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  "Is she alright?" Jimmy asked.

  "She's fine," Chrissy replied, "but she has no memory of you or anything."

  "Then it had to be Cassandra the whole time," Jimmy said, turning from her. "I knew it had to be all a trick. Anything that good to be true probably is."

  "I'm sorry, Jimmy," Chrissy said quietly, programming her TD. "I'm so sorry." She started to cry as the energy took hold and transported her away. A deathly silence fell upon the room, as Jimmy stood at the broken window, looking out over the battlefield, wondering what it was all worth.

  Chapter 14 - In Time

  * * *

  14

  "In Time"

  In a small apartment across town, a bright flash of light gave way to a figure dressed in a deep red dress, hovering in the air. When the light faded, she suddenly fell, stumbling off her feet and falling to her hands and knees. She started to breathe heavily, and she lifted her head to look at the mirror across the room. A sneer appeared on her face, and her eye color subtly changed from hazel to brown and back several times. She looked deeply in the mirror as her brown eyes stared back.

  "I am in control," she said through her gritted teeth. "You have no power over me. I will not let the enemy take my daughter the same way they took‚" She reeled back in agony and looked back in the mirror again, her eyes now piercing hazel, and a smirk on her face.

  "The only control you have is the little control I LET you have," she said to herself through a smile. "We can't let Power take our kingdom away from us. Our betrothed MUST love us! We must open his eyes‚if we don't, you will perish like all the others!" She shook her head and looked again, her brown eyes now in tears crying.

  "I will fight you with everything I have," she replied. "I will make him love me‚.but I won't live a lie! I will not let what happened to the others happen to me‚" She grunted in pain, but maintained her gaze into the mirror. "Wisdom has looked into our souls‚.and has seen what we are. You won't be able to hide from it forever! If you continue to fight me, she will find you and‚."

  "No!" she shouted, her eyes changing hazel again. "Her powers are weak! Cara could not invade the fragile mind of Xandia to save her precious Xavier, and neither will that child! You know our pain, our truth, and our fears are all intertwined. I will let you live as long as you serve me. I will never be controlled. Remember that‚your life depends on it." She grabbed her head and looked again with brown eyes.

  "Your life depends on it as well!" she shouted. "Without me you are nothing! Wisdom will destroy you in time if you let her. You see the future‚the same one I see! If you remain in control, I will make sure she takes us over‚even if it kills us‚." She reeled back in pain, and electricity flowed around her body. A black smoke rose from her body and floated to a glowing red orb on the floor beside her. The energy flowed with it, and the red dress changed to a blown shirt and blue jeans, and her hair changed from the reddish tint to a light brown with red highlights. She began to breathe heavily, and she looked over at the glowing orb with her brown eyes.

  "Remember," it said to her, "you are nothing more than a shell. If you ever turn on me, you will turn on yourself. The Five Kingdoms will be restored‚and Virtue shall be our king." The woman slowly passed out as the orb stopped glowing.

  * * *

  Jimmy laid there in his bed deep in thought. He thought back to how he first held the Sword of Courage‚.the first time he became The Hero. He reached into the desk drawer and pulled out his time band‚or what was left of it. He began to tinker with it, but in the end, put it back down. One of the crucial elements needed to power the device was missing, and he had no idea where he could find a suitable replacement. He instead gathered his things for class and left the room, heading downstairs to the pit area. When he arrived in the lobby, he ran right into Lauren. Their eyes met, and she looked at him with disdain.

  "Hi, Lauren," he said to her softly.

  "Don't say hi to me!" she snapped back. "Don't say anything to me!"

  "What is your problem?" Jimmy asked bluntly. "What have I done to you? All I ever did was care for you‚.maybe even LOVE you. Then Red comes along and has delusions and you suddenly back away from me like I've got some kind of disease!"

  "I don't believe you!" she yelled. "I may be na√Øve, but I can see right through you, Joseph! Whatever is going on, no matter what it is, is something I'm not going to tolerate!"

  "I don't understand a word you are saying!" Jimmy yelled back. "I have done nothing wrong!"

  "Your own thoughts betrayed you," she said, turning away from him.

  "I don't know what trickery is being played out," Jimmy replied, calming down. "All I know is something really great ended really abruptly over something that was out of our control. Don't you find that the least bit hurtful?"

  "Of course!" she yelled back. "I loved you, Jimmy‚.and now I feel I can't trust you. That's something that will never go away."

  "Then at least let me rebuild that trust," Jimmy replied. He grabbed her arms and looked into her eyes. "I know you don't ever see us together anymore. I can deal with that, in time. But we are also part of something bigger. If you really love as much as you say you do‚.if you are the same person I loved‚.that I LOVE‚.then at least trust me as your best friend." Lauren teared up, looking deeply into his eyes.

  "Maybe in time," she replied. "We are still a team. Chrissy is right. But I can't hold my feelings inside. What happened to us‚.it's done. I can't ever go back now. But maybe we can still move forward." Jimmy smiled.

