The Blood Witch Chronicles

by L. A. Stinnett

  "Can you identify any of these plants?" said U'ka.

  "Um . . . maybe the dandelion, except its orange, not yellow."

  "Look up orange dandelion in the index and turn to that page. We're going to make a tincture with it."

  Shane flipped through the book until she found the right page. "For problems of the stomach and bowels."

  "Start whenever you're ready."

  U'ka watched Shayne cut up the plants and crush them down before adding alcohol to the bottles. She followed the recipe perfectly.

  "Congratulations. You made your first curative," U'ka said, touching her shoulder.

  Shayne smiled. "That was easy."

  "Your uncle seems to be doing well."

  "Mostly. He still has bad dreams of the war which wake him at night and every time he eats, he has stomach upset."

  "Wait here," said U'ka. "Look up the recipe for Red Clover Salve." She retrieved the Watchful Eye Amulet and the bottle of Trona powder.

  "Hang this above your uncle's bed. It's the Watchful Eye of Samean and will keep away the bad dreams. Have him take one spoonful of this powder for the stomach ache. It tastes a little bitter, but it should make him feel better."

  "Are you sure you don't need this?" said Shayne, examining the amulet.

  "I'll manage. Now let's finish up these medicines. Go get the beeswax block and brazier out of the cabinet."

  They worked late into the evening, preparing salves, balms, ointments and extracts. Satisfied with Shayne's completed work, U'ka was confident she could prepare the medicines on her own.

  "You have a natural ability for this. You'll make a fine Wise Woman for the village."

  "I . . . I . . . don't know. Maybe if . . . " Shayne's voice trailed off and she just looked down at the table.

  "What is it?"

  "Nothing. Thank you for the amulet. I need to head home now," Shayne said before quickly leaving.

  What's going on here? Why won't people talk to me? And where in the dark realms is Teek?' U'ka cleaned up the table then drew preservation symbols on all the bottles, splitting up the medicine jars for Shayne's use and the rest to complete the caravan's medicine collection. It was a good, productive day, and she was tiring out. Determined to get answers from Lahm tomorrow, she couldn't shake the feeling of being left in the dark about something. She didn't like these kinds of secrets, even if she had many of her own.

  Climbing up to her bed, she stripped off her shift dress and fell into the soft bed. She closed her eyes, slipping quickly into the deep darkness of sleep.

  8

  Breaking the Giant

  U'ka stood in a barren field. Fire raged all around her, the heat made sweat break out all over her body. A figure dressed all in black, emerged from the flames, dark power rolling off him. He raised red glowing hands, shooting a bolt of energy at her. She was barely able to throw up her defensive shield in time and even then, it knocked her back several steps. Again and again, he advanced on her. Jumping and dodging the magic, she barely avoided the powerful spells he threw at her. She had to figure a way to take him out, but she never got a chance to cast a spell, his attacks were relentless.

  A clanging alarm bell jolted her out of the darkness of her dream. Frantic yelling and screaming further broke the silence. Loud, throaty cawing sounded outside the loft window; an outstretched red wing flashed past the glass. U'ka rushed to look outside, but the bird was gone. Red Ravens were warnings of bad things to come. She quickly pulled on her battle leathers and sword belt and rushed outside towards the village entrance. The grey overcast day matched her now sour mood.

  People ran frantically in every direction, she pushed her way through the crowd towards the village entrance, feeling like a fish swimming against an impossibly strong tide. Closer to the front gate, she saw Lahm directing men and women carrying wooden boxes of fish and vegetables, stacking them quickly into the back of a wagon. U'ka pushed her way to Lahm.

  "What's going on here?"

  "Stay out of this. You'll only make things

  worse," Lahm ordered.

  "Where is the rest of the tribute?!" bellowed the biggest man she'd ever seen. He wore thick Iron Oak armor, very rare and very expensive. A half dozen mangy looking hired swords in mismatched armor, stood behind him.

  Lahm stepped forward, "You weren't supposed to come for two more weeks. This is all we've been able to harvest since the last time you came."

