The Trials of Ascension

Chapter 4 – Otylia

Chapter 4 – OtyliaI hate dying.

I WOKE TO A CHOKING FOG. My hands were bound with vines, and I lay on a soft bed unlike any I’d felt. Silence hung in the air.

Whatever venom had flowed through my veins lingered. Sluggish, I shifted to get a better view of the room around me, but there was only a weeping willow and its roots that jutted from the ground, forming the bed’s frame. Etching covered them—symbols of the old tongue—only some that I recognized.

Father would know them.

But Dariusz wasn’t my father. Though he’d raised me and taught me the ways of the gods, his blood was not mine. He’d been a cold and demanding guardian, but as I traced the etchings with my finger, I wished for his presence. It didn’t matter if he would’ve scolded me. Harsh words and a push to improve seemed far better than being trapped in Nawia.

My heart suddenly pounded my chest. I can’t stay here.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed. No matter what Weles had planned for me, I wanted none of it. I would find Mother and figure out my “place” without his deceit! My legs didn’t get the message.

I wobbled the moment I tried to stand. Each foot acted of its own accord, digging into the damp dirt before giving way. With my hands bound, I fell face first into the muck.

“Gods…” I muttered as I peered through the mist. There was still nothing but the willow, its branches arcing over the bed like a falcon’s talons, so I crawled into the abyss. Pain arced up my arms as I twisted my sore wrists in the vines and pulled myself through the dirt. No matter how hard I tried, my legs dragged behind me, useless.

Time passed slowly. I struggled for every inch, but the venom faded the further I went. Soon, I could raise my knees. Slow and weak, they still quickened my pace, and I reached a wall of twisting vines that stretched into the fog.

What is this place?

I grabbed the vines, using them to pull me along. The wall seemed to stretch forever, but as my arms strained, I thought only of Mother and the smile she’d worn in the Lake of Reflection. Pain meant nothing when she was trapped by Marzanna. Only I could save her, and that meant escaping Weles’s grasp.

My fingers bled by the time a pair of doors appeared. They were crafted from a dark wood and stood as tall as two men, morphing into the vines at their outer rims. When I dragged myself to their base and pushed, they refused to give.

I yelled and slammed my fists into them. With each blow, I cursed Weles and Jaryło for what they’d done to me. It didn’t matter how long it took. I would escape. Then I would make them pay for my death.

My knuckles bloodied quickly, each strike leaving a crimson spray that slowly dripped down the doors. I needed to get out of the room. I needed to get back to Jawia. Marzanna only grew stronger with every passing minute, but I was too weak to even open a door.

“No!” I growled through gritted teeth. “Weles won’t win.”

The mists swirled above me as I took the vines in my bloody hands and forced my legs to hold me. Handles of gold glinted just above my head, but anguish trapped my mind. Every limb was fire and pain, every second an eternity as I reached for the closest handle. My fingers graced its surface. With every bit of strength left, I pulled it open before dropping to the dirt.

Darkness swallowed my vision. The world felt distant, my limbs weak. Keep going.

I clenched my jaw so hard it hurt, but it distracted from the dread creeping into my heart as I staggered into the room beyond.

Here, it was fogless and dark. Only a few stray streaks of light shooting through the canopy above offered any glimpse of the space. The walls of vines were closer on each side. Roots peeked above the ground before dipping to the depths among the short grass.

A solitary beam illuminated another weeping willow at the room’s center. A bed of violet basil flowers grew at its base, and unlike the ominous aura of the first, a power seemed to radiate from this one’s branches. It called to me—a familiar burst of life I’d felt so many times when I channeled.

“Mom?”

Dziewanna’s spirit danced among the catkins above me and ignited my drained soul with žityje. The air hummed as I scrambled to the willow and knelt among its roots. Bloodied and exhausted, I laid a hand on its trunk, whispering a prayer to her on the still winds. No response came but a warmth flowing from the tree. It was enough.

I rested against the willow for a long time—longer than I should’ve. The snake’s venom had taken its toll, but I would prove Weles wrong. Ascended or not, I was strong enough to return to Jawia. I had to be. Mother had protected me from Weles for years, and now it was my turn to free her from Marzanna’s grasp.

A twig snapped across the room.

