Sorciére

by J. R. Erickson

  "A chain is only as strong as its weakest link," she announced, closing her eyes and trying again.

  She reached the creature but, as it started to burn, another lunged from above her. It struck her shoulder and she pitched to the ground, striking her head.

  Sebastian fell upon it with the bone. He struck it in the face, grimacing as the soft flesh caved in and the teeth broke away. Even after it stopped moving, he continued to strike it.

  Lydie pressed her fingers to her scalp and felt the mash of hair and blood.

  "Ouch," she whimpered, teetering on the verge of a full break-down.

  Sebastian scooped her up and carried her behind one of the large boulders that Oliver had dislodged.

  "Take a breather, little fire goddess," he told her. "I can take care of these guys."

  She nodded grimly, pressing her face into her knees to cry.

  ****

  Faustine became clear like water and melded into the limestone wall. He knew that there were two and that they were not small. Their footfalls sent thundering vibrations up his legs. A human might not have sensed the impact of their movements, but Faustine discerned their every shift. They paused halfway down the stairs and he wondered if the other witches had arrived. Only one continued forward.

  He reached for Galla in his mind and warned her about the Vepar lying in wait. His focus on transparency pulled him away from his telepathic connection and he could not be sure that she received his message.

  As the Vepar came into view, Faustine studied him for recognition. His huge blockish head sat atop an equally thick neck, giving him the appearance of having no neck at all. Black curly hair surrounded his large chapped mouth. His tongue stuck between a gap in his front teeth and his eyes held a looking of cunning determination. He looked dim-witted, but he was not. Tobias was sending in heavy artillery.

  The Vepar stopped and scanned the tunnel. Faustine felt the demon's eyes rove across him and pass by, but they paused. The hesitation was barely perceptible, but Faustine understood that he had been discovered.

  Before the Vepar could rush him, Faustine reached into the body of the dark thing before him. With phantom hands, he seized the Vepar's brain, an organ composed mostly of water.

  The Vepar charged him, smashing him back into the rock wall and knocking the breath from his body. He lost his hold and crumpled to the earth. The Vepar snatched him by the collar of his shirt and flung him into the ceiling. He could not shield himself and reach back into the Vepar's skull. His body struck the earth and he felt the bones in his right shoulder shatter. He glared into the demon's eyes as he hardened the water within the thick skull to ice. The brute's eyes widened and he staggered back, clutching at his head and wailing in agony. Faustine concentrated on the ice. As it hardened, he envisioned it splitting and spider webbing. The demon's eyes began to ooze black blood and he fell forward on his hands and knees. He made a final attempt at Faustine, lunging forward before he buckled to the floor.

  ****

  Julian and Elda went to the well. Though they did not receive Faustine's message of the Vepars below, Julian perceived them before they reached the farm property. He handed Elda a sack of black powder and a steel stake.

  He dropped in first, quickly using the rope to slide down the well. At the lip of the tunnel, before swinging in, he pulled out his own bag of black powder and flung a handful into the opening.

  Julian had created the powder. To it he added ground rosary peas, frankincense and the ashes of a thousand candles burned on the altar of his lost wife Miranda. He then sat with the powder for a hundred nights, invoking the greatest Vepar hunter the world of witches had ever known. The powder affected every Vepar differently, but it never failed to debilitate the demons in some capacity.

  When no sound returned, he swung into the tunnel to wait for Elda. The Vepar rose from a crouch and, even in the far-off darkness, Julian saw the red glow in its eyes. He reached for the bag of powder and started to warn Elda, but the demon moved like thunder. It struck him and drove him back into the well and they fell. Their tangled mass hit the walls and brought a shower of rock with them as they twisted in the air. The Vepar sunk its huge jaws into Julian's wrist.

  Elda dropped, focusing on buoyancy, but also speed. She slowed when she heard them splash into the bottom of the well. Pulling the bag of powder from the pocket of her cloak, she grasped a handful and prepared to rain it upon them. Above her, something slid across the well opening casting them into darkness.

