by Logan Jacobs
“Thank you,” I replied. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” she said before she swept around and headed to her own section of the longhouse.
“Sleep well,” Revna added as she bowed her head. “I’ll be asleep on the cot by the end of the room… Vanessa, you can take the empty one next to me.”
“Thanks,” the professor yawned.
As the other wild women spread out to wrap themselves under their own furs and blankets, my coven took their time to remove their cloaks and boots and let down their hair before they splayed themselves on top of the cots.
I slowly removed my shirt, and when I casually glanced behind my shoulder, I couldn’t help but notice both Vanessa and Revna eyeing me as I tossed the fabric aside. Vanessa quickly averted her gaze when I caught her stare, but Revna didn’t seem to care one way or the other.
Meanwhile, Alexander and the other familiars found a corner for themselves and cuddled together before they fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.
“Master,” Penelope mewled as she laid on the furs. “Come here and keep us warm.”
I chuckled to myself before I removed my boots and slowly crept down to their level. Then I adjusted myself between Akira and Penelope while the others wrapped their arms and legs around each other.
“Goodnight,” I whispered before someone killed the fire.
“Goodnight, master,” my coven answered in unison.
As soon as I closed my eyes, I could feel my body drifting into a dim dream world, and for some reason, my heart began to beat wildly in my chest, like I was back on the battlefield. I could feel sweat trickling down the back of my neck, and cold shivers coursed through my numb body as I desperately tried to wake myself back up, but it was useless. Then, in my mind, I saw a giant black lake. The water’s surface was still, and there was a figure out in the distance standing just at the edge of the murky water. Her back was turned to me, but I saw her long, golden-brown hair, and I knew it was Samara. She wore a deep red dress, and even when I was close enough to breathe down her neck, she didn’t turn around or even flinch.
“Cole?” she said without turning around. “Is that you?”
“It’s me,” I growled, but when I reached down to look for a dagger or my wand, my hand went straight through me like I was a ghost.
“Don’t bother,” she chuckled before she turned around to stare at me, and when she did, I noticed her eyes were filled with tears.
“W-What the hell is going on?” I demanded.
“You tell me,” she snapped. “This is your head, after all.”
“Which you’ve trespassed into,” I hissed in a dangerously deep voice. “Get the hell out.”
“Don’t you think I want to?” she asked as she stared into my eyes. “I don’t know why, but I’ve seemed to form an attachment to you, Cole, and as hard as I try, I can’t seem to get you out of my mind.”
Her words drew me up short in shock, but I quickly shoved the sensation away. This had to be another trick of hers, and I wasn’t going to fall for it.
“You shouldn’t even be in my head,” I said as I tried to reach for my pendent, but my hand went right through my chest.
“That only protects me from masking my voice,” she said with a frown. “Remember?”
“Fuck off, Samara,” I warned. “We’ll see each other soon enough, and when we do, I’ll be sure to kill you.”
“I know,” she said as she took a step closer and pressed her hand against my cheek, and this time, her flesh didn’t seep through mine like a phantom.
Instead, a flash of memories that didn’t belong to me passed through my head like a raging storm. I saw Samara as a child running through a woodland, and then I saw her as a young woman beginning her life as a Wicca in training. I could feel her heart beating in time with mine, and suddenly everything turned cold. I could feel her emotions as if they were my own. I could feel her sudden hatred against the witches, but she was still torn between the holy and unholy way of life. This connection was far too intimate for my liking, but still, for some reason, I wanted us to remain bonded for more than just a few minutes.
But it came to an end when she pulled her hand away, and I gasped for breath as her eyes bored into mine like deep, silver-green pools of water. Then she suddenly leaned forward and placed her lips onto mine, and I could feel all her anger, hatred, and loss. For a brief second, I felt a tinge of pity for her, but then the dream ended as quickly as it began.
When I opened my eyes, Revna stood in front of us with a beautiful smile spread across her face.
