by B. C. Harris
Once again, I find myself holding hands with Drew and Jamie as we get into a circle. I notice that Jasmin manages to find Drew. For the first time, I see that Michael is on the other side of Jasmin. Has he held Jasmin’s hand every time we formed a circle? Opposite me, I see Radwin and Frank as part of our circle. I guess that Squirt must be in Frank’s pouch.
A huge explosion rocks the ground beneath my feet. The intensity of the light is much greater than we have experienced so far.
Before I manage to get ready, a beam of light strikes me. Then another beam hits me in the same place, then another and another. I cry out, “Stop! Please stop!”
I open my eyes in fear.
Suddenly Jamie throws himself over me and shouts, “Strike me! Leave her alone.”
The terrifying lights explode against Jamie. One beam after another smashes into him. I almost pass out from the punishment he is suffering.
The relentless attack finally stops.
“Sixty seconds,” Michael whispers under his breath as though he’s hesitant to say anything.
Everyone looks at Jamie who slowly rolls off me. His clothes are ripped apart, burn holes everywhere. There are blisters from the piercing lights all over his body.
“It’s over,” Michael says to Jamie, even though Jamie isn’t moving.
The pain in my legs quickly vanishes as my admiration for what Jamie did fills my heart. He risked his life to save mine.
I kneel down beside Jamie to see how he is doing.
Radwin breaks the momentary trance that we have lapsed into. “We’ve got to keep moving before the light beams come back again. We’re almost out of the jungle.”
“Let’s go,” I say with conviction.
Michael and Jasmin help Jamie to his feet. I grab the backpack.
“Let’s make it this time.”
“Go, go, go,” Squirt repeats as he peeks out from Frank’s pouch.
Jamie can barely stand. He’s barely conscious.
We begin once again to fight our way through the tangled vines and trees. Michael and Jasmin are dragging Jamie.
“One minute,” Michael informs us.
We have one minute to get to the edge of the jungle. If we don’t make it, Jamie will be defenseless against the next attack. He will never survive. I wonder what will happen if we make it to the edge of the jungle and the attacks from the light beams don’t stop.
“Faster!” I shout. “We’ve got to get Jamie out of the jungle.”
Even though I’m already carrying the large backpack, I help Jasmin and Michael with Jamie.
We smash through the thick vegetation, dragging Jamie.
“Twenty seconds,” Michael says.
We have twenty seconds to make it to safety.
Suddenly we fall out of the jungle,
In front of us is a large plain with grass that comes up to our waists. The plain leads directly to the mountains.
“Two minutes,” Michael says.
Jasmin and I throw our bodies over Jamie at the same instant. We brace for the worst.
Nothing happens. There are no more light beams. We have survived the jungle.
“Do we have any water left?”
Michael rips open the backpack. Within seconds he’s pouring water into Jamie’s mouth. Although Jamie’s eyes are closed, his mouth welcomes the refreshing drink.
“Look!” Jasmin exclaims. “When the grass rubs against my burns, they get better.”
Soon we’re carefully rubbing mounds of grass against Jamie’s wounds, as well as our own. Miraculously, the burns start to vanish. It’s as though the grass has a secret healing power.
Like the morphradels, I think.
Jamie groans.
“Jamie, you save my life,” I say. I kiss him on the cheek.
Before there’s time for a response from Jamie, Radwin says, “The sun is setting. We need to keep walking.”
Looking at Jamie, I wonder if he’s going to be able to move. He must have read my mind because he tries to stand. With support from Michael and Jasmin, he makes it. His legs and arms are already looking much better.
“I can do it,” Jamie says.
We’re on a flat plain with yellowish-green grass that is blowing in a slight breeze. Directly in front of us on the far side of the plain are mountains.
“Any thoughts on where the last door might be?” Michael asks.
“No,” I say. “I think we need to focus on getting as far away from the jungle as we can before night comes. We can always look for the door in the morning. Let’s aim for the beginning of the mountains.”
Jasmin and Michael help Jamie. I grab the backpack. Soon, Radwin is leading us towards the mountains.
Within a few steps, the grass towers over our heads.
Everyone is unusually quiet.
Our mission so far has taken its toll on all of us. I’m completely exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I’m fairly certain that the others must feel the same way.
Sleep would be a welcome relief, but we have to get as far away from the jungle as possible before night comes.
- 30 -
THE THIRD DOOR
We have been walking for at least fifteen or twenty minutes. The grass is beginning to get a little shorter. Our heads are bobbing above the top of the grass as we walk towards our next destination.
Michael interrupts the solitude.
“Over there,” he whispers loudly. There’s something moving in the grass.”
I catch a glimpse of some bright colors that are weaving in and out of the tall grass.
Whatever I see vanishes. I freeze.
“I don’t see anything,” Jasmin says.
“Me neither,” says Jamie.
“I saw something move,” I state, giving support to Michael’s discovery.
“There was something brightly colored in the grass over there,” I point.
I focus on the spot where I saw something before. Suddenly a strange green creature jumps into the air, followed by a second creature and then a third.
