by Tom Hoffman
“I liked the positive reinforcement a lot more than the punch on my arm.”
Sophia gave Orville a severe look. “Here we are. I’ll stop by at lunchtime and we can get a necklace for your mum. They have lovely jewelry at Miraculum’s Fine Antiques, and their prices are quite reasonable.”
Orville waved good-bye to Sophia and stepped into the Book Emporium, his paw still on his cheek. “Good morning, Master Marloh.”
Master Marloh was standing behind the long wooden counter sorting through the previous day’s receipts. He looked up with a smile. “Good morning, Orville. Ready for payday?”
“Yes, I’m going to get my mum a necklace for her birthday.”
“That sounds wonderful. I’m sure she’ll love whatever you get.”
“Has there been any news about Papa?”
The smile faded from Master Marloh’s face. “Nothing yet, I’m afraid. Finding him is not going to be as simple as I had hoped. The Dragonfly Squadron is attempting to track his movements, but it appears he may have covered a lot more territory than we had originally thought. I promise I will let you know the moment I hear anything. In the meantime, six crates of new books just arrived and we need to price them and get them on the shelves. That should take you most of the day.”
“Okay, I’ll start on that. I’m going with Sophia to pick out Mum’s birthday present at lunchtime, if that’s okay.”
“Take as long as you want and get a nice necklace for her. It’s most admirable of you to spend your hard earned silvers on her birthday gift.”
“Could I ask you about a scary dream I had?”
Master Marloh took off his glasses and looked directly at Orville. “What kind of scary dream?”
“Well, it’s kind of weird, but I dreamed that Sophia and I had to jump into a volcano filled with molten lava.”
“You were fully awake inside the dream?”
“Yes, I knew I was in a dream but we still had to jump into the volcano.”
“Hmmm.” Master Marloh pursed his lips, deep in thought.
“Is it bad?”
“There are two possible meanings for your dream. The first is that the dream is literal, and at some point in the future you and Sophia will actually jump into a volcano. This seems highly unlikely, in my estimation. The second possible meaning is that the volcano is symbolic of the fires of life, events which are difficult to endure and often life altering. The disappearance of your papa was one such event. It completely changed your life.
“The fires of life can be most distressing, yet they are capable of changing our lives in the very best of ways if we face them head on. You were forced to become responsible at a much younger age than most mice, and you responded with unyielding vigor and perseverance. As a direct result of your efforts you have become a proficient shaper and a valued member of the Metaphysical Adventurers. You and Sophia prevented Symoca from being drawn into a terrible war, along the way proving Draken Mouse was behind the murder of Sophia’s Papa, Rowland Mouse. I hate to say it, but if your papa had been here he never would have allowed you to become involved in such perilous undertakings.”
“I was trying to be like him.”
Master Marloh gave Orville a gentle smile. “When Eldon comes home he will be very proud of you. Now, off to work with you. It’s going to take me some time to count out all those silvers I owe you.”
The morning flew by and before he knew it Orville heard Sophia’s voice coming from the front of the shop. Moments later she was standing next to him.
“Ready to go pick out a necklace?”
“I have to get my silvers from Master Marloh.”
The two best friends hurried to the front of the shop. Master Marloh looked up from the counter. “Ah, there you are. I have your silvers all counted out. You’re a good worker and you deserve every one of them.”
Orville grinned at the sight of the stacked silver coins. “Thanks, Master Marloh!” He scooped them up and dropped them into his coat pocket.
Sophia put her paw on Orville’s shoulder and laughed, “Let’s go, Master Richmouse.”
Chapter 3
The Necklace
It took less than ten minutes for Sophia and Orville to reach the antique shop. Orville gazed up at the gray weathered sign swaying back and forth in the gentle breeze.
MIRACULUM’S FINE ANTIQUES
He dashed up the rickety steps and entered the shop, stopping for a moment to breathe in the air. “Mmm, I love that smell.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “There’s something about this shop I really like. It’s cluttered and comfy and feels magical.”
“There’s no such thing as magic, there’s only science that we don’t understand. I’ve told you that about a thousand times. No magic.”
“I know there’s no such thing as magic. I didn’t say the store is magical, I said it feels magical. There’s a difference.”
“You’re right. I have a good feeling about the shop too.”
The two friends strolled through the store, browsing the wide assortment of curious antiquities. Sophia pointed to an old tarnished oil lantern. “My great grandmum used to have one just like that. I remember her showing me how to light it when I was a little mouseling. She told me if I rubbed it three times my wishes would come true. I think she really believed it. Oh, look at all those books, they’re so old. I bet they’d be fun to read.”
“There’s the jewelry section over there. Let’s go see what they have, I don’t want to be late back to work. I hope they have a nice one.” Orville stepped over to a large glass display case filled with rings, bracelets, brooches, and necklaces.
“They have a lot of jewelry here. You should be able to find one she’ll really like.”
Orville glanced up to see an elderly mouse shuffling toward the display case.
“Good afternoon, my young friends. Is there anything I might be able to help you find?”
“I’m looking for a necklace for my mum’s birthday.”
