Elizabeth’s Story

By Madison
Young Author’s State Winning Story, Division 8

A lone figure moved along the quiet path in the twilight on that chilly November night.  The figure moved from a group of shadows to another swiftly, never staying in the open for very long.

The person stopped when she reached the edge of a dark and foreboding forest.  The pause was only momentary, barely a split second.  And then she was off again, headed straight into the heart of the forest.

She only stopped again when she reached a small clearing.  The figure walked into the center of the clearing and glanced behind her.

Then they mystery woman, in one swift movement, took off her black trench coat, black hat, and sunglasses…revealing the most surprising thing.

It was a very young woman…no more than sixteen years old.  When the hat fell away, the woman’s long, wavy dirty blonde tresses cascaded down her back.  The woman sported a black tube top and black pants, her midriff exposed.  She wore black boots.

The peculiar thing was that on the right pant leg and the outside of both boots, was a silvery-white star.

The woman knelt in the center of the clearing, eyes closed, hands clasped together, as if she were praying.  She stayed like that for several moments and then her eyes snapped open.

Like lightening, she was up and moving across the clearing towards and object several feet away.  The white stars on her clothing had suddenly begun to glow iridescently. 

Upon closer examination, the said object was revealed to be a small silver key.  The woman picked it up and smiled.  

“Gotcha,” she said to herself.  Then, suddenly, a twig snapped from somewhere behind her.

The young woman stood and whirled around, slipping the small key into her pocket.

Coming out of the shadows was a young man, dressed in all black.  He wore sunglasses as well and there was a sinister smirk on his face.  There was an air about him…something saying that he was not to be trusted or messed with.

“Caught in the act…eh?” he asked. “Tell me, Elizabeth, does dear Juliana know what she is getting herself into?”

The woman, Elizabeth, did not answer.  The man sneered at her.

“Are you scared, Liz?”

“Of who?” Elizabeth demanded in a confident voice. “Certainly not of you.  Why would I be afraid of you, Adam?”

“You’re shaking,” the man, Adam, stated bluntly.  And she was.  Though her voice was confident, Elizabeth’s body was shaking like shad had her own miniature earthquake.  And Elizabeth had every right to be scared.

Adam, you see, was the leader of the Death Raiders, the opposing force in the seemingly undetectable war between good and evil.

“Give me the key,” Adam said in a completely different voice.  Instead of the sneering tone used moments before, his voice was cold and dark—not unlike the voice’s owner.

“No,” Elizabeth said immediately.  Adam’s hand went to his side.  Elizabeth’s eyes shot to a large, rotting tree branch a few feet away.

Adam pulled out a gun and said in an even colder voice, “NOW!!  Give it to me, Liz.  I don’t want to kill you.”

He was in the process of pulling the trigger when Elizabeth raised her hand perpendicular to the tree branch.  In a swift movement, she moved her hand to point at Adam.  The tree branch went with the movement and struck Adam in the waist, sending him flying into the oak tree behind him.  Elizabeth took off running in the opposite direction.

Adam struggled to get up.

“Darn it,” he said to himself. “The Stars…telekinesis.”

Elizabeth ran as fast as she could.  She pushed her legs to the limit.  As she ran, she screamed mentally, <<HELP!!!>>

She heard Adam shouting behind her and she pushed herself to go even further.

Relief flooded her when she heard Savannah’s voice in her head. <<Get to the creek and we’ll be waiting.  Hurry…he’s called for help.>>

Elizabeth altered her direction slightly and ran towards the creek.  She hadn’t gone very far when a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist, jerking her out of her desperate dash.  She found herself looking into the deep blue eyes of Will Stanza.

Immediately, she pulled her arm away from him and stepped back several steps.  By doing so, she put distance between herself and her enemy and also prevented her crush from seeing how red her face had become.

This was the first time Elizabeth had ever seen the handsome Raider this close up without Adam accompanying him. 

“I really wish you’d just give up, Lizzie,” Will sighed. “I don’t get why you follow her.”

“Because I believe in something worth fighting for,” Elizabeth replied solemnly.

Both looked up at the sound of urgent voices.  Adam’s back-up had arrived.  Elizabeth spared one last glance at Will before talking off into the shadows.

Not a minute later, Adam came up behind will with three other guys.  The blue-eyed young man did not look away from the spot where Elizabeth had previously stood.

“Did you see her?” Adam demanded. “Did you see Elizabeth?”

Will glanced at his leader.  Adam looked at him expectantly.

“No,” Will replied dismally and walked away.

Elizabeth walked quickly to the edge of the creek.  Her boots splashed as she looked every which way for the help that was supposedly waiting for her.

