CHAPTER XXIV.
THE QUEST A trumpet of whales throbbed across the turbulent water.
The wind had risen and the waves crashed onto the tiny beach.
Pippi and Wolfgang brushed the ashes of the fire into the sand and the grey ground mirrored the stormy sky.
The oceanids called from the sea and the words of Coase chilled Felicity.
"'The toxics have begun.
They march for the caves.
No time for explanations.
We ride immediately.
' Ruben ran to the edge of the foaming waves to hear the rest of the instructions.
"'The strata will lift us to the oceanids.
The oceanids will not risk us mounting in these conditions,
' he shouted,
His hair whipping his face.
"'But we don't have our instructions,
Ruben,
' said Gus.
Ruben didn't reply,
His face was strained,
And Gus said no more.
The sky became black as the strata returned.
Barely had they set down from the air before the ancients moved off,
Surging into the high walls of stormy sea.
Hyperion and Theor went first,
Followed by Coase and Phoebe.
Oceanus and Tethys,
Who had to swim hard to catch up with the others,
Were last.
They had been delayed by the battle of Boarding George.
Each quest member sat aloft their allotted mentor.
Only Sib remained above,
Carried by the first strata.
He had already received his instructions.
The gargantuan creatures cruised skilfully out of the lagoon and across the northern seas.
They were unperturbed by the storm.
This world had been their home for many centuries.
As they ploughed through the water they delivered their message.
The final instructions were the same for George,
Wolfgang,
Pippi and Scrat.
Defence of the key trio,
At all costs,
Even to your own end.
The three are Little Green,
Ruben and Felicity.
George was glad.
He would have done this without being asked,
But it was good to have the key members confirmed.
Gus's instruction from Hyperion was very short.
Being open to all possibilities.
That's all we can say.
It will,
Therefore,
Be enough.
To Little Green were given the longest instructions.
You are a key member of the final stages of the quest.
You are the stipple who will rebuild the laws of the new Old World.
Your mother knew this.
Go to the core of the caves.
There you will lay your root.
There you will live your life.
Listen to the other stipples.
Bind your new root to the old.
The world needs to remember its origins,
But they must be joined with the history of the Toxics so there will never again be imbalance or misunderstanding.
You and your descendants will ensure this,
But listen carefully,
Green 7070.
You must succeed in opening the old root.
The new and the old must be bound from the very first growth.
For this you need Ruben and Felicity.
How will I open it?
Asked Little Green,
Determined not to forget anything.
You'll know what to do,
Was theirs short reply.
Fighting to keep his vision clear from the splashing waves,
Ruben watched.
Precisely how much had Felicity and Little Green been told?
His own instructions from Coers had been simple but quite clear.
You're a key member of the final stages of the quest.
You must ensure Little Green reaches the core of the caves.
Your allegiance is to Little Green and she only.
Nevertheless,
Felicity is the third key member,
And you need her with you when you and Little Green enter the innermost cavern.
Felicity knew she should share the courage of her friends,
But Phoebe's words had terrified her.
All at once this tale into which she'd been dropped was real.
There was no one to wake her up from a dream.
No owl to tease her for her ridiculous imagination,
No mummy to stroke her hair,
And even if she wanted to,
No father to call.
She was astride a creature bigger than a whale,
In the middle of an unknown ocean,
Gripping a lump of barnacles that scraped her bloodless hands,
And surrounded by a storm that isolated her from any communication with her pack.
She hadn't the energy to cry,
And she was ashamed of her fear.
She remembered all Ruben had taught her in times of anxiety.
Feel the world,
Breathe,
And have faith.
When she thought of Phoebe's instructions,
The fear flickered,
Locked inside.
Lifting her strong little chin,
She shouted into the wind and the rain,
I am Felicity Isabelle Penfold.
I am here because the old world called me,
And I will not let this quest down.
The salty water filled her mouth and her eyes and stung her cheeks,
But she cried out again and again and again until her words echoed back to her,
And her valour returned.
There was a shout from Cib above,
And Felicity peered through the driving rain.
Far ahead,
The rocky shores of the temperate north drew a shape on the horizon.
