Lark's End

by Christina Leigh Pritchard

  “I’m never eating jello again.”

  Andy laughed. “Yeah, I knew this stuff reminded me of something. Are you sure we ain’t dreaming and been shrunk real small?”

  “You think we’re in my jello bowl with a talking horse?” Tahmi rolled her eyes. “Sometimes your ignorance annoys me.”

  “I’m not dumb.”

  “You are.” She frowned. “I’ve gotta explain everything to you for school and now you’re trying to blame this weird place on me!”

  “Was not!”

  Tahmi shoved him. Andy slipped, landing on his back. “I can’t stand you sometimes.”

  “Well, the feeling’s mutual.”

  Andy leaned up, grabbed her leg and pulled as hard as he could. Tahmi slipped, knocking her head into his arm and then, together they tumbled down a mound of goo, rolling, hitting, pinching and shouting.

  Trusty galloped after them. “Stop! You’re heading for the—”

  It was too late.

  Tahmi saw it first. Her heart pounded and her knees shook. “Andy!”

  Andy looked, grabbing his friend tight. They couldn’t be.

  They rolled faster and faster down the hill, wrapped inside a gigantic goo snowball. “What is that?”

  “It looks like a gra—”

  Andy dug his feet into the goo trying to slow them down. This worked, burying him deep inside the goo. His fingers slipped and he lost his grip on Tahmi. Andy was trapped inside deep and unable to breathe.

  Tahmi kept rolling, faster and faster. Right before her was a hole filled with bones. There wasn’t any goo to break her fall and many of the bones pointed upwards. If she didn’t find a way to stop herself then she’d be killed. A bone would go straight through her.

  “Andy.” She swallowed goo.

  Trusty picked up speed. His hooves were moving so fast she almost thought he was floating just above the surface. Was that possible?

  Andy stopped struggling. His body inched forward slowly, inch by inch. Trusty reached down and tugged on his shirt—tossing him on his side. The horse did not stop running. He continued on, not even glancing back to see if the boy was okay.

  “Put your feet in the goo!” Andy shouted.

  Tahmi tried, unable to breathe. Was she having a panic attack? Her body ached. What was it with this place? In less than a day she’d nearly died several times, and being unable to breathe was becoming a seriously bad habit.

  She forced herself to straighten out. Her feet knocked into something hard—a bone. Her foot throbbed and she gagged on more goo. Tahmi flailed through the air. The goo evaporated as it came in contact with the piles of bones below.

  Now just inches from landing on top of the upright bones, Tahmi screamed. Her body slammed into something hard, knocking the wind straight out of her.

  She looked up and met Trusty’s eyes. He’d fallen first, breaking her fall. “I think you saved my life.”

  “Twice.” The horse smirked.

  “You’re bleeding!” She yelled. “Your leg is broken, isn’t it?”

  “It’s just the strawberries,” he chortled.

  “How’d you survive the fall?”

  “I didn’t fall—you did. I just caught you is all.”

  “Thanks.”

  “They don’t call me Trusty for nothing.”

  “Why? Cause you’re always there when someone needs you?”

  “I dunno.” The horse looked confused. “I think I was once the Queen’s most trusted stable hand.”

  You’re a horse,” she reminded him.

  “I’m not a horse.”

  “What are you, then?”

  “A man—or I was before Mary—”

  “Maryanne?”

  “No, Mary of the Monsters.”

  “Who is Maryanne Andrews?”

  “The Queen—your mother.”

  “And you’re a man?”

  “Yes, I’m a man—or was.”

  “Was? So, this Mary person can turn people into animals?”

  “Not anymore. Someone stopped her. But before they were able to stop her she killed all these people.”

  Tahmi surveyed her surroundings. Thousands of bones encircled them. Her eyes watered. Some bones were small, maybe belonging to children. “Why’d she kill all these people?”

  “I don’t know. We loved Mary but one day she changed and decided to kill us all. I was one of the lucky ones, though. She decided not to kill me. She said I was a good hard worker and would get to live—for now.”

