Part I - 10

In a room barely illuminated except for the burning candles around, was a group of seven people: men and women dressed alike. They were all dressed in black gowns with capes and were gathered around a table.

The cabin was near a lake and was covered by a thick forest. The niche was as silent as a tomb except for the rustling of the leaves and the sound of the cold breeze romancing the lake.

A young man of about twenty-five years of age walked into the room with his face slightly covered by a hat. He was wearing the same black gown as the members of the group.

"The witch is here but she wouldn't step in.'' he announced, clearing out his gray hat. The people around the table greeted one another with congratulatory smiles upon the announcement of the witch's arrival.

"Bring her in." directed the man seating in their middle in an authoritative tone. On both sides were three people each. Both his hands were stretched forth on the table. About forty years of age, he is the leader of the cult. He barely blinked his eyes.

"She is hesitant." complained the young man while caressing his hat.

"Shut up and be a man." growled an elderly woman from the group. She was sitting next to the leader. "You mustn't be told to do everything." She maintained a fierce look.

The young man fumed and wanted to speak but he was interrupted by the loud sound their leader created. He slapped the table hard with his right hand and screamed.

"Enough!. We don't have time," he growled.

"Drag the witch here immediately," he ordered. The young messenger glared at the elderly woman and headed out to get the witch.

The secret spot was guarded by several young men dressed in black. The young messenger went to the place he kept the witch. She was not far from them but just outside the door. Both her hands were tied behind her and around her neck was an enchanted necklace aimed at preventing her from practicing any form of magic. Her mouth was sealed and she was blindfolded. She was on her knees at the entrance of the room.

"Since you don't want to take a step further, I'll take you myself." her captor told her and aggressively swept her from the ground. She kept shaking her body violently in resistance.

He forcefully took her into the room and threw her before the group like a piece of garbage. "That's more like it." commented the elderly woman who spoke earlier. The messenger fumed again. She was getting on his nerves.

"Take off her blindfold." instructed the cult leader and the messenger did as he was told.

The witch, a middle-aged woman with blonde hair and a scar on her left cheek began to shiver. She looked around the cabin and saw the group of seven on the round table. The room smelled like a burning bush and deadly weapons and spell objects were hung on the wall. Beside the table was a chalice and when she gazed up, bats were hung face down. The witch estimated her chance and realized that she couldn't escape for there was no way she could. Her entire body began to tremble as if she had been electrocuted.

The cult leader stood up and began walking toward the witch. The closer he moved towards her, the more she quivered. When he got to her, He bent over and caressed her face. Then he proceeded to untie her hands. She was frightened by his bloodshot eyes. She immediately began creating imaginary circles with her hands which were now freed but nothing happened. The man smirked and went ahead to pull off the seal on her lips. She groaned and tried to perform magic by uttering some incantations but still, her efforts were futile. The cult leader mocked her with an evil laugh.

"Your magic has no effect on me and any of them," he told her, pointing at his team. He waved at the messenger indicating he could go and the young man left the room after shutting the door expertly.

"Don't try anything stupid." the cult leader warned the witch with a stern look.

"Bring her up here," he ordered and two men from his team hurried towards her. They lifted her and placed her on the table. She was resisting with a scream. The cult leader sent a slap across her left cheek and immediately returned the seal, shutting her mouth.

On the table, both her legs and hands were spread apart and a rusty cuff was used to prevent her legs and hands from shaking. She was breathing heavily. The cult group began arranging candles around the table while humming a dreadful tune.

The cult leader grabbed the dagger beside the table and made an opening of the witch's hand. She let out a loud groan which wasn't heard as fresh blood came out through her artery. Her blood was running down the table and was going through a tunnel underneath the table.

Underneath the table was Cassie's opened coffin and beside it was a circle with lit candles all around. The more the witch bled, the more blood flowed through the tunnel right into Cassie's open coffin.

While forming a circle around the table, the cult took each other's hands and were muttering some ancient words. On the table laid the bleeding witch.

Inside Cassie's coffin where her bones had once lay, was a mixture of flesh and blood. The group increased the pitch of their voice while lifting their tied hands to the sky. The higher their voices went, the greater the intensity of the fire from the burning candles surrounding the witch. They collectively led out a loud cry and the room almost went up in flames. They opened their eyes and the women from the group began freeing the witch.

The resurrection ritual was done and the freed witch was tightly held by the arm of one of the women. Cassie immediately climbed out of the coffin and sat up. She was naked. One of the women came forward with a white cloak and covered Cassie's nakedness. Cassie had been brought back to life and the act was aided by the witch's blood.

Meanwhile, while the witch was struggling on the table, a knot on the enchanted necklace around her neck broke loose and while they dragged her down the table, the necklace fell off and none of them noticed it.

Cassie was slowly helped out of the coffin by the cult leader. She gave them a strange look and she was able to listen to all their heartbeats simultaneously. Her throat began to itch and she could sense all the movements taking place in the room. Her eyes instantly turned red and when she opened her mouth, they noticed that she now had fangs. Cassie was now a vampire, a famished one too.

Cassie was staring at them with scary eyes and her move to attack them was detected by the cult leader. He immediately snatched the witch from one of the women who held her and presented her to Cassie but the witch pulled a fast trick just when she was about to be devoured by Cassie. Since the enchanted necklace had fallen off, she was able to cast a spell. She generated a cloud of smoke that covered the whole room and she escaped. The other cult members took a few steps backward trembling in fear at the sight of Cassie.

The cult leader quickly dashed outside and returned with a young man dressed in black trousers and a black shirt. He was one of the men guarding their secret spot. The cult leader presented the man to Cassie.

She grabbed the man and used her fang to penetrate the deepest layer of his skin while he screamed in anguish. Her sharp teeth were fixed on the right side of his neck and she was draining the blood in him.

"After the witch." ordered the cult leader to his group while Cassie was still having her meal. Two men immediately stormed into the forest to seek her.

"Useless guards," he lamented. "The witch ran out from here and they didn't even notice. He complained.

The guard Cassie fed on fell to the ground like a piece of wood. She had drained the entire blood in his body. He was dead.

"Get rid of him." declared the cult leader and two of his group members swung into action.

Cassie instantly felt dizzy. She took more steps towards them and began to stagger. The cult leader ran to help her. She managed to sit on one of the vacant chairs in the room. She was now fully back.

The two men who had earlier scampered into the forest to look for the witch returned to the room with disappointment spread on their faces.

"There was no trace of her within our perimeters." reported the thinner man. "She's gone," he added and lowered his head in shame.

The cult leader let out a loud groan of defeat and hit his left leg on the wall.