《The Dark Chronicles #1: Creation of the Darkness》


 Chapter 1: The Pendants are Found

    A loud rumble jolted me awake. I jerked upright, looking around half asleep. The sky outside my window was clear and as blue as the ocean beneath it.


    Through the haze, I formed thoughts. That¡¯s weird. Take a breath and think.


    Another rumble. I shook my head and took a few deep breaths to clear my foggy brain. No sign of a storm. With my head as clear as I could get it, the next rumble revealed the source. A dark, heavy cloud in the back of my mind. I flopped back onto my pillow with a sigh.


    Why did it have to come back? Didn¡¯t I get over this years ago? What the frack man?


    As I focused on it, an old, familiar heavy feeling settled over my chest weighing me down. I groaned.


    With no chance of going back to sleep, I forced myself to get out of bed, pushing the blankets away.


    A static shock went through my hand as I grazed the sheets.


    ¡°Ow, damn it,¡± I griped as I got up.


    I threw on a plain black shirt and jeans and left my room. I neither saw nor heard any sign of my dad as I walked through the house.


    I sighed. Must be at work.


    My stomach let out a grumble prompting me to head to the kitchen. After debating the pros and cons of cooking versus cereal, I settled on the latter. After pouring a bowl, I sat at the table to slowly eat while staring out the window. The sun streamed in through the glass along with the gentle roll of the ocean.


    Before I knew it, my spoon clattered against the bowl signaling the end of breakfast. After washing my dishes, I head out into the yard.


    I could already feel the heat. I hated it. It was morning and I was already starting to sweat. It was gross. There was a small gap between my house and the fence which I crossed in three steps and pushed open the gate. Directly on the other side lay the beach. To my right was a vacant house and on the other side of that was the dense rainforest. It surrounded the whole neighborhood and stretched beyond it.


    I walked through the gate and onto the beach, stopping at the shoreline, just outside the water¡¯s reach. Waves rolled over the sand as the scent of salt bombarded my nostrils. I stared out at the ocean. I listened, hearing only waves.


    The morning sun hung low in the sky, shining brightly just above the waterline, but not one bird called in the breeze. They should have been squawking up a storm by now. For some reason I couldn¡¯t explain this silence set my nerves on edge. I could feel them tingling in my toes.


    As I stared out over the water, something shiny glinted in the corner of my eye. I scanned the jittery ocean. The object escaped my sight until I spotted it again, stuck in some kelp. Keeping my eyes on the thingy, I waded waist-deep out to it. At least the water was somewhat warm and it was better than sweat. The textured plastic of a clear bottle wrapped in kelp kept a rolled-up sheet of paper safe and dry. Curled around the paper was a shimmering yellow stone on a gold chain. I pulled the bottle from the seaweed.


    What''s this about? The cloud rumbled in the back of my mind. Does someone on a deserted island need help?


    The lid had crusted around the rim but I twisted anyway. After some effort and using my shirt I finally got it open. I shook the items into my hand, and the pendant came out easily, but the paper. not so much. The incessant waves weren¡¯t helping either, but I pushed against them to keep my balance until I got enough grip to get the paper out. Finally the note, which was handwritten and short on regular notebook paper, slipped out.


    It read:


    To the finder of this pendant:


    Our world is in dire need of your help. Lord Phiale has killed our leaders and taxed us into destitution. Disease and famine run rampant. Our only hope is if this pendant reaches your champion. It grants the ability to open the path to our world. Please hurry. Our survival depends on you.


    Sincerely,


    Lliw


    I lowered the paper. ¡°Lliw? Lord Phiale? Who wrote this crap?¡± I scoffed. ¡°Yeah, right. Nice joke.¡±


    I held the pendant up for inspection. The cloud thundered. I ignored it, opting to keep the pendant in the hope it would bring me good luck. Maybe even canceling out the cloud once and for all. Yeah, right. Like that was going to happen.


    That cloud wasn¡¯t going anywhere after coming back, if it had even left in the first place.


    As I slipped the chain around my neck, I heard a voice call me from the beach.


    ¡°Hey, Will!¡± Nell waved at me from the shore.


    My heart beat faster at the sight of her straight, shoulder length, raven hair lifting in the gentle wind, though I didn¡¯t understand why.


    ¡°Coming!¡± I tossed the bottle into the water and carefully made my way back to the shore, trying to keep the paper dry. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°What were you doing out there?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Getting this,¡± I said, as I handed her the note.


    My eyes lingered over her as she read. She stood a couple of inches under my six feet. Being a descendant of the original Polynesian settlers and spending a lifetime under the sun had left her skin with a dark coppery glow. Her sparkling, light brown eyes squinted over the words, causing crinkles in their corners and sending strange pangs through my chest. Her loose navy shirt fluttered in the wind while her denim shorts looked like they were molded to her slender legs.


    My nerves fired on all cylinders as I waited until she was done reading. I really didn¡¯t know why I wanted her to finish it so badly. Maybe I just wanted to hear her voice again? Why did she always bring out this feeling in me? Everything about her from her smile to the way she put her everyone else first strangely flooded my body with butterflies.


    She finished reading. ¡°Who wrote this crap?¡± she asked.


    I smirked, pushing every feeling deep into my flip-flopping stomach. I couldn¡¯t let her sense the state I was in whenever she was near. ¡°I said the same thing.¡±


    She noticed the pendant. ¡°Is that it?¡±


    ¡°Why are you saving it?¡±


    She looked at me out of the corner of her eye. ¡°To show Sam,¡± she answered as if I should''ve known what she was doing. ¡°Come on. Let''s go for a walk.¡±


    I plodded beside her on the beach. I realized too late I should have changed out of my wet clothes, but I figured they would dry as the air warmed. My eyes kept wandering back to look at her. Something about her had a calming effect, even with the nervous energy she caused within me. Yet while my shoes padded through the soft sand, the cloud in the back of my mind kept up a low, constant rumble.


    ¡°What''s that in the sand?¡± Nell asked, breaking into my thoughts.


    I looked ahead at where she pointed. Something glimmered in the light, though we couldn''t make out what it was. Once we were close enough, I recognized a similar bottle to the one I had found. When Nell had extracted it from the sand, another letter and pendant were shown inside. The cloud rumbled loudly.


    What the frack is going on here? Where are these things coming from?


    I tried to think of answers while Nell carefully opened the bottle. She used her left hand while keeping it steady under her right arm. Before I could comment she got the lid off and emptied the bottle.


    This pendant was red, but like mine, on a gold chain. She unrolled the paper and read it aloud.


    ¡°To the reader from another world,¡± she began. ¡°Our world has fallen under the tyrannical rule of Lord Phiale. Through taxation, disease, and famine he has very nearly destroyed us. This pendant is our last hope of survival. Use it to unlock the path to our land. We are in desperate need so make haste. Please come. Llen.¡±


    ¡°Ugh.¡± Nell looked at me with an arched eyebrow. ¡°Who the chizz is doing this? I mean, seriously. What have they got against us?¡±


    ¡°Lord Phiale sounds like Lord Vile. They seriously didn¡¯t put any real thought or originality into this, did they?¡± I said.


    Looking at the new pendant gave me the same heavy feeling as before. She slipped it around her neck and the note into her pocket.


    ¡°Going to show Sam?¡± I asked sarcastically.


    She nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t we always share what we get up to when one of us is missing?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, good point. I guess that¡¯s what friends do.¡± I looked down at the bottle she dropped. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to pick that up and recycle it?¡± I teased.


    She punched me in the arm again.


    Why is she so violent?


    ¡°I¡¯ll pick it up on our way back. At least one isn¡¯t in the ocean.¡±


    I shook my head and we resumed walking again, going down the beach in a direction I hadn¡¯t been. ¡°Where are we going, anyway?¡±


    Nell shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ve never been down this way before. Just cause I was born here doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ve explored every inch of the island.¡±


    ¡°Fair enough. We can discover it together.¡±


    She smiled, though I had no idea why. I hadn¡¯t said anything funny. I had more important things to think about anyway: the bottles. Two had already shown up. Would there be more, and if so, how many more are there?And what¡¯s up with them anyway? Why us?


    I glanced at Nell as we strolled. Was she thinking about them too? Or was her mind somewhere completely different? I stopped focusing on her to scan the beach. If I didn''t solve this mystery, it would annoy the crap out of me. I really wanted to know who was doing this and why. It seemed pretty elaborate for a joke and why were they targeting us? Were we even the ones these messages were intended for? The thundercloud in my head grew darker as we walked. The rumbling grew until my brain vibrated like it was in the middle of a loud bass speaker. I did some deep, silent breathing to relax my mind. After a few minutes, the vibrations calmed down to minor tremors, nothing I couldn¡¯t handle. I just had to get used to it again.


    We said nothing else as we continued our trek on the beach. Nell¡¯s face didn''t show her thoughts and I didn''t get a chance to ask because a rocky outcropping taller than us blocked our path. It stretched out like the tail of an Indian mongoose from deep in the jungle and sloped far into the water.


    I looked at Nell. ¡°I guess we have to climb.¡±


    She cringed. ¡°Are you sure? There¡¯s no other way?¡±


    I shook my head and set my foot on a rock, slowly and carefully heaving myself up so I wouldn¡¯t slip or cut my hand. The wall wasn¡¯t tall, but some of the rocks were sharp, so careful hand placement was necessary. My shoe slipped when I tried to push myself up, but I was able to stop before I slid back to the sand. When I got to the top, I looked back down to see how Nell was faring. She was going slow, her face contorted into a look of exertion. Her jaw was clenched and her eyes were narrowed. Sweat beaded her forehead as she tried to drag herself up.


    ¡°Help me,¡± she panted.


    I reached my hand down. She missed the first time but the second time she managed to get it. A mini jolt shot through my hand as I grasped hers.


    What the frack was that? More static?


    ¡°OW!¡± she yelped, yanking me out of my thoughts. ¡°Be careful. I burned myself this morning and it still hurts.¡±


    ¡°Sorry. I''ll be careful,¡± I promised.


    I eased my grip a bit hoping it wouldn¡¯t cause her to slip.


    Despite the leverage the rocks provided, my arm still felt like it would be pulled from its socket, or I would be dragged down to a painful, anticlimactic death as she put all of her weight on it. I grabbed her wrist with my other hand and pulled every time she took a step. It was slow going but she made it to the top. She held onto me as she caught her breath. That¡¯s when I saw the burn on the web between her thumb and forefinger of her right hand. It didn¡¯t look too bad but it was dark red and slightly swollen.


    ¡°How did it happen?¡±


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Her face flushed with red. ¡°Burned it on the toaster getting my pastry. Something distracted me out of my kitchen window, it''s no big deal¡±


    I waited until she was ready before we started down the other side.


    At least this time, I could see where I was putting my feet since I was able to look down. It was easier to help Nell down to the sand. Once we were back on the beach I noticed something I had never seen in my life. A thin, green creek came out of the underbrush and went down to the water. The green ended the moment it mingled with the regular water.


    ¡°What the chizz is up with the water?¡± she asked.


    I crouched to get a better look. ¡°I don''t think it''s water,¡± I said as I slowly stuck my fingers into it.


    ¡°Will, don''t!¡± Nell screeched. ¡°It could be poisonous!¡±


    I pulled my fingers out and rolled the thick, syrupy gunk around with my thumb. It began to pulse. ¡°What the frack?¡± I muttered.


    Something that sounded like a foot slipping came from behind us, causing me to flinch in surprise. I turned and edged closer to Nell, ready to defend her when a head with matted curly black hair popped over the rocks. I breathed a sigh of relief as Sam climbed down to where we were. He moved easily and quickly down the rock pile, his broad shoulders allowing his arms a wider than normal range of movement. Water dripped off him the lower he came, some even landing on me. A blue pendant rested against his shirtless brown skin.


    Why are these people laying them out where we can find them? When did they do it? And why? Are they following us? Are we connected in some way?


    ¡°Hey, guys,¡± Sam said. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    Nell gestured to the creek. ¡°Well, this stuff could be poisonous and Will just stuck his fingers in it all willy-nilly.¡±


    ¡°I was curious,¡± I defended myself.


