A collie dog appeared from the foliage and I was a bit worried could this have been the one that bit Lilly? My brain quickly searched for all the information I knew about collie dogs. The only thing I could think of was the movie "Lassie". The dog looked at me and then with its head motioned for me to follow it and it even looked slightly anxious. I followed it into the woods. It began to walk a bit faster and I tried to keep up. I noticed the woods seamed to go on farther than it should but I kept going. The dog kept on the path until I noticed that we were walking amid other animals whom would just look up at us as we passed. It briefly amazed me that they didn't dart away like most animals would or should. I continued on for a ways more when it came to my attention that perhaps I would need a bit more than the Small pack of Medical supplies I had brought with me. I stopped and knelt down waiting for the dog to come to me. When It looked back it tilted it's head as if to say "what are you doing?" I asked "Is it much further? Should I get more medical supplies?" I realised then how stupid I must sound talking to some dog I was certain it couldn't understand a thing I was saying. I got up with the resolve to continue on and If I needed more supplies well then I would just come back and deal with it then as well as perhaps get some help. We walked on and the animals just continued to watch us. I could not believe how amazingly vibrant the forest looked. After a while we came out into a clearing. In the center of the clearing was a tree that towered and seemed a bit odd standing there alone. It had stones at its base or what looked like stones with vines covering all of it. The dog pointed at it and then sat down in the clearing in the bright light of the sun. I thought it was kind of odd but shrugged it off. I walked up to the tree and the first thought that came into my head was that perhaps they were making some sort of movie here and it was actually a hollow tree perhaps someone was trapped inside and hurt. I tried to brush the branches away I remember thinking how annoying they were. They seemed to move back a bit but then returned into their original place. I reached out my hand to feel my way around the tower of vines. I walked around the tree slowly after a few moments I had walked one third of the way around the tree when I noticed a small spot where the vines seemed to pull away revealing stone beneath. I looked closer and noticed names etched into the stone, I vaguely remember thinking that I had seen some sort of television show where they carved their names into the wall to open the door and let their companions out. I looked around for something to carve my name into the stone. When I looked down at the ground by my feet, I saw a hammer and chisel. I didn't think anything of it at the time I just picked up the hammer and set the chisel to stone and just as I was about to raise the hammer a voice spoke to me.
"If you do that there is no turning back." I looked over my shoulder but all I could see is the dog sitting there in the sunlight. I shook my head and shrugged. I turned myself back around and raised the Hammer once again. "I said.. If you etch your name in the stone there is no turning back. You will never again be able to return to the sleeping world." I turned back around and the dog was looking straight at me. Once again I shook my head. "weird..There is no way you could have been talking." "why do you say that?" The dog had spoken. I took a step closer to the dog and knelt down on my haunches. I tilted my head slightly and asked.."was that you whom was giving me a warning?" For the briefest of moments I thought what an idiot I was for talking to a dog, then it answered me. "Yes. If you carve your name into the stone your life will change and you will not be able to return to the life you once led." "yeah but if I don't then someone whom is injured will not get the help they need. Isn't that why you brought me here was to help someone?" I stood and turned around and raised the hammer again not listening to the dog as it said "The one in need of saving is you." I Chiseled the word 'Steph' and waited a few seconds then finished with 'anie' I stepped back and looked at the word I had just chiseled there 'Stephanie'. After a few moments the letters began to glow and the stone began to melt away revealing an entrance. I stepped inside and saw before me the room that seamed to be much larger than the tree looked on the outside. In the center of the room a shaft of light shone down encircling an individual laying on the floor. I ran toward them. As I got there I noticed they were not laying face up so I reached out and turned them over.
As I looked down into my own face I began to freak out. I quickly laid the body back down and stood then backed up to the door. I watched as the body turned to sparkles and floated up in the shaft of light. My eyes round as saucers I turned and walked out of the door. Afraid that if I had stayed much longer in the room it would close on me. I knelt down by the dog. "What... What just.. How the.." I had too many thoughts to form one cohesive sentence. The dog looked at me and for a moment I could swear it smiled at me. "You are one of my chosen." "Chosen what? I don't understand I am very confused as to what just happened." "I have led you down the supernal path to the Primal Wild. I have chosen you to assist in saving the fallen world. I give you the gift of Life." "The fallen world .. gift?" "I give you the powers over life. You have been chosen." "Right so your saying I now have the power to heal things?" The dog nodded. This had to have been a dream even so I was excited.
