The Tenth Virtue: Challenged

Chapter 1

Looking down toward my feet, I find myself surrounded by something fluffy and white. I kick at it and it puffs up around my shins before settling back down.

Is this a cloud?

I stomp my foot on the ground, half-expecting my foot to keep going down, but it stops and my leg jolts from the shock. I’m definitely standing on something solid.

Briancka is standing next to me, rubbing her little hands over various eyes on her face. One eye blinks open and then shuts again to let another blink open. It’s too bright!

I guess there is a downside to having that many eyes after all. It’s not that bright anymore. You just have to open your eyes again a little longer. See?

She squints her two main eyes that are in the same spot as mine. I see tears well up and trickle down her face as she opens them a little wider. She wipes the back of her hand across her cheek, catching a trailing tear, and then blinks again. Where are we?

I’m not sure. I watch as she looks down at her feet and kicks the white puff like I did.

Briancka’s eyes grow wider as she draws in a deep breath and holds it. Her cheeks are puffed out and her lips are pursed as she steps out of the white puff she kicked up.

I don’t think these are like the puffs from J’s world. I reach down and run my fingers through it, only feeling cool dew cling to my skin. See? I reach my hand out to her and watch as her lips open and a rush of air floods out.

Oh. Then what is it? She reaches down and swirls her fingertips through the white billows just below her knees. And why can’t I see anything else? It’s just white, puffy stuff everywhere.

I had noticed that too. As soon as my eyes adjusted from stepping through the portal, it didn’t open up into anything like where Briancka is from. There isn’t any green grass or trees here. In fact, there doesn’t seem to be anything here.

I think it’s a cloud; a cloud on top of something. I stomp my foot again and her eyebrows scrunch together as she watches my foot hit something hard under us.

She stretches out her right leg, first feeling with her toes, and then takes a step closer to me. It’s funny that she didn’t do that when she was trying to get away from the puff. I guess she was more concerned about the deadly flecks than falling off whatever it is we’re standing on.

She gingerly makes her way over to me and bends over. At first, it looks like she's staring at my feet, or where my feet should be. I can’t even see my feet in this cloud. The white puff swirls around my legs as she stares quietly.

I watch as she starts frantically waving her hand at my feet. What are you doing?

We’re standing on something. I wanna see it. She waves harder and harder and the cloud begins to dissipate. First I see my ankles and then the tops of my shoes. I reach down and wave my hand the way she is and we are finally able to part the cloud and see something brown and hard.

Is that …

A rock! We’re standing on a rock! Briancka stands up so quickly that she narrowly misses banging her head into my chin.

How could we be standing on a rock? It’d have to be a big rock for both of us to be on it. I wiggle my feet around, sliding to the left to feel just how big this rock is, but I don’t feel an edge.

Maybe it’s a giant boulder like the kind that J has back in his world. Maybe it’s so big that this whole place is one big rock! Briancka’s eyes get bigger as her excitement grows and she clasps her hands together. What if we’re at the tippy-top of the whole realm?!?

How could that be? Where would we go from here? I grip the strap of my pack and am comforted by the weight of my belongings pulling at my shoulder.

I don’t know, but you’re not as smart as the Monarch, so just because you don’t know doesn’t mean it isn’t so. She reaches down into the cloud and it creeps up her arm as she starts feeling around with her hands. She drops to her knees and crawls around me, bumping into my leg.

Hey! Be careful! I don’t want to fall off.

Briancka is singing and slapping her hands on the rock to a beat that only she seems to know. Tap, tap, tappity tap, where is the edge…

I move my feet a little and watch the cloud billow around her as she scoots around. Sometimes she’s braver than I give her credit for.

Out of the corner of my eye, a bright flash of light pulses and moves the cloud away from it. It’s as if a huge gush of air has hit it.

What was that? Briancka stops singing and tapping, but stays crouched as the white puff swirls around her shoulders.

I don’t know. I stoop down lower and try to squat under the white puff in hopes that I can hide a little. Whatever that was, I’m not so sure I want it to find us when we don’t know how far we can run, if at all.

Another flash pulses and the cloud around us floats away, leaving us exposed. Briancka flails her arms as though she’s trying to scoop the cloud up and move it back around her. It reminds me of when I was little and would play in the bubble bath that Miriam would run for me. I wanted to scoop all of the bubbles up around me so that I could hide in them.

Is that l-l-lightning? Briancka stutters as she scoots closer to me.

It kinda looked like lightning. Maybe that’s all it was …

Another flash of white pulses, bigger than the other two, but this time, the aftershock of it blows away all of the cloud. I can see the brown rock that we’re standing on and it’s huge.

I-I don’t like lightning. Briancka wraps her tiny arms around my left leg.

What are you two doing here? A girl’s voice asks from behind us.

Chapter 2

Who said that? I spin around, knocking my leg loose from Briancka’s grip.

I did, the voice says, now on the other side of me.

Aaaahhhh! It touched me! Briancka scurries away from me. I can see the cloud is starting to float back in to where it was before the lightning flashed.

