The Lost Witch

by David Tysdale

  "Well, I... Well, it... How come we couldn't see the lake and the lily pads? How come we couldn't see the stars or the giant red moon?"

  Zack screwed his face up in thought. "The fog! There wasn't any fog in the Faerie Realm, was there Carole?"

  "No."

  "And there wasn't any fog on our side, either," Zack grinned. "Just in between. Remember how it happened to Carole on her the first time? She landed between her farm and The Ghostly Spirit Realm, and got sick too. Not as bad as us. She didn't throw up, probably because she's already a multitasker. But you felt pretty bad didn't you, Carole? Like you were going to puke?"

  "Only for a second."

  "And yet you never actually left the farm. Some ghosts and tombstones just turned up. Well, didn't we just do the same thing?"

  "No we didn't!"

  Everyone looked at Martin.

  "We didn't go anywhere. We only got a... a taste of the Faerie Realm."

  "A taste?" Lilly said.

  "If I buy into this whole cockamamie story, and I'm not saying I have, but if I did, then when that vortex formed, part of the Faerie Realm must have come over--air and stuff. When Carole left the faeries it was still night, while here it was morning, but near the mouth of the tunnel it was in-between."

  "Duskish," Zack beamed, as if happy to forgive Martin now that the boy was seeing things his way.

  "That's probably because we got a mix of both worlds, which also explains why we got so dizzy. But it wasn't overlapping dimensions. It was only a temporary link through one tiny fog tunnel."

  "But, I bet if we jumped completely into a different dimension, we'd be fine once we got there. We just need to find the right tunnel." Zack was bubbling with enthusiasm.

  "You can't be serious?" Lilly looked horrified.

  "Why not? It's not like we'd be going to The Hub."

  "You don't know that! You don't know anything about these vortex tunnel things. We could end up anywhere."

  Carole held up her hands. "First of all Zack, I'm not sure I could find other vortexes even if they do exist. Second, you're out of your mind if you think I'd just hop into one. And third, if I do see one, I'm definitely not telling you about it. The connector's around here and this is where we need to look. If you'd rather not help, just say so."

  "Of course I want to help. I'm just trying to get a better handle on these things, you know. To figure out what we're up against, because you did say it was different after the Linking Ceremony, that you were able to see strings of light and whatnot."

  "Doesn't he ever let up?" Martin groaned.

  "What's that got to do with anything?" Lilly said.

  "Maybe the faeries taught Carole to see the natural vortexes."

  "That doesn't change anything. If I see one, I'm still running the other way."

  "But what if you fall into another dimension and Runt finds a connecting vortex, why shouldn't we jump over to help?"

  "Because there's no guarantee we'd end up in the same place as Carole," Lilly said.

  "We'd only go on Runt's say-so. He knew Carole was on the other side, this morning."

  "Trusting our lives to the say-so of a pig?"

  "Wreeet!"

  Martin ignored Runt's objection.

  "Listen to your sister, Zack," Carole said. "These days, dimensional travel is risky even for the experts, and you want us to mess around with it? Me a complete novice, and you guys who aren't even multitaskers?"

  "I'd be willing to give it a try."

  "Unbelievable," Martin said. "Man-eating forests and trolls. My idea of a good time."

  "The only reason Carole escaped is because of the faeries," Lilly said.

  Zack crossed his arms and stuck out his chin. "You know what they say: there's safety in numbers."

  "And misery loves company." Martin said.

  "If there was any trouble, Carole'd find an escape tunnel in time. I know she would."

  "That last tunnel was in the middle of a lake, Zack."

  "I can swim."

  "No," Carole said firmly. "It's too dangerous to consider."

  "We might not have a choice."

  "What's that supposed to mean!?" Martin said.

  "Remember Professor Philamount said that after her first jump, Carole wouldn't be able to resist? Well we've just experienced our first jump."

  "Have not!"

  "Sure, it wasn't exactly like Carole's, but we've all been exposed to the Faerie Realm, and maybe that's enough. "

  "We're not multitaskers, Zack," Lilly insisted.

