“Let’s go, girls,” Arkayna said as she leapt from branch to branch. “It’s magic hour.”
The rest of the Mysticons followed—or tried to. Zarya’s arms and legs were too tiny for her to get anywhere without Em helping her. It took them twice as long to get up to Mrs. Sparklebottom’s.
The girls stood in the window, staring at the back of Mrs. Sparklebottom’s head. She was watching television, but by the sound of it she’d fallen asleep. Her snores echoed through the room.
Piper crept in first, tiptoeing so she didn’t make a sound.
“Fan out and look for a safe,” Arkayna whispered.
Within just a few feet, Zarya tripped and fell. She was about to cry when Piper shoved a pacifier into her mouth. “Walking’s hard, huh, Baby Z?”
“It’s not me, it’s the floor,” Zarya snapped back quietly. “It’s uneven.”
“Look!” Piper said in hushed tones, pointing to designs that went around the room. “Pretty symbols.”
“Those are the star signs of Gemina,” Em said under her breath, leaning down to examine them.
Arkayna crept out from her hiding place behind a desk and stared at the symbols. They were arranged in a circle across the floor—and there was a keyhole underneath each one. “The safe is part of the floor,” she breathed.
“Thirteen signs, thirteen keys,” Zarya whispered. “We just need to figure out the right key to use under the right symbol.” She pointed to a gold key ring sitting next to Mrs. Sparklebottom. By now the old woman had woken up and was singing along to some jingles on the TV. She was so transfixed by the screen, she still hadn’t noticed they were there.
Zarya walked over to the keys as quietly as she could, but before she could grab them, they were picked up by a telekinetic beam. The Mysticons turned to see the furry pink baby floating in the window. It had followed them there!
It lifted the keys up, over Mrs. Sparklebottom’s head, and then dropped them. Arkayna leapt lightly forward and caught them before they came clattering down. She and Zarya hovered behind the couch, terrified. They didn’t move until they were certain Mrs. Sparklebottom hadn’t heard them.
Arkayna crawled across the floor, studying the symbols. “I was born on the tenth day of the month of the Dragon,” she murmured, finding the symbol that matched her birth month. “At the stroke of midnight.”
She flipped through the gold keys on the key ring, searching for the one that matched the dragon symbol. She tried it in the keyhole underneath the symbol, and it worked. Suddenly a short column of jewels rose out of part of the floor. They were arranged by different birth times.
“Ten o’clock,” Arkayna mumbled, moving down a row of gems, “eleven … midnight!”
Zarya pointed to a green gem on the column. “There! That’s your twin’s birth gem.”
Arkayna grabbed at it, but it fell and clinked across the floor. Thankfully Mrs. Sparklebottom had chosen that exact moment to stir her tea, and her spoon made the same clinking sound. The girls let out a deep breath and took off, turning the key to set the column back in the floor.
They leapt off the balcony and flew from branch to branch, not stopping until they were back in the nursery. Arkayna hit the button beside the door.
“Quick, everyone out!” she called.
“I’m way ahead of you,” Zarya said, racing toward the swirling light. But as soon as she crossed the threshold an alarm blared: BABY BREACH! BABY BREACH! The girls looked down at Zarya’s leg. She had a black bracelet around her ankle, and now it was flashing red.
“It’s a security bracelet!” Zarya yelled. “Run!”
NINE
BEFORE THE MYSTICONS could escape from the orphanage, a giant, sticky web snagged them all. They were suspended from the tree branches above, tangled up in their own individual cocoons. They looked up at the balcony, finally seeing Mrs. Sparklebottom … all of her. She had eight spiderlike legs, and she was glaring down at them over her tiny black glasses.
“Nobody takes my babies!” she roared. She shot another sticky web from her hand and snatched Zarya from the group so she could hold her in her arms.
“Give her back! She’s not yours!” Piper yelled. She twisted and turned, trying to free herself, but it was no use.
“Just like this birth gem you stole isn’t mine?” Mrs. Sparklebottom asked, grabbing the green gem from Arkayna’s hand. “I never give up information about my babies. Nor do I look kindly on those who steal it.”
She raised one of her long, sharp spider legs, about to strike the final blow on the three Mysticons she’d trapped.