    ¡°That¡¯s no reason to put your fingers in something potentially dangerous.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m still alive, aren¡¯t I?¡±


    ¡°Who knows what kind of shelf life it has? It could take a while to kill you!¡± Her eyes flashed with something I didn¡¯t recognize as she said this.


    ¡°Guys!¡± Sam cut in.


    We both looked at him. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Could you stop for a minute? Check out the necklace I found.¡± He indicated the blue pendant. ¡°And it came with this weird note too.¡±


    ¡°Did it come in a bottle? If it did, and you didn¡¯t recycle it, Nell might punch you in the arm as punishment. Apparently, she¡¯s very concerned about it.¡±


    She punched me. ¡°Will you get off that already?¡±


    ¡°Why always me? Why not him? I just risked my life to help you up the side of a cliff and I still don¡¯t get a pass?¡±


    She smiled a sly, coy smile that sent my heart fluttering. Even though I still didn¡¯t understand how she could make me react with a single glance, smile, or remark. ¡°Because you¡¯re more fun,¡± she said as she nudged my shoulder.


    ¡°And you¡¯re violent,¡± I stated, playfully nudging her back.


    ¡°Again? You guys just finished!¡± Sam said.


    Nell looked at him. ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s his fault.¡±


    I was about to speak up but Sam shook his head, stopping me.


    ¡°We found some notes, too,¡± Nell told him with a glance at me.


    What is her deal? What was that look?


    I flicked most of the green gunk off my hand and Nell and I held out our pendants. Nell also showed him our notes and he showed us his.


    Sam¡¯s note was nearly identical. There was the same doom and gloom, the same Phiale guy ruining everyone¡¯s day, but his was written by someone named Mas.


    Something about this note bothered me, but I couldn¡¯t put my finger on it. I took all three notes to study them.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Nell asked.


    Nothing jumped out at me though something still nagged at my mind. I looked at the names and it occurred to me. ¡°Guys, look at the names.¡±


    I held the notes out to them.


    ¡°What are we looking at?¡± Sam asked.


    ¡°Just look,¡± I said.


    They did and I watched their faces change from confusion to wonder as my discovery dawned on them.


    ¡°They¡¯re our names spelled backward,¡± Nell paused. ¡°And we each found the note with our name on it.¡±


    Sam shrugged. ¡°So they know our names. Big deal.¡±


    ¡°It could be just a big coincidence,¡± Nell added. ¡°Or a big fat joke.¡±


    ¡°Why would anyone go this far to play a prank on us?¡± I asked. ¡°And who would? They would have to know us and our habits pretty well to guarantee we were the ones who found them.¡±


    We looked at each other and I knew what we were all thinking.


    ¡°Jake and Bobby,¡± we said in unison.


    They were the resident bullies and they hated me from the moment they met me. I admit I might have caused it.


    ¡°But do you really think those two have enough brain cells between them to come up with something this elaborate?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Good point. But if it¡¯s not them, who?¡± Nell asked.


    Sam gestured toward the creek. ¡°You think this has anything to do with it?¡±


    Nell shrugged. ¡°None of the notes mention anything about it, so I doubt it.¡±


    Sam smiled. ¡°So if this is a gag, then no one would expect us to follow it. It would throw them off if it¡¯s not part of it.¡±


    Nell and I agreed and it was decided.


    We pushed our way through the dense underbrush of the jungle, trying to keep an eye on the creek though the thick mass of vines and exposed roots made it difficult to see the ground, let alone the rivulet. We caught a few glimpses here and there, so we knew we were on the right track. I stumbled more than once. A particularly tall and thick bush stood in front of me. I forced my way through, branches whipping me in the face.


    On the other side, thick trees rose like prison bars to block our path. As we wormed our way around them, I briefly worried about losing our trail. When we were clear of them, we had to dig through the vines to find it again, cutting up our hands in the process.


    ¡°Lousy cat¡¯s claws,¡± Nell muttered.


    It went much deeper than I expected, but we eventually found the source. There was a pond about half the size of a convenience store gas station parking lot full of the green stuff. It trickled from a metal tunnel about the size of a fully grown man and half of another that stuck out the side of a hill. By the time we found it, scratches covered our arms, and in Sam¡¯s case, his whole torso.


    ¡°So, this is where it starts,¡± Nell said as we looked over the scene.


    I rolled my eyes. ¡°Duh, Nell. Let''s use your brain for a minute here.¡±


    ¡°Shut up, Will,¡± she muttered.


    ¡°Well, if you wouldn''t state the obvious, then I wouldn''t have to say that,¡± I quipped.


    Sam sighed. ¡°Guys, enough. There''s obviously something more going on here than we thought .¡± He gestured to the large pipe.


    I walked to it.


    ¡°Where do you think you''re going?¡± Nell demanded.


    To my doom, most likely, I thought grimly as the cloud rumbled and darkened in the back of my mind. ¡°To see where that pipe goes, where else?¡± I answered without turning. ¡°I want to see where that stuff comes from and see if we can stop it. We can''t let any more of it get out. After all, you said it could be dangerous.¡±


    Despite how often I ignored the cloud, it had never been wrong when warning me about danger, and it had been going off all day after years of being silent. I took a step forward, that familiar, heavy feeling spread throughout my body. The feeling that always came with the sense of death. Or maybe it caused it, I didn¡¯t know. I was fighting another internal battle, and who knew how long it would last this time.


    Every muscle in my body screamed for me to turn back and leave it alone, logically I was still just a kid. What did I have to prove? And we didn''t even know if this had anything to do with the notes, and pendants, but I forced myself to face whatever was coming. Running headlong into danger was never something I enjoyed, but when it affected me directly, I had to stare it in the face until it flinched. One day I would be the one flinching, until then, I couldn¡¯t live my life afraid of everything the cloud warned me about.


    I heard my friends groan loudly and start pushing through the underbrush. They caught up with me as I stepped into the tube, continuing to protest as we made our way down the damp, cool pipe. It was easy not to walk in the green stuff because the stream was so thin. The further from the entrance we got, the harder it was to see where we were going.


    I felt a strange heat on my chest and looked down. My pendant was glowing a dim yellow.


    ¡°Will, do you have a flashlight?¡± Sam asked, his voice echoing from behind Nell.


    ¡°No, my pendant is glowing,¡± I answered, as if it were a natural occurrence.


    ¡°Oh, okay,¡± he said, then must¡¯ve realized what was said. ¡°Your pendant is what?¡±


    I stopped and turned to show them. ¡°It''s glowing.¡±


    ¡°How is that even possible?¡± Nell asked.


    ¡°Ours aren¡¯t doing it,¡± Sam added. ¡°What makes yours so special?¡±


    ¡°You know, I think that. . .is a very good question,¡± I answered. ¡°And I wish I had an answer for you.¡±


    The light steadily grew brighter the deeper we went, and eventually, I was able to see a few feet ahead of me. As if to match the increasing brightness, the air around us was steadily getting cooler. Goosebumps rose on my arms. My muscles started to quiver to increase heat.


    ¡°I h-hate the c-cold,¡± Nell said through chattering teeth. ¡°Why is this pipe so cold?¡±


    ¡°C-can we go back now? There¡¯s n-nothing here,¡± Sam griped.


    The chill made me shudder from time to time, and as we went further in, I found it harder to control the shivering my muscles so desperately wanted to do. I gritted my teeth so they wouldn¡¯t chatter. ¡°I¡¯m not quitting until I find out what¡¯s on the other end of this thing.¡±


    I was confident that before long, we would learn the origin of the green stuff but the pipe had other ideas. We soon found our path blocked by a set of bars. Our journey was at an end with no answers for our trouble. My stomach sank. Had I led my friends there for no reason? I hid my disappointment, which was easy with the near darkness around us. Since my pendant was the only light source, I used it to illuminate the area. I ran it slowly over the sides of the metal pipe. There was no way to squeeze through the bars, and I saw nothing at our feet. The sides were smooth.


    ¡°Up there,¡± Nell said.


    Above us was a hatch with a handle. Relief flooded through my body as I let out a ragged sigh. But could we get to it? I reached up, found it was too high, and jumped up. All I grabbed was air.


    ¡°Well, ain¡¯t that just g-great,¡± Sam griped. ¡°Guess we can all get out of h-here.¡±


    I tried again, this time somehow managing to get a grip. Before I could slip off, I used my other hand to grab on. I was now dangling in the air from a handle that was obviously stuck from rust.


    Nell laughed. ¡°You look s-silly.¡±


    ¡°You c-could help m-me,¡± I said.


    They grabbed onto my legs and pulled me down until the handle gave way, flakes of rust landing on my face. The door swung down, causing me to lose my grip and we all fell into a pile, right in the thin stream of ooze. I looked up through the open hatch into a white room.


    ¡°That was fun,¡± Sam grumbled.


    I looked at my friends. ¡°Help me up.¡±


    I reached up, putting my feet in their hands and they pushed while I pulled myself toward the exit. Sam grunted. I did my best to make things easier for them, but there wasn¡¯t much for me to grab on to. As I tried to use the hanging door for leverage, I felt them sliding around as they heaved. Somehow, I managed to get my head through the opening so I took a chance by using what appeared to be the floor of a building to hoist myself. Unfortunately, the floor was tile. I slipped back down.


    ¡°What are you doing up there?¡± Sam grunted as he tried to push me back up.


    ¡°Sorry! I have no grip up here!¡± I called to him.


    ¡°Can you take some more of his weight? I can¡¯t hold on,¡± Nell wheezed.


    I did what I could to shift my weight and keep it balanced for them. I gripped the edges of the opening and, mustering every ounce of strength I had, I heaved while they pushed. With that, I got to a point where they could let go, leaving my legs dangling.


    I was over halfway through so I inched along the floor, kicking my legs to get some momentum to push myself the rest of the way, the edge of the floor digging into my gut. With one final effort, I succeeded. I rolled onto my back and away from the opening to catch my breath.


    ¡°You okay?¡± Nell called up.


    ¡°Just a second,¡± I wheezed.


    Every breath was pure agony. Stabbing pains shot through me every time I inhaled. I checked my stomach, and it was red. Visible scrapes ran down it. As I lay there, I noticed the increase in temperature and it felt so much nicer than the cold of the tunnel. I flexed my fingers to return the blood to them. Feeling slowly returned to my hands and I realized how numb I had gotten.


    Once the pain subsided, and I was substantially warmer. I stood up. The room I found myself in was half as big as a soccer field and white, with sunlight streaming in through windows set near the ceiling. A silver tank roughly the size of a one-story house stood in the middle of the room. Attached to its side was a tall ladder.


    Wow, this place is big. What is it? With the sun coming in, are we still underground?


    I was about to head over toward the tank, but something else attracted my attention.


    ¡°Will!¡± Nell called, flailing her arms through the hole.


    I stared at her, trying to understand what she wanted, and then it hit me. ¡°Duh, Will. Let''s use your brain for a minute here.¡±


    I grabbed her hands, careful to avoid her burn, and with Sam pushing, we got her up fairly easily. Next came the hard part: getting Sam up with no help from below. I crouched while he jumped, but all I snatched at was thin air. The second time he jumped I caught his hand. The sudden shift in weight threw my balance off, and I almost went back down into the pipe with him. We were saved from this disaster when I felt Nell¡¯s arms wrap around my waist. I stood up a bit and with her help, I was able to get my footing and catch his other hand in my free one.


    ¡°Okay, on my count,¡± I said. ¡°One, two. . .¡±


    ¡°Hurry up! You¡¯re pulling my arms out!¡± Sam yelled.


    ¡°Three!¡± I finished.


    Nell and I pulled with all of our strength.My arms strained to hold him. I could feel my face heat up as it turned red with effort. Since he had nothing to support him, Nell and I had to carry all of his weight. My arms screamed at me to let him go as our feet kept slipping. I set my jaw and let out a heavy breath. Sam was swinging freely below us as I leaned back. Nell caught on to my plan and moved out the way. I took all the weight to pull him up. As more of him came out of the hole, I brought my legs together as a counter while falling back. I collapsed on the floor; Sam landed partially on top of me but mostly out of the hole. We let go of each other, and he extracted himself the rest of the way.


