The warm summer rain is what opened Bart’s eyes but even then everything was unfocused. As he looked around all he could see were images smeared together by the cloudiness of his eyesight. The sounds all around him were muffled, as if a grenade had gone off directly next to him and blown out his eardrum. He struggled to clear his vision but it was no use. He only caught glimpses of something vivid. Everything else was a blur. He saw that man named Mafortian walking towards him, and his mother was nowhere to be found. Charlotte was on the other side of the yard lying on her back and not moving. Bart struggled to push himself to a sitting position but instantly felt a pain surge from his leg all the way through his body. It felt as if someone was forcing a blade deep into his knee, slowly. The pain that radiated through his body was so severe that it was hard for Bart to pinpoint all his injuries. The scream he let out was bone chilling, so much that he couldn’t believe he was the one that made it. He glanced at his leg and saw that his left knee was covered in blood. Even though he couldn’t clearly see what was wrong he could definitely feel it. Whatever it was, it prevented him from moving in any way. Bart looked up to find Mafortian almost near him. His mouth was moving but all Bart could hear was ringing. He knew it was only a matter of seconds until he was done for. Maybe if he had been trained he could have done something to prevent this. Then again, Uncle Caleb had said he was no match for these guys, and if he couldn’t handle them then even with training Bart would be a goner. The rain was pounding on his head, which wasn’t helping the migraine developing as he looked up at Mafortian again. He wanted to pass out. Then, right when his eyelids got heavy, a flash of white light blinded him. He shut his eyes to block out the bright light and when he opened them again, he saw a figure kneeling in front of him. Slowly his ears began to work again, and he could hear the sounds of explosions and people yelling all around him. Then his eyes started to focus, and he saw that the figure kneeling in front of him was a beautiful woman with white hair. Her skin was a light shade of brown, a little lighter than Mafortian’s and the others but her eyes were different. They were mesmerizing. Her hair was amazing, and it shined as the moonlight beamed down upon it. Bart was so focused on her looks that he wasn’t listening to a word she was saying. Then he realized it was the same woman from the photo with his mom, just a little older.
“He’s not responding but his eyes are open,” she said to someone else. “Jonah, find his mother and grab the girl. Jester can you carry Caleb?”
“Yeah I got the wimp,” Bart heard someone say but he couldn’t see who. Not that it mattered. The only thing Bart wanted to do was look at this woman.
“Hurry, we must leave before they recover,” she said. She lifted Bart off the ground, which brought back the realization of the enormous amounts of pain he was in. He started to scream as his leg began throbbing and pulsating. “It will be okay Bartholomew, trust me,” she said softly. “Everything will be okay.” Her voice seemed to calm him. He didn’t want to fight the urge to sleep anymore, so he gave in and within seconds he was out cold.
Bart’s dream was out of this world to say the least. He was sitting atop a hill looking out into this huge field that seemed to go on forever. The grass was the greenest he had ever seen and the sun was so warm that he felt like he was back home on a cold winter night, cuddled up by the fire with his mom. Those were the best nights for Bart, when she would read him stories of another place, a better world. A world so beautiful that it always seemed like a dream. That’s how this place felt now for him. As he sat atop the hill, he could hear laughter and voices but he couldn’t see anyone. When he looked up, the sapphire blue sky was the perfect backdrop for the bright yellow sun. Bart stood up and then right when he was about to start walking, all the laughter stopped and it was replaced with screams. The grass caught fire and the sky turned a crimson red. The fire started surrounding Bart until he was up against a tree with a circle of blazing hot flames closing in on him. The screams got louder and louder as the flames got closer and closer until Bart couldn’t bear it anymore and he turned away. Everything went black and then Bart was staring at the ceiling. He sat up too quickly, and winced in pain as he grabbed his knee. Suddenly everything came back to him as he remembered what had happened before he passed out. He threw the blankets off to assess the damage to his knee but he noticed nothing out of the ordinary except a large scar on the side of it. His headache returned next and even though the pain wasn’t as bad as before it did make him a little dizzy.
“Where am I,” he said as he looked around. The room was extremely dark and the curtains were covering the window, so Bart couldn’t make out anything. He forced himself to scoot back and put his back against the headboard. What happened to me? The darkness made him a little uncomfortable but the fact that he wasn’t bleeding and the pain was less helped him cope. While he sat there thinking about what happened to him, the door opened and a little light came in. It was just enough for him to see Charlotte standing in the doorway. She flicked on the switch and the whole room lit up. It wasn’t that much to look at. There was a wooden dresser against the wall by the door and then directly across from the bed on the other side of the room, was something huge covered in a sheet. The floors were wooden as well and they creaked as Charlotte walked across towards the bed.
“Finally you’re awake,” she said sounding relieved. “I thought you were in a coma or something.”
“How long was I out?”
“Three days,” she said as she sat on the bed. “How you feeling?”
