Witch Queen

by Kim Richardson

  I’d swear that for a moment I could see a look of surprise and anger on the creature’s featureless face.

  As I swung my blade, it hit me with a harsh jolt of searing energy that sent me spiraling to the ground. I rolled and writhed in an attempt to rid myself of the spell. My limbs had begun to stiffen, and I was nearly paralyzed again. But because I had become accustomed to the creature’s spell, my own magic suppressed it faster this time. My body adjusted, and within a few heartbeats I had broken the spell.

  I jumped to my feet, sword in hand and a wicked grin on my lips. I was going to kill that pale bastard.

  “Seems like your magic doesn’t work on me, familiar.”

  I could hear his voice in my mind. You might be blessed with a stronger resilience than others, but in the end you will not last. No witch can withstand our magic. You will die, just like the others. Your blood is mine.

  Was that fury I imagined on its featureless face?

  The familiar hit me again and again with its magic. Each time it felt like a punch in the gut, and I was immobilized for a few seconds, but then I recovered and the spell broke. I stumbled and twisted to regain my balance as another bolt of magic hit me. But each time it became easier to recover, until finally its magic had no more effect.

  I couldn’t help but laugh. For the first time I actually felt what it was like to be immune to black magic—what it truly meant to be a steel maiden. And in this moment of clarity, I realized that my mother had gotten through the pass to Arcania because her magic had protected her. The familiars had no power over her.

  And for the first time I felt invincible.

  “Stop wasting your time, faceless,” I waved my sword and felt bolder by the second.

  “I’m going to kill you. And you know why? Because steel maidens are immune to your magic.”

  The creature lifted its head as if to smell me.

  Steel maidens are a thing of legend. There are no more witches of that clan that walk this world.

  “Wrong again. There is one left, and you’re looking at her, or can you even see me through that travesty you call a face?”

  In a fit of anger, the familiar threw a volley of magic curses at me, but to no avail. They didn’t even tingle. What a shame.

  I feinted to the left, spun, and came up behind it. As it turned in surprise, I slit its throat. The familiar’s blood spurted on my face and hands, and I gagged at the smell and taste of sour milk. Then I stabbed it in the head, just to be sure it was dead.

  I grimaced at the feel of its wet, gristly flesh on my hands as I pulled my blade free. The familiar slumped to the ground.

  Over the pounding of blood in my ears, I could hear the clangs and grunts of exertion as my men threw their blows. They had done well, and pale bodies littered the ground in puddles of white liquid. But still there were still way too many familiars left to fight.

  Will moved swiftly and deflected the talons of a familiar who was advancing on him. The creature never let Will catch his breath, but he parried every blow and returned fierce blows of his own.

  I could see Nugar’s battle-axe gleaming in the moonlight. I searched for Fawkes, but I couldn’t find him.

  My stomach churned when I saw that Leo and Lucas were in real trouble. They had been paralyzed and were as stiff as the statues in Soul City. Two familiars circled and danced around them, taking turns slicing deep gashes into their skin with their claws. They appeared to be savoring the moment, since the men couldn’t defend themselves and would probably bleed to death. I couldn’t see their faces, and I just hoped they were still alive.

  I moved fast and leapt over what I hoped was a dead familiar. A second familiar hissed and waved its clawed hands to cast a spell at me, but I didn’t stop to see if it would work.

  In a flash, I feinted to the right, ducked and twisted. When I straightened up, I sliced into the familiar’s neck. White blood splattered my face again, but I ignored it as another familiar replaced the one I had just killed.

  Left, right, left, I was assaulted by more familiars, and I struck down every one. They finally seemed to realize that their magic spells didn’t work on me. I could see it plainly as they stopped and swayed their faceless heads in confusion. But I didn’t care. I thrashed widely and deadly, until their mangled bodies fell at my feet in a pile.

  I caught my breath and caught a glimpse of Fawkes.

