“Yeah, I got them their share, too.”
“Eat,” he ordered them. They accepted the plate from her gently and wolfed the food down.
“Do they…like, know?”
“Their consciousness is trapped. They see, hear, feel, and taste everything. Their bodies are under my command, though.”
“How long will this last?”
“Until I run out of dark energy and find the need to process more,” he said. “I have enough to keep this going for a good few days, though.”
“But if they come back with us, they’ll know how to get to us once we let them off.”
“We’ll kill them after we get what we need,” he stated simply. Ivanna frowned, noticing something was definitely off about him.
“Are you okay, Mitch?”
The ghoul only shrugged. It took a few seconds for Ivanna to get it.
“Viria will be okay,” she said as she munched on her chicken, “there’s never been a mission she hasn’t come back from. And it won’t be a bad thing if she does need assistance this time.”
“I just wish I’d get some sort of clue of what’s going on there.” He sighed. “I worry about her a lot.”
“You care for her and that’s natural,” she said reassuringly, “but you have to trust her. She’s a capable person.”
Mitch knew Ivanna wouldn’t understand, she may be Viria’s sister, but she hasn’t been able to see past the strong front the little witch put up. Of course, she was capable, but Mitch knew she wanted someone to have her back sometimes. He’d spent so little time with her but it was obvious she felt tired and had been this way on her own for far too long.
“Yeah.” He only sighed. “She’ll be fine.”
“You can go to where she is and check up on progress after we get back, okay?” Ivanna offered. “Will the chimeras still be under your control that way?”
“Yeah, it’ll be fine,” he said. Ivanna nodded and they looked toward the morning that was finally coming around.
Chapter 19
She fell with a thump to the floor, the crack in her wrists audible.
Viria had foreseen a lot of things. She’d endured a lot to know she could take this, too. Broken bones and cut skin, pulled hair and chipped nails. Body abused and touched by uncountable. Her innocent vision shattered by display of violence.
Her brain, body, and soul had been battered to ends. She’d endured it all throughout the years. But enduring and getting used to are two different things.
One could never get used to pain.
And Viria felt a lot of it at the moment. She allowed herself to feel, as it demanded to be felt. She allowed herself to cry, as loose tears lessened burdens upon the heart. The torture had just started…
It wasn’t all that painful at first. They tied her up in chains and had witches surround her to make sure she didn’t use her spells, just like Ammara had when she and her witches had caught her. It would be child’s play for Viria to work past the defenses, but she didn’t.
“How much do you know about us?” Lydia asked.
“A lot, really.” She smiled at her lopsidedly.
“Just how much?”
“I heard everything during the meeting so you can guess.” The witch chuckled and that earned her a slap across the face, “Goodness, lady, those hands are far too soft to be lethal.”
“You’re a cheeky little shit, aren’t you?” she hissed. The chains crackled and Viria’s nerves tingled painfully, her body jolting for a few seconds. Her hair stood on its ends and fell down as soon as it stopped. Electrocution.Nothing new.
“What’s your agenda?” Lydia demanded.
“Oh, you know” – Viria forced out with a groan – “being a world hero and maybe spend a nice life in a little cottage by a valley or shit.”
“And you think I’m some evil the world needs to be ridden of,” she scoffed. Viria raised a brow at her and looked around at the chimeras and witches standing around her, waiting for her commands.
“You’ve got those poor things brainwashed,” Viria said dangerously. “You lied about a world that’s never before seen them. You enslave them mentally with false promises of a better life and thrust them into war – argh!”
Her body buzzed with pain as more shocks ran through her. The chimeras had stiffened and were looking at each other uncertainly.
“Do not feed them lies!”
“Oh, I don’t need to feed them bullshit.” Viria laughed. “I’d be wasting my time then. What did you tell those witches, huh? You’d have your chimeras kill…” She convulsed, but forced the words out, “them as soon as…they fulfilled their…their purpose because that’s what you want…To annihilate our…kind.”
“Nonsense!”
