Close Encounters of the Magical Kind

by Jeffrey M. Poole

  She gently applied a drop of the elixir to the tip of her finger, pried open the cub’s beak, and wiped the drop across the cub’s tongue. A few seconds later Sarah’s breath caught in her throat. The cub started to stir! Not by much, unfortunately. She might not have known anything about griffin anatomy but even she could see that the poor little cub was hungry. The cub tried to push himself up off the ground and squeaked weakly when Sarah gently, but firmly, pushed him back down.

  “Hang in there, little one. Help is on the way.”

  Gareth arrived back first. He held up a water bag and offered it to her. Sarah gently fed some of the clear liquid to the cub and smiled as the tiny griffin tried again to rise up off the ground. His petite wings flapped uselessly before they were refolded against his back. The cub’s eyes opened just then and he stared at her, unblinking. Sarah looked back into the cub’s hazel eyes and smiled.

  “It’s okay. I’m here to help.”

  Unsure if the cub could understand her, and not wanting to frighten the small being, she offered the cub her hand and allowed the young griffin to learn her scent. The cub feebly batted at her hand a few times before collapsing back on the ground, exhausted. Sarah soothingly stroked the cub’s fur and kept her voice just as friendly as possible.

  “You just rest. Your brothers and sisters are finding you some food. Everything is going to be okay.”

  Archadius touched down in front of them, followed closely thereafter by Thalian and the others. Archadius had some type of small, furry creature dangling limply from his beak. A quick check of the others showed similar finds. Only one griffin was empty-handed. As one, all the kills were dropped at Sarah’s feet. The cub, alerted to the presence of nearby food, squeaked hungrily.

  Sarah looked at the griffin baby, down at the kills, over at the adult griffins – who had all taken several steps backwards – and groaned. Once more it was up to her. She nerved herself and picked up the closest, least mangled kill. She dropped into a cross-legged sitting position, gently pulled the cub into her lap, and grasped the tail of a dead mouse-looking thing. She dangled it over the cub’s mouth and prayed that the tiny griffin would know what to do.

  It did.

  The cub lurched forward, grabbed the kill with its beak, and happily pulled it out of her hand. Sarah averted her eyes and hummed loudly to herself. The last thing she wanted to hear were the crunching of bones as the cub enjoyed its meal. Within moments the ‘food’ was gone and the cub squeaked for more. Sarah selected another and fed it to the cub. Thankfully she only had to suffer through that second feeding before the cub, full and content, circled once on her lap and promptly went to sleep. Sarah’s eyes filled and she was sure her heart skipped a beat. She crooned softly as she stroked the sleeping cub’s fur.

  “So where can we find Nyx’s mate?” Sarah quietly asked as she looked up at the watching griffins. “I can only imagine he wants to get his baby back just as soon as possible.”

  “What was his name?” Archadius suspiciously asked.

  “What kind of answer is that?” Sarah demanded. “Nyx was a member of your flock. Obviously her mate is, too. Don’t you know him?”

  “What was his name?” Archadius repeated.

  “I should’ve known you would ask that. Hang on, it’s the tip of my tongue.” Sarah thought back to their meeting with the two griffins up on Ranal. What had Nyx said her mate’s name was? “Skeiron. His name is Skeiron.”

  Archadius and Thalian hastily shared a look with one another, a fact not lost on Sarah.

  “What was that for? Why did the two of you just look at each other? What’s the matter? Is there something wrong with this Skeiron individual?”

  “It is your intention to have Skeiron assume full care of the cub?” Archadius asked, using an unsettling neutral tone.

  Sarah nodded, “Well, yes. That’s what parents do, right? It’s his cub. He’s the father. Why wouldn’t he?”

  “Skeiron has no business raising a cub,” Thalian angrily spat. “It would have been far more merciful to allow the cub to perish in the terra tremor.”

  Sarah felt sick. What were they saying? Was Nyx’s mate a poor choice to raise the cub alone? Had she just doomed the poor young griffin to a life of misery?

