by Logan Jacobs
We had far more important things to take care of.
“Madame Soulton,” I said with a small bow. “May I have a quick word with you and the professors?”
“Cole,” the pale-blonde beauty snapped. “Did you not hear me? I specifically instructed all students to return safely to their quarters, yet here you are, thinking you’re somehow exempt from the order.”
“And telling the students to safely return to their rooms was a wise decision to make,” I answered, “but now the question is… who is going to retrieve Headmistress Theodora and inform her about this domestic massacre? I would imagine she would want to be briefed right away. In fact, something tells me she won’t be happy to learn you waited to inform her that her students turned on each other for no damn reason. We all know she’d want to be here, so what the hell are we waiting for?”
“The man has a point,” Professor Olivia whispered as she brushed back her tangled silver hair and glanced around the chaotic room filled with mutilated bodies, puddles of spilled wine mingled with blood, and broken plates and goblets. “Theodora should be informed right away… I have a feeling she already senses something is terribly amiss. She would be most displeased if we decided to take care of the situation solely by ourselves--”
“And you think I don’t know that?” Madame Soulton snapped as she narrowed her pale eyebrows at the silver-haired professor. “Don’t forget who’s in charge here, Miss Olivia. You’re no longer a member of this court, or do I have to remind you in front of everyone in order for you to get the point? Your input is not as valued as it once was, so I suggest you keep that in mind the next time you address me.”
“Apologies, Madame,” Olivia answered in a soft tone as her cheeks darkened, and she studied her feet. “If my opinions are not welcomed, then I believe I’d better take a trip to the infirmary and place that charm on the doors… please, excuse me.”
We all awkwardly watched as the former member of the High Court marched through the bloody banquet hall and quietly slipped out the doors. I didn’t appreciate the way Madame Soulton humiliated her in front of her peers, and it took all my willpower to keep my mouth shut about the matter.
“Now,” Madame Soulton huffed before she coldly regarded us. “As much as I appreciate your efforts to save Vipera, please, leave this unusual business to us. We’re far more capable of taking care of this dire and unprecedented situation than you are, so, I will repeat myself one last time--”
“So, take care of it,” I growled.
“Excuse me?” the bright-eyed Wicca demanded in a furious voice. “What did you say?”
“You said you’d take care of it,” I replied as I clenched my jaw. “So, take care of it and summon Headmistress Theodora, or I will.”
“Cole, we’ll do it first thing in the morning,” Professor Luna whispered as she gently squeezed my shoulder. “For now, we need to clear up this mess and place as many protective charms around the academy before the sun rises… but I assure you, we will call upon the Headmistress as soon as the sun rises.”
“Do I have your word?” I asked with an arched eyebrow.
“Yes,” the pale-haired professor responded without missing a beat. She then regarded the other women with pursed lips and glassy eyes. “This was a very upsetting situation, and you have our word we will bring Theodora back at first light… correct?”
“Yes,” all the women answered, aside from Madame Soulton, who simply continued to glare at me with sharp, venomous eyes.
“Fine,” I said after a long moment, but I still wasn’t completely satisfied. As my eyes left Madam’s Soulton’s, I turned to look at my coven, as well as Beatrix and Marina, and I could tell by their pale faces and tired expressions that the group needed serious rest and perhaps a strong cup of wine. “Hey… why don’t you all return to the common room and take Beatrix and Marina with you… maybe Beatrix can place a charm on the door? Oh, and be sure to ask Cordelia to prepare something for you, wine or food… whatever you need. And tell her those were my direct orders.”
“Yes… thank you, master,” my coven responded collectively before they guided Marina and Beatrix away from the professors and High Court members.
“And why are you not following them?” Madame Soulton demanded in a sharp tone. “I thought we made an agreement, yet here you still are.”
“That’s because I would like to know what the hell just happened,” I snapped. “Witches don’t just attack their own kind for no good fucking reason. I saw their eyes… it was as if they were possessed by some other kind of magic… do you have any idea what happened? We all know the elders have penetrated our walls to speak through witches before, but now it seems our enemy has moved on to full body possession, and not just stealing a witch's voice. But I thought Scholomance’s defenses were up, so what the hell is going on here?”
