The New Candidates, New Dangers
“We’re going to Zion?”, Lilly repeated, “Why do we need to go there?
Isn’t there another group that can do this?” “They pick your group for
this”, Azuma said, “I can’t do anything about this. I don’t think that
any of you are ready for this.” “Just explain what we’re suppose to do”,
Crystal said, “What do we need to do for this?” “You’ll each be going
to Zion as a group”, Azuma said, “Each person will be given two weeks
worth of food. That’s it. You’re suppose to stay on Zion for two months.
You can do anything to survive. You’re suppose to leave tomorrow
morning, so I’m giving you the rest of the day off, even though I’m not
suppose to.” “Cool”, Lilly said, “I am totally prepared for this! Why can’t
we leave today?” “The people who pick you for this think that you
should have a good nights rest”, Azuma said with bitterness in his voice, “I
tried to reason with them, but they wouldn’t listen with me.” The
toothpick in his mouth broke in half from the pressure Azuma was putting on
it with his teeth in his anger. ”We’ll leave no”, Lilly said trying to
tell everyone they should leave now, “Don’t worry about us. We’ll be
just fine.”
Everyone left the room and started to walk down the hall.
“What are we going to do?”, Zero asked, “We aren’t prepared for this kind
of challenge.” “We’ll be just fine”, Lilly said, “The food will last us
and we can build some kind of shelter.” “How are we suppose to survive
the two months with only two weeks worth of food?”, Kizna asked, “Some
of us like to eat a lot.” Roose started to blush. “It will be okay”,
Lilly said, “We should just get ready.” “Lilly’s right”, Crystal said,
“There’s nothing we can do about it. We’re going and that’s it. All we
should do now is get some sleep and be prepared to go in the morning.” “I
almost forgot”, Lilly said, “Where are we suppose to sleep at? Azuma
never said.” “I’ll go ask him”, Crystal said.
Crystal turned around and
jogged back to Azuma. when she came back she was laughing. “What did he
say”, Lilly asked, “And what’s so funny?” “He said”, Crystal said,
“That we can sleep where ever we want to since we’ll only be staying for
this one night. Then by the time we get back, they should have a place
for us to stay.” “So where are we going to stay?”, Lilly asked. “You
could stay with us”, Kizna said, “We don’t mind the extra company.” “Okay”,
Crystal said, “Is that okay with you Lilly?” “Sure why not”, Lilly said
shrugging.
Since it was time to head back to their rooms, everyone said
good night and headed off in different directions. “I’m going to go
back to the relaxation room”, Lilly said and she left the group. “What’s
the matter with Lilly?”, Kizna asked, “Is she feeling sick or
something?” “No”, Crystal said, “She just has a problem on her mind she can’t get
rid of. We better get some sleep.” When they got to their room, Crystal
set up a bed in the corner. Everyone got changed and climbed into bed.
They shut off all of the lights, leaving only one dimmed for Lilly.
Then they all fell asleep.
Lilly was back in her spot in the tree looking out of the window. She
laid back and started to fall asleep in the tree. She was awoken by a
voice. “Are you sure they will be eliminated tonight?”, a voice asked.
“Yes”, another voice answered, “I will make sure they don’t survive.
Then I will go after the sisters.” “Do not harm the sisters”, the first
voice said, “I want them brought back alive. If you fail to kill them
tonight, kill them when they get to Zion. You will not fail me if you wish
not to feel my wrath.” “There is nothing to fear my lord”, the second
voice said, “Nothing but fear its self.” Then the doors opened and the
bodies that the two voices belonged to walked out. Lilly sat up in the
tree and tried to make out what the two people meant. The two sisters
had to be her and Crystal. Then that meant that they were going to try
and take out the other candidates.
Lilly jumped down and headed out of
the room feeling worse than when she first came in. She was almost out,
when she bumped into someone because she was in a hurry to get to
Crystal. Lilly got up and shook her head. “Sorry”, a male voice said, “I
didn’t see you.” Lilly looked at the person who the voice belonged to. It
was Force. “What are you doing here?”, Force asked Lilly, “I would have
thought that you would be sleeping.” “Did you see anybody leave this
room?”, Lilly asked in a hurry, “Did anyone pass you in the hall?” “No”,
Force said, “Why? What’s the matter? Why are you in such a hurry?”
