Lo-o-ooong chapter compared to the last one. I wanted to get some explanations out of the way so that we can get to the action.
Chapter 2
"—that man with a red glow—"
"He killed—"
"Yes, it was very—"
Handy's return to awareness was slow. He heard the other smurfs whispering, but he felt so exhausted that he couldn't yet bring himself to open his eyes. The boiling-water sensation still hadn't gone away, and he assumed that the bizarre glow was still there as well.
"Handy," a hand was shaking his shoulder. "Handy, wake up!" Handy felt weary enough that he would have ignored the command -- had it not been made in Papa Smurf's voice. With great effort, since he felt as though his eyelids were weighted down, he forced his eyes open.
He was back at home, in his bed. Papa Smurf, Hefty, Smurfette and Grandpa were clustered around him, looking anxious. Handy looked at his hands. Still glowing.
"How do you feel, Handy?" Papa Smurf asked him.
Handy smiled weakly. "I'll felt smurfier Papa Smurf," he replied. "But I'm all right, just a little tired." Suddenly he remembered, and started to sit up. "Oh my smurfness, Esa!"
"I went back there with some smurfs went back to the spot where we left her," Hefty told him. "But she was gone. The only thing left was the arrow." Hefty said all this in a voice that sounded like he was trying to sound casual, but failing miserably.
Well, of course, Handy thought. It must be hard to be casual when your best friend is glowing like he just swallowed a purple firefly. He lay back again, uncomfortably aware of the odd looks they were all giving him.
"Listen youngster," Grandpa said. "Hefty, Smurfette and Brainy have told us about what happened the way they saw it, but from the sounds of it you saw or heard something they didn't."
"Then she was speaking directly to my mind," Handy exclaimed.
"She was sp—is that how you know her name?" Smurfette said incredulously.
"Yes," Handy told them. He told them every detail of his strange experience in the forest. By the end of it, Smurfette, Hefty and Grandpa were staring at him with expressions of disbelief. Papa Smurf, however, looked thoughtful.
"The Gift..." he said slowly. "I believe I have seen something about that in one of my books. Give me some time to find it. In the meantime, I think you should try and get some rest Handy."
"But I'm feeling much better Papa Smurf," Handy protested. It was partially true. The paralysing exhaustion that had gripped him just minutes ago seemed to have eased off while he was telling them his strange tale, even if the boiling feeling still nagged at him.
"That's good to hear," Papa Smurf told him. "But until we can smurf out more about your—erm—condition, I don't want to risk you fainting again."
"But—," Handy gasped at a sudden sharp pain in his right hand. The glow around it had intensified tenfold, until he couldn't even see his hand beneath the glow anymore. Even as he stared at it the glow faded back to "normal", but something was different. The was now a strange marking on the back on his hand—it looked like someone had taken a dark purple pen and drawn a small, intricate sketch of a tree. The boiling sensation was worst in that spot.
Papa Smurf took his hand and looked at the mark for a moment, then gasped. "Great smurfs of fire," he said. "Now I know I've seen this before! I'll be back in a moment Handy!" Without another word he turned and left Handy's house. Handy looked at the other three smurfs again. They were still staring at him as though he had two heads. He couldn't blame them really, but he still wished they would stop.
"So," he said after an uncomfortably long silence. "What—what happened after I um, fainted?"
They seemed relieved that someone had broken the silence. "Well," Hefty said. "We couldn't wake you up, so I pulled you up onto the cart and we smurfed you back here."
"The supplies we gathered are in your workshop," Smurfette told him. Just as Hefty had earlier, she seemed to be trying to put up an act of normalcy. "We put them into your storage room."
"Thanks for smurfing that for me," Handy said, smiling. "What happened next?"
"When they got back here, Papa Smurf was at Homnibus's," Grandpa said. "So they came and found me, and we got you back here. You've been out for quite a while, youngster."
"Really?" Handy said, surprised. "What time is it?"
"It's been almost a full day since you blacked out," Smurfette said. "We were afraid you would never wake up!"
"A full day?!" Handy cried. "Great smurfs!" It was so strange to think that so much time could go by, and he wouldn't notice it at all. No stranger than glowing purple, I suppose, he thought. Then something occurred to him. He dreaded the answer to the question that had just come to his mind, but he just had to ask it.
"Where was Brainy during all of this?" he asked.
Just as he had dreaded, the looks on their faces grew angry and apprehensive. Brainy the blabbersmurf had been at it again. "What did he tell the other smurfs?" Handy asked.
"Well," Smurfette said. "He started out by telling them that it was only thanks to him that we ever smurfed out of the forest alive." Oh, typical, Handy thought.
"But," Hefty said, sounding hesitant. That was a bad sign. When Hefty said something to say, he didn't hesitate to say it. "He also started saying how—how—well, how unsmurfy that strange glow is."
"And?" Handy asked, dreading what was coming next.
"He has started to tell everysmurf that it may be—well—dangerous," Grandpa said. "Dangerous to allow you to remain in the village when we don't really know why it is your glowing like the harvest moon."
Oh smurfs alive. "They've—they've been listening to him?" Handy said.
They nodded weakly. "Most of them," Smurfette said sadly. "We've—Hefty, Grandpa, Papa and I—we've been trying to convince them otherwise, but..." she trailed off, looking teary. Thankfully Papa Smurf chose that moment to re-enter Handy's house.
