Chapter 5
Going Home
Peter watched out of the wagon window. As they rode
down so many roads, people were waving and saying, "Welcome
back." Some even stopped the wagon to get a glimpse at the
boy wonder.
"You're a very special young man," said Grandpa David.
Peter just smiled with a large grin on his face.
Baja was so beautiful with golden rain and purple and
yellow clouds. The bears that roamed the hillsides were as
big as houses, but they were very gentle creatures. There
were even trees that grew popcorn! Peter and his family
stopped as they saw a tree getting ready to start popping.
"Oh boy!" said Peter.
The family just laughed, running to the tree like kids
in a candy store. Jane kept her mouth open to catch the
popcorn while Grandpa David and Peter made snow angels in
the popcorn. Sam sat back and watched his family have the
time of their lives. After eating until their hearts were
content, the family sat by the tree and caught up on old
times. Sam was very reluctant to ask his father about his
brother Marcus. Marcus was a bad seed. From the time he was
born, he was very mischievous and rude, always blaming
everything on Sam. Besides, Marcus was the one who turned
his own brother in to the royal authorities for losing the
eighth key, even though he'd had a hand in it.
David shied away from the question of where Marcus
was. Finally he said, "Your brother has gone to the other
side. He sold the family out and went to work for the seven
wizards." Tears started to form in David's eyes as he
thought about his child fighting on the side of evil.
Sam was in shock. He began to pace back and forth,
asking his father, "Why?" over and over again.
David went on to tell his son that Marcus was so drawn
in by the key and the power that it held that he was
willing to risk his life for it. So, he found someone that
would let him divide and conquer -- the seven wizards. They
were a small group of men, women, and children that had
powerful magic spells, and so far, no one could stop or
undo them. This group could flow in and out of Baja without
notice. Since the elders were in hibernation, the citizens
of Baja were no match for those evil forces.
David went on to tell Sam that Marcus was also kicked
out of the boundaries of Baja, but not Baja completely,
like Sam and his family were. Because Marcus turned Sam in,
the elders showed him leniency and made him live on the
outside of Baja.
Sam was very hurt and didn't want that road for his
brother, but Marcus chose power instead of family. Now Sam
felt like it was his duty to stop his brother, because
whatever he was planning would soon come into effect.
Sam and his father continued watching Jane and Peter
have fun in the popcorn field, and then they were ready to
leave. Peter and Dingo had one last run around the field
and one last taste of mouth-watering popcorn. Back in the
buggy the family went. Peter stared out the window waiting
to reach the house farm. Jane and Sam looked anxious.
"A few more feet and we're there," shouted Grandpa
David.
Suddenly the buggy pulled up to a metallic gate made
entirely of gold. They rode up to a guard shack and signed
in to see their home again. The guard bowed to them and
told them he was glad to see them back. As the gate opened,
they saw an amazing sight, house upon house, there were
even houses stacked on each other all the way up to the sky.
"Which one is ours?" shouted Peter.
"I don't know," Jane replied.
The family marched on and went up to the help desk.
The lady looked the family over and over, out of the corner
of her eyes. She was very snooty and rude to the CarrotTops.
"Well, where is your passport? I must verify you are
who you say you are," said the lady.
The family showed their passports with plenty of
objections from Grandpa David. "They don't have to show
anything," he said with an angry voice.
But the lady took their information anyway, walked
over to the computer and did a few searches. "Here, I have
found your house," said the snobbish woman as she ripped a
piece of paper out of the machine and handed it to Sam.
Sam was not too pleased by the lady's attitude, but he
gently took the paper out of her hand. His face was filled
with anger to see the citizens praise them one minute and
mistreat them the next. The family was escorted to the
sorting field by a security guard. The guard apologized to
the family for his coworker's attitude and told Sam and his
family that he still believed in Sam. He also said that
Baja would be set free and the elders would wake again.
With a smile on his face, the security guard took the keys
out of his pocket and opened the main gate to the house
farm.