<<Uh…guys?  Where are you?  I kinda need to get out of here…like…now.>>

<<Look up…>> Savannah replied.  Elizabeth did as she was told and looked up, just in time to see a ladder lowered down from the helicopter above her.

Someone had muted the sound of the flying machine.  Elizabeth smiled to herself.  Only Juliana knew how to do that.

She climbed the ladder quickly and the pilot, Juliana Burton, flew them away.

“Did you get it?” Elizabeth’s long time best friend, Savannah Conway, asked as soon as she had caught her breath.

“Yep,” Elizabeth replied.  She reached over to pull out the silver key but Juliana, without glancing over her shoulder, stopped her.

“Don’t…wait until we get back,” she said.  Elizabeth nodded.

And so they rode in silence over many miles until they stopped.  Juliana landed the helicopter on the top of a large—enormous—cathedral looking stone building.

“Julie,” Elizabeth began. “We need to hold a meeting.  Right away.”

Juliana nodded. “I’ll get everyone to go to the conference room.  We’ll begin in an hour.”

She then walked off.  Elizabeth and Savannah walked in the opposite direction, to where Elizabeth’s bedroom was stationed.  Savannah plopped herself, rather ungracefully, onto the queen-sized bed the minute Elizabeth opened the door.

Elizabeth walked over to her closet.  Her suite was large and spacious.  It had six windows, laden with pastel colored silk curtains.  She had two sets of French-style double doors leading to the marble balcony overlooking the gardens.  Her floors were marble with touches of gold and were covered with expensive rungs in several places.

There was a queen-sized bed (with a canopy), a loveseat, a coffee table, a vanity, two nightstands, a large dresser, a large desk, a bookshelf, and a spacious walk-in closet.  In Elizabeth’s closet were things ranging from jeans and tube tops to evening gowns.

She stepped inside and shut the door slightly.

“Hey Savannah!” Elizabeth called out. “What should I wear?”

Savannah hopped off the bed and replied, “Your black blouse and khaki skirt with sandals!”

Savannah walked around, looking at things.  She came up to the bookshelf and put her flaming red hair behind her ears to see well.  Her eyes fell on a photo album.

She picked it up and, opening it, walked back to the bed.  She opened it up to the very first page.  There was a picture of a five year old Elizabeth playing ring-around-the-rosie with her twin brother and older sister.

The next picture was of a six year old Elizabeth with her mother, Sabrina Callihil.  They were planting roses in the garden.

Savannah smiled.  She had never seen her friend so happy.  Elizabeth deserved more than she had now.  So much had been taken away from her.  She flipped the page again.

An eight year old Elizabeth was blowing out the candles on her birthday cake.

“I remember that,” came the voice of the person in the picture.  Elizabeth sat down beside her friend. “I was with my grandma the next day.  Mom, Dad, Steph, and Luke were coming to pick me up when…”

Savannah nodded.  Her parents’ car was hit by a drunk driver.  Her parents died on impact.  Stephanie and Luke both passed away shortly after.  Elizabeth turned the page.

The next picture was of Elizabeth’s first school dance.  She was in a small, pale blue dress and was smiling broadly.

“That dance was the day before I met Julie,” Elizabeth informed her. “It wasn’t long after that that I was initiated…when I got sucked into all this.”

“It’s been going on for so long,” Savannah sighed.  Elizabeth nodded.

There was a knock at the door and it opened to reveal a small-framed girl with shoulder length chestnut colored hair and dark brown eyes.

“Well, hello Natalie,” Savannah smiled.  The young lady, Natalie, did not reply or smile.

“Madame Burton requests your presence, Miss Callihil,” Natalie said slowly. “Miss Conway, you’re needed in the auditorium.”

Then she turned and walked away.  Elizabeth and Savannah stood.  The photo album was put away and the two ladies walked down the hall.

“Natalie really shouldn’t be here,” Elizabeth commented as they walked. “She’s too young.”

“What do you have against her Liz?” Savannah demanded. “She’s just a little shy.  Age doesn’t matter…you know that!”

Elizabeth ignored her and walked into the conference room.  Juliana, Mary Lewis, Nicola Witherspoon, and Aubrey Donalds were waiting on her.

“Were you successful, Miss Callihil?” Nicola asked. “Did you get it?”

“Yes,” Elizabeth nodded.  She took out the silver key and let go of it.  Gracefully, it floated to the center of the table. “But I must tell you…for every new key found…they are getting more powerful.  Julie, I think it’s time we know what is going on.”

Juliana sighed. “We all know the story.  For years, the powers went undetected and undeveloped.  In 1940, Lisa Franklin discovered the truth and found the book in the back of the library.

