Board Thread:Off-Topic Fun/@comment-34225720-20180419014425

Chapter 1: Winter Winter stood up in a blank, dark, empty room. Strangely, the room felt familiar to Winter, though she knew she had never been there before. There was absolutely nothing, no furniture, no paintings, nothing to make this place the least bit hospitable. It was just...empty. As if everything had disappeared. Strangely, the room seemed familiar to Winter, as if she had been there before. Something felt wrong. Something was off about this place; Winter just didn’t know what. Then, suddenly, Winter noticed a woman standing next to her. The stranger’s face was dimly lit by a lantern above Winter’s head. She had milky skin and warm brown eyes, and somehow, Winter knew that her name was Grace. Grace sat on the ground, shivering, clutching her knees to her face. Winter realized what was wrong. Everything in the room was affected by the cold. Everything was affected by the winds. Everything except her. She looked down at her clothes. Just normal pajamas. Pajamas meant for autumn, and a mild autumn at that. The lantern thrashed against the wind, struggling to hold its light in the midst of all this darkness. The lantern blew out. Grace jumped to her feet. The room was pitch black, but Winter could hear Grace hyperventilating. “What is happening? What’s wrong?” Winter asked, alarmed by the sudden change. “I… don’t know!” Grace said, agitated. She didn’t seem at all surprised to hear Winter, elevating Winter’s suspicions. A piercing scream echoed through the night, followed by a sound like rocks grinding together. Grace stiffened. “No,” Grace said. “This can’t be.” The screeching sound stopped, and Winter struggled to detect any other noise over the din of the screeching gales. “What is it?” Winter said. The wind screamed, and was about to reach the door. “So everything we did… was for nothing.” Grace whispered, looking, not at Winter, but at the door. Her eyes were filled with tears. She whispered something else, but Winter couldn’t hear it over the deafening storm. The door was thrown open, and Winter felt a terrible sense of dread. A hooded figure floated in. Its robes were so dark that they were almost nonexistent, like silk woven of pure night. They flowed like the soft wind of a calm summer day, a stark contrast to the raging storm outside. “NO!” Grace said, yelling. The darkness slowly crept up to her, backing her against the far wall. Her pale skin shone with sweat as she heaved for breath. “NO! PLEASE!” Grace yelled again, almost in hysteria. The figure was creeping towards her. It got faster and faster. “What do you want?!” Winter asked, realizing the cause of Grace’s fear. The figure merely hissed, not looking away from Grace. “Aaaah!” Grace yelled as the figure hissed. It then crept up to Grace. They were both behind Winter now. It lowered its hood and unveiled its face to Grace. Winter then heard an ear piercing sound. It screamed. For a second, there was eerie calm. Grace went limp and fell to the ground, her long brown hair splaying out from her head. Winter screamed. The creature turned to look at her, its face covered by the hood. Winter was suddenly in a chair, sliding back on a track rapidly out of the dark room. The creature and Grace had disappeared, but she could hear the screams of both reverberate through her head. Winter closed her eyes and landed on a bed. She then fell asleep and opened her eyes. Chapter 2: Home Again She looked around frantically for any hint of her former surroundings. The wind. The girl. The creature. But she was in her bed. Alone. On a sunny day. She sighed, giving up hope that she would ever leave. It was a large brick house. In a street of large brick houses. They were all connected in a row. In a large brick subdivision. With a large brick wall. The monotony was astounding. At least, for Winter it was. No one else seemed to notice. She heard the familiar hissing of the stove that suggested breakfast was on the way. Great. She sighed, Another boring day in this boring town in my boring life. Even the monotony has layers. She climbed out of her bed, ready to face another boring, predictable day. Winter didn’t mean to be ungrateful. She knew she was one of the lucky ones who had survived the K2 epidemic that had killed most everyone else. (The disease was named for the mountain it had originated in.) Still, Winter wished she could do something more with her days than wile away the time learning math formulas she would never remember, or learning about books she didn’t care about. If only the K2 epidemic hadn’t killed her family and everyone...Wait, WHAT? she thought. She realized she was dreaming yet again, and woke us. Chapter 3: A School In Another World For Nadia it was just another Monday morning, reading time at the School. This school was the Mystic Forest School, one of the most elite in the kingdom of Occariosia. All was organized and silent, as per usual. Everyone's nose was buried in a book. Jasmine walked to the nearest bookshelf. She was usually very calm, but today, she looked worried, trying to mask it with the blank, expressionless face that most other students wore. She then walked back to her computer and entered in information from the book. "Jasmine." Nadia whispered. Jasmine looked back with an expression of absolute terror, then seemed to realize it was her and calmed down. "What's wrong?" Nadia asked. She continued walking as if nothing had happened. She grabbed Jasmine’s arm. "Jasmine!" she whispered louder. She looked down at Nadia and said "Nothing's wrong." Jasmine wriggled her arm out of her grasp. Something was definitely bothering her. Nadia stopped herself from following her. Now is not the time, Nadia told herself, later. During their 30 minute break, Nadia approached her. "What is going on?" Nadia asked "I don't know what you're talking about." she said calmly. "This morning. What was that about?" "Not now! We're being watched!" Jasmine hissed. "By who? Jasmine, what is up with you? This morning. Now." Nadia said, growing louder with each sentence "I think you're being paranoid. Why would anyone be wat—" "Shut up! You're going to get us caught!" "Not until I get some answers!" "It's too dangerous!" "Why are you being so protective!" "Because!" Jasmine shouted. She turned and walked away, leaving Nadia to wonder what she didn't want her to know. Chapter 4: Trapped When she woke up again, Winter was not sure if it was a dream. She tried to remember her new dream. The brick houses, the K2 epidemic, the orphanage. It was all fading away. She scrambled out of bed, grabbed her notebook, and searched desperately for an empty space. The notebook was filled with words, detailed descriptions of the dreams she had had over the years, but this one felt different. This one felt… important. She grabbed a pen from her bedside table and started scribbling in a vague recount. Somehow, the same way she knew this dream was important, she also knew that this information could be catastrophic if set into the wrong hands. She looked over her scribbles. Sometimes, when there was no space left for words, she had doodled the dream. She flipped backward and looked at her mnemonics from a few years ago, when she had realized the importance of conserving space. She used anything–anything to write them down. Markers, pencils, even crayons from some of her earliest dreams. She knew these dreams were vital–why, she didn’t know. But she had always felt the answer was on the tip of her tongue. This was the first time this week she had had a dream about Grace. She picked up the hand mirror resting on her nightstand. She looked inside. It showed Grace receiving an important message. It was unclear where she was, but Winter somehow knew intuitively that it was a school. She looked into the mirror again. This time, she saw a young man about nineteen years old transporting a package wrapped in chains. Somehow Winter knew his name was Marcus. He had six fingers on each hand. He was covered in sweat, and was nearing a walled structure. Behind him was a wave of bird-people. They eventually apprehended him, and in his fury, he screamed “GRACE!”