A Witchy Adventure

Prompt Action | A Travel Spell Gone Wrong

Morgana found herself in the middle of a dark forest, her pastel clothes a stark contrast with her grim surroundings.

She walked towards a tree. The ebony bark felt rough on her skin as she traced its trunk.

A emerald plant near the tree caught her attention. Its leaves were the size of a child and shimmered in the little sunlight that had found its way through the dense foliage.

That can't be real, Morgana thought as her hand hovered towards its leaves. She had hoped to feel plastic, but instead was met by a smooth, thick, organic texture.

This can't be...

Morgana took a deep breath. Her lungs filled with crispy, clean air. She clenched her chest as her eyes widened.

No dry A/C air.

This was definitely not the supermarket.

Morgana walked up and down the damp forest floor.

This is not real. She grasped her pastel hair. This is not real. She knelt down. This is not real. If she just kept repeating it, it must come true.. Right?

She shook her head and signed herself to stop.

"Freaking out doesn't help anyone," she said to herself. "I'm a witch." Morgana stood up. She straightened her pastel jacket and started to walk. "I'm the most terrifying creature in here. Everyone else should be sca-" She walked into a huge spider web. She screamed, turned around and ran for her life.

As she ran, the right side of her jacket started to squirm. An angry, half asleep voice shook: "Will you slow down?! I'm trying to sleep in here. And what's with that screeching? If I'd liked that, I'd become a banshee's familiar instead of yours."

Morgana came to a halt. She rested her hands on her knees and panted. "Sorry, Sophocles. I-- I think I screwed up big time." She loosened her jacket.

"What did you do now?" A small white bat emerged from her inner pocket. He yawned.

Morgana offered him her finger. He sniffed it and clenched his tiny feet around it.

Morgana lifted him up.

"Uhm..."

Sophocles rubbed his eyes. He opened his mouth and emitted a high-pitched sound. When the sound waves bounced back, he opened his eyes widely. "Where are we?!"

***

Sophocles hung upside down on a small branch. He walked up and down it, gesturing wildely. "Let me get this straight. You were running late for work, so you used a quick travel spell" - his voice grew more shrill with every word as he spoke - "and now we're in the middle of a forest full of predators?!"

"We're WHAT?!" Morgana shrieked.

Sophocles tugged on his ears. His voice turned higher and higher as he whined: "We're in a forest full of pre-dah-thorrrrs!..."

Morgana shushed Sophocles. "Keep quiet," she whispered harshly. "They might not notice us. What do they look like?"

"The smallest is three heads taller than you, as muscled as a lioness, the leg power of a kangaroo, as wide as a buffalo and with antlers the size of a moose."

"Antlers? Like Seitana?"

"These creatures are exactly like Seitana."

Morgana shrugged. "Then I don't see any problem. They're cool."

"Seitana is the nicest of his kind, but there's still a reason why he's linked to death. His species is more murderous than you humans.
Where you are the space Australians, they are the deity Australians and the last time I checked you humans can't slay gods and especially not the Australian type."

"Luckily for you, I'm a witch. How do I defeat them?"

"You don't. You just avoid them long enough to find a way out." Sophocles scratched his head. "What spell did you use?"

Morgana took a pocket sized notebook out off her jacket. She leafed through it and held it open in front of Sophocles.

Sophocles snorted. "You know I'm blind, right?"

"Can't you use your high pitched screaming?"

"For what? To determine it's a book you're holding? Honey, I can tell by the sound it made." Sophocles stared ahead unamused. When the silence had lingered long enough without Morgana responding, he added: "Enlighten me about what's on the page."

"Right. It's a sigil for quick and easy travels."

"What does it look like?"

Morgana raised an eyebrow as she glanced at the smudged ink splashes. "An octopus with a moustache?"

"You indeed used a travel spell..."

Morgana smiled. "I knew it."

Sophocles continued unamused: "To travel to a different dimension. Read the small prints."

Morgana's eyes widened as she scanned the page. Her smile turned into a wide and oval one as she scratched her neck. "Oops."

Sophocles face palmed.

"How do we reverse it?"

"We can't, but we can use another spell to get back."

"Which one?"

Sophocles scratched his head. "I can't remember."

Morgana pulled down the corner of her lips. She gestured herself to calm down and sighed. She looked at her notebook. Her finger slid slowly under every word as she meticulously studied the open page. "Here it says that to teleport back, we have to-"

"Do what?"

Morgana knitted her eyebrows. "Draw a..." She squinted her eyes, trying to decipher the smudged words. "Rune? We have to draw a rune on us and focus on home?"

"What rune?"

"A pointy one?"

Sophocles rolled his eyes. "They're all pointy." He remained silent and then said: "Fine. Let's try it." He opened his arms and exposed his white, fluffy tummy. "Use something washable. I want to quickly look presentable when we're back home."

Morgana rolled her eyes. "It's not like you can see it... Will mud do?"

"Yes, but not a gram more than necessary."

Morgana drew the rune on Sophocles and herself. She took his hand and called upon her powers. "Let's focus now. We don't want to teleport to somewhere we don't want to."

"You mean like in the stomach of that Seitana creature watching us?"

The runes lit up.

"The what? WHERE?!"

"Behind that tree."

Morgana and Sophocles teleported; needless to say, not to home...

***

Total amount of words: 999