Lucas Ryan Versus: The Return (2 page)

What connection? I don’t understand.

~ Touch the triangular rock in your palm. It’s called a Tri-Stone. When all three of you are holding the stone, make a wish. The same wish. ~

The same wish? You mean to go back home?

~ Yes. ~

“Seems easy enough,” I joked, aloud. That’s when I realized Sophia was the only one still by my side. Felicity had run all the way across the room in a terrified fit. Desperately, I groaned, “Of course.”

The evil serpent bellowed above her readying its final blow. She smacked her fists along the curved wall of the dome and screamed.

“Help! Help me, please!” The monster pulled back its snakelike jowls and lunged forward. At the last possible moment she jumped out of its way, crashing to the floor in a wild fit.

“Lucas! We have to help her!” Sophia demanded.

“I know, we can’t wish ourselves back home without her.”

We both ran forward with our fists locked in front of us, ready for a battle. My forearm buzzed to life with swirling waves of golden fire and Sophia’s hands flickered with silver blasts of light that lit the whole place up like a futuristic rave.

“Hold on, Felicity, we’re coming.”

LEVEL 02

IT’S ABOUT TIME

Desert Vista High School - Phoenix, Arizona

Olivia Weaver:

Another minute. Another hour. Another morning without Lucas. I wasn’t sure how much more of this I could take.

“Olivia Weaver, are you ignoring me on purpose?” Mr. Bastille, the Social Studies teacher barked. It yanked me from my dazed state. “Ms. Weaver?”

“Oh…sorry,” I mumbled, with a fidget in my seat.

“Did you forget it’s your turn to present your report?”

“No, Mr. Bastille.”

“Good. I was afraid that you might had finally fried your young brain in that ridiculous band of yours,” he smirked.
Ugh! What a jackhole.
A day never went by without at least one person judging me for my choice in hair color, clothes, or music. The bullying only made my bond with my band, my musical sisters, that much stronger.

“My band is doing great, thanks for caring,” I said, and grabbed my report from a loose folder on my desk and marched to the front of the classroom. On my way there I took an extra moment to adjust my skirt and combat boots, keeping my eyes locked on Mr. Bastille. His short, round, and sweaty frame bore the weight of his egotistical head. He returned my disapproving glare with a shuffle of his thick mustache.

“Feel free to begin, Ms. Weaver…anytime now…”

With an exhale of frustration, I began my oral report. In the back of my head though I still daydreamed of Lucas and my little sister, Sophia. Words spilled from my lips as if I was on autopilot. The kids in the first two rows looked as if they may fall asleep. I pictured them snoozing away as Lucas and I saved them from the wicked demons that almost ended their bland and pampered existence. Futuristic monsters almost devoured this whole city but we stopped them. Lucas and Sophia paid the ultimate price though. With one misguided wish they were lost, whisked away to who knows where. My heart crawled into my throat and I had to take a moment and gather myself before I continued on.

From the back of the class a welcoming pair of eyes watched me closely. They were angelic blue and hidden behind golden blonde strands of falling hair. The shiny mop fell along the wide and defined shoulders of Desert Vista High’s most valuable commodity. Taylor Swift, the star athlete and twin look-a-like of Thor, the comic book superhero. Only I think Taylor might be even stronger, especially on the football field. Most everyone else knew him as Big Country, his nickname, which he hated. It wasn’t his fault he shared the same name as one of the most successful songwriters in the world. He was one of the only people I could talk to about Lucas and Sophia’s disappearance. He had lived through it, too. As a matter of fact, I think he was having just as hard of a time dealing with their absence as I was. Lucas was his best friend and the only person who really understood him. I was still getting to know Taylor but it was obvious he blamed himself for Lucas’ abduction. The guilt was even starting to affect his performance on the football field.

I nodded his way as I finished up my report. He offered me a thumbs up and a crooked smile. Mr. Bastille offered me the opposite. He shook his head in disappointment and motioned with his pen for me to return to my seat. With a thud I plopped back onto my chair, and the dangling chains along my belt chimed appropriately. Mr. Bastille stepped to the front of the class once more and rolled his eyes.

“All right, who’s next?”

No one volunteered. The whole class just hid their eyes from him. It made him furious and he threw his pen to the floor.

