The worms fought off the Fren. There began to appear more worms as pieces of them were sliced off.
“Drake!” Tina yelled as she dismounted. “Find Nola! Bring her back here! Hurry!”
Drake wormed his way down one of the tunnels, following his tongue.
Suddenly, there was a Fren at Tina’s back. He was striking her with a club. She concentrated and a bear trap formed at the Fren’s feet. She pushed him and he danced a little, trying to keep his balance, and stepped into the trap. The trap snapped closed on his leg.
But no sooner had she incapacitated the one when another was on her. This one wielded a whip. She created a trapdoor beneath him and he slipped through. She closed the door over him. This was almost fun!
She looked around and saw that, though the worms far outnumbered the Fren, her order not to kill the Fren caused the worms a great handicap. Many of the original worms looked very weak and seemed to weaken further the more they were cut. Even the new worms that formed seemed almost unable to move about well.
As she tried to think of something to help, she was struck from behind with a heavy club, and all went black.
Drake had found Nola in a matter of a few minutes. She and her new friend, Curbie, returned with him and witnessed Tina’s injury. The girl lay motionless on the cave floor. One of the worms was wrapped around Reility, trying desperately to keep hold of him while being slashed at the same time.
Curbie rushed to help Curbia, who was fending off two Fren with the help of a rather slow worm. Mich was also doing his best to protect himself from two more. Another worm was trying to help him. Actually, it seemed to get in the way.
“What is wrong with the worms, Drake? Why are they so slow?”
“They are dying,” Drake said solemnly. “They have reprodusched scho many timesch that they are draining the very life out of themschelvesch. They are trying to outnumber the Fren.”
“Well, tell them to stop!” Nola said.
Drake screeched a command and every worm turned its head and nodded. During that distraction, a Fren approached with a razor jag and quickly slashed Drake’s head off. He writhed on the floor for a moment, then was healed. Another worm, looking just like Drake, slithered into the fray.
“I’m afraid we cannot overcome Reility thisch way. We will losche our livesch,” Drake said.
“Tell the warrior with Reility to let him go.”
“What? That would be inschane!”
“Please!” Nola shouted. “I’ll try to handle him myself.” She hoped she could.
The worm paused a moment, then screamed another command. The worm that held Reility was already loosening its grip. Reility jumped out of its coils and sped toward the nearest tunnel, running for his life. Nola was heartened somewhat to see his evident discomfort; Reility must think he was losing, despite the damage being done to the worms.
Nola made a throwing motion and a huge steel net sank down over Reility. Tendrils shot from every edge and snaked into the rock around him. He hissed and spit and chewed the cords. The cords began to pop loose. Nola knew that she could not hold him long without the cross; Creation alone was not enough.
She looked around for help, but all of her friends were busy fighting the other Fren. She would have to risk losing her cross by taking care of the matter herself. She had to have faith in herself for once, even though she was never more afraid of anyone in her life. Reility struck fear in her like no other person.
She ground her teeth and strode forward, throwing another net atop him as the hole he made in the net was growing larger. He cursed at her and threatened her, but still she approached, tears of terror streaming down her face.
Her cross dangled around his neck, begging to be rescued from him. But somehow, she couldn’t reach out to take it. It was her own fear holding her back. She knew it, and cursed it, but couldn’t overcome it.
Do not fear, my friend came Spirit’s voice in her mind.
“Esprit! Where are you?” she cried, looking around.
lam here, he said, sounding closer.
She turned and Spirit stood behind her, as huge and black as ever. His horn shone bright with pride. He had a Fren pinned by the arms under his hooves. Heat was there as well, standing guard over Tina where she lay.
You cannot be afraid now, Nola. You must do what is meant for you to do. Take the cross.
Nola’s joy at seeing her dear friend disappeared when she turned back to face Reility. He had broken through the net and was climbing out. The cross hung within her reach.
She stretched out her quivering hand. When she did so, Reility looked up at her with all the evil of the world in his black eyes. She let her hand drop away in another surge of fear.
“You should have killed yourself,” Reality growled. “You know as well as I do that your mission will fail. You will always fail!” He showed his nasty pointed teeth. “Your dreams will be destroyed.”
He kept saying that, yet he was trying to escape. She realized that he was attempting to terrify her, because he wasn’t sure he could beat her if she didn’t beat herself. That started a countercurrent in her that stirred her emotions and stiffened her dissolving spine.
Nola’s expression changed from one of trepidation to one of anger. “Yes,” she said, “I may fail. You may strike fear in my heart. But the fear you bring me can never match the fear of losing my dreams.” She was speaking the truth, and her own words were shoring up her courage. Now she could do what had to be done!
She wrapped her fingers tightly around the cross. Reility’s head came down on her fist, teeth threatening. In the same instant, he bit down on a Created gauntlet, covering her wrist and hand. He yowled with pain as she snatched the cross from his neck.
You see, you can fight him, Spirit thought approvingly. All you need is confidence to use your power.
True. But how hard she had had to struggle to believe that deep down, where it counted. To believe in herself.
