It was as if a whole island had sunk to the bottom of the sea bringing the castle with it. “Wow! A real…make-believe castle,” I said, catching myself just in time before I blurted out the word fairytale.
Second glance showed the castle to be made up of a cluster of the stone tree houses in different heights and widths, romantically draped with the vineing plants to be seen everywhere in Metsoola. It positively echoed with the sound of every fairytale I ever read.
“It’s definitely real,” Glori said. “There’s no make-believe about it. We are rather fond of Castle Downalot. It took over fifty years to build and is considered to be a real tour de force.”
“I know it is not make-believe,” I said, smiling. “It’s just that it reminds me of all the stories my parents told me when I was little, as if they had suddenly came to life. I have this feeling that as soon as I pass through those gates, I will be swimming into the middle of a…a…”
“Make-believe story, Miriam,” Darkflower whispered. “Don’t forget, Glori thinks you’re a fairy like she is.”
“Make-believe story,” I said emphatically. I don’t know what fairies call make-believe stories, but it was certainly not fairytales.
Now that we were almost at the castle, it was Glori’s turn to change the subject.
“Once we get inside, you will probably be whisked away to see King Mundiflure. But if you need a break, come for a quiet visit. I promise not to pummel you with questions, even though I am bursting with more. I’m puttering in the castle gardens most days, and anyone can tell you where I live if you have time or inclination.
Glori turned out to be right. Even before we were inside, I saw another Sky headed our way. “That’s Fiddlesticks, one of the king’s ministers,” she said. “He’ll know where to take you.”
“I’m on my way to a meeting with King Mundiflure right now,” Fiddlesticks said after introductions were done. “I’m sure he’ll be very pleased to meet you.”
CHAPTER 17
OOPS
When we found him, King Mundiflure was in a room with half a dozen other sea fairies, another salt elf, a couple of sea sprites and three Sky, four including King Mundiflure. From the general lack of the noise that was typical of most fairy gatherings, I presumed that the discussion was a serious one.
King Mundiflure’s black hair and bushy black eyebrows gave him a fierce expression. But his voice was soft and welcoming.
“So you’re Mele’ and Flora’s granddaughter,” he said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you...and a seahorse escort! I never thought to see a seahorse this deep. You are to be respected for earning their trust,” he said, implying that he understood the magic that brought them here.
“What brings you to our kingdom? Such a long journey must have a serious purpose.”
The next speech was for Bibi to make. But he had clearly not arrived or King Mundiflure would have told me. For all of Zazkal’s back-handed compliments about my golden tongue, it felt a lot more like lead at the moment.
The seahorses had helped me work out what to say. I just had to say it. Now Sharkstooth was whispering into my ear, prompting me, but it just got mixed up with my own thoughts. Everyone was looking at me. Oh, I wish Bibi were here.
“It does…I mean it does have a serious purpose, sir. We, I mean Zazkal, Bibi and I…we were separated on the trip and they’re not here yet...
“Ask about the rumors, Miriam,” Inkjet whispered.
“…we were sent by my grandparents to ask about rumors concerning the fairy lights. My grandparents heard that the abyssmal kingdoms were having some kind of problem. They understand how important the lights are down here…”
“They have information, Miriam,” Inkjet said into my ear. Oh, right. I remember now.
“They have information,” I said. “They suspect smugglers,” I finished abruptly.
“I hardly think smugglers would bother with us,” the king said. “We are much too far away.”
“You really need to talk to Bibi,” I said. “I’m sure he’ll be here soon…” Everyone looked skeptical and I was out of words. What to do?
“I brought some extra power nuts with me,” I ad-libbed. “In case you can use them”.
Swimming over to a small table that was built into the wall, I poured out as many power nuts as I felt could realistically be taken out of the sampo.
Everyone seemed pleased. Fiddlesticks and the other ministers were smiling and commenting quietly among themselves.
“What a thoughtful gift,” the king said as the large pile of magic pebbles emerged from my bag. “Pitzie,” he said to one of the sea sprites, “see how many there are.”
“There are 38,” announced Pitzie after he had counted them.
The king looked at my bag, then he looked at me “What a pity,” he said sadly, “that you didn’t bring five more nuts. It would have given us enough to reopen an important roadway.”
One of the ministers had a puzzled expression and seemed about to say something.
“Not now, Flambeau,” King Mundiflure said, sharply but I only heard the regret in his lovely voice. Anxious to help, I spoke up.
“Perhaps I haven’t emptied the bag completely. Let me check”.
The water was thick with the silence of the watching sea fairies while I pretended to search through my bag. “There’s a tear in the lining,” I said by way of explanation as I pulled five more power nuts out of the sampo.
“So it’s true,” the king said softly. “You really do have a magic bag.”
Uh oh! I had a feeling that insisting that the stones had been caught in a hole in the lining would not be a very useful exercise. I didn’t say anything.
The king stood a even straighter and there was a little more formality and distance to his already stiff manner.
“It is most kind of Queen Flora and King Mele’ to give us their magic bag in our time of need. We are most grateful to them and to you as their emissary.”
