The Ankulen

by Kendra E. Ardnek

There was another flash of purplish-pink light, one bright enough to make me close my eyes. The world began to spin and a dizzy feeling rose in the pit of my stomach.

  Chapter 3

  In Which I Discover that My Imagination is Gray

  WHEN the light faded and the world stopped spinning, I shivered, partly from the fact that it seemed to be cooler, partly from a feeling of despair that was heavy in the air.

  Part of me wanted to open my eyes. I was curious to see whether or not it worked, and if so, what my imagination looked like. Another part of me was scared. Chris had said that it was dying. Did I want to see a dying world?

  “You can open your eyes now, Jen,” Chris's remorseful words interrupted my thoughts. After a moment of heavy silence, he added, “Not that you'll want to.”

  I drew in a deep breath, and opened my eyes. What I saw made me wish I hadn't. Everything was dark, dismal. There was no color, no sign of life beyond the three of us. Everything was some shade of gray, even the sky, which was full of dark, angry clouds. What little light that found its way through was weak, and illuminated little more than the sharp, jagged mountains that loomed ominously over us. Shreds of color still clung to Tisha and Chris – but I …

  I was the grayest of all.

  Only the Ankulen still had color. Its gold was still as bright as ever, and its gems still sparkled purplish-pink.

  “It looks like a meteor struck,” I commented, staring the barren landscape.

  “I suppose it does,” agreed Chris. “If only one had. That would be an easy fix.”

  “Are you sure this is my imagination?” I hesitantly asked. “Maybe we got the wrong address or something …”

  “No, this is it,” Chris reluctantly replied. “This is what I've been seeing for the last – how long did you say it had been – eight years?”

  “Is it all this bad?” I couldn't see how it might be possible to have anything worse than the burnt-out grayness that lay before me.

  “Not all of it,” admitted Chris, with a heavy sigh. “But compared to some parts – this is good.”

  I shivered again, partly from the chill, partly from the horribleness of everything. “How can this be good?”

  “The Valley of Song is completely gone,” said Chris. “Sometimes we hear a few foul notes from its direction, but when we travel there, there's nothing left by a gaping blackness.”

  “Oh, Chris!” Tisha exclaimed. “Not the Valley of Song!”

  “Yes,” said Chris, grimly, “the Valley of Song. It was the first place the Polystoikhedron attacked, and the worst ravaged.”

  “What of the Singers?” asked Tisha.

  Chris shook his head. “Only Flute escaped. It was the first attack – we weren't expecting it. We've mostly been able to evacuate people since then … but we're running out of places to evacuate to. Almost everyone's taken to living underground, but it's only a matter of time …”

  “There are other people here?” I asked.

  Chris nodded as Tisha burst into tears, burying her face in her hands. I would have thought her pathetic … but this place was horrid. Part of me felt like crying as well … but I felt too detached from the place to do so. I didn't want this to be my imagination and yet, according to Chris, this was it.

  “Yes, there are more people,” said Chris, as he took Tisha's hand in a comforting way. “You made up lots of people for us to meet and talk to and play with. Some people helped us, some were there to be helped. Some people were there to hinder us, too, but there weren't many of them. I was merely your protector, and Tisha your favorite.”

  “Oh.” I held up the Ankulen. “You said I could fix things. How?”

  “You close your eyes and picture how you want them to look,” explained Chris. “Then you tap the gems.”

  I dropped my arm to my side, closing my eyes and allowing a groan to escape me. “But I can't form pictures in my mind!”

  “You can't?”

  I shook my head. “No, that's part of imagination. I haven't been able to picture things in my mind since you disappeared, Chris. Even reading is difficult!”

  “Well … maybe you can now that you have your Ankulen back,” suggested Chris. “You can at least try, can't you?”

  I sighed, unconvinced. “I'll try.” Since my eyes were already closed, I merely concentrated and tried to picture a rose.

  Nothing.

  Opening my eyes, I shook my head. “I guess … we try to figure something else out …”

  “Is the Old Woman …” Tisha began, her voice edged with an unsure hope.