  “Skeiron is cruel and vile,” Archadius quietly explained, confirming her suspicions. “If he is told that he must now care for his offspring then he will undoubtedly kill him since he won’t want to be bothered with such trivial responsibilities.”

  “What about someone else?” Sarah asked, hopeful that she’d be told that any number of griffinesses would be willing to care for the tiny cub. “This cub belongs in your flock. There must be something you can do.”

  “There is,” Archadius admitted. “For the cub’s sake, it must be believed that the terra tremor claimed the lives of both the cub and his mother. If any other griffin were to learn the cub lived then they would require the cub’s sire to assume responsibilities. Trust me, you don’t want that to happen.”

  “But that’s insane!” Sarah cried, looking down at the tiny form. “What’ll happen to him? Who’s going to look out for him? There must be something you can do.”

  “There is, and I am already doing it,” Archadius admitted. “I’m trying to save his life. If I take that cub back with me then he’ll be given to his father. I could try to see if there would be any volunteers to look after the cub but Skeiron will view that as an insult. He will not allow any besides him to care for the cub. With that being said, if he’s given custody then I predict the cub will be dead within a day or two.”

  “What if I take him?” Sarah quietly suggested. “What if the cub comes with me?”

  “You’re willing to look after the cub yourself?” Thalian asked, stepping forward. “This is no easy task. I don’t think one human can do it alone.”

  “Her mate is the fire thrower,” Gareth added. “If anyone can protect him then Lady Sarah and Sir Steve can do it.”

  “Then it is decided,” Archadius announced. “The cub now belongs to the human female. For all intents and purposes, Nyx and her cub perished in the landslide. Are we all agreed?”

  Squawks of acknowledgment sounded from all sides. Archadius looked up at Pravara.

  “Dragon, may we have your silence in the matter?”

  Pravara nodded, “Of course.”

  “Good. Thank you. We’ll be off.”

  “Wait!” Sarah exclaimed, rising to her feet. “What does he eat? How often do I feed him? What do I call him?”

  “Nyx’s cub has already been named,” said one griffin, who up until that time hadn’t spoken a single word. “I was there for the naming ceremony. My mate and Nyx were close acquaintances. The cub’s name is Emerion.”

  “Emerion,” Sarah softly repeated as she looked at the sleeping form of the cub. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  By the time she looked up she and Gareth were alone in the woods. Gareth squatted next to her and gently ran a hand down the cub’s fur. He looked up at her just then and raised an eyebrow.

  “What should I tell the king?”

  “I don’t want you lying to him. Tell him exactly what you saw here. Be sure to tell him about the dangers of returning the cub.”

  Gareth solemnly nodded, “I will. Are you leaving now? Are you going back to your world?”

  Sarah shook her head, “No. We’re not finished yet. I’ve got to get back to Steve to see how he’s doing. Do you need me to take you back to the castle?”

  Gareth held up a hand, “No, don’t worry about me. I can see you’re tired. I can take care of myself. Good luck!”

  “Gareth, thank you. For everything. I wouldn’t have been able to pull this off without you. Now, repeat after me: we’re even.”

  Chapter 13 – Moment of Truth

  “So what’s your plan here?” Steve asked, leaning over to stare at the young griffin, still asleep in her arms. “Are you actually considering taking it back to Idaho with us? I know you’re aware of th
e severe lack of griffins in our area, right?”

  “I know that, silly,” Sarah answered as she cradled the baby to her chest. She looked up into her husband’s concerned eyes and smiled. “Don’t worry, everything is going to be fine.”

  Thinian poked his head back into the room.

  “We really must be going. I honestly do not know how much time we have left.”

  Sarah nodded, “Of course. I’m glad I didn’t miss anything. After you, Thinian. We’ll be right behind you.”

  Sarah struggled to get to her feet. Not only was she completely exhausted, but her jhorun was also nearly spent. Her arms were killing her, and even though the griffin was practically a newborn, he was still almost thirty pounds of dead weight in her arms.

  “Can I give him to you?” Sarah asked her husband, adding in just enough of a sigh to convey how tired she really was.

  “Sure. Careful. I don’t want to wake him up and realize I’m not you.”

