Chapter 21

         "Dabble, wake up!" Crystal gasped.

         "Wha-at?" he whined, rolling over.

         "Come on, I've got an idea and I need your help."

         "Get it in the morning."

         "It is morning!"

         "So get it tonight, I just now got to sleep!"

         "Okay," sighed Crystal, getting up and stretching leisurely. "Here and I thought you were the adventurous sort. I can see you're not gonna be able to keep up with..."

         He was standing up and completely alert before she'd finished. "Okay, what're we doing?"

         "Good," she smiled, tousling his already tousled hair. "I'll have to explain this to you on the way." She picked him up in her arms and flew out of the little jewelry box.

         "On the way where?" he asked.

         "Where ever you tell me Vixen and her pals hide out," she replied. "We're going to get her to help us."

         "Yeah, right," laughed Dabble. "Where are we going, really?"

         Crystal looked at him seriously. "Really," she said.

         Dabble looked back at her and realized she did mean it. "I'm not going," he said, folding his arms stubbornly.

         "Yes, you are!" laughed Crystal, still flying with him.

         "Well, I'm not telling you anything!"

         "Dabble, you have to! If you don't, then we might not get there in time to help save Pandora's people and then it would be all your fault and everybody'd be mad and nobody would let you come with us and then you'd be real bored."

          Dabble sighed and grumbled to himself, then pointed in a direction.

         Crystal smiled inwardly. I must never use this power for evil, she thought to herself.

 

         Magbert wasn't sure if he was awake or asleep at first, but that part wsn't important. The important thing, dream or not, was to talk Crystal out of leaving the safety of the tree haven. Crystal, he said, hoping it was aloud, don't leave here alone! That brownie isn't going to be any help if you get attacked by his enemies!

         It was then that Magbert knew he was asleep. He wasn't actually with Crystal and Dabble physically, but somehow, he was. Her crystal, he thought. It's telling me what she's doing. He tried to wake himself up, then realized there was no way he'd wake up after such a long trip. Well, he sighed mentally, I guess it's better that I stay with her this way than no way at all...

 

         It didn't take much for Crystal to talk Wiji into letting her and Dabble leave the tree haven and even less time to find what Crystal was looking for.

         "So, how do I find this Vixen wom..." began Crystal, and Dabble clamped a hand over her mouth.

         "Shhh!" he hissed. "What're you, stupid? You'll get her people out after us!"

         "That was kinda the point, kiddo," said Crystal with a frown. "We need her help."

         "She never helps anybody but herself," said Dabble quietly. "I am personally trying to avoid direct contact with the woman."

         "Which is gonna be my bargaining chip," said Crystal confidentally.

         "I don't get it, so it must be bad," Dabble said, shaking his head. "Come on, whaddya say we just flutter on back to Wiji's, huh?"

         That's the first intelligent thing I've heard from that kid, thought Magbert.

         "Afraid, huh?" Crystal grinned. Dabble nodded vehemently and Crystal frowned. His response was certainly not the one she'd expected. "Dab, talking to Vixen might be our best, ooof!" Crystal's sudden crash into something unknown had been unexpected, too, but she was somewhat reaasured in the fact that Dabble was still alright. She could tell, because even as she slipped into unconsciousness, she could vaguely hear someone's panicked pleadings for her to be alright while Dabble shook her...

         Oh, please, please, please be alright, babe!, Magbert begged, not realizing she could hear him. At least hang on 'til I can get there...!

 

         Crystal woke up to two massive headaches. One was in her head and the other was kneeling in a cage next to her with a frown.

         "Just had to keep flappin' yer gums, didn't ya?" snapped Dabble.

         "Thanks, I'm fine," returned Crystal wryly.

         Thank Bios!, thought Magbert.

         "I can see that. Just had to make sure we'd get taken the hard way," added Dabble.

         "I take it 'the hard way' was whatever I ran into?" she asked.

         "Eril," said Dabble. "The guy can throw up a shield in front of almost anything faster than you can blink."

         "Where are we now?"

         "We're sitting in two fairly sturdy wooden cages about to be tied up and fed to wolves, thanks to you," Dabble said sarcastically.

