The young couple walked down the dark tunnel, glad to finally be alone. They had come to the mine with a group of friends, in such a small town there wasn’t anywhere else for the kids to hang out. The boy was sixteen, the girl fifteen. They had only been going out for a few weeks. They just wanted to get away from the others because they had started drinking and these two didn’t agree with it. They thought it foolish, but didn’t condemn the others for it; they just went their own way. As they walked the girl noticed a glow ahead. Pointing it out, she grabbed the boy’s hand and started to run toward it, thinking it was the bonfire their friends had started. When they reached where the glow was coming from, there was a flash of bright white light. When the light faded, the kids were gone.


As the woman walked down the street, she knew she was being followed but was not scared. She also knew that the mugger tailing her believed her to be an easy mark, when she first knew that she laughed. This young woman was afraid of nothing; in fact she was thinking the mugger to be foolish, that he should be afraid of her. The mugger followed her, keeping to the shadows, seeing only a small young woman who would be an easy person to steal from, and possibly rape. This young woman knew what his objectives were for her, and also knew, though he didn’t, that he would be unsuccessful. Deciding to get it over with, she turned down a dark deserted alley knowing that he would follow her and think that it was the perfect spot to do what he wanted. About halfway through the alley, she stopped and rummaged through her purse as though looking for her keys. He chose that moment to make his presence known.

“Give me your purse and lie on the ground,” he said menacingly brandishing a gun at the woman.

“I will not do any such thing. In fact, I suggest you drop your weapon and leave now” she warned him calmly and firmly.

As he stood there and laughed at her, he didn’t look at her, had he done so he would have run then and there. Her eyes had started to glow with a bright white light, her body appeared almost translucent, and her hair had started to blow about her face as though there was a strong wind, in spite of the still, warm night. He stopped laughing long enough to get off one shot before his gun melted in his hand. The bullet passed right through her chest, not leaving a mark. The mugger’s hair caught fire and then his face. The flames worked their way down his body, and though he was screaming, there was no sound. She was blocking the noise to avoid drawing attention to the alley. Even the flames made no sound. She cried as the man died, for she hated taking a life. The only consolation to her was knowing that she had saved the life of another young woman who would not have been able to protect herself, that this man would not hurt any other innocent young woman again. When she saw that the body had been reduced to ash, she checked for any bones or anything else that hadn’t burned. She found only a few and made those vanish. After scattering the ashes, she left to go home.

This young woman’s name is Circe. Her parents had powers and abilities of their own, but were not as powerful as their only child. They gave her the name of a powerful sorceress from Greek mythology. While she was still young, they sent her to the most powerful sorcerer in the world to be trained and taught to control and use her powers. The student soon surpassed her teacher and he sent her on telling her there was no more she could learn from him, she needed to gain some experience in the real world. After returning to her parents to finish her schooling in non-magical things, she started traveling.

Her parents were wealthy, and had set up a fund for her, so she didn’t need to work and spent all her time working with her powers and she used them to protect herself when needed. She knew she would soon need to move on though, since she had arrived in this city she had felt as though she was being called from a distance, and felt that whoever it was had gotten more urgent over the past few weeks. She was trying to decide where to go next and felt that the southwest part of the country was where the call originated. She felt it was from somewhere in Arizona or New Mexico.

Looking around her room about an hour later, she decided only to take one suitcase of clothes with her, if they were in as much trouble as she felt them to be then she didn’t have much time to pack. She grabbed all her cash and important papers, and put them in one bag, and put her clothes in another. She looked around the apartment one last time, made everything in the room vanish, and disappeared herself.


The girl woke and looked around seeing nothing, no plants or animals, just nothing. She called for the boy but he didn’t answer. The girl started screaming. Nobody answered, her voice just echoed all around her. Suddenly she heard a pop, but it came from inside her head. She realized she could hear voices but they were very far away, so she just listened. After a few minutes she realized she was listening to people’s thoughts. Listening and concentrating on making them out, she realized the voices were echoes of thoughts of others that had been here in the past. Again she yelled, but this time she did it with her mind as well as her voice. She heard a reply so distant she almost didn’t hear it at all. The voice was that of an old man. He told her he would help and to be patient. She sat and waited as the voice had told her, praying help would come soon.


When she reappeared, the sun was blazing and the temperature was at least ninety degrees. She wasn’t sure where she was because when she teleported, she had let the calls pull her to her destination. She knew she was in the desert but what desert she wasn’t sure. She closed her eyes and reached out with her mind. She sensed a town about fifteen miles to the west, a small town with few people. She could tell she was in western Arizona. She decided to save time and energy and fly until she got about two miles outside of the small town. From there she would walk the rest of the way, she didn’t want to alarm anyone. She had flown right into a town in Louisiana once, and the people of that town had chased her out before they even talked to her. She wouldn’t make that mistake again. She would also create a car where she started to walk so they would not be suspicious. She knew the road was about a half a mile to the south so she started flying and found it, after that she followed the road to the point she decided on. Once there she created the car out of minerals and metals that occurred naturally in the nearby soil, deciding that an actual physical car would be better than a temporary illusion this time.

The young woman drew attention when she walked into the gas station, as she knew she would, after all how many people just come walking out of the desert. After buying a bottle of water, and drinking it down, though she didn’t really need it, she just wanted to keep up appearances; she found the mechanic and started talking to him. He was an old man, on his late sixties and very grandfatherly in appearance, like a skinny beardless Santa Claus.

“Excuse me sir, but I need some help. My car broke down about two miles outside of town and I was wondering if you have a tow truck that could go get it and tow it into town?” Circe asked.

“Yes, ma’am sure do, but there will be a little bit of a wait, our driver is out for the day with the flu. Until then there is a motel down the road, about a five minute walk, they have a couple of vacancies, if you need a place to stay for a few days.” He replied kindly and patiently, “If I may ask ma’am, where were you headed when your car decided to give you trouble?”

“Well, I was looking for a small town to stay in while I wrote a book. I saw a road sign for this town, and had decided to check it out when my car died on me.” She lied, she had used this excuse before, it had worked then, and it would probably work now. “I was wondering sir, has anything strange ever happened in this town before? You see, I like to investigate the myths and legends of small towns. You know, the haunted house on the hill, strange creatures in the woods beyond town, that sort of thing.”

