The Seventh Crow

by Tamara Geraeds

  I lift my finger and conjure a bit of lightning in my hand. When I hold it above the circle, the hair catches fire. The ash is lifted into the air and evaporates.

  I clench my jaws when nothing happens. My new-found hope goes up in smoke.

  But then there’s a soft whoosh, followed by a triumphant cry from Vicky. “It worked!”

  She bends down to pick up the glass box with the green and brown spots.

  Relieved, I rest my head against the glass of our prison. I breathe in and out slowly several times. My hope and confidence return, and I straighten up. “Okay, now that we know spells work in here, I’m going to try another.”

  “Brilliant,” Kessley says, rubbing her hands. “Which one?”

  “The one that opens a portal.”

  “A portal home?” she asks eagerly.

  “Not yet. First I want to open a portal to the other side of this cube.”

  Vicky stares at the moving shapes around us. “Opening a portal is a heavy spell. A lot can go wrong, especially in an unknown world like this one. What if you only created a hole in the glass?”

  Jeep puts his hat back on and nods. “That would actually be a good idea. A hole through which only evil can pass. That way only the chaos residue will be able to leave the cube, and D’Maeo will stay inside.”

  “That will work!” Kess calls out.

  I smile at her. “Thanks for the confidence. I hope you’re right.”

  Maël taps her lightly on the shoulder with her staff. “Give him a little room.”

  “Oh, right.” With a blush, Kessley jumps back.

  I put away my Book of Spells and flip through Dad’s notebook in search for inspiration. There are a lot of herbs and spices I know the use off, but not all, and I really don’t want to mess up this spell. I remember what that chaos residue did to D’Maeo. How it pulled parts of his soul from him. And of course, I haven’t forgotten that it killed D’Maeo in the first place. Apparently, that wasn’t enough. It came after him when he turned into a ghost. I don’t want all of us to end up with the same problem.

  Vicky blows me a kiss. “We’ll be fine, stop worrying. You’re a great mage. You’ll have no trouble with this spell.”

  “Thanks,” I whisper, and I slam the book shut. She’s right. I know what I’m doing.

  She hands me a couple of basic things: salt, black candles and thyme. Then I list the herbs I want.

  “See,” she says. “You know how it works.”

  I shrug. “There’s still a lot to learn. Herbs and spices I don’t know about. Other ingredients maybe.”

  “There are tons of possible ingredients. But we don’t need any of them now. Your magic and your words will do most of the work.”

  When I’ve set everything up, I realize something is missing. “Do you have sodium hydroxide?”

  “For cleaning? Sure.”

  She digs into her pocket again and takes out a pot.

  “Not for cleaning this time,” I say with a wink. “In liquid form, it dissolves glass.”

  “I didn’t know you were such a chemical genius.”

  I snort. “Far from it. This is one of the few things I remember.”

  Gently, I add a little to the bowl and hand the pot back to Vicky. Then I hesitate.

  My foot taps in sync with the thoughts that tumble through my head. “You know what? I think I’ll put a circle of protection around us first, just to be safe.”

  Vicky winks. “You’re a fast learner.” She puts down some more ingredients from her pocket.

  It’s nice to work together like this. A handful of words is enough to get ready. She knows what I need, sometimes even before I do. And I’m not just talking about spells.

  A couple of minutes later, the protective circle is in place.

  “Make sure you stay in it, no matter what happens,” I tell the others. Then I take a deep breath.

  “Stay back a little, give him some room,” Vicky says, backing up herself too.

  I place the glass jar with D’Maeo and the chaos residue in it against the glass, and push the tip of my athame into my finger. With the blood that wells up, I draw a circle, half on the ground, half on the wall. The mist outside moves away, as if the creatures know something is about to happen. They’re waiting for their chance to attack. No room for mistakes in this spell. Not that there was any to begin with. I wouldn’t want to make things worse for D’Maeo.

