PROLOGUE - A Stormy night and a Music Box

Beyond the barriers of time and space, at the edge of what the imagination itself would find hard to believe, there exists a world, Earth, where inexplicably magic has never been developed. Here, deprived of the beneficial contribution of magic powers, a single specie assumed the role of the dominant race on the entire planet. They were strange mammals, once arboreal creatures, who had subjugated all other species to their will and established a civilization based on industry and technology, inexorably shaping the planet to their will. They could change the course of rivers at will or dig new ones to connect separate seas; they had chariots capable of moving on their own, or some who could even rise from the ground like the mightiest birds. Truly, they had machines and tools for any purpose.

However, most of all, one purpose most of all defined their existence: war.

In war they had been born, and they wallowed in it; many wars had been fought in the past, between factions and sides of their own kind, and many more would be fought, each more powerful, poisonous, and deadlier than the last. To war they devoted much of their culture and were always intoxicated by violence.

And today, a young male of said species was intent on once again conducting the barbaric rituals that his peers performed to honor war, violence, and noise...

(…)

"Norse! A red and proud Drakkar, led by the brave warrior..."

"Jacob!" an angry female voice rang out from behind the door, accompanied by knocks on the doorway.

The boy paused the music and head for the door, turned its handle, and then stood before a dark brown-haired, bespectacled woman looking sternly at him.

"What is it, Mom?"

"You keep the music too loud! If you keep it up, I'll confiscate it!"

"But it's The Norsemmen! The warriors of the Fjords! Their music has to be played loud!"

"But not this late in the evening! If you really want to hear music at this hour, why don't you listen to something softer? Classical music, for example?"

"That stuff for old people?"

"That's not stuff for old people! It's music, real music, not this cacophony of deafening noise that you'll burn out your hearing with!"

Jacob understood that he would not win this argument with a direct confrontation. So, he decided to negotiate a deal.

"All right look, how about I go for a walk? This way you won't have to listen to my music."

"At this hour?" asked his mom, eyeing the already darkening sky outside the window.

"I'm craving fresh air," he replied, smiling slyly. He had his phone with all the music of the Norsemmen and a pair of headphones, so he could enjoy his music without worry. Maybe, he could catch some acquaintances while he was outside...

"Alright. On two conditions: first, don't come back later than eleven o'clock; or at least, if you do, take your keys so you don't have to wake us up again late at night to open up."

"I told you; I hadn't forgotten them: they had ended up in a pocket hole!" he replied, scorned "And the second one?"

"Amelia goes with you."

"WHAT? Why does she always have to go with me when I go out? Don't you trust me to go out alone anymore?!"

"The reason I tell you to take your cousin with you," his mother replied, "is because you've already been caught writing on a wall..."

"I was expressing art in revolt!"

"...you got into fights with other kids..."

"They were thugs, and they had it coming..."

"...and you tried to buy beer without permission!"

"That…OK, that was my fault."

"The point is," she continued, "I'm very concerned about the effect this might have on your grades-I've seen your report card, you're still doing well but you're sailing on the edge! If you commit any more shenanigans, you could stake your whole future on it!"

Lovely, how you only care about my future when there is a risk of things not going as YOU say.

"And your solution is then to hook me up with a personal spy who, when we return, will give you an accurate report on everything I've done, said or even looked?"

"I'm not taking any chances with you, young man. And your cousin is far more careful and alert than you give her credit for."

Jacob could only grit his teeth at that. Amelia was a plague on his existence, but perhaps he could throw her in the middle of a highway. Of course, his mother would be very angry when she returned, but it would be worth it.

"All right," he said finally, "Give me a few minutes to change."

"I'll go warn her: she'll be waiting for you at the door," his mom replied. "And be sure I'll give her precise order to never take off her eyes from you!"

Once his mother closed the door again, Jacob gave her a poisoned look for a few more seconds through the closed doorway before turning his attention to changing. From the chair he picked up his long brown pants, which he had worn to school, and slipped them back on instead of his own sweatpants; he pushed his light blue T-shirt under his pants and put back on the green sweatshirt. After he strategically 'arrange-not-rearranged' his own clothes, he sat down on his bed and laced his black ankle boots over his white socks.

