Twisted Ever After

by Celeste Thrower

“Beautiful?” Vinya scoffed. “What are you looking at?”

  Carden frowned, confused. “A cottage, of course, covered in flowers and ivy.”

  Vinya twisted her head around to stare at her. She narrowed her wolf eyes. “You can’t see it, can you? What truly lies before us?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I see the entrance of a castle, the same one where I was held captive by the Huntsman and the witch.” She pointed at the cottage with a paw. “I don’t think your grandmother is all that she seems to be.”

  Carden looked at the dwelling. How could Vinya see something so different? “I know my grandmother,” she said after a time. “And I trust her. If you don’t want to come with me, I understand.” She stood up and started to walk through the bushes.

  “Carden, wait!” Vinya called, but she didn’t dare follow.

  Carden looked over her shoulder as the wolf cowered. With a shake of her head, she walked towards the door boldly. To even suggest her grandmother was this evil witch was blasphemous to Carden’s mind. Her grandmother would do no such thing. She was the protector of the forest and the village!

  Carden knocked firmly on the door and held her arms, waiting.

  There was movement on the other side, and she heard a relieved sigh. “Finally, I was beginning to worry.” An elderly woman opened the door, her face wrinkled from many years of life. A green gown clung to her thin frame, and silver hair framed her face. She looked much older than Carden remembered.

  “Grandma?” Carden asked.

  Her grandmother offered a tight smile and reached out to touch Carden’s cheek. “My dear one, what brings you here?”

  Carden leaned into the warm touch. She knew her grandmother wasn’t a witch. “The village is in danger. Everyone has fallen sick. Mother said you could help.”

  “Did she, now?” Grandmother nodded and held out her hands. “Come in, come in. I can certainly help you.”

  Carden made to follow.

  “Carden!” Vinya shouted behind her. The great wolf jumped out of the forest and bared her teeth. “Don’t do this. Get away from her!”

  Her grandmother looked over Carden’s shoulder and pressed her lips into a thin line. “Well, this is most unfortunate.” Her hand gripped Carden’s harder. “What has it told you?”

  “The truth,” Vinya snarled. “Let her go, witch.”

  Carden glanced back at Vinya. “Stop it. She’s not the witch. She’s going to help!”

  “Of course I am,” Grandmother replied. She rubbed Carden’s hands, and a strange sensation ran through her arms. It was like cool water gushing through her skin, pulling from her chest, and going down to her fingers. It made her head spin a little and she faltered. “But all medicine comes with sacrifice.” She released one of Carden’s hands and lifted hers. Fire blazed around her fingers as she sent a roaring ball of flames at Vinya. “Huntsman!” Grandmother snapped.

  Carden fell down to her knees as the energy flowed from her body. She saw the Huntsman form out of midair and raise his ax over Vinya’s head. The wolf dodged away from him and ran towards the woods with the Huntsman close on her tail.

  Grandmother snorted. She grabbed Carden’s other hand and dragged her into the cottage. As Carden stumbled through the threshold, the beautiful flowers and walls fell away to reveal a dark, foreboding prison of stone.

  A castle...just like Vinya had said.

  “What are you doing?” Carden mumbled weakly as her grandmother pulled her through a door. She was shoved into a chair. As she fell, wood came alive and wrapped around her wrists and ankles, pinning her in place. Try as she might, she couldn’t struggle free. “Why?”

  Her grandmother sighed and lit candles with a flick of her wrist. The only other piece of furniture in the room was a small table with a glass orb on top of it. When Carden looked at it, she thought she saw faint outlines of eyes staring back at her. “You weren’t supposed to be one of them,” her grandmother said. “That’s why I always told your mother to wear a red cloak. The Huntsman doesn’t go after those in red. But there have been so few girls lately...well, I have to do what I must to keep my magic alive.”

  Carden watched her grandmother run her hands over the orb until it sparkled with light. “Vinya was right...wasn’t she? You’re the witch.”

