Chapter 13
“Follow me,” I ordered in a calm voice. “The Defero stone is nearby. I can feel its power drawing me inside.”
“But, master,” Faye said with hesitant eyes. “Doesn’t this seem too… easy? There aren’t any guards, or spirits, or traps… at least none that we can see. I’m not trying to question you, but I just have a sinister feeling about it.”
“For the moment, we’re safe,” I assured the beautiful redhead as I paused a few feet into the entrance, “but we’re going to have to keep our eyes peeled and senses on high-alert. Keep your familiars close. Perhaps they can sense something we can’t.”
“Good idea, my lord,” Vanessa remarked as she stroked her loyal familiar’s head. “Isobel has always sensed danger before it arises.”
“Alexander, too,” I added. “He’s never been wrong.”
Thanks, Cole, Alex said, and my familiar grinned before he perched himself on my shoulder. You know I’d give my life to protect you. I’m just as loyal as your coven...
“I know, Alex,” I muttered in gratitude, and then I looked at the others. “Now, keep close. No matter what, I want you all by my sides. No splitting up.”
“Yes, master,” the witches responded before they pulled out their wands.
I took a deep breath, pushed back my shoulders, and stepped deeper inside the cold interior of Lilith’s tomb.
Like in my dreams, the air was freezing, damp, and thick with dust. It smelled like rotting moss and wet sand, but so far, nothing seemed deadly or out of place.
But I had instructed Theodora to make this one of the most dangerous dwellings in all of existence, for both holy and unholy believers, and while I didn’t know the particular obstacles ahead of us, there was no way in hell I would think this was going to be an easy endeavor.
No matter what, I wasn’t going to let my guard down. Not for one second.
All of our lives depended on every decision and turn I made. It was a heavy burden to bear, but for my coven, Scholomance, and all of Wicca kind, I was willing to do whatever it took.
I was their Dark Lord and sovereign, and today, I would prove it to all the realms, both evil and holy.
As I stepped deeper into the clay and sand molded tunnel, a sudden shiver creeped through my bones, and the sensation made my hair stand on end. I knew something was lurking nearby, and the time to be on high-alert was now, so I gripped my wand tighter and clenched my jaw as I looked around.
“D-Does it feel like something has changed?” Akira asked with her wand pointed in front of her. “I can’t say for certain, master… but I feel a chill creeping down my spine.”
“As do I,” I said, “and the further we venture, the more it’s growing. Keep your wands up steady and grab your other weapons if you need to. I have a feeling we’ll be needing them soon.”
“Fuck,” Vanessa huffed, and when she spoke, a soft mist emitted from her lips. “Do you feel the air changing? It’s freezing now.”
The professor was correct. The tunnel suddenly felt like a tomb of ice, and it made my bones ache with a numbing chill. Even my blood was turning cold, and every step we took was a painful endeavor. It was like daggers were stabbing up my heels, and the sensation was so severe, I feared our feet would bleed, and we’d freeze to death before we even came close to the stone.
“I don’t like this…” Beatrix mumbled through purple and quivering lips. “I-I feel like something is watching me.”
“Me, too,” Circe added as her forked tongue flicked out nervously, and her serpentine eyes were filled with sheer panic. “Do you feel it, too, master?”
“I-I do,” I grunted through my chattering teeth, “but whatever this cold inferno is, we’ll get past it. We have to.”
“Do you sense the stone, my lord?” Samara questioned.
“Give me a moment,” I replied as I pressed my fingers against my throbbing temples. “It’s not a strong sensation, but I do feel a pull toward something.”
“Is the compass saying anything?” Penelope asked as she rubbed her arms.
“Let me see,” I said before I grabbed the relic around my neck and checked the needle. It was still pointing north, which was the only obvious direction in our path. “We should just follow the pathway. That’s what my instincts are telling me, and it’s the only route we have available to us.”
“And you’ve never been wrong,” Vanessa said in a firm tone. “So, let’s stop complaining about the cold and go. Whatever crosses our path, we’ll deal with it.”
My witches obediently followed behind me without a hint of fear in their eyes or stature anymore. I knew they’d be ready to follow me to the ends of the realms if I asked them to, and I adored and admired them for it.
