Chapter 2: Chapter 2
Stick Together
"Grandpa!" Ace forgot his need to breathe. "Wh.I mean.how.The Emerson Stone?"
"Shh! Quiet now!" Grandpa said. He threw the cloth back over the stone and darkness took the room again. He frantically put the stone in the chest and locked it. "You knowing I have it is already dangerous enough. You're about to wake up the entire crew!"
"Where did you get that stone? And why are you telling me this?" Ace asked.
"I. . ." Grandpa scratched his chin, "it was a gift. Let's just leave it there." His eyes squinted with a hint of suspicion. "And I'm telling you this, because you've been chosen."
"Chosen for what?"
"To be the stone's keeper. To fight the power of the seventh realm with an even greater power."
Ace opened his mouth, then closed it. He repeated this a couple tim-
es until he decided which of questions flying through his brain he wanted to ask first. "What? But the seventh realm is a myth."
"That's what I thought too. But I have reason to believe otherwise."
"What reason?"
Grandpa leaned in to Ace's ear. "A map."
"A map? So, I'm going to the seventh realm?"
Grandpa rubbed his head. "That's a good question. I think it's a mixture of yes and no." He shook his head and wagged his hand. "No matter. The point is, you will be the stone's keeper soon, and the seventh realm will be woken to it."
Ace quarreled with his adventurous nature. It sounded like one of Grandpa's stories. The boy's mind split into three pieces: one believed Grandpa was telling a story and had taken his method acting to a new extreme, the other believed the old man had finally gone insane, and the final believed it to be true, but didn't trust his twelve-year-old self to perform the task.
"But . . . why me?"
"Haven't I told you? You're gutsy, determined, and you won't stop searching until you find the answer. What else would compel you to sneak into my Meeting Room? You know how bad Grandma's whippings hurt."
Ace stood baffled. The past few years on Grandpa's over sea trips had made him feel much less than how Grandpa described him. The Peppercorns finished their chores first. They beat him and Cameron in every family game. They were richer, more talented, better looking. Grandpa made a mistake.
"I am? But.I mean.the Peppercorns."
"The Peppercorns don't matter right now," Grandpa said, cutting down Ace's words like a razor. "You've been chosen for this. Forget everything else. Julie and Tamara will just have to deal with it."
Ace's heart couldn't decide whether to leap or fall. He only settled on trusting Grandpa.
"Okay, Grandpa. So, are you just going to give me the map and send me away? Or . . . how is this supposed to work?"
The old man laughed. Ace thought a lot of old people sounded like they had mountains of phlegm and mucus gathered in their throat when they laughed. But not Grandpa. His laugh was smooth, lighthearted, and could bring joy to the most broken spirits.
"You have been chosen to lead your family. Not leave them. You are to protect them. But defeating the seventh realm is a task great and far.
You will conquer many trials before reaching this place," Grandpa said.
"Do you mean that I am . . ." Ace paused, unsure whether this question was appropriate or not, "in charge of the rest of the family?"
Grandpa nodded. "You will be. But you must understand that leading your family is serving your family. Until you understand this, you will be in charge of nothing but your imagination."
Ace had no words. After all the years of the Halders being one step behind the Peppercorns, they were finally one step ahead. And not just the Halders, but Ace. The youngest and least talented.
"But, Grandpa. I don't even know how to get to school. Mom and Dad still drive me. And you want me to go to the seventh realm? Until just now, I thought it was a myth. And, I've never even used a map before . . . How will I know how to read it?" Ace said.
"When it's time, you will find your way," Grandpa said. "I wish that I could tell you more than this, but the way the Emerson Stone chooses to operate is out of my control. But listen close. When the map is revealed to you, you may not even know it, but the stone will then become yours."
Ace didn't pretend to understand what Grandpa said. Had the old man lost his mind? Was Ace dreaming? He scratched his head as an orange glow slithered through the rippling windows. The tip of the sun had just breached the horizon; dawn was approaching.
"For now," Grandpa said, "Go back to sleep with the rest of the grandchildren. You will find out more soon enough."
Ace nodded. Best to get back to the sleeping quarters before the others grew suspicious. He turned back down the hall, a fresh perspective in his mind as he crept his way back across the deck. He had expected to find some treasure, or ancient artifact, or maybe some Earth weapon; but, the Emerson Stone? No way. The thought of it dizzied him. The Emerson Stone only existed in Yutarian myth. Some spoke of its magical power to grant wishes. Others said it to be a weapon, and any country possessing it would become Yutara's next world power. Ace enjoyed most the stories of which the stone held the source of all light in Yutara and destroying it would bring eternal darkness to the seven realms. All differences aside, each rumor agreed on one thing: the witches of Yutara wanted the Emerson Stone and would do anything to get it.
