Chapter 13.
Valerie reached the bottom of the stairs and saw a long, narrow tunnel stretching ahead of her. Her heart thumped wildly as she stepped inside. She was only a few steps in when she tripped, catching herself against the wall at the last second. Her night vision goggles slipped off and landed beside her with a crunch. When she picked them up and put them back on, she saw only blackness. They were broken. She panicked for a second, and then remembered the flashlight in her pocket. She pulled it out and frantically pointed the beam in all directions.
The tunnel was completely empty, and the walls were lined with rough stones. The air inside smelled stale, as if it had been stagnating in here for years"which it probably had, she realized. The pa.s.sage was only a few inches taller than she was, and so narrow that she could touch both sides of it without extending her arms completely.
She was being squeezed by the close s.p.a.ce, and she struggled to keep her breathing steady so that she wouldnt hyperventilate from her fear. Ever since a terrifying experience of being locked up at one of her foster homes, small s.p.a.ces always robbed her of her self-control.
It took all of her strength not to turn around and race back outside to safety with Thai. But she considered the life that was waiting for her back there"the sickness that was sucking her strength away and the emptiness inside her that made her heart ache. At least if she moved forward, she had a chance of a fresh start.
So she forced herself to put one foot in front of the other, and her body obeyed even as her mind was tortured by thoughts of what was lurking further ahead. Without her flashlight, she would be in complete darkness. She wondered what could be hiding in the darkness beyond the circle of light.
Her panic swelled inside of her, and she began to run, faster and faster, hoping that the tunnel would finally widen. She started to wonder if it would ever end, and she had somehow failed the Sphinxs test and this was her punishment. Abruptly, the tunnel narrowed and the ceiling began to taper down so that she had to crouch in order to move forward. Her breathing came in gasps, and she sc.r.a.ped her hands against the sides of the walls as she tried to propel herself forward. The lack of oxygen made her dizzy.
She had a sense that she was directly under the Great Pyramid, and the vibrating of its magic rattled her to the bone. It was as if the entire weight of the ma.s.sive monument was upon her shoulders, bearing down on her. The tunnel curved sideways and angled upward.
Finally, she crashed into a barrier and collapsed to the ground. Her head was spinning as her lungs ached to breathe something other than the musty air of the tunnel. Her flashlight had shut off when she fell, and she frantically, blindly felt around the ground until her hand closed around the handle.
She turned the flashlight on and said a silent prayer of thanks that it hadnt broken from her fall. She shone the flashlight beam on the barrier and realized that it was the door that marked the entrance to the launch room. At last.
The door was covered in symbols and numbers that made up hundreds of complex equations. She recognized some of the symbols from her algebra cla.s.s, though most of them appeared to be in a language that she couldnt understand. She realized that some of the symbols were the same as the ones embroidered on Chisisis sash, and her anxiety for him, which had been driven out of her mind by her harrowing journey through the tunnel, returned.
She rested her flashlight on the ground and wiped the sweat off her forehead. Then she pressed both of her hands against the door, ready to push. But she didnt have to do a thing. She watched in wonder as light poured out of her fingers and traveled through the entire door, illuminating the equations with a translucent, neon blue light. Slowly the stone door disappeared, leaving only the glowing equations like a veil between the tunnel and the room behind it.
She stepped through the veil and into the chamber. As soon as she entered, the room lit up brightly, temporarily blinding her. She realized that more equations covered the walls, floor, and ceiling of the room, and they were all glowing brightly. She stretched, relieved to finally have room to breathe.
Then something caught her eye that caused anxiety to subside. In the center of the room, a long, silver sword appeared to be thrust into the stone floor. The handle was gold, and the blade shone in the light of the room.
She was immediately reminded of her favorite story since she was a little girl, the tale of King Arthur, who had pulled his magical sword from a stone to prove he was king. That legend had always fascinated her, and she had read every book on King Arthur and Camelot that she could find. She couldnt help walking over to the sword and gently grasping the hilt.
Hesitantly, she pulled, and it slid out of the floor easily. She looked at it in wonder, feeling as if she had stepped inside of her favorite tale. Winding along the blade was elaborate script. She had only read the first word"Pathos"when her nose picked up a familiar foul smell and the blade reflected someone entering the room.
Venu must have managed to sneak past Thai and follow her into the tunnel. Rage rose up inside of her with a ferocity that she had never known. Rage for attacking her, rage for almost killing Thai, and most of all, rage for what he had done to Chisisi. Seeing the look of pure hatred on his face, she knew that he shared her loathing. Sanguina stood behind him, a nasty grin spread across her face. But the usual freezing paralysis that Sanguina induced melted in the inferno of Valeries anger.
