Zollocco: A Novel of Another Universe (28 page)

shaped, large head.
"Tickets please," the ticket taker said officiously.
"Sorry, I don't have one," was my obvious reply.
The ticket taker gestured commandingly for me to leave. The pterodactyl bird tilted his head trying to figure out what was going on. "Problem?" he rumbled.
The crowd gasped as quietly as a crowd can gasp.
Knowing that the pterodactyl wouldn't ever understand about money, I focused my concentration and said to him in the Remembered Tongue, "He won't let me on board."
The pterodactyl flapped his pink wings and screeched in annoyance. I did what he told me; I crossed through the gate.
"Hey, you can't come through here without a ticket. Now get one or go away."
From up above us came the sound of a flute. I looked up. On the catwalk leading from the elevator into the spacecraft stood my friend the music professor priest playing his gold flute. He was wearing his robe and it was tied with the purple belt. I waved at him and shouted, but regardless of how loudly I shouted he couldn't understand what I was saying.
However, since he now knew I knew he was there, he stopped playing and waved at me.
"Look," I said to the ticket taker, "you can see I have a friend already on board and this pterodactyl is also insistent I get on the spacecraft. Won't you please let me by?"
"You may be used to getting everything for free here on Aridia," snapped the ticket taker, "but this is an Ichloz pleasure spacecraft, one of the most luxurious, and there are no free rides. You sorceresses always think you can call a pterodactyl to your aid and the beast will frighten me into letting you on. Well if I've seen this same trick once, I've seen it a hundred times. Why don't you let that poor creature fly away, and you go back to stirring brew."
Some Toelakhan were hurrying to the scene. The pterodactyl reared and flapped his wings again, this time in annoyance with the ticket taker. I turned and started up the ramp that led to the elevator. The ticket taker chased after me and grabbed my arm.
Turning me around the ticket taker said, "I said--" whereupon the pterodactyl nipped him-- or what was a nip for a pterodactyl.
The ticket taker screamed and let go of me. His arm was bleeding.
Aghast and contrite I said, "So sorry!"
Since the Toelakhan were coming, and the ticket taker was anal retentive in the observance of his duty, the pterodactyl decided that once more he had to take matters into his own claws. I pleased the pterodactyl with a bloodcurdling screech of my own as he hauled me up to the top of the elevator. Unfortunately, the pterodactyl was too large to fit on the bridge between the elevator and the spacecraft, and so he hovered next to the rail of this bridge (which was extremely high up) and required me to grab the rail with my arms and legs and climb ungracefully onto the safety of the bridge. All of this took some doing, burdened as I was with my basket and staff. The pterodactyl kept a tight hold on my hair until I was safe. The Priest did his best to assist me by grabbing my foot and pulling it over the rail.
Rubbing my poor, abused, sore scalp I said to the pterodactyl, "Thanks!"
The pink pterodactyl screeched, "My pleasure!" and flew off. The priest remarked, "The ticket-taker is shaking his fist at us. He has let some Toelakhan into the elevator and they are coming up."
The priest pulled the magic wand, the high powered and ornate transporter of the stone school, out from his robe.
"I've got the transporter here. I've been sent by Saemunsil to bring you to Zollocco. Zollocco has something he wants to show you."
"Oh, how very interesting," said a voice I knew and hated.
Raiboothnar smirked at us.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Orchard

The elevator door opened and five Toelakhan stepped onto the catwalk. One of them was Raiboothnar's husband, my nemesis of the white crew cut and passionless face. He darted forward, and with a quick gesture plucked the transporter from the hands of the priest.

"Well, wife," he said, "at last we have this zitam captive."

Raiboothnar's face was stony as she said, "Let's get to the transporter room. I am anxious to get this wild creature restrained in a cell. Did you see it sic the pterodactyl on the Cruise-Craft agent? Priest, we shall return your transporter to you as soon as we have this creature aboard the Know-All."

