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“You ready?” Margot asked and I nodded. “Just one more time, Max. I promise you can do whatever the hell you want in the Virtual Realm, just don’t die.”

He chuckled again and we picked him up and helped him into the room.

“Natalie, I need to draw the signs again. Keep my brother up, please.”

Nat took Margot’s place, but she wasn’t as strong as her and it felt as if my back was going to break with the extra weight.

Margot drew the signs again with my help. She was really smart and remembered most of them. She reached out to tap the infinity sign.

“No, the crow’s beak,” I said and she changed her direction real fast.

The door rippled and it showed a beautiful starry night on the other side.

Margot took Natalie’s position as she guided the kids through the door. We were last and once we stepped through the door, it disappeared.

We found ourselves on a hill. Below the hill was a farm house.

“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Margot said.

“Put him down, I’ll look for help,” I said and we put Max down gently against the nearest tree.

“Keep them safe.” I looked at the kids and gave them my super smile. “It’s going to be okay.” I crouched down in front of the girl. “Help Natalie okay? She lost a really good friend today.” The girl nodded and grabbed Natalie around the waist.

“If you see a bat, grab it.” Max joked.

“Hahaha, just stay alive.” I looked at Max and then at Margot. “I promise I’ll be back in a few.”

She nodded and I started to climb down the hill. “Chas,” Margot called back. “I’m sorry for thinking that it was you that stole my pendant.”

“It’s fine, Margot. See you later.”

The farmhouse seemed far but it came close sooner than I thought. Why I couldn’t tell that I was inside the Virtual Realm the first time I did that test was beyond me. The colors were all wrong and even the grass was way too hard. It was something Leigh needed to work on.

That thought made the corners of my mouth curve slightly.

Lights were on but they weren’t bright enough.

I reached the back door and just as I was about to knock, it opened slightly.

I walked inside. It was quiet as if nobody was home and I took my first step into the house.

Don’t speak, my gut said. It was Mr. Grey’s voice and for a second I thought the cat was here, but he wasn’t.

Voices and loud footsteps from above made me hide behind the kitchen counter.

I knew those voices, every time I heard them my skin tingled and the hair on my arms rose. They belonged to Shadow Casters and although this was the Virtual Realm, they were just as strong and deadly as the real ones. Leigh had made sure of that.

“That was easy. Did you hear how the old man cried out?”

The other one laughed as one guy mocked the old man’s pleading.

“We need to get back, there’s plenty to do.”

Their footsteps on the stairs stopped and I heard one of them inhale deeply.

My heart was jumping inside my chest fast.

“We have company.”

Shit, crap.
I almost thought about the “f” word too, but my mind was redirected to find something I could fight with.

My sand would be black in the Virtual Realm and useless against these Casters.

I opened the drawer and found a couple of things I could throw at them.

Their footsteps came nearer and I focused in on where exactly they were going, just like Max taught me the first time.

One was at my nine o’clock and the other moved in the direction of my three. Their hearts gave it away, but the fact that they were steady and not beating as fast as mine made me wish that I could be as confident as they were.

I grabbed a couple of normal knives and a sharp steak knife and rolled from my hiding place, letting three of the blunt knives leave my hands so quickly that the Caster only had time to block two. The third one, with my ability to think happy thoughts, hit him straight in the chest. He immediately started to glow, and began grunting, which turned into a scream, right before disintegrating into black dust. The other one was aiming arrows at me and I ducked all of them. I rolled towards him quickly. I got up, took a leap and grabbed him with my legs around his chest. I brought him to the ground with me and used the steak knife and stabbed him in the eye.

He screamed and pulled it out, but it was too late, my sand was already glowing inside of him and it was starting to pull him apart. He screamed more and exploded like he’d swallowed some sort of a bomb. I covered my face and rolled myself up in a ball.

Dark sand covered my entire body, and when it was all done, I took a couple of breaths.

The sand clung onto everything, the walls, the curtains, part of the kitchen counter and even the couch.

I shook off the sand and ran up the stairs.

In the first room I found the body of the old man they were making fun of.

He had white hair and was barely alive.

