ã€ŠTales From Mirthland: Girl Meets Devilã€‹


 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 1

    As the Deacon''s thugs lashed her to the old tree, Tabri plead to her fellow refugees for clemency. "Please! This is all a terrible mistake! I''m not a witch!"

    "Silence, foul conjurer," cried the Deacon, shoving a torch in her face. "One of the faithful witnessed you casting your sinful spells. Do not deny it!"

    With the ropes tightening around her, Tabri scanned the assembled crowd for any friendly faces. Most regarded her with twisted contempt, a few averted their gaze, not wishing this fate on her but not willing to speak up for their own safety. This strange new land had infected them with its frightful atmosphere.

    Dusk seemed perpetual here, and the thick forest endless. A far cry from the shining city they had come from.

    The accused witch''s eyes fell on Alinka, her old friend, among those who couldn''t bear to watch.

    "Alinka, please. Explain to them what I was doing. Please, save me!"

    Her friend just turned away, crying. Tabri''s heart sank as she did.

    The Deacon addressed his flock."Brothers and sisters, the old gods and their sorcery destroyed our glorious home of Xur. We must turn away from it if we are to survive. Thus is the will of our new goddess, and by her will, I find Tabri guilty of witchery."

    He tilted up her chin. The young maiden shot him the dirtiest glare she could muster.

    "You are hereby banished. Never return amongst us."

    She spit in his face. Wiping her malice away with a groan, he turned back to his followers. "Come. Let us leave this heretic to her fate."

    Quickly, the children of Xur departed into the woods, still seeking a new home. The accused witch watched their torchlights dwindle in the distance. Little did she know another had been audience to the spectacle, observing from the canopy above.

    With an audible sigh, Tabri struggled against her restraints. They held tight. The Deacon clearly meant not only to banish her, but to execute her for her crimes as well. Serving as a wild beast''s breakfast would be a fitting punishment for a heretic spellcaster in his eyes. She had no intention of letting that happen. She would survive, if only to spite him.

    Muttering a few words, a spell surged through her wrists and the ropes unraveled. Her magic may have freed her, but that left the young exile in no better condition. She was still lost in the foreign forest, a stranger in a land unvisited by humanity. And night would fall before she expected. Making matters worse, she was alone. On the long journey here, her people all worked together, divvying up tasks to ensure survival of the whole. But now banished, she suddenly realized how helpless she was.

    Having no other avenues available, Tabri ventured deeper into the forest. Her unknown voyeur followed her.

    An uneasy stillness hung over the scenery. No wind blew through the leaves and no birdsong echoed through the trees. The only sound to be heard was the faint crunch of dead foliage under her footfalls. To someone like herself, who''d lived most of their life in city bustle, the silence and isolation were eerie. That eeriness set Tabri''s nerves on edge. To alleviate them, she spoke to herself.

    "So this is to be our new home then? I can''t say it would be my first choice. No sea, no buildings. Is all the world beyond Xur simply forest?"

    Only the song of cicadas answered her.

    Putting her fists on her hips, Tabri attempted to appear unperturbed and continued, "I suppose I should find shelter. I''ll need some food and water too, and a fire. Where to start though?"

    She turned to the best tool she had, her magic. Surmising there must be a creek or stream nearby, she had no difficulty enchanting a few twigs to make a divining rod. Soon, the banished spellcaster was hiking through the thicket on her way to fresh water.

    But Tabri was a city dweller by nature. Her childhood in the grand metropolis of Xur left her unprepared for tromping in the shadowy forest. More than once she tripped on bulging roots, scratched herself on the sharp branches, and slipped on the smooth moss free rocks. The wet and muddy ground became treacherous beneath her boots.

    Despite the silence, she was not as alone as she believed. The woods had eyes, aside from her observer, hidden from view. These eyes observed the accused witch on her trek. When she hit a bad patch of trail and slid down a hill on her rear, already cut and bruised, they made their move.

    Tabri righted herself, rubbing her sore back, only to come face to face with a pack of gray wolves circling around her. The pack''s leader stalked forward, staring at her with a hunter''s intent and baring its teeth to give a low growl.

    "Oh no."

    To Tabri''s credit, she didn''t panic. Doing so would be useless. She just put up her arms, closed her eyes, and wished for her mother.

    As the wolf tensed to pounce, something dropped from the canopy above their heads. Landing between the maiden and her attacker, it snarled at the beast. Tabri released a small gasp when she spied her rescuer between her fingers.

    The creature was tiny, no larger than a child, but in the shape of a man. Its skin shimmered like volcanic glass or varnished black wood. Two wings, sharp as arrows, jutted from its back. Blue light spilled from its skull. Though outnumbered and outsized, Tabri''s rescuer didn''t back down. The pack barked and growled, and the odd beastie merely snapped back at them, embers flying from its mouth like spittle.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    This odd creature scuttled toward the wolves on all fours and the alpha demurred, sprinting away from the flame-spitting rival. Its pack followed. Now safe, Tabri said to her unlikely savior, "Thank you, I don''t know what I would have done if you hadn''t..."

    Her gratitude snagged on her tongue as her rescuer turned to face her. And what a face it was. The creature''s skull was open at the top and its head appeared hollow. Cerulean flame blazed within. Its eyes and mouth were empty cutouts, holes in a lantern, yet expressed themselves as well as any face. That face regarded Tabri with concern and curiosity as its owner extended one clawed finger toward her.

    But as she reached out to meet it, the creature withdrew sharply and scurried back into the undergrowth. "Wait, come back!" She cried out as she watched its light zigzag away from her. "I just wanted to know what you are."

    Her divining rod snapped in the fall. Tabri doubted her spell had been working well anyway. But finding fresh water wouldn''t be a problem for long. A downpour began after her near brush with death.

    As night fell, she took shelter in a shallow cave beneath an ancient, gnarled tree. A large leaf helped gather water, but cold and hunger still gnawed at her. Food she could deal with. The teenage spellcaster fashioned a few dolls out of twigs and leaves, tying them together with strips of her dress and breathing magical life into them. One by one, she sent her little mannequins out to forage. Warmth, however, was another matter.

    Despite an abundance of kindling, Tabri couldn''t get a fire started. She rubbed sticks vigorously and blew on every spark, but nothing would catch light. "Oh, if only I knew the spell," she cursed. Her magic had gotten her banished, and she hadn''t even mastered enough of it to keep herself alive. Damn that Deacon and his zealotry, his new goddess. Her people practiced the arcane arts in Xur for a generation and now, in the wake of the city''s fall, they forbade everything that made the city great. Leaving her smoldering pile, she retreated to the back of the cave, pulling her knees to her chest. Again, she missed her mother.

    That was when some light poked in at the cave''s mouth.

    Peering up, Tabri brushed aside a lock of dark hair to see her rescuer from before. The small creature hesitated on the threshold, wide saucer eyes meeting the teenager''s gaze.

    She beckoned it in. "Come, please. I won''t hurt you."

    The beastie accepted her invitation, padding in on all fours. Her guest stopped at her failed fire pit. Rubbing some ash between its fingers, it said, "Do you need fire?"

    "You can speak!"

    Embarrassment crossed its face. "I''m often told not to. I''ll be silent now."

    "No, please," said Tabri, " I would welcome another voice. And some warmth as well."

    Dipping its head, the creature scooped out some flame from its hollow skull. Tabri''s kindling finally lit and a cozy heat filled the cave. She scooted closer, warming her hands, and her two-time savior regarded her inquisitively.

    "Why did you run away from me before?" she asked.

    "Your words," it said, "I''ve never heard "thank you" before. What does this phrase mean?"

    "Never heard..." She found the notion absurd, but tried to illustrate the phrase''s meaning. "''Thank you'' is an expression of gratitude. I was grateful for your rescue."

    "So it was not a threat?"

    Tabri scoffed. "Of course not."

    "Interesting."

    "Do people not help each other when they''re in need where you''re from?"

    "No, not if they gain nothing from doing so. Helping another in need is considered disturbed behavior." Its gaze lowered. "That''s what they told me, that I was disturbed."

    "It sounds awful."

    "Perhaps that is why my superiors left me here. Because I kept helping people."

    "You were banished for that?"

    "Banished? Oh. Yes, I suppose I was."

    Sadness filled the creature''s face.

    "Well, It''s no sillier than the reason I was banished."

    "You were banished as well?"

    She nodded. "For this." Holding out her hand, Tabri produced a swirl of sparkles. They drifted into the fire, popping and cracking in the heat.

    "I can cast spells. A little. I still don''t know many. But even a little magic was too much for the Deacon."

    Intrigued, the creature moved closer to the young spellcaster. It took her by the hand and dragged a sharp finger across her palm, not deep enough to draw blood.

    "Curious. My people are born and bred from magic. Yet your people fear it?"

    "Well, they have reason to. In our old home, the great city of Xur, our king, Xemu, became obsessed with the power the arcane arts granted him. He meant to overthrow the gods. When they learned of his hubris, they struck down King Xemu and our home.

    "We''ve all fled since then, we survivors, crossing the sea to new lands. My people had to brave the harsh, high mountains to reach this place. But so few of them were spellcasters in Xur that only the destruction it brought remains in their minds. So magic frightens them, and the Deacon and his new goddess help keep them frightened."

    "But you do not fear it?"

    "No. My teachers told me of the wonders spellcraft could bring, if mastered. Sadly I had to flee before I learned much."

    She brought forth another shower of sparks, one of the few things she could do well with her meager conjuring.

    The creature examined her hands again. "Your spells are wonderful indeed."

    "Really?" She blushed. "Thank you."

    "Hmm. More gratitude."

    Tabri found the expression her guest made difficult to read, despite its simple features. It appeared to be rolling a sensation around in its mouth, uncertain what to make of the taste.

    "Oh! I never introduced myself. I''m Tabri. What is your name?"

    Her new companion stared at her and said, "I... I don''t have one. I never earned a name."

    "Your people have to earn their names?"

    It nodded shamefully.

    "Well I think rescuing me from those wolves is more than enough to earn you one."

    She looked the ashen gremlin over, trying to put words to its character.

    "How do you feel about Damn¨¦?"

    "Damn¨¦? Hmm... It is unlike the names my kind are usually given. But I am not like most of my kind." He bowed his head. "I accept this name."

    "Wonderful!"

    As the two spoke, Tabri''s animated twig dolls returned, their weak wooden arms laden with berries and mushrooms. They presented their bounty to their mistress.

    "Excellent work little ones," she told her enchanted servants and took a handful of their collection. Popping a berry into her mouth, its juice tart on her tongue, she realized hunger made her forget her manners.

    She offered some to the devil and asked, "Would you like some?"

    "No need," said Damn¨¦, "My kind do not feed the same way as you."

    "Then what do you eat? I owe you that much at least."

    "We feed on... fear." Guilt flashed on his face. "I must make a confession Tabri. When I saw those wolves surround you, I did not intend to rescue you. I meant to sate myself off your terror and misery. But my... disturbed nature led me to aid you instead."

    "You must be starving!"

    "That is the odd thing, I am not. Your feelings of gratitude nourished me far better than fear ever has. The flavor is strange to me, alien in fact, but delicious. May I have more?"

    Tabri, who began the day exiled and lashed to a tree, only blushed. In this foreboding forest she had found a kindred soul, another banished for his queer behavior. She wouldn''t be alone after all. How could she deny such a comrade''s request?

    "Take all you want Damn¨¦. I''ve more than enough."

    The rain gave way to a brilliant moon that night, as the girl and the devil snuggled close around their fire.

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 2

    They found another totem hanging from a tree branch, the fifth that morning. The odd wooden figures, similar to Tabri''s animated dolls, were becoming increasingly common the deeper she and Damn¨¦ ventured into the woods. The two had been settling in, exploring their new home in the nameless forested land, when they first discovered the idols several days before.

    "What do you think they could be?" the devil asked.

    "I''m not sure. There''s some kind of enchantment to them though. I can feel it tingle on my palms."

    Tabri cupped one of the effigies in her hand and sure enough, an electric sensation prickled at her skin. The magic was strong too; yet different from any she learned in Xur.

    As they passed more decorated trees, sudden wooziness overcame Damn¨¦, riding on her shoulders, and he wobbled on his perch.

    "Damn¨¦, are you feeling okay?"

    "These figures..." he put a hand to his head, "Something about them makes me ill."

    "Maybe we should we turn back then."

    "No, let''s continue for now. We may find some answers ahead."

    "If you think you can."

    She adjusted her passenger and followed her dolls'' trail deeper into the glade. More and more totems hung from the trees, along with strange patterns of stone set into the ground. The young spellcaster couldn''t discern the meanings of the symbols they formed.

    Her passenger let out a soft groan.

    "Let''s talk about something to take your mind off the pain," she said to him, "Why did you decide to stay with me?"

    "In truth Tabri, I am curious about you. My people''s opinion of humanity is very meager, though few of us have every met one of your kind in person. Most of us see you only as food, gullible livestock we can leech misery off."

    "Your people sound quite cruel Damn¨¦."

