Soulmage

The Witch of Warp and Weft left no bodies when she killed. Quivering from my hiding place behind the ruined central hut, I watched in silent, trembling horror as she methodically imploded every goblin in the village that tried to stand in her way, sending bullets of warped space like hunting hounds after the people who'd taken me in.

The tribe's elder snarled a wordless challenge and drew mischief from her soul, teleporting forwards in a blur of sparks, but the Witch scoffed contemptuously and flicked a hand, curving space in a twisted knot moments before Ragan's teleport finished. I'd never wanted to know what happened when you teleported into a spatial anomaly before, and as the gore and organs that had once been someone who'd cared for me splattered on the dirt, I wished I'd never found out.

"Did you really think that using teleportation against a witch of space was a good idea? Ugh, I knew goblins weren't sapient, but this level of idiocy is really something else." The Witch's eyes scanned the tribe; despite the fact that everyone left standing was either hiding or fleeing, she unerringly fired another round of six spells outwards in spiraling arcs. In my barely-developed soulsight, I saw six lives shatter like so much dropped porcelain. "Ah, well. Makes monster-hunting duty a little easier, I suppose. There's no point in hiding; I can see your souls." She turned to the right. Another four spells cast. Another four lives lost. She turned a little further—

And stared right at me.

She stopped, blinking in shock. A brave warrior—someone whose name I'd never known, and now never would—leapt at her, spear in hand, but his attack simply slid off the witch's back, space itself bending around her to protect her. Idly, she flicked a hand, and the warrior... ceased. I whimpered, frantically scrambling back as I reached for the magic in my soul.

"There, there. What's a human child like you doing in this hovel?" The witch stepped forwards, a disconcerting compassion in her eyes. "Did these monsters kidnap you?"

I tried to speak, to cast a spell, to run, but something deep inside me had just snapped, and I couldn't move, couldn't control the magic leaking from my soul. I shrank into myself, trying to hide from the world, to hide from the latest monster to rend my home to ash and rubble—

I froze as I felt a hand on my shoulder. "You have a strong soul," the witch whispered. "And nobody deserves to be left with these vermin. Why don't you come with me, hmm? I can teach you how to control that magic of yours."

Frantically, I shook my head. "Y-y-you killed them. You killed my family."

She frowned. "Your family? Child, these are goblins. Did you think they were people?"

"I—"

"We'll have to get that straightened out," she said, picking me up as if I weighed no more than a feather. "Along with any other things that these monsters might have done to you."

"They're not... they're..." I tried to assemble a coherent thought, but the terror and fear were overwhelming, and it was so much easier to just let the witch hold me, to stay quiet and do what she said. "I..."

"It's alright, child. I'll protect you from the monsters." Her voice curdled into something I think she thought was kindness. "Even the ones you think are people."

And against my numb, shocked protests, the Witch of Warp and Weft carried me out of the ruins of my home, leaving nothing behind but empty houses and bloodied soil.

A.N.

This story is part of Soulmage, a serial written in response to writing prompts! To catch up on the rest, check out this post, or browse r/bubblewriters for more!