“I said, who wants to go next?”

And if on cue the lights went out. They flickered a couple times trying to come back on but never did. With a flash the emergency lighting kicked on and the wind outside the windows growled. The school warning sirens clicked on and then back off. It startled everyone, especially Mr. Bastille. He fell backwards, hugging the white erase board before clutching his chest in the most dramatic fashion.

Thunder crashed from outside but it didn’t sound right. It sounded electronic, like a special effect in a science fiction movie. Another pop of the lights and they flickered back on, only brighter this time, blinding me. My hands covered my face instantly, shielding the brightness. In a matter of seconds the lights fell back to normal and the room became quiet and still.

Taylor’s voice shattered the silence with one word.

“Lucas!”

Standing in the middle of the room with a half dozen desks and students scattered to the floor, was Lucas, Sophia, and Felicity. He was clutching my sister with one arm and trying to pull his other arm from the grip of Felicity’s.
Was this a dream?

“Soph?” I mumbled.

“Sister!” Sophia hollered, and ran for me. She almost tripped over a classmate as she did. With all my might I pulled her into my arms and squeezed. Her skinny arms locked around me and she began to sob.

I kissed the top of her head and whispered, “I got you, Soph…you’re home.”

“I can’t believe it worked! Sis, you’re never going to believe where we’ve been!” Sophia declared. Dozens of camera phones clicked away as the class recorded the event for the rest of the social media world.

“I’m just happy you’re back. Mom and Dad have been going crazy since you’ve been away,” I comforted.

Ignoring my last comment, Sophia continued, “Lucas saved me. He’s my hero!”

From the corner of my eye I could see Lucas finally pry his fingers from Felicity. She was upset and pale. Her face on the verge of puking. She looked around the room in a nervous fit and quickly steadied herself. She fell to the floor and began to cry in relief. Lucas just turned toward Sophia and I with a small smile. He slowly held up his hand with a small wave and nodded my way.

“I told you I wouldn’t let anything happen to her,” he said. Tears cut down my cheeks and I inhaled another whiff of Sophia’s hair. I silently mouthed two words his way, “Thank you.”

With a crash, Taylor slammed into Lucas as if he were tackling the opposing team. Both of them flew backwards in an emotional bear hug that ended with Lucas suspended a few inches above the floor, tightly dangling in Taylor’s grip.

“Easy, T, you’re going to choke out of me what little breath I have left,” Lucas teased, with a soft cough. His voice sounded strained and scratchy but I was so happy to hear it again.

“Lucas! How? What? Where?” Taylor stuttered.

“There’s so much to tell you, my friend,” Lucas said. Taylor placed him back to the floor and Lucas seemed to falter in his stance a little. I pulled Sophia forward to reach Lucas but was stopped in mid step as the door to the classroom flew open. The school’s main security guard, Officer Malcolm, stormed inside with one hand on his walkie-talkie and his other on a large can of pepper spray.

“Don’t move, son!” he warned. Officer Malcolm was six-foot-seven and in great shape for his age. The gray hair had finally started to win the war and peppered the sides of his head. He used to play basketball and from what I had been told, he was pretty good at it. That was until he damaged his knee, losing the championship game, and getting him benched on his college team. Officer Malcolm was a good guy, but it was obvious he never fully healed from that life altering injury.

Lucas blinked in confusion. “Huh? Officer Malcolm, it’s me…Lucas.”

“I said, don’t move or I’ll spray you with all I got!”

Lucas stepped closer to him, and asked, “Umm…why?”

“Ahh, I see all that time away has made you brave, Mr. Ryan?”

Lucas looked around at everyone and then back at Officer Malcolm. “What? We’ve only been gone for a few hours.”

“Funny, Lucas, I guess you’ve been hiding out somewhere with no calendars, no cell phones!” Officer Malcolm squinted his eyes as if he was ready to fire his weapon.

Lucas whipped around to me and asked, “Olivia, what is he talking about?” He turned to Taylor when I didn’t answer fast enough. “T, it’s only been a few hours…right?”

Taylor shook his head slowly, “Luc, you better calm down, you’re not going to like this.”

“What? Why? What’s going on?” Lucas asked, agitated. Felicity jumped to her feet and searched her pockets. Franticly she pulled out her cell phone to check the time and immediately fell silent.