But now was not the time to be sentimental or dwell on things of the heart. We had to keep our heads and wands straight because each step I took seemed heavier than the last, and like my dream, it grew harder to break through the sudden barrier encompassing us all. Now, the air was not only freezing, but it seemed thicker and harder to walk through, like a wall was suddenly growing between us and the narrow passageway and attempting to block us from going any further.
“What the hell is this?” Akira snapped as it grew tougher to walk onward. “I feel like I’m trying to push through fucking mud or quicksand.”
“And the feeling will only grow,” I said without thinking.
I just knew it.
“It doesn’t matter,” Nyx said like she was reading my mind, but her voice was hoarse, like it was growing harder for her to speak or breathe. “W-We have to keep going, right, master?”
“Right,” I coughed, but something was telling me to turn back, and I had no idea if it was instinct or the voices from my dreams, but either way, I wasn’t going to listen.
We’d come too fucking far.
Suddenly, a deep rumbling sound emitted from the earth and made my feet tremble and nearly lose balance. Alex’s eyes went wide as he hovered over me, and I could feel alarm radiating from his body. The coven also wildly darted their eyes back and forth like a herd of deer facing a wolf, but pretty soon, their terror shifted into pure defensiveness.
They were prepared for anything and would do whatever it took to protect themselves and each other. I could tell by the grip on their wands and the fire in their eyes.
“Master?” Circe said in a low but steady voice. “What’s going on?”
“I’m not entirely sure,” I replied, “but we should probably--”
Before I could finish, the ground beneath us collapsed, and we fell into what seemed like an endless pit of nothingness. My stomach dropped along with us, and we tumbled downward and plunged into deeper shadows. I suppressed a scream as our descent into darkness grew fiercer and faster, and for a moment, I wondered if this was going to be our bloody and unsuccessful end.
Finally, we crashed down into what felt like soft clay, but the texture was sticky. I coughed and tried to steady my erratic breathing, but when I stood up, I was covered from head to toe with red, sticky liquid.
“Blood,” Vanessa grunted with disgust, and Isobel growled in equal distaste.
“But… this isn’t ordinary blood,” Faye said in a shaky voice, and she studied her red-streaked arms with wide emerald eyes. “This blood is far thicker, more viscous, and darker than most creatures’.”
“What are you saying, Faye?” Akira asked as she spat out some of the vile liquid and made a face.
“I-I’m saying something unholy and holy lives down here,” the redhead responded. “And it thrives on blood.”
“What is it exactly?” Penelope asked, but it sounded like she didn’t really want to know the answer.
“It might be a monstrol,” Faye breathed. “It’s a creature of myth and legend forged from light and dark magic… and it’s said to be unbeatable by common spells. Sounds like something Theodora would utilize here.”
“Well, then how are we supposed to--?” Revna began, but her words were cut short by another loud tremor.
The women huddled around me, and the familiars crept closer as the tunnel tomb walls shook. A deep, unsettling feeling settled in the pit of my stomach all of the sudden, and I slowly turned around with my wand in my hand.
And there, through the cracks of the wall, I thought I could see a pair of vivid, evil-looking eyes staring at me with pure contempt and a readiness to kill.
“Look out!” I yelled, right before something burst through the thick walls and came charging toward us. “Stupefaciunt!”
The spell shot from my wand and temporarily stunned the creature, and as it stood there, I took a moment to study its unusual form. It was a bulky, towering beast with hellish red skin, bulging bright eyes, two pairs of thick horns, and a wide mouth with rows of long dagger-like teeth. It resembled a giant with a man’s torso but goat legs and a long-horned tail. It was at least five times our size and fast enough to come charging at us again in a matter of seconds.
“Wands out!” I commanded before I flicked my wand. “Secare!”
A blast of light slipped from the tip of my wand and soared toward the massive brute like a bolt of sudden lightning, but despite the creature’s towering and robust build, it was able to dodge the incantation without a problem. In fact, it sped toward us like a bolt of lightning, and before I knew it, it was bringing its huge fist down on us.
If we didn’t move out of the way in time, we’d be crushed into bones and a puddle of gore.
“Move!” Vanessa shouted before we dove out of the way.
I hit the hard ground with a painful thud, rolled over, and stood on my feet as fast as my body would permit me. Then, with my wand pointed straight ahead of me, I fixed the beast in my sights.
“Dissulto!” I snarled.
