Chapter 5: The Goose Ghost at Goosebay

John Peter

A skinny black haired boy in his pajamas slept uncomfortably on the lower bunk bed. He forcibly closed his eyes and fought the traumatic nightmare that often visits his dream, but he hasn't resisted it this time.

"John, no!" He heard his mother's voice shrieking.

Too late, he had already covered his elder sister from the incoming golden beacon of curse and reflected it back to its conjuror. His eyes widened as he didn't expect it to ricochet at the half-dazed woman in the white gown, making her suffer from Enchantress' curse instead.

Enchantress was standing in front of him now, bellowing in anger as her grey eyes are flaring in flames. Her somewhat cold hand began choking his throat. He can't breathe for he was raised by the powerful grip of the sorceress. She forced to meet his gaze, but his eyes were shut. As he was focusing on summoning his powers, his hands were slowly covered with purple mist, and soon covered his whole body, he suddenly felt light, like he weighs nothing at all. Enchantress gets her hand off of his throat like she just touched a very hot object.

"How dare you suck up my mana?!" She blurted out angrily.

He floats in midair after Enchantress moved away from him to evade the incoming attacks from her enemies.

Josephine and Gekee kept sending bolts and streaks of violet and yellow rays of light at Enchantress who easily avoided them gracefully, teleporting from one place to another. One second, she was standing near the staircase, the other second she appeared behind the Queen.

While the fight was growing more intense, the maidens on the other hand stayed in a corner, holding each others' hands. Joreyna stood up and went behind Josephine and Gekee's back. Reka stirred from somewhere, her silver hair was still tightly bound. His twin brother floated in the form of a white mist, his new golden eyes are glinting. Fred and Iron stood up simultaneously, their canes at the ready. John landed near Joreyna's side, he felt dizzy but he fought his drowsiness as he staggered to stand up, his sister is supporting him.

Enchantress cast streaks of golden curses, the witches deflected them without difficulty. The room is in utter chaos: broken kitchen wares, metal scraps, and small fires were on the floor.

Queen Queenne looked devastated and deranged as she sent a huge streak of white light towards Enchantress direction, Enchantress teleported into somewhere avoiding the spell. She stood near the antique mirror and touched it, stirring the ghostly image of Aishah that rippled inside it.

"Come out my child," Enchantress enchanting voice seemed to invite her daughter out.

Queen Queenne grabbed a small bottle which magically appeared on the table, she threw it at Enchantress but it hit the mirror instead which sent it breaking into shards. Enchantress screamed in a high pitch after flashes of red and green beacons of binding spells from Iron and Fred's canes hit her, sending her on a wall as white ropes start binding her. She squirmed but failed to do so.

Misty white fogs began flowing out from the bottle, the shards from the broken mirror are slowly reforming. After an instant, a small winged creature came out from the fog, she wore a white robe, her eyes and hair were golden. She smiled meekly as she grabbed a white triangularly-shapen shard that floats in the air that would basically be returning at the center, reforming back to the mirror.

A golden chain of cords then entwined it, making it a pendant of the newly made golden necklace. The face of Aishah shimmered on it.

John felt a heavy feeling began flowing through his body, like a big responsibility is entrusted on him, a burden that he has caused.

Enchantress eyeballed the mirror and golden mists covered both the mirror and Enchantress as they vanished together into thin air.

The winged girl flapped her wings, holding the golden necklace in her hand. She glowed, spreading golden lights to cover the room and restore everyone that was hit and wounded, but her magic didn't take effect on the curses afflicted on Mammo and Janus. Mammo has grown into a beastly werewolf while Janus was a floating mist with golden glinting eyes.

***

John's dream faltered, breaking into bits of floating and traumatic memories photographed in his memory.

