This is a short story that takes place after the Rizzo Files. It has no important spoilers for RF (which is why I'm posting it so soon... ).
Prologue
She was sleeping soundly, her dreams filled with memories of the previous day. Ice was taking over, but, hand in hand with fire, she was untouchable. Wherever the two of them ran, life--nature--was restored.
Against all odds, they were pushing back the ice tribes. Normally she though of fire as destructive, but the force by her side was anything but: he was simply freeing the trees, and her home, from a prison of ice. As they stood looking out from one of the houses, she turned and held up her hand for a high-five.
And when the other turned too, puzzlement in his fiery eyes, something changed. He stopped moving entirely, even to breathe. Then, slowly, starting from the top of his blazing head and continuing down to his gnarled orange toes, he vanished as if he'd been erased.
Outside, chunks of the sky fell and bored dark, bottomless holes into the ground. Dazedly, she wondered if she was going to die. Darkness filled her mind, pushing everything else out....
Then a loud voice that came from everywhere and nowhere said: "I cannot let you go wrong.
"Fire must...not...triumph...."
She registered that the voice had a familiar accent; then streaks of gray and deepest blue flashed through her mind, obscuring her vision. Her mind went suddenly blank. She let out a soft cry in her sleep.
Then her dreams continued, but with two differences:
Whenever the forces of fire dared to appear, she felt a strong sense of unease and distrust.
And no longer did she see scenes from the day before; because the day before had disappeared from her memory.
Carefully working her way hand over hand along the vines and branches overhead, G'loona hummed a little tune as she sprinkled water over the plants in the Garden. Back and forth she swung the watering can, until the shower trickled to a halt. "Hmm," she hummed to herself, this time in thought.
She swung her dangling feet, then lifted her face to look up, and almost felt the terrible, piercing cold that the "Hunters", as they were called, had brought to the land.
And before she could stop her train of thought, she saw her old home, frozen over, in her mind's eye. Then she saw a flash of red. . . .
Her physical eyes grew moist. "Ba--Ballista!" she called. "More water over here!"
A wiry, shivering bat flapped up toward her; he had been watering plants from the ground. "More water, coming right up!" he sang in a scratchy voice.
G'loona took the full watering can he offered, dropping the old one and wiping her eyes on her arm.
Ballista the bat looked as if he was about to fly closer to the ground again, but he stopped himself. "What's all this?" he asked, when G'loona didn't continue to water the plants, instead letting her head droop. "Why are you crying?"
G'loona shook her head, not sure how to answer. Try as she might, she couldn't stop thinking about the Hunters, and how they must have frozen her village. The strange thing was, though, that she couldn't remember how it had happened, even though she was sure she'd been there at the time.
"It's...it's..." She sighed and swung herself into a sitting position on the nearest solid branch. Sniffles issued from her nose, and she was powerless to stop them.
"Yes?" said Ballista quietly.
But G'loona decided that if she didn't know how to explain her feelings, she wouldn't. Grumlo wouldn't approve of this kind of thinking, she knew, but how would he ever find out short of reading her mind?
"You know what?" said Ballista suddenly. "I think we should take a break. Go and admire the Yellow-Mellow tree."
G'loona turned away, a sad smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. Ballista always said something like this when she was tired or upset, but, it had to be said, the Yellow-Mellow tree never failed to cheer her up. "All right," she said at last. "Let's go."
*
The name "Yellow-Mellow tree" had been Ballista's idea. G'loona more often called it the "Tree of Eternal Bloom". But no matter what name it went by, it impressed all who knew of it. Both G'loona and Ballista let out small sighs as the first of its leaves came into view overhead. Most of them were a healthy shade of green, but those that weren't couldn't be described by a color at all: they were iridescent, veiny, translucent. It was these that surrounded the brilliant yellow flowers, ever in full bloom. The growth of flowers and ferns on the ground continued right up to the base of the sturdy trunk, which was only just too thick for G'loona to put her arms around.
Now directly overhead, the tangled umbrella of branches stretched in all directions as if trying to embrace its brother and sister trees. The half-dozen or so flowers provided a warm light.
G'loona strode over to the trunk and plopped down with her back against it, looking up into the branches. A glorious calm settled in her mind. This was where she belonged, deep within the much overgrown Garden, with no worries or fears to drag her down. . . .
When she looked back down, Ballista was hanging upside down from a branch in front of her. "Boo," he said, spreading his wings and smiling.
G'loona laughed, the wonderful sound ringing through the fragrant, humid air.
Laval hit the ground, rolled, and came up as soon as the swordswipe had shrieked past. Sir Fangar stumbled, having overswung. The heavy Glacior wobbled in his grip.
