12

six

Diana~Aries

Chloe had called a meeting for us in the massive library downstairs. Of course, it seemed like everyone here had already made friends before. I stood by the side of the room, leaning against a bookshelf, and watching everyone either interact with each other or keep themselves in hiding. Three kids near me were huddled close to each other, and two of the boys looked concerned for the petite Asian in the group. I watched as she kept shaking her head, saying, "I don't wanna talk about it."

My eyes moved towards a couple across the room, holding each other close. The girl must've been crying because her eyes were red and swollen. The boy seemed upset, probably for the girl. Her lips were moving, but since she was so far away, I couldn't tell what she was talking about.

Others were just plain scared. A black girl was hidden between the shelves, holding herself tight and crying. A boy, quite close to me, was staring at me, confused.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I snapped at the boy. His eyes went wide, and he gave a quick apology.

"I was just confused in why you are not as scared as everyone else," he said. He had beautiful blue-green eyes, and I wanted to stare into them.

"I am just as scared as all of you," I admitted to him. "I'm just good at hiding my feelings, I guess."

The boy smiled. He looked up at the ceiling, where there was a massive star show. They twinkled in the dark, giving us the only light in the room.

"I wanna know what's up there," he said, "and why we are here. I wonder if that is the actual sky or what."

I chuckled. "Don't go all spiritual on me. I'm too scared and tired to deal with that."

His eyes glanced at me, and I saw a flicker in his eyes. He beamed at me and stood up. Without saying a word, he left the room, his eyes either looking at me or the ceiling.

Later, Chloe and Chase came through the doors. Chloe looked flustered and Chase was carrying a bag on his back. "Line up!" she cried, raising her finger in the air.

There were eight of us total, all lined up together in the middle of the library. Chloe looked down the line and turned around to Chase.

"Where is Kaia?" she asked, crossing her arms. "We cannot start without her."

Chase shrugged. "You know her better than I do."

Chloe sighed. She turned back around and smiled at us. "I'm sorry for the delay, it appears that Taurus decided to not show up to this meeting."

Suddenly, as if on cue, the doors to the library swung open, and Kaia walked through with a drink in her hand. "Sorry I'm late," she said, stopping in the front of the room with Chase and Chloe. "I didn't want to come."

Chase rolled his eyes and pulled a book out of a nearby bookshelf, flipping through it.

"Finally, we can get started." Chloe smiled. "Welcome to Triplicity, home to the 12. I know you must be very confused, but we can help you here." Chloe looked back at Chase, who was still nose-deep into the book. "Chase."

"Oh, right," he muttered, shutting the book with a snap. "We were brought here to be warriors, to fight the monsters that roam Earth. We've been here for generations."

"Each of you here are special," Kaia continued. "We all have our different powers, and some of us have yet to discover them."

"Aimee, you aren't alone!" the boy cried, squeezing the poor girl to his chest. The girl - Aimee - groaned and pushed a lock of blond hair out of her face.