“That’s enough, Lucas, you and the girls need to come with me right now,” Officer Malcolm insisted. Lucas continued to ignore him.

“Someone tell me what’s going on! How long have we been gone?”

Taylor stepped up to him and placed a calming hand on Lucas’ shoulder. “How long do you think you’ve been gone, Luc?”

Speaking slow and steady, Lucas said, “Two hours.”

Sophia looked up at me and nodded in agreement. Her comfortable smile fell away from her lips when she saw the strained expression on my face.

“Enough of this!” Officer Malcolm interrupted. “Office! Now!” He waved one hand at all three of them and cocked the can of spray in the other.

Giving up on Taylor, Lucas turned to me once more and frowned, “Olivia…please tell me…how long have we been away?”

I walked Sophia up to Officer Malcolm and leaned into Lucas. With a breathy whisper, I said, “Thirty-seven days.”

He froze in place. “What?”

Taylor quietly added, “My friend, you’ve been missing for over a month.”

“That’s not possible,” Lucas gasped.

“Anything’s possible, Lucas. You should know that better than anyone,” Felicity said, in a soft rage. She marched out of the classroom. Lucas stared down at his hand and forearm. His brown eyes studied the faint markings scribbled along his skin. Slowly, he followed Felicity out the door.

“Finally, one of you kids has some common sense,” Officer Malcolm snapped. He gently escorted Sophia and I out into the hallway. As he placed his pepper spray back into its holster along his belt, he exhaled.

“It’s about time.”

LEVEL 03

THIS KID’S NOT ALRIGHT

Lucas:

“You really expect us to believe that?” Principal Garner rumble with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Completely,” I said, and held my breath. My eyes slowly circled the room. I was surrounded. Trapped. Principal Garner and Vice Principal Chan stood firm, directly in front of me. To my right was Felicity and her pout. Behind her were her parents with even bigger pouts. On the other side of the office was Olivia and Sophia. They were holding hands and watching me with carful eyes. Their mother paced back and forth, talking on her cell phone. She didn’t seem as upset with me as she did seem irritated that she was called out of work to deal with this mess. Olivia and Sophia came from a financially burdened family but you’d think their mom would be excited to have her little girl back. I quickly offered both of them an understanding glare. Sophia tried to smile but Olivia looked away, embarrassed. It bummed me out when she did. We had been through so much together. Olivia didn’t need to hide her pain from me. Maybe I had been away too long. Maybe her feelings had changed for me.

Finally, there were two police officers taking notes and preparing a statement for the media that had accumulated outside the school. I guess our month lost in another dimension had become quite the sensational story. But for now, I had to keep selling the lie. They could never know the truth. I mean, who’s going to believe we were mistakenly wished to another world where the worst evils are born and await their chance to wreak havoc on our pretty little planet. How could they possibly fathom that it was all possible because of the magic rock I had found and bonded with. A rock that wasn’t a rock. A rock that was actually home to a wish granting, magic spewing, inter-dimensional creature known as a Jynshee. A power-gifting being who was connected to me in every possible way. Now, that same amazing being lived inside the tattooed markings along my wrist and arm that I just so happened to name, Ripley. I would be locked up in the loony bin in a heartbeat if I even tried to sell them that story, no matter how true it was.

“Yes, Mr. Garner, that’s exactly what happened,” I said, calmly. Mr. Garner wiped his brow with a crinkled handkerchief and leaned into me.

“Really. So, you want us to believe that you ran away.”

“Yes,” I mumbled.

“You hopped a train to California?”

“Yes,” I said, trying not to look him directly in the eyes.

“And Ms. Weaver’s little sister, Sophia, as well as your classmate, Felicity Campbell, went looking for you…found you…and took over a month to convince you to come back home.” Principal Garner inhaled a long breath and exchanged a confused glance with Vice Principal Chan. From the corner of the room came a raspy grunt as Officer Malcolm couldn’t hold back his laughter.

“Bull…” he whispered, into his fist, as if he were coughing. I shot him a worried stare and he turned from me and left the office. The other two officers nodded back and forth and followed him out of the room. One of them stopped and turned back toward us.

