Liora is a witch, living as a saintess candidate in a church. Nobody knows who she really is, an abandoned Earth and Forest witch. She keeps her powers hidden, persecuting witches, so she may rule the world unopposed. But then, she does something a...
I stepped within the boundaries of the church's whitewashed walls. The high gate was made of a fragrant wood, held open by more church workers. As a saintess, I would run the whole city, but currently, it's managed by the three priests who will decide which one of us becomes saintess.
The walls are whitewashed, and fade to a warm gold near the top, a sandstone border. The cool shade inside the compound is delicious in the late summer, paired with an orange from the offering's pile that's been kept underground.
The inside of the walls possesses a delicious sent, of sun warmed tiles. I have to wear sandals, or I'd burn my feet on the dark beige-red tiles. The orchards at the edge of the compound are full of delicious fruit this time of year, and the sunset's are stunning, because the church sits on the hill.
The church is divided into two parts, the living compound, and the church hall, the place where everyone worships. The living compound is arranged in a symmetrical way, with a long corridor of bedrooms, a kitchen, and a bathhouse on the ground floor, with the saintess bedrooms being on a different corridor, with better living quarters.
Silvera's door is opposite mine, and as we walk over there, I see the faint glow of the approaching dusk. The distribution must have taken ages, because we started right after the siesta, and it's already dusk.
As soon as we stand by the door, we're left alone, and I turn to Silvera. Her eyes are more relaxed now, returning to their beautiful grey, like ripples on a shadowed pond. The thing is, I know who the actual saintess is. It's Silvera.
But I need to be the saintess. I can't afford to lose. As a woman, no-one else will take me seriously, and being a saintess is the only way I can get to power. People really listen to the church here, and so, leading it would give me everything.
"Silv? Are you alright?" I put a hand on her shoulder as I part the hair from her face. I open my door, and lead her inside, closing the door, and locking it behind us.
"I'm fine, I just had no idea how to deal with him." She relaxes against me, putting her head on my shoulder.
"Just be calm." I reply, finding the edge of my bed with the back of my heel.
"But how can I do that when I'm being accused of not being good enough." I sit down, and she slumps into my lap.
"Hmm." I say, pushing the hair away from her face, stroking her hair between my fingers. It's like silk.
"Liora?" She says into my shoulder.
I ignore her, and kiss the top of her head, inhaling her scent of the sun. I brush her cheek with the back of my hand, leaning down to kiss her right below her eye. I feel the flutter of her pulse in the vein under her eye, and her hand slowly rests just beside my ear.
My hair falls forward, strands of gold intertwining with hers. I feel a flutter in my reservoir of power, the deep scent of the Earth echoing under my feet. It mingles with the iron in my blood, and I shoot a net of awareness out in case someone for some reason walks past.
"Li-Liora." Silver stutters, and I pull her even closer.
ओह! यह छवि हमारे सामग्री दिशानिर्देशों का पालन नहीं करती है। प्रकाशन जारी रखने के लिए, कृपया इसे हटा दें या कोई भिन्न छवि अपलोड करें।
I open my eyes, because the warm hand on my chest shifted. I'm acting sleepier than I actually am, and peek open my green eyes to see Silvera snuggling closer. She's still asleep, her dark hair spread messily across the pillow.
She's lying with her back to the wall, and, of course I'm the one nearest the edge. Again. She huffs sleepily and rolls over, pulling the blankets closer to her, giving me enough time to slip away and leave her in my bed alone.
My bed is covered with a canopy of fine white netting, to keep the flies off when the heat gets oppressive, while still letting the cool breezes in. I walk to my desk, a neat table, with a bowl of lemon blossoms and lemon peel on it. I use my power of Forest regularly to keep them alive.
One of the benefits of being a witch.
Today is Inquisitor Leon Alonzo's welcoming ceremony. I insisted on it. After all, welcoming back such a hero, a witch-slayer extraordinaire should be an event. A celebration. And the perfect place to announce what will be his new duties.
That will be brilliant indeed, I think, as I wash my face briefly in a bowl of water and lemon peel. It makes me smell beautiful, and keeps my skin glowing and clear. I only bathe right after my siesta, but this helps me be the way a saintess should be.
I dress myself in a clean set of saintess' robes, glancing over at Silvera, still sleeping. I should probably wake her up, before she gets us both caught.
"Candidate Silvera." I say from across the room, braiding the part of my hair that I keep braided, because it's too long for anything else.
Witches get their power from themselves, and their main conduit is their hair. I don't know much about how that works, not much of anything about my witch-ness, but I know how to use my power and that's all that matters.
I hear the rustling of fabric behind me, and a little gasp. Silvera. I turn to look at her, she's sitting up, clutching the sheet tight to her chest. She squeaks at me, and I move, walking to the door, unlocking it and glancing outside quickly, double checking with my hearing.
I walk back over to her, pressing her old robe to her. She scurried out the door, into her own room, and I shut the door behind her. I went back to the desk and picked up a piece of paper. I put some ink on the fountain pen and started to write.
I took a deep breath, dropping into a strange trance, letting my hand write what it needed. I thought about what I wanted. I needed a creature like me, with strange powers, and I knew just how to get it.
