Viridescent Shadows
By Daring D.D. Danger
Terminal Chapter: Behind These Ruby Tears
"Alma hasn't always been incredibly forthcoming about her past." Eunice told me.
"Even though you're girlfriends?" I question.
"Well… it's more complicated than love. I've been a Marra for about thirty years, she's been one for about three hundred."
"What!?" I was on the edge of my seat now.
"You know the bandages on her arms? She was dying of the Black Death when she became a Marra, and the wounds never healed. She only takes the bandages off for nightmares, normally, but she showed me once as well."
"So, it was like me, then? Another Marra decided to spare her from death?"
"Not exactly, and this is the weird part- she wasn't turned into a Marra the same way we were." Eunice said in an unusually soft tone.
"How was she turned into a Marra, then?" I asked.
"She never told me the exact 'how', but I do know she was created by a witch, named Huld."
"So would that technically mean... we're all descendants of witches?"
"I suppose so." Eunice shrugged. "Huld was going to use the Marra as her own personal undead army, but she was killed."
"How was she killed if she could raise an army with magic?" Suddenly all the color drained from Eunice's face, and she covered her mouth.
"We killed her." Alma's voice came from behind me. I turned to her and gasped. Her eyes were glowing green, and her skin had glowing green lines running all across it.
"Alma… what did you do?!" Eunice yelled, tears running down her face.
"Euni… I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid." Alma looked at the ground.
"You were… you were just going to kill yourself without telling me!?" Eunice was down on her knees and sobbing now.
"It's not exactly an easy choice, Euni. I'm three hundred years old and probably the last of the original Marra. Once I go, everything Huld did is gone."
"It's not about Huld! You're my wife! You're all I have!" Eunice's sorrow was echoing through the Huldrawood- the creatures seem to have quieted.
"You have Christabella." Alma said softly.
"I want you! How did you even do this without me noticing?" Eunice begged through her tears.
"I haven't actually been consuming any of the fear for a few months. I'm actually not sure how I'm here now… it normally takes about two weeks. But I think creating Christabella finally spent most of my remaining energy." As Alma spoke, Eunice shot me the most terrifying look I've ever seen. I was too afraid to move. Alma moved and picked up Eunice, pulling her into an embrace.
"Euni, I need to tell you something in private before I go." Alma said.
"Please don't go!" Eunice cried.
"Christabella, don't follow us, if you do I'll end your afterlife." Alma said sternly.
"Can Marras kill each other?" I asked.
"Not really. But I'm not a Marra." A glowing green blade shot out of Alma's hand, creating a terrifying extension of her left arm. She then pulled Eunice into the woods.
About ten minutes passed before the pair returned. Alma stepped into the unlit fire pit, leaving Eunice to the side. The sun was now rising over the mountains.
"What a nice sunrise." Alma mused. She extended her arms, and suddenly her hands began to break apart into ashes which flew into the air, glowing faintly green, just as I'd been told. The old bandages unfurled from her arms and onto the ground, soon followed by her clothes as the last of her ashes spread into the Huldrawood and beyond. Alma was now a permanent part of the Huldrawood. I was left speechless until Eunice spoke to me.
"I need some time alone, Christabella." she said softly without even turning around to face me. It was fine. I needed to visit Maven to prepare for my own last stand. I stood up and flew away slowly- the Huldrawood was almost completely silent as I flew, as if the entire valley could sense Alma wouldn't be the last soul heading to the afterlife today.
Maven was waving as I flew in. She opened her window so I could crash inside the house instead of on the ground. I came to a sliding stop on her floor, and she had a table full of odd packages.
"They're curses, Christabella. I also gave you a bag to carry them in." Maven said.
"What do they do?" I asked.
"Explode." she answered.
"No magic words or anything?" I asked.
"This is more like alchemy, I suppose. I did have to use magic to make them not blow my house up while I mixed them." Maven shrugged. "I'd recommend starting your attack at the church." I nodded to her and took the bag of curses.
"One more thing. Do you have an extra hooded cape?" I asked.
"Sure. I'm not sure what you need it for, though." Maven replies as she pulls an identical cape to her own out of her closet.
"You'll see." I said as I grabbed the garment and headed off
I decided to fly low over the town as to not be seen, zipping between roofs. Eventually, I found my way to the church roof. I looked down onto the street waiting for my time, when suddenly I had a new idea and jumped a few roofs back to city hall. I left all but one of my curses there and returned to the church. I soon had a clearing and placed the curse in my mouth, and crawled along the side of the building like a spider, and into an open door.
