Chapter One: The Flying Monkeys
Elphaba stared at the Grimmerie in her hands. Her eyes seemed to cloud over, and the symbols scrawled across the yellowed pages slowly began to make sense. She could feel the power of the spell seeping out of the pages, after being suppressed for so long in the hands of the Wizard. She placed one green hand over the book, and began to chant.
"Ahven, tatey, aven tatey aven..."
Madam Morrible watched triumphantly as rays of golden light left the Grimmerie and struck the monkeys. The beasts screeched as the magic warped their bodies, causing the nubs of bone on their shoulders to grow and form skeletal wings. Glinda screamed in horror and stepped back as one of the monkeys tried to bite her ankles, frothing at the mouth and screeching in pain.
The Wizard stared in awe as Elphaba easily did what no sorcerer had ever been able to accomplish.
So this is what power is.
"STOP!" screamed Glinda, tugging at her friend's sleeves. Tears rolled down her eyes as the monkeys leapt, their wings flapping furiously and lifting them into the air. But Elphaba was intoxicated by the power of the magic, and allowed it to surge through her body.
"Ah may ah tay atum…"
The monkeys screamed again as feathers grew on their wings, and long talons burst from their hands. Their heads narrowed, and their eyes glowed a sickening yellow – now more like bird than beast, the monkeys flew around the palace, crashing into the chandeliers and spraying emeralds everywhere.
Glinda screamed and ran towards Morrible, who was laughing in triumph. She grabbed the other woman by the collar and shook her, shouting,
"How do I reverse it?"
The sorceress snarled and shocked Glinda with a bolt of lightning, sending her crumpling to the ground.
"You can't!" she laughed. "Spells are irreversible!"
"You planned this?" screamed Glinda, struggling to get to her feet.
"They'll make such perfect spies," said Morrible dreamily, already ignoring Glinda and watching the monkeys create pandemonium. The palace guards rushed in, bayonets held ready but unsure what to do.
Morrible held up her hand and signalled them to stop.
"So many opportunities!" said the Wizard, in amazement. "You both do!" he added hastily, as Glinda rose to her feet, a look of fury on her soft features. Elphaba closed the book and walked up to the three of them, who suddenly found that they could no longer move.
"Thank you, your Ozness," said Elphaba calmly.
"Don't do it, Elphie!" screamed Glinda, struggling to reach her friend. "He wants to hurt the Animals! Remember what he did to Doctor - "
Elphaba gave her a quelling glance, and Glinda's jaw instantly clamped shut.
"Since when did you care?" she hissed, looking her friend in the eye. Glinda was crying silently, with tears rolling down her frozen face. "It's always about you. What you want. What you need."
And then the spell was broken, and Glinda ran off, crying. She tripped over the hem of her beautiful dress, which tore with a loud rip. Elphaba laughed, motioning with her hands and commanding the monkeys to chase Glinda, screaming as they hurled shards of emerald at her.
"You must stop her!" shouted the Wizard, as Glinda disappeared down the corridor. "She knows too much!"
"With pleasure," laughed Elphaba, and launched herself down the hall, the monkeys flying close above.
Glinda wept bitterly as she ran up the stairs, no longer caring how much her dress tore. Elphaba had been so cruel to her, once that horrible book was in that hands. She realized that Elphaba had never been her friend… she had just wanted to use her, step on her back and crush her beneath her heels as a stepping stone to the Wizard.
She cried even harder. After all the trust she had placed in Elphaba… her friendship, her secrets… her love.
And then her feet met the landing. The stairs had ended, and she was trapped in the attic. The screeching of the monkeys was getting louder, along with Elphaba's thundering footsteps. Desperately, Glinda bashed down the flimsy wooden door and ran inside the dark room.
Completely blind, she stumbled in the darkness, trying to find a way out. But it was a dead end.