by K. Manna
Opening his eyes and lowering his hand, the Zylo raised his voice. “Go back to your mats and sit quietly. We will get nowhere with this kind of behavior.” He waited until everyone sat quietly on their mats, and then he continued. “I will now give you your group assignments, but only if there is silence.”
No one said a word because we didn’t want to wait another minute to find out what group we were chosen for. My body began to shake with nerves. This caused me to grab for the jade stone inside of my front pocket: my comfort, my protection, my reminder of Eli. When my fingers reached deep inside of my pocket, it was completely empty.
Where the heck is it?
I looked all around the mat and in the surrounding grass.
Did I drop it? Ugh, you have got to be kidding me. Eli gave me that stone. I told him I would always keep it with me. Where can it be?
Breaking my worried thoughts, the Zylo called out in a loud, clear voice. “Those of you in the hearing group are Onnika, Anton, and Lottie.”
Lottie’s hands shot up to grab at her ears. Her facial expression was of utter surprise.
The Zylo continued. “Preston, Alexander, and Maxwell make up the vision group. The next group includes those who have the ability to heal wounds with their hands. The individuals in this group are Maybree, Margo, and Indee.”
What? I can heal? That can’t be.
Maybree and I looked at each other at the exact same moment. Her arms were wrapped around her knees tightly as she gave me a quick smile.
“And physical strength,” the Zylo said next, all eyes zooming toward Ricky.
He is so lame.
Ricky sat there flexing his biceps for all to see.
“For physical strength, we have Jeremiah, Sasha, and …” The Zylo looked at Ricky and then at the name on the paper in front of him. “Cole.”
Ricky shouted, “You have got to be kidding me!” He pointed to Sasha. “No chick is stronger than me. I could kick all of your a …”
The Zylo swiftly cut in. “We will have none of that. The scans are correct, son. I am sorry, but you are not listed for strength.” He looked down at the paper in his hand. “Now, for the final group we have Gage, Elise, and, of course, Ricky. You are in the group chosen for physical agility, speed.”
“Yeah, well, speed is pretty good, too, but I would still rather have strength. Who knows, maybe this is all a bunch of crap,” Ricky mumbled.
“Son, with an attitude like that you probably will not get very far. If you believe that this is all make-believe, then it will be just that, but only for those who do not believe. To gain the use of your energy for your abilities, you must be aware and focused. The mind must be willing and open while learning and working with your energy. You need to control it; otherwise, it will not work.”
Sasha raised her hand. “So, after we learn how to work with our energies, what do we do with it? I mean, what’s the point to all of this? I’ve always been stronger than my older brothers, but all it ever does is get me into trouble. Who really cares how tough I am?”
A large smile blossomed on the Zylo’s face. “I care. My son, the future Zylo, cares. We care greatly. We are royals, and we want and deserve to have the very best for ourselves, for the protection of the royal family and the royal island. The Zyon has chosen the five lucky groups that all of you make up today. The Royals Rise—as I am sure you all know very well—is the royal tradition to prepare the Zyon for his future and to prepare those who will assist him. It is our honor and right to make the winners of this extraordinary event part of the royal family. Only the winner of each group will live in the palace and be charged with the role of meeting any and all needs we may have in the future.”
Max raised his hand. “So you’re saying that if I end up having the best vision and winning this event, I will live here at the palace and watch for trouble, like enemy ships and airplanes and stuff?”
“Possibly. You will just have to win to find out, won’t you?” the Zylo winked.
Max went on. “Will I get to carry weapons?”
The Zylo sighed. “Now, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You all have much to learn about yourselves and what you are capable of.” He pointed to the moon. “Look. We have a full moon tonight. Perfect. It is getting late, and all of you have a lot to work on for the next thirteen days. But for right now, I would like all of you to take this time to meditate. Sit with your back straight, knees bent, with ankles crossed as close to your body as possible, and hold your hands together in your lap with fingers interlaced.” The Zylo waited patiently until we did as he asked. “This is the correct position for your body to achieve true meditation. Now, I would like you to all close your eyes and clear your mind. Free your thoughts. Focus on your body and all of the energy that streams through it. Be aware of the special ability that I told you that you have. Be aware of all that you are. Please meditate on this for the next thirty minutes. I will clap my hands together when the time is up.”
