Chapter 13: New Beginnings

Wess ran as fast as he could. He could see the light at the exit and thought, I can make it! Just before Wess crossed the threshold, the snake vines grabbed him. He pulled as hard as he could. Inch by inch, Wess forced his way closer to the end. Then he started to slip. Wess was being pulled back in, and he pushed even harder. The snake vine was starting to wrap around his abdomen and chest, making it harder to breathe.

Wess realized that he was being crushed and felt like he would pass out. He pushed even harder. His adrenalin was pumping, and his heart was racing despite the pressure on his chest. Then he closed his eyes and concentrated on the snake vines. Wess felt their grip loosen. It wasn’t much, but he managed to cross the threshold as he pushed a little harder.

The vines suddenly disappeared, causing Wess to tumble forward and crash onto the ground. Then Wess started to heal. The sting of the scorpion plant just as his last foot crossed the finish line healed. As did the burns from the dragon vine, the cracked bones, and the sheer muscle exhaustion from pushing himself so hard. He was still a little weak and shaky. But he managed to stand with the help of CJ and Nina.

“I’ve never seen this garden be so hard on anyone,” CJ said. “But you made it through. Now claim your reward.”

Wess stepped up to the plaque. Just like the last two times, the light flowed into him along with the knowledge of dozens more protection spells. After dinner, they went back upstairs and set up a game of dominos. CJ had some snack foods brought up and some sparkling white grape juice so that they could celebrate Wess’s victory over the gardens.

“Wait a minute,” CJ said as they started their game. “I have a present for you, Wess.” She ran to her room and returned with a large cage covered with a dark grey birdcage cover. CJ sat the cage on the table, moving the loose dominos out of the way. “Go ahead, take a look.”

Holding the cover by the top, Wess pulled it off the cage. “A raven, Thank you, CJ. How did you get this? I mean, when did you even have time?”

“I sent Bobby to get him yesterday,” CJ said with a smile. “What will you call him?”

“I think I’ll call him Edgar,” Wess said. “Do you like the name?” he asked Edgar.

Edgar stuck his beak through the cage and unlatched the door. “Yes,” he said as he pushed the cage door open and hopped out onto the table. Edgar jumped into the air, flew around the room, and landed on Wess’s shoulder. Wess felt an odd sensation that he couldn’t begin to describe. Everyone watched as Edgar’s eyes turned silver then back to black.

When Wess looked at him, his eyes still looked silver. But, to everyone else, Edgar’s eyes looked black. Edgar leaped off Wess’s shoulder, glided to an empty chair, and perched on the back. “I feel like we’re connected now,” Wess said.

“Of course, you’re connected,” CJ said, “this is your Verketten (fer-ket-ten.).”

“I’m no linguist but, doesn’t that mean link in German?” Wess asked.

“Yes,” CJ said. “He and you will be linked together for the rest of your lives.”

“Lives?” Wess asked.

“I mean both you and Edgar,” CJ said. “Unless one of you gets killed prematurely, you will live the same amount of time and die at the same time.”

“What happens if one of us dies and the other one doesn’t?” Wess asked.

“I’m not sure,” CJ said, “but I imagine it feeling like losing a piece of your soul.”

“I have a present for you as well,” Nina said, interrupting their conversation. She went to her room. When she came back, Nina was pushing something on a dolly. Wess couldn’t tell what it was because it was covered with a sheet. “When I heard that CJ was getting you a bird, I ordered this for you.”

Nina removed the sheet, revealing a free-standing bird-perch. The perch was four feet tall, with a wide heavy base, and it was all silver. “Thank you, Nina. It’s perfect.” Wess rolled the perch into his room and set it up at the foot of his bed. Then he returned the dolly to Nina. He hugged her and CJ. “Thank you, both. These are the best presents I have ever received.” They finished their game of dominos and toasted the victory with sparkling grape juice. Then they all went to bed.

Sometime during the night, Wess woke up. He wasn’t sure what woke him up, but he felt like something was calling him. Looking around the room, Wess saw that nothing was out of place. Edgar was on his perch, looking around as if he had heard something too.

Wess got dressed and headed for the door. As he exited the room, Edgar flew onto his shoulder. Wess went to wake up Nina, but she was already awake and coming out of her room. Then CJ came back too. “Did you guys hear it too?” Wess asked. They both answered yes and looked at Wess to see if he had any answers. “I don’t hear it anymore, but I do feel like something is pulling me towards the gardens.”

They all headed for the gardens. When they arrived, they looked around and found nothing. “It feels as if it’s pulling me this way,” Wess said, pointing at a section of garden wall overgrown with vines. As he moved closer, the pull got stronger. Now CJ and Nina could feel it too. Wess used his natural magic to make the vines move out of the way. The vines had concealed a garden gate just like the other gates.

I’ve lived here for almost nine years, and I never knew that there was a gate there,” CJ said. As they approached the gate, a podium with a book appeared from the wall by the gate. Wess approached the book.

“Place your hand on my cover,” the book said. Wess put his hand on the book and waited. “You are worthy. You may enter,” the book said. But the gate didn’t open. CJ approached the book. “Place your hand on my cover,” the book said. CJ followed the instructions. Being accepted, she went to stand by Wess. Nina went through the same process. When she was accepted, the gate opened.

Wess, CJ, and Nina entered the garden and looked around. This garden was thicker, darker than the last, and was like a swamp. The only clearing was the ten-by-ten foot section just inside the gate. Wess walked to the edge of the clearing to see if he could see into the swamp, but it was too dark.

When Wess stepped back, he noticed a giant snake on a branch hanging over the clearing. Wess backed up a little more. “Step forward and let me examine you,” said the snake. Wess hesitantly stepped toward the snake. “Don’t move.” the snake said. Wess tried to stand as still as he could as the snake stretched out and looked him in the eye. He flicked his tongue out on Wess’s nose. Then the snake’s head moved to Wess’s left side as the snake started to wrap around Wess.

The snake’s tongue flicked out every second or so as he spiraled down. Soon Wess was completely enclosed in the snake’s tight grasp. Wess was about to panic when the snake started to uncoil faster than he wrapped around him. Then, one at a time, he repeated the process with the girls. When finished, the snake crawled back up the tree and onto his branch. “You may proceed to the stone slab,” he said, adjusting himself into a comfortable position.

All three stood in front of the tablet and touched it at the same time. As their heads filled with dark spells, paths opened throughout the swamp. “This is where you will find all of your dark herbs,” said the snake.

They saw herbs like hemlock, belladonna, nightshade, and white snakeroot as they walked down the path. With the knowledge they gained, they realized that all of these dark herbs were deadly. However, it was still the middle of the night, so they headed back to their rooms to get more sleep.

When Wess fell asleep, he had a peculiar dream. It wasn’t a nightmare. It was just a dream. But this dream gave him a bad feeling like something was about to happen. Someone he knew would be in danger, but he didn’t know who or what kind of danger. He didn’t even know when they would be in danger.

Wess awoke to an uneasy feeling, but he almost completely forgot about it by the time he had breakfast. He hadn’t realized how much time had slipped away during his training. That is until Wess realized that it was CJ’s birthday. They were born on the same day, so it was also Wess’s birthday.