Two Worlds (Written by a 10-year-old author, 62,000 words, 72 chapters)

Chapter 58: Theresa ruins a park

When Lily's vision cleared, she was standing in - you guessed it - the Very Annoying Park of Sophie's Magic Fountain. As usual, the park itself was in good condition as ever, but it was nighttime. The statue of Sophie in the fountain seemed to be glowing in the dark, illuminating her regal stone face. Lily hated it more every second.

BAM! Sophie materialized ten feet away from the statue. She was on the other side, so she couldn't see Lily. Lily inhaled sharply and searched the park for Theresa. She wasn't in sight. Lily climbed into the fountain with as little noise as possible and crouched behind the statue. She waited, though she wasn't sure what for. Was she waiting to be captured? Was she waiting for Theresa to save the day? Lily hoped it was the second option.

Lily peered over the hem of the statue's dress. "What-?" Sophie looked around her. Her eyes locked on the fountain, and Lily held her breath, trying to make herself as small as possible.

Sophie stepped toward the statue.

"Interesting," she muttered. Sophie studied the stone statue with interest, but she seemed slightly distracted. Lily heard the tiniest of splashes next to her. Theresa appeared. She held a finger to her lips and mouthed, don't move, you idiot. As Theresa glanced at her sister, her foot slipped.

The resulting splash was faint, but Sophie heard. She began to walk toward the statue. Theresa's eyes flickered uncertainly. Lily knew that they needed a distraction, but it had to be good enough to actually outsmart Sophie.

Theresa solved the problem. She pressed both of her hands to the base of the statue and frost spread over it, covering it with a thin layer of ice. Sophie snarled. As Theresa covered the statue with more frost, Sophie began to shiver, hugging her arms close to her body as she backed away. Lily realized Theresa was using the statue to her advantage. Amazingly, the stone carving looked so much like Sophie herself that she was able to transfer energy from the stone to Sophie - which meant anything that Theresa did to the statue happened to Sophie.

"Gah!" Sophie vaporized the statue with her own comeback - a wave of heat so intense, the rock steamed and smoked. Luckily, the statue imploded along with the water in the fountain, so both Theresa and Lily were drenched before the heat could reach them. They tumbled out of the fountain. The pieces of the statue lay scattered around them, bubbling and setting the grass on fire in various places. Theresa dropped a few gallons of water over the smoking gray park.

Sophie growled. "Theresa," she said. "I am going to pick you up and toss you into my dungeon." Theresa sighed. "Sophie, you are such a bore. At least Lily and I have better ways of communication." Lily nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, yes. She texts me on my phone." Even then, it was hard to keep a cheerful face without lunging forward and punching Sophie.

Sophie laughed and waved her hand. Lily's friends appeared on the grass next to Lily. Stacy groaned. "Oh, not her again." In that moment, Sophie attacked, sending a crackling bolt of gray light flying at Theresa. Theresa just managed to block it with her magic. The two sisters exchanged deadly attacks of magic that lit up the whole park. Lily herded her friends away from the scene, being careful not to step on the melted bits of Sophie's statue. They watched from a distance. Lily knew she should help, but they didn't have any weapons.

As the light show (there were no other terms to call the intense battle) progressed, so did Sophie's powers. Blasts of gray light came more frequently, and Lily could tell it was all Theresa could do to keep her sister at bay.

"This isn't going well," Jake said. "I can tell," Lily grumbled. Theresa glanced over her shoulder. "Lily, go!" she yelled. "I can take care of ..."

In that moment, Sophie struck. Gray light streaked towards her sister. By the time Theresa turned around, the magic had slammed into her and she fell to the ground.

Lily had envisioned this happening from her dreams and worries. But seeing it happening was different. Barely pausing to think, she ran towards Theresa and knelt at her side. To her relief, Theresa was still breathing, her eyes were open, and she looked very annoyed. Sophie stood over them, glowering. "I have always been the powerful one, sister," she said. Lily tried to kick her, but the sorceress dodged with a light laugh. A small distance away, Lily saw Tara sneaking behind Sophie.

Tara pounced, shoving Sophie to the ground. Sophie's laugh turned into a shriek, then a snarl. She morphed into a cloud of mist that seeped into the ground. Tara's expression was grim and unsatisfied. "She just left like that?" she asked. "Yes," Jake replied. "Ugh. Sophie is so annoying," Stacy muttered. Theresa struggled to her feet.

"Thank you," shesaid. "She would have overwhelmed me. But I cannot further assist you infighting Sophie." "Why?" Lily demanded. The sorceress held her gaze. "Becausethis is your fight to complete, Lily, not mine. You should know that by now.But remember: control your weakness and do not let it control you. With that,Theresa jumped into the air, and suddenly she was a glowing gray falcon thatsquawked and flew into the night. "Well, so much for bravery," Lily grumbled.But then she heard a voice - Theresa's - inside her head that filled her withthe fear of something bad to come. Lily,beware. Sophie's worst attacks come in phases. All around them, gray lighterupted towards the sky, forming a cage that rapidly began to solidify. "Run!"Stacy shouted. Lily and her friends bolted for the street.