Scholomance 6: The Devil's Academy Read online

  “Satan,” I breathed once I marveled at each woman. “You look fucking fantastic… every one of you. I could just devour all of you right now.”

  “Thank you, master,” Penelope blushed as she pushed back a loose strand of orange hair. “You look incredibly handsome yourself.”

  “You do,” Akira added as she bit down on her lip, “but it just makes me want to tear your clothes off right now.”

  “Hmmm, maybe we should just celebrate in my bed,” I chuckled, “but then I wouldn’t be able to see how jealous you make the other witches. Now, are you all ready?”

  “Yes, master,” they all responded in unison as they smiled.

  I nodded, and the women followed me out the common room door and down the corridors. The castle was neatly put back together as if nothing had ever happened, and as we neared the banquet hall doors, we could hear soft music echoing from within. When we stepped inside, the room was glowing with candle-light, and the smells of cinnamon, lemon, and other perfumed spices wafted through the warm air.

  An invisible band was playing the piano, violin, cello, and harp in a corner, and there were hundreds of witches dancing in the middle of the expansive room. Splashes of color drifted like water through the banquet hall as the music flowed in unison with the dancers, who glided through the room in graceful arcs and swan-like spins.

  We quickly found some empty seats, and as I craned my neck to get a better view of the room, I spotted the professors and Headmistress Theodora sitting comfortably at their usual table with several pitchers of wine and small platters of entrees in front of them. Theodora looked healthy and beautiful. Her cheeks were flushed with color, and her lips were blood-red. She was wearing a simple but lovely black velvet gown with a high collar, and her dark hair was pulled up into a wavy bun. The headmistress appeared to be in deep conversation with a stunning silver-haired woman who seemed somewhat familiar. Her long shimmering hair fell down her bare back, and she wore a pale pink gown with black lace detail along the sleeves and hem.

  As I continued to stare in their direction, the mysterious woman turned to look at me, and when her teal-colored eyes met mine, her pale lips curled up into a knowing smile.

  That’s when it hit me. She was one of the women of the High-Court.

  “Is that Olivia Mirkwood?” Morgana gasped as she tugged my arm in excitement, and she spun me around to face her. “By Satan, I think it is!”

  “It totally is.” Nyx grinned. “For a moment, I thought I was seeing things…”

  “What a surprise.” Akira rolled her black eyes.

  “What is she doing here?” I wondered aloud.

  “No clue,” Penelope answered with a quick shrug, “but it sure is exciting.”

  “I bet we’re going to find out soon enough,” Faye whispered as her golden-green eyes flicked back to the professors’ table. “Look, Theodora is about to give a speech.”

  When I turned around, Headmistress Theodora was on her feet with a golden goblet in her hand. She clinked the glass with a fork, but instead of a small clanking sound, the entire room echoed with thunderous jingles. The music immediately died down, and the dancers came to an abrupt halt before Theodora gracefully regarded the whole room with a relaxed, magnetic smile.

  “Attention, everyone!” the headmistress bellowed. “As I stand here before you all, I cannot be more grateful to our dark lord and savior, Satan. Tonight, we stand together, alive and victorious against the elder gods who tried their damnedest to see us dead and gone. Now, not only are we celebrating our well-earned conquest, but I’d like to also inform you all that we have a new professor with us. Please help me welcome Olivia Mirkwood!”

  The striking, silver-haired professor stood up and demurely smiled at the sea of students applauding her with as much energy as possible. She nodded in our direction and then raised her goblet high up into the air.

  “Thank you, Headmistress Theodora,” Olivia answered in a smooth and sultry voice. “I am honored to be dining with you here, on this glorious blood-moon filled night. Now, I’m sure you’re all wondering why I’m here, and not with my fellow High-Court companions. It has been decided that we’ll be bringing back the ancient class of potions and charms, and I will be your professor. I cannot wait to see just how dedicated and advanced you all are, and again, it is my immense pleasure to be here as part of Scholomance Academy.”

