328
Lucy
I sailed through the air, landing with a jarring thud within the ritual circle. With a trembling hand, I pushed myself up, my senses on high alert. A figure, cloaked in darkness, appeared in front of me. My blood ran cold. Selene.
"Well, well, Lucy," her voice, honeyed yet laced with venom, slithered into the darkness. "Thank you ever so much for making this easy at last.”
I grit my teeth. I wouldn't go down without a fight. Straightening my shoulders, I met her gaze, my voice shaking but resolute.
"You underestimate me.”
“No, Lucy,” her voice dropped, and a cruel smile twisted her lips. "You underestimate me.”
The chanting grew louder around me. I lunged for the necklace, my fingers grazing its cold surface before Selene snatched it away, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. But that touch, fleeting as it was, ignited something. I felt her pushing at my mind. I felt her shoving me back until I could see the forest from before, and we were fighting in a circle of onlookers. She shoved me to the ground. I caught her hand and tumbled her to the ground beneath me. The air vibrated like a tuning fork struck raw. The sound of the chanting struck me, pushing me back, and Selene stood. The ground cracked, moonlight rippling like shattered glass.
Her eyes locked onto mine, a ravenous hunger glinting within their depths.
"Foolish girl," she snarled. "You cannot defy your destiny. This body is mine, as it was always meant to be. This is your purpose!"
With a predatory grace, she launched herself at me. Her touch felt like venom coursing through my veins. Her power surged, rushing through me. The world grew fainter as if I was drifting away.
“How nice… Perhaps I can use this…” she chuckled. “Perhaps I will make a black wolf proper at last.”
I twisted, trying to push against her. She was talking about David, about whatever connection I might have with him.
“No!”
I shoved her off and opened my eyes in the ritual circle. A rift ripped open, and through it, I could see her standing in that forest. She hissed, and I went flying in through the gaping rift. Her hands were around my throat.
“Get your hands off my daughter!”
A fist cracked against Selene’s face. The impact rippled through the air, sending her flying away from me. I dropped to the ground. Allison appeared. Her eyes flashed with fury.
“Get back through the rift, Lucy,” she said. “You need to drain the necklace completely to end this. You know what to do.”
Selene reared up and lunged forward. Allison twisted sharply, landing a solid kick in her face. I scrambled back toward the rift when a shadow of movement caught my eye.
A large, hulking figure with wild eyes: Oren.
I scrambled out of the rift, tumbling onto the stone of the courtyard and drawing my dagger. I watched him over my shoulder, carefully trying to remember what to do. My heart was racing. Was it going to be enough? None of the witches seemed to notice that I was doing anything: smearing the drawn lines, writing new ones as best I could.
I really wished I knew more about ritual magic.
I looked back and found him inching too close. My blood ran cold. The echoes of the fight with Selene resonated through the courtyard. He smirked, looking back, and sauntered toward the rift, standing just on the edge. I swallowed. This wasn’t good. I grabbed the chalice and placed the necklace there. Then, Oren was gone. Selene was screaming.
“Enough!”
The pathway cleared between her and the rift. She marched toward it quickly, but she was stopped at the edge of the rift. Her eyes widened as the crimson light began to shift and change. Was that a good thing? I didn’t know. Selene smirked.
“It’s nearly time!”
The chanting continued. The woman on the altar burst apart into a cloud of light. The witches started to dissolve as well, though they didn’t seem to notice. The air picked up, swirling around me, heating the air in a way that felt dangerous.
Then, Selene’s smile faltered. She looked at me, and her eyes bulged.
“Stop!” She commanded. “You don’t know the forces you’re messing with, girl!”
I glared at her and carved the second circle from the book around the crystal necklace, overlaying it with the one that had been beneath the chalice. It lit up, and the rift’s color changed. In place of the forest, it was a vast darkness. No one was near it, but I could hear Selene’s voice.
I drew closer, peering into the darkness, and I could see Selene running towards the rift. Deliah, Allison, and several others chased her, tackling her to the ground. They ended up in a tangle of limbs, screaming and fighting one another.
Then, Oren appeared, walking toward me, his eyes gleaming with predatory hunger.
“Someone!” I called, not even sure if I could fight Oren myself.
Eve looked up and over. She pushed free of the tangle and streaked toward him, slamming into him with a violent shove. He roared and turned on her, grabbing her and shaking her.
"Lucy!" she screamed, struggling with him. "Close the gate! Now!"
“I don’t know how!” I screamed back.
Oren threw Eve aside. She got back up and leaped on his back, trying to choke him. He growled and threw her over his shoulder before stomping on her chest. Each brutal blow echoed through me.
“I thought you’d learned when you were alive what it meant to defy me, witch!”
She choked and lay still. He kicked her away from him and turned back to me. Panic filled me as I looked around for some answer. I had to stop him. If he got revived, who knew what would happen?
Eve choked. “The necklace, Lucy. You have to…”
She grunted, trying to get to her feet. She staggered after him, punch drunk. He backhanded her casually. My stomach jolted.
He smirked at me and stepped right to the edge. My heart was in my throat.
“Glad you’re a smart one, Little Moon Goddess.” He licked his lips. “I plan on picking up where I left off before Xavier’s runt interrupted.”
I glared at him, gathering my power.
“My name is Lucy,” I spat, lifting my hand as the power gathered. “And I’m not afraid of you.”
I let go and watched the light build to a bright, violent green like acid. Oren’s eyes widened.
“Go to hell.”
I let it go. The sound of it echoed in the air. The torrent of raw magic crackled and burned the air. Oren screamed, wailing until it vanished in the light. When it died down, there was nothing left of him.
I swooned, panting. My body drained, my mind reeling. Had it worked? He never said that spell would work on a spirit. I shuddered at the thought. Then, there was a strange humming sound. I looked up, and the color of the rift had changed again. A loud, hollow screeching filled the air, and the rift shrank and twisted.
What was going on?
It shuddered and jerked around. More spectral figures appeared, rushing toward the rift. I saw Eve get to her feet and turn back to join Allison and Delilah in keeping them back. I saw one of the spirits. It was twisted and burned with a malevolent light, and hunger glinted in its spectral eyes.
"They’re coming!" Eve cried, her voice sharp with urgency. "We have to close the gate! Quickly!"
Delilah and Allison shoved them back, but I could see that they were faltering. Eve joined the line, casting her own magic against the onslaught.
“One of you go!” Eve yelled. “Or both of you. Someone! I can hold them off!”
Fear gnawed at my gut. What was happening? Had my spell done something?
Delilah grunted. “Why the hell—”
“It’s Oren,” Eve cried, grunting. “His… malevolence is fueling the ritual. It’s why they’re all here. Only a malevolent spirit can hold them off, so go!”
She shoved Allison and Deliah aside, casting a wider barrier.
“Hurry!”
The rift shrank and opened like a blinking eye. I heard them arguing. I heard the hollow scream, and then it vanished. The gateway became a wave of blinding light engulfing the whole area. For a moment, I was lost in it, blinded. It swirled around me, gathering up every speck of light that had once been a person. The crystal necklace shattered into sparks, and it all condensed into a human shape on top of the altar.
A woman with long dark hair. I stumbled back as she began to stir and grabbed my dagger, ready to fight. Selene had somehow made it through. Would it be even worse than before? How long before she had her full strength? I gathered my courage and ran forward, but when she turned, I couldn’t believe it.
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