Chapter 26

Sir Edward

Raya looked over towards Andreanna.

"It's time to move on," she said, "we don't have a lot of time."

Andreanna nodded.

"But how do we get out of here?" she asked.

Raya looked around the room. The underground sunlight was returning and soon it was, again, pouring through the windows.

"You've freed me," said the girl, "I am eternally grateful."

She held out her thin, bony hand towards Raya.

"My name is Des, short for Desdemona, but nobody really calls me that," she said.

"It's nice to meet you Des," said Raya taking her hand and shaking it.

"Raya!" called Andreanna, "over here!"

Raya looked towards where Andreanna was calling. There, written on the wall was "Compassion."

"You've officially completed the second task," said Andreanna.

Then the wall writing slowly faded and in its place was a small wooden door.

"You've shown compassion towards Des," said Andreanna, "the completion of this task was the only way to get out."

Andreanna walked over to the door and tried the handle, but the door was locked.

"It's locked," groaned Andreanna, "now what?"

Des gasped softly. Raya and Andreanna turned towards her and saw that she was becoming engulfed in gray mist.

"Des!" called Raya worried the spell has not been broken after all.

But after a few moments the mist cleared and in the place of the skeletal girl stood a fully clothed, fully skinned, healthy girl.

"I'm back," said Des, "I'm free."

Though her clothes were still ragged she looked a great deal happier and in good health.

"I went through hell and you brought me back," exclaimed Des, "I went through the darkest times thinking that I would never know happiness again and you saved me, and for that, I will never forget you."

"Yes, you will," said Raya and she drew out her wand. "Obliviate!"

A blue light emitted from the tip of her wand and hit Des.

"What -?" she began.

"I hope you enjoyed our camp, Des," said Raya, kindly, putting her wand behind her back, "you were a joy to have and I hope you will return next year and, once again, be a role-model for the other children that attend."

"I don't remember -," started Des, looking around at the large room.

Raya drew her wand from behind her back while Des was looking away.

"Memoria Abeo!" whispered Raya and a thin, almost transparent gold light struck Des.

"I hope you had fun," said Raya sweetly.

"Oh!" said Des, "I did. I had so much fun."

"Are you ready to return home to your parents?" asked Raya.

"Yes, please," said Des.

Raya muttered the disapperating charm and Des disappeared. Raya closed her eyes in concentration. She pointed her wand in the air and shouted, "Memoria Abeo Maximus!"

The thin gold light appeared once more from her wand and shot up towards the ceiling.

"What was that about?" asked Andreanna, after the light stopped coming out from Raya's wand.

"That girl couldn't have been older than eight years old, and she's already seen hell at its worst. No eight year old should have to live with those memories. I rearranged her memories to make her believe that the reason she was here and away from her parents was that she was at some sort of a camp. Then after I sent her back I did a charm so that her parents and other family members believe she was at a camp as well. I couldn't possibly send her back with memories of camp and nobody else knowing what she was talking about, that would just cause confusion," answered Raya.

"That was a very honorable thing you did," said Andreanna.

Then both girls turned their attention towards the locked door. In the same spidery handwriting as twice before, honor appeared written in soft glowing letters across the door. The letters soon faded and both girls heard a click and the door swung open.

They looked at each other and then down the passageway that had been revealed to them.

"After you," said Andreanna uneasily, motioning towards the door.

Raya stepped forward into the doorway and stepped into the inky blackness of the corridor ahead. It did not stay that way long however. Only a moment after Raya set foot in the passage torches that had apparently been lining the walls on either side lit up and made the hallway glow with an eerie orange light.

"Oh light," said Andreanna, stepping into the passage behind Raya, "that's better."

They walked down the hallway cautiously for this was one with many twists and turns and who knows what surprises could be waiting around one of them.

"What task do you think is next?" asked Andreanna as they turned what seemed like the millionth corner.

"I'm not sure," answered Raya. "I've completed the tasks that prove my loyalty, my compassion, and my honor. That's three tasks down, five to go."

After a long while of walking they turned a corner and came upon a wooden door with a green light coming out from the bottom.

"Time for another test, I guess," said Andreanna and they approached the door.

Raya gently took hold of the rusty handle and turned it. It was unlocked and swung open easily. They stepped inside the room and quietly the door shut behind them. The whole room was filled with the strange green light, but it seemed to shine brightest somewhere on the left side of the room.

