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Chapter 30
WE ALL STAND QUIETLY on the path leading up the dark-gloomy castle entrance as the three matrons carry out a ritual. Seven small outcropping rocks lie spread wide apart in a horizontal line at the path leading to the castle steps and Oniko with the assistance of Bashir and Biola moves to each of the rocks, taking one of the seven rams that had been made available for the ritual, slaughtering the rams upon it and letting the blood spill upon the rock while the matrons follow them from behind chanting incantations.
They step back after spilling the blood of the last ram over the final rock, leaving the rest to the three matrons who begin a singsong incantation. Powerful magic ignites on the rocks, and the bodies of the ram and their blood catch fire, burning till nothing is left of them. We all sense an invisible barrier before the castle lifted as the fire goes out.
“Opening the castle does not demand much from your magic, it is only a matter of your will p
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CRIMSON SKY Chapter 31
FOURTEEN WITCHES SEAT in a round circle, five blacks, five reds, and four whites—which we sense more from their aura than from their clothes ranging in different colors from green, blue, white, black to purple. They are all women, and there are two empty seats in the circle. “The council of sixteen,” Ramatu announces. “This is not Nigeria. This is not Africa.” Ahmed states the obvious. “But how—” Chike begins. “Quiet,” Iditan hisses softly. The five of us are still connected. We can feel ourselves but we can’t see each other, and we are hidden within the shadows by the right side of the clearing. Why are we here? What’s this all about? I try to take a step forward out of curiosity but I find I can’t move. I sigh and then take the time to study the faces of the witches. There are a few young women amongst them, youths in fact. The fear on the face of the fourteen women mirrors each othe
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 32
TWENTY-ONE CAIRNS form a formation at the center of a wide clearing. Brea stands at its center while the members of the council form a small circle outside the cairns, and over hundred witches a larger circle behind the council.The witches chant softly as Brea moves around the interior of the cairns, laying a spell. She finally stands at the center of the circle and the chanting increases in crescendo. Brea stretches her right hand forward and the World stone appears in it, still in its dull unassuming form.“Everyone send your powers now!” Catherine commands.The chanting stops and a great storm of magic rolls as the witches all transfers power towards Brea within the cairns. A green and silver glow suddenly erupts from the World stone, bathing the whole clearing in its light and drawing gasps of surprise from all the witches.“The World stone!” a few voices hiss in surprise.A silent argument rises between Anna and Tilda
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 33
“WHERE ARE WE?” Brea asks, looking around in bewilderment. They are in a thick forest not unlike the one they have left behind.She looks at Selene and another witch who has since moved on to wake the others who are unconscious. The witches come awake with groans of discomfort, before taking on a look of wariness as they remember recent events.“Magic is Back!” Brea hisses in excitement, standing to her feet. “But it now has a different feel to it. It is way stronger than before.”“Where is Cat?” she finally asks, looking around for her. Her eyes rest on the witches who are all try to evade her gaze.“Brea,” Selene begins.“Where is she? Where are the others?” Brea asks, her voice quivering.“I’m not sure where we are,” Selene begins. “Cat opened a rift with blood magic using the Heaven’s eye, and she stayed back to stop Lord Bail.”
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 34
“NICE PLACE YOU GOT HERE. I never knew you—”“What in hell are you doing here?” I shouted, shocked. The feeling of déjà vu struck me so hard I had to steady myself on the aluminum rail of the staircase so as not to fall.“Mind your language.” Felicia who came out of the kitchen wearing an apron scolded. “I’m sure everyone in the estate could hear you from miles away.” It was one of those Saturdays when Felicia chose not to go to work so as to clean and do laundry, and so everyone else was at home except for my father.I barely answered her, staring at Kudaisi who sat on the couch and looked back at me with eyes twinkling in wicked amusement. Taiwo sat beside him on the couch, chuckling hard at my reaction alongside Shola and Kenny who were seated opposite them. Last time, it was chike making an unannounced entry into our house, now today, it was Kudaisi.I shifted a glance to
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 35
THEY WERE FIGHTING AGAIN.Felicia’s voice was louder as usual, her shrill voice resounding through the house while father’s thick baritone voice accompanied her with its vibrations. They never really fought or argued, but whenever they did we would have to make ourselves as scarce as possible, as anyone of us could readily be the focus of their anger at any moment, especially for father.The first fight would have been before we came home from the beach when father had arrived home to our absence. I had gotten back to my phone on reaching the car to eleven missed calls, nine from Felicia and two from Joseph, and with a message that we were to go to her supermart where Joseph would be waiting to bring us home on pretence that we had gone there as usual for our occasional part-time work.Felicia was scowling hard and her face red as we entered the house with terrified faces, and then another argument began when father came down and we greeted him. He h
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 36
“You sure did take your time,” Kudaisi said when I finally appeared in the garden. I only had twenty minutes to stay. “A lady needs her time,” I replied with a forced smile, joining him on the bench where he sat. He eyed me for a moment, noting the weariness on my face. “Come here.” He drew me into his warm embrace. We sat like that without any words till it was time for me to go, and I had to reluctantly detach myself from his arms. “Be safe,” I muttered as I opened the portal that would lead me to my destination. I was sure I wouldn’t be able to stop Kudaisi from going out to look for trouble tonight or any other night no matter how hard I tried, I could only hope he would be safe. “You too.” Ahmed accosted me as soon as I arrived at our designated meeting place, a little village in the north called Dabi. “You are late,” he said, smiling in his easy self-assured way. “I’m not really, we were supposed to meet by eleven.
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 37
I WOULD ALWAYS REMEMBER DANIEL to be the fat snotty brat who hid behind his mother’s skirt with either a lollipop, a snack, or one of his fingers in his mouth, refusing to be anywhere but beside her even when she had to seat and later during dinner. It has been over five years since I last saw him, since when uncle Christopher brought him visiting with his wife to our house, and although he should be seventeen now, he was still not too far from the fat snotty brat of the time.And that snotty brat was trying to hit on me at this moment.We were currently at Uncle Christopher’s sprawling mansion at Ibadan for his wedding anniversary, and the party was in full blown after the reunion which held earlier in the afternoon—a tiring affair which mostly involved getting introduced to our father’s friends or uncles, their children, and their wives who by default became our aunts, with a lot of false smiles, forced conversations and lunch.Currentl
CRIMSON SKY Chapter 38
WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE? My thoughts flew everywhere as I was unsure of what was really going on. It took all I had to compose myself and not break down from tension and fear as I sat inside the backseat of the highlander with Taiwo wrapping her arms around me and her head on my lap, as we waited for father and Felicia who had come to check me by the car minutes ago after Shola found them and told them I was sick and had then gone back to bid farewell to their friends before we left. Kenny and Shola stood outside the car, reclining against the side as music from the party which was still on sounded in the background.This was by far the scariest and strangest night of my life.Everyone of them had a black owl on their person; father, Felicia, Shola, Taiwo, Kenny, and the two drivers Mark and Joseph. I did not see those on Shola, Kenny and Taiwo until later when I connected to the sight, and I was sure it was the tension and fear that had made me reverse to basic
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