Case #6-The Witch of the West Woods, Part 3

"Finally...we've here!" I cry as I collapse to the ground on both knees. After traveling for four days (despite what Gary had said, it took us more than three days because of how the woods were constantly changing, prohibiting us from being able to use the map) through the West Woods, Evelyn, Crimson, Raiden, and I have finally made it to Landow Village! Of course, that came ast the cost of the lives of many of the villagers, including Larry, but he was annoying anyway. And hey, we still have Gary.

"Oh my goodness am I exhausted!" Raiden gasps as he collapses face first on the ground next to me.

"I…as well…" Crimson mutters as she kneels down next to me.

"You guys are all weak," Evelyn sighs with a facepalm.

"These are the people we hired…?" Gary asks himself under his breath.

"YOU DIDN'T DO ANY OF THE FIGHTING!" Crimson, Raiden and I snap as we turn over our shoulders and glare at Evelyn.

"I would have if someone taught me how to use a whip!" Evelyn snaps back.

"Either way, let's get to work," I say as I push myself off of the ground. "Hey, Gary, lead us in."

"Right," Gary nods as he takes the lead and brings us into Landow Village. Gary leads us through the village, as every villager we pass by cheers for our arrival.

"He's here for Circe!"

"Save us, Reaper!"

"Burn the witch!"

Raiden shuffles nervously from foot to foot.

"What's wrong?" I whisper to him.

"I just…feel uncomfortable with everyone talking about killing Circe," Raiden explains. "Maybe because I'm also a wizard."

Gary leads us into the largest wooden structure in the building, bringing up to a large wooden throne that has a well-decorated woman sitting in it.

"Village Chief," Gary says as he bows to the throne, before standing back up and motioning to the four of us. "These four are from Reaper's Paranormal. They are the ones who took our request."

"Thank you, Gary," the Chief says as she peers over at Gary. "You may leave now."

"Yes, Chief," Gary answers with a bow before turning around and hustling out of the wooden hut.

The village Chief then peers over at us again and looks us up and down. "I am the Chief of Landow Village," she announces. "Thank you for coming."

"No pro-" I begin to say, but the Chief cuts me off.

"DID I GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO SPEAK?!" She booms, causing me to flinch. The four of us tremble in fear.

"I think I peed my pants…" Raiden whispers.

The Chief leers at us for another moment, before tilting her head back and laughing. "I'm just joking!" The Chief laughs. "I'm not that kind of ruler, you may speak."

"Ah, okay," I reply with a nervous chuckle. "So…firstly, who exactly is Circe Salem, and why is she cursed?"

"You see, hundreds and hundreds of years ago, this village was the home of a clan of witch killers," the Chief begins to explain. I can't help but sigh, having the feeling that we're in for a long story. "This clan used their rifles to hunt dozens of witches in their day. That is, until the witches had enough. Using their magic, the witches casted a spell on us. The curse is that every few years, a daughter born of one woman in the village would give birth to a witch who has dastardly poison powers strong enough to wipe out the village with her plagues. Due to this curse, with the potent amount of poison magic lingering around this village, the West Woods started to transform. The West Woods wasn't always as vile as dangerous as it seems. Before the curse, the West Woods were normal woods. But after the curse, the woods was transformed into a dangerous place with acid water and venomous wildlife and poisonous plants. The forest is constantly slowly reverting back to its normal state, but every few years, when a new poison witch is born, the forest goes back to its toxic and dangerous state."

"What an info dump," I grumble as I crack my neck. "So…the villagers said they tried to kill Circe but couldn't. Why is that?"

"Oh, Heavens, of course we can't kill Circe!" The Chief exclaims. "Part of Circe's curse is that if we kill her, then she'll release an explosion of magical energy that could poison and kill the entire village!"

"How do you know that?" I ask as I raise an eyebrow at the Chief.

"Because it happened before…" the Chief sadly replies.

"I see…" I reply as I pull out my notebook and begin scribbling down notes.

"Hey, I haven't seen that in a while!" Evelyn comments.

"Do you have any idea of how to stop this curse?" I ask.

"None at all," the chief answers as she sadly shakes her head.

"Even though you have all these wizards in your village?" I ask.

"Those wizards are essentially just for show," the Chief explains. "Our village hunted magic, we didn't use magic. And so, we have very few books on magic in our library. We used our very limited knowledge in order to turn some of our villagers into wizards in hopes that they could figure out how to stop Circe's curse. As you can see, it didn't work."

"Yeah…" I answer. "That's why we're here."

