by B. J. Smash
My temper flared. I stopped Solstice, and when I did, Lucian dismounted. I hated to admit it to myself but I was going to have to use magic. It was only moments before he reached us that I focused on the whip he held. I knew of an old spell that Izadora had tried to teach me. We’d gone over it a dozen times. I never really saw the point of it, and so at the time I just feigned interest.
It was an ancient spell on how to turn an object into something else. My intent was to turn the whip into a snake. “Rochir mod fin cantigor. Ma nir Fae trin voltmir. Eh rin lonn chan snake,” I yelled.
His intention was to do a drive by and whip me off my horse. As he held the whip out and was about to smack me with it, it didn’t turn into a snake, but rather a squirrel. Hey, I never said I was an expert, but at least the whip had changed into something else. The squirrel bit his finger and ran up his arm. Whip Man whizzed by screaming like a little girl getting caught out in the rain without her umbrella. “Aghhh!”
I couldn’t help but giggle and Lucian let out a boisterous laugh. The squirrel made its way up Whip Man’s arm into his greasy black hair, and stood on his head. All the while, the horse was still galloping up a hill. When they reached the top, the horse bucked him from his back. Whip man rolled half way down the hill like a boulder, and finally stopped in a dip. The squirrel jumped from his head and scurried toward the forest.
Lucian and I could hardly contain our laughter, but we probably should have just shut our mouths. Even from where we sat, I could still see how red the whip man’s face grew. He screamed like a cave man with his hair on fire. Beyond him about forty birds were startled, and flew off to a safer place. I thought for sure he’d run down the hill and charge us without his horse. Instead he turned and walked up the hill and disappeared to the other side.
This concerned me. What if he found his horse and took everything out on him? I brought this to Lucian’s attention.
“We have to find his horse before he does. He might be very mad at the horse for bucking him off,” I said.
Lucian crinkled his eyes and scratched his nose. “I think you’re probably right. It won’t take long if I shape shift into hellhound form. When I find the horse, we’ll take him with us.”
This idea seemed like a burden and it weighed me down, but I wouldn’t have a horse or any animal abused. Never in a million years would I stand by and let it happen.
Lucian shape-shifted and I watched. I still couldn’t fathom how it was possible to shift from human form to an oversized dog. His joints popped and his skin expanded. His teeth extended and his face distorted. Then, with a scream, he stood as a big beautiful white dog with pointy red ears. But I knew even though he was beautiful…he was dangerous like a lit match in the woods during a drought.
He took off over the hill and Solstice and I followed, but we lost sight of him when he entered the forest. We continued anyway, carrying on straight ahead through the never ending field. When we were just arriving at the top of a hill, ahead I could see that it plateaued and then there was a decline, but I couldn’t see beyond this decline because a copse of trees blocked the way.
I brought Solstice to a walk. Something didn’t seem right. No chirping birds, no buzzing bees. No symphony of noises what-so-ever.
Some people would say that I should have left Whip Man to tend to his own business. They would say that I should have left him alone, and let him whip his horse to avoid confrontation. Others would disagree, and would have done exactly what I had done, and stole the whip.
Regardless, what was done was done. I knew that if Izadora were here, she would have turned Whip Man, himself, into a squirrel. I was not that advanced. But I do know that he’d be sorry for whipping that horse so much. She adored horses. The old woman had spent some time as a horse eons ago when she was a young teen. A white mare to be exact.
Anyway, I knew in my heart that defending the horse had been the right thing to do. I told Solstice to carry on. He didn’t seem to want to walk through this copse of trees but I insisted. He probably sensed the horse ahead, and I too, could sense something. I also knew that it was possible that this was pixie territory. They tended to like bunches of trees set in the middle of fields and especially on top of hills. It was their thing.
Lo and behold, as luck would have it, we walked past the trees and started down the hill, and were accosted by Whip Man. He had cloaked himself and all of a sudden he was visible. He had somehow caught his horse and now sat atop his back.
“Well, hello there,” he said nicely, although his face was contorted into an ugly, dark expression.