“The girls are free to go home with their parents. We’ll be in contact if there is any follow-up questions we need answered. But for now, I think they need to go home.” His eyes found mine. “If any of the families would like to press charges, please feel free to contact the station.”

Oh man, I was in trouble.

“As for you, Mr. Ryan, I need you to follow me.”

“Why?” I asked, stumbling over my feet.

“Every news channel in the Phoenix area is out front. There needs to be a statement made, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to tell the world that you three have been missing for a month because of a joyride to the West Coast,” he grumbled.

“Oh, okay,” I said.

I followed the police officers out of the office and down the hall to the main doors of the school. My new three month detention sentence weighed heavy on my shoulders as I dragged my sneakers along the hallway. I could already see the sea of reporters and news cameras through the windows. This was going to suck. Just before one of the policemen opened the door, he placed a hand on my chest.

“And by the way, your parents are waiting for you outside, so let’s make this quick…got it?” he warned.

“I’ll try.”

“Oh, and Mr. Ryan, no wishing your way out of this,” he said, like a threat.
No wishing? Why had he put it that way?
My heart raced in a new panic. His eyes pulled together as if the sun was blinding him and he quickly shoved me through the doors. The first wave of reporters rushed me with their microphones and digital cameras. It took my breath away.

“Mr. Ryan, where have you been?”

“Were you kidnapped?”

“Are you hurt?”

“What do you have to say?”

With a broken smile and blinded sight from the glare of the Arizona sun in my eyes, I announced…

“Wassup, America?”

ONE HOUR LATER…

“Wassup, America? Are you kidding me, Lucas?” my father roared from the kitchen table. I sat with my head facing the table top and let him get it out of his system. Twenty minutes of screaming passed painfully slow, and finally, I was being escorted to my bedroom. Grounded for the rest of the semester, or my whole teenage life. I wasn’t sure which. It didn’t matter though. My parents would never understand the crazy adventure I had been on. Especially my father, but I was used to him not understanding me. My mother, on the other hand, was a different story.

She wrestled with the absolute anger she had for my missing time away, but deep down I could see that her happiness for my return outweighed her frustrations. I gave her a quick kiss on her cheek before entering my room.

“I’m sorry, Mom,” I whispered. She wiped away a tear and tried to smile.

“I know, Son. I’m just relieved you came home.”

My father just crossed his arms, saying nothing, and nodded for me to assume the role of prisoner. With a small sigh I disappeared into my bedroom and my father closed the door behind me. Swiftly, I jumped upon my bed and scrunched my fluffy pillow under my chin. It felt wonderful. With another bounce, I turned over and placed my hands behind my head. My eyes locked onto the ceiling and the handful of movie posters that were taped to it. All of my favorite Action and Sci-Fi movies.

One of them had a shadowed image of a giant robot that cradled a kid in its over-exaggerated metal hand. The robot was the boy’s protector, and friend. I pulled my right arm from the comfort of my pillow and placed it before my face. I traced the tattooed etchings along my skin with my eyes and wondered aloud.

“I have a guardian, too.”

As a smile split my lips, my arm began to hum with golden light and purple electricity slid through the ink on my skin. Goose bumps and heat escaped my pores before a puff of smoke emerged in front of me. I jumped from my bed as the black fog rolled over my legs and blankets. Thin slivers of gold lightning sprinkled inside the smoke like magical fireflies.

Taking a small step backwards, I asked, “Ripley?” With a bright flash of gold, the shadow snapped together into a familiar form, a serpent shaped dragon. In my head I could hear it speak to me telepathically.

~ Lucas. ~

“Welcome to my room, Ripley,” I said, excited. Ripley was the name of the main character in my all-time favorite movie franchise. In those films Ripley had to fight and destroy her dragons. In my world, the dragon was a friend. “Welcome home.”

Looking past me at the background of my bedroom, Ripley slid closer to me and nodded.

~ Home. ~

“So, I have like a million questions…” I paused as the thought of me talking with a mystical being that had bonded with my essence, was overwhelming. Ripley’s smoky scales shifted tightly together with a clicking precision that soothed me.

~ I know. ~

I guess I’ll start with the most obvious question. “Are we safe?”

