Power Surge

by S. L. Perrine

  “Mind if we bunk? I’m exhausted and need to lay on a bed.” He didn’t wait for me to respond. He sat on the edge of the bed and started removing his shoes.

  I was so tired, I couldn’t think of what to say. I lay there until he curled up behind me, draping his arm over me to interlace his fingers with mine. The last thing I remembered was him kissing my head and telling me good night.

  When I woke, the sun was barely rising. Chad was still tucked close by, his arm protectively wrapped around me. I was so comfortable, I just wanted to stay like that for a while longer, but he must have felt me shift.

  “Good morning, E,” he said, and kissed the same spot at my temple as he did before I fell asleep.

  “Well, good morning to you too.” I made him loosen his hold on me as I twisted to face him.

  “How’d you sleep?” He moved the stray pieces of hair that landed on my face and tucked them behind my ear. Then he draped his arm across my midsection.

  “I don’t remember dreaming or waking up, so I must have slept great.” I stretched a little.

  He leaned closer to me and kissed the tip of my nose. “Good.”

  I moved my hand to the side of his face and let my thumb stroke the line of his jaw. He hadn’t shaved in two days and I could feel the stubble on his face as it dug into my skin. He laughed when I started to stroke the tiny hairs by themselves and slapped my hand away.

  “Hey, that tickles.” He rubbed hard at his face to get the feeling to go away.

  “I know.” I pushed up on my elbow and kissed his nose as he had done to me. I rolled out from under his arm and slid over to the edge of the bed.

  “Where are you off to? It’s barely light out.” He tried to grab at the hem of my shirt.

  “I need coffee and the bathroom, if you must know. Besides, I don’t like lying in bed for too long. It makes my body stiff.” I tapped his fingertips as he got closer to grabbing me.

  He rolled on his back and yawned, pushing his arms high above his head in a stretch. “So, these are the things I’m gonna have to get used to, huh?”

  “Well, could be worse.”

  “Yeah? How’s that?” he asked, not moving.

  I pulled my canvas sneakers over my bare feet and straightened my shirt. “You could not have to get used to it.” I laughed at the mess I made of the sentence and opened the door.

  He jumped off the bed and grabbed my wrist, pulling me to him. “I’d get used to anything you want,” he said, and then with his hand on the back of my head, he guided me to him. His lips somehow tasted like honey. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let myself sink into the kiss. I vowed not to pull away but let him guide the embrace for as long as he would hold it. Not long after that, he ended it and grabbed me by the waist with both of his hands, righting me on my feet. “Now, you go use the ladies' room and I’ll go make us coffee.”

  I laughed at him as he skirted around me and ducked out the door that had been left ajar. When I looked into the large living area, I saw Peter standing in the middle of the room with two full cups of coffee. I could feel the blush in my cheeks as Chad whistled his way downstairs to the kitchen.

  “Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t realize anyone else came up here.” I didn’t give him time to respond, but ducked out of the room as well, closing the door behind me, and made my way to the bathroom across the living room.

  I used the sink to lean on for a minute until I could catch my breath. Why was I so nervous about anyone seeing Chad and I coming out of the same room? Especially Peter? I hadn’t given much thought to him, other than when he was around. My heart was pounding in my chest and I felt as if the air around me was thick like mud. I braced myself against the sink and looked into the small medicine cabinet mirror. I hardly recognized myself. My hair was still down, past my waist. That wasn’t different. I actually couldn’t put my finger on it. Did my nose change? Or the color of my skin? No, it still carried a blissful tan. My eyes were deeper; more inset. Sultry almost.

  I turned my head, left to right, and examined the bone structure and contours of my face. I noticed my heart rate had slowed and I could breathe again. So I decided I was losing my mind and moved away from the sink.

  When I walked out of the bathroom, Chad was sitting on the couch with two cups of coffee in front of him. I walked over and before sitting, I took his face in my hands and kissed him full on his mouth. He still tasted of honey and it made me smile. The taste reminded me of something I couldn’t quite remember, but since it seemed like a pleasant memory, I let it go.

