May 27
----- The last executions were over a week ago and no one has blamed anyone else of witchcraft since. Everything has finally started to calm down. Luckily I didn't get dragged into it - thank the gods. I should be safe for a while longer.
-----I sighed and lifted my head from my writing to look outside through the glass-less window of the small thatch-roofed hut I called my home.
-----Let's get real here for a second, that's one of the absolute worst parts about settling your town out in the middle of nowhere. There's no one else close by which is great, don't get me wrong, but you miss out on every modern convenience ever. Wooden roofs? Too time consuming. Stone chimneys? Too heavy. Glass? Witchcraft. Honestly, just for once I would love to not have mosquitoes and flies buzzing in through my windows at night while I'm trying to sleep. But anyways, I digress.
-----The village was quiet. Almost painfully so. While it was the middle of a ridiculously humid summer afternoon and no one was enjoying the smothering heat, it didn't help that for the past two weeks the town had been just about eating itself alive with accusations of witchcraft and many innocent people had been executed. This wasn't a sleepy quiet. This was an ominous, shocked, and tense quiet. Everyone was uneasy. Especially me.
-----You see, I am actually a witch. No, we don't go flying around on brooms in the middle of the night wearing funny hats and turning princes into frogs, as awesome as that would be. No, instead most of us spend our time brewing tedious potions and fighting our way through the untamed jungle of spells and incantations written in the language of who-thought-that-was-a-good-idea. Not exactly glamorous. But in this time and place, it was dangerous. Especially here, where I was born.
-----This village doesn't look like much from the outside, but because of its extremely isolated location, it's a perfect breeding ground for intense religious dogma. Part of that religion's teachings is that magic is essentially the root of all evil and anyone who is found to practice witchcraft is worthy of death. Nearly everyone here wholeheartedly believes this religion, and as a result magic and especially witchcraft became some of the most taboo topics to bring up. There was actually one case I heard of where a family disowned their daughter all because she said, "Y'know, maybe not all magic is terrible..." This is not a pretty place to live if you're a magician of any sort, but if something like what's been happening the past few weeks happens, no one is safe.
-----There was a big magic scare a few weeks back and someone accused someone else of being a witch. Immediately the whole village was sent into upheaval and the next thing you knew, everyone was making claims that something supernatural had happened and that Viscet X, Y, Z was a witch. The village Elders didn't give fair trials and didn't discriminate on which alleged witches they would and wouldn't arrest and execute. Basically, if someone called you a witch, you were as good as dead.
-----I tried to stay as uninvolved with this as possible, not because I was actually a witch but just because I'm not exactly in the mood for dying young. I made myself as scarce around the village as I could. Out of sight, out of mind, right? This worked for me at least, but my parents weren't so lucky. A Viscet about my age from a family ours had been feuding with since before even my grandparents parents were hatched saw the witch scare as a chance to eliminate their nemeses and accused my mother and father of practicing witchcraft in secret, saying she'd even seen the cauldron they supposedly used to make potions.
-----I wasn't in town when this happened. I didn't know. If I'd been there, I could've stopped it.
-----At least that's what I tell myself.
-----The sun was just beginning to set, with the approaching dusk offering some cool release from the sweltering day. A few Viscets started to creep out of their homes and out of the forest, each eyeing down the others warily and apprehensively as if they were afraid that one wrong step and they'd be attacked for the crime of magic.
-----"All Viscets gather in the village center for a village meeting!"
-----The silence was broken at last, and it was as if someone had thrown a pebble toward the center of a flat pond. More Viscets slowly emerged and headed toward the village center where the Elders had called a meeting. Soft murmuring sprang up like a sudden gentle breeze as Viscets wondered why a meeting would be called now of all times. I sighed heavily and stood up, pushing my chair back as I headed to the door. I paused in the doorway for a moment to gather myself before I joined the crowd. I carefully made my way through the congregation, stopping a row behind the front.
-----A face that had become painfully familiar to me in the past week caught my eye from across the circle. The one who got my parents killed. She smirked smugly at me and I had to fight the urge to snarl at her. She knew she'd gotten to me. Apparently satisfied, she turned to face the Elders who at that moment called for silence from those gathered.
-----"We've called you all here today to discuss the events of the past two weeks."
-----A wave of whispers swept through the crowd, but the Elders shushed them.
