After cleaning the mug and plate, Viera leaned against the counter. “I need to tell you something, and now is as good a time as any.”

One of Betsy’s brows shot up. “Oh, and what’s that, my friend?”

“I’m …” Viera paused, unsure of how to say this. She swallowed, trying to get moisture into her dry mouth. “Look, I know there are only five Pillars on Earth, but I love Thorn and they don’t have any wizards on Abritos.”

A smile grew on Betsy’s face, bigger with every word Viera said. “You’re going with the chanzii when they leave.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yeah. And since Thorn is in the first wave, I’ll be leaving in the next month. I plan on volunteering to watch the kids while the adults focus on rebuilding their society.”

Betsy wrapped her in a hug. “Oh, Viera! I think that’s fantastic. I’m so happy for you.”

There was a knock on the door before Thorn came in. “What’s the party?”

Warmth and excitement bubbled in Viera as she gazed at the woman she loved. “Well, my beautiful friend …”

Thorn’s face scrunched up. “Friend?”

Viera waved her hands. “Let me finish or I’ll never get this out.”

Rolling her eyes, Thorn just nodded her assent. “Go ahead.”

“Okay, here it goes.” Viera’s hands shook. “Before I follow the woman I love to a completely different planet,” she watched as Thorn’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped, “my parents would like to meet you.”

Thorn lifted her in a hug, spinning them both. Betsy laughed; her joy filled the kitchen.

They didn’t have long before the Ziner crew sent them to New York. They landed in the conference room where they’d had their meetings with Juk.

Mr. Mard walked in. “Alright, ladies. Are you ready? It’s time to let the world know the truth.”

As happy as he sounded, Viera was worried. The world was about to learn some very hard truths.

***

“Hi, my name is Betsy Doeth. I am what is known as a Pillar on Earth. Currently there are five Pillars who have been keeping Earth safe for generations. I’ll give you more information about what that means later. I am joined on stage by Viera Kor, Thorn Firoza, and Orson Mard.” Betsy spoke to a huge crowd. There were thousands of people there to hear them speak. Speckled throughout the crowd were cameras.

“We are here to talk to you about what happened the other day all over the planet, but specifically in Chicago, since that is where three of the four of us were.” She waved her hand at everyone but Mr. Mard.

“You mean when the aliens and dragons attacked?” someone in the crowd yelled.

Betsy laughed. “Yes, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. Though, you do know you shouldn’t believe everything you see on the internet.” She waited for the laughter to die down. “On Monday, an alien race invaded Earth. Despite that, as a planet, we don’t need to worry. There is a division of the government and specialists that have been working with another group of aliens for some time. Together, in a joint force, we came together to ensure the safety of our world.”

Someone in the mass of people yelled, “What makes you so special?”

“I’m glad you asked.” Betsy’s smile remained on her face. Viera could tell she was enjoying herself, despite the centuries the Pillars had avoided just this. “Each of us have a reason we were part of the team on the ground in Chicago, the main area of the fight. Over the next few weeks and months we’ll be holding more of these press conferences to give detailed information to all of you. In these sessions, we’ll be introducing you to the individuals who were part of the team and maybe to some of the alien races who helped to keep Earth safe. Today, you’ll meet the three of us. Mr. Mard is our government contact. He can speak if he wants at the end, but for now, I’d like Ms. Thorn Firoza to share her story.”

Thorn stepped up. The crowd reacted as one would expect, applause, cat calls, and cheers. Thorn took it in stride. “Hello, people of Earth!” She waved. “I’ve always wanted to do that.” Her smile grew, intensifying her beauty. “As my friend here said, my name is Thorn Firoza, or as my people say, Commander Firoza. I am from a different planet, a world called Abritos.” In a quick transition, she dropped her human image. Her turquoise skin glowed in the morning sun, set off by her dark purple hair.

After a moment of stunned silence, the audience oohed and aahed. “I came to this planet when mine was invaded. Your government let a portion of my people settle here as refugees. Our planet has recently been emptied of its invaders and my people can return home. From the bottom of my heart, we chanzii want to thank you all.”

The silence that followed her words was almost deafening. Then, slowly, people shut their mouths, which hung open in shock, and applauded.

Thorn handed Viera the microphone. “Hi, everyone. My name is Viera … ah, Viera Kor. There isn’t a lot special about me. I taught second grade for years.” She shot Betsy a glance and her friend nodded emphatically. Viera wasn’t sure why they’d decided she should do this, but it was time. “Betsy mentioned there were five Pillars here on Earth. They are wizards, or magic users. I would be the sixth, but I’m heading to Abritos to help them rebuild. I was included in the group of specialists because I am one of only six humans who can wield actual magic.”

Viera held up her hands. She created the image of a dragon flying above the crowd. It morphed into a phoenix, then burst into a ball of fire. The heat could be felt by everyone below.

There was a moment of silence as everyone gaped at her and the magic she’d just wielded.

Someone in the middle of the mass of people laughed. “You think only six people on Earth can do magic? Arrogant much?”

A fireball flew from her hands, heat emanating from it. Viera was about to do something about it when it exploded into fireworks of pink flower petals that rained down over the crowd.

With a grimace, Viera shot a look at Betsy, lowering the microphone away from her mouth. “That was magic, I felt the power. You know I’m heading off-planet soon … looks like you’ll have a lot more on your plate than just aliens.”

Thank you for reading

Conflict Lessons

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About the Author

Harlowe Frost has been a teacher at both the high school and college level. Her parents instilled a love of reading from a young age. She grew up in the queer community. Her favorite genre growing up was fantasy and science fiction, that is, until she discovered urban fantasy and paranormal romance. What she never found in those books was the diversity in background, gender identity, and sexuality she saw in the people around her. She decided if she couldn’t find that in what she read, then she would write it herself. This started her writing paranormal romance with a LGBTQ+ background.

Turn the page to enter the contemporary world of bakeries in Wisconsin.

A new book, coming soon.

Bakery Wars

By Hannah Willow

Chapter 1 - Hope Retreats

Val

The trees covering the hills up ahead looked so dark and foreboding. But, despite that, I couldn’t keep the smile from my face and the excitement had me bouncing in my seat. I knew Craig would tell me to stop bouncing … again. But I’d begged for this, and he’d finally said ‘yes.’

“How much longer, do you think?”

I turned and smiled at the couple behind me. They both looked as happy as I was. I wish I could remember their names. They were a lesbian couple from … Oshkosh? Oconomowoc? Oxford? One of those ‘O’ named cities. I was as bad at names as I was with locations. I really should be better; they’d been so nice to us since this began.

“Not long. If I remember from what I read, the time at the Center was two days to meditate, relax, and learn, and then we’d take a ride to the hot springs.” My nose scrunched up as I tried to remember the brochure I’d read.

The man across the aisle—Greg? Tony? Fuck!—leaned over. “It should be about fifteen more minutes. Two days at the Center, a thirty-minute bus ride to the hot springs, and then we’ll spend two days there in the cabins.”

The pregnant woman, who sat behind me, sighed. “And do they expect all of us to have our babies in this two day window? There are seven of us on this retreat.”