"Willow?" Circe called out once again before gently holding her hand, which Willow quickly pulled back to herself as she rubbed her hands together as if to rub off dirt that had been put on her.
"I am sorry about that, but what is wrong?" Circe asked as she drew closer to Willow.
'I had known she was a woman aloof to her surroundings, but how can she ask me such an insensitive question? We have been here since yesterday night to prepare the ritual that commenced at midnight, and it is daybreak—soon it will be midday—and this WOMAN is asking me what is wrong?' Willow steadied her breath as she continued staring at her son.
"Stop worrying; they'll come out just fine," Circe said as she took another sip of her warm tea—that is, whiskey. "I looked into it; they come out just fine."
"What did you look into?" Willow asked in a suspicious tone.
"Don't worry, you will see," Circe said with a smirk and took a sip of her whiskey.
Willow wanted to say more, but what could she say to a woman who had not gone through the process? How could she explain to her the pain her child was going to pass through and was already passing through?
'I am sure she should have an idea; schools these days explain this process due to the number of children that have been consumed in it. Just let this be over and done with. I am tired of waiting,' Willow thought to herself as she looked around the camp from the shade of her tent.
'Willy!' Willow's Companion called for her attention.
'What is it?' Willow asked exasperatedly before getting irritated by the lack of response and being embraced by the chillness that bathed her spine.
It was here. Whatever they had called upon was there. Its overwhelming presence took over the area. It was not clear how far it was from the camp, as no one knew how much aura it carried.
She quickly stood up but fell back to her seat due to her drowsiness from following her son to fast in order to be pure enough to intervene if any circumstance went south. She stood up again but almost fell back to her seat. She kicked the table by her side and fell with her hands on all fours in this rocky side of the forest. She summoned all the strength she could and made her way to the Priest as the chillness spread to every part of her body, making her freeze where she was.
The activity around her stopped in an instant as a sacred silence fell over the whole camp. They had felt whatever entity had been called upon, and they needed to be with the children before any questionable situation occurred—no, something tragic.
It did not take long for the Priest to come out of his tent as he stared at his sister with tears rolling down her cheeks. Amidst the enforced silence, her rolling tears were the loudest thing he could hear.
"What came?" she muttered with a raspy voice as more tears rolled down her face and she bit her lips. Had she bitten off more than she could chew?
"There is no need to worry," the Priest said as he placed his hands on her, casting a spell on her. A wave of relief came over her, releasing her from the pressure earlier. She regained her color and looked around the area. Following the Priest to get a closer view of the magic circle, she thought it would make no sense to sacrifice her son to such an entity if it did not agree to be his Companion.
"Oh my! Has the Pet arrived?" Circe asked as she rushed to Willow, following her to the magic circle and trying her best to keep pace with Willow and the Priest.
"Can you shut up? And I have told you to stop calling it PET!" Willow said in a weird voice as her eyes shone golden brown, making Circe fall back as fear gripped her from what she had just seen.
'All this waiting can drive one crazy,' Zephyr thought to himself as he stood up and glanced around. 'I think it was around the time I started my fasting. I have done what I was meant to do with due diligence. I have run out of patience, and I am sure a cup of water will taste heavenly right now.'
He was about to step out of the circle into the runes when he heard his mom's voice.
"Don't you dare step out of that thing, you fool!"
It had the semblance of his mom, but that thing that spoke clearly was not his mother. Her eyes were golden brown, but her mouth lacked teeth as her lips carved into a very sharp beak. It looked ethereal, otherworldly; the only thing that made it human was the face.
Zephyr stayed frozen for some minutes, but nothing happened. "Can someone tell me what's going on?" he asked with a tired sigh.
"It is here," the Priest said as he drew closer.
'So what's left is a closing ritual. Finally!' Zephyr thought with a sigh.
A strange quietness enveloped the area, as if a thick blanket had been thrown over it. A scene no one expected at this point in time was unfolding. There was an entity likely stronger than everyone here combined, one that could wipe everyone out—including those that unleashed it! And this was what someone could think about?
The moment they had all been waiting for had arrived. When Willow had to send her son to the Necroforce Academy, she knew she had to give him the best chance of survival, which was why she contacted the Priest, who she had heard was working on some new way of bonding—a new technology. It did not take any convincing for the Priest to work on Zephyr.
She could have left him to bond with an entity upon arrival at Necroforce Academy like most of the other children, but he would not have gotten the chance to bond with such a great entity. It had shown no sign of aggression, so they should be able to go ahead with the bonding ritual. What she hoped was that it would go smoothly as planned.