As the smoke grew thicker, I could feel the life force of this unknown man coursing through my veins and pumping boiling hot blood into my heart. I suddenly felt more alive, and when the smoke dispersed, I stared at Akira. Her purple lips weren’t moving, but I could hear bits and pieces of her mind. Soon, I could hear full-on sentences, and I listened carefully to whatever the black-eyed witch was thinking.
Damn, I wish Cole would fuck me on this table. I would love to be covered in human blood while he plows me from behind.
“Fuck, Akira,” I chuckled. “Even in front of everyone?”
“Wait, what?” she asked with her lips slightly parted. “You heard that? As in… every single word?”
“Yep.” I smirked. “Every. Single. Word.”
“Satan,” she said as her cheeks burned red. “I wasn’t ready, okay? It was a passing thought.”
“Whatever you say,” I snickered. “Look, why don’t you try me? I’ll think of a color, and you try to guess what it is.”
The short-haired witch then narrowed her dark eyes at me while I thought about the color blue. As she stared into my eyes, I felt as if she were trying to see into the inner depths of my soul, and after a minute, her breathing grew more intense. She turned a deeper shade of red, and sweat dripped from her brow before she started panting. She pressed her red fingers against her temples and then left bloody fingerprints along her skin as she pulled them away.
“Satan, don’t kill yourself over it,” I muttered.
“I can’t see anything,” she groaned. “You’re like a black fucking fog that I can’t see into… wait, is the color black?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Sorry, it was blue.”
“Broom fucker,” she hissed as she slammed her bloody palm down on the desk. “Fine, why don’t you try me again? I’ll think of a color.”
I nodded and then narrowed my eyes at her, and the short-haired witch tried to remain expressionless as I stared deeply into her black eyes. I didn’t hear her voice this time, but then I saw a river that ran deep with blood. The grass that surrounded the water was also red, and the sky was ruby with dark, crimson clouds that matched the classroom ceiling.
“Red.” I shrugged. “Am I right?”
“Correct,” she grunted as she leaned back against the velvet chair. “You know, it’s annoying how good you are at everything.”
“I think you secretly love it,” I whispered as I edged a little closer to her, and even after being drenched in blood and guts, Akira still smelled like roses and lavender. “In fact, it turns you on.”
“Whatever.” She smirked as she crossed her long legs.
“Are you two done?” Vesta asked before she whipped around and stared at us.
“I guess I am.” Akira nodded with her arms folded in front of her. “I didn’t see shit.”
“Me, either,” Vesta sighed. “How desperately unfortunate.”
“I guessed what animal Morgana was thinking of.” Faye smiled, but then the redhead’s grin faltered. “Although… it could have been a lucky guess.”
“Well, what animal did you picture, Morgana?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“A raccoon,” she muttered, and I couldn’t help but break out into laughter.
“Out of all the beasts, creatures, and animals in the realms, why would you choose your own familiar?” I snickered.
“Honestly, I was so nervous about succeeding that I blanked out,” Morgana moaned. “It was the only thing I could think of on the spot!”
The beautiful brunette then placed her head into her hands and let out a long, drawn-out sigh, as if it were the end of the world.
“She’s upset because she didn’t guess my creature,” Faye whispered, even though everyone could clearly hear her.
“Chill the fuck out, Morgana,” Akira snorted. “You heard Theodora. If we don’t succeed the first time, there will still be plenty of time to practice. Besides, we all know Faye has a natural born talent for animals.”
“I know,” Morgana pouted with her rosy lips. “I just don’t like to fail.”
“Yeah, we know,” Akira grunted under her breath.
“Enough, everyone,” I ordered, perhaps a little too loudly.
The witches all clamped their mouths shut and gazed at me with wide, obedient eyes.
“Look,” I went on, “we need to stay focused on what’s important and boost each other up as much as possible. That’s the only way we’re going to get through this final game. Got it?”
“Yes, master,” the coven answered in unison.
