A small flock of red-chested hummingbirds flew by. They were one of Camelot’s indigenous species, and we’d seen them everywhere. I took that as my cue to change the subject, turning away from my friends to compare our map of Camelot with the Hole Tracker’s map.
The Hole Tracker map flashed with red, orange, and silver wormholes. Red and orange indicated Pop-Up Portals; they took you to the next world in the Wonderland sequence of fourteen realms. Red was a counterclockwise jump in that sequence and orange was a clockwise jump. Silver wormholes were Portalscape Portals that led directly to a Wonderland called the Portalscape, which was the great intersection of all these magical realms.
“There’s a counterclockwise wormhole to Neverland opening shortly about a quarter mile away,” I said. “If we hurry, we can make it before it closes.”
“Then let’s go,” Blue said. “We’ll take our horses that far at least and then see what environmental conditions we run into on the other side of the portal.”
SJ handed Daniel, Jason, and I back our SRBs. The lanyard bracelets had been enchanted by SJ via potion to keep us clean throughout our adventures. We’d taken them off before going to Avalon, as the isle didn’t allow outside enchantments of any sort. SJ also redistributed our remaining Mark Two magic compact mirrors, which we used for communication. Daniel’s team received two and my team got one, which SJ kept in her backpack.
SJ and Blue exchanged swift hugs with Daniel before leaping onto their horses. If I hadn’t known SJ had spent the last year working on getting over her fear of horses, I wouldn’t have thought she had any problem with them. I was super proud of her. Like the rest of us, she was adapting to the changing world and becoming a better, more confident version of herself.
I met Daniel’s eyes. “Good luck,” he said.
“You too,” I replied.
We hugged. I didn’t think it was weird, or awkward. He and I were good friends and that’s what good friends did, especially when they were worried about each other. But when I pulled away, I noticed Kai giving me a strange look. I took a step back and mounted my horse as Daniel did the same. It was time to split up.
I felt a slight pang in my heart like something was tugging on an artery. We’d split up before—many times in fact—but it never got easier. The people around me were some of the most important in my life. I’d been to death and back with them and I knew so long as I had their support, I could go much further. As individuals we were strong, but as a team we were infinitely more powerful. Not because of combat skills, or weapons training, or even magic, but because we cared so much about each other. I knew my friends would do anything for me, and I felt the same about them.
With a final wave, Jason nudged his horse and cantered toward the forest. The others followed. Daniel gave me a final glance over his shoulder before he disappeared into the trees.
I turned to Blue and SJ and put on my most confident expression. “Back to Neverland we go. Who’s ready for an adventure?”
J, Blue, and I rode to the counterclockwise wormhole. When we got there, we dismounted and Blue stuck her head through the red portal, then pulled it back out.
“We’re going to land in the water near Neverland’s port,” she said. “It’s about a six-foot drop. We should leave the horses in Camelot and go on foot. Better chance of keeping a low profile.”
SJ and I agreed. We’d made a serious enemy of Captain Hook the first time we visited Neverland, and he was the boss of most of the pirates there. It was best to stay under the radar.
We set our horses free and leapt through the portal, landing on sloped sand in fairly shallow water. Only Blue managed to stay on her feet. Both SJ and I fell on our butts in the tide. A clan of tiny minnows skimmed away from us in retreat.
SJ made a disgusted face as she pulled a chunk of seaweed from her arm.
When we stood, the water was up to our thighs. The SRBs dried off our upper halves, including SJ’s backpack, with a flurry of silver sparks. I looked up. The portal seemed to be swirling in the middle of the wooden pier above us. Two seconds later it closed, disappearing without a trace.
I turned to SJ and Blue, ready to get out of the water, but paused when I saw Blue’s eyes were creepy, glowing green. She was out of breath and seemed wobbly.