. She threw the mirror on the floor. But the dream was much more disturbing than the visions. But she still wasn’t sure that the shadow dream was a dream at all. She had felt the icy gales, felt the cold of the night. It had been so realistic… it couldn’t have only been a dream. “Winter!” called her aunt. “Breakfast is ready and it’s almost time to leave.” Winter had been living with her aunt, Ingrid, ever since her parents mysteriously disappeared when she was five. Today there was a delayed school start due to snow. Winter went downstairs, ate her breakfast, and prepared herself for another day of boredom. Great, she thought, There’s a late start today due to snow and I had to sleep until it’s time to leave. After she arrived at school, a siren sounded through the hallways. There were these “Pull down in case of emergency” things literally everywhere in the school. It was absurd how many there were there. Accidental false alarms were common and the school hadn’t even gotten rid of one. The idea was downright ridiculous to Winter. Great, she thought. The 1000000th false alarm caused by an accident. But what if it wasn’t a fire alarm? Chapter 5: The Palace In Occariosia King Theodore was frantic. A buzzing sounded throughout his castle. It was at night in his kingdom, and his wife and children were asleep. He then thought of his wife, Queen Isadora, who ruled Occariosia with him side by side, then of his son, Prince Omar, and his daughter, Princess Charlotte, one of whom would one day rule his kingdom. No, he thought It can't be about them. He cast a spell to find out what was wrong. He found himself holding a photo of his father, Xavier, and his mother, who was from a world called Earth. The warlock king gasped, and ran through the castle to his wife. Normally he would summon her, but everything had changed. No one else could be trusted. He burst into her room, and found her with Charlotte. Seeing the stricken expression, she turned to the princess. “Why don't you get in bed, your Evilness? Maybe that will help you sleep.” She walked out, giving her father a death glare. When they were sure she was beyond earshot, Theodore spoke. “Darling, there’s no easy way to say this...” he said, brushing back his tousled brown hair. “Don’t call me that!” Isadora snapped, cutting Theodore off. “I have broken free from your pathetic hypnosis.” “But I think the Seer has awakened.” “How?” Isadora replied. “The Scourge had reawakened.” Theodore said. “That buzzing sound it makes is unmistakable.” “The Scourge…” “The Seer is supposed to defeat the Scourge.” “Good. I don’t see what the fuss is about, then.” “I know the Seers are malicious. One murdered my parents.” Theodore paled. “It would be absolute chaos if Winter survives.” “You leave Winter out of this. She’s just a girl!” “Obviously not so little anymore or her powers would still be dormant.” Theodore said leisurely, a slow smile spreading over his face. “It would be best to murder her now, before she sees anything–” “How dare you!” Isadora shouted, striding up to Theodore, who wore the same eerie grin from before. “You’re lucky I haven’t murdered you already!” Isadora slapped Theodore across his face. “The Seer is not evil, you wicked scoundrel!” “Well I need to murder the Seer.” he said. “They have caused too much problems” The queen’s face darkened. With her long golden locks, and bright blue eyes, it was hard to imagine her looking this way. Scared and nervous and angry. But she hid all of that emotion away where she knew no one would find it. In her heart. “I will not let you murder her!” she said. She then ran away to her room. Chapter 6: Truth Winter looked around curiously. Something was definitely wrong. Everyone was acting strangely today. They avoided her as if she had the plague. Even her gaze. She shrugged it off and continued walking. Maybe this was some weird prank or social experiment. But… even the teachers were acting strangely. Winter saw her friend Anne walking by and tried to catch up. Anne looked back, frightened, and started walking faster. “What's going on?” Winter asked, and she grabbed Anne’s arm before she could run away. Anne shook her head vehemently, looking terrified.“Please. I don't know what's going on! We've been friends since kindergarten. You have to tell me!” Anne looked around furtively before whispering “It’s probably best if you don’t know, Winter.” “Please, Anne.” “I don’t know. Someone threatened me that if I didn’t avoid you I would be–” “Killed?” Winter guessed. “No,” Anne responded. “Tortured.” “Who told you?” “I– I can't. I'm sorry Winter. You deserve to know, it's just that–” Suddenly, she ripped her arm out of Winter’s grasp and ran down the hall away from Winter. Winter stood there, gaping. What was wrong? Chapter 7: Isadora’s Dilemma Isadora sat alone in her room. She was angry that only now had she come out of her hypnosis. She now had a wicked husband with fantasies of murdering the Seer. She shuddered at the thought. But she remembered Zoe on her deathbed, crying and delirious from her visions. She remembered her sister Grace looking out ominously, along with their mother Gwen. She remembered Grace’s daughter Illumination glaring, stony-faced down at her dying aunt. Illumination’s children, Nadia, Natasha, Yasmine, Cyrus, and Fiona were also present. Gwen’s four clones were also present. Isadora remembered the pain Zoe’s visions had brought to everyone, especially herself. Zoe had died long ago, along with several innocent victims of her prophecies,. And now Winter was awakening as well. Isadora thought back to before Zoe’s death. Probably the last joyous moment in her sister’s life. Isadora herself had presented the child to Zoe. And it had been the last time she had ever seen her sister smile. Even with the poison of the Scourge running through her veins, Zoe had found the strength to sit up to look at her child in awe. “Winter…” she had croaked, and then she had winced in pain and lay back down. “Her name is Winter.” Isadora had nodded and left the room, giving the child to Ingrid. Zoe had always held hope for her survival; she was strong, she said, and the Scourge preyed on the weak when under hypnosis from Gwen. But deep down, Isadora and Ingrid knew that there was no chance of her surviving, even if they tried to get the Scourge to heal her. The tears sliding down her face jolted Isadora back to the present. She then panicked and ran. She raced through the castle and the halls of the second floor until she reached the elevator. She pressed the B1 button, which took her down to the basement, where she transferred to another elevator which started in another part of the basement and went down. She took this other elevator one level down to the sub-basement where the portal was. The portal looked like an ordinary pair of elevator doors. She exited the elevator and she was suddenly stopped. “Where on Autioum do you think you’re going!” someone yelled. He stood in front of the door to Earth. He was very old and frail. “Father!” she exclaimed. “I thought I banished you to Vunderluund!” “Well your magic isn’t as strong as you thought.” Isadora looked to her right and found a second portal elevator which wasn't there before. Suddenly, three people emerged from the newly made elevator to Vunderluund. They were her mother, Gwen, and her twin older sisters, Hannah and Lisa. Isadora put on an invisibility spell and sneaked behind them and went through the door to Earth. The door led into an elevator, as all portals did, which went up. All of the buttons led to secret invisible closets in a school which the Seer went to, all on top of each other. She pressed the 2 button because she sensed the Seer would be there. She arrived in the closet, put an invisibility spell that only the seer could see through. She then weakened the closet’s invisibility spell so the Seer could see through it, and emerged from the closet. Chapter 8: A Secret Note The next day, Nadia found a note under her pillow. It said Dear Nadia, I'm leaving. I plan to leave the school and never come back. Ever. By the time you read this letter, I will have been gone. Now the Mystic Forest School will never find me, or at least I hope so. The headmistress is going to search for me, and there is no way around that, but I promise that I will be careful. You are the only one I wrote to. I made a promise to you, so now you have to promise me something; do not show this to anyone. Not even the headmistress. I do not want you to write my family either. I already dealt with that. I hope they get my last letter; the last one before I die. Do not ask me why I am leaving. I just want to disappear... in a way.... Speaking of which, I need you to do me a favor: While the teacher is not looking, erase my name from the attendance list, and dispose of my homework. Thank you for being a good friend.

