In the tight interstitial crevice, Deirdra began to feel the air thinning. She could feel cold sweats drenching her, a telltale sign of fainting. She nudged Martha gently to let her know she wasn’t doing well. Martha didn’t know what to do. On one hand, they needed to get out as quickly as possible to avoid Deirdra getting worse, but on the other hand, they risked encountering the giant. Martha realized they must find her sister as quickly as possible to help Deirdra.
Magant helped Deirdra lean on his shoulder, but he knew it was futile. They had to get out of there fast. Meanwhile, Martha realized that if Deirdra fainted, they wouldn’t be able to pull her out. The crevice was very irregular, and they had to contort their bodies to fit in. They wouldn’t be able to extract an unconscious witch from there.
Martha whispered her concerns to Magant and asked if he thought it would be better if they left the crevice and tried to escape. The monster concluded that in this case, there was no room for doubt, and they should leave. So they began squeezing back toward the exit, slowly, trying to be as quiet as possible. When Magant emerged, he checked if it was safe and signaled with gestures that Deirdra could come out.
She, barely conscious, began to wriggle out, but did so very slowly, given her condition. With spots in front of her eyes and difficulty breathing properly, it took the witch a long time to emerge. When she did, she felt so weak that she collapsed, but luckily, Magant caught her just in time. Right behind her, Martha emerged swiftly and cleverly.
Martha began to look around to see if the path was safe. Once she was sure they could escape, she waved to Magant to take Deirdra on his back, and they fled.
Martha ran ahead to light the way for her friends, also looking in every direction for any signs of danger. Since they started running away, the sounds began to grow louder, and they could hear loud stomping approaching them.
With her heart pounding heavily in her chest, Martha realized it was too late to hide; they had to flee. She ran ahead, not caring if they were being quiet or not. She felt the giant must know they were in his cave.
Magant also believed in the existence of giants. He comforted himself with the thought that if necessary, he could turn into a beast and protect the witches from any potential attack. Nevertheless, he was just as scared as the witches.
Deirdra regretted not feeling better. She really wanted to scream at both of them, “I told you so!”, but her condition had worsened significantly since entering the interstitial crevice. Subconsciously, she felt that someone needed to take care of her and heal her, and quickly, because she couldn’t hold on much longer.
The friends ran, fleeing from the giant, his footsteps growing louder and closer. Martha saw a faint moonlight piercing through from the second exit. Full of hope, she began to run faster, with Magant right behind her. Exhausted and thirsty, they saw a large narrowing in the wall ahead, through which a human or a witch could squeeze, but certainly not a giant. Light emanated from it, drawing the friends toward it.
“Just a bit more, we’re almost there!” thought Martha, filled with fear and hope.
Indeed, they were almost there. They ran with all their might.
“We made it! We’re safe!” Martha thought as she entered the crevice.
Right behind her came Magant, carrying Deirdra. Relief was evident on his face. Despite her condition, Deirdra also smiled and rested her head on Magant’s shoulder.
Magant suggested that he quickly take Deirdra outside to get some fresh air. Martha agreed, but she wanted to stay in the crevice a little longer. She hoped she might catch sight of the giant. Waving goodbye to her friends, she turned to look from around the corner.
She succeeded. She saw the massive body of the giant slowly emerging. The enormous creature was indeed searching for them. He relied on his sense of smell, evidenced by his sniffing nose, trying to catch their scent. When he managed to catch their trail, he leaned towards the crevice where Martha was hiding. The witch saw his huge eyes notice her presence. For a moment, they stared at each other, but fear took over, and Martha fled. The giant, irritated by the escape of a potential meal, let out a tremendous roar. Martha had to cover her ears with her hands; the sound was that loud.
As she ran outside, she saw Magant kneeling on the grass, with Deirdra lying next to him. Assured of their safety, Martha closed her eyes and took a deep breath. After a few seconds, she approached her friends and asked if they were okay.
“I’m good, but Deirdra’s condition is much worse than it was before entering the cave. Martha, I’m afraid if we don’t do something quickly, we’ll lose her,” said Magant, looking deeply into Martha’s eyes.
The witch noticed that the monster was holding her friend’s hand. She realized that Magant and Deirdra had formed a deep bond between them. On the one hand, it pleased her, but she quickly thought that it was of no use if they couldn’t save Deirdra.
She knelt beside them and gently stroked her friend’s cheek. She saw how quickly and shallowly Deirdra was breathing, and she also noticed how much it was distressing her friend.
“Magant, I don’t know what to do. I have no idea how to relieve Deirdra. The only thing that comes to my mind is brewing herbs that could slightly alleviate the pain,” she turned to the monster.
Magant looked into the witch’s eyes.
“I can’t think of anything else either. In that case, you take care of the herbs, and I’ll start a fire,” he said to Martha.
