Burning Flames By: Abby Hulek

“EVELYN!” Alarms blared around me. Heat burned my face, waking me from my slumber. It was early enough to still be pitch black and it was hard to see what was going on. My vision blurred and an overwhelming sense of panic danced through my veins.

“EVELYN! PLEASE!” My mother yelled again, despair creeping into her voice. It was distant and almost impossible to hear with the screaming alarms.

Wait. Alarms? I rubbed my eyes groggily and focused on something red dancing in front of my eyes.

FIRE.

My nose burned with ashes and flames. I was breathing the deadly smoke.

“MOM! DAD!” I screamed, terror filling every inch of my body. Unbearable heat filled the stuffy room, making me push my covers off hurriedly. My feat burned against the hot carpet and I squinted through the gray fog. 

“EVELYN!” I heard a fire truck roaring in the distance. My head swam with fear. My breathing became ragged. I stumbled out of my bedroom and down the stairs. My ears rang as I tried to find the way out.

“MOMMA!” I saw a limp body lying on the ground by the doorway. Tears slipped down my face. “NO MOMMA! GET UP! YOU’RE OKAY! LET’S GET OUTSIDE!” I fell to my knees, my eyes burning with tears. She couldn’t be gone. I started to wheeze and I hugged my mom, my ashen tears staining her clothes.

“LET’S GO! MOM!” She wasn’t moving. She wasn’t gone though. She couldn’t be.

“EVELYN! EVELYN!!! GET OUTSIDE NOW!” My dad staggered around the corner heading for the door.

“DAD! WE HAVE TO HELP MOM! PLEASE!” I wiped my wet face on my hand with a whimper. My dad’s eyes grew dim as he looked at her body crumpled on the ground. All of the happiness faded from his playful blue eyes. His comfortable posture stiffened.

“DAD! WHAT DO WE DO?” I screamed. My heart broke as I looked at his face.

“GET OUTSIDE. NOW.”

“Dad! We have to do something.” My voice cracked and more tears poured down my cheeks.

“OUTSIDE.” Anger rose into his voice. I had never heard my upbeat dad angry. I ran out the door, knowing I was making the biggest mistake in all the eight years I had been alive. 

After minutes passed, I started to run back into the house, fear pulsing through my body. A fireman grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

“It’s too dangerous.” He said with a muffled voice, coming from under his mask. 

I snuck around the side of the house, trying to avoid the firemen, and I burst through the glass door. Smoke clouded around me and red flames licked at the walls. I wobbled over to where I had last seen my mother and I found two limp bodies sprawled on the floor.

“No…” I breathed and everything faded into darkness. 

Snazzy Euphoria By Halle Rager

it radiates off of her fingertips as the words are blown past her lips. the curls bounce from his hair as a slight curve of his lips from the impact he had. there was a grace on her lips too, a sort of whooshing feeling coming across her chest. a heartburn, yet she never experienced one before. and this wasn’t it. but it burned so much more and it stayed for a little too long and she couldn't get away from it. for some reason, she could find comfort in it. but especially with someone else beside her. late at night to distract her from the woes of outside, and the thing that lingers by the side of the door. and she could distract her vision from it, whispering sweet little lullaby to it. knowing it would never whisper back, but it erased the thoughts of it bouncing out of nowhere and frightening her. then when she got bored she could look back, and see that face. not actually see it, but imagine the features. how the curves would be in the cheekbones and the freckles under the eyes. then the dull eyes, but back in them there was some sort of mystical mystery. and she wished she could reach out and touch them, but that would be too far. and would be misleading, because she just wanted to allow this feeling spark, and extend. then just hold onto it for the rest of her life. and the small thoughts kept rolling till her breath hitched at what was said next.

“and the fact that you’re here right now makes me question realism in a whole as a solipsist myself.”

and that’s all it took for her to start bawling, and for her to wonder how she could’ve found such a friend in this world. And yet they seem so far away and she wished she could just reach out through the void and their tips of their fingers will brush.

so this was what a sense of euphoria was. and she knew she could never be satisfied and she would just be chasing and chasing after something she couldn’t gain. but for some reason that was okay.

and maybe this was a tiny bit more okay than she expected.

and maybe he was snazzy in a way of not a light haha. but with more heart than before.

he was snazzy

the entitled of snazzy.

and in her book that was the snazziest thing that could come out of anything.

Escapar Part 1 By: Devyani Wadhia and Christina Bird

It was a cold night in Rio, Brazil. Kiania sat on their family’s old wooden porch chair that had been there since her parents had moved into the house way back before she was born. She could tell that the chair was really old as she rocked back and forth on it: the paint was peeling; it creaked as you rocked; the wood had cracks and the chair was slanted a bit. She was outside because that’s where she collected all her thoughts best. As she watched the sun slowly fan out its golden-yellow rays and drop down, she saw a stray kitten wandering on the sidewalk. Its fur was covered in layers of grime and it looked like it hadn’t eaten in days. She was longing to keep the kitten, but she didn’t know if her parents would approve. Where would she put it, anyway? Her parents wouldn’t want dirt and kitten litter all over the floors either. But no, she couldn’t leave this kitten alone by itself to suffer. It needed a home, a warm place to live, with food and friendly people. She decided to go and take it. As she jumped off the porch chair, her feet landed with a soft thud which made the kitten flinch and turn towards her. Kiania made her way over and gently lifted the baby kitten into her arms, stroking the rough layers of dirt on its fur. She could barely feel the soft fur underneath all the grime. It stared at her with wide eyes and blinked softly. There was no way this innocent cat could be harmful. She tiptoed into the house cradling the cat, the night sky blossoming above her, and gently started to rub soap and wash off the kitten’s fur delicately with buckets of water, because giving it a bath would cause too much noise. As Kiania was rubbing away, she could see that underneath all the soot was soft, luscious, cream- white fur with coffee- colored ears and a nose. Its eyes were bright blue and seemed to twinkle when Kiania looked at it straight in the eye.

She knew she was missing something she needed to do. Yes! She thought. I need to name her. She stared off into the distance as she thought of what to name the kitten. It has to be a girl's name, she finally thought. “I think I’m gonna name you Pucu,” Kiania finally decided when she had finished cleaning and feeding her. You mustn’t make any noise though or I won’t be able to keep you. The cat met her gaze and Kiania could swear it understood her. It was nearly midnight as Kiania tip-toed up the stairs, so she needed to find a hiding place quickly for the miniscule kitten. All she could think of was to keep the kitten under her bed. So she took Pucu silently to her room, put a bowl of water and a small box that could do for a litter box under the bed, and drifted to sleep.  

The next morning, she checked on Pucu and made sure she had enough water for the day. She needed to somehow get some cat food for her, but water would do for now. Then she came down the stairs to the kitchen to make herself breakfast. Afterwards, she brushed her teeth, and rummaged through her school bag to find her half-finished homework. She rushed to finish before her mother came down and then put it in her school bag.  

“You must pack up your school bag quickly and go to the bus stop. Grab your student card.” Her mom told her. A student card was what you carried and used to pay bus fares. She grabbed her lunch off the polished counter and hurried out the door. Adel had already left for his bus, because she didn’t see him or the other students standing at the corner of their street.