Next to him, resting on the leg of the bed was a black backpack, which he used for school. He did not look at what was in it, nor did he decide to lighten it by removing something that he would certainly not need: the books were already out and the backpack was not heavy, so whatever was still in it could stay in it for the evening.

He made to leave when he saw something resting on his desk: a tin helmet, with two plastic bull horns attached to it. It was an heirloom (his heirloom!) from one of The Norsemmen concert, and although his mother found it ridiculous, he wore it proudly whenever he could. If the principal did not risk reporting it to his parents, he would wear it to school, too.

He went out of his room and headed for the entrance. As foretold, her cousin was already there, dressed in a white T-shirt with a black jacket and pink pants, on her feet white socks inside strawberry red tennis shoes. And on her head, a cone-shaped Vietnamese model hat, matching the toy katana sword she wore on her belt.

She opened the door, and headed for the entrance: as foretold, her cousin was already there, dressed in a white T-shirt with a black jacket and pink pants, on her feet white socks inside strawberry red tennis shoes. And on her head, a cone-shaped Vietnamese model hat, matching the toy katana sword she wore on her belt.

"I'm ready."

"Still wearing that hat?" his mother asked in a condescending tone.

In response, Jacob pointed to Amelia's Vietnamese headdress with his eyes.

"Fine; just try to keep you out of trouble."

"I'm not the one looking for trouble: they're the ones coming to me."

"All the more reason to be cautious. Amelia, stand by your cousin, and remember: if you see something wrong..."

"...I will warn you right away, Auntie!" she replied with a smile.

Jacob felt his own blood boiling. He had been an only child and he had always liked the fact that he had his parents' undivided attention, however small that might be. But since his cousin had moved in with them, it was as if he no longer counted: she was almost like a leech.

"Let's go, while there's still some light."

"Take care guys and be back on time!"

"I promise, Auntie!"

"...if we go toward the convenience store, mom said to get milk. We're running out-"

"Tell me, plague, how is it that you are still attached to my behind? I usually have left you off somewhere by now..."

Amelia smiled, "I've been practicing, and now you won't be able to escape me! I am a ronin of the Los Angeles Dojo, invisible as a ninja and silent as the wind!"

"Ok, first! A ronin is a samurai without a master, not a little girl playing wannabe warrior with a wooden katana. Second! A dojo is a martial art school, so what the heck is the "Los Angeles Dojo"? Third! The only way for you to be quieter than the wind, is for everyone to be blind, deaf and a vegetative state!"

"Doesn't change the fact that it's my job to keep an eye on you and watch over you! Your mom-"

Jacob stopped abruptly, so she went slamming into him, making her stop talking.

"Hey, let me know when you brake!"

He did not respond: his mind was elsewhere.

"Hey, I'm talking to you! What is there to..."

It was then that she saw what was on the boy's attention. A short distance away from them, in a neighborhood playground, a small group of three girls were waiting for something, in silence.

Three girls, whom Jacob knew personally. And unfortunately, so did Amelia.

The blond girl on the right was Sasha Waybright, cheerleader, school queen and alpha female in training. A strong girl with a sharp tongue, she combined strong personal charisma, excellent lying skills, the personality of a diva...and a deadly right fist. Jacob and Sasha had met a long time ago, and since then a small war of veiled insults, barbs and mischievous challenges had existed between them.

To her right, sitting on a wooden bench, was a girl with a dark complexion and thick brown hair: Anne Boonchuy, daughter of a Thai family whose parents owned a restaurant on Sixth Street. A determined and rebellious girl who disliked responsibility, like Jacob, but in his eyes, was little more than a henchman for Sasha.

Finally, on the other side of the bench, there was a girl in a light green pullover: Marcy Wu, also the daughter of a family of Oriental descent (her parents were Taiwanese-Americans). She is a sweet and friendly girl, but one who found herself lacking in social relationships and physical activity, and whose enthusiasm sometimes got her into big trouble. Like Anne, she was Sasha's friend and as loyal to her.

