AB: Hello, everyone!
Iris: AB, is there some significance to the colors of my clothes?
AB: Yes, and I was just about to explain that. My friend and I were really bored one weekend so we watched all the episodes of The Secret Saturdays, and we discovered the show the is colored coded. Blue clothes mean a main villain for at least one season, and red/burgundy means a secondary villain. Black or orange means a protagonist or ally, and green means the character changes sides There is literally no purple in the show (Munya's uniform is a burgundy color), so I made you different.
Iris: Okay. Thank you for explaining.
AB: No problem. Also, I am starting the myth again; please note that I am starting out with short segments. Trigger Warning: Self Harm at end of chapter! Disclaimer: The Secret Saturdays belongs to Jay Stephens and, I think, Cartoon Network. Here's Chapter 17: Damage Done
(3rd Person POV)
Legend spoke of an ancient creature, whose name struck fear into the hearts of the people. All the land, every living being, quaked at the mere mention of this monster. But there was one who did not fear the beast, and her people banished her for fear of the monster and the gods' wrath.
Alone and scared, the woman wandered until she found a cave in which she could rest. A hot breath blew on her neck, and the woman turned to see the source. It was none other than the creature, and she realized this fate was her punishment, not banishment. She instantly hated her people and this monster.
"Welcome, my dear, to my cave. This is your new home, and you are my new pet," the ferocious serpent declared. Still terrified, the girl nodded. She had no idea what lay ahead.
(Iris's POV)
A feeling of dread consumes me from the moment I wake up. I know this feeling, and it always precedes something drastic. I bite the inside of my lip and try to convince myself that nothing is going to happen. I take more convincing than I thought I did.
Uncle Doyle comes in and tells me that we are about to head off a mission; then he closes the door. Excited for the mission, I spring out of bed and throw my clothes on. Then I slide out of room and ask where we are going. Mom turns around from her seat in the cockpit. She smiles and says we are going to Maine. My heart practically leaps out of my chest. I stare at Mom in utter disbelief. I ask which city, and she says Orono. I feel my eyes light up.
A few hours later, the airship lands just outside the familiar town. However, the town does not seem so familiar anymore. So much has changed, and I no longer have my bearings. It is extremely frustrating and disheartening. Part of me just wants to go back to the airship and stay there until the mission is over, but I know I cannot do that, not anymore.
"Iris, do you know this place?" Uncle Doyle asks.
"I grew up here." Everyone seems taken by surprise when I tell them that. What takes my by surprise is that they did not know that about me, considering they figured about just about everything me.
"So you can show us around, then?" Zak asks. I shake my head.
"No, I cannot. The last time I was here was six years ago, and so much has changed since then." Everyone sighs. "So, what are we looking for?" I ask.
"The person described it as Nessie but in Maine," Mom explains.
"Helpful," Uncle Doyle grumbles.
"I think I know where the person saw the cryptid. I think I can get us there." Almost everyone agrees that it is worth a shot, but Dr. Saturday says that he would rather use a navigation system. Naturally, majority wins, and I end up leading the group to the lake, after getting lost multiple times.
Once we get to the lake and away from people, I ask Zak if he will use his powers. He asks what is wrong with mine, and I tell him his are stronger. In actuality, mine are fading quickly, but no one needs to know. Zak shakes his head after a couple of moments; the cryptid is not here. But if it is not here, the only lake in town, then where is it? Then it hits me: the river!
The cryptid is not in the river either, and I am starting to worry. Orono is my hometown, even if I do not live here anymore, and I do not want a lake monster running around wrecking it. Uncle Doyle suggests we call it quits and leave, but Dr. Saturday objects and says we should stay three more days before returning, in case the cryptid makes an appearance; for once, Dr. Saturday and I agree on something. The others neither accept nor object to the idea, so we all head back to the airship. But I have this feeling that something is watching me, so I keep glancing over my shoulder, yet there is nothing there every time.
Back at the airship, I lose myself in paranoid thoughts. My mind jumps to conclusions such as a criminal is collecting data and waiting for the opportunity to strike. Zon screeches really loudly in my ear, abruptly ending my dramatic thoughts. She asks if I am alright, and I tell her I am fine. She gives me a laser stare, but I still keep my mouth shut. She walks away.
In bed that night, I toss and turn, unable to fall asleep. Fearful thoughts swirl around in my mind, and the anxiety mixed with the chaos make sleep impossible. I keep thinking about the dread I felt this morning, the feeling of being watched from this afternoon, and all my theories of betrayal. The tears well up in my eyes as I realize something. I do suffer psychological damage from my years at WeirdWorld. Now I am condemned to live out my days with paranoia.
A few tears hit my pillow, and the river starts to flow. I am not sure how, but I end up crying myself to sleep, despite my mental chaos.
The sun is not yet up when I wake up. My head hurts, and the dryness of my eyes causes them to sting, despite how long I slept. The feeling of dread is still around, and so is the paranoia. I hate myself for not realizing how damaged I am before now. I start to question whether the Saturdays will still want me once they learn about the damage. Will the person who takes me with the new will still want me? My self-hatred only grows worse.
