Chapter 3 - From Birth to Middle School (Part 2)

Carmen was about to reveal everything to Lexi when they heard a commotion by the door. Mrs. McMillan and Carmen looked at each other. They had a hunch that their greatest fear had finally come true. Endera’s henchmen from Czarnae Tribe may have finally reached the third realm. Carmen and Mrs. McMillan were not certain whether the people by the door were Endera’s henchmen.

The dwellers of the different realms possessed a unique aura that only the Czarnaens could differentiate. Carmen tried her best to conceal their aura, and she was certain that no one would be able to detect them, not even the Czarnae Tribe Chief.

Mrs. McMillan had the ability to create dimensional arrays that she could control. She kept the library hidden in an array so no one could see it. However, the ones who were in the library could clearly see the happenings outside. Carmen and Lexi were the only ones who could see the library and go there freely. Lexi had no idea that no one else could see the library, and it was the reason why she was its only visitor.

“Madam, who are they? Are they from Czarnae Tribe? Did Endera find out?” There was worry in Mrs. McMillan’s voice.

Carmen kept observing through the window. “I’m not sure. But, I don’t think they can sense us here if they are the Czarnaens under Endera.”

The ones outside the library looked like ordinary people. The Czarnaens had black skin and black sclera. They had bright yellow irises and fiery orange hair. Carmen was not sure whether the ones outside just happened to be there or searching for them. What was puzzling was that they seemed to be looking for something – as if they knew that a library was there.

“There’s nothing here. Are you sure that you detected the disturbance here?” One of the men asked. He was a burly man holding a big machete in his left hand. He had an imposing aura and seemed to be the leader of the group.

“I’m positive!” The skinny man confirmed, and he sounded annoyed with the way he was being questioned. He dared not voice out his discontent in front of the burly man.

“Humph, there’s obviously nothing here! Commander, we are just wasting time here. It’s best to move out.” The rest of the group agreed to the suggestion of the man wearing a black mask.

Carmen could see them from the library. She was trying to figure out the identity of the strangers. They did not seem to be Endera’s minions. Carmen seemed to recall meeting the man wearing a black mask before, but she could not remember clearly.

Ever since they arrived in the third realm, Carmen noticed that her memory seemed to be fading slowly. Her real name was not Carmen, and she just assumed the identity of the woman whom she helped in the alley. She only twisted the story a bit, but all the involved people were true. It was her who was pregnant back then and not the woman she helped.

The real Carmen had her days numbered. She had no family. When she was about to die, she gave Lexi’s biological mother her identity and left all of her assets to the mother and child. Mrs. McMillan had not known the real name of Carmen since she only called her madam all her life.

“Mom, do you know who those men are? Are they looking for something? We should go out and help them.” The young Lexi tugged at her mother’s sleeves as she tried to run toward the door.

“No, Lexi!” Carmen almost got dragged by Lexi’s sudden movement. Even Mrs. McMillan was stunned at Lexi’s display of strength. Just a mere child, and yet she was able to yank Carmen.

Mrs.McMillan tried to increase the barrier within the library to prevent Lexi from going out. Carmen blew some soporific dust to make Lexi fall asleep. The young girl stopped on her tracks and decided to lie down. Lexi had fallen asleep almost immediately.

“Madam, this is bad. The young miss’ power seemed to have awakened.”

“No, it’s not yet time for her power to manifest. The abnormality may have been triggered by the presence of those men. But, who are they?”

“Madam, do you think that someone is trying to awaken the power of the young miss?”

“Hmm, it is possible. Quickly, help me suppress it for now until the proper time comes. No one from the Ninth Realm must trace Lexi’s presence.”

The two women gave everything they got to stop the awakening of Lexi’s power. Carmen did everything she could to hide the truth from her daughter. She did not mention to Mrs. McMillan about her plan to completely forsake their identities. She knew that Lexi may not be able to live a peaceful life when Endera or Lucian traced them. She recalled something when she was about to lose hope.

“Mrs. McMillan listen carefully to what I’m about to tell you. Lucian once told me about the existence of the Imemorettis. They can track people from the Ninth Realm via their memories. If I remember correctly, the Imemorettis work for money. As long as they are satisfied with the payment, they will track down the person that the contractor wants them to trace. They can always capture the person when they locked onto his memories. I don’t know how they do it but they almost always catch their target.” Carmen looked at Mrs. McMillan with pleading, teary eyes.

Mrs. McMillan felt an ominous aura. She feared that Carmen may resort to erasing her own memories completely, and forget about the place where they originally belong. The madam was abandoning the master who could be under Endera’s spell already.

“Are you telling me that they can track you down because you have the memories of your existence in the Ninth Realm? What about me? If they can track you, madam, they will be able to find me too.”

Carmen shook her head. “No, they won’t be able to trace you. Endera thinks that you are already dead. She may not even think of the possibility that we are together in this place. The Imemorettis only track down the person that their contractor wants them to find.”

