My Story
I am a fantasy writer and currently I am working on a Middle Grade/ YA Fantasy trilogy called "The Shadow Children Chronicles". The first book "Orion's Sword" is complete at 62,111 words. It will find attention with fans of Shadow and Bone, Percy Jackson and How to Train your Dragon.
Miles Preston is an eleven years old boy who has a dangerous power sleeping inside him. From the outside, he seems to be a normal boy who seeks validation in a world governed by Cloud, a celestial regime with a cruel Queen ruling the 7 Dimensions and who only wants one thing: Orion’s Sword. But this isn’t a weapon for anybody and least of all for a boy, yet destiny decided to choose Miles as its Guardian. He soon finds out that the Shadow Hunters are protecting Orion's Sword from the Queen and those who lust for its power like Skell, the former Underworld King. Skell wants to reclaim his throne at all costs and allies with the cruel Queen and the Cloud Authority. Miles and his two best friends, Ava and Noah, find themselves cast out from the protected Circus where they could previously train their powers secretly. The children get forced into the Shadow Hunters Quarters who take them in for rigorous training to prepare for the Underworld Trials. Miles does not feel prepared when he takes on the three trials, but he has to prove that he can fight Cloud and restore peace within the 7 divided Worlds. Will the cast out Shadow Hunters be able to return to their old home, the Underworld? And will Miles be able to pass the three trials and save his friend Ava from the Queen? When the Sword turns into a dragon egg and leaves Miles completely defenseless in the Underworld, he needs to make a decision: awaken his inner powers and fight, or succumb to the dark forces of Orion's Sword.
Orion’s Compass is the planned second novel to follow Orion’s Sword in the Shadow Children Chronicles: The magic compass works only with the dangerous powers of the Sword and guides the children through the 7 magical Worlds on their quest to find Cloud where the Queen holds Ava captive. Miles and the Shadow Children find out that every World has its own Gate and a gate keeper: a dragon. Will Miles be able to train his dragon and reach Ava through the 7 Worlds? When Miles realises that the only World with a missing gate keeper is the Underworld, he comes closer to a dark secret.
Orion’s Shadow is the final novel of the Shadow Children Chronicles. Cloud and the Underworld collide in an epic war. Can Miles and his dragon unite the 7 Worlds and restore peace or are all Worlds doomed to an eternal shadow?
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THE FIRST THREE CHAPTERS of "THE SHADOW CHILDREN CHRONICLES"
CHAPTER 1: A Shadow in the Clouds
“…97, 98, 99 and 100. Ready or not, here I come!” Miles opened his eyes and scanned the area.
It was a bright spring day with blossoming apple trees swaying gently in the breeze against a clear blue sky. Miles knew that Noah was hiding in the grove behind one of the trees. He closed his eyes and focused, collecting his energy and felt for the hum of each tree. Every living thing in the circus had a hum - an aura. His father said it was the “vibration of the soul”. Nothing…, no…, not that one either… ah, Miles paused. There... The smaller tree on his right a bit further felt different. Miles opened his eyes and bent down to pick up an apple. He closed his eyes again and went within him, slowed down his breath and looked for the hum. Nothing. Then, he felt it. It was like an electric current that passed through his body in a split second. Miles felt the steady pulse of the trees mixed with Noah’s energy and he threw the apple.
SNAP.
That’s the sound Miles was expecting, but nothing. As he opened his eyes again, he realised that just a few inches before it could hit its target, the apple stopped mid-air. Time had stopped - at least for the apple it did. Shortly after, a skinny boy with messy blonde hair and a grin stepped out.
“Nice try Preston,” Noah said, twisting the apple in the air without touching it. “But did you only feel my hum, or did you see it this time?”
“I felt it,” Miles said, crossing his arms while looking away. “Why would I need to see it if I know where you are - kinda?”
“Because,” Noah said, releasing the apple from its time-lock. It dropped like a stone. If you can only feel, it will always be like looking for a needle in the haystack.”
Before Miles could say anything, he felt a strange rhythmic beat, an energy he thought was unusual and looked behind him. From a distance he saw workers hammering the last stakes for the Elephant Tent in preparation for the show tonight.
Hm, maybe I just imagined it.
Noah and Miles ran back to the circus where the Elephant Tent was standing in the center like a red-and-white version of mountain fuji with an entrance sign that said Somnia Simu, dream together. To the outside world, it was just another circus, but to the children living in caravans it was the only place they could feel safe, a place where being different didn’t get you locked away. They were Shadow Children. Children with special powers sleeping inside them that had to be hidden from the Cloud Authority and the world.
“Come on,” Miles said. “They are probably waiting for us. Mum will get us to clean all the tents again if we are late for the rehearsal.”
Noah sighed and they sprinted to the entrance, weaving their way through food stands with scents of sizzling curries and cotton candies. Noah was an orphan and Miles’ best friend since the first day he arrived. They both turned eleven years old this summer and spent all their time together, mostly fooling around. The first visitors were queuing for tickets and food, their eyes wide with anticipation for the ‘magical’ performers. They didn’t realize the magic wasn’t a trick. Miles turned the corner at full speed.
“Watch out!” Noah shouted, but it was too late.
Miles slammed into something - or someone. A girl’s cry followed a loud thump and Miles tumbled to the grass, and found himself staring into fire and ice. He realised then that he was staring into a pair of eyes the colour of frozen lakes with red curls framing them. Her eyes instantly narrowed and the girl raised herself up without a word and then slapped Miles across the face.
“Peasant,” she hissed.
Miles gasped in surprise as he was holding his burning cheek, eyes locked with hers.
Noah skidded to a halt. “Who are you calling a peasant?” he shouted. “And did you just slap my best friend?” He grabbed her arm. “Apologise right now or you’ll find out how we treat bullies in this circus.”
The girl’s eyes narrowed and something in the air grew hot and heavy, and suddenly Miles could feel her hum. It was the same confusing energy he had felt earlier. So it was her.
“Let. Go.” She hissed.
“Why would I?” Noah said.
“Noah, wait-,” Miles began, but it was too late.
A sizzling sound that turned into an explosion filled the air and it wasn’t rain that fell. It was potatoes. They were raining down on Noah in quick succession from seemingly nowhere, burying him within seconds to his waist.
“Ow! Hey! Stop this!” Noah cried, trying to time-freeze the vegetables but there were too many as new ones kept coming.
“Stop!” Miles cried, stepping between them. “It’s enough. He didn’t mean what he said earlier, so let it go.”
She turned to Miles when something in her eyes had changed. Did her eye colour change? Miles blinked and then they seemed to be as before. He must have imagined it.
“I mean, we’re sorry if we upset you in any way. He is a bit of an idiot, you see, and doesn’t always think before he speaks.”
The girl glanced at Noah, snipped her fingers twice and the potato-rain stopped.
“Your name is Miles?” she asked, her voice a faint quiver. “Miles Preston?”
Miles blinked and answered hesitantly. “Yes, but how do you know my name?”
The girl stepped closer. She looked like she hadn’t slept in weeks.
“I need your help.”
Miles and Noah looked at each other for a second and then turned to the strange girl again. Noah snorted.
