Chapter 14
My world was cold, black, and nothing but a deep void of death, and I could feel the water rushing through my lungs as I was dragged further down into the abyss. There was no light, not even when I glanced up at the surface, and my head grew lighter as the grip around my ankle tightened and squeezed. I tried to adjust my eyes and look down at whatever had its merciless hold on me, but I couldn’t see a fucking thing.
I heard my coven’s distorted screams somewhere above me, but their voices were a mere echo, and soon they too disappeared into the dark water.
If my life was on the line, then so was my coven’s, and nothing, holy or unholy, came between my women and me, so I reached down into my waistband and wrapped my fingers tightly around my wand’s hilt. Bubbles slipped from my mouth as darkness took over the remainder of my vision, but I yanked out my magical weapon and aimed it below me.
“Dissulto!” I tried to gurgle, but more cold and rancid water slithered down my throat and up my nostrils, so I mentally willed the spell to slip from the tip of my wand and penetrate whatever mysterious creature had me in its unforgivable grasp.
It took longer than I expected, but finally, a slow red light drifted from my magical weapon and spiraled downward in long lazy circles. The bright incantation hit something bulky beneath me and exploded into a ball of red light. All I saw were shadows moving against the murky current, but whatever it was, it let me go.
But I knew the mysterious creature wasn’t finished with me. Not by a longshot.
My head and lungs screamed for air, and I slowly reached up with both hands to desperately try and push my body upward against the pounding pressure, but it was one hell of a challenge. The water was swallowing me like it was a beast with a mind of its own, and when I opened my mouth as a reflex, acidic water flowed down my throat and filled my lungs. My head grew dizzier, the back of my throat burned, and I thought it was going to be the end, but I had to keep fighting. So, with one more push, I clawed upward until I was close enough to reach the glittering surface, but just when I thought I was going to break through the water, the hidden creature shot back up and grabbed me again.
I tried to get my wand in position again, but then a shimmering light sped through the water and penetrated something beneath me, and this time, I could make out a slick green texture. I looked up to see where the attack came from, and Marina treaded water above me with her wide purple eyes and her wand pointed out. She offered me her hand, and when I grabbed it, she used all her strength to pull me upward. We both shot up to the surface and broke through, and I greedily gasped and coughed up the rancid water. The other witches had their heads barely above the rising surface, and despite being close to drowning, relief flooded their eyes when they looked at me.
“Master!” Marina panted from beside me as she swiped the water out of her eyes. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah,” I heaved as I looked around. “Fuck, what the hell was that?”
“I don’t know,” the purple-haired Wicca gasped, “but I bet it’ll be back.”
“What did it look like?” Samara demanded, and the former goddess swiped her long golden hair out of her wide eyes. “Did you get a good look at it--?”
Before I could say a word, a strange wave of apprehension washed over me. I didn’t have to look down into the water to know the beast was lurking back up to the surface, and if we didn’t do something soon, it would drown us all.
“Spread out!” I commanded. “Keep your wands aimed downward and pointed at the ready!”
“Yes, master!” the witches cried out.
The coven did as I ordered and swam to different corners of the overflown cave-like tunnel. I didn’t realize until now, but we were in some kind of deep stone chamber, with curving moss-covered walls and no clear way out. It was difficult to look around since the water was only rising higher and higher, and when I realized we were trapped here with the strange beast and at a severe disadvantage, my stomach twisted.
“I-I felt something against my leg!” Beatrix cried out with petrified brown eyes. “Did anyone else feel it?”
“Stay calm,” I said, but then a different sensation brushed against my skin.
The deep gray water started to bubble and slowly boil around us. The witches immediately noticed, and their faces started to turn pink in the heating water.
“We’re being cooked alive!” Revna shouted as she waved her arms around.
I didn’t sign up for this shit! Alexander yelled in my head, and when I looked up at him frantically flapping his wings overhead, his focus shifted to Morgana’s drowning bear. Silvia, hold on!
“Everyone, keep calm!” I shouted as the water turned hotter and burned all over. “We’re going to get through this! Just keep your heads straight! That’s an order!”
“W-We know, m-master,” Akira rasped in between violent coughs, and her cheeks were as red as blood.
“We… trust you,” Vesta panted, even though the elvish witch was already as dark as a plum.
I cast my mind about for a solution. The beast below us hadn’t attacked again, but the water was continuing to heat and rise around us. My coven coughed and panted as they craned their necks back to keep their faces above the bubbling pool, and I gritted my teeth.
