Box Set #3: The Serenity Deception: [The 4 book 3rd Adventure of Egg and the Hameggattic Sisterhood]

by Robert Iannone

  “No, Mom. The best time is when the Myst Tree cured you. Without my mother, this – or any place – would never seem like home.”

  *****

  Sighing Whorl

  “To be kissed by the leader of the Hameggattic Sisterhood is an experience and a memory I will treasure always.”

  Polite but insincere and definitely not very romantic . . . and Egg knew it. “Well, just forget it. It was an accident,” she replied lamely.

  “Ah. You must have stumbled into my face. Quite a common occurrence. We shall speak of it no more.”

  “Jerk.”

  “Sorry?”

  “Nothing. Let's get this over with. Take my hand . . . “

  He took it, then pulled her close and returned the kiss. It was as brief as the one she had given him. When he stepped back, he apologized. “Sorry, I am inexperienced at this sort of thing.”

  Egg was having a hard time breathing. She finally managed to squeak “s’okay.”

  Flashing another one of his incredible smiles, he asked, “Shall we pay the Tree a visit?”

  “Um . . . tree,” she was trying to focus but she couldn’t.

  “The Myst Tree.”

  “Oh. Oh, yeah. Okay. Here we go,” and she stepped into the fog that protected the valley dragging the Prince behind her.

  They followed a worn path until they reached their destination . . .

  “Hey, Tree . . . it’s me; Egg of Earth.”

  “Always a pleasure, my young friend.”

  “I wanted to thank you for sending Spirit to help us. She’s great. In fact, she’s now a Hameggattic Sister.”

  “You are most welcome. As to Spirit, I was aware; but thank you for telling me.”

  “Um . . . Mr. Tree may I present Ben’Edikk.” The boy cleared his throat noisily. “I mean Prince Ben’Edikk, son of Dazzle and Z’kkk.”

  “It is an honor, sir. On behalf of my mother, Queen Rose’Alynnia, I wish to thank you for all that you have done for the people of Aerianna.” As always, he was very smooth, very polished and not in the least fazed by the way the Tree communicated.

  Awkwardly, the Tree did not respond. Ben’Edikk’s poise was beginning to crack.

  “Egg, tell this young man he is not yet worthy to address me. The Hameggattic Sisters and the Queen are the only ones to have earned that right.”

  “He didn’t hear that?”

  “No. And Egg, enjoy your vacation but be aware that what is may not be. Remember, she who laughs last, lasts best,” and the Tree went silent. As usual, the girl had no idea what his riddles meant. She just shrugged knowing that sooner or later, she’d figure it out.

  “Why did he not answer me? Should I repeat my greeting?” asked the boy who was now in full panic mode. He wasn’t used to failure.

  “Come on, let’s go.”

  “No. I command you to ask the Tree why he did not respond. I was thanking him for his help . . . surely he took no offense?’

  “Ben . . . let’s go,” and she started to walk out of the valley.

  He hurried to catch up. “Why will you not talk to him. My mother commanded you to do so.” Sadly, he was beginning to sound a bit whiny.

  She stopped and turned toward him. “He said you were not yet worthy to talk to him. He’ll only talk to the Sisterhood and your mom. Now let’s go.”

  It’s hard to tell on someone with blue skin, but Ben’Edikk blushed from embarrassment.

  Chapter 6 – Egg’s Ben’Edikk

  The flight home was uncomfortably quiet but mercifully quick.

  Egg had an overpowering urge to hold the boy . . . to comfort him. However, she knew in her heart that would be the absolutely wrong thing to do. Instead, she landed on a secluded balcony so she could talk in private.

  “Listen, Benny . . .”

  “Please, do not call me that. It is demeaning.”

  Now she wanted to slap him but resisted that urge as well. “Anyway, the Tree can choose whoever he wants to talk to. And he only wants to talk to people who have fought for this world, for its people. He’s here to protect Aerianna so he naturally likes anyone who’s done the same. It doesn’t mean you’re not a terrific kid . . . I mean a terrific Prince. It only means that you haven’t had a chance to prove yourself. Give it time. You’ll be awesome, I know it.”