“Kabingas!” Frank shouts. “They’re kabingas.”
Before any of us can respond to Frank, she flies directly towards the three creatures. They are definitely kabingas.
One of them has yellow polka-dots; another has blue spots; and the third one has purple spots.
As we draw closer to the kabingas, Frank introduces us to them.
“These are my friends: Emily, Jamie, Michael, Drew and Jasmin, and over there flying towards us is my friend Radwin,” Frank boasts to the other kabingas.
“Me, me, me,” Squirt squeaks as he emerges from Frank’s pouch.
“And of course, this is my friend Squirt”
The three kabingas smile at us. The one with the purple spots says, “I am Jasper. This is my friend Casper,” he says as he points to the kabinga with the yellow spots. “And this is my friend Gasper,” he says as he points to the kabinga with blue spots.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say. “What are you doing here?”
“We fly from valley to valley in between the mountains looking for fun and adventure with other kabingas.” Jasper says. Turning to Frank, he says, “Where do you live?”
“Mostly in the Land of Limnits,” Frank replies.
“The Land of Limnits? I have heard about that zany place.”
“Zany place, zany place, zany place,” Squirt repeats.
“What kind of creatures are you? What are you doing here?” Jasper says as he turns to me.
“We’re humans,” I reply. “We’re on a mission.”
“Humans? We have never met humans before,” Jasper says.
“They are human beans,” Radwin interjects as he arrives.
“Human beans?” the kabingas reply in unison, their singing voices causing us to laugh. As Radwin starts to laugh, it’s so deep and infectious that soon I’m laughing so hard that my belly hurts.
When our laughter finally subsides, I say, “It’s been great meeting you, but we�
�ve got to get going. We want to reach the mountains before darkness comes.”
The words no sooner leave my mouth when a burst of light explodes nearby.
“Up there! Look up there!” Michael shouts.
There are three silver objects flying above us. They resemble modern war planes.
“They look like Stealth bombers,” Jamie remarks.
A beam of light strikes nearby. The kabingas drop into the grass.
“Hide!” I shout.
My friends disappear into the grass before I join them.
As I flatten myself on the ground, hoping the grass will protect me from the objects in the sky, I find myself beside Jasper.
“What are they?” I ask him.
“They’re chromidians,” he whispers. “They’re very dangerous. We must be completely still and quiet. For some reason, they can’t see you if you stay below the top of the grass. The jungle is the most dangerous place to be. It’s more difficult to hide from them in the jungle.”
“Yes, I’m well aware of that fact,” I say, my voice trembling from the thought of our previous experience with the harmful beams of light. “We barely escaped from the jungle.”
“You escaped from the jungle? You must be very brave.”
Or perhaps crazy, I think.
Crouching in the grass, I peer upwards. The silver objects in the sky are coming closer. Although at first glance, they looked like jet fighters, now they look more like huge insects, except that they’re more aerodynamic. It’s as though flies have evolved into fighter planes.
As the grass rubs against me, I notice it is soothing. I wonder if the energy flowing in the grass that helped to heal our burns might also be helping to prevent the fly-like creatures from being able to find us.
The chromidians fly silently above us for several minutes. I expect that at any second, they will unleash their light beams.
“Have you ever felt their burning beams of light?” I quietly ask Jasper.
“Yes,” he whispers back. “When we first arrived in this valley, there were six of us. Three of my friends perished from the light beams. The other three of us were hurt so badly that we tumbled into the grass. That’s when we discovered that the grass actually protected us from the chromidians. We also discovered that the grass helped to heal our wounds.”
“How long will they hunt us?”
“I don’t know,” Jasper replies, “but one thing for sure is that you don’t want to be in this valley when it gets dark.”
I don’t need the kabinga to explain any further what he means by his warning. My imagination is already telling me that the night will bring a multitude of horrendous predators from the jungle. I visualize snakes that make anacondas look like worms.
“We’ve got to reach the mountains,” I say with determination. “We need somewhere to hide for the night.”
“At the beginning of the mountains is a crevice that leads into the mountains,” Jasper says. “I think the crevice will protect you from the chromidians, but…”
“But?”
“But,” Jasper says, “there is no telling what hungry creatures might be lurking in the crevice.”
“You’ve never been there?” I ask.
“No. There is something mysterious about the crevice. I don’t think I really want to know where it leads.”
I think about what Jasper said, but I know we have no other options. We must get far away from the jungle.
“My friends and I have to reach the crevice before night comes,” I say anxiously.
“We will help you,” Jasper replies.
“How can you do that?” I ask.
There’s no response as the kabinga is deep in thought. As I look above me, I see the chromidians quite clearly. There are three of them. They look like mechanical flies with streamlined bodies and legs that resemble the landing gear of an airplane. Their wings are shaped like a jet fighter.
“Come, we need to get together,” Jasper says.
As Jasper begins to crawl through the grass, I follow. It isn’t long before we find the others, even though they’re all lying flat on the ground.
“There’s a crevice at the beginning of the mountains,” Jasper whispers in loud manner to my friends. “You might be able to hide there. We’re going to help you reach it.”
