1. A Secret of Snow and Ruin

Chapter IV

Isla Wardwell

For the first ten years of my life I had everything I wanted. I had the jewels, engagement offers, and the promise of being named heir. I had it all.

Until Alistair was born of course.

My brother looked nothing like a by the book Wardwell. We had the most striking eyes, straight dark hair, and the most translucent pale skin. But when my father brought him home, my ten year old self was stunted. The baby was as brown as leaves, had dark green eyes, and hair curlier than I had ever seen.

Alistair was half Ialatic and was a muddled born. His mother was a human who could coincidentally cast a few encantations. He was a bastard my father had claimed after he learned from The Fates that Alistair would be gifted with the strongest psychic ability one could have. It infuriated me that I was now tossed aside. My sister Orla, loved Alistair dearly and I envied that too. I hated that the responsibility to be potentially heir fell on me and created this competition with my brother. I wanted to love him and once upon a time I did, but I got tired of being nice.

I made sure Alistair knew what I was meant to inherit when we were young.

But after Alistair's betrayal I could not help but feel threatened that he'd somehow unsurp my right as High Priestess and take the throne for himself. I always had him in line for as long as I could remember and yet this one mistake he made, grinded my gears in a way I couldn't fathom.

Stop fucking thinking about that Isla. Snap out of it. This heart from Ninomae will be your calling. You'll finally be more powerful than your brother, so stop dwelling in the past. I keep repeating.

I sigh and wait for my blessings to guide me. After I had killed Jasmeen her body was readily prepared for my sacrifice. A knock on my door tore me from my reverie and there stood Killian with a smile on his face. He held the heart in a case and gave it to me with a ironic gentleness.

Her heart now lay in my hand and it was still slightly bloody as I could see. A purple and magenta infused aura floated through the heart. It was Jasmeen's magic sense. Even though she was a psychic her ability to read prophecies was cosmic and foretold through the stars. Cosmic Magic had a purple hue, meanwhile every Psychic witch like myself has blue magic. But I wasn't quite sure about this magenta streak intermingled in her heart. 

"Thank you Killian" I say. I close the door and I sit in the darkness of my room, feeling excitement. As High Preistess I had to be the most powerful. Usually we shared power amongst the coven but this heart was an offer that was too powerful to resist. I took her heart out of the case and centered it in the small circle I had conjured from chalk.

I lit the candles surrounding the seance and began my chant, "tuam virtutem altae prophetiae super me" As I repeat the chant, I see my blue magic power through the seance. A bright magenta light from Jasmeen's heart begins to rise and I continue. But as the light moves closer and closer to me, I begin to see flashes of blood, death, and rampage. "tuam virtutem altae prophetiae super me" Through the carnage I yell through the images. But as everything progresses, I see an image of feral wolves tearing through Lycans like snacks. I indulge in the images and as the light reaches my chest, I fully embrace it.

The power was heavy but also left me feeling tingles throughout my body. I look and see indigo flashes of light intermingle through my veins. It was my power mixed with Jasmeen's. I smile at the sight, because I like this new power and because I was once step closer to being Queen.

But I also think to myself about what I had just seen from this seance. Lycans being killed by Lycans—feral Lycans. I smile and a new plan begins to emerge.