    "I suppose they are. But I have never been able to accept what they said about humans at face value. Any beings that think and feel as we do could not be so different I felt. Yet another reason my fellows considered me disturbed."

    The devil''s words tugged at Tabri''s heart. Damn¨¦''s tales of his people''s treatment couldn''t help but remind her of the way the Deacon treated her. Both of them had been cast out for their differences, based on the arbitrary beliefs of those with authority. She was glad of his companionship, and sympathetic toward his plight. Better to be two exiles together than alone.

    "Plus, you are my only source of food," he said.

    Tabri chuckled. "You don''t have to be so honest."

    As they walked past another stone circle, he swayed on her back again. Before she could help him, Damn¨¦ tottered off and collapsed to the ground.

    "Damn¨¦!"

    "Too... strong," the devil stammered out, "Won''t... let me... in."

    "What''s too strong? The magic from the totems?"

    The fire within his hollow head dimmed to smolders.

    Tabri knelt down and lifted his head, unsure what do. The sound of a bowstring being drawn sliced through her panic. She turned to see a sharp arrow notched in a taut bow pointed at them both, held by a hooded figure.

    Their assailant shouted at them in a language she didn''t understand.

    "Please, I don''t know what you''re saying," said the young exile, "My friend needs help. Help!"

    The archer hissed and relaxed their weapon. As they pulled off their hood, Tabri stifled a gasp at their appearance. They revealed themselves to be a dirty blonde haired woman with skin blue as sapphire. A sneer displayed her almost fang-like teeth, and she stood more than a head taller than the Xurean maiden.

    "By the gods..." said Tabri. "Are you a native to this land?"

    "Lireg kawag tenod. Dinef toht morph yawa tegh," the woman said to her.

    "I''m sorry, I still don''t understand."

    The blue-skinned archer just rolled her eyes and snatched Tabri''s arm, pulling her up from the ground. She gave Damn¨¦ a kick before dragging the young spellcaster into the forest of totems.

    "Wait! What are you doing?"

    "Lireg etihaw diputs, ouy ginivas!"

    Seeing the language barrier would get her nowhere, Tabri shouted back to her companion.

    "Damn¨¦! Move back outside the trees. Go back to the cave if you can. I''ll come find you!"

    Weakly, the devil raised himself up and nodded back to her. He scurried back the way they came as best he could.

    "Where are you taking me?"

    Her captor shushed her and said, "Egalliv ym ot kacab ouy ginakat mi. Ouy ot ka-eps stanaw manahs et."

    Tabri gave up the struggle for now. The archer''s grip was strong, and she only had her feeble magic to defend herself with, but defend herself she would if necessary. At that moment though, she worried more for Damn¨¦ than herself.

    After weaving through a maze of totem-draped trees and stumpy stone plinths, they came to a rough wooden wall. The archer rapped it with her knuckles, casting a spell to Tabri''s shock, and a split opened up in the barricade. With another forceful tug, she was led through. Beyond, intermingling with the forest, lay a small village filled with more of the blue-skinned natives. Their huts, built from found timber, thatched grass, and canvas, were primitive compared to Xur''s soaring architecture, but clearly crafted by an intelligent, organized civilization. As she was marched through, Tabri became quite the source of attention. Many blue-skinned people came out of their homes to see her. She stared back, observing that though the women were of average height all the men were smaller, only three-quarters of their size, and wore scarves around their mouths.

    More of the incomprehensible talk fluttered around her. The young spellcaster knew gossip when she heard it, even if she couldn''t speak the language. But why did these people find her so fascinating?

    Tabri''s captor finally released her arm at the village''s opposite end, outside a building of rough stone decorated with intricate runic patterns. From appearance alone, Tabri couldn''t help but think of it as a temple. A beaded curtain of many colors marked the entrance. The archer pulled this aside, sweet vapors wafting out from within, and indicated for her to enter.

    "In there?"

    The other woman nodded, patience wearing thin.

    Wary of what she might find, she entered.

    Smoke stung her eyes as they adjusted to the temple''s dim interior. Only candles and burning incense lit the chamber. Chanting seemed to vibrate through the ancient masonry. A native woman of extreme age, her face lined with wrinkles deep as canyons, wearing a hat wider than her body sat cross-legged on the floor. Tabri sensed the old magic, of both the woman and the temple, in her bones. It felt older than her homeland of Xur.

    The elderly woman beckoned her to sit, and she did so. Soft heat wrapped around her like a blanket. A smile twitched at the ends of her host''s mouth. Despite her captor still being outside, Tabri thought she was in no danger here.

    "Sadoow row ni ginivil naikicigam ganoi et erah ouy os," said the elder. Her voice was neither hoarse nor rough, but had the crack of dry aged wood.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    "I''m sorry. Like I told your archer, I don''t speak your language."

    The old woman nodded in understanding and pulled an oblong root vegetable from the folds of her shawl. She offered it to her guest.

    Thinking this must be a ritual of theirs; Tabri took the plant and gave the woman thanks. It sat in her cupped hands until her host motioned for her to eat. She swallowed the vegetable down, the flavor bland and the skin papery, though it left behind a tingle on her tongue, an aftertaste she couldn''t quite describe.

    "I believe that should make communicating much easier," said the woman in perfectly intelligible Xurean speech.

    Tabri gasped. "I understood that. You speak my language?"

    The old woman chuckled. "No child, no more than you speak ours. But there are ways around such things. That turnip you just ate was enchanted to let us understand each other."

    "So it was magic?" She said putting two fingers to her throat. That tingle had been a spell at work. "I knew it; the scent of the arcane is all around us. Baked into the very ground."

    "Yes, magic is rich in the soil and air of the Old Wood. But you would know something about Magic, wouldn''t you my child?"

    Lifting her sleeve, one of Tabri''s animated twig dolls teetered out, returning to its mistress. She let the tiny mannequin hug her wrist, glad to see it alive.

    "We''ve been finding your little servants around the edges of our village for a few days now, wondering where they came from. Imagine our surprise to find a foreign spellcaster living in this forest. What is your name, girl?"

    "I''m Tabri." She moved to curtsy, but couldn''t while sitting. Embarrassed, she gave an improvised bow instead.

    The elder smiled. "I am glad to meet you Tabri. My name is Ozaika, Mother of this coven."

    "Forgive my bluntness Mother Ozaika, but who are you people? We had no idea anyone lived outside of Xur."

    "Nor were we aware any people dwelt beyond our ring of peaks. We are the Witchfolk, born of the planet itself, and this land has been our home since its creation. But I am curious, why did you remain behind in the forest? The rest of the foreigners have moved on."

    "So they survived then?"

    "As well as they could. We''ve been observing your people from a distance since you descended from the mountains. They found the fields on the other side of our trees to be more hospitable."

    "I''m glad to hear so."

    Tabri may have bore ill will to the Deacon and his zealots, but she still harbored love for many others, like her lost friend Alinka. She had no wish for them all to suffer in this strange new land. Knowing her fellow Xureans had escaped to a better place came as a comfort to her. Mind set at ease, the young spellcaster laid out her tale of banishment to Ozaika. Once completed, the older witch scoffed.

    "How preposterous a reason to leave you behind. Fearing the arcane. Here, every child is born with magic in their veins and taught the art. It is as important as learning to hunt, or read, or count. Even our men know a few spells, though none seem to possess the knack for casting."

    "That may be how things are amongst the Witchfolk, Coven Mother, but it is not how things were in Xur. I would have mastered more, in time, if not for our city''s collapse."

    A near-silent sigh escaped her lips and Tabri stared at the ground, ashamed.

    "But you still learned some spells," The older woman pointed to Tabri''s doll, doing an improvised comic dance around a fat candle.

    "Meager conjuring, that''s all. I can''t even start a fire."

    " I am settled on the matter then," said Ozaika, "Since your people have cast you out for your magic, and taught you so little of it, I invite you to join our coven Tabri. If you wish, you can make this your new home, and we will teach you spellcraft."

    Tabri''s shame vanished. She looked up in disbelief. "Really?"

    "Of course. We''ll fashion you a proper talisman for casting and I''ll begin your education myself."

    "That... That would be wonderful!"

    Excited possibility overcame Tabri. Things had appeared so grim when she watched her people leave her behind, tied to that tree. But now she was being handed a second chance. A chance to live on and fulfill her dream that looked lost with Xur''s fall, to learn the art of magic. First Damn¨¦ came into her life, and now the Witchfolk would take her in.

    Oh, Damn¨¦!She thought

    "I appreciate your offer but I have my companion to think about as well. May he join me here?"

    Sunlight invaded the sanctum as Tabri''s former captor, the archer, drew the curtain aside and entered. "That is something I wanted to discuss with you, Coven Mother," she said.

    "Tabri, this is the leader of our rangers, Salaska. What do you mean about her companion?"

    Ignoring their guest, Salaska came around to Ozaika''s side and whispered into the elder witch''s ear. The expression on her face drew concerned, and then almost furious. Both witches regarded the young exile with suspicion.

    Ozaika said, "Tabri, is it true you are fraternizing with a Fiend?"

    "A Fiend?" she asked. "What is a Fiend?"

    "Don''t deny it!" snapped Salaska, "I saw the miserable little imp riding on your back!"

    The Coven Mother held up a hand to calm her ranger. "Tabri," she began, "Fiends are evil spirits who feed on misery and despair. They revel in cruelty and their twisted magic only corrupts and destroys. These malicious Vespers know nothing of compassion or love. Have you truly been living with one?"

    Tabri could not deny that the description matched what Damn¨¦ had told her of his people. That would explain why the totems hurt him, they were wards against evil presences. But Damn¨¦ was not some monster. He wouldn''t harm her. He was as lonely as she was.

    "No," she said shaking her head, "No, even if he is a Fiend, Damn¨¦ is not the sort of creature you''re afraid of. He''s an outcast, banished by his people just like me."

    "The Fiend has a name," said the ranger gripping a sheathed knife.

    "I gave him that name!"

    "And it didn''t strike you as odd that your devil gave you a sob story that almost perfectly matches your own? Did you ever consider what the chances of that were?"

    "Well..."

    Ozaika took over. "Salaska is right, Tabri. This is what Fiends do, weaker ones in particular. They manipulate the sympathy of the na?ve to get close, and then they pull on your desires to lead you into misfortune. All so they can feed on you and grow more powerful. They are selfish beings to their core."

    "No!" Tabri shot up. "That may be how Fiends are, Damn¨¦ told me as much himself, but I trust him. He helped me when it would have benefitted him more not to, when it would have fed him more. He''s anything but selfish. If you won''t allow him in, then I''ll stay in the woods."

    The Xurean maiden let out an exhausted breath as she finished, surprised at how attached she''d become to the little demon.

    "Very well." Ozaika rose from her spot and grabbed her walking stick, shocking Salaska. "Let us go and meet your devil, Tabri. We''ll make this assessment for ourselves."

    "Coven Mother, are you certain that''s wise?" the witch ranger asked.

    "Don''t worry, I have ways of protecting myself."

    Tabri was simply grateful for the reprieve. Letting her twig doll march in front, she led them to the cave where she and Damn¨¦ made their home. Her infernal companion waited inside, tending to the embers of their fire. His own flame perked up when he spotted her approaching.

    "Tabri, I''m glad to see you''re safe."

    She ran up and clutched him in a strong hug.

    "Me too Damn¨¦, but you were the one was hurt. Are you okay?"

    "I am fine. Once away from the totems my strength returned. Though your concern is both appetizing and appreciated."

    The Coven Mother cleared her throat and the devil took note of their visitors for the first time. "Blue. They are blue. Are people normally blue Tabri?"

    "No Damn¨¦, these are the Witchfolk. They... have some questions for you."

    He gave no expression, but regarded the witches with silent calculation. "Very well," he said.

    Ozaika stepped forward but Salaska notched an arrow and aimed at the devil.

    "Careful, Coven Mother," the ranger said.

    "That won''t be necessary Salaska," said the older witch, lowering the bow with the end of her walking stick. She glared down at Damn¨¦ as she came toward him. He turned sheepish under her gaze, and turned to Tabri for support.

    She clasped his claw-like hand and gave him a soft smile.

    "Hello, Little Fiend," Ozaika said to Damn¨¦, "Young Tabri has told us quite a tale about you. But we have met Fiends before and know how your kind lie to serve your own ends."

    "This is true," he agreed. "Silver tongues come naturally to us. Though I never managed to be a very good liar."

    "So you say. We Witchfolk have offered your companion a home with us, a place for her to learn magic and be safe from this forest''s dangers. But she refuses to accept unless you are allowed to come with her."

    "Oh." He glanced at his companion, "Tabri, do not burden yourself with my well-being. I am used to being alone. Go, it''s what you want."

    "Damn¨¦..." said the young exile.

    Ozaika''s face scrunched up at his response, surprised at the devil''s apparent earnestness. She couldn''t figure what he was playing at, for Fiends always have a hidden agenda. Salaska, for her part, scoffed and began sharpening her hunting knife.

    "Give me the truth demon," Ozaika said, "What are you doing in the Old Wood?"

