(Ivan)

Ivan paced back-and-forth along the edge of the Lonely River. William and Fleck had been missing for hours. He feared that Fleck was likely dead. Only a shifter could have survived that long under water.

“Have we heard anything new?” Rob’s voice startled him.

“Nothing,” Ivan said numbly. “The only information that we have so far is that my aunt was following the blood trail of the injured beast when it suddenly disappeared. Rose detected unusual magical signatures that she has never felt before. The remnants of these spells are so widespread that she can’t find the source. She said that the water here is saturated with magic. To make things worse, none of them have been able to reach the bottom of the river yet, not even Drake.”

“We’ll find them.” Rob placed a hand on Ivan’s shoulder. “One of my best divers, Kali, joined the search. Lin gave her an enchanted water bubble necklace, which allows her to dive for hours. She also has stun pebbles which work great underwater. She could knock out a rhinodon with one of those.” He gave Ivan a reassuring nod.

“Thank you. That’s good to hear.” Ivan replied before dragging his eyes back to the river.

His stomach was in knots. His brother was somewhere in the depths of the Lonely River.

He’s alive… He has to be alive! He survived this river once before.

“I need to talk to Fleck’s family. His son is one of the guilders. If you need anything, I’m here.”

Ivan nodded absently as he continued to scan the river. The night seemed darker than usual. Moonlight struggled to peek through the curtain of clouds. The guards were on high alert, and he could hear the clanking of armor nearby.

The inky water lapped rhythmically against the riverbank. The Black Forest loomed behind Ivan. He heard tree limbs scraping and creaking in the distance.

A few more hours passed and still, there was no sign of William.

I wish I was a shifter. Ivan sighed. I could be helping with the search right now instead of frittering away the time.

He kept watching the lake. Waiting…

“Over there!” a sentry shouted. “I see two bodies floating in the water.” Several guilders dashed toward the nearest boat, leaped in, and rowed furiously.

Ivan sprinted toward the sentry. He stumbled in the dark but kept running. When he reached the guard, he adjusted his night spectacles and saw the guilders pulling two bodies into the boat. The pit of his stomach fell.

“It’s them… It’s them! I found them!” someone exclaimed. “It’s Fleck and William.”

“They’re alive,” another shouted. Ivan fought the urge to jump in the water and swim to his brother.

More people piled up at the edge of the riverbank, waiting anxiously for the boat to return.

“For Tor’Sal’s sake, they’re sleeping,” one of the guilders announced incredulously. He tossed a rope toward the shore. “Just listen to Fleck. He’s snoring like a bullhorn badger.”

The boat was pulled onto the riverbank. Ivan jumped in and leaned over his brother. William’s eyes were closed, but he was breathing. Ivan reached out and touched his forehead. His skin was remarkably warm, considering he had just been dragged out of a cold river. He shook his brother and called his name, but William did not stir.

“We need to get them to the healers,” Ivan said urgently. “Bring over that wheeler.” He pointed at a nearby cart. Fleck and William were rushed to the healers.

“Bring them in… bring them in.” The Prime Healer, Clara Hale, gestured.

Inside, the healers removed their wet clothes, wrapped them in blankets, and laid them on cots at the back of the tent. Clara examined William, while her helper checked on Fleck.

“Zuzu, bring more sunstones,” she directed her young apprentice.

“Yes, mistress.” Zuzu hastened over to a nearby trunk.

“Come on, child, hurry up,” Clara snapped. She briefly rested her hand on the side of William’s neck and leaned down, listening to him breathe. Her eyes widened. She inched closer to him and took in a long breath. Her upper lip curled, and her nose wrinkled. She grabbed the sunstone from Zuzu’s outstretched hand, snagged the tongue stick out of her pocket, and opened William’s mouth.

“What is it?” Ivan blurted out.

Clara ignored him. She opened one of William’s eyelids and illuminated it with a sunstone. “Hmm…” She shuffled toward Fleck, muttering to herself. She brushed the other healer aside and examined Fleck. Nodding to herself, she turned to Ivan.

“Faint state, a smell of mushrooms, spotted purple tongue, and dilated eyes.” She raised a finger for each one of the symptoms. “I’m fairly certain that they’ve been exposed to nightshade mushrooms.”

Ivan opened his mouth as if to speak and she held up a finger to silence him.

“I’m not done yet,” Clara barked. “Nightshade is a fascinating mushroom that is quite rare. I’ve only seen it twice in my younger days. It impacts your memory. That’s the reason it’s so forgettable.” She snorted at her own joke.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Well, there is no need to worry. They’re going to be fine. They just need to sleep it off. If they were exposed to a small amount of nightshade, they’ll probably forget the last few hours or few days. On the other hand, if they were exposed to a lot of it, they might forget the last few years… or the last decade. Again, as I said, no need to worry, they’ll be just fine.”

Ivan drew in a sharp breath. “What? The last decade... He’s only thirteen!”

“Well, let’s not be greedy. We need to count our blessings,” Clara chided. “They’re alive and they should be awake by the morrow. My job here is done. I bid you goodnight.” Without another word, she stuck her nose in the air and strode out of the tent.

Zuzu shot Ivan an apologetic look and hastened after Clara.

#

(William)

William stretched his arms and yawned. There were a few flutterbies dancing above him. He smiled. Today was going to be a great day! The barges would finally head south toward Stoneridge, and he was going to scout with Lin.

He loved flying and scouting.

I hope I don’t get myself in trouble with Lin.

He heard light snoring from his right and turned his head. A stranger was sleeping in the cot adjacent to his.

“Whaa?” William mumbled in confusion. He sat up on the edge of the bed and looked around.

