“Before I step into the dark, scary closet, do you mind telling me why I’m doing this? More than, it’ll tell us your affinity,” Darius asked.

“It’ll tell us your affinity.” Madam Heart responded, still far more focused on the coat than anything else.

“The- the closet is just a good place for you to feel the touch of wattiez. Think of it like an oven, wattiez is the heat, and you’ll be a loaf of unrisen bread. Like heat, wattiez is a form of energy. Once you’re in, Madam Heart will-” Amelia took a good long look at her mother. “I’ll push a large concentration of wattiez inside and guide you through the process.”

“Sounds about right. Any risk I should know about?” Darius asked.

“Very rare but it is possible for the concentration of wattiez within to become too much for you. It’s called wilt. The length and effects of wilt can vary, but the most common symptoms last for two to three weeks. With it, a person will suffer from convulsions-”

“Nausea and shock?”

“Yes… How do you know that?”

“Sickness… It’s the Sickness!” Darius fell on his backside, covering his mouth, holding the vomit trying to escape. Kristina rushed to help, but he pushed her away. “Fine! I’m fine, just a… memory jolt. Pieces coming back, I’m fine.”

Kristina could see he was anything but okay. Darius struggled to stand on his own legs, looking more and more likely to fall at any moment. His eyes were a bloodshot red, tears only being held back by some primal willpower, yet Kristina didn’t know how to help. Calming him down sounded like a good first step.

“I get that you think you’re fine, but your body is telling me a different story. Look, I don’t need to know what’s going on here; I just really want to know if you’re actually okay. I don’t want to force you to do this. We can just call this off if you want to.”

Slowly, Darius’s shaking began to relax. His breathing even started to become more rhythmic, “No, I’m okay. I can do this.”

“I’m serious,” Kristina responded. “We’ve both gotten this far without wattiez. We’ll be fine without it.”

“I’m fine, actually fine… thanks. Amelia?”

“Yes, Darius.”

“I have some bad, let’s call them memories, with wilt. I may have had a small panic attack there, but that should be nothing to worry about. I’m ready now.”

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

Amelia took his hand between both of hers and spoke with an amount of confidence she hadn’t before, “While I am not as talented as my mother, she is my teacher of 14 years. Since she cannot help right now, I promise to keep you safe and guide you well.”

Darius couldn’t help but feel a bit uncomfortable. The way she looked up at him with those eyes full of drive and protective spirit weighed on him.

“Right… thanks, so I just need to get in the dark closet?”

“That’s the first step. Please, step inside.”

Darius faced the door, standing in front of it for a moment before taking a deep breath and stepping inside. The door clicked behind him, and he stood there, in the dark.

“Darius, are you fine in there?” Amelia asked.

“Yeah, no problems here.”

“Alright, I want you to sit down and close your eyes. Once you do so, I want you to focus on one thought, movement.”

“You want me to focus on-”

“No speaking! Not unless I ask you a question. Just focus on that idea. Walking, running, swimming, jumping, all of it.” Darius did as he was told, feeling a bit silly as he did. He particularly focused on the idea of Kristina jumping, he particularly liked that mental image. “Feel the muscles tensing and expanding, the energy being exhausted.”

Darius didn’t know why, but he could feel himself start to sweat as he continued to picture the thoughts.

Amelia moved onto the next step, “Let go of the images now, just feel the energy within you, the heat being released by your body. Try surrounding your body with that energy.”

It was hot inside, too hot. Darius was used to hot and humid weather in Journey, but inside it felt like a sauna on full blast. He felt as if something was crawling along his body, slithering from his head all the way down to his feet.

“Can you feel it?” Amelia asked.

“Yes, it’s like a steel bar being tightened around my entire body.”

“I’m not sure what a steel is, but I’m assuming you’re feeling some type of constricted feeling?”

“Yes!”

“That’s good. Now depending on how big your vase is, this might hurt a bit, so brace yourself. Take a deep breath.”

Darius did as he was told, expecting a sharp stinging pain, but got something far worse. The snake constricted itself, creating a crushing sensation around Darius’s body. It was extremely painful, but Darius endured, though not without letting lose a sharp yelp.

“That pain is good!” Amelia yelled excitedly. “It means your vase is well sized. Here’s the last step you need to-”

Darius couldn’t quite hear that last part and he couldn’t voice his concerns as the snake crushed the air from his lungs, so he did the only thing he could think of doing at the time. Spreading his legs, he pushed back against the snake, trying to rip it off himself.

“Get… off… of me!” With a roar, Darius ripped the snake apart shoving the door open as he did so, to the surprise of a now grounded Amelia. “Sorry about that.”