The Witch Care Association

Three women sat across a table in a small quiet inn. Two of them wore a dark hood that fully covered their faces. The third woman was an elderly lady. She had a warm smile on her face. She looked like a caring grandmother in front of her grandchildren.

"What's wrong? Please tell me." She said it in a caring tone

"Great Mother we really shouldn't, your heart might..."

"My heart is doing just fine. I'm old but I won't fall into my grave just by hearing what happened. Please let me hear it."

The two dark hooded figures looked at each other and then nodded. The one on the right removed her hood. She had sand like hair, a pair of sea blue eyes with elegant facial features. Right after she removed the hood she quickly became the centre of attention to everyone there. They looked at her from the corner of their eyes, but she didn't mind it and spoke in a distressed tone. "Great mother... We failed. We couldn't save her. We tried everything in our power but..." She put her hands on the table and held them together with a strong grip. The elderly woman gently grabbed her hands and said.

"There is no need to say more. You did your best. We will figure something out."

"But without her we won't be able to keep the association together Great Mother. We won't be able to pay for the secrecy." She gestured towards the other people in the inn." It's our fault that we will fall apart..."

"The Witch Care Association won't just fall apart, my dear." She laughed and grabbed her hand firmly. "I built it and I'm sure I laid good foundations. I will worry about this Annabelle. Even if our fortune left us. We will carry on just like in the old days."

"But how will you keep up with us?" The woman in the left said coldly, and hid behind her hood even more than before.

The elderly woman just laughed, and then turned to them with a serious expression on her face.

"Yes that means I will no longer lead the Witch Care Association my dear... You will go to the Fjords without me."

Annabelle jumped up. "No that can't happen! We refused to go with them once. They won't welcome us now with open arms! Did you forget that all the other witch associations used our association as a 'solution' to their 'problematic' witches! Even witches who just didn't follow their idiotic rules ended up here! Do you think they changed their minds? I don't want to see them ever again! I'm sure many of us feel the same way!" She then sat down and changed her tone. "This is the only place that accepted us... and you... Snowsyk Peak is our home and you're our Great Mother. Nothing will change that."

"Sometimes what we want isn't what best for us." She then slowly stood up and said "I will try to reason with the Duke and tell him what Gold is capable of. This will save her but all of you must leave the Kingdom. I don't want other people using you for their own goals."

"But... We can still try and..."

"No, you will help the others to get ready and make sure they know how to survive in the woods. It's been a while since we last used those skills. We relied on Gold for too long and too much... and we couldn't even save her." Suddenly a fourth woman came in and went straight to them.

"Great Mother!" She was panting heavily. "We found a new witch! She's asking for our help! But she wishes to speak to you first."

"A new witch? Are you sure we haven't met her before?"

"I'm sure Great Mother! She came from the Kingdom Of Greycastle! However there is a man with her who claims to be her relative. He also wishes to come to you and..."She stopped for a while and said." He offers a solution to our problem... I-I'm not sure what he means but he sounds serious."

The elderly woman was surprised. "What kind of problem? Is this man also from the south?" The hooded woman then nodded. "This is odd. They knew we're here despite coming from the the south,

They also knew where we are and came looking for us, and he knows a solution...? Let them come in then we will ask what they mean, make sure that the man doesn't wear God's Stone. It's possible that he's blackmailing her..." She nodded and left.

"Annabelle read the mind of the man, if he's blackmailing the woman. We will teach him a lesson. Also..."

"I know... I will scare him away." The hooded woman on the right answered and went to another table just across the room. All the other guests got out of her way. Some even ran. Like they feared for their lives. Then the whole inn became silent, slowly all of the guests left one by one. Only the bartender remained.

After a while, the silence was broken by a knock on the door. Two people were led in by a hooded woman. She showed them the table and left. The two people cautiously approached the table. The woman had short black hair and glimmering eyes, and the men beside her looked like an ordinary person. The only thing worth mentioning was the freckles on his face.

The elderly woman spoke first: "Take a seat. My name is Elaine she's Annabelle. How can we help you?"

"I'm Morrigan. I'm the witch who requested your help." She pointed at the men next to her" He's my relative Machiavelli. Are you the leader of the association?"

"Yes my dear." She smiled and nodded "I heard you need my help. Can you tell me more my dear?"

"Actually it's not me... It's him."