“Someone on G.O.A. is in danger”, Lilly said, “I know that there is someone
that is planning on killing someone other than me and Crystal.” “Do you
think that they’re planning on going after one of the top candidates?”,
Force asked. Lilly shook her head. “I don’t know”, she said, “I want
you to get back there and make sure no one gets into the room. When they
knock, ask them to identify themselves. If they say glitter by the
moonlight, let them in. If they don’t, use this to call me and I’ll check
it out. If it’s who I think it is, you’ll need some backup. All you have
to do is press the white button.” Lilly handed him a small compact and
took off running toward the candidates’ rooms. Force looked at the
compact for a minute. Then he ran out of the room and headed for the top
candidates’ room, hoping no one had beat him there.
Back at the repairers room, Crystal was awakened by a knock at the door.
Who could be at the door at this hour, Crystal wondered as she got up
to answer the door. When she opened the door, she was thrown back by a
great force. She hit the opposite wall with a huge crash that woke up
the others. A man walked in and looked at Crystal as she got up. “You are
pitiful”, the man said, “I thought you would have more sense.” He had
dark brown hair that was cut short. He wore a white T-shirt and black
pants. His eyes were a dark brown color like his hair color. “You should
tell me who you are before you come in anymore”, Crystal said, “I hate
intruders in the middle of the night.” “My name is Shadow”, the man
said, “And I have come for your life.” “You want the bands too?”, Crystal
asked, “Well that changes everything. I won’t feel sorry when I kill
you since you’re trying to kill me and take away something that doesn’t
belong to you.” “The bands don’t belong to a child either”, Shadow
sneered, “A mere child does not understand the power they possess. They
should be used to their potential.” “That means they shouldn’t be used for
evil”, Crystal said, “I know what you want the bands for and I know who
you’ll give them to. So you might as well go back to where ever you
came from ‘cause I’m not giving them to your ugly boss.” “You’ll pay for
insulting the king”, Shadow said raising his hand, “Prepare yourself for
battle.” Crystal took a defensive position and waited for an attack.
“Do you think your claws will be enough to stop me?”, Crystal asked, “You
are way more stupid than I thought you were.” “That’s enough!”, Shadow
yelled as he went to hit Crystal.
His claws were met by an invisible
line. While Crystal was holding it up, the line became visible. It was a
staff that was covered with vines and leaves. Shadow jumped back and
look at the staff. “I see you are the one who controls the earth”, Shadow
said, “This will make it easier on me.” His hands started to glow red.
“I call upon the forces of fire”, Shadow said. He stretched his hands
out in front of him with his palms facing Crystal. “Fire Prison Attack”,
Shadow said. A huge line of fire shot out of the palms of his hands,
headed straight for Crystal. “Water Serpent”, Lilly said, jumping down
from the ceiling, “Awaken from your sleep.” A big blue snake appeared
before Crystal protecting her from the fire. “When did you get here?”,
Crystal asked, “About three seconds ago”, Lilly said smiling, “I thought
some trouble would be lurking around, so I came to investigate. I guess
I found the source of the problem.” As the fire started to stop, Lilly
called back the Water Serpent. Lilly saw that the others were awake.
“You guys”, Lilly said to the others, “Get your stuff ready to go to
Zion. We’re leaving as soon as I get rid of this pain.” The girls went and
got dressed as fast as they could in the other part of the room.
“It’s time to finish this”, Shadow said, “I’ll just use my poison needles.”
“Go right ahead”, Lilly said, “Crystal are you ready?” “Been waiting for
this all day”, Crystal said, “Let’s show him that we don’t mess around
with people when there is other things to do.” Flames started to
surround Lilly and a white fog started to surround Crystal. “Are you sure you
want to play this game?”, Shadow asked. A green grow started to form
around him as well. “This isn’t a game”, Lilly said, “Because that is
what you think, that will be your downfall.” “Fire, wind, water, earth”,
Lilly and Crystal said in unison, “We ask you to grant us the power to
erase the spells that evil has made.” At the same time, Shadow had
finished forming his poison needle. The needles were floating above him in
an arch around his body. “Element Four attack”, Lilly and Crystal said.
“Poison needles attack”, Shadow said. The needles shot toward Lilly and
Crystal. At the same time, a twirling line of fire, water, wind, and
earth shot at the needles. When they collided together, a blinding white
light appeared. Through the light, the line that Lilly and Crystal had
shot hit Shadow, destroying him.
When the light cleared, Lilly and Crystal were the ones left standing.
