Heroes of Dreamland, Book 6 1/2: The Last Sakuranoki (OLD)

Finding Her Wings

Cherry couldn't believe her eyes. It looked like someone huge had taken a sword and sliced it right through the house, separating the top floor from the bottom and casting off to the side. Then, they had dug through everything in the bottom floor until they had found the wooden box under the bed. The box had had its lid ripped off, leaving splinters and bent hinges all over the place. But, worst of all, there was no sign of the star sword anywhere among the wreckage.

Scared, Cherry called out again, "Please, Father, hurry!" Who had taken the sword? It seemed almost like the work of that creature in her dream last night, but how could that be right? It had been a dream!

Donguri called back, "I'm coming, Cherry. Try to stay calm." Strangely enough, she could hear two sets of footsteps. One was her father's, and the other was a bit bigger. Who on Ripple Star could it be?

Moments later, her father appeared and surveyed the mess. Seeming horrified, he bent over the wooden box and shook his head. "No," he murmured in disbelieving fear. "He can't have taken it. If he has, we're all doomed. How will the chosen wielder ever find it now?"

"Father," Cherry whispered in fear, trying to understand what he was talking about and why something had decided to destroy her house. "What's going on?"

"I have to ask the same question. What is going on?" another voice she didn't recognize demanded. Spinning around, she was amazed to see a being of the same species she often dreamt of. Frowning deeply, she murmured, "But I only dreamed them up..."

While the being looked back at her in confusion, she ran over to her father, who was still kneeling by the wooden box, slowly shaking his head. "Father, please tell me what's going on... First the sakuranoki all cried, and then the star sword is gone, and now someone whose species doesn't even really exist is here."

Raising an eyebrow, Tracker muttered to himself, "The trees all cried? My species doesn't even really exist?" Great. It seemed like he'd just run into a nutter. It figured he was going to end up killed by some psychotic Fairy or something on what was supposed to be a peaceful mission. He should've just taken his mother's advice and become a locksmith...

Meanwhile, Donguri sighed and looked up at Cherry, his expression exhausted. "Cherry... I need you to pack your things, or, well, anything that's left, as soon as you can. It's not safe here anymore."

"What do you mean, it's not safe here?" she demanded disbelievingly. "This is just some strange coincidence. We'll be fine, Father."

Shaking his head, he sighed, "Cherry... there are some things I need to explain to you, sweetheart. A lot of things, honestly. Why don't we take a short walk?"

Hesitant, she nodded and took her father's hand, following him away from the cottage and back into the grove.

Tracker got the feeling that he should stay out of it, so he sat down under a small maple tree by the cottage and stared at the damage, trying to understand what was happening. "The magical trees are useless now, according to Crazy Fairy, anyway; a star sword is missing, and this house just got chopped to pieces. It's obviously the work of a Nightmare, but why didn't they stick around? Normally they ruin everything in their path, unless..." He shook his head slowly, not wanting to believe it. "Unless the place is slated to be attacked and destroyed soon after anyway."

He needed to warn the Fairy and the Brownie, but he didn't want to interrupt their father/daughter moment that seemed pretty important. So, nervous, he pulled his fighting staff out from where he kept it at his side and swooshed it through the air so that it magically grew to its full length, then leapt around the yard doing practice excercises to keep himself busy until they returned.