The Gemstone Chronicles

Rachel

Earlier before...

Today was officially the worst day ever lived in Rachel's little life. First, she was late for school due to her mother's continuous criticism of Rachel's appearance. Again. So Rachel's mother took one hour to put make-up all over Rachel's face!

Then, guess what?

Rachel forgot her already-due-for-two-months novel. Where did she leave it?

ON THE BEDSIDE TABLE.

So now, Rachel was sulking in her room. She looked through her window. It was already late, but the loud cars honking made it difficult to even think in peace. Well, there were a lot of cray-cray drivers on the road these days... she checked the clock, which displayed 11:48. Just great. If Mother came peeking in and saw that I was not yet asleep, I'm dead, thought Rachel. So she did the best thing she could in this case: She pretended.

But just as Rachel felt her eyelids slowing drooping down, a sudden peck on her window emitted her from her half-dream-half sleep. She looked up... and saw an owl.

With a heavy grunt, Rachel forced herself up and went to the owl. She opened the window, and as soon as it dropped an old-looking parchment in Rachel's hands, it quickly flew away. Urgh, could this day get any worse?

Rachel, with no choice at all, rolled open the mysterious parchment.

"Dear Rachel, you have been chosen for a journey of great importance." Rachel scoffed. "Like, seriously? That's all you've got?" She rolled her eyes. Suddenly, she heard soft footsteps echoing through the hallway and quickly hid her parchment under the pillow. Then in one swift move, she jumped in her bed and turned off the lights just as her Mother walked in. She scanned the room, and her eyes landed on her make-up table.

"This Rachel, is she even my daughter? Can't even get a better-colored lip gloss. This pink is absolutely hideous. Maybe I should buy her another one for her upcoming birthday." Rachel's mom paused for a moment. "Yes, that would be the most suitable present. Don't get why she needs an iPhone." Then she walked out and slammed the door with a loud BANG!

Rachel panicked. "So she's NOT getting me a new phone for my birthday?! I can't believe her! I've been asking for like, years."

She took out the parchment and continued reading. "Please meet with your guardian in your secret chamber behind the wall. She will guide you through your journey in Aurorium."
Rachel's eyebrows furrowed together. "How does this person know about my secret room? And where on Earth is Aurorium? Oh, this is probably just a prank letter."
But still, her curiosity won her over, and she quickly dressed up in a macha green tee and black jeans. Then carefully, as carefully as she can, Rachel twisted the round doorknob and it opened without a sound. She saw her mother's bedroom door closed, so she knew Juliette must have gone to sleep. Then she quickly but soundlessly goes into a series of twists and turns. Finally, she arrived at the wall her chamber was located. She'd come here so many times, Rachel had already memorized which particular brick to press. So she pressed the button on the top right part, and the wall became a door. Rachel pushed it gently, and it opened with a slight creek to reveal...
A woman.
She was wearing a cloak embroidered with small pearls. It looked old-fashioned. Rachel still hasn't recovered from the shock of all this turning out to be actually real when the woman turned to her. She smiled brightly, and Rachel realized this woman's features was one of the best she's ever seen. Prettier than Juliette, definitely.
"Hi, Rachel," the woman said to a stunned Rachel. Rachel finally returned to normal and immediately questioned the woman.
"Who are you?" Rachel's voice quivered.
The woman laughed, and the melodious sound filled the room. "Oh, please don't worry, my angel, I'm Natasha, and I'm your destined gemstone guardian. I have the power of a pearl. I know you have a lot of questions, but I promise you all of it will be answered when we get to Aurorium."

Rachel literally heard the wheels in her mind start spinning at an terrifying speed. Um, what now? This certainly was a wild night.

"Um, can I ask one question? Why am I going to this weird world almost halfway through the night and how would my mom feel about this?"

Natasha gave Rachel the most light-hearted laugh she'd ever heard and waved a piece of letter in the air. "Oh, that's easy. You've been accepted to the most famous and prestigious fashion school in France, and it's a boarding school. Only top 5 percent of gifted students gets in. Your mom will be so proud of you."

Rachel laughed coldly. "Proud? Oh, she'll be so proud." Rachel paused. "In another universe."

Natasha seemed to notice Rachel's tone. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry. But you should be proud of yourself. Only five people in the whole world had been chosen to do this, and you are one of them."

She then opened the chamber window.

"W-what are you doing?" Rachel asked, but had a feeling she already knew the answer.

"Oh, nothing much. Just opening a window and climbing out..?" Natasha laughed. "I will take you to the portal and into Aurorium, where you will meet the other four chosen ones. Are you coming or not?"

Rachel looked at the window wearily, then huffed. "Fine."

***

Which is how Rachel ended up in front of a tree.

"Are you sure it's this tree, and you're not making any mistakes?" Rachel asked for the second time.

Natasha nodded. "Positive. Now, watch and learn."

A sudden bind of white light surged through Natasha's right hand, and she placed the hand on the trunk of the tree. The trunk suddenly swung open, and the inside was so colorful Rachel couldn't see clearly.

Natasha smiled. "Coming?"

Rachel couldn't muster up any words. "Uh, yeah."

She stepped inside.