I rubbed my bruised hands and scraped knuckles, the scratches and tiny cuts filled with dirt starting to ache. Prying the rocks loose at the top of the avalanche using Karl’s bat and Leonard’s hockey stick had worked. By working together, we created a small opening in the mountain of stone, escaped the Cave of Soles, and made it out of the catacombs under the Crypt.
Now, we stood near the camp’s administrative offices. Light from the full moon shone through the glass doors, casting silvery rectangles on the hardwood floors.
“Are you sure the alarm won’t notify the police or fire department?” I glanced at Bobby.
“Don’t worry. I took care of it.” Bobby smiled. “I disconnected the phone line to the alarm system. They won’t hear a thing.”
I turned to Karl. “Is the skylight in the gym open?”
The baseball player nodded. “Yep.”
“Good, I think it’s time.” I glanced at my companions. “After this, there’s no turning back.”
“Do it,” Leonard said, his voice, as always, ringing with confidence.
The other kids nodded their agreement.
“Okay.” Reaching up, I pulled the fire alarm. Instantly, bells clanged, and sirens screamed across Camp Pontchartrain. Kids of all ages streamed from their cabins, the alarms shocking them awake. “Let’s get to the gathering point near the gym.”
We ran through the camp, heading to the north end of the grounds. When we reached our goal, we found kids already gathering in front of the gym, sleepy-eyed or wearing headphones. Camp counselors glanced around, looking for smoke, some returning to various cabins, ensuring everyone was out.
“What’s going on?” one counselor asked.
“Who pulled the alarm?” Mrs. Seitz, the tennis coach, demanded. She glanced about, looking for answers.
Leonard walked up to Coach Seitz. “Mrs. Chakoté told me to gather the kids in the gym for a special announcement. She said everything would be explained there.”
“What? That’s ridiculous.” Seitz glared at the boy. “We don’t use the fire alarms unless it’s a drill or emergency. I don’t care if she’s the camp director; this is wrong. If you see her, you tell her I said—”
“Tell her what?” The sound of an old wooden cane tapping on the ground cut the tennis coach off.
Leonard spun around and found Mrs. Chakoté standing behind him, a scowl on her wrinkled face.
“Mrs. Seitz, please get everyone into the gymnasium. This is an emergency.” Chakoté tapped her cane twice, signifying the end of the discussion.
Seitz glared at the older woman, then sighed. “Everyone, go into the gym and take your seats.” The coach’s words pierced through the gaggle of voices.
The other counselors heard and echoed the announcement, ushering everyone into the gym.
Minutes later, the students filed into the gymnasium and climbed into the tall bleachers. As usual, the kids sat with their cliques, soccer players together, runners with runners, a cluster of drama kids . . . a fractured collection of campers casting angry and suspicious glares from one group to another.
Karl moved to the center of the gym with Leonard at his side. The middle schoolers instantly recognized the football and baseball leaders and grew quiet, but the high school kids kept talking, ignoring the younger kids.
“Be quiet!” Leonard shouted.
The students grew silent.
“What’s going on?” one of the adult counselors shouted. “Who pulled the fire alarm?”
“I did.” I stepped onto the basketball floor and stood beside Karl, who patted me on the back.
Instantly, the students grew quiet, the shock of my confession silencing the crowd. Some pointed at Karl and me, questioning gazes passing from one to the other.
“I think they’re surprised that you and I are standing here together,” I said.
“That’s not the only surprise in store for them tonight.” Karl chuckled.
Mrs. Chakoté stepped out onto the court and moved beside me. A hush spread across the student body.
The kids probably expect me to get blasted by the camp director and are looking forward to watching my destruction, I thought.
Dr. Jen’s voice tickled the back of my mind. ‘That’s Future Telling, and it is never helpful. Focus on the now.’
I pushed the negative thought aside and stood tall, staring at the kids before me, refusing to look away. Bobby and Elisa moved out on the basketball court and stood with us, looks of grim determination on their faces.
Mrs. Chakoté turned and faced the five of us, then spoke in a low voice. “I see the Demon Lord has all the Skull Keys.” She pointed at her cane. Each of the Chakra stones glowed slightly, just like our pendants.
I nodded. “We failed to stop Malphas from getting them . . . sorry,” my quiet voice meant only for Chakoté and my friends.
“So, you’re organizing the evacuation?”
“No, it’s not time to run. It’s time to fight.” I stood tall and stared straight into Chakoté’s ancient eyes. “The younger kids can flee. In fact, we need them too, but we want the high school and middle school kids with us on the battlefield.”
“But you can’t fight the Demon Lord. Let him burn down New Orleans. We’ll get the word out, and hopefully, we can evacuate the—”
“Mrs. Chakoté,” Karl interrupted. “There’s more to it than that.”
