Power of Death (Agathario)

Chapter Fourteen

 Agatha and Rio walked along the dirt road, using magic to drag Thomas' body behind them. Rio slipped her hand into Agatha's as night grew closer and Agatha clasped their fingers together.

"So are we just going to plop down the body and leave?" Rio asked, glancing back at Thomas.

"Yup."

"And what do you expect the townspeople to do?"

Agatha shrugged. "If I don't reveal that I can't take power without being blasted with it first, then there's no reason for people not to be scared of me."

Rio smiled. "So you want them to be scared of you."

"Yes, actually," Agatha replied, the corners of her lips twitching into a smile as she imagined how much she could make people afraid.

She could practically see Thomas' sweating and begging, as if it was still happening.

She liked having that type of power.

"I was feared by my mother and now that she's been dead it's time to be feared by someone else," Agatha explained.

"You don't think it's better to just do your own thing and screw everyone else?" Rio asked. "It seems too much of a hassle to try and get people terrified of just your name."

Agatha let out a laugh at the irony. "Rio, you're Death. Everyone is scared of your name."

"I see, it's a competition."

Agatha rolled her eyes, though she did feel a slight spark of competitiveness in her chest.

They arrived at the town and Rio held back at its edge as Agatha grabbed Thomas' foot and dragged him forward without magic, the pebbles of the road crunching loudly. She grinned as she entered in plain sight. There was no more hiding for her.

The town was small, but she found it all too easy to attract stares. No one ran away screaming, but that was because the children were already in bed, leaving only the adults out. A few women gasped from where they sat by the wood shop.

Agatha stopped walking, halted by a group of men.

"What is this?"

"Well I'm just taking my husband out for a little walk," Agatha said, dropping Thomas' foot unceremoniously to the ground, her voice dripping with sweet sarcasm. "Just a little romantic stroll."

The men seemed to realize who Thomas was, and they jumped back.

"You witch," one of them said. "You're the Devil itself! You even turn on your own kind!"

Agatha just smiled coolly, flicking her wrist and raising Thomas into a standing position, a sick satisfaction rising in her chest. "The last person to say that to me died."

At this, the men ran and the women ducked inside. At first, it looked like everyone who retreated, until figures emerged from the shadows.

Agatha realized who they were as they approached and she sent Thomas' body back to the ground.

The woman in the front led the group of eight women as they grouped together, walking toward Agatha in their dark cloaks. The first woman had straight dark hair and pale skin, the only one who had her hood down. A smile curved her lips as she approached.

"It's been a while, Agatha," the woman said, "Do you still even remember us?"

Agatha glanced over them in shock. "Of course I do, Thornn. Salem wasn't that long ago, you know."

"We've been preparing for you, Harkness," she continued, drawing her hands out of her cloak's pockets as she neared.

"I spared your lives!" Agatha yelled in reply. "I could have killed all of you years ago, but I didn't."

"No, you didn't spare us. You took our mothers and you've taken countless others."

Agatha blew a piece of hair out her face. "So what, are you just going to try and kill me then?"

"Yes."

Agatha gave a dry laugh. "Go ahead then, try."

One of the witches in the back drew out her hands and shot at Agatha with a yell.

Her yellow magic hit Agatha's chest, which exploded in pain. But Agatha squeezed her eyes shut and focused, the magic quickly turning to something she could take. Her arms flew out as she sucked the magic in, leaving the woman an empty husk.

"Ahhh..." Agatha sighed as she drank up the remainder of the magic, facing the rest of the witches as they gasped and made room for their coven member to fall to the ground. "You didn't do your homework. Now I'm going to give you one more chance, against my better judgment. So leave now before I kill you all."

"You won't even spare us to learn about the Darkh—" One of the witches said before Thornn shushed her.

"Don't make deals with the witch killer."

Agatha smirked at the group, holding up a hand, playing with a bit of her purple magic as a warning. Thoughts ran through her head, though. There was the Darkhold again. A twinge of curiosity rose in Agatha's chest, but she didn't try to bring it up.

Thornn hissed at Agatha as she motioned for the rest of the coven to flee. They did, lifting themselves in the air and flying away into the night.

"This isn't over, Agatha Harkness," a voice called back.

Agatha grinned, the new magic still racing through her veins. Sure it wasn't over. If they ever came back, she would finish the job and kill them all. She turned, seeing Rio approach.

"Who was that?" Rio asked, looping her dark hair around her finger as she neared Agatha.

"Eight of the children of the women in my original coven," Agatha replied, "though there are only seven now."

"Hah, the seven witches from Salem."

Agatha smiled. "The Salem Seven. I'll be sure to call them that the next time they come back. Though the least I'll do to them is make them the Salem Six."

"No, I think it's likely you'll make it like they never even existed," Rio replied.

"In the meantime..." Agatha gestured to the witch's dead body.

Rio cackled as her face changed, the skull appearing on her face. She walked past Agatha, holding out her hands (like Agatha did while sucking peoples' magic), before completely disappearing into thin air. Agatha waited, and soon Rio reappeared, this time walking toward Agatha.

"I swear every time I see you you're more and more irresistible," Rio remarked, taking Agatha by the chin and bringing her into a kiss.

"My love, of course I do," Agatha replied, smirking playfully and taking Rio by the arm. They turned and walked out of the town, leaving the two bodies to be disposed of by the townspeople in whatever way they pleased.

But the Darkhold remained in Agatha's head, a small seed of interest.

—

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Time to begin with more backstory, and I'm very excited to write it.

Have a great day!

-VictoryGreen8