He opened his eyes, the huge bunk bed comforted him always but not this time. Time was slowing down again, like the events that had happened eight years ago were all coming back to him, but that was just the least of his problem. One of his major problems was that his sister had gone missing and that was four years ago. His second major problem is that his twin brother, Janus, is always bothering him, annoying him by flying around him constantly, playing trickery and slowing down the time within his bound, freezing him everytime they practice. His third major problem is that he has just turned sixteen and he must go on to venture with his initiation, but where would he go? What will he need to prove? Then a thought clashed his mind; what if he goes and ventures the shore of Cowardice and Frailty? Look for his sister and return her back. But his sister wasn't given a quest to prove herself, she was banished, and that was four years ago, he was just twelve that time when they angered their mother by breaking her most precious and powerful treasure, her supposedly 'sacred treasure' which she called Disaster. Majorly, that was all Janus' doings, that's why he hated his twin brother so much, wishing him to be the one banished and not their sister, not to mention that he is always used as a practicing tool by his twin; freezing him in time, sending flares of enigmatic glares that send horrible visions in his head that added to his daydreams and nightmares, and even trying to possess him.

Blobs of sweats trickled down his forehead, his whole body is in perspiration. He paced, and looked into their huge room, their huge room was in utter chaos as always. Janus floated in his invisible misty form in the upper bunk bed. He went back to sleep and slept, this time no dream came bothering him.

***

Morning laid amidst the horizon as cirrus clouds played tag in the turquoise blue sky. Sun rays lit the room, illuminating it with the luminous spots from the sunshine.

John opened his eyes, he rubbed them and he lets out a yawn, opening his mouth wide as he stretched out his hands. Janus floated and glided like a poltergeist. His ghostly transparent figure looked luminous from the light rays that are hitting him.

"Janus, could you close the curtains please. The lights are creeping me out," John grumbled and paced awkwardly back away from the sunlight.

"Morning, my emo twin brother," Janus said in a hoarse voice teasingly.

"Just shut up and do what you're told!"

Transparent hands then closed the flowery-knitted curtains. John lets out a sigh and looked at the misty image that is identical to his, he can see the drawing smile in his brother's see-through face. Janus moved his gaze away and glided towards the door, shutting it heavily.

The room was still luminous even the windows were now covered with curtains. John stood up. Their wooden walls were covered with wallpapers made from special delicate materials like they were made from plastic woods, the pictures on the wallpapers shone in green hues, especially the shaggy forest in it; the river was flowing real and the trees looked alive.

He ambled a step near the picture, a silhouette of a human being with the body of a horse was etched into it, then the shadow moved near the river, it ran fast and the forest seemed to come to life, his eyes narrowed to the horse. The centaur's shadow shifted and seemed to grow in size, he rubbed his eyes, the image grew into a full grown stallion with a man's body, the silhouette then talked in a husky deep voice.

John stepped back, making way to the shadow centaur who now came emerging from the wall.

"I'm Welcon, the Initiator. I and my brethren guide young wizards to become wizard cavaliers, mages, and necromancers."

John processed what the centaur was talking easily, but his brain seemed to have stopped functioning. He knew that he is sixteen and it is due time for his quest; what he doesn't understand was that shadow centaurs only showed when their trainees are too powerful, or weak, or can't control their powers. He was bothered that he might be weak because that is what his mind says.

"John, your quest awaits you. We'll go on your quest now," Welcon continued, he can't decipher his expressions nor can't look at what he looked like, he was a black shadow.

"I haven't decided yet."

"Will you wait for a decision or will you follow what your heart says? John," he put his hand on his shoulder, John was a bit hesitant and stepped back.

"I see." Welcon sounded forfeited.

"Don't be hasty then, but make sure that what's bothering you won't make you face great risks and consequences. You're special, and it is time to prove yourself," he pauses, "make sure your decision won't make you suffer in the end. I'll be going then," he reaches for his hand, "just tap on my mark if you need me." Then the shadow centaur was gone. John thinks of what was the mark the centaur was talking about.

On his right arm, just above his elbow, a centaur's image was etched like a tattoo. John noticed it.

"So this is the mark."

***

John leaned on a big tree, he sat there watching the meadow, thinking deep.

