Chapter Thirty-Three
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ALEX

π™°π™»π™΄πš‡ πš‚π™»π™΄π™Ώπšƒ π™΅π™Ύπš πšƒπ™·πšπ™΄π™΄ π™·π™Ύπš„πšπš‚, π™³πš„πšπ™Έπ™½π™Ά πš†π™·π™Έπ™²π™· πš‚π™·π™΄ π™³πšπ™΄π™°π™Όπšƒ π™Ώπ™»π™΄π™°πš‚πš„πšπ™°π™±π™»π™΄ π™³πšπ™΄π™°π™Όπš‚. At one point she was back in the arcade, playing Ghost Chaser and Pac-Man with Phoenix. Had this been a continuation of her previous dream, she did not know, but it was clear, almost like real life, and everything was just as she remembered it.

  After a while, they headed towards the virtual-reality section; an area that dealt with heavy technology. Above the door glittered a black and gold sign with the words πš…π™Έπšπšƒπš„π™°π™» πšπ™Ύπ™Ύπ™Ό, and then beneath it: πš†π™΄π™°πš π™·π™΄π™°π™³πš‚π™΄πšƒ. A ruddy half-light ghosted out of the paned double-door, and through the small gaps on either side wafted a smoky odour.

  Alex frowned, gripping the helmet by the rears and squeezing her head into it. A streak of blue wires flashed on the inside, visible through the separation in the jaw area. "Is it on right?"

  Phoenix laughed. He grabbed a loose piece of fabric dangling at one side of the helmet and attached it to the rear. "Now it is."

  "This won't give me cancer, will it?"

  "I'd hope not," said Phoenix. He took a step back. Then another. There was no one nearby; all the voices came from the retro area down the hall. "Can you see anything?"

  Alex shook her head. "Should I?"

  Another laugh. "Press the button."

  "Button?"

  He raised his hand and punched a button on the opposite side of her helmet. A sudden phantom weight materialised on Alex's shoulders. She looked down, expecting Phoenix's hands to be there, only to find nothing. But above, way above on the ceiling, were words splayed out in lines: a console display:

ENTER RETRO AREA

KEEP HELMET ON

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO REMOVE WHILE STILL ACTIVE.

  That last part pimpled her forearms in gooseflesh and made her heart skip an imperceptible beat. "What's that last part mean?"

  "About not taking off the helmet? Don't, it'll turn your brain to mush," he said evenly. He picked up the helmet tucked between his legs and threw it on.

  "What?!" said Alex, unsure of how to react. Terrified. That would make sense!

  "Relax, I'm messing with you, Al. Learn to take a joke." He laughed and pressed the button on his helmet.

  "Don't scare me like that," she said, defiant. "I can't tell when you're kidding."

  "Yeah? How come?"

  "Because you have the same face for every emotion."

  Phoenix snickered. "I'm not very emotional."

  "Yes you are! You cry all the time! That's the only time youΒ doΒ have a different expression."

  He gave her a super-serious stare, one of those looks brave warriors give dragons, though much more exaggerated.

  "See, now that's too much."

  "It's not easy being this cool," said Phoenix. "You should try it sometime."

  "I did, and where did that get me?"

  "Back to meeee." Phoenix made his best impression of a demonic orc, keeping his voice deep and scratchy.

  "But, I'm being serious," began Alex, "is this safe to do? I've never tried basic virtual reality, let alone one this advanced. And, the warning . . ."

  He scoffed, tapping his leather-gloved fingers on either side of his helmet. "Literally, that's just, like, there in case someone hits their head or gets dizzy or whatever. The company doesn't wanna be catchin' no lawsuits, ya feel, homeboy?" The more he spoke, the more cartoonish his voice became.

  Alex cringed.Β What a dork. Through the lens of the helmet, she rolled her eyes and said, "Stop. I'm not joking. First hover-cars, now this? What's next, actually transporting to other worlds? Different dimensions? Universes?"

  "Oh, so youΒ doΒ believe in the multiverse theory!" His eyes were wrinkled.

  "Never said I didn't."

  "Rad," said Phoenix. "Do you believe in God, Al?"

  A deep sense of unease formed in her stomach as she stood there in the dim hallway glow. The window at the end of the hallway gave way to a full-dark sky. The Spire, bright and blue and ever-so-magnificent, loomed high in the distance with a steeple on top, reflecting the shine of the surrounding buildings. From this perspective, the building looked like a lightsabre against the black of space. She could have gazed at it for much longer, mesmerised by the aesthetic. When was it built again? Ten years ago? She was like, what, seven? That was a long time ago, and still it appeared as revolutionary in design and as eye-catching as ever.

  "Al?"