  "Think about it, Lil. What were the Hub teachers doing here in the first place? Weren't they trying to turn monobrainers into multitaskers? And we did disappear."

  "No," Martin gasped, "it can't be."

  "For your sake, I hope not," Carole whispered.

  "For our sake, I hope so." Zack's eyes lit up and he smiled widely.

  * * *

  - 23 -

  On the off-chance that Zack's theory was correct and the rest of them had become sensitized to dimensional overlaps, Carole decided not to take any chances. She put Runt and Zack in charge of scouting out the Boar's Head path. Lilly and Martin would keep an eye out for people and wild animals, and she would watch for incoming dimensions.

  "I feel like we're on military patrol." Martin slumped under the weight of his oversized pack. "Is all this really necessary?"

  "Shush!" Lilly said. "Don't disrupt Carole's concentration."

  "It's all right, Lil. The idea isn't so much to concentrate as it is to relax enough to sense stuff."

  "What sort of stuff?"

  "Not exactly sure, but I think it's energy, mostly."

  "How do you do that?" Martin said.

  "I guess sort of like the way you can tell when a storm's coming. The wind changes, flies pester you more, you smell rain, and see clouds rolling in. Lots of little things add up."

  "You getting any warnings, now?"

  "Nope."

  Zack and Runt walked over the others. "How about a break? We've been hiking for hours and Runt's tootsies are getting tender, not to mention he's wasting away to skin and bone." Zack grabbed Runt's belly, causing the pig to squeal with laughter. "Oh ho, what have we here, a ticklish little piggy?"

  Runt sprang ahead, thwarting a second tickle attempt.

  "A rest suits me fine." Martin dropped his gear and flopped onto the hillside. "Oh my aching back. All this marching is worse than Phys Ed., no thanks to Mr. 'I wanna be a multitasker!'"

  "Not that you couldn't do with a little exercise," Zack muttered, as he too dropped to the grass, though with his back to the red-faced redhead.

  Giving in to the inevitable, Carole took the green space between the boys. Runt and Lilly joined them.

  Zack stared up at the few clouds meandering across the sky. "So what kind of place do you figure we're likely to end up in?"

  "Hopefully, none at all," Lilly answered wearily. "We've plenty enough to worry about around here as it is, most of it being you!"

  "I suppose I could handle a few days on a tropical beach," Martin ventured, "so long as it came with plenty of fresh food; bananas, oranges, pineapples, and no mosquitoes."

  "Don't forget the papaya." Zack closed his eyes and yawned. "Me and Runt would love to try some papaya, wouldn't we, Runt. Always wondered what the stuff tasted like. How about you, Carole, any preferences? Want to visit your witchling friend again? Carole?"

  Carole and Runt were sitting very still, peering into the distance.

  "Another dimension?!" Zack jumped to his feet.

  "I think... Yes, coming in fast. It's going to hit!"

  Lilly, Zack and Martin struggled into their packs and linked arms. They crouched in a tight circle. Runt wormed his way into the middle, while Carole took position a few paces apart, her staff gripped firmly in both hands.

  "If it takes me, I'll find the first tunnel back. If it takes you, follow Runt's lead. Here it comes!"

  She braced herself as the invisible wave swept ove
r. An instant later she was on all fours, her hands buried in gritty, black sand. She sprang to her feet and spun a complete circle.

  She was in a wide, long low cave, and she wasn't alone.

  The others were nearby, doubled over, being sick.

  Runt, looking shaky himself, stumbled over to lean against her leg.

  "Guess that answers that," she said. "You guys have been sensitized. How could Zack have been so stupid?" She rubbed her forehead vigorously.

  "Rit?"

  "Nothing! My head's feeling a little weird."

  "Ret?"

  "Probably just the shift."

  "Ret wret rit?"

  "No, I'm sorry. I didn't really mean it, but they're bound to find out, now."

  "Rit wret."

  "Yeah right. You should have seen Jason's face when I told him, and we were good friends. At least I thought so."

  "Wreet rit riit."

  "It wasn't that long ago."

  "Reet?"

  "Of course not, you're my familiar, remember? In fact, I'm putting you in charge of babysitting those three. Keep them in line, will ya."

