Tuesday Tales: From the Word BURNED

Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales. I’m continuing with Listen to the Stones. This week, our word prompt is BURNED.

Carrying it back to the sofa, she reached for the amulet once more. Raven, wide awake, sat beside her. Marina turned the pendant over and held the magnifying glass above it. The handle seemed to hum and warm as she held it. As if by magic, the tarnish vanished, leaving the handle shining as if it were new. The handle clearly depicted exquisitely carved shells, a trident, and runes, what one would expect to see on an item supposedly belonging to the king of the sea. What was even more surprising was the fact that the smoky glass had cleared.

As she looked through it, she watched the runes on the back of the amulet move, rearrange themselves, and grow larger until she could see the message clearly and understand it. The words, written in an ancient language, were from whoever had gifted her the unusual piece of jewelry and explained its purpose. She read the words aloud.

“Daughter of the sea, this is my gift to you. Eyes that have been shrouded from the truth will gradually clear as the time of reckoning approaches. Be open to the truth. Sense it in all its forms, but beware the deceiver. He who believes his lies speaks the truth as he perceives it. When the time is right, wear this against your skin to reveal all that you are, all that you were, and all that you will be. Do not fear the truth, princess. Embrace it. Use it to reveal what must be and free those imprisoned.”

She turned to Raven. “Well, that’s clear as mud.”

The cat meowed in agreement, her small head cocked.

Marina swallowed. What should she do next? She sat back, realizing that the magnifying glass had returned to its original state. Taking it and the necklace into her bedroom, she placed the magnifying glass inside its velvet shroud. She was about to put on the necklace when she heard the voice she’d heard earlier.

“It isn’t time child. Put it away for now.”

Her cheeks burned in anger. “I don’t know who and what you are,” she spoke aloud to the room, but and only because I need to think about all this, I’ll do as you say, but it you are a damn ghost, then you’re going to have to show yourself soon.

The voice laughed.

That’s it. Come back next week for more. Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.