Chapter 16

We were exposed. Alfred drove out as quickly as possible and my friends rearranged the Summer Triangle, made it an asterism again after we could no longer see their van. The barrier was up as soon as it had been down. All four of them ran to their rooms and were fighting agony and a terrible headache.

“Why didn’t you help?” I asked Phoenix.

“Not a descendant of the Twelve Major.” She shrugged, then fidgeted with her bracelets.

We’ll have Sagittarius in a matter of days. That leaves Gemini and Aries. Maybe even Leo. Scorpio is long gone. Libra may help us a little since they’re staying neutral. I made a mental list of the ones we have with us. Cancer, Capricorn, Pisces, Aquarius and Virgo. Then I remembered what Tristan had said. I’m a double threat. Ophiuchus isn’t one of the Twelve Major but still powerful.

“I’m going to check on Raelynn.” Phoenix sauntered away. Raelynn was banging her head on her pillow and trying not to scream. I checked on Tristan and Nathan, they were pretending to be brave in the training area. I could see the veins popping out of their foreheads and the shortness of breath but they refused to lock themselves in the room. When Raelynn heard of this she sat up as if her migraine had magically healed. She fixed herself up and started archery practice.

I guess she didn’t want to be considered weak next to everyone else.

“Well, that was easy.” Phoenix smiled.

“Where’s Anthony?” I asked.

“In the infirmary, as always.” she answered.

“Playing doctor or playing patient?” I wondered.

“Let’s find out,” she said.

Apparently, he was doing a little bit of both. He was drowsy and couldn’t concentrate. His coat was on inside out and his stethoscope kept falling off. He fell on cots and dozed off but he would snap back after a few minutes. We found him with an injection in his hand and he had collapsed on the floor.

Phoenix nudged him with her foot. “Get up.” she demanded.

“Give me a hand.” I slapped Anthony lightly on his face, that roused him.

“I’m fine,” he mumbled groggily. His eyes fluttered open and closed slowly.

“My friend,” Phoenix put a hand on his shoulder. “You and I have different definitions of fine.”

“I’m serious,” he insisted.

“Seriously sleepy and feeble,” Phoenix muttered under her breath.

“Go get some rest,” I told him. He looked like he wanted to protest but he just handed me the needle and dragged himself on the floor all the way to the boys’ room.

“Should we help him?” I asked.

“No.” Phoenix shrugged. “He’ll be fine.”

“What if he accidently walks onto the training area and get shot by an arrow or a bullet?” I worried.

“Then, we’ll tell everyone that it was an accident.” She smiled nervously. I glared at her but she was amused.

“I’m going to go help him.” I decided but she grabbed my arm before I could take another step.

“You worry too much.”

“And you worry too less.” I shot back.

She yawned as if I was boring her to sleep. “If he does get shot by anything, we’ll get a doctor to surgically remove the bullet or arrow.”

I raised my eyebrows at her. “Duh, what else would we do?” she snapped but I could see a little concern in her eyes.

“Isn’t there another way we can open the barrier without them acting like they’re drunk?” I asked.

“If there were, don’t you think we would’ve gone down path instead?”

“There’s got to be something to make them feel better.” I wondered.

“There is,” she hesitated. “Only that, Anthony and the other doctors say that we can’t use it unless it’s absolutely necessary. Like, during war or a battle.”

“What is it?”

She turned to me with both hands at her hips, lips pursued. “It’s ensorcelled Stardust,” she mused. “With magical healing properties.”

I was mesmerized by that. “Oh-” I stopped myself when I realized she was joking.

“You’re so childish.” She shook her head.

She sauntered off. Most probably she went to demolish the archery range. So, she’s in a good mood, then.

I could hear my heart beating in my chest. I was excited and terrified at the same time. The joyfulness was making me shake. After pacing for five minutes I went to check on Phoenix. She was aggressively shooting arrows. I noticed that she had used multiple arrows at one target and it looked like the poor target had been attacked by an entire army. I made a mental note to never cross Phoenix.

