I try my best to ignore the wary looks she gives me, as we descend to the basement, and look the other way. But every time the stairs curved, and we were forced closer together into a tight round, she looks at me as if I am about to eat her alive.
We stand at either side of the levitating transporter."Open, Cal Transporter."
I have seen a lot of people operate transporters before, but I have never been the one making commands. It feels good! It feels like I am the one who has the authority. A feeling that I am not allowed to experience often.
Its titanium walls forms two gaps. Then, with a little rattling, eyes find their way out and start scanning us from top to bottom.
"Access granted. " The transporter finally announces in the same young boy voice as the palace.
"Where would you like to go, Lady Scarlotte?"
'Lady Scarlotte'! Oh, Callianne!
"The North-East gate of Sardiarre." I command in the straightest, most emotionless tone I can muster, despite my excitement.
The transporter beeps in response. Arms spawn at our sides and hold us firmly to our seats.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."
The transporter rushes through the basement, slamming my cheek against the back of my seat and causes my fire to shake vigorously with the wind. When we pass through the basement doors, I choke on the air and let out a few rough coughs.
"A-are you okay?" Luna screams over the roaring wind.
"Y-yes, I am fine. My body just takes time to adjust." Or something like that, according to what mother always says every time I am in the open air and cough like that.
I am not sure she heard me, or maybe she is just trying to keep communication with the 'monster' to the minimal, but she doesn't say anything else for the rest of the ride.
We speed through the dark of night, as silver lights gracefully twinkle by. Almost like the stars mother used to summon for Amber and me to play under as kids. I hope she gets better. I hope that she gets better and summons her stars once more.
My head falls forward, and slams back again. Then, nothing! We finally stop! I close my eyes and re-calibrate for a moment. When my head stops spinning, the stars in my vision disappear, and are replaced by small silver-lined buildings. Too small that I can't guess what their purpose could be.
I turn towards Luna. "Are we here?"
She shrugs, without even looking at me.
"Cal, did we arrive?"
"Yes, Lady Scarlotte. Would you like to exit?"
"Yes, please."
The hands that were holding us in place retreat to wherever they came from, and the doors open. I step out but take a while to find my bearings and remember how to walk.
The gates too iridescently glow silver. Standing here in front of them, I feel invisible compared to the height of bars that reach to the clouds. Between those bars, 'Sardiarre' is spelled from right to left – so it seems right from the other side of the gates – starting with a similar crowned 'S' to the one on top of Cal Palace.
"We need to get to Allure." I demand.
Two eyes unfold from the sides and blink at us a few times. "Access denied." The gates respond in Cal's voice.
The embers of my eyebrows fly to the sky. "Beg your pardon?"
"Access denied."
"Listen Cal, the queen is seriously sick. Have you seen her arm? Or her fire? She is burning out. And we are trying to save her. So, please let us through. I bet you don't want to be the one to kill the queen, do you?"
"Access denied."
"I don't understand! Why?"
"Maybe … you can try again?"
"It won't make a difference, Luna." I snap, letting out all my anger and frustration on her, which makes her take a few steps away. "But fine." I groan. "Please, let us go to Allure."
"Access denied."
Ugh! Those stupid gates!
"What are we going to do now?" Luna asks in a hushed voice.
"I don't know! I thought that you were the one that 'has been to Allure before'. You tell me."
"I-I don't know. I-I was only a kid when we moved here. And as far as I remember, the gates let us through right away."
"M-miss, how about you just…relax?" She whispers, as if afraid that she might say something wrong.
I follow her gaze and realize that my hands are balled into tight fists at my sides.
I release them and take a deep breath. "Sorry for yelling at you."
"It's okay." She smiles sincerely. "I understand you are worried about your mom. We all are."
I let out a defeated sigh. "Maybe I should have just let father choose someone more fit for this. Someone those stupid gates would let through!" I throw a frustrated arm in their direction.
"Are you kidding? It would have taken him an entire week of meetings and interviews, and blablabla. Even then he won't decide."
I laugh, so does she, and some of the tension between us dissolves into the air.
She turns to the gate. "Let me try."
"Hello, Cal Gate." She waves, and I can't help burst into laughter. "Mind if you allow us to get to Allure?"
"Access denied."
Despite the fact that I saw it coming, it is no less disappointing.
We eventually decide to go back to the transporter and rest, till the sky burns, so we find someone to ask for help. I can't sleep, though. How can I? Mother's life literally depends on how fast I'll get those lilies. Till now, we haven't made any progress, which is not promising. Luna doesn't seem to have a better luck with sleep either; she keeps turning left and right next to me.
I look out the window. The sky is dense and cloudy, as usual. It's like it's always angry. Except when mother is around. It decorates itself with the prettiest stars at her command.
"Cal, can you let me out?"
