Chapter 4-The First Day
The second I entered the house my mom ran to me and locked me in her arms. I heard her sob as she babbled, "Oh My God April, how dare you put yourself in a situation like that? Without any chaperons or designated drivers. Don't ever do something like that again! You freaked me out!"
"MOM!" I unlocked myself from her. "I'm fine, the drinks were spiked mom, besides Justin didn't want alcohol there anyway."
"Oh yeah, this Justin, he was a very good gentleman calling me like that, but he could've called earlier. And where was your cellphone? I'm pretty sure you have over fifty missed calls! And—"
"Mom please stop freaking out! I promise I won't ever do that again. I just really wanna get some sleep right now I don't know why I'm just still tired."
"Alright honey, I trust you. Get some rest." she led me to my room which was unnecessary. Sometimes I feel my mother's overprotectiveness has its up sides however even after she forced me to take a shower and get into clean clothes, because she made me delicious soup and tucked me into bed. I remembered how my father would always do that and the thought of him again brought deep sorrow to my soul. My mom hadn't shown me anything like this in a long time, so I liked being taken cared of at least for today. As she left my room, I slowly shut my eyes. I didn't need to search for sleep, because I knew after a few seconds I would fall…
My dad is standing meters away from me. I shout out to him but he hears nothing. I scream. He still hears nothing. We're standing in a mine field and he's holding an axe, cutting into the ground. I'm so afraid something will explode in his face so I continue to scream yet it is no use at all. My father continues to cut through muddy grass. My mind isn't wondering about how we are here or why my dad has an axe, only how to get out of this place safely. Then I sense something. Something cold and dark coming from a forest completely ahead of us. Strong winds push my hair out of my face. I scream one more time then run. I run towards my father and hear eruptions coming from behind me, but I don't care. I had to get to him, I had to hear his voice at least one last time. Then just as if in slow motion, my foot slips on something hard dug into the ground and before I could come to my senses, everything is flared in red, yellow and orange colors. I feel no physical pain, but I see my father, burning. My feet stop moving and tears burn in the back of my eyes. It was my fault. If I hadn't moved, nothing would've happened. It was my fault again, this was my only chance and I blew it again. Ellina was wrong, my father now was dead, and still, I was the one to blame.
"April? April, please wake up." A soft voice whispers in my ear. I gasp in rage and get up quickly. It was only a dream I thought. I blink and look to my side to see Ellina standing near my bed. I scream. Was I still in a dream? But it wasn't and I knew it now. Ellina didn't forget to show up on time. But this time I couldn't argue. I didn't want to either, I just wanted to get it over with and if what she was saying wasn't true then, I would go home, or wake up, just return to reality.
She opened the same portal she had opened before and the noise drowned my voice out.
"This doesn't look so safe Ellina!" I exclaimed. I was afraid.
"C'mon! Just hold on!" she said half her body sucked in. I shut my eyes and held on to her hand. She pulled me through the portal, and I could feel myself being pulled in. I was sucked in and twirled as if in a washing machine.
"April, April get up, we're here." Ellina said. I had fallen to the ground and didn't even know it. I opened my eyes and gagged, "What happened?" I asked.
"You fell to the ground when we made it out of the portal. You didn't stiffen. That's what happens when you let the portal take you. You fall really hard." I heard Ellina giggle. "C'mon, we should get to my house."
"Am I in the past right now?" I asked.
"No, you're in the year 2010, just like back in the normal world, you're just in Overia. I can't travel the past unless you take me." Ellina explained.
I got up and steadied myself from falling. I looked around. Overia was beautiful. Green hills filled the place, with gorgeous flowers and roses rising out of the grass. The sun rose high in the sky. "Wasn't it night time back at home?"
"Overian time is different from the ordinary world. It's five hours ahead."
I smiled to such an amazing place and wondered why people would ever want to leave it. This was real. All of it. I was in another world. I blinked, and rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't still dreaming. The same beautiful sight was there. This was real. Ellina lead me over the green hills, aside of iridescent rivers, through meadows and valleys. We walked for a long time. I was amazed at every scene. Ellina broke the silence, "You should know that there are warlocks and witches, but of course they are not as powerful as the Witch of the Mountain. Magic is in the air, everywhere, like germs. There are also wizards, but it's very rare to find one here. Goblins and Ogres and such live under the earth. They're the Beasts of the Night. The ones Izel owns live on Earth. And of course, there are the Meris, which are people like you and me." The word wizards caught my attention.
"Wizards? Really? Where can you find them?"
