Witchcraft

Chapter 4 The Killer

The picture above is kind of how I picture Marcus!

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Beside me, Marcus spat out a string of the most colorful curse I'd ever heard.  Akumi twirled her dagger expertly in her hand, light glinting off the side.

I tried to remember all of the spells I could use in this situation, but my mind seemed to have stopped.  Mother always did say that I was horrible under pressure. 

"Stop, we mean you no harm,"  I tried to say confidently, but my voice betrayed the fear building inside of me.  My eyes flashed bright silver, as they always did when I feel strong negative emotions.  Emotions such as fear, hatred, or anger.

For a moment the only sound to be heard was the slight rustle of leaves overhead, and the pounding of my own heart, beating like a drum in my ear.

The silence shattered as Akumi lunged, lightening fast, towards Marcus.  Marcus reacted immediately, slicing the sword at the lykan.  She easily slipped away, dodging the attack.  I gathered white fire in my fists, drawing attention to myself, before shooting my hands towards Akumi, splaying my fingers.  Instantly, a giant flaming ball of white flew directly in Akumi's direction.

The lykae focused on me, as if I was deemed to be more of an opponent.  The air around me crackled with tiny sparks of electricity, but they did nothing as I couldn't control them.  Yet another flaw in my powers.

Akumi charged towards me, dagger poised to strike my chest.  I stepped out of the way clumsily, so her weapon nicked the side of my arm, drawing blood.  

One more thing about me, I have a low pain tolerance.  I  gritted my teeth as scarlet liquid began to slowly drip down my upper arm.  Marcus was coming up behind Akumi, lifting the sword to slice through her.  She realized a second too late, and the knight was able to create a long, diagonal gash in her back.  Not enough to annihilate immediately, but enough to seriously wound and kill if not attended to.  

Akumi let out a pained scream, blood leaking from the wound as she fell.  I lightly stepped forward, Marcus about to pull the killing blow.

Just as he brought his sword down I gave a shout.

"Stop!"  I yelled, stopping his blade before it could kill Akumi.   Marcus looked up at me with an irritated glare.

"What?  Kind of busy here, witch."  He questioned with aggravation.

"You can't kill her."  I stated firmly as his face turned surprised, before becoming faintly angered.

"Why the hell shouldn't I kill her?  It was obviously her goal to kill us."  He demanded, bringing his sword up once again.

"Hypocrite!  If I went by that rule, then you would be dead!"  I sent an icy glare his way as he froze in his action once again, meeting my eyes.

"Alright, then what do you want to do with her?"  He asked with slight fury coloring his voice.  I ignored his blatant behavior and moved to the lykae, groaning in pain on the ground.  Healing was always something that came easy to me, being a nonviolent person. 

Hovering my hands above her body, I whispered a few small spells  A faint glow spilled from Akumi, my magic at work.

The blood slowly started seeping back into the wound, and Akumi's screams began to get louder, ripping through the silence of the forest.  Healing could cause a lot of pain from someone as inexperienced as me.

Because my magic was weak, spells such as this one could be fatal if done wrong, or not helpful.  

Marcus watched in distaste and slight fascination as the wound began to suck the blood back in, and grew shallower.

The silver glow faded, and I slumped back in exhaustion.  This was tiring, and paired with the fireball and the sword, it made my eyes droop sleepily.

My mother, the sorceress that she was, would've been able to take on a small army alone, and come out nearly unscathed.  One day I aim to be that strong, so I've practiced everyday since I was 9, when my mother declared it okay for me to use my powers.

There was still a slice on Akumi's back, but it was definitely better, only showing a thin line of blood.  It would likely scar though, as I was in a hurry so she didn't die.

"We can leave her here and I bet that her pack will find her,"  I explained as I stumbled to stand up, my legs feeling like lead and a headache pounding viciously through my skull.

Marcus stared at me through narrowed eyes.  He noted my exhaustion, and began walking beside me.

"Why did you save me?"  He asked suspiciously, obviously not trusting me.

"Because if I left you for dead then it would weigh on my conscious forever."

"Witches don't have a conscious.  They are slaves of the devil."  He growled, and I let out a small sigh.

"Whatever you want,"  I mumbled, too tired to argue.

Marcus had a befuddled expression as we started our walk back to camp.  

Before we reached our small 'base', the knight had caught a small rabbit and a fat sparrow.  I was nearly asleep, so I wasn't much help, but it was good enough.

We roasted the two animals over a small fire that I'd made with the last of my power, and had only finished eating my half of the rabbit before I was consumed by the comforting blank of sleep.

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Hey guys!  Sorry for the slow update, I've been a bit busy with stuff.  I haven't written many fight scenes before, so I may come back later and revise this one to make it better.  Thanks for reading!