The Essence:: The Western Corner

By Sandra L. Hoskins

Learn how four young heroes unite with The Essence, overseers of the four corners of the world, to withstand the forces of human and otherworldly evils so that they could contend with the mission at hand: to help the people of Earth build character. . .
Raised in a town filled with magical beings, Kari often wondered why she possessed no special abilities or gifts. She had no idea that her real family had been searching for her for eleven years. Their fateful meeting happened by accident, thus sending Kari, her uncle, and two aunts, on a series of adventures. With the help of the Tressels, (of Tressel Tree Woods), their chatty horses, and other magical friends, the four youths overcome each challenge they face and find their new lives together one big surprise after another.
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• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 10, 2020
• ISBN: 9781984582256

Sandra L. Hoskins

Sandra Hoskins is from Cincinnati, Ohio

Book preview

Copyright © 2020 by Sandra L. Hoskins.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 06/09/2020

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Prologue

Changes To The Western Corner

Growth

Quests

Reveal-Ations

The Curious Cavern’s Treasure

Turmoil And Turbulence

Curiouser And Curiouser

Buried Treasure

… And Then There Were Four

New Surprises

Friends, Family, And Exciting Tails

Special Event

Destiny

New Beginnings

Epilogue

YOU SHOULD KNOW…

Writing a self-published novel can sometimes be a nuisance when you think you’re a genius…

After several failed attempts (three revisions) to get my novel straightened out, I finally gave up and called the expert who put it all together for me: my ten-year-old granddaughter Trinity, 5th grade spelling champ of Fulton Elementary in Springfield, Ohio (2011).

It was Lolly (my nickname for Trinity) who did the final revision. She came prepared, moving me out the way. After respectfully (haha) ignoring all my suggestions she promptly went to work. She took out all the blah, blah blather, added more dialogue, (it was mostly prose), used another font, asked me to please, please, please keep some of the chapters short and put them in order (they were a hot mess—all over the place) and then proceeded to put the book in a language that children her age could understand without using a dictionary.

While reading through the Essence, she came across a sentence in the section ‘Special Event’ that began, Me and my sister… and a few other things the character said, and then proceeded to lecture me on the proper use of grammar. I explained that the character, whom she was referring to, was speaking was from the future where the lingo had become a little more relaxed, but she kept insisting on telling me what her teacher said. After many futile attempts to make her understand that a fantasy-adventure did not have to follow the usual rules that other books did, she remained unconvinced and kept quoting her teacher, beginning with the words, But my teacher said…"

Finally, I put on my granny hat and told her that it was my book and that I would write it any way I wanted (while secretly thanking the teacher for doing her job). Lolly said nothing, but gave me a look that told me that I would soon be looking for another proofreader.

Exasperated, she called her seventeen-year-old sister, Cara, (whom I call Clark), and told on me. Clark said that I made the character sound ignorant, and insulted that entire section of the novel as well. I told her the same thing I told her sister, explaining the character’s vernacular. It did not stop there. They called their thirteen year-old-cousin, Ja’Tairi, (whom I call Giz), whose only concern was how the characters were going to be dressed. At that point Giz became my favorite granddaughter.

After all the rah-rah, Lolly finally settled down and assured me that we could do it my way (this time). I felt three years old. So much for my granny hat!

Thank you Lolly!!!

Love, Grandma

Written 2012

Dare to be different!!! Everybody’s got an opinion on how

things should be done.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First, Thanks to God Who loves us all!

Extra special thanks to my big brother, Wayne Hoskins, for his never-ending loyalty, love, and outstanding contributions to the 1st novel of ‘The Essence’ series. I could have not done it without him. Special thanks to Dominick Jones for giving me the name for my main character, "Kaīri." For help with editing: Marva Bishop, Ms. Lagena Johnson and especially my special niece Stephanie Watts. Your countless hours are deeply appreciated; and a big Thank you to JasonWearly, whose patience I nearly wore out. A special recognition for their input: acclaimed author Angela Henry, whose novels made me fall in love with comedy/romance mysteries, and the illustrious poet Chris Bays, keeper of future hopes and dreams…

…and a big ‘Thank You’ to Rita Gouldborne, who contributed the entire 4th chapter in Special Event.

And let us all give gratitude and thanks to Public Libraries Everywhere!

This book is

dedicated, with loving memories, to Sarah

Lee Hoskins, La’Keya Mae-Lee Freeman, Miya Grandison,

Carol Pritchett, Kenneth R. Hoskins, Mattie Davis, Larry

Hoskins, Martha Dunn, Morris and Lena Mae Freeman.