"Is that Anne and Marcy? Let's go say a little hello!"

"Wait a minute, leech! They are not our friends, they are just acquaintances, and to be precise, MY acquaintance."

"I've already met Marcy and Anne too!"

"And each time your approximate knowledge of the East made me cringe like crazy!"

"No, it didn't!"

"Yes, it did!"

"No, it didn't!"

"Yes, it did!"

"Prove it!"

"Let's see, remember when..."

(…)

"Marcy, here's my gift for you: a framed picture of the Great Wall of China! So you can feel closer to home."

The various students remained silent, while Marcy showed an embarrassed smile.

"What?"

"Amelia, I am of Taiwanese origin, not Chinese."

"Aren't they the same thing?"

"Besides, she's not from Taiwan-she was born here in California, you idiot!" replied Sasha angrily.

In the background, Jacob could only facepalm to hide his shame...

(…)

"Hey Anne, look what my dad brought me from his travels!"

"Hey Amelia, nice hat."

"I know right? We're almost sisters now!"

"...I beg your pardon?"

"It's a hat from Indochina: now we look like we're born from the same place."

"Amelia, my family is of Thai origin."

"But Thailand is part of Indochina: the one that borders Vietnam to the west, landlocked... No?"

"Amelia!" Jacob's voice rang out in horror.

(…)

"Good morning..."

"Good morning, Mrs. Boochuly-dono." said Amelia bowing, the cone-shaped hat covering her head "My name is Amelia-san and I am your daughter's friend. Please take good care of me."

Mr. and Mrs. Boochuly stood in open-mouthed silence, while Anne (who was returning from washing dishes) in the background covered her eyes.

(…)

"And your point is?"

"It's that you should think about what you say or do! Anne's parents almost banned you from their restaurant."

"Jacob, in Oriental culture is a sign of kindness to remove the shoes when you enter-"

"But not in a public restaurant!" Jacob hissed "And you didn't even have stockings!"

For a few seconds, the two cousins stood still, each one glaring at the other with evil eyes. Then, Jacob spoke up again.

"You want to come with me to greet them? Fine; but you stay silent and do not speak more than you must, and before you say something, please check my signals."

"Oh, come on Jacob: I'm the responsible one, not you."

"I'm sure both Anne's parents and Marcy would disagree, especially if I give them mom's phone number."

"Fine. Let's move."

"There you are, Cassiopeia!" A male voice said, smirking at the starred sky all over him "I've got you."

A few meters away from the playground, lying on a bench in the middle of a small green area, a young man with silver-dyed hair was intent on observing the night sky with rare attention.

James Blueingham, although he could express himself well with the locals, was not born in California: he was from England, Worcester to be precise, and was currently in Los Angeles only because his athletic achievements were good enough to allow him access to a scholarship.

Californian schools were very different from the old ones he used to attend in England: here, the uniform was much lighter and less formal; classes were longer, but also less tiring to follow. Here he also had a much wider choice on how to spend your free time, among stores, restaurants, playrooms, and communal areas. And he could learn many things, including the Japanese language, more easily than at home.

Yet there was something Los Angeles lacked, and James missed: the ability to effortlessly see the stars at night. To see the stars in Los Angeles, and because of the heavy light pollution, he had to look for the darkest areas, and to be equipped with binoculars or spotting scopes in any case.

Or a fair amount of experience in being able to locate the stars with the naked eye. Which James had many to spare.

His mom had introduced him to the world of astronomy when he was little, and it was instant love. At school, during handball tournaments, or even during the most difficult times (when he felt lonely and tired) observing the stars helped him regain his composure.

He was about to devote himself to searching for the next star (Alpha Centauri) when he heard voices coming from a spot near him, and instinctively raised his head to saw a couple of figures arguing loudly. He could not understand what they were talking about, but he could tell that there was much animosity between them.