    "I am confused. I thought Tabri told you. My kind exiled me for my disturbed behavior."

    "I want the real reason! What do you intend to do this girl? Do not make me send you back to the Fiendlands."

    "I... I don''t..."

    "Answer me!"

    From her shawl, Ozaika thrust one of the witches'' totems, larger and more intricate than those on the trees, into Damne''s face. The sight of it struck him like a thunderbolt and he reeled back, cowering behind his hands.

    "Answer me Fiend!"

    "Stop it!" yelled Tabri.

    Knife in hand, Salaska moved between her and Ozaika, stopping the young spellcaster from interfering.

    "I swear my story is true," said Damn¨¦, "I have no agenda. Do not send me back; there is no place for me in the Fiendlands. I only want to stay with Tabri."

    "Then swear by your creator, swear by the Chained God!"

    "I swear! I swear by my creator, Father of all Fiends. I swear on the name Tabri gave me, the only name I''ve ever known."

    The statement took Ozaika aback. Withering beneath her ward, Damn¨¦ couldn''t lie. To swear on his creator would have been enough, but to swear on a name held all the more significance to one so steeped in magic like her. She hid the totem and Salaska released Tabri. The Xurean maiden rushed to her devil''s side, her sympathy already restoring him.

    "Forgive me," said Ozaika, unable to face them. "We Witchfolk have had encounters with Fiends before. They have proven deceptive, so I needed the absolute truth. You may both come back and live with us."

    She withdrew an amulet; a wolf tooth carved with runes, and tossed it to the unorthodox pair.

    "That will negate the wards around the village. Tabri, your lessons will begin tomorrow. Come Salaska."

    The two witches departed, Salaska shooting the devil a skeptical glance before leaving. When they were far enough away, Tabri knelt and placed the amulet around Damn¨¦''s neck, then held her companion''s head close to her chest. The flames in his hollow skull tickled her chin, but did not burn.

    "Did she hurt you too much? Do you need more from me?"

    "No, I will be fine. Thank you. Hmm, those words still sound strange in my mouth. Your joy gives me strength enough. You will get what you want after all. You''re going to learn magic."

    "My joy comes from more than that, silly devil. We''re going to have a home."

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 3

    Seven years later...

    Tabri put all her concentration into the potted wildflower before her. Hands cupped around the plant, she focused on her breathing. Regular breathing helped the magic flow more easily.

    She spoke. "Daughters of pistil and sons of stamen, I compel thee to grow."

    With that utterance, her spell took root in the soil. Magic surged through her palms, enveloping the wildflower in a shimmering haze. Before her eyes, the leaves drew in the energy and the plant exploded into sudden growth, blooms sprouting and overflowing the pot.

    She laughed at her own success.

    "Excellent, Tabri, excellent," said Ozaika, "I knew in time we would make a great witch of you."

    Tabri idly twisted her talisman, a pale purple quartz crystal on a leather thong.

    "Thank you, Master. I owe it all to your tutelage."

    In the seven years since joining the coven, the Xurean maid had soaked up every lesson Ozaika taught her and grown into a skillful spellcaster. She possessed raw talent back in Xur, but time and practice had honed it. Now, with the proper tools and training for channeling magic, she was far from the abandoned teenager who couldn''t even conjure a fire.

    "I believe you may be ready to take the next step in your education. Time has come to make your Patron''s Pact."

    "A Patron''s Pact?" asked Tabri.

    "Yes dear. To cast stronger spells you must pledge yourself to a powerful magical being, a God or a Vesper. Once in their service, new avenues will open up for you," explained Ozaika.

    "Intriguing. Do you have any suggestion which God or Vesper I should pledge myself to?"

    The Coven Mother patted her pupil on the shoulder. "We''ll discuss it during your next lesson. You''re almost ready for your final test as my student."

    "My final test..." Tabri clenched her fist, sensing the warm sparks of magic surge through her skin, and reflected on her growth with pride.

    "But for now, I believe there are other things you need to attend to."

    "I can''t think of-" the apprentice witch paused mid-sentence as she remembered her duty. "The totems. Six months have passed. Time to recharge them."

    "There you are dear."

    Tabri rose to her feet in the smoky temple sanctum. "Better get to it then. I''ll tell Damn¨¦ you''re well."

    "Yes, your devil. Has he been... behaving oddly at all?"

    The 21-year-old spellcaster rolled her eyes at her mentor. Seven years and the witches still didn''t trust her infernal companion.

    "No, Master. He hasn''t been whispering to me to kill you all in my sleep. Good day."

    She slipped out the beaded curtain and into the village center. The passage of time had been good to Tabri, transforming her from a foreign exile into a confident member of the coven. Dressed in the rough black flax garments of the Witchfolk, no one would guess her to be a lost child of Xur. She hated to say so, but being lashed to that tree might have been the best thing to happen to her.

    Well, that or meeting Damn¨¦.

    She walked through town to her and the devil''s hut, waving to her fellow coven members as she went. They politely waved back, but grew scarce the closer she got to home. Her roommate made her neighbors wary. Arriving there, she pulled aside the curtain door to enter.

    "Damn¨¦? I''m home."

    "Welcome back Tabri."

    The devil sat on the floor, molding something out of wet clay. He too had changed in the years since their first meeting, growing from the size of a toddler to that of a prepubescent. On occasion, his wings would flap errantly. Often left alone and without friends besides Tabri, he spent his time sculpting. A good hobby when one can be one''s own kiln. The wolftooth amulet still hung around his neck.

    "Your pottery is coming along well."

    "Thank you." Damn¨¦ twitched as he spoke, a pleasant shock running through him from the words.

    "The Coven Mother reminded me to go recharge the totems around the village. Would you like to come with me?"

    "Of course. Just give me a moment here."

    He took a deep breath and exhaled a gout of flame from his mouth, baking the clay.

    "That should hold it for now."

    Seeing him show his more Fiendish side drew a chuckle from Tabri. She knelt to let Damn¨¦ climb on to her back. He may have grown, but she still let him ride piggyback.

    Among the coven''s many rituals, keeping the totems charged was vital. Without their wards, spirits with ill intent, Fiends and those little better, could wander into their village unimpeded. Such Vespers were common in the Old Wood and drawn to centers of strong magic. But though important, the task was also time-consuming. Each one needed to be recharged by hand and dozens might hang from a single tree. The witches did the work in shifts and Tabri scolded herself for forgetting hers had been changed.

    Once she and Damn¨¦ arrived at the village''s borders, Passing through the surrounding wall, her chore proceeded swiftly enough. The strange hazy sun of Hauntergast, as the Witchfolk called the country, arced overhead as the witch by adoption moved from tree to tree, cupping each totem in her hand and casting a simple spell on them, even hanging a few new ones. Several hours passed as Tabri worked, with Damn¨¦ providing her company all the while.

    Upon finishing, she stepped back and admired her work, hands on her hips. "Well, that covers everything I was assigned. I think I should be fine to end early."Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Oh Tabri, again?"

    "You didn''t have to come with me, you know."

    Her devil sighed, knowing what was coming. "Very well, lead the way."

    Tabri smiled at her small victory and headed into the forest. After all this time, she had learned the path through the undergrowth well and soon found her favored tree, climbing its trunk to her usual perch. Damn¨¦ followed behind. Up there, one could see for miles around but a spellcaster like her could do even better.

    Clutching her talisman around her neck, she focused her magic on her eyes and intoned, "Falcons and condors, hear my plea. Lend your sister your sight."

    She blinked twice as the energy tingled on her eyelids, her vision improving with each blink, becoming telescopic. From her treetop, the young spellcaster gazed across the canopy to spy on her former people, the lost children of Xur, their quant settlement on the plains, and on the Deacon and his zealous minions.

    Damn¨¦ showed more interest in the caterpillar inching along his claw. "I still don''t understand why you bother checking on them Tabri," he said. "They cast you out, left you to die in the woods because of their fear and prejudice. Why do you care about their well-being? I''d think you''d hate them."

    "I hate the Deacon, Damn¨¦, not all my people. They didn''t all want to tie me to a tree, like Alinka and her parents. I may be one of the Witchfolk now, but I''m still bound by my roots in Xur. So their welfare is important to me. And perhaps one day, after that awful preacher dies and is being torn apart by beasts in the Netherwild like he deserves, they''ll realize they were wrong about what they did to me."

    Her devil shrugged. "Perhaps. But if I were in your position, I doubt anyone in the Fiendlands would change their minds much about me."

    "Yes, but Fiends also consider altruism and compassion a sign of madness."

    Damn¨¦ tilted his head, acknowledging the truth in that statement.

    Scanning the settlement, Tabri was impressed by how well the Xureans were doing in spite of Hauntergast''s harshness. Crops were growing in the farms and rustic wooden houses were being built. Sadly, or not, the Deacon''s chapel was hidden by the cluster of conical roofs and the hamlet''s short protective wall. Imagining what twisted sermons he was delivering within turned her stomach.

    "Would you go back to them, if you could?" Damn¨¦ asked her.

    "I..." The erstwhile Xurean was uncertain how to answer. She should have said no, but it wouldn''t sound truthful. Gazing out at her people''s new hamlet, a familiar homesickness, or something of the like, ached in Tabri. She missed her countrymen more than she let on.

    Before she said anything, a pained scream from the forest snared Tabri''s attention, dissolving her sight spell. Wasting no time in reacting, she leapt from her perch to the ground and sprinted toward the scream''s source. Damn¨¦ bounded along behind her in the canopy above.

    A stone''s throw from the village''s border of totems, she found Salaska leaning against a tree. Blood dripped from a deep gash in her thigh.

    "Salaska! What did this to you?"

    The ranger threw up a hand. "Stay back Tabri! The thing might still be about."

    Both women looked around, searching for any threat, nerves alight. A horrible echoing howl sliced through the trees, riding an ill wind straight toward them, a cyclone of dead leaves caught in its wake.

    Salaska cried, "It''s come back!"

    Tabri turned to face their foe. An anguished ghost met her, cloaked in swirling green mist, its eyes only pitiless black pits. The specter thrust out gossamer talons and wailed from a mouth of broken teeth, speeding forward at the head of the wind.

    It hit the witch apprentice like a sledgehammer to the ribs, knocking her back. She winced. The creature of fog somehow ripped her clothes and cut her skin, drawing blood.

    As it came around to strike again, she pulled a few of the charged totems from her pockets, holding them up just before her spectral assailant could ram into her.

    It howled at the sight of the wards and Tabri lobbed one at its grotesque face. To her surprise, her throw actually made contact, burning a hole through the specter''s misty form. This time, it screamed in pain.

    Salaska shouted to her, "Tabri, while it''s injured, run. Don''t worry about me, just run!"

    "Salaska, what is this thing?"

    "Its..." The ranger groaned from her wound and was only able to say, "Fiend!"

    "Fiend!"

    The specter howled and raised a huge talon to claw Tabri. In her shock, she reacted a second too late. The blow slashed her back, raking open her flesh. The young spellcaster stumbled and the Fiend battered her with a hard gust of wind.

    Still reeling, Tabri''s mind tried to find any defense.

    "A spell. I must have some spell for hurting Fiends. Any spell will do," she said in her panic.

    She clutched her quartz crystal talisman in desperation, cycling through every spell she knew. On instinct, she cast the first the one she could think of.

    With an out thrust palm, she called out, "Bind this beast!"

    Thick vines, ropes as strong as spider silk, shot out of the ground at her command and snared the Fiendish phantasm. The magic in them trapped it despite its foggy form. For a moment, Tabri relaxed.

    But her hostage wailed and another cyclone spun through, sending the witches'' hanging totems dancing in the wind. The enchanted vines snapped and the Fiend dove at her.

    She gasped and braced for the assault.

    A black shape blurred past her vision. Damn¨¦ had launched himself from a branch overhead, landing on the howling attacker. It fought against him, screaming in his face, but the devil pinned the foul thing down. He screamed back, embers flying from his mouth.

    "You shouldn''t have left home," he said to the specter. Before it could howl again, he clenched its withered nose in his teeth and ripped the Fiend''s ghostly face off. He ate the hazy flap of flesh in one go, and then devoured the rest.

    Tabri watched her companion, rapt with grim realization. For all his calm curiosity and domesticity, she often forgot Damn¨¦ was still a Fiend. He might keep it buried, but he still had savagery in his heart.

    Putting that truth aside for now, she checked on her injured friend.

    "Salaska, are you alright? The wound looks deep."

    "I''ll be fine," said the ranger pushing her away. "Nothing that can''t be healed back at the village. Just grab a few leaves for a salve to stop the bleeding."

    "Yes, of course."

    Tabri hunkered in the undergrowth to gather the needed silver-edged plants. Everything happened so fast; her mind was only beginning to catch up.

    "That Fiend... Why didn''t the spell I cast on it hold?"

    "Your magic wasn''t strong enough," said Salaska, "Without making your Patron''s Pact, your spells won''t so much as scratch something on that level."

    "Oh, so this is my fault." Embarrassment washed over Tabri. Here she thought she''d become a competent spellcaster.

    "Don''t beat yourself up about it Tabri. Give me those."