  "Not good enough," growled the man giant from under his helmet. "Have you chosen a girl for tribute?"

  Lahm waved his hand. Two men drug forth a sobbing Shayne.

  "No!" yelled U'ka, drawing her dirks

  "Don't interfere, U'ka. This is not your business!" shouted Lahm, motioning her away.

  "Listen to him, little girl, or I'll take you instead."

  "You can try," she said, crouching into a fighting stance. Trying her best to look menacing before the giant that towered over her.

  A loud squeal filled the air as Bud came galloping from the pasture, leaping over a fence to face off with the man giant. Teek bounded up behind the horse ready for battle. Bud snorted and pawed at the ground. U'ka had never seen the stallion so angry.

  The man giant turned to look at the big destrier. "Blackheart Thunderhooves! I thought you were dead. Get over here, you mangy fleabag!"

  Bud reared up, kicking his legs out in front of him, letting out angry snorts. Steam poured out of his nostrils in the chill of the morning. The air around Bud shimmered as Iron Oak armor, perfectly matching the giants, appeared on his body.

  Oh, shit! "You abandoned him to die. He is my horse now." She positioned herself between the horse and the man giant. Teek roared behind her, ready to attack.

  Sheathing her dirks, which were useless against Iron Oak, U'ka readied her magic to take him out. She raised her hand, signaling to Teek she wanted to handle this on her own. Teek would do his job of keeping the hired swords off of her while she battled the giant.

  "This village is under my protection. Leave now and I won't be forced to kill you," U'ka said, trying her best to sound forceful.

  A deep, bellowing laugh came as his reply. Unfazed, he dismissed her warning as a feeble bluff. Before the events of the war, no one dared to be this dismissive of her. Oh, how far I've fallen.

  "I am insulted you sent this little girl to challenge me, Lahm. When I finish with her, we're going to burn this village to the ground."

  The hired swords laughed and looked on in anticipation.

  Lahm fell to his knees. "Please. She arrived unexpectedly and was supposed to be gone before you arrived in two weeks. I did not know she would try to interfere. Mercy!"

  U'ka saw the desperation in his eyes. She felt magic rise inside her while she formed a symbol in her mind, casting a Binding spell at the man giant. To her confusion, nothing happened. She threw another spell which should have knocked him off his feet and yet again, nothing happened.

  The man giant tapped his chest and laughed. "That's not going to work on me, you little Blood Bitch."

  U’ka looked closer to see spell nullification symbols carved into every section of his armor. She'd never seen anything like it. It was tough to set magic into Iron Oak because of its natural resistance to magic and only the Green Folk could carve symbols into the impenetrable wood. She didn't have time to ponder the mystery of how it was created. He was untouchable to her magic. Dammit! She was going to have to do this the hard way.

  She drew her dirks again, hoping for a small gap somewhere in the armor her blades could penetrate.

  "You are hardly worth my time. I'll make this quick so we can get on with burning the village to the ground," the man giant growled, trudging towards her.

  "Underestimate me at your peril," U'ka said, hoping her voice didn't waver too much.

  He reached over his shoulder, fingers wrapping around a thick wooden handle to pull out a massive war hammer. The head must have weighed at least fifty pounds, but he swung it over his shoulder like it w
eighed nothing.

  U'ka took a few steps back, hoping this fight wasn't a mistake. One wrong move and the hammer would crack her skull like an egg. He roared, slamming the hammer down. She jumped back to avoid the blow, feeling the impact of the hammer burying itself several inches into the ground. Leaping forward onto the back of the weapon, she launched herself at his head. Her blades slid harmlessly off his Iron Oak helmet. Rolling off his shoulders and dragging her dirks down his back, she landed a few steps behind him.

  The man giant yanked the hammer out of the ground; dirt flew everywhere. The villagers screamed at the sight before them. A quick side glance revealed Teek holding the hired swords at bay. Ducking the massive hammer, it swung in a wide arc mere inches over her head. She leaped forward, making several slashes at his legs, again failing to find any gaps in the fortress-like armor.

