Gabriel stared out the window the entire night, now a compulsive instinct. Outside his sanctuary the town stirred with the newest tall tale, gossip spread like a plague and it reached Gabriel’s ears in the afternoon, the streets swelled with the Aschfall in search of the seasonal witch.

The smallest Amesthyn observed the town bitterly, they scrambled and failed to find the culprit despite how easy he made the search by pointing it out.

Gabriel fed bread to the raven resting on his shoulder, but he did not shift his sight from the window. The child stiffened, Johan and other Aschfall members went door to door and escorted the women to the church for a trial.

His heart nearly dropped to the ground, he stood from his seat as they approached their front door. Johan was there as well, and locked eyes with Gabriel and smiled wickedly. “Mother Grizelda! In the name of the Law and the Holy Father, present yourself to the ashes!” Another member called. Gabriel needed to hear the conversation but did not want to risk his presence more than he already did. He cracked his window open and ducked against the wood wall.

The child barely made out the conversation, it was difficult to listen with the uproar of the town. But something he heard almost triggered his soul to eject from his body, “under the crimes of necromancy, we have reasonable doubt you harbor undead in your home. Many believe they had seen your dead child roaming the streets.”

That was enough information to hide from the Aschfall claims. Gabriel ran out of his room, down the stairs, into the living room and lifted the floorboards where his mother hid her weapon before. He squeezed himself into the tight space and sealed it shut with the boards.

The front door creaked open, “I have nothing to hide,” Grizelda said with a peaceful tone. “I can assure you all what you heard is pure nonsense,” she added.

“I sense you are bitter, Grizelda,” Johan mocked. “Did you not disclose to me how you wanted to at least try to bring him back?”

“Don’t be a fool,” Grizelda was awfully calmed, “you should know the act of necromancy is forbidden. If you willingly withheld information to harbor a witch in your own home you are also accountable and should be hanged…” despite how gentle her voice was, each word carried a dagger aimed where it truly hurt.

“We found something!” An Aschfall shouted from the second floor. The heavy boots trailed all the way to the living room, creaking above the floor where Gabriel hid. “We found this strange book in a bedroom inside this sack.”

Only the sound of pages flipping through were heard. Johan scoffed. “Grizelda, I painted you a saint… but the studies of demons are blasphemous. I am mortified my wife had this in her possession…”

“I’m dumbfounded you can’t read Latin…” Grizelda mocked. “Last I checked, you actually own more books like these. I mean it was part of our profession after all…”

“You must be confused, I am not a witch, I am a physician. I never dabbled in the devil’s calling.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Grizelda chuckled, “What are you saying, are you forgetting some crucial detail? Dear me Johan but I am starting to think you either have a crown of thorns around your head or you’re a wolf in shepherd's clothing…”

“I will not allow a woman like you to disrespect me in my own home…”

“Johan, I am almost shocked you betray your own kind… Almost.” Grizelda said. “But, of course, you will take me regardless if it were a misunderstanding.” There was a pause, “so, shall we get this over with?” the midwife added.

“So you do admit to the possession of demonic rituals?” Johan asked.

“No, I do not possess demonic rituals, perhaps the mistress who owns you does partake in the devil’s sacrament.” Grizelda laughed. “How about we make haste? The faster you hang me, the faster you can lick the witch’s cunt--” Grizelda was silenced with a loud slap.

“Don’t you dare disrespect me… Mockery of such won't be taken kindly by the eye of the choir,” Johan warned. “Take the witch to the cages.”

The door slammed close as the ashfall dragged the midwife to the church. Gabriel was too scared to move from his hiding spot.

He hadn't the slightest idea of how long he lied there underneath the floor but the screams had died down and the air grew colder. Gabriel’s heart refused to ease, beating wildly as the possibility of his mother hanging on the gallows for a sin she did not commit. The uneasy child couldn't lay idle any longer. He pushed the wooden panels and climbed out from hiding.

“How do I even begin…?” the youngest Amesthyn wondered. He was stuck and his heart wanted to leap out of his throat.

Gabriel sensed a very powerful presence behind him, despite how familiar it was he couldn't stop imagining how bad the scenarios could be.

“Your aura is a constant green… so different from the broken prism that once shaped your form,” a voice thicker than marmalade spoke. Without a doubt Gabriel turned to see Roy standing across the room.

“What are you still doing here…?” Gabriel asked.

“You asked for me to assist you in the search of your father, I haven’t forgotten your prayers…”

The young boy’s eyes welled with tears, he ran and hugged the cleric tightly. “They took my mother… And I can’t help but think this was all my fault… I need help.” Roy kneeled and hugged Gabriel back.

“I know you felt as if I'd abandoned you, but I never forgot about you.” The cleric held the boy’s face and whipped the tears with his thumbs. “You are not at fault for the weight of the sin… You are a victim of it.”

The world felt heavy for just a moment regardless of how much Gabriel had lost in the past few months. Despite it all, the arms of this man eased the child’s heart.

“You are a smart boy, but too frail to put at risk… I will teach you how to see the world through my eyes...” Taking Gabriel’s hands and pressing their foreheads together.

“Why is he so close…” Gabriel wandered as his palms clammed underneath the heavy hands of Roy Firestorm.

“You must always find a safe place for your body to rest. This spell will temporarily render your body inactive. You must stare into the host, and say… Ra, I seek the truth, Horus, I pray for protection, grant me justice as I transcend into a new reality.”

The small child starred, losing himself into the endless blue. “Ra… I seek the truth--” a shiver crawled down his spine and latched to his core, “Horus… I pray for protection,” almost failing to form a sentence, Gabriel managed to muster the second fragment only to leave him speechless as a tingle escalated his spine and his vision slowly faded to black. He forced himself to speak even if he didn’t feel his lips move, “grant me justice as I transcend into a new reality…”