StoryPaws: A Mystical Old World Story: The Toxics 15

CHAPTER FIFTEEN TOXICS The line of creatures stretched the length of a hockey pitch along the front of the forest.

Felicity felt her heart start to pound at the sight.

They were foul,

Misshapen replicas of Gus,

And their spines were filthy and blackened with dirt.

They moved with a creeping,

Sideways sway,

Their features twisted with vicious anger.

They were chanting in that unnerving language she'd first heard in Thornton.

Wheezing and spitting,

Croaking and hissing,

They approached.

Their spines faced forwards and they held their limbs straight out in front of them,

A grimy,

Spiked wall.

Felicity watched.

In this bright world she was growing to respect and love more each day.

The creatures moved as a mindless,

Grey lump.

Ruben shouted instructions.

LITTLE GREEN,

COVER FELICITY AND GUS WITH YOUR AURA.

GEORGE,

PLEASE WATCH OUT FOR SIDE-CRAWLERS.

SCRAT,

COVER LITTLE GREEN.

GUS,

KEEP FELICITY BY YOUR SIDE.

WOLFGANG AND PIPPY,

LET'S GO.

But Felicity could no longer hear his commands as he was running with a loop-harter,

His right hand raised to halt the creeping line.

Felicity watched the brave trio diminish in size as they crossed the space to the forest's edge.

Wolfgang and Pippy were snarling and growling as they galloped from side to side,

Containing the advance and giving Ruben time to identify any sort of leader.

Finally a particularly disgusting,

Gnarled pair of toxics shuffled ahead of the others,

Who were jostling and whining as loop-harter held them back with sheer determination and Ruben called on the ground and the air as he ran full pelt,

And his stature was as stone as he halted to repeat for the third time,

INTRODUCE YOURSELVES,

DISTURBERS OF THIS WORLD,

OF BALANCE AND MISERERS OF LIFE.

Felicity gasped.

Surely now the toxics would pounce?

They held still,

But the two leaders moaned evilly,

And lumpy saliva drooled over their facial spines.

Ruben looked directly at them.

Their eyes were large,

Like Gus,

But in place of deep intelligence were black chasms.

No light reflected in their pupils.

The orbs of darkness turned towards him.

He tried to mind-share.

He could hear only wind,

A rushing wind,

And the sound of whispers,

Low and malicious.

Then the smaller one spoke.

WE CHOOSE NOT TO SPEAK IN THE LANGUAGE OF THE WORLD,

IT SAID.

Strangely the hoarse whisper gave him comfort.

Communication of a kind,

He thought.

A group of about twelve had broken forwards further down the line.

The two leaders turned their heads slowly and stared at them.

The renegade group slunk back,

Weaving side to side and complaining with furious cackles.

The two leaders slowly turned back to Ruben.

Then the smaller one spoke again.

I AM DEMET OF THE FIRST CLAN OF THE NEW SOUTH,

Wheezed the grey mouth.

A lump of black-flecked spittle flew out of his thin purple lips and sizzled as it hit the floor.

Its lumpy collie cackled at the look of surprise from Ruben.

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE US,

RUBEN THE LAST,

SAID THE SMALL TOXIC.

Ruben looked down at his left hand.

A tiny speck of the spittle had landed on his third finger.

Suddenly he felt excruciating pain,

His flesh was burning and blistering.

He felt the anger rise and he opened his mouth to let the fire out.

As he exhaled and inhaled one long,

Deep breath,

He felt the still,

Pure air of the West travel down to the depths of his lungs.

He blew gently on his hand.

The pain was under control now,

And he looked up straight into the black holes of the toxic's eyes.

He felt the strength of his world pour into his veins,

And he let it saturate his mind.

He focused all his energy into a solid ball,

And then he simply emptied this ball of energy and strength like an arrow into those miserable,

Vacant holes.

He heard the toxic whine and moan as the goodness of the world spread into its withered pores.

It cowered back,

And by its side the second toxic whimpered with fear at this silent adversary.

I say to you,

Toxics of many thousandths of our ancient world,

Do not mistake the silent strength of light,

Sun and harmony.

Neither must you mistake dull ignorance and pointless destruction as containing any purpose.

Your introspective lives have led you to stray far from the paths of hope.

Our quest seeks to abate your hopeless cause.

Why do you bring your lack of light to these lands?

Come and learn from Toxic Toxic the true possibilities of our world and your place in it.

The small toxic straightened up again.

It looked past Reuben,

To Gus by Felicity's side.

Its expressionless eyes stayed on Felicity for a few moments.

Felicity saw Reuben's hands slowly clench and then uncurl as its gaze returned to Gus.

Gus stepped forwards and started to slowly approach the line.

Georges stomped closer to Felicity and Scrat,

And Little Green moved to fill the gap Gus left.

He walked slowly and surely towards the line of toxics.

Felicity heard the crackling,

Hissing noise of their muttering spread through the lines as they all realised Gus was one of them.

He walked calmly to stand by Reuben.

He faced the two toxic leaders,

Two pairs of empty eyes.

He felt their walls of anger.

And closing his eyes,

He went into their minds.

Through the hissing,

Ugly,

Broken language of their thoughts,

He travelled.

He broke through the second toxic's barriers and reached its young mind trails.

He found its memories.

He saw it small and fresh,

Trying to find a friend in its land.

He saw it confused and lonely.