The room was circular just as the room before had been. But in this room on either side of the room there was a rectangular chunk missing and created a little nook. The source of the green light was hiding in the left nook. They walked towards the area and turned to see that on a podium made of stone was a green glowing hand. In front of it, lain across the stone platform was a silver bladed, golden hilted sword.

"What test is this?" asked Andreanna.

"You have to fight it," said a voice and both girls whirled around.

There floated a ghostly man that looked as though he came from the mid-16th century. Dressed to the nines he was, with pearls sewn into his tunic, a lacey collar around his neck, and rings on his fingers. Well, at least on his left hand. His right hand was missing.

"You must fight my right hand to the death," he continued.

"Fight a hand to the death?" repeated Raya slowly.

The ghostly man nodded.

"How do I kill it?" asked Raya.

"You stab it," said the ghost as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"And may I ask how I stab a ghost hand?" asked Raya, "a sword would go right through."

"Exactly," said the ghost.

"What?" asked Ray who, at this point, was very confused.

"Let us first begin with introductions," said the ghost, "we must be civil."

"Alright," said Raya.

"I am Sir Edward, cousin to Gryffindor's beloved ghost, Sir Nicholas," he said proudly.

"You're the cousin of Sir Nick?" asked Andreanna.

"Is that what he has you call him now?" asked Sir Edward, "oh dear. He always did like to be familiar with his friends."

"I'm Raya," she said trying to move things along, "Raya Potter."

"Pleasure to meet you," said Sir Edward and he held out his hand for a shake.

Raya did her best to shake his hand, which was very difficult for her hand went through his.

"I'm Andreanna Pasternak," said Andreanna and she too shook his hand awkwardly.

"Now it is my duty to give you the rules of the task," said Sir Edward importantly.

Andreanna and Raya looked at him expectantly.

"You will challenge my hand by picking up the sword on the opposite podium."

He motioned towards the nook on the other side of the wall where another stone pedestal had an identical sword lain across it.

"Then you two will fight to the death," continued Sir Edward, "His aim is to cut off your hand and it will then take his place and he will rest in peace as well as the owner of the hand. Your aim is to drive your sword through the middle of his palm."

"Wait," said Raya before he could continue, "How do I do that if he is grasping the sword hilt? The hilt is covering the palm."

"The hilt of the sword is part of the ghost world and therefore mortal things can go through it," said Sir Edward, "and now we must begin."

Raya nodded and walked over to the right podium and picked up the gleaming sword. Immediately the green glowing hand jumped up and grasped its sword and rose itself off the podium and floated towards the middle of the room. Raya walked, with her sword held up in front of her face, towards the hand.

"May the best fighter win," said Sir Edward and the green hand lunged forward.

Raya just managed to block her left hand before pushing her sword forward with great strength and the hand flew backwards a few feet. This went on for a long while both hand and girl pushing back at one another with their swords flying every which way, both trying to protect their hand(s).

"Raya!" called Andreanna, "use your time alter thingy!"

"I can't!" said Raya, "I don't know how to call or use it whenever I want yet. It just kind of happens when it happens."

"Well," said Andreanna, "what about your claw nails?"

"No," said Sir Edward, "she will stab at him with this sword.

"Well," said Andreanna, "what new ability did you get with your honor task?"

"I don't know," said Raya, "so far the abilities that I've gained have just happened during the following task."

She stopped for a moment when the hand pushed her back a ways.

"So I guess," she continued, and then paused once more to take a stab at the palm, but the hand was too quick and moved away, "that my new ability will show itself during this fight."

Raya tried another stab at the hand quickly she drew her sword back in front of her own hand when the hand attacked.

"Well," said Andreanna, after a few more minutes, "It had better show itself soon."

It seemed that hours passed as they fought.

Sir Edward floated towards Andreanna and spoke quietly with her.

"Most people who have tried have given up by now," said Sir Edward, "I did. I was too tired to fight for this long."

"You tried to find the Book of Secrets?" asked Andreanna.

"Yes," said Sir Edward, "when I was little older than you two. I was 20 when I heard the tale and once I found out how to go about it I snuck into the ruins of Hogwarts."

