Escape Vo'Arum

by Nicole MacDonald

  Mila blinked the motion heavy and difficult. ‘Y-yes.’

  ‘Can you find the nightmare?’

  Papa helped her sit up. The spinning slowed, and the room came back into view, Mama and Nanny watched her anxiously.

  ‘What?’ Mila couldn’t make sense of the question, the ringing in her ears passing, leaving the room sharp in its quietness.

  ‘The nightmare, can you remember the nightmare? Focus, Lea. See if you can find it.’

  Mila closed her eyes and tried to let her mind wander. It didn’t want to come. She wrinkled her forehead, lips twisted in a scowl and tried harder.

  A soft touch on her shoulder made her eyes open. Mama smiled at her.

  ‘Not there?’

  Shocked, Mila shook her head. ‘No, Mama.’

  ‘Good. We won’t let that bother you anymore. Now, you and Nanny get to sleep.’ Mama kissed Mila’s forehead and Papa helped her under the covers. Both parents smiled down at her, smiles wide.

  ‘Sleep well, darling.’

  They left the room, closing the door and pulled to make the latch click.

  Nanny fussed around the room, getting changed to her nightgown and turned the glow lamp down to the softest touch of green and climbed into bed.

  ‘Sleep well, Mila,’ she said.

  ‘Sleep well, Nanny!’

  Mila lay staring at the ceiling.

  Something about her parents’ smiles felt strange.

  Knowing she shouldn’t, Mila relaxed her mind. It made her body lovely and heavy, sleep beckoning at the edges of her mind.

  It didn’t look right for a dream.

  Mama’s voice popped into her mind, Mila tensing, ears prickling.

  No, Papa agreed. It looked wrong.

  But if it was real…

  First things first. What’s our next step? Papa didn’t sound scared, his voice stern in Mila’s mind.

  I think I should speak to my parents, show it to them. We can’t make any accusations unless we’re absolutely certain.

  Good. Take the wryderon charm.

  Oh I shouldn’t need that! It’s just down the hall.

  Take it. I’m going to put the bolt in place once you leave. Mila sensed Papa stand and go to the cabinet that held all the food dishes. She felt him reach behind, rummaging then withdraw a long thin piece of wood.

  Mila recognized the piece in an instant. A special bolt embedded with crystals. She’d found it there once and Papa had sat her on his knee.

  ‘It’s to protect us, Mila. If you ever fear for your life you put this across the door, it will stop anyone from entering.’

  Really, Zayck, if we need that then we’re in trouble. We’re just trying to understand something. Let’s not fuss.

  Papa ignored Mama, Mila sensing the bolt in his hand as he walked to the door. I would rather be over protective of my family.

  Zayck, Mama hesitated. Should we be worried?

  Papa didn’t answer, busy with lifting the bolt in place so it stopped the door being opened. In the light of the glow lamps the crystals sparkled, winking at Mila. He turned to look at Mama, his face serious.

  I hope not. If that was just a nightmare then all well and good. If it wasn’t, however. Papa stopped and rubbed his hands over his face.

  In bed Mila’s body grew cold, that twisting in her stomach causing lines of pain to run through her, face prickling.

  It HAD to have been a nightmare.

  Mama nodded, the sense of motion adding to the general queasiness spreading through Mila. She stood.

  I’ll go see my parents. They’ll have an idea of what to do next.

  Papa held out the charm and Mama reached for it, holding Papa’s hands in hers.

  Be careful, Papa said quietly to her.

  Stuck there between her mind and theirs, Mila struggled to pull back to her own body. Mama couldn’t leave it felt wrong it wasn’t safe! Her body didn’t want to respond. Mila worked harder, trying to get her fingers to twitch.

  ‘Mila, lovey what’s wrong?’ Nanny’s voice broke through the state. Mila jerked awake, her face damp with sweat as she panted in relief.

  ‘I couldn’t move!’

  ‘Oh shush, it was a dream.’ Nanny stooped to sit beside her, gathering her up in a tight hug that Mila struggled against.

  ‘No Nanny! My nightmare, it WAS a nightmare?’

  Nanny pulled back from the hug and stared at Mila. She opened her mouth to answer when a loud repetitive sound drummed out. Loud sharp cracks of something against wood.

