BRANCHING OUT BUNGALOWS
Electrum looked out from the top platform in the palace. No other trees reached high enough to hinder the cold wind.
In the distance, the harbor bustled with morning activity. Loaded ships were already drifting into the current. Glowstones imbedded in the Silver Gate were still visible in the dim morning. They formed an arch that was reflected in the water making a circle of multicolored lights. He wished he were on the river now in a ship of his own, getting ready to sail through that magical circle. Even shivering in the wet mist around the base of the palace would be preferable to this.
Silverthorn had reacted with grim silence to the news about Dusty. Tension now hung in the air behind him as the prince pondered his options.
“I know you’re disappointed.” Electrum’s voice was almost a whisper. “There was nothing I could do. I got there too late.”
There was no answer.
Electrum turned back to the room where sunlight was beginning to push back the shadows. The prince stood with his fingers coiled into tight fists.
“We can’t find the plant without a cat,” Electrum said. “We don’t know what it looks or smells like. The plan won’t work now.”
“We need another cat.” Silverthorn’s voice was flat.
Electrum felt frustration mounting. “Dusty was it. We don’t have a backup plan. Cats are natural predators. You have to bond with them when they’re kittens or it’s far too dangerous even to get close.” He felt a shiver of fear as he remembered the yellow cat climbing the wall.
“What about the kittens?”
“You can’t spend every twilight in the Tween World with a kitten. You have responsibilities. Soon it will be too cold even for you to fly.”
“I have a flight suit. It’s good for below freezing.”
“Humph. It’s not like our winters. They have clouds and snow. Your suit won’t protect you from their storms. Sometimes the snowfalls are blinding. You can’t tell which way you’re flying. You might end up spending hours on a light pole waiting for it to stop. By then it would be dark. If the skies cleared you would be caught in their harsh moonlight. Think like a dragonfly.”
“They don’t have dragonflies in the winter.”
“That’s my point.”
“We could bring one of the kittens here, and we wouldn’t have to worry about the weather. They’re not very big. I could raise him in the palace. Surely I could bond with him if he were here.”
Electrum’s eyes got big. “You want to bring a cat here? To the palace?”
“Why not?”
“Need you ask, Ralphie? How would you feed it? More importantly how would you prevent it from feeding on us?”
“We could build some kind of pen...”
“A pen. Wouldn’t Sterling just love to hear this plan? He already campaigns to have the gates closed. This would bring others over to his side. I can hear him now...” He stood up straight and rubbed his thumb over an imaginary dagger handle. In a false bass voice he said, “For the safety of the people we must close the gates! Even the gatekeepers couldn’t argue with that.”
Silverthorn laughed. “Father would never allow that.”
“I’m not so sure. He thinks I was rash to allow you to join the merchant pollywogs. Bringing a kitten here would convince him I was crazy.”
“Okay, not the palace. We could hide him in the forest.”
Electrum threw up his hands. “If he’s not familiar with his own world, he would be useless to you. Here he would only bring destruction.”
Silverthorn’s shoulders slumped.
“Let’s give it a rest,” Electrum said. “Neither of us is fit for study today. No sense in continuing the frustration.”
“I’ll think of something,” Silverthorn said. He disappeared down the narrow steps notched into the trunk that led below.
Electrum sighed. They needed some other way of identifying the plant. How could the ancients have left out a description? He would make another search through the old scrolls.
He stood at the edge of the platform. The morning mist was gone. Most of the glowstones over the gate had faded with the rising sun. Only a few twinkles gave indication of their presence.
One slender finger of water branched off from the river in a wide lazy loop. At the end it widened into a pool surrounded by misshapen trees. The Ship Growers Pond.
He imagined he could see the sprites working in the trees as they formed the ships from the living branches. It had been years since he visited the ship growers.
The fresh morning was perfect for looking at retirement trees. The new neighborhood was just beyond the Ship Growers Pond.
Buttoning up his jacket and pressing his ears tight against his hat, he stepped off the platform. The cool breeze pushed against his wings and blew away the troubled thoughts. Grinning, he headed toward the harbor.
Most of the ships were done sailing for the year. Only one was still at the cargo dock. It was the Salamander. Workers were swarming over it. It looked like Ragnar was trying to squeeze in a few more runs before ice set in on the Tween World’s Passage River. If so, he missed the morning twilight.
He passed over the Ship Growers Pond and landed in the new grove of trees. Benches dotted the clearing, and sitting hammocks swung from low limbs.
An arbor marked the beginning of a path covered in pine needles. A wooden sign nestled between two potted plants read “Welcome to Branching out Bungalows.”
Electrum felt a stab of disappointment when he read the smaller print, “Grown from Tween World Seeds.”
Imported trees didn’t grow to Tween World proportions, but they were taller and stronger than native trees.
The most famous in the realm was the Palace Tree, which had been growing for centuries. That was okay for the king, Electrum thought, but it would make these homes expensive.
The imported trees produced only sterile seeds. Collecting seeds from the Tween World was a highly profitable but dangerous endeavor.
A parchment stuck to the side of the arbor flapped in the breeze. In wavy handwriting it read: Everyone’s gone to the Ship Launching. Feel free to look about. If you find something you like, submit a bid. An arrow pointed down to a small box. Still plenty of selections left. Make your choice today.
He chuckled. Looks like he could have his choice if he could find anything affordable. The pine needles muffled his footsteps. It was quiet. Unnaturally quiet.
The path branched in multiple directions and led to tree homes along the way. Small signs at each juncture listed the price of the homes. First the paths led to oaks, then beach. The prices slowly dropped. He passed by the maples, but the prices were still high.
He was ready to turn back when he came to a narrow dirt trail that led away from the grove. The price sign drooped to one side. When he straightened it out, he had to look twice. Now this was something he could afford.
