The Codex of the Witch: Fantasy Novel

by Federico Negri

  “Ga… Ga… Gabriela? Mm… my… cr… crew?” she whispers.

  “I don’t know, Jillian. I think they’re still on the ground.”

  “Go… go look for them… I beg you,” she murmurs.

  “Should I leave you with these two? They were in the compound’s dungeons.”

  “Yes. Go… find Gabri.”

  Alina looks up at her two strange companions. “It appears I owe you two my apologies,” she mumbles.

  The flurry of gunfire interrupts them, blowing the left panel to pieces. They instinctively duck down, flattening themselves against the deck.

  “We must get away from here,” Ramai says. “Soon this airship will no longer be able to fly.”

  “Hello!” a female voice from the depths of the hold. “Captain!”

  Gabriela bursts onto the bridge, her fair hair stained by long, black streaks.

  “Alina!” Hansi follows on her heels, stumbling. His trousers are shredded and his bare thighs red with blood. Kenneth completes the group, dragging the bag with the books.

  She moves to get up, but Gabriela’s glare shoots daggers at her. “What happened here?”

  A volley of machine gun fire once again hits the cabin, stirring up a swarm of splinters.

  “You aunt was injured. She was already like this when we arrived. We need to pull down the curtains.” Alina stands up and embraces Hansi. “How are you? Are you hurt?”

  “No, hardly, only scratches. And you?”

  Gabriela lowers herself beside Jillian, then she puts her hand on her face. After a few seconds, she lifts her head. “I’m taking command of the East Wind,” she declares, her voice breaking.

  “The Captain isn’t dead yet,” Kenneth remarks.

  The young witch springs like a snake, drawing her knife on the soldier. “Who is with me?”

  Alina and Hansi cling to each other, immobile.

  The whizz of a bombshell breaks the surreal silence. Luckily it smashes into the ground without grazing the airship, but the cabin is agitated by the vibrations.

  “We need to leave, Gabriela.” Kenneth puts his hands out in front of him. “Your friends have all fallen, you’ve seen them yourself. If we don’t start moving this quarrel will soon be moot.”

  “I am afraid the Englishman is right,” Ramai interjects. “We are at your command, at least until the Captain reestablishes herself.”

  “We’re in the same boat, Gabriela. We’ll obey your orders,” Alina reassures her. “I’m sorry about your fallen sisters.”

  Gabriela studies them one by one with a gaze dark as the thoughts of the demon. “Alright. Alina, take the helm. Allport, artillery. You two, bring my aunt to the sick bay. And you, German.”

  “Yes?” asks Hansi.

  “Keep your eye on them.” Gabriela clenches her teeth and sheathes her blade.

  PART THREE: SHOTS FIRED

  Kasia paces the scaffolding with long strides. A Dutch worker connects the hydraulic controls to her new quasi-aluminum frame. He has a flat honest face; he doesn’t look like a spy, but it’s better to oversee him in person. She doesn’t want there to be space on board the Needle for any unknown apparatus, which could betray them during navigation, or supply precious information to their many admirers.

  From the other side of the frame she glimpses Riger’s figure hanging from a pulley, she too looking over the shoulder of the repairmen hired by Leonardo. Silla is on the poop deck, from above only seeing a straight blonde mane gathered in a lace band, dark like the work uniform she’s wearing.

  Who knows about Alina. The thought returns to her persistently, like a wasp on leftover food.

  Foolish little girl, she should have come back with her. If she had kept holding on, notwithstanding the explosion, they would have managed to get back, the dragon would have protected her. But no, she—Kasia—had been foolish. For having treated her like an adult, and having given her weapons and permission to use them.

  Sixteen years old. At that age she should only be thinking about finding a handsome boy to bring to her first Sabbath, not shooting on the docks of the Palatinate.

  Kasia clenches her fists, thinking back on her brief conversation with Jillian Cerriwden, before they departed.

  Oh, dear Jillian, have no fear: I’ll pay back the debt, down to the last piece. There will be no discount and no delay. Kasia Santuini upholds her obligations, and she has an excellent memory.

