Gwevin

         "Move the handle to the left." Kevin instructed. His voice was slightly muffled from being under the car. "Like this?" I asked doing as he instructed. "Perfect Gwendolyn." he assured me. "I thought i told you not to call me that." I whined. "Come on Gwen. I was just using the name you were given at birth. What's so bad about that?" he asked innocently. I sighed and said nothing. "Hey guys. What you up to?" Ben asked, coming into the garage wielding three smoothies. "Thanking the best cousin in the world." I replied, grabbing one and immediately gulping it down. I was so thirsty lately. "You'd think that when the door was closed, you wouldn't come in Tennyson." Kevin complained from under the car. "Hey, I brought you and Gwen something to drink. The least you could do is thank me." Ben turned to look at me when he heard the noise of an empty cup."Gwen seems to be enjoying it. Maybe you shouldn't keep her cooped up in here all day while you work on the car, and let her get something to drink every now and then." Ben scolded. Kevin moved out from under the car to asses whether or not Ben was worth killing at the moment. I assumed not, as he just slid back under the car and continued working. The last thing I need was for those two to go at it again. "Gwen you want to tell your cousin to leave?" He asked. "Hey Gwen, you want to ask your boyfriend to can it?" Ben countered. "You know what Tennyson? It's go time." Kevin threatened, sliding back out from under the confines of the car and absorbing concrete from the floor. Ben started fooling with the Omnitrix. I sighed. "Look you two. I am not in the mood today. I am cold, tired, thirsty, and I think I'm going to..." I was starting to get tunnel vision, and I collapsed on the floor.



         "Gwen? Gwen!" I heard my name and immediately opened my eyes. I was being held in Kevin's lap on the floor of the garage. "My head hurts." I complained. "Oh Gwen. Don't ever do that." Kevin warned me, but I could see fear in his eyes. His aura was also practically reeking of it. "Ugh." I groaned, trying to stand. "Not so fast there. Stay put." Ben warned. "What happened?" I asked warily. They looked at each other wonderingly, "You tell us. We started messing around, and you freaked out and then fainted." Kevin sounded pretty serious. That didn't explain anything I didn't know. I groaned again when a felt a sharp pain in my temple. "Are you okay?" Ben worried aloud. "Yeah." I lied. I struggled to my feet and immediately swayed, feeling very dizzy. "Whoa there. Easy." Kevin gripped my arm and tightened his hold on my waist. Suddenly, Ben's phone began to ring. he pulled it out and flipped it open quickly. "Hello?....what is it?......we're on our way-" he glanced quickly at me, "maybe....bye." He closed the phone and closed his eyes while pinching the bridge of his nose. "The Forever Knights are in town. We should go." he sighed. "Okay, let's go." I prompted them. "We have some knight butt to kick." I tried to make my voice light when in reality my head felt like it was going to explode. Kevin and Ben exchanged a long glance before Ben shrugged and climbed into the backseat of the car. I scooted into the passenger seat and Kevin drove in his usual reckless way.