  Nanny stiffened, eyes wide, seeing beyond Mila for a second before she twisted, blocking Mila’s view of the bedroom door.

  The sound happened again. Mila stared in bewilderment at Nanny before the sounds connected in her mind.

  Someone knocked on the door to their quarters.

  Chapter Nine

  ‘Hello, Mestarns? Anyone in?’ Uncle Vidna’s voice carried through to the bedroom with an odd joyful tone. Mila clutched at Nanny’s sleeve when she turned her head toward the door.

  ‘NO!’ The whisper came out louder than she intended.

  ‘Good evening, Vidna. Is something amiss?’ Papa sounded calm, voice easy.

  ‘We thought we might chat to young Mila.’

  Mila jammed into Nanny’s arms at that voice, the other DeNaga uncle from her nightmare.

  ‘He.. he was in my dream to-o,’ Mila said, stuttering the words. ‘He ke-kept watch.’

  Nanny didn’t say anything but gathered Mila close.

  An explosion rang out.

  Mila pressed tight against Nanny, hands gripping the soft fabric of Nanny’s nightgown.

  ‘Vidna!’ Papa shouted through the door. ‘What are you doing!?’

  ‘Ask your lovely daughter!’ Uncle Vidna replied in that odd cheerful tone.

  Another blast rang out, loud enough to rock the walls.

  ‘Not a dream, not a dream!’ Mila shrieked, yanking on Nanny’s nightgown.

  The bedroom door burst open. Nanny flattened herself to the bed over the top of Mila while turning her head to see who entered. A shudder ran through her.

  ‘Thank the goddess!’

  ‘No time,’ said Mama in a brusque tone. ‘Quick, the trapdoor!’

  Nanny lifted Mila off her and hurried to help Mama. Mila stared in fascination as the two women heaved at her bed, pushing it across the room.

  There where her bed had sat was a large square wrought-iron gate set into the floor.

  It looked just like the manhole!

  Mama dropped to her knees next to it, seizing the iron ring handle with both hands and pulling back. When it didn’t budge she bent forward to examine it then twisted, shouting. ‘Zayck! THE KEY?!’

  A string of curses rang out from the other room when another CRACK of energy struck the door, sharper than the last one. Nanny leapt onto the bed beside Mila, snatching her close.

  Papa rushed through the bedroom door. ‘What? Can’t you find it?’

  ‘Where’d we put it?’ Mama demanded, ripping items from Mila’s closet, hunting through the shelves.

  ‘I’ll check our bedroom.’ Papa hurried from the room.

  Nanny and Mila sat clutching each other, bodies tense when another bolt rang out.

  An ominous splintering CRACK made Nanny gasp.

  In the midst of searching Mama froze. ‘ZAYCK!’

  ‘HURRY! We’ve got to find it!’ Papa’s voice rang out from the other room along with the solid clattering of wood on wood as he yanked drawers from dressers, searching.

  ‘Nanny, you keep looking in here. I’m going to search the kitchen.’ Mama left the room so fast her long skirts still spun in the opposite direction.

  Nanny set Mila on the bed, rushing for the closet Mama had gone through. She yanked items from the shelves, piling them high on Mila’s bed where it sat sprawled across the room.

  Hums of energy rang in Mila’s mind, the familiar sounds of Mama and Papa, but the urgency behind them was something Mila hadn’t heard
in a long time.

  The last time had been when she’d got lost in the tangled mass of forest behind the Manor Lodge. The ringing anxiety in the hums as her parents had searched for her then sounded similar to the anxiety now, fear and anger pulsing through.

  Mila bounced where she sat on the bed unable to sit still any longer. With Nanny preoccupied in the closet Mila scooted off the bed and over to the iron gate in the floor.

  Another wood splintering CRACK reverberated through the quarters. In the closet Nanny flinched, turning to look. Mila sat tense on the floor, hands squeezed tight. Papa’s energy hummed stronger in her mind, almost as if he created a special cover to go over them all. It blocked a little of the hard sharp sound of Uncle Vidna’s energy from her mind.

  In the kitchen Mama shouted something to Papa who yelled back. Nanny resumed her searching, muttering under her breath.

  Mila turned back to the wrought iron cover, gently running her hands over it while relaxing her mind.

  A sharp quick SNAP of energy made her jerk back.

