Dark clouds are rolling across the sky, I see a flock of crows rush away from it, screaming loudly. It’s going to rain.

  Sometimes, when the rain is too heavy, they turn off the electricity in the whole town for safety reasons. All I’m thinking while looking at the black clouds is how I would love to sit in this room for hours in total darkness, rain pounding on the windows while the fireplace is gently crackling in the background.

  A pleasant smell of a spruce tree is wafting out of the fire, filling up the room. Beso did mention something about the initiation ritual requiring certain aromas in the air. He’s probably burning them in the fireplace.

  I sink lower into the armchair, the comforting atmosphere is slowly lulling me to sleep. My thoughts are turning into dreams, the sun pendant and the fire are keeping me warm, I feel strangely good.

  I hear the harsh sound of metal clanking to the floor. My eyes snap open, landing on Beso’s guilty face. He quickly picks up the fallen long, metal rod and shoves it deep into the fire, away from my sight.

  Why does he look so guilty? Does he think he woke me up? Or is it something else?

  Beso turns his back to me and continues tinkering with something by the fire.

  My gaze shifts to the interior of the secret library room. There are peculiar pictures on the walls - strange landscapes, weird looking people, x-rays, flying machines, horses with horns and other unfamiliar animals… It's quite hard to tell whether they’re real photos or just realistic drawings.

  The largest picture is of a man, maybe in his early 30s, looking at me with a bright smile. I’m pretty sure it’s Utu Morieli, the ascended master who reached the highest rank called the Winged Claw and is now fighting a seemingly endless war at the Orion Belt.

  I recognise his face from the book Beso showed me.

  He has a unique appearance that instantly draws you to him - kind and fiery eyes, wavy, light brown hair reaching down to his neck, little moustache and an enigmatic smile. His strong presence is magnified by the bright purple hat that makes him look like a textbook wizard from children’s stories. He just radiates magic… a knight filled with light and whimsy.

  He looks young but, if I believe the stories, he’s been alive for centuries and maybe even several millennia. I can’t wrap my head around these numbers and the level of wonder this information brings me. His warm smile tells me everything’s going to be alright, that life is not that serious, there’s better things coming.

  I simply feel happy to be alive right now, to have an opportunity to someday reach the Winged Claw rank, meet all the ascended masters, talk to them, ask their advice and hear their point of view about life itself.

  I examine the picture again to catch more details. There’s a dark sky behind him littered with stars and a peculiar-looking machine standing close, it looks like a futuristic car. And that’s when I notice what Utu is holding in his left hand... A wand! The gorgeous and elegant light blue stick ends with a bright star.

  Utu has a wand and he casts spells with it?!

  I wave an invisible wand in the air and turn around. Beso is closely inspecting the metal poker again.

  When he sees me looking, he immediately stuffs it inside the fireplace a second time.

  “What is that thing?” I ask him.

  “This? Nothing to worry about… We’re ready here, all that’s left is to check your Energolight.”

  “My what?”

  “Energolight…”

  I look around the room until my gaze rests on Utu’s portrait again.

  “How do you check it?”

  “In the Spirit Cabinet, of course,” says Manuchar, exiting the bathroom. His hands are damp.

  “ENERGOLIGHT!” Shouts Beso, making us jump. “It’s a spiritual energy, the very thing that animates a human being. When Energolight disappears from your body, you die! It’s the most important thing in our lives and silly humans don’t even know it exists.”

  He whips out a poster from a drawer and waves it in front of my face, accidentally grazing my eye with its sharp corner.

  I instantly tear up but I swallow the cry of pain and study the poster with my unharmed eye. There’s a transparent human silhouette drawn on the poster, the most interesting thing is his legs, white, luminous paint fills the figure’s feet and shins, coming up to his knees.

  “This is Energolight,” he taps the white paint. “Every single human being possesses at least some amount of Energolight but the curse of the modern world is that our Energolight is in serious shortage. It’s supposed to start from the soles of your feet and go upward, passing through your whole body until it rests in your head, but unfortunately, an average human’s Energolight stops at the ankles,” says Beso.

  “This person…” he taps the poster, “has enough to advance into Lilac Larva and maybe even beyond that.”

  “Since his Energolight is reaching to his knees, we can conclude that he’s not an average human being, it’s a person who works on himself, who has the discipline and drive to advance on the ladder of spiritual evolution,” adds Manuchar.

