Chapter Fourteen
James approached the large wooden fence that surrounded the small town of Rain. The fence stood over thirty feet high with only one large wooden door in the front. On top of the town, stood a giant umbrella that completely covered the village beneath; protecting it from the never-ending rain. He was anxious to get in, for he was now starting to get very wet from the falling rain. He knocked on the large door with loud pounding. Three feet from the ground, a small door opened and a little man poked his head out.
“Yes, is someone there?” He said, looking up at James. “Oh.” He said, and then closed the door quickly. There was a clattering sound and a small thunk against the door, and then at almost James’ eye level, another small door opened and the same man poked his head out, again. “Can I help you, young man? What brings you to our town of Rain?”
“I have come to collect a few of your raindrops to help my wife. If you don’t mind, I will take some and then be on my way.”
“Katie, I assume? Yes, yes, come in and I will show you just what part you can get the rain drops from. Follow me.” James did as he was asked, and entered the town of Rain, once the large door opened.
“Has Katie’s story traveled this far, and is it so great that you know of it, too?” James asked, following the small man into the brick streets of the town.
“Oh yes, we all know of your dear Katie. We were told she was going to come here to collect the rain, but she has only gotten two of the six items.” He paused and looked over at James before he continued. “Oh, I see you have the cane. She will be finished in no time with your help.”
“As long as I get to see her again, I will do whatever I need to.” He felt like he was in the city of OZ, with the bustling of little people in the city. Some stopped what they were doing to watch James, who was following the gatekeeper. They walked past some small homes that almost resembled mushrooms. The windows were lit by small lanterns that hung on the window ledge. They walked down a narrow alleyway where James had to walk sideways to follow the small man. They came to the end of one alleyway and stopped in front of a brick wall. The small man peeled back the wall, which to James’ surprise wasn’t a wall at all, but a sheet that only appeared to be a brick wall. Behind the sheet was a work shop that was bustling with small men and some women, as well. They were taking the rain water and pumping it into different rooms. All the rooms were labeled differently, like ‘for the home’ and ‘for the heart’.
“What is this place” James couldn’t help asking the gate- keeper, who James found out, had quite a lot of jobs in the city of rain.
“This is how we keep the rain going for all these years.” He said, walking into the workshop.
“You mean you want it to keep raining like this? Why?” James asked, watching some of the rain water slide down a whirly tube and into a room called ‘love’.
“James, this isn’t just any rain water. Well, some of it is that is the part that falls outside the walls; it is just pure rain. Each drop is unique and has a different purpose. That’s what we do here; these machines sort the water into different parts and move them into the appropriate rooms. Almost like remedies, in a way. Some are just fresh drinking water and are moved to the houses for drinking and bathing. Some are to help you get well or just feel happy. People come from all parts of Atheness to buy our rain water. The King used to come all the time before he died; his children never visit us anymore, since they passed, though I don’t think they would, figuring the state they are in. That’s why you are here, I assume. Now, hand me that vial and we’ll go to the secret room.” He said, gesturing to the vial in James’ hand. James handed it over and followed the gatekeeper into a room at the far corner of the workshop. It was covered in words that said ‘keep out’, ‘secret work’, and ‘no admittance’. The man slid a clear card into the slot by the door and it opened. James followed him in until an alarm went off and lights started flashing around him. The little man raised his arms and said he was with him, and all was quiet again. A large clear tube ran into the room and emptied into a black cylinder container that was as big as a small house. The little man walked up to the cylinder and turned on a small nozzle on the side and poured the contents into the vial James had handed him. The clear liquid seemed to swirl and glisten in the vial. He handed it back to James, and looked up at him with stern eyes.
“Take care of this, lad; this is the most important ingredient your Katie will need to return the royal family to their bodies, again. This is the healing rain. There is none in all of Atheness. It shows your true self, once you use it. Now, all you need is snow and lava, is that right?”
“Um, yeah, I think that is what the fairy lady told me.” James said, putting the vial in his side pack and then shifting the cane in his hand.
“Adrianna is her name. I will show you the way to the ice castle. Any snow on the top of the mountain is fine to use. Just be aware that no one is around near the castle, so get the snow and get out before you are caught. I believe that the lava is something that Katie will get, or you will have to help her get it. I will take you back to the front gate, for you must leave us now. Follow the trail out front and it will lead you to the castle of ice. Be careful, James.” With that, the small man snapped his finger and James was alone at the front gate again. He realized he had a thick jacket on, made of soft cow hide with a wool lining.
“That was easy.” He said, checking to make sure he still had the vial of rain water and the cane. He looked over and saw a dirt path that wound around and slowly snaked up the mountain. James took in a deep breath, and ran as fast as he could down the path. He knew he had no time to lose. Trees, rocks, bushes all seemed a blur as he ran on by. The only thing that mattered was the task at hand; get the snow and then he could be with Katie once more and be lying in their bed, in their own room, as if none of this had ever happened.
Katie was the goal, the only thing that mattered; he still didn’t care for this world. It was beautiful, but without Katie to share it with, none of it mattered. He grew tired but never stopped or slowed down; he kept treading on. The air around him grew cold and a chilly wind whipped across him, freezing him inside and out. He slowed his pace because of the strong push from the wind, but he never stopped. He moved on up the mountain, holding the jacket closer to his body. He used the cane as a hiking stick up the mountain. The cruel wind kept beating against him, threatening to push him down the cliffs. His fingers and ears felt cold and started turning red from the harsh cold in the air. Snow started to fall all around him and he smiled for he knew he was close to the top. He slowly walked for another half an hour when he finally made it to the top.
