Palatinii Cycle

by G'vonni Avner

  “One more move and you will be dead,” Sabrina warned. “This blade need only touch you to make you bleed out dry.”

  Cyrus had managed to drag himself to his feet and began to move towards her, but Sabrina noticed. “You too, Padrigian. You’re the reason I came here.” Sabrina was breathing heavily and baring her teeth. “I am not here to kill you, Cyrus, but to bring you a warning. Cease this pointless crusade now, before it is too late. Fail to heed me now and I cannot guarantee safety for what is left of your pitiful family.”

  Sabrina turned back to Katie, Tyson’s neck in one hand and his hair pulled taught in the other. “Your mother’s body has gone, and I have sent her spirit to the Shadow Lands, where she will blink from existence.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Katie said.

  Sabrina threw Tyson to the ground. “Ask Cyrus, I’m sure he will tell you all about it.” She withdrew the blade from Tysons neck and kicked him, knocking him to the ground. She walked towards the hallway. She spat on the ground before leaving. Katie ran to chase her, but Sabrina had already gone, vanished into thin air.

  Frustrated, Tyson picked himself off the floor and brushed off his shirt and pants. He was muttering under his breath.

  “Don’t worry over it,” Cyrus said. “She is capable of far worse and is stronger than anyone I know on Earth. Stronger than most back on my world.”

  Cyrus’s words didn’t seem to make Tyson feel better. Tyson remained silent.

  “Are we ready to leave now?” Cyrus asked.

  “Wait,” Katie said. “Give me a minute. There’s something I want to grab before we leave.”

  Katie handed Cyrus the map and then ran upstairs. Knowing that she was possibly leaving her house behind forever, maybe even the world she grew up in forever, she wanted to take something that meant everything to her. There was no turning back. She made a quick stop at her bedroom and took a moment to say goodbye.

  With one last glance at her room, Katie walked out and headed into her parent’s bedroom. Even though Sabrina had told her that Natasha’s body vanished, it still came as a shock when Katie saw that her parent’s bed was empty. It was exactly as it would have been if they weren’t yet home, well made and no wrinkles. The only difference was a bloodstain on the sheets. She cringed at the idea that somehow Sabrina had made the bed after her mother disappeared. Was this some sick sense of humor?

  Katie held back tears as she walked over to her mother’s nightstand. She opened the small drawer and rummaged slowly through its contents until she found what she was looking for. She picked up a gold ring, lined with thirteen diamonds. Her parent’s names were etched on the inside of the ring.

  The ring was the one John Dimes originally gave to Natasha when they got engaged, but it was lost in a fight that Natasha had been in. That was what her parents had told her. Katie figured that her mother had been at a bar or something and the ring was lost there, but she now thought differently as to how that story may have unfolded. The ring was replaced with an exact replica, and shortly after, the original ring was found.

  Katie twirled it slowly in her fingers. She gasped when she felt Tyson’s hand close around hers.

  She looked back at Tyson. She didn’t even hear him come in. He had a determined look on his face coupled with sadness in his eyes. She locked eyes with him, her tears budding to the surface. She had never known Tyson’s eyes to look so sad, yet so determined. She felt like she had never truly seen them before.

  Katie didn’t let the tears fall from her eyes. She knew what she had to do.

  “We have to go now,” Tyson whispered. Katie looked at the ring. It was beautiful and only served to remind her of her mother’s beauty. The truth sank deeply, settling a sadness that she thought would last forever in the pit of her stomach.

  “There’s one thing I have to do first,” Tyson interrupted her grief.

  “What?” Katie asked, looking up at him again.

  They locked eyes. He grabbed her chin gently and brought his lips to her own. Without thinking, Katie kissed him back.

  During those few moments, thoughts flooded Katie’s mind. She pushed them away, wanting nothing more than to stay there, kissing Tyson, kissing her best friend, forever. She didn’t want to go back to worrying about what was going to happen and feel the razor-sharp pain that cut into her heart. She let it fade for a moment. And for just that moment she had not a care in the world.

  That wouldn’t last though. Katie knew that. It was selfish. Before Katie could reconcile her feelings, she felt Tyson slowly release her.

  “We should go,” Tyson breathed. His hand moved to her face. They looked at each other for a moment, ready to repeat the last. Tyson blinked, and he took the ring from Katie’s hand and slipped it on her finger. He took her hand in his and led her out the door back towards the living room.

  “Ready?” Cyrus asked as they entered. Tyson and Katie both nodded. “Very well, then. Let’s get going.”

