Made of Magic and True Grit

by Landry-Daniel Lié

  “We are fairies!” Pinly shouted as he charged again, his sword met the giant's fist and broke in an almost deafening ringing, but Pinly was fast to conjure another one and launched at the giant again.

  “You call yourselves fairies! You are weak” Pinly's fingers were tightly wrapped around the sword as he listened to the giant “I am doing you a favour here, I don't know what you want to do in Mendy but you will not last a day in there, fairies are strong and ruthless in Mendy, not your weak kind”

  “I don't care!” Pinly shouted “This is the only place where I can get some kind of answer to find my brother and I will die right here before I turn back” he said. Vince stayed quiet.

  “Your brother?” the giant asked

  “Yes my brother! But I wouldn't expect you to understand that” Pinly did not cry this time as he spoke about his brother. He had to be strong. He understood that better than ever now. Mendy was not a place for the weak and he was determined to get there whatever the cost.

  “Look, this all got out of hand” Vince stepped between the giant and Pinly “We were sent by Miss Poli you may know her as Polina? She’s a mage” Vince said, the giant stayed quiet for a while

  “I haven't heard the name in a thousand years... Why is Polina sending two children to such a place alone?” The stony giant said, Miss Poli's name seemed to be the key to get into Mendy, she seemed even more notorious than she let on

  “She didn’t have a choice, these other wizards came for her so she had to let us go… We’re supposed to wait for her inside” the giant’s head turned to Pinly

  “You said you are looking for your brother?”

  “Yes”

  “Who took him?”

  “An army of skulls and leprechauns and giants like you…”

  “You will not find your brother here” the giant said. Pinly's heart sank in disappointment

  “Where is he? Where do I have to go?” He said softly

  “Your brother is in another magical country, a place you should stay far away from until you are strong enough”

  “You don't understand, I have to go!” Pinly raised his voice “just tell me please” he begged

  “Perhaps it is better if you wait for the great mage” the giant stepped aside “You are free to go to Mendy and look for help whilst you do so”

  “Thank you” Vince said then changed form. Pinly hesitated. What was the point of going into Mendy if Lion wasn't in there? He would be wasting so much more time. But Mendy was his only option now and he knew that the giant wasn't telling him everything. So Pinly followed Vince, stepping out of Fiby and into Mendy.

  Chapter 26

  Mendy

  A s soon as they stepped into Mendy, Pinly had to shield his eyes with his hand to protect them from an overwhelming sun. It showered him with hot rays. He had never felt so hot in his life and it wasn’t long until his clothes were wet with sweat. A strong smell of vegetation, moisture and soil engulfed him. The sound of an endless number of chirping crickets resonated all around him, louder than the sound of the gentle waterfall beside them.

  When he got over the weather, Pinly noticed the utter disbelief on Vince's face, and when he turned to look around, his face froze the exact same way. In front of them, green pastures spread as far as the eyes could see; hills high and low and trees were scattered all around. They stood on top of a high cliff. A waterfall emptied into a long, winding river. It split the landscape in half. Above their heads, a flock of blue and white birds beat their wings gracefully, dragging their long legs behind them. Pinly had never seen such birds; they were even bigger than the birds that lived in the treetops of the forest where they had been training. The boys looked at each other, they didn't have to speak; they knew what the other thought.

  “We made it!”

  They both ran and jumped off the waterfall. It reminded Pinly of the game Lion and his friends played so often, the game he had done everything to avoid back then, but he was so confident in his flying skills now that he had dived off without even thinking about it. Pinly let himself fall until he was just inches off the water, then stopped and hung in the air. He would have loved for his brother to see that.

  “What are you doing? Hurry up!” He heard Vince's fading voice as his friend flew ahead. Pinly flew after him. It was only then that he realised some of the trees had funny shapes. Some were twisted, others were bent, and some even grew on the ground, their long trunks stretched around like great snakes. He saw an actual snake resting on a branch, its scales gleaming a very bright red. He had never thought snakes could be so beautiful. There were animals drinking by the river. Familiar animals but with features he had never seen before.

