The floor remained dirty. It was not a matter of hygiene—the reality was that this place was unpleasant in itself. The walls were blackened stone, the ceilings dark and full of soot. But that was what we prepared to face when we agreed to work with the Blackcaps.
Thris was suffering more than she admitted. In the city, I was the one who received unwanted attention. But here, where the students were young, where we were all exposed to the discoveries of their bodies, it was common for her to arrive tired and sore. Night became the only time of day we could work. She in the laundry, me cleaning the most disgusting areas of the dungeons, always looking for Lilith. Why? Because she was our lady.
Magic was not inside our bodies like people believed. We used it without thinking, without being detected. The power we had was so small it was never considered that we had abilities. But we did not need them. With Lilith, I learned to read. Thris read before meeting her, but now she wrote. I needed to learn to write; I had to be of help. So the symbols she carved in the foam when washing her battered body I engraved in my mind. The next day, I looked for those enormous blue stones in the basements. With my nail, I cut my hand as if it were a splinter wound. When a few drops had gathered, without anyone noticing, I passed by and wrote a line. Then later another, and by the time night ended, one more word was added to the stone.
I advanced slowly—I knew that. But many words had several strokes. I could not stay in front of the stones for long. Besides, it was not just writing; I had to put a little magic into them—almost all I had—for the magic invoked there to unite. I could not read their words, but my sister told me it was how they kept our lady imprisoned. They sucked out her magic. Every night, the students went down before sleeping. Every night, they attacked that crystal pillar. Amid jokes and blasphemies, they threw everything they knew or learned that day at Lilith, who let out a moan of pain. Having done this, they returned to sleep in straw mattresses that had to be clean by the time they lay down. My sister was in charge of that. Every night with red, numb hands—like her crotch—she came and taught me the next rune. There were fewer each day.
All the crystals were rewritten. Finally, the day of Lilith's liberation approached. But to activate it, we needed magic—more than my sister and I could emit. We had to think of something. A messenger announced that the Blackcap leader would return in two days, and he had forbidden us to approach. Yet his students, and especially the second-in-command, were the first to show us their greatest achievement. They all came and laughed. They did not seem to remember the fear they had when they saw her in action. I imagined that was why they put on this charade of coming to mock. That was exactly what Thris and I would do.
At night, with our savings, we bought provisions for dinner. We included much aphrodisiac food, bought directly from the Pink Salon. It cost us more than one gold coin, but it did not matter. It was our last night here. If we failed, we would have to flee. I was sure the Blackcap leader would be able to distinguish the crude writing I had done on each stone from that of those who lived here.
They dined with great enthusiasm. I served wine, and my sister served the food. Fifty students enjoyed everything. It was prepared with all the love in the world—we wanted them to eat everything, to prepare them for what followed. When eleven o'clock came, my sister reappeared. She came dressed in a piece of black silk, a gift from a merchant. She had suffered much to keep it, but she wore it without shame. She smiled at "the powerful mages of Midnight Raven," flirting, insinuating. With her eyes, she signaled me. Red with having to show myself like that before her, I walked and stood beside her. With my hands, I traced her nonexistent curves. She spanked me and laughed vulgarly. I knew it was an act, but I loathed myself for not being able to do this alone.
The provocation worked. Excited by the food and us provoking them, as we walked down the stairs, we felt them—their uncontrollable desire. By the time we reached the basement, several were already undressing. Upon arriving, I saw that my sister had prepared some aphrodisiac incense. The light of a faint blue illuminated us. In the center, she lay down and removed her loincloth. I closed my eyes and imagined we were back in the forest—she, her parents, and mine—when the first human tore at me.
The night advanced slowly. The magic they released was puerile—ice limbs, fire, air—the small imaginations of weak minds. Yet the damage was very great. My sister screamed, simulating pleasure, but I saw her hurting. At times, I emerged from the stupor as the pain became very intense. After two minutes, I would get used to it and let it be. My nature saved me from madness, from total misery, as magic accumulated.
The humiliations turned more personal. They tried to suffocate me twice. They used a whip twice. They put piercings on her, beat her. They were not humans—they were wild beasts, so caught up in doing whatever came to mind that no one saw we were carving the Leech Mana rune with our nails. It was small. We did not know what part of it meant what, but it had to work. When activated, it would drain all their energy and revive our lady. But I thought we would not live to see it. My sister had not reacted for a long time. Her eyes were white, her mouth drooling a line of saliva, indicating they had gone too far—perhaps beyond the point of recovery. I touched myself, and from my backside came a mix of fluids I preferred not to think about.
All the runes were in place! I only needed them to let their guard down—something to break their concentration in their field, something to let the runes activate, something to save my life so I could give my sister a burial. At that moment, I heard the masters shouting. The Blackcap leader had arrived! All exhausted, and I on the floor, we heard his steed, his screams of fury. That was the moment. All, frightened, forgot to contain their field, and suddenly the runes activated. I was sure—I could see a faint light in them. I turned and managed to glimpse Lilith's eyes. My lady... they just shone! I was sure! Perhaps I could not hear her thank us, but that did not matter. We won! My sister and I defeated a guild of mages. I wish she could hear me.