42 Blue Printing (1/2)
A few days passed with a strange routine.BugleHead stayed in the vicinity of where Nelda had vanished.He would wander off occasionally to play with the Jasper phoenixes, pick fruit or collect shells.
HoneyBeard would keep him company, wandering occasionally inside. The lapis phoenixes had brought out small rolled scrolls and opened them, weighing the corners with stones.
It seemed that one look at the image was sufficient.They held indigo ink in their beaks and inked out lines carefully and in close unison.
HoneyBeard shuddered.This kind of precision and efficiency was beyond anything in his experience.He would be more comfortable with magic than… technology.
He turned his mind to recovering the alicorn.He had buried it in the midden thinking that no one, given the choice, would look for it there.It turned out to be a rather nasty trick that he played on himself.
Nevertheless, he managed to dig the long, straight unicorn horn out.He washed it in the sea, keeping a wary eye out for mermaids.
Returning to BugleHead, he handed it over.
”Oh,” said BugleHead glumly.”Treasure.”
”Don't sound too pleased.”
”It's very nice.”
BugleHead looked up at the empty sky.A wet splat that he hoped was rain hit him in the eye.Rubbing his face he offered, ”We could just go home.”
”It wouldn't be the same.Would it?There's things… I don't mistake myself for a scholar, but there's things I would wonder about.And the harpies said all the peoples of Mirth are needed to stop the burny thing.”
”The cataclysm.”
”Hmm.And what other satyrs are going to want to get involved.”
”Not even me,” HoneyBeard admitted.And he was the most traveled satyr in the herd.”It was sort of an accidental adventure.”
”But now?”
”I am going to have a nap,” HoneyBeard replied.
#
Phyllis, Manny, Reg, Tyrone, and Jen all thundered down the hallway towards the guard.
The guard seemed young, very alarmed, and well-armed.It gave her an idea.
Nelda chased after them, pulled her hat down over her head, and yelled.”Guard, guard!There's an active shooter in the cafeteria.This custodian offered to let us hide in one of the cells.”
”The, the cafeteria.”
Team Idiot caught on very quickly.
”…There's shooting and.”
”…People are hiding under table…”
”Blood on the floor…”