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Once upon a time, when magic was not hidden from the eyes, there was a great kingdom with a huge castle made of crystal. This magnificent castle was built by a powerful witch who lives in it alone. Before building the castle, she lived in a kingdom whose folk ostracized her. They were terrified of the possibility that one day, she would use her powers on curses and dark magic. That she would pursue the feared reputation of her own kind and endanger their lives. Her struggle with this merciless forjudge started at a very young age. She remembered taking short walks with her mother in the village as a child. She remembered the constant stares and the obvious feeling of being unwanted. Even though it had always been hard, the gratuitous murder of her family made it all worse.

Her parents were good people who only had pure intentions. They raised her teaching how to use the immeasurable magic her family had for generations, for only noble purposes. They believed that was the sole method which they can prove every misunderstanding wrong. Even after the death of her beloved family, she never doubted their ways. She wanted to honor her family's legacy and help humanity in any ways she could. But if the people are scared of her she couldn't help them, so she came up with a plan.

She wanted to change people's belief in herself and the magic. She didn’t want to live like those who lived in the past with magic. So this plan was very important to her. Maybe it was her only chance. She was supposed to start work as soon as possible. She fulfilled the necessary things and got to work.

There was a group of bandit witches that lived in a huge castle that was built in a dark forest near a village. Village folk was tired of getting attacked by witches. They had no way to getting rid of them. The bandits kept looting the village. The witch’s plan was going to her old master who lived at the top of a mountain which was too far away from her castle and asking for help. Thus, she would be able to get the recipe of the elixir to create a dragon which was going to help her afterwards. So she needed to hit the road before the next attack of bandits.

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After a long and hard journey she arrived and fired her torch to go in that mysterious cave. But she couldn’t see her master at first. When she turned back, there he was. The master said “I was expecting you earlier.”

“I need your help.” said the witch.

“I know.” said the master. “But you must get me three things." he continued.

"Why don't you take a seat dear?" The witch sat. The master asked "What is your favorite color?" and he didn't wait for a response and continued. "Mine is mottled red. And I know a flower which is mottled red. It's Lemniscie. It is a unique flower that you can only find in the Effloresce Volcano. This flower is well protected by an enchanted shield and Effloresce is a magical place that will cause a lot of troubles. So, you need to be really careful to survive. Unless you get the Lemniscie, I won't be able to prepare the elixir. First, you need to bring the flower, and after you bring it, I will tell you the other things that we need. Good luck. Be careful!"

The witch hit the road after talking to the master. After an exhausting journey, the witch arrived to magnificent Effloresce Volcano. It was late at night and she was shivering because of fear and cold. She skimmed through the volcano and there it was! She intended to go there but something happened. The floor started to come loose and the volcano was bubbling. The flower disappeared and a loud voice yelled. "Why do you want to take Lemniscie?"

The witch said "I just want to use it for helping people."

And she heard the voice again, ”So, prove it!" The witch touched the enchanted shield and it was purified from dark magic and destroyed. The voice let her take Lemniscie.

She made her way back to the cave her master hid. She felt thrilled, consumed by the joy the flower she held in her hands gave. “I did it mother,” she mumbled. “No one believed me. No one thought I was capable of a pure heart. But a holy spirit believed I was worthy enough and gave me what I needed.”

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After three days of a vicious journey, she decided she would secretly spend the night in a village nearby. The bandits weren’t known to bother this village as much as the others, therefore she figured she would be safe. Using her knowledge of the ancient magic of transformation, she turned herself into an old poor lady. No one could have recognized her that way and she believed she would be able to hold the spell going for a day. Trying to look desperate, she approached a small house on the south side of the village.

It was almost dark, and a thin wave of light, possibly from a candle shimmered through the broken window. The house was old, made of visibly rotten wood. Horrifying creaks echoed in the isolating streets of the village, as the wind shook the house rapidly. She felt hungry, almost starved that she couldn’t stop herself from knocking on the door. A pretty young woman opened the door suspiciously and spoke with force. “Who are you? What do you want?”

The witch weakened her voice as much as possible and slowly said, “I am a lonely traveler and I come from a far away land. My daughter lives nearby, I want to visit her. She very recently gave birth to my grandchild, you see. Her husband was murdered mercilessly by those cruel bandits! And don’t be baffled when I say, I couldn’t even make it to her house before they also stole my old horse Bathilda, oh my precious! Would you maybe let me sleep in your barn for the night? I will be back on my way first thing in the morning. Please lady, have some mercy for a helpless human being.”