  To his credit, the boy looked Egg in the eyes while she talked. Most of us would have wanted to hang our head and sulk. Not Ben’Edikk. At least, not in public. “Thank you, Egg. Eloise. I can see why you are the leader of the Sisterhood. Why you are the honored Heroine of Aerianna. Perhaps I can learn from your experience.”

  She liked the sentiment . . . but he phrased it more like Lord Z’kkk. She would have to teach him to lighten up. “Whatever I can do, just ask. Promise?”

  “I do. I would ask one favor now. Please do not tell my parents about this encounter with the Tree. I will do that.”

  “Sure.”

  He turned to leave then stopped. “The trip was not a complete failure.” He smiled that ridiculous smile again and Egg got chills. Or was it goose bumps? “I kissed a most extraordinary young lady.” He nodded, turned and walked away.

  Egg was smitten. Head over heels smitten. “Oh my gosh. OH_MY_GOSH”.

  *****

  She went back to her room to freshen up. When she entered, she found a package with a note. It read, “Egg, this little gift is my way of apologizing again for messing up your ring. I thought since every human girl should have a change of clothes, this might do the trick. Just clip the crystal to your belt and think of a color. Love, K’ssss.”

  “What the heck?” but she pulled out the tiny crystal and placed it where the note said. “Okay, um . . . blue.”

  She looked down and gasped.

  “How cool is this? Okay, Yellow.”

  She tried every color she could think of but settled for the first one – blue.

  “K’ssss, you giant, generous genius, I love you,” she said to her reflection in the mirror. She adored her flying suit, but it did get boring. And unlike Spirit who had only one outfit, Egg preferred as many as she could afford.

  “I wonder which color is Ben’s favorite.” Then she laughed . . . what color would a blue-skinned Prince like? She thought she could figure that out.

  *****

  Galleria of the Sisterhood

  “Enough about me. Let me show you some of what’s in here. My favorite is on that wall. Come take a look.”

  They walked over to find paintings of the original seven sisters. Naturally, Egg was in the place of honor. “They love my sister, don’t they?” asked Ashley proudly.

  “There isn’t a person, dragon or sea serpent on Aerianna that does not think she is deserving of every accolade they could bestow on her. The fact that she hates the attention makes them love her even more.”

  “I will say it again, dear one. For as wonderful as my granddaughter is, she would never have accomplished anything without the Sisterhood.”

  The dragon smiled (showing her two rows of razor sharp teeth that caused Ashley to take a step back). “Grammy, as always, you’re too kind. Anyway, what’s really interesting is that the pose of each sister was voted on by the others. Egg and Syl didn’t get to vote since they weren’t here.”

  “How fun. Could you explain why they were chosen? It’ll give me a better idea of who you guys really are.”

  “Love to. So first, and foremost, is Egg. But we decided to show her in Dazzle’s old outfit instead of her flying suit. That’s Queen F’Aerianne’s castle behind her and the place where we gathered the Shades of Night before the final battle . . .”

  “What a cute costume. I bet there’s an interesting story behind it?”

  “I’ll let her tell you. Next is Sylvia. But she’s with Egg for three reasons. She’s Egg’s best friend, and her Feminion. More importantly, this is a copy of the photograph from Egg’s diary that helped her remember poor Syl after she was bitten by the Tack-toed Tick. Without it, we could never
have beaten Mobius.”

  “Little Sis doesn’t look very happy.”

  “She really didn’t like Sylvia when they first met . . . when this was taken at camp.”

  “Next we have Bl’azzz doing what Bl’azzz does best, burp and burn.”

  “Egg said she’s a F’yre Dragon that’s vegan. How weird is that?”

  “Vegan?”

  “Vegetarian.”

  “Yeah. Take it from me, it may sound noble, but the results are far less so. Anyway, here we have Sassi. Egg always says she’s the most beautiful girl she’s ever met. I’ll have to take her word on that. Being a dragon, I admit that to me you all look alike.”

