My internal weird-o-meter was sounding off in my head. This is so not normal, I thought. It wasn’t even in the grasp of normal. Last time I had checked, I couldn’t shoot light out of my hands. 

     When I looked up from the singed yard, Desma was smiling. Not as if she found anything funny, but in an “I know something you don’t know” kind of way. “So. Are we just going to stand out here in the sun or what?” Desma asked me. Jonathan glanced at her like she wasn’t supposed to have said that. 

     “My mom might be home you know,” I stated. 

     Desma smiled again. This time as if I humored her. “How’s that? Her automobile isn’t here.” Automobile? Who says that anymore? 

     Jonathan stepped up and said “your mother gets home at approximately 5:30 on Fridays… unless my information is wrong.” He was right. She usually got home from the office at 6:30 Monday through Thursday, but on Fridays she got off an hour early. How did he know? “It would be nice to get out of this heat though.” 

     I reluctantly got out my house key and opened the door. It’s not like I had any say on what was going on anymore. Jonathan walked in after me and Desma after him. I closed the door behind us. He went straight to the table, apparently knowing exactly where it was located. The three of us sat down and Jonathan started talking. 

     “By now you must have noticed that you are not like everyone else here in this world. The fact of the matter is that you are a witch.” I began to say something but he motioned for me to let him continue. “You are not just any witch though, Destiny. You have the soul of the Wiccan world’s greatest hero, Catharine, who fought against the tyrant Omega several hundred years ago. She had an aptitude for the craft, which explains why you can already summon psi-energy.” He paused, perhaps contemplating his next words. I took this time to ask him what he was talking about. 

     “But witches don’t exist,” I said, trying to find the logic in things. 

     Desma sat up closer to the table and said “you ask this when you’ve just shot light out of your hands?” She had a point. 

     Jonathan gently held up his hand. “Let me go on.” I sat back in my chair. “There is an abundance of natural power built up inside of you. For this reason I had to remove the block in your brain keeping you from using your magical abilities--” I opened my mouth to question, but he said “—which I will explain later” before I could say a thing. He continued “, now that your powers are free to flow, you will undoubtedly find yourself in quite a predicament if you remain untrained in the craft. 

     “Which brings me to my conclusion: we need to take you to a place where freely teach you how to master your gifts.” 

     What is he talking about? I wondered. I remained silent since I had been shushed the last few times I said—or tried to say-- something. Jonathan was looking down at his hands, which were joined together elegantly. After a somewhat reluctant sigh he said “, Destiny” he paused, emphasizing my name. “You will need to go away from here— away from this world.” What other ‘worlds’ are there? “In the next few hours we have before your mother arrives back here we introduce you to a world of which you never knew existed. Once you have seen it I will have you make a decision, but only at the end of the trip. All I ask of you is that you keep an open mind and remember that the people there can help you in ways that no one here can even begin to.” 

     Suddenly, there was a roaring whistle of a jet engine outside. It shook the house slightly, making the cups and dishes in the kitchen cabinets rattle. Desma lifted the sleeve of her jacket to reveal a rather expensive looking watch. She got up from her seat and opened the blinds in front of the sink. “He’s here,” she said musically as she walked out the door. Jonathan fallowed and so did I. At first I saw nothing. Then, by some unnatural means, a plane appeared feet away from me. I stayed on the porch with my mouth gaping open in what was probably a very unattractive manner. Desma walked over to the rear of the plane and stared up at the bottom. “Open up, Abe!” she called. Nothing happened. “Open up!” she repeated. “Hey—,” she started again, knocking against one of the landing gears. 

     A muffled voice came from inside. The words were undistinguishable and spoken with annoyance. I heard a few clicks and then the belly of the plane opened up and let down a flight of stairs. A slender man lumbered out of the aircraft. My guess was that he was Abe. He had brown hair which he had neatly combed back and strong facial features that complemented his overall appearance. “I heard ya the first time, darn it,” he grumbled. Abe turned in my direction. As soon as he noticed me he light up. “Well I’ll be,” he grinned. He walked towards me and Jonathan who was standing next to me. “Why Jonathan, it’s really her. By God, this is amazing. By God.” Abe walked up to me, beaming and clasped my hands in his.  He smiled and said “, I been waiting sometime for you. We all have. E’rybody’s so exited back home.” He let go of my hands. “Ta think: I get to fly you over on yur first trip to Atlantis.” 

     “Wait, what?” I asked as my brain registered the word ‘Atlantis’. “You mean mythical city with all the mermaids and stuff?” Abe looked at me like I had just asked the weirdest question he’d ever heard. 

     “Well, I never seen any mermaids there and I sure as hell know it’s not mythical, being that I live there an’ all,” he answered.

     “Bu--,” I began. 

     “I will explain on the way,” Jonathan said. 

     Abe stepped down from the porch. “Yer right. Time’s a’waistin’."

     Jonathan proceeded towards the plane and, despite my better judgment, I fallowed. The three of us walked up the stairs into the plane. Desma was already seated in the furthest seat to the front out of the seven chairs.  Jonathan sat in the one behind her and I took the one across the aisle to him. Abe walked passed all of us and into the cockpit once the plane was sealed. He strapped himself in to the pilot’s chair, flipped a few switches then said “, and we’re off!”