Benji lay there, limp and lifeless; He did not open his eyes and he did not speak. The blood continued to drip from his neck as he lay there. Rachel took off her sweater and tied it around his neck to put pressure on the wound and to stop the bleeding. She didn’t know why she didn’t think to do that before she left, but figured it was better late than never. She clutched his body with hers as she lay there hugging him. She could feel him struggling for air as he lay there.
“Benji, please! Wake up! I have the Red Amulet for you. I need you to tell me what to do with it?” Rachel begged.
She wasn’t sure how to use it since his parents didn’t tell him what to do with it once she found it. She knew she forgot something, and now realized that she didn’t know how to use it. How was she going to save him now without knowing what to do?
She took the amulet off her neck and put it to his. She tied the necklace around his neck and waited. She hoped it would do something, but nothing happened.
“It’s not working!” she yelled out. “Help me!”
Benji didn’t respond. He continued to lay there with the amulet around his neck as Rachel waited for it to take effect.
Then she remembered the page from the old Coven Book that she still had in her pocket. She pulled it out and unfolded it. Suddenly, the page lit up like the light from a Christmas Tree and she was stunned at what she saw on the page. It was the same page as she remembered, but this time, she was able to understand the words on the page. She couldn’t believe it. Why now, all of a sudden could she read this new language. Was the Red Amulet the cause of this?
She couldn’t believe it. She was reading Coven Code as if it were English. It was no problem for her at all and she couldn’t imagine why she couldn’t do it before. It came so easily to her.
As she read the page she was stunned at what she had to do to save Benji. She had to take the amulet, place it around his neck, laying at a 45 degree angle towards the sky. Then, she had to perform a ceremony in ancient Coven Code using rosemary leaves and the blood of a young fawn. She had to recite the ancient scripture which thankfully, was printed in the page and then do the sacred coven dance. After one completes all these sacred rituals, the person wearing the Red Amulet will be cured. Then, she read on and couldn’t believe what she saw. As she translated it, it said, Those who perform this sacred ritual must be ready to lay down their own life for the person they wish to save. It is an extremely holy act to save one’s life using the Red Amulet and many have been known to die performing the ceremony. If you perform these rituals and you survive, it is very rare. Very few ever survive and make it to see the light of the day.
Rachel’s heart jumped into her throat as she read that. She didn’t know what to do. If she performed these rituals for Benji to save his life, then she might die. But if she didn’t perform them, Benji would die and in turn she would be dead inside.
She realized she had no choice but to perform the ceremony. She couldn’t bear to let him die and her survive. She knew that Benji would lay down his life for hers and she wanted to do the same for him. After all, her life would be meaningless without him in it. It wouldn’t be worth living. She realized death was knocking at her door and she had to greet it with open arms. If it meant that Benji would survive, she would do anything. She loved him so much, that her well-being came second to his. He was the only thing she cared about and she would much rather look down on him from heaven than watch him die right there, in her arms.
She folded up the piece of paper and put it back into her pocket safely. She then used all her might to pick Benji up off the ground of the cave and carried him in her arms. The cave was pitch black and the water level was rising by the minute. She knew she had to get out and fast. They only had a few minutes before they would both drown in the cave. She was just thankful at this moment that she got back when she did. She realized the storm was coming and that it would kill him if he continued to lay there on the ground.
She looked into his eyes, which were still rolling back into his head as she carried him out of the cave and into the open air. It was still raining outside, and the clouds were a dark grey color. She knew she couldn’t perform the ceremony under the rain, she had to go somewhere where it was not raining so that she could really focus on the words of the ritual.
She picked Benji up and flew with him in her arms across the fields and west towards the setting sun. She knew it couldn’t be raining everywhere and continued flying until the sky grew calm and quiet. She landed on the ground below on a grassy field next to the woods. She knew she’d be safe here with Benji. She didn’t sense any danger and she felt a sense of calm as she was about to begin the ancient ceremony.
She took stock of everything she needed and then realized that she didn’t have the blood of a young fawn. She quickly put Benji down, and ran into the woods in search of a young fawn. To her surprise, there was a family of deer that were crossing the stream in front of her. She hid behind a tree as they walked by slowly and then she jumped out and sunk her teeth into the baby. She captured its blood in a hollowed out tree stump and then brought it back to where Benji lay, still lifeless in the field.
“Benji,” Rachel said before she started the ceremony. “I love you so much. I know we will be together again. In our next lifetime. I am about to perform the ceremony and as you know I may die as a result. I want you to know that I love you with my entire heart and wish you a happy remainder of this lifetime. I hope you find happiness and love. If you can’t be with me, I wish you find someone to make you happy. You are my one and only great love and you will forever be in my heart.”
Then she pulled out the piece of paper and began the ceremony. She placed the Red Amulet on his neck at a 45 degree angle towards the sky. Then, she took the rosemary leaves and sprinkled them over Benji’s body. The smell of the rosemary permeated the air around him and brought a sense of calm over Rachel. She knew she was doing the right thing despite her fear of dying in the process. She knew it was the right thing to do though. She knew she had to continue.
Her hands were shaking as she reached for the blood of the young fawn. She then took the blood with her right pointer finger and dabbed it onto his forehead in the shape of a cross. She then took the blood and dipped her finger back in and made a cross on her forehead. Now, she was ready to recite the ancient scripture.
“Domini Angus Lingus,” Rachel said. “Corpus, Truli, Andunis…”
Rachel repeated these two phrases over and over and watched Benji as she spoke. She placed her hand on his chest and felt his body begin to shake. The Red Amulet let off a soft glow, the same glow that she saw when she was in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. It was almost as if it was being ignited by a force from above.
She could feel Benji’s body waking up to the world again. She watched the wound as it slowly closed up and the skin around it healed. She saw him quiver and shake again and then his eyes began to blink quickly, opening and closing as his breaths grew faster and less shallow. She could feel him regaining the strength in his body, and at the same time she could feel her body growing weaker with each passing moment. It was all she could do to continue reciting the ancient scripture. Her body started to grow cold and shaky as she continued speaking, in a soft voice. The page fell from her limp fingers and her spine grew weak. She slunk down to the ground, feeling as if she were going to die.
She watched as Benji, who lay next to him, regained his strength and then began to sit up. She could hear him clearing his throat and she watched him as he touched his body with his hands. She could tell he was trying to figure out what had happened to him. There was no sign of injury or wound left on his body so she was sure he would never figure it out. Then, she saw him look at her. Their eyes connected as he reached out to touch her body.
“Rachel? Is that you?” Benji asked. “You don’t look well.”
“Domini Angus Lingus,” Rachel whispered, still gazing into Benji’s eyes.
“No! Rachel, stop! Please! What are you doing?” Benji said.
He then put his hands to his neck and felt that he was wearing the Red Amulet.
“You found it! You’re saving me. You can’t do that, you’re going to die!” Benji said.
He took his hands and wiped off the blood from her forehead. He then grabbed the Red Amulet and ripped it off his neck. He then looked back at Rachel and said, “I can’t believe you would do this for me. You have laid down your life to save mine. How can I ever repay you?”
“Benji, I love you!” Rachel said as she began to nod off, her body feeling weaker than ever. She felt her eyes roll back into her head and the last thing she remembered hearing, before her world went dark, was Benji’s voice.
“I’ll find you,” he said. “I won’t live without you. One day, somehow, we will meet again.”