I crouched beside him and he opened his eyes. “It’s okay. I’m not here to harm you.”

He whispered something but I couldn’t hear and I bent my head back down.

“The light has shadows inside them.”

I frowned. It was exactly what the old man in the woods had said before he got killed. What did it mean? Could he see what the other old man saw? That no matter how hard I tried, nothing I did to stay good would be enough.

He blew out his last breath and fell backward with his eyes open.

I closed them for him and swallowed hard. Virtual Realm or no Virtual Realm, he was alive and now he wasn’t anymore.

I went back down the stairs. I raided the cupboards for anything that might help Max and his wounds and found a couple of bandages, some medicine, a needle and a Celestial orb. Why did the old man have a celestial orb? And why didn’t he use it? Nevertheless, I took it and put it all inside my hoody and tied the arms so that I could carry all of them.

A voice, not from inside the house but over a radio, started to speak. It belonged to one of the Shadow Casters and I knew if they didn’t hear anything from their comrades soon, they would come running.

We were not safe hiding on that hill. I had to get out now and back to my friends to warn them. We had the orb, but where we should go, was a different question.

I rushed out the house and sprinted to where they were hiding. My legs ached and my lungs burned slightly.

On the hill, Margot was the first to meet me. They’d moved everyone behind the trees. “We need to go. The owner of the house was ambushed by Shadow Casters.”

“No, we need help,” she said and wanted to go back to the house.

“Margot, he’s dead. More are coming. We have to go.”

I showed her the Celestial orb and she put two and two together.

“Max is not going to make it. The fall. He would die for sure.”

“It’s a chance we have to take. We’re dead if we stay.”

“Then go, I’m not leaving him.”

“Margot.”

“Chas, take Nat and the kids and go, we’ll be fine. If you find Leigh, please tell him where we are.”

“I promise.” I grabbed her around the neck and gave her my hoody. “Here’s what I could find. Hope it helps. I’ll see you again, promise.”

She nodded.

“Take care of your sister, Max. Don’t you dare die, you hear.”

“Go, Chas,” he said in a tired voice.

I gave him a soft hug. It felt just like the previous time we’d been in the Virtual Realm and I hated leaving them there.

I left and took Nat and the kids with, found the closest tree and slammed the Celestial orb on the trunk.

“Do you have any idea where he might be?”

Nat nodded. “But it’s not safe for them.”

“Then the closets. You can hide with them, keep them safe and I will try to find him.”

“Backerwood theme park,” she yelled and I closed my eyes.

I knew which theme park she was referring to.
More Shadow Casters would be hanging out there
, I thought as the orb turned a bright color. I grabbed the youngest boy with the ginger hair and jumped with him through the light. We came to a hard landing, followed by the other four boys and last was Natalie and the girl.

The little ones were crying. The fall wasn’t nice but it wasn’t as bad as it had been the first time. I remembered my head was spinning like mad.

“Can you wield some chocolate?” I asked Natalie and she nodded.

She paused as she was about to give each a piece.

“How did you know about the chocolate?”

“Max, in my virtual test. He said chocolate helps.”

“Really, they’re that real?”

“We’re in the Virtual Realm now, Natalie.”

“Oh, right.” She shook her head and started giving the boys each some chocolate.

The eerie song of the carousel and the sound of a huge crowd played softly in the background.

“Do you have any idea which is his favorite ride?”

“Nope, just that he has a thing for theme parks.”

“I hate that so much.”

Natalie huffed. I knew she wanted to giggle but it wasn’t the time for laughter.

“Will you be fine?”

She nodded. “I’ve got Stan to protect me.” She ruffled up a blond kid’s hair.

“Okay, keep her and all your friends safe, okay Stan? And if you see a bad caster, you run.”

He nodded.

“Leave no one behind.”

“Promise,” he said with a puffed up chest.

“Be good.” I smiled and left.

The wind felt cold and I hated how all of this felt so real. Why didn’t he like to hang out in normal places like hotel pools or a club? Why a stupid theme park, with stupid eerie carousel and a House of Horrors?

I remembered my dream, the one where I’d smacked Leigh in the face with a baseball bat.