“She’s Princess Arkayna’s twin!” Arkayna blurted out.
Mrs. Sparklebottom cut Arkayna’s cocoon open in one swift motion, letting her drop toward the floor. “What did you say?” She hopped down from her perch on the balcony.
“And she’s in terrible danger,” Arkayna went on. “If we don’t find her—”
“I will!” a familiar voice interrupted. There was an explosion of black smoke at the portal into the nursery. Tazma appeared in the doorway with her shadow henchmen. She shot a blast of magic at Mrs. Sparklebottom, sending her flying. The green gem skidded across the floor.
“You’ll never get the gem!” Arkayna said, about to dive for it.
But Tazma was too fast. She blasted the tree branches across the nursery. Arkayna gasped as she realized that hidden among the branches were sleeping babies, safely cocooned in webs from Mrs. Sparklebottom. But Tazma’s blasts were breaking those branches, sending babies into freefall. Thinking fast, Arkayna broke the Mysticons’ cocoons with magic from her Dragon Staff. “Protect the babies!” she yelled.
The girls leapt across the nursery. Piper caught two babies in her hands, and Em caught another two in her shield. As Arkayna rushed to save the others with telekinesis, Tazma stole the gem. She let out an evil laugh.
“Finish them!” she said, ordering her shadow henchmen forward. They crept toward the Mysticons, their beady red eyes narrowing. Just before they could strike, Mrs. Sparklebottom flew up into the air, landing between the Mysticons and the shadows.
“NO ONE HURTS MY BABIES!” Mrs. Sparklebottom yelled.
She swiped at the shadows with her long, sharp legs, destroying them one by one. She ran toward another baby they’d surrounded, grabbing it before they could move in. Then she tossed a shadow at Tazma, knocking her to the ground. Tazma lost hold of the gem and it bounced across the floor again.
Zarya rushed in and grabbed it, while singing, “Nah na na nah nah!” at Tazma.
Tazma shot dark tendrils at Zarya, tying her up. She raised the baby Mysticon into the air and smiled. “Children should be neither seen nor heard.…” With that, she tossed Zarya over the side of the railing.
The Mysticons stood there, helpless. They all had their arms full with babies. Just when they were certain Zarya was gone, she floated up in a giant pink bubble. The furry pink baby had saved her using its telekinetic powers.
“Good boy, Blinky!” Zarya cheered. “Good boy!”
But it wasn’t long before the shadows returned. The Mysticons were completely surrounded. How could they protect the babies and fight Tazma’s shadow henchmen? It seemed impossible.
Suddenly Blinky’s eyes began to glow. With a sudden, powerful pink blast, he disintegrated all of the shadows around them.
“That baby is terrifying!” Em said, smiling with relief.
“Can we adopt him?” Piper asked.
Arkayna wanted to laugh, but she couldn’t. “Where’s Tazma?” she asked.
They stared at the open portal. Tazma had escaped … and she had the gem.
TEN
ARKAYNA FLEW AFTER Tazma, pursuing her through the woods.
“You can attack me,” Tazma said, flying above her. “But if anything happens to this, you’ll never find her.”
“True,” Arkayna said, weighing her options. “But at least she’d be safe from you. Unleash the Dragon!”
Her Dragon avatar eme
rged from her bracer and knocked Tazma off course. Howling, she dropped the gem on the ground and it shattered, all of its beautiful green magic gone.
Arkayna watched as a furious Tazma flew away.
What am I supposed to do with this? she wondered as she stared at the gray pieces of glass. She fought back tears. There’s no way I’ll find my sister now.…
But there was another way. When Arkayna got back to the orphanage, Mrs. Sparklebottom said, “You know, the birth gems aren’t the only place I keep information. I remember every single baby who passes through my portal.” She tapped her forehead and magically pulled out a thread of memory. It turned into an image of her memory of the baby.
The baby floated up in front of Arkayna, who gasped. She would recognize that face anywhere.…
* * *
By the time Arkayna returned to the Astromancer Academy, she could barely contain herself. She finally had the answer she’d needed for so long. She rushed into the Star Chamber, now dressed as the princess. Choko had already transformed back. Before she could tell Nova Terron what happened, Proxima blasted through the wall.
“Reveal yourself!” Proxima said, pointing at Arkayna. “Who are you?”
