Rejected - The Enchantress

We reach the archives which are located in a two story building beside the pack house and I am overwhelmed by the amount of books and scrolls that line the shelves. He leads me to the back of the first floor and begins sifting through the books until he finds the one he is looking for. We both sit down at the table at the center of the room and he opens the book, flipping nearly halfway through before stopping and turning the book toward me. On the page is a very detailed drawing of the dark haired woman from my dreams. I turn to the next page and find an equally detailed picture of the Queen of the Forsaken, the white haired woman from my dreams.

“How is this possible? I was only an infant when this battle took place, so how the hell am I dreaming about it?!” I bury my face in my hands, trying to sort through my muddled thoughts.

“There has to be a logical explanation. After dinner, we can speak with Lauren and see if she found anything more that can help us.” I shake my head and straighten in my chair.

“You said you had some information on the dark enchantress. I would like to see it, please.” I reluctantly walks back to the same shelf and pulls out two leather bound books and sets them on the table in front of me.

“There are passages in both of these about her.” I open the first book, a journal with the name Emil, and begin skimming pages. On the tenth page I find a passage that makes my blood run cold.

‘I was returning from the mill after the end of my shift today when I spotted the enchantress. Everyone always warned us to stay away from her, but I couldn’t stop myself. I followed her down toward the dock, but it was the sight of Owen being held against the building by Alpha Kendrick that caused me to hide. I watched the interaction as the enchantress tried to beg for him to release him. I watched helplessly as she tried to reassure Owen that he would be alright once the alpha had dropped his bloodied body to the ground. He uttered few words, taunting her and daring her to use her magic against him. He knows that the act of using magic within the city is punishable by death. I watched as he slammed his foot through Owen’s chest, but even he seemed unprepared for the sorrow filled wail that the enchantress unleashed. A strange black mist formed around her hands then it slithered like dozens of serpents toward the alpha until they had entered every opening they could find and left behind a mummified corpse as they returned to her. As they seeped back into her flesh, I watched as her skin hardened, becoming like stone and cracking before my eyes. I ran from the scene, hoping she did not see me and hoping to the goddess that if she did, she doesn’t come after me.’

I feel my heart racing as I read the details of my dream from a different perspective. I scan through the remainder of the journal, but the only other mention of the enchantress was a passage that stated that no one in the city had seen her since Owen’s death. I close the journal and slide it to the center of the table before opening the second. This one seems different from the first, beginning with the lack of a name for the writer. As soon as I turn to the first entry, I begin reading and feel my racing heart rate increase to an impossible rate.

‘The coven has denied my request to join in their training. They stated I lack the breeding required to be a true member of the coven. I am not pure enough to train with them, but they have no problem with treating me as a servant. I have served them since I was five and yet am still unworthy of being one of them. Even without their training, I have discovered many things on my own, but my abilities are wasted here. I am going to leave and find someone to train me since the people of my own coven will not.’

I flip past the next seven entries that seem to detail her plan of escape and tops on the nineth page where I begin reading and feel the world around me become charged with energy as I read each word in a state of shock.

‘I have been traveling for three days now. Tonight I was overtaken by the scent of smoke and burning flesh filling the air. I wanted to run away, but I could hear screams in the distance. I ran toward them and found a single house, the only one not currently burning. I made my way to the house with its door wide open and everything within bathed in a thick blanket of darkness…’

I stop reading and slide the book away from me only to have Syrus grab it to scan the entry that had me stunned into silence.

“Who wrote this one?” I stare blankly ahead and my mouth begins moving faster than my brain can produce thoughts.

“She finds a child in that house. The child dies in her arms and when the attacker comes for her, that is the first time she truly used her powers. That journal was written by the enchantress.” He continues skimming the page then turns to the next page and lowers the book.

“How do you know what happened? She writes about finding the child, but there is nothing after that, so how do you know?” My eyes meet his and I feel a shar pain in my chest.

“Because I saw it. What the hell is wrong with me?” He drops the journal and grabs my shoulders tightly.

“Nothing is wrong with you, Caitlin. I am sure there is a completely rational explanation for your dreams. Before you let yourself over think, let’s meet with Lauren and show her these. Let’s see what she has to say.” I nod, but I am not entirely sure I want to know the reason for why I am dreaming about past tragedies in the dark enchantress’s past.