Thoughts whirled through my brain as I tried to do this strange meditation thing.
What exactly does he want us to do or feel? This is weird. Am I even doing it right? Ugh.
Meditation had always seemed like such an odd thing to me, and that’s why I never felt like doing it before. My mom used to say that my great-grandmother, Margo—the one I was named after—used to meditate in her yard, humming and chanting with crystals and stones surrounding her. Mom also said that Great-grandmother had a big garden where she would grow herbs, and use them when she felt sick. Little kids in her neighborhood, I guess, would call her a witch and run when they saw her. I found a box in our basement a few years ago that was filled with small glass bottles, incense, tarot cards, stones, and crystals. Mom said that when my great-grandmother died, nobody wanted the box, but Mom didn’t have the heart to throw it away. I thought the box was fascinating and decided to keep it underneath my bed. And that was how I became interested in stones and crystals, just like Great-grandma Margo.
My family also said that my great-grandma claimed that she cured her own cancer, but they all thought she was becoming senile and eventually put her in a nursing home. I always wondered about her and what really happened. When she died, I was still pretty young, just a little runt. The one clear memory that I have of her is of me playing with her long white hair. It smelled like wood, but in a good way.
Okay. This is not working. I don’t feel anything, no energy inside of me, and no energy around me. Nothing. What is energy supposed to feel like anyway?
I heard light footsteps on the grass. I saw only the blackness of my closed eyelids. I smelled the scent of grass after it has been freshly mowed. With my hands clasped together, I started to pick at my nails. My senses worked fine; they just weren’t made for sensing energy, I guess.
There is no way that I can focus on this “healing ability” that I supposedly have been born with. Ugh, this is all a bunch of weirdness.
CLAP!
Time’s up. This is all pointless. Totally pointless.
Whoa, clothes mania.
Inside the walk-in closet were tons of royal-blue clothes: cotton pants, shorts, sweat shirts, and T-shirts that were all marked with a silver “Z.” The maids had also brought white running shoes, socks, sports bras, and …
Real cute. Granny panties.
I changed into shorts and a T-shirt for bed. The long nightgowns provided were definitely not doing it for me. Throwing myself on my bed, I curled up with Yuni, my stuffed and very matted unicorn. This had been such a long day, and now sleep was calling to me. All the frustration that I had felt about not being able to meditate slowly began to fade from my thoughts, replaced with swirls of purple and green that swam through the darkness of my mind.
CHAPTER FOUR
STRUGGLING TO BELIEVE
Trudging through the long emerald-green grass, I finally let myself fall to the ground. I f
elt drained, completely run dry. Eventually, my heavy breaths began to slow. As I laid staring at the sky, I found my fingers weaving a little dance through the silky blades of grass that surrounded me. It all looked too perfect, felt too perfect.
Is it all fake?
The only thing that I knew to be real was me.
My moving hand scraped something hard and pointy.
What is that?
My fingertips separated the grass in search of the object.
There you are. I wondered where you were.
It was the green jade stone that Eli had given me. It must have dropped out of my pocket last night.
Smiling, I picked up the stone and turned it slowly against the sunlight. It glistened brightly where light collided with stone.
From out of nowhere, someone snatched the stone from my hand. Then I heard a girl’s voice say, “Oh, isn’t this pretty.”
What the heck! Onnika!
Jumping up, I screamed, “Give it back! Eli gave that to me! It’s mine!”
Onnika smiled an evil, heartless smile. “He doesn’t like you, Margo, and he never will. When are you going to get that through your head? Here, this should help. I forgot to mention that Eli asked me out. We’re together now. He’s my boyfriend, so you won’t be needing this.” Onnika dangled the stone in front of my face.