  She shook her head groggily. "Yeah?"

  "You good? You're staring off into space again."

  "I do that."

  "I know."

  "What was your question again?" she asked.

  "Nothing." He stepped over to the double-door and it slid open automatically.

  Alex sighed, slightly embarrassed, heart fluttering. She followed him, but not before taking one last look at the warning virtually displayed above her.Β Do not attempt to remove, right.

*      *      *

She awoke later, wrapped in a blanket, her black T-shirt tight against her skin. There were dark circles under her arms, and a layer of gooseflesh erupted on her forearms. She was in a bedroom identical to Scarlet's. Her eyes were heavy and her muscles were limp. A sound came from outside: footsteps, soft and somewhat methodical.

  She wiped her face. How long had she been asleep? She hadn't the slightest of an idea. Normally, she'd have a phone she could glimpse at and all the information would be given to her. Things were harder here. Things were confusing. She trudged out of bed and searched through the bed for her black jacket. It wasn't there, and for a moment this had struck a nerve. Her grandmother bought her that jacket for her sixteenth birthday, which wouldn't have meant a whole lot had she not passed away the following year. It saddened Alex, made her intensely uncomfortable at times, but life moved on. What could she do?

  Not much.

  Poking out from the front of the bed was her jacket sleeve. It was difficult to notice at first, what with the darkness and all. She was also still tired and a little confused. What she'd do for a coffee right about now.

  Despite her predicament, she got dressed and went out into the hallway, expecting to see Scarlet making her way downstairs, but instead found darkness. She crept into her room to check on her. She was gone. Where to?

  Asking herself this, she backtracked and hurried downstairs. She perused the first storey carefully, checking the living kitchen and open hall that had all sorts of plants and paintings. A bookshelf joined pleasantly with a gallery of abstract artβ€”the pictures possessing one mutual theme: the eye. She'd seen this eye back in the house in the snowy subdivision. Did it mean something? Was God looking in on them? Wait, were these . . . cameras?

  Putting aside Scarlet for a moment, she stepped over to one of the pictures and removed it from the wall. Nothing on the other side. Nothing except for a nail stabbing out from the panel. Flustered, she put the picture back on the nail andβ€”

  SNAP!

  The picture fell and the glass smashed into several shards. She swore and went to pick it up but found that the nail had fallen, too. She nicked her hand on a glass piece and swore again. A torrent of footsteps came thumping down the stairs at the same time. They slowed down upon reaching the bottom, and then stopped altogether.

  "Drop something?" It was Mama's Boy.

  Alex looked back at him with a wispy blue fire building in her eyes. "Obviously."

  "Need a hand?" He cupped his mouth and stifled a laugh.

  "What?"

  "Nothing, you aight?" He walked towards her, somewhat askance.

  "No, Iβ€”" But by the time she spoke, the blood-soaked wound in her hand had already healed. Perplexed, she continued, or tried to. "I . . . I'm fine?"

  Mama's Boy was right next to her now, looking down at her hand. "Hm. All right then."

  He trudged back and went to switch the light on. The lights to the hall flashed, almost blinding Alex.

  She grimaced and waited for her eyes to adjust. A pain scratched across her foreheadβ€”a tension headache, brief but irritating. She rubbed her temples slowly, and then ran a finger through her eyes, clearing away the tears.

  "Doβ€”"β€”you know where Scarlet is?

  "Where's Scarlet?" Mama's Boy asked.

  "I was about to ask you that," she said.

  He shrugged, and then steadily walked over to the window, his hard-soled shoes soft against the carpet. Squinting, he said, "She's outside."

  "Outside?" Alex walked over to the side window by the front door and peered through. On the other side, Scarlet was leaning against the wooden balustrade and gazing out into the scenery, hands interlocked, thick, short-cut hair blowing eastward. Alex, with dull surprise, squinted.

  Wordlessly, Alex popped the door open and felt the icy wind billow over her body. The temperature change was expected, but even so, it didn't help. She shivered, gritted her teeth, and hissed out foggy breaths, stuffing her hands in her armpits.

  It wasn't raining, thank God, but she still wore her beanie. "Scarlet!" she called, her voice louder than it had been earlier when the storm was just beginning to thicken.

  The woman snapped back suddenly. Then she reverted her sight to the field below. "You're up already? I'm shocked." Her voice wasn't chipper as it usually had been.

  "I, uh, I'm fine now," Alex said. "Are you . . ." She paused.

  "I'm fine. Just like listening to the wind. It's a nice place to think, you know?"

  Alex nodded, then stood next to her, arms still crossed. "Doesn't the cold bother you?"

  "I lived in Canada for twelve years!" Now that voice was back. That happy voice. "This is baby powder."