         "You're kidding," said Crystal, but a quick look around told her he wasn't. The cages they were in were made of ebony and were tied together with an extremely thin but strong metal wire. She tried to use her magic to break it apart, but the bars wouldn't budge.

         "Brownies have magic, too, y'know," Dabble replied. "We're not going anywhere."

         "I hope they give us a chance to explain." Crystal said, looking around again.

         "They may give you a chance to speak freely to the air, but they're not gonna listen to some sprite and me," said Dabble.

         Almost on cue, a brownie woman walked by, snapped her fingers twice at them, then pointed from them to a thronelike chair not far from them. Two men came right behind her and hefted Crystal and Dabble, cages and all, to a spot directly in front of the throne. The woman sat down on the throne, then grabbed up a stick of ebony shaped in the likeness of a scepter, swung her legs informally over one arm of her chair and began to twirl the scepter in her fingers.

         "Who dares use my name in public?" she asked sweetly. "Certainly not the devil incarnate Knothead."

         "Boy, do they love you here," murmured Crystal.

         Almost as much as we do, Magbert thought wryly.

         "Oh, if you only knew how much, winged one," smiled the woman. "You see, I've been looking for this insolent little twit for a long time. Isn't that right, Knothead?"

         "Yes, Lady Vixen," mumbled Dabble. Crystal (and Magbert) looked at him in surprise. This was not the cocky little brat that had tried to take Crystal and Pandora prisoner singlehandedly.

         "Just a minute," said Crystal. "His name is Dabble and I brought him with me so we could find you."

         "And you shall be duly rewarded after he's dead meat on a stick," replied the Vixen.

         "You're going to kill him?" gasped Crystal. "He's only a little boy."

         "A little boy with a big mouth," snapped Vixen. "I've been hunting this kid down since he turned 6 and he's escaped me more times than I can count. This time, he isn't gonna live to see another birthday."

         "I tried to tell you..." sighed Dabble.

         "I thought she kicked you out," Crystal frowned looking at him.

         "Kicked out, ran away; what's the difference?" he murmured.

         "The difference is whether I care or not," smirked Vixen.

         In other words, the difference between life and death, Magbert thought.

         "I didn't bring him here to get killed," said Crystal. "I came to see if I could make a deal with him for you."

         At the word "deal", everyone seemed to perk up. "Deal?" echoed Vixen.

         "Uh, yeah," said Crystal, somewhat startled by the response. "I figure if you can help me, I can take him off your hands."

         "I don't want him off my hands," said Vixen. "I want his throat slit in three places while I watch." Dabble gasped audibly and recoiled into the corner of his cage.

         "Vivid though that is," frowned Crystal, "think of how much better you'll feel not murdering a child for something he was barely old enough to understand."

         "Oh, I knew what..." began Dabble, but his answer was drowned out by Crystal saying,

         "Oh, and just think of what respect these brownies will have for their leader if they know that she is big enough to let something silly like a few foolhardy words drive her insane!"

         Magbert smiled in pleasant surprise. Even he had trouble sometimes believing that his dearest love could be capable of being any more intelligent than the springtime breezes she seemed to embody, but here she was, rather skillfully manuevering this brownie woman into what she wanted. He was actually impressed.

         Vixen smiled. "You're trying hard, sprite, although I can't say I fathom why." She banged her scepter on the top of Dabble's cage thoughtfully, then said, "What are you gettin' outta this, sister?"

         Crystal sighed. This was becoming a common enough question, "why was she defending Dabble?", but she'd avoiding trying to answer up until now. Dabble looked at her questioningly, as did everyone else.

         "Why are you helping me?" he asked her, crouching closer to her cage.

         She decided to try at last. "Look, I sort of started caring about him a little, so I'm probably gonna do and say some weird things to keep him alive, 'kay? I mean, he's lost his family and I know how that feels, to be so young and not have people who love you around." She looked briefly at Dabble, who tried to smile a little, then looked down at his crossed legs. "And I can't think of anybody in this whole realm who deserves to die, not even the humans who took my family away, so I can't see where a little boy has to die, either."

         "Me either," agreed Dabble.

         That's my baby, Magbert thought warmly. The whole world's okay with her.

         "Well, that was truly heartwarming, wasn't it, boys?" Vixen said to the two brownie men flanking her. They chuckled and looked at each other. "Scrag the knothead, pay off the sprite and get me my mid-day massage," she added, drearily.

