Wonderoz Chapter Thirteen: Dorothy

It was strange moving in something that was actually moving you. Sitting inside Nick’s hollow armor Dorothy had to move her legs with his. But she found a way to sit and brace herself so it didn’t encumber her, or, Nick.

She watched the scenery from between  the cracks in Nick’s armor where the sheets of metal met and clicked together with hooks and belts. But there was also a lot to see just inside Nick’s armor as well.

Where his eyes were supposed to be hung this bright, glowing thing that hovered there. The center a bright pure white that looked as if it were heart shaped. Dorothy was assured this was Nick’s soul. And it was a beautiful soul. The light reflected from it came out in a kaleidoscope of colors and images. And all of these images Dorothy was sure related to the life when Nick had a body and she and Alice were his little girls.

Outside, Nick had put on Jack’s oversized jacket and gloves and a hat Dorothy had pulled from her basket. Eye had on a fitted, emerald-green coat, and black cap Dorothy had also taken from the basket. Flinch was hidden in the forest, watching safely from the brush.

Then, the Unicorn came into view. He was in man form and was wearing a deep red jacket with a ruffled white shirt underneath. He wore black slacks that were covered by high boots whose soles looked like silver hooves. His hair was platinum white and downy, feathering around his head like a sort of halo. His dark black eyes peered out from underneath his bangs and the great, pearly horn that grew from the center of his forehead. It was also no surprise to say that the Unicorn was an extremely handsome man. But then again, all Unicorns are extremely beautiful no matter what form they take.

He looked at his watch and frowned, glancing back up at Nick and Eye as they went down the road. The foresight the Unicorn had stolen from Flinch didn’t show him this.

In the forest Flinch had stopped moving some feet back. Freezing as soon as the Unicorn had come into view. He stood there shaking and sniveling.

The Unicorn turned and looked at Nick and Eye as they strode off. He sneered and turned around fully. “Where’s the girl?”

They stopped and Nick turned towards him. “Excuse me?”

The Unicorn smirked. “The girl.” He started strolling casually towards them, wringing the chain of his watch around his fingers. “Dorothy, where is she?”

Eye shook his head. “I dunno. We have no girl.”

“How stupid do you take me for?” The Unicorn laughed. “No one ever uses this road and this was last place she was seen.” He focused in on Eye. “She was last seen with a young man.”

Eye nodded his head. “She’s in the woods just back there, following behind us.”

Flinch heard this and jumped, running off into the woods blindly. The Unicorn, of course, heard this and grinned. “And she’s running.” He laughed. He nodded at Eye and tapped his horn. “Thank you.” He then jumped into the woods, following the Lion.

“Why’d you do that to Flinch?” Dorothy hissed from inside Nick’s armor.

Eye shook his head. “I dunno…I just…it just sort of came to me.”

“Flinch will eventually circle back here.” Nick said quietly. “First he’ll gain the attention of the Wheelers, but because he’s an Animal they won’t take any notice.” He chuckled. “But when the Unicorn runs into them-”

“The Deadly Desert,” whispered Dorothy. “Eye, that was a brilliant idea!”

“It was?” Eye said with a smile. “Well I-” he suddenly stopped and glanced over his shoulder.

Nick leaned towards him. “What is it boy?”

“I heard something.” Eye pointed behind them. “Coming from over there, somewhere.”

“What’d you hear?” Dorothy asked.

Eye bit down on his bottom lip. “Someone has spotted us.”

Dorothy furrowed his brow. “How can-” Something stabbed through Nick’s armor and grazed Dorothy across the arm.

“Try and fool me!” The Unicorn roared as he pulled his horn back out.

Dorothy screamed and Eye swung at the Unicorn. Eye missed and fell flat on his face, taking the Unicorn with him.

“Dorothy!” Nick ran off and swung open the front of his armor, pulling Dorothy out and inspecting her wound. “Dorothy, are you okay?”

“I’m fine Nick.” Dorothy rasped, touching the bleeding wound. “I’m fine.” She repeated and looked up at Eye holding off the Unicorn.

“But if the Unicorn is here-” She looked up onto the roadside and held her breath tight in her chest. “He brought the Wheelers with him.”

A Wheeler came down the forest and grinned from ear to ear. His flaming red hair was styled up in spikes that went along the center of his head. On his face was a tattoo of a Club like on the playing cards. He wore big, thick goggles over his eyes, which Dorothy was sure were crazy.

Dorothy stared down at his wheels then up at his goggled eyes. “Clubber?” She asked, bracing herself.