  The room echoed with thunderous applause again as the silver-haired witch bowed gracefully and then took her seat.

  Theodora was still standing, and when the clapping died down, she raised her glass up even higher into the air.

  “Now,” she continued, “let us enjoy this marvelous feast!”

  When the words left her lips, massive silver and gold platters materialized from thin air and appeared on each table setting. I found myself staring down at a full plate of roasted duck, griffin wings, mashed spiced pumpkin, and fresh greens with wild berry sauce. Goblets of dark red wine also appeared, and there was plenty to go around. Everyone quickly began to devour their exquisite meals and savor the spicy, peppery wine.

  As I ate, I glanced around the crowded hall, and in the corner of my eye, I thought I spotted a flash of bright pink and blue streaks of hair. It took me a moment to realize it was the twins, Iris and Ivy, and they were both wearing short black dresses with matching choker necklaces and heavy lined eyes. They were seated with a small group of witches, but mostly seemed to be keeping to themselves.

  “Hey, Penelope,” I said before I took a bite of well-done elk. “What’s up with the twins?”

  “Yeah, do they think they’re better than us or something?” Akira demanded before she drank a generous amount of wine.

  “I think after the battle they said they wanted to remain alone until their skills improved,” Penelope explained as she pursed her lips. “They won’t do anything but study, and I think that also meant they wanted nothing more to do with our little adventures… at least for now.”

  “Ah.” I nodded. “Well, whatever makes them feel comfortable.”

  “I think it's a clever idea,” Morgana added. “Better to be safe rather than sorry.”

  “Well, I personally don’t give a rat’s tail either way,” Akira muttered. “They were dead weight in my opinion… I don’t know how they even made it to the games.”

  “They just so happened to beat everyone else on that day,” Penelope remarked. “It surprised me, too… clearly, they have the potential… they just don’t know how to fully execute it yet.”

  Everyone muttered their agreements and continued to focus on the marvelous meals, and once the dinner was served and scarfed down, plates of various desserts appeared on the table in place of the empty platters. There were so many sweets, it was almost impossible to count them all. I noticed stacks of lemon poppy seed cake, plates of fairy berry pies, piles of vanilla and pumpkin cookies, and crystal bowls of pixie pudding.

  “Unholy shit,” Akira groaned with pleasure before she scooped up a mouthful of pudding, “this is amazing.”

  “May we join you for dessert?” a familiar voice asked from behind me.

  When I turned around, I saw Beatrix standing next to a woman with long, golden-blonde hair and exotic eyes, and it took me a moment to remember her name until it hit me like a spell. Her name was Circe, and she was one of the resurrected women who fought alongside the professors and students during the battle.

  “Hey.” I smiled. “Please, take a seat.”

  My coven smiled politely at the duo as they took two empty seats in front of me. Circe was wearing a sparkling, black and white gown with a red sash tied to her slender waist. Her long, golden-blonde hair was pulled into a half-updo, and it displayed her prominent cheekbones and wide, almond-shaped, serpentine eyes. Each time she took a bite of her strawberry-newt cake, I noticed her forked tongue swirling around the utensil, in an almost seductive manner, and some of my blood rushed south.

  After a minute, I turned my attention away from the beautiful b
londe and then marveled at the light-haired brunette. Beatrix was garbed in a peach-toned dress with a full, sweeping skirt and long, velvet sleeves. Her thick bangs nearly grazed her dark, sultry eyes, and her shoulder-length hair was styled in loose, luscious golden-brown ringlets.

  “This is magnificent,” Circe mumbled after she swallowed a mouthful of cake. “I’m so glad to be back in the living world.”

  “It does have its perks,” Akira grunted before she took another deep sip of black wine. “Like this wine… Satan, it’s strong.”

  “Easy, there,” Morgana hissed into the black-eyed witch’s ear. “Your eyes are as red as Faye’s hair.”

  “So?” Akira snorted with glassy, unfocused eyes. “Nyx’s are always like that, and you never say anything.”

