by K. Dzr
Chapter Twenty-Four
T H E T W E L V E
Meelix waved a final goodbye to his friends as he walked away from Rhykell, this time accompanied by Demetrius, Kraven and Alexander. He didn’t question how they were going to travel the distance without the help of dragons; he was in the company of three wizards. They had traveled the world over, time and time again, surely they had a plan. He followed them into the woods that separated Rhykell from the meadow. When they reached the riverbank, Demetrius stopped.
“This looks like a good spot,” he said. “Come Meelix, you might want to hold on to me while we tunnel travel.” He bent down and carefully scooped Meelix up in his right arm. With his left, he drew a circle that circumferentially extended from the ground to above their heads. He uttered the incantation while he repeatedly stooped and straightened up, raising his arm high as he retraced the circled. The large circle rippled. Once again, Meelix could see the terrain of the world rushing toward him within the circle. When it came to a stop, they were looking into the opening of a cave.
“Where is this?” Meelix asked.
“Iltrepidore. Our first stop, right?”
“We’re looking for Smokey?”
“We’re going to Iltrepidore to get Smokey. Just hold on.”
Demetrius stepped into the circle with Meelix holding tightly to his clothing. Instantly, they were standing at the very cave within in the circle. It was a good thing Demetrius was holding him, because just as quickly as they traveled, Meelix became dizzy. He closed his eyes and tried to shake his head clear, but that only made it worse. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Kraven and Alexander standing beside them. He swallowed hard several times in an effort to keep from throwing up. The color drained from his face.
“How are you feeling, Meelix?” Demetrius asked. “Perhaps you should sit down until it passes.”
Demetrius carefully set Meelix on the grass. He felt weak. Even sitting, he rocked back and forth and side to side, unable to keep his head up. He desperately fought with his lunch to force it to stay in his belly. He vaguely heard the voices of his friends speaking to him, but he couldn’t make out their words. They sounded so far away. His head was swimming, his eyes wouldn’t focus and, worst of all, he threw up. Kraven walked away to wait it out.
After emptying the contents of his stomach, Meelix felt better. The dizziness passed and his vision and hearing began to return to normal. He sat on the grass, still feeling light-headed, and looked up into the wizards’ concerned faces.
“From now on, I think I’ll stick to flying.”
Demetrius smiled and Alexander chuckled at the little gnome.
As soon as Meelix was able to collect himself, the four began their search for Smokey. The cave entrance was near the summit of the Elders of Fire, so Demetrius knew it would not be long until they were spotted. Alexander took his wolf form and darted through the shrubbery and rocks ahead of the others with Meelix on his back. Demetrius strolled up the mountain, taking in the blurry silhouettes and smells of the island. He enjoyed nature, and observing the interaction between creatures and their habitat. Nowadays, he relied more on his memory of how things looked rather than what his eyes told him. Kraven, on the other hand, hated getting dirty or doing anything physical. He soon abandoned the climbing and used his magic to ascend the mountain, floating above the black, rocky terrain.
“I shall alert the Elders of your coming, Teacher,” he called down to Demetrius.
“Very well, Kraven.”
Meelix watched Kraven in amazement as he flew without wings up the mountain.
“Wow, Alexander! I have only been in your company for a few hours and I feel I am in a new world. There is so much that I don’t know, that I never even knew was possible. I can’t wait to see what else happens!”
“My small friend, by acknowledging your ignorance, you have attained true wisdom.”
Meelix smiled to himself, honored to receive a compliment from someone like Alexander. He must try extra hard not to disappoint him.
As expected, Kraven was soon greeted by one of the elder Dracara. He explained his business on the island and inquired about the young Dracara who arrived the previous day. The Dracara left to find Darios and Ellic. Moments later, Darios descended the mountain with Ellic following behind.
“Smokey!” Meelix leapt down from Alexander’s back and ran to greet his friend. “Smokey, we came back for you!”
“Meelix, I learned who I am!” she shouted, temporarily forgetting about her new gait. Smokey jumped and danced around Meelix. “I’m a leviathan, see my fins…and webbed feet and oh, I have magic in my blood. Meelix there’s so much that I’ve learned!”
“Me too! See, these are the wizards I had to go find. They can do all sorts of magic! It’s amazing!”
Darios watched his small pupil reunite with her friend while he waited for Demetrius to finish his climb.
“Demetrius, there have been many visitors to my island lately. Why do I sense this is your doing?”
“It is of my doing, my friend. You know as I do, the hour grows near. The catalyst has been set in motion.”
“It is years, decades even, too soon. Are you certain the time is at hand?”
“It would appear that dark magic is at work.”
“So the spell on the fox cub was successful? Is Xanderick aware of this?” Darios asked.
“Not to my knowledge; I’d like to wait until I have more information before contacting him.”
“Why wait? We should notify him immediately.”
“I do not have enough to tell. I’m not sure how much time we have, assuming the catalyst was tripped at the proper time; we should have at least a year.”
“Those magicians are already causing quite a bit of trouble, from what I understand. And if the spell has been tampered with, how do we know the catalyst has been tripped at the proper time?”
“They are still keeping their affairs relatively secret. They are, for the most part, still coherent; one of my chosen was able to communicate with them. I intend to return to England, where I will do some investigating, and then I will inform Xanderick of all I know.”
“Two days, Demetrius. If I do not hear word from you in two days’ time, I will speak to Xanderick myself. I would hate to think that your hesitation would result in disaster.”
By now, Meelix and Smokey silenced their chatter to listen to the intense conversation. Meelix had no idea what was going on, but he sensed that his adventure was turning out to be more than he imagined. Kraven on the other hand was well aware of what was going on, but it was not his place to speak out during such important meetings. Alexander remained in his wolf form and as usual, allowed Demetrius to speak for them both.
“Very well, Darios. In two days you will know all that I know.”
“Agreed.” Darios turned and walked away, leaving Ellic feeling somewhat abandoned.
“Meelix, do you feel you can tunnel travel again?” Alexander asked.
“Well…I will…if I must,” Meelix replied.
“I assure you it gets easier each time, but if you are not comfortable, we can fly back to England,”
“What is tunnel travel?” Ellic asked.
“Oh, it’s amazing! But it’s horrible, too,” Meelix tried to explain. “You can go anywhere, faster than a blink of the eye, but it makes you so dizzy and nauseous.”
“It will be much better this time Meelix, and it may not be so bad for Smokey. Dracara are not as negatively affected as most other creatures because of their strong ties to magic,” Demetrius explained as he drew the familiar circle in the air. When he finished, they were looking at the castle doors.
“Everyone ready? Meelix, hold on to me again. Smokey, stay close.”
Meelix climbed up Demetrius’ cloak and into his arms. He held on tightly, closed his eyes, and buried his face in Demetrius’ chest. In the blink of an eye, they whooshed miles away as the portal closed behind them.