“We were close by when a call came in about…you. A young man said he saw you and was a bit shaken up.”

  “Cause he thought I was dead.” I take the chocolate bar from the bag and open it.

  “You were gone for a while.”

  “Longer than you know,” I say.

  “Can I ask you where you’ve been?” says detective Diamond.

  “My daughter just came back. We would like to be alone,” says my mother.

  “I understand. How about tomorrow?”

  “Tomorrow is fine,” I say.

  My mother takes the bag with the pasta from me. “Calina, you can see detective Diamond out.”

  “And I will need to talk to you too, Mrs. Cabhair, Leann.”

  I walk to the door, open it for detective Diamond, and close it behind him. Ric comes walking down the stairs. “What did I miss?” asks Ric.

  “Nothing. You know what, we should play a game like we used to,” I say.

  “It’s almost time for dinner,” says mom.

  “It’s too early for dinner, Mom,” I say.

  “We don’t play games anymore. Not since you left,” says Ric.

  “And now I’m back, so we should get back to being normal,” I say.

  “But this isn’t normal. None of this is. And it’s weird trying to pretend it is,” says Ric.

  “We were fine back in Kollosnia. Everything was okay,” I say.

  “Yea, we were fine because this is normal for Kollosnia, it’s not normal for here,” says Ric.

  “Well, we have to start somewhere,” I say.

  “Calina, it’s going to take some time. That’s all your sister is saying,” says my mom.

  “How about we play one game, as a family, on our first day back home? If it’s strange, we’ll watch tv and ignore each other,” I say.

  “Fine, if that’s what it takes to get a little piece around here,” says Ric.

  Chapter Fifty-Six

  Aiden

  Fire rains over Sky and me, heat pouring over our heads. We jump to the ground and cover our faces. The sound this creature makes is one I’ve never heard before, a beast, a monster, the sound of a...

  “Dragon?” Sky says.

  I look up at the sky to see what she sees. I see a monstrous beast flying overhead. Wings as big as a mountain. Tail as long as the sea. The sun disappears as the beast’s body looms overhead.

  “Who are you guys?” asks the female voice sitting atop the dragon. Her accent is different, a draw on every other word. “I know you’re not from here because you’re afraid. No one is afraid of…”

  “Dragons?” Sky is the first to speak.

  “Yes,” the woman shrugs.

  Sky and I are dumbfounded. My mouth is wide open, and I’m speaking, but no words are leaving my lips.

  “I’m Skyler, from Kollosnia.”

  “People from Kollosnia only have one name?” asks the woman perched on the dragon. “Is there only ever one, Skyler? And is there nothing that makes this one special in her house?”

  The dragon flaps it’s wings, pushing air into my face. I stand straighter; it hasn’t attacked yet, so maybe they aren’t going to.

  “Skyler Khadra; first beamer of my house?”

  “Beamer, and what’s that?” asks the dragon girl.

  “I can move from one place to the next by thinking about it,” says Sky.

  “Well, that sounds fascinating. And you, what’s your name?” asks the dragon girl.

  “Aiden Kagan, of Kollosnia, the first son born of fire…”

  “So, you’re like Pidi. He was born of fire, too.” She taps the dragon’s head, and the dragon lowers her to the ground. She jumps off and rubs the dragon’s face. It snuggles its face next to her. “I’m Parveti Golan, last of my house. So, what are you doing here?” asks Parveti.

  “Exploring,” I say.

  “Well, come on then, I’ll show you around.”

  “On the dragon?” I ask.

  “Yes, how else would we travel? And you might not want to stay here. This is where we deposit the remains of our dragon’s meals.”

  “Yea, we kind of guessed that much,” says Sky.

  Parveti climbs on top of the dragon and waits for me and Sky to jump on. Neither of us knows how to approach it, and we stare at the beast with wide eyes.

  “Come on,” Parveti says, stretching her hand to us.