  Quickly, I jot down the words that roll through my mind to make sure I don’t screw them up. Ignoring the swirling forms on the other side of the glass, I place two black candles on the spots where the line on the ground meets the one on the glass. Next, I rub half of the herb mixture on the glass jar and half on the wall inside the blood circle. I flex my stiff fingers before lighting both candles.

  “In this circle, make a hole,

  but keep both sides under control.

  To evil access is denied,

  and all that’s good will stay inside.

  Once the good is safe inside,

  open the hole and make it right.

  Break the glass jar on the floor.

  Release the souls inside once more.

  Pull the evil through the gap,

  but keep the good inside this trap.

  Once this job has been completed,

  let the full hole be deleted.”

  The candle flames flicker and hiss. Smoke rises and clings to the wall. The residues outside slither closer curiously, the red eyes narrowing as if they know I’ve got something in store they won’t like. But a tiny fault in my spell will be enough for them to enter the cube and kill us all.

  My gaze drops to the floor, where the jar wobbles from the weight that slams against the sides.

  Slowly, the smoke from the candles works its way along the line of the blood circle. With another hiss, it swoops up again and starts drilling through the glass. The chaos residues on the other side soar restlessly from left to right, their gazes fixated on the spot where a small hole appears.

  Once it’s complete, the creatures dive at it at full speed.

  My breath catches in my throat, and I’m unable to move. All my limbs go cold.

  CHAPTER 10

  No matter how hard the chaos residues hit the hole, they can’t get through. The spell is working.

  I jump when the jar shatters at my feet. Two distorted figures rise from the shards. I recognize a bit of gray hair and a foot; the rest of it stretches too far to make sense of.

  A loud roar makes me cover my ears. The swirling forms that escape the jar are separated. One changes into an old man bit by bit, the other remains amorphous, except for a large mouth and glowing red eyes.

  The residues outside go wild. They hit the hole with all the force they can muster. Mouths and claws become visible as they try to grab the edges. But it doesn’t work. My spell holds out; the gap is impenetrable.

  Suddenly, D’Maeo’s voice rings out from the cluster of mist and limbs. “You will… never… win this!” He sounds exhausted but unbending.

  The smoke that created the hole pushes off from the wall and clings to the chaos residue in front of me. I clench my fists, wishing there was something I could do to help. Come on, get that thing out of here, I urge the smoke silently.

  A hand reaches up from the mess of mist and smoke and tugs at a sliver that’s clinging to part of a human back.

  “Let go!” D’Maeo bellows.

  Another roar shakes the whole cube, and I stumble to stay upright.

  Behind me, I can hear Vicky sucking in a frightened breath.

  The candle smoke pulls harder and finally manages to tear the residue from the broken form of D’Maeo. It wriggles and moans in protest, but the smoke has it in a firm grip now. It is dragged to the hole and pushed through bit by slivery bit. The other residues move out of the way and seem to calm down. I guess they realize it’s useless to try and get inside.

  Once the smoke h
as pushed the last of the residue through, the hole closes rapidly. A gust of wind blows out the candles, and the smoke vanishes.

  “Dante?” D’Maeo’s voice is as distorted as his body. He floats in front of me, only half of his face visible, red gashes running over his nose.

  I gulp at the sight of his torso, that has limbs attached on the wrong sides. A leg without a foot sticks up where his arm should be while there’s nothing on the other side. His legs are just a vague form, and a hand floats above his head.

  He shows me half a smile. “Thank you for freeing me.”

  My voice trembles when I answer. “I’ll fix you, D’Maeo. Don’t worry about it.”

  There’s a sob behind me, and the old ghost’s gaze moves over my shoulder. “It’s good to see all of you again.”

  He tries to make his way toward them, but his barely visible make-shift legs are unable to hold him. Mist takes over most of his form, and I hold up my hand. “Stay here. Give me a minute.”

  I hold out my hand behind me. “A piece of cloth, please?”