         We had just entered the main part of town when we saw them. Only, this time they had help. She was standing behind what was clearly the leader, long white hair blowing in the wind. Charmcaster. She glared right at me as I stepped quickly out of the car. Kevin put his hand on the hood of the car and absorbed it. Behind me I heard Ben transform, "SwampFire." he growled. I knew that they knew what my target was. Their job was the knights, mine was Charmcaster. I let my mana flood into orbs at my hands. "Gwenny. How long has it been since we've seen each other?" She smirked. "Not long enough" I growled. "What a surprise." she scoffed. "Attack!" she screeched. Immediately the knights began to open fire on us. Kevin looked furious. Wait until there's a moment I pleaded with him in my head. Suddenly, there was another sharp pain, only this time it was in the base of my skull. I clamped my mouth shut and frowned against the pain. "Something wrong Gwenny?" Charmcaster snickered. I was just about to throw a mana ball at her, when I heard the sound of a large weapon warming up. I looked up just in time to find that Kevin was being targeted by one of the knights. Only this wasn't a normal laser, this one was much larger and more powerful. "Kevin!" I screamed. He turned around quickly, but he wasn't going to be fast enough. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Charmcaster about to strike. Without a second thought I focused all of my waning energy on Kevin, and created a small shield around him. He realized what I was doing a second before it happened, and a look of horror washed over his features. "Gwen!" he cried. I felt the laser hit my mana shield, and Charmcaster's attack knocked me to the ground. I focused as hard as I could on holding the shield. When I heard the laser being destroyed by Ben, only then did I allow my shield to fall. Kevin was at my side before I took another breath. "GWEN!" he pleaded. "I'm okay." I groaned, coughing and feeling blood on my lips. "Shh. Don't try to talk you'll just-" Behind him, I saw Charmcaster launch another attack, and with a groan I pushed a shield around us. But, with my quickly fading strength I just couldn't hold her back for long. "Kevin go!" I ordered. He looked at me in shock and surprise, "What are you talking about? I'm not going anywhere without you." he informed me menacingly. "I can't hold her much longer. You have to go. I love you." I quickly pressed my lips to his before putting him in a bubble of mana and transporting him as far away as I could. I think he reached the state line about 100 miles away. I set him down gently. That was the last of my strength. I simply lay there and waited for the end. But that wasn't the case when you have Ben Tennyson as a cousin. Without the slightest bit of warning, he swooped down as JetRay and carried me far from the fight. "Stay here. Kevin'll be by in just a few minutes." he demanded. Not like I could move any part of my body anyways.I let my eyes slip closed for a moment, almost dreading facing Kevin after what I did. Take the long way I pleaded with him in my head. I coughed again and found it was becoming more painful to breathe. okay, maybe don't take the long way I amended silently. "Well, well, well. Having a rough day Gwenny?" I sighed internally and opened my eyes. "Not as bad as yours is about to be." I smiled slightly. I tried pulling mana into my hands, only to find out I was too weak. Whatever illness that made me faint in the garage was affecting my mana as well. Great. Could this day get any worse? "Gwen you are in so much trouble! I'm going to--" I heard Kevin yell before he saw he saw me lying on the ground in front of Charmcaster. "If it isn't the infamous Kevin Levin? Coming to hide behind your girlfriend again? I don't think she can even save herself this time. Just let me finish this and I'll be right with you." she sneered. I watched Kevin's face turn from shocked to infuriated in a second. I took solace in the fact that she would kill me first, giving him time to run. But to my relief, I heard the unmistakable sound of Ben's voice. I took a deep breath and tried to focus on the fight. Charmcaster had both of them in an energy sphere. I saw the look of terror in their eyes and it made me strong. I pulled all the mana I could manage, not much, and shot Charmcaster's back with it. I stayed awake just long enough to hear a horrible yell and my name. Then, the blackness overtook me. Allowing me some much needed rest.



         "Is she going to wake up soon? I'm hungry!" I heard Ben's voice. "Shut up! Let her sleep! I heard Kevin retaliate, followed by a loud crash and a quite curse. “Language.” I scolded, my voice thick with sleep. There was immediate silence and I opened my eyes. “It’s rude Kevin.” I smiled. He looked back at me with those big black eyes, and mine filled with tears. “If you ever do that again I’m going to…” “I love you Gwen, I’m glad you’re back, can I go eat now? PLEASE!?” I forced a smile onto my face and nodded once. He was out the door in a second. “Anyway…” Kevin continued, annoyed, “If you ever do that again I’m going to…” The door swung open and a doctor walked in. “I’m glad to see that your awake now Mrs. Tennyson. We’ve run a few tests and the tests will be back in a few days. Until then, we want to keep an eye on you here.” With that, she smiled and exited the room. I felt my eyes widen and a great gust of wind rush from my aching lungs. “Stay here?” I whispered. “It’ll be okay Gwen. I won’t leave your side. I promise.” He soothed me. He took breath, “But if you ever do that again I’m going to have to…” The door opened and a nurse came in to check on my vitals. “OUT!” Kevin roared. The nurse looked frightened, turned, and ran out of the room. “For the love of God! The next person to interrupt that sentence is going to be punched right in the face, God help me!” Kevin leaned back down to me and I smiled. “If you do that again I’m going to have to…” I leaned up slightly and kissed him. He didn’t respond at first, but soon his lips were moving gently with mine. I felt wetness on my cheeks and didn’t realize what was happening until he pulled back and wiped my tears away gently. “…send you to your grandma’s house.” He finished quietly. “I’m sorry.” I whispered huskily. “It’s okay baby. I’m here. I’ve got you.” He climbed onto the bed with me and held me tight. I fell asleep on his chest with him stroking my hair and whispering sweet nothings in my ear. I dreamed of a time when I could breathe easily again.



