Chapter 8
At eight pm Lawrence and Lucy passed the old oak tree where she often met her friends. It was always so beautiful and peaceful there. The friendly sun loved to play in the colourful field, attracting so many curious animals with no fear of humans. Once when Lucy was very small, she fell asleep on his lap. Not wishing to wake her, he’d rested against the soft trunk for a while and drifted off too. Under the warming sun he’d enjoyed such a happy dream of brave young cats, tiny lights dancing in the air and strange creatures flying between magical moons far away.
Lawrence let out a big sigh, hoping for those days again, petted Lucy for luck and plunged into the dark woods. Sometime later he looked round to see she’d disappeared. Perhaps that was for the best. He never wanted her to be in any danger anyway, but she’d insisted on following him tonight. Rain fell once again, following him closely and bouncing off the treetops.
Meanwhile Lucy sat at the foot of the oak tree and yowled. It was very loud for such a small cat and echoed far across the valley. Then she lay down, waiting patiently. Sunlight faded and Lucy blended in with the trunk. In nearby woods ferns rustled restlessly, grass swayed, and branches bent high up. All thought as one now, and all advanced silently on the old oak like a mighty cloud. There must have been a hundred of them.
Furry new arrivals silently surrounded the young cat in a big circle. Lucy stood in the middle, quickly telling all. While speaking in the ancient language of cats, her fur became tinged with a deep warming yellow. Circles of golden mist spun outwards from her, covering all gathered. Their eyes now blazed with the magical power of their ancestors who once hunted souls of evil witches’ on other worlds. Very soon the large group were eagerly following Lawrence’s scent through creeping darkness.
Eventually Lawrence found the beautiful waterfall. Although it was still drizzling, all looked peaceful and quiet - exactly like the dream! Lawrence sneaked forward, using banks of the stream for cover, only to be hit by wave after wave of water creatures bursting over his face. Many smashed heavily against his legs, knocking him to the ground. Soon he was covered in sticky mud up to his knees, while dirty water rose quickly. Another set hit him, then another, till he could hardly breathe. These foul things weren’t going to let him get back up!
Suddenly the top of the waterfall blacked out. Next moment it became covered by a wide, shimmering curtain of thick mist. Just then Lucy sprung through the trees behind Lawrence with a confident yowl. Seeing her army pour into the clearing was such a wonderful sight. Soon all Lawrence heard was spitting of angry water spirits and yowls of angrier cats jumping amongst each other. Such confusion allowed him to climb out the mud and rush headlong through the waterfall.
A long, slippery passage led directly to the main chamber where a thick, powerful beam of silver plunged deep into the churning magical pool. Deafening humming of building power filled the cavern with a whirling, whirring, lighting the water with brightly burning colours. This foul smelling mixture swirled round the cavern sides faster and faster, blurring Lawrence’s vision till he thought he may faint. Each time the liquid completed a circle it grew thicker. Soon it rose so high it threatened to flood the floor. Next to the pool sat the metal statue stolen from the village. Lawrence had guessed right – the coven had left it as back up.
Atop the waterfall outside, mist thinned. Brandice could be seen floating in mid air, holding a long carved staff up high. Her whole body shook with the great power flooding through and her eyes bulged bright red. Her tall hat and loose sleeves caught alight with silvery flames. Rather weirdly her robes didn’t burn away. Such pain must have been terrible, but she didn’t show any trace of it. Nor did she seem to see the wild commotion going on below. All her concentration remained on holding the staff correctly at the right height.
Lawrence approached the pulsing beam as close as he dared. He’d never realised it would be as powerful as this. Loud hums slowly pushed him back, vibrating through the walls. Such a weird murmuring, whispering rose from the centre, which he couldn’t understand. It sounded like very old English talking very slowly, like a record being played at the wrong speed. Maybe it was the earth’s voice? Perhaps she didn’t like being used in this way?
At the second magic well Sally tried her best to hold her position under the deep lake. Fresh plants growing on the lake bed had curled up and turned brown. Dead fish floated all around in the boiling water. Great power shooting through there made her even more bloated. Now the crazy witch looked like a baby whale. Only her darkest magic prevented her from shooting to the surface with a mighty splash.
And at the last well Mr Davis couldn’t get anywhere near Gretchen, because driving rain had caused a massive landslide over the tiny road. Standing on the highest part of another hill he saw a glowing mist rolling round the top of the magic mound, faster and faster. As his watch ticked past nine wild screams of triumph sailed on the wind, making him feel frustrated and useless. Hanging his head sadly, he prayed Lawrence would have better luck and headed back home.
In the cave Lawrence had been left with a simple choice. None of the items brought with him made any difference to the growing magical beam. Not the silver talisman borrowed from his kindly gran, nor the collection of herbs and meditation scrolls to ward off evil gathered from the local Wicca shop.
Yet strangely, his hands now shone bright gold under the weird silver light, giving him an idea. Lawrence shoved the statue as hard as he could into the pool. Instantly the beam broke into three, bouncing off rocks and flying about in circles. It lashed about dangerously, tearing large holes in the cavern. Piercing screeches of pain and anger shot through the cavern. Walls shook dangerously, breaking large deadly rocks off above.
