A few days later.
Annie sighed as she turned to the right and to the left until she finally decided to lay on her back as she looked up at the celling.
She could not sleep at all, her insides were churning and her mind was raging with so many thoughts at once, she was sure that she would end up lying in bed wide awake like this till morning.
Annie tried to close her eyes and force herself to sleep, but it didn't work, her eyes shot wide open again as she just stared idly at the celling.
Maddie opened her eyes as she was not asleep at all, she had been awake all this time and she could tell that Annie was unable to go to sleep.
It made her feel so bad because she knew just how Annie was going through a lot right now, and she had contributed to her already stressed thoughts, she and Annie had not spoken properly for days now, and it wasn't on purpose, but everything was just so busy and moving along, there was no time to breathe.
"Can't sleep?" asked Maddie as she stared at the sleeping.
"Yes *sigh*, were you asleep? Did I wake you?" asked Annie as she replied staring at the celling.
"No, I can't sleep either" said Maddie as she turned on her bed to look at Annie whose bed was right across hers, she could not see Annie properly in the dark.
"I guess we are the same then" replied Annie as Maddie snapped her fingers and the lights switched on as there was silence between them.
"Annie, I'm sorry" said Maddie as she sighed.
"I'm sorry for making you feel terrible, for making you feel like you have no choice than to do what everyone else wants" said Maddie as Annie turned to look at her.
"I am sorry for making you angry with me, and I am sorry for not apologizing earlier" said Maddie.
"I'm not angry with you Maddie" replied Annie.
"But you are, and I am sorry Annie" said Maddie.
"You are my best friend Annie, and I love you, I'm sorry for not supporting you instead of telling you what to do" said Maddie apologetically.
"I'm sorry for being so selfish most times…" said Maddie as Annie smiled and raised an eyebrow at her.
"Most times?" asked Annie with an amused expression on her face.
"Okay, alright, you got me, not most times, more like all the time, but you know I can't help it" said Maddie as Annie laughed and shook her head.
"Oh you know how I am Annie" said Maddie.
"I do, and I don't want you any other way" said Annie with a smile as Maddie smiled.
"You know I got your back Annie, I'm your biggest supporter, always, and I'm sorry for the next time I'm selfish, I care for you a lot" said Maddie with a smile.
"I know Maddie, I know, and I'm sorry for being so angry" said Annie as she smiled.
"I caused it though" replied Maddie.
"That you did, anyway, I'm not angry, or upset or anything, I'm just tired" said Annie.
"How do you feel about tomorrow?" asked Maddie.
"Tired, nervous, I can't sleep, I have this sinking feeling in my stomach that things are going to go horrible and everything we have worked for, everything we have been through, everything I've been taught was nothing but a waste" said Annie.
"I'm so scared that things will go bad, that going to Caligo was nothing but a waste of time, that I would be better off dead" said Annie.
"Oh Annie" said Maddie as she got out of her own bed and she walked to hug Annie.
"I just feel so horrible, what if I am not strong enough? What if we lose again? I don't know what I would do" said Annie.
"What if all the people I love get hurt again and I can do nothing about it?" asked Annie.
"Oh Annie don't think like that" said Maddie.
"This time will be different, you have trained, you have gotten stronger, you are determined" said Maddie.
"Besides, for that reason your parents and my mom aren't going anywhere, but you know that you can never chase me and Matt away, we are going to be with you no matter what" said Maddie as that made Annie smile.
"You can count on us for anything, you don't have to do things alone, you have Curtis, me, Matt your parents, Aunt Stella, and heck even the blondie cares for you" said Maddie as she smiled.
"We will do this together, and tomorrow won't be a disaster" said Maddie.
"Don't think of tomorrow as a death sentence instead think of it like a day where everything will finally change and a tyrant will finally be destroyed" said Maddie.
"Okay?" asked Maddie as Annie nodded.
"Okay" said Annie.
"Thank you Maddie" said Annie with a smile.
"What are friends for?" asked Maddie with a smile.
"Are you scared as well?" asked Annie.
"Not at all, on the contrary I can't wait for chaos to reign" said Maddie.
"Last time I was asleep when you faced Azazel, but not this time" said Maddie as Annie smiled.
"So get some rest, we have a busy day tomorrow" said Maddie as she smiled.
"Honestly I don't think I will be able to sleep tonight" said Annie as she sighed.
"Well okay, if you are going to be awake then I am going to stay awake as well" said Maddie.
"You don't have to do that Maddie" said Annie with a smile.
"No it's no bother at all, in fact we can sleep any day, let's stay up till sunrise" said Maddie as she laughed.
"Doing what exactly?" asked Annie as she laughed.
"I don't know, how about we spar, or practice more spells, just anything to waste time" said Maddie.
"Alright, I agree with that" said Annie as she got out of her bed.
"Yay, let's go get Matt" said Maddie as she stood up and laughed.
"I don't think we should, he must be asleep by now" said Annie.
"Nope, I bet you he will come with us either way, come on" said Maddie as Annie followed after her.
…
"Hey Matt wake up" said Maddie as she knocked on the door to Matt's room and spoke lightly so as not to wake anyone else up.
