(TFT) SOLO III, 014

["David Michael Grouchy II" <david_michael_grouchy_ii@hotmail.com>]

SOLO III
Demon World
Part 014

    "Finding a run away child means a trip to the surface."  Ada takes her 
hand off the largest carpet and pulls out the one next to it.  "That's a 
different matter."  She and Rebecca take it out side the main door throw it 
toward the bottom of the stairs.  A picture of an ivy covered lattice 
unrolls before your eyes.
    In a slow ritual Ada walks completely around the carpet following the 
hem and examining it intently.  The then walks to the center of the carpet, 
faces forward, and then sits indian style without using her hands.  All the 
tassles around the edge stretch out straight and pull the carpet ridgid.  It 
floats smooth, up, and stops at knee level.  Rebecca sits and pulls her legs 
on.  She is behind and to the left of Ada.  You climb on to the right side 
behind Ada.
    The carpet slides up through the spiral stair.  The ceiling is in the 
pattern of the steps above.  There is enough clearance for seven people to 
ride up this stair on the carpet.
    Rebecca leans over and says "Of course we'll have to go through the 
trap door one at a time.  Some of the smaller carpets can go all the way 
through."
    Ada has her eyes half open.  She is concentrating on the flight.  The 
front of the carpet just misses the corner of a step each time.  You look 
over your shoulder as the carpet climbs in a spiral.  The back of the carpet 
is about a meter from the ceiling.  You watch one of the steps above your 
head as you come level to it then pass over it.  Then you see that the front 
fringes actually touch the corner of each step before them.  And the right 
side of the carpet is tickling the wall.  You suddenly realizes that the 
carpet is colision proof at this speed.  And the carpet is climbing at about 
a mans full run.  You wonder what it can do in the open air.
    At the top the carpet lands and everyone dismounts.  Rebecca and Ada 
take a corner on the back.  They yank once and the carpet rolls up to them.  
The lattice work rolling up on itself.  Rebecca climbs the ladder.  You and 
Ada stand the carpet up and pass it up to her.  Rebecca drags it out of your 
hands and sets it aside.  The rest of you climb up, and Rebecca pushes the 
handle on the square door.  The one to the kitchen.
    The trap door swings up and shuts beneath her feet.  The square door 
pushes out and she shoves it aside.  Turning around she takes one end of the 
carpet and backs through the square hole.  Ada feeds it to her.  Once 
everyone is out the square door is rolled back to its hidden position.  
Rebecca shoulders the carpet and carries it to your room.  Passing through 
the eating room Ada says to Gail "Set a watch.  We are going looking for a 
run away."
    Once in your room, they clear the table and two chairs from the middle 
and stand them against the wall.  With a toss the carpet unrolls revealing 
that lush emerald green vine again.  Ada mounts directly and the carpet goes 
tense.  The tassles probing the bed, table, chairs, dresser, and walls.  You 
and Rebecca get on in the same places.  Ada whispers "Concentrate on seeing 
the stars."

    You do!  More stars than you have ever seen in your life.  It's like 
floating in the cosmos with nothing between you and the liquid milky white 
that is the central band of the heavens.  Ada is there, so is Rebecca.  They 
breath slowly with quiet smiles and the stars seem to breath with them.  The 
stark brilliance of the stars.  You never knew there were so many.

    Eventually Ada turns to you and says "Always check on your body first." 
 Rebecca disappears.  Ada continues.  "Just think of your body."
    You are floating above it.  Sitting there indian style with Rebecca and 
Ada you can see the top of your own head.  Soon Ada appears and you are all 
together again.  "The bodies look safe.  Where should we start?"
    "Observation mountain."  Rebecca blurts out.
    "O.k. Rebecca."  Then Ada dissappears.
    Rebecca turns to you.  "Think of Ada's spirit."
    You are with Ada now in a stone bunker with a huge window or gunport 
looking out on the ocean.  Rebecca is suddenly there too.  The room is 
striped and bare.  It looks like it hasn't been used in decades.  The ocean 
is a heavy dark brooding color reflecting the darkened sky.  The clouds are 
heavy and black moving slowly toward you.  Rebecca opens a side door and 
lets in a steady wind.  She steps out on a side landing.  Outside you get a 
clear view back over the island.  It is a crator with a lake of molten 
sulfer.  Black sooty ash and silt trail away with the brisk wind.  The huge 
trailing smoke columns laying almost flat against the ocean.  In that 
direction.  On the other side a massive tunnel has been carved in the rim of 
the crater spilling the fire onto the ocean.  There it forms a very wide 
road that branches off in all directions to the horizon.  You can see the 
road of fire approach and circle some neighboring islands.  They too have 
flaming cities, like this one.
    On the other side of the crater from you, the lower side is below you.  
Your side of the crater is more like a mountain.  You are looking down on a 
burning city sitting along side the incindiary lake.  Black smoke rises from 
the corners of every building and quickly trails off along the roof tops.  
You can barely see into the city because of it.  But a little further back 
and higher up you can see the occasional flicker of a golden tower inside 
the smoke.
    Rebecca says forcefully.  "The demons pride themselves on shadow and 
fire.  By spreading their burning roads all over the oceans they have 
darkened the world."

David Michael Grouchy II

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