Page 57 of Hex
Just a heads up; Baba Yaga is here. That’s her spell. But Trina is here too, which is really fucking weird because she’s made herself visible.It’s important that they have as much information as possible before they appear because Baba isn’t just any witch, she’s probably the most powerful save for Hekate.
Fuck, we’ve got company.
Our communication goes silent and my best guess is that they’ve run into djinn and harpies in their quest to find me. This just makes me feel powerless. I’m all for equal power and shit but that’s my chosen out there and she’s only been a certified kyn for less than a week. It’s like giving the keys to a brand new sports car to a toddler with grease on their hands.
“Fuck!” I don’t realize I roar that sentiment out until both witches stop their bickering and look over at me. So I improvise. “You’re giving me a headache.”
Baba Yaga is the first to respond but she doesn’t use words, she aims her hand and throws one of her infamous lasers at me. I barely have time to jump out of the way when Trina gets in her face. I mean, she’s in spirit form so she’s more of a fog than an obstacle, but she’s taking her job of distracting Baba Yaga very seriously.
“How dare you try to hurt him? What’s wrong, you don’t have the power to get to me so you attack the more vulnerable?” Fucking hell, I’ve never in my thousands of years in existence been called vulnerable. Not once.
This gives me the time to get back to my brother.
Slash! What’s going on?I have to wait, and I fucking hate waiting for anything in general—even less when it has to do with my chosen.Slash! I swear to fuck, you need to answer me!
A little busy right now.
His curt response is confirmation that they’re fighting something. I’ve only seen the two kyn here but nothing says there aren’t more out there. Hell, I don’t even know where I am, let alone who my enemies are.
Distant shouts echo around the cave and I realize that Trina did her job well. The spell Baba Yaga was using to keep us invisible has been weakened by her lack of concentration. That small window has given Slash and Sage the opportunity to bust in here with literal fireworks exploding.
“What is happening?”
“Sage! Finally!”
Both witches are yelling at my chosen one but with different expressions on their faces. One with fury, the other with relief.
“You taking a nap, brother?” Slash winks at me as he slices through the bars with his almighty sword as though they were melted butter. There are weapons, then there’s this. Just like my bow and arrows have extraordinary powers, Slash’s sword holds magical strength given by the Dei of the demons. Nothing can stand in its way.
Until the next time he annoys me, he’s going to secretly be my favorite brother.
Sage barely acknowledges me as she sets off fire bomb after fire bomb aimed at Baba, who is too weak to do much more than throw some half-hearted bolts at her once-upon-a-time daughter.
Thousands upon thousands of stories have been told about Baba Yaga among the anthros and the kyn. Just like all the other rumors concerning our world, I dismissed them as myths. Turnsout, everything we’ve heard about Baba Yaga is true and she really is a hyped up cunt with a few magic tricks up her sleeve.
As I step over the now-open cage, I place myself between my chosen and her attacker, Trina floating right behind me. I want to destroy this witch, tear her limb from limb before cutting her head right off her shoulders.
My vines are finally liberated and as one connects with Baba Yaga, a strange sensation comes over me. It’s not the itherium, it’s not any spell I’ve ever felt before.
This is something more altogether.
I’m frozen, completely still as I watch my life essence travel from me to Baba Yaga by way of my vines.
It’s surreal and impossible, yet here we fucking are.
“What the fuck is going on? What is she doing to him?” Slash tries to pull me away but he’s sucked into the vortex right along with me, his own life force being siphoned off and floating into Baba Yaga.
“Quick, Sage, do something. She’s taking their strength to give to herself.” I can hear Trina but I’m incapable of speaking.
“I don’t have that spell. I don’t know how…” At first, Sage’s voice is panicked, like the whole situation has gone completely over her head.
I can feel myself weakening as well as Slash right beside me. In front of me, Baba goes from weak and nearing death’s door to standing straight without her cane.
“Hurry, my darling!” Trina’s voice is a pitch higher than normal and I’m thinking this is it. This is the moment we all fail.
“You will not hurt my chosen!” To punctuate her roaring declaration, the entire cave explodes into a ball of fire and I’ve never been more thankful for being a demon. Fire is not our enemy, but Baba Yaga? Not so much.
The connecting spell breaks with the severing of my vine but Slash and I are too out of it to do anything meaningful.