The family stood on a ledge that was about 200 feet
tall and watched as houses were checked in and out of
storage. It was like going to the store and buying a house
off the shelves. The houses were on a large belt that moved
back and forth. There were big houses and little houses all
in line to either be stored or un-stored. After the houses
reached their destination, workers pulled them off the
line. The movement was so in sync that even Grandpa David
was impressed.
Peter held onto his father's coattail as he looked all
the way down. There were thousands of houses as far as the
eye could see. Peter and his family were a long way up,
they could even see other families buying or retrieving
their homes. Suddenly the belt stopped and Peter's eyes
grew.
"Is that our house, Father?" asked Peter.
"Yes, sweetheart, it is ours, totally untouched," said
Jane.
The image of the house was in 3-D. With a turn of a
golden dial, the guard let the family see every aspect of
their home the way they'd left it. The house was huge, like
a royal palace. There was a courtyard, tennis court,
swimming pool, and a royal garden where the birds were
still humming and flying around. Jane's touch was
everywhere. There were huge plants the size of hills that
wound up to the sky. There was also a Beanstalk that never
seemed to end; it just kept going and going. Goldfish were
frozen in the pond waiting to be thawed. Peter's eyes grew
bigger and bigger as he saw all that the home had to offer.
The guard told the Carrot-Tops to go inside and check
everything out to make sure it was the way they'd left it.
It was like stepping back in time for the family;
everything seemed to be in slow motion. Sam was overcome
with emotion, and so were Jane and the rest of the family.
Sam trembled as he went near the door to turn the knob. For
a minute, he could not do it; it was too overwhelming for
him.
Grandpa David placed h
is hands on his son's shoulder
assuring him that everything would be okay. Sam took in a
deep breath and exhaled slowly. He closed his eyes and
opened the door with a quick turn of the wrist. Dingo
suddenly jumped out of Peter's pocket and ran into the
house. Jane was upset, and she told Peter to leave Dingo in
the wagon. But Peter didn't listen, and off Dingo went,
leaping and hopping up and down the stairs. Peter was right
on his heels, but Jane was angry, truly not at Peter, but
at all the time they had lost.
Sam, Jane and Grandpa David slowly entered the house.
The family walked through the massive hallways and into the
entertainment room, where Jane rubbed her hands over the
furniture, reminiscing about the good times they'd had. She
sat on the edge of the sofa and looked over the pictures on
the table. One was of Peter as a baby and the others were
friends and family. Back in the good old days, Jane was a
well respected socialite. Every afternoon, ladies would
come over either to gossip or talk about life in Baja. Jane
missed those days.
Because everything was frozen in time, the home was
the way they had left it. Jane continued to walk off by
herself into the kitchen where water was still boiling on
the stove and the ice box was open just as the housekeepers
had left it. Then she walked out to her favorite place, the
garden. The plants and trees were still alive, only frozen
in time.
Jane stopped to pet a bird that was at a standstill.
She could she the bird's eyes moving, but the bird could
not move. "Soon I will set you free, little one," she said
to the bird.
Everything in the house and its surroundings would be
frozen in time until the family moved it out of the house
farm. Jane walked through the house looking from room to
room and so did Sam.
Sam found his office, and sat back in the leather
chair, reminiscing about all the projects he had left
unfinished. He took off his glasses and burst into tears.
The pain was so great that he slid out of the chair and
fell to his knees asking, "Why?" His tears would tear at
the heart of any human. Sam stayed on the floor until he
got himself together. He finally got the nerve to get up
and look around. There were papers all over his office
flying in slow motion through the air with a timeless touch.
On one paper, Sam could see some of his work. Before
he was kicked out, he was in the process of creating the
finest and toughest army for Baja. There were sketch
drawings of animals, great and small, wearing armored
silver-plated suits. There were animals that were half
human and half horse carrying bows and arrows. Sam gently
pushed the paper aside as it moved through the air in slow
motion.
Down the hall, Sam could hear Jane rumbling, so he
went to see what all the racket was about. "Honey, are you
all right?" he called out to her.
