“You did it!” Tina said. “But why couldn’t I?”
Nola was getting a notion. “Try it again.”
She brought a second Fren forward and netted it. Tina closed her eyes. This time she saw an image right away, but could still not make it out.
“It’s a bird,” she said, squinting her eyes. “It looks familiar.”
She concentrated harder. She saw a color, red. The color of the bird grew brighter and brighter, until it was almost blinding. “I’ve got it! It’s a phoenix,” she said and opened her eyes.
It was indeed a phoenix. The net was gone; the bird had fried it to ashes with its magic fire. The phoenix squawked, spread its flaming wings and leaped into the air.
Tina and Nola hugged each other with girlish excitement. This was a good start, but there was much, much more to do.
Nola pulled back, smiling. “We’d better finish these off,” she said.
Tina tried again with a third Fren. This time, she couldn’t make it out. Nola tried. She put forth a great effort but came up blank.
Try the other two, Heat suggested.
The last two were equally difficult. The images remained blurry and they were unable to tell even what species the creatures were.
“Try to make ’em disappear,” Tina suggested helpfully. “I tried and I can’t do it.”
Nola tried, to no avail.
I fear that you may not be able to do that. To disappear, they must be forgotten, and only their human Dreamers can do that, Spirit thought.
“Say, that’s right. Maybe only their Creators can change them back.”
The more she thought of it, the more sense it made. In fact, she remembered dreaming as a child of a dinosaur just like the one she had changed back. She had long since suppressed it because her mother said she was foolish.
“Tina, did you recognize that bird?” she asked.
“You know, it’s funny, it looked really familiar, but I can’t remember where I saw it.”
“Well, what do we do now?” Nola asked the group.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” Mich said. “How do we call the Volant?” he asked, turning to Spirit.
You must recite an incantation, Esprit thought. I shall put it in your mind. Speak it to the sky.
“Why me?” Mich asked, surprised. So far, he had been kept pretty much out of things. He hoped he could do something valiant to impress Nola.
You are the king of Kafka now. She will be more apt to listen to the one who can legally represent this world. She would simply be annoyed if one of us were to call her.
Mich had almost forgotten about his royal blood. It was true. With his father gone, it was his responsibility to be king now. The realization was almost overwhelming, when he thought about it, yet he knew he must do all he could to save Kafka. Even if he died trying.
“I’m ready,” he said, straightening his shirt. He felt for his sword. He forgot that he had left it and his clothes on Earth. Their return had been so abrupt that he just hadn’t thought to gather his things. He didn’t want to ask Nola to make him a new sword, so he would get along without it for now. It hadn’t served him terrifically well anyway.
Suddenly, his mind was filled with words. He looked to the sky and repeated the spell. “Lady of the sky, Lady of the air, hear me now, listen to my prayer. You are needed here, on the ground. Only in you can help be found.”
He dropped his head. “Kind of corny, isn’t it?” he asked of no one in particular.
Almost instantly, there was a slight stirring in the air that grew stronger and stronger. Ashes from the burned-out ground were swirling into dust devils. The wind swept their hair and caused their eyes to tear as it picked up horrendous speed.
It soon turned from a gale into a hurricane. The two unisi kept their wings tightly clamped to their bodies, lest the wind catch their wings and hurl them, uncontrollably, into the air.
“Look at that!” Nola cried over the roaring wind.
The others looked and saw a shape in the distance. It was a white tornado. It was as high as the highest peak of the Mangors and as fast as the wind around them. It wiggled in the air like a serpent on a string.
Nola looked harder and was surprised to see that the tornado had no cloud feeding it. The sky above it was clear and blue. The tornado itself was very pale, almost like snow or steam. In a moment it was upon them.
Just when they thought they would all be blown away, the tornado exploded. They found themselves lost in a thick fog that settled around them, blocking all vision.
“Where are you?” Mich called.
“I’m over here!” Nola called back. She held out her hands so that she wouldn’t bang into anything.
“Where?” he cried as he felt through the fog.
The fog started to open up and he saw her and his friends. The fog continued to open until there was a hole in the middle where the group stood. The fog completely surrounded them, even above. It was like being in a giant igloo. The light from the sun filtered faintly in so that there was barely enough illumination to see.
“Who calls me?” inquired a sultry voice.
Mich nerved himself and responded, “King Michael Edward!”
“You mean the prince who dwells in the Forest of Imagination? The human prince? Are you now a king?”
“Yes. Until I find out what happened to my father.”
“What do you want of me?”
“Kafka is in peril. The king is unable to act, so I must speak for him. As king, I must save Kafka at any cost.”
“Then, for you, I will show myself.”
The fog above them swirled around somewhat as a pair of dainty feet showed. The woman moved slowly down through the fog, revealing herself from the base up, as if descending through an invisible hole in a cloud. Her legs were slender, long and firm, yet very dark skinned. As she descended, Mich noticed something strange. She had a pair of huge silvery wings.
The Volant was a winged woman with dark brown skin, flowing black hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a tight white gown that flared widely at the knees, so that when a breeze whipped it up, it exposed her shapely calves. She was slender, stately and beautiful. Nola was just a little jealous. Well, maybe a lot jealous.