“Lisa shared her information with her friends.  Amazingly, all of her friends had the same gift.  All of them together, worked to develop their skills.

“Lisa and her boyfriend were out at the library looking for more information on their powers.  They found a book with a legend inside about the Mystical Keys and the Door of Dreams.

“This discovery led to the end of their friendship and the start of the War.  Still, to this day, we search for the keys in the hopes that the Door of Dreams would make the world a better place.”

Juliana then pulled out the other keys they had managed to collect.  They had managed to collect the Ruby Key, the Emerald Key, the Topaz Key, and now the Silver Key.  Unfortunately, the enemy had the Sapphire Key, the Pearl Key, and the Diamond Key.  If legend was correct, there were two more keys remaining: Garnet and Gold.  The Gold Key was supposedly the most powerful and had special requirements.

“Juliana?” Aubrey said. “You told us that the Gold Key had to have a special circumstance.  What is that?”

“According to how the story goes,” Juliana explained. “There is one person…be they Star or Raider…who can possess the powers of the Key.  They shall be the one to open the Door and release whatever lies behind upon the world.”

“And you believe this?” Mary wanted to know.

“I have no cause to doubt it,” Juliana pointed out. “The Order of the Diamond Stars was founded on the belief that this story was true and that, by getting the keys, justice would be restored to the word.  If we doubt it now, the past five years would have been a waste of time.”

“I agree with Julie,” Elizabeth nodded. “We all chose, five years ago, who we sided with.  When we all discovered that we had the powers of telepathy and telekinesis…we had the choice.  Do we join the Stars or the Raiders?  And we chose the Stars.  To go back on our decision now is betraying everyone else.  To more keys.  We’ve come so far.  We can’t quit now.”

Echoes of approval went up around the room.  Juliana smiled at Elizabeth.  After a little bit more discussion, the meeting was adjourned.

Savannah, Elizabeth, Nicola, and Juliana walked up the front steps of Graceville Academy.  These four were the only highschoolers in the Order.  Everyone else was in Middle School.  Mary Lewis, though, was in college.

Elizabeth and Savannah went to their first period class.  Juliana and Nicol went to theirs.

“Good morning, Ms. Stevenson,” Elizabeth greeted the Pre-Calculus teacher.

“Morning, Miss Callihil,” Ms. Abigail Stevenson replied.  Elizabeth slid into her seat behind…that’s right…Will Stanza.

School was the only time when the Stars and the Raiders weren’t at each other’s throats.  One whole part of being a Death Raider or a Diamond Star was that their powers were secret.  If they started yelling and attacking each other at school, secrecy goes out the window.  So their fights always take place at night.

“Will,” Elizabeth said shortly.  Will turned around in his seat and opened his mouth to say something but Elizabeth merely shook her head.

“Liz, I—“

This time he was cut off by Ms. Stevenson beginning her lesson.  Will reluctantly tur4ned around and began taking notes.

Elizabeth barely paid any attention to her mathematics as her mind roamed the possibilities of what might have happened if Will had never become a Raider.

The next thing she knew, the bell had rung.  As she was gathering her things together to head to her next class, a folded piece of notebook paper fell on her desk.  Elizabeth looked up.  Will was walking away.

The blonde opened up the paper and read what was written inside.

Lizzie…the G.K. is hidden in the cemetery.

The last little bit was scribbled out so she couldn’t make it out.  Elizabeth looked up immediately.  What was he talking about?  What was the G.K.?  Was this some sort of Raider trick?

She stuck the note in her pocket.  She would solve the mystery during her lunch break.

Elizabeth was walking through the library during her free period right before lunch.  An idea dawned on her.  She walked more quickly to where the library’s books on coded messages were located.  She flipped through several books before she found something.

“’Some of the most basic codes are simply initials,’” she read.  Initials?  G.K.?  What could possible be of any significance to her that had the initials G and K?

“There are nine Mystical Keys of Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire, Topaz, Pearl, Diamond, Silver, Gold, and Garnet.  Find them and we will end the War,” Juliana’s voice echoed in her head.  Garnet Key.  G.K.  Will had told her where one of the last two keys was.

The rest of the day was not very productive for Elizabeth.  She got in trouble in several classes for “not being on task”.  Every time she did, Will, who, by happy coincidence, was in all of her classes, would look away.

Finally, school was over.  Her amount of homework was triple what is should have been, but Elizabeth didn’t care.  Juliana, as leader of the Stars, had come up with a way to keep homework from preventing them from doing their job.  She had purchased several parent-teacher stores containing answer keys for the majority of all assignments.  And having mental capabilities twenty times that of their teachers had its perks too…but anyway.

