Winter Witch

Chapter IV

Markel flew through the town and deep into the forest. He didn't stop running, even when he felt his legs burning from the weight of the snow. He was determined to find whatever, or whoever, that was.

He truly didn't care about the woman in question. He didn't care if she died. He did care though if this thing, or person, used her to get to him, and she died because of him. He couldn't live with the thought of someone dying, because he failed.

He stopped for a moment to catch his breath. He wasn't even sure how far he'd run into the forest, nor how long it had been since he'd left the town. He dropped to his knees and pounded a nearby tree trunk with the side of his fist.

He screamed in anger and frustration. "Where are you?" he called out. "Show yourself!" he demanded.

A childlike laughter filled the forest. He stood, looking around in circles, trying to find the source of the voice. "I told you it was a game! You have to try harder than this to find me! You wouldn't want her to die, would you?"

"Leave her out of this! I know it's me you want, so leave that woman alone! She has no association to me, so why did you attack her?"

"If you want to find out, then you have to find me first!" The voice giggled again.

Markel grew extremely angry. He drew his sword and swung it, cutting the icy air, so it froze over along with everything in its path. The icy chill of the wind grew ever colder. The voice had disappeared, leaving Markel completely alone.

I will find you, no matter what! He stormed off, continuing his search for the voice. He needed to lift the curse off the woman, so he could move on with his life.

He had no association to her, so why did the voice chose her to get to him. Ever since his meeting with the spirit of his sword that one day as a child, some of his memories were foggy - almost as if something was blocking his memories on purpose.

If only it had blocked out the memories of my parents, he thought. The memories of the abuse he received as a child always lingered in the back of his mind. His father beating him for no reason. His mother shunning him.

The woman's face came to his mind as he closed his eyes. She was very beautiful and quite lovely to behold. Her slim frame fit perfectly right into his arms as he carried her. That wasn't what caught his attention though. The woman resembled someone he once knew. That person was long dead as his parents were. He couldn't even remember their names.

Markel had an epiphany just then. His eyes flew open in realization. It couldn't be that girl, could it? What if she was that girl? No. That didn't seem right though. That girl was long dead. It couldn't be her!

He debated the thought, mulling over it in his mind. What if it is her?

Laughter filled the air again. "Have you figured it out yet?" The voice was back. This time, it was mocking him. "Have you figured out who she is yet?"

"Leave her alone! That girl is long dead!"

The laughter continued. "What if I told you she never died?"

Markel was shocked to his core to hear such a thing, but he remained impassive. "What do you mean she never died?"

"You want to hear a story? Then come find me?" The voice was mocking him now.

Markel smiled. "I found you already." The area he was in was frozen over with ice as pure as falling snow. It acted as mirror, using the moonlight to reflect everything within. Someone was standing just behind him.

The voice laughed. "So you did." A vortex of wind and snow grew from the ground up. A shadow appeared in the midst of the snow. When the vortex disappeared, a strange person stood before him. "You found me!" they shouted happily.

Markel crossed his arms, seemingly unamused. He continued to stare at them for a long time in silence. The person standing before him wasn't human. Their ears were like a stag's and their lower body was of one as well. Only they walked bipedal instead of quadrupedal.

The person's ears twitched, and they stopped their happy dance when they realized the man standing before them was unamused by them. They stood with their head down in repentance.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted someone to play with."

Markel burst out in anger. "That is no reason to get someone else's life involved! Do you realize how much danger that girl is in? We don't have time for playing games! We need to lift that curse before she dies!"

The stag realized they had made a mistake. "Wait! There really is a woman who is cursed?"

Markel was equal parts annoyed and surprised to hear the stag ask such a question. He placed his hand over his face and sighed in annoyance. "You mean to tell me you didn't know about any of that, and it was all just a coincidence?"

Markel was readying himself to strangle the stag before him. Laughter filled the woods again. He glared at the stag in annoyance. The stag jumped back from fear. "What? It isn't me this time, I swear!"

The laughter grew darker and more menacing. "I see you have a friend now. The little stag almost made it easier for me. Too bad. Now I will have to kill you both!"

Darkness filled the forest. The light had been completely snuffed out. All the light except for the stag who glowed with magic.

Markel was amazed. He placed a firm hand on the stag's shoulder. He whispered in their ear. "Tell me. Are you able to do anything to help lift the curse off that woman I mentioned?"

The stag startled a bit. "I guess I can," they responded after careful contemplation, "but it depends on the type of curse. You see, I'm more of a healer than a reverser. I can only lift certain curses."

Markel contemplated for a moment. "How about a curse of rot?" he finally inquired.

"Sure! The healing process depends on how long the curse has been active for as well as how much longer we have left before it takes effect."

"How long might that be? How do we lift it?"

"Usually curses are active as soon as they are cast. However, some curses, like ones for rot, can take several days to weeks, even months, before they are active. Sometimes it has to do with meeting a certain criteria or requirement for it to activate, but once it does, it takes one to two days to fully work."

So that means that the requirement for the curse placed on the woman to activate was I be in the town. Great! Now what do I do if I can't find that person who cursed her?"

"You don't need to worry about finding me," the voice answered his thoughts. "This game is no fun anymore. I'm going to kill you both and that girl."

Markel sensed danger nearby. His sharp hearing heard something whistle through the darkness. "Look out!" He grabbed the stag, barely dodging the projectile. It stuck into the snow, melting the ice and snow where it landed.

Poison! A groan resounded from beside him. Markel looked over to see the stag holding their arm. An arrow had pierced the skin, though not too deeply. Markel removed the arrow quickly. The stag wasn't wearing special armor like Markel was. They were only a simple magical woodland creature.

"Hang in there. I'll get us out of here," Markel tried to reassure the young stag.

He had no plan and no clue or idea how he was going to make it out even half alive. All he could do was sit in hiding and wait for daybreak. He shut his eyes and closed his mind off. He meditated, waiting for the barrage of poisoned arrows to cease.