"Yes, dear," Jane replied.
Sam watched as his wife stared at the nursery they had
for Peter before he was born. Everything was still intact
-- from the finest cotton blanket, to the crib made of the
finest maple. The room was covered in toys that were gifts
from the Carrot-Tops' family and friends. Teddy bears great
and small lined the wall. There were train sets that went
"choo-choo" around the room. It seemed just like yesterday
to Jane. She put her hands over her eyes and began to weep.
To the Carrot-Tops, it seemed like their lives had been
taken away.
"We must go, honey," Sam said gently.
As they walked through the doors of the courtyard,
they could hear Peter having fun with Dingo. Water was
splashing with the slow movement of time, and leaves gently
glided through the air.
Jane shouted to Peter, "Come on. We must be going."
Sam realized that his father was nowhere to be found.
They searched the entire area of the courtyard until they
found him in his favorite place, his gift shop. Grandpa
David was a special man with the skill of making and
producing the finest toys for all the little children
throughout the land. He made antique dolls and train sets.
There were kites and teddy bears everywhere. Sam watched as
his father touched his past.
Grandpa David was overwhelmed by all that he had lost,
and yet he was looking at the past. Sam placed his hands on
his father's shoulder letting him know not to worry. He
promised his father that he would make everything all
right. Although they could not start over, he would make
the rest of their lives worth living again.
Grandpa patted his son on the shoulders and said,
"Sam, this is not your fault. This is the way of the
prophet."
The family got their emotions together and headed out
of the door. They continued to look back at a place they
once called home.
"Is everything intact?" the guard asked.
"Yes," said Sam.
The guard then processed the paperwork and a huge
train came out of the clouds with a loud "choo-choo." It
had to be at least 200 feet long, and there were other
houses and property on it. The train was red and silver,
and its paint sparkled in the sun's rays.
The guard gave the workers the okay to load the house
and take it out of frozen time. With a few pushes of the
buttons, the house was out of the bubble of time, and
loaded onto the train. The guard notified the family that
the house would be delivered to their old address, 511
Cherry Street. With so much emotion built up, the family
only could nod their heads to answer the guard.
"Wow, that train is great!" shouted Peter.
The guard just smiled at Peter, and off the family
went out the door and through the tall gates of the house
farm to their waiting wagon. As the family loaded up, a
huge group of people were waiting, just to get a glimpse of
the family. News had spread far and wide to the
countrysides, and even in the heavens. Everyone knew the
Carrot-Tops were back in town, but the family had so many
other important things on their minds, like finding Sam's
mother and Jane's family. Off they went, the sun was soon
to go down, and they wanted to make it off the roads and
home before nightfall.
The ride was long, but the sights were wonderful for
their eyes. The family remembered how great and beautiful
Baja was. There were unicorns grazing in an open field, and
then flying up in the clouds whenever they heard people
coming. There were also purple, yellow, green and red
horses being sold at an outdoor auction. Peter stood up in
his seat because this was so amazing to his young eyes.
As they got closer to where Grandpa David and the
others stayed, a feeling of gloom came over the family. It
was as if a dark cloud just passed over and stayed in that
one spot.
The scene was so depressing; Dingo clawed Peter's
shirt out of fear. The trees and flowers were dying,
turning ash gray in color.
Peter watched as the trees tried to move, but their
roots would break from years of rotting. The screams the
trees made were heart wrenching. Everyone in the wagon
covered their ears.
"Just a few more feet," said Grandpa David.
By the look on everyone's faces, no one wanted to be
there. They were disgusted. As the wagon went closer into a
deep forest, hundreds of people came running out. Most of
them had their hands out, begging for food or anything.
Grandpa David pushed them out of the way and introduced
them to his family.
One lady burst out and said, "Because of you, Sam, we
are here. We were your loyal servants and got punished for
it."
