Taking a small step backwards, I asked, “Ripley?” With a bright flash of gold, the shadow snapped together into a familiar form, a serpent shaped dragon. In my head I could hear it speak to me telepathically.
~ Lucas. ~
“Welcome to my room, Ripley,” I said, excited. Ripley was the name of the main character in my all-time favorite movie franchise. In those films Ripley had to fight and destroy her dragons. In my world, the dragon was a friend. “Welcome home.”
Looking past me at the background of my bedroom, Ripley slid closer to me and nodded.
~ Home. ~
“So, I have like a million questions…” I paused as the thought of me talking with a mystical being that had bonded with my essence, was overwhelming. Ripley’s smoky scales shifted tightly together with a clicking precision that soothed me.
~ I know. ~
I guess I’ll start with the most obvious question. “Are we safe?”
~ For the moment. ~
Not the optimistic answer I was hoping for but it was a start. “What happened to us? Why has it been so long that we’ve been gone when it only felt like a couple hours on your world?”
~ When we were wished to my world it reset everything. My energy was used up, all gone, but yet, here I am. Alive and in the form that you’ve chosen for me. ~
“A dragon,” I whispered. Ripley’s eyes flickered with a golden glow inside its smoky black form. I spent most of my younger days dreaming of having my very own dragon, and when the enchanted stone that Ripley was born from found its way into my hands, I wished for it to be true. I wished for a kick-ass dragon.
~ Usually when the energy of a Jynshee Orb is used up, I no longer exist. I fade away. But your wish changed something, Lucas. Your wish freed me. ~
“I don’t understand.”
~ In the final battle with the universal demon that called himself General Love, my powers were exhausted…mostly. You handed over the magic of the Jynshee Orb to another person just in time. ~
“Olivia’s little sister, Sophia.”
~ Yes, Sophia. Her youthful spirit changed the power of the Orb. It also reset its form, I’m not sure why. The universal power changed from the shape of a stone into the rings she bears now…the Jynshee Rings. They conceal my original power. Well, almost all of my power… ~
“Huh?”
~ I’m part of you now. You’re part of me. The leftover power from the Jynshee Orb lives in you too. As long as you have those markings on your wrist and arm, we will be one. ~
With a quick glance at my arm, I smiled, “Cool.”
~ As for the the difference in time between our dimensions, that’s just how it works. Twenty-four hours in my dimension is the equivalent of fourteen months here on Earth. Sorry, Lucas. ~
“No worries,” I sighed, doing the math in my head. I jumped to the next question. “Now that the Jynshee Orb is no more and most of your power was morphed into the thirteen rings that Sophia and Felicity carry, what can you do?”
~ I’m not sure. ~
“What can Sophia do with the power inside the rings?”
~ Anything. Everything. ~
“Well, that’s a bit dangerous. That’s an awful lot of power for a twelve-year-old to have.”
~ Agreed. ~
“What do we do now?”
~ We teach her how to harness the true power within her jewelry, or we try to remove them from her possession. We keep your world safe, at all costs. ~
I smiled up at Ripley, and corrected, “Our world.”
Ripley nodded in agreement.
~ Our world. ~
The moment hit me like a hammer as I realized I was standing in the middle of my bedroom talking with a monster that I had created with my own deepest desires. Ripley settled in front of me and snapped its head in place.
~ Lucas. ~
“Yeah,” I said, dazed. My thoughts were far away, lost in this impossible moment.
~ You have company. ~
Instantly, Ripley faded into see-through smoke that sucked back into my arm like a vacuum.
~ Remember, Lucas…believe. ~
“Believe in what?” I asked, wearily. My fingers scratched at the lines painted on my skin. They still glowed with soft light as Ripley spoke inside my mind.
~ Believe in her. ~
From over my shoulder came a click against my bedroom window. Another quick click followed as I realized somebody was outside tossing small pebbles at the windowpane. Standing in surprise two floors up, I reached for my window and pulled it open. The dark starry sky greeted me as it was now nighttime. Man, how long had I been talking with Ripley?
“Lucas,” Olivia called from below. Her voice was filled with worry and she seemed unsure of herself. She looked beautiful, as usual. Long brown hair almost as dark as night with streaks of metallic purple racing through it, danced in the desert breeze. Worried violet eyes glared up at me. My longtime schoolboy crush, Olivia Weaver.
“Olivia? Hi,” I said, like a sap.
“We need to talk,” she called out.
“What time is it?” I asked, confused by the darkness. It was still light out when I came home.
“Midnight. Can we come up?” she asked, quickly.
“We?” I huffed. Just then a smaller version of Olivia appeared from the shadows. It was Sophia. She was all smiles and waved up at me. Olivia grabbed her hand and shot her a grumpy glare.
“Hurry up, before someone sees us here,” Olivia added. She was upset with me for some reason. Could I blame her though. I did almost lose her sister in another dimension.
“Hang on,” I whispered.
