The Salem Witch

Chapter 3

Everyone's eyes drew to my right hand, which was at my side, emitting a strong purple glow. I brought it higher, parallel to my shoulders, outstretched pointing outwards, showing everyone the rapidly growing mass of magic energy forming there. I threw it like a ball at the people who were going to execute me and the other accused "witches". They all ran, and when the ball of magic hit the ground, it exploded, the impact making my wind stream backwards. Purple and pink fires grew from the site of impact, doubling in size and numbers by the second, racing around the ground, jumping from burnable object to burnable object, setting everything ablaze.

I pulled at Bridget Bishop's binds, freeing her, and then Sarah Good, who I ushered to go and flee. Everyone was too preoccupied with the magical fire to deal with me, so this occurred without much disruption. I glanced back at the arson I had created, the purple fires faded into orange at the tips, setting a beautiful aesthetic that reminded me of the streaks of color that the sky adopted at dawn.

The smoke that blossomed from my fires were dark as a normal fire's smoke, it was thick and black, rising to the sky like clouds, evil and ready to take their place in the atmosphere. I raised my hand to the sky, pulling at the air for my broom to materialize. My hand felt like there were thousands of small beads inside, shaking crazily, like my atoms were being affected by my magic. I felt my broom forming in my hand, as if it was held in midair by an invisible person. I watched the wood stretch out, a delicate purple dust scattered across its texture. It pulled out into elegant dark purple feathers, with the occasional glowing pink strand. After complete formation, gravity took its hold on it, and the broom dropped into my hand.

I swing my leg over one side of the broom, mounting it and kicking off the ground, soaring far off into the distance, my hair billowing out behind me.

                                                       ·:*¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨*:·

Spiking pain shot across my face, making my head turn to the side sharply. The corners of Agatha's mouth crept up into a smile as she drew back her hand from the slap. Her dark purple robes had a fancy black design lining the edge, labeling her as the elite witch. Being here caused me constant pain, there was a reason many people feared ending up in Hell. The other witches loved to torture and beat me, all because of what I was, and the heat was unbearable, it would incinerate any mortal instantly, but witches could withstand it, especially since we worked for the devil himself. "I'm sorry," I spat, which Agatha frowned at.

She grabbed me by my jaw, lifting me up painfully, my feet digging at the ground, trying to stand. "You filthy monster, you aren't one of us, even if you try so hard to be. So be grateful that He lets you live, and make sure you don't ever disobey me again." Agatha threw me down onto the hard rocky surface of Hell, the stone biting into my back painfully. The witch blossomed into dark smoke, which swirled together and shot off into the heights of this dimension. Why do I stay here? The large twin scars in my back still stung, and sometimes, I could still feel- I needed to forget. That's in the past, I'm not- that- anymore. I'm...

The horrifying ripping noise, a loss I would never grow back...

                                                      ·:*¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨*:·

I pushed my way through the dark forest that I had chosen to hide in, broom in hand, the gray branches sharp and wicked, leafless, like claws waiting to catch you after a misstep, ripping straight through you. Stepping through the night, I found myself at the end of the maze of trees, looking over the town of Salem. I was going to get back into my house, I missed Aspen, and I needed to tell him what was happening, also I didn't particularly plan to sleep in the forest.

I stepped past the border that marked Salem and took off, unconsciously guiding my broom to my house. It didn't matter if someone saw me, I had already expressed that I was a witch. Was that the wrong thing to do? After such a long time trying to hide among others, I had just tossed it away. Could I have saved those women another way? It doesn't matter, I already did it. There was no point in wondering about what I could have done instead. I swung off my broom, holding it with one hand and using it to lower myself down in the backyard.

I lifted my window upwards, climbing in and folding myself through, placing my broom down on my bed. My entry caused Aspen to rush to my room. He had messy brown hair and piercing green eyes. "Cyra!" He cried, and I fell into his arms, "Where the hell were you?" I pushed off of him to stand up. "After you left they took me, they know that I'm a witch, and they were going to kill me with a bunch of other people who they think are witches." "But they aren't, are they?" Aspen stated. "No... and I kinda blew up the city center," I continued, and this got a laugh out of him.

"But, Aspen, they know about me now, I can't pretend to be normal anymore." "But you aren't normal, and you shouldn't have to pretend to be," he assured. His hand was resting on my back, where my two scars were, and they tingled at the contact. In the past there had been so much more there, but they had been pruned, destroyed, because the witches didn't like who I was.

"I can't stop remembering," I confessed to Aspen as he led me to the dinner table, where he had saved some leftover food. "I never understood why you wanted to forget," he replied, "You can't let others make who you are, remember what they did." He pushed me down into a seat, and we both knew I was hungry, I hadn't eaten all day, save for the morning. I picked up some bread, biting off small pieces as I pondered. "This all started because of a sickness, and everyone thinks a witch caused it. What if there really is another witch?" I asked, voicing my thoughts.

Aspen had sat down next to me, leaning against his chair, "So not only are the people hunting you, another witch might be nearby?" He exhaled. "The local militia will probably be here soon too," he said, but he didn't seem angry. Oh no, I never thought about that! Aspen would be in danger, because of me. "I know you'll be fine against a bunch of hunters, but one witch could call the whole coven of them," he continued.

"I might not even be able to fight one witch, they're all so much more experienced than me..." I admitted, "And I need to get my wand back if I'm going to fight one." Then I paused, "Wait did you just say coven? I thought a group of witches was a murder?" "No, that's crows," Aspen corrected, smiling, "But it should be a murder." I suddenly noticed that the lights were off, it had been dark when I first entered, so I didn't notice the light levels, but the realization of how late it was made me check myself. "Let's worry about this tomorrow, I'm tired," I offered, and Aspen nodded.

But lying in bed didn't help me sleep, I was left staring up at the gray ceiling, worrying, and I had to enchant myself, lulling me into a slumber. Then I sunk into a world of screaming.