  “Basically, if you want to advance and reach the Winged Claw, you have to raise your Energolight, this white light, from your feet to your head.”

  I close my eyes to fully grasp what they said to me.

  I’m pretty sure we just reached the main point, the centre of the whole teaching, the CRUX of everything, no pun intended…

  Energolight is the key to my progression on the spiritual ladder.

  I need to acquire and raise it up as fast as I can.

  I open my eyes and clutch Beso’s arm.

  “How do I raise my Energolight?”

  “Excellent question! Straight to action! I like that!” Shouts Beso.

  “Can you stop shouting, my head is splitting,” Manuchar lets out a groan, massaging his temples.

  “Ok, sorry… After the ritual I’ll give you a list of the things that raise Energolight,” Beso whispers, putting the poster of the transparent person back into the drawer.

  “First, Energolight, then the initiation ritual and after that, I swear, you’re free to go,” Manuchar flashes me a sweet smile.

  Not gonna lie, I wish he would stop smiling at me.

  They both told me not to pursue romantic love, that it will hinder my spiritual climb to the upper ranks. So why is he smiling at me all sweet?

  Is he trying to slow me down? Maybe he has a plan to make me fall in love with him, then overtake me and rank up while I stay as a Yellow Duckling?

  No, it sounds absurd. I watch too many stupid TV shows…

  “I followed the list diligently and look at me now, I’m Lilac Larva, baby!” Beso opens his arms and twirls around. Manuchar laughs at his little dance, ignorant to the turmoil he has caused me.

  And then Beso walks into a wall and disappears.

  Manuchar follows him and also disappears.

  “What the hell?!”

  I hear them laugh in the other room.

  Manuchar pops his head back into the wall, he looks like a ghost with only half of his body sticking out of the wall.

  “What the hell?!” I repeat again. This time louder.

  “It’s a fake wall. Come on.”

  He holds out his hand to me, expectant.

  Why is he holding out his hand to me? Does he want me to fail? Is he doing this on purpose?

  God, I sound paranoid.

  “Uh, Nia? You coming or what?”

  “Yeah, sorry…”

  His hand is so warm and soft. I feel my chest clench up, heartbeat increasing drastically. It’s even painful to take a breath.

  Damn, I think I’m even more touch deprived than I thought if a simple hand-holding is doing this to me.

  Manuchar, again, oblivious to my suffering, pulls me into the fake wall.

  I was expecting an empty space but instead I go through a thick, cold, fog-like substance that leaves my clothes slightly damp.

  I emerge on the other side into a small room with red walls.

  I immediately drop Manuchar’s hand, quickly walking away from him.

  He furrows his brows, puzzled at my reaction.

  Ha, I caught you, Manuchar! I know your evil plan of making me fall in love! I’m not gonna be duped!

  Or, maybe, he’s just being friendly and I’m just an idiot…

  “...Nia? You there?”

  I snap out of my thoughts, both Beso and Manuchar are looking at me expectantly.

  “Are you okay? Did the fake wall affect your mind or something?”

  “Um, can that happen?”

  “Actually, yes. I had nightmares when I first passed through it, some say the mist awakens old karma,” Manuchar gets closer to me, looking in my eyes, “so, are you okay?”

  I avert my gaze and walk a few steps back.

  “Yeah, I’m great…”

  He looks even more confused now.

  I need to stop being awkward around him or he might think that I hate him… or worse, HE MIGHT THINK THAT I LIKE HIM.

  “Nia, is everything okay? You’ve been acting strange,” He asks me, half-whispering.

  Fuck, he noticed.

  “I’m okay, sorry, let’s continue, I…” My eyes land on a huge, twisted, metallic crown mounted on the wall. I point at it, unable to speak from the rush of excitement.

  “Do you know what that is?” Asks Beso.

  “No, but I’ve seen it before! That’s how I met Father Seraphim! He was dragging a crown like this in the street!”

  “No way, you saw him out on one of his Nightwalks?! We’ve never seen him use that power!”

  “It was daytime, though.” I say, confused.

  “I didn’t mean literally at night. He’s a Nightwalker. He can warp reality around him, making himself invisible to people. That’s one of his powers.”