Don't write me back; there is no address to send a letter to. Forever farewell,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Jasmine Nadia buried the letter in her dresser drawer, to dispose in the fire later. Then, she ran to the library to do some investigating. It was deserted. She walked over to the moonlit window, and heard an owl hoot from the Mystic Forest, which surrounds the campus. That was when it hit her; Jasmine must have took off into the forest. The next day, she packed a satchel with an extra dress, binoculars, a canister of water, and dried food. she also packed an extra case of bows, rolled up her quiver and readied her bow. She threw on her grey, wool dress, sturdy boots, and white leggings. While putting her long blonde locks in a ponytail, she noticed the light pink hooded cape with red trim. It was very nice, but it could keep her identity a secret. Nadia skipped her morning classes, and she left after noon. It soon grew dark in the forest, and she noticed a letter strung to a tree with Jasmine's hair ribbon. The letter read...

Your father is dead.

Chapter 9: An Unexpected Intruder Winter was confused when she saw a closet door materialize and a woman come out of it. She immediately figured she was dreaming. Again. She continued walking, hoping that if she ignored it, the apparition would go away. But while doing this the woman tugged on her. “You need to leave” the woman whispered. “No, I don’t” Winter responded. “Could I please go to the….Mmmrph” The woman had gagged her. “Be quiet!” the woman whispered. “If we don’t leave now, you will be killed!” The woman dragged her into the closet and shut the door. Winter was very confused when she saw an elevator in the closet. The woman dragged Winter desperately into the elevator and waited for the doors to close. Once they were in the elevator, Isadora pressed the B2 button. The elevator went downward. Chapter 10: Confusion Below where the letter was, there was a chest, containing any of Jasmine's belongings with the school logo on it. Beside the clothes in the trunk, she found a folder of letters. The oldest letter said:

Dear Jasmine, I don't know whether we'll be able to get to you. The storms are getting worse. The only other way in is through the Mystic forest. Keep protecting Illumination. We'll keep trying, but with Hurricane locked up, Landslide and I can't battle the storms. If they find out about you, tell us. Landslide can lead you out underground.

Sincerely, Inferno

The next one said:

Dear Inferno, I don't see why you are so intent on rescuing me. Save Hurricane. She was loyal to our team. I'm not in any immediate danger and neither is Illumination. I'm worried about Illumination. Her powers are going haywire. We need her help to defeat the Shadow. We also need Hurricane to free Its slaves. Rescue Hurricane!

Sincerely, Jasmine

Dear Jasmine, We're heading to the palace to save Hurricane. If we fail, tell Illumination who Hurricane is and leave the school. If she gets captured, all hope is lost. I have enclosed a map here of where to go.

Sincerely, Inferno

That was where the letters ended. Who was Inferno? Who was Hurricane? Who was Illumination. And, most importantly, who was “The Shadow?” Nadia looked all over the most recent letter but she couldn't find a map. Frustrated, she poured all her water onto it and watched the words dissolve into a gooey mess. But to her astonishment, they connected to form lines.