“Why else are you creating the chimeras?” Viria growled. “What purposes do they serve you besides selling them into the human military for money!”
One of the witches lifted the chair of into the air and let it fall. Viria’s body bounced slightly against the tiles and her head hit the surface, racking a pain in her temple. She groaned, but the witches weren’t done. They lifted her up into the air again and Viria felt a numbing pain slash across her face that burned later. They were using whips, smacking it against her legs, arms, and face.
“If this isn’t the truth then why don’t you defend yourselves?” Viria screamed, “WHAT PROOF DO YOU HAVE TO PROVE OTHERWISE?”
Lydia gestured something at the witches and left the room. And as soon as she did, the chimeras fell to their knees, gripping at their throats.
“YOU LEAVE THEM ALONE YOU FUCKING CUNTS!” Viria yelled at the witches. “THEY DID NO ONE ANY WRONG! FUCK YOU DOUBLE-CROSSING ROGUE SHITS!”
And while the yelling seemed quite natural, painful, and heartbreaking, Viria’s hands had been working to move past the witches’ defensive barriers and lull the chimeras into a deep sleep. They all dropped one by one to the ground. Viria knew they were still alive. The witches stopped suffocating them as they were successfully fooled.
This time they let her drop, it was a really bad blow to Viria’s body. Her wrists took the worst of it. She couldn’t move her hands. All she could do was whispers enchantments and have the pain fade away momentarily for a little relief.
“That’s enough,” a voice came over invisible speakers. “Leave her be. We need to question her more over the course of a few hours. If she doesn’t answer, then we kill her.”
****
She wasn’t sure how long she was unconscious for, but she woke up to the early chimeras hovering above her. She thought she would die.
“Mitch…” Viria whispered. They listened to her intently.
“We only serve the truth,” one of them said. “We’re confused. Give us sources to the truth.”
“Go…” she rasped, “to Mitch… Ghoul.”
“You?”
“No… leave me…” she breathed, regaining a little of her voice, “I’m…on a mission.”
They looked at each other uncertainly and Viria coughed for their attention.
“Break through…the walls,” she forced out. Her throat felt like it would rip, “Go! Now!”
The chimeras sensed the urgency and turned away doing as she asked. Sure enough, they were powerful against the steel walls and broke through just fine. Viria was confused at what had just happened.
They only serve the truth, huh? she thought with a sigh.They’re not all that dumb, I guess. Just misguided.Might need to start rescue missions.
BITCH, RESCUE YOURSELF FIRST! Yang’s voice shouted in her head.
Oh, hey, you guys are here!Viria called out to them happily.
WE CAN’T GET IN! Yin cried.
Hey, just stick around and remember everything I tell you, okay? she said reassuringly.I’m right here. I’m okay.
YOUR FUCKING WRISTS ARE BROKEN!
I am aware.
The door slid open and Lydia returned.
“You still won’t tell us anything?”
&n
bsp; “Nope,” she said, “but I doubt killing me would get you anywhere. If anything, it will bring more hell upon you.”
“Oh, what could be worse than you?” she scoffed and walked over. Her stilettos neared Viria’s face and almost stepped on her nose. She leaned down and grabbed her by the hair, yanking at it. Viria grunted as her short locks slipped from Lydia’s nimble fingers. Lydia reached for her shirt and dragged her by the neck, almost suffocating Viria. She pulled her out of the room and down a slope.
“You know what, since you’re dying anyway, I’ll give you a little parting gift, eh?” she said.
“I love presents!” Viria cheered in pain. It got her a kick in the stomach that definitely knocked all the wind out of her.
Mitch feels you, Yang said.She’s taking you underground. It will take him a while, but he’s on his way.
Tell him to stay put unless I say so, Viria ordered with as much authority as possible. She felt Yang’s nod of obedience and went silent. The shirt was cutting into her throat, but she did not dare let Lydia know of her discomfort.
They soon came to an elevator and stepped into it. Lydia pressed a button and it descended. Soft music played through the small compartment and Lydia tapped her foot impatiently. After what felt like absolutely forever, they arrived and the doors dinged open.
