Chapter Two
(Brief lyrics in this chapter are from the song "True Love" by Dove Cameron.)
Catherine and Alyss decided to humour me and took me to the library with Jake so we could do research on the Krylock. I was determined to find this monster so that I could get into contact with Tulio.
"Uh, Aralyne?" said Jake as he flipped through a book, completely bored. The sisters looked up from an Atlas they had been studying. "If we were told to wait, how come we're here at the library trying to find this Kry... beast... thingie?"
"The sooner we find it, the sooner I find Tulio," I replied simply, getting back to the book in my hand.
"Aralyne, we all know how much you dig Tulio and all, but he disappeared months ago. Maybe it's time for you to start movin' on with your life," Jake suggested.
My head shot up and I glared at him. "Move on? How can you say that after everything I've been through?"
He put a sympathetic hand on my shoulder. "Sorry, Aralyne, but since he left, life's been passing you by." I continued to glare at him.
"Ooookay," said Catherine looking between me and Jake, "I have an idea. While we wait for the Krylock to show up, why don't we go back to the Benbow Inn and make cupcakes?"
"Ooh! Yeah! I'm starving!" Alyss agreed shutting the atlas.
"Fine," I grumbled, also closing my book. We returned all of the texts back to their shelves and left the library, Alyss waving flirtatiously at Milo Thatch.
When we got back to the inn, it was already past the lunch hour so we had the kitchen to ourselves.
"We should make several dozen cupcakes, and then sell them!" Alyss exclaimed, "That way we get food and money!"
"Yeah! Good idea!" Catherine eagerly agreed.
Right as we got all of the ingredients out for the cupcakes, Jim rushed in looking frantic. "The Krylock is loose in the town!"
I couldn't believe my luck! "Let's go!" I shouted running out of the kitchen, Jake right behind me.
"But, cupcakes," Alyss sadly said.
We rushed out of the Benbow Inn, and followed the sound of people screaming. It wasn't long until we found the giant krylock standing in front of its dimensional portal, people running for their lives. The krylock let out a monstrous roar.
"I've got a canister for the venom," said Catherine pulling one out of her pocket, "I grabbed it before we left the inn."
"Remember, this may be my only chance to find Tulio," I said looking around at all my friends.
They all nodded and Jake shouted, "Dragon up!" He turned into his dragon form. In an amazing maneuver, he leaped, kicked and spun towards the beast, until he was hovering right in front of it. The demon hissed and roared viciously.
"Sorry, Krylock! You got a little something I want!" I cried getting my bow and arrows ready. Too bad I didn't get a chance to grab Excalibur before leaving the inn.
As the Krylock swatted at us with its tail, we all jumped, dodged, and - in Jake's case - flew under its legs. The dragon turned to us, wearing a cocky expression.
"Yo, this Krylock's cake! I'll have it defeated in no -"
"Jake! Krylock comin' up on your rear!" Catherine shouted, but it was too late.
The Krylock used its tail to pick up Jake from behind and repeatedly slammed him into the ground. Jake was then flung through the air and crashed to the ground. Before the creature could hurt my young friend any more, Catherine stood between them. The Krylock charged for them, fangs exposed.
I shot arrows at the Krylock, but they bounced off him as if they were made of feathers. "Dammit!"
"Aralyne!" I turned towards Alyss who had managed to get hold of some rope. She threw one end to me and together we rushed forward on either side of the beast. We yanked on the rope simultaneously and tripped the Krylock, sending it plummeting to the ground on top of Jake and Catherine.
For a horrifying moment, I thought we killed them, but in one quick movement, Catherine whipped out the canister. Jake's tail pressed the canister against the tip of the Krylock's stinger, drawing venom out of it. The Krylock screeched angrily.
Jake grabbed hold of Catherine by the waist and dove out of the way from danger. The dragon smirked and said, "Hey, Krylock. Looks like your ride's leaving." The Krylock then scurried off back into the portal just as it closed and completely vanished.
