Her parents had founded the Time Traveler's Society.
It took Rapunzel a moment to understand. The book said her parents founded the Society but… then why had Agent Tom and the others at the Academy not mention that to her? They were the ones who told her that her parents were alive but that they didn't know where they were. Other than that, no one at the Academy knew anything else about her parents.
Which was clearly a lie.
When Cassandra told her that the Academy had lied to her about Gothel, Rapunzel never thought that the Society would lie to her as well. But they had. And she fell for it.
Maybe Cass had been on to something when she said she wanted to take down the Society. If they were capable of such large lies and sent assassins after people, then how good could the Society really be?
But if her parents were the founders then… did that mean they were the ones who had sent the librarian assassin after her?
Did they even know who she was? That she was alive? Had they ever looked for her? And if they were capable of time travel, then why did they never go back in time and save her from Gothel?
Some things were set in stone. Some things weren't. Maybe her kidnapping by Gothel was set in stone and there was nothing they could do.
Rapunzel told herself that had to be it. She was one step closer to her parents and didn't want to assume the worst of them. If she was able to find them, she'd ask them those questions.
"Who are those people?" Eugene asked, dragging her from her thoughts. He pointed at the picture of Arianna and Frederic Corona.
"Those are my parents," she whispered.
He did a double take before turning to her with concerned eyes. "All right. So… they founded the Society. But that's a good thing, right? It might make finding them easier."
She loved his optimism. It made her feel a little less alone. "Yeah," she agreed. "But I haven't found them in the two years since I've been working for the Society. They're the founders. How come I never met them?"
"Maybe they didn't want to meet you," Dave offered.
Eugene glared at the alien. "Not helping right now, Dave."
He shrugged. "How come?"
"It's ok," Rapunzel said, shaking her head. "Maybe Dave has a point. Maybe they didn't want to meet me."
"Don't listen to the non-human in the room who struggles with human emotion," Eugene said in a low voice so only she could hear. "It's your parents. You were kidnapped. They're probably eager to meet you. There's got to be a reason they haven't found you yet."
She nodded. "I hope so."
"So, where to next? This book gave us information we didn't have before but it doesn't say where we can find your parents. Or does it?"
She flipped through the book, skim-reading. "It says the founders of the Society can be located in the Society's headquarters."
"Great! So, let's go there."
"But I'm not sure where that is."
He frowned, taking the book from her and looking through it. "Does it not say?"
"No. The Society's headquarters are a mystery to most people. Only certain time travelers with the right clearance get to go there. Seeing as I don't have the clearance, I can't go there. I don't even know where 'there' is. The Academy where I was trained at is out of time, meaning it doesn't exist within any time period. I'm guessing the headquarters is the same. Without the clearance, no one knows how to get there."
"Surely someone does," he said, setting the book down. "Is there a clue in the book that could lead us in a new direction?"
"I'll have to spend some time looking through it in more detail." She sighed. "It could take a while."
He rubbed her arms. "Then good thing we can time travel. We have all the time in the world."
"Not all the time. We can still grow old and die."
"Don't be a Debbie Downer, Blondie. You're the smartest person I know. It's not going to take you to old age to find out where to go next."
A crash made them look across the tower at Dave who was standing in a pile of kitchen utensils he must have pushed to the ground.
Eugene sighed. "I'll deal with him. Give you space to find out where to go next." He leaned in and kissed her cheek. She didn't pull away that time. A part of her wished he had kissed her on the lips but she had pushed him away too many times to expect that.
When would she overcome this hurdle in her mind? She had died and was now alive. It was time to start moving on.
But before she could grab Eugene's face and kiss him, he was walking over to Dave and telling him it was time to go.
She turned back to the book and prepared herself for more answers. Or worse, no more answers at all and only more questions.
"Time to go," Eugene said to Dave, clapping him on the back.
"Go where?"
"Back to your stolen sarcophagus."
Dave pouted. It was a strange look on a humanoid alien dressed up like a mummy. "Do I have to?"
"Uh, yes. We'll be leaving soon and you're not coming with us."
"All right. I know when I'm not wanted." He started walking towards the door with his head hung low when he looked back at Eugene. Sighing dramatically, he started walking again but after a few seconds, he looked back at Eugene once more.
