Chapter 4
Chapter Four
The early morning light streamed through the palace windows, casting golden rays across the polished floors. The scent of fresh-baked pastries wafted from their living quarters. Their dad had made another kitchen run from the aroma that made their mouths water.
Phoenix and Spring waited by the door, watching as their father grabbed his jacket and looked around with a frown at the messy living room.
Phoenix bit her lip. Three days without their mom home to keep them organized was beginning to show.
Her dad did a double-take when Stardust, Phoenix’s symbiot, lifted its head and yawned from under a pile of unfolded clean clothes before he frowned at them.
“You two are up early,” Creon muttered with a raised eyebrow.
“I couldn’t sleep. You know what they say about the early worm,” Spring said with a bright smile.
Phoenix nodded. “She couldn’t sleep, so she got me up—to help her with the early worms,” she added, trying not to grimace at her lie.
“Plus, this way we get to see you off… for the day. To begin your day. Isn’t that right, Phoenix?” Spring said.
“Ok-ay. It’s nice to see that you both are up so early…
to see me off and for the early worms. I guess you’re excited about your sleepover as well.
” He looked back at the living room before he turned his attention to them again.
“Listen, maybe you two could straighten the apartment up a little today for me before you head out,” he suggested with a hopeful expression.
“Sure,” Spring said.
“Yeah, we can clean up a little,” Phoenix added.
“Thanks, and be good. Don’t let the boys talk you into doing anything crazy,” he half-teased before he grew serious. “I mean it. Don’t let them talk you into any adventures.”
Spring shot Phoenix a glance. “What makes you think the boys would do that?” she asked, shooting a sideway glance at Phoenix.
“I may be old, but I remember what your uncles and I used to get into during our breaks. Thank goodness you have Alice and Adaline. I’m not including Amber and Jade. They are probably as bad as the boys,” he joked.
“Yeah, Phoenix has already warned them to behave,” Spring mumbled before giving their dad a brilliant smile when he bent and kissed her on her forehead.
“Have fun at your sleepover, but…” his gaze flickered between them again, “not too much fun.”
Spring’s lips twitched. “We’ll be good, won’t we, Phoenix?”
Phoenix nodded. “Yeah, it will be fun.”
Phoenix tilted her head when he bent down to kiss her before she stepped aside. He pulled open the door, paused, and looked back at them. Opening his mouth, he suddenly aborted what he had planned to say and grumbled under his breath instead, shaking his head.
Phoenix clasped her hands behind her back with her fingers crossed. She tried not to laugh when their dad muttered, ‘I’ll be glad when Carmen is home,’ before disappearing through the doors. The moment he was gone, Spring broke into giggles.
“Come on,” Phoenix said, nudging Spring with her elbow. “Let’s throw everything into our bedroom before we leave.”
The two hurriedly cleared the clutter in the living room, before ordering Stardust and Little Bit to stay put.
If they took the symbiots with them, it would be a huge broadcast that they had gone on another adventure.
If the symbiots were here, then their dad would think they were too.
Besides, it would be a little difficult trying to explain the creatures where they were going.
Thirty minutes later, they were heading toward the massive treehouse nestled in the royal gardens. The towering golden-leafed branches glowed in the morning light. Laughter and eager voices drifted down from above.
As soon as they climbed up, Roam greeted them with a shake of his head.
“My dad was rubbing his butt and muttering about ‘bald spots’ all morning.”
Spring and Phoenix burst out laughing.
“I’d pay to see that,” Spring wheezed.
Jade giggled. “I bet Amber and I could get some holovid footage if we tapped into the security system cameras in the amusement park.”
“Really? Can you—?” Roam’s voice faded as he and Jade moved away.
Phoenix sighed and pushed her hair back from her face. “Let’s just focus on getting through this adventure without getting grounded for the rest of our lives.”
Taking a deep breath, Phoenix turned to the group, eyes blazing with excitement. “We can’t take our symbiots. That would be like waving a red flag over us.”
“We told ours to stay and pretend like we were still there,” Jade and Amber said.
“Mine’s going to stay in the treehouse with Bálint and Jabir’s,” Zohar said.
“Yeah, they are going to cover for us and make shadows like we are in here if our dads check on us,” Jabir said.
“Good. Everybody, remember, don’t draw attention to yourselves. We don’t know how they would react to us visiting,” Phoenix cautioned, trying to remember all the things her teacher said could happen.
“But… they didn’t mind you visiting last time, did they?” Jabir asked with a frown.
Phoenix shook her head. “There was something really weird going on then. I-I didn’t really get to see that much,” she said. “In fact, it might not be that interesting.”
“That’s okay. At least it will be something to do today, even if we don’t get to see pirates,” Bálint said.
There was a mumbling of agreement. She smiled when Alice threaded her arm through hers. “It’s going to be fun.”
Phoenix nodded and looked around. “Is everyone ready?”
“Do you need any help?” Adaline asked.
Phoenix shook her head, hoping her nerves didn’t show. “I’ve got this.” I hope.
The boys were already talking over each other.
“I want to fight a pirate captain,” Bálint declared.
“I want to find buried treasure,” Jabir added.