  “Mmm, what was that for?” He eyed me as I sat next to him, grabbing at the waiting cup.

  “For the coffee. Why? What did you think it was for?” I teased him.

  “For a peaceful night’s sleep.” He laughed. Then he straightened himself and held his coffee. “It was nice just sleeping next to each other. We can do that every night now, ya know.”

  I played with the idea in my head and smiled. I blew on the top layer of coffee in my mug before taking a generous sip. The warmth of the liquid didn’t bother me. Chad had put in the right amount of cream.

  “I know we can,” was all I said. I knew the powers he had use of would allow me to sleep peacefully. I just wasn’t sure I was ready to be that close. Well, not all of the time.

  “You don’t have to worry about me. I’m not in a rush. We have forever.” He put his coffee down on the table and pulled the two books out from behind him.

  “Oh, aren’t you a sneaky little shit!” I yelled as he plopped them on my lap.

  “You're laughing, so I’m taking that as a good thing?” His eyebrow raised.

  I took a contemplative look at the large books sitting in my lap. “I guess so. Can I wake up a little before we start mulling over these again?” I heaved them onto the table in front of us, grateful I didn’t spill the dark liquid from my cup.

  “I had no choice. It felt like something made me bend over and grab them this morning. Besides, they shouldn’t have been left down there. Out in the open, too.” He eyed the books on the table.

  “What? Why not? We’re all here.” I sipped the warm liquid, which had finally started to work its magic on me.

  “Don’t know.” He started looking around the large, empty room. He almost reminded me of a bobble head on a dashboard. I laughed on the inside until he spoke again. “It’s your parents pushing me around this morning. Isn’t it?” I looked up at him as his hair started to stand on end. I pinched my lips together, but that didn’t stop the laughter overtaking me on the outside.

  “What?” Chad looked over his shoulder and then all around himself some more. Something brushed up against him and pushed him into the back of the sofa.

  “Yeah, I’d say it’s safe to say they’re messing with you this morning. Come to think of it”–I jumped up from the couch and into my parent’s empty room to retrieve my cell phone–“I think we may be close to a full moon. The veil gets thinner then, right?”

  “I think that’s what my dad said.” He looked like he was struggling against a heavy weight to right himself on the couch.

  “Maybe that’s why they're pushing. Okay, let me at those damned books.” I placed the empty cup in Chad’s hand and grabbed the book on top. The big black Book of Shadows. The Sigmis family book.

  As I held it in my hands, I could feel the magic pulsating through it. “Did you feel this?” I looked up to see that Chad was headed toward the stairs with both mugs in hand.

  “Feel what?” He glanced back.

  “Nothing, never mind.” I smiled at him and he disappeared downstairs.

  The magic began to make my legs shake with its vibrations as I set the book in my lap to open it. A soft white glow came from the pages, and then they did their 'alive' thing again. Pages flipped back and forth…searching. I didn’t even have to hold out my hands.

  “Where were you two last night while we were trying to figure this out on our own?” I asked the air around me, assuming my parents to be near
by.

  When the pages settled, the glow grew brighter and then dimmed. That’s when the metal of my family ring burned me. Or at least, it felt like it was burning. I stood up. The book fell to the floor as I tried to pull the ring from my finger. When the book lifted itself from the floor and floated up to me at eye level, I stopped pulling on the ring.

  Lifting my arms, I reached out for the book. The heat of the ring was bothersome, but obviously not burning me. I sat and placed the book on my lap again and looked at the spell in front of me.

  Unlock the power of the Immortal witch,

  I ask of thee, to set it free in me.

  Allow the use of the elements; of all her power,

  Without the aid of the everlasting hour.

  This is what I ask of thee, so mote it be.

  A swirl of bright white and purple lights lifted from the ring and swirled around me. Chad came up the stairs then and dropped both mugs on the carpet, wide-eyed and speechless. The swirling lights wrapped around my body and traveled like a coil, up and above me. It settled in the air above my head, spinning.

  “What’s it doing?” Chad yelled.

  “I don’t know,” I answered as calmly as I could.

