has been very quiet up in the caves lately,’ Lori told her husband.
‘That’s because there are so few of them now,’ Zebulon replied. ‘It would be a very easy matter to take the gold!’ he mused.
‘The gold? What do we want with more gold?’ Lori asked.
‘Why we would always ensure our prosperity if we possessed all the gold,’ he told her.
Lori just shrugged. They had each other. They had Orin and they had an abundance of food and water. They were able to live in peace too. What more did they need? What was the prosperity her husband was always talking about?
As each day passed, Zebulon looked up at the caves and his greed festered. It wasn’t hard to convince the gnomes to rise up against the Glooms and the goblins now that their numbers were down. There was much gold to be had!
‘We must give them no inkling of what we are planning!’ he told them. ‘We do not want to evoke Drabon’s rage and risk a spell from him which could destroy us. Therefore, we must strike when he is least expecting it!’
The gnomes in the Village of Toadstools were not noted for their quick-thinking abilities. As a result they spent many weeks formulating plans, then discarding them and never really coming to a definite conclusion. As they procrastinated, Losing-it and Lost-it assembled the few remaining A to Z goblins along with the very small number of remaining Whorls. On a moonless night, they charged out of the caves down the mountain side bearing torches of fire.
‘Don’t set fire to the red and white toadstools,’ Drabon instructed them. ‘We need to leave the toadstools belonging to the leaders to show them we mean business!’
He and Putrida then joined in dropping their torches of fire from the sky while the goblins ran below at ground level. Screams were heard as the gnomes realized that their village was burning. Drabon and Putrida shrieked in excitement.
‘That will teach them a lesson!’
‘The children, the children!’ the gnomes cried, desperately trying to reach the toadstools allotted to communal living before the smoke overwhelmed them.
When morning came, Zebulon and Lori surveyed the smoking remains of the village in shocked silence. ‘The children – we have lost so many children,’ they wept openly.
‘And the homes – it takes so long to grow new toadstools. These poor people will be exposed to the elements for months!’ Lori cried, hugging Orin to her.
‘We will rebuild!’ Zebulon shouted to his people. ‘When we do, we will march on the caves of Gloomia and show the goblins no mercy!’
Chapter 6
In the Castle of Feathers, Lorelei and Drew had been busy helping Lottie to make the batches of fairy cakes which would be fed to the Hatchlings in the caves at Gloomia. As each batch was completed, Lottie stood over them and did her spell.
I now proclaim that these fairy cakes will banish all evil from the minds of those who ingest them!
Tristan was summoned to the kitchen on completion of the task, where the racks of fairy cakes were waiting to be delivered. Tatiana had given him a large cloak to wear with deep pockets which he filled with cakes. When he became invisible, his clothing, along with the cakes would also be invisible.
‘Now Tristan, act quickly! An army of Ciduries with Janus at the lead will accompany you to the outskirts of the caves. The Ciduries will carry supplies of fairy cakes. You will stay in the forest with the Ciduries and feed the cakes to the Hatchlings twice a day for two weeks!’ Lottie instructed him.
Andrew had volunteered to help transport the cakes, figuring that Tristan might need some moral support. As the boys made their way to the forest of Gloomia, Tatiana was going over the plan with the fairy children.
‘In order to reverse Drabon’s very powerful magic over Mab and Oberon, we need to work on changing his mind!’ she told them.
‘Changing his mind? Are you mad?’ Lottie cried. ‘Drabon is evil and so is Putrida. They have no feelings! You will be unable to appeal to either of them. They will laugh in your face!’‘Wait Lottie,’ interrupted Tatiana. ‘We have to do it in a way that they will suspect nothing!’
‘How?’ Tatiana looked at Ella. Ella caught her look and instantly understood. ‘I know,’ she said, opening her eyes wide. ‘I need to morph again!’ Tatiana nodded.
‘I need to get into the caves without anyone seeing me!’ Ella explained.
‘Maybe as a flea or something,’ suggested Dominique.
‘Yes, yes. Then I can play Drabon and Putrida off against each other like I did to Drabon and Ratbonia in the fortress of Gloomia!’
‘Of course!’ Everyone began to understand now.
‘We will give Tristan a week to work on the Hatchlings,’ Tatiana said. ‘Then, when Drabon and Putrida realise that something is not quite right with them, we can go in and confuse them!’ She told Ella.
‘I’m coming with you,’ Dominique said. ‘I want to be near Ella!’
‘Me too!’
‘And me!’ The others started protesting.
‘You may all be of use to us in the forest,’ agreed Tatiana.
The week that was spent waiting seemed an age to the children, but for Tristan, it flew by quickly. He had no problem becoming invisible and entering the caves of Gloomia. Once inside, he soon found the Hatchling nursery. He shuddered when he looked upon these little bat-like creatures that had so much potential for violence. One by one, he popped the cakes into the open beaks which seemed to want more and more each time he returned. Towards the end of the week, their hunger began to be satisfied. He noticed that they no longer set up a screeching noise demanding more cakes. Now they sat quietly contented. He even found himself patting one of them!
‘There’s something wrong with the Hatchlings!’ Putrida screamed at Drabon.
‘What now?’ he sighed.
‘They won’t eat,’ she told him nervously.
‘So they’re not hungry! So what? Are they sick?’
‘I don’t think so …’
‘Well then?’
‘They … they’re too quiet!’
Drabon sighed again. ‘Get Losing-it and Lost-it to assemble them outside the caves. They are almost full-grown now. Perhaps we can send them out on a raid before we produce the next set of Hatchlings!’ When he observed the group of Hatchlings assembled outside the caves, he turned on Losing-it and Lost-it in anger. The Hatchlings were sitting quietly, some holding hands, some positively beaming.
‘What have you done to them?’ he screamed. ‘They should be screeching and biting and hissing! What have you done?’
Losing-it and Lost-it shrugged their shoulders. ‘We … we didn’t do anything Master. We just fed them the
