The Relic: Deadly Liaisons at Sea

Chapter III: Tempests, Thunder, and Trickery

A young girl of eight stumbled into her father's room, pushing the door open with a slow creak. It was filled with lots of books and many glittery medals decorating the walls. She was curious to find her mother as her gaze looked up and around the mysterious room. Her father had told her that she needed to stay in her room when it became late at night now that she was old enough, but her mother offered to read her a story. "Mama, Mama, where are you?"

"Charlotte, sweetie, what are you doing here so late?" spoke a mysterious voice to her right, and the girl turned quickly around. There stood her Papa with a four-year-old sleepy Skylar in his arms.

"I'm looking for Mama. Papa, she disappeared when I wanted her to read me a story." Her father's smile gave her some encouragement about her mama's disappearance. "Don't worry, she didn't disappear. Ah, speak of the devil. Mama, Charlotte was looking for you."

Mama appeared through the entryway with a book in her hand. "Mama! There you are!"

"I should be saying that to you, Charlotte! You weren't in your bed!"

"It was only because you disappeared all of a sudden." She laughed as her Mama pulled her into a hug.

"I was finding two things. One is your favorite book and something for your papa." She showed little Charlotte a dark black stone that was as black as night.

"What's that, Mama?"

Her mama gave her a reassuring grin. "This was a protective charm that Papa and I found. But I can only grant it to someone worthy."

Little Charlotte jumped diligently back and forth between her mama and papa. "I can be worthy! I'm a good child!"

They gave her a smile before handing her the stone. "I'm sure you can when you are older, my sweet Charlotte. It may come to aid you one day if you decide to seek the rest."

Little Charlotte gave a puzzled expression. "The rest?" she questioned.

But her mama had no more to say except, "Come now, off to bed."

Charlotte had started to giggle when her mama started to tickle her into motion. Her papa also started to laugh at the antics his family was starting, and Skylar had begun awakening in her papa's arms.

Suddenly, everything froze. Her mother wasn't moving, Skylar and her father were standing completely still and eerily quiet. "Papa? Skylar? Mama?"

As if her voice broke the world itself, the floor tumbled in, and she collapsed inside to appear in her room. Slapping her cheeks, Charlotte ran to her mirror to look at herself. There stood a thirteen-year-old bashful yet gorgeous Charlotte staring into nothing.

"I thought I was with Mama, Skylar, and Papa," she murmured, but before she could say anything else, she picked up another noise with her ears. The door was opening slowly, too slowly, which caused her to take a step back.

"Charlotte, could you help me with this bow? Papa wanted me to accompany him to the masquerade ball tonight." A boy of nine entered. He had light-brown hair that was poorly combed into a semifashionable way. No matter how many times they had taken a brush to his hair, it would bounce back to the glorifying bed head.

Heaving a quick sigh, Charlotte relaxed when she recognized the hazel eyes her younger brother sported.

"Charlotte, you look beautiful just like Papa said! He said it was Mama's dress after all!" Skylar, who seemed to forget about his previous dilemma, quickly grabbed Charlotte's wrists and helped her out of her stupor.

"Right—but didn't you need help with your bow?"

Skylar looked up at his elder sister with his hazel eyes. "After we see Papa!"