Charles helped his dad carry the gifts out to the car. When he returned to the house, he heard his mom talking to Bev and Carson in the kitchen. Charles went to join them. When Molly saw him in the doorway, she said she would stop by the next morning to bring his clothes for school and the backpack with his books. They sat down and talked a moment longer, before it was time for Molly and the remaining guests to depart. Everyone walked out of the house.
Those leaving for the slumber party, crammed into the two cars. Sophie was chattering non-stop from all the attention. Molly was ready to drive the new car home, following Jack. Charles stood with Bev and Carson in the front yard and waved goodbye. As Jack put the car in drive, he suddenly looked to Charles like he was having second thoughts about the slumber party. They could hear the girls singing “Happy Birthday” to Cynthia for quite a while, as they rode down the street.
Carson laughed. “Whew, poor Jack!”
Charles shivered at the thought that that could have been him too.
Bev smiled. “Now Carson.”
Carson asked, “Do you need help cleaning up?”
Bev said she didn’t, so the two men ran for the office. Charles had never been so happy to have a celebration over with than he was that night. The two men had plenty to keep themselves busy. Carson decided to continue researching coins. Airabelle and Airasten flew over to join him. Charles put on his Sojourner glasses, reached for his crystal and started to read from the Caperson journals. He read until it was time to put things away for the night.
Chapter 5
The next morning, Molly drove to the farm with Charles’ schoolbooks, backpack and clothes. She ate breakfast with Bev and Carson before she left. After Charles woke up and dressed for the day, Bev put his school clothes in the bedroom closet.
Margaret dropped Caroline off to spend the day. She stayed briefly and talked to Bev, before heading back to help Al on the farm. Carson, Bev, Caroline, and Charles met in Carson’s office then entered the Passageway to the Hub. The group headed through the Hub to the Journal Storage Shop. Once they entered the shop, Carson explained their purpose to Beagan.
Beagan shrugged and said, “Even though Catherine and I discussed many things over the years, we did not talk about her Passageways. I will be glad to join you in your search. Maybe something in the room will jog my memory and I can be of help.”
He gave Caroline the key to Catherine’s room and walked with them. Caroline unlocked the door. They entered to begin the search for the enchanted marbles.
When Beagan heard the door chimes, he left the room. He recognized Natalie and Wayland and said, “They are waiting for you.” He escorted them back to Catherine’s room.
As soon as the door opened, Carson stopped what he was doing. He greeted Natalie and Wayland, and explained what they had done so far. The two young adults were eager to help. Carson resumed his search with Bev, looking at shelves that contained Sojourner artifacts. Natalie and Wayland approached another wall of shelves with art objects. Beagan joined them in the search, until he heard the door chime and excused himself.
Caroline stopped in front of a jewelry box. She opened several drawers peering at the collection of necklaces, bracelets and rings inside. Her breath stopped when she picked up a platinum locket. She touched the intricately engraved design on the front, then opened the clasp and looked inside. Caroline gazed at the image of a handsome young man. His smile was welcoming. She closed the locket and dropped the beautiful necklace in her pocket.
She walked to the back of the room and looked on the shelves for a beautiful black box. Caroline remembered from her first visit that the box had an inlaid pattern of a yellow and orange sun. When she located the box, she picked it up and took it to Carson.
As Caroline handed the decorative box to Carson, she said, “This box contains twelve of Catherine’s crystals. I would like to store it in your vault for safekeeping.” Carson smiled and agreed to her request.
Charles continued his search for the marbles. He opened each drawer from a stand-alone cabinet and peered inside. When he opened the third drawer he whispered, “Jackpot.” He picked up a marble between his two fingers, then placed it in his cupped hand and looked it over. An image of a castle was placed within the marble. A tiny red speck suddenly flickered off to the side of the castle.
Wayland crossed the room to stand next to him. As they observed the red dot, Wayland made an observation, “That speck seems to mark the place where the traveler can transport himself.” Charles and Wayland looked at each other.
Charles asked, “You mean with this marble a person could travel to that location on Bridgeiro?”
Wayland shrugged. “I would assume that is where the Passageway leads. Al wasn’t specific when he showed us the Marble Track this summer. Remember, he used a golden marble at that time. It seems that Catherine had two marbles for her Marble Track.” The other members of the group heard their conversation and walked over to join them. Natalie stood beside Charles.
Charles showed her the marble. “Natalie, is this the marble you were looking for?” She nodded. Charles handed her the marble. The group passed it around.
Charles continued to search through the drawer until he found the gold marble that Al used earlier in the summer. “Great, here is the other marble that Al showed us.” He gave the gold marble to Caroline.
After Natalie, Wayland, Bev and Caroline looked at the marbles, Caroline handed them to Carson. Carson looked at both of the marbles and said, “Magnificent. I’ve never seen anything like these enchanted marbles.
“We should now return to the office with what we have found. I believe we should consult with Dimitrios before attempting to use the Marble Track.” Everyone agreed with his suggestion.
Carson turned to Natalie and said, “Would you go to your father and inquire if he is available to meet in my office? If he approves the plan to use the Marble Track, then we can move forward.” Natalie agreed.