“Good morning,” she said, and I noticed another fire was in the pit while other women were already up and folding blankets. “We’ll be having some cold stew for breakfast, and then I suggest we head into the woodland to search for the elements to craft your wand. Then we’ll return to the longhouse, and Sigrid will provide us with whatever we’ll need for our journey.”
I couldn’t help but smile when I noticed just how excited Revna seemed to be. I knew she was dying for an adventure and couldn’t wait to walk past these walls, but as hard as I tried to keep a smile on my face, it was a little tricky. That dream rattled all my nerves, but I knew I had to focus on the task at hand and not concern myself with Samara’s tricks.
I hated to admit it, even to myself, but I felt something other than hatred for her after that dream.
And I didn’t like it one bit.
“Sounds like a plan,” I said as I gently pried myself away from Akira and Penelope’s tight hold. I slipped my boots back on and then my shirt, and when I looked down at the women, each one was still deeply asleep, but I knew I had to wake them up. “Hey, we have to get a move on… rise and shine!”
The women groaned and mumbled before they opened their eyelids and rubbed the exhaustion from their eyes. Their hair was messy, and their cheeks were rosy as they slowly sat up and regarded the fully-dressed Revna.
“What time is it?” Nyx mumbled as she rolled back her shoulders and stretched out her blue arms.
“Not yet dawn,” Revna responded in a gentle tone, “but the earlier we’re up, the better.”
“I agree,” I said before I slowly stood up and rubbed the kinks out of my neck. “I’ll wake the familiars so they can have a bite to eat before we head out.”
As the women gently pulled themselves up from the furs and blankets and began to dress, I headed over toward the familiar love pile and gently shook Alexander’s shoulders.
Nooooo, he moaned in my head. I want to keep sleeping.
“Tough shit,” I chuckled as I shook him even harder, and Silvia growled in her sleep when his body nearly fell off hers. “Let’s go. You don’t want to start the day on an empty belly, do you?”
No, I suppose not, he sighed in my head. What’s the plan for today?
“We’re going to head into the woodland to craft a new wand,” I said. “Then, when we return, we’ll be heading toward the mountains. I want you and the rest of the familiars to stay here and eat while we’re in the forest, though. I suspect we’ll be using the ursas as mounts again, and there’s no need for Silvia to keep up with a bear three times her size.”
Fine, but you’d better be careful, Alexander grunted in my head. I don’t trust any bears other than Silvia and Naomi.
“I think we’ll be fine,” I chuckled.
When he finally got up, the other familiars followed his lead, and I headed back to the others and joined them as they sat crossed-legged on the furs with a bowl in their hands.
“Here you are, Cole,” Revna said before she handed me my own portion of cold stew.
“Ahh, thank you,” I said before I took a small bite, and the taste of cold potatoes and meat was actually quite satisfying.
“Yes, thank you so much for your generosity,” Vesta purred before Vanessa slowly waltzed over to us and grabbed a bowl from another witch who was handing them out.
“Of course,” Revna said.
“Do you always get up this early?”
Nyx yawned before she stuffed a spoonful of stew in her mouth. “Satan, I feel like I barely slept.”
“Yeah, we do.” The wild Wicca nodded. “You get used to it after a while, though.”
“Where is Sigrid?” Faye asked as she looked around.
“Ah, well, she’s probably scouting the perimeters,” Revna responded. “She usually takes a group of women with her every morning to search the grounds and make sure everything is in order. Sometimes, they bring back a kill, but not always.”
“Oh, I see,” Faye murmured in a dreamlike voice.
“I bet that’s something you’d love to do,” I said as I glanced at the beautiful redhead. “Hunting in the morning and living in the wild.”
“Well, I’d only love it if I had you with me, master,” Faye said before she flashed me a quick wink. “You and everyone else, of course.”
“I’m not exactly sure if that would be the life for me,” Vesta chuckled before she took a dainty bite of stew. “I’d miss perfumed baths and fine wine.”
