The Painted Ponies of Partequineus and The Summer of the Kittens Page 5

  “You tried your best,” Alexander said to him.

  “This is all so awful,” Vanessa said to them. “We have to find some way to get at least one of you across the desert to Paximus.”

  “It’s impossible,” Spencer said. “You saw what Guaryntis is like. He’s too big and powerful for us to fight him.”

  “But I noticed something else,” Vanessa said. “He’s slow. He’s big, but just like a real cloud, he can’t change direction very fast. Maybe if you zig-zagged across the desert, he wouldn’t be able to grab all of you.”

  “We tried that once,” Aaron said. “All seven of us tried to go in different directions. But he’s too big. He just unfolded those huge wings and scooped us all back together again like fish in a net.”

  “But what if you spread out in a really long line first? Then maybe you’d be too far apart for him to reach.”

  “We tried that, too,” Alexander said. “That was really scary.”

  “Why?” Vanessa asked.

  “Quick as a flash, Guaryntis shrank himself down from cloud size to ordinary dragon size. He’s terrifying that way. He can fly so fast, ten times quicker than we can run, and he can turn on a dime. He lashed his tail and knocked us down. And his claws are as hard as steel. When he grabs you, he squeezes all the breath right out of you. It feels like you’re going to die.”

  “Anyway, the desert is too big,” Tristan said. “The dragon just picked us off one at a time and threw us back into the meadow. I was sore for a week. Alexander made it almost halfway to the forest, but by then the rest of us had been caught, and Guaryntis had plenty of time to head him off.”

  “That’s when you should have zigged and zagged,” Vanessa told Alexander.

  “I couldn’t avoid him,” he said. “I was too busy watching where I was going, so I wouldn’t fall in a groundhog hole and trip or something. I couldn’t keep an eye on him and run fast, too.”

  They sat quietly for a while, staring out over the ocean. The girl ponies had wandered off into the hills for the night, and everything was hushed under the three strange moons. Even the waves were calm, no longer foaming up onto the beach.

  “I’m beginning to get an idea,” Vanessa said at last.

  “Tell us,” Steven said.

  “Have you ever tried going together during the day? With the girls riding on your backs, I mean?”

  “Why would we do that?” Alexander said. “We can’t run as fast that way. Besides, only one of us has to reach Paximus in order to break the spell for all of us.”

  “I know,” Vanessa said. She furrowed her brow, deep in thought. “Tell me this. Can you understand what the girls are saying to you when you’re a pony, even though you can’t talk back?”

  “Of course.”

  “Good. Now, this afternoon, when we all went for a ride up to the end of the beach, Guaryntis didn’t pay any attention to us. But we were twice as near to the forest as we are here in the meadow.”

  “I knew that,” Steven said. “That’s why I took a chance and made a run for it.”

  “So if you do that again, maybe you’ll be close enough for one of you to make it all the way.”

  “I don’t think so,” Alexander said. “Guaryntis would just go after whoever is in the lead, and get him first.”

  “But what if…” Vanessa began. She paused and sat quietly for a few moments. “Listen, Alexander, you said you couldn’t avoid the dragon because you couldn’t see where he was, and still watch where you were going at the same time, right?”

  “That’s the problem,” Alexander said.

  “So what if I…” And she leaned forward and whispered in his ear.

  Alexander sat up straight, and his eyes opened wide. “That just might work!” he said excitedly. Then he frowned. “But if it doesn’t, he’ll capture you, and you’ll have to stay here in Partequineus forever.”

  “I know,” Vanessa said. “But it’s your only hope.” She stood up. “Listen, I have to go home now. I’ve been here for hours and hours.”

  “Don’t worry,” Steven said. “You’ll arrive back at four o’clock, just like always. No one will know you’ve been gone.”

  “But I’m already very tired. I’ll have to stay up with Mom until at least nine, or she’ll think something’s wrong with me.”

  “Go ahead, then,” Alexander said.

  “I’ll be back next Friday,” Vanessa said to him. “You tell everyone what our plan is. And when I get here, we’ll all take a nice, quiet ride down to the very end of the beach, just like we did today.”