  "Just throw it, Elda," Julian screamed from beneath her and she could hear them thrashing in the water.

  She opened the bag and flung it back and forth, praying that it would not hurt Julian as well.

  The Vepar took hold of Julian's neck and thrust him beneath the water. Julian grasped the sharp fingernails digging into his flesh. He couldn't breathe and conjuring a faculty of his power ceased to be possible as spots of white began to dance behind his eyelids.

  Elda pulled energy from the water and called upon the spirit of the sun to cast out the darkness. A brilliant white light illuminated the water and she saw the demon holding Julian beneath the surface, but his grip had loosened. The Vepar's eyes were clenched together and a stream of black foam dripped from the corner of his mouth.

  Julian rose and shoved the beast away. It swayed drunkenly, but did not fall. Julian pulled a dagger from his belt and, using his good arm, he thrust the dagger into the beast's abdomen, driving the blade in and up and until he felt the familiar burst. The Vepar collapsed and a rush of black blood filled the water.

  ****

  Adora tucked Abby into the backseat and stood outside. She walked the perimeter of the car sprinkling salt and grated osha root. She called upon the elements of earth, wind, fire and air to protect the young witch and to conceal her from searching eyes. Abby fell into a feverish sleep.

  She shivered and rolled over, feeling soft fur beneath her cheek. She tried to pull her blanket closer, but someone tugged it away. The blanket lifted and she stared at the naked back of a young woman. The woman pulled the fur throw--it looked like bear--up to her neck. She stood and walked toward the triangle of light coming through the single opening in the enormous leather tent. Abby scanned the tepee that she'd woken in, counting at least three more dozing bodies buried beneath heaps of blankets and furs. The young woman's long black hair caught the sunlight as she walked into the clearing where the previous night's fire still smoldered, leaking out wisps of gray smoke. The woman, Kanti, turned and Abby saw that she was barely more than a child really. A halo of breath stole from her small red mouth and her dark eyes glittered. She lifted a stick from the earth and began to poke the fire, then bent close to it and seemed to coo and whisper until the flames started to grow and dance. She shuffled out of sight and Abby stood and walked to the tent's opening.

  The girl sang softly as she gathered two logs from a stack of firewood and returned to the growing blaze. Then she reached into a small pouch that hung from her waist. She sprinkled something into the fire that made it crackle and laugh, and she laughed with it. In the dark forest behind the girl, movement caught Abby's eye. She watched a hulking shape, a beast of some sort, pacing within the shadows of the trees. Abby started to call out to the girl, but only silence emerged where her warning cries should have been. Abby lifted a hand to her throat, but felt nothing. It was if she were not there at all. In the forest, the shadow broke away from the trees. It was a very large man, well over six feet tall, laden with oily-looking black furs. Despite his size he moved quickly and, worse, quietly. The girl continued to sing and flirt with the fire, unaware of the man closing in. He took her in a single swipe. His huge arms enveloped her body, one across her face, silencing her screams and then he disappeared back into the woods. Abby stared at the stick that had fallen from the girl's hands and she watched the flames grow huge and bright and then, as quickly, they died again and only the smoldering embers remained.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Ga
lla, Thomas and Rod moved through the tunnel that Oliver had entered earlier that day. Galla conjured a dense shield of green light that shone out of her chest and surrounded them completely.

  Thomas walked in front and, as tunnels began to appear on either side, he stopped and consulted with Galla before moving forward. Galla no longer had contact with Faustine. The impenetrable earth and forces, that she preferred not to consider, put a stop to the visions.

  Rod walked between the two witches. In his hands he held a dagger and a fistful of Julian's powder. Of the three, Rod was the least afraid. His heart beat steadily and every muscle in his body reassured him that it was time to fight.

  When the Vepars appeared, blocking either direction, Galla knew that they would not all make it out alive.

  ****

  Demetrius and Max burst through the last of the boulders and rushed into the cavern. Oliver crouched on his knees, his eyes bloodshot and his face dripping sweat. The elder witches recoiled at the stench and covered their faces with their hands.