  “They are not,” Nyx replied with a cool laugh. “My tolerance is incredibly high.”

  “Whatever,” the short-haired witch responded with a dismissive wave of her hand. “I’m enjoying the night… how often do we get to just relax?”

  “She has a good point,” Beatrix giggled. “I say we drink as much wine as possible.”

  “You’re going to regret that in the morning,” Faye tutted, but then she took a deep sip of wine herself. “Satan, she’s right… this wine is absolutely exquisite.”

  Before I could respond, a swift, icy breeze swept through the room, and everything grew dark as night. The candles all died at once, and then the music came to a chilling, sudden stop. A scream filled the air, and when I turned to look at the professors’ table, I noticed with horror that our new silver-haired professor had her hands wrapped around her throat as if she were choking to death.

  Pale moonlight seeped through the stained-glass window, and it highlighted the struggling professor’s deathly pale face. Her lips parted open like a fish out of water, and then a terrifying, low growling noise erupted from her mouth.

  “Are you comfortable?” a harsh, male voice that clearly didn’t belong to her asked. “I hope you are… because you should enjoy every single second of peace you have left. Harmony and unity will soon be a memory to you all, and from here on out, all you will know is fear, suffering, and death. I will not stop until the dawn of the Wicca era is nothing but history, written in the dusty pages of long-forgotten books. You will know my wrath and remember my voice, for I am an elder king, and you are nothing but walking corpses.”

  A resounding, choking sound echoed in Olivia’s throat before she collapsed to the ground, and then the entire banquet hall was filled with panicked whispers and pale-faced witches.

  As I’d predicted, the battle we’d faced was only the beginning of something far more deadly and terrifying.

  And every Wicca in this room knew it.

  Chapter 2

  “Silence!” Theodora bellowed in a fierce and commanding voice. “I will have silence, or so help me Satan, I shall rob you all of your tongues!”

  The room immediately fell deadly quiet, and the only subtle sounds I could perceive were soft, frantic breaths and the crackle of dwindling firelight. The air was filled with trepidation and a deep, unwavering sense of foreboding, and as I carefully studied the vast banquet hall, my heart fell at the sight of my fellow Wiccas. The students were pale-faced as they gazed unknowingly at one another with wide, fearful eyes and trembling lips. Theodora rarely spoke so harshly, but at this moment, I could not blame her for her sharp words or severe tone.

  An unnerving silence continued to fill the void, but no one moved or dared to speak a word as Theodora knelt beside Olivia’s limp body.

  I stared at the silver-haired professor splayed out on the marble floor with a broken goblet by her hand. Spilled, dark wine pooled around her head like a halo of blood, and without thinking, I found myself standing up from my table and approaching the headmistress and the unconscious Oliva.

  “Cole, w-what are you doing?” Beatrix whispered from her seat. “You should sit down!”

  I ignored the light-haired brunette and quickly approached the professors’ table. All the professors turned to look at me, and when Vanessa’s cold, icy-blue eyes met mine, her beautiful face curled up into a daunting scowl.

  “Cole!” she snapped. “Get back to your seat, this is a matter for the professors to deal with.”

  “No, it’s quite alright, Vanessa,” Headmistress Theodora affirmed as she sharply nodded in her daughter’s direction. “He may help if he wishes.”

  The strict, dark-haired professor clamped her lips into a tight line and regarded me with contempt, but she knew better than to defy her mother’s demands, so she slowly sat back down in her seat and then turned her flushed face away from me.

  “How can I help, Headmistress?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Let’s take Professor Olivia to the infirmary,” Theodora responded as she stared deeply into my eyes. She then turned to look at her daughter and snapped her fingers in a commanding manner when she realized Vanessa wasn’t even looking in her direction. “Vanessa, please ensure the students are seen safely back to their quarters. I’m afraid we will have to cut this celebration short.”

  “Of course, Headmistress,” Vanessa answered in a respectful tone of voice.

  “Come along, Cole,” Theodora ordered before she pulled out her intricately carved wand.

