[Half/Time 02] Twice Upon a Time by James Riley

Author:James Riley
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: YA
ISBN: 9781416995968
Publisher: Aladdin
Published: 2012-04-24T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 23

Jack bubbled into existence just in time for something hard to slam into him, sending him smashing into what felt like vertical pillars of coral.

All the water whooshed from Jack’s lungs, and he glanced up to see… nothing, since it was completely dark.

“Buh?” Jack said when he could breathe.

“Jack?” a certain familiar prince said.

“Phillip?!” Jack shouted. “What was that for?!”

“I was attempting to break free of this cell!” Phillip said. “Why would you choose to appear directly in front of me?!”

“You’re right,” Jack said, shaking his head. “I’ll know better than to do that next time.” He glanced around, barely able to make out the prince, but nothing else. “You’re sure we’re in a cell?”

“Yes. My eyesight has adjusted, and I explored a bit before you showed up. Unfortunately, the coral is strong, so I weakened it as much as I could by picking away at it, then—”

“Then kicked off the wall, right into me,” Jack finished. “Great plan, up until the part where you almost knocked me out. Where’s May?”

Phillip gasped. “The princess was taken as well?! Jack, you were supposed to protect her once I was removed from the situation!”

“How could I have been so stupid, not to realize that?” Jack said. “Seriously, put that genius mind of yours on a better way of getting out of here than hitting the bars really hard, ’cause it’s just wasted analyzing all my mistakes. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!”

“Perhaps your sword?” Phillip said.

Jack stopped, blushing hard, glad the prince couldn’t see him. But after a quick reach to his back and finding no sword, Jack thankfully switched back to sarcasm. “Oh, fantastic idea! It’d help if they hadn’t taken it from me!”

“It would appear that we are trapped here, then.”

“Either that,” Jack said, sitting down on the coral floor, “or fed to sharks. We’ll know either way in an hour.”

“An hour?” Phillip said, punching his hand. “We do not have much time to escape and rescue the princess, then.”

“Let’s hope your escaping skills are as good as your grasp of time measurements,” Jack told him, feeling around on the ground. Somehow the coral floor grew right into the walls, as there wasn’t even a seam.

“Perhaps we could get help,” Phillip suggested as he picked away at the bars. “Perhaps we could find this mermaid princess, the one her mermaid sisters mentioned.”

“Oh, I’m sure she’s coming along at any second,” Jack told him. “I bet she’ll randomly show up here and poke her head in these bars to chat. ’Cause that’s so likely to happen.” He rolled his eyes. “Your grasp of reality frightens me sometimes.”

“Speaking of reality,” Phillip said, his tone darkening, “I believe it is time to explain to me how the Eye speaks to you in your dreams.” Jack just grunted, so the prince continued. “Stories say that the Eyes typically kill the strong but infect the minds of the weak-willed in order to better control the populace.”

“Do those stories have a twist ending?” Jack asked, his anger rising.

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