Chapter 11: In Vunderluund Queen Fatima panicked, her feathers flying everywhere. Rudolph, Gwen, Hannah, and Lisa, horrible criminals, had escaped Vunderluund! What would Isadora think? The only reason she was queen was because she had agreed to hold them in her realm. The previous ruler, her father, King Mohammed, who was controversially standing in for his dead wife, who was the initial ruler, had picked her older half-brother, David, as heir. However, David was controversial because of the fact that his mother was Gwen, a terrible Autioumese criminal. The fact that this made Isadora her step sister was how they met. When Mohammed lied in his dying state, uproar rose throughout all of Vunderluund. So he eventually agreed to let Fatima be queen under the condition that she keep Isadora’s twin sisters and parents trapped in Vunderluund. Fatima would not give up her throne. Not after she had worked so hard. She would capture and kill the criminals. And anyone else who saw her incompetence. She then received a message from Isadora. It read: Fatima Meet me on the sixty-sixth floor of your palace. It is very important. Isadora Chapter 12: The Palace Winter arrived in Isadora's sub-basement. She gasped. It was filled with elevators upon elevators. “What is your name?” Isadora asked as they got into an elevator. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m just not in the habit of giving my name to random women who try to kidnap me.” Winter said. “You were going to be killed!” Isadora said “Are you…..” The elevator doors opened at the 4th floor and cut off Winter’s sentence. She followed Isadora, and tripped on something that instantly made her pass out. “Oh no!” Isadora gasped. “The sleep trap. I completely forgot about it.” Hours later, when Winter was awake enough to be moved onto the outdoor balcony, Isadora moved her there, and Winter woke up. Winter gasped. It was nighttime and there were 4 moons in the sky. Each was a pale red, casting an orange hued light all over the palace and the city that sprawled out around it. She looked at Isadora, who looked down at her kindly. “Winter, I know you don’t trust me, and that is perfectly fine. But you have to understand–you are in more danger than you know. Please try to let me help you. That’s all I ask.” Chapter 13: Tremors Fatima was worried. Rumours we're going around about Isadora’s family. According to the rumours, which were supposedly confirmed, Hannah had founded a kingdom on an island in Autioum decades before she was arrested. The rumours also said that she had a daughter, Princess Constance, who was rumored to have dark intentions, who took over when she forced her mother to give up her throne. She was also said to be working with her cousin, Cassandra, Zoe’s daughter. She paced back and forth in her bedroom, pondering over what to do. Her kingdom had no formal military. The mountains had protected them from invaders and isolated them from the rest of Vunderluund for centuries. Constance was at least as old as Isadora, according to the rumours. Cassandra was only a few years older than Winter. But Cassandra was a daughter of Zoe. She was powerful enough to destroy the entire mountain range. Meanwhile, in a distant castle on an island kingdom in Autioum not far from Queen Constance’s, a shadowy figure stood. “I can't believe it. Mother has escaped. How dare this happen!” she said to herself. “My mother, Lisa, who never even bothered to give me a name!” The very thought was unbearable to her. Her mother, who abandoned her on the streets, made her life miserable. “Mother, if you truly have escaped, you will wish you had rotted in that prison! You will pay for your mistakes! You will feel the wrath of Queen Arwenthreyfur!” Chapter 14: The Hotel The lines had connected to form a rough map of the forest with a mark on a spot which wasn’t far but would take three days due to the extensive swamp, thorns, and bushes. If Jasmine was going anywhere, she would go there. So Nadia started walking at about 3 miles per hour. She hunted wild animals for the first two days, but on the third day, she couldn't find any food. Nadia still crawled forward, ignoring the echoing emptiness in her stomach. She followed the map until she came to a crumbling canyon wall. Nadia looked everywhere around it, but she couldn't find anything remotely hospitable. She angrily banged the wall towering over her. She heard a hollow echo. She inched around the wall until she found a perfectly circular imprint on the wall. She touched it and the entire wall dissolved, leaving only a large stone cave with torches and people. Nadia walked in and asked the man behind the counter if he had seen a girl with long black wavy hair, violet eyes come in. He said he had and gave Nadia her room number. Not a good secret keeper, she thought. She crept into Jasmine’s room trying to find any more letters. The door slammed shut behind her. "Nadia, what do you think you're doing?" She was surprised to see that it was not Jasmine. Instead, it was a strong and muscular man in soiled clothing. His extremely pale skin almost shone blue in the small amount of light streaming through the tiny window. Besides that, his eyes glowed like a fire in the darkness. Burn marks covered his hands and clothing. "Nadia, you must leave. You must leave now. If you don't, you will be in trouble. Now GO! Leave! I will burn you! I cannot put any more lives in danger... I... I am Inferno. I'm the one who used Jasmine... to commit a crime! She... she is dead. And it's ALL MY FAULT! PLEASE... LEAVE! I... I... need to think." "You... you mean to say.. Jasmine is DEAD! HOW, HOW COULD YOU! SHE WAS MY BEST FRIEND! And... And now she is gone... I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU... BECAUSE OF YOU I HAVE NOBODY... I.. I am alone... YOU KILLED HER! INFERNO! YOU MONSTER! ALL OF THOSE LETTERS! They were a lie... AND ALL FOR WHAT?! WHAT COULD YOU WANT THAT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER?!" He sat on the bed, his face in his hands. Then, he turned to Nadia, fear in his eyes. "I SAID LEAVE!" He screamed. "Not until you tell me what you did to her..." Nadia said as her voice trailed off and she began to cry. Inferno reached for her arm and grasped it tightly in his hand. He began to burn her as she cried and screamed in pain at the same time. Chapter 15: 66th Floor Winter expected more from Vunderluund. She had been sent to the sixty-sixth floor of Fatima’s palace. She was initially amazed by the amount of buttons in the elevator. But after the teleportation nausea, it was less impressive. She looked around the sandy room impatiently, tapping her foot. Isadora looked at her sharply, with an expression