  “That’s the coolest power I’ve ever heard!” I want to cry, invisibility has been my dream since I was a kid. Why do I have to be a stupid Seer?

  “Well, I guess it’s not cool enough since you saw through it! You noticed Father Seraphim when no one else did! You’re an exceptional Seer!” Exclaims Manuchar.

  I feel my face heat up from the compliment.

  “He gave me a coin, which I lost, and then another coin materialized under my pillow. How did he do it? Which power is it?” I ask.

  Manuchar and Beso exchange smug looks.

  “You won’t believe even if I tell you.” Says Beso.

  “Try me.”

  “He can materialize things out of thin air.”

  “Sorry, what?!”

  “Not all the time, it’s not that easy, but sometimes he can materialize stuff out of thin air just by concentration. It’s called being a Magicker.”

  “A Magicker…” I repeat it reverently.

  So Father Seraphim is a Nighwalker and a Magicker and I am… freaking jealous…

  “So my silver coin…” I take the Crux silver coin out of my pocket. “If it’s pulled out of air, what is it really made of?”

  “It’s made of Ether, coming straight from the pure dimension above us.”

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  I’m in awe. A lot of crazy things have been happening to me but this one takes the cake. I’m holding a piece of unearthly material, because Father Seraphim materialized it out of thin air like a wizard.

  “It won’t disappear, right? Will it exist forever?” I hug the coin to my heart.

  “Yes, it will exist forever. Actually, it’s more enduring than any other Earth metal. It’s a little bit sentient too.”

  Woah…

  “Atlantean metal resembles it.” He points at the crown. “They’re very close but not the same. They mix this pure Ether, which they magick out of the higher dimension, with Earth metals, forming Ercury - the Atlantean metal the crown is made of.”

  “So Atlanteans also have Magickers?”

  “Yes, a lot of them have this power and they’re very proficient with it.”

  “Nia, since Seraphim magicked the coin out of thin air, it means it’s imbued with his energy, he knows how to find you because you basically carry a piece of him with you. Isn’t it cool?” Asks Manuchar.

  “That’s so cool but it’s also making me uneasy because it means he’s tracking us like GPS.”

  “Well, I’m sure he has better things to do than track us through the coins. At least, if you’re ever in trouble or simply lost, he can come and find you.”

  “That does sound reassuring… So what does the crown do? I’ve been thinking about its function since I saw it.”

  “Oh, it’s a gift from Atlanteans, it’s basically an energy generator. Only needs oxygen to charge, nothing else. It’s a blessing.”

  “That’s why we always have a tiny window open here.” Manuchar points at it.

  “Will we need it?”

  “Yes it plays a crucial role in your initiation, it powers up the Spirit Cabinet. Step into the cabinet, please.”

  I look over where he’s pointing at. There’s a small cabinet in the corner of the room. I thought it was a super narrow wardrobe at first.

  I walk over and open the door. Instead of wood, I’m met with an emerald colored crystal floor.

  “Take off your shoes.”

  I take my boots off and put them away.

  I feel a low thrum behind me. My ears prickle, I feel uncomfortable, as if a predator is stalking me. I can’t see it, but I feel it.

  “You felt the weird vibration, didn’t you? It’s the crown. We turned it on,” says Manuchar.

  “How do you turn it on?”

  They don’t answer. They start discussing something between themselves. I take a breath and enter the cabinet.

  I feel my skin prickle.

  “Is this thing radioactive? I feel like it’s lightly burning my skin.”

  Manuchar and Beso exchange looks.

  “Uhh, it was built by Atlanteans, I don’t think they would make it radioactive.”

  “Just don’t worry about that right now, okay? We need to measure your Energolight levels.”

  I’m freaking nervous. What if my Energolight is stuck at my feet? I didn’t even know about its existence five minutes ago and now look at me, all stressed out about it.

  Little white bulbs turn on in the Spirit Cabinet, illuminating everything. I jump in surprise. It’s too bright.

  Manuchar laughs and comes closer, holding out his hand.

  Oh no, not again!

  I unwillingly take it.

  “Are you okay? It will just measure your energy. There’s nothing scary, I promise,” he squeezes my hand.

  “I’m great, not scared at all. Just tense, you know…” I mumble. He needs to stop with the hand-holding.

  The lights in the cabinet start to flicker.

