After a number of turns around the inn, I paused and looked up at the inn. The building shone like a beacon. A colourful aura of red, yellow, orange, blue and green lit up the immediate vicinity. We could do no more, it was time to move into the grounds.
With the building glowing at our backs we began to widen the circle. Wider and wider we walked, in a continuous spiral outward, pacing the same pieces of ground, alternating earth and concrete depending on where we were, stepping among the debris and ash of the stable block. Wider and wider until some time around midnight, I heard the familiar sound of Mr Hoo calling for me, not far from me, through the trees. The undergrowth had become dense.
This was it then. Several of our group had wands out ready, others only their bare hands. I had no comprehension of what I could do, or whether there were any spells I could cast. Instead I stepped into the dark woods, concentrating on cleansing and protection.
Mr Hoo fluttered from branch to branch ahead of me as I walked slowly among the trees, following a natural path. Ahead of me I could vaguely make out Mortimer with his bright yellow shirt. It would be better to take a different route to him, I decided, and so I stepped away from the path, away from him, aware that I had already lost Wizard Shadowmender and Mr Kephisto. I followed a deer trail, watching my step, my eyes gradually adjusting to the poor light, but the darkness was alleviated somewhat by the glowing inn behind me. Then I spotted lights ahead. The words for the ritual died in my throat.
Small orange dots hovered at head height, a few feet away from me. Somewhere else in the world they might have been fireflies, but not here in Devon. They couldn’t be. As I moved closer they remained static. I reached out to touch one. It was hot and crumbled to dust in my hand. These were the embers from the fire I had watched as they drifted into the woods. They hung in the air like fairy lights, illuminating a trail for me to follow.
I remained where I was, peering among the trees, the undergrowth and the shadows. From further away I could hear voices, chants and spells and the sounds of people moving carefully through the wood. I wasn’t alone by any stretch of the imagination, but now I wished for closer company.
Tentatively I followed the trail of embers, until I spotted more light ahead. As I moved closer, I could see that it was much larger, hanging in the air, an orb of some description, green with a gold sparkling fleck running through it. Beautiful to look at. At first it was stationary but as I continued to move forwards, it suddenly started spinning extremely quickly and hurtled towards me at speed, I shrieked and ducked as it whizzed past my face close enough to disturb my hair. I spun to see the light hit an oak tree. The massive oak tree, a good eight feet in diameter at the base, rocked in place, and the trunk shimmered green and gold, before gold sparkles exploded into the air and rained down on the ground in front of me. As I bent down to examine the sparkly stuff, Mr Hoo squawked a warning. I felt, rather than saw, something hard volley over the top of my head. Had I been standing upright it would have taken me out. I dropped to my knees and crawled towards the shelter of the oak tree, then peered out from behind the trunk to see what had passed overhead this time.
A red light with gold sparkles hovered some twelve to fourteen feet away from me, pulsing with its own inner energy. The depth of red, the way the gold twisted through it, like a marble, reminded me of the ring that had belonged to the corpse, Edvard Zadzinsky.
Shocked, I threw myself behind the trunk of the oak tree, my breath jerking out of my chest in shallow spasms. Partially immobilised by panic, I clenched my jaw hard. Get a grip, I whispered. I needed to warn everyone. I had to take action.
Shouting for help, wishing I’d stayed within shouting distance of Shadowmender or Kephisto after all, I flung myself onto my belly and scuffled through the undergrowth. A scorching beam of red light shot my way, heading directly for me, and I face-planted in the earth, digging my fingers into foliage, willing myself small and insignificant.
The red orbs had to be The Mori. Did that mean the green orbs were friend or foe?
Not far away something exploded, followed by a loud shriek of anger. Hot gold glitter rained down on me when I raised my head to look, and the tree above me pulsed red, green, red and then green before the colours disappeared. When the ground had finished vibrating, I had a quick scout around – I couldn’t see any of my friends.
