Thread
Chapter of work in progress by Iris Carden
Wendy had blinked to Mr Glanville’s house, leaving the others to stay with Bobby at home.
Wendy explained their situation to Mr Glanville, and said she and Frederick really needed to know anything he could tell them about the Venomous Void.
“I can confirm everything your uncle said,” Mr Glanville said to them. “The void ensures that people can’t get to the garden and the fruit, if they are trying to get them for selfish or other evil reasons It will magnify your feelings. If you go in worried, you will be overwhelmed by worry. If you go in frightened, you will be overwhelmed by fear. If you go in hopeful, you will be filled with more hope. So, I recommend that the whole time you are in the void, you remember why you are there, remember that you love Bobby very much, and you want to help him be well. You need to focus on your hope to help him, not your worry that you might fail. Do you understand?”
“I think so,” Wendy said. “But when we get to the garden, how will we tell which is the fruit for healing and which is the fruit for knowledge?”
“I can’t tell you the answer to that. I can tell you that the Watchitt who helped me many years ago, gave me both and I ate both.”
“You ate both fruits?” Wendy asked. Something connected in her mind. “So that’s how you get to be an Ancient. You’re a human who ate the health and long life fruit and the knowledge fruit.”
Mr Glanville nodded. “That’s right. That’s why there are so few of us. The only beings able to get to the garden at all are Watchitts. If they go there for selfish reasons, they end up like your uncle. So the humans who become Ancients, are lucky enough to have Watchitts go there for us when we are seriously in danger.”
“So this has been done successfully before,” Wendy said. “That’s a good thing to know, something to help us be hopeful.”
“It’s been done many times before. And the two of you are Watchitts who I am sure will be able to do it. Is there any other way I can help you?”
Wendy had been thinking. “I think we need to find something like… Do you know the story of the Theseus and the labyrinth?”
“I know it well,” Mr Glanville answered.
“Well Ariadne gave Theseus a long woollen thread to unroll behind him so he could always find his way back. Do you think it would be a good idea for us to find a lot of string or something like that to do the same thing?”
Mr Glanville smiled. “Wendy, behind you is a cabinet. Open the top left drawer and take out the small wooden box in there, then open it.”
Wendy did as she was told. Inside the box was a glowing ball of golden coloured thread.
Mr Glanville continued, “I know the story says it was wool, but very few people knew just how clever my friend Ariadne was. She spun together pure gold, light and hope to make that thread. The gold was because it couldn’t corrode and was base to hold the other elements together, the light so I could see to find my way, and the hope so I wouldn’t lose hope in the labyrinth. I think she would be very happy if she knew you would use it for this adventure. I’m sure you will care for it very well.”
Wendy ran the end of the silky thread through her fingers. “So you’re Theseus?” she asked.
“That’s one of many names I’ve used over the years.”
“And you killed the minotaur.”
“No, I found him and talked him into coming out of the Labyrinth with me. Then Ariadne helped him to go back to his own realm.”
“There’s a minotaur realm?”
“There’s a chimera realm. Minotaurs, centaurs, fauns, mermaids, sphinx, all of those creatures that look to humans as if they are half one creature and half another, live in the chimera realm. The minotaur in the labyrinth was lost, alone and frightened. He wasn’t really a monster, but people who had seen him were frightened and attacked him. I found him, and eventually talked him into coming out, but not before he injured me. He was frightened and lashed out, not knowing I was trying to help. Ariadne sent him back to his own realm where he would be safe, then she went through the Venomous Void, to the garden, and brought me back the fruit.”
“She was a Watchitt?” Wendy asked.
“She was a Watchitt, almost as powerful as you. Probably almost as clever as well, although she didn’t think to take the thread with her for the trip.”
Wendy wondered if some day people would tell stories about her, the way they had told stories about Ariadne and Theseus.
Chapters of the Venomous Void to date:
- Chapter 1: Going to Grandma’s
- Chapter 2: Taking a Break
- Chapter 3: Octavius’ Story
- Chapter 4: Communications
- Chapter 5: The Problem at Home
- Chapter 6: Thread
- Chapter 7: Into the Void
- Chapter 8: A Strange Encounter
- Chapter 9: The Garden
- Chapter 10: Saving Octavius
- Chapter 11: Fruit for Bobby
- Chapter 12: Happy Birthday Wendy
Now the story is complete, I will edit it and get it ready to publish it as a book. Look out for it soon at your favourite online bookshop.
The Venomous Void will be the sequel to Wendy Watchitt.
Wendy Watchitt is just an average 10 year old girl.
She’s brave and clever and caring. She carries her pet toad on her head, and makes strange things happen when she blinks. Well, perhaps she isn’t quite so average.
A new adventure starts for Wendy when her family moves house.
A new town, a new home, new school, and new best friend are just the beginning of what she’s going to find.
Wendy will have to save her friends, travel between realms, learn some very big family secrets, and still find time to get her homework done.
While you’re here…
Find my Books: Direct from the publisher From Amazon Or from your favourite online bookshop
Follow Me: Twitter / Facebook / Instagram
Digital Tip Jar: PayPal Me
Everything on this site is the product of human, not artificial, intelligence.
Iris Carden, Author 
6 comments