Raelynn was dizzy and she couldn’t keep her eyes open. Nathan and Tristan had collapsed in a corner, I tried not to laugh at their stubborness. It wasn’t long before Raelynn dragged herself over to me and pointed towards the girls’ room, indicating that she was about to lose consciousness. I grabbed her arm, took her shoes off and tucked her in.

“Annabelle,” Phoenix whispered. “Help me get those two idiots to the boys’ room.”

I knew she meant Tristan and Nathan. For the first time, I agreed with Phoenix. They were idiots. If you’re not well then just say so, no need to act all brave and ruin your health. After shaking them awake didn’t work, I suggested we lightly slap their faces. Phoenix had another idea, as always, the harshest way is the Phoenix way. So, got two huge glasses of freezing cold water, handed one to me with a mischievous smile on her face.

She didn’t even have to tell me what we were supposed to do. I already knew. She stood in front of Nathan which meant I had to wake up Tristan. She was about to drain her glass when I put a hand on her shoulder to stop.

“There better be a good reason you’re interrupting my brilliant plan,” she whispered.

“Shouldn’t we at least try to gently wake them up?” I insisted.

“No.”

“Please?”

“Where’s the fun in that?” She snorted. “Being gentle. No one ever got anything by being gentle.” She looked at me as if I’d given her an impossible math problem to solve and she was confused by it.

“Oh, come on, Phoenix,” I started. “You’re not that bad. You’d never disturb two anguished boys from their slumber.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Yes, I would and I will.”

Before I could protest anymore, she wet her hand and splashed drops on Nathan’s face. He didn’t so much as twitch. I doubt the water would work on them if they’re in deep sleep. We both emptied out glasses simultaneously. Phoenix jumped in excitement but she was left disappointed because they weren’t awake.

“Should we use colder water instead?” Phoenix suggested. “Or maybe throw something at them?”

“No, let’s just try to drag them to their room.” I decided.

She groaned. “No one ever lets me have any fun.” she complained.

“How are we going to do that?” I felt embarrassed by how weak I was. Phoenix pulled Nathan to his feet with one hand. I was amazed. She was having trouble with him, she dropped him and he fell on his face. That did the trick. Nathan groaned out of pain, he was so loud he woke up Tristan.

“Why am I wet?” he said groggily. I rushed to help Nathan.

“I think my nose is broken.” he whined like a toddler.

“Oh, please, you’re overreacting.” Phoenix crossed her arms.

Tristan was now standing right next to us. “Will you care to explain why Nathan was hugging the ground and why we’re wet?” he demanded.

“That’s a great question,” I smiled nervously, then turned to Phoenix. “You want to answer that?”

“Oh, shut up!” she snapped. She explained what we were trying to do but neither of them found it amusing.

“That was you’re amazing idea?” Nathan raged.

“What else did you expect from her?” Tristan said.

“You two are lucky she didn’t use you as a human target for archery practice.” She that that was Plan B.

“I wasn’t actually going to do it,” she promised.

“Not true,” I fought. “You, my friend, are very unpredictable.”

“Thank you,” she said, flattered.

“In your case it’s not a good thing.” Nathan confirmed. Phoenix glared at him. Judging by the look on her face she was furious. I nudged Nathan in the chest.

“Oww!” he exclaimed. “We were all thinking it.”

Phoenix made a growling sound deep down in her throat and then retreated to the weapons room.

“And now she’s mad.” Tristan worried.

“So what?” She’s been like that before.” Nathan said calmly.

“Yeah,” Tristan started. “She almost made a bomb detonate the last time someone attacked her personally.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Then, shouldn’t we keep her away from the weapons room?”

“We should,” Nathan shivered at the flashbacks.

“And normally we would,” Tristan added. “But she’s a trainer and soldier. Alfred and Hellen trust her.”

“They trust an impulsive girl with anger issues who could put us all in danger because she was pissed off by something?”

“When you say it like that . . .” He scratched the back of his head. “Honestly, I think it’s good that she’s a little rough.” Tristan said. “This is war.”

“Yeah, but we’re trying to make peace.” I corrected.

“Then why are you rebelling against the Hydras?” he asked.

“To make peace!” I repeated. That’s when I realized how stupid I sounded.

