Chapter 10 The kingdom
Christmas Eve-Present Day
That night, after witnessing the strange light show, Sebastian made Makayla and Ethan swear they wouldn't say a word to the others. He was afraid they'd be scared to death. They had to act like nothing happened, especially since Grandma and Grandpa Hanks were coming first thing in the morning. Carefully, the three of them put the box back inside Makayla’s trunk, making every effort not to rub the pictures. No one said a word as they tried to erase any evidence they had been up there. Sebastian didn't want to move the trunks again, for fear of making too much noise, but mostly because he was afraid they would find something else just as crazy and frightening. He didn't think Ethan, or he for that matter, could handle anything else weird tonight.
After watching Makayla and Ethan go safely back to their rooms, Sebastian crashed onto his bed. He knew it was going to be a while before he was calm enough to sleep. He snorted. Sleep. Who could sleep after that? There’s some magical box and six mysterious trunks sitting in his attic and he was just supposed to fall asleep like nothing weird was happening? Yeah, right. Deciding he needed take his mind somewhere, anywhere but the attic, he grabbed his remote and flipped on the television. It was after midnight by now, and he knew late-night television sucked. He finally found old reruns of the A-Team, a show that had been the glory of his parents' generation. Still wide awake after three episodes, he decided to find something a little less action packed, hoping the boredom would put him under. He flipped the channels again, stopping when he found the movie “You've Got Mail.” Classic chick flick, he thought, but kept it on anyways. Twenty minutes later, he was sound asleep.
Sebastian found himself walking through a meadow with extraordinarily tall grass, even taller than the pictures of Africa his father brought home from his safaris. There were brilliant wildflowers randomly shooting over the grasses everywhere, making the meadow look like a patchwork of color. The sun was blindingly bright, brighter than he had ever seen in Ithaca. The sky was a perfect powder blue, the kind of sky any photographer can only dream of capturing. He was waist high in nature’s artwork, brushing the palms of his hands on the yellow and purple buds without having to bend down to do so. The flowers brought a sweet scent to his nose, an intoxicating aroma that was the most amazing scent he had ever smelled. Being a teenage boy, he didn’t pay attention to smells, especially the flowery kind, but how could you not notice that? The willowy grasses tickled his forearm as he continued to walk in the meadow. On either side of him were tree lines leading into thick forests. He could see birds flying in and out of the dense woods, swooping through the air and diving back down again to either land on the branches below or catch a meal. He thought that was weird, only having seen birds behave like that while fishing over the ocean. The trees were familiar to him, since he lived in a wooded area, but he noticed that their colors were brighter here. The reds and browns in the leaves seemed more distinct, more defined. It took him a moment to capture it in his mind. Common mundane colors he’d seen every day, seemingly crystal clear in depth and life in this place.
In front of him was a city, but it wasn't a city like he had ever seen. In fact, he wouldn't describe it as a city, but more like a kingdom. Running the length of the perimeter of the kingdom was a fortified wall, like one you'd find on the outside of a castle. But these walls weren't the usual stone faced exterior he expected to see. Instead the walls sparkled and shimmered in the bright sunlight, casting sparkling rays onto the ground in front. It reminded him of his mom's diamond necklace, the one with the pendant that glimmered in the sunlight. She used to wear it often when he was a child, and he had fond memories of sitting on her lap twirling it around and around in his hands.
In the center of the wall, there was a wrought-iron gate that stretched higher than the wall itself, making it clear that this was the entrance. The gate made an arch in the center, where the two halves met, and in the middle was a large oval crest embedded in the iron. In the center of the crest was a picture that was glaring in the sunlight. Sebastian tried to deflect the sun with his hand, while making out the shape within the crest. It looked like a lion holding a coat of arms in one hand and a spear in the other. There were brilliant rays of light projecting out of the body of the lion, as if they were exploding from the abdomen of the majestic creature. Again, like everything else in this meadow, the colors were brilliant, almost blinding to the eyes. When Sebastian looked past the gate, into the kingdom, he saw a central street that made its way to the heart of the city. Sebastian had to blink because he wasn't sure if he saw it correctly or if the sun was just too bright, but it looked like the street was gold in color. The sun shifted as the clouds above kept rolling across the artist sky, changing the focus from the meadow to the path like it was reading his thoughts. With the sun out of his eyes, Sebastian was able to more clearly see the magnificent city. The street, which was definitely made of pure gold, led to an enormous castle rising up from the center of the kingdom far above anything else he could see. It was sparkling in the sun, just like the wall, but looked like it had shimmering colors on the edges of the tall towers that extended toward the clouds. There were four towers, one in each corner of the castle and two central towers that rose taller still. On top of the central towers there were circular balconies that were outlined in a ridged stone pattern that was breathtaking. Sebastian looked more closely, and saw rocks embedded into the towers that were red, green, yellow and blue. The rocks were translucent and when caught by the sunlight, they cast rays of color onto the golden street below. It reminded him of the rocks in some of his mother's rings, the ones that she kept locked away in her safe. The sight was magnificent. Sebastian stood where he was, afraid to move, afraid to breath. He had never witnessed something so precious, so beautiful. He had seen a lot of priceless artifacts, and been to some of the nicest places in the world. Those seemed insignificant compared to what he saw now.
