“Rey! How dare you eat my Marigold Surprise?!” Krystal shouted.
It was a casual Wednesday at Ringmasters Training Academy. In the afternoon, Sana, Rey, Krystal, and Prince were hanging out in the sophomore lounge area during their break time. Of course, things weren’t casual for long.
“I didn’t know it was yours,” Rey said as he finished eating the Marigold Surprise.
“I left it on the table to go get some water. Did you not hear me say that to everyone?”
“You sure you said that?”
“Ugh! Even so, you just eat food left on the table that you clearly didn’t buy?! Like a heathen!” Krystal exclaimed. “And why did you two not do anything about it?”
“I was in the bathroom,” Sana said.
“I just didn’t care,” Prince said.
“Ugh!” Krystal exclaimed. “You owe me another one!”
“What is happening?” Neil asked as he came up to the group in the lounge.
“Rey ate my Marigold Surprise,” Krystal said.
“Big deal. You can get another one,” Neil said. “Anyway, Devil apparently wants us in his office.”
“What?! Who told you that?” Rey asked.
“My brother casually dropped that while I was walking by in the hall,” Neil said. “Quite rude if you ask me.”
“You guys better not have done anything,” Sana said.
“Knowing them, trouble is their best friend,” Prince said.
“Oh, shut up, Prince!” Krystal exclaimed. “Let’s just get this over with!”
***
Rey, Krystal, and Neil headed straight to Headmaster Devil’s office. Once they went inside, they found Headmaster Devil wasn’t alone. He was with Professor D’Sena.
“Professor D’Sena?” Krystal said.
“Hello, kids,” Professor D’Sena said. “Should I stay for this?”
“No, Arun,” Headmaster Devil said. “I’ll take it from here.”
Professor D’Sena nodded and headed out of the office. Krystal was confused and could see Rey and Neil were as well.
“So, what’s going on?” Krystal asked.
“You three should probably know,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Know what?” Rey asked.
“Professor D’Sena just informed me that you three didn’t do so well on your recent exam,” Headmaster Devil said.
“What?! I actually studied this time,” Rey said.
“Hold on. He didn’t even hand them back to us yet,” Neil said.
“I know. But he informed me that you all are now on the verge of not passing the class this quarter,” Headmaster Devil said.
“What?!” Krystal exclaimed. “That’s impossible. I had a B this quarter.”
“Yeah, and now you currently hold a solid seventy,” Headmaster Devil said. “Needless to say, it’s not looking good for you three. You know that Combat Strategies I is a crucial class to pass this year.”
“We’re not getting kicked out of the academy, are we?!” Neil asked.
“No, but I did talk to Professor D’Sena just now. He’s giving you three an opportunity that could ensure you three don’t fail this quarter,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Okay, what is it?” Rey asked.
“Well, he wants you three to write a six-page paper on the importance of combat strategies and how they’re applicable to real life scenarios,” Headmaster Devil said. “That shouldn’t be too hard.”
“Six pages? When is it due?” Neil asked.
“Professor D’Sena wants it by class tomorrow,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Ugh! How can I write a six-page paper by tomorrow?!” Krystal exclaimed.
“That’s why he wants you to write it together,” Headmaster Devil said. “A group paper.”
“Suddenly it gets worse,” Krystal said.
“It’s a pretty fair opportunity. As long as you get at least a B on the paper, you three will pass this quarter,” Headmaster Devil said. “You three can work on it at the library after school. Shouldn’t be too hard, right?”
Krystal sighed. Rey looked at Neil and could tell he was feeling just as irritated.
***
After school, Rey, Krystal, and Neil went to the library to begin work on their paper. Krystal was going through the many sections of books to find relevant materials, Rey was going through the bits of lectures he recorded on his phone, and Neil was staring at his laptop screen. As Krystal arrived back to the table with the books, she sighed and said, “What are you two doing?! The laziness here is unacceptable.”
“Hey, I’m actually doing something here!” Rey exclaimed. “I’m looking through the lectures I recorded in class.”
“Those blurry videos with poor audio?” Krystal said.
“It beats trying to learn from a book,” Rey said. “I’m a visual learner. The only reason I did bad on that exam was because I forgot to study.”
“And your excuse is what?” Krystal asked Neil. “I told you to start writing the intro, and you’re just staring at the screen.”
“I have writer’s block,” Neil said. “And since when are you such a taskmaster for school? Isn’t that Sana’s thing?”
