Escape From Manitou Island: Part 20

PART TWENTY:
Go East, Young Woman

"I DID NOT call Kabeyun with the fear that Megissogwun would destroy the Island," Geezhigo-Quae said. "I called him because I knew he would destroy it, if given the chance. Megissogwun is the one who destroyed the first Manitou Island."

Charmian--and everyone else within the Sky Tree--stared at Geezhigo-Quae in silence. After a very long pause Charmian swallowed and attempted to find her voice.

"Megissogwun...?" She had to seek again to be able to speak. "He destroyed the Island...?" Her brow slowly furrowed. "But...I thought a flood destroyed the Island!"

Geezhigo-Quae's wings quivered. Her face was still unnaturally pale, and Niskigwun stood not far from her, yet she seemed at least able to stand on her own, now.

"Megissogwun was the one who orchestrated the flood," she said quietly. "He had assistance. He had the help of the Mishupishus."

Charmian felt a stab of alarm in her breast. The Underwater Lynxes--? They're the ones trying to get to the Island NOW--!

"Then--if he's here, and they're here--" she blurted out.

Niskigwun's feathers and wings flared in alarm. "Grandmother!" he exclaimed, touching her arm. "Tell us what happened!"

"Megissogwun is a strange manitou," Geezhigo-Quae said. "I have never been able to determine even where he came from. It just seems he always has been. All I know of him is that he came, and ordered the Lynxes to destroy the Island. There had been none before then able to control the Mishupishus but for the Animiki, and all they have ever been able to do is subdue them when they become belligerent."

"Animiki--?" Charmian echoed; Manabozho had used that word, before.

Geezhigo-Quae nodded. "The Thunderbirds. They and the Mishupishus have always been terrible enemies. This is why I asked you, if this storm occurred when you saw the creature in your lake. When the Animiki travel across the lakes in the summer, they attack the Mishupishus as often as they can. It is their lightning bolts which strike the Lynxes and wound them."

Charmian drew her hand up and started rubbing at her head. "All this time...my science teacher told me it was high-tension electric discharge," she murmured, confused.

"The Animiki were the only ones who could hope to take on the Underwater Lynxes and win," Geezhigo-Quae went on, "and even they are not successful all the time. At first when the Lynxes came to the Island, I thought the Thunderbirds had driven them this way--yet they have never been so negligent as this. In fact, they helped to protect the first Island, before they flew away into the west. And when these Lynxes attacked, they did all they could to defend this place, but they were not strong enough. The Mishupishus are usually solitary creatures--yet these ones attacked all as one. The Island could not stand a chance against them."

"Megissogwun convinced them to work together?" Geezhigo-Quae nodded and Charmian started chewing on her lip. "How would he be able to do that, if even the Thunderbirds couldn't fight them...?"

"I can only assume his medicine is much greater than that of any manitou I've known so far," Geezhigo-Quae said. "If I had known such a one as he existed, I would have called upon more of the Animiki to come and protect the Island. I was not aware of his power when he first came and so I sent him away. He came back with the Lynxes, and before long, the Island was beneath the waters. There was nothing more that could be done."

Silence fell again, but for the chirping of crickets far away outside. "You got a bit of dirt from the Island somehow," Charmian said, and the old woman nodded again.

"I could not reach it on my own...all creatures upon the Island, at least, those who could, climbed upon a large turtle that appeared...I sent down some of them to fetch some of the soil from the first Island and bring it back. When this had been done, the second Island--the one you know so well--was created. I made it to look just like the first. This was when I sought the aid of the Four Winds, for I knew Megissogwun would destroy this Island just as surely as he had destroyed the first. This is the sort of manitou that he is."

"Did he call the Lynxes back?" Charmian asked.

Geezhigo-Quae shook her head. "I did not allow him the chance. I called upon the Animiki before they could fly west for the winter, and they managed to hold the Mishupishus off, as they were not then under Megissogwun's control--he must have loosened his hold over them, as they were more easily driven away from the Island and back north where they came from. I called upon the Winds to seek Megissogwun and subdue him. I decided it would be best to send only one of them after him, as the Four Winds are among the most powerful manitous, and I had truly thought that if I summoned all of them together, their medicine would be such that they might accidentally destroy the Island themselves." She winced slightly. "If I had known how truly powerful the Pearl Feather is...I would not have made such a foolish mistake. The Four Winds have never been fond of each other's company...yet perhaps if I had called them all, they could have properly done the job, since it looks as if it were not finished after all..."

