Things are getting intense now! I love the idea of how Soul can be a sweetheart and open with his feelings when called for. For now, let's dig into Ametrine's past a little more!
A knock on the door brought Ametrine back to reality, her fingers marking the page of the spell tome she was reading. It had been a few months since being officially coronated as the Mother of the Coven and she had been swamped with paperwork and research. Evanora Killgorne had been missing for nearly three months now and members of the Coven were pushing their Mother to take drastic actions in finding her. A headache began to form, and she pinched the bridge of her nose, letting out a heavy sigh. She knew there was a heavy responsibility of becoming the leader of the witches, though this felt more like being buried beneath a mountain of paperwork and constant meetings that were really just for other witches to complain about stupid suggestions like a new color of flower for the Coven gardens.
With a grunt she pushed her chair back and stood, straightening the wrinkles in her floor-length robe out. It was tradition for the Mother to wear the midnight black robes embroidered with golden thread depicting the connection between the stars and magic. For thousands of years, the Mother's of the Coven had worn this sacred robe to keep the tradition and faith alive for generations to follow. Thankfully they had kept it clean and in fairly good condition, but the thought of one of her predecessors dying in the robe made her skin crawl.
"I'm coming," Ametrine called as she made her way to her office doors, her heels clicking loudly against the aged wooden floor. Through the large glass windows adorning the office walls she could see the sun beginning to set, a vibrant mix of oranges and reds creating a peaceful view.
"Mother, forgive me for the intrusion so late in the day, but there's been an incident and the Council is requesting your appearance immediately." A breathless courier huffed out as she bowed. "Regarding the disappearance of Ms. Evanora Killgorne. Please, come with me and I will escort you there."
"Evanora Killgorne? They've found her then?" Ametrine asked as she hurried behind the messenger, one hand grasping her large black hat as they moved. The teams sent out to find her hadn't reported anything that would lead to her location, so why now?
"I'm afraid I don't have the final answer, Mother, I am merely the messenger. I do not dare question the Council for they are a fierce and respectful group of witches. We are nearing the meeting room, Mother."
The meeting room was merely a stone's throw from Ametrine's head office, nestled directly in the center of the Coven. It was an ancient building with records indicating it was nearly as old as the Coven itself, shaped like a crescent moon adorned with intricate flower beds along the walls. There were witches mingling around in the gardens surrounding it; a generally popular place to relax and enjoy the foliage on nice days. Ametrine was slowly getting used to the other witches bowing and showing respect as she passed, but today she paid them no heed.
They arrived at the massive set of ornate wooden doors leading into the meeting room and the messenger bowed deeply before scurrying away, leaving Ametrine alone to deal with the Council. She could feel the tense air seeping through the cracks around the door frame and grit her teeth; this wasn't going to be good news.
"Ahh, Mother of the Coven, welcome to our sanctum," Celestina Barclay greeted Ametrine with a bow as she strode into the room. "We have urgent news regarding the disappearance of Evanora Killgorne and the other witches. Please, have a seat at the head of the table. We are waiting on Cordelia Delacroix to finish gathering her information regarding the matter. Would you like anything to drink? We have water, tea,"
"Just water would be fine, thank you." Ametrine smiled at the elderly witch as she took the head of the table, the large backed chair seemingly imposing over the others.
She eyed the witches with interest as they fluttered around, gathering papers and marking map locations with charcoal. Most of them were nearing five hundred years old, give or take a few decades, though that number paled in comparison to the head member of the Council. Cordelia Delacroix is the oldest surviving witch in the history of the Witches Realm, reaching an age nearly double that of her council members. Stories tell that she was one of the original founding witches to the Coven, but she merely shook it off as rumors spread by witches with nothing better to gossip about. The Coven was founded nearly three thousand two-hundred years ago; unless she was a master at life extension, Ametrine highly doubted she was that old. There were fairy tales of witches living past a thousand years old, created mainly to scare to children into avoiding the forests at night; however, they were nothing more than tall tales.
Nearing one hundred and fifty years old herself, Ametrine was entering the prime of her years and magical power. Witches generally reached their peak power level between one hundred ninety to two hundred and thirty years old, with the exception of some naturally gifted witches born with larger power reserves like herself. The High-Level witch had stopped aging shortly after turning twenty-one years old, her appearance staying young and supple thanks to her powers. The councilwomen, however, preferred not to waste their powers on something trivial like appearances. Their hair had long ago faded to gray and were now kept up in tight buns or braids, very rarely let down from those styles. Wrinkles adorned their sun-spotted faces, only adding to their wise and all-knowing appearances. Only Cordelia attempted to keep some of her youth, opting for a younger sixties appearance to hide her true age from the world.