Eugene knew what Dave was doing. He was trying to garner sympathy into staying. Well, it wasn't going to work on Eugene. He wanted time with Rapunzel – not some weird alien dude.
Finally, Dave got the hint and left. Eugene watched him through the window walk back into the city of Cairo. People saw Dave and went running away. That alien was going to cause trouble but as long as he went back into his sarcophagus, he was harmless. Eugene had run into a lot of crazed, evil aliens before but Dave wasn't one of them. It was refreshing actually to encounter an alien who was pretty chill, albeit weird as hell.
Finally, Dave walked out of sight and Eugene promptly pushed the strange alien from his mind.
Walking back to Rapunzel, he saw that she was bent over the book, a crease between her eyebrows and a frown on her face. Despite that, he still thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
"Find anything?" he asked.
"Actually, I did."
"See? I told you that you were smart enough to figure it out."
She smiled and pointed at a page. "It gives a hint on where to find the headquarters. Those who are smart enough to find it may be allowed to enter."
"So, what's the hint?"
"Ever been to Ancient Greece?"
"What are we looking for exactly?" Eugene asked once they landed in Greece, 478. They were dressed in appropriate Ancient Greek clothing from the pink drapey dress Rapunzel had on to his tunic and blue cloak. He even got to wear sandals. Normally, he'd hate it but the breeze felt good on his feet and Eugene was learning to not complain as much about the clothing he had to wear when time traveling.
Rapunzel explained in detail to him after they changed what each piece of clothing was called but Eugene kind of spaced out. He didn't care about the names of clothing, just as long as he looked good.
"I'll know it when I see," Rapunzel responded as they walked through a busy marketplace. "Until then, keep your eyes and ears open for anything… peculiar."
"Peculiar?" He snorted. "Blondie, we've encountered so many peculiar things over the past couple of months that I don't even know what's peculiar and what isn't."
"Good point. The book said that the first step in finding the Society's headquarters was somewhere the light doesn't shine. And that we could find that place in Greece, 478."
"But that could be anywhere. Inside anyone's house. In a cave. Who knows?"
She sighed, stepping around a kid who was spinning around in circles and laughing. The kid's mom grabbed his hand and pulled him away. "I know. So, we'll stay vigilant and try to find where this place is. But at least we know it won't be outside in the open were the sun is."
"True."
They kept walking until they came across a large house with a grand courtyard. A lot of the people from the marketplace were heading in its direction. A large crowd had formed within the courtyard.
Rapunzel and Eugene shared a look.
"Peculiar?" he asked.
She nodded. "Peculiar."
They joined the crowd. "What's going on?" Eugene asked the man standing next to him.
"King Minos has an announcement to make. Everyone has been talking about it for days." He looked at Eugene like 'where have you been?' If only he knew.
Eugene turned back to Rapunzel. "Apparently some king is making an announcement. Do you think this will help us?"
"I'm not sure. But the coordinates in the book took us to this exact place in Greece, on this exact day, and this exact time. So maybe we were meant to follow the signs. If a king has an announcement to make, then we should listen."
A man stepped out of the house onto an upper balcony. The crowd went wild with applause. The man wore a crown on his head and had a smug expression on his face. Eugene hated him already.
"My humble servants," King Minos said in a booming voice. That was the nice thing about Rapunzel's tower – it translated all languages into ones they could understand. "You are here because I have a challenge for you. A way for you to win a prize beyond your imagination. You can have anything you want. Gold." He motioned forward a servant, who held up a box full of gold. The crowd clapped in excitement. "Horses." He nodded down below to where two strong looking horses stood. There was still excitement for that but not as much for the gold. "Or even knowledge." He motioned for another servant to step forward.
The new servant held up a scroll.
Rapunzel gasped.
Eugene knew instantly from her gasp that they needed that scroll.
Unlike the gold or the horses, no one clapped for the scroll. People looked around at each other like, 'why the hell would we need a piece of paper for?'
"I see the looks," King Minos said. "But this book is no ordinary scroll." He took it from the servant. "Within the confines of this scroll, there is knowledge of our universe that no other people know. Ways to travel through the stars. This knowledge is powerful and I'm willing to offer it to anyone who can complete my challenge."