The sky was filled with cumulus clouds as he watched the green luminous meadow. Two kilometers away, there stood the dark castle of the black witches, Josephine's castle, the twin towers faced each other in opposite directions, standing side by side by the castle, the garden maze stood there also as a fortress.

John looks at his hand, closed his eyes and muttered a chant, his voice sounded like a scraping metal, like a steel being brandished in a rock.

Purple mists covered his hands and covered his body, he felt light again, he opened his eyes which now are in full purple colors. Birds are starting to fall down from the sky while they were flying, the tree where he was leaning started wilting, the grasses wilted, the squirrels and skunks weakened, manas filled his veins, he felt invincible. He stood up and flew as purple mists covered his body, he stopped himself from sucking mana, his stomach rumbled like he needed more, but he stopped himself, afraid he might get addicted of doing so and then he started testing the air, feeling the wind, flying from here to there.

"Now I've decided." He said and shot himself to the north, flying 80kph. He past Ariadne Mae's forest, which he knows barely. Ariadne Mae's enormous willow flashed green.

"That is sure to possess a lot of mana. That sure would be a scrumptious treat," his evil side thought in greed. He then shot past the green swamp, he flies fast, thinking of the evil creatures living there.

"Poor maidens, sacrificed to heal the good-for-nothing son of the Queen. The insolent wizard cavalry." His black eyes flashed with sympathy. He can now see the blue waters of the sea of Goosebay, the shore of Cowardice and Frailty.

He landed on the fine-grained sands and felt exhausted. He faced the lush mangroves, at his right stood the huge boulders. He walked to his right direction, a big boulder was on his way.

John closed his eyes and focused on his anger, thinking of Janus' annoyance. A streak of violet light hit the boulder, shredding it to pieces. He then continued walking. He heard cracking movements, he looked behind his back, the boulder has reformed in its original shape.

He wandered the shore and noticed that there aren't much mangroves there.

At the farthest, he saw a woman. He wasn't quite sure of what her features were.

Clue, that's the reason why he's here, after all, a clue of finding his missing sister. Maybe that woman might help him, so he ran towards her, she is starting to get visible, she was bulky and pale in complexion, she was meters away from him now. She wore a white robe under her ghostly white skin. John darted his eyes into her dark eyes.

"Hello?" He said.

She faced him, her expression was unreadable, she seemed to be looking sad or angry.

"Another test? Get it on boy?!" Her black eyes turned red, her hands were covered with brown swirling goos instantly, no, they were brown sludgy muds.

"No, I'm here for a quest."

"A quest? This is no place for a quest." She shot muds towards his direction, John dodged them. Now, piles of mud are on the sands.

"I'm looking for my sister," John said, dodging another ball of mud.

Piles of muds were circled around him, he was now inside the circle of mud. The girl smiled. She raised her hand and the piles of muds covered him, devouring him. He closed his eyes and opened them making the purple fogs oozed. The muds disintegrated.

"No one escapes my trap!" She bellowed angrily, sending an enormous wave of mud that came sprouting from the sands, it looked like a ten-foot tsunami made of muds.

"Stop!" He shouted and the huge wave disintegrated before it gets to hit him.

The bulky girl dropped her jaw. John's eyes were igniting in purple.

"Are you going to answer my questions or what?" He blinked and his eyes returned to normal.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"I'm John Peter of the West," he replied looking into her eyes, her eyes are returning to their original colors also.

"And you?"

"I'm Angelica Kim. I'm from the Island of Abundance, Pasaso Island, I came here to train and discover what I fear," she blinked her eyes.

"Are you a witch, a royalty?"

"I'm a mage and yes I'm a princess. And you're a black wizard?"

John shot her a glare and grimaced.

"How long have you been here?"

"Two days."

"Then you're no help."

John walked past her, leaving her behind.

"Wait, what was your quest all about? This place isn't a place for...?"

"For what?" John cut.

"For boys."

"Wizard cavaliers guard this place, and for your information, I don't talk to strangers."

She chuckled. "You're funny." He turned back and walked.

