Kendra Kandlestar and the Crack in Kazah (19 page)

EVEN THE MOST STEADFAST of adventurers eventually longs for home. For Kendra, home currently meant the cloud ship where she could reunite with Uncle Griffinskitch and her friends Ratchet, Jinx, and Professor Bumblebean. It was these friends that filled her concentration as she clutched the Kazah Stone. She imagined them, standing there amidst the swirling snows of winter, waiting for her and Oki.

In a flash, the ring performed its magic. Kendra felt a sudden chill around her ankles. This was to be expected—she was bound to end up knee-deep in snow. What she didn’t expect was to open her eyes and be confronted by a black-bearded Dwarf looming over her with a mischievous smirk, a club in one hand and a net in the other.

“EEK!” Oki squealed.

The little mouse tugged at Kendra, and she rolled over just as the Dwarf swung the club. It crashed to the ground in an explosion of snow.

Kendra scrambled to her feet and fled after Oki. Even as they dashed across the snow, Kendra could see countless more Dwarves storming through the woods, all armed with nets and weapons. Eens were scampering everywhere and the vale echoed with their screams.

What in the world is going on?
Kendra thought.

The Dwarf with the black beard was hot on her heels—she could hear and smell him. Kendra desperately yanked her wand from her belt, turned, and sent a blast of lightning at the foul pursuer. Her bolt struck him right in the beard, causing him to stumble back and holler (though more in surprise than pain, Kendra guessed). She knew it wouldn’t slow him down for long.

Suddenly, a hole opened in the snowy ground right in front of them, and there appeared the familiar face of Juniper Jinx.

“Quickly!” the tiny grasshopper hollered. “This way.”

They stumbled forward into the hole, which Kendra now realized was capped with a lid disguised to look like a rock. As soon as they were through, Jinx quickly shut the lid. They found themselves inside a small tunnel lit only by a dim lantern.

“We thought you were dead!” Jinx exclaimed, bounding forward to enfold Kendra and Oki in her arms.

“Uh . . . Jinx, are you okay?” Kendra panted. “You’re not exactly the hugging type.”

“Yeah,” Oki added, squirming free of the grasshopper’s four-armed embrace. “You’re more of the punching and kicking type.”

“What are you talking about?” Jinx asked. “I’ve never punched a soul in my life! And, oh—please do call me Juniper. Even in times like these, it’s so barbaric to call someone by her last name.”

Kendra looked at Oki in complete puzzlement. They had
always
called Jinx by her last name. “Sure,” Kendra said, skeptically tugging a braid. “What in the name of Een is going on? Where did all those Dwarves come from?”

“Come on, let’s get somewhere safer—and warmer,” Jinx said as she led them down the dark tunnel. “And you know those Dwarves. They’re Ratbaggio’s thugs. They’ve been prowling around here for the last couple of days.”

“Ratbaggio?” Oki asked.

“He’s the ringmaster of that cruel carnival show; but you know that—are you two sure
you’re
okay?” Jinx asked, pausing to look at them in concern.

“Kendra,” Oki whimpered. “Something’s wrong. Very, very wrong.”

“Oh, don’t fret,” Jinx said, hugging Oki again. “Let’s get below where it’s warmer. I doubt there’s much Eencake left, but I’m sure Master Bumblebean can prepare some tea.”

“Did you just call Bumblebean your master?” Kendra asked.

“Of course!” Jinx said. “But it’s
Professor
Bumblebean to you, Kendra. You should try and show respect to one of the most distinguished and learned Eens in all the world!”

Kendra didn’t know what to say. She just tugged one of her braids.

They eventually arrived at a small alcove where they saw Professor Bumblebean and Ratchet. Both looked like they had been through harsh times, for their clothes were patched and threadbare, and even the Professor’s spectacles were cracked. The small room mirrored their condition. It was sparsely furnished with only a few simple comforts.

“Happy days!” Professor Bumblebean cheered upon seeing Kendra and Oki. “You found them, dear Juniper! Good work!”

“Oh, my pleasure,” Jinx blushed, batting her long-lashed eyes at him.

“There’s the apprentice I’ve been looking for,” Ratchet said, tousling the top of Oki’s head. “I was certain you had perished. What happened?”

“We could ask you the same thing,” Kendra remarked. “We have no idea what’s going on. The last thing we remember is falling from the cloud ship.”

“Cloud ship?” Ratchet asked. “Whatever is that?”

“The
Big Bang!
” Oki cried. “You know, the flying ship we built!? It’s . . . it’s, well, you know—splendulous!”

“I’m certain I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ratchet admitted, scratching his chin. “But you should employ sensible, real words, Oki. Don’t you want our inventions to be taken seriously?”

“Eek!” Oki cried. “What’s happened to all of you?”

“Don’t worry, little one,” Jinx told the mouse, squeezing him tight. “Oh, you’re so cute, I could hug you all day.”

“You need to tell us what’s going on,” Kendra insisted. “Why are you living in this hole? And why are the Eens all running around the Forests of Wretch? Why aren’t they hiding behind the magic curtain?”

“The magic curtain!” Professor Bumblebean exclaimed in surprise. “Come, Kendra, you know the magic curtain fell over a year ago!”

“It fell?!” Kendra gasped. “But what about Faun’s End? And the Elder Stone? And—”

“All obliterated,” Ratchet answered. “Since then, it’s been every Een for himself, hiding under stump and stone from the truculent beasts of the outside world. But if the Professor and I have anything to do about it, we will raise the curtain again.”

