by Lora Palmer
Kara wrinkled her nose. "Heroes. Do they even know what those two did, unleashing all the disasters?"
I put a hand to my head and stifled a groan. "I think they know and don’t care."
"Leah! Good, you’re awake. I was so worried," Kara said. "Hmm, I wonder if they’re doing something to cause each disaster, or…"
"They might have set it all in motion years ago, and now it’s escalating way beyond what they imagined." I sat up and made my way over to the injured woman, silently applying ointment and bandaging the leg. The man who’d retrieved the first aid supplies gave me a nod, then stood and went to help the others free those still trapped. It sounded quieter outside now, but I could still hear fierce winds off in the distance.
* * *
When it was over, we surveyed the devastation outside. Buildings crumbled into ruins; monorail tracks and train cars lay on the ground, and rubble blocked roads everywhere. This storm was part of the signs pointing to a dramatic climate change — a pole shift — the scientists said, and the blue flames in the heavens had sped up the process. I wanted to help the clean-up and rebuilding effort, but I could only do that by activating the device. No other choice remained. Now, after everything I had been through during my short stay, it had become personal because I had fallen in love with the people, this world, and its cultures.
We had to take an open air bus-cab back, and the debris on the roads slowed us down so much we barely made it back to the airship in time to fly the rest of the way to the island.
"Run!" I exclaimed, grabbing Kara and pulling her along. I had never run faster in my life, and for one heart-stopping moment, I worried we wouldn’t be fast enough.
"They’re going to seal the door!" Brian waved his arms to get the attention of the ticket steward. He sighed in relief and slowed slightly when the man nodded that he would wait for us.
Inside, we collapsed in the lounge. Checking the latest news, I discovered there were more signs of disasters, including another flash-freezing the day before.
"I have to finish this before the planet slips on its crust." Biting my lip and facing my family and friends from Earth, I let the data pad fall into my lap. "It’s getting way too dangerous here. We almost died back at the lab, and it’s only going to get worse from here on in. Please, get back to Earth while there’s still a chance you can. If anything happened to you…"
"No. We’re not leaving until we’ve seen this through," Kara said, wrapping her arm around me.
David nodded in agreement but frowned. "Still, Leah, this could destroy you! People will understand if you don’t sacrifice everything you are for this."
"She’ll survive," Brian said, lifting his chin, his tone fierce, determined.
Brian and Caleb brought out their data pads to research the previous wielders. They came across tons of articles and personal writings from not only the wielders themselves, but family and friends.
Tossing his data pad on the couch seat beside him, Brian shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "There’s a lot here, but none of it tells us anything more than the Knowledge Crystal already has."
Another traveler, a tall, thin, grey-haired man who appeared to be in his sixties overheard the conversation. "Forgive me for interrupting, but I couldn’t help overhearing your dilemma," he said. With a wink at me, he added," I also wanted to meet the wielder. Alec is my name, and I may be able to help you. As it so happens, I am descended from the previous wielder. At least, my family says they can trace their lineage all the way back to him."
My eyes lit up, and I beckoned this stranger to sit. "We would love to know more. If there’s anything you can tell us. A way to survive and even help the ones before me, anything…"
Alec clasped my hand in return, his glance kind, almost pitying. "The story goes that he had figured out through the Knowledge Crystal more about how the crystals work together. Each of the crystals augment each other’s power, and in the hands of the wielder, the power is virtually limitless. However, it comes with a cost. The power is borrowed. It is a rare gift to be allowed to harness it, and only someone who can trust it and is willing to give it back might be able to withstand it. My ancestor failed, even knowing what he had to do. Maybe in the end, he couldn’t give the power back. I don’t know."
"What did he say about how the crystals work together?" King Korin asked.
The man shrugged. "It didn’t make much sense to me, just that they worked in harmony — a harmony only understood by someone who had wielded the Knowledge Crystal."
Nodding, I replied, "I think I do understand."
