Makenna soon marched through a chilly corridor lit with torches and called, "Tracey! Tracey! It's me! Makenna Delling!"
Raeven glanced at the ceiling, and his eyes landed on crystalline structures hanging from it. "Do you have any idea where you're going?" he inquired.
Makenna shook her head. "Not really."
Raeven suddenly gasped. "Oh no!" He reached for his head. "Then that means we're going to be trapped down here forever! We're all gonna die!" He shook Makenna's coat collar, but she pushed his paws away.
"Geez, Raeven, take it easy. Nobody's gonna die. We're going to search these corridors for Tracey, and we're not gonna rest until we find him."
"Bu-But, Makenna," Raeven chattered. "We're trapped down here. I'm sure this place is swarming with ghosts! There's probably a man-eating monster at the very end of it! Then you won't be able to fly because your wings are tucked in your coat! We'll get blasted to smithereens!" His knees knocked together, and he wrapped his wings around him.
Makenna grumbled and covered her face with her palms. "Shut up, Raeven! Nobody's gonna die!"
"How can you be sure?" asked Raeven.
Suddenly, they heard shouting, and it echoed off the corridor's walls.
Makenna immediately stopped walking. "What's that?" she nervously asked. She crept down the spooky corridor in the direction from which the shouting came.
Raeven flew into her face and said, "Are they thugs? Bandits? What is it?"
"I'm not sure, Raeven," Makenna admitted. "Don't worry. I'll protect you." She had to admit, though, that she was a little uneasy, too. She pulled Raeven off her face and hugged him, jumping when she heard the shouting again.
"We're all gonna die!" Raeven repeated.
Makenna continued creeping toward the shouting.
The corridor led to an enormous, torch-lit room filled with training equipment.
Makenna and Raeven hid behind a wall and peered out.
Makenna gasped. While the room was impressive, she was even more surprised by who she saw in it.
In the heart of the room, a teenage boy with long black hair and golden brown eyes was training and performing a beautiful magic show. A curved tuft of hair stood up in the center of his head, and another tuft rested on the left side of his nose.
It was Tracey. Makenna couldn't believe it. It was Tracey, Merlin the Great's young, ninja-like fairy apprentice. He was just as handsome as Makenna remembered. The last time she saw Tracey, he was being rushed to the Coutarine Fairy Hospital in critical condition after the Octopus Man severely damaged his wings. He was back, though—he survived—and looked much better than he did that horrifying night at Makenna's school.
Tracey was dressed in what appeared to be a training uniform. He wore a white, green, and purple-trimmed, armored bodysuit with shoulder pads. It had a long tail that stretched from his waist to his knees. The uniform was green on the inside, and Tracey also wore boots and elbow-length, white gloves with black fingertips. The only thing he didn't have anymore were his wings. Since they were so severely damaged, the doctors had to amputate them. Makenna expected the wings would come off, and she was right.
She watched, amazed, as Tracey continued his magic show. With him was Gina, his own best avian friend. She, too, once broke her wing, but hers healed, so she could still fly.
Tracey didn't see Makenna and Raeven spying on him. Instead, he waved his hands, and a purple and green, rainbow-like image appeared over his head. Tracey reached up and grabbed it.
Gina, Makenna, and Raeven watched as he pulled it down and covered his shoulders.
Tracey sprinted forward, and the image streamed out behind him.
Gina followed her friend.
Tracey soon stopped and wrapped the image around him. There then was a blast of light, and green and purple sparkles rained down.
"Whoa," Makenna whispered. She released Raeven and rested her hand on a loose rock in the wall. Right then, the rock broke and fell. "Uh oh," Makenna added.
Instantly, Tracey whirled around and shot a beam of light toward her.
Makenna screamed and turned to run away. Tracey's attack slammed into the ground, throwing her forward. Makenna landed on her front and braced her head as a cloud of dust surrounded her.
"Makenna!" Raeven screeched in bat language that time. He shook from pure fear while resting on another rock.
Makenna coughed through the dust.