“That is a mighty strange hobby for such a pretty young thing as yourself. But, in answer to your question, there is an old mine outside of town, there have been quite a few people who have gone to explore it and never returned, a couple of times the people who disappeared were state troopers who went searching for kids who went in there.” He replied after some thought, “Nothing has ever been found of them, and you’d figure that if some of the teens who vanished had just run off, like some people seem to think, at least a couple of them would have contacted their parents. That’s why our town is so small, kids disappear, and their parents move out of town. Too many bad memories for those poor folks.”

“Thank you sir, I appreciate the help. When you get my car in the shop here, please let me know. I will stay at the hotel you suggested. If you need me, contact me there.” She finally said, ”Have a good day.”

After leaving the garage, she walked up the street and found the motel mentioned by the old man. After checking herself in, she went to her room, unpacked and settled in. She lay down on her bed and decided to contact Merlin. Clearing her mind, she mentally called out to her mentor, friend, and teacher. When he replied, she told him what she was told by the old mechanic, and he told her what he knew of any supernatural occurrences and creatures in the area, he also told her that one of his student was nearby and suggested that she enlist his help, he also needed the experience in such things. She thanked him for his help and then woke out of her trance. When she looked out the window, she saw it was after dark. She knew she couldn’t go to the local library till the next day so she decided to pay a surprise visit to Merlin’s student, and see what help he was going to be. She knew the person’s name was Christopher, but did not know exactly where he was. She decided to try to use her mind to find him. She reached out, calling for him, and told him to meet her outside the motel in about a half an hour, and then got in the shower and got ready to meet him.

When she stepped outside to look for Christopher, she heard the calling again and replied with her mind. She told the voice to be calm, that she was close and ready to help however she could. When she opened her eyes, standing in front of her was a man in his mid-twenties, about average build, a normal guy, at least where his appearance was concerned.

“Hello Christopher, how long have you been standing there?” she greeted him as she looked him over.

“Just a minute or two,” he replied, surprised she knew who he was without him telling her,” I came right after I spoke with you.”

“Don’t be surprised, though I doubt Merlin told you much about me.” She said lightly, half laughing “I am probably the most powerful magic user you will ever see in your lifetime. Yes, I am even more powerful than your teacher, though I was his student many years ago.”

“But you don’t appear to be any older than me. How can you have been his student many years ago?” he asked, shocked at her casualness to the whole thing.

“I graduated from Merlin’s teaching when I was about ten years old. I am only twenty four.” She smiled at him, not at all surprised by his reaction; she got it often from fellow mages. “Shall we go somewhere more private? I am not here for a vacation, I am here for a reason, and I was hoping you could be of some help.”

“Sure, we could go back to my place, it’s only a block or two from here. That’s how I got here so fast. I hope you will answer some questions for me while we talk.” He told her, pointing the way they needed to go.

“I’ll tell you what I am able to, though I know some of your questions are about me, and some of them I can not answer right now.” She replied, “Let’s go then.”

Not much later, they were seated at his kitchen table with two cups of coffee ready to talk. She told him of the voices calling and what she had found out from the mechanic. He nodded his head and sighed.

“Well, I do not know much more than that myself. I never heard the voices myself, but then I’m nowhere near as strong magically as you are. In all, over the past one hundred years, there have been easily as many disappearances. Mostly young people between the ages of thirteen and nineteen, though some police and miners have vanished. The main reason the teens have vanished is because they would go down there to party and make-out other then that nobody bothers to go down there, except of course for the police that go down there to try to find the missing kids. The strange thing is, nothing has ever been found of the victims, not even their clothing.” He told her after listening to everything she said.

“Well, that eliminates a few things. They couldn’t have all been eaten, there would have been bones, clothing, or something found.” She replied after thinking about what he had told her, “Merlin said he had never heard of anything happening in this area, and that is strange, especially if this has been going on for a hundred years, though he does tend only to record what he is told, not checking anything for himself. I think that he just never got any reports from anyone else, since he did say you are the first student he’s ever had from this area. And you also told me you never heard the voices yourself.”

“That is very true, the times I’ve actually been in the same room as Merlin, I have noticed he tends not to do something he can get somebody else to do for him. Now please forgive me but I am very curious about you, and your special abilities. Please tell me more about yourself. I don’t mean to sound nosy but I would like to know about the person I am going to be working with and helping.” He looked at her with interest and curiosity in his eyes.

“Well, there is not much to tell,” surprised at his interest in her, “I was born twenty four years ago on the island of Atlantis. Both my parents are mages, though they are not as powerful as I am. The day I was born, the leader of the island felt the magic emanating from me. My mother also knew that I would become a very powerful magician if I were able to control my powers. You see, besides being a mage, my mother was also a strong psychic and very clairvoyant. That is where I got my telepathy and other psychic abilities. I am also clairvoyant, but I have learned that when it comes to the future, there are too many variables to truly be certain of what will happen. When I was five, my magic was very strong but I had no knowledge of how to control it, so my parents sent me to be taught by Merlin. After five years, I had learned all he had to teach me, and then he knew that I was even stronger than he is even though I am many centuries younger. I went back to live with my parents until I turned nineteen and then my parents and teachers decided it was time for me to go and gain some experience in the real world. I have been travelling ever since, learning where I can and helping with the supernatural where it is needed. Now may I ask you, what is your history? I told you mine, it is only fair you tell me yours.”

“I lived a normal life till I hit puberty, that is when my magical abilities manifested themselves.” He told her, thinking back, “My parents saw me using my abilities once and threw me out, they thought that the things I were doing could only be done with the help of Satan. I started into the world with no way to feed or clothe myself. I had been wandering for about a year and a half when Merlin found me. He took me in and helped me to hone my abilities. He set me up with some money, and sent me out to learn about how my powers could affect people. I had only been here for six months when you arrived. I had heard a little about the mine, investigated it a little, and then you arrived. And from talking to you it appears that you are more than just an ordinary witch.”

