Chapter 11: Patience is a Virtue

The following day, Wes and Nina were up at the same time. Wess let Nina have the restroom first, and then he got ready after. By the time Wess had finished getting ready, it was time to head down for breakfast. He could tell that Nina was nervous, but she was ready. They headed downstairs. When they got to the dining room, CJ was already there. Wess introduced the two girls.

“Wow,” CJ said. “You said she was beautiful, but she’s gorgeous.”

That made Nina blush. After breakfast, CJ wanted to see the room that Wess had built for Nina. So, they went to the attic. CJ was impressed by his craftsmanship, but she found herself a little confused. “Where did you get all of this wood from?” CJ asked.

“I had Art make it with a fabrication spell,” he said. “I probably could have done it myself, but I didn’t want to take any chances.”

“Getting a little cocky now?” CJ asked.

“On the contrary, I’m still working on my confidence,” he said.

“Well, would you mind working on it somewhere else?” CJ asked. “I would like to get to know my new sister. By the way, I like your new jacket. It looks good on you.”

“Thank you,” Wess said. “I think it’s the silver version of the cloak.”

Wess closed the door as he went to his room. Once there, he asked Art to find every reference book that he had on reincarnation. Wess told Art that he could just leave them on his desk. Wess would wait for Nina to do the research. He just wanted to have all of the books ready. Standing in front of the fireplace, Wess realized that the stone on top had also turned silver. He pushed it, and the wall slid back. When he opened the door to his laboratory, he snapped his fingers and extinguished the dark flame.

He went straight to the silver book and started reading. An hour or so later, the girls appeared in the doorway. It was time to research Wessiers and death. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much to find. They pored through many books just to discover that no Wessiers had ever died without being reincarnated before. Not that they could find, anyway. They knew about Nina’s grandmother, but she didn’t appear in any of the books either.

“Of course!” JC said, throwing her hands up in realization. “They wouldn’t bring light to something like this,” “I certainly don’t like the idea of others knowing that our immortal souls may not be so immortal. So, why publish it in a book?”

“You wouldn’t,” Wess said as he started to catch on. “So, there’s a chance that someone would know! And I have an idea who we should ask. Bobby!” He called out suddenly, startling Nina.

A minute later, Bobby walked through the door. “Yes, Master Wess?” Wess didn’t like it when Bobby called him master, but he knew that correcting him wouldn’t get him anywhere. Getting mad most likely wouldn’t stop him either. So, he gave up and allowed him to continue calling him master. “How may I be of service?”

“You’ve been around longer than Wessiers, haven’t you?”

“Yes, Master Wess,” Bobby said, “By at least three or four times.”

“What do you know about Wessiers who have died and not been reincarnated?” Wess asked.

Bobby looked at them one at a time. Starting with Wess, then CJ, and finally focusing his gaze on Nina. He looked as if he had recognized her. “You have touched the other side,” he finally said. “Have you been touched by dark magic as well?”

“I’m not sure,” she said. “I don’t think that it was dark, Wessiers, but when the magic that struck my father down hit me, it did feel evil,” she said with a shiver.

To answer your question, Master Wess, there have been at least half a dozen throughout history. Officially, however, all but two have found a way to return to life. Now it would seem that the count is down to one,” he said, his eyes seeming to drill through Nina’s, touching her very soul.

She felt another shiver run down her spine as her eyes darted between everyone in the room. “What does that mean, the count is down to one?” she asked. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to know the answer. She asked the question, though, because she needed to know. Nina knew that she couldn’t hide forever. Somehow, this felt like the missing piece of the puzzle.

“Allow me to explain. I’ll try to make it simple,” Bobby said, pausing long enough to make sure everyone was ready. “You know that when a wessier dies, they are reincarnated as the first Wasier who is conceived after their death. If the intended Wasier dies before receiving the soul, The Wessier can no longer be reincarnated. You must have been conceived at almost the same time as her death.”

“Why would you think that?” Nina asked skeptically.

“That,” he said, “is the only way that she could find you as you slipped into death.” Bobby paused to let it sink in, never taking his eyes off of Nina. She looked more confused, so he continued. “Your Grandmother would have to have a connection already. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to distinguish you from any other spirits. And since you still had a connection to your body, she could merge with your spirit and follow it back to your body.”

“So, you’re saying that she’s in here with me?” Nina asked.

“No,” he said, “I’m saying that she is you. Why do you think that you have been named after her? Your spirit is a fraction of hers, but I suspect that your spirit is whole again. If that truly is the case, then I must say, welcome back, mistress Nina.”

“You know me?”

“I have served you before.”

“So, why did you ask me if I “was touched” by dark magic?” she asked. She had a feeling that she probably wouldn’t like the answer, but she had to know.

“I thought that I sensed something attached to your spirit. But I could only feel it for a minute, and then it was gone. In all of my existence, I have never witnessed anything like that, but it was most definitely dark.” He paused for a moment to think. Reaching a decision, he put his hand in his pocket and pulled something out. Keeping his hand closed so no one could see what it was, he held it out, offering it to Nina. “I shouldn’t give you this because I have vowed to keep all of them safe, but I’m sure that it will be safe with you. Besides, in this case, I don’t think Master Weston would mind,” he said, looking at Wess.

She held out her hand to accept what he was offering. He slowly opened his hand and let a small object fall into the palm of her hand. It was a small stone. The stone was slightly larger than a marble and the deepest green that she had ever seen. It was warm! As she held the stone, she realized that it was pulsing in her hand. She instinctively closed her hand and looked at Bobby. “What is it?” she asked.

“Master Weston charged me with the task of protecting the rest of the natural magic, “he said, looking at Wess again. “That is all I know about it, but I’m sure that you will figure it out when the time is right.”

“Thank you, Bobby,” Wess said. They decided to break for an early lunch. After lunch, they decided to go out to the garden and finish the training there. At first, Wess didn’t see the point since he was now a silver Wessier. But after further discussion, he realized that he could still use light magic and learn a lot of spells and potions and not have to study them.

When Wess, Nina, and CJ arrived at the garden, the book opened the gate and let them right in. They moved to the center of the area, where a cauldron and other supplies were waiting. Wess felt nervous, but he was in a hurry to be done with this. He decided on a simple metamorphosis potion that would temporarily allow him to shift between himself and anything he wished.

He practically ran through the garden collecting the herbs that he needed. When he had everything he needed, he threw them into the cauldron, mixed them, and cast the accompanying Spell. The mixture in the pot exploded, shooting the potion straight out of the vat, like a geyser. At its apex, the potion burst into flames. All of the brew burned up in mid-air, only leaving ashes to rain down around them. “What happened?” Wess asked. “I had the right herbs, I mixed them, and used the correct spell.”

“So, you don’t know what went wrong?” CJ asked. Wess looked at her and thought as hard as he could, but he couldn’t think of anything. He was sure that he didn’t make any mistakes. “Nina?” she asked. What did he do wrong?”

Nina looked at CJ and then at Wess. He noticed that she had a conflicted look on her face. “It’s okay,” Wess said. “If you know what I did wrong, you can tell me. I won’t be mad at you. Maybe at myself, but never at you!”