  "Let's get to class," Jimmy said. "Maybe now that we are a team, we can at least try to get some of this school work done and have each other's backs in case trouble comes up." Lauren nodded. They shook hands, and walked out of the building.

  * * *

  The woman began to come to, slowly getting up from the floor. She blinked her eyes a few times and looked in the mirror.

  "It's just me," she whispered to herself, staring intently at her brown eyes. "I can do this. I need to just go out there and find Amy. I have to tell her the truth about me‚then maybe I can stop all this." She picked up her purse, then reluctantly picked up the orb from the floor and placed it inside her purse. "I hope I won't need to call on this again." She then left the apartment and the building.

  As she walked out of the building, her eyes shifted, as if watching for something. She carefully began walking down the street, taking careful but quick steps forward. Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her. At first she tried to reason with herself‚that it was only other people walking the same way she was, but her trained ears picked up the beats of the footsteps matching her own. Her own paranoia frightened her, and she began to walk faster. The footsteps matched her rhythm.

  "Hey!" a voice yelled to her. She began to run faster, and whatever it was was right behind her. She turned a corner and ran down an alley, hoping to escape her pursuer. Suddenly she came to a dead end. Fearful but ready, she turned to face her pursuer.

  "Stay back!" she yelled, getting ready to reach into her purse. The person got closer, and she recognized who it was.

  "Stop!" Chrissy yelled. "Tell me who you are!"

  "For your own safety, please stay back!" she yelled. "Don't come any closer!"

  "I'm not your enemy," Chrissy said, walking towards her. "I saw into your mind. I know you are not who you seem to be. Please talk to me." She reached out, and the woman cringed, then instinctively reached out to her. In an instant, and electrical charge pulled Chrissy in and their hands met. Both of their eyes rolled back in their heads, and the power flowed between then as they lost consciousness and went into a deep trance.

  * * *

  "Where am I?" Chrissy said as she slowly got up and looked around. It was a desolate wasteland, and it looked like storms were in the skies.

  "You are on a blank canvas, Wisdom," the woman said, slowly approaching her. "The field of the mind. I won't let you in, any more than you will let me in. Consider this our neutral ground."

/>   "Why have you brought us here?" Chrissy asked.

  "WE brought each other here," she replied. "The only way for us to stop the evil is to join forces. I am afraid I can't tell you everything you wish to know‚but maybe what I can tell you will help you save the one I care about most."

  "You mean Jimmy?" Chrissy replied.

  "Your powers aren't refined enough yet," she replied. "While I can tell you that I do believe Jimmy is the one I was meant to find, there is someone I‚.that 'I' care about more."

  "Who?' Chrissy asked.

  "My daughter, Amy," she replied. Chrissy's mind became flooded with images, and the storms began to roll in quickly. Soon she started to become inundated with feelings and emotions‚.which all at once hit her with a force that knocked her clear of this world‚

  * * *

  The bond broke, and they both fell backwards to the ground. Chrissy stood up, and carefully approaching the woman, she extended her hand.

  "I'm Chrissy," she said to her. "And I'm willing to trust you if you trust me." The woman reluctantly grasped Chrissy's hand and pulled herself to her feet. She looked into her eyes.

  "I'm Karen," she said. "Karen Loah. If you help me‚.I will help you." The two of them walked out of the alley and towards South Bane-Barre.

  * * *

  Jimmy and Lauren were on their way to class, when Jimmy saw something that made him stop dead in his tracks. Lauren stopped as well and looked at him.

  "Why did you stop?" she asked. Jimmy pointed, and sure enough, there was Amy walking to class.

  "She has absolutely no memory of who we are," he said. Lauren frowned.

  "Now is your chance for a fresh start then," she replied, a bit of sarcasm in her voice. The two of them walked over to her and as they met, Amy stopped and looked up at them.

  "Hi," Jimmy said nervously. "My name is Jimmy. You're one of the new transfer students, aren't you?"

  "Um, yeah," she said hesitantly. "Look, I have to get to class. It's nice to have‚um‚met you." She hurried along, seemingly spooked by his sudden questions.

  "Not a clue," Jimmy said to Lauren. Lauren just smirked and shook her head.

  "Let's just get to class," Lauren said. "We can work on your anti-social skills later." They started to walk when suddenly a dark cloud appeared in the sky. Something then dropped from it and ran straight for Amy.

  "It's Cassandra!" yelled Jimmy, unsheathing his sword.

  "Jimmy," Lauren said, "We can't transform, there are too many people around!"

  "Well we can't just stand here," Jimmy said. "What are we supposed to do?" Lauren looked around and saw that everyone was running away. Lauren ran without Jimmy towards Cassandra, bare handed.

  "Cassandra!" Lauren yelled. "Let her go! It's us you want!" Lauren placed a hand on the hilt of her sword, ready to draw it.

  "Fool!" she yelled. "I want the Red Witch!" She grabbed Amy and ran for the portal. "With the girl in our possession, it is only a matter of time before she comes running‚and the Triad follows!" She jumped through the portal. Lauren pulled her sword and ran as fast as she could, taking a flying leap, but the portal closed, and Lauren fell, skidding on the grass to a stop. She stabbed her sword into the ground.

