by K. Manna
Holy shit!
Abruptly, a tree broke through the ground right beneath me. It was so large that when I curled into a ball, I still had plenty of space around me to know that I wouldn’t roll right off the edge of its canopy. It grew higher and higher, pushing for the yellow sky. I could feel it, but I kept my eyes closed, too scared to watch. At first I didn’t think that it would stop until I was high above the clouds. What seemed like minutes was probably mere seconds, but I dared not open my eyes. Eventually, I gathered my courage enough to look. Peeking out one eye and then the other, I found leaves and branches surrounding me. Behind me, a wooden tree house stood quietly among branches. Curious, I stood up and went to inspect the unusual cottage.
CREAK.
The door slowly opened, and a warm smell filled the air.
Mmm, cinnamon.
Very cautiously, I stepped through the doorway. To my surprise, I found a little old lady rocking back and forth in a rocking chair. An easel with a finished painting sat a few feet from her chair. This room felt so warm and cozy with candlelight flickering in the breeze that gently blew through the treetop.
“Come, come, darling. I have something to show you,” the old lady said sweetly, continuing to rock in her chair.
Her voice sounds so familiar.
Quietly, I walked toward her, a little hesitant at first.
The old lady smiled. “Don’t you worry now. This will only take a moment. I would like you to take a look at my painting. I finished it just before bed last night. Go on. Go on. Take a look.”
I turned and walked closer to the painting near the window.
OMG, the image moves.
The paint started to move as if it were real life. This painting was of a girl standing on a rock, her white dress flowing with the wind. Ocean water swam in front of her, brushing up against the rock and onto her toes. In the background was a blur of colors. Paint strokes brushed from left to right with a sense of motion, a motion that moved with such speed.
This painting is so interesting, but what does it mean?
“Ma’am, why did you want to show me this painting? What does it mean?” I asked, still staring at all the movement inside the canvas.
She smiled back at me. “Oh, I don’t know, darling. That is for you to figure out. ’Tis about time.”
Time for what? Me to figure out? What in the heck is that supposed to mean? She painted this, so she should know what it’s about.
“Before you go, please take this with you.” The old lady reached out her hand to me.
That was when I noticed it.
That necklace around her neck, where did she get it?
The necklace hanging from around her neck faintly glowed back at me in the candlelight. It was a pendant that read “Go-Go.” My eyes almost popped out of my head.
Who is she? Why does she have my name on her necklace?
My hand opened and she dropped something warm into it. When she pulled her hand away, my jade-green stone began to glow back at me.
My jaw fell open. “Where did you get this?”
Without a word, the old lady shrugged her shoulders, still smiling, her aged eyes twinkling in the light.
Can it really be? Can this really be me?
In an instant, the rock grew horribly hot before turning into a spider that raced up my arm.
“Ahh!” I screamed. “Get it off of me!” My body shook, trying to throw the spider off of my arm. I shook and shook and shook …
My eyes flew open, and my whole body jolted awake. Sleep no longer had its hold on me. Dreams no longer distracted my thoughts. I was back in my room. Back to reality, awake, but that dream still very much remembered. It had felt so real, so alive. Oh, and that spider. That’s what really woke me. My body shook again from the memory. I looked at the clock.
Ugh, it’s only five twenty-three.
“There is no way that I can get back to sleep.” I threw back the covers. “I gotta get outta this room.”
I tugged on a sweatshirt and pants and, still holding tightly onto Yuni and my jade stone, crept out of the door, down the long hallway, down the many stairs, and through many more winding hallways until I reached an almost hidden back door. The palace was quiet at that hour. Only a couple of servants were out and about, but they didn’t seem to pay much attention to me or anything else, only to what they were doing.
Work, work, work, little bees. Work is so much more important than life.
I stepped outside where the sun had already begun to rise. The grass looked and felt dewy against my bare feet as I made my way across the lawn toward the cluster of willow trees. My eyes trailed upward where I saw birds flying high in the sky in the shape of a “V.”