  A peculiar wistfulness overcame Alex. She leaned forward and pressed her arms on the balustrade. She took off her beanie and ran her skinny banana-fingers through her hair. She could have sworn it had grown a little bit longer since she last remembered. But maybe her mind was playing tricks on her. It didn't matter either way. It was at least dry, and with the rain clearing up, it would probably stay that wayβ€”as long as she steered away from lakes and dragons and whatever else roamed the world.

  Speaking of water, a thirst scratched on her throat. She cleared it audibly.

  "Thirsty?" asked Scarlet.

  She nodded. And in a velvet tone: "Yeah . . ."

  "Have you tried the tap?"

  A shake of the head. She puckered her lips. "It doesn't work."

  "That's right!" Scarlet slapped her own forehad. "Maybe we'll get lucky along the way. Find a river or something."

  "Maybe."

  Those same footsteps from earlier came rumbling behind them. Alex switched her gaze to the stairs and saw Mama's Boy coming down. He struggled to keep the hem of his jacket from blowing all over the place.

  "Everything aight?" he yelled.

  Scarlet sighed and turned around to face him, straightening her posture. "You ready to go?"

  He nodded. "Hm. As ready as I'll ever be."

  She looked at Alex. "Alex? You feel ready to head out? It's all right if you wanna wait. We have all the time in the world."

  Alex smirked. "I'm fine. I'm not even sure what happened. I . . . never really fainted before."

  "Must be all the walking," she said, and then planted a hand on her shoulder.

  Alex warmed up and let her hand thump against the wet, slippery balustrade.

  "You're sure, then?"

  "Yes, uh, I'm sure." She strapped on her beanie and laughed timidly.

  Scarlet did the same. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a piece of paper and spawned a dim light on her palm.

  "What's that? The Reach Project?" asked Mama's Boy, taking a step towards her.

  "Jake's letter," answered Scarlet quickly, looking up at him. "Esmond found a gateway in a cave somewhere. And this place . . . It's pretty rocky, so keep an eye out for that."

  "I guess they forgot to tarp the plants," joked Mama's Boy.

  "Hyeah." Scarlet laughed. "Seems like it. That's why I think they took off after them."

  "Sort of defeats the purpose of the letter, ain't it?" Mama's Boy said.

  Scarlet shrugged. "If we head"β€”she pointed at the rocky formations in the distanceβ€”"that way, and keep walking, we'll eventually come across it. It's probably pretty far. He said that Esmond needed a portal to get back. Either that or he's lazy."

  "OrΒ he prioritises time over everything else," said Mama's Boy.

  "That sounds like laziness with extra steps." Scarlet chuckled; they all did.

  Grinning that wolfish grin, Scarlet continued. "And he was afraid of something." She closed her palm and the glow from her hand vanished. She slapped the paper against her fist a couple times. "This is what I wanna know about. Why was he afraid?"

  "Hm." Mama's Boy nodded like always.

  That was the part that worried Alex, as well. The monsters in this world were downright terrifying, weather-caster or not. And, this time around, she couldn't bank on the sudden power she'd gained from the godshard; she'd have to rely partially on her wits. But, with Mama's Boy's assistance, things might be even easier. A breeze, perhaps. He could copy anyone's power. And what was stronger than one weather-caster? Two. And Scarlet would also help, even if she wasn't the most powerful. She was smart. A strategist. She knew what to do and when to do it.

  And she knows a lot about the creatures . . . Are they all the same?

  "Alex?" said Scarlet. "You okay? Zoning out?"

  She blinked rapidly. "Yeah, I was just thinking."

  "Yeah? What about?"

  "A lot of things, but . . . I think Braeden can help a lot. He can copy me."

  Mama's Boy laughed that wheezy laugh. "I can copy anyone."

  "Yeah," Alex said, "that's what I mean. We can combine our powers."

  "Hm. And what if that's not enough?"

  "It should be," answered Scarlet.

  Anxiety snatched Alex.Β Should be?

  "As long as we work as a team, nothing can stop us," she said.

  Mama's Boy nodded. "I see. So what's the plan after that? After we find the gateway? And what is a gateway?"

  "Not sure what it is," said Scarlet. "But . . . if it exists, then we should use it. If it's heavily protected, it must be valuableβ€”"

  "True," he said, brow furrowed, lips pursed.

  "β€”and, we might not get another chance. There may be one gateway, there may be hundreds. We don't know. Ya know?" She beamed.

  Alex knew. More than that: sheΒ understood. This gateway could be their ticket out of here, and at the very least, it could bring them closer to the Spiral. If not, well . . . Well, nothing. She didn't know what would come after that. And it didn't matter either way.

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