  "Good God, what is it?" Demetrius hissed, stripping out of his jacket and covering his nose. He didn't need an answer. He could see the mountain of rotted bodies rising up from the earth.

  Sebastian and Lydie stood in the center of a fire ring that Lydie had created. Charred bodies were laid around the circle, the hair of one fiend continuing to burn.

  "It's a dumping site," Max whispered, shaking his head in disgust. He went to Oliver and laid hands on his back. He sent radiant light into the young witch and allowed his own energy to be depleted as Oliver healed.

  Lydie released the fire ring and ran to Max. She nearly knocked him down. He bent over and hugged her fiercely.

  "You're okay now," he whispered into the top of her head. She cried openly, balling his shirt in her fists and pressing her face into the fabric.

  ****

  The first Vepar struck the shield and blew the energy apart. The blast rocked them all. Before Galla could try to recreate it, Rod rushed forward and attacked the Vepar who lay stunned on the ground. He stabbed at the demon, sinking his blade into its neck and chest.

  Thomas raced to his aid, knowing that Rod did not have the strength to thrust the stake through the Vepar's chest plate. He pushed Rod out of the way and slammed his fist hard into the handle.

  Vesta emerged from the shadows and fell upon Thomas. She sank her teeth into the soft flesh of his neck. She did not merely bite to anesthetize, but to kill. As his neck opened, she drank the witch's blood and felt her overpowering thirst finally quenched.

  Galla could only watch in horror as Thomas buckled beneath the succubus. Beyond Vesta, the Vepar Wrath watched Galla with cold dark eyes and it took all of the power within her to hold him back. She held her palms toward him and created a wind strong enough to stop him from moving forward.

  As Vesta drank, Rod threw the black powder into her face. She hacked and spit and turned on him.

  "He's mine," she growled to another Vepar, also a woman, but a smaller pixie-ish thing with pointed spikes for hair and rings sticking from nearly every orifice in her face.

  Vesta grabbed for him, but her hand froze in mid-air. She started to tremble and convulse. She turned back to the smaller Vepar, but the demon backed away and hissed when Rod reached for another handful of the powder. She retreated further into the tunnel. Vesta's head shook mechanically to the side as if trying to rid her ears of water. Thomas's blood flowed from her lips.

  Rod pulled the stake from the chest of the fallen Vepar and plunged it into Vesta. She did not cry out, but sank to the ground. Her body slowed and then stopped shaking. He pushed it deeper and, when it still did not break through, he stood and, with precision, jumped and landed on the handle. It slammed into the Vepar and her eyes shot open and locked on his. She let out a gurgling scream and then the black thing that she'd traded for her soul exploded within her.

  ****

  Elda drove the stake into the Vepar that lay unconscious near Faustine.

  "My old friend," Faustine sighed as Julian offered his hand. "And I see that we are in similar positions." He gestured at his limp arm.

  "Yes, and damn, does this anti-venom make my blood feel like ice," Julian complained, offering Faustine a one-armed hug.

  Elda put the blade in her cloak and walked to Faustine. Gently, she took his face in her hands and kissed him.

  "I prayed for this moment," she told him, fighting back tears. "I was not sure..."

  "Shh...I know, darling. Let's celebrate like the old days when we get out of this pit of despair."

  Together they moved quickly down the long stairway. They did not speak, each on high alert for any disturbance in their energy field.

  They smelled the departed before they reached the bottom of the stairs. As they entered the cavern, Elda stopped, causing Julian and Faustine to nearly walk into her.

  "Oh," she placed a hand over her mouth and shook her head as if she might deny the savagery. Her heart broke in equal measure for the dead, the dying and for her coven. Oliver looked dazed and leaned heavily against a boulder as he spoke with Demetrius and Sebastian. Max sat on the ground with Lydie's head cradled in his lap.

  Elda went to them and helped Lydie to her feet. She hugged her close and apologized for her terror. Both Faustine and Elda took Sebastian in a long embrace. Sebastian fought the urge to ask about Abby. Demetrius had already told him that she waited for him above the earth.