When she heard him use the word witch she frowned and glared at him, causing his chair to fly back and hit the wall. “Do not EVER use that word to describe me or any other magic user. This is not Salem, that word has an awful meaning. There are things in this world you have yet to learn about and you will be learning fast, because there isn’t time to learn any other way. I suggest you refrain from labeling anything or anyone until you know what they are capable of or what they are.”

“All right I get your point, I am sorry.” He managed to sputter out after getting up and righting his chair, “Do you know what we will be facing in the mine?”

“Well, I am not certain yet, I must do more investigating before I will know. I will go to the local library in the morning to see what the newspapers have said about the disappearances.” She told him, standing and looking out the window in the direction of the mine.

“Good luck, I read those articles three or four times and didn’t see anything worth while.” He looked at her with respect, though he doubted she would find anything in the library.

“The reason you didn’t find anything is because you didn’t know what you were looking for. I will meet you in front of the motel at ten o’clock. Good night.” She said shortly and vanished, leaving him standing in shock gaping at the spot where she was standing only a second before.

The next day, Circe woke early. It was only six and she was not supposed to meet Christopher until ten. She showered and ate. She sat down on the bed and decided to meditate until it was time to meet Christopher. She leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes. She blanked her mind and made all her muscles go limp. She lay there for three hours letting her mind and body rest and restore themselves. When she regained awareness, she saw the time, and realized she needed to get dressed to meet Christopher. She had regained her focus and would not need to do so again for quite a while, depending on how much magical energy she expended. After dressing, she walked outside and sat on the step to wait. Christopher arrived at ten and they left to go to the local library. He showed her the articles that he had found on the local disappearances. In a few of the articles the police mentioned some writing on the walls of the mine, these quotes caught her attention. She copied what the police said and finished looking at the articles that Christopher had brought her. She told him she also needed a written history of the town, which he brought to her right away. She read it and copied everything that pertained to the mine. After that they went for lunch.

“Well, there is not much here from the articles to tell what this thing is, but I think the answer lies in the writing that is on the walls in the mine. Unfortunately there are no pictures with the articles. I need to see the writing to know for sure.” Circe said after reviewing all the information they had gotten that day. “Another thing that might help would be talking to the locals and getting any legends or stories that might be told by the older people. They would be the ones who would know any legends that would have been started about the mines and they would know the history of the town.”

“I agree, I think the best place to start would be out at old Ned’s house. He is the oldest person left in the town that has full use of his mind. He’s a good eighty years old and his parents were one of the first couples who settled this town. We can go this afternoon around three. He will be home then.” Christopher agreed. After that they finished lunch and started walking over to the house of the oldest person in town.

They knocked for about five minutes before a small white-haired man answered it. “Can I help you young people?” he said peering through wire framed glasses at Circe and Christopher.

“Hello Ned, it’s Chris. Got someone who wants to talk to you about the town’s history. I know there’s nobody in this town that knows more about it so I brought her straight over. I hope you’re feeling up to a bit of conversation. Her name is Circe, by the way.” Christopher told the old man.

“Oh, hi Chris, hello Circe, you two come on in. I am feeling pretty good today so I don’t mind talking for a while. Let’s go on into the kitchen and have something to drink while we talk. I stayed here even though the rest of my family moved away years ago because the heat is good for my arthritis, but it sure makes one darn thirsty.” Ned responds while showing them the way to the kitchen. He pours them all glasses of iced tea before sitting. “So what can I help you with young lady.”

“Well, I was wanting to ask if there is anything significant in the history of this town, in particular related to the old mine and the disappearances. I would appreciate anything you could tell me.” Circe told him after thanking him for the drink.

Ned just looked at her for a moment as if trying to determine if she was being serious about what she wanted to know, as if he could see beneath her skin into her mind. He then set down his glass of tea and started to tell her everything he knew. “Well, young lady, I am the only one in this town even willing to think about that damned mine, the disappearances have had such a terrible affect on this town, but at my age nothing scares me any more, I know I might not have much time left in this old world so I want someone to hear the stories so they won’t be lost. Chris probably told you my parents were one of the first couples to settle in this town. Well, the mine was here before they got here, and they got here about five years before they had me. The disappearances started around that time, though I imagine there were some before then, but nobody was around to notice. Of those that disappeared, not many were past their twenties. I also know that there were some Indians that traveled through the area before the town was here, but they would never rest here for more than one night. The mine was just a series of caves before some people came looking for gold and added the supports and the rest of the mining stuff, most of it is still down there. The miners that didn’t disappear died less than a year after working down there, which is why they shut it down. It wasn’t long after that this town started being settled. I don’t know much about the people who disappeared down there, but I know there is some strange writing down in that mine. I had an Indian friend when I was a kid, and he told me that there were two sets of writings down there, one set was ancient back then, the other was written by those of my friend’s grandfather’s generation as a warning to people to avoid the cave. Kids would go down there to make-out or whatever else kids do, which is why so many of them weren’t over twenty, no one else had any reason to go down there till the kids did disappear. That’s all I can tell you, except Circe I know why you are here.”

“How do you know what I am here for Ned? The only person I’ve told is Chris.” Circe asked not really surprised at his statement because she had seen to many things in her young years to really be surprised by anything anymore.

“I told you I had an Indian friend as a boy, well, I grew into adulthood with him, you see my mom died giving birth to me and my father died when I was just seven, and my friend’s family took me in and taught me many things. I’ve heard the voices too, but at my age I couldn’t do a whole lot to help them, so I did the only thing I could. I took the lessons my friend taught me and amplified the voices to so someone younger and stronger would hear them, and come to help. Chris, I knew you were here and I knew of your abilities, I also knew that if you couldn’t hear the voices then there was no way you would be strong enough on your own to help either. However, when I felt your presence as you entered the town, Circe, I knew then that you had heard the cries and had come to help. I knew that Merlin would direct you to Chris. Yes, I know your teacher, he paid me a visit when I was about twenty asking me to study with him, I chose not to but we never lost contact. I never told him about the mine because I never felt it to be important enough to bother him with. So you see, things aren’t always as they appear, for I am not eighty, I am one hundred and twenty years old, this town is older than recorded in the history books, it wasn’t large enough to be considered a town until less than a hundred years ago.”

