L. Frank Baum_Oz 14 (12 page)

"Leave that to Glinda," advised the Wizard, realizing he was helpless
to do it himself.

"If it were just an ordinary sunken island," said the powerful
sorceress, "there would be several ways by which I might bring it to
the surface again. But this is a Magic Isle, and by some curious art of
witchcraft, unknown to any but Queen Coo-ce-oh, it obeys certain
commands of magic and will not respond to any other. I do not despair
in the least, but it will require some deep study to solve this
difficult problem. If the Swan could only remember the witchcraft that
she invented and knew as a woman, I could force her to tell me the
secret, but all her former knowledge is now forgotten."

"It seems to me," said the Wizard after a brief silence had followed
Glinda's speech, "that there are three fishes in this lake that used to
be Adepts at Magic and from whom Coo-ee-oh stole much of her knowledge.
If we could find those fishes and return them to their former shapes,
they could doubtless tell us what to do to bring the sunken island to
the surface."

"I have thought of those fishes," replied Glinda, "but among so many
fishes as this lake contains how are we to single them out?"

You will understand, of course, that had Glinda been at home in her
castle, where the Great Book of Records was, she would have known that
Ervic the Skeezer already had taken the gold and silver and bronze
fishes from the lake. But that act had been recorded in the Book after
Glinda had set out on this journey, so it was all unknown to her.

"I think I see a boat yonder on the shore," said Ojo the Munchkin boy,
pointing to a place around the edge of the lake. "If we could get that
boat and row all over the lake, calling to the magic fishes, we might
be able to find them."

"Let us go to the boat," said the Wizard.

They walked around the lake to where the boat was stranded upon the
beach, but found it empty. It was a mere shell of blackened steel, with
a collapsible roof that, when in position, made the submarine
watertight, but at present the roof rested in slots on either side of
the magic craft. There were no oars or sails, no machinery to make the
boat go, and although Glinda promptly realized it was meant to be
operated by witchcraft, she was not acquainted with that sort of magic.

"However," said she, "the boat is merely a boat, and I believe I can
make it obey a command of sorcery, as well as it did the command of
witchcraft. After I have given a little thought to the matter, the boat
will take us wherever we desire to go."

"Not all of us," returned the Wizard, "for it won't hold so many. But,
most noble Sorceress, provided you can make the boat go, of what use
will it be to us?"

"Can't we use it to catch the three fishes?" asked Button Bright.

"It will not be necessary to use the boat for that purpose," replied
Glinda. "Wherever in the lake the enchanted fishes may be, they will
answer to my call. What I am trying to discover is how the boat came to
be on this shore, while the island on which it belongs is under water
yonder. Did Coo-ee-oh come here in the boat to meet the Flatheads
before the island was sunk, or afterward?"

No one could answer that question, of course; but while they pondered
the matter three young men advanced from the line of trees, and rather
timidly bowed to the strangers.

"Who are you, and where did you come from?" inquired the Wizard.

"We are Skeezers," answered one of them, "and our home is on the Magic
Isle of the Lake. We ran away when we saw you coming, and hid behind
the trees, but as you are Strangers and seem to be friendly we decided
to meet you, for we are in great trouble and need assistance."

"If you belong on the island, why are you here?" demanded Glinda.

So they told her all the story: How the Queen had defied the Flatheads
and submerged the whole island so that her enemies could not get to it
or destroy it; how, when the Flatheads came to the shore, Coo-ee-oh had
commanded them, together with their friend Ervic, to go with her in the
submarine to conquer the Su-dic, and how the boat had shot out from the
basement of the sunken isle, obeying a magic word, and risen to the
surface, where it opened and floated upon the water.

Then followed the account of how the Su-dic had transformed Coo-ee-oh
into a swan, after which she had forgotten all the witchcraft she ever
knew. The young men told how, in the night when they were asleep, their
comrade Ervic had mysteriously disappeared, while the boat in some
strange manner had floated to the shore and stranded upon the beach.