At first, no one said a word until the ruby-haired Professor Crimson looked between the other women and finally sighed.
“I’ve heard of this kind of thing happening in the past,” she said with a firm nod. “I suspect this has something to do with the elders… but I cannot say for certain what kind of power they’re using. All I know is that it is strong enough to break through our defensive barriers and infiltrate more than one mind and body at a time.”
“Only the most potent of elders can penetrate minds like that,” Madame Soulton muttered as she pressed her fingers against her temples. “Whoever is behind this… they are obviously of great stature and power… we may have won two battles against them, but they are retaliating in a way we couldn’t detect.”
“Theodora will know what to do I’m sure,” I said before my eyes wandered around the bloody room, and it pained me greatly to see dead women lying on the cold floor and soaked in pools of wine and blood. They were all brutally mutilated with wide, stunned eyes, and pale, parted lips, and my blood boiled with rage as I thought about the elders and how they had done this without warning, like the fucking cowards they truly were. When I turned to look back at the professors, I took in a deep breath and steadied my trembling hands. “In the meantime… I’d like to speak with Vanessa.”
“Whatever for?” Professor Evanora asked, and I couldn’t help but notice specs of bright-red blood in her pale-pink hair.
“I think she has a right to know what happened,” I said with my chin raised. “Don’t you? Besides, I personally want to make sure she wasn’t affected by anything.”
“Very well,” Madame Soulton answered after a long, pregnant silence. “Follow me… the rest of you, please stay here and clean up. I’ll return shortly.”
“Yes, Madame,” the women replied in unison.
“Let’s go,” Madame Soulton snapped as her venomous-green eyes bored into mine. “I can tell you ahead of time that she won’t be pleased to see you… so I think you’d better let me be the one to break the news to her.”
“Fine by me,” I said with my hands raised up into the air.
The head of the High Court vehemently shook her head before she pulled up her velvet skirts and did her best not to step on any dead bodies on her way out. I followed closely behind her, and by the time we left the banquet hall, I was relieved to be free from the stench of metallic blood mingled with the scent of spiced meat and earthy wine.
“Come on,” Madame Soulton urged as she whipped around and paced down the hallway. “Keep up! I have plenty of work to do.”
I bit my tongue, rolled my eyes, and closely followed the bossy blonde Wicca. Her heels clicked and clacked as we scurried down the corridors, and when my eyes landed on the ever-observant paintings, I could tell by their expressions that they sensed something was deeply amiss. Their cold eyes were narrowed in confusion as they followed the two of us down the hallways, and I could have sworn I heard the echo of faint whispering as we ventured through the cold castle. Wherever Madame Soulton was taking me, I had never been in this part of the castle, but that notion didn’t exactly surprise me. Vanessa was an extremely reserved per
son, so of course her private chambers would be located somewhere deep and hidden within the academy.
When we reached a large reddish-brown door with a golden wolf’s head as the knob, Madame Soulton slowly raised her hand to knock on the door, but before she could do so, a sudden, overwhelming pain took over my entire body and caused me to cry out.
“Fuck!” I grunted as I doubled over.
“Cole!” Madame Soulton shouted with terrified eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“I-I-I don’t know,” I gasped as I tried to suck in quick breaths of air. “My head… it feels like it’s going to explode.”
The blonde Wicca stared at me with petrified eyes as I pressed my fingers against my pounding temples. Blood filled my mouth as my vision grew dangerously hazy, and the last thing I saw before my entire world went black was Madam Soulton pulling out her wand and aiming it right in between my eyes.
Chapter 3
When I came to, it took a minute to adjust to my new surroundings. Everything felt eerily similar and strange at the same time, yet also completely different. I knew I was in the halls of Scholomance, but everything was modeled in reverse. The gritty black walls were replaced with ivory stone, and small diamonds and gems were embedded in between the cracks. What’s more, the ghastly but beautiful paintings of former Wiccas were swapped with portraits of angelic-looking women with glowing skin and piercing eyes. Their brightly-hued orbs stared right through me as I traced my fingers along their golden frames, and as they followed my every move, vicious shivers ran down my spine.