Chris looked in shock at the old man but Circe just absorbed what she heard and merely nodded her head. “I knew there was something familiar about you Ned, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I didn’t want to probe your mind unless I felt something hostile; I usually just allow myself to feel for general emotions. It’s your mind that lingered in the voice. Your friend taught you well, but he failed to mention a few things, though I doubt they would be important to you now. I do thank you for your help; I am glad you called me here. I will speak to Merlin for not telling me about you, though I think he probably just wanted to maintain your privacy. Well, Chris we should probably go, Ned, keep your mind open, if I need to talk to you more, I will talk to you that way now that I know I can. Good bye Ned.”

“I will and Circe, be careful, whatever’s down there is very dangerous.” Ned told her as he showed them to the door. He waved as they walked out into the night air; they had talked for many hours.

They returned to Chris’s house to eat before retiring for the night. During the meal Chris asked if she had any idea what they were dealing with. She shook her head and just told him that the next day they would be doing some traveling, so he needed to sleep.

“We’re going to go quite a distance, however we will be doing so in a way you probably have never traveled before. I will tell Ned that we are leaving and to listen for any further voices while we are gone. Hopefully it will only take a couple of days at most. Meet me in front of the hotel at six in the morning. I am going now, good night and be there on time or you will get a very rude awakening.” She again disappeared into thin air.

When she got back to the motel, Circe reached out with her mind and told Ned about her plans and how long she intended to be gone. He agreed and told her he would listen until she returned. Circe then reached out to Merlin and told him of everything she had learned and told him he should have told her about Ned, saying that he would probably make a very good ally in spite of his age and small abilities.

“I’m sorry I did not tell you about him Circe, but you were right, I wanted to protect his privacy. I figured if he thought he could be of help, you would find each other somehow. He never learned much more, but he has always been sensitive to psychic ability and the presence of magic. I think that you are right in going to visit the library in Atlantis to see if there is anything there on this type of thing. Do you want me to tell your parents you are coming?” Merlin said after hearing her story.

“No, I will tell them myself after I finish talking to you tonight. One more question for you though, has Chris ever teleported?”

Merlin just laughed. “No, he hasn’t. Let me guess, he’s coming with you tomorrow. He isn’t a very strong magician but his mind is quick at picking things up that’s why I thought he would be of help on this thing. Well good night and good luck my young friend.”

“Good night Merlin.” Circe then cleared her mind and focused her thoughts on her mother, since her father wasn’t as good at communicating telepathically. She told her mother everything and her mother agreed to help in any way she could and agreed to tell her father they were coming. After finishing talking to her mother Circe went to bed and rested.

The next morning Circe went outside and saw that Chris was already waiting for her. She laughed and told him to follow her. They walked out of the town to a place in the desert where they could not be seen from either the town or the road. She then told him to brace himself and close his eyes. She grabbed one of his hands and closed her eyes and concentrated on her home. She felt the familiar waves of magic flowing through her body. When they opened their eyes only a few seconds later, they were in a magnificently beautiful and peaceful garden.

Circe turned to her companion and simply said, “Welcome to Atlantis.”


She realized that she had fallen asleep, but strangely it felt as no time had passed at all. She also realized she wasn’t hungry though she knew she had to have been here for a long time. She yelled again, with her voice only to see if anyone else was there. After a few minutes, she felt the presence of a voice in her mind. This time the voice was young and female. It told the girl that she was there to help and she needed to patient for a while longer. The girl listened and agreed; though she still felt like crying. She felt so alone even though she knew that someone was trying to help her. She wondered where the boy was and if he was still alive. After a while of thinking about him and what had happened to her she did start crying, and ended up crying herself to sleep.


For almost two minutes Chris looked around in wonder before Circe grabbed his arm and guided him, still dazed, to her parent’s home where her mother warmly embraced her.

“Hello mom. Let’s go inside and get him sitting down, it was his first time teleporting and combine that with his first view of Atlantis, he’s still stunned.”

“Well, where did you two land?” Jenny asked as she helped her daughter get Chris settled in a chair. After getting them all drinks, Jenny took a seat in a chair across from her daughter and Chris.

“We ended up in the druidic gardens, and please understand mother, I know the garden is not the best place to bring a first time visitor, but it’s the easiest place for me to concentrate on.” As her mother just shook her head, Circe continued, “Did you do what I asked you to?”

“Of course dear, but having Merlin talk to Joseph sure helped. You have permission to look through all the books in the library too find what you need, I guess Merlin stressed how important this project is, I didn’t have much luck when I approached him, but after Merlin talked to him Joseph actually came here to tell me about giving you permission. Ah, it looks like your friend is finally coming to his senses. How are you feeling young man?”

Chris, looking around, replies, “I’m okay I suppose, but where am I?”

“We are in Atlantis, and I apologize for the sudden way everything happened, but I did not think we had the time to properly prepare you for the shock of teleportation. This is my mother, Jennifer, and this is the house where I grew up. We came here because this is the only place in the world where I could possibly find anything of use for what we are looking into, and we have permission to look through every book in the library if necessary to find anything that would be of use to us. Do you feel strong enough to come with me to find my father and then go on to the library?” Circe looked at him concerned, because she knew how shocking teleportation could be the first few times.

“I think I feel well enough to go with you. Is this what you meant by a rude awakening?” Chris asked, still a little shaken by everything that had happened that day.