  “She sounds crazy,” Andy said. He stood at the top of the hill with sweat dripping down his face. Tahmi looked up at him and nodded.

  “This place is creepy,” she decided. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “Yes, I agree.” Trusty motioned for her to climb onto his back. She obeyed. Her legs rested against the sticky strawberry guck but it didn’t seem to bother her.

  “What happened, exactly?”

  “What do you mean?” Trusty struggled up the rocky hill. Bones rolled down on either side of them. Andy tapped his foot.

  “I mean, how did all these people die?”

  Trusty stood at the top of the hill. He glanced down at the bones. An image of hundreds of people and Gadaenites appeared. They screamed—scrambling about—looking for the portal.

  ***

  “She’s coming!” Sandy screamed. Trusty remembered her long sandy blonde hair that curled up at the ends, and her petite figure and long arms. “We’re not going to stay in this nutty place anymore. I’ve hidden our secret from Mary forever, now let’s go.”

  Trusty’s heart pounded. Where’d she hide their secret? He looked around. He was tall and slender and maybe six feet tall. His hands were over worked and so was his face. Sleep had never been easy to come by working for Mary. She had him up at all hours doing weird things. He never complained or argued. A job was a job and he loved horses.

  “Eddie, let’s go.” Sandy tugged on his arm. His real name was Eddie?

  They froze.

  People and Gadaenites flew through the air like bullets towards them. Fire and rocks littered the sky and a gust of wind knocked them backwards. “Mary’s coming!” Someone screamed, flying past them. Trusty covered his wife’s eyes as he smashed into the ground.

  “Who was that?” Sandy shook. “Who—”

  “Shh,” Trusty cooed. “I’ll go check it out.”

  He crawled over to the body. Trusty swallowed, holding back his tears. It was his best friend.

  “Who is it, Eddie?”

  “Don’t know.”

  “Is he alive?”

  Trusty checked his pulse. Nothing; his best friend was dead. “Y-Yes, he’s alive. Let’s get out of here.”

  “And where do you think you’re going?”

  Trusty looked up.

  He gasped.

  Mary stood, towering over him with her hands on her hips and sparks flying behind her. She was lit up like a sparkler.

  “Out of here, that’s where,” Trusty answered, scrambling to his feet. “I came here to work for you, not kill people or destroy things.”

  “I know what you came here for.”

  Trusty crawled away. He needed to protect Sandy. “I just want to take my wife and go home.”

  “You aren’t going anywhere,” Mary snapped. She pointed at him and narrowed her fire red eyes. “I have plans for you.”

  “I’m not yours.”

  “That’s what you think.” Mary smiled.

  Trusty felt funny. His body convulsed and he shook uncontrollably on the ground. “What’s going on?” That was all he could say as his skin ripped.

  ***

  “Watch it!” Tahmi shouted, smacking the horse in the side. He reared up—dropping her and Andy into the goo.

  Trusty shook his mane and blinked his big eyes. Was he remembering the past? Had he and Sandy shared a secret once? What was it? His blood boiled.

  “What were you thinking about?” Tahmi asked. “You went off into a zone or tra
nce and almost fell back in the hole with the bones.”

  “Sorry, I was remembering. Mary wouldn’t let Sandy or I leave this place. We were heading for the portal. Sandy said we had a secret and that she hid it from Mary. But, I don’t remember what it was. I don’t understand—unless Mary got to it before—.”

  “Sandy sounds like a typical woman liar,” Andy said. “Women lie to get what they want all the time.”

  “No,” Trusty said. “Not Sandy.”

  “That’s not true,” Tahmi protested. “I don’t lie to get what I want.”

  “You will when you’re older.” Andy smiled.

  She shoved him hard. “That’s where you’re wrong.”

  “I ain’t wrong.” Andy climbed up onto the horse’s back. He offered her his hand. “It’s the way it is.”

  “Not here,” Trusty whispered. “Or at least it never used to be that way.”

  Tahmi placed her hand on his brown fur. He was soft and she wished like anything that she could know what his secret was. What could he possibly need to hide from Mary? “Where is this Mary person?”

