by Jim Hines
Vernors flew forward, smacking Gulk’s head in passing. “Yer majesties, I ain’t gonna try to count every human on that world, but I can’t say the lass is wrong. There are thousands of humans in that one town alone. Their magic allows them to communicate instantly over long distances. From what I’ve seen, I counsel you to take this girl’s words seriously.”
“Where is my dragon?” the Elf Queen demanded. “It can pry the truth from your minds.”
The pix shrugged. “That ol’ worm hasn’t poked its head from the sewers since the Goblin Queen fried its whiskers.”
The Dead King chuckled.
“That’s right,” said Tamora. “I beat your dragon. My brother Mac broke Elannasithe’s spell. My friend Karina enchanted your delegate with her own magic. Three humans did that. Do you really want to make enemies of the rest?”
“Your people know nothing of magic or our world,” said the Dead King. “They cannot war upon those they cannot reach.”
Tamora folded her arms. “In school last year, we took cuttings of a pussy willow bush and grew new plants. We can do the same with this tree. We’ll plant them throughout the world to grow dozens of enchanted trees. Hundreds.”
“You lack the ability to open them,” said the Elf Queen.
“We opened this one.” Tamora paused to let that sink in. “If I don’t return, everyone on the other side of this portal will reveal the existence of goblins and pix and elves and magic. They’ll tell how you kidnapped and enchanted human beings—children—from our world. It may take a while for humanity to get here, but we will. And do you know something I learned about human beings from history class? Once we discover a new place, we don’t leave. This won’t be your world anymore. It will be ours.”
“We have magic,” the king pointed out.
“We have tanks and jets and guns and bombs,” Tamora shot back. “And factories that can produce millions of them.”
The two elves looked at one another. The Elf Queen’s lips tightened. The Dead King was first to speak. “What is it you want, Goblin Queen?”
“I want my friends,” she said. “Let me take them home. And your promise that, no matter who wins this war, neither of you will ever again take people from my world.” She looked at the Elf Queen. “I’ll return Ms. Anna to you once we’re safely back.”
The elves exchanged another long, silent look. Unlike the dragon, Tamora was pretty sure elves weren’t telepathic, but these two had probably known each other long enough to communicate without words. Tamora tried not to fidget.
“We…agree,” the Elf Queen said through clenched teeth.
“Well done, Queen of the Goblins,” added the Dead King. “Return to your world in peace, and take these bothersome humans with you.”
Tamora could barely speak. It had worked? Andre, Kevin, and Lizzy were coming home! “Thank you.”
The Elf Queen turned to her escort. “You will accompany the Goblin Queen.”
Karina hugged her. Vernors let out a whoop. Gulk tugged at Tamora’s hand, pulling her toward the portal. Pukwuk simply stared, her eyes huge, as if she couldn’t believe what had happened.
“Come on.” Tamora took one last look at Bansa. A part of her wanted to stay and explore, to see more of this world. Instead, she turned her back on elves and monsters and climbed the roots of the willow. “Let’s go home.”
Chapter 19: Crayfish and Crab
Tamora’s first step through the tree into Karina Lord’s backyard felt…heavier, somehow. As if everything were more solid. She squinted against the sunlight. Even through the trees, Earth’s sun was brighter than Bansa’s.
Ms. Anna rested in the dirt a short distance away, bound in duct tape and surrounded by goblins and pix, including one pix who sat comfortably on the elf’s head.
“She survived.” Ms. Anna turned to the goblin on her right. “I lose our wager.”
The goblin bared his teeth in triumph.
“Well?” snapped Vernors’ second-in-command, Pepsi. “Did it work?”
“Yes.” Tamora moved aside as Karina and Mac emerged, followed by Vernors and the two goblins. “It worked.”
Andre stepped cautiously through the tree, his gold armor gleaming in the dappled light. He raised a hand to shield his eyes.
“It’s all right,” Tamora said. “You’re home. I know you don’t remember, but we’ll fix that soon.” All they had to do was destroy the flute and knife, and everyone would be back to normal.
Lizzy followed, her small form clad in silver-studded leather. Kevin was the last to arrive. His armor was similar to Andre’s, but left his arms bare, save for leather bracers on his forearms.