“Look, tomato…uh, Princess.” He hesitated. “We’re not some sort of charity here. You should just go – “
“Nobody asked you,” she said and then looked at Miles. “I need to find my mother.”
And then he felt it. Her hum, it was clear and loud. Then an image of a sword and stars on fire briefly passed him. It was gone as soon as it came.
Miles gasped as he stared ahead.
“Are you okay? Was it a vision?” Noah asked.
“Uh, it’s nothing. Alright, let’s find your mother then,” Miles said, gathering back his senses.
Noah stared at his best friend in disbelief.
The three children entered the Elephant Tent together while Noah kept shaking his head.
“Hey, tom-head,” Noah said and turned to the girl, “why would your mother be here? And what’s that weird potato-power of yours?”
She ignored him like he was thin air and went on to follow Miles who stopped and turned around to her and said: “So this is the rehearsal area and usually top secret, but since we are looking for your mother, I will make an exception and let you in.” Noah’s eyes almost fell out of his head.
“Are you insane? This is against the circus rules, and who knows why she’s here? She might be some crazy fan, or worse, a spy from Cloud! I wouldn’t even be surprised if she turned out to be some sort of alien.”
“She’s one of us,” Miles said without looking at Noah. “What’s your name by the way?”
“Avinella, but you can call me Ava. My mother does too.”
“Ava then,” Miles said, “that’s a pretty name. Well, you already know who I am, and this silly boy here is Noah. He’s usually not that rude, really. I guess he’s got a bit of trouble warming up. Just give him some time and he’ll be soft as a bunny. Right, and before I let you into the Elephant Tent, you’ll need to make a Somnia Simu promise.”
“A Somnia Simu promise? What’s that?” She asked.
“Hm, it’s an unbreakable promise, and maybe you can become one of us.”
Noah snorted. “One of us? You mean a Shadow Child? She is definitely not one of us.”
“Leave it,” Miles said and then continued. “Promise us that you will not tell anybody about us and whatever you will see in here will stay a secret until eternity.”
“I promise,” she said.
Miles smiled and then accidentally brushed her right hand. Images of fire flushed pass him and he saw again the sword in blue and red flames.
“Stop,” he mumbled.
“What is it?” Noah cried, stepping between him and Ava. “Hey, it’s just another illusion. It’s okay.”
The flames disappeared and it took a few minutes until his eyes re-adjusted back to normal. When Miles looked up again, he saw Ava’s wide eyes staring at him.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“Sorry,” Miles said, “Yes, it’s nothing.”
“You shouldn’t have touched a stranger,” Noah said. “You know that’s how your visions start, and that girl is probably cursed or something.”
Ava gave Noah a glare and something in her eyes looked as if she was considering another potato-rain.
“It’s fine, don’t worry,” Miles said.
“Did you see my mother by any chance? Is she okay?” she asked. “ I’m sorry. I can imagine that these visions must be painful, but I need to find my mother no matter what.”
Miles looked at her for a moment. “I’m not sure,” he finally said. “It was too short to make out anything, but I saw flames.”
“Flames?” Ava repeated and something like concern was visible on her face. It could have been even fear.
Miles hated the visions. They felt real and intense, too much so that sometimes it got difficult to understand whether it was actually happening or not. He had to trust his gut feeling on these. Father said it would become easier with time to understand the difference between visions and reality and that he should try to think back to the point in time just before everything changed and whether this transition really made sense. ‘You may not be able to trust your eyes, but you can trust your heart’, dad always said. Miles knew the visions were sometimes meant to tell him something, but it was hard to tell, and then sometimes they were related to either something that would happen in the future or already happened in the past, he seldom knew which of the two.
“Well, are you ready?” Miles said, slowly lifting the thick dark red cloth to the training space in the Elephant Tent.
Different rays of colour blinded them momentarily as the three children tried to shield the light off with their arms. Miles then glimpsed his mother on the stage with some of the older Shadow Children who could control their powers already well. One of them was Chloe. She had a boyish nature with her shortcut blonde hair and quick temper. She was twelve years old and mother brought her in last year from another orphanage. Miles’ mother threw a bucket filled with water at Chloe and she made it swirl and twirl around in the air wherever her fingers pointed as if she was creating a spider web. A blonde boy next to her then created sparkles with his hands and mixed them around the water, which made it twinkle and sparkle brightly in different colours. Miles heard Ava sigh in wonder next to him.
“That’s Chloe and Coen, they work together as a duo to create this water-play with lights and colours for our shows. They are quite popular,” Miles explained. “And the other girl next to them is called Suki. She is, just like Chloe, a year older than me and Noah and came from an orphanage in Japan a few years back. She can see through the eyes of whoever she chooses at any time. Although it’s easier for her when she knows the person well or holds a personal object of them in her hands. It comes in handy for a show when Suki can tell exactly which card the audience had picked from a pile of cards or ‘guess’ the colour they see with her eyes blindfolded. But that’s not all she’s got. Watch.”
Ava leaned forward, her eyes wide open. Suki and another blonde boy who looked identical to Coen went on stage with two long, sharp swords in his hands of which he threw one casually to Suki who caught it with ease. The boy was tall with sleek blonde hair, like Coen, but he also had a slightly pointed chin. The only other difference in looks to Coen was that he was wearing black gloves.
“That boy there, that’s Blake,” Miles said, amused by Ava’s amazement.
“She’s so elegant and beautiful,” Ava said. “And her skin is as white as snow…”
Miles watched as Suki tied her long raven hair to a ponytail, something she always did before a fight, her mojo for concentration and focus. Her walk was filled with grace, almost as if she was dancing.
“And who is this woman in the long blue dress next to them?” Ava asked.
“That’s Elisabetta,” Noah said, “the head and founder of this circus. And the mother of Miles.”
Mother positioned herself between Blake and Suki, blindfolding the latter.
“Fight!” she then shouted and moved in two quick strokes backwards.
Swift movements followed with the sound of swords touching in the air. Suki didn’t have any trouble dodging and attacking whilst her eyes were blindfolded. Her opponent, Blake, attacked in quick, firm movements, determined to land the first hit. Just as he was about to touch her tender neck with the edge of his sword, she quietly turned sideways like a ninja while using her sword to shove away his. She then kneeled down and moved out one leg, over which Blake stumbled and fell brusquely. She got up as soundless as a feather and then served her final move, her sword lingering at her opponent’s neck.
“She’s amazing,” Ava whispered. “Are these swords real by the way?”
“You’re easily fooled, huh?” Noah said with a mocking smile. “They’re fake of course and just for show. Those two are well trained in Taekwondo, Judo and Wing Chun and who knows what else. If only Blake wasn’t such an arse.”
“Blake,” Ava mumbled. “Is he the twin of Coen?”
“Yes,” Noah said and pointed at Suki’s defeated opponent, still lying on the floor and eyes staring furiously at Suki. “That guy hates losing. Well, then again, I can't think of anything he doesn’t hate apart from himself and his big ego. Still can’t believe how different these twins are… I would have lost all my brotherly love for him a long time ago if I was Coen, but that softhearted cry baby will take his side no matter what.”