Ametrine sipped on her water lightly, eyes drifting downward to the table as she waited for them to settle. There were a few maps lined neatly in front of her showing the wooded areas around the Coven along with the closest sister towns. A red line showed the path Evanora should have taken on her way back; it was nearly a straight shot from the town back to home base, but there was one patch of dense woodland centered directly in the path. The witch narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the spot, something in the back of her mind telling her to avoid that area at all costs.
"Forgive me for the wait, Mother, there was new information I needed to read over before meeting with you." Cordelia strode into the room with her head held high, a stack of papers resting in her arms. "We, the Council, have called you here in regard to the missing witch Evanora Killgorne. Our sources have gathered unusual readings from within the Kerrojour Woodlands over the past few months, approximately around the time Evanora vanished. The magic around the perimeter is too strong for our witches to attempt to enter."
"Though it is still an unlikely option, we fear there may be madness seeping into the Realm." Marilla added in. "It cannot be confirmed of yet."
"Or there is a possibility that the madness within someone has finally reached the point of consuming its host," Raine Moonfall quickly threw in. "There is no telling what exactly has happened since we have not been able to successfully enter the forest grounds. The nearby towns have reported some of their witches having gone missing as well, all of them going near or through the forest."
Ametrine scanned over the papers she was handed, all depicting reports of missing witches, the dates they vanished, and odd noises coming from the forest itself. All of the disappearances seemed to begin just a few weeks before Evanora was set to return home. The towns were sending letters begging for the help of the Coven Mother, all desperate to have their citizens return home safely. One remark stood out from the rest and she traced a finger over the sentence as she read.
'A witness reported seeing a strange human male stumbling towards the forest dragging a large burlap sack behind him. When confronted and asked if they needed assistance, the man turned and snarled menacingly at the bystander before lunging at them. The victim managed to escape without injury and stayed a safe distance away, watching the person retreat back into the woods.'
There weren't very many human men in the Realm; mainly witches put a spell on them and kept them around as servants for a few years, but the ones that were around had a close eye kept on them to ensure the safety of the witches. Save for the few men on the Elite teams, most were kept under a memory wipe spell that cleared their minds of anything magic related. Only one or two had gone rogue in the past few decades, but the fact that there was another one acting crazy was suspicious.
"Perhaps Asura's madness still lurks within the world…" Ametrine mused as she flipped through the other papers. She had read around a dozen books pertaining to the Death God Asura and how Lord Death had forced his fear into his first-born son to become the God of Absolute Order. Once he lost himself, the madness was felt even in the Witch's Realm.
"Asura is still sealed away, Mother, he could not possibly be behind this strange occurrence." Marilla pointed out.
"That may be so, but his madness was felt all the way here in the Realm hundreds of years ago. Surely someone who was affected by it would still have remnants remaining inside of their body if they were never cleansed of it. Witches do not have the power to remove any amount of madness from a person; all we can do is destroy the physical body to remove it, thus taking the life of the person infected. Only a person wielding an anti-demon wavelength would be able to purge and destroy the madness. The madness, depending on how the body was destroyed, will most likely be released into the environment and just move onto its next host. Who's to say it hasn't been passed from body to body in search of a stronger vessel? With all of those witches going missing, it may be searching for a more powerful host to inhabit."
The councilwomen froze and looked at each other with wide eyes. No one had thought of that possibility due to the improbable idea that Asura's madness had still survived hundreds of years later. Ametrine took the shock as a sign to continue.
"Furthermore, if I was a person infected with madness, I would stay away from the general public to avoid raising suspicions with the locals. A dense, quiet forest would be perfectly suited for such a thing. Also considering the fact that this forest sits directly through a main travel road between towns, it would be the easiest way to trap unsuspecting witches travelling through. Many higher-ranking witches travel along that road for council meetings here in the Coven, so the possibility that they were infected by the madness on their way through is mild to high. There is the added possibility that the infected person suppressed their madness or used Soul Protect in case the witch was too powerful to take down. If that were the reason, it would explain the constant disappearances of less powerful witches. They're working their way up to a more powerful witch in order to do something drastic. If they need that much power, then something major is going to happen."
