"Yes." Cube realized that it was best not to get sidetracked. "Your joint talent is to step to the, uh, side, and enter this empty realm. Can folk in regular Xanth see you when you do?"
"Oh, yes," Tessa agreed. "And hear us, a little. But they can't touch us. We seem like ghosts."
"Like ghosts?"
"We shall demonstrate," Cory said. "Step this way." She walked out of the rock.
Cube followed. Now she seemed to stand beside the dark lake. Karia and Diamond stood there. The centaur's mouth worked, but there was only the faintest of sounds. Cube nevertheless made it out, since there was no other noise. "Ah, there you are! Was it nice in the wall?"
"Observe," Cory said. She stepped right into the centaur--and through her, emerging on the other side.
Cube was almost as startled as Karia was. "Ghost," she said loudly. "We are like ghosts."
"Ghost!" Karia repeated loudly/faintly.
"Sidestepping," Cube shouted. "We're in a different realm."
"We'll bring them in now," Tessa said.
The two women linked hands and stepped forward together. Then Cory took Karia's hand, and Tessa rested her hand on the dog's back. They stepped back, drawing centaur and dog with them.
"Well hello again!" Karia shouted.
"Now sound's normal," Cube said. "We're both in the same realm again."
"Oh." Karia looked at the cave wall. "We can step into rock?"
"Follow me," Cube said, and walked back into the stone.
Centaur and dog followed, both looking bemused. "This is interesting," Karia said, evidently not one for overstatement.
"It's an--an alternate world, or something," Cube explained. "With nothing in it, so we see Xanth shining through."
"Without interacting physically with it," Karia agreed. "As if it is illusion. This could certainly simplify trekking through some of the natural hazards. I believe the Princesses are correct: we can use these people on the Quest."
"I agree. But maybe we should check with the others."
"Princesses?" Cory asked.
"Let's return to real Xanth, and I'll introduce you to the other members of our party."
They went back to the lake, and sidestepped out of the other realm. Then Cube brought the others out of the pouch, introducing each as she did. Cory and Tessa were duly awed by the presence of the Princesses and the dragon.
Demoness Metria popped into view. "Nothing much beyond the lake. Have I missed anything?"
"Very little," Karia said with half a smile.
"That's good. I would have hated to miss their smooching with Umlaut, because I knew him and smooched him some myself." She formed into a large floating candy kiss.
The centaur's half smile faded, becoming half a frown. Apparently she hadn't known that the demoness was not always as absent as she seemed.
Then they went through the sidestepping demonstration with the others. "Do these two women seem to be a worthy addition to the Quest?" Cube asked the group.
The others agreed that they were. So they explained the nature of the Quest and returned to the cave apartment, where Cory and Tessa made them all comfortable.
"How did the two of you get together?" Princess Melody asked as they relaxed on the couches and sipped boot rear diluted with tsoda popka.
"Since you must not have known your half talents before then," Harmony added, chewing on a mellow fragment of a sweet marsh--a marsh mellow that made the centaur wince.
"Or discovered the other realm," Rhythm concluded as she nibbled on assorted mints from a mint julep tree: hot pepper mints, delightful compli mints, and pointed spear mints.
"It's a dull story," Tessa said.
"Very dull," Cory agreed. "We're from Mundania."
"So we can skip it," Metria said. "Xanth is dull enough without even thinking about dreary Mundania."
"But you two have magic," Ryver said. "Everyone knows that Mundanes don't have magic talents."
"Everyone knows wrong," Cory said.
"We are the proof," Tessa agreed.
That got Metria's interest. "Are we about to puncture a common delusion? You must tell us all about it."
The two exchanged a glance. Then Cory spoke. "I was born in Mundania--"
"You were what?" Cube asked.
