Burn the Witch

Peculiar Dreams and Customers

I couldn't breathe.

I swung my arms around wildly, trying to grab anything to anchor myself. I felt like I was drowning, but I didn't know if I was truly underwater. Everything was so dark, I couldn't distinguish what was up from down, but I was moving, and I couldn't breathe.

I tried to stop myself from moving too much. The more I panic, the more air I would lose. But the fear didn't let me be still.

Moments before I felt the telltale signs of fainting, I was suddenly dropped unceremoniously from the ground. My hands touched the stone surface reverently, while I try to ground myself.

I looked around at my surroundings. I seemed to be in some sort of stone chamber. Everything was sleek black, aside from the burning torches perched on the walls. I turned my face upwards, and I could only see an endless yawning void.

A scratching sound made my body tense, and I frantically search for its source. The room was empty save for me.

I tried to leave the slab of stone I was dropped onto, but I soon realized that I couldn't physically lift my body from it. I was stuck in position, half sitting and half lying down.

I heard the scratching noise again and this time; I found where it was coming from. A statue was being pushed outwards from the wall as if it was a stone relief being made right before my eyes. I didn't know how that was possible but as seconds ticked by; the figure becomes more prominent.

I gasped when I slowly started to recognize the man in the statue.

"Alex?"

But there was something wrong with it. His hair was much longer, his face much older. The build of his body was also different, and it simply screamed of another person.

I heard another set of scratching noises and it took me by surprise to see that other statues were being made. A man with a fur hide draped on his back, a man holding a sword, and two men were back to back with each other while their arms were raised.

I couldn't recognize any of them.

Unexpectedly, a lone figure materialized out of thin air right in front of me. He was wearing a sleeveless robe made from animal hide. His face was bald, and I could see the age lines and wrinkles around his eyes and lips. His black eyes stared directly at me. Right behind him, a statue similarly looking like him was also being made.

"I have made my penance!" He screamed, and my body immediately tensed up.

"I have put things into motion. Oh, Father, may we finally rest in peace," and then he raised his hand holding a dagger, and plunged it deep into his heart.

***

I woke up with a scream.

Ever since we started making potions, I kept having weird dreams. The one I just had was the weirdest of them all. Thankfully, they were just that; dreams.

I rubbed my arms up and down, trying to chase away the chills from the nightmare. I had to be focused and fully on board today. It was the end of the month when I'm supposed to gather materials with Alex.

He called it hunting, but I seriously doubt we would be doing much of that. All I saw in his shop were plants, flowers, and herbs. What we would be doing was much closer to foraging.

Anyway, I shouldn't be late. Despite our initial plan, Alex insisted on opening the shop early in the morning. He said he had an order to be picked up by a client, so we would be waiting for that before going on our little excursion.

***

I entered Lucent White and immediately switched on the lights. Aside from finally letting me make potions, Alex also gave me headway in dealing with his shop. That meant taking and releasing orders and being the person that clients spoke to.

I would have taught Alex would assign this task to me first, but apparently, I might be handling orders with extremely volatile and harmful potions. It was much better to have prior knowledge than straight-up dealing with complicated mixtures, even if I would just be handing them to their respective owners.

Imagine if I handed the wrong order to the wrong client, and that person immediately consumed it without checking. Oh, the chaos.

I put my bag under the wooden counter at the end of the room. There was another boxed meal set on top of it, a daily occurrence now. I never directly asked Alex about it, and he didn't exactly say anything about it either. I just made sure to convey my gratitude by eating every last crumb of each meal every day.

I tidied the shop for a bit after eating, then sat down and decided to wait for the client.

***

Three customers and a handful of orders later. It was already past nine and Alex had not yet arrived. I face-palmed myself for forgetting to ask how many clients was he exactly expecting today. No problem, though. He was not here yet.

The bell on the door rang for the 4th time today and a man wearing a leather jacket, a white polo shirt, and jeans entered the shop. He had the brightest blonde hair I had ever seen, and his blue eyes were like deep ocean pools. His skin was slightly tanned, and he was giving a mix of the surfer and hot-police-at-work vibes.

The man gave me a wide smile and waved his hand. I almost waved my hand back but managed to stop myself. So much for being professional.

"Hi! I'm Avery. How can I help you?" I said, trying to hide my embarrassment.

The man gave me an easy smile that lit up the whole room. He leaned towards the counter, resting his elbows on the wood.

"The shop looks lovely today. Can I have three vials of visions?"

"Right away," I said, then I left him in the shop to go to the workstation and grab the potions. These were some of the restricted items that needed additional access and information to get. After a few seconds, I returned to the counter and placed the vials on the table.

"The plants look as vibrant as ever. Where's old Mikey, though?" He said while he was looking around.

I paused from grabbing my records book. "Mikey?"

"Yeah, the boss's assistant."

"Oh, he retired," I said, then I picked up my pen and faced him. "I just have a few questions before I can release these to you, sir. It's protocol."

"Ask away," the man replied with a wink.

I tried to stifle my smile and remain professional. "Name, sir?"

"Leon Walker. By the way, I see you're fully stocked with potions. Is Alex still actively around?"

I jot down his name while answering. "Yes, but he's not here yet. He usually checks in at 10. Reason of purchase?"

Mr. Walker moved away from the counter and slowly walked around the shop while tapping his chin, his head slightly tilted. "Will work requirements be good?"

"Yeah, that'll be enough. Age and occupation?"

I heard a clinking sound and saw him holding a potion. Inside, a sparkling bright magenta liquid sloshes. Mr. Walker regarded the bottle with keen interest while humming to himself.

"This comes in handy from time to time," he said, facing me while slightly gently shaking the bottle.

I nodded. "Yes, especially with children. Self-cleaning potions aren't harmful to persons and they can be safely administered anywhere. Unruly kids with their mess stand no chance at all." I smiled after delivering the sales talk.

Mr. Walker approached the counter again, and he placed the other potion beside the three other vials he first ordered.

"Uh huh, or for cleaning murder," he said, then he gave another one of his saccharine smiles.

"Will you take this as well?" I asked, completely ignoring his statement.

"Yep," he said, popping the letter p. "By the way, you look new here, but you sure do know what you're doing. Are you the new assistant?"

I started packing the potions. "Yes, I started-"

My voice faltered when I realized what exactly the man was doing. The moment he entered the shop, he's been asking questions, hidden behind his easy-going attitude and comments. He's been prying for information, and I didn't notice it soon enough.

"Yes, I just started more than a month ago," I repeated with more confidence.

When Alex told me he'll be letting me handle his clients, I had my reservations. I wasn't supposed to be here. I'm a human. But he said the key to fooling anyone was confidence. Act like you belong right where you were and no one would be the wiser.

Did Mr. Walker know the truth? I'm not sure, but I would plaster my best smile until he got sick with his games and go away.

Mr. Walker gave me a chilling smile in return. I couldn't even sense any of the false warmth he tried to convey earlier.

"Age and occupation?" I asked again, still smiling.

"Does LaCrosse pay you well?" He said instead, ignoring my question.

I tried my hardest to not show any outward reaction, but the glint in his eyes showed that he did notice my hesitation.

Who was LaCrosse?

"Twenty-seven. Office work," Mr. Walker suddenly said, then he placed a stack of bills on the counter, definitely more than what he owed by how thick it was. He grabbed the potions and proceeded to walk towards the door.

"Maybe you should do some searching about your boss." Then Mr. Walker turned around for the last time and said, "See you around, Avery."