by Logan Jacobs
“I see…” Sigrid said as she slowly nodded her head. “Well, returning to our former topic, just how do you plan on killing Samara?”
“We need to collect three holy artifacts,” I explained. “We’ve located one, but now we need to find the other two. We have no idea exactly where the other two are located, but what we do know is that we’ll have to pass through the Gelida Mountain Path to obtain the second.”
“The Gelida Mountain Path?” Sigrid echoed with wide, concerned eyes. “That’s dangerous territory, you know. You should take a guide.”
“I’ll go!” Revna said before she turned to look at me.
“No, you won’t,” one of the women at Sigrid’s side snapped. “It’s far too dangerous.”
“I want to,” Revna refuted in a stern voice. “I’m tired of repeating the same tasks every single day. This is by far the most exciting thing ever to happen here, and I refuse to pass up the opportunity.”
“I believe Revna would make the perfect guide,” Sigrid said as she smiled coyly at the ambitious witch. “She is strong, intelligent, and capable of great magic.”
The two women at the shieldmaiden’s side cast each other a concerned glance, and I could tell by their pursed lips and downturned eyes that they wanted to disagree, but since Sigrid was their leader, they had no choice but to obey her commands.
“Yes, my lady,” they answered at the same time.
“I can do this,” Revna said in a gentler tone as she stared at her sisters. “You must have faith in me. Satan will protect my every step. I know it!”
“We know you can do it,” the one with violet eyes responded. “Please, just be careful.”
“Of course, I will,” Revna said. “You know I’m one of the most capable witches here.”
“Agreed.” Sigrid nodded before she tilted her head back and took a hearty sip of ale. “Now, I suggest we finish this glorious meal and celebrate while we still can. Agreed?”
“Agreed!” Akira said as she raised her cup high in the air. “Cheers!”
The women chuckled as Akira gulped down her ale in seconds, and after we enjoyed our salted meat, we watched as some of the women began to dance and cheer as they drank and laughed.
“So,” Revna said as she turned to look at us. “I saw your wands… they’re pretty fancy. Your school must be filled with riches.”
“I don’t know about that,” Vanessa chuckled as she looked around, “but yes, I’d say we’re pretty well off. We’re one of the most prestigious schools in all the realms.”
“And the classes are invigorating, structured, and hands-on,” Morgana sighed in a dream-like voice. “Satan, I do miss it.”
“Why don’t your people send young women off to schools like other Wiccas?” Marina asked with an arched purple eyebrow. “Do you not believe in academic structure?”
“It’s not that we don’t believe in structure,” Revna responded in a patient tone. “It’s just not our tradition to send witches off into the world. For one, we like to remain as secret as possible, and two, it’s our tradition to pass off raw magic from mother to daughter and sister to sister.”
“Oh, well, that makes sense, I suppose,” Marina said before she continued with her drink.
“Do you have a wand?” Beatrix asked as she cocked her head to the side. “I didn’t see one on you earlier.”
“I do,” Revna said before she turned around and pulled out a simple, stick-like wand from the inside of her furs. “It’s not much, but it can enact powerful spells.”
“And clearly, you also know how to wield several weapons,” Akira said as she studied the ax hanging by her side. “It’s pretty impressive.”
“Thanks,” Revna replied in a modest tone. “We have to train every day, both with magic and weapons. Living out here is no easy task, and we want to make sure every witch is skilled in both areas… anyway, would anyone like to join the dance? It will keep us warmer, and it’s pretty fun.”
My women giggled as they turned to look at the circle of dancing women around the small fire pit, with their hands all joined together as they bounced up and down and drunkenly laughed with one another. Drums were beating on their own in one corner of the room, and even the familiars were watching the women with wide, curious eyes.
“I would!” Vesta said before she set her glass down and jumped up. “Who else would like to join me?”