“H-hi,” I stuttered. Soon, his face was dark red. He took a deep, deep breath; so-much-so that the bottom button of his shirt flew off. “Thief…” he screamed, and pulled another whip from thin air. He held it out to the side and was preparing to use it on us.
I tapped Solstice on the flanks and without taking my eyes from the angry Whip Man, I leaned down and whispered in his ear, “Solstice…go.”
We fled like we were being chased by a tribe of cannibals. Solstice’s hooves tore up the ground, shooting up clumps of dirt and grass in our wake. His breath was heavy and his ears were down. My hair flew back like a flag waving in the wind and my heart beat like a drum.
But whip man was not to be underestimated. After all, he was a wizard. I am certain that if magic were not used, we would have easily escaped. However, whip man called out something to the wind and a whirring sound began. A low growling force.
Looking over my shoulder, I saw a wind tunnel beneath the horse’s feet. They were moving at extreme speed, and soon his horses head was next to Solstice’s midriff. He and his horse were riding a mini tornado.
“Holy cow!” I said. “Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh,” I said over and over as I knew my fate was not going turn out good. The Whip Man was pulling tricks out of his hat that were on the same level of Izadora’s magic.
It only took a few seconds for everything to happen and I had no time to counteract his spell with one of mine. He was too damn experienced. Whip Man extended his whip to the side and thrust it forward. It lengthened and expanded out about four horse lengths—another uncanny spell—and hit about five yards in front of Solstice. What happened next blew my mind.
The ground ahead of us caved in, and before my quick and nimble horse could avoid it…we fell. It was the worst accident I had ever been in. Solstice had to be going thirty miles per hour and we were suddenly falling to our doom. I was flung from his back and landed on my left arm. Sharp, excruciating pain shocked my senses, and my head hit an unearthed rock. The world spun before my eyes and I saw stars zipping around above me. For a moment I thought they were pixies. Then they were gone.
It took me some time to focus and by that time I heard the loud thudding of Whip Man’s horse galloping away. Blood dripped down my face and I forced myself to sit upright. My shoulder was in excruciating pain. But this harrowing experience wasn’t over yet.
When I said Solstice’s name, he did not respond. We were in a deep pit and I looked over to see him on his side, his head contoured up in an unnatural position against the dirt. Panic shuddered through my body and my heart sank low into the pit of my stomach.
“No,” I whispered. “No. Not this. Anything but this.”
I scrambled to his side holding my left arm close to my body and stuck my fingers under the rim of his jaw, and searched for a pulse. Nothing. My breathing picked up speed to the point where I began to hyperventilate. I flung my right arm over his side and screamed into his side. I willed every ounce of healing energy that I had in my body, into his own. I didn’t have any trees or roots to tap into, but at all times, I carried some in my very being.
Balling up my fist, I shook it at the Universe and screamed. Positioning my right hand over Solstice’s heart, I focused all of my energy into him while I pushed up and down. It was the only thing I could do for him. I hoped and prayed that his heart would start up again.
My nose dripped and I could barely see p
ast the tears in my eyes when Lucian arrived. He leaned down into the big gaping hole we were in. His frown was apparent and his eyes full of pity. He slammed his fist into to earth and it crumpled, toppling over Solstice and I.
As I cried, Lucian said, “Ivy. Wait. His chest rises and falls. Only slightly, but it does!” He jumped in our grave and shifted to hellhound form, and began to dig the earth out more so that he could lay Solstice’s head down flat. While he shifted back to human form, I straightened the horse’s neck and listened for breath. A slow whoosh escaped his nostrils.
“He’s alive,” I said.
“But that was the least of his problems,” Lucian said.
Lucian sat in the moist brown earth and held one of my horse friend’s legs. It was clearly broken and the bone protruded through the fur. I collapsed on Solstice’s back and stroked his neck as he grumbled softly. It was apparent that he was in intense pain.
“He’s an elven horse. He’s gonna make it. We just have to figure out what to do. Are there any trees? Maybe you can perform a healing?”