  “I hope it will work,” Alexander said.

  “It has to,” Vanessa said. “Guaryntis has kept you prisoner long enough. You all deserve to go home.”

  Vanessa took one step back.

  “Don’t forget about us,” little Frank said.

  “I won’t let you down,” she said. Two steps.

  “You’re very brave,” Evan said.

  “So are you.” And with the third step, Vanessa was once again standing by the edge of her bed, with the four o’clock sunshine streaming in through the window. Her pale blue tunic was the only proof that she had been away. She slipped it off and put on her school clothes again, and was on her way downstairs when her mother came in the door.

  “Hello, sweetheart,” Vanessa’s Mom said cheerfully. “Anything exciting happen today?”

  Vanessa smiled with secret pleasure. “Oh, you know,” she said. “Just the usual stuff.”

  NINETEEN

  The next week passed by very slowly. Vanessa was anxious to get back to Partequineus and see if her idea to save the ponies would work. She felt afraid, too. If she failed, she would never see her mother again, or her friends at school. She’d become a painted pony, just like the rest of them, and spend forever as a prisoner of Guaryntis in that beautiful but lonely land.

  She couldn’t let that happen. Vanessa had plans. She was going to finish school, and go to university, and do something useful with her life. She wasn’t yet sure just what that would be, but she knew that it was important for her to try to do her best, because every person on earth has the power to make the world into a better place.

  And that’s why she had to free the others, Christina and Alexander and Steven and Alyssa, and every one of the painted ponies, so they could come back and do whatever it was that they were meant to do.

  Every day after school she hurried home and finished her schoolwork right away. She was careful to eat a good meal each evening, a good breakfast every morning, and no junk food at lunch time, so that she would be strong when next Friday came around. She went to bed by nine every night. That way she would be well rested and wide awake when the purple mist came back to carry her away.

  Even though she was apprehensive, she was happy. Her new friends needed her, and she was sure she knew how to help them.

  When Friday arrived at last, Vanessa was all ready, dressed in her vibrant blue tunic and feeling strong and alert and more alive than ever before. She watched the big hand of the clock creep slowly around the dial, keen to feel the first faint stirring of the purple mist as it entered the chimney flue and seeped into her room. When at last it came, she stood up bravely and took a deep breath.

  “Here we go,” she said, and strode forward - one, two, three - into the land of the blood-red sun, the triple moons, and the painted ponies of Partequineus.

  TWENTY

  Christina and the rest of the girls were waiting at the edge of the meadow when Vanessa stepped into their world. “Is everyone ready to go?” she asked.

  “We’re all set,” Kathy said.

  “Do you know what the boys are planning to do?”

  “They told us last night, after we turned into ponies.” Kathy said. “We couldn’t talk back to them, of course, but we understand most of what’s going to happen.”

  “Good,” Vanessa said. “Okay, so first we go for a ride down the beach, just like the last time I was here. We’ll get as close to Paximus as we
can, and then make a run for it.”

  “That didn’t work out so well for me the last time,” Alyssa said sadly. Her leg still ached from her fall after Guaryntis threw her and Steven out of the desert.

  “That’s because we didn’t have a plan,” Vanessa said. “Steven was just hoping to outrun the dragon all by himself.”

  “Right, and with me on his back,” Alyssa said disgustedly. “I wish he’d asked me first.”

  “That’s what gave me an idea,” Vanessa said. “Alexander told me that he couldn’t avoid Guaryntis because he had to watch where he was running so he wouldn’t fall. He couldn’t keep track of the dragon at the same time, so he didn’t know which way to run to avoid his claws.”

  “What difference does that make?” little Emma said.

  “Don’t you see? If we all go together, like we did last week, we girls can watch for the dragon. Whichever way he turns to come after us, we can tell the boys - I mean the ponies - and they’ll know which way to run to get away.”

  “That just might work,” Christina said. “Especially if we all spread out really far before we enter the desert.”