Then the sound of hands clapping suddenly echoed in a dark corner of the tent and a petite woman with long red hair that fell all the way down to her waist appeared. Ava whacked open the thick curtain and ran on stage.
“MUM!” she cried.
Noah stared in disbelief as the scene was unfolding in front of them.
“What?” Noah shouted and ran after her. “You can’t just burst in here like that. Miles stop that crazy girl!”
But it was too late. Ava ran into her mother’s arms while everyone on stage stared at them.
Miles put a hand on Noah’s shoulder and stopped him from climbing on stage. He was wondering why Julianne came here without her daughter, especially if she had a power too, then why did she never mention her daughter in the first place to any of them? Miles was wondering if his mother was aware about her and he tried to see if he could feel confusion in his mother’s aura.
‘Don’t even try this on me,’ she said to Miles in her mind’s voice. This was her power. She could talk to people in her mind and it had always been freaking Miles a little out. He could have sworn that his mother could also read minds but she always denied it. Perhaps it was to her greater advantage to not let people on so she could use her power on them better. Just then his mother suppressed a smile and looked away. Moments like these convinced Miles that she actually could read minds…
Julianne’s eyes were wide with surprise and fear. Why wasn’t she happy to see her daughter? It seemed rather bizarre to Miles and it only raised more questions about Ava. So they were not supposed to know about her. Julianne participated in the shows as the aerial hoop performer, and her mastery of the hoop was so advanced that it almost looked like she was flying and gliding through heights as elegant as a butterfly, all that without even using her power, or at least so she claims. Nobody even knew what her power really was and she didn’t want to disclose it. There were some rumours circulating that she actually didn’t have one, but seeing how Ava does have one, that rumour doesn’t hold anymore Miles thought. She might even have the same one as her daughter. Jualianne is apparently an old friend of mum’s and lives in a city called Loron, a few hours ride by train he was told by his uncle Jaden. But Miles never heard about her up until now, that is, until she suddenly showed up this summer out of nowhere... Mum would refuse to discuss her background with him, which he found very frustrating. Jaden told Miles that mum and Julianne both grew up together in the circus, secretly training to become Guardians for the Cloud Authority, both gifted with extraordinary powers. Miles’ mother could influence gravity and make objects bend and move to her will, a power Miles would have loved to master but unfortunately, he is unable to use it. He wasn’t even sure whether he inherited it. When Miles pressed to know more about Julianne’s power, Jaden suddenly pretended like he didn’t know anything and looked worried as if he said too much after too many glasses of red wine. He was a funny man of small build and little hair left and strangely he had no power. This one had always been a mystery to Miles but neither his mother nor him, even after many glasses of wine, would engage on that topic. Miles stopped asking about it a long time ago as he thought it could be a hurtful topic for his uncle.
“Hey!” Blake shouted. “Who brought this stranger here?”
Blake jumped down from the stage in one brusque movement, still holding his swords, and walked towards Ava.
“Don’t you dare touch my daughter!” Julianne cried as she raised both her hands and next, to the utter surprise of Blake, a stone wall appeared in front of him, blocking him from Ava.
So she had the same power as Ava after all Miles thought while everyone else stared at Julianne and then the wall. Blake caught himself quickly again and turned his head to Miles, walking towards him with quick steps.
“You,” he said between gritted teeth, “the headmistress’ son of all people bringing trouble again, huh? Who said you could just bring anyone like that in here?”
“Hey, hey, buddy,” Noah intervened. “She won’t stay here long, so calm d-“
Blake placed his sword on Noah’s neck, cutting off his words.
“Who the hell asked you, muppet?”
Miles pushed Blake away. “Leave him alone!”
Blake dropped his blade and punched Miles hard in the stomach and was about to take one of his gloves off when Elisabetta cried out and he stopped midway. Miles cringed on the floor, his hands tightly gripping his stomach. Visions of fire appeared again in his mind’s eye just like earlier when he accidentally touched Ava. Why? When the visions stopped, Miles looked up and saw a crowd of concerned faces standing around him.
“Miles? Are you okay?” Suki asked, careful not to touch him so he wouldn’t see any more visions.
“Enough now, we’re having a break of twenty minutes, please leave the practice room everyone. Miles, you too, please. And Blake, you come with me,” Elisabetta said and helped Miles stand up.
“What?” Blake snapped. “I was only joking, I wasn’t really going to-”
“Shut it,” Elisabetta said with a firm voice. Her expression was stern and serious and something in her eyes told you she wasn’t letting this go. Noah made faces at Blake as he left the practice room with Elisabetta. He broke one of the three big rules in the circus and that was serious. Using his power to harm somebody, or intending to, meant breaking the very first rule:
‘Never use your power to hurt somebody.’
Miles saw how Julianne whispered something to Ava and how the smile on her face disappeared. Soon after thick tears rolled down Ava’s cheeks. Her mother then said her name in a serious tone and Ava turned around and ran out of the tent.
“Ava,” she cried after her but didn’t move and then turned around midway and headed towards the preparation room. Noah gave Miles a puzzled look, Miles nodded and the two boys left the tent to look for Ava.
***
Elisabetta entered the orphanage and walked across a dark, narrow hallway with dim light bulbs hanging down the walls and Blake following silently behind her. Soon they reached a heavy wooden door. Elisabetta placed both her hands into an engrained circle so that one hand rested in the circle of the left door and the other of the right door. The circle briefly lit up in light blue and then the door swung open with force, revealing a tidy, spacious office with hundreds of books neatly lined up on dark chestnut shelves. Elisabetta walked over to a wooden desk that seemed to take over half of the room and leaned against it. She motioned to Blake to sit down on the green velvet sofa across from her. He refused her order and remained standing, eyes fixed on her.
“Do you realise what you just did, Blake?” She asked and turned around to look at him.
Blake snorted condescendingly and then remained quiet. For a few seconds the room lay in eerie silence until Elisabetta flung out her right arm swiftly. The sofa behind Black jammed so quickly back into the room and against the wooden shelves that he didn’t realise what had happened until all books fell out and flapped to the ground with force. Now she had all of his attention.
“You broke the first rule,” Elisabetta said.“Do you understand what this means?
Blake didn’t react.
“You will need to transfer to the orphanage of Cloud.”
Blake jumped up from his seat. “What?”
“You know the rules, Blake. Use your power to hurt somebody and you’re out. Cloud will take your case from here.”
“But this is not fair, I didn’t even use it, so I didn’t break the rule,” he shouted.
Elisabetta sighed impatiently and stepped closer to Blake, gripping tightly one of his hands covered by a black glove and lifting it up on eye level.
“Did you or did you not try to take off this glove?”
Blake didn’t react.
“And did you or did you not stop only because I intervened?” She asked, her grip tighter still. Blake squirmed in pain and jerked away his hand.
“I don’t know,” he said.
“Again, did you or did you not?”
“I did,” he admitted, “so what? Nothing happened and I stopped it in time.”
Elisabetta turned around and went over to the heavy, wooden desk. She slowly lowered herself into the chair and folded her hands.
“What if next time nobody is there to intervene? Do you want me to wait for this time to come with a power as dangerous as yours? Now, please pack your belongings and wait for somebody from Cloud to come and get you.”
Blake stared at her in disbelief. “What is this bullshit? I’m not going anywhere.”
