Dream a Little Dream (13 page)

She removed the pistol from her purse and showed it to Mich. Mich held it up to see it better. He put his eye to the little hole in its end, but couldn’t see anything inside. He twiddled the little device on one side of it.

“Hey, man! You crazy? Gimme that!” Tina snatched the gun and stuffed it back in her purse. “You tryin’ to git me caged?”

Mich couldn’t quite understand her strange phrases, but kept his mouth shut.

“As I was sayin’,” Tina continued, “he said he wuz gonna kill me, so I pulled out my enforcer and gave him what he deserved.”

“You killed him?” Nola asked, horrified.

“No way! I may’ve had the street drilled into me, but I ain’t God! It ain’t my right to take life. No, I just gave him a plug in the leg, an’ when he was on the floor, I took my pay.”

Nola was glad to have the story straight, but she wasn’t so sure she liked it.

Mich was fascinated by it. There was never anything like this going on in Kafka. He was glad there wasn’t.

After the beach cleared out a little, Nola led them down to it. The section of beach that she reserved for her pondering was devoid of people for miles and the sun was dropping low in the sky.

“What now?” Tina asked.

“I wish I knew,” Nola said, disappointed that apparently Spirit had not made it here this time. “Any ideas, Mich?”

“Nope. Maybe we should go in the water?” He knew, with regret, that this was all pointless.

“I ain’t goin’ for no swim!” Tina said defiantly. “If we ‘re gonna do it, let’s do it now!” She pulled out the gun and aimed it at her temple.

Before Nola or Mich could speak, they felt a strange sensation. Nola remembered the only other time she had felt this way. She had been put asleep for an appendectomy.

In moments, all three of them were asleep.

Mich, Nola and Tina lay on the ground. Nola was glad there weren’t mosquitoes, biting flies or other obnoxious insects here. Maybe there were, but there were spells to protect people from such attacks.

Spells? Did that mean—?

As they woke, their first sight was that of a pair of huge black fetlocks blowing in the breeze.

They struggled to their feet, rubbing their eyes. They were back in Kafka, standing before Spirit. They were beside the river at the exact spot they had fallen in.

Spirit’s huge, black head towered over them. He lowered it to look Nola over. Heat was nowhere around, but Snort attended to Mich, worrying over him as if Mich were his cub.

Tina stared, disbelieving, into Spirit’s sparkling green orbs. She saw her own image reflected back.

“AAAAAAHHHHH!” she screamed, stumbling backward. “What the hell is that thing?!” She pointed the gun at him.

Nola immediately slapped the gun from Tina’s grasp.

“I wouldn’t,” she said.

“W-what the—” Tina stammered.

Nola drew her aside. “Look, I asked you if you wanted to leave Earth and you said yes, so that’s what we did.”

“But I thought—”

“You thought I meant permanently? No.” Nola stepped back and dramatically raised her arms. “Welcome to Kafka.”

“Kafka?” Tina looked again at Spirit. She rubbed her brown eyes, still not able to believe what she saw. “Where the hell are we?” she demanded.

“I’ll explain later.” Nola turned to Spirit. “What happened, Esprit? How did we get here?”

I brought you,
he thought happily.
I’m glad to see you are healthy. I missed you.
He nuzzled her face, and she gently caressed and kissed his nose.

At that moment, Mich wished he were a unisus. He wanted more details. He knew he’d finally learn what special magic Spirit had. “But how did you get us here?” he asked.

Heat galloped up carrying some tiny red berries in his mouth.
I
believe I can answer that, if I may.

Be my guest,
Spirit thought.

But first, let the girl eat these.

Mich took the berries out of Heat’s mouth and persuaded Tina to eat them. The girl seemed somewhat dazed, and put them in her mouth without really paying attention. Her eyes were trying to take in the whole scene at once, and evidently not succeeding.

“Look at your shoulder,” Nola told her.

Tina was astonished as she watched the wound on her shoulder heal before her eyes. “Look at that! The pain’s gone too!” Then, catching sight of her reflection, she scooped up some water to wash her dirty face and arms, and brought out a comb to do something about her hair.

Now,
Heat began,
if I might answer your question
—

But Tina interrupted, still working on her appearance. “How can them horses say stuff but don’t move their lips?”

Heat stared at her.
My dear, we are not horses!
He was obviously insulted.
We are called unisi. My name is Heat and this is Esprit; that’s
Spirit, to you.
He indicated the black unisus with his bright silver ‘ horn.
We two are the lessors of a once complete rainbow and we speak with telepathy. That is, through thought; and I do not appreciate being referred to as a mere horse!
He snorted indignantly.

