The television had been quiet for several hours. But Cody barely noticed. His eyes were closed tight most of that time, trying to think of other things to drown out the loud groaning and creaking coming from the attic door. It started out as wind, the same type that pushed him back from Aaron when the doors of hell opened up in his father’s bedroom.
He never had time to think how crazy it all was. There was no way he could’ve known that Paralaya was real and that the evil wizard trying to break into his world was either but now he wasn’t sure if he was having a nightmare or if he was going insane. Kumar would certainly think so.
The entire house shook or at least it seemed that way when the rushing winds turned to distant quakes. He had moved into a nook of boxes to get away from the noise but it was all around him, driving him to shiver and shake. But now the noise was just a grumble. He still kept his eyes shut, hoping it would stop and his father would pop his head through the attic door. His father would tell him everything was okay and make him a peanut butter sandwich and a glass of chocolate milk. It was simple but it was the only thing he wanted. He wouldn’t spill it this time. He would appreciate it and be careful. He would appreciate everything more.
That was if this terrible dream was over but as far as he could tell, from the tree branches growing from the floorboards and going up the sides of the attic, it was not. The only way to know for sure was to find some courage and open the attic door. If he could take a peek, he might not be spotted by whatever horrors await him down there, in whatever alternate dimension took residence in his house. But no, he couldn’t. He was curious but not that curious. “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” His father had said, a sense of disappointment in his voice. Cody could still feel the bruise that had long since faded on his knee from the time he tried to ride the bike. He wasn’t supposed to ride without his father watching but he did it anyways. And he suffered because of it. But if he followed all of his father’s rules, he wouldn’t have any fun. Checking the door didn’t seem like fun though. It would likely mean survival however. He decided that he couldn’t stay up here forever when his stomach growled, matching the groaning from downstairs.
When they had first spoken Phaeton mentioned the “tethers”, the sacred objects that were taken from Paralaya and turned into random objects in his house. “Seek them out and bring them together.” That’s what he said. Cody had followed his instructions and cursed himself for it. Why did he have to trust people so easily? He had always been taught to be good and obedient but where did that ever get him? This time he wouldn’t allow himself to be so vulnerable. Illyion probably wanted him to stay put as well, at least until his friends arrived but what were they going to do against an evil wizard who wanted to destroy Earth and was probably eating all his peanut butter? He would have to go down there, find the objects, and destroy them even if it meant risking his life. Rules, even ones that were meant to keep him safe were meant to be broken.
He opened his eyes, squinting, and the box to his right was slightly ajar, revealing its contents. The lid markings had been crossed out several times. The first one read, “Kid stuff,” which was crossed out. “Old stuff” was also crossed out, leaving “Junk” at the top as the current label. Cody stuck his hand in and pulled out an old VCR player, boxy and heavy. He dug around some more and found a pair of fuzzy headphones attached to a handheld device with the name “Walkman” on it. This was his father’s stuff, dusty and faded. It had to be but Cody had never seen it before. As he opened the box wider, his energy returning, his eyes widened when he found a plastic knight’s helmet that seemed to be a few decades old. The light gray plastic was cheap but it was still cool. And when he put it on, he found that it fit perfectly and the round cap was surprisingly thick. He thought about his father’s reaction when he’d see him wearing the helmet when Cody saved him from the evil wizard and smiled.
When the triangular visor was pulled down the round holes did not obscure his vision. Halloween was his favorite time of year, the one time of year he could hide his face and not be strange. Somehow even now he felt protected, his face obscured and the attic door wasn’t so scary anymore. He was about to go to the door when he noticed a piece of dark blue cloth in the box. Probably another one of his father’s old costumes. Being careful he pulled out the ragged cloth and unfolded it. It was a cape. He wrapped it around himself. It was larger around the shoulders but it didn’t hit the floor. The cape was embroidered, reminding him of something his grandmother would make.
He tied it loosely around his neck and suddenly felt tears welling in his eyes. Sure, the cape would allow him to hide easier but there was a sense of family pride about wearing it. His father wore it when he was younger and so would Cody. If only his father could see him now.
Too much time had passed. It was now or never. He quickly tip-toed to the attic door and laid on his stomach, pulling up the door with one finger. He didn’t know what to expect but with the cape and helmet he didn’t care much anymore either. A cold draft hit his face first. As his eyes adjusted, he discovered that he was peering into a circular brick structure, reminding Cody of a water well, ancient, deep, and ominous. He would have gasped if he wasn’t holding his breath. But it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t exactly the same smell as old refrigerator food but the foul stench did come close to rotten meat.
Seeing the dark well instead of the first floor of the house made him nauseous. It didn’t make sense but nothing lately did. He quickly grabbed the flashlight and fumbled to turn it on. The glow drove the darkness away and he could see that the well was blocked by a wooden platform maybe eight feet down.
