An ear-splitting scream threatened to burst through my mouth, but I was too stubborn to let it. Pain entered my body in waves, pulsing with every word the woman in front of me chanted. My eyes were fixated on her face, though it was a challenge keeping them open. They wanted to roll back and close as every new wave of pain shook my body.
Sweat coated my forehead as my body convulsed and constricted and the woman rushed to the culmination of her enchantment. Her voice reached a deep and bestial octave, shouting the words in the language unbeknownst to me. The fragile windows of the weathered cabin we were in shook, the sound of glass trembling got lost in the woman's voice.
With her each word, dark lines spread over my body. They resembled veins, tattooed black veins that carved themselves into my skin. Heart pounding, mind spinning; I could only hope that the end of this torture was close. It was as if someone traced lines over my body with freshly sharpened knife. The woman standing before me was relishing in my pain, slight smirk dancing in the corner of her never stopping mouth enraged me, making me grit my teeth stronger. My fingers were clenched into tight fists, nails tearing the skin on my palms; drawing blood. I wouldn't even notice it, hadn't my eyes been focused on the scarlet liquid that dripped in between my fingers; my mind's petty call for a distraction.
The last ripple of agony surged through me, burning its way from the tip of my toes to the top of my head. Left numb and unfeeling, I was barely able to register the final scream the woman let out; before a blanket of silence embraced us. She toppled into the wooden armchair behind her, panting. Her vigorous breathing matched mine, joining the howl of the wind that was heard from the timeworn windows. Soon, drops of rain followed; quickly turning into nothing short of downpour as the sky roared in encouragement. The nature protested, the deed we had just done countered its every law.
Hours were spent as Gala, the witch that preformed the act, and I just sat there, in the poorly furnished living room, listening to the pounding of the rain. Small fireplace in the corner of the room was the only thing that provided us with warmth and light, and we relished it as our breathing slowly evened. Gala resented me, I was very aware of that fact. Resented me for forcing her to do what she did, to challenge the Nature's will in the way she did; but I was far from caring. At this point, my mantra was that the goal justified the acts. Now that I had what I needed to continue my mission, there was only one thing left.
"Now-," I started, but stopped to swallow away the dry lump in my throat. "Now take me to the portal."
*** *** ***
Gala and I were standing on a clearing deep in the heart of the forest, tentatively observing the sight in front of us, a sole reason for my many sleepless night in the past year and a half. Two huge trees stood proudly in the center on the clearing, evidently old and survivors of many storms and lightnings they had witnessed throughout the time. Their branches intertwined to a point they seemed joint, like each was an extension of the other. Together, they formed something that seemed as a frame for the glistening mirror that was guarded by the trees. The mirror was no ordinary one, quite contrary, it showed no reflection but emitted such alluring force that traveled softly towards us, like an invisible power that blinded us to anything but its luminous surface and what it contained behind.
One step through that reflectionless mirror was all it took. At first, the world stopped for a fraction of a second, allowing me to observe the way everything around me melted away. It was as if the forest acquired a liquid form, slowly gliding into an abyss to reveal nothing but darkness.
Then the madness began.
Blinded by the force I could not see, I was submerged into the worst feeling I had ever felt. Blinking, I tried to distinguish my surroundings but my mind was lost, snatched out, leaving me disorientated. It was as if I was being ripped into pieces and assembled anew, as if my body was being split into atoms, into smallest particles and being recreated again with the speed that was greater than the one of light.
My insides turned over constantly, like I was stuck on a never ending roller-coaster; my head was spinning. One moment I felt as if I was submerged into rapidly drying cement, and the very next as light as a feather without anything solid to cling to. I screamed, but no sound was heard, I trashed around but couldn't move. Even breathing seemed as an impossible task.
And I could have sworn centuries--millenniums!--passed in torment before I blinked again and finally met with a clear image. My ears were ringing as I struggled to restore my balance, but my knees couldn't take my sudden weight and wavered. I had only enough time to bring my arms forward in order to prevent my face smashing into the ground. Forcing myself to breath normally again I blinked several times, the image in front of my eyes blurry, the dirty ground kept zooming in and out threatening to disappear entirely. Slowly, agonizingly the world around me stopped spinning, returning to normal. My lungs opened, allowing the air to flow normally in and out, strength slowly coming back to my bones. The pain that previously threatened to swallow me was nothing but a sizzling sensation now.
The aftermath of crossing to another universe slowly abandoned my body, and my reason made an appearance in form of anger. Gala said that the transition would be just slightly uncomfortable, never mentioning the inexplicable feeling I was immersed in. My mind cooled off, however, when I picked myself up from the ground and took in my surroundings. Immediately my lips contorted into a small smirk of victory at the sight of the whole different universe--a dangerous universe--I willingly stepped into.
"Finally."
ns 15.158.61.54da2