After school, instead of going to where the helicopter was waiting for the Stars, Elizabeth headed to one of Graceville’s two main cemeteries.  There were two and Will had failed to specify which one he meant.  Typical Raider…

Elizabeth headed first to the cemetery that she visited most often.  It was the cemetery that her parents and siblings were buried in.

As she reached the entrance, the young Star glanced over to the flowers at the gate.  Narrowing her eyes, several of each were uprooted from the grounds and flew to her outstretched hands.  Humming a tune, she strolled innocently into the cemetery.

Fortunately for her, she ran into no one as she walked.  Not knowing what else to do, Elizabeth stretched out with her mind to find the pulsations of energy that would come with the Garnet key.

For several moments, her patience only helping in the search.  She stood for several minutes, eyes closed, the chill breeze blowing her silky strands all around her.

And then…she found it.  The pulsations were faint—barely even noticeable.  Eyes still closed, she began to walk.  She let her mind guide her feet, knowing she wouldn’t run into anything.

As she went, it got stronger.  The waves became steady—a heartbeat of silence.  No sounds were needed.  Its sheer power spoke volumes to Elizabeth.

She remembered the first time Juliana had sent her to get a key.  It was her first assignment with Savannah.  She would never forget the first time she had felt a key.  Never had she dreamed that something like that could even exist.

Elizabeth was so caught up in the moment, she never noticed the figure approaching.  When the person finally got to her and reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, Elizabeth’s eyes snapped open.  She whirled around and slapped whoever it was across the face…hard.

“Gosh darn it, Lizzie!!!” Will Stanza shouted, backing away from her.  Elizabeth merely shrugged and turned to continue.

She smiled to herself though.  Will was very handsome.  Thinking back, she found herself incapable of finding a time when he hadn’t.

“Liz!  Elizabeth!!” Will called, running to catch up.  She didn’t look at him when he came up beside her. “Lizzie, please…look at me.”

Sighing, Elizabeth stopped and turned to face him.

“What?” she snapped.

“I think you should go back to wherever you Stars go.  Adam’ll be here any minute.  Please go,” Will begged.

“Why should I believe you?” Elizabeth’s words came out a lot harsher than intended.

“Liz, if you didn’t believe me, you wouldn’t be here,” he pointed out.  She flushed and started walking again.

“How do you know that—“ Elizabeth turned around to ask him her question, only to find that he was gone.

Shrugging, she kept on walking.  But, now, she felt awkward, like she was being watched.  She sped up and attempted to ignore the feeling.

<<Elizabeth Marianne Callihil!!>> Juliana’s very angry voice echoed in her head. <<Get your butt back here NOW!!!>>

<<I’ll be there in an hour, Jule.>> Elizabeth shot back mentally.

<<No, you come back now!  Adam is there!  He’s following you!  You’re leading him right to it!!>>

Elizabeth froze.  The eyes on her back bore holes right through her.

<<Will wasn’t lying.>> Juliana told her. <<Go!!!>>

<<I’ll never make it.>> Elizabeth replied, fear engulfing her.  The fact that she was surrounded by Raiders was finally sinking in.  And she was scared.

<<Will won’t tell.>> came Savannah’s voice. <<You have the flowers.  Go put them on your parents’ graves.  Act stupid.  The helicopter will be waiting at school.>>

Elizabeth decided to give it a try and feign stupidity.

“Oh!” she said out loud to herself. “What the heck am I doing here?  It’s that way.”

She pointed to her left and laughed.  Then she began walking in her new direction.

Adam had taken the bait, she knew.  Elizabeth, you see, had a tendency to space out and get really slaphappy.

Humming, she made her way to the graves of Eric Callihil, Sabrina Callihil, Stephanie Callihil, and Luke Callihil.

“I miss you guys,” she said, making her voice crack.  Acting was something she was good at.  She could tell Adam was getting angry and that just motivated her to keep up the act.

She put the flowers on the graves of her mother and sister.  Her father and brother had, jokingly, said that, if they ever died, they did not want flowers on their graves.

Elizabeth smiled to herself and began walking back to the entrance.  She heard Adam’s rather…colorful vocabulary.  Straining her ears, she heard Will attempt to defend himself.

But Elizabeth was confident he would tell Adam that she was playing him.  Juliana was right.

Strangely enough, it had always been so.  She had known Will long before everything had started.  Even before she had lost her parents and siblings.  And he had always been watching out for her.  Always.  Stephanie was her older sister, but Will was her older brother.  He had always made sure she stayed out of trouble during her curious and mischievous spell.

And then, when they were all eleven, he had chosen to be a Death Raider and she had chosen to become a Diamond Star.  Elizabeth often wondered why Will had become a Raider.