When I pulled away, my attention turned toward the other side of the corridor. Our beautiful, stained glass windows, which bore the history of the Scholomance Wiccas, were switched to open, arched frames to reveal a vast blue sky with thick white clouds roaming through the cool, sweet-smelling air. Giant doves and other unusual birds flew past, and the sound of their high-pitched chirping and cooing echoed all around me.
“What the actual fuck is going on?” I muttered as I looked around.
There were no candles inside these whitewashed corridors, and when I looked down at the floor, the frosty marble was so sleek, I could see the confused expression plastered across my face.
“Hurry!” I heard a familiar voice giggle. “Our master is waiting! We can’t be late!”
When I spun around, I saw Vesta and Akira holding hands as they floated down the corridor toward me. They were dressed in fairy-like white gowns with sheer fabric, gold trimming, and flowing sleeves. Both women looked so incredibly different, and my jaw quickly dropped from the shock and confusion of it all. Akira’s short dark hair was now long and pale, and her purple lips were tinted a rosy pink. Vesta’s beautiful lavender skin was now white as milk, and her elvish features were completely absent and substituted with elder characteristics. Both women wore crowns of pale roses, and long, cross pendants dangled from their necks. They were barefoot and giggling, and they practically skipped down the corridor like two young girls wandering through the woods for the first time.
“Hey!” I raised my hands. “Stop, I command you… Vesta, Akira?”
Instead of obeying my command, the two women looked right past my face and didn’t even bother to slow down when their noses were practically touching mine. Before I could utter another word, they drifted right through me, like I was a ghost, and headed toward a pair of wide marble doors. As they pranced and sung a sweet lullaby, the doors slowly swung open, and what I saw next nearly took my breath away.
There, in the distance, I saw myself, dressed in a pale silk robe, seated on a golden throne, and surrounded by glittering jewels and other precious relics. It didn’t take long for me to recognize this room as the banquet hall since everything was the same except for the white walls and painted floral ceiling, but I could barely take in the new surroundings because I was too focused on this other version of myself. Not only was I wearing a robe like an elder, but I also had a giant pair of golden wings attached to my back as well as a shimmering crown on my head. Countless gorgeous women swarmed around my throne, and they carried large platters of food and poured substantial goblets of wine as they continued to serve and obey me like I was their holy king.
As my eyes scanned the room, I finally spotted my coven in the vast sea of beautiful women. Morgana appeared to be reading something to me, while Akira and Vesta took turns massaging my shoulders and feet. Meanwhile, Penelope and Nyx were serving me different goblets of wine, while Circe and Faye were on their knees as they stared up at me with love-filled eyes. It took me a moment to absorb in my new surroundings, since the other women looked different as well. Morgana’s long brown hair was tinted a fair shade of gold, and Penelope and Faye’s bright-orange and red hair were muted into a deep-auburn, while Nyx’s sapphire-blue skin was now milky-white and her hair was a light shade of robin-egg blue. And Circe looked the same aside from her eyes which were now a lighter shade of green with orb shaped pupils. There were so many women at my beck and call, I even spotted Professor Vanessa garbed in a transparent white dress that showed her erect nipples and the cleft between her legs, and she fiercely nudged another woman aside as she tried to serve me a platter of golden grapes.
“What the hell is this?” I hissed to myself. “This isn’t the Scholomance I long for… I need to get the fuck out of here…”
Marvelous, isn’t it? asked the woman from my dreams, but deep down, I knew it wasn’t truly her. Isn’t this what you’ve always wanted? Well, of course, it is… it’s what every man could ever dream of.
“What the hell is going on?” I demanded in a sharp tone. “I want out. Get me the fuck out of here.”
But why? the mysterious voice purred inside my head. This is you… as the master of Scholomance… why would you want to leave?