Everyone shrugged. Everyone except Rapunzel and Eugene. That was the 'peculiar' incident they were waiting for. That scroll was the next step in finding the Society's headquarters.
"Don't underestimate this," Minos said. "But if you want, gold is still an option."
The crowd cheered again.
"What's the challenge?" a man shouted out.
"I was getting to that," Minos snapped before clearing his throat and straightening his tunic. "The challenge is to defeat a monster." A chill went down Eugene's back. "A monster hidden underground. The minotaur."
The crowd laughed like they didn't believe him but Rapunzel's face went white.
"What's the minotaur?" he asked her.
"It's a mythical monster. But aliens do exist so anything is possible, I guess. It has the head of a bull and the body of a man. In myth, it ended up killing a lot of people."
"Jeez. That's morbid. But I'm sure we can beat it. Right, Blondie?"
She shrugged. "Sure. I guess." But her face didn't look sure. In fact, it looked the opposite of sure.
King Minos began to speak again. "All you have to do is defeat the minotaur and you'll get your choice of these three prizes. Gold. Horses. Or the scroll. Anyone can volunteer. Man or woman. If you want to partake in this challenge, stay within the courtyard. You will be taken to a place for the night, then lead to the underground tunnel. If you wish to not compete, leave now."
Majority of the crowd left, with people grumbling. They were probably hoping for an easier way to win one of the prizes.
But a good chunk of people remained – mostly men, Eugene noticed. In fact, they were all men except for Rapunzel and one other woman. The other woman was standing next to a man who looked a lot like her. Brother, Eugene figured. They were dressed in dark clothes and both had long black hair that they each kept in a braid.
A man stepped forward with a pompous grin that quickly turned savage. "I will defeat the beast. I don't even need a prize. Just glory."
Another man sighed. "Theseus, take it easy. Everyone wants the gold. You're not better just because you want glory."
"I will see you later tonight," Minos said. "For now, you will be lead to the barracks until then." He stepped back into his house, taking the scroll with him.
A couple servants existed the house and motioned for them to follow. They lead them to a large building that housed nothing but benches. "You will remain here," one of them said before leaving. They shut the doors behind them.
A second later, a board was placed over the doors, locking them inside.
"That's not good," Eugene said to Rapunzel.
She slowly shook her head. "No, it's not. They don't want us running."
Theseus stepped forward. "What's a woman going to do against the beast?" He looked Rapunzel up and down in a way Eugene did not like. It was a combination of disbelief mixed with lust. "You're pretty, I'll give you that. But no woman is a fighter. She can't stand against the mighty minotaur. If you think you're going to defeat the beast, then think again."
Eugene stepped back, letting Rapunzel walk forward. She knew how to stand up for herself.
She faced off against Theseus. "You don't know me. If you think I'm going to fall over and crumble, then think again."
Theseus scoffed. "A woman's folly. Always thinking she's stronger than she really is. I don't understand why women get such ideas. Don't go above your station. I will defeat the beat and bring glory to my family. If you get in my way-," he stopped. "Wait. Of course you won't get in my way." He laughed and the sound made Eugene want to tear his ears right off.
Rapunzel lifted her knee up and landed a hit straight to Theseus's balls. He groaned and slouched forward. The other men in the room laughed. The only other woman gave Rapunzel an appreciative nod.
"If you get in my way," Rapunzel said to Theseus, "you're not going to like the outcome. I am getting that scroll and no one is going to stop me."
She left Theseus groaning in pain as she walked back to Eugene.
"Impressive," he said. "Remind me to never get on your bad side."
"Thanks."
"I've never heard you threaten anyone before."
"I didn't mean it," she said in a whisper. "I just wanted to take him down a peg."
"And I applaud you," he responded, clapping his hands. "Dude's a douchebag."
The woman and her brother approached them. "That was wonderful to see," she said. "I was thinking of doing the same thing, so you saved me a trip. I'm Daphne. This is my twin brother Alexander."
"Rapunzel. And this is Eugene."
He bowed just because he felt like it. "At your service."
"Eugene can be weird," Rapunzel whispered in a non-quiet voice to Daphne, making the other woman laugh.
"But you like it," he said to Rapunzel, nudging her.
