Kingdoms of the Galaxy: Whispers of the Elements

The Calm Before The Storm

I have no idea why I chose that song for this chapter, but I really like it. (Don't judge my music choices😑)
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Valerie's POV

"What's the plan, guys?" I question.

"We should probably ask the one person that has experience with the house. Any ideas on how to get the stones out of your house, Vanessa?" Rex asks.

"Well, my mom is usually busy with her work for most of the day, so I think it would be better if we used the teleporter to get in and out. If that's okay with you guys, that is," she answers.

"That could work. I doubt she would expect anyone to break into there in broad daylight," Eli says.

"But I'm guessing that there is some sort of security, right?" I assume.

"Yeah, there are guards at every door and entrance to keep anyone who's not welcome, out," Vanessa explains.

"So we have a way in and out, but we don't know what to do once we get in," Ashton sums up.

"Well, we have Vanessa here to help us get around, don't we?" Taylor asks.

"Yup. I'll definitely be with you guys in there since I know how to get around," Vanessa confirms.

"How many stones will we take?" Tyler asks.

"Enough to mess up her plans, but not enough to be suspicious. Maybe two," I answer.

"So we're all good, then? Anything else we might need?" Rex confirms.

We all go to our "beds" to get the stuff we'll need. Communicators? Check. Earrings? Check. Mindspeaking?

'Check!' Vanessa projects into my mind.

I guess I'm all set before the rest of us, so I decide to stop by the grotto for a few minutes. I built a replica teleporter just in case we lost one, but it's a bracelet instead of a remote so that I can get to it faster. And it's like a chameleon, so it blends into whatever I'm wearing so that no one can see it. It also comes in handy when I want to get away from the others. Even Rex. I start to type in the coordinates when Rex walks up behind me.

"Whatcha doing, Val?" he asks.

"I was just testing out a new feature I added to my suit. You want to see me test it out?" I think of the best way to get out of there without having to take Rex with me.

"Sure," he answers.

'Great,' I think, typing the rest of the coordinates in. "And one...two...three...see ya later, Rex," I do a two finger salute and press the teleport button.

Rex's POV

Valerie presses something on the arm of her suit and disappears in a flash of light. 'Wha–Of course! She built a teleporter! She's probably at the grotto,' I conclude, going back to preparing for the mission.

I can't believe we're going to do this. We're finally going to end the Preeminence's plans, once and for all. This is so weird. We were on Avalon less than two weeks ago, and now we're stopping one of the most notorious intergalactic criminals of all time. It's amazing what can happen over two weeks.

I check off what I need in my head. Suit? Check. Awesome girlfriend? Check. Plan? Check. 'That's about everything I need. Time to relax,' I decide, walking over to the empty hammock and taking a nap.

Valerie's POV

"See ya later, Rex," I say and press the button. A second later, I'm back in the grotto.

"Finally. Some peace and quiet," I sigh and sit on the bank of the stream.

The water relieves my feet from all the walking we've been doing and cools them off. The water ripples a few feet away from me, but I dismiss it, thinking it's just a harmless water bug. It also ripples a few seconds later, closer to me and I see something grey. I move closer to get a better look and the thing grabs my foot. I shouldn't have done that.

"Ahh! Get off me!!" I scream, shaking my leg wildly to fling it off me.

It doesn't let go, so I make a risky decision. I raise my right hand and summon a ball of fire, take a deep breath, and shoot it at the thing on my leg. The grey fish-thing finally lets go after getting hit, but not before I hit myself, too.

"Ow ow ow," I whisper in pain and soak my foot in water, "ahh..."

'Oh man, how am I going to hide this from everyone?' I think and look at the burn. It's all red, throbbing, and stings when I take it out of the water. 'Leaves! I need leaves!' I remember from the Academy. A certain type of leaf can help burns, and I think there are some here. So, I lift my foot out of the water, take one step, and fall on my knees from the pain of putting weight on my left leg.

"Why do these things always happen to me?!" I complain into the trees.

Instead of walking, I choose to hop over to the bushes and look for an orange, two prong leaf that I can use to soothe my foot. I finally see some after searching for five minutes, and grab a handful of them for later.

After putting the leaves on my burn, I use some discarded vines to hold them there and put on my socks to hide them. "There we go," I say, "I really hope no one notices."

For the second time today, I punch the coordinates into my teleporter and press the teleport button. I appear in the hammock room and, as quietly as I can, hop into the closest one and fake being asleep.

"Aww! She's so cute when she's sleeping," I hear Rex say when he passes by. 'Phew...' I think, relieved, 'I really hope those leaves are doing their magic, or else I'm gonna get a lot of questions that I don't want to answer. Well maybe not a lot, more like three.'
•••
"VALERIE!" Someone screams.

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I know. Terrible ending. It's getting harder to end the chapters because of the plot line, so I'm trying to find a relatively good place to end them. I hope you like this chapter, anyways.

I don't know if you guys saw the update chapter from the other day(sorry if I'm being pushy), but I finally posted the prequel to the series. It's only three chapters long and it's about how Rex and Valletta met, and lost, each other when they were kids/teens. I know I'm being pushy, but please go check it out. It'll take only 5 minutes to finish, and I'll know if you liked it, or not. Thanks if you do. But you don't have to if you don't want to...it's your choice.

'Til next time, see ya!