  Chris nodded, some of the despair dissipating from his face. “Yes, she's still here. She lives so far underground, she'll probably be the last person that the Polystoikhedron will find.”

  “Oh,” cried Tisha, her face breaking into a smile that dashed away the tears on her face. “That's wonderful! We should go see her!”

  “Yes we should!” agreed Chris. “Let's go!” He broke into a run, and Tisha ran after him.

  “Wait!” I exclaimed. Both stopped and whirled around to face me. Lifting my palms in a questioning manner, I asked, “Who's the Old Woman?”

  After a short, slightly stunned silence, Chris explained, “The Old Woman is the person we'd go to for advice before we went on an adventure. She knows everything there is to know about your imagination, and more about the Ankulen than anyone else besides you. If anyone knows how to get your imagination back, it's her.”

  This sounded like a good enough plan to me, so I consented and followed them when they resumed the run. To my surprise, the run didn't wind me, and the fact that I was wearing flip-flops wasn't hindering me at all. In fact, I was still running strong when Chris and Tisha slowed to a walk.

  “Why'd we slow down?” I asked, reluctantly matching my pace to theirs.

  “Because Tisha can't run any further,” said Chris, between pants. “I could run a little longer, but not by very much. Unlike you, we can get tired here.”

  “Unlike me? Does that mean I can't?” I cast a smug glance in Tisha's direction. Her face looked quite red.

  “No, you can't,” said Chris. “Not here.”

  “That's good to know.”

  We walked in silence while Tisha and Chris caught their breath and I surveyed the land. We were no longer in the barren desolation that had first met our eyes. There was dead grass under our feet and here and there a dead tree broke up the horizon.

  I shuddered. They were still dead.

  “We're here!”

  Chris's announcement was a welcome exclamation.

  We were now standing before a low-mouthed cave, out of which came an eerie blue-green light. I shrunk back, but Chris and Tisha went in without hesitation, though Tisha had to duck. After eying it warily for a few seconds,. I decided that I might as well follow. Chris had said that the Old Woman lived underground.

  The cave was not high enough for me to walk through erect – I hadn't meant for anyone taller than four feet to make the journey, I guessed – so this wasn't the most comfortable trek I had ever made.

  The blue-green light was produced by luminous bugs that covered the walls and ceiling. I scraped one of these bugs off the wall for a closer examination. It was a sort of beetle, shaped like a ladybug, except bigger.

  Since the ceiling was so low, I kept bumping my head against it. While this didn't really hurt – reminding me of Chris's assurance that “nothing could hurt me here” – I ended up with lots of these bugs in my hair.

  “Looks like I'm going to have fun brushing my hair later,” I muttered, giving my pony tail a shake. Several bugs plopped to the floor.

  “What sort of bugs are these?” I asked, when I finally caught up with Chris and Tisha. I'm sorry to say, but I smirked when I saw Tisha. Since her hair was much longer, there were more bugs in it than there were in mine.

  “Glowbeetles,” said Chris, the only one of us who was not hampered by the low ceiling. “You put them in all of the caves. They're really handy.”
/>   “And they seem to like hair,” I commented, knocking several more to the floor.

  “Yes, so it seems,” agreed Tisha, brushing several out of her hair. “I'd never noticed that before.”

  “Perhaps because we were shorter back then,” I pointed out.

  “Quite likely, Jen.”

  The blue-green light gave Tisha and Chris a blue-green sheen which, I had to admit, looked quite good on them. I held up my arm and frowned. All it did was make me look more gray.

  The tunnel twisted and turned for quite some ways, and I was soon sure that we had made our way to the very center of the earth … Or at least the center of my imaginary world … If it had a center. I wondered if I had made a flat world.

  “Whenever the Polystoikhedron is in the area we have to block off the mouths of the caves,” Chris's voice broke the silence. “It's attracted to light more than anything else, so if it sees the Glowbeetles, it attacks. We lost the River Caves, and thirty-two people before we discovered that.”

  “Thirty-two people!” Tisha exclaimed. “Who were they?”

