《The Night's Witch》


 Prologue

    A cold breeze spread through the field, grass swayed as the moonlight shone upon them with mysterious and symphonic light. The terror and horror that happened a few hours ago seemed to cease and the place was left to nothing but silence, with a frequent echo of insects and howls of hidden beasts.


    The supposed smell of nature and grass was occasionally covered with whiffs of stinking blood. Traces of said red liquid could be found here and there but all of it led to a single person lying on the ground, motionless.


    Arms were sticking to the body¡¯s sides, stomach pressed against the harsh ground and clothes were ripped apart from different places as if the body¡¯s owner was fighting for their life. Blood was splattered around the whole body with scars that were almost impossible to heal even if the body¡¯s soul was still intact. The back had the largest damage, a large sword sank deep inside the body as it shone a cold blue light against the world.


    The weapon had a bizarre shape as if the maker couldn¡¯t decide between a dagger or a sword. The grip, which seemed to be barely few centimeters tall, was arced like a dagger¡¯s handle, foreign words and ancient patterns were drawn on a brown leather covering it. The metal began blooming after a few millimeter of graced gold guard that followed the beginning of the sword¡¯s body in an empty triangle and gave a deadly royal vibe.


    The blade curved with a thin width at the beginning before thickening up and straightening its spine to reach a wide and terrifying point that was buried deep inside the body.


    The empty moments of cold wind and dead corpse could send chills to the mightiest knights. Maybe, that was the reason why everyone left such a young lady in these uncivilized grounds.


    But as harsh as humans were, fate followed everyone till the end and left none untouched. Many fear superiors, many fear parents, many fear death, but they forgot about fate and destiny. Fate brings all of these and scars a lot.


    And fate decided to play a cruel game this time. Fate decided to erase the lines of what seemed believable.


    The white as jade frozen fingers twitched. The wind that played with the scattered black hair stopped and particles of flying sand and insects were paralyzed in the mid-air. A cloud slowly moved to cover the moon, and suddenly there was no light on the empty land.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    In the midst of this hushed disorder, the young lady¡¯s lungs moved tragically. At first she was panting hard but seemed unable to take the right amount of oxygen, then, slowly calmed down, breathing shallowly - as if she had fallen asleep.


    Her fingers shook, trying to regain some power and her small shoulders scorched up. She gathered the grass underneath her hand as she clenched her whole being to have some support. She failed a quite few times before gradually pulling herself up to sit on her knees.


    As the moonlight returned and the cloud disappeared, the place was illuminated with the sudden fireflies appearance. The whole scene resembled an illusion of a lonely painting of misery.


    With eyes covered by the dirted hair, the girl looked at the moon and breathed deeply from her nose. The sword on her back didn¡¯t give her any resounding feeling of pain, no. Rather it was a comforting reminder of what happened. It was a reminder that the bloodshed wasn¡¯t a dream afterall.


    She took her hands off her lap and placed them on the sword¡¯s handle. In agonizing speed and silent cries, it was taken out of her system. Blood maybe should¡¯ve rushed out at that moment, but no, the wound - the scar that they left for her - started closing down, leaving no trace of death.


    Her body began tingling as cuts healed themselves. She was left covered with bloody clothes and body, but no evidence of the cause.


    She was alive again and her soul returned from the depth of death zone.


    Her covered eyes were revealed as the wind played with her silky hair. Black horrifying empty eyes had sealed in all the memories that came to her. Their actions, her actions and her place¡¯s fate.


    Anyone would feel sad and miserable at a time like this, but she felt nothing. Her heart had stopped moving alongside her body, and even though her body turned back alive, her heart didn¡¯t.


    A mocking chuckle came out of her mouth. It was so low, barely hearable but somehow the sounds of animal howling in the night stopped and her laugh was carried with the wind.


    ¡°How do you feel?¡± A whisper asked her.


    ¡°Wonderful,¡±


    ¡°Remember the deal?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Very well then,¡± The voice carried a hint of viciousness. ¡°From today on, you are no longer Arie¡¯s beautiful sweetheart. You are the Night¡¯s witch.¡±

 Chapter 1 - The beginning

    Deep red liquid drowned her fair fingers and an agonizing scream followed that.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do it! Please, I swear on my famil- I swear on the gods above! I didn¡¯t do it.¡± It was pathetic enough to see a grown man who has enough muscles to send her frail body miles away with a soft punch - if she let him do so - break down in tears and soft demands of freedom.