  Cyrus led them to the elevator which took them to the ground floor. When they exited the building a handsome limousine parked by the driveway greeted them. Cyrus opened the back door for Katie and Tyson before jumping in himself.

  The driver took off. Katie couldn’t see the driver because the blacked-out window that divided the front seats from the back was closed.

  “You two should eat and drink something,” Cyrus said, pointing to the back. On a shelf was an assortment of food. “The day has been long and we still have a lot ahead of us.”

  Katie and Tyson didn’t respond but did start eating. If Cyrus thought this was rude he didn’t say anything.

  The drive only took about half an hour but to Katie, it felt like an eternity. As she ate, her mind flashed with memories of her mother, the auditorium, Sabrina, her father and everything else that had happened that day. It was a never-ending movie set on repeat.

  Soon enough the limousine slowed to a stop. Katie had just finished her plate of food. “We’re here,” Cyrus said and stepped out. He closed the door after Katie and Tyson left the vehicle and the driver took off into the night.

  Fifty feet from them was a jet black plane. Large floodlights made it easy to see. It looked like they were in a small, private airport. The roads were large, and, in the distance, you could make out indistinct silhouettes of some buildings.

  Cyrus walked towards the jet and led them up the stairs.

  “How much do you trust him?” Tyson whispered to Katie.

  “I don’t know what else to do,” she replied and walked more purposefully. Tyson shook his head but followed Katie all the same.

  The inside of the plane was gray and silver, with a fat teal stripe inches off the floor. The chairs were cheap-looking and were lined up against the walls. While it wasn’t uncomfortable, Katie still had the feeling she was in a military plane about to take off to a war zone.

  “Buckle up and stay so until I tell you otherwise,” Cyrus instructed. He strapped himself into the seat closest to the door. “The ride will be fast and bumpy. Once we are over the Triangle and cleared through Command, you may unbuckle.”

  The door to the plane closed. Katie and Tyson both nodded and put their seat belt on.

  “We’re not flying over the Bermuda Triangle, are we?” Tyson asked.

  Cyrus chuckled. “No, we are flying into it,” he replied.

  “You’re insane,” Tyson said, unstrapping his seat belt. “I’m getting out.”

  The jet engines roared to life, shaking the plane.

  “I suggest sitting back down, Tyson,” Cyrus said, amused. Tyson did so. “Do you want to know the best part?”

  The lights in the jet dimmed and started to roll. Katie and Tyson both waited for Cyrus to speak, but he stayed silent, occasionally chuckling at their scared faces.

  The jet gained speed and took flight.

  “I’ve done this many times before,” Cyrus said. “We won’t get lost, we won’t become another story of Bermuda. Because we know where we a
re going,” Cyrus said.

  “You know where we’re going,” Katie retorted. “Tyson and I have no idea what’s happening.”

  “Of course you know! I told you,” Cyrus replied. “We are going to Narque.”

  Katie believed him but started to feel sick. She looked out the window. There was nothing to see except darkness.

  Cyrus put on a headset and spoke into it. “Do the normal, just the basic trip.”

  There was silence for a moment while Cyrus listened to the Captain. “I will make sure they know what to do.”

  Cyrus finished his conversation and took the headset off.

  “We will be there in fifteen minutes,” he said.

  “No way,” Tyson blurted out. “It takes longer than that to reach Florida from here.”

  “Not with this plane,” Cyrus replied.

  They continued their flight in the night sky. Tyson looked calm but was shaking inside. Katie still felt sick but kept telling herself she was doing the right thing.

  “When we fly over the Triangle, there will be more disturbance with the plane. Nothing to worry about. When I give you the okay, unbuckle your seat belts and follow my lead. Our window is narrow so I will need you to act quickly. When you fall, keep your legs tightly pressed against each other and arms close to your body.”

  “What do you mean when we fall?” Katie asked.

  “Well, we’re going to have to jump out to get to Narque,” Cyrus replied. “There’s no easier way to get there.”

  “We’re jumping out?” Katie asked. “Like, without a parachute?”

  “Yeah,” Cyrus said. “Don’t worry. I have done this many times.”

  “Tyson’s right, you are crazy,” Katie said.

  Cyrus chuckled. “Your father told me that a lot.”

  “What happens if we don’t jump out?” Katie asked.

  Cyrus smiled. “The jet will circle back around and around until you do. But I will jump out first, so if you don’t do it when I do it, you will do it alone.”

  Tyson clenched his jaw.

  Katie looked at Tyson briefly, noticing his uncomfortable posture and said to Cyrus, “Well, I guess if you’re jumping out first…”

  She suddenly struck by the fact that he might just be a psychopath, willingly committing suicide.

  “That’s right,” Cyrus said brightly.

