2024: A Reflection, with some Resolutions and Plans for the New Year (and a Poem)

Hey, all my readers out there.

The Year 2024 has been really . . . something, both for the greater world and for myself personally. That's not to say there hasn't been any ups this year. There certainly has been. But it's hard not to let those ups get overshadowed by all the downs which, to this day, seem to have no end in sight. I can tell you that certain world events have left me both frustrated and disappointed. And I'm sure you all have been as well.

Anyway, let's get right to it, then.

For the Year 2024, I managed to finish and publish two books on Amazon. One of them was probably one of my best works (in my own opinion) in a long while. It is the fantasy, slice-of-life story of The Vampire's Coffee Shop. There were a few hiccups here and there, but overall, it went exactly as I had hoped, right down to the ending. The final scene in particular was something I had envisioned since the start of writing the story. And I also got to express some of my world views and beliefs through the story as well.

The other's the second volume of The Mysteries of the Community Service Club. It takes place during summertime and the villain this time has literal fire power. I can't say I've done a really good job. I know some parts of the stories flopped, mainly because there were elements to the story that I've never been good with. Just click HERE to buy the book.

Both stories are not only available in paperback form on Amazon, but they are free to read online. But I do hope you'll show me some support by visiting the links above and buying a book.

Moving on, I am still working on the final book of the Lucy Douglas Series. I've just about reached the final part of the story, but I still have many, many chapters to go.

It is the same for The Magical Trials of Lily Wong which I started at the very beginning of this year. I had hoped to finish the first volume before the end of 2024, but that does not seem likely. I have reached the final arc for the volume, but it will also be many chapters long still.

Now there are several reasons why I wasn't able to finish some stories this year. One is because I was on an overseas trip. Another is world news that prompted me to put my pen down so to speak refrain from posting anything or post poems with reflection of my feelings instead. There have also been moments where I didn't have the energy to write and I take a break instead. But more frequently than not, I've been hit with Writer's Block which can get increasingly frustrating the closer I am to the finish line. Not only that, I end up getting inspired to write brand new stories, just adding to the number of stories I'm already juggling at the same time, which is now four total. I haven't posted chapters of the new story yet, but I might get started on 2025.

Speaking of 2025, with a new year on the horizon comes new resolutions for it.

Just like for 2024, I resolve as a writer to have at least one book published by the end of 2025. No, scratch that. Let's be ambitious and make it two, no THREE books. But realistically, by the end of next year, two of the stories I'm working on should be done and published as books. Three if it's a good year. All four might be a bit of a stretch since the newest story was started late in this year. I can only hope that I won't get hit with more Writer's Block next year than this one.

Now for my 2025 plans.

Like I mentioned earlier, I got a new story in the works. This one takes place in an old neighborhood of a city in modern-day China where a variety of characters battle for possession of a mystical, otherworldly artifact called the Pearl of Fate.

And if all goes well for me next year, I'll finally be finished with the last novel of my Lucy Douglas series, the first volume of my Lily Wong series, and the third volume of my CSC series. Once those are all done, I'll move on to Lily Wong Volume Two and CSC Volume Four. I already have a general outline of both volumes and clear visions of their endings. The only problem that remains, as always, is the nitty-gritty details.

Now, what else . . . Oh! That's right! So about The Vampire's Coffee Shop story I mentioned earlier. I actually have inspiration to write a prequel (and sequel) to it, sort of like an anthology of events that happen during the Vampire's entire career which would, of course, include tales from before and after the original story. Maybe after I take care of some of the above stories, I'll get to it.

That's about all I got to say for now. Good bye, 2024 and hello 2025. To borrow the words of a famed comedian, "Let's all do better next year."

Oh, and also, I got a poem to express how I view 2024 and the dawn of 2025. Fair warning, it is a downer of a poem. So if you're hoping to spend Christmas and the end of this year with some cheer, don't scroll down any further.

That's it from me for the rest of 2024. Merry Christmas, have a happy New Year, and happy reading, everyone!

**********

POEM: 2024

2024

True Colors fly

Looming Shadows spring

Masks of heroism fly off and expose the Villain beneath

Four Years of Hope end in Darkness

With nary any Progress

Clowns continue to be Clowns where Clowns don't belong

The Greedy continue to Steer the Wheel of Fate

And Sinners avoid the Hammer of Justice

The Year of the Dragon it is not

The Year of Monsters it is

For it has been a Year Monsters rampage

It has been a Year that the Devil Laughed

Flipped on its head is Law and Order

Tarnished, sullied, tossed aside is the Honor of Nations

Once Victims of Heinous Acts, now Reflections of the Heinous One,

The Heinous One whose Name lives in Eternal Infamy and Disgrace

So with the Close of the Year,

So begins the Open of a New One

Bereft of Hope, Lacking of Faith

Hearts stained Black, a return of the "Bah, Humbug"

CSC V3 Ch. 5

Chapter 5

Yuna and I followed Isaneko's gaze to the fat utility pole at the side of the road. From behind, a girl around our age stepped out.

"Damn it," she swore. "How'd you know I was here?"

Astonished, I blinked and asked, "Kyouko? What are you doing here?"

Kyouko scowled and said, "That's Miss Azamume to you. Only my friends call me by my first name. And last I checked, you and I are not friends."

Kyouko was Yuna's cousin through their moms. They used to be something like childhood friends, but then had a falling out some time ago and she showed up last summer to bully and play really mean pranks. Somehow, somewhere I wasn't there, they patched things up and became friends again. I don't know how that happened. But as long as everyone was happy, I wasn't going to question it. So now they're close friends. Although the way Kyouko sometimes showed that friendship could be questionable.

Oh, yeah. I nearly forgot to mention it, but Kyouko is also a power user, one who can make herself invisible to people. She doesn't technically turn invisible. Her actual power is Perception Manipulation, meaning she just telepathically messes with people's brains so they can't see her. I'm the only one that power won't work on thanks to my Psy-Armor blocking out whatever rays she sends out from her own cranium.

After snapping at me, Kyouko whirled over to Isaneko and said, "Again, how'd you know I was here? I should have been invisible, and it didn't look like Oota noticed me. It's not like you got me on GPS tracking. Or do you?"

A huge smile spread on Isaneko's face. She didn't say anything, but it was all the answer Kyouko (and really, me too) needed. 

"Seriously?" she said. "You got me on GPS tracking?"

Isaneko's big smile got bigger and she showed us all her phone which had a map displayed on its screen. There were dots on the map at certain stretch of road that matched the number of people standing at our spot.

I blinked. "Is that us? Wait, you're tracking me and Yuna too!?"

Both Yuna's and Kyouko's jaws dropped. 

"How?" asked Kyouko. "Since when?"

Isaneko impishly lifted a finger over her lips and said, "That is a secret. But I must say, you have very interesting hobbies for a member of the Azamume family."

The Azamume family, which Kyouko's a part of, is another big psychic family. Although, from what I know, they live at another town pretty far away from here.

Color drained from from Isaneko's face and she stammered, "W-w-whatever d-d-do you mean?"

In faux innocence, Isaneko tilted her head sideways and said, "Why, just two weeks ago on Saturday, you - "

Kyouko cut in and in a panic, yelled, "Ah! Ah!"

I exchanged looks with Yuna and wondered to myself, "What did she do two weeks ago?"

I must have said my thoughts out loud, because Kyouko suddenly whirled around at me and snapped, "It's none of your business!"

I was a bit taken aback, but quickly recovered and asked again, "What are you doing here, anyway? Is it okay for you to be so far out of town right now?"

"My school's closed tomorrow for its Founders Day," Kyouko explained. "And if you really must know, I heard about the new Piper that's running around and got worried about Yuna. So I thought I'd check in on her to see how she was doing."

"So you're stalking her again," I said.

"I am NOT a stalker!" she shouted back in dismay. "And what did you mean by 'again'?"

"Well, you did do a lot of stalking during summer vacation," Isaneko pointed out.

"Oh, don't you start too!" Kyouko snapped at her.

While me, Isaneko and Kyouko had our back and forth about her stalking, Yuna rapidly typed on her phone and then played its sound, "I appreciate your concern. Thank you, Kyouko."

Yuna's modest display of gratitude was enough to flip Kyouko's mood and while beaming, said, "You're very welcome, Yuna. And don't you worry. You'll be safe as long as I'm around. If that Piper or whatever ever dares to come for you, I'll teach him a lesson he'll never forget. He won't know what hit him, literally."

"Argh!"

"Yeah, like that," said Kyouko. "Wait, what was that?"

After hearing a guy's yell, we all looked around, wondering where it came from. I heard more yelling coming from down south, or at least where I thought south was and pointed.

"I think it's coming from over there," I said. "Sounds like there are guys fighting."

"Ugh!" Kyouko groaned. "Must be another Soushu-Yamimura dispute. Seriously, this has been going on for so long already. I'm surprised they haven't gotten tired of it yet."

"I don't know," said Isaneko. "That doesn't sound like just any old fight. It sounded more like - "

"Die! Die! Die!"

"Someone's trying to kill someone!" I cried.

I immediately took off running. My feet carried me down the road which split two directions at the end. I went down left and rushed straight until I finally found the source of all that shouting.

A dreadful sight awaited me. A guy dressed in black leather was swinging a long drainpipe up and down onto  another guy wearing the same school uniform as me. The guy with the pipe had on a black motorcycle helmet which completely hid away his features.

I had horrible flashbacks to a time, not too long ago, when I encountered another man dressed just like him. It was pretty clear who and what I had run into: it was the new Piper attacking a new victim.

Blood rushed to my head and I shouted, "Hey! Leave him alone!"

The Piper stopped and turned, distracted just enough for his victim to spring up and retaliate with a vengeance.

To my surprise, the victim turned out to be someone I knew. It was Yamimura (sometimes known as Yamimura of Yamimura from Yamimura). He was a tall, rough-looking guy with an intimidating presence, usually surrounded by underlings.

Yamimura threw a left hook against the side of the Piper's helmet hard enough to send him flying away. The space around his fist rippled as if covered by a heat distortion (the telltale signs of psychic energy). He was a psychokinetic user like me.

The Piper crashed into the wall at the other side of the road and fell down. But he quickly got back up, albeit a bit wobbly, and looked at me. He then looked at Yamimura before finally turning his gaze down to the drainpipe that miraculously never left his hand.

He decided to abandon his weapon by throwing it at Yamimura before fleeing.

Yamimura took off after him, angrily shouting, "OI! GET BACK HERE!"

I hesitated and wondered if I should join the chase. Knowing Yamimura and seeing that he was okay, I figured he got this covered. But neither got very far when Kyouko suddenly appeared in front of the Piper and swung her right arm out, hitting him with a lariat.

The Piper went crashing down on his back and then received a merciless stomp to the gut beneath Kyouko's black loafer. He lurched up once and then dropped down limp. 