"Hey! Can I join your quest? Maybe you can help me find the ghost goose here so that it'll qualify me."

"I'm the one needing help here, why would I help you?"

"Because if you could help me, I'll help you find your sister." She smiled amiably at him.

"Deal?"

"Deal."

"So, where do we start first?"

John thinks of it, maybe if he has gone with Welcon and let him choose his quest, maybe he's not worrying now, but he decided to look for his sister and he'll stick with that.

"Where do ghosts go?" John asked while they're walking. There was a quagmire on the sands.

"To heavens, if they were good." She replied. They noticed that the ground was wet and there was a trail of webbed feet, from a duck. Their eyes met.

"A quagmire?" they said in unison.

"Duck's footprints," John suggested.

"They're definitely goose's footprints."

"Let's follow the trail then," John invited.

"Sure thing."

Together, they both followed the footprints which were heading to the mangroves. They ended on another puddle of water.

The sky was cloudless, the wind blows cool and the salty smell of the sea loomed in the air.

A portal, a whirring whirlpool appeared on the puddle.

"Let's jumped in," Angelica invited.

"You sure?" John said uncertainly. If this whirlpool portal was made of magic then surely he'll negate it, and Angelica's chance of finding the ghost goose and his chance of finding his sister will surely be put to naught.

"Yes, this is where the trail ends,"

"Maybe it's a trap."

"Then we'll find out then if it is."

"On three then," John relaxed, making his emotions stable, sealing his mana.

"Three." Then they both dissolved into the whirling puddle.

John opened his eyes, they were in a different place now, in front of them was a beautiful lake, the water was a clear blue, the sky was cloudless and tranquilizing. The aroma of the air is making them sleepy.

"What's this place?" John asked.

"My realm," a deep soothing voice replied from behind them. They both turned back at the same time.

"Welcome questers. I'm Jairus Rodney, just call me Jairus or Rodney whichever you like." He introduced himself.

He has a beak, his body was filled with feathers, he looked like a man in the middle of morphing into a bird—a goose.

He shimmered, then his beak and feathers vanished after. He wore a ghostly white tunic. His eyes were blue, his black-hair was damp. He looked transparent now, like a ghost.

"Am I qualified?" Angelica asked.

"You're overqualified, Angelica Kim. You passed your tests very well, you'll be a great mage."

He waved his ghostly hand and a pig's image appeared, it flew and hit her. She floats and then muds began covering her, the muds disintegrated slowly, and then her clothes changed, she wore a magnificent white gown, glimmering in tiny beads of jewels, hair combed. Her face has gotten a makeover.

"Woah! That was intense, intenser than my mother's making over."

"And you?" Jairus moved his gaze to John. "Black wizards aren't supposedly trained here. Where's your guide?"

"Here," John pointed his right upper arm where the centaur image of Welcon is engraved.

"I see." His eyes turned white, "You're not going on a quest, you're going to avenge your sister."

"What?" John butted in.

Jairus' image whirl, no, their bodies whirled, and the place faded. The sky was dark, they were sent into the midst of a forest.

"Where are we?" Angelica asked and gets near John. John raised his hand, leveling it to his chest, violet light then ignited from his hand.

"There," John steadied himself, he hasn't yet gotten what that ghost meant about him avenging his sister, that wasn't his goal, his goal was to find his sister not to seek revenge.

There was an ignited hut on a clearing, near the deep thicket.

"Maybe we could get help there," Angelica suggested and ran to the hut.

"Angelica! Wait," John hasn't seen what was inside the Forest of Feesh yet, but if ever he's right, the rumors were right, the black witch by the Colleen lived in a hut in the midst of this forest.

"Just call me Kim," she looked back and smiled.

"Come on let's hurry."

John moved his feeble feet forward, they were now on the front of the hut, it has a balcony and was built from bamboo slants, the floors were wooden and the roof was made from cogon grasses.

Torches and jack-o-lantern illuminated the creepy crappy hut.

"Want to get inside? The place seemed to have no one inside." Kim grinned.