She promptly Created a magical net and encased Reility. She turned to the melee and began throwing nets. In moments, she had it all under control. Every Fren was safely contained.
She approached Tina and knelt by her side. She gently lifted her and tapped her cheeks until she came around enough to consume some healing spice. After treating Tina, she passed healing spice to Mich, Curbie and Curbia, and all of the weary worms.
When everyone was well, she took a moment to throw her arms around Spirit’s neck and kiss his cheek warmly. She saw, in a flash of thought in his mind, how he had escaped. He had simply burst his bonds and come galloping through the tunnels to find her the moment he knew that she was free and the Fren were attacking. He couldn’t risk it as long as she was captive, because the Fren might have killed her rather than let him join her.
“Thank you, friend, I love you dearly,” she whispered.
No, the thanks are all for you, he replied, nuzzling her face.
She turned as she felt a familiar hand on her shoulder. She threw herself into Mich’s arms, and he hugged her closely. They kissed passionately.
“You have your cross back,” he said as he released her.
“Yes, and now it’s time to call on some help,” she said, “Drake, I need you and your warriors to stay here. Make sure all of the Fren are contained.” She threw some more nets in front of him. “I’m sure there are many more of them roaming Kafka, but at least half are here, in the cliffs. The nets should work when you throw them. That way, you won’t have to be concerned about being cut up anymore, and you’ll be able to recover your strength.”
“Yesch,” he replied. “When will you be returning?”
“Soon, Drake. I will bring you to me when I need you. Please send a few worms out, give them a net each and have them release the Kafkians in the cells.”
Drake bowed to her and picked up a net in his tubular mouth.
“Oh, and Drake—thank you. You made it all possible.” She had learned the value of a compliment, and was pleased to see the great
worm turning another shade of color. This said, she mounted Esprit, holding Curbie in her lap.
Mich and Tina mounted Heat, holding Curbia between them. Mich reached out to take Nola’s hand, and she closed her eyes.
She conjured them to the top of Mangor.
They landed directly in a group of startled Fren. “What next?” Tina yelled as a Fren jumped her.
Nola threw a net over it and continued to throw nets over the rest until they were secure. When they were all contained, she tried to “see” them, but could not.
“Can you figure out who they are?” Nola asked Tina.
Tina tried. “No. I can’t.”
Mich touched Nola’s arm. “It’s time. You’d better do it now. It may take some time for them to arrive.”
“Yes, I hope this will work!” She sighed, unsure of how to go about finding the Creators.
She took off her cross and held it in her hand. If this dreamstone could make any magic spell at all, it would be simple to find the Creators. All she had to do was spell each one so that it could be appreciated only by a Creator. The next question was how could she make sure that the spell would be used. That was simple, maybe: just attach a note.
A bed spell formed in her free hand. A translucent globe of spinning lightning. She considered it.
That would not do. She had to make it something a little more ordinary.
The globe shrank and became hard. It was the size of a marble and the lightning inside looked like glitter. She was sure this would not startle anyone too much, but was just pretty enough to inspire wonder and curiosity. She put the spell into a box with a note saying,
“Please make a wish and dream a little dream.”
She closed the box and held it in her hand. She concentrated and the box was now spelled so that it would go only to a true Creator. Then, the box disappeared from her hand.
“I hope it gets there! I’ve never done this before,” she said, worried.
“It’s all right,” Mich said.
Yes, Spirit agreed. Trust in your ability.
Another marble appeared in her hand. She put a note with it and placed it in the box. The Volant had said there were only ten or so other Creators left in the world. She made twenty boxes, just in case. The ones left over would never be found, so it was safe to do so. She made sure to fine-tune each spell so that it would bring the Creators to the mountaintop in slightly different spots. She didn’t want Creators landing on one anothers’ heads, or, worse, all jamming onto the very same square foot of ground.
When she was finished sending the spells to Earth, it was time to wait. She had no idea what to expect. Would there be several Creators in the next minute, or would it take hours? Or would they misunderstand the spells, and not come at all?
There are many Fren left out there, Heat thought. They will soon be coming for us. They are quick and will probably have searched all of Kafka in an hour. They will find us.
“No, they won’t!” Nola said. She waved her hand over her head and a tall wall was formed around her group and the captured Fren, with enough room left over to hold the Creators who would be coming. The wall was made of the same material as the dam across the river: dreamstone. They would not be seen.
Curbie sat down beside her. “I’m sorry I mistrusted your strength, Nola. You truly will be Kafka’s hero.”
Nola was as unsure as ever of her ability, but she had to show confidence. “Thank you, Curbie. I’m glad you and your sister are together again. I never had a brother or sister, but I can imagine what it would be like to lose a loved one. I came close to losing my friends. I thought I would die.”
Curbia trotted over to Mich. “Mich, show Nola what you found.”
Mich looked confused for a moment. “Oh, yeah!” he said as he fished in his armor. He pulled out a pallid blue stone, about the size of a pea, cut in half.
Nola’s eyes went wide. “You found it?” she asked as she reached for it. “The twin stone?”
