Frivlok (Appointments on Plum Street Book 2)

by Eli Ingle

  “Oh good,” said Rona. “More walking.”

  “You’ve just been doing nothing, riding in a cable car!” said Rigel. Rona gave him a look as they began climbing. The clang of the steps echoed up throughout the building as they climbed.

  Even when they reached the top, Rigel and Rona were not out of breath – their training was obviously good for something. Mry and Bry were not faring so well.

  “I need to get out of that basement more often,” Mry puffed.

  The group arrived at another door. The walls here were dotted with windows, splashing afternoon sunshine across the room. This time Bry did knock before opening the door.

  Rigel looked around as he entered the room. It reminded him very much of the audience room where the Royals had met them for the first time, except this one was sparser. There were several bookshelves, two comfortable chairs and a rug. The rest of the room was taken up with floor-to-ceiling windows. There was a ladder at the opposite end with a trapdoor open at the top. Alcor was sitting in one of the chairs, reading a book. Mizar was not there. As he heard them enter, the King looked up at them and smiled.

  “Ah, welcome! Welcome! Glad to see you again.” He stood up and walked over to them, shaking their hands. He had replaced his long robes with a white shirt, red waistcoat and dark burgundy trousers. His boots were a reddish-maroon, shined until they reflected the sunlight. “Professors,” he said, inclining his head at them. “You’ve scrubbed up well.”

  “We seem to be hearing that a lot today,” replied Bry, examining a fingernail.

  “Maybe because it’s the first time it’s ever looked like you’ve made an effort,” the King replied, winking at the Light Ones.

  Bry’s mouth opened and closed a few times but before he had the chance to respond, the King shouted “Mizar! Our guests are here!”

  There was a short period of silence followed by cursing until they saw a pair of shiny azure shoes and trousers followed by the rest of the Queen. She had also ditched her robes in favour of a white shirt and ocean blue waistcoat. A haze of tobacco smoke followed her.

  “Good day, children,” she said, smiling at them. Rigel nodded his head. It did not escape his notice that she ignored the professors, but he did not know what to make of it.

  “I wish you’d give up that habit,” complained Alcor.

  “And I wish you’d give up being a whiny baby and yet here we are,” replied his sister, giving him an icy stare. “When are the others getting here?”

  “They should be here soon,” commented the King.

  Drinks were offered and passed around. There was a knock on the door.

  “Enter!” Mizar announced, slugging her drink.

  The door opened to reveal Laurie, Tink, L’aroche, Opal and Quimby all trying to peer in at once. Tink spotted the Light Ones first and gave them a magnificent grin.

  “Hello, you two!”

  The pilots all tried to get through the door at once. There was grumbling, failed attempts at freeing themselves and laughter before they burst through the door, stumbling into the room. Mizar tutted at them, but Alcor was grinning. Laurie stood, brushing off his jacket.

  “Your Highnesses,” he addressed the royals, bowing. The other pilots followed suit. “Hello!” he bellowed at the Light Ones, who dived over to hug him and the rest.

  “It’s good to see you,” said Rigel, voice muffled as his face was pressed into the Captain’s jacket.

  “I’ve missed you,” said Rona, hugging him from the other side.

  “Aw! This is nice!” said Opal, attempting to hug them all.

  “Please, sit down,” offered Alcor.

  After a few more moments of greetings, the group sat around in a circle of chairs, smiling at one another.

  “We might as well get down to the formalities,” said Alcor. “There will be plenty of time for small talk later.”

  “There will where you’re going,” muttered Mizar. The King ignored her.

  “How has your training gone?” asked Alcor.

  “Well,” replied Rigel. “I feel healthier and stronger than before. Erdiz’s lessons have taught us how to think in a healthier way.”

  “I think we both were expecting lessons about our powers,” interrupted Rona. There was an awkward silence as the Royals looked at each other.

  “In honesty and confidence, Rona,” Alcor replied, “we do not believe there is anyone who would be qualified for the job. It is something you must teach yourselves.”

  “But how?” asked Rigel, a wave a fear crashing over him. “We don’t know how.”

  “You did once – long ago. You must try to resurrect those memories and powers.”

  The group fell silent.

  “Apart from that?” Laurie prompted.

  “Yes, it went well,” said Rona. “We’re as prepared as we’re ever going to be.”

  “Professors?” Alcor inquired.

  “Yes?” asked Bry, looking up from his fingernail, which he had been biting intently.

  “How has the desensitisation gone?”

  “Well, if we dismembered all of you right now and there was blood and your intestines everywhere, Rigel and Rona would try to help you, but they could stare at it all day and not feel one ounce of stress or the urge to vomit,” he replied.

  “Charming,” the King replied.

  “I’d like to see you try,” sniffed Mizar, looking at the professors. As Rigel glanced over to their teachers, he saw them give the Queen a look that made her avert her attention from them.

  “Well,” the King sighed. “It seems you’re as ready as you’re ever going to be …”

  “I guess.”

  “… which is fortunate as we have you scheduled as leaving this evening.”

  “What?!”

  “I’m sorry this is sprung on you at such short notice, but we really don’t have much choice.”