Adel was her older brother who was going to join her father in the military soon once he was old enough, which would be next month when school ended. He always looked so fresh before school started, his hair slicked back, uniform clean of wrinkles, and face shiny; in other words, he was the perfect child. Mother and father favored him because he was the eldest. Calista was her younger 9-year-old sister. From her beautiful flowy hair cascading down her back to her smooth feet and clean, tiny toes, she stood out in their family. Her bright, wide blue eyes, and warm, charming grin always looked elegant. Kiania, on the other hand, though, didn’t look that charming and wasn’t as bright or neat as her brother. She wasn’t always in order and harsh like her father or as hardworking and gentle as her mother. As the students streamed off the bus into the school, Kiania caught sight of her friend name. She tried to make her way towards her, but kept being shoved into the horde of kids.

As she walked into her class, Kiania noticed there was a substitute in her class. She was definitely an Argentinian. Kiania knew of some stories that Argentinians had been taking some people away in her neighborhood during the war. But this lady was probably not bad, because the school made sure that all teachers that came into the school were not on Argentina’s side. She looked older, like in her 50s or so, and had dull, brownish- gray hair in a bob cut. It had snow- drifts of dandruff in it and matched her crinkly eyes and wrinkly, pale skin. She looked Kiania straight in the eyes as she took attendance and her eyes glimmered with pure hatred. Was she bad? No, the school wouldn’t have misread the detector that determined if any of the Argentinians that came to the school were on Argentina’s side. But she wasn’t so sure. She shook her head and tried to clear the thoughts swirling around in her head. She knew the school wouldn’t let anyone in if they were harmful. On the board, her name was spelled out as- what did it say? It was so scribbly and small that Kiania couldn’t read it. She put them to work right away. Kiania twirled her hair around her finger over and over again as she worked. She wondered if Pucu had kept quiet all day. Did she have enough food? How was Kiania going to get cat food without her parents finding out? None of her friends had a cat- but wait, didn’t her neighbor Celina own a cat named Vanila? She was pretty sure she did, because she often saw a big fluffy white cat wandering near her house, and she had seen it once when she was at Celina’s house even though the cat barely ever came out. Everyone called Celina “Lina”, because Celina liked being called that better, since it was easy and quick to say. Before that, in 1st grade, her nickname was “CeCe”. Kiania had been her best friend since 1st grade, when Celina had moved from the busy city of Rosario, to the busier city of Rio before the war had started. She could probably borrow some cat food from her and decided she would ask Lina if she could borrow some of her cat food when the substitute turned her back to the blackboard.

After a few minutes, she saw her chance. She quickly jotted down a note to Lina and passed it to her right before the substitute turned around. Kiania had a sinking feeling that the teacher had seen her. She didn’t want to get in trouble, but the lady just stared at Kiania for what seemed like minutes, until she finally turned back towards the blackboard. Usually, their teacher snatched notes off students desks if she saw them. Kiania saw her stick the note inside her study book and read the note like she was reading the study book. The note read:

Do you have any cat food that I can borrow? I found a small kitten yesterday and took it in.

~ Ki

P.S. Please don’t tell your parents. My parents don’t know about this.  

She saw Lina writing furiously as soon as the teacher started to write down equations on the board. She was just about to pass the note to Kiania, and Kiania was ready to grab it and tuck it in her study book, but the substitute turned around and looked at Llina suspiciously for a while. Then, she glanced over at Kiania. As she glanced over at Kiania, Celina stuck the note under her desk quickly. Finally, she slowly strode over to Celina and stopped just short of her desk.

“Is everything okay here? She asked in a gravelly voice. The whole class turned towards them. Neither of them answered. Somebody got the nerve up to say,

“You can talk?” Then everyone turned to that person.

The woman turned to the student and fixed her eyes on her until she turned to the whole class and croaked, “Get back to work, kids.” After that, nobody said anything, and she pretty much seemed to forget about Kiania and Celina. Kiania read the note. It was in much finer writing than Kianias messy, loopy, uneven script. The bright pink sticky-note read:

You got a cat?! I have to come over and see it when your parents aren’t home. I definitely have some cat food you can borrow. My cat is really fat, so I have a lot of cat food, because she’s always hungry.

You can get off at my bus stop and walk home after I'll give you some cat food and you can walk home afterwards.

(And don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.)

~ Lina

“Yes!” Kiania said aloud to herself. She realized her mistake as her classmates turned towards her, including the substitute. She was just glad that she would be able to give Pucu some cat food now, but she might have been a little bit too happy! She pretended to be writing down a note in the answer slot from the textbook, and came up with a pretty bad lie that she hoped everyone believed, especially the teacher.

“I, um, was um, just happy I figured out the answer to question six,” Kiania stammered. She put on a weak smile for the class. Kiania was awful at lying.

“Only question six?” Pedro asked. “I’m on question 15! That’s more than half ahead of you!”

“I’m on question 17,” Gabriel sneered at him. “Higher than you.” Then everybody started to yell out which question they were on and it was like a circus going on until the substitute yelled, “SILENCE!” Everyone started working and kept their mouths shut until the end of class, maybe with a few exceptions.

“I didn’t know she could yell,” Jose whispered to Pedro. He might of whispered a little bit too loudly, because half the class glanced up at him, including Kiania, but thank goodness the teacher didn’t hear him.  

______________________________

Ding the dismissal bell finally chimed. Ding.

“Yes!” All of the students cheered. Finally, it was dismissal. Kiania was excited to see Pucu (hopefully her parents hadn’t found out yet) and give her some real cat food. But Kiania would never have cheered about it being the end of the school day had she known the night ahead of her.

______________________________

Kiania sat straight up in bed, her heart beating. She thought she heard a sound like someone had broke the door down- or was it just a dream? She listened, straining her ears and trying to be as quiet as possible, tiptoed to Calista’s bedroom, but she was still fast asleep. She bent over to check to see if Pucu was awake, but she was fast asleep. Maybe she’d just had a nightmare. She started to snuggle back up in bed; after all, it was only 1:30am in the morning. Then she heard feet faintly moving across the floor.

Sketch by Emma Herzing

Bottle of the Ocean #5 By: Maggie Yang and Abby Hulek

Previously on Bottle of the Ocean #4, Kayla has finally managed to get out of her cell. The shadows have Kayla’s mom trapped in a cell. She has met another shadow and doesn’t want it to kill her. What will happen next? Will the shadow kill her? Will Kayla find her mom? Read Bottle of the Ocean #5 to find out...

“SHHHHHHHHHHHH!” The shadow yelled, making me stop mid-scream. I steadied my heartbeat and moved my body slowly around the other side of the vent. I stopped for a couple of seconds, breathing heavily. I forced myself to peek around the side once more. The shadow was lying on the floor. I didn’t know what to do; it looked so miserable, but I knew I couldn’t help it. It was on the bad side, the evil side, the mean side and I couldn’t help that little shadow.

I turned on my heels, despite what my heart cried. I started to walk back the way I came, feeling desperately out of hope.

“STOP! Please!” The shadow yelled in a gravelly voice. I knew that she was on their side. But why was The Order of Horror keeping her locked up? I decided that she was maybe going to tell me something important. Maybe why the Order of Horror captured me and my mom? Or maybe what she’s doing here all locked down?  At that moment, my heart pulled my body back to the vent and I peeked through.

“Don’t go!” Her voice sounded so sad, so lonely. She was still a part of The Order Of Horror though….

“What do you want?” I snapped back at her, rage filling my throat. All I could think about was how they had imprisoned me. Shadows, just like her. How they had also imprisoned my mother. How they planned to kill her. My heart overcame my brain once more. Maybe we can do a trade? Maybe she can save my mom! Although, then my brain regained power and created a voice of its own. SHE IS GOING TO KILL YOU! YOU CAN’T LISTEN TO HER!