The glow around Crystal and Lilly started to fade away. “Are you
ready?”, Crystal asked the others. They stood still, not saying a word for a
few seconds, then they seemed to recover from the shock of the intense
battle. “Yes”, Kizna said, “Are the guys coming with us or are we
leaving them here?” “I totally forgot about them”, Lilly said, “We better go
and get them.” They all started out the door. “Where do they sleep?”,
Crystal asked. “I know”, Kizna said, “Follow me.” “I’m going to get the
other candidates”, Lilly said, “Let’s meet in the relaxation room in
about five minutes.” They split up and ran to get the others. Kizna lead
the Crystal and the other repairers to their partners’ room, while
Lilly went to get the top candidates and their repairers.
Crystal and her group stopped at the room that was marked with the
numbers 86-90. They went in and woke the guys up. “What’s going on?”, Zero
asked sleepily, “Why did you wake me up?” “Get up”, Crystal ordered,
“We’re leaving for Zion tonight.” Once Crystal saw that the boys were
awake, she and the rest of the girls waited outside while they got
dressed. They came out dressed and still half asleep. “We have to go to the
relaxation room now”, Crystal said, “Lilly and the other candidates are
going to meet us there.” They started walking down to the relaxation
room, all of them tired and sleepy.
Lilly was running to the room that the top candidates were at. She
found the room after wondering around the area for a few minutes. She
knocked on the door. “Who’s there?”, someone said on the other side.
“Glitter by the moonlight”, Lilly said. She went in and found the guys fully
awake and dressed. “Whoa”, Lilly said, “I thought you would still be in
bed.” “The repairers are getting dressed”, Sure said, “Force came in
and told us about what you said. Why did you want us up and ready to go?”
“We have to leave for Zion”, Lilly said, “There’s something or someone
on G.O.A. that doesn’t belong here.” A scream echoed through the air.
“The other thing has showed itself finally”, Lilly said, “Go to the
relaxation room and wait for Crystal. She’ll be coming with the other
candidates.”
They left the room and headed for the relaxation room. Once
Lilly made sure they were out of sight, she walked across the hall to the
repairers’ room. She stuck ear to the door and listened. “Let me go”, a
voice said. “Why should I”, another voice said, “You’ll be my ticket to
ruling the world.” Lilly walked back to the other side of the hallway
and started running toward the door. She kicked it down and hit the
another person. She let go of the girl’s wrist and fell to the ground. “Go
get out of here”, Lilly told the girls, “Go to the relaxation room.
Hurry!” The girls ran out of the room toward the relaxation room.
Lilly turned back to the intruder. It was a girl that couldn’t be more than
fifteen years old. She had long blonde hair that was pulled back into a
bun in the middle of the back of her head. She had white pants and a
white T-shirt. She got up and looked at Lilly right in the eye. The girl’s
eyes were a light bronze color. “What are you doing here?”, the girl
asked, “Why did you stop me?” “I was about to ask you the same thing”,
Lilly said, “Who are you?” “I am Emily”, the girl said, “I have come for
the one called Lilly Hamiya.” “That’s me”, Lilly said, “What do you
want?” “I came to warn you about victim. They have grown smarter and are
after the bands that you have”, Emily said, “The four bands are called
the Bands of Ki. They have enough power to wipe out the universe and
everything inside of it. You must not let them have the bands. The fate of
humanity is now in your hands.” The girl started to fade. “Hey”, Lilly
said running to the girl, “I have more questions for you!” Lilly went
to grab the girl, but her hand went through the air. “Whoa”, Lilly said,
“What did you mean by the fate of humanity is now in my hands?” Lilly
remembered about Crystal and the others. She ran out of the room and
went to the relaxation room.
When Lilly got there, she found everyone waiting. “What took you so
long?”, Crystal asked, “You need to stick to the time limit if you set
it.” “I’ll tell you later”, Lilly said, “We need to get to Zion now.”
“How are we going to get there Einstein?”, Crystal asked, “In case you
haven’t noticed, we don’t have anything to transport us to Zion.” “Yes we
do”, Lilly said, “I told you to meet in here in ten minutes for a
reason. Our ride should be here in a few more seconds.” Everyone looked at
Lilly like she had lost all sense. “There it is”, Lilly said pointing to
the window. A goddess stood in space with its hands open waiting for
something. “How are we suppose to get on?”, Crystal asked. “I told you
our ride would be here”, Lilly said, “All you have to do is walk through
the glass. I already modified the glass so you can walk through. Once
you’re on the other side, a bubble will surround you protecting you.”
“Who is piloting the goddess?”, Crystal asked, “Who did you trick into
flying us to Zion?” “I didn’t trick anyone”, Lilly said, “I simply
asked if someone would take us to Zion.” “So who is it?”, Crystal asked.