  “Where is it going?” he yelled out and rushed over to me.

  “I don’t know!” I yelled back at him as he tried to make it to me. The lights swirled around a last time and then flew like a boomerang. It went away from me and around Chad, sling-shooting back to me. It hit me in the chest like an arrow and knocked me to the couch.

  The commotion had awakened the entire house. I hadn’t even known anyone was staying upstairs in another bedroom until Matt and Crystal emerged, sleepy-eyed and disheveled. The stairs sounded like a herd of animals. Chester came to me first. That’s when I noticed I hadn’t landed on the couch, but in Chad’s arms. He was sitting on the floor, holding me closely to him where the sofa used to be.

  “What happened?” Chester inspected me as if I’d been in a car accident. “Is she hurt?”

  “No, I don’t think so,” Chad managed. Then, as if he got his breath back, he was retelling what he’d seen. “It was so weird. It just flew straight into her chest.” He was shaking beneath me.

  “Did she cast a spell?” He looked down at me.

  “I think maybe she did. I got a weird nudge to pick up the books when I went down there this morning.” He looked around the room.

  Everyone was staring at me as if I was in a coma, and they were unsure if I’d ever wake up. Crystal knelt close by, Clara next to her. They both looked like they were close to tears. Ophelia hadn’t left the railing of the stairs. Peter was standing close to her, as if he was lending her strength to stay upright. Cinnabar, Barnaby, and Bellatrix were all huddled around Alistair, who had been holding onto my foot.

  “Where’s my sister?” I tried to ask, but it was as if no one heard me. Then I pushed myself up to move but couldn’t feel my arms. “What’s going on?” I panicked. I looked from left to right at everyone crowding around me but didn’t feel like my head was moving.

  Chad cradled me closer and Chester reached under my legs. They were murmuring something to each other, so I couldn’t hear them. When they lifted me, I didn’t move. I mean, my body moved when they did, but I didn’t move. Then I saw Michelle behind Chad. She was brushing my long hair with her fingers, like Helen used to do to us when we were sick or sad.

  “You’re okay,” a soft voice, not unlike my own, said to me. I saw her move into the room like a ghost wading through mist.

  Her hair was long and raven black, like mine. It hung down to her slender hips. I knew I wasn’t looking at myself, because she had more curves than I had, even after the gifts of the High Priestess. She was wearing a black satin gown. It hung low around her neck, revealing cleavage I had only dreamt of. The sleeves looked as if someone had ripped them off, much like the hem at the bottom.

  “Don’t be afraid, child,” she said as she settled next to me.

  “I’m not afraid. I’m just kinda wondering if I’m dead. Cause then, we're all screwed.” The girl gave me a quizzical look. “All in big trouble.” As I guessed, her confusion disappeared.

  “You’ll have to excuse me. I don’t know many things past that of the eighteenth century.” She looked humored by me.

  Under normal circumstances, I may have been intrigued to meet someone wearing a ripped-up ball gown from the 1800’s, but as my family and friends were all around me thinking I had killed myself with a spell gone bad, I wasn’t that interested.

  “Who are you? Better yet, what happened to me? Am I dead?” I finally asked her.

  “No, you’re not dead. Look,” she said, pointing to my body, which was resting on the couch.

  Chester was checking my pulse and breath. He didn’t seem to be worried, so I guess that was a good thing. Then I started thinking about all the other things that could have gone wrong, and my heartbeat started pounding in my temples. I couldn’t get a deep breath and I thought I was starting to shake. I felt like I was underwater. A strong pain crept into my chest. It kind of felt like a handful of nails being hammered into my sternum.

  Then I saw them. They walked, not floated, next to me. She grabbed my hand and stared right into my eyes. I had no choice, as it seemed, but to meet her gaze. Then she smiled, and I didn’t want to look away.

  “You’re going to be fine, Elyse,” she said to me and broke eye contact for a moment to look at the tall dark-haired man behind her. “We all are.”

  “Mom.” It wasn’t a question, but more a muffled sob.