“Forget treasure, I want a ship,” Zohar grinned, making a sword-fighting motion. “We’ll be real pirates.”
Alice and Adaline, laughing, shook their heads.
“We just want to swim with the mermaids,” Alice said dreamily.
“And maybe learn a spell or two,” Adaline added.
Phoenix noticed Amber and Jade in the background—silent but vibrating with contained excitement. They weren’t giggling like usual. They were waiting.
“Are you two ready?” she asked.
“Yep,” Amber said.
“Oh, yeah,” Jade replied, patting the huge duffle bag.
Phoenix frowned. “What’s in the bag?”
“Just clothes,” Amber responded.
“Yeah, just clothes,” Jade replied with a bright grin.
Phoenix cast the twins a suspicious look before she shook her head and turned to the rest of the group.
“I need more space to open the portal. Let’s go down into the garden.”
Instantly, Roam shifted into his tiger form and leaped gracefully out the window, his sleek form disappearing below. The boys followed suit, shifting into their dragons and diving after him.
Alice and Adaline disappeared, teleporting out of the treehouse while Amber and Jade, grinning, hauled their oversized duffle bag toward the treehouse lift.
The rhythmic creak of the lift’s gears groaned under the weight of whatever the twins had packed.
Phoenix seriously doubted it was just clothes.
As her sister headed for the trapdoor, Phoenix reached out, her fingers brushing against Spring’s hand.
A troubled expression clouded her sister's face as she turned to look at her.
The sadness in Spring's eyes was palpable, a visible ache that tugged at her heart.
Roam's silence, a stark contrast to the others’ cheerful greetings, made her heart ache for her sister.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
Spring nodded. “Yeah. I’m so over boys. I think I agree with Alice. I’d like to see some mermaids.”
Phoenix watched as her sister disappeared through the trapdoor and down the rope ladder. She followed a second later, her mind swirling as she tried to think how she could make Spring’s wish come true.
She turned away from the group when she reached the ground.
The garden gleamed in the morning light, the air thick with the scent of blooming flowers and rich earth.
The low hum of the pollinators filled the air.
Some of the bee-like creatures that helped make the flowers grow were the size of her fists.
She took a deep breath, then let the power within her flare.
Her body shimmered, stretching, transforming—until she stood tall in her dragon form, her wings massive and feathered with living flame.
Her black scales absorbed the light while the edges of her feathers crackled with fire, pulsing with untamed energy.
The boys muttered with envy. Phoenix shook, sending tiny bursts of red, yellow, and orange flames out. She made sure she sent an extra dose toward Roam. He hissed and jumped back, glaring at her.
“Hilarious,” he growled.
“That,” Jabir breathed, his amber eyes wide, “is awesome.”
Phoenix turned and winked at her sister who smothered a laugh. Picking a spot, she reached deep inside, pulling at the energy within her, shaping it, pushing her will outward as the only image she had of the Seven Kingdoms formed in her mind.
She rose into the air, flying in a tight circle. The flames of her wings and tail crackled with energy as she flew faster. The light began to shimmer, and a moment later, a swirl of golden fire ignited before her, spinning and twisting, forming into a portal.
The inside flickered—a hazy image forming within the rippling flames. Through the portal, a rainbow-colored bridge formed. In the distance, there was a faint image of a kingdom. Before Phoenix could even finish stabilizing it, the boys surged forward.
“Wait—!” she called.
They skidded to a stop, colliding with each other in their excitement to get through.
Phoenix grinned, distracted momentarily by the comical scene below her.
She was pulling her focus back to finishing the portal when a loud buzzing sound cut through the air.
Seconds later, screeching shrieks ripped through the garden and chaos exploded as Alice and Adaline barreled into the boys.
Phoenix wobbled, trying to escape the bright yellow, black, and orange shape that streaked away from Alice and Adaline. Below her, the two girls were screaming, trying to get away from the pollinator attracted to the colors of the portal.
Her cry of warning came too late. The girls, in their panic, knocked into the boys. One minute the boys were teetering on the edge of the opening and the next everyone was falling through the unfinished portal.
“Don’t—”
Phoenix’s concentration snapped when energy surged through her.
The portal fractured. Phoenix watched in horror as her sister grabbed for Adaline.
Unfortunately, Roam had grabbed Alice’s hand, who had ahold of Adaline, and was pulling her in the opposite direction.
The portal’s force yanked Spring off her feet and through the opening like the tumbling dominos they like to play.
Phoenix stared in horror. A silent cry echoed through her mind as she tried to regain control of the portal. Light splintered in all directions. A moan of frustration slipped from her when Amber and Jade released a loud wahoo before disappearing through the opening.
Phoenix knew she was the only hope of the others ever finding their way home. With a final helpless cry, she twisted in the air and flew into the portal as it began to close.
She glanced backward, and the last thing she saw before darkness swallowed her was one of the palace gardeners stepping into the clearing.
He looked around him with a confused frown before he spotted something on the ground.
She realized it was the bag of opened chips that Jabir had been munching on.
Frowning, he bent down, picked it up, pulled out a chip, and popped it into his mouth. His eyes widened with delight.
“Mm, that’s good,” he muttered, turning just as the colors from the portal dissolved into a brilliant burst of sparkles.