His curiosity piqued, he padded down the dirt path. Occasional pinecones littered the trail. Here there were young trees not big enough for habitation. Ahead he saw an evergreen bush where the trail ended. As he neared it, he realized he was on the edge of a bluff. The bush was the top of a pine tree growing out of the side of the cliff, its roots far below him. A rope bridge led across to a platform on a top limb. Perfect for transporting heavy items.
Built in benches and tables made the many platforms cozy and comfortable. Sitting and sleeping hammocks swung invitingly from branches.
A lower platform offered privacy from the trees above and provided an amazing view. The air around the Ship Growers Pond was full of sprites stringing ropes from the branches. Crowds lined the shore. The sound of voices and laughter drifted up from below. He took a deep breath and inhaled the smell of burning sweet wood and baking pastries.
Impulsively, he launched from the platform and flew down to join the party. His wings were tiring by the time he reached the end of the waterway and dropped through the twisted trees to the ground. He hurried toward
the pool.
Sprites scrambled through the trees near the water. Stretched branches creaked with musical rhythm and hammering and chopping punctuated their singing. He found an old log and sat down to watch.
“Thinking of buying a ship?”
Electrum looked up. “Ragnar! I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“I could say the same for you, my friend.” With a grunt and a wheeze he eased himself down on the log. “Have you picked out the one you’d like?”
“I wasn’t planning on buying a ship. Tough day at the palace and I just slipped away to watch the growers.”
Ragnar gave him a sly grin. “That plush royal life can be pretty stressful.”
“That explains why I’m here. But you? Have you decided to replace the Salamander?”
“Bite your tongue. I had a special delivery for Simon, but they couldn’t unload until this morning. Seems very particular about it.”
“What is this mystery cargo?”
Ragnar shrugged. “Verry secretive,” he drawled out the words and winked.
“Probably more linen for his precious scrolls.”
“I wish. Took several tough dock workers to haul the crates off the Salamander.”
“Crates? How many did he get?”
“Three. All secured tightly and stamped with the Gold Realm’s Council Seal and accompanied by a pookah merchant.”
“A pookah merchant here? They don’t usually like to travel and certainly not this late in the year. Anyone we know?”
“He’s called PoJoe. I’ve seen him around. Has a shop in the mining district. Very upper class. Usually caters to the wealthy that have no where else to spend their coins.”
“A shipment for the King then.”
Ragnar snorted. “If that crate was full of merchandise from PoJoe’s shop, your king has more wealth in his treasury than I can imagine.”
Above them the sprites called to each other as they lashed one thick branch to the tree so its weight could not drag it into the water prematurely. Coils and bands around the wood had trained the growth into the shape of a ship.
Ragnar said, “Even with these fast growing trees from the Tween World, it takes a couple seasons. Fascinating how the ship is fully formed before it’s even severed from the tree. Used to be they just sawed off a limb and hollowed it out.”
Electrum chuckled. “Is that how the Salamander was made?”
Ragnar snorted in disgust. “The Salamander was one of the first free formed ships produced. These new ships got nothing on her.”
Debris fell into the water. The waves rocked a small boat tied to a stump.
“What about that ship?” Electrum pointed to the wobbling boat. “She might interest you. You’re about the same age.”
“Ah, the Dragonfly. An unassuming little vessel.”
“Is that what you call it? Unassuming?”
“She’s a bit waterlogged and has a few cracks and creaks, but she’s still seaworthy.”
“Are you saying you’d sail her through the Tween World?”
“Sure. Just needs a little love and attention. With a wee bit of work she’d be sound enough. Most pookahs don’t want to bother though. That’s why the sprites just use her around the pond.”
“Wouldn’t mind a boat I could sail myself or with a hand picked crew,” Electrum said wistfully.
“To carry a small load, you wouldn’t even need a crew for the Dragonfly. Some of the pollywogs can be a nuisance at times.”
“I guess that’s part of being young.”
“It’s more than youthful shenanigans. Sterling has strategically placed some of his loyal favorites on our ships. Doesn’t pay to be free with your speech around them.”
“Sterling’s paranoia must be growing. He thinks the ships are contamination.”
“Desperate times lead to desperate measures,” Ragnar said with a smile. He struggled to his feet. “Looks like it will be a couple hours before they release the ship from the tree and drop it in the water.
Tomorrow is my last run for this season. I better check on how the unloading of the Salamander is going. But first some lunch. Would you like to join me?”
“No,” Electrum said. “I’m going to fly back to the new grove up on the hill. There’s a nice pine up there available for sale. Think I’ll put a deposit down. Might be a good investment for retirement. I’ll need a place to live.”
Ragnar shaded his eyes and looked out across the pond. “You’d have a good view of the ship growers. Maybe you ought to think about a vessel like the Dragonfly. It could be a good investment too.”
After Electrum dropped his offer into the deposit box he returned to the pine. His timing was perfect. He settled into a sitting hammock facing the pond. The sprites below labored to chop off the branch.
It dipped and wavered with a loud cracking noise. Only the rope now held it as it slid gracefully down, and smacked into the pond. Water splashed high and drenched the spectators sitting in the front rows.
Lively music erupted from a band of musicians, covering the shouts and laughter. The new ship bobbed in the water and cheers rose.
He stretched out his feet and scooted farther back into the hammock. This tree would be perfect for retirement. When he craved a little excitement he could catch a ride on the Salamander. Maybe that was what PoJoe was doing. Just breaking the monotony of being in a shop every day.
But a shipment with the Council Seal? What could Simon be ordering from the Gold Realm that required that much secrecy and security? And did Sterling know about it?
A Sprinkling of Thought Dust Page 7