by Raven Storm
“Got any other tricks up your sleeve?” I asked Luci, half kidding, half hoping she would. To my surprise, she responded.
“Grandmother says I can’t unless it’s an emergency.” Her black eyes were wide with panic.
“I think this would qualify,” I hissed back, as they slowly stalked us. I threw my sword into the chest of the biggest vampyre, then dove into the next with my claws and fangs. Three more quickly pounced on top of me, the first skewering himself on my hard, spiked back. His weight pushed me down, and I knew eventually they would overpower me, and I wouldn’t win.
“LUCI RUN!” I screamed, hoping she could get back to her people.
I felt a blast of heat and heard tortured screams. The scent of burning flesh hit my nostrils, but I ignored it as the bodies on top of me went still. I fought and clawed my way out of the pile to find the forest a holocaust of destruction. Luci stood in the middle, her eyes blazing as everything burned around her—the trees, the bushes, even the ground. We were trapped.
The smoke thickened, making it hard to breathe, let alone see. Luci screamed her rage and fear at the world, the fires blazing higher in response. I grabbed her arm and Luci snapped out of it, her sharp eyes darting around to the destruction. She went deathly pale.
“Come on, move!”
I snarled, but she was rooted to the ground. I tried to throw her over my shoulder, but my injured wing throbbed from being overworked too soon, and I tugged uselessly on her hand. How did such a small little thing stay so rooted to the ground?
“LUCI MOVE!”
I yanked hard on her hand again, but where would we go even if she did move? Everything was black, thick rolling smoke—it was impossible to see where the flames ended and more began. I tripped over the body of a vampyre and went sprawling. With shaking hands, I retrieved my dagger from his throat, feeling around for the other body, and thankfully closing my fingers around the hilt of my second one. I’d be inconsolable if I ever lost the first gifts anyone had ever given me. I sheathed them back around my thighs with shaking hands, and yanked my short sword out of a dead, flaming chest. All around us bodies were turning to ash, and if we didn’t find a way out, we’d be next. It was almost impossible to get a clean breath.
“Can you stop it?” I yelled back to Luci, but it was like talking to a large, terrified doll. I seized her hand again and picked a direction. Flaming tree limbs fell from the sky, making it impossible to move anywhere with confidence. The urge to let out a distress call was strong, but I tamped it down. That would be the quickest way to draw the demon hordes to me, and they were clearly already searching hard.
I coughed, wondering if I could fly us both away while struggling to get air. I grabbed Luci and held her tight to me, shielding us both with my wings as I flapped them hard as a last resort. I felt an odd tingle, then all the air vanished from my lungs. I was left sputtering and choking, releasing Luci as my hands went to my throat in blind panic. Where did the air go?
The flames around us instantly vanished, sucked back down into the ground and out of existence like they’d never been there to begin with. The forest around us went deadly silent, surrounded by blackened, charred remains and grey ash. Luci stuck her head out from behind my wing, and the air immediately returned. I fell to the ground gasping, relishing the feel of clean air returning to my lungs.
“LUCI! LUCI!”
A stoic, breathtaking woman with silver hair met Luci halfway, falling to her knees and seizing the small girl in a fierce embrace. Luci was babbling now, crying hysterically as she described the vampyres, Lykos, and demons who had come for us. A group of women halted a few feet behind the first woman, stopping together in formation as one cohesive unit. They all had the same silver hair and wore the same white linen shifts. Luci’s red hair stuck out like a flaming beacon. I rolled again, trying to get my feet under me. The woman shoved Luci behind her and raised her hands at me in a threatening gesture. I flared my wings again, flinging off soot and debris as my fangs flashed. My body still ached, but I could probably fly if I absolutely had to. That would likely be my own defense against a witch. If their glares were any clue, it might be sooner rather than later.
“A female draken?”
The woman’s voice was a hoarse whisper of astonishment, sending those behind her murmuring and gasping.
“It’s Wren, Grandmother, I told you about Wren.”
The woman’s eyes were pure silver. Her shocked gaze wouldn’t leave my face.
“I thought it was just another imaginary friend, like all the others.” Her voice was awed, while Luci huffed in indignation.
“I told you…” she muttered.
I stepped forward, lowering my wings and holding my hands out. My white scales were covered with black and grey grime; I must have looked awful.
“It’s my fault...there was a hunting party looking for me. I fell while we were fleeing the mountain.”
I had hoped this would explain things, but the women all stared at me as if I had just uttered complete gibberish. Luci’s Grandmother waved a hand helplessly.
“The drakens have left the mountain?”
The tone of her voice couldn’t decide between disbelief or shock. I nodded.
“We were fleeing to Lyoness, and I was injured and fell. Luci—” I smiled at the smaller girl—"fed me while I recovered. I'm sorry I brought the hordes anywhere near your forest.”
My shoulders drooped, surveying the damage.
“No wonder there have been so many in our woods this past week.”
I shifted uncomfortably, her eyes never leaving mine. Luci drew them away, babbling as she took her grandmother’s hand.
“There were so many, and I was scared, but Wren told me it was an emergency so I used the fire—”
The woman shushed Luci’s frantic explanation, one hand smoothing over the girl’s hair.
