A Fateful Séance
Leaving no stone unturned,
entrusting nothing to chance;
the maven sought the crystal ball,
for a profound revealing séance.
Seeking the crystal ball earnestly, the maven returned to his castle, determined to retrieve the precious relic; the only device that held a promise of leading him to the cause of the mysterious malady that gripped the princess. He induced a spell upon a ball of copper yarn for copper holds the power to conduct spiritual energy from the spirit world and lets psychic messages flow to the mind. Empowering the yarn with his potent spells, he set it rolling on the ground. The charmed yarn unwound from his hand, rushed to seek the crystal ball as do ferrous matter rush to cling with the beckoning magnet. Soon enough did it lead him to the lost article. Having retrieved the magic orb from the wilderness of the cavern, the maven reinstated the relic in its receptacle and embarked on preparing for a profound séance.
Set in a deep dank cave with a sole opening at the ceiling, the séance began on the sixth hour under an ominously dark moonless sky. Quavering flames of hazel and oak torches burning in the craggy niches of the sinister crypt, lent an uncanny aura to the ceremonial chamber; juniper burnt in large braziers of coal in order to intoxicate the spirits into being visible to the mortal eyes. The rough stony ground lay scribed with complex ritual symbols, representing mystic calculations that could only be deciphered by the knowing and the initiated. In the midst of this ritual design, stood the luminous crystal ball, mounted upon its majestic ivory pedestal. Pounding hearts carved out of live wild boars and bloody livers of oxen were laid along with urns filled with fresh warm blood and strong smelling nectars, for hungry spirits sought physical gratification. Frankincense and camphor burnt in tiny bowls around the chamber to abate the overpowering smell of blood and reek of animal remains.
The maven descended into the grim ceremonial crypt at the ordained hour. Bathing his eyes in the sap of elder wood to enable vision of the faerie folk, he meditated deeply. Seated upon a bed of aspen leaves, he sought communion with otherworldly creatures with the assistance of the potent herb. A violent storm brewed within the crystal ball while the chants intensified and gradually gathered an awesome rage as the maven’s incantations reached a crescendo. The bewitched orb turned violent as the maven closed in upon the device; it thrashed out malicious lightning around the chamber, setting fire to the articles that came in its fiery path. The explosive light that sparked off the crystal threw macabre blue and violet reflections on the maven’s fierce face. Smoke filled the cave as spirits descended into the crypt through the narrow pit on the ceiling. Filling the air in unruly clusters, the ghastly shadows rampaged the solemn site. The chamber turned into an inferno as the disturbed spirits lunged at the bloody offerings, devouring the bizarre articles and throwing the victuals all around the crypt. Streams of blood spilt from the urns turned the floor crimson; the half-eaten offals of the wild beasts lay scattered everywhere in abominable abundance. The unfazed maven struck back at the mischievous ghouls with his wand and warded off the undesired apparitions from the ceremonial vicinity. The screeching and yelling of the phantoms reduced to moans and whimpers as they receded from the crypt and faded into the distant gloom again.
Chanting the ancient forbidden spells aloud, the maven circled the crystal ball with renewed zeal as though reiterating his summons, commanding the magic orb to acquiesce his earnest incantations. Presently, the crypt shook with the violence of a flurry of powerful bolts of lightning that leapt from the orb and the horrendous face of the witch appeared, trapped within the convulsing crystal ball. Clawing at the smooth surface of the orb with her bony long-nailed fingers, she made a desperate bid to break free from the magic spell the maven had gripped her within. Her enormous blood shot eyes full of hatred, she spit repeatedly at the maven for the unwarranted summon and refused to heed his command.
Furious at her brash impudence, he circled the ball more vigorously and threw charmed dusts at the witch that made her writhe with insufferable pain. The maven commanded her again. The coerced harridan relented.
Though the witch spoke not from the crystal, she breathed life into the serpent braces. The deadly serpents sprang to life amidst the raging storm and thunders that ravaged the crypt. The lunging raised hoods of the three asps appeared like awesome incarnations of death in the midst of the deafening claps of lightning. The morbid creatures hissed and spit venom all over the maven that burnt deep scars into his skin. Assaulted thus, he descended into a charmed trance and began scribing an unintelligible script upon the craggy walls of the chamber. For long did he continue his crazed scribble before he finally collapsed on the floor, soaked in blood, sweat, venom and spit; drained from the intense exertion of the eventful séance.
His quest thus propitiously fulfilled.
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