Even with the helmet covering his, it was easy to tell that he was out cold. But that didn't stop Yamimura from rushing towards him, grab him by the front of his jacket, and lift him up while swearing.

"You damn - !"

"Yamimura, wait!" I cried.

I didn't like where this was going and pulled him away from the Piper. He shook me off and snapped, "Don't try and stop me! This guy tried to kill me!"

"I know!" I shouted back. "But if you keep this up, you could end up being the killer instead!"

Yamimura and I locked eyes for probably a good minute or so. And in that time, his breathing calmed and his face softened as his rage gradually left. Slowly he backed away, gave his fallen attacker one final look before turning away.

As for me, I was bewildered by what I had just done. On my own initiative, I met a scary guy's rage head on. Even though this is me I'm talking about, it was just too hard to believe I actually did that.

Finally, Kyouko spoke up.

"You guys finally done?" she asked.

Yamimura looked at her funny and then fired back a question of his own. "What the hell is the heiress of the Azamume family doing here? Don't tell me . . ."

Kyouko cut him off and said, "Relax, Yamimura. I was just here to visit a friend. The Azamume are staying clear away of whatever clown show your family and the other two got going on."

And then she turned around and waved. I could see Yuna and Isaneko lingering back up the road. Yuna waved back in response.

"Visiting a friend, huh?" Yamimura muttered.

"Uh . . ." I went. "Do you two know each other?"

"You could say that," Yamimura said. "We met a few times at some fancy dinner parties."

That probably astonished me the most that day. Yamimura, at dinner parties?

Yamimura scowled and said, low and annoyed, "Oi. What's that face for? You trying to say something, punk? Like I don't belong in a dinner party?"

I frantically shook my head in denial and stammered, "N-n-n-no!"

I was really grateful when Kyouko cut in again.

"Ahem!" she loudly went. "Moving on, since we're all here, why don't we see who's under that mask?"

She reached down for the Piper's helmet.

"Careful there, Kyouko," I cautioned. "You don't know when he might wake up."

But Kyouko waved off my concern and retorted, "Oh, relax. Nothing's gonna happen. Even if this guy does wake up, I'll just knock him back out."

With that said, she reached for the helmet and yanked it off.

"It's . . . Yeah, I have no idea who that is."

Underneath the motorcycle helmet was the face of a gaunt man with sunken cheeks and a big nose. He looked a few years older than us and wore a twisted, pained look. The latter was no surprise after what Kyoko did to him.

"I do," Yamimura said, looking grimly down at the man. And then he let out a long, really exasperated sigh. "I was afraid of this. That's Michioka, a big critic of my family and a bigger supporter of the Soushu family."

<== Chapter 4

CSC V3 Ch. 4

Chapter 4

"The culprit's a psychic!" I said.

My outburst got the others looking my way. It was after school and we were just hanging out in the clubroom like usual.

"What's this all of a sudden?" asked Omoyo.

"Like I said," I replied, "I think the culprit's a psychic."

I followed up with a brief summary of what happened the day before. Yuna corroborated my story, and I think that's what got the others to take my opinion more seriously.

"So you think the new Piper that's going around attacking people's a guy with ice powers," Mirai said while rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I gotta admit, knowing this town, that's not out of the question."

"True," Isaneko seconded. "Yuna's sensing someone following this friend of Oota's and that out of place sheet of ice on the ground do make strong, circumstantial evidence. But I'm surprised. That was pretty insightful for you, Oota."

"Thanks," I said with a proud grin.

Omoyo pointed out, "That was not a compliment."

"Still, that doesn't really narrow down our suspect pool," said Isaneko. "From what I understand, there are tons of people in this town with ice-based powers, including one in our very own student council."

"Well, we gotta start somewhere if we want to solve this mystery," Mirai said with a shrug.

"Should we tell someone?" I asked. "Like maybe the police?"

Mirai, however, shook his head. "Sadly, I'm not sure that'll really help. Like Isaneko said, there are tons of people who could make an out-of-season frozen puddle. It'll be impossible to catch the new Piper with that alone. And that's assuming you're right and the one who attacked your friend is the Piper."

"You think there's a chance I'm wrong?" I asked.

"Sorry, Oota, but yeah," Mirai said. "I'm not saying that you're just imagining someone attacked your friend. I'm just saying that whoever attacked your friend might not be the Piper. After all, what happened doesn't exactly match the Piper's usual M.O."

"I guess you're right," I said. "But that still doesn't change the fact that someone attacked my friend, or that they're a psychic."

"Does your friend know that he was attacked?" asked Omoyo.

I shook my head and replied, "No, he thinks it was just a freak accident. I never got around to asking if he had superpowers or know that they're real."

"I also think it would be a good idea to keep quiet that the new Piper may be a psychic," said Isaneko, gaining all eyes on her now.

"How come?" I asked her.

She explained, "I've been keeping track of the whole Soushu v. Yamimura situation on social media, and things have grown even more volatile. I don't know how it started, but members of both sides are accusing one another for inventing a Piper copycat as cover to attack each other's members. If word gets out confirming that the culprit is a psychic, it'll just add more fuel to the fire." 

Suddenly, a tune chimed from the P.A. system and a boy's voice announced it was almost time for the school to close.

"Well, that's our cue to go," Mirai said. "Let's pack our bags and call it a day."

After grabbing our bags and locking the door, we headed out together like always. As we walked down the hall, a boy called out to me and said, "Yo, Oota! Looking forward to sparring with you soon!"

He ran the opposite direction from us and disappeared at a turn. 

When he was gone, Omoyo turned to me and asked, "A friend of yours?"

I responded, "Kinda. That's Sakamoto. He's one of the Kendo Club's newbies."

"Oh," Omoyo said. "That's right. You got practice with the Kendo Club in a couple of days. You're getting really popular there."

Self-disparagingly, I snorted and said, "I wish."

Well, it is true that Sakamoto and I got along well and sparred together frequently. Though I think his respect for me is a bit overblown given that we're almost the same age.

Suddenly, after passing the front gate, Mirai went, "Oh! I just remembered. The Dark Lords of the Abyss have tasked me with an important mission. One that could decide the fate of all Underworlds!"

"Ugh!" Omoyo groaned and rolled her eyes. "Just say you got an errand to run for your parents. But that reminds me, I need to head over to the marketplace to restock my fridge. So I'll be splitting from here too."

"Then it'll just be me and the Ootas," said Isaneko. "Don't worry. I'll make sure our little chickadees get home safe."

I frowned reproachfully at being treated by a little kid, but she just ignored me. Instead, she waved Mirai and Omoyo off with a smile before joining me and Yuna for a stroll back home. 

The sun was a bit too bright and hot for my taste as me and the girls walked down the road. There were birds chirping, chatter around us, and leaves rustling in a barely helpful breeze. Now and then, cars whisked by, though I barely paid attention while occasionally glancing at my phone.

Basically, it was the same-old, same-old. Until, that is, a bunch of strangers suddenly walked up to us and bowed their heads as low as they could. They were two men and one lady.

"Oh great and all-powerful Angel!" said the lady. "It is an honor to be in your presence!" 

Yuna and I blinked, confused, and I went, "What the what?"

Isaneko, however, grimaced. I had never seen her make a face like that before and wondered who these guys were and what they did to irritate her that much.

The strangers didn't notice because they had their heads down so low it was like they were trying to fold themselves in half. But when they finally looked up, her face was back to fake pleasant and grace.

"This is quite a surprise," she said. "What are you all doing here? Don't you all live in Tokyo?"

"We were sent here by the Grand Regent to check in on you," explained one of the men. He appeared middle-aged with a scrawny build.

"Her Excellence was mighty concerned for your safety, as we all are, after news of a new Piper surfaced," said the more stoutly-built gentleman.

I stood to the side with Yuna, watching the exchange with what Isaneko called a blank stare, wondering who these people were, if they were friends of Isaneko, and who was the Grand Regent and Her Excellence.

Keeping a smile plastered on her face, Isaneko responded to the strangers, "I see. It feels me with gratitude to know I have such loyal followers concerned for the safety of their idol."

The strangers appeared pleased, but I wasn't so sure that was a compliment. To me, it was noticeably snide. Even more so than usual for Isaneko.

"But in any case," she continued, "your concerns are unnecessary. I am the All-Powerful Angel, remember? Do you really think that with my power, I could be harmed? I am perfectly safe."

"But Lady Angel!" the lady protested. "You yourself have said that even you have limits. And this Piper could be the act of the Demons."

Isaneko raised an eyebrow. "The Demons? What Demons?"

"The Demons that the Grand Regent warned us about," the lady said. "She believes that Demons were coming, seeking to do harm to you and then the world."

"And how, pray tell, did she come to that conclusion?" asked Isaneko. Her voice had become somewhat steely. And this time, the strangers noticed. I could see them quaking in their shoes.

"F-forgive her, Lady Angel!" stammered the stout man. "She did not mean to offend you."

"There is no need for apologies," Isaneko said sweetly. "There's no offense taken."

"Coulda fooled me," I muttered under my breath.

Isaneko turned and with a smile that chilled me to my bones, asked, "Did you say something?"

"Nope!" I quickly replied. "Not at all."

"Anyway," Isaneko said, returning her attention to the strangers, "you do not need to worry about any Demons attacking me. Even if something were to happen, I have the Holy Guardian to protect me."

She gave me a glance. The strangers also found themselves looking at me after following her gaze.

"Uh . . . why are you all looking at me?" I asked.

"This . . . boy is the Holy Guardian?" said the scrawny man.

I blinked. "I'm the what now?"

"Indeed, he is," said Isaneko. "Do you doubt me?"

"Forgive us, Lady Angel," said the stout man, "but he doesn't look like much of a guardian. He looks more like a semi-shut-in nerd boy who consumes an abnormal amount of anime-related media even by most anime fans' standards."

"Hey, I don't consume an abnormal amount of anime-related media," I protested. Honestly, with school and club activities, I felt I wasn't consuming enough.

"That's the only part that bothers you?" Isaneko whispered. 

She cleared her throat and addressed the strangers again.

"Looks can be deceiving," she pointed out. "But if you still have doubts, allow me the chance to dispel them."

She turned to face me again.

"Turn on your Psy-Armor," she ordered.

I looked at her warily and slowly asked, "Why?"

"Just do it, pretty please?"

She could act all sweet all she wanted, but I knew her true nature already and did not like where this was going. But it is also because I knew her true nature that I knew it would be best to have my Psy-Armor on anyway.

After a short pause, I said, "Okay, it's on. Now what? And is it really okay to show our powers in public like this?"

Isaneko waved me off dismissively and said, "It's fine. It's fine. Just wait a bit."

She looked around until her eyes landed on a nearby recycle bin. The lid of the bin flew off on its own and she peeked inside. 

As she backed away, a big glass bottle floated out of the recycle bin like a balloon and followed her as she strolled back over to me. I really did not like that big smile she had on her face as she approached me.

The strangers, however, were in awe.