“The Mori are here!” I yelled, hoping my voice would carry and warn everyone else, and then pushed myself to my knees once more and scurried back towards the edge of wood. When nothing else appeared to impede me, I took to my feet and ran, branches catching my hair and yanking me painfully about. Once or twice I lost my footing and crashed to the ground. Any hope I’d had of casting useful spells was lost in my growing panic. I had to get out. I doubled back the way I had come.
Or that’s what I thought I was doing.
I found myself face to face with the palest of blue barriers. This was Kephisto’s boundary. I had travelled further than I thought. Swivelling to look back, I could see the woods alive with red and green and gold. Explosions lit up the sky like millions of tiny stars, and illuminated the wood. People were running and shouting. The very trees themselves rocked and twisted, branches extended, reaching, whipping backwards and forwards with alarming ferocity, leaves shaking. I heard a crash and then a scream that froze my innards, and without thinking, acting purely on instinct, I stepped away from the chaos. I felt a slight resistance and a pop, and I had breached the barrier, reached the extent of my land and was out of Speckled Wood.
My breath rasped loudly in the silence. Turning slowly, I peered back into my woods and could see nothing extraordinary. No colours. No people. No lights. No blue barrier. Everything appeared as it should, no sense that The Battle for Speckled Wood raged on inside, loud and chaotic and vicious. Less than a mile away people in the village slept easy.
I could walk away. Go back to the inn. Wait for everyone there. Make sure Jed was alright. Then in the morning, all I’d need to do would be to thank everyone for their help, and tell them I’d call them if I ever needed them again. I could live an ordinary, mundane life. Maybe settle down with Jed. Have a few children. Join the WI, become part of the community. Grow old.
Or I could re-join the people in the forest, my people, the ones who had travelled a long way in some cases to help me out. I could fight for my wood and my inn, and banish The Mori from my doorstep, now and forever. Then I could help others to fight The Mori. I could help protect the ancient woods and forests, do something meaningful with my life.
There was no question really. I stepped back towards the action – met the resistance of Kephisto’s barrier, which was much stronger this time. I had to really, really want this. I pushed hard, and harder still, stretching at whatever spell he had woven to keep folks out. I was sweating with the strain, urging myself forward and finally I could see the faint blue of the barrier again, and with one more lunge, I plunged back into the fray.
I landed on my knees, instantly on high alert. Uncertain which way to head, I listened. Most of the commotion came from the centre of the woods. I should go that way, towards whatever darkness lurked there. Mr Hoo called to me as I rose.
“I’m back,” I whispered to him, brushing the leaves from my knees. “Show me which way to go.”
I followed his soft sounds, moving quietly and as quickly as I dared, sticking to the dark paths and shadows.
I thought I was alone, so when someone grabbed my arm I shrieked in fear. Kephisto. His face smudged with dirt and moss. “Are you alright, Alf? I was just checking on the barrier to make sure it was holding.”
“I went through it,” I garbled. “Did I break it?”
Kephisto looked back towards the inn. “You went all the way through it?” When I nodded, he said, “Then I must check on the inn and recast the spell to keep everything secure. Follow me Alf and keep your head down.”
I ducked once more and ran with him, but I had travelled no more than fifty yards or so when something sma
shed into the tree above my head, and shrieked into my ear so loudly that I was temporarily deafened.
I fell to the ground again, shielding my head, as twigs, small branches, leaves and insects showered down on me. Kephisto had run on without me, oblivious. A red globe of energy, woven with gold, and the size of a cricket ball, shimmered in the air, approximately four feet off the ground. I stared up at it in fear and as I did so I felt something emanating from it, a dark energy, reaching out for me.
“Stay still,” a voice from behind me commanded. Not Kephisto.
“It’s growing,” I said, hearing the tremble in my voice. The orb had grown to the size of a football.
“It’s drawing on your negativity. Feeding on your emotion.”
The globe pulsed and span in the air, the size of a glitter ball.
I ducked, frightened it would explode and cried out.