  He and Vince nodded to each other, agreeing to approach a herd of deer. Where their tails would normally be was a bulb; it opened and closed, revealing a beautiful lotus like flower. Pinly advanced cautiously, trying not to scare them away. A doe raised her head and looked at the boys before slowly approaching Pinly. The other deer had seen the boys too but did back away. Most of them just ignored them. They kept drinking as if the two fairies were part of the herd. Pinly landed on the ground and the doe approached even closer. She put her head on his chest as if asking for a hug. Pinly gladly closed his arms gently around her neck. Her fur was soft and warm. He felt Vince tapping on his shoulder.

  “Look,” Vince whispered. A stag stood tall in front of them. He must have been at least two meters high, and was by far the most impressive and beautiful thing Pinly had ever seen. The deer's antlers were made out of coloured crystals, a crown worthy of gods.

  The deer approached, his nostrils flaring at the two boys. Vince couldn't help but touch the precious antlers.

  “Careful,” Pinly whispered.

  The sun hit the crystals and they reflected like a rainbow on Pinly’s shirt. He felt Vince's hand tapping on his shoulder for attention again.

  “Look,” he said. Something else seemed to have taken his breath away.

  Pinly looked behind the majestic deer to find more stags, smaller ones, all with precious antlers; one's set was made out of white pearls, another was a mix of gold and silver and another one diamonds. Pinly could not believe what he was looking at until Vince pinched him.

  “Ouch,” he complained.

  “Sorry. I needed to make sure it wasn't a dream,” Vince said.

  “Then pinch yourself,” Pinly said, rubbing the sting away, but Vince was already gone; something had caught his attention once more. He was walking towards a family of blazing foxes just a few meters away from the deer. Pinly's heart stopped when he saw them; they reminded him of the two foxes Lion had adopted back home. Vince approached with a gentle hand out to caress the babies. They seemed excited and just like sun and moon their tales caught fire as they wiggled. Vince immediately removed his hand.

  “It doesn't burn,” Pinly said as he picked one up and held it close to his heart. The parents went to the water to drink, leaving the babies in the boys' care.

  “Why do all the animals trust us like this?” Vince asked. Pinly shrugged.

  “Maybe because this is Mendy, fairy country, and we're fairies.” Pinly put the baby fox on the ground and it ran to join its parents and sibling by the water.

  Soon,the boys were surrounded by more and more animals of different species, all gathering by the river to drink. Two of the stag approached the boys again, the one with the crystal antlers and the one with the gold and silver ones. The majestic mammals lowered their bodies close to the ground

  “I think they want us to ride them,” Vince said.

  “Ride them? Are you sure?” Pinly had never done that before; the closest he had been to riding anything was when Lion let him climb on his back.

  “Yes, hop on its back,” Vince said as he grabbed hold of the golden antlers and passed a leg over the deer's body, which instantly straightened up.

  Pinly hesitated, his hands carefully gripping the precious antlers. They felt a lot more robust than they looked. He raise
d a shy leg over the stag, then gently sat down on the fur of its soft and warm back. The deer stood tall again and before they knew, they were galloping with the whole herd alongside the river. Pinly marvelled at the beauty of Mendy, the strange yet beautiful animals, like the warthog that joined them galloping right alongside them Pinly passed his hand through its long, silky black mane. He wanted to stop and have a closer look at the huge white tusks, which had beautiful carvings on them, but before he could, the entire herd turned left into a small and colourful wood. There were flowering trees everywhere, blue, pink, yellow, red. The herd stopped at a small, clear pond in the middle of the forest.

  “That was amazing!” Pinly celebrated.

  “I still can't believe we're here!” Vince said. Pinly ran and plunged headfirst into the pond. Vince followed. They began splashing water and fake drowning each other. The boys played until they were tired and Pinly's belly began to rumble. When he came out of the water, the herd was still there looking at them. Some lay on the ground, others just grazed. Pinly was both happy and anxious. Yes Mendy was beautiful, yes it was beyond anything he’d imagine it could be, but it was also daunting and overwhelming. He had seen more strange animals and plants in the few minutes he had been in Mendy than in his whole life.