    Sam adjusted his red swim shorts. ¡°Almost lost my trunks,¡± he said with a grin.


    ¡°You need to lose weight,¡± I said between gasps.


    ¡°No, you two just need to work out more,¡± he replied. ¡°I am not fat. I swim. I¡¯m lean.¡±


    Nell ignored him. She was too busy jumping up and down to warm herself. ¡°This is so much better than that pipe!¡± She stopped jumping when she saw the tank. ¡°What''s in there?¡±


    ¡°I don''t know, but I intend to find out,¡± I answered, once I caught my breath.


    My footsteps echoed off faraway walls as I crossed the room to climb the ladder. A heavy chill passed through my body when I touched the cold metal, and I was a little nervous about going up so high. I swallowed over the thud of my heartbeat and forced myself up, focusing my eyes on the rim of the tank. Almost there. Almost there.


    My stomach did a couple of flip-flops as I climbed. The higher I went, the worse things got. My body trembled, and my breathing grew ragged. I refused to look down. My sweating palms made it harder to grip the sides of the ladder. I hoped they couldn¡¯t see my fear down there. I took it one step at a time until I reached my goal. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, doing my best to clear my head and relax my body. It didn¡¯t help. I hoped I never had to climb this high again. So far, I had avoided it perfectly.


    Why did I volunteer to climb this, again?


    Steeling my courage, I looked in the tank.


    ¡°What''s in there?¡± Sam called from below.


    ¡°More of that green stuff from before!¡± I answered, my voice trembling.


    ¡°What the chizz is up with that crap?¡± Nell wondered. ¡°All of a sudden, it¡¯s everywhere.¡±


    I didn''t reply. Instead, I busied myself with investigating the stuff in the tank, trying to take my mind off how high I was. Despite the experience I had before, I still wanted to reach into it. My hand was inches from the goo when something moving too fast to clearly make out crashed through the ceiling, landing in the tank. A huge wave of the stuff swept over me, splashing down on Nell and Sam.


    ¡°Gross, gross, gross,¡± Nell exclaimed. ¡°I don¡¯t wanna die!¡±


    ¡°Yuck,¡± Sam agreed. ¡°Get this gunk off me!¡±


    The goo was thick like syrup, but it wasn''t sticky. I froze, feeling the weight of the gunk on me.


    Then everything exploded. I was blasted back through the air. The jungle was a green blur as I flew back. Air screamed past my ears. Or was that me? My flight abruptly ended when I slammed into something hard, knocking all air from my lungs and falling face down to the ground.

 Chapter 2: Evil Forces Conspire

    ¡°Eagleton!¡± a deep, booming voice bellowed.


    Before long, a small, balding, old man answered the summons. He stepped into the beam of light, completely illuminated to the man behind the desk. He wore a green jacket over white shirt and black slacks. His beady eyes were set close together over a long, thin beak of a nose. The man who had summoned him wore a dark blue suit and a blood red tie. He sat behind a nicely organized desk directly in the center of the dark room. The only light coming in was a beam a few feet in front of his desk, just big enough for someone to stand in. Which Eagleton stepped in the middle of.


    ¡°Yes, sir?¡± he asked meekly.


    ¡°How goes everything?¡±


    ¡°Good, sir. Our teams are collecting the tax money from everyone that is still free. Those that can''t are sent to the camps or put to death. Your reach is ever expanding; nearly total.¡± He paused, unsure as to how to break this next bit of news to his boss. His boss was known to have a temper when things didn''t go his way, and this news was really bad for his ambitions. There was no telling how he would react to it, but he had to tell him. ¡°Also...there have been rumors that some people have sent out pleas for help against us.... against you.¡± He held his breath, waiting for the backlash.


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    The figure sat quietly for a few minutes, processing this news. This was potentially a new threat to his empire, and it was something that would not be tolerated. ¡°Have there been any responses?¡±


    ¡°No, sir,¡± Eagleton replied. ¡°As I said, sir, they are only rumors.¡±


    ¡°Rumors or not, I cannot take this chance. Send out a task force to find these people and have them destroyed. Have them kill anyone who opposes them or refuses to talk. We can''t have anyone coming to help them. I worked too hard for this. I will not be stopped.¡±


    Eagleton nodded. ¡°Yes, sir. It will be as you command.¡± It''s not like I have any other choice, he thought in despair as he left to follow the orders.

 Chapter 3: A Heavy Loss

    I awoke to someone shaking me. I groaned and rolled over. It took a slow minute for my eyes to adjust to the light. There was a momentary flutter of joy. The dark cloud was gone. I hoped for good, but I knew better. It had always been there alternating between light and dark, loud and quiet, a constant heavy weight in my mind. Nell was standing over me, staring down with those deep, glistening eyes. Somehow, she looked perfectly clean despite being covered in goop not long before.


    ¡°Will, get up,¡± she said softly.


    ¡°Did anyone get the license plate of that truck?¡± I asked.


    Sunlight filtered down through the canopy above us. I struggled to sit up despite the swimming dots in front of my eyes. My body felt drained of any energy, making sitting seem like a chore. I used a nearby tree to help pull me up. Briefly, I wondered if this was what I hit before I blacked out. Leaning against the trunk, I took a few deep breaths to steady my nerves, though it did nothing for my head. My stomach rumbled loudly.


    I guess exploding really takes a lot out of you. ¡°How did we survive that?¡± I wondered aloud. ¡°We should be little pieces of nothing right now.¡±


    ¡°I don''t know, but right now, I really feel like I didn''t. I hurt like chizz all over,¡± she griped.


    I did a mental check and discovered that I didn''t hurt at all. ¡°That''s weird. I''m fine.¡±


    I tried to stand on my own. My energy was taking its sweet time returning. I couldn¡¯t even grip the vines to pull myself up. I held out my hand. ¡°Little help?¡±


    She grasped it and attempted to pull me up, but my head was having none of that. The second I was upright, black spots swam in front of my eyes, and I fell back down, my hand landing in a puddle of the green stuff.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Nell asked, her voice full of concern.


    ¡°Yeah, it''s just a gigantic head rush,¡± I replied slowly as I shook my head to clear it.


    Once I was okay, I tried again, this time going slower.


    Nell wrapped my right arm around her shoulders as I put my hand on the tree for balance. The instant my ooze-covered palm touched the bark, I felt a strange tingling sensation shoot up my arm and into my brain.


    Whoa. What a rush!


    The sudden cascade to my brain threw me off balance pushing me into Nell, who had absolutely no trouble supporting my weight, which was weird since I was basically leaning everything I had on her.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe the jungle survived,¡± I said, looking around. ¡°You would think something like that would have destroyed everything in the area.¡±


    ¡°We gotta find Sam,¡± Nell said.


    I agreed, pushing all other thoughts from my mind. As soon as I could stand without help, we began the search for him. We forced our way through some thick bushes, making sure we kept an eye out for any part of Sam through the underbrush. We stumbled across a log that came up to my waist and thicker. The ends of it were hidden in the dense growth. I carefully straddled it and slid to the other side. I went to help Nell, who rested one hand on it and hopped over it without a problem.


    I looked at her in shock, but she apparently didn¡¯t notice as she was busy looking at everything else.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t see him anywhere on the path I took when I stumbled across you,¡± she said. ¡°Though by now I have no idea where that even is. I only found you with luck.¡±


    I thought for a moment. ¡°Why don¡¯t we make our way back to where we exploded? We might find him along the way. Plus, I want to see if we can find out what happened.¡±


    She nodded. ¡°Speaking of which, did you see what caused it?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°Uh. . .kinda. I couldn''t exactly tell what it was, though. It happened way too fast. All I saw was something crash through the ceiling and land in the tank.¡±


    ¡°That explains the wave that covered me and Sam. Which could have killed us thanks to your stupid curiosity.¡± Her eyes again flashed with that thing I didn¡¯t recognize and a pang shot through my chest.


    I nodded, and we trudged through the underbrush in silence. The fact that most of the jungle was still standing surprised me. Why hadn¡¯t the explosion wiped it out?


    Nell¡¯s right. This was all my fault. I led us down this path and look what happened. We nearly died, and Sam¡¯s missing. Probably dead. Who knows what else? She would have been better off if we never moved here. If I could change it, I would. This is why I¡¯m better off alone. I always was.


    The memory of the feeling when I woke up came back to me. The dark cloud returned stronger than ever. It weighed on my mind, darkening with every step. How could I live with myself if Sam was dead? Nell would hate me and I would deserve it. I would be better off if I hadn¡¯t miraculously survived that explosion. I sighed.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nell asked.


    I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Just trying to clear my head.¡±


    We forced our way through a particularly thick bush, fully emerging on the other side. We had apparently arrived at where the building had been, and my jaw dropped when I saw how much the area had changed in the short time since the big explosion.


    This should have been me. It¡¯s no less than I deserve.


    There was now a huge crater where the building stood, and there was green stuff all over the place. Crime scene tape surrounded the area and people in hazmat suits walked around collecting samples.


    A black car sat off to the far side of the giant crater with a symbol I couldn''t quite make out and a large trailer stood off to one side that everyone was going in and out of.


    ¡°How long were we out?¡± I murmured, surveying the scene. Was this really a crime scene?


    Nell had no answer. Not that I expected one.


    Standing near the car was a man in minimal protection gear looking like he was overseeing the flurry of activity. His head swept back and forth as he pointed at various things. We were too far away to hear. Then as his head passed across the crater again, it stopped and stared in our direction. I tensed up as I grabbed Nell¡¯s hand.


    Finally, he pointed at us. ¡°Get those kids!¡± he yelled.


    What the frack did we do? I thought.


    Nell and I looked at each other in confusion. Some of the men advanced toward us. I didn¡¯t want to wait to find out what they wanted. We took off running back the way we came. Vines smacked me in the face. My feet slipped in the underbrush. Behind me, the men yelled for us to stop. There was no way I would do that. I ran for the beach, no idea where Nell was.


    The ground disappeared from beneath my feet causing me to crash into a deep ditch. I tumbled down the side, landing in a heap when I hit a large chunk of metal. Nell slid down the side, landed beside me, and pulled me up.


    ¡°Come on, Will! We can¡¯t let them catch us!¡±


    Once I was back on my feet I saw the men at the edge of the ditch, sliding after us. Once again we were off like a shot, not even knowing where we were headed. They kept shouting and we kept ignoring them.


    We dodged around other pieces of metal which I vaguely recognized as the remains of the metal pipe. One large sheet tumbled in front of me and slid to a stop, but I failed. I crashed right into it, knocking it, and me, down.


    ¡°Damn it, Will! Stop playing!¡± Nell cried, pulling me up again.


    ¡°You think I wanted to do that? And stop saying my name!¡±


    We jumped into the now empty pond and scrambled up the other side, slipping in the mud. Nell fell back down. I moved behind her to push her up as she struggled for purchase. The men steadily gained on us. One nearly grabbed my foot as I hoisted myself out of the hole. The rocks would be coming soon, but we had more jungle to get through. Here, we would have the advantage since they had to work through the cat¡¯s claws. We knew where they were and made short work of the jungle.


    The men cursed behind us as they fought the thorns. That gave us the distance we needed when we hit the sand.


    Once there, we turned away from our homes. We didn''t want them following us there.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± Nell panted from behind me.


    I couldn''t answer her. I had no idea. All I knew was that we needed to get away.


    We ran down the beach, along the edge of the jungle. Suddenly, the tree line became a rock wall that rose gradually. The wall continued until an opening appeared. As we got closer, I realized it was a cave.


    ¡°In there!¡± I yelled to Nell.


    We ducked in and didn''t stop running until we were in a large, dark chamber.


    ¡°I think we''re safe now,¡± I ventured after we caught our breath.


    A sharp pain throbbed in my side. I grabbed at the offending area and hissed. Forcing myself to run through a thick jungle was not a good idea. I briefly wondered if the adrenaline from the run hid the pain.


    ¡°But won''t they follow our tracks?¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± I hadn''t thought about that.


    I hoped they wouldn''t, but they seemed pretty determined to catch us. ¡°We¡¯ll go deeper into the cave,¡± I decided.


    It was hard to straighten up with this stitch.


    ¡°If it even has a deeper part,¡± Nell muttered.