Mrs. McMillan fell silent. She could not think of any reason to contradict Carmen anymore. Carmen took a deep breath before uttering her wishes.

“I need you to erase my memories and make me believe the stories that I have told the others are true. Please help me live the lies I have created and turn them into absolute truths. This is the only way to save my daughter and you.”

“Madam, I can’t do that! What about the master, your husband?” Mrs. McMillan’s tears, which she had been trying to suppress, trickled down her cheeks.

Carmen saw it, and she tried to console and to convince Mrs. McMillan. She was left with no other option, but to make herself believe that they belonged to the Third Realm. As long as she kept remembering the Ninth Realm and Lucian, their enemies would find them soon.

For all she knew, her husband may have turned into someone else’s groom already. It was all too late. They had nothing to return to. It might as well better if she and her daughter could live in peace in the Third Realm.

“Mrs. McMillan, treat this as a friend asking you for help. I think it was Lucian who sealed parts of my memory. He knows that as long as I can remember anything related to the Ninth Realm, Endera’s minions will be able to locate us.”

“Are you certain about this?”

Carmen nodded.

“How about this library, should I make you forget about this too, including me?”

Soon, tears fell from Carmen’s eyes.

“Make me forget everything, but let Lexi come visit you often. I don’t think Endera, Lucian, or anyone who holds the power in the Ninth Realm will be able to recognize Lexi. I have covered her aura since she was young, and she had no memories of the Ninth Realm at all. They wouldn’t and shouldn’t know that she is my biological child.”

“But madam, I strongly feel that we will be able to get back to our real world soon.”

Carmen shook her head. “It’s still too early to say that we will be able to go back. Don’t hold much hope. Why don’t you just stay here?”

Mrs. McMillan looked at Carmen with the saddest pair of eyes.

********************

Three years had passed since the incident in the library. Lexi continued going there and meeting Mrs. McMillan, but Carmen never set foot in that library again. Lexi did not pester her to go together to Mrs. McMillan’s library.

“Mrs. McMillan, what do you call this?” The young Lexi was always curious and Mrs. McMillan was always ready to help her.

She gave Lexi a warm smile and taught her the things that she wanted to know. Her line of sight happened to land on the sealed door in the library. She looked at the young Lexi and shook her head.

‘It’s not a proper time yet. Let’s wait a bit more.’

At the end of the day, Lexi bid goodbye to Mrs. McMillan who was no longer taking the tonic for her skin. Carmen had completed her treatment, although the condition of her skin was beyond salvaging. Carmen’s memories were completely sealed off. Mrs. McMillan just couldn’t bear to erase them completely, although Carmen specifically told her to do so. However, sealing off the memories was as good as erasing them. She just hoped that nothing would trigger the unsealing.

“Mom, I don’t want to go to school. The library is already full of books that can teach me everything I need to know. I don’t need to go to school. Mrs. McMillan can teach me.”

“You keep mentioning this Mrs. McMillan, who is she?”

Lexi chuckled and found her mother’s remark ridiculous.

“You were the one who introduced her to me. She’s the librarian of the library in the woods.”

Carmen felt pain in her head as she tried to recall who Mrs. McMillan was. She felt she could trust the person and decided not to think much about it anymore. The pain she felt earlier began to subside.

“You still need to meet other people and interact with them.”

“But I already know many people,” Lexi answered while pouting her lips.

Carmen sat down and pointed at the chair next to her. Lexi obediently sat on the chair. She was a smart girl, and she already knew so many things. But, it was Carmen’s wish for her to grow up properly and be like any normal kid her age. Carmen knew that her daughter was gifted.

“When you go to school, there will be teachers who can guide you as you learn things.”

Lexi pleaded with her mother, but Carmen already made a firm decision. She sighed and agreed to Carmen’s wishes.

“Okay mom, I will listen to you.”

Lexi began going to school the following day. Everything should’ve been smooth if not for the boy named Clancy Brown. On the second day, he hid Lexi’s lunch box. On the third day, he took away her book. Almost every day, Clancy brought trouble to the young Lexi. Carmen remained oblivious of the bullying. Lexi did not say anything to Carmen.

“How was school?” Carmen suddenly asked her daughter one day.

She was afraid that Lexi could be having trouble trying to get along with her classmates. She was curious why Lexi did not mention anything about school ever since.

“It was fine.” It was all the Lexi said, and she gave her mother a sweet smile.

Her classmates knew the bullying, but none of them reported anything to the teachers. One of Lexi’s classmates even advised her that she should learn to keep everything to herself and not to trouble her mother.

Lexi did as she was told until the bullying got worse. Lexi was beaten beyond recognition after she hit Clancy with a shoe when he tried to take the handkerchief that Carmen embroidered for her. Lexi was taken to a hospital, and that was the only time that Carmen learned about the bullying. Lexi clenched her handkerchief and refused to hand it over. The staff in the hospital failed to take it away from her, even though she was already unconscious.

Carmen cried so hard that day. She looked at her daughter who was half-dead on the hospital bed.

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