Wow, I can’t believe they aren’t in the shape of a “Z” like everything else around here. It’s nice to see something different. It’s nice to be reminded that this isn’t all that exists anymore.
Tree branches swayed in the wind, leaves flickering as if they were dancing. Normally, this sound would have relaxed me, but not today, not after seeing Gage’s still body. Everything had happened so suddenly, so fast. And it still didn’t feel real. The world wasn’t the same without him.
My brother. My twin. Gone forever. How can this be?
Sadness pressed me down to the ground, my back sliding against a willow tree. Its leaves dangled down from above, surrounding me but no longer protecting me. Nothing could anymore. But I still watched the leaves sway in the wind, my heavy eyes spacing out for I don’t know how long.
Just stop thinking. Forget all that happened and remember … nothing. Just disappear into nothing.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw something move.
Oh cute, a little rabbit.
I watched it hop away through the tall grass until another something caught my attention, glistening in the morning sunlight. I scooted toward the spiderweb. It was empty, no insects stuck to it … yet. At the edge of the web, a small black spider sat very still, silently waiting for its prey to be caught.
“Hey, icky little spider, this must be your castle, huh?” I asked in a whisper. “Nothing is forever, little guy. Your sparkling castle will be torn down just like everything has been torn from me: my brother, my dreams, everything.” Tears ran down my face with the reality of it all. With one brush of my hand, I destroyed the spider’s castle.
Broken within a flash just like my world, but at least the spider can rebuild its castle. I can change nothing. Everything is out of my hands, out of my control. I have nothing.
A little while later, I heard a whistling sound followed by voices. The sounds grew louder and clearer as they came closer. It was Sir Felix, Sasha, and Anton.
Sir Felix was smiling crookedly when he came into view. “I have brought your Enertion, Margo. How are you feeling this morning?”
What a stupid question. How the hell does he think I’m feeling?
“Um, I still feel like crap. And I’m not hungry or thirsty, so you can take that back,” I said, feeling slightly annoyed.
Sir Felix held the glass of Enertion out toward me. “Oh, Margo, you must have something. You haven’t had anything at all since the Royals Rise yesterday.”
I shook my head. “No, I don’t want it. Take it away, please.”
Sir Felix didn’t take the glass away. “Only drink a little bit then. Come on, Margo, at least try.”
Ugh, can’t you just leave me alone.
I took the stupid glass from him and took a sip so that he would shut his trap, but then I choked. My throat closed and I gagged uncontrollably, spitting out the revolting drink.
“I can’t, see? I can’t,” I mumbled, handing the glass back.
“Yes, I see. Well, I will come back in a little while so that you may try again. You must have a glass every day at the Zylo and Zyon’s request.” Sir Felix began to walk
in the direction of the palace, then he looked back. “Don’t be long, Anton. Your ceremony will take place after Preston’s and Roderick’s. Sasha, you will follow after Anton. Margo, we have decided to give you some time to gather yourself together and find the strength to move forward. You will be going last, my dear.”
Sasha crouched down beside me. “I am here for you, Go-Go. Whenever you need to talk, okay? We all feel terrible about what happened, and I know there are no words to make you feel better. Just know that I am always here for you.”
Looking at the ground, I nodded, clenching tightly onto Yuni and the stone in my hands.
Anton spoke. “Gage was a really good guy. Man, he should be here with us. I can’t believe what has happened. Seriously, it doesn’t seem real. I’m so sorry.”
“I know. I know both of you are. Thank you,” I said softly, still looking at the ground. “I feel so bad for thinking this way, but I wonder why it had to be Gage. Why couldn’t it have been Ricky instead?” Tears began to cloud my eyes. “Or Onnika? She is so cruel. It should have been her, not G-Gage.”
“I totally know what you mean,” Anton said. “You might not care to hear this, but when Onnika was on the boat ride back home, I guess she was all crying and spazzing out over how she lost and threw herself over the edge of the boat. Cole actually jumped in after her and saved her.”
“Really? That’s crazy.” I picked at the grass near my feet.
“Cole should have let her drown. She was the one stupid enough to jump in,” Sasha went on. “But Cole’s a good guy.”