“TRESSPAPSSERS!” He screamed giddily at the top of his lungs.

“Run, Dorothy!” Nick shouted, standing before her and brandishing his axe.

Dorothy picked herself up and stared running, rummaging through her basket at the same time. She pulled out one of the Mad Wizard’s bottles. It was Yellow. Southern Magic and undrinkable.

“Please do something useful.” Dorothy whispered hopefully to the vial. And she turned and flung it. The bottle crashed against the Wheeler’s temple and green moss grew where the contents splashed. The moss spread quickly, covering everything in a thick, lush blanket of green. It spilled like a toppled glass then climbed up anything with feet on the ground.

Dorothy leapt into the air, watching it crawl underneath her as she pulled her knees into her chest. She landed softly on the green blanket and turned to look once more. The scene behind her had frozen, everyone underneath the Moss Blanket had fallen completely asleep and still.

“Oh no!” She whispered and stumbled forward. “Eye! Nick!” She crumbled moss off of Eye’s face. “Eye?” No response.

“You!” Dorothy was grabbed from behind by her hair.

She yelped, but no one was awake to hear her cry. She struggled and looked up at the Wheeler looming over her. His long fingers tangled up in her hair, his wheel jutting from the wrist.

“You’re coming with me.” He growled.

“Let go!” Dorothy ordered. A hazy glow started flowing across Dorothy’s skin and through her eyes.

“Hey!” The Club Wheeler was understandably startled. “Wha-what are you doing?”

Dorothy’s glow started to spread all over her body and became exceedingly bright and warm.

“You better release her before her magic banishes you.” A voice came from the woods.

“Yes Sir!“ The Club Wheeler did as it commanded and rushed back up into the brush beside it’s leader who was coming down for a look himself.

The leader of the Club Wheelers was known as Mace. And despite the fact that he was in an intolerant and violent gang he was a very civil and well educated boy. Like most Wheelers he was tall, leggy, gangly, and thin. He had smooth black hair that he slicked back into a point at the base of his neck. His eyes were dark green and thin, like the rest of his face. Thin eyebrows. Thin nose. Thin face.

He walked towards Dorothy who was staring at her hands and the light ripping around her. It was like the light Nick’s soul gave off. She wasn’t afraid of it, nor was she confused by what was going on. In fact, she felt completely safe and aware of her surroundings.

Mace retracted his wheels and sat down beside Dorothy. “Are you hurt, Your Highness?”

Dorothy looked up at him, more bewildered by his statement than anything. “You know who I am?” She swallowed the sore lump in her throat away.

“Very few people in the world have such a magic as yours.” Mace said, touching the tip of Dorothy’s freckled nose. “So few in fact there are only three known.” He smiled charmingly at her. “But they disappeared long ago.” He quickly tacked on, “Supposedly,” and laughed.

Dorothy braced a hand against the ground and the moss started to recede just the way it had spread. The Wheeler who had been chasing her toppled over as he awoke. Eye and Nick slammed into each other.

“What?” Nick blurted. “What’s going on here?”

Dorothy spoke up. “It’s alright! I threw a spell.” She got up on her feet and went to Eye to help him stand. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Eye said smiling. “But wait,” his smile vanished and he leapt back to his feet. “Where’d the Unicorn go?”

“Jumped, I’d say.” Mace said, standing again. “Damn, wish we could have had a chance at him. We’ve been after him for a while now.”

Dorothy breathed heavily. “I wish you had too.”

Mace laughed. “Any Unicorn is unwelcome here.”

Eye squeezed tightly on Dorothy’s hand. “So what are you going to do with us, huh?”

Mace smiled. “We’re going to make sure you get out of this forest alive.” He said with a sigh. “But first,” he extended his wheels and got down on all fours. “I believe your pet has gone missing.”,

“Why are you going to help us?” Nick asked gruffly.

“Because before I was a gang leader I happened to be in the Royal Army of Her Highness, Queen Ozma. That is, before Langwidere. Most of us Wheelers left when Ozma and the White Knight vanished, those who stayed left after Langwidere deemed us not to her liking” He then turned to his friend behind him and the one behind Nick. “Go find the Lion and meet us back at the Club House.”

“Yes sir.” They both replied and sped off.

Mace turned back to Dorothy. “Now, I’d like to invite you over to rest a bit.”

“Thank you. I’m Dorothy.” She said, extending her hand to Mace.

Mace lifted a wheel and placed it in Dorothy’s palm. “And I’m Mace. I’ve been waiting a long time for you to come home, Princess Dorothy.”