so reminiscent of a mother’s that she remembered her own. Yes, her own mother, who was gone. Winter’s heart ached for Earth. And she had to ask. “Why did you bring me here? Why am I in ‘danger’?” “Because someone is out to kill you.” she replied. “Who?” She hesitated. She did not know what to tell her. “Many people.” “Who?” Winter asked impatiently. Suddenly the door opened and Winter almost screamed. She saw a woman with long black hair and a bird face. Chapter 16: Chase Suddenly, three men came running through the doorway towards Nadia. "We have found you!” they said. “Now let her go!" "LEAVE!" Inferno yelled at the top of his lungs. "LEAVE!" He set the doorway on fire, scorching the men who just came in. Nadia managed to break free, stabbing one of her arrows into his arm. After that, she ran. As far away as she could, never stopping. She left the map in the room to burn with him. From a distance, she could only assume he had burned down with the rest of the hotel. Suddenly, Nadia heard the flapping of the wings of the Headmistress’s Vunderluunder servants. She recoiled in shock and disgust. How far would she go to pursue me? Nadia thought. Nadia knew that the Headmistress knew that her father, Phillip, and her siblings were at home, safe and sound. Naida wistfully remembered the last time she had seen him. Oh, to live that life with no cares in the world except homework and grades. Back then, Nadia had hated it. But now, she would trade anything to be there again. A twig snapping drew Nadia out of her daydream. She pulled out her bow and waited silently. Then another snap came and she whirled around to the thicket from where it had come. A shadow neared her and she drew back. She drew an arrow to her bow, but was surprised to see that it was a spear that had shot through the brush. Nadia knew that this could only mean one thing; the Vunderluunder servants were near. Because of this Nadia bolted over the muddy forest floor. It seemed that no matter how far she ran and jumped over the roots of the trees that she never got tired. She was only slowed down by the searing pain that ran through her leg. She jumped over a fence that read Border With Dsur, Keep Out. But still the only thing she thought was Run. Don’t stop. Run. Chapter 17: Fatima’s Palace “Hello, Winter.” the woman said enthusiastically in the strangest accent Winter had ever heard. It sounded like she had to vomit and use the restroom at the same time. Winter gulped and waved. Then Fatima began to speak. “Finally you have awoken from your hypnosis. I was tired of seeing you murdering thousands of innocents.” “Fatima, I need you to keep Winter in your castle. If my wicked husband finds her…” She looked at Winter and trailed off, but Fatima didn’t seem to realize. “Oh, of course! Anything for my old pal! But what would happen if Teddy finds her, Izzy?” Isadora flinched. She hated being called Izzy. It now occurred to her just how oddly eccentric Fatima was. “Oh, well, you know, he doesn’t know --” “Doesn’t know? Izzy, do you mean to tell me that you didn’t tell your own husband about your guest? Or what about Connie? Rumour has it that she is going to kill us all.” Fatima said in a sarcastic tone. “Of course not. Theodore wanted her dead. Thought she was evil.” Isadora slowly turned around to see Winter’s astonished face. “Your husband, the king of Occariosia, wants me dead. And you. Didn’t. TELL ME?!” Winter screamed. Isadora cringed and teleported out, leaving an angry Winter with a confused Fatima. Chapter 18: Captured Thoughts swarmed in Nadia’s head like a tornado of insects. Who was Inferno? She thought. How had he killed Jasmine? How did my friend, Jasmine, who had never done wrong, committed a crime? And what did Inferno have to do with it? She ran through the forest, tears flooding her eyes. Where she was going, she didn't know. I need to get away from there. She thought. Away from the School. Away from the hotel. Away from Inferno, the psycho murderer who killed his accomplice and cried about it. Just...away. Nadia suddenly stood up. What was she doing crying about it? Jasmine had kept so many secrets from her. How come Jasmine has lied so smoothly and yet I am crying over her? She thought. What am I doing? Since she wanted to keep her secret to the grave then fine! I don’t care! Huffing, Nadia picked up my supplies. As she started to stand up, she heard an oily, sly voice. "Don't move. You are under arrest for treason to King Colin of Dsur." the voice said. "King Coconut?!" Nadia asked with laughter and fear of what he might look like. "Are you trying to insult our ruler?" asked another voice which sounded nasally and deep an with exaggerated pitch. "Take her away! So she can directly apologize to King Coconut for her scandalous actions." "For King Coconut!" said another voice which cracked at least three times in that one sentence. It sounded similar to the previous voice. "This insolent little girl will be punished greatly for her dishonorable behavior. Now, I must not be obscene; what do thriving creatures of your king call you? Or should we just call you Abusive-Absently-Minded-Ragamuffin?" "Who are you calling we? And there is no chance that you are going to arrest me!" Nadia said on the verge of breaking out in uncontrollable laughter. The guards started to crowd around her. "CHAAAAAAAARGE!" they all bellowed in concur. Those were the last words she heard before waking up on a bed. She made her way to the window where she saw a profound-looking child who was not much older than her walk through the door. His hair was pure white and shiny like fish scales. "Are you Miss ‘Abusive-Absently-Minded-Ragamuffin?’” the boy recited.   Who are you?” Nadia asked.    “My name is Gregory. My father is King Colin of Dsur. Those guards were brainwashed by Arwenthreyfur.” Nadia sighed. At least now she knew where she was.    “Where am I?” Nadia asked.    “The eighth floor of the palace in Nmekka, the capital of Dsur.”    “And why am I here?” She asked warily.    “Because your friend, Jasmine, is working with her grandmother, Grace, and Grace’s daughter, Hurricane.” He said.    “So that’s who Hurricane is, Jasmine’s aunt? How do you know about Jasmine?” Nadia asked.    “Because Hurricane is my mother. Jasmine and I are cousins.” Gregory responded. Chapter 19: Revelation    Fatima kept hearing more and more rumours about Isadora’s family. According to these rumours, Isadora had a sister named Grace who was the Headmistress of a school which kidnapped children and taught them sorcery. The rumours also said that Grace had married a man named Brightcloud and drank a long-lasting potion which would greatly increase the odds of a multiple birth. According to the rumours, she had twins, Illumination and Midnight, and later triplets named Inferno, Hurricane, and Landslide, and finally when the potion wore off she had a single child known as “The Shadow.” The rumours also claimed that Constance had two children with veiled faces. Suddenly, a large resounding “boom” echoed across the castle. Fatima's head snapped up, looking for the culprit. Seeing none, she rushed into the hall and gasped. Three figures were standing there, looking calmly at her. Behind them was a gargantuan hole in the ancient sandstone wall which was on display. One was shorter and had a veiled face. Her short black hair was in a braid down her back. The other two were taller and veiled with pale skin that seemed to glow. Their eyes were blood red under their veils, and they looked at Fatima as if she was something to eat. All three of them wore black capes with shining clasps that Fatima recognized as pure silver. The shorter one spoke first, “Vunderluund is ours. Surrender now and no one gets hurt.” She spoke her kingdoms language, but Fatima’s minister translated the meanings. “What?! No! GUARDS!!!” Fatima yelled. The girls seemed unfazed as troops filled the room. The taller girls took off their veils and looked at the guards. As their gaze turned, the guards began to scream. The agony filled the room until everyone was collapsed -- dead. Everyone except Fatima, her minister, and the girls, who were all veiled now. “What do you want from me?! The whole planet?!” Fatima wailed. “No, just your wretched kingdom.” she said. “Who are you?” “I am Matilda. Teresa. Annemarie.” She pointed to the veiled girls behind her. “Constance’s daughters?” Fatima said, astonished and terrified. Matilda nodded smugly. “Are the rumours about Isadora’s family true?” “Yes they are.” Matilda responded. Fatima gasped. “Because you stole my father’s throne!” she said. “I am Matilda, daughter of David and Antoinette, and today, I am taking back my kingdom!” Teresa and Annemarie took off their veils, and the last things Fatima saw were their blood red eyes. Chapter 20: Questions “I think you should get some rest.” Gregory said. “No way! I don’t care if you’re the prince, you need to tell me what’s going on! Now.” Gregory sighed. This was going to take a lot of explaining. “We’ve got all night, Greg.” Gregory sighed before continuing. “The headmistress of your school, Grace, is my grandmother.” “How is that possible? Nadia asked, confused. “After Grace got married, to a man named Brightcloud, she drank a potion which increased the odds of a multiple birth. She had twins, Illumination and Midnight. One year later, she had triplets, named Inferno, Hurricane, and Landslide. When the potion wore off, she had a single child known as ‘The Shadow’. Jasmine is Midnight’s daughter.” “So.. Jasmine is… a criminal?” Nadia said. “Well… technically, she hasn’t committed any crimes.” “She’s dead.” Nadia said. “I know.” Gregory said. “The surveillance at the hotel went viral.” “Why did Inferno kill her?” Nadia asked. “Why wouldn’t he? She is a criminal. He tried to apprehend her, but it ended up being him or her. “But what did she do? What if she was innocent?” Nadia whispered the last part. “I don’t know, but my mother claims she is.” Gregory said. “And the letters I found seemed to say that she was working for Inferno, your mother, and Landslide.” Nadia said. “By the way, people lie.” “Speaking of lying,” Gregory said, “Tell me the truth. Where is Grace’s school?” Chapter 21: Plans Gone Awry Winter woke up to a loud ‘boom’. She tumbled off of the bed and looked through the window onto the bottom floor. Guards were lying strewn about the floor in a circle of three girls. Winter saw Fatima fall with wide eyes and the girls dispersed throughout the castle. The whole castle looked exactly like a skyscraper. Winter saw them get into elevators. Suddenly, the door opened, and three people walked in. All three had veiled faces. One was average height and had a beak underneath her veil, while the other 2 were at least 7 feet tall. Winter shrank back. The shorter one smirked under her veil and held out her hand, muttering something. The taller ones hissed, and she stopped. “You’re coming with us.” she said “You won’t kill me, right?” Winter asked, stunned. “Who are you?” “I am Matilda, daughter of David and Antoinette.” she said. “Who are they?” Winter asked, confused. “David is Isadora and Fatima’s half brother, but Isadora and Fatima are not sisters.” she said, sounding annoyed. “Matilda, I’ve just about had it with you. You are so selfish and you are showing zero respect.” said the figure to Winter’s left. “Teresa, I am not! Will you just shut up!” Matilda said indignantly. “Take her into the elevator. NOW!” Teresa, the other person, and Winter walked into the elevator, which was right in the room, and Teresa pressed the B2 button and the elevator took Winter to Isadora’s sub basement. They then proceeded to dash down one level on a spiral staircase to arrive at a train platform. Almost immediately, a sleek, very modern looking train practically slid in, making no noise at all. They got on and it began to leave the station, moving very fast. Winter watched as the train rolled out through fields, bridges, and tunnels. The train had only made a few stops when an announcement came over the P.A. They would arrive at the border of Rientalia in five minutes. Chapter 22: Interrogations Nadia was confused. What is so important of the location of the school? she thought. For some reason, this rubbed her the wrong way. Why did he need to know? “I… have no idea.” she said “You’re lying.” he said, his face hardening. He was almost scary. He leaned over her, his breath reeking of fish as he spoke. “Nadia, you are either an ally or an enemy of Dsur. Which do you want to be?” “Why do you want to know?” she asked suspiciously. Somehow, she felt like the location of the School was a secret she needed to protect. “To apprehend Grace, of course.” “Why do you need to apprehend her? Did she do something wrong?” “Kidnapping people is wrong!” “But she fed us and taught us and--” “Listen to me, Nadia! Grace is a criminal! It doesn’t matter what she did to you after kidnapping you, it is wrong! She is evil!” “Oh, so you think every criminal is evil!?” she said, turning bright red. “Yes!” he said, looking exasperated. Suddenly he realized. “Oh. No, I didn’t mean it like--” “It doesn’t matter what you meant, Gregory. I think it would be best if you leave.” I said frostily. “No.” Gregory said. “I will not leave yet until you tell me why I should not kill Grace.” Nadia gasped. She did not expect a death sentence. “But….,” she said. “She is my grandmother.”