“Ah, excellent, you’ve come to the right shop. We have quite a collection of lovely old necklaces in a variety of styles and price ranges. May I inquire as to how much you were thinking of spending?”
Orville glanced over at Sophia. “I hadn’t thought too much about that, but I guess about ten silvers?”
“Perfect, all the necklaces in this case are ten silvers or less. There are some rather lovely ones, as you can readily see.”
“Yes, they’re very nice. Sparkly.” Orville glanced over at Sophia, who was studying a necklace in the next display case. Even from this distance Orville could see it was exquisite, with an ornate silver chain and three mounted stones. The two smaller gems were a pale iridescent green, the large central stone a brilliant translucent blue. Orville felt strangely drawn to it. He stepped over next to Sophia and eyed the necklace. “There’s something about that necklace.”
“I know, I can’t stop looking at it. I’m getting a very peculiar feeling.”
Orville looked at the price tag. It was thirty-six silvers, far more than he’d planned on spending. Master Marloh had given him thirty-eight silvers, which meant he would only have two silvers left if he bought it. Orville whispered to Sophia, “It’s really expensive. Maybe I could shape one just like it.”
Sophia looked up in surprise. “Did you just say what I think you said?”
“I know the Shapers Guild says we can’t use shaping for personal gain, but it wouldn’t really be for my own personal gain. I’d be giving it to someone as a gift. Everyone always says it’s better to give than to receive.”
“I guess you forgot you’d also be saving yourself thirty-six silvers. That sounds a lot like personal gain to me.”
“If you think about it I’d just be making my Mum a lovely birthday present. When I was a mouseling I used to make all her birthday presents and she loved them.”
Sophia rolled her eyes. “Really? Your mum loved those presents because you put a lot of effort into making them, you didn’t just flick yo
ur wrist and shape them. Besides, you could be interfering with this new chain of events in ways you don’t understand.”
“I didn’t think of that. There could be something really special about this necklace in particular.” That was the moment Orville heard the voice. His eyes blinked. The voice always surprised him even though he had heard it many times before. Sophia had explained to him it was his inner voice, coming from a deeper part of him that existed outside of space and time. It was a part of him possessing a far greater understanding of the universe and the events he was currently experiencing in his life.
“This is the necklace you must give to your mum. There is no other.”
Orville could scarcely breathe. He instantly knew that buying this particular necklace would change his life, and the change would involve walking of his own free will into the ferocious fires of life. He managed to regain his composure, leaning over and whispering to Sophia, “We have to get this one. My inner voice said I had to.”
Sophia nodded. “There is no other.”
Orville looked up at the elderly mouse who was absently cleaning his small round glasses with a soft cloth.
“Sir, I’d like to get this necklace for my mum.”
The old mouse put his glasses on and stepped over to the display case. He looked at the necklace, then looked up at Orville with some surprise. “Oh my, I’m afraid that’s a rather precious one. It’s quite costly as you can see. Are you certain that’s the one you wish to purchase? We have a good many others at lesser cost.”
Orville reached into his pocket and pulled out all his silvers, stacking them carefully on the glass display case. He picked up two silvers and put them back in his pocket. “I’m certain. This is the one I want.”
The shopkeeper nodded, carefully removing the necklace from the case. “It’s exquisite. I will put it in a velvet presentation box for you. Your mum is lucky to have such a generous and thoughtful son.”
Sophia was studying Orville’s face. It was time to tell him about her dream. She was certain now that a significant chain of events was under way. She knew the necklace Orville was buying would play a vital role in whatever came next, but she was at a loss as to what that role might be.
Orville stepped out of the shop sporting a cheery smile. He gingerly opened the velvet case and held it out for Sophia to see. She studied the necklace carefully, touching her paw to the gleaming blue stone. “It’s truly beautiful. Your mum is going to love it. I only wish I knew why it was so special, why our inner voices said there was no other.”
Orville shook his head. “I don’t know. The Thirteenth Monk told me we have to let events run their course and eventually we’ll understand the deeper meaning. Until then we have to trust the wisdom and truth of our inner voice.”
“I want to tell you about the dream I had on the same night you had your volcano dream.”
“You said it was scary?”
“Very scary. I dreamed I was in a deep physics class at the Symocan Institute, a class I’ve never even heard of. The instructor was lecturing to us on the nature of temporal dimensional variabilities but I couldn’t understand what he was saying. Right in the middle of a sentence he just stopped talking. He stopped talking and he stopped moving. He was motionless, a living statue. I turned to one of the other students and saw everyone else in the classroom had stopped moving too. I was scared, and I mean really scared. Way more than if it had happened when I was awake. A horrible, shapeless fear filled me, and I couldn’t stop thinking about you and your mum. I had to find you. Without even thinking I blinked back to Muridaan Falls in three jumps. There wasn’t a mouse in sight and the village was deathly quiet. It was so spooky, there was no wind, no rustling leaves, even the clouds were still. The horrible fear was growing worse with every step I took, but I managed to reach your front door. I knocked, but no one answered so I ran inside and called to you but heard only a dreadful empty silence. Even the big clock in your living room had stopped ticking. I found your mum standing next to the kitchen table, frozen like the mice at school. I ran upstairs to your room, flung the door open and saw us.”