    ¡°Then let''s find out.¡±


    We split up and started searching the large chamber for another tunnel that might take us out and away from the beach. The darkness made it easy to hide my pain from Nell, but as I walked I seemed to be getting better.


    ¡°Over here!¡± Nell called, her voice echoing all around me in the surrounding darkness.


    ¡°Where?¡± I asked, just before I bumped into her. ¡°Never mind.¡±


    ¡°Here''s another passage. I think. It could only be another chamber or whatever you call it.¡±


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    Only one way to find out. I headed into the opening, my arms stretched in front of me so I wouldn''t bump into a wall. For some reason, my pendant wasn''t glowing like it had before in the pipe. Did it use up all of its light? Did it break in the explosion? This disturbing trend of rising questions with no answers was getting on my nerves. Answers better show up soon. The cloud rumbled in response.


    Before too long, we saw a flickering light ahead of us.


    ¡°An exit!¡± Nell exclaimed happily, her voice shaky with cold.


    I didn''t reply. Something strange about the light caught my attention. ¡°I don''t think so. It''s flickering. Sunlight doesn''t flicker in a cave.¡±


    ¡°Then what is it?¡±


    We entered a smaller room with a burning torch hanging on the back wall.


    ¡°Chizz,¡± Nell spat. ¡°Good going, Will. You''ve trapped us,probably even killed us.¡±


    ¡°Where else were we going to go? Home? That would be too easy. And it was the first place I saw while we were running.¡± I paused. ¡°And I seriously doubt they want to kill us. But I still don¡¯t want to know what they wanted to do.¡±


    ¡°You know, sometimes your logic really annoys me.¡±


    She punched me in the arm, but I didn''t feel it.


    After some time had passed, Nell said, ¡°Will, we still need to find Sam.¡±


    Apparently, her concern over Sam was overriding her fear of our pursuers.


    ¡°Okay.¡± She was right. We had to find Sam before they did. Who knew what they wanted with us in the first place?


    We snuck back to the entrance of the cave.


    ¡°We have to be quiet,¡± Nell whispered. ¡°Something could be waiting for us.¡±


    I took Nell¡¯s hand and crept out of the cave mouth. We held our breath, listening. Nothing happened. Still, we were careful as we snuck back to the rocks where this had all started. We didn''t encounter anyone on the walk back, but I kept my eye on the treeline all the same. What if they were there, searching just beyond the growth? They could be watching our every move, waiting for something.


    Nell had taken it upon herself to erase our tracks going to and from the cave.


    ¡°Over there!¡± a voice yelled and we turned to run back to the cave.


    ¡°We have them now!¡± another voice shouted but no one came for us. In fact, they were heading away from us.


    ¡°Where¡¯d they go?¡±


    ¡°There! I see one!¡±


    They kept getting further and further away until we could no longer hear them.


    I looked back at Nell confused. ¡°What the frack?¡±


    ¡°You think Sam lured them away?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Somehow, I don¡¯t think it was him.¡±


    ¡°It had to be something.¡±


    Hoping we were safe now, we finished our trek back to the rocks.


    ¡°Let''s split up,¡± I said.


    Nell shook her head. ¡°I don''t think that''s a good idea. They may have been led away, but they could still find us. They may even have Sam.¡±


    I hadn¡¯t considered that, but it was our best option. ¡°We have no choice. It''s the quickest way to find him before anyone else. And if they do have him then we will just have to find a way to rescue him.¡±


    ¡°How do you propose we rescue him from whoever those people are?¡± Nell asked.


    ¡°I. . .have absolutely no idea.¡±


    Nell shook her head. ¡°You need to think things out. Maybe you should take your own advice and use your brain.¡±


    I wanted to point out she hadn¡¯t offered an idea on how to rescue him either, but we had to hurry. Sam could be in very real trouble. So we split up. Nell went toward the ditch where the pipe had been while I went in the direction the cave was.


    Only a few seconds had passed before I saw a shadow pass over me heading toward the beach. A heavy splash followed suit. I ran back to the beach just in time to see Sam sinking beneath the water. Without thinking, I dove in and swam toward him, but I didn''t make it. He slipped under, well before I got to him.


    Frack! Where is he? Nell will kill me if I don¡¯t find him!


    Fear flooded my body as I took a deep breath and dove under the surface to find him. Sunlight filtered through the water up to a certain point where it dropped off into the dark depths. Of course, that¡¯s where he was. I kicked myself down. I was far from being a decent swimmer, but I was all he had. Somehow, that thought didn¡¯t comfort me and I forced myself further down.


    The water surrounded me, giving me the feeling of claustrophobia. I had to force myself to remain in control despite my body wanting to react. Sam needed me to be clear-headed.


    How did it get so dark so fast? I¡¯ll never find him at this rate!


    My lungs screamed for air. Muscles I wasn¡¯t used to using throbbed. Salt water stung my eyes as I forced them to stay open. Which was pointless. I couldn¡¯t see anything. The water pressed around me as I pushed deeper. My head grew fuzzy the deeper I went. I wasn¡¯t used to holding my breath for so long. My eyes started to close as my body slowly relaxed. My movements grew weaker.


    I¡¯m coming, Sam. One way or another.


    Just when I thought we were goners, a bright blue light flashed ahead of me. With a sudden burst of strength, I went for it. Somehow, Sam''s pendant had alerted me to his location, though I didn''t have time to think about why his pendant was glowing like mine had. I grabbed him and frantically kicked to the surface.


    When I broke through, I took a deep, coughing breath and started lugging Sam back to shore.


    ¡°Nell! Over here!¡± I called, dragging Sam through the water. ¡°I have Sam, and he''s not breathing!¡±


    Nell broke through the jungle in a sprint and hurried over to me. She grabbed his feet to help me carry him to the shore. Once we were clear of the ocean, we laid him on the sand. His face was drained of color. I started CPR, not even sure I was doing it right. I pounded on his chest while Nell breathed into him. We repeated the process. She would breathe, and I would pump.


    Breathe. Pump. Breathe. Pump.


    ¡°It¡¯s not working,¡± I growled in frustration. ¡°I¡¯m probably doing it wrong anyway.¡±


    ¡°Keep trying,¡± Nell pleaded.


    So I did. I kept at it. I saw a glint of something white out of the corner of my eye, hitting Sam in the chest. I glanced toward the jungle to catch it, but all I saw were trees.


    He coughed and sputtered, water and ooze coming out of his mouth. I sat him up and slapped his back until he stopped coughing, recovering enough to speak. ¡°What happened?¡± he asked hoarsely.


    Nell and I told him about the explosion and what had happened afterward. I was hesitant to tell him about how I found him, but I did anyway. Nell and Sam were speechless when I finished that part of the story, and I wasn''t sure I believed it myself, even though I had witnessed it.


    To my surprise, Sam didn''t comment on how he ended up in the ocean but on the people at the crater. ¡°Who were they, and why were they there?¡±


    ¡°We didn''t stick around long enough to find out,¡± Nell answered as we helped him up, ¡°but they were sure interested in us.¡±


    ¡°It''s not like we were going to conduct an interview with them,¡± I added. ¡°Duh, Sam. Let''s use your brain for a minute here.¡±


    Nell punched my arm again, and I still didn''t feel it. ¡°Shut up, Will. This isn''t the time for one of your jokes.¡±


    She was right, so I dropped it. She helped Sam up, who was still shaky from his ordeal. His body trembled as he stood and leaned on Nell, who completely supported his full weight without issue. Neither one seemed to notice.


    My mind raced. This whole situation is way too weird. Why am I not feeling it when she hits me? And how is she holding Sam up without any effort?


    I didn''t voice any of these concerns. We had a slightly more pressing matter to deal with. ¡°Should we hide out at my house?¡± I asked as I put Sam''s other arm around my shoulders.


    Both nodded. We walked mostly in silence, broken only by Sam¡¯s ragged breathing. We took it slow so Sam wouldn¡¯t feel over stimulated stopping for a break when we reached the rock pile.


    ¡°How are we gonna get over this?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll climb up and you help him up to me and I¡¯ll help him down,¡± Nell said.


    ¡°But you-¡± I started to say before she scrambled up to the top and sat down.


    ¡°Ready when you are,¡± she said.


    Sam and I exchanged a look of confusion before he stood up.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with,¡± he muttered and started climbing.


    I stayed beneath him, ready to catch him if he fell. I did my best to help him keep his balance while providing support when he needed to rest. I was worried we would both fall whenever he stopped, but we didn¡¯t and he was soon in range of Nell¡¯s hand. She grabbed his and pulled him up with ease then did the same with me. She pulled us up as if we were nothing but feathers.


    What the frack? I wondered as I studied her.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked when she saw me looking at her.


    I shook my head. ¡°Nothing. Let¡¯s head down.¡±


    Getting down was the easy part, especially when Nell was doing all the work with keeping Sam steady.


    Once we got to my house, Nell stiffened. ¡°Something''s wrong,¡± she said, staring at her house, which was next door to mine. ¡°The back door to my house is open.¡±


    ¡°Maybe one of your parents left it open,¡± I suggested. In the back of my mind, I heard thunder rolling. Was this what the cloud was trying to tell me? Did something happen at Nell''s house?


    ¡°Maybe,¡± she agreed uncertainly.


    We went into my house and plopped Sam down on the couch.


    ¡°Feeling better?¡± I asked.


    ¡°A little,¡± he admitted. ¡°But how did I end up in the ocean?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°All I know is what I saw and heard. And even that isn''t a whole lot.¡±


    ¡°Guys,¡± Nell broke in, ¡°I still can''t shake this bad feeling I have.¡±


    ¡°How strong is it?¡± Sam asked.


    ¡°Very and getting stronger every minute.¡±


    ¡°Then go check it out. Will, go with her. I''m still weak.¡±


    I didn¡¯t know why he wanted me to go, but I didn''t want to argue. Nell and I walked the short distance to her house, stopping at her front door. When we did, I got the familiar, ever-present, dark feeling, and I knew something bad was coming.


    ¡°Can you wait here while I check it out?¡± she asked.


    I nodded, unable to speak for some reason. She went in, and the feeling only got stronger and heavier. I knew it wouldn''t go away. I stood there, trying to make sense of this feeling while the cloud thundered loudly in my mind. I wanted to fight it, but it was too powerful. It felt like it had covered my entire mind. Then I heard the loudest thing I have ever heard, causing my stomach to drop to the ground: Nell''s scream of blood-curdling terror.


    I ran inside and bumped right into her back. She didn''t notice. I stepped around her to see why and was met with a horrendous sight. Her mother lay in a pool of what appeared to be her own blood. Nell was panicking, so I forced myself to remain calm despite my heart hammering in my chest while I assessed the situation.


    I grimaced at the stab wounds all over her body, her blood leaking from each one. My stomach churned as I forced myself to keep looking at her. There was a big gash on her neck that went from ear to ear. I closed my eyes, forcing down the bile that threatened to explode all over everything had I allowed it. Her clothes and hair were all stained with her blood. Why anyone would do this was beyond me. I swallowed hard. Unfortunately for me, the cloud was still present and thundering in the back of my mind, so I knew something far worse was coming down the line.


    Gently grasping her ice-cold hand, I led her to the couch as her colorless face stared blankly ahead. It was like her blood had stopped flowing. Her body went completely limp when it touched the couch.


    I placed a pillow in her lap and wrapped her arms around it. Once I was sure she was as comfortable as I could make her, I went to the phone to call the police. They told me to wait outside and that someone would be here soon. I went back to Nell, saw the pillow was on the floor, took her hand again, and led her outside. She followed with no resistance, her stare still blank.


    Nell finally found her voice. ¡°Why, Will? Why would anyone do this?¡± She buried her head in my shoulder, sobbing loudly.


    What could I say? I tried to recall what I went through when my own mother died. I barely remembered it since it was years ago. My dad still didn¡¯t like talking about it so I didn¡¯t even know how she had died. I jolted myself out of my thoughts to focus on Nell. She needed me and I had to be present.


    Sorrow stabbed my heart as I helplessly watched her. I wanted to do something, but what could I do?


