The Blind Witch
Chapter 21

I sometimes wish the darkness never chose me. But who was I, a lowly servant to the Gods, to say no? Perhaps you shall be different. Do you have the strength to defy them?

While Ophelia was away, Sybil prepared a secluded room to be used for the meditation. She took quartz crystals and used them to create marks against the stone. Circles and triangles dotted the floor, connecting in one large pattern. Candles were placed throughout the room in the small circles that she drew. In the center of the room was the large circle where Clarissa would sit. She put the freshly made incense in small glass jars around the edge.

She took a deep breath, inhaling the lavender, rosemary, and star anise. It was aromatic and calming. As she walked around the room, surveying her work, she wondered how long it would last. Pulling someone out of themselves and into the Astral realm was no easy task. And Clarissa was a powerful witch. Witch? Was she even that? Sybil had thought much about what Ophelia told her about the Welcoming Rites.

Sybil looked down at her hands. She watched the magic barrier radiate and pulsate across her skin. But she was quickly pulled from her thoughts when she heard footsteps. She glanced over her shoulders and saw Ophelia.

“You are back sooner than I expected,” she commented. She looked over her mother’s face and noticed the anger that she tried to hide. “What happened?”

“Dray tried to get them to vote on a proscription,” Ophelia scowled. “He could not get her for his coven, so he wants to have her killed instead. Ignorant brute! And on top of that, Craigen was furious with me. I haven’t even had time to process what had happened, and yet he wants me to drop what I am doing so I can tell him of every little thing that Clarissa does.”

“Wait. Did Requiem know about the sun?” Sybil questioned as her eyes grew wide.

“Oh, they sure did!” Ophelia yelled as she raised her hands in the air. “Someone in this palace relayed information to them!”

“You need to tell Azrael,” Sybil instructed gently. “It could be anyone from a servant to a guard.”

“I will deal with it,” Ophelia sighed as she took a deep breath. She needed to relax, to get into the right head space. “Where is Clarissa? We need to delve deeper into her soul before anything else happens.”

“She and Aiden were in the library last I saw them,” Sybil answered. “You go get them; I have a few more things to put out.”

Ophelia nodded. She smoothed her hair as she left the room. She walked for a few minutes, taking her time to gather her thoughts first. She needed to think about what she would ask. But what was it that she wanted to know? Clarissa should have been able to use magic for many years now, so why has her magic become destructive these last few months? Was the darkness within her asleep while she was with the humans? Did it awaken to save her from the slaver?

“Lady Ophelia?” Aiden said as he noticed her in the doorway to the library. “Is it time?”

“What? Oh, yes, it is time,” she replied, blinking away her confusion. She held her hand out for Clarissa. “Come, child.”

“May I watch?” Aiden questioned as he brought Clarissa to Ophelia.

“No,” she answered. Her voice was harsher than she had meant it to be. “You would be a distraction. You may wait in the hall.”

She took Clarissa’s hand and led her out into the corridor. They walked back to the secluded meditation room in silence. Once inside, she shut the door, blocking Aiden from entering. Clarissa was gently sat in the middle of the largest circle. She crossed her legs and placed her hands on her knees. She could hear Ophelia and Sybil go around her, lighting the incense individually. The room was soon enveloped with a thin veil of smoke. They sat just outside the circle, one to Clarissa's right and one to her left. The two women held out their hands and closed their eyes.

Humming soon filled Clarissa's ears. She could see bright light begin to creep into her vision. It was magic coming from both Sybil and Ophelia. It was a wall that slowly wrapped around Clarissa. She could feel her heart begin to beat erratically. It felt like it was being ripped from her chest. She did her best to stay calm, to steady her breathing. She needed to do this; she needed to know more.

Clarissa closed her eyes and focused on the aroma around her. Lavender, rosemary, and star anise. She could feel herself sinking, similar to when she was in the Welcoming Rites. But this was different; she could feel herself being split apart. As the tearing became unbearable, the pain suddenly stopped.

She opened her eyes. She was concerned that it did not work, but as her eyes fluttered open, she could only see bright light. There was no darkness, there was no space, only light. It worked! Her consciousness was pulled into the astral realm while her soul remained.

"Can you hear me?" Ophelia said to her.

Before Clarissa could open her mouth, she could hear herself speaking. It was her soul that responded.

"I do," her soul answered.

"We are going to start with simple questions," Ophelia stated. "When did the darkness awake within you?"

"It was never asleep," she responded as her voice became flat. "From the time I was conceived, the darkness was there. Ever present, ever watching."