"Ooh! The Angel's miraculous power!" went the scrawny man.

"It has been so long since I could feast my eyes on this wonder!" said the lady.

The stout man put his hands together in prayer and muttered, "Thank you for this miracle! Thank you for this miracle!"

Judging by the lady's words, this was not the first time they had seen Isaneko's telekinesis. 

I looked away from the strange grownups and asked Isaneko, "What are you going to do with that bottle?"

Her smile spread wider to a more sinister grin. Next thing I knew, the bottle flew straight into my head and shattered to a bajillion pieces.

"Yikes!" I yelled and jumped back. "What was that for?"

But rather than answer me, Isaneko turned to the strangers and said, "As you can see, he is unscathed."

"Oh! It's true!" exclaimed the stout man. "He doesn't even look like he felt anything!" 

He and the other strangers stared at me with as much wonder and awe as they had shown Isaneko, which I really did not enjoy. I was always the type of person who preferred to be left alone rather than be in the center of attention.

"He is my indestructible Holy Guardian, chosen by the Heavens themselves to aid me in my mission," Isaneko continued. "So don't let his looks fool you. He may look harmless now, but he will turn into a mighty and vicious oni to punish evil! So you better behave, or you'll find him at your doorstep with blade in hand."

"What am I? Some kind of Namahage?" I grumbled under my breath while wondering how she could keep a straight face while spewing the same sort of nonsense Mirai usually did. And more importantly, I wondered how those grownups (probably twenty, thirty years older than me) could take her words so seriously. They looked at me fearfully like children who ran into an actual Namahage.

A Namahage, by the way, is a scary, mythical being that goes around punishing bad little boys and girls.

With a demonstration of my power, Isaneko was finally able to convince the strangers to leave and go home, which they did reluctantly. Isaneko, Yuna and I stood and watched until they disappeared down the road.

Once she was sure they were gone and out of earshot, Isaneko breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Good riddance."

Yuna and I exchanged looks and then she pressed button on her phone to voice her question: "Who were those people?"

"And what's this about me being the Holy Guardian?" I added.

Isaneko replied, "Oh, them? They're just some members of my cult. My mom sent them to check up on me. She's the Grand Regent and Her Excellence, by the way. As for that Holy Guardian garbage, that's just something I made up on the spot to get them to go away."

"You don't seem to like them, even though they seem to really like you," I pointed out. 

"They like me a little too much," said Isaneko, "which can be very annoying and troublesome. Anymore questions, Oota?"

I shook my head.

"How about you, Yuna?"

Yuna shook her head.

"And how about you, little Miss Invisible Girl?"

<== Chapter 3

CSC V3 Ch. 3

*****

Hisao

*****

It's been a few days since the attack that inspired rumors of a new Piper out on the prowl.  There haven't been any incidents after (thank goodness), and because of that, the excitement and fear eventually died down and life had mostly gone back to normal.

Well, I say mostly gone back to normal, but not everything.

"What the hell is that cop's problem?" Omoyo yelled, giving her desk a frustrated smack.

With no volunteer work scheduled, we were all chilling in the clubroom doing our own thing when she suddenly lost her temper. The "cop" that got her all vexed was Serimachi.

Ever since that first meeting with him when he questioned us about the attack, we've all spotted and run into him many times. He mostly just said or waved "hi" to us in passing, but for some reason, it got on Omoyo's nerves.

"That guy's totally stalking us," she claimed.

"Are you sure it's not just your imagination?" I asked. "I mean, that attack did happen close by our usual way to and from school. He could just be doing his job by canvasing the whole area, looking for clues, all that."

"All the way here?" Omoyo said, referring to the school. "No way. He's definitely stalking us. The way he looked at us sometimes, it's like he thinks we're criminals or something! We need to watch out, especially you, Isaneko."

With a smile, Isaneko replied, "Aw, are you worried about me, Homura? I'm so touched. You must really care about me, a lot."

Omoyo scowled and said, "I'm being serious here." She turned away as if to hide her face, which was looking a bit red. "It was obvious from the get-go that cop doesn't like you. I wouldn't be surprised if he tries to do something to you. Speaking of which, what did you do to him? It sounded like you guys got history."

"In a way, we do have a bit of history," Isaneko admitted. "His wife is actually a member of my cult."

I blinked and wondered, Did I hear her right?

"Isaneko, you have a cult? Like an actual cult?"

The others looked at me funny.

"Yes," Isaneko said, rather slowly and deliberately. "But you should know that already. We talked about this a while back. Don't tell me you forgot."

"Well . . ."

"Unbelievable," went Omoyo. "How do you forget something like that?"

I shied away feeling somewhat embarrassed and defensively said, "Give me a break. If it's been a long time, I'm going to forget, okay? So, does this mean that you got people bowing and praying to you, stuff like that?"

"Occasionally," said Isaneko. "It's surprising how stupid people can be. Just because I showed a little bit of supernatural gift, they believe that I'm like some kind of divine savior. I have to pinch myself to keep a straight face every time my followers sing me praises. It's just too hilarious."

She had a dark smile plastered on her face as she spoke with rising evil elation.

"I take back my concern," said Omoyo. "It's no wonder that cop hates your guts."

Isaneko shrugged. "I'm already bored with all that worship, to be honest. I've been trying to phase those kinds of meetings out, but Mother was adamant about keeping them going."

"Okay," I went, standing up. "I think that's enough of an info dump of things I'm probably better off not knowing."

"Oh, is it that time already?" said Mirai, glancing up at the wall-mounted clock stuck close to the ceiling.

"Yeah," I replied back. I hit the snooze button on my phone, ceasing the alarm buzzing and stuffed it back in my pocket.

Ever since the attack a few days ago, my parents had become increasingly worried about mine and Yuna's safety, so they had us coming home earlier than usual. They also didn't want us going out during the weekends, which didn't really matter since all the weekend volunteer work events the club always joins have been canceled for the foreseeable future. I was also more of a homebody, anyway. Still am.

As I grabbed my stuff, I asked the others, "You guys coming with?"

Mirai shook his head. "Nah. You guys go on ahead. I must consult the dark forces for the next harvest of souls."

I'm not even gonna bother trying to translate that.

"I'm gonna stick around too," said Omoyo. "I just remembered I'm scheduled to help out the Library Committee today."

"I'm also scheduled to help out the Library Committee," said Isaneko.

Omoyo raised an eyebrow and said, "You are? Since when?"

"Since right now."

"Oi."

"Then I guess it's just you and me, Yuna," I said. "Let's go."

As Yuna and I casually strolled through the usual streets and roads, I noted how there were more people around compared to when we usually walked down this way. I was just about to turn a corner, when Yuna suddenly tugged on my sleeve, stopping me.

"Is something wrong, Yuna?" I asked her.

She pointed at the corner and out walked a boy our age from another school. I think Yuna must have sensed the boy coming and stopped me from walking into him. He happened to glance at us, and his eyes almost immediately lit up.

"Hisao? Is that you?" he said.

"Shinji? Wow, it's been a while!"

The boy grinned and replied back, "Yeah, it has."

Shinji was a friend of mine back when we were kids. We used to hang out together all the time until middle school. 

"Look at you," he said. "Did you lose weight? I hardly recognized you!"

"Must be all that Kendo practice," I said.

Shinji did a double-take. "You and Kendo!? You, the guy who did nothing but watch anime all day and night? You joined the Kendo Club?"

"Did you have to say it like that?" I pouted in dismay at his reaction. "But no, I'm not in the Kendo Club. I'm in the Community Service Club. I just get sent there to help out when they're short on people, which seems to happen a lot for some reason. Never joined them in any contests though."

Shinji raised an eyebrow. "You get sent there? What? Did your mom bribe your club prez or something to make you exercise?"

"You know?" I said. "That would not surprise me."

Yuna yanked on my sleeve again.

"Oh! Right!" I exclaimed, realizing something. "Sorry, Yuna. Hey, Shinji. This is my cousin, Yuna. Yuna, this is Shinji, a friend of mine from middle school."

"Pleasure to meet you," Shinji said with a grin. 

Yuna smiled back and bowed without a word.

"Not much of a talker, huh?" Shinji whispered to me. "Even less than you."

"There's . . . actually a reason for that," I whispered back.

"A reason?"

"It's complicated," I said, thinking better than to elaborate on my cousin's past without her say-so. "Anyway, what about you? Are you still doing Kendo yourself?"

"You know it," said Shinji, glancing back at the long bundle of fabric slung behind him. "Got a match coming up too."

"With who? Megugami?"

Shinji shook his head. "A different school, which is too bad. I'd love to spar with you some time. I bet it'd be fun."

"Pft! I doubt it," I said with a short. "I can barely hold my own against the latecomers. I won't last a second against you in a fair fight, Mr. Middle School Kendo Star."

"Aw, don't say that," said Shinji. "Who knows? After all that practice, you might even be good enough to give me an actual workout."

"Ha ha," I laughed mockingly at his sarcasm. "Very funny. But seriously, I'm not even in the Kendo Club. Like I said, I just help out from time to time with practice. No contests or anything like that. Anyway, it was nice talking to you, but me and Yuna need to get going."

"Why? What's the fire? You guys got a doctor's appointment or something?"

I shook my head and replied, "No, nothing like that. My mom just wants us home early because of that thing that happened a few days ago."

"Oh, that," said Shinji. "It's crazy what's been happening in town lately. First, the Piper shows up. Then we had those fires. Now this. Did you hear? The guy that got attacked was the ace of his school's Kendo Club! I know the guy was probably taken by surprise, but to put him out of commission like that . . . Whoever the culprit is, they're strong. I hope they catch him soon."

"You and me both," I said. "Well, see you."

"See you around," Shinji said.

We parted and went our separate ways.

A few minutes later, while me and Yuna continued our walk home, Yuna suddenly stopped and tugged on my sleeve again, this time rather frantically.

"What is it now, Yuna?" I asked.

Yuna aggressively jabbed her finger the way we came again and again, and then wildly waved her hands around. I didn't really understand what she was trying to say.

Giving up on hand signs, Yuna hurriedly pulled out her phone and typed in it as fast as she could before practically shoving the device into my face.

On the screen, I read: "Shinji following trouble maybe"

I repeated the words a few times under my breath, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Which wasn't easy for me, let me tell you. But I got it soon enough.

"You think someone's following Shinji and he might be in trouble?"

Yuna gave a vigorous nod.

A terrible image suddenly flashed in my head of Shinji lying face down on the ground and I felt something surge from inside my stomach. It was both hot and unpleasant.

And then, without hesitation, as if someone else had taken me over, I ordered Yuna, "Take me to him. Quick!"

Yuna seemed surprised at my sudden change in personality, but recovered and nodded. 

Together, we ran back the way we came. Yuna led me down the road Shinji had taken and it was a straight shot forward. Along the way, Yuna nearly tripped, but I caught her before she could hit the ground and scooped her up in my arms, carrying her the rest of the way. 

