Talented (On Hold)

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

The next day in History, Kaolin noticed that the posters that had been removed were back up, including the one she had seen him take down. They were all maps of Angoria, the other dimension they had learned about the day before. Mr.Curin smiled at Kaolin. Then he addressed the class. “There has been a few schedule changes for all of you. This is not U.S. history. It is now Angorian history. Science is Angorian Creatures. Gym will be spent on your talent, and, as you progress, will be extended to include weapons skills, survival skills, and basic first aid. Spanish is now Aliga, the most common dialect in Angoria.”

Helen raised her hand.

“Yes?”

“Why would we need to know all this? I mean, are we actually going to go to Angoria? And why would we need to know how to use a weapon?” She wrinkled her nose.

“Good question. Yes, we are going to go into Angoria.” Everyone started talking at once.

Mr.Curin held up a hand, and they all fell silent.

“But not for a while. Angoria is a dangerous place, with many, many, creatures that would love to eat you. That is why you must learn to wield a weapon with accuracy. Now, for our first basic history lesson. I want all of you to open your minds, as strange as that sounds. Empty it. Don’t be afraid, this is my talent, and it will not hurt you. Just enjoy.”

Kaolin did as he said, and suddenly an image sprang into her mind.

A unicorn walked calmly through the forest, horn sparkling. A lovely young woman sat in a tree, feet dangling. Her ears were pointed and her skin was tinted slightly green.

 “In the beginning, our worlds were connected and people and creatures traveled freely between.” Mr. Curin’s voice echoed in her head. “Think of all the creatures in our mythology. Think of the Irish Fair Folk and the Greek Dryads. Those are Angorian people. But, not all of the creatures were friendly and relations between the two worlds steadily worsened.”

 A dragon swooped low over a town while villagers ran screaming in fear. A group of men hunted a unicorn, waving spears and blowing horns. A woman tied to a pole screamed.

 “Think of things like the Salem Witch trials. Creatures like the unicorns went from being revered to hunted. Soon, the sorcerers of Angoria decided something must be done, for our sake and for theirs. We obviously weren’t ready to know about Angoria.”

A group of men and women in capes stood on a hillside, chanting. They raised their arms and with a flash of light were gone.

”They cast a layer of spells to hide the existence of Angoria from the people of our world. Though this helped, it did not solve the problem. Monsters still came through and killed people, but now no one knew what was going on.”

A woman walked through the forest. Suddenly the bushes rustled and a huge dog, with red eyes and a forked tail, stepped out into the open. It growled, and the woman, instead of running away, walked toward it. “Here, puppy.” She called. “Also, those who could not see the rifts between our worlds would often walk through by mistake.”

A little girl ran through the forest. She did not seem to notice the glowing rift, which looked like a tear in the backdrop of trees. Through it mountains showed. With a gasp of surprise, she ran straight into it and vanished.

“The Queen of Angoria decided something must be done. She sent a few of her sorcerers through a rift and into this world. They sought out children with strange powers, due to Angorian magic in their veins, and trained them in secret schools across the country.”