  It took me a moment to realize her wand was different from what she used to carry. This rod was made of darker wood, perhaps ebony wood, and the handle bore a wolf’s head with a pair of raven wings wrapped around its crown. There were markings of various dialects carved deeply into the wood, and it would be easy to miss if one wasn’t looking closely enough.

  For a moment, I thought about asking her why she owned a new wand, but now was neither the time nor the place.

  “W-What happened?” Olivia asked in a weak voice as she fluttered her teal-blue eyes open. “Why am I on the floor?”

  As her lively eyes darted back and forth in confusion and shock, I noticed the silver-haired Wicca had diamonds, or silver gems embedded into the corners of her eyes. She was even more stunning up close, even after suffering a temporary possession by an elder king. When her glassy eyes met mine, she opened her mouth to say something, but then Theodora placed a slender finger over the professor’s pale, cracked lips.

  “Shhh,” Theodora purred in a gentle manner. “You were possessed, but do not worry. We shall take you to the infirmary. Just close your eyes and let yourself drift into a state of pure serenity.”

  The silver-haired professor took in a deep, shaky breath before she closed her eyes and gently nodded.

  Theodora looked at me for a quick moment and then rolled up her black sleeves before she aimed her wand at the silver-haired Wicca.

  “Supervolo,” Theodora muttered with a steady hand and a stern voice.

  I watched as Olivia’s limp body slowly rose up into the air and then began to drift toward the banquet hall doors, like a dead, dark angel rising to the heavens where she didn’t belong. The entire banquet hall watched as Theodora and I followed the hovering professor out the door and into the empty corridor. When the doors closed behind us, I could hear faint voices echoing from within, but then Vanessa’s shrill voice rang through the air, and all was silent once more.

  “Will she be alright?” I asked Headmistress Theodora as my eyes stayed focused on the drifting professor.

  “Yes,” Theodora answered without looking at me, “I have seen many possessions in my lifetime, and they do not last long… even if it stems from elder power. She will be on her feet in no time, with the proper care and brew, of course.”

  “Thank Satan,” I muttered with relief.

  As we passed by the prying portraits and glided down the hallways, I couldn’t help but think about the voice that erupted from the pale, pink lips of our new professor and member of the High-Court. That chilling, god-like voice sent violent shivers down my spine, but Satan knew I was filled with feral rage more than anything else. To me, the man was nothing but a fucking coward who feared o
ur growing power and strength, and I vowed I’d do whatever it took to see him dead by my hand.

  When we reached the dark infirmary, I quickly pulled out my wand and raised it above my head.

  “Illuminana,” I muttered.

  The room quickly lit up as the air grew warm, and the soothing scent of lavender and spiced brews filled the infirmary. For a moment, I was lost in the intoxicating and lovely aroma, but then I quickly shook my head and focused on the two women before me.

  “Thank you, Cole,” Theodora said as she guided Olivia’s still hovering body over to a small, white cot. “Let’s place her over here by the window. I’m sure she will appreciate the warm light when it hits her at dawn.”

  I watched carefully as the silver-haired professor’s body descended slowly onto the bed, and when her head hit the pillow, her teal eyes gently fluttered open. At first, she seemed confused, and it took her a long moment to remember why she was here.

  “Oh, Satan,” Olivia grunted as she placed a pale hand over her slick forehead, “everything is such a haze… how long was I out for?”

  “Try not to speak,” Theodora said in a soft and comforting voice. “I’ll bring you something for the pain.”

  “T-Thank you, Headmistress,” Olivia coughed.

  I remained by the foot of the bed while the headmistress drifted over to a tall armoire filled with various colored mixtures, withering weeds, unusual herbs, and peculiar potions. She mumbled to herself as she rummaged through the hundreds of different concoctions, and then finally, she picked out a vial of bright, tangerine-tinted bubbling brew.

  “This should do the trick,” Theodora said before she locked the cluttered armoire and retreated back to the bed. “As soon as you drink this, you should be feeling as good as new.