Ethon (The Other Worlds Series Book 2)

by M. L. Greye

  When he and the receptionist were out in the hallway alone, passing between rows of lockers, Legann asked, “Why does Mrs. Harney want to see me?”

  “I’m not sure, dear.”

  She was a bad liar. Legann didn’t need to read minds to know she wasn’t telling him the truth. An eerie feeling was forming in the pit of his stomach. In the Other Worlds, it had signaled something was wrong, but now it most likely meant that Legann was dreading his upcoming conversation with Harney. Would it be too late to take off now? He doubted the receptionist would be able to catch him if he ran out the school’s door.

  A second later though, Legann’s escort pushed open the door to the registration office and held it for Legann to walk inside. “Wait here, please,” she said politely, gesturing toward the three colorful plastic chairs against the right wall.

  It was too late to run. Legann reluctantly obeyed as she disappeared around a corner, off to Harney’s office. He frowned as he took in the tiny lobby. It was painted a dull blue and consisted of the receptionist’s desk across from where Legann sat, and four smaller offices located behind that, hidden by the wall Legann’s messenger had walked behind. Legann had viewed the back offices only once before when he’d registered for classes with Olinia and Trenton over a year ago.

  One office belonged to a guidance councilor, one to the Vice-Principal, Mr. Charles Kong, one to Mrs. Harney, and the last was used as a computer room for all student registration. Each office was painted a different pastel color. His least favorite, though, was the soft pink of Harney’s office.

  “You can come with me now.”

  Legann turned in surprise. He’d been staring out the long window across from the door he had entered through. His escort was back, standing beside her desk. Taking a deep breath, he followed her to the pink office.

  That feeling was growing stronger inside of him, spreading into his limbs. As he finished the short walk to Harney, the door opened, revealing her short, round form behind her desk.

  She had a forced smile on her face as she said to the receptionist, “Thank you, Mary.” Then to Legann, she waved a hand for him to enter. “Come on in, Mr. Reien. Please, have a seat.”

  As Legann lowered himself into the square, stuffed chair facing Harney’s birch desk, he heard the door shut behind him. “So, Mr. Reien, do you know why I brought you here?” Harney asked.

  He had his suspicions, but he wasn’t about to voice them. He shook his head, feigning innocence. “No.”

  She gazed at him through her narrow, dull blue eyes and flattened her already thin lips in a look that told him she clearly didn’t believe him. “I have been informed of your recent incident. I am concerned about your home life.”

  “My home life is just fine.” But he spat out the words too quickly. Harney was frowning at him.

  “If this is true, you won’t mind answering some questions then.”

  He grimaced. “Right.”

  “Excellent.” She gestured toward the back of the room, and Legann turned.

  Two burly men stood on either side of a thin, very beautiful, blonde woman with sea green eyes. She held a leather briefcase in her lap, sitting on another stuffed chair. Legann was shocked to find anyone else in the room. The door must have hid them when he first entered.

  The woman stood and moved to the edge of Harney’s desk, while the men remained where they were. She offered her hand to Legann and in a crisp British accent she said, “Hello, Legann. I am a state social worker. Mrs. Harney asked me to come.”

  Legann shook her soft hand briefly. She looked like she was in her early twenties, perhaps even younger. How would someone so young be a social worker? Legann furrowed his eyebrows and murmured, “Nice to meet you.”

  She leaned onto the edge of the desk and dropped her briefcase beside her. “Legann, you do not live with your parents, do you?”

  “No,” he replied. “My sister is my legal guardian.”

  “I see. Where are your parents?”

  “Dead.”

  “I am sorry to hear that. How did they die?”

  He clenched his fist at his side. “I was too young to remember it.”

  “Hmm.” She opened her briefcase and began rummaging through it. “What if I told you that I know exactly how your parents were killed?”

  “I’d say it’s rather unlikely that you do,” he retorted.

  She looked up and gave him a tight smile. “You are special, Legann. But did you know that there are many other special children, just like you?”