“We are?” one of the other kabingas replies, but I can’t see who it is. “How are we going to do that?”
“We’re going to hop in and out of the grass to lead the chromidians away from Emily and her friends. When the chromidians start shooting at us, Emily and her friends can run to the mountains.”
“But what if you get hit?” I ask.
“That’s a chance we will have to take,” Jasper replies. “Hopefully, if we get hit by any beams of light we will fall safely into some deep grass. The important thing is that you reach the mountains before the three of us are hit. Once we have all been struck, we will no longer be able to distract the chromidians from attacking you.”
I’m amazed at the selfless courage of the kabingas. They are strangers to us, yet they’re willing to risk their lives to help us. I’m moved by Jasper’s offer.
Before I reply to Jasper, Frank says to me, “Take Squirt with you. I’m going to help my new friends.”
I want to argue with Frank, but I know that it would serve no purpose. She has the opportunity to be with some other kabingas, something that is obviously important to her.
“Frank, I love you,” I say sincerely. “You saved my life. I will never forget you.”
Frank blushes from my praise.
The other kabingas look enviously at Frank.
“Jasper, Casper, and Gasper, thank you for offering to help us. You are amazing.”
The kabingas are glowing as they blush.
“Emily,” a deep voice interrupts my thoughts. It’s Radwin. “It’s almost dark. We need to leave. I can fly near the top of the grass so that I can see our destination. You can follow me.”
“Is everybody ready?” I ask.
“Yes,” Michael answers.
“I’m good,” says Jamie.
“Okay,” Jasmin adds.
Although I don’t hear anything from Drew, I guess he’s likely beside Jasmin.
Squirt jumps on my shoulders and gives me a big, toothy, silly grin.
“Okay, okay, okay,” Squirt squeaks.
“On the count of three, let’s go,” Jasper says.
Before he starts counting, Frank leaps into the air. The other kabingas follow her.
“Come on,” I say. “Let’s follow Radwin.”
Radwin hovers directly in front of me, quickly darting along the top of the grass. I’m bent over, walking quickly, trying to keep my head out of sight.
Although I can’t see them, the kabingas are making a great deal of noise as though they’re playing. Their antics are putting their lives in danger. I wonder how long it will take before the chromidians attack them. Regrettably, my answer comes too soon. I hear the beams of light beginning to explode not too far away from us.
As I continue to push through the tall grass, I hear a scream of pain. It sounds like Frank. My heart sinks. If only I could do something to help protect the kabingas. Then it hits me. In the jungle, the light attacks only lasted for one minute. I turn to locate Michael.
He’s a step or two behind me.
“Michael, how many seconds have gone by?” I’m hoping he’s counting the seconds as the chromidians attack the kabingas.
“Thirty-three, thirty-four…,” Michael says.
The grass is now below my head, making it easier to see our destination.
“When Michael reaches sixty,” I say to the others, “we need to run like crazy for the mountains. Not only will this help us to get there faster, it will also distract the chromidians away from Frank and her friends for a brief time. If the chromidians begin to fire on us, we can fall to the ground and hide in the grass.”
“One minute!” Michael yells.
“Run!” I scream.
Instantly we’re running like frightened squirrels through the grass. The mountains are getting closer, but it appears to me that we’re not going to reach them before the chromidians start to fire again.
Glancing behind me, I notice the chromidians turning in our direction. We have successfully taken them away from the kabingas. We have to stop running and hide in the grass before they start shooting at us.
“One minute,” Michael says.
“Run harder,” I say. “We’ve got to get as far as we can before the chromidians start firing at us.”
I’m still carrying the backpack. Although it isn’t very heavy, it is bulky which makes it difficult for me to run at full speed through the grass.
“One-hundred and ten!” Michael yells. “Drop!”
I fall into the grass, hugging the ground for my life. Colored beams start to explode. They are bursting everywhere. I pray that none of my friends get hit. I hope everyone remembers to clear their minds of any fears. Not hearing any cries of pain from my friends, I suspect that the energy in the grass is somehow blocking the energy from our fears.
I try to control my breathing as I get ready to run again once the attack stops.
“One minute” Michael says.
“Is everyone okay?” I say nervously.
“Yes,” the answers come in unison.
I hear Frank shouting in the distance.
“Over here! Over here!”
Although I can’t see Frank and her new friends, I imagine they are jumping up and down like crazy limnits.
I wait another few seconds, hoping that the chromidians have now turned away from us, and shout, “Run!”
As we begin to run, the chromidians unexpectedly follow us. Glancing upwards ever few seconds, I see that they are descending towards us.
“Hurry!” I shout.
“One minute,” Michael says, the fear evident in his voice.
I can now see the crevice.
The tall grass that was once protecting us is now only up to my knees. There’s no way the grass will be able to hide us anymore.
“One-hundred and ten,” Michael says, his voice struggling to complete the sentence.
In ten seconds, we’re going to be blasted by beams of light.
“Drop to the ground,” I say frantically, although I know the grass isn’t going to save us this time. “Try to get any fears out of your head.”