by F. C. Shaw
He was so anxious to get home and see Taj. He hoped he had made the right choice in wishing for Zalla’s return instead of Taj’s life. In the moment it had seemed the right thing to do, and the smart thing to do so that both he and Zinnia could get what they wanted. He realized he would not have made that wish for anyone else, and wondered if his feelings for Zinnia were clouding his judgment. If Zalla was unable to heal Taj, Dodie would never forgive himself . . . and neither would his father and grandfather. Suddenly Dodie felt sick, but not from flying. He felt sick with worry. Eventually he fell asleep. He woke up some time later feeling a little cold. Zinnia was still asleep next to him.
“What time is it, do you think?” he asked Zalla in front of him.
Zalla did not turn around. “Around five. The sky is starting to lighten.”
“Do you need a break? I can fly for a little bit.”
Zalla shook his head, his wild hair ruffling in the breeze. “After sitting around locked up for months, it feels good to be flying. I’ll sleep after breakfast. We should arrive in Turah before sunset.”
Dodie lay his head back down and dozed off again. He felt Zinnia sit up, and when he opened his eyes the rising sun made him squint. He noticed the ocean was gone, for they had turned west into the desert. Dodie watched Zinnia dig through the pack of food, her cheeks aglow with rosy light.
“How’d you sleep?” she asked as she fished out bread and cheese for breakfast.
“Good. I’ve never been able to sleep on a flying carpet before. It was comfy.”
Zinnia tucked her short hair behind an ear. “We should let my dad get some sleep.”
They paused in mid-air long enough for Zalla to switch places with Dodie and Zinnia. He curled up on Amethyst and soon fell asleep. Dodie flew Phoenix while Zinnia sat cross-legged behind him. They spent the morning recapping the Grand Flyer and its many perils. They ended in a fit of laughter as they remembered Atallah’s shocked reaction to his defeat. They both agreed that he would probably return with a vengeance, and they’d have to be on their guard. Then they listed all the things they would wish for if they had unlimited wishes from the genie. Some of Zinnia’s top wishes were for girls to be allowed to race in the Grand Flyer, for Atallah to be banished, and for the ability to fly without a carpet. Dodie came back with a wish for his grandfather to no longer be a cripple, for Atallah to be crippled instead (Zinnia laughed, then chided him for such a cruel wish), and for his family to be rich so his father wouldn’t have to work so hard.
They ate the last of the food for lunch, saving some for Zalla when he woke up. For a few miles they rode in silence. Then abruptly Zinnia spoke, and when she did her voice sounded strained. Dodie did not turn to look at her, for he still felt awkward seeing her cry.
“I haven’t thanked you yet,” she said. “For returning my father.”
Dodie shrugged. “I know you were thinking it anyway.”
“Would you have done that for another friend?”
Dodie didn’t answer her.
“Like for your friend Binni?” she asked.
Dodie gave up. “No, Zinnia, I wouldn’t have. I did it just for you.” He kept his eyes ahead on the vast sand dunes. Quickly he added, “And I did it for Taj, obviously.”
“Should I ask why?”
Dodie shrugged again. “If you want to.”
“I don’t think I need to,” she said quietly. “Well, I would have done the same for you. For the same reason.”
Dodie felt his face heat and his heart pound.
“Thank you,” her voice suddenly sounded right in his ear.
He froze.
She lightly kissed his cheek.
He couldn’t move, but he felt an overwhelming sensation bubbling up inside him.
Zinnia sat back down behind him.
For a few miles Dodie felt her kiss on his cheek. Once the bubbling inside him subsided, he could think more clearly about her kiss. When he was honest with himself, he had secretly yearned for a kiss. But it had caught him off-guard, and he had not reacted the way he had imagined he would. Now the moment was past. Time slipped on so that now it was too late to respond to her kiss in any way. Even talking about it would be stupid. He felt like he had wasted the moment of a lifetime, and he hated himself.
