Twisted

chapter 1

The last thing I can remember is the tree. But now I'm floating or am I drowning? I can't see the sky. Only a small fraction of light is visible. Red water is surrounding me. Or is it blood? It's blocking my view. All I see is a red haze. The liquid is burning my eyes but I can still somehow see. It's all so confusing. My lungs are on fire. I want to scream but I know it would be useless. My head is throbbing and it feels as if it's going to explode any moment. I know I must swim to the top, but where is the surface? With a burst of energy I swing my limbs around violently to try and get to the surface... but I'm so tired... I can't anymore... I stop and await my death until it comes.

How long have I been here? I can't remember. How am I still alive? Where is here? I hear my name being called. How? No one else could be down here and still alive. It sounds distant. I hear it again but this time it sounds as though it's right beside me and it's being yelled. I turn my head and there it is. The most horrific thing I've ever seen. It's right next to me. As it takes my hand I shudder. Even though the water is lukewarm it's hands are like ice. It's dragging me to the bottom. It's whispering my name. It speaks louder and louder until my name is a deafening shreak heard throughout the water shattering into ripples that repeat itself. It's dragging me down ...deeper and deeper into the darkness I go...

I come to with a start realising I've been dreaming. The first thing I hear is a voice saying "Charm wake up!" but the first thing I see is the tree. The branches so delicate yet strong enough to remain attached to the tree. It always has the same blossoms. They never fall. It's because of the magic rock that is intertwined with its roots. The Rock is the most magical thing in all the universe, possibly the most powerful thing to exist. There were once millions of them scattered all around but there are only two left in existence. One being underneath the Celtic Alba. The old ones call it that. It can harness the rocks powers and cab use it for its own purpose. The old ones know spells to tap into its powers and can see the wisdom, but they do it often. They only do it every year at the vitellina. The vitellina is the graduation of the salix. It's the young ones that have completed their training and are ready to take the oath to protect our kind. We are the only kind of people that can use light magic. We, the salix, have to defeat the dark ones. The alduin. The tree provides us with the wisdom to preform most of the ceremony and also with enough protection to train our magic and learn how to harness as well as control it.

"Oh good, you're awake." The second thing I see is Ruby. Her amber eyes sparkling. She is one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen, with her copper hair falling over her face. "Charm are you okay?" She brushes her hair away quickly before continuing. "Were you having another dream?"
"Ruby... it was horrible... I... I..." she already knowing the answer because she used one of her spells and has seen my dream before. She gives me a warm embrace as I cried. Ruby is one of my oldest friends but she's the one that's helped me through the most. After about a minute she lifted my head and dried my eyes. She looked at me for a long time before eventually saying :"You've been here most of the afternoon. You're sister is really worried about you. What were you doing here anyway?"
"I looked down at my hands and played with the ring on my finger. "I just came here to clear my head. That's all. I guess I must have dozed off. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just really needed to get away from it all."
"Okay what did he do this time?"

On the way home I told her about the fight. How he had done it yet again. "I swear Charm that boy will be the death of us... unless I kill him first..." she added quietly under her breath "... He just wants to argue with everyone. I don't know what you see in him. Ever since those two showed up he's been a real pain in the fucking ass."
"I know Ruby."
"Then why do you still try to be friends with him? He's always with them and every time you go near him they insult you. Just face it, you mean jack shit to him. He isn't your best friend, or even your best friend for fucks sake."
"Ruby stop! You're going too far again. You're just jealous because you think I like him better than you. I like you both equally, and Turner would never do that to me. He promised me that he would never let them take my place. And all the problem lye with Dillon and Tiger. They are the problems not him so don't talk about him like that."

We walked back in silence. But it wasn't a cold shouldered silence. It was a warm silence where two friends had reached an understanding and didn't need to discuss it further. While we walked back to our house, Tristis, which we shared along with my sister, I couldn't help but think of Turner and the way he used to be. We were so happy back then before they showed up and ruined everything. It was just the four of us back then Ruby, Turner, my sister and me.

Just then as I was remembering the happiest memory of all four of us I was roughly dragged back to reality when someone ran into me. I stared up at him in amazement from the ground. "You see charm it's just like you summoned him by thinking about him." He helped me up with a dazed and confused expression on his face. He had brown eyes with gold and green speckles scattered all around. His hair was a very dark brown, almost black, and was always untidy. It was long but not as long at the other boys. When we were younger I had always at least a head taller than him but in the last two years he hit a growth spurt and now he towered above me from the heavens. He was the tallest boy in the whole group of the young ones. "Sorry Charm I didn't see you there and my magic must have been working."
"It's okay."
"Listen about the fight..." He stopped talking when he cough the look in Ruby's eye's. "It's okay it was a little of my fault too."
"Well then I'm sorry but I have to go now. Dillon and Tiger are waiting for me and you know how they get."
"Oh don't we just all." Ruby said in a low menacing voice. "Now go since your in such a hurry." He retreated walking a few steps and then started running probably feeling the hole Ruby was staring into his back. And with that he was gone, he didn't even look back. My attention was drawn back to Ruby when she took my hand. We stared into each others eyes for a second before she started laughing and I followed shortly. "He was always such a scared little shit."

We laughed until we cried. We laughed at nothing and everything at the same time. We laughed the way only true friends could laugh.