"Mmmm, where are you going?" Luna asks in a lazy sleep voice.
"I need to try something."
She was too sleepy to ask further.
I lay down on the cinder-covered ground, just like old times.
I take a deep breath. Here goes nothing. "Octavia, project the stars."
But nothing happens. The sky is still dark and cloudy as always. It's like the sky only likes mother, and only obeys her when she recites this incantation. Feeling too heavy with disappointment, I just lie there.
"Um-Miss?" I wake up to someone shaking me.
As I open my eyes, they are attacked by the brilliant light of the burning sky. Its daytime already! Overlapping murmurs attack my ears, telling me that people are awake now and are filling the once empty street.
"Miss? Are you alright?" Asks a concerned boy my age, looking down at me. "Why are you asleep in the middle of the street?"
"Hey! Watch where you're going!" He snaps at an older man who almost stepped on me.
I quickly stand up and dust off my dress, feeling extremely embarrassed to be found like this. How did I even sleep here?
"Thank you." I whisper, when he turns back to me.
He gently holds my arms and looks down at me, but as soon as his chocolate brown eyes made eye contact with mine. "Your eyes. They are blue. Ocean blue. Murderous bl-"
"Don't worry. I promise I can't hurt you. But if it makes you feel better…" I close my eyes. "There. But please don't leave me. I need your help."
I gestured behind me at the gates. "Th-the gates, they won't let me through. I-I need to get to Allure urgently. T-to get a remedy for my mother, because she is seriously ill."
"Well, that's odd. I live close by, and usually the gates let anyone through." His tone shifts with suspicion. "Is there a reason why the officials of Allure won't welcome you to their city?"
I shake my head. "No. No, my mother's been there a lot and they welcome her there just fine."
"I don't know." After a pause. "Well, I have got to go. My mom doesn't tolerate tardiness."
"Um-Scarlotte? Who is this guy?" Luna's voice.
"I was asking him if he could help us with the gates."
"Oh! Hello." Her tone becomes more eager. "Uh?"
"Aaron." He is still here. Good.
"Okay, Aaron, can you please help us? The gates won't let us through."
"Yeah, she was telling me. I am really sorry, but there is nothing that I can do."
"NO! Wait! Please help us!" Luna yells.
What? Is he leaving? I flutter my eyes open, and quickly grab his arm before he is gone. "Please, my mother's life depends on this."
He looks at me, but as soon as we make eye contact, he diverts his eyes to Luna. "Seriously, ladies, there is nothing that I can do."
He tries to pry his arm free from my grip, but I hold on firmly. "How about…" I take a deep breath.What I am about to say next will shock him. It is already shocking me. But it's the only way. I can't just let mother freeze. "How about you try… See if the gates will open for you… And, if they do, you'd help us get through when they open."
He stares at me, wide eyed. "You're crazy."
He quickly jerks is arm free from my grip and runs away. When he is at a safe distance, he looks back to check if I am following him. But how could I? I am pretty shocked of my request myself. I literally asked a total stranger to be my accomplice in a crime. I guess people do 'crazy' things when they are desperate.
I turn to my left, and find Luna next to me, totally frozen in her place. She opens her mouth a lot, but nothing comes out.
Eventually she suggests hesitantly. "H-how a-about you wait b-back i-in the tr-transporter? I-I'll get help, okay?"
I silently nod and march back to Cal Transporter. I think I have caused enough trouble for the day.
When she returns, she has a family of five – mother, father, two sons and a daughter – following at her heals. Each one of them is dragging an overly filled squeaky cart, which makes me wish I never had ears.
She turns back to the parents. "Wait here."
She slides into the transporter next to me. "Okay, here's the deal." She starts off hesitantly. "You see… We weren't granted access because we never asked for permission to get through."
"What do you mean? We did ask the gates to pass. We literally begged him."
"No, you don't understand." She is nervous. "We have to go to a travel tower, first. It's a tower, with a huge green light in the middle. A guard tells that light that you want to go to another city. It checks whether you are welcomed there or not. If you are, it tells this gate to let you through."
"Look, I am really sorry, Scarlotte. I forgot. This is my fault. I really am sorry. It's just that I was really young when I traveled, and I barely remember anything."
"And where is that 'travel tower'?" I ask, trapping a lot of harsh things I want to say right now behind gritted teeth.
"According to them." She gestures at the family that trailed her. "It's back in Central Sardiarre."
"What?" My voice comes out louder than it should.
"Yeah, and, by the way, I offered them a ride." She whispers it quickly, hoping that I don't catch it.
I look past her, at the people who will, apparently, be traveling along with us, and force a fake smile. They smile back, more genuinely.
"Hello." I try my best to make it sound more like a greeting and less like a scolding. "Please, have a seat. Cal, please make more room for five people."
The transporter expands from the sides at my command. Now, instead of having a tiny two-seater, the transporter's seat was as wide as a street bench.