  Legann frowned at the mention of him being a child. He was seventeen. In his realm, he would be an adult. He felt like rolling his eyes, but her words confused him. What did she mean by special? She couldn’t possibly be talking about his gifts. Did she mean that others had had their parents murdered too?

  He watched her for a moment. Then, “Can you define special for me?”

  “That is precisely what we do.” She laughed lightly.

  All at once, the two men were at his sides, holding him down. The social worker yanked out a syringe with a green liquid inside of it. Legann gaped. He struggled to free himself, while across from him, Harney stood, backing up against the wall. She had a horrified look on her face, yet she refused to interfere. Legann opened his mouth to yell at her cowardice, but nothing came out. The blonde had dug the syringe into his upper arm. The world tilted at an odd angle and then plummeted into an empty black.

  : : : : :

  For the past few days, Tiara had passively participated in the anticipation of Zedgry’s arrival. He was Olinia’s brother that Tiara had yet to meet. Truthfully, Tiara was not opposed to waiting – it kept her away from princess duties in the long run. Since Tiara and Olinia had the shimmer stones to open a portal to their realm, it was easier to have Zedgry come to them than to have everyone travel to him.

  This was a valid reason, but not entirely accurate. At the time of their conversation, Tiara had accepted it as logical, but once she really started thinking about it, she realized that Olinia must not know about the shimmer stone’s function of inner-world travel.

  Tiara had discovered this option on the night the Kendren brothers were defeated in Tlaid. She and Archrin had needed a silent and fast entry into Desnbi Castle, so they used the shimmer stone to open a portal into the throne room from Voiel’s home, a little over a mile away. The shimmer stone didn’t just open portals to other worlds. If Olinia had wanted, she could have opened one to Zedgry without any trouble. Too bad Tiara hadn’t thought of this sooner. It was too late now. Zedgry was coming to them, flying in an Ethon contraption called an airplane. There was no point in using the shimmer stone.

  She sighed. During her days in Ethon, she’d spent her time watching television, driving through the city, and laughing with her friends. Then, at night, she and Olinia practiced Globing to the future. Sadly, she hadn’t really succeeded in her attempts. While Globing, she somehow kept ending up visiting the recent past instead of the future. The night before, she accidentally took Olinia to the hanging of Ryth – one of the Kendren brothers. Experiencing it for the second time wasn’t any more pleasant than the first. She really hoped that tonight she would go some time not so gruesome.

  Oddly enough though, this trip felt almost like a much-needed vacation. Realistically, Tiara could leave now. She hadn’t needed to save Olinia after all, thanks to Will. Since there were two shimmer stones between their group, Tiara and Archrin could take one and the others could still leave Ethon. But she wasn’t quite ready to take off just yet. Plus, she was technically fulfilling the wishes of the Fraers with Olinia, so what was the rush?

  “What are you looking at?”

  Tiara turned. Archrin was standing in her room’s doorway, shirtless and tousling his wet hair with a towel. She couldn’t help but smile at his toned torso. It made her a little giddy to know she would be marrying that. “I was watching the wind,” she told him. “I like seeing the leaves blow off the trees.”

  “Is it a n
ice view from here?” He chuckled, joining her at the window.

  “Not too bad.”

  “Have you been up here very long?”

  “Just a few minutes.” She frowned. “You look tired.”

  “I am tired. This is what releasing the animal does to me.” He grunted and leaned forward onto the windowsill, his towel still in hand.

  For the third time since Tiara had met him, Archrin had phased into his panther form. As a Craele, he was unable to remain human for extensive periods. His animal instincts would grow too strong to ignore, and he would be forced to answer the call. Earlier that day, he had disappeared into the surrounding woods to hunt the local wildlife. He’d asked Sazx to follow him at a safe distance to keep him out of trouble with the Ethons.

  “Where’s Sazx?” Tiara glanced over her shoulder to the hallway.

  “He’s showering. The forest was muddy.”

  “By the look of you I’m going to assume you already bathed?”

