The party, consisting of Carson, Carly, Mr. and Mrs. Prince, and Issa.
After close to three hours of walking, they were now taking a break... at least that's what Carly and Carson thought.
Issa set down the huge backpack and pulled out four sleek wooden swords. Carly's eyes got big when she saw them.
"Here you go, Mr. Prince." Issa said as she passed one of the swords to him.
He took it and handed it to Mrs. Prince taking another for himself.
Carly was trying to stall without showing how scared of the edged weapons she was.
"So, you guys told us about Luna and Ray, but what happened to them?" Carly asked the first question she thought of, "Where did they go?"
"No one really knows, though most people say they became the first Shadow pair. Some say they went into hiding out of shame, others say they gave up, perhaps they touched."
"What? What do you mean 'gave up'?"
Carson snorted, "You really don't know anything, do you? Shadows can't touch. If I were to grab you hand right now, it would kill one of us. That's one of the down sides of being a Shadow."
"Why?" Carly giggled, "Did you want to grab my hand?"
Carson's face reddened.
" Alright, that's enough." Mr. Prince called their attention back to him, "Ms. Prince and I will demonstrate."
As they squared off against each other, Mrs, Prince said, "You must be able to fight together. You need to know what the other is about to do a second before they do it. Like so."
Then Mrs. Prince launched into a heavy overhead swing.
Had Mr. Prince waited a second longer, he would have been dead. As it was, he barely dodged the blow, regained his balance, and brought round his own blade.
Mrs. Prince brought her's up at the same time, and there was a clang as they met in the middle.
After a few more minutes of spectacular plays from both sides, the duelers turned to face their stunned audience.
"Like that." they panted.
"Now you two can try." Mr. Prince said, "We'll have two teams so you can get the idea."
"These teams don't seem very fair." Carson mumbled, as she and Carson looked apprehensively at Mr. and Mrs. Prince.
"Don't worry." Mrs. Prince smiled kindly, "Just focus on guessing what your teammate will do, so you can help them. If you work together you can do it."
Carson grunted his consent.
'How can I work with someone I don't even know?' Carly thought, but she nodded.
And with that, both Mr. and Mrs. Prince jumped to the side rushed at Carson and Carly.
Carly and Carson tried to block, but, being unused to the weight of the swords, they both stumbled back.
They ended up in a pile on the ground.
Mr. Prince laughed. "We'll need to keep working on that."
Carly sat up and laughed too. "Yeah, we couldn't even defend ourselves, never mind each other, hey Car."
Carson sat up, looking embarrassed and angry. "Don't call me Car." He snapped and stalked off towards the trees.
"Oh, um, sorry." Carly mumbled, but Carson was gone.
Carson breathed hard. He had found a platform in a tree above where the others had set up camp. He tried to settle his nerves as he sat on the treetop platform.
To Carson's frustration, Carly sat down beside him.
"Hey bro." She gave a nervous smile, as if she expected him to bite. "You good?"
"Fine." He answered briskly.
They sat in silence for a long moment, then Carly cleared her throat.
"So." Carly couldn't understand why this was so awkward. "That sword lesson didn't go very well, did it?"
"No." He answer in the same brusque voice, "Stop beating around the bush. What do want?"
Carly decided to play it straight. "Well, I really don't know you. I just find I work better with people I'm close to."
At the word close Carson twitched, like he was shooing a way a bug.
"Look, kid. Let me put it simply. The only reason I'm here is to save the world. I'm not here to get to know you or be your friend. I'm here because it's the only chance the world has." Carson said it all in a detached, flat voice, as if what he was saying did have any feeling. It was just the facts.
Carly was appalled. Her mouth hung open for a second before she spoke. "But, I'm your sister. We're twins. This an adventure and we're in it together. We're a Shadow pair, not single."
"Oh, come on!" Carson bust out suddenly, "We all know I'm the only one that matter here!"
"What?" Carly asked in a horrified whisper.
Carson rolled his eyes. "Really? I know how to use a sword. You ruined that training session! I know where the weapon we need is, and how to get it. I know exactly what we're getting into and how to deal with it. And what do you know?"
There was a thick silence.
"Exactly." Carson looked through the leaves of the tree, "You know nothing."
It felt like there was a bubble growing Carly's throat.
"And, of course, we all know who mom and dad decided to raise themselves, and who they got rid of." Carson added.
Suddenly, Carly exploded. "That's unfair! I'm here for a reason, same as you!"
"Oh really? What reason?"
Carly couldn't answer.
"I'm sorry, but those are just the facts." Carson shrugged and began climbing down the tree.
Carly sank down onto the boards. She felt tears of anger pricking at her eyes, but she pushed them back.
Then, quietly at first, a voice whispered, "He doesn't care about you."
Carly looked around, but there was no one there. Yet she could still hear it whisper, "He doesn't love you. He would get rid of you if he could."
"No! He wouldn't!" Carly argued, "He does care. He just... shows it differently. I bet I just misunderstood."
"Are you willing to bet your life?" It whispered, and Carly couldn't answer.
Wow. That was a little more intense than I had imagined. XD I hope you enjoyed, and make sure to stay tuned for the next part, on Saturday!
~ Megan