"Then you have what you need. The question is whether you’ll be able to do what it takes, even when none before you have. Best of luck and skill, Wielder. I hope you succeed."
"I will." Outward confidence aside, I wondered how I was going to manage it.
* * *
On the island of Galdera; Brian, King Korin, and I strapped crystal-clinging gear onto our hands and feet, which we used to scale the cliff to a cave beneath the waterfall. I found the climb difficult — I’d never been rock climbing before, and my arm muscles burned by the time we’d gone only a quarter of the way up.
"Saints alive..." My eyes went wide as I noticed how high I’d climbed. From this vantage point, my family and friends seemed so small and far away. Pale and shaking, I squeezed my eyes shut and hunched close against the face of the cliff. I took a few deep breaths to steady myself and slowly allowed my eyes to open again, this time fixing my gaze on the goal far above. Stretching with my right hand, I pulled myself up, then reached with my left while using my feet for support. Inch by excruciating inch, I climbed, stopping only when I needed a brief rest.
"Come on, slowpokes. My grandmother could climb faster than you two," Korin called down with a laugh.
I made a face. "If she shows up, you two can race, then. Brian and I will get there when we get there."
Brian followed just behind and to my left. On my right, I could hear Korin still scaling the cliff faster than I would be comfortable with. Brian looked pale and scared, but when I managed a smile for him, he smiled back and kept climbing with renewed determination. My strength had given Brian the strength to climb with me. Reaching the top, we stepped into the cave — getting drenched by the spray of waterfall in the process — and found the monolith inside.
When I wielded the Healing crystal, a burst of green engulfed everything around me, radiating out as far as I could see. The light slowly faded, leaving us in darkness. I wondered if I’d now be able to heal the devastation back in Brisa, but I suspected it would have to wait. Nothing short of activating the device would be powerful enough to work.
* * *
As I climbed down, Commander Lars and his army surrounded the others far below, weapons drawn. He was saying something, but I couldn’t hear it. Whatever it was had my parents shouting in fury. I wished we’d left someone down there who could use magic.
"Come on!" I called to Korin and Brian. "We’ve got to hurry up and get down there. Whatever’s going on, it isn’t good." I narrowed my eyes at Caleb as I saw his expression turn guilty for a second. Then the expression was gone. Had I imagined it?
Following my suggestion, we quickened our pace. Commander Lars watched our descent, tapping his foot, expectant, one hand on hip. Then, while his attention was distracted, Prime Minister Roland withdrew his energy weapon and tossed one to First Lady Rhianna, who caught it with ease. The two of them stepped between the army and those from Earth. Now I had descended far enough down the cliff for snatches of conversation to drift up to me. Brian and I reached a ledge and stopped to listen. I desperately wanted to get down there, but my arms wouldn’t work well after using muscles I’d barely used before in my life. First, I needed to rest.
"A foolish move, Roland." Commander Lars’ lip curled into a sneer, and an energy sphere formed in his hand. "I don’t think you want our guests harmed. Your technology can’t save all of you against our magic."
Prim
e Minister Roland’s face went red with outrage. "Not in combat against opponents who have no magic." Such a thing was forbidden by law.
Commander Lars arched an eyebrow. It was clear he considered himself above the law. "Make no mistake, we will use magic for this."
"Fine, then we will pit our finest technology against it — and win." First Lady Rhianna activated her crystal sword, and the energy beam within lit up, ready for attack. My family and friends from Earth joined in to help, activating their own weapons they’d been given to use in the previous battle.
"I don’t think so." Commander Lars waved his hand and drew the weapons to him, despite everyone’s efforts to hold onto them. "Much better. There’s no need to fight. Now, this warrant calls for your arrest, Prime Minister and First Lady of Astoria. It also states that per the council, I retain my position, and it is my duty to select the next Prime Minister. Caleb, being the rightful magical heir, you are named in their stead."