  “It’s too dangerous,” Grace said. “The dragon will catch Vanessa, too, just like he caught me.”

  “Maybe he will,” Vanessa said. Suddenly she had another great idea. “In fact, that’s exactly what will happen. Alexander is the strongest, fastest pony, right?”

  “Of course,” Alyssa said.

  “Then I’ll go with him,” Vanessa said, “and I’ll let Guaryntis catch us, but only after I keep him busy for a while.”

  “How will that help?” Christina said.

  “You’ll see!” Vanessa was excited to get started. “Quick, call the ponies. We have to reach the end of the beach before the sun gets too low in the sky.”

  TWENTY-ONE

  The ponies came galloping over the hill in response to Christina’s whistle. They were all saddled and ready to go. Christina chose to ride the Steven pony. Alyssa went with Aaron, and Kathy picked Tristan. Grace climbed aboard Spencer’s saddle, Emma rode with Evan, and tiny Janie went with Frank, the smallest pony of all.

  The girls mounted up and set off down the beach with Christina in the lead, and Vanessa came last, sitting nervously in Alexander’s saddle. No one spoke as the ponies trotted along. They didn’t hurry. They were saving their strength for the ordeal ahead. The girls were all lost in thoughts of their own.

  What if my plan fails? Vanessa thought.

  What if the dragon is so angry, he decides to kill us all? Janie thought.

  What if I can never go home again? Grace thought.

  The sun was low in the sky when they finally reached the end of the beach, where the rocks and cliffs forced them to turn inland. The desert stretched away to the north, and beyond it, they saw the cool green trees of Princess Melisande’s forest that promised them safety and an end to their imprisonment.

  “We haven’t got much time,” Vanessa said anxiously, looking up at the sun. “Spread out all along the edge of the desert. I’ll stay in the middle with Alexander, and we’ll go first. Stay as far apart from each other as you can. And remember the most important thing. Watch the dragon every minute. Let your pony concentrate on where he’s running so he won’t fall. Whichever way Guaryntis flies, tell your pony as quickly as you can, so he can run the other way.”

  “I’m scared,” Janie said.

  “So am I,” Vanessa told her. “We all are. But we have to be brave. Remember, only one of us has to reach the forest for all of you to be free.”

  “I’m ready,” Alyssa said boldly.

  “So am I,” Kathy echoed, and they turned their ponies toward the desert and spread out in a long straight line at the very edge. When they were all in place, Vanessa raised her arm high above her head. She looked back and forth along the line, took a deep breath, and sliced her hand down through the air, the signal for them all to run.

  TWENTY-TWO

  Seven heroic ponies charged out across the sand. Seven courageous girls clung to the reins and leaned forward eagerly, with their eyes fixed on the safety of the trees of Paximus in the distance. The earth trembled, quivering beneath the rumble of twenty-eight flying hooves.

  Far ahead, Vanessa saw a most amazing sight. All along the edge of the forest, hundreds of people began to appear, everyone who lived in Princess Melisande’s land. They waved their arms above their heads, and Vanessa imagined she could hear them cheering their encouragement as the ponies thundered onward, faster and faster.

  And then the air was split by a tremendous roar as the cloud-dragon Guaryntis launched himself into the sky.

  “Faster!” Vanessa shouted to her companions. “Don’t look back! We’re going to make it.”

  Guaryntis vaulted over their heads and spread his mighty wings, but the ponies were too far apart for him to gather them up all at once. Vanessa and Alexander sprinted ahead, and Alyssa and Aaron wheeled away to the west and ran diagonally toward the mountains. Kathy and Tristan reversed direction and headed for the beach, while the others rushed headlong down the middle.

  The dragon bellowed in frustration and leapt high up into the sky. The huge cloud began to swirl and contract, and to collapse in on itself. And out of the mist emerged the most terrifying sight Vanessa had ever seen. Although smaller than before, Guaryntis was now cloaked in dark grey scales like armour plate, and the ends of his leathery wings grew vicious needle-sharp talons. His eyes blazed fire, and his bloody mouth gaped open to reveal gleaming yellow fangs.