But he didn’t want Zinnia to think the kiss didn’t matter to him, or that he didn’t appreciate it, or worse that he hadn’t felt it. She wasn’t desperate enough to ask him about it either. He had to say something, or it would forever be the unfinished conversation between them that could potentially stain their friendship. He didn’t want that!
He cleared his throat. “You’re welcome,” was all he could think of to say.
“What?”
With a sinking feeling he realized a good twenty minutes had now passed in silence since her kiss. She had probably moved on and was thinking of other things, namely what an idiot Dodie was.
Dodie tried again. “You’re welcome . . . for saving your dad. And thanks . . . for the . . . kiss.” He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing this awkward moment away.
Zinnia giggled softly behind him and rested a hand on his shoulder, which made everything feel okay again.
Later in the afternoon, Zalla woke up and ate the food they had saved for him. They paused again to switch places so he could drive Phoenix the rest of the way. Dodie and Zinnia sat side by side on Amethyst. As they started off again, Zinnia laid her head on Dodie’s shoulder. He rested his cheek on the top of her head.
“Village ho!” Zalla hollered.
Dodie and Zinnia snapped their heads up, both of them blinking for they had started to doze. Ahead they could just make out the onion-shaped turrets and rusty-red rooftops of Turah. The sun was heavy in the west. They also noticed a long caravan of camels and merchants snaking past Turah. Not wanting any trouble from them, they skirted the town instead of flying through it, and soon spotted Rue’s Rug Emporium. They swooped down and landed on the Rue’s roof patio. Dodie jumped off the carpet and raced into the house, Zalla and Zinnia right behind him.
“Dad! Grandpapa! Taj!” Dodie shouted as he tore into their bedroom.
“Dodie! Is that you?” Nadar zipped over to him on his carpet, and engulfed him in a smothering bear hug. “Why are you back early? What happened? Did you not make your wish?”
“I’ll tell you everything later,” Dodie panted. “We have to save Taj first.”
“Can’t save him.” Gamal’s face fell.
Zalla stepped forward. “I can heal him. I am Zalla the alchemist.”
“Zalla the Great?” Nadar stared at him in amazement. “You were presumed dead.”
“What do you need?” Gamal cut in, rubbing his hands together. “To save Taj.”
“I need a shallow bowl filled with water,” Zalla began, rolling up his sleeves. He rattled off a list of random ingredients. “And lastly I will need a drop of blood from the one who poisoned him.”
“We don’t know who!” Gamal wailed.
Dodie turned to his father. “We do, Dad. It was Raz.”
“No! He wouldn’t—”
“It’s true,” Zalla spoke up. “We need his blood.”
“I’ll get it,” Dodie decided.
“Should I go with you?” asked Zinnia.
Zalla shook his head. “I need you to help me with the antidote. It will take us about twenty minutes to prepare. Raz’s blood is the last ingredient to add, and it must be added moments before Taj drinks it. By the looks of it, we don’t have much time.”
Dodie glanced over at his brother lying on his cot. Taj was white, his lips and eyelids were ashy, and his breathing came in wheezy gasps. He did not move.
“I’ll get that blood,” Dodie vowed, “or die trying.”
Chapter 17
Dodie hopped on Phoenix and raced down the dusty street. The town wasn’t too
active, for most families had closed up shop and were gathering on their rooftops for twilight supper. Dodie was glad he wouldn’t be noticed, for he couldn’t be bothered by the villagers’ inquiries about the Grand Flyer. When he arrived at the alchemist’s shop, Dodie flew to the side alley. He hovered next to a window on the second floor.
“Binni!” he called.
Binni popped his head out the window. His face broke into a wide grin, his two front teeth bucking out like a rodent. “You’re back already?! How’d it go? How are you flying without—”
“Binni, this is urgent!” Dodie cut him off. “Listen to me, I need a few drops of your uncle’s blood.”
Binni frowned. “What? That’s about the weirdest thing you’ve ever asked for.”
“I don’t have time to explain,” Dodie said impatiently. “Just get some for me, will you?”
“Fine.”
“And don’t tell him what it’s for.”
“What is it for?” Binni questioned, his eyes narrowing.