“This isn’t Scholomance,” I growled. “Whatever the fuck this is… it isn’t my academy… and you are not the woman from my dreams. She would never show me something so… blasphemous. It’s not what I want, and I demand to return to reality.”
But I am the woman who’s always been by your side, the woman responded in a gentle voice. All I want is what’s best for you, my dear Cole. Haven’t I always been here to guide you down the right path? When have I ever led you astray? You’ve always trusted me… so let me guide you to greatness. Let this be your future!
“You’re not her,” I grunted. “Fuck off… I don’t need shit from you.”
Not until you’ve seen it all, Cole. What if I told you there’s more? Not only could you rule all of Scholomance, but you could become a king as well. You would have domain over all the realms… with my guidance, you’d be more than a master. You’d be a god.
As I stared at this version of myself, I knew I hated what I saw. It didn’t matter if I was surrounded by gold, women, and all the jewels in the world. The sight made me sick to my stomach because, to me, I looked like a fool playing a false elder god. This was not who I was or what I fought for, and I knew deep in my Satan-worshipping soul that I would always long for the darkness.
“I’m not an idiot,” I snapped. “Did you think you could drag me into this vision you’ve conjured up, and I would just abide by your wishes? I don’t know who the fuck you think you are, but I’m not so easily swayed.”
Oh, we’ll see about that, she tittered.
Before I could say another word, the view before me vanished as quickly as a bolt of lightning, and I found myself on the outskirts of another palace. This castle was even grander than Scholomance, and the towers were so tall, they reached the clouds and surpassed the heavens. Giant white serpens flew around the fortress, and they looked like pairs of majestic swans soaring through the sky in perfect, harmonious circles.
Isn’t it beautiful? the mysterious woman sighed. Only the greatest elder kings and gods live here…
The castle was made from white stone, and each brick was perfect and equal in shape and size. The windows were grand, open arches, and I could hear laughter and soft music playing from within. Wing
ed white horses roamed around the rose gardens and emerald-green mazes that surrounded the entire palace, but the sight only made disgust roil inside my gut.
“Let me guess,” I sneered as I stared upon the majestic fortress. “This could all be mine as well?”
But of course, the woman’s voice purred. Riches, women, land. What more could you possibly ask for?
“I’m not betraying my faith, my coven, or Theodora,” I said through gritted teeth.
But what if Theodora bowed to you? her voice resounded inside my head. Could you imagine it? How delicious would it be if she obeyed your every whim and desire, instead of the other way around?
“Everything I do for Theodora is for the fate of Scholomance and my fellow Wiccas,” I answered. “I choose to listen to her because I trust her.”
You may trust her, but didn’t they all treat you so terribly when you first arrived? They hated your guts and acted as if you were a ragged dog. Why continue to cherish and protect them when you could have so much more?
“I’ve already chosen my path,” I growled. “When will you get it through your thick head?”
Perhaps I could tempt you with another offer? she insisted. What if I told you that a beautiful, lonely queen now lives behind these walls… and she’s on the hunt for a handsome, robust king? Someone who could match her in both strength and mind?
Before I could respond, the majestic castle slowly faded from view, and in seconds, I found myself in the middle of a grand hall with a checkered marble floor and snow-white walls. An enormous gold and diamond chandelier dangled from an arched ceiling, and the light from the ornament shone against the walls like specks of starlight. The ceiling was at least a hundred feet from the floor, and rose-pink clouds were painted across the entire plafond, but what truly caught my attention was the beautiful woman seated upon a silver and gem-adorned throne.
The elder queen was dressed in a flowing, lavender gown with roses sewn onto the shimmering, sheer fabric. She wore no shoes, but she did embellish herself with stacks of silver bracelets, diamond rings, and star-bright earrings. Her cascading, wavy hair was a mix between gold and brown, and her eyes were tinted silver-green like the clearest waters of the ocean. Her skin was so flawless it could have been carved from the most precious porcelain or the rarest marble. For a moment, I thought she could see me, but then I remembered how Akira and Vesta walked right through me like I was a phantom lost in between worlds.