Smirking with relief, Laval charged in and swung his Valious, trailing an arc of fire.
Sir Fangar regained his balance just in time to block the stroke. Steam hissed as the swords clashed.
The saber-tooth growled with frustration. "Sooner or later, I will get through to you!"
Laval winked, then sidestepped to avoid a vicious thrust. "Let's make it later...as in, never."
Their swords clashed again, several times in rapid succession.
"Do you really think you can defeat me?" sneered Sir Fangar.
"Oh, sure," said Laval, willing his blade to burn hotter. "After all, everyone knows that to win, you need to fight fire...with fire."
Sir Fangar roared and flung a handful of snow into the lion's face. Laval sputtered, pawing the cold out of his eyes.
Sir Fangar stabbed the Glacior forward, but Laval fell over backward, barely avoiding its tip.
At last he blinked the snow from his eyes, then plugged an orb of fire Chi and regained his feet as strength and energy roared through his body.
Sir Fangar shrank back a little, but then shoved and orb of normal Chi down his own throat. Ice spread in all directions, encasing all the nearby trees.
Seeing this, Laval let out a deafening roar and spun in a circle, melting the snow and ice around him. Soon he was on a vicious offensive, swinging his Valious in long, powerful strokes.
The intensity of the battle elevated. The power of fire blazed forward, while ice held its own, enduring and occasionally gaining ground.
And when the fiery lion and the frigid saber-tooth hopped onto their speedorz to take their endless (and pointless) battle to the roads, they left behind a steaming waste.
In the wake of the battle, many trees had fallen; the ground was half-frozen, half-burnt; and an unhealthy-looking gray cloud hung in the sky. Stealthily, a phoenix with his wings hidden under a black mantle made his way to the battleground. He carried a massive leaf, sweeping out his footsteps behind himself. His yellow eyes shifted. His beak, normally turned down in a permanent frown, was turned up in a small, hideous smile.
Carefully, he inspected the fallen trees and the sickly earth. "Yes, yes," he muttered, absentmindedly sweeping a circle around himself.
He peeled a piece of bark off a fallen tree and tasted it. Then he let out a soft, cold laugh and hurried away, leaving no trace of his presence.
This is a short story that takes place after the Rizzo Files. It has no important spoilers for RF (which is why I'm posting it so soon... ).
Prologue
She was sleeping soundly, her dreams filled with memories of the previous day. Ice was taking over, but, hand in hand with fire, she was untouchable. Wherever the two of them ran, life--nature--was restored.
Against all odds, they were pushing back the ice tribes. Normally she though of fire as destructive, but the force by her side was anything but: he was simply freeing the trees, and her home, from a prison of ice. As they stood looking out from one of the houses, she turned and held up her hand for a high-five.
And when the other turned too, puzzlement in his fiery eyes, something changed. He stopped moving entirely, even to breathe. Then, slowly, starting from the top of his blazing head and continuing down to his gnarled orange toes, he vanished as if he'd been erased.
Outside, chunks of the sky fell and bored dark, bottomless holes into the ground. Dazedly, she wondered if she was going to die. Darkness filled her mind, pushing everything else out....
Then a loud voice that came from everywhere and nowhere said: "I cannot let you go wrong.
"Fire must...not...triumph...."
She registered that the voice had a familiar accent; then streaks of gray and deepest blue flashed through her mind, obscuring her vision. Her mind went suddenly blank. She let out a soft cry in her sleep.
Then her dreams continued, but with two differences:
Whenever the forces of fire dared to appear, she felt a strong sense of unease and distrust.
And no longer did she see scenes from the day before; because the day before had disappeared from her memory.
Laval hit the ground, rolled, and came up as soon as the swordswipe had shrieked past. Sir Fangar stumbled, having overswung. The heavy Glacior wobbled in his grip.
Smirking with relief, Laval charged in and swung his Valious, trailing an arc of fire.
Sir Fangar regained his balance just in time to block the stroke. Steam hissed as the swords clashed.
The saber-tooth growled with frustration. "Sooner or later, I will get through to you!"
Laval winked, then sidestepped to avoid a vicious thrust. "Let's make it later...as in, never."
Their swords clashed again, several times in rapid succession.
"Do you really think you can defeat me?" sneered Sir Fangar.
"Oh, sure," said Laval, willing his blade to burn hotter. "After all, everyone knows that to win, you need to fight fire...with fire."
Sir Fangar roared and flung a handful of snow into the lion's face. Laval sputtered, pawing the cold out of his eyes.
Sir Fangar stabbed the Glacior forward, but Laval fell over backward, barely avoiding its tip.
At last he blinked the snow from his eyes, then plugged an orb of fire Chi and regained his feet as strength and energy roared through his body.