Martha nodded and stepped away a few paces from her friends. She knelt on the ground and with her powers caused a beautiful specimen of black elderberry to start growing from the earth, amidst the grass. At first, only a small twig emerged from the ground, but it quickly grew. It transformed into a large, beautiful shrub on which white flowers began to bloom, their intense, almost suffocating fragrance spreading throughout the area. The flowers quickly turned into fruits, which Martha intended to pick.
Magant watched everything, amazed by his friend’s powers. Aware that Martha, contrary to appearances, was a strong witch, he watched with pleasure as she created a beautiful plant out of nothing. Observing how her hands, initially flat on the ground, slowly rose up, he marveled as a new plant grew. The green, delicate light surrounding her hands fascinated him. Although he wanted to watch this beautiful phenomenon until the end, he quickly left to gather twigs. He didn’t want Deirdra to wait for the remedy.
The monster quickly headed towards the nearby trees to gather dry branches from the ground. He quickly gathered a sizable stack. As the monster walked away, he heard rustling behind him. He decided to dismiss it, but shortly after, whispers could be heard. Magant, being familiar with combat, tried not to let on that he was aware of the presence of third parties.
Walking on, he listened closely to see if the voices he had heard would follow him, if they would attack, or if they would leave them alone. Approaching Deirdra, he began to prepare a fire not far from her. Horrified to find she was unconscious, he couldn’t afford to save her; he had to remain focused on the intruders.
Pretending not to be aware of the presence of third parties, he called out to Martha, who was finishing gathering the elderberries.
When she approached, Magant whispered in her ear, “Behind the trees to our left, there are bushes. Someone is sitting in them, watching us.”
Surprised, Martha immediately turned in that direction, and that was a mistake. Because the intruders realized the group knew about their hideout. They decided to come out of hiding.
Martha, Magant, and Deirdra were surrounded. In the blink of an eye, several people emerged from behind the trees, cutting off the friends’ escape route. The intruders stood around the friends, forming a circle that prevented any attempt at escape. Magant immediately picked up the unconscious Deirdra in his arms and stood ready to defend the witches. Martha tried to look closely at them and see who they were dealing with, but she couldn’t discern any particular signs. The figures were cloaked in black, with hoods over their heads. Under cover of night, it was difficult to see any faces. Martha wanted to speak, but then she heard a familiar voice.
“Leave them alone; they’re harmless,” the voice commanded.
Hearing the order, the intruders immediately nodded in the direction of the voice and obediently backed away. Magant watched them leave. He also tried to make out who they were dealing with, but the cloaks effectively prevented that. It was easy to surmise that whoever they were, they didn’t want to be recognized.
Martha’s stomach was tied in knots from stress. She felt sick and dizzy. The witch, terrified to the brink of despair, realized this was the end of her endurance. She couldn’t bear the stress, fear, and nerves any longer. Her body, exhausted from constant fleeing, had had enough. The witch fainted. She fell to the ground, her red hair covering her face.
Magant remained alone on the battlefield, surrounded by two unconscious witches. He gently laid Deirdra next to Martha. He was furious because his friends, the only people who had treated him like a human being, were in danger. In frustration, he shouted to the mysterious voice that had earlier ordered the intruders to leave their friends alone.
“Show yourself! Come out and tell me what you want from us!” Magant roared.
The monster didn’t expect any reaction; he thought the attackers had moved away from them. But to his surprise, a figure emerged from the darkness. It was an adult woman, blonde, with her hair tied in a ponytail. She wore the same black cloak as the attackers, but she didn’t have a hood on. She had green eyes, like Martha, but they lacked the same kindness that Martha’s had.
“I see you’re having fun with my sister,” the woman said sharply.
Magant was surprised by her directness. His muscles were tense, and his hands clenched into fists.
“What do you want from us?” he gritted through his teeth.
“I want to help you,” the woman replied.
She clasped her hands behind her back and approached the unconscious witches. She circled them and addressed the monster.
“Can you carry them both to my cottage? It’s a few kilometers from here,” the woman’s tone matched that of a knight’s commander training new recruits.
Magant didn’t want to engage in a discussion with her. He subconsciously sensed that the woman was also a witch, so he decided to trust her. He nodded and lifted Martha and Deirdra onto his arms.
“Lead the way,” he said to the woman.
The newly acquainted witch set off towards her cottage. The monster followed her. They walked through the meadow, under the cover of night, in silence. Neither the witch nor the monster wanted to start a conversation. Magant was too focused on not disturbing Deirdra’s body, especially now that he had to carry both friends. He had them slung over his shoulders. He suspected it wasn’t the best position for Deirdra’s bruised body, but he had no choice. Somehow, he had to carry them to the unfamiliar woman’s cottage.
The sky was lightly overcast, but when the moon peeked out from behind the clouds, Magant could discern the outline of a beautiful mountain. It was tall and steep. Unfortunately, he couldn’t make out any other details, but he was still captivated by the beauty of what he could see.
After an hour, the stranger spoke up:
“Do you see that cottage?” she pointed with her finger to a small wooden house, thatched with straw.