  He moved with the agility of a cat and danced from familiar to familiar, striking them dead with his sword. The two that were torturing Leo and Lucas broke away and leapt at him from behind. But Fawkes turned around just as they neared him, and with quick, deadly jabs the creatures fell at his feet.

  “Elena!” bellowed Fawkes. “Get to the horses. Go! And ride hard!”

  I wiped the sweat from my brow. Will and Nugar breathed heavily, clearly shaken, their faces and clothes were covered in white blood, but they were alive.

  “What about Leo and Lucas?” I asked. My breath came in rapid gasps, and a cramp pinched my right side.

  The spells of the dead familiars still seemed to enthrall them, and I feared they’d stay frozen forever.

  “Forget them. It’s too late,” said Fawkes. “They’re just humans. Leave them. They’re dead anyway.”

  “I can’t just leave them like this.”

  I took a steadying breath.

  “I won’t,” I added with more conviction.

  “Foolish witch! There’s no time for human sentiments. There are thousands more of those familiars. If we don’t leave now, even your magic won’t be able to stop them.”

  Fawkes wiped the blood from his sword and made his way towards the horses.

  “Then go. Leave. Because I’m not going without them.”

  I looked at Leo and Lucas’ stiff bodies and wondered if I was being foolish. I hoped I wasn’t risking our lives and our quest to rescue them. But I’d made my decision. I would not leave them.

  Fawkes mounted his elk in an instant. At first I thought he was going to abandon me until I saw him reach for Torak’s reins to steady him. He gave me a nasty scowl, but he stayed by the animals.

  “Then I suggest you hurry if you want the humans to live,” he barked. “We only have a few moments before more familiars arrive—before we all perish here for this foolishness.”

  My pulse raced. Fawkes could really push my buttons, but I knew exactly what to do.

  “Nugar. Will. Come and help me get them on their horses,” I yelled as we all ran towards the horses.

  I glanced at our packs on the ground, but there was no time to pack anything. We would have to leave everywhere behind. Moving fast we steered the horses towards the two motionless men. I could see movement in Leo’s eyes and realized with a surge of relief that he was still alive. Lucas was alive as well.

  We hauled them onto their horses and strapped them in their saddles as best we could. I tied their reins to Nugar and Will’s steeds and then tied Max and Garrick’s horses to them as well. I wasn’t about to leave any of our horses to the familiars.

  As I tied the last rein in place, I heard hissing, and a cold voice whispered inside my head.

  The homeland is sacred. The homeland is power. Those who leave, we devour.

  The sides of the cliffs crawled with familiars. They arched their backs and sprang.

  “Go! Go! Go!” I screamed. I pulled myself onto Torak, grabbed the reins, kicked him hard, and we shot forward.

  Will and Nugar were right behind me, and the sound of our hooves thundered in the pass. Torak tore through the pass at an incredible speed, and I hung on for dear life.

  Fawkes kept up the rear this time, but I didn’t dare risk a glance behind. I imagined the throng of familiars at our heels. There would be too many this time, and my magic wouldn’t help me against hundreds of deadly talons.

  We rode hard and didn’t stop. I thanked the Goddess that the ground was flat and urged Torak faster until I could hardly feel the pounding of the ground beneath his hooves. It felt like we
were flying.

  I don’t know how long we tore down the pass with the pale devils behind us. Hours? Minutes? It was only when the darkness lifted and soft light poured down on us that I realized it must be morning. But I didn’t dare stop.

  I heard Fawkes calling my name and looked over my shoulder. I was fifty yards ahead of them. Torak’s speed had outshone the other horses again. Leo and Lucas appeared to be all right. They were sitting up in their saddles and riding hard. And there were no signs of the familiars.

  I scanned the cliffs that surrounded us. At first it was hard to focus as Torak threw me around, but as I steadied myself, I could see only rock and mountains.

  I slowed Torak and stroked his neck to calm him. Fawkes steered his elk next to me. In spite of the dry white flakes that covered his face, it only took a moment for me to see how relaxed he had become.

