Uniquely Unwelcome (The Shadow World)

by Brandy Nacole

  When I open my eyes, I can’t get over how amazing the view is. I’m standing high over the ocean, feeling level with the moon. The cliffs are high. I’m unsure of just how high they are, but I can tell it’s high enough to keep me from doing a little night time dive.

  I dangle my legs over the edge and take another deep soothing breath. I try clearing my mind and focus on nothing but the moon shining on the water, the sound of the breeze coming up over the cliffs, the waves crashing against the rocks below me.

  I don’t know how long I sit there; enjoying the peaceful serenity I’m in before I hear some rustling behind me. I turn and spot Ethan walking my way. Great! I come out here for some peace and quiet, not more ignorant banter. I so don’t need his moping butt keeping me company right now.

  “Hey,” Ethan says and then sit’s an arm reach away from me. I continue staring out at the ocean, choosing not to acknowledge him.

  We sit there in uncomfortable silence for what seems like forever. I’m about to leave when Ethan starts blurting his frustrations.

  “I am so glad that we are only staying here for a day. I don’t think I could take another day.”

  I knew he was being quiet and weird since we got here. I didn’t realize it had to do with this place.

  “We’ve only been here for a couple of hours.”

  “Yeah and in that time, I have never felt more uncomfortable in all my life. Everywhere I turn someone is watching me. They act all scared of me or something. Keeping their distance but making sure I don’t go all crazy. It’s like they think I’m going to wolf out and eat them all. I hate it. It’s so uncomfortable and well… it’s insulting.”

  Ethan’s staring down at the water in his own little world. His face is drawn and pouty. His fists are tight in his lap.

  I sigh heavily as I scowl at him. I was finally starting to relax. Finally getting a moment to think for a moment without anyone staring at me or pressuring me. Then he comes out here to complain about his feelings getting hurt over nothing really. No one called him names, threw food at him, or hurt him in any physical way. So there watching him, big deal. There watching me too, or did he happen to forget that?

  “Are you serious? Are you seriously sitting here ruining my evening because your feelings got slightly hurt?” I rise, wiping the dirt off my butt, and turn back toward the dorms.

  Ethan tries to protest. “But they….”

  I turn on him so fast he doesn’t see it coming. I get right in his face. “But they what? They stare at you from afar? They don’t say much? Well, have they accused you of anything? Called you names? Anything? No! They’re just watching out for those they love. But when they start doing that, let me know. Maybe we can compare your one day of hurt to my lifetime of it.”

  I turn back to the dorms just as fast and walk off. Not caring if I hurt his feelings more or not. God knows he’s done it enough to me.

  I cross back over the vines with no trouble. I didn’t think about the wards when I crossed to get out. I’m just thankful they’re letting me back in. I guess once you have been welcomed and cross them, they don’t keep you out.

  Once I get back to my room, I snuggle up in bed. I try forgetting everything and let my mind relax. I need to get a good night’s rest before meeting with the Elders in the morning.

  Who knows what the day will hold and I would like to be well rested. Soon after I have confirmed this thought with my body, I fall into a deep sleep hearing nothing but waves crash against the cliffs.

  Chapter Six

  What a morning. First I’m awoken to Danika knocking on my door at six. I knew that I would be meeting with the Elders this morning but I didn’t think it would be that early. After instructing me to get dressed, Danika told me to meet her outside in the front lawn. She disappeared before I could ask which front lawn she meant. Did she mean the one in front of the dorm? Or did she mean the one in front where we parked?

  After showering and getting dressed, wearing jeans and a t-shirt for comfort, with my boots of course, I made my way down to the kitchen. Hoping to find something small to eat and grabbing a cup of coffee.

  When I got to the kitchen Ethan was there. He muttered good morning but said nothing more. He was still acting weird and quiet. I thought back to last night and his slummy attitude. It must still be weighing on him this morning.