My eyes widened in shock as I heard this. I wanted to yell out but couldn’t make myself. Until now, I hadn’t imagined how difficult it would be to give up being a First Daughter, even if the title — and the expectations that came with it — weren’t what I wanted. Worse, this was a complete betrayal. Turning to Brian, I saw an expression of...understanding? "Brian, did you know about this?"
"No, but I suspected something. I think this was their plan all along from the time Uncle Erik showed up at our house. He convinced Dad that this is what Jantyr needs."
I fell silent, and we both watched Caleb far below. It gave me at least some small satisfaction to see a pained expression on Caleb’s face when he accepted the position. He covered it well, but I saw.
"So what does this mean for Leah?" Kara asked.
Hearing my best friend ask this, at a time when her own safety was in jeopardy, warmed the chill within me. Commander Lars could react badly to being questioned, yet she’d taken the risk.
I couldn’t believe the possibility of losing my status mattered so much to me, especially since it was a moot point anyway. The genesis device would see to that. And it wasn’t like I wanted to be a First Daughter, having to marry who I was supposed to, and act a certain way. So why did I care? Why was I fighting back tears, finding it difficult to swallow because of a painful lump in my throat?
Maybe it was because all of this — being from this world, belonging to these people, and being their First Daughter with everything the position involved — had become my identity. So now, I was losing a piece of myself. And it hurt.
"As she is magical, Leah still retains her title of First Daughter through Janice’s lineage," Commander Lars replied, as if this should be enough consolation for us. "Erik and Aedalina wanted to ensure people with magic, people who would support them as rulers in name, would lead the various regions. Years ago, we knew Astoria would be the most challenging region to set right, so we quietly planned this transition from the beginning, when we first lobbied for centralized rule."
The old jerk was insane — or maybe just totally clueless — for worrying about who should rule Astoria when the entire planet stood on the brink of destruction. Did he actually believe things would get better, and this was nothing more than a cycle characterized by escalating disasters? Astounding how he could deny what was going on when the evidence of it lay all around him.
Prime Minister Roland and First Lady Rhianna nodded, seeming satisfied. A surge of relief welled up inside me, yet my heart ached for what was happening to my birth parents. It was awful the way they were being forced from their positions just because they lacked magic! It wasn’t right. Next to me, Brian appeared deep in thought, almost hopeful.
"Well, this is unexpected," Korin said, sitting down next to me and letting his legs dangle over the ledge.
For the first time, I realized he’d joined us. "Yeah," I nodded. "We’d better get down there." My limbs had finally lost that leaden, shaky feeling, so I was ready to make the final descent.
Before we could climb down, another earthquake struck. Losing my balance, I threw myself flat, barely managing to stay on the ledge. Korin and Brian weren’t so lucky. I reached out for them, but my hand missed by inches. They both slid off. A scream tore from Brian’s throat as a chunk of crystal dislodged from the cliff face and struck him on the head. Screaming, too, I scrambled closer, and to my profound relief found them both clinging to the ledge by their fingertips. Blood streamed from Brian’s temple, leaving a trail of red down his face.
"Oh, heavens, Brian! Are you all right? Take my hands!" I called, and hooked my foot around a sturdy rock to keep from being dragged over, too.
"Yeah, fine. Hang on!" Brian grabbed my hand tight, so tight I thought I might lose all feeling in it. He turned pale as he strained to hold on, as though he might pass out at any moment.
"I will," I promised, closing my eyes and gritting my teeth at the strain. When Korin grabbed my other hand, I fell forward, and only my foot secured by the rock kept me from going over the ledge. Agonizingly slow, the moments passed with Brian and Korin holding on, unable to pull themselves up. My arms and hands shook, having lost their strength. The truth dawned on me, a sick roiling in the pit of my stomach.
I couldn’t hold onto them both. I’d have to choose who to save.
"You’re going to have to let go of one of us," Korin said, still struggling to maintain his grip and work his way back up over the ledge. "I can’t make that choice for you, Leah, but you’re going to have to decide. It’s the only way."