"Matt, I know you can hear me, get out here" said Maddie as she heard footsteps Matt walked to the door and opened it as he yawned and rubbed his eyes.
"Gosh Maddie, what is it? It's late" said Matt as he looked sleepy.
"You see Maddie, I told you he was asleep, sorry for waking you Matt" said Annie as Maddie scoffed.
"Annie and I can't sleep, we are going to train, are you coming?" asked Maddie as Matt blinked at her, was that even a question when she had already come here to wake him up.
"I guess so, you already woke me up, and I doubt I will be able to go back to sleep" said Matt.
"Great, come on" said Maddie with a smile as she walked away and both Annie and Matt looked at each other as they shook their heads.
"She's in a very good mood isn't she?" asked Matt.
"That she is" replied Annie as Matt laughed and shook his head as he and Annie followed after Maddie.
…
Nia was walking up and down, she was super nervous right now, the sun had just rose and she knew that it would not be long before what would happen would happen, and she was worried, because things could either go really bad, or really good.
"Ahh Hunter you scared me!" said Nia as she turned around and was startled by Hunter suddenly appearing behind her without making a sound at all.
"Sorry" replied Hunter.
"Stop doing that, you want to give me a heart attack or what?" asked Nia.
"Maybe" replied Hunter with a smile as Nia scoffed at him.
"Nervous?" asked Hunter as Nia nodded.
"Things can either go horribly bad, or horribly good" said Nia as Hunter nodded, that was true.
"But we'll see, anyway are you ready?" asked Nia as Hunter nodded.
"That I am" said Hunter.
"What's the signal again?" asked Hunter as Nia whispered in his ear and he nodded.
"Alright got it" replied Hunter.
"Good" said Nia as Hunter smiled at her.
"What?" she asked in carefulness as she wondered what was making him smile.
"Nothing, I'm going to miss you" replied Hunter with a smile.
"Don't say nonsense Hunter, this is a very serious situation right now" said Nia as she scoffed.
"I'm not saying nonsense" replied Hunter with a smile.
"In that case, don't tell me that you are planning to betray me and the others?" asked Nia as Hunter just laughed.
"You really don't trust me do you?" asked Hunter as Nia narrowed her eyes at him, of course she didn't trust him, especially not if they were supposed to work together to capture Azazel.
"Of course I don't last time you were angry with me just because I didn't do what you wanted, so no, I do not trust you" said Nia.
"Well you are wrong, I won't betray you… any of you" replied Hunter as Nia did not seem to believe him at all.
"I have to go now, we don't have any time to waste good luck and be safe" said Hunter as he turned around and walked away as Nia wondered what exactly he was planning, for some odd reason the way Hunter spoke did not sit well with her, and she knew it would be better for her to just ignore it, so as long as he did what he was supposed to do.
…
Azazel opened his eyes when he heard footsteps in his office.
"Sorry if I disturbed you" said Hunter with a smile as Azazel looked at him.
"What do you want?" asked Azazel.
"I wanted to know when you would like to attack the High Council Palace, after all, you did say that it would be today" said Hunter as he reminded Azazel of something he had completely forgotten about.
"If you are here then it means that you have sent the rogues already" said Azazel.
"That I have, I sent some of them, and I am waiting your approval to send some witches with them" said Hunter.
"Do it" said Azazel.
"Alright, will you be going with them?" asked Hunter.
"No" replied Azazel.
"Why not?" asked Hunter.
"There is something strange in the atmosphere today" said Azazel as he could sense it, he just did not know what, he was not going anywhere, but that would not put a stop to their plans.
"Strange how?" asked Hunter.
"Send who you need to send and capture the Palace like I told you" said Azazel.
"Got it" said Hunter as he nodded and walked away.
…
"Everyone in position?" asked Mira as she stood on top of a hill scanning the area, making sure that everything and everyone was set in order and in place, nothing could go wrong here, absolutely nothing.
Mira received the replies that she needed to hear, which made her certain that everything was put in place and the sun was shining very brightly, hopefully that was a good sign.
"Alright, Annie you can go on" said Mira as she looked up at the sky.
Annie was on another hill as she nodded and replied to Mira.
"Are you okay Annie?" asked Maddie as she looked at Annie who looked at her and Annie nodded.
"Are you sure?" asked Matt as Annie nodded.
"I'm okay guys, where's Curtis?" asked Annie.
"Probably down there with Aunt Stella" said Maddie.
"Alright" said Annie as she picked up her bow and got into position as she took a deep breath.
Annie put her arrow in her bow and she pulled back on the string and took another deep breath, here went nothing as Annie let go of the string and the arrow went flying quickly as It landed down in the valley in the camp below.
…
The ground started to shake violently as everyone in the camp was wondering just what was going on.
Nia quickly looked up and rushed away slowly, this was her cue to leave and get somewhere safe, everything was set in motion, and now it was all up to Hunter to get Azazel to the right place.
…
Ollie sighed as he paced up and down in his room, he had to leave right now, something big was going down and of course he wanted to be there to help, and yet he was stuck here.
