The Bounty Hunter's Trilogy: Chosen By Fate

Chapter 5. A Patient Door

I can't really explain how I knew where it was. The feeling was difficult to grasp. It was like a whisper or something. I could feel something trying to find me. I went forward, half of my own will, half because I listened to my own pure, idiotic instinct. I took it slow, step by step, and found myself stopping and turned to my left. I opened my eyes and found the door in front of me seemed to want me to open it.

My door was built of solid oak, nice and sturdy. But I noticed the doors in this corridor didn't have symbols on them. Beverly came to my side and gave me a pat on the arm. "Nobody can see the symbol until the resident shows up. You have to open the door yourself. Go ahead." I reached for the doorknob and as soon as I touched it, the door started glowing bright green from the middle out, like green fire. It created a pattern made up of a line weaving in and out of itself in four different sections, all coming to a point in the middle, making a circle. I recognized it as a Celtic knot. I had no idea which one though. Once the burning stopped the symbol wasn't even ashy. It almost looked as if the wood had naturally grown with the symbol in it. Oh yeah, sure. That's always been there. Doesn't all wood have that?

I reached out to trace the pattern and touch the wood, finding it was room temperature instead of hot, leaving no ashy residue on my fingertips "What does this symbol mean?"

Beverly shook her head in confusion. "I don't know. I've never seen any like that one. It's definitely powerful though. I can tell you that much."

"How powerful are we talking, exactly?"

Beverly scoffed. "Nuclear. The symbol is connected in all four parts." She pointed to the connecting marks, proving her point. "See?"

I nodded. "So it means... something about unity?"

Beverly shrugged, unsure, and stuck her hands in her pockets. "Maybe, but it's hard to say. Oh well, we'll look it up later in the library, but for now, go inside and have a look around. It's been waiting for you." Oh great, a room that's been waiting for me. Why did I feel the sudden need to run and hide in a corner?

"When do I get this tattooed on me?"

"Once you've lasted here long enough. Either then or the first time you fight with us. Whichever one comes first."

"When'd you get yours?"

"After eight months of training and proving I was trust worthy."

"Oh, so you didn't fight?"

"Not until a few weeks later, no." Beverly turned around and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?"

"To my room, it's private time for me. Your schedule is on your bed." She walked down the hallway and turned out of sight. Suddenly the pistol in my hands felt heavier than before. Good thing I had the safety on. I checked my gun nervously. The symbol on my door was now etched into the side, just above the trigger.

I swallowed in an effort to get rid of the lump in my throat as I turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, stepping across the threshold nervously before pausing to listen. For what, I wasn't sure, but I felt uneasy about a room that knew I was coming. I stepped further inside and shut the door behind me. I turned the light on and a light fixture above the bed flickered to life. It looked like a mini upside down oak tree. Odd, but I kind of liked it. A set of dog tags was resting on it and I took them down, seeing a square with twisted corners on them, along with my symbol and full name. I put them on, knowing I probably should, and tucked it inside of my shirt. A glass case was mounted on the wall with a sheathed sword and dagger inside. My symbol was on the scabbards of each as well as the glass of the case.