The Rise of the Earth by Jeanette and Myrna (good books to read for teens txt) 📖

if he could have a word with her after he put her sister down. When Lux turned around and saw Caliga’s pale face she ran over and asked what happened. As Ryan tried to explain what happened, Lux’s eyes grew wide and told him to wake up Thalia and they all had to get out of the room. He could tell from her voice that it was urgent.
Unfortunately Thalia was in no mood to be up before the sun had fully risen.
‘LET ME SLEEP RYAN!’ she shouted and aimed a random punch which hit him straight in the arm. Ryan wasn’t too happy about that but he kept on trying to wake her up anyway.
‘That’s it!’ Ryan shouted while pulling his unwilling sister out of her bed and dragging her out of the room. It was just after they closed the door when Lux told them not to go back in there until night.
‘Why what’s wrong?’ Thalia asked while rubbing her eyes and giving a quick punch in the arm to her brother for waking her up so early.
‘It doesn’t matter as long as you don’t go in there.’ Lux looked down to the ground as if she was hiding something.
Ryan wouldn’t take no answer so he went to open the door but when his hand neared the door handle, it was emanating heat. But to make it stranger, ice crystals started to form all around the door, sealing it shut.
‘Well, she did warn you.’ Thalia said while taking Lux to go get some breakfast, but Ryan was determined to get inside the room.
He tried all sorts of things, but every single time he got near the door or cracked a piece of ice off, more ice would appear and he would be hit with a huge black of wind. So our stupid and stubborn Ryan stayed by the door all day. Random people from the ship came to help, but the second they saw the door, turned right around and knew it wasn’t a good idea to get involved with this one. It was just around half six in the afternoon when Ryan tried one more time, but this time, all the ice broke away when he hit the door with the hammer he had been using. There was a cold blow of wind, but it was quite weak in strength, so Ryan walked straight in. Lux had just turned the corner then and shouted for Ryan not to go inside, but he had already gone inside and the door shut.
Inside was not something Ryan expected to see. There was ice everywhere, in every corner. He looked around the room, surprised that Caliga was still in the same spot as she had been when they had left, even though she was in a box of ice. However, when he walked up to her and said her name, the ice box melted and she lit on fire. And in one split second, Gaia’s face was in the flames, but she was trying to take over Acario’s body. Ryan looked surprised for a bit but then he realised what Gaia was doing and attacked her. Gaia jumped back in surprise from the large sword that was swinging towards her face. She let go of Caliga and the flames dyed down a bit. Gaia turned to face Ryan and moaned,
‘What the hell are you doing here?’
‘I’m just looking around...’ Ryan answered
‘It’s not nice to stick your nose into other people’s business,’ Gaia moved up closer to Ryan and whispered in his ear, ‘Your mom was no exception.’ A dark smile spread across her face as she moved slowly backwards just so she could take a good look at Ryan’s stunned face. ‘You really don’t think your dad would hate me so much for nothing do you? Such a naive little boy. And just think, at this rate, Caliga, oh sorry I mean Acario, won’t exist for much longer, and it’s all thanks to you.’
‘Wait what?! What the hell did you do to my mum, and who is Caliga?’ Ryan shouted
‘I guess you’ll have to ask Acario yourself.’ Gaia started to fade just as Ryan angrily charged at her screaming. But she disappeared laughing before he could reach her. And just as she disappeared, the room returned to normal and Caliga woke up.
‘Shit! My head.’ She complained as she sat up in bed, hands clutching her aching head.
Ryan walked straight up to her and yelled,
‘You have some questions to answer before I let you out of this room.’
‘Not now, leave me alone. I need some sleep.’ Caliga lied back down and turned around as so she didn’t have to see Ryan. But Ryan wouldn’t take no for an answer so he shouted,
‘What does Gaia have to do with my mum.’
‘Why would I know, and if I did, why would I tell you? It’s not like Gaia tells me everything, she just used my body.’ Acario complained
‘Then who the hell is Caliga?’ Ryan took a deep breath in and let it out.
Acario jumped out of bed the second that she heard the name. She raised her hand and all the water from the floor flew towards Ryan and pinned him to the wall.
‘Where did you hear that?’ Caliga hissed
‘I don’t have to tell you anything.’
Caliga was angry at this answer so she sprayed more ice on him. There was so much it was almost suffocating him, only his head wasn’t covered in ice.
‘I’ll ask you again once more nicely, where did you hear that name?’
Ryan knew that this wasn’t a battle that he could win this time so he told her if she let him go he would tell. Caliga agreed and melted the ice.
‘Damn I’m freezing cold now!’ Ryan complained as he ran to the bed and wrapped himself in the blankets.
‘Tell me now Ryan.’ Caliga’s foot started to nervously tapping and she twitched her fingers.
‘It was Gaia who told me. And now since I answered your question, answer some of mine.’
There was no response. Caliga just stood there wide eyed and she looked as if someone had just shot her. It was just then when Lux had finally opened the still frozen door and rushed over to her sister.
‘What in the Gods name did you do to her?!’ Lux screamed while trying to get her sister back to normal
‘Nothing, I just asked her something.’ Ryan stuttered, surprised at Lux’s fierceness.
‘What did you ask her?’ Lux asked
‘All I was ask who Caliga was.’ Ryan said defiantly, ‘I did nothing wrong here. It’s you guys who are keeping some very important secrets from us.’
Lux was too surprised when he said that. But she snapped back to after a few seconds and shouted,
‘There are some things that people want to keep secrets. I’m sure you have at least one as well. Oh dear Gods what the hell did you do.’ Lux sat her sister down on a chair. ‘Get out now!’
Ryan got up and walked straight out of the room and shouted, ‘Man, you both have anger issues don’t you?’
‘You don’t understand a thing about us!’ Lux screamed, while crying for her sister to come back.
‘Lux?’ Caliga finally said
‘Shhhh, don’t waste your energy. Just go to sleep.’ Lux whispered while patting her sister’s hair when she laid down.
‘She told him. It’s out, they’ll all find out. Oh my Gods Lux, I gotta get out of here. They’ll all hate me.’ Acario was shaking.
‘They didn’t find out, they never will. Now just go to sleep.’
‘I’m such an idiot to not think that they would find out.’ Caliga started to cry and Lux stormed out of the room to go find Ryan.
It didn’t take long for Lux to find him because he was waiting outside with Thalia.
‘WHY DID YOU GO INO THE ROOM WHEN I TOLD YOU NOT TOO?!’ Lux screamed at him.
‘You can’t keep us in the dark forever, so you might as well tell us now. And don’t say this doesn’t involve us, ‘cause it does. It has something to do with our mother.’ Ryan said defiantly.
Lux looked around worried, as if she was looked to see if someone was there. She opened the door to make sure that Caliga was sleeping when she told them that she would tell them, but not there, they needed a safe place where she wouldn’t be overheard. But the only agreement was that she wouldn’t tell Ryan, only Thalia. Ryan, of course, refused and insisted that he hear it as well, but all Lux did was shake her head and say,
‘My sister doesn’t want you to hate her.’
Ryan pleaded so much that Lux gave in, but he had to promise that once he heard it that he wouldn’t tell Caliga that he knew, Thalia too.
So they went to a quite room where no one was near, Lux put a protective barrier around it just in case someone walked past and over hear.
‘Are you going to tell us or what?’ Ryan complained.
‘You two might want to sit down for this one.’ Lux explained. She took a deep breath in and started.
‘Acario wasn’t always like this. She used to be normal, and used to act like a girl. And Caliga is her real name. Acario is just a cover up.’
Ryan and Thalia’s mouths dropped open in surprise, and Lux continued.
‘ It all started 5 years ago...’