He saw it fully grown,

Encased in bitterness that swirled around its memories and distorted them.

He came back to its present thoughts.

Its vacant pupils sharpened for a moment and looked at him properly.

He spoke to it in the language of the world,

They dulled.

He spoke to it in the toxic's chosen new harsh whispers.

It listened.

For a moment,

He knew it heard It shared his mind and it saw his light.

Then it retreated.

It looked at him and its eyes were pools of sadness as it remembered the hope.

He spoke to it for the last time before it shuffled away,

Alone.

Be calm,

Toxic of hope.

Be still and be calm.

Wait.

Our quest continues but be patient.

Seek others like ourselves,

Toxics of hope,

And shelter with them.

Leave this darkness.

I saw your beauty.

Find me when the quest has succeeded.

Find me,

New friend.

At these words and at the desertion of his second-in-command,

Demet became enraged.

He darkened and blackened and his foul features shriveled up even tighter.

He started spitting and hissing and boils erupted between his spikes.

He stood alone in the centre of the massive line of toxics and simply fumed.

His colleague didn't look back.

It calmly walked away,

Past the quest group and on along the shoreline as if in a trance.

The rest of the toxics were crowing and cackling,

Hissing and spitting.

The whole line of them began to advance with their praying mantis shuffle,

Led by the postulating leader.

Reuben and Gus looked at each other.

Well done,

Gus,

Said Reuben,

And then they turned and ran back to the group.

Run,

Said Reuben,

Laughing.

Flisty decided he'd definitely gone mad.

They were backed up to a frothing sea,

Full of so much food they could hardly jog off.

And the line of misinformed,

Blackened and melting toxic diehards were approaching fast.

Seeing the blisters on Reuben's hand was not reassuring either.

Wolfgang and Pippi broke their defensive patrol and galloped back.

Before Flisty was aware of what was happening,

Pippi had grabbed her and tossed her onto her back.

Wolfgang had snatched Scrap and Little Green onto his.

Gus was hanging on to George's mane and they were off.

Reuben took the lead.

He was running at full stride along the shoreline.

The water splashed up into their faces.

Flisty licked her lips as she bumped along and tasted its saltiness.

Hold on,

Flisty,

Said Pippi,

And she lurched ahead in huge,

Bounding leaps.

Looking back,

Flisty could see the swaying line of toxics had reached the sea.

But they simply continued on.

They entered the water,

And their moans were muffled as they bobbed in the water like a scattering of ugly corks.

Oh!

She giggled,

Horrified and fascinated.

Not their end,

I'm afraid,

Flisty,

Said Reuben.

They will float with the tide and reach the shadowed south,

Which I think was always their leader's intention before they ran into us.

I wonder why so many were here in the Western Isle,

Said George.

Wolfgang and Pippi were panting.

But Wolfgang stopped for a moment to answer him.

I think that may have been the final gathering of strays from the West.

Yes,

Confirmed Reuben.

Sib talked to me of the gathering of the toxics in the regions.

He said the Western Isle was the last region to turn.

I think Demet the leader was sent from the shadowed south to harvest the final lost souls and take them back with him.

With Sib's name just at that moment floated a small wave of despair,

Flisty felt it like a thin tissue hovering between them.

It was almost visible.

Sib had still not returned.

His sudden departure remained unexplained.

The toxic party had been dark,

So very dark.

The sun slid behind a large cloud and Little Green from Wolfgang's back held her slender arms up and began to sing.

As her gentle,

Young voice crooned its soft melody up into the sky,

The shapes of the strata could be seen high above.

They were still there,

Protecting from up high,

Realised Flisty,

And gradually felt her shoulders relax as Little Green's magic renewed their hopes.

Reuben came over and put his arms around her.

She lent her tired head on his chest.

He smelt strong and a little sweaty,

But she didn't mind.

His courage was magnificent and her heart felt big enough to hug them both at that moment.

Reuben kissed the top of her head.

As the sun came back out he lifted his head and looked to the edge of the forest.

A movement caught his eye.

Not more,

Surely,

He muttered to himself,

But out of the forest stepped the most exotic creature Flisty thought she could have ever imagined,

Even in this surprising,

Mystical world.

It was tall and yet so delicate.

It was a plant and yet its features were clear on its petal-framed face.

It floated gracefully over to them across the sand.

As it reached them Flisty saw it was a beautiful woman.

Well,

A beautiful woman plant,

She thought.

Hello,

Reuben,

Said the plant.

Hello,

Orcadia,

Said Reuben.

He let go of Flisty and went to touch Orcadia.

They touched foreheads,

Then noses,

Then lips.

Enough,

Thought Felicity,

Studying this interloper.

Orcadia was mainly tendrils apart from her face.

She reminded Felicity of an orchid her mother had once received from a secret admirer.

Her face was the largest flower,

Tiny flowers seemed to denote her hands and feet,

And the rest of her was a swirl of delicate downy tendrils,

Like a chiffon ballet-dancing orchid.

Felicity ground her teeth.

The rest of the troupe seemed delighted to see Orcadia.

Reuben turned back to Felicity,

And he and Orcadia looked down at her from their lofty heights.

And as Felicity faced this exquisite,

Fragile plant,

She heard him continue.

Orcadia,

May I introduce Felicity Isabel Penfold,

And Felicity,

May I present Orcadia 4000th,

My enharmonic.