Ziv backed away slowly. “Why are you being so cruel?”
His little wings flapped slowly. He wiped his eyes, “and the ‘king of all kings’, will make her our queen.” Ziv flew low, eyes set on the princess. “He says he’ll make her our queen.”
Tahmi held out her hands. Ziv sat in them. “Did you ever think that maybe you don’t need a queen?”
“Never,” Ziv whispered, his voice cracking. “We need someone to be our hero.”
“Why can’t you guys be your own hero? Why don’t you fight back?”
“Can a painting stop the painter from destroying it?”
“What?” Tahmi shook her head. “No, of course not.”
“Only another painter can fix the damage.”
“Or maybe the painter wanted to start over.”
“Yes, but what happens to what is erased?”
“It’s gone forever.”
“Right, so you see, if Mary wants to destroy us, there’s nothing we can do about it—unless someone else—just like Mary stops her.”
“Ziv, I can’t draw.”
The star groaned. “That’s just symbolism!”
“I know, I know.” Tahmi smiled. “Let’s find Quella.”
“Does this mean I get to be your guide?”
“Only until I get close to Quella; I hear she’s evil. You have to fly back home immediately.”
“Okay.” Ziv summersaulted. He clapped his hands. “This is so cool!”
“Promise me, Ziv.”
“I promise, I promise. Let’s get going.”
Tahmi looked down, almost forgetting that she was standing virtually upon nothing directly above the Muddy Palace. She could see the cave of the “black ones” in the distance. She wiped her eyes when she spotted the pool of oil where she and Teri nearly drowned.
Teri.
She wasn’t going to cry again.
“Hurry, Princess!”
“Don’t call me that or I’m gonna start singing about glow bugs.”
“Sing? I have a lovely voice!”
“Oh, geez.” Tahmi smacked her forehead.
Rolls cranked up, like a gas-powered lawn mower. He bounced ahead, knocking himself into the sides of the cave like a bouncy ball.
“The future queen named a knight; a kniiiiiight.”
“Lemme guess, with bat like wings that could glow?”
“Exactly.” Ziv grinned. “Would you dub me? If I help you save Jerry, that is?”
“I’m not a queen. How could I dub you anything? It would be a fake dubbing or whatever.”
“Nonsense,” he said, lighting up. “Hey, look at my eyes! They’re not green anymore.”
Tahmi examined them. They were a light brown. “I wonder why your eyes changed.”
He held in a laugh, as if he knew a secret. “What will you change when you’re queen?”
“I’m not going to ever be a queen. But the rulers of this world need to put an end to all the cruelty.”
“Who do you feel is cruel?”
“The war pigs, the muddlers, Lark, Mary—am I missing anyone?”
“You’ve got it all wrong, princess.”
“Oh, do I, now?”
“You let me call you princess!” Ziv giggled.
“Cute.” Tahmi tried to catch the star in her hands. He glowed, zipping through the air. “Who’s the real villain if it’s not them?”
“The ones who are pretty on the outside,” he answered, letting the princess catch him. “But, ugly on the inside.” Tahmi placed him on her shoulder. “They are the products of Mary—including you.”
She stopped, breathing hard. “Are you calling me bad?”
“Time will tell.” He frowned. “I can’t know for sure what you’ll become until you become it.”
“How insightful.” Tahmi tossed the star high in the air. He barrel-rolled forward, light seeping from inside his black wings. “Let’s get Jerry back!”
Tahmi and Rolls chased after Ziv as he shot through the winding air tunnels. Tahmi knocked into invisible walls, bruising her toes. This didn’t stop her. She felt like the same girl back home on Earth that never recoiled from trying dangerous things. Adrenaline pumped through her veins. The longer she ran through the caves, the more she saw. There were nearly visible lines outlining separate tunnels above, below and to the sides of them. Ziv led them farther and farther downward.