  “A bit of warning would have been nice,” said Rona.

  “Yes, and I’m sorry about that. But you also have to consider it from our point of view. You’ve been locked up in the Institute for weeks now and no-one's seen hide nor hair of you. For all they knew, you’d disappeared or goodness knows what. That is why, I admit, we had you driven out here today. Photographers have been camping outside the Institute looking for hints as to whether you’re there or not. We didn’t want them getting edgy and thinking you’d disappeared, so we brought you out today to give them a sight of you. Then when you disappear after tonight, it could be another three or four weeks before they get suspicious about not seeing you again.”

  “Oooh, you’re good,” smirked Tink.

  Alcor gave him a sideways glance before continuing. “So as sorry as I am to land this on you, you must leave tonight. We will all leave here together and send you on your way.”

  “We’re not going alone, are we?” asked Rigel, suddenly panicked.

  “No, of course not,” snorted Mizar, “you wouldn’t stand a chance.”

  “Who is going with us?” asked Rona.

  “Erdiz, Jhoan and Laurie,” replied Alcor. At this announcement, Mry looked deflated, but Rigel could not put his finger on why. He was feeling too relieved about hearing who was joining them.

  “Excellent!” he beamed. Tink did not look too happy about being left out but the others were smiling at the children.

  “So I guess we’d better go and pack then,” said Rigel, more to himself than anything.

  “Yes, you should. Let’s go.”

  So without further conversation, they made their way back to the Institute. Rigel could not help but feel that their afternoon had been a waste of time more than anything. But he supposed that at least the press had caught a glimpse of them and no-one would be panicking that they had just vanished.

  On the car ride home, Mry seemed upset about something but Rigel did not want to pry into what it was. She tried to hold his hand again, but he pulled it away and looked at her sharply.


  “How old are you?” Rigel asked, frowning at her.

  “Fifteen,” she replied.

  The answer took him by surprise.

  “Fifteen? How can you be fifteen? You’re a professor.”

  If anything, this seemed to increase how unhappy she looked.

  “Yes,” she sighed. “We had a difficult childhood.”

  “That’s saying something,” muttered Bry from the front seat. Rigel glanced over at him, annoyed that the conversation was being eavesdropped upon.

  “And the Institute is the only real home we’ve ever had,” Mry continued as if there had been no interruption. “Fortunately, we’re clever enough to build a niche for ourselves there.”

  “Right,” said Rigel, troubled as he looked out at the passing countryside.

  Pulling up outside the Institute, they were greeted by the cries of photographers and newspaper writers all vying for their attention.

  “Give them five minutes of your time,” advised Laurie. “They have been waiting weeks to speak to you and not once have any of them tried to break in … which is unusual.”

  Standing at the top of the stairs by the front doors, Rigel and Rona turned to face the crowd.

  “Hello,” said Rigel, smiling.

  “Hi,” said Rona.

  A barrage of questions hailed down on them all at once.

  “One at a time, please. We’ll do our best,” said Rona, holding her hands up.

  “How are you!” someone called out.

  “Fine, thanks. How are you?” For some reason, this brought a chuckle from the crowd.

  “How’s the training going?”

  “Great thanks,” replied Rigel. “We’ve learnt a lot and we’re already stronger than we were.” They did not have to know that this meant in a physical capacity.

  “That’s great!” someone else called up. “What have you been learning?”

  “We can’t tell you that,” replied Rona. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you’ll understand it’s kind of confidential.”

  “Of course, of course,” the reporter answered back, “but you feel confident that what you’ve learnt will help?”

  Rigel could not help but feel that half of these questions were asked for their own reassurance rather than any desire to find out answers for the newspapers.

  “Definitely,” he replied. “Watch out, Darkness – here we come!”

  This brought a cheer from the crowd.

  “Two more questions, please,” announced Laurie. “The children need to be going on.”

  “How do you feel about this, Laurie?” asked a reporter.

  “I’m very proud of the children and confident that they’re progressing nicely,” Laurie responded. “But I think you want their answers, not mine. Don’t waste your questions on me.”

  The crowd laughed again. There was always something about a crowd of people desperate for reassurance that would laugh and cheer at things when it was really not justified.

  “What’s next for you then, kids?” asked a female reporter, holding out a recording device.

  “More training,” replied Rona, vaguely. “Until we’ve reached our full potential.”

  “And then?” she pressed. The crowd fell silent. It seemed this was the real reason they had all gathered round. Rigel pressed his lips together, unsure how to answer. What then?

  “We destroy the Darkness,” shrugged Rona, giving a sideways grin.

  The crowd burst into spontaneous applause and cheering. The Light Ones smiled in response.

  “That’s all we have time for now,” called Laurie, attempting to be heard over the crowd.

  “Thank you for your time,” said Rigel, blushing. The idea that people were interested in him was still a novelty.

  “Thank you for talking to us!” replied an enthusiastic reporter, tipping his hat at them. There was more applause before the group went inside.

  The sounds of the street outside were muffled as the large doors of the Institute were shut behind them.

  “You’re getting the hang of that,” said Laurie, smiling at them.