  Vicky pushes it into my hand only seconds later, and I quickly wipe the blood circle from the floor and wall.

  “Light blue candles?” I feel like a surgeon getting ready for a difficult operation.

  Vicky takes two candles from her pocket.

  “Light blue stands for health, right?” I ask her when she holds them out to me.

  “Yes,” she says hoarsely.

  I squeeze her hand before I take the candles. “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.”

  Of course, that’s only wishful thinking. What if I can’t fix this with a spell? What if he stays like this forever? Or worse, if he’s pulled apart until there’s nothing but floating parts of him left?

  I suppress a shiver. Don’t think like that. This can’t be harder than getting the chaos residue away from him.

  The torn-up form of D’Maeo still hovers in the same place, although his limbs float around him, as if they’re searching for where they belong. There’s not a glimpse of worry in his one visible eye, which gives me the bit of confidence I need to continue.

  I scratch my head. “Let me think… Rosemary for healing…”

  Vicky pushes some bright green leaves into my hand. “Use mugwort, it’s stronger.” She adds some dried, dull green stuff. “And horehound, to balance personal energy.”

  I blow her a kiss with my free hand. “You’re the best.”

  She agrees with the rest of the herbs I choose, and after mixing them, I waste no more time hesitating. I’m doing this, and it will work.

  I scribble the words that pop into my head onto an empty page in my Book of Spells. I’ll add the instructions and ingredients later. When I look up again, D’Maeo shoots me an anxious look. Is he having second thoughts?

  I hold up my thumb, not prepared to let his fear throw me off balance. Then I light a match and throw it into the mixture I made. With what remains of the herbs, I draw a new circle around D’Maeo and myself. With another match, I light the two blue candles. Then I push my hand with the remains of the mixture against D’Maeo’s misty forehead.

  “Take the parts that linger here,

  and make the spaces disappear.

  Whole again this man will be,

  from now until eternity.

  Change him back, but without pain.

  Let his confidence remain.

  He will come back as he was.

  Let him now return to us.”

  D’Maeo’s face and torso stretch. The limbs around him come to a halt. Then he is twisted by an invisible force, like a cleaning cloth that’s being wrung. It looks painful, but the one eye that I can see only expresses surprise. I guess putting something in about the process being painless wasn’t such a bad idea.

  The old ghost is pressed into a ball of body parts and mist. The candle flames burn bright, and one by one, the legs and arms pop out from the ball. This time, they’re in the right place. Hands and feet follow and then the head. The nose appears, and after a slight shiver, the mouth and eyes become visible. Slowly but surely, the leader of my Shield is build up before us. Eyebrows and sideburns are added, then the matching gray beard.

  D’Maeo flexes his fingers and shakes his shoulders loose. Then he smiles at me and opens his arms wide.

  I fall into them and hold him tight. “It’s so good to have you back.”

  “It’s good to be back. I was starting to think the fight with the Black Void was never going to end.”

  He lets go and catches Vicky. The force of her embrace nearly pushes him over.

  “I’m sorry it took so long,” I say.

  “It’s fine, Dante. I understand.”

  They all welcome him back with a hug, even Maël, who isn’t fond of hugging.

  Kessley hesitates, but when D’Maeo beckons her, she greats him enthusiastically. “It’s an honor to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”

  “Oh dear,” D’Maeo chuckles. “I hope I can live up to your expectations then.” He winks at me, and I grin.

  We fill him in on everything he’s missed. Everything I’ve felt since he got sucked into that jar passes his face in only minutes. He lets out a heavy sigh when we finally get to the point where we got trapped inside this cube.

  “So, to summarize…” he says slowly, “you’ve had some luck and some bad luck.”

  I snort. “That’s one way to put it.”

  He shrugs. “Well, if you add it all up, I’d say we’re still ahead. Lucifer has, what? Two souls?”

  “And Mom.”