That was all they knew. They had searched in vain for three days for
Ervic. As their island was under water and they could not get back to
it, the three Skeezers had no place to go, and so had waited patiently
beside their boat for something to happen.

Being questioned by Glinda and the Wizard, they told all they knew
about Ozma and Dorothy and declared the two girls were still in the
village under the Great Dome. They were quite safe and would be well
cared for by Lady Aurex, now that the Queen who opposed them was out of
the way.

When they had gleaned all the information they could from these
Skeezers, the Wizard said to Glinda:

"If you find you can make this boat obey your sorcery, you could have
it return to the island, submerge itself, and enter the door in the
basement from which it came. But I cannot see that our going to the
sunken island would enable our friends to escape. We would only Join
them as prisoners."

"Not so, friend Wizard," replied Glinda. "If the boat would obey my
commands to enter the basement door, it would also obey my commands to
come out again, and I could bring Ozma and Dorothy back with me."

"And leave all of our people still imprisoned?" asked one of the
Skeezers reproachfully.

"By making several trips in the boat, Glinda could fetch all your
people to the shore," replied the Wizard.

"But what could they do then?" inquired another Skeezer. "They would
have no homes and no place to go, and would be at the mercy of their
enemies, the Flatheads."

"That is true," said Glinda the Good. "And as these people are Ozma's
subjects, I think she would refuse to escape with Dorothy and leave the
others behind, or to abandon the island which is the lawful home of the
Skeezers. I believe the best plan will be to summon the three fishes
and learn from them how to raise the island."

The little Wizard seemed to think that this was rather a forlorn hope.

"How will you summon them," he asked the lovely Sorceress, "and how can
they hear you?"

"That is something we must consider carefully," responded stately
Glinda, with a serene smile. "I think I can find a way."

All of Ozma's counsellors applauded this sentiment, for they knew well
the powers of the Sorceress.

"Very well," agreed the Wizard. "Summon them, most noble Glinda."

We must now return to Ervic the Skeezer, who, when he had set down the
copper kettle containing the three fishes at the gate of the lonely
cottage, had asked, "What next?"

The goldfish stuck its head above the water in the kettle and said in
its small but distinct voice:

"You are to lift the latch, open the door, and walk boldly into the
cottage. Do not be afraid of anything you see, for however you seem to
be threatened with dangers, nothing can harm you. The cottage is the
home of a powerful Yookoohoo, named Reera the Red, who assumes all
sorts of forms, sometimes changing her form several times in a day,
according to her fancy. What her real form may be we do not know. This
strange creature cannot be bribed with treasure, or coaxed through
friendship, or won by pity. She has never assisted anyone, or done
wrong to anyone, that we know of. All her wonderful powers are used for
her own selfish amusement. She will order you out of the house but you
must refuse to go. Remain and watch Reera closely and try to see what
she uses to accomplish her transformations. If you can discover the
secret whisper it to us and we will then tell you what to do next."

"That sounds easy," returned Ervic, who had listened carefully. "But
are you sure she will not hurt me, or try to transform me?"

"She may change your form," replied the goldfish, "but do not worry if
that happens, for we can break that enchantment easily. You may be sure
that nothing will harm you, so you must not be frightened at anything
you see or hear."

Now Ervic was as brave as any ordinary young man, and he knew the
fishes who spoke to him were truthful and to be relied upon,
nevertheless he experienced a strange sinking of the heart as he picked
up the kettle and approached the door of the cottage. His hand trembled
as he raised the latch, but he was resolved to obey his instructions.
He pushed the door open, took three strides into the middle of the one
room the cottage contained, and then stood still and looked around him.

The sights that met his gaze were enough to frighten anyone who had not
been properly warned. On the floor just before Ervic lay a great
crocodile, its red eyes gleaming wickedly and its wide open mouth
displaying rows of sharp teeth. Horned toads hopped about; each of the
four upper corners of the room was festooned with a thick cobweb, in
the center of which sat a spider as big around as a washbasin, and
armed with pincher-like claws; a red-and-green lizard was stretched at
full length on the window-sill and black rats darted in and out of the
holes they had gnawed in the floor of the cottage.

