I don’t hesitate. I immediately sit, crossing my legs in front of me. Here with her I’ve never felt more like myself or more alive, and I’ve also never felt so… free.
“Does the blood moon have special significance to our power?” I keep my eyes pinned to her.
I don’t think I could look away even if I tried. Hekate is like a bright star in a night sky, a flaming torch at the end of a dark and suffocating tunnel, the one who will lead me where I belong. She is the brightest star I’ve ever seen.
After summoning black candles in a circle around us, she waves her hand and brings them to life. The blue shield around us grows brighter and brighter as thorns and roses climb up the walls and close us in, creating a perfect garden of privacy. Only the curved arch at the top is left open to allow the red glow of the moon to shine down upon us.
She doesn’t look at me as she speaks, busy setting up for our lesson. “Every element and celestial object is one we worship. They all hold a power within which we can wield to make us stronger and fiercer. Some can help us heal others or even raise the dead if we have the ability within us.” Her lips turn up at the corners as she summons two golden cups in her hands. “The selini aimatos in particular is important for opening portals to new and higher levels of consciousness. It is also great for blood magic.” As she smiles her eyes flash with excitement and candlelight flickers across her features.
“Blood magic,” I breathe in a hushed whisper, afraid for the punishment of even speaking of the dark magic might bring. “It is forbidden.” It has been for centuries, and I enjoy my place in the realm here, though others surely wouldn’t mind my absence. I do not want to be forced to leave or worse if the others were to find out about my use of dark magic.
“What we do in the shadows is between you and I, Nyx. The Gods and Goddesses of the realms cannot even see us now.” Her steely eyes pierce into mine as I smooth out the wrinkles in my robe and readjust my legs beneath me.
The witch laughs and my eyes dart back to her. The sound is like music to my ears, a whisper in the wind that calls to my soul. I can’t help but smile though fear runs rampant in my mind.
“Fear not, my dear.. Magic is neither good nor bad. It is neither dark nor light. The one who wields it chooses which side they are on. Blood magic has many great purposes for a witch.”
“What great purposes could dark magic have?” As I gaze up at the moon, I feel a familiar sense of churning within my soul, like the darkness within me is ready to combust and set the world ablaze. I grit my teeth, fisting my dress and praying to whichever God might still care for me to push the darkness down deep, to never let it make its way to the surface.
Darkness guide me. Gods save me.
My question hangs in the air as she retrieves a small, elegant dagger from the front of her dress. “It can be used to form everlasting bonds between our people. On the other hand, it can be used to break bonds, weakening our enemies. I have seen it wielded to create love and to create life.” Glancing at me, her eyes soften as she sends waves of energy my way, pushing thoughts into my mind of my mother and how I was born.
I don’t want to remember. She was a fool for accepting a blood bond with a dark God, the very bond which brought me into existence. She was a powerful witch who let a celestial impregnate her and then allowed dark blood to run through the both of us, a bond and a scar on my soul that I too will forever bear. The same dark god she bound herself to eventually killed her. The celestials could have slaughtered me for being what I am, and I would not have blamed them. No one else exists like me. No one ever should.
“The main purpose for bringing forth the blood moon is to harness ancestral power. To open doors which are normally hidden. Simply ask for that which you desire and open your vein as an offering to her. You shall receive what you wish for.” Shadows dance across her face and there is not so much as a glimmer of a lie hiding there.
What she says is true. I can feel it. The power shining down upon both of us feels electric and alive. The moon is a radiating sphere of magic waiting for us to make an offer. I can learn to use my darkness for good. I have so much power within me, if only I could learn to use it. Hekate is a blessing sent to me by the gods and goddesses themselves. Dark power and maybe even darkness itself is not something I should fear. As Hekate said, it is the one who wields the power who ultimately chooses which side they are on. I choose light, always.
“What shall we ask for tonight? What shall we offer her?” I swallow nervously.
