Tales of Bristeria
The Reign of Witches
By: Brooke Smiley
Bristeria
Copyright ©2020 by Brooke Smiley
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Published by CLC Publishing, LLC, Mustang, OK.
ISBN: 978-0-578-65453-9
Fiction/Fantasy/
I dedicate this story to those who have suffered neglect, feel alone, broken, and think there is no healing for what you've endured.
My prayer to you is to ask that you turn your focus on the only one who can restore you: Jesus Christ our Savior
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Praise to You, Daddy God, for continuing to restore me, planting this story inside me, and for giving me back my passion to write it. It's not by my might or power but only Your Holy Spirit. I am never alone.
Thank you to my loved ones, Patrick and Justin, for always being by my side and helping me make this story great. I love you both to heaven.
Thank you, Dad, for believing in me and for your support. Love you alligator!
Thank you to my sweet friend Tamika for your prayers and for always telling me I have a special story to tell. I love you!
Thank you to my editor, Shannon, for being incredibly patient and kind through this whole amazing journey.
And to close it out, Thank you to all my friends and family. I truly know what it means to be rich in Christ and I love you all deeply!
So many of us live our whole lives feeling discouraged. Stuck in the mindset that we're the victim. We're always going to be the victim. No. Correction. We were the victim, but we don't have to stay the victim. There is freedom at the end of the tunnel. We just have to look for it and never give up.
Jeremiah 29:13
If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. (NLT)
CHAPTER 1
It was any normal day in Bristeria. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and chirping. The rays of the sun were so bright that they cut through the dark shadows of my room. I walked over to the window and took in a deep breath of fresh morning air. I saw that Mother was already up seeing off Father. He was always leaving to go handle business that involved the castle.
My brothers were up and starting their fencing lessons. Watching my older brother Brighton training to be a knight was the highlight start of my day. I wanted to be just like him when I grew up!
Meanwhile, my little brother Kedron, was into more crafty things like magic tricks and making the people of Bristeria laugh. Kedron was always there to make me feel better when I needed him. He was small statured and really thin. His hair was dark as the shadows at nightfall. He could sneak around the castle with no problem.
“Hey there Sis! What are you up to today?” Kedron asked me with a huge grin formed on his lips. “Mother and I are traveling off to the village market to shop around.” I replied. Kedron shook his head side to side as he left, probably to go practice magic or something. Who knew with that kid?
I knew why he shook his head. It was because Mother would always buy so many trinkets when we would go to the village. I watched him skip down the hall.
Going to the bakery was my favorite part of going to the village with Mother. I could already taste the sweetness! Mother and I always ordered the gingerbread bears. I couldn’t resist getting the girl bear. The icing on it was so beautiful with its yellow hair, pink bow, blue eyes and a white dress. I truly believed the baker could read my ‘Miss Prissy’ mind because that cookie was always there on the rack waiting for me.
My mother, Queen Cheylenna, on the other hand would only ever order the gingerbread boy bear. It was always decorated with two brown dots for eyes and outlined in blue. “I mean, how boring can you be, Mother?” I thought to myself, only to be interrupted by the queen shouting for me to hurry along, or she was going to leave without me. I hurried through the kitchen and out the back door to find Mother waiting impatiently in the carriage.
“Annalise, honestly, you’re slower than a turtle. Hurry up and get in here stupid girl.” Mother wasn’t always kind with her words.
Fastening in, I gave the queen a small smile and said, “I can’t wait to get our favorite cookies!” She didn’t say anything. Mother just stared out the window. I started to wonder if we were even going to go to the bakery. We sat there in silence, and so I wouldn’t become sad in the midst of it, I started to think about what my father, King Cyrus, had told me: She isn’t this way all the time. She just has trouble expressing her feelings.
As I thought back on what my father had told me, it didn’t seem to give me any comfort. A deep sigh left my lungs as I told myself, “She doesn’t seem to have that problem when I’m around. She expresses her anger perfectly fine.”
Mother snapped her fingers at me. “Annalise, we’re here. Come, let’s go get our bears.” I didn’t show any emotion for fear of her changing her mind. But on the inside, I was jumping up and down!
As we opened the door, I closed my eyes and breathed in the smell of the freshly baked goodness. Mr. Baker came through the flapping door when he heard the queen ring the bell. “Good morning, Your Majesty. Will it be the usual for you and Miss Annalise?” Mother nodded as she tapped her finger on the glass at the plain bear cookie in front of us. “Very good, ma’am”. He looked down to see me eyeing my treat. “And for you, Miss Annalise?” While handing me my baked good, he gave me a quick wink. Mr. Baker was always so polite.
Mother dug into her coin pouch to pay for our order. Just as we were about to leave, Mr. Baker came rushing to the door to hand me a sack. “Good day to you, Miss Annalise,” he said with a toothy grin. I opened the bag, and it was full of goodies!
Walking away he said, “Now don’t eat those all at once, little lady.” My cheeks blushed as I told him, “I won’t. Good day to you as well, Mr. Baker.” He looked to Mother, who was holding the door open to the carriage. She was apparently over pleasantries. Mr. Baker bowed. “Your Majesty, good day to you.” The queen flung her hand at him, shooing him away like he was a pesky bug. I silently got into the carriage.