The priest and I looked at each other and sighed. Raiboothnar and her five Toelakhan muscle men marched us down twisty, curving corridors to a transporter room. Raiboothnar, her husband, and I stood on one pod, the priest and two guards on another, and the rest of the guards on a third. The transporter operator went to work turning dials and switching switches on the control panel.

The priest caught my eye and mouthed, "Zollocco!" My mind filled with visions of Zollocco--and we were there.

Our human is with Us again! We are so pleased to have this aspect of Ourself returned to Us. The Blue Dawn priest who Saemunsil sent to fetch her for Us is here, too. That ugly Raiboothnar is staring stunned at the lovely chapel Our human designed. This priest is a funny person; he is very much amused by the fright of all those can-colored Toelakhan. The smell of can from Raiboothnar and those Toelakhan is sickening. The mammals and marsupials can not endure it and are running off. Even the snakes who want to watch can barely tolerate the stench.

That smelly, ugly Raiboothnar is shaking and screaming at Our human "What have you done? You'll be sorry you brought me here! How did this happen? You are a monster! You are not human! How did you do this?"

At first, I was so startled by Raiboothnar's attack that I just stood there while she dug her long claws into my arms and raised her fists to punch me. In her insane rage, her first jab missed me, and I ducked her second punch. Before she could punch at me again, I gave her a good push and she fell down. The guards were on me in a second, pinning my arms back, and Raiboothnar's husband helped her up. The priest strode up between Raiboothnar and me and stretched up his arms, one to each of us.

He said, "Professor Raiboothnar, only this priestess and myself can leave this Forest safely without the aid of the transporter, and I have reason to believe the transporter will not work for thee. If thou dost attack this priestess a second time, Zollocco will surely protect her against thee. Dost thou want to risk the Forest's displeasure?"

Some of Our octopi are carefully and quietly positioning themselves in the tree above that ugly Raiboothnar. If she touches Our human again, they will reach down and strangle her and those other can-smelling humans.

Raiboothnar's husband set the switches on the transporter. After a moment, he looked at his wife. "The priest is correct. The transporter isn't working."

Raiboothnar fixed a baleful glare on me.
One of the guards spoke up, "How are we going to get out of here?"

Some of Us are of the opinion that maybe We shouldn't let them out of here, except for Our human and the priest, of course. The water-elm objects to that idea, and quivers at the thought of their toxic flesh contaminating Our soil. The orchard says Raiboothnar should come amidst it. Now that is an idea!

Raiboothnar grabbed the transporter from her husband and tried it herself. She spent a good twenty minutes fiddling with the switches while we all watched her. While she cursed and jerked the switches to different positions, my mind kept wandering. I felt the orchard that abutted my little natural chapel was beckoning me. I envisioned myself walking the narrow path through the fruit trees until the path disappeared and I was surrounded by the orchard and the fruit's lovely odor. I was startled from my reverie when Raiboothnar violently threw the bejeweled transport at the largest of the three black stones in my chapel-garden. The large blue diamond of the transporter chipped a corner off the stone, but the transporter itself was unharmed. We all looked at each other. No-one made a move to retrieve the transporter.

Raiboothnar hissed at the priest, "Well priest, you seem to know so much about what is going on here, tell us, how do we get out? What do we have to do?"

"I was sent to fetch this priestess because Zollocco does wish her to walk amidst that little orchard over there. Zollocco did interfere with the transport to bring us here since we were with," and he pointed at me, "her."

Raiboothnar cocked her head to the side distrustfully and scowled at the priest, "And if we let her walk in that little orchard the transporter will work again?"

"Yes."
Raiboothnar snarled, `Well, that seems simple enough.