The others laughed before they leaped from the bench and joined the green-haired witch. I smiled as I clapped along to the music, and the women continued to move their bodies to the beat of the drums. When I turned to look at Vanessa, though, her gaze was cold and fixated on the flames and not on the women.
“Professor?” I said before I placed a hand on her shoulder. “Are you alright? Why don’t you join the others?”
“I’d never be caught dead taking part in some wild dance,” Vanessa growled without meeting my eyes. “Besides, I’m not in the mood to partake in anything, but thank you for your concern.”
“Alright,” I said as I retracted my hand and raised them both in the air in defense. “It was just a question.”
As she continued to stare at the fire, her loyal familiar slowly walked up to her and licked her hands, and Vanessa couldn’t help but break into a smile as Isobel nudged and whined for more attention.
Ah, what a place, Cole, Alexander said before he flew down and perched himself on my shoulder. Great food, lively music, and hot women… we should stay here forever.
“I know,” I chuckled, “but we have a mission to complete, remember?”
Yeah, I know, he sighed dramatically in my head. A familiar can dream, though, right?
I laughed, but when I stood up to join the others, there was an explosive sound at the doors. Everyone stopped what they were doing, the music died, and despite all the drinking that had taken place, the women swiftly and expertly pulled out their weapons and aimed at the doors. My own coven also whipped out their wands, and both Vanessa and I rose to our feet as we pulled out our weapons and turned to the trembling doors.
“What the hell is that?” Sigrid growled before she rushed to my side with her weapon drawn. “Some kind of beast?”
No, the woman from my dreams echoed in my head. Elder scouts! They’ve found you, Cole!
“It’s an army of elders,” I hissed under my breath.
“How do you know that--?” Sigrid started, but then the doors burst open, and wooden shards went flying everywhere.
Shrill war cries filled the air as the wild women charged at the horn-headed elders, who looked exactly like the random scout I’d killed in the woods.
Shit.
Chapter 4
“Dissulto!” I yelled as a racing cluster of elder men came charging in my direction.
A bright red light surged from the tip of my wand and blasted them backward right into the broken wooden door, and as they struggled to regain themselves, the wild women began to stab them repeatedly with their axes, swords, and daggers.
Blood splattered in every direction as the women plunged their weapons through the elders’ eyes, hearts, and bones. Each time they stabbed their enemy, a deep black spot formed in the elders’ wound and spread through their bodies like poison, just like the arrows the women used to attack us with when we first arrived. Hungry war cries filled the air, and the wild witches continued to rip these elder men into raw ribbons.
“There has to be some kind of magical coating on their weapons,” Penelope gasped before she shot a random spell at an incoming elder. “I’ve never seen or read about any natural poison that can do that kind of damage.”
“It’s pretty fucking cool,” Akira grunted before she ducked out of the way of another incoming spell, “but maybe we can inquire about that later?”
“I agree, and that’s coming from me,” Morgana huffed before she flicked her wand. “Glacio!”
The brunette’s spell went flying in the air and hit a group of elder warriors who were huddled together as they tried to defend themselv
es from Revna and her sisters’ vicious blows. However, as soon as the soldiers froze into statues of pure ice, the women swung their weapons and shattered the men into shards of icicles.
“Well done!” Revna cried out as she shook her ax in the air.
I wanted to relish in her enthusiasm, but then it felt like my heart stopped beating as another elder took the chance to attack the axe-wielding blonde when she had her back turned. I thought she was utterly done for, but before I could send a spell flying at the elder or even warn the warrior, she whipped around and cut his head clean off his shoulders with one swift swing.
“Thank Satan,” I whispered as I focused on the army. “That was too fucking close.”
Cole, the woman from my dreams said in a calm but firm voice. There are more coming from the north. Hundreds of them. You’re not in the clear just yet.
Fuck.
For now, we had the upper hand, but I knew if more men arrived, there would be too many elders to take on alone, even if the wild women were savage, fierce, and exceptional at both hand-to-hand combat and spell wielding.