“Queen Tamora broke prophecy!” Gulk danced with excitement. Or perhaps “jumped and flailed wildly” was a better description.
“Aye,” said Vernors. “And Lady Karina there insulted the Dead King to his face, she did!”
Karina blushed, but most of her attention was on her brother. Kevin, Lizzy, and Andre remained close to the tree, like rabbits ready to bolt.
“Quiet,” said Mac, using his iPad once again. “Don’t scare them.”
Tamora extended a hand. “You’re safe. Just come away from the tree so we can close the portal.”
“No one is ever truly safe, young human.” The Elf Queen stepped from the willow, her wand in hand.
Goblins scrambled for cover behind the trees. Pix shot upward to hide in the branches.
“If you’ve come for your elf, you can have her,” said Tamora.
“I’m afraid it’s not that simple,” said the Dead King. Two of the frog creatures carried him through the tree. His legs and feet dragged over the roots. “You and your followers threatened our world.”
“Only if you kept the humans you’d taken.” Tamora stepped back. “Leave us in peace, and we’ll do the same. You have my word.”
“Would you risk your world on the word of a child?” asked the queen.
“I warned you,” Ms. Anna said quietly. She twisted toward a cowering goblin. “It seems I may win our wager after all.”
Tamora picked up her bat. “The crayfish always sides with the crab,” she whispered.
“What’s crayfish?” asked Gulk, peeking from behind a fat maple tree.
“They’re like little lobsters. It’s an old saying Dad uses sometimes.” No matter how much the Elf Queen and the Dead King hated one another, they were both elves, which meant they would come together against a common enemy.
“Oh.” After a moment, Gulk asked, “What’s crab?”
The king raised his head. “Only when you’re all dead and the portal destroyed will we be safe from the threat my former consort brought upon us with her schemes and deception.”
The Elf Queen frowned, and for a moment Tamora thought she might turn on the Dead King. Instead, she waved a hand at Kevin, Andre, and Lizzy, and said, “Destroy them all.”
Kevin and Andre drew their swords, moving in perfect synchrony. Lizzy yanked her daggers from their sheaths.
Pix arrows flew from the trees, but burnt to ash at a flick of the Elf Queen’s wand. A goblin charged and swung a metal rake at Andre, who parried easily. His sword sheared through the handle, leaving the goblin staring at the stump.
“Your weapons are nothing against the enchanted blades of my champions,” said the Elf Queen.
Mac and Karina clutched each other’s hands as they backed away. One of the Dead King’s frog creatures spat a glob of green mucus at them. It struck a tree and began to sizzle, smelling like rotting eggs.
“Andre, it’s me,” Tamora shouted. “Tamora Carter. Your best friend.”
Andre advanced.
“Kill them,” shouted the Dead King. “Leave not a single survivor to tell their story.”
Tamora raised her bat. “Andre, please!”
Andre hesitated ever so briefly, then thrust his sword at Tamora’s chest. She twisted aside, but lost her footing. Andre lunged again, impossibly quick. She struck his sword with her bat, defl
ecting the thrust, but not enough. The blade tore a shallow line of fire along her arm. She bit back a scream.
With an incoherent cry, Gulk jumped onto Andre’s back and tried to bite his ear. Pukwuk charged to slash at the back of his knee with her bread knife. Andre spun and kicked Pukwuk in the face. As she fell, he reached up to grab Gulk’s arm. A twist of his body flipped Gulk onto the ground.
Andre blocked Tamora’s view, but she heard Gulk’s breath explode from his lungs as Andre kicked him in the side. She heard Gulk squeal in pain and terror. She saw Andre reverse his grip on the sword and stab downward.
“No!” She pushed herself up on her uninjured arm. Her body was numb with horror. She ran and swung one-handed. The impact of her bat against Andre’s armor jolted her arm and shoulder, but it knocked Andre off balance. Tamora ducked low and moved in close for a hip-block. Andre fell onto his back with a clash, almost hitting the Elf Queen.
To her right, Kevin had knocked Mac’s iPad to the ground. Karina’s leg was bleeding, and she clung to Mac for support. Kevin’s left hand glowed orange, making the air ripple. Smoke raced from his fingers like snakes, circling Mac and Karina. Both began to cough.