    The ranger pressed the leaves against her wound, gluing them in place, and wrapped them with a torn piece of her cloak. She grunted in pain as she fixed the makeshift tourniquet.

    "I''m not exactly thrilled about being rescued by your pet devil, but at least he finished the job. The Fiend is dead."

    "Unfortunately, it''s not," said Damn¨¦.

    Sound seemed to drop out of the world at his words. Fear coiled in the two witches'' spines.

    Tabri asked, "Damn¨¦, what do you mean?"

    "That wasn''t the true Fiend, merely a minion made from its essence. Like your twig dolls in a way. Its master likely separated off a bit of itself to act as a scout, to probe the village''s defenses."

    "So the real thing will be even stronger?" asked Salaska, one hand on her injury.

    "Without a doubt."

    "Perfect."

    Picking up her bow, she slung it across her back and limped toward the village. When she wobbled, Tabri tried to give her a shoulder to lean on, but the proud ranger refused. Her demeanor took on that of a military commander.

    "Tabri, did you finish recharging all the wards in your assigned area?"

    "Um." In all the excitement, she couldn''t remember if she had recharged every hanging totem before her peeping act. She believed so, but this sudden threat clouded her memory with doubt.

    "Yes. Yes, I did."

    "Good. We''ll have to work through the night to finish the rest and secure our warding circle. The Coven Mother needs to be told about this at once."

    Salaska soldiered on, but her injury took a heavier burden than she first thought. She stumbled and almost fell as they crossed through the sea of totems. Eventually, the ranger relented and accepted Tabri''s shoulder.

    "Here, let me help as well," said Damn¨¦.

    "No, thank you. Having one Fiend touch me is more than enough."

    The two witches pulled ahead of him. The devil said nothing else as they continued on, but his hollow eyes betrayed the slow calculations of his thoughts.

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 4

    Night did not fall easy on the Witchfolk''s village. Members of the coven worked in the darkness to recharge every last totem and ward, the women weaving their spells and the men providing torchlight. Salaska and her rangers stood on guard, ever vigilant for the Fiend''s return. No threat came though and as dawn broke, they retreated behind their barrier still frightened.

    A mood of confinement settled over their homes. In her own hut, Tabri breathed in the stifled air. Dread clung to her skin like errant spider-webs and dull heat weighed on her. Damn¨¦, emotional epicurean that he was, sensed her anxiety.

    "Tabri, your temperament is so sour. Take my hand, please. I hate to see you in such a state."

    Gently, they clasped hands and her devil guided her down to the floor by his side. The two embraced and Tabri''s loving gratitude eased his palette and mind.

    "Thank you, Damn¨¦. This Fiend just has me so on edge."

    "If I know my kind, this pervasive fear is what it wants. The flavor is irresistible. As for what the Fiend will do next, it''ll wait for someone to make a mistake. Something that will give it an opening. Then it will swoop in and destroy us."

    "But why? What does it gain?"

    Damn¨¦ shrugged. "Any number of things. The despair it would create would be a magnificent feast. Or it may be trying to perform a grand act of cruelty to earn itself a name. Fiends don''t think in mortal terms Tabri, human or witch. It might be scaring the wits out of us for its own amusement."

    She thought back to Damn¨¦''s bout of cannibalism in the woods and let her hand slip out of his grasp. "I often forget that you are a Fiend too," she said, barely louder than a whisper. "Yesterday, you asked me if I would go back to my people if I could. But what about you? Would you return to the Fiendlands Damn¨¦?"

    "Tabri..."

    She rolled away, turning her back to him. The hurt was obvious in his eyes, and she regretted the question, but she needed to an answer all the same.

    "I told you, seven years ago that-"

    "I know what you said seven years ago. But things have changed since then. You''re smart enough to realize that. None of the coven trusts you, even after all this time, and I''m your only friend. You must be just as alienated here as you were in the Fiendlands. So would you go home if you could?"

    Damn¨¦ stood at his full height and sat Tabri up, putting them eye-to-eye. Resting his hands on her shoulders, the devil said, "No, I wouldn''t, and you yourself said why. You may be my only friend Tabri, but that''s still one more than I ever had in the Fiendlands. Through you, I''ve experienced things no Fiend has, kindness, camaraderie, and love. I love you, and being with you is the only home I need."

    The girl and her devil hugged again, warmly and tightly, and she told him, "I love you too."

    He purred. "Mmm, a sweeter taste than any cruelty."

    Their embrace was broken by the bellow of a horn. The village had been breached. Without a word, Tabri and Damn¨¦ left their hut to discover the intruder''s identity, and do battle if necessary.

    The rest of the villagers appeared to have the same idea. Witchfolk thronged in the torchlight of not quite dawn; eager to see why the horn had blown. Tabri fought her way forward, meeting Ozaika at the wall.

    "Master, did the Fiend attack our border again?"

    "I''m not sure Tabri. The rangers have caught something, that is all I know."

    A frightful scream echoed behind the barrier, followed by carried voices. The Witchfolk muttered amongst themselves, not recognizing the language. Damn¨¦ jabbed a finger into the darkness.

    "Tabri, look!"

    Salaska limped in through the magic opening; pulling off her hood, bow at rest.

    "Salaska, what happened?" asked Ozaika.

    The ranger held up a hand to calm the crowd. "Everyone relax. We didn''t find the Fiend. But we did catch something out there." She whistled behind her.

    Two other rangers, cowls still up, dragged in their quarry, a human woman dressed in beige peasant garb. The gathered masses all backed away in confusion and disgust at the intruder. Salaska''s comrades threw their captive to the ground, keeping their arrows trained on her, and the woman frantically scrambled up, begging to the witches in words none of them spoke. None but Tabri.

    Ozaika nudged her apprentice with her walking staff. "Tabri, speak to her. Ask why she is in our woods so late."

    "Oh, of course Coven Mother."

    She put Damn¨¦ down and approached the foreigner, a fellow child of Xur. The woman was nearly hysterical. Tabri needed a minute to make sense of her words, being so long since she''d used them herself.

    "Be calm!" she said to the woman, "Be calm, you won''t be harmed here."

    Understanding dawned on the woman''s face, then confusion. "Tabri, is that you?"

    Tabri raised an eyebrow. "You know me?"

    "Yes, it''s me. Alinka."

    "Alinka?" Sorting through the cobwebs of seven years'' memories, Tabri registered her old friend''s name. "Alinka! By the gods, I didn''t even recognize you."

    "I could say the same thing." She said, gesturing to Tabri''s witch dress.

    Examining herself, clad in rough spun black and feet bare and filthy, Tabri had to admit she looked nothing like she did back in Xur.

    "Rumors were going around that witches lived in the woods," said Alinka studying her captors, "I had no idea you were living with them. I had no idea that you were alive at all."

    "Very much so, my old friend. More alive than I ever was with the Deacon."

    Salaska gave Tabri a soft tap on the butt with her moccasin to get her attention.

    "Why is she here?" the ranger asked her in Witchspeak.

    "Oh, yes." Tabri switched between the two languages. "Alinka, what are you doing in the Old Wood? This place isn''t safe for the Children of Xur. Especially now."This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    The frightened woman grabbed her by the shirt. "Oh Tabri, it was terrible. Some... monster, some... thing attacked our village. A howling ghost made of green mist. It dragged people away, bit into their necks and drained them of... of... life. We looked for the Deacon to protect us, but he''d vanished too. Most of us fled without thought of the direction. I wasn''t even thinking about the woods'' danger when I ran this way."

    Tabri''s pupils shrank to pinpoints at the description, dread obvious on her face. The assembled Witchfolk murmured at her reaction. Ozaika stepped forward, trying to maintain the calm, and asked her student, "Tabri, what did this woman say?"

    Slowly, Tabri turned her head to her Master. She looked to Damn¨¦ for support, and he gave her a nod. After a hard swallow, she told them all in Witchspeak, "The Fiend has attacked the foreigners'' settlement. Many of them have fled. It''s coming this way."

    Captive silence held sway for mere moments as the words left her mouth. Then, pure panic seized the Witchfolk. Men and women alike burst into screaming and scrambled for shelter. Ozaika, Stoic and resolute, fired off a loud spark from the end of her staff. The crowd quieted as it popped and fizzled over their heads.

    "Everyone, remain calm! We have prepared for this. The wards around the village still hold. We are still safe."

    "But Coven Mother," said someone from the gathered throng, "The Fiend is on its way. Our totems may keep it out, but it won''t leave. That monster will wait for any opening it can get."

    Or it will attack the settlement again, the Deacon be damned, Tabri thought to herself. She clutched Alinka''s hand, offering comfort and a friend''s smile, as her fellow Xurean was lost and confused among the witches.

    "What are we to do?"

    "We will do nothing," Ozaika addressed them, "All of you, return to your homes. I shall go and face this foul spirit alone, and banish it back to whence it came for good. In my absence, heed the Rangers'' words. They will protect you."

    Mollified but still frightened, the Witchfolk withdrew back to their huts. For them, this Fiend was a storm, an obliterating hurricane, and they had little choice but to wait the ordeal out. Tabri, having seen what a fraction of this specter could do first hand, was keen to follow suit.

    Alinka tugged on her arm, still terrified within an inch of her life. "Tabri, what were they saying? What''s going on? What will happen to me now?"

    "You''re going to be fine, Alinka. You''re going to have to stay in the village for now, but don''t worry. No one is going to hurt you here. Forget anything the Deacon may have said about witches. These are very kind people."

    "But will I be safe from that thing?" She pointed at Damn¨¦.

    Tabri loosed a melancholy sigh. With him not giving much care to it, she sometimes felt like she had to shoulder her devil''s sadness for him.

    "Don''t worry about him. He''s with me."

    Cautious relief filled Alinka''s face. She stood but fidgeted, uncertain of what to do.

    "Okay, um, where am I supposed to go?"

    "Oh, uh..." Tabri looked around for someone to help her friend. She whistled and a group of male Witchfolk, diminutive with scarf-wrapped mouths, scrambled over to her. In Witchspeak, she told them, "Take our guest somewhere safe. Give her some food and new clothes. And one of the Coven Mother''s speaking vegetables. Treat her well. Understand?"

    The men nodded in unison and, unable to speak, took Alinka''s hand to lead her on.

    "Go with them, Alinka. I''ll come find you later."

    "Um, alright. If you say so."

    The male witches tugged on her dress to get her moving.

    "Yes, I''m coming you... strange little men."

    As they departed, Tabri cupped her face in her hands, sudden exhaustion hitting her. A Fiend attacking the Witchfolk was one thing, a horrible prospect but one her adopted people were prepared for with their magic and ancient knowledge. But a Fiend attacking the settlement was another thing entirely. The refugees of Xur were defenseless against such a threat, their fear and trauma turning them away from the only means of defense. The Gods only knew the Deacon''s cheap zealotry would be useless.

    She sank to her knees and longed for this nightmare to pass. Astute to Tabri''s emotions as usual, Damn¨¦ rejoined her. Light from his hollow head blaze tickled against her eyelids. Opening them, the silhouette of the devil''s smile eased her anxiety.

    "Tabri, a question. Why are you so distressed? This is about more than the Fiend stalking beyond our borders. Don''t lie please, I can sense the truth in your feelings."

    "It''s Alinka, Damn¨¦."

    "I would think being reunited with an old friend would make you happy. Isn''t that why you''ve been spying on them? Granted, the circumstances are not the best."

    "Those circumstances are why. I lost one home to rogue, malicious magic. But I managed to find another one, and my people did too. Now both are under attack from this monster and I just feel so..." Tabri searched in vain for the right description. When the word finally came to her, and all her inadequacy along with it, it slid off her tongue like an iron weight. "... Helpless."

    Damn¨¦''s jack-o-lantern face remained unmoving following the statement. Only the twitch of his flame bore evidence that he hadn''t become a statue.

    After a few concerned moments on Tabri¡¯s part, he said, "Then do something."

    "Oh right, what should I do?"

    The devil gazed over at Ozaika. If he''d had eyebrows, he might have waggled them. She took his meaning at once.

    "All students eventually have to put what they''ve learned from their teachers into practice, right?" he said.

    Damn¨¦ was proposing a bold and reckless idea, one that both thrilled and terrified Tabri. She''d joined this Coven for shelter, but also to learn to be a better spellcaster, to master her magic. Time to see how much of a master she''d become.

    Ozaika didn''t hear the motley pair rush over to her; she was too busy directing the rabble. The old witch barely gave a glance as the girl and her devil approached her.

    "Master, I have a request." Tabri said.

    "Not now, Tabri," she said without looking at them. "The village is still on a knife''s edge. Your old friend has done us no favors this night, and there may be more intruders yet. If that weren''t enough, I must now prepare to face this demon."

    The Coven Mother moved away at a brisk pace, attending to her leadership duties, but the young spellcaster and her piggybacking devil simply followed after her.

    "That''s what I wanted to ask about. Let me face the Fiend. I''ll banish it back to the Fiendlands."