“We may be trying to bring peace to Stellaregno but we have to have a war, so we can fight for what’s right.” Tristan said.

“My head feels heavy,” Nathan complained.

“Same here.” Tristan said.

“Get some rest.” I suggested. “I’ll wake you up after a few hours.”

They didn’t hesitate. I trained all day long, it distracted me from my thoughts. But, at night, when I closed my eyes all those thoughts flooded my dreams. I dreamt of losing this war and that all my friends had disagreed to join me. I was left alone.

Those two words replayed in my head. Alfred and Bemus have been gone for seven days. Hellen says they should be back by now. We all think they’ll arrive today. But I doubt it because it’s getting late, the sky is purple and deep blue, the Constellations illuminated all of Crimsyn State. Tristan had volunteered to guard the entrance so we’d see them coming and open the barrier. Nathan offered to help me learn how to do it so I could help. But I declined. I hadn’t Stargazed in days. I was too scared to.

We were all pacing anxiously outside the Conference Hall building. Hellen was having a grown-ups meeting. Apparently, we all were still children and weren’t allowed inside. I talked to her about sending two more people to Aries or perhaps Geminus but my coaxing didn’t work on her. She was stubborn and finalized that it can only happen when Bemus and Alfred are back.

Anthony had just finished healing a broken bone, he was still nervous but he said the surgery went well. He was under supervision since it’s his first time. He still had his glasses on which made him look more mature. He only wore them while studying and right now he had a book in his hand which was about the stories behind Constellations. The Stars provided a good reading light for him.

Phoenix was blowing bubbles with her chewing gum and leaning against the building. Raelynn sat cross legged on the ground, she acted as if she had no interest in us, and she was more aloof than ever. Typical Aquarius. Nathan looked like he was ready to fight but his fear was greater than his bravery. Typical Pisces. He had his sword strapped to his belt but it dragged on the ground since it was too big for him. Anthony was a little moody but everytime Phoenix spat out a comment like:

or He’d get emotional and his voice would crack. Cancers. But I was glad we had so many people with different personalities and traits. It was actually a good thing. Even Phoenix. I could tell she was concerned about the situation but of course she didn’t admit it.

“What if they have been caught?” Nathan feared.

“Then I hope Bemus got beaten so much that he finally had some sense knocked into him,” Phoenix commented. I fixed her with a stare. Secretly, I thought she had a point.

“Then, at least they tried,” I said, praying Nathan was wrong.

“It’s getting late.” I yawned.

“No kidding,” Phoenix shot back.

“Why do you want Bemus to get beaten up?” Anthony almost yelled, “He’s dwelling on a person’s death, is that so bad?”

“That is not why I hate him.” Phoenix got defensive. “He’s been feeble and depressed ever since he got back from Hydrus. I think we can all agree he’s being overdramatic. What is he going to do, live his entire life in agony and pain? It’s time he moved on. That’s what we have to do, because this is war. As I said before, people die everyday. The least we can do is to make their deaths worth it.”

Then she muttered something in Latin which I understood, she cursed Bemus. Raelynn stared at her with her mouth wide open.

“Language!” Anthony demanded in a squeaky mouse voice. His hands were over Nathan’s ears, while the Pisces boy blushed in embarrassment.

Phoenix rolled her eyes and huffed. “Bemus deserves to be imprisoned and he is an . . .”

“Alright!” I stopped her foul words. “You don’t have to repeat it.”

I agreed with what Phoenix had said but she could’ve been nicer about it.

Hours past, the Conference Hall emptied out. Hellen stayed in her office and we waited for news from Tristan. Nathan decided to take his place so Tristan could get some sleep.

“Are you sure you can stay out here alone? At night?” Phoenix teased. Nathan just nodded.

“Don’t hurt yourself using that sword of yours.” She said with mock concern.

“Ignore her,” I whispered, even though she was out of earshot.

“Good luck.” Anthony patted Nathan’s head. Raelynn just grinned at him.