         “This place is AWFUL!” Ben shouted, coming into my room. It had been three days without knowing what was wrong with me. Sometimes, the pain was bearable and sometimes it wasn’t…this was one of those times. “Shut up.” Kevin muttered loudly enough for him to hear and turned back to me, concern filling his eyes. “I’m fine.” I groaned. “Yeah, you sound fine.” He chuckled sarcastically. I winced as a sharp pain invaded the base of my skull. “I’ll get the nurse.” Ben said, walking out of the room. “I hate this.” I muttered as the nurse left after administering more medication. “I know honey, but I’m here with you, and Ben’s gone most of the time.” he smirked as Ben looked at him defiantly. We all heard the familiar ring coming from Ben’s pocket and I felt my breath catch in my throat. “Hello?” Ben asked, answering warily. “I see. Okay, we’re on our way.” He promised. He closed the phone and we were silent for a long moment. “Forever knights and Charmcaster were spotted downtown. We should…Kevin and I…we should go.” I felt a lump form in my throat and I took a deep shuddering breath as they both looked at me. “Go then. Kick some Forever Knight butt for me.” I smiled weakly. I felt fear bubbling deep inside my stomach. How could I just lay here and send them to fight? I bit my tongue to keep myself from telling them to stay. What were the police for anyway? “Be careful!” I called as they walked out the door. “Please, for me, be careful.” I whispered to myself.



         I don’t know how long I sat there while they were gone. It could have been minutes as well as it could have been years. I was just about to go crazy when the doctor walked into the room, she looked at me gravely. “I can do this one of two ways. You’re a smart girl Mrs. Tennyson and I want to give you the choice. I can give you the ‘diluted to make you happy’ version, or I can give it to you straight. The outcome is the same either way.” She told me. I didn’t even register the words at first. Slowly, they sank down into my brain. I, however, stayed strangely calm. “Straight.” It was all I could manage. “Your powers are affecting your body. This is a disease that’s the anodite version of…brain cancer. Only it’s caused in unknown ways by your powers.” I waited for a moment. “Can you fix it?” She frowned, “We can give you medication. But you’ll also have to do some exercises with your powers to keep them from moving and attacking the other parts of your body.”



{indent“Don’t tell the guys please.” I asked. “Just tell them it was due to ‘girl stuff’. I don’t think either of them will question it further.” She smiled sadly and nodded. “We’ll give you instructions on the exercises and the medicine. You should be able to leave by noon.” She said, walking out of the room. It was 10 o’clock. Only 2 more hours in this unspeakable place and I could go home. And face the future alone? I know I didn’t want the boys to know. But, who was I going to tell? Nobody. That was the only answer that made sense. I didn’t want to put my burden on others. I called a nurse and asked her to put the ‘Do not disturb’ sign on my door and tell the boys I was sleeping if they came back. Then, I settled under the covers and cried for an hour straight.

         When I was done, I cleaned up my face and hands, put on some real clothes, and had a nurse remove my IV. When I walked out of the room, I took a deep breath and steeled myself to smile and be happy for everyone. “How are you feeling?” the nurse asked. “Fine, a lot better actually.” She smiled and nodded slightly. I knew she knew what was going on. Suddenly, people started yelling and screaming. “What’s going on?” I asked. No one answered. I ran towards the source of the commotion and saw the television showing live footage of Kevin and Ben losing the fight. I watched as Kevin was thrown into a pole. He didn’t get up… he didn’t move at all. “No.” I muttered. Without a second thought—I ran.

