When he woke again he still felt ill but not so severely. He pushed
himself up against the wall and looked around again. Sterling sat a few
inches away from him now, eyes shut, arms crossed and Toby lay asleep in
the corner he had been huddled in before. There was not much else to look
at: just four wooden walls, a ceiling and a floor.
"Feeling better?" Sterling asked without opening his eyes.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Axel huffed.
Sterling laughed. "Liar."
"So where are we?" Axel asked.
For a moment Sterling kept his mouth shut and simply sat quietly. The
sound of pounding hooves filled the silence and Axel's head pounded. Then
Sterling broke the silence. "We're in the heart of the Night World."
Axel raised and eyebrow and looked over at his friend as if he'd lost his
mind. "What are you talking about?" He asked.
"The Night World is all around us," Sterling said, sounding very old all of
a sudden. "It's full of vampires and werewolves and shape shifters and
witches. We've been around for thousands of years and have created our own
rules to protect us from humans. You and Toby are now slaves of the King
of the Night World."
Axel fell to the side in an uncontrollable burst of laughter.
Once the attack subsided and his checks could no longer take the cramp of
smiling he supported himself with one arm and looked up at his friend.
"And I thought those drugs did something to me," he said. "They've made
you go crazy."
Sterling looked at Axel for the first time and raised his lips in a snarl.
Axel felt his eyes widen involuntarily as he watched his friend's teeth take on new frightening sizes. They looked like knives made of pearl: beautiful but deadly. New realities pounded him from all sides. The realization hit that Sterling was actually telling the truth, that he was not human, and then the words he had said before resurfaced; You and Toby are now slaves of the King of the Night World. What had he meant by that? "So...what are you?" Was all Axel could manage. "A werewolf, actually considered lower class," he said. He made a sound through his lips that resembled a laugh. "So, if you're part of the Night World, then why did they kidnap you too?" The storm in his mind was slowing now and thoughts were forming their proper patterns again, which only brought more confusion. "Because I don't like to play by their rules and I need to be taught a lesson," Sterling laughed. "I ran from my parents so they wanted me to be put back in line-my parents live here anyway." "Here? Where is here?" Axel asked. "It's in the middle of a valley no one can find because of all the spells put on it," Sterling said. "I can't remember where it is exactly." Axel peeped out one of the holes in the walls. The landscape reminded him of something out of a storybook; deep green grass, amazing blue sky with lovely trees reaching their arms to it. He turned back to Sterling. "I'm nobody's slave." It came out as a hiss and it shocked him how much he actually sounded like a snake. He half expected Sterling to laugh but the ever-changing eyes merely shut and he shook his head. "You don't have much of a choice." "Wanna bet?" The wagon stopped and nineteen-year-old Axel opened his eyes, the images of the past floated away. The doors of the opened and the man with the dark eyes, Rolf, reached in and grabbed Axel by the bicep. Axel knew better than to struggle now, the time to fight was later. No use in getting the crap beaten out of him just yet. Rolf half dragged, half carried Axel through the village right up to the castle gates. As he entered the castle the memory of his first day there swept over him, and he saw Angelina. Her picture remained perfectly kept in his mind, untouched by the work of time: her small round face, her hair that looked like ringlets of gold, her sparkling blue eyes contrasting against her ivory skin. No matter how much he loathed her, she'd always appear an angel in his eyes. She'd gone from the little bratty cherub, to the spoiled little angel. He also saw her father, King Aster. This picture remained the same as well; it only grew darker through each passing year. His eyes were dark like Rolf's but full of an evil power that sometimes even bewildered Axel and Sterling. Memories flooded back. They pulled the three twelve-year-olds from the wagon and dragged them to the courtyard. There, Sterling's parents pulled him to the side by the ear and started reprimanding him. However, Sterling pulled one of the best acts Axel had ever seen. By the end of his lamenting and hugging his parents were in tears forgiving and forgetting as if the entire event had been some episode off of the Disney Channel. Then, everything went still: the King and his daughter entered the courtyard. An eerie glow surrounded them and everyone-even Sterling-went silent. All the color had washed from Toby's face and Axel saw his hands shaking. King Aster loomed nearly two feet above Rolf and Axel actually felt a slight twinge of fear, but then the King spoke. "Angelina, here are the new slaves," he said in a voice that vibrated through the air. "Take your pick." The little girl, who didn't even come up to Axel's chin, put her hands behind her back and circled the two boys. Her lacy pink dress rocked like a bell and the sun bounced off her hair causing it to appear on fire. She stopped in front of Axel and reached out a little hand as if to touch his chin. But Axel had lost his patients. He swatted her tiny hand away and took a step back. The watchers gasped and Toby whimpered beside him. "Did I say you could touch me?" More gasps from the crowd. The little girl's mouth dropped open and her eyebrows rose. For a moment she studied Axel's face and then smiled. At that moment she no longer looked like a little girl but an imp ready to cause all sorts of mischief. Axel knew immediately that he was in trouble. "I want him."
