by Justin Sloan
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Captain Crab said.
“By the Order of the Teddy Defenders,” Danu said to the captain, “I command you to lay down your weapon and surrender.”
At this point, the remaining ships that hadn’t stopped at first now realized their captain’s ship had come to a stop, and were pulling back to surround it. Cubs and grizzlies alike were watching from the ships to see what was happening—some with swords at the ready and wearing mean expressions, others simply curious or even afraid. Many glanced at the moon with nervous eyes.
“My brother never deserved his power,” Captain Crab said. “I don’t mean to let him keep it.”
“You don’t have a choice in the matter,” Queen Danu said.
“I’ll take you all out!”
“You and what army? These bears?” She gestured to the surrounding ships. “Many of them are cubs who simply want to spend their years with children who love them, not fighting for some tyrant. Even these grizzlies, I’d be willing to bet, would love to return to the kingdom, to the joy of the Teddy Bear Picnic.”
At that, many of the grizzlies’ expressions started to transform into interest, even hope.
“Is it possible?” one of them shouted. “Would Father Moroz take us back?”
“When I tell him how you helped return these cubs to their children, he will, gladly.”
A moment of silence soon was replaced with cheering and a clatter as the bears threw down their swords.
“What’re you doing?” Captain Crab shouted, his voice booming above the cheer. “We have her in our grasp! The power can be ours, the world of children and humans can be ours! They can be ours for commanding, not serving.”
Danu shook her head sadly. “You’ve forgotten what it means to be a teddy bear.”
“She’s right.” Feeling the moment, Ari stepped forward. He held out a paw for Mia, another for Brutas. “We all stand together, for each other, and for the children. We don’t go to them out of some duty. We do it because we love them.”
“Love!” The captain spat on the deck. “I don’t know the meaning of the word.”
“And that’s why you’ve lost today,” the queen said.
The captain’s chest heaved, his eyes like ice. Then, with a roar that caused waves to lash at the ship, he charged at the queen, sword held high.
But he never reached her. Instead, all the bears on the ship converged on the captain at once, and before the fight could even begin, it was over. He struggled, growling and screaming, as a group of cubs led by Eran, paws glowing, held down his sword hand while others pinned his body to the deck. Ari stepped forward and kicked the sword away.
Queen Danu held up a hand for silence, and Arthur and Percival held the captain’s mouth shut. “Harpner, was it?” she said, looking up at the flying monsters. “Would you and your friends be so kind as to bring this bear to your prisons, to serve his time alongside the fallen bear?”
Captain Crab struggled, eyes full of fright.
“Of course, your majesty,” Harpner said, and the bears moved aside for the flying monsters to swoop down and take hold of the captain. “For how long, may I ask?”
“He has sentenced himself in the matter. When he feels he’s ready to be part of teddy bear society again, where no bears are exiled and all are welcomed and loved, we will hold out our arms and welcome him back.”
“Last chance,” Arthur said, picking up the fallen cutlass and feeling its weight. He seemed to want to keep it, but with a nod from Danu he tossed it overboard and then turned back to Captain Crab. “Join us?”
“Never!” the captain shouted.
With a wave of Arthur’s hand, the flying monsters took him into the air.
“Thank you, friends of the teddy bears,” Danu said with a bow.
Harpner returned the bow, and then they were off, the captain’s shouts vanishing into the distance. As he vanished, so did the night and the snow that had magically swept in. The sunlight returned, bright and warm, melting whatever snow had managed to stick to the deck.
The remaining bears all turned, silent, waiting for Danu’s next words.
“All will be welcome in our new Teddy Bear Picnic kingdom,” she said. “No more exile, no reason for anyone to feel the need to pirate. Monsters live with us in peace, so to think that we cannot have peace among bears…. We’re better than that.” She looked at each of the former pirates with compassion. “So, will you come with us?”
A long silence ensued, and then the first grizzly stepped forward. Ari tensed, ready for anything, but the grizzly simply bowed before the queen.
“I am at your service,” the grizzly said. “Thank you.”
The others cheered. More bears knelt before the queen, and before long, the ships were sailing—no longer pirate ships—to bring their queen home.
Chapter 8: Merry Christmas
The ceremony that followed Queen Danu’s homecoming was unreal. All the teddy bears gathered in the greatest picnic the lands had ever seen. The tall evergreens were covered with sparkling lights and tinsel, and the flying monsters were there to place a sparkling star of light on the top of each tree.
“Can you believe we actually did it?” Mia asked. “We saved Christmas.”
“Of course we did,” Brutas said, pouring more sparkling cider. “We’re Teddy Defenders!”
Ari laughed. “He’s right,” he said to Mia. “I never had a doubt. And you know, I actually kinda had fun.”
She rolled her eyes and seemed about to respond, when Father Moroz and Queen Danu stepped out onto the stage.
“Merry Christmas,” Father Moroz said, holding the queen’s hand high. “And thank you for accompanying my queen on her journey home.”
The bears all cheered.
“I can’t thank you enough,” Queen Danu said. “Our days together will be full of peace, I promise you, but we must all work together to make sure every bear among you feels welcome. No one should feel that they are treated lesser than any other, and for that reason, we are opening the palace to you all!”
