Episode 20 — Sugar we’re Going Down Swinging

Sasha’s heart pounded so hard it hurt. Her gaze darted between her mother’s cold figure and the friends who stood behind her torn between the struggle of the past and the fragile hope of the present.

As she contemplated everything that happened, some bad, some worse. Her mind screamed for clarity, for the right choice but there was no such thing as right or wrong anymore.

“Mother,” she whispered, her voice breaking before she could gather it. “I’m sorry… but I can’t let you destroy this town. I just can’t.”

The Witch’s head tilted ever so slightly. “Think carefully about this,” she said, her voice like a blade jabbing her ribs. “If you stand in my way, daughter… I will end you too.”

Sasha swallowed hard, tasting fear and tears all at once. Her body trembled, but her voice came steady. “If that’s what it takes for this town to be free,” she murmured, “then I will gladly give my life… to protect my friends. My family.”

The Witch stilled, her porcelain fingers curling with an audible crack. Slowly, she stepped toward Sasha, the shadows clinging to her like a living shroud. Her face was unreadable, but her gaze—sharp and unrelenting—felt like it could cut Sasha in two.

She snapped her fingers.

“Destroy them all!”

The chained Suit moved first, its whip-like links snapping through the air, narrowly missing Mathers and Clara near the pulpit. The Crimson Suit followed, hurling its massive ball that smashed into the floor just beside Kovac. Robin bolted toward him.

“Run!” she screamed at Tania and Anya as they scrambled ahead.

“No!” Sasha cried, rushing forward before the Suits could reach them. She planted herself between the monsters and her friends, heart hammering. The black Suit raised its arms, shadows rippling like hungry serpents, and Sasha closed her eyes, bracing for the impact.

“You truly chose them over me,” the Witch whispered. For the first time, her voice cracked.

Sasha’s eyes opened just as a cool touch grazed her cheek. Her mother stood before her, brushing trembling fingertips across Sasha’s tear-streaked face.

“You were always too kind for this world,” the Witch murmured, her voice soft and distant. “Even when you were little. This is so… unfair. You know I could never harm you. Perhaps… perhaps it would have been better to destroy the entire town long ago and save myself this agony.”

Sasha let out a shaky, broken laugh. “No, Mother. I’m glad you didn’t. That would’ve sucked,” she said, her voice trembling but certain. “I just… I just wish you could learn to forgive everyone.”

“Them?” The Witch’s tone hardened like ice. “I will never forgive. Not as long as I live.” But her gaze softened when it returned to Sasha. “Are you truly sure of your choice? This family you cling to....what will you do when they fail you? Because they will. Will you forgive them then?”

Sasha didn’t hesitate. “If they do, I’ll spend the rest of my life forgiving them.”

Her gaze flicked toward Mathers, whose pale face gave away everything he couldn’t say. “I don’t know how yet,” she admitted, voice soft but unwavering, “but I love them more than enough to try.”

The Witch’s lips curved into a small, bitter smile. “I never expected to fight for custody of my own child,” she said dryly. “Even after what they’ve done to your mother, you still choose love over vengeance. Perhaps there is a lesson to I have yet to learn.”

She exhaled, the sound heavy and ancient. “I fear for you, my child. Your kindness is a fragile thing in a world that devours the gentle.”

Sasha’s shoulders trembled, but she stood taller. “Maybe it is,” she said quietly. “But it’s who I am. Just… Sasha.”

The Witch’s hand dropped limply to her side. She gazed at her daughter for a long, aching moment before finally speaking again. “Even though I don’t understand it… I will cease the attack.”

“I will never ask you to understand it,” Sasha whispered smiling.

“Very well.” The Witch’s voice was little more than a breath. “They can live their worthless lives… for now. And you, my daughter….live your life full of love, if you can. I only hope you won’t regret this choice.”

“Hopefully not,” Sasha said softly.

“She won’t,” Michael said, stepping firmly to her side.

The Witch glanced at him with mild disdain, then turned away, the shadows tightening like a cloak around her.

“What happens now?” Tania spoke up. “Where will you go?”

The Witch’s lips curved faintly. “You do have remarkable friends, daughter,” she said. “Though they are rather nosy.”

She turned her gaze to the adults—Mathers, Clara, Robin, and Kovac—and her voice cooled to a knife’s edge. “I will be… around. Watching. For when you stray. Ready to burn…”

Anya shivered and clutched Jasmine’s hand.

The Witch’s body unravelled into shadow, shrinking and folding in on itself until it disappeared.

The Suits dissolved into drifting black ash, their empty fabrics fluttering lifelessly to the ground.

Pastor Mathers exhaled heavily, his knees nearly buckling. “It’s over,” he said quietly.

Just then, a loud crack split the air as part of the floor above gave way, crashing down onto the pulpit. Mathers and Clara barely threw themselves aside in time, tumbling hard onto the ground.

Tania looked at the wreckage and smirked faintly. “Now it is,” she said.