I'd been in the chapel many times before. Rows of pews all facing what was more or less a stage with a podium. Behind that was a stained glass window and a depiction of Jesus on the cross. I hadn't read much of the holy book, but I knew these stupid witch hunts were not a part of it. I hurled my curse at the foot of the cross, suddenly a blinding flash of light engulfed the room, when I could see again the entire black wall was engulfed in flames. The fire was rapidly spreading out into the pews and screams began filling the air. I crawled back out of the side door and hopped through the smoke back to my bag of curses. Now, things would get violent. I looked back at the church. A crowd had gathered in the front, the back of the building already beginning to collapse. However another depiction of the holy cross still stood on the roof, facing the crowd. Under the cover of the smoke, I pulled on the hood and took my place, posing like Jesus on the cross, and waited.
"Hey! Someone's up on the cross!" A woman finally screamed. I began laughing under my breath.
"Who did this!?" The town priest yelled.
"You did!" I yelled in the most vocal chord shredding voice I could muster. I pulled off my mask to reveal my face and my glowing Marra eyes, and the crowd collectively gasped.
"Christabella!?" I heard the mayor yell. "You died!"
"Did I?" I said as I allowed gravity to take me once more. I protected the bag of curses as I slammed full force into the ground.
"Is she dead?" A man asked as the crowd grew silent.
"You wish." I said as I stood up, I suddenly realized my head was facing the wrong way. "Seems I broke my neck though." I then grabbed my head and rotated back into place with an awful snap. Now that I could see the crowd I could tell they were horrified. "In case you didn't notice, your witch hunt failed." I walked up to the mayor with a smug look on my face.
"The power of Christ compels you!" The priest was shuddering behind me, holding a cross. I reached over and grabbed the cross, holding it with my thumb and pointer finger.
"This is nice, I wonder how long it took to make?" I looked at the Priest again. "You know, this can't hurt me though. In fact, check this out." I then put the cross in my mouth and bit the end off of it, before returning it. "So, mayor, do you want to tell people what this witch hunt was really about?"
"I don't know what you mean!" He yelled.
"The power of Christ compels you!" I heard the priest yell as something snapped, and suddenly I was in pain. I looked down and there was an arrow dripping some sort of black ooze, protruding from my chest. I coughed and a little more ooze came into my mouth. I turned to the priest.
"What part of you not being able to kill me didn't I make clear?" I yelled at the shaking man with the crossbow. Then I grabbed the arrow and pulled it out of my chest leaving a pool of what I suppose is my blood on the ground. "That still hurts a little, you know!" I threw the arrow on the ground.
"You all bought into the hysteria these two idiots started and some of you used it to kill your enemies. The mayor ignored the trained witch hunter and as a result, you all murdered a fair portion of this village! I'm taking revenge for all the people that died because of your corrupt mayor and corrupt church!" I took to the air and hurled my first curse, crashing through a window of the nearest building and exploding. Screams erupted as people scattered. I took to the air dropping curses into the streets, admittedly trying to avoid hitting people directly.
It took only minutes for me to empty the bag, and I returned to the church. I looked around to see Trolberg in flames around me, still filled with screams. I sat down and started crying. I'm not sure whom for. The people who died? The village I called home? Mirabel? Maybe even myself?
"There's the witch!" Suddenly people began gathering near me. Another arrow suddenly just missed my head.
"I told you, that doesn't work!" I screamed as I wiped my tears away.
"You have to atone for your crimes, witch!" A man yelled.
"I was avenging all the people you murdered!" I yelled. Some murmurs moved through the crowd.
"Step aside!" A stern female voice silenced the crowd. The people separated to reveal Maven, her cloak blowing in the wind. She was holding a crossbow, pointed at me.
"Stop with the crossbows!" I yelled at her.
"This isn't an everyday crossbow." she said. She pulled an arrow from her quiver and spun it in her hand before dropping it in the bow. The tip was glowing purple. She fired with a snap and the arrow hit me. I dropped to my knees and then onto my back. I lifted my hand to pull the arrow out and it began dissolving into green mist. I lifted my other hand to see it was already gone as well. I closed my eyes, and the world went silent.
End