But I knew there wasn’t. We were in the center of a large open field, and there was no way to get Solstice’s big body to the trees. He weighed over 2,400 pounds. Not even Lucian would be able to drag him—not even an inch. And I knew he wasn’t going anywhere with a broken leg. I stood and looked around for the nearest tree, hoping that I’d find one. No such luck. The only thing I could do was continue to transfer some healing energy from myself using the elven stone, but I feared it wouldn’t be enough.
I crouched back down in front of the horse but our attention was drawn to screams farther down in the field. Someone was swearing up a storm and screaming out in agony. Concerned, I stood and peeked out of our hole.
“Oh, don’t worry. It’s just the pixies,” Lucian said in a happy tone. “I was going to go after him myself but they showed up. I fear he’s about to pay for his sins.”
He was one hundred percent correct. What I had seen floating above me a few minutes ago must have been pixies and they were now tormenting Whip Man…with his own whip. Using my elven sight, I focused in on them to see two colorful pixies holding the end of the whip and cracking it at Whip Man’s derriere. About another five pixies hovered above him and soon he was lifted off the horse. He tried to swat at them but to no avail. They were too quick and way too witty even for a wizard. Soon he was floating high above the horse, cussing and cursing them the entire time. They would lunge at him and pinch his cheeks, his arms, and legs. I knew it had to hurt, like bee stings.
Another pixie sprinkled gold dust along the backside of his horse and three pixies sat on the rump, while another two pixies stood holding the long hair from the main. One more sat between the ears and gave orders. Soon, they were galloping across the field toward the forest. The horse was now free. This made me smile.
Lucian stood beside me and his face lit up with satisfaction. We continued to watch as they carried Whip Man high up above the trees. I’m not sure where they were headed but I had an idea.
Lucian went to put his arm around me and I flinched back about a foot. The pain in my shoulder and arm were almost unbearable. I looked to Solstice and forced myself to be strong. His eyes had brightened a little and I could tell that he would make it, but he was not going to be able to travel yet.
“What happened to your arm?” Lucian asked.
“I don’t know, but it hurts like a son of a gun,” I said, panting a little.
“Let me see.” He felt my shoulder over and tried to move my arm. I grunted heavily from the pain; I couldn’t believe how badly it hurt.
“You have a dislocated shoulder. Your socket appears to be underneath the bone. You have two choices. You can try to heal yourself at a tree, or I can pop it back in.”
“I don’t have time to worry about me. Just pop it back in place.” I bit my lip; I knew this was going to hurt so stinking bad.
Lucian shook his head to signify that I might be a tad bit crazy. But he said, “Very well. Sit on this rock. It will only hurt until its back in place.”
He held and supported my right arm at a ninety degree angle. I cringed in pain and my breathing was unsteady. He told me to relax and without warning, he pulled my arm down with great force. Pain shot through me like lightening. I leaned forward and bit his arm while he popped my shoulder back in place. After a few deep breaths, I realized that the pain had subsided. I lay my head back on the earth and said, “Thank you, Lucian.”
“Not a problem. And hey—you bit me. That was a bonus. I always thought our first romantic encounter would be a bit more subtle. You know…like a kiss,” he joked.
“Huh?” I said, pretending that I didn’t understand him. My cheeks suddenly felt hot. I knew he had a crush on me and I had to admit that I did feel something for him, too. But the fact was…I loved Drumm.
“Ah never mind. I’m getting out of here to try to round up some of the pixies. Maybe they can help us.” Lucian hopped out of the hole.
I knelt next to Solstice and patted his nose. His breathing was now heavy and labored, and his eyes bore into mine as if he were trying to tell me something.
And I knew exactly what he was trying to tell me. “You didn’t let me down big fella. That man was a horrible person. A dark soul. And I promise you…” I kissed him on the bridge of his long nose, “I will get you out of here. And you’ll be right as rain.”
He huffed out his nose, as if to say he understood me. I knew he was hurt pretty badly and he thought he might die, but that was not happening on my watch. Ever.
