Authors: Annastaysia Savage
“You see—balance. I’m sure it’s quite full, since it’s been in circulation a millennium now. Do you really want that responsibility? It’s quite a big one for such a young girl, one who’s not even capable of wielding all her powers yet. Oh, that’s right, you don’t even have all of them yet,” the Master chuckled.
“How do you know about the Heart’s workings? How do you know what it does? Leave my daughter alone or I’ll….”
“You’ll what? Die like the rest of those that oppose me? I have no use for you or your pretty friend here. But, Sadie, now we could rule this new world, all the new worlds I’m making and in great style. You know what they say? 'Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer,'” the Master said menacingly.
Sadie’s stomach churned at the thought of doing anything with this man. He was evil to the core, which made his appearance even more repulsive to her even though he was a handsome man. She studied his face for a moment, searching for anything she could possibly use.
She was angry that her mother, Tara, the Three, none of them told her anything about the Heart, yet the Master gave her information about it freely. She wanted to know how it was that the Master knew and could tell her things about it. She also wanted to know why this Heart that thrives on evil would be placed in the possession of such a young and inexperienced girl.
Do I really want that responsibility?
“Sadie, think about it. I’ll take the Heart from you and lock it away so that you will never have to worry about it again. You’ll never have to worry about being tempted by the evil it carries inside. I’ll help you to….”
“No, Sadie, he’ll use the Heart to unleash all its evil souls it’s holding within. He’ll destroy you, not help you. Don’t listen to him!” shouted Adrienne, sounding desperate.
Sadie was beginning to see a way out. If she willingly did what the Master asked, she’d be free of the responsibility of the Heart. If she had known it was full of so much evil, she would have insisted her mother take it back immediately. She'd never wanted the task of keeping it anyway.
Please help us.
There was that voice again.
Ignore the voice; focus Sadie.
If she did what the Master asked, maybe he’d let them go. They could find another way to fight him, to fight the Syndicate.
Yes, he’ll let us go if I just give him what he wants, Sadie thought as she looked into his eyes.
“No, Sadie, he won’t; please just follow what you truly feel,” begged Tara.
Sadie looked at her mother again. She loved her so much and didn’t want to lose her again. Though she was angry her mother hadn’t told her anything about this burden she was in possession of, wherever it was, she didn’t want anything between them. She just wanted, no, she needed, her help and guidance.
“Mom, please, tell me what to do,” Sadie pleaded.
“Ladybug, you know in the deepest regions of your soul what is right and what is wrong. Trust in yourself; I cannot reveal a thing to you about the Heart by decree of the Heart’s powers. Remember, you must discover it by yourself.
“If I do tell you, I will surely pay the ultimate price of forfeiting my life for the sake of information, and I think I may be needed here more than in the afterlife. Plus, we’ve only just found each other again. I need to be with you, Sadie. Believe in yourself and the power of good. The Heart will not forsake you. I can’t say anymore,” Adrienne answered.
The Master grinned, his smile spreading wide. “I will let you, your mother and Tara go if you just give me the Heart. I give you my word,” he said.
Sadie was torn between two worlds. She thought it noble and good to give up one thing for the lives of others she loved. He might even fix Uncle Marcus. But she also had doubts as to whether she could trust his word. On the one hand, she felt like she had nothing to lose by entering the agreement with him, not that she knew where the Heart was to give it to him, but she figured if he knew what he did about it, he could probably figure out where it was.
On the other hand, deep in her soul, she felt it would be wrong to agree to anything with this evil man, though she didn’t know why she felt this way. At the same time, she just might be going crazy since she was hearing voices again. She thought about that and realized she could feel the voices more than anything, and they were making her feel other things.
She felt it would be far nobler to die with the conviction of following the path of good and righteousness than to agree to anything with the Master. She studied his face, in the hopes of finding some sort of compassion or humanity, but deep down knew he was void of both. She watched him, stalling; as he took another sniff off his lapel flowers, something sparked inside her. She looked at his eyes, and then she looked at the flowers once again.
Suddenly, recognition and remembrance overtook Sadie as she stared intensely at the cluster of purple flowers in The Master’s lapel.
“Catnip!” she exclaimed.
The Master lifted the flowers to his nose and inhaled deeply.
“I don’t see how my choice of lapel flower has to do with anything right now, witchling,” he said almost in a growl. He seemed angry that Sadie was more interested in his catnip than in his plan to dominate every plain of existence or even the question he had proposed to her. It was as if she were taking away his moment of glory, and now he seemed to be on the verge of madness. Or maybe it was all the drugs….
Sadie’s chest began to feel weird, like it was swelling, and her head and stomach had that familiar feeling like when she KNEW her mother was still alive or how she knew something was going to happen.
Feel us, Sadie!