"I need you all to investigate Circe's curse and figure out how to break it," the Chief orders. "If you do…then you will be rewarded very, very handsomely. Go to the library first. You may be able to find something there."

"Alright team!" I say as I spin around and clap my hands together. "Let's get investigating!"

"Yes sir!" Evelyn salutes.

"I'll follow your lead," Crimson replies.

"We'll save Circe!" Raiden adds.

"See you later," I say as I turn and peer over my shoulder at the Chief, before turning forwards again and exiting her cabin, with my three employees in tow.

"Hey, Zach," Raiden whispers to me as we exit the cabin.

"Yeah?" I ask.

"Did you notice?" Raiden answers. "That the village Chief is the only resident of Landow Village to call Circe just Circe and not her full name?"

"Huh…" I reply. "Good ears, Raiden!"

"Thanks!" Raiden replies with a beaming smile.

"Things just got interesting…" I smirk to myself.

***

"So what's our first move?" Evelyn asks as the four of us exit the cabin.

"Oh, simple," I answered. "Let's go see Circe."

"But the Chief told us to go to the library?" Raiden asks.

"I know, isn't that suspicious?" I reply. "It would make more sense if we went right to Circe. I have the feeling that the Chief is hiding something…"

"Maybe she suggested we go to the library because she figured that we wouldn't be able to handle seeing Circe?" Raiden asks. "Because of the poison."

"Maybe," I reply. "But maybe not."

"Are you sure?" Crimson asks. "Her poison very well may kill us all."

"That's why you guys will remain here," I reply. "I will talk to Circe alone."

"What makes you think that the poison won't hurt you?" Evelyn asks.

"Don't underestimate the leader of Reaper's Paranormal!" I answer. "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. And by tricks…I mean souls."

"Right," Evelyn replies with a nod.

"Yo, Gary!" I shout as I turn to face the man hiding around the corner of the building across from us. Gary gasps and ducks behind the building. "Can you bring us to Circe?"

"How did you know that I was here?" Gary asks as he exposes himself.

"I have good eyes," I answer.

"Well, either way, I can't bring you to see Circe Salem!" Gary answers. "Village Chief's orders! Besides, I'm not even allowed to know anything about her!"

"Do you want the curse lifted, or not?" I ask.

"If I disobey the Chief, then I'll be kicked out of the village…" Gary answers.

"Nah, the Chief will be too busy celebrating the curse being lifted to notice your betrayal," I reply, causing Gary to shriek.

Gary sighs. "Fine…" he replies. "I'll show you the way."

Gary turns around and begins leading us through the village again. I smirk as I follow Gary, and my friends follow after me. Gary leads us to the farthest corner of the village, where we spot a small, run down cabin. This part of the village is far different than the rest. As we draw closer to the cabin, we see more and more toxic plants and animals, as well as more acidic puddles of water-acid. The buildings surrounding the cabin are run down and corroded, as if they haven't been lived in for years.

"This is as far as I can go," Gary says as he abruptly stops a couple hundred feet away from the cabin. The air here is especially thick and burns with each breath, as if the poison gas has merged with the air. "If we go any farther, Circe Salem's poison will fill our lungs and kill us all."

"Alright, you guys stay here," I say as I take a step forward and reach into my messenger bag. "I'll take care of this," I continue as I pull a soul out of my messenger bag and swallow it. And when I do, green scales sprout across my throat.

"Just what…is he…?" Gary asks as he watches in amazement.

"He's the leader of Reaper's Paranormal!" Evelyn proudly booms.

"He's a Reaper," Crimson elaborates. "Who has consumed the soul of a poison- resistant swamp monster."

"Huh?!" Gary cries.

***

"Do we get him?" Agent Kardos whisper-shouts to Agent Sniper from their hiding place in the woods behind Circe's cabin, watching as Zach approaches Circe. All of the Supernatural Investigators are wearing gas masks.

"No," Sniper replies. "Let's wait and see what the Reaper does, and afterwards, we'll intercept."

"I don't know what you're hung up on the Reaper," Smith sighs. "He's our target. Yours is Circe Salem."

"Shut up," Sniper grumbles. "Only I am allowed to kill the Reaper."

"Why do you want him so badly, that Devil girl has a higher bounty, anyway?" Gaumond asks.

"SHUT UP!" Sniper snaps, causing Gaumond to narrow his eyes at him. "The Reaper is mine! You can have the scraps!"

***

"Swamp monsters are usually resistant to poison," I say to myself as I stroll over to Circe's cabin. Unlike before, my chest doesn't burn with each breath, and I can actually breathe normally. "And if you aren't, then their healing abilities will counteract the poison."

