The Gamma's Dark Witch

3 - Laurel

(Nisha)

I woke up surprisingly fresh for the lack of sleep I had the night before. My sisters were sleeping around me. Zephyr, for once, looked soft, even if the wind still blew threw her long dirty blonde tendrils. I stepped over Soleil and only quickened my pace when I was enough away from them so they wouldn’t be awoken.

I felt invigorated, happy to find that the new magic still lingered in me. I followed the sound of a stream, the sun was almost midway, and I was parched. My stomach rumbled, but I was used to that by now.

We were nomads, and when we traveled, we packed light and ate light. We rarely stayed in one place long or returned when we left. That thought flipped my stomach, but I was sure it was just the hunger; after some water, I would be fine.

I passed through the trees, sunlight trickled through the leaves above, and I felt calm, happy to be alone for even a few moments. Making a decision, even something small, felt special. Doing something for me instead of a higher purpose felt right.

“Oh, hi.”

I took a step back, the darkness collecting at my hands, waiting to be used. A young woman was standing across the stream. She looked at me with hazel eyes over a smattering of freckles that stood out even against her light brown skin.

“You scared me,” I said.

She tucked some brown hair behind her ear that fell out of her messy bun. She was wearing a white frock over a simple dress, it didn’t fit with this time, but then again, I rarely had dealings with any humans or modern cities.

“I was just getting some water,” The woman motioned to a bucket next to her. “It’s safe to drink if you were wondering.” She offered a smile.

I studied her. I didn’t know her. I had no reason to trust her, but I would have drank the water anyways. Maybe that made me unwise, but I was probably overthinking it.

“Thank you,” I watched her lean down and cup her hands into the stream. She looked up at me as she drank deeply.

I followed her movements and took a long sip myself. It was cool, crisp, and everything I needed.

“What are you?” I asked her.

“Similar to you, I would say.” She gave me a bright smile that revealed a set of dimples. “A witch, a light one though, mostly nature-related things.” One of those potion brewers that preferred to spend time deep in the woods healing things then.

“I’m not a witch,” I countered.

“Then what are you?”

“I’m.” I swallowed. I hated that question the few times I was asked. I was, we were, made for a purpose. Not born. Made. Similar to witches, I guess, but not.

We all had a power, something that we could control. I’d met witches before, and their magic was more.. Broad. I could perform some basic things as well as my sisters. I could bend enough force to use to my will, I could shield myself pretty well, I had control over some other small object, and I was powerful enough without tapping into the darkness that wanted to consume me. Basically, I mastered useless things that would only save me a few moments of time, if that.

Soleil had the power of sunlight itself. She could blast out that power more controlled and dangerous than any creature I had come in contact with. Her power felt metallic, and it coated my mouth with something ancient whenever she showed us even a bit of the extent of what she could do. She looked almost unassuming, with her pale skin and long fiery hair, but she was lethal.

Kevari could control water; she could learn from it. She said that water held memories, and some places had more memories to share. Kevari could control it and sometimes summon it from the water in the air, but her powers had limitations. She was most powerful when she was near a body of water. She could bend to her will.

Zephyr controlled wind, but it was more than that. She could listen to it, the wind whispered to her, and she interpreted the voices carried to her. Most of her time was spent alone, listening. I’d seen her in action before, not that we have ever fought anyone on purpose, but times have arisen when we needed to protect ourselves. The wind, the force in it, that she can summon felt like pure rage.

I had nothing like that, nothing useful. My power was shadows, darkness. I felt it thrum inside me, begging to be let out, but I was too scared to see what destruction I could cause if I did. The others could use theirs for good, but I didn’t see anything that wasn’t evil coming from me. I could move through shadows, and I saw all the wolves' faces last night when I did. It was pure horror, nothing like the awed shock that my sisters got. When people saw me, it was a look of instant hatred and terror.

“Are you okay?” I blinked a few times and looked at the girl across the bank.

“Y-yes,” I shook my head, “I was made, not born,” I tried to explain something that I didn’t understand, “I have a purpose that I serve.” I stopped there, my jaw set.

She nodded but didn’t press on. “Laurel.” A muffled voice called from behind her.

“Coming.” She sang back. “My betrothed,” she explained, holding up a hand with a thin gold band on it.

“Congratulations,” I tried to offer her a smile, but it twisted my stomach. Not that I ever thought the idea of spending a long life with one person appealing, but I liked the idea of some semblance of normality, knowing where you would be and who you would be with.

She stood up, brushing off her white apron, “It was lovely to share a drink with you,” She gave me a bright smile that I hated that liked.

I nodded deeply to her, waiting until she left to take another long drink of water and return to my sisters for the journey ahead.

_______

We were moving for over a week now. I didn’t mind the wandering - this time. Usually, I was anxious to get to our destination, but the further I got away from the mountain, the emptier I felt. It confused me, and each step felt harder. I wanted to talk to Soleil about it, but I wasn’t sure how to phrase it. She was my mentor, the oldest of us by far, but even she didn’t have the answers to everything.

I glanced at her slowly walking next to me, her head was tilted back towards the sun, and its rays soaked into her. Her milky skin caught every ray of light, and it entranced me. She was everything that I wasn’t.

“The path is clear,” Zephyr said, coming up on too-quiet feet that used to startle me, but I was well used to it now. Soleil just nodded, not even bothering to open her eyes.

“We should make it by nightfall,” Soleil said, coming back to us. Her green eyes seemed to flare golden as she set them on Zephyr.

“How long will we stay?” I asked, not able to meet her eyes. I wanted it to sound nonchalant, but I knew there was a tone of desperation under it that Soleil would pick up on.