________________________

‘CALIGA! WHERE ARE YOU?’ Lux shouted, as she ran around the trees looking for her. ‘Aunt says it’s time for our lessons.’
‘I’m right here!’ A voice called from the tree behind her. Mud steps arose from the ground and out of the tree came 11 year old Acario, except, she was wearing a dress and had long hair, and she wasn’t Acario, but herself, Caliga.
‘I’ve been looking for you for ages Caliga!’ Lux complained as she tried to catch her breath from running so much.
‘I was just enjoying watching the people pass by our villa. I wish we were allowed outside, it looks like so much fun.’ Caliga sighed.
‘If I let you out you’d probably disappear for good, and I don’t want you too, you’re all mine.’ A kind voice said from behind them.
‘Aunt!’ they both shouted.
‘Caliga, where have you been this whole time? You’ve had me and the maids worried about you this whole time!’ The twin’s aunt gave her a light tap on the head.
‘Sorry, I was just in that tree there.’ Caliga pointed to the tree.
‘What am I going to do with you two?’ She laughed and walked back towards the villa, ‘Oh it’s lunch time girls. And you have a lesson soon Caliga so go and quickly eat so otherwise you’ll be late, again. And I can’t have an impatient teacher waiting around the house for you.’
‘Yes Aunt.’ Caliga replied while daring her sister to a race to see who can get inside faster.
‘But you always win...’ Lux complained,
‘That’s because you’re too slow. Think of this as training.’ She smiled a mischievous grin as the twins got ready to race. But of course, Caliga won as usual.
Lux complained a bit but they both just laughed it off in the end as they went to the kitchen to ask the cook for something to eat.

Later on that evening the two were back outside, lying in the field behind the house, staring at the stars.
‘I wish I could go on a long adventure. One that includes going outside of the villa.’ Caliga said
‘Good luck with that, we aren’t ever going anywhere. Aunt said that normal people without