Free Tales of Aradia The Last Witch Volume by L.A. Jones

enchanting all who come upon
her. It is obvious that the young one is in possession of great
magic, but I suspect it goes even further than that. I believe her
power could one day surpass even that of the coven elders. Part of
me suspects this to be part of what drew the Seer to her.
    Most expect she shall be the next Seer, but it seems
like a waste. It is true, that the role and responsibility of Seer
is among the most important individual roles of the coven. She
foretells the future and helps us to prepare for what is to come.
Still, with the powers that the child displays at such a young age,
even the most important role seems trivial.
     
    October 10th, 1691
    The Seer's mood has grown depressed. She has been
thrust into another world, a dark one. All the latest prophecies
have been of doom and destruction, mostly for our people, but also
for others. The Seer has never been wrong, but it cannot be that
our entire kind is doomed to extinction.
     
    November 8th, 1691
    The Seer was right! As she always is. It began in our
neighboring village, the human community of Salem, in the home of a
Christian preacher. Several young girls, starting with
eleven-year-old Abigail Williams and nine-year-old Elizabeth
Parris, began behaving as if possessed by devils. Soon Ann Putnam
Jr. and other Salem girls began acting similarly. The doctors
diagnosed it as witchcraft. It stunned the whole village when we
heard of this, for we are members of the hidden race! To be known
to the human world… it is forbidden! Yet, now all humans not only
know of, but hunt witches. How can this be? Numerous trials have
been set to try the poor women accused of human witchcraft. This is
what truly frightens us! Humans are killing innocents, and those
murders are on our hands.
     
     
    November 29 th , 1691
    I write more often than I have grown accustomed.
Events have become serious than I had ever imagined. We have been
accused of betraying the hidden race, breaking the most important
and sacred law: to remain hidden for all eternity. The penalty for
such a crime is death to all accused.
     
    December 12th, 1691
    Ever more hiddens turn against us. We have lost
contact with several of the other covens. There have been rumors of
hunting parties being seen. We do not know who they are or what
they are hunting, and we are too terrified to find out. The people
who leave the safety of the commune end up disappearing altogether.
Most of our allies no longer speak with us. Daily we have asked the
Seer what we should do, but she says there is nothing we can do.
She has tried to intervene or ask divine guidance in how to save
our people. She says no matter what she does or how she tries to
read the signs, the result is always the same: our kind is
doomed.
     
    Aradia paused and took deep heavy breaths trying to
prepare herself for what was going to come next. The entries in the
book became frenzied scrawls filled with panic and terror until
finally Aradia reached the last entry. Immediately she noticed that
on this particular entry the handwriting was different from the
others.
     
     
    July 12th, 1961
    I, Cassandra Fauna, the Seer of the coven under the
divine protection of the witch goddess Aradia write this entry in
my own hand. The hunters gather around the commune trying to force
their way in. The elders are confident in their belief that the
hunters will not breach our defenses, but they shall. I know not
how they will achieve this feat, but I am certain they will, for I
have seen it. Many times, repeatedly, the same vision for months on
end! I have seen what would be the end of my race and my people. In
spite of all the spells I have cast I still find no answer to why
this is happening. I have chosen to accept my fate for it seems to
be unavoidable. However, I will not condemn my daughter Aradia to
death. I have raised her as my own since her mother died and now
love her as if she were my own. My visions have shown that it is my
fate to die, but I have seen no