  Grandmother scowled. “I knew that wolf would cause me trouble. It’s no matter, the Huntsman will take care of her this time.” She walked towards Carden and touched her hand. The strange cold sensation ran through her again. “I try to avoid draining the lives of my grandchildren, but it happens from time to time when you’ve lived as long as I have.”

  Carden moaned as the dizziness returned. She rolled her head to the side, beads of sweat trickling down her face. “The village...will come looking for me.”

  “And all they’ll learn is the terrible tale of how the werewolves hunted down their savior and killed her.” Grandma...the witch, paused and laughed. “That is if any of them survive long enough to find me.” She placed her free hand on the orb, and it started to glow brighter. A pale mist flowed from Carden’s arm, through the witch, and into the glass. “Don’t worry, not all of them will perish. Their daughters will live and grant me eternal life. And when I need the next sacrifice, I’ll just start another plague so they send one of their beautiful maidens to me.”

  Carden’s heart skipped a beat. She was the reason the village was sick? All this time they’d thought it was a winter illness, but instead this woman had done all of this for selfish reasons. “How can you do something so horrible?”

  The witch looked into the orb of ghostly eyes and sighed. “As I said, magic is not without sacrifice. The forest is at bay because of me.”

  “But if we learn the ways of the forest, we have no need to fear it!” Carden protested, “The only one we should fear is you.”

  “Silence!” The witch grabbed Carden by her throat. “I’ve heard enough from you, dear granddaughter. Sleep.”

  She tightened her hold—not enough to strangle Carden, but it was no less threatening. Carden felt the life ebb out of her and flow into the witch’s hand. Slowly, the wrinkles faded and her skin turned smooth. But each disappearing wrinkle ticked away a year of Carden’s life.

  Carden’s smooth skin started to age, and her long, red hair frosted white. She slumped in the chair and looked at the orb with tired eyes. She thought she heard voices calling out to her, begging her to stay awake.

  The door to the room exploded and sent splinters flying through the air. One cut her cheek, but more struck the witch. The woman fell away with a cry of rage and pain.

  The Huntsman lay in a heap with Vinya, in wolf form, standing on top of him. She bit down on his throat, and he vanished as he had before, dropping his ax with a resounding thud. Vinya leapt past him and ran to Carden’s side.

  “I’m sorry,” Carden mumbled weakly.

  “Save it for later,” Vinya said and snapped down on one of the restraints.

  Carden fought as the wolf freed her from her arm bonds and one foot bond. As they struggled to dislodge the final one, green magic wrapped around Vinya’s body.

  The wolf was lifted into the air and hurled against a nearby wall. Vinya yelped in pain and slumped down, only to be thrown again.

  “No!” Carden screamed and looked at the witch. The mad woman cackled as she lifted the wolf again and again. Carden grabbed the dagger from her belt and stabbed it into her wooden shackle. The chair tried to grab her again, but she slithered away and bumped into the table holding the orb.

  “Don’t!” the witch shouted. She dropped Vinya and held out her hand towards Carden.

  Vinya collapsed to the ground, whimpering.

  Carden looked back at the orb then at the witch again. Behind her, she heard voices whisper, “Set us freeeee.”

  Carden grabbed the orb.

  “Get away from that!” the witch shouted. “You don’t understand the consequences of--”

  But Carden was tired
of listening. She threw the orb down as hard as she could. The witch dove for it, but the orb shattered into thousands of sparkling pieces. Magical wind threw Carden and the witch backwards. Carden slid across the stone floor and fell against Vinya, every bone in her body aching from her forced aging.

  White wisps rushed towards the witch and circled her. She screeched in fright, but she received no mercy. The wisps pulled the magic from her. The witch aged before Carden’s eyes and grew frailer and weaker in seconds. With a final pull of magic, the witch crumbled into dust.

  Carden panted and stroked Vinya’s soft fur. “Be alive,” she pleaded in a gravelly voice. “Vinya...I’m so sorry. Please, be alive.”

  The werewolf cracked open her gold eye. “Are you hurt?” she asked, her voice laced with pain. “Carden...your face…”

  Tears stung Carden’s eyes. She ran her wrinkled hand along Vinya’s furry cheek. “I’m sorry...I’m so sorry, Vinya. I should have listened to you! I never meant for you to get hurt.”

