by Logan Jacobs
We followed the hot-headed professor down another series of corridors until we finally reached her empty classroom.
When we stepped inside, the room was dark, cold, and devoid of any other students, but without a word, Vanessa pulled out her wand and then flicked her wrist.
“Illuminana,” the impatient professor snapped.
In seconds, the room lit up, and a warm, comforting glow surrounded us as the air grew less chilly. The walls were painted deep red, and the floor was made of sleek ebony wood. A dozen bookcases were plastered against the back wall filled with books and other small artifacts, like a golden clock and a silver wolf. There was also another row of identical armoires against the other side of the room, and each one had a heavy gold lock around the door handles.
However, unlike the other classrooms, this one didn’t have a single desk or table. In fact, the middle of the room was completely empty, and I knew it had to mean something. I knew the others were thinking the same damn thing, too, but no one dared to speak up about it.
So, instead, we quietly watched as Vanessa strolled over to her massive mahogany desk, pulled open one of her drawers, and then retrieved a heavy, familiar book. She brought the giant book up to her nose and silently but furiously flipped through the pages until she found whatever page she was searching for.
“Here we go,” she muttered to herself.
“Professor?” Morgana murmured as she shot her hand up into the air. “I’m sorry… I really did my best not to ask any questions… b-but I’m afraid I can’t hold my tongue any longer.”
“What is it, Miss Morgana?” Vanessa questioned without lifting her eyes away from the page.
“What exactly are we doing here?” the bookish brunette asked in a tiny, timid voice.
“We’re here because Headmistress Theodora specifically asked me to bring you here,” the professor said in an ominous tone.
“But what for?” Morgana pushed.
Finally, Vanessa lifted her eyes to meet Morgana’s, and to our surprise, a small smile crept across her face.
“Well, I don’t know if your master has informed you yet,” Vanessa began, “but Theodora warned him we would need to expand our Scholomance academy. We need more warrior Wiccas to join our ranks, and she believed this was the best way to achieve her goal.”
“What way is that?” I asked with an arched eyebrow.
“She wants mystical beings to be transformed into females fit for Satan’s Academy,” Vanessa answered with a straight face.
“Wait… we can do that?” I questioned with raised eyebrows.
“Of course.” Vanessa shrugged, like we were discussing something as simple as brewing a cup of spiced coffee.
“Why does Headmistress Theodora think this is the best course of action to take?” I pushed. “I’ve never heard of this being done before.”
“Well, by Satan, of course, you haven’t!” Circe gasped before she placed a hand over her chest. “That hasn’t been done in decades… no, wait… centuries!”
“Exactly.” Vanessa nodded. “Theodora knows this decision is a rash one, but it is also a necessary one. We need to expand Scholomance, and this is one of the ways in which we will accomplish this… which is precisely why I need you all to shut up and pay attention… now… what do you know about sirens?”
No one said a word for a long moment, until Morgana began to squirm, cough, and tilt her head back like she was in physical pain.
“Miss Morgana,” Vanessa sighed. “I know you know the answer, so speak up, for hell’s sake!”
“But, Professor,” the brunette said in a faint voice. “You just said to shut up.”
Vanessa coolly regarded the clever witch before she rolled her eyes and shook her head.
“No one likes a smart ass, Morgana,” she snapped. “Just tell us what you know. Pretend this is class, and I’m going to grade you on the quality of your response.”
“Err, well, in that case,” Morgana gushed as her blue eyes flashed with excitement. “A siren can take a number of various forms… are we talking about land, sky, or sea sirens?”
“Sea sirens,” Vanessa answered with a dead-pan expression on her face.
“Ah, well,” Morgana continued as she pressed a finger against her temple. “Sea Sirens are probably the most cunning of all three types. They swim in groups, or rather pools, and they are remarkably beautiful monsters. They obviously cannot survive above the surface, and they thrive only at night. They sleep during the day, but they have been known to lure men into sea storms with their heavenly voices and angelic demeanors during the darkness of night. Sometimes, but not always, one male king rules over a pod of sirens, and he would rather die than part with any of his women. He is known to harbor extraordinary power, and unlike the women, he can walk on land whenever he desires.”