She looked up at him with soft eyes. "I do. Very much." It made his heart squeeze knowing she was looking at him like that. God, he wanted to kiss her. He didn't want to sound like an ass but he really wanted Rapunzel to work through her problems so they could get back on track.
"Would you like to work together?" Alexander asked. "To the defeat the beast? We could split the gold."
"Sorry, buddy," Eugene said. "It's not gold we're after."
"The scroll, then?" He shook his head. "Impressive you can read. Most people in Ancient Greece can't."
Rapunzel went still as she looked at the brother and sister more closely. "Why would you call it that?"
"Call it what?" Alexander asked, looking confused.
"Ancient Greece. Why the ancient?"
The brother and sister shared a knowing look before Daphne gave them a little wave. "We'll see you guys in the maze." They walked to the other side of the barracks.
Rapunzel turned to Eugene. "They're time travelers."
Eugene quickly looked at the twins.
"Don't look," she hissed.
He turned back to her. "How do you know?"
"Because they called it ancient Greece. No one during this time would have referred to Greece as ancient. It was still in its infancy here."
"So, did the Society send them to kill you?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe they were here already. Who knows? But I wouldn't be surprised. So far, every time we've gone looking for a piece of the puzzle, we've run into a time traveler."
"Coincidence, I think not," he muttered, crossing his arms.
"We need to keep an eye on them."
"Sure. Should be easy to do while defeating a mythical beast and dealing with general assholes." He nodded at Theseus who was glaring daggers at Rapunzel. "That was sarcasm by the way."
"Oh, I got that." She placed her hand on his arm. "But I appreciate you telling me. We need that scroll if I'm ever going to find more information about my parents and the Society."
"I just don't want to die today, so that would be nice."
"We're not going to die today. We're in this together."
He met her eyes and saw the steadfastness there. That was the Rapunzel he knew. Not the one who doubted herself or who wanted to die but the one who wouldn't give up for anything.
He grabbed her hand and squeezed. "Together."
Two years ago
"Where are you taking me?" Rapunzel asked Agent Tom and Cass as they drove away from her tower, leaving behind the dead body of Gothel hidden behind the bushes.
"We're taking you to the Academy," Cass explained, glancing at her in the backseat. "It's where you'll train to be a Time Traveler."
"How long will it take to get there?"
"Not long," Agent Tom said, pressing a button on the control panel. Within a second, the scenery outside her window changed. One moment she was in a forest and the next she was looking up at a large, castle like building.
"This is the Academy," Cass said. After getting out of the car, she opened Rapunzel's door. Rapunzel got out of the car slowly. Her life was changing drastically within an instant.
"Where is this place?" She looked around and noticed that the stone beneath her feet was floating on a cloud. It looked like they were in the sky but… that was impossible.
"We're out of time," Agent Tom said, walking forward without looking back. "The Academy and the entirety of the Time Traveler's Society doesn't exist within any time period or on any plane of existence. It just… is. Now, follow me."
He lead her into the castle which was decorated in dark woods. Lots of people walked by, carrying books and conversing with each other. "This is where you'll train to become a time traveler. You'll learn the history of different alien species, different planets and so on."
Rapunzel did a double take. "Did you say alien species?"
"He did," Cass said beside her. "There's a lot you don't know but you'll learn."
"How did you even find me in the first place?"
"Because we knew you'd train here at one point," Agent Tom said, keeping his back to her as he continued walking. "We were able to come for you."
She stepped around two people standing in the hallway just talking to each other. They rudely didn't move. Rapunzel had never been around this many people in her life before. It was overwhelming. "Does that mean you can see every point in history?"
"Not exactly," Cass said. "Some things we can see but not everything. Time travel is fickle like that."
"Why me? Why choose me for this?"
Agent Tom finally turned around and met her square in the eye. "Because you were destined to be a time traveler. Now, come along. Cass will help you get settled in and you can get started on your training." He held his hand out to her and she carefully shook it. It was the first time she had ever touched another human being other than Gothel. "Welcome to the Time Traveler's Society, Rapunzel. We look forward to seeing the good work you do." He walked away.
She turned to Cass. "Now what?"
"Now I help you train to become a good time traveler."
