Chapter Three

Crash -- bang -- crunch -- whack --

The sound of half a year's hard work being slammed onto the ground caused Mercury to flinch with every impact. Still, he had to get it all on tape. Mercury stifled a snicker at the thought of exposing Simon like this. What a way to go out: everyone watching him destroy the precious set pieces like an animal. He wondered what the punishment would be; expulsion was ideal, of course.

Crunch

There went a table. He was really going all out with this!

Crouched up in the tech booth, Mercury had the perfect vantage point -- as long as Simon didn't look up. There were a few close calls, but he was safe so far.

Then, disaster struck: the auditorium doors opened.

Simon's animal attitude changed from that of a predator to prey in an instant. And Mercury felt like a long-suffering hunter whose pursuit was spoiled by a twig snapping on the forest floor. 

He wanted so badly to be the one to force Simon into checkmate, but the dolt was on the edge of being caught by someone else. His heartbeat sped up to the point of numbness, and his hands clutched his phone as he watched Simon scramble in vain to hide. In the last possible second, he slipped into a leg of the right wing.

You idiot! Mercury clenched his teeth.

"What the everloving--" breathed the newcomer. As soon as he saw her, Mercury's chest started to burn. It was Helaine. He had hated her stereotypical fishnets and Demonias from the moment they met; and now that those boots were going to trample all over his plans, he hated them even more.

Helaine, being the awfully predictable human that she was, walked up the stairs of the stage toward Simon, who was hiding in the most awfully predictable spot imaginable. There was no way that this would end up well.

Mercury was nearly pulling his hair out with each of Helaine's thumping steps. Curse words streamed through his head in between prayers of please don't let this happen please don't let this happen plea--

"You better have a real good explanation for what's going on here before I do something drastic."

Mercury felt a scream crawl up his throat. The new speaker was yet another prick who had no business ruining his plans: Felix Hayes. If there was such thing as an actual pity party, this would be it. So many pathetic people in one room.

"Felix, what a pleasure to see you." Helaine said. Mercury could tell that she hadn't spoken today before that sentence; her voice grated against his ears like the screech of a street cleaner.

"I said explain yourself, you overgrown deep sea creature." Felix said, striding toward the stage. His feet sent shards of wood sailing across the floor.

"Hold on there buddy, you better watch your mouth. I walked in and found everything like this, and before you came in with your stupid sea creature crap I was about to find out who did it." Helaine snarled.

"Well, show me then." Felix spat.

Please tell me that he was smart enough to get out of there while those two were fighting. Mercury thought, trying to ignore the churning of his stomach. Time seemed to slow again as Helaine reached for the curtain.

Gasps echoed through the auditorium.

"Simon, what the HELL?" Felix's voice cracked as he hollered. Mercury couldn't take it any longer. He shot up and made his way down the stairs to the stage.

"You idiots ruined everything!" He yelled.

"Okay, WHAT is all this?"

"I could explain if-"

"No explanations! I was trying to-"

"Would you all shut your-"

"-absolute trainwreck-"

"What the hell is going on here?!"

Everyone turned to the speaker. Mercury hadn't thought it would be possible, but his stomach dropped even further. It was Aidan. Her friend Levi walked in after her, and Mercury watched the smile melt from his face as he let an armful of dandelions fall to the floor. No one spoke for what seemed like an eternity.

Then, Aidan walked slowly up the stairs to the stage. And of all the insolent kids in the room, every one backed away when they saw the heartbreak in her eyes. They swept over the damaged set pieces, the chips of paint, the months of dedication. Mercury imagined that he should feel bad -- so why didn't he? He was numb. All this destruction, and he was unfeeling.

Aidan didn't say a thing. She just walked to the center of the stage, where the Einhresna crystal prop lay, shattered. She bent down to pick up a piece.

Suddenly, light pierced Mercury's eyes. He let out a cry as his body lurched involuntarily forward. He felt as if he was liquid yet magnetic, being stretched and dragged and all the time blinded by pounding psychedelic lights. He called out, but no one answered. The lights streamed as if in the shape of a tunnel, and Mercury was being pulled along relentlessly. It was painful, but at the same time it didn't hurt. The lights swirled and increased in intensity, pushing and pulling and breaking him and putting him back together until--

He opened his eyes. Mercury was laying on the ground, and he was most certainly not in the auditorium anymore. He wasn't even on Earth.