If we didn’t do something, and soon, we’d either be devoured by the beast, boiled alive, or drowned, so I took a deep breath, slipped down into the scalding water, and looked around.
There was nothing in sight except for bubbles and murky green water. My eyes burned as I swerved my body in circles and tried to figure out how the fuck we were going to get out of this one, but suddenly, a pair of bright ruby eyes popped out from the darkness.
It was the monster that had grabbed me, and the glowing eyes sat above rows of razor-sharp teeth. Its face resembled a reptilian beast, with a flat snout and serpentine eyes, and the creature shot toward me with its maw agape.
I whipped the wand in my hand, and even as the water burned my skin, I managed to open my mouth and recite another powerful incantation.
“Secare!” I shouted in a muffled and distorted voice, and a bright light descended from my wand and hit the beast right in between its ugly eyes.
Dark blood clouded the water as a deep gash formed across its reptilian face, and my spell cut so deep, I could see bone shining through the open wound. The creature wriggled its massive head to and fro, and its underwater roar sent a fierce current my way and shoved my body backward. I suppressed my own scream as burning water scorched my flesh, and the beast slowly disappeared deeper into the dark water.
My lungs cried out for air, and it felt like fire was slipping into them, but I had to push through. Everything was spinning, but I sure as hell wasn’t about to give up. I still had my wand in my tight grasp, and with every ounce of strength, I flicked it against the pushing current.
“Illuminana!” I screamed.
Bright light blazed and soared from the end of my wand, and it burned bright underwater. I could finally see everything clearly, and this time, I wasn’t going to be surprised when the underwater creature emerged from nowhere.
To my horror, I saw my coven and familiars floating unconscious just below the vanished surface. Their skin was pink and blistered, and barely any bubbles slipped from their noses and mouths.
Anger flowed through my veins like molten magma, and rage compelled me to swim ahead. This time, I was the hunter, and the monster was the prey. I had a feeling if I slaughtered the creature, then all of this chaos would subside, and we’d be free from whatever magic had its hold on us. There was no certainty in my theory, but I’d trusted my gut before, and I had to follow my instincts again.
I used my arms to push against the burning current, and even though my head was spinning in long circles and my vision was growing hazier, I felt powerful enough to keep going. It didn’t take long before I sensed another dangerous presence surrounding me, but I stopped moving and waited. I just let my body float there, helpless and limp, like a doll. My grasp was still tight around my wand, but I closed my eyes and pretended to be unconscious. If the beast thought I was drowning and unable to breathe or move, then it would think I was ready for the taking.
But the fucker had another thing coming.
The water burned me inside and out as I hovered in the same spot, and that was when something wrapped around my torso. It pulled me closer and dragged me against the heavy, hot current, and when I opened my eyes, I saw the beast’s head just inches away from me.
I swiftly traded my wand for my knife, and before the creature could open its mouth to swallow me whole, I plunged my dagger into its split head and stabbed repeatedly. Blood spurted around me in a crimson cloud and blurred my vision, but I continued to plow my weapon in and out of its thick skin. I didn’t stop until a low guttural growl resonated underwater, and the grip around my body loosened.
When the bloody water parted, I caught a glimpse of a heavy body slowly descending down into an abyss of darkness. Then another echo boomed around me, and it sounded like metal grinding against metal. The water instantly cooled and started to drain, and before I knew it, I could breathe again as the water receded past my neck. My chest burned with pain as I gasped for breath and hacked up lukewarm brackish liquid, but I was grateful for the feeling.
I looked around as normal sensation returned to my body, and the sound of my ragged breathing echoed through the cool chamber. The ground had risen, and now we were in a long tunnel without water. A round marble door appeared at the foot of the narrow passageway, and my coven was lying on the ground, as still as statues.
My heart hammered with dread, but when several women and animals spurted water from their mouths and gasped desperately for air, my chest stopped pounding, and relief swelled through my body.
“Fuuuuuuck,” Penelope groaned as she writhed on the wet stone ground and slowly sat up.
Her red panda familiar copied her every move and shook her head in frustration, and then she glared at Penelope like this was her fault.
The orange-haired Wicca ignored her impatient familiar and turned to gape at me. “W-What happened, master?”
“We nearly died,” Vanessa muttered before she wiped her singed fingers across her red eyes, “but thanks to Cole, we’re still alive.”
“I feel like I’ve been turned on a slow spit over a fire,” Beatrix moaned, and she winched as she poked at her blistered but slowly healing cheeks.