    The small cell - adorned in grey harsh walls and nails implemented deep on one side of the room with a soft washed color of red that left the imagination run wild with what could it have been used for - had a strong smell of decaying corpses and lost lives, but that didn¡¯t matter for her.


    The only source of light was a tiny window close to the ceiling but out of anyone¡¯s reach. It had the width of a man¡¯s hand and the height of a grown mouse. It was small enough to let someone¡¯s hopes crush at the thought of no escape.


    ¡°London, again,¡± She ordered. No one had the speed of reacting yet as a strong whiplash hit the man to face the ground. The scars deep and red, running blood covered his knees and back, it was a miracle that the man didn¡¯t drop dead with blood loss. Some of his old uncleaned injuries were beginning to rotten or get infected by some kind of disease as colors were going from red to shades of greens and blues.


    He wanted to beg- he appeared he wanted to do so - but his words were caught in his throat as he raised his head with his greatest efforts to look at the young lady in front of him.


    Her figure was covered with a huge cloak of dark clothes. Her relaxed arms rested on armrests, back straight and head looking down at him. Her eyes were a little difficult to see since the cloak hood covered her face, but with one movement they shone in the darkness, making him wish he didn¡¯t catch the sight of them.


    She had eyes darker than nightmares, almost lucid-like, the more he looked at them the more he felt like he was hypnotized. Light didn¡¯t exist in her eyes. She caught his gaze but her expression didn¡¯t change. She didn¡¯t hold amusement or hatred, rather she looked empty and lifeless. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    Even if he didn¡¯t have the right to do so, for a tiny moment, he felt pity.


    But right after that moment, the young lady raised her hand which cut off his last source of life.


    Winter came without a warning. The evening seemed to seep in through the walls and cover up the corners of the streets that lanterns weren¡¯t able to light up. Weirdly, in such a cold and dark night, a crowd of people seemed to be busy talking and mingling with each other while others were just walking by.


    A figure walked into a stray alley located in the outskirts of the bustling town. The gentle taps of quick footsteps were skillfully obscure despite the small water ponds that scattered left and right in every turn. If not for the small puffs of fog coming out of that person¡¯s mouth, one wouldn¡¯t think they were breathing.


    With each turn, the darker the road got. Light almost didn¡¯t reach the end of the blocked alley, for there was a fake roof with scarves and other types of fabrics.


    The quick steps slowly turned into slow walk until they finally stopped in front of a woman dressed in red. The red attired - that was noticeably wearing something that didn¡¯t fit with the bone-freezing weather - woman pulled a soft smile as the shadowed figure entered her view. She chuckled softly before opening her arms.


    ¡°And to whom may I owe this honour of receiving such a glamorous guest?¡± Her words were tinted with obvious sarcasm and fake flattery. But the other person didn¡¯t seem to appreciate her words one bit.


    ¡°Carl, I need to meet Carl.¡± The stiff and low tone was colder than the weather, sending chills running through people¡¯s body.


    ¡°Why so anxious, darling?¡± Noticing that her open arms didn¡¯t meet anyone, she closed them around each other, tilting her head to the side with amused light flashed through them.


    The black-clothed figure sighed and walked into a dimly lit corner revealing a messy mass of blonde hair and vivid blue eyes of a man as tall as a pillar with sharp features and a poker face. His eyes, in that moment, looked as if they would kill a person. His cheekbones were high only giving his face structure more of a stoic look.


    Seeing as the large person in front of her looking all serious, she sighed in disdain and all the amusement she had in her went out of the window. She raised a dirtied gray curtain, covering an open door. ¡°Go this way,¡± she said.


    She didn¡¯t get to say anything else before the man was buried deep inside the darkness as he walked into the entrance, not forgetting to throw a few notes of cash on the ground.


    The vanished amusement made its way back on her face as she picked up the bank notes and slowly counted each one of them with care and love, forgetting all about what just happened.

 Chapter 2 - The Bargain (1)

    A hall was hidden behind the fake darkness. Lights emerged like waterfall and illuminated the space he finally reached. Glass walls - made as mirrors - and shiny black dotted in white floor sparkled as the light from the chandeliers reflected on them.


    The walls and floor mirrored his figure as vivid as a lake would. He noticed small spots of spilled drinks around the room and oddly dressed people pushing past each other to get from one side to another. He would have frowned upon this heavy taste if he cared enough to.


    The party was blessed with loud music and sound of joyful laughter completely different from the deadly silent night outside. Men in white and black suits shuffled around the room, holding trays containing empty and filled glasses of crimson colored drinks. In the middle of the huge hall stood a white square stage, framed by two huge and thick pillars on each side and a cage glittered in-between them as it slowly rose with barely dressed dancers moving inside charmingly.


