“I have an idea,” I said in a tentative tone, “but I’m not sure you’re going to like it.”
“What is it, Cole?” Morgana asked as she furrowed her eyebrows. “I’m sure whatever it is, it can’t be that bad.”
“Not too sure about that,” I replied as I shook my head. “Listen, you’re going to have to take off your cloaks… and show some skin.”
“But we’re only wearing our skirts and t--” Penelope began until her brown eyes widened with realization. “You want us to offer ourselves up to the king in exchange for the stone?”
“Just to get in without a fight,” I firmly pointed out. “It’s not as if I’m going to leave you here and then take the stone.”
“No fucking way,” the orange-hair witch snarled as she crossed her arms over her chest. “There’s no way in hell I’m doing that.”
“Why not?” Vesta asked as she swiftly began to remove her cloak and then toss it aside as if it were as light as water. “Cole’s never let us down before, and if he thinks this is the best course of action to take, I’m in.”
“But--” Penelope tried to argue, but my coven were already taking off their cloaks.
Even her group was undressing and unbuttoning their blouses, and as the women stripped, I wondered which witch should be presented first. I looked at Vesta, and now that her elvish ears were visible, and her skin was gradually turning back into its light lavender complexion, she looked more like an elf than a human. Her skin was glowing like moonlight, and her exotic eyes were shimmering like a silver river. Even covered in dirt, she reminded me of a goddess, and I knew no man could resist her. She noticed my stare, and before she could say anything, I pulled her forward and then looked into her wide eyes.
“Look,” I said, “you’ll need to stand in front of the others… I have a feeling this prick has a special hard-on for elvish women.”
“Alright,” she sighed. “I had a feeling I might have to do this… considering how beautiful I am. Let’s just get it over with, shall we?”
I gently pulled Vesta along while the others followed me, and Penelope huffed angrily before she shrugged off her cloak and then trailed after us toward the wooden door. I knocked three hard times before the large, troll-like man opened the door and then snarled down at me.
“Who the fuck are you?” he demanded with enormous yellow eyes.
“I’m a humble traveler,” I started. “And I’ve just so happened to stumble across these lovely morsels as I was returning home. I figured the king would enjoy a new addition to his private collection. I’ve heard he’s quite the collector.”
“He has plenty of women already,” the guard growled. “Fuck off.”
As he was about to slam the door in my face, I wedged my foot into the doorframe to stop him from shutting me out, so he glowered at me and then took a heavy step forward.
“Did you not hear me?” he snarled. “Fuck. Off.”
Before I could respond, a deep voice from within the suite echoed into the hallway.
“Gregson, who is it?”
“Some peasant trying to sell you some dirty whores,” he rumbled. “I told him to fuck off, but either he’s hard of hearing or as stubborn as a goddamn mule.”
“Well, hold on,” the voice replied. “Bring them in. I’d like to see the goods for myself.”
I smirked as the guard tentatively stepped aside to let us in, and as soon as we entered the hallway, the strong smell of incense hit us all at once. The jingle of bells and the beating of drums echoed loudly as we ventured deeper into the suite, and everything looked exactly as it had in my mind.
When we finally approached the king, he was slouched back into the bed with greasy lips and hungry eyes.
“Well, what do we have here?” he asked as he eyed Vesta and the others. “Bring them closer, if you please.”
I gestured for the women to take a step closer to the king, and I could feel the tension radiating off their bodies as the portly king eyed them like a piece of spiced steak. He licked his wormy lips and motioned for the other women to leave the room, and a small wave of relief swept over the dancers’ faces before they abruptly stopped swaying and bowed to the king. Then the two slaves left the room in a single-file line, and they both caught my eye as they passed through the door.
“Ah, Gregson, I think these women would make a fine addition to my personal collection,” the king answered as he slowly stood up. “You know how much I liked to collect as many trophies as possible… even live ones.”
He gestured toward his golden artifacts and the stone next to his bed, and the guard bowed his head.
“Yes, sire,” the troll-man grunted.
“I prefer to keep my private collection in here, rather than the castle.” The king winked at Vesta. “The wife has clumsy fingers, and I’d rather not risk beheading another wife for touching my most prized possessions. A king can only go through so many wives in one lifetime, and I’m on number seven.”
He laughed at his own joke as he slowly approached Vesta, and then he placed a thick finger under her chin and looked into her gleaming, silver eyes.
“Tell me, child,” he murmured with a greedy, slimy smile. “Are you mixed?”
“Yes, sir,” she answered in a soft, demure tone. “My mother was an elf, and I never knew my father, but I know he was fair-skinned. I am an experienced dancer, musician, and singer. I could bring you all kinds of joy… in more ways than one. ”
“Lovely,” he said before he released her. “I do love some dirty mutts… and that hair… what gorgeous hair and eyes you have, my dear.”
“Your majesty is too kind,” the elvish witch purred before she gracefully curtsied before the fat oaf.