  Runt nodded.

  "Anyway, what's done is done. Might as well see what we're up against."

  Carole examined the cave. The entrance wasn't far, so there was plenty of light streaming in, but the air was hot and fetid.

  She looked at where Martin, Lilly and Zack were kneeling. "Runt, is that where you four actually landed?"

  "Riit. Reet?"

  "Probably nothing. Come on, it looks like they've finished throwing up."

  Lilly was still kneeling on the ground, her head hanging low. Carole pulled out a canteen and offered it to her.

  Lilly took a swig and spat it out with a grimace. "It wasn't quite so bad this time." She smiled weakly.

  "I'm sure it'll get easier," Carole patted her shoulder. "You might not even throw up next time. How about you guys, going to survive?"

  Zack nodded gamely. Martin frowned.

  "So, what do you think, the tropics?" Carole said.

  "Definitely hot enough," Zack agreed.

  Martin scooped up a handful of the black sand and let it pour through his fingers. "Volcanic. Besides, even in a desert you'd expect a cave to be cooler."

  "What if this is cooler?" Lilly said.

  "Guess we'd best find out. You three well enough to walk?" Carole said.

  No one disagreed.

  "Alright, but--" She leveled a finger at Zack's chest. "We've no idea what's out there, so pay attention and keep it zipped."

  "Yeah, sure."

  "I mean it Zack."

  "Okay, I get it. Geez."

  Carole took the lead with Runt at her side. The others got up to follow. Almost immediately Martin fell to his knees with a yelp.

  "Shush!" Zack swatted Martin's arm. "No talking."

  "I couldn't help it. I twisted my ankle." Martin reached into the sand and pulled out an object. "On this." He held up a golden orb, the size of a large orange. "Wow, is it ever heavy. Wonder if it's gold?"

  The others gathered around. "What do you think, buried treasure?" Martin said.

  "Maybe," Carole said, "but if so, keep an eye out for the pirates."

  "And for more gold." Zack shifted the sand with his feet. "Lucky stiff."

  "Should I keep it?"

  "Let me see it for a sec." Carole, surprised at the weight of the orb, held it to her forehead and tried to get a sense about it.

  She handed it back to Martin. "Better not risk it. Put it back where you found it. Let's go." She moved off followed by Lilly and Runt.

  "Who made her boss?" Martin grumbled, as he dug a hole in the sand.

  As they looked out from the cave's entrance, it was obvious that they weren't on a tropical island, at least not the vacationing sort. The sky was smeared with thick orange clouds, and the air was heavy with the reek of rotten eggs. A nearby puddle belched loudly, spattering the ground with acrid mud, forcing them to back away from the eye-stinging fumes.

  Zack pinched his nostrils, "Gross! Who did it?!"

  Runt head-butted his shin.

  About a hundred paces from the cave, the ground sloped into a murky swamp, in which grew leafy purple and orange bushes and gigantic red ferns. Most of the shrubs spread over the surface of the greasy water, but the ferns opened into a feathery canopy high overhead.

  "It's enough to make you sick."

  "The smell?" Lilly said, her voice tight as if she were trying to hold her breath.

  "Everything!" Carole squeezed her temples.

  "Listen to that hum," Zack said. "Must be a billion bugs out there. And would ya look at that!" He pointed to a black cloud rising from the near shoreline. The cloud dipped and swirled through the air before drifting down the beach.

  Martin grimaced. "Hope those aren't mosquitoes."

  Carole studied the sand where the bugs had been, and then looked upwards toward the smoking peak of a mountain so vast that it filled most of the skyline. "You were right about volcanoes, Martin."

  "It's as tall as Everest," Lilly said in a tone filled with awe.

  "At least we know what's making the smog." Martin wiped his brow.

  "Come on," Zack said, "let's check out the water. See if it's decent enough for a swim."

  Carole yanked him back by his collar. "Are you nuts?"

  Zack tried to pull away. "Let me g--"

  A curtain of flame enveloped the shore at the same time as a deafening roar shattered the air. Following the flames, a huge mass slammed into the swamp, sending an explosion of muck and water high into the sky. Waves of steam carrying the repulsive smell of swamp water and burnt flesh, rolled across the beach. Carole clamped her hand against her mouth to keep from gagging.