  ‘MILA!’ Mama yelped feet thudding before she appeared at the door. ‘Are you okay? What was that?’

  Shocked, mind stinging like she’d been slapped, Mila went to point at the trap-door when the loudest CRACK yet shook the walls.

  ‘Oh goddess!’ Mama uttered it like a prayer before meeting Nanny’s eyes, Mila watched them both. Silence stretched after that ear aching sound, Mama stared blankly ahead mouth moving. Mila couldn’t sense her energy so wondered who she spoke too. As if sensing Mila’s gaze, Mama shook her head a quick sharp shake before staring at Nanny. ‘Pack a bag for you and Mila. Just enough.’

  ‘Oh no,’ Nanny said, her face sagging into lines Mila didn’t recognize as her always cheery Nanny.

  Mama nodded, mouth a hard line then left the room.

  Chapter Ten

  Mila stared at the open door, chest tight. She turned and regarded Nanny, noting the older woman’s unnatural gray tone to her skin and the pronounced lines.

  ‘Why a bag, Nanny?’

  Nanny jolted, looking down at Mila where she sat next to the trap-door.

  ‘Mila! Oh darling.’ Nanny crouched down next to her and hugged her tight. She pulled back, staring at Mila, her gold-brown eyes sunk in those tired lines. ‘We know it wasn’t a nightmare. I’m so sorry we didn’t believe you, little one. But you understand how strange this is.’ She gave Mila another tight hug and released her, pushing to standing. ‘Now! What to pack.’

  Mila wasn’t sure what to say confused and bewildered at the words and events.

  ‘Zayck! Anything?’

  A sudden sharp piercing CRACK rang out, making Mila shriek, hands over ears.

  ‘THE DOOR!’ Mama’s voice roared out a moment before Papa’s energy hummed even louder in Mila’s mind.

  Uttering prayers under her breath, Nanny’s hands flew as she flicked through clothing, selecting pieces that would pack small. With deft motions she rolled each piece, packing it into one of the old rucksacks Papa had stored in the cupboard. She’d had to tip out all the toys and mementos Mila had stored in them. A small polished sphere of crystal rolled across the floor. As it rolled past Mila another CRACK rang out and the crystal sphere shattered.

  ‘MILA!’ Nanny rushed to scoop her off the floor, face pale. ‘Are you okay? What happened?’

  ‘The crystal,’ Mila managed to say, her ears ringing. ‘It broke!’

  ‘Okay?’ Papa’s shout sounded close.

  ‘Yes!’ Nanny shouted back before looking her over again. ‘Be careful. Just sit there, I’m nearly finished.’

  She sounded breathless as she set Mila back beside the trapdoor.

  Head woozy from the sharp noise, mind wondering how it happened, Mila leant back against the door.

  It hummed beneath her hands. The pile of shattered crystal beside the trap-door vibrated across the floor with the hum and dissolved into tiny pieces, looking like sand.

  Mila pondered that, wondering something.

  What if the door had been protected? That would be why Mama didn’t use her energy on it. Maybe the crystal broke the protection?

  Mila twisted to stare down at the trapdoor, remembering the nasty snap of energy it gave her before glancing Nanny’s way. The woman still packed at a frantic pace, not watching.

  ‘Oh NO!’

  Mama’s cry of despair made them both turn. Mila pushed to her feet, bare feet padding across the cold floor. She reached the door as Nanny did, the woman placing a hand on her shoulder preventing her going any further.

  ‘Wait, little one,’ Nanny cautioned.

  They glimpsed Mama through their angled view into the kitchen. She stood by the table, body shaking and tears streaming down the hands pressed to her face. She looked at someone, at Papa, Mila realized able to make out his shirt.

  Mama shook her head at Papa.

  ‘Try someone else. We have to warn them all. We have to try!’ Papa’s voice carried to them.

  Mama nodded, closing her eyes and letting her arms fall to her sides. A moment later the hum of her energy rang through Mila’s mind, like it did when she called her.

  ‘She’s calling to people,’ Mila said to Nanny, knowing she couldn’t hear the sound.

  Nanny nodded and pulled Mila back into the bedroom, pointing for her to go back to the trap-door while she continued packing.

  Papa rushed past the bedroom door, clutching items. Mila heard it as he dumped the items onto the kitchen table.

