|
a new classic by Edward Summer |
red
was the last to awaken the next morning.
"We've got to stop them!" he announced as he sat up in bed.
"Stop who?" Tony was reading a comic book on the top bunk.
"The things from the basement!" Fred jumped out of bed.
Ginger was tying her shoelaces. She didn't even look up. "What are you babbling about, turkey?"
"He said they came up from the basement and talked to the frog."
"Who said?" Ginger asked.
"Teddy said! And we have to get the amulet, too!"
Tony and Ginger exchanged looks. Tony leaned over the edge of the bunk and hung upside down. "Oh, yeah, right, Teddy said."
"Well, I did!" Teddy shouted indignantly and leapt to his feet.
Tony 's mouth dropped open. Staring upside-down at the bear, he slid off the top bunk and fell to the floor with a loud clunk.
"See?" said Fred, "I told you!" Then he too realized what had just happened. He turned to stare at his bear. "Teddy! You talked! Just like I wished!"
"Of course I talked! Now don't just sit there gawking, stop them!"
"Stop who?" Tony muttered rubbing the sore spot where he fell on his head.
"The thing from under the bed." Teddy quivered with frustration. "The frog told him it would end here."
"What would end here? Wait a sec, you mean the frog talks, too?" Tony looked over at the terrarium. The frog was sleeping quietly wedged in behind a rock. Tony tapped on the glass. "Well? Say something!. I'll believe anything now."
The frog barely opened one eye, made a low sound, and went back to sleep.
"This is crazy! Frogs don't talk! Teddy bears don't talk! And my head hurts!"
"Wait a minute," Ginger said. "Fred? Did you say something about an amulet?"
"Yeah, he said to get the amulet." Fred pointed at Teddy.
"He said to get the amulet." Teddy pointed at the frog.
"What is everybody talking about?" Tony paced back and forth.
"Amulet. That's what that old woman said she was wearing around her neck," Ginger answered. "It's the only time in my whole life that I heard anyone call anything an amulet."
"So?" Tony asked.
"So, don't you think it's strange that suddenly everybody keeps talking about an amulet? The frog was talking about an amulet and Teddy is talking about an amulet and that lady Mrs. Seel has an amulet. Maybe that's the amulet Teddy is talking about, so maybe we should go ask her." Ginger was totally out of breath and as bewildered as Tony. She looked back and forth at Fred and Teddy and Tony and the frog trying to figure it out.
"This is totally weird. Yeah, sure, right, okay. Let's do it. Let's go." Tony shook his head. "Get dressed, turkey." At least he could still order Fred around.
Ten
minutes later, the three children and Teddy, their hearts pounding,
were standing on the front porch of Mrs. Seel's house. Tony pulled back
the door knocker with the gargoyle face. The thump seemed to echo inside
the house for hours before Ginger heard Mrs. Seel's footsteps and the front
door creaked open.
"Hello, children," the old woman said quietly.
"Uh…. Excuse us for bothering you, but we'd like to ask you something." Tony stared down at his left foot and waggled it back and forth.
"Yes, of course, come in." She studied them for a long moment. "I was expecting you."
The children exchanged glances as Mrs. Seel opened the front door and let them into the front hall. They watched the gaslight flicker softly as Mrs. Seel closed the door.
They walked into the living room and Mrs. Seel indicated a group of huge, overstuffed chairs that reminded Ginger of something out of Alice in Wonderland. The children flew to the chairs which were like safe, soft little caves to crawl into. It was an overcast day, so the light coming through the stained glass window was gentler and made the room feel comfortable, but also a little mysterious.
Mrs. Seel sat down in her carved-wood rocker. She picked up a corner of the quilt, which hung from the arm of the chair, and spread it across her lap. She smiled and waited for someone to speak.
Finally Tony began. "Now I know this sounds weird…. But… somebody else, I mean, besides you, told us about the amulet."
"Yes? Who was that?" Mrs. Seel's expression was undisturbed.
"Oh! I knew this would be impossible!" Tony blushed. "It was… well… it was Fred's Teddy bear."
"Teddy. Yes. We've met." Mrs. Seel nodded politely at Teddy as though she had been having conversations with stuffed animals all her life.
Teddy wriggled in Fred's hands and stood up on Fred's knee. He started to slip, but Fred caught him and held him up.
"There was a monster thing with big nostrils." Teddy said. "It growled and made strange drippy noises. It tried to eat the frog."
"And…?" Mrs. Seel asked.
"The frog said Reon should beware and that we should get the amulet."
"Do you know what he's talking about?" Ginger interrupted. "You're the only person I've ever seen who even has an amulet."
Mrs. Seel stared off into space. She seemed to be studying the scene depicted on the stained-glass window. She turned back to the children.
She sat back in her chair and spread out part of her patchwork quilt. The
image of an ancient, spired city was embroidered on one of the panels.
Mrs. Seel held it up so that the children could see it clearly.