Hey… This isn’t my tent. He frowned as he looked around.

He saw medicinal supplies stacked on shelves. Rolls of bandages, elixirs, and salves were neatly organized. He rubbed his eyes.

Scraps, what am I doing in a Healer’s tent? How did I even get here? He scratched his head.

He heard sounds outside, and he hopped off the bed. “Sheesh, where are my clothes?” he looked around.

No wonder he did not see them immediately. They were neatly folded on a wooden chair, rather than being piled up in a crumpled mess on the floor. He pulled on his pants, buttoned up his shirt, and shrugged into his jacket. He shambled out of the tent and covered his eyes protectively from the early morning sun.

“You’re awake,” a willowy girl exclaimed. She popped up from her small stool and raced toward him.

“Hmm.” He squinted his eyes. He knew that girl from school.

What was her name? Ah, that’s right!

“Hey, Zuzu.”

To William’s surprise, she gave him a big hug. “You saved Lula’s husband,” she gushed. “We feared the worst when that beast dragged him into the river. Everyone agrees that he would have drowned without your help.” She squeezed him even harder. “You’re so brave.” Stars danced in her eyes.

“Uhh,” William stammered. He had no idea what the girl was talking about. Come to think of it, he had no idea where he was. He could see a forest around them. There were a few barges on the riverbank. “Hey!” William pointed, feeling even more bewildered. “That’s too small to be the Elma River. What’s going on? Where am I?” He pulled away from Zuzu and looked at her suspiciously. “What’s going on and what beast are you talking about?”

“Ohhh… yeah… your memory.” Zuzu slapped her forehead with her palm. “Let me fetch the Prime Healer. She can explain.” She hustled off toward a distant tent.

William stood disoriented. He felt like a shipwreck survivor that had washed ashore. He gazed blankly around. A screeching sound caught his attention. He looked up and saw a falcon swooping down. He recognized his aunt even before she shifted.

“Thank Cea’Nia, you’re awake!” She locked her arms around him and held him in a tight embrace. “You always get into the thick of things.” She hugged him for a while, before stepping back. Looking anxious, she asked, “What’s the last thing that you remember?”

“Uhm… I woke up in the healer’s tent and I was completely shocked… My clothes were neatly folded.”

“No, no,” she interrupted him. “What do you remember from yesterday?”

“Oh.” William looked puzzled. “Well, yesterday we were at the Elma River, getting ready to leave for Stoneridge.” He chuckled to himself. “Mary and I Levitated some food out of the cookery, while the chef wasn’t looking, and we stole the potty-paper when John went to the privy.” William grinned broadly. To his surprise, his aunt looked relieved, and she did not even chastise him.

“Thank goodness!” Lisa sighed and patted her chest. “You’ve only forgotten a little over a week. We were worried that you might have forgotten years of your life.” William’s eyes widened.

She went on to explain everything that had happened over the last few days and what the Prime Healer had told them about his condition.

William listened intently, trying to make sense of the events that had unfolded. The first thing that he did was cast a healing spell.

Whew, I can still heal. Relief coursed through his body.

“Scraps, I could’ve forgotten everything that I know.” He paled and stood speechless for a moment then the corner of his mouth quirked up. “Well, I don’t really know all that much, so it probably wouldn’t have been a big loss.”

Lisa laughed. “Oh, William, you can find humor in anything.” She placed her arm around his shoulder and added, “Are you sure that you can’t remember anything since we left the Elma River?”

William’s brows furrowed and he scrunched up his face in thought.

“No.” He shook his head. “I don’t even remember seeing the creature that you described. A weird amphibian tree shifter...” He paused.

He shook his head. “Nuh-uh, I don’t remember a thing.”

“I wonder if you found something that you weren’t supposed to,” his aunt mused aloud. “Rose and I think that you were deliberately given the nightshade to make you forget. There are a lot of folktales and mystery surrounding the Black Forest and parts of the Lonely River. Whoever lives here is quite secretive. Last night, we discovered something important. Some of the trees in the Black Forest are actually shifters. They’re not human shifters. They’re entirely something else.”

“Wait…” William’s eyes widened. “You know that bridge west of our farm, the one that never gets old? I wonder if those other shifters built it. I mean, it’s not that far from here.”

“It’s possible, but if they can shift and swim, why would they need a bridge?”

“Yeah, good point.” Several flutterbies circled William and a few landed on him. “Sheesh, what’s going on with the flutters this morning? They’ve been all over me since I woke up.” He waved a few of them away. His hand brushed against something on his neck. He looked down and saw a necklace made of shells.

What’s this?

He lifted the necklace over his head and looked at it. He had never seen anything like it, and he did not remember getting it.

I must have gotten it in the last few days. I’ll have to check with the twins. They might know who gave it to me.

“How are you feeling?” his aunt inquired. “Do you think you can fly? We need to catch up with the lead convoy.”

“I feel great,” William answered as he stuck the necklace in his pocket.

“I told you he was going to be fine,” the Prime Healer proclaimed, shuffling toward them. Zuzu followed her, like a shadow.

“What’s the last thing that you remember, child?” asked Clara.

“He has only forgotten about a week.” Lisa looked pleased.

“Oh, he must have ingested a very small amount of the mushroom. Well, he no longer requires a healer. I’m going to check on Fleck.” She left as abruptly as she had arrived. Zuzu smiled shyly at William and scampered after the Prime Healer.

Lisa and William took to the sky.

(Seetk)

Seetk waved his branches merrily as the two pink worms flew away. He chuckled to himself when he saw flutterbies following them. He had finally gotten rid of that accursed necklace.