The Legend of the 12 Gemstones

Chapter 3~ working on title

        "Would you like a salad or pasta lunch?" asked the immaculate, pencil-staight, pin-thin flight attendant.

        "Hmmm..." stalled Zlair. She was in serious thinking mode, and coming up with her salad order became a struggle. "I think I'll have a Romaine salad with 27 carmelized walnuts, 1/33 cup feta cheese, 15 fluid ounces-- actually, can you make that 16 fluid ounces?-- of parmesan vinaigrette, 16-1/9 inch thick tomato slices, 8-2 inch thick onion slices, and 14 croutons?"

        The smile on the flight attendant's face faded into a frazzled frown."Um, Quelta cannot provide you with do-it-yourself sal--"

        "Oh!" Zlair added, smacking her forehead. "How could I forget? Can you add 10 fat-free seasoned chicken breast slices to my order?"

        Amy, sitting to the left of Zlair groaned. "What she means is she would like the salad."

        The flight attendant looked relieved and handed the salad to Lyndsie, at the end, to pass down to Zlair, who had taken the window seat so she could see her reflection on the scratched pane.

        "And you?" the flight attendant asked, turning her attention to Amy.

        Zlair leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes and zoning out the conversations around her. 

        On the ride, Zlair had a long time to think. She was surprised by her parents' adoration for the Waxflower Hotel. And, honestly, she was disappointed. She wasn't ready to save the world from failure. There was a lot of pressure on her shoulders. It weighed her down as if she had ten duffle bags instead of five. 

        "Ugh," Zlair groaned after the flight attendant left. "Does anybody know a good massage?"

        "No, but I read an article on how to soothe someone." Lyndsie tried.

        "You did? Thank god. What did it say?"

        "Well, first, I should sing you a lullaby."

        "Ummm... are you sure about this?" Amy asked skeptically.

       "Of course. My mom told me that she used to use it on me."

        "She used to, huh?"

        "At this point," Zlair sighed. "I really don't care what the strategy is."

        Lyndsie grinned. "A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J--"

        "Well, I do," Amy pouted. "You're tote-ally off key. This is how it's supposed to sound: A-B-C-D-E-F--"

        Lyndsie joined in, singing louder, and then Amy sang an octave higher, and on and on until Zlair was convinced that both her eardrums and brain were going to explode. Zlair would rather listen to a walrus dying than them. When they were finished with the entire song, they burst out in fits of giggles, but Zlair wasn't in the mood to laugh over annoying noises (not that she ever was). And she didn't appreciate their efforts.

        Finally, the plane landed and rolled along the rocky gravel path. Zlair gathered her things together, three duffels on one shoulder, two on the other, and a Vera Bradley™ suitcase in her sweaty palm. She got up and followed Amy down the aisle, her bags knocking everyone out of the way and punching the soft leather seats. Finally, Zlair was back in the airport. Together, the four of them pushed through the glass double-door exits into the outdoors. 

        So here they were, four kids, all alone, age 14. No guardians. Nobody to tell them to put on a jacket. Nobody to tell them to be quiet. Nobody to tell them to stay calm. And Zlair hated it. 

        Usually, something like this would make her excited. There wouldn't be anything restricting her from doing what was fun. But now that they were out in the wild, with nothing for company except for themselves and the critters scurrying around, she couldn't help but feel scared. She wondered how Amy and Lyndsie were able to stay happy.

        Zlair took a deep breath of fresh, cooled air, trying to gain confidence. The only thing she gained was a shiver. Zlair didn't know if she should blame the icy temperature or the nervous feeling trapped in her stomach. 

        "Well, now which was do we go?" Lyssa asked after a minute. 

        They were heading off to the shore of New Zealand to find sharks.

        "Follow the yellow brick road." Lyndsie giggled.

        "Fun fact: Glinda is color-blind. The road is ahb-viously gray!" Amy laughed, and Lyndsie joined in. "But, we're supposed to head West."

        "Which way's West, Wicked WItch of the West?"

        Amy pointed towards the sun-bleached pavement that trailed into a forest. 

        "And how do YOU know?" Lyndsie asked.

        "Because, fun fact, the Wicked Witch of the West is actually Einstein. The sun sets around the Southwest." 

        Lyndsie shrugged. "Okay, then. To the Emerald Trees, we go!"

        The foursome giggled while they walked into the moss-green forest.

        Crowding the orange sky were stretched-thin clouds that matched the white foam edging at the tips of the sea green waves like french nails. Behind her were mountains of grassy jungles. A heavily salt-scented breeze blew through Zlair's hair, and she wished it would do the same with her doubts.

        "Ugh, I'm so hungry!" complained Lyndsie. "Where's our hotel again?"

        "Didn't Carnavia say that she put it near the coast?" Lyssa asked. "Or maybe not."

        "Yeah, I remember her saying that." Amy nodded. The three of them looked off into the distance until Lyndsie spotted a marble building reflecting the sunlight a quarter mile or so away. They began walking towards the hotel and then paused.

        "You coming?" Lyndsie asked, turning around to face Zlair. "You've been almost as quiet as Lyssa."

        Amy glared at Lyndsie and glanced over at Lyssa, saying "she's standing right there, Lyndsie!" with her eyes. Lyndsie shrugged apologetically.

        "I'll catch up." replied Zlair, sitting down on to the sand. "You guys can go ahead."

        "You sure?"

        Zlair nodded. Lyndsie, Amy, and Lyssa headed towards the hotel until Zlair could only barely make out Lyndsie's wild mass of curls. She sighed and leaned back on her hands, watching the sun. She thought about watching the ocean with her father, back on the coast of California. Her father... her heart suddenly lurched in pain. When was the next time she'd see him? Days? Weeks? 

        Her brain shuffled through different memories of her dad. And then it came to a quote he'd always tell her.

       Automatically, she stood up. Her head turned towards the calm waves lapping over each other. She unbuckled her gladiator sandles, and sharp grains of sand tickled her toes as she walked until she could feel the icy water stinging her bare feet.

        She was going to find that Garnet. So what if she had fears? She knew that she could overcome whatever challenges were coming her way. She would do it for the world. She would do it for Amy, Lyndsie, and Lyssa. She would do it for her father. She would do it for herself.

        Zlair murmured the quote, imagining her father warm hand on her shoulder. "Nobody said it would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it."