Her vision went white with a blinding light, and her entire body filled with a warmth and love she didn’t know possible. As her head rolled back, too heavy to hold up on its own anymore, perfect knowledge filled her entire being.
“YOU’RE GRIMM!” she shouted before going limp.
Anger flashed across the man’s face, severe and resolute, while his body seemed to ripple. Tara and Adrienne stared in disbelief, then looked to Sadie’s limp body and then turned their attentions back to the Master.
“That explains how you knew so much, you were supposedly cat-napping on Arthur when I went to explain all that had happened, to show I wasn’t dead and bring everyone back to the North Wind’s abode. You’re a sick and revolting traitor. Why? Why are you doing this? Is Mrs. Felis in on this, as well? Wait ‘til the Three hear about this,” said Adrienne.
“They won’t hear about any of it,” Grimm, formerly known as the Master, said with force.
“And to think, the humans that originated and built the Syndicate for the sole purpose of destroying all witches and magikal beings are actually being led by one.” Tara laughed a spiteful cackle and continued. “I’m assuming that’s why you took the form of a man. Unless, of course, you really want to be a human…in that case, I recommend counseling and some….”
But her words were cut short by the Master. “ENOUGH!” he shouted and looked as though he would burst from anger.
The doors to the corridor slammed shut and bolted themselves by an unseen force. The hairless black beast dove into the fire pit in a flash of light and sparks. The Core of Corruption stone began to glow a bright red and was now vibrating on its pedestal. The Master walked towards the pit and knelt at its edge. His long thin fingers ran across the rim of the cavity and his head cocked sideways. Looking back over his shoulder, he grinned maliciously at his three captives. Sadie had begun to regain consciousness and saw him through blurry-eyed vision.
“Now, you’re going to meet my very special pet,” said The Master.
Hearing those words coming from the traitor Grimm made Sadie sit up straight in her cold, stone, straightjacket chair. She knew she had to listen to what he was saying, that it was life and death, but she was experiencing something she had never felt before. Her body tingled from head to toe; she felt more alive than she ever had. Something was happening inside her.
Is this what it feels like to know your magik? Because I’m feeling much stronger for some reason.
She shivered, not from fear, but because of the newfound energy coursing through her essence. She knew, without fully hearing what he was saying, that Grimm was about to do something drastic. She also knew she had the power now to try and stop him and, at the same time, the power to rule all the worlds with him.
The voice in her head that was only moments ago so clear was now the chatter and mumble of a thousand voices all at once. There were too many to single out just one, and she didn’t need to be distracted by them now. She needed to stall Grimm once more so she could come fully back to her senses and make a clear-headed decision.
This power does feel good. And think of all the getting even I could do with all those nasty kids at school. I could make everyone pay for how mean they were to me. I would never again have to sit alone at lunchtime if I chose to go back. Oh, things would be so different at school…I could zap anyone who picked on me—ever or even in the future. Wait, is this the evil talking? The evil that the Heart holds? I don’t care; it feels good.
“Grimm…I’ve decided to join you. These witches have done nothing for me but put me in the midst of a great war—one that I didn’t want to fight. But now…now that I’ve seen your power…I want power, too. I won’t be stupid like Uncle Marcus.
“I want to get even with all those kids at school who were so mean to me. I want to do…things. You’ve explained more to me about the Ataraxia Heart in the short time I’ve been down here than they have in days. My own mother didn’t even tell me she gave it to me. Heck, she didn’t even tell me I was a witch. “Release me from these bindings and together we’ll destroy the Guild. What’s that saying I’ve heard…oh yeah, 'better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven.’ Please…I want to help you release all those dark souls from the Heart. Now that I’ve been…confined…I can only imagine how they feel,” said Sadie. Her face was twisted with anger, and she turned left and right, glaring at her mother and Tara. Grimm studied her features, grinning, and stood up from the pit to face her full on.
“Do you really think I’d fall for that? You’ll have to do better than that, Sadie,” he said.
“Release me, and I’ll prove it to you. Give me a captor to feed to the Soul Seether. Let me torture someone. Let me show you,” replied Sadie.
She was, for the first time in her life, steady and sure in her speech.
Grimm appeared to think for a moment. He rubbed his chin while sniffing his lapel. He then pulled that little vial out once more and inhaled deeply. His eyes glassed over, and a smile began to form on his face.
“Sadie, NO! I love you; you know I couldn’t tell you anything. Please, don’t do this,” begged Adrienne.
“Don’t bother, sister witch. She’s already gone over to the dark side. We’re fighting this battle without her now; we must fight her as well as him,” Tara said.