I fell asleep almost immediately. I didn’t realize how tired I was. We all were. But I was roused after what felt like five minutes of sleep, by Phoenix’s aggressive shaking. Her hair was a mess of black and red, she had her leather jacket on over her gray pajamas. She was still wearing her bracelets, the dirt from her boots indicated she had been outside.

“We need your help,” she said.

“With what?” I asked sleepily.

“We need to open the barrier and Nathan isn’t feeling well,” she explained, irritable. I didn’t bother fixing my hair or putting on my sweater. I jumped in my boots and raced Phoenix to the entrance of Crimsyn State. Raelynn, Nathan, Anthony and Tristan were there. Standing under their Constellations. I could see Alfred and Bemus outside of Crimsyn State, they were banging on the invisible barrier but I didn’t see any Sagittarius there.

Nathan was on his knees and he was holding his head. There were veins popping out of his forehead, his face was red and he squealed out of pain.

“He tried opening the barrier himself.” Phoenix announced before I could ask for an explanation.

“Who let him?” I raged.

“He was the only one awake when they arrived,” she told. “It’s a good thing Raelynn went to check on him and stopped him before he did anything too drastic.”

“Now what?” I wondered.

“Now, you take his place.” Phoenix said as a matter of factly.

“I can’t do that,” I squeaked, stepping back quickly.

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t know how.” A good excuse.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Phoenix said. “They have been standing outside for hours. It took us some time to wake everyone up and to calm down Nathan because he started hallucinating.”

I didn’t have time to protest. I decided to use both of my Constellations for this. I placed Virgo and Ophiuchus above me and I slowly powered them up.

“What are you waiting for?” Phoenix yelled from fifteen steps behind me. I thought she meant me but when I looked around I saw that no one else had started manipulating their Stars yet. Nathan convulsed. We ignored him, it’s not like we had much choice.

Expecting to feel like I was about to be in the same condition as Nathan, I fully powered my Constellations. It didn’t make me feel like I hadn’t slept in aeons or like I hadn’t had a meal in months. It made me a billion times more powerful. I felt like a little ball of energy.

A lot of things happened at once, all of our Constellations spread out their aura to the Summer Triangle and it’s Stars aligned. I glanced at the sky, my Constellations were the brightest. The barrier opened, Bemus and Alfred ran inside. We waited for more but a van drove into the garage where all the other vehicles were stored.

The barrier had been closed, everyone collapsed except me. I had subconsciously helped close a protective barrier around Crimsyn State but the Stars of the Summer Triangle were still aligned. I became aware of their alignment. I shall take the credit for that. I couldn’t stop conducting Virgo or Ophiuchus. I didn’t want to. It felt too good. Everyone was shouting my name but I couldn’t hear them, it was as if it was just me and the two Constellations. I was in a different place. Something yellowish started filling the sky, it looked like the sky was water and someone had dropped oil in it. The sky was still pink and orange but the yellow looked sickly with those colours.

“Annabelle, stop!” Phoenix and Raelynn yelled in unison. That’s when I reluctantly let go. I wasn’t dizzy or exerted, instead I felt well rested and better than before.

“You almost burned the barrier.” He stepped in closer and grabbed me by my shoulders. “Are you alright?”

I nodded. “I didn’t know I was doing that.”

“How are we going to repair it?” Raelynn said quietly. She massaged her temples.

“We’ll figure it out but for now I demand you explain why you did that.” Phoenix yelled.

“I don’t know,” I confessed. “It felt good.”

“That’s it?” She raised her eyebrows. “The rest of them fell like they were dying and you felt good?”

“Yeah,” I confirmed. She eyed me suspiciously. Tristan knitted his eyebrows, he was anguished, so was Anthony but he was still helping to rouse Nathan.

“Where’s Alfred?” I looked around, changing the subject.

“He’s helping Bemus, I think he got hurt,” a familiar voice answered. I nearly screamed with joy.

I turned to find Lewis shivering in the cold, besides for the fact that he was wearing ear muffs, gloves, snow boots and an enormous jacket. He was carrying a backpack and beside him was a suitcase.

“Lewis!” I yelped. Tristan’s pain washed away the second he saw his friend. We embraced each other. One down, two to go.