"Flimgog, jump onto Arnold's back and hold on to his shoulders." The Queen said. Arnie crouched slightly to make it easier, but Flimgog leapt with such ease he thought he needn't have bothered.
Once he was comfortably in place the Queen spoke again. The other moth, only slightly smaller than the Queen and with differing patterns, stayed back slightly saying nothing. "Arnold and Isabelle, lay flat on your stomachs on the ground. We shall carry you like that."
Her voice was such that one didn't feel like doubting her instructions and so they lay flat on the ground, side by side. Arnie could feel Flimgog's small arms clinging to his shoulders.
The two moths moved forward and stepped over the two humans. As one their long, flexing legs wrapped themselves around their bodies and they launched into the air.
Arnie felt butterflies erupt in his stomach as they took off and heard Isabelle let out something between a cheer and a scream. They were above the forest now, flying through the cloudless night sky. Arnie thought it ought to be cold, but once again it had that temperturelessness that was comfortable.
"This is my home realm. It stretches far into the distance." And they flew over the glittering tree tops. Despite the dark he could see the swaying colours of the trees. They flew forward and came to other clearings in the forest and Arnie saw other moths resting amongst their caterpillar children. He looked straight ahead and saw that they were not alone in the sky. The sky was filled with many, many moths, cruising and flapping gracefully over their forest home.
"It's spectacular!" Flimgog exclaimed from his back.
"Simply amazing!" he replied, feeling excited.
Arnie had always thought of moths as jerky, flapping creatures. But these were anything but. Their wings moved fast, but it had a beauty and skill about it. The moth's anatomy combined with intelligence gave them an edge over their Earth-bound cousins.
They swooped around to face the other way and Arnie caught a glimpse of Isabelle suspended in the legs of the other moth. She looked exhilerated. Her multi-coloured hair swaying with the movement.
Up ahead he saw the pink sand and water. It didn't seem far from up here despite how long it had taken to reach the Queen. The guardian of the messages rose as sand in the shape of a swan and swooped around the pink beach. He was putting on a show without leaving his domain. Arnie waved at him.
He looked down again into the swaying trees and thought he could make out glimmering blue lights appearing and disappearing. His stomach dropped slightly remembering his encounter. As though reading his thoughts the Queen spoke.
"It is unfortunate that we must deal with these creatures, they harbour a malice that is powerful. But they protect my family from the spiders. They ally themselves with us for their protection and comfort and are bound by a magical contract."
Arnie nodded and realised she probably couldn't see it.
They were over the beach now and Arnie saw Isabelle and her carrier flying alongside them and they swooped over the sea. He noticed other moths never far away and wondered if they were guards. The red, cone shaped mountains were up ahead on the horizon of the pink, lapping ocean.
A large fish jumped from the water, a green feather protruding from the side of it's mouth.
"Ahoy there!" a voice called.
Arnie twisted his head slightly and saw the two pence sitting on the back of the fish. He was clinging on with one thin, spindly arm to the dorsel fin.
"Ahoy!" Arnie called back and they were back beneath the surface.
They rose higher now, away from the water, fast approaching the mountains ahead.
The sky had changed again and Arnie managed to look back. He saw that half way into the forest in the distance the night sky started. A constant state of half-day and half-night. They were back in the blue sky with the orange sun.
"We prefer to fly at night and so our home is in constant night." The Queen called to him. Arnie wondered if Isabelle was being treated to information from her host.
They continued their incline and Arnie caught site of what they hadn't before. The top of the mountain was a sharp, slim point. To the left and the right he saw the other mountains and they looked the same. He looked back down and they couldn't see the bottom. He panicked momentarily but it passed quickly.
As they cruised over the top of the mountain the Queen slowed and stopped in midair. She hovered effortlessly and her companion stopped alongside her. Arnie and Isabelle were able to look straight ahead.
"This is Sockland. As far as you can see in all directions."
It was immense and intense. Arnie noticed every colour of the rainbow and beyond. He saw hills and holes, lakes and fields. Greens, blues, purples. There was mist and fog of various kinds and their was movement, buildings and pathways. He thought he could make out glimmering silver and thought of the spoons but he may have imagined it.
"Wow! This is a big place!" he said.
"It has grown beyond measure. The Land of the Lost." The Queen said. "That is it's rightful name."
They remained suspended, looking out for a long while. Arnie lost track of the time. He saw that the skies changed suddenly in the distance, one to the next. He recognised the bubblegum pink near the pen village. He saw the neon sky. There were several suns scattered around. His mind struggled with it.
"And you Arnold and Isabelle are the Prince and Princess of all you see. When you return we shall travel further and wider. You have opened it up again for us.."
And they swerved around and swooped back beyond the pink water into the night sky and the forest home of the Queen.
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YOU ARE READING
Travel to Sockland
Abenteuer(*Wattpad Featured Story*) Arnie is a physics student. When he discovers once again that one of his socks has gone missing, he decides to apply his knowledge to tracking down where the lost socks end up. He soon finds himself in Sockland, a world...