Sir Fangar shrank back a little, but then shoved and orb of normal Chi down his own throat. Ice spread in all directions, encasing all the nearby trees.
Seeing this, Laval let out a deafening roar and spun in a circle, melting the snow and ice around him. Soon he was on a vicious offensive, swinging his Valious in long, powerful strokes.
The intensity of the battle elevated. The power of fire blazed forward, while ice held its own, enduring and occasionally gaining ground.
And when the fiery lion and the frigid saber-tooth hopped onto their speedorz to take their endless (and pointless) battle to the roads, they left behind a steaming waste.
In the wake of the battle, many trees had fallen; the ground was half-frozen, half-burnt; and an unhealthy-looking gray cloud hung in the sky. Stealthily, a phoenix with his wings hidden under a black mantle made his way to the battleground. He carried a massive leaf, sweeping out his footsteps behind himself. His yellow eyes shifted. His beak, normally turned down in a permanent frown, was turned up in a small, hideous smile.
Carefully, he inspected the fallen trees and the sickly earth. "Yes, yes," he muttered, absentmindedly sweeping a circle around himself.
He peeled a piece of bark off a fallen tree and tasted it. Then he let out a soft, cold laugh and hurried away, leaving no trace of his presence.
...except the missing bark on the tree from where he had pulled it off.
Well, first off, the LMBs closing got me down. My most active friend and fellow author Bobofoot said he'd be moving to the TTV message boards, but for some reason that site won't let me make an account. And he never moved to the galleries. Sooo I can't really direct him to LMBE and he seems to lack the motivation to post stories on TTV right now and it's kinda driving me crazy. Reason #1
Also, I finally saved up enough money to get a LEGO set that I've wanted since it came out last August, annnnd...it's been discontinued. I checked pretty much every Walmart, Target, and Toys R Us within an hour's drive around me and it's at none of them. On Amazon and eBay and Bricklink the price has doubled (at least). Sooo I won't be getting it anytime soon. (this is more troubling to me than you might think...) Reason #2
Lastly, I'm at a complicated place in my life, with lots of expectations on my shoulders, and I have a few problems (extreme S.A.D., for example) that keep me from living up to those expectations. Reason #3
Sorry for the long and TMI-filled answer, but, well...you did ask.... Also, sorry if there's TMTMI, mods.
When G'loona made it back to her little lean-to just outside the lion Temple, Gorzan and Eris were waiting for her. This wasn't a good sign, as she knew from experience.
"G'loona," Eris began, "You really should start the Trial by Fire. You know, and get access to fire Chi?"
G'loona blinked. "Um--"
"C’mon, dude," said Gorzan, his voice deep and slow and relaxed. "The hunter-dudes aren't gonna get rid of themselves. We need you."
"You remember Flinx?" Eris asked with a barely concealed smile. "Of course you do. If you start the Trial by Fire, you'll get to spend more time with him--"
"NO," said G'loona firmly, wondering for the umpteenth time who Flinx was and why everyone kept trying to remind her of him. "I--not yet."
Gorzan and Eris stepped back as if they'd been slapped. "You're--sure?" said Eris.
G'loona swallowed. She had been asked this before.
Many times.
Too many times.
But she wouldn't join the fighting forces of the fire tribes, any more than she would join the Hunters. She may have looked up to Eris in the past, but this was taking things a little too far. Something felt off about the whole thing.
G'loona remembered that during the war with King Cragger, both Gorzan and Eris had been kind and helpful. But now their behavior was hardly ever consistent: one day, they might be as helpful as ever; the next, they'd be pushy, nosy, more demanding.
Maybe G'loona was the only one who saw it this way. Maybe they had been that way all along and she simply hadn't noticed.
Or maybe something really had changed.
Letting out a confused sigh, G'loona pushed past the eagle and the gorilla without saying anything further.
At the door of her lean-to, however, she paused, hearing grim whispers behind. She had been talked down to, she realized. There was something they hadn't told her.
"If all else fails, we'll take her to Fluminox ourselves," Eris was saying, unaware that G'loona was listening.
"Totally," Gorzan replied darkly. "She's being a pain. Hiding from us."
"Flinx might've been able to help..."
Their voices started to fade away, and G'loona let her shoulders droop. If she continued to refuse the fire Chi, would they really try to kidnap her? Maybe it would be better to play along and pretend to join them. But, then again, maybe it wouldn't.
Finally she entered the lean-to, found a jug of water, and sat on a tree stump next to a small wooden table. She took a few sips of the water. It tasted like dirt.