Venu lunged at her. Valerie cursed the Sphinx for making her bury her magic. She didnt know if she would have beaten Venu last time without that taste of her power that Stonehenge had allowed her. But even without magic, her time on the streets had honed her reflexes. She dodged him, and he slammed against the wall from the force of his own stride. Venu shouted something in another language that sounded like a curse, and pulled a long dagger from his belt.
Leave here now and Venu will never come near you again, Sanguina said. Valerie knew that she was trying to distract her. I promise you, even if you escape him, I will be waiting for you on the other side.
But Valeries rage focused her, giving her an anchor to keep her from getting lost in her fear of Sanguina. She held the sword in front of her, and even though it was clumsy and awkward in her hands, it also belonged there. As Venu thrust at her with his dagger, she awkwardly knocked his blade away, barely keeping the sharp edge from touching her skin.
It took every ounce of focus to antic.i.p.ate where Venus next attack would come from. She concentrated on his twitching muscles, and escaped his next slash by a hair.
Sanguina put her face right in front of Valerie, blocking her view of Venu. In the end, you know youll lose. Run now while you can, she commanded.
But Valerie refused to let Sanguinas words distract her. She knew that her life depended on being able to focus. So she said nothing and concentrated every cell of her being on the fight for her life.
She saw Venus blade less than a second before it came speeding toward her, ready to plunge into her stomach. She stopped it in time, but the tip of the dagger pierced her skin, and blood trickled out of the wound. For a split second, her mind registered the pain. But just as her rage had swallowed her fear, it also obliterated her pain. Nothing existed except for calculating her next move.
It was time to stop being on the defensive and attack. Every pa.s.sing second was making her weaker. Valerie struck out blindly, and her sword met nothing but air. This wasnt a strategy that would enable her to make it out of this fight alive. She forced herself to take a deep breath. She reminded herself of what a helpful foster brother had taught her about fighting"to use all her senses to guide her. She heard the sound of Venus heavy breathing and smelled the poison on his hands.
Letting instinct lead her, she thrust her sword and it clashed with Venus dagger. She flicked her wrist, and her sword nicked his flesh. She had the strangest feeling that her sword had acted on its own, giving her a tiny advantage.
Venu grunted in pain and his dagger skittered across the floor. Without over-thinking her next move, she kicked, and her foot connected with his stomach. She heard his heavy body fall to the ground.
Are you going to let this little girl defeat you? Are you a man? Get up! Sanguina demanded.
He looked up at Sanguina with fear, and Valerie didnt hesitate. She hit Venu on the head with the flat of her sword, and he slumped to the ground, unconscious for the second time in three days.
It took all her remaining strength to drag him out of the launch chamber so that he wouldnt be near her when she was launched into s.p.a.ce. As her rage drained away, something strange took its place that was even better"pride in her triumph over Venu, Sanguina, and her fear. Venu wasnt moving at all, but he was still breathing.
It will be much, much worse for you on the Globe, I promise you. I will find you like I always do, and I will destroy you, Sanguina said when Valerie finally dropped Venu with a grunt. She heard the desperation in Sanguinas voice and deliberately turned to look at her.
You know what I think? For all your threats, youre afraid of me. Thats why you dont want me in your world. And you should be afraid. Because I will fight you, and I will crush you.
Something in the look on Valeries face silenced Sanguina, and she vanished. Valerie took a deep breath and knew that it was time to take off, before Venu could attack again. She had never felt so powerful in her life. She was ready to be on the Globe, to embrace her magic fully, and to take on whatever trouble came her way.
She must have pa.s.sed the second half of the Sphinx test, because she knew exactly what to do next.
Goodbye, Earth, she said, and she touched the center triangle on the north wall that would launch her into s.p.a.ce.
Chapter 14.
A burst of energy exploded in the chamber, searing through Valerie like a shock wave. The symbols covering the walls of the launch chamber pulsated, glowing even more brightly. Then the air shimmered and the symbols seemed to peel off the stones, cascading closer and closer to her, surrounding her in a blue bubble of light. She floated a few feet off the floor in the exact center of the room. Bathed in the blue light and effortlessly hovering in the air, she was completely at peace, ready to be reborn.
But unexpectedly, the vibrating power of the magic that filled the room caused the ancient stones, now weakened without the magic of the symbols to reinforce them, to tremble. The whole room began to shake violently. One of the stones in the ceiling crashed to the floor and shattered into pieces. The last thing that Valerie saw before she was launched into s.p.a.ce were dozens of rocks jarring loose as the room collapsed into itself.