Laughing, Circe just shook her head, “No, not quite, but I did tell you a couple of days ago there were many things you had yet to learn, this is just one of them. In the outside world, everyone believes the stories of Atlantis falling into the sea hundreds of years ago. Well, obviously that didn’t really happen. In all the old myths, Atlantis was the home of magic users and advanced scientists, that much of the story is true. Atlantis did disappear, but it did not sink into the ocean as believed, that was a projection from the minds of the most powerful mages of the time. The island floated until it reached where it sits now, that is why in spite of centuries of searching no one had ever been able to find much on the ocean bed. By using a combination of magic and science, our ancestors were able to use crystals to harness the powers of the land and our people to hide the island from the rest of the world. Only those trained in magic are able to physically ignore the magic field surrounding this place. You see, Atlantis is located at the center of what the rest of the world knows as the Bermuda Triangle. That is also the reason behind all the mysteries surrounding this part of the ocean, the magic that hides our island from conventional means of finding it also severely disorients those who enter without the benefit of magic, the magic field also disrupts the working of conventional equipment which is also the reason that the island is what most would consider primitive. The people here now are nowhere near as powerful as our ancestors were, with one exception, me. I am more powerful than any of the magicians or psychics that existed when Atlantis disappeared from the outside world. I am not telling you this to brag, I am merely telling you the facts as they were told to me by Merlin and Zeus, who was real though he was not a god, when I was first sent to study with Merlin years ago. Zeus is no longer on this plane; he left it about five years ago, though he can still be spoken to through the crystals in the center of Atlantis. I hope you can understand all I am telling you. I hope you can also understand that you can tell no one else of this place, for even if they were to listen and to look they would find nothing here, and they would think you were crazy.”

“I can really see why they would, but I think we should go do what we came here for. Have you checked in with Ned?” Chris asked after she finished talking.

“Yes, I talked to him about five minutes ago while we were walking from the garden to the house. He told me everything is fine and he hopes we have some luck in the library finding what we need. Mom, do you know where dad is? I want to talk to him before we go hunting in the library.” Circe stood in the doorway and motioned for Chris to follow her after getting the answer from her mother. She found her father exactly where her mother told her, the corn patch just outside the town. She gave her father a hug and told him what she was there for, to which he wished her luck and told her he had to get back to work but if she needed him for anything to just come get him and he would do whatever he could. They then walked to near the center of town and entered a large building. Just past the door a young man stood looking at them.

“Michael, where is Joseph? We need to use the library and we may need his help, after all nobody knows the books better than him.” Circe greeted him warmly, shaking his hand as she spoke.

“Joseph is in the resource room as usual, Circe, he’s expecting you and told me to bring you there immediately. I do not know what you’re looking for, but for Merlin to convince the old man to personally help you look it must be very important. Well, you and your companion should follow me.” Michael then led them past several sets of doors and up two flights of stairs before pointing to a room and telling them to go right in.

“Joseph, I’m here, Michael said you wanted to speak to me. I don’t have much time so I would like to make this search as quickly as possible.” Circe signaled to Chris to sit after doing so herself.

“Yes Circe, I know so I will make this as short as possible. I am glad to say I have already done a little searching based on what Merlin told me, and I have found some books that might be of help, unfortunately they are the only ones on this sort of disappearance, so if they don’t have anything than there isn’t anything in this library. They already are in the reading room so that will lessen the amount of time you’ll take considerably. The only other thing I need to tell you is that when you finish this mission, so to speak, I want you to record everything that happens in one of the empty crystals in the record room, nobody has had this experience first hand so this will be of help in the future. Good luck in your search, and in facing whatever is in that mine.” Joseph then walked them to the books and left them alone to do their research.

After looking over the books, they found they could put about half of them back, since these particular books were written by people from the outside world quite a few of them were about the Bermuda triangle, which amused them a little seeing as they already new the answer to that mystery. The other books mentioned disappearances from all over the world but the most common theory given was that of alien abduction, which definitely did not apply in this case, though another theory given was that of dimensional travel. After reading the theory on dimensional travel, Circe called Joseph in to talk to him and see what he knew about the topic. He said he didn’t know much but he would look to see if there were other books about it, but if he didn’t find any to go talk to one of the elders to see if they knew anything about it. Joseph returned after about fifteen minutes and told them that he was only able to find general information about it, and they should travel to the crystal chamber and see if they could get help there. After returning the books they didn’t need and making copies of the pages that were relevant, they went to the crystal chamber. After passing through four separate doors, they finally got into the center chamber. Chris looked in awe at the room. This room was at least thirty feet tall and about one hundred square feet around, and except for the floor in the center of the room, every part was covered in all sorts of crystals.

“Amazing isn’t it? There are all sorts of gems in here, though we call them all crystals just to simplify things. There are diamonds, all high quality, all types of quartz, and other assorted precious and semi-precious gemstones. Though any normal human who saw this place would probably love to take and sell these stones, they would never get them out of here, this building is enchanted by spells that prevent the removal of the stones by anybody who does not know the proper incantations. There are different grades or quality stones for different uses, the best stones are those used for communication with those who are no longer on this particular plane, a separate stone for each person, though they do not all have to be diamonds, each person chose a type of stone and they were given the best of that particular type. You’ll see what I mean shortly. First we are going to the history crystals; I remember something about an old story about Poseidon doing some dimensional travel after helping to get Atlantis settled here. Poseidon was also real, and yes Zeus and Poseidon were brothers, but as I said they were not gods, you see they enjoyed traveling among ordinary humans and some saw them using their magic, in which they were very powerful, and assumed them to be gods, when they disappeared the humans assumed that they had returned to Olympus, the dwelling place of the gods. A lot of the characters of the old myths existed, but none of them were gods, as a matter of fact, a few of them still live here in Atlantis. Now that I think of it, there is someone else that might be able to help us after we finish here.” Circe then led Chris to a set of rose quartz crystals and looked at them. After concentrating for a minute, she selected four of them and led her companion to a room that had three chairs and what looked like a small end table with holes in it. Circe took the seat next to the table and told Chris to take a seat also. After getting settled, Circe took one of the crystals and placed it in a hole in the table, which caused the room to get dark. After a few seconds a soft voice started speaking. It told the story of the creation of Atlantis and the role Poseidon and his brothers played in it. The first crystal held nothing they could use so Circe put in the second crystal. This one told of their travels and what they did that led people to believe they were gods. The next crystal told of the journey of the island of Atlantis to where it now rests. The last crystal told of where Poseidon went, but only touched on the fact that he had done dimensional travel. After the last one ended, they returned the crystals to their proper places. They next went to a section where there were all sorts of different types of crystals, all of them the most beautiful of the collection. In the center of the stones in this section, there were four diamonds larger and more beautiful than any others were. One of these was raised almost a full foot higher then the rest. This was the one that Circe took. They then went into a circular room with a round pedestal made of solid marble in the center. Circe took position on one side of it and pointed for Chris to stand opposite of her. She then took the diamond and placed in the hole in the center of the pedestal and chanted shortly in a strange language. The stone started glowing and a form appeared above the glowing diamond. The form turned to Circe and smiled at her before speaking.

