Chapter 4
“Dissulto!” I yelled as a racing cluster of elder men came charging in my direction.
A bright red light surged from the tip of my wand and blasted them backward right into the broken wooden door, and as they struggled to regain themselves, the wild women began to stab them repeatedly with their axes, swords, and daggers.
Blood splattered in every direction as the women plunged their weapons through the elders’ eyes, hearts, and bones. Each time they stabbed their enemy, a deep black spot formed in the elders’ wound and spread through their bodies like poison, just like the arrows the women used to attack us with when we first arrived. Hungry war cries filled the air, and the wild witches continued to rip these elder men into raw ribbons.
“There has to be some kind of magical coating on their weapons,” Penelope gasped before she shot a random spell at an incoming elder. “I’ve never seen or read about any natural poison that can do that kind of damage.”
“It’s pretty fucking cool,” Akira grunted before she ducked out of the way of another incoming spell, “but maybe we can inquire about that later?”
“I agree, and that’s coming from me,” Morgana huffed before she flicked her wand. “Glacio!”
The brunette’s spell went flying in the air and hit a group of elder warriors who were huddled together as they tried to defend themselves from Revna and her sisters’ vicious blows. However, as soon as the soldiers froze into statues of pure ice, the women swung their weapons and shattered the men into shards of icicles.
“Well done!” Revna cried out as she shook her ax in the air.
I wanted to relish in her enthusiasm, but then it felt like my heart stopped beating as another elder took the chance to attack the axe-wielding blonde when she had her back turned. I thought she was utterly done for, but before I could send a spell flying at the elder or even warn the warrior, she whipped around and cut his head clean off his shoulders with one swift swing.
“Thank Satan,” I whispered as I focused on the army. “That was too fucking close.”
Cole, the woman from my dreams said in a calm but firm voice. There are more coming from the north. Hundreds of them. You’re not in the clear just yet.
Fuck.
For now, we had the upper hand, but I knew if more men arrived, there would be too many elders to take on alone, even if the wild women were savage, fierce, and exceptional at both hand-to-hand combat and spell wielding.
“Cole?” Vanessa growled as she blasted spell after spell. “What the hell are you doing? Why are you standing there like you’ve just seen your own ghost?”
“There are more coming,” I hissed. “Hundreds, maybe even thousands.”
“What?” Vanessa shrieked in both disbelief and horror. “Fuck, we’re barely a hundred together.”
“I know,” I said, and as I struggled to come up with a plan, I thought of the mountains just north beyond the village.
“C-Cole?” Beatrix puffed before she shot another spell and sent men soaring back into the air. “What are we going to do?”
“I have an idea,” I said, “but I need you to watch my back while I enact it… Alexander, I need you to fly outside and tell me when the army is just below the mountain range.”
You’ve got it! my loyal familiar responded before he swiftly flew out the door.
As I kept my feet steady and breathed slowly, I welcomed Satan’s eternal darkness into my heart and willed the elements to obey my unholy bidding. In my mind, I pictured the peaks of the jagged, snow-coated mountain tops and imagined them cascading down into a deadly mass of ice and snow. I imagined the rush of sleet, fiercer and more lethal than any ravenous river, longing to devour the elders whole.
Then I closed my eyes and waited for Alexander’s warning.
“Cole?” I heard Revna’s voice ring through the air. “Is he alright?”
“Quiet!” Vanessa snapped as chaos ensued all around me. “He needs to focus.”
I took another deep breath and absorbed the darkness, and I could feel sweat trickling down my neck as I fought to maintain focus.
Cole! Alexander’s voice abruptly echoed in my head. Now!
Without hesitation, I pictured the mountains once more, but this time I saw an elder army just below the range, and then I uttered the fatal incantation.
Motus.
Suddenly, there was a crack as loud as thunder, and the echoes of a thousand screams rang faintly on the wind. The surviving elders inside the longhouse cast us glances of mixed emotions, and in my head, I could see the snow tumbling down and violently crushing the elder soldiers as they feebly attempted to race out of its ferocious path. Then the snow swallowed them whole and stopped inches away from the walls of the village.
My entire body trembled, but I still had enough strength left to destroy the rest of these bastards once and for all.
