When I first heard the story of the witches coming on their beasts, I became obsessed with the trees. Dad once told me…
The witches revolted with their ferocious beasts and wreaked havoc upon the city when the people of Chimera started burning them. He said that the head witch left trailing flames in her wake, as she led the attack. “The stories say there were witches as young as nine,” Dad said.
“One was only a little girl,” Dad continued, “with shackles on her wrists and a bloody smile painting her face. Days after the attack, people investigated the forest and discovered carvings on the trees.”
Later, I asked Mom if she knew why there was a little girl in the story. She smiled at me and said, “Some say her name was Ares. She was a killer, who slayed people by the hundreds. She made a twist in the story that people yearn to hear.”
I’ve always gazed into the forest as if my answers were there, but I have never dared to enter. It’s closed off to the public. Scientists created the rules that we must stay out. No explanation given.
Today is the day I plan to break those rules. School’s over, and I have decided to ask my brothers if they want to join my rebellious adventure.
I walk up the path of rocks leading to my home. We live next to the ocean and right by the city, Rechimera.
I open the door and call out, “Solstice, Polaris, you home?” My twin brother, Solstice, is always game for adventure. However, my older brother, Polaris, is somewhat of a believer in not breaking the laws.
“Simple rules like no talking are silly and created to be broken,” Polaris once said. “Laws are created to last and follow.”
In my opinion, Polaris is too kind, too generous, and too perfect. He has brown hair, hazel eyes, and just the right amount of freckles on his face. I have Carribean green eyes, flame red hair, and not a freckle to be seen. Solstice looks exactly like me except with short hair.
I call again, “I know you’re here! School’s ended and I need to eat something.”
Polaris comes down the stairs, tilts his head, and says, “What does school ending have to do with eating?”
I smirk and say, “I worked really hard in school. I need to keep my energy level high. I don’t want to collapse of exhaustion.”
Solstice comes down the stairs and says, “You remember all we did today was listen to a speaker, right?”
I shrug and say, “Want to come to the forest?”
Solstice sighs and replies, “Why not?” in the most sarcastic tone, though he is smiling.
I ask, “Want to come too, Polaris?”
Polaris rolls his eyes at me, walks out the door, and says, “Come on, you two.”
When we reach the fence line, I jump over, without a second thought, and walk down the path into the forest. I’ve never trespassed before.
As we pass by the ironwood trees, my jaw drops as I see the carvings on them. I’ve seen pictures of the engravings, but I was still skeptical of their existence until now. I gently touched one of the intricate carvings.
After some time, Solstice says to me, “Pisces, I think we should head back.”
Polaris says to me, “Pisces, what was the purpose of coming here?”
I shrug and say, “I don’t know, to have fun?”
At the end of the path, I see that the city, Rechimara, has a bell tower in the plaza.
As we walk up to the city gates, we pause. I whisper to Solstice, “When were there gates in this city? And when was there a bell tower?”
Solstice whispers back, “There aren’t gates or a bell tower in this city. It’s the 21st century.”
Polaris says, “There were gates in this city a few hundred years ago, and a bell tower.” His eyes keep darting from the city, to the forest, and to the guards flanking the front gates.
We walk down to the gates, a guard stops us. He says, “I need to see your tattoos.” Then he points to his forearm.
On it is an image of a winged beast with three heads. It looks like the beasts in the story Dad told me, except, of course, with three heads.
The guard sees our blank looks and takes a few steps toward Solstice and me. He ignores Polaris.
Polaris has his thinking face and rushes in. “Our master is in the city. The tattoos we are supposed to have were washed away when we became slaves. We apologize for being a hindrance and deeply hope you don’t think us frauds. As the vagrants we were, we were not permitted permanent tattoos.” Silver-tongued Polaris always uses clever words to help.
I see the guard furrow his brow at this explanation. He says,“I guess the boy is all right, but I’ll still be taking the girl. You shouldn’t be so callous to the danger of witches.”
Grabbing my arm, he shoves me into a carriage. Polaris and Solstice have panic in their eyes and words they mean to say. They don’t say anything because they don’t have time.
I must be in shock. I can’t clear my head of the fog in it, and I lose consciousness.
When I regain all 27 senses, I am staring at a boy in a black cloak. It’s dark, and I can faintly discern a glass wall between the boy and me.
There seems to be a little girl next to him. She’s in chains and smiling. I realize three things: one, I have traveled back in time; two, I’m in a prison cell; and three, I need to find a way to get out of here.
I jump up and look for an exit. I spot the door and lunge. My ankle gets jerked back. I look down to see a chain, fastened to a collar, around my ankle. I tug on it and wince. I take a minute to look around and see the boy and girl conversing.
The door opens, and the boy walks in.
He says, “You won’t escape, witch. That’s iron fusing on your ankle. I’m sure it’s painful on your immoral soul. You’ll burn soon enough, so you won’t feel its effects.” I stand and hiss at him. I reach for his keys in vain. He purses his lips and says, “Be patient.” Then he leaves.
My head’s spinning round and round, and I’m screaming realizations in my head. I feel saltwater slowly slide down my cheek and drip into my mouth. I snap at myself to get it together. I have to think of happier things. No. I should stop thinking. Instead, I think of burning flesh and my throat going hoarse with screams. Where is Polaris? Where is Solstice? I’m panicking, but instead I force myself to think of crispy waffles and sweet pancakes.
I can feel my body moving, and my hands starting to claw at the chain. My hands become bloody and bruised, and yet I still try to pry the chain from my ankle.
The boy silently comes in and attaches a chain to my wrist. He then leads me out of the cell. As we walk, I ask in a voice I hope sounds unfazed, “Do you think waffles or pancakes are better? Do you want to know my name? Of course you want to know my name. I was named after one of the twelve zodiacs. What’s your name?” I’m rambling.
“I have twelve guesses to your name, witch,” he says, in a tone not matching his bright smile.
I’ll tell Polaris and Solstice about this dream. It has to be a dream.
When we walk out, I see we are in the plaza. The clocktower is in view, as well as a wooden stake piled with flammable objects.
I stumble, and the boy yanks on the chains. He leans back and whispers in my ear, “I’ve figured it out.” I don’t understand what that means, but I rage silently. I do not see Polaris or Solstice. I think the boy’s words through.
At the wooden stake, he ties my chains to the post, and my back is pricked with splinters. I suddenly start uncontrollably laughing. The wooden splinters dig deeper into my skin with each laugh. “I’ve figured something out too!” I scream. He shakes his head and smiles just a little.
“You’re Pisces, one of the twelve zodiacs. I’m the thirteenth,” he whispers. The torch in his hand lowers, and I burst into flames.
I wake to see nothing but a silhouette of trees and hear the boy whisper, “My name is Ophiuchus. Time-traveler, you should return home.”