Tracey and Gina soon emerged from the cloud, and Tracey held a shuriken. He pointed it at Makenna and calmly but sternly asked, "Who are you? How did you get here?"
"What?" Makenna said, glancing at him. Raeven was right. Tracey didn't even recognize her!
"How did you get here?" he repeated.
"Dude, it's me!" Makenna shouted. "Don't you remember? It's me! Makenna Delling!"
"Makenna Delling?" Tracey questioned. "No, that's impossible. Makenna Delling is ancient history."
"What?" Makenna wondered. "What are you talking about, dude? It's me! Remember, we worked together last year before your accident to find Selene?"
"Accident? What accident?"
Makenna was bewildered. Why was Tracey acting so weird? Was it because of the curse the Octopus Man had placed on him last year? Was it zapping him of his memory?
Makenna shakily stood and explained, "You broke your wings last year, Tracey. Merlin told me you had to be put in the ICU of the Coutarine Fairy Hospital. You were in such terrible shape! Merlin and the doctors didn't think you'd make it. Don't you remember returning this necklace to me?" She reached for her necklace pendant, which hung before her coat.
"Huh?" Tracey's eyes landed on the pendant, and he stared at it.
Gina gasped at the sight of Makenna and seemed to smile. "Makenna!" she yelled through telepathy. She soared to Makenna and landed on her shoulder pad. Raeven landed on the other one, and together, they watched Tracey.
He continued to stare at the necklace, but then recognition returned to his eyes, and he said, "Makenna! Makenna, it's you!"
"Yeah," Makenna nervously spoke, gesturing at Raeven. "And there's Raeven. Remember, Raeven, the loudmouth Megabat?"
"Makenna!" Tracey yelled. "It's you! It's really you!"
"Yeah. Hi, Tracey. It's been a while."
"A while?" questioned Tracey. "Are you kidding? It's been forever! So, what are you doing here?"
"Good question," Makenna said. She glanced at Raeven. "Want to answer that, Raeven?"
Raeven scoffed. "Hello. Don't blame this on me. You were the one assigned to deliver that parcel to Merlin. I tried telling you to wait until today to fly out here, but you didn't listen to me."
"Parcel?" Tracey asked. "Oh, so that's what that box was."
"You know about the box?" Makenna questioned.
Tracey shrugged. "Well, now I do. I set it down over there."
He pointed at the corner of the room, and Makenna peered in that direction. Sure enough, there was the "extremely important parcel." Makenna was relieved to see it safe and sound. She nodded and turned to Tracey again. "So, Tracey, Merlin didn't take you to Coutarine Island with him?"
"No," Tracey explained. "But that's okay. I don't want to get involved in his urgent mission. Besides, I have plenty of things to do here. Hey, if you'd like to talk, Makenna, do you want to go outside?"
"Outside?" Makenna asked.
"Why not?" was Tracey's next question. "It's a beautiful day, and I'm getting the itch for fish!"
"Fish?" Makenna shook her head. "Yeah, let's go outside, Tracey. I think you've been indoors too long. Besides, it's freezing in here! Which reminds me—thank you for the coat, but I think I should return it if we're going out." She reached for her coat and unbuttoned it.
While she did that, Tracey said, "No problem. I knew you would be cold when you woke up, so I went ahead and made it for you."
Makenna pulled off the coat and handed it to him. Immediately, she shivered.
"You won't be cold for long," continued Tracey. "I know a back entrance from here, and whoa!" His golden brown eyes landed on Makenna's Crystal Metamorphic Fairy transformation. "Sensei wasn't joking! You really are a Crystal Metamorphic Fairy now, Makenna! That's a good look for you, too."
Makenna chuckled. She had forgotten how much fun it was being around Tracey.
He gestured for her to follow him and finished with, "Follow me. There's an awesome cove just behind this section of the volcano. It's a great place to catch up with each other. Gina and Raeven, do you want to come, too?"
Gina, resting beside Raeven on his rock, nodded and grabbed his paw with her claws.
"Whoa!" Raeven spoke as she pulled him off the rock and into the sky.
