Starfall

by R. M. Anderson

  Thomas shook his head. “Sand got into his eyes when we were tossed out. It will just have to work its way out. Here, let's get him up.” He reached down and began to lift Henrick.

  Without his sight, Henrick couldn't exactly protest Thomas's help, though he certainly wanted to. Radianne and Thomas both helped him to his feet and each took one of his arms.

  “This is just great,” Henrick muttered. “If it's not one thing, then it's another. What did I do to deserve this? When will the ridiculousness end? Now I'll probably be blind forever. This adventure just keeps getting better,” he grumbled sarcastically.

  “No, you won't go blind,” Radianne countered as she leaned closer to him. “Sometimes when it rains, it pours you know. You've just had a run of bad luck at the moment, but it will get better. Have a little faith.”

  In that moment, she knew that everyone was going to have to have a lot of faith. None of them had any idea where they were, as the cloud had deposited them in an even more remote corner of the vast desert, quite far away from where they'd first caught up with it.

  They walked on for awhile, Radianne carrying Blink in her bag while helping lead Henrick with her free arm.

  He was in a very unpleasant mood, which she was used to by now. Thomas was also in poor spirits and Blink had grown very solemn.

  As night fell once more, they found a place to settle. Thomas scowled as he built a fire. He was not enjoying the constant complaining of Henrick.

  Radianne didn't know how to cope with the grumpiness of her travel companions. Her main concern at the moment was for Blink, who continued to look ever-more sickly with each ticking hour. She grew increasingly worried about her friend.

  He sat near the fire, his points very stiff, his face looking stony. She settled down next to him and gave him a gentle pat.

  “Are you alright, my dear friend?” she asked him softly. “It shouldn't be long now until we reach our destination.” She didn't know what other comfort she could give.

  The star slowly looked at her, then turned his eyes up toward the sky, where he often gazed when deep in thought. “To tell you the truth, I don't feel quite right,” he said. “In all seriousness I feel like I'm fading away. Losing something.”

  Emotion welled up in Radianne's throat but she forced it back down. She knew she had to be brave.

  “I'm sorry you are feeling out of sorts. But I do have faith this journey will come to an end soon and you will be back to your normal self. You have to just hold on a little while longer…”

  Blink nodded. “I will certainly try.”

  They talked a bit more, until Blink drifted off to sleep. Radianne then stood and walked over to Henrick, who lay sprawled out on his back with his eyes still closed tight. He wasn't fooling her. She knew he was awake because of the deep frown he kept working.

  “Things will not get better by staying eternally angry,” she advised, settling down next to him on the sand.

  “And how would you know?” Henrick retorted. “I've been directing your path on this journey the whole time, taking the brunt of the misfortunes. You certainly wouldn't have made it this far if it hadn't been for me. So don't tell me when and how things will get better.”

  His arrogant words stung. Radianne felt as if she'd been slapped.

  “That's a rotten thing to say. I think it is Blink who has suffered the most. And you're the one who insisted you follow ME on this journey.”

  “Maybe I shouldn't have. In a multitude of ways, this adventure has left me worse for the wear. Perhaps I would have been better off if I'd just kept walking that day.”

  Radianne's heart sank further at his words.

  Henrick turned his head back toward the fire. He knew he'd hurt her but he was hurting himself by becoming so involved, and didn't know how to handle things.

  Radianne was very disappointed that he thought nothing of his choice of words or the deep impact they had on her. Perhaps she'd been wrong about the feelings she'd thought they'd shared together… she stood up, moving away from him.

  She told herself once again to remember he was a Wanderer, after all, and would be tied down to no person or place. He was a very egotistical and unstable Wanderer at that, she thought.

  She decided then and there that she should no longer waste her time pining for something that would never be. Or someone who thought so little of her.

  At that moment, she caught Thomas staring staring at her with sympathy. Embarrassed he'd heard their conversation, she returned to Blink. She lay down next to the star and turned her head away from the two men, trying to shut the thought of them out. Time with the both of them had been extremely draining.

  No sooner had she closed her eyes than she heard their loud voices bickering. Her eyes popped open and she listened.

  Thomas, apparently tired of Henrick's foul attitude, was trying to get him to open his own eyes instead of feeling sorry for himself again. Henrick of course, was objecting.

  “Just leave me alone and mind your business,” he snarled. “I know what I'm doing.”

  “Oh yeah?” Thomas countered. “It sure doesn't seem like it. Again you were almost killed by a Desert Dog, then imprisoned by the Snorgs, then blinded by sand… it sure doesn't seem like you know very much about survival in the wilderness at all. How you've managed to be a Wanderer all these years is a great mystery. And your attitude toward Radianne stinks.”

  “I'm not the one who ran off to the desert and hid away for years like a recluse,” Henrick shot back. “Like a scared little boy. And leave Radianne out of this, you don't even know her.”

  “My family was killed, I needed time to think,” Thomas said angrily.

  “My family was killed too, but I didn't hole up in some desert and just try to forget.”

