Young Writers Society

Maruco and Scarlet are used to the unnatural. Both are students at Madam Prince's School for the Gifted, a place that teaches those with magical powers so they can learn to harness their potential. Though they face the struggles that any normal student faces, they're also quite used to magic.

Arin and Sune are used to a different kind of unnatural. Both are interstellar explorers in the wraith-infested Pegasus Galaxy. Magic runs through their veins, but science is the cause of any bizarre situations they're thrown into. But when they're torn from their galaxy - and possibly their reality - as a result of a strange artifact in a deserted civilization, they're going to have to get used to their magic if they want to find a way home.

"I don't think it's a good idea going in here," Sune said, falling into step beside her as they slipped into the old abandoned building.

It must have been ages since anyone lived here - the walls looked like they were barely holding up the ceiling, and a thick layer of dust coated the floor. She guessed it was some sort of old laboratory. There was notes scribbled down everyone they could see in a language she couldn't read, and a strange device sat in the very center of it all. It was circular and had display screens, but, more importantly, it had some cute little stones resting in indents into it.

"It'll be okay," she said, already heading towards center. Sune didn't look convinced when she glanced over in his direction. "We'll leave the moment this place looks like it's about to break, and we'll hide the moment we hear any wraiths."

Sune frowned. "Arin-"

"We need to find a stargate," she continued, grabbing one of the stones and inspecting it with a scrutinizing gaze. She threw from one hand to another. "There's go to be one somewhere in here. Or something we could use against the wraiths, anyways. Why else would that hive ship be hanging out around here?"

Sune sighed. "...Fine. We'll stay."

He joined her by the console and picked up a stone as well. They both studied these stones for a good five minutes before they came to the simultaneous conclusion that they had nothing of any importance or interest on them, and put them back in their original positions.

And then promptly appeared in a place that was definitely not the laboratory. It was a garden, with plants Arin had never seen before. She looked for Sune and found him standing a few feet away, just as bewildered as she was by their sudden change in location.

SCARLET

The gong boomed loudly to signal break time.

Scarlet jumped and covered her ears. “Are they trying to deafen all their pupils?”

“It’s a big school,” said Maruco, rummaging through his bag. “Maybe they just want to save the trouble of installing several different bells. But yes, it is deafening. Have you got my gythil?”

She frowned. “What the devil is a gythil?”

“Sorry, I keep forgetting you were raised a human. The little blue pen.”

“Oh, that!” She reached into her pocket and pulled out the pen. “What is it?”

“You’ll see.” He winked at her, and put the pen in his bag. “We’ve got ten minutes. Shall we go to Base Camp for a bit?”

“Sure. Last one there is a jellyfish!” She darted off, pushing through the crowds.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Maruco gave chase.

When she reached the garden, Scarlet stopped in her tracks. There were two people standing there that she’d never seen before. One, a girl, looked fairly normal. The other was clearly not human.

Maruco caught up to her. “What are you looking at, Sparky? Oh. Who on earth are they?”

He immediately pulled Arin close the moment he heard someone speak from the near vicinity. Arin gave a startled cry at the sudden action, but ultimately didn't protest it. There was always a good reason for him doing something like that, and both of them knew it. They were in a strange place with only an inkling of how they had arrived - Sune guessed it was that device - and now there were people here. It was impossible not to be wary of them when everything else was taken into account.

They slowly turned around.

All tenseness immediately faded from Sune and Arin. Though they were wearing uniforms, which was always a cause for concern when only militaristic groups tended to do that, the two they found themselves looking at were only in their teens. And while adults would always be a cause for suspicion, a fellow teenager was always welcomed with open arms.

Though there were some obvious exceptions to the rule, the part about being suddenly transported to this place being a major one of them. Sune's tenseness returned, but Arin managed to slip out from underneath his arm and go over to the two.

"Arin-" he started, reaching out a hand to grab onto her. But she was already gone. He let out a heavy sigh and went over to join her.

"Hey, Sune," she said, "look how fancy their uniforms are!"

SCARLET

Despite herself, Scarlet laughed. “They are. A bit too fancy.”

“Who are you?” Maruco asked. “Are you a friend of Adilus’s?”

The two of them were used to Adilus Bacon’s friends - the most memorable being Anya the talking crocodile who’d eaten her way through all the desks in one classroom.

Scarlet thought the girl looked friendly, but she knew that that didn’t automatically mean she was trustworthy. “Where did you come from?”

"Adi-who?" Arin repeated, crossing her arms as a look of confusion appeared on her face. She didn't like the feeling that she was getting right now. While she doubted these two fellow teens were responsible for their sudden appearance here, she couldn't rule out this Adi-person or whoever owned the fancy building adjacent to the gardens they were in.

But if these two were being so kind to them, the least she could do was answer their questions. "My name's Arin, and that's Sune. He's been my best friend since forever and my boyfriend since last year. And we came from those ruins-"

Sune suddenly gave a startled cry and dove behind her. She was sure it was quite a bizarre sight, given how tall his current guise was and how short she was by comparison. Sighing, she looked in the direction that he had come from.

"What was it this time?" she asked.

He peeked over her shoulder and pointed a finger at the offending herb. "Rosemary," he said, his voice jumping an octave at the end of the word. "Right there. And I was almost close enough that I could feel it!"

SCARLET

“I’m Scarlet,” Scarlet smiled. “This is my best friend, Maruco. I didn’t think there was anything in those ruins - how did you come through?”

Maruco frowned. “It’s just rosemary.”