Chapter 23: Debate Gregory gasped. “How is that possible!” he exclaimed, and Nadia instantly regretted telling him. “It was at noon on a Tuesday. I was called on the announcements to meet with the headmistress.” Nadia said, spinning a web of lies. She reminded herself that Gregory was only being nice to trick more information out of her. “The guards let me in,” she said. “You're lying.” Gregory said. “Tell me the truth. I swear I am not trying to manipulate you.” Nadia still doubted if Gregory was telling the truth. She then remembered how she actually found out. It was on a Sunday night, the last night before Jasmine had started to act strange. She walked by Jasmine’s bed and found a letter that caught her eye. It read:

Dear Jasmine, I don't know why you are so insistent on protecting me. You can “Defeat the Shadow” without me. I refuse to work with my mother. She kidnapped my daughter, Nadia, from me. I will not engage in activities with my horrid mother. She tortured my husband, murdered her own, and killed my twin brother, Midnight. GOOD-BYE. I don’t want to see any of you again.

Sincerely, Illumination

On that same night, she had found another letter underneath it. It read:

Dear Illumination, Grace did not murder her own son and husband. The idea is absurd. We are trying to find Orgiosghrgsre. He is very wise and we seek his help. I know for a fact that his granddaughter Arianna is Gwen’s sister and that she raised you. Please help us. We need to locate Orgiosghrgsre or we will suffer greatly. You can either be a traitor to us and suffer the consequences, or you can give us information and help us find him. The choice is yours. Choose wisely.