“That was absolutely the right decision, my star. I’d rather have half the forest burn down than lose you.”
“It looks like it was half,” murmured a voice from the larger group. The woman turned, snarling.
“Perhaps the next time one of your witchlings is in danger, Stella, we will see if a goddamn tree is more important!”
The woman glared, then turned back to me.
“I am Astrid. You have my eternal thanks for saving my witchling, who clearly needs to learn some more control. Regardless, the coven is in your debt.”
I shook my head.
“No! She kept me alive and hidden when she could have turned me over to the horde. There is no debt.”
Astrid nodded, accepting my words.
“Very well. We must move you on your way, before—"
“Another scouting party, six of them.”
The group of witches fell into a tight V formation in front of Astrid and Luci, shoving me in the middle.
“Rub as much dirt and ash onto your skin as you can,” Astrid hissed, then strode to the front. Covered by the women, I had no shame as I shifted back to my human form, rolling quickly on the ground as I rubbed grime and soot over my arms, face, chest and neck. One witch grabbed a handful and rubbed it vigorously into my hair, covering its brown color. An extra shift appeared out of nowhere, and I shimmied it quickly over my shoulders and down my hips.
The vampyres and demons crashed into the clearing created by the flames, stopping short when they saw the witches. These demons weren’t the groveling imps that I’d just defeated—they were large, hulking beasts of black that stalked rather than walked, alternating between loping along the ground with their arms, and walking upright on two feet. Massive horns sprouted from their foreheads, two of them with only one that curled above his forehead, and one with two shorter, smaller horns on each side of his head. They were like the creatures that attacked us while we fled the mountain, but with a sharp, added intelligence. I knew they were different, but I couldn’t put my finger on why.
“Shadow demons,” Astrid hissed, as the witches pulled me up to my fe
et and shoved me into formation. I took my terror and shoved it deep down, trying to fix a fierce expression on my face to match the other witches. There was no way I’d fit in, they were all beautiful, pale, powerful, and—
“What happened here?”
The shadow demon with one horn spoke slowly, painfully, as if our language was unfamiliar and painful to his tongue. His voice was a dark, gravelly rasp. Astrid didn’t shirk or step back from him.
“There was a fire.”
The shadow demon hissed. “Obviously, witch. Where are my men?”
Astrid deliberately kicked a lump on the ground, watching nonchalantly as it crumpled into a ball of ash. She shrugged.
“What men? We came to rescue our witchling, whose power is not yet tamed. If you tell us who you are searching for, perhaps we can be of assistance. We have noticed your presence in our woods these past few days.”
The demon’s nostrils flared, dark smoke trailing from his nose.
“You will stay here while we search the remainder of the forest.”
His men fanned out, while he ran a suspicious eye over all of us. I tried to imitate the other women by looking angry and put out. I praised the gods that the ash covered the shine of my skin, and even the brown, ruddy color of my hair. Would it be enough?
“Just how many of you are there in our woods?”
Astrid could have been asking about the weather, she was so relaxed. The shadow demon hissed, but then shot her an ugly smirk that made our backs go rigid with anxiety.
We stood in stony silence as the horde crashed around the remaining forest. Time passed, the demon growing angrier the longer we stood there. When the final member of the hunting party reported back empty-handed, he was livid. Astrid’s face was smooth and unreadable.
“If you would allow us to help--”
“The she-draken is hiding in your forest, and I WILL FIND HER! WE SAW HER FALL!”
Rather than appear flustered or afraid, Astrid’s expression was politely confused.
“There are no drakens left outside the mountain, let alone female ones. Who told you—”
The shadow demon reached out with black fire, but Astrid held a hand in the air, sucking the air from his flames before they could reach her. The demon snarled, backing up a step.
“Air witch…”
“Are you accusing my coven of lying, lieutenant?”
Astrid’s eyes were ice, her body straight and proud. Her claws twitched out from her nail beds. The witches behind her did the same. The shadow demon realized he was outnumbered with his small hunting party against twenty pissed off witches. It didn’t make sense—where were the rest of his forces? Nevertheless, he backed down.
“No. But in the...spirit of cooperation, I am sure you won’t mind using your little fire witchling to assist us?”
Astrid frowned, confused.
“Of course, we will assist, but I don’t see how—”
“Burn the rest of the forest down, as a show of good faith you aren’t hiding the draken.”
The coven twitched around me but were disciplined enough not to glance at me or otherwise give me away. My heart dropped into my stomach and Astrid’s face paled, horror in her eyes.
“You want us to burn our home—”
The shadow demon laughed, a sound that carried a cold, icy breeze on the wind. I resisted the urge to shiver. The witches around me were murmuring and grumbling, but Astrid silenced them with one hand.
“The Overlord appreciates your cooperation. Do it now.”
The shadow demon gave us one last sneer and vanished into the shadows, taking his men with him. As soon as he was gone Astrid whirled around, her face fierce.
“No one speaks until we are home.” The faces around me were tight with tension, and I swallowed heavily. This was really, really bad.
“It won’t be our home after—"
“I SAID SILENCE!”