  Tyson wasn’t reassured.

  They did not talk for the rest of the ride which wasn’t much longer. Suddenly, the lights flickered and went out. Katie heard the engines turn off and the plane plummeted towards the ocean. Katie grabbed the sides of her seat and screamed. Tyson did the same, but his voice didn’t work and he let out a choked squeal. Cyrus sat calmly, not even blinking as they fell. It was over as quickly as it had started.

  The lights came back on and the engines fired. The jet rose back to its normal altitude and sped on as if nothing had happened. Katie looked at Cyrus, who seemed genuinely unconcerned.

  He returned Katie’s look, shrugged and said, “What? I told you it would be a slightly bumpy ride when we pass through the Triangle.”

  “Slightly bumpy?” Katie asked. “You call that slightly bumpy? The plane dropped a hundred feet! If not more!”

  Cyrus laughed and took his seat belt off. “It’s time,” he said, ignoring everything that Katie had complained about. He seemed amused.

  Neither Katie nor Tyson moved. Cyrus opened the latch on the door, pressed a button and the door rose. Wind crashed into the plane, sending Katie’s hair flying, but the aircraft felt otherwise safe. You couldn’t see anything outside except for the red lights on the jet.

  “Well, come on then!” he urged Tyson and Katie. They quickly unbuckled and stood up, fighting their way over to the open door.

  “Remember, legs and arms pressed against your body,” he said and then abruptly jumped out. Katie watched as his body disappeared into the darkness below. It was so sudden; he left no time for questions or contemplation.

  Katie figured that was the best way to do something you weren’t sure about. Or if you were about to commit suicide, which was what she felt like she was about to do. Who would jump out of an airplane with no parachute unless they were committing suicide?

  She tried not to think about it as the thoughts not only saddened her but made her question her recent choices.

  Tyson and Katie knew they didn’t have much time but the prospect of jumping out of a speeding aircraft without a parachute or any proper gear wasn’t inviting. Tyson nodded his head once, squeezed her hand, his face set, and he too jumped out.

  Katie watched him disappear into the night. She looked around the empty plane, took a deep breath and threw herself out.

  Her arms and legs flailed wildly as she spun around out of control. She went through a cloud, felt the cool water drench her and then she could see the moon reflect on the wide ocean that opened up beneath her. She was falling fast. Her hair flew up into her face, making it hard to see. Too much air was forcefully filling her lungs so she couldn’t scream. She almost felt like she was suffocating.

  Still, faster and faster she fell. A little more than a hundred feet from the ocean’s waters, she pulled herself together, pinned her legs and arms against her body, which wasn’t easy to do, and cut through the air, feet first, closer and closer to the water.

  When she first saw the ocean, it had seemed small and unreal. It looked so far away from her, but she was so close to it now, and it looked so big and so real, Katie feared for her life. There was nothing she could do.

  Right before she hit the water, Katie closed her eyes and breathed air out through her nose. She hit the water with such force. Water shot up her nose and into her mouth. For a second she felt disoriented. But then she was swimming underwater.

  The tide pushed her away and Katie rolled onto sand. She was coughing. When she opened her eyes, she saw a golden beach made of pure, beautiful sand. Her vision came back to her quickly. The beach went on as far as she could see. Right ahead of her were groupings of tropical trees that led into a dense jungle.

  6

  The Jungle of Eden

  The first thought Katie had was that she had landed on an island like Madagascar, or another similar jungle island. It looked and felt like it was in the middle of the afternoon. She knew she wasn’t on Madagascar, but she didn’t know of any other tropical islands, and if she had to relate what she saw to somewhere she knew, she would describe Madagascar.

  She looked around for some sign that welcomed her, telling her exactly where she was and where the nearest tourist attraction was, but there was none in sight. She saw Tyson and Cyrus though, both of whom were drenched and spluttering.

  “I’ve always hated that entrance,” said Cyrus, coughing up water. When he saw the displeased looks on Katie and Tyson’s faces he added, “It was the closest entrance, and gets us where we want to be, sort of.”

  “How are we still alive, unhurt, even?” Katie asked. “A fall from that high into water should make for a pretty solid impact.”

  Cyrus wiped the water out of his eyes and spat on the ground before answering. “The gravitational pull in the Bermuda Triangle differs greatly from most places on Earth. It is that way because of the planet we currently stand on. While we are too far away in time and space from Earth to be discovered, there are still several gates from this world into yours. The gravity from the Triangle feels as if it is pulling you down with incredible speed and strength, but in reality, you fall slower and slower until you enter the gravity on Narque, which in turn draws you into it.”