-----"As you all know, we've been plagued with sorcery and dark voodoo more than any of us could anticipate, and we've lost many to the Dark Path. Our beautiful village has been left in shambles and since it's been a few days since the last executions, we decided we wanted to take this as on opportunity to discuss how best to continue moving forward and to ask if anyone else has any last information about dark traitors in our midst."
----- The Elder's voice was so dull and he talked so slow that even though it was only a few sentences, I found myself getting drowsy by the time he was done talking. I stifled a yawn as I looked around.
-----At the mention of traitors, the mood instantly changed. Everyone's fur was ruffled and many were casting suspicious glares at those around them. Angry murmurs started to rise up from the crowd as Viscets speculated about who else might be a witch, yet I remained impartial.
-----Everyone was shifting uncomfortably, but no one seemed to want to come forward. After a few moments, there was movement on the other side of the ring. A few Viscets stepped to the side and after moment, she stepped out into the center. Gods above, what the hell could she possibly want now?
-----"Yes? What is it child?" She had the Elders full attention.
-----"O Wise Ones, I believe we still have a witch among us, and if I'm not mistaken, he's here at this meeting right now."
-----The gathering immediately broke into chaos as Viscets immediately turned on their male neighbors, demanding to know if they were witches. The murmurs grew into a roar as Viscets started shouting. I shuddered as I felt the eyes of some Viscets glaring me down, but I wasn't interested in what they thought. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach and a terrible suspicion that I knew what was coming.
-----"Who?! Who is it?!" everyone demanded her. She waited until she knew she had everyone's attention before she took a breath and continued.
-----"EADONN CORREDDEMOS VADIMIRCURUS IS A WITCH!" she shouted, whirling to point accusingly at me.
-----"WHAT?!" I knew it was coming, but I was still absolutely dumbfounded.
-----The Viscets around me recoiled away from me in shock and everyone gathered started shouting all at once as I was forced forward into the center. I could still hear her voice shouting at me over the din, and I knew it was sealing my doom.
-----"YOU, EADONN VADIMIRCURUS, ARE A WITCH! YOUR PARENTS WERE WITCHES, SO OF COURSE THEY'D HAVE INDOCTRINATED YOU WITH THEM!"
-----"Wait, - No, - I-," I stammered stupidly.
-----I couldn't think. I was still reeling with shock.
-----This can't be real.
-----Everything was happening too fast.
-----"ARREST HIM!" thundered the Elders, and before I could react, two guards were on me. I finally snapped out of my stupor and lunged at the guard nearest me. I felt my teeth sink into flesh and I bit down. Hard.
-----The guard shouted and yanked his arm free, but I felt a small chunk of flesh tear off in my mouth. I spun to face the other guard, who at this point had gotten his spear out and was pointing it at my chest. I bared my teeth in a snarl and spat out the hunk of skin and fur as all the fur on my back was on end. He charged at me, and behind him I could see the village members all shouting and screaming but I couldn't hear them through the blood rushing through my ears.
-----I sidestepped the spear and jumped on the guard as he passed me. My teeth sank into his ear and my claws were knotted in his mane as I felt him stumble from the sudden addition of my weight. I twisted my head and pushed off with my hind legs, leaping off him and shoving him to the ground. I somersaulted in the air and landed on my feet. I was turning to face the first guard again but he was already on me.
-----I saw a bright flash of metal in the sunlight a fraction of a second before a sharp stabbing pain shot through the right side of my face, starting just above my eye. I let out a shriek as his momentum carried us to the ground. I couldn't see out of my right eye, but I could feel the hot blood running down my face in sheets and I could see the dagger held poised above me like the snake before the strike. It descended like a lightning strike in slow motion and I felt as a second searing slice joined the first. I shrieked again and kicked him off me in a sudden burst of adrenaline fueled strength.
-----I scrambled to my feet. I was hunched over gasping for breath as I cupped the wound with my paw. I felt teeth clamp around the base of my skull and got the wind knocked out of me for the second time in less than half a minute as the other guard tackled me from behind.
-----I struggled violently to free myself, but it was no use. He was too heavy and strong and I was far too tired. I heard the clinking of metal and felt the cold bite of still around my wrists as the first guard cuffed my paws. I was yanked unceremoniously to my feet, swatted in the head from behind as I tried to run, and finally dragged away.
-----I must've passed out from shock and blood loss because the next thing I remember was waking up that night in a dingy jail cell. It was cold and dark and I could barely see anything. The only sound was that of dripping water.