Catherine smiled victoriously, holding up the canister of venom. "Got it, guys! Let's go open us up a portal!"
"And make some cupcakes! I'm hungry!" Alyss added.
Jake turned back into a human and we rushed back to the Benbow Inn's kitchen. Jake helped set up the ingredients for the portal (he had stopped by Grandpa's house on the way. Apparently Lao Shi didn't know what we were up to, and that was a good thing), while the sisters were making cupcakes.
"Dude, we're still missing a key ingredient!" Alyss exclaimed in a panic. Catherine was pouring cupcake ingredients into a power mixer, while consulting a cookbook. "Cupcakes can't bake without baking soda!"
"The baking soda's in your hand," Catherine said calmly not looking up from the book. Alyss saw she was right and grinned sheepishly.
Jake and I were at our own station beside them, me pouring the ingredients into a mortar while he was reading the spell book.
"Uh, can you guys keep it down a little? We're working on a portal spell over here," I said looking at the ingredients with disgust. The sisters stuck their tongues out at me.
"Gimme some bat guano," said Jake and I gagged as I tossed the guano into the mortar. Why do spell ingredients have to be so disgusting?
"Alyss, Cocoa powder," said Catherine. Alyss poured the cocoa powder into the mixer.
"Troll belches," said Jake. At least this one wasn't so gross.
"Heavy whipping cream," said Catherine.
"Krylock venom," Jake said at the same time Catherine called out, "Vanilla."
I grabbed a canister without really looking at it and poured it into the mortar before pounding the ingredients with a pestle.
"And presto! One portal potion, ready for action!" Jake declared, picking up the mortar and handing it to me.
"And one batch of cupcakes, ready for baking!" Catherine crowed pouring the batter into a cupcake tray. She stuck it in the oven.
"Okay, just pour the potion on the floor and say Tulio's name," Jake instructed, "When the portal opens, dive in. The next thing you know, it'll be you and him getting it on!"
I blushed at his implication. "Well... I guess this is it." I poured the potion onto the floor, creating a purple puddle hovering in midair. Taking a deep breath, I said, "Tulio." I jumped forward... and found myself still inside the kitchen of the Benbow Inn. My heart pounding, I turned to see the purple concoction vanish. It didn't work!
My heart got lodged in my throat. Tears started pouring from my eyes and I ran out of the kitchen, sobbing.
"Aralyne, wait!"
I ran up stairs to my room and threw myself upon the bed, crying into my pillow.
"If I could do it all over, baby I'd do it different
Maybe I wouldn't be here, in this position
I found you and I lost you, looking back is torture
And it hurts to know I let you go, you live right around the corner
And I could've had it all, could've had it all
True love, I know I had it
True love, was so hard to find
True love, If I could get it back, yeah
I'd never let it go this time
True love, is an inspiration
True love, it was mine oh mine
True love, If I could get it back, yeah
Never let it go, I'd never let it go this time"
Eventually I stopped crying, and instead stared at the wall in despair. Catherine, Alyss, and Jake came into the room.
"Look, Aralyne. We're sorry the spell didn't work, but we're not gonna let you waste away a whole day in bed," said Alyss.
"Go away," I muttered.
Catherine frowned, and stormed over, grabbing me by my shoulders. "Get a grip! Like it or not, life goes on! Now snap out of it, and march your patootie downstairs, 'cause we got cupcakes to sell!"
I was startled by her attitude, and got out of bed. We went back down to the kitchens where all of the cupcakes they made were in pink boxes.
"I just don't get what went wrong," I said looking at the empty mortar where I had left it on the counter, "We had all the ingredients, I said Tulio's name..."
"How 'bout we forget about what went wrong, and focus on what went right. Behold, the cupcakes!" Alyss exclaimed opening a box and showing me the finished product.
The four of us grabbed boxes and left the Benbow Inn to go around Nesidy selling cupcakes.
A couple came over and gave me some money, and I passed over some of the cakes.