As I sat staring into his eyes, I heard a swift fluttering of wings approach us. Silver dust sprinkled down into our dark hole, shimmering like tiny stars. I looked up to see a blue-haired pixie wearing nothing but an oak leaf. She was skinny; unlike my dear friend Pladia. She had long pale legs, and long spindly arms. Her hair looked like a giant poof that stood up everywhere. She came close to my face and giggled, “Bad wizard. He go bye now.” Her small freckled nose just barely peeked out of her round face and her lips were a cherry red. I didn’t have time to answer her; another pixie arrived.
Now, this pixie could have almost been Pladia’s cousin. Her hair wasn’t as vibrantly red and it was shorter. Ironically, the pixie’s hair was cut in a “pixie” style haircut cut. Her legs were little round stumps, and her buttocks were quite large for a pixie. Her face had a “know-it-all” expression, with a lifted eyebrow, and I could tell already that she was the one in charge of this duo. Her outfit was nothing but a dandelion puff that covered her chest and lower region, and just barely covered her derriere. Her eyes sparkled blue and she said, “My name Oona. This here, Tullia.”
Oona’s wings were silver and shaped like a monarch butterflies. They were almost transparent, and silver dust sprinkled from them.
“Nice to meet you.” I didn’t know what else to say.
“Me pixie sisters take bad man to sirens in lake. Oh he going to be sorry.” She shook her head while she laughed, and her tiny teeth were sharp and pointy.
As if that were her cue, Tullia joined in with a gleeful laugh. She covered her mouth with her small hand and fluttered her light blue wings. Silver dust covered Solstice’s belly and Solstice lifted his head slightly to watch.
“His arse is up a paddle with no creak,” Tullia said.
“That not how human say it, Tullia. Gosh. It up creak and no broken paddle.” Oona rolled her eyes.
Lucian was standing above ground and he ran his hand down over his face. He was trying not to acknowledge the humor of the pixies. He knew the number one rule: Never offend a pixie. Therefore, it was in his best interest not to laugh until they got to know us better. Still, I knew he was loving the fact that they were taking Whip Man to his doom in the lake. The sirens of any lake, will have NO mercy on an animal abuser.
In a more serious tone, Oona held up two fingers and said, “We can help you horsey. But he must stay put for two day.”
“Two days?” I said with annoy
ance. I quickly lightened my tone, “Um…why two days?”
“Two day because he rest leg. We fix. But it take two day,” Oona said, opening her eyes wide. Her hands were already on her hips and I wasn’t about to push her temper any further.
Tullia shook her pointer finger at us, and said, “Two day!”
“We only help you because, one: you elf. Two: you have pixie pock mark under right eye,” Oona said.
My hand flew to my face and I felt around under my eye. I couldn’t feel a thing. “Pixie pock?” I asked.
“Yes. Pixie pock.” She raised her thin eyebrow up so far up that it was comical. “You have helped Pixie before. Only elder wise woman pixie can mark you. You in our good grace.”
And then I remembered, when Drumm and I had released the pixie’s from Egbert Winemaker’s tent, an older pixie whacked me under the eye. I thought she had slapped me but instead she was doing me a favor. Marking me for other pixie’s to see.
“Wow. Can you see it Lucian?”
He leaned down, squinted, and shook his head, “no.”
“No duh. Only pixie can see. If I shine light…human can see.” She came forward about two inches from my face and held her hand out, and a bright pink light shot forth. “See. Pixie pock.”
Lucian jumped into the hole just to see my mark. “It’s a small silver handprint. Wicked cool.”
“Wicked? Not wicked! Only Good!” Oona’s temper flared.
“Oh, no I meant it as good. Ah, wicked cool is an expression we use back home, to say…very good,” Lucian explained.
“Yes. Good cool pock mark,” she said, pretending to understand.
It occurred to me that if pixies could lift Whip Man up from his horse and carry him to the lake, that maybe if there were enough pixies they could lift Solstice to a tree. I could then try to heal him.
