“Um…” She flipped the hair out of her face from her braid that had begun to unravel. It seemed that the Virtual Reality geniuses got the annoying pieces of life correct too.

  Stephanie pressed her tongue against her molar, her mouth slightly open and her eyes narrowed. She tried to think of the best way to describe what she meant which was something of a challenge because she wasn’t used to people not understanding English slang. She was on someone else’s planet, though, so it only made sense that confusion would be the reaction.

  She put her hands out. “I wanted the flame to stay green. So, when it went red again, I didn’t like the result.”

  BURT wanted her to think the teacher in the system was the same. “And that is when it bit you?”

  Stephanie chuckled but almost immediately forced a straight face. “No, it didn’t bite me at all. When I said it bites, it means I didn’t like the outcome.”

  The teacher put his hands together. “So not that the flame bit you.”

  She shook her head. “Uh, no. I probably would have had more of an adverse reaction if the flame bit me.”

  The teacher nodded but his face still revealed some slight confusion. “We tend to be a straight-forward species when we talk about things like that.”

  Stephanie grinned and swung a leg back and forth. “Do you know many English idioms? We have a lot of them and even I get confused sometimes.”

  Immediately, BURT wanted to say yes and list the various English idioms compiled in his language database. A dime a dozen, beat around the bush, bite the bullet, break a leg, speak of the devil, and the list went on and on. However, he wasn’t about to answer that question as the digital equivalent to God. It would not be realistic and if she were ever to face a Meligornian in the flesh, she would surely struggle with that. They would have no idea what she was talking about and could even possibly take some of the idioms as a threat. For example, pull yourself together, costs an arm and a leg, wrap your head around something. Those could be completely confusing.

  As it was, he played a Meligornian who was supposed to be on his own planet. They would have zero idea of what she was talking about.

  “No,” he shook his head. “I don’t even speak English. We use a spell to converse at the moment.”

  Stephanie shaped her lips into an “o.” “Ohhh, okay. I didn’t even think about that. I guess that would make sense. My naivety played a role in that one. Or maybe my inability to think beyond myself. I didn’t even consider it when you began to speak English but I should have known. I have studied your planet and you have a very distinct and separate language. Only the higher officials and ArchMage tend to speak fluently in English. My apologies.”

  The teacher bowed peacefully. “Accepted. However, it might be worth your while to learn some of our customs and language. For example, when you approach a Meligornian, you place your right hand out, grip their forearm while you raise your left hand diagonally, fingers tight, and bow your head. If they are royal, you press your hands together and do not attempt to touch them. When the bow is complete, you raise your head and say, Kaitel Gorniffula. It is a gender-neutral greeting that in your language means blessed to meet you.”

  She bowed and stretched her hand out with the other held in front of her. “Kaitel Gorniffula.”

  He bowed too and took her arm. “Very good.”

  When she straightened, Stephanie bit the inside of her lip. “What if I need to discuss something of grave importance. How do I say that?”

  The teacher nodded and held his hands behind his back. “It is customary to always keep your hands latched behind your back when speaking casually. Then you would say, Hycenthia Overlum Hippoguard Alsuvia.”

  Stephanie pursed her lips and placed her hands behind her back. “Hycethia Overlum Hippoguard Alsuvia. That’s a lot to remember.”

  He chuckled. “It is. But with practice, you can learn the language. At the same time, though, there is a spell to turn the words spoken into the receiver’s preferred language. It is an advanced spell and you would need control over your magic. You can ask the other person, Engotish Preferatus Ingorna Discusio. This asks if they mind speaking in English.”

  Her eyes glazed slightly but she doubled her focus, determined to remember. “Engotish Preferatus Ingorna Discusio. I should have brought a note pad.”

  They both laughed. Stephanie repeated both phrases in a whisper. These would be important if she actually ever had the ability to go to Meligorn in real life. Even if she got to go there in the Virtual pods, actually, but that was about as unlikely as the first. “How about when it is time to say goodbye?”

  The teacher smiled. “This depends on whom you are speaking to. With an elder, you kiss the back of their hand. With a royal, you bow low with your hands pressed together. If it is a friend, you can repeat the initial greeting. As far as speech goes, you would say, Fortunata Elfortina Gratias. It means may fortune and thankfulness fill your souls.”

  Stephanie was taken back. “That is such a nice way to say goodbye. Humans usually simply say stuff like ‘later.’”

  M’rick tapped his fingers to his lips. “Oh, the really important one is thanking someone. We are a very thankful and grateful species. You say Hartuitus Baskilor. This is the equivalent to thank you so much.”

  She repeated, “Hartuitus Baskilor, M’rick.”

  He tilted his chin slightly and nodded. “Very good. And you are more than welcome. You catch on very quickly. Most humans taught in the Virtual World have a difficult time pronouncing the words, much less getting the specific tone of them correct. With your flames and your language, you may become a Meligorn one day.”

  Stephanie looked at the ground with a smirk. “I wish. That would be crazy, to say the least. Okay, so in one of my electives in school, I took French. Although a dying language, I always found it beautiful. My teacher told us that when learning a language, always learn to ask where the bathrooms are.”