"Thanks, and enjoy the cupcakes. But don't just enjoy the cupcakes, enjoy each other. 'Cause you never know when you're gonna be ripped apart by the hands of fate, never to see each other again," I said looking them straight in the eye. They gave me a frightened look and ran off. Catherine and Alyss shook their heads at me.
Grandpa had gone over to the Benbow Inn to check and make sure Jake was doing his job. After being directed to the kitchen, he looked about at the mess on the counters. On one side were leftover cupcake ingredients, and on the other were magical ingredients.
"A portal spell?" he said figuring out what the magical ingredients were for. As he got a closer look, he saw the canister of vanilla near the magical mess, and a canister of krylock venom with the cupcake ingredients. Lao Shi quickly realized what was going on, and yelled in Chinese.
Catherine and Alyss had left Jake and Aralyne to sell cupcakes somewhere else.
"Cupcakes! Get your delicious homemade cupcakes right here!" Alyss shouted out, then whispered to her sister, "We are going to have some for ourselves, right?"
"Yes," said Catherine giving a cupcake to a little girl, "Aralyne saved a few for the four of us."
The little girl eagerly ate the cupcake and when she was through, she suddenly transformed into a mutant that sort of resembled the krylock. She gave off a beastly roar.
"Oh. My. Gosh," said Catherine horrified.
"We need to get back to Aralyne," said Alyss. The sisters dropped their boxes and took off running.
With a depressed sigh, I sat down on a wall and Jake joined me. I took a cupcake from my own box and took a bite. Before I could properly eat it, Grandpa, in his dragon form, appeared out of nowhere, knocking me off the wall.
"Don't eat the cupcakes!" he yelled. I spat it out and gazed up at him in confusion. "They are spiked with Krylock venom which should never be consumed!"
"What? Why? What'll happen?" I demanded, sitting up.
At that moment, Catherine and Alyss came running up to us. Reaching our side, they panted and pointed behind them.
"Aralyne, we got problems!" said Jake.
I finally turned to see that everyone we had sold cupcakes to turned to kyrlock mutants. They were causing chaos all over the place.
One of the mutants lunged at us, and we all dove out of the way.
Grandpa threw me Excalibur. "I thought you might need this."
"Thanks," I said, catching it by the hilt.
Jake did a somersault in the air, turning into his dragon form, and landed on the ground, facing the mutants. "C'mon, ya'll. Bring it!"
"Jake, you are not to harm the mutants!" Grandpa ordered and we all gave him surprised looks. Um, then why did you give me my sword? "We need to revert them back to their original forms."
"And how are we supposed to do that?" I asked.
"Krylock venom gets its power from the Krylock it came from," Alyss quickly explained, "So if you destroy the Krylock, everybody goes back to normal."
"But Alyss, you said it yourself - Krylocks are impossible to find," I pointed out.
Grandpa pulled out a baggy with what was left of the failed portal potion we made. "Not with a portal spell they're not," he said, handing it to me, " All we're missing is the venom..."
"Which is in the cupcakes!" Jake and I shouted.
"But... we were supposed to use the potion to find Tulio!" I said quietly staring at the baggy.
"I am sorry, Aralyne. We have no choice," Grandpa said.
I bit my lip, knowing what I had to do, and nodded. "You're right. Let's get those cupcakes."
As Jake and Grandpa were immediately attacked by mutants, the girls and I ran to the box of cupcakes I had dropped when Grandpa knocked me over. I grabbed a cake and turned back towards the fighting. I needed the baggy!
Grandpa knew what I was thinking and tossed it to Catherine, who threw it to me. I dropped the cupcake into the baggy and smashed it all together. When I tossed the contents out of the bag, a portal materialized before me.
"Show me the Krylock demon," I said. The portal widened and inside I could see the Krylock rampaging around a fiery pit. Just then, another portal opened up side the first, and I gasped. Sitting in a room reading a book was Tulio.
(And for those of you that say you hate my story and refuse to read it, STOP READING IT! I know you're just too damn nosy to stay away!)