"I just need to keep going straight, right?" I asked her.

She timidly nodded in response.

I didn't notice at the time, but Yuna was pretty flustered when I picked her up. I wasn't sure why. We were in a rush and it seemed like the sensible thing to do to save time. 

I also normally wouldn't have the strength to carry another person, let alone carry someone while running. But thanks to my Psy-Armor, Yuna was as light as a feather, and I could run for miles and miles. Thankfully, I didn't have to go that far.

In just a few minutes, I caught up to him. I spotted him a few feet away just slowly making his way home without a care in the world.

I stopped just a few feet behind him and set Yuna down. As far as I could see, we were the only ones around.

"Yuna," I whispered, "you sure he's being followed?"

Yuna nodded and made circle motions with her finger before pointing ahead. I think she was trying to tell me that the guy following Shinji had circled around and is now waiting ahead of him.

"Great, now what to do?"

As I tried to figure out my next move now that I was there, Shinji suddenly cried out.

"Whoa!"

Yuna and I looked up, and I saw Shinji fly up, like a guy in a cartoon slipping on a banana peel.

"Shinji!"

I kicked off and leaped. A cluster of psychic energy gathered at my feet and exploded, propelling me forward as I leaned down. I managed to get beneath Shinji just in time after skidding across the ground, which felt surprisingly slippery and cold for some reason.

He went "Guh!" when he landed on my back and rolled off. I, on the other hand, didn't feel a thing thanks to my Psy-Armor.

As we picked ourselves up, I asked, "You okay, Shinji?"

"Forget about me!" Shinji cried out. "What about you? I probably shouldn't say this about myself, but I'm pretty heavy on muscles thanks to all that Kendo."

"Oh, I'm okay," I said. "Didn't even feel a thing."

Which was the complete truth.

"Were you always this hardy?" Shinji asked with an incredulous look.

I shrugged and replied, "You're not the only one who's built some muscle."

I couldn't really blame him for it, but the doubtful look on Shinji's face was really hurtful. But moving on . . .

"You still haven't answered my question," I pointed out.

"A little sore, but nothing serious thanks to you," he said. 

I breathed out in relief. "That's good to hear. But that seriously freaked me out, the way you suddenly flew up like that. It was like something out of a cartoon."

"You're telling me," said Shinji. "But there's nothing funny about this. If you hadn't caught me, I might have conked my head and it'd be lights out for me. Forever."

He took a look at the ground.

"It's weird though, how the ground just suddenly got all slippery. Wait, is that . . .?"

I followed his gaze to the pavement and was astonished to see that quite clearly a section of it was covered in ice, something that should be impossible this time of year.

<== Chapter 2

Lily Wong Ch. 34

Chapter 34

An Absurd Man

A new day had come, and with it, a new month. With Halloween over, everyone was out cleaning up the remains of the festivities, including the students who got the day off from classes. All of the students were out sweeping, packing up decorations and throwing away garbage. All of them except for five students who had gathered at a classroom at the history building to speak with the teacher there.

Viceroy Kevin Lin sat on top of his lecture table with his arms crossed, and one leg folded over the other while scowling sternly at the kids sitting in front of him.

The previous night, after rescuing Lily from an army of homicidal skeletons and suits of armor, Viceroy carried her out of the underground chamber filled with deadly traps through holes he made by punching the walls and ceilings, and then took his niece to a nurse's office for a checkup before returning to the dorms to rest. He discovered the others' involvement in Lily's magical activities when showed up to see how she was doing and had them come to the meeting taking place now.

As soon as everyone was seated, Viceroy got started.

"Now then," he said. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but I want to hear your story first."

He looked Lily square in the eye. 

"Tell me everything. Leave nothing out."

Lily and the others gave each other quick glances. After taking a deep breath, she told her uncle everything. From the moment she found the bracelet to all the adventures she and the others had; she left nothing out.

When she was done, Viceroy closed his eyes for a moment to ponder.

"I see," he said after opening his eyes again. "So you've been sneaking out at night to deal with a magical maniac who's been tormenting the students for his own amusement who's been calling himself the Schemer. And you freaked out yesterday because you thought I was working for him."

Lily nodded. "Yeah. But now I'm not so sure anymore. Please tell me, Uncle Viceroy, what is really going on?"

"First of all," Viceroy said, "I have no idea what's really going on. I never even heard of the Schemer before today, let alone work for him."

"But then why lie about losing a bet to patrol the library?" asked Lily. "Why were you at these places before the Schemer hit them? And why were you so chummy with him yesterday? What even are you? Since when could you use magic?"

"Yeah," Tanja cut in. "And why do you wear glasses even though your medical records say you got perfect vision?"

Everyone looked at her funny.

Uncle Viceroy asked, "Why do you know what's in my medical records?" 

"No reason," Tanja quickly replied. She turned her gaze away while whistling innocently.

"Uh-huh." Viceroy had a raised eyebrow but chose to just steer back to the main matter and started to tell his story.

"I suppose I should start with that last question. When I was about your age, me and my cousin Jodie suddenly got zapped to another world that was like straight out of a fairy tale. We met a famous witch there and traveled around with her for a bit before we found a way back home. During our travels, me and Jodie read some magic books and practiced a few spells, which was how we gained our powers."

"So Aunt Jodie has magic powers too?" asked Lily.

"That's right," Viceroy said with a nod. "And she's probably way better at it than I am. She used to do all sorts of experiments on my after we got back from Emeron."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Lily cut in. "Hold the phone here. Did you just say Aunt Jodie used to experiment on you?"

"Yep," said Viceroy.

"Like you were some kind of lab rat?"

"Yep."

"And you let her?"

"Yep."

"Why?" Lily asked her uncle. "Just why?"

"She paid me with Pokémon cards."

THUNK!

Lily planted her face down on the table and groaned.

"Anyway, that's how I got magic powers," said Uncle Viceroy. "Now what else . . . Oh, right! About lying at the library. Well, I noticed something magical going on that time and came to check it out. I couldn't actually tell you that since magic was supposed to be a secret, so I made something up. Though, I suppose that was pointless."

"And the places the Schemer hit? What about those?" asked Lily.

"Bluestone asked me to check those places out because he noticed something out of the ordinary," Viceroy said. "I didn't find anything myself and thought they were all just false alarms, except for that tiger statue everyone was talking about. I thought I heard a girl while I was dealing with it, but never imagined it was actually you, Lily."

"Pardon me, Mr. Lin," Oliver cut in. "But you said Director Bluestone asked you to investigate those places?"

"That's right," Uncle Viceroy said. "Oh, you probably don't know this but Director Bluestone is actually a magician like me. And a pretty powerful one at that. Well, you have to be if you want to be part of the Magic Council."

"The Magic Council?"

Uncle Viceroy explained, "They're a group of magicians that go around telling all the other magicians in the world what to do. They're not actually a government for magicians, but they got a lot of magic power, a lot of money, a lot of people working for them and almost everyone goes along with the same kind of rules they make anyway. And believe it or not, I'm actually a secret agent for the Council."

Lily raised her eyebrows in surprise. "You're a secret agent, Uncle Viceroy? How'd that happen?"

Viceroy shrugged and replied, "Not sure. After my term as a Fourth Grade English teacher in a Japan was over, I suddenly got a call from them saying they wanted to hire me. Maybe me nuking the Illuminati had something to do with it."

Lily cried, "You did WHAT?"

Uncle Viceroy acted like he didn't hear and continued. "I haven't really done anything secret agent-y yet though," he said. "The Council had me stationed here at the school as a teacher for cover while I wait to get a mission."

Under his breath, Oliver muttered, "Something tells me you're never getting one."

Lily overheard and wordlessly agreed. It was pretty obvious that the Magic Council's real aim was to keep Uncle Viceroy from making more trouble by putting him somewhere out of the way.

"But we're getting off-topic," he said, oblivious to the students' thoughts. "There's still one final question, I need to answer, right Lily?"

He looked Lily square in the eye, his usual goofiness gone and replaced with a chilling sharpness. Lily swallowed but gave a firm nod back.

"You accused me of being chummy with the Schemer yesterday. Before I explain, let me ask you a few questions first. Judging by when you freaked out and broke that transformation spell, I'm guessing you're talking about the visitor I had at my office. Am I right?"

Lily nodded.

"Why did you think my visitor was the Schemer?"

"Are you kidding me?" cried Lily. "Looking like that, who else could he be?"

Uncle Viceroy rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a bit.

"And just what exactly does the Schemer look like?"

Lily scowled at her uncle.

"Just humor me here, guys."

Reluctantly, Lily obliged. "Well, he's really big and tall."

Viv added, "He's got on this blue gown with long flowing sleeves and a hood over his face."

Eddie chimed in, "And you can't see anything under that hood. Like completely pitch black."

To cap it off, Oliver said, "He also sounded like he was using one of those digital voice changers, all deep and distorted."

"And that's what you saw and heard Lily?" Viceroy asked.

Lily nodded.

"I see," said Viceroy. "But what, or rather who, I saw looked completely different. Who I saw was an old man of average height with white hair and dressed in a business suit."

"How can that be?" cried Lily. "I did see the Schemer! I really did! I was there listening to you chat and laughing over evil schemes! I'm not lying."

"I never said you were lying," Viceroy said. "I'm just saying that you and I saw and heard different things."

Lily crossed her arms and irritably asked, "How is that any different?"

"Think about it, Lily," said her uncle. "There must have been something strange from our chat, something that doesn't match, a gap or two maybe?"

"Now that you mention it, I did notice some weird pauses you made," said Lily. "But what does it all mean?"

"I can understand your confusion," said Uncle Viceroy. "But there is a pretty obvious reason behind these discrepancies, one that anyone involved with magic could think of: an illusion. You were hit by a magic hex that made you see and hear things differently from what is actually there and said."

"But when did that happen?" asked Lily.

"If I may, Lily," said Oliver. "I believe you may have been hexed with an illusion spell at the same time you had been transformed into an infant. I suspect that what happened yesterday was no accident, but an orchestration of the Schemer."

"You think he used his magic mumbo jumbo on my stuff?" Tanja asked. "But when would he have the chance to do that?"

"Remember, Tanja," said Oliver, "our opponent is a cunning sorcerer far more experienced and educated in the magic arts than we are. There's no telling what sort of tricks he still has hidden in his sleeves. He could easily tamper with our things without us noticing and has only done so now because he probably felt like it was time to up his game."

"That said," Uncle Viceroy spoke up again, "I don't have any proof to anything I just told you. It's just my word against what you saw and heard with your own eyes and ears, Lily."

"I believe you," Lily said with conviction. "If you were really working for the Schemer, you wouldn't have put a stop to that tiger statue. And you wouldn't have come to save me, twice."

"Well, I'm glad I have your trust again," Uncle Viceroy said, smiling warmly. "It's just too bad I have to give you all detention for the remainder of the school term."

Lily blinked. "Say what?"