“It’s for an antidote to save Taj,” Dodie told him. “Now hurry!”
Binni disappeared inside. Dodie glided up and down the alley. The minutes dragged on. Dodie stopped to look in Binni’s window. If Binni wasn’t back in another minute Dodie would go in and look for him.
Another minute passed.
Dodie drifted in through the large window, and hopped off Phoenix, leaving her rolled up on the floor.
Binni walked in, and held up a tiny glass vial with a few scarlet drops. “I told him I needed it for my own potion-brewing and that—”
“Give it to me!” Dodie reached out for the vial.
“Binni!” a voice barked from the doorway.
Binni turned around. “Hey, Uncle, so—”
“You’re back!” Raz looked at Dodie in surprise. “What do you need? Is it Taj?”
Dodie gulped. “Yeah, we have a chance to cure him.”
Raz’s gaze hardened. “Devil’s Kiss has no antidote. He cannot be cured.”
“Yes he can with a few drops of his poisoner’s blood.” Dodie locked eyes with the alchemist. “So we need yours.”
Binni looked from his uncle to his friend. “What are you talking about?”
“Go into the other room, Binni.” Raz kept his cold eyes on Dodie.
“I don’t understand, Uncle, what—”
“Go now!” shouted Raz. “And give me that vial.”
Binni clenched his hand around the vial of blood. “Not until we figure out what this is all about. Dodie says he needs this to save Taj, so—”
“Taj cannot be saved!” Raz roared, wrenching the vial from his nephew. “I cannot allow it.”
Dodie glared at him. “Why did you do it?”
“Because of the prophecy. He was to be champion and ruin me. He was to restore the great alchemist, and I would be ruined.”
Dodie looked at him in confusion. “That’s not what the prophecy said.”
“That was my prophecy,” Raz muttered. “I overheard the Seer’s prophecy over Taj. Right after, I received a word from her that the Rue victor would restore Zalla the Great and the desert would swallow me.”
Dodie reveled in this news. “So you made sure that neither prophecy would come to pass by murdering Taj.”
Raz’s eyes flashed. “I hated myself for doing it.”
“You’re a fraud!” Dodie snorted. “Your alchemy was stolen from Zalla, and to protect your dirty secret you were willing to kill an innocent person—my brother!”
“The Seer is never wrong,” argued Raz.
“You were wrong though,” said Dodie. “Those prophecies weren’t about Taj. They were about me. I’m the Rue victor.”
His words struck Raz like a bolt of lightning. Before Raz could recover, Dodie lunged for him and grabbed his hand clutching the vial of blood.
“Take it easy!” Binni yelled.
Raz kicked Dodie off him. As Dodie tumbled to the floor, Raz bolted for the door.
Dodie got up and chased after him. Raz slammed the door in Dodie’s face and locked it on the outside. Dodie pulled, pushed, kicked, and pounded on the door.
“This is crazy!” Binni hollered. “You need to calm down!”
Dodie spun around, and got right in Binni’s face. “Back off! You knew your uncle was up to something—”
Binni threw his hands up in defense. “I swear I didn’t! I would never betray my best friend!”
“Your uncle’s been holding Zalla the Great!”
“Yeah, but my uncle told me Zalla was a wicked alchemist and if I said anything about him—” Binni stopped short, his face pale.
Dodie noticed a fresh bruise on Binni’s temple. “He’d beat you.”
Binni glanced nervously at the locked door. “I couldn’t say anything,” he whispered.
Dodie looked around Binni’s room that was a complete mess of bowls, herbs, vials, stains, and other remnants of his many potion experiments. “How do you unlock the door?”
Binni frowned. “I can’t unlock it from the inside. I’ve tried before.”
Dodie realized being locked in his room was yet another abuse Binni regularly endured. “Come on!” He ignited Phoenix. He and Binni hopped aboard and flew out the window. They raced around to the front of the shop just in time to see Raz take off on his own flying carpet.
“There he goes!” Binni shouted behind Dodie.
