flight, circling twice overhead until Childheart was on his way.
Both Starnee and Childheart were encouraged as they headed back toward Taralina’s castle, but wondered what they would find there and what the ensuing hours would bring. If they found the castle enemy-free, or requiring them to make it that way, they had already agreed that Childheart would resume the search for Jamie and Alex.
Starnee flew ahead and scouted the compound, returning to declare no signs of life anywhere about the castle, enemy or otherwise. He added, however, that all entrances to the seemingly undisturbed castle were shut, leaving him uncertain about what if anything might be waiting for them inside. They agreed that the only suitable place to attempt access was the vast set of double doors forming the principal entrance atop the lengthy outside staircase; it was also the only place that provided Starnee the possibility of entering the castle.
Within minutes the condor and unicorn had together reached the compound. Starnee circled with his limp cargo while Childheart jumped the slight remains of the outer and inner walls and trotted with forced ardor up the length of the staircase. On reaching the top, Childheart poked his horn through one of the latch rings, turned it, and pushed hard against the door. When it didn’t budge, he employed the same technique with the other door, but to no avail. So Childheart reared up on his hind legs and brought his front hooves down violently against the doors, forcing them open with the sounds of clanging iron and splintering wood. If anything at all was already inside the castle, it now knew of the unicorn’s harsh presence. Nevertheless, Childheart walked stealthily into the castle, as if his entry was still a secret. After a few minutes, he returned to the open door and motioned for Starnee to set Thorn onto a rug that Childheart had found inside and dragged through the doorway, spreading it on the broad landing. Once Thorn was on the rug, Childheart pulled it back inside, Starnee walking into the castle behind them.
The two friends stood in the middle of a large hall serving as an anteroom, the only light in the place being the pale one from the outside streaming across the threshold and cutting the darkness just enough for them to see that all the other doors and windows had been boarded over, apparently for a long time; the only exception was an iron gate that was furthest from the main entrance, resting slightly ajar. Dust was thick on everything, which seemed to have been left undisturbed, as if a sole occupant many years ago had departed abruptly and without forethought, leaving the boarding up to someone else. There was no evidence on the inside of the castle of the battle that had raged only hours earlier on the outside.
“I suggest we close the doors and bar them with furniture, and then take the boards off several of the smaller windows for light,” said Starnee.
“Why don’t you take care of that while I see what’s beyond the gate,” replied Childheart.
~four~
Each holding tightly with one hand to the ground grub, Elli and Beatríz held tightly to each other with their free hands. The startling acceleration of Aneht’s legs caused them to gasp and reach for air, but soon they were trailing the ground grub like two tails on a single kite, the scent of freshly burrowed ground enveloping them. In the soft glow of the lantern Elli saw the sides of the tunnel whizzing past them. They had just begun to relax enough to wonder where they were going when Aneht decelerated hard and quickly stopped. Elli and Beatríz stood behind Aneht in the tunnel, their hands still tied to the grub and to each other. Aneht’s head was poking itself into a large opening in the ceiling.
“Yes, yes! Here we are!” proclaimed Aneht; then, the girls still attached, she jumped up and through the hole, landing softly in the daylight on a carpet of dry leaves. There she promptly sat, pulling the girls down next to her, one on each side.
“Yes, yes! Well, here we are!” Aneht announced again, glancing first at Beatríz and then at Elli, as if awaiting some proper reply.
Utterly exhausted, and their minds already filled with a host of unanswered questions, Elli blurted out, “But, please, Aneht, where is ‘here?’” It was then that Elli realized that Beatríz and she were sitting in the midst of something familiar—or so it seemed.
“Well,” said Aneht quietly, “someplace you need to be right now—Sanctuary, of course!”
Beatríz, feeling dapples of sunlight on her face, asked, “Miss Aneht—what is ‘Sanctuary,’ and—Elli—what does it look like?”
The ground grub seemed content to sit there, looking all about and smiling slightly, feeling no sense of urgency to speak just yet.
Elli squeezed her friend’s hand happily. “We are once again outside, Beatríz, on the ground, in a small clearing—and among the tallest of trees! As tall as the ones in the Forest of Giant Trees, but they are further apart from one another, and there is bright sunlight everywhere! And,” she added, squealing pure delight, “I just saw a squirrel—a pretty big one—dart across the grass!”
Beatríz released her hand from Aneht’s loose grip and stood, reaching her arms toward the sky. “It feels so wonderful, Elli—so wonderful, Aneht! It’s almost like one can forget about all of one’s troubles for a while, and feel good again, despite everything! Like, well . . . like they are not so horrible remembering them any longer—right now, I mean—right here, I mean!”
Elli thought she had never seen such a wide smile on Beatríz’s face before—or one that seemed to come from so deep within her. Elli, her voice rich with gratitude, again asked, “But, please, Aneht, where are we? I mean, where is ‘Sanctuary?’ And what is it? And who are you? And how do you know we need Sanctuary—or anything else? You don’t know anything about us really!” insisted Elli. And then she paused and added, “Do you?”
“Yes, yes, need to explain! Answer your questions. But, no, no, I don’t need to tell you where Sanctuary is, because you already know! Already said so! Yes, yes! Seen the light! Followed the light! To The Forest of Giant Trees! But in the light of Sanctuary!”
Aneht held up her lantern—and the light of it became so suddenly brilliant that it reminded Elli of the white light that was rushing fiercely toward her from the dragon’s black flames. Elli turned away and caught a glimpse of the sun, the very light of which seemed to have dimmed, encircled by a ring of deep, dark purple. (She wondered whether the purple ring was actually around the sun, or in her mind—or even both, and whether it mattered.)
“Aneht, I am so confused—and I have so many questions—but . . . ” said Elli, her voice caught luxuriously somewhere between weeping and weariness.
“But, yes, yes, first we must eat and drink! Eat and drink and be merry! And then we will talk!” And with that, Aneht stood, pulling the two girls to their feet, and rather bounced as she began to walk, leading the girls through the trees.
“Elli?” Beatríz asked, searchingly.
“Right here, Beatríz,” Elli replied.
The three of them walked on in happy silence, Elli and Beatríz each wondering why—given all that had transpired up to that moment, and fearing the worst for their companions—they were feeling so light, so unburdened, so simply joyful. And they even wondered why they were not feeling guilty about it—or feeling guilty about not feeling guilty about it all. To be sure, they were relieved: relieved that their encounter with Kahner was over, at least for the time being; relieved that they were not dead—that they were still with each other, still had each other; relieved that they were not buried alive—and out of the tomb; relieved that they felt safe with Aneht, though they knew practically nothing about her, and that they seemed genuinely to be safe, at least for the time being; and, finally, relieved that, at least for