"The ruins of Hogwarts?" asked Andreanna.

"Yes," said Sir Edward, "I'm a muggle. But even muggles, if they ever ventured down here and really searched around the supposed rubble, could see the large stone map of Novia tipped onto its side on the ground. So I figured out the password and followed it down."

"But did you get any of the messages?" asked Andreanna, "Only the ones who see the message are even able to maybe get to the Book of Secrets."

"No," said Sir Edward, "and I did not know I needed a message. I passed the loyalty test when a dog had appeared in the water beside me and I saved it from the falling rocks. I passed that horrid demon man that had captured that little girl, but only because for some reason for a couple of seconds he thought I was one place when really I had snuck up behind him. I didn't kill him. In order to kill him you must have driven your nails through his heart but I only got his shoulders. He left anyway though. I knew something was wrong when it was the girl that unlocked the door for me. For once the door was open the passageway was deadly cold and I could smell death. As if it lay waiting for me around every corner."

"I came into this room and knew that I would make it no further for my blood was growing cold as ice as the ghost of Sir Henry explained to me the task. The hand had me going for two hours before I threw down my sword and held out my hand in surrender as he parted my hand from my arm. Sir Henry howled with joy as his hand was reattached to his body and his slowly faded away as I lay huddled in the middle of the room on the floor and bled to death."

"I am sorry," said Andreanna, but then she looked at Raya, "but Raya will never give up. She is fighting for more than just to get the book. She is not only fighting for herself."

"That is where I went wrong," said Sir Edward, "my only hope in this mission was for me to own the Book of Secrets and be rich for selling it to whoever was the highest bidder. What are Raya's intentions for the book?"

"War is occurring," said Andreanna, "the evil Lord Voldemort has gathered armies in all the different worlds and dimensions and will attack soon. On which world we do not know but we know that the only way that the world of good can triumph in this fight is that we have the Book of Secrets to guide us and aid us in this great battle."

"This war will be great?" asked Sir Edward.

"The final war of Good against Evil," answered Andreanna and her attention went back to Raya.

Raya collapsed in exhaustion on the ground. She breathed in heavily as if she had just run a marathon. The hand was just about to stab at her when Raya's wand rattled and lifted itself high into the air. A sudden pale blue light surrounded Raya and the ghost sword bounced off it.

"The Contego Charm," gaped Sir Edward.

Raya stood up. In one last effort she drew up her sword and stuck the center of ghost palm.

Sir Edward applauded by slapping his left hand against his leg.

"Very good, very good," said Sir Edward, "You have great skill. Although, I cannot deny that part of me hoped that you would lose and take my place, I am also happy to see you move forward in your quest."

"Thank you," said Raya, still breathing quite heavily.

"I believe you exit through that door," said Sir Edward and he pointed behind Raya. She turned and a wooden door had appeared and in the same thin scrawl 'Endurance' shone brightly on the door until it faded.

Raya went to return the sword to the pedestal when Sir Edward shook his head and said, "No, my dear, you keep that. Your new ability, if you will. Here."

From the side of the room he pulled a sheath off the wall. The sheath was a brilliant silver with a silver band around it that Sir Edward placed around Raya.

"If I may," said Sir Edward, sheath in hand.

"Yes," said Raya and Sir Edward clasped the sheath around her waist. Raya sheathed her sword and smiled up at him appreciatively.

"Thank you Sir Edward," said Andreanna and the two of them opened to the door.

"Tell Sir Nick that I say hello, if you wind up getting out of here!" Sir Edward called after them. They smiled back and said they would and closed the door.

Another tunnel awaited them on the other side of the door.

"Oh no, not this again," said Andreanna sighing.

"No," said Raya, "Look! At the end of the hall there, there's a light. It's not a very long tunnel at all."

The girls walked towards the end of the short hallway and when they turned they saw that they were in what looked almost to be a Greenhouse. Plants were everywhere as well as fountains trickling here and there.

"Wow!" said Raya looking around, "So far, I like this room best."

Then they heard something else. It sounded like two voices. They walked towards the sound. As they got closer they realized it sounded like two girl voices. Arguing about something. Then the turned from behind a large plant to see a large stonewall. It looked like an ordinary stonewall. Ivy leaves climbing high around it, a wooden door built in, flowers growing out from the top. It was indeed an ordinary looking wall. The only thing that made it a little unordinary was the fact that on either side of the little wooden door were mounted two heads.