"I'm also banning you from all the game rooms, movie theaters and playgrounds. You won't be allowed to go anywhere except for your classrooms, the dining hall and your dorm rooms. Oh, and you can't use the internet anymore except for the school's digital library for homework."

Eddie exclaimed in dismay, "What? Why?"

"What did you expect?" asked Uncle Viceroy. "You guys admitted to breaking curfew, trespassing to off-limits areas, and even snuck out of school grounds one time. Worse still, you kids knowingly put yourselves in danger. You should count yourselves lucky that I don't tell your parents about this. I can't anyway because of all the magic stuff. Well, except for you, Lily."

"What? You're going to tell Mom about this? No! You can't!" Lily cried. "She's going to kill me!"

"Believe me," said Uncle Viceroy. "I'm not happy about this either. I'm sure to get most of the flak for this."

"Then - !"

"But for you and me, this magic business is a family matter. Unlike the others, I can't hide this from your parents. You're going to just have get ready to face the music."

"But - !"

"I'm sorry, Lily," Uncle Viceroy cut in. "But this is not up for debate. Now, get going. You're going to want to enjoy what little time you have left to be free, because starting tomorrow that freedom's going bye-bye."

**********

After watching his students trudge out of the history building, Viceroy marched over to the Castle and headed up the stairs to the top floor before stopping in front of a door.

Knock! Knock! Knock! Went his knuckles against polished wood surface. He waited a few seconds and then knocked on it again. The second time, he got an answer from inside.

"It's open!" a raspy voice called out.

Viceroy opened the door and walked into the dimly lit office space. There, he found Julius Bluestone sitting behind his desk while sunk comfortably low in his chair, one leg folded over the other with his hands clasped on his lap.

"Ah, Viceroy," said the white-haired old man. "Take a seat, take a seat! To what do I owe this sudden visit?"

Viceroy opted to keep standing and said, "I got something I needed to ask you, Director. It's pretty urgent."

"Urgent you say?" Bluestone frowned and straightened up. "Well, if it's urgent, ask away!"

"Yes, or no: are you the Schemer?"

Bluestone looked up. While his eyes were locked with Viceroy's, he tapped a finger on the end of his chair's armrest over a small rune symbol carving. That carving was the trigger for a powerful and complex illusion spell that Bluestone had built into his office that could overwhelm the strongest of minds. Whatever the victims of that spell see and hear would be things that he wanted them to see and hear. 

Viceroy's eyes flashed blue for an instant, a sign that the spell had taken hold.

So, while Bluestone smiled and answered truthfully, "Yes, I am the Schemer," Viceroy instead heard, "No, I'm not the Schemer."

This should be more than enough to fool his built-in lie detector, Bluestone thought.

But against expectations, Viceroy squint his eyes and said, "So you ARE the Schemer."

Bluestone dropped his jaw, astonished. "That spell was powerful enough to befuddle a dragon. How - ?"

"Illusions are still lies in the end," Viceroy said. "Simple as that."

Bluestone gaped at the history teacher, dumbfounded. But then he snorted and laughed. He laughed and laughed. And laughed. 

Then, after calming down, he said, "Here I thought you could not possibly surprise me more after literally punching through the magical defenses of the old Bluestone family lair, but to resist illusion magic of the highest grade like this! You truly are an absurd man, Viceroy Kevin Lin. But I suppose that's to be expected of the person who nuked the Illuminati."

Viceroy was not amused. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

No longer all smiles, Bluestone coldly responded, "No. You probably want to know what my plans are and why I'm doing all this, but I will divulge neither. All you need to know is that I have fallen onto the path of evil and that I will not stop."

Viceroy balled his fingers into fists, and he said softly, "You think I won't stop you?"

"No, you won't," said Bluestone. "Because you're not allowed to."

"Not allowed? And just what is that supposed to -! Huh? Why can't I move?"

Viceroy suddenly found himself frozen in place. No matter what he tried, his limbs refused to listen.

Slowly, Bluestone stood up and casually paced around the younger man with his hands held together behind his back.

"Oh, Mr. Lin," the old man said, "You are indeed an absurd man. But no matter how absurd you are, even you cannot break the chains of a magic contract."

Viceroy made a puzzled face. "A magic contract? Since when did I -?" He was hit by an abrupt realization and his eyes lit up. "My job contract! That wasn't just an ordinary piece of paper I signed, was it? That was a magic contract!"

"That's right," said Bluestone. He stopped right in front of Viceroy and smirked. "A magic contract, one of the few magic spells out there that are absolutely unbreakable. Once signed, the very universe itself will make sure you follow whatever's written in it."

Viceroy glared daggers at Bluestone while listening. "So you've had this planned out for years!" he said.

"Well, I've certainly been planning for years and years, and years," Bluestone said. He had resumed pacing around his prisoner. "But the magic contract was the other Magic Council members' idea. You didn't really believe they thought you would be the perfect secret agent to help protect the world from evil did you? To them, you were dangerous, like a rabid animal that needed to be caged. And the magic contract is that cage. I merely took advantage of the contract and added a few things to it to make you . . . convenient for my plans."

"Which you still won't tell me about?"

"No," said Bluestone. "But don't worry. You won't have to wait long to find out."

And then he burst in evil laughter.

"Mwa ha ha ha ha ha! MWA HA HA HA HA HAAAAA!"

<== Chapter 33

A Poem: The Spiral of Hate

 The Spiral of Hate

A Spiral of Hate is sparked

By Hateful Deed to Innocent People

Indignant cries leads to march for Justice

But Righteousness depletes at a rabbit's pace

The Line between Good and Evil blurs

Angel faces become masks for Demons

As Hate pollute Souls of Heavenly Blue to Hellish Red

No longer Righteous and Just.

No longer Heroes of Goodness.

Stained by Innocents' blood

Monsters they are of the Worst Sort of Evil.

Reviled, disgusted and Hated

Sins of Vengeance inspire more Hate to spread.

The Indignant misdirected to Misguided Acts

To make pay the Innocents and Undeserving

In place of Hate-corrupted Kings who ignore Calls for True Justice.

Truly, Angels have Fallen

Obedient to the whispers of the Devil in their Hearts

An Inspiration to Others to make weep He Who Watches From Above

To turn a most Stupid Cycle, a most Foolish Spiral with no end in sight.

A Spiral of Hate

*********

Hi. This is Victor, the author.

It is not often that I openly express my views to the wider world, mostly because I'm just a simple guy who wants to avoid conflict as much as possible. But sometimes, as news after news comes out of an unfortunate situation getting much, much worse, I cannot help it. And it has gotten to the point that this time, I wanted to make sure that this poem is understood at its core.

This poem in a nutshell is a criticism and condemnation of all parties involved in the currently ongoing conflict as of this post that started between Hamas and Israel that started in October 2023 AD and eventually snowballed to rope in at least two other countries directly, and inspired people in the greater world in really negative ways. And I mean all parties.

It is also a warning of things to come that we've all already seen coming but still needed saying for some reason. Everyone had these warnings before. We've seen it in the latter half of Naruto, a franchise started by Japanese comic artist Masashi Kishimoto. We've seen it in an episode of Doctor Who about a conflict with rebellious Zygons. Sure, one's a cartoon and the other's a fictional sci-fi drama aimed at children. But that doesn't mean the messages, the morals, and the lessons are invalid, especially about the consequences of war and falling to our own hatred.

One real life example that proves my point would be the event that took place in Amsterdam between November 6 to November 7, 2024 and possibly ongoing as well.

And to be perfectly clear so there is no misunderstanding, I condemn antisemitism. I condemn racism. I condemn sexism. I view all those things as evil, and they clearly are. 

I judge not by a person's race, religion or cultural background. I judge people individually, by the things they say and do as individuals even as they claim to say and do things as a representative of their demographic. And if I believe what those individuals do is evil, then I condemn those individuals, and those individuals alone. Because race, religion and cultural background are in no way indicators of a person's worth or whether they are evil or not.

Now, I will end my essay with a link to a video that perfectly encapsulates pretty much everything.

The Doctor's Speech | The Zygon Inversion | Doctor Who

YOUTUBE LINK

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJP9o4BEziI&ab_channel=DoctorWho

Lily Wong Ch. 33

 

Chapter 33

A Horrible Place

Julius Bluestone flew out of his chair and yelled out in horror. "NO!"

He had been watching Lily through a big crystal ball in his office right up until she disappeared in a flash of blue light.

The parrot who had been watching everything unfold from the school director's shoulder squawked, "What happened? Why did she vanish? Where did she go?"

"I don't know!" cried Bluestone.

"Well, find her!"

Bluestone snapped, "I'm trying! But I can't find her anywhere. She must have been taken somewhere I can't see."

"That's impossible!" said the parrot. "There should be nowhere in this school you cannot see. Unless . . ."

"No, I'm certain she is still somewhere in the school at least," said Bluestone. "Blast it all! There must still be areas of the property I haven't gotten under my control!"

"An area not under your control!?" The parrot squawked in dismay. "Anywhere of the Bluestone family not under your control is about as safe as a cave full of starving bears! Such a place is sure to have lots of curses and other magical defenses against intruders. And if there is one thing the Bluestone family was not known for, it is being merciful to intruders. She's lost in a literal death trap!"

*********

Lily stared ahead and blinked. Around her were walls of rough, dark stone illuminated by torch fire. But even with the crackling flames, the air chilled Lily to the bone and made her shiver. And whether she looked left and right, there was just endless darkness ahead.

"Where is this?" she wondered aloud. "How'd I get here?"

She remembered running away from her uncle and then everything got covered in bright, blue light. Next thing she knew, she was in a hallway straight out of a movie about Medieval Europe.

After taking in her surroundings, she pressed her back against the wall, sank down to the floor and let out a long sigh.

"Worst. Halloween. Ever!" she grumbled to herself while looking aimlessly up at the ceiling. First, she gets turned into a baby. And then she finds out her uncle had been working for the enemy, helping the Schemer with his cruel, evil escapades. Now, she's lost in some random hallway with major creep vibes worse than an empty school hallway covered in fake spiderwebs. She didn't even have any idea how she got here in the first place. "Well, at least I got away from Uncle Viceroy."

After a brief rest, she stood back up and stretched a little. She was reluctant to go back, but she didn't want to worry the others more than they probably already were.

Lily rolled back her sleeve. Even if she didn't know where she was, she could just use the magic of the bracelet to get out of here. 

"Alright, bracelet. Take me home."

Light flashed from the bracelet's jewels and then a piece of paper popped out. Lily snatched it out of the air to read, "Impossible. Magical defenses detected. Cannot break through."

"So I'm trapped here!?" Lily cried in dismay. She took a few deep breaths. "Don't panic, Lily. So what if you can't beam yourself home? That just means you have to find the way out the old-fashioned way. But . . ."

She looked left and right again.

"Which way do I go? I don't suppose you can tell me, bracelet?"