“It’s Gareas”, Lilly said, “I asked Leena if she would ask Gareas if he
would take us to Zion. She asked him and told her she would have to get
all of the details. So she told me and I gave her a piece of paper
explaining everything and he agreed. So are we leaving or not?” Crystal
walked out and stood on the hands. Once everyone saw it was safe, they
followed one by one. Lilly was the last one to go. When she was on the
hands, the goddess turned and handed for Zion. “So why are you going
without permission?”, Gareas asked, “Why did you want to leave in the middle
of the night?” “We didn’t”, Lilly said, “We had no choice. Someone at
G.O.A. is causing a lot of trouble. Watch your back when you get back
and tell the others to.” “I can only take you right before the
atmosphere”, Gareas said, “The goddess hasn’t been tested to see if it can take
the pressure that the atmosphere gives. You’ll have to continue on your
own.” “Drop us off right there”, Lilly said, “Then I’ll take over.
Thanks a lot and tell Leena that we made it here safely when you get back.”
Gareas dropped them off right before they entered the atmosphere. When
he had left, Lilly gave the next instructions. “You have to form a
chain”, Lilly said, “I’ll lead and then everyone follow. Crystal I need you
to be at the end to make sure everyone gets here.” “Sure”, Crystal
said, “Stick me at the end. I never wanted to be here anyway.” Lilly
started flying into the atmosphere. Kizna was after her starting the chain
off. As they went through, they started to feel hot. “Don’t worry about
the heat”, Lilly said, “It will go away when you get out.” Lilly spotted
land and landed. She hit ground and helped everyone get to the ground.
When Crystal landed, everyone looked at Lilly for the next
instructions. “There’s nothing else to do”, Lilly said, “We have to stay here for
two months like it was originally planned.” “But what about the food
supply”, Zero asked, “We didn’t get the two weeks worth of food we were
suppose to get.” “I’ve got that covered”, Crystal said, “I’m a great chef
and can cook just about anything from anything.” “We should get some
sleep and when we wake up, we can start building camp”, Lilly said, “I’ll
make something for everyone to sleep in just for tonight.” Lilly tapped
her blue band twice. A wave of water came out and formed into a house.
“It should last until tomorrow”, Lilly said, “Complete with four
bedrooms big enough to fit at least seven people each, a kitchen, bathroom,
and family room. It may not look big, but it is huge when you go in.”
Lilly went in. The others followed.
When they walked in, they saw what Lilly meant. The inside was huge.
The first room was as big as the rooms on G.O.A. They followed Lilly
around the house. “Half of the girls will sleep here”, Lilly said, “and
the other half will sleep across from them. The boys will sleep next to
them in the next two rooms.” They walked down the hallway and stopped at
the end. The room on your left is the bathroom and the room and your
right is the kitchen. If you’re in need of midnight snacks go to the
refrigerator.” They went to their rooms. “These are so soft”, Zero said
laying on the bed, “These are nothing like the ones at G.O.A. If I fall
asleep like this, don’t bother to wake me up.” There was a knock on the
door, then Lilly poked her head into the room. “If you want to change
into clothes to sleep in”, she said, “Just look in the closet. There
should be some pajamas. Good night.” Lilly pulled her head out and shut the
door.
After she told everyone the same message, she went to the front room
and sat in the chair. “What’s the matter?”, Crystal asked walking in the
room, “Did you get hurt while we were at G.O.A.?” “Not that I know of”,
Lilly said, “I’m just really tired.” “I’m not surprised”, Crystal said
sitting down in the other chair across from Lilly, “You did do a lot of
stuff today. You fixed the computers, got us from G.O.A. and brought us
to Zion, and you fought against that guy Shadow.” “I also met someone
else before we came here”, Lilly said. “What are you talking about?”,
Crystal asked. “There was this person that I met before we left”, Lilly
repeated, “She said her name was Emily. She knew a lot about the bands.
She said they were called the Bands of Ki. She also said that victim
had become smarter and that they are after the bands.” “Well she’s right
about victim wanting the bands”, Crystal said, “But why do they want
the bands this badly?” “They have the power to wipe out the universe and
everything in it”, Lilly said, “She told me that the fate of humanity
is now in my hands.” “Well that sure is a big responsibility for a two
year old”, Crystal teased, “Are you sure you can handle it?” “Yes”,
Lilly said getting up, “And for the record, I am not two years old. I am
fourteen. Good night.” Lilly left the room and headed outside. “You need
to lighten up”, Crystal said after Lilly left. She got up and went to
bed.