  U'ka jumped to the side when the hammer struck the ground again. It was a formidable weapon, but the giant's movements were slow, his armor hindered his motions even more. She had speed on her side and was trained by one of the best Sword Masters in all of Eleanthra. But all her skill with a blade was useless if she couldn't find some weakness in the armor.

  They traded blows back and forth. Her blades slid along his breastplate, but could not penetrate the armor. Neither of them were able to land an effective hit. The ground around them was scared with pockmarks and divots from their intense fight. It felt like they'd been fighting for hours. Her breathing became ragged; she hadn't exerted herself like this since the war and was starting to tire. The giant's heavy breaths were equally ragged. He was not used to a prolonged fight, relying on his warhammer to quickly take out his opponents.

  She wished she could access her Blood Magic, which would easily allow her to dispatch her foe, but the wish remained unfulfilled. He swung the hammer in an upwards arc to knock her head from her shoulders. U’ka leaned back, feeling the hammer whiz by, missing her by a hair's breadth. The missed upswing brought the hammer up and over his head, throwing him off balance.

  She saw her chance. Going in low, she swung her dirks around to the back of his knees with all her might. Already off-balance, his legs crumpled and he fell over backward, slamming the ground like a huge fallen tree.

  Anticipating U'ka's direction, long vines shot out from Teek's hands, wrapping tightly around the giant. He struggled and cursed futility while the vines tightened across his body, small tendrils slipped inside the tiny crevices of the armor seeking out the release points. She heard low clicks all over him as the Iron Oak armor fell away from his body. Everywhere it touched his skin was covered in red, raw sores. His underclothing stained a dark black color from built-up skin oil and sweat. The armor hadn't been off of him in many months. Green Folk were the only beings able to fit the seamless armor onto the body. What happened to the Green Jack who fitted it to the man giant?

  The stench of sweat, body odor, urine and feces assaulted her nostrils. She'd never before smelled anything so foul. Backing away from the overwhelming stench, she fell to her knees in exhaustion. Teek released his vines, leaving the giant still trussed up. There were murmurs of disbelief behind her. Looking around at the crowd, they were in shock at what just happened. The hired swords lay dead. Teek quickly and efficiently dispatched the men who threatened to attack the villagers.

  Crazed laughter came from the man giant. "Free! Finally, free!"

  Crawling over to him, U'ka pulled off his helmet to take a closer look at his eyes. They were a standard dark brown color. The man was just a brute; someone else was controlling him.

  "We need to find out who his Master is," she said. "I don't have it in me to interrogate him right now. Do it your way, Teek."

  She knew Teek would perform a forced mindshare. When it wasn't consensual, it ended up being more of a mind rape, very damaging and very painful. She looked up at Lahm, who held the still sobbing Shayne.

  "When Teek is finished with him, do you wish the giant to live or die?"

  "We'll let the God of Storms decide his fate."

  Teek nodded and went to work to extract the needed information. It took every ounce of strength U'ka had left to push herself to her feet and make her way to the agitated horse.

  "Hey. Hey. It's okay now. He can't hurt you ever again," U'ka said in as soothing a voice as she could manage.

  Some of the fear left the horse's eyes. His Iron Oak armor slowly dissolved away. She wrapped her arms around his thick neck. "Now I understand why you prefer to be called Bud. That grand name isn't so great."

  Bud snorted in agreement.

  She grabbed his reins and handed them off to Shayne. "Make sure he gets back to his stable. I think he's experienced enough excitement for today. We need to talk, Lahm."

  On wobbly legs, she followed Lahm back to his home. She heard the giant’s agonized screaming from Teek's invasive interrogation. He closed the door behind them, motioning her to sit. U'ka took a moment to calm herself, otherwise, she would have mercilessly ripped into him.

  With slightly trembling hands, Lahm set two glasses down, filling them with a dark amber liquid. U’ka didn't usually drink hard liquor, but she picked up the glass and downed it in one gulp, wincing when the dark liquid burned all the way down. U'ka set down the glass and motioned for more. Lahm sat wearily across from her, then refilled the glass.

  "Why didn’t you tell me marauders were extorting the village?"

