A Witch's Way

Chapter 32

"You know, I've been waiting for so long to end your pitiful existence," Erik snarled, leaping at Serena.

She threw up a wall of vines and she heard a grunt from the other side. A vine broke free and grabbed Erik's ankle, swinging him back and forth into the walls.

Serena felt something crawling up her leg and she jumped, the black shadow releasing her foot with a sickening 'pop' noise. She scrambled back to the room Jasper had gone into, and could hear shouting coming from it. It was muffled, and she couldn't hear much, but it sounded as if the wind was inside.

Something hit into her stomach and she groaned, folding over to cover her stomach. The pain burned into her skin, into her organs. She removed her arms to see nothing, her shirt still intact, but the sensation was remained, curling her toes from the pain sparking from her stomach throughout her body. Like a dagger, twisting and turning inside of her, dragging its way down her sides and back up.

She looked up to see Erik dancing his way past the snapping vines, holding a ball of shadow in his hand. He grinned, tossing it back and forth from hand to hand as if it were a toy.

"How are you doing, Serena? Done already?" he whined, grabbing at her face with his free hand. "Because I don't think you're done yet. You wanted this, and now you're gonna get it!" He pulled the ball of shadow toward her skin and she bit her lip, feeling a burning sensation on her arm before he jolted her backward.

Serena yelped, being thrown back-first into the swirling shadow-colored goo. It sucked at her skin and back and she squirmed, trying to get out of it. It climbed up her sides and up her neck, trying to reach her face to sink her in.

It sucked her in deeper. Was this is? Really?

"Dearest. You have to fight it."

Serena pulled her head up, her hair tangled within the goo. Rosemary was right. She had to fight. For Ian, for Stella, for Jasper, for Rosemary.

For herself.

A vine grabbed her wrist and pulled her up, leaving the goo behind as it furiously climbed up her legs to keep her from getting away. Another vine shot out of the wall around Erik and grabbed his waist.

He jumped and was flung up, smashing into the ceiling before falling to the ground, twitching.

Serena landed, stumbling. She swore that she could hear Erik laughing as he stood up, wobbling side to side. An eerie grin was pressed onto his face.

"You've gotten stronger--yes, yes!" he crowed, clapping his hands together. "I love it! I love it!"

Serena stood up, teetering back and forth on her legs. She pressed a hand to the wall. She could do this. She had to ration out her energy--but she had to kill him now. She didn't want to kill, she never wanted to, but it was kill or be killed, and she was not going to be killed.

Erik stepped forward, grinning before he lurched forward and backward. He looked down in shock and pressed a hand to his chest. Crimson liquid coated his fingers and he looked back up at Serena in shock.

She stared at him, surprised that she had done that herself. Vines impaled the man and his legs gave out. The vines held him up, blood trickling down the thorns and mixing with the dust on the floor.

She walked to him and stood, heart beating fast. He reached out, trying to grab at Serena, a look of both fear and fury on his face, trying to breathe. "W-what?"

"Goodbye, Erik. Rot in hell," Serena snapped, removing the thorns from his body. He crumpled down like paper, his breath leaving him with every second. Blood pooled around him and he stopped moving, and the hallway was silent. It startled her for a second, how quiet it was. No screaming, no shouting. Nothing.