  We shall see each other at the Grand Council, Cerriwden. We’ll find out if the other clans will abide your strange visits with the German barons.

  After crossing the metal plank for the hundredth time, Kasia decides to climb down.

  “Captain!” Silla’s shrill voice calls to her. “There’s a spider in the pot!”

  An old code, so as not to inform everyone on the docks of what’s going on aboard the Needle. What Silla meant was the captain of another airship is on board.

  Kasia straightens out her work jacket and looks sorrowfully at her boots covered with dust. She will have to receive him in this state, despite how she hates to appear before other captains looking shabby. On the docks, respect needs to be earned day after day, in part by always presenting herself impeccably, as if she’s walking out from the beauty parlor and not from hours of work on the frame.

  When she arrives on the command deck, a tired Leonardo is waiting for her, sitting in the lookout’s chair. Kasia purses her lips; Silla was a little too lax leaving a guest on the bridge by himself. It’s good Leonardo is an ally, but the crew shouldn’t exercise its own judgment regarding character evaluations; visitors are never left alone in front of the charts.

  “Kasia. How go the repairs?” the Swiss man mutters through his mustache, his blonde hair disheveled and shirt unusually wrinkled.

  “Swiftly. You have access to some truly first class materials. A fighter frame: I never thought I’d see the day I owned one of those.”

  “Don’t make me regret having procured them for you. How are you doing? Your first officer told me you’ve been up almost all night.”

  Kasia’s gaze lingers through the glass noting Silla suspended on the planks of the scaffold, keeping one eye on the work’s progress and the other on their movements on the bridge. So Leonardo appeared to be alone while she observed him from above. There’s still someone whose gears are turning on the Needle, even if it’s been many hours since she’s slept. The witch silently thanks her first officer and answers, “Bah, you don’t exactly look fresh as a daisy either. Are you leaving with the midday wind?”

  “Yes. However, first we must stretch our legs with a stroll across the docks.”

  “No, thank you. During our last stroll, I lost the person dearest to me in the world. I wouldn’t dream of even setting foot on the ground.”

  “We’ll find Alina again,” he huffs, with a half-smile, “I promise you. That Jillian Cerriwden though, can she be trusted? I think she sleeps on the wrong side of the bed.”

  Kasia twists her mouth in a frown. “She does business with the Dutch and perhaps also with the Germans. But the war is over, it’s a free world.”

  “Don’t play naïve; it doesn’t suit you. The problem is I can’t leave before paying a little visit,” Leonardo pulls out one of his slim cigars and lights it with studied leisure, “to Baron Dietrich.”

  “And how can I help you with that?” Kasia counters.

  “We need to bring him Guild Poe, who’s in your custody. Keep in mind that we’re in the port of Den Haag. If I hope to obtain something from the Baron it's better I surround myself with a few friendly faces.”

  “If you bring him Guild Poe, that’s game over. Like leading the mouse into the snake’s nest.”

  “From what I’ve heard on the docks,” Leonard resets his waistcoat over his slightly protruding paunch, “your spectacle the other evening—when you flew through the walls with old Guild in your coils—attracted a fair amount of attention. I doubt someone will attempt to take him from you again.”

&nb
sp; “I won’t cast another return spell. If they lay their hands on Guild Poe, they’ll keep him.”

  “Why not?”

  Because I’ll be too weak if I leave the dragon behind on the ship and force him out of my heart, Kasia would like to answer, and this is not the time to be weak. It isn’t a good habit for a witch to reveal her problems, thus she limits herself to replying, “If you want to take him to Dietrich’s, you will have to be in a position to defend him on your own.”

  Leonardo looks at her in silence for several seconds, then he breaks into one of his usual grins, smoothing out his moustache. “Very well, I will be trusting the word of the Baron who guaranteed our security. I shall come to your airship in a half hour and you, Guild, and I will walk like three old friends down the docks of Den Haag to the Baron’s ship. We’ll have a nice chat and turn around without even one of your red curls getting twisted. Meanwhile, given that your first officer, the shadowy Silla, will be coming with me to search for your little niece, do you think you can trust the rest of your crew?”