“Hello my young friend, it has been a long time since we last spoke. I hope you and your family have been well.” The person looked at Chris; ”You are new to me. I do not believe you are from our fair island. I am pleased to meet you young man. Now my dear girl, you usually do not call on me unless you need to know something, what can I help you with.” The man spoke with a deep resonant voice that was also very warm and affectionate.

“I am glad to see you again Zeus, and yes, my family is well. You are right, I need to ask you for some information. I have already searched the crystals and they did not contain the information I need. I need to know what you know of dimensional travel and doorways. I believe we may have trouble with one in the American southwest.” Circe smiled at her friend but turned serious when asking for the information.

“Hmm, well, I will tell you what I know but you may need to go speak to my brother, he does know more about the subject than I do. There are two types of dimensional doorways, ones that are summoned and those that appear on their own, so to speak. The former are similar to when a person teleports, but I imagine those are not the ones you need to know about. The ones that appear on their own occur kind of like a rip in fabric. That is all I can tell you for that is all I know.” Zeus shook his head and just looked at her after he finished talking.

“I thank you for the information, but that still leaves me with a few questions, like how to close and seal the doorway. I will let you return to the other plane. Good day my old friend.” Circe frowned as she spoke, but smiled when bidding her friend farewell. Zeus waved and faded from view before the diamond was removed from the pedestal. They returned the diamond and went back outside.

“Well, I only have a couple more ideas to try out, but right now I think we better head back to the house to get a bite to eat. You will need to get some rest so after eating, you can wait at the house for me to visit the last person here in town. My mother will keep you company until I get back.” She talked as they walked back to her parent’s home. When they got to the house, her father was there and told them he was finished in the fields for the day. They ate then Circe left telling them she would probably be a couple of hours and that her parents were to take good care of her friend until she got back. Circe walked to the largest home in the city and knocked on the door. In the outside world the house would be considered a mansion, but since no one person here was any richer than anyone else, due to time everyone on the island would be considered rich to the outside world, the house was actually occupied by all the elders and their most trusted assistants, so the size didn’t seem unusual to those who knew what it was used for. A young man answered the door and Circe asked for whom she had come here to see. She was led to a large sitting room that also served as a meeting room for private meetings between the elders. She took a seat and waited for about five minutes when a tall, lovely middle aged woman walked into the room. The woman looked and saw who it was, smiled and embraced her.

“Circe my dear, how are you? It’s been what, a year since we last spoke? I am glad to see you, your parents told me you had some outside work to do. The ones graduating here now do not leave and I fear they are missing out on vital experiences to their learning to control and use their magic. Now, my page said you needed to speak to me about something very important, pray tell, what is it?” the woman smiled and sat next to Circe.

“Athena, I am glad to see you are well. A lot of your teaching has been of use in the outside world, though I will admit a lot has changed since you left it. Unfortunately the changes have not been for the better, a lot more violence and such. Well, I suppose I should get down to business and ask what I came here for. I already spoke with your father, and he wasn’t able to tell me a lot. I need to know about dimensional doorways. I’m investigating disappearances in the American southwest and I think that is what is behind them. Can you help me?” Circe was glad to be talking to her old teacher and friend, one of the few remaining mages with notable power, and seeing her appearance she could see how Athena could be mistaken for a goddess.

“Well, I hate to say it but if my father told you all he knows, I won’t be of help. I know they exist, but I don’t know anything else. I do know who would, my Uncle Poseidon. The only other thing I can tell you is where he lives currently, he moves around a lot but he does keep in touch and tells me when he moves and where he is going.” Athena sighed with frustration at the fact she couldn’t be of more help. She told Circe to follow her and led her to a private chamber with books and maps on the walls. Pulling down a map of the Pacific Ocean she pointed to a spot and said, “Here is the last place he told me he was going, that was only a couple of months ago so he should still be there. Have you ever been to his ocean city? If not I’ll have to project an image for you to focus on to get there. I think I know the perfect place, and I’ll tell him you are coming so he’ll be there to meet you. He knows of you, and I think he’d be glad to meet you. He’s always pleased to meet powerful mages and psychics.”

“Well, I have met him briefly a couple of times, though we weren’t introduced formally. Thank you for your help Athena,” after a few minutes of silent concentration to receive the mental images for the focus point, “I’ll leave first thing in the morning, it’s too late tonight to make such a journey, though it will be easier being here at home. My companion will need to get some sleep before I dare teleport with him again.” She hugged her friend again and said her good-byes and left. She returned to the house, where she told Chris that they would be teleporting again the following day so he needed to get a good night sleep to be ready for the next morning. The next morning she hugged her parents and walked with Chris back to the garden they landed in when they first arrived. Circe closed her eyes recalling the place Athena showed her the night before.

“Well, you ready to go Chris? We have to travel to one more place before returning. I already spoke to Ned, he told me that the voices have still been calling, but nothing has happened though he did say that Merlin has been in contact with him and is helping him watch the mine. This time you know ahead of time that we will be teleporting and I am warning you now that the place we are going will be wondrous compared to anything you saw before you arrived here in Atlantis. I will also tell you that the person you will be meeting is like nobody you’ve ever seen before.” Circe then took Chris’s hand and told him to close his eyes and closed hers. She then focused on their destination and felt the magic pouring over them.


When the girl awoke again, it still felt like only moments had passed since she had gotten here, though she was certain it had been much longer. She still didn’t know what she should do while she waited, certain if she tried to explore she would get lost and nobody would be able find her. She somehow knew she was still alone, but she didn’t know how she knew that. She worried for her parents and knew how worried about her they would be and hoped they were all right. She wished she was home with her family, and she felt guilty over the fight she’d had with her mother the morning before this happened. She wondered if she would ever get out of there. Thinking all those things, she again cried herself to sleep.