With a snap of my wrist the tattoo flickered to life. Ripley appeared in the palm of my hand in a miniature version of itself. Only about the size of a pet lizard.
“Ripley, can you help me out?”
LEVEL 04
MIDNIGHT CITY
Camelback Mountain - Phoenix, Arizona
With a dizzying puff of smoke, we found ourselves atop one of the highest peaks in the Valley of the Sun. Olivia, Sophia, and I clung to each other as Ripley spun around us like a tornado made of static electricity. With one final pop of energy, Ripley slid back into my arm leaving us in a quiet amazement.
“That was intense,” I said, carefully. I surveyed our surroundings as Olivia and Sophia tried to catch their breath. My magical dragon had teleported us to the summit of these famous hills. In the cool darkness of night the large city of Phoenix glowed and flickered with every possible color of the rainbow.
“Where are we?” Sophia asked in a nervous voice. Her hands were locked along her big sister’s arms.
Olivia grumbled, “It looks like Lucas’ pet whisked us away to the top of Camelback Mountain.”
“Why?” Sophia asked, quickly. She was letting her fear fall away and soaking up the blurring lights from below us.
“Ripley took us somewhere safe, and private, so we can talk,” I said, finding Olivia’s worried eyes with mine.
Looking over the edge of the mountain, she doubted me, “Safe, huh?”
I glanced around once more. “Well, sort of.” We both laughed and it echoed through the nighttime sky.
Sophia looked up at us and smiled. “Don’t worry, I still have my rings. I can protect us.” She held her hand out and tightly wrapped around both of her pinky fingers were two shiny bands. They twinkled to life, spinning with golden sparkles. The scratches along my forearm matched their colorful flashes. She had only two of the twelve rings on her. I wondered where the other ten rings were. In my head I could hear Ripley come to life.
~ She must be taught to control the power of the rings. ~
I agree. I spoke in my head.
~ No one as young as her has ever wielded the power of the Jynshee. ~
I know. I thought, quietly.
~ Thankfully she only wields twelve of the thirteen bands. She cannot unlock the full potential of the rings without the complete set. But, this is still extremely dangerous for h
er. ~
Why don’t we just take them from her?
~ Because once the power of the Jynshee has bonded with its host, there is no taking them away. Only the host can wish the power away, and I do not have faith that Sophia will give them up so easily. ~
I had felt that power myself. It was intoxicating and absolute. I frowned, and agreed. I know.
Olivia stared at me curiously. She knew my history with Ripley and the powers it had. Quickly, her hand fell onto my markings and she closed her eyes. My two-way mind conversation became a three-way.
* Are you two talking about Sophia? *
~ Hello, Olivia. ~
Feeling excited to have her voice in my head, I smiled, and answered her back. Yes, we are.
* About what? The rings? *
Ripley thinks it’s too dangerous for Soph to have the rings. It’s too much power to handle.
* I completely agree. * Olivia leaned into me. It made a goofy smile appear along my face.
Olivia, I’ve missed doing this. I mean, sharing our thoughts like this. Olivia and I had shared this closeness before. When Ripley was still a stone-like jewel, we shared a few important conversations telepathically.
* I’ve missed it too. *
So, you did miss me while I was gone.
* Everyday, Lucas. *
I stepped slowly to her and she leaned closer to me. The moonlight filled her big eyes and I wanted to kiss her. Suddenly, she pulled away from me again.
What’s wrong?
* We should talk about this later. *
Why?
* I just think we should take things slow. Things were moving so fast before you…left…disappeared… *
I guess saving the world can be a little stressful, huh. I was making a joke, but her words had taken the wind out of my sails a little. She looked away from me for a moment.
* I guess so. *
I took a deep breath and continued. Maybe we should take a step back. Just be friends, or study buddies or something. I so didn’t want to take a step back. I had been infatuated with her even before middle school after all.
* Friends. * She repeated inside my brain.
“Friends,” I said, out loud. She looked down at her hand along my forearm and blushed. Her fingertips were gently tracing the lines of my flickering tattoo.
* With benefits. *
We both erupted into a fit of laughter and it echoed everywhere around the mountain. Sophia walked up to us and broke our connection with her hands.
“You’re talking about me, aren’t you?” she demanded.
“Calm down, Soph,” Olivia warned her.
Sophia snapped back, “Don’t tell me to calm down, O!” I stepped between both of them.
“We need to talk about your rings,” I said, to Sophia.
She stepped back from me. “What about my rings?”
“Soph, they’re too much responsibility for you. They’re too dangerous,” Olivia tried to say.
“Are you kidding me? No they’re not!” Sophia yelled.
“I know the power of the rings is appealing, tempting even, but it’s a power we don’t fully understand yet. You’ve seen what they did…we were lost for over a month,” I tried to reason with her.
“So!” she fought back.
“So, they’re dangerous! I can’t take the chance of losing you again,” Olivia snapped.