The woman shut her up fiercely, obviously scared of someone hearing them. She let the witch go into the barn and just when the witch was about to fall asleep, laying on hay piles, she came in with a bowl of warm milk and a piece of bread. The witch thanked her over and over again and after she finished eating, she closed her eyes for a night's sleep. But only after a few hours, she opened her eyes wide awake as gory screams clamored. Then she realized, the barn was on fire. She immediately grabbed her bag, which the Lemniscie was in, and got out of the barn.

The witch bandits were attacking the village. A whimpering young woman ran before her and tried reaching to her son who fell on the ground. When his mother hugged him, he cried out a hoarse scream. The witch shot a glimpse over her shoulder and saw that the boy was wounded on his leg.

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The mother yelled for help as the curses and terrible magic flied over their heads and hurt innocent people. The witch hesitated because if she helped the boy then she would no longer be able to maintain her disguise. She spent a few short seconds thinking but ended up listening her heart and helped the boy. She whispered a powerful healing spell and the wound closed.

When her true identity was out, the mother who was thanking her silenced with shock. Everyone on the land knew her face because of her family. She was told that she looked almost identical to her well-known and feared mother. So she wasn’t surprised that they recognized her right away. The woman muffled a one last “thank you” and picked her son up. The witch was surprised because if she yelled anything about her, the bandits would kill her on the spot for being a disgrace to her kind. When they were about to leave her side, little boy untied the thin chain around his neck and dropped it in her palm. She then realized it was a necklace, a silver dragon figure.

After that terrifying night, she spent two other days trying to reach her master’s cave. And when she finally did, she gave him the flower and told him everything that happened. How she found the flower and how she survived a feral attack from the bandits and the little boy she saved before she escaped. Then she showed him the necklace and asked him to tell her what the second item was.

The master smiled with a hint in his eyes which she couldn’t name. It was strange and unusual but she ignored it. “You already got the second item my child,” he said as he poured some water in his teapot and placed it on the fire. “The second thing that we need was something earned. Something you endeavored for, something you risked yourself and struggled through. This necklace is everything you fought for. Weren’t you the one complaining about people not liking you, there you go! A pure gift from an innocent child, that’s more than enough.”

She smiled happily and curiously asked for the third thing. “Please master, tell me! I’m so closed to reaching my purpose, we have to be quick. Tell me!”

The old man laughed as he looked at her wisely and amused. “For the third item, I want you to find any garden around and bring me a dragon fruit.”

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She couldn’t believe what she heard. “A dragon fruit? Is that all? Why didn’t you tell me that before!”

“I spared the easiest one to the end. So we can have time to enjoy our tea.” He said carelessly as he stirred the teapot. “It will be ready when you arrive, come on now!”

She left the cave once again, this time confused. Still, she hurried into the woods hoping to find a garden. They were common around this village. But she couldn’t help questioning her master asking for something so simple. It made no sense. A dragon fruit for this kind of intense and ancient magic. Had it always been like this? She knew old magic could be tricky and complicated but still, a fruit was irrelevant. She tried remembering the first time she heard about the elixir. Then she stopped herself, feeling guilty and ashamed for doubting her master’s ways. She climbed the tree she just found to grab the fruit and hurried back to the cave.

Even though she told herself suspecting her master was wrong, she had an uncomfortable feeling on the way back. Her steps were getting faster and she was getting impatient. Just when she was about to open the cave’s gate, she froze on the spot. Memories invaded her mind and she felt shivers on her spine.

“Remember my young pupil,” said the loving voice of her mother. She was helping her with magic. She loved working with her mother, with potions and magical items. She listened carefully as her mother kept talking. “We only use cherries and sunroots for our magic. The dragon fruit that grows in our land is used for dark magic and dark magic only.”

She wanted to run away. She wanted to leave the cave and scream with disbelief but the gate wide opened and she felt herself being pulled inside the cave. There they were. The bandits. Her master stood on their side, smirking at her. She shouted at him, “How could you!”

That was when he transformed into another one of the dark witches. That was when she realized, it wasn’t her master that was helping her all this time.

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“Silly girl,” she laughed. “It took you days to realize we replaced your master. Don’t worry honey, he’s fine. Just waiting to be saved in the depths of the cursed forest, with his hands tied on his back!” They all lost themselves in an evil laughter. She was horrified and she didn’t know what to do. She was completely desperate. They locked her in the cave and left her there. After they were done entertaining themselves, telling her that the whole village was ready to align with them just to stop her from what she was doing. The people she wanted to help and risked her life for betrayed her without even knowing it. They believed that she was even more evil than the bandits. They chose to side with them. And now, when the bandits used the dragon fruit, they were going to pay for it. She couldn’t even help them.