Light flashed from the bracelet again, and another piece of paper popped out, which read, "Locator spells cannot be used."

Lily rolled her eyes and sighed. "Of course. I guess I got no choice except to just pick a side and hope for the best."

But just as she was about to start walking - 

"AH HAHAHAHAHA!"

A cackling laugh suddenly filled the hallway and startled Lily out of her skin. 

She whirled around and shouted, "Who's there?" But she did not get an answer back. The hallway was once more dead silent. She really didn't like that one bit. "Hello?"

Still nothing.

"Ugh!" she groaned. "As if things weren't bad enough! This can't possibly get any worse."

And then all the lights went out and Lily was plunged into complete darkness. A word left her lips that ought never be written in a book for children.

Clunk-jingle, clunk-jangle, clunk-jingle, clunk-jangle, clunk-jingle . . .

Noise filled the hallway again, coming from both ends and getting louder and louder. It sounded like lots of boots were marching towards Lily in rhythm, accompanied by the jingle-jangle of something made of metal. The sounds bounced off the walls and made her head throb with each beat. She cupped her hands over her ears to try and block it all out.

While hunched over, she screamed, "Just what is happening?"

Her question got an answer when light flashed from her bracelet and exposed a suit of rusted armor standing right in front of her with a sword raised over its head. The sword came down in the blink of an eye, too fast for Lily to get away in time. But before the straight blade could split her in half -

CHING! 

- a wall of blue glass appeared over the young girl and stopped the sword in its tracks. 

"Eek!"

With a frightened shriek, Lily turned to flee and quickly ducked down when she spotted a glint of metal out of the corner of her eye. A blade from a second moving suit of armor flew over her head, narrowly missing by a hair's breadth. She swerved around and raised her hand as a third armor approached. Light flashed from her bracelet and Armor #3 went flying into Armor #4. Armor #5 tripped over #3 and #4. 

Lily ran past them, chased after by Armor #2. After shattering the glass wall with a second blow, Armor #1 joined Armor #2 along with dozens more.

Up ahead, she spotted a fork and turned right. That turned out to be a mistake, because there, the floor crumbled beneath her feet. She had stepped on a pitfall trap that sent her plunging into a dark abyss. Light from the bracelet showed Lily that down below, there were ten-foot long, thin, pointed spikes waiting to impale anyone unlucky enough to fall in. Unlucky like Lily herself.

But once again, the bracelet came to her rescue. The first time, it had created a blue glass wall to shield her from the armor's sword. This time, it pulled out a flying broomstick that looped into her jacket and stopped her from falling further. Her hands and feet dangled as she floated just an inch over the needle-sharp points.

While staring at one point that aimed dead center between her eyes, she heard marching footsteps and looked up. To her horror, suits of armor came falling down with their swords pointing at her.

"Seriously!? Do you guys really want to kill me that badly!?"

The broomstick quickly swung Lily right and left, and suits of armor dropped past her to be skewered by the spikes below. She tried not to look down at the grisly sight as the broom lifted her out of the pit and right in the path of a huge block of stone that swung down from the ceiling.

A split second before the block hit Lily, blue elastic poured out of the bracelet and wrapped itself around her. It absorbed most of the impact, but it and Lily went flinging down the corridor. After bouncing off the floor once, the bubble popped. Lily hit the floor next and went rolling a couple of feet before stopping, covered from head to toe in agonizing pain.

She laid still for a moment and then let out a sob.

What did I do to deserve this? She wondered. I didn't ask for these magic powers. I didn't ask to be chosen to be a magical superhero. And I definitely didn't ask to be dumped into this place full of deadly traps and living armor.

She was literally sick and tired of it all. But she would be given no more time to rest. She could hear a chorus of footsteps marching getting louder and louder. It wouldn't be long before those homicidal suits of armor showed up again.

"I need to get out of here," she muttered aloud. "I need to . . . GET UP! NOW!"

She gritted her teeth and mustered just enough strength to sluggishly rise. A bit of stumbling later, she was running again. And then -

SPLAT!

"OH, COME ON!"

Her feet sank into a puddle of quicksand. And she knew it was quicksand because what else could it be?

She twisted left and right, trying to tear herself out of the quicksand. But that, of course, didn't help. Instead, she sunk even faster. Her knees and then her waist were submerged in a matter of seconds.

I need something to pull myself up! As soon as that thought left Lily's mind, the broomstick appeared flying to her rescue. She grabbed hold of the blue handle as soon as she saw it and clung tight with a bear hug as it pulled and pulled, and pulled. Both Lily and the broomstick pulled with all their heart and soul, but their efforts bore no fruit and Lily continued to sink further and further, deeper and deeper.

And then she noticed something unusual while trying, and failing, to climb out of the pool of quicksand. The hallway had suddenly gotten quiet.

Slowly, and reluctantly, she turned her head. No surprise, there was a crowd of sword-wielding suits of armor behind her. Mixed in the group were spear-carrying skeletons with glowing red eyes. Their jaw bones rattled as if they were laughing at her.

The armor suits raised their swords, and the skeletons raised their spears. Sharp blades dropped down and then - 

BOOM!

A section of the wall to Lily's right burst and from the hole, piles of rock clumped together into the shape of a man jumped in. It threw a punch that, although didn't reach, unleashed a gust of wind so strong, it reduced all the armor suits and skeletons to scattered pieces.

It was the Stone Man, Lily recognized, the same one no less that saved her twice before. 

The Stone Man gave the floor a strong, thunderous stomp and the quicksand spat Lily out, sending her flying into his arms. He gently let the young girl down and then handed her a sheet of paper along with a firm command spoken in a low, rumbling voice. "Stay here."

Lily gave the sheet of paper a glance, noting the red Chinese writing on it. And then she looked up at the Stone Man, thinking he was a lot smaller than last time.

After the young girl gave him a nod, the Stone Man turned away to face a wall of enemies approaching them. Light flashed from his dark eye sockets and he let out a low, guttural growl. He said to the oncoming crowd of skeletons and suits of armor, "Weapons. Do. Not. Belong. In. A. SCHOOL!"

And then he went charging straight at the crowd. And he mowed them all down with a combination of palm strikes and elbows so lightning fast that none of the skeletons or suits of armor had a chance to even lift up their weapons before they exploded into pieces of bone and metal. Sometimes, he'd add a twirling kick that send enemies flying against the walls.

As Lily watched, she wondered, Is that Kung Fu? The Stone Man knows Kung Fu?

A trio of skeletons suddenly appeared behind her and attacked with their spears. But before the blades reached her, the paper in her hand flashed red and the skeletons, weapons and all, turned to dust. She never noticed.

Before long, the army of metal and bone had been completely wiped out. The Stone Man took one look around at the trail of destruction he had made and then walked back up to Lily, purposely crushing pieces further beneath his feet on the way. 

Behind him, a huge block swung down from the ceiling, but he turned and stopped it with a punch. There was a loud bang and then silence. A few seconds later, both the ceiling block and the Stone Man crackled all over.

Lily was, at first, dismayed, thinking that the Stone Man had gotten hurt or worse. But as pieces of the Stone Man crumbled down with the pieces of the ceiling block, she realized that it was only his armor that got damaged and underneath all that rock was a human like herself. He had black hair like herself and wore a blue coat-like robe. On his head was a cap with a piece of paper stuck to the side, identical to the one that Lily had been given.

Wait a minute, she thought. I know that costume.

Slowly, the man turned around and revealed his face.

Lily's jaw dropped.

"Uncle Viceroy?"

Viceroy Kevin Lin glanced at the bracelet shining blue around Lily's arm alongside the red glow of the paper charm in her hand and then he said to her, "You and I need to have a word."

<== Chapter 32                                                                          Chapter 34 ==>

Lily Wong Ch. 32

Chapter 32

Halloween Disaster

"You turned Lily into a baby!" Eddie cried.

Tanja snapped back, "I heard you the first time!"

"Can you turn her back?" Viv asked.

"Of course not!" shouted Tanja. "It was all the bracelet's fault! Not mine!"

"What do we do?" yelled Viv. "We can't leave her like this!"

"No need to panic!" said Hassan. "I'm sure one of the magic books here has the answer to our problems. We just need to look for it."

"Good idea," said Oliver. "Let's all split up and start searching. Viv, you stay here and keep an eye on baby Lily."

"Got it," Viv said with a nod. She turned to pick the baby up, but then froze. "Where's the baby?"

"Huh?" Everyone looked down again.

"She's gone!" Eddie cried out.

"But she was just here!" yelled Oliver. Even he was starting to panic.

Tanja pointed and shouted, "Look! Over there!"

Over by the exit, baby Lily was seen riding on top of a floating green book as they slowly drifted out of the room.

The gang gave each other glances and then ran after the flying baby. They chased her down the hall and were just in time to see her reach the end where she vanished in a flash of light. Then they all screamed their heads off.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"After her! After her! AFTER HER!" screamed Oliver.

They all piled onto the magic circle that zapped them out of the secret hideout and back to the library where they split up to look for the baby. But no matter where they looked, Lily could not be found.

"Now what do we do?" moaned Viv.

After a fruitless search, they all gathered behind the checkout counter. There was no one else around and the librarians were away to help out with the school's Halloween event that was set to begin within the hour.

"She can't have gotten far," said Oliver. "Let's split up and - !"

He was interrupted by an adventurous jingle coming from his pocket. After answering his phone, he put it to his ear and said, "Now's not a good time, Francis. Can I call you back la-?"

"HELP!" screamed Francis Yorkshire, Oliver's roommate. "Some blue parrot made the grim reaper costume I was going to wear to the Halloween party come to life and now it's trying to kill me!"

Oliver blinked. "What?"

Over Francis' screams was a cackle like from an evil phantom straight out of an old-timey cartoon and then a different, familiar voice that sent a chill down the teen detective's spine.

"You heard the young man, detective," said the blue parrot. "Better hurry before his soul is taken."

The line cut off there.

Oliver swore and put his phone away. "Bad news, guys," he said. "The parrot's got my roommate. I need to go save him!"

"But what about Lily?" asked Viv.

"We were going to split up anyway," said Oliver. "While I go help Francis, you guys can - !"

 He was interrupted again, this time by the lights suddenly shutting off.

"Now what?" he groaned.

The darkness was temporary as soon blue light filled the library. But it wasn't from any lamp of the library. This supernatural glow came from a skeleton dressed in a nurse's outfit from the late Eighteen-Hundreds that popped out of the floor and flew over to the gang. It was the ghost of the matron that haunted Tanja before.

The ghost tauntingly sang, "I'm baaaack!" And then she flew away and circled around the library. Each bookshelf she passed over shook and rattled, sending books and decorative knickknacks tumbling to the floor in a messy pile.

"Aah!" screamed Alejandro. "She's messing up the library!"

"I just fixed that shelf!" moaned Melody.

"Quick!" yelled Hassan. "We gotta stop her!"

