Qu’l-Nia looked up from the scripture she was reading. There was no real reason to do, as the work she had been reading had immersed her almost completely, but a persistent feeling had been worming its way past her complex thoughts. The steady twinkling of her hair became slightly erratic as she looked around the room. Alma seemed completely out of it, and had just been sitting there on the couch, staring mindlessly up at the ceiling. The gatin was resting comfortably in her lap, unaware of the magic going on in that moment. Hwalín was as Hwalín does—lying back on the other couch, her head shaking back and forth in a daze. Oddly enough, there was a smile plastered across her face.
The eldritch woman stood up from her position on the floor and sat down next to Alma. She gently picked up the gatin and placed it on her own lap, stroking its head gently. The small creature didn’t seem to mind, and continued purring comfortably. After a moment, she looked over at Alma, who had a pained look on her face. She started to wonder exactly what it was the young ex-soldier had been dreaming about in her vision. The magic of this world was so very rudimentary, she wondered just how precisely it affected the childling physiology. Qu’l-Nia picked up the mug from the table in front of Alma and gave a small whiff to its contents. There was a faintly familiar scent among its magical ingredients that stood out more than the rest. Buried deep within Heloise’s witchcraft was a trace of something far more ancient and powerful—otherworldly. She wondered if Alma was aware. She must have been, right? Alma’s face continued to contort in discomfort.
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The bird turned its bloody torrent towards Heloise, as she erected another barrier to prevent herself from being drenched in its attack. The loud crack of its flapping wings resounded high above as the gushing tide grew stronger. The witch threw up another barrier, followed by another. The Caladrius eventually started to zip around, attempting to hit her from different angles, causing her to finally dive behind another tree.
“I’m getting sick of this!” Heloise shouted during a fit of coughing. Despite the cold, her hands were extremely clammy and her head felt hot and sweaty. Her breathing was starting to become ragged from all the jumping around. It was all beginning to take its toll on her, which only served to enrage her more. “You think you can make a fool of me? All the hard work I put in to make my own way. All the effort. The blood, sweat and tears to make my wishes come true…! My life has been one fucking hardship after another. I’m not going to let one annoying bird shit on all the happiness I’ve acquired! I’m going to piss on your corpse when this is over.”
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The witch chanted a magical mantra to herself, concentrating her energies into her staff. She once again prepared herself to cast something more powerful from her arsenal. She stepped out from behind the tree and stood in full view of the avian enemy. Holding her staff up high, she invoked her spell.
Natura Penetrans Ex Membra!
Dozens of empty branches stretched forth and collided in midair, crashing into the spot where the bird had been firing from. It had learned to dodge. The attack managed to distract it from its bloody barrage, but the witch only grew angrier with contempt. While the energy remained in her staff, she repeated the spell a few more times. But each time, the bird had managed to dodge almost expertly. Until finally, the lump in the bird’s throat grew thick and another ball of phlegm was fired directly at the interwoven branches before they had another chance to separate. The mucus had glued them together.
At this point, the look on Heloise’s face had become almost deranged.
The witch had reached a boiling point. Something within her snapped, and she was starting to lose reason. But through the blinding fury, she somehow managed to sense something was amiss. She was becoming far more reckless than usual. There was a point once, where she would refuse to acknowledge her own stupidity, but having spent so much time with Alma, she’s learned to reflect just a small amount. And it had made her realize that even she would never act so brazenly foolish. At least not through any fault of her own.
The Caladrius unleashed another torrent of sanguine fury. The time, however, instead of running for cover, Heloise stretched out her arms and let the attack hit its mark.
The strong force of the blast sent the witch flying several feet, barely avoiding any trees until hitting the snow-laden ground roughly. Heloise and the area around her were now drenched in the bird’s strange blood, the consequences of which quickly took effect. In what felt like a strange twist, the anger she had been feeling was already subsiding and replaced with a more cheerfully ecstatic feeling. With the help of her staff, she gingerly got back up on her feet.
“Oh my Dark God! I’ve been acting like such a total bitch!” Heloise laughed exuberantly, still covered in blood from head to toe. “You silly bird, you slay me! I mean, unless I slay you first. Ha!”