After destroying Camelot’s legendary Questor Beast monster—a creature with five heads that could spit acid, produce fog, track prey by its fear and adrenaline, and shoot poisonous teeth—Blue had acquired its powers. We didn’t know how said powers would manifest inside her long term, but for the meantime they’d been making her constitution weaker. Throughout the morning she’d broken out in cold sweats, her hands had been shaking, and her eyes were periodically changing color.
“You okay?” I asked. “When the boys and I came back from Avalon, I thought you seemed better.”
“I am better,” she insisted, green eyes flashing aggressively. Her body shuttered despite the assertion. She clenched her fists and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened her eyes anew, they’d returned to their normal blue shade and her body stopped shaking.
“I feel these waves of energy going through me,” she explained. “That’s what’s causing the shaking—not cold or weakness, but strength. It’s as if there is too much energy inside of me; like there’s a swarm of bees buzzing around. I think it’s starting to settle now though.”
“Good,” I said. “Let us know if anything changes.”
“Yeah, I will. Though my state isn’t the biggest point of interest right now.” She gestured to the distance. “Didn’t we burn down half the Jolly Roger a few days ago?”
I pivoted to stare across the water. The Neverland ocean stretched before us like a thick, rustled blue bedspread. Upon the sea by the horizon line sat at a familiar vessel. The Jolly Roger sat proudly on the water with its black skull-and-crossbones flag swooshing in the wind.
“Neverland must have a lot of good boat contractors,” I commented.
My lighthearted comment didn’t diminish the spur of agitation that tingled through me. The last time we’d been in Neverland, Captain Hook of the Jolly Roger had tried to kill my friends and me. He was far from the first villain to try, but it had definitely been one of our closer calls. If Peter Pan and the Lost Boys and Girls hadn’t shown up, we may well have drowned out there.
Peter . . .
“I know what you are thinking,” SJ said, looking at me.
“Oh, and what’s that?”
“You are wondering if the Gwenivere Brigade was successful in rescuing Peter and Arthur after they were captured by the antagonists,” SJ replied astutely. “And if there is anything we can do to help them while we are here.”
On our quest to retrieve Excalibur, my brother and I had gotten further mixed up in the Camelot storyline thanks to a prophecy uttered by the realm’s most famous and powerful wizard, Merlin. The prophecy declared that a “Knight of royal blood” was destined to claim Excalibur and return it to the rightful king of Camelot. But first he or she had to pledge a renowned vow of service to the king of Camelot called The Pentecostal Oath.
Rampart may have been in power in Camelot, but since Arthur was alive he was still technically the king of the realm. So a few days ago Alex and the antagonist lot had come to Neverland to force Arthur to give the pledge to my brother just like the king had given it to me. Arthur and Peter had been captured in the process and were being held somewhere in Neverland. Rampart said he wanted to keep Arthur alive to witness our failure at preventing Excalibur from falling into the evil new king’s hands.
Some of the top members of the Gwenivere Brigade had gone on a mission to rescue Arthur and Peter a couple days ago. We’d provided the female warriors with a Hole Tracker and hadn’t heard from them since.
“All right, guilty,” I admitted to SJ. “But I suppose you’re going to tell me that we don’t have time for that and we need to find the next portal.”
“Quite the contrary,” SJ responded. “Yes, we a
re on a deadline, but we still have roughly seven and a half hours before the Vicennalia Aurora. So if there is something we can do, we should do it.” She reached into her backpack, pulled out our Mark Two compact mirror, and tossed it to me. “Contact the Gwenivere Brigade and see if they need our assistance.
“And do not look so shocked,” SJ added at my surprised expression. “I am practical, not coldhearted. Your plan to portal-hop theoretically allows us more than enough time for a detour. Past that, Peter, Arthur, and the Brigade looked out for us and we owe them the same favor. It might cost us some time, but if I have learned anything from you, it is that we should always seek the path that is right, not the path that is easy.”
SJ’s words stirred inside my conscience, reminding me of something Merlin had said.
“Considering what’s at stake, I would think Crisanta would have sought the path that’s right, not the path that’s easy.”
