Return To Lan Darr (23 page)

“We can’t! Alice is still in danger,” Laura yells. “Help her!”

“We are glad to help the friends of Allan Westerfield,” the Peeble says.

Rubic, Allan, and Laura are picked up by the largest of the Peebles and hauled into the air. They fly over the lava.

Laura points. “There! Alice is still alive!”

Alice’s island rocks back and forth as more and more lava flows around it. Because it is floating on the lava it’s buying her more time.

The ground shakes again. The last and the largest explosion rocks the ground.

Laura looks down at Alice and tears flood her eyes. The tears fall away, heading unencumbered to the molten rock below.

Lava rises and flows over Alice’s rock, forcing her to lift one leg. Only one foot can stand and not get burned. She’s crying and screaming, choking on the hot air, “Find my daughter! Laura! Find her! Tell her I tried! Tell her I tried to save her!” The lava floods over her boot and she drops her other foot. Both boots melt instantly, and her feet vaporize in a cloud of steam and ash.

A Peeble swoops, scooping Alice out of the lava. It holds her shoulders tight with its massive feet. She passes out from the pain. Smoke rises from the small amount of fabric and fatty tissue still burning at the edge of the stumped legs. Blood runs from her exposed veins, dripping back to the molten surface.

The Peebles carry their cargo away from the mountain just as the lava covers the entire side with its fiery fingers.

Only the sound of wind and the flapping of a hundred Peeble wings fill the dark night.

Chapter
26

Back to Katonaay? :(

The Peebles carry Rubic, Allan, Laura, and the bleeding Alice to a nearby cave. Another one had retrieved Allan’s chair from the sand dune. This cave is more extraordinary than the one Allan saw on his first visit to Peebland. Huge white and clear crystals cover the cave’s walls and ceiling. A dozen waterfalls pour from cracks and passageways into the river that flows the length of the cave.

The Peebles whoop and click in the darkness, echoes bouncing around like crazy balls. Immediately, lights come on throughout the cavern. The Peebles swoop to a beach along the river and land.

Alice wakens and screams when her bleeding stumps touch sand.

A Peeble, dressed in tight white wrappings resembling a mummy, lands next to the screaming Alice. The Peeble has a sack attached to her chest that resembles a baby harness but is filled with bandages and creams. “Hello, I’m Ixix. I know very little about your bodies, but I have worked with Martin on many occasions. I believe I can help.”

Alice howls as Ixix presses bandages to her leg stumps. Other Peebles place poles with glowing stones mounted to the top all around the beach, like tiki torches. 

Rubic leans close to Allan and whispers. “Do you know who Martin is?” 

Allan nods. “He’s nice. He and his wife came here in the late sixties.” Allan tells Rubic about the Wikan-Waks and how he has a standing invitation to come to dinner.

Rubic smiles. “I knew you were raised right. You have to show your best when you travel to other places. Whether you mean to or not, you’re speaking for the entire population of Earth. I know they’ve met Earthlings before, but you don’t want to be the one starting an intergalactic race war.” Rubic laughs.

Allan points to Rubic’s bare legs and beer-mug-stamped boxer-shorts. “Good impression of Earthlings, Rube.”

Rubic had forgotten he was wearing only boxers. “Great. I’m the one making the terrible fashion statement for Earthlings.” 

Ixix walks up to Rubic. Her small foggy eyes stare at him, and she smiles. “Her leg wounds are not bleeding anymore. But she still might get sick and die. The wounds are very bad.”

“I know. Look, you’ve done a great job, but we’ll still need to get back to Earth so we can take her to a human hospital.”

“I understand.” Ixix bows and steps back. She unfolds her great wings and leaps into the stuffy cave air.

Allan sees the walkways, balconies, and alcoves filled with hanging Peebles.

Rubic kneels beside Laura and Alice. Allan rolls to Laura’s side and touches her shoulder. It’s an odd feeling to have so many creatures watching their every move, but it is with affection, not suspicion, so the feeling fades.

Laura dabs a wet cloth on Alice’s forehead. Alice moans but isn’t awake. Sweat beads on her forehead and runs down her reddened face.

Rubic rubs his hands together. “Okay, let’s get her home.”

Allan digs into his pocket. “Uh, Rube.”

“What? You have enough orange pollen to get us to Earth. That little bag was full.”