Makenna smiled at the sight of them flying. "Hey, Raeven and Gina, wait for me!" She lifted her crystal wings and flapped, lifting into the air. Makenna still had trouble believing she could really fly.
She soared toward Gina and Raeven, then flew in circles around them. Fairy dust trailed behind her, and the rainbows shimmered in her wings. Makenna soon stopped to hover and gave Raeven and Gina a high five: Raeven with his paw, and Gina with her foot.
Down below, Tracey smiled feebly and chortled. He held his hand out to his friends and announced, "Don't forget me! I want to join the flying party, too!"
"Flying party?" Makenna asked, looking at him and gasping. "No, Tracey! Wait!"
Tracey didn't listen. He attempted to fly.
Bending his knees, he leaped into the sky, but immediately fell. His foot hit some ice, and he yelled as he slid forward.
Makenna, Gina, and Raeven closed their eyes and turned away when Tracey crashed into a stack of wooden crates. All of them fell on top of him.
When Makenna finally opened her eyes, she stared frightfully at the mess.
Tracey soon emerged from it, limping a little. He examined the crates, and his entire face reddened. Tracey unleashed a frustrated yell and kicked one wooden crate across the room. He then crossed his arms and plopped down on his knees. His wing-free back faced Makenna, Raeven, and Gina.
Gina sighed and stared at him. She then nudged Makenna, and Makenna glanced at her. Through telepathy, Gina told her, "You've got to comfort him, Makenna. He's really not as happy as you think. He's still being affected greatly by Peter's bullying."
Makenna nodded understandingly. "I know, Gina. Merlin told me last week. But I also know it's something else." She flapped her wings and soared toward Tracey.
He sighed sadly and shook his head.
Makenna soon landed behind him and asked, "Tracey? Are you okay?"
Tracey jumped a little. Without looking at Makenna, he lifted his fist and rubbed his nose. "Yeah," he answered in a slightly choked voice. "I-I'm fine, Makenna. It's just..." He next rubbed his eye. "I-I forgot. I don't want to talk about it."
"Oh, all right, then," Makenna spoke. She grasped Tracey's shoulders and bent down to him. Makenna sat and met his eyes. "Why don't we go outside? You're right, Trace. It's a beautiful day. It's so beautiful that I almost want to get married to nature." She hoped she would get a chuckle out of Tracey, but she didn't.
Makenna sighed. She wasn't the best at telling jokes. She picked up Tracey's hand and comfortably rubbed it. "Um, now about this cove you mentioned?"
"Oh," Tracey responded. "Right." He nodded. "The cove. Um, right. Follow me." He stood and headed toward one of the room's back walls.
Raeven and Gina flew to Makenna and hovered beside her ears.
Makenna shook her head and admitted, "There is something peculiar going on with him. One minute he's happy, the next he's not, and the next it's like he doesn't remember anything."
"He's been like this all week, Makenna," Gina elucidated. "It's the curse. You have to be really careful when you go to that cove. He cannot go in the water."
"What's he doing?" Makenna asked.
Tracey stopped before the back wall and brought his hand to his chin, tapping it. He stared at the wall. He didn't move at all.
Makenna again shook her head and headed toward him, calling, "Tracey. Tracey. Tracey!"
"Hm?" he asked, looking over his shoulder and suddenly smiling. "You know what? Let's go fishing."
"Huh?" Makenna said. "But what about the cove? Can't you have fish later, Trace?"
Tracey suddenly snapped at her. "My name is not 'Trace!' It's Tracey!"
"But, that's my nickname for you," Makenna argued. "Come on, you call me 'Makenn,' and I don't care. Now, Tracey, please, are we going to the cove or not?"
"Oh, yeah," spoke Tracey. "Good point. There actually happens to be a coral reef just outside that cove. Perfect! Thank you, Anne Louise."
"Anne Louise?" Makenna questioned. "What? I'm not Anne Louise. I'm Makenna Delling. Oh, Tracey..." She sniffed and gripped his wrists. "I thought I had you back."
