Tainted Wings: Book One (18+)

Chapter 4

The birds flew over a small cottage in the woods, far away from the tribe of Taínos. The sun shone brightly in the clear blue sky, the wind making the trees dance and the grass sway. Yet another blistering day on the island that would be called La Hispaniola in the future. It was another normal day for a particular Taíno Witch, another day of being alone. Little did she know that soon, her life would change forever.

Virago gathered her basket and cloak, pulling the hoodie over her head to block out the intense sun rays. She placed her Grimoire back in her bookshelf and exited her cottage to enter her garden. Her garden was one of her great accomplishments. It was filled with herbs and vegetables and some new herbs growing for future use. She even had her very own chicken coop behind her cottage.

After feeding her chickens, Virago hummed a Taíno tune as she filled her basket with herbs. She began mentally listing the ones she needed for medicine. She was going to restock later that afternoon since she didn't want to run low on supplies. Breathing in the air, she smiled at the new day. After her tribe kicked her out for the use of Witchcraft, she was now finally living the life.

Witchcraft wasn't frowned upon within the Taíno Natives. But Virago was accused of using Black Magick, which wasn't a lie. She didn't regret what she did, the man who she knew murdered her best friend deserved every curse she threw at him. She killed him without a second thought, knowing the consequences of her actions. Justice was what she was looking for, no matter the great lengths she had to go through to get it.

The parents of the man she killed begged for the chief to get rid of her permanently. She didn't care about them, they knew what their son did and they still pretended he was innocent.

Her father was chief of her tribe. He couldn't bring himself to sentence his only daughter to death, so he banished her. All her friends and cousins shunned her, once they knew what she did, everyone disowned her except her mother. Virago was given strict orders to never return to her former tribe. That was the only rule she'd sometimes follow. Now she was free to do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted.

Virago sighed, wondering why her father never believed her, she did it out of the goodness of her heart. Her mother was the only one who fought to let her stay, but rules are rules and whatever Virago's father said, goes. Sometimes she wondered what everyone was doing when she was not sneaking back there. But then she remembered when they threw rocks at her and dragged her out of the tribe. She remembered everyone watching her scream for forgiveness while no one batted an eye. Her father had to hold her mother back from protecting her. Virago could've used her powers against those who hurt her, but she didn't want to hurt them.

Now things have changed – she lived her life alone, far away from the people she grew to love and cherish. Far from her family and friends, and from her deceased friend's grave.

Virago thought it was better off this way, no one could hold her back anymore. She always knew she was free spirited. The only friends she had now were what people would call ghosts. Another one of her friends also grew up learning Magick, but she was never around much due to her love of traveling. Virago hasn't spoken to a Human in quite some time.

As she picked out the new herbs and placed them in her basket, suddenly, it became too bright to see. Virago turned to face the source. A fiery, erumpent beam of light came falling down from the sky, the end of it crashing somewhere in the woods. Virago dropped her basket. She ran into the woods to inspect, following the direction where the animals ran from.

The smell of burning grass hit her nose. She stepped into a circle of burning grass, wincing at the pain and found a man lying unconscious in the middle. The power of his fall tore down many trees, some lit aflame along with the grass. Virago took action, using her Water Magick from a nearby lake to stop the fire from spreading. Trying not to panic, she motioned for the water to spray onto the trees. Once she was finished, she sprayed it on the grass so it wouldn't continue hurting her feet.

Slowly walking towards the middle, her voice came out shaky as she spoke in Taíno. "Hello? Are you alive?"

He wore a white cloth from the hips down, laying on his stomach with two red slashes running down his back. He seemed to be injured in Virago's eyes. She squatted down and gently tapped his shoulder. He was really muscular, as if his body was handcrafted by the gods.

"Hello? Can you get up?"

In a flash, she was pushed down, letting in one single intake of breath before the strange man began choking her. Virago's eyes teared up as she tried to escape the strange man's stone-hard grasp.

He growled at her in Enochian. Rage burned his red eyes and he squeezed her neck tighter. "Disgusting Human! How dare you touch me?!"

Virago kicked her legs, thrashing and scratching down his arms, trying to push him off her body. Her lungs screamed for air. Almost out of breath, dying with no way out. It felt like the veins in her head were going to pop. Then her eyes found a way to survive. Reaching over beside her, she mentally raised a rock with her powers and swung it across his head, knocking him out once again. His hands loosened up and she gasped for air, pushing his body off to the side.

As Virago sat up, she took in deep breaths until her lungs were back to normal. She looked over at the man who almost caused her death. Virago noticed the wounds on his back were less severe than she thought. They were not slash marks, more like burn marks. Calming down first, she decided to take him in.

Carrying him was hard work. She slid her arms under his and locked her hands together across his chest. Her petite body struggled to pick him up. He was all legs and muscles. Her ponderous footsteps wavered as she dragged him.

"Why are you so heavy!?" she cried as she struggled to bring him back to her cottage.

If he were dead, she could've used her telekinesis. However, her powers had limits – she can't use them on the living. Virago finally made it to her room. She dropped him facing down on the quilt on her floor, shaking her arms. "I'm never saving anyone again."

Virago looked over his body, making sure there were no other wounds and turned his face towards her. His shoulder length hair hid his face and she rolled her eyes. She left her room to get a piece of cloth, a bowl of water, and medicine. She had about enough to help him recover.

Virago knew she had to help him. If he woke up in the middle of the woods, he'd search for her and try to kill her for what she did. So she didn't leave him, if he wakes up to her taking care of him, he wouldn't try to hurt her. At least, that's what she hoped for.

Virago pushed his hair back and froze. Whoever the strange man was, he's the most beautiful she had ever seen. His bone structure was strong, almost like a statue. He had a strange handsomeness which she found highly appealing. Clearing her throat, she began to clean any dirt off from his body and angelic face. His skin was smooth and snowy. His hair was curly brown and his long lashes almost touched his cheeks. Virago had to remind herself to stop staring at his beauty.

After cleaning the dirt off from the wound she inflicted on his face, she applied the medicine on the cut. Next, she began to clean his large arms, placing it on her lap one after the other until finally, she reached his back.

The second the wet cloth touched the burn marks, his eyes fluttered open.