Twisted Returns

"Wear blue. It will symbolize the planet and bring hope."

"Thanks, Valerie," I say. Though I don't understand how wearing a certain color is better than anything else.

"Here, wear this one," she says, holding up a long gown. "The material is light and won't hold you down."

"Pretty. I kind of remember wearing it, I just don't remember when."

"Your fourteenth birthday party," Valerie says, running a comb through my hair (though my hair never seems to tangle anymore). "I remember helping you get ready for every occasion.

Having a witch for a mother and fairy for a father, Valerie had no magic of her own. And in a magic based world, there wasn't much for her to do. So at the age of fourteen, she came to work in the palace, wanting to see all the magic that she could never have.

"I'm not really sure this counts as an... occasion."

"Occasion or not, it has to be done. Everyone needs you," she says. "They have to know that you're alive and well, that they have something to fight for."

"Oh yes, fighting for a princess who doesn't even remember anything. Who lost her magic and can't do anything."

"Magic isn't everything," Valerie says, her voice getting softer - the way it always does when she gets offended. (I remember!)

"You're right. It isn't." I hold up the dress against my body and look in the mirror. "I survived. I'm still here. If I lived, so can they."

"Exactly."

----

The teleporters are deactivated, to keep enemies from getting to the palace too quickly. Which means we have to take a small, slow moving plane. I had figured that Marigold would be with me, but instead, it's my father, Christopher.

Although Marigold was the one who married into royalty, she was always seen as more of a ruler - because of her magic. Which makes me begin to doubt the truth of what Valerie had said.

Not that Christopher ever minded. Like me, he never liked to make big decisions. However, he was very charismatic. He took care of everything public (other than emergency announcements).

With dark hair and pale skin, he has the looks of a true Crystallarian. I get my looks from him. It makes him a better symbol of the planet than Marigold, who isn't even from Crystallaria.

"Almost there," he says, looking out the window. "I don't really want to look."

"I don't either," I say. "I'd rather have all the windows shut until we get there."

"No problem." He lifts his staff and points at all the windows. They shut, one by one. "I had to learn that one when you kept leaving the windows open after jumping out."

"And why exactly did I jump out windows?"

"Your wings were coming in. You couldn't wait to fly."

"Oh. Guess it's good you learned that spell then."

We sit in the plane in silence, Christopher looking down at his staff. I remember asking him about it on the first day I met him. It ended in a long but surprisingly interesting lesson.

To summarize, the magical universe is very dependent on these staffs. And they are very rare - only one or two can be produced in a year.

Although they can simulate magic, there are drawbacks. It lets you do magic, but there is no freestyle. There has to be a spell for everything you do. And it's hard to control.

The materials come from the planet of Kriaklesh, a mining planet. The materials are constantly being mined. However, there is a certain dust in the mines, causing an illness that is usually fatal. But there is a cure - the crystals of Crystallaria.

Of course, Crystallaria hasn't been able to export crystals for sixteen years. There is still no contact with any outside world, other than Glitteria. But the barriers are still up - no one can get in, and no one can get out.

"Diana," Christopher says. "We're here."

----

There are strawberries everywhere.

Then I remember - strawberries are my favorite fruit. (Although I should have remembered that on Earth; I kept eating strawberries.) I came to this village for the fruit, and here I met Crystalline.

Unfortunately, the plants aren't looking so good. They're strewn everywhere, the paths painted red with their juices. Of course, it could also be blood...

About a dozen guards surround me, forming a wall of blue uniforms. We head towards the closest house, a pale yellow bungalow.

"Now, this family has been cursed," the guard behind me says. "They will be confused, most likely. We'll hold them off, if needed."

"I'm sure you won't need to," Christopher says. He hands one of the guards his key that unlocks any door in Crystallaria.

They unlock the door and we head in, the scent of strawberries all over the house. The house is neat and orderly. It doesn't look like there was an attack at all.

We walk into a bedroom. A woman lies in the bed, covered by heavy blankets.

"Oh my," she says, her eyes widening at the sight of the guards. But the front guard steps to the side, revealing me. "Diana!"

"Hello," I say, offering my brightest smile. But I don't know what to say after that.

Turns out I don't have to. "Diana, so beautiful. I know I'm paralyzed from the neck down, but this just makes up for it! It's such-" She's cut off by a man stumbling out of the bathroom.

"Polly," he says, walking over to the bed. "You're so beautiful. But why must you be such a bad wife? Where are the waffles?"

Polly looks offended, but explains. "He got hit with some kind of confusion spell."

A gray cat walks in, limping. The man points to it. "Terry, you're an even worse wife!"

"I'm really sorry," Polly says, biting her lip.

"No problem," I say. "Not your fault."

We stay for a while, just talking about little things. Polly turns out to be a very pleasant woman, optimistic about the war.

"Well, thanks," Christopher says as we get ready to leave and move on to the next house. "We hope this war will be over soon."

The guards push us out of the room, nearly causing us to trip over the cat. I turn to wave and say bye.

Just in time to see all the windows blow in and an arrow fly straight through Polly's heart.