I made a mental note of not going into the House of Horrors.

I took a deep breath as I reached the entrance. Paid the dollar and smiled politely, as if I was one of Leigh’s creations.

These people felt so real, all of them. There were plenty of kids around, laughing, playing the games they had at the booths. A drunken man started a fight with another. A couple of punches flew and I took a couple of side steps, not to be in their way. I took the opposite direction to the men and their vendor carts selling cotton candy and popcorn and walked toward the big Ferris wheel.

I scanned the crowds, wishing that a dark-haired guy with glasses would pop up any time, but nothing came.

I passed a crowd that was busy watching a freak show. I’d never had any desire to watch them, they would only end up giving me more nightmares. I already had enough to deal with.

A tall man wearing a pair of slacks and a Bob Marley shirt turned his head and our eyes met for a second.

Smile, Chas.

I did, but the guy narrowed his eyes and my strides widened a bit and I walked faster.

I glanced around at the guy, which was a huge mistake, and I saw him walking with huge strides toward me.

I ran as fast as I could.

I knew who that guy was, he had to be a Shadow Caster and could clearly see Light Caster written over my entire body.

The carousel with horses and carriages was on my left and I jumped over the barrier that blocked the crowds from the ones enjoying the ride.

Someone yelled and the sound escaping his lips with a couple of other expressions of disbelief was a good warning that he wasn’t far behind.

I didn’t think twice and jumped onto the revolving floor and made my way as quickly as possible toward the middle. I opened the door, but didn’t go in, rushing off to the other side, hoping that I would lose him, making him think that I went and hid inside.

I jumped off the carousel again, and left on the opposite side I’d entered.

Glancing back one more time, I found that my pursuer was gone.

I started to scan the rides again.
Leigh, where the hell are you?

I started to search the rides, one by one, but couldn’t see Leigh either enjoying one or standing in line.

Running off to the next ride, I bumped into another man. Only when his hands gripped me hard, did I look up to see who it was.

The smile with yellowish teeth and dark eyes was enough to tell me who it was.

“Got you, little bird.”

I pulled hard from his grip and when that didn’t work, I brought my knee up and collided hard with his groin. When he crouched and grunted, my hand thrust up into his face, and another kick made him fall backward. I ran again as fast as I could and the only attraction in front of me was the House of Horrors.

Urgh! I couldn’t believe that I was back where I said I didn’t want to be, and that this time I literally had no choic
e
.

I RAN AND DUCKED PAST ALL THE PUPPETS AND ART that was meant to give you a slight heart attack without blinking an eye and hid behind the corpse bride that was floating with a mechanical laughter mechanism molded inside of her.

The thing was creepy with her torn wedding dress and hair that was slightly showing bits of her skull.

Flesh still hung from her body and the weapon that’d killed her was still lodged inside of her. Cobwebs were everywhere and with the fog that a machine created it sure felt like everything was real.

A couple of men ran fast past a couple in the next cart who screamed when the laughter went off.

I watched from behind her skeleton how they stopped and searched. I lowered my head back down, praying for the cart to just pass so that the light would go off.

When that happened, I crawled from my space and crawl-walked in the opposite direction back out of the House of Horrors.

Another cart was coming in my direction and I made myself small against the wall, off the tracks.

The teenagers inside were making jokes.

“It’s a walk in the park, man. Buff up.”

“I bet fifty dollars that Tiff is the first one that screams her head off.”

They all started to make bets as the cart passed.

I walked back onto the tracks and ran up toward the next attraction which was a scarecrow killing people.

I had to say, Leigh was surely one talented guy, and scary all at the same time.

When the cart passed me again, I walked further until I saw the entrance.

“Hey, you. Stop. What are you doing here?” the conductor selling tickets asked and I jumped over the ledge and fell about two feet, landed on my feet and started running again.

“You, stop!” He yelled again. I didn’t like the attention he was drawing toward me and the security officer running behind me made it worse.

I needed something to hide my face and I spotted a grey hoody that was lying over one of the barriers next to a ride. I grabbed it, pulled it on and put the hoody over my head and started walking again.

The security guard ran past me and I walked in the opposite direction again.