"I am back, Annie." Tracey pinched Makenna's cheek and shook her skin. "I am the same boy you knew over a hundred years ago."
Makenna sniffed again and admitted, "No, you're not, and there are reasons behind this. Number One: I have no idea who Anne Louise is, and Number Two: I am not over one hundred years old, and neither are you." Makenna whimpered. "Octopus Man, what have you done to him? Tracey, please." She gripped his pointy ears and pulled his face close to hers. "Snap out of it!"
Raeven soon tapped her shoulder, and Makenna glimpsed at him.
Smiling hopefully, the bat told her, "You know, Makenna, I could always get Ash."
"No!" Makenna instantly stated. "I don't need any so-called wizards helping me, Raeven! I can deal with Tracey myself!"
"Well, remember it was he who slipped you out of your trance on the pier," Raeven explained. "I'm sure he can do the same with Tracey."
"No!" Makenna again yelled. She accidentally spat in Tracey's face.
He closed his eyes and reached for it.
"Oh, my gosh!" Makenna continued when she saw the spit on his face. "I am so sorry, Tracey!"
Tracey rubbed the spit out of his eye and grinned. "Water!" Tracey leaped ten feet in the air. "I love water! I need more water!" He clapped and whirled around to the wall again.
"Tracey, stop!" Makenna yelled. "Please!" She snatched his arm. "You can't go in the ocean!"
Tracey again repeated, "Water!" and freed his arm. He lifted his hands and began patting different sections of the wall.
"What in the name of Neptune are you doing?" Makenna said.
Tracey continued to pat the wall.
After a bit, the wall's rocks moved aside, revealing Merlin's Island's jungle. As soon as it did, a gush of warm morning air blasted Makenna, Tracey, Raeven, and Gina.
Makenna smiled and lifted her hands, saying, "Cool."
While she stood in the entranceway, she took in a whiff of the tropical breeze, but immediately became serious again when Tracey yapped, "Water! Water!" over and over. And then just like that, he took off and sprinted out of the cave in the direction of a beach.
"Tracey, wait!" Gina and Raeven landed on Makenna's shoulders, and she chased after Merlin's apprentice. However, because he was a ninja-like fairy, he was swift. He moved only as a green blur, which made Makenna fly even faster.
"Stop him!" Gina yelled through tern squawks. "He can't dive in the ocean! The Octopus Man will drag him to the Bermuda Triangle if he does!"
"I know, Gina!" Makenna bellowed. "Merlin told me! But the thing is, he moves so fast, even without his wings. Tracey, stop!"
Tracey didn't. He hopped over a log and pulled a branch forward to move it out of his way. When he released it, the branch snapped back like a slingshot and smacked Makenna.
She yelped and toppled out of the sky, landing on the tropical jungle's bed.
Makenna soon rose to her knees and told Gina and Raeven, "Stay here, guys. I'll get Tracey."
Raeven leaped to his feet and shouted, "Makenna, wait!" but Makenna shushed him. She jumped back into the sky and flew after Tracey again.
Behind, Raeven and Gina exchanged glances, and Gina told Raeven, "We've got to go after her."
***
How beautiful Merlin's Island's jungle was, Makenna didn't have time to admire it. She had to catch Tracey before the Octopus Man did.
Tracey led Makenna to, as he said, a cove. Makenna definitely felt like she was in paradise the second she stepped onto the fluffy, white sand.
The second Tracey reached the cove, he hurried toward the water and a coral reef. As he approached, he yelled "Water!" again and again.
"Tracey, stop!" Makenna begged.
Raeven and Gina soon flew up on Makenna from behind, and they plopped onto a pile of driftwood to rest their wings.
Gina seemed to gasp when she saw Tracey close to the water. "Oh no! Oh, I can't watch!" She covered her eyes with her wings.
Makenna thought fast. She first yelled, "Ka-ploop!" and dove into Tracey's back, knocking him down. "Tracey, you can't go in the water!" Makenna clenched her teeth and held him tightly.
Tracey squirmed and tried to break free. "Make me!" he shouted. "Anne Louise, please. I need to search the ocean for tuna." He failed to release himself, though.