“Please, I know you think I am evil, but I have been captured and turned into a slave to work for these shadows. They dressed me in rags and I am really a person like you!” The shadow’s voice cracked as she spoke. Probably false sadness.

“How do I know that I can trust you?” I asked. My hard stare was on, and I could feel my heart and my brain fighting. I totally had a soft spot for saddened people. So annoying...

“Please, you have to trust me. I can promise you I’m not bad or evil. I am completely human and they have injected black goo into me to make me look like them.” She said.

“You are probably just tricking me! You all are! And then you are going to kill me and my mother!” My heart was starting to get into my brain. I feel so bad for her, all alone, down here by herself, I have to help her. NO! I can’t, she is on the bad side. She is just tricking me, and I can’t fall for it. It’s probably just a trap anyways.

“No, please believe me.” She pleaded.

“I can’t,” I said, turning back the way I had come.

“You know that they are really good tricksters, right? The Order Of Horror is going to kill you. Go ahead, lead yourself to death. Your decision.” The shadow’s voice was so sorrowful, I couldn’t bear it.

This stopped me in my tracks. Once more, I turned around.

“Why would you even care to tell me this?” I asked. A hint of anger could be identified.

“Because I know what it feels like to lose someone you love. They took me, but they also took my mom. They blamed her for what I did, they killed my mom and I was put right in front of her to watch them stab her. I was so scared after that, I thought I was going to die. Instead, they put me in prison and made me their slave. I never should have done what I did. Now my mother is dead because of me.” The shadow explained.

I stayed silent for a moment, processing everything.  “But… What could you have done that is so bad?” I asked, my voice quavering.

“It’s not important.” The shadow turned her gaze toward the wall.

“Well… Ummm… What should I call you then?” I asked.

“You should call me Alaina. That was my name before they called me Ashes because I am their slave.”

“Well… Ummm… I guess I will just stick to Alaina. My name is Kayla,” I said. Alaina smiled.

“But I can’t reach you! You are stuck on the other side.” Alaina said.

“Well, I have some experience with vents. I was able to break the one in my cell to escape. I’m sure we can figure something out.

“ASHES!” A voice yelled. “Get over here, there’s something we need you to do for us. HURRY UP NOW OR YOU’LL BE THE NEXT ONE TO DIE.”

I heard footsteps coming down the hallway. I could hear them getting closer and closer. What did they want Alaina to do?

“Uh, Yes, Sir!” The look on Alaina’s face had turned to absolute horror. “Hide!” Her whisper was urgent. The footsteps were getting louder and louder, faster and faster. I needed to hide somewhere.  I looked around, not one single hiding spot. Think! You need to hide! Hurry and find a hiding spot!

I scrambled away from the vent and pressed my back on the cold, hard stone wall. If whoever this was, peeked inside the vent, I would be dead meat. My breathing had once again grown heavy and I (once again) began to sweat.

I could hear stumbling, and I assumed that Alaina was moving. Maybe she was covering for me? I heard the footsteps finally come through the cell doors and heard the keys jangling to open Alaina’s cell. I prepared myself for anything that could happen. What if Alaina really was evil and was using her magic powers to hypnotize me into believing her? No, stop magic powers aren’t real. She’s going to help you.   

“GET OUT HERE NOW! WE NEED YOU TO GET THAT BRATTY LITTLE GIRL! FIND HER- VALINA’S ORDERS! YOU BETTER BE BACK HERE WITH HER IN TEN MINUTES!” The scratchy voice yelled and then the footsteps retreated.

“Yes, Sir!” Alaina replied. I could hear the fear in her voice. I heard some more movement and then her face appeared through the bars of the vent.

“Stay here!” She whispered. “We can’t let them find you!”

“But you will get in trouble!” I argued.

“No, you can’t risk it. You need to get your mom and you out of here now!” Alaina replied back. Why was she being so nice? Was she really a nice person, or was she one of those evil Order of Horror people.

“But what about you?” I asked. “You need to get out, too! Come with us!” I couldn’t believe that I had said those words to a shadow. Never before had I imagined that I would talk to one in the first place!

“I’ll be fine. Stay here. I will be back!” Alaina burst out of the door.

“But…” I started, but Alaina had disappeared. I slumped back in against the vent wall and waited what seemed like hours. I almost fell asleep, but a scream disrupted my thoughts. My body bolted upward and smashed into the roof of the vent.

“OW!” I yelled, throwing my hand over my mouth. That sounded like a familiar voice. What was that?

My hands flew to the vent and started ripping at the bars. They didn’t budge! Curse high-tech security! My brain whirred- No screwdrivers? Well, something to rip it… Hair tie! I ripped the ribbon out of my hair. I tucked it around the edge and pulled. Surprisingly, the bar snapped, and I ran out. I guess they hadn’t thought about all the ways to break out of the vent.

“Help!” Alaina stumbled into the room, holding her shoulder. I jumped to the ground in alarm.

“WHAT HAPPENED?”

The Willow Tree #2 By: Maggie Yang and Hannah Kifer

Previously on The Willow Tree… Willow’s twin sister, Fern, died in what is now known as World War II. What a great birthday present for Willow. Now in The Willow Tree #2, watch as The Willow Tree and Voices of Ancient Egypt connect.

August  28, 1945

Dear Diary,

Today some officers came to take us away. My mom keeps saying that everything will be alright. But whatever is happening, it can’t be good. We were moved to a building with a bunch of other Jews. The people killed my mom and now I’ve given up on life and instead, I spend days crying myself to sleep.

September 28, 1945

Dear Diary,

Today, I was taken away and sent to live in a dark cold stone building. I met this lady named Miss K. She is evil. She plans to kill me after she kills some girl named Jessica! Who even is Jessica?! Why me? I don’t want to die! This dumb war is over now! I don’t have to die anymore!

October 28, 1945

Dear Diary,

I think I’m in a different country altogether. It’s way hotter than usual. I’m practically roasting. It smells like the desert. Last night, Miss K came to my cell with a book called Voices of Ancient Egypt. Then she held a rag to my mouth and nose. Right before I passed out, I remember a bright light shining from the book. What is this place???

November 28, 1945

Dear Diary,

Today, I’ve finally got to see the outside of wherever I am. I think I’m somewhere in Egypt. Did that book that I saw almost a month ago teleport us? Is that even possible? This morning I overheard Miss K talking to someone (a girl, judging by the high pitched voice). I think she called her Zoey or something. I heard something about needing more blood, needles, ruling the world, and Jessica. Who is Jessica?

December 28, 1945

Dear Diary,

Today, I met Jessica. Or at least what is left of her… she looks like a REALLY dry raisin. Like all her juices got sucked out of her. Like her blood got sucked out of her. Jessica reminded me of my dead sister.

January 28, 1945

Dear Diary,

Today is my birthday. It’s also Fern’s birthday and death day. Miss K is coming down the hall. I’ve gotta hurry. I think they’re going to draw all of my blood, too. I just hope it’s today. I want to die when Fern did.

January 29, 1945

This is Miss K. Willow is dead. So is Jessica. I have found Willow’s diary and decided to write one last entry. I am going to start World War III in 3006. You’ll all be dead and this will be ancient history. But just in case, I have cursed this book and anyone who reads it to a life of eternal misery...

Voices of Ancient Egypt #3 by: Maggie Yang and Abby Hulek

Previously in Voices of Ancient Egypt #2 Jessica has met Zoey and Zach. There’s something fishy going on. At the end, a dark figure emerges from the shadows. Who is this mysterious person? What’s going to happen next? Read Voices of Ancient Egypt #3...