    I know this is bad, but I¡¯m not good with this kind of thing. Why am I even here? Sam¡¯s known her longer. It should be him. Doesn¡¯t he know how useless I am in emotional situations?


    A swarm of cop cars showed up on the street. As an organized unit, they cordoned off the scene with tape and started searching the yard. Some of them went into the house while one in plain clothes approached us.


    ¡°Tell me what happened,¡± he said.


    Nell wasn''t up to the task, so I took over and described mostly everything we had done that led up to this point, making up a story that we had been at my house and Nell had come back home to get something.


    The cop took down my statement, remaining silent until I finished. ¡°You said you live next door?¡±


    I nodded.


    ¡°Okay. Take her to your home. We''ll be over if we need more information.¡±


    I stood and helped Nell up. I guided her back to my house where I found Sam looking out the kitchen window. He instantly wanted to know what happened and why we had taken so long and why the cops were there. He followed me as I took Nell to the living room and sat her on the recliner then proceeded to answer all of his questions.


    His face paled and fell when I informed him of Mrs. Iona''s murder. He kept his emotions in check to show Nell some strength, but the tears still fell. He collapsed heavily onto the couch.


    ¡°Who would do such a thing?¡± he asked, his body trembling. ¡°She was so nice.¡±


    ¡°I don''t know but I hope they find whoever did this,¡± I said softly.


    Nell buried her head in her hands with a loud sob and I went to her side, wrapping her in a hug as she cried into my shoulder. All I could do was rub her head and hold her. I didn''t even mind that my shirt was getting waterlogged. Although I did wonder how it was me that was once again helping Nell with a problem. It seemed that I was the one to always be there for her, and she needed me now. Sam and I remained quiet. Nell¡¯s muffled sobs were the only sound.

 Chapter 4: A Mysterious New Recruit

    She wore an apple red, nylon, thigh-length skirt and it was in tatters. Her dark red blouse, however, managed to survive the tumble she took from the explosion. She opened her eyes and bright sunlight seared into her brown eyes, blinding her momentarily. Slowly the spots faded, and she sat up, marveling at the new landscape that was presented before her. She had gone from a jungle with a building ahead of her to a barren wasteland that she had never seen before.


    Did that explosion wipe out everything around here? she wondered in awe.


    She stood up, looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings. There were no signs of any human, plant, or animal life anywhere within her range of vision. Briefly, she wondered if the people she had been following had been destroyed like the land.


    ¡°Excuse me,¡± someone said from behind her.


    The startled girl jumped and turned to face the newcomer. She didn''t recognize the small, old man, but he was the only living thing around, except for herself, so she didn''t have much choice but to answer him.


    ¡°Can you tell me where I am?¡± she asked.


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    The old man nodded. ¡°You are in Hawaii. Now come with me. Let''s get you cleaned up.¡± He gestured to her legs.


    She looked down and gasped. Her legs were scraped, bloody, and covered with some kind of green ooze. She also saw the blood that was on the ground around her. ¡°Yeah, okay,¡± she vaguely agreed, wondering why she didn''t feel any pain.


    The pair started off, and pretty soon they came to what appeared to be a village that she hadn''t seen. It seemed to have popped up from out of the ground.


    Why didn''t I notice this village before? It¡¯s not even that far from where I was, she thought.


    She was really confused about everything that was going on, and the old man wasn''t offering any explanations.


    ¡°Stay away from him,¡± a voice from the crowd hissed at her.


    She looked around for the source, but all she saw were people struggling to survive. After they left the village, the wasteland surrounded them once again and the village seemed to disappear behind them. The girl was even more confused at that.


    When the enormity of the situation hit her, she became very afraid. Here she was, in a strange land, with a strange man, and she didn''t know what to do.


    I knew that I shouldn''t have followed those people. Why did I even do it? Then it hit her. One of them was familiar to me and I wanted to see if I knew him. Now look at me. If I ever find him, I''ll make him pay for this.

 Chapter 5: The Powers Manifest

    Nell hadn''t stopped crying during the last half hour we had been sitting there and the only time that the cops had come over was for contact information for her dad. I was getting sick of waiting. I had to know what was going on.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I said to Nell. ¡°We''re going to see if they found anything.¡±


    I shot a quick glance at Sam who nodded his encouragement.


    We went outside and over to where a cop was standing, taking notes.


    ¡°Have you guys found out anything yet?¡± I asked.


    He looked at me with a stern expression, as if he was wondering why I had the nerve to inquire about police business. ¡°Why do you want to know?¡±


    I gestured to the body bag they were wheeling out then to Nell. ¡°She was her mother,¡± I said flatly.


    His face softened. ¡°Oh, I''m sorry,¡± he said without a hint of sympathy. ¡°No, we haven''t found anything out yet, but when we do, someone will let you know.¡±


    With that, he turned back to the scene and resumed his notetaking. We wouldn''t get any more information out of him, so I took Nell back to my house.


    I told Sam of our failure, and we resumed our silent wait. Nell had even stopped crying, but I could see her trembling. I took her in my arms and held her.


    My dad showed up sometime later while I was making us something to eat. ¡°What¡¯s going on next door?¡± he asked.


    I quietly explained to him what had happened.


    His face fell and he stumbled, catching himself against the kitchen counter before reinforcing his composure.


    That¡¯s the first time in a long time I¡¯ve seen him show any emotion like that, I thought as I finished the sandwiches.


    He went into the living room, and I heard him expressing his sympathies to Nell. I brought in the food and served Sam and Nell, who just set it aside.


    Just then there was a knock at the door. ¡°I''ll get it,¡± I said.


    ¡°You wanted to know when we found something?¡± a cop asked when I opened it.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I answered, then louder said, ¡°Nell, it''s about your mom!¡±


    There was a sudden rush of footsteps as everyone crowded around me. The cop looked surprised at the group of people, but he took it in stride. I was grateful that it wasn''t the same cop we had spoken to earlier. I was also shocked he had complied with my request and sent someone.


    He held up an evidence bag. Inside was a butcher knife that was covered in blood. ¡°I¡¯m not really supposed to be doing this, but we believe this to be the murder weapon.¡±


    With that, he turned and left while I closed the door.


    ¡°Well, that''s some good news,¡± my dad said, looking at his watch. ¡°I have to get back to work. I''ll be home later.¡±


    I briefly wondered why he had even come home since he didn¡¯t do anything.


    Once my dad was gone, Nell spoke up. ¡°I hope they don''t find anything on that knife.¡±


    I did a double take.


    ¡°What? Why?¡± Sam asked.


    Nell started crying again. ¡°Be-because when I-I saw it. . .I threw it under the co-couch.¡± She broke down into loud sobs and I took her into my arms again.


    Sam glared at me. ¡°How did you let that happen?¡±


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said defensively. ¡°I knew nothing about it.¡±


    ¡°It was wh-when you were on the ph-phone,¡± Nell explained. ¡°I''m so sorry. I have no idea wh-why I did it. I guess I th-thought that if I got ri-rid of it my mom would come back.¡±


    ¡°Oh man, Nell,¡± Sam moaned. ¡°You could get into big trouble.¡±


    ¡°I know!¡± she bawled. ¡°It wa-was stupid!¡±


    ¡°It''s okay,¡± I reassured her. ¡°If anything happens Sam and I will help you. Right, Sam?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he agreed. ¡°Everything will be fine. You''ll see.¡±


    How he intended to keep that promise, I had no idea.


    Nell had been staying with us the past few days while the cops looked through her house. Her dad had wanted her to go to a hotel with him, but she didn''t want to, so my dad had allowed her to stay with us. Sam had been coming over every day since it happened, and due to the events of the past few days, none of us had thought of the explosion or of the people at the crater who had chased us.


    We were all sitting in the living room talking when there was a knock at the door. I got up to answer it, finding a cop on the other side.


    ¡°Is your friend here?¡± he asked gruffly. ¡°I have some questions about her mom''s murder.¡±


    How did they know she would be here? I wondered as I let him in and led him to the living room.


    I sat next to Nell while he started in with his questions. They were all the same as the ones the first cop had asked me, and Nell answered them the way I had the first day. It was as if he was trying to find a flaw in our story. I was getting angry. How could he not believe us? I thought. It¡¯s as if¡ª


    He asked the one question we had all been dreading since Nell had made her revelation. ¡°One last question. Why were your fingerprints on the murder weapon?¡±


    Before she could answer, Sam broke in, ¡°What makes you think they were hers?¡±


    ¡°Because we took samples from her room to rule her out as a suspect, like we did her father, but her prints were on the knife,¡± he answered without looking at him. ¡°Now, I''ll ask again. Why were they on the knife?¡±


    ¡°Because I threw it under the couch when I saw it. I didn''t know what I was doing,¡± she answered matter of factly.


    ¡°I don''t believe you. You''re under arrest.¡± He pulled his cuffs out.


    I was livid. How dare he accuse Nell of this and try to arrest her? But what could I do? My anger was building up and had nowhere to go. Except it did. As the cop moved to cuff Nell, I felt a surge of hot energy flow down my arms and into my hands. My arms tingled as if they had fallen asleep. The tingling traveled down to my fingers, causing them to vibrate like a low-level electric current was running through me.


    My fingers sparked, then thin white bolts launched from them striking the cop in the chest. He flew across the room, hit a wall, and crumpled to the ground, unconscious.


    We all looked from my hands to the cop and back again. None of us could speak and my hands weren¡¯t doing anything anymore. I looked at Nell and Sam. Both had stunned looks on their faces.


    ¡°What. . .just happened?¡± Sam asked slowly.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± I replied, staring at my hands.


    ¡°We should probably run before he wakes up and tries to take us all in,¡± Nell suggested.


    We ran out of my house and down the beach, not even knowing where we were going. I guess our brains knew what to do since before I knew it, we were scrambling over the rocks, ending in the last chamber of the cave Nell and I had used days earlier to hide from the other people who had been after us, panting. I was getting tired of being chased so frequently.


    Nell and Sam tried to figure out what was going on.


    ¡°What was that?¡± Nell asked me.


    I stared at my hands. ¡°I don''t know but I think it was electricity. It certainly felt like it.¡±


    ¡°This is insane,¡± Sam muttered while looking around. ¡°Electricity shooting from your hands, the explosion, and a torch on a cave wall? What the fudge nuggets is going on here?¡±


    Nell and I shrugged. ¡°Who knows?¡± she replied.


    ¡°All I know is that nothing like this happened until we found these pendants,¡± I said.


    There was a rumble in the back of my mind, and I knew that the cloud was warning me about something. But since it was just a damn cloud how could I know what it was referring to? Sometimes I wished it could just speak and tell what the frack was going to happen. That would be so much better.


    ¡°Good point,¡± Sam said. ¡°But why us? How did we get involved in this? And, for that matter, what the fudge even is this?¡±


    I stood up. ¡°We can''t stay hiding from the cops forever, I say we try to figure out what¡¯s going on, or at least as much as we can, before they find us.¡±


    ¡°Where do we look?¡± Nell asked as she studied the back wall in the flickering light.


    I thought about it. ¡°Where this all started. Back at the crater. There may not be a building there anymore, but there has to be something.¡±


    ¡°And what about the people who were there?¡± Nell asked as if trying to get me to come up with all the answers.


    ¡°I''ll deal with them,¡± I replied. ¡°I can apparently shoot electricity, remember?¡±


    Nell and Sam agreed. We got to the mouth of the cave, and I checked to make sure the coast was clear. When I saw no one lurking around, we set off for the crater.


    It seemed someone had cleaned up the area because there was no debris or green stuff anywhere. We stayed quiet in case we weren''t alone, but we arrived at the crater with no trouble. All that remained was the huge trailer from before. We looked around and saw no one.


    ¡°Why do you think they left that?¡± Nell asked.


    The answer quickly became clear when the door was tumultuously thrown open and a man in a lab coat headed toward us yelling, ¡°I knew you''d be back if I waited!¡±


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    ¡°Here we go again,¡± I muttered as we turned and ran full speed back toward the beach.


    ¡°Just use your electricity!¡± Sam called from behind me.


    I stopped and let my friends pass me then turned to face our pursuer. ¡°Keep going,¡± I told them.


    They nodded and kept running.