But, even as a Raider, he had always protected her from Adam as best he could.  She knew he had covered for her the day she got the silver key.  And then he told her where the Garnet Key was hidden.  And then he warned her that she was in danger.  And still then, he covered for her yet again.

All they way backed to Graceville Academy she pondered the young man with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes.  She pondered all 6’ ½ “ of him.

She only broke out of her trance when she walked into the ladder dropped down from the helicopter above her.  Elizabeth looked up.

Savannah’s head poked out and Elizabeth saw her raised eyebrow.

Yep, questions await me, Elizabeth thought to herself.  Grudgingly, she climbed the ladder.

Juliana was in the pilot seat with her usual face of stone.  Savannah, on the other hand, had this sly grin on her face.  Elizabeth turned away, her face turning red.

“Tell me, Julie,” Savannah said loudly to Juliana, but keeping her eyes on Elizabeth. “Since when does the young girl with enough common sense to make Einstein nuts be in such daze that she walks directly into a ladder?”

“I always knew she would lose her mind someday,” Juliana replied.

Elizabeth laughed.  Savannah directed her next smile to her. 

“Thinkin’ about someone special, Lizzie?” she asked.

“No!” Elizabeth shouted in embarrassment.  Savannah nodded, mostly to herself.

The rest of the trip back to the Cathedral as Elizabeth had so wonderfully named it, was rather unproductive.  When the three Stars got inside, Elizabeth moved to go to her room but Juliana stopped her.

“We’re headed to the meeting now,” she said coldly and headed to the conference room.

Elizabeth turned to Savannah.  The red head was no longer smiling.

“When Juliana found out you had gone to find a key without telling anyone,” Savannah paused and shuddered. “I thought the end of the world had come early.”

They walked in awkward silence to the conference room.  Juliana’s face still hadn’t changed from the face of stone.

Elizabeth slid into her seat, suddenly empathizing with the goldfish of the world.

<<Now I know what it feels like to be a scientific specimen.>> Elizabeth said telepathically to Savannah.

<<It’s not…that bad.>> Savannah said back unconvincingly.

“Elizabeth Callihil, what were you doing in the cemetery?” Mary Lewis demanded.

“It had been revealed to me that the last of the keys is located in the cemetery.  I was merely confirming it,” Elizabeth replied.

“Yet you did so without notifying anyone,” Bridget hissed.

“I didn’t want to waste time if the information wasn’t true,” Elizabeth answered.

<<Liz that is crap!>> Savannah laughed in her head. <<But it is very nicely said crap.>>

“Was it true Elizabeth?” Juliana asked.  Elizabeth looked at her.

“Yes,” she said simply.

“Then you and Natalie will go back tonight and retrieve it,” she concluded.

“But—“ Elizabeth protested.  Savannah elbowed her.

<<Enough is enough.  Don’t push your luck.>> she warned mentally.

“But what?” Nicola asked.

“Nothing,” Elizabeth sighed.  Juliana dismissed them  and Savannah and Elizabeth walked back to Elizabeth’s room.

The blonde Star changed into her black pants, black tube top, and black boots.  She braided her hair and pulled on a black hooded sweatshirt.  They chatted away until the clock in the tower chimed midnight.

Natalie was waiting with Juliana at the front entrance.  Natalie was wearing a black sweatshirt, black jeans, and black shoes.  Her shoulder length brown hair was swept back into a messy and loose bun.

“The Garnet Key is your only objective,” Juliana stated. “Do not stop for anything.”

<<Or anyone.>>” she added mentally to Elizabeth.

And so they set off.  Natalie sat in the copilot’s seat of the helicopter as Elizabeth piloted it.  Now there’s something you should know about Elizabeth Callihil.  When she was piloting a helicopter they flew.  Her piloting skills weren’t for the weak at heart.  Natalie learned this the hard way.

They made excellent timing and Elizabeth landed the helicopter in a field several yards from where she had felt the key earlier.

“How much further?” Natalie asked.  It was the first time she had spoken since they left Headquarters.

“A little ways,” Elizabeth replied shortly.  Then she stopped and turned to face the dark haired girl. “Wait a minute…you can’t feel it?”

“Feel what?”

“The key’s pulsations of power coming in rhythm to the very beating of your heart?” Elizabeth asked as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“No,” Natalie shook her head and continued walking.  Elizabeth caught up with her.

“Why not?”

“I just joined the Stars when my mother died of leukemia,” Natalie replied sullenly. “My senses aren’t that attuned.”

Elizabeth nodded. “And how did your father die?”

Her words came out harsh…even to her own ears.  Harsh and accusing.