What did she usually do when she was nervous? Visit the Garden? No, she'd only just gotten back. Talk to somebody? That wouldn't work either; the only animal she really trusted anymore was Ballista, and he never seemed to leave the Garden. Read a book, maybe? She could stop by the eagle library later.
Shivering, she stood.
Grumlo had once told her that all of life was beautiful, but she was having trouble fully believing it.
Especially now, when Grumlo himself had been frozen and taken away.
Especially now, when the threat of being kidnapped loomed and the equally destructive forces of fire and ice were laying waste to the land and nothing seemed beautiful at all.
Well, first off, the LMBs closing got me down. My most active friend and fellow author Bobofoot said he'd be moving to the TTV message boards, but for some reason that site won't let me make an account. And he never moved to the galleries. Sooo I can't really direct him to LMBE and he seems to lack the motivation to post stories on TTV right now and it's kinda driving me crazy. Reason #1
Also, I finally saved up enough money to get a LEGO set that I've wanted since it came out last August, annnnd...it's been discontinued. I checked pretty much every Walmart, Target, and Toys R Us within an hour's drive around me and it's at none of them. On Amazon and eBay and Bricklink the price has doubled (at least). Sooo I won't be getting it anytime soon. (this is more troubling to me than you might think...) Reason #2
Lastly, I'm at a complicated place in my life, with lots of expectations on my shoulders, and I have a few problems (extreme S.A.D., for example) that keep me from living up to those expectations. Reason #3
Sorry for the long and TMI-filled answer, but, well...you did ask.... Also, sorry if there's TMTMI, mods.
Makes sense. Well, hope you feel better soon, and hope you can find the LEGO set somewhere.
When G'loona made it back to her little lean-to just outside the lion Temple, Gorzan and Eris were waiting for her. This wasn't a good sign, as she knew from experience.
"G'loona," Eris began, "You really should start the Trial by Fire. You know, and get access to fire Chi?"
G'loona blinked. "Um--"
"C’mon, dude," said Gorzan, his voice deep and slow and relaxed. "The hunter-dudes aren't gonna get rid of themselves. We need you."
"You remember Flinx?" Eris asked with a barely concealed smile. "Of course you do. If you start the Trial by Fire, you'll get to spend more time with him--"
"NO," said G'loona firmly, wondering for the umpteenth time who Flinx was and why everyone kept trying to remind her of him. "I--not yet."
Gorzan and Eris stepped back as if they'd been slapped. "You're--sure?" said Eris.
G'loona swallowed. She had been asked this before.
Many times.
Too many times.
But she wouldn't join the fighting forces of the fire tribes, any more than she would join the Hunters. She may have looked up to Eris in the past, but this was taking things a little too far. Something felt off about the whole thing.
G'loona remembered that during the war with King Cragger, both Gorzan and Eris had been kind and helpful. But now their behavior was hardly ever consistent: one day, they might be as helpful as ever; the next, they'd be pushy, nosy, more demanding.
Maybe G'loona was the only one who saw it this way. Maybe they had been that way all along and she simply hadn't noticed.
Or maybe something really had changed.
Letting out a confused sigh, G'loona pushed past the eagle and the gorilla without saying anything further.
At the door of her lean-to, however, she paused, hearing grim whispers behind. She had been talked down to, she realized. There was something they hadn't told her.
"If all else fails, we'll take her to Fluminox ourselves," Eris was saying, unaware that G'loona was listening.
"Totally," Gorzan replied darkly. "She's being a pain. Hiding from us."
"Flinx might've been able to help..."
Their voices started to fade away, and G'loona let her shoulders droop. If she continued to refuse the fire Chi, would they really try to kidnap her? Maybe it would be better to play along and pretend to join them. But, then again, maybe it wouldn't.
Finally she entered the lean-to, found a jug of water, and sat on a tree stump next to a small wooden table. She took a few sips of the water. It tasted like dirt.
What did she usually do when she was nervous? Visit the Garden? No, she'd only just gotten back. Talk to somebody? That wouldn't work either; the only animal she really trusted anymore was Ballista, and he never seemed to leave the Garden. Read a book, maybe? She could stop by the eagle library later.
Shivering, she stood.
Grumlo had once told her that all of life was beautiful, but she was having trouble fully believing it.
Especially now, when Grumlo himself had been frozen and taken away.
Especially now, when the threat of being kidnapped loomed and the equally destructive forces of fire and ice were laying waste to the land and nothing seemed beautiful at all.
When G'loona made it back to her little lean-to just outside the lion Temple, Gorzan and Eris were waiting for her. This wasn't a good sign, as she knew from experience.
[edited]
Especially now, when the threat of being kidnapped loomed and the equally destructive forces of fire and ice were laying waste to the land and nothing seemed beautiful at all.
).
Sig by Sam