  Max shook Julian's hand.

  "It's been too long," Max told him.

  "And what terrible circumstances for a reunion," Julian added. He could barely take his eyes from the mound of bodies. "I have never seen anything like this."

  "Nor have I," Max agreed, but he looked away from the dead. He felt the suffering still palpable in the room and it exhausted him to endure it.

  "Julian," Oliver hugged him with his good arm and laughed when Julian returned his own clumsy one-armed hug. "They must be trying to turn us into a coven of cripples."

  "Or eat us all together," Julian added wryly, immediately sorry when he saw the tear-stained cheeks of Lydie.

  "The dead people have stopped attacking us for now, but I'd rather not wait for another freak show," Oliver announced. "Let's get out of here."

  "The dead people?" Faustine and Julian asked in unison.

  "Yeah, Zombies," Sebastian said.

  "This is a charnel ground," Faustine spoke, drawing again on the ground water to bring him strength. He asked the water to speak with the dirt and rock and he listened to the language of life and death. "They're not only animating these beings, they are drawing power from them."

  "I want to leave," Lydie choked. The crying had stopped and her face had returned to her world-weary expression.

  "I agree," Sebastian added. He could not help, but think of Claire or Sydney lying in the pile of the dead. He imagined all of the people whose hearts would break when their loved ones never came home.

  "We need to consider our best way out," Elda said.

  "But where did you just come from?" Oliver asked. "Why can't we go that way?"

  "Because something shut us in," Elda told him uneasily.

  ****

  With Vesta's death, the tides started to turn and then Wrath, as if cued, charged Galla with all of his force. He drove beyond the wind pressing him back. His face held no expression at all. His eyes were two black holes that Galla could not look away from. Beyond him, something huge and black began to fill the cave. Rod shot forward and threw a handful of the black dust, but Galla's wind blew it passed Wrath and he fought on. She lost her hold and, with a final burst, she turned to Rod and screamed, "Run."

  But it was too late to run. The Vepar took hold of Galla with supernatural force . He grasped her hair and raked her to a stop. Rod seized her hands and tried to pull her out of the Vepar's grip, but he might as well have been a child fighting a toy from a tornado.

  Beyond Rod, a hulking black shadow fell upon them. Galla saw giant twisted wings and h
uman eyes--no, not human, Vepar's eyes in the wolfish face. With huge taloned feet, the creature seized Rod by the throat and dragged him back down the tunnel. Galla lost her hold on his hands and screamed in agony as the monster crushed Rod's neck and then disappeared into the tunnel's darkness.

  Wrath wrestled her onto the ground and pressed one grimy hand into her face and another into her chest. His breath smelled foul and saliva dripped from his pointed teeth. He kneeled on her legs, trapping her. She felt the upsurge of panic, but beat it back, focusing on the dagger concealed beneath her left sleeve. She thrashed and blew gusts of wind into his face to prevent him from lowering his teeth into her neck. He shifted further down her body and she screamed as his teeth pierced her thigh. He gnashed through two layers of pants and, in a single bite, pierced her skin and muscle.

  An excruciating heat poured through her whole body, but her hand released the dagger and she slammed it into the Vepar's temple as he drank. His mouth continued to suck even as his body grew slack. She shoved him and drove the dagger into his abdomen and up into his place of power. He died silently and his mouth shone with her blood. She scrambled for the anti-venom in the pouch secured around her waist. Already her vision grew blurry. She poured it into the wound and then began to drag herself back out of the tunnel.

  ****

  Abby came to in the car. She pushed the quilt that Adora had wrapped her in to the floor. Sweat made her shirt cling to her torn stomach. She lifted it and stared at the blood-soaked bandage.

  Images from her dream continued to course through her muddled brain. She saw the girl, Kanti, stolen from her tribe. She saw the fear in her eyes as the giant dragged her away. Suddenly a chill settled upon her and she wrapped the quilt around her again.