Sam took a deep breath. "You look like garesh. You might want to consider sleeping inside your casket tonight. From the looks of it, you'll kick the bucket before sunrise. No offense."

Yaloom tried to laugh, but instead, he coughed. It took him a moment to settle down. "No offense taken. The coffin is looking more comfortable. I hope the next series of moments in which my eyes look upon you, they'll be through the eyes of a babe."

Sam nodded. "I've given you my word."

"Then it appears that everything is in order, King of Brandor, or should I say, future father." Yaloom struggled to pat Sam on the shoulder.

"Don't call me that. I would rather be spared the t.i.tle of Father until my son lives."

"I meant no offense. We shall save it for later then." Yaloom looked at the casket. "Perhaps I'll retire now. Will you have someone watch me through the night, and seal me inside once I pa.s.s?"

"I will. Until later?"

"Yes. Until later, Sam."

The king turned to leave. As he approached the door, Yaloom called to him. "Wait!"

The king stopped. "What is it?"

"Sam, you're a good man and a better king. Southern Grayham has needed a man like you for many seasons. Your wife will succeed. She's strong, and I wouldn't worry about your son's future."

"I hope you're right, Yaloom. I hope you're right." The king lowered his head and left the room.

Yaloom sighed and then whispered, "I also hope I'm right. With everything that's left of me, I hope I'm right."

Western Luvelles Head Master Brayson's Desk Inside the Book of Bonding George continued to walk through the fog while Payne flew beside him. The haze blanketing the forest floor was thick. It covered George from his waist down, and it was impossible to see the ground.

As George studied the looming trees, he reached out and used his magic to scorch the bark of the one closest to him. He rubbed his hand across the mark and then looked at Payne. "I feel like I'm inside some kind of Thriller video. This place is creeping me out."

Payne tilted his head. "What 'Thriller' mean?"

George rolled his eyes. "Nothing. Let's just keep going. Something's got to give."

The forest stretched high into the air and became so dense they could not see the sky. All they had seen since their arrival was gloom. It was not long before they came back to the tree which bore George's mark. The mage reached out and rubbed his hand across it again. "We're going in circles. Nothing about this place makes any sense. Where are we? This must have something to do with Brayson. I just know I'm going to have to kick that s...o...b..'s a.s.s."

Payne gave George another confused look. "What 's...o...b..' mean?"

"d.a.m.n it, Payne! You don't know c.r.a.p, do you? Just forget about it." George whirled around and threw his arms up in frustration. "Look at this place. It's miserable. We need to find our way out of here, or we're going to starve to death."

Payne scratched the top of his head. "Master use magic."

"To do what? We're in a forest, for h.e.l.l's sake."

The fairy-demon's brow furrowed. "What 'h.e.l.l' mean?"

George rolled his eyes and thought, I should just shoot myself in the d.a.m.n head. "Forget about it. How do you want me to use my magic? What do you have in mind?"

"To find the way ... um ... gotta find a way."

"And exactly how would I do that?"

"Payne don't know. You master."

"Bah!" George hesitated. After a few moments of studying his surroundings, the mage raised his hands in front of him, placed his palms together and then motioned for the fog to part. The haze split, following his hands as they separated. The ground beneath was revealed. "d.a.m.n! There's nothing here. Perhaps I should try again."

George took a quarter turn to the right and repeated the process. Again, the ground bared itself, and again, there was nothing. "d.a.m.n it!"

"Why Master say d.a.m.n, bunches?"

George growled, "What do you care? You sound like Athena. Shut up!"

"Master mean to Payne."

George shook his head and lifted his hands for his third try. As he separated them, a path was revealed. "That's weird. We've been walking forever, yet this path begins right where my feet touch the ground. What are the odds of that? I wonder if magic has something to do with it?"

Payne lowered to the ground and touched the path. "It lives."

"What do you mean ... 'it lives?'"

"Um ... it breathes ... like Payne ... like Master. He want Master to find it."

"What do you mean, 'he?' And stop talking about us in third person. You're driving me insane."

"Ebbish nay! Grouchy Master." Payne lowered his ear to the ground. "Him name ... um, um ... Payne mean ... um ... the, the, the-"

"The path, Payne, the path. It's called a path."

Payne growled in frustration. "The path name Follow."

"The path has a name?"

"Yes."

"Well that has to be the most absurd thing I've ever heard. A path named Follow. You've got to be kidding me. I'm not even sure what to say to that. At least we're getting somewhere." He rubbed his chin. "I wonder where Follow will lead us."