         Dabble and Crystal gasped as the two brownie men opened Dabble's cage and hauled him out kicking and screaming. Crystal tried desperately to reach him through the bars of their cages to no avail.

         "No! Noooo! Crystaaaaal! Help meeeeee!" he hollered as they left.

         Crystal leapt to the door of her cage as Vixen stretched leisurely. "Lady Vixen, please! You don't know what he means to me!"

         "Ewww!" said Vixen. "Sounds like a personal problem."

         "No!" cried Crystal. "I can't let him die, I just can't! He's only a child!"

         Vixen giggled at Crystal. "You aren't letting him die, sister, I am."

         Crystal's panic mounted. "You don't understand!" she nearly sobbed. "Don't you even care that he'll never get the chance to become anything? Doesn't the sound of his terrified voice move you?"

         "Yeah, it moves me," smirked Vixen, checking her nails. "Moves me to tears. How much ya want for his capture? One gold piece sound like enough? We can dice it up for you into easily spendable pieces..."

         "I don't want your lousy money!" Crystal snapped. "I want Dabble safe and sound. Kill me in place of him if you have to!"

         Vixen paused to stare at her. "What?" she asked quietly.

         Crystal, no!, Magbert shouted.

         "I said kill me in place of him if you have to have some sort of appeasement, but don't let his life end like this," said Crystal. "Please!"

         Vixen looked at her for a tense moment. Her eyes met Crystal's pleading ones and could not turn away. "I take it you're serious about this deal. Why don't you tell me what you want and I'll tell you what you'll get from me," said Vixen at last, squatting down next to her.

         "I just need you to help me fight Gerald the Panderer. In exchange, I'll keep Dabble out of your sight for as long as I live, I swear!" said Crystal hurriedly.

         "Gerald, that mincy Duke from the east? I heard he's been talkin' bad about my people, anyway," nodded Vixen thoughtfully. "I already owe him one. Had planned to dish it out to him myself." She looked at Crystal.

         "Do we have a deal?" breathed Crystal, her wings nervously fluttering.

         "Okay, but you've gotta tell me where Gerald is and..."

         "I will...!"

         "And if any of my people even catch a glimpse of Knothead..."       

         "Dabble!"

         "Yeah, Dabble...if they even barely see him, they've got orders to kill."

         "Okay!"

         "And anything that little rug rat does is on your head!"

         "Alright, I give you my word, just stop your men!"

         Vixen grinned. "We have a deal, then." She shook Crystal's hand, then unlocked her cage. "If you can get to the runt in time. If he's dead, the deal's off!"

         Crystal flew out, barely thanking Vixen as she hunted down the two brownies holding Dabble. They were standing on either side of a rock that had a huge human dagger rigged to swing above it. Dabble had been strapped to the rock and was yelling in terror as the dagger's own weight forced it to swing closer to his throat.

         "Dabble!" she shouted.

         "Crystal, help!" he returned.

         She flew over to him and tried to untie him. "You, there!" she said to the two brownies. "Help me get him loose!"

         "Hey, sprite, if you can't do it, then he doesn't deserve to live," said one of them, leaning back against the rock to watch her.

         "Crystal, hurry!" begged Dabble, trying to regain his composure.

         "I'm trying!" she replied, fumbling with the ropes.

         "Try faster!"

         The dagger kept coming closer and closer and Crystal kept feeling more and more as if she didn't have enough time.

         "We're not going to make it...!" she muttered to herself, as the dagger swung forward again, this time barely nicking Dabble's neck.

         "Don't say that!"

         "We're not gonna make it...!"

         "Oh, please, please, please!" begged Dabble. The dagger swung back and lowered itself a final time. It came swinging back toward Dabble's neck and he closed his eyes in anticipation. "Crystal!" he squeaked.

         Sing, Crystal, sing!, Magbert yelled.

         Crystal jumped in front of the dagger, blocking its return path and sang so fast Dabble barely heard her sing anything.

         When they both opened their eyes, the dagger sat frozen in midair in front of the tip barely touching the center of Crystal's chest. She slid out from in front of it, then finished untying Dabble hurriedly, scooped him up off the rock and leapt away. Both of them stood in a fierce bear hug for a long moment as the dagger finally made its last swing across the rock where Dabble would have been.