Panic crawled up my throat. Okay, well, they can’t see me! It must just be something somewhere else in the world! I started tip-toeing around them.

“FREEZE!” Zach’s eyes glittered with hatred.

“You can- you can- you can hear me?” I asked my voice stuttering unwillingly.

“Uh, duh!” Zoey laughed. “You are stupid if you think that we ACTUALLY couldn’t hear you! We just created a simple plan involving-”

“Excuse you?” The figure that had just appeared revealed herself as the librarian- Miss K! I stared. “I created this and I get to finish this! Let me talk!”

“Hi… Uh… Mrs. K? Are you okay? When did you get here?” I asked, my voice quivering as I spoke.

“Oh, Jessica! Are you okay? Oh my gosh! Seriously?” Miss K mimicked.

“Uh... Well… What are you doing here?” I wanted to get them talking while I figured out my escape plan.

“Well, we are geniuses! I had my sister send out a book project. It was all easy after that because you walked right into our trap! You grabbed the PERFECT book and got sucked in just   we hoped! Then we…..” I tuned out the rest of her words. Sneak around the side of her? No, too dangerous! What about under her legs? She could SLICE me! What about through the side? I could try…..

“And then here we are!” She smiled and the smell of chocolate chip cookies wafted up through my nose. The good old times! I thought. STOP! You can’t get hypnotized right now! On 3, 2, 1!

My feet pushed hard on the ground and I flew gracefully through the air, landing a few feet away. Zach, Zoey, and Miss K. jumped up in stunned silence for a few moments.

“GET HER!” Miss K. roared. Zach and Zoey bolted after me. I didn’t know where to head, but I just ran aimlessly as fast as I could.

I peeked a quick look at them to see how far away they were from me. All of a sudden, silver hair flashed in front of my eyes. Chocolate chip cookies danced in my eyes and I could smell them like they were sitting on my nose.

“Stop!” Zoey commanded. My soul kept on going, but my body stayed put.

“Come here!” Miss K. smiled. My legs started acting like robots and I walked right over to Miss K. and I stopped right in front of her.

“Grab me a chair!” Miss K. snapped at Zach.

“What about me?” asked Zoey.

“Some rope would be nice. This won’t last forever!” She walked over to me and grabbed my arm. The warm air wisped my hair around my face and I smiled in her presence.

“Right this way, Jessica! We will have so much fun and you can be of so much help!” Miss K. walked me over to an old tree. “Stand right here!” I obeyed.

“I’m coming!” Zach ran around the side of the house carrying a wooden chair. Did I mention how wonderful those cookies smell? Zoey followed close behind with a big bundle of rope that was falling apart. Zach placed down the chair next to me and smiled.

“May I?” He asked.

“Fine.” Miss K. sighed.

“Jessica! Sit down right here!” My body did as he said, although my brain screamed at me to run. Zoey panted as she came to a stop beside me. I looked up at her glittering silver hair. So pretty! I thought.

Zoey was a fast worker. Within a minute she had tied my entire body to the chair except for a spot on my arm. Surprisingly, she didn’t cover it.

With a loud screech in my soul, my body stopped listening to their voices and I snapped back to reality.

“HELP!” I screamed. “SOMEBODY HELP!” The three of them just laughed, although Zoey’s sounded scared.

“It’s too late.” Miss K. smiled. “We are going to use your blood and rule the world. We will start World War III and you will die along with everyone else.”

Her evil laugh echoed around the yard. Zach smirked. Zoey’s eyes flashed a look of fear.

“Everyone else?” Zoey’s voice was quiet enough to be a whisper.

“NO, IDIOT! NOT YOU GUYS OR ANY OF MY SERVANTS! JUST PESKY LITTLE BRATS LIKE HER NEED TO DIE! ANYBODY WHO SURRENDERS TO ME WILL LIVE AS LONG AS THEY ARE UNDER MY RULE! AS LONG AS THEY WOULD DIE FOR ME, LIKE MY LOYAL SERVANTS!” Miss K. yelled.

Zoey’s face relaxed and she nodded. “We are the ones stealing everyone’s belongings, we have done everything we can to make people worry.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you will die along with everyone else and there’s nothing you can do about it.” Miss K smirked again. Boy, I hate it when people smirk!

“Well, what other evil plans do you have?” I asked, trying to keep the conversation moving to postpone my death.

“Nothing that YOU need to know about!” Zach glared at me. Zoey tugged at Zach’s hand.

“Ah, yes! Time to DIE!” Miss K. shrieked.

“Wait! We have to get the equipment first!” Zoey urged.

“Argh! That’s your duty! NOW GET IT, ZOEY! UNLESS YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN MISS JESSIE!”

“You mean, Jessica?”

“SHUT UP!” She roared and then turned to face Zoey again. “NOW GET IT FOR ME!” Zoey ran off to a shed that I hadn’t noticed yet.

“Can I help, Ma’am?” Zach asked.

“GO HELP ZOEY AND STOP BOTHERING ME!” Miss K.’s face was turning a dark shade of red.

“On it!” Zach ran off to Zoey, who was bringing out a huge green wagon filled with machines, syringes, long needles, and more. Together, they pulled the wagon over to where I was wrapped.

Miss K. was pacing back in forth, glaring at me. I squeezed as far back as possible, trying to escape her gaze.

“WHERE IS THE ROCKET, YOU IDIOT?” She screamed.

“Uh… Sorry, Ma’am! It’s uh…. Right over here!” Zoey scampered off and returned moments later, wheeling a big rocket on silver wheels.

“Right here, Ma’am!” Zoey showed a false smile.

“Shoot it! SHOOT IT!” Miss K. started pacing faster.

“On it!” Zach hurried to a bunch of levers.

“MWAHAHAHAHA! YES! YES! FINALLY! THE START OF WORLD WAR III. OUR FIRST OF MILLIONS TO TORTURE! NOW, ON THIS MAGICAL SCREEN RIGHT HE- ZACH!!!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING! GET THE SCREEN OUT HERE IMMEDIATELY! OK, SO ON THIS MAGICAL SCREEN YOU WILL HAVE TO WATCH YOUR FAMILY DIE!” My heart stuck in my throat as Miss K. roared.

I overcame my fear after a couple seconds and returned her with a snide comment. “The first? That explains why you don’t know what you’re doing!” I mean, I was going to die anyway! (Although, my knight in shining armor will appear and save me, so probably not… But you know, You got to do what you got to do!)

“YOU STUPID LITTLE, BRAT! YOU ARE GOING TO DIE IN AGONY!!”

“Yeah, right!”

“RARARRAARARRARARRRAGGH!” She screamed. Her voice echoed through the desert, bouncing of all of the pyramids. Men stopped and looked while they were holding the blocks. The whole place grew eerily silent.

On the screen, a video of my house showed up. I wondered what they were doing with my house!

“Ready, Ma’am?” Zach asked, his hand on a lever.

“DUH! SHOOT THE STUPID THING AND KILL HER STUPID FAMILY!”

I didn’t have time to process what they were saying before I heard a big BOOM. Too late to think about that, the whole house exploded with fire. There was ash and smoke everywhere. I could see my parents running around the house in panic. I couldn’t watch them die.

“NOOOOOOOOOO!” I screamed.