THE TRUTH
Sandy stood frozen in the garden surrounded by orange goo. The only noise she heard came from the bees that flew around her ears. She shook her mane, scattering them. Had Sable really been her sister? Was she really a human? There was no way she had any part in helping anyone murder her own parents. Something Sable said bothered her most: Just pick a strawberry or two and learn your secrets. Why had Tahmi wanted her to get the fruit? Was there something she knew? Why hadn’t the child told her? A pain pierced her sides. Did she even want to know what she’d forgotten? Maybe it was erased from her mind for a reason…
When Sable said she knew who had created the beautiful garden, she also claimed that this person also made everyone forget their pain. It didn’t make any sense. Maybe the answers were deep in the goo.
Sandy trotted ahead through the cornfield. She watched for creeping monsters and kept her distance from any dark shadows. She picked up speed, galloping through the goo. How was she ever going to find Trusty and Andy in this mess? The faster she ran, the deeper she sank, her feet stuck in the goo and she promptly sunk. How lovely.
“Trusty!” The war horse grunted, sloshing her hooves in the guck. “How in the world do you get through this stuff?”
“Easy, don’t run or press too hard.”
Sandy jerked sideways. “You startled me!”
Trusty stood behind her. “What are you doing out here? Has Tahmi succeeded in bringing her sisters home?”
The brown horse nudged Sandy.
She flicked her tail in his face. “I can take care of myself.”
“I know you can.”
“Let me get out of this mess.”
“Someone’s become very sour since this mission began.”
“I’ve had a long day.” Sandy sniffed, lowering her neck. She struggled. It was as if she were inside a suction cup.
“So, the princesses are home and now Tahmi has asked you to fetch her best friend, Andy, correct?”
“No, Trusty, Tahmi has decided the princesses shall never be rescued. She thinks they’re evil and doesn’t want them destroying our world. She’s sent me out here to pick her some strawberries. I must go deep in the goo and fetch them.”
“I can get them for you—if you’d like, that is.”
“Tahmi says I must do it.”
Trusty shifted. “Tahmi said that? I can’t believe it.”
“Well, believe it. She’s changed since you last saw her. She thinks she can save people now.”
“Isn’t that what we’ve all been hoping for?”
“Uh, no, you stupid stable hand, we’ve been waiting for a powerful queen to come and save us from our miserable lives. That girl has no intention of freeing us.”
“You’d be surprised,” Trusty whinnied softly.
They trekked through the goo, flashes of the past raced before Sandy’s eyes. They were blurred and she was unable to understand them. A woman held something. Was that woman her? What was she holding?
“Hi, Sandy!” Andy shouted. He and Ot’tai stood on a wooden cart. “Look what I’ve made. We’ve collected tons of food for the black ones. Ot’tai here packs everything up tight so we can fit as much food on here as possible. What do you think?”
“I think you’re wasting your time, son. There’s a huge vegetable garden growing enough food for both the ‘black ones’ and the war pigs.” Sandy winced with pain as the freckled boy rammed himself against her.
“I can’t believe it! When Trusty, Ot’tai, and I saw that garden last, it was small and in the shape of a human body,” Andy said. “The garden smelled like Tahmi a
nd was even in the same place she was standing during the war pig attack; weird, huh?”
“Maybe you shouldn’t tell anyone about how the garden came about,” Sandy said. She swallowed. Sable had made sense after all. A great trembling erupted in the horse’s stomach. Images of herself with a young, pudgy girl appeared. They played a strange game that included giant berries and loonettes.
***
Sable, the pudgy girl, wore an apron filled with large blueberries. Loonettes flew above, circling them. “Sandra Anne, throw them as high as you can! C’mon, Sandra Anne, you can do it—just like this.” The child tossed berries in the sky. The loonettes chased after them, munching them quickly. Was the smaller one Anala? The loonette she helped the other day? She’d been the “black ones” translator. Why hadn’t Anala said something about her sister?
“Sable, you have excellent aim.” Queen Mary stood inches away. Her long blonde hair flew behind her. The queen’s lips curved into a smile. She was still the good Mary they’d all come to love. What had changed her into being such a villain? “Would you like to come and train as a Royal Guard?”