“Sounds eerily familiar,” Vanessa remarked in a sardonic tone as she glanced at each woman and then at me. “Anyway, yes, well done, as always, Miss Morgana.”
“Well, aren’t you a walking library, huh?” Circe remarked with a broad smile. “I don’t think I ever met a witch who could recite so much information so quickly… it was like you were reading off a page!”
“I mean…” Morgana blushed. “I just read a lot… it’s no big deal.”
“Yes, we all know this, Miss Morgana,” Vanessa huffed as she dismissively waved her hand in the air. “Anyway, you’re all here because I will be teaching you an ancient blood spell that will morph these exquisite female creatures into one of ours. It has not been practiced since the first dawn, and of course, it is considered highly dangerous and potentially deadly.”
“We understand, Professor.” I nodded. “We’ll do whatever it takes to protect Scholomance.”
“Yes, I know,” Vanessa grumbled without meeting my eyes. “You have plenty of faults, including being born a male, but I will admit you’ve gone beyond our expectations to protect the academy. All of you have.”
“Thank you, Professor,” Vesta purred with glittering silver eyes. “We appreciate that.”
“Yeah,” the older, dark-haired witch awkwardly coughed. “Anyway, let’s continue, shall we? As Morgana mentioned, these sirens only thrive at night, and while this particular realm is quite far away, it also happens to share the same sun and moon as us, so we need to hurry since the sun is already setting… oh, it’s also fairly cold where you’re going, but there’s no time to change clothes, so when you get there, I suggest you act quickly.”
“Yes, Professor,” we answered without missing a beat.
“Now, let us begin with the blood sacrifice required for the spell,” Vanessa said before she placed the open book down on her desk. “Hos parere imperio!”
A giant cloud of purple smoke erupted in the center of the classroom, and suddenly, there in the middle of the room, tied to a wooden chair, was a warlock with deep blue hair and glassy, red-rimmed brown eyes. He was wearing the standard Mors white tuxedo, but it was stained with blood and other bodily fluids. The man was gagged, and thick droplets of sweat trickled down his forehead as he uselessly rocked his starved body back and forth. He was also sobbing uncontrollably, and we looked at him with disgust and hatred as snot bubbles blew from his flared nostrils and tears streamed down his sallow, filthy face.
“A Mors bastard,” Akira observed through gritted teeth. “Satan… please tell me that’s what the blades are for, Professor. I’m aching to spill some traitor blood.”
“Yes, but patience first, Miss Akira,” Vanessa reminded the edgy black-eyed witch. “All in good time.”
Akira nodded, and the rest of us waited as Vanessa turned to look back down at the open book. Her pale blue eyes darted across the text, and her red lips were fluttering as she read incoherently under her breath.
“Alright… in many of these ancient sacrifices,” Vanessa read aloud, “Wiccas were used as the blood sacrifice because of their magical blood, however, considering what we are facing, we will not be killing any of our ow
n kind since we need every able-bodied witch we can. Thankfully, we still have plenty of traitor warlocks to spare, so this pitiful asshole will have to do.”
Then we watched as Vanessa slowly stepped away from the book and moved toward the confined sobbing warlock. She glared coldly at him, and then she gently pulled a small shimmering dagger out from underneath her dress. It was secured by a leather strap around her upper thigh, and it was difficult not to marvel at her beautiful, creamy white skin as she let the fabric of her gown fall back over her long, lean leg.
“I hope you know you deserve this,” the dark-haired professor hissed with venomous, pale blue eyes. “You deserve this and much more. I doubt Satan will have mercy on your soul… and be sure… that will be a conversation you’ll have shortly.”
The warlock wailed through his gag as he feebly tried to untie himself. It was a pathetic struggle, and we all knew he was done for.
The thought sent a pleasant shiver up my spine as I tightened my grip on my blade.