-----I tried to move to look around but the cuts to my face suddenly seared with pain, forcing me to sit back. That was when I realized my paws were chained to the stone wall above my head. Judging by how sore my body was and how cold my paws were, I guessed I had probably been here for a few hours at least.
-----I felt a warm liquid trickling down my face, and I realized my attempts to move around must have opened up my earlier injuries. They clearly didn't care about giving witches medical care, so I would have to take care of this myself. After a few minutes of careful testing, I found that if I stood up ever so slightly I could get enough slack in my shackles to be able to reach my bandana, which was currently being used to hide the glow of my eyes.
-----Over the course of the next fifteen or so minutes, I painstakingly untied my bandanna and retied it in a way that it covered the wound and put enough pressure on it to hopefully prevent future bleeding.
-----If I made it that far.
-----I immediately banished the thought. Of course I'd make it that far! No question about it.
-----The only question was how.
-----I briefly considered my options. I'm already going to be executed, so there's no reason to be stingy about magic anymore. I don't have any of my supplies with me, and even if I did, my arms are uselessly shackled above my head so I wouldn't be able to even reach, much less make use, of anything I had with me, so that killed any chance of any potion brewing taking place. I couldn't brute force my way away from the guards and through the crowd, the fight earlier had already proven that, not to mention that this time it was with the added disadvantages of being cuffed and more blind than I normally am, so that was also out. The only possible option left was direct magic.
-----I've never been fond of using magic directly, maybe because I'm not much good at it, but it's the only option left to me. I don't know much about controlling magic, and I've rarely practiced it, so I couldn't do anything crazy big like teleport away, and I'd rather escape without needlessly killing more Viscets, which really means the only thing I could do would be to cause a distraction. Even that would really be more than enough for me to get away. I know these woods well, and I know where I can go where they won't find me.
-----I went over my plan a few times in my head, making sure I remembered the spell I was going to use. When I was sure I couldn't forget it, I figured I should try to sleep. It wouldn't do me any good to go into this sleep deprived and exhausted. I tried to get comfortable and fall asleep, but that's far easier said than done when your arms are chained above your head and you're sitting against a cold, damp, stone wall. Eventually I managed it, and I drifted off into a restless sleep.
-----I was awoken by the loud rattling of the bars of the cell as the warden slid the door open. The guard whose ear I'd mangled and another one I didn't recognize stepped into the cell, which didn't look any different in the cold light of morning than it had by the light of the half moon. They unchained me from the wall and prodded me to my feet with their spears.
-----"Walk, demon, and you better not try any funny business," the one from yesterday snarled in my ear. They escorted me swiftly through the prison, which was startlingly and disproportionately large for such a small village. The halls were narrow, the ceiling low, and many of the stones were either cracked or missing entirely. The floor was slick with rainwater, and I swear I saw patches of moss and mold.
-----Another guard was waiting with a key by the double door entrance and opened the doors as we approached. The sudden change from pitch dark to the light from the torches and the rising sun was enough to cause me pause and shut my eye, and I was jabbed sharply in the back with one of the spears to get moving again. I forced my eye open again despite the light to survey the scene.
-----The whole village was there lined up around the same clearing we'd gathered at yesterday. Where the Elders had been was now a makeshift gallows, a sight and routine that had become all too unwelcomely familiar. The Elders were all standing lined up beside the gallows, and there were even more guards scattered among the ranks of the villagers. The two behind me prodded me again to get me to hurry.
-----My heart was pounding and my chest felt tight. My paws were cold and my stomach felt empty as I walked down the path toward certain death. Every second felt like an eternity and I felt painfully aware of every detail on every face of every Viscet. I saw fear. I saw sorrow. I saw disgust. I saw hatred.
-----By the time we were halfway there, my paws were shaking and my legs felt like lead.
-----It's now or never.
-----I shouted the spell I'd spent so long going over in my head just the night before and suddenly an impenetrable wall of dark smoke rose up from the ground to completely hide the scene, and I immediately bolted for the forest, my body feeling electric with adrenaline and fear.
-----The smoke cleared fast.
-----"Hey, where'd he go?!" I heard someone cry within seconds.
-----"There he is!"
-----"He's getting away!"
-----"AFTER HIM!"
-----The resulting mob was instantaneous. Viscets grabbed any torch and the nearest sharp object they could find. I didn't wait.
-----I ran.