  M’rick smirked. “You say bathroom as…bathroom. Meligornians do not secrete excrement in the way humans do. In fact, we do not at all. We only eat foods that can be completely consumed by our bodies. But, seeing as so many humans visit the world these days, we have built them for you.”

  She curtsied. “We are much obliged. Hartuitus Baskilor.”

  The teacher rubbed his hands together and looked around. “Let’s work on some other cantrips. What do you say?”

  Her eyes widened. “Yeah! Awesome!”

  He pulled the sleeves of his robes up and put his hands out, waist high and palm up. “I want you to watch first and then give it a try.”

  Stephanie nodded and held her hands behind her back. M’rick took a deep breath and spoke the words, “T’Figio Windustus Calimore Totafocus.”

  A small breeze fluttered around them and he flipped his hands so the palms now faced away from him. He said the words again and a burst of air fluttered from his hands and moved like a broom to almost clean a dirty and dusty rock in front of them. The color of the stone went from brown to sparkling emerald green. Her mouth fell open. “That’s awesome.”

  M’rick smirked. “Thank you. It’s my Shawasty’s favorite—that is the equivalent to a wife. Now, you try.”

  She found another similar stone and faced it to repeat the same motions. With her palms down, she spoke the words with intent. She flipped her hands to face the palms out and said the words again. For her, though, the air burst out and slammed into the rock to ricochet off and blow a huge ball of dust straight at her. It blew hard for several moments before it died down.

  Stephanie coughed and blinked uncomfortably. Chunks of dirt and dust drifted from her to the ground. She shook her body and dusted as much from her avatar as she could. M’rick raised an eyebrow. “One should learn to put up a dirt shield when playing with air.”

  Stephanie hadn’t realized that he didn’t get a bit of dirt on him. “One should—”

  She stopped herself when she remembered where she was. He pressed his lips together and looked down to hide an amused smile. “How about we try to make rain?”

  “At least I’ll be clean then,” she agreed with a shrug.

  The teacher bent and looked at a wilting flower. “We’ll start small.”

  He put his hand over the blossom and closed his eyes. “Huthera Magica Aqium.”

  A cloud emerged from his palm and rained on the flower. The bloom opened and waved back and forth in the water. He smiled at it and rubbed his finger at the base before he looked at Stephanie and nodded toward one at her feet. “You try. It’s very simple.”

  She felt a little more confident so she dropped onto one knee and held her hand over the flower. With her eyes closed, she repeated the words. Small drips of water fell from her palm and her eyes went wide. “I did it! I—”

  Suddenly, thunder clapped, and a steady stream of rain poured over her—only her—and one small cloud hovered above her. She lowered her eyelids and clenched her teeth as she stood slowly while water ran down her avatar face. M’rick watched with surprise and humor. Stephanie flicked a drop of water from her nose. “I don’t think I did it.”

  Another boom of thunder and a small lightning bolt flared and nipped her in the ass. She jumped and rubbed it as she tried to get away. M’rick couldn’t help but laugh as he raised his hand and waved the cloud away. “Perhaps something even smaller, and we’ll do it together.”

  Stephanie’s avatar dried quickly, and she stepped beside him. He put his palm out. “Hand out. Wave the other over it and repeat the words after me. Gr’Thoreus Enlistuous Profoundus.

  She swallowed hard and complied, then watched with excitement as an Earth rose formed in the palm of her hand, swirled, and slowly opened. M’rick’s flower was beautiful too, something from his planet. As her hand opened, a butterfly emerged, spread its wings, and fluttered off. Stephanie giggled as she lowered her hand and the flower disappeared. “That was much nicer.”

  M’rick agreed. “Is there anything that you specifically would like to learn?”

  Stephanie thought about it, her fingers clasped in anticipation. She looked at the landscape once more and finally focused on the clear green pond. “I would love to learn how to walk on water. I always wanted to take a stroll across the oceans.”

  M’rick raised an eyebrow. “Well, the oceans might be a bit much. What about a puddle to start with?”

  She jogged over to the pond. “How about the pond?”

  He looked hesitant. “This can be difficult to master. I—”

  Stephanie shrugged. “How much more wet could I get? I got this. Trust me.”

  The teacher joined her with both eyebrows raised. “If you wish. The first thing you will want to do is center your chest. You must feel the energy flow from your heart. Then, when you are calm, you say the words while you raise your leg and step out onto the water. Make sure to keep your concentration. The words are…”

  M’rick centered himself with his chin high and eyes closed. “Oke’Trall Alu Ae Eldilie.”

  She watched in wonder as he stepped out onto the pond and walked to the center and back, exactly as if he walked on land. His arms swayed from side to side and fish-like creatures jumped and dove around him. The glowing life beneath the surface swirled wildly below him and created a light show.

  She was so ready for this. With her chin high and eyes closed, she spoke the words. “Oke’Trall Alu Ae Eldilie.”

