Into The Burning Flame

“Go away now!” My mother’s voice, although weak, came out harshly as she pushed me away from her.

Tears ran down my eyes and I shook my head stubbornly. “I’m not leaving you behind mother, not now, nor ever!” I swore.

I could hear their heartbeat loud in my ears and I knew my mother could too, they were fast approaching and we were no match for them. My mother writhed from pain on the floor, she had collapsed, her injuries too unbearable and I knew she was giving up the fight. The large forest wasn’t enough to cloak us.

We had escaped home with mother’s teleportation power, but not before one of those bastards had swiftly struck her, his blade slicing through her back. My hands shook as I ran them down the gash on her back, her cloth was fast soaking with blood, trailing us as we made our way deeper through the forest, stumbling past fallen trees and twigs.

“It’s no use,” Mother said but I ignored her and closed my eyes trying to focus all my powers. I felt the energy make its way from my core, passing through the rest of my body until it came to my fingers sizzling and it stopped, abruptly.

“Fuck!” I cursed loudly, my voice ringing through the forest.

“Shut up!” Mother hissed, a reminder that we were in danger.

“Why isn’t it working?” I asked, tears of frustration pouring down my face.

My mother’s breath came out shaky. “Anthurium,” She managed. “I could smell it in the air.”

Realization dawned on me, it was why mother’s powers hadn’t been able to teleport us far enough, anthurium was every witch’s enemy, when properly prepared with the right spell and at the accurate time, it could cease or weaken a witch’s powers leaving them vulnerable, just like we were.

“Climb on top of my back.” I attempted to pull her but I felt her restraint.

“Go away Eliana, it’s me they want, not you. I’ll distract them, please go from here.” She pleaded, tears pooling in her eyes, and in all my years alive I had never seen my mother cry.

“If they want you, then they’ll have me too.” And with a force I didn’t know I possessed, I hauled mother up my back, ignoring her grunts of pain as I hurriedly made my way farther into the darkness.

My movement wasn’t fast enough and even I knew deep in my heart that this was futile, soon enough I realized mother had gone eerily quiet.

“Mother,” I called, my chest tightening in fear.

“Let me go, Eliana, please.”

I smelt them before I saw them and from the way mother stiffened on my back, I knew she did too.

“What? Are there no more tricks in your sleeve left to pull?” I heard a cynic voice ask, humor in his tone.

We were immediately surrounded by men of different sizes and heights, each holding a torch that lightened the night. My eyes moved from one man to another, there were over a hundred of them but I knew if I had my powers I could easily have destroyed them, with just a thought slain bodies would have pooled around me within seconds.

“You’re all despicable!” I spat fearlessly, I would be damned if I was going to show fear in the face of these lowly werewolves, they were no match for me and even in my death, I would never bow to them.

The man who was obviously their leader laughed, an ugly laugh that was just like his face, his scarred, horrendous face.

“So she speaks,” He mused.

My jaw tightened. “Let us go and I will spare you.” I threatened, I couldn’t let them know there was nothing I could do.

Their leader approached me slowly with some men following behind him until he stood right in front of me and grabbed one of my hands forcefully placing it on his chest.

“Go on hag, kill me!” He dared, his dark eyes filled with loathe fixed on me.

Again, electricity made its way to my fingers and stopped. I wanted to cry, curl up on the floor and cry until I woke up from this nightmare but I didn’t, I retrieved my hand and jutted out my chin fiercely. Another man roughly pulled mother from my back and she landed on the floor.

“Mother!” I screamed attempting to reach her just before I felt myself being pulled back. All of the men moved towards us now and in no time, I was being tied up, my screams, scratches, and kicks were all useless and when my leg finally struck someone, in a flash, a hand swung at me so hard, I felt one of my teeth fall off into my mouth.

I spat it out, a mixture of blood and saliva but I didn’t cry, I was never going to do so no matter how tears stung at my eyes and the pain tore at me.

My mother and I were led back to their land, she was weak and her eyes were closed, her breath coming out shallow. All through the way, the men sang demeaning songs and then songs of war success as they led us back to their home.

The crowd waiting for us scared me, all of the werewolves pack members gathered around waiting for us and as the men led us through, me on my feet being pulled by the rope that had been tightly wound up around my hands binding me, and mother on the floor being dragged along.

Pebbles were thrown at us, stinging my face and arms but I showed no fear even as I felt a thick, mucous land on my face, I made no move to wipe the saliva and simply stumbled on until we were brought to the center of the clearing and I was made to kneel in front of the log of wood piled up together.

“Mother,” I called. “Mother please open your eyes.” I pleaded but she lay on the floor motionless, the tears poured down my face this time and a loud wail escaped from deep in my throat.

The scream tore out from me as I attempted to crawl towards her, the pack members laughed as they watched me, the laughter ringing out more when I was pulled back from mother by the werewolf holding the other end of the rope around me.

Silence fell amongst them when a man walked towards us, his looming figure stood above me as he stared down at me with disgust, Alpha Damon stood in all of his glory.

“I told your mother,” He started, his voice thick with emotion. “That she was going to regret this.”

“She didn’t kill anyone!” I yelled back at him, all of his pack members feared him for his ruthlessness but at this point, I didn’t care anymore. “My mother is innocent.”

His lips curled up into a smile. “Was,” He corrected, sparing a glance at mother’s lifeless figure that lay next to me.

He turned to his men, “Put them up.” He ordered and immediately I and mother’s body were hauled up and placed on top of the pile of wood. I didn’t struggle, the fight in me had died alongside my mother.

I watched silently as Alpha Damon was handed a torch and he held it above us amidst cheers and claps from the rest of the people surrounding us.

“I hope to reunite in hell, Eliana.” My name coming out from his lips accompanied by a wicked smile just as he dropped the torch on my mother’s body, the fire immediately spreading amongst everything around us.

My eyes closed on their own and tears fell from my eyes at the injustice that had been done to me and my mother.

“I am going to be reborn,” I said, letting loose all of the anger, pain, and betrayal I felt. “I am going to be birthed again and I promise to make you pay for this Damon, I, Eliana will destroy you!”

His thrilled laughter was the last thing I heard as the fire swallowed me.

(AUTHOR’S NOTE: Hi, thank you for clicking to read this out of a thousand other books out there. This is my first time writing in the fantasy genre and I promise to make this worth your while so please do stick with me. Kindly vote and comment)