I watched. Everything looked like it was in slow motion. Why were they doing this? I couldn’t tolerate this. I just couldn’t. I tried nagging at the rope tied around me it was no use. I watched Miss K. laugh as the bomb exploded my house. I couldn’t believe it, I fell for this stupid plan they had.

Flames engulfed the only place I had ever loved. The only place I ever felt safe. My family was dying and screaming. It was all my fault! I should have been home! I should have protected them!

“MOM! DAD! GET OUT! PROTECT YOURSELF! PLEASE!” I screamed. I kicked like a toddler in the chair. Tears streaked my cheeks and my voice grew hoarse from screaming. The laughs coming from all three of those STUPID people made everything ten times worse.

Blackened bodies fell to the ground around my beloved home. Ashes covered the grass and floors.

“JESSICA!” My mother screamed. She searched through the rubble. “HONEY!” She tripped over a fallen brick and collapsed. Her head did not come back into sight. All movement stopped. Sirens blared and red and blue lights flashed around the room. Screams and shouts were heard as water burst into view, creating a pool. Water covered the floor and red hats popped into the building. Tears flooded down my face. Zoey smirked as she saw my tears

“Now that MIGHT be enough agony!” Miss K. smiled. “Now for the best part- Death!”

Zoey and Zach intertwines fingers and smiled at each other.

“GET THE STUPID MACHINE OVER HERE!” The two let go of eachother and ran over to get the machine. My body trembled with the horror of what I’d just seen. I’m dreaming I thought This is all just a nightmare! I’m going to wake up and everything will be back to normal! I turned away from the screen. The red machine was carried over to my side. A huge needle at least two feet long was positioned on the side of the machine. Connected to the needle was a long pipe that winded down into a clear compartment inside.

“Who’s going to do it?” Zoey asked, curiously.

“Me! DUH!” Miss K. stated. Zoey’s shoulders sagged and Zach looked at her disappointedly.

Miss K. started to unravel the big needle from the side of the machine. Think, Mind, THINK! I couldn’t think of a way to get out.

“MOMMY! DADDY! HELP ME!” I yelled as loud as I could, a fresh flood of tears tracing down my cheeks.

“Don’t worry, Honey!” Miss K. smiled “We are just going to suck all of your blood out as the starting signal of World War III!”

“HOW DOES THAT FIT UNDER THE CATEGORY OF ‘Don’t worry!’?” I asked, maddened by her attempts. I mean, her winning attempts.

“DON'T MOVE!” She commanded me. My body obeyed. I HATE MY BODY!

My brain was overwhelmed with everything that I had seen and all the surprises from the day. I longed to be back home with my- Oh My poor parents. I want to wake up from this horrible nightmare and have everything go back to normal. I wish that I never had moved to my house and that I had never left Minnesota behind. I wish that I had never met Mrs. K or the librarian. I wish that I had never followed Zoey and Zach. I wish that I had never checked out that book!

I watched, my skin tingling, as she picked up the needle and held it next to my arm.

“Say your last words, little one!” The needle pierced my skin and pain flared up through my arm. The flame roared into an inferno, covering my entire body in a millisecond. My vision blurred.

“HELP! MOM! SOMEBODY! DAD! Help….me…” I was barely able to squeeze the last words out of my mouth. All of my energy was draining as my blood drained. My body crippled and started to fall over.

“You… will…. not…… win!” I forced the last words out of my mouth just as I fell into complete darkness, the sound of laughter echoing around the desert.

Bottle of the Ocean #4 by: Maggie Yang and Abby Hulek

Previously in Bottle of the Ocean #3........ Kayla is trying to escape, but The Order of Horror knows she’s trying to escape and are running back to get her. She finds out that her mother has also been captured by The Order of Horror. She has to surrender in three seconds, or else her mother dies. What does she decide to do? Save her mother? Or save herself? Read Bottle of the Ocean #4 to find out what happens next..........

My heart hammered against my chest. Sweat beaded on my forehead. The weight of the choice I would have to make felt as heavy as a 200 pound weight. What do I do? What about my mom? I have to save her!

“2 SECONDS!” The shadow screeched. Her comrades laughed and get their weapons ready. I couldn’t bare to cause my mother’s death! I forgot about everything that I had to do and I tried to surrender. My soul moved to the edge of the tunnel, but my body stayed put. I took that as a good omen meant to save me. I scrambled through the tunnel as fast as I could, trying not to make a sound.

“1 SECOND!” Someone from the Order Of Horror yelled her anger rising. I braced myself for the upcoming disaster. I crawled through the tunnel as fast as I could manage, tripping and falling over my own hands. A smash was heard- It was a mixture of glass shattering, things smashing to the floor, and chains clattering.

“Order of Horror- TO HER MOM!” Voices screeched in the distant and get farther away as time goes on. I curled up into a ball and cried, tears sliding down my cheeks like rain on a window pane. After what seemed like hours, I wiped my tears away and calmed myself down. My brain finally regained control and I started to realize the situation that I was stuck in. My mom is going to die because of me! I’m stuck in a vent! Where am I going? What do I do now?

“Hello?” I asked gently. My voice echoed through the tunnels. I kept crawling, and the top of the tunnel opened up to a higher ceiling. I was able to stand up, though my legs wobbled and threatened to collapse. My only light source had long ago disappeared, so I was trapped with darkness on all sides.

“Hello?” I asked, slightly louder. I listened to my echo, travelling through the tunnel. I started to grow desperate after I realized that I was lost. I sat down, ready to cry again.

“Hello?” A scratchy voice sped through the tunnel toward me. My heart lifted. Was it another shadow? Why did it sound like one?

“Can you hear me?” I asked, afraid that I had only heard a late echo. I smiled when the same voice returned my question.

“Yes! Please help me!” I scrambled back to my feet, hoping to follow the voice.

“Talk to me? I’m coming!” I listened silently.

“Okay! Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi!” I ran toward the sound, using the “Hi!”s as my guide. My hands flew across the walls, helping me feel my way. The voice got louder and louder until it seemed like I was next to it. My eyes were adjusting to the darkness, so I was starting to be able to tell where I was going.

The tunnel stopped at a hard stone wall. To the right, another vent looked into another cell. Except this cell was even more like a prison. It was stone gray and just being in the room drained all your happiness. Not like I was happy or anything. Two boards hung from one wall with straps that connected to the wall. Peeking through the vent was another shadow. This shadow was scrawny and her cloak was torn and ripped in every place imaginable. The shadow had cuts and scars all over her face. Ashes covered her hair making it look gray.

“AAAAHHHHH!” I yelped. “DON’T KILL ME! PLEASE!”

To be continued............

Voices of Ancient Egypt #2 By: Abby Hulek and Maggie Yang

Previously on Voices of Ancient Egypt...

Jessica just got another book project on Ancient Egypt. She has finally found the perfect book. Except it’s not so perfect after all;  she gets sucked into the book! What happens next? Read Voices of Ancient Egypt #2...

-------------------------------------------------------

My heart hammered. I bolted up like I had just awoken from the worst nightmare ever. A girl was sitting with her legs crossed. She had silver hair arranged neatly on her shoulders and she leaned her back on a sarcophagus. The sarcophagus was pure gold, with a little bit of lapis lazuli on the eyebrows. She was reading the book that I had just been reading- Voices of Ancient Egypt.

My head swung. Sarcophagus? Dead person? Mummy? WHERE AM I?

“He-Hello?” I squeezed the words out in a squeaky voice. The girl paid no attention to me at all.

She kept on turning the pages. I watched mesmerized by the sound as she turned the pages. I was falling into a trap. I was getting hypnotized.