“Cole?” Vanessa growled as she blasted spell after spell. “What the hell are you doing? Why are you standing there like you’ve just seen your own ghost?”
“There are more coming,” I hissed. “Hundreds, maybe even thousands.”
“What?” Vanessa shrieked in both disbelief and horror. “Fuck, we’re barely a hundred together.”
“I know,” I said, and as I struggled to come up with a plan, I thought of the mountains just north beyond the village.
“C-Cole?” Beatrix puffed before she shot another spell and sent men soaring back into the air. “What are we going to do?”
“I have an idea,” I said, “but I need you to watch my back while I enact it… Alexander, I need you to fly outside and tell me when the army is just below the mountain range.”
You’ve got it! my loyal familiar responded before he swiftly flew out the door.
As I kept my feet steady and breathed slowly, I welcomed Satan’s eternal darkness into my heart and willed the elements to obey my unholy bidding. In my mind, I pictured the peaks of the jagged, snow-coated mountain tops and imagined them cascading down into a deadly mass of ice and snow. I imagined the rush of sleet, fiercer and more lethal than any ravenous river, longing to devour the elders whole.
Then I closed my eyes and waited for Alexander’s warning.
“Cole?” I heard Revna’s voice ring through the air. “Is he alright?”
“Quiet!” Vanessa snapped as chaos ensued all around me. “He needs to focus.”
I took another deep breath and absorbed the darkness, and I could feel sweat trickling down my neck as I fought to maintain focus.
Cole! Alexander’s voice abruptly echoed in my head. Now!
Without hesitation, I pictured the mountains once more, but this time I saw an elder army just below the range, and then I uttered the fatal incantation.
Motus.
Suddenly, there was a crack as loud as thunder, and the echoes of a thousand screams rang faintly on the wind. The surviving elders inside the longhouse cast us glances of mixed emotions, and in my head, I could see the snow tumbling down and violently crushing the elder soldiers as they feebly attempted to race out of its ferocious path. Then the snow swallowed them whole and stopped inches away from the walls of the village.
My entire body trembled, but I still had enough strength left to destroy the rest of these bastards once and for all.
“You,” an elder with a bloody nose and bruises under eyes sneered as he locked gazes with me. “That was you, wasn’t it? We should have destroyed you first. Samara said there would be one witch to look out for. Kill him! That’s an order! Rip him into fucking shreds!”
“Everyone, gather around me,” I ordered. “I have another idea, but I’ll need your help.”
“Cole, what do you have in mind?” Vanessa muttered as she stood by my side.
“I’m going to use the ancient motus incantation,” I replied as I raised my hand in the air.
“You just brought down an entire mountain,” the professor said. “You’d better use your wand to channel the spell. I think it will spare you from blacking out again.”
“Alright,” I agreed as I pulled out my wand.
Without saying another word, my coven, Vanessa, and the wild women quickly formed a circle around me with their wands and blades extended.
With them protecting me, this was the perfect opportunity to take every single remaining elder out, and I quickly vowed to make it as painful as fucking possible. I knew it would take every ounce of strength I had in my body and mind, but it would certainly be worth it.
I focused on the soldiers and their attempts to push through the women, and I imagined their hearts being ripped from their chests. I pictured their plump muscles pumping blood through their veins, and once I imagined the organs behind their rib cages, I willed them to emerge, bloody and beating on the floor.
“Modus antiquorum!” I shouted as I aimed my wand at the large group of men.
The next thing I knew, the brightest light I’d ever wielded spurted like an explosion from the tip of my wand, and when it hit the elder men, they stopped what they were doing and then dropped their weapons all at once. My entire body violently shook as I fought to keep my strength and mind alert, and as I focused even harder on their lifespans, I willed them all to come to an end.
Suddenly, all the men’s chests burst open in a tidal wave of gore, and their hearts soared through the air and landed at the women’s feet. Life instantly left their eyes, and they crumbled to the ground on their knees.