I glanced down at them both, terror mingled with understanding on their dirt-smudged faces. Brian nodded at what Korin said.
"No." I refused, absolutely refused, to choose. In my heart, I knew I would choose Brian, but I couldn’t lose either of them. Shaking my head, I repeated, "No." And then, I saw the way out of this. "Remember the energy field we created to save Kara? We can use that to get down — together." Letting my magic flow, I felt it join with Korin's and Brian’s. Everything stopped shaking, to my relief, and I could concentrate better.
A shimmering net of energy formed below us, widening as we pooled our energy, and Brian and Korin let go to stand on it. They sat down, and I let myself fall from the ledge to land beside them. All three of us kept the energy net in place, allowing ourselves to drift down to the ground.
"Brian, hang on," I implored, seeing how ashen his skin had become, how his face was slick with sweat. His breathing had become shallow and ragged. I reached out to grasp his hand as we floated downward.
Brian collapsed once we landed safely. I rushed to his side, knelt beside him and wrapped one arm around him. Placing a palm to the wound, I closed my eyes and envisioned him healing, every muscle and skin cell knitting together. My hands warmed and glowed golden as the healing magic worked.
"You saved me, Leah," Brian opened his eyes, a look of awe and wonder on his face. "I could feel myself slipping away, but your light kept me here."
A half sob, half laugh escaped my lips. "I couldn’t let you go."
Korin coughed, and the two of us gave him an apologetic look and stood. I brushed dirt from my pants, keeping my gaze down. The ground beneath our feet started to shake again, and everyone braced themselves. More rubble dislodged from the crystal cliff, bearing down on us.
"Look out!" I shouted. Extending a hand, I cast the net again to protect the group — Commander Lars and his lackeys included — from being hit by a huge chunk of rock. It missed Commander Lars by inches.
"Impressive, Leah. Thank you. Now, you and your parents will need to come with me. They’re under arrest, and you have duties at the castle. During this crisis, you cannot afford to be gallivanting around the world."
"Gallivanting?" My voice rang out, sharp. "Gallivanting? No, I’m doing what it takes to save the planet — the whole galaxy! I’m not going with you, and neither are my parents."
"I’m afraid you have no choice," Commander Lars responded with a dark stare, and he and his men aimed their weapons.
; "That won’t be necessary," Prime Minister Roland said, raising his hand in a quelling gesture. "We will go with you."
"You surrender? Say it."
First Lady Rhianna glared at Commander Lars. "We surrender," she spat, still managing to appear regal and elegant.
"No!" I couldn’t believe it. To save everyone, my birth parents had given themselves up. Again Commander Lars demanded I return with them, but I edged away from him toward the cliffs. Brian and Korin followed suit. Kara and David began talking at once, demanding answers and providing the distraction I needed.
"Relax, everyone," Caleb said — a command, not a request. "You will be guests at the castle while Leah, Brian, and King Korin fulfill the rest of their quest. Lars, stand down. We need to go."
I faced the cliff. Maybe its shiny surface could work like a mirror, could take me, Brian, and Korin to the floating caverns — the crystal shelves of Arie. The cliffs shimmered and rippled, a sparkling white pool of light. Once we were through to the other side, I whirled around. "We’ll be back. And Commander Lars? This device is our only chance. Without it, the millions who don’t have time to get offworld will die."
My last glimpse as the portal sealed was my parents being led away.
Chapter 26
We emerged into a cavern the size of a football field, dim in the fading sunlight. A green glow emanated from within the rough crystal-glass rock surrounding us.
Even though Caleb had to go attend to his duties, I decided to contact him to ensure David and Kara would get back to Earth. He agreed, promising that they‘d be evacuated next.
Jaedyn pushed her way into the video, jostling Caleb aside. I couldn’t help but chuckle as he frowned. "First Daughter," she said. "Will you put Korin on?"
Korin joined me, and he ignored Jaedyn’s frown at seeing the two of us with our heads leaning together over the data pad. "You’re still in charge."