  “Nah, you just turned yourself into a heartless Wanderer who thinks he knows everything but actually knows VERY LITTLE. Especially when it comes to women…”

  Radianne stood up. She'd heard enough. “I think both of you need to stop this childish behavior, right now!”

  Thomas and Henrick were both standing by that point, fists clenched at their sides.

  “No one forced you to come along with us,” Henrick said to Thomas. “You could have stayed in your cave and continued to shut out the world.”

  “And if I hadn't come along, you'd be dead.”

  “You two are ridiculous, I'm going for a walk,” Radianne announced. She turned on her heel and began to walk away into the night. The act was becoming all too familiar for her.

  “Don't do that, you don't have a map,” Henrick called out after her. “You might get lost.”

  Radianne stalked away from the bickering men. She wanted to grab Blink right then and leave them behind… maybe she would, she thought. Maybe she'd go back to the camp, pick up Blink, and tell those two good riddance. They were bringing her nothing but trouble and heartache. They only cared about themselves and their egos and not the present mission at hand.

  She fumed over how much Henrick managed to get to her. It frustrated her that she'd let him and that his words had the ability to cause such terrible reactions. He had turned everything topsy-turvy throughout their travels.

  She had gone back to rescue him and then all this had happened…

  If he was so miserable with her and Thomas, she wondered, why was he still there? Why hadn't he stayed with his sister?

  Was it all done out of boredom? Was it something Wanderers just did for fun?

  Just then, caught in the wasteland between worlds, Radianne was more confused than ever before. Where was Shondalina? How much longer would it take to find the key to Blink's freedom?

  Focus, she told herself. Her focus had to be sharp and she had to stay calm. She looked up at the stars, imagining Blink's mother was looking down at her.

  “I'm bringing your son back,” she whispered. “I promise, I will.”

  Returning Blink home was vital. Once he was safely home, she would go back to Eugladia and forget about Hen
rick and Thomas. She'd then set out again on her own to rescue the Floppersnogs. This time, it would be all on her own. She would be better prepared and knew she had gained the confidence. Even if Henrick didn't believe in her capabilities.

  She turned back to camp.

  **************

  Sometime during the night, the swelling in Henrick's eyes miraculously went down and the sand worked its way out. In the morning light, he announced that he could see again, though his vision was blurry.

  “That's good to hear,” Radianne acknowledged, politely, as she gathered Blink up in her arms. She would carry the star for the remainder of the trip, as he had no movement left in his poor little body. “With that being said, there is no time to waste,” she continued. “As you can see, though neither of you may have noticed, Blink is deteriorating quite rapidly now and we have to get to Shondalina as soon as possible. We're leaving now and we are going to find a way. With or without you.”

  Thomas and Henrick looked taken aback, but she didn't care. It wasn't about them or their hurt feelings, wounded egos. It was not about her either, and her thirst for adventure and need for change. She realized she'd been selfish, thinking and brooding about nonsense for much of the journey.

  This was about saving a life. A life that was fading in her arms. And it was her responsibility now to do what she had first set out to do and help her friend get back to where he belonged.

  She didn't look at the two men as she left. She was done caring. She just held Blink close and let her heart guide her, pulling her forward along an unknown path.

  Her eyes filled with tears as she walked. She thought again of her selfishness on the journey, always thinking of her feelings for Henrick too many times to count. Perhaps she hadn't taken Blink's predicament as seriously as she should have. At the moment, the situation was grave.

  She hoped that she'd still be able to save Blink, or she didn't know how she would ever forgive herself for not being able to fully devote her attention to him and his needs.

  So she walked. And she pressed on, even when her knees felt like they would buckle under her. She grew thirsty and tired. But she had a feeling, deep down, that she was being guided.

  She felt the despair slip away. A warm glow filled her spirit, and she knew then that it came from within. Throughout the journey, she'd slowly been transforming. The naive girl of yesterday was gone. In her place was a young woman with ambition… with purpose… with hope.

  And then, there it was. What she saw made her heart skip a beat. The desert had finally come to an end.

  A path of lush green grass stretched out just ahead, beyond a foggy cloud of sand, in a sort of winding road running into a meadow surrounded by light. Just when it felt as if she and Blink could go on no longer, she had arrived. She knew then that the sand funnel had been sent by The Creator to help speed things along, so they'd make it in time. She knew He had led her there, in the final hours.

  Tears streaming down her face, Radianne stepped forward. She walked onto the path that led into the meadow and collapsed in the soft grass, too tired to go further at the moment, even though she knew she must.

  “We've made it Blink,” she whispered. “We've made it to Shondalina.”

  -22-

  Last Hope

  R

  adianne realized that many places throughout the journey had been beautiful, but she was quite certain Shondalina had to be the most extraordinary she'd ever laid eyes on or ever would, at least outside of Heaven.

  Pale purple mountains surrounded the meadow from all angles, their peaks jutting up into beds of puffy white clouds scattered across a serene blue sky. Blades of wispy grass in all hues of green blanketed the gently undulating hills of Shondalina's countryside, which was dotted with bright and glorious smelling wildflowers.

  A river snaked its way through little valleys between and over the hills, seemingly stretching for miles beyond what the eye could see.

  And then there were the butterflies.

