Isabella had an absolute feeling of freedom after her 20th birthday. She had finished her schooling, earned fantastic marks that made her top of her class, and even attended a 2 year program under the governor of magic himself. After her apprenticeship had finished and her birthday celebrated with her friends and family, she considered herself a fully fledged witch! She was now blessed with no set obligations that demanded her attention, nothing could stop her from doing what she wanted now.
But this feeling was new to Isabella. It was slightly scary, creating knots of unease and subtle doubt inside her. She couldn't lie to herself though, it was intoxicating. There was a sort of exhilarating drive to it that fueled her passions even more. she was now determined to do something she always wanted to do.
Explore. Travel unknown lands.
Discover something new.
Something forgotten.
Her love for knowledge didn't escape her once her studies had concluded. If anything it amplified her curiosity and allowed her to devout her brain to something specific. Focusing her attention to a single project that had been living in her mind since her first few years in school. An ancient tomb dedicated to the most knowledgeable witches in the world. She imagined herself discovering it and learning its secrets. Maybe the women who discovered it had their names added to the history books! Or worked together in secret to make the world a better place while working in the shadows. Maybe the tomb held forgotten languages and scrolls of knowledge that only she could show to the world. But she could only know if she found it.
She had only seen one mention of it in an autobiography of an ancient witch. She was famous for her travels and discoveries of ancient ruins. She briefly described an ancient tomb that collected the most adventurous women of their time. "I'll never forget the women in that tomb. Their marks were eternal." The few sentences were forever printed onto Isabella's brain and she has wanted nothing more than to find it.
After committing all of her research during the first year of complete freedom, Isabella believed to have narrowed the tomb down to a single square mile deep within an old forest. Of course no one has found it, she thought, it was tucked away deep in the bosom of mother nature where who knows what lies within. You'd have to be a fool to venture that far, but Isabella was no fool, she had prepped for weeks. Granted, she was inexperienced and did not know of what ancient spells or traps were waiting for her, but her years of study and practice made her confident.
The biggest mistake Isabella hadn't even realized she made was not telling anyone where she was going. She packed her things and ventured into the wilderness. Isabella had little experience camping but found it comforting after spending several nights in the forest. She protected herself with defensive magic at all times and spent her days scouring the forest for the tomb's entrance.
Through a thicket of vines, she found a lone statue of a woman, she knew she had found it. Finding the hatch underneath, she said a silent prayer and ventured within.
Lighting her wand, Isabella could tell she was the first person to enter the tomb in decades. Possibly centuries. She walked headfirst into its bowels, keeping her eyes peeled for traps as the floor slanted downward. Deeper and deeper into the earth she walked. The bare walls showing no signs of decoration or flair as if the tomb was holding its secrets close to its ancient chest.
Isabella travelled deep underground, becoming more aware of how alone she really was down here. She momentarily questioned her decision of venturing this far on her own but quickly extinguished that thought. If she wanted to be championed as the greatest witch of her generation then she should have no problem conquering this tomb. Hell, it was practically made for her.
Isabella noticed the downward slope evened out after 12 minutes of walking. The hallway seemed endless but when it opened up into a giant torch lit room, her mouth fell open. The room glowed with fire that must burn forever through some ancient magic and the ceiling was held up by several colossal columns. The massive room stretched forward farther than Isabella could see with the side walls only being 100 feet from one another.
Littering the inside of this tomb was hundreds of coffins strewn about in disarray.
Isabella was giddy, jumping with joy. She celebrated her victory silently as to not disrespect the dead that rested here. They somehow earned the right to have their bodies stored here and Isabella had no intention of disrespecting that honor. For she knew that each of these coffins must hold a witch of great significance. She collected herself and marched through the maze of still and silent coffins.
The coffins were mesmerizing to look at because they each had a carving of the woman inside depicted on its front. The women were all gorgeous, and stark naked which made Isabella uncomfortable but she still admired them. She dared not look below their necks out of some form respect she told herself. But she knew she was just embarrassed to look at their expertly carved breasts and their privates that must've been shown below their waists. But the beauty of their faces entranced her because she knew they must have been masterful witches on top of being beautiful. Sure their faces were gorgeous but their minds were the real beauty she thought.
Isabella always knew she was pretty with her curly dirty blonde hair that hung a bit past her shoulders. Her freckled face complimented her pale skin and big eyes which shined with enthusiasm during her studies. She thought of her breasts as pointy little things that seem to get caught on every piece of clothing she put on. She viewed them as a nuisance more than anything but that she had always caught her fellow students peeking glances at her chest and short frame. She wasn't afraid to show any skin but preferred her skirts with black tights underneath. She was wearing one now with a thick sweater underneath her traveling cloak.
She couldn't stop herself from imagining her own image carved onto one of these coffins. Preferably clothed, but her desire to have her beauty and intelligence remembered forever in this tomb with her fellow witches of history would be the greatest honor.
She ventured further into the tomb passing hundreds of coffins, the far wall coming into sight. But after many coffins and a few stolen glances, Isabella started to notice something strange about the coffins. Each one had a different woman, but also a different base to their carvings. A different horror was painted on each of them she realized.
On one coffin, a beautiful long haired Asian woman was craved with some sort of goblin creature at her feet. The creature seemed to have a cock that was fully erect and the size of the woman's forearm. Another had a woman standing in tentacles up to her waist. And one had a woman's face in a contorted expression of pain or pleasure, Isabella couldn't tell which, as a giant carved pillar was impaling the woman's crotch and making her stomach bulge. Her toes were dangling a few inches above the base of the coffin.
Isabella felt a sense of dread flood her body as she continued to walk through the room. Her feelings of accomplishment and wonder quickly disappearing with each step. Every coffin had a carving of a different woman, a different expression, and a different device or creature attacking the women's crotches. Most of the women's faces had an expression of peace or slumber to them. But some had their mouths open, eyes wide or rolled back as their carvings were being defiled by a beast or some phallic device.
The longer Isabella walked the more she became afraid, terrified even, of what these carvings implied. She didn't want to continue, but she couldn't stop walking through the room, determined to find the other end. But she kept looking at each woman she passed like her body was compelled to study their faces, their expressions, their horrors. Isabella felt like she owed each woman her attention as some sort of payment as she brushed past their coffins. And the deeper into the tomb she went, the more erotic and exhausted the women's faces became.
The coffins were beautiful.