He had made the comment after Daniel and I explained why I didn’t use one of my recent visions of the future to convince our realm’s Godmother Supreme, Lena Lenore, of the oncoming danger with Alderon’s In and Out Spell. See, while some people knew that regular magic was going to become weaker because of the Aurora, my vision had shown that Pure Magic was going to become stronger. Which meant that all the Pure Magic wielding witches and warlocks in Alderon—people with Pure Magic Disease who’d turned dark and been locked up—could have the power to bring down the destabilized In and Out Spell.
The limited number of Godmothers assigned to protect the spell made this almost a certainty. However, to make matters worse, I’d also foreseen a flying monkey attack.
The rulers of Oz had two special crowns called Simia Crowns—one that controlled male flying monkeys and one that controlled females. The crowns were designed to counteract each other so that no person could have full power over the creatures. At the moment, Glinda was in possession of one crown. The rightful ruler of Oz, Princess Ozma, used to have the other. But Rampart had imprisoned her in some kind of sleep state within his castle and taken it.
Arian wanted one of those crowns, and based on my vision of flying monkeys attacking the Godmothers during the Aurora as they tried to reinforce the In and Out Spell, I assumed he’d get one. I hoped we could stop this assault by getting the other crown, but that was just a plan. A theory. What I saw in my vision—the attack and the strength of Pure Magic—was a fact. But I didn’t want to tell Lena Lenore that. Revealing I had visions of the future would be the final piece of evidence our realm’s most revered higher-up needed to prove I had Pure Magic, which she’d been trying to do for a long time. Once she had that, Lenore could instantly sentence me to Alderon like the other carriers of the disease. In other words, telling her meant I’d be putting myself at her mercy, and goodness knows she didn’t have a lot of that.
Sigh.
I hadn’t been willing to do this before. But Merlin and SJ were right. I wasn’t about easy choices; I was about the correct ones, even if that meant putting myself on the line. Given what was at stake, I solemnly accepted that it was time for me to play my last card.
“We’ll contact the Gwenivere Brigade,” I said. “But first there’s someone else I need to talk to.” I took a deep breath and flipped open the compact. “Lena Lenore.”
The Mark Two buzzed a few times before Lena Lenore’s elegant face filled the mirror. I’d always found it fascinating that such a mean woman could look so radiant. Her dark skin, hazel eyes, and strong features stared back at me.
“Crisanta Knight.” I was amazed at how much disdain she could pack into my name. “I have no time for you right now.”
“Lenore, you were right,” I said bluntly. My heart shied away but I forced the words out, each syllable searing the inside of my throat like acid. “You were right about me all along. I have Pure Magic. I can see the future.”
It was the most surprised I had ever seen her. The calm, cool, collected Fairy Godmother Supreme may have known the truth about me this whole time, but she certainly never expected me to admit to it. Before she could condemn me with her response, I continued with my own agenda.
“I’m telling you this because I had a vision that during the Vicennlia Aurora, regular magic, like yours and the other Godmothers’, is going to weaken and Pure Magic is going to get stronger. I have already felt the power growing in the air since this morning. The witches and warlocks of Alderon are going to take advantage of this when the Aurora hits by trying to take down the destabilized In and Out Spell with their powers. I realize many of your Godmothers are stationed in other kingdoms to protect people from the predicted commons rebellion attacks tonight, but between the Aurora’s magic flux and the flying monkey attack I’ve also foreseen coming, you need more help at the Alderon border.”
The sound of the tides washing against our submerged legs was agonizingly loud compared to the silence as I waited for her to respond.
“You do understand what you’ve just given me, Crisanta,” Lenore said evenly, studying my reflection. “I own you now. You’ve just sealed your fate.”
“Whatever. Do your worst, Lenore,” I said. “This isn’t about me. This is about the rest of the realm. I know the commons rebellion is a serious threat and that moving some of your Godmothers may give the rebellion a leg up, but that is better than the entire realm falling to the antagonists if they break free. Please call for reinforcements before it is too late.”