    I wasn''t sure how to use my new ability, so I improvised. I made a fist and waited for that guy to come out of the brush. My wait was shorter than I expected. Before he could speak, I opened my fist and did an uppercut, but nothing happened.


    ¡°Oops,¡± I said and took off again.


    Fortunately, he wasn¡¯t as adept as me at running through the jungle. I could hear him stumbling and I think he even tripped once. Though, to be fair, I was barely faring better. I didn¡¯t fall, but my feet kept getting caught in hidden vines and roots. Branches whipped me in the face and arms, though my arms remained free from scratches.


    ¡°Come back here,¡± he yelled. ¡°I need to test you!¡±


    I caught up to my friends as they were climbing over the rocks.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Nell asked as we dropped down to the other side.


    ¡°It didn''t work, and he''s right on my tail. Let''s split up and double back on him. We''ll meet back here.¡±


    They nodded, and we split up, each going in a different direction.


    I continued toward the city, and I heard a splash behind me, from someone diving into the ocean, but I didn''t dare look back to see who it was. I hoped whoever it was would be okay. As for me, I had to think about where I was going. I didn¡¯t want to go too far from them, so I turned back into the jungle just before I got to the houses. I flung myself into a bush which I found out had thorns. They didn¡¯t affect me.


    *    *    *


    Sam didn''t know what had possessed him to do it, but dove into the ocean and swam a good distance away from the shore before his pursuer arrived at where he had dove in.


    ¡°Come back here!¡± he yelled.


    Sam chanced a glance back and saw the man was getting closer. Without thinking, he dove under the surface. He panicked when he realized that he didn''t take a breath before diving. Instinctively, he inhaled and was in complete astonishment when he discovered that he only took in air. He filed this information away for later so he could concentrate on getting as far away from the man as possible.


    Being a native Hawaiian with a lifetime of swimming under his belt, he had no trouble getting away.


    Sam heard him splashing after him, but he seemed to stop when he got too far to walk. Miraculously, Sam was able to hear him clearly though the water.


    ¡°What the hell? He¡¯s breathing underwater!¡± He turned away, muttering to himself. ¡°No one told me about this. I have to do more research. If only I could access that video, but no one granted me clearance.¡±


    From his vantage point, Sam watched the man head back to shore and toward the trailer, his mutterings growing fainter until he felt safe enough to poke his head out of the water. He breathed a sigh of relief before slowly swimming to shore.


    *    *    *


    Nell heard the scientist splashing after Sam and ducked behind a bush. She peeked through the leaves to watch the events on the beach unfold, but her attention was soon diverted by a dark shadow rising off the ground. Her mind told her there was something familiar about it, something sinister, but she couldn''t remember. It molded into the ground, blending into the others.


    She turned her attention back to the beach, noticing the shadow again when it followed the scientist away. When they were gone, she came out of hiding, just as Sam came out of the ocean, raving about his newly discovered talent.


    ¡°Did you see that?¡± he asked excitedly.


    ¡°You mean you breathing underwater?¡± she asked mildly.


    ¡°Yeah! This is like Will''s electricity! This is so AWESOME!¡± he exclaimed.


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± she agreed flatly. ¡°I hate to burst your bubble, Sammy, but we need to find Will.¡±


    ¡°Did you call me?¡± Will asked, suddenly appearing from the trees.


    *    *    *


    ¡°Will, you missed it! I can breathe underwater!¡± Sam told me the instant I broke through the brush.


    ¡°Cool, Sam. I know it''s a big deal, but we need to take it down a notch here. We need to think.¡±


    ¡°About what?¡± he demanded.


    ¡°About our next step. We know we can''t go back to the crater. The cops are hunting Nell, and probably us, too. And we have no way of proving her innocence or getting our questions answered.¡±


    I could tell by the look on Sam''s crestfallen face that he knew I was right, but he didn''t want to admit it. He pursed his lips and slumped his shoulders. I hated breaking his excitement.


    ¡°So, what do we do?¡± Nell asked. ¡°The crater was a bust. We can¡¯t go back there.¡±


    ¡°See if that cop is gone,¡± Sam suggested.


    I nodded. ¡°Right. I can¡¯t have my dad come home to an unconscious cop in the living room.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nell agreed, ¡°but what if he arrests us?¡±


    ¡°I don''t know,¡± I admitted.


    We went back to my house and saw that the cop was gone. I checked out front to make sure his car was gone, and it was. I relayed this information to my friends.


    ¡°At least he''s totally gone,¡± Sam said.


    ¡°Yeah, but he''s probably out looking for us,¡± Nell argued.


    ¡°Probably, but we have a hiding place,¡± I countered.


    ¡°True,¡± she agreed.


    ¡°Then why didn''t we use it while that guy was chasing us?¡± Sam asked.


    ¡°Because then we would''ve been trapped in the dark not knowing where he was,¡± I answered. ¡°Duh, Sam. Let''s use your brain for a minute here.¡±


    ¡°Speaking of the cave,¡± Nell quipped, ¡°I saw some carvings on that back wall where the torch is. Want to see?¡±


    I thought about it. We were momentarily in the clear. There were no immediate signs of our pursuers. I couldn¡¯t think of anything else that could stop us. I nodded. ¡°Yeah, let''s go.¡±


    We left my house and a short time later we were standing in front of the back wall of the cave, the torch''s light flickering around us. I ran my fingers over the carvings.


    ¡°Doesn''t that thing ever go out?¡± Sam wondered.


    ¡°Beats me,¡± Nell answered.


    ¡°What do these mean?¡± I murmured, looking at three pairs of letters set under three smooth grooves.


    ¡°What does what mean?¡± Sam asked, coming up beside me.


    I pointed to the letters under the notches. ¡°These. L-R, L-Y, M-B.¡±


    ¡°Why are they even here?¡± Nell asked


    I shrugged. ¡°I have no idea. But they have to mean something or else they wouldn¡¯t be here.¡±


    We all stared at the wall, but it was Nell who spoke up.


    ¡°I have an idea. Remember those notes we found? The ones with our backward names?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Sam answered. ¡°What about them?¡±


    ¡°Just stay with me here, but what if the L, L, and M are for Llen, Lliw, and Mas?¡±


    Realization hit me like an anvil. Duh, Will. Let¡¯s use your brain for a minute here.


    Sam picked up on her train of thought. ¡°So, the R, Y, and B are. . .¡±


    Nell stole the rest of his sentence. ¡°Our pendants."


    ¡°So, what about the grooves, little miss know-it-all?¡± Sam asked.


    ¡°Duh, Sam. We put our pendants in them.¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°Let''s see what happens. Give me your pendants.¡±


    I collected them and set them in their proper places. At first, nothing happened. Then the flame on the torch flared red, faded to yellow, and darkened to blue.


    ¡°That¡¯s all it does? How anticlimactic,¡± Sam said.


    As if to prove a point to Sam, the cave started to shake, knocking the dust and small rocks down all around us.


    ¡°Holy chizz!¡± Nell said.


    ¡°A cave-in? Seriously?¡± Sam exclaimed.


    The quaking intensified. I frantically looked around for something to grab on to but all I saw were the torch and my friends. Neither would help.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here!¡± I yelled over the noise.


    Nell and Sam tried their best to head to the tunnel as I moved behind them. We struggled to remain standing as we tried to run for it. We fell hard to the ground, but I felt nothing. All around us, a loud groaning filled the air.


    We turned our attention to the back wall that was now slowly opening. The shaking came to a stop, but we were too busy staring at the vibrating widening gap to notice.


    On the other side of the opening was a long dark passage The torchlight barely illuminated the area we were in, so we couldn''t see much of anything beyond the range of our vision.


    Nell was the first to speak. ¡°What the chizz. . .?¡±


    ¡°I. . .don¡¯t know,¡± I answered.


    ¡°Magic?¡± Sam offered.


    Neither Nell nor I disagreed with him. We didn''t have any better theories.


    Once we were over the initial shock, we stood up, gathered our pendants, and hesitantly made our way down the new tunnel, heading toward an unknown destination. The shock may have worn off, but my apprehension was building.


    ¡°What''s going on here?¡± Nell asked.


    ¡°Something creepy and crazy,¡± Sam said.


    I remained silent. We didn''t have any answers, just more questions. The cloud made itself known again, this time feeling like a thunderstorm was raging in my mind.


    What have we gotten ourselves into?


    After walking some distance in the dark, the tunnel opened up to an empty, sun-drenched beach. I looked around, wondering what just happened.


    ¡°Did we just cross the island?¡± Sam asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Nell answered. ¡°We didn¡¯t walk that far.¡± She glanced around. ¡°At least, I don¡¯t think we did.¡±


    ¡°Something really weird is going on here,¡± I muttered. I wouldn¡¯t have had problems like this in California. I sighed.


    Slowly, we left the cave, making our way up the beach. We hadn''t gone far from the cave before the ground started shaking under our feet.


    ¡°Seriously? More shaking?¡± Sam yelled as we tumbled to the ground.


    Over the rumbling, I heard something approaching. We turned, sitting and watching with wide eyes as a large sand cloud rapidly drew closer. There was no chance of outrunning whatever was headed our way and nowhere to hide, so we waited.


    The cloud stopped before us, finally settling down, revealing a large, unbelievable creature.


    I stared in awe, trying to take it all in. It was golden and as huge as an elephant, with the body of one. Large eagle wings protruded from its back, currently in the resting position. Falcon¡¯s legs protruded from the beast, complete with talons. The back of the creature carried a huge, scaly alligator''s tail. But it was the head that was the most impressive. Like the body, it was the golden head of a male lion, complete with an amazing mane. It roared thunderously to add to its terrifying presence.


    ¡°What is this thing?¡± Sam whispered.


    ¡°Beats me,¡± I replied.


    The creature panted from the exertion of its run but still looked ready to attack. It stared, as if it determining who it would eat first. Slowly, we all stood, trying not to make any sudden movements. The creature roared again.


    I watched Nell side=eyed as she stood trembling in place, staring up at the beast. Her arms turned a light shade of red, rapidly growing darker. Nell screamed and clutched her hand as she fell to her knees. The creature opened its mouth to roar again, sending spittle through the air. I had just shielded my face from the spray when Nell¡¯s arms exploded into a bright orange flame. When the monster roared for the third time, the fire shot from her hands down the thing''s throat, making it choke.


    To stop this assault, the being turned quickly, hitting all of us with its tail, knocking us in different directions. Sam was thrown into the ocean, landing with a loud splash; I was launched into the air, but didn''t come back down; and Nell was sent flying further down the beach, landing on her left side.


    She cried out in pain, shaking me from my daze. The monster took off after her at full speed, beating its massive wings to create a dust cloud. I oriented myself and flew off after it, wondering where Sam was.


    I glanced around seeing him come out of the ocean, chasing the dust cloud. I didn''t know what he could do to stop it but hoped something would come to him. As he ran, he looked as if his movements were becoming more fluid, like he was gliding over the sand. Despite the distance and flying sand I could see his arms turning dark blue. He was focused on the dust cloud ahead of us. He dove for the cloud, presumably for the thing¡¯s tail.


    When he reached out to catch it, water blasted from his hands, hitting the cloud. Sam slowed to a stop, staring at his hands. I would have stopped with him, but Nell was still in danger. I flew over him, picking up speed to catch up to the beast.


    I didn¡¯t even feel like myself as I did this. It was as if something else had taken over and was pushing me.


    ¡°Come on, guys!¡± Nell screamed as she tried to pull herself away with her right arm but soon gave up.


    Sam started running again as soon as I passed over him, quickly closing the gap to cloud. I flew over it, shooting electricity, but it had no effect. Maybe the sand was creating too much of a grounding shield?


    Sam shot his water to dampen the dust cloud to fully reveal the creature. Once the cloud was gone, he focused his efforts on shooting water at the creature.


    I snarled, rage flooding my body. Neither Sam''s water nor my electricity had any effect, and the creature was getting closer to Nell. This thing had to die. No, not just die, but be completely wiped from existence. There was no way it would touch her again.


