“The Curse of the Cauldron”

Chapter 1

I stare at my surroundings. Where am I? This place looks nothing like home. Home for me is where the trees grow on lush, green fields and where flowers dance, propelled by a cool summer breeze. That is the place I know and love. This barren grey wasteland is as far away from my home as one could find.

Even I look different here. I catch sight of my reflection in a jagged piece of glass, and discover I barely recognise the person staring at me. I look hollow and tired, a weak shell of who I used to be. I am sure of nothing now. I am not sure of who I can trust. I am not sure how, or why, I am here. I am not sure how to get home.

My final memory of home is the cauldron. There are more stories of the cauldron than I can count. Some say it is a myth, some say it is a blessing and some say it is a curse. The only thing I know for sure is that if the cauldron exists, it is guarded by the oldest woman in the world, the only woman who will live forever. She decides who is worthy of the cauldron’s powers. She has not deemed anyone worthy for over a hundred years. Not until yesterday. Not until me.

I was in the middle of finishing the last page of a book when I was suddenly transported to a huge hollow oak tree. Inside the tree, a warm light glowed, and I found myself being dragged towards it. I was pulled along an intricate winding path to reach the light. I discovered the light was from the cauldron. The cauldron I had scarcely believed existed. The cauldron glowed green as I tiptoed towards it, holding my breath. A voice spouted from it, booming the words I had sensed were coming the past weeks. The words I had dreaded and hoped for at the same time and the words that would determine my whole existence…