Sam had no words to say but sorry, but the people did
not accept his apology. For years they had suffered for
Sam's sins against the elders. He got out and stood on a
hilltop, and told the people he would make everything all
right. Right now, he had to find his mother. Grandpa David
pointed in the direction of his wife. Under a tree sat an
old lady, worn out, and her clothing was dingy and old. She
continuously coughed and held her chest. Her hair was in
disarray.
"Mother! Mother!" Sam called out.
"Who is playing games?" the frail voice answered back.
Sam went to his mother and held her hands letting her know
he was back. "My son, I knew you would not forget us," said
Sam's mom Dorothy.
Jane, Peter, Dingo and Grandpa David joined in on the
family reunion. They hugged and kissed. Dorothy was glad to
see Jane, and for the first time was introduced to her
grandson, Peter. Dorothy told Sam about how they had
suffered in the hot underground tunnels as punishment for
Sam's sins. She spoke of the abuse, the hunger, and the
many cold nights. Sam was not only angered by what his
mother was saying, but also by the knowledge that his
brother Marcus had not been any help to them.
By Dorothy's accounts, Marcus let the authorities take
them away because, for many years, he felt Sam got special
treatment from his mother and father. Dorothy said she
loved both of them, and Marcus was jealous of all the power
Sam had, from running his own armed forces to making sure
the citizens of Baja was well taken care of. Everyone in
Baja respected Sam, and Marcus felt as if he had to walk in
Sam's shadow.
Sam told his parents that he had to get them out of
the dark and depressing forest, but his parents did not
want to leave unless everyone was leaving.
"Honey, we have a house with thousands of rooms," Jane
said. "We will get all of them on their feet and then they
can move on with their lives."
Sam quickly agreed. He then stood on the hilltop once
again and told the people of his plans. Some were
reluctant, but many others were willing to go. Anything
would be better than being poor and homeless. The crowd
began to gather up their few belongings and was ready to
start walking to Sam and Jane's mansion. But before they
could leave, Jane had one thing to do.
Her heart would not allow her to leave the trees and
flowers in a rotting state. She gathered her strength
together and touched the largest tree in the center of the
forest. It gave root to all the trees near and far. Jane's
hair began to blow in the wind; she could feel the trees'
pain, and she saw all the horrors they had seen. With all
her might, she pushed her hands toward the trees and let
her powers flow. Within minutes, the trees stopped crying
and screaming. Their leaves began to turn green; their
roots began to have life again. Fruit began to appear, and
so did the animals that once fled. This was so overwhelming
for Jane that she passed out.
Sam and the family ran to her side and picked her up.
As Sam was leaving with Jane's lifeless body, a deep voice
came from the trees, "We will always be at your service,"
and then the voice disappeared.
Birds started to make their nests in the trees and the
dark clouds suddenly moved away. The forest was once more
bright and inviting again. Birds sang and the trees and
Beanstalks began to grow. Wow! How amazing Jane's powers
were to the people watching.
Sam and the other men carried Jane and the older women
to the wagon, while the strong and young walked behind.
Dorothy began to fan Jane with a torn piece of paper.
Little by little, Jane began to open up her eyes, but she
was still weak. She began to mumble about all the pain she
saw, and how a war was coming. No one really paid attention
to what she was saying. They just wanted to get her home
safe and sound.
Peter and Dingo began to make new friends as the older
adults worried about grown-up concerns. This was a time of
fun and excitement for Peter, not only did he get to stay
up later, but he got to have fun doing it.
Little did they know that they were being watched by a
group of trolls, maybe eight to ten of them. They stood
four feet tall. Their bodies were gray with white polka
dots, and their eyes were long and slanted. They had thin
lips and large razor teeth. These creatures constantly
drooled and slobbered all over the place. They smelled
horrible, and to most people, they were disgusting. The
townspeople called them Goonies. They watched every move
made by the Carrot-Tops. It was apparent that they were
reporting to someone. The Goonies made sure to keep out of
sight, but not to lose contact with the family.
Dingo knew something was wrong; his animal senses
began to tell him another creature was somewhere close. He
began to tug on Peter's shirt.
