I grab the group's attention with a wave. “Let’s get going.”

  I close my eyes, and circulate the psi of my third eye. [Psychic Search].

  My mind travels through the park, as I stand still. I search for a few minutes, then a few more, and then a few more.

  “Shit.” I say, opening my eyes to see the expectant looks of my friends.

  “What is it?” Blake asks, wiping the rain off of his brow.

  “I can’t find them. They’re gone.” A shiver passes through me, and I’m reminded that I’m soaked by the rain.

  “What do you mean t-they’re gone?” Damien’s teeth chatter in the middle of his question.

  I shrug, not sure how to explain it.

  Captain! Sensors are noticing a significant decrease in heat. I suggest we follow emergency protocol: get inside.

  We can’t, Cadet. Those buggers are out there somewhere.

  But sir, the protocols.

  Screw the protocols. Every great captain has ignored the rulebook at least once. Just look at Captain Kirk.

  Sir, I don’t think he’s the best example…

  “Are you alright, Elena?” Rose asks. She grabs my chin and tilts my head to look at her.

  I feel the slight trembling in her fingers, a combination of adrenaline and the cold rain.

  What the hell am I doing? I’ve lost track of the Red Caps, and I’m forcing my friends to wait in the freezing cold rain.

  The rain increases in intensity, proving my point. At this rate, the weather conditions will make it impossible for us to fight safely against horror movie monsters, and if the Red Caps have learned how to escape my detection….

  “We should head back.” I say, surrender in my voice. “I’m starting to freeze, and you guys aren’t looking any better.”

  I can see that Blake wants to argue, but one look at our group quickly changes his mind.

  We make our way back to the car without any troubles, and pile into it. Blake turns on the heat full blast and we all shiver in silence for a few moments.

  Blake jumps into the car, a singular dish towel from his trunk in his hands. He hands it to Rose. “Sorry, I'm lucky I had anything at all.”

  She shakes her head as she uses it to dry off. “Better than nothing.”

  “Shouldn’t we do more?” Damien asks, a slight shiver visible in his body.

  “What can we do?” I ask, “I’ve lost them.” I lean my head against Rose’s shoulder, enjoying the warmth.

  “I don’t know.” Damien says, “but I feel like there is something we should do.”

  “I agree with you, I just wish I knew what it was.” I give him an exhausted smile, to take any bite out of my words.

  Left with no other options, we peel out of the street, and make our way to my place.

  I invite the group inside, and we all enter to the curious look of my mom. She has a broom in her hand, but as soon as she sees a group of wet teenagers, she enters mom mode, and hurries all of us into warm clothing. The boys wear shirts I recognize as my dad’s, while Rose and I are able to change into some of my clothes.

  “What were you kids doing out in the rain?” She asks, pouring all of us some hot-chocolate she’d found time to make while rushing us all into dry clothing.

  “Hunting monsters.” I answer, warming my hands with my mug of hot-chocolate.

  Mom snorts, and turns to Rose. “My daughter can’t be serious. She definitely gets it from her father. What were you all up to?”

  Rose opens her mouth, then closes it again.

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “We were at the park when it started to rain.” Blake comes in for the save with his usual charming smile, “Elena somehow managed to bring us into a game of tag in the downpour. Don’t ask me how she did it.”

  “I’m not surprised. My daughter has a way about her.” Mom laughs, and a buzzer starts ringing. “Oh! That’s the oven. I’ll be right back.”

  She putters off to the kitchen, and the four of us find spots to sit in the living room.

  “What could’ve stopped you from finding them?” Blake asks, waking me up from my hot-chocolate induced drowsiness.

  I fold my arms on the edge of the couch and rest my head on them,“They could’ve left the area,” I say, my voice muffled by my arms. “Or they were hidden from me somehow. I don’t know.”

  ***

  I hold the six gold that I’d gained from killing the Red Caps, feeling the texture of the coins in my hand. I look up to the portal in my bedroom, the one that leads to The Shop.

  With a sigh, I push myself off of my bed and walk through the portal.

  The colors around me twist and turn, eventually solidifying into the entrance of The Shop.

  I look around, and notice another Open sign on the mostly empty street. Curious what it could be, I walk over to the shop and enter it. A soft humming comes from the interior of the shop, as a man and woman walk around, placing objects on counters.