Real Stars

PROLOGUE

She felt sick, tired, hungry and hurt. Not just physically from brushing against tree limbs, or walking for long periods of time, but also mentally. While thinking about how unkind fate had been to her, the young mother paused long enough to reflect back to the exact moment when she’d finally mustered enough courage to run away. She had often thought about it but could never find the right time to do so—until tonight.

While the rest of the family slept, the young mother gently wrapped her tiny daughter in a bundle of soft, folded blankets to keep her warm. She gathered a few personal belongings, all the food and water she could carry and then quickly, but quietly, slipped out the door.

She and her husband had been very much in love, blissfully so, and finding they were to be blessed with a child only added to their happiness. After their daughter’s birth they’d settled down in a modest cottage on the opposite side of the village, away from his parents. Her husband’s parents were not at all pleased with this, and blamed their son’s wife for the move.

She had repeatedly tried to get along with her husband’s parents, but to no avail. Now her beloved husband was gone, taken from them by an untreatable illness, leaving her widowed with a three-month-old baby girl. Grief forced her to live with her in-laws, for she had no other place to go. Her own parents were long dead and she had no one else. Life with her husband’s family had become increasingly uncomfortable, so she decided to take the baby and leave.

A little way into her journey, the young mother realized she should have given her plan a little more thought. She had no idea where she was going, or how long the meager scraps of food she’d brought along would last. She did not even know how she would take care of her baby, for she had no real skills to speak of. She had aimlessly rushed out of the cottage to get away from her insufferable in-laws, and had paid no attention to the route she had taken. But now—her mind raced frantically—now she wished she had.

Trudging ahead, the young mother thought about her husband’s siblings, and wondered how her departure would affect them. After her husband’s death, she watched the once seemingly happy children become as sullen and aloof as their parents. The youngest girl, who was barely more than a baby herself, was the exception. The young mother often enjoyed the little girl’s company while reading to her own infant. Though she liked the children, the hostility their parents displayed towards her had become too much to bear.

Startled out of her reverie, she thought she felt something lightly touch her shoulder. The young mother sat beneath an odd-looking tree, in a clearing. She realized she must have wandered into a wooded area while reminiscing. She’d often heard stories about certain woods and wondered if these were the same ones. Although the woods looked peaceful enough, she could not help wondering how she came to be there. While walking, her mind had become riddled with exhaustion. She’d also been too busy daydreaming to even notice how much darker it had gotten.

After feeding herself and the child, the young mother suddenly felt very sleepy. She was also hot, sticky and ached all over. After changing and cleaning the infant, she felt even more exhausted. Although thirsty, she dared not drink another drop of the precious water she’d brought. There was not much left, and she had no idea where she’d next see a spring. However, she did spare some for the baby, who would need it more than she.

The young mother could not understand why she was so drowsy. She’d had sleepless nights before because of the baby, but wondered why this time it felt so different. At first, she thought it was due to all the walking, until another thought entered her mind; one she knew was much nearer the truth. She knew that she may have contracted the same illness that had taken her husband’s life, and felt afraid—dreadfully afraid that if she fell asleep her child would not be there when she woke up. She was painfully aware that the grandparents would search far and wide to get the infant back. Too tired to take another step, the young mother placed a large blanket under the odd-looking tree, and lay next to her daughter.

A short while later, she thought she heard tittering and quickly turned around, only to find no one there. She felt as if she were being watched, and cautiously took another long, slow look around.

While taking in the splendor of her surroundings, she suddenly began to smile. It was as if the truth about the beautiful woods, and their secrets, had just been revealed to her. She had no doubt that she could now rest without worry.

Feeling a sense of peace, the young mother let out a deep, weary sigh. She listened to the lulling song of the woods and stared up at the shimmering stars, reveling in their wonder. She wanted so badly to stay awake, but sleepiness prevailed. She gave her daughter one last kiss, and told her how much she loved her, before drifting off. She then fell into a deep sleep, one from which she would never awaken…

The baby woke up to sunshine and singing birds. Giggling and cooing, she was unaware that her mother was no longer with her. Being just a baby, however, she was very aware of her hunger, and started to cry. An infant’s cry may sometimes be confused with that of a small animal, but an infant’s hungry cry is quite different. This was the cry that reached the ears of an entity that happened to be in the wooded area at the time. This entity heard the crying, determined it was not an animal, but that of a small human, and then went in search of the whereabouts of the sound.

CHANGES TO THE

WESTERN CORNER

The Uni, guardian keeper of the sun, the moon, the stars and other surrounding worlds, created a most powerful force called The Central. Later, The Uni created four lesser, but still very powerful forces—spirits of the land; one for each corner of the Earth. Collectively, they were called The Essence. These cloud-like entities, wisps-of-winds, had the ability to alter their shapes to appear human.