I frantically tried to keep my own consciousness by fighting against my body. Her silver shimmering hair, She’s so pretty! We could just lay down and sleep to the sound of the pages! Let’s read along with her! Go sleep in the sarcophagus! So warm and cozy! My body urged me to lay down and sleep next to the pretty girl inside the sarcophagus. I noticed a big fat lock sitting near the girl’s hand. I pushed as hard as I could against my body’s will. It took all my strength to look away from her and stop making my legs move toward the dead person bed. There was NO way that I could just die!

I set my gaze on a huge pyramid towering over little blocks. Handsome men walked around lifting blocks and attempting to place them on the pyramid. Most of them wore rags and loincloths. One man wore a big fancy dress type thing. Ewwwww! A man wearing a DRESS? Sweat trickled down his neck as he hauled a big block over to be lifted on the pyramid. He set it down and ran over to where I was stationed.

Sweat started to trickle down my neck. Why was he coming towards me?

“Zoey!” He called. The girl in the silver hair shut her book and smiled.

“Zach!” Her brilliant white teeth glinted in the hot sun. She stood up, and I was able to see her silver sandals with golden straps. Golden bracelets danced on her wrists. She jogged over to the boy. I suddenly noticed that the guy also had silver hair. It was styled in a side part and he had a necklace with a wooden bead. He walked barefoot, so his feet were rough and calloused.

“How was work, Honey?” Zoey asked. They started to walk away. She twirled her silver hair in her fingers and grasped Zach’s hand.

“Well, Carson dropped a block on Hudson’s head. He immediately started bleeding and died.”

“So the usual?” She asked. I didn’t even get to fully understand what that meant when they started leaving. My mind blocked out the rest of their conversation and went into action mode. Follow them! I snuck behind them, hiding whenever I could. After a few minutes of that, I realized that they couldn’t see or hear me. I stopped hiding and just walked a foot or so behind them. I assumed they must be a couple, because of the way they acted.

After around twenty minutes, we arrived at a stone building. Stone building? I thought they made buildings out of mud brick in Ancient Egypt…. They walked up to the front of the house and opened up the door.

“Home sweet home!” Zach smiled. “Another day of hard work and another day of nice rest!” He leaned over and kissed Zoey on the cheek. She smiled.

“GROSS!” I yelled. Immediately I turned red, until I remembered that no one could hear me. The couple jumped in surprise, but then pretended that they hadn’t noticed her. I didn’t notice them- I was too involved in my own problems. I had to find a way out of this book!

Zach shut the door with his unoccupied hand, right in my face. I decided not to open the door, because I had no idea if they’d see me open the door. I started to walk around the side of the house toward a patch of bushes.

As soon as Jessica left, the couple sat down and started to talk.

“Ok. I think she went around the side. Good cover!” Zach exclaimed.

“Yeah- You too. When is Helen K. getting here? I heard her sister followed through with her book project plan!” Zoey asked.

“She should be here in a couple minutes at least. I think Jessica went around the side- Right into our ambush! I can’t wait to walk outside around the back and block her as Helen comes out! Our plan has to work!”

“I agree,” Zoey smiled. “I can’t wait to see her face! We will finally succeed! After all those children who-”

“Let’s not get into it…” Zach interrupted rubbing his thigh in remembrance. Zoey’s smile disappeared.

“MUMMIES ESCAPING!” The code for “I’m here!” echoed through the book.

“Helen’s here!” Zoey’s smile returned and she peeked out the window. Helen was nowhere in sight- Like they had planned.

MEANWHILE….

I sat down in the bushes at the side of the house. I stuck my hands on the windowsill and peered through, my eyes just level with the edge. Zoey and Zach were talking with grave expressions. I couldn’t make out their words. I slumped back down and pulled a blade of grass from the ground. I twirled it through my fingers until it ripped in half. I stared around at the pyramids and workers.

“Well, well, well!” A figure emerged from the dark shadows. Behind me, Zach and Zoey appeared from the side of the house that I had come from. Evilness glittered in their eyes as they glared down at me, smirks growing across their faces.

To be continued...

Nothing is Something by Halle Rager

Nothing is something.

The only way to describe the emotion she felt was nothing. It wasn’t neutral. And she wasn’t happy or sad. Not even both of them, nor one of them. None of them. No anger. Just sort of nothing. And it was like she was just there. The life of hers paused as everyone goes around her. The laughter running from their mouths. Getting up and walking as they go to hug onto the ones they love. And all of them floating around her, while she’s there. But not. None of her was there. It was gone. There was nothing. And she missed all of the feelings. She couldn’t remember what it felt like. How a warm feeling would bubble up in her chest, and a smile would stretch through her being. It would surround her and tear away all of those dark rafters. Or maybe they were just shutting them. For only a strong wind to come and rip it from its hinges.

Yeah, she felt nothing. She was nothing. And.

And you guess nothing is something. So she beat the system. And for some reason that can make things better. And maybe if she were to grasp onto that long enough, she’ll realize that hey, maybe she was kinda okay. Because she isn’t a lifeless piece of nothing. No, she was indeed something. And. And that’s what brought tears to her eyes. And there was sadness there. She was feeling, and it hurt. But. But there was no longer nothing. There was something there. And it was overpowering. Like some sort of relief was lifted up off of her shoulders. Because she was feeling sadness, and like maybe she had a chance. And that was indeed something. It really was something.

Bottle of the Ocean #3 by: Maggie Yang and Abby Hulek

Previously in Bottle of the Ocean #2:

Kayla has been trapped by the evil shadows and she has no way of getting out. She strapped to a bed with chains. With a sudden burst of energy, she rips off the chains, causing the Order Of Horror to run back.

What will happen next? Read Bottle of the Ocean #3 . . .

My heart raced furiously like a person beating a drum. How can I possibly make it? Screams echoed off the hollow walls. I wanted to yell desperately for my mom. Where is she? I was bombarded with worries, but I knew I had to clear my mind and think straight. If I didn’t, I would never make it out of this dark place alive.

My eyes flashed around the room, looking for a quick way to escape. The walls were dark gray, along with the concrete floor. It was freezing cold and hard to see, but I had no time to dwell on that. Broken chains were covering the floor, and the bed sat in a shadowy corner. There was a metal vent up high on the wall. I didn’t have ANYTHING to pry it off the wall with. No screwdriver, no hammer, no nothing! There was a big gray door with electrical wires, so I knew I couldn’t escape that way.

The vent. I knew there had to be something that I could use to pry it off. Items? Well, chains, a paper cup, and a bed. Not helpful . . . WAIT! CHAINS!

My mind whirled. The sounds of screeching shadow figures could be heard barreling down the dark hallway. They could arrive in a matter of seconds.

The chains felt cold slipping through my sweaty fingers. They made rattling sounds, which was not helping to mask my noise. I stood up on the bed, kicking the remaining chains off. I did the craziest thing I have done in my entire life. I jumped.

My body rocketed towards the vent. Air whistled in my ears. My fingers fed the chain through the bars. I felt the chain attach, making my body jerk. I dangled 2 feet from the ground, my hands slipping. My face felt hot and tears burned in my eyes. When I first jumped, I hadn’t realized how high the vent was.

I pulled as hard as I could. The lock on the door jingled, and the room grew ten times hotter.

“No escape! You better give yourself up, and then we won’t punish your mother for your actions!” A familiar screechy voice sounded from right outside the door. My mother? They have my mother? She’s in danger! Because of me! Ugh, this is life or death. STOP THINKING!