    The most crowded zone was the bar on one side of the room, as people zoomed in there without any hesitation, completely obvious that this happened more than once.


    Two men wearing white masks walked toward the male that looked like sore thumb between the well-dressed and noble looking people with his mud-covered clothes.


    ¡°How can we help you, sir?¡± One with heavy accent asked, he raised his arm as to block the scene behind him from the uninvited guest. His mask had a hole in the center with drawn eye around it.


    ¡°Carl.¡± One word was enough to stiffen up both of the bodyguards and slightly bow their heads to him as they made way and broke the crowd apart, keeping him away from people¡¯s touch. He closed his eyes for a second as he sighed.


    This was all a major headache.


    They soon passed the caged dancers, passing the drunk crowd and the VIP seating and ran up a few stairs that were at the end of room, in an almost isolated corner, guarded by another staff with the same identical white one-eyed mask.


    As they reached the upper room, the air smelled and felt completely different from downstairs. In fact, the sounds from the party didn¡¯t reach here. The hallway itself felt more private and important than one would expect.


    Rather than white, the people upstairs wore black masks with no patterns or anything on them - how they were able to see was a mystery. The suits were white and the contrast between the people who were leading him and the ones that stood on the side of the hallway was apparent; the former showed respectable attitude to each passing worker.


    Finally, they reached a double door that was circled with designs of snakes almost biting each other¡¯s tails. The staff¡¯s gloved hand rose and knocked the door twice before stepping back at least few feet away. They instructed the blond man to back off to the side and wait.


    Seconds passed slowly as silence was the only companion to the standing lot. Irritation began to rise in his chest and he tried to hold himself down, remembering his teammate¡¯s words before he arrived here.


    He must be patient and let this deal go through.


    Time kept ticking and he was seconds away from telling the staff to knock once again. He didn¡¯t have the opportunity to do so before the door opened by itself with a huge bang, hitting the wall behind it and a child was thrown onto the ground in a humiliating way. He wasn¡¯t sure if he heard a bone break as he saw the poor child¡¯s face hit the surface.


    ¡°Don¡¯t come back if you don¡¯t have anything interesting to offer,¡± The hoarse voice came from inside the room. It was low and intimidating. The staff glanced at the stiff figure of a man and instructed him to enter.


    ¡°Oh James.¡± the overweight figure of a man only acknowledged the blonde with these two words before turning his attention back to his drinking glass, consuming it as if it was water. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    The room was decorated in a grandeur manner. It had golds, silvers and blacks all mashed up together somehow. The heater in the room was warming James¡¯ cold bones and for a moment, he felt relief before remembering that he shouldn¡¯t.


    This room had everything their people didn¡¯t have. It gave the illusion of another world, especially since the windows were closed with layered velvet curtains, blocking away the reality


    James felt his fingers itch. Bad habits were difficult to get rid off, especially ones you needed to use frequently. He rubbed his fingers against each other to contain himself. He wasn¡¯t a crow to follow shiny things. You¡¯re human.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have all day, young boy,¡± Carl warned, he kept his eyes on his glass of wine. ¡°I don¡¯t have the patience too, so talk your little talks and lets get over with this.¡± Hearing this, James rushed toward the seat opposite of where Carl was sitting proudly behind his royal walnut desk.


    He put his elbows on his knees and leaned closer while saying, ¡°You spoke to me last week of a deal. A land will be given to me if I bargained with a task,¡± He tried searching for Carl¡¯s gaze, but he wasn¡¯t graced with a glance, so he continued, ¡°You told me, if I did a job for you, you would give us our land back.¡±


    ¡°Which is mine now, right?¡± Finally, Carl looked at him with a reminding smirk - that almost made James rush toward him with his fist, had he not remembered what Mina told him - and pulled a contract and threw it at James


    ¡°Look at this and tell me what you think. I will give you twenty minutes, just in case you forgot how to read- do you know how to read?¡± James would have taken offence had he not felt that Carl almost hit the mark. He knew how to read, but it had been such a long time since he read long passages, and this complex looking contract would, most probably, take a lot of time for James to finish reading and understanding.


    So he began taking in the words immediately, understanding complex ones by the meaning of the sentence and for a second, that took him back to the times when he attended school with his brother. The times they worried about their exams, papers and maybe the fights that awaited them outside their dorms if they weren¡¯t careful.