“No shit.” Akira playfully smirked. “But I have to admit, I can see the appeal of living like this… and practicing with weapons every day? Sign me the fuck up.”
“Well, I’d much rather trade places with all of you,” Revna said in a low voice. “I can’t imagine how amazing it would be to get up every morning and not worry about breakfast or other mundane tasks. I’d love to sit in a classroom and just focus on improving my raw spells.”
“Perhaps one day you could come with us to Scholomance,” I suggested. “Once we deal with Samara, of course.”
“I think you mean when we kill her,” Vanessa said with a raised eyebrow. “Right, Cole?”
Before I could respond, the doors swung open, and there stood the shieldmaiden side by side with Revna’s sisters. Their cheeks and lips were tinged with blue, but they smiled when they saw us. I also noticed a massive dead boar was floating behind them, so I knew their morning hunt had been a success. Then I peered over their shoulders, and I caught the bloody sun about to rise just beyond the walls.
“Good morning, everyone,” Sigrid said with a bright smile. “Looks like we’ll have plenty of meat for the next couple of days. Ah, but Revna, if you and the others want to make your way into the woodland and get a head start toward the mountain trail, I’d get a move on. The wind is picking up, and I can feel a violent snowstorm brewing.”
“Yes, my lady,” Revna answered as she bowed her head. Then she turned to look at us, and there was a mixture of urgency and eagerness in her eyes. “I’ll grab some furs and proper boots so we can ride back into the woods.”
“On the bears?” Faye asked in an excited voice. “We’ll get to ride the bears again, right?”
“Of course,” the wild woman chuckled before she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Now, let me get you the clothes we’ll need.”
We watched as the dark-blonde beauty collected everything she required, and when she returned, she was carrying a heavy load of fur capes, and her sisters helped her bring over the boots.
“Now, get dressed as quickly as possible,” Revna said before she swung her cape over her shoulders. “I’ll meet you by the gate doors.”
We watched as Revna confidently grabbed her weapons and then strolled out of the longhouse, and when she was out of sight, we all scrambled to seize our own capes and boots. I found an oversized fur cloak and wrapped it tightly around my neck, but none of the shoes looked like they would fit me.
Morgana must have sensed what I was thinking because, without a word, she pulled out her wand and aimed it at the last pair of boots.
“Crescere!” the beautiful bookworm incanted, and the boots instantly grew a couple sizes larger to fit me.
“Thanks, Morgana.” I grinned.
“No problem,” the bookish brunette answered before she tucked her wand away.
“We’d better go,” Vanessa said before she tightened the strands on her fur cloak. “A storm is coming, and the last thing I want to do is try to control the weather after all the power we exerted last night, agreed?”
“Yes, Professor,” we responded at the same time.
We stepped outside into the freezing cold, and then we trudged through the snow until we reached the village gates where Revna patiently waited. The bears we rode in on were waiting for us, and each one bowed their heads as if to say hello and welcome back.
“Now,” Revna said before her face broke into a smile. “Let’s go craft you a wand, shall we?”
Chapter 5
We quickly clambered onto our newly bonded beasts and followed Revna back toward the snowy woodland. The air was freezing cold, and my body still wasn’t used to such a numbing feeling, but I forced myself to ignore it and clutch onto my bear’s hide with icy fingertips. The beast was warm to the touch, and it grunted each time it took a step forward and pushed through the heavy snowfall.
“So,” Penelope breathed as mist escaped from her bluish lips. “What exactly are we looking for? I’ve never read about wild wand binding before.”
“We need to seek the bone of Draugr, a Fenrir tooth, and bare bark,” Revna responded as she forced her own black and silver bear forward. “It shouldn’t be too difficult to find, though, once we reach the heart of the woodland.”
“May I ask when you made your first wand?” the orange-haired witch questioned as we headed up a snowy peak, and the bears grumbled as they marched higher and higher up.