“Sure did!” he laughed, handing it to her. “It was right in the section I had to mine. Curbia sniffed it out for me, telepathically. It was there all along, but the Fren didn’t know how to find it.”
“I knew there was something important,” the Dalmatian said. “I just didn’t know how to get it, until Mich came.”
Nola looked it over. It was the same size and shape as the one she wore. She felt a great relief at having both of them. She would do anything she had to, to keep Reility from gaining possession of either of them. She wondered whether he knew that she had the twin. If so, he would surely try to take it from her. Of course, he couldn’t do anything as long as the worms kept him captive in the nets, but Nola didn’t have a lot of confidence that that would last. Probably the best that could be hoped for was that by the time the Fren king escaped, his minions would have been defeated, so he would have no real power to draw on.
The group of travelers feasted on Nola and Tina’s Created food. When they were finished there was a chill in the air and silence settled. Everyone felt tense and nervous. What if none of the Creators caught on to the nature of the bed spells? What if only some of them did? That would leave many Fren unconverted and free to molest the peaceful Kafkians. If Reility got away, the whole mess could start over.
As Nola sat in the growing darkness, she could hear nothing but the scratching and chewing of the captured Fren. Mich sat next to her, smoothing her hair and holding her.
When the others were resting, he whispered to her, “What are you going to do when this is over? Will you stay with me?”
Nola noticed some apprehension in his voice. “I have thought about this. I know I cannot stay here.”
That was not the answer that Mich was hoping for and it hurt deeply to hear it. “Why not? I love you and I need to be with you. Now that I know you will be alive and well, on the other side of my world, my life will be empty if you leave. Though I didn’t know it, I had an empty life before you came, and I fear going back to it.”
Nola stared into his eyes as hers began to fill with tears. “I love you, so much, but I just can’t stay here. It took me a while to realize it, but I love my home, I love my mother and my cat. I suppose I love my life. I now have the strength I need to get away from someone back there who was hurting me. Your love makes it easy. This place is so beautiful, but Earth needs dreamers. If we all stayed here, where would that leave Earth? Where would that leave my home and my friends? I have to set an example and maybe get others on my world to believe. The more people believe, the better a place Kafka will be.”
Mich looked away from her and she could see the hurt on his handsome face.
“But that does not mean that I can’t visit,” she added quickly. “I’ll come back if you need me. I’ll be here for you, the way you are here for me now.”
Mich continued to look away and Nola longed to see his face, but she knew it would only show pain. “I can go with you,” he said.
“Not for very long. You would die there.”
“No,” he said gently. “You have the stones. You can make me real, make me be like you.”
Nola had forgotten about the twin stones’ power. She thought about it for a moment. “I don’t know if that would be such a good idea. Kafka needs you. But I do want to be with you. Please give me sometime.”
“Of course, Nola.” Mich leaned back on the ground and closed his eyes. “I love you, whatever you decide.”
Nola lay beside him. Just when she was sure she would get some rest, Esprit’s gentle thoughts surged into her open mind.
I’m sorry to disturb your rest, he thought.
“You could never disturb me,” she thought back.
I hope you don’t mind my always reading your thoughts. I suppose it can become quite a burden. However, I must discuss something with you.
“Yes?” She waited, feeling the tension and excitement in his thoughts.
You know, I have known of you ever since I was created. We share one soul. I know of Mich’s re
quest, yet I too have always longed to share in your human life. Though I cannot become a real human, lean become a real horse.
“Horses are stupid and beasts of burden. I could never do that to you!”
I would not be an ordinary horse. I would retain my intelligence, as well as my magical ability, but I would be real. I would lose my distinguishing characteristics, such as my ability to fly, my horn and my eye color. This would be necessary to blend in. I would gladly give up those things to live with you on Earth.
She knew that Esprit immediately felt her dismay and confusion. She wanted both him and Mich to go with her, but Esprit had warned her the stones could be used only once in this way. When used to make an unreal creature into a real one the stones disappeared, having spent all the magic within on such a large spell. If she used them to take either of them to Earth, not only would she leave one of them hurt and rejected, but she would lose her ability to ever visit Kafka again. Once the stones had been used, they would be gone forever.
I know I must let you decide and I don't mean to hurt you or your true love, but it is my fondest wish to be real, as I’m sure it is his as well. The decision will be yours. Do not let either of us influence your choice, or you will be unhappy with it.
He gave her mind a loving touch, then departed from it, leaving her to wallow in her confusion and sadness. She had to decide between her true love and her best friend. She would rather die than ever have to desert either one of them. How could she turn them both down without hurting them? Right now, she was faced with a different problem. Should she hurt both of them by not choosing, or hurt one of them by choosing? Then, if she did choose, whom would she choose? How could she choose?
Sometime deep in the night, the group was shaken by a man’s shriek. Nola created torches all around the inside wall of the enclosure, so that no creature could escape the light.
Between the unisi and the netted Fren stood an older man. He was wearing a loose white shirt and a pair of rumpled pants. He looked as if he had just gotten up from bed. He was holding his knee; he ‘d apparently wandered too close to the Fren and gotten himself cut.