         Magbert wasn't sure how, but somehow, in this dream connection, he felt faint with relief.

         "I thought I was dead meat!" gasped Dabble.

         "I thought we both were!" Crystal returned.

         "You saved my life."

         "I will never, ever let anyone hurt you, I promise," she replied solemnly.

         The two brownies that had been standing there all along had also been affected by Crystal's song. They seemed to snap out of it now and they turned on Crystal in an effort to stop her.

         "I think I'm really ready to go now," said Dabble, earnestly.

         "Me, too," said Crystal, wings in motion.

         "Hold on a minute," said Vixen, grabbing her ankle. Crystal came back down and faced her. "Very impressive. I take it you hadn't expected that to work."

         "Honestly, no," Crystal replied.

         "Um. Well, never tell anybody; you lose your power stance that way," Vixen replied, folding her arms as her two henchmen flanked her.

         Crystal smiled slightly. "I'll remember that, thanks. I'm getting ready to fulfil my part of the bargain. I don't have any proof that I'll uphold my end except for my word."

         "Unfortunately for you, that's all I got, too," said Vixen. "Of course, my word's better than gold, but no one seems to believe that. Okay, guys, send 'em off and hurry back, 'cause my muscles are tight in my shoulders." She turned and left.

         The two brownie men pointed east. "That way," they said simultaneously.

         "But you don't even know which way we..." began Crystal.

         "Trust me, twinkletoes," said one of them. "We know."

         Crystal took off flying in the direction they'd shown her as Dabble hung on open mouthed.

         "How the heck did you do that?" he asked.

         "Do what?"

         "Get us out of that!" he exclaimed.

         "Oh, that," she smiled. "Just good, I guess."

         Magbert frowned. He knew of a certain sprite who was going to get a major lecture on personal safety and recklessness when she returned...

 

 

         Magbert awoke in a cold sweat. He was barely awake before he leapt up and ran to the little nightstand where Dabble and Crystal's box sat. He grabbed it up and peered into it, but was surprised to find both of them in the box, stirring sleepily.

         "Magbert?" Crystal murmured, looking up at him. "What's the matter?"

         "I thought...I mean, the two of you, you..." He paused, confused. "Have you been asleep all this time?"

         "I've been trying," she said uncertainly. Dabble rolled over and curled up closer to Crystal in his sleep and she smiled a little.

         Magbert sighed. "Right," he agreed. "Of course. Go back to sleep, dear."

         "Are you sure?" she asked. "Nothing's wrong, is there?"

         "No, no, just go on back to sleep. I just...had a bad dream, that's all. Good night." He gently set the jewelry box back down and trudged off to his pallet again.

         Crystal sat up listening to him go, then looked down at Dabble. "He bought it already, knothead; don't overdo it," she muttered, closing her eyes and pushing him away some.

         Dabble grinned, but said nothing.

 

         "Duke Gerald, mockery of Alkin."

         The thin whisper woke Gerald from his sleep in a panic. "Wha..."

         "Silence, my lord, lest you wake your guards," came the voice.

         Gerald caught his breath and remembered he was a duke. No one could harm him. He had his title, his guards and his raw strength, or, at least, two out of the three. "Who are you?" he asked.

         "Let's say a friend. Surely you don't believe you'll find any nymphs running around the forest waiting for you to force them to talk."

         "All the people of Alkin listen to their duke!" Gerald protested angrily.

         The voice laughed, a chuckle fraught with mocking. "Perhaps some of the human outside the forest respect your authority, but you'll never get anyone loyal to the Triangularate to help you. Why, within the first few hours, you've to make an enemy of even the brownie folk. Do you even have a mage with you, or just a bunch of musclebound humans wanting to join a fray somewhere?"

         Gerald sat up, his eyes straining in the dark. He could see a figure in the darkness, slim and crouched down. The elven ears were visible even in the shadows.

         "No," Gerald answered. "I have no mage."

         The elf opened his hand and a light blue globe of light formed above it. He pointed at Gerald with a smile. "Perhaps," said the elf, staring at Gerald, "you should get one."

         "Yes," Gerald replied. "Perhaps I should."

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