"Kabeyun's the only one who could defeat him?"

Another nod. "I sent first Shawondassee, the South Wind...I had truly thought that he would be powerful enough. He is the weakest of the Winds, but even he has great medicine. I was foolish; he was defeated with barely a blow struck." She rubbed her head again with a sigh. "Wabun the East Wind went next...it did not take too much longer for him to be cast down."

"You said you thought the North Wind could defeat him," Charmian said.

"Kabebonikka is one of the most powerful of the manitous," Geezhigo-Quae said. "He is the one who brings the snows and ice in the winter, and it is said that he once controlled the Wendigoes, or else fought them. I had not ever even seen him until I called for him; he looks much like one of the old Wendigoes, himself." She rubbed at her arms. "He was confident that he could thoroughly destroy Megissogwun, yet I asked him merely to subdue him, because I do not know where the Pearl Feather came from or what he might command. I could not believe it when even the North Wind was defeated. Megissogwun himself proclaimed it. I knew even without seeing that it was so. Kabebonikka is not the sort of manitou to let himself be slighted in such a way." She lifted her gaze toward the ceiling of the room. "And so as a last resort I called Kabeyun. I did not think he would succeed. Everyone knew that Kabebonikka was the strongest manitou. And so far, Kabeyun had shown no interest whatsoever in getting himself involved. Shawondassee and Wabun, they had been willing to defend the new Island; and though Kabebonikka had not cared for the Island, still, he did care for appearances, and perhaps he felt that Megissogwun was a challenge. I had to have the Animiki fetch Kabeyun just to get him to come." Her eyes darkened slightly. "He was much like Megissogwun himself. Both in appearance, and in demeanor. Only instead of that dead look always upon Megissogwun's face, he looked always prideful, and quite taken with himself. Indeed I think that the only reason he came at all was to prove that he was the most powerful manitou, after all."

"But what about the Island--?" Charmian asked, confused. "I just kind of figured..."

"He did not care for the Island," Geezhigo-Quae said, silencing her. "This was never once one of his concerns. His only involvement was in defeating Megissogwun so he could claim that he was the one who had done so." Her eyes shifted toward Manabozho, then back toward the balcony. "And somehow...this he did. It was a very long battle. Several times, I was certain Megissogwun would make his way back to the Island alone and do what he'd planned to do. But it was Kabeyun who returned instead. When I asked him if he had killed Megissogwun or merely subdued him he said that either way, it did not matter, as he would no longer be a problem. I took that to mean that he had actually killed him. By then, I did not care either way. Just as long as the Island was safe. It has been thus ever since." Her brow furrowed. "I do not understand how he could come back. Apparently Kabeyun did not kill him after all. So where has he been all this time and what brought him back? This makes no sense to me." She lifted her head abruptly and her eyes fixed on Manabozho as if she'd forgotten that he was even there. "Your daughter," she said, so suddenly that they started. She looked at Charmian. "He said what he intends to do with her--?"

"I got the feeling he wasn't interested in her, personally," Charmian said, biting her lip a bit uncertainly. "But I could be wrong."

Mani whistled. Could not read his thoughts--he hid them. But felt his feelings. Red Land One is exactly correct--Pearl Feather One not interested in Turtle One.

"He said we could see her again if we found Kabeyun for him," Charmian said.

Niskigwun flicked his wings. "He wants you to find the West Wind--?" He looked confused. "But--he is a manitou, is he not? What makes him think you could find Kabeyun any more than he could?"

Charmian shrugged, flustered. "I don't know! Maybe it's a game? Like Chakenapok's?"

"I did not get this feeling from him," Moon Wolf said, earning a look from Charmian.

"Whatever his reasons are, he still has Turtle," Thomas said, and everyone looked at him now. He flushed a little on seeing their attention, but managed to meet their eyes. "Isn't it the most important thing to get her back...?"

Charmian looked at Manabozho, feeling awful all of a sudden; he'd been so quiet, she could easily forget that he was there. "We have to look for Kabeyun then," she said. "Wherever he is! And I don't have any idea where to look. I had enough trouble just finding Manabozho's brothers the last time!"

"West," Augwak snapped, making her jump. "Isn't this the most LIKELY place for him to be?"

Charmian glared back at him. "YOU want to go walking west for who knows how long--?" She turned back around. "I barely even found Mudjikawiss in the west. And Kabeyun wasn't with him. I don't know where to even start."

