Page 68 of Magic and Medicine

‘Fine, I will do it, but let her go.’ I said, and Rostov smiled.

‘I knew you are a reasonable woman, but I want an oath, a blood oath.’ He said. I didn’t have the faintest idea what a blood oath was, but on impulse, I bit my lip, smearing blood on my finger, and then touched the barrier.

‘You have my word. I will return your god to the world if you release and heal Nina immediately.’ I kept it as ambiguous as possible, promising him to draw Czernobog here but nothing more. The barrier shimmered, ripples of power spreading from the bloody fingerprint before it shattered, and Nina raised her head, weak and dazed.

Rostov pushed her off the altar, and I rushed toward my friend, who landed on the hard floor with a heavy thud.

‘Sara, you can’t do it. This bastard is a monster. He killed so many just to keep this place running.’ She murmured, looking around, her dazed eyes slowly regaining focus, but Rostov laughed.

‘She swore a blood oath, fool. If she runs, her soul will face unimaginable torture.’ He unbuttoned his shirt, gesturing toward me. ‘Come, my dear, it is time to fulfil your part of the bargain.’

I studied Rostov as he drew a sigil on the black stone before repeating the gesture on his chest. When I approached, he lay on the altar and grabbed my hand, placing it in the centre of his chest. I could sense his spirit throbbing at the core of his existence. Weak and tainted, but full of greed and desperation. With a boom, the building shook under the pressure of an external force, and Rostov hissed before he started an incantation. The grating melody of his voice gave me goosebumps, but I could easily understand the words and the intent behind them.

Come to me, answer my call, come to me and accept your servant’s sacrifice. Darkness condensed around Rostov’s body, and he smiled in ecstasy.

Yes, come to him, fill him, and when nothing is left of you in the Nether, let me bind you to this mortal body before I kill you. I thought, sensing another presence in the room. Coiling darkness reached for me, wrapping its tendrils along my hand, still connected to Rostov’s chest.

‘I can feel him, his power. Guide him, Sara. That’s what you were born for. Guide him home, Soul Shepherd.’

‘Doer lu’quanth nindol rothe xuil dosst yorn.’

The strange words came from the depths of my soul, but I knew their meaning. I give you this body to rule, to use, to destroy. I bind thy soul. I didn’t just let Czernobog possess him, instead forcing the old god into the very fibre of Rostov’s being, remaking the Warlock’s existence.

Rostov’s body jerked, his pupils widening in shock, and I felt his heart flutter in his chest like a caged bird before it stuttered to a halt, and he died. The man who’d hurt and killed so many was gone, even as his body was filled with energy.

‘Sara! What have you done?’ Leszek’s roar was filled with fear, but I didn’t regret my actions. I owed Jarek and those killed to fuel the Warlock’s obsession, this moment of revenge. Rostov was dead; now it was his master’s turn. I looked at the body before me, eyes filled with swirling darkness as it slowly sat up, my hand still pressed against its chest. I tried to snatch it back, but Czernobog was faster, securing my wrist and refusing to let go.

‘Ah, little witch, I saw you in my thoughts, his thoughts. I’m glad we could meet again.’ His voice, low and sensual, with the hint of a hiss, threatened to overwhelm my mind. His hand lazily trailed over my cheek, and like a deer in the headlights, I trembled under a crashing amount of power. His finger slid lower, touching my bloodied lip, and he raised it to his mouth to taste it. Suddenly, his face contorted in fury, and he spat to the side.

‘Leshy! He is sorely mistaken if he thinks the gift of his blood will stop me from claiming you. You are mine now,’ he snarled.

And then the Dark God bit me.

Chapter thirty-three

Venom coursed through my veins, making my thoughts sluggish. I knew I was still in Czernobog’s grip as his mouth was against the hollow of my neck, his fangs puncturing my skin. The agony I felt as his teeth tore into my flesh was slowly replaced by a strange, euphoric lethargy, leaving me hanging limply in his embrace.

I watched with detached interest as Nina picked herself off the floor and looked around. As our eyes met, hers widened in terror before she grabbed a tall candlestick, toppling its burning candle to the floor as she brandished her improvised weapon in Czernobog’s direction; its spiked end reflecting the flickering light in my eyes as she prepared to do something stupid.

I tried to speak, to stop her, but my mouth wouldn’t obey me, and I could only watch as Nina stabbed Czernobog in the back. The only reaction from the old god was laughter, his teeth ripping away from my neck as he expressed his disdain for my friend’s attack. Czernobog lowered me gently to the ground, turning his attention to Nina, who still stood there wielding her weapon.

The confusion on her face told me she didn’t feel the immense power surrounding her opponent’s body, and I tried to warn her, but once again, my body failed me as Czernobog gestured with one hand, his power throwing her against the wall.

I crawled, slowly dragging myself along the floor to get to her. I felt Czernobog’s stare on me as he observed my efforts with a lazy smile, but all I saw, all that pushed me forward was my friend, unconscious by the wall, and the need to get to her.

The building shook, and I sprawled flat on the floor, arms trembling weakly. I took a moment to gather my wits, only for another thunderous boom to deafen me. This time, the doors to the inner temple bowed inwards, two massive paws thrusting through a widening gap until they burst apart, smashing explosively against the walls to reveal the monstrous creature that could only be my Leszek.

Wow, is that? Is that what he really looks like? My thoughts were a jumble as I stared. With his antlers brushing the ceiling, he stepped into the dim light of the glowing amber, and my jaw dropped. Leszek’s already muscular physique had grown so massively that only tattered remnants of his combat gear were hanging from his gloriously furry torso and arms. I took in the pelt over his shoulders and head, at a loss as to where he’d found a wolf’s hide from or the golden torque gleaming at his throat. However, it was his hands, sporting three-inch claws big enough to crush my skull, that kept capturing my attention as they flexed into fists, blood dripping from the darkened fur.

Just like my vision, I realised, but there was no love in his gaze, only death as he surveyed the wreckage of the room. I savoured the image of my wild, elder god in all his glory until my arm was roughly grabbed and my body lifted from the ground. Leszek stepped forward in reaction.

‘Don’t fucking dare touch her!’ he roared, and my head slumped to the side when Czernobog held me before him, showcasing the damage to my flesh as I sagged. ‘What have you done to her?’

Leszek charged. My enraged beast rushed forward, body blurring as he sped toward us, but Czernobog simply smirked, and Leszek’s body slammed into an invisible barrier, my ears popping as magic flared, and we shifted outside of time. It felt like the world was duplicated, two images not fully aligned. The god who held me created a temporal distortion, and now we were locked in a bubble of time.

The bubble distorted as Leszek raged, crashing into it repeatedly, refusing to accept defeat, making the world ripple as I stared, amazed he could even do that much, but as the magic solidified, his form slowed until he stilled. Anger raged within me, burning through my lethargy, and my body reacted to its stimulus, clearing my muddled thoughts. I needed to break this spell and free us from this temporal cage so that Leszek could deal with this powerful threat. If I could only reach for the dagger, or move at all, for that matter, I thought, running scenarios through my head. I couldn’t fight, at least not now. I couldn’t even cast a spell. I needed something to help me regain control. My eyes drifted to Nina, the woman who was a sister to me in all but name, but she was lying unconscious like a broken doll. Sister… the Coven….

Maiden protect me, Mother heal me, Crone guide me. Help me, please. Veronica, I need you. I directed my thoughts to the witches, trying to find the life-giving tether that connected me with them. I kept repeating the blessing, and when their response came, it was filled with magic so different from Czernobog’s deathly embrace that it allowed me to breathe.

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