  He nodded. “Sazx was nice enough to let me go first. I was covered in filth.”

  Tiara traced with her fingertips the Kendren symbol – the dying lion on its hind legs with a sword through its heart – that was tattooed on the back of Archrin’s right shoulder. It still amazed her that even though Gavin had torn Archrin’s back to shreds, the Eveon Healer had been able to fix him to the point that it was like it had never happened, preserving the sign of the Kendren soldier. She knew Archrin wished his injury would have gotten rid of the tattoo, but she was secretly glad that it hadn’t. The symbol was a sign of his past – a reminder of what he’d left to be with her.

  Archrin sighed and dropped his head to rest on his hands. “What else did you do while I was gone?”

  She frowned. “You should take a nap. You look like you’re going to collapse.”

  “I feel like it,” he admitted, “but I’ve been away from you most of the day.”

  “Let’s go downstairs.” She took his hand. “You can lay your head on my lap while I watch TV on the couch.”

  “Do you even know how to turn that thing on?”

  “Olinia showed me.” She headed out of the room, pulling him with her. “Come on. Put on a shirt and meet me downstairs.”

  : : : : :

  They were to Legann's high school now. A couple students stood by the front doors, but other than that the school looked deserted. The majority of students were still in class. Will pulled the car into the loading-unloading area. “Has Legann texted you back yet?”

  “No.” She shook her head. She’d calmed down a little since leaving her college. “He hasn't responded yet. I'll call him.”

  As Olinia raised her phone to her ear, Will glanced out his window, looking at the gloomy sky and colorful trees surrounding the school. Prior to now, Will had only been to Virginia once before on a family vacation to the nation's capital. That had been in the summer, years ago. He remembered thinking the state was lush and beautiful, but little had he known that Virginia’s best season was the fall. In autumn, Virginia was a landscape of brilliant colors beneath an overcast sky.

  “Something's wrong.”

  He turned. “What?”

  Olinia's face was pale. “I can't hear him. His mind isn't responding anymore than his phone.”

  “What does that mean?” Will blinked.

  “It means DS must have got to him.” Olinia pushed open her car door and stepped out, slamming it behind her.

  Will yanked the keys out of the ignition and followed after her up the school's front steps. He managed to catch up with her just as she entered the building. “Where are you going?”

  “To the main office to try to find out what happened to him,” she replied.

  “And will you threaten them with your gifts as well?” He retorted.

  “Got any better ideas?”

  The halls were cleared out of the students. There were only a few scattered clusters of kids among the lockers on either side of Will and Olinia. The kids didn’t even give them a second glance. They were too involved in their own conversations.

  A few minutes later, they reached the main office. Olinia didn't wait for Will to get the door. She threw it open and came to a halt in front of the startled receptionist.

  Olinia glared down at the middle-aged woman sitting behind the desk. “I'd like to know where Legann Reien is.”

  The receptionist was visibly flustered. “Legann Reien?”

  “My brother, yes.”

  “I believe he's gone.”

  Olinia gripped the edge of the desk, leaning closer to the woman. “Gone? Gone where?”

  “I believe he went home,” she said, shrinking into her swivel chair.

  Olinia’s eyes narrowed. “You watched him get carried out of here unconscious. Who took him?”

  The woman looked like Olinia had slapped her across the face. “W-what?”

  It was time for Will to intervene before Olinia became violent again. He placed a hand on the small of her back and cleared his throat. “We’d like to speak with the principal.”

  “She – she’s in a meeting,” the receptionist stammered, not meeting his eyes.

  Olinia let out a short, bitter laugh before tossing a glance at Will. She strode past the receptionist's desk to the hallway behind. Will, assuming this was the way to the principal, decided to join her.

  “Hey, you can't go back there!”

  “Feel free to try to stop me,” Olinia muttered.

  Will was led to a pale pink office at the end of the hall. Olinia let herself inside and Will once again followed.

  “Harney, may I have a word?” Olinia dropped into a stuffed chair across from Harney’s desk.