  “The familiars,” I gasped. My throat was raw, and I was thirsty. I blinked the sweat from my eyes and scanned the peaks behind me. “Why have they stopped chasing us?”

  Fawkes pointed straight ahead and said, “Because we have arrived at our destination.”

  I hadn’t even noticed that we’d reached the end of the pass. And as the morning light bathed us in warmth, we stood at the entrance to another realm.

  Sprawled before us was a world of magic and mystery. Witchdom.

  CHAPTER 15

  WITCHDOM WAS A BREATHTAKING world of sparkling rivers, snowcapped mountains, rolling green hills, and primeval forests and river valleys. Although I could see villages and towns, the landscape was eerily silent, as though the world was holding its breath.

  It looked like Arcania in many ways, but within its rolling hills, waterways, and greenery lay the secrets of magic.

  I was dizzy from hunger. The cool air had finally settled in, and I felt a chill in my bones, too. But I refused to ask Fawkes to warm me with his magic. I didn’t want him to feel as though I really needed him.

  The world was awash in the pinkish light of a rising sun, and I let out a shaky breath. After over a month’s travel, we had finally made it to the witches’ realm. We had done it.

  I wasn’t sure what I had expected to see. Maybe I thought I’d feel some sort of connection that would bring me closer to my mother’s homeland. However, nothing but dread was in my heart. I didn’t feel like I’d accomplished anything, even though I had traveled across an entire country, because I knew that the worst was yet to come.

  As I slid off Torak’s back, and when my boots hit solid ground I jumped back in surprise. A subtle vibration pulsed against my feet, as though thousands of bees lived underground. Instinctively I looked at Fawkes.

  “The magic in Witchdom is potent, especially here. It is most concentrated near the borders, in the mountains,” he explained as he dismounted his elk. “You’ll get used to it.”

  The earth’s magic throbbed like a heartbeat, as though there were a spring of magic below my feet.

  The men looked at each other uneasily before they all dismounted. But if they felt the magic pulsing beneath their feet, they didn’t mention it. They seemed unaware of the magic’s pull. Maybe they couldn’t feel it. Maybe only witches could feel the magic.

  At another time I would have felt privileged or special to have felt the pulsing of magic when the others hadn’t. But I still couldn’t shake the dread in my heart, and it was getting worse.

  “We made it,” said Leo, shaking me out of my thoughts. He smiled at me, but he was paler than usual, and there were dark circles under his eyes.

  “Yes. Yes, we did.” My smile didn’t reach my eyes.

  My dread was slowly becoming an ache in my soul, and I strained to control myself. I would not let the men see me falter. I couldn’t let them see how panicked I truly felt.

  “Is it what you expected?”

  I shrugged at Leo, “To tell you the truth, I have no idea what I expected.”

  “Well, from the stories I heard as a boy, I was expecting to see fire and ash everywhere, and rivers flowing with the blood of tortured folks. But it looks pretty much like back home, doesn’t it?”

  The color was coming back into his cheeks.

  I nodded. I had heard the exact same stories. “I guess it does.”

  “You were right, Elena,” said Leo as he turned his gaze towards the Witchdom. “Folks from the Pit are small minded and ignorant. Look at me, believing in children’s tales. It’s like you said, witches are just like us, maybe just a little different around the edges.”

  He looked at his feet as the flush on his cheeks moved down his neck.

  “And I’m sorry I ever doubted you. But I have faith now. This witch king is going to help us. I can feel it. We’re going to save the realm…we’re going to save Jon.”

  With a winning smile, he made his way back to the group, leaving me with words in my mouth that I couldn’t utter. When I looked back at the men, I could see that some of the tension had faded from their expressions, and they carried themselves more lightly. It was clear that whatever atrocities they’d expected once we had crossed the pass hadn’t happened. I even saw a few smiles as they began to relax.

  Part of me wanted to slap them out of it, to warn them against being too careless, and not to let the familiarity of this realm fool them.