  I hold on to Parveti’s hand and leap; she pulls me up. She is much stronger than she looks. I hold a hand out for Sky and pull her up to sit on the dragon behind me.

  The skin of the dragon is rough. Parveti clicks her tongue, and the dragon lifts off, flapping its heavy wings. We are airborne, and the wind is loud in my ear as it rushes past us.

  Parveti is a beautiful woman with short, striking red hair and light brown eyes that draw you in and almost hypnotize you. Parveti is tall and slender and dressed in long trousers and a shirt the length of a dress.

  “Don’t be afraid to hold on to me, handsome,” says Parveti in a chipper voice.

  I laugh. “So, are there a lot of dragons here?” I ask.

  “Well, this is the land of the dragons, so everyone has at least one dragon, but most people have about three,” says Parveti.

  “Do you have space for that many dragons?” asks Sky.

  “Well, tell me if we do,” says Parveti, stretching her hand out.

  We fly upon a big and wide city with high buildings and many are as wide as they are tall. These buildings seem strong, not the wood of tree trunks or bricks. All around, I see metal. Above the city, above the buildings, I see a platter of wings hovering in the sky.

  My mouth drops, and my mind is filled with amazement. This is nothing close to Kollosnia, so much more advanced than we are.

  “Amazing, right? They are such majestic creatures,” says Parveti.

  Even though there are many buildings here, there are also a lot of fields and clearings. The dragon we’re on lowers itself, and soon we land on top of a building. The dragon perches snugly on the roof.

  We jump off when the dragon lowers itself.

  “You’re fortunate that I found you guys. Not everyone here is as friendly to strangers as I am. I’ve been waiting since the veil dropped to see who would come over. You’re the first, but some people are anxious, and we already have enough problems here.”

  We exit the roof with a lift powered by an unknown mechanism.

  “It seems so nice here. What problems could you have?” asks Sky.

  “Especially when you can burn villages with one dragon.”

  “Well, it’s always trouble when everyone thinks they have the power. That’s the reason all our buildings are metallic; they don’t burn. But not only that, we make them from a metal called shadowgold. No matter how much heat goes against it, it stays cold.”

  “That’s new,” I say.

  “Shawdowgold has been around for trugas. Don’t you have shawdowgold where you’re from?” asks Parveti.

  “Nope, don’t have it. What’s trugas?” I ask.

  “One truga is the time it takes for the sun and the moon to make a circle,” says Parveti.

  “So, one year,” I say.

  “Is that what you call it where you’re from?”

  “Yes.”

  “Wait in this room, and I will have everyone come and meet you,” says Parveti.

  Sky and I walk into the room, staring at the building up and down. It all looks exquisite. This area is a little sparse for whatever function it might serve. It’s strange to see such an open space empty of furniture.

  The door of the room we walk into is closed, and Sky and I look around the space for a moment before concern set in.

  “It feels like a prison cell,” says Sky.

  “I don’t know,” I say. I head for the door and turn the handle. “It’s locked.” I give it a shake.

  Then the walls move, coming in towards us. Sky panics and runs for the lock again, twisting it. This time, the ceiling lowers. We are in a box, that’s closing in on us.

  “Don’t touch the lock. It’s some sort of trigger. Try to beam us out,” I say.

  Sky and I hold hands, but nothing happens. Sky breathes in and out to focus herself. Despite that, we are in a locked room.

  “I can’t focus,” says Sky.

  Metal scrapes against metal as the large empty room turns into a metal trap, hinging towards crushing us.

  “Focus Sky, please,” I shout now.

  Sky flails around, her hands flopping like a fish, and stomps her feet. I know she won’t focus, not like this, not at this moment. The walls are upon us, and Skyler and I have to straighten as it forces us upright, pressing our bodies to the other side.

  Sky and I hold hands. I know she’s still trying, but our time is out. Sky closes her eyes, and I close mine. I can feel the cold metallic wall against my skin, it pressing against my skull. I pray it will happen fast—what comes next. Sky screams, and maybe I’m crying too, but I’m not sure anymore, as pain overcomes me.