"It makes sense now…sisters, I believe Mother is onto something here." Raine whispered. "We must take a plan of action, immediately, before any other witch befalls this madness. Let's assemble the elite team and –"
"Great Witch Cordelia, if I may suggest?" Ametrine interrupted the elder witch. "I believe I will take this task head on. We wouldn't others to get wind of madness possibly spreading around, now would we. Give me a small team for backup and this problem will be solved by morning." That gave her more or less twelve hours to get this taken care of.
"M-Mother, I fear that going by yourself is extremely dangerous! We must insist—!" Celestina shouted out, an unusual characteristic of the normally quiet councilwoman.
"Celestina, you shall control your outburst lest you have your privileges suspended." Cordelia spoke quietly, but her tone sent a clear message. "Forgive her, Mother, she is just concerned of the high risk of doing such a thing. We have many elite teams that are trained in hand-to-hand combat and magical defense, surely, they will be enough to conquer the being?"
"I'm afraid not; if they cannot penetrate the outer edge of the forest, a higher-ranking witch will have to cut through and enter the forest. Being a High-Level witch myself, I see myself as an acceptable solution to the problem at hand." Ametrine laid the papers down on the table and stood, the elevated ground below the chair giving her an intimidating stature. "I respect your wishes and your guidance, Council, but this is a matter that needs to be handled swiftly and discreetly. If word were to get out, we would have panic and disorder in the Coven. Please assemble a small team of elite witches and have them ready near the Northwestern side gate, I need to return to my quarters momentarily."
"Yes, Mother. Protection and guidance be with you." The witches chanted in unison, bowing as Ametrine strolled from the room.
Ametrine was nearly giddy with excitement; being able to study madness up close would be a dream come true! Books never did justice to studying something in person and this was the perfect opportunity to do just that. Her robes fluttered as she strolled back to her quarters, hands clasped behind her back. Madness had always intrigued the witch with how it completely ruined a person's mind and soul with ease. It was such a powerful weapon that could annihilate an entire army within seconds, bringing them to their knees from the insanity. Her pace picked up as she neared her room, heels clacking loudly against the stone corridor. All she would need is her usual witch apparel and a small bottle to capture some of the madness.
The perks of being a curvaceous woman was that anything looked good on her; the dark thigh-high stockings accentuated the length of her legs while drawing attention to her hips, the two-inch heels boosting her height as well. A long, tight black and gold embroidered dress left little to the imagination with its high side slits while a Grecian neckline showed off her plump assets. Ancient witch symbols lined the tops of the stockings and down the sides of the dress slits, powerful meanings behind each one. Long gloves stopped just shy of her shoulders with loose fabric flowing freely from the base, the sleeves just short of touching her wrists. Long blood red nails protruded from the ends of her gloves, glinting dangerously in the light. With a snap, her long flaming tendrils were weaved together into two thick braids, the tails ending just past mid-back. Ametrine tossed on her over-sized twisted witch hat and gave a nod of approval, lightly touching the curled lip of the fabric.
Being the Mother of the Coven made being secretive even harder due to the constant flow of people in and out of her office daily, so the vial would have to be hidden somewhere safe in her room. She would deal with that when she got to it; she had some madness to collect.
Night had fallen by the time Ametrine made her way to the gate, piercing maroon orbs scanning the area for unwanted eyes. She could feel the presence of a few elite members nearby, waiting for her arrival. A shadow jumped down from the tall wall, landing effortlessly on the ground next to her.
"Mother of the Coven, we welcome your arrival. As ordered, a small team is ready and at your disposal for this mission. We're ready when you are." The masked witch bowed deeply, her bright white eyes shining in the darkness.
"Very well, let us embark at once and put an end to this killer." Ametrine began walking towards the forest, the elite team following silently behind.
In less than an hour, they had arrived at the edge of the Kerrojour Woodlands. Even from a distance Ametrine could feel the madness seeping through the dense forest. She kept her face neutral as she walked up to the closest tree, energy snapping at her fingers as she laid them against the bark. Taking a deep breath in, she began to chant.
"Mothers above, guide us with thy wisdom and thy magic. What has been bound must be undone, what has been unleashed must be ensnared back to the Earth. Thy will commands, thy shall comply. Thou shalt bend to thine will, thou shalt abide by thy command. Corrupticus Phanterio, Reduerous Imperfenum; thy will shall hath commanded…shatter!"
The barrier shimmered briefly before shattering violently. As it did, a blast of madness hit them hard. The Elite team staggered backwards, clutching their heads as the madness began to corrupt their minds. Ametrine clenched her teeth as she fought the thick black fog, covering her mouth with an arm.