I passed a couple of the Shadow Casters too, pretty annoyed that they’d lost me.

“Are you sure it was her?”

“Yes,” the other one growled.

I lowered my head and walked on. What did the guy mean by was it me? How did he know me? My mother would never have told them what I looked like if she was with them, so why on earth were they looking for me? What was it that they wanted from me?

I turned the corner and walked faster, back to the entrance. If Leigh was here, he would’ve found me.

Screams filled the place and I was ready to run when I looked back, sure there was a Shadow Caster. There wasn’t. It was much worse than a Shadow Caster.

It was something invisible, something that started to suck up the entire theme park.

Rides broke from their sockets, some still had people inside. They rattled like mad and then would get sucked into an invisible vortex.

People screamed everywhere and a strong wind was coming in my direction.

Plenty of people ran in all directions and I thought that it was the best idea for now.

It moved really fast and I ran as fast as I could, bumping against people, trying to make my way back to Nat and the kids.

“Chastity.” I heard Leigh’s voice.

“Leigh!”

I saw him on my left a couple of yards away and we ran toward each other.

“What the hell is going on?”

“I can’t stop it, we have to leave.”

“Natalie, and the kids….”

“Don’t worry, they are safe. I found Max and Margot and they told me where you went. It wasn’t hard to find Natalie and the kids, but you were a different story.”

“I was looking for you.”

“I know. We need to get out of here.”

“How?” I asked, still gazing back to see how far the invisible vortex was.

Leigh pulled me to the side and we started to run.

A couple of steel pipes flew past us and we had to duck and dive, changing direction a couple of times in order to get away from the force.

It was a hard run and my hand was inside of his. My legs ached with the pace he was keeping.

We started to outrun the screaming and it was dying out really fast. Still, I didn’t look over my shoulder to see what was behind me.

I saw Leigh take something from his pocket as we reached the trees where Natalie and the kids had been hiding. My legs burned as we ran up the hill, and my feet even slipped a couple of times, but Leigh just pulled once and I was back on my feet, pushing forward.

He slammed something onto the tree perfectly and grabbed me as we dove into the bright light.

“CHASTITY,” I HEARD NATALIE’S VOICE. I WAS STILL lodged inside Leigh’s arms when I looked up.

The look on Margot’s face said it all. She didn’t like it one bit that Leigh’s arms were around me and didn’t even care that he’d just saved my life – for the gazillion time.

“What happened?” Nat asked Leigh.

“The same thing as the farm house.”

“Wait, you mean it’s going to destroy the entire Virtual Realm?” Margot asked Leigh.

He nodded.

“What was that?” I had to know and didn’t care if speaking to Leigh was going to give Margot more insecurities.

“At first it was only in small places. A little at a time so that I wouldn’t pick up on it. It progressed in the past couple of hours and now it’s like a vacuum cleaner, wiping everything I created clean.” He sounded worried. “I don’t know how to stop it.”

“Are we going to die if it reaches this place?”

“I don’t know. You might not. There’s a loophole created in the Virtual Realm. If you die in this one, it will transport you back to where you came from.”

“So we’ll go back to Revera?” Natalie asked.

“We opt out,” Max said at the same time Natalie asked her question. He was leaning against a pillar that was right in the middle of the room, which reminded me of a basement.

“As easy as that,” Leigh said, “and yes, you guys will go back to Revera.” He looked at Natalie.

“We don’t know what’s in Revera. They’ll kill Max if we go back now.” Margot started to freak out.

“What will happen to you?” I had to know.

Leigh just looked at me.

I knew the answer. He was part of the Virtual Realm and he would die. I didn’t like it and looked around. The room was dark with only a dim light that illuminated the place. There were no windows. “Where are we?”

Leigh looked over his shoulder and I saw a bed. “The safest place at the moment but I don’t know for how long.”

“Guess?” I said.

“Two hours maximum.”

I set my watch to count down two hours. “That’s all we need.”

“Need for what?” Natalie asked.

“Chastity?” Leigh squinted.

“I’m not going to sit here and wait for the entire Virtual Realm to be destroyed. Are they here for what I think they are?”

