying to find her as well--”
“Yoo-hoo!” Luna’s voice suddenly echoed around us, and we all fell silent at once. “Follow the sound of my voice!”
“She must have realized her mistake,” Morgana chuckled. “Or… maybe she did it on purpose to fuck with us.”
“She’s crazy, we’ve already established that.” Akira rolled her black eyes. “Come on, let’s go find her.”
We all nodded our shadowy heads in agreement before we followed the sound of Luna’s voice. The witches we just met also trailed after us, and it didn’t take long before we found Luna’s half-wispy form hovering between two trees. She smiled at us with cold black eyes and beckoned us to come closer.
“I guess she did decide to morph with her shadow,” Nyx muttered.
“She probably wanted to wait until everyone else changed to make sure it was safe,” Akira commented quietly. “Is it weird that I’m both impressed and pissed off at the same time?”
“Just let it go,” Vesta sighed. “You know she’s an odd one… come on, let’s just return to our normal selves, shall we?”
“Agreed.” I nodded as we drifted over toward Professor Luna.
“Now, did everyone have a pleasant hunt?” the blonde professor asked.
“Yes, Professor,” we echoed.
“What did you end up killing?” she asked as she gazed at our group with black, soulless eyes.
“We attacked a herd of antelopes, Professor,” Morgana answered with her shadowy chin raised in pride.
“Ah, well done,” Luna said as the other students began to float toward our group. “Full marks for that.”
You did all of this for a good fucking grade? my own shadow’s voice echoed inside my mind. I think we could use our joint power for something else entirely. Imagine my power combined with yours… we could wreak havoc down upon your greatest enemy… I’m sure you have something or someone in mind, don’t you, Cole?
“I do,” I muttered as I thought about the fucking warlocks who still lived in their Mors castle.
I’d been craving to attack them for a long time now, but I never thought about how I’d do it.
Until now.
“Great, well, now after that fruitful lesson,” Professor Luna continued. “I think it would be best if we returned to our former selves--”
“Wait!” I cut in. “Let’s not change just yet.”
“And why not, Mr. Cole?” Luna asked as she placed one hand on her shadowy hip. “We’ve completed the lesson. You and your group have full marks! What else could you possibly want?”
“Well, think about it… we could use these powers for so much more!” I grinned with excitement. “For example, wouldn’t it be useful to take down an enemy? We are twice as strong right now, and when was the last time a witch or warlock bound themselves to their shadow like this?”
“Why do I feel like you have a certain enemy in mind?” Luna asked with a half-smile. “Oh, Cole… always thinking of the bigger picture. I’m not sure if that’s a good or irritating quality.”
“I’m thinking about the Mors Academy,” I answered as I ignored her last remark. “I think we should use our new forms and attack them. They won’t expect it, and we can finish them off once and for all.”
Excited whispers, shocked gasps, and chitter-chatter filled the air as soon as the idea left my lips, and at that moment, I knew everyone else was already on board with the idea. We all loathed the Mors students for their betrayal, and I knew everyone was willing to spill the rest of their traitorous blood.
“Cole, I don’t know,” Professor Luna said slowly. “I mean, I love a good bloodbath as much as the next witch, but Headmistress Theodora never gave us permission--”
“Do you think she’d disagree with the idea?” I pushed. “You know her even better than we do!”
“Well, I can’t speak for her, Cole,” the blonde witch answered with her hands back on her lips. “You know that!”
“But think about it, Professor,” I continued. “It would be another enemy to wipe off her list completely. I think she would appreciate us taking the initiative… don’t you? She might even reward you for it.”
Professor Luna opened her shadowy mouth to say something, but instead, she placed a finger against her lips, and her black eyes looked up toward the sky.
“I suppose we could pay them a little visit…” she said after a long moment. “We could invade the halls and rip out the throats and hearts of all those who survived and then bring down the entire castle… eat a few warlocks and surprise Theodora.”
“Exactly!” I grinned. “I think it’s a great idea, and trust me, Theodora will think so as well.”
“But I cannot force anyone to come along,” Luna continued with pale furrowed eyebrows. Then she raised a shadowy hand into the air, spun in a smoky circle, and began to count all the students around her. “Oh, Satan… I lost count… I’d say a few hundred are here… now, does anyone object to visiting the Mors Academy? Err… I suppose visit is the wrong word, but you know what I mean. If so, this is your last and only chance to say something!”
When no one said a word, I rubbed my hands together and licked my lips with bloodthirsty anticipation.
“Well, then…” I said as a smirk spread across my face. “What are we waiting for? Let’s kill some Mors bastards!”