“You,” an elder with a bloody nose and bruises under eyes sneered as he locked gazes with me. “That was you, wasn’t it? We should have destroyed you first. Samara said there would be one witch to look out for. Kill him! That’s an order! Rip him into fucking shreds!”
“Everyone, gather around me,” I ordered. “I have another idea, but I’ll need your help.”
“Cole, what do you have in mind?” Vanessa muttered as she stood by my side.
“I’m going to use the ancient motus incantation,” I replied as I raised my hand in the air.
“You just brought down an entire mountain,” the professor said. “You’d better use your wand to channel the spell. I think it will spare you from blacking out again.”
“Alright,” I agreed as I pulled out my wand.
Without saying another word, my coven, Vanessa, and the wild women quickly formed a circle around me with their wands and blades extended.
With them protecting me, this was the perfect opportunity to take every single remaining elder out, and I quickly vowed to make it as painful as fucking possible. I knew it would take every ounce of strength I had in my body and mind, but it would certainly be worth it.
I focused on the soldiers and their attempts to push through the women, and I imagined their hearts being ripped from their chests. I pictured their plump muscles pumping blood through their veins, and once I imagined the organs behind their rib cages, I willed them to emerge, bloody and beating on the floor.
“Modus antiquorum!” I shouted as I aimed my wand at the large group of men.
The next thing I knew, the brightest light I’d ever wielded spurted like an explosion from the tip of my wand, and when it hit the elder men, they stopped what they were doing and then dropped their weapons all at once. My entire body violently shook as I fought to keep my strength and mind alert, and as I focused even harder on their lifespans, I willed them all to come to an end.
Suddenly, all the men’s chests burst open in a tidal wave of gore, and their hearts soared through the air and landed at the women’s feet. Life instantly left their eyes, and they crumbled to the ground on their knees.
A smile spread across my face as I looked at their open chests and broken rib cages, but then my hand began to shake uncontrollably, and to my utter disbelief, my wand completely shattered into a thousand pieces.
“Unholy fuck,” Revna was the first to gasp. “That was fucking incredible.”
“Thanks,” I grunted as I stared down at my shattered wand, “and I know.”
“Not only did you kill all the guards, but you also managed to wipe out the incoming soldiers as well,” Sigrid breathed with wide, disbelieving eyes as she approached me. “Satan, I can’t believe it.”
“I told you he held incredible power,” Circe remarked with a smirk, and her forked tongue flickered coyly past her lips.
“But, Cole, your wand…” Morgana breathed as she looked down at the broken pieces. “I-I can’t believe that happened.”
“Neither can I,” Vanessa agreed, and I could have sworn I heard a hint of regret in her voice. “Cole, I’m sorry… I was the one who suggested you use your wand instead. I can’t help but feel somewhat responsible.”
“Don’t blame yourself,” I said. “You were right, I used a great amount of strength, and it was the wise thing to do. I’d rather the wand shatter into pieces than my skull.”
“How the hell did that bitch find us?” Akira growled like a wolf as she kicked at a bloody elder corpse. “We’re in a secret realm for hell’s sake.”
“The woman has eyes everywhere,” Vanessa sighed. “I’m sure something was following us, and we had no idea. Her spies can take the form of many creatures, and I’m afraid we’ll never be fully safe from her ever-watchful gaze. Now, Cole, about your wand…”
“Do not fret, I’m sure we can make him a new wand,” Revna said in an upbeat tone. “Let’s get these bodies out of here and burn them. Then we’ll get a good night’s rest, and tomorrow morning, we can begin crafting you a new wand.”
“Alright, sounds like a plan,” I agreed, and the others nodded silently.
We quietly followed a group of women before they pulled out their stick-like wands and pointed them at the mass of bodies.
“Volito!” they shouted in unison.
All the bodies slowly began to hover up into the air, and we watched as the women guided them outside and began to create a pyramid of dead corpses. They chanted quietly as the mountain grew taller and taller, and I couldn’t help but wonder what they were saying under their breath.
“This is our tradition,” Revna whispered in my ear as we trekked onward through the deep snow. “We pray to Satan that their souls will become trapped in purgatory and that they’ll never see their beloved God in the afterlife. Then we burn them and let the boars eat their charred bones.”