  “Manuchar, brother, let the poor girl go, her emotions are going haywire, can’t you see?”

  We both look up at the flickering lights. He quickly lets my hand go and steps back.

  Well, this is embarrassing. Who was going to tell me that the lights react to my emotions?!

  “Ok, so where’s this Energolight? I don’t see it…” I look down and nearly scream. I’m transparent! My whole body looks grey and washed out.

  “I’m fading away! I’m fading!” I try to step out of the cabinet but Manuchar blocks the exit.

  “It’s just a trick, you’re still solid, calm down.”

  I nod and try to take deep breaths. A bright white liquid starts rising up from my feet, slowly coming up to the middle of my shins. I stare, mesmerized.

  “Wow, you have a very good result for a beginner! Congratulations! In no time it will reach your knees and you can advance to the Lilac Larva rank!” Beso claps his hands.

  “Nia, this is an amazing result, truly!” Manuchar joins Beso’s celebration, but his eyes look a little sad.

  This is all too much. Overwhelmed, I step down from the platform and sit on the floor.

  “The Spirit Cabinet measured your Energolight and translated it into an image. Isn’t that the coolest thing you’ve ever seen?” Beso asks.

  “I’m overwhelmed, I had a crazy night because of that Atlantean girl, then the girl attacked again in the morning, then, suddenly, I was swept away to the library and found out I might be an incarnation of some old Atlantean princess and now this Energolight business…” I sound like I’m complaining, so I add hastily “BUT it’s amazing, everything is so magical! I can’t wait to start on this crazy journey and do my best!”

  “Let’s initiate you, then!” Beso runs past me, disappearing through the wall.

  ____

  “The Order Of The Crux is a long-standing organization, its roots go far into the past, to the early mystic sects, where only those with magical powers were accepted. That’s when Atlanteans contacted us, asking for cooperation. They gave us technology and knowledge, in return they wanted our protection from the Reptilians. They need our help because there are only 2 million Atlanteans left in the world, because Reptilians committed genocide against them… those bastards… Now there are approximately 25 secret orders in the world, protecting humanity from the Reptilian race.”

  “Order of the Crux is one of the oldest ones, our tradition goes back to the 9th century,” Manuchar adds with pride.

  We’re back in the main room. I’m kneeling in front of the fire, heavy aromas are wafting out of it, making me dizzy. Pomegranates are assembled around me in a circle. I have a crown made out of acacia leaves resting on my head and I’m trying my best to keep it from sliding down.

  “Why aren’t we alerting humans of the threat?” I ask.

  “It would cause total chaos from which Reptilians would greatly benefit. Also, that was part of the deal we made with the head of the Cosmic Brotherhood, Utu Morieli. Instead of tearing the planet apart, he made us sit down and negotiate with Reptilians. We can’t kill each other or reveal each other to the masses, we are only allowed to protect ourselves if we’re attacked. But the Reptilians are a sneaky bunch, very intelligent, they’ve been behind every major controversy, war or tragedy in this world. They spread aids, covid, black death, every killer virus you’ve heard of, to humans, hoping that we would bring the virus to the Atlanteans living underground. And we did, Reptilians managed to shorten the already short numbers of Atlanteans remaining on Earth.”

  “Why do Reptilians hate Atlanteans so much?” I ask Beso.

  “I don’t know. No one knows at this point. Something happened in the past, something long forgotten…”

  “If it’s long forgotten, then why are they still fighting?”

  “You should ask Father Seraphim, I don’t know.”

  “Okay… then why didn’t Utu Morieli stop Reptilians if they’ve been hiding between us, starting wars and spreading viruses”

  “Because…” Beso looks around and leans closer. “As you know, Utu has been out of the Solar System, fighting a war, but also, he can’t do much about all this. He can’t intervene in our fights directly. There are a lot of karmic laws binding us, if Utu intervenes harshly, he might mess up everything. The Reptilians have become bolder because of this. More daring. The Cosmic Brotherhood is still functioning at some level, but it’s weaker and more distant. The remaining brothers are trying to keep us in check, but it’s hard for them to keep track of everyone. If Utu doesn’t come back soon, Reptilians might take over the planet… The only person they’re afraid of is Utu.”

  I let out a breath I don’t know I’m holding. The situation is even worse than I thought.