"They find you. Wizards are of the wise. They travel from place to place every season. They know anything about everything. And their power is unpredictable. Except they have terrible memory, so if you have met them before they wouldn't remember you. But it's really rare for someone to actually reach them. Because they have to be able to cross through Sleepy Wood, and that's nearly impossible. No one dares go there from the rumors that they have heard about it."
"How do you know all of this?"
"My mother was a historian, all the facts I know about everything and everyone are from her," she smiled at the thought of her mother "We made it to the town."
I stared in despised surprise. The place was exactly like how I saw it in my vision. Clouds covered the sky, dullness filled the air. Everything was dark and gloomy. I saw the grief in Ellina's eyes when we approached town. "This," she finally said. "This is one of the places which Izel oppresses, luckily we're a little more free here, but there's no other place for us to go. So we stay, where there's food and shelter."
"How old are you Ellina?" I asked to get her mind off of everything.
"I'm seventeen. You turn sixteen soon."
"In two weeks." I smiled.
We finally made it to a house.
"Come in."
The house seemed old. It had a brick roof, and the chimney seemed like it was going to fall off. Ellina opened the brown bamboo door, and I peered inside. There was barely any furniture; just a brown couch and a night table with a lamp on it. And on the other side of the room there was a wooden dinner table. Everything was dull. The floor was made out of wood. And the curtains on the windows were held by bamboo sticks.
Someone came out from a distant room in the house. It was a boy. A teenager it seemed. He had blond hair and blue-green eyes. His body was filled with muscles everywhere. Though it wasn't overdone. He was wearing a grey shirt, and shorts. I didn't think people in Overia could dress so normally.
"Who's this Ellina?" he said as he came near me smiling.
"This is April. April, this is Ace, he's a friend of ours." Ellina said. He came even closer to me, bent down and kissed my hand, "The history seeker. It's very nice to meet you, I can't even believe my eyes."
I said nothing, just smiled.
"I'm an earth bender, watch." said Ace.
He cupped his hands and faced them up, and then he moved his hands in a circular motion. His arms stiffened, and his muscles tightened and he raised his arms above his head. A rock was flying in the air below his arms. I was fascinated. I'd never seen anyone do something like that before. "Whoa!" I said.
He laughed, "It's like you haven't seen anyone bend before." He put his arms down and the rock was put back exactly where it was. Ellina rolled her eyes. "Ace. Be nice, she's still new to this."
Ellina was a whole new person. It was like she shifted completely into a relaxed, normal, teenager. She must have been beyond relieved that I was here.
"I'm gonna go get Blake, he'll have to be informed of this as well." I nodded and assumed it was her brother. Ellina slammed the door shut behind her. I couldn't believe the moment I was in or anything that was happening. I rubbed my eyes over and over. It was still true. I gave up. This must be true, I convinced myself to stop trying to prove that this wasn't real.
"Are you alright?" Ace asked.
I was startled, "I'm fine. It's just, I'm so new to all of this."
"You'll get used to it. I bet your world is a lot more interesting than this."
"Not entirely. There's no magic in our world." I said.
"I've never been to Earth, but I should go one day." He smiled.
"It's not all that, trust me, not like this."
"At least it doesn't have Izel oppressing every inch of it. My parents were killed when I was young. I have no one but Blake and Ellina. They're my only family."
"I'm sorry." I said.
He smiled, "Don't be, it's not like you killed them."
He had the same glum face Ellina had when she'd spoke of her family. Izel had scarred everyone in this place. I felt terrible. Then suddenly the door flew open. Ellina stood at the door next to another boy. He was also a teenager, and he looked just like Ellina. He had blue sparkly eyes and black spiky hair that stood in place over his shoulders. I could tell that he had a lot of muscles even from under his black shirt like Ace.
Ellina broke the silence once again, "April this is Blake, my brother, and Blake this is April, the history seeker." Blake didn't say anything. His eyes just widened, and he didn't move. He was staring at me, fascinated. I smiled as a greeting but all he did was look away. I said nothing.
"April, would you come take a look at this?" Ellina said. She had already gone in the house and Ace was helping her with a map of some sort. I quickly turned around to see what Ellina wanted. It was the first time I had seen Ellina without her hood on. Her hair was pure black, and it was very long and straight. She was really pretty.
I went over to her and Ace. I felt Blake coming closer behind me. He stood there, not moving a muscle. I didn't know anyone could be so still. He was so close I could feel his breath. But I didn't say anything. "What's this?" I asked.
"This is a map of when The Witch of the Mountain appears. We will need it once we find the rest of the Meris helpers." said Ellina.
"It's not even almost a half moon, so we have plenty of time." said Ace.