He knew perfectly well that my sampo was not a gift. I think that he also anticipated that I wouldn’t have the nerve to contradict him. He was right.
Oh, golden tongue, I thought, start working…fast. A silly picture of the king confronting a tiny goldfish crept into my brain and a tiny smile crept into the corners of my mouth.
The puzzled expression that ever so briefly crossed the king’s face was enough to break his spell of intimidation. I knew just what to say.
“The bag is not a gift, Your Majesty,” I said, “but you may have it if you wish.” The room remained silent. All eyes were on me as I untied the bag and handed it to the king.
The king was momentarily taken aback. I filled the silence as quickly as I could, to keep him from issuing any more unpleasant royal decrees.
“I came with two other companions,” I said, trying to match his formal tone, “Bibi, the chief minister, and Zazkal, the magic user to whom my grandparents have apprenticed me. We were separated on the journey when the device Zazkal had invented to hasten our trip broke up. They should be…”
“Miriam, I smell danger,” said Reddragon. “Get out if you can.”
“They should be reaching Metsoola soon,” I improvised. “We planned to meet again just outside the city, but as I was so early, I came ahead to let you know of their arrival. I know you will have many things to discuss with them, matters of state and of magic of which I have no knowledge. I will bring them as soon as they arrive.”
All the while I was talking, I was swimming backwards towards the exit. Executing the underwater equivalent of a formal bow, I ended my speech with a theatrical “Farewell, Your Majesty. Until we meet again.” I turned and swam off, grinning.
“I’ve always wanted to say that,” I told the seahorses.
“Hang on tight, everyone,” I said, increasing my speed so as to be far away before the king figured out that he couldn’t use the sampo.
We were swimming fast, faster than is considered polite indoors and the waves from our passing were
wreaking havoc with the palace furnishings.
We had come to the end of a horizontal hallway and I wasn’t sure which way to turn and didn’t want to spend a lot of time thinking about it.
“Which way,” I said.
“Left,” said Sharkstooth.
“Right,” said Thorn.
“Down,” said Inkjet.
“Wrong way,” I said, bumping into King Mundiflure after a fast left turn.
“Hi,” I said weakly.
“Wrong way,” he said, smiling indulgently at me. “You needed to turn right at that corner. The main entrance is just up ahead.”
The king had my sampo in one hand and a big scissor in the other. Behind him at a polite distance were two large Sky, both wearing the same green belt and matching collar studded with little gold orbs. The palace guard, I presumed.
“Metsoola can be confusing for a newcomer,” he continued. “Perhaps it would be better if we sent someone else to meet your companions.
“And while we are waiting, you can show me how to use this magic bag, that is, if it really is a magic bag. If it is not, then we might as well discard it.” He held out the sampo, opened the scissor wide and brought them together.
“No!” I gasped. “Don’t destroy my sampo!”
The smile that crossed his face after my remark was enough. I was totally outed.
“Tell me,” he said. “Can I use this bag at all?”
“Not really,” I answered with defeated honesty. “It was made to work only for me. A really good magic user might be able to get something out of it, but I wouldn’t know where to begin to show you how to use it.” I took a breath.
“Your Majesty,” I said, speaking quickly, before I lost my courage.” I know how troubled you must be about the fairy lights, but my magic bag won’t solve any problems. You would do a lot better talking with Bibi and Zazkal when they get here.”
He lowered his head and peered at me as if he were looking over the top of a pair of spectacles. He had a look about him of someone who was making up his mind about something. It was only a moment, then he turned to the Sky behind him. “Fetch Edward,” he said.
CHAPTER 18
JAWS WILL DROP
The king led me into a nearby room filled with cushions to wait for Edward, whoever he was. One of the palace guards stayed, floating near the entrance to make sure I didn’t get any ideas.
I prepared myself for an onslaught of difficult questions, about my bag and my background.
And I thought I had trouble getting around Glori’s questions. If I was concerned about saying the wrong thing to Glori, I was sure that I had no right answers for this Sky.
But whatever his reasons, the king adopted a more relaxed posture and changed to a less charged subject.
“Most people who come to Metsoola for the first time want to know why it’s so warm,” he said.
“It’s true,” I answered, relaxing a little bit. “Everything about your city is an enigma, familiar and strange at the same time. Even the Tree houses.”
“Tree houses?”
Here we go again, I thought. No matter what we talk about, I’m in trouble. How could I tell him what a tree house is without revealing that I am from outsea.
Since the traveling bubbles seemed to be a marginally safer subject. I tried to make it sound as if the bubble trip overland had been where I had first learned about trees.
“Zazkal created a device that shortened our journey from Casalot by allowing us to travel unseen over the land,” I said. “The land we passed was covered with plants called trees. They have a tall thick and hard central section with the softer part of the plant growing out of the middle and top. They look a lot like your houses. So we decided to call them ‘tree houses’.
“Tree houses,” he said again after he understood. “It’s more accurate than you realize since our homes are grown and cultivated like plants, even though they’re made of stone.
“For any deep sea kingdom,” he continued, “the two most important things are light and a way to grow or get food. The special advantage we have are all the active volcanoes under us.”
The ground suddenly feeling very warm, I unconsciously floated up and off my cushion.
