Aspen and the Dream Walkers

  Chapter 11

  Chancellors

  "Hey, Aspen."

  Aspen opened her eyes to see Sandy and Ginny standing together in a lime-green field. "Hey, yourself. Were you waiting for me?"

  "Of course," Ginny said. "You took forever to fall asleep, Princess." Her braided blond hair bobbed up and down as she bent her head.

  Aspen let out a little snort. "Cut that out. You don't have to bow to me."

  Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "Okay."

  She was as pretty as Sandy, but her face was more rounded and feminine. She wore snow-white clothing with a soft flowing skirt and white leggings underneath, and her blouse was made from the finest lace.

  Aspen thought that the thick soles of her boots ruined the outfit, though. She wondered if she could introduce prettier clothing to the Power clan. She'd have to find out where they had their clothes made and make some suggestions.

  Sandy pointed them toward the village of Lanta. "Come on, let's go shopping. We can practice a bit later."

  "Ooh, I wondered when you did normal things."

  Sandy grinned. "First work, then play, but we'll make an exception today."

  "We need to get you something more suitable to wear, Princess." Ginny touched the skirt that Aspen wore. "This must be uncomfortable when you run. Look, my outfit allows me to run, but yours will make you fall." Reaching around her waist, she ripped the skirt off in a smooth motion. "We have a special material that fastens without stitching, and it can come off easily."

  "Is it like Velcro?" Aspen asked.

  "Very similar, but we can't make that here, so Demothi has made a spell that he casts on each piece of material to make them special."

  She grimaced. "Can he do something about the boots?"

  "Relax, kid," Sandy said as they walked toward the village. "Those boots come in handy when we fight. Any stray bolts get deflected when we're on rubber."

  Aspen could only see one road leading into the village, which she assumed was for protection. She followed Ginny and Sandy along it, chatting as they walked.

  When they reached the town, Aspen was delighted to see Lanta's shops huddled together like seals on a rock, bathed in a soft lemon light. The scene was as pretty as a picture.

  "What happens when it's Lavendula?" she asked. "Do the shops close?"

  Ginny answered her. "The shopkeepers stay inside. They don't fight the Chancellors. Shops get locked and there are magical charms written around the door frames that stop intruders from entering. The charms keep the store owners and shoppers safe, but the doors must be sealed to make the spells effective."

  Aspen walked into the main street and thought about what Ginny had said.

  "Look, that's my favorite store." Ginny pointed at a cheerful clothing shop with colorful advertisements decorating its windows. The three girls headed for the entrance. A bell tingled and heralded their presence as they pushed the wooden door open and crowded into the entrance.

  "Ooh. They have so many things," Aspen cooed. She noticed a fine black script inked on the door frame as she looked over her shoulder.

  "Don't worry, you'll be safe," Sandy teased. "It's time to shop."

  Ginny grinned. "Just look at the racks at the back."

  Clothes were hung on hangers that clung close together on waist-high metal rails in every imaginable space around the shop. The girls had to squeeze between the layers of material draped everywhere.

  A small lady with mocha-colored skin smiled at them from behind the counter. Her hair was braided in a long, thick plait, and high cheekbones and slanted brown eyes gave her a distinct Native American look. Grinning at the girls, she waved a slender hand across the store as she invited them to look at the merchandise.

  "That's Mona. She's Demothi's daughter," Sandy whispered in Aspen's ear.

  "I like this." Ginny held up a short beige skirt and paired it with chocolate leggings. She chose a wispy white top and handed the outfit to Aspen.

  "These boots are cool too." Ginny picked up a leather ankle boot lined with fur. She dropped a brown leather jacket on top of the clothes piled on Aspen's arm, and pushed her gently toward the dressing room.

  Aspen did like the jacket, but she'd never thought to pair all the different textures together. Lanta was not like Earth, where cheap clothing was available in every fabric, color, and style. The garments here were made from natural fibers like wool, silk, and leather, and she wondered if Mona had made all of the clothing herself.

  After she'd changed, she admired herself in an oval floor-length mirror. The clothes fit beautifully, and she pulled the dressing room curtain aside.

  "What do you think?"

  The girls grinned at her and nodded. "You look amazing."

  "I've got your size now," Sandy called out. "Stay there while I get some more."

  Forty minutes later, Aspen tossed her old clothing on the chair and walked out of the dressing room in her first new outfit, along with several more draped over her arm.

  "This was such fun. Oh, I forgot." She covered her mouth with her free hand.

  Sandy glanced over as she thumbed through a rack of clothes. "What?"

  "How am I going to pay for this?" Aspen's cheeks burned, and she shifted the clothing in her arms.

  "Don't worry, it goes on the Power clan's account, and it gets settled by the elders later."

  "How can they do that?"

  "We have to be clothed in order to fight the Chancellors," Ginny explained, "and we don't get paid to fight them. The elders help the shopkeepers in other ways. We don't exactly need money here, you know." She chuckled.

  Aspen frowned. "But I've been here in jeans before. How did that happen?"

  "We don't know. Sometimes we appear in our earthly clothing, but most of the time we end up in clothing from Lanta. That's why it's best to get outfits that you're comfortable wearing. If you can get something fashionable, then more power to you." Ginny's eyes changed to silver as she smiled.

  Feeling better, Aspen walked up to the counter. Outside, the sky had darkened. Mona moved to the front door and closed it just as the air began to cool. She turned a key in the lock and made sure the door was sealed tightly.

  Sandy walked up to the large shop windows and gazed outside. "Hmm, we'd better stay in the store. It's Lavendula and the Chancellors will be roaming about outside. I don't think you want to mess up your new clothes before you've had a chance to show them off."