Pfft. Witches? Actual witches?
Did Grandpa actually have the Emerson Stone? Maybe Grandpa tricked him. Tried to teach Ace a lesson or something, right? It wouldn't be unlike him.
He stumbled on the door leading to his bed. He pushed it ajar, squeezing his way through quickly as possible. He didn't want the morning sun waking the others. Especially with Julie and Tamara sleeping right by the door. To his misfortune, he wasn't sneaky enough.
"Hey," Julie said, wiping her eyes, "What are you doing, Ace?"
Her voice whined enough to wake everyone up. Cameron and Tamara moaned and groaned in their waking as they sat from their hammocks.
"I just.uh.had to go to the bathroom," said Ace.
Julie squinted and stood from her hammock. "No, you were sneaking around, weren't you? I can tell by the look on your face."
"What?" Ace chuckled nervously, "that's ridiculous."
"Grandpa told you not to go into the Meeting Room, Ace. But you just had to, didn't you? I knew you couldn't go the whole trip without peeking," Julie wagged her finger at him with the other hand on her waist. "That's why Grandpa and Grandma love us more. We actually listen to him."
Ace grew hot. Already tempted to give away Grandpa's secret. Actually, Grandpa put me in charge of all of you! He seems to think I'm a better leader. So, you and Tamara can spend the rest of the trip swabbing the decks! Get to work!
Ace bit his tongue as the hope of earning Grandpa's trust tugged on his heart.
Cameron yawned and stretched as he mumbled some gibberish. He finished his stretch and spoke again, this time with more clarity. "What's going on?"
"Your stupid little brother is going to get us all in trouble," Tamara said as she stood from her bed.
"I'm not stupid!" said Ace.
The door flung open and Grandma Martha stepped inside, dressed in a night gown, her gray hair pulled into a ponytail.
"What's all the racket in here?" The old lady said.
"Grandma! Ace went sneaking around last night. I'll bet he went into the Meeting Room. The exact place Grandpa told him not to go," Julie said.
"Oh? Is that so?" Grandma stepped closer, leaning towards Julie.
"No," Cameron said, now stepping from his bed. "She doesn't know that. Ace just came back inside. He said he was using the bathroom and Julie is just throwing out accusations."
Ace smiled at Cameron. Having always looked up to Cameron, he felt uneasy about being put in charge.
"Well then, Ace. Were you using the bathroom?" Grandma asked. Before Ace could answer, Grandma gave him a subtle wink. Did she know about the stone too?
"Yes, Grandma," he said.
"Well, Julie. Maybe you had better learn a little bit more about a situation before you start drawing conclusions," Grandma said.
Julie folded her arms and pouted. She stomped outside the door.
Grandma sighed. "You three, get your stuff ready. We should be
arriving shortly. I'll deal with Julie."
The old lady turned to the deck and shut the door behind her. Ace smirked, trying to contain the joy of seeing Julie not get her way for once.
"What were you doing, Ace, really?" Tamara said. She stood from her bed and walked to him. "Grandma never sides with the Halders.
Something is up."
Ace glanced at her as she towered over him. She and Julie never had to try and look nice when they woke up. He still had bed hair, and could nearly feel the circles forming under his eyes from his sleepiness. As much as he hated to admit it, Tamara looked like the seventeen-year-old princess she thought she was the second she woke up. Her smooth brunette hair fell perfectly by her shoulders, not a single hair out of place, and her green eyes glimmered in the morning light creeping through the window, complimenting her light brown skin. She had plenty of beauty sleep apparently.
"Well, there's a first time for everything, I guess. Grandma obviously trusts Ace. So just deal with it." Cameron said. "C'mon, Ace, let's start getting our stuff ready."
Ace nodded at his older brother, then gave Tamara a smile loaded with sarcasm. She stomped down the hall. Probably on her way to try and defend her sister to Grandma.
Once she left, Cameron stepped closer to him. The timid light revealed the details in Cameron's unkempt morning hygiene. Crust gathered in the ducts of his brown eyes and broke into pieces around the gray circles. And his black hair, just longer than his ears, looked like a hurricane.
Cameron put his arm over his little brother. "Okay, but for real.
What's going on?"
"I can't really tell you. It's a secret," Ace whispered.
"What? C'mon little brother. We Halders have to stick together, right?" Cameron said.
Ace bit his tongue, desperately wanting to share Grandma's secret with him. Halders were supposed to stick together. But Grandpa, he was a Halder too, and Ace couldn't let him down.
"I know, Cameron. But . . . I just can't. You're just gonna have to trust me."
Guilt welled inside him as Cameron's face grew long. "Fine. But you owe me," he said, gently punching Ace's arm.
-- Gift
received