  Vinya smiled, as best a wolf could, and closed her eyes again. “Been a long time since someone cared about what happened to me.”

  Carden went to speak, but something glowed beside them. She watched as each of the white wisps that had attacked the witch turned into a young, ethereal woman. They smiled at Carden and Vinya. Some even looked like Carden.

  One spirit with silver hair stepped forward. “Thank you. We’ve been held in bondage for so long. Now we can be free.” She looked over Carden’s shoulder at Vinya. “You both sacrificed much to save us. We will grant you a final gift.”

  She held out her hands. A bright, white light washed over Carden and Vinya, sending healing magic through them both. Carden gasped and touched her chest, feeling the life return to her. Her hair turned red, and the wrinkles vanished. Vinya grunted and suddenly changed back into her human form. All of her wounds melted away, though her werewolf nature remained. She knelt beside Carden and touched her hands.

  “You’re not hurt,” Carden said in shock. She touched Vinya’s face then fell against her with a laugh. Vinya held her close.

  The spirits floated beside them a moment longer. “Your village is safe,” they said together. “With the death of the witch, the curse is lifted. And the forest can live as it should.”

  “Thank you,” Carden said and lifted a hand to touch the light. “Be at peace.”

  The spirits released a deep sigh then vanished from sight.

  Carden turned back to Vinya and took her hands. “Your oath has been fulfilled. I know your family is gone, but you can come back to my village with me.” She blushed and smiled. “I think you can find a home there.”

  Vinya smiled back and laced her fingers through Carden’s. “I think I’d like that very much.”

  ALSO BY ERIN CASEY

  FIND ERIN CASEY ON AMAZON

  ERIN’S WEBSITE

  FACEBOOK

  UNDER THE SEA

  BY KELLY N JANE

  A LONELY GODESS..A HANDSOME VIKING…A LIFE-CHANGING OFFER. A TALE WITH A LITTLE MERMAID FLAIR.

  Photographer: Lecia McDermott

  Model: Jessica Streebing

  Arild

  We were the last dragon ship on the beach. The other raiders had already shoved off and were raising their sails in the distance.

  “Where are you, Dag?” I mumbled.

  I’d fought to have command of my first ship this season, and choosing my childhood friends as shipmates might not have been a good idea. Every port had yielded as much trouble as treasure.

  “Arild,” Goran called from where he sat on one of the crates we’d acquired from the village.

  I turned toward him and he nodded at something over my shoulder with an arched brow and a twinkle in his eye. Curious, I spun to see two young women strolling down the beach toward us.

  Goran rose and met me while we waited. “The gods have blessed us, my friend.”

  “It seems so.” We’d not taken any thralls over the summer. The practice of keeping women as slaves didn’t sit well with me. But I couldn’t reject a gift from the gods.

  Both women wore their long hair loose over their shoulders, one’s tresses golden, the other raven-colored. Their dresses were like some I’d seen on tavern girls, though neither had shoes. As they neared, their crystalline, lilac eyes sparkled like gems.

  When the fair-haired maiden smiled at Goran, I met the grin of the other. She had an expression that sang of mischief. It drew me a few steps closer.

  “Hey!” Goran shouted.

  It all happened in a heartbeat. The maiden nearest Goran had grabbed a golden chalice from an open chest and sprinted away, with the other woman following her. After a second to gather our wits, Goran and I gave chase.

  “Stay with the spoils,” I called to a warrior who lounged on the ship’s rail.

  The sand pulled at our feet, making for slow progress, but we gained on them. The women seemed to have more trouble navigating the beach than we did. Goran wrapped his arms around the waist of the woman who held the gold. I didn’t have it as easy. The other maiden kicked and fought until I tackled her to the ground, getting a taste of sandy grit between my teeth.

  I thought I had her pinned, but she was as slippery as an eel. She rolled over and shoved a dagger at me. The sharp edge nicked my chest as she glared.