  “Blindly. But don’t ask me to take off leaving behind a whirlwind full of administrative fines, which will then accrue interest. That’s sure to anger my sisters who share in the fortune, or rather, the financial misfortunes of this airship.”

  “I didn’t say anything about these details; I will sort them out and you will leave clean as clothes drying in the sun. Meanwhile, I’m in a bit of a hurry to deliver an envelope to the English capital.”

  Kasia puts a hand on her hip. “It’s illegal for us witches to act as couriers, do you know that?”

  Leonardo pulls from his doublet a black leather bundle with a heavy wax seal at its center and turns it over in his palms. “It’s a pardonable crime. A pirate like you surely won’t let herself be frightened by something that small.”

  “I am a respectable merchant not a pirate!”

  “I’m in need of one,” he answers, with his eyebrows frozen in a somewhat crestfallen expression. “I could ask you to do it in exchange for money, or your new quasi-aluminum frame, or a thousand other favors. But I prefer to ask you as a friend.” He strokes his bristled cheek. “My profession is dangerous and it’s hard to find some to trust.”

  “I don’t want your trust,” Kasia counters, losing patience with his sorrowful tone. “I’m pleased to be your friend, but you conduct business out of my reach and getting involved in it is a bit too risky for my tastes, considering I am responsible for an entire clan.”

  “I’m in desperate need, Kasia. We’re in high waters here! We need to have faith in each other if we want to bring Alina back home.”

  So much for money or flattery, this is extortion, Kasia thinks, but for the moment she keeps her opinion to herself, recovering the girl is more important than making a point.

  “I’ll carry your envelope,” she says to him. “But I won’t deliver it until I see my niece again. Alive.”

  “Alright. This message is just a precaution, in case things should go south. For you as well. Take it,” he holds out the dark bundle, “and don’t worry, the contents are encrypted, save for the recipient’s address.”

  Kasia puts it away in the chest with her log journals, under her seat. None of her crewmembers would ever dare lay a finger on it, at least not while she’s still breathing.

  Leonardo gets up and offers her his hand. “Come, Kasia, let’s go and hash out an agreement with Guild Poe.”

  The witch yields to good manners and weaves her slender fingers into his thick grasp.

  “Leo, that speech on trust earlier… Nothing personal; I’d like to be able to share certain confidences. I like you. But business is business and Alina kidnapped doesn’t help me sleep.”

  “I understand, have no fear,” he says with a sly air. “Who knows, one day, when this affair is over, you may decide to join my crew. We could pilot the Mala Avis together, two old adventurers in search of treasures and secrets.”

  Kasia squeezes his paw and gives a cutting smile. “We shall see. Perhaps I could captain the Mala Avis and you be my second-in-command?”

  He returns her smile with warmth from behind his bushy whiskers.

  “Why not? I would like retiring to the ship-owner’s cabin and leaving the helm to a capable captain.”

  They head toward the crew’s quarters while Kasia ponders the Swiss man’s offer.

  Leaving her clan in the hands of Alina, her heir. Silla would accept acting as the young woman’s second for a few more years until she learns. And Riger was too fond of her bunk on the Needle to consider any alternatives. The only one who needed handling was Lili, too fragile for such an inexperienced captain. What would the new Needle be like under Alina’s command? With a quasi-aluminum frame lighter and faster than most military airships, a fearsome, profitable vessel. And she’d feel free to accept the offer of this kind, mysterious behemoth, an adventurer with a penchant for humor and a good meal. She could abandon the Rule, the Council of witches, and her entire world like a young novice in love for the first time. In her case, though, she would have lived an entire lifetime in the law’s shadow, and she could be reasonably sure Alina would carry on the tradition, assuming her head cools down a little. But who isn’t full of life at sixteen?

  Leonardo gives her a deliberate look with a glint in his eye, filled with promises.

  “Captain!” Silla charges into the corridor, with her eyes gaping out of their sockets. “Lili! She’s having an attack.”

  “What?” Leonardo moans, but Kasia quickly interrupts him. “You, get to the bridge! Don’t touch anything or you’ll see a furious witch! Silla, call Riger.”