George slapped his own forehead. "My h.e.l.l! I can't believe I'm referring to a path as a person." He looked down and kicked the dirt. "What the heck? Let's follow Follow's path." George shook his head. "Holy b.a.l.l.s. That was a mouthful."

"Master act stupider."

"Shut up, Payne!"

George pondered a moment and then chuckled. "Now that I think about it, it's kind of humorous. Hey, Payne, ask Follow-"

As George turned to look for the fairy-demon, he was shocked to see that Payne had already started down the path. "Dang it, Payne, wait for me. It's bad enough I have to follow Follow, without following you. You should follow me and I'll follow Follow." George chuckled again. Wow, now that was an even bigger mouthful. d.a.m.n, I rock at tongue twisters.

What was left of the haze had vanished and everything was now in plain sight. As they followed Follow, the flowers that had been hidden by the fog were now following them. The plants were aware of their presence. They paid attention to the duo's movements as if they were stalking them. The flowers' stigmas acted as eyes, staring the pair down as their stems adjusted their red-petaled bodies for the perfect line of sight.

"What are these things, some kind of creepy tulip creatures or something? I feel like they're sizing us up," George said with a touch of anxiety.

Payne lowered next to one. He s.n.a.t.c.hed the flower out of the ground and shoved it in his mouth. "Creepy tulip creature taste gooder to Payne."

The earth beneath the rest of the flowers began to shift. One by one, leg-like roots emerged as the rest of their bodies pulled free of the ground. They began to surround George, as if they were preparing to attack. At the base of their petals, tiny mouths opened, exposing razor sharp teeth. Their stigmas split in two and transformed into a real pair of eyes. Long, leafy arms peeled away from their stems and turned into claws.

"Payne, get over here! Right now!"

Payne did as instructed.

George grabbed the fairy-demon by the leg and teleported down the path. When they reappeared, he shouted, "Follow me!"

They rushed down the path as the tulip creatures scurried after them, their petals falling to the forest floor as they gave chase. But Follow was about to end. Since George was looking over his shoulder, the mage did not see the large pit that appeared in front of him.

Payne watched George fall into the darkness.

As the mage lost sight of the botanical bandits, the fairy-demon folded his wings and dove into the depths after his master.

CHAPTER 7.

You're Proud of Me?

Inside the Book of Bonding PAYNE'S DEMON EYES WERE able to see his surroundings as he fell through the darkness of the shaft. The end of their fall was approaching fast, and Payne knew he had few moments to react. He was working to keep his body as streamlined as possible to catch up with George, but the mage was too far ahead.

Payne shouted, "Master, teleport!" But he could not understand George's response.

The rock floor was only a few hundred paces away. Payne's eyes searched for a place to land. He teleported to the bottom of the pit and allowed his body to erupt into flames. He burned bright, hoping to shed enough light on the area to define the terrain. The water covering the floor of the shaft was ankle-deep. The flames enveloping the fairy-demon's body tore into the surface of the pool and the water hissed. All he could do was hope his actions were enough. It was now up to George to save himself.

Less than two paces remained before impact. Payne covered his eyes and listened for the splat he knew George would make. After a moment, the fairy-demon peeked through his fiery claws. George was standing in one of the few spots on the floor that was high enough to remain dry, but far enough away to avoid the heat that was radiating from Payne's body.

Payne danced, pleased that his plan had worked. As he did, each step he took caused a searing sound to echo through the pit as the water met his scorching feet. Small clouds of steam rose into the air while the fairy-demon sang out loud. "Master so safe, Master so safe. Payne save him, Payne save him. You need Payne, you need Payne. Ha, ha, ha, you need Payne. Payne so gooder. Payne so gooder. Na, la, la, la, la, la, lahhh ... Payne so gooder. Yeah! Uuh!" Payne stuck out his tongue and blew s...o...b..ry, fiery spit in George's direction, all of which evaporated as it pa.s.sed through the air.

George, though shaken from his fall, chuckled, but he was careful to keep his distance from the demon. "Yes, you saved me, Payne. I'm proud of you. I didn't think fast enough. I'd be dead right now if it wasn't for you. I couldn't see anything. I'm impressed."

The fairy-demon stopped his celebration. "Master proud of Payne?" The fire encompa.s.sing his body dissipated as his black eyes began to shed tears that evaporated as they rolled down his skin. "Payne never hear no one say that to Payne."

With a wave of his arm, George commanded the darkness to depart. He summoned a breeze to cool the area. As the heat faded, the mage approached his little companion. "You should be told when you do something right. You made me proud."

"Neat." A moment later, the fairy-demon's expression changed. "Payne hungry." True to form, the child's attention span had moved on.

George shook his head. "Wow! That's all I've got to say."

