The door swung open as a group of three teenagers entered the room. The first one to enter was a young woman with onyx-black hair and hazel eyes; the second was a young man with jet-black hair and dark brown eyes; the last person to enter was a boy with fair hair and dark blue eyes. Each of them had a book in their hands—the girl's book was bound by brown leather, the brown-eyed boy's book wore a coat of blue cloth, and the blue-eyed boy's book wore a jacket of red velvet.

The blue-eyed boy closed the door behind him before slumping onto one of the sofas. Opposite him, the black-haired boy sat at a desk. The girl sat on an armchair adjacent to the sofa.

"I can't believe we got magical books! I can't wait to find out what mine can do," said the blue-eyed boy.

"Me too. I'll transfer my notes onto it first," said the other boy. He reached for his bag, which was on the desk, and retrieved his journal and pen. He cracked it open and placed it next to the blue book. Before his pen could touch the page, the blue book levitated in front of him.

"Greetings, José," it said, writing on itself. "I am a magical book that can show you all the information you need on other realms, their geography, and the lifeforms inhabiting them."

In an instant, an article full of data appeared on one page while a map of Parafiso was sketched on the other. José's jaw dropped.

"Dios mío! Brandon, did you see that?"

"Yeah," Brandon said, "it's basically a magic encyclopedia."

"I know! That's so cool." José continued to gape at the pages, reading all the things that were being shown to him. Apparently, Parafiso did exist before the creation of the countries Fae and Nox, and its unification was actually a reunification. Brandon opened his book.

"Hi, so, what can you do?" he asked.

"I can teleport people and objects," it replied, its voice eerily similar to its owner's. Brandon raised one eyebrow.

"What do you mean by 'teleport'?"

"Moving something from one place to another instantly."

The book closed itself. In a blink of an eye, Brandon found himself sitting in an armchair next to the girl instead of lounging on the sofa. He widened his eyes, his face bright with amusement, and held the book in front of his face.

"Awesome! I'm so glad I got you instead of José's book!"

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?"

Brandon ignored José and continued to teleport from one place to another. One moment he was laying on his bed, the next moment he was standing on the balcony, and the next moment he was somewhere else. Meanwhile, the girl opened the book and laid it on her lap. Ink materialized out of nowhere and formed two words on one of its pages.

"Hello, Celestine."

"Hello. What can you do?"

"I can show you the past."

The words morphed into a detailed illustration. The first thing that was drawn was a depiction of a woman. She had short, wavy, dark brown hair; bright, sweet, hazel eyes; and a tan, diamond-shaped face. Around her, a bedroom formed. Tucked into the bed was a person that Celestine recognized as a much younger version of herself. The woman caressed the young girl's forehead as she cooed,

"Ninna nanna, ninna oh, questo bimbo a chi lo dò? Se lo dò alla Befana, se lo tiene una settimana. Se lo dò all'uomo nero, se lo tienne un anno intero."

"Ninna nanna, ninna oh, questo bimbo me lo terro," Celestine sang along softly.

A tear escaped her hazel eyes and trickled down her cheek. She had not heard that voice for more than ten years. How she longed to hear her mother again, to see her again, to feel her warmth as her mother wrapped her in a loving embrace! She wiped her tears away using her fingers. Brandon teleported to the armchair next to her, his eyes still focused on his book.

"Hey Celestine, what does your book do?" he asked.

"I-it can show me the past," she replied.

Brandon turned his head toward her and his face darkened upon noticing her moistening eyes. "Celestine, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine." She sniffled. At this point, José noticed her. He got up from his seat and walked to her side while Brandon pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. He began to wipe away her tears.

"What's wrong?" José asked.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm fine."

The book flew out of her hands. A bright flare radiated from it before fading away. The trio gasped—they were no longer in the living room. They were standing in the middle of a narrow corridor, the grey walls tainted yellow by the amber lamps that hung from the ceiling. Celestine's book swiftly flew towards them and spread its leaves.

"I am showing you a flashback. It is like watching a movie. Follow Helene," it told them.

They heard footsteps. Coming into their view was a female figure in a royal blue cloak, her hood hanging from her back instead of obscuring her head. Her blond hair was tied into a short ponytail and her fierce, electric-blue eyes stood out from her pale face. There she was—rather, a younger version of herself. The trio followed the young Helene through the dim-lit corridors and into a small meeting room.