“Give it back. Now!” Tears began to well up in my eyes.
Onnika started to laugh at me, mocking my words and my cries. Tears spilled from my eyes, streaming down my face. I couldn’t hold them in any longer, no matter how hard I tried.
How can a person be so mean? So cruel?
Onnika continued to laugh as I closed my eyes, trying to shut her out. More and more tears came running down my cheeks, never-
ending tears.
Wiping my eyes, I woke from that horrible dream. My eyes felt hot, slightly swollen, and wet. The pillow that I was lying on was a salty, sopping mess.
How can dreams feel so damn real?
That dream made me feel like a bucket full of sadness with a hint of anger on top.
Grr, that Onnika chick. She pisses me off. Okay, okay. It was only a dream. She isn’t really with Eli. She probably doesn’t even know him. And she doesn’t have the stone. The stone! Where is it?
Pushing the covers away, I crawled out of bed and started to scramble around the room.
Ugh, nothing. Where else could it be?
I looked in the bathroom, in the closet, and on top of the dresser.
Nope. Okay, retrace your steps, Margo. When did I last see it? Hmm … oh, yeah, when that security lady gave it back to me. I must have slipped it back in my bag.
I walked over to my bag on the floor next to the nightstand and unzipped it. I sighed. “There it is. I forgot I put it back in there; so dumb of me. I hate that feeling of losing something important.”
Lottie turned over in her bed and groggily asked, “What did you lose?”
“Nothing. I found it now. It’s a jade stone that I got for my birthday.”
Lottie asked, “What’s so important about a stone? What do you do with it?”
“Well, my best friend, Eli, gave it to me. I don’t know if you believe in the power of objects, but jade is used for protection, power, and lo …” I stumbled over the word, just as Eli had done.
Lottie looked at me kind of weird. “And what?”
“They say it’s also used for love,” I continued.
Lottie smiled as she sat up in bed. “Oh, so are you more than just friends with Eli?”
I looked at Lottie out of the corner of my eye. “No. Only friends.”
“I don’t believe you. Why are you acting like this? Why did you not want to say love? If you two are strictly friends, then what is the big deal?”
Ugh, why is she bothering me about this?
I tried to look Lottie straight in the eye, but I couldn’t. She was on to my biggest secret EVER! I had promised myself never to tell anyone.
Maybe it’s not a big deal if I tell Lottie. It’s not like she knows Eli. No, I just met her, and she could have a big mouth. And who knows, Gage could find out somehow. No, I’m surely not telling her. If Gage ever found out, I would never hear the last of it.
So I lied. “It’s not a big deal,” I said. “We’re best friends, and that’s all we’ll ever be. The stone is just a stone, nothing more. I just like having it with me.”
Lottie walked toward the bathroom. “Okay, okay. You guys are just friends.” She started to close the bathroom door, then gave me a look. “But I still don’t believe you.”
I rolled my eyes.
Whatever.
Sir Felix had told us the night before that breakfast began every morning at eight, and so Lottie and I made sure to arrive at the dining hall promptly at eight. Some of the others were already seated and ready to order. Everyone wore blue outfits, with some choosing pants and others shorts. I had selected shorts, the sort that hung just above the knee. A little long for my taste, but it must have been at the Zyla’s request.
After everyone had been seated, Keendra and Bridgeet began to serve each of us first with a large glass filled with a very orange liquid. Swirls of deep brown and little green speckles floated throughout the liquid.
Oh, please tell me this isn’t carrots. I hate carrots.
Sir Felix entered through a door at the far end of the room, a door that I had never noticed before because it blended in with the wall design so well.
Smoothing his shirt, Sir Felix began to speak. “Are all of you excited to begin preparing for the Royals Rise?”