Before I know it, the sun has come up, and the others are all awake. Zak and Fisk, based on what I can hear, are moving pretty slowly while Mom and Komodo are on the ball. Uncle Doyle, Zon, and Dr. Saturday could care less. The noise outside the room gets louder as people wake up more, but I stay in the bedroom. I do not want them to know that I have this problem; I do not want to be sent away.
Mom and Komodo eventually come and check on me. I hide the fact that something is wrong as best as I can, but I feel as if they can see right through my façade. They soon realize that I am not in the mood to come out of my room, so they leave and close the door firmly behind them. I am left in the solitude and security of my room. I lie back down and curl up in the fetal position; I close my eyes and try to rest.
Komodo comes in a few hours later and wakes me up. He stares at me for a moment once I come to my sense; he seems concerned. I squirm around, fearful that he will find out if I sit still. Then Komodo jumps off the bed, walks over to the window, and looks out at the town. I follow his gaze and notice that the town looks different. In fact it looks like a monster was on a rampage. I leap out of bed, grab a shirt and jeans, and get dressed in the bathroom. I finish getting ready in record time, and I race out to meet the others. I immediately ask what happened, and Mom says the cryptid came back.
We walk as casually as possible into town, despite our rush and frenzy. No one is out, and downtown is covered in rubble. It is terrifying knowing that something has the potential to do this. I flash of color to my right catches my attention, so I turn to face that direction. I look closer and can make out a hint of red and pale blue. Zon snaps my attention back to the group before I can take a closer look. I wonder what the colors are.
We spend the rest of the day listening to eyewitness accounts of what happened and where the cryptid went. We use what little information we can get and start looking for the cryptid again. I still feel like something is watching me, so I keep glancing over my shoulder. I catch Komodo looking at me at some point, but that does not shake the feeling.
We scour the forests, rivers, and the one lake in hopes finding the cryptid, but we find absolutely nothing. Dr. Saturday suggests Zak and I go looking by ourselves. No one agrees or disagrees, so Zak and I head off on our own. We use our powers as little as possible, but there comes a point when they are all we have. Zak and I try calling the cryptid with our Kur powers, but we connect with nothing. The entire time, I watch behind me, expecting someone to jump out at any moment. Zak suggests we throw in the towel, and I agree. The two of us make our way back to the group and tell them we found nothing. Then we split into two groups and keep looking.
At the end of the day, we find nothing but a footprint telling us the cryptid has been around. Dr. Saturday snaps a picture of the footprint, and we all return to the airship, tired and ready for the day to end. Dr. Saturday verifies the cryptid's existence in the cryptipedia, but he does not tell us what is is; he only tells Mom. He says can leave tomorrow. But the damage done to Orono is still there, and so is the damage done to my mind.
Smoke? I smell smoke when I wake up the next morning. Why on Earth am I smelling smoke? I immediately crawl out of bed, see thick, black smoke outside my window, and check the door with the back of my hand. It is not hot, so I open it. Zak is on the other side, looking confused. I shake my head, grab his hand, and pull him outside. We group up with the others; I ask what is going on, and Fisk points to the airship.
"Yes, Fisk, I am aware the airship is smoking. Why?" I am not in the mood for games right now.
"Well take another look, Iris." Fisk points once again at the airship, and I take another look.
"You have got to be kidding me," I exclaim; fire is consuming the whole back of the airship. Fisk asks what we are going to do, and I tell him that I can try something. Everyone seems too preoccupied by the fire to object. I center myself and try to connect with the flames. Fire is, in my opinion, the trickiest element to control. Connecting with the fire turns out to be a lot harder than I originally thought it would be. This fire burns with hatred behind it, and it refuses to back down.
"Iris, whatever you're doing, stop," Zak demands. I shake my head and keep trying. "Iris, you're only making it worse." I open my eyes and look, sure enough, the fire has spread. Immediately, I stop trying to control the flames; the fire draws back. Fine! If I cannot control the fire this way, then I will try another way. The ocean at the bottom of the cliffs gives me an idea. I make some of the water come up and douse the airship. A few flames are still present, so I drop more water on them. Everything is dead still for a moment.
Dr. Saturday glares at me, and I take a step back. Then, as thanks, he points out that the airship is now icing over. Wait, icing over?! The ice moves swiftly and has covered over three-quarters of the airship by the time I realize what is happening. I try to stop the ice, since ice is a form of the water element, but nothing happens. Water was the first one I learned to control, so I cannot figure out why my powers are failing.
Suddenly, Uncle Doyle cries out, "That's my Freeze Tech!" I should have known the ice was not water ice! We instantly begin searching all over the airship for the Freeze Tech. Everyone comes up empty handed, and the ice now covers the the entire airship. I guess Dr. Saturday notices something because he walks to the other side of the airship, into the surrounding trees, and disappears. He comes back a moment or two later with an empty, metal thing I am guessing is the Freeze Tech. Dr. Saturday approaches Uncle Doyle, drop the Freeze Tech at Uncle Doyle's feet, and says coldly that he found it.
