“Well, well, little Matilda,” said the voice coming from the speaker on the wall, “here you are again. You know that I heard what Maximilian said about me when he met you. ‘A cranky old fusspot’. Not very nice. You seem to have impressed him but don’t get carried away with yourself, little girl. I’m . . . not . . . very . . . happy. And I control things around here. So you better watch what you do. I can be cranky, fussy and nasty.”
“But that was Maximilian, not me,” said Matilda, feeling a little scared – and silly, talking to a wall.
“Harumph. I know that,” said the voice sharply. “But Maximilian has to learn that I’m in charge of this attic and I demand respect – even if he is my superior. The sooner he understands that the happier everybody will be.”
The conversation was interrupted by a flash of light followed by a cloud of smoke and there, in the middle of the room, Maximilian appeared, still dressed in his purple robe and fez, with his powerful arms again folded across his chest.
“What’s this nonsense you’re carrying on with old man?” roared Maximilian. “How dare you question my authority. I have a good mind to send you back into the desert where you belong.”
“Oh, please, please master, forgive me. I didn’t mean to question you. I was just . . . just . . .a bit upset, that’s all. Please don’t send me away,” the voice pleaded. Matilda began to feel sorry for him. But she had no need to worry as Maximilian continued.
“Very well, you can stay. But make sure you keep your place in the scheme of things mystic. You are the caretaker of the attic, not the master. Understand?”
“Yes, yes,” said the voice. “Thank you master. Thank you. I think I’ll just switch off now. Goodbye everyone.” And the room went quiet.
Maximilian turned to Matilda with a smile.
“Hello my little brave one. It fills my heart with joy to see you again.”
“I feel the same . . . Maximilian,” said Matilda, still shy about using his name.
“I believe you’ve been having an unpleasant time lately with some repulsive relatives,” said Maximilian.
“How do you know that?” asked Matilda, amazed at Maximilian’s knowledge.
“In my mystic world we know a great deal,” Maximilian informed her. “Perhaps I will be able to help you out with your problem later. But first I want to hear of your reason for visiting me again.”
“I would really like to go on an adventure, Ali . . . that is if you think I can manage it,” replied Matilda.
“Of course you can,” said Maximilian. “I wouldn’t send you if I wasn’t sure. But first you have to meet your special friend again.”
He snapped his fingers and the little Persian fairy, Peri, appeared, on his shoulder. She held her wand in her hand.
“Of course you remember Peri from your storybook adventures,” continued Maximilian. “My favourite Eastern Fairy.” He smiled at the fairy who snuggled up to his cheek. “You two are going to have another wonderful experience together.”
The little fairy nodded at Matilda, “Hi, Matilda,” she said with a smile.
“Hello, Peri,” Matilda replied gently. She was happy to be reunited with her friend.
“Once again Peri will accompany you on the adventure and, once again, she will be your protector,” said Maximilian. “Her magic wand saved you many times in the past and it will do the same in your next venture should you choose to do it.”
Peri flew across to sit on Matilda’s shoulder. Then she suddenly vanished.
Maximilian laughed, “Oh, yes. You'll remember that while she has the magic wand, Peri can appear and disappear whenever she wishes. That will come in handy as well.”
The fairy reappeared on Matilda’s shoulder. “I’ll always be here for you. All you have to do is whisper my name,” she said.
“I remember,” replied Matilda warmly.
“Now it’s time to get down to business,” said Maximilian.
Chapter 3
The Challenge
“First of all I must explain something to you. The Other World that you will be travelling into exists as a parallel world to your own. Imagine an opaque glass wall that separates your world from another, side by side but unknown to each other. The Story Mat gives you the ability to pass through this wall and you will travel to new and strange lands,” explained Maximilian. “This time you will be taking part in your own story as it unfolds. What happens will very much depend on how you behave. Nothing is certain.”
It sounded thrilling to Matilda. “What are these lands?” she asked.