After what only felt like a few seconds they opened their eyes and found themselves in a small garden. As they looked around and saw that the city was in what looked like a dome made of glass and was deep underwater. Chris was surprised, Circe wasn’t. The city itself looked like a cross between Greek and Roman architecture, like the best of each was chosen and combined to make a beautifully elegant city. The first person they saw came up and welcomed them telling them that he was sent to greet them and bring them to the city’s only elder, the man started to say the name of the elder but Circe stopped him, wanting to surprise Chris. As they walked through the city they saw all sorts of different people wearing clothing from all different time periods. Their escort explained that a lot of the people of the city were those who disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle and their memories had been affected by the magic field surrounding that area. They were brought here to live and they were taken care of by magicians from Atlantis who needed practice or volunteered for service taking care of other people. They finally arrived at a huge mansion that served as meeting hall, home for the town elder and as the hospital and school for the city. They were taken to a private parlor where they waited for the city elder. They had waited for about five minutes when someone opened the door. The man who walked in was stately, to say the least. This man was easily seven feet tall, with deep black hair, which shined blue in the light. His eyes were bright, a blue-green in color that seemed to be laughing. Most people definitely would consider him handsome. He looked around the room then walked up to them and shook their hands.

“Hello there. You must be Circe,” looking at the young woman, “I spoke with my niece last night and she told me you would be coming. I’m sorry I couldn’t meet you in person but I did have a lot to do before I could meet with you today. Now that you are here, I think we should go and eat something before we get down to business. Of course I would like to know your companion’s name, mine of course is Poseidon, but then I think you knew that already.” The whole time he spoke he was smiling. He led them to a large dining room.

“My friend here is Chris, he is a student of Merlin’s assigned to help me for a while. He was not told who we were coming to see today, I felt it would be more proper for you to introduce yourself to him, he’s still got a lot to learn about the world of magic. He’s one of those whose powers manifest themselves after puberty so he’s not had them long. Thank you for your offer of lunch. We hadn’t had a chance to eat before we left so I imagine my companion is hungry.” They all sat down and were served a meal of fish and assorted vegetables. To drink they had fresh water that Poseidon produced using his magic.

“That is why the ancient Greeks believed me to be a god of the oceans. My magic is very attuned to the water. My older brother’s magic tends toward sky and electricity; each member of our family has different magical abilities. We were believed to be gods because nobody of that time period had seen magic before, except for those people in Atlantis. Neither my brothers or me took it seriously, but we used it to help the people when we could. I thought the whole thing funny really, because I’m no better than any of the ‘magicless mortals’.” He talked as they ate. When they finished they walked to Poseidon’s private chambers to talk. Though the building looked luxurious from the exterior, Poseidon’s chambers were merely comfortable, more like a one-bedroom economy apartment than the quarters of one once believed to be a god. The rooms were decorated with a lot of blues, greens, and other water tones. The only thing in the room that could be considered a luxury was the huge fish tank that took up all of one wall in the living room area and stuck out about three feet from the wall. They each took a seat and Poseidon produced glasses of water for them to drink.

“Well, now that we are settled, we should really discuss what you came here for. My niece wouldn’t tell me anything other than it concerned my travels after the relocation of Atlantis. She also told me you spoke to my older brother about it and he wasn’t able to tell you very much. Now, I did a lot of traveling so you will need to tell me what exactly you need to know.” Poseidon looked at both of them, though his eyes were still smiling, his mannerisms had turned very serious.

“Well, I had gone to Arizona in the United States to investigate voices I heard calling me mentally. I found a mine in which a series of disappearances had occurred. From the descriptions I was able to obtain, I went back to Atlantis and did some research in the library, and the only thing that fit the description was a dimensional doorway. I talked to your brother and niece and both said I should come see you, that if anyone knew about them it would be you. Can you help me?” Circe told him all she could and then waited to see what his reaction would be.

“Well, from the description you gave me the only thing that it could be is an accidental dimensional doorway. I am familiar with them, though I have not done much with them myself. After all, when you use the doorways to travel then you need to know all you can about them, no matter what type they are. Unfortunately, you are not able to tell me what caused this particular door. There are two types of accidental doorways, ones that are caused by artifacts and the ones cause by tears in the dimensional fabric, so to speak. I can not tell you which this is. I might have a book that could help you. As for the voice you heard, the only way a person could survive the shock of being sucked into a doorway is if the person has some magic abilities, and from what you told me, at the least this person is psychic. I imagine they also have magic abilities, but do not know it. I think that will help when you go to help them. I think though the only way to make this doorway unusable to anyone else will be to collapse the mine. Unfortunately that is all I can tell you. Now, I will get you that book and you can keep it for as long as you need.” Poseidon then left the room and returned shortly with a thick book that he gave to Circe. He then walked them back to the garden waving at various people as they passed. He wished them luck before returning to the mansion. They then teleported back to the hotel where they sat and looked through the book for an idea of what they would be looking for inside the mine.


When the girl woke up again she still didn’t feel like any time had passed. Still not hungry or thirsty, she started thinking again. She worried about her parents and her friends. She wondered if they were still looking for her or if they thought she was dead. She wished she could reassure them, tell them she was okay, well, maybe not okay but at least alive. Nothing had hurt her yet, but it still didn’t look like there was anything or anyone here besides her. With nothing else to do, the girl sat and stared into the vast nothingness that surrounded her.


Circe checked with the motel’s manager and found out the mechanic had gotten her car to the garage and were working on it and that it would probably take a couple of weeks to finish. She returned the call, telling the mechanic that he could take however long he needed since she would be staying for a while longer anyway. After finishing the phone call, Circe realized how late it was and after letting Ned know they had gotten back safely, started making plans for the next day. The book hadn’t told them much more than Poseidon had, so she sent it back to him. The only new thing they learned was that only those who were very strong with magic had the control to use dimensional travel even though someone with minimal magic would be able to survive it. Circe and Chris knew the next step would be investigating the mine itself, so they agreed to meet the following day at six in the morning again. Chris told her that he would have all the supplies they should need, flashlight, rope, and chalk to mark the passages. He had them because he went camping a lot. Circe manufactured two backpacks and gave them to Chris, telling him to pack them with whatever he thought they would need and bring them when they met the next day. He then told her goodnight and left with the backpacks. After he left, she looked through the clothes she had brought with her and realized she didn’t have anything that would work for spelunking, so she picked out a T-shirt and some jeans and put them on the bed. Thinking, Circe realized she would need a sweater, jacket and some hiking boots. It was too late to go to a store to purchase the things she needed, so she made them, borrowing what she needed from the environment around her. After gathering the things and setting them on the dresser for the morning, she meditated and then slept.