Enthusiastic whistles and shouts filled the room. “First things first. Each of you has a glass of liquid in front of you that you must drink every morning, before eating your breakfast. We call this drink Enertion, and it is extremely important that you drink this even if you do not like the taste. Enertion is made only here at the palace, and the royal family drinks a glass every morning. It is filled with all kinds of great fruits and veggies and plenty more that will give your bodies energy and nutrients for the day. This special drink also enhances your immune systems and fights illness and infection, which will be important for all of you. We wouldn’t want any of you to become sick, would we? Now, please drink up. The quicker you get it down, the better.”
Raising our glasses, we all took our first sip.
Ugh, this is horrible. How will I ever get all of this down? This drink should be called Craption. Ick, it tastes like black licorice, carrots, moldy cheese, dirt, and who knows what else?
Something in the drink stung my throat. Holding my breath, I took a gulp. My throat felt constricted, and I began to gag. Sitting up straight, I steadied myself by taking in another slow, deep breath and tried not to think about the horrible taste. I could hear the others around me complaining, some gagging, just like I was.
Watching all of us struggle to drink the liquid, Sir Felix said, “It is an acquired taste. It will get easier with time.”
From behind my almost-full glass, I noticed Gage, Ricky, and Anton racing to see who could get their drink down the fastest. Within seconds, Gage slammed his empty glass down on the table before the others.
“That’s how it’s done, baby!” Gage yelled.
Of course he would win. I had always told Gage that he should be on one of those reality shows where they have to eat and drink horrible, nasty, gut-wrenching things like animal organs and insects. Gage had the stomach for it. He could down just about anything.
Eventually, I finished my drink—and it stayed down. By that time, my appetite had totally disappeared, but I managed to nibble on a piece of buttered toast. I hoped it would absorb the nasty Enertion we’d been forced to drink. Well, not really forced because we all drank it willingly. Everyone wanted to win the Royals Rise, and drinking that sludge was a small price to pay to achieve tha
t goal.
After breakfast, Sir Felix separated everyone into their groups. Maybree, Indee, and I now stood together. A tall, balding man with a thick mustache told us to follow him outside. Carrying a large black duffel bag, he led us far across the back lawn to a secluded area among the patch of weeping willow trees that I had noticed from the bedroom window. Near the largest tree, we laid blue mats down and took a seat. I rested my back against the tree trunk. This willow tree was even bigger than Mr. Willow at home. Its long strands of leaves dangled down to the ground, surrounding us, making me feel relaxed and almost safe.
The man smiled. “Hello, my name is Eugene. I will be helping you with your healing abilities. For some of you, this may begin to happen very quickly, and for others, it may take a little more time and patience. Let’s start by having each of you introduce yourselves.”
After we had introduced ourselves, Indee asked, “Eugene, are you able to heal? Because if you are, I totally want to see you do it. I have never seen anything like that before … except in the movies.”
“Yes, I am able to heal less-significant injuries, but only my own,” Eugene said. “Hopefully all of you do not share these limitations. But I won’t be showing you my healing abilities today. We’ll save that for another day.”
“Oh, come on. Don’t keep me waiting. Do it now. Pretty please,” Indee whined.
Eugene shook his head. “No, today we need to focus on all of you.”
I asked, “Eugene, how did you know that you had the ability to heal? I mean, I was completely clueless that I could heal until the Zylo told me that I was born with the ability. Heck, I’m still not even sure that I believe it myself. How is a person supposed to know this on their own?”
“Well, you see, that is just it. Most people do not know and will never know. That is why we so rarely hear about people having these special, almost magical abilities,” Eugene began. “For me, it started when I was seventeen years old. It was only weeks away from my eighteenth birthday when my grandfather became terribly sick, and we all knew he didn’t have more than a few days to live. Before he passed away, he called my younger brother and me to his room and explained that he had something very important to tell us. It was odd, because he was adamant that he only wanted to see my brother and me. I think my father was a little worried about Grandfather’s strange request, but he eventually left the room.