  Then there is no more pain, and I think I’m gone. The pressure of the walls pressing into my body stops. The walls pull back to where they started before, and the door opens.

  “I told you to get rid of this room, Parveti,” says a man’s voice.

  Sky and I are immediately on high alert, ready to fight out of this room now that we have the chance.

  “Easy, everyone. I know you’re frightened and upset.”

  “It was an accident,” says Parveti.

  “Accident,” says Sky.

  “This is where we used to keep the traitors…,” Parveti stops short. “We crush their bones and feed the meat to the dragons.”

  “Come on out,” says the other man. “I am King Joshwa Levine, ruler of the land, and I sit on the glass throne.”

  Sky and I get off our defensive, and I’m burning to say something, frustrated that I almost died. But I’m in an unfamiliar land, and I don’t know yet if they don’t want us dead, so I say nothing.

  “I can show you around,” says King Joshwa.

  “Maybe another time,” says Sky.

  “You’ve come such a long way,” says the king, who stares back at us.” Neither Sky nor I answer him. “Well, I understand.”

  We head back up to the roof, where we were before, and it would have been nice touring the dragon lands, but now we are not up to it.

  We think we will mount Pidi, the dragon we came here on. But Pidi leaps away, and another dragon approaches an even scarier one, if that’s possible.

  The King mounts, and Sky and I jump up after him.

  “This is Zose, the destroyer of men.” The king taps the dragon, and it lifts off. “So Parveti tells me you were here exploring.”

  “All our lives, there was only us, and suddenly there were more people and lands. I’m surprised no one else has come,” I say.

  Sky takes it all in.

  “I agree. I think soon more people will test their courage and venture out.”

  “We came to see your land, but since you’re here. Would you consider being an alliance for our cause?” I say.

  “And what cause is that?” asks King Joshwa.

  “There is a leader in our nation who might not be the best for it. There might come a time when we need to remove her, and we might need help.”

  “I don’t know about getting involved in someone else’s fight. So, for now, I will have to turn you down.”

  “I understand.”

  I ask the king to fly around to a secluded area of Kollosnia to not spook anyone. We are back in Kollosnia and watch the dragon fly away, hoping no one can see it.

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Anorvia

  Kyle and I head to the dining room to eat for the first time today, though it’s well past breakfast. I’m welcomed by the aroma of a familiar but distant smell. I look at the dining table to see steaming bowls of scrambled eggs and bread with butter.

  “What is this?” I ask the servant girl.

  “King Jamal brought over some birds, and what he said are favorites from Asca, as a part of your new alliance,” says the girl.

  “Well, that’s great.”

  Kyle and I sit down to eat and dig into the great new food. More variety than we’ve ever had in Kollosnia. In a few minutes, Kyle excuses himself, and I’m left eating alone.

  The guard announces that Nate is on his way to the dining room. On arrival, Nate sits at the table, and the servant places a plate in front of him, and he piles food onto it.

  “Are you just here to eat, or do you have news to tell me?” I ask.

  Nate swallows the food he’s already stuffed in his mouth. “Calina has escaped, but she isn’t coming back.”

  “How can you be sure when she’s not dead?”

  “I mean she was dead and even that didn’t stick, so who knows. But I believe she went through the portal and has no intentions of returning.”

  “You saw her go through the portal?” I ask.

  “No, but I have a very reliable source, and unless you can open this portal yourself, I can’t go for her,” says Nate.

  “Excuse me?” I say. “I hope you’re not getting too comfortable. The minute you get comfortable is the moment you leave. I would suggest you open a portal and figure out where she is. It is; after all, the one job I gave you to do. I don’t care where she is. I want her dead.”

  “Okay, I can figure it out,” says Nate.

  “I did, so you can too,” I say.

  Nate ponders for a moment. “I have an idea where I can find a portal.”

  “Great. And if you see any of Calina’s little friends, kill them too. All of them.”

