“And what did she find?” I asked.
“She hasn’t reported back yet,” Nitivia said. She closed her eyes and put her hands on her temples. “Sister, please answer me. Little sister, come in. Please, come in.”
Nitivia shook her head. “That’s strange. I didn’t get an answer.”
Zeke stood up. “We’d better go check it out!”
Paula looked at me. “I hate to say this, but the green oaf is right.”
“Thanks! I love the nicknames you give me!” Zeke grinned.
I stood up too. “I agree. Let’s go find Luna. What does she look like?”
Nitivia whirled her hands and snowflakes appeared. She expanded her hands, and the flakes took the shape of a pretty blond girl with big blue eyes. She looked like a younger version of Nitivia.
“She looks like you!” Zeke said.
“Really? I don't’ see it!” Nitivia shook her head.
“Do you think she could be in trouble?” I asked.
Nitivia frowned. “Normally, I would say no, because there are only creatures of kindness and goodness here.”
“But,” Paula said.
Nitivia nodded. “But things aren’t normal now. Therefore, I guess it is possible.”
“How do you two get along?” Paula asked Nitivia.
“She is my little sister, so I love her with all my heart,” Nitivia replied.
“Does she drive you crazy?” Paula probed.
“I am a high elf; I generate light and goodness wherever I go. I strive to make people and creatures happy!”
“That doesn’t answer her question,” Zeke said.
Paula nodded. “I agree with Zeke!”
Zeke smiled. “I don’t think you’ve ever said that. In fact, in all my life I don’t think I’ve heard that more than once from anybody!”
Paula ignored Zeke. “Tell me, Nitivia, how do you and Luna get along?”
“She is my little sis,” Nitivia said meekly.
“Yeah, we’ve established that,” Paula replied. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”
“I agree with Paula!” Zeke said. “Hey, we agree with each other. We’re agreement buddies!”
“That’s a tricky question,” Nitivia sighed.
“Just answer please,” I told her.
“I love my sister!” Nitivia said.
“You can still love somebody who drives you crazy?” Paula asked.
“Correct, like the way Lia loves me and I drive her crazy!” Zeke said, showing some awareness and some cluelessness at the same time.
“Ah, Zeke I like you as a friend,” I replied.
Zeke gulped. “But that’s a form of love. Right? You love my can-do attitude! How I never give up! How I am great at distracting the bad guys! How I’m always there for you guys!”
“Whether we want you or not!” Paula sighed.
“Yes!” Zeke said.
“Yes, I love you as a friend,” I said. “A very different kind of friend…” I added.
“Great!” Zeke patted Paula and me on our backs. Looking in Paula’s eyes, he asked, “You love me as a friend, too! Right?”
“I’m an evil genius, bent on future world domination!” Paula replied. “I need no friends!”
“How about as a future minion?” Zeke asked.
Paula actually smiled a bit. She tried to hide it, but I noticed it. “Fine, I love you as a future minion,” she said. Paula pointed at Nitivia. “Now, let’s get back to the matter at hand!”
“Right!” Zeke thrust a finger at Nitivia. “Admit it! Your sister makes you crazy!”
Nitivia sank down in her chair. “Oh, my candy canes, she so does. She has such power. But she never uses it wisely. I’m afraid she wastes it. I can’t see how she can ever help me run this place. But hopefully, she will mature over the centuries…”
“When was the last time you saw her?” I asked.
“Yesterday,” Nitivia replied. “When she left to scout the area for anything strange.”
“Do you know which direction she took?” I asked.
“North, of course. We always travel north in this world. It’s a small world, so we travel north for a bit, and then we wrap around. Time and space work a little differently here,” Nitivia explained
An elf came running into the room. “Nitivia, this is trouble!” the elf shuddered.
“What is?” Nitivia asked.
“This is so, so, so, so, so bad…” the elf stammered.
“Tell me, Sandi!” Nitivia ordered.
We heard a booming sound. The entire building shook.
“Oh, never mind,” Nitivia said.
The booming grew closer. The building shook some more.
Nitivia stood up. She tossed us a glance. “Let’s go, heroes!”
