From Fear & Fury

By Clarissa Clarke

Curiosity catches Alec by the nose and transports him far, far from home.
Book Two focuses on the ever-curious and ever-arguing Alec. He's on his way to superstardom, though it depends who you ask.
There’s a nasty doorknob, a stick city, and a traitorous beast. The scorpions try to snap, Alec plays football, there’s a nasty king. Aleena solves mysteries, Verity is invisible, Alec doesn’t bleed. There’s a daring rescue, a way with rock, and a pink horse that doesn’t believe. There’s also the Light - the only thing powerful enough to set them free.
Oh ... and Timarune wants his spot back. (It's a long story).

It's a high-flying, fear-fighting adventure to find a pendant piece!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Clarissa Clarke
• Release date: May 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9780991653461

Book preview

Chapter 1: Shine

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It wasn’t until Aleena whispered, He’s awake, that he finally opened his eyes—and screamed.

Eyeballs swiveled every which way, looking for the source of Alec’s fear.

You can’t wear those now!

I like them.

Ignoring Aleena’s pouting, Verity continued. Do you want Mom to take them away, or do you want to keep them?

Keep them, Aleena grumbled.

They’d had this conversation twice already. That didn’t mean Aleena liked the idea of having to hide her glasses.

She’ll just take them away.

But she likes the stuff I find.

Yeah, but we got this stuff from the bad guys, Verity reminded her. Mom doesn’t know we went, and she’d be really upset if she did.

She didn’t tell us not to go, Aleena pointed out.

Because she didn’t know we were going.

Because we didn’t tell her.

Because she would have told us we couldn’t go!

Arguing with Aleena was exhausting, and Verity needed a break. Fortunately, that was the moment Aleena bent over Alec (for the fourth time) to see if he was awake.

Heart pounding, Alec decided that being scared first thing in the morning was not an experience he wanted to repeat. Ever.

I closed the door when I peed this morning. Still leaning over him, Aleena thought he would appreciate this information.

Verity was giving him her studious look. Me too. Are you okay?

Pushing his covers off and sitting up on the cot, Alec said, I’m fine. Just … how long have you guys been up? He noticed that they were already dressed and, since Aleena no longer had traces of chocolate around her mouth, possibly washed.

Fourteen hours, Aleena told him.

Verity shrugged and added, We already ate, but there’s more for you.

Why don’t they fold? He studied the glasses Aleena sat on the bed. What are you supposed to do, wear them all the time?

Aleena rubbed her forehead before saying, They make my head hurt.

He didn’t need to be a genius to know she hadn’t told her sister that. Watching her fiddle with the glasses, he repeated something his spirit said.

They’re not for you. They weren’t made for you.

At first he thought she was going to pout, but instead she bunched her eyebrows and continued listening.

I tried on my grandma’s glasses, and after a few minutes they made my eyes ache. Aunt Pam said that was because the glasses made it harder for my eyes to do their job. But they help my grandma’s eyes work better.

Aleena looked down at the glasses. So they don’t help my eyes work better?

Shaking his head, Alec said, I don’t know. Your eyes work perfectly now. The glasses help them work in a different way.… But it’s not your eyes that ache.

She was rubbing her forehead again. With a sigh and a shrug she went back to her fiddling. Putting one hand on each arm, she pulled. Alec opened his mouth to tell her they would break, but he watched in amazement as they flattened out.

Aleena laughed and kept pulling, stretching the glasses as if they were a rubber band. When she released them, they snapped back to their regular size, and disappeared.

Alec chose to panic. Verity, distracted by the sudden movement, crawled closer to see what was going on.

Aleena held out her right hand, displaying a circular disc: bright green in color and covered with sparkles.

Ha! Verity picked it up and flipped it over. After two tries, she found the small bump she was looking for. Aleena’s finger snaked out and pushed it, after which she squealed in delight and hung her new necklace around her neck.

Amazing, Alec said, shaking his head. And I’m trying hard not to be jealous, he added, now staring at the necklace Verity wore. It was the color—a mesmerizing blue that shimmered when it moved—that attracted him to it. A single word stood out on the pendant: shine.

Isn’t it great? She held it up for approval. I pushed a little bump back here and this chain popped out.