“Scuuuuze me!” Tina said, daunted but resistant.

Now,
he continued,
I was about to say that it was Spirit’s power that brought you back. Unlike me, it takes him precisely five years to charge his spells.

Nola was intrigued anew at her friend and looked at him in awe.

“You say ‘spells’?” Mich asked.

Yes. His power is far more versatile than mine. He can perform any given spell, once every five years. He was just a few hours shy of being fully charged when you fell into the river.

“That explains why he didn’t try to save us before; he was charging a bed spell! I always thought you had to be in bed, but I guess it doesn’t matter where you sleep, or even if you are sleepy. The spell put us to sleep. But how did he know that we ‘d fall into the river? I mean, if he had been charging a bed spell for five years, how did he know we’d need a bed spell? Or was it just a coincidence?”

Spirit explained,
I didn’t know you would fall. When I release the spell, it coalesces into whatever spell I require. As Heat indicated, it is very versatile.

“That it is,” Mich said thoughtfully. “How did you get rid of the Centicores?” Mich knew that they hadn’t defeated them, because there were no bodies.

Nola tweaked his arm. “Silly!” she said, laughing. Mich remembered his friend’s wings and the answer was obvious. The unisi must have outmaneuvered them in the air.

“I guess we should go before the Centicores return. What will we tell King Kras? His warriors are gone.”

“Now, wait just one minute!” Tina interjected, bracing against Snort. “Did you say King Kras?”

“Yes,” Nola said, hoping foolishly for something she wasn’t able to pin down at the moment. She had been somehow drawn to Tina; was there a reason?

Snort, annoyed at being used for support, puffed steam into Tina’s face, and she immediately stood on her own, trying not to sway. The booze was wearing off, slowly.

“Well, well. Ain’t this nice? You know, I ain’t never told this to nobody, but I used to have a dream about a gigantic worm that lived underground, cuzuva story my grandpapa used to tell me when I wuz a girl. You know, that worm’s name was Kras. He was named after a city in the Soviet Union where Grandpa’s mom wuz born.”

It was true! There
had
been a reason! Tina had dreamed of a giant worm named Kras? There could be only one explanation. Nola realized that she had been drawn to Tina because the girl was another Creator.

Nola laughed out loud. Not that what Tina said was funny, but at the coincidence of meeting another Creator and taking her back to Kafka. The chances were slim. Maybe Nola’s luck was turning good, for once.

Heat realized what he had done. He had snapped at a Creator. Heat cuffed the ground with his silver shoes. He was embarrassed, but still too proud to apologize. Instead, he offered her a ride behind Mich. She accepted, saying that she loved horses. Heat wasn’t insulted, being loved like that.

Mich remembered their important business. “We must return to the Fren Cliffs and fight them ourselves. Are you ready?”

But what of their mission to locate the source of the River of Thought and destroy the dreamstone dam? Nola thought they should attend to that first. But she didn’t voice her thought. For one thing, if they didn’t do something about the Fren soon, they would never reach the source.

Spirit trotted north, back the way they had come. Mich followed
with Tina clinging tightly to his waist. Snort flew ahead to watch for danger.

Nola was just a little green. Tina, despite her status, was very pretty, with her long blond hair and more than adequate bosom. She had been a mess when they arrived in Kafka, but her clean-up job had been effective. Now Nola worried how she herself looked. As if she didn’t have more important things to be concerned about.

Tina was frightened by just about everything they saw. When they stopped for a snack, she was even frightened by the spotted oranges, but she enjoyed them. Nola told her to be careful not to eat any mushrooms, but Tina reminded her that the mushrooms were her own idea. Tina found Nola’s story of eating the worm eggs hilarious.

When night drew close, they were near the worm tunnel where they had been abducted. They discussed it and decided they should inform King Kras of his warriors’ fate.

They soon discovered that King Kras’s kingdom was in ruin and the king himself was deathly ill. His pedestal lay in a crumbled, tarnished heap.

“I feared that when I hadn’t had word of them. Do not worry, they are not dead,” he mumbled.

“What’s up with you, Kras? What happened to your kingdom and your pretty silver throne?” Tina asked.