"Down, boy," said Peter, but Dingo kept on until Peter
finally paid him some attention.
When Peter knelt down to Dingo to see what was the
matter, Dingo stuck his fingers out pointing in the
direction of the noise. The Goonies were hiding behind a
great big bunch of trees.
Peter sensed something was wrong and put his hands to
the floor. Suddenly the earth began to shake, and his
orange hair began to blow back and forth like a whirlwind.
His eyes were fixed on the target. Holes started appearing
out of nowhere, big ones and small ones. One by one, the
Goonies began to scream as they fell deep into the holes.
The adults came running.
"What's the matter, Peter?" Sam asked.
Peter explained that they were being watched and he
had caught the perpetrators in the hole. Sam pushed Peter
aside and held an oil lamp above the hole. A creature
jumped toward Sam and startled him, but the hole was too
deep for the creature to escape. Everyone started to gather
around the rim, watching the creature's every move.
"These
creatures are from a dark side," said Grandpa
David.
Sam reached out, grabbed the creature, and it began to
shiver and turned into a ball. "Who are you?" Sam asked the
creature.
"We are your brother's keepers," the creature replied.
Sam knew then that his brother was up to no good and
they had to hurry. He told his son to close up the hole
with the creatures inside, and so Peter did. With the power
in his hands, he conjured up the dirt, and buried the
creatures inside. The people were amazed once again by
Peter's powers, but there were also a few jealous ones in
the crowd. Some people clapped, and some snickered in
disbelief.
As the group continued to walk on, Sam and his father
had a long talk. David told Sam that his brother was way
beyond help and the evil had total possession of him. David
described to his son the pain he and Dorothy had gone
through at the hands of Marcus. They went from living like
royalty to the pigpen, at the hands of their own son. Sam
told his father he was very sorry and assured him
everything would be all right soon.
The group continued to walk toward home. Peter was
excited to see his new home fully. Dorothy and Jane sat
quietly in the back of the wagon. Suddenly, it began to
shake violently. Dorothy looked out, and she was in the
air. Sam had used his powers to levitate everyone into the
air. The people were now flying; this was the only way to
get home quickly before nightfall.
Through the sky they went. The children were having
the most fun touching the clouds. The birds moved out of
the way, and the long trees shrunk to make way for the herd
of people.
"Wheeeeee!" said they kids.
Up and down they moved and chased each other. This was
the first time many of them had been completely free. The
adults were placed in the back. Many of the older ones were
afraid, but Sam put their fears to rest assuring them now
that he would not drop them. Faster and faster Sam flew
them through the air, going in and out of trees, flying
over vast stretches of land. People on the ground were
pointing and shouting with surprise. One kid on a bike
rolled into a patch of hay when he saw the crowd in the
air. People were running, trying to catch up with the
flying people. Some were running to neighbors, telling them
what they had seen.
The fresh air did Jane a whole lot of good; she woke
up smiling, asking for her family, until Dorothy filled her
in on what was going on. Jane pushed her hair back and
looked out of the wagon window, and smiled at her family to
show she was okay. This gave Sam more strength to move the
wagon even more quickly. Suddenly, the wagon and the people
came falling down slowly from the sky.
"We are home," said Sam.
The Carrot-Tops' home had arrived in one piece, safe
and secure. It was no longer frozen in time. The house was
like a castle -- there must have been hundreds or even
thousands of rooms. It was like the Carrot-Tops were kings
and queens of Baja. The home was fit for royalty. The crowd
of people stared at the enormous house and wondered how was
it that Sam kept all of this when their homes were either
destroyed or taken away. Some people in the crowd were
happy to have a warm place to bathe and sleep, while others
were becoming very jealous of the Carrot-Tops.
The people went through the house feeling and touching
things. It had been years since they had even seen or in
fact been in a house as luxurious as this. The people were
like kids in a candy store -- they wanted to feel and touch
everything in sight. Some people were even trying to steal
little knick-knacks outside in the garden, before they even
went into the house.
