Chapter Four

While on the plane, Hay Lin was telling Yan Lin about her problem.

"So you see, Grandma," Hay Lin finished, "I don't know who to choose. I like Eric for certain reasons, but I like Dark for others. I'm so confused."

"I believe," Yan Lin began, "that soon you will know who cares about you more. Wait a little while, you're still young."

"But the school has been rebuilt. Their bound to find out about each other. I'm doomed!" She looked around and gave an embarrassed grin to Dark. He was the only one, excluding Yan Lin and herselfwho was still awake, even after the 11 hours they'd been in the air. He rose and walked toward the door of the plane.

"Tell the others," Dark said, giving Hay Lin a big, toothy grin, "that I'll see them at Heatherfield."

"What are you doing?" Hay Lin shouted.

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..." Dark said grinning even wider. He turned the door's knob. "Taking a faster route home." He opened the door and jumped out of the plane!

"NOOOOOOOO!"

Hay Lin's scream awoke everyone on the plane.

"What is it?" Irma asked Hay Lin, taking her by the shoulders.

"What's wrong?" East and North said simultaneously.

"Dark...he...crazy...jumped," Hay Lin stuttered.

"Dark jumped out of the plane," Yan Lin said to the others, "He said he'd see us at Heatherfield."

North gave a small laugh. "Dark can fly," she told them, "He's been able to ever since he was six. He always does that, especially when he's trying to impress a girl." She looked over at Hay Lin. "We'll see him soon."

"How do you know?" Will asked her.

"Because in 12 hours we'll be landing in Heatherfield."

The plane door opened again. Dark walked in.

"So," he said to Hay Lin, "would you like to go for a ride?"

"No thanks. I like feeling the ground under my feet."

"No you don't. You're Air, you love flying. You just don't trust me."

"I do trust you, Dark. It's just that..." She turned away from Dark and the others.

"Yes?"

"I don't want you to get the wrong idea." She turned back to face Dark. "I've got a boyfriend already."

"I'm not proposing to you."

"I know, but I just don't want you to think we're anything more than just friends."

"I don't."Hay Lin's eyes widened.

"Really?"

"Yeah. To me, saving the world is job. And I don't believe in on-the-job relationships."

"So you don't care that I have a boyfriend?"

"Not...at...all," Dark said, taking slow, deep breaths. "I'll see you guys later." With that he opened the door and jumped out of the plane again.

East walked up to Hay Lin and put her arm around her shoulders. "Whoo!" she said. "You two are hotter than summer in the Caribbean."

"Leave me alone," Hay Lin said, shaking East's arm off of her shoulders. She sat down in her seat and closed her eyes.

"Well," Cornelia said, "Dark really does impress me. We'd make such a cute couple."

"Yeah right!" Will said. "You'd probably dump him the minute he does something you don't like."

"Hmph!" Cornelia folded her arms over her chest and sat in the seat next to Hay Lin.

"Why do I get the feeling we're being watched?" Phobos pondered. He looked outside one of the windows of the plane. Sure enough, they were being watched by a tall man with an all black dress suit, a long cape that had the collar pulled up and no eyes.

Cedric started to tremble. His eyes rolled back and his nose and mouth started to bleed. "Don't go near him!" he yelled. "He can't hurt us if we don't get close to him."

"How do you know this?" Tibor asked him.

"I don't know. I just do."

The others took heed to the advice and ignored the man. After a few minutes, he flew off.

"Who was that?" Taranee inquired.

"Not who," Scales said, "What. That was the demon Luck. He has been encaged for centuries for trying to destroy the universe. One of the evil kings of Nreyda made a deal with him. He promised that if he gave him his eyes he would let him out of his prison once the new Keepers and Guardians had joined forces. He is indestructible. His only weakness is that he can only leave Nreyda the seventh and thirteenth of each month."

"So we're gonna have to beat him?" Irma asked.

"No," North said, "Dark will have to beat him."

"Why Dark?" East asked. "Why not me?"

"Because," Fate said, standing up, "Luck...is Dark's birth father."