"The storks seldom deliver in Mundania," Cory said. "Instead there is a somewhat messy and painful process that--" She broke off as she noted the suddenly rapt attention of the three Princesses. "That we don't need to go into. I was part of a normal Mundane family, which is to say, dull. But even as a child I was tall. I had very long bones and loose joints. It is called Marfan syndrome, and it runs in families. You might call it a curse. Soon I was taller than any girl and most boys, and the other children made fun of me unmercifully. Women are not supposed to be that tall and clumsy. It did not abate as I reached maturity; others no longer teased me openly, but neither did they care to associate with me. Seeing all chance of a normal social life gone, let alone any prospect for romance, family, or success in life, I made a fateful decision. I announced that I was departing for a far country."
"Xanth!" Melody exclaimed.
Cory shook her head. "I did not know of Xanth. No, my words were a euphemism for a much darker denouement."
"A what for a what?" Harmony asked.
"A mild or vague expression substituting for something harsh or ugly," Karia clarified. "For a conclusion, outcome, or resolution."
"Death," Metria said.
"Whatever," Rhythm said, forcing a cute frown.
"Death," Cory agreed. "I needed only a private place to do it, where my body would not be found. I wanted others to believe that I had found satisfaction elsewhere. I wanted no further embarrassment. And so I sought the deepest, darkest forest I could find, that was reputed to be haunted, so most folk stayed well away from it. Within it I searched for the least accessible section, girt about by rough ground, brambles, and poisonous insects. I found a rushing river, with a brief level flow between two treacherous rapids, and it split, forming a tangled island. There was my place! It was all I could do to reach it, but I didn't want to drown, because my body might be carried out to some larger lake and discovered, ruining my secret. I struggled onto the island, and to the thickest brush at its center, and there I set about digging a grave. But a violent storm came up, and its wind and rain tore at me as if about to blow me away. I cowered down in my partial grave, clinging to the anonymous rock I intended as an unmarked head-stone, and waited for the end."
"But that water didn't end you," Ryver said. "I know it wouldn't do that."
Cory nodded. "The river overflowed its banks and covered the island. I tried to hang on, but it carried me away. I feared I was about to drown, and be discovered. But it became oddly soft and warm, and bore me along like an encompassing cloak. Finally it left me on a distant bank. I was bruised and dizzy, but not dead, so I got to my feet and tried to organize to complete my mission. I had no idea where I was, but it was soon apparent that it was no place I had known before. I found a tree bearing pies."
"A pie tree!" Melody said.
"Yes. But they were not full pies. Instead they were slices. I picked and ate three slices, and when I had done that, I saw that it had grown one more slice. So I ate that, and then it produced four more. Suddenly I recognized a pattern I had learned in school: 3.14 was pi, the ratio of a circle to its diameter."
"A pi tree," Harmony agreed.
"Alerted by that, I soon saw other evidences of literalism. There was something that resembled a Mundane printer, but instead of paper, jam was oozing from it."
"Paper jam," Rhythm said.
"I saw a big dark bird, an owl, garbed with a helmet and sword."
"Ugh!" Karia said.
"A knight owl," Ryver said.
"At that point I was overcome by curiosity, so I started exploring this strange land. Then I encountered another person, a short one. I thought she would laugh at me, but she didn't."
"Which is where I pick u
p," Tessa said. "My journey to Xanth was far less traumatic. I had suffered some ridicule in Mundania because I was too short. I pretended I didn't mind, but I did mind, and so I tried to find new friends who would accept me as I am. I drove to Florida, and down along the keys, which don't look like door keys in Mundania, but more like a string of islands, and I stopped at one called No Name Key. I had run out of money--that's something that is used a lot there--so I inquired at the first house I found for work. A nice man said he needed someone to carry a packet to another land, and he would pay me when I accomplished this. So I took the packet and went along the route he told me. But just as I got there, there was a horrible storm that pelted me with brightly colored hailstones. I tried to hide under a tree, but the hanging branches of the tree became tentacles and grabbed for me. I barely got away, terrified--but I had lost the packet. I knew I could not return and admit my failure, so I wandered on, dejected--and encountered a very tall woman."
"And so we met," Cory said. "We found this cave, and discovered that we liked each other's company, because each of us understood what it felt like to be teased for our height. We had no desire to associate with others, because the folk in Xanth consider us odd too. So when we happened to see other people, we hid."