A shiver ran down his spine: before he left, his parents had advised him to be careful when he went out alone, especially at night, for fear that he would end up encountering thugs or other dangers. James had yet to encountered any, but that could just mean he had been lucky so far.

His first impulse, since they apparently had not noticed him, was to flee and get away. But something held him back: he didn't know if it was really as he feared, and even if it was, until they saw him, he was ahead of the game. If he had managed to find out what it was, and then made an anonymous phone call, the police would have intervened, and the thugs would have had to flee, or they would have ended up arrested.

In either case, he would not have been forced to give up his small personal stargazing space.

Silently, James approached to find out what criminal activity was taking place just a few steps away from him…

"Come on, Anne; let's-"

"Hello, you beautiful ladies."

Hearing a male voice appear out of sudden, the three girls moved their heads toward the newcomer. Sasha frowned, Marcy smiled, and Anne simply stood there.

"Jacob" Sasha said, a voice full of anger, "What are you doing here?"

"I could say the same exact thing about you, pom-pom."

"If you call me pom-pom once more, I'll make you spit out all your teeth!" Sasha replied.

"Jacob" Marcy said, coming forward and hugging him, "How are you?"

"Like every day, I'm living large and kicking assess!" Jacob said, happy of being hugged by the girl, "I was listening to some music at home, but mom can't understand what true art is, so I decided to get out and get some fresh air. And I met you all here."

"And you're alone, right?" Sasha questioned him.

"Well, actually…"

"Nope!" said Amelia, appearing from behind Jacob "It is me, the American samurai, ready to fight with honor!"

"I had to bring my cousin."

"Great: the idiot with the Viking hat, and his cousin, the brat who can't get one fact about Japan right."

"Girls, please!" Jacob said "We mean you no trouble. And while I'll admit that Amelia is bothering as a flea-"

"Hey!"

"-but considering the fact she's only here because my mom asked her to report on me, maybe we can simply forget about it? Her errors aren't that bad…"

"Well said, like emperor Nobunaga."

"Nobunaga was never an emperor, you dimwit!"

"Wha- I'm going to cleanse my honor by doing ikebana."

"That's seppuku: ikebana is the art of flower arrangement!"

That was when Jacob noticed something odd on Anne's lap: a strange box, finely decorated, with gems shining brightly.

"Hey, what is that? An old family heirloom?"

"No, we…found it on an antique shop, you know, the Thrift Stop."

"I know it," he said, remembering the time he passed in front of its showcase. "And I know that such a shop is not cheap, surely not for such an item. How much did it cost you?"

"We...don't know."

"You do not know how much you paid for it? You used a credit card?"

"No, I …didn't pay for it?"

Hearing these words, Jacob grinned "Anne…you stole it?"

"It was a dare, Jacob" Sasha came to support Anne "And I was the one who asked her to do it. After all, the girl needs to learn to live more courageously: is her birthday!"

"Anne, is your birthday?" both Jacob and Amelia said at the same time.

"Huh…yeah-"

"Oh, happy birthday girl!" Amelia rushed to hug her "Let's go to a sushi place and buy you a good meal!"

"Thank you, Amelia, but I already ate. And I do not like sushi like you…"

"Anyway, happy for your birthday" Jacob smiled, giving her a reverence "I only wish I had remembered earlier, so I could have a gift prepared for you."

"Thanks, but is not necessary," she replied "It was already a good day."

"And you got a nice box with it too. Are you going to keep it?"

"What? No way! That box is not yours: you must bring it back where it belongs!"

"Oh, come on Amelia," Sasha teased her, "Being a goody two-shoes is no fun! Beside, we can return it later…"

"Just to ask," Jacob asked, "have you see if there is something inside?"

"Actually, we didn't" Marcy admitted, "We were going to open and see when you arrived."

"Maybe it contains something precious?" Jacob's eyes gleamed, "If the shop owner do not know about it, you think we can keep it?"

"Absolutely not, cousin! I'm willing to stay silent for the girls and because is Anne's birthday, but we must put it back on place before they notice it's gone."

