“You’re officially a Yellow Duckling. Welcome to the order.”

  The dream landscape changes.

  I look down at the silver coin in my hand, It immediately morphs into a little mirror. But it’s not my reflection staring up at me, I can’t recognise the young woman in the mirror at all.

  She looks older than me, maybe in her late twenties. Her hair is white, she has beautiful facial features and her almond shaped eyes are light blue… very intense.

  While I’m observing the reflection, Father Ilarion, the magnificent but terrifying being I found sleeping in a room the night before, creeps up behind me and mercilessly pushes me off the platform I am standing on.

  “Come on, stop the apocalypse, Inanna! That’s your duty, isn’t it?!” His cold, sarcastic voice echoes around me. His billowing white hair is the last thing I see before I hit the ground.

  I am out for a while and when my consciousness returns I find myself lying in a black field. The grass is completely churned, a disgusting burnt smell permeates my every pore.

  I look up at the sky and through the smoke, instead of the Sun, I see a familiar black symbol looking down on Earth like a hateful eye.

  Ш

  “What have you done?! What have you done?!” I hear an angry voice behind me.

  I am terrified.

  I wake up drenched in cold sweat. My fists are clenched and it’s extremely hard to take a breath. I’m having a panic attack.

  “Focus!” I give myself an order. “Focus on your breath! Don’t succumb to panic!” I try to concentrate on the chubby pigeon perched outside my window. It’s cooing in a low voice, walking around the windowsill, demanding some bread.

  Our neighbor feeds them every morning and I suspect that’s what fuels this pigeon’s boldness.

  My rapid heartbeat slowly evens out.

  Now that I’ve calmed down, I persuade myself that it was just a silly dream.

  It’s definitely an allegory of my upcoming school exams and the strange three-point symbol can easily be my math teacher.

  Nothing suspicious or ominous at all.

  But who was the woman in the mirror? Why was I someone else in my own dream?

  I have been Nia all my life, why would I dream of being someone else? And why was that dude, Father Ilarion, even there? I just saw him once last night and he wasn’t even awake.

  He called me by some strange, foreign name that I can’t recall now, and pushed me off a platform.

  Rude.

  I get up and start pacing up and down the room. I stop by the window and peek outside. A burly man of forty catches my eye right away. He is glitching. One second he is a human being, another second he is a grey Reptilian creature with long hands reaching down to its knees.

  I am really hoping their frequent appearances aren’t connected to my recently acquired membership in the Order Of the Crux. But of course they are, who else would be stalking me? The pool administration, because I stayed past their closing time yesterday?

  Nah.

  I walk away from the window and continue pacing in the room.

  The dream is still bothering me.

  “Stop the apocalypse, that’s your duty.”

  What the hell does this even mean? Is there an apocalypse coming?

  But if it’s true, how is this my responsibility when so many capable adults are in the order already?..

  I chuckle to myself and shake my head. This is stupid, why am I getting so worked up over some stupid dream? I’m wasting my time while I should be getting ready for school.

  But, now that I think about it, I feel quite weak and my throat is sore and dry.

  I sip some water and it goes down leaving a trail of fire in its wake. Oh no… I had a fear this would happen after yesterday’s little trip to the Order with soaking wet hair.

  But, I guess, it was worth it, they accepted me.

  My mom got back from the business trip in the middle of the night, I heard her suitcase rattling on the floor between my dreams.

  I stick my head out of the room and shout her name, Teona, at the top of my lungs. I want her to make me soup.

  Whenever I get sick, she miraculously turns into an attentive parent for a few days and takes care of me, which feels quite nice, to tell you the truth. I don’t know which ghost possesses her during these times, but I’m truly thankful.

  My mom brings me bread, butter and honey with tea and some anti-flu medicine. Then she promises to make me vegetable soup and leaves the room.

  I go to the bathroom and brush my teeth. I feel good despite my sore throat. I really needed this day off to slow down and think about the crazy developments in my life.

  Everything is going to change drastically from now on.

  I imagine what my days will be like in the Order. Will it be magical? It should be. Wait, will I have to wear robes? I hope it won’t be the altar boy outfit Manuchar wears, the white one with golden crosses on it. It will be disastrous to walk around the town dressed like THAT. Well it does suit Manuchar, but it will not suit me. It’s for men. Everyone will either laugh or scream at me to take it off and stop disrespecting their culture.

  Maybe they have a separate outfit for women? But they don’t even have any women in the Crux…

  Okay, this is alarming. Because I don’t want to look bad. I know it sounds shallow but I am seventeen and I want to look good, or, at least, presentable.