"And one day after we had linked hands and fled desperately, we found ourselves in a really strange place," Tessa said. "Trees had become insubstantial; we could walk right through them. We were afraid we had died and become ghosts, but we were solid to each other. So we retraced our steps, and managed to return to regular Xanth. We had discovered sidestepping."
"A magic talent," Cory said. "Each of us had half of it; we could do it together but not alone."
"So it's not true that Mundanes in Xanth don't have magic," Tessa said. "It just takes time for them to achieve magic. They would discover their talents, if they ever thought to look for them."
"But they are so sure they have no magic, they never look," Cory concluded.
Cube was amazed. She had been one of the "everyone" who knew that Mundanes had no magic talents. But if the children of Mundanes in Xanth had talents, why shouldn't the Mundanes have them too, if they remained here long enough? She remembered how the Good Magician's sock had absorbed some of his magic; proximity did have its effect. Actually she wondered about that; he was the Magician of Information, while the sock was a transport mechanism, not his type of magic. So maybe Sofia Socksorter had confused the reason for the sock's magic. Not that it really mattered.
"So now you know our Quest, and we know your histories," Karia said to the two women. "I have no doubt of the usefulness of your talent, but there is another problem: we don't know exactly where we are going. We have been focusing on completing our roster of nine, and now that we have done that, we must orient on the mission."
"But you have more than nine," Tessa said.
"No, just nine Companions, including the two of you," Cube said. "Metria, Karia, Ryver, Melody, Harmony, Rhythm, Drek, Cory, Tessa. Nine."
"You didn't count yourself," Cory said.
"I'm not a Companion. I'm the one with the Quest."
"Is that what the Good Magician said?" Tessa asked. "Because it makes sense to me that your whole party be nine. That's the square of three, and you're looking for a new land, maybe the cube. Like your name."
"The twenty-seventh recorded adventure," Metria said. "I sneaked a peek at the Muse of History's list of titles."
"So there is three, squared and cubed," Karia said.
Cube turned her thought back to the Good Magician. "He said to limit my party to nine, no more, no less. So I did. And he said each person in it would be appropriately rewarded."
"Your party includes you," Karia said.
Cube realized that it was true. She was a member of her party; that must be what the Good Magician meant. She had one too many people. "But that means someone will have to go."
There was a silence. Then Cory spoke. "We are the last to join. We'll have to go."
"But then we'll be short one," Ryver pointed out.
"I'm the short one," Tessa said, smiling. "But we must be together; our talent won't work otherwise."
"We won't split up either," Melody said.
"Because we'd lose the cube of our talent," Harmony added.
"And we have to look out for each other," Rhythm concluded.
"I agree," Karia said. "They can't be separated. But perhaps I can be spared."
"You're the reason Mother let us go," Melody said.
"You have to stay," Harmony added.
"So we can stay," Rhythm concluded.
"Well, I could go," Metria said, looking uncharacteristically sad.
"I'm not sure that would be wise," Karia said. "We need the talents of a demon who can turn invisible or flit ahead. There's no telling what we will encounter along the way."
Drek wiggled an ear. "But we may need protection," Karia said. "We would be vulnerable without a dragon."
"That leaves me," Ryver said. "I'm sorry to go, but I guess I'd better."
That sent a pang through Cube. She wanted Ryver along, so he could be there when she got beautiful. "We need you too," she said quickly. "Your talent with water--we could need that any time."
"It is your decision, I think," Karia said. "It is your Quest."
Cube struggled with her conscience. "I don't think even the Good Magician knows exactly what's going to happen. Maybe he thinks nine is the right number, but maybe it's not. I want to keep our whole party together."
"I think keeping me is apt to bring more mischief than it's worth," Ryver said. "Betting that the Good Magician is wrong is foolish. He's never wrong."
"But he is seldom understood, either," Karia said. "Perhaps he did mean nine Companions, and a party of ten."
"I could pop back and ask him," Metria said.
"No," Cube said firmly. "Let's plow on, on our own, and see what happens."