“Because of you guys, I’m missing out on the release of the new Reshawna Fruit Fest bag collection,” Krystal said as she sat down at the table. “I was going to snag the Strawberry Milkshake bag at the mall, and now it’s probably sold out! Ugh.”
Krystal sighed. She looked at Neil’s laptop screen and said, “I don’t even know how to start this paper.”
“I would’ve rather gone on some mission where we kick some ass,” Rey said. “Writing about fights isn’t exactly as fun as actually fighting.”
“Well, we can’t sit here and complain all day,” Neil said. “The sooner we finish this, the better.”
Krystal got ready to crack open one of the books. As she opened one, she noticed one of the books fell on the floor. She got up to pick it up but was puzzled. It didn’t look like a book that she picked up from the shelves. It had a lavender cover and gold writing on the front that was in a language she didn’t recognize. There was a small golden fairy in the top right corner as well. She knew she had to focus, but she couldn’t help but be intrigued.
“What are you doing, Krystal?” Rey asked.
“Oh, I just picked up this book by mistake,” Krystal said as she put the lavender book on the table. “It looks really cool though.”
“What language is the writing?” Neil asked.
“Not sure,” Krystal said. “Maybe we can open it and see what’s inside.”
“I thought we were supposed to focus on the paper,” Rey said.
“We are. This is just a quick peak,” Krystal said.
Krystal opened the cream pages of the book. As soon as she opened it, the book emitted a golden glow that stunned her, Rey, and Neil. Suddenly, she could feel herself being pulled into the book along with the others.
The three of them screamed as they were pulled into a golden portal. After a few fleeting moments, they fell onto a ground. Krystal could feel her back was hurting from the fall. She quickly grabbed her wand, which had fallen on the ground. As she grabbed it, she noticed something different. Her clothes had been changed. She was now wearing a long-sleeved orange dress with intricate gold embroidery.
“Damn, what the hell just happened?” Rey asked as he got up along with Neil.
“Your clothes! They changed,” Neil said to Krystal. He looked at Rey, seeing him in a white long-tunic, blue billowy pants, and brown boots. He looked at himself to see he was dressed in the exact same outfit. “I changed clothes! What the hell just happened?!”
“I just asked that,” Rey said.
Krystal was puzzled. She couldn’t understand what was going on. The more she pondered over it, the clearer it became to her.
“I think…we maybe got transported into the book,” Krystal said.
“What?!” Neil said.
“Wait, she might be right. Things went whack when she opened the book,” Rey said. “What did it say on the cover?”
“I don’t know. I couldn’t read it,” Krystal said. “Though there might’ve been a fairy in the corner of the cover.”
“Fairy tales! We must be in a book of fairy tales,” Neil said.
Krystal couldn’t believe it, but the more she processed it, the more she realized how true it was.
“This can’t be happening. So, what fairy tale involves clothes like these?” Krystal asked.
Before anyone could answer, Krystal heard the sound of loud thumps. She turned around along with Rey and Neil, horrified at what she saw. A giant three-eyed dark beast that had the form of a bear was coming towards them. The creature roared at Krystal, Rey, and Neil.
“Maybe we should run and discuss this later,” Rey said as he took off.
Krystal and Neil followed Rey, running off as the dark beast chased them with its loud thumps. It didn’t take long for the dark beast to start launching dark energy beams their way. The trio kept running, dodging each one.
“I thought you two were always in a fighting mood,” Krystal said to Rey and Neil.
“Not when we’re being chased by a giant bear!” Neil exclaimed.
“Look! There’s a little cave thingy!” Rey pointed out.
Rey quickly led Krystal and Neil towards the cave he found. He pushed the green branches away and headed inside with Krystal and Neil, making sure the dark beast didn’t see them. They sat down and Rey took a deep breath.
“That was scary as hell,” Rey said. “Man, I’ve never seen anything like that.”
“I’m confused. I’m scared,” Neil said. “What the hell is happening?!”
“Neil’s the one that said we’re in a book of fairy tales,” Krystal said. “What fairy tale is this?”
“I don’t know,” Neil said. “First off, none of the fairy tales I’ve read mentioned dark beasts in them.”
“Wait a sec. Krystal, was there any writing on the book?” Rey asked.
“Yeah, but it was in another language,” Krystal said. “Why?”
“Well, our clothes and the giant monster remind me of this Indian fairy tale that Sana told me about once,” Rey said. “I don’t remember the Sanskrit title, but it translated to Three Kids and a Giant.”
“So, we’re in an Indian fairy tale book?” Neil asked.
