Last Witch Standing

chapter 15



The Present

Pangea



Rachel awoke in the cave overlooking the cliffs on the planet Katie called Pangea. Katie, the little sorceress, was out, probably down on the lower ridges feeding her llamas. Rachel took this opportunity to practice channeling the Power. While Katie insisted she was not a prisoner, Rachel knew, in effect, she was being held captive, far from home, with no way of returning by her own means.

The air was clean from the night’s rain and in the valley below, the greenery of shrubs and trees, punctuated by fields of orange, yellow and purple flowers, could be seen clearly. In the sky, flocks of birds weaved their patterns in flight: moving first one direction, then another, synchronized swimmers in a pool of cerulean blue atmosphere. Far in the distance, several condors circled, their immense wingspans casting long shadows on the rocks below. Rachel breathed in the scent of greenery, pollution-free air, and water moistened sandstone from the escarpment.

Katie had not taken the emerald, nor even commented upon it. Rachel fingered the precious gift from her Mountain Witch sisters. The cave let in enough light for the half-dollar size gem to sparkle. Rachel breathed in slowly through the nose, deep into the diaphragm for a count of ten, followed by a slow exhalation as Queen Annalisse, the leader of the Upper Mountain Witches, had taught her. It was the Mountain Witches, miniature women Gifted with the Power, who had tried to prevent Rachel’s abduction from their village a year earlier by the sorceress, Katie. After several, calming, repetitions Rachel reached for the Power. Practice had brought her to the point where she could touch the strands at will and pull in only what she needed.

The emerald glistened, as Rachel used the Gift to direct light from outdoors onto first one plane then another of the gem.

Next, she felt for the stones that made up their fireplace and levitated each one, in turn, a few centimeters from the hearth.

“Moving the hearthstones, Rachel? Would you like some help?” Katie asked.

Rachel turned; the sorceress stood behind her.

“Katie. I was just practicing my channeling. How are you?” Rachel shuffled her feet.

“It is a good morning.” The sorceress walked up to Rachel and took a seat beside her, pulling up the bottom edges of her little yellow sundress, as she sat, to keep them off the ground. “Remember, Rachel, I too had a human life before becoming a sorceress. Though I died very young on Earth, and have little recollection of it, I understand what you are going through. Even though you were older than I was at the time of your human death, you are still transitioning to this new, second life, as a witch.”

Rachel didn’t comment. The sorceress expected her to, or at least acknowledge her remarks, but Rachel just glanced at Katie.

“I died a little girl, and I have kept that size and shape, even down to the very dress I wore on my last day on Earth, but it is not necessary. We can form ourselves into any shape we desire, and I wasn’t joking when I said you might like to try the Joan Collins look. Or perhaps a famous actress of your own day, not mine? I died in the early 1970’s so I am not familiar with current celebrities on Earth, but you really could be anyone you want. It might be fun to try.” Katie looked up at Rachel, then patted her knee.

Rachel remained silent.

“I’ll tell you what, Rachel. I’ll make an Earth run and bring back some picture magazines. You can try the current look.”

“I want to go for a walk and get some air,” Rachel said.

“Enjoy. The air is clean and beautiful, as it always is on my Pangea. This is a paradise, Rachel. Many would give all they have to live in a place like this.”

Rachel went outside to the ledge facing the cliffs and valleys. For security, Katie had built the trail down from their cave home in such a way that it passed in front for hundreds of meters before circling behind. She had blocked all other ways up, particularly from behind, by dropping large boulders and leveling out any footholds on the cliff around them. Any intruder to their home would be visible from a great distance.

Rachel walked down the path. Pumpkin-orange lichen and earth-green moss grew along the ledge and rocks that lined the trail. When she hit the first plateau, trees, similar to the pines of Rachel’s home, Earth, greeted her.

At least Katie chose a planet similar to Earth to hold me captive on.

At the far edge of the ledge stood the corral where Katie kept her llamas. The animals moved toward the fence to greet her.

“Hello, sweeties.” Rachel walked up to the fence and stroked the neck of the first one. Several more huddled around, waiting their turn for affection.

Six months earlier, Rachel had helped Katie to enlarge the corral and build a stable for the animals. As she stroked the llamas’ necks, she surveyed the handiwork that went into building the structure. Her time with the Mountain Witches had taught her much about craftsmanship and what makes a good building. Katie had helped cut rocks and fell trees for the stable, but the design was Rachel’s. It was built into the side of the cliff, protected from wind and rain. A roof of pine, even and tightly caulked, sloped down, supported by porphyry columns, quarried from the slope of an inactive volcano miles away. Gray, granite blocks, fitted to a tolerance measured in millimeters, made up the sides. Rachel wished her Mountain Witch friends, Gertrude and Eustice could see it.

She opened the gate and entered the corral. The llamas crowded her, hungry for further affection. One lowered its head and nuzzled her shoulder. Katie had already fed them, but Rachel went into the stable, anyway, eager to further admire her architectural craftsmanship.

All was well inside. Katie used the Power to keep the stone floor pristine. Each individual stall had fresh grass bedding. Water trickled into a trough Katie had cut from the wall and linked to an underground well. The smell of llama, fresh cut grass, and rock wetted by fresh spring water pleased Rachel.

Should she channel here? Katie would have a much more difficult time sneaking up on her than in the cave, and Rachel did need the practice. Her skill with the Power was many, many times greater than it had been when Katie took her from the Mountain Witch village, but it was not enough to make a bolt for freedom. Plus, she didn’t know where she was within the universe or how to get home.

Home? Where was home? Not on Earth with her adoptive parents. The closest thing to home was the Mountain Witch village, and that would be the first place Katie would search for Rachel if she fled.

Rachel returned the latch to the corral gate to exit. A hike would do her good. Further down the path away from their cave home, fields of tall grassland were punctuated by an occasional pine.

Rachel noticed movement out of the corner of her eye as she walked. To the right, deep in the grassland, a small figure moved. Katie? Was the little sorceress following her? Surely, Katie could be more circumspect than that.

Rachel moved towards the area where she had seen the movement. When she reached the first tree, a head peered out from the stalks of grass. The creature was a tiny woman with closely cropped hair and a simple, burlap-colored dress tied with a cord.

Trudy. An Upper Mountain Witch! The one who had accompanied Queen Annalisse on their expedition into the Upper Mountain Witch Kingdom and later attended Rachel’s “Witch Got Better” party, on Rachel’s last day in the village before Katie kidnapped her. How did she get here?

The grass fluttered and a large cat came into view. Sophie. Queen Annalisse’s mountain lion friend.

Rachel smiled. They had found her.