Arkayna’s stomach dropped. Nova Terron’s spell must not have made Choko as convincing a princess as they had hoped. Proxima obviously knew something was up. She pulled at Arkayna’s cheeks and hair, trying to see if it was a mask.
“Hey, hands off the princess!” Em said, pushing her back.
“She’s not the princess!” Proxima yelled.
“I can assure you, I am definitely the princess,” Arkayna said calmly. She felt Choko trembling against her leg, terrified Proxima might look at him.
As soon as she spoke, Proxima seemed to settle down. Arkayna was sure Choko had messed up their plan. He’d probably chirped too many times or crawled into a corner and peed on something.
“The princess has important news,” Nova Terron said.
“The Mysticons found the identity of my twin,” Arkayna said, turning to Proxima. She stared into her green eyes, trying to see herself in them. Wondering if Proxima already knew, if she’d felt it somehow.
“Well, who is it?” Proxima said, searching Arkayna’s face.
“It’s you,” Arkayna said. “We’re sisters.”
They stood there, staring at each other. Arkayna couldn’t believe it was true. Would she ever feel close to Proxima? Had that been why Proxima annoyed her so much? Was it some normal, sisterly thing she hadn’t understood?
She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. She hoped one day this would all make sense.…
ELEVEN
PIPER RAN ACROSS the Stronghold common room with Choko in her hands. He was curled up into a ball, so every few feet she bounced him off the floor. She dodged Em, spun around, and dunked Choko into a portal bag that hung on the wall. There was another portal bag right next to it, and he traveled between them, popping out of the other one.
“Slam-dunka-bunga!” she cheered.
Piper and Em had been playing portal bag with Choko all morning. He’d gone from one to the other again and again. Arkayna sat there, trying to enjoy herself, but it was no use. Since they’d discovered she and Proxima were twins, the Astromancers had decided it was too dangerous for them to be together. Arkayna was forbidden to spend time with her, for fear that the prophecy would come true. Nova Terron had guards watching both of them.
Arkayna and Proxima had managed to sneak away from the Astromancer Academy for just an hour. In that short time, Tazma tracked them across the city and attacked them, putting the whole realm in danger. After that, Nova Terron felt he had no choice but to send Proxima to another realm. Malvaron’s aunt, Auntie Yaga, accompanied her to Earth. Now Arkayna was waiting to hear when she could return. How long would it be before they saw each other again? Would Arkayna ever get her sister back?
She sat on the couch, resting her head in her hands.
“Hey, you stressing about Proxima?” Zarya asked, walking over to her.
“You know me so well,” Arkayna said. She looked at Zarya gratefully. “We’ve come a long way, haven’t we?”
“A loooong way,” Zarya agreed. “A princess and a pauper? BFFs?”
“You saying ‘BFFs’…” That made Arkayna smile.
Zarya wrapped her arm around Arkayna. “Your sister’s gonna be fine.”
They sat there for a moment, watching Piper and Em play ball with Choko. Then, without any warning, a portal swirled open beside them. Auntie Yaga’s van came screeching out of it. All the girls ran behind the couch, ducking for cover.
As the van slowed to a stop, Auntie Yaga stumbled out. She was a large, round woman with curly black hair. She fell into the girls’ arms.
“Necrafa captured Proxima…” she said.
Arkayna’s heart sank. As the other girls helped Auntie Yaga up and called for Malvaron, Arkayna tried to process what it all meant. Necrafa, the most powerful villain in all of Gemina, had her sister. It was only a matter of time before something terrible happened. Proxima was in grave danger already.
The girls were helping Auntie Yaga onto a stone table as Malvaron rushed in. Em grabbed her hand and held it tight. “Is she going to be okay?” she asked.
“We can only hope,” Malvaron said. “This is some seriously dark mojo.”
Arkayna stared down at Auntie Yaga, her anger building. Tazma and Necrafa had hurt her and kidnapped Proxima. They had to act.
“Okay, girls,” she said, turning to the others. “Let’s hit Necrafa’s lair and save Proxima.”
“Wait!” Malvaron said. “If Necrafa captures you, she’ll have both twins.”
“Right—and she’ll be able to raise the Spectral Dragon,” Em added.
