Disclaimer: Guess.... So? What did you think of ch 11? Ya, a bit sick, but I had to have a reason big enough for him to run away. That will be the end of the flashbacks, since I have you up to date. R&R- Thanks! (Oh, and thank you "Dude"...whoever that is...keep reading!)

Rhia woke slowly, peacefully. She knew where she was, and felt safe there. Looking around, she spotted Alex, who was still asleep. Knowing about his hard night, she let him be. Slowly, she got up and did her yoga stretches.

Shortly after that, Rhia began to scale the inside of the trunk to go see Charlie and Brolo. It only took her a matter of minutes to do so, thanks to the rough bark. As she reached the branches, a familiar voice said, "Well, well, well. Good to see some one up and about."

"Hey, Charlie." Rhia called, "I came up because I need to talk to you about some serious stuff." The Cheshire lifted one of his bushy, purple eyebrows and replied quizzically, "Like what? I may be all-knowing, but if it has anything to do with lovey-dovey junk count me out."

"Whoa, no need to get all touchy," Rhia replied humorously, "I just wanted to ask about this place. Like, what's it called? How did it get here? How come there was a gate in my world? And how do we get back?"

Now both of the cats' eyebrows were raised. Charlie chuckled, "You sure are a curious little nymph, aren't you. Well, this might take a while, so get settled in." Rhia lay down on a thick, sturdy branch and nodded.

"Okay, here goes. This world that you and I are in right now is called Everworld, because it will supposedly last forever. Its creation began thousands of years ago, as the people in your world began to shun the ancient gods."

"These gods had been created by human minds, and so had become real. When Egyptians turned to other religions and Roman gods were replaced, the old gods had to go somewhere. They decided to make their own world where they would always rule."

"They gathered their people and, for the first time in history, got together and created Everworld. They made different provinces and areas that coincided with their Earthly rule." Rhia asked, "So, I could go visit Zeus on Mount Olympus, and then travel for a day and see Osiris?"

Charlie gave her a sardonic smile. "Yes, I suppose so, though they do live on opposite sides of this plane. You see, their one flaw in creating this world is that it is flat. They had no concept of round, because the humans had not thought of that yet."

"Now, about the gate in your world, it is because these two worlds, this one and yours, are parallel. This is because many major powers moved from one dimension to another. They got close enough together, which happens about once every thousand years, that they rubbed. This created a hole that lasted for about four weeks."

Rhia gasped, "But it's already been that long! I've been keeping track! Oh, now what do we do?" The cat heaved a huge sigh. "There is a prophecy, one that says there will be a gateway that enters through from your world. Apparently, it is human."

"If you want, I could recite it for you," Charlie said, without waiting for an answer, he began.

Over thousands of years Two worlds collide, Some shall cross And some shall hide.

Of those that come, One dozen less two, Only the last shall survive Because they both flew.

One last hint, Should they come, They will see, True love will only Save one of thee.

For the other to live, And make it through, They must understand From which they flew.

This thing is most precious More that any jewel, For thee to escape Thee must not rule.

Well, R&R please!