Ties to the Wanderer: Part Four

Part Four: Rescue

They awoke in a similar place, but this time the dark fog was all around them.

     And, strangely, their memories were back.

     Wanndiasan knew now exactly where they were, and she had a good idea why.

     This was all very odd, Will wouldn't deny it. Still, they were out of that place, even though they ended up in another. Even better, he actually remembered everything. Even... the parasailing incident. Okay, maybe that one should've stayed forgotten... "What the heck happened here?" he asked, confused even more. "And how come we actually remember everything?"

     "I would account the memory increase to the passage of time, judging by my rather great hunger," was the Wocky's reply. "Although I fear that my remembering is nearly as much a bad thing as it is a good thing..."

     "Why would that be something bad?" he asked, rubbing his forehead as a sort of headache came over. Not that it was something brought on by the thing. Headaches were quite normal for him. "Does that mean you remember what started this thing in the first place?"

     "Precisely," she said. "I do indeed remember what caused this. Everything leads back to Kel." She stood up, adjusting her dress so that it fell properly and brushing the hair back from her eyes, though he could not see it for the dark fog.

     "It all leads back to Kel?" he repeated, raising a brow. "How? What does this... thing have to do with Kel?" Will asked, even more confused now.

     "She cast the Drifting on Kel," was the answer. "She is trying to... to get rid of... of Kel. She doesn't want me near Kel, because I prevent the Drifting. So she brought me to this place... Which reminds me, now that you remember, how did you get here?"

     "That Lyco guy and I were in Sakhmet, looking for you," he answered, recalling how he'd wound up in this little mess. "Some voice called to me, and, being the idiot I am, I answered it." Will shrugged, shaking his head. "Would you call it sort of sad that someone who should've learned about curiosity killing the Meowclops when he pried too deep about his friend's personal life and earned a good black eye for a week didn't learn his lesson?" He smirked, laughing to himself.

     Wanndiasan was not quite certain what he was talking about anymore, so she simply nodded, then remembered that he could not see her through all the dark fog. So instead she muttered, "Aye?"

     Touching the wall, she sighed.

     "Of course. Now the walls have wards against spells," she murmured. "So, how to get out of this place?"

     "We could try to break the wall down," he offered, getting to his feet slowly. Of course, from the looks of it, that wouldn't exactly be the easiest thing in the world. "Somehow. It's times like these I wish I had actually dragged Sly with me," he muttered, trying to figure out just where the walls were.

     "This is the same room," she said suddenly. "Here, this is the little hole I managed to make in the wall. The only difference is, now we're surrounded by fog. Oh, Kel is much better with this sort of thing than I am." She buried her face in her hands and started sobbing, realizing that as she tried to find an escape, her sister had likely already faded beyond help...

     "Are you kidding me?" Will's voice had a bit of disbelief in it, as his arms fell to his sides. "So, you don't think we could just 'make' an exit out of here? If you could make that hole, surely we could get one big enough to let us through."

     "Well," she said after a moment, realizing that her tears did no good, "it's more of a dent. But we could certainly try. The problem is, she would know instantly, with her fog all around us."

     "So let her know," he said confidently, feeling around the walls to find the small hole. "If someone wants to keep their pets, they have to look for them if they go missing." Even though that wasn't exactly the most reassuring thing in the world, Will was sure that the one who had imprisoned them was all fog and no power.

     Finding his hand in the fog, Wanndiasan dragged him close.

     "You do not understand," she said. Leaning closer, she whispered in his ear, "The one who has captured us is Jhudora."

     "Jhudora?" For a moment, Will actually realized that they could be in some deep dirt after all. "Well, I guess I can say that my friends and I have made belts out of things more powerful than she is." He smirked confidently, before having another revelation. That was when the entire gang was there. Not when he was somewhat alone.

     "Do not speak of it further. She can hear us-"

     Sounds came from high up. It seemed very far away.

     Shouts, chanting, screams.

     She looked up. Could it be-?

     Impossible!

     Or... was it?