  “So Atlanteans can’t stop Reptilians?”

  “Reptilian strength is in their big numbers. They’re reaching a billion while Atlanteans are barely two million left.”

  “Oh, shit…”

  “One on one, Atlanteans win, no doubt, but with these meager numbers they can’t overpower the evil.” Suddenly his voice changes, he straightens and delivers a line with a solemn expression “What we need from you, Nia Nelia, is to give your oath to us, to the Order and to Atlanteans, that you will protect them and the planet till the end… Use your gifts for the good. Don’t let humanity die, don’t let our planet die in this war. You were chosen by God himself, he bestowed these divine powers upon you, because he wants you to fight for the greater good.” He hits his fist on the table. I feel the floor vibrate.

  I look down at my hands. The powers that opened up to me are indeed a divine mystery. Is that why I got them? To defend Atlanteans and humans? To fight for the greater good? Am I ready?

  My knees start to hurt. Kneeling on the floor for so long is not for the weak.

  “You might not be ready yet,” Says Beso, as if reading my mind, but you will be. You’re just starting. You’ve been chosen to walk the path to the Winged Claw and nothing can stop you. You’re already standing on this sacred road!”

  I hear footsteps approaching, someone knocks on the door. Our heads whip towards it.

  “It’s me, Salome!” Comes a whisper.

  “Oh, you made it! Manuchar, can you let her in, I’m busy.”

  Manuchar runs to the door and opens the lock, Beso’s sister slips inside and stands by the wall, trying not to disrupt the ritual.

  She catches my eyes and waves at me, I wave back, smiling.

  “Nia!” Beso shouts out, making me jump. My acacia crown slips down, I thankfully catch it mid-way.

  “Do you promise to serve humanity and Atlanteans until your death?!”

  Uhh… do I? Well, I can’t back out now… I don’t want to back out. Maybe I don’t care much for Atlanteans but I do care for humans! I will do it for them!

  “Yes, I promise!” My voice rings out loud and clear in the room.

  “Nia Nelia, you’ve officially been accepted into the Order of the Crux! Congratulations! Your life is going to change for the better! Your soul is awakening!.. Now it’s time to get your mark.” He adds the last sentence quickly, hoping I won’t hear him.

  “Say that again? A mark?” I ask, turning around.

  I see all three of them exchanging awkward looks.

  “I’m sorry, I couldn’t bring myself to tell you sooner, you need to be branded on your side by a hot metal rod. I’m glad Salome’s here, she will do it.” Beso motions for his sister to come closer.

  “Me?!” Exclaims Salome, backing away. “I can’t do it!”

  “It will be more comfortable for Nia if you do it, Salome! You have a gentler touch.”

  “I can’t do it! I’m not even a member of your Order!”

  “You don’t have to be, just push the hot poker onto her skin, how hard can it be?!”

  Hot poker onto my skin?! That metal rod Beso was trying to hide from me earlier?!

  “I’m not getting a mark. That’s crazy.” I protest.

  “You have to, we all have it!” Beso rolls up his sweater, revealing a silver mark on the right side of his ribcage. I was expecting a hideous scar but it looks quite beautiful.

  It’s a circle and inside the circle there’s the mark that’s been consistently haunting my dreams - Ш. It’s made out of tiny, flowery lines.

  “It’s an ancient Atlantean symbol, it means love,” says Manuchar.

  Love? But it looks so menacing. Whenever I see it in my dreams it always brings me dread.

  Beso and Salome are still bickering in the background. Salome is scared to do it, she thinks she’ll mess it up.

  “I’ll do it,” says Manuchar. “I can put the mark on Nia, if she’s okay with it, of course.”

  The siblings fall silent. All three of them are looking at me now, waiting for my answer.

  “Will it hurt?” My voice breaks pitifully.

  “Not much. I swear. It’s Ercury, the Atlantean metal, it won’t even damage the skin around it.”

  “Okay, then…” Before I change my mind, I roll up my sweater, revealing the right side of my torso.

  “I’ll hold that for you.” Salome rushes up to me, holding my rolled up sweater.

  “Thanks,” I try to flash her a brave smile but, to be honest, I’m terrified.

  “Okay now sit comfortably, it will be over soon,” says Beso encouragingly.

  Manuchar grabs the sigil-forged metal brand from the fire. I see the Ш symbol gleaming in red on top of it.