She sat there for an hour before she heard the furious roar coming from outside. There was something just before the cave but she couldn’t open the gate. That was when she heard the same voice from the volcano. The muffled words made no sense. She mumbled to herself, so confused. “I don’t understand.”

And suddenly the gate crashed into pieces. She strayed away into the cave and tried to see what caused it. An enormous and glorious dragon, with mottled red skin just like the flower Lemniscie. She was speechless. She had never seen a dragon before, there were just a few alive ones left. She thought she was about to die when the dragon started to speak. “Foolish girl,” the voice echoed inside her mind, like magic. Pure, delicate magic. She was sure, it was the voice she heard at the Effloresce Volcano. “You made a huge mistake. You endangered and devastated the fate of humanity. You gave Lemniscie to the hands of the most dangerous cult I have ever seen in my one thousand years of life. And now, innocent humans will pay the ultimate prize.”

She cried and invoked to the dragon. She apologized numerous times with an unbearable agony written on her face. She kneeled down and looked up the holy creature, begging for its help. “Please! Please oh mighty dragon, spirit of fire, ruler of the Effloresce Volcano, guardian of the Lemniscie! I have made a terrible, terrible mistake. Please help me fix it!”

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“Very well, young witch. When you touched the shield, I wouldn’t have let you take the Lemniscie if I hadn’t believed you had good intentions. Our destinies are bounded now, so I will help you through your path, lead you to your victory and guard you as you fulfill your fate. First, we must find those witches and stop them before they cause irretrievable damage.’’

The young witch asked desperately “But how? By now, they must be long gone.”

The dragon replied with a smile on his face “I already know where they went, my little one. Come on, we are going for a ride.” he said as he came down to the ground for the witch to get on his back.

At first, she was a little afraid to fly on a dragon, but as they went up in the air, she forgot all her concerns. She wondered what it would be like to be a dragon and see the world from a different but wonderful view. She brushed her hand against the clouds, they felt very soft around her skin. Shortly after, they started landing on a mountain. Soon, she realized that she knew this place. It was the Effloresce Volcano. She whispered to the guardian Dragon, fearing that someone may hear them “Spirit of Fire, I do not mean to offend you in any way, but isn’t this your volcano? How could the bandits be here?”

The dragon explained “Don't worry my curious witch, I am certain that they are here. To put that kind of powerful witchcraft, dark magic into practice; they need a sacred place. An ancient place that is filled with superior energy, a place that can provide them the power they need. A place where all the spirits of old witches and wizards come after they have fulfilled their journey on Earth. We should get closer so we can see them.”

The dragon walked slowly but surely towards the top of the volcano. The bandits were already there, ready to put their dark magic into practice. They had carved an enormous circle on the floor, in order to summon evil forces. Nearby, three bandits were mixing a potion inside of a cauldron. She saw them put the dragon fruit in, but Leminiscie was still standing beside them in a glass cage. The witch sighed in relief. If they had not used the flower yet it meant that they were not done with the spell. In the middle of the circle stood a small figure. She could not recognize what it was from far away, but it did seem like a human. As the figure moved, its face became clear. She couldn't believe her eyes at first, but she recognized the familiar face. It was her master!

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The bandits lifted the cauldron up and started to pour the boiling liquid into the circle. They started chanting a weird melody together. While they sang, the floor started to shake as if an earthquake was happening. The dragon spoke with a panicked tone “I'm afraid we are late. They have already started the craft. We can still stop them but first, we must take precautions. I will stay here in case they need to be stopped immediately. But you must go down to the village and warn the people. The volcano can begin to erupt at any moment now. Tell them to get away. Oh my little one, be careful.”

The witch nodded her head with fear in her eyes. She started to run down the hill. She was running so fast, she thought for one moment that her legs were about to leave her body. She was exhausted when she finally arrived at the village. The villagers recognized her face, they looked at her with disgust and enmity. She knew the villagers all hated her, but she needed to face them with courage and help them. The witch belted, almost running out of breath “I know none of you trust me, some may even hate me. But I swear I am nothing like the witches you know. I am here to help you and the only thing I care about is your safety. The bandits are trying to cast a very dangerous dark spell on the top of the volcano. We are trying to stop them, but the volcano is going to erupt soon. Please listen to me, run down the hill to your neighbor village. The lava won't be able to reach that far, you will be safe there.”