I shot to my feet as a great bear stepped from the darkness. It advanced on its hind legs, thin beams of light revealing the beast’s brown and oddly manicured fur. When it reached the edge of the willow’s branches, it bared its jagged teeth and loosed a roar that tore through Dziewanna’s hope and left me crumpled at the willow’s base.

“Show no fear,” Mother’s voice whispered to me from my memories. “You are stronger than the wildest beasts, my child.”

“What do you want from me?” I asked, meeting the bear’s gaze.

“I want nothing but to help you, little one,” it replied with a voice far kinder than I’d expected. “My name is Ivan, advisor to Master Weles. What brings you from your bed when you remain so weak?”

Pushing away the stabbing pain, I gripped the tree’s bark and pulled myself to my feet. “Help me leave. I need to find Mother. Nothing else matters.”

“Doesn’t your own life?”

“Obviously not! Your master had me killed so I could suit his purposes.”

“You see him as a monster, like she once did.” He glanced toward the willow when he said she.

I narrowed my eyes. “Mother took me away because she still saw him as one. She wanted me to be free from his grasp, but I fell into it anyway.”

Ivan broke the binds at my wrist and dropped his front legs. Even on all fours he was nearly as tall as my chin, and a foul odor of fish hung from his mouth, forcing me to stagger back as he sighed. “Oh, how Dziewanna did not wish to marry Weles. She was a wild creature, beautiful and bold unlike any woman either Weles or I had ever seen. The master became hopelessly fond of her. For years, she wasted away in these swamps, fleeing to Jawia whenever she had the chance. Her bond to him was not so easily broken, though, so she always returned from her escapades. When she did, Weles would await her with gifts of jewels, pelts, and servants of both animal and spirit. Yet even these did not please her.”

“Mother was never interested in wealth or the prizes of a married woman,” I said, smiling at that. “Nothing could tame Dziewanna.”

“Yes, the freedom of the wilds would always be more than gold to her, but she treasured Prawia, the realm of Perun and the gods, more than all. You have heard the story of her rebellion, have you not?”

I nodded, leaning against the tree to support my wobbling legs. “Dziewanna believed Perun to be the wrong ruler of Prawia, so she fought to rule it and all of the Three Realms herself. But she failed. That’s why she was forced here in the first place.”

Ivan drew closer, and I slid down the willow’s trunk as he sat next to me. “Dziewanna saw her father as corrupt,” he said, “obsessed with his war against my master instead of helping the people of Jawia. She believed Weles to be no better, especially after he kidnapped Jaryło when he was merely a baby. Though Dziewanna’s cause was just, she was only a newly Ascended and naïve goddess who let her ambitions get the best of her.”

“What’s wrong with wanting change?”

“Nothing. In fact, change has always been quite the thing most gods have been poor at. Your mother, though, failed to realize the strength of patience. Perun loved her dearly, and after years of watching his older children squabble, he had wished to gift Jawia to Dziewanna so that, together, they could end the fighting. Instead, she received no inheritance at all.” The bear chuckled—an odd sight. “Your mother’s passion was her greatest trait and her ultimate downfall.”

My hands trembled as I dug my fingers into the dirt, seeking the power I’d felt before. It lingered but was dull, distant. Did I ever really know her? Was her ambition really so harmful, or was Ivan telling the story Weles wanted me to hear?

“Weles brought you here to convince me to wait, to trust him.” I shook my head at myself. “I’m such an idiot.”

He chuckled. “You remind me of her. I mean that fondly. Master Weles may be far from perfect, but he could make Jawia yours, Otylia, if you do not surrender to mortal desires.”

“Don’t lecture me!” My knees ached as I stood, but they held as I surveyed the room, looking for an escape. “Mother didn’t surrender to Weles’s temptations and neither will I.”

Another set of enormous doors lurked opposite the first. I could run, but Ivan would be faster. Being eaten by a bear did not sound appealing—I needed a distraction.

“Yet Weles did tame the wild goddess,” he said, noticing me eying the doors.

I hesitated. “Mother said she had a moment of weakness.”

“Did she?” He seemed to grin as he glanced at the flowers among the tree’s roots. “Weles brought her a type of basil that only grows in Prawia or the deepest, untouched wilds of Jawia. All the riches of the Three Realms could not convince her to stay, but that flower won her heart for far more than a moment.”