“When can we stab him, professor?” Circe asked in an eager voice. “Oh, wait… I don’t have a blade… how disappointing. I suppose I’ll just watch. Be sure to stab him as deeply as possible. Puncture those organs as best you can now.”
“Do not worry,” Vanessa replied without looking at the blonde serpentine witch. “It will be an unforgettable show… now, everyone, raise your blades, prepare to sink them into this worthless bastard’s flesh, and then repeat after me… hoc volo perficere sanguine infuso magicenque.”
We surrounded the confined warlock and formed a perfect circle around him with our blades raised up high in the air. Circe and Beatrix watched with wide, curious eyes as they stood outside our formation, and I could hear them panting with bloodthirsty anticipation as we prepared to make our sacrifice.
“Now!” Vanessa bellowed in a fierce and commanding voice.
“Hoc volo perficere sanguine infuso magicenque!” we shouted.
As the spell left our lips, we plunged our blades into the warlock and stabbed him over and over again. My dagger slipped in and out of his flesh like a knife cutting through butter, and as specs of blood splattered over my face and uniform, I only grew more determined to slash and cut the fucker into bloody ribbons.
“Hell, yeah!” Circe cackled in glee. “Keep going!”
The dying warlock barely made a sound as we gouged him with all our force and fervor, and soon, a dark pool of blood began to spread at our feet. The warlock died only after a minute or two, but that didn’t stop us from plunging our sacred weapons into his body again and again.
“Enough,” Vanessa panted when his skin was covered in deep red holes.
When we took a step back, the warlock’s eyes were missing, and he was bleeding from every crevice. As we stood there and marveled at our work, the room quickly darkened, and a resounding echo reverberated through the classroom. The candles flickered as a chill swept through the room, but the icy sensation only lasted for mere seconds.
“It worked,” Vanessa breathed with relief. “Now, one of you… fetch me a vial from my desk drawer and be quick about it!”
Morgana was the first to react, and she spun on her heels and then ran toward the professor’s desk. The brunette pulled open a drawer, rummaged through the professor’s belongings, and then came back with a medium-sized flask in her hands.
“Will this do, Professor?” Morgana asked with eager blue eyes.
“Yes,” Vanessa answered as she snatched the glass from her fingers.
We watched as Vanessa roughly snatched the limp head of the warlock and tilted his head downward. Thick dark blood dripped from his eye sockets and seeped into the vial until it was filled to the brim.
Once the professor collected the blood, she closed the vial with a cork and handed it to me.
“Keep it safe,” she ordered as she looked deeply into my eyes. “If you lose it, you’re all as good as dead.”
“Understood.” I nodded as I tucked it into my pocket.
“Once you have gained the sirens’ trust, you must have them drink it,” the dark-haired professor explained.
“But how will we do that?” Akira demanded as she narrowed her eyes sharply in Vanessa’s direction. “I mean no disrespect, Professor, but that’s a lot of pressure to put on us suddenly. We didn’t even have time to come up with a plan!”
“That is for you to figure out, Miss Akira,” Vanessa answered in a tactful voice. “I’m sure Miss Morgana or perhaps Miss Faye will be able to think of something, but as I said, time is of the essence, and I must send you now… are you ready?”
She posed it as a question, but we all knew it wasn’t really up to us. So, we simply nodded and held tightly onto our bloody blades before she raised her hand up into the air and wrapped us up in a thick cloud of purple smoke.
My body twisted and turned as we passed through realms, and even though we’d been through shadow porting countless times before, this was one hell of a trip. The sensation was rougher, faster, and quicker than usual, and I couldn’t help but wonder if that meant something terrible was awaiting us.
When we finally came to an abrupt stop, I ended up slamming into something unbearably cold and numbing. I hit my head so hard that bile rose up into my throat, and the world was spinning even before I opened my eyes.
“Satan,” I heard one of the women breathe. “Where the hell are we?”
I forced myself to open my eyes, and when I did, I sucked in a sharp breath of air and took in the white wonderland around us.
