Zordon’s eerie face popped into my head. His hollow black eyes called to the being within me. He looked powerful, scary and determined, but determined for what? I wondered what had happened to Gwenevere.
The sky had turned a charcoal gray as the sun tucked itself away, revealing the mystic stars and almost full moon. I sighed as I locked the door and shut the curtains. Then I smiled inquisitively.
I plopped onto the bed and pulled the covers over my legs for encouraging comfort. Reaching inside my nightstand, I found the Oraculus. I ran my fingers over the inscribed symbols on the leather cover. The symbols of The Fates.
The infinity symbol suddenly lit up, burning like fire. I untied the tether and flipped open the cover, running my fingertips along the inside of it.
The other two symbols remained unlit. Did this show that I still have the key?
I shut the book, tied the tether back, and tucked it neatly back into my dresser. One down and two to go, I thought, hoping that tomorrow I would be able to pry another clue out of Mr. Creepy. Who needed a treasure map when I had him? The map was still in my bag where it would remain until I figured out how to use it.
For now I would rest and pray that the moon wouldn’t complete its cycle before I had a chance to return home.
Chapter 20
You’ve Got to be Kidding Me MY EYES SNAPPED OPEN AS I sat straight up in my lonesome room. I glanced over at the clock. 10 a.m. The clock ticked annoyingly, rubbing in the fact that time was running out for me.
I turned the TV on and watched a commercial for a local beach. Very appealing, I thought as I continued flipping the channels until I reached the news.
The meteorologist was giving the seven-day forecast. “Clear skies for the weekend,” he said in his cheesy voice, “and for all you astrology lovers out there, stay tuned for an update on this Saturday’s super full perigee moon.”
My mouth dropped. Today was Thursday. That meant I had only two days to find the other two keys.
I went over to the table and opened my laptop. Google popped up. I typed in “perigee moon” and waited, tapping my fingers against the table.
Most of the sites were speculation about a super full moon that had occurred—wait a minute, had occurred eight years ago in December. The same month and year that I had appeared on Mily’s doorstep.
“…The moon will be almost fifteen percent bigger than a normal full moon, something that hasn’t happened in eight years and shouldn’t be happening for another ten at least,” called the weatherman on the TV.
This can’t be coincidence, I thought. “And I know just who to ask,” I said to no one as I jumped up from the chair and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower.
While in the shower, I had formed a back-up plan. If Mr. Creepy couldn’t pull through in giving me answers, then I would brave up and go see Eve. She may be able to help since she had known so much.
My flip-flops slapped the underside of my feet, echoing off the walls as I rushed down the stairs two at a time. As I stepped up to his door, a little note fell through the mail slot and landed at my feet. Okay?
I bent over to grab it and flipped it open, peering around the corner to see if his nose was sticking out of the curtain watching me. Nope. I glanced around, checking to see if someone other than him was watching and was delighted to find no one. I read the paper:
You’re not supposed to know I’m watching you. Therefore I cannot help you. Do
us both a favor and pretend I’m not
here. And no, I cannot help you find
your keys. They are your mission.
I quickly grabbed a pen from my purse and scribbled back:
Why are you “watching” me? You know
it’s against the law, right? I could report
you! You’d better help me or else!
I slid the note back through the slot and waited. The seconds that ticked by felt like eons, but soon enough, the letter reappeared. I caught it this time, anticipating its fall.
I don't follow the law in this realm. Enjoy the amulet.
Zordon’s face made another appearance in my mind, and his voice pierced my memory like a sharpened blade. “I don’t follow the law.” Exactly how was Mr. Creepy tied into all this?
I quickly jotted:
What‘s your name? Do you know a man
named Zordon?
I waited, hoping for an answer, but nothing came. My hand rose up in a fist, tempted to knock on the door and demand an answer, but something stopped me. Was I really ready to know exactly who he was?
What if it was like Fenn had said? What if he was on Zordon’s side? I had no way of knowing. Dread filled my stomach as my mind swarmed with conspiracies. What if he was setting me up to fail? Then I would never find Fenn. I kicked at the gravel and turned back one last time hoping to catch him peeking out into the world. The curtains remained unmoved.
I was more than a little perturbed by my neighbor. Because he never answered, it left me feeling like maybe he was tied in with Zordon. Why else would he have ignored my question? Guilty conscience? I shook my head at my internal fight.
Plan B was now my only available option. I headed to the bus stop and boarded a few minutes later when it peacefully pulled up. Maybe Eve would be willing to tell me more about Zordon and even Mr. Creepy. She’d told me to come back and I needed her assistance now more than ever.
My stomach began to stir as I got closer to her place. What if she proved to be as difficult as Mr. Creepy? But my stomach dropped as the bus pulled up to where her house was. The signs were gone and the lights were off. A real estate sign sat staked in the front yard. Why would she have packed up and left so suddenly? She told me to come back anytime.
I got off the bus and walked up to the front door, hoping to find some evidence. It didn’t make sense. disappearing.
Peeking in even more confusion. The previously painted walls were a bare white, and where a curtain once hung as a door, a real wooden door now sat. All of the furniture was gone. It was as if Lady Eve had never even existed.
