Destiny Island

Chapter 16

Witch Village

After taking only a few steps into the village, it was clear to them it was no ordinary village. It was a village populated by witches but luckily for them, good witches. Amber was thrilled with their discovery since she always loved reading about witches and magic. For her, it was a dream come true. Jade was a bit more rational since she wasn't the biggest fan of witches, good or bad. For her, it was yet another thing added to the list of inexplicable things on the island. The list that was only getting longer as they kept learning about the island and its inhabitants. Although it was a village full of witches, it still looked more or less the way any regular village was supposed to look like. There were, of course, some strange stores and establishments and from time to time a witch would fly by but other than that it was a regular village. Also, that was the first time they heard about some smaller disturbances happening on the island.

They didn't pay any attention to the rumors because they were too overwhelmed by the possibility of researching such an interesting place such as a witch village. It was mesmerizing for both of them but for different reasons. While Amber wanted to research all the village's magical glory, Jade was more concerned with its history. Not being able to find a compromise they decided to split up. Since they were in a village similar to any village they have seen before (except for the few magical details) they felt certain they could just meet up in front of the store called the Witch's Hat. The reason for that was the fact that the whole store was in the shape of a black pointed hat, so they thought it would be difficult to miss it. No matter where they went they would still be able to see that strange landmark or at least that was what they thought when they split up. Jade moved on to the city library while Amber headed towards the shop that looked the most witchy of them all. She could see some cauldrons and different potions, so she decided she had to go in and look around.

It didn't seem to Amber as if she had spent a lot of time browsing through the store's magical goods when she noticed that it was darker outside than she expected. She thanked the shop clerk and ran outside only to realize that it wasn't nightfall, but she found herself in the middle of the vicious storm. It was unlike any storm she had ever seen and it was so powerful that she couldn't even fight it enough to go back to the store she came out of. She was swept away by the strong winds that kept pushing her in a different direction, and she had no idea where she was or what she was supposed to do. Trying to find some shelter she kept straining her eyes but it was so dark and windy that she couldn't see anything. The only thing she could do was try to stay upright and not allow the wind to knock her over. In all her life she had never seen such a powerful and strange storm. One part of her mind that could still think told her that it was probably not a regular storm but a magic one, and she had no idea how to deal with it. Finally, she could see a dark shape in front of her that looked like an entrance, and she didn't care where it led just as long it led her out of the ever-growing storm.

As she barely managed to go through the entrance she realized it was some kind of dark cave, and she had no idea how she got there. It was dark and cold and worst of it all she had always suffered from paralyzing fear of darkness and there she was all alone in pitch black. The sounds of the howling wind outside were making her feel even more terrified. It was so unusual to be in such an unfamiliar place, not to even know how the weather worked. Also, she had no idea if she was still in the village or if the wind carried her far out of the village and there was no way for her to find out. On the other hand, having no idea what kind of village a witch village truly was she couldn't help but think that it was possible for the cave to be inside the village. She hadn't seen anything like it before but that didn't have to mean anything. Her hands started shaking violently, and she wasn't sure if it was from fear or the cold. Probably both since it was freezing in the cave, and she was scared out of her mind. Every new sound was a possible attack of a beast or a person to her mind that went into overdrive.

"I wish Jade was here, she would know what to do, and she is not afraid of the dark. I hope she is okay. " Amber thought before a loud bang snapped her out of her thoughts. There was nothing she could do but fold in on her self with her back firmly against the wall. The good thing about that was that no one could attack her from behind, and yet she didn't feel any safer. It was strange to her that she kept thinking about all the bad things that could happen to her but that has always been the major problem with darkness, anything could be lurking in it as far as she knew. The fear of darkness was mostly the fear of unknown. When you see the danger coming it is easier to find the courage to face it but in the darkness, your worst enemy becomes your mind. It can conjure up things that are much worse than anything that could ever happen in reality. Although Amber was well aware of that fact, it didn't stop her from being petrified. Suddenly, she was aware that there was someone else with her in the cave, or something else, she wasn't sure and that was when she started screaming.