by J. J. Medina
We both laugh.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” I say.
“I’m glad you care. That you’re here.”
“I guess our coven bond is solid. I felt your pain. Look, what I said in the park was stupid. I’m so sorry. I—”
“I hear you’ve been hanging with Nico. He’s a lucky guy.”
Yikes. He’s biting his lower lip as he looks at me. What can I tell him that won’t make things worse? That I sorta like them both? In totally different ways, for totally different reasons. He would love that. “I’m not here for Nico. I miss you guys. You’re one of my closest friends.”
“What If I said I want to be more than just a friend?”
I grab his hand. I whisper a healing spell. The swelling and bruises go down. “Then I’d say let’s see what happens.”
“So now what?” Miranda walks in and flings JP the ice pack. “You think we’re just gonna forget about what you did, Aria? JP won’t say it because he’s gaga over you, but what you did at the park was wrong. Friends don’t treat each other that way.”
“You’re right,” I say. “I was wrong. I’ve become obsessed with getting stronger, faster. I believed the Kimchi could help get me there. And I was willing to push everything and everyone aside because of that.”
“I think the book’s cursed,” JP says. “Something always happens when we use it.”
“Por favor, the Kimchi’s not an excuse,” Miranda snaps. “We all have a choice. You decided to hurt Summer, Mike, and us. We’re supposed to be a team.”
“We are a team. You guys just have to trust me when I say I won’t doubt you or JP again, I swear.”
“We’ll be cool as long as you promise not to be a bendeja again,” Miranda says.
She grabs JP and they hug me.
I’m lucky. No matter how many times I mess up, they’re willing to look beyond my faults. Just like Leung, they’ve been nothing but truthful and open with me. I feel I should tell them who I really am. But I’ve caused so much strain on our relationship already. The truth could mess things up, and I was miserable without them. I can’t risk it.
Miranda and JP pull away.
JP’s staring at his dad, shaking his head. “Now what are we going to do with this fool?”
“I called my mom,” Miranda says. “She’s sending some paramedic friends. They’ll check on him. What your dad said was freaky. Maybe we should go visit Sarka?”
“We need to see JP’s mom first,” I say.
“Aria’s right,” JP says. “Let’s go pay our respects.”
Sixteen
· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·
JP LEADS US INTO A domed mausoleum filled with well-manicured flowers.
“I don’t know if I’m ready for this,” he says.
I put my hand on his shoulder. “We’re here for you.”
He nods.
We form a triangle around the tomb and recite a reincarnation spell. A bright light appears and hovers over the center of the tomb before shooting up. A woman with glowing, tan skin takes its place. Her long, brown hair is decorated with flowers and a flowing white dress surrounds her.
“Mom,” JP says. A tear slips down his cheek.
She manifests even clearer as she floats up to him. Hand outstretched she reaches for his cheek, wipes the tear away.
“I’ve missed you, Jean-Pierre,” she says.
“Same here. I can’t believe it’s really you.”
They hug.
What I would give to hug my mother again. To have this moment.
She inspects JP’s face. “The bruise is gone.”
“You know what happened?”
“I’m always with you. Watching. Protecting.”
“Dad said you’ve been in his dreams, trying to warn us.”
“We have,” says an old woman taking form behind them. There’s a snake coiled around her hands and shoulders as if it were a shawl. A blood-red turban is wrapped around her head, matching her dress.
“Abuela,” Miranda says. She lets out an excited scream and hugs her.
They’re acting as if seeing the dead is an everyday thing. If my mom pops up, I’m gonna flip out.
“What are you doing here, Abuela?”
“We came to tell you and JP the truth,” her grandmother says. “And to meet Aria Dawn, ruler of the Crothinians.”
JP and Miranda look at me.
Great. Abuela just blew up my spot. Well, here goes nothing. “I’m from another world called Crothinia. I didn’t think you would accept me if I told you the truth. Please, don’t hate me.”