  Stephanie raised one foot and as it touched the surface of the water, her eyes flew open in excitement. She was walking on the water as if it were made of glass. She stepped again and giggled at the fish that swam wildly around her feet. Exhilarated, she stepped again and again and made it to the center of the pond where she stopped and put her hands out to her sides. “Look, I did it!”

  M’rick gestured in warning, a look of concern on his face. “Steady. Keep your focus.”

  She nodded and looked at her feet but frowned when she saw a large brown animal swimming in circles around her. It didn’t stay still long enough for her to see what it was. As she leaned closer and bent her knees, she gasped. The creature opened its bright red eyes and splashed water in her face. With her sudden inability to keep her focus, she looked at M’rick in panic and dropped into the water.

  He hurried to the edge where he peered at the surface for a moment, unable to see her swimming. Suddenly, the animal splashed again and used his tail to slap her up and out of the water. She landed on the bank and bounced on her shoulder. M’rick patted her back when she coughed. “Maybe we should have taken that one a little slower.”

  Stephanie turned onto her back. “That was a little freaky. Maybe slower, yeah.”

  BURT spoke in her ear. “Be careful or you might fry the AI and the whole system. I think your chances at a place in the prep school may go down significantly if you break it.”

  She shook her head, panting, and sat up. “Unless I break myself first.”

  Chapter Ten

  It still seemed utterly crazy that she could stand there as her avatar and still feel like she was soaking wet. She could feel every drop of water, the cold in the tips of her fingers, and the water that slushed in her boots. M’rick held his palms toward her and blew a stream of hot air in her direction. She closed her eyes and wrinkled her nose as she stood there with her arms out. Her clothes began to dry, her hair was no longer dripping, and she could feel the warmth all over.

  When he was done, she shook his hand. “Hartuitus Baskilor.”

  The sun had begun to turn the dark, sparkling sky to light purple again and she could hear birds around them. She tapped her finger to her lips. “I have another question. What—”

  BURT spoke quickly. “It is time to go. We cannot go over the time period and risk your acceptance.”

  Stephanie’s shoulders sagged. M’rick walked over and bowed, one hand up as the other grasped her arm. She did the same and felt the energy pass through them. They spoke in unison. “Fortunata Elfortina Gratias.”

  When Stephanie looked up, he had faded away and only the sense of his magic still lingered around them. She took one last look at the Meligorn landscape and the illusion shifted and sped past like it had when she had created her avatar. She was flung back to her seat on the bench in the park on earth. It was as if no time had passed but she had learned so much. She was sad to finish. The truth was, she brimmed with questions. There were so many things she wanted to know but she had run out of time.

  “Did you enjoy your session?” BURT asked

  She sighed. “I did. I wish I could have stayed forever. I wanted to ask about their history and their culture. Do they have political differences like we do here? Do they have economic differences that hinder the education of the young Meligorn kids like we do? So many things.”

  BURT was impressed by the type of questions she wanted to ask. She’d had her fun learning the magic that most humans couldn’t even dream of completing. But beyond that, she actually had an intelligent thought process about their lives. It was incredibly interesting to see a human with those types of insights at such a young age.

  Stephanie’s hands dropped to her lap and she looked around. The park was the same but she was a lot less amazed by its beauty. Meligorn would always be the choice of parks for her. The magical essence she felt when she walked the beautiful landscape and spoke to the native people of that planet was incomparable. People on Earth had believed for so long that they were alone in the Universe or that they would be the superior race of beings, no matter what. Of course they thought that way—they always had and took it to so many levels. Civil Rights, Gay Rights, Women’s Rights…they always found a way to make someone more superior than someone else. It was stuck in their selfish DNA.

  But after the hours Stephanie had sat and read about the planet and their people, the videos she’d watched, and having gone there in the pod, she was sure that Earth and the way they treated their people were far from superior to anyone else. The only thing that often separated them from Dreth pirates was that they killed and suppressed in a nice suit with smiles on their faces.

  BURT interrupted her train of thought. “Tell me about your family.”

  She was surprised and slightly irritated. When she had come for the testing, she hadn’t thought she would have to share the private details of her life with a perfect stranger. Still, if this would help her get into the prep school with a good scholarship, she would do it. “My parents have a cleaning and restoration company. They do what the government doesn’t have time to get to for the rich people. It makes them enough to pay the subsidized-housing costs, keep food on the table, and have small things like holiday gifts and birthday parties. Other than that, we live very simply.”

  “And your friends?”

  Stephanie’s gaze wandered and she crossed her legs and kicked one foot uncomfortably. “My best friend is named Todd. We’ve known each other a long time. I’m quiet and reserved enough to skim under the radar and he is more outspoken. I have other friends, but we are focused on school. Well, at least I am. Why all these personal questions?”

  “There is one important question I would like you to answer. I thought knowing your background would help me understand,” he explained.

  She narrowed her eyes. “And what question is that?”

  BURT was silent for a moment. “Why are you so adamant about your future with the pods? Why try so hard for something with such a small statistical chance of success?”

  Stephanie thought about that question. There were many routes she could go in answering it. She could give the collegiate response, the professional response, or she could simply be honest. At that point, she really didn’t see any reason to bullshit.