“And our realm goes kablooey!” Piper cried. “Kapow! Kablammo! Kaboom!”
Everyone turned and stared at Arkayna, waiting for her to speak.
“Maybe you should sit this one out?” Malvaron asked.
“Proxima is my sister,” Arkayna said, more certain than ever. “I’m bringing her home.”
“We’re bringing her home together.” Zarya put her hand on Arkayna’s shoulder and smiled. Arkayna let out a deep breath, relieved she could count on her friends. Together they headed out to the stables to get their griffins.
TWELVE
THE FOUR MYSTICONS cut through the sky, speeding toward Necrafa’s lair. Arkayna led the way, her eyes fixed straight ahead. She was going to get her sister back. No one could stop her, not even Necrafa herself.
“Okay, once we get in, Em, Piper, you search Tazma’s lab,” Arkayna called out. “Zarya and I will hit the throne room.”
“How?” Zarya asked. “Necrafa’s lair is going to be swarming with spectres.”
“Yeah, we can’t just fly in,” Piper said.
“Who said anything about flying?” Arkayna asked. “Em, did you bring them?”
Em held up four pink orbs. She tossed them into the sky, and one by one they grew and surrounded each Mysticon, creating an airtight bubble.
The heroes floated off their griffins and splashed down into the ocean around the dark tower. They went deeper and deeper into the murky water, eventually coming up in a hidden cove just below the main entrance. After the Mysticons had left the orbs behind, Arkayna sent Choko up to distract the spectre out front. She needed the element of surprise.
Choko taunted the skeleton for a few minutes, then pounced. While the spectre was yanking Choko off its face, the Mysticons sprung up onto the ledge, aiming their weapons at it.
“Nighty night,” Zarya said, and they fired. The skeleton exploded in a cloud of red smoke.
Arkayna and Zarya took off down the tunnel, while Em and Piper went the opposite way, toward the lab. When Arkayna finally got to the throne room, she spotted Proxima, and a lump rose in the back of her throat. Her sister was tied up, her head hanging down as if she’d been knocked unconscious. Four spectres stood guard around her. Arkayna and Zarya hid
behind some rocks, trying to figure out how to save her.
Arkayna pointed to the stone column that Proxima was tied to. There were two of them right next to each other. “Those obelisks probably help activate the dragon egg.…”
“Not if we have anything to do with it,” Zarya whispered, knowing this was their chance. It was only a matter of time before Tazma and Necrafa returned.
The two girls sprung out from their hiding spot. Arkayna blasted a spectre with her Dragon Staff. Zarya leapt into the air and shot at another spectre, destroying it. Arkayna kept firing at the other two until they erupted in a cloud of red smoke.
“Get Proxima,” Zarya said. “I’ll watch out for Necrafa and Tazma.”
Arkayna used her Dragon Staff to propel her up the stone column, right to Proxima. She worked at the magic restraint that tied her sister up. “It’s okay, sis,” she whispered. “It’s me, Arkayna.”
“Arkayna?” an evil voice replied. Proxima lifted her head, and in an instant her features changed to Necrafa’s skeletal face. She had horrible, beady red eyes and sharp horns. Arkayna tried to get away, but Necrafa ensnared her in a magic web. It had all been a trick—Necrafa had trapped her.
“So the Dragon Mage is the princess,” Necrafa said.
“Let go of her!” Zarya cried. She raised her bow to fire, but a dark tendril surrounded her, tying her up. Tazma and General Tibion stood in the doorway to the throne room, holding the real Proxima captive.
“You were right, my queen,” Tazma said. “They came to rescue her. Welcome to our humble lair, Princess Arkayna.”
Proxima stared up at Arkayna, her eyes wide. “You’re a Mysticon?”
“Hey, sis…” Arkayna said.
“Finally, the twin stars are here!” Necrafa announced. “Time to unleash the Spectral Dragon!”
She threw Arkayna in the air, slamming her against the stone column. She tied her up with dark magic. Then she threw Proxima onto the other stone pillar and held her there. The dragon’s egg floated between them.
Necrafa stood in front of them and raised her hands to the sky, sending a surge of green magic spiraling up the columns. “Arise, my pet! Arise and wreak havoc!” she shouted, letting out an evil laugh.
Mysticons--Prophecy of Evil Page 3