If he was going to do this, he needed to do it now. There would be no turning back, no retreat, and possibly no way home, since what appeared below was not his home. Illyion told him that he wasn’t alone but he wondered if that was just something she thought he needed to hear, to comfort him. The truth was always harsher. As he looked down, he realized he would need to learn how to fall, this time for real. He clutched the flashlight closely and jumped.
The wood, which turned out to be two planks, shook violently. Dirt and dust trickled down below from what he could see. From above he didn’t notice the connecting, brick waterway that was round like the well and went further into darkness. Suddenly it was like he was in a creek or abandoned house, touching muck and ancient stone. He couldn’t let it bother him. He crawled forward and found the dark walls were covered in moisture. But the faster he got through it the faster he could find a way out and hopefully find his father.
Feeling more like a rat he scurried down the brick pipe as fast as he could, closing his eyes despite the lack of light and trying hard to not breathe in the cool, stinky odors coming from ahead of him. He scurried faster, his knees getting wetter, trying to get through the horrible stench. The cape he was less concerned about. For several minutes he crawled through the pipes, contemplating still if this was a nightmare. It sure felt like it. After several curves in the pipes, he saw a light and hurried fast, his knees becoming sore.
The light came from a crack in the water pipe. He held his breath when he came to it, peeking inside. The smell was the first thing he noticed, which was stronger than before and was like his grandmother’s breath after surgery. The second thing was the bright, crackling flames that blinded him. A room was below the pipes, veiled behind cobwebs (he hoped they were cobwebs and not spiderwebs…) Inside the torch-lit room Cody discovered what was causing the smell. It was an ancient lab of some kind, somewhat like the school labs but much older, filled with vials, worn leather books, some ancient looking machinery, and various glass jars, each one filled with a grotesque creature, long since dead. But his attention was narrowed to the back of the room and nothing else seemed to matter. Standing by a round table containing several gems and a large book was a man, a much older man than even his grandfather, who, now that he thought about it, had been long dead as well.
Cody’s eyes grew wide when he realized the man was the grand wizard Phaeton. This was the man that had been trying to ruin his life. The one man that affected his life more than his father. And he was a cripple. The wizard was using the table to keep himself upright. He was barely doing a good job of it either. The man’s face was wrinkled and saggy like a deflated balloon to the point where his cheeks nearly stretched below his chin, if his chin wasn’t also drooping. Bags under his eyes were so dark they almost appeared to be his own eyes, black and soulless, and his eyelids drooped as well. He appeared drowsy just from his decrepit facial features. But besides his physical appearance he was also shaking uncontrollably like his muscles were giving out and his head bobbed like a toy. How pathetic. Cody could easily take him. But he wouldn’t be that stupid.
Another option would be to continue down the disgusting pipe but they could lead anywhere. He shuddered to think what could be waiting further into this place, wherever he was. Clearly this wasn’t his kitchen or his house. Had Phaeton achieved his evil goals and transported this dungeon from Paralaya? Suddenly everything became a mystery. The outside world might have been transformed as well. Earth itself might have been replaced with this other Paralaya dimension. He shuttered again, considering everything he had known might be gone. But then he saw them. Not everything was gone. He saw the tether objects, his personal objects, sitting on a table. Each item had a little raised platform as if they were displayed at a museum.
Gems and crystals clanked on the table as Phaeton struggled to read the pages in front of him, squinting and pointing at each line. He tried to grab a crystal but could barely focus and kept missing like an old man trying to grab a TV remote. Around the chamber there were plenty of places to hide, shelves, dusty corners, tables. With Phaeton practically blind Cody could easily slip down, grab them, and go find his father. He cringed at the thought. There was no telling how big this place was or even if his father was here or sent to another dimension entirely.
Screw it. Time was slipping away. He cautiously spun his body around and lowered himself down the brick wall and into the chamber below. There was the soft tap of his shoes and the squishy slap of the wet cape hitting the ground. Cody turned, swatting at the cobwebs, and saw that Phaeton was still distracted by the book. His heart was beating faster when he made his way around the dark part of the room, to the left side. There was a gap between the wall and table where the tethers were. Enough space to hide and use his tiny hands to grab them. They were just sitting there, out in the open. His red ball would be the hardest to nab. The journal, gum wrapper, shark necklace, and watch would be easy. He could use the ball as a weapon if he needed to…
“You shouldn’t have left your cage, guardian.” That voice…. It was painfully familiar. Cody turned to Phaeton, thinking it had come from the wizard but the wizard licked his finger and continued reading. “If only you had stayed as obedient as when we first spoke. But now –“
A gauntleted hand grabbed Cody by the shoulder and turned him around to face the doorway by the table. The hooded face of his brother stared back, dark circles around his eyes like Phaeton behind them. He didn’t recognize Aaron with the full suit of black armor and strangely cocked eyes. He was taller and angrier than he had ever been before.
“–your body will be a tomb for your mind.”
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