Two people stood alone in a clearing. One was a man who measured 5'5" and had an air of power and peace surrounding him. The other was a fifteen year-old boy who was nervous and trying not to show it.
"We're damaged too much to leave and we need more help, Master," the boy said.
"I'm sure we will find someone here to help. Do not worry, my young apprentice," the man replied.
"I hope they speak Basic," the boy said in unoptimistic tone.
"We will see tomorrow when we leave. Get some rest. We have had a hard journey," the man told the boy.
The two climbed into their space ship and closed the hatch. The older of the two sat down in to pilot's seat and pressed a button that rendered their ship invisible
Elizabeth woke with a start. "What a weird dream," she thought, "and what kind of language is 'Basic' anyways?" There was something about the characters in her dream that she almost recognized but could not put her finger on. She glanced over at her clock. It read six a.m. The girl groaned and pulled herself out of bed. As she dressed in her dorky school uniform, kaki pants and a solid colored collared shirt, Elizabeth thought about the dream again. It was coming to her. She almost had it figured out. She was almost there.
"Elizabut!!!!! Breakfast is ready," here annoying little brother called up the stairs.
"I'll be down in a minute, Nichotoothead," Elizabeth yelled back at her brother. They were always calling each other names.
Elizabeth continued to dress and tried to get her train of thought back. She thought and thought, but she could not remember what she almost figured out about the guys in her dream.
The brunette walked down the stairs and into the breakfast area where the kitchen table was. Her mother had already made eggs and bacon and set it out nicely on the table. Her parents and brother had apparently already finished eating, as there was only one plate set. She sat down and started on her eggs. As soon as she tasted the first bite, she spit it out.
"Sugar!" Elizabeth exclaimed, "He put sugar on my eggs! Nicholas you are going to die!"
She chased him around the house and had finally succeeded in capturing her little brother. She was just starting to inflict pain when their mom walked in.
"Elizabeth, what on earth are you doing?" her mother asked.
"Getting pay back," she replied.
"For what,"
"Sugar,"
"Sugar?"
"Don't ask,"
"Good, because I don't want to know. Let go of your brother and I won't ground you. Okay?"
Elizabeth let go of her brother, but gave him one last pinch as a reminder. Seeing the problem solved, their mom left. Nicholas followed her. Elizabeth went into the pantry and took a granola bar out of its box for breakfast.
The teen wolfed down the granola bar and back ran up stairs. The blue-eyed girl gave her teeth a quick running over with her toothbrush. She picked up her backpack and headed out for school. Because she lived so close to her school, Saint Mary of the Snow School, she walked there every day.
As she walked, Elizabeth thought about the dream again. The words of the man and the boy kept echoing in her mind. What were they trying to tell her? It was clear that the man was the master and the boy an apprentice, but an apprentice to what trade? They also probably were not related.
It was like one of those days where you get a song stuck in your head but you can't remember who sings it, what most of the words are, what it's called, or where you heard it.
Just when things were starting to make some sense, Sashu, Elizabeth's best friend jumped out from behind a mail box and yelled, "Boo!!" Elizabeth screamed.
"You scared me, Sashu," Elizabeth gasped after she had finished screaming.
"Duh, that was the point. Let's get going," Sashu replied as the pair started to walk down the sidewalk together.
When they got to school, the best friends met the hustle and bustle of a Thursday morning. They wormed their way to their lockers, which were, too the teens' delight, right next to one another. After grabbing the correct books, they said goodbye and headed in opposite directions to go to first period class. Sashu went to home economics and Elizabeth had World Civilizations.
In world civ., as it was usually called, her class was studying ancient China and they were going to try meditations today. Elizabeth had never done this before, and did not know how meditations worked. When she got into the classroom, the teen noticed that all of the desks were pushed up against the walls and everyone was sitting in a circle on the floor.
"Elizabeth, since you are still up, why don't you sit in the middle of the circle," a voice behind her said, "Now class, in ancient China and other places as well meditation was and still is seen as a relaxing process. The Chinese believed that this process was good for the body. Legend says that if you sit in a circle around a person that person will be gifted with prophetic visions."
During this, Elizabeth sat down in the exact center of the circle and tried to think calm.
"Students, sit up straight and try to clear your mind," the teacher, Mr. Houchens, continued, " Now direct the feelings you are having towards Elizabeth and continue to keep your minds empty of all thoughts."
Almost instantly, Elizabeth saw the man and the boy again. They were standing next to a car that was in front of a forest and had exchanged their flowing brown robe like jackets for blue jeans and t-shirts. The man handed the boy a large hooded sweatshirt as he pulled on his own.
"This should cover everything," the man said to himself.
"These pants, what did you call them 'jeanies' or something like that, they are constricting. I can not move in them," the boy told the man.
"Jeans, my young apprentice, they are called jeans. They are the most common casual form of clothing here. Let me remind you that these people have limited space travel and have never met a being from another world," the man said to his apprentice.
"Weird," the boy replied, "Do they speak Basic?"
"Yes and no," the man said cautiously, "On this planet there are many different languages. Even though many people speak a different language as well as Basic, we may not be able to communicate with all people. And here they call Basic English."
"What is this planet called again, Master?" the boy asked once they got into the car.
"Earth, my young apprentice, this planet is called Earth. And do try not to be so forgetful," the man answered as he started to drive.
"I am working on it, Master," the boy said. They drove on in silence for several minutes until they entered a city.
As the boy opened his mouth to speak, the man said, " We are entering Sunshine." The boy looked surprised for a moment but quickly regained composure.
"Will we need our li-" the boy started as Elizabeth was jerked back into the real world. When she opened her eyes, she saw all of her classmates staring at her.
"Did you see anything?" Mr. Houchens asked.
"No," she lied.
"You were muttering something during the meditation. The only thing I understood was 'Genies'. Does this mean anything to you?" her teacher asked.
"No," she lied again.
"I guess the old legends were wrong again. Now class, tomorrow we will have a discussion on the realism of tea readings and no we will not all be trying this but I will thoroughly explain it. Class dismissed," Mr. Houchens said to his class.
"Mr. Houchens," Elizabeth asked after the rest of the class had left, "Can I talk to you, maybe at lunch, about what really happened during the meditation. I saw people and they need help. And they're right here in Sunshine."