Without missing a beat, Sophia made a fist and stuck it in her big sister’s face. “You won’t lose me again. You won’t lose anyone again, because of these!” Sophia made one of the rings spin along her finger. White and blue light sparkled like a firecracker within the ring as it spun and Olivia rolled her eyes in annoyance.
“Damn it, Lucas, tell her what Ripley said!” Olivia huffed.
Sophia’s eyes locked onto me. “What did Ripley say?”
“Just a warning,” I mumbled.
“What warning?”
“You’re too young to control the power completely.”
Sophia’s eyes welled over in tears. “What does that mean then?”
I inhaled a slow breath and placed my hand on her shoulder. “We take it slow, okay. All of this magical mumbo-jumbo is confusing, even for me. Just promise me you won’t use the rings for anything.”
“Seriously?” she whined.
“Just for now, Soph. I’m still new at this too.” She pulled away from me just like her older sister had done moments before. “How about we learn together. Deal?”
She thought about it for a long minute, and finally said, “Okay. Deal.”
“Good,” Olivia groaned. Sophia pulled the rings from her fingers and slid them into her pockets. She quickly wrapped her arms around herself as the wind picked up and brought with it a cooling breeze.
“Do you have somewhere safe you can put them? All of them?” I asked Sophia. Olivia removed her pullover and placed it over her little sister’s shoulders. Sophia smiled at her and nodded my way.
“Yes.”
“Good. I trust you with this secret,” I smiled.
“I trust you too, Lucas,” she whispered.
LATER THAT NIGHT…
Back in my bedroom I glanced at the time on the screen of my computer monitor. It flashed thirteen minutes before 1 a.m. With a long yawn I caressed the lines of my tattoo, tucking Ripley in for the night. From the corner of my eye came movement in the far off distance through my opened window. From their second floor balcony, my snooping neighbors, the Anderson’s, watched me with smug smiles. Wrapped in their plaid pajamas they didn’t even make an effort to hide that they were watching me from their house across the street. I placed my arms behind my back as if I was hiding a bad secret from them. They both smiled at me and turned around, slowly fading into the shadows of their balcony. It was like a scene from a horror movie.
“What the…”
Had they seen my secret? Had they seen Ripley? The Anderson’s were always watching me, always keeping tabs on the neighborhood. I found them harmless but annoying. With a swift scratch of my fingers through my messed hair, I pulled my blinds closed and made my way to my bed and slept like I hadn’t done so in years.
LEVEL 05
COOL KIDS
My first day back. I expected it to be an unbearable morning full of curious stares and stupid questions. I figured my new infamy would at least change my reputation as the geeky kid who could fix your grades with a swipe of his hands across his computer keyboard, to the mysterious kid that disappeared for the last month. I at least thought that I had earned some cool points with the troublemakers of the school with my runaway story and reported shenanigans, but I was wrong. The cool kids were still bored and beautiful. The smart kids were still attentive and much too serious. The hooligans were still dangerous and half asleep. And the soap opera that I called high school hadn’t changed a bit.
Walking onto the campus and through the front doors I was greeted with two requests for wiping the memory chips of old cell phones, probably recently stolen. Also, one request for help with an overheating Playstation game system. Yup, nothing had changed in my little world. I was still the kid you came to for a quick fix when your favorite gadget was on the fritz. The nerdy nice guy that everyone loved to use but never wanted to let in their social network. No cool kid here. Just your everyday chump.
“Chump that saved the world, once…” I mumbled, to myself in a quiet fit of self loathing. Maybe next time the school is about to be eaten by a dimension hopping monster I’ll take my giant brain and magical toys and go home. Ungrateful bunch of people.
Thankfully, my crew of misfits were here to calm me down and settle my nerves.
“Lucas!” the Saint twins called out. My oldest friends on the planet, Roland and Morgan Saint. Born only moments apart, they were inseparable even though they argued half of the time. Roland and I had been best friends since kindergarden. We shared the same interests, computers, video games and comic books. Sadly, we even dressed too much alike. Roland stood in front of me with one
of my favorite T-Shirts that he must have snagged from my closet. It was blue with the words ‘Doc Brown’s Custom Car Modifications’ painted across its chest. Roland grinned wildly and embraced me with a tight hug. His skinny arms barely holding onto me because he was so excited. His sister, Morgan, flipped her long hair behind her back and squeezed me as tight as possible. Her freckled nose scrunched as she doubled her grip. She was easily the sweetest person I had ever known. I was a better person because of her friendship.
“Ro! Mo! I’m happy to see you, too,” I barely said, before they cut me off.
“We tried to call you last night but your cell phone went to voicemail and your dad said you weren’t allowed any incoming calls on the home phone,” Roland said.
Morgan added, “Yeah, Luc, he sounded pretty upset.”
“You have no idea,” I smiled.
“So, spill it,” Roland demanded. He was the conspiracy theorist of the group and wouldn’t let me go until he had heard every gory detail of what had happened to Sophia, Felicity and I.