  "Dammit, I was so close!" she yelled. Jimmy came up to her.

  "There's nothing we could have done," Jimmy replied. "Let's get back to the dorm and get ahold of Chrissy. Maybe between the three of us, we can figure out where Cassandra took Amy." They both turned around and ran as fast as they could back towards the dorm.

  * * *

  Jimmy and Lauren burst in the door to Jimmy's room, only to find Chrissy sitting on the bed with Karen. Both are a tad stunned.

  "Chrissy," Jimmy said, "we have problems. Who is this?"

  "This is Karen," Chrissy said. "I believe she may be the key to finding and defeating whatever is causing the disturbances in the city. What's wrong?"

  "Cassandra," he replied. "They took Amy." Karen stood up.

  "No!" she shouted. "I have to do something."

  "Calm down," Chrissy said to her. "I told you I will help you‚but you have to trust me."

  "What is this all about?" Lauren asked, annoyed. Karen reached into her purse and pulled out the orb she placed in it.

  "This is the Red Orb," she said softly. "It is an artifact that was passed down from generation to generation. It grants me the power to transform myself into a sorcerous of great power‚able to wage war both in the real world and that of the mind."

  "Did you say 'Red'?" Lauren said, drawing her sword.

  "Lauren, relax," Chrissy said, motioning her to lower her sword. "There is a lot that you don't know‚..and a lot I don't know either. Yes, this IS Red‚in a sense."

  "She has a right to distrust me," she replied. "The essence that powers the orb has been at war with Power for a very very long time. At times it is nearly impossible to control‚and for a time, I lost myself to its madness." She sat down on the bed. "The story starts long ago‚with the forging of the Swords of the Avatars. The most powerful Elder Sorceress, G’riel, oversaw the forging of the swords and was responsible for their empowerment. Her amulet remained as a key to focus the Triad power, unlocking their full potential. As time went on, the Great Cataclysm came, and G’riel came face to face with the remnant of the Master of Anti-Time." She placed the orb back into her purse.

  "Anti-Time?" Jimmy asked. "How is that possible?"

  "No one is certain," she replied. "All I know is that she was the beginning and the end of the same battle, and knew that history would repeat itself again and again. That is when the Red Orb was created."

  "It was used to protect the Queen," Chrissy said. "The orb was passed down as an heirloom that would be a symbol of protection and strength for the kingdom. It wasn't until the incidents leading up to Jimmy's first meeting with Susira that the corruption began. The Five Kingdoms were broken up, and an evil force murdered the king and took his place. The amulet was said to have become corrupted somehow‚and that is how 'Power' became involved."

  "With Virtue and Wisdom no longer around," Karen continued, "Power was left to try and stop the evil on her own. That was the first clash between them. Since then, the powers have been passed down, and the amulet finds a new host to empower and carry out this mission."

  "How does Amy fit into all this then?" Jimmy asked. "You said she was your daughter."

  "The power within the amulet lay dormant for many years," she continued. "It is said the only one who can rid the world of the evil would be Virtue. With all of the former hosts never finding him‚.I assumed he no longer existed. With the power dormant, I tried to live a normal life. But one day, about nine years ago, the power of the amulet started to grow again‚and terrible things began to happen in my mind." She lowered her head. "I don't remember what happened to my husband‚.I only know he is gone forever. Amy is all I have left. And now that I have found you, Jimmy, you may be the key to set me free once and for all."

  "One thing at a time," Lauren said, grumbling. "First thing we need to do is try and find Amy and safely get her back here. How do we find out where Cassandra has taken her?"

  "Wisdom has the power to look into the minds, hearts, and souls of others," she said. "I have the power to focus those thoughts, and more importantly, I can see things in time that no one else knows. Perhaps together we can combine our powers to locate her. But you are still so raw‚.you haven't even begun to understand your powers yet."

  "I found you," Chrissy replied. "I may not understand it all yet, but every day I'm able to slow down my thoughts more and more."

  "There is a lot I haven't told you about your powers," she replied. "But one of the things I need to tell you is to be cautious about wandering inside the field of the mind."

  "Is there a danger?" Chrissy asked.

  "You are getting stronger," she replied. "But you need to be careful how deep you go and what you do. If you are not careful, especially in a mind riddled with walls, you mustn't become lost
in their thoughts‚.or you may never return."

  "I understand," said Chrissy.

  "There is another danger I have to warn you about," she said. "Specifically about me."

  "What is it?" asked Chrissy.

  "The corruption within the orb," she replied, "we are bound together through the power the orb grants. It knows who and what you are‚and what you could do. If it takes over, and I lose myself‚.I ask you to break the connection IMMEDIATELY‚.and finish me before I can react."

  "Whoa, wait a sec," Jimmy said. "I won't let anyone die. There must be a better way." But Chrissy looked her dead in the eye with a stoic look.