Sadie smiled a wicked grin. She stared straight ahead at Grimm, willing him to believe in her with every fiber of her being. Grimm rose and walked slowly, deliberately, to stand in front of Sadie. He knelt down until he was about eye level in front of her. He placed both hands on either side of her cheeks and stared into her eyes for what seemed like an eternity.
“I will release you from your bindings, but remember: I’m the Master. I can kill you instantly, if not by myself then with the help of the Seether. Don’t try anything; you will regret it,” he said.
“I am here to serve you,” replied a very somber Sadie.
Grimm loosed her bindings by hand and then snapped away the stone chair, out of the dungeon, out of existence. Legs stiff from sitting on the cold stone surface, Sadie stood slowly and a bit unsteadily. She flexed her muscles, which now seemed stronger somehow, and extended her fingers as energy and power poured through her every molecule.
“Now you’ll show me your loyalty,” said Grimm.
Grimm snapped his fingers, and Zeno appeared. He was bound on all four feet and his hands were tied tightly to his chest. His mouth was gagged, and he had wounds all over his body. As he lay on the floor of the dungeon, looking up at Sadie, his tail swished in aggravated twitches.
“When they caught your Uncle Marcus, they also brought back our favorite old cart horse Zeno.”
Turning to face Sadie, Grimm continued.
“Did he tell you he used to be one of our best slaves, hauling precious stones from the mountain trolls' mine? He was really obedient until he escaped. To this day, I don’t know how he did it. But no matter now, he’s back. And apparently he’s losing his touch; he was doing very badly in a fight with one of our creatures from the fifteenth plain. Sadie, I want you to kill him for me.”
Sadie walked to kneel in front of Zeno. She had no emotion on her face, save for a blank look in her eyes. Her hand drifted to the ring he had given her as a birthday present, and then she quickly took it off. She wound his long mane through the ring and tied it onto his hair tightly.
“I have no use for this…horse…or the gift he gave me,” she said with steely determination. Standing once again, she turned to face Grimm, the Master, and her new master. “The only thing is I don’t have all of my powers yet. You’ll have to do it or help me do it.”
Grimm smiled the most wicked of evil grins and came to stand by Sadie. Zeno shut his eyes, as if accepting his fate, and made no more movement or sound. Grimm took Sadie’s hand and raised it with his own. In one swift flick of his wrists, Zeno became ensconced in flames and then began to fade from sight. In a matter of seconds, it was all over with. Adrienne cried aloud while Tara hung her head low.
“Well, that didn’t work quite as I had planned, but he’s gone nonetheless. I’m gonna have to set up some new magik laws once all is said and done. You can help me with that, Sadie. I don’t like my magik not producing the exact result I require. Although, the fire was a nice bonus,” said Grimm.
“Let’s get on with the program,” said Sadie, void of any emotion.
He walked to the pit, motioning for Sadie to follow. Obeying, she did and came to stand right beside him.
“Let’s get out my best pet to play for a while, so you can continue to prove your loyalty,” he said to her.
“Gladly, I’d like to see what it can do,” she said.
“Sadie, please, rethink this. You’re good; I know you are. You didn’t mean to do that to Zeno; I know you didn’t. Please, Sadie, Ladybug, I need you; we all need you,” begged Adrienne.
“We don’t need her; we can fight without her. She doesn’t even have full witch power or know where the Heart is. She’s just…” Tara didn’t get to finish.
“But that’s where you’re wrong. You saw what I did to that cart horse, granted with a little help from Grimm. But I am feeling stronger by the minute since destroying him. Watch this,” said Sadie.
She pointed at a sconce on the wall with her right hand and reaching into her pocket with her left, gripped her raven skull. Focusing on all the newfound energy within her, sparks of light began to pop and crackle above her head. Immediately a bolt of bright white light, just like lightning, surged forth from her finger and blew the sconce into a thousand pieces. Grimm smiled. Adrienne looked surprised. Tara hung her head once again. Sadie grinned wickedly before facing Grimm.
“Now, show me this pet of yours,” she said.
Grimm knelt at the fire pit, bowed his head, and whispered a few words. The flames began to rise, this time a tinted a blue-black color. A low, deep growl was heard from the depths, and Sadie knelt beside Grimm. Her heart pounded faster, harder, as she could now feel the evil that lay within the very walls of the dungeon. There was a gurgling and the flames all but disappeared. Both Sadie and the Master stood up, in unison, and faced the hole in the dungeon floor.
“Step back, you’ll not want to be close for what happens next,” said Grimm, taking her hand and pulling her away. “I’ve learned some new magik. It was a gift from the Seether. I’ve made it possible for the Seether to be functional without its heart—the Core, at my command, of course. All of its energy held together makes for a very powerful entity and ally indeed. And…it’s all under my control,” he said, smiling viciously.