"How are we going to find the other Meris, and how does this help me find my father? I thought we had a deal?" I asked.
"A deal? Since when do you make deals with a kid Ellina?" Blake said.
"I'm not a kid." I said flatly, yet quietly, I couldn't lose my temper to people I didn't even know.
"Blake look, it was the only way she was ever going to come with me, I had to promise her we would find her father." Ellina said.
"The one who married a mortal? I'm sorry, kid but you're here to help us, I don't think you have a choice."
"I'm not a kid!" I said. Who did he think he was?
"April I'm sorry, Blake may I speak to you for a second? Alone?" Ellina said. She went into one of the rooms with him and I heard them whisper, but I couldn't make out the words.
"Sorry about that, you're lucky, he didn't blast anything at you the second he saw you. That's just the way he is, stubborn and angry, all the time." Ace said.
"It's ok, it's not the first time I'd been bullied." Ace said nothing, and I realized just how stupid I had sounded. Blake and Ellina got out of the room and Blake seemed calmer, quieter. I didn't know what she had done, but she truly did something.
"Welcome back guys, so you figured out how we're planning on randomly finding Meris, now that Izel is sending troops tomorrow to check who's ready for 'transportation'." Ace said.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"He means that Izel's going to take more Meris to his little conspiracy dungeon and if we don't get a move on, we're going to be one of them." Ellina gave Blake a glare, he sighed "I mean, we should, find a good plan quickly." He said.
"Well, we can think about that after we eat, aren't we all hungry? Let's go get some dinner from the market." Ellina said.
Food. I had forgotten about food. But surprisingly, I wasn't hungry. I nodded at Ellina. She signaled for me to follow her into one of the rooms. I went inside. There was a bed with white sheets on the side next to the bamboo framed window. The brown wooden closet was in front of the bed. Ellina had already opened a closet door and took out a bunch of clothes. She laid each of them on the bed. "Which would you like?" she asked. I stepped closer to the bed. Most of the clothing was brown. There was a green tank top with something that looked like a golden necklace attached to it. On each strap of the tank top there was something that looked like a necklace dangled down. The collar area had a thick, gold, metal piece that would cover the whole neck. There was one pair of pants and a skirt. The pants looked like skinny jeans and they had these golden necklace things hanging from the sides like the tank top, they where a brownish color. The skirt was also a golden color and it seemed to reach my knee if I wore it. Ellina was a little bit shorter than me, but her clothes would still fit me I thought. The skirt also had these dangled necklaces. I decided to wear it.
"I'll take these." I said holding the tank top and the skirt.
"Alright." she said. "You can wear these sandals." The sandals were like those of the ancient Romans, with laces that are meant to be wrapped around your ankle area.
"Thanks." I smiled.
"April," I turned. "How do you like it here so far?"
I shrugged.
"It'll get better. I promise." I smiled a little.
"I'm going to the bathroom to change." I said.
"Wait." I heard Ellina say. "Take these earrings. They make you more tolerant.
"Alright. Thanks." I said.
"The bathroom's on the right, April."
I turned around and headed for the bathroom. It was a small bathroom. The sink was attached to the wall and the toilet was right next to it. I set Ellina's clothes on the dried sink and took off my clothes. I wore the tank top and skirt, and then I wore the sandals. They covered most of my chins, but they didn't make it to my knees. I looked up at the mirror and turned the tab on to wash my face. I untied my ponytail and let my brown curls lay on my shoulders. I put on the earrings. They were shaped as golden circles. I brushed my hair and laid my bangs on the side of my face. I stepped out of the bathroom and went to the door where everyone else was. They were all looking at the schedule that Ellina told us about. Ellina had changed from her black robe to a beautiful sleeveless dress. It was light purple with the same golden necklaces dangling from her waist. The dress made it above her knees by a little bit. Her hair was curled and tied in a ponytail. I thought she looked really nice. "Are we gonna leave now?" I said.
They all turned around. Ellina quickly came to me and said, "Great you're ready, let's go!"
"Wait." It was Blake. "Can I come with you?"
"Are you sure Blake?" Ellina asked shockingly.
"Yeah. I'm sure. I want to come." He said.
"Ok then. Come along." Ellina said.
It was darker now in Overia. Street lights were turned on. I was surprised by how quickly time passed by. Maybe Overian time ticks faster than the normal time as well. We walked for a long time in silence across the town. Everywhere I looked, there was sadness. No smiles lit anyone's face. People were either going back home or walking gloomily on the street off to somewhere, who knows where. This place seemed so oppressed. It made my smile fade away as quickly as melting ice-cream in the hot sun. I watched the stars and saw that it was a half moon, like Ace had said. There were so many clusters of stars that lit the dark night. Aside from the half lit lampposts on the streets, the moon seemed to be the only sign of hope to me that this place might get better. I tried to imagine smiles on each of these people's faces, but I couldn't.