  “She’s breathtaking.”

  “This is actually a self-portrait. Sassi’s quite the artist. Next is Soo’nami otherwise known as Soo. If you haven’t heard, she’s the unofficial wisecracker of the Sisterhood. You might think that we came up with this ridiculous pose just to be mean. Sadly, she always looks like this.” She smiled as she said it.

  “She’s a lot thinner than K’ssss, isn’t she?”

  “Actually K’ssss is a lot heavier than Soo . . . or most sea serpents. The girl used to love to eat eels. Now, all she eats is chocolate. Speaking of K’ssss, here she is in the Crystal Forest. Did you know she sacrificed herself to save the others from a Ding ‘bat?”

  “A what?”

  “Ugly flying creature. If it bites you, you turn into one. Just goes to show you that you can’t tell what’s inside a person by what’s outside. K’ssss was, is, over-weight and back then, not very bright. But she saved the Sisters six or seven times. We owe her a lot. And now, she’s a super-scientist after the Circle of Life did its thing.”

  “Circle of Life?”

  “Best ask Egg.”

  “And finally, here’s yours truly . . .”

  “Ashley, that is the infamous Crystal Mountain in the background. It is where Mobius kept the Queen’s body.”

  “If I remember the story, Egg was the only one to reach it. Aeri’elle, can I ask why your sisters put it in your painting?”

  The dragon’s eyes beamed with pride. “I sacrificed myself to save Egg from the monster AyBee. Had I not, the Quest would have ended in failure. My sisters did me great honor with this painting.”

  “An honor well deserved, my dear. Well deserved.”

  Since there was so much to see, they picked up their pace and completed most of the tour in two hours. By this time, Grammy was exhausted. “Aeri’elle, my dear, I believe that I’ve run out of steam. You two can continue on but I’ll need to rest before the reception. It wouldn’t do for me to fall asleep in the presence of the Queen.”

  “I’m sorry, Grammy. How inconsiderate of me. Your rooms are not far from here let me show you. And Ashley, what is your pleasure?”

  “I would love to find a place to sit and just take in the incredible sight of this floating city. Perhaps you would join me and we could continue my history lesson?”

  “Sounds perfect. I’d like that. Oh, by the way, in your room is a translation necklace, a gift compliments of her Majesty.”

  “Oh, how thoughtful. I’ll be sure to thank her.”

  *****

  “Egg, you in there?” Sylvia knocked again. “Egg?”

  The door opened and there was Flying Girl . . . in blue. She pirouetted and asked, “Like it?”

  Sylvia smiled. “I like the red one better, but this is certainly a nice change. Did they make you a second suit?”

  Instead of answering, she said “Yellow” and the suit changed color. “Red” and it did it again. “Blue” and it was back where it began.

  “Okay, that’s a pretty neat trick. Let me guess . . . has to be an invention from K’ssss. Right?”

  “My Feminion continues to impress. Nice deduction.”

  “How weird is it that she’s married and a super genius? Who’d of thunk it?”

  “I know, right. But if anyone deserves it, she does. Anyway, close the door I’ve got something to tell you.” Just the thought of what she had to say made her blush.

  Sylvia saw it. “Eloise Graystone . . . did you kiss him?”

  “Oh my gosh, would you stop doing that.”

  “Doing what?”

  “Stop knowing everything. Sometimes you freak me out.”

  “It’s a gift, what can I say. Now spill it. I want every last detail.”

  They jumped on the big, comfy bed. “Well he was really obnoxious . . .” and she went on to tell her friend all that happened. “So to make a long story a little longer, I’m in love.”

  “No you’re not.”

  “Yes, I am. Why would you say that?”

  “You don’t even know what love is.”

  “And you do?”

  “No; how would I? I’m almost fourteen not twenty-four.”

  “You don’t have to be twenty-four to fall in love.”

  “Egg, I don’t doubt that you have a crush on him, but one walk in the park isn’t enough to know if you’re in love.”

  “Really?” said the girl sarcastically.