Standing back against the wall, Sadie planted her feet firmly for what was to happen next. The energy inside her seemed to expand until she thought she would burst. Her heart felt the size of her entire body; in her mind she began to see images of death and destruction.
Release my cohorts, she heard a disembodied voice say, and she knew it was directed at her.
She also knew this voice was different from the previous voices she had begun to hear.
Maybe I really am going mad now.
She looked around to see if anyone else had heard this voice, but all eyes were transfixed on the pit, even Grimm’s. Sadie’s body began to quiver and shake.
I want my children, the voice said again.
Sadie felt it this time, in both her heart and mind. Grimm held Sadie flush to the wall with one arm as he snapped his fingers on the other hand.
“Get ready; this is going to be phenomenal,” he said, almost giggling.
A blast equivalent to a volcanic burst shot forth from the pit. The heat alone made Sadie feel her hair and eyebrows to make sure they were still there. Then a roar that shook the stones of the dungeon and made small bits of dust and debris fall from the walls and ceiling bellowed from within the intense fire.
Sadie was not afraid, for once, and she found this to be empowering. A large, black, clawed hand slowly emerged from the flames. It held the side of the pit, unsteady, feeling around as another appeared. Slowly, a figure began to rise up within the flames, pulled by the hands on the rim. The shape was enormous, with two immense wings, and the black outline of it belied nothing of what they were about to see. Sadie inhaled, and this time didn’t choke on the burnt flesh smell that hung thick in the air.
Grimm stepped forward to face the shadowy figure still hidden, engulfed in the inferno. He knelt on one knee, raised both hands skyward and began to speak.
“I have given you the power to live and breathe without the Core beating inside of you. For the first time ever, you can walk the earth and other realms in your one true form. You can exist without the burden of the Core. I am your Master; your creator of new and this is your birth. I command you to do my bidding,” he said to the fiery figure.
A low, slow rumble shook the floor. The walls began to drop bits of stone and the Core fell from its pedestal. It rolled precariously towards the edge of the cavity, which now resembled a crater more than fire pit. One of the clawed hands reached out and grabbed the Core quite delicately for such grotesque and mutilated hands. The shape in the fire began to come closer to the forefront until it began to slowly emerge from the flames. Sadie’s eyes opened wide, watching its every move.
I want my kindred spirits, she heard the disembodied voice say.
But this time she knew it was the creature in the flames. And it was only speaking to her. It wanted the evil souls contained in the Ataraxia Heart, and it knew she had it.
If only I knew where it was, she thought. Oh, what I could do.
With the Core in one hand and the other pulling itself from the pit of fire, the creature emerged to show itself wholly. It was colossal, rippling with muscle and authority. Sadie wondered if it would burst the ceiling of the dungeon they all occupied and crush them all.
It looked almost human, save for the two spiraling, twisting horns protruding from its head and the large black leathery wings with matching black skin. It took a step with its cloven hoof out of the pit and came into full view. Impressive, intimidating with its size and appearance, Sadie still was not afraid. She looked at her mother and Tara, whose eyes were stricken with fear. She looked at Grimm, who was grinning wickedly with pride at what he had accomplished.
Give me what’s mine, she heard in her head.
Watching intensely, the beast surveyed those in the room. Its hooves clopping and echoing on the stone floor, it turned to survey its surroundings and stopped to face Grimm.
“Bow before me, Seether; I am your maker,” Grimm said with authority. “And you can stop worrying about the Core; you don’t need it to exist anymore. I told you, I’ll be its keeper from now on.”
The beast hesitated and then looked to the ceiling and let loose a loud bawl. It shook its head and sparks flew from its horns. It spread its wings, sending a gush of heated air across the room. Lowering its gaze, it looked directly at Sadie for several moments before turning to face Grimm.
“Fool, infidel, and weak little imposter. I answer to no one. You are but a cat, a kitten, fraudulently hiding in a man’s form. I banish you to your true form without return to this guise for all eternity,” the creature said.
Grimm began to contort and writhe in pain. He grabbed his head, then his chest, and fell to his knees. Dropping down on all fours he began to shrink and was lost in his clothing. A cat’s tail snaked forth from a leg of the trousers, twitching with aggravation. Roiling with pain and anguish, he had turned from man to the cat they all knew.
When the transformation was complete, Grimm the cat disappeared into the shadows at the far reaches of the room. The denunciation of Grimm had also broken his spells, and Tara and Adrienne were released from their bindings. They held each other as they cowered in fear, along with Grimm, against a far wall. The beast seemed satisfied and not bothered by them, and turned his attentions to Sadie.
“I haven’t walked this Earth for thousands of years. It feels strange, but satisfying,” he said, flexing his wings and stretching his back. Grabbing hold of the Core, he raised it to look at it more closely. “Now, I can be whole again,” he said moving the Core to directly in front of his chest.