“Saw us?”
“You were at your desk showing a funny drawing to Proto, and I was sitting on your bed writing in a notebook. We were living statues. It was so strange to see myself. I screamed but nothing came out. My legs were shaking so badly I fell to my knees and started crying. I’ve never cried so hard, I couldn’t stop. When I woke up my pillow was soaked. I’d been sobbing in my sleep.”
Orville let out a long low breath. “Creekers. What do you think it means?”
“I’ve been thinking about it a lot. Master Marloh told you the volcano dream probably meant you would have to walk into the fires of life, and I had a dream everyone in Symoca was frozen like statues. I’m sure those two things are connected, since we had our dreams on the same night.”
Orville grabbed Sophia’s arm. “Remember how I stopped time the night we exposed Draken Mouse as a murderer? What you described is exactly what it looked like. I even remember thinking that everyone in the room looked like a living statue.”
Sophia’s voice was barely a whisper. “Something is trying to stop time in Symoca.”
Chapter 4
The Rolling Puzzle
Sophia, Orville, and his mum were seated at the dining room table when Proto marched in with the birthday cake. Orville’s jaw dropped at the sight of the exquisitely decorated three-tiered cake with its warm flickering candles. “Whoa! Did you make that, Proto?”
“It’s stunning!”
Orville’s Mum gasped. “Good heavens, Proto, you didn’t need to go to so much trouble!”
Proto beamed with delight. “I’m so pleased you all like the cake. I’m rather proud of it, and I assure you it’s just as tasty as the little frosted cakes you are all so fond of.”
Orville laughed, “We’re not the only ones who like them. Those sticky green ball creatures on Periculum went wild over those tasty cakes.”
Proto chuckled, setting his magnificent culinary creation on the table. After a moderately lovely rendition of the Symocan Song of Birthdays, Orville’s mum blew out the candles.
Sophia turned to Orville with a grin. “Did you have something for your mum?”
Orville reached inside his coat and pulled out a beautifully wrapped package. “This is for the best mum in all of Symoca. Happy birthday, Mum.”
Sophia rubbed her paws together. This was going to be so much better than an Excelsior duplonium powered electric bread slicer.
Orville’s mum could barely speak when she opened the velvet case. She looked at Orville, then at the necklace, then at Sophia, and then back at Orville. “Oh, this is too much. You really, really shouldn’t have. It’s so beautiful! I think it’s the most beautiful thing I own.” She kissed Orville on the cheek and gave him a long hug. “I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful son. I will treasure this forever.”
Proto clapped his hands. “Who’s ready for cake?”
Two hours later Sophia had blinked back to school, Orville’s Mum had retired for the night, and Orville was sitting on his bedroom floor, leaning back against his bed.
“Mum really loved the necklace. Thank goodness Sophia convinced me to get that instead of the bread slicer. I wish Papa could have been here. He would have been proud of me.”
A deep sadness washed through Orville. Maybe they’d never find him. Maybe he wasn’t alive. Maybe the Metaphysical Adventurers ring they found didn’t mean anything. He could have lost his ring because something bad happened. Master Marloh said Orville’s papa was one of the best shapers he knew. There was only one thing Orville could think of that would keep his papa from coming home.
Orville slowly rose to his feet and opened his top dresser drawer, feeling around in the back corner for the blue marble his papa had given him. He remembered how Papa had winked when he said the marble was magic. It was the last thing Papa had given him. If the marble was magic, that was the reason why. He slumped
back down on the floor, gripping the marble in his paw, his eyes burning. How could he be so happy and so sad on the same day? With a long sigh he set the marble down on the floor in front of him. It was strange how a tiny object could hold such power over his feelings. He watched the marble slowly roll across the sloped floor to the other side of the room. It was rolling away from him like his papa had. Tears welled up in Orville’s eyes. He was about to cry when he realized something was very, very wrong.
“Huh?” Orvilled jumped up and ran across the room. He grabbed the marble and dashed back to his bed. Setting the marble down on the floor he watched as it rolled across the room and bumped into the wall. He did it again. And again. And again.
Orville stared blankly at the marble in his paw. Their house was old, and over the years the shifting ground had tilted the foundation. That explained their sloping floors, but what it didn’t explain was why the blue marble was rolling up the slope and not down the slope.
Orville had a difficult time falling asleep that night. He couldn’t stop thinking about the marble and what could possibly cause it to roll uphill. It was clearly breaking the laws of physical motion and yet he had seen it with his own eyes. It reminded him of the clockwork glowbirds. It couldn’t be happening, and yet it was. Finally he drifted off to sleep. When he woke up the next morning his bedside table was covered with snow.
This time Orville converted the snow to a field of energy called a thought cloud, threw his clothes on, grabbed the blue marble and dashed downstairs. Proto had a delicious breakfast waiting for him.
“Good morning, Orville, I do hope you had a lovely sleep. I’m pleased to inform you I remembered to deactivate the interdimensional photonic simulation barrier, so you’ll find no unwanted visitors slithering about the house today. I hope you didn’t mention anything about our little mishap to Mum.”
