The Sea Witch's Revenge (ON HOLD)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Victoria's feet sink into the black sand. Behind her, the rest of the crew follow. They secure the rowboats further up the beach, away from where the waves crash behind them. Victoria stops and looks up at the dramatic black cliff face where the figure still stands. She takes in a shallow, nervous breath.

"Come on, best not to leave her waiting," Thessaly says, grabbing Victoria's arm and dragging her toward the cliff. Victoria's eyes widen when she sees the path.

Path is too kind a word for it.

A vertical zig-zag of uneven steps has been carved into the rock face. Victoria lets out a huff as she cranes her neck to look up at it. Thornly pats her shoulder.

"You aren't scared of heights, are you Vic?" he asks.

"Of course not," she replies and brushes his hand off. He laughs and walks ahead, catching up with Oscar.

Victoria doesn't move. Instead, she turns to look up and down the amazing beach, still unable to wrap her head around its dramatic beauty. She'd never seen black sand before. There is something hauntingly magical about it and the way the dark grey water of the ocean gracefully glides across it with each passing wave. Contrasting the black sands, are the huge blocks of ice. They must have been in the water before because they are deep blue and polished. The way it warps and bends reminds Victoria of a crystal. She steps toward one and reaches out, pressing her hand on the smooth, chilled surface. It towers over her, making her feel tiny beneath it.

A hand presses against her shoulder.

"Thess is right, we really shouldn't keep her waiting. Plus, you don't want to be climbing up that in the dark," Lorenzo says. Victoria frowns and turns to face him. The sun is close to setting as night draws close. As there is still daylight, however, the captain's form has yet to return from that of a monster.

"I thought she was your friend," Victoria says as the pair start walking to the cliff.

"She's a friend, yes," he agrees. "But she's still one of the witches and as we both know all too well, they aren't to be messed with."

Victoria sighs and nods her head in agreement. "What should I expect? This is my first time meeting a witch," she asks him.

"She's a being who has lived for a millennium and holds all the ancient knowledge about magic and mystery. So you can expect cryptic riddles and questions only partly answered."

"Great," Victoria grumbles sarcastically. With a huff, she drags herself up onto the first step, which is as high as her hips. Once she's standing on it, her heart already racing from the excursion, she looks up at the winding staircase and lets out a long groan.

Behind her, the captain laughs and gives her a light shove. "Go on, up you go. It's only going to get worse so stop stalling."

"Fuck off," Victoria grumbles and lifts her leg up to climb the next uneven, slippery step, which thankfully is half the size of the first. 

They continue up the staircase in silence. Partly because the climb is exhausting, and partly because Victoria needs all her attention to be on making sure she doesn't slip and fall to her death. The rocks are damp from the sea spray and ice, making them horribly slippery. Add to it the uneven footing and bearly anything to hold on to the stairs are nothing short of a death trap.

It is only when she's halfway up that it suddenly occurs to Victoria that she's going to have to come back down this wretched path. She groans and hauls herself up onto the next step. She dares not look down. Just the thought of seeing the sand so far below her has her stomach churning and her head spinning.