One was a girl with brown hair done up in a very fancy style with a little tiara on her head. The other was a girl with blue wavy hair that was merely let down. It seemed they were fighting about who had the better hairstyle.

"Mine is up to date with the latest fashion," exclaimed the first.

"Honestly no one cares about your hair," shot back the second.

"Everyone cares! You have to look perfect for everyone!" cried the first.

"What everyone! No one is here!" yelled the second.

The first one gasped, "You always have to take it too far!"

"Um, excuse me," said Raya stepping forward a little.

"What?" asked the two heads together.

"Um, we're here on the quest," said Raya. "Are you two part of it?"

The first one smiled sweetly.

"Why yes," she said kindly, smiling almost too sweetly, "we are. Hi, I'm Raila. And we are meant to help you in the completion of your next quest."

"You're such a suck up," said the second glaring at Raila, the first head, and then she turned towards Raya and Andreanna. "I'm Alethes."

Her smile was, well, there wasn't one. Her face remained nonchalant.

"So," said Alethes, "you've come to test yourself and have made it to our task."

"Yes," said Raya, wondering when they were finally going to explain what the task was.

"Well, enough chit-chat," said Alethes, "let's continue."

"You're so mean," said Raila, "they have worked hard to get here and do deserve a reward."

"What kind of reward?" asked Andreanna.

"Why don't you look over these on the stone platform," said Raila.

They looked behind them and saw two chocolate frogs bouncing around just waiting to be caught.

"Wow!" said Andreanna, "chocolate frogs!"

And she ran to catch hers.

"No thanks," said Raya, "I'd rather start on the quest."

The truth was she wasn't very hungry at all. She just wanted some rest. She was still exhausted from her duel with the ghost hand and she felt like she was going to be sick if she didn't lie down somewhere and rest awhile.

"Alright," said Alethes frankly, "it's pretty simple really."

"All you have to do is figure out which one of us is telling the truth and which one is lying," said Raila, finishing smiling brightly.

"Telling the truth or lying about what?" asked Raya, then she eyed the first head, "it had better not be anything about hairstyles."

"No, no," said Raila, "nothing like that."

"Believe me if it was, I wouldn't have signed up to be part of it," said Alethes.

"There are two books," said Raila, looking down on the ground as best she could.

Raya looked down as well and two books appeared before her feet.

"One written by me," began Raila.

"And the other by me," finished Alethes.

"Inside the books are spells," said Raila.

Both books on the ground opened up to the middle pages and as Raila had said spells were written out on each. One in a neat cursive print that shimmered, Raya assumed that was Raila's and one in a loose sloppy cursive print that was plain black against the paper, Raya assumed that was Alethes'.

"Both spells open the door," continued Alethes, "but they differ in what happens behind the doors."

"What do you mean?" asked Andreanna, munching on the leg of her chocolate frog.

"One spell leads you to safety and the next task," said Raila, smiling, "while the other leads you into hell and eternal torture."

"And I am suppose to guess which spell does what?" asked Raya.

"Well sort of," said Alethes.

"Sort of what?" asked Raya, she was getting frustrated with all this riddle talk.

"You pick a spell," said Alethes, "and you say it before the door. The door will open and only once you step through will you find out whether or not your choice was good or bad."

"So no turning back," said Raya thoughtfully.

"Precisely," said Alethes.

"And what task is this?" asked Raya, thinking maybe this would help in how she was to approach the problem.

Raila and Alethes looked at each other.

"Are we allowed to tell her that?" asked Raila.

"It doesn't say anything about it in the rules," answered Alethes.

"Does that mean yes?" asked Raila.

"I guess," said Alethes.

Both heads turned back towards Raya, was had sat down while the heads talked among themselves and to Andreanna who was starting on Raya's chocolate frog.

"This is the test of logic," said Raila.

"You will use common logic and reasoning to solve the problem," said Alethes.

"This is beginning to sound too much like math," said Raya and she began looking over the two books.

Sorry for the long delay. You'd think it being summer I'd have more time to write but obviously that isn't the case. Hopefully there won't be such a big gap between the next two chapters. Please Read and Review! Flames will be ignored.