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Something big is coming towards us,” Paula said.
The booming grew louder. The room shook again.
“It’s Abby, the abominable snow creature. She grows larger when she is angry.”
Everything really shook.
“She must be really angry now!” Sandi said. “The question is why?”
Nitivia pointed to the ceiling. A hole opened up. “Let’s go ask her!” Nitivia levitated up through the hole. I flew up with her. Zeke and Paula activated their jetpacks and joined us in the sky. We saw a big hairy creature pounding her way towards us. She had to stand 100 feet tall. Her feet alone were as big as a school bus.
“Abby is one of Santa’s guard creatures!” Nitivia told us. “I’ve never seen her this big, or so angry! She must sense real trouble!”
Nitivia flew up to Abby’s face. “Abby, my friend, what is wrong?” she asked.
Abby shuddered. “I feel three bad creatures here! They are here, but they should not be here!”
“Oh, I have a bad feeling about this,” I said.
“Me too!” Paula said.
“Hey, there are three bad creatures, and there are three of us!” Zeke commented.
“Yeah, think about it,” Paula said.
“There are three of us here to help Abby fight three creatures!” Zeke grinned. “This works out great!”
Abby jumped up and down, waving a giant hand in the air.
“Man, she waves her hands in the air like she just doesn’t care!” Zeke said. “I like her!”
Abby pointed at us, shaking her claws. “They are there! Behind you! The evil is behind you, Nitivia!!”
Zeke looked over his shoulder. “Nothing there!” he said.
Abby swiped her hand and grabbed Zeke. She lifted him higher into the air.
“Oh, I get it now,” Zeke said. “She thinks we’re the bad guys.” He smiled. His smile turned to a frown when it finally hit him. “Oh, this is bad.”
Abby started squeezing. Zeke started turning white.
“Nitivia, get her to stop! Please!” I called.
Nitivia floated up close to Abby. “Abby, please. These are friends. They are here to help!”
Abby kept her grip on Zeke. “I don’t believe you! You have been corrupted by the magic. B a a a d magic!”
“Want me to blast her?” Paula asked.
“No, let me handle this!” I said.
Flying over to the hand that Abby had wrapped around Zeke, I grabbed one of her fingers and pulled it off Zeke. Kicking downward, I forced her to let Zeke go. Zeke dropped towards the ground. Paula fired a net from her armor. The net softened Zeke’s landing.
Abby shook her hand. She glared at me with her huge eyes.
“You hurt me!” she screamed. The force of her breath sent me reeling back a bit, but I stayed even with her.
“You were hurting my friend. I couldn’t let you do that!” I said, holding my ground in mid-air. Okay, holding my air, I guess.
Paula flew up next to me, pointing a couple of wrist rockets at Abby. “Down, big girl!” she ordered.
“No!” Abby shouted.
Paula fired the rockets.
&nbs
p; Darting forward, I caught the rockets in my hands. I held my hands together, and the rockets exploded harmlessly inside them. Whiffs of smoke sneaked out between my fingers.
“Why did you stop me?” Paula asked.
Turning to Paula, I told her. “Abby is scared; we don’t want to hurt her!”
With my back turned, Abby swung at me with a giant hand. Turning and holding out one of my hands. I blocked her blow.
“She definitely wants to hurt us!” Paula said.
“I can attest to that!” Zeke said from the ground.
“That still doesn’t mean we have to hurt her!” I said, holding Abby’s giant hand back with ease.
Abby swung at me with her other hand. I blocked that one also. I floated in mid-air, holding both her arms. “Now, Abby, I don’t want to hurt you!” I stressed.
Nitivia floated up between Abby’s arms to her furry face. “Abby, what’s wrong? These people are our friends!” she said kindly. I swear I smelled candy canes and apple pie in the air.
“The voice tells me that they want to hurt Santa and Mrs. Claus! I can’t let them do that!” Abby said. She looked at her hands that I had blocked. “Though I must admit, these creatures pose quite a challenge.”
“Abby, please stand down!” Nitivia said. “These are friends!”
