Chapter 3
Nimbus and Grum, Lucent Deep
Poached
The first leg of the voyage was not very long, but Grum had plenty of time to find where the square wooden tokens were used. It was a magical vending machine, full of wondrous smells and a variety of selections. He inserted one of the tokens and pressed a large button with a picture of what looked like a juicy roasted turkey with mashed potatoes and peas. The machine made some clunking operations—or at least that’s what the vibrations felt like to Grum. After a moment, a narrow hatch at the base of the machine opened. Grum reached in and removed a fully cooked meal, right there on a thin wooden plate. “Awesome,” he said, but nobody heard. Sampling a bite with the provided fork-like utensil, Grum chewed and thought, “Not as good as the picture, but you can’t eat a picture. Still, this will be great for the voyage, as long as it stays fresh.”
They arrived in Shimmergrove Harbor before dusk. There was excitement ashore: the Festival of Sparkles—a very old and dazzling Fairy tradition. The Scuttleback docked near a grassy park filled with carts selling fairy treats, enchanted orbs of light, and some questionably fashion-forward clothing. As the ship docked, a very loud “BOOM!” nearby startled all three. Then another. Looking quickly out the window, Grum said, “Ooh, pretty!” at the fireworks display in the sky over the park. Thalarae’s eyes sparkled with the reflection of a vibrant blue burst with white streaks. Nimbus was charmed, his eyes on her instead of the window. The Echo Shroud had been abruptly deactivated when the ship docked.
A green canister dropped in the tube—woosh, thunk. Nimbus opened it: a note from the captain stating they had two hours before casting off again, and an optional request to help load some special cargo. The three all agreed it would be good to stretch their legs and wings one more time before they were confined to a limited space aboard the ship. They trotted ashore. The festival was just beginning, as most of it happened at night. Some worn-out SunSparkle party horns could still be heard tooting all around, and there were more fireworks displays growing as the sun sank. Children twirled glowing orbs on strings; some wore hats with flashing emblems, and others wrote in the air with Rainbow Sizzle Popper sticks, which always ended with a sharp crack of sound and light.
Captain Trapbeard approached the trio. Nimbus looked slyly at him, wondering what was so special about the cargo. “Will you help me?” asked the captain. “It won’t be hard—just a little awkward. Over easy if you three assist me.” Thalarae and Grum looked at each other. Nimbus responded, “Sure, and scramble back to the ship—sounds like a piece of cake.” Thalarae rolled her eyes again; Grum chuckled. “Aye, we’ll get there in thyme,” stated Captain Trapbeard. “Just need to hatch a plan.” Thalarae joined in, “Let’s wing it,” grinning. “Beat that.” The three followed the captain to a nearby mushroom building.
“OK, so the cargo is in the middle of the town square, and we have to make it disappear without anyone seeing it, get it aboard, and take off.” Grum looked out the shop window while the captain was talking. “You want us to steal it?” asked Nimbus. “We’re returning it to its rightful owner,” the captain explained. A gigantic egg sat upright in the middle of the town square, adorned with candles and sparkly things—clearly an important part of the celebration. The egg itself was scaly—not like a lizard or fish, but deep blue-green interlocking plates, like a hundred turtle shells glued together at the seams. “Oh boy, this is not going to be simple.” As Grum watched, villagers and visitors often bowed to the egg as they passed it. Some danced in circles around it; others with paint easels recreated its likeness with oily paints and watercolors.
The captain pulled a device from his pocket. “Not with this.” It was an Aetherite crystal and a shard of Glimmerglasse wrapped in a shimmering thread; another small crystal, like the Lumispar staff but white, was attached at its base. From his other pocket, he removed—apparently—nothing. “And this,” he held out an open hand, “will ensure we can get away.” Nimbus looked confused. “I get it,” said Thalarae flatly. “What’s the plan?” Grum asked. “We replace the egg with a projection—an illusion—take it, and escape under an aura of invisibility,” Thalarae explained. “Great,” said Grum, “where’s the invisa-thingy?” Captain Trapbeard held out his open hand again. “Oh, that makes sense now—haha,” laughed Grum. “Shh, not so loud,” snapped Thalarae quietly. “I’m ready,” whispered Nimbus. “Let’s go,” the captain ordered.
Miraculously, the plan worked. The illusion held true enough; even a few of the painters gathered some final details from it. They made it to the ship with the egg on a “borrowed” cart—being invisible has its advantages. Loading it on the ship took some effort, but several of the Seagull Sailors helped shove it into a stable spot on the deck, and it was covered with a false-top crate. With the cargo loaded and ready, and the three friends returned to the ship, the Scuttleback was ready for departure.
Back in their cabin, they received another note in a green canister: “Thank you for your help, it was egg-zactly what I needed. You will be awarded with extra ration tokens.” Several tokens tumbled out of the canister as Grum tipped it over. “Sweet. Who’s hungry?” Both Nimbus and Thalarae were eager to try the food machine, but Thalarae said, “Hold on to those for now—I got some fresh Fairy food here.” Thalarae laid out a miniature banquet of sparkle-themed Fairy treats, sandwich salads, and a few bowls of something Grum couldn’t identify but that smelled delicious. Nimbus looked over the bounty hesitantly. Thalarae smirked, “Nah, I didn’t steal it, but I did grab them while we were invisible. Left some coin. Proper amount, even.” Nimbus shook his head in a mixture of disbelief and relief. The three happily gobbled till their bellies were full and saved some treats for later.