“Bullshit?” Elisabetta asked silently. “Bullshit happens when you lose control. You demonstrated this very well today. Goodbye Blake. Somebody will pick you up tomorrow morning at dawn in front of the entrance.” She got up and left the office without turning back. She could feel Blake’s stare on her back for a long time after this day and hear thoughts darker than she could have ever imagined, and for the first time Elisabetta wished she didn’t have this power.
CHAPTER 2: Orion's Sword
Ava’s head was spinning. She had never seen her mother so upset and didn’t understand why she suddenly left home without saying anything. They both possessed the power of Creation, creating whatever their minds are trained enough to imagine. When Ava was younger, she would make for herself dolls and dresses she imagined. Sometimes painting the object she intended to create with her power first helped her train, which was a method she learnt from her mother. Often, they would spend many hours together sketching and painting, and one day it would magically appear in front of them. Once Julianne was painting an apple tree for many weeks and then, one day, they woke up and it was just there, a fully grown tree in their garden with red, plump apples waiting to be picked and eaten. Ava was smiling at the memory as she walked along the river, until she almost bumped into something. She looked up, realising that ‘something’ was actually somebody and she then looked straight into the darkest pair of eyes she had ever seen. She looked immediately down and saw his black glove.
“Ah, now look who we’ve got here,” Blake said without moving away. He looked as if he was out of his mind.
Ava tried to move out of his way, but he blocked her. His sleek, blonde hair was untidy and wet. His skin was covered in sweat, pale and clear, and he had light grey circles below his eyes, giving him a sickly appearance. Ava didn’t like his looks nor the feeling he gave off.
“What do you want from me?” She looked up with folded arms and assumed a firm stand, pretending he didn’t scare her.
“What do I want?” Blake said. “Huh, what do I want now? Ah yes, a bit of blood maybe…. how about yours?” He stared down at Ava with a skewed grin that distorted his whole face. Ava looked back in horror.
“What do you mean?” She said, her voice shaking. She was so surprised that she couldn’t move or use her power. Nothing would come to her mind in time. He grabbed her shoulders with force and was about to lift her when something hit his head. Blake growled in annoyance and dropped Ava, turning around abruptly.
“Hands off her or you will get to feel a few more stones against that empty head of yours,” Miles shouted, his left arm raised mid-air and ready to throw another stone. Noah was standing next to him with stones flying in front of them that had been frozen midair and ready to hit its target if released.
When Blake saw Miles, his eyes darkened further.
“You again,” Blake said between gritted teeth. “This time there’s nobody who can save you. Count yourself dead, you little freak.”
He darted towards Miles and Noah in a speed their eyes couldn’t quite follow and before they knew it, he was already right in front of them. Miles got punched so hard that he fell several feet backwards. His lip burst open and dark red blood was streaming down his shirt.
“Miles!” Noah rushed to his friend’s side and was about to help him up, but Blake was faster and pushed Miles against a tree, raising his gloved hand which he was about to remove.
“GET AWAY FROM HIM!” Ava shouted and threw potatoes on Blake’s head. He cried out and furiously jumped at Ava and pushed her with so much force that for a moment she couldn’t breathe.
“Leave her alone,” Miles cried and launched himself at Blake.
As he was about to hit Miles’ face, Noah time-froze Blake for a few seconds, giving Miles enough time to move his arm and redirect Blake’s punch against his own face. The punch was loud and sounded painful, making Blake groan and roll on the ground, holding his face.
Miles looked over to Ava, “Can you create ropes?”
“Ropes?” Ava asked. “Uhm, only potatoes,” she said with a shrug. Large potatoes then rained down on Blake and soon buried him as he squirmed and shouted.
“You will regret this,” he cried and then took off the glove from his right hand where something like a black hole was visible. An unusual suction could be felt coming from it and then dark matter shot out of his right palm, creating a small black hole.
“RUN!” Miles shouted.
Ava ran with Miles and Noah back towards the circus, and as they ran, they heard a frantic laugh behind them.
“This dude has always been nuts, but he’s gone completely mad now. I don’t think my time-freeze is strong enough to hold back his black hole, I don’t know if it worked at all,” Noah said.
“Blake’s black hole will be growing larger soon and it’s going to swallow up everything if we don’t stop it,” Miles said. “We need to find my mother. She will know what to do.”
§§
The sky erupted in orange and red trails as the sun slowly began to set and take away the day’s light. Elisabetta left her office and stepped outside to get some air and organise her thoughts. She’s never had to expel somebody from the orphanage till this day. Blake had always been the bully in the circus, especially with Miles. And yet, she never thought that he would cross the line and actually try to use his power to harm her son. As she looked into the far distance, she noticed Julianne who walked into the Elephant Tent, looking anxious and agitated. The two of them had been friends since they were children and grew up together in this circus. Ten years ago, Julianne suddenly disappeared without a word or trace. Elisabetta still remembered this dark, rainy winter day well. Both of them had a joint performance planned on stage for that evening. They had been rehearsing for months together and were both excited to show the new tricks they could do. When the curtains were drawn, only Elisabetta appeared on stage and there was no sight of Julianne anywhere. Elisabetta had to improvise and perform alone, the show a complete disaster. She couldn’t focus on her power or performance and ended up leaving the stage in the middle of the show to go look for Julianne. Naturally people were asking for their money back from the ticket sales office on their way out. Ten years later, Julianne suddenly appears again. Just like that. Her friend’s past cheerfulness had dried up with her youthfulness and was replaced with agitation and hardness and it felt as if nothing could get through the thick wall she carefully constructed around herself. And to only add to the confusion, a small girl appears suddenly too and turns out to be Julianne’s daughter… Elisabetta’s head was exploding with questions and anger was slowly building up inside her. Who does Julianne think she is, coming and going as she pleases? Ignoring her as if they’d never been friends. She never even explained herself for what happened that night… Julianne owed her at least that much. Elisabetta decided to act on her anger and decided to follow Julianne inside the tent. She was about to call out her name when she stopped short. Julianne was talking to someone in a low voice. Elisabetta hid behind a curtain backstage, trying to catch what they were talking about. The lights were off, and it was dark with some diffused light finding its way in from the open tent entrance. She then realised who the other voice belonged to… it was her brother Jaden.
“You’re not safe here. You and your daughter need to leave as soon as possible,” Jaden whispered.
“But what about you?” Julianne asked. Her hands seemed to tremble. “Let me take it, you know he’ll kill you if he finds you.”
“No, it’s safer with me than you,” Jaden said, holding out his right hand. Elisabetta couldn’t believe it, could it be… was it really the very thing she was thinking it was? Elisabetta knew her little brother better than anyone, and never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined that he could hide something like that from her.
“This is different, Jaden. He has been trapped in that cave thanks to James’ curse, I know, but this curse only lasts for ten years and tonight this time is up. Even if Elisabetta was renewing the spell every full moon, I know it must have grown weaker every time still. And Skell will do anything to get it back once he’s freed. He wouldn’t hesitate a second to kill us all,” Julianne said, her voice shaking. She looked pale and terrified.
Elisabetta winced as she heard the name of her husband, and then stepped forward between the curtains.