"You heard what she said," Manabozho said, and Charmian looked at him. He was very nearly scowling. "He didn't even care about the Island when it was in danger. Why would he concern himself with this? I already told that oaf that if he wants a fight, then he's already found one. I just wasn't ready the last time. The next time I face him, I'll be ready!"

Charmian had to fight not to roll her eyes. "Manabozho...do you remember what happened the last time you tried to take on someone on your own--?"

He glared at her. "At THAT time, that GLOOSKAP fellow said I couldn't do it on my own! Do you see anything saying that now? I think Kabeyun has made it pretty clear. He went away and he won't come back for something like this. And truthfully, I'd prefer it if he stayed away! This Island and everything else are much better off without him!"

He turned and stalked from the room, disappearing out the door. They watched him leave before turning back to Geezhigo-Quae; Charmian frowned a little, then fiddled with the zipper on her vest.

"Megissogwun didn't say where he would be going," she said hesitantly. "He just said he would watch us. Do you know anywhere about where he would go? Where he might be watching us from?"

Geezhigo-Quae looked thoughtful. "Even with as powerful as he is, I never received the impression that he is omniscient," she mused. "He must utilize something like my Sky Tree in order to see. Unfortunately, I would not know what this is. All I know is he is not from here, and is from far away. His medicine may not even be of the same sort as ours."

"Any idea where he came from?"

"I could not tell you, Mainlander." She paused. "This is very much a guess...but perhaps he came from the east. The Megis shell came from the east, long ago...I do not know if they are related in any way. But it is all I can think of."

"East." Charmian fell silent in thought for a moment. She peered at the cabochons set in the wall. "Geezhigo-Quae...do you think the Sky Tree might be able to help us find him?"

Geezhigo-Quae frowned a little, then turned toward one of the cabochons. "I doubt this...as when he appeared on the Island, I could not see him." She stopped before the crystal and held up a hand. "But perhaps it can show us another way."

She touched the cabochon and it glowed. The others stood waiting; Charmian thought she saw images swirling in the stone, but from her distance couldn't be sure what they were. She told herself to be patient as the old woman stared into the crystal for several moments. After a while the glow faded, and Geezhigo-Quae turned to look at her.

"The Tree cannot see him," she said. "He must have some medicine that disguises him. Yet I asked the Tree if it could find a way that he may be seen. It pointed eastward. There is a great power there."

"Eastward--?" Charmian's brow furrowed. "Was it Wabun?"

Geezhigo-Quae shook her head. "You already know who it is." She stepped toward them, though Charmian was growing more confused. Geezhigo-Quae gestured at the doorway now. "The Tree is not certain if there even is a way that Megissogwun's medicine may reveal itself, but it suggests that you seek eastward and ask this of Glooskap. He is a powerful manitou, so perhaps he knows more of the Pearl Feather than I do."

"Glooskap--?" Charmian blinked. Glooskap was the name of a manitou much like Manabozho, only older and admittedly wiser, who lived far to the east, near the ocean; although quite witty and useful to them in the end, he'd unnerved her a bit, with his odd behavior...such as first presenting himself to her dressed in a dapper business suit and tie...and hitting on Geezhigo-Quae every chance that he got. "The Tree will let us go to him again then?"

Another nod.

"You do recall that the way to Glooskap's place was quite a walk away the last time, don't you--?" Thomas suddenly cut in. He made a face. "Are you really prepared to go all that way--?"

"Marten had a shortcut," Charmian said.

Thomas gave her a look. "Do you think he'll be there waiting for us?"

Charmian's shoulders sank a little. "Oh...I guess you're right. Even little furry spirit guys need free time, I guess." She chewed on her thumbnail. "Well...if it's for Turtle..."

"The entrance to Glooskap's realm may have moved since you last used it," Geezhigo-Quae reminded her. "I could not say with certainty where you will end up. The distance to travel is likely to be about the same, but the location may be completely different."

Charmian grimaced. "Now I remember...no offense but this Tree has some directional problems!" She sighed. "I guess the sooner we go the better--we don't all have to go, so maybe if only a few of us do then we can get it over with faster." She turned and looked the others over thoughtfully before pointing at X'aaru, who blinked and glanced from side to side. "X...you could fly me to Glooskap if you go through, and we could get there a lot faster."

X'aaru shifted from foot to foot a bit anxiously. "Well...I suppose I could help...though I've never really...been there, before..."

