When I woke up, there was a huge pounding in my head and little memory of what happened last night. The light coming into the room was making the pounding worse. Pulling the bed covers over my head, I vowed to never trust Fer when it came to alcoholically drinks again.

“Oh, you’re up.”

I pulled the covers away slightly, sitting up to see that Fer was standing at the edge of the bed looking nervous. In her hand was a glass with a purple, almost blackish liquid in it.

“Here, drink this. It will help with the pounding.” She handed me the glass and sat down on a chair in the corner of the room.

Sniffing the liquid, I asked, “What is this?”

“Water with some of my healing magic.”

I took a small sip and gaged. It was bitter and revolting, the liquid churning my stomach. I quickly set it down onto the nightstand by the bed. “What happened last night?”

“Drink the water first.”

“What time is it?” I did not want to drink the liquid, even if it would help with the pounding. I’d rather stick to human methods, that tasted much better.

“It’s going to be noon soon. Now, drink up. I won’t talk to you until you do.”

Sighing, I quickly chugged down the water, gagging as it went down. Once I had finished it, I set the empty glass back down. “Okay, now I…”

But before I could finish, memories came flowing back to me. Last night flashed before my eyes and I suddenly remembered that Fer was trying to tell me something important.

“Your last adventure, what do you mean by that? That you may die.”

Fer looked away and whined. “Okay, so about that. The book I got from the Omnia Library, was on research on a place that disappeared long ago. It’s believed that there is an eighth realm. I’m going to look for it, meaning I may never come back. You were agreeing to come on a suicide mission.”

I fell off the bed in shock. The pain of hitting the wooden floors brought me back to reality. “Have you lost it. Everyone knows that there are only seven realms. How can there be an eighth?”

Fer’s eyes narrowed. “No, I haven’t gone crazy.” She grabbed her bag and pulled out a book. Throwing it at me, she muttered, “Read it and make a decision. To continue with me, knowing that you may die and never come back, or to stop here. I won’t judge you for your decision and I’ll make sure you get back to the manor safely.”

“What about the story you’re telling me? The deal was that I follow you on your adventure to get the story.”

“Look, that was an impulsive decision, okay.” She sighed and walked to the door. “You’ll get the rest written in the notebook that Madam Owlet gave you.” She opened the door. “I’ll give you two days to make your choice. The book will help you decide by answering all your questions.”

She walked out, slamming the door shut and leaving me alone in a confused state over what had just happened.