Page 27 of Hex
Well fuck me all the ways because it works!
The snake hisses a final time, its skinny tongue poking out of its mouth before I watch it slither from the bush and farther into the mass of gray trees.
That was easy.
“The path is as you make it. Always.”
I don’t know exactly what she means, but with my determination to do this quickly, a clearing appears at the end of the path. There’s a swirling ball of purple electricity, like forks of lightning, between two cherry blossoms in full bloom, the whiteness of the flowers standing out among all the gray shades.
Running toward it as fast as I can gets me there within seconds and I just seem to know that I have to touch it. My ability to read people seems to have strengthened and now I can sense the peace the purple forks hold. The rest of the forest around me is sinister, full of secrets and hidden horrors, and I’m just glad to be out of here.
I reach out to the purple forks, desperately hoping that I’m right and my usual abilities didn’t fuck off when the new ones arrived.
One singular touch is all it takes and the pain from before rushes back, my whole body alight with invisible flames and myhead thrown to the moonlight. I feel like it’s powering me, and that’s when everything happening around me becomes clear, too.
The guys are fighting the fenrir, and they’re so close, but something about it makes me want to keep it alive.
However, watching the huge white paw raise and swat Hack to the side fills me with an anger I have never felt before. Heat pours through me and I scream out, “STOP!”
I expect nothing to happen, but instead, everyone, including the fenrir, does exactly that. They all turn to look at me, standing beside the valkyrie with my arms out to the sides, still wearing the clothes I dreamed up a few moments ago.
Next, the fenrir closes its eyes and bows its huge head, resting its long snout against its paws in front of him.
My own eyes widen in shock, because I think I just made myself the fenrir’s new master…
Chapter Eleven
Hack
“What the fuck just happened?” It may be Slash’s out of breath question, but I don’t need to look around to know we’re all wondering the same damn thing.
For a while there, I had to share my attention between a giant, not-so-friendly furball killing machine trying to decapitate us, and my chosen, who was clearly in a trance, white pupils and all.
My first instinct was to run back to her until I remembered this motherfucker with teeth as long as my femur. Lathuneh was there, doing her job and protecting Dei Hekate’s daughter. I had to concentrate on being the barrier between me and Sage. That was it, that was the job.
And it’s a good thing, too, because we needed all weapons on deck in order to keep the fenrir at bay. We had speed on our side because, clearly, these beasts may be strong as fuck but they lack some serious hand-eye coordination, which is where we excel.
It was on a particularly brutal swipe of his massive paw across my torso that I decided we needed a new strategy. Once I caught my breath, my ribs working overtime to heal themselves, I ran up behind the beast and slid my way beneath him. The entiretime, I’m shooting dozens of arrows up at its underbelly. It took him by surprise, giving my brothers the time to jump up on him and stab him in a few good places.
But we weren’t the ones who made him freeze, made him stop all movements with his eyes aimed straight at my chosen.
It was one word. One command. One loud, threatening order that had all of us come to a complete standstill. As a whole, we turned toward the earth-shaking sound and stared. Where just minutes ago I’d checked in on Sage, who was wearing ripped up bits of clothing, hair in disarray and a pallor that screamed malnutrition, she was suddenly dressed like some badass superhero from an adventure video game. Knives at her hip and all.
So, yes, Slash’s question is valid and we’re all wondering what the fuck just happened.
Then it hits me.
“Sage just passed the threshold.” Fuck, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced joy before because the weight that’s been lifted off my shoulders and the warmth that’s infused the very fabric of my being is nothing short of perfection, pure and unfiltered. It feels eternal and exponential with every breath I take. Despite all of this, I’m rooted to the spot.
We all are.
Facing Sage, like an army ready to serve at her feet, we wait. For what, I’m not quite sure. She’s officially a witch, yes, but she’s more than that, isn’t she?
The goddess in her is like a beam of moonlight outlining her silhouette. Everything about her is mesmerizing and calls upon our duty to follow, our duty to fight for her.
“Shit, she’s got the gift of the gods.” Slay’s words ring truer than anything I’ve ever heard. As the daughter of the Dei of Witches, the goddess of witchcraft and magic, of the moon, thenight, and the souls that wander the Earth, Sage is in line to, one day, inherit the throne.
It’s unlikely since Hekate will live until the end of time, but the heir to the Dei, she is. Not to mention, we have no idea who her father is, which will probably complicate shit, but that’s a question for another time.