A sound rustled behind where Anton stood, causing him to turn around. “Oh hello, Zyness Rozalind.”
“Hello,” Roz said, walking up to join us. “I saw Sir Felix a moment ago and he said you were over here. Um …” she looked from Anton to Sasha. “May I please speak with Go-Go alone for a moment?”
Anton nodded while he helped pull Sasha to her feet. “Oh yeah, for sure. We better get back anyway. The ceremony and all, ya know? Next time you see us we’ll all be royals.” Anton smiled.
After Sasha and Anton were out of view, Roz sat down beside me and wrapped her arms around me. “I heard what happened, Go-Go. I am so sorry for your loss. I couldn’t even begin to understand how you feel or what you are going through.”
I bit the inside of my lip. “Why did you say ‘you heard’? Didn’t you see it happen? Didn’t you watch?”
Roz shook her head. “No, the royal females are not allowed to watch the Royals Rise. I only heard my father and uncle talking about what happened.”
“O-oh,” my voice cracked. “Roz, um, I can’t stand being here. I just want to go home and be with my mom and dad. All of this isn’t for me. I wish, I wish I could go home. Maybe Indee or Bree could come back and take my place. They would love to come back, and they can serve your brother just as well as I can.”
Roz leaned her head against mine. “I will do what I can, all right? I will talk to my father and my brother. My father can be very strict and old-fashioned about certain things, so he may not agree, Go-Go. But I will at least try.”
I wept into my hands. “Th-thank you, Roz. Thank you.”
Roz stood up. “I will be back. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.”
Mine were already. My heart almost skipped a beat at the thought of going home.
Home.
Yes, the only place that I yearned for. I would stay right here and wait impatiently for Roz to come back.
Please, Roz, come back with good news.
I took this time to think about Sasha and Anton and their changing to the royal status.
They are both so happy. At least someone is right now; too bad it can’t be me. Things could have ended up so differently if Gage hadn’t fallen, hadn’t died. What if we would have won together?
The thought of us both winning made me smile, but only for a second. I knew it would never be.
Thoughts reeled through my brain over and over again. What if this? What if that? I should have done this, or I should have done that.
Blah, blah, blah … It never ends.
Finally, Roz came back, but her face was no longer dry; it was wet with tears. “Neither of them would agree to it, Go-Go. I’m so sorry. I swear if it were my decision, I would let you go back home in a heartbeat. Ugh, I’m so upset right now. How can they be so inconsiderate, so thoughtless? I don’t get it. I don’t get them. How can this be my family?”
My only hope had just been torn apart, shattered into little pieces. I closed my eyes and softly said, “It’s okay, Roz. Thank you for trying.”
“Truly, I am so sorry,” Roz cried.
“I know you are. Roz, would you please leave me alone right now? I just, I just need to be alone. I’m sorry,” my voice quivered.
Roz nodded, wiping a tear from her eye. “Of course, I completely understand.”
Roz ran off, crying. I lay on the ground facing the tree trunk, staring at all of the lines in the bark while tears soaked Yuni underneath my head. The jade stone warmed in my hand. Before I knew what I was doing, I dug into the tree with the stone. Flickers of Gage flashed through my mind like a movie, and slowly a word was carved into the tree: Gage.
I whispered angrily to myself, “Dammit, Gage! Why couldn’t it have been me? Why? You could have handled this so much better than me. You were always the stronger one. Always.”
I lay there torturing myself with questions, one after the other, when something else caught my eye. A tiny green glow blinked from underneath a leaf on the ground near my head. Reaching to see what it was, I turned the leaf over and …
Suddenly, I felt a quick movement in the air and felt something nearby that startled me.
It was the Zylo, rushing toward me. “Margo, please, we need your help right away,” he said, hovering over me with concern in his eyes.
I rolled over. “My help? I can’t help anyone. Look at me.”
“Yes, you can, and you must. The Zyla has given birth to our second son, and there are serious complications that were not expected. Sonya is healing my wife at this very moment, and I need you to heal my son. Margo, it is serious and could be life threatening for the both of them. Please, I beg of you,” the Zylo pleaded.