"Will we become friends?" She never had a human friend before. Pascal was a great friend but chameleons could only do so much, even though Pascal was pretty close to perfection.
Cass looked at her warily before sighing. "I mean… sure? Why not. We can become friends. But you should know, I'm not the most friendly person around."
"That's ok. I can be friendly for the both of us." She lowered her voice. "And besides, I could really use a friend right now."
Cass's eyes softened. "Come on. Let me show you to your room." She didn't object to them being friends so Rapunzel saw that as a good sign.
Even though she was still in disbelief this was happening, she was looking forward to exploring more of the world.
And with a new friend on top of it all.
Greece, 478
They were stuck within the barracks until the sun went down. All the while Rapunzel had to deal with glares from Theseus and knowing looks from Daphne and Alexander. She was worried that the minute they got down into the underground maze, that they would come for her.
The door was finally opened and King Minos stepped into the room. "It's time to start the competition. Whoever can kill the minotaur may have their choice of prize."
He led them out of the barracks and down a steep set of stairs until they reached a cave overlooking a rocky expanse below.
Theseus charged forward like he wasn't afraid at all.
"He's gonna get himself killed," Eugene muttered to her, making her smile. Despite how scared she felt, she still had Eugene at her side, making her feel better.
"In this cave," Minos said, "lives the minotaur. Whoever can bring back its head will win the prize. Good luck."
The group of them walked into the cave. It was pitch black inside with no light anywhere in sight.
"How are we supposed to do this?" one man asked.
"Figure it out yourself," Theseus said, already running farther into the cave.
The other men began to follow Theseus, including Daphne and Alexander. Rapunzel felt like she could breath easier knowing they weren't hunting her down.
"Shall we?" Eugene asked, motioning the way forward.
They fumbled along the cave path until it became too challenging. "We can't see," she said.
"Deduced that, did you?" he teased.
"We need light if we're going to find the minotaur and get that scroll." She pulled out a compact mirror from her pocket. It had the advantage of showing people what they wanted to see, which made it easier for Rapunzel to get into places.
But right now, what she needed it for was light.
There was a crack in the cave ceiling letting in just the tiniest bit of moonlight. Rapunzel lifted up her mirror and pointed it at the moonlight, making it reflect off the surface. She angled the mirror to point it down into the cave, illuminating their way. It wasn't much but it would have to do.
"Blondie, you're a genius. I knew there was a reason I loved you."
Eugene's words made her blush.
They slowly made their way farther into the cave. As they moved deeper, they began to hear things. Mostly the sound of people screaming.
And then came a roar so loud, it rattled Rapunzel to the core.
"The minotaur," they said in unison.
"How are we going to kill it and take its head back to the king?"
"We're not," she said, walking forward.
He hurried to catch up. "Uh… what? King Minos wants the head. If we want that scroll, we need to kill it."
"I'm not killing a creature that doesn't deserve to die unless absolutely necessary. I don't even know who this minotaur creature is. They could be a prisoner for all we know and not some evil monster."
"So, we're just going to talk to the half-human, half-bull man? Because judging from the roars it's making and the screams following it, I'm not sure it's up for a chat."
She gave Eugene a look. "We won't know unless we try."
He sighed. "Follow the sound of screaming. That will take us straight to the minotaur."
They kept walking until Eugene ran right into a wall. He groaned, holding onto his face. "Damn, that hurt. How does my nose look?"
She squinted at it. "Looks fine."
"Fine? Just fine? Blondie, you're words hurt you know."
She laughed before looking around, then immediately stopped laughing. They had reached their first problem. They were at a crossroads. Two paths led in different directions. It was hard to know which way to go since the minotaur's roars and the humans' screams were echoing throughout the cave, coming in different directions. It made everything more disorienting.
"Which way?" Eugene asked.
"I'm not sure."
"And where is everybody? How did they get so far ahead of us?"
"They're desperate for one of the prizes. And it is a maze in here. It's easy to get lost. Let's go right."
"Right it is."
They were walking down the path when the minotaur's roar sounded out, not too far away from them. It was so loud, it shook the walls.
And then another shake overtook the cave. This one was much more violent. It reminded Rapunzel of when she was in the pyramid.