Thai told her later that he saw a flash of blue light shoot out of one of the airshafts that exited the Great Pyramid. But all she knew was that one second she saw the crumbling walls of the launch chamber, and the next she was so far away that she felt like an astronaut seeing Earth from s.p.a.ce.
Valerie stared in amazement at the brilliant blue, green, and brown planet that had been her home. No picture of Earth in a science textbook could compare to this. After a moment, she realized that Earth wasnt getting any smaller. Whats wrong with you? Why wont you move? she yelled at the bubble. Her heart sped up in panic. Cyrus! Where are you? You promised that it wasnt possible for me to get lost in s.p.a.ce!
The second that she thought of Cyrus, the bubble began to move again, hurtling her toward the dark patch in the sky that hid the Globe. She breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that the bubble hadnt been moving because she hadnt been steering it with her thoughts. Concentrating, she pictured Cyruss face in her mind and the bubble moved even faster. The glowing equations moved rapidly in circles around her, spinning more quickly the faster that she traveled.
Because of the sheer speed at which she was traveling, the stars streaked past her, appearing as lines of light rather than individual stars. Line after line zoomed by, and Valerie wondered if she was moving faster than anything else in the universe right now.
In the distance, she saw a cl.u.s.ter of stars swirling around a dark hole, as if their light was being pulled into the eye of a hurricane. She realized that she was headed directly for that dark spot, which grew bigger with every pa.s.sing second.
Logically, she knew that the Globe was hidden inside that void, but the closer she got, the faster her heart beat. As hard as she strained her eyes, she could see nothing in that hole but an empty blackness. She forced herself to control her panic. She would make it through this, like she had made it through every obstacle on this trip. The hole grew larger. She held her breath and squeezed her eyes shut as she was drawn down, down into the fathomless darkness.
When she finally dared to open her eyes, the darkness had disappeared. Through the blue equations of her bubble, she could see a planet that was more colorful than she had ever imagined. The royal blue and turquoise water met land that was many colors, from purple mountains to golden deserts to red canyons. Cool, she gasped in amazement.
Cyrus, Cyrus, she chanted to herself as her bubble sped toward the Globe, worried that she might wind up in the middle of nowhere on this strange new planet. She could see that she was coming closer and closer to a light green patch of land, but she couldnt make out specifics of the landscape as the colors blurred together from the tremendous speed at which she was traveling. Her pulse started to speed up again at the thought that she was going to crash into the Globe at a million miles an hour and be blasted into smithereens, but as if in response to her worry, the bubble immediately slowed, approaching the ground at a less alarming pace.
Seconds later, her feet gently touched land. The bubble around her vanished, and she stared straight into Cyruss shining blue eyes. She realized that she was still clutching the sword she had found in the launch chamber, and she immediately dropped it and threw her arms around him. He lifted her off the ground and twirled her around in a circle.
Took you long enough!
She laughed in joy and relief. It was amazing to finally hug Cyrus and to have her feet firmly planted on solid ground. Up close, she realized that he was a good five inches taller than she was. In person, he seemed older, less like the kid that she had pictured playing with when he was her imaginary friend years ago. Somehow it hadnt hit her that he had grown up, like she had, until she saw him in person.
Cyrus finally released her from his warm, tight hug, and she stepped back.
Youre bleeding! he said, alarm replacing his joy.
Valerie looked down and saw the slash Venu had given her with his knife. Im fine. Its nothing, just a shallow cut. The bleeding has already stopped.
What could have happened in the forty-five minutes since I saw you last?
Before she could respond, a unicorn, pure white with a silver horn, stepped out from the trees. The unicorn met her gaze and nodded.
Cyrus followed her gaze. Valerie, meet Azra. Shes the only one other than me who knows youre here. Azra is one of the founders of this place, and shes been around longer than anyone. And now shes sort of like, um, what you would think of as the Globes president.
Valeries eyes widened nervously. What was the proper way to show a unicorn respect? Especially a unicorn that was president of a magical world? Azras eyes twinkled kindly, and Valerie felt, rather than heard, her lyrical voice in her mind. Welcome to the Globe. Im so happy to finally meet you.
Valerie sent a pleading glance toward Cyrus, silently asking him to help her say the right thing. He burst out laughing. Relax, Val! Shes cool.
Its a, um, pleasure to meet you, Azra.
If its my t.i.tle thats worrying you, Im nothing like a president, really. Im an adviser of sorts. And I do hope youll think of me as a friend.
Valerie smiled and relaxed. Azras calm, warm presence made her feel like she was someone who could be trusted. For the first time since she landed, Valerie took in her surroundings. They were standing in a small, gra.s.sy valley surrounded by a forest.