  He rose up in the air, roared his challenge, and plummeted to earth like a rocket, straight toward Grace and Spencer. His massive arm flashed out and seized them in his grasping claws. He whipped around and flung them all the way back to the meadow, where they tumbled head over heels and fell to the ground, stunned and breathless.

  Guaryntis snarled in triumph and turned his attention to Alyssa and Aaron, who were racing beside the foothills toward the forest. He vaulted above their heads, turned a quick somersault, and landed on the sand right in front of them. Aaron reared up and whinnied as Alyssa clung desperately to his neck. He tried to dash around to the right, but Guaryntis whirled and lashed out with his monstrous spade-like tail, knocking Alyssa out of the saddle.

  Aaron turned back to try to save her, but it was too late. The dragon snatched her up and tossed her into the woods, then turned on the frightened pony and swept him off his feet with one thrust of a powerful wing. Aaron rolled over and over, and then lay still.

  TWENTY-THREE

  Guaryntis sprang into the air once more and crossed the desert in a single bound, catching Kathy and Tristan as they tried to escape by running toward the beach. He scooped them up and, laughing evilly, threw them into the ocean. Then he twisted around and spotted little Janie, clinging to Frank as he raced beside the rocks and cliffs at the very edge of the desert.

  Janie was the dragon’s first capture, and his favourite. He wasn’t about to let her escape. He lunged at her and plucked her from the saddle. Janie screamed. Guaryntis tossed her into the air, and as she fell back toward the earth, he swung his tail around to catch her. Janie grasped the very end of it and hung on tightly to keep from falling, as the dragon spun sideways and snatched up her pony in his big left claw.

  With Janie clinging desperately to his tail and pony-Frank struggling to free himself from the cruel talons, Guaryntis shot skyward once more and discovered Christina and Steven running hard, almost to the forest of Paximus. He growled and snarled and beat the air with his mighty wings, and the sand rose up from the desert floor in a massive whirlwind that swept over the fleeing pony and blinded him. Steven stumbled but struggled on, unable to see, and Guaryntis laughed and dropped to earth right in front of him. Steven crashed into the dragon’s scaly side and fell unconscious, and Christina sprawled on the sand beside him.

  Guaryntis then spotted Vanessa, standing up in her stirrups and straining forward. She was urging Alexander on as he raced for the safety o
f the forest. She was the only girl ever to escape from him, and he wanted to capture her most of all. He wanted revenge. He swooped down upon them, but Vanessa saw him coming.

  “Quick, go left!” she shouted, and Alexander swerved hard and took off in the new direction. Guaryntis missed them and plunged heavily into the ground, but one claw raked the pony’s flank and drew blood. He bounded up for another try. Vanessa saw him leap to cut them off.

  “Go right!” Vanessa yelled. “And STOP!”

  Alexander planted his hooves and skidded to a halt. Guaryntis overshot them and ploughed head first into the sand. Alexander whirled and plunged off toward the trees once more.

  The dragon shook himself and screeched in fury. Still clutching tiny Frank in one claw, and with Janie desperately hanging on to his tail, he planted his powerful hind feet and leapt after the fleeing pair. He opened his mouth wide.

  Vanessa screamed, and Alexander whipped his head around to see the awful monster’s vicious yellow fangs flashing in the sunlight as he bore down upon them. Desperately he flung himself right and then left, his hooves scrabbling at the sand, and his back left foot dropped into a groundhog hole and tripped him. He heard an awful crack and felt a bone break. His leg collapsed beneath him, spilling Vanessa onto the sand.

  Guaryntis roared out his victory. His powerful jaws gaped open and swept them up. He tossed his head in the air, and Vanessa and Alexander tumbled over his huge slimy tongue and slid toward that great open throat, plummeting down to certain death.

  And behind the dragon’s back, brave little Evan, with Emma’s small arms wrapped tightly around his long pony neck, dashed out of the desert and into the beautiful green forest of Paximus.

  Vanessa’s plan had worked!