“What?” The old woman glanced at me, a gray eyebrow raised.
The student body started murmuring to each other, but Chakoté tapped her cane on the hardwood floor, instantly silencing the crowd.
I told her what the Demon Lord had said in the Cave of Soles, describing the plan to destroy everything on Earth and put everyone under his control. “Rylee told us it’d take him a while to bring the huge monsters of Agartha to the gateway. We still have a little time, but not much.”
“Rylee?” Chakoté asked.
“You’ll see.” Bobby grinned at the old woman.
Mrs. Chakoté tapped her cane twice on the gym floor again, the sound echoing like a shot from a gun. She turned and faced the students. “There are important things to discuss, and you’ll be informed of what’s happening soon. For now, I need absolute quiet. Does anyone disagree with me?” She glared at the faces filling the bleachers. No one uttered a word.
“Good.” Chakoté gave the kids a grandmotherly smile. “The next person who breaks this silence will most certainly regret it.”
She turned back to us. “So Malphas doesn’t just want to attack.” Mrs. Chakoté tapped the ground with her crooked wooden cane lightly as she processed the information. “He wants to take it all.”
I nodded. “We can’t let that happen.” I stepped forward, chin held high. “It’s time to stand up against his violence and push back, no matter what. I’ve been under my anxiety’s control for a long time; I won’t let that happen anymore, and I refuse to surrender my freedom to that demon.”
Chakoté gave me a wry smile and nodded. “Okay, talk to your army.”
I nodded and stepped forward, holding my hands over my head. “We’re under attack,” I said in a loud, clear voice.
The kids glanced at each other, confused.
“Monsters from a parallel world will soon emerge from the cave near the Crypt. Their goal is to take over Earth and turn us into their servants.”
Someone laughed. Karl stepped forward and pointed Number Three at the culprit, instantly silencing him.
“I have a plan to stop them, but I need all of you to help.” A buzzing echoed in the distant places of my mind, the Beast trying to awaken. But instead, I thought about my friends and what we’ve survived so far. I glanced over my shoulder at my companions and smiled, then turned back to the kids in the bleachers. “If we do nothing, the Earth will be turned into a wasteland, like their own planet. If we do nothing, New Orleans will burn to the ground just like the last time they were here—these monsters caused the Great New Orleans Fire in 1788. I believe this camp was founded on these grounds to prevent the next disaster.”
“That’s ridiculous,” someone shouted. “There’s no such thing as monsters or parallel worlds. I supposed you’re gonna tell me magic exists, too.”
Mrs. Chakoté stepped forward and smashed the end of her cane on the gym floor. A crack of thunder filled the air, the seven Chakra stones embedded in her cane flashing with such intensity, everyone had to shield their eyes, the air sparkling with power.
She glared at the boy. “I think you need to be more respectful and listen.”
The students glanced at each other, stunned.
“But, come on . . . monsters? Really?” another said.
Chakoté was about to say something when I put a hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t worry,” I whispered to the camp director. “I got this.” I turned to the kids in the bleachers and spoke in a loud voice. “Everyone, don’t freak out . . . he’s a friend.” I looked up at the skylight overhead. “Rylee, how about you come down and meet everyone?”
A red glow filled the skylight as Rylee floated down from the ceiling, his tiny wings flapping so fast they were just a crimson blur. His horns blazed with light.
Kids screamed and shouted, fear rippling through the audience. As Rylee descended, Bobby pulled out a box of Gummy Bears and tossed one into the air. The imp dove and caught the treat, gobbling it down with a smile. Some kids giggled. Bobby threw another in the air, which Rylee easily caught, then extended a clawed hand. Bobby gave the bag of candies to the Agarthan and smiled as the imp devoured them.
Bobby shrugged. “Apparently, imps from Agartha like candy.”
Some of the fear in the audience faded. Rylee finally settled to the ground and stood next to us.
“Rylee is a friend who’s been helping us battle the Demon Lord, Malphas, and his minions. These monsters aren’t evil; they’re just under Malphas’s control. We have a plan to stop them, but it’ll only work if all of you help us.”
“You want the elementary school kids to go to war?” one adult asked.
“No, they won’t fight, but they’ll still help.” I crossed to the other side of the floor. “The counselors will take the elementary kids off the camp grounds and head toward New Orleans. While they’re leaving, they’ll create as much noise as possible. That’ll make Malphas think we’re retreating, giving us the element of surprise.”
“But what can a bunch of middle and high school kids do against an army of monsters?” someone asked.
“We can stand and fight.” Karl held Number Three in the air as he moved to my side. “Each of you is part of some team or club. All of you have weapons you’re very skilled with; mine is a baseball bat.” He pointed at the Icers. “You have your hockey sticks.” Karl turned to the Techies. “You have technology. We all have skills; that’s why we came to Camp Pontchartrain. It’s time we used our skills for something other than just scoring goals.”