“How lovely,” Vesta purred as the pile slowly grew higher. “I think it’s important to keep traditions alive. They really do paint a beautiful picture of one’s culture.”
“Indeed,” Sigrid agreed before the last body was placed on the pile. She then closed her eyes and cleared her throat before she aimed her thin wand at the bodies. “Illuminana.”
A fire quickly spread across the bodies, and the smell of raw, melting flesh instantly filled the air. The sound of the fire crackling and the putrid stench made a small smirk spread across my face, and I watched with satisfaction as the flames consumed every single fucking elder.
“Now, let’s get some sleep,” Revna said before she turned to look at me and my coven. “Do you all want to sleep together, or would you prefer separate cots?”
“Separate cots,” Vanessa said in a rushed voice.
“But we can sleep together,” I said as I gestured at my women. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Sigrid answered in lieu of Revna. “It’s the least we can do after what we put you through.”
“And for saving us,” Revna added.
When we stepped back inside the longhouse, the women gathered together to pull furs and blankets out of wicker baskets, and we watched as they laid them out by the small fire pit in the center of the elongated room.
“There,” Revna said before she laid out another blanket. “Now, is there anything else I can get for you?”
“No, I think we’ll be perfectly fine.” I smiled. “Thank you for your hospitality.”
“As I said,” Sigrid responded before she placed a hand on Revna’s shoulder. “It’s the least we could do. Have a good night’s rest. We’ll feed you in the morning before we send you on your way. Oh, and Revna will be sure to help you find whatever you may need to reconstruct a wand.”
“Thank you,” I replied. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” she said before she swept around and headed to her own section of the longhouse.
“Sleep well,” Revna added as she bowed her head. “I’ll be asleep on the cot by the end of the room… Vanessa, you can take the empty one next to me.”
“Thanks,” the professor yawned.
As the other wild women spread out to wrap themselves under their own furs and blankets, my coven took their time to remove their cloaks and boots and let down their hair before they splayed themselves on top of the cots.
I slowly removed my shirt, and when I casually glanced behind my shoulder, I couldn’t help but notice both Vanessa and Revna eyeing me as I tossed the fabric aside. Vanessa quickly averted her gaze when I caught her stare, but Revna didn’t seem to care one way or the other.
Meanwhile, Alexander and the other familiars found a corner for themselves and cuddled together before they fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.
“Master,” Penelope mewled as she laid on the furs. “Come here and keep us warm.”
I chuckled to myself before I removed my boots and slowly crept down to their level. Then I adjusted myself between Akira and Penelope while the others wrapped their arms and legs around each other.
“Goodnight,” I whispered before someone killed the fire.
“Goodnight, master,” my coven answered in unison.
As soon as I closed my eyes, I could feel my body drifting into a dim dream world, and for some reason, my heart began to beat wildly in my chest, like I was back on the battlefield. I could feel sweat trickling down the back of my neck, and cold shivers coursed through my numb body as I desperately tried to wake myself back up, but it was useless. Then, in my mind, I saw a giant black lake. The water’s surface was still, and there was a figure out in the distance standing just at the edge of the murky water. Her back was turned to me, but I saw her long, golden-brown hair, and I knew it was Samara. She wore a deep red dress, and even when I was close enough to breathe down her neck, she didn’t turn around or even flinch.
“Cole?” she said without turning around. “Is that you?”
“It’s me,” I growled, but when I reached down to look for a dagger or my wand, my hand went straight through me like I was a ghost.
“Don’t bother,” she chuckled before she turned around to stare at me, and when she did, I noticed her eyes were filled with tears.
“W-What the hell is going on?” I demanded.
“You tell me,” she snapped. “This is your head, after all.”
“Which you’ve trespassed into,” I hissed in a dangerously deep voice. “Get the hell out.”
“Don’t you think I want to?” she asked as she stared into my eyes. “I don’t know why, but I’ve seemed to form an attachment to you, Cole, and as hard as I try, I can’t seem to get you out of my mind.”
Her words drew me up short in shock, but I quickly shoved the sensation away. This had to be another trick of hers, and I wasn’t going to fall for it.