We walked past a small cottage and I noticed what was happening. Some sort of armed solider was standing by the door. An old woman came by and I watched solemnly as the armed man shouted at the poor lady and whipped her with his lash. I wanted to do something about this, but I couldn't. Ellina saw me start to tear and she grabbed me by the shoulder and whispered something in my ear that I couldn't comprehend. How could this happen and no one do anything about it? It was terrible here. After seeing that I wanted nothing but to go back home, where things like that were acted upon. Maybe London wasn't my home, but I certainly liked it better than this.
We finally made it to something that looked like a souk. Under every umbrella there were different types of food. Ellina lead us to the each of the shaded stands, "You may sit over there if you'd like while I go and get the food."
"No, I'll come with you." I said. It would be interesting to see what kind of food Overia had. Maybe it would be completely different than London's. We went to the vegetable area, and I watched as Ellina pulled out the strangest vegetables I've ever seen. She got something that looked like rice, and diary products. After that, she went to the poultry area, and grabbed something that looked like a chicken to me, but I doubted it was. When she was finished she went to someone who was the cashier I presumed. He took everything and put it in a bag, "That's fifty four Izolons." He was a fat, bald man. I could see tiny hairs on his head, though they were barely seeable. He wore the same colors everyone wore here: brown or green, and he had the same sandals I wore. Ellina was the only one who wore a different color: purple. But the dark colored robe she wore over it covered it.
I assumed that Izolons was there currency. I saw Ellina hand the man old looking coins. They were silver colored, and had strange engravings on them. I couldn't tell what they were.
"Let's go." Ellina said. Blake took the bags from Ellina and walked in front of us. He stood bold and strong. I observed every muscle in his powerful arms. I tried to imagine him water bending. I remembered Justin all of a sudden. I remembered his green eyes and brown hair and tried to compare him with Blake. They were both such different people. But it was obvious that Blake was stronger. Then I remembered Jessica, and Stephanie. I remembered my dad. I tried to imagine how my life would be like if it was true that he's still alive. Would it be possible that I didn't loose him? I felt like a fool to have been sad for the past three months and to have thought he was gone. Maybe that's why my mom was better. Maybe somehow, he went into her dreams too, and told her he was ok. Why wouldn't my mom tell me though? Didn't she understand that it was my right to know my father was still alive? Did she know that I was a history seeker? Did she know I was capable of doing things not all humans are capable of? The thought of my life back in the normal world didn't want me to go back. It wasn't as how I wanted it to be anyway. Maybe this life is better for me. Maybe change is good. I didn't understand anything yet. Maybe this was all a dream. I took a deep breath, and closed my eyes. I was more relaxed that way. Then suddenly I tripped on something. I shrieked, and felt someone carry me back up on my feet. Their arms were as hard as steel. I wanted to know who it was, but my eyes wouldn't open up again, and then unexpectedly, I fell to the ground.
I woke up in a bed. I gagged, and put my head on my forehead, to try and get up.
"Are you alright?" Ellina said.
"What happened?" I asked.
"You lost your conscious. You're transition is hitting you pretty hard, it's most probable that it'll be complete by next week. The symptoms are all different. Maybe today was too much pressure for you. You should get some rest. Do you need anything?" I tried to get up and felt Ellina trying to help me, "Are you sure you want to get up?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." I felt her let go of me. I didn't want her to let go. I was too exhausted, but I didn't want to appear weak in front of them, they were all so strong. I had to get up. I pushed through the pain and stood on my feet. I was in Ellina's room. My eyesight was still a little blurry, but I made my way through the door. Ellina told me to rest but I insisted on helping her to set up the food. She told me to follow her to the kitchen. When I entered I realized that it was the similar to my kitchen back at home. Only it was a little smaller. She set down the food on the table.
"The rejo is in the storage room. Would you mind getting it please?" I heard her say.
"Rejo?"
"Yes. The food that looks like rice I believe. I remember from watching you on Earth that you never cooked."
That's what she had bought in the market, it was very much like rice, but it was a bit darker colored, a shade of brown. Perhaps everything here was as dull as that color.
"Oh ok. And yeah, my mom works at a sandwich shop and sometimes we just order out."
"Well that is certainly easier."
"Yeah, and it also means I don't know how to cook." I said.