Silence takes hold.
Great. I messed up one too many times with them. They hate me. I knew it.
“That’s why your aura’s so different,” Miranda says. “Are you human?”
“Not fully.”
“Wait, you’re an alien? A real alien?” JP says.
I nod.
“So you’re not who you said you were,” Miranda says. “You lied to us.”
I can’t look them in the eyes. I feel so stupid. I screwed this up for sure. I should just vanish and forget I ever knew them.
“Of course she lied. How do you tell someone you’re an alien?” JP says.
“True,” Miranda says.
“That’s so much cooler than being from Europe,” JP says.
Okay, not the reaction I expected. “You two aren’t mad?”
“Mad? Please. Now it makes sense why you’re such a bad ass,” Miranda says. “What I don’t get is how Abuela knows you?”
Good question. I face the ghosts. “What do you know about me?”
“That Dagon wants you,” JP’s mother says.
“Who’s Dagon?” Miranda asks.
“A sick, demented asshole who wants to enslave my people,” I say.
“A sorcerer we thought stood for something meaningful a long time ago,” Miranda’s grandmother says. “We were wrong. We were once his followers.”
Why do I get the feeling this is gonna blow up in my face?
“Followers? Were you in some kind of cult, Abuela?”
She nods. Miranda runs her hand through her hair, looking how I feel—confused as hell.
“You too, Mom?” JP asks.
“It hurts me to say it, but yes. He promised to end poverty and bring about peace for our planet and Crothinia. He lied. All he wanted was to crossbreed humans and Crothinians to make powerful warriors for an army. Sarka led the experiments.”
“Sarka? But she’s been guiding us,” Miranda says.
“You three were born from those experiments. Forgive us, mija,” Miranda’s grandmother says.
“Experiment?” Miranda says. “This is creeping me out.”
“Aria’s mother was Dagon’s prized specimen,” JP’s mother says. “We had no idea the doctor we were seeing, Remos, was working for him. That we were bringing forth a prophecy.”
“Remos? He’s a traitor. When I get my hands on him, I’m going to rip those dreads off his head and strangle him with them.”
“Wait, wait, wait…we’re part of a prophecy?” JP asks.
Annoyed, I recite: “‘A light born from the dark will reign. Out of the shadows will come dissension and fright. Forever cursed, she’ll fight the dark’s sweet call, to write her own path. With four by her side, a covenant of love will succumb. For the dark will reign. But only the Dawn will know if she’ll show her true light.’ It’s stupid. I don’t believe any of it.”
“You have no choice but to believe. It is written in the stars,” JP’s mother says. “Together you’re all destined to destroy Earth and Crothinia.”
“Not cool.” JP looks at his mother in shock. “I don’t understand. How could you let this happen?”
“We had no choice. We were tricked.”
“Just like Sarka tricked you all into learning dark magic. The Kimchi was written by Dagon. It bonded with you three.” Miranda’s grandmother turns to me. “Especially
you, Aria.”
That’s why I picked it up so quickly. The dark magic made me stronger and more powerful than light magic ever did. But why didn’t I notice what was going on? How is this all possible? “Why didn’t Selene tell me any of this?”
“She was embarrassed to have turned to Dagon to conceive you,” Miranda’s grandmother says.
“Conceive me?”
“Selene’s your mother, Aria,” both ghosts say simultaneously.
“What? This is crazier than a novella,” Miranda says.
“That’s not true. My mother was murdered. I saw it with my own eyes.”
“She was badly wounded, but not killed,” Miranda’s grandmother says.
“None of this makes sense. My life’s been a big fat lie?”
“Welcome to the club,” Miranda says.
“Okay, wait, if this is all true, how do we stop this prophecy?” JP asks.
“Kill Aria,” the ghosts say together.
“What?” I say, taking a step back.
“That’s not an option,” JP says. “There has to be another way.”
