Exclusive Bewitching Excerpt:
“I don’t mean to sound pushy,” Beth started, “but earlier you said that
I’m a Dreamer. Tell me more about what that is.”
Zack turned away from Frank, walked over to Beth, and took a seat back
at the table next to her. “I’m going to give you the short version,”
said Zack, “only because I need to get to the real reason for our
visit.”
“Of course,” said Beth.
“So straight to the point, you are a Dreamer, as I said before,” Zack
said. “That makes you part witch and part psychic but with an added
benefit of being more powerful than both. The main difference between
you and normal witches is that you can see into the future without using
magic because your psychic side empowers you to do so naturally. And you
don’t even need to train this skill. Where other witches fail, you
succeed because they don’t have the natural psychic ability you do. They
have to use magic to see into the future.”
Beth gawked in amazement at Zack’s words. “So how far into the future
can I see?” asked Beth.
Zack shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t know. But what I do know is that
the answers you seek can only be found in the grimoire. The grimoire is
the most powerful spell book among witches and warlocks. Every spell
from growing flowers in your garden to conjuring up lightning is
recorded in that book. Every name of every witch and warlock, whether
good or bad, down to every war, including the Great War of 1782 is
recorded in that book. You can even find spells on how to create magical
objects like amulets and talismans.”
“And even the mystical arts of performing magical charms and
divination, on summoning or invoking supernatural entities, is also a
part of that book,” Zoë chimed.
“Do you know how many supernatural beings would love to get their hands
on that book?” Zack added.
“Where is the book now?” asked Beth.
“Long gone,” Zack said. “It was given to a very powerful witch like
yourself to keep safe. She also was a dreamer, the first of your kind,
and the only one until now. You are the second, my sister, in our 250
years of traveling on this earth.”
“Only the second?” said Frank.
“Yes, only the second, and we’ve been everywhere in this world, so that
should tell you something. Your wife’s kind is rare.”
“Well, the question here for you to answer now is, who and where
is the first?” asked Beth.
“Her name was Tiara. And she died along time ago,” replied Zack
somberly.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Did you know her? I mean were you close with
her?” asked Beth.
“Yes…very. She was the one who taught Zoë and me how to use our
powers,” said Zack. His eyes beat over to Zoë. “She protected us during
and after the Great War. If it wasn’t for her, we would’ve been dead
long ago.”
“God, I miss her,” said Zoë, finally speaking up.
“Well, now that you know everything there is to know, keep this in
mind. Power is innocent. The one who wields it…” said Zack with a brief
pause. He pointed directly at Beth. “Well, that is what taints it. He or
she must decide to use it for good or evil. That choice makes a
difference.”
“Just remember who you are,” said Zoë, cutting in.
“I will,” said Beth.
“Good, now let’s get to the real reason why we’re here,” said Zack.
“After the great battle back in 1782, Jackals and witches all went their
separate ways as the town was no longer viable. The fallout of the fight
was tremendous; houses were burned to the ground. Bodies were
everywhere, and the land was saturated in blood and rotten flesh. The
stench was unbearable. It was all a complete mess. So some witches
migrated to the east while others went north. Zoë, Tiara, and I headed
west. After settling down for a few months, we split up again and went
our separate ways. Tiara told us she was going on a journey to find
someone very important and that she would be back in approximately one
year.”
“If you don’t mind me asking,” said Beth, “why didn’t you two go with
her?”
“We wanted to, but she forbade it. She insisted that we remain behind
and give aid to any stragglers that needed assistance,” said Zoë.
“Yes, she did,” said Zack as he nodded in agreement. “There is not a
day that goes by that I don’t live with the regret of my decision that
day.”
“So what happened to Tiara?” asked Frank.
“We never saw her again,” said Zack, his voice raspy and soft. “But
anyway, after 30 years away from Black Oak, we had grown very powerful,
teaching ourselves the ways of mysticism and sorcery. And then one day
in the fall of 1812, Zoë and I felt something: a surge of power we’d not
yet experienced before. Not since the Great War. It was all in the air,
calling out to us. So we packed our things and followed the surge to its
source until it led us back here to our original home of Black Oak.”
Zack took a moment to smile as Zoë placed a gentle hand over his. “I
could see the town in the distance and, as Zoë and I approached, we
started preparing ourselves for a fight because we didn’t know who or
what was living there. But the closer we got, our minds began to calm.
The visions before us were heartwarming. People were everywhere.
Families and friends were bustling about. The town was good as new. It
was like nothing ever happened and the magic we felt there was good and
pure and untouched by evil.”
“You could sense it,” said Zoë.
“And now it’s happening again, but only this time, the magic feels
different. It’s evil for sure, I know it,” said Zack.
“How can you tell?” asked Beth.
“Answer one question for me,” said Zack, staring intently at Beth.
“Okay,” she replied.
“What did you sense from my sister and me when you first opened your
door?” asked Zack.
“Good. I felt good in both of you,” said Beth. “Nothing bad…not even a
little bit.”
“And I too felt the same thing when I saw you. And I’m not talking only
about tonight,” said Zack. “But what I feel in this town now is wicked.
Mark my words. Something is coming. What’s more, is that something is
already here. And that should be impossible. Do you know why?” asked
Zack as he stared at both Frank and Beth for an answer.
They were both speechless, but Beth took a stab at it anyway. “There’s
some special magic protecting us?”
“Yes. A force field—placed over this town hundreds of years ago by the
witches, that was supposed to stop dangerous beasts or any other
supernatural creatures from passing through,” said Zoë.
“But I’m afraid the force field failed against whatever forced its way
in. Now Zoë and I need to find out who or what it is before someone gets
hurt or maybe worse…killed.”
“Killed?” Beth inquired.
“Yes. On the way over here, we came across a sea of dead bodies in the
woods. Most likely campers who were mauled to death, and it looked like
the work of Riffs,” said Zoë nonchalantly.
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