“Ugh, if only I could just shed my skin off in one piece,” Circe pouted as she tugged at a particularly red patch of her skin. “I feel so itchy when my wounds slowly heal.”
“Master,” Morgana panted. “What did you do? All I can recall is burning water, drowning us. Then total darkness took over.”
“That water was horrible.” Marina shuddered. “And coming from me, that’s saying something.”
“There was some kind of beast,” I explained in a rough voice. “I killed it, but it doesn’t mean we’re in the clear just yet.”
“I knew you would succeed, master,” Revna coughed before she looked around and frowned. “Wait, does anyone see my bow? It slipped away at some point.”
“Here,” Samara called out from where she was slumped against the tunnel wall. Her clothes clung to her drenched form, and her hair hung in large golden ringlets in her face. The former goddess winced as she sat up further and reached behind her, and then she pulled out the splintered remains of the wild Wicca’s bow.
“Oh, no,” the blonde gasped as she stumbled forward.
“I must have fallen on it, but don’t worry, I can-- oh.” Samara blinked in surprise when Revna suddenly stooped to help her up.
“Are you okay?” the wild witch asked the former goddess, and her blue eyes never once drifted to her broken weapon.
“I… yes, I’m fine,” Samara said, and a confused frown tugged at her lips. “The same can’t be said for your bow, unfortunately.”
“I’m just glad you’re alright,” Revna replied with a small smile.
The former goddess shifted awkwardly on her feet, and I had to stifle a chuckle. I knew she was unused to being treated with kindness and consideration, so she seemed at a loss for words when faced with Revna’s concern.
“Well, thank you.” Samara cleared her throat and glanced down at the broken bow still in her hands. “Let me… return your kindness.”
Before Revna could respond, Samara murmured an incantation under her breath as she ran her palm over the bow, and a moment later, the weapon looked new and pristine.
“Incredible,” the wild witch breathed as she was handed the restored bow, and she reverently ran her fingers over the polished wood before she looked up at Samara and grinned. “Thank you, sister.”
“S-Sister?” the former goddess echoed, and her ocean-hued eyes widened in her pale, damp face.
“Yes.” Revna nodded matter-of-factly. “We are all our master’s women and future brides, so I view you all as my dark sisters.”
“Awwww,” Akira giggled. “How cute.”
“It has a lovely ring to it,” Vesta purred.
“I love it,” Faye added as a grin tugged at her red lips.
“It’s a bit sappy, but I kind of dig it,” Nyx chuckled in her husky voice.
“I’m happy you feel this way, Revna,” I said with my own smirk. “But if you are all to be my brides, I first must complete this mission, so we need to get moving.”
“Agreed,” Vanessa said as she rose to her feet and pushed back her long wet hair. She then turned to look toward the doorway with narrowed eyes and gasped. “Wait, t-that wasn’t there before, was it?”
I turned my head to follow the professor’s gaze and studied the mysterious doorway that had appeared out of thin air.
“No,” I answered, “but it looks like it’s our only way out.”
“There are markings on it,” Vesta purred in a low voice as we all moved closer to the door. “Look, it’s in elvish.”
“Can you read it, Vesta?” Marina asked as her eyes flickered with hope.
“I think so,” the purple-skinned Wicca responded with pursed lips, “but it might take me a minute or two. From here, it looks like an ancient form of elvish, not the common tongue.”
“Well, it is probably instructions on how to open the door, so you should take your time and make sure you read it correctly,” Vanessa suggested with a furrowed brow. “We don’t want to make any mistakes.”
“Yeah, we have time, right?” Nyx drawled in a relaxed tone as she wrung her dark-blue hair out. “What else could they have in here besides a giant cooking cauldron and a monster? Right?”
Before anyone could agree with the horned Wicca, a deep echoing noise reverberated throughout the chamber and made the ground shake. Everyone’s pupils instantly dilated, and no one said a word until Akira shot Nyx a pointed look.
“I guess you spoke too soon, horn-head,” she grunted.
“Vesta,” I said. “How much time do you think it will take for you to decipher the message?”
“Let’s see,” the elvish beauty replied in a surprisingly steady voice. “Give me a moment.”
With our wands at the ready, we prepared for whatever new obstacle was about to head our way. I looked wildly around and tried to determine what the hell was going on, and finally, I heard an unsettling, grating sound at the end of the wall. I narrowed my eyes and fixated on the stone partition, but a cold sweat broke across my face as it started to move closer toward us. Then long black spikes began to push through the stone, and as the seconds ticked by, the spiked-wall was drawing closer and closer to us.