Sincerely, Jasmine

The memory of the notes rung through her mind as she stood before Gregory. It made a lot more sense now. Illumination was her mother. That also meant that Orgiosghrgsre was her great-great-great-grandfather. But how could he still be alive? Chapter 24: Travelling East The train pulled up to the border to check their passports. Teresa showed them three. Apparently there was one for Winter as well. Matilda had left them long ago after the attack at the palace, which Annemarie and Teresa did not seem too enthusiastic about. Later, they got of at the station for Astuku, the capital of Rientalia. They exited the station, which was crowded with people wearing strange, almost extraterrestrial clothes. Winter suddenly felt relieved for the change of clothes she had received from Fatima. “Who are you?” Winter asked once they were in the station. “That’s classified” “Where are we going after here?” she tried again. Without moving her gaze, Teresa replied, “Niedria.” “Right, right,” Winter replied, “And where is that?” Finally, Teresa looked at Winter in amusement. “Wow. You really don’t know any of the kingdoms. Let me give you some advice. Learn. There are people who want you dead. You need to know who your allies are.” “And is… Niedria an ally?” “That remains to be seen.” Suddenly, Winter felt a sharp pain in her head. It felt like an ax was cutting open her skull from the inside. She screamed and clutched her head in her hands as the other people in the station stared at her. She saw Teresa and Annemarie’s concerned faces fading in and out of focus. Then she felt blissful, painless darkness. She thought she was dead until she heard a voice. “Hello, Winter. I’ve been waiting so long to meet you.” Chapter 25: Haunting Dreams Winter’s eyes flew open. She was in a field. It would have been beautiful in any other case, but the moonlight shone on a man standing alone across from her. “Who are you?” Winter asked, terrified and puzzled. She looked around. Teresa and Annemarie were nowhere to be found. The man who stood in front of her had long brownish-black hair and was about five and a half feet tall. She groaned when she realized that she was tied to a chair. “My name is Landslide.” he said. “Explain, please.” Winter said. “I am not the one who needs to explain,” he chuckled, “I want to know where Grace’s school is.” “Who is Grace?” Winter asked, confused. “Tell me.” he said, all pretenses of friendliness gone “Where. Is. The school?” “I don’t know!” Winter said. Suddenly, she felt herself rise up. She looked down and realized that she was hovering in midair. She tried to scream, but her lips weren’t moving. She looked around, but Landslide was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, a voice echoed from all around. “The location of Grace’s school!” Winter felt tears streaming down her face as she answered, “I don’t know!” “Of course you know!” he snapped, “Seers know everything.” There was bitterness in his words. “I– I’m not a–What’s a Seer?” “Tell me!” he screamed. Suddenly, the world started to dissolve. “No!” he shouted desperately, “NO! WHERE IS THE SCHOOL?!” But the voice faded off into nothing as the world around Winter became clearer. She was in a bed. A hospital bed. “She’s awake!” said a voice. Winter couldn’t bring herself to look. Chapter 26: Astuku “Where am I?” Winter asked, dazed and confused. “At Astuku hospital.” said Annemarie. “You have been out for two days. You will be dismissed soon.” “And where is that? Why am I in a hospital?” “Rientalia. We’ll be arriving at our destination shortly. As for why you are here, you collapsed in the train carriage. It took my sister, me, and half of our guard to carry you here. Seriously. How much do you weigh?” A few hours later, Winter was dismissed. She slowly got out of the bed and followed Teresa and Annemarie down a hallway to an elevator. They went up 3 floors, from the eighth floor to the eleventh floor. They then walked down a hall which became a skybridge which was fully enclosed in green tinted glass. In the middle of the short walkway, Winter looked out through the glass, which tinted the sun green. “Why is the weather so strange? It is so oddly sunny but no one is outside.” Winter asked, confused. “It’s 109 degrees outside.” Teresa said. “We are going to meet with Queen Pandora in the palace.” Winter then looked ahead several feet and realized that that was where the sky bridge connected to. It was large and was made partially of glass. They entered the palace and Winter was surprised that the hallway ended at a wall with no passages to the side. In front of them was an elevator. Suddenly, several grey spirits emerged from a vent below them. There were 17 of them. Annemarie appeared to meditate for a few minutes and they vanished one by one. “Who were they?” Winter asked. “They are Gwen’s siblings, their wives and husbands, and their children.” Annemarie responded. “Who is Gwen?” Winter asked. “She is Isadora’s mother. With her husband Rudolph, she had, in birth order, twins Hannah and Lisa, Grace, Isadora, Zoe, and Ingrid. Hannah’s daughter with her husband Gravestone is my mother Queen Constance.” Winter realized that this is the third time she heard of someone named Grace. What if they were the same person? “Does Grace run a school?” Winter asked. “How did you know?” Annemarie responded. “And is she hiding from a hooded creature?” “Oh my god!” Teresa exclaimed. “How did you know about Grace!” “Because I had a dream in which I was in a room which was dark and a shadowy creature entered,” Winter responded. “It was black as night.” “What happened?” Teresa asked as they entered the elevator. “The creature entered the room and I heard the worst sound ever.” “That was no dream,” Annemarie said. “That actually happened. You were the girl in the room. The creature is known as Creature #1 and is a daughter of Arwenthreyfur.” “If there is a Creature #1, is there a Creature #2?” Winter asked. “Yes, but it was Creature #1 who attacked Grace since Creature #2 was and still is trapped in Gwen’s mansion’s basement.” Annemarie responded. “These creatures have no other parent, and it is not known how or why that was or why they are a subspecies.” “I am confused. How is their mother a regular Autioumese and have children who are not?” Winter asked “No one knows.” Teresa said. Winter’s eyes then shut. Chapter 27: Plans Anne was puzzled. Never before had her father even tried to kill himself. Yet the crime scene was unmistakably a suicide. And here she was in the palace of a city she hardly knew. Atsuku, the capital of Rientalia. In a world she was thrust into only knowing from a few stories her father, Inferno, told her. She knew that she was going to meet her extended family in the 13th floor meeting room. All these years, no one had told her her best friend was the Seer. She knew that her father had many siblings and was one of triplets. She had met her aunt, Hurricane, only once, and she came alone and hardly talked. She had only heard of her uncle, Landslide, the third of the triplets since Hurricane briefly mentioned him and his six daughters during her only visit to Earth. In the years after her mother’s disappearance, her father had grown increasingly distant. But he would never have killed himself. That she knew. It was Nadia, then, her cousin, who had caused Inferno’s death. But even that didn’t make sense me. Nadia had no way of using her magic, trapped as it was, and Illumination was still clueless. There was no way or reason that Inferno was dead. But even death could be confusing. She knew that much. But it still greatly puzzled her. Or maybe it was Creature #1, her second cousin. But there was no way that could have happened. Why would Creature #1, one of her closest allies, betray her? Anne thought and thought about the possibilities, but none made any sense. “Hello. We have been waiting for you.” said a hooded figure who was about the same height as Nadia. It was Seraphina, Creature #1’s daughter, who had just walked into Anne’s hotel room, along with her father, Harrison, her uncle, Albus, and her twin cousins Nygamaea and Nygomoeo. “Have you found your mother yet?” Anne asked Nygamaea and Nygomoeo. “She is trapped in the basement of Gwen’s mansion.” said Nygamaea. “And my father?” Anne’s voice trembled as she spoke. Seraphina seemed to smile through her hood, her dark eyes flashing through the hood as it it were transparent. “He will be fine if you do as we say.” replied Seraphina. “But what must I do?” Anne replied. “You must go to the river by this castle,” Said Seraphina, chanting. “The one that goes through the city?” “Yes,” Seraphina responded. “Then chant River, Oh river, bring back this soul form the dead.” Chapter 28: The Meeting Winter’s eyes flew open. The elevator doors opened at the 13th floor. Standing right in front of them was a woman with blue hair. “Hello,” the woman said. “My name is Pandora.” Pandora then led them down the hallway and to a room at the end. It was a meeting room. It was long and Pandora proceeded to sit at the far end. Winter then walked around the table. Names were on metal plates in front of each seat. At the near end of the table was a seat marked Teresa. She then walked down the right side of the table. The names read in order: Helga Illumination Lillianna Terra Seraphina Sven Lilianne Nygamaea Winter Then, at the far end, it read Pandora. The other side of the table read: Lilianni Irma Nygomoeo Marcus Annemarie Theodora Natasha Yasmine A- Winter decided to stop reading the names while beginning to read the last one. Winter backtracked and sat at her seat. Some of the names that she read confused her. Who is named Illumination? she thought, And who is named Nygamaea, or Lilianni? Winter was very confused. Who were these people? “Who are these people who are supposed to arrive?” Winter asked. “Our family” Pandora said, nodding to Teresa and Annemarie. “I think a more important question is, what happened to my children.” Teresa said. “What?” Winter said. “What happened?” “Not exactly certain. One night in the palace, it was very stormy and the storm was downright unnatural. I went to my four childrens’ rooms and they were gone.” Teresa said. “The storm must have been artificial, a fabrication of reality.” Just as Teresa finished her sentence, the door opened. “It appears we have our first arrival.” Pandora said. Standing in the doorway, Winter saw three hooded figures about her height. Then Winter’s eyes dashed to the fourth guest. She gasped. “Anne?” Chapter 29: Trials Nadia stared at Gregory, awaiting judgement. After their discussion, he had stormed out of her room to tell his father. The next day, armed guards had escorted her down a hallway and into this meeting room. The room was encompassed by glass. Nadia and the guards sat on metal chairs, while the prince and king sat on glass ones. Nadia raised her eyebrows at the silence. Still, no one spoke. They all stared at the king, who stared at her. “So… the weather today! Interesting, wasn’t it?” Nadia laughed awkwardly. No one joined in. She turned red but continued trying to break the silence, these chains are– they’re pretty cool… Metal, amirite?” She sighed and buried her head in her hands. “What do you want?” “We want justice,” King Colin said, and Nadia tried (and failed) to cover her giggles with a cough. His voice was ten times stranger than the guards who had first arrested her, and his voice had cracked six times. Now Nadia could tell he was glaring a bit more. “How did you find out Grace is your grandmother?” “I found two letters between my mother and Jasmine.” Nadia said. “In them my mother said that she would not work with her mother, Grace. Jasmine replied in a desperate attempt to get her to her her find Orgiosghrgsre.” “Thank you for your information.” Colin said. “Now follow me.” “Where are you taking me?” Nadia asked. She followed him through a hallway. They kept on walking for several minutes. The king was silent. Then the hallway ended. At the end of the hallway there was a window that was open. King Colin then drank a serum of sorts and then lifted her up. “LET ME GO!” Nadia exclaimed as she writhed trying to break free. She then yelled in agony as he flung her out the window. 