Prologue
Aliza Meriya Nettles pulled her cloak tightly around her to shield against the fast-falling snow. It had been a long walk through the Forest, especially in the dark of the night, and she was chilled to the bone. Her blue hands were shoved deep in her coat pockets were there was a heating charm, but even with that, her face was flushed red and her teeth where chattering slightly in the cold. And yet, in her satchel she had the herbs that Marcia had told her to get.
Aliza drew closer to the Castle and she could see the tiny lights from the candles in the distance. It was one the longest night of the year, and the lights would be on till dawn, to help keep the dark at bay. Aliza always loved this walk to the Castle. She had never been afraid of the Forest (although she should, being only seven) or its inhabitants and loved to hike through the thick trees for miles. She was at the edge of the Forest now and the tall, thick trees had begun to thin out to grass, small saplings and bare berry bushes. Aliza could see the whole Castle spread before her. The walls hugged the winding river and zigzagged around the clumps of houses.
The Castle had started life as a small village. Being so close to the Forest the villagers had put up some tall stone walls for protection against those of the Forest who often caused them harm. As more houses were built, the walls were extended and a deep moat was dug.
It grew and prospered so much so that the inhabitants began to run out of space until someone decided to build The Ramblings. The Ramblings was a large stone building that was built up along the riverside. It sprawled for three miles along the river and back again into the Castle. It was the noisiest place in the whole village, filled with small shops, factories and little children.
Aliza began to walk faster as the sun began to go down, giving way to dusk. She needed to get to the North Gate before they locked it and pulled up the drawbridge at nightfall. She had never been left out of the Castle at night and she did not plan on it anytime soon. She was only seven after all, she could barely protect herself.
It was then that Aliza sensed something nearby. She stopped in her tracks, small ears straining for any noises. As an Ordinary Wizard she could sense these things but she was still quite young, not everything was completely fine-tuned yet. She heard the faint beating of a heartbeat, not as if it was dead, but as if that was how it had always worked.
Underneath a bush beside the path was a small hollow and inside a bundle. The heartbeat sped up though it was no animal or human. She picked it up, stuffed it inside her bag, and hurried on.
She reached the drawbridge just as Gringe, the Gatekeeper, was about to go and yell for the Bridge Boy to start winding it up.
"You're cutting it a bit fine," growled Gringe. "But you Wizards are weird. Waddyou all want to be out for on a day like this I dunno."
"Oh?" Aliza wanted to get past Gringe as soon as she could, eager to see what laid inside the small package, but first she had to pay. Gringe was not one to be trifled with and could hold a mean grudge. He was the keeper of a gate so he was not one you wanted to cross. She quickly found a gold piece in one of her pockets and handed it over. Gringe gave her a toothy smile.
"Thank you, Gringe. Good night." She said politely.
Gringe stepped to the side and she rushed through, quickly making her way through the cobblestone streets till she reached her own home. She shoved open the door with her shoulder (it still hadn't been fixed) and shook off the remaining snow, shedding off her layers and leaving them by the door as she held the bundle in her free hand.
She looked around curiously for Alice but saw her on the couch, snoring away. Aliza smiled softly, tiptoeing her way to the kitchen, grabbing her plate of food before entering her room.
The faint heartbeat that she had heard before turned into a buzzing as she carefully shed each layer of cloth from the item, curiosity growing inside her. She hadn't even thought of the consequences this might bring her.
As she completely opened the parcel there was a bright flash of light before she fell back onto the bed, only catching a glimpse of two green dots before she passed out.