    Her request stopped Ozaika in her tracks. The elder witch could only turn and regard Tabri with a look of utter disbelief. Shaking her head, the same way an exasperated parent would at their child, she headed toward the temple.

    "Don''t be foolish," she said, "Your spellcasting is nowhere near potent enough to deal with this threat. Salaska told me what happened in the woods."

    Tabri demurred, the sting of her failure still sensitive, but pressed on.

    "I''ll be ready this time. Almost everything I''ve learned about magic I learned from you. Teach me to perform the banishing ritual on this Fiend. You said yourself that I needed a final test of my abilities in the arcane arts."

    "Yes, but this ridiculous Tabri. It would be suicide!" The Coven Mother threw aside the temple''s curtain, ready to withdraw within, but lingered on the threshold. She had one last point to make. "For earth''s sake, you haven''t even made your Patron''s Pact yet."

    "Then I''ll make my Pact."

    Ozaika scoffed. "With whom?"

    "With me," said Damn¨¦.

    Stunned silence hit both women.

    He continued, "Tabri needs an advocate to the spirits of the world to increase the strength of her magic. No one knows her better than I do. I would be honored to be her Patron."

    Ozaika''s eyes turned from Damn¨¦ to match gazes with Tabri. The light in the younger woman''s expression said that she would take the devil as her Patron without hesitation.

    "Could it be done?" her apprentice asked.

    "I don''t know," said Ozaika. "No witch has ever made a Pact with a Fiend before. In theory, it is possible. But... No. No, you''re moving much too fast. Both of you. A Patron''s Pact is binding for life. This is not something you just do on a whim."

    She tried to enter the temple and leave them, but Tabri stopped her by the shoulder.

    "Master, please let me do this. I lost one home when Xur fell, I can''t lose another."

    Ozaika considered her student''s aura. She found resolve there, and passion. In a way, she was proud of how far Tabri had come from the untrained, abandoned maiden who couldn''t conjure a candle''s worth of fire. Then there was Damn¨¦. The Coven Mother had never trusted him, but she couldn''t deny how close he was to Tabri. As Patrons went, her student would find none as devoted.

    Perhaps the best way to fight a Fiend was with another Fiend.

    "Damn¨¦," Ozaika said to the devil.

    "You used my name."

    "If you were to become Tabri''s Patron, what price would you have her pay? What would you ask of her in exchange for your Patronage?"

    Damn¨¦ tilted his eyes down, as if in thought, and took his companion''s hand. He squeezed and she squeezed back. And though he spoke to the elder witch, he looked only at her.

    "I would only ask for that which she''s already given me. Companionship, insight, and love."

    "Do you swear by the name she gave you, Damn¨¦?"

    "I do."

    Blushing, Tabri smiled at her devil.

    "Very well. Then you have my permission to make your Pact. Do so, and then we will discuss dealing with the matter of the Fiend. Good night you two."

    Beatific acceptance beaming on her face, Ozaika slipped into the temple. For her, and for the pair she left outside to make their arrangements, a cool breeze had just cut through the dull claustrophobic heat of dread. Morning was on its way.

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 5

    Ozaika made clear to both Tabri and Damn¨¦ that a Patron''s Pact must be made in private. Only the Patron and their Pledge could be present. Otherwise, she had been vague on what the ceremony entailed. That would be up to the Patron, she told them. As said Patron, Damn¨¦ took the lead. In his quiet, calculating mind, he planned the whole affair without telling a word of it to Tabri. Her first clue came two days following Alinka''s arrival at the Witchfolk''s village.

    Unlike any other morning, she awoke and didn''t find her devil beside her. He had left her a note detailing when and where to meet him. Upon reading his chosen rendezvous, Tabri understood his plans. She departed their hut in the early hours of dawn, when both sun and moon still hung in the sky, and passed through the cordon of walls, wards, and totems. The thought of the Fiend attacking did occur to her, but she dismissed it. She had the sense that nothing so foul would happen on this morning.

    Ethereal shafts of white light pierced the Old Wood''s gloom, glittering off fresh dewdrops. The whole of the forest appeared awash in soft diamond gleam. In the distance, the song of a running river rang in her ear. Dressed in naught but a loose white linen dress and flower crown, Tabri strolled barefoot through the refreshed ancient coppice. Moss tickled her soles. Though Damn¨¦ had set a time, she was in no rush. She doubted he would mind.

    He didn''t, in fact, when she arrived at his meeting place. Tabri couldn''t help but smile at his choice. They would make their Pact in the same cave where they met, seven years before. The same place they both found new homes in new companions. No other place could be so fitting. Decorated with strands of wildflowers, even the dingy hollow seemed brighter in the morning haze. Damn¨¦ waited just inside, tilting his head up when he spotted her approach.

    "I knew you would understand," he said.

    "Oh Damn¨¦, this is beautiful."

    "Not as beautiful as you, Tabri."

    She blushed.

    "I like your flower crown."

    "Thank you," Tabri said. "Alinka made it for me when I told her we were doing this. She didn''t quite grasp what a Patron''s Pact is, but said I should look my best nonetheless."

    "Well my compliments to her work."

    The girl and her devil stepped into the cave, faced each other and clasped hands. Their gazes met, Tabri''s deep and soulful gold eyes staring into Damn¨¦''s empty holes. Though she saw nothing but his blue blaze beyond them, the love in his expression was clear as a cloudless sky. Not even the height difference made the two appear ridiculous.

    "So how do we go about this Pact?" Tabri asked.

    "I''m not certain. I think I may be the first Fiend to ever make one. But I do have some ideas."

    Damn¨¦ lifted a trinket from around his neck.

    "I had the Coven Mother craft this for me to give to you. An amulet, the same as mine, enchantment and all."

    The devil pressed a rune carved wolf tooth necklace into Tabri''s palm.

    "I hope you will accept it."

    Curling her hand around the gift, she held it next to her heart. "Of course I will Damn¨¦."

    Gently, she placed the rawhide thong around her neck, letting the amulet rest on her breastbone. Within the simple token, her devil''s love smoldered and warmed her skin.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    "I... I feel like we should say some special words or something,"

    "Very well."

    They clasped hands again.

    Damn¨¦ began. "Tabri. By accepting my gift, I accept your pledge in return. I will be your Patron, I will grant you access to the higher realms of magic. I promise to provide for you, and to remain with until the end of my immortal life. Do you accept?"

    "I do."

    The young spellcaster blushed. Her turn.

    "Damn¨¦. I thank you for accepting my pledge. I promise to keep a Sabbath for you, and give you my love in exchange for your own. As a spellcaster, I promise never to do anything that will bring shame or dishonor to our names. I promise to remain with you until the end of my mortal life, and afterward if the gods are kind. Do you accept?"

    "I do."

    The moment the vows left their lips, a breeze blew through the Old Wood. It swept by them, carrying an electricity that sparked and tingled on their flesh. The wind swirled into a miniature cyclone in the cave''s mouth, sweeping up the dead leaves, and dissipated just as swiftly, leaving behind an old vellum scroll on a rough table, quill and ink standing by.

    "Did you summon that?" Tabri asked her new patron.

    He shook his head. "No, this wasn''t my doing."

    The quill dipped in the two''s direction.

    "I think it wants a signature," said Damn¨¦.

    "No. It wants both of ours."

    Her devil went, "Oh" in understanding. They had made a magical contract, and that was no small thing. It needed to be official.

    As Patron, Damn¨¦ went first. Black ink dripped from the quill''s tip as he signed his name. The only name he''d ever known, the one his beloved gave him. He pricked his thumb and pressed it next to his signature, leaving an oval scorch mark. Tabri did the same, pressing a bloody thumbprint alongside her name.

    Then just as suddenly as they appeared, the scroll, table, and quill vanished into the ether once more.

    "So our Pact is now official?" asked Tabri, knowing the answer already.

    "I suppose so."

    The girl and her devil were left alone in the woods, the great anticipation deflating. They looked to one another, neither sure how to proceed from there. Some form of release was needed. Tabri, almost by reflex, obliged.

    She leaned down and kissed Damn¨¦ on the lips. Though surprised at first, he soon returned in kind.

    Magic ignited at this expression of love, and power surged between their bodies. Sparks spilled from their mouths as they released their kiss. Everything tingled as mystic energy crackled through their veins.

    "Tabri, what is this sensation?"

    Damn¨¦ stared at his hands in amazement as a weak glow enveloped them. Tabri looked at her own and found them glowing too.

    "I think it''s our contract," she said, "This is the magic from the initiation of our Pact."

    "Goodness, this is extraordinary. It tastes so pure, so rich. The flavor is once in a million!"

    Stunned by the spectacle, Tabri gasped. "Damn¨¦, you''re changing!"

    Before her eyes, the devil metamorphosed from his stout simian stature into the form of a fully-grown man. Not a dwarfish witch male either, but a strapping human man. Twin horns curled up from his eyebrows and over his hollow head, like a grill over an open flame. Still more ornament than functional anatomy, Damn¨¦''s wings spread out into broad sweeping blades. Last, a thin spade-tipped tail spiraled out from the small of his back.

    Regarding his changed form, he gave only the mildest reaction. "Hmm, curious." His glance turned to his new pledge and drew a shocked gasp. "Tabri, you are changing too!"

    Astonished, the young spellcaster checked her own body. Damn¨¦ had spoken true. Her skin had transformed color, turning an ash gray. Hiking up her loose dress, she rushed to the nearby brook to examine herself more closely. Her ears had pointed and her canine teeth had sharpened into near fangs. The water''s reflection showed thicker eyebrows, wilder hair, and a strange symbol on her forehead that wouldn''t rub off.

    "Do you recognize this?" she asked her new Patron, pointing to the mark.

    "I believe that emblem is my name written in Fiendish. Tabri, what are these changes? What caused them?"

    "Our Pact. Stronger magic is already flowing into us."

    Closing her eyes, Tabri reached out through the ether. She sensed her and Damne''s auras tethered together now, like two soap bubbles merging into one yet remaining separate. Through the gentle tug, power flowed between them.

    That power swelled in her. She felt stronger, feral and liberated. Her muscles belied an increased stamina. An urge to run off like a wild beast filled her.

    "This is incredible," she said. "I never expected it to feel like this."

    Clenching and unclenching his fists, Damn¨¦ said, "I know. If I''d have stayed in the Fiendlands, it would have taken a thousand visited cruelties for me to become this powerful." Two cyan fireballs burst to life in his palms.

    "We should celebrate."

    "What were you thinking?"

    Tabri answered with her actions. She slipped her linen dress from her shoulders, letting it fall useless to the ground, took Damn¨¦''s hand and led him to the back of their cave.

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 6

    Ritual would be needed to defeat the Fiend. Ritual developed in the youth of the world and passed down from Coven Mother to Coven Mother. Borders between the realms were more porous in those days, and Fiends common.

    So upon the last crow''s cry, as twilight settled on the Old Wood, Tabri arrived at the witches'' temple to begin the necessary ceremony. Ozaika waited for her in the smoke-filled sanctum. Along with three other trusted disciples, the old witch prepared her to face their foe. Deep chanting echoed against the old clay walls as they peppered the young spellcaster''s body with sacred powders and traced intricate patterns of protection on her bare flesh with sacred dyes.

    No others would be allowed in while the ritual was in process. None but Tabri''s new Patron, her devil Damn¨¦.

    As the Coven Mother and her disciples went about their work, Tabri focused her mind. The new strength her Pact brought had taken some adjusting to, but in this endeavor, her own emotions posed a greater threat. Ozaika instructed her to suppress her fear.

    "Show no signs of tension or dread, my apprentice. This Fiend will not hesitate to jump on the smallest advantage. Your new bond, strong though it is, may not be enough to protect you."

    "I understand, Master. I shall do my best."

    Hot concentration hissed out her nose. Despite her training, worry pooled in Tabri''s mind. Her encounter with the Fiend''s minion lingered in her memory. The helplessness haunted her. Yes, her Patron''s Pact had made her stronger, but had she truly mastered her magic? Could she protect her adopted home?

    Comfortable warmth, like a beloved familiar blanket, spilled into her aura. Tabri knew it was Damn¨¦, sending his love and support through their shared connection. A small smile broke through her meditation.

    "Step off the pedestal now," said Ozaika.

    She complied and the other disciples dressed her in a simple black chemise that fell to her knees. They then brought forth an unadorned wooden chest.

    "The symbols and powders we''ve put on your skin will help protect you, but we need to arm you as best we can if you''re to banish this monster Tabri."

    With a gesture from their master, Ozaika''s disciples withdrew a long cloak made of black feathers from the aged trunk. They draped the garment on Tabri''s shoulders where it hung heavy with the weight of generations of Witchfolk. Encompassing her form, the deep power that came with such age seeped into her.

    Ozaika spoke, words echoing against the chamber. "When we Witchfolk were first born, we emerged from the earth naked. Our first Coven Mother weaved this cloak from the feathers of condors to clothe herself. She did not take their feathers, but learned the condors'' language and asked for them. That cloak is as old as Hauntergast. May it give you strength."

    "May it give you strength," the disciples repeated in unison.