"I don't know," she replied, shrugging. "We were just there one minute, and here the next-"

Sune let out a nervous whimper. Arin sighed again, but still grabbed onto her boyfriend's hand and gave it a tight squeeze. While his reaction was dramatic, she couldn't blame him. The stuff absolutely burned if she got too close to it for too long.

"Could we talk somewhere else?" Arin asked.

MARUCO

“Sure.” Maruco glanced around. “We’ll have to be quick, though - if someone sees you it would be a problem. Sparky, do you think we could sneak into the library?”

He checked his watch.

“We’ve got a few more minutes before we have to go in. Come on, follow us.”

He and Scarlet set off in the direction of the main building.

Sune fell into step beside her as they followed their impromptu tour guides. Slipping her hand into his bigger - and warmer - hand, they made their way to the building that the gardens were adjacent to. They were apparently in some sort of institution, which immediately made her feel uncomfortable. She hated being stuck in a confined space for too long, and all of this order was already getting to her.

She nervously tugged at her collar with her free hand.

Sune looked over at her, a concerned expression flickering across his face. He didn't say anything. He just studied her for a moment, then took to studying Scarlet and Maruco's backs. When they were a good distance apart, he dropped his voice down to a whisper. "I saw we use the technology excuse," he hissed, giving her hand a tight squeeze as he did so.

She glanced up at him. "We don't have a need to yet."

"We don't want to get caught," Sune replied, keeping his voice low. "I'll give myself a human appearance, and use that uniform Maruco is wearing. You use the one that Scarlet's wearing, alright?"

She tugged at her shirt's collar again. "...I guess."

Another tight squeeze. "Thanks 'Rin," he said, leaning down and giving her a small kiss on the cheek.

She let out a quiet sigh, then let the magic wash over her body. It was a warm, tingly feeling, but it soon passed. When it did, her clothes had been transformed into a nearly identical copy of Scarlet's. She turned to see Sune standing beside her as his usual self - a boy roughly her age that still managed to tower above her, with messy black hair and piercing blue eyes.

And his uniform was a direct copy of Maruco's.

Sune cleared his throat. "Before you turn around and get very confused," he said, raising his voice just high enough for the two to hear them, "Arin and I have technology that allows us to change what we look like. We thought it'd be a good idea to change our outfits to match your school's uniforms."

Oh, so that was what this place was?

"Also, Sune's human!" Arin cheerfully added. It was one of the bigger lies they had told since they had shown up here, but he did look the part. "He was using the technology to help us escape from the wraiths."

MARUCO

Maruco glanced round and laughed. “That’s really cool.”

Scarlet smiled. “OK, we’re here.”

They had arrived at a large building separate from the main one. It had exquisite statues outside the doors and beautiful stained-glass windows. Engraved letters over the entrance read, LIBRARY.

Maruco pushed the door open. Inside was bursting with books. There wasn’t a wall without a heaving bookshelf.

He looked over at a large desk over at one corner of the room. “OK, Miss Persimmon’s on her lunch break still. Quick.”

Maruco walked over to a large bookshelf and pushed on the corner. There was a groan as it swung open to reveal a dark corridor behind.

He turned to Arin and Sune. “This way.”

Arin and Sune exchanged a look before following the two down the corridor. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about this place. People didn't usually take so kindly to seeing a wraith; in fact, they should have been petrified with fear when they first showed. But they hadn't been. That should have meant that they were dealing with wraith worshipers instead, but there was none of the same respect he had come to expect when running into them.

So that begged the question: how did these two teenagers not know what a wraith was?

SCARLET

Scarlet glanced over her shoulder at them and whispered to Maruco, “Are you sure we can trust them? I mean, they seem really nice, but they did just appear out of nowhere.”

Maruco nodded. “I think we can. And if not, I’ve got the gythil.”

Scarlet raised an eyebrow. “Really? A pen? Come on, we’re about to show them our secret meeting place. Don’t you think we should make sure they’re not evil first? Remember, Maisie was really nice too. And she turned out to be a master criminal.”

Maruco sighed. “OK, Scarlet. If it turns out they’re evil, I’ll just use the gythil on them and we’ll go and get Madame Prince. But we need to hear them out first.”

“OK.” She nodded uncertainly. “We’re here anyway.”

They had come to a large wooden door. Someone had sellotaped a notice to it that read, KEEP OUT. PRINCE’S WARRIORS ONLY.

Scarlet pushed it open and stepped into a huge room. An empty fireplace stood at one end underneath a mantlepiece with several ornaments on top. At one wall there were stacks of chairs, and in the middle there were four large armchairs. The opposite wall had a large bookshelf with stacks of folders. There was also a cabinet with lots of different magical items. She flicked on the light switch and a large chandelier came on, brightening the whole room.

Though they were too far away for him to make out any specific words, he knew that they were likely whispering about the two newcomers. He wasn't sure if that was meant to be a good sign or a bad one; while the whispers implied secrets, the fact that their discussion was so noticeable implied that they weren't experienced enough to provide a significant threat.

He kept his concerns to himself. Arin had undoubtedly picked up on them already - they had been through too much for her not to.

They followed the two into the room, Arin tugging at her collar as light flooded the area. Neither one made a move for any of the armchairs. They would wait to see what Maruco and Scarlet did first.

MARUCO

Maruco sits down in one of the chairs. “So, where are you from? I’m guessing not Earth.”

Scarlet walks over to one of the bookshelves and begins flicking through a folder.