“Yeah, it was full, but I don’t have it. I gave the pollen to you at the police station.”

Rubic’s mouth drops open. “The pollen was in my pants.”

“Which burned up in the lava.” Allan’s chest feels heavy, and he wants to hit something. “They don’t have orange pollen here.”

“What do you mean? Are you saying we’re not on Lan Darr?” Laura says, panic stamped across her face. Allan realizes how out of place she is.

“This is Peebland. It’s a long ways away from Lan Darr. And orange Hubbu aren’t blooming this time of year. Only Pink Hubbu flowers are.”

“Pink? Where does that go?” Her voice is shrill and cuts into Allan’s eardrum like a knife.

“Pink goes to Katonaay. And we can’t go there.”

Rubic shakes his head. “Yeah, we would be fools to go there.”

Allan taps the wheel of his chair. “Do we have a choice?”

“It’s not going to get us to an Earth hospital. So that choice is off the table.” Rubic’s face is frozen in a scowl. He stands and tugs on his beard as he paces.

“I’ve been there. I know what to avoid. We have to sneak around. I can get us to the dome where they keep the Hubbu,” Allan says, remembering his escape. He also remembers how he almost failed, but keeps that to himself.

After a few minutes, Rubic returns to Allan’s side. “Okay. I’ll go by myself. I’ll secure purple Hubbu and orange Hubbu. I’ll get back here and take us all home.”

“I want to go with you,” Allan squeaks out.

“I know, but this is what we talked about. Some things I will have to do for you and that’s okay.”

Allan nods. “Fine, I’ll take you to the Hubbu field, though.”

“Good, I don’t want to travel without you if I can help it.”

“I’ll stay with Alice.” Laura says. “As long as they have food and water here. Lots of water.”

Allan stares at her vivid blue eyes. “They have lots of water. And you’ll like the food too.” He smiles, knowing what she will be served.

Not wanting to traverse Peebland at night for fear of the dinosaur’s sleeping trumpets and the crazy lightning storms, Rubic and Allan wait until the sun finishes rising. Everyone lies near each other on the black, sandy cave bottom. The hours creep by as slow as they’ve ever moved. Alice wakes and moans every now and again, disturbing the quiet cave.

A few large Peebles land near the group. The biggest one says, “It is morning.” Allan and Rubic stand. Neither had gotten a wink of sleep.

“Be safe,” Laura says to Allan.

Two Peebles carry Rubic and Allan to the surface and drop them off. The dawn sky has replaced the shadows. The rolling hills, dark valleys, and the faraway volcano don’t seem as scary anymore. It’s a planet, not unlike Earth in many ways. Including the ability for people to survive it.

“Thank you,” Allan says to the Peebles that had carried them to the surface. It’s not the king he’d met before, but it’s the leader of this cave and is wearing ornate, tiny animal-skull necklaces and bright flags tied to its arms, legs, and waist.

“You are welcome. I wish we could carry you farther, but we are not that strong. We have only a few Pic-Peeble in our tribe, and they are the only ones big enough to carry your weight. They are tired now, one has a sprained wing.” The Peeble bows.

“I know. You really pushed yourselves getting us here. And we are grateful. I wish I had a gift I could give you.” Rubic takes off his vest with the many pockets. “Here, take my vest.”

The Peeble puts it on with some difficulty. It tears the back of the vest out when it unfolds its wings. “Thank you, it fits very well.”

Rubic laughs. “Yeah, looks great on you.”

The Peeble flies away.

Rubic pushes Allan across a field in the direction of Martin’s house. They’ll have to get a Wikan-Wak and find the same Hubbu field as before. The Peeble leader had said it is a long way to Martin’s house, and Allan is already tired and hungry. Rubic too. Allan sees the dark circles under his eyes. What he’d give for a night of stupid movies and junk food.

Halfway across a hill covered in black crystals the size of small cars, a breeze picks up, and a single, small, dark cloud moves overhead. The breeze strengthens and Rubic ducks.

“Lightning storms. They’re really bad here.” He looks up at the single cloud.

Allan points to the small cloud. “That’s a crazy evil-looking cloud. So evil, it’s almost cute.” Allan says sarcastically. “Relax, old man.” Allan laughs.

“You laugh now. But that little cloud might have friends that’ll come out of nowhere, and it’s like you’re suddenly in a Tesla Ball. Come on, let’s get to lower ground.”