"Thy shall bow to thine will by order of the Mothers above, thy shall cleanse thyself with the stars above. Remove thyself from thine presence or thy shall face the wrath of the heavens. Evicta Focuendius…cleanse!" Ametrine shouted as she threw her hand out, blasting the wave of madness with a cleansing spell. As if it were alive, the madness let out an earsplitting screech before bursting into nothingness. The Elite team were stunned and coughing, but still alive.
"I will be back within three hours. If I am not, then you have my order to come in and retrieve me. Otherwise, please stand guard and ensure no other witches enter the woodlands." Without waiting for an answer, she strode into the dense forest, a twisted grin on her ruby lips. That display of madness power was beyond anything she had ever experienced…and she wanted more of it.
The iron doors creaked as they opened, stirring Ametrine from her restless slumber. With a grunt she sat up, shifting uncomfortably on the cold hard ground. It took her a moment to realize what was happening as the sound of metal scraped against the rocks in front of her.
"Mabaa has been generous enough to give you decent food, not like it matters with your limited time left." A guard gruffly said as he closed the iron doors behind him, sealing the two together in the cell. "Just so you know, there are a dozen guards surrounding this place so don't try anything funny. While you were asleep, an exploding collar was attached to your neck. Curtesy of Lord Death from the DWMA. Try any incantations and boom."
Ametrine tried to stretch her neck and felt the cold hard collar pressing against it. There were infrared sensors that monitored any movement and it let out a warning beep when too much movement was detected. Making a note to specially thank Lord Death, the witch remained still as her mouth seal was removed. She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. There was a slim chance this could work…she would just have to wait for the right moment.
"Could I please have some water? I'm a bit parched from my slumber," Ametrine mewed sleepily, adding a small yawn for effect. "It does tend to become a little dry in here after a while."
"Don't even try of using seduction on me, sweetheart, it won't work. I've been warned about your dirty tricks beforehand." The male guard barked out a laugh before grabbing the glass of water from the tray and plopping a metal straw into it. "I've read the stories of the men you've seduced and then suddenly they disappeared."
"Seducing men? Surely, you jest," Ametrine purred out as she shifted her shoulders to push her chest upwards slightly. "A woman of my level could easily get any man I wanted without the tackiness of seducing them like a piece of meat. I prefer to use my brains instead of an attractive body for my entertainment."
"I'm sure you do, witch Ametrine, but with looks like yours, men should be hitting the ground and begging at your feet within seconds."
The edge of the straw tapped at her lips and Ametrine slowly allowed her lips to part, drinking ever so slowly from the cup. If everything went according to plan, she would get the guard to drink from the cup and the rest would fall into place on its own. With a discreet breath out, a small blast of madness was slipped into the glass, seamlessly mixing with the liquid.
"I'm sorry to be such a pain, but the water seems to taste weird. Would you mind taking a sip of it? It seems to almost have a metallic taste to it," Ametrine grimaced, waiting for him to take the bait. Hopefully he was a sucker for big breasts and innocence, otherwise another guard would have to work and there just wasn't enough time to wait for another opportunity.
"Metallic? That's weird, I wonder if the pipes are beginning to rust out in the kitchen." The guard removed the straw and swirled the glass around, looking for anything physical in the glass. With a hesitant sniff, he put it up to his lips and took a small sip.
"It's probably nothing, but I just wanted to ensure it wasn't tainted water. I have a small reaction to certain metals, and I hope it won't cause an allergic reaction." The witch sounded worried, biting the corner of her lip. She knew he had already taken a swig of the water as the madness inside of her began to twitch eagerly.
"Huh, it does seem to have a weird taste to it. I'll check with the kitchen and make sure the supply line is fine. Time's almost up, you'll need to eat quickly." The guard quickly fed the imprisoned witch, even taking the time to wipe her mouth off afterwards.
"Thank you for feeding me, kind sir. May I know your name?"
"Aleksy, Captain of the Elite team."
"Captain Aleksy, thank you kindly for taking care of me. I hope you treasure every moment that you are still breathing." The witch gave a small bow, leaving her head down as he cleaned up the food tray.
"I always do, ma'am, never a dull moment. It's a shame, you know, for such a bright and talented witch like yourself to be imprisoned. I may not know what crimes you committed, but you don't seem all that bad to me." The guard stood and knocked on the door, signaling he was done.
"You flatter me, Aleksy. I'm sure any girl would swoon over your sweet words,"
"Only one girl for me, ma'am, and I'm the luckiest man in the world to have her." Captain Aleksy smiled to himself as the massive doors groaned open, bright sunlight filtering into the dark cell. "I'm going to ask her to marry me within a fortnight."