Maximilian clicked his fingers again and a large scroll appeared in his hand. He unrolled it on the floor and, with a flick of his hand, pins nailed it to the floor.
Matilda saw a map in front of her. It showed two large islands called Laboria and Bivia. They were separated by the Fluvian Strait and there were several smaller islands to the north of Laboria. Both of the large islands had a volcano at their centre and appeared to be tropical.
“Two countries in the Indigo Ocean,” explained Maximilian, “commanded by the Wizard of Laboria and the Witch of Bivia, separated by a small patch of sea – and opposites in everything. Unfortunately, in this case, opposites definitely do not attract . . . as you shall discover, my little friend.”
“Will it be dangerous?” asked Matilda.
“Yes it could be dangerous at times,” confessed Maximilian, “but you will have Peri to protect you with her wand.”
“But we will have to be careful,” interrupted Peri. “If we use the wand too much it can run out of power and need time to recharge.”
Matilda remembered the time she had been saved from the Troll in the nick of time and Peri had used up most of the wand’s power to freeze the horrible monster.
“I am sure you will be able to use it wisely,” said Maximilian. “However, if it becomes very dangerous, you must promise me that you will immediately return on the Story Mat. Is that clear?”
“I promise,” said Matilda, feeling her tummy rumble with butterflies. She was beginning to have niggling doubts about the wisdom of going.
“You will be all right,” said Maximilian, reading her mind again. “You have already shown me your bravery and, with the help of Peri, I am certain that you will overcome all of the difficulties you will meet.”
Suddenly they heard barking at the door. They turned to see Peekee standing in the doorway snarling and yapping at them. It had obviously followed Matilda’s scent up to the attic.
Matilda started to move towards the dog but it bared its teeth, growled, then barked even louder. She backed away. Something had to be done before the dog woke up the whole household and they came to investigate.
There was a bright flash and Peekee was hidden by a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared, Matilda saw that the dog had been changed into a soft toy. It just lay there, its legs spread - eagled.
“That will keep him quiet for a while,” laughed Maximilian. “What a nasty little animal.”
“Aunt Prudence will have a fit,” whispered Matilda, in shock.
“Oh, don’t worry, little one, I’ll restore him later on – but with a much nicer personality. Now where were we? Ah, yes, the adventure. You can choose the time you wish to leave but you should not delay for very long. Events are developing on the islands and you need to be there as soon as possible. Remember that time will stand still while you are away so you won’t be missed.”
“That’s a relief,” sighed Matilda.
Maximilian handed her the map. “Keep this safe and it is important that you study it carefully before you set out,” advised Maximilian, then clicked his fingers again. “And here is your transport.” The Story Mat appeared and gently floated to the floor. Matilda was once again gobsmacked by its beauty.
“When you are ready to leave,” explained Maximilian, “as before, you simply place the map on the sun in the centre of the carpet, fold your arms and close your eyes, and the carpet will take you away. Be careful, my preciou
s ones, and have a wonderful adventure. I will not rest until you return.” And he slowly faded away.
Chapter 4
Preparing For The Adventure
Matilda rolled up the Story Mat and pushed it and the map through the small door. Crawling outside, she picked them up and shone her torch down the stairway. Nothing was moving in the house and she could hear Uncle Percival’s snoring, rising from the floor below. Clearly nobody had been woken by Peekee’s barking. Thinking of the dog, she bent down and picked it up from beside the door. She would have to hide it until the adventure was over.
Matilda checked to see that Peri was still with her.
“Peri,” she whispered, and the little fairy appeared on her shoulder.
“Don’t worry,” she said, “I won’t leave you.’ And she disappeared again.
Matilda climbed gingerly down the stairs to her bedroom. She stored the Story Mat under her bed, then picked up Peekee and wondered what she could do with him. The positive thing was that she knew time stood still in the real world while she was away on her adventures so, if she left on her adventure first thing in the morning, Peekee would not be missed before she returned. She finally decided to hide the dog under her pillow. At least there was no chance now that its weak bladder would cause any problem.