“You shouldn’t even be in my head,” I said as I tried to reach for my pendent, but my hand went right through my chest.
“That only protects me from masking my voice,” she said with a frown. “Remember?”
“Fuck off, Samara,” I warned. “We’ll see each other soon enough, and when we do, I’ll be sure to kill you.”
“I know,” she said as she took a step closer and pressed her hand against my cheek, and this time, her flesh didn’t seep through mine like a phantom.
Instead, a flash of memories that didn’t belong to me passed through my head like a raging storm. I saw Samara as a child running through a woodland, and then I saw her as a young woman beginning her life as a Wicca in training. I could feel her heart beating in time with mine, and suddenly everything turned cold. I could feel her emotions as if they were my own. I could feel her sudden hatred against the witches, but she was still torn between the holy and unholy way of life. This connection was far too intimate for my liking, but still, for some reason, I wanted us to remain bonded for more than just a few minutes.
But it came to an end when she pulled her hand away, and I gasped for breath as her eyes bored into mine like deep, silver-green pools of water. Then she suddenly leaned forward and placed her lips onto mine, and I could feel all her anger, hatred, and loss. For a brief second, I felt a tinge of pity for her, but then the dream ended as quickly as it began.
When I opened my eyes, Revna stood in front of us with a beautiful smile spread across her face.
“Good morning,” she said, and I noticed another fire was in the pit while other women were already up and folding blankets. “We’ll be having some cold stew for breakfast, and then I suggest we head into the woodland to search for the elements to craft your wand. Then we’ll return to the longhouse, and Sigrid will provide us with whatever we’ll need for our journey.”
I couldn’t help but smile when I noticed just how excited Revna seemed to be. I knew she was dying for an adventure and couldn’t wait to walk past these walls, but as hard as I tried to keep a smile on my face, it was a little tricky. That dream rattled all my nerves, but I knew I had to focus on the task at hand and not concern myself with Samara’s tricks.
I hated to admit it, even to myself, but I felt something other than hatred for her after that dream.
And I didn’t like it one bit.
“Sounds like a plan,” I said as I gently pried myself away from Akira and Penelope’s tight hold. I slipped my boots back on and then my shirt, and when I looked down at the women, each one was still deeply asleep, but I knew I had to wake them up. “Hey, we have to get a move on… rise and shine!”
The women groaned and mumbled before they opened their eyelids and rubbed the exhaustion from their eyes. Their hair was messy, and their cheeks were rosy as they slowly sat up and regarded the fully-dressed Revna.
“What time is it?” Nyx mumbled as she rolled back her shoulders and stretched out her blue arms.
“Not yet dawn,” Revna responded in a gentle tone, “but the earlier we’re up, the better.”
“I agree,” I said before I slowly stood up and rubbed the kinks out of my neck. “I’ll wake the familiars so they can have a bite to eat before we head out.”
As the women gently pulled themselves up from the furs and blankets and began to dress, I headed over toward the familiar love pile and gently shook Alexander’s shoulders.
Nooooo, he moaned in my head. I want to keep sleeping.
“Tough shit,” I chuckled as I shook him even harder, and Silvia growled in her sleep when his body nearly fell off hers. “Let’s go. You don’t want to start the day on an empty belly, do you?”
No, I suppose not, he sighed in my head. What’s the plan for today?
“We’re going to head into the woodland to craft a new wand,” I said. “Then, when we return, we’ll be heading toward the mountains. I want you and the rest of the familiars to stay here and eat while we’re in the forest, though. I suspect we’ll be using the ursas as mounts again, and there’s no need for Silvia to keep up with a bear three times her size.”
Fine, but you’d better be careful, Alexander grunted in my head. I don’t trust any bears other than Silvia and Naomi.
“I think we’ll be fine,” I chuckled.
When he finally got up, the other familiars followed his lead, and I headed back to the others and joined them as they sat crossed-legged on the furs with a bowl in their hands.
“Here you are, Cole,” Revna said before she handed me my own portion of cold stew.
“Ahh, thank you,” I said before I took a small bite, and the taste of cold potatoes and meat was actually quite satisfying.
