Worst Curse: A Ghostwalkers Journey, Book II

Chapter 8

     A weight of sadness latched onto Pilo's thoughts, dragging his mind into despair. Wind blew at his back, taking the scent of the blood away from him. Before he lost a presence in the actions unfolding before him, anger sunk its talons deep into his attention and snatched him back into the conversation. With a tight hold on Yasmina, he couldn't give into his first reaction, and attack the messenger. Using restraint, he remained motionless, and kept his position. Controlling their savior seemed to be his only form of power over the coven's decision making. Losing Demini took away all of his need for the coven standing before him. He thought about lashing out until the old witch distracted his morbid thoughts.

     "Relax," she said, turning to look at him. "It isn't you that should mourn. Once again, coming into contact with you two, has taken away another one of my sisters."

     "Demini's still alive," Pilo asked.

     "Who is this blood sucker," the messenger asked the old lady. "They've killed more?"

     "What happened to her," the old lady asked, ignoring the messenger's questions.

     "They were in a struggle when they arrived. It ended here, and we felt her presence fade off down the mountain. She was still in the spirit realm. We took our sisters body inside, but it was too late...She informed us you were in danger. We were preparing to leave when you showed up."

     Behind the messenger, the shadows began to move. Figures in the dark took shape as the witches moved into the dim light. Seeing how greatly outnumbered he became, Pilo decided it to be best to retreat. Knowing Demini still remained in the spirit realm, he didn't want to spend any more time there than needed. A change in direction of the wind brought whispers from the darkness of the cave in his direction. Feeling the witches cast a spell, he knew who the intended target would be. Wrapping his arms around Yasmina, Pilo entered the spirit realm, and brought their savior with him. As he lifted in the air, Austesh emerged, and gave chase. Jumping off the ground, Austesh barely caught a hold of Pilo's ankle as he escaped.

     Four witches followed them into the spirit realm in an attempt to stop them. Their ravens lifted them off the ground, and kept them right behind Pilo. Only one idea wanted to consume his thoughts. The only thing Pilo wanted to worry about, found difficulty from the dangers chasing after them. Locating Demini took precedent over everything, except his safety. If the witches were to catch him, he wouldn't get any opportunities to save his love. Getting to safety struggled within his mind. It didn't come easy convincing himself to leave Demini behind for the moment. He trusted in her strength and tenacity to keep her safe until he found her. For the time being, he had to overcome the fear of her getting hurt, and trust she would defend herself until they were reunited. In this land only one place would keep the witches at bay, and Pilo guided his bat directly there.

     Aside from Pilo, the witches had only one major threat, and he hoped to find sanctuary in her company. Keeping along the mountain ridge, they soared North through the darkness. Erratic movements kept the witches from staying directly behind Pilo in the spirit realm, but the ravens kept the bat in view. Spreading out their formation, the ravens made it difficult to escape their threat. Moving into the trees, Pilo backed off control, and let his tandem animal use its instincts. One raven got in real close, and clawed at the bat, scratching his wing, knocking it out of flight. It hit the ground hard, but quickly shook it off. Before the witches could locate their position, they were back in flight.

     Another raven closed in, and Pilo grabbed Austesh, and pulled him up from his ankle. "I need you to switch realms, and just start throwing punches," he told his passenger.

     "What," Austesh asked, but received no answer.

     Pilo threw the man in the air, and yelled at him, "Now! I'll catch you."