“Good.” I nodded.
Before my coven could utter another word, Theodora clapped her hands together, and the entire classroom went deadly silent. The headmistress then flashed us a slight grin and gestured toward the classroom door.
“Most of you are dismissed,” she chimed. “Those of you who need to stay behind, you know who you are.”
“Shit,” Vesta hissed as she glanced down at her blood drenched uniform. “Are we seriously not going to get cleaned up before the private lesson?”
“Is that a problem, Miss Vesta?” Theodora asked with her head tilted to the side.
Satan, this woman had the ears of a fucking bat.
“O-Oh, no,” the green-haired witch stuttered. “Not at all, Headmistress.”
“Perfect.” Theodora smiled. “Now, Penelope, why don’t you and your group come forward and take a seat next to Cole’s coven? Professor Vanessa should be here at any moment.”
I watched the orange-haired witch closely as she sauntered over to the table beside ours, and her posse obediently followed her before they quietly took their seats. When I turned to my coven, I noticed Akira staring intently at the other group with furrowed eyebrows and a deep frown.
“Hey, psst!” the black-eyed witch hissed as Theodora cleaned up her desk. “Carrot head! Over here!”
Penelope rolled her eyes and turned to look at our table, and as I stared at the orange-haired witch, with her long, slim legs and small waist, I couldn’t help but picture her underneath me, naked and begging for my cock to be inside her pussy and my seed deep in her womb.
I vowed to myself it would happen soon. I already had four gorgeous women under my thumb, so why not make it five?
Why not every beautiful witch at this school?
Why not every witch who served Satan?
“What do you want, Akira?” Penelope growled.
“Lose the fucking attitude, bitch,” Akira sighed. “I just want to ask you a question.”
“All right, so ask,” Penelope replied as she rolled her brown eyes.
“Theodora mentioned this morning at the meeting that there would be two teams of five for each school,” Akira began. “Why don’t you have a fifth member?”
“Well, tryouts for the other schools already took place, before the crack of dawn this morning,” the orange-haired witch stated. “Theodora also explained to us privately that we didn’t need an extra team member. She’d just eliminate two of us before the final game, and by two of us, I mean, two of my team. Something tells me she would never dare try and break up your precious coven.”
“Damn.” Akira nodded slowly. “Sucks for you.”
“Bite me, Akira,” Penelope scoffed.
“Maybe later,” the short-haired witch retorted, and then she stuck out her tongue.
“Easy, Akira,” I reminded her, and when she turned to look at me, her dark eyes softened.
“Sorry, master,” she muttered.
As we sat in our seats, Penelope stared at us with folded arms while the other members of her team whispered anxiously amongst each other. I studied Beatrix, with her golden-brown locks and creamy skin, and then at the attractive twins with their short dark hair and streaks of pink and blue.
I could make them all mine if I wanted to, but first, I needed Penelope. She would be the key to expanding my coven, and it would take some time, but I knew she would eventually give in.
My train of tho
ught was broken when the door suddenly swung open, and when I turned to see who it was, I saw Vanessa standing there with a small frown on her flawless face.
“Ah,” Theodora said as she threw her bloody hands into the air. “There you are.”
“Are they ready?” Vanessa asked in a stoic voice.
“Yes, I believe so,” Theodora responded with a slight nod.
Vanessa snapped her fingers as she went and stood in front of Theodora’s desk. Then she stared long and hard at us and raised her chin.
“Stand up,” she ordered. “We’re shadow-porting out of here.”
“Where are we going?” Morgana asked.
Vanessa shot the brunette a frigid glare, and Morgana swallowed hard.
“Not that I’m obliged to answer your question, Miss Morgana,” Vanessa spat, “but we’ll be heading into the Cavae Terrace.”
The witches around me all gasped and covered their mouths with their hands.
“What is that?” I questioned when no one explained the destination.
“It’s an abandoned realm,” Vesta whispered. “Its soil is said to be soaked with witches’ blood… it’s a notorious place, filled with hungry shadow demons and other soul-devouring beasts.”