  “That’s unnecessary, I’ll not hurt you. But you will have to come with me.” I stood and reached out my hand, ignoring the dagger now positioned near my knee.

  Even as she glared, there was that sparkle again. A sensation crossed my mind that I’d played right into her hands instead of the other way around.

  Before I could think too much about it, though, shouts and the ring of metal on metal grew louder from a nearby alley in the village.

  “Take them to the ship and tie them,” I shouted to Goran as I shoved the second woman toward him.

  Pulling an axe from my belt, I charged forward. Dag emerged around the corner, leading the rest of the crew, while men from the village attacked. They were no match for my men, and my friend’s big grin showed through his bushy, red beard.

  I met the first man with a block to his arm as he swung a short sword for my head. Punching him in the jaw, I sent him staggering back, then drove my axe into his neck. Done with their fun, my friends dispatched two more of the attackers before the rest came to their senses and sprinted away.

  “Where have you three been?”

  “I got myself caught. Had a rope around my neck and everything.” Dag laughed as he told of the mishap. “The others had to save me from the rope burns when all those skinny devils realized they couldn’t lift me.”

  All the men roared with laughter as I shook my head. Dag was a huge man who liked to say his mother was a giantess. In truth, he’d been found abandoned near our village and didn’t know who his parents were, but it made a good story for a man nearly seven feet tall.

  I slapped Dag on the back as we headed to the ship. “When I make it to Valhalla, it will be because of you, I’m sure.”

  We each grabbed the side of a crate and hoisted it up to the others, who’d already climbed aboard the ship.

  “You’re welcome,” Dag said with a laugh.

  Isca

  Of all the maids I’d sent out, I knew it would be my sweet Mara and Meri who found the perfect match I sought. I’d watched the brave Vikings who rampaged through village after village for years. They were my kind of people.

  The poor boy my girls chose didn’t have a clue.

  A hearty laugh exploded from me, and it felt good after such lengthy boredom. I tapped my long nails on the arm of my throne. The red glow of the scorpionfish kept the dais cozy—a perfect place for intimate conversation. I conjured another chair. Smaller, made of twisted, gray pumice rather than the shiny black basalt of mine, but it would be perfect for my next prince.

  There was only the matter of getting him to me. If I dragged him here to my underwater fortress, I’d have to keep him locked up. I growled
under my breath. That stupid treaty I’d signed with my sister to end our war would haunt me forever. Anyone I brought against their will would have the right to leave, so it required that I make a mutually acceptable deal with them. I wanted the company, and a prince would be the perfect escort to parties and boring diplomatic sessions. It wouldn’t do to have him trying to run off all the time.

  That meant I’d need to find a way to make him come with me voluntarily. I’d have to craft an offer he couldn’t refuse. I rose from the throne and swam across the large gathering hall. More research needed to be done.

  In the middle of the large room, I hovered, my beautiful, black scales glistening as I tried to remember the last time I’d thrown a party. Eons ago, it seemed. That needed to change. I was beautiful and in the prime of life. The seas were my playground, the place for me to unwind and relax.

  It was time to put myself first. I chuckled, knowing that was always the case. But I deserved to have someone by my side.

  Mara and Meri had performed well. Through the pearls on their necklaces, I could monitor all that happened on the surface. They’d even gotten the handsome leader to carry them aboard so they didn’t touch the water. I couldn’t have them returning to their mermaid forms before he had agreed to my terms, after all.

  He’d tied my poor girls up, though. They must be feeling as if they were about to be filleted for dinner. I’d find a way to make it up to them when they made it home.

  It was time I headed to the surface and spoke to Arild myself.

  Arild

  The fire on the docks burned bright and reflected the orange glow on the water as our oars cut through the bay. Keeping the village’s ships from following made sense, but the fire was spreading to other buildings. It wasn’t something I could voice out loud, but I didn’t feel good about it.

  “You shouldn’t worry about those people,” the dark-haired maiden said, getting my attention.

  “What are you talking about?” I sighed and lounged back against the edge of the ship.