“Yes, and it’s a terrible idea.”

“Leigh, help me and stop wasting time.”

He took a deep breath.

“Is there a way we can stop this from spreading?”

“There might be. But I still think you are going to waste your time..”

“How?”

“The only thing I can think of is that they must have reached the Basilisk Orb.”

I looked at him with raised eyes. “It has the power to do all of this, Chas.”

“But you said…”

“I know, if they find it, they’ll wipe out the entire Revera and change it into the second Oblivion.”

“What are you talking about?” Margot asked. “If they’re already at the Basilisk Orb, we’re screwed.”

“Not entirely,” Leigh said and gave a huge sigh.

I knew he was going to tell them about the twin that Selene used to carry and was hiding now for safekeeping.

“There’s a twin Orb that is just as powerful as the Basilisk Orb.”

“What?” all three of them yelled in unison.

“It’s small, and Selene used to carry it around her neck.” He looked at me. “It’s in the form of an angel, Chas. The angel’s carrying the Orb. It resembles a pearl, if the Shadow Casters find it, they’ll use their power to change it into the dark.”

“Where is it, Leigh?” I glanced at my watch. Ten minutes had passed.

“In her vault.”

“How do we get into her vault?”

“It’s a waste of time, Chastity.”

“You said nobody knows about it.” I didn’t care anymore about our secret meetings in my dream.

“One does, Lord Crane.” My grandfather.

“How?”

“I don’t know that part. He’ll tell the Shadow Casters, but they need a Light Caster to open Revera for them
.

Dingle.

“I told you before, Chas, it’s not him.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“That look on your face spoke a thousand words, one in particular.”

“You have a suspicion of who it is?” Margot asked.

“No, she doesn’t.”

“Then tell me the reason why it isn’t him?”

“He’s not what you think he is, okay. He is fighting for the greater good Chastity. It’s someone else.”

“Who, Leigh?”

“I don’t know.”

“We’re wasting time,” Margot grunted.

“What do I do when I get the pendant?”

He shook his head.

“Leigh, please.”

“Light Casters won’t be able to save the Orb anymore. Only a Shadow Caster can revert it back to the light.”

“So we’re going to die,” Margot said.

The children started to whimper, they were scared. The Oblivion was no place for them.

I felt Leigh’s eyes on me but I couldn’t look at him. I knew what he was thinking. I was thinking it too and they would repay me with everlasting darkness.

I looked at the children again and Shades’ voice from the day Margot accused me of stealing her pendant jumped into my mind. It was a hopeless case from the beginning to be honest.

The Oblivion was no place for any of them.

I took a deep breath and looked at Leigh.

“No.” Leigh shook his head and stared at me.

“It’s going to be okay. If it’s to save Revera, I can do that.”

“What are you talking about?” Margot and Natalie asked at the same time.

“Chas, it’s a one way ticket straight to Oblivion.”

“I’m going to be fine. After all it’s where I really belong Leigh.”

“What?” Margot yelled. “You are a Shadow Caster?”

“Easy, Margot. Right now Chas is the only one that can save your ass.” Leigh spoke through clenched teeth and she backed off. “I can’t let you do this.”

“It’s not your choice Leigh. I can’t let Revera turn into the Oblivion. Think about the children, about everyone you care about.”

“I am.”

My eyebrows knitted as the butterflies in my stomach went wild. Still, he could mean it in a friendly way.

“No,” Max said. “I saw your dust, it’s gold, Chas.”

“It’ll change, Max. Sooner or later. It will change,” I said.

“You can choose, Chastity,” Leigh reminded me.

“Not anymore. I have to revert the twin Orb back to light. I can do that.”

He shook his head again and looked away.

“What do I need to do?” I asked. He didn’t answer, just stared at the floor.

“Leigh, what do I need to do?” I asked again.

“Please, if Chastity can stop this, we need to give it a try, Leigh,” Natalie whispered.

“I’ll go with you.” Max started to push himself up against the wall.

“Are you insane? You can’t even walk properly.”

“She’s going to need help. I’m the best fighter against Shadow Casters. She can’t do it alone.” He looked at me. “It’ll be just like old times.”