As the library helpers scrambled to deal with the cackling ghost and stop her from ruining the library further, Tanja spoke up and said, "Say, Oliver. Don't you think it's a weird coincidence that we've got the parrot and the matron showing up right when we've got a runaway baby to deal with?"

"Not at all," said Oliver. "This whole mess has the Schemer's name written all over it. He's definitely behind Lily turning into a baby and then disappearing to who-knows-where."

"What do we do?" asked Eddie.

"No change to the plan," said Oliver. "We split up. Divide and conquer, and all that. I'm going to go save Francis from his Halloween costume. We'll leave the library helpers to deal with the matron and clean up the mess she made. You three look for Lily."

"I'll go back to my room and check the school's cameras," Tanja said before running off. "I'll message you if I find anything!"

"Got it!" Oliver called out to her. "Okay, Sapphire Society. Disperse!"

**********

For some reason, nobody batted an eye when a baby passed by while riding on a flying book. In fact, they didn't seem to even notice. They continued to walk on without giving her a glance, many dressed in costumes for Halloween. There were the usual werewolves, vampires, witches, wizards, zombies, Frankenstein's monsters, and ghosts. Fairy tale princes and princesses also walked among them, as well as police officers, firefighters, and doctors in scrubs.

Just what on earth is going on? Lily wondered.

To be clear, she was still herself on the inside. Her mind, at least, had not been babyfied.

While the others had been distracted, the book that she found herself sitting on had suddenly started floating up like a balloon and took her out of the hideout. At the library, the doors swung open on their own, allowing the book and baby to go outside. Lily knew she should have gotten off the book when it started flying, but she missed her chance and was now stuck.

Where is it taking me? She wondered as they drifted down the road across campus. She wanted to ask, but the only thing that could come out of her infant lips was nonsense babbling. The book likely wouldn't answer her anyway since books can't talk. At least as far as she knew.

Eventually, the book came to a stop at the history building. Right in the middle of the main hall, it lowered the baby down and made her slide off and gently land onto the floor before going away.

Huh? What? Seriously? Lily thought. You kidnap me out of nowhere and now you're just going to leave me here in the middle of some random hallway?

Lily didn't like it here one bit. It was a hallway devoid of life, covered in fake spider webs and other creepy Halloween decorations. And now that she was a baby, everything looked bigger to her now, which just made it even creepier. Her instincts started to kick in and she let out a whimper. The whimper would have turned into a full bawl, but then a door opened, and feet appeared in front of her.

A familiar voice exclaimed, "What in the world?"

Lily looked up to see her uncle gaping back at her in surprise. He wore a blue, coat-like robe and a black hat with a round, red top. Taped to the side of the hat was a piece of yellow paper with Chinese writing on it.

"What is a baby doing here?" he wondered aloud.

Great, just great! Lily thought glumly to herself. Of all the people to find her, it had to be her uncle, the one person she wanted to see least right now.

Uncle Viceroy's costume, by the way, is a type of Chinese zombie called a Jiangshi. Lily recognized it from some old Hong Kong movies her parents liked to watch sometimes.

"Alright, up you go." 

He scooped Lily into his arms. She didn't like it but resisted the urge to make a fuss. When he straightened up, two boys suddenly showed up. One wore a black cape and a pointed hat while the other had butterfly wings taped to his back.

The boy with the butterfly wings gasped and cried out, "Oh no! It's finally happened. Mr. Lin's become a full-blown criminal!"

The caped boy followed up and added, "And not only that, of all things, it's kidnapping!"

"Ha ha, very funny, Mr. Fowl, Mr. Potter," Uncle Viceroy said sarcastically.

"Apologies, sir," said the winged boy named Fowl. "It was just a joke. But in all seriousness, why is there a baby with you?"

Uncle Viceroy replied, "She's not mine, if that's what you're thinking, though she does look really familiar for some reason."

Lily's heart skipped a beat and she broke out in cold sweat as her uncle stared at her face intently.  For a moment, she was afraid he was going to figure everything out. But to her relief, he turned away and continued to speak with the boys.

"I just found her in the middle of the hallway."

Potter raised an eyebrow. "By herself?" he said. "Think she somehow gave her mum or da the slip?"

"That's probably the case," said Uncle Viceroy with a shrug. "Anyway, I need to let security know and have them look for her parents. You guys go on ahead and have fun at the Halloween festival."

Lily watched as the boys leave and was then carried off to a small room at the end of the hall with a big window that allowed a good view of the worktable, steel file cabinets and huge, black computer screens inside. She thought she'd be left there; but after a brief word with the guard there, Uncle Viceroy took her back with him to his office instead.

This room's surprisingly neat and roomy, Lily thought as she looked around. Five steel file cabinets were lined up against the back wall while against perpendicular wall was a simple office desk. On top of the desk were three tidy stacks of papers, two on the right side and one on the left. Between the stacks was a computer with a big ledger book resting on top of the keyboard. There were also, on all sides of the room, posters of characters from Japanese cartoons.

After sitting in his black leather chair with Lily settled on his lap, Uncle Viceroy flipped open the ledger book to a page in the middle where a red silk ribbon laid flat.

He bent his head left and right, making popping noises from his neck and then picked up a pen. "Alrighty then. Sit tight, little lady. Uncle Viceroy's got some work to do."

Lily replied with a, "Guh!" She looked up at her uncle with her mouth hung open like a blank-faced goldfish.

Uncle Viceroy flashed a warm smile and nuzzled her hair with his cheek before grabbing a sheet of paper from the left stack. He gave the piece a quick glance, wrote something in the ledger, and then moved it to the right before moving on to the next. He would repeat this cycle for the next several minutes in complete, peaceful silence.

**********

Meanwhile, at Oliver's dorm room . . .

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"AH HAHAHAHAHA!"

Two teenage boys screamed their heads off while playing Tug-of-War with a scythe against a cackling skeleton wearing black robes with a hood.

And over at the library . . .

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"AH HAHAHAHAHA!"

The library helpers were running around screaming their heads off while swinging giant butterfly nets at a cackling skeleton nurse lady flying back and forth near the ceiling.

And outside as the sun was setting . . .

"LILY! LILY, WHERE ARE YOU?"

Viv and Eddie pushed through throngs of costumed Halloween revelers trying to call out for their friend over loud, pounding music. 

Over on a bench by a tree, a guy in a Darth Vader mask stood flashed peace signs with both hands and yelled, "Trick or Treat! Smell mah feet!" And then he jumped into the arms of his friends below. After planting his feet back on the ground and straightening up, they all screamed at each other's faces, "YEEEAAAAAAAAH!"

**********

As Viceroy Kevin Lin worked on his ledger book, baby Lily watched. She had never seen this side of her uncle before, looking all hard-working and serious like a proper adult. He was always doing something ridiculous like having full-blown conversations with pigeons under a tree or using a dancing inflatable and voice recording to do his classes for him.

If Grandma and Grandpa saw him now, Lily thought, they'd probably say something like, "If only he was like this all the time."

Done filling in his ledger book, Uncle Viceroy tapped the spacebar of the keyboard, and the computer instantly blinked to life showing a picture of himself with a little girl sitting on his lap. Both of them had big grins on their faces as they stared into the camera. 

Lily instantly recognized the girl as herself when she was younger. Well, technically she's younger right now having been turned into a baby while the girl in the picture was around five years old. 

"Ooh."

Uncle Viceroy looked down and smiled. "Interested in that picture?" he asked in a high voice. "Know who they are?"

"Ooh!"

"That's right," said Viceroy, though he definitely didn't understand what Lily was saying. "That's me. And the big sister there is my niece. Her name's Lily. Can you say 'Lily'?"

"Eeh."

"You know, I used to play with Lily a lot when she was thiiiis small," Viceroy told the baby, pinching air between his thumb and index finger in front of her. "Just like you are now. But then her mommy and daddy got really, really good jobs so they all had to go far, far away. We couldn't play together anymore. I really missed her."

That's right, thought Lily. It's all coming back to me now. Uncle Viceroy used to take care of me all the time whenever I visited Grandma and Grandpa's house when I was really little. He was always so nice. There's just no way he could be the cruel Schemer or one of the villain's just-as-cruel followers."

But just as Lily became convinced of her uncle's innocence, a visitor appeared who flipped that conviction upside down.

A knock at the door made uncle and niece turn their heads.

"It's open," Uncle Viceroy called out.

As soon as she saw who had come in, Lily's heart leaped to her throat. It was the Schemer looking as he always did in his blue robes with his face hidden beneath the shadow of his hood.

Uncle Viceroy, however, was not perturbed in the slightest by the visitor and asked, "Ah . . . fancy meeting you at this hour. Do you need my help for something again?"

The Schemer glided into the room; head bent down to fit beneath the door frame. He turned the void beneath his hood to Lily and a deep, artificial voice said, "Who is this little one?"

"Not sure," said Uncle Viceroy, giving the baby a glance. "I just found her in her lonesome out in the hallway. I already let security know. I'm sure they'll find her parents soon."

"One can only hope," said the Schemer, staring intently at the baby.

Lily shrank away and whimpered.

"Oh, what's wrong?" Uncle Viceroy asked her. He lifted her up to his shoulder and gently pat her back. "Hungry?"

"Never mind her for now," said the Schemer. "As you've correctly guessed, I need you to do something for me."

"Is it school related, or magic related?" asked Uncle Viceroy.

Lily's blood ran cold as she heard the word "magic" come out of her uncle's mouth. And it went even colder when the Schemer replied back, "Magic related. Can I count on you?"

Without a hint of hesitation or reluctance, Uncle Viceroy said, "Sure. Just say the word . . . and I'll get it done."

"Gah!" Lily yelled in dismay.

"Good," said the Schemer. "The pests are at it again and causing me headache. I want them dealt with."

Pests? Could he be talking about me and the others? Lily wondered. She felt tight squeeze on her heart.

Uncle Viceroy frowned. "Seriously? You'd think they'd learn after last time."

Last time? As in that time the others got turned to stone? Lily thought. The squeeze on her heart got tighter and blood rushed to her head.

"Don't worry . . .," said Uncle Viceroy. "I'll make sure this time that they're stopped for good. They won't bother you, me or anyone else ever again!"

Unable to take it any longer, Lily wailed. She screamed at the top of her lungs, startling Uncle Viceroy who cried out, "What's wrong? Is it hunger? Need a diaper change? What?"

The baby, of course, didn't answer, and instead tried pushing her uncle away with all her might.  There was no doubt in her mind at this point that her uncle, Viceroy Kevin Lin, was a villain. She had had enough and wanted to get away.

Suddenly, light flashed from her bracelet's jewels and an explosion of energy finally split the two apart.

Viceroy skidded to a stop with his chair in the middle of the room. When he looked up, his eyes popped out in shock as he watched the baby disappear into the light only to be replaced by his red-faced niece.

"Wha-? Lily!?"

A burst of magic had turned her back to normal. 

She glared at her uncle without saying a word, tears streaming down the sides of her face. And then she turned and ran out of the room.