A giant and powerful blast of light shot from my wand and hit the creature right in the center of its broad chest. The beast had no idea what literally hit him, and my spell sent him soaring through the air and smacking against the back of a wall. He slumped against the clay, and a smear of deep, thick blood dripped down the stone wall behind him.
“Way to go, master!” Revna cheered with her wand and a dagger in hand.
“I don’t think it’s time to celebrate yet,” Marina warned, and the former siren bared her teeth as she narrowed her eyes on the beast.
Then the bastard groaned and twitched, and when it lifted its head, pure rage burned in its eyes.
I knew my attack hurt him, but it also seemed to piss him off.
“Look out!” I yelled before the beast jumped to his massive feet and lunged toward us.
The witches spread out, and each of us took a position in the pit we found ourselves in. No one dared to take their eyes off the monster as it swirled its ugly head in every direction, and the women cursed at the brute and sent spurts of spells his way, but nothing seemed to faze him.
I wasn’t sure if it was intelligent enough to know it was outnumbered, but I didn’t think it cared either way. It grunted and growled as the coven’s incantations hit his tough exterior, but no matter what struck him, he remained on his feet.
And all the while, its beady eyes stayed locked on me.
The bastard was solely out for our blood, and when it reared its head at me and bared its fangs, I knew it was determined to destroy me first.
I tightened my grip on my wand, planted my feet squarely, and snarled back. I wasn’t going to falter, and no matter how close he came to crushing me with his fists, I knew I wouldn’t move an inch.
Not until it was time to slaughter him with my most potent form of magic, or rather, my Satanic supremacy.
“Master, be careful!” Beatrix screamed as the creature bellowed and lunged for me, but I didn’t answer her pleas.
Instead, I raised my wand higher and steadily aimed it at my foe.
“Secare!” I cried out in a feral fury.
This time, the light exploded like a small burst of lightning and sped toward the creature even faster than before, and I barely had time to blink before the incantation tore a giant hole through the monster’s broad and muscular chest. Blood, bone, muscle, and gore gushed from the split opening and spilled out from the monster’s wound like a sliver of wet snakes, and the beast’s eyes widened like saucers before it collapsed to the ground in a pool of its own blood and gurgled its final breaths.
“Unholy fucking hell,” Akira panted as she hunched over her knees, and her face was slick with sweat. “What the hell was that?”
“Faye was right,” Morgana breathed, and when I turned to look at the brunette, her eyes were wide with terror and relief. “It was a monstrol. They are constructed from the earth they dwell in and attack anything or anyone who passes through their territory. Of course, no one ever comes down here, so it thrives on the blood of creatures who crawl through the walls. It will kill anything, even those who’ve created them. They’re mindless bastards, and their only intentions are to kill.”
“You said they were holy and unholy creatures?” Revna asked with wide eyes.
“A mix of both,” the brunette responded.
“The most powerful kind of magic.” Vanessa winced, but then her eyes met mine. “Besides the one you wield, of course, master.”
“How did the headmistress wield holy and unholy power?” Circe asked in her usual curious tone.
“I’m not surprised she was able to wield it, it’s the headmistress after all, but normally that kind of magic is forbidden by the High Court, which means…” Morgana trailed off.
“She broke Wiccan law,” Vanessa finished.
“I must have told her to do it,” I said as I looked up at the hole we fell through and then around the chamber. “But that doesn’t matter now. What does matter, though, is finding a way out of here, and quickly.”
“Agreed,” Penelope sighed before she lit her wand to provide more light. “I don’t want to wait here and see what happens… like another monstrol bursting through a wall.”
“Or something worse,” Circe agreed, and her snake-like tongue flicked out nervously. “I don’t remember much about crafting beasts of both magic, but what I do remember is how discreet they can be. We need to keep our eyes and ears open.”
“No shit,” Akira chuckled as her black eyes darted in every direction. “Master, does the compass give us any idea where we can go? Maybe we can create a passage through one of these walls? I don’t think we’re going to be heading back up from where we came.”
“That’s not a bad idea, Akira,” I said before I pulled out the compass, but to my dismay, it was now spinning in slow circles, and no matter how long I stared down at it, it refused to stop.
“Anything, my lord?” Samara asked after a moment, and the former goddess peeked over my shoulder.
“No,” I sighed. “It won’t stop spinning.”