He saw the bump on the back of the pendant and recognized the shiny silver disc. That’s the starie?

She nodded excitedly. The key clicks on the front. This is my sticker, she added, pointing to the ‘shine’.

Amazing, he said, flopping back on the bed with a laugh. We are amazing.

To prove his point, memories from that morning filled his mind. He recalled the portal ride through the Entosh realm, the pendant piece they collected, the discovery that Aleena could fly.… And then there was the journey home.

Chapter 2: Whirring, Whizzing, Whooshing

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Earlier that morning.…

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Fresh air, Verity sighed, exhaling and inhaling with bliss. Sprawled on her back, enjoying the surprisingly soft grass and soaking in the sun, she could hear Alec turning pages next to her.

Did they find our portal? he asked Aleena. The one that led to the exit?

You woke me up.

Verity poked her sister. We just got here. You can’t be asleep.

Alec heard her squeak and came to see what she was staring at. Bizarre, he said, waving his hand in front of Aleena’s face. Four eyeballs followed his movement. The eyeballs on top (for they were arranged in pyramid formation) were closed.

Verity shuddered. It doesn’t look natural.

It’s not natural. Do you think she knows the other ones are still moving?

Aleena’s eyes flew open, causing Verity and Alec to sit back, startled. They didn’t find it, she told Alec with a yawn. They’re still searching.

Twisting like a pretzel, Verity tried to see behind Aleena’s glasses. Close your eyes, she directed.

For once, without protesting, Aleena did as she was told.

They’re closed.

But not here, Alec said, understanding the experiment. The two extra eyeballs in each eye socket were still open—only the top ones were closed.

So those are her real eyes. How does she see if her real eyes are closed?

Turning back to his maps, Alec shrugged. I think we have a little extra time, since they didn’t find our last portal. Doesn’t mean they won’t find it.

He flipped pages nonchalantly, but his comment caused Verity to snap to attention.

Right. So I’ll make a portal home. Any idea—

Alec held up his hand to stop her. Actually, I think it’s this one. See … it has a cavern with five tunnels leading out of it. I haven’t found that on any of the other maps, and I’ve done thirty-seven.

But that cavern wasn’t connected to our exit tunnel. Was it? She turned to ask Aleena, who shook her head even though her eyes were closed. Maybe it’s not even part of the same map.

Alec groaned. I said a little extra time. We’ve still got to get home, remember?

I’ve got an idea. Aleena … Aleena.… Verity addressed the open eyeballs. Do you wanna help me see if there’s a number on the cave? It’s a mystery.…

Dun, dun, dun, Aleena said, eyes flying open.

Why didn’t we think of that before? Alec asked.

Verity and Aleena sprinted for the cluster of rocks hiding the entrance to the Entosh realm. A few minutes later they were racing back, voices ringing in the air.

We found it! they shouted. Seventy-two.

Seventy-two? It felt weird to talk out loud, and he had to clear his throat a few times to get rid of all the croaks. Seventy-two is.… He flipped to the very last map and counted back three. Okay. So how do I know what entrance—

Verity snatched the book from him. She and Aleena began tapping triangle after green triangle on the world map, racing to see who could find the number first.

How’d I forget about that? Alec asked himself as he lay back on the grass.

He’d just closed his eyes when Aleena yelled, Got it!

Alec rolled over to see where they were. Uh-uh, he said, closing his eyes again. Not possible.

Verity studied him, then the book. Why not? It’s the right number.

We live over here. He placed a finger on the map. That’s the Netherlands, he said, shaking his head. When did we cross an entire ocean?

The tunnels go everywhere, Aleena said. Your book says so.

"They are portals. Verity nodded. They bend space and time, she continued, mostly to herself. I think that’s how Reetbe said it."

Makes it faster, Aleena clarified.

Alec recalled his conversation with Harmony. You know, I was wondering why it only takes a couple of minutes to walk to my house through a portal. And I heard you ask your mom if it could go faster.… He turned to look at Verity.

Reetbe’s hiding it from me, Verity grumbled. I think it’s a different kind of portal.

"So we don’t know how to make a time portal … but that would explain how we got here." His gaze swept a meadow dotted