Somehow, deep down, I was already expecting this. But that doesn’t make it any less of a shock.
My head is spinning and I am dazed, my vision swimming in and out of focus.
Gretta. She’s Gretta. I’m in the Kingdom of Stella. Oh my god, I’m inside the book!
Whatever happened to Kyrstin?
I shake my head, wildly. I’m not going to let this get to me. I’ll be okay.
And as I have so many times before, I shut out my thoughts and let my mind take over as I speak, trying to burn out any notion of fear.
“I’m Aurora,” I say.
“Aurora…the beginning? The light of the dawn…” her expression is thoughtful.
Surprised, I nod. “Yes! How did you know?” I ask.
Gretta simply tilts her head, her eyes twinkling mischievously. “It’s a beautiful name.”
The vehicle gives a lurch, and we plummet forward, grins melting off our faces. I suddenly remember the situation that we're in, and my stomach drops. This isn't even my world anymore; what is going to happen to me? I shake my head, tears threatening to take over my self control again.
"We're in a skypod, by the way," comes Gretta's voice from in front of me.
I'm shaken back into reality. "A sky--what?"
Gretta looks at me, an odd expression on her face. It quickly morphs into something like...approval? Shaking my head, I clear my thoughts. I'm overthinking.
"A skypod...the transportation method of Stella?"
Oh. "Of course! I'm sorry, I zoned off a little bit there."
I internally scold myself for not acting upon my extensive knowledge of the world of the book that my nose has been in most of my life. A skypod is similar to a car, but longer, wider, and rounder. It doesn't have wheels--instead, it flies.
"It's alright," she looks amused. "I saw it when they captured me. It's an old model, so it's slow."
She takes a deep breath before declaring her next statement.
"We have to make a run for it."
"Wait, what? How? I could never outrun those thieves!" I am starting to become nauseous--the simple thought of attempting to escape and possibly getting caught again is enough to make my insides pound with terror.
"It's okay, Aurora. We can do it! Just like you said, we're smarter than the thieves, and that gives us an advantage. The moment I yell, you have to follow me as fast as possible. We need to get out of their camp."
Shivering and not speaking for fear that my voice might give away my emotions, I nod. Gretta gives me a reassuring glance before turning around and getting to work. From what I can see, she is fiddling with something in her hands, probably meant to help us escape. I take in my surroundings. It's dark and cramped. For the first time since we've been in the skypod, I notice the heat. It is creeping up, threatening to seize the contrived, fragile calm that we have created. I take off my jacket, exposing my shoulders to the air.
The aircraft lurches again, and this time it won't stop. My breath quickens, each one coming out shorter and faster. It seems like my lungs don't have enough air. The skypod's jerking forward, toppling backwards, wobbling everywhere. I can't see anything because the trunk that we are located in has gone dark, every inch of light sucked into the whimsical matte of black.
"The light must have gone out in the skypod's control area!" Gretta shouts.
I nod to myself, simply thinking, because panic has driven my entire body to numbness. That makes sense; the only reason that we were even able to see a little bit was because of the light from the control center slipping through the cracks in the doorway. If the light went out, then we're probably about to crash.
Cold joy seeps through me, almost mockingly. Time has spun into nooks of woven yarn, slowing down as if striding through a solid wall. My face has been forced into an expression of fake, blissful peace. Gretta is trying not to scream. Isn't she? I can see her throat moving, and then it hits me. Wait, she's talking to me! I wonder what she's saying? I can't hear her...
What if it's a warning?
Too late to register what or anything she said, I feel pure agony as a deafening smack echoes through the pod. My head is wrenched forward, and I hear a snap as my vision goes blurry. The pain has blotted out any kind of sense that I may have left, and unthinkingly, I clumsily stand up. I put a hand to my head and wince as I teeter to one side, remove my hand, and see something like blood. I laugh. This is crazy! Why don't I just leave? I start to walk, but I fall backwards. Somehow, something prevents me from hitting my head on the hard floor of the craft.
My face wet with sobs, I don't know when or how they came. All I know is that I am frustrated, and that there is something I need to do. A moment of clarity strikes my blurry vision, and I find myself suddenly wanting to strangle the thieves who kidnapped Gretta and I.
Shards of metal are spiraling off of the walls, sharp and ready to pierce the intangible chaos. They are swiveling, around and around. The skypod is going to burst.
The world suddenly becomes a pulsing mass of green and red. The colors dissolve into the black of the pod, and my eyes fall shut.
I cannot see anything but the darkness behind my eyes.
ns 18.68.41.180da2
