Alcatraz Versus the Knights of Crystallia

“It is happening now,” the knight said. As much as I like the knights, they can be … well, blunt. And stubborn. And really bad at taking jokes. (Which is why I feel I need to mention page 47 again, just to annoy them.)

“Surely you can let us in,” Grandpa Smedry said. “We’re important witnesses in the case!”

“Sorry,” the knight said.

“We are also close personal friends of the knight involved.”

“Sorry.”

“We also have very good teeth,” Grandpa Smedry said, then smiled.

This seemed to confuse the knight. (Grandpa Smedry has that effect on people.) However, once again, the knight simply shook his head and said, “Sorry.”

Grandpa Smedry stepped back, annoyed, and I felt a twist of despair. I’d failed to help Bastille after all she’d gone through for me. She should have known not to rely on me.

“How are you feeling, lad?” Grandpa Smedry asked.

I shrugged.

“Annoyed?” he prompted.

“Yeah.”

“Frustrated?”

“A bit.”

“Bitter?”

“You’re not helping.”

“I know I’m not. Angry?”

I didn’t answer. The truth was, I did feel angry. At myself mostly. For partying with Rodrayo and his friends while Bastille was in trouble. For forgetting about Mokia and its problems. For letting my grandfather down. It hadn’t been that long ago that I’d always assumed that I let everyone down. I’d pushed people away before they could abandon me.

But working with Grandpa Smedry and the others had made me begin to feel that I could lead a normal life. Maybe I didn’t have to alienate everyone. Maybe I was capable of having friendships, of having family, of …

There was a slight cracking sound.

“Oops!” Grandpa Smedry said in a loud voice. “Looks like you’ve gone and upset the boy!”

I started, looking down, realizing that I’d let my Talent crack the glass beneath my feet. Twin spiderwebs of lines crept from my shoes, marring the otherwise perfect crystal. I blushed, embarrassed.

The knights had grown pale. “Impossible!” one said.

“This crystal is supposed to be unbreakable!” the other said.

“My grandson,” Grandpa Smedry said proudly. “He has the Breaking Talent, you know. Upset him too much, and the entire floor could shatter. Actually, the entire castle could—”

“Get him out then,” one of the knights said, shooing me away like one might treat an unwanted puppy.

“What?” Grandpa Smedry said. “Antagonize him by throwing him out, and you could destroy the castle itself! We’ll just have to see if he calms down. His Talent can be very unpredictable when he’s emotional.”

I could see what Grandpa Smedry was doing. I hesitated, then focused my power, trying to further crack the glass at my feet. It was an extremely foolhardy thing to do. That was what made it exactly the sort of plan Grandpa Smedry would come up with.

The spiderwebs at my feet grew larger. I steadied myself by touching the wall, and immediately created a ring of cracks around my hand.

“Wait!” one of the knights exclaimed. “I’ll go in and ask if you can enter!”

Grandpa Smedry beamed. “What a nice fellow,” he said, taking my arm, stopping me from breaking more. The knight opened the door, stepping inside.

“Did we really just blackmail a Knight of Crystallia?” I asked under my breath.

“Two of them, I believe,” Grandpa Smedry said. “And it was really more ‘intimidation’ than it was ‘blackmail.’ Maybe with a twist of ‘extortion.’ It’s always best to use the proper terminology!”

The knight returned, then—with a sigh—gestured for us to enter the chamber. We walked in eagerly.

And then Grandpa Smedry exploded.

Chapter 11

Okay, so he didn’t really explode. I just wanted you to turn the page really fast.

You see, if you turn the pages quickly, you might rip one of them. If you do that, then obviously you’ll want to go buy another copy of the book. Who wants one with a ripped page? Not you. You have refined tastes.

In fact, think of all the wonderful ways you can use this book. It will make an excellent coaster. You could also use it as building material. Or you could frame the pages as art. (After all, each page is a perfect work of art. Look at 56. Exquisite.)

Obviously you need lots of copies. One isn’t enough. Go buy more. Have you forgotten that you need to fight the Librarians?

Anyway, after getting done not exploding, Grandpa Smedry went into the chamber. I followed, expecting to find a courtroom. I was surprised to see only a simple wooden table with three knights sitting behind it. Bastille stood by the far wall at attention, hands at her sides, staring straight ahead. The three knights at the table weren’t even looking at her as they decided her punishment.

One of the knights was a masculine, burly man with an enormous chin. He was dangerous in an “I’m a knight and I could totally kill you” sort of way.

Next to him was Bastille’s mother, Draulin, who was dangerous in an “I’m Bastille’s mother and I could also kill you” sort of way.

The third one was an elderly, bearded knight who was dangerous in a “Stop playing your hip hop music so loud, you darn kids! Plus I could kill you too” sort of way.