Outside, Lilly was sitting on the roof looking at the stars. “Why does
victim want the bands?”, Lilly thought, “Why would they go through the
trouble to send people after us just to get the bands? The bands won’t
come off, so they’re just wasting their time.” Lilly tapped her blue
band. “Hey Star”, Lilly said, “Are you there?” “Yeah”, Star said, “What
is it?” “I got some new information about the bands and why victim wants
them so badly”, Lilly said, “Before we left I met someone named Emily.
She said that the bands were very powerful and that victim shouldn’t be
allowed to get them.” “But they can’t get them anyway”, Star said,
“They won’t come off of your arm or Crystal’s arm. You were just telling me
the same thing that we already knew.” “Did you know that they are
called the Bands of Ki?”, Lilly asked, “She told me that the bands had
enough power to wipe out the universe and everything in it. She also said
that victim was getting smarter and the fate of humanity was in our
hands. Then she disappeared before I could ask her anything else.” “I think
that I know who you’re talking about”, Star said, “Before I was trapped
in the bands, I knew a girl named Emily. She protected the bands along
with me. We started out enemies, at each others’ throats. But as time
passed, we started to become friends. Then one day we were separated.”
“What do you mean by separated?”, Lilly asked. “Did you get a new job or
something like that?”
“No”, Star said, “There was an attack on the building we were suppose
to protect. There were some magicians that had heard about the bands
and their power. They wanted it for themselves. They came to the building
and tried to take the bands. They took out the first, second, and third
line of defenses. The only ones left to protect the bands was Emily and
I. The magicians were strong. We took out three of the five that
attacked. I was fighting with one of them and Emily was fighting the other
one. The one Emily was fighting was the strongest. He beat Emily so she
was too tired to fight back and headed to the bands. I was still full of
energy and just got done with the one I fought. When I saw that he was
about to get the bands, I went after him. I knew that he was stronger
than me, but I couldn’t let him get the bands. I was told to protect the
bands with all of my life. Emily was trying to help me fight, but her
power had gone down a lot. She was putting herself in danger of getting
killed. I kept telling her to stop, but she wouldn’t listen. ‘We fight
together.’ That’s what she always said. The magician took advantage of
Emily’s state and took her hostage. I wouldn’t do anything that would
get her hurt. She told me to just fight and protect the bands. ‘You
won’t get any where in life if you don’t make some sacrifices.’ She kept
trying to get me to fight, but I wouldn’t. Then she reminded me of
something.” “What was it?”, Lilly asked.
“We made a promise to each other”, Star said, “We said that no matter
what we would fight to the finish when we're under attack. She told me
that I made her a promise and now she wanted to see if I could keep it. I
couldn’t give my friend up nor could I brake my promise. She told me
that I should always keep my promises and continue to fight. I did what
she asked me to do. I fought some more.
The magician was taken back by
my loyalty to my friend and the promise I made. He wasn’t ready to
defend against me. Emily took the hit that I tried to land on the magician.
He had held her up, so he wouldn’t get hurt. I was so enraged that I
lost all control over myself. I was fighting blinded by my rage. I did
win, but the magician cursed me. He trapped me in the bands and said the
curse could only be lifted by who ever was able to wear the bands.
Emily was destroyed during the fight. I never forgave myself for turning my
back on my friend. I still can’t forgive myself. I never will be able
to, even if she says that I did the right thing.”
“It doesn’t sound like
you turned your back on your friend”, Lilly said, “You did what she
asked. She knew what would happen to her and she was ready for it. But how
could she have been on G.O.A. if she was gone? Was it just a ghost I
saw or was she really there?” “I don’t know”, Star said, “You should get
to bed. It’s getting late.” “I know”, Lilly said, “I can’t get to
sleep, even if I tried. There’s too much on my mind right now.” “You should
ask Crystal if she would put you to sleep”, Star said, “She can do it.”
Lilly shook her head. “I want to fall asleep by myself”, Lilly said,
“Besides I’m keeping watch for enemies, especially victim. Victim is
after me and Crystal. We would leave the others, but I fear if we do victim
would come after them. That would force us to come out and fight them.
If victim is as desperate as I think they are, they will send something
to get us.” “Well the temperature is going to drop”, Star said, “So if
you’re going to stay out here any longer, you should get something to
keep warm in.” “I’m fine”, Lilly said, “I can keep warm for a while. When
it starts to get cold, I’ll go and get something to stay warm in.”
Lilly continued to keep watch until the sun came up.
_________________________________________