Ollie walked to his bedroom window and he could see that it was a long way down, but he could get down there with no trouble at all.
"Wait a minute, this is my house why would I be trying to sneak out like a criminal?" asked Ollie to himself as he shook his head, he was the prince after all, how could he leave his like a fugitive
"I am not doing this" said Ollie to himself as he turned around and walked out of his room, down the hall and down the stairs, he had somewhere much more important to be.
Ollie quickly rushed through the doors as he heard a voice call out to him which made him stop right in his tracks.
"And where do you think you are going?" came Albert's cold voice as Ollie turned to face him.
"Where do you think I am going father?" asked Ollie.
"You are going nowhere" said Albert.
"Oh so you are telling me that I am now a prisoner in my own home?" asked Ollie.
"You better not be going where I think you are going" said Albert.
"And if you as a king does not know what is going on in his own kingdom I am worried" said Ollie.
"Don't start now Oliver, it is dangerous out there, you are not going anywhere and that is final" said Albert in a tone that has no room for refuting.
"Oh I am happy that you at least know it will be dangerous out there, but it would make me even happier if you did not only worry for me, but for everyone else out there as well" said Ollie.
"Why don't you worry for Annie, my friends the way you worry for me?" asked Ollie as Albert was silent.
"Why don't you openly be on the right side?" asked Ollie as honestly he wasn't angry anymore, he just did not get it.
"Those are questions you will understand the answer to when you are older Oliver" replied Albert.
"Well I am older, and as prince of the witch realm I will stand with the right party and you can do nothing to stop me" said Ollie seriously, he did not care that by going he would shatter his already broken relationship with his father.
Albert sighed, knowing fully well that Ollie was not going to back down in this.
"Does your mother know?" asked Albert.
"Unlike you she supports me and she knows the right thing" replied Ollie.
"Fine then go Oliver, but if you dare allow yourself to be harmed out there your title as Prince will be revoked" said Albert in all seriousness as Ollie had expected this.
"As expected of you, see you later your Majesty" replied Ollie as he turned around and walked away as Albert sighed, he did not want to be too harsh on Ollie, but he knew that he had to be for his own good.
…
Azazel looked around, there was something unnatural about this unusual shaking that just started, the books in the bookshelf were shaking and falling down.
"What in the cauldron is going on with this sudden shaking?" asked Selene as she waked
Hunter quickly walked into Azazel's office without knocking, Azazel did not reply to her at all.
"Oh come on my lord, please do not tell me that you are still angry with me?" asked Selene as Azazel said nothing at all and Selene scoffed internally when she started to hear screaming coming from above which baffled her.
Hunter walked into Azazel's office as Azazel looked at him.
"What is going on out there?" asked Azazel in an irritated tone.
"We are being attacked Azazel and I am sure that you know by whom" said Hunter.
"That is impossible, we are supposed to be attacking them, and not the other way around" said Selene as Hunter ignored her.
"We did not see this coming, some people are being captured while others are running away, we need to leave now if we do not want to cause a scene" said Hunter.
"You are stupid if you think that we will run away, Azazel is stronger then all of them combined" said Selene.
"We will leave" replied Azazel as he stood up and Selene looked shocked by his reply, he did not want to have to waste his energy over a bunch of pests.
"I have already cleared a secret escape path, no one will see us leave" said Hunter as Selene scoffed.
…
"Do you hear or see him yet Matt?" asked Maddie as Matt looked around and shook his head.
"Not yet, I can't hear anything" said Matt.
"Over there" said Annie as she pointed down and Maddie looked down.
"I see him, come on" said Maddie as it was time to get to lower ground as Annie nodded.
…
Azazel was walking behind Hunter as Selene was walking behind him when he suddenly got a whiff of a very enticing familiar spell which made him narrow his eyes.
She could not possibly be here now could she? That would be a stupid play on her path.
Hunter suddenly stopped walking as he turned to face Azazel.
"I hear something unsettling ahead, they are coming to corner us, I will go and deal with them" said Hunter as he quickly left and Azazel turned around and walked back as Selene watched him.
Azazel looked around and he narrowed his eyes when he raised his hand and caught a rock that was heading straight for his face as he crushed it and chuckled as he walked further away.
"Is that your way of fighting me? With mere rocks?" asked Azazel as Annie dropped down from the sky and landed a large distance away from Azazel with another rock in her hand.
"No, I just thought that you and the rock looked similar" said Annie, she was trying to test his power, and she could feel it coldly emanating, it was so overwhelming that she was starting to get a bit hesitant.
"That's child's play" replied Azazel coldly.
"Oh so you finally realize that you are truly fighting a child?" asked Annie in sarcasm as Azazel was amused by her sudden boldness.
Maddie was watching what was happening between Annie and Azazel from a safe distance above when she caught sight of Selene fast approaching Azazel, there was no way Annie would be able to take on both of them on her own.
"Oh no you don't" said Maddie as she dropped down quickly, she was not going to let Selene interfere this time.
Selene was approaching Azazel when she suddenly felt herself being pulled back as she turned around to see Maddie glaring at her.