A little melodic giggle tinkles around me and, now that the cloud is coming back, I can see it move with the voice. Who are you?

I was once one, but now I am many, the strange voice says, now in front of me. It's so close that I swear I can feel its breath on my face.

I know that saying, but when I look over to where I last saw Briancka, she’s still there. Could this be one of Briancka’s parts?

Briancka is sitting in the cloud in front of me, but strange ripples are moving through the air in between us making her look wavy. What are you doing over there?

Me? Briancka raises a hand to her chest and a couple of eyes pop open on her cheeks.

Yes, you. You’re all wavy.

The giggle tinkles again from in front of me and, now that the cloud had drifted back in like it was when we first arrived here, I look down at my feet. There’s an open circle in front of me where the cloud is missing and I can see the rock that we’re standing on. I stretch my arm out in front of me and my hands stops when it bumps into something that I can’t see.

Ouch! Why would you do that?

The void in the cloud moves away from me. Now it’s going toward Briancka. Briancka! Move! It’s coming for you!

What is wrong with you two? The voice sounds irritated, but it’s not as close to me anymore.

The cloud that has drifted back in suddenly starts to swirl up onto itself and another flash of light blinds us both. I raise my hand up to my eyes and turn my face away. I can see green spots when I open my eyes from the flash. I rub my eyes with my hands and, just as the green spots start to dim, something touches my arm.

Wha … I flinch and pull my arm back as I turn to see a girl’s face looking back at me. Who are you?

The girl standing in front of me is almost my height with long, brown hair like Briancka’s, but her eyes sparkle like emeralds, and she has tiny whiskers sticking out of either side of her nose. My name is Amaryl. I am the gatekeeper.

I’M A GATEKEEPER TOO! Briancka jumps to her feet and runs over to Amaryl. Are you one of my parts?

Amaryl takes a step backward and looks at Briancka with her eyebrows pushed together, making a crease in the middle of her forehead. I don’t have any parts. They were all destroyed.

No I wasn’t. What are you talking about? We were split apart, silly! Split apart to be the gatekeepers until the time was right when we could be put together again. Like now! Briancka’s eyes all open and she starts clapping her hands. Just as she reaches out to touch the new gatekeeper, Amaryl takes another step back.

No, I don’t have any parts. Maybe you do, but I, I don’t. Plus, wouldn’t your parts look more like you? I don’t look anything like you, do I? Amaryl turns toward me and Briancka does the same.

It’s as if I’m looking at an older cat-like version of Briancka. There’s definitely a resemblance. I look down to Briancka, who comes up to Amaryl’s shoulder, and when she turns her face up to me, I see the same face shape and the same hair but Amaryl’s eyes and nose are different. How many eyes do you have, Amaryl?

Two. See? I don’t look like you, she says as she turns toward Briancka. Plus, I have these. She reaches up and gently pulls on the whiskers sticking out of her face.

You must help them, little one.

Guide? How can I help them? They don’t even know each other.

You’ll know how when the time is right.

Do you have a wheel? J said that you would have a wheel. You have a wheel don’tcha? Briancka walks around Amaryl and pokes at her legs with her little fingers.

How did you know that? Amaryl turns toward me, her eyes wide. How did she know that?

We had a friend in the last realm that told us stuff.

Stuff about me? Who is this? I don’t know anyone in any other realms. Who are you two? Amaryl backs away from us.

His name is J, just J, even though it’s really not. And he’s the post master of the Prison World. He’s kinda nice but he wasn’t at first. Briancka rambles on for a minute and then looks up at me. She’s the tenth.

Nice. I place my hands on my hips and shake my head at Briancka. You could’ve warmed her up a little before slamming her with that bit of info.

I - I was just trying to help. She’s my part and I want my parts to know everything … everything I do. Briancka grips her hands together in front of her as her two eyes get huge like saucers.

I reach over and put my arm around her shoulders. It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean anything by it. I look toward Amaryl and say, She’s right. I’m the tenth.

Amaryl stares at me and then looks toward Briancka. The tenth what?

Briancka spins around toward me and tugs on the front of my shirt. J said everyone knew. Everyone everywhere in all of the realms. Patrina, how doesn’t she know? She’s my part! How doesn’t she know?

I’m not your part and I don’t know what being the tenth has to do with anything, but you need to get out of here. No one is allowed through and if you’re here too long, he comes. Amaryl glances around us and when I follow where she’s looking, I see something off to our left that looks like the mouth to a cave.

He who? I can feel my feet start to tremble. Is it because I’m afraid? Or is that the ground moving under me?

You’ve gotta go back! Amaryl moves toward us with her hand out, shooing us backward.

I reach out and push her hands away, pulling Briancka in toward me with my arm. We don’t have anywhere to go!

You can’t stay here! He’s coming! Amaryl lunges at us like a cat and, when we try to dodge her, we fall backward into the cloud we’ve been standing in, except this time, we keep falling.

Chapter 3

PATRINA! Briancka yells from my side as we fall down under the cloud and hit with a thud on a cliff shelf just below it.