“Fuck,” Nyx groaned as she rubbed her horns. “I wish I was high right now… my anxiety is through the roof. Is anyone carrying any herbs on them?”
“Well, yes,” Penelope said with a sheepish smile, “but I don’t think I have anything for what you’re looking for.”
“Broom fucker,” the blue witch pouted.
“Relax, Nyx,” Marina reassured her. “Our master will find a way out. He always does. Right, Cole?”
“Right,” I mumbled as I looked up at the hole we made in the clay tunnel and wondered if there was some way we could soar back up and continue on our path.
I thought about it, but Akira was right. It didn’t seem like a sensible option, and at the same time, I felt like there was a reason we landed down here.
There was an outer force at work here, and it was trying to desperately tell me something.
“My lord?” Vanessa asked after a long pause. “What are you thinking?”
“I think we need to go deeper,” I finally answered. “That’s why the compass refuses to lead us to a proper route. We need to go deep into the earth until we find the stone.”
Are you sure, Cole? Alex asked in my head. That seems like a dangerous idea.
“I feel it in my bones,” I whispered before I pictured a giant hole in the ground, one that we could sliver into without difficulty. Then I made my decision and looked around at my coven. “Everyone, take a step back. I know what to do.”
The witches nodded their heads in agreement, took a couple of steps back, and patiently waited with their familiars by their sides. I could feel the tension in the air as I took a deep breath and tucked my wand into my pocket, and then I closed my eyes. I did my best to block out any doubts in my mind and raised my hands up in the air before I envisioned a small tunnel forming beneath our feet. In my head, I imagined the ground obeying my will and creating a path to guide us to where we needed to go, and when I was ready to enact my desire, I uttered the ancient spell.
“Modus antiqorium!” I shouted.
Suddenly, the ground started to shake, and my coven gasped as they tried to maintain their balance. Then I opened my eyes and looked down at the earth as it slowly started to form a wide opening. A circular tunnel developed fully beneath my feet, and when all was still, I brought my hands down and smiled at the others. The passageway was large enough for even the biggest familiars to squeeze through, but I had no idea how long it would be before we reached wherever we had to go.
It didn’t matter, though. We’d crawl for however long it took to get to the Defero stone.
“Well.” I smirked as I looked at my women. “Let’s get going, shall we?”
Before any of them could respond, I got down on my knees and crawled through my deep and dark creation. The earth was damp, and the clay-like soil smelled sour and rotten. Slimy and filthy critters of all shapes and sizes slithered around me, but I paid no attention to them, even when they crawled across my skin and nibbled on my flesh. The air was so thick that it was hard to breathe, but I ignored the discomfort and continued to push forward anyway.
My knees pressed against the damp ground, and the further we ventured, the colder it became. My heart beat faster as time went on, and the sound of our labored breathing echoed like we were in a deep, dank cave. We crawled through the tunnel for what felt like forever, but finally, I could see a slight drop ahead. Then I smiled with relief when I saw something other than clay, and the circular opening was glittering, like dark-green diamonds or gems. Because we’d been in a dark passageway for so long, it took a moment for my eyes to adjust, but then I realized I was staring at a pool of shimmering water.
“What do you see, master?” Revna cried out from behind me when I came to a slow stop.
“It’s a way out!” I grinned. “We’re almost there!”
The witches cheered in unison, but our joy was short-lived when a deep rumbling sound behind us made my heart stop in my chest. I looked over my shoulder, and my coven was pale-faced and unmoving. No one said a word, and as the sound intensified, I took a sharp breath of air.
Then dirt started to rain down on our heads.
“Move!” I yelled. “The tunnel is coming apart!”
My coven and their familiars swiftly scurried closer, and I held my breath as I turned my head and moved as quickly as possible toward the opening. If we didn’t move quick enough, the entire thing would come crashing down on us and possibly drown us in soil.
But I wasn’t about to let that happen.
I crawled as quickly as my body would allow, and then I neared the drop, fell through the opening, and crashed down into a pool of ice-cold water. A thousand needles of icy-cold stabbed into my skin, and when I opened my mouth, a rush of metallic water flooded down my throat and filled my lungs. I kicked and pushed with all my might, but no matter how hard I tried to reach the surface, I continued to sink instead.
The last thing I heard before everything went black was the echoing sound of my women screaming in terror, and then something snatched onto my leg and dragged me down into the icy dark abyss.