The others nodded. They were committed, for good or ill.
Chapter 7
Thread
They rested that day, working out the details of their Quest for Counter Xanth. The three little Princesses tried to do a Find on it, but Rhythm's finger waved wildly, describing the contour of spilled spaghetti rather than any particular direction.
"This is frustrating," Melody said.
"Our magic is being balked," Harmony agreed.
"We don't like that," Rhythm concluded.
"This could be the work of the Demoness," Karia said. "Subtly interfering with the Quest."
Drek wiggled an ear. "You have an idea?" Cube asked him. He wiggled his right ear.
"This will be arid," Metria said impatiently.
"Be what?" Cube asked.
"Dry, sterile, aseptic, dull, irksome--"
"Tedious?"
"Whatever," she agreed crossly. "Why not have the Princesses make an illusion that can talk for him?"
Cube glanced at the three. "Can you do that?"
"Sure," Melody said.
"Now that someone thought of it," Harmony agreed.
"We'll make a talking picture tied to him," Rhythm concluded.
The three huddled, then sang, played, and beat, and the image of Drek appeared. It looked the real Drek in the snoot. "Hey, that's me!" the image said, surprised, while the real Drek wiggled both ears.
"That's you. You talk through the image," Karia told him. "To make it easier for those of us who don't speak Dragon."
Both the real and the image dragons looked confused, then thoughtful. Then the image spoke again. "How am I coming through?"
"Very well," Karia assured him. "Tell us your idea."
"It may not be the evil Demoness," the image said. "It may simply be that we have too many Companions, so the magic is fouled up. There may still be a Route, just more complicated than it might be. It may wind around and about, instead of being one straight direction. We can still follow it, if we make it visible."
A nod passed from Karia to Ryver, and through the three Pr
incesses, the two sidesteppers, D. Metria, and finally ended with Cube. "Can you do that?" Cube asked the three again.
The three huddled, made music, and a silver thread appeared. It led out of the cave, wound around a nearby acorn tree, and headed away through the forest.
"And there we have it," the Drek image said, satisfied. "The winding route." There was perfume in the air.
"I'll follow it," Cube said. "And bring one of you out only when I have to, so as to keep the mission secret."
"What about Diamond?" Tessa asked. "We can't just leave her here."
Cube had almost forgotten about the dog they had rescued. "There must be a place for her. Maybe she could be a seeing-eye dog for Wira."
"Who?" Cory asked.
"The Good Magician's daughter-in-law. She's blind."
"Are you a guide dog?" Karia asked the dog.
Diamond looked down. Her tail drooped. She was not a guide dog.
Cube shrugged. "I suppose she can tag along with me, until she finds a place to stay."
Diamond wagged her tail.
In the morning, well rested and fed, the nine Companions slid into the pouch, leaving only Cube and Diamond. The dog tracked the thread by smelling it. Cube found that she was satisfied to have Diamond along, because it was suddenly lonely by herself, after being with the full group. She would have preferred to travel with all of them, openly, but that was not feasible or sensible. But who would notice a dog? They weren't common in Xanth, but neither were they unknown. So she had company after all.
The faint silver thread wound around the acorn tree, as they had seen before; Cube paused, considering, then decided that it was best to follow the trail exactly, so as to be sure not to lose it. So she didn't skip the loop, though she had to climb through brush, then returned to clear ground. She looked back, and the thread behind her was gone. It was like a one-way path, disappearing when used. What would have happened, had she skipped that loop? Would the whole thing have vanished? Of course she could bring out the Princesses and have them do it again, but that would be an admission of failure on her part and she didn't want to do it. She already felt guilty enough about getting the wrong number of Companions and complicating her route. She might have been there by now if she had been able to go straight. All because she wouldn't let handsome Ryver go. She knew appearance should not be that important--if she were judged by appearance, she'd be worthless--yet she was affected by it herself. She liked Ryver for his handsomeness, and wanted to win him, and to do that she had to have him there to see her get beautiful. So she had sacrificed her Quest for a selfish reason, which did not speak well for her quality of personality.