The mage looked away to study his surroundings. "Speaking of eating, your eating habits are what got us into this mess. I thought we agreed that you would eat what I eat."

"Nope. Payne never do no agreeing. Payne just listen to Master." The fairy-demon looked up. "Why Master not teleport ... um ... to top of big hole?"

George rolled his eyes at the fairy-demon's attempt to redirect the conversation. "I tried, but I couldn't. I think we were meant to fall down here."

"Um ... now what to do?"

The Underwater City of Ultor Swill carried Gage far beneath the surface of Crystal Lake while he protected the badger by using his angelic water wings to create a pocket of air.

They were approaching a beautiful reef of freshwater coral. The Ultorian was headed toward the vibrant colors without showing any signs of slowing.

Gage was nervous. He had never been under water before, let alone move so quickly through it. He was unable to do anything. His magic had been nullified while sitting inside Swill's barrier. All he could do was watch.

A pair of sea snakes emerged from their holes. They moved in a large circular pattern as if they were indicating where Swill needed to go.

With the reef nearly upon them, the Ultorian still did not decrease the speed of his approach. Gage balled up and closed his eyes. When the impact with the coral never happened, he opened them just enough to peek through his claws.

The reef appeared to be far away again, but they had not backed away from it. In fact, it was quite the opposite. They were still moving forward, but their bodies had shrunk, and they were continuing to shrink. The sea snakes were also in their same position, but now they appeared to be t.i.tans of a watery underworld.

The smaller they became, the farther away the coral shelf seemed to get. Gage did not realize it, but he was no larger than a grain of sand, and the shrinking was not about to stop. Eventually, their approach narrowed to a specific part of the reef, and the pores of the coral became gigantic openings, welcoming their microscopic bodies to swim inside. Gage had never seen such magic, and his body was struggling with the change. It was not long before his badger eyes closed, and he faded into unconsciousness.

Now, fellow soul ... allow me to tell you about the Ultorian King's kingdom. The Ultorians numbered nearly 31,000,000. They occupied a magically protected area of coral that totaled two square hands within the depths of Crystal Lake.

The lake was the largest body of freshwater on Luvelles, and it covered more than 65,000 square jaunts-which was the worlds' equivalent to an Earth mile. Crystal Lake could have been called a sea due to its size, but since it was surrounded by land, the governments on Luvelles cla.s.sified it as a lake. This body of water served as the Ultorians' home since their creation.

When Gage awoke, he was lying on a floor. It took a moment, but he was able to collect himself to study his surroundings. He was in some sort of barrier that held back the water. The floor beneath his paws was porous, sponge-like, and alive. Beyond his bubble, the Ultorians' radiant forms could be seen as they swam past.

The amount of traffic swimming by his location suggested that Gage had been placed in the middle of a heavily populated area. It was as if he was on display. From within the midst of this organized chaos, a familiar face eventually appeared.

It was Syse. He swam up to the bubble, settled down onto the coral floor and then walked through the gelatinous wall of the barrier. Once inside, the Ultorian's form began to change. His skin turned hot, and the water covering his figure evaporated. Before retracting his wings within the confines of his back, he fanned the area to cool the bubble and then finished his transformation while his skin settled into a soft blend of yellows, oranges, and reds.

"I see you have awakened," Syse commented as he took a seat on the floor and lifted his hand toward the roof of the bubble. A series of ultrasonic pulses shot from his palm and penetrated the barrier. Once he was sure his message had been delivered, he addressed Gage again. "I have sent word that you're awake. Our king will be joining you once his meeting with the council has concluded. The council was warned many seasons ago that you might seek refuge. I'm sorry, but I had no other choice than to bring you here."

Gage clinched his cane with both paws. "What do you mean, you were warned?"

"Chancellor Id told us that you might come. Beyond this, I cannot speak further until King Ultor arrives."

"Am I to be returned to Marcus?"

"This is not for me to decide. The king will determine what's to become of you."

Gage closed his eyes. He tried to teleport, but nothing happened.

Syse sighed. "Your magic isn't strong enough to escape. I understand your fear, but our king is a gracious leader. He'll listen before making a decision."

"This isn't how I imagined my journey would end. I only want a peaceful existence."

"You'll know your fate soon enough, badger."

Mary's Home The Next Peak Brayson appeared on Mary's doorstep just after Early Bailem. Though he was not expected, he knocked and waited for Mary to answer. When she opened the door, she was still wearing her nightgown, and her hair was a mess. Seeing who was on the other side, she slammed the door shut.

She shouted through the heavy wood. "I look awful! I thought you were one of the kids. I don't want you to see me this way."