Axel felt his eyes widen involuntarily as he watched his friend's teeth take on new frightening sizes. They looked like knives made of pearl: beautiful but deadly. New realities pounded him from all sides. The realization hit that Sterling was actually telling the truth, that he was not human, and then the words he had said before resurfaced; You and Toby are now slaves of the King of the Night World. What had he meant by that? "So...what are you?" Was all Axel could manage. "A werewolf, actually considered lower class," he said. He made a sound through his lips that resembled a laugh. "So, if you're part of the Night World, then why did they kidnap you too?" The storm in his mind was slowing now and thoughts were forming their proper patterns again, which only brought more confusion. "Because I don't like to play by their rules and I need to be taught a lesson," Sterling laughed. "I ran from my parents so they wanted me to be put back in line-my parents live here anyway." "Here? Where is here?" Axel asked. "It's in the middle of a valley no one can find because of all the spells put on it," Sterling said. "I can't remember where it is exactly." Axel peeped out one of the holes in the walls. The landscape reminded him of something out of a storybook; deep green grass, amazing blue sky with lovely trees reaching their arms to it. He turned back to Sterling. "I'm nobody's slave." It came out as a hiss and it shocked him how much he actually sounded like a snake. He half expected Sterling to laugh but the ever-changing eyes merely shut and he shook his head. "You don't have much of a choice." "Wanna bet?" The wagon stopped and nineteen-year-old Axel opened his eyes, the images of the past floated away. The doors of the opened and the man with the dark eyes, Rolf, reached in and grabbed Axel by the bicep. Axel knew better than to struggle now, the time to fight was later. No use in getting the crap beaten out of him just yet. Rolf half dragged, half carried Axel through the village right up to the castle gates. As he entered the castle the memory of his first day there swept over him, and he saw Angelina. Her picture remained perfectly kept in his mind, untouched by the work of time: her small round face, her hair that looked like ringlets of gold, her sparkling blue eyes contrasting against her ivory skin. No matter how much he loathed her, she'd always appear an angel in his eyes. She'd gone from the little bratty cherub, to the spoiled little angel. He also saw her father, King Aster. This picture remained the same as well; it only grew darker through each passing year. His eyes were dark like Rolf's but full of an evil power that sometimes even bewildered Axel and Sterling. Memories flooded back. They pulled the three twelve-year-olds from the wagon and dragged them to the courtyard. There, Sterling's parents pulled him to the side by the ear and started reprimanding him. However, Sterling pulled one of the best acts Axel had ever seen. By the end of his lamenting and hugging his parents were in tears forgiving and forgetting as if the entire event had been some episode off of the Disney Channel. Then, everything went still: the King and his daughter entered the courtyard. An eerie glow surrounded them and everyone-even Sterling-went silent. All the color had washed from Toby's face and Axel saw his hands shaking. King Aster loomed nearly two feet above Rolf and Axel actually felt a slight twinge of fear, but then the King spoke. "Angelina, here are the new slaves," he said in a voice that vibrated through the air. "Take your pick." The little girl, who didn't even come up to Axel's chin, put her hands behind her back and circled the two boys. Her lacy pink dress rocked like a bell and the sun bounced off her hair causing it to appear on fire. She stopped in front of Axel and reached out a little hand as if to touch his chin. But Axel had lost his patients. He swatted her tiny hand away and took a step back. The watchers gasped and Toby whimpered beside him. "Did I say you could touch me?" More gasps from the crowd. The little girl's mouth dropped open and her eyebrows rose. For a moment she studied Axel's face and then smiled. At that moment she no longer looked like a little girl but an imp ready to cause all sorts of mischief. Axel knew immediately that he was in trouble. "I want him."