  As the steam thinned, she saw two pair of enormous wings stretch out and beat the air with such force that she could feel the wind against her face. A monstrous creature leapt free of the water. Carole backed quickly into the cave, dragging Zack along with her. She watched in stunned silence as the creature, clutching the charred remains of what looked like a reptile in its claws, flew towards the smog-shrouded summit.

  "That was a...a...a...." Zack stuttered.

  "A dragon!" Lilly said.

  "A dragon the size of a house!" Martin squeaked.

  "Which is why we watch first, and move second." Carole scowled. She let go of Zack's shirt and gripped the back of her neck.

  "You wanted to do this?" Martin accused Zack. "To visit a different dimension?"

  "Excuse me, but I wasn't the one who asked for a tropical island."

  "Not one with frigging flying monsters! This is all your fault Zack. If you hadn't run after that pig, none of this would've even happened."

  "Reeet!"

  Zack grasped Martin by the shoulders and shook him enthusiastically. "Do you know how many kids would give their eye teeth to see something like that? It's a real live dragon for Pete's sake. This is great."

  "Eye teeth? We're sweating to death in some prehistoric nightmare and all you care about is seeing a dragon. That beast could toast us all with one blast from its nostril."

  "Be that way then, but if it wasn't for me you'd still be stuck on your raft, twiddling your thumbs and going nowhere 'til next spring."

  "Your point?"

  "Come on. It never even saw us."

  "No thanks to you. If Carole hadn't--"

  "Will you two shut up!" Lilly snapped.

  Unbeknownst to the boys, Carole had edged out of the cave and was looking skyward. "It landed near the peak," she said. "Maybe the dragons live on the high ground and those reptile things hide out in the swamp."

  "It must've come out from under cover," Zack reasoned, "but why do a stupid thing like that? You'd figure everything around here would know about the dragons."

  "Maybe they've got pea brains," Martin suggested.

  "Maybe something got its attention," Lilly said, while staring at the water.

  The boys studied the swamp with renewed in
terest. There was a slight rippling of the surface beside one of the nearer trees, and poking up from the center of the ripples were three large, unblinking eyes.

  "You think it sees us?" Zack said, the hairs on his arms beginning to tingle.

  "What do you think Carole, stay put until a vortex turns up?" Lilly said.

  "We'd best head for higher ground."

  "Uh Carole, the high ground's smoking like a nasty cigar," Zack said.

  "Not to the peak," she sighed.

  "What if dragons live in the woods?" Martin said.

  "I doubt there's enough room," Carole said.

  "Something else might. Some saber-toothed tiger thing or who knows what."

  "Hope you can climb trees," Zack scoffed.

  "Martin's right, Zack," Lilly said. "We hadn't a clue about dragons or those reptiles."

  "We'll just have to keep our eyes peeled," Carole said, "because we can't stay here. There's no drinking water. And by nightfall those swamp creatures are sure to come calling, if they even wait that long."

  "Reet, reeet?"

  "Take a closer look at the ground." She pointed at the patterns crisscrossing the beach.

  "Tracks." Zack whistled. "Tons of 'em."

  "I bet the reptiles come out at night, which probably means they're safe from the dragons then, but--"

  "We're not safe from them," Lilly said.

  "We can't just walk out in the open with monsters flying about," Martin said.

  Carole pointed to a gap in the rock face on the far side of the beach. "Looks like a ravine of some sort."

  "There's a lot of open sand between here and there," Martin said.

  "I'll check it out. If I'm spotted I can always gli... I mean Glistlefern said my dress could help protect me."

  "Only if it's fire proof," Martin said.

  "It's not like we've much choice." Carole rounded on Martin with both fists clenched. "We're sitting ducks if we hang around much longer, so unless you've got a better plan? "

  "Sorry, sorry, you're right!" Martin retreated.

  The sky was still empty, so pulling on her hood, Carole slipped outside.

  "Ever cool, Carole," Zack said. "Your dress was purple a minute ago, now it's rock gray."