“When I was seven,” Revna replied without turning around, and she clicked her tongue to make her ursa go a little faster. “I was sent into the woods on my own, and I had to spend three days hunting for each ingredient. I had to forage for my own food without magic, and I had to build fires and take shelter in caves, but don’t worry, it won’t take us three days to find these ingredients.”
“Sounds pretty fucking tough,” Akira said with a low whistle.
“It certainly does,” I added in an impressed tone.
“It’s a tradition for wild witches.” Revna gave a small shrug. “Either you survived, or you didn’t. It’s our way to test who is suitable for a life in the wild and who isn’t.
“I think it sounds invigorating,” Faye commented as she scratched her bear behind its ears. “I remember when my grandmother used to take me hunting… I think I was a few years older, but she used magic, and I had my own wand by then. By no means am I comparing our experiences, but even I struggled with the advantages I had, so your prowess is truly impressive, Revna.”
“I can tell you, in particular, are one with nature,” Revna remarked as she turned to look at Faye with a small smile. “I saw the way you approached the ursas without a trace of hesitation or fear. I was most impressed with you, as well… Faye?”
“Thanks,” the redhead chuckled with pride, “and, yes, it’s Faye.”
“She’s incredible with wildlife,” I said with a proud smile. “She’s pulled us out of many tough situations with her immense knowledge.”
“Thank you, master.” Faye blushed. “Now… Revna, what should we be on the lookout for first?”
“Well, once we enter the woodland, we need to search for the bone before we look for anything else,” Revna said. “The Draugr bone will be buried in the snow somewhere, so we need to keep our eyes peeled.”
“Wait, what’s a Draugr?” Marina asked, and the former siren frowned in confusion. “And how do we retrieve their bones?”
“Oh, I know!” Morgana perked up before Revna could respond. “Do you mind if I explain, Revna?”
“We’re not in class, Miss Morgana,” Vanessa sighed with impatience. “I’m sure she won’t mind at all.”
“She’s right.” Revna nodded. “Go ahead.”
“Well, they are undead beings,” Morgana explained in the same tone she would use in class. “It’s nearly impossible for them to be permanently killed, but they do go into hibernation, and that’s the only time you can easily remove their limbs.”
“So, how does the b
one go into the wand?” Marina asked in a perplexed voice.
“The bone will be the basis for the wand,” Revna said, and in the distance, I could see the outskirts of the woodland.
“And the tooth and bark?” Marina asked. “What do they do?”
“The tooth will be used to remove the bare bark, which will be the coating for the wand,” Revna explained in a patient voice.
“Which bone in the body will we be using?” Circe questioned. “For some reason, I feel like it’s a finger bone?”
“Yes, indeed it is.” Revna grinned. “They have exceptionally long fingers. How did you know?”
“I feel like I’ve made my own wand before,” the serpentine Wicca mused as her snake-like eyes slipped out of focus. “I can’t explain it, but I just have a feeling in the back of my head.”
“Schools used to teach witches how to make their own wands, so I’m not surprised,” Vanessa said in a bored voice. “This was, of course, hundreds of years ago, before we decided to bless students with them, but we don’t have time for that story right now.”
“Wait, where did you come from originally?” Revna asked as she turned around to look at the blonde witch. “You don’t look like you’re a hundred years old.”
“I still have no idea,” Circe responded before she glanced at me. “Cole brought me back from the dead, and my memory of my past life is hazy at best. Sometimes things randomly come into my head, but it’s never a clear picture of my past.”
“What about you?” Revna asked when she averted her gaze to study me. “You’re the first male witch I’ve ever seen or heard about. Where are you from? If you don’t mind the question, that is.”
“Well, my story is pretty similar to Circe’s,” I said. “I wasn’t resurrected from the dead, but I arrived on the grounds of Scholomance after an unholy ritual was performed. It was the dead of night, and blood poured from the sky, but I can’t remember anything before that. It was one of the most confusing moments in my life and one of the most exciting. I don’t think there’s one being in the realms that can remember their own birth, but I feel like I do. It’s an unholy blessing.”