"Happy wishes to you both, Captain. Who's the lucky girl?"
"Adeline Norwood, the kindest and most beautiful woman I've ever met."
"May you have a long and prosperous marriage, Captain. Mothers guide you both to eternity."
The massive doors swung shut, deafening in the small cell. Ametrine licked her lips eagerly; Captain Aleksy let his guard down during the conversation and forgot to reseal her mouth. Though she couldn't recite incantations without her head being severed from her body at any moment, the witch could still work her magic in other ways. But for now, her work was done. The madness in the guards' body would soon manifest into an out of control monster, spreading throughout the Coven and crippling their defenses. All she had to do was sit back and relax until the day of the trial.
This was going to be easier than she thought.
With each step she took, Ametrine could feel the madness growing stronger and stronger. As soon as she had gone just a few feet into the forest, the trees had shifted and sealed the entrance behind her. Not like she actually wanted to leave; not with the powerful amount of madness pulsating from within, and the witch found herself relishing the sensation of madness washing over her. Her mind was still clear and sharp, something that couldn't be said of the Elite members, though their power levels were nowhere near Ametrine's. The trees began to clear and what looked like a small cabin was nestled in the center of them. It looked run down; a damaged roof caused by a fallen tree, the aged stone weathered down by time and rain, the front door tossed carelessly aside, moss covering nearly every inch of the house. In front of the old building looked to be a pile of…
"Who dares willingly entering my domain?" A voice hissed from within the rundown cabin. "You…you are not affected by the madness?"
"I am not, unlike my fellow witches who have fallen prey to such power." Ametrine stopped short of the stone wall surrounding the cabin, eyeing the rotting pile of corpses in the front yard with disgust. "I am not here to vanquish you, nor am I permitting you to continue harnessing power from passerby. I wish to make a deal that will benefit us both."
The air began to ripple, and the witch readied herself, hands clenched and ready to release a powerful attack. The darkness blasted from the within the cabin and surrounded Ametrine, powerful winds turning the madness into a tornado. It sliced at her clothing as the madness tried to infiltrate her body any way it could.
"And what makes you think I want to make a deal? What could you possibly offer me apart from a more powerful body?" A figure emerged from the rapid gale, unseeing eyes a pitch black as it effortlessly floated towards her.
"I see you've met my fellow witch Evanora Killgorne. Not a bad choice for a strong body," Ametrine grit out as she stared at the former body of Evanora. "I can offer you something that no one has before; a strong body and freedom. If I become your host, then I will help to spread the madness far and wide, even to the Human Realm. Your master, Asura, has been sealed away by Lord Death for nearly four hundred and fifty years already. Become one with me; together we can spread the madness to the ends not just the Witches Realm, but to the Human Realm as well!"
The gales suddenly died out and Ametrine lowered the arm shielding her face. Evanora stood there studying her, the emptiness in her eyes boring through the witch's soul. It seemed to be pondering the deal, crossing her arms and tapping her fingers rhythmically.
"What do you want in return? Your offer seems to have a catch,"
"I want to know everything there is about the madness and how to control it. But there will be rules that you will have to abide by if you want to spread your madness across the planes," Ametrine felt her heart pounding against her chest as she carefully thought over her next words. "One; you must remain hidden until called upon to avoid suspicions. Two; You are not to fully control me unless given consent. Three; I want you to assist me in eliminating any threats to my power. Seeing as I'm the Mother of the Coven, these rules are non-negotiable. If it's found out that I'm carrying madness, I'll be executed on sight."
The creature seemed to mull over the offer, chewing on her lips thoughtfully. Taking a closer look, the witch noticed how rotten the body had become; skin was peeling away in blackened chunks, teeth had all but fallen out from rot, hair was thin and frail. Even her clothes were tattered and filthy, like they had never been washed. It was like something out of a nightmare and Ametrine doubted she could ever erase the memory from her mind.
"Mother of the Coven, you say? My, that certainly is a high title. Tell you what," Evanora's face was suddenly inches from Ametrine's, a sinister rotten grin on her face. It took everything in her power to stay still and stare down the black abyss without fear. "I think you've got yourself a deal, Ametrine, Mother of the Coven."
A crooked grin adorned Ametrine's face as she grasped Evanora's rotting hand, sealing the deal and her fate.
"Let's get started then…partner."
I'm actually impressed I cranked out this chapter so quickly! Hopefully this story is lining up a little more now. Onto the next chapter!