⛭ Chapter 2 ⛭

Heading downstairs towards the dining room after getting herself together, Chelbie found Flight, Hisa, Cherry, and Snowflake all eating breakfast together. Saying good morning to each of them, she then peeked in on Styra and Kade who were listening to Eternika in the living room.

“We still have not been able to get much out of locating where Prism could be. With The Eternal Light Of Fractality looming elsewhere, this power could have easily shattered more realities into some unforeseen chaos. What it is up to now remains a mystery to me. Perhaps Styra, has an undiscovered part in helping us stop it. We must clear out these messy details and pinpoint where we need to go to solve this situation,” said Eternika.

As they were about to continue on formulating ways to address the issue at play, Styra noticed Chelbie had been listening to their conversation and decided to walk up to her.

“Hey, Chelbie… How’s it going? Did you get good sleep last night? I know it’s been a lot to package in after having to save everyone. That and now we have to figure out where Voltaze went. I’m a bit worried about how it could go but… Ah great, I’m boring you aren’t I? Sorry for blabbering too much. I’m just not sure how to feel about what has happened recently.”

Chelbie, who was at first dazed by the entire response Styra greeted her with, suddenly gave a loud yawn. It was her only way at attempting to brush off the emotions racking her brain from the recent nightmare she had.

“Never better Styra. I mean that in a good way of course. It’s just that, I’ve been feeling a bit more starved for a little more adventurin’ every now and then. I kind of also felt like revisiting some of those worlds again too, but otherwise… Yeah, I’m doin’ great.”

“That’s nice to hear. Well then… I’ll let you do whatever you were about to get to. I’m going to hear what the others have to say.”

When Styra started to make her way back towards the living room, Chelbie suddenly grabbed her hand. Almost as if she had more going on in her head than she let on.

“If you’re not too busy after that, do you want to do something together today? Cause, I just remembered that you did pretty promise me a little one-on-one.”

Styra smiled, knowing exactly what she was referring to.

“Got a place where we can do it at?”

Thinking on this question, a certain restaurant popped up in Chelbie’s mind that she remembered looked like one she had seen in StarSpace.

Of course, this was common to figure after seeing that Animearth felt a lot like an alternate version of her original home.

“There is this one really fancy cuisine restaurant I used to visit with my parents on the weekend. It was my favorite place to eat at. Tell you what, it’ll be a surprise. I’ll be outside for a while. Whenever you’re ready, call me so we can meet up. Fair game?”

The deal being offered enticed Styra a lot more from hearing that it would be mysterious.

“Fair game. I’ll see you there,” she exclaimed with an excited expression before heading back to the group in the living room.

Thinking to herself about the face-off, Chelbie did have a few doubts about it after awhile. Still, deep in her fiery heart was the need for some spice in her life. The rush of adrenaline was more compelling ever since she found it to be enticing.

That was all she really wanted to live for after all.

Just as she took a few steps toward the door though, a certain familiar voice called her back in.

“Chelbie, wait! Remember what I told you about leaving outside?”

Only one word popped up in Chelbie’s head the moment she heard that.

Shit…

Hisa Night, the niece of Xavier Chile (Chelbie’s stepfather), came down the stairs in a rush as she crossed her arms with a look of disappointment.

“Umm… Okay, I know what you’re thinkin’ right now. Just hear me out…” said Chelbie with a fully nervous expression.

“What is there to hear? I told you this before. You running off without telling me anything has got to stop. We may be far away from home, but that doesn’t mean there is nothing to worry about. In fact, it’s quite the opposite concerning what I told you beforehand,” warned Hisa.

“Jeez, chill… I’ve grown up a lot since what’s been happenin’ already. I’m not little like that. I wanna do somethin’ more for once ya know? Me and Styra are goin’ to somewhere later today.”

“Chelbie, growing up isn’t just about going places. There’s more to life and a lot of that comes from slowing down and acknowledging that what you do has consequences. That’s why from now on when you go outside, Cherry and I set up a home alert system that tracks whoever comes in and out. So, to make sure I can know where you’re going, she will be joining you.”

Hearing this gave Chelbie mixed feelings. She didn’t mind Cherry coming with her to go somewhere, but it clearly felt like she wasn’t allowed to do anything meaningful by herself either. The call for excitement and adventure was the biggest motivation she could possibly have. During their previous battle against the rogue Zethyrian alien known as Voltaze, her perception of travelling was heightened astronomically.

Regardless of this, her inner emotions were halted by everyone in the living and dining room who were staring at them.

Even Styra.

As Cherry approached where they were while carrying a small purse that was decorated with flowers, she was also wearing a special vanilla-colored spring blouse with a beret hat that matched it in hue.

Seeing the odds were against her, Chelbie finally caved in to the pressure.

“Fine, fine. I’ll go outside with Cherry from now on. Cross my heart…”

She really didn’t have much of a choice at this point.