Another cheer.
“Of course,” Father Moroz said, raising his hands for silence, “many of you have homes to go to, for Christmas morning is drawing close.”
Murmurs rose from the crowd as the cubs chattered excitedly about their new homes and meeting the children who would love them.
“But remember, all of you are still family, and you are welcome to visit whenever you would like.”
Again the cheers, and Father Moroz and Queen Danu raised their hands in celebration and began walking among the bears, handing out small toys from a bag that Father Moroz carried. When they reached Ari, Father Moroz presented him and his companions each with a gold star, a small honey cake, and a heartfelt “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome to stay here with us,” Father Moroz said, looking at Ari as if he could see right through him.
It was a tempting offer, one that Ari normally would have considered. But after yet another adventure with Mia and Brutas, he realized he couldn’t do it.
“Thank you,” Ari said. “But no. For now at least, I’d like to stay with my friends.”
Mia and Brutas smiled at him.
“And you have a new friend, it’d seem.” Father Moroz gestured toward the light-blue bear, Eran, who stood nearby, rubbing his paws awkwardly.
“Get over here,” Ari said with a smile, and he took Eran in a hug.
Brutas and Mia joined in the hug, and Mia said, “Come on, let’s get you to your new home.”
Beaming, they finished their honey cakes, laughing and talking of their recent adventure. Then, with a smile to everyone and nod to Queen Danu, they stood, ready to get back to Tiffany and Rick for Christmas morning.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Justin Sloan is a fulltime writer of video games on such titles as Minecraft: Story Mode and Game of Thrones. In addition to the Teddy Defender novels, Justin has written such books in the Bringer of Light trilogy as Allie S
trom and the Ring of Solomon, and the Land of Gods series as Falls of Redemption.
Justin holds an MA in writing from the Johns Hopkins University and a certificate in screenwriting from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theater, Film, and Television. He has published short stories and poetry in Separate Worlds, Viral Cat, Coalesce, O-Dark Thirty, and other literary publications. His screenplays have won or placed well in such contests as ScriptVampt, The-Greenlight, Page, and Austin.
Find out more about his writing at www.JustinSloanAuthor.com.
First Chapter of Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon
Allie Strom stared at the eerie blue glow of a small necklace on the floor of her bedroom closet. She knew that necklace well. Her whole life it had always hung from her mom’s neck. Yet here it was, but her mom was half-way across the world.
While searching for her favorite pleated skirt, Allie had first noticed the necklace. Starting seventh grade in a new city made her decision about what to wear especially significant.
She shuddered at the memory of sixth grade, when her stupid friend Crystal had betrayed her for the cool kids. All it took was for Allie to tell her she was moving, and maybe it hadn’t helped to bring it up during Crystal’s birthday party. The cake frosting in her hair took forever to get out, but the feeling of betrayal wouldn’t leave with a year’s worth of scraping.
No, this year she was determined to make sure she started off right. She would get in good with a group of friends and form her own crew of soccer girls. For the past few days she had thought of nothing else, aside from the occasional annoyance at her mom’s absence, once again. Regardless, finding the necklace had thrown Allie off guard.
A knock on the door startled her. She nudged the necklace into the closet with her toe, alongside the skirt and polo combination she didn’t want her dad to see. She paused at the mess, realizing that in spite of already being there for two months, her unpacking job of throwing everything in the closet hadn’t magically fixed itself.
“Honey, can I…?” her dad’s deep voice came from the other side of the door, more hoarse than usual this morning.
“Um…” She checked the other clothes on her bed to make sure they were to her dad’s liking. He was a great dad and meant well, but that didn’t mean he would let her wear whatever she wanted to school. He still had the idea that she wasn’t independent until she turned eighteen, and even that seemed like a stretch. Now, if her mom were here, that would be a different story. She was the one that had noticed Allie buying the pleated skirt and pretended not to see. She would probably help Allie pick out an outfit, tell her everything a girl needed to know when going into Junior High, when becoming a young woman. But, like always, her mom was deployed with the Army. Off trying to improve the lives of others instead of focusing on her daughter like she should have been. No one cared about Allie’s life. Where was Mom this time, Afghanistan or something? One of the Stans, Allie remembered that much.
Allie turned with a smile as she heard the door open. “Yeah?”
Her dad stepped in hesitantly. He was the kind of dad that seldom lost his cool and wasn’t going away for work all the time. Usually he was clean cut and dressed well for his job at Nintendo, testing games or doing computers or something, Allie wasn’t sure. But at the moment he sported a thick scruff and the skin beneath his eyes drooped like purple sacks.
“All ready for the big day?” her dad said with a glance toward her clothes on the bed.
“I'm not worried.” Maybe it would’ve been true if her mom were there to drop her off, or even be there to wish her luck. Allie turned to look out her window at the hint of a rising sun reflecting on the damp asphalt of the apartment complex’s parking lot. She had woken up early with a tingling in her stomach.
“It's just seventh grade,” she said. “Not like it's the World Cup or something.”