"More than long ago, there was a golden kingdom that had known centuries of peace. The kingdom was reknowned throughout the world for its glorious cities which were carved by hand from the mountainsides. They were so tall that they seemed to pierce the sky. Some people said they drew the energy of the clouds themselves. The glory of this kingdom rivaled the sunrise.
"Identical twin sons were born to the king and queen. They named them Teefr and Reon.
"When the sons were grown to early manhood, it was time for the king to choose his successor. This was a decision that had to be made slowly and carefully.
"Teefr waited patiently for the decision. He trusted his father's wisdom.
"Reon, however, became sullen. Jealous of Teefr's patience, Reon feared that his brother would inherit the kingdom. He decided to take the kingdom by force. Secretly, he raised an army of mercenaries, then trained them and housed them in hidden valleys and caves. When his troops were ready, Reon attacked.
"Reon struck at night. His army swept down upon the villages in the darkest hours, burning homes and destroying lives with abandon.
"Reon's companion was a magnificent, but vicious, black dog. It blended so well with the shadows that it could scout the villages without being detected. The dog was faithful to Reon and was known to tear the throat from anyone who even raised their voice to his master.
"Together, by night and torchlight, Reon, his army, and the dog captured ever-growing areas of the kingdom.
"Horrified, the king quickly decided to divide the land equally between his two sons. But it was too late. Reon was fixed in his evil desire to rule alone.
"The nighttime attacks continued. The people lived in terror of Reon. This was the first time in memory that the peace of the kingdom had been shattered. The people began to lose trust in their rulers.
"Then, out of goodness, Teefr did something to save the kingdom. But he made a huge mistake. Without consulting the king, he stole the defining symbol of his people. It was an ancient amulet of power and immortality that was kept unguarded in a public shrine.
"This amulet was old beyond old. Some said that the amulet had appeared by magic at the moment that time began. Some said that the amulet had been a gift from the gods, from the mother goddess herself. Some said that it had been made by a man or a woman skilled in ancient knowledge.
"In the beginning, the legend said, the amulet had no definite form. It had shifted slowly, flowed through many configurations to its present shape. Even in its present form, the amulet has ever so subtly shifted its shape.
"There were always definite rules to what the amulet did: Powers and rules that could never be broken! It protected the wearer from death, and so it gave eternal life. But it was a gift that could only be given - it could not be taken.
"The amulet was so valuable that in time the people felt that no one person should own it. It was a symbol to be held in trust for everyone, royalty and common people alike. No one even wished to own it. The responsibility was too great.
" Strangely, though, no one had ever seen for themselves if the amulet actually worked. No one dared to question this belief. And no one dared to take the risk of touching the amulet.
"But Teefr was determined to win peace. The shrine was unguarded. So he just walked it and took it and placed it around his neck. Then he prepared for war with his brother."
"How could he take it?" Tony interrupted suddenly.
Mrs. Seel looked up and smiled. "Because no one person wore it, it belonged to everyone. It could be touched as long as it was not worn. Not meaning to, Teefr took the power away from everyone. Now it was on his neck and protected only him," she explained patiently.
"Okay," Tony said quietly. "Thanks." He settled back in the chair. The other children and Teddy were spellbound by the story.
"That same day at midnight -- not knowing what Teefr had done-- Reon mounted a massive attack to capture the amulet for himself. He saw it as the key to controlling everything. But when he arrived he found Teefr's army waiting for him and the amulet around his brother's neck.
"A titanic battle took place in total darkness lit only by flaming torches and the sparks of clashing swords. The amulet seemed to protect Teefr and his men against overwhelming odds.
"Soon, Teefr and Reon stood face-to-face in the ultimate battle for supremacy.
"Determined to stop the fight before he lost both his sons as well as the eternal peace of the kingdom, the king himself stepped between Teefr and Reon. Just then, fearing for his master, Reon's dog sprang at the king's throat in fury. Only Reon's instant command saved his father's life.
"Teefr was jolted into an awareness of his crime. With shame, he returned the amulet to his father.
"Holding up the amulet, the king stood before his sons, shivering in the pre-dawn darkness. He knew that at sunrise the people of his kingdom would demand that his sons be punished for their crimes. He was in torment. He searched himself for the answer to his terrible dilemma: How to punish his sons without condemning them to death? With a heavy heart, he finally spoke.
"Your duty also will be to guard over your brother to make sure that never, upon pain of his death, will he set foot in sunlight again, for that is my curse to him.
"You, Reon, because you killed without mercy, yet saved my life, you will also have one final chance. You are like an insect of the night that feeds upon death. And so you shall become. But your size will be as huge as your crime so that you may no longer hide as easily as an insect. Because you tried to cloak your evil with the black of night, only he who has never known of you may call you forth. Because you slaughtered the helpless, you are doomed to fight the never born and the deathless. And you must live out all your days in darkness, shunning sunlight for eternity.
"I give you only one hope. You will not die before the frog.