Magant looked in the direction indicated by the witch and saw a cottage nestled among the evergreen trees, on the mountainside.
“I see,” he replied.
“Go inside and make yourself comfortable. I’ll come to you in a while; I still have a few things to take care of,” said the stranger, then quickly turned on her heel and left.
Magant followed her instructions and entered the cottage. He expected to find a similar decor to Deirdra’s in the cottage, but to his surprise, he found even more splendor in the decor of the newly acquainted witch.
The floor was covered with colorful rugs, whose vibrant patterns were meant to delight guests. Wooden shelves hung on the walls, adorned with carvings of leaves and flowers. On these shelves stood goblets, made of pure gold, with inscriptions, but Magant couldn’t read. He regretted this greatly because he was very curious about what the witch had received so many awards for.
From this room, narrow doors led to the kitchen, which looked similar to Deirdra’s.
As the monster searched for a bed where he could lay his friends, he had to walk around the cottage, which meant that without the owner’s knowledge, he was moving around her home.
“Well, she herself told me to make myself comfortable. I guess she won’t mind,” thought the monster.
Magant entered the room again and headed towards the other doors, opposite the kitchen. This time he succeeded and entered the bedroom. The walls and floor were wooden, as was the ceiling. There was also a tiny rug on the floor, less extravagant than the one in the living room. The bed was double, wooden, and the bedding was of pure cotton.
The monster arranged his friends, trying not to offend Deirdra’s body. He gently covered them with a blanket and stepped outside the cottage to wait for the newly acquainted witch. He listened to the hooting of owls, a sound that relaxed him because it reminded him of Ely. Sitting near the forest and watching over it, he listened to the sounds of the animals that inhabited it at night.
“Are you looking for wind in the field?” he heard the sarcastic tone of the stranger’s voice.
The witch approached the cottage, holding a sizable stack of documents in her hands. She was still dressed in a black cloak, but now she had a hood on. The monster recognized her by her tone of voice.
“I didn’t want to sit alone inside. You might consider it rude,” the monster replied calmly, opening the door to the cottage.
He let the witch in first, and she casually tossed the documents on the table and took off her cloak, revealing a beautiful, red dress.
“I assume you’ve done nothing to wake up the girls?” she said sharply.
However, she didn’t let Magant get a word in and headed for the bedroom. She quickly approached the bed and slapped Martha without hesitation. Martha opened her eyes and felt a stinging pain on her cheek as she brought her hand to her face.
Martha was very dazed, and she still felt dizzy. She had no idea what was happening around her and felt the contents of her stomach rising to her throat. She tried to swallow her saliva to prevent vomiting.
“Wake up; we need to talk seriously,” Martha heard a familiar voice.
Martha looked up and saw her sister, Agnes, standing over her.
“What’s going on?” she asked weakly.
“What’s going on is that you’re ruining our family name. Your incompetence is deplorable!” Agnes scolded her.
“What am I doing here? How did I get here?” Martha still didn’t understand her situation.
“Please leave us alone; I’ll explain everything to Martha,” Magant requested.
Agnes cast one more sharp glance at her sister and left the room.
Magant knelt by the bed where the witches lay and explained to Martha their sudden arrival at her sister cottage. He also mentioned that he had no idea that Agnes is Martha sister.
“I understand… thank you for taking care of me,” Martha said, placing her hand on Magant’s.
“I know you would do the same for me. How are you feeling?” the monster asked.
“I’m definitely feeling better. I think I can get up from bed now.”
The witch slid her legs off the bed and gently rose. She was still very cautious, not wanting to faint again. Magant offered her his arm to lean on, and they walked out to the living room where Agnes was waiting for them.
“Instead of gallivanting, you should have been focusing on guarding the forest,” Agnes said. She was sitting at the table, reviewing the documents she had brought to the cottage earlier.
“What are you talking about? Magant is a friend,” Martha said, surprised.
Agnes smirked ironically at her sister and replied, “And that’s your problem. I pointed out two things to you, the forest and gallivanting with strangers, and all you’re concerned about is that I might accuse you of inappropriate relations with men. Your work doesn’t concern you at all, dear sister.”
Martha stood with her mouth open in astonishment. She didn’t suspect her sister of being able to slander her in front of third parties. On the other hand, she understood that the matter of Ely was the most important. She tried to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat and turned to Agnes.
“How do you know what happened in Ely?” Martha tried to sound as casual as possible, so that no one would detect fear or shame in her voice.
“I took over our father’s position, and the witches’ court in Sabbat knows everything. That’s what we’re here for,” Agnes replied.
Martha sensed a hint of bragging from Agnes. The witch lowered her gaze. She didn’t have the strength to continue this topic any longer, so she asked if her sister would be able to help Deirdra.
“The medics are on their way here,” Agnes said, and as if nothing had happened, she returned to reviewing the documents.
Martha understood that the conversation with Agnes was over, so she took Magant’s hand and they returned to the bedroom.
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