  “Mostly Water Babies,” said Chris, “but Queen Tailya had sent several mermen to help protect them. Since then … the Water Babies no longer trust the caves.”

  “The poor dears …” muttered Tisha.

  I wondered what Water Babies were, but I didn't have time to ask questions, for at that moment we stepped into a large chamber where I was finally able to stand up straight again.

  The light was the first thing I noticed. Instead of the blue-green light produced by the Glowbeetles, here there was a lovely magenta light produced by jewels that covered the walls in pretty patterns. As my eyes traveled upward, I couldn't help but be awed by the sheer distance between me and the ceiling.

  “Why couldn't I have made the tunnel ceilings this high?” I muttered, rubbing my neck.

  “Because you didn't choose to, Lady Jenifer. You were much shorter when you last were here.”

  I nearly jumped at the speaker's voice, for I hadn't noticed that there was anyone in the room beyond Chris, Tisha and me. Glancing around, my eye soon fell on the form of a very old woman who was seated in the exact center of the room. She was so frail, I thought that she was fortunate to live so far underground, where no stray wind might blow her away.

  “How do you know who I am?” I asked, my voice small. The eyes that stared into mine were cloudy. Somehow, I knew she was blind – and yet at the same time, I felt that she could see me – perhaps see through me.

  “I am the Old Woman.” Her voice was light and airy, yet I could hear her perfectly. “There is much that you have revealed to me that is hidden from the eyes of others. I know that you are Lady Jenifer because you wear the Ankulen, which can only be worn by you.”

  “Oh, um, that's good to know.”

  “Old Woman,” said Chris, in a respectful voice, “as you know, I have, at long last, succeeded in returning Lady Jenifer to us.”

  “As well as the Fair Maiden Letitia,” acknowledged the Old Woman. “That is no small feat. And yet, Lady Jenifer returns to us incomplete, and is thus powerless to help us.”

  “Um, yeah,” I commented, “I'm kinda lacking my memory of how to do things.” I drew in a deep breath. “So … can you offer any ideas as to how I can get my memories back?”

  The Old Woman was silent for some time. “I do not know what happened to your memories,” she said at last, “for that information is hidden from me. However, it is possible that you have hidden them somewhere, or that the sight of something might trigger their return. You left us in anger, Lady Jenifer, vowing never to return again. That you have returned at all is more than many have dared hope.”

  “Yes, I'm here,” I said, allowing a bit more irritation into my voice than I like to admit. “But what good does that do if I can't do anything? Where should I look for my memories? What about that Polystoikhedron? Maybe it thought they'd make a good snack. Where would I be in that case?”

  “That would be dire, indeed, Lady Jenifer,” said the Old Woman. “But I do not think that such is the case. Memories are of a different substance from imagination, and are much harder to destroy. I do not think the Polystoikhedron ate them.”

  “That still doesn't help me find them,” I declared. “I don't even know where to start looking. Do you know?”

  “No, I cannot say that I do,” she admitted. “But perhaps your Ankulen can answer that question.”

  I lifted my arm to look at the Ankulen. “How?” I asked, skeptical. Did the Ankulen talk? Just what I always wanted – a golden bracelet that flashes and talks.

  The Old Woman gave a low chuckle. “The Ankulen doesn't talk. No, return to the surface, close your eyes, and tap the gems. Then you must ask it to show you how to find your memories. I wish you luck, Lady Jenifer, for this is my home as well, and I will inevitably crumble with it.”

  “Then what?” I asked, but the Old Woman didn't answer. Her speech was done. She had no more advice to offer me.

  “May we spend the night here?” questioned Chris. “It grows late, and Fair Maiden Letitia and I are quite weary from the day's adventures.”

  “Yes, you may,” said the Old Woman. “It will not do for Lady Jenifer's companions to collapse on the journey. While more is destroyed every moment, the three of you should rest for tonight in relative safety.”

  “Thank-you.” He and Tisha bowed in her direction, and she, in turn, dipped her head in mine. Chris then led Tisha and me out of the chamber and into another cave – but this one had a higher ceiling.