Stretching her arms and yawning, Matilda climbed into bed and unrolled the map in front of her. According to the scale of the map, the islands of Laboria and Bivia were only about 50 kilometres apart. Pretty close for two empires that didn’t get on, she thought, and wondered which island the Story Mat would transport her to first.
The map was beautifully drawn with exquisite lettering and landform details for both islands. Each appeared to be formed by extinct volcanoes with a mountain in the centre and the land sloping down to the sea with a broad coastal strip around their edges. It was here that the main settlements were located. Laboria was much larger than Bivia.
Looking closely , she saw that there was strange writing at the bottom. She had no idea what it
said as it was in some sort of weird code, with no spaces between words. The letter ‘Z’ appeared quite often:
“GSOZDUJMIMTZIHZSOJOZ
HOOQZGSOZGJAGSZ
YOVEJOZBEAZUXXOLGZ
DSUGZBEAZHOOZUMWZUJOZGEPWZ
UPPZIHZMEGZUHZIGZHOONHZ”.
Matilda was not good at solving codes so she quickly copied the message onto a piece of paper and put it in the pocket of her jeans. Perhaps somebody would be able to translate it for her when she arrived on one of the islands.
With that last thought, Matilda rolled up the map and pushed it under her bed. She turned out the light and pulled up the covers. Within minutes she had drifted into a deep sleep.
**************************
Matilda heard a loud scream. She sat up in bed, thinking that she was having a dream. But no, there it was again, an ear-splitting shriek from downstairs, followed by blubbering sobs. Matilda recognised the voice – Aunt Prudence! She looked up at the clock on her bedroom wall and saw that she had overslept. It was 8.30, well past the time she had planned to go on her adventure.
Then she heard her aunt screech. “She’s done something to my poor Peekee. I know she has. That nasty little girl. Matilda! Matilda! Get down here immediately!”
The first thing that popped into Matilda’s head was how her aunt could possibly know what had happened to Peekee. She checked under her pillow and there was the little dog, slightly squashed but still looking like a soft toy. She quickly hopped out of bed and pulled on her clothes. There was nothing to do but face the music.
She reached the bottom of the stairs to find Aunt Prudence sitting on the lounge with her head buried in Uncle Percival’s arms and her parents looking shattered.
“Aunt Prudence can’t find Peekee,” said her father. “He always sleeps on their bed but he was missing this morning. Do you know where he is?”
“I’m sure he’s all right, Daddy. I haven’t seen him running around. He’s probably hiding somewhere.” She hadn’t answered her father’s question but she hadn’t told a fib either.
“Mm-m-m,” muttered her father, sensing that something was not right.
Suddenly Aunt Prudence jumped up, knocking Uncle Percival onto the floor.
Pointing a fat finger at Matilda, she screamed, “You’ve never liked Peekee. You’re jealous of him. What have you done to him you nasty little girl?”
“I haven’t done anything,” replied Matilda. After all, it was Maximilian who had turned him into a soft toy. “He has to be somewhere in the house. Let’s all look.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” said her mother. “We should all search the house before we panic . . . and start accusing.”
“I know something’s happened to him. I just know,” wept Aunt Prudence.
“Well, you just sit here and rest while we look,” said mother. “I’ll get you a glass of water.” She rushed out into the kitchen, returned with a drink and handed it to her.
Uncle Percival had picked himself up from the floor and was dusting himself off. “Yes, my darling,” he added, “We’ll find Peekee. You just relax.”
Aunt Prudence continued to sob and just waved her hand at them.
“I’ll look upstairs,” Matilda said quickly, and rushed out of the room. Taking the steps two at a time she reached her bedroom and pulled the Story Mat and map from under her bed. She had to start her adventure immediately and make time stand still before things became worse. Maximilian had assured her that he would restore Peekee when she returned.