  Her husband took the sleeping bundle of fur and feathers and looked down at the motionless griffin. It had its paws curled up under its body and its two tiny wings were folded flat against its back. It squeaked a few times as it was passed from one person to the next but otherwise remained asleep. Sarah felt an immediate increase in heat from her husband and realized Steve must have increased his jhorun to help keep the cub warm.

  “So what happens if it does wake up?” Steve wanted to know.

  “His name is Emerion,” Sarah told him as she rubbed the painful kinks out of her arms. “And I really don’t know what he’ll do. I’ll just have to stick close to you. I’m pretty sure he trusts me, but you’re a stranger. I don’t want him freaking out if he wakes up and sees you instead of me. No offense.”

  Steve nodded, “None taken. What are we supposed to feed him?”

  “Well, he ate this dead mouse thing earlier, followed by some type of small lizard. I assume we can feed him things like that.”

  “You assume? You mean you don’t know either?”

  Sarah pushed open the amethyst front doors and held them open so Steve could go through.

  “I really don’t. We’re going to have to play this by ear.”

  “I thought the plan was to give the cub to its father?”

  Sarah shrugged, “That was the plan. At least until I found out the cub’s father is cruel and abusive. The other griffins we met said that it would have been more merciful had the cub died with Nyx.”

  “As opposed to giving the cub to its… er, his father?” Steve asked, dumbfounded. He looked down at the sleeping form in his arms. “And there’s no other griffin that would take him?”

  “There probably is,” Sarah admitted, “but that would be viewed as an insult and Nyx’s mate would never allow it.”

  “Even though he’s unfit to raise this cub?” Steve asked, perplexed.

  “Yes,” Sarah confirmed.

  “To hell with that.”

  “Which is precisely why I brought him with me,” Sarah explained as they followed Ria and Thinian to the opposite side of the massive tree’s trunk. “The griffins that we met said that if the rest of the flock were to learn of the cub’s existence then they would insist on giving the cub to his father. They already agreed to let the flock know Nyx and her cub perished in the landslide.”

  “I’m really not liking the cub’s father,” Steve grumbled.

  “You and me both,” Sarah agreed. “However, that is a matter for the griffins. I will not let the cub be given to his sire. So he’s coming with us.”

  “But a griffin?” Steve asked, incredulous. “You expect us to raise a griffin? In Idaho??”

  “We have a lot of land,” Sarah reminded him. “There’s plenty of open space. There’s easily four times the acreage that we were used to before.”

  “That little jaunt through time definitely had a hand in that,” Steve said, grinning. “I think we can attribute most of that to you. You’re the reason everyone thinks the manor is haunted. I realize we don’t have proof but I’m pretty certain Luther bought all the land around him ‘cause no one wanted to live close to him.”

  “That’s still a sore spot,” Sarah confessed, giving him a frown. “What about those poor people that were living near us? They’re all gone. We came back to find that there were no houses around us at all.”

  “We came back to learn that we no longer owned 150 acres but instead it was closer to 500,” Steve added. “We didn’t kick anyone out. There were never any houses there to begin with.”

  “In the original timeline there was,” Sarah argued.

  Steve sighed, “It’s in the past. There’s nothing we can do about it now.”

  Sarah held a finger to her lips and pointed at the Fae queen. Ria was gesturing at the trunk of the tree and giving Thinian instructions. They watched as their Fae companion squatted down on the ground.

  “Start there at the base,” the Fae queen instructed, pointing at a spot on the ground near the middle of the trunk. “The pollen needs to be spread evenly around the tree. Every reference I have found on the matter states the pollen must be administered around the entire circumference of the Tree.”

  “There isn’t much here, your majesty,” Thinian reminded her. “The trunk is massive. I do not believe we will have enough.”

  “Use it sparingly,” Ria instructed. “If it must be one or two drops every three feet then so be it. What’s important is that the pollen circle be complete.”

  Thinian nodded, uncorked the small vial of golden liquid he was holding, and carefully tapped the side of the vial. Once a single pure drop had fallen onto the ground he took a step backwards, administered another drop, and repeated the process until he had traversed the entire tree’s huge trunk. He held the vial up to the queen to show that there was still some left.