Right before her eyes, that same symbol appeared on the cave wall. The one that looked like a sun within a circle with branches reaching out from it. The symbol was a bright, golden light, bright enough to light up the path. As soon as the symbol appeared, the shaking stopped.
"There it is again," she murmured.
Eugene stood beside her. "What does it mean?"
"I have no idea."
"And why does it keep following us?"
"I still have no idea."
"Too bad I don't have my phone with me. I could have taken a picture," he said.
Rapunzel didn't need a picture to remember the symbol. It was planted firmly in her brain.
"There's something about it that's calling me to it," she said.
"But you've never seen it before?"
She shook her head. "Never."
The sound of footsteps came running down the path towards them. No, not footsteps. Hooves.
"Uh, Blondie, I think the minotaur might be coming our way. Do we run or do we confront it?"
"Confront it." She squared her shoulders.
"But we don't have any weapons."
"We don't need weapons when we can use reason."
"Sure," he said but he didn't sound convinced at all.
Out of the darkness came a large bull-man, running right for them. His bull head was bent low so his horns were pointing right in their direction. Eugene dived out of the way but not before the minotaur turned around and tried impaling him.
"I think we should run now!" Eugene shouted.
"That might be a good idea." She grabbed his hand and took off sprinting in an unknown direction. They kept running, the minotaur right on their heels, when Rapunzel suddenly felt no ground beneath her. She was suspended in air for just a second before her body came crashing against the side of a cliff wall.
Eugene was above, standing on the edge of the cliff, holding her hand. She looked down. It was nothing but darkness. Who knew how far that went? Surely to one's death.
"I've got you," he said through gritted teeth, trying to pull her back up. He managed to and she scrambled back onto solid ground.
But there was no time to celebrate. The minotaur was still coming right for them. There was only two options: try to run past the minotaur and risk an impalement or jump down into unknown depths below.
Rapunzel picked up a rock and tossed it down. She counted until the rock reached the bottom. "It's not a far drop," she said. "We could make it."
"Are you crazy?" he hissed, looking at her like she was… well, crazy. And maybe she was. She had grown up in a tower all by herself after all. Rapunzel always knew she had a bit of crazy inside of her.
"Do you want to face off against the minotaur?" she asked.
"It was your idea to try and talk to it."
"I know. But right now it's trying to kill us and we need to escape. So…" She nodded towards the blackness. "Let's jump."
There was a war on Eugene's face for about a second before he grabbed her hand. "Ok. But if I die, I'm coming back to haunt you as a ghost."
"Same."
With a shared look between them, they jumped down.
And fell and fell until they hit the bottom, landing on… sand. Eugene grunted as he lay there. "Well, we got lucky."
She smiled as she looked up, catching her breath, when she saw the minotaur jump off the cliff and drop down below to meet them.
Before she even had a chance to react, the minotaur was running right at her…
…When something like a grappling hook wrapped around the minotaur's horns and forced it to the ground. Out of the shadows stepped the twins.
Alexander had rope in his hands that was attached to the grappling hook around the minotaur. Daphne sauntered over to Rapunzel and Eugene.
"Need a hand?" she asked, holding out her hand.
Rapunzel was wary to take it but she did anyway. She doubted, given how winded she was, she'd be able to get up on her own. "Thanks."
Daphne smirked. "No problem." Then she pulled a knife from her pocket and plunged it into Rapunzel's stomach.
Rapunzel cried out and bent over. Daphne ripped the knife from her, causing blood to spurt out of her stomach.
"NO!" Eugene shouted, running over to her but Daphne stopped him by grabbing Rapunzel and holding the knife to her throat.
"We were sent to kill her," Daphne explained. "So, kill her we will."
"And we'll be taking that scroll for ourselves," Alexander said. "That's why we need the beast." He nodded at the minotaur, who was now lying on the ground, breathing heavy, stuck in Alexander's grappling hook.
"Don't follow us," Daphne said, pushing Rapunzel to the ground.
Then the twins managed to force the minotaur to stand back up and began marching it down a pathway until they blended into the darkness.
Rapunzel curled into a ball, holding onto her bleeding stomach.
Eugene knelt down beside her. His look said everything.
How were they going to make it out of this one?
Until Wednesday!
