RAYNE (Xiao Hong Song)
The trip to Pennsylvania and the back hills of West Virginia, to the campsite that her twin had rented out for the group. With all the travel, delays, and getting lost, it was in the middle of the morning and far too dark for any of them to attempt to start searching for Bù Wěndìng de Jūmín place. Her twin had a decent idea of where it was nestled in the mountains, but there were still miles of territory to find entrances, the people working for the creatures, and how to defeat it.
Rayne staggered into one of the cabins through the dark, humid early morning. She curled into a ball on the lumpy mattress to shut out the noises of nature they were in the middle of. Her bunkmates were already in deep meditation or sleeping. She attempted to join them in slumber.
She tossed and turned, couldn't get over the sinking feeling that everything was not as simple as Ming-Yue was making it out to be. Her sister was always in control and had plans upon plans within her. Not that they all didn't know the dangers going in, but right now, she still couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong with Ming-Yue. The control and power she had shown at the battle were still well beyond anything she should have been capable of, even with practice. But everyone in the circle kept going on like nothing strange had happened. Everything was perfectly normal with her twin. Something was wrong. She felt it and couldn't shake it.
The night dragged on; Rayne's unease only grew worse. She rose from the bed and stepped outside to get some fresh air. The old forest welcomed her. The mist at her feet wafted up waves of watery air. The dark and eerie surroundings might worry ordinary people, but she was still a witch. This was part of her time. The moon's light pierced though the thick canopy of trees, showing her way through. She stood there momentarily, breathing in the old trees and woods, trying to clear her mind with the uneasiness latched well and truly onto her soul. Rayne flung her thoughts through the air with her powers, allowing her intuition and emotions to take over. Her mind flowed through the woods, feeling the world around her. She listened to the ancient songs of the forest, which sent her worries and concerns outward.
Years of being locked in cities, working, and hiding from her magic, this freedom of being out in nature freed her. She wandered into the woods, following paths she didn't know but could follow with ease. Old trails called to her; her mind floated through as her body followed slowly behind. She wandered through the trees, feeling her way through. The songs of the air, the forest, and ancient words flowed through her, having her travel a path. The pull grew more vigorous, approaching a clearing she stepped into, able to see with the moonlight helping. She spread her hands wide, welcoming the moonlight and night air into her. She felt she could breathe, be open again, welcome magic into her soul, and clean herself of everything. Empty out all her doubt, grief, and sorrow, and welcome in the joy of magic once again. She twirled around the clearing for several minutes until the other presence joined her within the field.
Ming-Yue glided into the clearing, still in her casual, loose linen outfit. She wasn't carrying a flashlight or anything, just following the flow of magic as Rayne had. The call was powerful, pure in the old ways. The elemental pulls to a place that was once important to their kind. Rituals were cast here on nights like these. Witches would dance, pray, and gather long before the twins arrived. It didn't seem like any of them were still gathered here. The clearing echoed ancient magic but felt empty, waiting to be used again.
Rayne and Ming-Yue's eyes met across the field, waiting to see what the other would do. Neither wanted to go first into this ancient field of rituals. Both had felt the call, the pull to this place. It had been slumbering, waiting for witches powerful enough to wake it from its long hibernation.
"What is this place?" Rayne asked in hushed tones.
Ming-Yue came fully into the clearing, closer to her sister. She bathed in the moonlight, stretching her arms as Rayne had done. She was opening herself to the magic of the area. "I don't know, probably an old witch’s grove lost to time. Chased out of this area by religious folk given how long it has been abandoned.”
"Can it help us?" Rayne asked, bending down, touching the land to connect with the ground. "It feels like it could help."
"I believe so. It did call out to us," Ming-Yue replied, following Rayne's action to touch the land and pour her magic into the ground.
The twins both connected into the ritual area through the earth below them. Long dormant magic swelled up beneath them, adding to them. Rayne could feel all the space around them, speaking to them, connecting them to the earth in a way she had never been able to without a long ritual with the circle. Earth was not one of her elements. It had never called to or spoken to her before. This was Ming-Yue's gift, but she wasn't completely able to do this. The land was pulling her in, along with the old power residing. It carried her with the magic, speaking the songs deep within.
They learned of the people who were here long before them and sailed on boats. Those who lived upon the land. Then, of those who came from the ship across the vast ocean. They mingled and worked together before they were driven out. Blood and violence. The land mourned the loss of the people, the witches who came and were taken. None lived here in this spot now. None used this place of worship; none came to this blessed place anymore. It needed people. It wanted the people back. Rayne looked at her sister, who only nodded back. They could use this place of worship and dance their way into being one with this land. Please become part of this wider field, vast ability, something more than themselves.
Rayne danced through the field, accessible in the moonlight and light for once. Free from the worries of the coming trial and the last one. She danced with the air and allowed the fire to flow through her, sparking on her fingertips to give dim light in the area. Her sister moved slower, resisting the flow of the call. Rayne passed her several times, enjoying the complete freedom of movement through the clearing, becoming one with the old ways, not just duty, pure joy once again. Rayne could feel something else within her sister. The dark shadow, something lurking just below the surface of her perfect sister. Not that she could understand it. It was just new, different. It didn't belong. It needed to be purified, and she would know how much of a perfectionist her sister was. But also, there wasn't enough time yet. They had to get the next creature.
Until then, they would connect with the area and find Bù Wěndìng de Jūmín to handle it. She danced and felt the magic rise up below her. The waves of power came and went, leading them through the mountains through old pathways until they found a dark plague upon the land spot where the magic stopped. All the energy was being sucked into the void, several miles away from where they were camped out. The void area was devoid to the natural powers. It had been pulled from the pool of magic.
Rayne pulled herself away before anything within the void noticed. She stopped dancing and had to stop Ming-Yue.
"We have an idea where it is. We have to get some rest before everyone gets up," Rayne said, holding on to her sister’s arm, allowing nature’s energies to flow freely between them.
Ming-Yue nodded and released the overview.