“You mean I’m sitting on a volcano,” I said. But before I could receive the confirmation I didn’t want, a large group of Sky arrived.
I recognized several of the ministers from the previous meeting, two more palace guard types, and a boy about my own age who was clearly related to King Mundiflure.
He had the same distinctive black piercing eyes, but with a softer, more open expression. Unlike the adults’ stiff formal hairdos, his hair was short and loose, more brown than the king’s black lacquered hat of hair and on his shoulder sat a small ghostly white octopus.
They came in silently and silently waited for the king to speak. He was not quick about it. Finally, when everyone was seated and looking at King Mundiflure, he straightened his body and took a deep breath. I already recognized the stiffness that preceded and accompanied his formal speaking style.
Now I’m in for it, I thought. Why did I ever think I could come here without waiting for Bibi and Zazkal?
He turned to me and said, “Miriam, this is my son Edward.”
Then he turned to Edward and spoke. “Edward, this is Miriam. She is the granddaughter of King Mele’ and Queen Flora of Casalot, and I have agreed to their proposal of marriage. You will be married tomorrow…to each other,” he added to make it perfectly clear.
It wasn’t just me, the whole room was speechless. Jaws were dropping all over the place. The only thing I could hear were tiny gasps coming from some the seahorses.
But for a ten-year old, marriage is a fate worse than death. Our eyes bulged out with astonished indignation. I was the first to attempt speech.
“I’m just a kid,” I squeaked.
“I’m too young to get married,” squeaked the second pair of bulging eyes.
The king had already turned his back to us and begun speaking to the ministers.
“See that her two companions are met by an official escort before they enter the city. There is no need for them to come to Castle Downalot. Have a suitably large entourage to accompany them to back to Casalot to inform Queen Flora and King Mele’ of our acceptance of their proposal.”
“Make it clear to the king and queen that we understand that the great distance between our kingdoms makes it impossible for them to arrive in time for the actual nuptials. We will prepare a wedding celebration to take place when they arrive. Take the children to the garden to become acquainted. See that they are…are suitably supervised.”
I suddenly found myself surrounded by green belt and collar Sky and being gently propelled toward the door. Edward seemed to be in the middle of another group of belt and collar people, also moving to the door.
I rolled my eyes sideways, trying to see the seahorses, hoping for some useful advice. But they were all out of sight in my hair. They must have been just as shocked as I was.
Just as we reached the exit, the king turned to his son and spoke. “Edward, I am sure you will like Miriam after you get to know her. From the little I have seen of her, she seems to me both clever and kind.” Then looking at me with a twinkle in his eye, he added, “and I think you’ll find she has an excellent sense of humor.”
CHAPTER 19
KNOW YOUR ENEMY
I was silently steaming as we moved past and through a series of floor doors and wall doors. Most of the guards had gone elsewhere, leaving us with an honor guard of two Sky, one in front and one behind.
“Don’t worry, Miriam,” Inkjet whispered, “we’ll figure something out.”
“We think you should try and get the prince talking,” Thorn said. I wasn’t exactly in the mood for conversation and Edward’s narrow eyes and jutting chin suggested that neither was he, but I made an effort. Thorn was right. Know your enemy.
“Cute octopus,” I ventured. It was kind of adorable.
/> “Thank you.”
“So, do you usually have an octopus on your shoulder,” I asked, trying to provoke a conversation.
“Yes.”
“Does he have a name?”
“Specter,” he answered flatly.
I sighed and tried a different subject.
“You’re father was teasing me when he said that the city was built on an active volcano, wasn’t he,” I asked.
“That’s plural, as in volcanoes,” Edward said. “They’re the reason it’s warm enough to grow food down here.
“Not only do the volcanoes give us the temperatures we need to grow food,” he began, “but our method of controlling them provides our housing.”
“You’ve made this speech before, haven’t you,” I said. He sounded like he was reciting something he learned in school.”
Edward sniffed once, held his head a little higher and continued the lecture. At least he was talking. I hoped the seahorses were happy.
“Everyone in Metsoola who has reached a certain level of expertise in magic, and that includes most of the adult population,” he added, “takes turns spending time at one of several underground observation sites around the city. This way, we can tell well in advance when a volcano is about to erupt.”
Having gotten this far on one breath, he paused, took another deep breath and continued.
“There is a very small group of Sky who rank among our best magic users. When volcanic activity is predicted, several of them are called to the site to precipitate and direct the lava flow,” he said, speaking with careful precision. “The result is a controlled flow that is used to produce a new building.”
I watched as he reinflated his chest for the next section.
“Every building in Metsoola is the result of a single volcanic eruption. About the only thing we can’t control is the amount of activity. The bigger the eruption, the bigger the building.”
“Now I understand what your father meant when he said that even though they were built of rock, the buildings grew and were cultivated. Any chance I’ll get to see a new one growing?” I asked.
“Not likely,” came the reply. “They don’t occur that often. In my entire life, I’ve only seen six. But you never know,” he said, exiting lecture mode and looking around.
“We’re here,” Edward said despondently.
CHAPTER 20
THE NOT-SO-SECRET GARDEN