Jeremy bent beside Ezekiel. He was trying to rub in some form of heat to the guy's hands, but unfortunately, his hands were as cold as ice, the temperature dropping with each minute that passed by.
Asher had a conflicted look on his beautiful face. He looked terrified for Ezekiel. He didn't want anything to happen to him; he didn't want to lose anyone dear to him. Yes, he said it—no matter how disturbing Ezekiel had acted in closed spaces, he wouldn't wish death upon him.
"Slyvia, please, isn't there something that can be done? We are losing him." Asher's voice rang with desperation.
Slyvia too was beside Ezekiel. She was trying to think—perhaps there was something within her strange knowledge, which kept coming after her first encounter with her ancestors.
She looked at Ezekiel and could tell something beyond the physical was fighting against him.
"Please, Slyvia, do something. He is in a lot of pain now." Asher kept pleading.
Ezekiel kept vomiting maggots. Before it moved to something deadlier, he began to vomit his intestines.
Jeremy's face fell more as he witnessed the terrible scene. Rose, who was looking so majestic, lost her composure for a second.
The scene was horrifying and gross. Just looking at it was beyond her, but Asher didn't care. His top priority was saving the damn prick's life.
"Ezekiel, please look at me. Zeke, I said look at me." Asher sat down on the floor with Zeke's head on his laps.
Slyvia raked her hair, which was scattered. This was bad. Students would start flooding the area soon, and witnessing such a gruesome scene was maddening.
"Okay, let me try one of my spells, but I can't assure that he will get better," Slyvia announced. A feeling of hope washed over Jeremy and Asher, who both looked downcast.
Slyvia, who was carrying her backpack, dropped it on the floor and began ravaging through the contents, her eyes peering over them, and finally, she came across an old notebook.
Her dad's spell book—one that she took when she was going through the loads of abandoned contents at the balcony of their home. Shockingly, her father was a dreadful witch, one that was powerful to the extent that various beings feared him.
Opening the dusty book, Slyvia went through the ancient spells that were confusing and disjointed. She became alarmed when Ezekiel screamed.
"Haaaaaaaaaaaa," Zeke let out a painful shriek that vibrated through the ground, tearing through the air and causing explosions in the properties around.
Asher's face turned pale when he saw Ezekiel's skin, which had turned so grey. His also beautiful grey eyes had dimmed, bringing out a dull color from the iris.
"Guys, what's happening? I don't get—how is he doing this?" Asher exclaimed.
Jeremy, who was surprisingly holding the biggest grudge on Ezekiel, was shocked at the care he was showing to him in his weak state. He himself was speechless. But at this moment, anything to keep Asher happy, because it was obvious that Asher cared for the guy, even though they had been ignoring each other for the past days.
"This is a sign that a force larger than us is at play, because with what I am seeing—they want Ezekiel dead for a reason unknown to us," Slyvia revealed. Then after some dreadful minutes, she came up with a solution.
Coming to the center of the whole charade, Slyvia finally took hold of Zeke's cold hands and she began to chant. But before she went on, she cut herself a bit—also Zeke's hands were cut—and mixing the two bloods, she began going deeper with the incantation.
The wind began to howl, the sky rumbled, and the air around grew so heavy that it looked almost like a formidable creature was coming.
Then a powerful silver light exploded from Slyvia's body, penetrating the parts of Zeke's organs. But this action possessed a fatal side effect. Zeke's body instantly started convulsing, his hands twisted, and his face turned savage as he stared at Slyvia with intense bloodlust.
Asher, who watched the unfolding scene, knew something sinister was amidst and tried to meddle with the spell. So he came nearer, but a barrier blocked him, an invisible thread like force that pushed him back so violently that he was almost injured. Thereby preventing him from coming closer to Slyvia and Zeke.
"What the fuck! Slyvia, what's going on? Why the barrier?" Asher asked in panic.
Jeremy, who was also observing, became alert. His back—with the cross-like tattoo that went down to his butt—glowed with great intensity, and the sword appeared in his hands.
Rose came closer, clasping her hands on Asher's own, who looked disturbed.
"I can sense a dark force hovering around," Asher declared, while trying to step into the invisible barrier that had shielded Slyvia and Ezekiel.
Ezekiel's bones cracked unnaturally, his limbs twisting and turning at impossible angles, his neck curving, then his eyes turned completely lifeless—like a hole, a bottomless pit in those dark eyes. Zeke's eyes then turned to Slyvia and he let out a chilling smile.
Slyvia moved back instinctively, getting ready to fire at the strange entity that had taken over Zeke's body.
"Oh, Slyvia, you're fighting against the ancestors—know that. And you're ruining the reputation of the witches. Step down, dear, because this mission you're embarking on with the child of light will be your downfall."
Zeke spoke out while still moving unnaturally. He walked closer to Slyvia.
"You have potential. I can see that untapped power that lies in you. And imagine if you reach your full potential. So this is the last warning—don't engage with the vampires and werewolves like this pathetic cabbage you're trying to heal. And most importantly, let the dead witches be, because this is part of the good witches' plan. A new era must be restored—one where witches will be in dominion."
Zeke concluded.
Slyvia's face turned pale. She couldn't believe the witches were collaborating with dark forces—especially the dead witches, destroyers of the balance of nature. No… this can't be. What is it? Her people can't be evil. But what about her father? And why the hell was his statue doing close to the Phoenix Stone?
She turned more apprehensive, waiting for the last words of the creature present before her.
"Allow us to end him. His life is hanging by a thread. The oak tree only made him vulnerable. Now he is going to die because we can't allow the divine being to fulfill his destiny. And he will be a weapon that will be either the child of light's downfall or their success," Zeke concluded. But before exiting, he brought forth his hands.
"So, dear, let's get to business. Can you hand over the Phoenix Stone right this instant? The dead witches need it urgently." Zeke demanded, eyes unblinking.
Slyvia's gaze hardened. So Ezekiel was Asher's key to success and downfall. So, going with the latter, he was definitely needed alive. She wouldn't let him die—never. And about the Phoenix Stone—it's time to show the witches that she wasn't taking shit from them.
"You're delusional and plain stupid if you think we are giving you the Phoenix Stone," Slyvia chimed in, smiling. But before she could take the talk over, Zeke attacked her with dark shadows of poisonous arrows.
Before Slyvia could stop the raining arrows, Asher raised his hands and a strange pillar of blinding beam fell over the heavens, and a harrowing force of light erupted from the earth, breaking the barrier apart.
Zeke, who was about to stab Slyvia—who was numb for a moment—got stabbed by Jeremy's sword, and he fell stiff and lifeless suddenly, life drifting away from him.
Asher, who was controlling the angelic beam, stopped, and his eyes fell on Zeke's limp body.
"No… Ezekiel—it's not him, is it? Nooo! Who did it? I didn't plan to kill him! We were supposed to cure him! Jimmy! How dare you?! Answer me, Jeremy!"
Asher yelled, falling beside Zeke in horror. Rose then faced the team in haste.
"Guys, cover your nose!" Rose screamed urgently. But they turned without listening to her—and a dark smoke penetrated their nostrils, each with a chilling smile that came out from the background.
"Time to sleep, people." Lamia's voice came from the air hauntingly, and a wave of dark shadow dragged them all to the abyss.
Suddenly, they all appeared at the skyscraper in which Lamia resides—the place where the dead witches now dwells.
Rose, Slyvia, Asher, and Jeremy all stood in the dark building with nothing but horror and dismay.
Lamia is back for them—and this time, he is here to torment and kill them all in their dreams.