  Chapter 4

  In Which We have Frog Leg Soup for Supper

  CHRIS directed Tisha and me into a room that contained two beds and left us there. Letitia collapsed into one, and was asleep instantly. I, on the other hand, was still wide awake. Being unable to get sleepy did have its disadvantages.

  I sat down on the other bed and sighed. How long would Tisha be asleep and I be left in solitude? I suspected that it would be quite a while.

  As time moved slowly by, I let my mind mull over the events of the day. I still found it hard to believe that Chris had appeared, still the same age he had been eight years ago. The whole “I have an imagination that I can make real” part though – that was still totally mind boggling.

  I wondered if I were dreaming all of this – and the fact that I wasn't tired and had been unable to feel pain when I bumped my head in the tunnels was a good support for this theory. Yet I knew better. I never had dreams this vivid, this strange. Yes, I dreamed, but my dreams were usually comprised of real life and movies I had watched.

  So I had found my imagination, it seemed. I was in my imagination at that. My dead imagination. I found myself wondering what it had been like before I had abandoned it. It was pretty enough down here – where the Polystoikhedron hadn't touched.

  I hadn't made a dead and dying world, that I was sure. The room I was now in was evidence enough of the potential beauty of the place. This room was lit by, I assumed, more of those luminous bugs. They were all on the ceiling, however, and the ceiling was so far away, I couldn't be sure. The fewness and distance made it a bit darker than the other rooms I had been in, but since this room's purpose seemed to be sleeping, that wasn't a problem. There was enough light to see, and enough light to glitter off the gems that coated the walls.

  I really surprised myself at how well I knew this world, even though I had no memories. I had only to look at something, and every detail of its design and makeup was clear to me. The same was true for people. I had always been able to read Tisha's emotions well … but now that I was here, I almost felt them myself.

  The beds were ornately carved from a glittery rock. They weren't quite long enough for fifteen-year-olds, but Tisha didn't look too uncomfortable. She was shorter than me though …

  Sighing, I laid myself down. The fact that I couldn't stretch out was annoying, but the bed itself … it was like lying on air. I closed my eyes and wished I could sleep. If only my bed at home
was this soft.

  My eyes flew open. Home! I'd completely forgotten about the assignment mom had given me! She would be so worried when I didn't show up for supper!

  Wait … why was I concerned about supper? Mom would be worried period when Tisha didn't show up for lunch. Quickly, I regained a sitting position, my eyes flying to the wrist that didn't wear the Ankulen – the wrist on which I wear my watch.

  My watch wasn't there.

  I blinked, unable to believe what I saw. You see, I always wear my watch – even when swimming, since mine is waterproof. I had had my watch on that morning – I could remember checking it. Where had it gone? When had it disappeared?

  I probably would have used the Ankulen to return to Reality right then and there, had Tisha not awakened at that moment.

  “Good morning, Jen,” said she. “I feel much better now.”

  “Where's my watch?” I asked – demanded, really.

  “Your … watch?” Tisha questioned, confused.

  “You know, the other bracelet that I 'always wear' the one that tells time.” I held up my bare wrist. “Yours is missing too,” I pointed out.

  “Time doesn't flow the same here as it does in your Reality,” said Tisha, shaking her head and rubbing her own bare wrist. “Devices that tell time do not travel with you.”

  “Oh.”

  “Don't worry, Lady Jenifer,” continued Tisha. “You'll have your watch back when you go back out.”

  “And when will that be? Won't Mom be worried when we're not back by lunch?”

  “You'll be out by lunch,” Tisha assured me. “Or, at least, you almost always were.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “What about you?”

  She shrugged. “If you wish me to return, I won't argue. If you insist that I stay, then I will remain.”

  I eyed her untrustingly, but a knock at the door prevented me from making a reply. Tisha opened the wooden door, revealing Chris, who immediately doffed his hat and made a bow.

  “Would Lady Jenifer and Fair Maiden Letitia be interested in some breakfast before we set off in quest of Lady Jenifer's memories?”