         I reached the park within a few minutes. “I was beginning to think you wouldn’t come, Gwenny.” Charmcaster was looking down at me from atop the water tower. “You wish!” I yelled back. “Gwen?” I heard Kevin’s weak voice from behind me. I whipped around to see him on the ground with a large cut in his arm. “Kevin.” I murmured, rushing toward him and kneeling down. “Isn’t that precious? It makes me sick. Let’s get this over with.” She said as she floated down to the ground. “You know what makes me sick?” I growled, looking up at her. “What?” she asked sarcastically. “You.” I snarled, shooting a large beam of mana at her. It took her off guard and she flew backwards into the tower, and knocking her out. “Kevin.” I breathed. “Gwen.” He responded lightly. “Hold on.” I soothed him. I put my hand gently over his arm and spoke quickly, “Halium hermium” The cut healed immediately under my hand. His eyes opened wide and before I knew it he was hugging me tight to his chest. “Are you okay?” he asked. I nodded quickly and looked around. “Where’s Ben?” I asked, worried. He released me and I closed my eyes to sense my cousin. When I found his presence I almost rolled my eyes. “He’s at the Groovy Smoothie.” I informed Kevin lightly. He laughed and stood slowly. “So what happened? Did the doctors find out what was wrong with you?” He asked. I smiled and made myself blush. “It’s…you know…girl stuff.” I stuttered purposefully making myself look embarrassed. I felt his step falter, and his hand clench around mine a little. “Oh.” And I knew that that was all I was going to have to say about it. It made me sad and happy at the same time. “I have to swing by the pharmacy and pick up my prescription. Then, I have to go to the hospital and get some instructions on therapy.” I told him. “I’ll take you.” He smiled. “No!” I shouted. His face fell a little and I amended it quickly, “It’s kind of…embarrassing.” I muttered, looking at the ground. “Oh.” He repeated. He put a finger under my chin and forced me to look at him, “I’ll see you at the garage later then?” he asked. I grinned and pressed my lips gently to his. “Definitely.” He smiled, got into the car, and drove off. I closed my eyes and teleported.

         I had no idea what I was going to do. How was I supposed to train every day on top of everything else that I had to do? “Come on Gwen.” We have to train every day if we want to stay at the top of our game. I sighed and looked at Kevin and Ben. “Okay.” I conceded. I was already exhausted from the medication, therapy, and the earlier battle. The therapy was the worst though. I had to focus my mana up to my head, and then I had to try to heal myself while still shooting mana out of my hands. I followed them to the training center below Kevin’s house. We spent three hours working on communication. I passed off my exhaustion as a result of the fight. What a day, I thought as I lay down in my bed that night.

         The next three months were awful. I was tired all of the time, the pills were just barely taking the edge off the pain, and Kevin and Ben were getting angry at me for it. “Gwen!” Kevin yelled at me one day during training. “That one was all yours and you just let it go!” He growled, gesturing towards one of the models we were practicing with. We had only been practicing for 30 minutes, and already I was exhausted. “I’m sorry Kevin. If I could just get a break…” I began. “NO! You’re taking WAY too many breaks! You have to take this more seriously! When you’re fighting someone who wants to KILL you, there won’t be any breaks!” He shouted. “He’s right Gwen. You need to start trying a little harder. It’s like you’re not even trying anymore.” Ben yelled from across the room. “I said I was sorry okay?! I’m doing the best I can right now!” I shouted back. “That’s not good enough anymore Gwen! You’re not good enough anymore!” Kevin exploded. That stopped me in my tracks. “What?” I murmured. I felt tears filling my eyes, and took a step back. His face went from furious to remorseful in a second, “Gwen. No, I didn’t mean it that way.” He pleaded, moving towards me. “Leave me alone.” I whispered, tears running down my face. I turned and ran from the room. I ran out into the street and I kept running until I didn’t know where I was anymore. And, like in any horrible time, it began to rain.

         I sat on the side of the empty road and cried for what seemed like an eternity. My cell phone started ringing, the screen said ‘Incoming call from Kevin’. I hit end and placed the phone beside me; then, it started to thunder and lighting. “Great…just great.” I muttered. “Is this some sort of punishment?! What did I do to deserve this?! Why are you doing this to me?!” I screamed at the sky. My phone buzzed again and I was past the point of caring. I picked it up and continued to cry. “Please come and get me.” I choked out.



“Gwen? Where are you? What happened?” my dad yells into the phone. “I’m okay. Please come and get me daddy.” I pleaded, giving him directions to where I was sitting. “I’m on my way baby. Don’t move.” He commands, hanging up. I try to compose myself while I wait for him to arrive. Only ten minutes later, I hear the familiar rumble of my dad’s old Subaru. “Gwenny?!” he yells as he runs toward me. I pick myself up and run into his arms. “Shh. I’ve got you now. It’s all going to be okay. Shh.” He soothed me. He helped me into the passenger seat of the car and drove home with me silently sobbing my eyes out.