Carson continued, “We will head back to my office with these items and set up the Marble Track. While we wait, I’ll gather what we need and wait for you there.” Natalie left the shop with Wayland to find her father.
Dimitrios was in his office, going over his agenda for the day with Cassia when the young adults barged in. He had just set his coffee cup down on his desk and almost spilled it when the door flew open. He looked up at Natalie, frowning at her behavior.
“Dad, come quick! We have something that we need to show you. We’ll explain on the way!” Dimitrios was already up. He grabbed his coat while following them out the door.
Natalie explained to him what they had discovered. He stopped in the middle of the Hub. She kept going, until she realized he had stopped. She turned around and walked back to him.
He put his arm around her shoulder as he continued to walk slowly in the direction they were going. “Natalie, I thought something urgent was happening. Please don’t scare me like that. I don’t mind accompanying you, but what if I had something pressing on my agenda.”
She thought about her father’s comment before saying, “Oh, I’m sorry Daddy. Did you have something important you were working on?”
He shook his head and smiled. “No, but thank you for asking. As a matter of fact, this sounds very intriguing.”
As they began to pick up the pace through the Hub, Natalie and Wayland talked nonstop all the way to the Jones’ Passageway. They went through to Carson’s office.
As soon as Dimitrios, Natalie and Wayland walked into the room, Charles showed Dimitrios what they had discovered. Dimitrios took out his loupe and inspected each of the marbles. He cleared his throat. “This is very interesting.”
He thought for a moment before he went on to say, “I know of someone who is even more knowledgeable about these things than I am. Anthony is the perfect expert. May I go and see if he is available? If it is a convenient time for him to leave, we will return.” Everyone agreed to Dimitrios’ excellent suggestion; knowing it would benefit their v
enture, if the prime minister could come to Carson’s office to give his expert opinion. “It won’t take me very long.”
Carson took Caroline’s black box to the vault. When he returned, he was holding Willoughby. Carson leaned the walking stick against his desk. If they were going to travel to the Whispering Forest, he believed it would be wise to take Willoughby as a guide.
Dimitrios left to contact Anthony. He stopped by his office, took something from his desk drawer and placed it in his pocket. Then he walked briskly to Anthony’s office and told him about the enchanted marbles. Anthony was intrigued as well. He told his secretary he would be out of the office for a period of time. Both men hurried to Carson’s office.
As soon as they entered the room, Anthony greeted everyone and asked, “What have you discovered? It sounds very compelling.”
Charles explained the situation and showed him the marbles. Then he pointed in the direction of the Marble Track. Caroline stepped out of the way so Anthony could get a closer look.
Anthony said, “This is remarkable… I’ve never seen anything like it before.” He walked closer to the track. Anthony looked at Charles. “It’s very old. I’d say one of the first of its kind. I believe it must have belonged to a king.” He bent down and motioned for Charles to see what he had spotted. Charles inspected the track first then motioned for the others to come look. Caroline went next.
Anthony continued, “I believe it’s a king’s initials on this royal crest. The monarchy believed the one True Majesty Himself sent them here to rule. That’s what the cherubim represent.”
Dimitrios said, “That makes sense.”
Anthony said, “May I take a closer look at the marbles?”
As he inspected both marbles, Caroline asked Willoughby, “What do we do with the marbles?”
Willoughby responded, “Put a marble in the angel’s pitcher. When she drops it, the marble rolls to the cherubim. Once it rolls to the first cherub, the Passageway will appear. The second cherub will open the Passageway. Once it’s been opened, you are welcome to step through. The other cherubim will keep the marble moving on the track until you return.”
Anthony asked Caroline, “Shall we try it?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
Anthony pointed to the marble with a castle on it. “This one?” He smiled at her.
She picked it up and gently set the marble on the angel’s pitcher. A symphony was heard around the room as the angel bowed and the pitcher tipped, releasing the marble onto the track. When it reached the first cherub, a Passageway appeared in the middle of the room.
Carson walked over to study it. He saw that it was altogether different from their Passageway. It was seven feet in diameter with a flat surface that was hovering above the floor. It had a reflective quality similar to a mirror. Carson turned to watch the marble traveling around the track. Seeing that the marble had gone around the entire track once and was continuing its progress, he reached out to touch the mirrored surface. The music abruptly stopped as the room was filled with the sounds of a forest. He withdrew his hand and peered into the reflection; beyond which he could see trees and a path.
Carson turned around saying, “Come and look.”
They each took turns peering beyond the mirror. It seemed as if they were near a forest paradise by the sounds, smells and the warm gentle breeze that filled the office.
Willoughby said, “Home. Who wants to go home?”
Before anyone knew what happened, Caroline instinctively walked through the Passageway with Willoughby. Charles reached out to stop her. He stumbled and fell through, following Caroline.
Dimitrios said to Anthony, “Stay behind, I’ll go.” He turned and walked through the Passageway. The rest of the group followed, holding hands in case they were to get separated. The entire group instantly found themselves together in a forest clearing. They looked around in awe of their surroundings.
Charles said, “There is no way this is Earth. Just look at the splendidness of the forest. This has to be Bridgeiro.”