  “She’s in the land of the Monsters. That’s where she comes from and is trapped there—for now.”

  “What do you mean ‘for now’?”

  “The barriers have been shaking lately as if maybe she’s gaining her power back over whoever stole it from her originally.”

  “Do you think she’ll kill more people if she escapes?”

  “Yes, she’ll kill us all—including you if you’re still here.”

  “This place is insane!” Andy exclaimed. “Get up here.” He grabbed Tahmi’s hand and pulled hard, hoisting her up. “The sooner we find your ‘mother’ the sooner we’ll be on our way home.”

  “I’ll take you to the Bridge,” Trusty said. Andy and Tahmi held on tight. “Maybe you’re here for a reason. Mary did lose her power on the same day that you disappeared.”

  “Or maybe she’s gaining it again because I’m back.”

  Trusty took a deep breath. “We’ll never know unless you get to the Queen.”

  “Giddy up!” Andy kicked his feet into Trusty’s sides.

  He didn’t move.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m not a horse, boy.”

  THE THREE BRIDGES

  Tahmi, Andy, and Trusty trudged through the orange goo for hours. They were thirsty and dizzy. Everywhere you turned—all you saw—was goo; miles and miles and miles of just endless goo.

  “What were you doing out so far in this guck?”

  “Looking for food; it’s scarce close to the bridges. I’m the only one who’s willing to venture so far. Everybody is afraid of the death cloud.”

  “What’s a death cloud?”

  “That thing you came here in.”

  “The pink cloud?” Andy asked.

  “Yes, must be the death cloud.” Tahmi sighed. “I really, really hate jello now.”

  “I never liked it to begin with. But I never will after this.”

  “We’re almost there.” Trusty stopped, pointing at three blurred figures up ahead. “You’ll have to cross on your own. It’s the way it works. I can’t help you or else you’ll fall to your deaths.”

  “What?”

  “Yes, I know.” Trusty inched closer to Tahmi. “Whatever you do, don’t look down.”

  “Why? What will happen?”

  “Well, the bridge will disappear.”

  “Disappear?”

  “Yes.”

  “It’s a bridge—how scary can it be?” Andy decided. “C’mon, Tahmi, we’ve got a long trek ahead of us.”

  “Okay, thanks Trusty for all your help.”

  “Anytime!” He galloped away.

  Tahmi glanced back at the brown horse one last time. His head was buried deep in goo, searching for food. Where the heck was she?

  “Let’s go!” Andy ordered, trudging ahead. “I want to go home. Don’t you?”

  “Yes,” she answered, forcing herself up a mound of goo. “I do.”

  “What is this place?”

  “It’s some weird alternative universe.”

  “That’s sci-fi.”

  “Yeah, well maybe there really are other worlds out there. Ours exists so why can’t this one?”

  “Tahmi, this is not real. None of it is possible. Where would this place be? In outer space?”

  “No, it could be right on Earth in another dimension or something. I dunno, Andy, I’m not a scientist.”

  “For someone so smart you sure are dumb to even think this place is real.”

  She stopped, hands on hips. “You’re standing in the same disgusting crap as me! Are you an ostrich with its head in the sand? Or should I say goo?”

  “I wish I’d never met you!” Andy yelled, slipping down another mound of goo. “I bet we’re going to die here and it’ll be your fault.”

  He shoved her in the back.

  Tahmi landed, face first, in the goo. It burned her eyes and she rubbed it off inside her shirt.

  Furious, she picked up a handful of the guck and tossed it at him. He kicked some at her and then fell on his bottom.

  “Ha, serves you right.” She tried to gain her balance. Tahmi teetered in the goo.

  “Whatever,” Andy grumbled. He stormed off, nearly slipping again. She was stupid and annoying.

  Tahmi went in the opposite direction. He made her so sick sometimes. She wanted to get as far away from him as possible.

  “Hey, where do you think you are going?” Andy shouted.

  Tahmi kept walking. He thought she was going to talk to him after that?

  “Oh, so now you aren’t going to talk to me? How old are you?” Andy ran up behind her and punched her in the shoulder. She grabbed him by the leg and he landed on top of her.