I stared hard at the woman in the mirror. Her expression was unreadable. Then she turned away. Muffled sounds in the background told me that someone else was talking to her.
“Lenore—”
“I have to go.” And with that, she closed her Mark Two and severed our connection.
“Crisa . . .” Blue said grimly.
I looked up at the shock on my friends’ faces.
“What have you done?” SJ gasped.
“The only thing I could do,” I responded. “I have faith that we’ll make it back to Book before the end of the Aurora, but even if we do, there’s no guarantee we’ll provide enough help to make a difference. If that In and Out Spell falls and I didn’t do everything in my power to stop it, then I might as well be on the other side helping those witches take it down because it would be just as much my fault.”
Blue looked crestfallen but steely. “I hope it was worth it.”
“Time will tell,” I said. “And speaking of time . . .”
I activated my Hole Tracker and discovered there were currently three wormholes open in Neverland. Two led back to Camelot, but they were on the other side of the island and we’d never make it before they closed. A third was a silver Portalscape Portal that wasn’t far off, but it was going to close in twenty seconds, so it was a no-go as well.
I turned through the time settings on the Hole Tracker to see what lay ahead. Another set of portals would open thirty minutes from now. And twenty minutes after that there would be three more. We definitely had time to check on our Neverland friends.
I powered off the Hole Tracker and flipped open the Mark Two again.
“Ormé,” I said, speaking the name of our friend, the fearsome leader of the Gwenivere Brigade. The compact buzzed but no one answered.
“Maybe she’s busy,” Blue suggested.
The buzzing stopped. Someone had answered the call, but the screen remained black.
“Ormé?”
I heard some rustling sounds, some shushings, and some . . . hissing?
Ormé’s face suddenly filled the looking glass. Her copper-colored hair was frazzled. Her eyes looked scared, but her face was tough and her words were intense. “Crisa. Where are you?”
“Uh, we’re in Neverland,” I replied.
“Do you have Excalibur?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, good. Get to the Temple of Malbona as fast as you can. We need your help. We’re trapped by the—”
The call went dead.
“Ormé?” I repeated. This time she didn’t answer and
eventually I had to shut the compact.
“The Temple of Malbona,” SJ said. “I know that name.” She plunged her hand inside her magic potions sack and pulled out a map of Neverland. She unrolled it and pointed to a spot. “There,” she said. “The Temple of Malbona. It is in the jungle on the western part of the island.”
“I remember the name too; I helped make that map,” I said. “The temple is supposed to be some sort of underground ruin. We’ll need help finding it though. That jungle is pretty thick and our map isn’t exact or complete. We could get lost, especially going on foot.”
“Then I guess we’ll need directions.” Blue nodded behind me toward where the pier stretched up the beach to the port town. “So much for keeping a low profile.”
“That’s not our style anyway,” I said.
Asking for directions in Neverland was not an easy task. The local residents were pretty anti-kid because of the ongoing feud between the pirates and the Lost Boys and Girls. We did know of one man who’d helped us in the past though.
My friends and I kicked open the doors of Once Upon a Tavern and strut into the pub like we owned the place. Unlike the first time we’d come into the bar—timid and curious—we marched in with purpose and confidence. Any adult who dared look us in the eye was met with the stone glare of three girls who’d seen and done more than they could ever imagine.
The manager who’d assisted us last time looked up from the counter. He was so startled that he accidentally missed the glass he’d been aiming for and ale from the beverage gun in his hands sprayed onto the bar.
“Chawkovsky,” I barked as we strode over to him.
He stored the beverage gun, which had a long hose that connected to a large barrel. “You kids must have a death wish to be back here so soon,” he said in a hushed tone as he wiped up the counter with a dirty dishrag. “Half the men in here are pirate regulars who likely remember your faces and would turn you over to Hook in an instant.” He tilted his chin at a couple of guys wearing bandanas who were eyeing us over their menus. “The captain’s offered a heck of a reward for your heads—the going rate is a fifth of his total booty.”
Crisanta Knight: The Lost King Page 3