Carson’s eyes were wide open. “We must be very careful of our new surroundings. I believe we may be in the natural land of Bridgeiro.”
Bev leaned down to observe large florescent flowers. Each petal was a different color. Carson walked over and looked at what she was so intently watching. From inside the flower came a puff resembling a tiny cloud. It was a creature covered with tiny eyes that blinked at different times. When the breeze blew, the puff floated through the air. When the breeze stopped, it would float until it landed on a plant. Then when the breeze started again, the flowers would sway casting the tiny creature airborne once again.
Bev said, “I can’t help but smile watching it.”
Dimitrios looked around. “Look at the natural grass.” He bent over and felt it. He plucked a blade and looked at it closely. It was actually blue in color in the sunlight but when he shaded it with his hand, it had a white cast to it. He pointed out to everyone, “The grass in the Hub is not native to the planet. The early Sojourners removed the flora what was native to the planet and brought grass and the shrubs from Earth. Because the roots of small plants from Earth do not delve deeply into the soil, the plants do not come alive like the native plants. What I hold in my hand is the native grass to the planet. I read that they also transplanted trees from Earth to the Hub. They discovered that if trees were planted in this soil their roots would dig deep and take hold. Eventually the trees from Earth would come to life like the native trees on this planet. That is why the trees in the Hub are kept in pottery.” The blade of grass swayed, bent and wrapped itself around his finger. “Everything here is alive in a special way.”
He stood and looked into the sky. Dimitrios pointed out the stars beyond the purplish-blue clouds and the two moons that gave the planet an appearance of being unearthly. “No need to wonder where we are.” The sunlight cascaded through the leaves of the nearby trees.
Charles looked at the sky and mentioned, “The gray moon looks so large. It looks large in the Hub as you look past the eternal border, but it looks even larger here on this side of the border.”
Dimitrios looked at him. “You’re right, it does. On Earth our moon couldn’t possibly be that close to our planet or it would rip the planet apart. Bridgeiro’s moons are made of a less dense matter than Earth’s moon. However, because this planet’s gray moon is so close, it does cause large tidal waves out at sea. If you look in the sky for long periods of time, you can tell that Bridgeiro’s moons travel around the planet at different speeds. They move in their own individual orbits, so they appear in different places in the sky at different times as well. The larger gray moon travels at a faster speed because it is closer to Bridgeiro. The smaller purple moon, since it is farther away, travels at a slower speed in its orbit. Because the two moons revolve around this planet at different speeds, it has what is called a tidal force happening that causes the planet to slow down very, very gradually.”
“It’s important you understand this planet, since you are going to be in a very powerful position within the government. This is something we will discuss in more detail another time. Bridgeiro is different from Earth in many ways.”
Willoughby whistled to the forest and then explained to Caroline, “I’m greeting the Whispering Forest, telling them I am home.” The forest responded back to his greeting with the rustling of leaves.
Charles spotted a path and pointed it out. He asked Willoughby, “Is that the path we should take?”
Willoughby replied, “It is. Follow the path through the forest. He has heard about my arrival.”
Charles asked, “Who has heard?”
“The recluse.”
Everyone crossed the clearing and walked over to the path. It was hot in the sun and cool in the shade. The warm gentle breeze felt good on their skin. They followed along the path. As the group walked, they spied a variety of creatures they had never seen before. Willoughby quietly talked about his visits with Catherine; how she br
ought grain for the forest dwellers and fed them. It was a very scenic walk. As the path meandered through the forest, it revealed the most interesting things for their observation. They were like toddlers seeing the world for the first time. Wayland and Natalie walked on ahead.
Wayland turned around and called to them, “I think I hear water up ahead.”
Dimitrios was surprised at that comment because in the Hub the water flowed in underground springs. He jogged to join them.
It wasn’t much farther before they came to another large clearing in the forest. Wayland walked beyond the tree line. Ahead of him was a spectacular log cabin. He walked over to a bridge that straddled a large creek and looked at the flowing water below. It was crystal clear. He gazed upstream and saw in the distance that the water seemed to be coming up from underground. Then Wayland turned to look downstream. In the distance was a view that took his breath away.
As the group stood on the bridge together, Willoughby said, “I never thought I’d see home again.”
Caroline asked, “Is this your home?”
Willoughby whispered, “It’s where my spirit soars on the wind.”
Natalie inspected the carvings on the bridge. Some places were purposefully burned into silhouettes of scenic views; in other areas pictures of the native wildlife were carved into the wood. At both ends of the bridge, faces were carved on the end posts.
Charles looked down into the clear stream. He pointed. “Is that a fish? What is that creature?” Everyone walked over to look.
Dimitrios said, “It would appear to be a type of fish.”
It didn’t look like a fish to Charles. He studied the creature. The animal had a small head with a rounded snout, and a muscular eel-like body. It had a long fin from its head to its tail and anemone-like tentacles all over its body.
Carson said, “How would you like to catch that flejh? I read about them in Catherine’s journal.”
Charles wrinkled his nose. “I can hardly believe that they would be any good to eat.”
Return of the Clonsayee Page 3