Brandice lost focus and swooped down through the waterfall to confront Lawrence. Floating in the air with her cloak still on fire and her face shooting out blazing bolts of silver, she looked truly terrifying.
“Back my sisters!” she screeched, “Defend our chamber!”
Lawrence suddenly felt so weak he ran straight into some fallen stones. His acrobatics were no help this time. As he struggled to his feet Brandice’s friends returned, trapping him in the corner. Both witches appeared very confused and unsure of their surroundings. Gretchen seemed weakest and ready to collapse. Sally was puffing hard and her bloated body reddened further, threatening to explode. From her bizarre movements it looked like she thought she was still underwater.
Suddenly Brandice shook violently, sinking to her knees. In an instant Gretchen and Sally lay still beside her.
“You... you win,” Brandice croaked weakly in defeat, “I’ll leave, you’ll never see me again.” Lawrence didn’t see that her fingertips still glowed brightly. Way off in the distance the village clock struck ten. When Lawrence turned back the witches were gone and the cave looked just like any other. Swirling dust, animal tracks and lots of spindly spider’s webs filled it from top to bottom. The sparkling stream ran past his feet clean and clear, gurgling a warming tune.
Lawrence ran back outside, finding the water creatures had disappeared, along with the Rooksbridge coven. Lucy’s army of cats were strutting round the clearing, congratulating each other with contented purrs. It seemed Lucy had forgotten her dislike of water just this once, because she joined in the fun by leaping into the stream. Rain stopped and the countryside became peaceful again, allowing smells of wild garlic and wet lavender to float from the hills.
Phew, the evil experiment was over, it was time to go home. Mum would be worried sick.
Lawrence wasn’t quite sure exactly what had happened. Lucy knew a lot more than him about the situation this time, and had saved the day in a number of ways. She certainly was a very special cat. There would have to be a big reward for her and her loyal friends.
When Lawrence and Lucy arrived back at the old oak tree Mr Davis and his wife were walking towards him. Both were soaked through and looked very worried.
“Thank the lord!” Mrs Davis exclaimed, “If
either of you had been hurt, I don’t know what we’d have said to your mother.”
“I’d never have forgiven myself,” Mr Davis nodded, smiling with relief. Now the rain had finally stopped they all sat down for a bit to catch their breath. Under the welcoming oak tree it actually felt quite warm for once. The two adults listened excitedly as Lawrence told them everything. When his story drew to an end Mr Davis became quieter and quieter. He jumped to his feet. His hands trembled and sweat poured down his paling face.
“Lawrence, this is terrible! It’s a trick, an illusion! We must go back and destroy everything properly like last time. Brandice is still there - She’s alive! Now her friends are no more there’s only one thing she can do to mend it all. An evil witch like her is angry and insane enough to do it as well. Her weather spell was only the beginning. The rest - that’s what was on the note. No wonder she made you forget it. Why didn’t I work this out earlier? Lawrence you were right, it was revenge, pure and simple!”
Lawrence realised he’d made a big mistake. Earth’s power wasn’t evil, it was neutral. Therefore it could be used for good or bad. That was why his lucky talismans had no effect.
“What shall we do?” Lawrence asked, feeling very worried again. Many of Lucy’s friends appeared from the undergrowth to wish her goodnight and arrange to meet for her wedding next week. None of them could help much now as they were just ordinary cats again. Mr Davis still hadn’t answered because he and his wife were staring in front of them in disbelief at a massive black whirlwind spinning over the trees. Lawrence sprung to his feet, grabbing Lucy protectively. The strange mist swirled round the oak and dragged them both through the air, high into the clouds.
In less than a second the mist cleared and the two friends found themselves back in the witches cave. Everything had changed back to exactly the same as before the fight earlier, so the smelly magical pool still bubbled away.
Gretchen and Sally still lay near, motionless. Brandice rose to her feet, glowering evilly in triumph. Hundreds of imps poured out the water to surround them. Lucy looked for an escape route in vain. Most of the rock wall here was flat, so there was nowhere for either of them to hang on to.
“Now it’s time!” Brandice screamed so furiously her head almost burst. Spinning round, she attacked the wall in fury. Stone shattered everywhere. Razor sharp shards of fiery rock powered down the passage, hissed through the waterfall and deep into the trees. Terrified animals ran for cover for miles around. Instinct told them something very dangerous was happening, and it wouldn’t pay to be anywhere near.
The evil water spirits pushed Lawrence and Lucy back towards the pool onto the wall, so they couldn’t move. Lucy’s fur glowed, but dimmed straight away. Deep below the ground something ancient stirred, giving the deafening roar of a mighty dragon. The cavern shook, swirled and moved from side to side, till Lawrence felt so sick and his throat dried up so much he couldn’t even cry out for help. At their feet the magical pool gurgled, spat, hissed, span and sucked them both deep below the bubbling mixture.
“Have fun!” Brandice screeched crazily as her body shone, shook and fizzed wildly.
The moment Lawrence and Lucy dropped beneath the thick, smelly liquid they fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.