“Me? In the Royal Guard?! Oh, that would be a dream! Mom and Dad would be so proud of me!” Sable pranced about, tossing berries. “Sandra Anne, did you hear that? We’re to be in the Royal Guard!”
Mary frowned. “I’m sorry, Sandra, but your heart is too jealous to be in the Royal Guard.”
“I’ve no desire to be a slave.” Sandra shrugged, dropping her berries on the ground. “What makes you think Sable is cut out for the job?”
Mary leaned forward. “She’s pure of heart. Sable loves everyone and she cares about what happens to them.”
“I care about others, too. Plus, I’m older and smarter.”
“Sorry, Sandra Anne, but you lack the heart.”
“What’s wrong with my heart?”
“Too much anger—too jealous of anyone who has something you do not.”
“Sable! Let’s go home and tell our parents the good news.”
The child rolled around in the confetti field. Butterflies and loonettes flew around her. They poked at her apron, searching for more to eat. “Isn’t this exciting?”
“Yes, I finally get to be an only child again.”
***
Sandy shrugged her head, erasing the horrible thoughts invading her mind. Had she been that nasty as a human?
“What’s wrong, Sandy?” Andy patted her. “Are you all right?”
“Yes, I need to pick two strawberries for Tahmi and then we need to head back so we can tell the ‘black ones’ about the vegetable garden.”
She took a deep breath, burying her head inside the goo.
***
“Hurry, Sandy,” a tall man with gentle eyes said. “Sable says there’s trouble at the Silver Castle. The Royals are going mad! Your parents say that the humans must fight for the freedom of Gadaie. We ride out against Mary tonight.”
“Eddie.” Sandy jerked her arm away. “That’s suicide, fighting Mary. We should just pack up and leave this place.”
“And abandon your family? What about our friends? The loonies are no match for the royals. They’d be wiped out in a day. They wouldn’t even put up a fight—they’re so good natured.”
“Eddie, please let’s just run. We can go back to Earth where we came from. We’ll take Maya with us and some of the others who really shouldn’t be here.”
“Don’t be a coward, Sandy.” Eddie stiffened. “You used to be brave. Your parents ordered you to stay away from me but you ended up marrying me despite their threats.”
***
“Eddie!” Sandy’s head reappeared with goo stuck in her hair. She placed the strawberry on the cart.
“Yes?” Trusty stepped forward.
“What are you doing, stable hand?”
“You called my name and here I am.”
“I called Eddie, not Trusty.” Sandy backed away, her heart pounding. “What’s going on Trusty? Did you know that we—”
“Yes, I know you’re my wife, but Princess Teri ordered me to say nothing.”
“How dare that child keep such secrets from me!?”
“She’s just a selfish girl, you know that.”
Sandy gagged on her own thoughts. She stood, wide eyed.
“Trusty, you must tell me the truth.”
“What? What is it, Sandy?”
“Did I do terrible things with Queen Mary?”
“Now, Sandy, the past is the past. No one could disobey Mary. She had this power to control others.”
“She didn’t control you, did she?”
“Somehow I resisted. But—”
“I didn’t resist. I helped her attack good people and kill—”
“Stop that, Sandy. This is why I didn’t want you to come out in the goo. This is why I held my tongue. I was afraid you’d remember too much. The past is painful for us all. Do not fret. I love you, Sandy. I’m here and I want you to be my wife again.”
“Even as horses? We’re livestock Eddie! LIVESTOCK!”
“I know, I know.” Trusty rested his head on her neck. “We just need to have a little faith that Princess Tahmi will do her job and fix us.”
“She can’t even keep her shoes on her feet! Tahmi lost her crown within ten minutes of our journey.”
“Tahmi never quits,” Andy said. “No matter how hard or scary something is, she sticks with it. She says she won’t help but what do you think she’s been doing this whole time?”
“The boy is right,” Trusty said.
“Of course I’m right. I’m Andy.”
Sandy chortled. “He’s just like—”
She swallowed.
“What is it?”
“I cannot tell you. If I do, all will be lost.” The war horse nuzzled her husband. “I never want to forget you ever again.”