“He was drunk and—“

Natalie was cut off by cold laughter.  It echoed around them like they were consumed by it.  Neither could tell where it was coming from.  It bounced off the surrounding trees and then bounced again.

“Who’s there?” Natalie demanded in a frightened tone.

“I thought you worked alone, dear Elizabeth,” came an amused voice as the echoes of the sinister cackle faded away.

Adam emerged from the shadows looking more evil than normal in the faint lighting.  Two of his subordinates—Dave and Jonathon were their names—emerged behind him.  Both had guns out and aimed.

Elizabeth’s green eyes darted everywhere.  From shadow to shadow.  But there was nothing she could do.

<<Juliana!!  It was a trap!!  We need HELP!!!!>>

It was Elizabeth’s last chance.  Anything she did would get either Natalie or herself killed.  Juliana and Savannah were their last hope.

<<Stall him.  Pretend to lead him to it and done.  We’ll be there.>> Juliana replied.

“Liz, Liz, Liz,” Adam laughed at her. “I’m not after the key.  I told Will to tell you where it was.  I wanted to be here when we beat you.”

“It isn’t over!” Elizabeth yelled.  But inside she was berating herself for not blocking her thoughts from him. “There’s still one key left!”

“And you are minus a team member,” Adam said sadly.

It was at that moment that the blood-curdling scream of Savannah Lynn Conway filled her head.

Realizing what was finally going on, she began yelling a whole stream of words and names—most of them not all that great—directly at the leader of the Death Raiders.  Adam merely laughed.

“Go back to Miss Burton,” he said. “I want her to know that her second-in-command has come back empty handed.”

Elizabeth glared at him. 

“If looks could kill,” Adam grinned.  Natalie, feeling totally lost, looked back and forth between Elizabeth and Adam.

Without another word, Elizabeth Marianne Callihil turned away and walked swiftly in the direction of the helicopter.

“Elizabeth!!” Adam called out her name.  She stopped but didn’t turn around.  Natalie ran to stand beside her, glancing back at Adam nervously. “We have Savannah now.  I know she’s your best friend.  You will get me the Gold Key and find the person who can open the door or I will kill her.  And don’t think I won’t.  I put her life in your hands.”

Elizabeth clenched her fists and continued to walk.  Natalie followed obediently.  The usually extremely talkative blonde said not one word, uttered not one sound as they flew back to the Cathedral.

Juliana ran out of the building as they landed.  Natalie got out immediately but Elizabeth didn’t.  Juliana got on the helicopter to find the second-in-command in tears.

“What did Adam say?” was all Juliana asked.

“They’ll kill her if we don’t get the key and the one who goes with it,” Elizabeth replied, choking on her tears.

“We’ll win this thing,” Juliana reassured her. “And we’ll all come out alive.  I promise.”

Elizabeth nodded.  Juliana and Natalie had to practically drag her to her room where she slept restlessly.

Ms. Stevenson wasn’t in the room when Elizabeth walked inside.  Her green eyes were puffy and red from crying and lack of sleep.  She walked to her seat like in a trance.  But, instead of sitting in her seat, she put her stuff down and came back to stand in front of the desk where Will Stanza was staring at the board.

She slapped him as hard as she was capable of doing.  He flinched and looked up at her.

“You JERK!!!!”  she screamed. “You rude, obnoxious, self-absorbed, traitorous, snotty JERK!!!!”

And then she slapped him again.  He stood up and grabbed her stuff and his.  Then he grabbed her wrist and led her out the door, down the hall, and into the sunshine.

They walked to the park and Will put their stuff down and let go of her.  She stood there, glaring at him and he stood there, unflinchingly under her glare.

“Why?” she asked.

“Why what, Liz?”

“Why did you do this?”

“I’m trying to help you—“

“No,” she shook her head. “Why did you become a Death Raider?  You could have been such a great member on our team?”

“Are you gonna give me a chance to answer?” he asked.  She looked down to the ground. “I’m not really a Raider, Liz.”

Elizabeth’s head shot up and she looked at him as if he had suddenly gone insane. “Who are you and what have you done with Will?”

“I’m not kidding Liz,” he laughed. “That’s why Juliana trusts me.  She asked me to be a Raider.  Lizzie, I’m a spy.”

“What?” she was totally lost now.  Juliana had known this all along and hadn’t mentioned it to her.

“I joined Adam because Juliana asked me to,” he explained. “And that is the only reason.  I hate Adam’s guts.  And that is the honest truth.”

“And why did you lie and tell me where the key was if you knew it was a trap?” Elizabeth asked, letting her attitude show through. 

