CHAPTER 1

ORA’S POV

I stood next to the old warehouse, observing the frightened children. Most of them were huddled together shaking and crying. However, there was one boy who sat there in a lotus position with his eyes closed. His expression was calm, almost as if were a mini version of a saint doing deep meditation.

His slightly messed up hair fluttered on his forehead giving me this sudden urge to brush it off. My eyebrows furrowed. When did I develop a liking for kids?

I was still observing him when his eyes opened up. They held a kind of determination and wisdom that could only belong to an adult driven by ambition. But, he was a small child barely reaching up to my waist. I was so stunned that I couldn’t even react.

His eyes darted around and he spoke up in a voice that was soft yet firm, “Stop crying. Crying won’t get you anywhere.

My mouth hung open and I shook my head incredulously. What was he? A reincarnation of Buddha?

Surprisingly, most of the children in the group of about ten stopped crying. There was just one girl who was still sniffling. Breaking into a bout of hiccups, she stuttered, “I want mommy…. I don’t want to go back home.”

“If you want to go back, you will have to get out of here.”

“How can we do that? We are just kids….” Another boy dressed in a white shirt spoke in a feeble voice.

“Ron is right. We should wait for our parents. I am sure, my dad will be here any moment.”

The boy remained unperturbed by their words. His expression didn’t change in the slightest. “What if that evil witch kills us before that?” His expression hardened and his voice took a dangerous edge, “I would rather die than let a witch win.”

I was taken aback by the viciousness in his voice. He was a small boy of about five. How could he harbour such hatred towards someone?

He walked up to the door and took out a ring from his pocket. I almost gave myself away with the gasp that escaped my lips. It was studded with the infamous Blackstar. Rumour had it that this ring could absorb a witch’s power making her weak.

All this while I thought that the boy was just talking big. But he seemed to know what he was doing. He raised his hand in the air as he spoke in a serious voice, “That witch has put a boundary spell around us. Don’t worry, I will lift the spell with my ring.”

There was a soft crackle as the power of the stone delved into the veil of the power. Who exactly was this boy? Why in the world did he have this ring on him? I was intrigued and shocked at the same time.

As the crackle grew in intensity, the boy’s face turned pale and his face got covered in sweat. His tiny body wasn’t enough to withstand the power clash between the ring and the veil. I could see the strain on him but he didn’t show any signs of giving up; his gaze remained focused.

A streak of blood flowed down his nose and he started shaking like a leaf. If he didn’t stop soon, he would die. I couldn’t stop myself anymore. With a flick of my palm, I opened the door and absorbed the veil.

The boy staggered but I held him quickly. Going down on my knees, I wiped off the blood with the pad of my thumb. Then satisfying my urge to brush off the hair from his forehead, I asked, “Are you okay?”

His eyes narrowed. Instead of replying to me, he pushed me away, “You are one of them. You are a witch.”

The other children scurried backwards, huddling as close as possible. A deep sigh escaped my lips and I tried to explain, “I am a witch but I am not evil. I am here to help you.”

The boy’s expression turned even warier and he pointed the ring at me, “Don’t think that I will fall for your flowery words. I know that all witches are evil.”

His words held a vibe of deep hatred. I never cared for what others thought. But, for the first time in my life, I wanted him to see that I was good, “Not all of us are Evil… Umm… What is your name?”

“Why? Do you want to use my name to cast a specifically nasty spell on me?”

This boy; my! He sounded so arrogant and rude but he had managed to tug at the strings of my heart. I didn’t want him to be sacrificed.

“I can help you get out of this place…. That is if you agree to come with me.”

His little eyebrows puckered as if contemplating something. He cleared his throat and stated, “We will come with you if you make a magical pact not to harm us.”

My lips lifted in an appreciative smile, “You even know about magical pacts? Fine….” I held out my hand towards him.

Placing his small in mine, he stated, “I want you to say the spell aloud…. And use only the basic spell; no changes.”

I chanted the spell slowly as my mind replayed everything that he had said.  This boy’s knowledge and foresight were amazing. Once the spell was completed the boy put down his guard to a certain extent. Chewing his lower lip, he questioned, “Are you really not evil?”

“You will understand once you have reached home,” I ruffled his hair as I spoke. “I will teleport you to the boundary of the Halterland but after that, it is all up to you.”

He nodded and turned to face the others, “You might feel a bit dizzy and confused but there is nothing to worry about. She won’t be able to hurt us now that she has made a magical pact.”

I was startled by his words, “When did I say anything about helping others? I can’t let everyone escape. The Grand Magus will kill me.”

His expression hardened, “I won’t leave without my friends.”

“Cracker, don’t be silly. Magus is going to sacrifice all of you during a ritual. If you stay here, you will die.”

He raised his eyebrow and eyed me with scorn, “So you want me to abandon them to save my life?” His voice took a stubborn edge as he continued, “That will never happen. Evaan will never do something as bad as this.”

So, this little prodigy’s name was Evaan. My eyes darted from him to the other children in the room. Magus shouldn’t have kidnapped them in the first place. They were just innocent little kids. How could she bring herself to sacrifice them?

In a moment of impulse, I teleported all of them outside the Halterland. My lips lifted in a smile as I watched the children walk away. Gathering some power from my surroundings, I cast a protection spell over them.

When I watched the disappearing figure, something tugged at my heart and I muttered,  “Stay safe Little Cracker.”

Someone grabbed me from behind, forcing me to turn around. It was my sister, Zaviana. A deep sense of worry shrouded her gaze. She shook me up as she spoke in a horrified voice, “Do you have any idea what you have done, Ora? If the Magus finds out, she will kill you….”

I shrugged my shoulders, “Who is going to tell her?  I know I won’t.” Looking into her eyes, I stated in a confident voice, “I know very well that you won’t either.”

Conflicting emotions flitted across her features. She let out a long sigh and stated, “I won’t breathe a word but you shouldn’t test your luck like this. It is bound to backfire someday.”

 “We will worry about it when that happens…,” I shrugged off her concern with carefree nonchalance. “Let us go home now. Mother must be waiting for us. If we are late for the monthly ritual, she will be angered.”

I grabbed her hand and teleported us home before she could protest any further.