“There now, don’t you feel better?” my mom asked as she wrapped a blanket around me and handed me a mug of apple cider. I had taken a shower and now I was in dry clothes sitting on the couch. “Yes.” I lied to make her smile. “Okay. I’m going to bed. Goodnight honey.” She murmured, kissing my forehead. I sat alone for a while before my dad walked in and sat down next to me. “What happened?” he asked bluntly. I looked into his eyes and saw all the love and compassion in the world. And it broke me. I leaned into his shoulder and cried while telling him everything. Not just the fight, but my sickness, and how hard I was trying every day. I told him how tired I was and how scared I was when the doctor had told me. He just rubbed my back and held me like I was five. When I was finished, he asked a few questions and let me cry some more. Then, he carried me to my bed, tucked me in, and stayed by my side until I fell asleep.



“Fine, I won’t tell anyone. But your mother gets to know. And you have to at least talk to Kevin. He hasn’t stopped calling since midnight and it’s giving me a headache.” As if to emphasize his point, the phone began to ring again. I ignored it, and my father gave me a look. “I’ll talk to him eventually.” I promised. He sighed and kissed my head. “I’m going to work. I want you to stay here and sleep. You need your strength.” I nodded. He walked down the stairs and the phone rang again. I heard my father pick it up. I picked up the receiver that was in my room so that I could listen in. “Hello?” my father asked. “Umm…is Gwen there?” Kevin mumbled. “Yes.” “Uh…can I talk to her?” Kevin mumbled again. “No.” There was a moment of silence, and then my dad spoke, “Look Kevin, you hurt her. She called me last night and had me pick her up from the side of the road. Do you know how wet and broken she looked? I don’t know why she doesn’t trust you with what’s going on in her life, but that’s not my place. I just want you to know that if you make her feel like that again I will find you, and no amount of osmosian power will be able to save you. Understand? And, lastly, you can come over here if you want to talk to her. She’ll be in her room. I bet if you let her know how much I know you care about her… she’ll let you in on a not so little secret. Okay? Okay.” And then he hung up. I groaned and huddled under the covers for a nap. If he was coming over, I was going to need all the strength I could muster.



“What am I supposed to say to her?” Kevin’s voice came from the far side of my room. I heard someone yelling on the other side of the phone. “Other than that you idiot!” he muttered. “Yeah I already talked to her dad.” He waited a moment. “He’s pissed at me…what did you think? I can’t believe I hurt this bad.” He choked. “No! I’m not crying.” He yelled. “I have to go. I think I just woke her up.” He whispered. I looked at him and he looked back. “What are you doing in my room?” I asked calmly, yet still with anger in my voice. “I came to apologize.” He mumbled, not moving. “Why? You were only saying what you felt.” I muttered, climbing out of bed. My head started to spin, and I felt nauseous. “Oh God, not again,” I groaned. “Kevin please hand me the pills off of my table.” I asked. My vision started to fade. “Hurry.” I urged. I felt the bottle being pressed into my hand, and I opened the cap to take the two pills. As soon as I swallowed them, the pain was gone and my vision was back. Kevin was sitting on the bed next to me, reading the pill bottle. “What the hell is this Gwen?” his voice was hard. “Well…” I began.



“Why wouldn’t you tell me?!” he yelled. I felt the anger re-enter my eyes, “Because I was scared that you would react like this.” I yelled back. He froze and his face fell. He buried his face in his hands and sunk down to sit on the floor. “Kevin.” I sighed, leaning down to comfort him. I snuggle into his side and say nothing. Slowly, he opens his arms to me and I rest against his chest while he holds me. I want to be able to comfort him, to tell him I’ll be okay. But I can’t, so he just holds me, and we both silently reassure each other. After a while, I fall asleep again.