  The coffee pot was empty and there was no more to brew, wonderful. Ethan noticed me messing with the coffee pot and told me they were out. Yeah like that wasn’t obvious. Then the strangest thing happened. He told me he really didn’t need or want his cup and gave it to me. Weird. I exam the cup very closely, did he poison it? Spit in it? Uh, could you imagine how nasty that would be? Yuck.

  He informed me that he didn’t drink out of it. After seeing my face, he continues to tell me he didn’t do anything to it, promise.

  After getting over the shocking surprise of his politeness and satisfied that it’s safe, I find some fresh baked muffins. I sit down at the lone table pushed in a corner. From the looks of the kitchen, I would say it’s more of a grab and go kind of place.

  I scarfed two muffins and downed my coffee, then headed out to find Danika. There were people out everywhere this morning. Some had books in their hands heading to the big house in the front. Some had baskets with various vegetable and breads in them. There were a few boys chopping firewood.

  I watched as girls swooned at the boys. There are male Witches but very few. Since Witches aren’t allowed to mix with other Shadows or humans, the girls try very hard to catch the eyes of the few male Witches there are. Why can’t the Ruling-Council see how cruel that is? The few Witches that do find love are lucky. The others are doomed to live alone, never being allowed to love.

  As I’d walked toward the big house, everyone had stopped what they were doing and started gawking at me. You want to talk about uncomfortable, here’s a prime example. There were probably sixty eyes watching me as I walked past. I felt like a criminal on the way to my death sentence. I was waiting for them to start chucking vegetables at me and calling me a killer.

  I made it to the front of the big house where Danika was waiting for me. She told me the big house was the Elders house. The three-story house was where meetings were held, the classes were taught, and the Elders lived. When Danika asked me if I was ready, I nodded as butterflies danced in my stomach. I was kind of expecting Ethan to come but he was nowhere around. As much as I disliked Ethan, his face was the only one that I knew.

  Now I’m sitting in a normal-looking living room on a normal couch waiting for the Elders to join me. Once again this is not what I expected. I expected something more like a dark room lit only by candles with a large long table with Elders sitting behind it in high back chairs. I would be sitting in front of them, sweating bullets, as they interrogate me and make a decision on whether I am worthy enough for the information they hold.

  Instead I’m sitting on a cozy black couch in a warm and inviting setting. Feeling like I am waiting on a friend rather than the Elders of the Witch Covenant. The room is done in a black, white, and burgundy scheme. The colors are all intricately put together so the room is still full of light, instead of a dark gloomy feeling.

  After what seems like forever, I hear a door creak open and footsteps coming down the hall. First Danika enters the room and goes stand behind me where I can’t make eye contact with her. Then they enter.

  A girl, who appears to be my age, enters the room and takes a seat on the black couch opposite me. She’s very beautiful with long black hair. I mean long like, down to her knees long. She has the brightest deep blue eyes ever. Eye lashes girls would kill for. Her skin is smooth and creamy, I wonder if she has some secret herbal cream.

  Then walks in another woman that’s just as beautiful but older. She too has long black hair, pretty blue eyes, and beautiful skin. Her eyes aren’t as dark blue as the younger girl. Hers is lighter but still pretty. I’m unsure of how old she really is because she seems motherly but only
looks around thirty. I am so getting that herbal treatment when this is all over, selling it, and making millions.

  A third woman walks into the room. She is older but still beautiful for an older woman. Her hair has more gray than black. Her skin is radiant too but there is some wrinkle. But the thing that stands out the most is her eyes. They are endless with wisdom, understanding, knowing, and a lifetime of experiences one cannot even understand until they experienced it all themselves. Her eyes are the lightest color of blue I have ever seen. Appearing almost white but containing that light tint of blue.