  “How did you get in here?” The round woman blustered.

  Will lowered himself into the seat beside Olinia. “We walked.”

  Harney scowled. “Who are you?”

  “Olinia Reien. We’ve met before. I’m Legann’s older sister and legal guardian.”

  “And you?” Harney eyed Will suspiciously.

  “I’m Olinia’s boyfriend. My name’s Will.”

  “Why are you in my office?” Harney shoved some papers on her desk to the side.

  “You know exactly why,” Olinia retorted. “Who took my brother?”

  Harney frowned. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

  “Don’t give me that,” Olinia shot back. “What happened to Legann?”

  “I don’t know if I’m the correct person to ask. You should speak with his classmates.”

  Olinia leaped to her feet, slamming her hands on the desk. Harney jumped from the movement. “Shut your lying face!” Olinia was visibly seething. “You were here when that blonde chick drugged him. You won’t stop thinking about it. Now tell me, where did they go?”

  Harney was gaping. Even Will had to admit that Olinia was pretty intimidating. He also noticed that she slightly betrayed her gift – not that the round, stunned woman seemed to have caught on.

  “I-I’m going to call the police,” Harney managed to choke out.

  “Be my guest.” Olinia leaned further over the desk, placing her face closer to Harney’s. “I’m sure they’d love to hear the whole story from that jittery secretary of yours.”

  The principal’s mouth opened and shut twice before she finally said, “I don’t know where she took him.”

  “What’s her name?” Olinia glowered, but then straightened almost instantaneously, taking on a shocked look of her own. “Aeorin? Here?”

  Will blinked. “What?”

  Olinia glanced at him. “Aeorin took Legann. She drugged him.”

  “How – how did you know that?” Harney stuttered.

  Harney shouldn’t have opened her mouth. Olinia whirled back to her. “You allowed that manipulative whore to take my little brother away. I won’t forget that. You value your salary more than the lives of your students. When this is over and I get him back, I can guarantee you won’t have your job anymore.”

  Just then, a knock
sounded on the door behind Will and Olinia. They both turned. A petite, brunette student poked her head inside. Harney cleared her throat. “Yes, Hillary?” Her voice wavered.

  The girl eyed the room inquisitively. “The janitor locked himself in the gym again. He says he needs your key to let him out.”

  Harney stood. “Excuse me, please.”

  “We aren’t done here,” Olinia assured as Harney exited.

  Will’s eyes were on the princess. She was practically shaking from her rage. He wanted to ask her what she’d seen in Harney’s head. He glanced over his shoulder to see if Hillary had left them, but was startled to find her shutting the office door, placing herself alone with him and Olinia.

  “We don’t have very long,” Hillary whispered.

  Olinia faced her again slowly. “Why do you want to help the boy who yelled at you in front of all your friends?”

  The girl blushed. “That wasn’t what it looked like. That wasn’t really Nora. It was Serena. She’s one of us.”

  “Us?” Will repeated slowly.

  “Students of the Academy of Defining Specialties,” she replied. “You don’t know what you’re getting into. If you want to get Legann back, you’re going to need me.”

  12

  ------------------

  A strange, short note was repeating itself in a rhythmic order. Dagon lifted his heavy eyelids to white curtains surrounding him. On the opposite side of the curtains, he saw the outlines of several figures pass in front of some light source.

  He was lying beneath white sheets on a narrow bed. The ceiling above him was a pattern of white, lumpy square tiles. Dagon had no recollection of entering this room. He did not know where he was, what day it was, nor who had placed him in the bed. It could have been weeks since the last time his mind was as clear as it now was. If he tried to pull a memory from after leaving the Vrenyx, his thoughts suddenly became blurred.

  Off to the right of his head, the incessant note continued. Slowly, Dagon turned to it, irritated by his own weakness with how much effort the action required. He was startled to find several oddly shaped objects mounted to the tops of silver poles. Thin, smooth ropes, in colors of blue, yellow, and red, were protruding from the objects.