  Charlie slaps my back. “We don’t know that.”

  “Two souls and maybe your mother,” D’Maeo recaps. “That’s not a lot. He can’t win with that.”

  I start pacing again. “Maybe not, but he also has a plan for which he doesn’t need the souls.”

  The old ghost scratches his beard. “Sure. A plan that’s hard to execute, or he would’ve done so already.”

  “Still, I would not think of it too lightly,” Maël interrupts.

  “Of course not. All I want to say is…” D’Maeo pauses to look at us. “We’re doing great. You were doing great, even without me and Jeep. Keep the faith, because the odds are in our favor.”

  “Hear hear!” Kessley yells, making us all jump. She does a pretty good impression of a cheerleader, but without the pompoms, and I end up in a laughing fit when I see D’Maeo’s frown.

  “Don’t mind her,” Vicky says with a smile. “That’s normal.”

  “Oh right, the alcohol.”

  Kessley stops hopping and blushes. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry,” I say. “You make us laugh. That’s important too.”

  Charlie bends toward D’Maeo. “And she can do some awesome things.”

  CHAPTER 11

  After Kessley’s demonstration of her powers to D’Maeo, we sit down and watch the residues outside. I don’t need words to know that everyone is thinking about the same thing: how to get out of here.

  After a long silence, I stand up. “I’m going to try another spell.”

  Vicky pushes herself up too. “What kind?”

  “A reverse spell. One that will put the chaos residues in the cube, instead of us.”

  Charlie stares past the swirling forms. “What if there’s more in this world than these creatures? We don’t know what we’ll run into, you know.”

  I pick up the bowl and wipe the remains of the last spell from the bottom. “Then we fight them.”

  He shoots me an incredulous look. “Just like that?”

  I hold up my hands in surrender. “What other choice do we have? We can’t wait here forever.”

  Gisella hops to her feet and throws out her blades. “I’m in. I’m already sick of being stuck here.”

  “Me too,” Jeep says. “I’ve been locked in an empty place long enough recently.” He rubs his arms and shivers.

  D’Maeo watches him thoughtful
ly. “But because of it, you got rid of the souls inside your tattoos.”

  Jeep smiles at him. “True, but it also added a problem to our list.”

  “Don’t worry about those crows,” I say. “We’ll get rid of them.”

  D’Maeo is still studying Jeep. “How does it feel?”

  The tattooed ghost stares past him. “Good. Weird.” He pauses. “Empty.”

  Vicky puts her hand on his shoulder, and Jeep pats it gratefully. “It takes some getting used to, but I’m fine. Really.”

  We all nod in understanding.

  I look down at the circle of herbs. “Some new candles and I’m good, I think.” I pick up the light blue ones and meet Vicky’s equally blue eyes. “There’s no color that strengthens something like relocation, is there?”

  She shakes her head.

  “Then I’ll take white ones, please.”

  With a smile, she hands me two. “White to represent any color.”

  “Yep.” I go over everything I put into the mixture to free D’Maeo. “I’d better add some knot weed, to control movement. It’s the best I can think of.”

  Once again, she digs into her pocket. “I’ll run out of ingredients if you keep this up.”

  “Don’t worry. Hopefully you’ll be able to restock after this spell.”

  “I’m counting on that,” she says with a wink.

  “Okay, get ready,” I warn everyone. “Something might attack once we’re out of this cube.”

  I add the knot weed to the mixture that forms the circle. Then I light the white candles. The flames reach up eagerly.

  “Surround the creatures in this place

  with this glass-encompassed space.

  Free us of this cube of dread,

  and lock the monsters in instead.”

  The glass around us starts to shake, and the candle flames dance, casting shadows upon the moving glass. I want to tell Gisella to call the shadows to her, but they vanish as the flames rise from the wicks. They float to the bottom corners of the cube, where they split into two. The new flames move to the other two corners, and the cube slowly starts to rise.