Although The Central possessed the same qualities and abilities as The Essence, he was only to oversee and allocate their duties. He would remain in the sky until otherwise instructed by The Uni. The Essence were to stay on Earth for two hundred years.

When the latest assignment was given to the Western Essence of the Western Corner, The Essence had already been on Earth one hundred and seventy years. Her mission was to help rebuild character in the people on her Corner.

The Central was the only entity aware of The Uni’s existence, and even he did not realize how closely The Uni had been watching.

CHAPTER 1

The Western Essence (affectionately called WE) changed into human form before going into the enchanted woods on the Western Corner of the world. It was here that she could experience the true beauty of nature. In her natural state, as a wisp-of-wind, she could not fully appreciate the fragrance of a flower, the sound of rippling water, or feel the damp blades of grass beneath her. However, in human form, with her senses heightened, she was able to experience these things, and much more.

In the Western Corner’s enchanted woods there was Giggling Grass, (fondly referred to as Giggles), grass that laughed when walked unshod upon. In the winter it would be replaced with Sticky Snow— snow that turned into a thick white sludge if the woods were attacked. If any of the wood’s inhabitants were threatened, the snow would capture the culprits, holding them with its sticky substance until given permission, by WE, to release them. There were also Soft Rocks. These stones would turn mushy if they were used as weapons against innocent humans, forest creatures, or indeed, any denizen of the woods.

Besides their breathtaking aroma, the flowers had the ability to rotate and change colors; and like the trees of the woods, were able to shift positions. A rainbow variety of pretty birds and other beautiful flying wing-ed things often used the treetops as their homes.

The largest trees in the enchanted woods were called tressel trees, and never shed their long, odd-shaped, multi-colored leaves, no matter the season. The bottoms of these enormous tressel trees housed the Tressels. These small, delightful, leafy, tree-like forms, often provided comfort and companionship to the denizens of the woods.

Other trees of the enchanted woods had the ability to produce an array of fruit; not just one type, but an assortment of many, on each tree. The water from the Sparkling Spring, (Sparkles, for short), ran warm in cold weather, cold in warm weather, and had distinct flavors that changed from time to time. The spring was meant to provide a drink, or an occasional bath, for weary travelers. Its purity was recycled by the constant swirl beneath it.

Other smaller bodies of water surrounding the inner woods were home to several species of fish. There was a particular type of fish that leapt out of the water and into the air to become some of the beautiful flying wing-ed things that often flew around the woods.

Then there was the Traveling Trail,(usually just called Trailor) — a gossipy, moving pathway that delivered messages throughout the enchanted woods.

The enchanted woods were pleasing to both the eyes and ears. They were also very protective and, if threatened, could become extremely dangerous, for example:

One wintry day a malicious human set fire to some trees in the enchanted woods of the Western Corner. The sticky snow held the man fast in its grip to prevent escape and, as the Sparkling Spring surged up to douse the fire, it also drowned the man.

While marveling at the woods and enjoying nature, the Western Essence heard a noise and first thought it to be that of a small wounded animal. She followed the sound, until it became evident that it was not an animal at all, and continued to search for the source.

CHAPTER 2

The scene that WE witnessed was both poignant and curious. In a clearing of the enchanted woods, lying atop a large, tattered blanket beneath a lone tressel tree, was a baby girl and her dead mother. The dark brown, beautiful skin of the deceased woman still glistened under the sun’s rays. The crying infant appeared to have been wrapped carefully, and lovingly, with smaller blankets. WE was so touched by the image that she knew right then that she must protect the child. She also knew this decision had to be approved by The Central.

The Western Essence called upon the Tressels to bury the mother, while she attended to the baby. The young woman was so lovely that they could not bear putting her in the ground. Instead, they preserved her body by swaddling it with the child’s blankets. They then placed the body inside an unoccupied tressel tree. This they did while WE situated the child inside of her wisp-of-wind form, to go see The Central.

The Tressels had already seen the young mother and her baby earlier, when the two first arrived in the woods. They were fascinated by some of the noises the infant made. They continued to watch the two humans, even after they had fallen asleep. However, when the little one woke up, it started to make a horrific sound. The Tressels did not know what the wailing was about, and wished the mother would wake up to make it stop. They liked the little human better when it made funny noises when Giggles tickled it, or while the beautiful flying wing-ed things playfully flitted around it. But this particular noise was not so pleasant. They usually asked WE about such matters, but she had been unavailable.

It