“Which is perfect for practice.” Theodora smiled. “So, stop your chitter-chatter, and let’s go.”
My heart raced as I stood up and then joined the others who were gathered in a circle. Theodora and Vanessa stared at each other before the headmistress lifted her wand into the air and recited the spell. Purple smoke swirled around our feet, and then the classroom slowly vanished from sight.
In the next moment, everything turned black, and my blood ran ice cold before we even landed in the other realm.
I knew we were in for another extraordinary, but life-threatening, lesson.
Chapter 2
When we finally stopped spinning, we landed with a hard thud on slick red soil. The texture was unsettling, and it reminded me of blood-soaked quicksand. However, the unusual consistency of the ground wasn’t the only thing that caught my immediate attention. There was also a thick layer of fog hanging in the air and obscuring my vision, and the vast blanket of white quickly began to suffocate me. It felt as if my lungs were being filled with poisonous gas, and I did my best to quietly fight against the sensation and focus on the others.
“Oh, Satan,” Akira coughed as she tried to sit up. “That fucking hurt. And why is it so fucking hard to breathe?”
I rubbed my head and forced myself to sit up, and when I looked around, I noticed the toxic mist was slowly evaporating. When it finally cleared, my mouth gaped open at the vision in front of us.
We were in a massive crimson field that expanded for acres and ranged as far as the eye could see. The sky above us was a deep stormy gray, with inky black clouds that hovered directly over our heads. I’d been in many unusual realms before, but this place sent a strange chill down my spine. As I looked more closely, I noticed a row of wooden stakes wedged into the earth a few feet in front of us, and when I glanced to the right, there was a colossal stone tower with only one small black arched window placed at the very top. The structure was at least two-hundred feet away, and it towered up into the clouds, so Satan only knew exactly how tall it was.
As I stared at the stone column, I felt a strange, furious presence expanding through the air and penetrating into my bones.
Whatever took place here, it was terrifying, bloody, and painful.
In the next moment, I began to hear loud, feral, female screams that pierced my eardrums, and I had to shake my head to rid myself of the unpleasant noise.
“What the fuck?” I squinted against the onslaught and glanced around, but I realized I was the only one who could hear the screams since no one else seemed to be affected by the sound.
“Cole,” Morgana said with wide, concerned eyes. “Are you alright? You look a little pale.”
“I’m fine,” I reassured her with a smile. “Don’t worry about me.”
“Oh, get up, for hell’s sake,” Theodora tutted. “On your feet! All of you! We have work to do.”
Everyone, aside from Vanessa and Theodora, was splayed out on the vile soil, and each witch looked pale as death as they cautiously glanced around.
“Come on, now,” Vanessa snapped, since, as usual, her patience was wearing thin. “You heard the headmistress. We don’t have all fucking day.”
We scrambled to our feet and then tried to dust ourselves off, but it was useless. The soil stuck to us like blood and refused to budge, no matter how hard we scrubbed at our skin and clothes. I desperately wanted the red, waxy substance to come off, and I could tell the others felt the same. It made no logical sense to me because I could have been covered head to toe in a man’s guts with no problem, but being drenched in this soil made my hair stand on end.
“Um, Headmistress, what are we doing here, exactly?” Faye asked in a small voice.
“We’ll be combining psychokinesis with blood magic,” Theodora replied in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
“How invigorating and informative!” Morgana gasped.
Akira rolled her eyes at the bookworm and then edged a little closer to me.
“You’d think Professor Vanessa and Morgana both forgot we’re in one of the most notorious and infamous realms known to Wicca kind?” she whispered.
“That may be true, Miss Akira,” Vanessa said in a loud voice, “but rest assured, I’ve forgotten nothing. There’s a specific reason you’re all here, and it is disrespectful of you to question my motives.”
Akira shut her mouth and then stared down at her soil covered boots. Even the outspoken witch would not dare contradict or challenge the short-tempered professor.