Everyone started screaming, all at once. It was impossible to tell what they were saying. But she heard one man shout “Don’t believe this wicked witch, she is only trying to get us away from our village so that she can steal our gold!” She tried to explain herself but it was pointless, no one was even trying to listen. It seemed like the villagers were not going to leave their village, she had to do something else to save them but at the same time keep them in their village. That is when she thought of a brilliant idea. Using her magic she created a giant shield that would protect everyone. The villagers were still busy arguing they did not even realize the huge shield above them. Once the spell was done the witch started running up the hill to help the dragon.

When she arrived at the top the dragon was waiting for her.

“I saw what you did with the villagers. Nicely done.” he said. “Now we must combine our powers to defeat these evil bandits. I have a marvelous plan but it relies on your magic and abilities. Can I trust you?” he asked.

The girl promised “I will do everything in my power to protect the people and our sacred volcano.”

“Good, good, very well then.” said the dragon and started to whisper the plan into her ear. Once he was done explaining, they proceeded with the plan.

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The dragon lit a small fire, merely by one breath. Some of the bandits rushed to stop it and some of them wandered into the sky to see where it was coming. While everyone was distracted, the young witch ran into the middle of the circle and grabbed the master. She hid him in the place they used to stand before. She sent the dragon a sign to inform her that the master was safe. Now it was time to move to the second part of the plan: saving the Lemniscie. This time it was the young witch’s turn to distract the bandits. She screamed at them in a sarcastic voice “I have been told the cruel bandits were the most dangerous cult of the last thousand years! Now, I find that hard to believe. Why don't we riddle it thoroughly!”

This angered all the bandits and they started to attack her. Now she had to cast a spell she has never used before. The sound of her mothers voice rang in her ears.

“My beautiful girl, you are so powerful, just believe in yourself and you can cast even the hardest of spells.”

She directed all her focus and power onto the bandits and it worked. She succeeded in putting all of them inside a cage made with her magic. Once they were in the cage, everything was so easy. The dragon took her beloved flower and put it back to its old place. The danger was no longer existent.

The witch looked at the dragon and cried “Thank you, our Guardian, I would have never been able to do it without you. The Lemniscie is saved and the bandits will never be a problem for anyone ever again. All thanks to you.”

The dragon smiled “Don't be so humble my dear. It was you that cast the spell. I must go back now. I hope you don't cause any other troubles in the future and won't need my help to solve them.” he laughed as he brushed her hand against the witch’s cheek. She glanced at the bandits and asked “Do you know what you are going to do with them?”

The witch responded “I think I do. Goodbye, dragon.”

The dragon smiled and muttered “Farewell my child.” He went inside the volcano. After a few seconds later he was completely out of sight.

After the dragon went away she saw her master standing beside her. You could understand from his face that he was very proud of his pupil. They hugged and the master congratulated her for capturing the bandits. The young witch used her magic to carry the cage and together they went down the hill to the village.

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When they arrived at the village all of the villagers were inside the shield. Surely, they have recognized it by now. They looked a little annoyed but also thankful because they knew if the witch had not protected they could be hurt. The witch slowly removed the shield, everyone sighed in relief and joy. And as the cage slowly arrived everyone was shocked. The bandits that hurt so many for a long time were finally captured.

“The danger has passed now.” she announced. “These bandits will never hurt anyone again. It is up to you to punish them rightfully. Though I do have a few suggestions” she mumbled sarcastically.

The village chief slowly approached the witch, held her hand and admitted. “We have not been kind to you in the past. We thought that all witches were evil and wanted to harm us. But you can't really blame us.” he cried as he pointed at the bandits. “We are sorry that we treated you badly. We let our prejudices get the best of us. I apologize on behalf of everyone.” All the villages nodded their heads in agreement. “Well then, young witch, we must make it up to you and celebrate the end of the bandits' reign.”

All the villagers, the witch and her master got to work immediately. After a few hours the preparation was done. The town square was decorated beautifully and there was delicious food on every one of the tables. Together they celebrated, laughed and ate. The witch even entertained the people with a small show. And as for the bandits, they were all punished. Though some people wanted to throw them in the dungeons, the village chief thought that it would be more helpful for everyone if their punishment was to do errands around town. After that day bandits paid for their evil act by cleaning houses and doing laundry. The witch moved from her crystal castle to a small but cozy house in the village. And the castle was used as a school for the kids. In the end it all turned out to be fine. They all lived happily ever after.