  Kyle returns after breakfast. We head to the study to discuss visiting the other islands. Finally, we get to talk about alliances. A partnership is helpful for several reasons: aid in wealth, food, and other resources; assistance in war; and preventing conflicts.

  Kyle will head out to talk to the king of the land of dragons he tells me about. I wouldn’t believe it, even if I’ve seen it, but he assures me it’s true. I’ve seen so much, having been here and believed so much already. What is one more miracle? I’ve yet to hear a word on what’s on the other islands, but we’ve had people, spies, in place to find out.

  A guard announces that King Jamal is here to see us, and we invite him in. His fleet of servants and followers wait outside for him to return. Jamal bows to us, and we lower our heads to him.

  “Doesn’t seem like you’ve had much honeymoon time,” says Jamal.

  “The life of a queen and a king.”

  “That is true,” says Jamal.

  “I won’t take up too much of your time.” Jamal takes a seat in the middle of the table. “I see you’ve put plans to get Kollosnia on the right track. The duels that you’ve proposed are exciting. People fighting for what they deserve. I would like to sponsor this event as a part of our alliance.”

  “Okay, and what do you get from us in return?” I ask.

  “I will give you crops to farm and animals to raise. It’s clear Kollosnia needs a little replenishment. I think we’ll all benefit from using the same currency. Kollosnia doesn’t currently have any form of currency, so that could be something to share. We can build getaways on both our little islands. Both our island’s people can visit and have fun whenever they want,” Jamal makes his case.

  “And what do we offer you?” I ask again.

  “Nothing. I hope we can be nice to each other, expecting nothing in return. I am very interested in seeing how these duels turn out though, and I’m sure everyone in Asca is also curious. So, would you mind if whoever wants to, come over and watch the proceedings?” asks Jamal finally.

  “No, I don’t mind at all. You are all welcome, and thanks for your support,” I say.

  “It’s my pleasure.”

  Chapter Fifty-Eight

  Calina

  Ric and my mother thought playing games would be weird, acting like everything was fine and routine, when it wasn’t. Nothing will be fine unless we try to make it that way. Nothing will feel normal until we decide it will be.

  We leave the living room and sit down to have dinner, all of us around the table. There is one more space left.

  I think back to Kollosnia, even though I’ve just left. The father I had but never knew, and the mother that gave me up or lost me, whichever it was. Maybe I was wrong about going back to ‘normal.’ This feeling, this is the new normal. This life is what normal is now. There isn’t any going back, just here and now, and the new normal I will have to live with.

  The steam from the plate of pasta rises before me, and I take a big sniff. I immediately pick up a fork and eat. I’m not sure if being away for so long made this food taste better, but it’s like I’ve never tasted food before.

  There is a knocking at the door. We all look up from our plates to each other, everyone’s eyes saying the same thing, wondering who’s at the door.

  “I’ll get it,” I say. I take another bite before I walk away from the table.

  I get to the door and open it. My mouth drops, my heart racing in my chest as Andreas stands in front of me at my door.

  “What are you doing here?” I push him back and close the door behind me.

  “I had to talk to you,” says Andreas, anxious. He looks jumpy and nervous. An unfamiliar look for him.

  “Why?” I fold my arms across my chest.

  “I… I… You. You…” Andreas points a wavering finger at me, and I realize with pleasure that he might be a little afraid of me. “You did something… you moved me with your….” His voice drops to a whisper as though he can’t believe the words. “With your mind.”

  I stare at him, neither affirming nor denying. Letting him squirm on the doorstep. “Despite that, you came here.”

  He shrugs his shoulders and looks down. “I’m sorry for everything.”

  “Are you?” I ask.

  “You were an outsider, who never wanted to speak to anyone. So it was easy picking on you.”

  “So you’re saying I made myself a target,” I say with disgust.

  “No, that’s not what I’m saying. But if you want me to be honest, you always separated yourself.”

  “So let me get this straight. You came to my house to talk about how I caused all the hardship I went through at school?”

 

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