“We have a little,” said Morgan. “And we need to spend it exploring the other rooms. We need to figure out what we’re up against and learn all we can about how to fight it.”
“There is no we in this.” He reached out to push her aside, but she slapped her wrists together and threw her force field up before he could touch her. “Morgan, I am not letting you get killed for me! Now get out of my way!”
“Don't be such a moron!” Morgan snapped. “You can't beat him alone yet, and if you fail, we don't stand a chance without you. You are the Multiversal Paladin, and we are your companions, whether you like it or not.”
“Too true, chap,” Vassalus added, “too true. We are still exhausted from the last battle; it is a poor time to start a new one. And remember your father’s sword, Bright-Cage. You need it, and it could be in one of the other rooms.”
“Please calm down,” Morgan urged him.
Arthur took a deep breath and tried to calm his emotions, for her. He knew they were right and that he couldn’t face the warlock like this. He had to rest first and prepare. But the power in him — the two-hearts-beating rush of emotion — was overwhelming. And the door to the Inner Sanctum still drew him, as if the warlock was silently taunting him from behind it. He couldn't look away, and he couldn't stop his feet from taking another step toward it. With unnatural strength, he dragged Lexi along as he tried to step around Morgan.
She popped him in the face with her force field. As he recoiled in surprise, his eyes tearing up, she said, “Calm down and let it go!”
“Morgan, you don't understand. I have to —”
She made a tut-tut sound and shook her head. “Arthur, am I going to have to put you through the Tetris Calm?”
Startled, Arthur took his eyes off the door and looked right at Morgan.
“I don’t have any cards, but I want you to picture the T-shaped Tetris piece, upside down, in red — no, wait, picture it in purple.”
Arthur stared at her in disbelief, blinking slowly. The shadows faded, and the second heartbeat ceased. For a moment, he actually pictured the piece she had mentioned.
She dropped her shield and smiled. “Good. Now picture the L-shaped piece in a nice, soothing blue falling toward the first piece …”
“Morgan, you see Dr. Edelman for counseling, too?” he asked, perplexedly.
The Tetris Calm was a meditative technique Dr. Edelman used where he had you visualize playing Tetris with the pieces he showed you on flashcards. Dr. Edelman had developed the technique himself; Arthur doubted anyone else in the world used it.
“Of course,” Morgan replied.
“How’d you know I went to see him?”
“Well, there are only two psychiatrists in town who specialize in children and young adults, and one of them is too lame to handle you. Besides, I saw your file on his desk one day.” She looked away and chewed at her lip. “And I … may … have had a peek at the contents while he popped out of the room.”
Surprisingly, Arthur didn’t care that she had. Anything she’d read in that file she’d seen or heard firsthand by now. It’s not like his issues were a secret, and any she’d missed before, she’d seen on display over the last day.
“Edelman’s really weird, huh?” Arthur said.
Morgan hesitated, probably because she had expected him to be mad at her for reading his file. “You mean he’s weird like us, right? I like him.”
“You would.”
“He’s much better than my other psychiatrist, Dr. Shanks,” Morgan said. “Shanks is creepy and unsympathetic.”
“Is he fascinated by Tetris?”
Morgan smiled. “He’s fascinated by long-winded phrases and his fingernails.”
“You see both of them?”
“Yeah, unfortunately.”
Arthur realized he’d forgotten, for a few moments, all about the warlock. Morgan was like magic; she could actually calm him down! He had the sudden urge to hug her, but knew better.
“Morgan, I think you’re right. We are friends, and we have been, ever since we met. I mean, how could we not be? I just didn’t realize it.”
Morgan grinned. “That’s because you’re a moron.”
“Maybe I am.”
Suddenly, the lanterns down the Grand Hallway flared to full strength.
“Whoa,” Arthur said. “Check this place out.”
The hallway was grand, alright. The polished wood floors and lacquered panels on the walls gleamed beneath the blazing lanterns hanging from the rafters; the golden handles and plaques on the doors sparkled, along with elaborate tapestries and paintings, and the statuettes that stood in niches between the rooms.
The brightened hallway lifted his mood.
Morgan sighed with relief. “Welcome home, Arthur.”
Arthur ran his hands through his mussed-up, shock-white hair. As he gazed down the length of the Grand Hallway, he smiled — despite his exhaustion and injuries, despite the danger, even despite his feeling that he wasn’t really worthy of all this.
Two days ago, his life had seemed endlessly disappointing, with the threat of military school and years of frustration looming over him … but Arthur had been flung away from all that and across the universe. Now, he wasn’t stuck in Rockville where he would die of boredom at a dreary old age. Now, he had a purpose, and his life was going somewhere. With the Door To Many Worlds, it could literally go anywhere. And the best part was that he wouldn’t be alone.
Afterword
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The Storm Phase Series …
A teenage wizard burdened with a mysterious destiny, a cat-girl ninja he can't help but fall for, and a bat-winged daemon that doubles as a diary embark on a journey of self-discovery in a world teeming with monsters and magic. Perfect for fans of Percy Jackson and Avatar: the Last Airbender, this enchanting Asian-inspired fantasy series delivers fast-paced adventure for readers young and old.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Afterword
The Storm Phase Series …
The Shadowed Manse Page 13