Anyways, hope you enjoy the character receiving part of a name and the plot point that gives her incentive to do stuff. Have yourself a lovely day, and see you Monday for more.
The Warlock X by Mackinley Clevinger, August 18, 2016
A few seconds’ nervous pause broke as the woman resumed her approach, clutching her hands together and looking at me with renewed interest. She stepped past me, shifting her focus to my body double lying unconscious on the horse. She prodded it, making physical contact and drawing a low, pained groan out of the bloodied form.
“You don’t seem to be doing too well, old friend. In more ways than one.”
The low ring of smoke exploded from the ground, encasing me in a whirling maelstrom of deafening sound and terror. I could feel my mind beginning to shift, the seeds of doubt and paranoia rapidly growing to take control and send me into a panic as I was blinded to the world around me, alone again with nothing but nightmarish memories and fear to accompany me.
I fell to my knees, feeling hollow within as thin whispers creeped into my ears, voices of doubt and ruin that I couldn’t block out, couldn’t stop from taking hold within my mind and –
In a flash, the storm was gone. The afternoon sun bathed me in its gentle caress as a thin wind blew by and rustled the grass beneath me, tickling my legs and drawing my mind away from the horror I’d experienced. The simple, quiet sounds of nature cleared my head of the voices, and with quaking legs I stood back up and looked at the white-skinned woman controlling my dreams.
“It’s a nasty trick, isn’t it? That kind of devious play would rival even the finest of your works, Warlock. If one of these don’t get you…”
With a wave of her hand, one of the twisted men, its spine bent and limbs twisted in what would be agonizing if it hadn’t had its mind destroyed, appeared before us. Holding out her other hand, she mimed grabbing something from the air, a move that made the creature go rigid and still. Smirking, she ripped her hand back, a turbulent mass of purple energy ripping itself free from the creature as it fell limp to the grass and began to turn into something more resembling human.
“Then that bit of spirit-rot will. You thought you’d get back some lost power, hmm? Take it right out of the mouths of those poor things and feel like your old self again? Well, you weren’t the first to try it. How’s that feel?”
The numb spot on my right hand flared with sensation, the sigil on it glowing brightly with a pale, silver light as dark, purple veins that had been spreading out of it receded beneath the glow. As the light faded, the veins began to slowly spread out, the thickest tendrils reaching towards my wrist.
“If you cracked them open and looked inside, you’d find one of those carved all over the insides of those bags of flesh and blood you’re so fond of. On you, it’s going to try and spread, get in every nook and cranny, and take you apart from the inside-out. Then it’ll put you back together, and take you home to master if you manage to survive.”
She flicked her hand out, sending the energy back into the still body on the grass. It jerked, eyes flying open as its mouth screamed soundlessly. It shook, spine arching as bones and muscles shifted violently beneath its skin, thick blood oozing out of where bone jutted out before receding back into the body. It rolled onto its stomach, arms and legs jerking as the bones popped out of place and were forced to refit themselves into a new design.
“A little bit of power would be enough to keep this in check, but surely you’ve seen how hard it can be to get that these days.”
Its jaw jutted forward, pulling the skin taut as it suddenly clamped sharpened teeth together, eyes manic and bloodthirsty. The grass around it was covered in blood and scraps of flesh, the tears in its body sealing up as I watched it begin to prowl around oblivious to our presence. It was without grace or finesse, a rough copy of my own work that made her point clear. She sighed.
“I never got the hang of these; the best teachers were sadly missing by the time I started, but I try. Of course, none of this matters if you bleed to death in front of some very sturdy gates.”
She looked over at the woman beating down the gate, shaking her head with a thin smile as the crack widened and scraps of wood went flying. Hair the color of wheat flew around her as she slammed her shoulder into the wood, shining metal armor getting dented and scratched with each ensuing attack. Her skin was the same as the other woman, more like a cloud than mine like coal.
“Pointless, but where would she be without her pride? She reminds me of her namesake more than any of the others who’ve worn his name. A shame that after all her efforts, you’re still going to die because of – “
I shook my head and walked towards her, raising a hand to cut her off. I’d heard it enough times already, and I could see what she was getting at. I’d promised myself I wasn’t going to do this, was going to avoid entering this kind of a contract again, but it seemed I wasn’t going to be able to avoid it. I’d hear her out, at the very least.
“I get it, I understand. If I don’t die of my injuries, I’m going to die because of this.”
I shook my hand, the little sigil flaring softly. It was placed just off from the center of my hand, seeming now like part of a larger design that had been cut away.
“You’ve made your point. Now make me your offer.”
She folded her arms, letting out an annoyed snort as she looked at me sidelong. She seemed annoyed that I had cut her off, but if I was in such dire straits as she seemed insistent on reminding me of, then politeness could take a breather while survival took over.
“You need two things, Warlock. Permission to enter my domain, and power to keep that infection from spreading. I’d be happy to watch you die, but lucky for you, I need something too; something that I think you may need as well.”
She turned from me and walked towards the gates, letting her robes billow out as she laid a hand on the fractured wood. I followed her, trying to think of what she could possibly ask of me, and why she was making such a show out of it. The deals that I could remember asked for blood, and I had a feeling this was going to be no different.
She laid a hand on the gate, the dream world surrounding me changing rapidly. Darkness advanced from the distance, vague forms shifting within it and watching me with glowing, hateful eyes as a stiff breeze began to blow, heralding a storm I could now begin to hear. The armored woman and the horse were gone, my damaged body now hanging on the gate and bleeding, covering it in the dark, thick blood of the deformed creatures.
“There will be no bargaining. You either take my deal now, or I leave you to die. Understand?”
I looked at her, nodding after a moment as the distant howling and rising wind began to unsettle me. This was her design, her choice to make all this happen. Why would she try to intimidate me with a scary dream?
“Good. Now, for your side of the deal. Bring me the heads…”
She was going to ask me to kill someone for her. Of course that was what she wanted, it was all these spirits ever wanted from me. I wasn’t going to go down that road again, trading the blood of innocents for my own gain. Not again. I was going to have to refuse her, choose my own death in exchange for –
“Of the Boulos family.”
I stared at her, the world going quiet and my vision narrowing in on her. An empty part of my memory suddenly filled itself in, pictures of faces running through my mind with the full names now associated with them. Boulos. Carmen, Adrian, Ingrid, Delilah, Lucas, and… me. My family’s name. I knew Carmen had survived, but the rest of them as well?
She smiled at the hard-set look I knew I wore on my face. I remember what I’d become, and what I’d turned the Boulos family into. If they were still around…
“I’ll do it.”