  The bell above the door rings, and the woman turns to me. Her eyes and forehead are covered by a scarf, but two spiraling horns are visible peeking out of the top of her head. Her clothes are flowy, with lots of tiny bells and jingling pieces, reminding me of one of the mystic seers you might see on tv.

  She smiles at me, showing two sharp fangs. “Hello, young one. Welcome to The Shop Of Statues.”

  “Hello,” I say. I walk over and take a closer look at the objects they’d been putting up on their walls; small statues carved exquisitely into different creatures and shapes. “These are stunning.”

  I look closer at a wooden sculpture of a fairy, so similar to Dee, that you might think it is her. Wooden water flows around the sculptures hands, looking so real that I’m surprised it isn’t moving.

  “Thank you dear. We take a lot of pride in our work.” Her smile brightens as a thought occurs to her, and she leans closer to me. “Have you ever been to a sculpture shop before?”

  I open my mouth to respond, but she shakes her head before I can say anything.

  “What am I asking? This is a Beta World, of course you haven’t.” She motions for me to follow her, “A world that has never experienced true magic, what a novelty. Let me show you what we do.”

  She leads me to a small table where three wooden statues, all wolves, sit facing an ogre.

  “Sayas, reon.” The woman says in a breathy voice.

  The statues move, their stillness becoming fluid as the wolves shake their fur, and the ogre lowers its club.

  The wolves growl at the ogre, and the ogre roars back at them. The roar shakes me with its intensity, as if its larger brethren were standing in front of me.

  The wolves leap at the ogre, tearing apart as it attempts to strike them with its club.

  My mouth opens in shock as the creatures fight. Harry Potter chess is possible. Oh gods and goddesses in heaven, you’ve made a little girl’s dreams come true.

  Eventually, the wolves take down the ogre, losing a member of their pack in the process. The woman simply waves her hand, and the parts of the creatures strewn across the table reform themselves, until all of the statues are standing without a scratch.

  “We give life to objects that did not have it. My husband and I are some of the finest sculptors you’ll ever lay your eyes on.”

  “What are you doing on a Beta world then?” I ask, my eyes staying on the immobile statues.

  The woman laughs. “You’re a bold one, aren’t you?”

  I look at her and shrug, “How much would it cost to buy a chess set from you?”

  “You know of chess? I didn’t think a Beta world would know of the exquisite game.” She smiles wide and leads me over to a part of the shop with a few different sets displayed. “We have a range of prices, but considering that you are our first customer, I’ll give you a discount. Our lowest price set would be, let’s say four gold?”

  I consider it for a long moment, then shake my head in sadness. “I need to save my gold.”

  The woman studies me from behind the scarf that covers her eyes. “I understand. In the spirit of friendship, I would be willing to offer you a set for three gold, but no less.”

  Who am I to ignore such a good deal? Although I don’t know the original price, so I don’t actually know how good a deal it is.

  Still, the little girl inside me screams in excitement at the idea of a chess set that moves on its own.

  “Deal.” I take out the three gold. “I’ll do my best to pay back the favor someday.”

  The woman takes the money from me with a practiced hand, then leads me to a set with tiny dragons representing each piece. She hands it to me, then leans into my ear, and whispers words that I can’t quite remember. Somehow, I know that if I need them, they will appear for me to animate the chess set.

  I thank her again, before leaving and heading towards Taylor’s shop.

  She greets me with her usual sharp smile, “What brings you to my shop today, Elena?” She motions towards a chair.

  I sit down, “Hi Taylor. I’d like to know why there are Red Caps in my city.”

  Taylor’s eyes sharpen, and she lets out a small hum. “That information will cost you four gold coins.”

  I purse my lips, “I only have three, can I owe you one?”

  Taylor snorts, then waves her hand towards me, “you’re lucky I like you so much.”

  I click yes, and a sphere appears in my hand. I crush it, letting the information flow through me.

  not place Elena at the top of trending and rising stars, and best rated, and popular this week. We shall destroy the very foundation that-

  you enjoy this fiction, the haters are gonna be haters no matter what, but every "thank you for the chapter" and correction of my misspellings makes me so happy. I know that I have people that actually care, and want this story to succeed. So, thank you for all the support you give me and I hope you enjoy what's to come.