The next morning, Chris knocked on her door when and woke her. She let him in and got her shower and got dressed. Even though it was still dark they left and walked to the mine. They got there in about twenty minutes and went in after turning on the flashlights. After walking through some winding tunnels they came to a fairly open area where they found some writing. There were two sets, one hundreds of years old while the other was obviously newer than the other but it was still old.

“I recognize this symbol.” Circe said, pointing to an elaborate insignia on the wall with the ancient writing. “It hasn’t been used since before Atlantis moved but we were still taught it in school so we could recognize any ancient artifacts. It is an old Greek mage guild’s insignia. This writing is ancient Greek also. It warns of Limbo ahead. Limbo is the place between dimensions. The other writing only warns of danger, judging by the clan symbol, this is the writing Ned told us of.”

As they continued deeper into the mines, the warnings became more frequent, until all of a sudden they stopped. Circe pointed out a glow to her companion and told him that was probably what they were looking for. They followed the glow until they realized they no longer needed the flashlights, which is where they stopped.

“You will have to stay here Chris. You may have magic, but you are not strong enough to enter Limbo. I will enter and bring the person out. After I return, we will follow the trail back to the entrance of the mine and then I will collapse the tunnels behind us. The person should be all right; no matter how long they were in there. Limbo is without passage of time, so a thousand years could pass here and someone in Limbo would not have felt any time passing.” Circe then handed her pack to Chris and paused for a moment to communicate with the voice and tell it that she was on her way and would be there soon, and not to be frightened.


The girl heard a voice in her head, which broke her out of her thoughts. It was the female voice she had heard before, but it felt closer. The voice told her that she was coming soon and not to be frightened. The girl felt relief wash over her. Finally, someone was coming to help her. She told the voice she was waiting, and wouldn’t move. She also told the voice to please hurry. She then started crying again, this time out of happiness.


After speaking with the voice, Circe opened her eyes and looked around. She then started walking forward and a bright white flash of light blinded Chris for only a second. When he could see again, Circe was gone.


Circe looked around and saw only white. She then looked behind her and saw a tear in the white, as though it was a cloth. Through the tear she could see the mine and Chris waiting for her, she only hoped he listened and didn’t try to follow her. Knowing the way out she started looking for the source of the mental voice, calling out with her voice and her mind. After a few minutes she heard the frightened and tearful voice of a teen girl. The girl came running up to Circe and startled the woman by her appearance. The girl was dressed in a style of clothes from the fifties. Circe told the girl who she was and took her hand and started leading her out of the white place. As they walked towards the tear, the girl cried with joy and relief.


As Chris watched the spot Circe disappeared, there was another flash of white light, this time he looked away so he wasn’t blinded by it. When he looked back Circe was standing there with a young lady whose face was red from crying.

“Chris, I am going to teleport us to the cave opening, when there I want to collapse the mine tunnels. I am going to need your help, I am starting to tire, and we have done a lot the past few days. By the way, the girl’s name is Bobbie. Let’s go.”

A few seconds later they were standing outside the mine. Chris and Circe joined hands and the woman said a few words in Greek. A few seconds later they heard a rumbling coming from the depths of the mine. The noise grew louder until they saw the dust of the collapsing mine walls. They waited until the mine entrance was totally blocked by debris before returning to Circe’s hotel room. Circe asked the girl to tell her the whole story and listened while she did so.

“Well, you were trapped there for a long time Bobbie. I need to feel in your mind for information about your parents so I can tell you if they are still alive. That still leaves a problem. There is no way you could return to them; you have not aged in the forty years that have passed since you saw them last. The problem with that is the fact that no one would believe your story. Besides, by now your parents, if they were alive would have believed you dead for a long time. I can take you to my home, and you will be well cared for there, and would be able to lead a somewhat normal life. My parents would welcome you into their home, and my mother would be able to teach you how to use your psychic abilities. After we try to find your parents, you can tell me what you wish to do. Now however I need to rest for a while, these events have been trying on my stamina. I am going to meditate; I will awaken on my own in a few hours. Bobbie, while I do so, you are welcome to take any of my clothing that you are able to wear, but I ask you to remain in my room.”

After a few hours, Circe woke and saw Bobbie sitting in a chair near the bed. Chris had left a little while before to go home to get some sleep. Circe told Bobbie that she would now be able to help find out if her parents were still alive and well. Having Bobbie sit on the bed facing her, Circe took the girl’s hands and told her to clear her mind except for thoughts of her parents. Using those thoughts, Circe was able to reach out with her mind and look for the people. She found the mother, but by looking into the woman’s mind was able to see that the father had died about five years ago.

“Your mother is alive and well, but your father died a few years ago. I can tell you that she does think you dead, but they had two more children after you disappeared, both boys. Though they both loved your brothers dearly, they still missed you terribly. Your brother’s names are Michael and Jonathon. Both are married but have no children yet. I am glad I could tell you your family is well. Have you thought over my offer? I hope you will accept it.”

“I am glad they went on with their lives. I think I will accept your offer Circe. I am very grateful for all your help, I didn’t think I would ever get out of there. What about Chris though, shouldn’t we let him know what is going on. And I have one more question for you, who was the old man whose voice I heard before yours?” Bobbie was a bright young lady and quickly understood that everything Circe had told her earlier was true.

“I already told Chris, he declined joining us. He said he had enough teleporting for a while. The old man is Ned. He has lived in the area for a long time. He is a good man and already knows you are safe and that the mine will catch nobody else again. Well, shall we go to my parent’s home then? I will warn you, you are in for quite a shock.”

After telling her what she asked about, Circe took Bobbie’s hands and teleported them to the same gardens she and Chris had been to only two days before. There Circe’s parents welcomed them. Bobbie would live with them and start classes at the school in a few days and would receive training for her psychic abilities with Circe’s mother. After meeting the people and seeing everything there, Bobbie decided she was going to be very happy here.