Out of all of my sisters, I seemed to be the only one that didn’t fully accept the nomad lifestyle. I always thought I would get used to it as they did, but I never detected any trace of sadness or longing when we left a place. Maybe they had placed they had become more attached to that I hadn’t seen. I felt too embarrassed to ask them outright.

“Until our task is complete,” Soleil answered matter-of-factly, and I didn’t ask anything else.

The ambiguity of it all always irritated me. My life boiled down to something I didn’t understand; a purpose. It was hard to connect with a purpose I was made for but didn’t choose. But it wasn’t up to me to understand. My choice had been made for me, or I guess I had been created for it. I tried not to be annoyed at my maker, whoever they were, I was happy for this life, but I couldn’t understand the lack of choices I had or why I couldn’t serve their purpose while living my own life.

“What is it?” Soleil looked at me, tilting her head. She rarely looked angry, only supportive and eager to help. She was everything I could have asked for in a big sister, and a mentor.

“I’ve just been thinking a lot since the other night after meeting the werewolves,” Soleil nodded; her eyes seemed to beg me to go on, “I felt something that night, but I still feel it. It feels not wrong, but off, to be leaving.” I shrugged.

“I understand.” She looked up to the sun filtering through the trees, drinking it in. “When you come into your power, it connects to things. It’s confusing for us, especially with the amount that we travel. There will always be places, people, and things, that might connect to you because your power seeks them. Learning to separate that from what your calling is is crucial to survival.”

I nodded; that made sense. “But how do you decipher between a calling and something more fleeting?”

Soleil paused and reached for my shoulder, giving me a wide smile, “You’ll figure it out, and I’m here to guide you.” She turned back and caught up with Zephry and Kevari.

I was left even more confused than when I started talking to her. I knew she meant well, but she has been living far longer than I could comprehend. She was out of touch with what she must have felt when she was first created.

___

“We’re close.” Soleil paused. “This way,” She took a sharp left, and we all followed silently.

We were all exhausted by this point, looking forward to a real bed and an actual meal that wasn’t foraged. Despite how often we move, none of us were that great at it.

Everything seemed to go quiet; the air felt cold, still, and familiar.

Soleil smiled an old smile that showed her actual age. I rarely saw this smile from her; it was sad, full of loss and wisdom and consequences.

A stone slab sat in the middle of a clearing where nothing grew around it. The sign that our kind was welcomed here and had been here before. It was supposed to be something that should have made me feel comfortable, at ease, but the sight of the stark lone stone spoke more to me of loneliness than it did of welcome.

Soleil nodded at the stone in a motion that resembled a bow and continued on past it without a word.

I once asked Soleil who put them there, and she only shook her head. I don’t think she even knew. I wondered how long they were standing or who put them there. There must have been more of our kind before to have such large markers. I hadn’t met any outside of my sisters, but it was comforting to know others were out there; others were looking out for our kind.

__

In the distance, there was a warm glow. A large cabin-type house came into view. The sight of a new place usually comforted me, but not tonight. As much as I wanted a warm bed, I still felt a lingering tug from behind.

“Soleil.” An older yet sprightly man greeted her with open arms.

“Ezowyn,” Soleil’s said with a smile, placing a soft kiss on his cheek.

“Thank you for coming.” The man said and ushered her into the cabin.

Zephyr shrugged and followed them in. I glanced at Kevari, and she shook her head, following Zephyr. I didn’t want to intrude, we didn’t get an invitation, but I wasn’t going to stand outside all night.

We huddled around a fireplace, and the man, Ezowyn, gave us bowls of soup, still only speaking to Soleil in hushed voices.

The weariness of days of traveling settled into me. With a slightly full stomach and emotions, I couldn’t place warring inside me, my eyes started to flutter.

“Why don’t you get some sleep, Nisha?” Soleil gave me a warm smile.

Ezowyn took my bowl and showed me to the loft where we would all be sleeping. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow dreaming of flames and cold water from a babbling brook and deep green eyes.

(Cam)

“I need to find her,” I told Jackson when we were alone in his office. It had been a week since the battle, and everything had settled down.

“I wish you would wait.” He sighed, pinning me with his icy blue stare.

“Everything is taken care of here.”

“I know that, but you don’t even know where you are looking. Our merger with Silver Moon is still new, and you might be gone for months.”

Our pack, Moon Stone, officially merged with Silver Moon, a close ally, a few months back. Everything was going smoothly now, but I did get his point.

“You don’t have a way to contact her. You know nothing but her name and that she is a witch.” Jackson went on.

“She claims she’s not a witch,” I mumbled.

“Whatever she is, this is a rash decision, Cam.” Jackson met my stare.

“I want to get it over with.”

“You don’t know her.” His tone softened.

“Don’t.” I shook my head. “ I made my decision.”

Everyone had tried to bring it up, and talk about it with me, and I didn’t want to. I felt nothing but confusion and shame. It evoked emotions I tried to repress. It was something I didn't want to delve into, and I avoided those conversations entirely.

Was I not good enough for a normal mate?

Isla, our Luna, was so good and pure and innocent. She was strong and steady.

I hadn’t met Lucas’ mate yet, but every time they talked, or he talked about her, his eyes lit up. I have never seen him so happy, and that was saying a lot for a man that constantly wore a s.tupid grin.

And what am I stuck with?

A dark, evil, witch.

“Cam, I just want you to think this through.”

“I have.” My voice was harsher than I intended.

Jackson took a long breath and studied me. “Let’s give it a bit of time. We still have things to deal with here. Once everything is more settled, I’ll feel comfortable letting you go. I just need you here.” Jackson explained, and I knew it wasn’t a request.

“Okay.” I tried not to look as crestfallen as I felt.

This was eating at me, and as much as I pushed it away, it still lingered. I hated the uncertainty. I hated how weak this bond made me feel. I wanted it gone.