“Listen to me,” the voice came again, calm and authoritative, and this time I half-thought I recognised it. I turned to see who it was, but could only see shadows behind me. “You have to dampen that fear. Don’t feed this creature.”
“I don’t know how to,” I cried, casting a wary eye at the red globe, shimmering in delight above me.
“Yes you do. Kill it with love.”
“With love?” I squealed as it whistled and shrieked above me, dancing in place.
From above my head, high up in the tree, I heard Mr Hoo call to me. “Hooo hooo. Hoo hooooo.”
Was he safe? My heart melted at the thought of my feathery little friend with his sticky up ears, and that single emotion was enough to halt the globe’s relentless spinning and stop it creating such an awful noise. It hung in the air, the colour diminishing. I conjured up Mr Hoo’s face in my mind’s eye and smiled, imagined smoothing his feathers, balancing him on one hand, feeling his weightlessness. As I did so, the gold shimmer disappeared from the globe as it began to shrink. I imagined lifting my arm, and Mr Hoo leaping away, flying though Speckled Wood, hunting in the night, free and happy. The globe shrank ever smaller until eventually it collapsed in on itself and disappeared with a pop.
Relieved, I scrambled to my feet once more. I turned to thank my saviour, but he had disappeared. No time to waste, and crouching low to avoid incoming missiles I ran towards the action, now relatively unafraid. I had the capacity to defeat these things, after all. I passed a number of our group, magnificent in their fearlessness and tenacity, engaging more of the red globes, each dealing with them in their own way. I spared a moment to contemplate that this Battle for Speckled Wood would surely go down in the magickal history books, as I reached the clearing in the centre of the forest where the circle of benches had been arranged. Pausing to take stock of what to do next, and half hoping I would draw out another of the enemy, I heard someone yelling, “We’ve got them on the run!”
Thrilled, I clapped my hands, and in the same instant heard Mr Hoo calling to me urgently. I turned to look for him and was knocked off my feet by a pulse of bright corrupt energy, landing with a painful thump on my right hip and elbow, and smacking my head on the ground. After lying dazed for a few seconds, I struggled to sit up.
A large red globe apparated in front of me. This one was different to the others, larger, a deeper red. The weave of gold through the centre was beaded and ornate. I tried to keep my fear in check, watching as it started to grow, swelling to twice and then three times its original size until it was the size of a horse, hovering mere inches above the ground.
I rubbed the side of my head and heard others joining me. Wizard Shadowmender, wand drawn, Kephisto, his hands stretched out, Mortimer and Virginia, Bryony bleeding from a gash on her forehead, Finbarr with a potential black eye … and behind us all, the green globes created a circle around the clearing, forming a barrier of sorts. Our adversary could not escape.
Energy flew from the red ball in spiky shots of lightning, downing several of the green balls, shrieks split the air around us, and I could see that a number of the green globes, and our witches were ready to cut it down. But Shadowmender dropped his wand and held his left hand up.
“No more,” he said, his voice quiet but firm, and the tension that had been ramped up, eased a little.
Mr Kephisto helped me to my feet, and I stood in between him and Wizard Shadowmender as the latter addressed the red globe.
“We have banished The Mori from this wood tonight, and you – their leader - are the last, and the angriest. This is no place for you. You may leave of your own free will or you will be exiled. Fight us and we will destroy you. The choice is yours.”
The globe in the centre of the clearing spun dizzyingly quickly, gold sparks flying through the air and illuminating the surroundings. I noticed two figures lying prone on the floor, at the edge of the clearing, clad all in dark green. These were the green globes, now transitioned from energy to bodies.
“Wait,” I said. “Who are you? Show yourself.”
I caught the glance between Shadowmender and Kephisto. “I want to see. I want to know who wishes ill on the inn and the forest.”
Kephisto nodded and Shadowmender lifted his wand. “Show yourself,” he commanded and the globe stopped spinning, and shrank rapidly, settling on the ground, revealing a figure clad in a dull red cloak, hiding his features from view. When he moved, a bright ruby ring shone on his hand. And then he stood, tall and fierce, dark-haired and handsome in his own unique way, and entirely unapologetic.