“Err, Vesta--” Beatrix began, but then I shook my head.
“What is it?” the elvish witch asked without turning around.
“Just keep working on it, Vesta,” I encouraged. “Don’t think about anything else.”
“Yes, master,” Vesta responded quietly. “Elia miz kerpa van t-tola…”
“My lord,” Samara muttered by my side, and the golden-haired former goddess actually looked nervous. “It’s getting closer.”
“I know, but I trust Vesta,” I said before I raised my hand in the air, took a deep breath, and closed my eyes. “Give me a moment. I’ll buy us some time.”
Then I pictured the spiked wall pushing back rather than moving forward, and I willed the giant nails to slip back into their confinements as well.
Motus.
I didn’t expect the sudden, sharp pain that shot through my head and made me shudder with anguish. I gritted my teeth, hunched over, and fought back the stinging sensation in my ribcage as my body shook with excruciating agony, but I refused to let it deter me.
The wall ground to a snail’s pace as the spikes retracted into the stone, but the wall itself was still steadily inching toward us.
“Master?” Marina gasped. “A-Are you alright?”
“Yes,” I lied through my teeth. “Just focus on Vesta.”
Cole, Alex said from where the familiars were huddled together near the door. Whatever you’re going to do, you’d better hurry.
“It says, ‘with the last glint of the full moon, the stone you seek shall rest on a podium of silver’… no wait, gold,” Vesta hummed as she studied the door. “‘The way to pass shall be determined by your will to spill blood.’”
“So, we need to use our blood to open the door!” Penelope declared.
“We should cut into our skin and smear our blood on the entrance!” Morgana suggested with a gasp.
“It’s worth a shot,” Vanessa said before she pulled out her knife and cut into the palm of her hand.
“Everyone, do the same,” I said when I turned back to look at the wall. “Hurry!”
The witches rushed to slash their flesh open and cover the door in their blood. My eyes were still fixed on the moving wall, and it took all my might to make it slow down even further. Powerful magic was at work here, and it was trying to push back against my supreme power. If I took my eyes off the wall, even for an instant, I knew it would come racing toward us, so I had to be the last one to make my bloody mark.
“Master!” Faye called out. “We’ve done it. We only need your mark to open the door!”
“Alright,” I said before I swiftly turned around and cut into my skin. “Here goes nothing.”
I could hear the wall rushing toward us, and as I reached for the door with my bloody palm, I heard Alexander cry out.
Cole, hurry! he warned. It’s coming!
“I know,” I muttered as I pressed my stinging hand against the cold marble, and then a creaking noise echoed through the chamber and collided with the sound of the spiked wall coming toward us at an alarming speed.
The door fully swung open before me, and I saw another narrow passageway leading into a dark underground room. Who knew what the hell was down that route, but we had no other choice but to follow it.
“Move, move, move!” Vanessa shrieked.
Our feet pounded against the floor as everyone scrambled inside, and then a terrifying boom blasted around us and made the marble door crumble into oblivion. We crashed to the floor violently, and chunks of rubble flew in every direction. Dust floated all around and made us choke and gasp for air, and when I sat up, I studied the broken doorway. Spikes were poking through the destruction, and it sickened me to think it would have been through our torsos if we hadn’t made it inside in time.
“Unholy hell,” Akira nervously chuckled. “That could have been us.”
“I so didn’t want to be turned into a shish kebab,” Nyx snickered while she pushed herself upright. “The only shaft I like to be impaled on is Cole’s.”
“Ugh, my mouth is full of dirt,” Beatrix spat before she stuck out her dust-covered tongue. “Gross.”
“It’s pretty dark in here, huh?” Penelope remarked as she brushed the grit out of her hair.
“Not for long,” Vanessa sighed before she flicked her wand. “Illuminana!”
The tip of the professor’s wand glowed with fire and lit up the entire hallway, and the light allowed me to scan the pathway to check for anything in plain sight. The corridor was mostly empty, aside from a few broken statues plastered against a long, cracked wall.
“I don’t like this,” Samara said under her breath. “It’s too damn quiet.”
“And empty,” Morgana added.
“Let’s keep our guards up,” I ordered. “We need to stay alert in case another trap just springs out of nowhere.”
“Agreed,” Vanessa replied with a long sigh. “Mother certainly created one hell of a hiding spot, didn’t she?”
