Lux
Christmas break came and went without any other strange incidents, but Lux felt a growing sense of restlessness when she was once again isolated from her Circle. Even the friendly faces at the coffee shop didn't spark the same joy they once had. It was time to move on, but to what she didn't know.
Her mother wanted her to go to college, but that dream felt as if it belonged to another girl. Lux couldn't see herself studying English when she should be growing in her knowledge of magic, even if her mother insisted it was possible to balance a magical life with a human existence.
Because Lux wasn't just any witch. She was the Priestess Most High, and for every bit of knowledge she'd gleaned over the last two years, there were a dozen more things she didn't know or understand. Kitty was right about one thing. She couldn't carry as much power as she had without learning how to use it.
Taking advantage of the mild January temperatures, Lux went to the Nature Center for a walk after work. As a Quartz witch, she found strength in all elements- the earth steadied her, the air energized her, water cleared her thoughts, and fire... she looked down at her hands and let flames dance across her fingers. It wasn't an element she had access to in everyday spell casting, but when she did, it made her feel invincible. No wonder fire witches had a reputation for being brash and bold and for going to the darker sides of the craft.
With most people back at school and work, Lux had the trails to herself. The world was mostly quiet, not even the leaves crunched beneath her boots because of recent heavy rains. They stuck to the earth, their mottled brown and orange skins torn and frayed. Leafless branches clacked together in the breeze, creating dancing shadows when they interrupted sunbeams. And overhead, the winter sky was pale blue and unmarred by clouds.
A perfect day for a witch to take a walk.
If only, Lux sighed as she thought to herself, the peace around me would spread to inside of me.
The real problem with moving forward was that she knew exactly what she must do, and it was exactly what her mother and grandmother didn't want her to do. Seek help from outside the First Circle. Before he left, Declan had suggested she consider training beneath another High Priestess, but Memaw shut him down so fast Lux had whiplash.
To ask for training would be to admit how ill equipped their Circle was. For centuries, the First Circle was revered, and even when it seemed to fade from existence, others spoke of them in reverent whispers. When the witching world became aware of the new generation of First Circle witches, they didn't question their right to lead the other Circles. They were the Gatekeepers. The First of the First Daughters. And so far, they'd managed to put on a convincing front, but if Lux, the future Priestess Most High, asked for help, it would be an admission that no one in their Circle was skilled enough to train her.
"What does it matter?" she hissed, putting her hand against a tree as she caught her breath at the top of the hill.
It wasn't as though any of the other witches had stepped up to carry the burden of guarding the Gateway to the Underworld when the First Circle failed in their duties, and if the rumors in the supernatural world were true, a war was coming. She had to be ready to lead her people because losing wasn't an option. Not when Morgan hated witches and sorcerers almost as much as she hated the Guardians- the very people who were created to fight against her.
Something foul tainted the breeze, and she jerked away from the tree, opening herself up to her power as she searched for the source. This wasn't simply a bad smell- no this was the putrid stench of blood magic.
Moving faster, she slipped through the trees, a spell on her lips as she looked, but it faded to a gasp when she came to a sudden halt. This place was familiar, and suddenly she had the sense that things had come full circle.
"Lux, what brings you here?"
Taken aback, she looked up to find Hanish peering down at her with his peculiar silver eyes. Never far from Audra, the Fae was as reserved as the air witch was impetuous. The only time he seemed to waiver in his steadiness was when Travis was near. His love for the fledgling Guardian was evident to anyone with eyes.
"Hello, Hanish. I didn't know you and Audra were still around. She usually disappears after the Gateways are sealed for the year."
"She's somewhere in Tennessee."
Lux frowned. "I thought where she went, you went."
"Not this time. Separation will serve us better for now. She's investigating supposed sightings of werewolves in a small town."
"And what are you doing?"
He jumped down from his branch, using his affinity with air to slow his descent, landing lighter than a cat. Pointing down the hill, he started to walk, not bothering to ask her to follow.
"The taint a Bloodborn leaves behind takes years to fade, but it does fade. This place remains drenched in filth. It wakes me up at night no matter my distance from it."
"I don't feel it. Not like the last time."
She shivered, remembering how vile it had been when she and Brook stumbled upon it. The evil had coated their lungs like tar, and breathing was almost impossible.
"The Bloodwitch is clever. Powerful. Wards and spells are strong."
"Why didn't Daphne hide if it was possible?"
The Sylph shrugged. "With no practicing witches in the area, she didn't think she needed to hide." A tightness grew around his eyes. "A Bloodwitch that would willingly work and live in the same space as the First Circle terrifies me. It's almost as if she's asking you to find her."
They stopped in the same place as before. There were no visible markers declaring this spot as evil. The forest looked as beautiful and peaceful here as it did on the trail, but Lux could feel it now. It didn't bring her to her knees as it once had, but her eyes watered.
Forcing back bile, she worked moisture in her mouth so that she could speak. "Did we step through the wards?"
Hanish nodded. "She works in a small space. There has been a fresh kill, but the body has been moved."
"We've not had anyone reported missing in years. Not since Corinne- no, wait. There was a girl. Kana Saito. But, I think her parents said she was a runaway."
The Fae shook his head slowly. He dropped to the ground and ran his finger through the earth. When he lifted it, black mud and detritus clung to the digit. First, he sniffed it, and then he put it in his mouth.
"Much blood is in this soil. Much is old, but there is some fresher than others. The earth has been watered steadily with it for the last two years."
Lux staggered back, clutching her stomach as her magic swirled inside of her. It pushed against her skin and filled her channeling stone, but still she couldn't find relief. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and the world started to spin.
"Lux, are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she gasped, fanning herself as she fought for control. Not since the days before she had her stone had she been so overwhelmed by the power inside her.
"Focus on your stone. Push your power through it."
Breathing through her nose, she closed her eyes, driving her magic through the key at her neck. It grew so hot, she thought it would burn her, but as she listened to Hanish's soothing voice, the tempest inside of her calmed. The stone cooled.
Unleash it all.
Her eyes snapped open. The voice in her mind didn't belong to her, but she had no time to think about it as the reality of their discovery started to sink in now that she could think clearly.
"Better?"
"Yes."
"Does that still happen often?" His finger hovered above her channeling stone. "Even with this?"
"No, that was a first. Just a response to finding out there's a serial killer witch living right under our noses. Again!"
"We need to bring the Circle back."
The gut feeling was fast and hard. "No. Not yet."
"Lux, you're powerful, but this witch is dangerous. She'll fight dirty."
Lux surveyed the lair, a plan forming in her mind. "I'm counting on it."