  Sue me.

  I puff up my pillow and sink deeper into the covers.

  All in all, despite the unknown danger looming over my head, I am pretty excited about my new life.

  ____

  I spend the day in bed, drifting in and out of sleep. Darkness has slowly consumed the world behind the window facing my bed. My mom has hurried off to teach her evening classes, leaving the house in an eerie silence.

  I’m woken up from yet another meaningless dream by a loud crashing sound. I’m not sure if the sound is a part of my dream or something a little more real. An unpleasant cold gush of wind forces itself under my blanket when I sit up.

  I strain my eyes to spot anything unusual in the darkness and after several seconds of fruitlessly scanning the pitch black corners, I happily come to the conclusion that the loud crash was just a figment of my imagination.

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  I’m about to return my weakened body back to bed when, to my horror, I realize that someone’s head is sticking through the window.

  I draw in a sharp breath, icy chill slowly spreads through my body.

  The dark silhouette and I both freeze and stare at each other. I can’t see its facial features but I can feel its eyes on me. My heart is beating in my throat, the air is charged with electricity, something big is coming…

  “Hello…” whispers an oddly familiar female voice.

  “Hi…” I stammer out, also whispering.

  Silence falls between us again. The peeking head is undecided on how to proceed.

  “Can I touch your hand?” She whispers.

  “Uhh.. What?” I can’t believe my ears. “Who are you? How did you climb to the third floor?”

  “Can I touch your hand?” She repeats her request. “If you refuse, I will kill you.”

  “Are you a demon?” I whisper, trying to keep my voice from shaking.

  “No, I’m not a demon, but I’m not a human either. I just need to hold your hand, if you refuse, I will kill you. Your choice.”

  “Well, I don’t have much of a choice, do I?!” I say as I climb deeper into the warm covers, as if my comfortable blanket will be able to shield me from the crazy stranger. “What are you gonna kill me with, anyway?” I want to know exactly what I’m dealing with. Does she have a machine gun slung over her shoulder or maybe some type of interdimensional weapon I’ve never heard of?

  Anything’s possible.

  “I have a knife.” She says after a little pause.

  I stifle a chuckle.

  “Is this funny to you?! Let’s see who laughs when I pierce your heart!” She’s not whispering anymore, her voice is melodious with a husky twinge, I rack my brains. I’ve definitely heard that voice somewhere and it’s vital that I remember.

  “No, sorry, it’s not funny, I’m terrified, actually… It’s just that, I thought you would have something more sophisticated than a simple knife.” I say apologetically.

  I should try to keep her talking, I desperately need to remember where I’ve heard that voice.

  “Well, it does its job,” the girl shrugs and nimbly heaves herself up, hopping into the room. All I can make out is her tall, slender silhouette and straight, long hair draped over her shoulders.

  “What are you looking at?!” She yells at me “Close your eyes if you want to live!” A knife glints in the dark. She has raised it above her head, ready to strike.

  “Calm down, I closed them, I closed my eyes, see?! No need for violence!” I shout, swiftly covering my eyes with my left hand.

  “Hold out your right hand, NOW! I don’t have time for this!”

  I do as I’m asked. She unceremoniously grabs my hand and squeezes it.

  “Now don’t talk! I need to concentrate!” She orders.

  Her hand is ice-cold.

  I feel anger rise inside me but I still keep my hand over my eyes, I’m not planning on getting myself stabbed tonight.

  Her breathing grows steady and deep. My right hand grows tingly, numb and cold, it feels like vital energy is leaving my body. As if she’s performing some kind of unpleasant magic on me…

  Several minutes pass in silence. I feel very strange. Nausea creeps upon me and settles in my stomach. I want to yank my hand away but I’m afraid of the stupid knife she’s holding over me.

  Should I try to fight? In movies the heroes always fight back. But now that I’m here, I’m scared to even make a tiny movement, in case she thinks I’m trying to escape.

  I wish the Order members could somehow feel my mental distress call and save me.

  If only I could reach my backpack and take out the Crux silver coin, maybe I could contact Father Seraphim with it? He mentioned something about being able to locate me through my coin.

  The girl squeezes even harder. My right hand feels like numb jelly. A little more and I won’t be able to use it for a few days.

  She’s definitely trying to get information out of me by skin-to-skin contact. Must be some advanced technology or power I’m not familiar with.

