The Underground Palace

Chapter Fourteen - The Only Thing That Kept Him Going

You're going to die! You're going to die!

Glen closed is his and begged Alex's voice to disappear.

Glen, just face it. In the matter of seconds you're going to be dead.

Was it true? Alex had an ability to predict things, know what was about to happen before it happened. Was it true? Was he really going to die? 

Alex and Glen had known about their powers for a long time.   Alex called it her "special guessing power".  Glen grinned in the darkness and shook his head.  How naive they were back then!  Alex knew the answers to every school test and she could guess what a customer would order at their mothers' cafe before the customer even looked at the menu!  It wasn't guessing, it was knowing what was going to happen, before it happened!  It was a magic power.  Alex's power had been easy to shrug away and call "coincidence".  Glen's power however....

At first he blamed his bad memory.  He would fall asleep on the couch and wake up in his bed.  Or walk out of his house late for school and find himself at the school gates instantly.  Until one night, when he was locking up his mum and aunt's cafe alone, he found himself confronted by two armed robbers.  As they turned violent, Glen closed his eyes and wished he was home.  And bang.  He was home.  

He didn't tell anyone about it.  Initially he thought he was going crazy but after time, patience and practice, he found that he could control his power.  He had even managed to hide his power .. for a couple of months only.

It was winter and one of the worst snowstorms in ten years had hit the country.  Alex was outside on the pavement making the "best igloo in the entire universe" when a car driven by an old lady spun out of control and careered down the road.  Glen saw the entire scene unfold in front of his eyes a few metres away.  He used his power to teleport Alex out of harms way.  They missed the car by half a second.  The old lady never saw Alex or even realised how much danger she had been in.

From that moment on, Alex had pestered and begged Glen to tell her more about his ability but he didn't like talking about it.  Just thinking about his power caused a headache.  He felt like a freak.  

The first day in this wretched place, Marco arranged a "session" and warned Glen that if he ever dared use his power in the Underground Palace he would kill Alex without a second thought.  It was that threat that prevented him from teleporting his ass out of this place.  He couldn't do it.  He couldn't risk Alex's life.  He couldn't be the reason she would die.  She had been spared from this misery for a reason and he would not jeopardise that.  

This entire situation was unreal.  Seven Children.  Magic.  Powers.  Rulers of Good and Evil.  Everything to begin with seemed a dream but after a few torture sessions Glen now believed everything.  Including the fact he was going to die within the next few days.  One unforgettable birthday present. It put Glen in a mood every time he thought of it. He could remember kids back at school asking him when his birthday was:

Hey, I forgot, when's your birthday?

The first of January.

That's so awesome, what time were you born?

Midnight, in the morning.

Seriously? That's wicked. So, you were like the first baby born in 2000?

No, do you know Alex? My cousin? She was born the exact same time as me.

That's so weird man.

Alex and Glen hated it. They would stay up all night, waiting for the Big Ben to strike midnight on New Year's Eve and watch the fireworks explode in London on the television, then wake up the next morning feeling incredibly exhausted. Once when their mothers had went to every effort to get the New Year's cake absolutely perfect, they had forgotten about the birthday cake. And top that the "Merry Christmas and Happy New Years!" cards from friends and family with the words "p.s. happy birthday!" was a real charmer. And now this year was going to be his most eagerly anticipated birthday yet. Utterly, perfectly brilliant.

The truth was, Alex was the only thing that kept him going. He had to remind himself every second when his mind wondered back over to the beast, that Alex was going to save him. Whatever's going to happen, we'll stick together right? Alex had asked him. Always, Glen had replied. And always meant always. Forever and ever. Alex had to save him! It was the only hope he had! Glen forced himself not to cry. He couldn't. Only girls cried, he told himself. But it was hard. How could he not when his death was just around the corner? No! He had to think of something else, anything to distract himself.

Alex.

Glen could remembered the night Alex snuck out of her house and watched horror movies all night at his house with popcorn. Luckily they were never caught since she returned to hers early in the morning. But every time a midnight feast was mentioned the two cousins would glance at each other and try their hardest not to grin. As a precaution, Alex and Glen had connected earphones into the TV so the sound couldn't wake up Glen's mother or sister. Glen couldn't help but smile at the memory of Alex jumping a foot into the air then falling off his bed when a serial killer entered the screen, dressed as a mad clown. Alex hated clowns, she couldn't stand them. Glen was forced to turn the TV off to help calm Alex down. She was hysterical. What did he say to her that night? 'Clowns are nothing to be afraid of compared to the sick people out there. Clowns are only the beginning, like the front cover of a book.' Alex loved books, she had a whole bookcase full of them in her bedroom. Her favourite was fantasy. It was typical of her really – magic, adventures and lucky escapes. Alex liked all that stuff.

Glen knew Alex will save him. If she could easily dodge her way around rock slingers and create strategies to invaded other kings and queens, she could easily manoeuvre her way through the Underground Palace. There was no way on earth Alex would sit back and wait for everything to pass like nothing had or will happen. Alex wouldn't do that. She wasn't that type of person. He'd be alright. Alex would be alright. Everything would be perfect. 

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Hmm, reading this makes me think I should have written Glen and Alex as lovers, not cousins, what do you think?