"Then why only cause destruction in these recent months?" Ophelia questioned.

"Destruction? You know nothing of destructive. What you have seen is just a mere taste of the powers within me."

"Let me rephrase the question," Ophelia said as she tried to keep her nerves at bay. "Why not use your magic, or your powers, when you were a child? Why start at the slaver's camp?"

"Something was missing between me and the darkness," the soul answered. "I needed to call for it myself, to call for my magic. I had always been able to create small sparks, but fear kept it hidden away. Fear. Fear kept me from everything. But, that night, inside the slaver's tent, I heard something. Something that I have never heard before. I heard a whisper. A woman who told me to see past the fear. I would not resign myself to be taken by the man, and I summoned the fire from within me."

"A whisper? Have you heard the whispers since?"

"I have. I hear them often. In my sleep, in my dreams."

"Do you know who whispers to you?"

"Two whisper to me: a man and a woman. The woman, she is a creator, a god. She is Nyx, my creator, the mother of my darkness."

"What does she tell you?" Ophelia inquired.

"She says I am a creator, too. Fire and darkness. Ruinous and violent."

"Ruinous and violent? But Nyx told you that you were not dangerous. Why use those words?"

"It is not I that is ruinous and violent. It is what is held within me. It is what I am to become."

"It is not who you are, but what you are to become? Those seem to be very contradictory statements," Ophelia noted as she furrowed her brows. "What are you to become? Are you the Goddess Nyx reborn?"

"I do not know," Clarissa's soul answered honestly. "I don't think Nyx knows either."

"What else does Nyx tell you? Does she command you to do anything?"

"She only asks that I learn, that I listen. She said I can hear the histories in the darkness but that I must listen for them. She tells me not to dwell on fear. She tells me not to fall to him."

"Who is him?" Ophelia questioned curiously.

"The man that whispers to me," the soul replied. Clarissa could feel tears begin to fall down her face, but when she wiped her cheeks, they were dry. It was her body on Earth that was crying.

"Do you know who he is or what he wants?"

"I do not know his name. He only speaks of the darkness, consuming, taking over. He speaks of the shadows that creep in, absorbing the light, feasting upon the weak. But it is not what I want. It is not what Nyx wants!"

"What is it you want? Tell us!" Ophelia commanded.

"I want to be with Aiden! I don't want to be feared by those that do not understand me! I just want a chance to prove that I can do good. I don't want to be consumed by the darkness," she cried.

Clarissa sat in the emptiness of the astral realm, pulling her knees up to her chest. She could hear someone whispering to her. Then, something felt wrong; she was not alone here. There was a cloud, darkness, drifting to her. He was here. He was here for her. She began to struggle, to fight against Ophelia and Sybil. She needed to return before he could reach her.

Clarissa could finally feel herself being pulled back. She cried out as she felt herself fuse back with her soul, with her body. When she was back on Earth, in her body, she collapsed to the floor. She could only prop herself up on her elbows as she began to sob. This was not enlightening for her; it was traumatizing. The sickening feeling of seeing the darkness approach her frightened her, unlike anything before. Every part of her being wanted to get further from him, to run. Run.

Clarissa could feel someone touch her arm, and she began to pull away, screaming as she did. Once the hands no longer touched her, she created a firewall around her. Ophelia and Sybil had to jump back to prevent themselves from getting burned. Something happened. She had suddenly fought against their meditative pull, forcing them to end early. But now she was shielding herself, keeping them away.

The door behind them shot open; it was Aiden. He could hear Clarissa screaming, and though he was warned, he could not keep himself away. He ran up to her wall of fire and slipped through. He saw her huddled on the floor, her hand on her head, rocking herself as she cried. He sank to his knees and pulled her to him.

"Clarissa!" He called out to her as his arms wrapped tightly around her. "I am here!"

Feeling Aiden with her, Clarissa's fire only intensified. Everything within her wanted to run from the darkness she saw, but now that Aiden was here, she needed to protect him. He could not be consumed; she would not allow it. She would die before that happened. Her hands went to his shirt; she needed to feel something, something that would pull her back. Aiden looked down at her face. Her eyes. The stars and planets had returned. He leaned down and kissed her, hoping that it would bring her back.

Clarissa could feel herself begin to calm down. The fear started to subside, making way for Aiden's warmth. She could again feel the sparks as their hands touched. When Aiden pulled away, he saw that her eyes were normal. He could feel her heart rate slowing, and her breathing was steadying. He wiped the tears from her cheeks as the wall around them slowly faded.