“We brought you here because we need you to be prepared for anything,” Theodora added in a softer voice. “So, stop complaining and stand in a straight line. It’s not like this is the first time you’ve been in a dangerous territory--”
“With all due respect, Headmistress,” Vesta interjected. “This is the first time we’ve been on holy land… and I must say, it’s actually quite beautiful in a blood-thirsty kind of way. I know it’s wrong, but just look at the uniquely colored soil and the ominous sky--”
“Wait, did you say holy land?” I interjected with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes, this is where holy men would take witches and burn them, but not before they had their way with them first--” Morgana explained, but Vanessa raised a hand to cut her off.
“I didn’t realize this trip would turn into a history class.” The professor scowled. “Would you like to lead the lesson instead, Miss Morgana?”
“It’s all right, Vanessa,” Theodora said. “Cole is curious about this place, and he has every right to be.”
I knew Vanessa’s patience was dangling on the edge of a knife, but she would never dare to contradict her mother, so she remained tight-lipped and took a small step back.
“As Morgana mentioned,” Theodora began, “this realm has been placed under a holy prayer, and the earth itself is permanently drenched with Wicca blood. Human soldiers and elder knights brought witches here to be burned to a crisp, and that tower you see over there… It was built by ancient Wiccas when the elder gods and warriors abandoned the realm, and they’ve long since forgotten about this territory, for it means nothing to them now. So, that’s where we keep men who’ve scorched our kind. They were brought here ages ago and have been placed under an extensive life extending spell. This land has a terrible history, but we must face our fears and learn to conquer them. Understood?”
Before anyone could answer, there was a long, drawn-out scream that erupted from the tower. It sounded like a man, and it seemed like someone was peeling the skin from his bones.
“Never mind that.” Theodora smiled. “Let’s get down to business, shall we?”
The headmistress then waved her hand, and we all jumped back as the wooden stakes beside us simultaneously caught on fire. The flames weren’t ye
llow or orange, but instead, they were black as night, and the blaze smelled like burning, rancid meat.
The witches all pinched their noses and then took a couple of steps back.
“Our goal today is to move the flames with our mind,” Theodora explained. “This will be achieved by combining a blood spell with the power you’ve already harnessed through the man you harvested. Not only have you gained insight through his sacrifice, but you also hold the ability to move elements with your mind… it all just takes a bit of practice.”
We all nodded our heads, and then Theodora turned to look at her daughter.
“Right,” Vanessa said. “Let’s mix up the teams for this one.”
Everyone exchanged confused looks with one another, and then Penelope stared right at me with her chocolate brown eyes.
“Shall we partner up?” I flashed her a small smile and then inched closer to her.
“Fine,” she muttered as she looked away from me.
I repressed the urge to smile and waited as the others paired off into groups of twos and threes. Vesta teamed up with Beatrix and Faye, while Akira and Morgana each paired up with a twin.
Once everyone had their respective partners, we stood in front of the burning stakes and then waited for Vanessa or Theodora to deliver the next command.
“We will begin by forcing the flames to disappear,” the young professor declared. “Everyone stand together with your partner and try to picture a bare wooden stake. Then cut into your hand, and when you’re ready, aim your wand at the fire and say, ‘imperium meum.’”
I stood tall in front of the fire with Penelope by my side, and I could feel her trembling. It didn’t take my advanced premonition skills to guess the orange-haired witch was nervous.
“Can you go first?” she whispered as she shifted from foot to foot.
“Of course,” I drawled.
I cleared my throat and then stared at the black flames. At first, I thought this would be a piece of cake, but then I heard strange voices echoing in my head.
You can’t do it, the voices taunted. You’re not as powerful as you think.
I clenched my jaw and shook my head. Whoever placed a holy prayer on this land was trying to fuck with me, but I wasn’t about to let that happen. So, I aimed my wand at my hand and focused all my energy into the next spell.
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