As he was busy studying the women, I discreetly stared at the stone on his shelf. It was right next to his bed and in the middle of his other artifacts. The guards by his bedposts were staring right at me, and I knew I couldn’t just take the stone, even if I used apportation. They’d see it floating in the air, and we’d all be dead in minutes. I knew I had to come up with another plan, and that’s when I noticed the candles by the king’s bed. I studied the small, golden embers and then focused on moving the flames with my mind. I needed to cause a distraction, and this was the only way I knew how.
Motus.
The candle fire began to expand upward and caught onto the sheer canopy of the king’s bed. A guard immediately took notice of the flames and tried to bat them away without alerting the king, but I was using all my power to multiply the blaze as quickly as possible.
“Sir!” the guard finally called out. “Fire!”
The king swirled around and then took a clumsy step back.
“Well, put it out, for fuck’s sake,” he roared. “How hard can it possibly be?”
I narrowed my eyes, and my head throbbed uncontrollably as I spread the fire toward the bedsheets and wooden posts, and soon, the entire piece of pompous furniture was on fire.
“Dear gods,” the king gasped when he realized it was too late. “For heaven’s sake, get me the hell out of here!”
The guards swarmed over to his side and then practically dragged him out of the room by his armpits. Since the king was so fat, they were moving slowly, and I knew it would buy us some time to escape before they did.
So, as the chaos ensued, I focused through the smoke and flames, narrowed my vision on the stone, and repeated the incantation in my head. A moment later, the red stone flew from the shelf, through the haze, and then landed in my hand before I quickly shoved it into my cloak pocket. Now, the fire was spreading quicker than I intended, so I turned to the others and pointed to the door.
“Go!” I urged.
We ran through the king’s suite, and soon, other patrons and women were beginning to notice the smell and were running madly through the halls. Women were being shoved aside by men who desperately wanted to save their own skins, and the bastards trampled the slaves to get as far away as possible. The sight made my blood boil, but I had
to set my anger aside and focus on getting us out of here in one, unburnt piece.
“Fire!” people screamed. “Run!”
We were sprinting and panting through the brothel, but before we could reach the staircase, I felt someone grab me roughly by the arm and then yank me back until I hit the back of a wall with a painful thud. When I adjusted my eyes through the gray smoke, I realized I was staring up at the troll-like man, and he had a dark, satisfied look on his hideous face. He didn’t even seem to care that we could have been burned or crushed by the collapsing building. The only thing he seemed intent on was confronting me, fire be damned.
“You,” he growled as he jabbed a meaty finger into my face. “You caused the fire. I saw it.”
“And how the hell could I do that?” I snapped as I straightened myself up. “You’re mad.”
“Magic,” he spat at my feet. “I know magic when I fucking see it.”
I rose to my feet and then slowly reached into my sleeve for my wand, but before the troll-like man could reach for me, I saw Penelope take a step toward the beast and aim her wand at his back.
“Volant!” she screamed.
A light struck the guard, and he went flying into the wall right next to me, and before he could even stand up, I retrieved the stolen dagger from the back of my waistband and then stabbed him in the neck with all my strength. He cried out in pain and tried to swing at me, but I jumped back.
Despite his serious injury, the troll-man still managed to stand up on trembling legs and then glared at me with his yellow eyes. The dagger was still in the back of his neck as he stumbled forward, and he tried to reach for me with his meaty hands. I knew he wanted to wrap them around my neck, so I took another quick step back. Then I swiftly pulled out my own wand and aimed it at his thick throat.
“Secare!” I shouted.
A cut slashed across his thick throat, but it wasn’t enough to kill him. However, it was enough to cause him to stumble back in surprise as he clutched onto his neck in shock and horror. When I looked up to the ceiling, I noticed a massive chandelier hovering right above him, and that’s when I saw my next opportunity to finish this fucker off once and for all.
Motus.
The chandelier unhooked from the ceiling, and right before it fell on top of the giant man, he looked up and screamed. He tried to cover his head with his hands, but it was a useless endeavor. The dense ornament landed right on top of him, and he was instantly crushed. Dark blood pooled around the broken chandelier, and his troll-like body was positioned at an unusual angle. The dagger had punctured deeper into his neck from the impact, and I knew he was dead.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here!” I ordered as the witches stared at the mess with gaping mouths. “The entire building is going to collapse at any moment!”
We ran through the burning building and down the stairs, but before we reached the front doors, I noticed many of the magical women were unable to run away because of their chains and collars. They couldn’t even place their feet past the threshold, as if some invisible force field prevented them from leaving the burning brothel. Not to mention the poor mermaids who were trapped in their tanks.
I knew I couldn’t leave them in there to burn, so I used all my mental strength to imagine their chains and collars unlocking. I also pictured the tank breaking open, and I hoped to Satan these women would be able to develop legs like the mermaids I’d read about.
If not, well, I couldn’t save everyone, but I could at least try.
“Cole, what the hell are you doing?” Penelope shouted as she tugged on my arm. “Let’s go before the king realizes what we’ve done!”
“Not just yet,” I answered through gritted teeth.
It took every last ounce of strength I had left, but I finally managed to picture every single lock and chain coming undone. The slave women all gasped and looked at each other as the demeaning confinements fell off their bodies, but they raced through the door without further hesitation.