Dodie chased after him. He felt a confidence bolster him, a confidence that came from having just survived one of the most brutal carpet races. A confidence from having conquered his own fears of flying. A confidence from owning his prophecies. He felt a surge of speed from Phoenix, as if she too shared his confidence.
Dodie came up behind Raz. “I won’t let you get away!”
Raz threw something over his shoulder without turning around.
“Watch out!” warned Binni. “Snap crackers!”
Dodie swerved as an explosion boomed a few feet to their right, and destroyed the baker’s awning. He stayed on Raz’s tail as they flew out of the village. Raz turned around briefly to squirt a bright green liquid at Dodie.
Dodie managed to avoid most of it, but a few drops splattered his arm. The acid burned through his sleeve and into his skin. He gritted his teeth.
“Cut it out, Uncle!” yelled Binni.
Dodie had to stop Raz before they got too far across the desert. They neared the small oasis where Dodie had found his grandfather’s emergency stash of stardust. Raz dove for the tree tops.
Whack!
A palm frond swiped through the air and knocked Raz off his carpet. He lost the vial.
Dodie did a nose dive; Binni gripped the back of his tunic. Dodie skimmed the sand, inches above the ground, and reached down to grab the vial that landed with a clink. He grabbed a fistful of sand with the vial, and urged Phoenix to climb up again.
Whack!
The palm branch hit Binni who did not know to duck. With a yelp, Binni fell off of Phoenix.
“Binni!” screamed Dodie. He swooped back around to pick up his friend, but stopped short.
Raz had mounted his carpet and caught Binni in mid-fall. He gained more altitude and hovered in place, glaring at Dodie who stopped a few yards away.
“Give me the vial!” hollered Raz. “And I’ll give you Binni.”
“Let Binni go!” yelled Dodie.
Binni struggled to get free, but Raz pinned his arms down and clenched a hand over the boy’s mouth. “Give me the vial or Binni will die!” He whipped out a small bottle from his inner pocket. “Devils’ Kiss!” He uncorked the bottle.
“No!” screamed Dodie. “Don’t! He’s your nephew!”
Raz brought the bottle to Binni’s mouth, which he still covered with his hand. “Who will you save? Binni or your brother?”
Dodie licked his lips and felt his insides wiggle. His palms started sweating and he clenched the vial of blood harder. He was on the brink of vomiting. He felt the fear so keenly—the fear of failure again.
Click-click! Hiss!
A mound was moving beneath the sand, heading straight for the spot below Raz’s hovering carpet. The mound rose.
“What’s that?” screeched Raz as he watched the mound rise below him.
“Your failed alchemy!” said Dodie.
The sand fell away like water as a giant black mass materialized. First the tail with its razor sharp hook on the end reared up. Then came the plated body and the two front pincers the size of palm fronds.
Raz shrieked and started to fly away, but the scorpion’s tail batted at him and snagged the carpet. Hooked on the tail’s stinger, Raz could not escape. The scorpion yanked on the carpet.
Raz lost his grip on Binni. The boy fell off the carpet and landed in the sand a few yards from the scorpion.
Dodie swooped down. The scorpion crawled through the sand toward Binni, towing Raz and his carpet by the tail. Binni clambered to his feet and started running as fast as he could manage through the soft sand, his feet sinking with each step.
Click-click! The scorpion snapped his pinchers right behind Binni.
“Come on, Phoenix!” Dodie coaxed through gritted teeth.
With a burst of speed, Phoenix zoomed for Binni.
“Binni!” shouted Dodie. “Grab on! Fast!” He held out his hand as he raced toward his friend.
Binni reached up. Dodie grabbed Binni as Phoenix shot past the scorpion and up into the safety of the sky.
Hiss! The scorpion shook with rage.
Snap-crack! Raz threw down more snap crackers, but they fizzled out on the scorpion’s armor.
The attack did not go unnoticed by the giant beast. It catapulted Raz off its tail.
Raz crashed into the sand. He shook his head, saw the scorpion coming, and scrambled to his feet. He started running.
“My uncle!” exclaimed Binni.