“She most certainly did,” I laughed. “She did well. Now, come on, let’s not stay in one place for too long.”
The witches and familiars nodded their heads in agreement, stood up, and followed my lead. I kept my wand raised high above my eyes, and each step I took was slow and precocious.
As we made our way forward, the air slowly started to freeze once more, and it sent tingles coursing up my body as dread coiled in the pit of my stomach. I agreed with Samara, I didn’t like this one bit, but it wasn’t as if we could turn back. We had to make sure we reached the room with the Defero stone and then find the bones of my long-dead mother.
“It’s fucking freezing,” Penelope chattered with her arms wrapped around herself. “First the boiling water, and now ice? What’s next? A fucking sandstorm?”
“Ugh, don’t jinx us, carrot head,” Akira huffed through purple lips.
“It doesn’t matter what lies ahead,” I said in a low voice. “We need to keep going.”
“Yes, master,” my coven replied in unison.
Soon, snow started to fall inside the tunnel from some magic source, and the white powder quickly covered the ground in a slushy mesh. The storm didn’t seem too drastic until suddenly, hail started to rain down in sheets, and the chunks were growing heavier and falling faster.
“Look out, Faye!” I heard Morgana cry out. “Above you!”
I whipped around, and I saw a giant, boulder-sized hailstone was about to rain down and smash the redhead’s skull wide open.
“Volar!” I yelled, and the stone soared away from the women and toward the end of the tunnel, where it crashed into the wall and shattered into a million icicles.
“Run!” Vanessa roared, and we took off sliding down the tunnel.
More icy boulders started to rain down, and they crashed into the ground and sent cold, stinging bits of shrapnel flying in every direction. The floor became more and more slippery, and it was growing more difficult to run, but we couldn’t stop, not even for an instant. We ran and slid and stumbled, but suddenly, the floor stopped midway, and there was nothing but a giant gaping hole before us.
“Shit!” Samara gasped as she skidded toward the edge, and I had to yank her back. “Thank you, master. That was too close.”
“Is there any way across?” Revna demanded as more hail fell, and she used her arms and bow to try and cover her head from the onslaught. “We have to get out of here!”
“Not unless you can fly,” Circe hissed as she narrowed her eyes at the chasm at our feet.
Hey, I can fly everyone across, Alexander suggested. Trixie and I. We’re strong enough.
“That can work,” I said as I blasted another hailstone before it could smash Morgana into bloody bits. “But we need to be quick!”
I’ve got this, Alex reassured.
As Alex and Trixie started to pick up the witches and the familiars and fly them across the gap, I used my wand to disintegrate all the cascading rocks. The cold air whipped across my skin, stung my fingers, and made it almost impossible to move, but I had to keep using my protective magic. My body felt like it would freeze into a solid block of ice, and my blood was running so cold it was growing harder to breathe, but I ignored it all.
I was the Dark Lord, and a little ice wouldn’t stop me.
When my coven and familiars were safely on the opposite end of the broken edge, Alex swooped down and snatched me under my arms. He picked me up, and as we soared across the gap, little bits of ice cut into my skin and split me open. Blood trickled down my face, and I could feel Alexander’s pain like it was my own, but I knew my strong familiar would not falter.
Then he gently dropped me on the other side, and the moment my feet were planted on the solid stone, we ran for it. We had no idea where we were running to, but we needed to make it to safety, if there was such a place in this deep endless tomb.
“Run, run, run!” I yelled.
The women’s erratic breathing echoed around us as we tried to escape the deadly storm, but it seemed like the more we ran, the harder the hail hit us. Bruises blossomed on our skin like spring flowers after rain, and each time a stone smacked against my bones, I had to ignore the pain and push through.
By the time we reached a small narrow door, we were bloody and battered. Vanessa was the first one to press her hand against the entrance, but when she did, her eyes rolled into the back of her head, and she collapsed to the ground, limp and lifeless.
“Vanessa!” I screamed, but no one could hear my outburst because the storm had turned into a new monster, one made of fire and ice.
The wind turned into a solid form, and a shadow of snow loomed high above me, but it was fully fleshed and seemed carnivorous. The creature towered high above our heads, with the bluest eyes I’d ever seen, and its roar sent more razor-sharp icicles our way. The spears of ice pierced the women and familiars, pinned them against the door, and left them covered in holes and blood.
I was completely alone now and about to face one of the greatest beasts I’d ever encountered.