    From the same ancient chest, the old witch retrieved a fist-sized polished bloodstone. With the treasured gem, she clasped the ancient avian mantle closed at Tabri''s throat. Beneath it, her wolf tooth amulet draped against her breastbone.

    Her Master continued, "As we first mastered the arcane arts, we took our talismans from nature. The trees and the rivers provided them to us. Our first Coven Mother discovered this stone on the site of this temple. It served her well for many years. May it grant you power."

    "May it grant you power."

    Tabri brushed her fingertips against the bloodstone and tiny arcs of energy zapped them. Even that slight touch revealed the vast magic contained within the gem.

    Shuffling forward, Damn¨¦ joined Ozaika and her disciples to observe their handiwork. Empowered by her new Pact and adorned with these sacred artifacts, Tabri no longer resembled the wayward waif and abandoned apprentice she''d been seven years before. Now there could be no doubt that she was a Witch of the Old Wood, primal as nature and mystic as the changing moon.

    "You''re ready," said Ozaika.

    "Coven Mother, how will I find the Fiend''s lair?" Tabri asked.

    The older woman put both hands around her student''s. "Reach out into the ether. Search for a twisted knot of pain, a bruise on the skin of the world. That will be where this foul specter is hiding."

    Careful not to disturb their work, Ozaika hugged her apprentice. The embrace carried as much farewell as good luck.

    "May the earth bless your efforts Tabri, and may your Patron protect you."

    "Fear not, I will," said Damn¨¦.

    The devil laid his hands on his beloved''s feather cloaked shoulders, and she grazed them in return.

    "I suppose we should be going then. A shame you can''t ride on my back anymore Damn¨¦. Your closeness would bring me comfort."

    "Don''t fret Tabri. I can still remain close as we travel."

    He kissed her wayward hand and stepped back. Tabri''s shadow tickled the tips of his toes. Touching his spiraling tail to it, he dissolved into his pledge''s silhouette. Only two circles of blue light on the flat ground belied his presence.

    "I''ll always be with you."

    "I love you, Damn¨¦."

    A wolf''s howl echoed over the village.

    "Be on your way now," Ozaika told them, "That Fiend won''t remain at rest for long."

    Without another word, Tabri bolted out of the temple. Drawing on her newfound strength and the old magic flowing through her, she leapt high into the air. Jumping over the village''s border of wards and into the woods beyond. She landed on her voyeur''s lookout.

    Finding her footing, the chosen champion of the witches took a deep breath and concentrated. She reached out as her teacher instructed, seeking a canker sore in the invisible field of magic. Any spot of torment and agony.

    Damn¨¦ fed her another pulse of love as encouragement.

    The place the determined spellcaster sought revealed itself soon enough. Waves of pain emanated from it. Turning her gaze out to the landscape, she tried to pinpoint her quarry.

    "Hawk''s eye. Woad wit." She cast with her new mantra, the untranslatable phrase adding weight to her spell.

    Her vision turned telescopic. Spying the demon''s dwelling for herself, Tabri almost wasn''t surprised at its choice.

    The Fiend had nested itself in the Deacon''s church.

    "I sense some fear in you, my beloved," said Damn¨¦, "But also some excitement? Curious. Is this a common feeling for humans?"

    "Not usually, my dear devil. But imagining how that bigoted zealot is going to react when I banish this monster from his chapel is as delicious to me as to you." Her bravado faded as the danger reared its visage. "If I banish it, and that''s a big if."

    "I have no doubt you will succeed."

    Tabri wished she shared his certainty. Though Ozaika had taken her through the ritual, spell by spell, exactly as she would have performed it, the young witch still felt apprehensive. The fear that she would miss some important detail stayed lodged at the forefront of her thoughts. Ever astute to her anxieties, Damn¨¦ tried to ease her mind.

    "Perhaps you would be more comfortable with a more familiar spell?" He offered.

    The devil''s comment caused an idea to occur to her. She had learned the banishment ritual by heart, but a second strategy might be prudent. She formed a quick plan and whispered it to her Patron, who nodded in approval. Hopping down to the forest floor, they gathered the necessary materials. After swift work, they admired the results.

    "Do you think this scheme of mine has a chance?"

    "Our foe certainly won''t be expecting it."

    She smiled. Good enough for her.

    An owl''s hoot reminded them of their purpose. The Fiend still waited. From her shadow, Damn¨¦ agreed they make haste, so Tabri grabbed hold of the bloodstone brooch. Casting her spell quick, she transformed into a vicious mother wolf and padded at full sprint toward the Xurean settlement.

    The rough ground beneath her paws gave way to soft grasses as the last trees of the Old Wood spilled out into the meadow. Sudden openness surrounded her and she slowed her pace. Communicating by thought, Damn¨¦ asked, "Is something wrong?"

    "No. It''s just... I haven''t been outside the forest in such a long time. I forgot how open the world beyond those trees is."

    Tabri allowed herself but a moment to adjust. Roving through the tall grass, she approached the village, barely visible through the veil of mist. The young spellcaster, still in wolf form, entered with caution. The knot of pain she tracked here was spread thin, a pervasive ache in the ether.

    "This place is giving off such a disquieting aura."

    "Agreed," said Damn¨¦, "I''m reminded too much of the Fiendlands."

    Passing into the village set their nerves affray. Flat moonlight shone through the mist, casting eerie illumination. Dust hung on every surface. Not a soul or sound disturbed the scene. A vast sense of emptiness filled the place, like an open tomb. Nothing appeared damaged or broken. From the look of the town, all the Xureans had just gotten up and left.

    "Where is everyone?" Tabri wondered, "Did all the settlers flee?"

    As they moved toward the church, a few moths floating through the haze betrayed the only sign of life. The spellcaster turned wolf made note of the bugs heading in the same direction as her. Leaving pawprints in the dust behind her, she padded past the hamlet''s thatched conical huts to the earthen mound that marked the Deacon''s church.

    Tabri shifted back into human form and Damn¨¦ exited her shadow. The two looked on the simple stone arch covered in moths, built into the dirt structure and opening on a staircase underground, a descent not into a home of the gods but a Fiend''s lair. Trails of mist spilled out from the doorway, licking at their heels like deep-sea tentacles. A burst of cold air blew across their forms, a released breath from the manmade cavern.

    Chill crept along Tabri''s skin, despite the warmth of her feather cloak. Her beloved Patron held a blaze in his palm close to her.

    "Our quarry is trying to scare us," he said.

    "I can tell. Do you think it''s awake yet?"

    "Most likely."

    Standing at the threshold, peering into the depths, Tabri¡¯s faith wavered. She despised the zeal of others, remembering how it had left her for dead in the woods. But now she worried that her own zeal, the zeal to defend her home and overcome her powerlessness, may have doomed her. The memory of this Fiend''s minion, that screaming specter that raked her back with its claws, flashed in her mind. Did she really believe herself to be enough of a spellcaster for this challenge?

    Seeking some comfort, Tabri found it in the wolf tooth amulet hanging beneath her bloodstone talisman. She clutched her beloved''s gift in her fist, letting the sharp tip jab the heel of her hand, and another memory came to her. Of her first day in the Old Wood, when a tiny nameless Fiend rescued her from that pack of wolves. Her devil had always been there for her, and she drew strength from that. Together, they could face this monster.

    Damn¨¦, face unreadable as ever, gazed at his beloved expectantly.

    "Let''s go," she said.

    The temperature, already low, seemed to sink as they descended the smooth stone steps. Only the thin layer of dust protected Tabri''s bare feet from the cool surface. She kept one hand on the wall for balance in the narrow stairwell. Cobwebs gathered around her fingers as she went.

    The blaze behind Damn¨¦''s eyes lit their path. The torches that normally served that purpose all stood snuffed. Once more, Tabri cursed the Deacon and his damned new deity. Why build your chapels underground? All it did is brought you closer to the traitor god, chained at the world''s center. But then there was much she never understood about the Deacon. Like how such a hateful man had become a leader to Xur''s lost children.

    The reason mattered little. In his heretical zeal, that mad pontiff had built a lair perfect for a Fiend to take residence. The stairs didn''t descend very deep under the ground, but the darkness, claustrophobic walls, and cobwebs made it seem much deeper. As the witch and her devil reached the bottom, a sound like splintering wood met them. The horrible cracking came from the chapel''s far end.

    "Come in, little one," said a hoarse, high-pitched voice.

    Damn¨¦ looked to his pledge and she nodded her assent. He returned to her shadow.

    The chapel itself was not all that large, a spartan room with an altar opposite the entrance. Behind it stood a statue of the Deacon''s chosen god, a reed-thin crone draped in gossamer veils, buried beneath layers and layers of gray wax. Slits where the walls met the ceiling let in the faintest slivers of moonlight. There were no pews, for the worshipers prayed on their knees. But the floor was not empty. As Tabri moved toward the altar, her cloak leaving trails in the dust, she discerned the shape of several human-sized bundles, like sacs of spider eggs, clinging to the sides of the room. She believed she''d found the missing settlers.

    Keeping her voice calm yet firm, the young witch called out, "Show yourself Fiend. I have no patience for your tricks."

    "As you wish."

    The cracking returned, coming from the goddess statue. The mass of dust and wax burying it split open like a cocoon and from within, her enemy emerged. Tabri''s hand shot to her bloodstone talisman, and she fell into an offensive stance. She would be prepared for whatever form this monster took.

    Stepping out of her chrysalis, the Fiend''s nude, emaciated body appeared mummified. A wild matte of unkempt, spider-strung locks burst from her head. Her eyes were huge, blank white ovals. Mist drooled out of her mouth between craggy, broken teeth. A ring of coarse, wiry black hair circled her throat. Two moth wings, brittle as glass, jutted from her shoulder blades. Decaying before Tabri''s eyes, the Fiend resembled some carrion-eating insect blown up to human size, wearing the flesh of its last meal.

    Tabri covered her nose and mouth to guard against the stink of rotting meat.

    This decomposing monster extended her arms toward the young spellcaster, joints cracking and skin sagging with each movement, as she shuffled forward.

    "Come now, my young visitor. Don''t be so rude. You''re in my home after all."

    "This is a house for the Gods. You''re nothing more than an unwelcome guest. Here, and in this realm in general."

    "Again with the rudeness. This wonderful chamber was made to be my domicile, my place of honor. I was welcomed in and as you can see, I''ve already begun decorating."

    The Fiend''s gnarled feet left the ground as she hovered through the still air over to one of the giant eggsacs. She caressed it as gently as one would a sleeping newborn.

    "When these pitiful humans wake from their slumber, my whispered spells will be nested in their brains. They''ll pledge their loyalty to me and call me Goddess. Then I shall build my fiefdom outside the Fiendlands, earning me a name for sure."

    Damn¨¦ whispered to Tabri from her shadow, "All this trouble from a Fiend who hasn''t even earned her name yet? Tread carefully."

    She nodded and remained on guard. "And what if they don''t start worshiping you? What will you do then?" she asked.

    "They worship me already, though they are unaware they do." She airlessly gestured toward the icon of the crone, the Deacon''s chosen deity. "Their leader promised me their faith in exchange for the power to sway their wills."

    "Wait, you are the Deacon''s nameless god?"

    "Indeed. He summoned me to this realm to serve that purpose."

    Mindful of her teachings, Tabri disguised her shock. The Deacon rose to his position with Fiendish magic? And he was serving up his followers, her fellow Xureans like Alinka, to this monster like fatted calves? Despicable, even for a despicable man.

    "But if they choose not to pledge their faith..." Her adversary shrugged. "I suppose I''ll just eat their souls. These frightened fools have already been such a delicious source of misery."

    The Fiend paused and sniffed the air through the empty cartilage of her nose. Independent of each other, her blind eyes turned to Tabri and her lips pulled into a discomforting smile.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "Don''t worry, I''ll save plenty of room for the souls of your Witch friends too."

    Before she could react to the threat, the desiccated corpsefly flew over to her in an instant and licked the Xurean maid''s face with a long, thick, and slimy tongue.

    "Interesting," said the monster, "You smell like a Witch, but taste human. What are you?"

    "A spellcaster."

    Tabri jabbed her hand into her foe''s hollow ribcage. As the hellspawn gasped, she cried, "Burst of Dawn! Woad Wit!"

    Her hand exploded into light, blowing a hole in the demon''s chest and throwing her back. She landed in a bundle of cobwebs, smoke rising from her wound, but staggered to her feet in seconds. Tabri kept her hands up, magic sparking from the bloodstone at her throat to her palms. Her enemy hissed at her.

    "You foul little harridan! I''ll eat your soul!"

    "You are welcome to try."

    Snarling, the ghoulish hag rushed forward, long broken nails ready to claw her prey. Tabri thrust her hands into the feather cloak''s hidden pockets. When the Fiend''s claws came within inches of her flesh, she pulled out half a dozen of Ozaika''s intricate warding totems. One had been enough to torture Damn¨¦. Six would be agony.

    The Fiend screamed, throwing up her arms in sudden pain. Her attack forgotten, she collapsed to the ground and tried to crawl away. Tabri pressed forward, strings of her enchanted wards dangling from her fingers. Unknown to her, mist began trailing into the chapel around her ankles.