Putting my head down, I nibbled on my delectable and charming treat. Even though I was enjoying my delicious bear, I still hurt for my queen. She is never nice to me, and in thinking about all the names she calls me, a huge frown started to form on my lips.
Our coachman stopped the carriage and Mother and I got out to walk through the village. Plodding behind her, I rolled my eyes as she grabbed everything shiny in sight. Letting out an annoyed sigh, I didn’t even realize I had spoken out loud. “Mother, we can’t carry all of this.” “You stupid girl; how could you be so insensitive! I am not going to lift anything. You will carry it all, and don’t you drop any of my treasurers, you ungrateful little wench, or I’ll see to it that you be thrown into the dungeon with no food or drink until your father returns!”
I just couldn’t understand how my mother could be kind to my brothers, yet with me she turns something you only dream about into a nightmare. I wonder why, if she can’t stand me, she still chooses me to go with her rather than my little brother. Of course, if she did, the poor, innocent little kid would be destroyed. She would take away all his joy.
Being only 9 years old, I didn’t really understand all the things she called me. Let’s face it, my vocabulary was not very good. I was “unlearned”. That’s how she put it
anyway. At least I knew how to spell my nickname, Pete. King Cyrus told me that it means strong. He would always tell me, “You are my most precious possession, Pete.” Although I did not quite comprehend the words coming out of my father’s mouth, I felt the gentleness of them. Remembering that moment brought me back to a smile.
Mother looked down at me as we were entering Renard’s store. Unfortunately, his store was the last stop before returning home. I couldn’t stand him. Rotten Renard the Tard, that’s what his name was to me. He was nothing special. His store was filled with all kinds of dark looking things. Candles of all colors and books stacked all over from floor to ceiling. Oh! And he never failed to have a glass with red stuff for my mother. It looked like blood!
Mother cracked the door, but before fully opening it, she glanced at me with evil green eyes and said, “Don’t you dare embarrass me young lady!” Of course, a threat of punishment came along with her words. I put my head down, feeling as small as the bug crawling over my shoe. I looked up to acknowledge the queen and answered, “Yes, my queen.” Slinging the door open, we walked in.
“Good day, Queen Cheylenna! Good day, my little prin…” I cut the despicable man off in my head. “Don’t you dare call me that!” I shouted on the inside. I was not his little anything! The thoughts in my head shook my whole body to its core. I wanted to yell that to him at the top of my lungs, but I didn’t, for fear of the queen’s wrath. “…princess.” He finished with his greetings.
I looked at the slug with revulsion and then dropped my head to a slight nod. My body was burning with furious rage on the inside. What was the purpose of going into his store in the first place? Every time we’re here, Mother and Renard go into the back while I am left to sit and play with cards.
I liked to pick out the nice ones from the deck. Some are so scary that I end up running to hide beneath the table. They have a red man with horns and a weird tail, swords with blood, and a skull with fire shooting from its eyes, head and mouth. This is something I do not want to look at, let alone touch.
I crawled my way from under the table to find a black as night figure staring straight at me, as if it were splitting me right down to my soul. I felt my body start to ice up, my legs stuck like tar, and my eyes unable to look away. I was petrified. “I want my daddy!” I cried. Just then, a light figure, so bright and to my right, lifted me from the floor.
“I can move!” I shouted in my head. The light was so warm, it thawed me completely. The black as night figure was so angry it pierced me with its yellow eyes as it faded away. “Thank you.” I said to the light figure, but it too faded away into thin air.
By that time, Mother and Renard were coming out of the back. I couldn’t help but wonder what it was they did back there. I didn’t think Father would approve, and I knew I didn’t care for all the secrecy. As all these thoughts rummaged around my head, I wondered if I was keeping secrets, too.
Renard entered the front first, with a malicious smile frozen to his mouth. Mother came out next. “Mother, look! Your button came undone.” I said. She viciously glared at me which made me drop my head quickly and twiddle my fingers while staring at the floor. They smiled and laughed, giving each other farewell googly eyes as we were heading out the door.
Mother and I approached the carriage. Right before I started to climb the step, she jerked me so hard I stumbled and almost lost my balance. “You dare mention this to anyone and you will wish you were dead!” She always knew just how to threaten me to keep me quiet. We stepped up into the carriage and journeyed home.
CHAPTER 2
Cheylenna was evil. She played on my innocence. I never wanted to have any part of black magic trickery. Being as crude as she was, I knew she didn’t have any lick of caring about what I wanted or didn’t want.
She entered my room to teach me something dark. It was a spell I’d never forget. It was terrifying, and I told myself that I would never teach it to anyone in my life.
Mother’s eyes glared into mine as she glided across my room. She clenched her teeth together tightly. It sounded like she was chewing on them. Chills ran through me, and I felt cold. She stopped before reaching my bed, then she turned, looked at me while tapping her toe and said, “So, you’re curious, huh?” “Curious? No, Mother, I’m not. I don’t want to know.” I said as I dropped my eyes to the floor.
