Another World

Chapter 23

As I walk back to my room, I walk past Quinton. I wave at him and he waves back. He looks down and confused. I walk towards his room where he entered. He sits on his bed with a bush of flowers. Roses. Where did he get those?

"Hey you! What's wrong and where did you get those roses, Quinton?"

"Well, I kind of like Auriella, you know that. When I was about to give her the flowers, Tom walked by. Her boyfriend. He freaked out and slammed the roses onto the floor. Auriella apologized and ran off. I got the roses in that dome thing in the underground base. Why?" That means... I run to seek for Jake. As I enter the elevator (good guess) I slam into Jake's chest!

"Isabelle, what's wrong?"

"The roses! They're going to die!" When he doesn't respond, I press the bottom floor button. The doors slide and Jake speaks up, "You look bewildered! What happened?"

"Someone picked the roses!"

"Shit. This can't be good."

The doors move sideways as we reach the ground floor. The underground base is perfectly still and quiet like the first time I entered here. I take his hand because he looks lost. We run to the biometric door. On my way, I fall and cut my hand on a rock lying on the floor. Jake helps me up and as soon as we reach the stamp, I place my hand on the screen but the machine declines the print. I try it again and again but it doesn't open. The cut! It isn't the same print with the cut! "Jake, what are we going to do?"

He thinks for a moment and then his fist slams through the glass. He tears the window open by punching the cracks. Eventually the window is out and shards of glass lying everywhere. He gestures for me to go first. Once a gentlemen, always a gentlemen! Firstly I notice the white roses suddenly turning a sickly brown and dark green.

"What do we do, Jake? How can we stop it?"

"I... I don't know of the myth is true but they say if you pour a twin's blood in the roots, it will last until the next winter solstice."

"Auriella. Jolene." I sigh. Why does everything have to be so complicated!?

"Where is Auriella?" Jake asks in urgency.

"We last spoke in the Chinese Gardens an hour ago. Maybe she's in her room?"

Jake leads us to the transporter and we type in; Auriella bedroom. The floor shifts between tunnels in the walls as I hold onto dear life. And Jake. He also holds on to me so tightly. It's a matter of hold on or fall and die. That is so not a joke! (me, smiling) The floor stops and we're in front of Auriella's room! We both knock fiercely at the same time. We wait in silence as the door opens after a few seconds.

"Hey guys-" She was cut off by Jake's voice.

"Auriella, we mean you no harm but the roses are dying and as you know, the only cure is to-"

"Feed the roots blood of a twin born on a wintersolstice. I know, that's not me. We need Jolene's blood. She's the one who iscursed." She finished off.