Kailani

No one was waiting for me in the library when I crawled back over the ledge. Walking out and to the elevator, I called for the fourth floor and it accommodated, shooting up.

The elevator doors opened on either side for both the east and west wings. After they opened, but before I could step out, I heard yelling behind me and immediately ducked.

A bright red ball sailed over my head, connecting to the ground in an explosion of scarlet spider-like silk with the strength of a titanium-steel alloy.

Gripping my fists, I stood, whirling around. Blayne and Cowen were covering their mouths in fear and shock and Kella attempted to hide behind a couch that had been taken from the family lounge and overturned as a fort.

The hall was in complete dishevel. Furniture was scattered everywhere, pulled not only from the lounge but from guest rooms. The walls, ceiling, floor, and participants were covered in the red, blue, and purple spider-web substance known as nano-glue. It was theoretically indestructible. The strongest adhesive on the planet... and Cowen, the genius he was, had been prodded by Blayne to turn it into balls that would explode on impact. Add some colored dye and the game Nano-ball was born.

I took two steps out of the elevator, almost shaking with fury. My attention snapped to Cowen, the guiltiest looking of the three.

"Don't tell Dad," he begged.

"Please, Kai." Blayne folded his hands together. "Mom would still want us to have fun, and this could be our only chance to have the really big game we've always wanted." He ran back and pulled out a basket of yellow nano-balls. My favorite color. "We made some for you, too."

"And none of you are worried about, I don't know, Mom's safety? Or even the castle's structural integrity!" I yelled, gesturing around. All of the glue would have to be removed... somehow.

"Of course we are," Cowen said softly, "but the castle can always be fixed and Mom's going—she'll be—I know she's going to be okay." He sounded like he was still trying to convince himself.

I sighed, shaking my head. This is just a stupid distraction to them.

Reluctantly, I walked forward and picked up one of the yellow balls, getting the feel of it in my hand. "Hey, Kella?"

"Yes, little lamb?" She said, no longer trying to hide.

I observed the damage done by her purple balls, seeing it was minimal compared to the twins'. She also looked to have hit them more times. "Wanna team up?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Blayne tried to interject.

"With you, little lamb? Anytime. ATTACK!"

"AHHH!"

Battles were fought. Alliances were broken. Family ties were meaningless when a nano-ball was sailing toward your face.

I threw a nano-ball at Cowen, the small orb missing its target and colliding with the wall behind him. "Haha, you missed me!" The ball bounced off the wall, sailing for his chest. "What the—"

It burst on impact and he fell over onto the couch.

Ding!

We froze.

Chip—still in his fencing gear—walked out of the elevator, then froze. "What in the absolute..."

"There's no time!" Blayne slid him a basket of striped blue and yellow balls. They spilled out of the basket.

Dropping his fencing gear, Chip dove for the basket, landing a shot right in Blayne's stomach. He doubled over, sending Cowen into a fit of hysterics, but he was Chip's next target.

"For Fossit or death!"

"Pilks rule, Reds drool!"

"Avenge me, brother!"

The war raged for hours. I knew it would be dinner soon, but I wouldn't rest until yellow had dominated. Victory would be mine!

Ding!

We froze. Dad walked out. He froze.

"Uhhh..." Blayne, who was standing in the middle of the hallway, perfectly in Dad's line of sight, dropped his ball on his foot where it exploded, sticking him to the ground. The rest of us had to cover our mouths to keep from laughing.

"What is—what is—what in the name of—" Dad stuttered, and we struggled from laughing more. "FRONT AND CENTER!"

"Yes, sir!"

My military training kicked in. It had for Chip and Kella too, apparently. We fell in line on either side of Blayne, still stuck in place. Cowen followed behind, carrying Kella's cane with him. She snatched it from him and stood a little straighter, if that was even possible.

"What in the Great Infinity's name are you doing!"

"Uh, nothing?"

Cowen elbowed Blayne, and Blayne elbowed Cowen back.

Dad sighed. "Jolan? Kai?"

I knew we were in trouble when Dad used Chip's first name. I shrank away.

"I expected this from them, even from you, Kella, and, unfortunately, I will have to tell your parents—er, your father about this little incident."

"No, please, Your Majesty—"

"I'm not trying to be needlessly cruel." He sighed. "But we all make mistakes, and the five of you—" he gestured to the mess of the hallway "—just made a humungous one! What were you thinking? You have to expect that I'm going to hold you accountable!

"I mean, Chip, Kai..." he shook his head, starting to pace. "Kai, you're almost sixteen-years-old. You'll be a legal adult in just a few days, and this is how you're spending your time? First you leave without telling anyone, and then you encourage this? Of all the irresponsible—if your mother was here, she would... she would..." His head snapped to Cowen. "What would she do?"

"Uhhh..."

"Don't do it, man!" Blayne whispered.

Dad's stare was too intense.

"She would... say Kai was probably afraid she wouldn't be able to have as much fun once she's adult so she's just acting out now while she still can?"

Blayne relaxed. "Oh, that wasn't so bad."

Dad sighed. "You're probably right. But what about Chip? What about you, Chip?"

Chip hung his head in shame.

"You're nineteen. You constantly tell your mother and I how responsible you are, how you're ready to join me overseas, and then you pull a stunt like this the moment she's gone?"

"I'm... I'm sorry Dad. I have no excuse."

"Cowen?"

"Uh, Mom would give him the disappointed mom look then probably discuss with you in private the possibility of moving back the date of when he's getting shipped out—"

"What?!" Chip snapped his head between Cowen and Dad. "No!"

Cowen looked down at his feet, but Blayne and I exchanged glances. We were thinking the same thing: neither of us wanted Chip to go.

"Thank you, Cowen," Dad said.

Cowen shifted his stance uncomfortably. Blayne gave his shoulder a squeeze.

It wasn't fair of Dad to ask him those questions, but Cowen thought more like Mom than the rest of us, and Dad seemed almost lost without her... almost.

Pacing back and forth for another moment, he stopped, focusing on something by our feet. Shaking his head, a smile broke across his face. He burst out laughing.

"What is it?" Chip asked.

Dad shook his head, trying to be serious again. "Nothing, nothing. Go to your—go to your rooms!" he sputtered. "And—and think about—" he laughed, "—what you've done!"

The five of us exchanged glances.

"I think your Dad's off of his horse!" Kella murmured.

Still confused, we tried to move, but couldn't. Looking down, I saw we had all stepped in a pile of now dry nano-goop. When I tried taking my feet out of my shoes, I discovered that enough of the nano webbing had sprayed on or around my feet at some point to stick them inside.

The others were having similar problems. Though Kella was able to get her shorter leg out by removing the lift in her shoe, the lift itself was stuck to her sock.

"What are you just standing around for?" Dad said, fighting a smile and waving his arm for us to leave. "I told you to go to your rooms! We'll discuss this tomorrow."

"Uh... Dad..." Cowen said.

"Yes, um—" I started "—I think we're stuck."

He shook his head in amusement. "Perhaps for now, the best punishment will have to be bed without dinner. By the time the maintenance crew finishes scraping you out, it'll be long past midnight."

He wasn't wrong. We were stuck standing there for almost four hours.