Mystical waters

8: Island of curses and ghosts

I bought and used an old compass.

Houses sprouted in front of Ada and Lenara as they arrived in what seemed a little village. Everything seemed eerily quiet and empty. The houses were all in poor states as if they hadn't hosted living beings in a long time.

"Where is everybody?" Ada asked. A cold wind blew and she shivered. The place was starting to give her chills. She was hoping to rest for a bit but this wasn't what she was expecting. Something malevolent was in the air and she didn't want anything to do with it.

"Can we go Lenara? I don't want to stay here."

"I fear we cannot. This village is under a curse. Unless a curse is broken any living being that entered cannot leave."

Ada didn't want to believe her ears.

"Why have you brought me here, then?"

Lenara craned her neck and looked at her.

"Have you forgotten the reason you are still alive? Your part of the deal?"

Ada shook her head.

"Of course not. I just wasn't expecting it to confine me to one place."

"It is not the deal keeping you here, it is them."

She looked around. "Them? Are you sure we are in the right place? There is nobody here."

Lenara shook her mane.

"There may not be anyone living here, but it does not mean it is empty."

Ada felt a shiver run down her spine and the hairs on her arms stood up. Air spun around her and figures started appearing.

"Look a guest has come to visit us," the mist spoke as it started to take shape of a female.

"Uh, it is living. It has been some time since any living meat came here," another one hissed. The apparitions started spinning around her and she covered her head with her hands and crouched to the ground.

"Let's play!" one of them squealed.

"Wait!" Ada shouted. "I am here to break the curse!"

The air around her calmed down and she opened one eye.

The ghosts were now intently staring at her. One female ghost glided forward.

"Why would you be able to break a curse?" she looked at her skeptically. She tilted her head and her ghostly eyes shone with curiosity.

Ada took a deep breath.

I am the Chosen one," she said and extended her arm to emphasize her point.

The ghost bulged her eyes and gasped.

"That ring... the cursed one..." she muttered, staring at the ring with wide eyes.

Ada furrowed her brows.

"What..."

The ghost sighed. "You may want to know the whole story... As you probably noticed the whole village is dead... You see long ago I made a mistake. I drank too much and I met a man, a very handsome one... I gave myself to him even though I was already promised to another... so I didn't think much that faithful night. He asked me to bring him to the village. Well, how could I say no... how could I know? It is not that they haven't been warning us about demons dwelling outside... Well, I brought him to the village... And he... he killed every living thing inside here. I watched little children being torn apart. Not a soul has been spared. All because of a stupid mistake..."

Her eyes stared somewhere in the distance lost in her thought. Ada listened to the story, horrified. She looked around. Even though the rain had washed away the stains of blood, she could almost smell the carnage.

"Krasue's curse, they called it. But this is not the origin of it, you see. Even longer ago, there was a woman with a ring just like yours. A village recognised her as a witch... they believed she was a demon and tried to burn her... but she escaped. Though not before she placed a curse on this place so no person in this village would ever rest in peace. Ever since then people have been leaving to die elsewhere... to not fall under a curse."

She sighed exasperatedly.

"Until this happened." She motioned with her hand around.

"But it seems you are the master of this ring now. You really can undo the curse that is keeping us here."

She looked at her hopefully. "Please help us, if you don't want to end like us."

Ada looked at her ring thoughtfully. "I am not sure what I'm supposed to do..."

"Well, according to stories that woman used her blood to issue such a powerful curse upon our village, that has been lasting for centuries," Krasue told her.

Ada's eyes lit up.

"So perhaps, if I use my blood I might be able to counter it."

"If it was a blood curse then a new master's blood offering might make the ring take it back," Lenara nodded.

Ada took a deep breath. She wasn't very keen on opening her veins. In fact, it made her feel like throwing up. On the other hand, staying in this creepy town forever was even less to her liking. Suddenly shedding a bit of her blood didn't seem as bad.

She took a dagger from her belt and closed her eyes. She moved the blade to her hand, lingering there for a bit, the cold metal brushing her hand. Finally, she gritted her teeth and pressed the sharp edge hard to her skin. The edge cut into her skin with little pressure needed. She opened her eyes as soon as she felt warm blood oozing out accompanied by sharp stinging. She removed the ring from her finger and turned her palm for a drop of blood to fall onto it. She then held it between her palms and raised it in the air.

A cold wind made her hair flutter as she closed her eyes again.

"Long ago blood has been offered to you to seal the curse upon this village. Now I offer you mine and ask you to take it back and let the souls of this village rest in peace. "

She opened her eyes as she sensed light through her eyelids.

Light started to shine inside the ghosts and slowly they started fading.

"Thank you," Krasue said, before fading into the light, leaving Ada and Lenara in a now truly empty square.