The witch shut up immediately, her jaw closing with an audible snap.
“Wren, is it? Walk with me.”
Not a problem since most of the witches were giving me a wide berth as it was. I stood still as they passed, some not-so-accidentally running into my shoulder. Astrid’s lips thinned in displeasure, but I put a hand on her arm.
“This is my fault. I’m so sorry.”
Astrid’s eyes softened as she pushed Luci ahead to join the other witches.
“I am the coven leader; this is my decision to make. You shouldn’t worry about it.”
I lowered my eyes. “I don’t think your coven agrees.” Astrid sniffed.
“How much do you know of witches? I assume you’ve been hiding most of your life?”
She wasn’t wrong, so I nodded.
“Witches live in covens mostly according to their elements, though we always have witches of other elements that visit if we have any particular need. I lead the air witches, and there is a coven of fire witches to the south, a few earth witches west of here, and water witches near the eastern coast. The blood witches have always wandered, but were last seen in the northern forests, close to the mountains.”
Her tone left little doubt as to her opinion about those witches.
“We have two sisters from the earth coven visiting with us currently, and one from the water coven. It helps to have a mix to provide for the overall health of each coven.”
“But Luci—”
“I adopted her because her own coven abandoned her for being too powerful. She nearly burnt down an entire town by accident, and then the Overlord was looking for her, wanting to use her as a weapon. He killed nearly the entire coven trying to get his hands on her, so they tossed her out as a sacrifice. Luckily, I was flying by and found her. As an air witch, I can easily control her fires IF I get there quick enough, so the danger is minimal. Usually.”
Her quick eyes scanned the forest around us, sighing.
“The Overlord is going to send more hordes back here, regardless of your presence. He already showed the fire witches he does not honor promises—he merely kills when it suits him. Now that Luci has been revealed again, he will come for her, and unlike her last coven, I will not give up on her.”
I blinked back tears, her devotion to the small witch stealing my breath.
“Luci is incredibly fortunate to have found such an ardent protector. Not all of us are as fortunate.” Astrid didn’t turn to look at me, and I was thankful. We finally reached the edges of the burnt woods, the trees and bushes now green with health and vibrance. It was like stepping between two worlds—one of eternal winter of death, the other the promise of spring and rebirth. In a way, it mirrored my own life.
“They only found her because of me—”
Astrid held up a hand, silencing my protests.
“The Council voted to remain neutral in the Demon Wars. That was the last time we met unified, all the covens together. Since then, we have watched the collapse of not only humanity, but the decline of every other race since then, including our own. It is time for those of us who stood aside in the beginning to make things right before we are all dead.”
Her eyes sadly scanned our surroundings, and I had nothing to add.
Shouts and yells came from up ahead, and we abandoned the conversation. Astrid and I broke into a sprint as she pushed through her coven, stumbling into a clearing with what remained of her coven’s village. I could easily imagine what the bustling village was, built using the lush forest’s natural landscape. Treehouses dotted the clearing, leaving the natural floor of the forest fresh and vibrant. I had to imagine it, because the reality in front of me now was in stark contrast.
The intricate tree homes were trashed, burned down to kindling and hanging haphazardly from branches. Others had been dropped to smash on the ground. Belongings were strewn everywhere—pots and jars smashed, clothing torn and ruined. The air reeked of burning flesh, and it was impossible to miss what awaited us in the very center of the village, desecrating the forest floor.
A large fire burn
ed, along with the bodies of every witch who hadn’t been with Astrid and her guard. The smell turned my stomach, and I struggled not to vomit. Astrid’s face twisted in sorrow, her eyes raking up and down each body that lay slain before her, tossed like garbage into a heap of blood and death.
“This is her doing!” Cried Stella, beautiful even in her anger with silver hair down past her shoulders. Astrid whipped around and slashed the witch across her face, drawing four angry red lines. The witch shrieked and fell, while Astrid stood over her, blood dripping from her claws.
“Any other opinions?”
A few more shot me angry glances, but no one said anything out loud. Some witches broke down at seeing their sisters burnt bodies, falling to their knees and weeping. I felt like a pathetic worm and looked away. It was my fault.
“It is likely they attacked before finding us in the woods. Do you see?” Astrid said quietly, every witch frozen to listen. “This is our punishment; our penance for stepping aside last time. We did this, not the female draken. The indecision of our ancestors pushed the burden to us, to now. Comb the forest, look for survivors.”
Astrid turned towards me, unshed tears in her eyes.
“You do not control the actions of monsters, so don’t pretend you do.”
I nodded mutely, managing to keep from crying. I admired her strength and hoped I could one day be just as strong of a leader for the drakens. Benedict deserved someone he could trust to help lighten his load.
Benedict. That empty place in my heart panged with need, and I pushed it away. I couldn’t think about him here; not until I got to Lyoness. Wait. Lyoness.
My pulse raced, a mad idea hatching in my mind. I reached out and grasped Astrid by the shoulder, squeezing hard.
“I know where you could live, safe from the hordes. It would be my apology for ruining your forest.”
The witches went still, every eye turning to me. Astrid lifted an eyebrow.