"There will be none of that. Anything you want is
free. There is no need to steal," said Sam.
Peter ran up to the door and waited on his father to
open it. One deep breath and Sam gave the door a turn, and
swung it open. Everything was just like they had left it,
only this time, nothing was in an altered state. The cats
were running around the house and everything seemed to fit
in place. Sam went and lifted his wife out of the wagon and
brought her into the house. With Jane resting comfortably
on the sofa, Sam invited everyone in for a hot meal and a
fresh bath.
Some people began to grumble, they were upset that Sam
still had all of his wealth and they had nothing. He tried
to ease the tension in the crowd, but no one wanted to
listen. They were all jealous of the luxury Sam and his
family had.
"All of you have been loyal to me, and I will see that
you also get all that you left behind," said Sam.
But, no one wanted to hear that. They were upset. They
had lost everything because they were Sam's followers.
"Why should we trust you?" one man asked.
"Because we all have suffered," intervened Sam's
father.
But the pep talk did no good, and off went the crowd,
grumbling and complaining. Only two people stayed behind,
Red Fox and Samantha Grey. Red Fox was half-man half-fox.
He was one of Sam's loyal friends and commander of his
army. Red had grown old and worn; his fox fur was matted
and his demeanor was that of hopelessness.
He looked Sam in the eyes and asked him, "Will you
make me like I once was?"
Tears began to fill Sam's eyes and he let Red Fox know
that he would do everything in his powers to make things
right.
Then Samantha Grey stepped forward. She was a young
woman, no more than twenty. Her gifts of being a ninja had
served Sam's army very well. Samantha was of Asian descent;
her long body and jet black hair made her stand out in a
crowd. She had taught thousands of Sam's soldiers how to
fight and how to respect the art of becoming a ninja, and
her army was unstoppable.
Samantha explained to Sam that she had had to hide in
the Black Forest when the elders kicked him out of Baja,
and she did not want to get killed like the others. Sam
went over and gave her a big hug, and told Samantha
everything would be all right.
"Don't blame yourself for running," he said. "It was
the right thing to do."
But Samantha still felt like a coward, since she could
not protect Sam's family from being punished at the hands
of the elders. But Sam never held it against her. He
understood that at the time, she had to fight for her own
life.
Red and Samantha were the only people in the crowd who
stayed, the rest left, intent on trying to reunite with
their families that they hadn't seen in ten plus years. Sam
understood that they were angry with him, so he let them
go, knowing that most of them would be back once they were
rejected by their families and friends.
The
remaining guests made themselves at home while
Peter and Dingo were having a blast running through the
house. Up and down the staircase they ran. Jane was pleased
to see her son finally finding a place to call home. It was
kinda strange to the Carrot-Tops to be back in their house
that had been vacant for years.
That night was so strange for the family that they
couldn't sleep, so the night was filled with stories by the
fireplace. Deep down inside, everyone was wondering what
tomorrow would bring. Jane began to tell Peter of a great
primary school, the great Waldorf Academy School. She told
him it was a school of possibilities, and that whatever his
dreams were, the school could make them come true.
"Oh boy, I can't wait!" said Peter.
Jane told her son that he would fit right in with all
the other kids, unlike back in Georgia. For a moment,
Georgia seemed strange. They seemed to have been gone from
there for so long already. So, they put thoughts of the
human world in the back of their heads and continued on
with the stories by the fireplace.
Red Fox slowly came down the stairs; his fur was all
wet and shaggy. "Oooh, that was a great bath!" he shouted.
"It has been so long since I had a good hot bath like that."
The family just laughed and welcomed him to sit by the
fireplace. Jane noticed that her mother-in-law was missing
and went up the stairs to find her. Dorothy was in her old
room stroking the pillowcase.
She heard Jane coming and said, "It has been years
since I slept on a bed, it seems so strange to me."
Jane sat on the edge of the bed with Dorothy and gave
her a big hug, promising that Sam would make everything the
way it was. Dorothy put her feet in the bed and crawled up
into a ball.