It was cold. As cold as Viria’s anger when contained in an essence and let loose to enforce punishments. And it was dark. So dark that Viria thought she’d gone blind, so she closed her eyes and switched spectrums through a quiet spell that allowed her to view the energies in the place. There were hardly any since there was no heat in the place. A small green light blinked somewhere and she looked above her to make out the silhouette of Lydia’s face. She’d gotten a pair of goggles somewhere and she could probably see everything.
“Do you feel that?” she asked the witch, “The power?”
“The only thing I feel is cold and death,” Viria admitted.
“Nobody can see her, you know?” she continued as if she heard nothing, “She’s the very essence of darkness and energy itself. So powerful you can’t even make out what she is. All you can make out is a dark cloud.”
“You’re telling me you managed to sedate something as formless and powerful as that?” Viria scoffed in disbelief.
“Oh, I didn’t.” She giggled. “A good accomplice of mine did. You know him, Gael.”
“Please don’t say his name like that.” Viria gagged. “I’d rather you spit it out like poison.”
Send him in now, you guys, she reached out to her familiars.
He’s on his way, Yin informed.
“Every second spent here unguarded takes away a part of your share of dark energy and consciousness,” she said with clear malice in her voice. “And I’m the only one it can’t get to.”
“That’s some useless protection seeing I can easily kill you with a knife to your throat.”
Lydia pulled Viria onto her feet and pushed her forward into the room, sending her stumbling down and landing on her face.
“We’ll see you try that after you’re dead.” She laughed. Her heels slowly backed away into the elevator, and the doors dinged close. She was gone.
Viria was stuck in the dark. The mother was there somewhere, but she didn’t dare move anywhere in case she came in contact with her. Moving slowly, she pushed herself back. Viria felt the power oozing off the mother in waves. It got lighter as she moved further back, but it was still present nonetheless and there was no escaping it.
Cold.Viria began to shiver. She was stilla skinny little thing with little fat over her muscles to keep her warm. She got colder more quickly than most people did, and while she could ignore it, she couldn’t keep it up over long periods of time. And this place was deathly cold, as if encased in something colder than ice. It was the kind of cold that sucked the warmth from anywhere it could in desperation. She was pretty sure there wasn’t an atom vibrating down here at all. And she knew she wouldn’t be shivering soon, either.
Although it was already dark, it seemed to grow darker at the corner of her vision. She felt weak…hopeless…senseless. As if she was slowly sinking into a dark pit of despair. If depression was never reaching a small light at the end of a super long and eternally dark tunnel, then this feeling of falling into a black hole must be...death? She didn’t know. She’d never died before. She’d been in near death experiences, though. Maybe her life had flashed too many times before her eyes for her brain to even carry out that protocol anymore. She’d still have a chance to come back to life, though. If only Mitch made it here fast enough. She knew she’d have seven minutes of brain activity left and that was more than enough time for Ivanna to extract her complete essence along with all the information in her brain.
It was sad where she was. This is not how she wanted it all to end. But she felt relief knowing that one of the key elements to this whole operation was located all so easily. Mitch would be there any second to see that he was right. And since he could control dark energies, maybe he’d find a way to communicate with the mother. He could get her to reason with him and help stop this madness. Maybe the chimeras who ran away would find him and he could get more of them on his side and help them train their own armies in the sanctuaries.
She wouldn’t know, though. She couldn’t even think anymore.
It was like she had ceased to exist…
Witch Academy Box Set (1-5)
Sarah J. Stone
Book 1: The Missing Queen
Chapter 1
Desmond awoke with a start, his body tensing up. It took him a moment to figure out exactly what the problem was, his magic finding its way up to his brain.
He realized after a moment that it was a crash from his kitchen that had woken him. However, the presence that he sensed was not anything that would cause him harm. His dishes and food supply might be in danger, but he was not.