"HOW" I was eager to learn this healing things or others would be helpful in my line of work. "How do you normally do what you do?" I saw a branch and picked it up and matched it to the limb on the tree where it had fallen and turned "I usually bandage things" I pulled out a spare gauze bandage and wrap the branch to the limb on the tree. I turn and look at the dog "so your saying that If I were to remove that bandage it would have been healed?" The dog didn't say anything and I felt my shoulders slump I couldn't believe that I was actually thinking of believing this. I looked up in time to see a white stag with the perfect antler rack stepping from the woods. As I looked at this stag I wondered how he could have been proportioned so perfectly. I noticed with a bit of a shock that he was also see through. I could not explain why I was drawn to him just as I was drawn to follow the dog into a strange woodland area. I took a step closer expecting him to dart away but he stood still and I felt like whistling. I wanted to reach out my hand to touch him but was too scared to do so. He spoke. "I am the aspect of Spirit and I have chosen you to assist in saving the fallen world." I blinked there was no way this was a mechanical stag. "You spoke with a dog just a few moments ago why can you not believe now?" I stared at it and tilted my head to the side shrugging slightly. "I think I am still in shock." was all I could reply. I listened as the stag explained how everything had a spirit and could speak even the penlight in my hand. When I looked at it and it spoke to me I dropped it on the ground with a shriek. It screamed back at me, "Ouch that hurt." I bent down and picked it back up. I remember thinking 'Amazing'. The stag explained to me that the world I knew is what they call the fallen world and that there is an abyss between the fallen world and the Supernal world. The Abyss was going to swallow the fallen world if we didn't find a way to stop it. This was what they had chosen me to do. That disbelief was part of what was causing the fallen world to slip closer to the abyss. I must have had a look of overwhelming confusion on my face as the dog spoke. "I believe she should go soon. She can not stay here much longer." The stag replied "you are correct. She can not stay much longer." He looked to me and spoke again in a calming voice that seamed to draw me closer. "remember not to speak of this to anyone except those more like yourself. You will no longer be able to speak with us unless in your dreams so if you need to you can still ask questions." As he spoke things seamed to fade I looked up and saw the big blackness that was the Abyss the four other spears pointing down toward the same tower I had just exited from not too long ago. I nodded and walked back down the path I had walked with the dog not to long before. I didn't even notice my surroundings as I was lost in thought believing I had gone insane.
I stepped out of the woods onto cement and still I could hear the things around me speaking to me. I reached in my pocket pulled out my cell phone and dialed the number of my shrink whom I had felt I needed to see right off. "Morgan," "Hello Stephanie, Is there something I can do for you?" "everything is crazy.. I am going crazy.. Everything Is talking to me. A Dog a Stag my pen light. I am going Crazy the stag said I had awakened but I don't I am goi... Oh my god... heh.. he also said not to say anything to anyone other than an awakened." "Stephanie, I think we need to meet. I will meet you at your apartment in five minuets." I opened the door to my apartment and agreed then hung up the phone and dropped the medical bag then started pacing. My doorbell rang two minuets later. I went to answer the door and almost jumped back as I saw Morgan there. I thought she said five minuets but she ... She must think I am truly messed up, was all I could think. I motioned for her to come in fully expecting her to prescribe some Valium for me and perhaps something a little stronger. "Stephanie, I think you should sit down." Looking at her I felt slightly blinded at first but she spoke to me telling me to concentrate on something else and as I did I could see better. This struck me as odd. "How..What..." "I am also Awakened. Your talking with me was OK. I have been among the Awakened in the city for a while now. You will have to practice your mage sights but that is what that was. You spoke to a stag and a dog.. it seems like Alice would be able to help you hone your new skills more." "Wait your .. like me ... so All that ... was real?" Morgan smiled and patted my hand while nodding. "Yes, It was real. You are now a mage. And I believe you have some mail." She looked to the bag I had just put down only a few moments before. There was nothing in it then. Now there was a Letter. I reached out and noticed my hand was steady though I thought it should be shaking. I pulled the letter from the bag and opened it and read. 'Miss Stephanie White, Your presence is formally requested at Consilium.' It proceeded to tell me time and place. I looked to the clock and noticed it would have been starting now. I mentioned this to Morgan but she smiled and told me she would take me there. She then told me that as she didn't attend Consilium much she would not be staying she and Bunnie didn't get along. I caught a glimpse of my first magic as I stood next to Morgan in my kitchen as she spoke a few words and waved her hand opening a space portal. "step through." I reached out to touch it but it felt like air so I just stepped into it. I stepped out into the back hall way of a coffee shop near the restrooms. Morgan was behind me, I walked forward with her encouragement and became a bit nervous.
"Welcome to Consilium La'Fae. And who do you have here?" This came from the man at the front of the room who seamed to be leading the meeting. I noticed this was Morgans husband and thought this was a bit odd. "I have brought a newly Awakened to Consilium." Was her reply and I remember feeling slightly like I was being fed to the wolves. Little did I know I would meet them soon enough, "Step forward and give us your name." I stepped forward and spoke softly "My name is Stephanie White." I watched as he typed a few things on his laptop and I could feel my knees shaking. After a few moments my current life was flashed up on the wall like a dossier. I was a little unnerved by this but listened as he spoke. "You have one month to pick an order. I do not abide apostates in my city. You may have a seat." I looked around and an greying man whom seemed very English and proper spoke "Here my dear you can sit by me." I turned back and noticed Morgan had left already so I sat next to this man whom said his name was Sherlock. I nodded and smiled. A voice came out of a speaker box telling me that I could call upon his aid when and If I needed. I looked around and just shrugged. That was when another man came up to me and offered me his card. I looked at it and all it said was Marcus. He spoke "If your in trouble or need to speak to me just call my name while holding this card." My head began to swim. This was a lot to take in but at least Morgan had assured me that I wasn't crazy. What else could happen?228Please respect copyright.PENANABx3CZfpRFz