Thomas, Mani, and Moon Wolf were starting to get dangerous looks on their faces; Charmian waved her hands at them. "X'aaru's strong enough! He can take care of things if anything happens," she insisted, though the demon lowered his head and his tail started to slither between his legs. "And like I said, it'll save time if there aren't a dozen people having to keep up. X'aaru's a fast flyer--we should get there in no time. And Glooskap will likely have a doorway or a shortcut we can take back."

"That's kind of what I was worried about..." Thomas grumbled, but Geezhigo-Quae walked across the room, nodding at Charmian and gesturing at the doorway again.

"Follow...we will try the same doorway as before. Perhaps you'll recognize where you appear."

Not so likely, Charmian thought, remembering with a wince how confused the Sky Tree had gotten her before, but following in silence nonetheless. She cast an apologetic look back at the others; Thomas and Moon Wolf just looked exasperated, but Mani gave her such a glare that she blushed and hurried to follow Geezhigo-Quae out of the room. She hated leaving him behind, but X'aaru could likely fly faster than he could run.

They walked down a long hallway and into a room which was encircled by numerous differently colored cabochons set in little round doorways around the wall. X'aaru looked at them all with awe on his face. Geezhigo-Quae held up her hand and one of them glowed blue-green. "I believe this was the one," she murmured, and the doorway receded and vanished. She peered outside, then looked back at Charmian and gestured. "You are certain you are ready to go as you are...? You prepared yourself, the last time..."

"If we get hungry we can just find something through there," Charmian said, feigning a confidence she didn't really feel. "We have to get right on this for Turtle."

The old woman nodded and stepped back. "Good luck, then. I hope you find out what you need to know."

Charmian nodded and approached the doorway, waving at X'aaru; he paused before reluctantly following. She peered outside but all that she saw was fog. She frowned and squinted, but nothing came into view; for all that she knew, they could be overlooking the same steep slope as before, or they could be directly over the ocean. This second thought made her shiver and she put her hand on X'aaru's shoulder before he could crawl through the doorway. He looked at her.

"Maybe I should keep hold of you, just in case," she said. "I don't know if it's land or water or what."

That didn't seem to boost his confidence any, but he swallowed and nodded. "You can hold onto my tail, if you like," he said, and she stepped back and grasped onto his tail. He peered at the others forlornly before sighing and turning back to the doorway, sticking his head through and then climbing out. Charmian clenched his tail, hoping that she wasn't hurting him, and tried not to shiver as she followed. X'aaru didn't flap his wings, so she poked around with her foot and thought she felt solid ground. She pulled her leg out behind her and glanced back to see the briefest glimpse of Geezhigo-Quae's face before the door slid back into place and vanished into thin air, nothing but fog replacing it.

She let out her breath. X'aaru stepped forward again and she followed, turning back around right before the earth vanished beneath them and they both let out a startled yell as they plunged off into nothing.

CRAP!! Charmian's mind screamed. HOW DID I KNOW IT WOULD DO THAT?!

She kept a tight grip on X'aaru's tail as they fell, and felt him start to flap his wings frantically, but before he could ascend they had struck something--water?--and plunged beneath the surface with a terrific splash. Charmian managed to suck in a quick breath before clamping her mouth shut and feeling cold water rush up over her, bubbles flying past her. Something large and heavy bumped into her and she reached out to dig her fingers into X'aaru's fur; the demon started paddling, and she attached herself to his back as he swam his way back up. They broke the surface, gasping and sputtering, and as soon as they could breathe again X'aaru let out such a horrible yowl that she nearly let go of him in fright.

"SOMETHING'S GOT ME!! SOMETHING'S GOT ME!!" he screamed, and started thrashing wildly, wings slapping the water. Charmian let out a yelp and clung to him harder but that just made him thrash and howl all the more, until she realized that he was screaming because of her.

"X'aaru--!" she gasped.

The demon continued flailing and splashing. "IT'S GOING TO KILL ME!! IT'S GOING TO EAT ME!! CHARMIAN!! HELP!!"

Charmian clung to him for dear life, grinding her teeth and trying not to go flying. "X'AARU--!!"

X'aaru's head shot up and his ears quivered. "Charmian! I can hear you but I can't see you! Where are you? It's got me--!!"

"X'aaru, it's ME!" she yelled practically in his ear, and he yelped and splashed into the water, nearly submerging her; he popped up again and whirled his head around to look at her, and his eyes grew as big as moons when he saw the dark bedraggled look on her face. Immediately his own face went brilliant red and he lowered his soaking wings, his tail sliding through the water to place itself neatly between his legs again.

"Um..." His head sank almost into the water and he let out a tiny cough. "I'm...sorry about that."