    My pendant began to glow brightly; so bright I had to squint to lessen the yellow light. A surge of power erupted from my hands, sending a huge burst of electricity, the white light overtaking the yellow. I closed my eyes, opening them again only when the world went silent. The thing had been in mid jump when I hit it. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as we watched. The animal¡¯s wings froze, outstretched, and its talons were pointed straight down, but it wasn''t moving. Then it began to fall back toward the beach.


    Nell writhed in pain as she covered her face. It seemed to take forever for the monstrosity to hit the ground. I was already moving to scoop her out of the way just in case it would land on her.


    When it eventually came back to earth, it was a few feet in front of her, and all sound returned. The sounds of the ocean flooded my ears. I landed when the sand settled, and we watched the thing turn into dust. Once the beast was gone, I scooped up Nell and we took off down the beach, looking for help.


    Groans and hisses escaped her but for the most part she was quiet. I tried to be careful as Sam and I ran down the beach.


    We found a white house with blue trim that Sam rushed to and pounded on the door. My mind vaguely registered its familiarity before someone answered. Sam tried to explain what had happened, but he was speaking too incoherently.


    Finally, he managed to break his own language barrier just as I got there. ¡°Hurry!¡± Sam panted. ¡°She''s hurt!¡±


    The boy looked at Nell. ¡°Come in.¡±


    We rushed into the house, led by the boy.


    *    *    *


    The band of five rode into the village on black horses. Everyone looked up at them in fear, assuming that they were there to give them new orders or more taxes. They were wrong.


    ¡°We heard that some people have asked for help against our boss. Where are they hiding?¡± the leader of the group asked.


    One bold citizen stepped up to him. ¡°We do not know what you are talking about. We pay our taxes to Lord Phiale. Why are you harassing us?¡±


    The leader smirked. ¡°You dare talk back to me? I will ask again. Where are they hiding?¡±


    ¡°We do not know of anyone who has asked for help,¡± the citizen repeated.


    The leader pulled out a gun and pointed at his head. ¡°My patience grows thin. You will tell me, or I will kill you.¡±


    ¡°Kill me then. I don''t know...¡± he was cut off when the gun fired into his head, splattering his brains all over the people behind him. Everyone watched his body fall.


    The leader turned to his group. ¡°Search the village. We need those people. Kill anyone who opposes you."


    The members of the band nodded and set to work.

 Chapter 6: A New Evil Emerges

    Deep in the vast, mountainous forest that surrounded the city of Hanaloa rested a small building that hid a deep labyrinth of hallways and laboratories that were filled with people. One person in particular who seemed to be in charge was trying to get information from a scientist about their current project. He wore a black suit with a green tie. His dark hair was cut short and seemed glued to his head, reflecting the light. His angular face held a deep frown and his blue eyes were narrowed.


    ¡°What have you discovered?¡± Red asked the scientist before him.


    The scientist looked distraught as he answered. ¡°We haven''t found a way to keep them permanent yet. They wear off after a few days and their bodies need time to recover before we can administer the next dosage.¡±


    Red was not happy with this news. ¡°The higher ups want results,¡± he said while trying to contain his anger. ¡°Keep working until you can make them permanent. Have you, at least, found a way to make the dosage simpler?¡±


    The scientist nodded, visibly relieved. ¡°We have, indeed. We managed to reduce it down to pill form. No more injections required. However, only one pill can be taken at a time. Too many pills at once or taken in rapid succession will kill the person outright. Fortunately, there are no adverse effects when they are off the pill.¡±


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    Red''s anger seemed to abate slightly. ¡°This is indeed good news. I will inform the administration of this triumph.¡± He paused. ¡°But keep working on the main task.¡±


    The scientist nodded and left to return to his duties.


    Pills? That is much better than the formula, and much cheaper, thought Red as he made the long trek down the hallways to the conference room where the Administrators waited for his report. But it will still be more cost-effective once we finally integrate them permanently into the DNA.


    Red wasn''t anything special in looks or attitude, but he was smart. That''s how he had gotten this position. Red wasn''t even his real name. It was his designated title within the company. And it wasn''t even the highest that could be bestowed. There were several people above him, but his position was no less important. His job was head of the scientists and he was just the latest to hold this role. The others before him simply vanished when results weren''t achieved in a timely manner. That''s why Red was in such a hurry to get results. He didn''t want to disappear like the others, but the way things were going, it looked like he was headed down the road that no one before him had returned from.


    He reached the door to the conference room and paused to compose himself before going in.

 Chapter 7: In Another World

    ¡°Eagleton!¡± the figure called.


    The old man shuffled slowly into the room. ¡°Yes, sir?¡±


    ¡°How is the fivebrid creature doing?¡±


    ¡°Um...it''s...dead, sir.¡±


    ¡°DEAD!?¡± the figure bellowed. ¡°How can it be dead? After all my careful planning...¡± he trailed off.


    ¡°Well, sir, someone killed it.¡±


    ¡°WHO?¡±


    Eagleton cowed. ¡°I don''t know sir.¡±


    ¡°I want you to find out. And do whatever it takes. Kill if you have to. Torture anyone who you even think might have information. I want them found. That creature was my enforcer.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Eagleton said before leaving the room. ¡°Jerk,¡± he muttered when he was out of earshot.


    *    *    *


    I jolted awake, finding myself in a dark room. Dreams plagued me the whole time I was asleep. They were all different, but three things remained the same: a large, misshapen creature cloaked in shadow; Nell screaming in pain; and, of course, the ever-present dark cloud.


    As I tried to calm myself, a noise came across the space. Light entered the room in the shape of a door, with a dark figure in the entryway.


    ¡°Who''s there?¡± I asked.


    ¡°My name is Lliw,¡± a male voice that sounded a lot like mine said.


    ¡°Turn on the light,¡± I said, wary of the new presence.


    As he did so, I did a quick mental check and saw that the cloud was light. There was no danger, at least not for the moment.


    When the light came on, I was momentarily blinded, but I was not prepared for what I saw once my eyes adjusted. I stared, unable to form words due to the heavy shock I just received. My eyes traveled up and down Lliw''s body. Short dirty blond hair, blue eyes, pale skin; I was looking at a mirror image of me.


    Holy frack! Did I wake up in some mirror world?


    Lliw read the shock on my face. ¡°Calm down. I know we look alike, and I''ll explain it all to you later. But now, I need to take you to your friends. Come on.¡±


    My heart thundered in my chest. None of this made sense. There was no logical reason for this to be happening. Then again, since I found my pendant, nothing had been logical. I didn¡¯t even know how I ended up in this place. I looked around for my friends, but Lliw was the only person in the room.


    The room I was in looked similar to my own. Blue walls, brown dresser with a mirror on the left wall next to the main door, closet door next to the dresser, bed on the opposite wall facing the door. Even the entertainment center was the same, though it was empty, whereas mine wasn¡¯t.


    I slowly got out of bed, still unsure of what to make of Lliw. He may look exactly like me, but that didn¡¯t mean I could trust him. Were evil twins really a thing? I noticed I was still dressed, and my shoes were at the foot of the bed. I slipped them on, then followed him out of the room.


    How did I get here? Why are we separated? Who is this guy? Did he do something to us? Where are we going?


    Despite all of these thoughts, the cloud still didn''t do anything, so I didn''t know what to believe. Before I could speculate further, Lliw opened another door and I saw my friends. Nell was lying in a bed, and Sam was sitting in a chair nearby, his face in his hands.


    I slowly entered, Sam didn''t notice. I walked to the edge of the bed, touching Nell''s arm. Sam looked up. His face was pale.


    ¡°What''s wrong with her?¡± I asked.


    It was Lliw who answered. ¡°She''s unconscious. She fell right after you brought her in.¡± He paused. ¡°What happened to you guys, anyway?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°I don''t remember. Do you, Sam?¡±


    He just looked at me.


    ¡°He hasn''t said anything since he pounded on my door. We''ll find out what happened when Sam decides to talk or if she wakes up.¡±


    I jerked my head in Lliw''s direction. ¡°What do you mean by ''if she wakes up''?¡±


    ¡°She sustained numerous injuries. Broken ribs, a broken left arm, a lot of deep bruising, including one over her heart. I wasn¡¯t sure if that bruise was part of a bigger injury that may have affected it.¡±


    My legs collapsed under me. Luckily there was another chair to land in. ¡°Oh man,¡± I moaned, taking Nell''s hand. ¡°Please don''t die.¡±


    Sam came over to me and put his hands on my shoulders. Together, we watched as Nell struggled to breathe.


    All at once, the cloud intensified in weight and color. If anyone else could have heard it, the thunder would have deafened them.


    *    *    *


    Red completed his report to the Administrators with mixed results. They were angered by the lack of progress in the main objective but were elated with the news of the pill. Despite this elation, Red was still ordered to return to the main task, but there was nothing he could do to rush the research.


    Despite that fact, Red was a patient man, even if his bosses were not. They were the ones in a rush for this to happen. Whatever it was. Not even he knew the full extent of what was going on. And it was designed that way. No one person knew any more than they needed to.


    Even armed with that knowledge, he knew things were still very rocky. There was an apparent deadline that he was unaware of and it was fast approaching. His place was to follow orders and not question them. He knew that if he broke either of those orders, he would be gone. Briefly, he wondered why the others who carried his title had vanished but thought better than to ask those questions. That was another road that he would rather not go down. If he did, he knew for a fact he would not be coming back. Not in any physical form.


    *    *    *


    When the small band finished their assault on the village, it was nothing but a smoldering ruin. Dead bodies lay scattered everywhere. Those who didn''t die in the assault, had run off, hoping to keep their lives or warn others about what was coming.


    ¡°We have killed them, but some people ran. We have learned nothing,¡± one person said.


    The leader growled in anger. ¡°Spread out. Locate the survivors. If they ran, they must know something. If they don''t, kill them. We still have a job to perform.¡±


    The other members of the band nodded and spread out, hastening to obey since it was a task they relished performing.


    *    *    *


    I kept my vigil at Nell¡¯s bedside that night, hoping she would wake up and ignoring the constant thundering in the back of mind. My eyes never wavered from her unconscious form. A slight rise and fall in the blankets, indicated that she was breathing, at least for the time being. I hoped that wouldn''t change anytime soon.


    My eyelids were getting heavy. I was beginning to doze off when I heard a sound come from the bed. At first, I thought I had imagined it. Then I heard it again.


    I jerked myself awake, studying Nell for any sign of movement. She remained unchanged, then she slowly stirred. I was cautiously optimistic that this was the moment she would wake up, but the cloud in my head wouldn¡¯t leave me alone. As far back as I could remember, it had never alerted me to anything involving other people, but this could be a first.


    I kept watching, willing Nell to wake up. Time seemed to slow as I stared, but eventually her eyes fluttered open. They darted around the room, finally landing on me. I held my breath as I waited for her to speak; to indicate that this wasn¡¯t a fluke or some last thing that happened before someone died.


    She took a ragged breath and said, ¡°Why are you watching me sleep, you weirdo?¡±


    I exhaled and laughed. I couldn¡¯t help it. Leave it to Nell to say the right thing to alleviate all my worries with a single sentence.


    ¡°Where are we?¡± she asked, once I had stopped laughing.


    I updated her with what I had learned since I woke up, which wasn¡¯t much, finally asking Nell what had happened on the beach.


    ¡°You don¡¯t remember that?¡± she asked, immediately concerned. She struggled to sit up. ¡°You need to be in this bed instead of me.¡±


    I stopped her. ¡°Nell, relax. It¡¯s not a big deal. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s just the stress of everything that happened. It¡¯ll come back to me once my mind accepts it.¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡±


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    I nodded. ¡°Now you get some sleep. I¡¯ll be here if you need anything.¡±


    She laid back down. ¡°Alright, but if you feel like you need this bed, wake me up, and I¡¯ll move for you.¡±


    I had no intention of getting her out of bed until morning, but I assured her I would. That satisfied her enough to close her eyes and go into a natural sleep. I watched Nell for a little while longer, before settling back into the chair and allowing myself to finally doze off.


    Morning came a lot sooner than I would have liked, but I had to get up. I looked over at Nell, who was sleeping peacefully, and sighed in relief. She had made it through the night. Even after our talk, I still didn¡¯t know if she would wake, but now I knew for sure she would be okay.