I looked up at Karl and nodded, then turned to the audience. “You all have a choice. Either you take a risk, stand with us, and try to change the outcome of this war, or do nothing and become an unwilling servant to an evil demon. It’s up to you.”
The kids glanced at each other, a soft murmur spreading through the crowd.
“I know you’re afraid.” I stepped forward and spoke at a normal volume, forcing those in the stands to quiet. “Trust me. I know a lot about fear. I have anxiety, and I’m afraid all the time.” I glanced over my shoulder at my companions. “But when you’re with friends, the fear can be managed if you don’t give in. I see the fear on your faces when you look at Rylee or when we talk about fighting a war against creatures from another world. I get it. I’m afraid too. But you need to ask yourself, how will you feel if you back away now and watch your friends suffer?”
What if they won’t listen to me? What if . . . NO. I let the fears wash over me and recognized them as lies. Instead, I pointed at the wall.
“Think about the lyrics to our camp’s anthem, especially the twelfth line. ‘For fears that we shall smite . . .’ you know how the rest of it goes. I used to think those were just words, but now I realize our founders built the camp here on purpose because of the doorway between our world and Agartha. We are the ‘golden light.’ We will ‘cast away the darkness,’ but only if we ‘remain true.’ The words in our Alma Mater speak the truth for this moment, right now. And if we do nothing, everything we love, our camp, our friends, even our families and our way of life . . . it’ll all be destroyed. We must fight or perish.”
I stopped speaking and held a fist in the air, hoping the crowd would cheer, but they were utterly quiet. Some glanced at their teammates, uncertain, while others gazed at the floor, afraid. A held-breath silence engulfed the gymnasium as everyone watched the destruction of my hope.
My heart sank as I lowered my fist, defeated once again. A sense of frustration and disappointment washed over me like a tidal wave, threatening to engulf me. It was a feeling I knew all too well, a feeling of failure that seemed to follow me everywhere. The heaviness spread through me like a disease, my body feeling as if filled with lead. My Beast stirred, happy with my failure. Why did I think anyone would listen to a loser like me? It should have been Leonard talking to them, or maybe Karl or—
“I’ll fight,” a small voice said.
I held my breath for an instant, my heart pounding in my chest, hope stirring. I looked up and found a sixth-grade girl standing in a sea of scared faces. Her freckled face and long red hair stood out amidst the blonds and brunettes. She was one of the drama kids.
Helium suddenly replaced the lead filling my body. My arms and legs felt light with anticipation.
“Do you think I can make a difference?” she asked.
“Even the smallest person can be a hero.” I glanced at Leonard and Karl, then turned back to the girl. “Never judge a person just by the strength of their body; judge them by the courage in their heart.” I stepped toward her section of the stands. “Yeah . . . you can make a difference.”
“Okay. I’ll stand with you, Cameron.” The girl made her way to the bottom of the bleachers and stood at my side. She turned and glared at the crowd, daring them to look away.
Just then, the kids from the high school football cabin all stood. “We’ll stand with you.”
Then the soccer kids took to their feet. “Count on us.”
The archers and tennis players stood, then the ice hockey players and the art students, and the . . . Students leaped to their feet and added their names to the ranks of the army as courage blossomed throughout the gym. And for the first time, the patchwork of different-colored jerseys and club shirts were united as one group, the boundaries between cliques and teams erased by a cause and a leader. The kids started chanting my name louder and louder.
I raised my hands, and the crowd slowly grew quiet. “Okay, we don’t have much time. The Super Blood Moon will happen soon, and that’s when the doorway between worlds will be fully open. Let me explain my plan.”
And I mapped out my strategy, explaining key points.
“Don’t forget about my jelly-gun,” Bobby said, bringing a wave of laughter. A sad expression flashed across Bobby’s face as he lowered his gaze to the floor.
When I finished the battle plan, I scanned the faces of the students. The fear that had taken root earlier was blasted away by the fires of courage burning bright in every heart.
A wrinkled hand settled on my shoulder. I looked up and found Mrs. Chakoté standing over me.
“Maybe we can do this, Mrs. Chakoté,” I said. “Maybe we’ll save the school, no, the world.”
She nodded and gave me a warm smile. “Yes indeed, child. And remember, I’ve called the Order of the Stones. Soon, they’ll be here with real weapons. We need to hold the line until then.”
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Chakoté; you can trust us.”
“I do have faith, but more importantly, I have faith in you; I always have. I’m confident you’ll see this through.”
I smiled, and for the first time in my life, I had faith in myself as well. It was a strange feeling, a good feeling.
“Ok, everyone, we have supplies to gather and preparations to be made. Once we have everything we need, get into position, and wait for the signal.” I held a fist in the air. “We have a war to win!”