  After the older woman, a man walks in. I knew there were three women that led the Covenant in Hecate’s time, I didn’t know a man had joined the ranks. I’ve always been part of the Shadow World, heck I was born into it. But it’s as if I just found out about this world and have to learn things that I knew nothing about hours before hand. My grandmother had always scolded me for not paying attention in school. I just never cared about the Shadows histories. Why care when you didn’t belong to any of them?

  The man is older too, with a complete head of gray hair. He’s tall and also has those endless light blue eyes. He’s wearing an expression that says he would rather be anywhere but here.

  The three women sit on the black couch opposite me and the man sits in a overstuffed white chair adjacent to the couches. It’s close to the image I had without the dark room and table separating me from them. The older woman is the first to break the silence as the others continue to stare at me.

  “Hello dear, my name is Eldrida, the Crone.” She gestures to the middle aged woman, “This is Hanalei, the Mother.” Then she gestures to the youngest of them. “This is Laveda, the Maiden.” And last she gestures to the older man. “This is Witten, the Magister.”

  “Hi, my name is-”

  “We know who you are Harmony. We’ve heard a lot about you, dear.” Eldrida says.

  “Racquel.” I hastily correct her.

  “Yes, of course. How was your drive?” Eldrida asks, waving her hand to dismiss my correction.

  Only one word could describe the drive with Ethan. “Long.”

  The older woman smiles, “Dagna called and told us you would be coming. She did not specify what you needed.”

  Here it goes. But wait, how do you properly address the Elders? O Jeez. Do I say Majesties? Maim and Sir? Mighty Ones? Well Majesties is a cover all, I’ll go with it.

  “Well, your Majesties-” Apparently that wasn’t it because they all started chuckling. How nice.

  “We are not royalty, dear, nor are we kings or queens. There is no need for a formality of such. Just call us by our names.”

  “Oh, okay. Well, I’m sure you know Dagna thinks that I am best fit to find the missing Shadows.”

  The Elders nod their heads. “Dagna told me there were some useful things I would be receiving from the Covenant. She also said that I needed to gather information on the missing Shadows. Their locations and any related information to their disappearances.”

  “Before we give you anything, please tell us why you have agreed to this difficult task.” Eldrida asks.

  “Mostly because of Addie, my sister. She is the only one who has ever cared for me. I need to know what is going on and where she might be. I have to find her and I will not stop until I find her.” I didn’t want to mention the part about my grandmother coming to Dagna. They probably already knew but it wasn’t something I wanted to discuss. I wanted to find out why my grandmother wanted me to do this on my own.

  “What makes you think we know anything? If we knew anything why would we not act?” Wittens’ face is sour as he cuts his cold blue eyes toward me.

  “I...well, honestly I don’t know. I came here on a long shot hoping that you might know something but unsure if you did. I have no doubt that if you had information you would act upon it.”

  “Then why waste your time?” the Magister asks. I wonder what his deal is. Witten seems so cold compared to the women Elders.

  “I’m not wasting my time. I will never be wasting time when it comes to finding Addie. Nor will I ever give up until I know.”

  “I see.” Eldrida says with a pleasant smile on her face. “I was hoping you would say something like that.”

  The Elders look at each other, and then silently agrees to something as they nod their heads. Hanalei looks at me with approval on her face.

  “We have been looking all over not only for Addie but for the others as well. Unfortunately we have been unsuccessful. After Addie’s belongings were brought to us, we tried scrying for her. At first we were able to get a location on her but then we lost the connection.”

  I knew very little about scrying but made a mental note to check it out. I needed to know every possible way that I could try finding them on my own. If scrying was one way to do it, then I would figure out how. “Where was she when you located her?”

  The Elders hesitate but then Laveda answers me, “In your home town.”

  “What? Why would she be there? Where did she go?” My voice rises from the shock at hearing Addie was in Virginia.

  “We do not know why she was there but she was only there a short period of time. By the time we contacted the local Coven, they were gone. We have been trying to scry for her ever since but we keep getting bounced around the world: Egypt, Russia, China, even the Black Sea,” Eldrida explains.