  “But—” Leonardo tries.

  “Go. It’s a question of a few minutes, either way we’ll end up having to rush. That’s an order, Leo, this is my ship.” Kasia turns her back to him and runs towards the crew’s cabins. The scene she’s confronted with as she crosses through the doorway is exactly what she feared most since they raised anchor on their first voyage after the exile.

  Lili is spread out on the floor, wearing only a nightshirt, bathed in sweat. Her eyes are black like two pits and her hair wild clings to her face. Across her body purple and violet veins glow through her skin, throbbing like they’re about to burst.

  “Lili,” Kasia tries calling to her, but she gnashes her teeth and shakes her head violently.

  Riger and Silla rush in at breakneck speed. The first officer suggests, “Let’s form a triangle. We need to contain her.”

  Lili has only a few minutes before the demon overtakes her and scorches her with a vehemence which would take a good chunk of the Needle with it.

  “Wait,” Kasia says. “If we contain her, we’ll be erasing two years’ progress. She’ll become a vegetable again, and this time I’m not sure she’ll be able to recover.” Kasia takes a step toward the poor witch. “Lili, snap out of it. It’s me, Kasia.”

  A savage cry escapes through the woman’s clenched teeth, as she arches her spine as if an invisible harpoon were lifting her by her navel. “Bastards,” she screams again. “Leave her alone, she’s only a baby!”

  “Lili,” Kasia kneels down as close as she can to her head, taking care not to touch her “It’s Kasia. You’re on board the Needle now, that’s in the past. It happened a long time ago.”

  Kasia notices her friend’s fingernails clawing at the floorboards, sending up spirals of black smoke.

  “Leave her alone! I’ll kill you all,” the sentence ends in a roar that makes the room’s windows tremble.

  “Captain,” Silla interjects, “her hands and feet are already black. We need to rein her in.”

  Kasia ignores the suggestion and stretches out next to Lilli. She brings her lips up to her ear. “This is the Captain speaking, Lili. You’re on board the Needle and you’re about to kill us all. Take back control, I need you. Naike is dead, there’s nothing you can do for her now. The war is over, and you set sail on my airship.”

  The other witch turns her face towards her wit
h short twitches, as if her head were spinning on a broken screw. Her arms are black up to the shoulders and below her ankles her feet are already smoking.

  “Captain,” Riger touches her shoulder. “We only have a few seconds.”

  “Wait, look.” An inch at a time the burnt skin starts to fade, returning to its normal pink color.

  “Lili,” Kasia continues, “you’re doing well. Breathe and control yourself. The war is over, Lili. It’s all over.”

  The suffering witch slowly brings her pelvis back down to the floor. The expression of animalistic rage turns into infinite sadness, until a sob interrupts her breathing. Two tears flow from her still-black eyes, dripping onto the deck. Lili covers her face with her hands.

  “She was just a baby. How could anyone be so cruel? She was a special girl, my Naike, but she was just a kitten.” Violent weeping shakes her as she curls into a fetal position.

  “Lili.” The other two witches draw closer, whispering some words of comfort.

  Kasia reaches out and brushes her sister’s forehead. It’s still hot as an oven, but she’s slowly coming back to reality.

  After a few moments, Lili stretches out a hand, finally back to its natural hue, and touches Kasia’s. “Captain… why? Why did they do this to me? Couldn’t they have killed me instead and spared her?”

  “Naike’s gone to sleep forever, her suffering is over now. You need to be strong, Lili. You’ll have your vengeance, but first you need to regain your balance.”

  The woman stares at her with her gaze dark as a crow’s. “That’s all I live for, you know. I don’t understand why I lost control. I was thinking about her and…” she dries her tears. “I haven’t had such a devastating episode since you’ve brought me aboard.”

  “It must have been the blow to the head. Don’t worry yourself. But take a sleeping draught, to rest.”

  “Captain, I want to—”

  “You,” Kasia rises to her feet, “should rest. Riger, prepare the potions. Morning and night. I don’t have a great desire to end up roasted.”

  “Sisters,” Lili says softly, “you are my life. Everything I have left. Thank you.”