“Jed!” I cried in surprise, and my heart shattered.
Jed stood tall, his demeanour difficult to read. He was beaten and he knew it. He glared at us all one by one, turning to take everyone in, leaving no-one out, his look one of utter disdain and hatred. I watched him do this and I willed myself to be strong. I would not let him fell me with his loathing. He left me till last. The Alf of six or eight weeks ago would have withered and died. But not me. Not today.
I stepped forward to meet him and stretched my hands out to his face.
“Alf,” Shadowmender said behind me, but I shrugged him off.
I didn’t touch Jed, just held my hands an inch from each side of his face as though I would reach to caress him, hold him close and kiss him, as I had done dozens of times over the last few weeks. I’d been blinded by my feelings. In this moment, I could have said, “I thought you loved me,” because I thought he had, but that wasn’t important any more.
Instead, in a calm quiet voice, I told him the things that were important. “I love you. Thank you for helping me find myself. Thank you for helping me to fall in love with the inn. Thank you for helping me to see my future and my place in it.”
Later I would think it was my imagination, because no-one else noticed a change in expression, but I thought I caught something in his eyes. Regret? Perhaps.
“You can’t hurt us now. Not me, nor my friends, not the inn or Speckled Wood,” I said. “I banish you from this place. Never visit my hearth or darken my door again. You are not welcome in these woods, and neither are your kind.” I stepped away from him, then slowly turned to take in my friends, indicating that everyone else should join me in Jed’s expulsion.
“We set you free, to live your live in peace and harmony elsewhere.” I lifted my hand, palm up. “Goodbye Jed,” I said and pushed at the air between us. The very earth seemed to move beneath my feet, and such a force of magick erupted around me as my friends joined me, that the world crackled as though held in the grip of a furious fire. And then Jed, and all of The Mori, were gone.
My shoulders slumped as I regarded the empty space he’d once inhabited. With Jed in my life I had certainly felt less alone. I heard mumbling around me and sensed movement as my friends shuffled about, exclaiming at aches and pains. I turned about. The first fingers of dawn were poking at the sky, and one by one the stars were flickering out.
Kephisto and Shadowmender stood together, each observing me with compassion.
“You knew, didn’t you?” I asked and Shadowmender nodded.
“I’m a
fraid so. When you came to see me, I knew some of what was going on because Millicent had been keeping me informed, and you filled in the blanks. When I asked you to hold the orb, I’d already requested that it show you who was leading the campaign of destruction against you and the inn. The first person you saw would be the perpetrator of ills against you.”
“I saw Jed,” I said dully. “I thought that was because I’d left him at the inn to look after things, so the orb was merely showing me what was.”
“His magick was effective because you had freely invited him to be part of your life, and because you trusted him.”
“Millicent recommended him to me,” I pointed out.
“Yes, she’s been working underground for us here in Whittlecombe for years. Her role in this was twofold. She has always kept an eye on happenings at the inn, in your family’s absence in any case. But most importantly, she has long suspected Jed’s father of being a member of The Mori, so we decided to bring you and Jed together and see what that would teach us. Millicent has proved her mettle time and time again. I am sorry that you had feelings for Jed. That was an unplanned consequence.”
My head was spinning. People I had trusted were not who I thought they were, and some of those I suspected were entirely trustworthy. How had I missed all the signs? “He knew all my weaknesses. I confessed everything to him. It could have been so easy for him to destroy both me and the inn.”
“You’re a good person, Alf,” Mr Kephisto said quietly. “You will move on from this.”
“I sent you to Mr Kephisto after you had visited me, so he’d confirm my suspicions,” Shadowmender continued. “We were worried about you.”
“I needed you to stay the night, to keep an eye on you,” Kephisto added. The two wizards appeared to be perfectly in tune with each other’s thinking.
The Wonkiest Witch Page 13