It occurred to me that as intimidating as the three of us were–well, kind of–we didn’t look capable of taking out a coven.
“Do you think it’s a sexist thing that they didn’t let us stay?” Aveline was saying to Yuna as the cecaelia examined the length of her sword.
“I think men are worthless and this only serves as more proof,” she shrugged. “Your Troublesome Trio are wholly arrogant. Your kitsune is…” she searched for the right word, teal eyes gazing steadily at the sky.
“Helpful?” I asked dryly.
“Unstable,” Yuna said instead. “Either way, I’d rather have the two of you at my back than any of them.”
Both Aveline and I traded confused looks. Why?
“What do you want to do, George?” It didn’t escape me that Yuna and Aveline, and maybe Merric, were the only ones who trusted me to make any kind of decision. The Troublesome Trio thought I’d wreck everything, apparently.
“We should split up,” I said after a moment. “If we’re all comfortable with that?” I looked at Aveline as I said it. Yuna was nodding like it was the most reasonable solution in the world.
“We’ll most likely have to kill the witches,” The cecaelia pointed out. “Unless we can scare them off.”
My stomach clenched and I glanced away. Yuna didn’t miss the motion, and her eyes held mine steadily. All I saw for a few seconds were the blurred faces of the witches I’d torn apart.
Will you be able to kill them? She seemed to be asking with her gaze alone.
“I know,” I told her slowly. “But if they’ll surrender and walk away, let them.”
“Fine.” Yuna looked to the cemetery, tone implying she didn’t care if any of them left alive or not. “What do you want to do when we find their coven leader?”
“We shouldn’t confront her,” Aveline said quickly. “Not until we’re all there. She’ll kill us if we aren’t careful.”
“We need to look for where they have their magic set up,” I added. “And break the spell that they’ve put on the bayou.”
“Look for a map,” Aveline suggested. “They didn’t walk a circle around the whole bayou. That would be ridiculous. There will be a map of it, and something to signify the magic being worked there. We just need to destroy that.”
“That’s the priority,” I added.
“I’ll take the front gate.” Yuna grinned as she said it. “I can make a lot of noise and draw some of them to the front of the cemetery. Both of you should find other ways to sneak in.”
“I’ll take the north side,” Aveline agreed. She started walking down the alley we were parked near, and Yuna took that as a signal to stroll down the sidewalk.
I jogged across the street and down another side road, pausing to call back, “Good luck,” before they were both out of earshot.
Yuna grinned. Aveline nodded.
Then they were gone, and I was on my own.
My quick paced walk turned into a jog, and I only slowed when I could see the wrought iron fence of the cemetery from the other side of the street.
Yelling had started, and I saw a few shapes rush towards the gates where Yuna had gone.
Quickly I called the power of the Chariot to me, forgoing the summoning and instead letting the card’s power infuse my body.
When I held this card’s Aspect, I had nearly the same kind of agility as I did as a fully shifted wolf, but with the bonus of no murderous tendencies. My steps were light on the ground, and it felt like I could run for miles. Easily I vaulted the wrought iron fence, not even skimming the top of it before landing in an easy crouch on the other side.
I wasn’t as fast as my wolf, or Indra’s hellhound shape, and definitely wouldn’t be able to keep up with Cian, but I was quick on my feet all the same.
A witch stepped out from behind a tomb and I ducked, going round the other side and grabbing them by the mouth. I used my momentum to send them to the ground, one hand going to my thigh bag and bringing out a pinch of black dust from an open container there.
The dust was tossed onto the witch, and before she could speak I whispered a spell that reacted to Aveline’s hypnotic concoction. A second later, she was unconscious. I wouldn’t kill her if I didn’t have to.
“What the hell?” Apparently she had a friend.
I whirled, hand going to the bag again, but the woman held her hands up in surrender. “No, I saw what you did at the compound.”
“Then leave,” I hissed through numb lips. “Now.”
She hesitated. “I can’t. My family will kill me.“
“I’ll kill you if you stay,” I promised, wondering if I could do just that.
That did it. The druidic witch exploded in a flock of crows that shot upward and out of the cemetery.
I started walking, letting my magical sense expand around me as I did. It was as if my magic blossomed from somewhere inside my rib cage, growing around me like a bubble. If the spell were close enough, I would be able to sense it. Unfortunately this opened me up to any witches looking for intruders as well.
Sure enough, the magical sight of another brushed my mind and I hissed in frustration as the man barreled around a corner hefting a flaming dagger like a torch.
“You killed my wife!” he snarled, causing a pang of regret to shoot through my body like a bullet.
“I didn’t–“ I stumbled backward, wanting to explain. “Your wife…“ Who was his wife, even? Faces blurred in front of my eyes. I couldn’t even remember those that I’d killed, past the blood and the thrill of it.
My moral dilemma gave the man the opening he needed. Words fell from his lips and he released the knife, though I was too slow to consider the repercussions of his actions.
I dodged, though it was too late and the blade sank into my
