Satin Rose and the Witch Hunters

12. Magic Up

The four of us went through the door with the girl going last. She locked the door behind us and from her cloak pulled out a piece of chalk proceeding to draw a circle on the wood that glowed ever so softly against the light. The glow seeped into the wood dying down when it engulfed its entirety. It faded away, as if it had never been there, replaced by smooth stone. Chris Knocked on my shoulder, the widest grin I have ever seen on his face. I went to tap Phil, but his jaw had already dropped as he looked at where we actually were.

Calling it a cave would be the understatement of the century. We were standing on the edges of a giant basin. Cavernous to seemingly no end, the far reaches could not be touched by the torches placed about and the roof looked as high as the clouds. Stalactites and stalagmites pierced through the stone everywhere you looked, some even combining to create massive pillars as if the massive redwoods from the forest had turned to stone. Gemstones of red, green, and orange glinted in the rocks adding a sparkle and a shine wherever you laid your eyes. From somewhere the sweet smell of incense drifted out into the cool air. And cutting with color, a small sky blue stream came from the shadows to sneak right through the middle of it all. There a group of about fifteen children were gathered with two hooded figures. A Small wooden bridge was before them and on of the figures seemed to be speaking.

"Come on. It looks like they already started."

The road was steep as you went down. Each of us almost slipped, toppling over each other. We only managed by holding on to each other and locking our arms into a chain. The girl on the other hand was as nimble as a bird on branches, she hopped from one stone to another as if she had done this her whole life. Coming near to the crowd, we could finally hear the words that one of the figures was saying.

It was the coarse words of an old man halfway through his opening lines, "-no dancing on top of water or flying in the air. I will assure you though that with every bone in my body what you will be doing is indeed magic. The pattern of magic surrounds us and all one must simply do is to see where they fit in the design. Now with that preamble out of the way let us begin the initiation."

The other one cloaked was a woman who clapped her hands, "All right kids get in line now get in line one at a time everyone will get a chance no pushing"

"Persephone!" Our purple haired guide called out. "There's a few stragglers here that came up last minute."

He shuffled forward to meet us. "Welcome! Welcome! I'd be hard pressed to turn away anyone at the door." He was surprisingly spry for an old man, not tripping on the long emerald robe he wore. He smiled delight fully and extended an wrinkled hand to help me the last few steps down. His eyes creased though a he inspected us. "Aren't you boys a bit old to be learning magic?

"Yes, yes we are." Christopher said standing tall with a boyish smile.

The old mans smiled returned as he swept his hand and led us forward. "Let's see what you're made of them. Touch the orb on the bridge, ponder what you see, and tell the madam over there the vision."

The bridge seemed to be newly build, made entirely of wood and painted with a sheen. The orb in the middle on the other hand was a lumpy mass of glass that looked as if a glass vase was being made, but then got put to the side after a bad blowing. It sat on a pillowed pedestal that connected to the bridge and the woman was making sure that only one child was on the bridge at all times. Closer, it was clear that a mask of a painted lady was covering her face. Snow white, how was she even seeing through it with no eye holes?

We got into line with the other boys in girls. Most of they were a year or two under us with some probably even half our age. Again, here I recognized a few from our schoolhouse though the majority were unknown. There didn't seem to anything other than solving the puzzle that fit as criteria for entrance. The range of clothes started with a boy near the front was what could only be generously described as tattered rags in the form of a shirt and a pair of girls were in matching blue dresses that puffed up. All walks of life I guess.

My heart sunk though at the inevitable. Each one seemed to have some sort of creature in their clasp. One skinny child was even clutching a lizard, probably recently caught between the rocks here.

Christopher and Phinion both pulled out their own pets and I stood last in the line fidgeting with my hands as my heart raced.

The first child, a girl with a clean grey dress, was the first one up. She had a sparrow, tied to her pinkie with string, that she held gently. When she hovered a hand over the glass the bird escaped her grip and start flying frantically. Everyone in line stood on the tips of their toes to try and see what was happening. Her hand had barely rested on the orb however when she snatched it away with a yelp. At the same time the bird flew into her face. Horror and fear filled the faces of the others that turned into immense confusion when she suddenly burst out laughing. The bird was perched on her nose calmly. She whispered something in the woman's ear before skipping away.

"What'd you see?" The boy in front Phin asked as she passed by.

"It's a secreeet," She taunted, the bird singing softly. She went to the back and the purple haired girl who let us in bee her to sit down on the rocks.

As the line moved it became clear that when one got their vision, the animal was somehow connected. Soon the air was filled with a dozen tiny noises as birds, mice, bugs, kittens, pups, and even a piglet began seemingly talking to their child. There wasn't much communication going on though as the children were almost shouting at each other with excitement.

"I saw a tree!"

"My pig grew a thousand size.

"It was just a splash of color."

Finally it was just the three of us left with Phin up front. He took a shaky step onto the wood, hugging his beetle in a jar. The masked lady stood by as the red head put a single finger on the orb. Eyes shut tight, he slowly opened them and looked back at the cavern around us then down to his jar.

"Sorry!" He yelped opening the lid. The beetle flew lazily out and away into the cave.

As he back Chris asked franticly. " What'd you see?"

"The cave looked green, the cave looked green," Phin murmured still holding his empty jar.

Chris strut up to the orb doing a little curtsy to the woman before digging his little kitten out to holding gently. Confidently he rested his palm on the orb. The kitten in his hand stretched and curled. He raised a brow at this and smoothly took his hand off and told the mask what he saw.

He came back with a slight smug grin with his eyes dying to tell a secret. Putting his pet back inside the bag he pat my shoulder. The smile on his face finally came and I didn't even have to ask him anything.

"I was tall, looked like my father. And the cave wasn't green, it was blue."

The last to step up, everyone else was gathering around the old man again who seemed to have something to say.

"Ahem," The lady coughed gently. I smiled, a little embarrassed. Her voice was gentle, "No familiar dear? Don't worry you really need one and if you do, you'll find one later."

She tilted her head toward the pedestal. I wasn't sure why I was nervous. The noise behind me turned down as the old man said something to far to hear, the animals were still in a fritz, and the lady's mask was starting to bore it's painted face in my mind. Dad would have laughed, I chided myself.

At this small thought I put my hand on the orb and the world seemed to dim. But it wasn't like the darkness when we first entered here. That felt the same as closing your eyes and still seeming a fire. No, here the voices and chattering turning into distant mumbles in the background. Shadows around every corner crawled out as the torchlight dimmed, to transform into sharp eyes that stared into my soul.

Was this the magic? A vision of my future?

As my hands touched the glass though a familiar pain pricked at my heart and I felt myself paralyzed from head to toe. No not magic just the pain I felt when I woke up.