A/N: Welcome to my latest fic. It's a bit different from the previous things I have written but Everlark are very much at the centre. There is more magic and fantasy in this story and the witch mythology described in this chapter has aspects of the witches storyline in the CW's series The Originals. This is only the prologue but I have the first full chapter written and hope to have that posted in a couple of days. After that updates should be every Monday. Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think.

Prologue

The blonde girl wakes with a start, gasping for breath and sitting bolt upright. Her blue eyes frantically scan the murky surroundings as she tries to piece together what has happened to her. We have her trapped in an underground cave. A mangy rat scampers across our toes. A strong stench of sulphur itches the nostrils.

The girl's eyes widen in fear as she catches sight of Enobaria's golden cat like eyes glint with mirth as she sharpens her nails into claw like talons. Cashmere chuckles as she stirs a pot of softly bubbling potion. Eventually the girl's eyes fixate on me and she freezes in place as she catches my stony stare.

"Who are you? Where am I?" she asks, the panic clear in her voice.

I roll my eyes. Always the same questions. Who are you? What do you want? Are you going to kill me? It was amusing at first to see their terror and know that was the last emotion they were going to feel. It made me feel powerful. I was in control. But their stupid questions have become tiresome.

"Don't fret yourself sweetheart. You are here for the greater cause," I reply as I walk over to her and brush a strand of hair off her face.

She freezes at my touch as the realisation of who we are hits her.

"You're the Tribute witches," she states. "You're the ones bringing darkness over the Districts."

The girl raises her hand to try and defend herself with her magic but I am too quick for her and raise my own hands to cast her back against the wall with my own spell. I conjure a rope from thin air and it spirals round her wrists to keep her in place. I drop my hands breathlessly once she has been secured. Magic is getting harder to perform. The binds are not as tight as I would like. They are not cutting into her skin to make her bleed. This is another clear sign that our magic is getting weaker. The need for the sacrifice to be completed grows ever more imperative.

"I wouldn't bother trying to use your magic. Cashmere over there has kindly fed you a drink locking your powers in your body for the next 20 minutes," I say.

The girl looks over to Cashmere's smirking profile and shrinks back against the sticky wall of the cave.

"And trust me, you won't be needing it after that," Enobaria adds, walking over and flashing a grin that shows off the pointed ends of her teeth.

"I know what you are trying to do. But you don't need to do this. There are other ways to keep our magic!" she pleads.

I chuckle lightly.

"You are wrong Miss Undersee. You must feel your magic weakening. Every day we don't act causes us to lose our bond with our ancestors. Witches lore dictates that we need to make a sacrifice every red moon to ensure our magic is secured. Just be thankful that you are helping your people continue with their destiny," I say.

The girl shakes her head frantically, tears threatening to fall. I let out a heavy sigh. I really hate the criers. Cashmere's sister, Glimmer, was unbearably shrill as she begged for our mercy.

"We've all had to make our sacrifices. We are all members of original families. I had to sacrifice my sister, Enobaria her cousin and Alma her daughter. But it's the price we must pay for being fortunate enough to descend from the original families. It was our bloodline that created this power and it is our duty to sustain it," Cashmere states as the prowls over to join us.

The 3 of us stand in a triangle formation looking down at the terrified young girl. She is a pretty young thing with long blonde hair tied up in a neat knot and innocent baby blue eyes. I am sure she will have left some poor boy broken hearted back in her village. But that doesn't matter. She has a destiny to fulfil.

Our magic is bound to the ancestors of the 5 families that founded our power. Over the years our magic weakens as our link to our ancestors deteriorates. The only way to strengthen the bond is to complete a blood sacrifice before the red moon disappears. This moon appears every 500 years and stays in the sky for 6 months illuminating the night sky in a fiery haze. 5 daughters, one from each original family, must be given to reinforce our link with the ancestors and secure our magic for the next 500 years. If the sacrifice is not completed our magic is lost forever.

I am not about to let the thought of losing 5 silly young girls' lives deter me from retaining my power.

For too long the magic in these lands have been squashed and hidden as fear of our power has caused the nobles who run the Districts to subdue us. The Kingdom of Panem is made up of 12 Districts each run by one reigning Royal family. Not all are aware of our existence and the ones that are are determined to hide us. But I will not be suppressed any longer.

Cashmere, Enobaria and I have created a small coven, known as the Tribute Witches, that is slowly gaining control of the Districts. We've recruited further suppressed magical beings including the tracker jackers and lizard mutts to march in and overthrow villages. We use our spells and potions to manipulate and control the residents to ensure they bend to our will.

But as the departure of the red moon approaches the magic holding these villages weakens and our control over them loosens. Currently we are in command over many villages including ones in Districts 1,2 and 4. With our power returned to full strength we aim to control all 12.

"Be a good girl and sit still while we complete this. Trust us, it will be a lot less painful for you if you do," Enobaria says as she floats a cup of the elixir of death over.

The girl squirms as Cashmere pins her down and Enobaria forces the sickly concoction down her throat. The girl is more stubborn than I gave her credit for and some of the purple liquid dribbles down her throat as she glues her lips together in fierce determination. This one doesn't want to die.

But Enobaria's magic is stronger than the girl's will and she pries her mouth open with a common spell. Once the potion is forced down her throat the three of us begin chanting the incantation that will seal the ritual.

The girl continues to wriggle and squirm as the potion makes its effects known. She begins screaming as the poison enters her bloodstream, boiling her blood and disintegrating her organs.

We continue our chanting as she begins to weaken and slowly grow still in our arms. Her screams quieten to whimpers as the life slowly drains out of her.

Eventually her whole body goes limp and we reach the end of our spell. I feel the jolt of power surge into my body as her magic is transferred to us. Cashmere, Enobaria and I all smile as the fourth part of the sacrifice is completed.

Glimmer Diamond, Clove Anderson, Lavinia Coin and Madge Undersee. Four out of the five girls have be obtained and given back to our ancestors. Only one more is required to complete the sacrifice and reenergise us to full power. Only one more girl to allow us to gain control of the Districts:

Katniss Everdeen, the Royal Princess of District Twelve.