“What about my husband? And how do you know that I’ve been renewing the spell?”
“Elisa…” Jaden began.
“Do you really think I’d believe that Skell is alive? A curse? No, my husband killed him. Skell is gone for good and he did what he had to do. His soul is well locked up in the Banshee Cave and cannot escape even if the barrier has weakened.”
“How can you be so sure of that?” Julianne said. “Or is that what you want to believe because James left you?”
Elisabetta moved forward swiftly and a loud clap echoed, leaving a bright red bruise on Julianne’s cheek. Tears were rolling down from Elisabetta’s cheeks as she stared at Julianne with indignation.
“Was that really necessary?” Elisabetta said between gritted teeth. “You’re that same immature little brat as back then, only doing whatever you want and disregarding people’s feelings completely.”
Elisabetta then pointed at Jaden’s right hand.
“What is this doing here with you? The Cloud Authority will have you killed for this.”
§§
The first stars began to appear against an inky sky with the faint outline of a full moon when the three children reached the entrance of the circus, a dark and gaping mouth that stood in contrast to the increasing vivacity outside and people gathering in anticipation to the circus show. The children looked around cautiously and entered the tent. It was dark inside apart from the stage lights, and they saw Ava’s and Miles’ mother standing on the stage with Jaden. Ava was about to call out for her mother when Miles stopped her.
“Wait a sec,” Miles said and put out his arm in front of Ava and Noah. “Something is wrong.”
“What do you mean?” Ava asked.
“Miles, we don’t have much time left, that sucker’s hole might be expanding by now,” Noah said.
Miles motioned them to duck down, and Ava and Noah followed his instructions with puzzled faces. Slowly they moved closer to the adults, staying small in the shadows, until they were close enough to hear.
“Elisa,” Jaden said. “Let me expl-.”
“Enough,” she cried, lifting her right hand. In a swift motion, she hurled something through the air, and it landed with a loud thud near the tent entrance. It fell right in front of the children. They looked at it in astonishment. It looked ethereal and beautiful with beautiful stones glowing in arctic blue and ruby red in the darkness. They had to move away quickly so they wouldn’t be seen. Then Julianne stepped forward and stopped in front of Elisabetta.
“That’s enough now,” she cried. “If it wasn’t for Jaden and me hiding the sword, we would have been dead a long time ago, all of us. Not knowing more keeps you safe.”
“And this is your idea of ‘safe’?” Elisabetta snorted and gestured towards the far end where the sword lay on the ground. “Do you know how dangerous this thing is? This sword should be with the Cloud Authority, but of all places you keep it in a circus full of children? Tell me what is going on right now. I can’t have the children anywhere near it.”
“Ah,” Julianne groaned, “you haven’t changed a bit. You always think you know what’s best. Things can be out of control, even for you. Do you think I want to have this sword here? To put you, Jaden or the children in such danger? But all you can do is think about yourself, your point of view and that one is always the right one, isn’t it?”
Elisabetta was raising her right hand and about to slap her friend again when Jaden stepped in and grasped her arm firmly.
“Elisa, don’t,” he said. She looked into his eyes for a few seconds, holding his gaze and then she relaxed and let go of her brother’s arm.
“Ten years ago,” Julianne began, “I got pregnant with Ava. And I broke the Law of Cloud.”
“What do you mean?” Elisa gasped. “What have you done?”
“I cannot tell you this. Knowing it will put you all in danger. All I can say is that I had never intended to break the law. And then a week before our performance, you came to me with this radiant face of a woman who was blessed to become a mother too. Oh, I had never been more scared in my life. Scared for your future child and mine. Staying meant I would put both their lives at risk. Cloud wanted Ava’s life more than anything, they still do.”
Ava gasped and Miles quickly covered her mouth before she could make more sounds.
“It was the scariest moment of my life.” Julianne continued. “The Cloud Authority found out the same night what I had done and sent a Guardian to kill me and the baby.”
That sword,” she said and pointed at it across the circus where the children were listening, “is a special weapon that can only be used by whoever it chooses. Somebody powerful enough to withstand its force and destined to protect the Gates. But what you didn’t know is that Orion’s Sword can also take away powers by absorbing them and give the owner even more power. Whoever controls the sword, therefore, can easily get corrupted and lust for more power. That rainy night ten years ago, it was the Gate Guardian Skell, who came with Orion’s Sword to kill me and my baby. It was the night of our show. Skell was supposed to take me to Cloud Court as per orders from the Queen, but what he really came for was my power”
“What do you mean?’ Elisabetta said, feeling more confused by the minute. “Skell, he tried to kill you?”
“Yes... he found me in the practice hall, and oh, I’ll never forget how dark and cruel his eyes looked that night. I’d never felt more scared. He cut my right palm with the sword when I tried to fight him and blocked my powers. I created sharp ice cones to attack him but they melted away at once. Skell was about to take my power and kill me when Jaden and James appeared and forced Skell to the ground. Orion’s Sword fell and Jaden turned it invisible, so Skell couldn’t use it anymore. James used his strongest power to trap him in a tombstone in the Banshee Cave.”
“But,” Elisa said.
“Yes, that’s right, his spell could only last a limited amount of time and he managed to seal him away for ten years. Those ten years will pass tonight despite your renewals,” Julianne said. “It’s Jaden that told me about it all these years and how the barrier has been getting weaker despite everything. And he’s right to have told me, because if Skell comes back for the sword, we’re all dead. Only James was powerful enough to fight Skell, but…,” Julianne stopped when she saw Elisa’s face, torn with pain.
“I will go to the Cloud Elders today and present them with Orion's Sword and ask for your protection,” Julianne said, “but promise me you will keep Ava safe here with you.”
Ava watched her mother with wide eyes.
“Mum,” Ava said, her word so faint and silent Miles wasn’t sure he heard it. Miles and Noah were right next to her, hiding in the shadows and listening to the conversation of the adults. She then suddenly plunged forward and grabbed the sword on the floor. The adults turned their heads in surprise and immediately saw Ava who came forward into the circus light, her fingers tightly embracing the hilt.
“Ava, what are you doing? Get away from that sword right now,” Juilanne cried.
Ava clutched the hilt even harder, “You can’t leave me again, I won’t let you.” She then turned around and ran out of the tent as fast as she could, the sword heavy in her right hand. Ava had difficulties keeping up with her pace. She heard footsteps behind her, their sound increasing gradually as they were following her, but she didn’t dare to look back, couldn’t risk losing time and ran ahead, running towards the black hole whose existence she now appreciated. The sword had to disappear. It was the only way to save her mother from her sacrifice to the Cloud Authority.
“Wait,” Miles cried behind her, trying to catch up.
“I’m tellin’ ya, this girl is nothin’ but problems,” Noah said while running after them.
They had reached the black hole with no sign of Blake around. The hole had doubled in size by then and the children could feel the suction strongly. Ava was getting closer, not realising that she was too close.
“That stupid girl,” Noah shouted, trying to time-freeze the black hole with no success.
“What are you doing?” she cried, glaring at Miles and Noah with flushed cheeks. “Stop it. I need this black hole.”