“Master Bumblebean thinks he’s discovered a new and improved magic formula,” Jinx gushed. “Isn’t he absolutely superb? He’s handsome
and
intelligent!”

“Oh, don’t think of eggs,” Oki groaned, throwing himself against the ground and clutching his head.

“You know, I think you two have been through too much lately,” stated Professor Bumblebean. “Juniper, why not take them down to the side chamber for some rest?”

“Certainly,” Jinx chimed. With two of her four arms, she grabbed Kendra and Oki and led them down a tunnel until they came to an even smaller hole carved out of the cold earth.

“Wait a minute,” Kendra said as the grasshopper was about to leave. “Where’s Uncle Griffinskitch?”

Jinx looked at her with her large insect eyes. “Oh, Kendra,” she said after a moment. “You really should lie down. I’ll bring you some tea in a moment.”

“I don’t want tea!” Kendra cried. “I want to know where my uncle is.”

“I’ll be back in a moment,” Jinx said, hurriedly turning and bounding down the tunnel.

Kendra whirled and looked at Oki. “What in the name of all things Een is going on?” she demanded.

“I’ve been trying to figure it out,” Oki said, nervously rubbing his paws together. “I think we changed the timeline somehow, Kendra. Something we did in the past has completely changed our present. Jinx is kind, Ratchet is serious, and Professor Bumblebean doesn’t even use big words!”

Kendra sat down, her mind flooding with worry. “And the whole land of Een has been destroyed,” she added.

“We have to go back,” Oki said. “We have to change whatever we did. But what was it?”

“It . . . it was
me
,” Kendra murmured after a moment. “It’s what I did.”

“What was that?” Oki asked anxiously.

“That note I slipped into Gayla’s pocket,” Kendra explained. “I told her . . . .”

“Oh no!” Oki squealed. “Don’t tell me you—”

“I did,” Kendra admitted. “I told her I was her daughter. I told her that she was going to become so consumed with proving to the council that we were actually the same as Ungers and the rest that she would one day run away from Een, and that I would be orphaned. I
begged
her not to leave Een.”

“EEK!” Oki screamed. “Kendra, how could you? That was it! That’s changed everything! Your mother never ended up fighting the council. She never left Een. Your brother never became Trooogul. That means . . . that means . . . that means a
tribbillionous
things have changed that shouldn’t have!”

“How was I supposed to know all this would happen?” Kendra cried frantically. “I just thought I could have a mother. Did you see how obsessed she was? She cared more about that curse than anything else.”

“But she’s supposed to!” Oki wailed.

“I thought I could make everything better. But it’s much, much worse.”

“We’ve got to go back,” Oki said. “We need to fix it. Right now. We’ve got to sneak that letter
out
of Gayla’s pocket.”

Kendra didn’t argue. She pulled out the Kazah stone and slid it onto her finger. She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate—but she couldn’t. There was a loud series of thuds coming from above.

“What is that?” Kendra asked, opening her eyes.

Suddenly, the point of a pickaxe came slicing through the ceiling, sending down a shower of rocks and snow. Kendra and Oki both screamed as a giant hole appeared in the ceiling and there, glaring at them, was the Dwarf they had just recently escaped. This time, he had help.

“Looksee here, I found their nest!” the Dwarf chortled to his fellow. “Ol’ Ratbag is goin’ to grin ear to ear.”

With a squeal, Oki made an attempt to scurry down the tunnel, but the Dwarf with the black beard nabbed him by the tail, plucked him out of the hole, and stuffed him into his sack. Kendra reached for her wand, but it was too late. The second Dwarf had his greasy hands around her braids and with cruel force yanked her upwards. He snatched away her wand and, dangling her upside down, began to shake her. Out came the Kazah stone, into his waiting hand.

“Oooh, shiny!” he tittered, and then he dumped Kendra into his own sack.

“Oki!” Kendra screamed—but all she heard was a muffled reply. The mouse was already being taken away by the other Dwarf, and now Kendra felt her own sack bounce atop her captor’s back.

Where’s he taking me?
Kendra wondered desperately.

This question was answered only a few minutes later, when she heard the clang of a door and was unceremoniously dumped onto a hard, cold wooden platform. She rubbed her eyes and turned to see the Dwarf smiling smugly through a row of iron bars.

She was in some sort of cage. It was filthy and, despite the frigid temperature, slick with slop and slime, so putrid in stench it made her gag. Looking past the Dwarf, Kendra could see a whole caravan of cages, each of them on wheels and arranged in a circle. Each carriage seemed to hold a different creature; Kendra could see not only Eens, but Griffins, Fauns, and even a mermaid (she was in a tank frosted with a thin crust of ice).

It’s the carnival that Jinx was talking about,
Kendra thought.

“Ratbag will be all too happy to add this shiny to his treasures,” the Dwarf snickered, holding out his greasy palm to reveal the Kazah stone. “Me bets there’s extra ale for me tonight!” Then, whistling a happy tune, the vile fellow turned and waddled away.

“Oki, where are you?” Kendra moaned.

“K-Kendra?” came a voice—but it wasn’t Oki.

Kendra whirled around and gazed into the dark recesses of the cage. “Wh-who’s there?” Kendra stammered, clutching anxiously at her braids. The voice sounded familiar, almost like . . . .

Then a figure staggered out of the shadows, into the meager winter light, and Kendra cried out in shock.

It was her mother. And she was so very old.