The Two Worlds by Alisha Howard Page B

talking about a war
here, Nia!” I shook my head hard as if trying to shake myself out
of a bad dream. “Not a simple assignment. A war!”
    “ The KaKonians don’t know
about you...yet,” Grandpa said. “That gives us precious time to
teach you what you need to know. I will be with you every step of
the way.”
    “ So will I,” piped Rena. I
closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I did not want to think
about this right now. Time to change the subject.
    “ Grandpa, we were headed to
Caldbeck originally because Rena’s mother is here. She would like
to see her. Is there anything you can do?” I didn’t add that he
owed us one since he forgot to mention this recent
information.
    Grandpa rubbed his cheek. “What did she
do, Rena?”
    Rena explained her situation, and
before I knew it, we were walking along the rows of books
again.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

CHAPTER TWELVE
     
     
    The book that Rena’s mom was housed in
was a bright neon green and had a red emblem on it. The emblem
glowed when Grandpa stepped near it, and Rena caught her breath.
Grandpa muttered a few words under his breath and lightly tapped
the book. The emblem parted until each half of it was on an
opposite side of the cover. Grandpa gripped the book and turned
around to face Rena.
    “ Are you ready?” he asked.
She nodded, and I grabbed her hand for support.
    Grandpa slowly opened the book. At
first, nothing happened. Dust rose from the pages, showing that it
had not been touched for quite a while. But as Grandpa continued to
stare down at them, the pages began to glow a faint green. We all
stood there, watching in awe as the book continued to glow, eerily
lighting Grandpa’s face.
    “ Symposi nauseum, majoot
aldrej, release yourself,” Grandpa whispered to the book. It
stopped glowing at once. We all stood staring at it, holding our
breath. “ Symposi nauseum, majoot aldrej, release yourself1”
Grandpa cried louder. The book trembled in his hands so hard he
dropped it. We all jumped back in surprise as the book began to
twist and morph until it was at least ten times the height it once
was, and wide enough for all of us to stand in it. It continued to
stretch and shake, thick layers of dust rising up with each
shiver.
    “ Symposi nauseum, majoot
aldrej, release yourself, veroot, veroot!” Grandpa shouted.
Rena gave a small yelp, and we grasped hands tightly. I looked on
in a mixture of shock and fear. The book seemed to have melted into
a figure, its pages forming the outer layer while the thick layers
of dust shielded us from seeing the middle. Grandpa straightened
his back and took two steps towards the figure.
    “ Shake it off, prisoner,” he
cooed. The figure stood still for a moment and then shook fiercely,
with dust flying everywhere. Rena, Nia, and I coughed and squinted,
trying to protect our eyes and watch at the same time. When the
dust had settled, Grandpa stood back again, satisfied. And there
stood a tall woman, with crystal blue skin and Rena’s eyes. She
blinked and quivered, allowing two large beautiful wings to expand
from her back. The woman was dressed in gray robes, with the
nametag 32000651QDF on her chest.
    “ Mother?” Rena whispered,
her skin a ghostly white. The woman frowned for a moment and then
smiled.
    “ Rena?” she asked. Rena
nodded, and the woman began glowing a brilliant pink. “RENA!” Rena
ran to her mother, and they embraced, both glowing rainbows of
colors. From inside her mother’s arms, I could hear Rena laughing
and crying at the same time. I looked over at Nia, who was trying
to wipe away a tear without being noticed, and gave her a big
grin.
    “ My name is Jala. I
am— was on the force Tormey, protector of the skies.” Rena’s
mother had sat down next to us in another room in Caldbeck. Nia had
created us a buffet of kirrs—meat that resembled oysters—biscuits,
tea, and cookies. After Awakening them, I loaded my plate and sat
back down to listen