  "I did not think you could help. You are just a Healer."

  "I told you I fought during the war."

  "The giant seemed so invincible. I did not think you could best him. You heard what they would have done if you lost the fight."

  "What about Shayne? How could you sacrifice her like that?"

  "This was the first time he asked for a human tribute. I did not want to do it, but her sacrifice guaranteed the village remained unharmed. One life in exchange for many. It's not something I'm proud of. I had no choice." Lahm looked away nervously, not wanting to face her judgment upon him.

  "You've left yourself isolated for far too long. You need to learn to ask for help when needed. Others will come to your aid if asked."

  "At the time, I could not risk it. I will try and do better in the future."

  "In the future, if you ever have problems like this, have the Green Folk reach out to Teek and we will be here."

  "I will," said Lahm raising his glass. Picking up hers, she clinked his glass and they downed their drinks in unison. The strong, bitter liquor made her whole body shudder.

  "Before you leave, I have a question for you," said Lahm. "Thallos called you a Blood Bitch. Does that mean you are a trained Blood Witch? With that kind of power, shouldn't you have been able to defeat him with your magic?"

  "Yes, normally. But I can't access that kind of power right now. The war took a lot out of me. I can only use the base magics," she said, pushing herself to her feet. "I am going back to the hut to rest."

  On her way through the village, U'ka saw that people were still shaken by today's events. A few gave her looks of gratitude. She hated to think how things would have gone for these people, especially Shayne, if she never came to the village.

  U’ka opened the door to the Healers hut, pleased to see a warm tray of food on the table. She sat and started eating, savoring every bite, knowing her time in the village was coming to an end. She didn't know if she’d ever eat this well again.

  The door opened. Lilli came in followed by Teek pushing a hand cart filled with Thallos' armor. The fetid stench assaulted her nostrils, her appetite suddenly lost.

  "Ugh! Put it over in the corner. You're both lucky to not have a sense of smell," she said, holding her nose. "We've got to find a way to get rid of the stink."

  "I will have the Green Jyll's clean the armor later," said Lilli covering the cart with a canvas tarp.

  "Teek, where have you been? A little heads up about Thallos and his hired swords would have been nice."

  "I tell Teek about him coming once a month and tak
ing food. It did not seem like problem. Always take food and leave. Did not know he wanted human tribute. Lahm not tell us. Would have called for Teek if I knew," said Lilli.

  "It's not your fault. This town's been keeping too many secrets, it seems."

  "We try to look after the villagers, but sometimes they not make it easy."

  "What's going to happen to Thallos?"

  "He will be taken out in boat and chained to Judgement Rock. The God of Storms will decide if he lives or dies."

  U'ka nodded. "Teek, what did you get out of the giant? Who is his Master?"

  "Giant's mind very clouded. He under some sort of powerful spell. Teek only get image of Obsidian Keep in the Dead Lands."

  "Alright, we'll head there in the morning. I'm too tired to deal with it now. Oh, before I forget. I dreamed about a dark warrior attacking me. A Red Raven appeared at my window, I think these things are a portent, but I've never had the power of prophecy."

  Teek pointed at the armor in the corner.

  "No, it wasn't him. The warrior was a magic-user. Maybe the Obsidian Keep will provide us with some answers. It's strange that this sort of power comes to me now."

  "Teek say maybe it one-time thing. A warning to be prepared for what is to come."

  "I hope so. I'm exhausted. I'm going to lie down for a bit," U'ka said, wearily climbing the ladder to the loft.

  "I will have the Green Jyll's clean the armor for you," said Lilli as she and Teek left.

  Quickly stripping off her battle leathers, she fell into bed exhausted. She lay for a moment thinking about the Obsidian Keep. It's repository of books nearly rivaled that of the Citadel's grand library. Would it have the answers she sought about the Sanctum runes? She slowly slipped into the deep darkness of sleep. The dark warrior once again invaded her dreams — his magic attack on her relentless. Opening her mouth to scream, no sound came out. She couldn't stop the onslaught, her defenses weakening. . .