“Do you really think this will save your mother? You sacrificing yourself like an idiot?” Miles said. “You will only get sucked into this hole, don’t you realise this?”
“I don’t care,” she cried, “I need to save mother.”
The black hole’s suction was in full motion, feeling stronger than before. Ava was about to let go of the sword for it to disappear in the black hole forever when she lost control and felt herself being pulled into it. From a distance, she saw the figure of her mother running towards her and heard her cry her name. And then everything around her darkened. She had lost control.
CHAPTER 3: The Banshee Cave
“Ava,” Miles cried, holding out both hands and trying to catch her, but she was too far away. Miles ran as fast as he could and then managed to get hold of her hand. That’s when he realised that they were too late. The black hole was too strong and both of them were getting sucked in. The last thing he heard was Noah’s cry, then his mother’s and then time stopped. Did Noah do this? Miles was in front of the black hole now, about to enter, but he could still move and walk. How? He turned around and saw Noah, motionless and staring at his friend with wide eyes. His mother and Ava’s mother were close behind Noah and frozen statues too. It couldn’t have been Noah or anyone else’s power if time had frozen for them too. Miles didn’t know how much longer this strange time state would last, but it was the only chance he had to get Ava out of the black hole. He jumped in and found himself falling into an abyss of complete darkness. And then he saw something…bright. Was it a light? A faint red and blue light appeared in the far distance and seemed to grow stronger and move closer every second. The object was bigger than the sword and covered in a red-blue halo, something he had never seen before. For a moment he thought it was a bird flying in flames. His eyes adjusted to the bright light and then he saw it. A black dragon with amber eyes was flying right at him and glowing brightly in the darkness, and Ava was sitting on it.
“Miles,” Ava cried, “take my hand!” She flew towards him while riding the dragon and held her hand out. Miles' eyes widened and he then reached out just in time for her to get hold of his hand.
Miles heaved himself on the dragon. As confused as Miles was, he had to postpone his million questions to another time as right now he really had to focus on staying on it while Ava seemed to be oddly at ease with riding dragons. She then turned her head over her shoulder and gave him a big smile.
“Ready?” She asked and then sped up before he could say anything. They rushed through a blue tunnel at a speed that made Miles tear up. The light around them shone in full brightness in a sapphire blue and ruby red.
“What’s happening?” Miles asked her. “Why on earth is this dragon here?”
“I know you must be thinking this is crazy, and I don’t think you will believe me either way. The sword turned into this dragon.”
Miles pinched Ava’s right cheek.
“Ouch, what’s that for?” She cried.
“I guess we’re not dreaming after all.”
Ava gave him a confused look and then smiled without saying a word. “I knew you wouldn’t believe me.”
“I can’t explain it, but I do. I believe you.”
Time must have started to flow again as what seemed to be dark mass around them was moving quickly in all directions in thin filaments connecting to millions of halos. He was also surprised to see this cosmic web of dark matter as it physically wasn’t possible, it shouldn’t be interacting with light, and then he realised that it wasn’t dark matter itself that was moving or that he saw, but a blue light inside intricate webs was flowing like liquid and centred itself in a halo pattern all around them. Miles stared at it in awe and before he knew it, they were out of the black hole.
“We’re back,” Ava said and they got off the dragon. The moment they did, the dragon looked at Miles with its amber eyes, spat fire and then shrank in size until it got fully engulfed in blinding blue light. When they opened their eyes again, they could only see the sword resting on the ground as if it had always been there.
“Ava,” Julianne shouted and ran to her daughter’s side. Elisabetta and Noah ran up to join them too.
“Blimey,” Noah said, “how on earth did you do that? You were just in front of me and the next second you come out flying on a dragon! Ah, as for potato head,” and he glanced over to her, “you could have left here in th-” Ava gave Noah a smack on the head before he could finish his sentence. She then picked up the sword, lying in the grass, and held it out to Miles.
“Why are you…?” Miles said, unsure why she was handing it to him.
Ava sighed and stepped closer. “Miles, the dragon told me earlier that it belongs to you.”
Miles and Noah stared at her as if she had just told them she was an alien and planning on taking them to her secret planet for summer vacation.
“She’s completely lost her marbles,” Noah said, circling an index finger next to his head. “Is this the same girl who kept crying about her mother earlier and how this sword needs to disappear? How does any of this make sense now? Talking dragons, are you kidding me?”
Ava ignored him.
“While I was inside the black hole, I heard a voice. It told me that the sword belongs to you and that you have been chosen as its owner a long time ago. Don’t ask me how or why, but you are supposed to have it according to that dragon. It was its inner voice. And isn’t it great, mother? It means that everything will be okay for us. If Miles is the owner of the sword, well then he can protect us from the Cloud Authority surely and-”
“Shut your mouth,” Elisabetta cried. “Not one more word. You don’t know what you are talking about. This is nonsense. The black hole must have made you delusional. Jaden, take the children and Julianne away from here. I will take care of this hole.”
“No,” Julianne said, “I’ll help you. Take the children, Jaden.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Ava said and stood her ground, her face turning pink. Elisabetta sighed.
“You’re just like your mother, aren’t you? Let’s not waste any more time then,” Elisabetta said and held out both her hands with eyes closed. Then Julianne closed her eyes as well, breathing heavily. Suddenly Elisabetta’s hands started to shake and purple webs that looked like electricity were forming in front of them, growing exponentially bigger.
“What is that?” Noah said, staring at the growing purple mass.
“It’s negative energy,” Jaden said. “Combined powers that leverage each other.”
The children looked impressed.
“Now!” Julianne cried and Elisabetta used her power to carry the negative energy into the black hole and it was shrinking instantly. For a split second, Miles thought the sword’s jewels were shining when the hole disappeared, and he felt a strange tingle inside him. It was spreading in his body and getting hotter, and he felt dizzy and then he felt himself falling to the ground, his body shaking as he clutched his chest tightly where his heart was. What was that pain? Why couldn’t he breathe? His vision became blurry and then everything disappeared.
It felt like time had stopped once again for Miles as he was wandering around in complete darkness.
Hello? He cried and heard his voice echo back to him. Is anyone here? He tried again, only hearing his own voice answer back. Miles kept on walking, hoping he would see something if he went on long enough, but nothing appeared. Suddenly he heard voices in the distance, voices that were familiar. Mum? Ava? Then a small, blue light appeared in front of him as a globe and grew bigger by the second with whispers coming out of it and growing louder as the ball grew. Miles slowly held out his hand to touch it. The moment the blue light reached his fingertips, a fire began to burn around the globe and the whispers were repeating his name louder and louder until they turned into cries and the black dragon with amber eyes appeared again in front of him and then came aflame in bright blue fire until it completely disappeared again.
That’s when Miles opened his eyes and saw Ava’s face close to his, saying his name and shaking him.
“Miles! You’re awake, thank God… Oh, you were trembling and sweating all over, I thought you’d die.”
“That light,” Miles murmured, trying to sit up on his bed while Ava helped him find his balance. “What is this blue light all about? And that fire, I think it’s somehow all connected to the sword, but I don’t understand how…and somehow it feels like it is also connected to you… and this dragon…who are you exactly?”