But the most startling thing was a huge gray ape which sat upon a bench
and knitted. It wore a lace cap, such as old ladies wear, and a little
apron of lace, but no other clothing. Its eyes were bright and looked
as if coals were burning in them. The ape moved as naturally as an
ordinary person might, and on Ervic's entrance stopped knitting and
raised its head to look at him.

"Get out!" cried a sharp voice, seeming to come from the ape's mouth.

Ervic saw another bench, empty, just beyond him, so he stepped over the
crocodile, sat down upon the bench and carefully placed the kettle
beside him.

"Get out!" again cried the voice.

Ervic shook his head.

"No," said he, "I'm going to stay."

The spiders left their four corners, dropped to the floor and made a
rush toward the young Skeezer, circling around his legs with their
pinchers extended. Ervic paid no attention to them. An enormous black
rat ran up Ervic's body, passed around his shoulders and uttered
piercing squeals in his ears, but he did not wince. The green-and-red
lizard, coming from the window-sill, approached Ervic and began
spitting a flaming fluid at him, but Ervic merely stared at the
creature and its flame did not touch him.

The crocodile raised its tail and, swinging around, swept Ervic off the
bench with a powerful blow. But the Skeezer managed to save the kettle
from upsetting and he got up, shook off the horned toads that were
crawling over him and resumed his seat on the bench.

All the creatures, after this first attack, remained motionless, as if
awaiting orders. The old gray ape knitted on, not looking toward Ervic
now, and the young Skeezer stolidly kept his seat. He expected
something else to happen, but nothing did. A full hour passed and Ervic
was growing nervous.

"What do you want?" the ape asked at last.

"Nothing," said Ervic.

"You may have that!" retorted the ape, and at this all the strange
creatures in the room broke into a chorus of cackling laughter.

Another long wait.

"Do you know who I am?" questioned the ape.

"You must be Reera the Red—the Yookoohoo," Ervic answered.

"Knowing so much, you must also know that I do not like strangers. Your
presence here in my home annoys me. Do you not fear my anger?"

"No," said the young man.

"Do you intend to obey me, and leave this house?" "No," replied Ervic,
just as quietly as the Yookoohoo had spoken.

The ape knitted for a long time before resuming the conversation.

"Curiosity," it said, "has led to many a man's undoing. I suppose in
some way you have learned that I do tricks of magic, and so through
curiosity you have come here. You may have been told that I do not
injure anyone, so you are bold enough to disobey my commands to go
away. You imagine that you may witness some of the rites of witchcraft,
and that they may amuse you. Have I spoken truly?"

"Well," remarked Ervic, who had been pondering on the strange
circumstances of his coming here, "you are right in some ways, but not
in others. I am told that you work magic only for your own amusement.
That seems to me very selfish. Few people understand magic. I'm told
that you are the only real Yookoohoo in all Oz. Why don't you amuse
others as well as yourself?"

"What right have you to question my actions?"

"None at all."

"And you say you are not here to demand any favors of me?"

"For myself I want nothing from you."

"You are wise in that. I never grant favors."

"That doesn't worry me," declared Ervic.

"But you are curious? You hope to witness some of my magic
transformations?"

"If you wish to perform any magic, go ahead," said Ervic. "It may
interest me and it may not. If you'd rather go on with your knitting,
it's all the same to me. I am in no hurry at all."

This may have puzzled Red Reera, but the face beneath the lace cap
could show no expression, being covered with hair. Perhaps in all her
career the Yookoohoo had never been visited by anyone who, like this
young man, asked for nothing, expected nothing, and had no reason for
coming except curiosity. This attitude practically disarmed the witch
and she began to regard the Skeezer in a more friendly way. She knitted
for some time, seemingly in deep thought, and then she arose and walked
to a big cupboard that stood against the wall of the room. When the
cupboard door was opened Ervic could see a lot of drawers inside, and
into one of these drawers—the second from the bottom—Reera thrust a
hairy hand.