Something in the woods to me left catches my attention, and I have no doubt that is is a person. I race after the person, and I find myself too slow. I use my powers to build walls out of the branches and ground, blocking the person from escaping. Because of my advantage, I am able to find the person, and it is who I thought it would be.
"What do you think you are doing?" I ask.
"Leaving."
"You caused the fire and the ice, did you not?"
"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. Why do you care?"
"There are four weeks left in the truce."
"But I'm not with him."
"I know you are. You all are. Now I suggest you go and tell him that time is not up, or else I will alert the others, and you will have to answer to them." I drop the walls, and turn back around to go back to the frozen airship.
Everyone starts using whatever they can to break the ice. I hear the sound of glass shattering behind me.
"Zak, those were solar panels!" Dr. Saturday cries. Zak laughs nervously and promptly moves as far away from all things breakable. I want to laugh at the situation, but no one would understand why. I go back to my work, but I start feeling the stares of a person. I look around, but no one is there.
We spent the night clearing away the ice, trying to get the airship open again. We finally removed enough of the ice to get inside, so we all went to bed and fell right to sleep. Now that morning is here, I realize how sore I am. My arms and my legs are killing me, and I just want to lie down and not move. Sadly, that is not to be. Zak broke the solar panels yesterday, though I have no idea how he managed that, so we are stuck in Orono until further notice. Dr. Saturday has decided that are all going to help repair the solar panels and get out of here as soon as possible.
No one really wants to work on the solar panels, but we know that no panels means we are stuck in Maine for who knows how long. So we start repairing, and it takes us all morning to even make a dent in the process. We break for lunch, and Mom suggests that we go to town for lunch, since we will be here a while. Dr. Saturday decides to stay behind and keep working, so everyone else heads into town.
The seven of us step into the near empty restaurant. The already quiet interior silences when they see us. I stare down at my feet, worried I might recognize someone, or worse, someone might recognize me. Out of my peripheral vision, two very familiar colors catch my attention, and I duck behind the back of a booth; the feeling of being watched has returned. Mom looks at me with a confused expression, and I tilt my head in the direction I saw the person. Mom takes a quick peek, looks back at me, and shakes her head. I stand up and look; the person is gone. I shake my head in total disbelief.
"Iris, are you okay?" Mom whispers in my ear.
"I think so," I whisper back, lying about my paranoia.
"If it's alright with you, I'm taking you to a psychiatrist when we get home." I immediately shake my head and tell Mom that it is a bad idea. Mom nods, but something tells me she does not believe me.
When we return to the airship, we find that Dr. Saturday has replaced all the broken solar panels and is working on rewiring them. Zak asks how long it took Dr. Saturday to do this, and Dr. Saturday replies an hour or so after we left. The catch is, we were only gone half and hour; something is not adding up, but I try to ignore the thought. Everyone starts helping finish the repairs, and everything is done by the evening. Mom, Dr. Saturday, and Uncle Doyle decide that it is probably best if we leave now, so they prep the airship for take off. It takes off a few minutes later, and I watch Orono, my hometown, grow smaller and smaller as we fly away. I did not even get to see my old home.
Later that night, Dr. Saturday and I are having a pleasant conversation, much to my surprise. The conversation is mostly small talk, but at least it is conversation. But then things start to turn sour. I have no idea who said what or how who reacted, but Dr. Saturday and I soon found ourselves in heated argument, yet again.
"I thought you said you could control elements! What happened to your little magic? Did you make it up?" Dr. Saturday taunts.
"No. Fire is the trickiest, and I never got the chance to truly learn to control it." I fight to keep my temper at bay.
"And I suppose you think you're one of us now?! An equal no doubt! Well, let me remind you, Miss Van Rook, of who your father was and who you lived with."
The angry tears burn my eyes. "I am sorry for being who I am, and I am sorry if my past, which was out of my control, is questionable, but I am not defined by those. People change."
"No, they don't. You know the Secret Scientists. They used to be our friends, but deep down they were all evil. When they discovered Zak was Kur, they had reason to attack. They are all evil, no matter how kind they seem, and so are you."
"No, Dr. Saturday, you are the evil one." Dr. Saturday seems too stunned to make a comeback, so the argument ends there.
A few hours later, we all go to bed, but I hear Mom and Dr. Saturday fighting. He shouts at her, and she shouts back at him. Then Mom lowers her voice.
"She has psychological damage, Solomon." My heart sinks. They know.
AB: I don't know what to say. This chapter did its own thing, I guess.
Iris: What was the source of those color flashes I saw?
AB: I'm not telling. That's all I have to say to wrap up the chapter. Thank you all so much for reading; I love you all. Don't forget to follow, favorite, and review!