Kassandora looked up at the ceiling of her cell as she flexed her fingers. For the first time in a thousand years, she was smiling. That energy! That power! It was as if she had just stepped into a kitchen and smelled the stew being brewed. It wasn’t ready yet, but the sensations spiralling through her body were delicious. Her mouth watered as she took a deep breath and calmed herself.
A thousand years had passed since she felt these tingling emotions. She burst out in a taunting laughter.
Kassandora, Of War, felt joy.
“LYCA!!!!” Eliza screamed out in joy. Lyca stared up at her, trying to raise one of his hands to wipe away the tears on smattering her face, it didn’t move. Fleur fell to her knees and Edmonton looked as if he was in disbelief.
“I…” Lyca tried to calm them down, but he struggled to do more than produce a single guttural sound.
“Welcome back.” The woman said. “I’m impressed.”
“Impressed by what?!” Eliza shouted. “You almost killed him!”
“I had no issue with killing all of you before. I still don’t.”
“I…” Lyca tried forcing more words out.
“You’ve made it, well done.”
“Where was I?” Lyca finally asked. The woman shrugged, her voice nonchalant.
“I don’t know. Yourself maybe? Some other land? Everyone goes there once. It’s different for everyone too.” Her eyes travelled to the wound in Lyca’s chest, what was left of it anyway. “But it did heal you.”
“A…” Lyca pretended his throat gave out and coughed. The wolf had entered him.
“You know these people better than I, can they make it?” The woman asked.
“What?” Everyone turned to her.
“It was a simple question, can they make it?”
“Why?” Lyca asked.
“Because this lesson serves as the foundation for all future ones. You are now eligible, but they aren’t.” She looked over at the other three around Lyca. “One student is already above my expectations, but there’s a tendency that if one passes, the group does too. And four students are better than one.”
“What happens if you don’t… make it?” Edmonton asked.
“You die.” The woman’s voice wasn’t cold or domineering, she was simply stating a fact.
“What’s the upside?” The woman raised her hand, a red ball of light blinked into existence in her open palm. “Magic?”
“Not magic. I’ll explain everything once you’re out.” The woman said and Edmonton crossed his arms.
“You’ve not been too forthcoming so far.”
“I have my reasons.”
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“Great.” Edmonton’s answer was rife with sarcasm. “You won’t try to kill us?”
“Did I kill little Lyca here?” Lyca only rolled his eyes.
“How hard was it?” Edmonton asked.
“It will be easier for you, he was wounded.” The woman replied.
“I wasn’t asking you.”
“It’s…” Lyca shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“What happened anyway?” Eliza asked.
“I really don’t know.”
“Any help?”
“Trust your gut.” Lyca said and Edmonton smiled.
“That’s exactly the useless sort of answer I’d expect from you.” Both of the men laughed, Fleur merely stared at them as if she was looking at some amazing display of idiocy.
“You’re laughing now? After you just died?” She said incredulously.
“But I survived!” Lyca beamed.
“Whatever.” She turned to the woman. “I won’t have to use a wand if I pass whatever it is?”
“Your body will become the catalyst for magic, no wand, no gems, nothing.”
“Good enough for me.” Fleur said. “Let me try.”
“Lie down.” Fleur did. The woman repeated what she did to Lyca, a flash of red magic slash her hand but she merely dropped the blood on Fleur’s lips. The girl lost consciousness immediately. “And you two?”
“Well if Fleur’s doing it.” Edmonton lay down on the ground.
“I’m not going to be left behind.” Eliza said. Soon the three of them were knocked out. Eliza was whispering was incomprehensible tongues, Edmonton looked stern and sweat had burst out of Fleur’s face.
“I have a question.” Lyca tore his away from his friends and looked at the woman. Before she was a menace, in the fight with them, she was terrible, now she looked like a scientist watching the project of her dreams. Those red eyes held no animosity, that beautiful face was twisted with impatience. Even her red dress seemed to belong to someone else.
“If it’s generic, wait for them, I don’t repeat myself.” The woman said, her eyes not leaving the three on the ground.
“It’s specific to me.” That got the woman’s attention. “You said something at the start, not to take anything, not to…”
“And you took something.” It wasn’t an accusation, it was simply stating another fact.
“A wolf.” Lyca patted the healed wound. “It entered me.”
“So it has.”
“I was…” Lyca shrugged. “I mean, I was hoping you would explain it.”
“You’ll grow fur, you should shave it off, the other changes, you’ll feel them.”
“Feel them?”
“It’s different for everyone.” The woman said. “You’ve been cursed.” Lyca raised an eyebrow.
“I don’t feel cursed.”
“You’ll feel it eventually, it can spread too.”
“Spread?”
“If you bite someone, you’ll curse them.” She said idly. “Or give them a gift, it’s a matter of perspective. They won’t be as strong as you are.”
“That’s cryptic.” Lyca said.
“Like I said, it’s different for everyone. I know a few who came out as wolves, actual wolves, they became the animal. Some became beastmen. Your situation isn’t unprecedented but it’s not common either.” She shrugged, turned to him and adopted the fakest smile Lyca ever had seen. Was THAT supposed to be supportive? “And on one hand, it’s the best-case scenario.”
“That’s it?” Lyca was stunned.
“What’s it?”
“Your advice?” The woman actually scoffed at him!
“I’m not your mother. If you made it through the test, I assume you’re smart to know how to handle yourself. The one piece of advice I’ll give is don’t infect others all willy-nilly.” Those childish words were comical coming out her of her. “Your teachers won’t know what’s happening to you. Your friends won’t either, but you don’t want to attract the attention of Divines.” Lyca blinked.
“Excuse me?”
“Did you suddenly lose the ability to comprehend language? I don’t repeat myself.”
“Divines will be out to get me?” The woman sighed.
“Some will, some won’t. The ones who won’t are long gone, the ones who will are in charge.” Lyca blinked.
“Who are you?” The woman merely shrugged.
“Come here next time there’s a full moon. I’ll do that much for you.”
“So what has happened to me?”
“You’ll work it out eventually.” The woman replied.
“But you will teach us?”
“This cannot be taught, but I guide you.”
“Is there a difference?”
“Some say there is, some say there isn’t.”
“So when do we start?”
“You just went through your first lesson.” Lyca felt his stomach drop. THAT was his first lesson? The woman actually giggled. “You all passed your interviews when you entered here. I knew you would be students from the moment you stepped in.”
“How did you know?”
“Experience.” The woman replied. “Eventually, you just know off by sight and aura.”
“Great.” Lyca said. “So what now?”
“Now we wait for them to wake up and then I’ll send you home.”
“What?” Lyca shouted.
“None of you are ready for the next lesson.”
“So you’ll call us? Or what?”
“You’ll be dragged here eventually when the time is right, come as a group or alone, I don’t particularly care. And you Lyca, you’re not ready for dealing with the wolf yourself.”