She didn’t care. She made me learn against my will. I kept wondering if she had taught this to Brighton and Kedron before, or if I was the only one. I started to hum songs in my head as loudly as possible to drown out what was happening, but nevertheless, it was always going to be there. Implanted in my mind and thoughts forever.
My heart sank in that moment, and I never wanted her to teach me anything ever again.
As I sat there, I wondered why. What was the point of having to learn that spell, anyway? What did it mean? Why would Queen Cheylenna want to teach this to me? Not knowing, and being so confused, set the waterworks in motion. I began crying as I pondered over everything that had just happened.
The next day, King Cyrus arrived back home. I wanted to tell him everything! He chuckled when I ran up and buried my face deep into his tummy. He pulled me away so he could look at me. “So, what did you and your mother do while I was away?” I couldn’t let him see my eyes for fear of giving myself away. On the inside I was screaming out everything I wanted to say: “Oh it was awful! She was beyond scary and that spell she taught me!” But, none of that came out. Instead, I took a deep swallow and said with a big, fake smile, “Oh, we had so much fun, Daddy!”
Lying to my king, my protector, my father, brought me no joy at all. If he knew the truth and went after Cheylenna, she would go into a rage and curse us all! No way would I start that war.
King Cyrus patted me on the head and went inside to greet the evil queen.
I needed some fresh air, so I walked into the forest where I came across a shining bright light just near a pile of stones on the ground. The shimmering beam moved closer to me. I had to look away because the glow was so intense. By the time I turned around, she was visible.
There she was… A beautiful enchanted fairy, just fluttering in front of me. “Good afternoon. I’m Tailya.” I stood there in complete stillness eye to eye with this amazing creature. Beautiful bright lights swarmed around her. My eyes remained stunned. I couldn’t look away or seem to get any words out. I was under a spell of wonder, so I just smiled and nodded.
“And you are?” She asked. My mind was racing, and I just knew this was a dream. Right? I mean, fairies aren’t real. I was deep in thought. “Are you mute?” The fairy asked. Her voice broke me from the contemplation going on in my head. “I… I am Annalise.” Tailya smiled and said, “Pleased to meet you, Annalise. Would you like to come meet my family?”
Wonder and amazement filled my eyes and heart as I nodded in an overly excited way. I shouted, “Yes, please!!” In an instant we were on the ground and I was a fairy looking up at the big sky. “I’m a… a fairy!” I said to myself. A scream of joy rose up out of me.
“What’s the matter with you?” Tailya asked while rushing to me with terror in her bright, glowing eyes. I guess I must have screamed in joy out loud, making her think something was wrong. I looked at her and said, “This is the most amazing place…” My eyes were frozen in awe.
Tailya let out a deep exhale. Her eyes quickly adjusted from alert to contentment. “Come on Anna. I mean…” I crossed my arms at her pause. “What’s wrong?” I asked. She still looked disturbed after letting out a breath of reassurance. “I didn’t mean to shorten your name without asking. I am sorry, Annalise.” I laughed and she looked baffled. “Yes, Tailya, you can call me Anna.” Tailya smiled wide. “Ok, great! Then let’s get going.”
I paused. “What is that, Tailya?” Excitement overtook me as we headed toward what looked to be a giant diamond. I took a deep breath in, and we grabbed each other’s hands. Side by side, we walked into the captivating jeweled entrance.
I looked
at Tailya playfully. “So, since we’re shortening our names…” I stopped. I couldn’t finish. She noticed the mischievous grin that was well expressed on my face. “Well…?” she said while crossing her arms. With her staring at me in curiosity, I knew I had to finish asking my question. I cleared my throat and asked, “Can I call you Tay?” Her eyes fell into slits toward me. “Tay!” she replied with a shout. “Yea, Tay, it’s short for Tailya.” I said with a giggle. The confused fairy’s face softened as she answered me. “Okay, Tay it is, then.”
My feet froze as I laid my eyes on the most beautiful things fluttering all around us. There were fairies everywhere! The colors were breathtaking. Pinks, blues, greens, oranges, purples, and so many more glorious colors filled the room. Their wings fluttered in unison so beautifully. I couldn’t help but to let out a content exhale.
“Wands! You have wands!?” I practically screamed out to Tay in amazement. “Yes, Anna. Shhh…you’ll wake and scare the brownies.” "Brownies?" I asked with a dumbfounded look.
The only brownies I knew of were the sweet ooey-gooey treats of chocolatey goodness.
A growl tried to rise from my belly. I started to drift off into my thoughts of those delicious brownies, just about to lick my lips, when Tay shouted, "Anna!" pulling me out of my sugar stupor.
"Huh?" I was so knee-deep in thought, that's all my lips would reply. Tay grinned while pointing to the floor. "Anna, those are brownies.” My heart jumped, then a calming warmth came over me as I laid my eyes on teeny fairies, smaller than Tay. They were no bigger than a speck of dust floating through the air.
I couldn't take my focus off watching them slumber in their little acorn beds.
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