"Ok, guys, listen" Anne said, gathering each one's attention "Let's make an agreement: I open it, we see what's inside, and then we decide about bringing it back."

"I'm still thinking we should bring it back now, without checking." Amelia said.

"Are you mad?" Jacob replied "There could be something interesting inside: let us have a peek."

"For once I agree with Jacob," Sasha added her own voice "Now that we have it, at least let's give a look before returning it."

Amelia pouted "…fine."

Jacob turned to Anne, and so did Marcy and Sasha as her hand moved over the box's lid. And then, she opened it with a quick movement. At first, Jacob could see rainbow colors gleam inside, then in a second a flash erupted, and his vision went blank…

…and so, five humans, plus one who had nothing to do with it and had just gotten too close, were sucked together into a whirlwind of light and color.

When James regained consciousness, the first thing he felt was a strong smell like cosmetic. Only when he opened his eyes again a few seconds later did he discover its origin.

"Oh, I beg your pardon!" He said, realizing that he had somehow fallen on top of a blond girl, who was looking at him very badly, "I'm afraid I lost my balance?"

"You'd better get it back fast, if you don't want to lose something else too!" growled Sasha, shaking him off.

"Oops, Marcy are you okay?" said Amelia seeing that she was under her.

"All good, but please get off."

"Anne?"

"Jacob?"

"I know I'm very handsome, but don't you think it's time to get up before your friends get the wrong idea?" he said with a grin.

"Ugh," she said as she stood up sharply, realizing that their faces had been very close, too close.

"Um, folks, does anyone have an idea where we are?"

Jacob looked around, and saw that they were no longer in the playground, or in Los Angeles, or anywhere he could recognize. Instead, the area around them looked like a dense, damp, cold, and not at all hospitable forest.

"Please," Anne said, "If this is a birthday joke, I'm not amused."

"No, it's the pure, brutal truth."

"How did I get into this? I didn't even have anything to do with it…"

"Look kid, this is no time to start crying..."

"I have a name: James Blueingham! And I'm sure if I'm here it's your entire fault!"

"Our fault?" retorted Sasha aggressively "Listen to me..."

"Guys!" said Marcy drawing their attention "The box!"

The six boys saw the decorated box, which until a few moments before had been on Anne's lap: somehow, it had traveled with them.

"The gems are no longer shining. And… they have increased in number?"

Jacob took a step forward and saw that it was true. The gems on the box now appeared deprived of their colors, like vulgar glass slides, and there were no longer only three: now there were six, two on the longer sides of the box, and one on the short side on the right.

"You mean it was this thing that brought us here?"

"So what are we waiting for?" said James in a panic "Open that thing again, and let's get out of here!"

"Yes, do it now!"

Marcy opened the box, but this time, nothing happened. She closed it and opened it again, and again, and again, until the horrible truth was clear in everyone's eyes.

They couldn't return home.

"Well, perfect, wonderful!" roared James angrily, "We ended up in a damp, cold forest! The thing that brought us here is broken with no idea about how it works or how to fix it! The only bright spot is that it can't get any worse..."

Almost in response, an inhuman scream ripped through the air, and some trees collapsed hard, revealing a giant insect, a red praying mantis roaring toward them.

"...except maybe it can."

"RUN!" Sasha was the first to react, grabbing Marcy and running away, followed closely by Jacob, Anne, Amelia, and James. The giant mantis roared again, and there pursued.

"Faster! Faster!" shouted Anne in a voice full of panic.

However, the mantis was fast and kept gaining ground. Jacob noticed a crevice to the left.

"Down!" he shouted, throwing himself to the left and at Sasha, causing her (and by association everyone else) to fall into the dimly visible crevice.

"Jacob, you ugly-"

He put his hand over her mouth and signaled for her and the others to be quiet. The mantis, fortunately for them, had not noticed the crevice, and believing it had only lost sight of them, continued to run forward, moving farther and farther away.

Only when the insect's roars became distant did Jacob speak again.

"This is a nightmare..."