  “Good,” said Rona, stretching. “We did enough meetings, so I would have hoped so.”

  “I guess we should pack?” asked Rigel.

  “You got it,” replied Laurie.

  “What about you?

  “I did it a few days ago. My luggage is ready and waiting.”

  “Right. Well, we’ll go and do it now then. Where shall we meet you?” asked Rona.

  “In the Okturn. They’ll take us from there. I’ll be darned if I can remember the way to that portal room.”

  “It’s a wonder you ever became a Captain of an airship,” grinned Rigel.

  “Go on, scat!” said Laurie, shooing them off with his hands. “Don’t dawdle.”

  “I never dawdle,” replied Rona, walking off. “I just use my time inefficiently.”

  As Rigel was clicking the locks on his suitcase shut, there was a knock at the door. Expecting it to be Rona, he called for them to come in. When she did not appear, he pulled the case from the bed and set it by the door. Opening it into the hall, he was surprised to see Mry standing there, looking even more awkward than normal – if that was possible.

  “Er, hello,” he said, holding onto the door knob.

  “You’re going then?” she asked, looking past him and down at the suitcase.

  “Well, yes,” he replied. What had she been expecting the answer to be?

  She frowned, looking unhappy, tried to say something, stuttered, tried again and failed. Sighing heavily, she blurted out, “I’ll miss you.” Then she stared at him from behind her round sunglasses.

  “Okay ….” He did not like where this was going. She was still staring at him, seeming to expect more of the answer. “I’ll miss everyone,” he replied cautiously. “Thank you for all your lessons, Mry. We struggled with them but—”

  “I love you.”

  Rigel opened his mouth, shut it, opened it again and stared at her.

  “What?”

  “You heard me,” she whispered.

  “Mry I don’t think … this is hardly the time—”

  “Say it back.”

  “Say what back?” he asked, feeling a mix of irritation and irrational fear blooming in his chest.

  “You know what,” she replied, looking sulky.

  “Look, I’m sorry but now isn’t the time for this conversation,” he said, picking up his suitcase and attempting to squeeze past her. She blocked the door with her marble-coloured arm.

  “Yes it is,” she insisted. “You’re going to that place and you might die there. Now is the time.”

  “I don’t know what to say. I’m sorry.”

  “Okay.” She had moved away from the door and was staring at the carpet. Fearing she might spring to block his way again, Rigel began to creep slowly out of his room. When she did not try to stop him, he pulled the door shut and locked it. He glanced at her, feeling more awkward than ever.

  “Did you want to say anything else?” he asked.

  “No.”

  “Mry, I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t. Just go.”

  “Mry?”

  “Go.”

  He took two steps away from her before looking back. Crystalline tears were falling from her downturned face, landing on the carpet like morning dew. Feeling like he had just drowned a bag of puppies, Rigel turned and began walking away again. A flurry of footsteps followed him, making him turn around in alarm. Mry threw herself at him, grabbed his hair and reeled him in, kissing him. In his surprise, Rigel staggered backwards, falling onto the carpet. This allowed him to escape by scrambling backwards, before hurrying away, his battered suitcase swinging as he went.

  Mry stared at the retreating figure going down the hallway. When he was out of sight she slid to the floor and cried.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Rigel’s suitcase bashed against his leg as
he walked down to the Okturn but he barely noticed. His head was still reeling from his conversation with Mry. He felt terrible for the way it had come across, yet at the same time, he was confused and very angry with her. What had she expected? He was supposed to be transported off to some unknown end of the universe in about thirty minutes, worrying to death about it and she was standing there wanting to talk about her feelings.

  “What about my feelings?” he muttered to himself, as his stomach did a backflip. Where were they going, really?

  “They don’t matter.”

  Rigel jumped. He had been so preoccupied that he had not even noticed he had arrived at his destination. He looked up and saw Rona.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “I said your feelings don’t matter,” she grinned.

  “Har-har,” he grumbled, setting his suitcase down. They were alone in the room. The sun glaring down through the glass dome cast a strange auburn tinge onto her green hair.

  “Oh cheer up,” she said, bumping his arm. “We could get fried by inter-dimensional gamma rays in thirty minutes. Do you really want to spend your last half hour alive sulking?”

  “That is a very good point,” he conceded. “Where’s Laurie?”

  “Getting his bags, I guess.”

  Rigel glanced around the room, feeling distracted. Questions raced through his head. How long did she think it would take them to get there? Would it be safe? How would they get home again? Then he realised that she would not have the answers either.

  “I’m scared,” he said instead.

  She shuffled over and hugged him. “Me too.”

  “Aw that’s cute,” called Laurie, making them jump. “All set?”

  “I guess,” said Rigel.

  “Cheer up! We’re going on an adventure!”

  Rigel wished people would stop telling him to cheer up. “I’ll be happier when we get there in one piece.”

  “Hey, if you can fly in an airship with me and not have to send off insurance quotes for lost limbs, I’m sure you can step through a portal and arrive unscathed on the other side,” he said easily. “I think we’re meeting the others down there.”

  “Right. Shall we go then?” asked Rona, picking up her suitcase.