Page 76 of The Fearless Witch

I followed Roman, carefully stepping over bleeding roots and smoldering grass.

I didn’t bother conjuring a light—the trees didn’t like it, judging by the way they attacked me the last time I tried to use fire to illuminate our way. So I had to rely on the occasional gleam of the red sky through the twisted branches overhead, and Roman and Beleth’s steadying hands.

For a few minutes, my steps were the only sound to be heard, when suddenly, both of them stopped at the same time, their hold tightening on me.

“We’re being watched,” Roman whispered, his back pressing to my chest when he moved closer. I looked around, but my sight was too weak and I didn’t want to waste my magic on something so trivial.

“We need to move faster,” Beleth said just as quietly and I nodded, nudging Roman to start walking again. His movements quickened, the hand that held mine started pulling me relentlessly with a speed that had me tripping every few steps.

A loud howl sounded from somewhere and we all scanned the trees, trying to determine where it had come from. Another one followed, then another, and even I could tell they were surrounding us.

“How many?” Roman asked, turning to face the forest just as Beleth did.

“Four,” Beleth replied, his shadows already seeping out of his body.

“Don’t use your powers for this!” I hissed at him, but he only bared his teeth. “We can take care of them, you just stay out of the way.” At that, his eyes turned black, and it took everything in me not to roll mine. “Stop being so stubborn! Do you want to win or not?”

“Necromancy doesn’t work on hellhounds,” he spat, but his shadows retreated under his skin.

“I know. But punching them in the face with a branch does,” I smirked while I pressed my hand to the nearest tree, begging the forest to protect us once again.

The howling drew closer, snarls deafening the sounds of snapping wood and feet thudding over hard ground. Roman released my fingers and leaned forward, preparing to charge, when I spotted the first creature—well, I saw its red eyes right before the monster jumped from the tree above us.

Roman grabbed it by the front leg before it could reach us, swinging it in the air and smashing it into the dirt. The beast tried to get up despite its broken limbs, but the vampire stomped on its face and its skull exploded in a bloody mess.

More eyes appeared in the darkness, followed by a flash of teeth. Beleth cursed under his breath, but his shadows remained beneath his skin, so I pressed my other hand to the rough bark and whispered another prayer to the forest.

A second hellhound charged and Roman moved in front of Beleth, catching the beast by the shoulders and killing its inertia. Long, black nails dug into Roman’s thigh, but he barely noticed, too busy pulling the monster’s jaw in two opposite directions.

“Come on!” I snarled, glaring at the silent trees. “Protect…” Something slid around my waist and I looked down, eyes widening when I noticed the branch tightening its hold on me. “Fu…” was all I managed to get out before I was yanked back with so much force, the air whooshed out of my lungs, silencing my scream. I wrapped my arms around my head as I flew between the trees with deadly speed, but to my relief, I didn’t hit a single one. At least not until the moment that thought crossed my mind.

The crash wasn’t bad enough to break my bones, but it still left me aching and disoriented, and by the time my vision cleared enough, the outside world was shrinking. More and more branches twisted around me, swirling like snakes as they formed a cocoon around my body.

“Stop!” I urged, clawing at the wood. “Release me!”

‘Protect,’ the trees whispered, and the wood tightened even harder, pressing on my legs and chest until they were ready to snap. My view of the world narrowed and the tiny spot that allowed me to see the twisted trees in front of me sealed completely.

“No!” I screamed, calling on my magic until fire exploded from my palms. The trees screamed but didn’t release me. My head started to pound as the air grew thinner and the pressure on my chest increased. Darkness crawled into the corners of my visions and I was just beginning to suffocate when the wood splintered and a fist flew toward my face.

I screamed, but no sound came out of my mouth and neither was there pain because instead of hitting me, the bloodied fingers wrapped around my throat. Shadows crept into the crevice like tentacles, fighting against the branches as they moved to close the gap. The tree started to shake from the effort and a familiar roar of frustration deafened the ringing in my ears before wood burst all around me.

The branches that held me fell to the ground, and I tilted forward, my weight pulling me down before I could remember how to use my limbs. A pair of strong arms caught me while I struggled to fill my lungs with air.

“I thought you were supposed to handle the first trial, Red? You’re epically failing.”

I lifted my head to glare at Beleth, but when I saw a hint of relief in his eyes, my anger vanished. Darkness filled his gaze as he yanked me to my feet, releasing me right before Roman’s voice asked from behind.

“Are you alright, darling?”

I whirled around just as he stepped over a bush, his shirt hanging in ribbons from his shoulders and black blood dripping from his mouth. When I nodded, he strode to my side and picked me up.

“Let’s get out of here before more of them come.”

Without waiting for a reply, Roman broke into a sprint. The demon seemed to have no problem keeping up even with his human body, but when Roman finally set me down, Beleth was panting and staring at our next challenge with a sour expression.

The forest ended so abruptly that it looked like a painting where the artist had stopped drawing in the middle of a canvas. The dark trees, bushes and wilted grass vanished, leaving only gray stone and puddles of burning water. There was no movement or sound except for the gurgle of the strange ponds and the cracking of the flames, but I knew that the moment we took a step into that seemingly picturesque hellish landscape, the serpents would come out.

“We move fast and don’t look back,” Beleth said. “They can come out of anywhere, at any time. Don’t stop until you’re at the other end.” His eyes darted to the looming cave in the distance before he locked them on Roman. “This trial is all about speed. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

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