  I feel faint.

  “Hey, it’s ok, it doesn’t hurt much, I promise,” Salome pats my head, trying to calm me down.

  “How do you know if it hurts or not, you don’t have the mark,” Beso asks his sister then realizes it’s not helping the situation, “BUT I have the mark and it only burns for several seconds and then the pain disappears, I swear, Nia.”

  “He’s right, the pain won’t linger,” Manuchar grips the metal tighter. “Tell me whenever you’re ready.”

  I clench my fists and nod. Manuchar comes closer, smiling encouragingly, but I notice his hands are shaking.

  Oh god… This is going to hurt, isn’t it?

  “Ok I’m doing it. Try not to move.”

  Salome’s hands are shaking too, I can feel it through the sweater she’s holding up. Manuchar’s hands are still shaking, my hands are definitely shaking and even though I can’t see Beso’s hands, I’m sure he’s in the same boat.

  We’re just a bunch of kids, tasked with this serious ritual.

  I wish Father Seraphim was here…

  Manuchar kneels beside me on the floor, he’s trying to find the best spot for the mark. I can feel his breath on my ribs.

  “Please, hurry…” I beg him. I can’t take this weird tension anymore.

  “Okay!”

  He suddenly wraps his arm around my naked waist to steady me.

  I choke on air, coughing like crazy.

  “Stop, it’s serious!” He scolds me, waving the metal brand in the air.

  “I know it’s serious! I’m coughing! Give me a second!”

  “Come on, let’s get it over with,” I hear Salome’s voice behind me.

  The pendant on my chest warms up and starts to buzz. It’s reacting to the metal rod. They’re both Atlantean-made so I’m pretty sure they’re both made out of Ercury.

  “DO IT!” I shout.

  Almost immediately, I feel the metal press into my skin. There’s a “shhh” sound of sizzling flesh.

  I scream out at the top of my lungs, but there’s no pain… The brand is ice cold against my skin.

  “Manuchar, it didn’t work, it grew cold, you were holding it outside the fire for too long!” I turn my head towards him, coming face to face with him, our noses bump into each other.

  He immediately backs away, blinking fast.

  “It’s done. What do you mean cold?” He shakes his head, confused.

  I look down at my ribcage, the silver mark is there, sitting pretty on my skin. The area around it is undisturbed. No one can guess that the mark was burned into me a second ago.

  “That’s crazy! You didn’t feel a thing?” Asks Beso.

  “It was just super cold…”

  Manuchar’s hand finally slides off my waist.

  I sigh in relief.

  “Fascinating…” Says Manuchar, examining the mark up close. He ghosts his fingertips over it. I shudder.

  I think Salome notices my reaction and smiles to herself.

  Did my pendant cool down the sigil? Can two Ercuries communicate? When the hot brand got close to my body, the pendant started to buzz… And Beso did mention that they’re sentient.

  Now all three of them are kneeling by my side to examine the mark closely.

  “It’s perfect, you’re a part of us now,” after a few minutes Beso finally declares the ritual finished, clapping me on the back.

  The acacia crown slides down from my head a hundredth time. I leave it on the floor and finally get up, massaging my stiff legs.

  “Here, rub it on the burn for several days, just in case.” Manuchar hands me a tiny jar of dark golden ointment.

  “I will, thanks for giving me the mark.” I just realize that he has branded me with the ancient Atlantean symbol that means love.

  I look up at him, meeting his gaze. He looks embarrassed. I’m glad I’m not the only one burning from the inside.

  “Children!” Beso rushes up to the coat rack and grabs his jacket. “I just got off a call with Father Seraphim. We have a fresh intel about a Reptilian attack at Baia’s concert tonight! We have to hurry!”

  “At Baia’s concert?! You mean THE Baia? The world-famous pop star?! What are we expected to do there?” I ask, confused.

  Beso opens up his coat. He has white spheres dangling on thin ropes from his pockets. They resemble oversized pearl beads.

  “What are those things?!”

  “They’re Revelation Bombs, baby. Time to bust some grey ass.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’re going on your first mission, Nia - fresh from the oven!”

  I touch my newly acquired mark on the side.

  Woah, things are moving TOO fast.

  I’ll probably sleep for two days straight after this Reptilian mission.