“You’re lying! Mother would never have stayed with him.”

As I stepped away, Ivan rose with his head bowed. “Dziewanna spent many a year in Nawia. I do not know if she loved the master as he did her, but she always returned to him freely. Well, she did until you…” He sighed. “You have little reason to trust me, Lady Otylia, but I wish to protect you from both Master Weles and yourself. There is much you do not unders—”

My fist struck his nose. The great bear reeled back with a roar as I bolted away with everything I had left.

“Lady Otylia!” he huffed. “Please, I can help you!”

But I leaped for the handle and tore open the doors, sending light spewing over me as I ran blindly into the next room. When I glanced over my shoulder, the last things I saw before the doors slammed were Ivan’s bared teeth and a sea of violet basils encircling Mother’s willow.

I’ll find you.

Light flooded everything beyond the door. I covered my face and pushed forward, but the endless rays pierced my eyes as they watered, begging me to shut them. I didn’t. With Ivan only strides behind, I needed to put as much distance between that room and me as possible. No matter what peril Weles had waiting for me, it couldn’t be worse than Ivan’s claims about Mother.

That was before the hissing began.

It came from everywhere. I couldn’t see the branches, but it sounded as if a swarm of snakes hovered above me as something larger cracked the foliage behind. Not again.

I charged into the light without direction. Sweat poured down my face, burning my already stinging eyes. I cursed Weles as I tripped on roots and stones. Scrapes covered my knees and blood from jagged cuts trickled down my arm, but each time I fell, I pushed on.

Soon, the chorus of noise drifted away as rock replaced dirt beneath my feet. I collapsed, desperate for each breath. Why does it have to be snakes?

I rubbed my irritated eyes. Wolves I could try to fight, but the serpents tailing me were a mass of venom ready to kill me slowly. At least wolves were generous enough to go for the jugular.

A shadow hovered over me when I moved my hands from my eyes, revealing the massive ravine less than twenty strides ahead. I would have to return to the forest. But as I struggled to stand, the shadow loomed closer. Catching my breath, I turned back to the woods.

A snake’s giant head towered over me. Its tongue flicked at the air ahead of its golden scales, slinking and slithering through the rays. With the hissing of the others approaching from the forest, its green eyes narrowed to slits before it lunged.

I dove to the side as the snake’s fangs ripped through the place I’d knelt moments before. Its body coiled upon itself as it prepared for another strike, but I didn’t give it the chance. I scampered over the uneven stone ground, running along the tree line and dashing each direction to avoid the snake’s strikes.

My thighs ached with each stride. Since I’d awoken under that weeping willow, it seemed I’d done nothing but struggle forward, but this had to be Weles’s doing. Whether it was torture or a test didn’t matter. I would survive.

The ravine curved across my path, forcing me closer to the woods. Hissing echoed around me. No matter how fast I ran, the giant serpent was never more than a dozen strides behind. I had no choice but to charge back into the trees.

What did Weles want from me? Was he trying to awaken my powers, teach me a lesson, or something else?

I didn’t know, so I ran. Numb to both pain and the stinging light, I sprinted through the forest and leaped over downed trees and snakes alike. But I couldn’t escape the largest among them.

The giant snake struck out behind me, missing my ankles by inches as my feet caught on roots. It’s too fast!

I scrambled into a massive pine. Needles and branches tore at my skin, but I pushed deeper, too far for the serpent’s fangs to reach. Its excited hissing circled me as I clung to the trunk and forced myself to breathe. Now what? I couldn’t stay within the tree forever, but leaving would mean my death.

Needles crunched beneath me. I reacted too late.

Pain shot through my leg as I stared down in horror at the two holes in my calf and the brown snake slithering away. My weakness returned with the venom, and I collapsed to the dirt.

“Mother, help me,” I whimpered. I knew she wouldn’t hear my cry. Even if she could, she was trapped, and instead of saving her, I’d stumbled into Weles’s own prison of roots and snakes.

“You cannot run from the dangers you face,” Weles’s voice said from the mouth of the great snake beyond the pine. “Nor can you confront them directly.”

I gritted my teeth. “How do you expect me to win if I can’t fight?”