  These were not of the Gentle Giant variety; they were just normal, but beautiful, shimmering butterflies. There were a great number of them and they seemed to dance everywhere at once, as if in celebration of their lives and the fact they lived in such a pristine and wonderful paradise.

  Though time was of the essence, Radianne just had to sit there for a few moments and revel in the remarkable beauty of it all. As she looked down at Blink cradled in her arms, she noticed he too was taking in the lovely scenery.

  “We've finally arrived Blink,” she whispered to him again. “We've made it. You are that much closer to home now.”

  “Yes,” the feeble star said weakly. “We've finally arrived.”

  Radianne turned her head and watched as Henrick and Thomas slowly trailed in. They had apparently followed her, being sure to keep a good distance behind. She supposed she hadn't expected them to do anything else anyway, and admittedly, would have been put off if they hadn't.

  It was a wise decision on their part, she thought as she took in their guilt-ridden faces as they approached.

  As the two came forward, Thomas bent down and, in one sweeping gesture, plucked up a beautiful white flower from a cluster of the wispy green grass. Bowing, he took a few steps closer and presented it to Radianne, as if handing her a peace offering.

  “A beautiful flower, for a wise gem of a lady,” he said, blushing and suddenly seemingly shy.

  Radianne raised an eyebrow. She wanted to stay irritated with them both, but things had changed so much for the better that she could not bring herself to do so. She giggled, taking the lovely flower in her hands and sniffing its petals.

  “Thank you.”

  With a casual glance she noted that Henrick took in the exchange without a word or change of expression. His face was blank. He didn't say anything to her and she actually didn't mind. She did not want his sourness to ruin her wonderful mood.

  Besides, there was no time to waste thinking about such things. It was time to get moving.

  Though the sun shone brightly in Shondalina, the heat was not scorching hot like the desert had been. A gentle breeze blew as the group walked.

  Radianne wondered how to find the Queen of the Pegasus. She didn't have to wait long. Winged horses began to appear.

  “Look!” she said, delighted, pointing to a nearby field where the horses grazed. “Aren't they stunning?” The horses had long, silky flowing manes and glorious wings graced with various hues of the rainbow. Some of them also had foals nuzzling their sides.

  The lovely creatures looked up as the group passed, several stopping to stare and others moving in close together in a huddle as they whispered about the newcomers in their midst.

  A large blue Pegasus suddenly galloped forward, stopping the newcomers in their tracks.

  “Greetings!” the horse said. His voice held an air of nobility and authority. He wasted no further time with pleasantries and got right to the point. “I am one of the Queen's Watchers. May I ask what your business in Shondalina is?”

  “We are here to see Her Majesty,” Radianne said shyly. “On a matter of very important, private business.”

  The blue horse glanced at a few other Pegasus standing nearby. They exchanged a knowing look before he turned back and grunted his approval.

  “Of course. I will take you to her at once. All you have to do now is just climb aboard.”

  Radianne's heart pounded at the thought of meeting the Queen. She gestured to her friends and hoped she wasn't being too rude or bold.

  “If you don't mind, my friends must accompany me as well,” she said. “And, well… we can't all fit on your back…”

  “Of course.” The blue Pegasus laughed. He whinnied and two more of his stately brethren arrived on the scene, ready to cart the group off.

  He bowed down low and Radianne climbed up, holding Blink firmly tucked inside one arm and wrapping the other around the soft neck of the horse. Henrick and Thomas followed suit on the other two Pegasus. When all were
situated comfortably, the winged horses took off at a slow gallop and soon soared into the sky.

  “Whheeee,” Blink said softly as they ascended, smiling. “My, but it does feel good to be up in the air again.”

  “Soon you'll be home and back in the air permanently,” Radianne said softly. Her heart fell a little at her own words. While she indeed wanted Blink home in his rightful place and she had known all along her friend would be leaving her, she hadn't realized just how much the reality of him leaving actually hurt.

  The horses flew through the clouds for some time until they began to circle around an elegant white castle set atop an enormous expanse of solid looking cloud. The Pegasus descended with a gentle landing and then bowed down low to let the riders slide off their backs with ease.

  On one side of the marvelous castle sat a small forest of blue pine trees. Two of the winged horses immediately trotted off toward it.

  “The Queen likes to spend her days reflecting and planning in these trees,” the blue horse explained. “I will also go to her at once and tell her of your arrival.”

  Radianne, Henrick, and Thomas waited quietly on the cloud, examining their surroundings with wonder, amazed that a cloud could be as solid as the ground.

  Radianne, in particular, was so engrossed with the marvel of it that she didn't hear the small gasping sound at first. But when she finally heard it, she looked down with horror and all color drained from her face.

  Blink appeared to be choking. He stared up at her and his eyes were wide with alarm – eyes that were for the first time since she'd met him, full of extreme fear.

  “What is it Blink?!” she cried, kneeling down and gently cradling her friend in her arms.

  And then she saw. And she screamed.

  Blink's mouth had disappeared. In its place was a line of solid rock, the same sort of texture his points had transformed into.

  The only body parts he could move were his terror-filled eyes.