“She’s the key to it all,” the ghosts say together. “But, you can choose to work together to destroy Dagon, risking death and the destruction of both Earth and Crothinia. The decision is yours.”
“Guess we’re gonna have to whip Dagon’s ass,” JP smiles at me.
I return it, fighting the urge to break down and cry.
“You’ll have to hurry then,” both ghosts say. “Selene is the only one that can help. She’s being held prisoner by Remos and Sarka. Take care.”
A bright light shoots out of the tomb, engulfing the chamber. When it dissipates, we’re in Remos’s empty office.
I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut. Deep breath. Release. I lean against the wall, needing a second to gather my thoughts. We’re standing around like strangers.
“Okay, I’ll say it. I’m freaked out,” JP says. “Hearing that we’re part of a prophecy, that the fate of two worlds depends on us, has me nearly crapping myself.”
Miranda laughs.
“I’m not joking. People will die if we’re not ready; if we fail. I don’t want that kind of pressure.”
“Cojelo suave, JP,” Miranda says. “Just breath. I know how you feel. Let’s face it, this isn’t easy. But we got this.”
“I’m sorry you’re both caught up in this.”
“It’s not your fault,” Miranda says. “We’ve all been tricked and lied to. All I want now is to make this Dagon character pay. He’s the cause of all this.”
“My people barely beat him the first time around,” I say. “If he turned my mother, what shot do I have against him?”
“Selene must’ve had a good reason to do what she did,” JP says.
“Maybe she just gave up on me early. I’m scared. What if I’m destined to rule by Dagon’s side? What if the prophecy can’t be changed?”
“I get you’re upset,” Miranda says. “But right now we’ve got two choices. We can either give up and sulk, or we can take control of our fate. No matter what the odds are, I’m not a quitter. I know we can make this work if we do it together.”
“Miranda’s right,” JP says. “You know, I never told you what I saw at the cafeteria when we linked hands and saw our futures.”
“You never had a chance,” I say. “I ran out like a lunatic.”
“I never told you because I was afraid. I saw you about to kill me and Miranda.”
“What? You saw how we die and you didn’t tell me?” Miranda says. “You think you know a guy then he doesn’t tell you when he knows you’re going to die. That’s cold, JP.”
Annoyed at Miranda, he takes a deep breath while shaking his head. “I don’t know if she went through with it. You were draining our energy, Aria. Along with Selene, and even Nico. You were in great pain. You had strange symbols on your skin. You looked like some kind of demon.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” I say.
“I didn’t think so either. Until now. You’re going to have to make a choice. It’s not going to be easy. But before the vision faded, I saw your thoughts. You were in control. You were at peace. Whatever you decide, it will be what’s best for you. The Aria I know would never hurt her loved ones. I trust you will do what’s right for you and all the people counting on you.”
“You better make the right choice because I don’t wanna die, you hear me?” Miranda says.
I chuckle. “You’re such a fool.”
“We’re going to get through this,” Miranda says. “But you have to trust us, the way we trust you. What do you say?”
I hug them. Knowing they’re by my side is making this easier. I pull away and notice movement in the full-length painting of Remos’s dream lab. I take a closer look. It’s Remos. He grabs a scalpel off a table before walking out of view. I wave my hands over the painting.
“What are you doing?” Miranda asks.
“I saw something.” I touch the painting; my fingers sink in as if it were water. I push my hand in further. It disappears. “It’s a portal.”
I walk into it, appearing in a room filled with jars of body parts and strange living creatures.
JP and Miranda appear next to me.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this exact scene in a horror film,” JP says.
“Ahh!”
JP grabs Miranda. “What was that?”
“What happened to the balls you had back at your mother’s grave?” Miranda says.
“You’re right. You’re right.” JP slaps his face a couple of times. “I got this. We got this.”
Miranda shushes him. “Oye. I hear voices.”
We head down a corridor into a room filled with skeletons and embalmed humans. Remos and Sarka are standing over Selene. She’s unconscious lying on a table. Remos is holding a scalpel over her face.