Lizzy was battling goblins and pix, several of whom lay wounded or dying in the dirt.
Andre rolled onto his side and swung his sword. Tamora jumped back, barely avoiding a sweep that would have taken her leg. The elves were right. Tamora’s team was no match for the Elf Queen’s champions and their weapons. If they retreated now, fled in different directions, some of them might escape.
A shout from Karina made Tamora’s heart stop, but a quick look showed Kevin hadn’t stabbed her. Karina had stumbled over Ms. Anna, who watched the fight with all the interest of a parent at a derby bout.
“Karina!” Tamora pointed past Ms. Anna, to where the flute lay forgotten in the dirt.
Andre’s boot slammed into Tamora’s ribs, knocking her to the ground. Her bat clattered away. She rolled onto her side, silently begging Karina to understand.
Karina’s mouth tightened into a determined grin. She crawled to the flute and stretched her hand toward the end.
Kevin’s hand glowed with magic. He pointed at his twin sister.
Mac snatched up his iPad and threw it like a Frisbee. It spun through the air to strike the side of Kevin’s head. Whatever spell he’d been planning vanished in a ball of black smoke.
Andre kicked Tamora again. She tried to roll away, but he followed.
Karina climbed to her feet and swung her flute at Kevin. He raised his sword to parry.
The enchanted blade sliced through the flute.
Andre froze, his weapon poised to run Tamora through.
“Kill her,” screamed the Elf Queen.
“Andre Malcolm Stewart, don’t you dare!” Tamora shouted.
Andre blinked. “Tamora?”
Tamora almost passed out from relief. Destroying the flute had destroyed its effects. She tried to sit up, but gasped with pain.
“What happened?” Andre reached to help her. Kevin and Lizzy had stopped fighting as well. They looked around in confusion, while behind them, the Elf Queen blasted another pix from the tree.
Tamora shook her head. “The Elf Queen’s wand. Stop her!”
“Where are we?”
“Andre, please!”
He nodded and jumped toward the Elf Queen. His sword flashed too fast to see. Blue light flashed with a crack like thunder, and the top of the wand fell to the dirt. Andre’s follow-up lunge would have run the elf through, but she twisted out of the way and backhanded him hard enough to knock him to the ground.
The Dead King readied a wand of his own. Before he could use it, one of Lizzy’s knives thudded into the closer of the two frog people holding him upright. He fell, and Vernors swooped to snatch the wand from his hand.
The remaining frog thing dragged the Dead King back to the willow. The Elf Queen had already begun to retreat into the tree.
“Don’t leave me,” called Ms. Anna. “I’ve spent decades trapped here, serving you.”
“Failing me,” the Elf Queen snapped.
Both the Dead King and the Elf Queen stopped within the portal. Whatever their history, however many years they’d spent fighting one another, in this moment as they stood between worlds, they were united in their rage toward Tamora.
“You started this war.” Tamora clutched her arm and tried again to stand. She settled for sitting more or less upright. Sitting was good. “You can end it.”
“Oh, we shall,” hissed the Elf Queen. “Every indignity we’ve suffered will be repaid a thousand times upon you and your subjects.”
A pix arrow struck her shoulder. She scowled and tore it free. The arrow burned to ash in her fingers. Destroying her wand hadn’t left her powerless.
“Our armies will pour through the portal,” said the Dead King. “Like a wildfire leaving nothing but ash and ruins in its wake.”
Tamora was only half-paying attention. Gulk had dragged himself around the willow tree, unseen by the elves. One hand pressed the wound in his side. The other reached out…
“Go on,” Tamora said hastily. “Revenge and suffering and wildfire. Sounds terrible. What else have you got?”
“You dare mock us?” demanded the Elf Queen.
“What? No! I’m sure your vengeance will be very scary. I’d be shaking in my sneakers if I wasn’t so exhausted.”
Both elves opened their mouths, but whatever threats or curses they meant to speak were lost as Gulk yanked the magical knife from the base of the willow.
The portal began to close. The queen shrieked and started to jump free, but the wood had already sealed around her legs. The king tried to pull himself loose by shoving her backward, but the tree folded around them both. Seconds later, there was nothing but two vaguely elflike shapes encased in bark, sprouting from the side of the tree.