Ava’s deep blue eyes watched Miles for a while and it felt like time was slowing down. He almost forgot his question when she finally answered:
“I am… your father.”
Miles stared at her in disbelief. Then she burst out into loud laughter and Miles joined her heartily until they had tears in their eyes. They looked at each other for a few seconds, trying to calm down, and burst back into more and louder laughter still.
The door to Miles’ bedroom suddenly opened with a loud bang and Noah stormed in with a mix of worry and anger on his face.
“What on earth can be so funny after having gotten hoovered into a black hole and a near death experience?” boomed Noah, looking at them as if they’ve lost their minds completely.
They grinned at Noah, suppressing another surge of laughter.
“Right,” Noah said slowly, “who wouldn’t go all cuckoo after what happened a few days ago… anyways, what is this thing?” He gestured towards the sword resting on the windowsill, its silver blade reflecting the first rays of morning sunshine.
“A few days?” Miles asked and looked bewildered at his friend, “what do you mean? Don’t tell me…?”
“Yeah, man, you were out for three days or so. The doctor said you’d be fine and that you only needed some rest. Dude, your mum’s nuts with worry. We all are, I mean what the hell happened out there? You were suddenly aflame in blue and red lights and then you passed out. It kind of came from that sword and went all over your body. I’ve never seen anything like it. I think we should get rid of this thing, or whatever it is, like right now. And we should throw that crazy lady out of here along with it if you ask me,” Noah said, and pointed at Ava.
Ava sighed and got up from Miles’ bed. “But nobody asked you and your empty head.”
“Better than a potato head,” Noah growled.
Ava and Noah glared at each other.
“You’re thinking of using your ridiculous potato power on me again, don’t you?” Noah said. “Huh, go ahead then, let’s see how well it goes this time.” He positioned himself into a kung fu like position, ready to fight. Ava rolled her eyes. Miles looked helplessly from one to the other, feeling too tired to say anything.
“Noah,” Miles said. “When time stopped, was that your doing?”
Noah stared at his friend, bewildered. “Uh, no. I couldn’t even time-freeze that black hole for a split second. It was too strong.”
“Hm,” Miles mumbled while looking at his hands. “I see… it was like everything had stopped. Time stood still altogether apart for Ava and me, and… well…the dragon, or sword, whatever it really is.”
Before Noah could answer or say more, Miles’ mother appeared in the doorframe and ran over to him, hugging her son tightly. Julianne and Jaden entered the room too, but kept their distance from Miles, fear clearly showing in their eyes. Were they afraid of him? Miles wondered, baffled. Why would they be afraid of him?
“Is anything the matter?” He slowly asked and looked at Jaden, then Julianne.
“Don’t you know?” Julianne asked, “don’t you know what it means to see the dragon?”
“Enough,” Elisabetta cried, “enough of this nonsense! My son has nothing to do with that sword. Now get out of here.”
“Elisa,” Jaden said, “we must tell him. This is too important to hide, even if he is still a child. He needs to know…”
At these words, Elisabetta raised her hand and whirled Jaden through the door and out of the room. Julianne stared at her for a moment in disbelief and then left the room without a word. Ava and Noah followed her out, too scared to stay in the same room with such an angry Headmistress.
Miles didn’t dare to say anything either, but he was burning with questions. What was it his mother was hiding from him?
***
Rumours about Miles and Blake’s disappearance spread quickly in the circus and the children behaved suddenly differently around him, whispering and staring whenever he was passing by somewhere or when they were in class together. It was their last class this afternoon with Jaden teaching the circus children Martial Arts and how they can effectively use it with their powers. The children focused more than ever on their defence techniques, for there was a general nervousness in the air ever since the black hole incident and suspicion on what was going on with Miles and the dragon some other kids sighted.
“I heard he blew him up with one stroke of his sword and Blake had to run for his life,” Milly said, a small, chubby, blonde girl who was always excited about any gossip she could get her hands on, saying it loud enough so Miles and the others could hear it too.
“Is that even possible?” William said. “You know how strong Blake is, he could just use his black hole power and suck away whatever gets in his way, you know. He is a Sucker.” William laughed, visibly proud of his joke.
“Oh, you are so dumb,” Pamela interrupted while William was still laughing, “don’t you know that it was the dragon that took care of everything? Some kids saw it. Miles has nothing to do with it, he’s just a weakling.”
Milly gasped. “You mean Blake got eaten by a dragon?”
“That’s what the others say.”
When Pamela was about to say more as she finished snorting a laugh, large rays of lights were blinding her and whirling around wildly. Pamela turned around while blinking, trying to identify the source. She saw a tall, blonde boy with long hair tied to a ponytail.
“Stop this Coen,” she said in a high pitched voice, blowing strokes of wind at the light rays, but with little effect.
Coen quickly approached her and then stopped blinding her. “Is it fun to talk about my brother? A little girl like you has no idea about anything, not him or anything.”
Pamela looked at Coen with indignation and raised her right hand, about to slap him when Chloe stepped in and stopped her, holding her arm firmly in place.
“Let’s not get too worked up here, shall we?” she said and then pushed down Pamela’s arm while holding on to it tightly. “We don’t want anybody to drown in your little lies and made-up stories, do we? Otherwise let me know and I might be able to help.” Chloe winked and raised her left hand with water drops coming out of her fingertips. Pamela forced her arm away with a groan.
“What’s all this about?” Jaden cried, and walked up to the circle that had now formed around Chloe and Pamela.
“They attacked me,” Pamela cried, pointing at Chloe and Coen. “She used her power against me. She broke the law! Throw her into the dungeons in Cloud immediately!”
“I don’t see any water here, or anything wet at that matter,” Jaden said. “So, I don’t see how Chloe used her power here.”
“She just-,” Pamela huffed. “She-”
Ava interrupted and stepped forward while balancing a wooden stick on her palm: “It’s a Martial Arts class, I believe. Also, weren’t you about to slap Coen?”
“Yeah, not sure which technique that’s supposed to be,” Suki said and swung around her sword.
Pamela stared at Ava with narrow eyes, and then looked at the sharp edge of the sword Suki was swinging about close by. “Whatever, forget it. Waste of my time.” She snapped and then turned to Ava. “You’ll regret this, potato girl,” she hissed, and left the circus with Milly and William following her close behind like two little ducklings.
Jaden announced the class as finished and the children left the circus training room one by one, whispering excitedly as they passed Miles again. He caught bits of words like ‘weirdo’ or ‘dragon demon’. His efforts of trying to hang low and stay unnoticed weren’t really working out lately. He still didn’t understand why his mother was so afraid of the sword and how he was linked to it, or how it could turn from one moment into a dragon and then back to a sword again. None of it made any sense. Noah was just as curious, but most of all he was suspicious of Ava and wonders if it’s all a trap set up by her to save her mother from her penalty for the crime she committed and blame it somehow all on him and Miles and then serve them up as dragon dinner. In his opinion, the dragon is Ava’s pet and she is using her power to turn it into a sword and back. When the two of them walked to class together this morning, Noah explained that it would be best to stay close to Ava and to find out as much as possible about her evil plans.
“Trust me, we will find out the truth. I bet she’s from a dangerous organisation trying to eliminate this circus. And who knows? Maybe she is even working for Cloud.