We will all escort her there."
The priest put up his hand warningly, "No! She must
needs go alone!"
Raiboothnar, "Now why am I not surprised you said
that? What little trick are you two going to play on us now?" "Professor Raiboothnar," said the priest earnestly, "That
orchard is the sacred grove of Zollocco. As thou dost know,
each Forest has one. The Forests permit only certain people
to enter Their sacred groves, and then only rarely. Whoever
enters a sacred grove must be willing to see themselves as
they really are, as they behave towards others. If they see
something they cannot accept, they will physically transform
into a manifestation of the part of themselves they most
fear. Zollocco has only invited this priestess. The orchard will
not allow any one else to enter."
"Not even you priest?" smirked Raiboothnar.
The priest walked over to the orchard and immediately
thorn bushes clustered to bar his entrance. He tried to move
around them and they moved with him. Also the limbs of
trees bent down and gently swatted him warningly. The priest turned to Raiboothnar and said, "As thou
canst see professor, the orchard refuses me entrance." "Wife, we might as well try it. The zitam will probably
escape us again, but at least we will be able to leave this
awful place. We will track the creature down again; you can
be sure of that."
Raiboothnar shook her head no. Her husband ignored
her and gestured to the guards holding me to let me go. I
looked at them. I looked at the priest. The priest smiled
encouragingly at me. I entered the orchard. I walked along
the path, looking at the dwarfed and gnarled fruit trees and
breathing in the sweet aroma of the fruit. I heard
Raiboothnar rushing towards me.
"Where are you? Where are you, zitam?" she screamed,
running past the fruit trees. I thought the best course of
action for me to follow would be to hide. I ducked behind
the thick trunk of one of the more gnarled fruit trees. I was
amazed that Zollocco had allowed Raiboothnar in His
sanctuary. As I watched Raiboothnar's frenzied search for me
I attuned myself to Zollocco to find out what the Forest had
in mind.

Just watch, Our human, just watch.

Raiboothnar halted and gasped with fury. Throwing angry looks at each of the trees surrounding her, she screamed, "Come out of hiding!"

A tree-dog jumped from the branches of a fruit tree behind Raiboothnar. She whirled around and stared at the tree-dog.

"Bad! Bad!" she raged at the animal.

The tree-dog's hackles rose, his muscular long tail coiled and uncoiled. Raiboothnar backed up and backed up, and then she turned and ran. Two of the dwarf fruit trees stretched out their misshapen branches and twined them together. Seeing this Raiboothnar stopped so suddenly, she slipped and barely caught herself from falling. She turned round and ran in another direction. Two more of the twisted fruit trees tangled their branches together to block her way. Raiboothnar stopped again and surveyed the orchard. She seemed to grow calm. Sedately she took a few steps in a different direction, and nodded when the fruit trees joined branches. She looked around her, and watched dispassionately as the orchard circled around her and tangled their branches together to fence her in. I was fenced in too, but I wasn't about to let Raiboothnar know that. The treedog slinked into view; head lowered, long tail curled over his back ready to lash at her. Raiboothnar eyed the tree-dog coldly. She very slowly crouched and seized a stick. The treedog halted, wary. Slowly Raiboothnar stood. She examined the stick she held, and pulled back some of the dry bark. Some of the bark crumbled it was so dry. A small smile cracked the thick white make-up on her face.

I knew that smile. I had seen it only once before and I had hoped never to see it again. She had smiled like that when I was entered on the List and she had received the Listing
fee. Raiboothnar reached into her pocket and pulled out a matchbook. Raiboothnar lit a match and set the stick on fire. The smile faded away.

She said very matter-of factly, "Zitam, remember my telling you I would torch this Forest? Well, now I'm going to. She fitted the flaming branch to the limb of a tree. I ran from cover and yanked the branch away from her.

Raiboothnar said, "I knew that would bring you out." I threw the branch down and stamped the flames out. "Zitam, you are a stupid creature. We need some flame to convince these trees to let us by."

I glared at her and looked at the wall of trees encircling us. The deformed fruit trees were advancing towards us, hemming us in.

"What's the matter zitam? Is your beloved little forest frightening you? Don't worry, I have plenty more matches." Raiboothnar reached in her pockets and pulled out a half a dozen matchbooks. "See? Let's see who becomes hysterical. I don't think it will be me."