     "What's that?" he whispered, sort of afraid to speak any louder. "Friend, foe, something in between... what is it?" He sat up, staring upward as well.

     The fog began to dissipate.

     More yelling sounded.

     And then...

     Silence.

     A voice called, "Over here! I found something!"

     They seemed closer.

     "What is that?"

     "Some kind of... door, maybe?"

     A tiny square of light appeared suddenly in the darkness above, high up in what was evidently the ceiling. Most of it was blocked out, the first voice calling, so quiet they could hardly hear it, "Well, there's something down there, but it's so far I can't see..."

     "Lyco! He found us!" Dia whispered.

     Then she called up, "You'd better have some rope, because I sure can't fly!"

     There was a banging sound, and then a startled Shoyru barely avoided crashing into the floor.

     "Dia!" Lyco cried. "So, I was right, or you were right, or... something..."

     "Oh my goodness, we're saved," he muttered, avoiding the falling Shoyru before he saved himself. "Man, what took you guys so long? Sorry not to seem grateful or anything, just asking." Will shrugged a bit, grinning nervously.

     He thought a moment, head tilted to one side, then said, "Well, three days to find Dia's letter, one to Meridell and to convince Illusen to help, one more to Faerieland, and then most of this morning to find you. Psellia, that was hard. I probably wouldn't have made it if Aki hadn't shown up."

     "If Aki's here..." Wanndiasan began.

     "Kel's been sleeping most of the last five days. She asked Aki to go help, or something like that. I'm not sure, Aki's not making much sense... "

     "Fyora help us, we have to get home!"

     "Lyco?" Akirinia's voice called down. "Did you live?"

     "Yes, I lived, o elder sister. You can't get rid of me that easy!" Grinning, he flew back up to his sister.

     Wanndiasan shook her head, chuckling.

     "Then that means Kel must be sort of getting better," he said happily, getting to his feet again. "Let's get the heck out of here before something worse happens. Fyora knows what'll happen if we don't get out quickly," Will pointed out, trying to figure out a way to get up.

     The Wocky abruptly stopped laughing.

     "Oh, no," she said. "Kel's much worse, if she's been sleeping so much. We have to get back, quickly. She may already be beyond help..."

     Lyco appeared again.

     "One problem," he said, looking a bit sheepish. "It seems we can't get you out..."

     "You can't get us out?" His grin faded as Lyco spoke, a groan of despair escaping from him. "What's keeping you from it? Is some sort of barrier not letting us out or something?"

     "Well, yeah. You're sort of at the bottom of a well..."

     He stared at Lyco for a moment, shaking his head. "We're at the bottom of a well? That's it? Send a rope down here, then! Surely you guys can somehow make some sort of thing to help us out of here!" One would believe Will was somewhat claustrophobic from the way he was acting, and it wasn't far from the truth.

     "Hey, I think I found something!" Akirinia called.

     "What?" Wanndiasan yelled up.

     "I'm not- Oh!"

     Coloured lights shone back and forth across the narrow opening. Frowning, Lyco went back to see what it was.

     "Well," he said when he saw, "that might help."

     A moment later, he was flying back down, multicoloured lights swirling about.

     Next thing they knew, they were in Faerieland, not far from Jhudora's Cloud.

     "Thank you," Akirinia whispered.

     "That was... surprisingly easy," Will murmured, but wouldn't really comment aloud to Lyco and Akirinia. He sent a worried glance back at Jhudora's Cloud, hoping that she wouldn't notice they were gone until they were far away.

     "Don't worry," Lyco said, noticing the glance. "She'll be busy awhile."

     "Let's go home," Wanndiasan said.

     "Yeah, that sounds like a plan," he nodded, still not sure about Jhudora. "You sure she's preoccupied right now? She doesn't seem like the type who would forget her prisoners, y'know." It was quite humourous hearing this from someone who only moments before believed they could handle her.

     "Aye, but we've the cure, now," Aki said with a small smile. Her brother and sister cast her a startled glance.

     Then they smiled too.

     Next stop: Brightvale.

To be continued...