Kinderling 54

 In case you are interested in starting this story at the beginning, Kinderling 1 can be found here:

The Tricycle of Thought: Kinderling 1

Please don't judge the story or the writing too harshly, this story is written with little to no editing.  It is just meant to get me writing regularly for practice.  

Now back to our story, already in progress.

It soon became apparent how Mama had returned from the Elves for our Lady of the Eastwood.  The Star Sailor's ship was fast.  Not just fast like the monster-go-stick fast.  It was a whole new meaning of the word fast.  I asked if there were a word for when something was faster than fast, and Mama just chuckled and said "very fast", which wasn't very satisfying.

When the Star Sailor suggested we move to the Garrison to plan our next move, I expected lots of arguments and debate - Elves seem to just love them some debate after all - yet, The Star Sailor just walked to the opening of the cave and announced that we were going.  Even the Elven King of All scrambled to make sure his people got packed an boarded before the ship left.  

"That was easier than I expected."  I commented to the Star Sailor and Mama, whom I noticed had quickly joined us with our things. We didn't have much to pack since we were geared up for travel anyway.

"You will find, my friend, that there is a certain amount of freedom that comes from being beyond your peers."  The Star Sailor replied.  "I have the Sky Ship.  Not even the King of All can command me upon her decks.  If he tried, I could just sail away.  If he took her from me, who but me could make her fly?  You have your small flying devices.  Can others make them?"

"Make them?  No, but with some training and practice, others can use them after I made them."  I replied.

"No, I don't think that's the case Tandy."  Mama said.  "Sure, I can manage to make one go, but at my best you still fly circles around me.  And I'm not convinced that very many others could.  I can only do it because I am too stubborn to quit, and I have watched you grow, and your magic progress, from the day you were born.  I can, because I know you so well.  The only one who knows you as well as I is probably Mizzy, and I can't imagine her ever having the desire to use one."

I had to laugh.  Mama was right that I hadn't gotten Mizzy interested in flying on a go-stick other than to ride along when I flew somewhere.  But Mama was also wrong.  All I had to do to get Mizzy up and flying was to, somehow, convince her that it was what the perfect Kinderling wife would do.  Convince her of that, I suspect Mizzy could do just about anything.  I found myself missing her more than ever.

Mama continued,  "They didn't want me to say anything, but both your father and Tommil tried, neither of them got the go-stick to even move.  Adiz did a little better, getting it to wiggle a little, but not fly.  She seemed to think her success was as much to do with the fact that her and Tommil worked together to shape the wood than her being able to connect to it."

"In the many years since I built the Sky Ship, there have only been a few who have been able to move her."  The Sky Sailor added,  "None as well as I."

That got me thinking about my other devices.  Tilly was able to use my arrow-chuckers, but she and I shared some similar magical abilities.  Even then, she wasn't able to match my abilities to use them.   On the other hand, my no-see-me devices worked for anyone, or even without a person actively using it like when we hung them up in the entry of the under-tree fort when Mama and I went to rescue Mizzy.  Another thing like that was the lights.  I created quite a few mostly-working prototypes before I was happy with the lights.  I gave them out to anyone who wanted them.  Don't get me wrong, the Garrison keeps us safe and is as comfortable as it can be, but living underground like that, the darkness does tend to get oppressive.

"Could it have something to do with the intention of the creator?"  I asked.

Mama and the Sky Sailor just looked at me like I had lost my mind.

"What do you mean?"  Mama asked.

"I have often thought that the intention of the creator was part of how the device worked."  I said.  "It's why I can create a device using the same runes as Tilly, but when completed, my device does something completely different than Tilly's device.  When I was creating the go-sticks we used when we went to save Mizzy, my intention was to create a pair of go-sticks that either of us could use."

"I don't know, Tandy."  Mama said.   I never liked hearing the words "I don't know" from Mama.  It just never seemed right.

"May I examine these go-sticks?"  Asked the Star Sailor.  

"Sure."  I went and retrieved the monster-go-stick from where I had stashed it for safe keeping.  Mama got her go-stick also and we handed them over.  

"This is interesting."  Said the Star Sailor.  With that, he placed the monster-go-stick down and stepped onto it.  After a few seconds of concentration, the monster-go-stick shakily started to rise.  Elves gathered around amazed as the Star Sailor wobbled this way and that trying not to fall off.  As far as I've seen, Elves tend to be incredibly graceful.  That grace was not in evidence as the Star Sailor caught, then lost, then re-captured his balance, only to finally end up on his rump sitting on the deck.

"That was exciting."  Was all he said.

As our Elven audience started breaking up and going back to their assigned tasks, the Star Sailor stood up and brushed himself off.

"I see what you were trying to do there.  Those runes are very similar to some of the ten thousand Elven runes I carved into the Sky Ship.  It's almost as if Elves and Kinderlings are related in some way.

"We are." I said.  "When she saw the first peoples, the Elves, the muse of Kindness wanted a people for her own and created us Kinderlings.  She used the Elves as a guide, but built us small so we wouldn't attract unwanted attention and wouldn't anger whoever created the Elves."

Once again, Mama and the Star Sailor stared at me like I had said soil was water and air was stone.

"Or at least that's what an old Gorf once told me."  I added.  I don't think telling them where I heard that tidbit of knowledge helped my case much.