  “Really. I read it on the internet. Besides, I think you have competition.”

  That made her heart beat a little faster. “What do you mean? Who?”

  “Molly.”

  “NO.”

  “We had a great long talk. First, hang on to your hat, the Queen is making Jenny and Molly royalty.”

  “NO.”

  “Jenny’s going to be the Countess of Earth-Shire and Molly will be a Marquesa . . . whatever that is."

  “Well, that’s nice.” Normally she would have been super happy for her friends but not if she was competing with one of them. Her old urge to win was beginning to creep back into her subconscious.

  “Yeah, it is very nice. Anyway, we talked for a couple of hours and Molly found a way to bring up the Prince’s name every chance she got. And, just like you, when she did, she would blush.”

  “But she never said anything about loving him, did she?”

  “Of course not. If for no other reason her mother was right there.”

  “Good point.”

  “Egg, she’s really nice. She grew up to be super sweet. None of this royalty stuff has gone to her head.”

  “Don’t forget to throw in the fact that she’s drop dead gorgeous too. Makes me want to scream.”

  “Since you’re already feeling badly, I’ll add a little salt to the wound. Molly lives on Aerianna and you don’t. Talk about your long distance relationships. They never work . . . I read that on the internet too.”

  “But I’ve got one thing going for me. If he has to choose between Molly and me, Dazzle’s going to tell him to pick me. So would his Lordship.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Of course. Heck, if for no other reason than they kind of owe me one.”

  “They owe you at least two – don’t forget Zynn-Zaz’zia.”

  “Do you think he’ll like me in blue?” and she stood on the bed and pirouetted again.

  “If he likes you, it won’t matter what color your outfit is.”

  *****

  The Royal Sitting Room

  “Mother, Father . . . I have returned.”

  “Come in, Son,” said Z’kkk. “How did you fare? Did you get to greet the Myst Tree?”

  “I am sorry to disappoint you, Sir . . . but I have failed.”

  Z’kkk looked at his wife then back to his son. “Well, there is no knowing what motivates the Tree. I take it Eloise was unable to get you into the valley.”

  “No, Sir. We had no problem in that regards. She led me to the Tree, greeted and thanked him for his assistance then introduced me.”

  Rose asked, “And you gave the Tree your message?”

  “I did but he chose not to respond.”

  A mother always knows when her child is troubled. “Please, my son, tell us the rest.”

  “Egg . . . Eloise . . . asked him why and according to her — I was unable to hear the dialogue — t
he Tree found me unworthy.” The Prince finally looked like the boy that he really was. Rose, as Egg before her, wanted to embrace him, to comfort him. But that would have been the wrong thing to do. “Egg said that the Tree will only talk to those who have fought for this world . . . the Sisterhood and you, Mother.”

  “Son . . .”

  “Yes, Father?”

  “She is correct. The Tree will not speak to me.”

  The boy’s eyes got very wide, surprised by what he had just been told. “Really and truly?”

  “Really and truly. When Mobius usurped the throne from your grandfather, I was turned into the Wraith K’aos. In essence, I fought for the bad guy.”

  “Mother, then why did you send me if you knew I would not succeed?”

  Rose smiled. “I believe you answered your own question.”

  The boy thought for a moment until her meaning became clear. “You wished me to fail . . . to know disappointment. But why?”

  “Because life is filled with success and failures. You must learn how to embrace both. Enough for now. Egg’s reception will begin shortly. Please go change . . . but nothing too formal.”

  “And we will make both announcements at this affair.”

  “Yes. Does that please you?”

  “Of course. The taste of defeat and accomplishment all in one day . . . I shall savor the memory forever.”

  “You make me proud, Ben’Edikk.”

  “Both of us,” added his father.

  ******

  “Molly, are you’re ready?’

  “I’m so nervous.”

  “Are you sure you want to go through with this?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Then, my little girl, let’s do what no one from Earth has ever done before.”

  That reminded the girl why all this was even possible. “Mom, how do we ever thank Egg and Sylvia?”