  “Why do you think they like fairies so much?” Vince said as he came out of the pond. “I mean, I know we're fairies, but animals are scared of humans back in Fiby and they definitely don't let them ride on their backs.”

  “I don't know. They obviously have a different relationship with animals here, and these animals are definitely not ordinary.” Pinly gently ran a hand over the cold, pearly antlers of one stag. He still couldn't believe it. “Just look at them…” he murmured in awe, “I think we have to forget everything we know and take this all in…”

  “Yes, but we can't stay here forever, though. We need to find fairies willing to help us.”

  “We don't even know where to start looking.” Vince sighed. “This place could be bigger than our country. It could take days, even weeks before we meet a fairy and they might not even be able to help... Maybe the deer could help.”

  “What about him?” Pinly said, breaking his silence. Vince turned around.

  A boy around their age floated just above the water. He pushed strands of curly black hair away from his face, revealing a mask of bright red and black paint that stopped just below his nose. He only wore a red cloth around his waist that stopped mid-thigh, but most importantly: shiny black wings! They were big, oversized even. They moved like a graceful bird of prey as the boy beat them through the air to stay above the water.

  “Bami!” the boy shouted and pointed an angry finger to his left. All the animals rose to their feet and galloped away, as he seemed to have ordered. He frowned at the boys, the look on his face as confused as it was furious. “Lêplêaneu piclilé?” the boy said.

  Pinly and Vince looked at each other. Vince shrugged.

  “Lêplêaneu piclilé?” the boy repeated.

  “We don't understand,” Pinly said.

  “What are you doing here?” the boy shouted.

  “We don't want any trouble, calm down,” Vince said. The boy stared at him, his frown deepening. “My name is Vince and this is my brother, Pinly,” he said, gesturing at himself and then Pinly. “Can I ask you what your name is?”

  “You will not live to remember my name.”

  “We said we didn't want any trouble.” Pinly stepped forward. “We're fairies just like you…”

  “Fairies? Without wings?” The boy looked as though he had been insulted.

  Vince changed into his fairy form, which seemed to have shocked the boy. He flew backwards.

  “Wizards,” he said before charging at them. His great wings lifted a small storm. He struck Pinly, who went crashing against a tree. It hurt him more than any hit he had ever received. He watched through blurry vision as Vince unsuccessfully tried to strike the boy. Even though he was as fast as ever, the boy intercepted every attack. He then beat his massive wings once, the wind they produced sent Vince crashing into the water.

  The humming fairy rose back out, his fist ready to strike at the boy's head, but before he could land a punch, the boy elbowed him in the face, then struck him with his left wing. Vince went spiralling against a tree, then fell on the ground. His body lay there, unconscious, his face dripping with blood.

  “No!” Pinly charged at the boy. He summoned powerful white light in his palm and flew towards the boy. He easily caught Pinly by the wrist. His expression let Pinly know that it had been a close call; it changed from a frown to a relieved face. Pinly attempted to kick the boy, but missed and instead managed to break free. He conjured his sword and swung left and right, but his attacks were too slow to land, he had no advantage against the winged fairy whatsoever. The boy blocked and dodged everything, then finally grabbed Pinly by the neck. The pain made Pinly drop the sword, which sank to the bottom of the pond.

  The strong fingers around his neck blocked the air from coming in and out of Pinly's body. He hit the boy and clawed at his hand unsuccessfully. He heaved as his vision blurred, all strength left his body, he wasn’t completely unconscious yet when the boy tossed his body to the ground like it was nothing.

  Chapter 27

  Bonhill

  P inly woke up to the harsh sensation of ropes tightly wrapped around him. His body gently rocked back and forth in the air, suspended upside down. The landscape moved around him as they moved forward. A strong grip seemed to be holding on to his feet. Pinly painfully cleared his throat. It still hurt as if his attacker’s fingers were still clutched around his neck. When he looked around, he saw to his left that Vince was dangling upside down, too, but still unconscious.