"Lily! Wait!"

Viceroy chased after her, leaving behind Julius Bluestone who stood alone, wearing not his Schemer costume, but his normal every-day suit. The director and owner of Bluestone Academy listened to the sound of doors banging against a wall and feet thundering against the floor quickly fade. When he left the office, he found a blue parrot waiting for him in the adjoining classroom.

Perched on top of the teacher's lecture table, the parrot asked, "Was this the push you were talking about? Really? This?"

Director Bluestone looked away and did not answer.

**********

Lily ran out of the history building as fast as she could, covered in a veil of blue light that helped her exceed the top speed of a race car. She cut across the grassy courtyard and turned left along the road, streaking past her peers who thought the light they saw out of the corner of their eyes belonged to someone's costume. Close at her heels was her Uncle Viceroy keeping up with her magical speed.

"Lily! Stop!"

She refused and kept running. 

Among the people they passed by was Viv and Eddie.

Viv looked at her brother and said, "Was that light just now . . . ?"

Eddie nodded. "That was Lily! And I think she was being chased!"

"Come on! We need to go after her!"

A distance away, after finally subduing his roommate's killer (literally) costume, Oliver came to meet the twins, spotted them rushing off somewhere and followed.

Lily went all the way from one side of the school to the other and then circled back around to the middle where the Castle sat. She zoomed up the stairs and dove in through the main entrance, went down a corridor and descended a flight of stairs to the underground level. That turned out to be a mistake because her uncle soon caught up and trapped her at a dead end of the right hallway.

Lily and Viceroy faced each other, both out of breath and drenched in sweat from their impromptu exercise.

Viceroy spoke up first. "Lily - "

"No!" she shouted. "Just stay away!"

But her uncle would not budge.

"Lily," he said again. "Just tell me what's going on. Why are you freaking out like this?"

"I! SAID! STAY! A! WAY!"

She stomped hard on the ground and, again, her bracelet unleashed a wave of light. Suddenly, words appeared beneath her feet in the shape of a circle, adding their own supernatural glow to the bracelet's. 

Viceroy had a bad feeling about that light and reached out to pull Lily away from it. But he was too late.

Oliver, Viv and Eddie arrived just in time to join the history teacher and together watched as Lily disappeared before their very eyes.

<== Chapter 31                                                                          Chapter 33 ==>

Lily Wong Ch. 31

Chapter 31

Secrets of the Bracelet

BANG! So went the door as Lily came bursting into the secret room of the Sapphire Society, shouting, "Oliver, are you okay?"

Everyone looked up, gathered around the main table of the classroom area with books and papers spread out in front of them.

"Lily!" Oliver cried out. "You should be at your room, resting!"

"There's no way I could do that after I got that text message," Lily said. "Is it true you got jumped by the Schemer?"

"Yes," Oliver admitted. "But as you can see, I'm perfectly fine."

To prove his point, he stepped away from the others, spread his arms out like wings, and did a full turn-around. Lily was relieved to see her friend was okay, but couldn't completely relax just yet.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Well," went the teen detective, "I was on my way to see Director Bluestone when I happened to run into the Schemer and the parrot in the hallway. They spotted me and attacked, but I managed to shake them off and ran straight here."

"It's good to know that you made it out without a scratch," said Lily, "but what were the Schemer and parrot even doing at that hallway?"

"Talking," said Oliver. "It sounded like they were making up some kind of plan."

"Did you catch what they were saying?"

"Well . . . " Oliver looked away.

Lily frowned at the way her friend hesitated. "What? What is it? Go on. Spill."

Reluctantly, Oliver said, "I couldn't make out what their exact plans were, but I did manage to hear a name."

Lily suddenly knew where this was going to go, but she asked anyway, "And?"

"It was Viceroy Kevin Lin. They were talking about your uncle. Judging by how excited and happy they were while talking about him, my guess is that he's going to do something they'll like. And I'm sure you know that anything those villains will like will be bad for everyone else."

"So you still think that Uncle Viceroy's a bad guy?" Lily didn't mean to, but she spoke with a sharp edge to her voice.

"Lily," said Viv, "I know that Mr. Lin's family to you, but you have to admit that there's something fishy about him. We have videos of him wandering places where the Schemer and his parrot struck, and now we got those two talking about him. And that's not all."

She gave Alejandro and the rest of the original library helpers a glance.

With all eyes on them now, Alejandro stepped forward, cleared his throat and explained, "Ahem! Me and the others went around asking the librarians about the game of mahjong Mr. Lin mentioned he lost that got him patrolling the library for them. But it turns out that was a lie. None of the librarians even knew how to play mahjong. The head librarian said that Mr. Lin asked to take over himself."

"I don't have to tell you that makes him more suspicious, do I?" said Viv.

Lily threw her roommate an angry glare.

Sensing danger was brewing, Oliver quickly cut in, "There's only one way to know for sure whether Mr. Lin is guilty or innocent, and that's a good, old-fashioned investigation."

"Is that what all those books and papers are for?" Lily asked, nodding to the clutter on the table.

"No, that's actually something else."

Lily jumped in surprise. "Gah! Where'd you come from?"

Appearing out of nowhere behind her was Tanja, hugging a cluster of old books and rolled up pieces of paper.

"Just from the bookshelves over at the back," she replied, nodding her head over yonder. "Anyway, this stuff is really heavy, so would you mind?"

"Oh, sorry." Lily quickly stepped out of the way, allowing Tanja to rush over to the table everyone was gathered around and dumped everything over an already chaotic mess. Curious, Lily joined them and asked, "What is all this?"

"These," Tanja said, waving her hand over the table, "are all books and worksheets about magic formulas."

Lily blinked. "Magic formulas?"

Tanja nodded. "Magic formulas, basically math in magic. Turns out there's a LOT of math behind magic spells. While you don't really need to understand the math to cast a magic spell, according to some of the books I read, understanding magic formulas can help you to figure out how to break curses or enemy enchantments, or to invent new magic spells just for yourself. Well, first you need to understand the language of magic, which is what is used in incantations and spells, before you can get to magic formulas."

Lily's head spun from the barrage of information rapidly spewing from Tanja's mouth. She quickly raised her hand and cried, "Hold up! Hold up!"

After a short pause to sort through everything, Lily said, "So basically magic formulas are how magic spells work?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Tanja said with a nod. "Anyway, I got to thinking that maybe if I learn more about magic formulas, I could learn more about that bracelet of yours. Because according to my research, magic formulas are a must when making magic items. Take a look at this."

Tanja brushed aside some papers to expose a cream-colored manilla folder. And from the folder, she pulled out a large picture of something blue covered in strange markings.

"What's this?" Lily asked.

Tanja answered, "A blown-up picture of your bracelet."

"A picture of my bracelet? When did you take this? How?"

Tanja answered, "A couple of days after you became Lady Sapphire, using the school's security cameras. They're surprisingly clear. But then again, this is a school for rich kids, so it makes sense their cameras would be topnotch. Anyway, you see those markings all over? Those are magic runes used to write magic formulas on magic items."

"Really?" said Lily, looking down at her bracelet.

George took a look at the markings. "Looks like gibberish. How do you know what this all means?"

"With this handy magic runes to English dictionary," said Tanja, holding up a really worn-out paperback book with yellowed pages. 

"That book looks like its got more than a thousand pages," said Lily. "You read all of that?"

Tanja nodded and proudly replied, "Yep. Only took me a day or so."

"Geez!" went Eddie. "Did you even get any sleep?"

"Not at all," said Tanja. And then she burst out a goofy laugh.

"You should probably take a nap now," Lily suggested. "I think you need one more than I do."

"In a minute," said Tanja. "I still need to tell you what I found out about the bracelet."

"What did you find out about the bracelet?" asked Oliver.

"Well, for one thing," said Tanja, "it is NOT what gave Lily magic powers."

Lily blinked. "It's not?"

Tanja nodded and said, "Actually, it's the other way around. If my math's correct, and it always is, the bracelet actually takes power from you when you need it to do something and then gives that power back from the air or whatever when it's done, like recharging a battery."

"So basically, I'm a battery for the bracelet," Lily said.

"That's right," said Tanja. "But not only that, the way it's designed, the bracelet drains more power than what's normally needed to cast any magic spell, as if it was made to use up as much of your energy as possible."

"What's the point of that?" asked Eddie.

Viv spoke up and said, "Maybe it's like a training machine. I remember reading in Mom's journal that magic power's like muscles. It gets stronger with exercise."

"So instead of just giving Lily powers, the bracelet helped her grow her own." Oliver rubbed his chin thoughtfully and frowned. "Hmmm."

"Something wrong, Oliver?" asked Melody.

"Oh! Sorry, it's nothing," said Oliver. 

That was a lie. Something about Lily's powers growing made Oliver's brain itch, but he couldn't figure out why.

No need to tell the others this, he thought. It would just confuse them.

"Anyway," he said, "was there anything else you discovered?"

"Well," said Tanja, "I saw runes for fire, water, earth, air and some other elements. And I also saw some runes that mean creation, which I guess is how Lily could make stuff out of nothing. I haven't finished reading the whole formula yet. I just got around to this part here. It kind of looks important so let's take a look right now!"

She placed at the forefront a picture of a part of the bracelet covered in pretty much the same kind of symbols as the rest. Lily couldn't make heads or tails of the markings and simply took Tanja at her word. Tanja pulled out a magnifying glass and put it over the picture.

"Now let's see what we got here," she said. Her fingers brushed over the symbols, which suddenly lit up in an unusual bright shine.

Panicked, Lily cried out, "Look out!" And then she pulled Tanja away, turning as she did so before the shine exploded into a flash that filled the room for an instant.

"Yikes!"

"Eek!"

"Whoa!"

The light startled everyone and made them turn away.

"What was that?" Oliver shouted. "What happened?"

Tanja yelled back, "I don't know! I think I might have tripped a defense mechanism or something!"

"Hey!" Viv called out. "Where's Lily?" 

As soon as she could see again, she turned right and left but could find neither hide nor hair of her roommate.

"She was the closest to the picture when that light show happened," said Oliver. "You don't think . . . ?"

He dared not finish that sentence, but he spoke enough to make everyone's hearts sink into a pit of dread.

"It can't be!" Viv cried. "Lily! Where are you? Answer me! Please!"

There was no answer, which made Viv fear the worst. But then - 

"Gah! Gah! Goo!"

"Uh . . . " went Hassan. "Am I the only one who's hearing baby babble?"

Everyone exchanged looks. And then slowly, they turned their gazes down to the floor where, looking back up at them was a baby.

While staring at the adorable, pudgy infant, Tanja spoke up. "You don't think . . ."

"Guh!" went the baby. She raised her stubby hand and around her arm was a blue bracelet with matching jewels on it.

"Oh my goodness!" cried Eddie. "You turned Lily into a baby!" 

<== Chapter 30                                                                         Chapter 32 ==>