  “Is she….alive?”

  “Yes. If she had passed on to another plain the amulet would not move. But since it is still in motion, she must still be alive.”

  Well that’s a relief. “I wonder if anyone saw her.”

  “We did try finding that information out as well but were unable to obtain anything,” Laveda informs me.

  Hanalei, looking down at her lap, looks sad. “We have also been visited by Cate’s spirit. She-”

  I interrupt Hanalei, “Who is Cate?” I need to understand everything and that includes knowing who each person is and how they play a part in all this.

  “She was the first Witch to be taken.” Laveda says placing her hand on Hanalei’s.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t know the names of those taken.” Then something else dawns on me. “Wait, did you say….spirit?”

  “Yes.” Laveda has sorrow in her eyes and understanding of my shock and concern.

  I can feel my eyes are wide, my mouth gapping open. I shut it quickly, clear my throat and ask, “So does that mean-”

  “She has moved from this plane, yes dear it does.” Eldrida also holds sorrow in her expression but peace too. Maybe peace at knowing Cate is safe and happy now. When we still don’t know what’s happening to the others.

  I look down at my own lap trying to hide the fear I feel for Addie. If this Witch was taken and died, then that could happen to Addie. I try not letting that bother me now. Right now, I need to concentrate on finding her so that never happens.

  Unable to think of anything to say, I just mutter another sorry. I hate moments like this when you want to say something but don’t know exactly what to say. It’s like when you lose a loved one and all these people come to comfort you but never know what exactly to say. I hate it. I never had to deal with it too much. I was too young to remember my mom and dad’s funerals. When my grandmother died, not too many people came around. Then when my grandfather left, shortly after my grandmother’s death, I watched from afar as many tried consoling Addie. Even then, no one really knew what to say.

  “It is a sad loss but she has moved on to a higher place.” I know that this is how the Elders and the whole Coven see it but it doesn’t bring comfort to me. I wouldn’t have comfort if Addie was to pass away just because she was in a higher place. I know it’s selfish sounding but I want her here on this plane with me for a few more decades.

  “As I was saying,” Hanalei says as she clears her throat. “Her spirit was angry and she was very adamant about getting all of our attention. So we decided to create a circle to summon her here.”

  “What did she ha
ve to say?” I ask.

  “She was unable to give us much information. She was knocked out from behind when she was taken. When she woke up, she was in a type of jail cell. There were others but they were unable to communicate with one another. She said it was as if some type of spell had been put on the bars to make them sound proof. There were human servants that would bring them food and water but she never seen who was in charge.”

  Humans? Why would someone involve humans into an ordeal like this?

  “Was she able to communicate with any of them?”

  “No. She could speak to them and they heard her but they were unable to speak with her.” Laveda sounds disgusted, her tone is tight and uneven but what she says next explains why. “They couldn’t communicate with anyone because their tongues had been cut out.”

  This just keeps getting better and better. First off, why have humans been involved? Second, why cut their tongues out? I couldn’t even imagine something so horrible. Or any reason to do so.

  “Was there anything else?” I ask trying to clear my head of tongue less humans.

  “After a few days, one of the humans came to get her. They took her down a corridor where she was able to see all the other prisoners. They tried talking to her but of course she couldn’t hear them and they were walking too fast for her to lip read. Finally, they arrived in a laboratory type room. Two humans strapped her to a bed.

  First, they took a lot of her blood. Then a Witch came with a rolling cart. The cart held several different types of syringes on it. She injected Cate several different times. She was unsure of the syringes content. Then the Witch did a binding spell.” Hanalei stops. She looks very upset and doesn’t seem fit to continue.

  Eldrida places her hand on the woman’s shoulder and continues for her, “After that she went through excruciating pain for a long period of time. We were able to feel her pain as she did and it was severe. After some time her body couldn’t handle the pain anymore and it gave up.”