    I let Nell sleep while I went to find some food. Lliw and Sam were nowhere to be found, and I didn¡¯t want to look for them at that moment. I wanted to be alone. I made a sandwich and sat down on the couch, trying to remember the events that caused us to be here, and why Lliw looked like me, and just where the frack were we? As usual, I had no answers for the multitude of questions that plagued me, and I was tired of it.


    Then I wasn¡¯t alone anymore. First Lliw came into the kitchen, Sam joined us a moment later, and to their obvious surprise, Nell walked in looking perfectly healthy. They went up to her and bombarded her with questions about how she felt, but for the moment she ignored them.


    She crossed the gap between us and gave me a hug. ¡°Thank you,¡± she whispered.


    I didn¡¯t know what she was thanking me for, and it didn¡¯t feel right to ask, so I just nodded, and she let go.


    She looked back at Sam and Lliw, then did a double take. ¡°What¡¯s going on? How do you look like Will?¡±


    ¡°It may sound insane, so bear with me a bit,¡± Lliw said. ¡°This is a parallel dimension to the one you live in. There are many similarities, such as many people looking like people you know.


    They are, of course, not these people. I look like Will, but I am not him.¡±


    Nell threw a glance at me. ¡°Well, that¡¯s obvious.¡±


    Lliw ignored her. ¡°You got here through one of many openings between our world and yours. The pendants are the keys to opening each of these doors. We don¡¯t know how they work, though.¡±


    ¡°The cave shaking thing, right?¡± Sam asked.


    Lliw nodded. ¡°We just know that they were given to us, and we sent them on to your world based on the instructions that came with them. We were told that they would save us, but we weren¡¯t destined to use them. We also don¡¯t know who sent them to us, we never saw anyone, but since we were told they could help, we obeyed.¡±


    ¡°Just because you were told they could help?¡± Nell asked, totally glossing over the rest of the story.


    Lliw nodded. ¡°We are desperate for help. Lord Phiale is destroying our world. Of course, we tried to use them, but we couldn¡¯t figure out how.¡±


    ¡°I still don¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on here, but whatever. Things have been crazy lately,¡± Nell said. She turned back to me. ¡°How¡¯s your memory?¡±


    ¡°Still don¡¯t remember what happened,¡± I answered.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll tell you,¡± she replied and told me what had happened up until the part where she was knocked away. Sam took over from there.


    ¡°I flew?¡± I asked incredulously. ¡°First electricity and now flying. This is insane.¡± How could I have flown? That ladder sent my nerves into overdrive!


    Sam looked rather pleased with himself. ¡°Don¡¯t forget me shooting the water and Nell¡¯s fire.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s something I¡¯m likely to forget now.¡±


    This was incredible. I looked from Nell to Sam and back, but they didn¡¯t look any different. However, I felt like my memory was coming back after they described what had happened. Indeed, I was able to envision the events they talked about and the more I thought about it, the more I felt them.


    ¡°But why is this happening?¡± Nell asked. ¡°You said they didn¡¯t do anything for you.¡±


    Lliw nodded. ¡°Only because we didn¡¯t know how to use them. You apparently do.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°We are in the dark as much as you are. We have no idea what we did to get these. . .abilities?¡±


    Sam looked thoughtful. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve done anything special to activate them.¡± He paused. ¡°Well, except for when we all got covered in that green stuff.¡±


    ¡°That has to be it. I had some on my fingers before my pendant lit up in that pipe. That was the first instance. Then we were covered in it.¡±


    ¡°That makes a lot of sense,¡± Lliw said. ¡°It explains why we couldn¡¯t get them to work. This green stuff must be connected to them. When it came into contact with your pendants, they bonded with you, somehow giving you these abilities.¡±


    I wondered how Nell would take this. She seemed nonchalant when she and Sam described the events on the beach, but adding all this to her mom being killed and finding her body must have been overworking her mind. I looked at her. Her face was stoic.


    ¡°But are we worthy of them?¡± Sam asked.


    No one answered him. We fell into silence for several minutes.


    Finally, Nell spoke. ¡°I¡¯m ready to go home if you guys are.¡±


    ¡°Sure, I¡¯m ready,¡± Sam said.


    ¡°But what about us? We were told you would help us,¡± Lliw said.


    ¡°We are still learning about what¡¯s going on. Give us some time to understand what all of this means,¡± I replied. ¡°We won¡¯t forget about you. We will be back.¡±


    Lliw nodded at my answer. ¡°Until next time then.¡±


    We took our leave, hoping there weren¡¯t any more surprises left for us to find.


    After going a good way back down the beach, a group of five men in matching black uniforms with gas masks approached us. I didn¡¯t understand why they wore masks since, as far as I could tell, the air wasn¡¯t toxic.


    One of them stepped in front of the group. Clearly, he was the leader. I stepped up to meet him.


    ¡°Your presence has been. . .requested. . .in connection with the disappearance of the fivebrid creature,¡± he said. His voice was muffled, but I could still understand him.


    Requested? Yeah right. I pretended to think it over. ¡°Will there be snacks?¡±


    This was not a reaction he expected. He was taken aback for a moment but regained his composure. ¡°You will not have that sense of humor much longer.¡±


    ¡°And how do you plan on taking it away from me? Do you have some sort of humor removing machine?¡±


    He stiffened. ¡°How dare you talk to me this way? We will simply have to make you come with us. I don¡¯t think the boss cares if you are a bit roughed up when we bring you in,¡± he snarled.


    ¡°Get them.¡±


    They lunged at us. Sam raced to the water, Nell backed up, and I, unsure of what to do, tried the flying ability that Nell told me about. I jumped into the air while my stomach remained firmly on the ground. The blood flowed straight to my head as I floated up, forming little black dots in my eyes. The sudden blood loss from my limbs made them tingle with anxiety.


    I gulped. Why me?


    *    *   *


    Nell didn¡¯t know what to do. She had no idea how to activate her fire. She saw Will in the air, watching everything, and Sam was in the water. Two of the men were advancing toward her so she had to focus back on her situation. She kept backing away, trying desperately to get her fire started. The men simply laughed at her.


    They were nearly upon her when her arms finally exploded.


    She grinned at the men. ¡°Now you¡¯re in for it,¡± she said.


    She didn¡¯t know what she was going to do now, but she knew she had better do it soon or else she was in big trouble.


    *    *   *


    Out in the water, Sam was formulating his own plan. He saw Will up in the air and Nell¡¯s arms had just ignited. He had no idea what their own plans were, but he worked his out. He watched two of the men staring up at Will, completely ignoring him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t just stand there,¡± the leader yelled at them. ¡°Fire!¡±


    They pulled guns out and started firing at Will, who deftly dodged each one. Sam took this opportunity to spray the three men with water. This wasn¡¯t much in and of itself, but Sam knew that Will would take the hint. Which he did. Bolts of electricity came raining down. Only one of the men got hit, taking him down.


    At least it¡¯s something, Sam thought miserably.


    The two remaining men turned their gunfire on Sam, who hid beneath the surface. Bullets hailed all around him.


    What do I do now? he wondered.


    *     *    *


    I watched as Nell tried blasting her fire at the two men who came after her and the remaining two firing at Sam hiding in the water. I realized I failed my fight.


    My stomach did flip flops while I was hovering above everything. My head felt light and I dipped due to my dizziness. I closed my eyes and shook my head to clear it. My friends were in danger and I had to help. So far, only one of the men had been taken down. It was a good thing my bubbling anger was in control, since it seemed like my electricity was connected to it like when I zapped the cop.


    How to control my flight was a different story. I had done minor dodging but I had no real control. With the men focused on Sam, who looked like he was playing a wet and violent game of whack-a-mole, I had time to think. But what? What was I going to think of?


    An idea struck me. I forced all my energy on flying down. I angled toward the men, focusing on them. I dove in their direction. It was time. I flew in the path of the bullets trying to draw their fire, which worked. They turned their attention to me. Too bad I wasn¡¯t quick enough to evade their fire.


    Holy frack I¡¯m gonna die! I did not think this through!


    The bullets hit me square in the chest.


    They¡¯re not hurting me? I thought incredulously.


    I flew directly at them, firing electricity, no longer caring for my safety. The leader dodged, but the other man wasn¡¯t so lucky. The bolts caused him to violently convulse until he died.


    Another one down. I paused. I killed another guy?


    My stomach rebelled against the thought but I had to push it away. I promised myself to let it out later.


    The leader was now alone with his two remaining friends, who seemed to be in a bind of their own. He tried to fire on Nell, but I wasn¡¯t having that. Boiling hot energy flared through my body and I saw red. Even the cloud in my mind roared in anger, sending shockwaves through my nerves. He wasn¡¯t about to hurt her while she was distracted and couldn¡¯t get to him. Fortunately, his aim was erratic and he missed each one so far but he could still hit her. I dove in the path of the gun blocking his shot.


    ¡°No way, fuck face,¡± I snarled. ¡°You fucked up.¡±


    I fired a bolt at his hand. He yelped and flung the gun away.


    *    *   *


    The two men had dodged each fire attack, getting close to Nell. The fire had gone out when Nell lost her concentration, now she was at a loss as to what to do. Then something happened. Some new force welled itself up inside of her and took over. She grabbed the two men by their necks and began to squeeze. They started flailing around, trying to hurt her, but to no avail. She was vaguely aware of Will flying down in front of her, but she didn¡¯t know why. She kept squeezing, unsure why she couldn¡¯t stop herself, slowly choking the life out of them. When there was nothing left, she dropped them, leaving the leader left alone.


    *     *    *


    Behind me I could hear the other men choking and gurgling, but I didn¡¯t dare look. I wasn¡¯t taking my eyes off this bastard. Whatever was happening, the guy saw clearly, causing him to shake.


    Sam came out of the water while I landed, and Nell came up to my side. The group leader stood on trembling knees, holding his injured hand, as he looked at each of us with wide eyes.


    ¡°What was that about making us?¡± I asked him.


    He babbled incoherently. He didn¡¯t know what to do. So, he tried to run, but a blast of water stopped him.


    I said, ¡°You¡¯re not going anywhere.¡± My anger had eased, but it was far from gone. He had to pay for thinking he could shoot at Nell.


    ¡°Please, I was just following orders.¡±


    I thought about it. ¡°Well, we can¡¯t have you telling your boss about us, but you¡¯re not attacking us, either, so killing you wouldn¡¯t be very fair.¡±


    ¡°But he was earlier,¡± Sam pointed out.


    ¡°Yes, he was, but now he¡¯s not. What should we do with him?¡±


    I actually didn¡¯t know what to do. We had killed his companions, but did we really want to do that again or at all? My stomach certainly didn¡¯t like that thought and I had no idea how Nell felt. Maybe they would have lived if they hadn¡¯t attacked us, but we had no way to subdue them for any length of time. They would have gotten away from us eventually. His boss, probably Lord Phiale, would be out to get us if he knew who we were. Or worse, since other people in this dimension looked like us, they could be the targets of his wrath. I was at an impasse.


    I looked at Nell. ¡°He tried to shoot you, so you get to decide what we do with him.¡±


    Before she could answer, he solved my dilemma for me. He fired at me, but the bullet just flattened against my chest.


    Nell took this opportunity to incinerate him where he stood. ¡°Looks like I can use it again,¡± she muttered looking at her hand.


    ¡°Well, that solves that problem,¡± Sam said, staring at the pile of ash that used to be a person.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know I could make it that hot,¡± Nell quipped. ¡°I guess I was furious and scared he would fire on you while you were offering him mercy.¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°What could you do?¡± I thought for a minute. ¡°Now, if you¡¯ll excuse me, I think I need to throw up.¡±


    I stepped away from them, no longer able to keep my stomach in check. The combination of flying and what seemed to be casual murder was too much for me to handle. I doubled over and everything came up. My throat stung and my eyes watered as my stomach rejected all of its contents. Even after it was all done, I dry heaved until even the air was out.


    I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, panting, as I kicked sand over my mess. My friends were waiting for me by the water which I used to wash up. I wondered how Nell handled the situation but I thought it best not to ask.


    We took one last look at the bodies before Nell burned them to ash and we continued on down the beach toward the cave, my mind racing and stomach churning and aching.