Charmian couldn't keep glowering at him, he looked so timid; she let out a sigh instead, and brushed her sopping hair back from her eyes. I really thought he'd taken care of that... she thought, before brushing it off. "It's okay, X...I'm kind of freaked out, too." She lifted her head and they both looked around themselves; they stood in the middle of a wide body of water, but the fog was so heavy that she couldn't tell what it was. She dipped her fingers into it and tasted it, then frowned.

"No salt...it's not the ocean, then." She looked down into it, seeing only her reflection; it must have been either dawn or evening, judging by the dim pink color of the hazy air around them. "X, are you standing or floating--?"

"Huh--? Oh." He looked down into the water as well, lifting one hand. "I'm standing...it's not that deep right here." He blushed. "I must've gone into shallower water. It was deep when we landed."

"We can't be too far from shore, then." She squinted, scanning where she assumed the horizon must be, before her eyes fell on something not that far off behind them. "I think I see cattails...we must be in a marsh or a pond or something. Let's go that way; maybe things'll look more familiar once we get on dry land and out of this fog."

X'aaru turned and started sloshing toward the reeds. True to her prediction, the water grew shallower, though this went on for quite a while, and still the shore didn't come into clear view. She thought she could see the faint shapes of pines in the distance, though, and sighed to herself.

"I don't remember ponds where we last showed up," she said, squeezing out her shirt, "but I do remember lots of pines. Maybe this is Marten's forest, just from a different angle. I can't believe that I'm actually hoping he has a shortcut, this time."

"His shortcuts aren't that good...?" X'aaru asked, and she made a face.

"That's kind of putting it nicely." She looked from side to side; his tail swayed as he walked, the water splashing softly. "So, this is your first time away from the Island, then...?"

X'aaru blushed again and lowered his head a bit. "Well...aside from the Borderlands...then yes, I guess it is. I've just never really felt like leaving. Everything I want is on the Island." He peered back at her and his eyes were anxious. "I suppose that's a good reason to come here, though, isn't it...?"

Charmian stared at him for a moment before reaching out to scratch his ear. "I know all of us will do everything we can for the Island," she said, and he let out a small sigh before turning away again. She shielded her eyes. "I wish I knew where we were, though...I don't even know this place too well. And I hate doubting Geezhigo-Quae, but her Tree didn't make too much sense the last time..."

"O-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!" a strange high-pitched voice suddenly yelled from somewhere off to their side, and X'aaru jumped, landing with a loud splash; Charmian had to cling to him like a barnacle in order to avoid falling. The weird call echoed over the water, just before--"O-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!"--another, identical voice cried out the same thing, only from their other side this time, and they both jumped now, yelling in surprise.

X'aaru's fur bristled. "Wh--what was THAT?!" he yelped, teeth bared in panic.

Charmian's fingers dug painfully hard into his ruff. "I--I don't know!!"

"O-ho-ho-ho!" the first voice, off to the right, called; they glanced toward it but saw nothing but the hazy vague shape of the pines. "They've come through, they have, both at once, both like that!"

"O-ho!" the second voice called out, from their left; they looked that way now. "Just like that, they both come, both at once!"

"Just like was said!"

"Just like expected!"

"In just the right place!"

"Just like we thought!"

"O-ho-ho-ho-HO!" both voices called at once, and Charmian and X'aaru started chattering wildly.

"Wh--WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Charmian shrieked, hating how her voice cracked, but at least it didn't sound quite so weird compared to those other two voices. There was a brief silence, then the strange call came from the right again.

"O-ho-ho-ho-ho! The fog is so heavy!"

"They can't see! O-ho!"

"Our eyes have always been better, o-ho!"

"O-ho! Should we show them? Should we come out?"

"This is what we're here for! O-ho!"

"O-ho-ho-ho-HO!" Charmian let out a little scream and ducked her head, chattering; the strange laughlike yells had come from considerably closer this time, and she could hear a flapping sound approaching over the water. X'aaru whimpered and sank into the water as well, though it was so shallow that by now all he could do was lie in it up to his knees. Charmian couldn't believe that she wished they were in deeper water, for once. At least out there, they could hide.

"O-ho, o-ho!" the first voice exclaimed. "You've come through the doorway! The doorway between the worlds!"

"We've been waiting for you! O-ho, o-ho!" added the second voice, and Charmian stared upward with fearful, goggling eyes as the two voices joined into one combined "O-ho, o-ho-ho-HO!"--and two shapes came flying out of the fog straight at them.