On her left shoulder was a huge hummingbird. It seemed to be three feet long from beak to tail tip. Mich wondered what flower that bird would pollinate.
On her right shoulder were two tiny hummingbirds. They seemed to be of all colors, but mostly red and green, and their feathers sparkled like morning dew.
As her feet touched gently on the black ash, she folded her wings behind her back and looked at the group. She noted Snort and reached out a lovely brown hand to pat his hot head. Then her expression shifted from wan smile to scowl as she saw the two unisi. “How dare you give that incantation to a human! I thought I expelled you two.”
Spirit and Heat both bent a foreleg and arched their necks in a half-bow.
We know that we are not welcome in your presence, Mistress Volant, Spirit thought. But we have done nothing to harm you or the sky. We are sorry that we could not be apart of your rainbow, but we cannot help the colors we were born with. You of all people should be sympathetic. Please, do not let our presence here affect my friend’s situation. We have great need of your assistance.
“You are a noble animal to speak to me thusly,” she said, impressed. “I have never harbored resentment toward you. It is my job to design the rainbow with colors chosen by God, and your colors were not selected. I know how you must feel. There are some who say a Volant should not be so—well tanned,” she concluded, casting a glance at her arm. “I will listen to your friends.”
Thank you.
She turned to face Mich. “You called me. Now, what is it you wish?”
“I wish information,” he said a little nervously.
“I am the goddess of the sky, not a muse of information!”
“Yes,” he said, clearing his dry throat. “I was told you would give
help, for those willing to pay.”
She approached him and looked him in the eye with an icy stare. It was all Mich could do to keep from backing away and making a break for it. Her face was chiseled and serious. Then she seemed to become thoughtful. Finally, she retreated again.
“Yes, this is true,” she said, her gown sweeping out as she turned to face them. “I sometimes take payment, if the cause is worthy. Is your cause worthy?” The Volant gave him such a hard look that Mich almost choked. He looked away and tried to cough.
Nola stepped up and took his hand. “This will work,” she whispered reassuringly.
He started to explain about the Fren.
The Volant held up a hand to silence him. “I know of this. I don’t care.”
How could she say she didn’t care? The life of his friends as well as his own were at stake here, not to mention planet Earth. How could she be so callous? “But if you don’t help us, you’ll die too!”
The Volant laughed sweetly. “Young man, this is not so! I am not of Kafka. I am of the skies of the universe, a goddess! What is one world lost? That’s just less work for me to do.”
Nola couldn’t stand it anymore. “Look, if you don’t help us, I’ll—” But she couldn’t kill the woman, because goddesses were eternal. “I’ll capture you!” she said, thinking of throwing a net. She felt silly after saying it.
The Volant seemed unconcerned. “And who are you?”
“I am Nola Rollins of Earth.”
“Ah, a Creator. I’m afraid that capturing me would not be possible, but you could complicate things for me and possibly delay me. I am on a to-the-second schedule, you know. Let me consider.”
The woman walked through the fog wall. No one tried to follow.
There was no telling what would happen if they did. They might lose each other in the fog. So they waited, and waited and waited.
Half an hour later, she returned. “I have decided to help. What have you to pay me with?”
Mich spread his hands. “I have nothing but the crown.”
“What would I want with kingship?” She nodded to the two small hummingbirds perched on her shoulder. The birds immediately flew toward the group.
One landed on Tina’s purse and removed the pistol. Tina was amazed that the bird could lift the gun, which was twice its size. It carried the gun to the woman and hovered before her, turning this way and that, showing her the gun. The woman shook her head, her thick hair tumbling slowly. The tiny bird took the gun back to Tina’s purse, then flew back to its mistress’s shoulder.
The other bird flitted among the group looking in pockets and in socks. It flew to Nola and hovered for a moment. Then it made a bee-line for her halter top. It perched on the fabric and stuck its long bill inside.
Mich glanced over and saw the bird on Nola’s chest. It looked as if it were sucking nectar from her bosom. Nola had a surprised look on her face and was reaching up to shoo it away. Her hair was tangled and wild and her blue eyes were wide with amazement. The bird pulled free before her hand reached it, and it flew back to the woman with the Kahh in its bill.
Nola reached after it but missed. What would happen now? She knew the woman would surely take the Kahh as payment! But what good would it do to pay her when she would just use the Kahh to destroy Kafka anyway?
“Excuse me, Volant, but we cannot pay with that,” Mich said.
The woman looked up from the Kahh in her hand. For a fleeting moment, the woman had an expression of mischief on her face, but it was replaced with a sweet smile.
“My name is Ventus, Prince; call me Ventus.” She gestured to him. “Come, sit. I think we can deal. You too,” she said, pointing to the others.
Nola sat down next to the woman. Ventus Volant; that was a nice name. “You have a pretty name, Ventus. That’s Latin for ‘wind,’ isn’t it?”
“You compliment me.” She blushed, which was hard to do, considering her dark skin. “Thank you. Yes, it is.”
“And Volant, that has something to do with flight.”
“You’re a smart girl. Perhaps my information will, after all, be useful to you. I will tell you all you need to know.”