There were already three other Gatekeepers inside, all of them male and older than her. One of them appeared to be in his early-30s, while the other two seemed to be in their late-50s. Their faces were cleanshaven as well. Celestine noticed that each of them wore a different color—the young man wore blue, like Helene, matching his navy-blue eyes; the other man was dressed in dark green, similar to his leaf-green irises; the last one was clothed in brown, matching his pools of dark hazel. Helene closed the door behind her. They all shook hands before taking their seats.

"Master Helene, you requested a meeting with us?" the green Gatekeeper asked.

"Yes," she replied. "I would like to propose something."

"It's not about those three humans, is it?" asked the brown one.

"If you are referring to the three in possession of magical jewelry, Master Earle, then yes. After the recent death of Terra Vicario, the owner of the silver bracelet, I now intend to train their children to prevent such things from reoccurring."

"We have already discussed this. Right, Master Lutz?" Earle glanced at the green Gatekeeper. "We have already agreed that they may keep their jewelry, and, in exchange, they shall keep their abilities secret. And besides, we have already determined that they have no need for their powers. However, if you are insistent on training them, perhaps we could recruit them."

"Recruited to be Gatekeepers? I was thinking of something else," she said. "I intend to train them till that they are only proficient in their abilities, so that in case any non-human intends to harm them, they will be able to defend themselves."

"But Helene," the blue Gatekeeper spoke, "you know Gatekeepers are the only humans authorized to use magic and have superpowers."

"And the only humans allowed to possess magical objects until we made an exception for the three of them," Helene reminded him.

She scrutinized their faces. Earle's lips were pursed, and his arms were crossed as he rested them on the table. Lutz kept a neutral expression, his face unmoving and unreadable. The other one tilted his head and gave a very slight nod. At least one of them seemed to be on her side.

"Anyway," she continued, "we already know the jewelry has bonded to their families—that's why we were unable to separate them from the three. Why not we train them to use the jewelry, at least for self-defense?"

"How sure are you that they will not use their powers for self-gain if we train them? And how sure are you that we really cannot separate the jewelry from them and give them to others?"

"About the second question, Master Earle, we really couldn't. During one of our attempts, I tried using the golden necklace, but it left me paralyzed for two weeks. We've tried almost every method, but they seem to be indestructible and inseparable from their current owners. If we want other people to use them, we have to end three bloodlines first," the blue Gatekeeper answered Earle.

"I suppose we can have a use for them," the green one said, stroking his chin. "As you all know, Gatekeepers are only allowed to guard the portals and protect humans from otherworldly threats, as well as make sure no traces of non-humans are left on Earth. Perhaps those three can form a team we can send to other realms in case they need extra help."

"Are you suggesting we form a superhero task force?" Earle scoffed. "How powerful can they be anyway? I'm pretty sure the other realms will have no need for such a group, especially the powerful ones like Juvathon and Nitea."

"About that, the pieces of jewelry are actually extremely powerful. They might even be comparable to the Lightning Rod and Diamond Diadem," she informed. "You can ask Master Theodor."

"What she says is true," the blue one confirmed.

Helene observed their faces more closely. She might have convinced Lutz and Theodor, but Earle remained skeptical. The discussion continued for several minutes. The trio, their presence not acknowledged by the Gatekeepers, whispered among themselves as they followed the conversation. Celestine knew her mother's death had something to do with her and her friends receiving training, but she did not suspect that it would be the driving force behind the team's formation.

"Fine then," Earle said, sighing, "since you were so adamant about having them trained, you will be allowed to train them in our headquarters here in Parafiso. Just in case they lose control of their abilities, nobody on Earth will notice. However, since you do not want them to be recruited, you shall be the only one to mentor them. No other person will be obliged to assist you. Does everyone in this room agree?"

They all nodded their heads.

"What should we call them, by the way?" asked Lutz. "Master Theodor, do you have a suggestion?"

"I suggest we call them 'Team H' for now, after their soon-to-be mentor," he proposed, winking at Helene.

After the meeting, the Gatekeepers rose from their seats and shook hands. The book swooped in front of the trio and flashed a bright light. The light enveloped them for a split second. After it faded, the trio glimpsed their surroundings. They were back in the living room. They exchanged looks, no sounds escaping from their mouths.

"So that's why we're here," Brandon said.

Because of my mother, Celestine thought, grasping the book in her hands.

⭐

Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who has read, voted, and commented on my story! Without your support, I wouldn't have been able to garner more than 2000 reads and 100 votes on this book! I have published this bonus chapter as a "thank you" to all who have supported me and to celebrate this milestone.

Cheers,
Stella