    How many days did he stay up to finish studying? How many punches did he take for his weak brother? How many words did he swallow and stutter and forget back then because of fear?


    It was long ago, but at that second, it felt like it was yesterday. The sudden memory made James shake and close his eyes tightly to forget. He couldn¡¯t be remembering all of this now, He didn¡¯t have time for this and, maybe, the time was never for these stuff in James¡¯ life.


    After he finished - with a lot of effort - reading the whole contract, a deep frown placed itself on his face. His jaw clenched and he felt a little pale at what he read inside these papers. It was already a huge task to meet Carl, but meeting Carl and then taking this kind of a job? Yeah, that was pushing boundaries.


    ¡°Are you playing with us?¡± James tried counting to ten, maybe it will help.


    Carl shrugged his shoulders and said, ¡°It is your call, whether you accept it or not, i¡¯m not the one losing here.¡±


    Counting to ten was impossible, because James ended up slamming the papers on the table in front of him before he reached nine. He stood up from his seat and he heard the guards nearby the door prepare themselves to hold him down.


    ¡°This is suicidal! You are basically sending us to our deaths!¡± He wished he could implement his fist right in Carl¡¯s big nose, giving him a little help with his haggard face. ¡°We helped you days on end- no, years! and this is what you give us?!¡±


    When the man in front of him didn¡¯t say anything, James continued, ¡°The witch would kill us before we step in her compounds. You heard what she does, and you have seen it! Bringing her here - if we were able to - much less, killing her is impossible. You just want to get rid of us.¡±


    He must have hit the bull¡¯s eye, because he saw Carl narrowing his eyes and standing up from his seat suddenly, leaving his wine glass to tatter on the carpeted ground. ¡°Listen here, young boy,¡± Carl said, ¡°This task is yours, and if you accept it or not it is your call. The land was yours, and is mine now. If you want it back then work for it!¡± Carl¡¯s booming voice was afterward welcomed with silence.


    Once again after so many years, James somehow felt small, felt weak. He felt that it wasn¡¯t fair and this whole ordeal wasn¡¯t on their side. They could die, or perhaps something worse than death could happen to them, and James didn¡¯t know if they had any other choice.


    But they also needed the land, their people found it hard to find places to seek sanctuary in without paying their blood and tears. Things were harder in winter when even the best inn in town couldn¡¯t save their bodies from numbing.


    ¡°Go back and discuss it with your group. I will give you three days only to figure yourself out.¡± With that, he was ushered out of the building and into the chilly wind outside.

 Chapter 3 - The Bargain (2)

    Mina knew something was wrong when she saw her best friend march inside the inn, pushing the door open, forcefully. They had sent him to meet the dealer and find out about what he wanted from them, but looking at her friend¡¯s face, she knew something wasn¡¯t right.


    His face looked paler than usual and his eyes shone with deep killing intent. He looked like a rogue ready to jump on someone and maybe the people around her noticed that too, as they moved out of his way.


    She thought of the last time she had seen him like this. Blood had filled the town back then. It might have been at the fire five years ago, when the royals refused to acknowledge James¡¯ pleads and hopes. They set him outside of the palace on his knees, begging for someone to show mercy. She believed that his knees were frozen as ice and wind bit into them slowly, turning them shades of blue and purple, but he kept his gaze isolated from anything other than stairway in front of him. He kept his hopes up until they shattered before him.


    Her memories after that were jumbled. She only remembered bits and pieces and she believed that it might be herself not wanting to remember rather than her ability to.


    That was years ago and James was no longer weak. He proudly stood about six feet tall, his muscles were visible, even through his thick clothes and he ranked the highest in their group, almost topping Marcus with his fighting skills. Mina had a moment for herself before walking toward where James settled.


    The table he chose was their usual meeting place - not their discussion place, since it was far too public - and he knocked a few times on the old table before taking deep breaths as if he was following her instructions of how-not-to-lose-your-shit.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± It was a stupid question, but it was question that had to be asked. He nodded his head once, not looking at her. ¡°This isn¡¯t the place to talk, let¡¯s go to the back, the rest are there.¡±


    She tried her best not to set him off, she knew that at these type of situations, it was better to let him talk himself through before letting others speak to him. But now wasn¡¯t the time or place to give anyone space. They had a mission, they barely had any moment to spend carelessly lazing around.


    She was proved wrong when they entered the back room behind the bar, kept away for them after making special request with the bar owner and giving him special money - too much money. She found two of the group playing cards while chatting like housewives, one was making tea on one corner and one was sitting idly around. Mina almost stopped her steps and pulled at her hair in frustration .


