Defiance

3.6

Chapter 36

E L Y S I A

    "I won't do it," I told the five High Priestesses. I stared at each one - Melheera, Nai, Odette, Amberly and Lillian. I never had the chance to speak to Odette, Amberly or Lillian but I did have the chance to listen to them yelling. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect this.

    I crossed my arms, watching Melheera the most from the corner of my eyes. For once she didn't say anything. Instead, she gawked at me, watching me the way I was watching her. I wonder what she thought now that she knew I could perform pure magic.

             What was even more shocking was that they expected me to go ahead and somehow repeat what I did, except instead of injuring wolves, they wanted me to kill them.

    "Did you just say you won't do it?" Odette yelled.

    "I am a healer," I snapped. "I will not help you commit genocide. That isn't going to end the war."

    Melheera threw me into the wall, muttering a spell at her lips. I groaned and scowled back at her.

    "So is that?" I hissed at the Melheera. "You're going to hurt me if I don't comply? Go ahead. I am not afraid of you."

    Green light curled at my neck, my wrists, my leg until I was locked against the wall. I glared at Melheera, staring her down. The High Priestess around stepped forward but shock was written across their features. I was disrespecting a High Priestess before them.

            Either way, I wasn't done.

            "It's bad enough you forced me to go into a battlefield knowing I couldn't fight - knowing I knew about how the fuck to fight to in a battlefield but now I have exceeded your expectations, you want to use me?"

            I knew what Melheera's intentions were when she listed my name on the witches who would fight. Even if High Priestess Nai has assigned me a duty to the infirmary, I wasn't able to get off the list. The number of soldiers was slowly decreasing.

    "Mel," Lillian snapped. "Stop. It's not working. She's not going to comply if you torture her."

    "Is that so?" Melheera hissed, suddenly the green light was cutting off the air to my throat.  She was choking me. At the same time, the green light cut through my skin at my wrists and legs, my blood dripping to the core at the light cut through my skin and tightened its grasp.

    "Let her go," Nai snapped.

    The grip at my throat loosened, but I feel the wet circle of blood she formed at my neck, like a collar. As if I was her pet.

    "I won't respect you until you earn it," I groaned at Melheera, barely breathing properly but not caring enough to shut my mouth. "Torturing me because I said no is not earning it."

    Suddenly the bracelet at Melheera's arm transformed into a silver whip - the same whip she hit me with before. For once, my instincts were faster and I cut through the green light, my wrists red with blood.

I caught the whip a second before it hit my face. I felt the sting at my hand and the blood that had encompassed there, cutting through the skin of my palm too. My blood dropped down in large drops, encompassing a puddle on the ground. High Priestess Nai stepped forward and motioned me behind her.

    "That's enough, Mel," Nai hissed.

    Melheera's jaw twitched but she followed Nai's instructions. My feet were back on the ground and Nai pulled Melheera behind her. She motioned the other High Priestess and they grabbed her arm, pulling her aside, preventing her from lashing out at me once more.