  But I couldn’t. They’d been through so much. They deserved a little hope. Even if it was for just a little while, even if I knew it would soon crumble.

  Fawkes looked troubled, however. Though he concealed it well, a slight shake of his head was enough to confirm my suspicions.

  Things would not go well at all. Humans were not welcome in Witchdom.

  After we had given our horses a much needed break, we saddled back up and began the journey to the capital, Lunaris.

  As we rode out, we were met with newly fallen wet snow that covered the ground in a thin white blanket and was slowly melting in the sun. I was glad to have left the giant granite rocks behind, but I couldn’t still the hammering of my heart as we began our journey. A cold sweat broke out on my forehead, and my undershirt was soon soaked. I had failed to calm my nerves.

  We set off on a less traveled road that was overgrown with weeds. Fawkes led the way on his bull elk, and Torak and I rode alongside him. I kept my face blank and watched him for any indications of how he felt our journey east would go. But he kept silent for hours, and I couldn’t decide whether it was just part of his charm or whether it was fear. From the little I knew of him, Fawkes didn’t come across as someone who would scare easily. The tension in his shoulders, the thinness of his lips, and the way he had shut down could only mean that he was also dreading whatever we’d be facing in the capital.

  Would we make it out alive? Was he leading us to our doom? Was this a mistake? Could we face the necromancer priests without the help of the witch king? Was there another way? Were we riding into a trap? I didn’t think we had any other choice but to continue.

  After a cold and silent night, we woke the next morning to a nonexistent breakfast. We did find water to slake our thirst, but it didn’t really satisfy the aching of our starved bellies. Fawkes managed to find a handful of mushrooms and berries that were safe to eat, but they did nothing to quench my hunger, and I drank more water.

  The clear, glorious day did nothing to lessen the chill around my heart. The closer we got to the capital, the more my nervous I became. I felt I was on the brink of an edge over which I was about to fall.

  After a few miles of riding, we came to a crossroads and turned northeast. The way took us through plains, over rivers, and up into rolling hills. Streaks of smoke coiled into the sky from distant villages.

  As we neared the first village, we met our first group of witches. They were working in the fields, just like the farmers in Anglia. My first impression was of how odd and familiar the sight appeared. I had never expected that witches would do any kind of hard labor at all. I imagined that they would have enchanted their fields to produce an endless supply of vegetables.
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br />   Before we got close enough to see their faces, Fawkes ordered all of us to pull our cowls over our heads.

  “From now on you must keep them lowered over your heads at all times.”

  I could see the tension in his face.

  “Humans are not welcomed here. Just as witches were perceived as the enemy in your homeland, humans are the enemy here. If a witch recognizes you as humans, they will undoubtedly try to kill you. And I will not be able to stop them. The only thing I can do is cast a temporary cloaking spell that will make you appear to be witches. But it won’t last.”

  The men exchanged worried glances but said nothing.

  Fawkes bit back his annoyance.

  “Never forget that there are only four of you. There are thousands of witches, and they would like nothing better than to peel the skin off your bones and watch you die slowly. Don’t give them an excuse. Keep quiet. Don’t react to anything you might see because it will give your humanity away. Keep our eyes on the road ahead and don’t try anything stupid no matter what you see. Understood?”

  To my surprise the men all nodded, but if they had felt any sense of good fortune earlier, it was now completely crushed.

  “Witches hate humans. Remember that.”

  Fawkes raised his right hand and quickly spoke a few words in a language I couldn’t decipher.

  “What language is that?” I asked when he finished. It sounded like the same strange words he had uttered back at the entrance of the pass. While the words were strange, the language was enchanting and had rhythmic qualities like the melody of a song.

  “Witchtongue,” said Fawkes. “The old language of the witches. Most of us speak Common and Witchtongue. All spells, charms, enchantments, and magic are in Witchtongue.”

  Fawkes seemed to read the disappointment in my face.

  “If we live through this, I promise to teach you the old language.”

  I beamed at him. “I’ll hold you to it.”