  “Vince!” Pinly called as he wiggled to break free.

  Pinly could see the boy who attacked them was flying ahead, which meant someone else was holding them. That's when he realised. Bulky legs and arms made out of rock. Just like the giant Pinly thought. Big and small boulders attached together to form a human figure, but this one was much smaller and it didn't have a mouth, just holes for eyes, white light shone out of them too.

  “Golem, drop them,” the winged boy said without even looking back. The golem did as it was told. Pinly's head hit the ground harder than he expected, but he was more worried about Vince, who didn’t show any signs of life.

  “Hey! Be careful!” Pinly shouted.

  The golem looked at him. There was no way to tell what it thought, as it didn't have any expression. “What are you looking at?” Pinly snarled.

  The golem stooped down and seemed to be examining him very closely.

  “Get away from me.” Pinly tried to roll away from the creature.

  Although the Golem was his enemy, Pinly couldn't help but feel that this golem was harmless. Maybe it was just in the way it moved; slowly and gently. One thing was for sure, the golem did the boy's bidding.

  “Where are you taking us?” Pinly asked, but the boy continued to ignore him. He beat his wings once and rose high enough to pick a yellow fruit from a tree with purple leaves and a twisted trunk. The boy sat against the tree, resting comfortably on his enormous wings.

  “Where are you taking us?” Pinly persisted, but this time he didn't wait for a reply because as soon as he finished talking, Vince began to cough. “Vince, are you okay?”

  Vince kept coughing and gasping for air.

  “The ropes are too tight, do something!” Pinly shouted, but the boy continued ignoring him, taking big bites out of his fruit.

  “It hurts…” Vince moaned softly.

  “You'll be alright, hang in there,” Pinly said, not sure he was telling the truth. Who knew what was going to happen to them?

  “My body hurts,” Vince repeated in a whisper.

  “Help him!” Pinly demanded. The boy stood up, finished his fruit, tossed whatever was left of it and began to walk away, his great wings dragging behind him.

  “Golem.” The bo
y beckoned. The creature effortlessly picked Pinly and Vince up then followed after its master. Pinly couldn’t tell how long he had been unconscious but they weren’t in the forest anymore. They were now surrounded by fenced hills. They walked through a field packed with goats with a light blue coat before arriving at the bottom of a very high cliff. Pinly tried to stretch his neck but couldn't see the end of it.

  “Golem, go.” The boy flicked his hand. The golem let go of the boys and crumbled into a pile of rubble, as if it had never existed. The masked boy finally looked at Pinly for the first time since he had awakened.

  Pinly glared at him. “Are you going to say anything?”

  The boy approached and leaned in. Pinly squeezed his eyes shut, thinking he was going to get hit again, but he just felt the boy’s fingers slide through the ropes as he took hold of them. Pinly’s body left the ground; he opened his eyes and saw the great wings spread out as if to gather enough strength to fly up while carrying the weight of two extra people. Then the wings struck the air like thunder and Pinly felt himself lifted at a speed he had never flown at. It was almost unbearable to be under such pressure. He couldn't see or hear anything until they landed, but what a view it was.

  As soon as the winged boy landed on top of the cliff, he dropped Pinly and Vince. The ground was softer this time; Pinly felt himself resting on cool grass. There was a much welcomed cool breeze. It felt good, but Pinly's mind was quickly taken off the breeze when he realised what was in front of him. Up above, scattered all around the sky, were massive floating islands. The winged boy stretched and picked up Vince and Pinly again, flying them up to the first island. Pinly could not believe his eyes. How did they manage this? Never had he even dreamed of such a thing. And the wonders did not stop there; when they landed on the island itself he saw tall pyramids and even taller trees scattered around, fairies flying in and out of them. On the ground, there were colourful farms, buzzing with life of all sorts.