  Joining her, Aspen looked out into the street. Chancellors oozed out like sticky black tar from crevices between buildings. She shivered involuntarily as their numbers grew.

  "These don't create the nightmares," Ginny said in a low voice, gripping the hanger in her hands tightly as she spoke.

  "Really, why not?"

  "They're here to make sure that we don't attack the ones who do make them. The actual nightmare creators are outside the village. They can cast a nightmare from the hills or the trees, and even the rivers. These here will do anything to stop us from attacking their casters."

  Sandy peeled a poster away from the window so they could see the Chancellors better. They had pale skin and their eyes were completely black. They wore their familiar black T-shirts with cargo pants, and heavy boots on their feet.

  Suddenly one of the Chancellors spied them through the window and walked toward the shop. The girls held their spot behind the window, but shrank back slightly from the creature as he approached them. He was tall with dark hair cut close to his skull. A sickly sweet odor permeated through the front door as he approached them.

  Aspen held her breath as he faced them directly, and started when she realized that the thin sheet of glass was the only thing separating them. She trembled and glanced at the stern features of her friends. Ginny stuck her chin out and smiled menacingly.

  The Chancellor curled his lips upward in a grim parody of a smile, but his mouth had no teeth. A large Adam's apple bobbed up and down his long throat. He raised a bony finger and slowly dragged it in a circle on
the glass.

  Aspen watched his movements as he traced the symbol on the smooth surface. After he'd completed the circle, his eyes widened and he mouthed the word, "Boo." She jumped as he tapped the window.

  Sandy and Ginny didn't stir, so she squared her shoulders and glared at him. He laughed silently but kept his gaze on her. Even though she was a quivering mass of nerves, she didn't look away. She stared back and refused to show fear.

  When the Chancellor marched away abruptly, Aspen breathed a sigh of relief and sagged against Sandy's back. "Whew! What was that all about?"

  "Just a friendly game of chicken," Ginny answered. Her pulse flickered at the base of her neck, and Aspen realized that the encounter had rattled her just as much. They watched him until he turned into an alley and was out of sight.

  "Well, now that you've seen one up close and personal, would you like a chocolate milk to calm your nerves?" Sandy smiled.

  "Yes, thanks, that would be great." Aspen let out a long exhale. The noxious odor had disappeared as soon as he'd left, and she desperately needed a sugar fix to soothe the tension.

  Mona collected the clothes draped over Aspen's arm. "I'll wrap these up and send them to Leeman's house. He told me I could send whatever you wanted there."

  "Thank you so much."

  "I've left some flavored milks on the table in the kitchen at the back. Help yourselves."

  "Mona, you're the best. I was just going to ask if you had any left." Sandy gave her a quick hug.

  They left the retail area and entered a small room at the back of the shop. Three glasses of chocolate milk sat temptingly on a wooden table, and the girls wasted no time and claimed one each. They scooted their chairs around the table.

  "How will we know if the Chancellors are making a nightmare or if they're just defending their kind?" Aspen asked as she sipped at her drink.

  "The Chancellors go into a dream state," Sandy explained as she played with her straw, "and we can actually see the nightmare as it happens in front of them. That same nightmare gets sent out to thousands of children at the same time. If we can stop the Chancellor, the nightmare fades and the kids get a good night's sleep." She took a long pull on her straw and then pushed her empty glass closer to the middle of the table. "If we don't get to them, they multiply because of the children's fears. It seems to feed them and gives them strength to reproduce themselves as brand new, fully grown Chancellors."

  Ginny grimaced. "The Chancellors casting the nightmares are the dangerous ones. They can send the nightmare straight at you. You've got to be careful of them, they are the worst."

  "Yup," Sandy said with a nod, "the nightmare starts in a bubble, but once it becomes big enough, it leaves the bubble and attacks you. We've tried to destroy the protective shield that surrounds the nightmare but we can't, so we've got to wait until it's fully formed and can get out. Your dad was the only one who could break the shield." She kept her eyes down and played with the rim of the empty glass. "The nightmare can go back into the bubble if it needs protection. I'm talking about lions, tigers, spiders .?.?. anything."

  "Ugh." Aspen shivered. "I know about the spider nightmare. That's just terrible."

  The sky lightened and moments later, the room was bathed in yellow light again.

  "Time for action, girls," Sandy exclaimed.

  They washed their empty glasses in the sink and thanked Mona for the milkshakes before leaving.

  As they walked away from the village, Aspen tried to aim at stationary targets. A tiny shrub exploded instantly as it was struck by a well-placed bolt.

  "Hey, watch it." Ginny smiled. "You're going to set the place on fire."

  "Sorry."

  "Let her practice, it's okay. She has to learn how much juice she's got before she can control it."

  "Well, in that case, how about that tree?" Ginny pointed to the side.

  Aspen focused on a gnarled oak tree with a wide trunk and heavy branches. Tendrils of electricity zinged up and down the skin on her arms, and the hair on her head rose.

  "Burn that sucker!" she snarled.

  "Whoa!" Sandy shouted in amazement as the entire tree exploded instantly.

  Jumping back in fright, Aspen dropped her hands in a hurry. Blue flames shimmered on her arms before they died out.

  "Seriously, what was that?" Sandy stared at her in amazement and Ginny sat down on the grass in awe.

  "What, was that not normal?" Aspen asked.

  Pieces of leaves and small twigs floated around them in the air, and a huge hole was left in the earth where the tree used to be. The smell of charred wood floated around them.

  "Not normal, not normal? That was absolutely mind-blowing!" Sandy cried and hugged Aspen.

  Ginny glanced over her shoulder and announced calmly, "Don't look now, but I think your blast got someone's attention. We've got company."