Those Three Girls

21. Oh God, She Was "Wright"

"Thank you," Anna-Beth gratified once they'd been handed towels by Gabriel, the man at the door. He raised his eyebrow at her sudden change in character, but otherwise was silent. They all took a seat on the couch as they dried themselves off.

"So." a young girl, who'd introduced herself as Bethany, began, "I don't think I've seen you in Venice Cove before. Are you new here?"

"My name's Anna-Beth," she began, "Me and my friends, Jake and Bella, are on a mission to collect things called 'wish tokens' in order to help restore the kingdom known as Kards. We're not from here."

"Are you this blunt in your home world?" Jake demanded.

"Perhaps," she giggled.

"Do you have any wish tokens you can show us?" the one named Ivy wondered, "Or a picture?" The three girls produced their tokens all at once. One baby blue, one golden and one blood red.

"They change colour depending on who they're awarded to," Anna-Beth explained, "Each world appeals to a different personality and the person who best fits their description gets the token. We need a minimum of five, in order to complete our mission."

"I wonder where the token is," Bethany admitted, petting the dog on her lap named Phantom.

"Up until now," Jake explained, "The people we first encountered are supposed to have it, but I don't think that's likely because, as of recently, our luck's been running out."

"I don't think it has," Bella muttered.

"Bella," Jake reasoned, "We transported into the ocean."

"There are two other potential energy forces emitting within this town," Anna-Beth moved on, "One of them is like my other half, dark. Zalia says the other is light, a tad dimmer than you three."

"Xavier," Bethany beamed, the other two nodding in agreement.

"Who?" Jake questioned.

"My boyfriend," Bethany blushed.

"What about the other power?" Ivy wondered, "Can you explain it?"

"I think it's a boy," Anna-Beth informed, closing her eyes, "Zalia will be better at this than me."

"Oh joy," Jake rolled her eyes as the transformation took place.

"He's a charmer," Zalia relaid, keeping her eyes closed, focusing, "My shadow powers are weak here, but we must be close to my dimension because they're working."

"Just tell us about the dark guy," Jake hissed, annoyed.

"Fine," Zalia humphed, "He's got straight dark hair, reaching his shoulders, tall, lean and eyes... Jade-green. Sharp cheekbones and... It's almost like he knows I'm relaying this to you. It's weird. He DOES know! He's got a message for someone named... Annabel Lee? Nobody here has that name. His dark powers are equivalent to what mine would be at home. It's so very weird... I don't like it. Even as an apparition, he's strong... Are you scared of him, Bethany? I can feel the fear admitting off you." She opened her eyes and the usual confident and superior look had been replaced by one of hollowness and fear.

"What?" Gabriel demanded, "What did you see?"

"I've been deep in the Shadow Realm," she whispered, "I've killed innocent people for the sake of my own. I've felt the pleasure of evil course through my veins, but nothing quite as evil as his intents have ever crossed my mind."

"What?" Bethany urged, "What does he want?"

"He wants to play a game," she hissed, "No matter the stakes, I win every game. That's what the shadows were made for. Game play."

"Stop ranting!" Jake shook her, "Who is he?"

"Arakiel the fallen angel," Zalia whimpered, "And he has our wish token."