"That's alright. All I need now is the rejo, I mean rice please." There were so many things in the storage room. Unlike my house, this place had all the food needed to live a lifetime…or so I thought.
"Where is the rice?"I asked.
A fan was turned on. "Top left corner, in a big bag!" she shouted. I looked at the top left corner and saw a really big bag that looked so heavy. I reached for it to pull it down but it was stuck. I kept pulling it until the whole bag fell on my head. I was starting to become dizzy again. I couldn't see what was happening, but the bag made a loud thump as it fell on my head. Ellina quickly looked around to see me covered in white rice. She put her hand on her mouth, "My goodness! Are you alright?" she asked shockingly.
I got up and rubbed off the rice that was all over me. Ace and Blake seemed to hear the noise, because they came into the kitchen and saw what a mess I have done.
"Sorry Ellina." I was ashamed.
"That's alright, I'll clean it up. I told you, you should rest. You can sit outside in the living room with Blake and Ace while they set the table." It was obvious she didn't want me in the kitchen anymore. I nodded and followed Ace and Blake to the table. They had already set up everything.
"Here, you can sit down here." Ace said, while pulling out a chair. I went over to the chair and sat with my hand over my head, trying to stabilize myself.
"Are you alright?" Ace said.
"I'm fine, I'm just really tired." I said. I was wondering at the same time what on earth made me lose consciousness like that. I did nothing above my own strength. At least I didn't think I didn't. I tried to recall the events of the day, to try and remember if I did anything that overwhelmed me.
"It's the transition. How old are you?" Blake said.
"Fifteen." I said.
I heard him chuckle, "Like I thought, a kid. This is going to happen for the next week or so, get used to it."
"I wasn't complaining." I said. What is his problem?
"We could hang posters saying we need a future reader and air and fire bender," Ace said. "For getting Meris, I mean."
"Yes," Blake said vaguely. "so when Izel's troops comes back, he won't suspect a thing about a history seeker ever existing. Think a little Ace."
"Well then what should we do?" I asked quietly. Ace was silent. He seemed out of ideas.
"We will have to go to each house and look for the Meris. That may not be the best idea, but there's no other way." Blake said.
We sat there for another ten minutes completely silent.
Blake got up, "I'm going to check on Ellina." And he left the room.
"You hungry?" Ace said.
"Oddly, I'm not. And I didn't eat anything since yesterday."
"When the food comes, you'll be hungry."
"Maybe." I said. Ellina and Blake came out of the kitchen carrying two pots.
"Ace can you go get the juice. It's on the table inside." Ellina said pointing at the kitchen. Ace nodded, quickly got up and went to the kitchen. The food smelled delicious. Ace was right. I would be hungry when the food came. Ellina and Blake set the pots on the table. "Help yourself." Ellina said. I opened one of the pots. It had rice in it. I took my spoon and put rice on my plate. The vegetable pot smelled even nicer than the rice. Everything seemed so normal here, I felt like I was still on Earth.
Suddenly I remembered my mother, and how she'd known about this and never told me. And I remembered Justin's party and how I was probably going to miss it. The thought of home made me sad, I wanted to go back but the thought of my dad still being out there, was beyond just riveting.
Ace came back with the juice and a bowl that had meat in it. Ellina probably forgot about it. With my fork, I took a piece of meat. We all sat down in our chairs, and I heard Ellina say, "I hope you like it April."
The food was amazing. Ellina was an excellent cook. The vegetables and the rice were juicy and mouthwatering. And the meat completed the meal. I took a sip from my orange juice. I couldn't stop eating this wonderful meal.
When we all finished eating Ace and I cleaned up the table. Blake and Ellina went inside and washed the dishes. I laid my head back onto the couch and shut my eyes. I felt Ace come and sit beside me. "You tired?" he asked. I could hear him chuckle a little.
"Very." I said. "So much stuff happened today, I don't think I can absorb it all. Yesterday I was a normal person living a normal boring life, and right now, well this isn't something I can take in all at once."
Ace laughed. "You better get rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, with finding the Meris and all. Come, I'll show you to a bedroom." I followed Ace down the hallway into a small room with a bed and a night table. I turned to him, "Thanks."
"No problem, Ellina must have pajamas somewhere in her room. I'll be right back." He left the room swiftly and made no sound. I sat on the bed and analyzed the room. It was really small. It looked just like Ellina's room except this had no closet and was much smaller. I didn't mind it though, I was really tired anyway. I took off the sandals Ellina had given me and laid my head on the pillow. And before Ace returned, I was in a deep sleep.