“Right,” he said, his eyes shifting to the floor. “Hey, Princess, I —”
“Dad, I'm twelve now, okay?”
He looked at her like he couldn’t believe it, then nodded. “Yeah, I know. Hey, grown-up-Princess…”
She rolled her eyes and smiled.
“That's more like it.” He sat on her bed, his butt on the sleeve of one of her sweaters. She cringed, but he didn't notice. His left nostril twitched the way it always did when he was nervous. “I wanted to talk to you about something…and well…”
“Dad?”
“Yeah?”
“Can it maybe wait? I mean, I still have a lot to do to get ready and Mom's not here to help so...”
He looked at her, his eyes lingering. Since her twelfth birthday two months ago, he always stared at her like that, like he would lose her if he looked away. He kept saying how she was growing up so fast. Well, it was about time, in her opinion. A growth spurt before starting at the new school would have been the thing she needed, especially for the soccer team. But alas, she had no such luck.
Her dad sighed and stood. “Sure, honey. But after school, we talk?”
“Yeah, okay.”
He attempted to smooth out his wrinkled white-dress shirt, then looked around at her piles of clothes. “Maybe I can help?”
“Of course you can. Why didn't I think of this earlier?” She showed him to the door.
“How, honey?”
“Make sure Ian doesn't bother me.”
Her dad frowned as the door closed with him on the other side.
She rummaged around in the darkness of her closet and soon her fingers found the necklace by the smooth, cold stone.
She squatted to pick it up, nibbling at her lip as she pulled it into the light. The necklace had a blue stone at the end of a silver chain, an upside down triangle overlaid on a right-side up triangle of silver in the middle. Her mom had always had it on, as if it grew from her skin. Allie held it in front of the mirror, holding it up to her neck and staring in awe.
The clasp had been broken. She tied the chain in a half-knot and was about to put it on when the doorknob turned again.
“Dad, I’m not….” She paused, seeing it was her older brother, Ian. The light peach fuzz around his mouth stuck straight out and he wore a scarf as if it made him look special.
“It’s me, puke-breath.” He smiled at her in a groggy sort of way. “What’s wrong with this family, why are we up so early?”
“Is it early?” she glanced outside as she tucked the necklace under her pillow to hide it. Sure enough, she could still see her reflection in the window. The sky was a dark blue of early morning, with streaks of pink and bright orange highlighting the clouds. This didn’t mean it was actually that early, being as it was September in Washington State. Still, compared to her friends she had always been an early riser.
Ian leaned against the doorframe and yawned but didn’t leave.
“What?” she said impatiently.
Ian stood in the doorway and smirked. “Dad made his favorite, a la’ surprise for the big day.”
“Which is?”
“Yogurt and granola, with his special frozen blueberries,” he said with a laugh.
He waved for her to follow and she did, but with a regretful look toward her pillow. She would have to check out the necklace more after breakfast.
Allie found her mouth watering and she didn’t mind that they were eating the same food they ate every morning. Whatever her dad had wanted to say earlier, he must have put it out of his mind for the moment. He laughed and told stories of his first day in seventh grade. Even Ian, often glum and in his own world, told her a story about how he had accidentally walked into the girls’ bathroom on his first day and been made fun of the whole first month of seventh grade. Stories of humiliation – exactly what she needed before the big day.
“Some eighth grade boys found out,” Ian said, blushing. “Whenever they’d see me they’d say ‘he runs like a girl and sits down to pee.’”
Allie cracked up and thought it was the funniest thing she had ever heard her brother say, and
then wondered for a second if he did sit down to pee. He had played with Barbies with her and their cousin when they were younger. But then she decided to think about soccer, because the idea of her brother peeing grossed her out and made her lose her appetite.
When she returned to her bedroom, she sighed and leaned against the closed door. The wall was covered with posters of her favorite soccer players, all except a black Megadeath poster off to the corner. Her brother had given it to her and she had cherished because he said it was cool. He was trying too hard, she thought, but still, she kept it because it was one of the few things he had given her. He had also said Dungeons and Dragons was cool and she had bought into that one as well. Remnants of this fad showed in her perfectly aligned collection of small figurines on the corner shelf. By far the nerdiest was a giant with his massive ax protecting a female warrior with flaming fists. She had painted them herself a couple of years back and couldn’t convince herself to trash them quite yet. The idea of her brother being cool needed to be wiped from her brain, but that appeared harder than she would’ve thought. He would always be her big brother, after all.
For now, she had a priority. She pulled out the necklace and watched the stone glimmer as it twisted on its chain. The rest of her room was dull in comparison. The necklace had always intrigued her, always there, shining from her mom’s neck. Now, holding it inches from her eyes, she stared into the silver lines in the blue stone. The little patterns on the stone reminded her of maps she had seen, maps of the world, but of so much more too. Maybe the universe?
She pulled it up to tie it around her neck again but paused, surprised to see a clasp on the chain where it had been broken before. Certainly her dad and Ian wouldn’t have known she had found it, or managed to sneak into her room and replace the clasp. That would be ridiculous. The only explanation, then, was that she had imagined it being broken.
