Order of The Rose: Forsaken Petal by Joshua Hoyt

dream or did it mean something? He had to know. He quietly walked to where Cody was sleeping and shook him softly. “Hey, Cody. Wake up.”
    Tom shook him a couple more times but Cody just rolled over and began to snore. He sat for a few moments before deciding that he had to go by himself. I can do this. I’m always waiting for others to help me.
    He left the room and headed toward the library walking as quietly as he could. He looked for a light on the way and found a candle and matches. He made his way to the library and went to the open bookshelf. He slowly approached the doorway; chills ran up and down his spine. This is a bad idea, Tom.
    He made his way down the stairs and to the long hallway that led to the old library. He stopped as he looked down the dark hallway. What if one of the spiders is still alive? He walked toward the door, the dream returned to his memory. He had to know if the dream was real.
    He put his hand to the door, it felt cold to the touch, and he slowly pushed it open. Tom blinked several times. Is this real?
    Sitting at the table was a man dressed in a black robe looking directly at him. “Hello Tom,” the man’s voice was kind.
    Tom’s voice quivered as he responded, “Hello, sir.”
    “I have been waiting a long time to meet with you.”
    The man was wearing a necklace with a blue rose like the skeleton had had on. His hood was off. He had white hair and bright blue eyes.
    The man spoke softly and waved for Tom to come closer. “I am of the order of the Rose. The order is long gone now and only a few of us remain.”
    “ We have been working to bring a new day into this world. The council has grown greedy and corrupt, causing many to suffer unjustly.”
    Tom walked closer. He felt safe around the man.
    “I don’t have much time but you will find many of the answers you are looking for here in this library. The world has grown complacent. They feel they have all they need. The people feel that they can’t be destroyed because of their own greatness.”
    The man looked down at the book in front of him and turned a couple of pages. “This book is for you. It will explain some of the power that is in you.” He smiled and a tear came to his eye as he turned a few more pages. “This is the last page that I was able to write, so long ago. You are our last hope. You must make things right.”
    The man closed the book, smiled at Tom and then was gone. Tom’s mouth dropped in shock. He looked around the dark room and fear returned. 
    He walked to the table where only a skeleton of the man sat. The book lay on the table covered in dust. He touched it, wiping away the dust from the cover and seeing four roses. There was a blue, red, white and brown, their stems interlaced. Lifting the cover gingerly he saw ancient writing inside. At first he could not read the strange words that were written but as he squinted and looked closer the words came into his mind. It was as if the words skipped his eyes and appeared directly in his head and he was able to understand them.
    His head began to hurt from the strain and he had to stop reading. He closed the cover and tried to pick up the book. Surprised by its weight, he tried again, but no matter how hard he tried, the book would not move. Looking at it he wondered what was keeping it in place. Not seeing anything, he figured it was magic so he gave up and left the library.
    He walked through the secret door into the library where he saw Cody running up the ramp toward him. “Where have you been? We have been looking all over for you.”
    Still in deep thought, he looked up at Cody. “I was down in the old library.”
    “ What were you doing down there?” Cody asked.
    “ I-I had a dream about the library.” Tom shuddered remembering the screams. “There was a man I talked to him.”
    “ There was someone down stairs?”
    Tom shook his head slowly from side to side. “Yes, no. Not a man but a spirit. He showed me a book.”
    Cody looked at