I looked at the sign and pulled out my phone. Maybe the real estate agent would have an answer on where I could find her. I should have gotten her phone number before.
It rang twice before a lady picked up. “Hello?” she asked hastily.
“Umm, yes, hi. My name is Aurora. I was calling in regards to the property located on Intuition Avenue.” I paused to wait for her answer.
“Ah, yes, are you looking to buy?”
I contemplated lying but went with honesty instead. “No, ma’am. I was just wondering if you Everyone in my life was
through the window brought knew where the owner moved her business. Her name was Eve.”
“I’m not sure you have the right place in mind. This is my personal property. It’s been on the market for years now.” She sounded annoyed.
I felt my stomach drop even lower. Nausea kicked in. I stepped back onto the gravel and took another look at my surroundings. This was the place we had been to before, I knew it.
“Okay, thank you for your time,” I finished and hung up. “What is going on?” I asked out loud.
I walked around to the back of the house, hoping to find something that would give me some kind of assurance about my sanity. The place was fenced in and luckily unlocked. I tried to look inconspicuous as I walked around the backyard. I found nothing. No trace of what transpired the other night. I peeked through every window hoping for something. Still nothing.
The wind picked up again, caressing and almost pulling me around to the back of the yard again. I instantly noticed footprints caked into the sand. These weren’t just any footprints—they were a woman’s footprints. They trailed all the way to the back, stopping in front of the fence.
“What the hell?” A small shred of cloth that looked as if it had been ripped from an outfit was snagged on the chain link fence. I leaned in closer and pulled it off. It was the same material that Lady Eve wore when we had visited her. I loo
ked over the fence. There weren’t any footprints on the other side or leading away from this spot in the backyard. She had walked all the way back here and stopped, but where did she go?
I contemplated calling the police, but what would I say. “Umm, hello, this lady that I only know by first name who broke into someone’s house and claimed it as her own den of psychic wisdom may be missing.” Yeah, that would fly real well. In the back of my mind, fear struck. What if something had happened to her? She had been scared of Zordon, and she was definitely scared when she pushed us out the door, ending our time together. My emotions were overwhelming.
Suddenly, the blinding sun felt suffocating, and I couldn’t breathe. My chest heaved up and down in an unbalanced cadence that I couldn’t steady. I laid my hand over my heart, trying to will it to calm down, but it continued to race wildly as if it were going to beat out of my chest. In the pit of my stomach I felt a strange being stir. Such heavy emotions seemed to be a trigger for my dragon side.
Think calming thoughts, I told myself. Breathe, breathe, breathe… But I felt something creeping up my arm like tiny crabs. I looked down to brush them off and instantly panicked.
Red mirrored scales began to run up my arm, scales like you would find on a…a dragon. I tilted my head away from them as they rushed towards my shoulder in a wave. This was not happening, I thought as I went to scream, but my scream was interrupted.
“Hello, Aurora,” said the quirky voice of a girl.
For a moment I stopped breathing. Everything stopped actually. And then like the crazy wave in which they had rolled up my arm, the scales rolled back down, disappearing, as if they had never been there at all.
“What the hell is going on?” I questioned as I tried to shield the rays of sun that surrounded her.
“Good timing on my part,” she answered with a laugh. “Looks like the dragon’s out of the bag,” she finished with a knee slap.
“I’m glad you find this funny,” I retorted. “Scales, shiny red reptilian scales, just took over my skin. Wait,” I said, peering at her. “Why am I telling you this?”
“Aurora, this may sound odd, but you and I are about to become very well acquainted. I’m from the other realm, and like you’ve been warned, time is of the essence.”
My heart found its rhythm and a sense of calm set in. The girl was about my height with short, chunky brown hair and was wearing leather pants and a weird looking long sleeve shirt. It was well over 98 degrees out.
Was she a customer I’d waited on? Wait, she said realm. I should have been weirded out, but her voice sounded so sweet and intoxicating. It was as soft as rose petals and I felt pulled to her, like everything she was saying could only be the truth. I shook my head, trying to shake the connection I felt to her. It was as if she was inside my head, coaxing me to believe her.
“I can see that I didn’t approach this right,” she said unsteadily. “I’m not very good at this sort of thing…umm…” She looked back and forth and then back to me again. “Why don’t we go somewhere private so I can explain everything a little better?” She grabbed my hand, starting to pull me away from the house.
I yanked my hand from hers and stepped back, faltering on the sidewalk and falling straight onto my butt. She leaned over to offer me a hand, but I gave her my best scowl and stood up on my own.
“No, thank you,” I said evenly. “Now if you don’t mind, I will be on my way.” I turned to walk away, but she was right on my heels. “Alone.”
She opened her mouth as if to say something, but I cut her off by saying, “No, no, that won’t be necessary. Keep your comments to yourself.” Her mouth went shut. I gave a fake smile and turned, walking as quickly as I could back to the bus stop. I wasn’t going off with some random girl who could have been peeking over my shoulder. I didn’t care if she seemed nice and helpful and could possibly have the answers I was looking for.
I am doomed for all eternity, I thought as I looked to the skies. Why? I reached the bench and laid my stuff down, anxious to get back to the safety of my motel room, when I felt someone breathing on my neck.