Ugh! My back hits something flat and hard like the ground we were standing on up there. When I open my eyes, I can see the cloud above us, and suddenly, Amaryl’s head pokes through the cloud just over the edge of the cliff we fell off. Her hair falls down around her face and parts at the top, revealing two pointy cat ears.

Are you two okay?

Briancka jumps to her feet, slams her hands onto her hips and yells up at Amaryl, What do you care?!? You just pushed us off a cliff! How can you be my part? My part wouldn’t have done that to me!

I’m not your part! How many times do I need to tell you that?

I struggle to sit up, arching my back in an effort to get it to stop hurting as I look up at both of them. Actually, you are.

What? They both say in unison as they turn toward me.

Actually you are, you’re both part of one another, however you say it. The Guide told me. I turn to my side and push myself up onto my feet. Once I get all the way up, my head spins and I close my eyes, reaching out my hand and finding Briancka’s shoulder to steady myself.

When I open my eyes, they’re both staring at me. Briancka yanks her shoulder away from my grip and stomps her foot. The Guide told you? When? When were you going to say something? I thought you were my friend, but you didn’t say anything this whole time and now we’re stuck down here and she’s up there and I can’t get to her.

"How can you talk to The Guide?" Amaryl ignores Briancka’s temper tantrum and her eyebrows raise up as though she’s interested in what I have to say.

He talks to me. Well, he talked to me first. I can kinda talk to him … sometimes. I don’t even know how to explain how The Guide talks to me when Briancka gives me a goofy look. What?

We know how The Guide talks, silly. He talks to us too. Briancka rolls her eyes. I see the ones on her cheeks roll in unison under the lids making her face ripple.

"I just didn’t understand why The Guide would talk to you. Amaryl adjusts herself on the cliff just as the ground shakes again. We have to get you two out of here."

Briancka crosses her arms across her chest and stomps her foot again. I’m not going anywhere without my other part.

The ground shakes again, vibrating under my feet and I lose my balance. Whoa! I reach out and grab Briancka’s shoulder and she grabs my hand. What’s making the ground shake?

Amaryl clutches the edge of the cliff and rubble breaks off, sprinkling onto the ground in front of us. The one who roams the realms.

I push Briancka closer to Amaryl so that we’re standing just underneath her. Nobody can just roam the realms. That’s why there’s gateways.

The Six can roam them. Amaryl creeps over the edge a little more and sticks her arm down to us. C’mon, you need to come back up here to get out.

Who are The Six? I bend down and hook my arms around Briancka’s waist to hoist her up to Amaryl.

Amaryl stops mid-stretch as she looks at me. Her eyes narrow and her whiskers twitch as her stare becomes uncomfortable. You know The Guide, but you don’t know who The Six are?

Even I know who they are and I was more sheltered than you, silly! Briancka squirms in my arms and turns to me to give me a look that makes me feel dumb. Good thing I’m your protector!

Amaryl stretches to reach Briancka’s hand, but she’s just out of her reach. "You? You’re her protector?"

"We’re her protector! Briancka lunges to reach Amaryl’s hand and just when I think we’ve got it, Briancka’s hand passes right through Amaryl’s. Hey! Why didn’t you grab me?"

I did! Why didn’t you grab me?

I did!

Look, I don’t know what just happened but if you can’t grab her hand, then you’re going to have to pull me up first. I set Briancka down next to me and she fixes the frilly edge on her dress.

Amaryl scoots back a little on the edge of the cliff. She’s too short. If I pull you up here, we won’t be able to reach her. And you’re the only one who can touch her apparently.

I run my hand over my face and I can feel the grit on my skin from when we fell. Then you’ll have to come down here and we’re going to have to find another way through.

Amaryl shakes her head. There isn’t another way. You have to go through the cave up here. That’s the only way through to the next realm.

Then you two are going to have to concentrate and use both hands or something. I reach over to Briancka and wrap my arms around her waist again.

Hey! Be careful! Briancka squirms and reaches to pull her dress down. I just fixed that!

I’m trying, but I have to get you up as far as I can. I shuffle her around a little and pull her dress back down. Ready?

Yeah, I guess, but it’s not gonna matter. She won’t grab my hand. She’s a poopy face.

I’m a what? How do you deal with her? Amaryl looks at me and her eyebrows are scrunched together making a line in the middle of her forehead and wrinkles down her flat, pointed nose.

We’re working on her people skills. Here. With one huge motion, I launch her at Amaryl and I watch as both of Briancka’s hands melt into both of Amaryl’s hands just before a bright flash of light blinds me.

I close my eyes and feel Briancka disappear from my grip as a rush of cold air passes over me and I cover my face with my arm.

Chapter 4

I open my eyes and can feel tears trickling down my face from the flash. I wipe the back of my hand across my cheek and try to focus. Briancka is gone. I look up at the cliff edge and I don’t see Amaryl either.

Guys? Are you there? The ground rumbles under my feet again as goosebumps rise up on my arms.

Another flash lights up the cloud overhead and I hear a rustling above me. If there was anywhere