Eventually, I reach Circe's cabin and knock on the door of the rickety wooden shack. When I knock on the shack, I hear a small yelp of surprise as well as some crashing and shattering noises like various objects have fallen on the floor. 

"Um...hello?" A nervous voice asks from within the cabin.

"Circe, right?" I reply. "Circe Salem? I need to speak with you."

"Um…yes, that's me," a meek voice replies.

"My name is Zach Reaper, the son of Grim Reaper," I explain. "I'm here from a business known as Reaper's Paranormal, we were hired to-"

"Ah, that's right!" Circe exclaims, cutting me off. "Come on in!"

"So you already know…?" I ask as I slowly open the door and step inside the cabin. And when I do, I'm greeted with a girl a little shorter than me, looking to be seven years old with maroon-purple sort of colored hair and matching eyes. Circe's clothes are the same color but a brighter shade, wearing a long witch's robe that ends rather abruptly, as if Circe had sawed off the rest and created a skirt. Underneath, she wears thigh-high toxic green tights with black polka-dots, sort of like the frogs and mushrooms we saw outside. Circe wears a tall, pointy matching witch's hat, decorated with golden planets. As for her shoes, Circe wears pointy black shoes with a gold buckle and purple laces. Circe also wears a Raiden's style of a large brown belt with a gold buckle that hangs crooked around the girl's waist, which has vials filled with mysterious colors of liquid hanging from them.

Circe is holding a large wooden spoon and is sitting in front of a large black cauldron over a lit flame, which has a matching toxic green liquid swirling with it. Circe is surrounded by open books, some with pages torn out, and a wooden broom. The walls of the shack hold all sorts of books and potion bottles and unholy, disgusting ingredients on the shelves.

"What's up, Circe?" I ask as I pull up a chair and plop my butt down backwards on its seat.

"How…are you here…?" Circe asks me. "And…alive?"

I point to the green scales on my neck. "Swamp monster soul," I explain. "I can eat the souls of creatures and take on their abilities like the swamp monster's ability to be immune to your poisons."

"Huh…" Circe answers, and then, a wide smile washes across her face. "HOW DO YOU DO, ZACH REAPER?!" Circe booms as she jumps up to her feet.

"Woah!" I recoil

"MY NAME IS CIRCE SALEM, THE WITCH OF POISON, NICE TO MEET YOU!" Circe booms.

"You're…excited," I reply with a crooked smirk.

"How could I not be?!" Circe excitedly answers. "I haven't had a conversation with a person that lasted more than a few minutes in years!"

"Hmm?" I ask, my piqued. "You…have people to talk to?"

"Yeah!" Circe answers. "My mom stops by whenever she can! She's incredibly busy and can't stay for very long, but she almost always comes at night to say hi!"

"Uh-huh…" I reply as I take out my notebook and scribble down some information.

"What's that for?" Circe asks.

"I'm basically a detective," I answer as I snap my notebook shut and slip it back into my pocket. "So what's up with all the stuff on the wall, how did you get it?" I ask. "Are you…making poisons?"

"The villagers stop by once per day to bring my food and water!" Circe answers. "And when they do, I ask them to bring the materials I need for my spells! They're afraid that if they don't…I'll curse them!"

Circe laughs, but I can tell that she's faking it.

"What kind of spells do you make?" I ask.

"My mom gave me all of these books," Circe exclaims as she spins in a small circle, motioning to all of the books spread across the floor. "Since I have so much time on my hands, she figured that it would be a good use of it if I tried to break the spell myself. So I've been studying these books for years now. I've become pretty good at making potion-based spells."

"Potion-based spells?" I ask as I look around at all the books spread across the floor. "No wonder the Chief said that they have such little knowledge on magic in their library, it's all here."

"Yeah!" Circe answers. "They're basically pre-made spells that you can use without a wand and a spellbook since they're contained in bottles. They're a lot more handy than using actual spells, since those require a lot of prep time." Circe then reaches down and picks up a vile of orange liquid. "Want some?" She asks.

"Uhh…no, I'm okay…" I cringe as I hold a hand up.

"Good!" Circe laughs, causing me to recoil. "Because it would have killed you!"

"So, Circe, is it true that you have to stay in here or else your entire village will die?" I ask.

"Yup. I can kill them in seconds if I wanted to," Circe explains. "I could kill you right now, too."