"Oh! Thank you!" The mother smiled. "But what about our luggage?"
"Cal, can you do something about the carts?" I ask, getting more and more irritated.
"Just align them behind me and I will take care of it."
They join us in the transporter. The parents slide in next to Luna, and I get the children. Great. The little girl clumsily climbs onto the seat first, then crawls until she is right next to me. Too close next to me. She places her hand on my thigh, for support, to adjust herself, but I shove it off and she uses the seat instead. Then, her brothers follow her more easily.
"Wow! It's beautiful! Do you think it's beautiful?"
I ignore her, but she doesn't take a hint. She tugs at me and starts nagging. "Do you? Do you? Huh? Huh? Huh?"
"Yes, I find it … fascinating." Somehow, I find her sitting on my lap, her face uncomfortably close to mine. I grab her by her tiny waist and place her on the seat.
Because of the daytime crowd, Cal cannot move at the speed we moved at last night. At that speed, the kid would be stunned into silence. But unfortunately, that is not the case. Unfortunately, I am stuck with her climbing me, screaming in my ear, nagging while tugging my sleeve. Worst journey ever. And it is all thanks to Luna, who is currently having a civilized conversation with mature adults.
The transporter finally comes to a stop. "We have arrived to Cal Travel Tower." Cal announces.
Finally! I can't help but sigh with relief. This horrendous, noisy trip is over. Half of it. Less than half of it. We'll still have to go back to the gates, and to the gates of Allure. The thought of spending another moment with this girl alone gives me a headache.
"Excuse me," I demand, not even bothering to look at the children.
The boys get out easily. But when it is the little girl's turn, she takes her sweet time to crawl out. I take a deep breath, and look to the other side, and realize that the parents and Luna are already out, so I just slide out from their side instead.
The tower is huge. With a wide base, and a narrow tip, that I have to tilt my head backward to see. From up there, I can see a brilliant silver glow – sliver, not green like Luna said – coming out of it.
"Those kids are such a nuisance." I complain as we walk up the cinder-covered path that leads to the foot of the tower.
"Come on, it can't be that bad. They seem really cute."
"'Really cute'? Try sitting next to this little girl that climbs you, tugs your clothes, screams in your…"
"Okay, okay, I get it. If you want, when we get back, I'll sit next to them."
At first, the path seems to lead to a dead end at the foot of the tower, no entrance. But when we get close, the walls carve into a door that opens wide.
At the center of the round hall, an iridescent silver light, that illuminates the entire space, is surrounded by a fence.
"Hello, how may I help you?" Asks a woman's voice under a guard's helmet.
"We want to get to Allure." We reply in unison.
"Well, follow me." She guides us towards the silver glow.
Now that I am close enough, this 'fence' is not a fence at all. It is something like a board with lettered buttons on in it.
"Your Name?"
"Scarlotte."
She taps on the letters, and spells 'Scarlet'.
"No, Scarlotte. S, C, A, R, L, O, T, T, E."
"Oh, sorry. Cal, please from the top."
The silver glow emits a few tiny sparks, which weave together to spell 'sure'. She taps on the buttons again, in correct order this time.
"Surname?"
"Sardiarre."
"Oh! Your highness. I-I am sorry, I didn't － I am sorry," she stammers as she spells it on the keys.
"Its okay. I am not － I am not really royalty."
"Okay? Birth date?"
"13 Aidlynne 160"
"Reason of visit?"
The Queen is sick, and we need lilies to treat her. But I can't tell her that. If word spreads, it will be a disaster. "Do I really have to answer that?"
"If you can't, it's understandable." Though I can't see her face, I can imagine she must be wearing a fake smile.
She taps on the keys to spell 'personal reasons'. That's good. When she is done, tiny sparkles detach from the huge silver light, turn green and spell 'access granted'.
"Thank you, your highness." She turns to Luna. "Your turn, miss."
Luna dictates her credentials, and honestly, I am surprised to know that she is thirty-two years old. She looks so young, like she is just in her twenties, less than ten years older than me. But apparently not, she is twice my age!
When the lights approve, she beams. "All right! Have a safe trip to Allure!"
The transporter looks so odd when it's this wide, but the long mechanical hands holding the family's carts in line at the back are making it look more proportionate. This time, as promised, I sit in the adults' side, away from that little nuisance.
Cal eventually picks up the pace, when the sky burns out, causing my head to slam backwards. The little girl to lets out a piercing, non-ending scream. Ugh! Even when I am as away from her from her as possible, she is still a nuisance.
When we are in front of the gates, I take a deep breath. "I would like to get to Allure."
The mechanical eyes blink at me, and then the others in turn. "Access granted."
Yes, yes, yes. I calmly hop back into the transporter on the outside, but I am jumping up and down on the inside.