Despite Everything

Chapter 2

My breath is knocked out of me with a thud. I lie there on the grass, trying to breathe again, my vision going in and out of focus.

There's a grunt and a thump, and Mags is standing over me.

"Get up before someone sees you!" she hisses, grabbing my arm and yanking me into a standing position. 

I wobble on my feet. "Y-you pushed me off the l-ledge." 

Mags shrugs, and pulls me over to the trees on the side of the street. "Yeah. It's the only way I could get you to come with me. Now hurry up. Jesse and Marina are waiting, and Marina does not like to wait."

I manage to get my legs working right, and follow Mags. She strolls along, slightly bowing her head if anyone looks her way. Finally, we arrive at our destination - the forest. I stop to admire it, but Mags tugs at my arm and motions for me to follow her deeper.

I do. She takes me to a cluster of bushes far into the woods, and pulls them inside.

I gasp slightly.

An old wooden trapdoor is in the ground.

Mags crouches down and opens the trapdoor, revealing a gaping black hole. "Come on!" she says, disappearing into it.

I try to resist, but I can't help it. If falling from my wall was the spark of adventure, seeing this tunnel turned it into a bonfire.

I follow Mags into the secret passage and close the trapdoor behind me.

It's pitch black in here.

"Don't worry, the camp is straight ahead," says Mags. Her voice echoes in the chamber.

I follow the tunnel, running my hands along the packed dirt walls, until we reach another door. Mags opens it.

Light.

That's my first thought. The room is bright, filled with lamps, ceiling lights, and bulbs.

"Jesse can't stand the dark," says Mags. "That's why I was the one to go get you instead of him. He hates going through that tunnel."

There is a white table in the center of this room. A boy and a girl sit at it.

The boy has fine blonde hair. He's wearing glossy pink lipstick, eyeliner, and a gray suit. He smiles. "Hey, new kid! I'm Jesse. I see you've already met Mags." His smile is kind and soft, and it makes me feel warm inside. "I'm from the Air Quadrant - Libra Zone." He gives me a once-over. "Let me guess. Taurus?"

I self-consciously look down. "Um... yeah. How did you know?"

Jesse smiles wider. "You're wearing green, which is the color of Taurus. Your knees have dirt on them, probably from gardening. Your shirt has a picture of a tree on it - Taurus people are down to earth and love nature." He sees my surprised expression, and laughs. "Also, Mags kind of told me before she went out that she was going to bring back a Taurus."

I manage to let out a chuckle. "Heh. Y-yeah. Okay."

Then I look to the girl. She has long black hair, and is wearing skinny jeans and a long-sleeved purple shirt. 

"Hi, I'm Marina. I'm a Scorpio. Water Quadrant." She runs her fingers through her hair and smiles at me. 

I relax a little, and smile back. "So... where are we? Where is this... camp?" 

"We're underneath the Lava Wall," says Mags. "In between the Earth and Fire Quadrants."

"But I thought you said we were going on some adventure to 'explore the Zodiac.'" I fiddle with the material of my shirt. "Not that I want to, or anything. Mind you, I'd rather be home."

"We are going to explore the Zodiac.* But first, we had to have four members in our group - one from each of the Quadrants, so we can know how to act when we're in said Quadrants. You, my dear-" Mags puts her hand on my shoulder. "-were the last piece."

Jesse grins. "We'll be traveling to Sagittarius Zone - Mags' home - first. Then Leo and Aries. Next, we'll go under the Lightning Wall and enter the Gemini Zone in the Air Quadrant. We'll go to Libra and Aquarius, and cross over the Rain Wall into the Cancer Zone - Water Quadrant. From there, we will travel to Scorpio and Pisces." He takes a breath. "Then we'll sneak underneath the Mud Wall, so we can get to the Capricorn Zone in the Earth Quadrant. We will go to Virgo, and finally, back to Taurus."

*A map of the Zodiac is shown as the chapter image.