Suddenly the gates started to open and a woman was walking out toward him. She was walking in the traditional sense, but when he looked down at her feet, it seemed like they were hovering above the ground, never making contact with the meadow floor. Her blonde hair reached down to her waist and swayed with each step she took. Tiny, shiny dots in her hair reflected sunlight all around her, as if they were jewels embedded in the strands of her hair. On top of her head was a thin silver crown hardly noticeable compared to the whole of her beauty. Her body was tall and thin, making the silver satin gown that caressed her soft curves appear to be part of her gorgeous frame. The gown flowed around the radius of her feet, trailing behind her as she floated toward him. The toffee colored skin was lost against her thin face and pronounced cheek bones. This angel of his dream, pierced her gaze right into his, her smile crooked and full of secrets. Only then did Sebastian notice she adorned the same crest that was on the gate, blazing brilliant colors in her fragile crown, as if it alive. She was halfway to him when she stopped and beckoned him to make the rest of the journey toward her. He wanted to close the distance, for the appeal to go to her was stronger than any desire he had ever had. He had never wanted anything more than to run to her and go with her into the magnificent kingdom.
“Sebastian, you must come.” Her voice was like music, like a bow caressing a perfect note from a violin. It was enchanting and addictive. It was a drug.
Suddenly, her hand dropped, grabbing her stomach in torturous pain. Her face twisted and contorted. As she looked up toward the sky, tears started streaming down her cheeks. Her body writhed, as if she were being beaten by an invisible force. She began to call his name over and over, but instead of the perfection in her voice that he heard just seconds ago, this time her voice was saturated with sharp tones and piercing high shrieks. The clouds rolled over and formed into one massive cluster. They transformed into a hideous black blanket that began to stretch across the sky, covering the picturesque horizon. The castle in
the middle of the kingdom began to grow black and all its brilliance began to dull, turning shades of gray. Everything that was beautiful was turning hideous. The sounds that were enchanting were now shrieks of horror and death. The forests around him began to sway, dropping their leaves that were blackening in decay as they fell to the ground. There was nothing left to the majestic woods but bare branches and twigs. The meadow became a scorched land with no sign of life, and the dirt was like an abyss. Sebastian screamed at the top of his lungs. He wanted to run to the lady; he wanted to do whatever it took to save her. What was making her writhe in pain? What unseen force was destroying this most precious place? He tried to reach out to her, but he couldn't move. He tried to pick up his feet and force them in front of him, but the lower half of his body was glued in place. Why couldn't he get to her? Why couldn't he help? He began to scream again, this time not out of fear, but out of panic, out of anxiety. No one was there but him and the lady. No one was able to help. Then suddenly movement at the edge of the woods forced his eyes from the lady to the tree line that was now a pitiful sight. He saw his brothers and sister standing on the forest's edge, looking like they were ready for battle. They were cloaked in hooded wool capes, and each had a sword on their back and in their hands. They had boots that reached their knees, the kind you would wear on a long journey. They were standing, as if frozen in time, watching him. Why were they there? What were they waiting for? Couldn't they see the lady? Couldn't they hear her screaming his name? Run! Save her! He wanted to shout, but he couldn't find his voice. A fury began to ignite deep inside him, threatening to fester up to his mouth. An anger that burned so bright, it was tearing his insides apart. Sebastian willed it forward, calling it out of himself. Finally, it found its way up from the ashes of his emotions, from the buried place that he rarely allowed himself to go. Normally, he would do anything to push it down, to avoid the anxious feeling such anger would cause him, but he knew that this fury was the thing he needed to push himself forward. It slithered up his spine, like a snake racing to attack its prey, and seeped out of his hands, allowing them to move. It raced down his legs, escaping out his feet, separating them from the blackened floor. It burned his throat and grabbed his tongue, helping him to find his voice.
He looked at his siblings and then at the lady. He decided he had to save her himself. She was the most important thing that had ever mattered in his life. He ran to her with a force, a passion that he never thought himself capable of. He was halfway to her, when she screamed his name again. Only this time, her voice was the light musical tone it had once been. Sebastian stopped and everything returned to the brilliant glory he so desperately wanted to see.
The lady looked at him with a smooth expression and motioned toward his siblings. “Sebastian, you must lead them. You must find a way to save us. We are hoping for you!”
Suddenly Sebastian found himself on his knees, too ashamed to look at the lady. Guilt was overriding him, shame for not coming to her the second she needed his help. Why was he so afraid? What was it that had paralyzed him? When he raised his head, the look in her eyes spoke of such perfection, such love, that he couldn't bear it. He threw his face to the ground once more. He knew then that he would die a thousand deaths to save her. He would endure the worst torture to get to her. When he looked up again, she was gone.
Sebastian sat up in his bed, sweat covering his entire body. He rubbed his eyes, giving himself a minute to return to his senses. Collapsing back on his pillow, he rolled over and screamed into the pillow, so that no one could hear him. Could anything get weirder than this? He didn't think so.