The top of the vent suddenly came loose and dropped down to the floor. My butt slammed into the concrete. I yelped. Pain rocketed into my tailbone.

The lock clicked, and the doorknob started to turn.

I ran to the bed once more, ignoring the pain, and leaped as quickly as I could. My hands grasped the sides of the hole I had created, and I pulled myself up. I guess gym class hadn’t been so stupid after all. Thankfully, I had enough strength to haul my body into the small gap.

“Come out come out wherever you are!” A new screech laughed. “You have three seconds to surrender, or your mother DIES!”

To be continued . . .

Sketch: "Nala" by Hailie Root

The Willow Tree By: Maggie Yang, Chloe Rushing, Abby Hulek, and Hannah Kifer

Prologue

Brilliant, glistening slices of sun spilled like water as the tresses of the tree went flying. The sun filtered in, beams of gold going through then disappearing, dancing with the wind.

The vibrantly colored flowers spilled petals around and around, the breeze lifted the pale green tresses of the tree, petals swirling in a tornado of brilliant blue, soft pink, and gleaming purple. They floated and settled, sending little baby ripples across the surface of the mirror of jade water.

She laughed then, opening her lips to show her teeth. Our teeth were the very same. Even our lips were the same, with a little freckle under our bottom lip.  Today, only our outfits were different for our 10th birthday.

Our mother had lovingly sewn us dresses, the same pattern and shape, her pouf dress was an easter egg blue, made of thin, gauzy fabric. Mine was the exact same design, except it was rich, dark, emerald green like the swaying leaves around us. We even had a crown of flowers in our hair for each of us! My hair was down, swaying around me like a curtain, and hers was in a long ginger braid.

And then, in just a second, a singular moment of time suspended in every single other moment, our peaceful world was shattered.

I released a single, bloodcurdling scream; I screamed and screamed and screamed.

The sharp stench of bullets stung my nostrils; the scent fiery and fresh. Hailstreams of bullets peppered the ground around us. They plummeted through the thin, swaying chains of green that surrounded our safe haven. Many of them were ripped brutally from the branches, showering the ground in leaves.

Fern, my sister, shrieked as bullets pummeled down with no mercy; narrowly missing us. I could feel the wind of the bullets hitting the ground grazing my skin. I threw myself against the thick, aged stump of the tree as more and more holes appeared in the dirt. I covered my head with my hands; tears stinging my eyes. As bullets rained like hail out of nowhere. Where were they coming from? Who was shooting?

I wanted to cry, to go home, to hug my mom, who would stroke my hair and promise me that no one would harm us.
But I couldn’t go home without her.

She was my twin! My sister! My Fern! We had a bond that was invincible. Even through death.

She was lying there under the swaying leaves of the Willow Tree from which my name came.

I could see that she was gone in her eyes, her open eyes, which stared without seeing. Her mouth was hanging open like a broken hinge. Something deep in those icy green eyes had died.

My eyes.

To be continued............

Bottle of the Ocean 2 By: Maggie Yang, Abby Hulek, and Chloe Rushing

Previously in Bottle of the Ocean: It’s Kayla’s birthday and she wishes for a vacation to the beach. She definitely gets her wish. She gets to move to the beach. But something bad, something strange, something out of this world happens. The whole beach got sucked into the bottle; everything, including Kayla.

Now, in Bottle of the Ocean #2:

Somewhere, deep within me, I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t speak. My mind couldn’t even begin to comprehend what just happened. The world around me was tinted a cobalt blue, and I appeared to be floating. Dark shadows flew around the world, screeching.  

“Hello?” I asked. My voice was scratchy, and it barely made a sound. I tried to take a breath, but brackish mouthfuls of salt water, and grainy pieces of sand filled my mouth and I hacked desperately. I stood up and pushed my head through the surface. I coughed. My legs felt like lead and I was having trouble not fainting. The world spun once more, and before you knew it, I was out cold.

“What have you DONE?” hissed a croaky voice. I could barely lift my head, but I did my best to peek at whomever was talking.

“Where . . . where am I?” I asked. My head spun, but I continued to prop myself up on my hands. I felt my hands shaking with fear. My heart was beating as fast as a rollercoaster. All of a sudden I felt something grasp around my neck choking me. I couldn’t breathe. Darkness started to surround me once again. I was trying to get some air into me. Then I heard a familiar voice crying out and trying to reach me.

“Kayla!” shouted my mom with fear. “Where have you gone?!”

I realized it was my mom. Was she being kidnapped too? Everything was too confusing for my brain, and I fainted.

“Finally, she fainted! That took forever man!” croaked the black shadow to another black shadow.

“I know, right? She’s feisty,” the shadow hissed back.

When I woke up, I was stuck in a cold dungeon. The sleek, black, concrete ground made me shiver. I was tied to a bed with chains all around me. I felt like a prisoner.  

“Ugh, she’s woken up already!”

“I was hoping for at least two more weeks!”

I struggled to peer over the top of the chains wrapped around my body. Four red eyes were looking straight through me burning my insides. I had never gotten a close up look at them. They wore ripped black cloaks and had scrawny, wart-covered hands. The cloak was wrapped around their head.

“Thanks to you, The Order Of Horror will RULE THE WORLD!” The biggest one came over and picked up a chain wrapping my already wrapped arm to the bed. She fingered with it in her hands.

“And there is nothing you can do about it. Oh, and by the way our group name is The Order of Horror, because we’re so scary!” The other one sneered.

“Not helping,” The one with the raven engraved on her hand.

“How are you going to rule the world ‘thanks to me’?” I said, wincing from the pain of the chain.

“You ‘brave’ ones won’t stand a chance against us!”

“You think you are SO smart!” The smaller one added.

“Is it wrong to think something that’s true?” I yelled with as much effort as I had, although it wasn’t much, considering I was dying, and chained to a bed.

“Like I said - feisty!” They laughed as they shut the door and locked it.

I was stuck.

I had to find a way to get out.

I ripped my arms as hard as I could and the chains snapped with a loud clank! Why hadn’t I thought of that before?

A screech sounded from down the corridor and I heard somebody yell.

“She’s trying to escape! Run!”

To Be Continued . . .

Voices of Ancient Egypt By Abby Hulek And Maggie Yang

Another book. Ugh! School STINKS! My teacher, Mrs. K., has always given my class triple the amount of schoolwork than any other class, especially when it comes to reading textbooks. I HATE her! I just wish I could go inside a book and die. My life is TERRIBLE!

I slumped down in the brown chair seated at a library table.

“Where to start…” I whispered to myself, glumly. I fidgeted with the plastic zipper on my coat pocket.

“May I help you?” A middle aged woman in a purple dress smiled down at me. I was mesmerized by her bouncy golden curls. Her smile was warm, and it made me feel like I had just eaten my mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies straight out of the oven!

“Uh-u-uh,” I stammered. Her gaze burned into me- Her features,  the wonderful smile, the pretty features. I sighed a big breath as the smell of roses filled my nose.

Snap out of it, I thought to myself.

“Ummmmm. Well… I was just hoping to find a book on pyramids and Ancient Egypt. Can you help me find one?”

“Ahhhh. Yes! We have a whole section on Ancient Egypt! Fun! I have a book in right now called Treasure of Egyptian Mythology and Voices Of Ancient Egypt! I have some more available over this way as well!” She lead me over to a bookshelf labeled Egypt.

