The Stone Keeper's Quest- Elrich
chapter 4

The bushes rustled. The soldiers drew their swords from the scabbards on their belts and tensed. A figure emerged from the greenery, his face grim and sweaty. It was Zachary, the First Commander. The soldiers relaxed and sheathed their blades.

“Sire, there are four witches in the clearing,” Zachary reported. “And something else. A dead beast of some kind.”

“A beast?” King Gilfillan II asked, his brow furrowing. “What kind of beast?”

Zachary shook his head. “I couldn’t tell, Sire. It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”

The king clenched his jaw. “Have I grown so weak that witches dare to hunt in my lands?” he muttered. No one answered. He looked at Zachary with a fierce glint in his eyes. “We’ll take them by surprise and capture them alive. They’ll pay for their crimes with their blood.” He turned to his men and raised his voice. “You heard me. Follow Zachary and do as he say.”

The soldiers nodded and dismounted their horses. They grabbed their quivers of arrows from their saddles and slung them over their shoulders. Zachary led them into the bushes, gesturing for them to be quiet and careful. They moved swiftly and silently, like shadows among the leaves. Zachary stopped and raised his fist.

The soldiers halted behind him. He crouched and crept forward, peering through the branches. The soldiers followed his example. Zachary reached for an arrow and fitted it to his bowstring, pulling it back with a steady hand. He aimed at one of the witches, who was kneeling by the carcass of the strange beast. The soldiers did the same, each picking a target. Zachary gave a sharp whistle and released his arrow.

The arrow flew through the air and pierced the witch’s thigh. She screamed and fell to the ground, blood spilling from her wound. The other witches looked up in alarm, only to see more arrows flying towards them.

Arrows flew from the bushes, cutting through the air with deadly precision. The witches gasped and dodged, but not fast enough. Madeleine felt a sharp pain on her cheek as an arrow grazed her skin. She heard a scream behind her and turned to see Kiara clutching her thigh, where an arrow had pierced her flesh.

Gianna ran to her side and helped her onto her flying stick. “Kiara, are you all right?” she asked, worried in her voice. She glanced at the wound and saw blood dripping from it. She tore a piece of cloth from her robe and wrapped it around Kiara’s leg, hoping to stop the bleeding.

Kiara grimaced and nodded. “I’ll live,” she said through gritted teeth. She clenched her jaw and tried to ignore the pain. She looked at Madeleine and saw blood on her face. “What about you? You’re bleeding too.”

“Sisters, we have to get out of here,” Madeleine said. She grabbed her own flying stick and lifted off the ground. She wiped the blood from her cheek with her sleeve and felt a sting. She ignored it and focused on flying away from the danger.

The other two followed her, rising above the trees. More arrows flew at them from below, some missing by inches, some hitting branches and leaves. The witches dodged and weaved, hoping to escape. The bushes erupted with soldiers, who ran after them with swords and bows. They shouted and cursed, firing at the witches whenever they had a clear shot.

“Fly higher, but not too high,” Madeleine said. “We can’t let them catch us.” She looked down and saw blood soaking her robe. She had been hit in the stomach and didn’t even notice. She felt a surge of fear and pain but tried to ignore it. She looked ahead and saw a branch blocking her path.

She tried to swerve, but it was too late. She crashed into the wood with a loud crack and lost her grip on her flying stick. She fell from the sky like a broken bird, flailing her arms in vain. She hit the ground with a thud that knocked the breath out of her.

She tried to get up, but her legs wouldn’t move. She heard footsteps approaching and saw soldiers surrounding her with swords drawn. She reached for her wand, but it was too far away. She felt a cold blade press against her throat and knew it was over.

“Stay put, you are not going anywhere,” said King Gilfillan’s soldier as he kicked Madeleine in the abdomen inviting a piercing squeal.

“Tie her up,” said First Commander Zachary. He pointed his sword at the unconscious witch lying on the ground.

“One down three to go,” said First Commander Zachary, as they continued with the chase leaving behind two soldiers busy tying Madeleine with hemp vegetable rope.

“Madeleine is hurt, let’s go back for her,” said Kiara, her voice muffled by the war cry below. She looked back at the scene and saw her friend’s limp body being dragged away.

“What?” said Gianna.

“Madeleine is hurt, let’s go back for her,” said Kiara shouting at the top of her voice. She turned her flying stick around.

Gianna grabbed Kiara’s stick and tried to stop her. “We can’t go back, it’s very risky,” she said.

Kiara shook off Gianna’s grip. “I can’t leave her now, can I?” she said.

“Kiara, come back you are hurt,” said Gianna as she saw the blood dripping from Kiara’s leg where an arrow had pierced her flesh.

“Let’s leave her Gee she is a fool,” said Andrea, accelerating. She ignored Kiara’s reckless act and focused on escaping.