~ For the moment. ~

Not the optimistic answer I was hoping for but it was a start. “What happened to us? Why has it been so long that we’ve been gone when it only felt like a couple hours on your world?”

~ When we were wished to my world it reset everything. My energy was used up, all gone, but yet, here I am. Alive and in the form that you’ve chosen for me. ~

“A dragon,” I whispered. Ripley’s eyes flickered with a golden glow inside its smoky black form. I spent most of my younger days dreaming of having my very own dragon, and when the enchanted stone that Ripley was born from found its way into my hands, I wished for it to be true. I wished for a kick-ass dragon.

~ Usually when the energy of a Jynshee Orb is used up, I no longer exist. I fade away. But your wish changed something, Lucas. Your wish freed me. ~

“I don’t understand.”

~ In the final battle with the universal demon that called himself General Love, my powers were exhausted…mostly. You handed over the magic of the Jynshee Orb to another person just in time. ~

“Olivia’s little sister, Sophia.”

~ Yes, Sophia. Her youthful spirit changed the power of the Orb. It also reset its form, I’m not sure why. The universal power changed from the shape of a stone into the rings she bears now…the Jynshee Rings. They conceal my original power. Well, almost all of my power… ~

“Huh?”

~
I’m part of you now. You’re part of me. The leftover power from the Jynshee Orb lives in you too. As long as you have those markings on your wrist and arm, we will be one. ~

With a quick glance at my arm, I smiled, “Cool.”

~ As for the the difference in time between our dimensions, that’s just how it works. Twenty-four hours in my dimension is the equivalent of fourteen months here on Earth. Sorry, Lucas. ~

“No worries,” I sighed, doing the math in my head. I jumped to the next question. “Now that the Jynshee Orb is no more and most of your power was morphed into the thirteen rings that Sophia and Felicity carry, what can you do?”

~ I’m not sure. ~

“What can Sophia do with the power inside the rings?”

~ Anything. Everything. ~

“Well, that’s a bit dangerous. That’s an awful lot of power for a twelve-year-old to have.”

~ Agreed. ~

“What do we do now?”

~ We teach her how to harness the true power within her jewelry, or we try to remove them from her possession. We keep your world safe, at all costs. ~

I smiled up at Ripley, and corrected, “Our world.”

Ripley nodded in agreement.

~ Our world. ~

The moment hit me like a hammer as I realized I was standing in the middle of my bedroom talking with a monster that I had created with my own deepest desires. Ripley settled in front of me and snapped its head in place.

~ Lucas. ~

“Yeah,” I said, dazed. My thoughts were far away, lost in this impossible moment.

~ You have company. ~

Instantly, Ripley faded into see-through smoke that sucked back into my arm like a vacuum.

~ Remember, Lucas…believe. ~

“Believe in what?” I asked, wearily. My fingers scratched at the lines painted on my skin. They still glowed with soft light as Ripley spoke inside my mind.

~ Believe in her. ~

From over my shoulder came a click against my bedroom window. Another quick click followed as I realized somebody was outside tossing small pebbles at the windowpane. Standing in surprise two floors up, I reached for my window and pulled it open. The dark starry sky greeted me as it was now nighttime. Man, how long had I been talking with Ripley?

“Lucas,” Olivia called from below. Her voice was filled with worry and she seemed unsure of herself. She looked beautiful, as usual. Long brown hair almost as dark as night with streaks of metallic purple racing through it, danced in the desert breeze. Worried violet eyes glared up at me. My longtime schoolboy crush, Olivia Weaver.

“Olivia? Hi,” I said, like a sap.

“We need to talk,” she called out.

“What time is it?” I asked, confused by the darkness. It was still light out when I came home.

“Midnight. Can we come up?” she asked, quickly.

“We?” I huffed. Just then a smaller version of Olivia appeared from the shadows. It was Sophia. She was all smiles and waved up at me. Olivia grabbed her hand and shot her a grumpy glare.

“Hurry up, before someone sees us here,” Olivia added. She was upset with me for some reason. Could I blame her though. I did almost lose her sister in another dimension.

“Hang on,” I whispered.

With a snap of my wrist the tattoo flickered to life. Ripley appeared in the palm of my hand in a miniature version of itself. Only about the size of a pet lizard.

“Ripley, can you help me out?”