Disclaimer: Everyone in the story is 18 years old or older at all points. Any resemblance to any real person, real or dead is just happenstance.
I dreamed I was in the dark forest again, its twisted trees moving to an unseen wind, moaning as they moved. I could feel pressure against my mind, coming from all sides. The trees hated that I was there and seemed to be moving closer, trying to suffocate me. Deep down, I knew if I didn't get away from them, they would hurt me.
Since the trees looked the same everywhere, I picked a direction and started walking. The path I took was winding between the trees, and as long as I was moving, the pressure was tolerable.
It felt like I had been walking for hours when I heard a sound behind me. I quickly turned, but there wasn't anything there.
Just your imagination, this place is creepy,
I thought, turning around and moving forward.
I had gone a little further and heard the noise again, louder than before, closer. This time I knew what the sound was, claws hitting the ground.
I started running, not wanting the thing behind me to catch up with me. But, unfortunately, the path between the trees had narrowed, making it harder to move through them at any rate of speed. Then I heard it, the howling. It came from directly behind me, sending chills down my spine.
I ran as fast as possible, but the claws and howling kept getting closer. I knew that it was only a matter of a few minutes before it caught me when I saw the light ahead. I knew I had to make the lit area ahead before it caught me. I could feel the creature breathing on my back as I dived forward into the light.
There was a sharp shooting pain in my left calf as I landed and a scream of pain from behind me. Rolling over and looking back, I could see a dark shape with purple piercing eyes, pacing on the other side of the circle of light. On the ground next to my leg, I saw a smoking black claw which dissolved as I watched.
I tried to stand, but my calf's pain wouldn't let me put weight on my left leg. Looking at my left leg, I saw that my pants were shredded, and there were several deep gouges in my leg.
Looking around, I found a fallen branch and used it as a walking stick. Finally, I managed to get to my feet and hobble towards the source of the light.
In the center of the clearing, I found a small cottage with a pair of posts in front of the steps. The light keeping the creature that had chased me out was coming runes carved in the columns.
Since I had nowhere else to go and the area outside the light was not safe, I walked to the door and knocked.
The door to the cottage swung inwards, and I found myself face to face with Page's grandmother.
"Nana?" I asked, leaning on the doorframe for support.
"Hi, sweetie," she sighed, looking me over and noticing my leg.
She frowned. "Come in and let me look at your leg. Then you can tell me how you got here again."
I limped into the cottage and sat on a stool she pulled out for me. She knelt and pulled the pants away from the injury.
"I bet that hurts, but fortunately for you, it's easy to fix," she said, running her fingers over the three gouges in my leg. Then, she walked away and started going through various powders and herbs, humming as she placed them into a small pot and put it on the stove.
"While we wait for that to steep, tell me how an untrained witch managed to get herself fully into bardo again.
"
"What's Bardo? Wait, witch? What are you talking about, Nana," I asked, shaking my head to clear the cobwebs.
"Always so many questions from you," she said with a smile. "Bardo is the place between life and death. Typically spirits pass through here on their journey to the afterlife.
"As to the witch part, you have a lot of potential, child. More so than Page does." Nana replied as she poured the liquid into a cup.
"Here, drink this before you pass out," she said, handing me the cup of steaming liquid.
It smelt horrible, which caused me to make a face and look at her. "Are you sure I need this? It smells bad."
"Yep, drink it fast," she advised.
"Will that make it taste better?"
She chuckled, "No, but it won't be as bad as trying to get it down by sipping it."
I pinched my nose and emptied the entire cup into my mouth, swallowing the thick liquid. It burned all the to my stomach. Immediately the wounds on my leg started to close.
"That's amazing," I said, feeling suddenly tired.
"You were lucky Tina, a bit from a wearg is harder to fix and much faster to kill than their claws."
"Wearg?" I asked.
Nana sighed. "It is the creature that chased you. But, unfortunately, there is too much to tell you in the time we have left before the healing puts you to sleep."
She reached for the amulet around my neck, lifting it over my head. Then, she walked over to the table and picked up a scribe.
Curious, I walked over to watch as she worked quickly to add additional markings on the back of the amulet. Once she was satisfied, she pulled a wand out of her pocket and touched the new markings causing a flash.
"That should help," she said as she picked up the amulet to examine her work. She turned and placed the charm over my head. I felt the heat from the flash that happened when it touched my skin as a tingle ran over my skin.
"Page's heart was in the right place, but the amulet was bound to her, not you. I am impressed that you could bind part of it to you without any training. We will need to rectify the lack of training. Otherwise, you will end up hurting yourself or someone else."
"In addition to binding this to you, I have added a simple codex. It will answer simple things and help with wards if you need them. I cannot stress enough that you never take this off, Tina. One more thing before I send you back. Touch the amulet and think of this cottage if you find yourself here again. The amulet will bring you directly here."
I tried to listen to everything, but I was having difficulty concentrating. I started to wobble, and everything faded to black as I fell.