  “I’m never going to talk to you again!” Tahmi yelled, smearing goo in his mouth.

  They slid through the goo like they were on a slip-n-slide.

  “Hey, check it out, there is something up there.” Andy wrapped his arms around Tahmi so that she couldn’t move. She struggled still.

  “I don’t care.”

  “There’s the bridge the horse told us about.”

  She bit him.

  “How old are you?” He shoved her and she tumbled down a gooey hill.

  Tahmi rubbed her head. Her heart slowed and calmness fell over her. Was the goo making her angry? She looked up. Andy was right. There, in front of her were three bridges. The horse said a wooden bridge, right?

  “Andy!” she shouted. “We’re saved!”

  To the right, there was a bridge made of golden blocks with an iron railing. The bridge arched up in the center. There was a weeping willow tree in the center that cast a dark shadow over half the gold blocks.

  The middle bridge was long and wide with a road of cobble stones. There was a red brick wall surrounding it. The sun shone on it brightly.

  The bridge to the left was absolutely gruesome. It was made from ancient wooden planks held together by rotting rope. In a few places, the wooden planks had split in half. It swayed, never staying still. A grey fog rose from below clouding their vision.

  “That doesn’t look safe,” Andy whispered. “Why would the horse tell us to cross that?”

  “I dunno, it looks like it’s ready to fall apart.”

  Andy motioned for Tahmi to follow him. He went for the bridge made of gold.

  “What are you doing?” Tahmi’s heart pounded. “Trusty said to use the wooden bridge!”

  He stopped. They heard a faint snort as they passed by the red brick bridge.

  The story of Hansel and Gretel popped into their minds. They went into the candy house but almost turned into the witch’s dinner.

  “Stop!” Tahmi screeched. “Something’s not right about these two bridges.”

  Andy rolled his eyes and placed his hand on the bridge’s rail guard. “Stop being a big baby. It’s just a bridge.”

  Wicked grunts came from the Willow tree. Andy fr
oze. He couldn’t move his legs. Was there something in the tree? Whatever it was it didn’t sound friendly.

  “I don’t think you should try to cross that one.” Tahmi could barely swallow. “It’s evil. Something about it is not right.”

  “How do you know?” Andy whispered. His hand dropped from the iron railing. “What do you think it is?”

  “Remember my dreams?”

  “Yeah?” Andy backed away. “What about them?”

  “I never told anybody this.” She took him by the arm. “But, I think this bridge was in it.” She pointed at the rotted rope bridge. “I mean I really was dropped off on my door step so maybe the whole dream is real.”

  “Impossible.” Andy stumbled over his words. His teeth chattered. Was he cold? No.

  “Okay, I have to admit this is odd, but Trusty did say to cross this bridge and the others feel wrong. Not only that but I feel like I remember this bridge—somehow.”

  “Well, what are you waiting for?” Andy hesitated, and then with a large breath he gave her a little shove. “Let’s go find your talking cat.”

  CROSSING THE WOODEN BRIDGE

  The bridge swayed in the wind. It creaked and the boards bent when they stepped on them.

  “This is too dangerous,” Andy said. “I’m not going on this one. Let’s take the middle bridge.”

  “No, I’m going to do what Trusty said.” She slid her hands along the rotten rope. “Whatever you do, don’t look down.”

  “Why? What’ll happen?”

  “Trusty said the bridge will disappear if we look down.”

  “Disappear? Are you kidding me?”

  “No, I’m not.”

  Andy placed his hands over hers. “I hate this—whatever it is.”

  “Please don’t look, okay, Andy? You’ve never been very good at keeping your eyes up.”

  “What? Are you scared? I’ve never seen you afraid of something before.”

  Tahmi trembled. She was petrified. It wasn’t any shaken faith in her own self that scared her—but Andy. The last thing she wanted was to have harm come to him. He was her best friend, for better or for worse.

  “Just go already,” Andy snapped.

  The plank bent under Tahmi’s foot. Her hands slid along the moldy rope. Each board she touched creaked louder and bent more.