“I didn’t know it was a trap,” Will admitted. “He told me he knew where it was.  Automatically my first thought was to make sure you got to it first.  Only afterwards did I realize what was going on.”

Elizabeth nodded. “I’m sorry I slapped you,” she whispered shyly.  He nodded in acceptance of her apology.  She turned to get her stuff.  She had no intention of going back to school.  So she was going to go back to the Cathedral and try to locate the last key.

As she was walking, Will caught her arm.  She looked up, surprised, “Will?”

“I’ve been meaning to ask  you for awhile,” he said. “You wanna go out to eat tonight?  Maybe catch a movie?”

“You talkin’ about a date?” she asked, taken aback.  She knew her face was about as red as humanly possible.

“Possibly,” he shrugged.  Elizabeth nodded, got up on her tiptoes, and kissed his cheek.

“It’s the Cathedral building downtown,” she whispered and walked off in a much better mood than she was in when he led her there.

Elizabeth spent the rest of the afternoon in the practice room for the Telekinesis students.  She spent all that time reaching out in different places all over the city in search of the Gold Key. 

But her heart wasn’t in it so she didn’t find as much as she could have.  All she found though, was a faint trace of energy in an old warehouse on the outskirts of Graceville.

At about 4:30, when the other Stars started rolling into the building, Elizabeth gave up and went to change.  She started crying again when she forgot Savannah wasn’t there and called out, asking her what to wear and got no reply.  But she composed herself and managed on her own.

She let her blond hair stay in its natural waves and put in some earrings.  Not being a fan of make-up, she just added some shimmering gloss to her lips.  She put on a sleeveless black dress that showed off her slim waist shamelessly.  The dress stopped at her knees with a frilly edge.  She donned black sandals and some perfume and called it done.

Around 6:30, someone knocked at her door.  Juliana stepped in smiled at her friend.  Elizabeth walked over and hugged the brunette.

“I heard you slapped him twice, apologized, and then agreed to go out with him,” Juliana laughed. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

“I don’t regret a thing,” Elizabeth laughed.  Juliana shook her head and stepped out into the hall.

“He’s in the lobby waiting on you,” Juliana smiled and headed down to the library.  Elizabeth grabbed her purse and walked down to the lobby.  She passed Natalie and Nicola in the halls.  Both of the girls smiled slyly but said nothing.

Will was standing by the window in the lobby when she entered.  He was wearing black pants and a white shirt. 

“Hello, Miss Elizabeth,” he greeted her.  She smiled, flushing.  She seemed to be doing that a lot lately.  She took the arm he offered and they made their way to the Italian restaurant in the middle of town.  It was the only good restaurant Graceville had. 

Elizabeth had a better time than she thought she would have.  Will was even better than she thought.  He practically had no flaws.  He was the best looking guy in the entire school, he was intelligent, his personality was great, he was athletic, he was definitely the conversation type, and he wasn’t really a Raider.

She didn’t pay any attention to the movie as she was too wrapped up in the seventeen year old guy next to her.  All in all, it was one of the best nights of her life.  And another good part was she didn’t have to pay a penny.  

The whole Order of the Diamond Stars spent the next week away from school.  In this week the world as they knew it was changed forever.  And it was all because of one girl and one key.

Elizabeth and Juliana spent three days locked up in the auditorium concentrating on feeling for the Gold Key.  When they found it, Juliana was taken back by what if felt like.  It was like all the other keys together and multiplied by five. 

But what was really extraordinary was that when she reached out to feel for the Gold Key, she felt Elizabeth.  It was like the two were one.  But the thing was Elizabeth could only feel the Key.  She didn’t feel herself.

It didn’t take Juliana long to realize that it was Elizabeth Callihil who would be the one to use the Gold Key to open the Door.  She was the one.

So Elizabeth set out that very moment to the very same warehouse she had found a few days before and had no problems in getting the Gold Key.  While she was gone, Juliana contacted Adam.

“What do you want Juliana?” Adam hissed over the phone.

“I would like for you to put Savannah Conway on the phone,” she said calmly.  Adam grumbled but did as she requested.

“Hello?” came Savannah’s weary voice.

“Savannah?”

“Julie!”

“You’ll be out of there soon.  I promise,” Juliana assured her. “Elizabeth found the Gold Key.”

“We’ll meet in the park tonight,” was Adam’s cold reply.  Juliana nodded to herself.

“We’ll be there,” she said confidently.

That night, they met.  Adam, Jonathon, Dave, Mike, the other Raiders, and Will.  Dave and Mike were non-too-gently restraining Savannah.

Elizabeth and Will made eye contact and she gulped.  Adam stepped forward and Juliana stepped forward also.