Gulk sagged against the tree. “Stupid elves, threatening Queen Tamora.”
Tamora crawled toward Gulk. Even from here she could see he was bleeding badly. “He needs help!”
Gulk scowled and picked weakly at the sequins on his T-shirt. “Armor didn’t work.”
“Don’t talk,” said Tamora. “Put your hands over the wound and press hard.”
Andre reached the goblin first and pressed his hands over Gulk’s. “Queen Glitterlord!”
Lizzy pulled a flask from a pouch on her belt. She nodded to Andre, who pulled his hands away so Lizzy could drizzle the flask’s contents over the wound.
Gulk stiffened, but the bleeding slowed, then stopped. The goblin groaned. “Still hurts.”
“You got stabbed,” said Lizzy. “It’s gonna hurt for a while. But you’ll live.” She turned to Tamora and poured several drops onto her arm. The burning pain eased, replaced by a sore throbbing. More like the aftermath of a shot from the doctor than a cut by a magical sword.
Relief burst from Tamora’s chest with a sound between a laugh and a sob. She looked up at Lizzy. “Glitterlord?”
Lizzy’s cheeks reddened.
“Thank you,” Tamora said. “Can you help the others?”
“On it.” Lizzy looked around. “Who’s next?”
Andre crouched beside Tamora. “What happened? My memories are like puzzle pieces spilled across the floor. I see…flashes, but not how it all fits together.”
Tamora smiled. “For one thing, you tried to kill me.”
He stared at her arm and the blood on her sleeve. “Oh, God. I remember fighting, but… I’m sorry, Tamora.”
“S’okay. I’m pretty sure if I’d had a magic sword of my own, I could have taken you.” She tested her arm. “Hey, you know how your parents are always saying you spend too much time playing video games?”
“Yeah,” he said.
“They were right.” She got up and gave him a quick hug. “Mac? Karina?”
“We’re all right,” said Karina. Both had taken cuts and bruises, but nothing life-threatening. Lizzy was helping the other wound
ed pix and goblins. A few were beyond healing, but most would survive.
Tamora reached to take the knife from Gulk.
“You have to reopen the portal,” said Ms. Anna, staring at the willow tree. “They will break free in time. If you release them, they might show mercy.”
“Even if they did, they’d just go back to their war on Bansa.” Tamora looked at Karina and Mac.
“I have a better idea.” Karina squeezed Mac’s hand. “I know where my father keeps his chainsaw.”
Chapter 20: Aftermath
Eight days later, the thunderous voice of a dragon shocked Tamora from her sleep.
“I would have words with the Goblin Queen!”
By the time she stumbled out of bed, grabbed the bat she’d begun keeping in her room, and made it to the front door, the entire house was awake. Appa stood on the couch, barking loud enough to rattle the window. Smoosh was at door, back arched, hissing and spraying snot.
“What’s that?” asked Mac, tapping out the words on his new iPad. The last one hadn’t survived the impact with Kevin’s head.
Before Tamora could answer, Dad bellowed, “Am I losing my mind, or are the rest of you hearing voices too?”
“It’s all right,” Tamora shouted. “It’s just a dragon.”
“Cool!” Mac climbed onto the couch next to Appa.
“Not cool!” Dad yelled. “Do I need to call the police? Or Animal Control?”
“No, and definitely not! I’m sorry, I meant to tell you. Gulk said yesterday that the dragon wanted to talk to me about a favor, that’s all.” At least, she hoped that was all. She glanced at the clock and added, “I didn’t realize it meant six-thirty in the morning.”
“I come in peace, to ask a boon.”
Tamora nudged Smoosh out of the way, opened the door, and stepped onto the porch. She didn’t see the dragon anywhere, but she heard the rasp of scales from the storm grate on the other side of the street.
Dad and Mac joined her on the porch. Dad was in his bathrobe, and his hair was a spiky mess. Tamora still wasn’t used to his shorter haircut, but it mostly hid what had broken off when he’d been turned to glass.
“No tricks,” Tamora warned. “My father has an electric generator and a long set of jumper cables, and he’s not afraid to use them!”