Jane went down and told Sam about his mother. He
rushed right up to her bedside to make sure that she was
okay. Sam saw the state his mother was in, and ran to the
phone and called a doctor. David ran to his wife's side and
comforted her.
"It's the years of digging in those nasty tunnels that
has her sick," said David.
At the same time, Sam was on the phone talking to the
doctor, asking him to get there right away. Within a few
seconds, he appeared out of thin air. It startled everyone
for a moment. Sam went over and tried to shake the doctor's
hand, but it was only a hologram of the doctor that told
the patient and their family what to do to help their loved
ones.
The hologram of Dr. Doo came on with a computergenerated
voice telling the family to boil hot water with
lotus leaves and place them on Dorothy's chest. The family
was stunned for a while, but did what the hologram told
them to do. Dorothy went in and out of a coma. Sam was very
sad, and he begged his mother to hold on just a while
longer.
Before anyone could say another word, the medicine
worked. Dorothy was still ill, but was feeling much better.
She leaned over to her son and asked him to bring Peter
forward.
Peter went forward to hear what his grandmother had to
say; she whispered, "You are the eighth key."
Peter did not understand what she meant and just went
on agreeing with her because she was ill. She fell fast
asleep and everyone left the room. The computer-generated
image vanished and the door bell rang. Jane walked to the
door and opened it slowly.
An older gentleman walked in and said, "Hi, I am Dr.
Doo."
Jane was caught a little off guard and proceeded to
take the doctor upstairs. Dr. Doo explained to the family
that the computer-generated image stayed with a person who
was ill until he arrived. This was a far more advanced
technology than the Carrot-Tops were used to. The doctor
examined Dorothy and told the family she would be fine; she
just needed a little rest and clean, fresh air. Dr. Doo
also let the family know how wonderful it was to see them
back in Baja, and that he supported them one hundred
percent.
The family was amazed to see the support they were
getting from all over Baja, and this made Sam more
determined to fight. The night was quiet and everyone went
to bed waiting for tomorrow to come. Yet, Sam could not
sleep. He walked through the house, pacing back and forth,
trying to take in all the emotions, and to find out where
his life had left off at.
He went and sat at his office desk, reading the papers
from ten years past. The headline was the exile of the
Carrot-Tops. The report made the Carrot-Tops look like a
disgrace. Sam read the report over and over again. In his
mind, he could picture and replay the event again and
again. He went through his office with a fine tooth comb,
looking for anything out of the ordinary. He knew that his
brother would probably try to set him up again.
Sam suddenly fell asleep in his office. The spirits of
the seven elders came to him, one by one in a ghostly
fashion. They swarmed around the office and said in soft
voices, "Sam, Sam, wake up." The voices repeated their
request one by one.
Sam woke up, but he was also now a spirit. He walked
out of his body to be in the same form as the spirits. Sam
looked back and saw his body lying lifeless, sleeping away,
then he turned his attention back to the spirits. He tried
to reach out to them, but a force field stopped him. To
Sam, it felt as if his legs were made out of iron. The
spirits warned Sam that they must talk quickly and he must
listen.
"A war is coming and Peter is the key. If we do not
awake in the time before the war, Baja will be lost
forever. We know you are not the one at fault. Your brother
is, and he must be stopped or we will lose everything,"
said the spirits.
Sam acknowledged them, and promised the spirits that
he would try to make things right and Baja would not be
lost. The spirits reminded him that there was nothing that
they could do while in hibernation and the longer they
hibernated, the less powerful they would become. It had now
been ten years and they needed to get out of hibernation as
soon as possible. The spirits' images began to fade in and
out, and then suddenly, they disappeared.
Sam woke up in a pool of blue goo; it covered his
entire body. He ran to the bathroom to wash his face. He
could not stop thinking about what the spirits had told
him. After a quick check on everyone, Sam was back in his
office, thinking about the way in which he could save Baja.
Peter Carrot-top Page 5