“Like absolute crap,” Bart said while rubbing his head. “What happened?” Charlotte looked a little confused by his question.
“Don’t you remember?” she asked.
“The only thing I remember is talking to Uncle Caleb, running through the house and then waking up in a pool of my own blood with the worst knee sprain and migraine I’ve ever had. Oh, and I remember this woman. She had beautiful long, white hair.”
“Yeah, that’s Victoria,” Charlotte said with a smile.
“You know her?”
“Well not really, I mean I met her the same time you did. Well actually a little after since I didn’t wake up until we got back here. That’s when I saw you. I was scared, Bart. I mean, yeah you’re an annoying fart sometimes, but seeing you like that, covered in blood not moving…that wasn’t fun.”
“I can imagine,” Bart said as he thought back. He knew what he looked like from his perspective, but he couldn’t begin to think about what Charlotte saw. He knew it must’ve been tough. There is no way he would’ve been able to handle seeing her or his mom that way. “So what happened after we got back? Where are we?”
“We’re at the old ghost house,” Charlotte said which gave Bart a chill. He’d never been inside but he always imagined it being full of weird sounds and hallucinations. “Victoria brought you up here and she began doing some crazy weird stuff with her hands. They wouldn’t let me in, but they told me everything would be okay. I was allowed to come check on you from time to time, but every single time you were still out. I guess it’s good your mom didn’t see you like this.” As soon as she said that, Charlotte’s eyes widened. Bart could tell right away something was wrong. Charlotte bit her lip as if she had just spilled a secret that could threaten national security.
“What?” he asked hesitantly. “What’s wrong?”
“Bart I don’t want you to panic,” she said, but Bart was already panicking.
“What happened, Char?” Bart looked around and saw that once again it was just him and Charlotte in the room. He thought back to Charlotte’s explanation on what has happened when he was out and realized that she never mentioned his mom coming to check on him. “Where’s my mom?”
“Bart, they have done everything they can-” but Bart cut her off.
“What do you mean?”
“Bart,” she started again.
“Spit it out, Charlotte!”
“Your mom hasn’t woken up yet.” The words echoed over and over in his head as he stared at Charlotte. What did she mean his mom hadn’t woken up yet? Why was she even hurt? The blast had hit him and Charlotte, not her. His heart started to speed up and his throat went dry. “She is worst off then you according to Victoria.
“I have to see her,” he said as he tried to get out of bed. The pain of moving so suddenly coupled with him trying to stand for the first time in three days made him fall flat on his face. Charlotte helped him up only to be met with more anger as he swiped her hands away and tried to keep moving.
“You can’t, Bart. You can’t,” Charlotte yelled as she tried to stop him. But he just shoved her out of the way and hobbled to the door.
“Bart, you’re still hurt, you should really rest,” she pleaded as he hopped down the hall.
“Which way Charlotte?” he asked angrily.
“Bart, don’t do this,” she said but once again he ignored her.
“WHICH WAY?” Reluctantly she pointed to the left, and he hopped his way down towards the room.
“It’s this one,” Charlotte said, stepping in front of the door to try and stop Bart once again.
“Move Charlotte,” he said but she didn’t budge.
“What if this was your dad, Char?” He knew it would work as soon as he said it. With regret she stepped aside and Bart threw the door open. The sight of his mother covered in blankets with scratches and bandages on her face was almost too much for Bart to handle. He hobbled over to her bed and fell to his one good knee. “Mom,” he said softly, trying to fight back the tears. Her body was lifeless and still as he touched her hand. “What happened to her?” he asked aggressively.
“She took most of the blast,” said Charlotte. “When the guy with the slicked back hair pointed at your feet,” Charlotte said but she got choked up. “When he pointed at your feet she pushed me to the left and you right out of the way. She was so fast. The blast hit her full force and knocked us back. She landed somewhere in the house.” Bart thought back to what happened a few nights ago. He didn’t remember feeling her push him. He only remembered the flying away part and the aftermath. Then it hit him. When he looked around at the carnage he never saw his mother. Now he knew why. She had been thrown back into the house.
“Why mom, why?” he said.
“Because she loves you,” said a voice that Bart semi-recognized. He turned to see the woman with the white hair, Victoria, standing behind Charlotte. “She would do anything for you,” she continued. “That’s what mothers do.”
“Yeah, but not this,” Bart said as the tears were starting to fight back. “I would never ask her to do this.” Victoria walked over and put her hand on his shoulder. The calming effect her touch and her voice had the other night wasn’t present now. Not when his mother was lying on a bed unconscious because of him.
“We never have to ask our parents to do these things. It is who they are. We are their babies; nothing is out of the question for us.”
“This is. This should’ve never happened. If I was trained it would’ve never happened.” Bart was fully crying now but more so because of anger than sadness. Anger that he was kept in the dark. Maybe he could’ve prevented this.