Seeing them is filling me with rage. I want them to pay for the pain they’ve caused me. “Back away from her,” I yell.
“Aria?” Remos says.
“Your powers have grown,” Sarka says. “Have you figured out the real reason you were created? Your true purpose? Who Selene really is?”
I call my power to me, feel it getting ready to do my bidding. “All this yapping isn’t helping you.”
“Join us, Aria. Help us end Dagon and rule the way you see fit,” Sarka says. “If not, you’ll rule by Dagon’s side.”
“I can think of another scenario,” JP says. “We take you two out, then Dagon. We live happily ever after.”
I grin at JP. “That sounds good to me.” My hands glow as energy rushes into them.
“You kill us, your mother dies,” Remos blurts out. “She’s infected with Lyric. I’ve discovered a cure. I’m the only one that can help her.”
His eyes tell me he’s already decided her fate. He’s going to kill her no matter what. I fire a stream of energy into his chest, sending him crashing into the wall.
“Fools,” Sarka shouts and raises her staff.
Miranda lets off a stream of fire. Sarka ducks. JP fires a volt of electricity. It absorbs into Sarka’s wooden staff. Sarka throws the staff at us. We dive away. It boomerangs back into Sarka’s hand before she jumps into a picture and vanishes.
“She’s getting away,” JP says.
“We’ll meet again.” I pass by Remos’s dead body. It’s lying in a pool of his own blood. I walk up to Selene. Her eyes fly open.
“What’s going on?” Selene asks frantically.
“Why don’t you tell me? And don’t leave anything out, Mother.”
Seventeen
· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·
I KNOW I HAVE TO face Selene, but I can’t. We’d wordlessly gone our separate ways after coming home last night. I’ve been paralyzed with emotions ever since. She left me. She’s clearly not dead; she’s been alive the entire time. I’ve been living with her, interacting with her. Every. Single. Day. It was all lies. Listening
to Coldplay’s “Fix You” isn’t helping. I take my headphones off. I hear knocking.
“Aria, can I please come in? We need to talk.”
Speaking of —nothing she says will ever make this right. But I need to know why she left. “Come in.”
Selene steps inside. I look up to meet her eyes. Her face is different, but those are my mother’s eyes. I’ve been so caught up in gaining my magic back, being angry with Selene, and believing my mother was dead. I didn’t notice the similarities. I see them now. They were always there in her laughter and disposition. I’d been so young when she left.
“I don’t know how to start this.” Selene takes a seat at the edge of the bed.
Good. I don’t want her close to me right now.
“I became very ill after Dagon’s attack. The Lyric that was dormant within me suddenly wasn’t anymore. I couldn’t protect you as a mother should. I was dying, even faster on Crothinia. Earth was the only way to slow down the process.”
“Are you still dying?”
“Yes.”
“So you leave, now we’re together, and you’re gonna die. You should’ve brought me with you. A mother doesn’t leave her child. You left me.”
“I was wrong, Aria. I was searching for a cure, hoping I could return to you. I would give anything to have witnessed how you became the woman I see in front of me. To hold you, be with you through the good and rough times. I know what you’ve been through. I’m sorry.” She moves to sit closer to me, reaching forward to wipe the tear I didn’t know had fallen on my cheek. “Please, let us start over.”
“Really? Start over? Just like that?” My head is spinning. I’m torn between lashing out and suppressing my anger. What can I say? She’s my mother, my world. I grieved her, now she’s back in my life, dying.
“I know this isn’t easy.”
“It’s not. After I thought you died I was so lonely. There were always people around me, prepping me, training me, every day I followed a plan that dictated every place I went. I was told how to act, what to wear, how to talk to people. I was trapped in my own home. I hated every second of my life. Nothing mattered, no one mattered. Except for Leung. I refused to let anyone else get close. If it weren’t for her, I don’t know what I would’ve done.”