“Every great power has its weakness. To defeat a stronger enemy, you must patiently find that flaw and then exploit it.”

Weakness? I steadied my breathing and focused on the serpent’s dripping fangs through the needles. What’s a snake’s weakness? My eyes widened. That’s it!

Mother’s potion lessons had mostly been about treating diseases. Once, though, a hunter had fallen at our doorstep, dying from a snake bite. She’d used venom itself as part of the antidote. Afterward, she’d explained how she would extract the venom from snakes hibernating in winter. But where was I going to find snow? Even if I created the anti-venom, how would I defeat the beast that towered before me?

“You may be frightened as your body weakens,” Weles hissed, “but a god’s power lies in their soul’s žityje, not their body. More importantly, it lies not in your mother or your grandmother, but in you. To survive and complete the first Trial of Ascension, you must surrender your bond to them.”

I glared up at Weles. “Never!”

His head lowered, bringing the serpent’s nose into the tree’s branches. “Then you will perish once again. You have proven your will to leave without giving me a chance to prove myself, but I cannot allow you to do so until you find your power and Ascend. These lands need not be torture for you, my daughter. You are the princess of Nawia, not a prisoner. If you choose to end this ridiculous game, then I will show you the truth and teach you how to heal.”

“This isn’t a game!” I flung dirt into his eyes and scrambled free from the pine. “And I’m not your little princess!”

He reeled back, hissing, “Very well. If that is your will.”

Slits returned to his eyes as the ground slithered with snakes once again. Weles’s tongue flicked the air, and I rolled away just as he lunged.

Dirt and blood filled my mouth, but I fought back to my feet and sprinted deeper into the trees. The ravine blocked the furthest edge, so I ran parallel to it and the wall of vines. There had to be something between them that I could use.

That felt like more hope than anything. Hope was all I had, though, and when the trees thinned, I smirked at what lay beyond.

The forest crawled up a mountain’s side before giving way to a blanket of white. That’s it. I began the climb, ignoring the monster’s presence and the throbbing pain from the bite. With both Dziewanna and Mokosz’s power distant, I had no chance to fight the beast. The snow far ahead was my only chance.

The world spun around me as I reached the first steep ridge. The venom was spreading through my veins, and my head felt disconnected from my body. Each breath became a struggle, slowing me as Weles hissed from below.

I grabbed a notch and pulled myself onto the rock wall. One foot at a time, I slowly crawled my way up as blood and sweat coated every groove my fingers found. Pain flooded my mind, but with so many places sore or stinging, it all became a blur.

When I reached the top and collapsed against a tree, I couldn’t remember half the climb, but I’d made it. The ridge was at least fifty feet high. I was safe.

I took a deep breath and glanced over the edge at Weles. He hadn’t followed. Though his eyes narrowed up at me, he only slithered back and forth before disappearing into the trees.

He was gone—for now.

My stomach turned as I continued my ascent. Before long, I dropped to my knees, vomiting what little substance was left. Mother’s words to the hunter rang in my ears as I wiped the sick from my chin, “First comes weakness, then vomiting, and after that…” She had bitten her cheek, unable to finish. It was hard to know whether to curse or thank her now. If it was bad enough to make her hesitate, then I never wanted to find out.

I caught my breath after what could’ve been a minute or five. Time sped and slowed at random, and the landscape warped with it as I staggered my way toward the snow. Besides the sting of the cold against my skin, I felt only dread. Then I heard the cracking of the trees.

“Run!” I muttered to myself. “Go!”

My feet dragged like a drunken chief as the serpent slithered through the pine forest’s shadows.

The snow wasn’t far now, but my progress was slow as bits of stone and dirt slid down the slope with each step. Exhaustion ruled my mind. My breaths were shallow. And when my legs surrendered, I clawed my way forward, desperate to survive.

It wasn’t enough.

“The first Trial is the key to the rest,” Weles said. “You must let your mother go and embrace who you are.”

Darkness lurked at the edge of my vision as I turned to face him. His serpent form loomed over me, eyes hungry as his golden body encircled mine.

I told myself I could fight him, that I could still survive. But as I reached for my žityje, demanding that Mother’s power answer my call, I sensed nothing but a void.

Then the serpent struck.