I’m unsure if I can be trusted with knowledge of such power. This darkness at times seems to have a mind and choices of its own. But I am sure of how I feel around Hekate. I trust her. She will teach me to be good. With her near, my body vibrates with power in a way that has me convinced I could have everything I have ever desired. With her I no longer feel out of place, like a mixed breed creature who must be watched carefully or treated with special care. I just feel like me. Not Nyx the dark one or Nyx the cursed. I am Nyx the celestial witch whose darkness is a gift as much as the light.
She gives me a half smile before raising her dagger up and pointing it directly toward the moon, her icy hair falling behind her shoulders as she tilts her head back. “Mother Moon, Goddess of Earth. Hear us. We ask of you to bless us with your power, under the guidance of the blood moon and with darkness as witness to our pleas. Let Nyx become one with myself and my covens. Let her share my blood and share our ancestor’s wisdom from this day forward. Forgive her for the selfishness, the greed, and the vanity which came before this day. Accept her as one of your own and one of mine. Hear me mother moon and goddess of earth and let her power rise!”
She keeps the dagger raised, and her eyes do not flick open as the clouds roll in, not even when thunder rolls overhead or as lightning strikes the ground all around us. As the wind swirls rapidly within the dome and our hair blows wildly, she still holds the dagger toward the moon without flinching. Even as whispered words from unseen strangers echo all around us, strangers who I cannot see but feel as though they’re right next to me, she simply smiles. Their power brushes against my skin softly. They whisper my name into the shadows. They circle around me again and again, tiny speckles of blue light and surges of power. I hold my breath and refuse to blink, too stunned to look away.
Hekate lowers the dagger into her lap and locks eyes with me. She glances around as if she can see them, the ones who whisper in the dark. With a single nod to the ethereal forces, she runs the dagger across her palm, letting blood drain into her golden chalice. The warmth from the powerful forces hums like electricity buzzing through the air. Still, the storm rages on as she sends the dagger floating my way, and I gladly retrieve it from the air. My trembling hand does not hesitate or flinch as I slice open my vein, letting it spill into the cup in front of me. My offering to the moon if she will accept me.
Hekate holds her cup up above her head, eyes locked to the sky, so I do the same. Prickly, warm power radiates in the palm of my hand. Love, light and darkness combine to form acceptance of all that I am and who I am meant to be. Intense power spreads from my hand and tingles as it climbs down my arm and pushes its way into my blood stream. It weaves through every part of me, attaching to every fiber of my being. It does not leave a single cell unaffected, and there’s a distant, gentle murmur of acceptance by the powers that be.
I am no longer just a witch who can wield an unimaginable amount of power. I am power.
The contents in our cups bubble and splatter out as they boil. My hand is warm, and my heart is full as I watch the liquid from Hekate’s cup rise to meet the blood from my own. It is no longer my blood or her blood, or the power from the blood moon above. It is our blood. Our power. The union of our souls. My heart thuds loudly in my chest and my lips curl up into a wide smile as the liquid contents slowly descend back into the cups in our waiting hands.
Blood magic cannot possibly be evil when it holds such beauty. Not when it feels so right.
Hekate’s bright smile puts the glow of the moon to shame, even as it appears now like a spotlight above our heads, watching and waiting for what happens next.
“Nyx, will you accept this offer from our ancestors and from the Mother Moon? They offer you to join us. To be one of us. They offer to guide you in the journey of becoming a witch, so long as you take heed to this warning: do not let your power lead you down a dark, winding path, for you may get lost in the darkness and never find your way back.” The witches’ eyes glow now with a bright blue hue, the color swirling and holding me captive.
I want to be like her. I want to strengthen my power and use it only for good, to prove I am worthy of this. To prove to Gaia and Ourahnus that they made the right choice in saving me and letting me live with their people. Most importantly, I would like to prove to myself that I am worthy of living. The ancestors’ words of warning replay in my head, but even in times when all hope felt lost, I have never been tempted to give in to darkness. I despise it more than anything.
It is light that will always guide me home.
“I accept their offer and will heed their warning.” Glancing up at the moon nervously, I pray I’ve said the right thing.
I have no idea what I am doing or where I will go from here, but I want this more than anything. I would love to spend more time with my new queen.