    ¡°Oh, Blue is here!¡± Ethan called with a smirk while holding tea. He wasn¡¯t aware that it wasn¡¯t the perfect time to tease James and call him by his nickname, but his mistake was proven when the said man walked over to him and gave him a punch in the guts.


    James massaged his fist. ¡°That feels so much better.¡± He left his friend to get back up on his feet alone. Mina saw Ethan scowl at the behaviour of his crew member but didn¡¯t say anything, realizing that James was pissed off. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    Mina sighed, other than the messy attitude of the members, the place itself was a chaos. Stains covered the carpet, clothes and parts of them were thrown left and right and the blue coach, near a table in the middle of the room, was the worst, ripped at the bottom with a missing third seat from the side. They had meant to replace it with a new one but their priorities were all over the place for that.


    She stopped herself from going back to their bank book and counting how much profit they made this month.


    Mina snapped back to reality when James threw papers on the table. ¡°I spoke to Carl, and this is his deal.¡± He took a glass of liquid and chugged it all down without wincing.


    Daniel, who was sitting beside grumpy James, took the papers away and read them silently. His poker face slightly twitched before turning towards us. ¡°It says we need to pack our things and kill the witch. Bring her head back to Carl, alongside some potions, and we can get our land back.¡±


    There was no change in his tone as he spoke these words. The only change that was a little obvious was his green eyes as they slowly dimmed in color. ¡°The only guarantee we have that Carl wouldn¡¯t get back on his words, if we were able to accomplish this, is the Council¡¯s signature.¡± James added. The papers were passed around the room.


    Anri scoffed. ¡°What a funny joke that is.¡± the smile on her face was careless as she threw her winning cards. ¡°We only have to kill a sorceress and get back our home.¡± She flashed her white teeth at Marcus, taking all the spread money she won.


    Marcus face wasn¡¯t looking good as he glared at his companion. He looked like he was deciding whether or not to fight for his money back; his love for her seemed to win. ¡°We are talking about the same person right? The one that horrified those sad royal guards.¡±


    Mina agreed, ¡°We can¡¯t let our guard down. This mission would be our end if we don¡¯t make plans. Lots of plans,¡±


    ¡°And that is what we will do,¡± said Daniel, his eyes were occupied with the contract as it returned back to him.


    ¡°What do you mean, exactly?¡± Said Mina. ¡°Do you have one already?¡±


    They waited for Daniel to elaborate but they were answered with nothing other than, ¡°Go to sleep, it is getting late.¡± He stood up and left the group to their own anxieties before anyone could stop him.


    Luckily, Mina was able to catch a glance at his face. A glance was enough for her to know he was brewing something. Something complex and probably out of the world and he was keeping it to himself until he makes sure of all the possibilities.


    That was how Daniel worked. He thinks of ways, makes ways, and accomplish his task in the shortest time possible, that was one of the reasons they thought of him as a leader. Mina couldn¡¯t remember exactly when she had first met him, but she remember the times he got them out of troubles and the times he got injured for them. The patch covering one of his eyes was a clear reminder.


    She followed him out of the back door, noting how he was leaning against a brick wall, facing the door she got out of as if he was waiting for her. She froze for a second when his eyes met hers. The sun shone in them. His green-almost-hazel eyes reached somewhere deep in her, almost played with her mind.


    She needed sleep.


    ¡°What did you mean?¡± She said. She hoped her voice was as confident as she wished for it to be. The empty expression he gave her didn¡¯t let her read his mind. She saw him walking away again, out of the alley.


    It was of no use, but, nonetheless, she followed him until they reached the main canal of Eveawell, the shadows falling on the left road was their perfect barrier of the outside world and the loud noises coming from a nearby shop.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to explain yourself?¡± Mina¡¯s words fell on deaf ears as Daniel continued ignoring her. They passed by a bridge and two taverns before Mina started noticing where they were going. ¡°Daniel!¡±


    He finally stopped before entering the red-light district, almost making Mina bump into his back. She never thought that he was one to go to these kind of places, but at the same time, they never really got to know Daniel that well, anyway. He grew up with them but he was almost a shadow.


    That was the perfect way to describe him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t follow me anymore.¡± He said. He acknowledged her with a look over the shoulder. He continued before going on his own way, ¡°I will tell you tomorrow of the plan. Go back to check on James, we don¡¯t want another fight happening.¡± with that he disappeared.