“I was preparing to send you a message when I learned that you were here, my dear Christine. When I called forth the royal ca-vanymph to carry the message, I was attacked by the Fren. There were many here. I fear they have made off with my son. His enclosure had been ripped open. None of my loyal subjects remain. I fear they are all dead or run off.” He coughed up some green goo, and turned an ugly shade of brown.

“Don’t worry!” Tina cried. “I will help Nola fight the Fren and I’ll bring back your people. Just don’t die!” She embraced the slimy worm.

King Kras jerked back and blinked his red eyes. “
No!”
he coughed. His voice, despite its cracking, was still authoritative. “I must insist. You cannot fight the Fren alone. You must enlist the dragons. They reside in the unknown region of Kafka.”

“But the dragons won’t help us,” Mich interjected.

“They will if you have the right credential. Here, carry this to them. You must continue south.” He looped his tongue up to remove his crown. Inside the silver bowl was a medal. It was made of iron and was in the shape of a crescent moon. Resting inside the curving moon was a six-pointed star.

Nola heard Spirit whinny for the first time. His voice was sweetly terrifying.
The Kahh!

“Yes. Take it to the dragons. They will not refuse you. No one will.” He tongued it to Mich. He coughed feebly and rolled his eyes, which had now turned black. Tina hugged him again, gently, and his skin tone looked better where she touched it. She was, indeed, his Creator.

Mich turned the star over, looking closely. “But what is it?”

Kras grimaced with pain. “Leave me. There is danger here. Go—now!” he gasped.

“But I can heal you!” Tina protested. “It will take some time, but I know I can do it. You’re my creature.”

“Yes. That is why I will not let you take the risk. You are immeasurably more valuable than I am. You must go.”

“Do it,” Mich recommended. “We must protect our Creators at all costs, and we of Kafka appreciate the dangers better.”

“But you can’t really want me to go,” Tina protested to the great worm.

“Yes. I want you to go. Instantly!” Kras sagged, seeming to deflate, and his color deteriorated even more.

Tina’s expression changed. “Well, if that’s the way you feel.” She let go and stepped away, hurt.

The group left Kras behind. Tina seemed not to care anymore. “I never liked him anyway,” she commented sourly.

Nola believed that most Creators would be strange people, but this girl gave new meaning to the word. Nola did not question her. She thought it better to give Tina time to adjust to being in Kafka.

Then something shifted in her mind, and she realized that she had been looking at it the wrong way. Tina simply couldn’t handle rejection, even for good cause, so she pretended she didn’t care. Even to herself.

Once outside, they foraged for food. Mich was too nervous to eat so he sat and waited. He hoped that he could find his father. It was likely that the Fren had killed him, but he put it out of his mind. What kind of hero was he? Kafka was falling and he could only watch. He hoped that whatever special power Nola and Tina had would manifest itself soon.

The group gathered around the tunnel entrance in the dark. The night was unusually quiet. Nola lay huddled against Spirit’s flank and Tina sat beside her. Snort rested his serpentine head on Mich’s lap while Heat grazed.

Mich took the medallion from his pocket and handed it to Nola so she could give it a close inspection. The edges were sharp, like a knife.

“Esprit, you called this a Kahh,” Nola said. “What is it? “

It was a gift to the dragon Kafka, from the Great Wizard. You know him as God.

“From God?” Nola wasn’t sure she understood that, but decided to let it pass. “What is it for?” she asked, still confused about how it would get dragons to help.

Reading Spirit’s thoughts, she knew that dragons were the worst monsters in Kafka. They were numerous and often attacked in swarms. A few were so large that one could easily kill a Centicore with one chomp.

It is the hope symbol. It is the sun rising over the moon, representing light overcoming darkness. In legend, it is used whenever Kafka is threatened, to unite its denizens for the common good. Whoever you show it to will offer his help unconditionally. But only to the one who holds it. It is the one law by which humans and dragons alike must abide.

Heat lifted his head.
That is true. However, should it be shown to one who is truly evil, such as the Fren, the symbol will be forever destroyed and all hope with it. Ones like the Fren have no hope and will destroy all they can find. There is a saying. “When the Kahh is lifted high, your enemy will be your friend, all good creatures will be your brothers and hope will satisfy.” As long as a creature has hope then it must obey this law.

Mich hadn’t heard that part, but it made sense now. That, perhaps, might be the reason none of them had ever heard of the worm king. If he was meant to protect the Kahh, it would be wise to remain secluded. He hated to think what would happen if Reility ever got his hands on it. He stuffed it back into his pocket.