“How so if Cloud is looking for her and her mother?” Miles challenged.
“Whatever, the best way to get rid of the new girl and her dragon pet is by spying on her and once we find out her real intentions, and I can assure you this girl ain’t up to no good, it will all be revealed in front of everyone and we can kick her out. This, my friend, is what we call a ‘master plan’.
“Making friends already?” Suki said and walked up to Ava. “Not sure it’s a good idea to have Pam on your bad side, she can get pretty nasty when she perceives somebody as weak, but I’m sure you’ll be fine with time. Will you be staying with us in the circus then?”
“Thanks for the advice, but I’m not too worried about being on the bad side of someone like her. I’m sure I can handle a little wind. And I think I will, yes. I am starting to like it here actually.”
“You should still be careful with her,” Suki warned, “once Pam finds a victim to pick on, she won’t let go easily. And that’s great. We love to have you here.”
“Do we?” Noah grunted as he walked up with Miles.
“You’ll be fine as long as you ignore this grumpy man here,” Suki said and ruffled over Noah’s blonde locks. “Try to watch your mouth more. She’s one of us now. And you might have other things to worry about in any case.” She added and pointed a finger past them.
Miles turned around and saw that Coen and Chloe were headed towards them. Coen looked troubled and as if he was trying to control his anger. Miles couldn’t remember ever seeing him in such a bad mood. Today he looked more than ever like his twin brother Blake, angry and nervous. Noah was about to step between them, but Miles held him back.
“It’s fine,” Miles said.
“Hello Miles, the Dragon Whisperer I heard,” Coen said and then whistled.
Chloe stood next to him with her arms tightly folded, observing Ava with interest from the side.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Miles said.
“Oh, come on, everybody knows that you only escaped my brother’s black hole because of this demonic dragon. Ah, don’t tell me you don’t know the legend? Huh, he really doesn’t know... well then, don’t you know why everybody is so afraid of you?”
“Watch your mouth. If it wasn’t for Miles, we’d have all been sucked up into your brother’s black hole by now,” Ava said, folding her arms. “You included I’m afraid.”
Coen looked curiously at Ava, about to say something to her but decided not to. He ignored her and turned again to Miles.
“Must feel great to be finally superior to Blake, having kicked him out of the orphanage as the son of the headmistress and letting him bleed away in the woods by himself. Maybe you would have deserved the black hole after all.”
Noah walked up and positioned himself in front of Coen, grabbing his collar.
“Look, man, I think you are mixing up a few things here. Your brother was the idiot who attacked us first, got it? So, it’s this guy’s own damn fault that he got himself expelled and injured. Get that into your head and leave us alone.”
“No,” Chloe cried, splashing Noah with water. “You need to help him.”
“What?” Noah said, loosening his grip and staring at Chloe like a wet poodle. “Did you just?”
“Help us find Blake,” Chloe said. “He must be somewhere in the woods. I know he’s not your favourite person, but he is our friend and Coen’s brother. I don’t know how hurt he is, or if it’s life threatening. He wouldn’t have attacked you if it wasn’t for getting expelled, he didn’t mean to. Blake got angry and out of control, but I know he regrets what he did. And we need your help to find him, Miles, with your powers you should be able to detect his energy field, and Suki, you can use your power to let us know what Blake is seeing right now. Please help us find him and save him.”
Noah laughed at that and was shaking his head as he let go of Coen. “What is wrong with you people, seriously?”
“Okay,” Miles said.
“What?” Noah blurted. “Have you lost your mind? That guy is bad news, we don’t want him back here. He’ll get us all killed with his bad temper and, oh yeah, did you forget? That cute black hole of his. We’ll all be dead before we can even count to ten, or make it five as he spreads his right hand fingers in demonstration after taking off that black glove of his, that’s what.”
“I don’t hate anything more than that, but I have to agree with Noah here,” Ava said. “Blake has no self-control over himself it seems, and it’s too dangerous to bring him back.”
Miles hesitated for a second.
“I will take responsibility for him,” Coen said. “If anything happens again, I will make sure he leaves the circus.”
“Oh yeah,” Noah said mockingly, “how would you do that? I don’t think your pretty lights will do much against a black hole.”
Coen sighed and looked at Miles. “I will leave the circus with Blake if he ever loses control again, I promise. So please convince your mother to take Blake back in, Miles, and please help me find him before it’s too late. Please, he’s my brother and my only family left.”
Miles and Suki nodded.
“Let’s find him then,” Suki said.
“Fffine, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but fine, let’s find Blake…but don’t say I didn’t warn you all if this goes wrong, cause it will,” Noah snorted. “You better buy me a big scoop of vanilla ice cream Miles. You owe me cause being your friend is suicidal.”
***
Blake dragged himself slowly from tree to tree, his vision blurred and his head throbbing with sharp pain from the punch he gave himself. It’s all this damn kid’s fault, Miles. He would pay for it one day. He would even regret the day he was born.
At that moment, he saw a light in the distance. It was getting darker by the minute as night was slowly setting in, the light becoming clearer and brighter. The full moon was covered by dark, heavy clouds and it began to rain lightly. Blake made his way through the woods while transfixed on the light, ignoring the explosive pain in his head.
“And that damn red-head and her potatoes,” Blake groaned as he moved on.
Eventually he reached a small clearing and heard the sound of a river nearby. He saw now clearly where the light was coming from, glinting in blue and red hues inside a dark cave. Blake was about to enter when a rush of thirst overcame him and made him walk towards the river. The moment he turned, he heard whispers coming out of the cave, low and deep, calling his name repetitively. And then they turned into a sing song. They were a slow song in whispers, and they seemed to come from the shadows inside the cave.
Blake, Blake, come here Blake, come closer, Blake. Come to me, Blake.
All feelings of thirst were forgotten, and he found himself transfixed by the light again and followed the deep voice inside the cave. The voice and light felt oddly comforting, and all he wanted was to see it and feel it. He stepped closer and saw that the light was coming out of something that looked like a stone coffin. The coffin was at a narrow end of the small cave with blue and red light shining brightly through its corner rills. Blake was stepping through dark puddles as he approached it slowly and the whispers grew louder steadily.
Blake, come closer, Blake. Come here, come, come to me…Again a singsong of whispers that penetrated him from all sides.
He slowly stepped closer and waded through the puddles until he touched the stone coffin, blinded by the brightness of the lights. Blake felt as in trance, as if he was guided by a magnetic force. It was as if something was controlling his will. He felt the power of the force and he wanted to have all of it, feel it, taste it, be it. At this last thought, Blake got pulled forward with such force that he fell flat on the cold stone, his bones crushing from the weight of the pull. He then realised in horror that blood was streaming out of his body as if it was being sucked out, flowing quickly into the rills of the stone coffin. He’d never felt so much pain in all his life, but he couldn’t make a single sound. His body was numb like death. This was death.
About me
Whenever I am not lost in the Seven Dimensions with gate keeping dragons and magic swords, I also do geeky AI and organisation transformation projects for aerospace, wedding photography, dog mum activities and singing Jazz in old, charming bars.
I value authenticity, integrity and helping people.
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Questions or Comments
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Sandra Lana