"No!" Makenna snapped. "You're not going anywhere, Tracey. You and I came here to catch up with each other, not play a game of tag."
Tracey finally lifted his hand and flicked Makenna's forehead with his index finger.
"Ow!" Makenna released him and reached for it. "How dare you flick me! All right, Tracey, you leave me no choice!"
"Tuna!" Tracey begged. "And salmon, and seaweed! Anne Louise, please! I don't belong here! I belong in the Bermuda Triangle! I love the Octopus Man as if he were my own father!"
Makenna choked on her spit. She coughed and reached for her throat. "Anne Louise?" Her eye twitched. "What is wrong with you? My name is not 'Anne Louise!' It's Makenna Delling! Oh, my God, if you say, 'I love the Octopus Man as if he were my own father' again, then please give me a plastic bag so I can puke in it! How can you say that? He's the one who broke your wings! He's the reason why you're acting so weird!"
"Water!" Tracey again shouted, totally ignoring her. "I feel like fish and swimming. The Bermuda Triangle is where I will revive my powers."
"No!" Makenna shouted. "Tracey, please! Don't do it! I don't want to lose you again!" She reached for Tracey's arm, but he flicked her forehead again.
Makenna flinched. She watched as Tracey stood on the beach and sprinted toward the South Pacific-like water again.
Makenna had to stop him! But how?
She frantically looked around the cove for a solution to the situation, but couldn't see anything. Her eyes then caught the pile of driftwood that Gina and Raeven rested on. At the sight of it, Makenna smiled. She just found the perfect solution to snap Tracey out of his trance.
Makenna soared for the driftwood.
When he saw her, Raeven gasped and announced, "Makenna!" in English.
"Huh?" Gina frightfully squawked, peeking out from behind her wings. Her eyes landed on Makenna.
She soon hovered over the driftwood and shot her hand forward into the pile, saying, "Excuse me!"
"What are you doing?" Raeven wanted to know.
Makenna didn't answer. She really didn't want to do this to Tracey, especially since he had been seriously injured the year before, but it was the only way she could stop him from diving into the ocean.
She bellowed, "Sorry! Not now, Raeven!" and Raeven nodded.
From the driftwood, Makenna removed a long piece of it and whispered, "All right, this should work." She banged the piece against her palm.
Very slowly, an amused smile developed across Raeven's face.
With the driftwood on hand, Makenna soared toward Tracey again, who continued to run for the ocean and yell for water.
"Mom! Dad! Don't worry, I'm coming!"
His parents? Weren't they, um, dead? So, why was Tracey yelling for them?
Makenna hovered and inhaled. She could do this. She believed that this was the best thing for Tracey right now. She just hoped she wouldn't critically injure him. Not again. Makenna prayed for that with all her might. Finally, when she was ready, she continued her flight toward Tracey.
He was very close to the ocean now—almost too close. "Mom! Dad!"
At last, Makenna yelled, "Incoming!" and lifted the driftwood over her right shoulder.
From the pile where Gina and Raeven waited, Raeven excitedly bounced up and down, while Gina frightfully peeped out her wings again.
Where Makenna and Tracey were, Makenna closed her eyes and swung her driftwood. It smacked Tracey right on the head, and he fell onto his side on the beach. Merlin's Island was quiet, except for the gentle slap of waves brushing the shoreline.
Makenna soon opened her eyes. When she saw Tracey lying unconscious on the fluffy sand, she released a quick sob. Makenna dropped her weapon when she saw some of his blood on it. Right when it hit the ground, she landed and whimpered, "Sorry, Trace, but I had no choice."
From where he and Gina sat, Raeven cupped his paws around his muzzle and said, "Boom! Headshot! Well done, Makenna Delling! Well done! Let's all give her a warm round of applause!" Just like that, he clapped his paws.
Makenna felt terrible, but she knew she did the right thing. She fell to her knees beside motionless Tracey and dropped her wings behind her.
Makenna pulled him into a hug and softly spoke, "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me."