When I wake up, I’m lying on my bed and Kevin is kneeling beside me. “I know I haven’t done this in a while. I’m not sure I really believed in a higher power, but for her to exist…there has to be something good out there. Right? If you are up I hope you can hear me. I’ll never do anything illegal again. I swear on my mother’s life. Just…please…don’t take her away from me. She’s the most important part of my life. I can’t live without her. I’ll do anything you want. You can’t take her. I don’t really know if that’s how it’s supposed to work, but I hope it’s good enough. Amen.” The most shocking part of that prayer was that Kevin had said ‘please’. I don’t remember him ever being polite before. I let my eyes flutter open and decide to let him think that I didn’t hear that moment of weakness from him. “Hey.” I murmur my voice thick with sleep. “Hey there beautiful.” He whispers back, smoothing my hair away from my face. “I’m sorry for falling asleep.” I blushed. I’m sure it’s not very attractive to fall asleep while being held by your boyfriend. “You needed your sleep. I liked watching you.” He smiled. I smiled back and sat up. “So…what do you want to do now?” I asked. He looked a little uncomfortable and asked, “What are you allowed to do?” I laughed and kissed his cheek. “I’ve been doing everything for three months. I can do whatever I want. In fact, I might even be up to a little training.” I smiled. “No.” he said immediately. “Why not?” I asked, surprised. “I’ve pushed you way to hard the last few months. I just want you to rest. Okay?” he looked genuinely. “I’m not an invalid. Let’s go train.” I insisted. I brushed my hair and grabbed some clothes to change in the bathroom. “I’ll meet you downstairs in a few minutes.” I smiled. I saw his shoulders slump in defeat before closed the bathroom door.



When I was done changing, I rushed down the stairs only to run smack into Kevin on his way up to get me. “Whoa there!” He grinned that grin that made my knees go weak. I smiled a little and pressed my lips to his. I felt his arms wrap around my waist to pull me flush against him. I could feel every inch of his chest against mine. I let my fingers delve into his hair, and he groaned into my mouth. I smiled against his lips and opened my mouth slightly to allow his tongue entrance. Now it was my turn to moan and have him smile. “Gwen.” He whispered against my neck. He placed a trail of gentle kisses from my mouth to my collar bone. My head tilted back to give him better access and my eyes rolled back in my head. It seemed like my body was reacting without giving me a chance to tell it what to do first. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling, it felt natural. He suddenly lifted me by the waist and swung me around the waist. I laughed and heard him laughing with me. When he finally put me down, he gently kissed my lips and rested his forehead against mine. “I love you.” He murmured. “I love you more.” I replied with a slight smile. “Not possible.” I rolled my eyes and he gave me a chaste kiss on the lips before carrying me, bridal style, to the car.



When we arrived at the training room, I turned the simulation to the usual setting. “Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked. I nodded and we both got into position. The bots started flying at us from all sides. I put a shield around us and began to shoot manna at them. Without warning, one struck me in the back of the head, and I fell. I couldn’t believe one of them got through my shield. “Gwen!” Kevin shouted from across the room. “I’m fine.” I shouted back. I watched in anger as he shook his head and turned off the simulation. “What are you doing?” I yelled. “I’m making sure you don’t hurt yourself. You need to be more careful.” I groaned and walked out of the room in frustration. I had a feeling I would never be able to train or fight again. “Gwen wait!” Kevin yelled.



“Why do you always storm out on me?” he asked, breathless from running after me. “Why do always make me storm out on you?” I countered. “Touché.” He admitted. “I am perfectly capable of training. I was hit in the head okay? I’m fine. It’s going to happen just like it happens every time we train or fight someone. I’m going to get hurt. But, when it’s real…you won’t be able to turn it off. Then what?” I demanded. He looked a t the ground for a moment. “Okay, I see your point. But, you should see mine too. I mean, geez Gwen, you need to be more careful. You may not have very many restrictions as to what you can do and for how long, but you need to rest more and make sure you don’t strain yourself.” Kevin argued. I sighed, because I saw his point…a little. “Fine. But you have to leave the decision up to me. It’s still my body.” I compromised. He smiled and nodded, “And what a fine body it is.” He muttered. My eyes widened in pretend shock and I hit him on the shoulder. That was one of the last normal days I would have for a long time.