  “Yes. Elyse, honey, you’ve done it. You’ve found her magic. Now, she is going to help you use it.” She looked at the apparition in front of me.

  Apparition? My parents were there in corporeal form. Why was this woman here as a ghost? “Who is she?” I asked Gwen.

  The woman moved closer and placed her hand on top of mine, then her other on my forehead. When both hands were laid on me, she, too, had become whole.

  “I am your family. Seraphina Crawford. The Immortal Witch. Leader of the Covenant of the Silver Shadows. Blessed by our mother goddess.” She leaned down and kissed my forehead, next to where her hand was. “And you, my dear Elyse, are our greatest achievement.”

  “What? How? What does that even mean?” I stammered on.

  “Your mother will explain everything to you. For now, you must know this. The power that had been in the ring now lies in you,” Seraphina spoke slowly and softly. She was in no hurry, nor was she affected by my sobs and fear.

  “So what? I’m immortal now? I don’t want that!” I could hear myself screaming, yet everyone around me, including my parents, never reacted.

  Seraphina took her hand from mine and rested it over my heart. “No, child. You were born with the same powers I was gifted at birth. Only yours were magnified by the blood ritual. Now, you have been gifted all the magic I had stolen to become immortal. That magic the mother goddess let me keep. Now, she lets you take it for your own because my sacrifice earned it for you. As did your parents.” She kissed my forehead again, and just as she had floated into the room, she began floating out.

  “But wait, how do I use it?” I screamed again.

  Gwen squeezed my hand. “You just feel what you want. Just remember, midnight is the witching hour.” Gwen kissed me where Seraphina had. I felt a pull in my gut and shut my eyes. An overwhelming feeling of nausea overtook me. When I opened them again, I was staring up at Chester and Chad. As I began to sit up, everyone started to move closer to me.

  “What? What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “E, you passed out after that light thing shot into you,” Chad started. “It scared the crap outta me.”

  “Oh that, yeah. Well, you could say I had an out-of-body experience.” I laughed, but everyone looked at me weird.

  They looked as if they were studying something on my face. “What?” I asked. When Chad pointed at me, I jumped from the couch and ran to the little bathroom. I switched
on the light and stared at my reflection in the mirror. This time, I could pinpoint the change I saw. There was a small white rose tattooed on my collarbone. The same one that was on the ring.

  When I lifted it to compare them, I noticed the one on the ring was gone. “Aw, crap!”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “What is it? You know, you’ve got us all worried about you. The least you can do is let us know what’s going on.” I recognized Chad’s annoyed voice and just sucked my teeth at him.

  “I know. I’m sorry. It’s been a rough day and I haven’t even had breakfast yet. Give me some slack.” I studied the rose and traced it with my finger.

  “Where did that come from?” Crystal poked her head around Chad and noticed my new tattoo.

  “Looks like it’s a gift from Seraphina.” I pushed them from the doorway and went back to sit down on the sofa.

  “As in 'crazy immortal on a killing spree' Seraphina?” Matt asked.

  I just looked at him. “Huh?”

  “You know. She was born with crazy powers. She killed hundreds of witches to get more crazy powers. Then she let the Covenant turn her immortal with crazy powers,” Matt said between bites of bacon.

  I knew a little bit about Seraphina from Ophelia’s story and from the book, and I knew I needed to find out more about her. However, right then, all I wanted was the bacon. Then, as luck would have it, Michelle came upstairs with a plateful of waffles covered in blueberries, whipped cream, and bacon.

  “Someone said you haven’t really been eating right. So, I made as much of your favorite as I could.” She placed the plate in front of me and sat down on the end of the sofa. I reached around Chad and gave her a big hug.

  Between mouthfuls of food, I explained to the group about my vision of Seraphina, my parents, and my new gifted powers–like I needed any more powers I couldn’t control. I flipped through the book and noticed two pages in each book–and not close together–filled with incomplete spells. It was like they had been separated for a reason. As I stuffed my mouth with waffles and fruit compote, I tried to rework the spells together in a way that made sense. My intuition screamed when it looked as though I had gotten them right.