⚫ Part Seven: "The Witch's Revenge"

"Return from Hell"

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Ethan and Ella stood frozen before the ancient grave, their breaths ragged as a name long forgotten echoed in their minds. A name they had read in the black book buried in the cellar…

Mariana.

"We need to leave. Now!" Ethan shouted, gripping his sister's hand tightly and pulling her through the dense trees.

The wind howled behind them as if chasing them. The air grew heavier, as though the forest itself refused to let them go.

"The Haunted House"

In the kitchen, Karen was preparing lunch when she noticed the sink filling up with thick black water, exuding a foul stench, as if it had risen from the depths of hell.

She tried to turn off the faucet, but the handle was stuck—frozen in place, as if fused with the sink.

Then—everything went dark.

"David?! Is that you?!" she called out, her voice trembling. But the house was eerily silent… too silent.

Suddenly, the cupboards shook violently, doors slamming open and shut as if unseen hands were toying with them. Pots crashed to the floor, the deafening sound echoing through the house. And amidst it all, a sinister female laughter rang out, emerging from every corner… from the very void itself.

Upstairs…

David was in his room when he heard a faint clicking sound. Slowly, he turned toward the mirror and saw thin cracks spreading across its surface, like black veins growing in a living body.

His reflection was no longer his own.

There was someone else—someone identical to him, but with hollow black eyes and a grin stretched unnaturally wide, reaching his ears.

The entity in the mirror moved slowly, raising a hand to mimic David… but then suddenly pressed its fingers against the glass from the inside.

The mirror shattered with a deafening explosion!

David fell backward, shards of glass scattering around him, as the air grew thick with whispers.

"She is coming…"

"Buried Secrets"

Ethan and Ella rushed into the house, only to find their parents lying unconscious on the floor.

"Mom! Dad!" Ella ran to her mother, while Ethan tried to wake his father.

After a few moments of panic, Karen and David began to stir, their faces filled with fear. Ethan and Ella quickly told them everything—about the graveyard, the cellar, the entity they had seen.

When David heard the words "black book," his eyes widened.

"You said a black book?"

He stood up abruptly and headed for the attic—locked for years. With a swift kick, he broke the old lock, and the wooden door creaked open ominously.

They all followed him inside, dust filling the air, ancient boxes scattered everywhere, the scent of mold thick and suffocating.

"Look for anything related to the people who lived here before us!" David ordered, and they all began rummaging through the decaying boxes.

Karen, acting on instinct, opened an old chest filled with journals and aged newspaper clippings. She pulled one out, covered in dust, and when she read the bold headline, her blood ran cold.

"Look at this!"

She held up a clipping, showing an old photograph of a woman weeping beside a child's corpse.

And the headline read:

"The Only Heir of the Black Family Dies Due To…"

But what was written next made her breath hitch.

"Assault by seven children, three years older than him."

She covered her mouth in horror as Ethan spoke. "Ella, it's her."

Ella nodded. "Yes… Mariana Black."

David stepped forward, digging through the chest until he pulled out another newspaper.

He flipped through the pages until he found another article…

"The Execution of the Witch Mariana Black After Killing Seven Children to Revive Her Dead Son."

Karen's hand flew to her mouth. She turned to Ella, whose entire body was trembling.

"Seven children…" Ella whispered, then looked at Ethan.

"They were sacrifices to her…"

Ethan's voice was grim. "Could it be that she's only seeking revenge? Maybe the ones who died were her son's attackers…"

At that moment, David found something strange among the pile of manuscripts—a peculiar book.

Its leather cover was rough and black, as if made of human skin, and its letters were carved in a dark, blood-red hue.

On its own… it opened.

A single page flipped by itself, as if guided by an unseen force.

An ancient spell was written, inscribed in a lost language, but its meaning was clear.

"The Resurrection Ritual."

And beneath it, a chilling line:

"Revival requires eight souls… seven have been taken… the eighth must be given willingly."

Ella turned to her father in shock, her voice barely above a whisper.

"She wants me…?"

Panic surged through her as she clutched her head. "She told me before… I am the key… Why me?!"