“Yes, thank you so much for your generosity,” Vesta purred before Vanessa slowly waltzed over to us and grabbed a bowl from another witch who was handing them out.
“Of course,” Revna said.
“Do you always get up this early?” Nyx yawned before she stuffed a spoonful of stew in her mouth. “Satan, I feel like I barely slept.”
“Yeah, we do.” The wild Wicca nodded. “You get used to it after a while, though.”
“Where is Sigrid?” Faye asked as she looked around.
“Ah, well, she’s probably scouting the perimeters,” Revna responded. “She usually takes a group of women with her every morning to search the grounds and make sure everything is in order. Sometimes, they bring back a kill, but not always.”
“Oh, I see,” Faye murmured in a dreamlike voice.
“I bet that’s something you’d love to do,” I said as I glanced at the beautiful redhead. “Hunting in the morning and living in the wild.”
“Well, I’d only love it if I had you with me, master,” Faye said before she flashed me a quick wink. “You and everyone else, of course.”
“I’m not exactly sure if that would be the life for me,” Vesta chuckled before she took a dainty bite of stew. “I’d miss perfumed baths and fine wine.”
“No shit.” Akira playfully smirked. “But I have to admit, I can see the appeal of living like this… and practicing with weapons every day? Sign me the fuck up.”
“Well, I’d much rather trade places with all of you,” Revna said in a low voice. “I can’t imagine how amazing it would be to get up every morning and not worry about breakfast or other mundane tasks. I’d love to sit in a classroom and just focus on improving my raw spells.”
“Perhaps one day you could come with us to Scholomance,” I suggested. “Once we deal with Samara, of course.”
“I think you mean when we kill her,” Vanessa said with a raised eyebrow. “Right, Cole?”
Before I could respond, the doors swung open, and there stood the shieldmaiden side by side with Revna’s sisters. Their cheeks and lips were tinged with blue, but they smiled when they saw us. I also noticed a massive dead boar was floating behind them, so I knew their morning hunt had been a success. Then I peered over their shoulders, and I caught the bloody sun about to rise just beyond the walls.
“Good morning, everyone,” Sigrid said with a bright smile. “Looks like we’ll have plenty of meat for the next couple of days. Ah, but Revna, if you and the others want to make your way into the woodland and get a head start toward the mountain trail, I’d get a move on. The wind is picking up, and I can feel a violent snowstorm brewing.”
“Yes, my lady,” Revna answered as she bowed her head. Then she turned to look at us, and there was a mixture of urgency and eagerness in her eyes. “I’ll grab some furs and proper boots so we can ride back into the woods.”
“On the bears?” Faye asked in an excited voice. “We’ll get to ride the bears again, right?”
“Of course,” the wild woman chuckled before she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Now, let me get you the clothes we’ll need.”
We watched as the dark-blonde beauty collected everything she required, and when she returned, she was carrying a heavy load of fur capes, and her sisters helped her bring over the boots.
“Now, get dressed as quickly as possible,” Revna said before she swung her cape over her shoulders. “I’ll meet you by the gate doors.”
We watched as Revna confidently grabbed her weapons and then strolled out of the longhouse, and when she was out of sight, we all scrambled to seize our own capes and boots. I found an oversized fur cloak and wrapped it tightly around my neck, but none of the shoes looked like they would fit me.
Morgana must have sensed what I was thinking because, without a word, she pulled out her wand and aimed it at the last pair of boots.
“Crescere!” the beautiful bookworm incanted, and the boots instantly grew a couple sizes larger to fit me.
“Thanks, Morgana.” I grinned.
“No problem,” the bookish brunette answered before she tucked her wand away.
“We’d better go,” Vanessa said before she tightened the strands on her fur cloak. “A storm is coming, and the last thing I want to do is try to control the weather after all the power we exerted last night, agreed?”
“Yes, Professor,” we responded at the same time.
We stepped outside into the freezing cold, and then we trudged through the snow until we reached the village gates where Revna patiently waited. The bears we rode in on were waiting for us, and each one bowed their heads as if to say hello and welcome back.
“Now,” Revna said before her face broke into a smile. “Let’s go craft you a wand, shall we?”