“What’s a Tesla Ball?”

“You’ve seen them; they’re the glass balls with electricity in them. You touch the glass and the electricity follows the conductivity of your fingers.”

“Yeah, those things are cool.”

“The inventor was Nikola Tesla.”

“Next time we visit Lan Darr, we’re bringing Mizzi one of those Tesla balls.”

“I like the way you think.”

Rumbling interrupts the conversation.

“Wait, I hear something, and it’s not thunder.” Allan rolls around a large stone, and then up an incline. Rubic helps push him up a small hill.

From the direction of the ocean comes a flying airship. It’s oval with the same rib cage construction as Asantia’s first ship. Instead of the cockpit in the main balloon, like her first ship, there’s a cockpit attached to the bottom. Huge engines stick out of the sides and belch black smoke. The ship gets closer, and when it’s overhead, it descends to the ground. A ramp lowers from a side door and rests on the hilltop. Asantia stands in the shade of her ship with her hand on her hip. She struts down the ramp toward Allan.

“Somebody told me that a boy in a wheelchair needs a ride to Earth.”

Allan’s arms fling out to the side. Asantia hugs him. “You’re okay!”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she snaps.

“You were going off to war…” Allan blinks, holding his tears back. He wants to look tougher than he feels at this moment.

“Have some faith! I’m a much better fighter than you know.” Asantia looks at Rubic and makes a quick nod. “I assume you’re Rubic?”

Rubic reaches out and hugs her. “I am. And you are an angel! And yes! Four tickets to Earth, please.”

“Four?”

“Two others are waiting for us in a Peeble cave. One needs a hospital, so we have to hurry,” Allan says, relieved there will be a direct flight to home.

They board Asantia’s new ship, which is faster and more stable, and has separate living quarters and an actual bathroom, instead of a pot that emptied out into the wind like her last ship.

After a tour of the ship, they fly to the cave. Laura and Alice are brought to the surface.

Laura walks up to Asantia and introduces herself. “I’m Laura, Allan’s girlfriend.” She looks at Allan. Allan’s eyes widen as large as the moon, and his jaw falls open.

Asantia smiles and pats Allan on the shoulder. “Good move. She’s pretty.”

“And smart,” Laura says with a thin smile. Her eyes linger on Asantia’s tight outfit, the dagger on her belt, and the sword hilt sticking up from her back, then shrinks the gap between her and Allan.

“What is this I hear?” Rubic says, just as shocked as Allan is. He nudges Allan playfully. “I knew there was something more there.”

Allan turns bright red, and his heart double flips under his rib cage. He stares at Laura and notices a kind of glow around her.

“Let’s get going. Time isn’t free.” Rubic and Asantia carry Alice into the ship, set her on a cot, and cover her feverish body with a blanket. She moans, “Find my daughter. Find her.” Then Alice passes out from the pain.

“What happened to her?” Asantia asks, looking at the blood-soaked bandages that were where her feet should have been.

“Lava melted her feet,” Laura says.

“She’s lucky to be alive.” Asantia steps back. Her eyes fixate on Alice’s face. Asantia leans close again and rubs Alice’s hair between her fingers. It’s reddish brown and similar to her own hair. She gently touches Alice’s nose and lips and runs her fingers over Alice’s closed eyelids. Asantia kneels and clasps her hands together. “Who is this woman?”

“Her name is Alice. She lost a daughter a long time ago and has been searching for her ever since. She says she was in a field of flowers when her girl vanished into thin air.”

Tears flood Asantia’s eyes and stream down her cheeks.

Laura rests a hand on Asantia’s shoulder and continues, “The baby was wearing a pretty green sundress with white frills and little …”

“White sandals,” Asantia finishes and then lays her head on Alice’s chest. “She’s my mother. I still have the dress. No one had ever seen that kind of a dress on Lan Darr.”

The silence in the room lasts for an eternity. Laura moves to the armrest of Allan’s chair, where she always sits. Rubic watches by the doorway, unable to move or prevent tears from filling his eyes. Alice’s chest rises and falls, but her breathing is shallow.

Asantia stands and storms out of the room. “Come on, we need to get her to Earth.”

At the controls she flips levers, turns dials, and pounds on a control box. Orange powder spits out of tiny hoses all around the window of the ship, and sparks fly where there were no sparks before.