SkyFall

Malin

Twenty minutes, a splash of water, and a few bandages later, my wounds were cleaned up. I turned to Beth, who sat on a rock and wouldn't look me in the eyes. Once again, I told the story about everything, from the pizza place, to the dream.

She was speechless, but the shocked look on her face said it all. Finally, after a few minutes, she spoke. "So, SkyFall isn't actually a video game..."

I chuckled. "So, I tell you that all of SkyFall is in danger, I was manhandled in a dream, and I woke up with actual wounds; and all you're surprised about is that SkyFall isn't actually a game? You would..."

She gave a wide smile that I hadn't seen in a very long time. "Well, It's shocking to discover that the government hid this from us, and made us think SkyFall was a video game! I mean, that explains why we didn't go into a Sims game like you mentioned back at The Base!"

"And back to the current situation, do you have any idea what could possibly be going on?" Ally asked Beth.

"Not a clue," she sighed. "Nothing like this was included in the game's instruction manual... But what I do know for sure is that we need to find Logan."

"So, are we sisters again?" I acted like I was teasing, but deep down it was a serious question.

It look a minute for her to answer. "Yeah. But don't think I'm going to get along with your boyfriend."

I opened my mouth to respond, when I saw that patches of the sky began to darken.

"A sky fall!" Megan cried. "Where can we hide?!"

"There's a cave close by! I saw it when I went to the river!" Beth replied. Grabbing our backpacks, we bolted in the direction that she indicated. We heard loud crashes as the chunks of sky fell from above, making us charge even faster.

Finally, we reached the cave, but to our dismay, it was more like gap along a rock wall. The space was small, but we squeezed ourselves in. The sky pieces fell like meteors, leaving us breathless with fear and awe. As frightening as it was, it was beautiful in ways impossible to describe.

We peered just the slightest bit out of the cave to look up at the sky. As each chunk fell, vast darkness was left in its place. The sky was a quilt of black and blue patches. As the pieces crashed down, they disappeared a few minutes after hitting the ground.

The intensity decreased, then finally ceased to a stop. I let out a shakey sigh. We stepped out of the cave and looked around. Up above, a new, bright blue sky was now intact.

Ally sighed. "Well, now that that's over-"

"Look!" Beth pointed towards our right-hand side. Thick, dark smoke rose up in the sky. I checked my map and saw that it was coming from the direction of the islands.

My heart pounded. "Let's check it out," I said, thinking of Logan. My friends nodded and we jogged in that direction. We were on the shore of the mainland and could see all three islands in the distance.

"The smoke is coming from the middle island," I noticed.

Beth gulped. "That's Dark Forest Island."

"Well, let's get our boat and go over there!"

"It's too dangerous," Beth answered, with Megan and Ally nodding in agreement.

"We've been there before -looking for you- and we were lucky to make it out alive." Megan said.

"Speaking of that, Clarissa was there too. I bet she has something to do with this." Ally stated.

"Clarissa? She's harmless!" I answered, quite sure of myself.

"People change... And knowing her, it was probably for the worse..."

There was a sound of yelling in the distance. Or was it screaming?

"What if Logan is in trouble?" I couldn't make my voice louder than a whisper.

"Then let's go." Beth answered.

"But I thought you didn't like him..."

"She hasn't even met the guy!" Ally intervened.

"I don't. But, if you want to go help him, I'm with you."

A watery smile formed on my face. "Thank you," I whispered. She nodded. With that, we went for our boat, pushed it onto the shore, and squeezed ourselves in.

Taking turns with the heavy oars, we finally reached the island. My heart dropped when I saw it. It was lifeless, dark, and eerie to look at. Duh, that's why it's called Dark Forest Island. We stepped ashore and tied our boat to a dead tree near by.

We made our way farther into the island. I was scared beyond possible. Of the island itself, of the chance that Logan might be hurt, and most importantly, of what waited for us deeper into the forest.

Then, I saw him. No, not Logan. I'll never make that mistake again. The other one. I nodded to Beth and whispered that he was the one who was in my dream. We hid behind a cluster of trees.

"You're an idiot, Malin!" A voice yelled out. It was Logan. But from my angle, I couldn't see him.

"Nonsense! You're the only idiot! You fool! You let the humans enter! And now, they have helped me escape."

"Except, you haven't completely escaped. And I'm aware that a villager helped you out as well."

"Oh, so you aren't as stupid as I thought! Of course a villager also helped me. I may not be completely free, but I will soon. So prepare."

"You don't need to warn me." Logan took a step forward, and I was finally able to see him.

"It's the least I can do." Then, Logan spotted me. His eyes widened and his mouth hardened into a thin line. Whoops...

"Run along now," Malin continued. "I have things to do and restraints to break."

Logan gave a dark chuckle. "You didn't win last time, and you won't win again."

"We'll have to wait and see." With a flick of Malin's wrist an explosion went off, knocking down trees and sending wooden shards soaring into the air. When the debris settled down, Malin was gone.

Ally tugged at my arm. "Let's go! Unless you want to stay and die!" There was another explosion, must closer to us than the previous one. I nodded.

Suddenly, Logan appeared, looking like a stern parent. "What in SkyFall are you doing here!?"

"Uhh, taking a tour...?"

He rolled his eyes, but smiled. Then he turned serious. "Dawn, I'm taking you back to the castle. You'll be safe there."

"What? No! I'm staying here! I can help, just tell me what's going on!"

"You can take your friends with you. C'mon." He reached for my hand, but I pulled away from his touch, not wanting to be teleported to the castle with out my consent.

"Logan, please. Stop hiding things from me... Maybe I can help!"

"Fine. I'll take you to the village and tell you everything there." A third explosion went off, making us shield ourselves from the flying debris. I looked at him suspiciously.

"Dawn," he said, reading my mind. "I'm going to take you all to the village, not the castle. I promise."

"Okay," I answered. I reached for Logan's hand, then reached for Beth's. She then grabbed Megan's hand and Megan grabbed Ally's. Beth shot Logan a dirty look, making him look at me in question. I shrugged.

"Oh," I said, looking to my friends. "Be prepared to vomit. Teleporting has some nauseating side effects." Their faces paled.

"And before we go," I turned to Logan. "Who is this 'Malin'?"

Logan sighed and looked at me. "Malin is my brother."