A smile spread across my face as I looked at their open chests and broken rib cages, but then my hand began to shake uncontrollably, and to my utter disbelief, my wand completely shattered into a thousand pieces.
“Unholy fuck,” Revna was the first to gasp. “That was fucking incredible.”
“Thanks,” I grunted as I stared down at my shattered wand, “and I know.”
“Not only did you kill all the guards, but you also managed to wipe out the incoming soldiers as well,” Sigrid breathed with wide, disbelieving eyes as she approached me. “Satan, I can’t believe it.”
“I told you he held incredible power,” Circe remarked with a smirk, and her forked tongue flickered coyly past her lips.
“But, Cole, your wand…” Morgana breathed as she looked down at the broken pieces. “I-I can’t believe that happened.”
“Neither can I,” Vanessa agreed, and I could have sworn I heard a hint of regret in her voice. “Cole, I’m sorry… I was the one who suggested you use your wand instead. I can’t help but feel somewhat responsible.”
“Don’t blame yourself,” I said. “You were right, I used a great amount of strength, and it was the wise thing to do. I’d rather the wand shatter into pieces than my skull.”
“How the hell did that bitch find us?” Akira growled like a wolf as she kicked at a bloody elder corpse. “We’re in a secret realm for hell’s sake.”
“The woman has eyes everywhere,” Vanessa sighed. “I’m sure something was following us, and we had no idea. Her spies can take the form of many creatures, and I’m afraid we’ll never be fully safe from her ever-watchful gaze. Now, Cole, about your wand…”
“Do not fret, I’m sure we can make him a new wand,” Revna said in an upbeat tone. “Let’s get these bodies out of here and burn them. Then we’ll get a good night’s rest, and tomorrow morning, we can begin crafting you a new wand.”
“Alright, sounds like a plan,” I agreed, and the others nodded silently.
We quietly followed a group of women before they pulled out their stick-like wands and pointed them at the mass of bodies.
“Volito!” they shouted in unison.
All the bodies slowly began to hover up into the air, and we watched as the women guided them outside and began to create a pyramid of dead corpses. They chanted quietly as the mountain grew
taller and taller, and I couldn’t help but wonder what they were saying under their breath.
“This is our tradition,” Revna whispered in my ear as we trekked onward through the deep snow. “We pray to Satan that their souls will become trapped in purgatory and that they’ll never see their beloved God in the afterlife. Then we burn them and let the boars eat their charred bones.”
“How lovely,” Vesta purred as the pile slowly grew higher. “I think it’s important to keep traditions alive. They really do paint a beautiful picture of one’s culture.”
“Indeed,” Sigrid agreed before the last body was placed on the pile. She then closed her eyes and cleared her throat before she aimed her thin wand at the bodies. “Illuminana.”
A fire quickly spread across the bodies, and the smell of raw, melting flesh instantly filled the air. The sound of the fire crackling and the putrid stench made a small smirk spread across my face, and I watched with satisfaction as the flames consumed every single fucking elder.
“Now, let’s get some sleep,” Revna said before she turned to look at me and my coven. “Do you all want to sleep together, or would you prefer separate cots?”
“Separate cots,” Vanessa said in a rushed voice.
“But we can sleep together,” I said as I gestured at my women. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Sigrid answered in lieu of Revna. “It’s the least we can do after what we put you through.”
“And for saving us,” Revna added.
When we stepped back inside the longhouse, the women gathered together to pull furs and blankets out of wicker baskets, and we watched as they laid them out by the small fire pit in the center of the elongated room.
“There,” Revna said before she laid out another blanket. “Now, is there anything else I can get for you?”
“No, I think we’ll be perfectly fine.” I smiled. “Thank you for your hospitality.”
“As I said,” Sigrid responded before she placed a hand on Revna’s shoulder. “It’s the least we could do. Have a good night’s rest. We’ll feed you in the morning before we send you on your way. Oh, and Revna will be sure to help you find whatever you may need to reconstruct a wand.”