A large castle stood on the top of the mountain. It was carved completely out of ice, though he couldn’t see the inside, for the castle had been frosted over from the new snowfall. Guards that looked like they had the head of a boar, paced back and forth in front of the castle’s large door. Other strange looking guards paced in the court yard, never once noticing James.
James scooped up some snow into his last vial and placed the lid on. The snow sparkled and shone inside the vial and James watched in amazement.
“Hey you, you have no right to be here!” One of the boar guards snorted, running up to James, with his spear extended. James stood up and ran in the other direction as fast as he could. He looked back and noticed that a few more boar guards had joined the first. James turned, jumped off the snow-covered path and into a small hole that was hidden by bushes. He lay perfectly still and the boar guards ran right past him. He gave out a heavy sigh and stood up.
“Now, where am I?” He asked himself. Suddenly, the trees rustled and moved and James stood in front of a large cave. He smiled and walked inside. The trees rustled again and a small pile of branches and twigs sat in front of the cave. “Thanks,” James said to the trees. He opened his pack and took out a small lighter he had, from before he left in search of Katie. The branches instantly lit on fire and James began warming his hands. The fire spit and crackled under his hands. The sound was quite comforting. He looked up at the sky and it was now clear with beautiful shining stars. He didn’t know, but at that moment, only a few miles away, Katie sat and looked up at the same sky, thinking of James.
Katie curled up next to Simona for warmth in the cool night air. Simona was already asleep though Katie knew by how she stirred, her dreams weren’t peaceful. She looked up at the sky and thought of James. Thinking how nice it would be to be back in his arms again. To kiss his warm soft lips and have everything as it was, again. She hadn’t eaten much since the day she arrived. She had only been there a week, but tonight, she felt a little ill. Chadwick was curled up next to a tree and shivered in his sleep. Katie stood up, feeling a little dizzy and walked over to him. She stood over him for a moment and found his cape next to her pack. She picked it up and placed it over him; he stopped shivering. Men always think they are so tough, she thought to herself. Nausea took the best of her; she ran a little further and vomited behind a bush. She walked down to the river and rinsed her mouth out. This can’t be possible, can it? If I didn’t really exist in my world, how could I be pregnant in this one? Wouldn’t my child disappear, as well? Katie asked herself.
“Only if the father was still in the world of man, and he didn’t believe you existed, as well.” Katie turned around and saw Queen Adrianna standing before her. Katie bowed. “How did you know? And how is this possible; James is still in the world of man, remembering me or not.”
“Oh no, Katie, he came looking for you, so I let him in. He has already found two of your items. All you need to do is get the lava from the Valley of Fire. You will see him soon enough. Your babies will be safe enough for now.”
“Wait, slow down… babies? You mean two, and James is here?” Katie felt nauseous again, after hearing that news.
Queen Adrianna smiled a sweet smile down at Katie. “Yes Katie, two babies; a girl and a boy. Also, James is here. He has already gone through a lot to see you again. He has stopped at nothing to see you, and bring you home. Please don’t give into him, not yet, anyway, we need you here.”
“How can you know that I’m having two, and that they are both a girl and a boy?” Katie asked, again trying to hold back the nauseated feeling she was having.
“I know. I haven’t been around for hundreds of years for nothing, you know. They have a great life ahead of them and so do you and James. You must wake Chadwick and Simona now, and you need to get the last item tonight, and then save Varek and Chait. Now go, Katie, there isn’t much time. GO!” With that, Adrianna was gone. Katie touched her stomach, smiled and then walked over to wake up her companions. They woke before she got any closer.
“Did you hear that?” Simona asked standing up. The sound of a small bell was ringing softly.
“What is that?” Katie asked.
“It’s the Centaurs. I have heard of this, but I have never before witnessed it. The midnight parade; I hear they do it on the eve of the first of every month, which is tonight. Follow me and be quiet.” Chadwick said, as he crouched behind a bush. Simona joined him, followed by Katie, trying to hold back her nausea.
The forest was lit by glowing lights and flowers. Several bells played the same rhythmic tune. One by one, pairs of centaurs’ men and women began parading in lines through the forest. They sang to the tune of the bells, dancing as they went. They decorated their tails with flowers and some had crowns of flowers on their head. It was an amazing sight.
“I have been told that the centaurs are so vain that they think they are the loveliest creatures in all of Atheness. That is why they have this parade, to celebrate their beauty. They don’t care about the wellbeing of others, and will never fight in a battle, for they might get dirty.” Chadwick said, watching the parade.
“We need to go. Queen Adrianna said that all I have left to do is get the lava from the valley of fire. Then, we can get Varek and Chait.” Katie said suddenly.
“What about the other three items?” Simona asked, turning from the parade.
“It’s been taken care of. Come, we must hurry before dawn hits to save them.” Katie said, now standing up and putting her backpack on. Simona nodded and waited for Katie to get on her back. Once settled, she stretched out her long wings and jumped into the sky, followed by Chadwick.