Twenty-Two

I slept through the whole night and woke up early the next morning. My head was still pounding, and my body felt shaky.

Two glass bottles of water were sat on a small table that Kipp had put next to the couch for me. I emptied one immediately and placed the second inside my coat.

It took all of my strength to pull myself up from the couch. I caught myself from falling over and looked over at Kipp’s bed. She was still asleep on.

I slowly approached her and gave her light kiss on the forehead. Her mouth turned up into a slight smile and she rolled over.

I headed out of the Jade Palace and wasn’t surprised to see Zasi was already waiting for me. She leaned against a tree and approached me once she saw me.

“How ya feeling?” Zasi asked. She gave me a quick once over.

“Like shit,” I said.

“You don’t look much better,” she chuckled.

“So you know where we’re going?” I asked. The sun really bothered me. I pulled on my slightly bent pair of sunglasses and that helped. I couldn’t bring myself to throw them away, Gabrielle had picked them out for me close to ten years ago.

“Yeah, I know where we’re going. A little enchanter’s hut within the forest. An old gnome witch.”

Zasi and I made our way through the forest without a problem. When we came across the hut, my mind recalled memories of the fairy tales I used to read as a kid. It was a large mushroom with a red and white spotted cap. Purple smoke drifted out of the chimney.

Clothes were washing themselves in a big wooden tub, and when they were done, they’d hang themselves up on a clothesline.

We approached the hut and Zasi knocked on the door. The door swung open with a chilling creak all on its own.

“Hello?” Zasi called out.

“Yes, you can both come in.” The voice screeched down the back of my mind.

We entered the hut and the door closed again on its own accord. A damp, earthy smell sang through my nostrils and a warm fire greeted me.

An elderly gnomish woman sat in a rocking chair. She wore an apron and was knitting what looked to be an immensely long scarf. She wore a knitted woollen cap and a faded flower dress.

“Good morning, Heltra. I’ve dot Detective Vincent Clay with me. He’s investigating the murder of a-” Heltra raised her hand, to cut Zasi off.

“I know who he is and why you’re both here. To answer your first question, yes, I did supply Jackson Speers with the gem that played a part in the murder of Heston Barclay.”

“Did you know what he intended to do with it?” I asked.

“Believe it or not, no, not at first. Not until the act was committed. He’s a twisted man, that Jackson. He is so riled up in his own game, that I couldn’t peer into his mind. Believe it or not, I have my limitations.” Heltra continued to knit as she spoke to us.

“Then, do you know of a way we can get around his gem. When I confront him?” I could feel the woman poking around in my mind as she stared at me.

“Having a strong resolve always helps.” The woman gave a chuckle.

“That’s not gonna help me much in confronting him.”

“The gem would have limits on it, wouldn’t it?” Zasi asked. Heltra shrugged her shoulders and continued to knit in silence.

“Could you give me a gem, or some other item, that could counter what Jackson’s gem can do to me?”

“I can give you something, yes. But its an item that is hard to handle. Its side-effects can be tricky and confound most people when they use it.” She waved her hands and her knitting floated through the room and came to rest on a table.

“What is it?” I asked.

“This.” With a flick of her wrist, a small mushroom appeared in the palm of her hand. The cap looked a little battered and bruised and the stalk looked too thin, like it was shrivelled up.

“It’s a mushroom,” said Zasi.

“That it is. But you see, this is no ordinary mushroom. Consuming this mushroom, the person’s mind can become completely blank. Meaning, you cannot be hypnotised by Jackson’s gem.”

“By completely you mean…” I said.

“There is nothing going on in there. At all.” Heltra gave me a concerned look.

“Could you please elaborate?” I asked.

“So, this could potentially mean you forget how to breath and could die. Simple as that.” Heltra continued to stare at me, waiting for some kind of reaction.

“How do I work with it though?”

“You need o have a strong will. A resolve harder than steel and sharper than a razor. You need to know what you need to get done before you consume it. After that, your body runs on auto pilot.”

“And how long does it last?”

“Depends on your willpower when you consume it. Your desire is that you can overcome it and so it only lasts as long as you need it to.”

“Okay. Thank you.” I approached the witch and reached for the mushroom.

“I need some kind of payment for this. These things are extremely hard to grow, they die way too easily.”

“I’ll return Jackson’s gem to you.” I glared at Heltra, and she glared right back. I had nothing to offer her, I hoped this was enough.

“Yes, that’ll do. Thank you.” She offered me the mushroom.

Zasi walked me to the gates that led back out to Edge City.

“Good luck out there. Hopefully it goes your way.” Zasi gave me a nod. I gave a nod back and left Fantasy Park.

I had absolutely no plan.

Shit.