She whispered, “Peri,Placing the map on the golden sun in the centre of the carpet, Matilda sat down, folded her arms and closed her eyes.
WHOOSH! The Story Mat lifted off the floor and shot into space.
Chapter 5
Laboria
Matilda felt the wind blowing against her face and just managed to open her eyes. She saw white light all around her and sparkles shaped like stars whizzing by, in all the colours of the rainbow. It was as if she were flying through a long tube. The wind finally forced her to close her eyes. Soon she felt the Story Mat slow down and settle on solid ground. Matilda opened her eyes again.
She was on a hillside covered in lush green grass and magnificent trees. Behind her was a slope leading up to a massive volcano. Looking down from the hill she could see the ocean and a large city snuggled along the coast. All of the houses were painted white and shimmered in the sunshine. As she stepped off the Story Mat it rolled itself up and disappeared.
She was admiring the view when she felt something tug at her shoulders. She was suddenly lifted off the ground and up into the sky. Twisting her head she peered into the eyes of the largest eagle she had ever seen. It was pure white with green eyes and a razor-sharp beak. The bird had its talons wrapped over her shoulders and arms. She was being taken high above the island. Matilda panicked, then remembered her guardian, Peri.
“Peri!” she shouted and the little fairy appeared on her shoulder, her wand in her hand. But, before Peri could do anything, the giant eagle rolled in the sky and Peri had to make a grab for Matilda’s hair to stop herself falling to the ground far below. As she clutched at a clump of hair her wand fell from her hand. She watched as it tumbled through the sky, down, down, down, into a forest.
“Uh, oh,” thought Matilda, as she saw the wand disappear, “now we’re in big trouble.”
“Don’t worry,” came a voice from above them, “you’re safe with me. Just relax and enjoy the flight.” Matilda looked up to see that the eagle was actually smiling down at her.
“You can talk?” she said in amazement.
“Of course,” replied the eagle. “I have been sent to transport you to our leader. You have nothing to fear.”
“That’s all right for you to say. You’re not hanging up here without wings,” thought Matilda, but said, “What about the wand?”
“Oh, yes,” said the eagle. “Sorry about that. I struck a bit of turbulence
. We’ll look for it later. I’m sure you’ll get it back.” And the bird grinned.
Meanwhile, Peri had steadied herself on Matilda’s shoulder, still gripping a hank of hair. “I don’t think I like this,” she whispered in Matilda’s ear. “I can’t defend you without my wand and I can’t disappear from sight. I truly think we’re out of our depth here.”
“He says you’ll get your wand back,” Matilda whispered. “We’ll have to trust him until we find out otherwise. Unfortunately we don’t have much choice.”
The eagle began to descend towards the city but, at the last moment, veered towards cliffs above and behind the buildings. It glided down to earth and gently dropped Matilda and Peri on a tiled forecourt surrounded by beautiful shrubs and statues. When they turned towards the cliff face they saw a wall of glass wedged into what looked like a cave.
“I must leave you now,” said the eagle. “If you walk up to the glass wall you will be guided to our leader.”
The eagle took to the air again with one beat of its huge wings that made Matilda and Peri duck for cover.
Chapter 6
The Wizard Of Laboria
When the eagle had disappeared into the distance, Matilda turned towards the glass wall. It looked menacing and her stomach filled with butterflies.
“Well, Peri, here goes,” she said to the little fairy on her shoulder as she climbed the steps leading up to the glass. As soon as she stood in front of it, part of the wall dissolved to form a door and a strange animal appeared – the top half was human and the bottom half was crocodile. It wore a brass helmet and chain-mail, and carried a long spear.
“Welcome to the palace of the Mighty Wizard.” It spoke in a deep, gruff voice. “Please follow me.” And with that it turned on its heel and proceeded down a long hallway, waddling on its crocodile legs and swishing its tail behind. Matilda trotted along in its wake.