It was some time later when Izolda awoke in the witch’s cave. There was no confusion or disorientation, instead she was filled with the knowledge of what had happened and the consequences of what she’d done.
Varnya’s power was hers. She could feel it crackling beneath the surface, ready to be called upon should she need it. There was also the knowledge that the witch had come here seeking out those of power to replenish her own. The spell Izolda had memorized was simple - sacrifice one of power to gain that power for your own.
This is what happened to the young men from the village of Bakal, Varnya had lured them to the river to drain their magic – that’s what truly killed them. But the magic of Bakal was not as strong as the magic of Likhvin, Izolda’s village, which is why Varnya befriended Izolda, to gain access to more powerful prey.
Izolda had always known Varnya was not teaching her out of the goodness of her heart, that she had an ulterior motive. Now she knew that the witch had fully intended to drain her dry of her magic. One last gulp of power before moving on.
There would be many questions. The ripple from the transfer of power would have been felt in the village. Izolda needed to come up with plausible answers. She could deal with the contents of the cave later. For now she set her own wards at the entrance, far superior to Varnya’s, and headed back to the river.
Matyei was lying half in, half out of the river. As Izolda checked to make sure he was still alive, a plan began to form. With a single thought her appearance became more disheveled. Taking hold of Matyei by the shoulders, she began to drag him the rest of the way out of the river. When her father and several others from the village reached them, Matyei was just regaining his senses.
“What has happened here?” Andrei demanded, an accusing glare directed at Izolda as though it were all her fault.
“Oh, father!” she wailed, arms clutched around herself, rocking back and forth as she crouched on the ground beside her brother. “Matyei is a hero! He vanquished the Ruslka!”
“What nonsense is this? What have you done to him?” He gripped Izolda by the arm, pulling her to her feet. With a motion of his other hand directed two of his other sons to help their brother.
Izolda sniffled. “We came to the river to fish, Matyei and I. There was a woman,” she choked back a sob. “A strange woman. She looked at us with glowing red eyes and we were frozen in place. Then suddenly I was surrounded by woods.”
She shuddered. “I knew something bad was happening. I made my way back to the river in time to see Matyei break free of the Rusalka’s power and vanquish her.”
Andrei’s grip loosened and Izolda sank back to the ground. “Is this true?” he demanded of Matyei, who’d been helped to his feet by his brothers.
“I—I—” he glanced helplessly at Izolda. “We came to fish, yes. And the woman came to us suddenly. I did not see what happened to Izolda – the woman cast a spell on me. I—I—remember standing in the river . . .” He shivered. “My memory is foggy. I thought I was going to die, but she turned to smoke.”
Andrei’s face showed a mixture of emotions, finally settling on pride. He clasped Matyei in his arms. “Behold my son, vanquisher of evil!”
Izolda waited until the men started back to the village before climbing to her feet. She gave a sniff, wiping the false tears away. Her grandmother was right, she decided as she trailed after them.
All men are fools.
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