“But the Kahh—” Mich began.
Snort jetted flame into the air. Guarding the Kahh was his job!
Peace, friend, Heat thought. She will not use the Kahh on an evil creature. We have no fear from that, and she will keep it safe. We will have two problems solved.
“Let’s see, how do I begin,” Ventus said. “Have you discovered the way to convert the Fren into the creatures they once were?”
“I think so,” Nola said. “Tina is a Creator too, and we tested ourselves. We started with five Fren and were able to turn two of them back, but not the other three. Why?”
“You see, you cannot fight the Fren alone. You must have the help of the other Creators. There are a few more on your planet, perhaps ten or so. You must help them come. They may know what is happening, but they cannot stop it. They are all like you, Tina and Nola: they’ve lost faith. Their dreams have been destroyed but most of them have not yet Forgotten their dreams, and there is still hope.”
“But how do I get them here?” she asked.
“You can bring them, my dear; you are the gifted one. You are the one who can imagine magic, the only Creator who can do anything with magic Creations, and with that talisman you wear.”
Nola fingered the cross around her neck. “You mean, all other Creators can Create new dreams and re-Create old ones, but I’m the only one who can Create magic dreams, like spells and stuff?”
“Yes, and magic is needed to destroy the dam. You can Create magic dreams that work on other worlds as well. You can bring the Dreamers here.”
“You mean with a bed spell?”
“Yes, or something like that. You can give them all one, and those who wish to come, will.”
“But what do I do once they get here?”
“You must simply join hands and cast your minds across Kafka. Once the damn is destroyed, the Fren cannot reproduce. Every Fren must be contained until the dam is destroyed; otherwise, they will kill you. You, being human, can be killed. Only you have the ability to destroy that dam. All will be restored if you make haste.”
“How do I find the others? There are billions of people on Earth.”
“With magic. Use your imagination.”
“You say there are only a few Creators left on Earth. Why is that?”
“You silly girl,” the Volant laughed, “do you not know the nature of the very world in which you were born? Nearly all on Earth are simply passive dreamers. They see the things and creatures of Kafka, yet do not take them for more than a mere dream. They do not believe. So you see, only the ones who truly believe are keeping this world alive. If much more time passes, there will be only you two to keep this world from dying, making you an easy target for the Fren. They will never let you leave now. They will be watching.”
Nola felt her heart go cold. “Thank you, Ventus,” she said tightly. “One more thing, though. Is King Edward still alive?”
“He has not been Forgotten, yet. Now, you must act quickly, but you must prepare. Go to the castle and arm yourselves. You will not be able to capture all of them in nets. The ones that slip through will try to destroy you. When all the Fren are captured, you will face Reility. Beware of him; he is strong.” The Volant smiled, somewhat distantly. “Good-bye, mortals, and I wish you luck.”
Mich felt a great relief to know that his father was still alive. He also realized that Nola must care greatly for him. He would not have thought to ask the Volant about his father. He cast a glance and a smile at Nola, who returned it in a deeper fashion.
As they sat there, the woman opened her wings and lifted into the sky, carrying the fog behind her. The sun shone down once again, although it was now lower in the sky.
Spirit and Heat stepped forward to nuzzle Nola. Tina gave her a hug, Snort rubbed his body on her legs like a cat and Mich kissed her uncertain
ly. They were all, it seemed, proud of her. She just hoped that their faith was well placed, knowing that it was not over yet. They wanted her to know that they would stand by her, no matter what came to pass.
“What is the best route to the castle?” she asked.
“The safest way to get there would be for you to conjure us there. Why don’t you try it?” Mich asked, smiling.
“Hmmm.” She considered, realizing that the notion had merit. “Now, there’s an idea.”
She thought about conjuring. If she could Create a magic spell, would it matter how she went about it? “Maybe we should mount up and join hands,” she suggested.
They tried it. Snort sat in Mich’s lap. The two unisi had to squeeze together because their barrels were so large that Mich and Nola had to lean over to reach each other.
Nola asked Mich to describe the castle to her so that she could picture it in her mind. She knew what the castle looked like, of course, having Created it, but she found it easier to picture when he spoke to her. Once she had it fixed, she began to concentrate. She pictured the dreamstone castle with its tall battlements, ramparts and parapets with high flying pennants, its tall outer wall an imposing barrier to its enemies, in its own section of the Forest of Imagination. This part of the forest seemed untouched. The trees rose majestically, opening their arms to the sun.
When she opened her eyes, they were there. Castle Edward stood before them as huge as ever. Every brick gleamed as if it had just been polished yesterday.
The drawbridge was down. Mich called out, but of course no one responded.
“It looks empty,” Tina said. “Let’s go in.”
Mich took a step onto the drawbridge—and fell through it, into the moat. He coughed and gasped with surprise as he scrambled onto the bank and stood there dripping.
“What the hell happened?” Tina asked as she felt the drawbridge with a hand. “There ain’t nuthin’ there! It’s fake!”
Mich looked at it. The drawbridge was opaque and he could even see the splinters of wood that had flaked off from use. It looked perfectly real, until he reached down and his hand passed through. “She’s right. It’s illusion.”