Now tell me what happened to you! Cyrus demanded.
Azra noticed Valeries wound for the first time, and her gentle eyes filled with concern. Allow me to call a healer right away.
Im okay, I promise, Valerie replied, and then turned to Cyrus. Ill tell you everything, but first, let Thai know Im safe and find out what happened to Chisisi.
But, Val Oh, fine, Cyrus said, unable to hide his impatience. Dont say anything interesting until I get back!
Valerie watched as Cyrus sat down and concentrated. The air around him shimmered, but he didnt disappear. She knelt beside him and waited in silence so as not to break his concentration. Nervously, she stroked the gra.s.s, which was like velvet under her fingers, and watched Azras iridescent mane ripple in the gentle breeze. After a few minutes, the shimmer around him disappeared and his eyes popped open.
Thai found Chisisi. Hes going to be okay, Cyrus said. The tension in her body began to dissolve. Thai said if any more venom had gotten into his bloodstream, he might not have made it. But luckily, Chisisi knew what he was doing and went straight to the hospital. h.e.l.l make a full recovery within the week.
Im going to visit him as soon as you teach me how to do that mental projection thing. Now, what about Thai?
Hes going to stay at the hospital until Chisisis fully recovered to make sure that Venu isnt coming back. Then hes heading back to Vietnam one last time before he goes to South America, Cyrus said. Anyway, enough about Thai. I want to hear what happened to you.
Valerie launched into her tale, recounting her fight with Venu and her trip through the universe. But one thing troubled her. Did I do something wrong when I activated the launch chamber? It looked like I broke the room.
Azra responded thoughtfully. It was a very ancient portal, Valerie. It was never meant to last this long. I think that perhaps the magic held on this long because it was your fate to take this trip. If it werent for you, the launch chamber would have crumbled long ago.
Valerie shook her head in disbelief. How could it possibly be that she, Valerie Diaz, was the reason that the powerful monument had survived for thousands of years? It had to be a coincidence that it crumbled after her trip.
Where did you get that sword, Val? Did you make a pit stop at the Milky Way for one last souvenir? Cyrus asked.
Valerie had forgotten all about the mysterious sword she found in the launch chamber. She picked it up and turned it over in her hands, examining it in the Globes bright sunlight. I found this in the chamber right before I took off. It was embedded in the stone floor, like the story of King Arthur. I had to take a closer look. Do you know where it came from? Was it supposed to be there?
Azra came closer, her mane brushing the blade as she examined it curiously. Then her eyes widened. That is a very famous sword"the Edge of Pathos. I have no idea how it came to be in the chamber. But I knew its last owner. She disappeared years and years ago. She was a friend.
Azra shook her mane regretfully, and Valerie held the sword out to her. You should have it to remember her by.
Thank you, that is most kind, but I believe that Pathos was there for a reason. Besides, it somehow looks as if it belongs to you.
Valerie lifted the sword"Pathos, shed have to remember that"and took a few practice swings. The hilt fit her hand perfectly, as if it were molded to fit her grasp. Thank you, Azra.
Well find you a sheath for it this week.
Valerie took a deep breath, tasting the sweet air on the Globe. Im so glad Im finally here! she said, realizing for the first time that it was true. Coming here was the right decision. All of the fatigue and weakness that she had carried with her on Earth had been lifted, making her feel like she could take on anything.
Not as glad as I am! Can we take her to look around now? Theres so much I want to show you!
Yes, if youre ready, Valerie, well give you the grand tour of our city, Silva.
Valeries eyes shone. Im very ready.
Chapter 15.
Azra and Cyrus led Valerie through the forest. It was like no woods that Valerie had ever seen, except in storybooks. Leaves of every shade of green imaginable were on the trees, and on some of them, the bark glinted as if it had been brushed with gold paint.
As they walked, Valerie occasionally caught a glimpse of something moving in the woods, but she couldnt make out what it was. She started to worry that they were being surrounded, but Azras words softly entered her mind, rea.s.suring her. Its the people of the woods. Humans used to call them elves. They dont like to be bothered often, but they wont hurt us. Valerie let out a breath that she didnt know shed been holding. Were nearly there, Azra added.
Where exactly are we, anyway? On the planet, I mean.
The Globe is split into different countries, much like Earth. Right now were in the country of Arden. Its mainly made up of forests, lakes, and waterfalls, and its capital is Silva.
Thats where you guys live?
Yes. And I think youll like it here very much. In Arden, there are many wonderful teachers who will help you to explore your powers. Here, there are no rules like those on Earth to suppress the magic inside you. You can be the person you really are, fulfill your true potential.