The Phoenix Witch

Chapter 15

Christine's P.O.V

The air grew thick and tense as we treaded through the path toward the clearing that was the glass gardens, It was just like I had remembered but so very different, the trees shed leaves, the chirping of birds and skittering of insects unheard, a tribute to their mourning. I glanced at my companions, their jaws set and posture rigid, only William, our ever-happy jokester glanced curiously taking all that was to offer. I sometimes couldn't believe he was a 1000-year-old vampire, he had the happiness and curiosity of a child, It baffled me and that was what made him so intriguing. The clearing welcomed us as we walked in, the calm sky turning dark, the wind picking up as if it anticipated our fight. We waited, falling into our given positions, like a diamond with Aurora in the front, William and Matthew at its sides, and I at the back. The currents became harsher as our enemy, the shadow man - Travis Gallimore guarded with 3 ninja mutants approached us.

'Ah Aurora, I see you did not come alone, Good thing I came prepared ' he said while pointing to the three behind him.
Aurora didn't respond, her gaze wholly focused on the barely conscious boy held by one of the three ninja mutants. He followed her line of sight and said

'Oh yes! Your little boy, I took great care of him, I must say I have much better hospitality than you lot but then again how could anyone be as good as me ' his stupid unnerving voice filled with amusement echoed through the clearing. Who was the most narcissistic person? Well I certainly know the answer now, I thought as disgust showed on my face.

' Enough talking Gallimore, give me my boy, I have the Esecta ' she said, her voice cold with a touch of lingering concern.

'As you wish' he said with a sigh as if disappointed at the lack of cruel banter.
'Same time' he warned and they stepped forward, him passing the boy and her the Esecta, Its bright white glow dimmed a little but didn't deter it from being the most enchanting thing I had ever seen. Aurora hauled Juan to her side, inspecting him for injuries, finding none she pushed him behind her and muttered a silent spell for protection. She then turned to Travis, her expression thunderous, a signal for us to ready ourselves, in turn, my muscles coiled and anticipation coursed through my body. And then, It all happened at once, a plume of red magic knocked the Esecta from the unsuspecting hands of Travis landing near a patch of trees, Matthew and William vamped across the field fighting the ninja mutants, I watched as they gracefully fought, their super strength and speed matched with the opposing power of the ninja mutants.

Years of training ingrained in me saved me from the powerful swipe of the third ninja mutant, I turned swiftly, changing my stance, and put my to-go strategy into action. It was simple, as I was weaker than him, I would wait for him to tire himself while dodging and examining his every attack until he left me an opening, and then I would strike. It worked well and when I saw him tire, I took my earned opportunity and attacked, hitting his shins, the private no-no regions, and then finally without leaving time for him to recover, I stabbed him with all the strength I had. He staggered back, falling hard and I heaved as I straightened, the lack of practice getting to me, and turned to see us losing.

Aurora fought with Travis, their fight tied, each one as strong as the other, It wasn't clear who was winning but somehow the ninja mutant things knew exactly what
to do, and that confused me. Weren't the Calistos supposed to stop the seer from knowing what we could do? I didn't have more time to ponder over this as the ninja mutant groaned as he woke back up, I sighed in annoyance and got ready to fight again. This time was different though, he seemed to know all my tricks and was not amused, The swipes were far harsher swung to aim for my life but I held my ground, dodging when I could waiting for Matthew's signal, After a grueling ten minutes the rest of them appeared seer along with them. A sigh of relief left me as a huge lavender-colored wolf leaped over me and chunked on a huge piece of my opponent. I sagged onto the ground staring in awe at the ethereal wolf, glowing like a star against the dark sky, it fought like it was born to conquer and kill. I turned to the others when I heard more battle cries and saw many more of those ninja mutants appearing. What in the world?!

I thought as I stared in astonishment at the raging battlefield, I had been in fights before but never one with such nauseatingly powerful creatures. The slicing sound of a knife broke me out of my reminiscence and I turned to see it hurtling towards me, I stood there frozen and before I could even attempt to dodge, it stopped mid-air, turned back, and stabbed the ninja. I glanced back to see Eli was the one who had saved me, I marveled at the sight, feeling guilty about not being with him as he became a frighteningly powerful witch, A whisper caressed my mind breaking me out of my pity, and I dropped my mind block and his baritone sounded in my head, "now", I looked at him still fighting and finishing off many more yet his face didn't show any signs of communication with me. I quickly turned, my gaze locking in on the Esecta which was still glowing near a patch of trees.

I waded through the battle seeing no other faster way to get to it and boy! Was it tiring, it had been a while since my body had strained this much or so my muscles said. The glow of the Esecta welcomed me warm and soothing as I neared it, I walked closer towards it and paused when I felt a thrum of ancient weird power radiating from it, my heart beating louder and faster, the power choking me. I had been around noteworthy artifacts before, even touched some of them but never had I felt anything so overwhelming. I took another step and a force slammed into my head, making me falter, a voice spoke then, garbled and inhuman but somehow understandable,

"The one of magic and death, such a rousing mind you have"

A series of images flashed through my head, a swirl of colors moving faster than my mind could process, and finally threw me into a void of darkness. A faraway voice calling my name broke me out of the Esecta's bewitching trap, my eyes refocusing and pain exploding through my body, I gasped at the sensation and tuned into the voice in my head, "Get the book, Christine". That definitely wasn't a good idea, I thought as more pain exploded through me. My breathing became shallow but I steeled myself against it and focused on getting the book, My wobbly legs took another step and more pain hit me, I groaned and tried to take another step but the voice pierced through my mind again, " Me or the seer? I wonder who you will save" it said. My eyebrows furrowed, confusion filling me as I tried to blink the tears out of my eyes, Its words finally clicked and I turned as swiftly as I could with scorching pain. My eyes searched for the seer while the battle raged 0n in full fire until I found her standing on the edge of the battle very close to me, she was in a battered state from what I could see but safe, well as safe as she could be amongst a battlefield.

I frowned at this not understanding the book the words until my gaze reached Travis and Aurora, They weren't fighting each other anymore, branching out to fight their enemies instead, That was normal but what I saw next scared me, Travis was making his way through the gaggle of either dead or injured ninja mutants and heading straight towards the seer, a furious look on his face. He lifted his hands, a vomit green colored ball of magic forming in it, aimed at the seer and I suddenly understood what the book said, I had to choose between it and the seer.

I looked at the book my decision already set, it seemed to know and it glowed a bit brighter as if giving me comfort. I turned away from it and towards the scene, my pain not forgotten only pushed to great depths of my mind and my muscles coiled to run the short stretch, I quickly calculated the time by which I would reach her and decided that I would get there in time. So, in a matter of a second without thinking of any consequences, I sprinted just as Travis threw his ball of ugly magic, time seemed to slow down as the sky thundered and lightning shot through it making it bright.

The magic hit me and unbearable, unimaginable pain even worse than the pain I had experienced burst through every vein of my body. I fell to the ground with a thud, my eyes unfocused and my heart straining to keep me alive. Faraway voices called for me, screamed for me to wake up but the bright lightening was all I could see, and the thunder was all I could focus on. Black spots lined my vision, the sweet temptation of peace of oblivion calling me when the voice spoke again "Well chosen, child". I could feel warm hands enveloping my cold body, the smell of pine and old books easing my pain just a little, My mind tried to make my open and see who it was but my eyes didn't cooperate, so I succumbed to the oblivion, making my eyes go completely black and my heart still. What I didn't feel amidst the pain and dying was the cracking and breaking of a part of my soul, unlocking something the world wasn't ready to see.