What am I supposed to say? I can’t refuse. Nobody refuses the Zylo, nobody. Plus, this is helping the baby zyon, an innocent little being’s life. If I can help, then I will.
“Okay, take me to him,” I said willingly.
The Zylo sighed with relief before turning his back toward me, crouching to the ground. “Please get on my back. It will be much quicker.”
I shook my head. “Oh no, that’s all right. I will run.”
The Zylo turned serious eyes upon me. “Get on.”
“Okay, okay.” I gave up and climbed onto his back.
Whoa, holy crap, he wasn’t kidding when he said this would be quicker.
We shot through the air with such speed that it took me a few seconds to catch my breath as a gust of wind blew in my face. His legs ran so quickly that we made it to the palace doors within seconds. His speed reminded me of Gage and how fast he always had been and then how much faster he became after coming to the palace.
The Zylo and Gage were born with the same gift—tremendous speed.
With me on his back, hanging on for dear life, we raced through the quiet hallways and up each flight of stairs. I caught a glimpse of Preston and Sir Felix walking together down a hallway with their backs toward us. It was only a quick glimpse, but it almost looked like Preston walked with his hands brushing against the wall beside him.
Continuing on up many more stairs, higher than I had ever been before, we finally reached the very top floor. Down the carpeted hallway we sped until stopping in front of two large silver doors.
“Here we are. Margo, please heal my son as safely and quickly as possible.” The Zylo’s
eyes showed concern as he pushed open the doors before us.
Looking in, on one side of the room I saw thick blue curtains pulled, creating a barrier between the opposite side of the room. Dr. Avery stood with his gloved hands inside of an incubator. The Zylo nudged me in that direction, so I carefully made my way toward the incubator, while the Zylo disappeared behind the curtains.
Dr. Avery looked at me with his gloved hands still inside of the incubator. “My dear Margo, I am so glad that you have come to help. The baby zyon has been born with the skin of his abdomen not fully intact. You see here beneath my fingers, his intestines are protruding through the open skin of his umbilicus.”
“Isn’t there something that you can do, you being a doctor and all?” I asked, confused at the sight before me.
“The Zyla refuses for the royal family to have any type of surgical procedure. She only believes in healers such as you. Now, please. We cannot waste any more precious time,” Dr. Avery explained. “Please put on gloves and begin.”
Setting Yuni and my stone aside, I gloved up even though I didn’t have to actually touch the skin in order to heal it. I cautiously placed my hands inside of the heated incubator, opposite Dr. Avery. The tiny little baby boy lay so still. My eyes followed down his fragile body until reaching his tummy. There, his little insides bubbled outside of the opening in his skin as Dr. Avery removed his hands from holding the skin gently together.
Poor thing. So innocent. So unaware.
The last thing that I heard was Dr. Avery saying, “The very stubborn Zyla Ambrosia had me sign a permanent contract many years ago that stated I must never attempt any sort of surgical procedure on her or her children as long as she is living. Even now, even as she is uncontrollably bleeding behind that very curtain, she refuses my surgical expertise. ‘Only healers’ she says. I must go now and attend to …”
His words trailed off at this point, the point where I closed my eyes, once again imagining my purple healing light. So wild and fierce so that it would quickly heal this little baby’s belly back together, heal his insides back into place where they belonged and were protected. I had to work extra hard in doing this due to my state: I was filled with sadness, plus I’d had little and horrible sleep, and no Enertion or food inside of me giving me strength. But I pressed on. I pressed on to heal and save this little baby boy. The heat rose up through my fingers, causing the incubator to become even hotter. The baby zyon twitched slightly through the glass of the incubator when this happened. My energy grew stronger, slowly soaking through his little organs, moving them back into place like a miniature puzzle, one piece at a time. It was difficult to see all that was happening beneath my hands inside of the incubator, but I didn’t need to. I could feel the energy working—my energy—even without touching his open skin. Within minutes, he began to wiggle, a tiny cry gurgling from his small mouth.