“All for what Gee, the Code of Honor, well I am not dying for no one today, princess or not,” said Andrea. She glanced at Gianna and saw the conflict in her eyes.

Kiara’s sharp eyes spotted the troops long before they got within her range. Halting no time further, she rushed towards a tall tree and took refuge in its branches. She held her breath as the menacing army slowly walked in obliviousness beneath her. The pain in her injured thigh was intensifying with every tick of the clock.

Kiara adjusted her posture to ease the agony, but then a branch made contact with the arrow in her leg and an excruciating pain ensued. She clenched her teeth, trying to prevent herself from screaming out loud.

Blood gushed through her thigh and flowed down. The blood splattered on the shoulder of a soldier passing by below and the soldier removed the blood with his fingers, stared at it for a while, and finally looked up.

“Over here!” the soldier shouted as he noticed Kiara courteously hiding behind the leaves. He drew his bow and aimed at Kiara.

Kiara gasped as a sharp pain stabbed her chest. She snatched her flying stick and took off. The soldiers chased her through the swaying trees, shooting arrows at her. Kiara zigzagged and darted on her stick, trying to dodge the flying projectiles. She felt a sudden jolt of agony in her lower body and saw an arrow sticking out of her belly.

Another arrow pierced Kiara’s shoulder, making her wince and tear up. She lost control of her flying stick, which veered off and smashed into a tree. This sent her flying into the air and bouncing off a springy branch. She landed on another branch from a nearby tree, which flung her back and slammed her into a third tree trunk. She finally fell to the ground and hit it with her face.

“Secure her, the others can’t be far ahead,” said First Commander Zachary.

*****

As they approached Witchesville, the witches flew down and entered the gate under the watchful Frost Giant’s eye. “Soldiers! Soldiers!”

The sound of alarm made the witches leave their huts and gather at the altar in the middle. Queen Witch Moribund came out of her house, annoyed by the noise. She lifted her hand and silenced the rowdy crowd with her authority.

Queen Witch Moribund asked Gianna with urgency, “What is going on?” She gripped Gianna’s arm and looked around nervously.

Gianna replied, “King Gilfillan’s soldiers are chasing us, my queen.” She pointed to the forest.

The queen’s voice rose in panic. “Where is Madeleine?” She scanned the faces of the other witches, hoping to see her daughter among them.

Gianna fell silent. She lowered her head and bit her lip. The queen repeated, louder, “Where is my daughter?” She shook Gianna’s arm and glared at her.

Andrea spoke up, lowering her eyes. “She was captured, my queen.” She swallowed hard and clenched her fists.

The queen’s lips trembled, and her eyes turned red. “You abandoned my daughter,” she accused. She released Gianna’s arm and stepped back, as if betrayed.

Andrea bowed her head in shame. “We had no choice, my queen. There were too many for us.” Andrea said. She lifted her gaze and met the queen’s eyes with a pleading look.

The queen said bitterly, “No wonder my eyes were burning.” She closed her eyes and chanted, “Damicho Karawu,” to link with the four eyes of the Frost Giants, the eyes that guarded the village.

She scanned the surroundings through the four giant eyes, looking for signs of the enemy. She broke the connection and opened her eyes.

“They are almost here, Grand Witches. Quickly, let’s form a Ring of Fire,” Queen Witch Moribund commanded. She grabbed one Grand Witch’s hand and pulled her into the circle with the other witches.

The twelve Grand Witches and the queen joined hands in a circle and chanted in unison, “Mezito marodo.” They repeated the spell over and over, until sparks flew from their hands and wove together into a white ring of energy that encircled the village, shielded by the giant eyes. The ring of fire crackled and roared, creating a barrier of light against the enemy.

*****

“Look! There’s a weird gate over there,” one of King Gilfillan’s soldiers pointed at Gianna and Andrea, who were running under the gate.

“Stop!” King Gilfillan II ordered, raising his hand. “This must be the notorious Witchesville,” he said, his voice full of contempt and curiosity.

“Your Majesty, we are outnumbered. There could be hundreds of witches inside,” First Commander Zachary warned, glancing nervously at the surrounding trees. He saw one of the Frost Giant’s eyes move and shouted, “Take cover!” He pushed the king behind a large rock and drew his sword. The other soldiers followed his example, hiding behind whatever they could replace.

“They are counting us,” King Gilfillan II realized, feeling a cold sweat on his brow.

The soldiers watched in awe as a white ring of energy formed around the village, connecting the giant eyes. Then, the village vanished like a misty image on a mirror, and a thick forest appeared in its place. The gate, the houses, the witches, all gone without a trace.

“Was it all an illusion? Witches and their dark magic,” First Commander Zachary muttered, shaking his head.

“Let’s go back to the castle the way we came. Mark our path as we go,” King Gilfillan II instructed, getting up from his hiding spot.