Sandy couldn’t breathe. It felt like an eternity since she’d felt the warmth of her husband. She’d been happy with him—many years ago, he made her content with who she was. Eddie. The name was like butter upon her lips.
There was, however, a horrible truth that she’d hidden even from her husband. It now rumbled inside her—struggling to free its self. She couldn’t reveal it to anyone. For, if she did—the future would be lost.
QUEEN EMIHE
Tahmi and Rolls followed Ziv through the air caves. They stopped, eyeing the scenery below them. This irritated the little star. How could he be a perfect guide if they wouldn’t stay focused on the mission?
“There’s nothing to see,” Ziv groaned, turning his light out. Others still glowed in the air caves as they were in charge of keeping No Where Zone bright.
“Where is this?” Tahmi’s hands rested on the invisible rock. “Who’s that lady in the tower?” Her eyes set on a woman, maybe twenty-five. The lady wore a green embroidered dress with a bronze crown. Her castle matched as it was the same bronze color. The lady’s ringlets were a burnt brown and she was an olive color.
“That’s Queen Emihe, your aunt.” Ziv rolled his eyes. “She’s a bad person. Why would you concern yourself with her?”
“She looks lonely and trapped.”
“Queen Emihe is trapped in her castle. She can never leave.”
“What’d she do that was so horrible?”
“I wasn’t born yet. So ask Alina—if she ever talks to you again.”
“Couldn’t I just ask Emihe myself?”
Ziv somersaulted. He put his hands on his head and sighed loudly. “Please, princess, I’ll be the laughing stock of my peers!”
“Why?”
“Because I can’t even keep you focused for five minutes.” He frowned. “How’ll I show myself back in Luster Low?”
“All because I want to see the world that I’m supposed to save—somehow.” Tahmi shook her head, resting her forehead against the rock. In front of the castle there was a dried out farm. Crops were brown and brittle. Behind the bronze castle was a town—or at least it was at one time. The homes wer
e broken and battered and the roads were cracked.
Tahmi glanced back at the tower. Queen Emihe locked eyes with her. The emerald green eyes that belonged to the young queen turned a mud brown.
Tahmi backed away, heart pounding. “She’s evil. I remember those eyes.”
“You’ve met Queen Emihe?” Ziv sat on her shoulder. “She can’t see you.”
“Yes, she can. I felt her look at me.”
“Maybe she can, I don’t really know who can or can’t see through the rocks.”
“There’re no rocks in the sky that I ever saw.”
“Princess Tahmi,” Ziv whispered in her ear.
“What do you want, you annoying little glow bug?”
“Never mind.” He flew away.
“I was just kidding, Ziv, come back. You keep calling me a princess and I told you I’d call you a glow bug if you said it again.”
Ziv grinned. “Follow me.”
Tahmi ran through the tunnels with Rolls next to her. He’d lost steam—almost as if he needed to rest. But, as soon as she began to run, he followed suit, making mechanical noises as he rolled up the sides of the walls.
“Hurry!” Ziv lit the way. “I have something to show you!”
“What is it?”
The star stopped in a cave. There, lying on its side was an old sign. Tahmi bent down and flipped it over. Dust flew in her face. She coughed, rubbing the front. She scrunched her nose when she finally read the words.
“Candy Loo Land, what’s that?”
“That’s what Queen Mary used to call our world when she was a young girl. That’s what the land of the Loonies was called.”
Tahmi picked the sign up and walked back to the tunnel. “Let’s go.” She waved the star and rollie pollie forward. “We’ve got a lot to do today.”
“Where are you taking the sign?” Ziv flittered above it, touching the chipped paint with his tiny hands.
“Back to Candy Loo Land,” Tahmi decided, “If that’s what the world was called then why should it change?”
“I don’t understand.” Ziv stumbled. Tahmi caught him in her free hand. He clutched her fingers.
“Me, either.” She rolled her eyes. “Who would name a world Candy Loo Land? I mean a long time ago there was a board game with a similar name. But, wow, that’s all I can say to such a weird name—Candy Loo Land; the land of the Loonies.”
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