Running a hand over his face, he tried to pull the sleep from his eyes, glancing at the time piece. He was planning to get up now anyway; the alarm would beep after a moment or two. It was later than he normally got up, but he didn't have anywhere to be for another hour.
“Nathaniel,” he said as the door to his chambers whooshed open at his touch. “What are you doing?”
His former Tiro looked up at him, a piece of toast in his mouth.
“You're awake.”
Desmond raised an eyebrow, leaning against the doorframe.
“You think I can't still sense when you are causing chaos? Eleven years of training you, Nathaniel. I promise that the bond is not broken yet.”
Nathaniel smirked as he searched for more bread, and Desmond decided it was a losing battle. Besides, he was meeting Mariah for breakfast anyway, so he didn't need food here.
He had trained Nathaniel for eleven years as his third Tiro, readying him as a full-fledged witch; the guardians of the galaxy. Magic was dangerous and destructive if not controlled and well trained, and those born with it often didn't survive it unless they were taken from their families and devoted their life to its control. Witches, who were taken to the academies around the galaxy and trained by Maestros, became warriors, guardians, peacemakers, and healers. They were well respected, strong, and completely devoted to keeping the galaxy safe.
It came at a price, of course. They rarely, if ever, saw their families again. They were not supposed to form attachments or have families of their own. They were completely devoted to their craft and their quests. When they were young, they were usually devoted to their Maestros. When they came of age, they were put through a series of rigorous tests that determined whether they could go off on their own and become a new generation of Maestros.
There were exceptions to every rule, of course. Tiros were supposed to be in the academy from the time they started walking, and they needed to be with a Maestro by the time they were thirteen if they wanted to be able to take the tests. Otherwise, they remained at school until eighteen and could work in a minor role. Any
time after eighteen, they could take the tests and become a full-fledged witch.
Desmond knew that he and Nathaniel had broken almost every single one of those rules in their years together. It wasn't necessarily on purpose, because he didn't always believe in everything the Jurors dictated. But Nathaniel had been almost fourteen when Desmond finally took him on after a disastrous last Tiro. Nathaniel was stubborn, mouthy, and more interested in fun half the time. Desmond knew Nathaniel would never be the serious, quiet, thoughtful Witch that was expected. Nathaniel was twenty-four when he finally took the tests, passing with flying colors in everything except his attitude.
Now, nearly two years later, they remained at the academy. Nathaniel was teaching some of the classes, and Desmond sat on the Jurors part time, dealing with the intergalactic issues that came their way. Both of them were expected at some point soon to take on a Tiro. But after a bumpy eleven years, Nathaniel didn't seem quite ready to be self-sufficient
Desmond, despite being technically free of a Tiro, found it hard to find time for himself and Mariah – not that he publicly wished for it.
The first day Desmond saw Mariah was nearly thirty years ago. They had both been young witches on their first Tiros. They had locked eyes across the room, and Desmond knew that he was in trouble.
Neither of them had broken any rules, at least in public. But as they started to age toward retirement with a quiet life of advising only in their near future, he found it harder to make sure they were in line and not just existing in a grey area that the Jurors raised their eyebrows at.
He knew Nathaniel was aware of the fine line he walked and took it as challenge. No matter how much Desmond tried and scolded, Nathaniel had always had eyes for women. He wasn't discreet either, and more than once, he had been called in front of the Jurors for disobedience.
Desmond's only solace was that, as Nathaniel got older, he seemed to be settling down and focusing his attention on the one woman he came back to again, and again. A quest on Jeffro – a border planet – had introduced the fifteen-year-old Nathaniel to the seventeen-year-old orphaned ruler, Queen Eliza. She was just as head strong, stubborn, and in control of her emotions as he was. Desmond pretended to not hear the late-night hologram fights they had over the years, and pretended not to hear Nathaniel's thoughts when they were doing well. As long as he was focused on his duties, Desmond could turn a blind eye. And, he noticed, no matter how hard they fought, they always returned to each other. They fought in a way that acknowledged that ending their relationship was never an option.
Hunting the Rogues (Shadow Claw Book 8) Page 13