  ‘Dan’iss!’ Papa called Mama’s name. ‘Switch!’

  Mila listened, mind reaching to try and see what they did. She felt it as Mama’s energy seemed to draw back, Papa’s layering over it. Another hum rumbled through her mind, this time Papa calling out to people. None of it came through clear enough for Mila to understand.

  Frustrated, stomach aching Mila again turned her attention to the door.

  With tentative hands she reached out. A shudder of relief ran through her when her hands pressed against the iron with nothing striking her mind. It sounded clear, like the manhole cover she’d opened did. Mila closed her eyes and let her thoughts flow, watching the puzzle appear in her mind. She sucked her breath in at the bizarre shapes - it didn’t look like any of the puzzles she’d solved before.

  In her mind’s eye she saw five separate circles, floating, held together by tendrils of light. The normal solid puzzle pieces didn’t exist!

  She studied the pieces as they slowly rotated at different speeds. Mila visualized reaching out with her hands and followed the cycle of the first circle. It had varying edges and random looking slots. In her mind she went over and over it, careful not to disturb its rotation. The random slots had her stumped. She saw they would move, shift and click, but she couldn’t see which way to make them move.

  A tiny notch on the outer edge caught her attention.

  Mind stuck on that notch, Mila chewed on her cheek and followed the fine line that moved out.

  Oo, that might be it!

  Using the tip of a finger Mila hooked that notch then tugged it ever so gently against the rotation of the circle. The notch, stiff at first, shifted in a smooth motion that made Mila jump then freeze.

  Heart in mouth, Mila stared as the circle spun, sparks of light flicking out faster and faster until the circle shone white.

  A snap sound echoed in her mind.

  The circle stood still. Now it looked like a piece of bronze etched with lines. Behind it the four circles still moved at their own stately paces.

  Heart thudding in excitement, Mila started on the next circle.

  Each time she found the starting point and dragged it around the spinning would begin. Now four of the five circles hung in her mind, not moving, still linked by those wispy tendrils of light.

  She gave up chewing on her cheek when she tasted blood, instead Mila pleated her skirt in her fingers as her eyes saw nothing but the final puzzle piece hanging in her mind. The starting point wasn’t as easy to find. She’d
gone over and around it three times now but nothing yet caught her attention.

  In the back of her mind, the conscious part, she could hear Nanny still packed, Mama and Papa diverted their gifts between defending the door and calling out to other Mestarns in warning.

  The tiniest twinkle caught her attention.

  Mind alight with excitement Mila reached out, keeping the tiny indent in sight. As light as a feather she let the circle keep its rotation going until she made certain which way it worked. When it rounded to the top she gave the indent a sharp tug, pulling it down to the center of the circle. The circle spun faster, flicking out gold light this time, and the light bounced off the other circles, starting them all spinning. Mila pulled her mind back from the puzzle, the spinning making her head hurt.

  Blinking, eyes watering, Mila stared at the iron gate.

  A soft whirring sound, so quiet Nanny didn’t hear, hummed through the metal as Mila rested her hands on it.

  CLICK!

  ‘Mila! You can take one, which do you want?’

  Mila jerked around to find Nanny staring at her, crocheted toys in her hands.

  ‘Ayla!’ Mila said after a moment’s hesitation, sure she was about to be told off.

  Nanny nodded, tucking the toy in before staring around the room with searching eyes. Mila’s shoulders sagged in relief when the older woman’s eyes went back to the pack before she marched to the door, twisting to point at Mila. ‘Don’t move! Dan’iss? What do you have, should I do one for you two?’

  Mila listened as Nanny and Mama shouted back and forth and cringed at another wood splintering CRACK.

  Papa’s shield over the door wavered.

  It spurred Mila on. Turning back to the trap-door, she grabbed the heavy iron ring in both hands and pushed to her feet. With all the strength she could muster, Mila hauled back, her full body weight behind her.

  With a faint metallic groan the trap-door lifted. Mila kept pulling, leaning back as hard as possible.

  WHOOSH!

  The door swung wide, the motion flinging Mila onto her back, head connecting with the floor. ‘OW!’

  Mila clung to her head as tears ran down her cheeks. She sat up and rocked on the spot, waiting for the pounding pain to pass. It faded as she realized the trapdoor lay open.