“I guess so,” Rey said. “But it doesn’t explain why we got sucked into the book. Also, the monster in that tale is a ten-headed giant. So, why the change?”
“I don’t know what’s worse between the monster we got and that one,” Neil said.
“Okay, so, does this fairy tale book have some kind of spell on it? I mean how else can you explain us getting sucked into the book,” Krystal said. “Whatever spell was cast on it must’ve transformed the creatures in the stories into dark beasts.”
“Creatures?! Let’s deal with the story we’re in right now,” Neil said. “Rey, what do you remember about this story?”
“Ugh, it’s kinda fuzzy,” Rey said. “There were three characters that were being chased by the giant. That’s all I remember right now.”
“Well, that’s certainly not helpful,” Krystal said.
“Krystal, it’s something. Anyway, we should be focusing on getting out of here,” Neil said. “Maybe there’s some passageway that leads us out of the book.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Rey said. “Maybe the end of this cave can lead us out somewhere.”
Krystal nodded as she got up along with Rey and Neil. The three kept moving through the cave till they reached the other side. Once they stepped outside, Krystal took in the surroundings. The scent of fresh jasmine flowers was in the air and the trees were covered in a variety of greenery.
Rey looked ahead, seeing the sun was still bright as ever. He wondered how time worked within the world of the story they were in. There were hundreds of other questions on his mind as well, but he had to focus on getting out.
“I don’t see the giant bear in sight,” Rey said. “Maybe if we keep walking, we’ll find an exit.”
“Sounds good. Let’s go,” Neil said.
Krystal was about to follow Rey and Neil until she could feel her foot press down on something. She looked down, seeing what looked like an arrow imprinted within the grass. She fell through the ground, screaming as a bright glow surrounded her.
“Krystal!” Rey shouted as he turned around with Neil. It was too late. Krystal had disappeared.
“Damn it. Where did she go?” Neil asked.
“I don’t know.”
Before Rey could even think of what to do, he heard the same giant thumps from before. He looked up along with Neil to see the giant dark beast had returned. As it roared at them again, Rey and Neil ran forward. They ran as fast as they could until they smacked into something that made them fall back. Rey was puzzled as he didn’t see anything in their way. He got up, trying to run again only to fall back again.
“What’s happening?!” Neil exclaimed. “Why can’t we keep going?!”
“I don’t know! It’s like there’s some kind of barrier!”
“So, we’re trapped?!”
Rey could barely think as the dark beast was getting closer to them. He could feel the pressure as he didn’t know what to do.
***
Krystal opened her eyes, feeling the heaviness of her pounding head. She sat up, finding herself to be more confused than ever. She was now in a soft pink bedroom that had intricate paintings hanging on the walls along with the usual essentials like a dresser, nightstand etc. What was jarring to her were the steel bars on the window that looked like they were in place to keep her locked up. She looked at her dress, seeing it had changed again. This time she was wearing a bejeweled lilac blouse with a matching skirt. The thing that made her most confused was her hair. It was now incredibly long, tied in a braid that reached all the way to the floor.
“What the hell is going on here?!” Krystal said.
***
Back at Ringmasters Training Academy, Sana was heading over to the library. As she walked towards the door, she saw Zayn was heading there as well.
“Hey, Zayn,” Sana said as she walked up to him.
“Oh, hey, Sana.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to check out some books here before they close. What about you?”
“I came to check on Rey. I tried calling him, but he didn’t answer.”
“He’s probably just busy, but we can check.”
Sana and Zayn entered the library. The two walked around to find Rey but couldn’t find him anywhere. Then, Sana saw something that caught her eye. She walked over to a table, seeing a bunch of belongings left behind.
“Do any of these belong to them?” Zayn asked.
“Yeah. I recognize Neil’s laptop. It has the same blue cat sticker.”
“Is it possible that they stepped out for a bit or something?”
“If they did, it’s clearly been a while. His laptop is on lock mode.”
“What’s that book on the ground?”
Sana looked down, seeing the book Zayn was referring to. She picked it up, seeing the writing on the front. She recognized it to be in Sanskrit.
“It appears to be a book of fairy tales,” Sana said as she opened the book. “This actually looks similar to the fairy tale book that my dad gave me when I was younger.”
It didn’t take long for the book to give off its golden glow. Sana was stunned, and she could see Zayn was equally surprised. Soon, Sana and Zayn were sucked into the book, and it closed, falling to the floor.
Copyright © 2022 Meryl T
All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.
The Ringmasters Society 