"You must both search out the amulet for all of your days. Without it, your true forms will never be redeemed. But beware! Beware! Though it grants eternal life, it will fill no emptiness within. Only you can do that for yourself.
"Beware, too! Woe to he who possesses the amulet first!
"May the universe be kind in bringing you both to your destinies. Now, go! Go from my sight forever!"
"The king fell into despair. In a fury, he threw the amulet into the sea.
As the waves washed it away, the king lay down upon the ground. His heart
was broken, and he slipped gently into eternal sleep. With him, the glory
of the kingdom passed forever. The people dispersed. The buildings crumbled.
And the long, long peace perished forever."
The three children and Teddy looked at the quilt, at Mrs. Seel's face, and back again. They scarcely dared to inhale, for fear of missing a detail.
"There is a great danger," Mrs. Seel sighed. "Both Teefr and Reon have tried to settle this curse during past ages of darkness and strife, but always without success. Something has been missing. This time, however, it is possible for the prophecy to be fulfilled.
She looked deep into Tony's eyes. "Since you called Reon forth - though you never knew of him - you have set the prophecy in motion. And you have a responsibility to help. It is only by your free choice, however, that you may.
She looked deeply into Teddy's eyes, then at Fred. "In the presence of the never born, the time has come."
A low rumbling made the house tremble for a moment. Then it stopped as suddenly as it had begun.
"Another earth tremor!" Fred cried out.
For a brief moment, Mrs. Seel looked uneasy. Then her expression eased. She looked softly and warmly into sparkling eyes of the children who were puzzled by her intensity.
"Will you help?" Mrs. Seel asked.
Each child, and Teddy, nodded yes.
"Then there is something that you will need," she continued. "You must tell no one, including Teefr, for it is his destiny or Reon's to win this in their own way." She reached up and lifted the chain holding the amulet from around her neck. The sun, moon, and star design flickered in the gaslight.
"I have worn this amulet for many years. I believe that its powers come from deep within the heart of the wearer. It gives its protection as freely as you give your love."
Mrs. Seel placed the amulet carefully around Ginger's neck.
"Thank you," Ginger managed to say. "Thank you very much.
Tony and Fred started at Ginger, stunned. There was a long silence.
"Can I ask you another question?" Tony hesitated.
"Of course," said Mrs. Seel.
"How does Teddy talk?"
Mrs. Seel paused before she answered. "Things can be as you want them when they need to be that way. When we are young, our world and the world in which Teddy talks and we are able to hear him are close together. As people get older, though, the worlds get farther and farther apart until the hearing becomes difficult and, for most people, impossible. Sometimes, if the desire is strong, we can bridge the gap. But the bridge doesn't seem to last long. One never knows when it will disappear."
This answer seemed to satisfy Tony. He glanced uneasily at Teddy, but didn't say anything else.
Then Fred spoke up. "What if that scary monster comes back?
"Teefr will help you," said Mrs. Seel, "if you help him."
"But what will Reon do?" Ginger asked.
Mrs. Seel stared down at her quilt and thought for a moment. "Remember," she finally began, "the sun is as certain in its path as the moon. After the darkest night, the day will always follow. If you believe, you can win, but you must continue to believe throughout your darkest fears.
Teddy moved closer to Fred. No one said a word.
"I, uh, we, should be going home now, I think." Tony could barely speak.
Mrs. Seel smiled for the first time after her long story. She put aside her quilt, rose, and led the children out to the front door. They stood together in the open doorway. The stormy, overcast light of the world outside mingled with the flickering shadows of the golden gas lit hallway.
Carefully, Mrs. Seel bent down and kissed each child on the forehead, with a last kiss for Teddy.
"Will we see you again?" Ginger asked in a whisper.
"Perhaps," Mrs. Seel stroked Ginger's long red hair. "Perhaps. But I might also go away again. Hurry, now. It looks like rain."
The children walked slowly across the porch. They turned and waved goodbye. Even Teddy waved. The old woman waved back with a shining, youthful smile. Suddenly, years of age seemed to be lifted from her face.
Quietly, Mrs. Seel closed the door. She watched through the lace curtain, through the rainbow prismed glass, as the three small children walked slowly down the path to the street.
As she turned the bolt to lock the door, she looked down at her hand. It looked different. Something has changed, Mrs. Seel thought. Something has definitely changed. She lifted her hand, and turned it slowly, examining the fingers and the flesh she had known for so many years. It was not the shape of her hand that had changed she suddenly realized. It was that it had become slightly transparent. She could now make out the shadowy form of the doorway through her translucent palm.
She wiggled her fingers playfully for a moment, watching the wallpaper patterns through them, then she smiled with childlike delight.
Mrs. Seel walked to the first gas mantle. She reached up and turned off
the valve. The yellow-gold flame dwindled down to a small blue one, then
disappeared entirely with a soft, gassy pop. One after another, she turned
off the gaslamps along the wall.
When the last one was out, she stared deep into the heart of the shadows for a breathless moment, then walked ever so quietly into the parlor.