    "I''ll give you one chance, nameless one. Leave now, return to the Fiendlands of your own volition and never step foot in Hauntergast again, and I''ll harm you no more. But if you refuse, then I will banish you by force. Which do you choose?"

    Dragging her weak body across the floor to the nearest eggsac, the Fiend''s screaming only got louder. She tried ripping the cocoon open; to rejuvenate herself on the soul of its sleeping hostage, but Tabri pushed her weapons closer and backed her adversary into the corner of the chamber.

    "What is your answer?" she demanded.

    Between pained wheezes, the monster said, "You''re... too... Overconfident."

    "Tabri, look out!" shouted Damn¨¦.

    He shot out of his pledge''s shadow in time to knock away two of the Fiend''s foggy minions. Another moment, and they would have snuck up on the pair. The specters let out their death rattles as they attacked Damn¨¦, gnawing on his arms and neck. He ripped them off with no effort and burnt them to smoke in his grasp.

    "Are you hurt?" Tabri asked her devil.

    "No, they were too weak to cause real damage."

    "I remember you now," their foe said, "I thought you looked familiar. You''re that novice witch who tried chaining my minion in the forest. And you," she pointed to Damn¨¦, "you''re that simpleton the Father of Fiends banished."

    The Fiend would have chuckled, but Tabri''s totems turned the laugh to a grunt in her throat.

    "Be quiet, you nameless corpse fly," said Tabri, "You won''t disrespect my devil while I''m here."

    He put a hand on her shoulder. "Beloved, your anger is not necessary. Her words mean nothing to me."

    "Maybe, but I have to do right by my Patron. Don''t I?"

    They shared a warm smile in the cold, damp chamber.

    Despite her pain, the harried hag on the floor croaked out a mocking chortle.

    "You took him as a Patron, my witchy morsel? You must be an even bigger dunce than he is."

    "She said that''s enough from you, so silence!" demanded Damn¨¦.

    Their foe continued, "Did he tell you about his life back in the Fiendlands? How he was always the weakest, most inept Fiend any of us had ever seen? Imagine, being weak on top of being soft in the head. We would have pitied him if we had any."

    "Be silent!"

    "I guess he was lucky that you had some pity. Only way he survived I bet, finding a gullible human and feeding off them like a parasite. How pathetic. Of course, not as pathetic as you for falling for such an obvious sympathy play."

    "Shut up before I rip your jaw off!"

    If not for her totems, Tabri would have held him back.

    "Damn¨¦, keep calm. This is what she wants. Let''s perform the ritual and be rid of her."

    The Fiend turned to her. "And now he''s gotten you to make him your Patron. You''re stuck with him forever. I''m not sure which of you is a bigger moron. After all, he doesn''t have a name any more than I do."

    Roaring, Damn¨¦ lunged at her. His new size knocked Tabri back, sending her sliding across the chapel into another eggsac. The strings of the totems fell from her fingers as she went, clattering to the dusty floor. Her devil snatched their foe by the throat and slammed her into the wall.

    "I do have a name. I am Damn¨¦. That is the name my pledge gave me and I wear it proudly. More than any craven vermin like yourself could know."

    "Name or no, you''re still an idiot."

    "Huh?"

    In the span of a blink, the Fiend spun Damn¨¦ around, trading places with him. Snapping her head back like there was a hinge in her jaw, she vomited up a torrent of wax and wood pulp all over him. He threw up his hands too late. Wet slop dripped off his form, gluing him in place.

    The fetid hellion sniffed her new captive. "What''s this?"

    She tore off Damn¨¦''s wolf tooth amulet.

    "Ah, this is how you got around those wards. I think I''ll have to keep this." She draped it around her neck.

    Tabri, still on her back, made to grab her totems, to regain the advantage. But her foe was fast. Flicking her wrist, fog swallowed up the witch''s weapons and decay set into the wood. They turned black and crumbled into ash.

    "All alone now, morsel. No Patron, no charms. You''ll make a fine appetizer before I move on to the rest of your Coven."

    The Fiend floated inches off the ground, advancing slowly toward her.

    "Maybe I''ll steal your face when I enter the forest. Those blue-skinned hags won''t suspect a thing. They''ll welcome their destruction in with open arms."

    Shaky on her feet, Tabri stood and threw her up fists, aglow with arcane power, ready to keep fighting. The Fiend''s split lips pulled into a smirk. She let loose a glass shattering shriek into Tabri''s face, stunning her, and back handed the young spellcaster. Tabri reeled, amazed how hard the blow hit. Blood trickled from her mouth.

    She wiped it away. I still have my fall back. If I can make an opening, just for a moment, I can put my scheme into motion. Then I can perform the ritual. But how? My totems are gone.

    The hovering Fiend twisted in the air, the hole in her chest still gaping, and shot toward Tabri. Dodging a second too late, her adversary clapped a hand around her throat, tight as a vice. The monster''s blank eyes and gap-toothed smile chilled her straight through to her soul. Desperate, she flicked through every spell she knew, hoping for any strategy.

    But as Tabri struggled, sudden warmth filled her in the cold, subterranean chamber, flowing through her and Damn¨¦''s shared aura. Her Patron, her beloved devil, was sending her his love. The same love she gave him to feed on. Over her foe''s shoulder, His hollow head still blazed despite his confinement.

    As she spotted that azure blaze, she got her strategy.

    "Now," said the Fiend, "I''ll offer youa choice. Give up and I''ll make this painless." She dragged a long, brown broken nail down Tabri''s cheek. "I''ll wait until after you''re dead to cut your face off. Keep resisting and I''ll do it while you''re alive. So choose. There''s nothing else you can do."

    The monster loosened her grip. Tabri coughed and said, "There''s one thing I can do."

    "What''s that?"

    "Start a fire."

    Snatching a handful of the Fiend''s hair, she cast "Ignite! Woad Wit!" The bloodstone talisman shined, pouring out its power, and embers popped in her palm. The hellspawn''s frail dirty locks went up like dry kindling and she screamed, dropping Tabri. Free, the nimble spellcaster scrambled over to where Damn¨¦ hung imprisoned.

    He called her name through the muffling cocoon.

    "Brace yourself," she told him and put a hand to his prison.

    "Break! Woad Wit!"

    The force of a dropped hammer gathered in her hand. With a tap, she shattered the wax and wood pulp tomb into splintered pieces, leaving Damn¨¦ unharmed. He hugged his pledge.

    "Tabri, I''m sorry," he said, "Her words pulled my strings. I should know better than anyone how a Fiend can cloud and manipulate feelings."

    "No need for apologies Damn¨¦. We can still perform the ritual, still banish her. We have the fall back; I just need an opportunity to trigger it. Think you can buy me some time?"

    The devil turned his gaze unto their foe, eyes narrowing with fury.

    "Gladly."

    He spread his wings and reared his head back, roaring, while the flame in his skull bloomed into an inferno. Their enemy had just managed to extinguish her burning scalp when Damn¨¦ leapt across the chapel to throttle her. Their opponent distracted, Tabri moved behind the altar and sat cross-legged, concentrating on casting the enormous spell.

    The two Fiends wrestled in each other''s grasp, rolling on the floor, and thrashing like savage animals. They hissed and barked, baring their teeth, clawing at whatever parts they could snare. At times, they halted their furor and sized the other up, rearing up like feral cats, then re-engaged, lightning quick, throwing their bodies at one another.

    They locked arms, and the nameless hag spat at Damn¨¦, "Traitor! Heretic! You were a whelp when we banished you. How did you become so strong?"

    "This is a power you''ll never understand," he answered. "It comes from love and compassion. Both are more nourishing than any misery I''ve ever tasted."

    They twisted on the ground, biting and scratching each other. Damn¨¦ ripped off some of the Fiend''s flesh, but her teeth couldn''t break his wood hard skin. She screeched at her attempt.

    "What treacly nonsense," she shot back. "You can only grow strong when you make others weak. When you destroy them before they can destroy you. That is what earns a Fiend their name!"

    She raised her claws to dig them into Damn¨¦, but he snatched her wrists and headbutted her, embers from his skull spilling on her face as she reeled.

    "Yet I have a name and you don''t."

    Tabri did her best to ignore the chaotic din around her. All her concentration needed to be on her spell. The trigger had been pulled, but she still required time to draw the prepared materials here. Through the ether, she sensed the vibrations of heavy marching feet. They were on their way.

    If the hag had possessed a nose, it would have been broken. She rubbed the smashed cartilage and went, "Bah! A name given by a mortal is worse than worthless. And you''re worse than feeble-minded. You''re a disgrace to all Fiends, letting yourself become a domesticated pet. She might as well be yourPatron."

    "If being a Fiend means being like you, then I would rather be a pet."

    The Fiend snarled at him. Both of them got up on their haunches, flared their flightless wings, and roared at each other.

    Their enemy cried out, "If you won''t eat misery, I''ll feed you my hatred!"

    She pounced on Damn¨¦, grabbing his head, and vomited glop into his hollow skull. His blue flame smoldered into smoke, and he threw her off him. Woozy, he shuffled back with a hand to his forehead.

    Peeking out for just a second, Tabri witnessed her Patron''s distress. She almost jumped from her position to help him, but their back up plan required her full attention. So she did the only thing she could. Through their shared aura, as he''d done for her, she passed some of her own strength on to her devil.

    His interior blaze re-ignited, burning low but still burning. He collapsed to the ground, clearly unable to continue the skirmish.

    The hag laughed. "A name and a pledge and that''s all the fight you have in you? A true Fiend would have gone on until they died."

    Damn¨¦ weakly turned to Tabri. She nodded.

    "I must not be a true Fiend then, because I was just keeping you distracted."

    "Eh?"

    Out of nowhere, huge holes broke open in the chapel''s ceiling, chunks of masonry falling to the surrounding floor. As moonlight flooded in, massive forms dropped into the underground church, landing with booming thuds. Tabri stood to direct her new soldiers, their fall back scheme. The same animated wooden dolls she''d made so long ago, but built from logs instead of twigs.

    She pointed at the Fiend. "Attack her."

    Fast for their bulk, the half dozen log figures surrounded their target and pounded on her with their thick arms. Bare stumps of oak, maple, and pine beat the nameless hag''s face into lumps, broke her ribs, and bent her delicate wings at cross angles. Tabri''s servants knocked the Fiend around the tight circle they''d closed around her, like a ragdoll held together by weak stitches. She made a valiant attempt to clamber out over their knobby stump heads, but a blow to the stomach dropped her back into the fray.

    As her dolls battered the haughty monster, Tabri rushed to Damn¨¦''s side. He breathed heavily as he lay propped up against an eggsac, the flame in his head growing and dying like each breath was a bellows. He lived, for now, but he needed rest.

    "How badly did she harm you?" she asked.

    "It hurt, but it won''t be permanent. Could you hold my hand though? Feeding would ease the recovery."

    "Of course."

    The two lovers, the girl and her devil, clasped hands. Their shared aura came together and they felt complete. Tabri ran her thumb down her Patron''s hard cheek, and he drew some emotion from her. The spiritual transfusion made his fire burn a little brighter.

    Turning their attention to the beating before them, Tabri ordered her log dolls to step back from their victim. The Fiend lay bruised and swollen on the floor. She righted herself a little, leaning uneasy on one elbow, coughed up a glob of thick black ooze and moaned.

    "Time to finish this," said Tabri rising.

    Hands held up in ritual formation, her bloodstone talisman glowed and the enchanted servants stood at attention, awaiting her command. She directed them to the sides of the chamber where they took position, one in each corner and two on opposite walls.

    "Now, be our shield. Guard against all foulness."

    With the slightest tilt of her wrists, the enchanted soldiers spread their timber arms wide and triggered Tabri''s second spell. From arm to arm, a circle of shimmering laser light ignited around them, trapping Tabri, Damn¨¦, and their adversary within. The air in the chapel hummed with the barrier''s power. The wooden warriors became warding totems, giant-sized versions of those dangling from the trees outside the Witchfolk village.

    "I gave you the choice. I offered to let you leave willingly. But you refused. So now, I banish you by force!" declared Tabri.

    Getting up on almost surely broken knees, the hag showed no sign of the intense pain she should have been experiencing. Instead, her head lolled back, and she let out a smoky belly laugh.

    "What? But she-"

    Damn¨¦ interrupted Tabri''s shock with an agonized groan. He slipped off the eggsac on to his side, clutching his stomach, and curled into a fetal position. His interior blaze grew erratic, leaping and dying with no pattern.

    "The pain... Make it stop... The pain!"

    "Damn¨¦. What pain? I don''t understand."

    The Fiend laughed harder. "Oh, my stupid morsel..." She crooked her head to one side; remaining hair draped over her face, and held up the wolf tooth amulet around her neck. "Did you forget about the trinket I stole?"

    Tabri gasped. In the fracas, she had forgotten their foe''s cheap theft. Now without his protection, wards ten times as strong as any strung around the village bore down on her Patron. Anguish wracked his body.