The next morning at 3 a.m. I was riding in the car with Kevin and Ben in response to a distress call from a warehouse. Apparently, Charmcaster and the knights were making trouble again. I had called Ben after practice the previous day and Kevin and I told him everything. He took it well, so when the call came in and Kevin asked me to stay, Ben insisted I come. I never thought I would be so grateful to Ben. “Okay. No funny business. Just in and out.” Ben informed us. We both nodded, somehow knowing that it wouldn’t be that easy. We heard a crash from the building as we pulled up. “Be careful you twit! Those are fragile!” the voice mad chills run down my spine.... Charmcaster. I saw Kevin glance at me in concern before focusing straight ahead again. We stepped out of the car and Ben started fiddling with his watch. We snuck around the corner to scope out the setup. The knights were loading crates onto trucks that were pulling away at astonishing rates. “What are those?” I whispered. “Only one way to find out.” Ben replied. Then, he slammed his hand down on his watch, “Big Chill!” he yelled. ‘What a dork.’ I thought. “Let’s go!” Kevin urged. I put up a shield around us and started shooting manna as fast as was possible. “Ahh. Gwenny…so nice to see you again.” She smirked. I smiled right back, “Right back at you.” I shot a bolt at her, and she blocked it easily. “Is that the best you’ve got?” She taunted. “I haven’t seen you bring anything my way.” I taunted right back. Her smile faded, and she shot a bolt back at me. My shield held firm though. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a knight about to shoot Kevin in the back. I shot a bolt at him and received a smile from Kevin. “I’ve got your back.” I assured him. I felt Charmcaster shoot another bolt at me and I turned back to give her my undivided attention. “I think we’ve come to a bit of a stand-off don’t you?” I asked. Her glare turned even fiercer and she began shooting bolt after bolt at my shield. I had to admit it was making my shield weaker and weaker by the second. I focused most of the energy into my hands and shot one huge bolt at her. The result was pitiful. She blocked it with a wave of her hand. “Just tell me what’re in those crates!” I yelled up to her. With that, she smiled and stopped shooting at me. “Well, if you must know…eggs.” She laughed. “Eggs?” I asked, completely off guard. She laughed again. “Gwenny. Let me explain. Basically, these eggs are going to a planet called Grathus. They will then be given as a bribe to the ruler. He will then, in turn, come down to earth and destroy it.” She couldn’t stop laughing. Then, her laughing ceased. “I wish you could be alive to see it. But, sadly, your days are numbered. As are your seconds.” With that, she made a large bolt and prepared to strike me with it. I pushed my shield up around me and let focused my remaining energy on a bolt to counter hers. They connected with a loud clashing noise and I felt my energy fading fast. I held strong until I heard her cry out in pain, and then I did the same. Slowly, everything faded to black.



I opened my eyes and saw an old man standing in front of me. He smiled at me and offered me a hand to help me up. I took it gratefully, and looked around to see only white light surrounding me. “Am I dead?” I asked him. He smiled wider and spoke in a voice as wise as the universe was long, “Not quite yet my child.” “Is Kevin okay? And what about Ben? Where are they?” I asked quickly, starting to panic. “You’re friends are back on earth. I took you out for a quick chat.” He smiled again. “About what?” I wondered aloud. “You are a very strong, brave, and kind young woman. The exact kind of person that I like to see among my children. I have watched your kindness and determination save many lives…and for that others regard you as a hero. You give all of yourself and ask for nothing in return. And because of that…I have decided to give you a choice. You may go back and keep living…but you will continue to suffer, and you won’t have this choice if you should almost die again. Or, you could come with me…and live in heaven. If you should die you will go directly to heaven. It’s your decision my child.” I hesitated for a moment. It should have been an easy decision. I might die anyway, so why go through pain. I should have just chosen option two, but then I thought of Kevin. “Can I ask you something?” I mumbled. “The answer to your question is yes.” He smiled. I smiled as well and looked at him. “I guess you know my decision then.” I told him. “I am so proud of you. Not many people would have chosen that.” With that, he kissed my head and pushed my eyes closed. I opened them quickly again, and saw I was back at the warehouse. “GWEN!” Ben shouted from the other side of the building. I stood up, and felt a large surge of power. Looking at Charmcaster lying unconscious on the floor, I put her in an energy bubble and shot her right off the planet. Then, I turned to the rest of the knights and blasted them all at once while protecting Kevin and Ben with shields. I took a deep breath, close my eyes, and felt my feet lift off the ground. I sensed all of the trucks that had left the warehouse and smashed all of the eggs inside them. I let my eyes snap open and I slowly descended to the ground. I looked at Kevin and ben who were both staring at me with wide eyes. “Who wants to go get a smoothie?” I asked, laughing. Kevin raced over to me and lifted me up, wrapping me in his arms. “You…are…incredible” he exclaimed between kisses. “We thought you were a goner.” Ben admitted. I smiled easily, “You can’t get rid of me that easily.” Ben laughed and turned away saying, “Like we could get rid of you at all.” He pretended to gripe. “Tennyson…prepare for the beat-down of your life.” I warned, running after him with Kevin close behind. “Come and get me.” he challenged. As we ran out of the building, laughing and fighting, I thought everything was going to be okay…I was wrong.