  I feel helpless and useless. I’ve been accessible to Demons, Reptilians and all kinds of weirdos for the past few days. I need serious protection! I wish my power was super strength instead of stupid Seeing and Channeling. I would have gone full Terminator on her…

  Wait, Channeling… My new power of hearing interesting conversations underwater. When I dived in the pool yesterday, I overheard two people, a girl and her grandma plotting against me... the young girl’s voice was very distinctive, husky and melodious...

  OH MY GOD!

  She is here in the flesh! Standing over me with a knife!

  My heartbeat increases, but I try not to show my agitation on the outside. I pull myself together and slow down my breathing. I need to think.

  If she doesn’t plan on protecting us, we will have to deal with her before she deals with us.

  That’s what the girl said about me in the water. Why did they need MY protection? It made no sense.

  “Maybe I also need a knife,” I mutter to myself.

  I’m so deep in these thoughts, I don’t register the girl growing uneasy next to me. Something she is receiving from me isn’t sitting well with her.

  She snaps her hand away from me, as if burned.

  “I don’t think you need any weapons, you’re good,” she says coldly and steps away from me, towards the window.

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “You’ll see… anyway, goodbye, Nia Nelia. Until we meet again.”

  “That’s it? You’re leaving?”

  “You really want me to stab you or what?” She snorts in amusement.

  “Just wash your hands when you get home,” I tell her “I have a nasty virus. I’ve been in bed the whole day.”

  “I know, WE gave you the virus, sprayed it in the room last night, while you were asleep. And, besides, my kind don’t get human viruses, but thanks for the heads up,” she slips out of the window and she’s gone.

  I can finally open my eyes, the curtains are gently blowing in the wind.

  I jump up and lock the window, as if the glass can stop her from coming back if she wants to…

  People who can easily spray viruses in your bedroom to get you sick, are not to be played with. Well, at least, they’re more advanced than humans, that’s for sure.

  The old woman in the water called her “your highness”. Is she a ruler of some magical race, hiding from humans like Reptilians are?

  Are they evil?

  What can I deduce from this?

  First of all, they waited for my mom to leave the house. That was a good sign.

  Second, contrary to what she said, she most likely wouldn’t have stabbed me if I had disobeyed. I’m 70% sure she isn’t a killer by nature, but I still felt so vulnerable and weak in front of her… I hated it. I need to learn how to fight, I need weapons, I need protection against these kinds of situations!

  But the girl said I don’t need weapons…

  What did she mean by that?

  I shake my head with a sigh and fall back into the bed.

  “My kind don’t get human viruses,” I repeat her words. And what the hell was her kind supposed to be? How many players were entering the game? I just stepped into this world and already was swarmed with nonhuman entities from all sides.

  Where were they during those dreadful times in my life when I was dying from boredom, dragging my ass from school to home, from home to school?

  You’re telling me they’ve coexisted with us since god knows when and no normal people have encountered them?

  Come to think of it, I’ve heard some conspiracy theories about Reptilians since childhood, but I’ve always dismissed them, even laughed at them.

  My grandma Tamar is a regular reader of the infamous magazine “UFO”, they always run a story about Reptilians and other impostors living among us. As a kid, the stories terrified me, I would flip through the pages, mesmerized by the ugly, badly photoshopped creatures peering at me.

  “They could be your mother, sister, husband, even your kind neighbor! Watch out! Watch out! They want to take over the planet! We have to fight back!” The articles would warn us against the evil Reptilians.

  As years passed, my fear turned into amusement, I was no longer a believer. Whenever I saw a copy of UFO by my grandma’s bed, I would just chuckle and shake my head.

  “Poor old woman has lost her mind.”

  Well, I was dead wrong, wasn’t I?.. I should apologize to my grandma for doubting her. Reptilians are among us and I’ve seen them! They want humanity dead! They are evil!

  God, I sound like those crazy articles.

  Maybe I should pay a visit to her UFO magazine collection and borrow some? Why not? I could get vital information on our enemies.

  Enough thinking, I need to act. I jump out of bed and take out the silver coin from my bag. Seraphim didn’t exactly specify how to call them, so I improvise. I clench the coin in my fist and close my eyes, concentrating on the image of Father Seraphim in my mind.

  “Dear coin, dial Father Seraphim, connect me to him, tell him I need help,” I repeat this sentence like a mantra. On the fifth try, the coin starts to get warm.

  My mobile phone rings, making me jump.

  It’s an unknown number.

  “Yes?” I try not to show unease in my voice.

  “Nia, my child, what’s going on? Did you try to contact me through the coin? It tells me you are home. Did something happen?” A worried voice speaks on the other end.

  “Father Seraphim?! Is that you? Someone came into my bedroom and threatened me! She came through the window!”

  “Tell me everything.”