“What?” I said as I turned around and collided noses with the pixie girl. She was so close I could see each and every tiny freckle on her face.
“I’m sorry. I guess I forgot to mention that you don’t have a choice in this,” she said, and the last thing I saw was a glowing green light exuding from both her hands.
“Insomnus,” she chanted as I felt myself slip into a slumber.
Chapter 21
Who Are You and How Did You Find Me? I CAME TO BEHIND THE wheel of a car, driving I might add. “What the hell,” I said as I slammed on the brakes, nearly causing the car behind me to run into us. My hands were shaking as I tried to register how I was driving with no memory of getting in the car.
A glowing green light brought my attention to the passenger seat where that crazy pixie girl sat. She was magic. Her green energy shot towards the car behind us.
“Why the hell am I driving a car?” I asked on the edge of hysteria. “I’m pulling over. I want out of here.” I jerked the car off the road and came to a hasty halt, then closed my eyes, breathing deeply and exhaling slowly.
“This is my life, this is normal for me. I have nothing to worry about,” I chanted to myself.
“Aurora, don’t be difficult. I’m here to help you. You brought me here after all,” she said with a laugh. “Sure, I’m a little late.” She broke off, glancing out the side of the window at the traffic whizzing by. Then she turned back to me. “I can’t very well just walk away and leave you here alone. You need me, now more than ever.” Cars were honking as they zoomed by us.
“I brought you here? Why would I do that? How could I do that? That doesn’t even make sense,” I rambled. “I don’t even know you.” I turned to her, perturbed by the fact that she was picking at her nails, undisturbed.
She looked up a moment later and pointed to my necklace with a silly smile, a smile I wanted to smack off her face. “You weren’t supposed to have that just yet,” she replied easily. “Actually, the only reasons you would have that necklace are if you were dead or crossing back over.” She laid her two fingers on the artery in my neck. “And you’re not dead.”
I frowned.
“Wait, what? This necklace brought you here?” I shook my head dizzily and braced my fingers to my temples. They suddenly began to throb as panic rose up and seized my train of thought. Something was breaking open inside me. Doors were flying open in the hall of memories. I could feel an anxiety attack on the brink.
“Aurora, just breathe. You’re working yourself up for nothing,” she said lightly, rolling her eyes.
I puffed up, irritated by her indifference. “You talk as if you know me, but I’ve never seen you before. You don’t think I have a reason to work myself up? My world is falling apart piece by piece.” The sorrow in my voice was poorly disguised.
She sighed. “Look, I sympathize with you, really, I do, but we don’t have time for you to break down right now, and I don’t know how to operate this thing.” She glanced around the inside of the car, lip curled, then added, “especially not when danger is right around the corner and your shift is in progress.”
“Shift?” I asked groggily.
“The scales running up your arm thing…” she said, registering my look of shock. “It will all be explained soon enough,” she said as she grabbed my forearm. I felt a calming sensation wash over me. “Just get us to where you live and I will explain as best I can along the way. At this point I would only be giving you the answers you’re looking for so what have you got to lose? You have questioned everything, I’m sure.”
I paused a moment to let myself breathe as she suggested. She definitely had a point, I thought as I glanced at her goofy smile and feather light hair.
“Whose car is this?” I asked, leery to the fact that it could be stolen.
“Relax, Aurora, no one will miss it and it will be returned when we’re done using it,
” she reassured.
I huffed. I was going to tell her that I would be perfectly fine walking back to my motel, alone, but instead it came out as, “Explain everything, or I will walk back to my motel, alone.” I emphasized the last word. “You have until I get to my place to convince me.”
She smiled, content with my proposition.
I eased the car back onto the road, keeping my hands at ten and two. It was the closest I could get to feeling like I had some control over my stability.
“That’s plenty of time,” she said confidently. “First off, my name is Alexis, but you can call me Lexi for short.” I braked at the stoplight waiting for it to turn green. “So you already know about the magic—you’ve experienced it by now—and it’s all real, including the power you harness over fire, although that comes from your other half.
“Our two realms are connected by a doorway, a cave on this island. The doorway cannot be opened without the keys of The Fates, which I’m sure you know by now.”
I nodded as I kept my eyes forward, absorbing what she was saying, what Eve had basically already explained.
“Wait, so there really are gods?” I questioned.
“Yes. Four to be exact.”
“But I’ve heard there were five. What really happened?”
“Oh yeah, the fifth heavily. “He created the realms by crossing over.”
“Because he was trying to protect the dragons?”
She smiled like a proud mother. “Yes. The other brothers were furious, blaming him for upsetting the balance after he created the race of dragons behind their backs. They ordered all dragons to be executed. The fifth brother couldn’t handle the despair that weighed on his soul and pleaded to the other brothers. His life for the dragons, thus creating the infamous Stone of Immortality. Many in our realm have sought after this stone, yearning for the power of a Fate, but it is protected by the Draconta and nearly impossible to attain.”
brother,” she sighed barrier between our
“So, Zordon won’t stand a chance in taking the stone, right?” I asked, a spark of hope igniting within me.
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