    "What will you do now?" their enemy gloated, using what small vigor she had left to stay upright, "If you drop your spell to aid your Patron, I''ll escape with his trinket. But in his condition, if you keep this circle up to banish me, he''s likely to perish as well. And madness is all that awaits a pledge whose Patron dies. You''ve trapped yourself, "spellcaster."

    Tabri regarded her foe with contempt until she felt a tug on her loose dress. Through his torture, Damn¨¦''s embers burned hot enough to let him do that much.

    "Beloved... Do it! Banish this foul thing. Don''t," he groaned, "worry about me."

    "I have no reason to worry. You''ve already given me the answer to her quandary."

    She snapped the thin leather thong of her own wolf tooth amulet. The dental ornament jabbed her hand as it came free. This sign of their Pact, his gift to her, possessed the same enchantment as her devil''s pilfered protection. Damn¨¦ would rise again.

    But the moment it left Tabri''s skin, the excruciating pain bearing down on her devil crashed down on her as well. She collapsed next to him. Her log sentinels remained in place, their barrier still gleaming.

    Their corpsefly foe chortled at their ignorance as her knees gave out. "Foolish girl, do you understand your Pact at all? That sorry excuse for a Fiend is your Patron, so you''re connected. Surely you must have felt it. You receive both his strength and his weakness." She arced her back and laughed her punctured lungs dry.

    To Tabri, it felt like a mountain was pressing down on her, her whole body pinned beneath the force. The slightest movement sent slivers of pain shooting through her nerves.

    "Tabri..." whined out Damn¨¦.

    "Damn¨¦..."

    Struggling against her own wards, she crawled toward her devil. His flame wavered as though in a wild wind. They reached out their hands.

    "Damn¨¦, I''m sorry. It''s my fault we''re both here. I knew I wasn''t up to this task. Because of me, our home is doomed. I''m a failure as a spellcaster."

    "No Tabri. Don''t apologize. I am responsible here... as your Patron. I couldn''t... give you the strength you needed. But I''m thankful, that for a little while at least, you gave me a home."

    "Damn¨¦, you sorry devil..."

    As Patron and pledge struggled to reach each other, the hag dragged her broken body to the chapel''s side. She couldn''t escape the circle, but nothing stopped her from pulling one of her cocooned hostages within. Protected by her stolen amulet, she could feed on the unfortunate captive''s soul and regain her vitality. She wouldn''t even need to attack Tabri and Damn¨¦ once restored. If she waited long enough, the barrier would kill them for her.

    Shaking loose some of her own webbing and wax, the Fiend hauled in one of her preserved meals. She clutched the cocoon to her chest like a newborn and let out another low, cracking chuckle, directed at Damn¨¦.

    "Do you see the wisdom of the Fiends now, you slow-witted imbecile? Only rely on yourself. Sharing strength makes you weak. In the end, it destroys you."

    Her mirth echoed on the chapel walls as she drew one brown, ragged nail across the eggsac.

    Tabri locked eyes with Damn¨¦, shared agony evident. Their fingers almost touched they were so close. One more push and they would reach. She and her devil still had a chance. If one of them could just get her amulet...

    No, if they both could.

    Gritting her teeth, the spellcaster slapped her hand down on the hard, dusty floor. She gripped one end of the leather cord and whipped it up faster than an arrow''s flight. Instantly, Damn¨¦ understood and caught the other with his outstretched hand.

    Soothing energy poured into both of them and the pain of the wards eased. Not disappearing, simply dulling to an ache, but that was enough to let the two rise to their feet. They wound the wolf tooth around their clasped hands and Damn¨¦''s fire blazed higher. Tabri breathed in magic, sending it surging through their shared aura, creating a loop of power, carrying more might with each cycle.

    "You''re wrong. We''re stronger together than we either were apart. And that strength comes from our connection," said Tabri.

    "It''s like a fire," said Damn¨¦, "One blaze can light many others, without burning any less bright. A shame you and my brethren can''t see that."

    "But you''ll have plenty of time to ponder the subject back in the Fiendlands."

    Seeing the tables turn, the Fiend gripped her cocoon with two hands to rip it open. Tabri glared and cast a new spell.

    "Amulet, return to your owner. Woad wit!"

    Damn¨¦''s stolen wolf tooth charm shot off the hag''s neck and into Damne''s hand. He burned it to cinders. The warding barrier hit the rotted corpsefly like a falling hammer. She shrieked as smothering pain enveloped her already broken body.

    "Filthy girl and filthy moron! I''ll eat your souls! You can''t do this to me!"

    As she whined and harangued on the floor, Tabri and Damn¨¦ shared another glance.

    "Together?"

    "Together."

    They turned back to their foe and extended their clasped hands. Magic from Tabri''s bloodstone and her devil''s internal reservoir pooled in their combined fist. Arcane light flooded the chthonic chapel, and the Fiend threw up a near skeletal arm to shield her blank eyes.

    "Nameless Fiend, by this circle I''ve drawn, I bar you from this realm!" shouted Tabri.

    Tabri''s log soldiers stomped their thick arms to repeat her declaration.

    "Nameless Fiend, by invoking your master, the Father of Fiends, I tether you back to your homeland!"

    A fat prismatic chain wrapped around the Fiend''s throat as the words left Damn¨¦''s lips.

    In unison, Patron and pledge gave the last litany.

    "Nameless Fiend, by the power of this amulet, grown strong by our love, we banish you from this realm, never to return!"

    Their captive adversary moaned and struggled against her chain. Her pupil-less eyes grew wide as they lifted up their clasped hands, tip of the wolf tooth pointed down. With a great cry of "woad wit!" they plunged the amulet into her forehead.

    It struck like flint to kindling. A flash brighter than the sun erupted at the blow and the two were flung back. The burst of illumination swelled out in a tsunami. Everything: the timber soldiers, the egg sacs, and the whole of the underground chapel, vanished in its intensity. The Fiend screeched out a death rattle as the light swallowed her, vaporizing her form. A deafening hum drowned out her last cry.

    Then, quick as a blink, the ritual was complete. The fog rolled away and the only illumination came from the moon overhead. Spots of color popped in Tabri''s vision, and she shook them away. Her log dolls relaxed, their glimmering circle dissipating into sparkles. All that remained of the Fiend was a thin trail of smoke snaking up from a scorch mark on the floor.

    Their hands were still entwined. Her devil roused himself and they released their clasp. He asked, "Did... did we succeed?"

    "I believe so," said Tabri, "Are you hurt Damn¨¦?"

    "Somewhat. Your wards were strong."

    "Here."

    She re-tied the cord of her amulet and placed it over the devil''s head. Fire filled his eyeholes.

    "Thank you. But won''t you need this to enter the village?"

    "We''ll deal with that when we arrive."

    Exhausted from expending so much energy, the young spellcaster rested her head on her Patron''s chest. Gentle as snowfall, he wrapped his arms around her.

    "I love you Damn¨¦."

    "I love you too Tabri. If you don''t mind, I think I''ll retreat into your shadow to rest."

    "Of course"

    Turning to smoke, he dove into her silhouette. Still tired, Tabri called over one of animated dolls to help her up. She directed the other five out, watching them jump out the holes they arrived through. Her servant led her to the narrow exit.

    Behind her, the Fiend''s forgotten cocoons rustled. Hands pushed through the thick webbing and spongy waspwax to free themselves. The captured Xureans tore open their prisons and gulped down revitalizing air. Men and women stepped out into the chapel as if from a sudden, curious slumber.

    "What happened?" said one, "My head is so fuzzy."

    "I remember a monster. She... put us to sleep."

    "Yes! Then she wrapped us in these webs. But where is she?"

    The settlers examined their surroundings, finding no sign of their tormentor, but spotted their rescuer making her leave.

    "Wait Miss, who are you? Did you free us?"

    Tabri turned back and a stray moonbeam threw her shadow on the wall. The twin flames of Damn¨¦''s eyes shone clear and the shade shifted into his form. The Xureans backed away at the sight.

    She held out an empty hand. "Fear not, I mean you no harm. Indeed, I am your rescuer. The Fiend that assailed your home is gone, banished from this realm. If you wish to know more, I suggest speaking to your Deacon. It was he who summoned that foul specter."

    That fact drew gasps from her former people, but their shock soon turned to curiosity.

    "Do we know you, miss?"

    Tabri opened her mouth to answer, but paused. For a moment she considered revealing her identity as the girl they''d exiled all those years ago. There would be no better retribution than telling them she was now their salvation. But the new witch had moved beyond such pettiness.

    Instead, all she said was, "No. You know me not. I am but a spellcaster, passing through. Your thanks are unnecessary. Good night."

    With that, she turned and left. As she did, the idol of the Deacon''s god cracked apart and toppled over.

 Girl Meets Devil: Chapter 7

    The Old Wood of Hauntergast often possessed a grim, predatory atmosphere. Tall, dark trees and cloistering canopies of leaves covered the forest floor in darkness, and eerie silence its usual music. But with the passing of winter, the gloom lifted. By Middle Spring, the ancient timberland became downright pleasant. Sun dappled the newborn blossoms and thawing creeks babbled sweetly. Life came back, however briefly, to a land that so often seemed cold and haunted.

    Alinka trod her way through this revitalized landscape, a basket of treats on her arm. Despite the Witchfolk still being wary of letting the Children of Xur wander too far into their hidden glades, the Coven Mother made certain exceptions for her.

    She half-skipped down a low hill and came to her destination, a cottage built into a cave beneath a huge tree''s roots. A brook ran in front of the cozy domicile, with a small bridge over it. On that bridge Alinka spotted the reason for her visit.

    Tabri lay there on her stomach, bare feet idly kicking behind her, and twirled a flower between her fingers. Her loyal devil, Damn¨¦, sat on her back and stroked his chin, lost in thought as he stared out into the foliage. Despite his thick onyx skin, he weighed no more than a cotton sheet.

    Their visitor called out to them.

    "Hello, you two!"

    Tabri waved back. "Alinka, welcome!"

    The old friends rushed forward to meet each other in an embrace. Alinka hugged Damn¨¦ too. He wouldn''t say so, but he appreciated the gesture. Soon all three gathered on a blanket on the lawn to indulge in Alinka''s goodies. She updated them on the goings-on of the Xurean village, which Tabri found more convenient than treetop snooping.

    "Nearly everything has been rebuilt, thanks to the help you sent. Those male Witchfolk may not be great talkers, but darn if they aren''t industrious little fellows. I think one has even taken a shine to me."

    "Alinka, you naughty girl. He''s probably twice your age."Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "Well we all can''t find Fiends for husbands."

    They chuckled like they did as girls and Damn¨¦ just looked on, uncertain whether he was being mocked or not.

    "And the Deacon?"

    "Exiled to the mountains. Where he''ll remain for selling us to that Fiend."

    Tabri sipped some tea, taking comfort that some justice had come to that awful man.

    "Good," she said.

    "You''ll like this. We lashed him to a barren tree up there. But yes, we''ve turned back to the old Gods since. As we did back in Xur. Fear of magic is fading as well. Maybe we''ll start training in the arcane arts again."

    "I wish you luck."

    "You''re welcome back anytime, you know."

    "I know."

    Alinka looked over her old friend, and scarcely believed how much Tabri had changed. Not just from when their people tied her to that tree all those years ago, but since she banished the nameless hag in the autumn past. She wore naught but a loose white dress. Her already wild hair had grown down to the small of her back, held out of her face by only a simple strip of cloth. The spellcaster''s bearing was that of an untamed she-wolf, beautiful and free, like she''d never known life in the city. Tabri seemed to glow and in all her visits, Alinka never saw Damn¨¦ leave her side.

    "This is a nice cottage, but have you two given any thought to moving back to the Witchfolk village?"

    "Not really." She twisted the wolf tooth amulet around her neck. "I have this for when I have to go there. Ozaika could make another one of these easily, but Damn¨¦ and I are content out here. We''re all we ever needed."

    She and the devil shared a kiss.

    "Don''t you two get lonely?"

    "We won''t be alone much longer," said Damn¨¦, "Tell her the good news, beloved."

    Tabri ran a hand down her abdomen and said, "I''m pregnant."

    Alinka gasped, clapping her hands over her mouth. She pointed to her friend and then to her Patron. They both nodded in turn.

    "Congratulations," she said, "Oh, I wish I had someone to tell about this."

    Morning turned to afternoon and Alinka had to be on her way. Pledge and Patron waved goodbye to her.

    "She seemed rather excited about our news," said Damn¨¦. "Do you think you''ll take her up on her offer? To go back to your people, I mean. I could go in your shadow."

    "Maybe some day. We''ll take our child there."

    Tabri leaned back on her husband, Patron, and devil''s chest. She traced a finger up and down her belly, sensing the magic of a different kind growing there.

    "But for now, I''m happy here. I''m home."

    "I couldn''t agree more."

    Damn¨¦ bent down and kissed his wife again.

    In the years to come, the two would fulfill their promise and their child would leave their home in the Old Wood. Their only child, who would become the first monarch of Hauntergast and start a dynasty, born from two abandoned souls who found each other in the forest and fell in love.