"Pardon me... I'm not sure I heard that right. Old age brings many curses."

Then the man spoke. "I am a prince from a faraway land and I want to reclaim my crown. I ask for the aid of witches so I can take back my title as king and avenge this misdeed done by Roland Wimbledon! I hoped that you can provide a powerful addition to my army and I can also provide power and riches to all those who follow my decree." He then looked at Annabelle who was shocked. So was Elaine who then replied with an irritated tone.

"We're not offering any sort of aid for those who want to shed blood. We're protecting the witches from the likes of you and that is our only responsibility. If that was the only thing you wanted then I have to tell you that you will leave this place empty handed."

"How unfortunate. You leave me no choice." He then raised both of his hands and clapped it together. Annabelle then shouted in a loud voice.

"The Guards! His Guards are coming!" The hooded woman in the background rushed towards the door and prepared for people to come in. She stood unwaveringly and opened her hands. Like she was preparing to use her nails as weapons.

"No they are not." He then sit down calmly and continued. "All of that was a lie. Now let me reintroduce myself. My name is Machiavelli and I am from the Kingdom of Greycastle. I came here looking for your aid and I am also willing to provide my help to you." Everyone in the room was confused including the woman next to him.

"Wh-what? Hold on! What just happened?" Annabelle asked with frustration."

"I have the habit of never telling more than necessary, but now that I tested your ability I have no other choice but to speak my mind to you. Unfortunately for me... you can see right into my line of thought. Completely reading the mind of others, but not their memories, emotions or the validity of their words. I had to focus especially hard just to test all these."

Annabelle almost choked when she heard the response. "Why...? And where did you know that I can read your mind in the first place?"

"I had to know that you can defend yourself from any infiltration attempts, and it was obvious that there is someone who can use her ability on others when you asked for my God's Stone." All of them were confused and in disarray but he continued. "Now back to my help. I know about the gold making witch and I guess something happened to her because you wouldn't be here in a small ruined inn otherwise. Tell me what happened and I will solve your problem."

None of them was able to keep up with him. They were still in shock. Elaine spoke first.

"I don't understand you young man..."

"You're not alone Madam...." Morrigan spoke.

Machiavelli let out "sigh" and said "I am willing to help you if you are willing to shelter my followers. However, I will need some sort of payment in the future. We can agree on that later. Now fill me in with the details with your witch. Where is she?"

"You're quite an impolite young man... However you sound serious and you knew how to get here. Your goal was clearly to ask for our assistance..." after meditating for a while she said "Tell me young man. Can you break into a heavily fortified castle full of soldiers in the finest armour and rescue one of my daughters?"

"Consider it done." He replied instantly. He said it like it was nothing. Both of their jaws dropped. "It will take me a week but, if you give me armour that those soldiers have and set up a campfire near the castle on the second day I moved in. I can do it within two days. If you accept my offer." Suddenly the woman from the door started to move towards them with swift and furious steps.

"How? How can you do that we witches are unable to achieve with all our powers. You are just an ordinary man! How can you do anything? You don't even look like someone who can carry a sword!"

He turned towards her "That's exactly how. Unlike you. I am just an 'ordinary' person."

"You will just run away when you see the first sign of danger! I am sure of that! Like all those 'brave' and 'honourable' knights that faced me!"

"What makes you think that I am like them?" He answered with a grin on his face.

"Let me show you something truly terrifying..." She pulled back her hood and revealed her face. Her facial features were graceful, almost like an angel that descended from the heavens, but her eyes were...full blood red. All of her eyes, not just her iris... Like it's the eyes of some sort of demonic beast. Her black hair also covered something that looked like... A pair of horns. She looked down on the man, but he was completely unmoved, with a facial expression that tells 'So what?' this shocked her and she opened her hands like before, and her nails turned into claws. They looked as sharp as the finest sword. But he was still unmoved. Her back then began to rise. Higher with every second, then suddenly a pair of small bat wings came out... But he was still unmoved.

"I have nightmares that keep me awake at nights. You are nothing compared to them..."

"You..." She raised her hand and was about to strike at him, but a Elaine in a soft and gentle voice spoke up.

"Fallen Angel... my dear. Please don't." She then turned to Machiavelli "Young man. You bring a lot of trouble." She let out a big sigh. "I hope you can fullfil your end of the bargain."