Abby tilted her head back. Her eyes moved to the top of her head. Her ears perked up. “I can hear the voice. The voice tells me to fight!”
“This is not going so well for you,” Paula said.
“Yeah,” Zeke shouted from the ground. “Okay, you kicked my behind pretty good, but I’m the easy one. I’m the distraction!”
Abby’s stomach started to rumble. She let out a howl that felt like she’d cracked the very air itself. I clasped my hands over my ears. Abby clapped her hands together with me between them. She applied pressure. The pressure increased. I could sense Abby grow larger and stronger with each press. I crumpled my body in, then pushing out with great force, I smashed through her hold. I flew up toward her face, now at least 200 feet above the ground.
Abby swatted her arms at me, but the bigger she got, the slower she got. I could dodge her blows. I flew right up to her nose. Her eyeballs came together as she tried to focus on me.
“You are little but powerful!” she said.
“Yeah, so give it up now before I knock you out!” I warned her.
“Ha! Puny person, you can’t hurt me!”
Flying up to next to Abby, I tapped her nose with a finger. My simple tap sent her reeling backward. She staggered but tried to catch her balance. Paula flew behind her, creating a beam of energy behind Abby’s knees. My tap combined with the energy beam, caused Abby to fall over backward. She plowed into the ground leaving a huge dent and sending snow flying into the air.
Abby lifted her head from the ground. “Ouch!” she said. “That hurt!”
Zeke made a fist and waved it at her. “That’s what you get for picking a fight with my friends.”
A puff of snow appeared over Abby. A head popped out of the puff.
“Luna! You are here!” Nitivia said.
Luna smiled. “Yes, I am back from my exploration just in time!”
Luna blew on Abby. “Sleep, my friend and return to your normal size.”
Abby smiled contently. Lowering her head, she closed her eyes. She sank into a deep sleep. She shrank back to normal size, a mere 10 feet tall.
Luna smiled. “Now that’s better.”
Nitivia hugged Luna. “Where have you been, sister? We missed you!”
Luna hugged Nitivia back. “I’ve been all over the Pole looking for what’s wrong. I sense something is out of place. But I still can’t put my finger on it.”
Flying over to them, I said, “Abby talked of a voice.”
Luna nodded. “I’ve heard that voice. It calls and says there is trouble.” She looked at me, Paula and Zeke. “I assume Abby thought you three were the trouble.”
“Yes,” Nitivia said.
“It’s a logical assumption for a creature like Abby. She is a creature of feelings more than thoughts.”
“I like that!” Zeke said. “I feel more than I think too!”
“I wouldn’t brag about that,” Paula replied.
“That’s because you think more than feel,” Luna told Paula.
“Hey, how’d you know that?” Paula asked.
“Paula, I know a lot. I am in tune with many worlds,” Luna said.
“I like you! You’re cute!” Zeke said.
Luna smiled at Zeke. “Thanks. You are interesting. In an interesting sort of way.”
“I am!” Zeke said. “I’ve heard that I smell especially interesting!”
I stepped forward. “Luna, do you have any idea of what is going on here? What Abby actually felt?”
Luna shook her head. “Not yet. But I believe that together with you three, we can solve this.” Luna smiled at Nitivia. “Good job bringing them here, big sis. These three will be a big help!”
“Thanks,” Nitivia said. “Now let’s get back to the toy shop. We need to fill in Mom and Dad.”
Pointing at the snow monster, Abby, I asked, “What do we do with her?”
“When she comes around, she’ll come to the shop too!” Luna said. Luna smiled at us all. “I am glad to meet you. I am so glad my sister brought you to us.”
Nitivia dropped back a step. “That’s odd; I thought you’d be angry that I brought in outside help. You are always so big on ‘let’s do this ourselves.’ But they can help a lot, sis.”
Luna smiled. “I’ve grown, sister.”
“In the last couple of hours?” Nitivia asked.
“I’ve learned a lot in my adventures throughout the Pole,” Luna said.
“I repeat, you’ve only been gone a few hours, which is like nothing to us,” Nitivia shook her head, trying to understand.