Then I refocused my efforts on the mermaid tanks, and as soon as the glass shattered, the sirens all gasped as they flooded through the broken glass and water. I held my breath as I watched their tails slowly vanish and were then replaced with legs, and they met my eyes before they slowly stood up and then raced toward the door as quickly as possible.
The women were all running as far away from the burning brothel as possible, and some patrons were also trying to run, but most of them were too drunk to even make it to the door. In fact, when I peered through the smoke, I saw the king and his guards slowly making their way toward us. No doubt it was difficult to haul his fat, slow ass down the stairs, which was why they were some of the last ones left in the building.
When the king’s beady eyes lifted up to meet mine, he scowled through the smoke and then stopped in his tracks.
“You!” He pointed right at me. “You did this, didn’t you? All my precious artifacts are gone! I’ll have you hanged, drawn, and quartered for this, you son of a whore!”
I ignored his meaningless threats and then used the last trace of energy I had left to bring the entire burning building down on top of him and his guards. The last thing I saw before all the stones came crashing down was the king’s wide, panicked filled eyes and a long, drawn-out scream.
And then everything faded to blackness.
Chapter 12
“Cole?” Theodora’s soothing voice called out to me. “Cole, can you hear me?”
It took all my willpower to force my eyes open, and when I did, I saw Theodora, Penelope’s team, and the rest of my coven staring down at me. Their eyes were filled with panic and concern, but then quickly turned to relief as I smiled weakly at them.
“Hey,” I muttered. “W-What happened?”
“The burning building came crashing down on the king and his men,” Penelope was the first to answer. “Thanks to you, and your kick-ass premonition skills.”
“I remember that,” I grunted as I tried to sit up, and when I looked around, I noticed we were back in the dungeons. The room still stank of piss, shit, and blood, and it made my stomach churn. “But what happened afterwards?”
“We were shadow ported out of there before the entire city could come after us,” Morgana explained in a soft tone. “You passed out right when it happened.”
“How did you manage to spread the fire so fast?” Penelope asked, and her brown eyes glinted with fascination. “I never knew it was possible to control multiple objects and elements at the same time.”
“It usually isn’t,” Morgana pointed out. “Right, Headmistress?”
Theodora was looking down at me with a mixture of concern and amazement written across her beautiful face. I assumed she’d seen the whole thing in her mind, and she was searching for some kind of explanation.
“Cole,” she finally said, “Morgana is correct. What you did was very noble for the magical races, but it could have killed you. You were controlling fire, stone, wind, and water all at once… it’s a Satanic miracle you weren’t killed in the process.”
“Well, we’re still alive and in one piece,” I answered, “and that’s all that matters, isn’t it?”
“Just barely,” Theodora responded as she helped me to my feet. “What you did was bordering on reckless, but there have been ancient witches with your ability to control multiple elements… it’s not as if it’s never been done before.”
“Ah, is that so?” I grinned weakly.
When I was steady on my feet, I reached into my pocket and then curled my fingers around the cold stone before I gently pulled it out. I studied it under the dim candlelight and let it sparkle for a moment before I handed it to the headmistress.
“Here you are,” I said as I placed the precious Defero into her hands. “Do I dare ask why you needed a second stone?”
Theodora smiled as she held the vibrant red stone, but rather than study the precious artifact, she quickly tucked it into her dress pocket and flashed us a small smile.
“
All will be revealed in good time, Cole,” she cooed. “Now, if I were you, I’d get some rest or perhaps some food. You’ve had quite an adventure, and it’s dinner time now at Scholomance… time passes more quickly in the other realms, you know.”
I knew she was right, and I should go back to my room and get some sleep, but now that I was back at the academy, I couldn’t rest. My mind was a frenzied mess, and I knew the only way for me to feel calmer was by studying. I couldn’t just wait for the next class to start. I had to feel productive.
“I think I’ll be heading down into the abandoned cellar,” I replied. “I’d like to read more about my special premonition skills… that way, I'll feel better prepared for the final game.”
“It’s your choice.” Theodora shrugged. “But don’t forget to take care of yourself.”
“Will do.” I nodded firmly.
“Well, let’s get out of here, shall we?” Theodora said before she snapped her fingers.
In the next moment, we were all covered in a thick cloud of purple smoke, and when the mist evaporated, we were back inside Theodora’s office.
“I’m not trying to be rude, Headmistress,” Beatrix said after a moment, “but why couldn’t you have done that before we entered the dungeons?”
“Because I’m not here for your shadow porting convenience,” Theodora tutted. “Now, off with you. I have work to do.”
We slowly left the headmistress’ office, and a part of me wondered how many more stones she would need before she told me who she was trying to summon from the tethered worlds. I knew there was no point waiting around to ask her in private because when Theodora wanted you to know something, it would always be on her own terms.
“So, that was a fucking adventure,” Penelope said once we were back in the corridors. She rubbed at her grime-covered face and then sighed at us. “Look, I admire you for wanting to study, but I think I’m going to bed for the next ten years.”
Scholomance 4 Page 18