“Elizabeth has the Key you say,” he said coldly.  Juliana nodded. “Has she found the person to open the door?”

Elizabeth’s eyes widened.  But Juliana remained indifferent.

“Yes she has,” Juliana replied.

<<Julie?>> Elizabeth questioned telepathically. <<You don’t lie.>>

<<I’m not lying.>> Juliana replied mentally.

“Who is it?” Adam demanded.

“You shall see,” Juliana smirked.

“Then let us have it,” Adam raised his voice.

“We’ll show you that we have the key and you will let Savannah go,” Elizabeth said. “And then I will give it to you.”

Adam nodded reluctantly.  Elizabeth unbelievably slowly, reached to her pocket and pulled out the small golden key.  She held it up so the Raiders could see and Adam motioned for Dave and Mike to let Savannah go.

The redhead jerked away from them and walked over to the Stars and stood defiantly between Juliana and Elizabeth.

“Will,” Adam said to the blonde haired young man. “Take the key from her.”

Will nodded and made eye contact again with his girlfriend as they both walked forward.  Taking a deep breath, Elizabeth held the key out for him to take it.  As his hand came down on hers with the key in between them, a bright light erupted from the small key and nearly blinded everyone in the vicinity of it.

Will jumped back and Elizabeth attempted to, but found herself glued to the spot.  When the light dimmed, a golden door was before her.  Its brilliance left both groups in awe.

When Adam snapped out of it, he realized what was going on, he ran forward to get the key from Elizabeth but ran into a golden barrier type thing between him and her.

Elizabeth looked over at Juliana, uncertainty plain on her face.  But Juliana was smiling broadly and nodded. 

“Open it,” she whispered.  Elizabeth gulped and turned back to the door.

Slowly, oh so slowly, she reached out towards the golden doorknob.  Her hand closed around it and she closed her eyes and turned it clockwise.  Then she pushed it open and the door disappeared, leaving a doorframe of white light. 

Elizabeth backed up and, at Juliana’s command, held up the Gold Key.  It zoomed out of her hand and into the white light.  Once more, they were engulfed in blinding light.  Only this time it was twice as intense. 

When the light finally disappeared, the Raiders had disappeared except for Will.  All around them, the park and surrounding trees looked like they did in the summer.  Bursts of color surrounded them but far more ethereal than anything summer or spring could produce.  All the buildings in the distance were made of blue stone.

Everything you could see was like some fantasy world where everything was perfect and it was perfect all year round.  The chill in the air had disappeared and a warm breeze was blowing her blonde hair behind her.

Elizabeth smiled.  The Stars were cheering and hugging each other and laughing and acting like the kids they never had the chance to be.  Elizabeth spotted Juliana and Savannah hugging like sisters.  The blonde girl spotted Natalie all alone and found, from somewhere deep inside her heart, the courage to confront her.

She walked up to the young brunette.  Natalie looked up, surprised.

“I’m sorry,” Elizabeth apologized happily.

“For what?” Natalie wanted to know.

“For being such a snot towards you,” Elizabeth told her. “It was wrong.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’ve been really jerky to you ever since I found out that it was your father who crashed into my parents’ car and killed my mother, father, sister, and brother.”

Natalie’s eyes widened.

“It was you!”

Elizabeth nodded. “I’m sorry I treated you like I did.  It was really wrong of me.  I took out what your father did on you.  Forgive me?”

Natalie nodded and hugged her.  Elizabeth grinned. 

“Natalie!!” Nicola called from other side of the field.  Natalie smiled at her again and ran over to her friend.  Elizabeth stood there smiling to herself.

Then Will of all people came over and picked her up by the waist, spun her around in the air and brought her down for a soul-searing kiss.

Ten Years Later

Twenty-six year old Elizabeth Stanza opened the front door to the small one-story house.  She entered and put her purse down and closed the door behind her.  She shook off the snow and took off her coat and shoes. 

She was dressed in blue jeans and a green sweatshirt with a Christmas tree on the front.  Her blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail. 

“Frosty the Snowman” was filling the house.  Elizabeth headed down the hallway to the kitchen, where voices could be heard.  Just as she reached the corner to turn into the kitchen, she stopped and looked at the picture on the wall.  It was a large frame with a picture taken the day the War ended.  They were all in it.  Juliana, Savannah, Natalie, Nicola, Mary, Bridget, Will, her, and everyone else. 

Smiling broadly at the memory, she peeked into the kitchen.  Will was talking nonsense to their four month old daughter, Erin Stanza, as he checked the cookies she had put in before leaving. 

Then Elizabeth looked back at the picture on the wall and giggled to herself before entering the kitchen to where her husband and daughter awaited her.