“There was nothing you could’ve done Bartholomew, do not blame yourself. She did what had to be done to save you.”
“Well it didn’t have to be done! She didn’t deserve this,” he said as he began to just let the tears flow. “I wasn’t a good son to her that night. I wish it was me instead of her that got hit.”
“Then she would be sitting here saying the same things you are saying. It’s a circle, a vicious circle, and whether you believe it or not, if she had the choice to do it again she would.” Bart had no response for her this time because in his heart he knew she was right. His mother has always done anything and everything she could for him. Now he repaid her with hateful words and bandages.
“Why hasn’t she woken up yet?” he asked, wiping his face free of tears. “Is she-” He had trouble bringing himself to say it. “Is she dead?”
“No, she isn’t dead, but she is hovering on the brink. We don’t know what kind of attack Mafortian used, but it seems like it was meant to put you in some kind of coma. She is close to death but she is still very much alive. Shadow wielding has many treacherous tricks and attacks that are meant to dismantle opponents.”
“Shadow wielding?” Bart asked.
“Later,” Victoria said in response, angering Bart a little. He was tired of lies and secrets. He wanted to know everything that was going on and he wanted to know now.
“Is there a way out of it?” Charlotte asked. Bart was grateful she was there. He wanted to ask all these questions but it was hard enough just seeing his mom like this. He wasn’t sure if he could handle it all.
“As of now, we don’t know. We won’t know for sure until we get her to Demetrius.”
“Who is Demetrius,” Bart asked.
“He is my teacher. He is far more skilled than I in the arts of healing and he will have a better idea of what to do once he can evaluate her situation.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Bart asked impatiently. “Won’t her being stuck in this state like make it worst?”
“Actually, no. We thought it would as well but it seems that it is staying steady where it is. For some reason, they wanted you incapable of fighting back but alive. We don’t know why yet but we intend to find out.” Bart turned back to look at his mom. “As for why we haven’t left yet, well that is because we are waiting for a safe trip to the cove.”
“The cove?” Charlotte asked, sounding confused.
“Yes the cove. It’s a small inlet on the other side of the Dorman falls forest. It’s a dangerous path but the only other way to Zathya has been sealed for protection purposes.” Bart turned and looked at Charlotte who was expressing the same amount of confusion on her face as he was on his.
“Wait,” he said as he tried to stand. “We are going to Zathya?” The look on Victoria’s face suggested that she thought they already knew this.
“Why of course,” she said, sounding surprised by Bart’s question. “That was always the plan.”
“And just how do you plan on getting Mrs. Nelson there?” Charlotte asked politely. “It’s not like she can walk and Dorman forest is huge, I’ve never even been to the other side. What are you going to do carry her the whole way?”
“Not I, no,” said Victoria. “My brother and Caleb will take care of that. Myself, Mr. Cole and Jonah will be going with you two.”
“I’m not leaving my mother,” Bart said sternly as he struggled to stay standing.
“I apologize but you do not have much of a choice. It will be safer for those two to carry your mother without you. If you aren’t present, they are less likely to be attacked.”
“So you’re saying they won’t be attacked if I go with you?”
“Not exactly,” said Victoria. “I said they are less likely to be attacked. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Look, trust me when I say that you are better off leaving your mother in their hands. We’ll meet up with them in Zathya.” Bart didn’t like the idea of leaving his “on the brink of death” mother in the hands of a stranger and his uncle who already admitted to being no match for this Mafortian guy, but he didn’t have the strength to argue.
“Fine,” he said finally.
“When do they leave?” Charlotte added.
“Tonight,” responded Victoria. “We leave first thing in the morning.
“Why do we have to wait,” Bart said, once again becoming impatient. He felt so helpless and he wanted to have control over something.
“We must wait for you to rest a little more Bartholomew. You will do us no good on one leg the entire trip. Unlike my brother, Caleb, and your mother, we will most definitely be attacked. If you cannot defend yourself then you will end up like this again or worst.” Bart thought she might have been joking but her face remained straight.
“My dad doesn’t know how to wield, so why would he go with us?” Charlotte asked. “If we are in danger why wouldn’t he just go with them for protection?” Victoria paused before answering.
“Your dad does not completely trust us,” Victoria said. “Therefore, he will not let you go alone with us. I respect his decision.” Bart looked at Charlotte. She looked a little taken aback but she didn’t say anything. Bart decided to let it go and change the subject.
“What makes you think I will be able to defend myself, bum knee or no bum knee? Did you see the amount of damage that was done last night? You might want to know that I haven’t even been trained. Why don’t you just leave me here and go without me?” Victoria smiled as he stared at her and then she turned and walked towards the door.
“I did see the damage Bartholomew, but like you said, you were untrained then.” She turned and faced him, still smiling. “Get some rest, both of you. Your training begins tonight.”
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