  Ria held up a hand to wait. Everyone held their collective breaths as they watched the trunk of the tree with eager anticipation. Unfortunately, it became clear that nothing was happening.

  “Circle it again,” the queen instructed. “We went to such great lengths to retrieve the pollen that we shouldn’t let any go to waste.”

  Thinian nodded and started again. The moment the Fae started on the second pass around the trunk several things happened at the same time. Sarah first noticed the drops of pollen Thinian had placed on the ground began to glow. Within a few seconds a glowing golden ring of light had appeared around the entire tree.

  “What’s happening?” Steve whispered in her ear. “What’s going on?”

  “I haven’t the faintest idea,” Sarah whispered back. “Hush now.”

  The glowing ring of light melted into the earth and disappeared from sight. Husband and wife shared a look. Was that it? Was the tree cured? Sarah squinted up at the huge tree. It didn’t look healed to her. It was still brown and devoid of most of its foliage.

  “Is that it?” Steve whispered. “Talk about being anticlimactic.”

  Sarah glanced uncertainly over at the queen. Ria was staring up at the tree with the saddest expression Sarah had ever seen on anyone’s face. The Fae queen truly thought they were too late. That must mean she thought something else should have happened, too. Was that it? Was it over now?

  Sarah’s eyes filled with tears. Steve nudged her shoulder but she angrily brushed him off. Now wasn’t the time for her husband to offer some sarcastic bit of humor to lighten the mood. Her friends were going to die and it was their fault.

  She felt a tap on her shoulder. Her tear streaked face looked up into her husband’s but was surprised to see that he wasn’t looking at her. His eyes were trained on a spot near the trunk of the tree. Then she heard Ria gasp with surprise.

  A tiny sapling, growing near the base of the trunk, was giving off a golden glow. In fact, the tiny plant looked as though it was made of pure gold. And it was growing!

  The sapling wrapped itself around the trunk and began a helical ascent up the tree. The trunk of the Fae’s home tree started to glow at every point the g
lowing sapling made contact. The glow started at the base of the trunk and grew steadily upward.

  Sarah hurried to the queen’s side. Ria, seeing Sarah standing next to her, clasped her hand in her own. It was as if someone had begun adding color to the Tree, starting at the trunk and working their way upward, keeping in time with the growth of the sapling. Then they heard something that made everyone present giddy with excitement: the Tree was making noise. It was swaying.

  Sarah hastily wiped her eyes with a corner of her sleeve. They had done it after all! The Tree was going to survive! It was getting its health back, right before her eyes.

  “Houston, we have a problem.”

  Sarah’s eyes snapped over to her husband’s.

  “What is it? What’s the matter?”

  “It’s slowing down,” Steve told her. “The rate of growth for the glow is decreasing. I hate to say it, babe, but it looks like it’s not going to make it to the top.”

  “But it has to!” Sarah cried, looking up at the trunk. She blinked away her tears. Yes, her husband was right. The sapling had slowed as it neared the trunk’s halfway point. The glow was still traveling up the trunk but it was definitely slowing. In fact, it only had a few minutes more before she estimated that the sapling would halt its ascent altogether.

  “So what do we do?” Steve asked. “We can’t let it fail now.”

  “The Tree must be farther gone than we had thought,” Sarah whispered, thinking hard. “I’m guessing the pollen isn’t strong enough.”

  “If it’s not strong enough then what is?” Steve demanded. “There’s gotta be something we can do.”

  “Not strong enough,” Sarah slowly repeated. Her eyes widened. “Honey, that’s it! We have to make it stronger!”

  “Again I ask, how? It’s not like we can make the Tree use a jorii.”

  “Even if we did have a jhorun amplifier with us, you’re right. It wouldn’t do any good.”

  “Then why bring it up?” Steve asked.

  Sarah risked a glance at Ria and Thinian. Both had sunk to the ground and were staring hopelessly up at their tree. Ria’s head fell while Thinian looked lost.