I rolled my finger over the bindings looking for a book that I could use, but I wasn’t entirely focused on finding one. Her scent was just so fascinating! Roses, happiness, warm chocolate chip cookies! I was going into a trance.

“And I shall leave you to find what you would like!” she smiled.

There was something weird about her though. She was too perfect. I didn’t like that.

I realized that I was still in the library and not in a fantasy world of my dreams. I picked up Voices Of Ancient Egypt and flipped through the pages.

“This seems okay….” I sat down at the table I had previously been seated at. I flipped to a random page.

Inside the pyramids, the center contained the pharaoh. The pharaoh was placed inside a sarcophagus and…….

“Hello, Jessica.”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!” I screamed. The book flew out of my hands and hit the floor with a loud WHACK!

“No need to be frightened,” The sound was coming from the book, lying with one page bent on the floor. I was breathing heavily.

“WHAT IN THE NAME OF- Oh, it’s you. Ummmmmm… Are you okay?” The librarian had come back over. Immediately, all the fear inside my body left me.

“Oh, uh ye... yea, yeah, I’m fine,” I said, struggling to make myself sit straight. Why had the book been talking? What was happening to me? I felt like I was in a dream.

The beautiful librarian walked back to her desk, the bottom of her dress swaying with her hips. I watched as she sat down and started reading a magazine.

I opened the book again. This time there wasn’t a voice. Something even worse happened. I felt wind brushing against my face, I was falling endlessly. I landed with a hard thump on the ground. I looked around, there were pyramids everywhere. The pyramid for King Tut was right in front of my face. I looked around, everything was an orange glow around me, the sun was blinding. It looked exactly like the picture in the book that I had been reading that was when I realized I got sucked into the book.

To Be Continued….

Tormentor By: Sadie Williams

Splash! I hear the sound of getting to the bottom. I take a step, then another. I work my way up to the top as quickly as my nervous legs will let me.

“Pink?” Asks the lifeguard at the top. I nod. I step on the scale, and when the lifeguard nods, I walk over to the pink slide. The pod slowly opens and I step inside.

“Cross your arms and legs,” Instructs the lifeguard. As I do, the pod closes. I look over at my dad.

“One.” I hear the lady in the tube start counting, I breath in.

“Two.” I close my eyes.

“Three” I breathe out.

The floor drops out from underneath me. I can barely feel the water on  my back as my shoulders burn. I open my eyes as I turn. It feels as though the inside of this tormentor is closing around me. I close my eyes again.

I open my eyes just as water soaks my head and stings my eyes. I realize I’m at the end of this terrifying, intimidating, incredible journey. I stand up and step out of the bottom of the slide then blink. I look over at my dad and yell:

“That was amazing!”

Nature At Its Best by Emma Herzing

I start the walk through the path

Filled with living things

The twigs crack under my feet

The sticky brown mess

Holding on to my old sneakers

Beside me

I watch as the swift,

Glimmering water

Moving in the different direction

I hear the breeze hitting

On the big, living tall trees

I only watch where I’m going

So I don’t trip on the roots

That are peeking out from the ground

Waiting to get some fresh air

My thoughts are peaceful

Every move I make

The sun kisses the leaves

Making them glow bright

And it makes my skin feel warm

As I move forward

Through the thick rough of trees

This is a place of beauty

This is a place of peace

This is a place of shelter

This is nature

At its best

-Emma Herzing

Sketch by Ella Praskovich

Bottle of the Ocean By: Maggie Yang, Abby Hulek, and Chloe Rushing

WHOOSH! The wave washed over the bottle, drowning it deep down into the dark ocean. I watched for minutes as it slipped away into the salty sea, never to be seen again - Or so I thought...

Five years later...

Finally, it was my tenth birthday! All of my friends sat around a big round table as I watched the flames flicker like a fairy on my white ice-cream birthday cake.

“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Kayla! Happy birthday to you!”

I smiled the biggest smile I could. What do I want to wish for? I thought. I know! A vacation to my favorite place ever - the beach!

I blew all the air out of my body, and the flames went out. I looked up and saw the smiles on all of my friends’ faces.

“See you later!” I waved goodbye as my friends headed out the door to catch their rides.

“Hey - Kay, can I talk to you for a second?” My mom asked in a low voice. She always delivers bad news when she gets in this mood.

“I don’t see why not…” I felt like my heart was going to fall out of my body. I HATE it when my mom acts this way.   We walked up to my bedroom in silence. I sat down on my bed and my mom looked as though she was going to cry.

“What?” I burst out. I couldn’t help it.

“We have a bit of a crisis,” Her expression scared me. My hands started sweating and I felt like the room temperature had suddenly rose to be 10,000 degrees. My heart was beating out of my chest and darkness closed in on me. I didn’t know what to do. I sat there staring at her like the world was going to end.

“We’re moving!” My mom’s voice rung in my ears. It took a few moments to process her words, What? Beach? Moving? And then the meaning overcame me, I staggered back a few steps.

“What?” I asked in shock.

“ To the beach,” my mom said looking at the floor shoulders drooping.

“The beach?” My shock overcame me.

“Yup.” She said.

“That is SO COOL!” I yelled.

When I opened my eyes I was looking outside at the beautiful beach. Palm trees everywhere, and the cool, velvety blue ocean next to the glistening white sand, shells dotting the smooth grains. I was in the driveway of my very brand new house. It looked like a mansion. The warm blue color lined the outside of the house. The sleek and shiny white paint covered the whole house. The swimming pool, waving softly in the gentle breeze, invited me, the gleaming sunlight shining on it and, next to it, an amazing fireplace built into the wall with pearly white couches next to it, and a low intricate glass coffee table matching with the couches.  

“THIS IS AMAZING!” I squealed.

I got up and ran to the beach as fast as I could. The waves were almost as high as me. I loved when this happens. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I see something wash onto the shore. I start to slowly walk over, being cautious that it might be a creature or something like that. I then realized it was a bottle. The bottle was covered in seaweed and it was very clear that I could see a little piece of paper rolled up inside. It had something like a heart sticker or something like that. I looked and realized it was the note I wrote five years ago. I quickly opened the bottle and reread the paper impatiently. How could this be happening? I felt like the world was spinning. Everything was getting sucked in to the bottle, including me...

To be continued:  the sequel will be coming soon!

Interviewing Newspaper Artist Sophia Marsala by: Grace LeBreton

Sophia is an amazing artist and really enjoys it. Sophia has been publishing comics for the Park Forest Times school newspaper.  She is eleven years old on the 6th grade Wolves team, and has also made some really beautiful pieces in art class.

What is your favorite piece of art in the newspaper?-  “I think it would be my first comic.”

Have you written any stories?- “No, but I have a selection of comics.”

How do you come up with the art ideas?-  “I start sketching then it turns into something great.”

What's your favorite color?- “ Honestly, blue.”

Do you use your favorite color at all in your art?- “I actually don't color my art a lot, but if I did I would.”

Is there anything you don't use much in your art?-  “I don't usually put eyelashes on my characters much.”

If you could go back and change anything would you?- “I would make it a little neater and draw lighter at first and check over my work to make sure it's done.”  

Have you been writing with the newspaper since Marking Period 1?- “Yes.”

Do you express your art in any other way besides the newspaper?-  “I do sketch sometimes when I'm on my own or with friends.”

Do you love all your art pieces thus far?- “Yes, but I wish I could make my comics a little neater.”

Have you ever had to remake a piece or turn it into something different?- “Yes I'll be drawing a character then realized it looks like something else and change it.”