“I found a nice quiet cave and meditated. I found my answer. My answer is to be mellow and not so forceful,” Luna insisted gently.
“Sounds good to me!” Zeke said. “You seem cute and wise.”
Luna took Zeke by the hand. “Come, let’s get back to the toy shop!”
“I like toys and shopping!” Zeke said. “Almost as much as I like fish sticks!”
Luna snapped her fingers. They disappeared in a cloud of snow.
“She’s always been a show-off,” Nitivia said. She shook her head. “But this is strange.”
“Yeah, being attracted to Zeke is really weird,” Paula said.
I nodded. “I have to agree.” I felt bad agreeing with Paula there. But wow, Luna was a very pretty and powerful girl. I just couldn’t understand why she’d be so instantly attracted to Zeke.
“Is she alright in the head?” Paula asked.
“She has a very good brain,” Nitivia said. “She’s quite smart. Usually, though, she is more combative and likes to argue with me about everything. She has very strong opinions.”
“Maybe she got hit in the head?” Paula said. Paula turned to me. “Use your x-ray version to check out her skull and see if there are any brain leaks!” she told me.
“That would be an invasion of privacy!” I replied.
“That would be saving her life!” Paula demanded.
Turning to Nitivia, I asked. “What do you think?”
“This is unusual for sure, but I doubt she has a brain injury. She is a royal elf, and we are very hearty.” Nitivia paused for a moment. “But, I must admit, she does seem sweeter, more mellow.”
Paula looked at a gauge on her wrist. “I made a device to measure the abnormal amounts of holiday magic here.”
“And?” I asked.
“And so far, there is nothing unusual,” Paula said.
“Let’s go back to the shop and regroup,” Nitivia suggested. “We stopped Abby. Maybe when she comes to, she will have some ideas.”
Nitivia snapped her fingers. The next thing I knew, she, Paula, Abby, and I were in a little mini hospital. An elf in a white co
at and glasses was looking over Abby, who laid down in a big long bed.
“Man, you people are fast!” I said.
“We eat a lot of sugar!” Nitivia said. “How’s Abby doing, Doc?” Nitivia asked.
The doc took Abby’s pulse. “Her pulse is 10, which is very rapid for her.”
Abby sat up. She smiled at me. “You pack a lot of power, little lady!” she exclaimed.
“Yeah, sorry,” I said, my head lowered. “I didn’t want to hurt you. But I had to stop you.”
“Just be glad she didn’t take her boots off, that would have decked you for a long time!” Paula added
“Thank you!” Abby said. “I’m sorry, I went berserk and thought you were a threat to Santa and Mrs. Claus and the others. Now I see that you are nice kids.”
“Hey, I resent that!” Paula replied. “I’m not nice; I’m a future supervillain. I knocked you down from behind, that’s dirty!” she insisted.
Abby stood up. She patted Paula on her head. “Nice of you to think that, honey!” she said. “I still think you’re a little cutie!”
“Take that back!” Paula insisted.
I positioned myself between Paula and Abby. “Abby, you said you heard a voice tell you there was trouble?”
Abby nodded. “Yeah, I know people who hear voices in their heads are usually wrong, but this voice sounded very believable. It sounded real. I believe it was magic. I still feel that the magic in our land is off. Way off. I just can't get a read on it.” She patted me on the head. “I know it’s not you or your friends. I now deem you mostly harmless.”
“Hey, I am not mostly harmless!” Paula scoffed.
Abby laughed. “Little mad scientist, you have a big brain. You must be smart enough to know you are not a threat to this land. Nitivia could snap her fingers, and you’d be a pile of sugar.”
“I would never do that!” Nitivia said. “That is not a proper use of good magic.”
“But you could!” Abby said. “That’s why I know there is a threat. These two and the one called Zeke, he is odd, though none of them are a threat. They are here to try to help us.”
“We will help you!” I said.
Abby smiled and patted me on the head again. “I know you believe that. I hope it’s true!”
Nitivia asked, “Have you felt this type of magic before, Abby?”
True Love! Page 4