Yikes, that gave me chills. "So Circe, the woman who births the cursed witch, how is he regarded?" I ask

"By the villagers? Horribly," Circe answers. "At first, every witch born in the village and their mother was executed instantly. But, that causes a giant mass of poison gas to release from the witch's body, almost wiping out the entire village. So, when I was born, they stuffed me into this cabin. No one knows who my mom is, only the village Chief, and a villager named Gary."

"Gary, huh?" I ask. "How come?"

"Not sure," Circe answers with a shrug. "We visit whenever he can. Unlike the other villagers, he brings me sweets!"

I peer over at one of Circe's open spell books. "Say, is that in Latin?" I ask.

"Yup!" Circe answers. "At least I think so!"

"How are you able to read it?" I ask.

"I can't," Circe answers. "I can't read. No one was able to teach me. I just follow the spells based on the pictures and guess how much of each ingredient I need!" Circe laughs. "That's why they don't work a lot of times." Circe picks up a vile of yellow liquid, which explodes. "Like that!" 

"This isn't English, by the way, this is Latin," I reply as I pick up the spellbook. "This isn't the written form of the language we speak."

"Huh…?" Circe asks.

"I'm taking your books," I say as I crouch down and stuff as many spell books as I can into my arms. "One of my friends speaks Latin, he may be able to decipher these books for you and figure out how to break the curse."

"Seriously?!" Circe excitedly asks as sparkles light up in her eyes. "Really?!"

"Yup!" I answer with a smirk as I turn towards the door. "Hopefully, I'll see you soon."

But then, a burning sensation echoes across my chest, causing me to grunt in pain as I drop to the ground on one knee, gasping heavily for air.

"Zach, are you okay?!" Circe cries as she rushes over to me.

"Yeah, but the effect of the swamp monster soul that I ate is running out," I grunt as I push myself back up to my feet and gather as many books as I can. "I need to go."

"Thank you, Zach!" Circe calls to me as I rush out of her cabin.

"Hey, guys, I've got a lead!" I call to my friends as I jog over to them.

"Zach, are you okay?" Evelyn calls to me.

"Yeah, you look pale," Crimson adds.

"I'm fine, it's just the poison that kinda hurts," I replied. "I have some books in Latin that I need Raiden to read! I think that the key to figuring out how to break the spell is in here, but the villagers couldn't figure it out because they couldn't re-"

A mere second before I'm about to exit Circe's range of her poison gas, the green scales on my neck vanish.

"Oh, shi-'' is all I can muster out before the poison fills my lungs. I drop to the ground and begin convulsing, and then, everything goes black.

***

"Zach!" Evelyn cries as she takes a step towards Zach, but Crimson holds her back.

"Don't get too close!" Crimson exclaims. "Zach is a Reaper, he can survive being poisoned, but you, you'll die if you go near him!"

"R-right…" Evelyn saddly replies as she stands down.

"I'll fetch him," Crimson says as she lets go of Evelyn and takes a step towards Zach. But before she can get over to the Reaper, two bullets fly out of the forest and pierce Crimson's chest, causing the Devil to howl in pain as she collapses to her knees.

"Crimson!" Evelyn cries.

And then, four Supernatural Investigators leap out of the surrounding woods wearing gas masks, all with their plasma weapons drawn.

"We meet again, little girl," the Supernatural Investigator wielding dual revolvers growls.

"That voice…you're Agent Sniper, right?" Evelyn asks with a scowl. "Back for more?"

"Gaumond, let's grab the Reaper!" Agent Smith orders as she removes her gas mask.

"Right!" Agent Guamond replies as he scoops Zach up and begins hustling away, after removing his gas mask as well.

"Oh no you don't!" Sniper roars -before removing his gas mask0 as he charges after Gaumond. "The Reaper is mine!"

"Colt, stick to the plan!" Agent Kardos exclaims as she removes her gas mask as well, but sighs when she very quickly realizes that Sniper won't listen.

"I'll go after Zach," Crimson orders as she ignites her hands in Hellfire. "Raiden, you grab the books and try to figure out the curse. Evelyn, you help him."

"R-right!" Raiden answers as he scrambles to pick up all of the books then rushes off.

"Will you be okay alone, Crimson?" Evelyn asks.

"Yes," Crimson answers as she turns and peers over her shoulder at Evelyn with a smile. "I have to earn your trust as a member of this team somehow, right?"

"Right," Evelyn replies with a confident nod, before turning around and hustling after Raiden.

"I guess I'll head after those two kids," Smith sighs as she hustles after Raiden and Evelyn. "I trust Gaumond to take good care of the Reaper."

"Alright, Devil, looks like it's you and me," Kardos smirks.

"It looks like it is," Crimson scowls back.