We were surrounded by white glistening snow, a raven-black sky filled with twinkling starlight, and light shimmering snowfall. There were no trees, mountains, or hills, and the only sound we could hear was the piercing howl of the bitter wind. The ground was covered in a thick white blanket, and off in the distance, I thought I could make out a glittering pool of deep black water.
“Welcome to our haunted domain,” a chorus of hauntingly beautiful voices echoed. “If death is what you seek… then you have come to the right place.”
A choir of shrill giggles echoed through the frigid and bitter winter air, and for a moment, I wondered if we’d made a fatal mistake.
Chapter 11
“Come closer, land dwellers,” a hauntingly beautiful voice echoed. “Hmmm… I can smell a man… and he stands among a group of lovely women. How unexpectedly delicious.”
“F-Fuck,” Akira stuttered through chattering teeth, and all the color drained from her already pale face. “I don’t like this.”
“Just stay cool,” I ordered under my breath. “We’re going to get through this if you follow my lead.
“Y-Yes, master,” the black-eyed witch answered as she rubbed her trembling hands together. “I’ll definitely stay cool…”
“Aww, are you cold?” the voice teased in a seductive tone. “You should come near the water… it’s so warm and refreshing. Just one dip, and we swear you’ll never want to come out. Trust usssssss.”
“Yesssssss,” another voice rebounded through the raw, bitter air. “Come closer… there’s nothing to fear from us. Just slip inside the pool, and you’ll never be cold again. We promissssssse.”
A chorus of giggles swirled through the falling snow, and their voices sent an icy chill up my spine. These mysterious women sounded more like a group of deceitful snakes than mesmerizing females with their hissing and snickering, and I refused to play along with their silly little game.
“I’m sure you’d love that!” I yelled back, but I could feel a strange pull beckoning me toward the black pool of glittering water. “We know of your kind, and you cannot fool us!”
“Is that so?” they responded in a sing-song chorus.
“Yes, we know of your tricks and illusions!” Vesta shouted and lifted her pointed chin defiantly. “You cannot deceive us, for we are not of mortal blood.”
“Oh?” the chorus of voices answered at once. “If you speak the truth… then what is stopping you from coming just a bit closer? If yo
u are immune to our charms, then what’s the risk? We harbor magic, too… of a different kind, of course.”
“They’re right,” I said before I turned to face the trembling group of women. “We need to get closer. It’s now or never.”
The air was growing icier by the minute, and the heavy snowfall was increasing as well. All the women’s lips were turning shades of deep blues and purples, and their entire bodies were trembling from the brisk, frozen air. We didn’t even have our cloaks on, and I knew if we wasted any more time standing here in this isolated and wintry realm, we’d become more susceptible to the deadly propositions of the sea women.
As I lost myself in deep thought, I gazed back at the black pool of water, and its shimmering surface reminded me of ebony silk. It looked so smooth and inviting that a part of me wanted to strip naked and submerge myself into its comforting depths, but I knew those thoughts were nothing but siren magic and deadly illusions.
“Cole is right,” Morgana said as snow coated her long, thick eyelashes. “If we’re going to do something, now is the time.”
“But what if they lure us into the water with a melody?” Beatrix asked as if she could read my mind. “They can be crafty things… Morgana, you even said so yourself.”
“They won’t trick us, though,” Faye replied in a stern voice. “If we stay strong of mind, we cannot be lured in by their magic.”
“She’s right,” Vesta added as her silver eyes sparkled with determination. “These bitches think they’re the most beautiful beings to grace the realms… all we have to do is remember to resist them and remind ourselves it’s nothing but a fucking illusion. We can certainly do this, and besides, it’s not as if we have a choice. Vanessa made it clear this was what Theodora wanted.”
“Alright.” Beatrix nodded as she bit down on her bluish lips. “Besides, mermaids can’t be that deadly… right?”
“Mermaids aren’t considered extremely deadly,” Faye responded with a frown, “but we’re dealing with sirens… not mermaids.”
“What’s the difference?” I asked.