"I've found it!" he said triumphantly. He was carrying a huge, weathered looking book. Papa Smurf stopped short when he saw the looks on their faces. "Whatever is the matter?" he asked. Then he seemed to realize. "Ahh. You've heard about Brainy's latest village gossip."
"Yes," Handy said softly. "Papa Smurf...what is he's right? What if I am too dangerous to keep in the village?"
Papa Smurf shook his head and put a comforting hand on Handy's shoulder. "Don't worry Handy," he told him. "I thinkI know exactly what is causing that strange glow, and I don't believe it will pose any danger to the others." So saying, Papa Smurf opened the book and started to read from it.
"The Gift," he began. "Is an extremely rare magical ability that manifests itself in the form of a colourful glow. Though the abilities it grants vary, the most common are the abilities of teleportation (instant travel from one place to another) and telepathy (reading other's thoughts)." Papa Smurf turned the page. "The Gift runs in certain families. It is in fact, so rare, that only fifteen family lines are known to possess it." Here he stopped and looked up. "I received this book more than four hundred years ago, so it is outdated. I believe that that number has now dwindled to seven." He turned a page again and scanned the book for a moment. Then he tapped a spot on it and turned the book so that Handy could see it. It was a list of families known to have the Gift; smack dab in the middle was the name Elm Peak. Right next to the name was a picture of a marking that matched the one on Handy's hand.
"But what does that mean Papa Smurf?" he asked. "I can't be a part of their family; I'm a smurf, not a human!"
"You aren't part of their family line, Handy," Papa Smurf told him. He turned another page and continued to read. "The Gift is unique in that it must be passed down from person to person in a family; it may only exist in one person at a time. This is a difficult transfer that must be made in person and before the death of the gifted family member, or the gift will be let loose in the world." He looked up again. "The last time a family's Gift was released, there was an earthquake that tore up the entire southern half of the forest."
"I remember that," Grandpa exclaimed. "It took over a century for that part of the forest to recover. That was only a few years before you youngsters were born."
Papa Smurf continued. "On rare occasions, when the person who is to receive the Gift is not present at the time of death, it is possible for another person to take possession of the Gift temporarily, until the right person is found. These people are known as Carriers." He looked up. "It is likely that that you fainted because your body got a bit of a shock from so much magical power being poured into it. It needed time to adjust."
"Esa..."Handy whispered. "She called me her carrier." Then something occurred to him. "Papa Smurf, why me? She didn't just choose me at random."
"You know, that's true," Hefty said thoughtfully. "She saw Brainy, Smurfette and I first. Why Handy and not one of us?"
"I'm getting to that, my little smurfs," Papa Smurf said, before continuing to read. "The reason that carriers are so rare is that they must possess specific qualities in common with the Gifted family in order to be able to control the immense power of the Gift. These qualities vary from family to family." He looked up again. "The family of Elm Peak," he told them. "Aren't just known for their magical Gift. They are also known to be resourceful, hard working—and renowned inventors."
"Just the way we describe Handy," Smurfette said in awe.
"And because she could read my mind," Handy said. "She knew that I had those qualities." He lay back in his bed, Feeling stunned. The boiling water feeling kept right on roiling inside him as he lay there, turning over a thought in his head; the feeling was a little distracting. Then he sat up again. "I have to find Matthew."
"Matthew?" the others chorused.
"Yes," Handy told them. "Esa told me that I had to find him and that he was Gift-less. She must have wanted me to pass it on to him. Papa Smurf, do you know where Elm Peak is?"
"Yes," Papa Smurf said. "But it will be a long trip, Handy. It would take several days walking, and that is the only way to get there; the way to Elm Peak is far too windy to risk taking Feathers into. What's more, the path to Elm Peak s far from easy to travel—its very dangerous!"
"Papa Smurf," Smurfette said. "You said that this...um...Gift...that it can be used to teleport?"
"Yes, but I don't think it would be a smurfy idea to try that," Papa Smurf replied. "Handy, the Gift is somewhat self-aware; it will allow you to carry it, but I don't think it would appreciate being used by anyone but its rightful owner."
"That's alright," Handy said. "I haven't the faintest idea how to use it anyway." He carefully sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Very slowly and cautiously, he stood up. No dizziness, no shakiness—he felt like he was back to normal. Well, except for that boiling water feeling. Which was getting steadily more unpleasant by the moment.
"Handy, are you sure you're smurfing well enough to travel?" Grandpa asked him, presumably concerned about how slowly Handy was moving.
"Believe me, Grandpa," Handy replied, wincing as his tingling feet protested their contact with the floor and his muscles groaned at being used after almost twenty-four hours of lying still. "The sooner I get rid of this thing, the better I'll smurf. I'll leave as soon as I've gathered some supplies."
"Wait just a smurfberry-picking minute, Handy!" Hefty said. "What is this about "I'll leave"? You aren't thinking of going alone are you?" The brawny smurf was frowning at Handy, arms akimbo. "Papa Smurf," Hefty continued, turning to the village elder. "Shouldn't a few of us smurfs go with him?"
"I agree," Papa Smurf said. "No Handy" he added as the carpenter smurf started to protest. "You are not going alone. It's far too dangerous for one smurf."
"But Papa Smurf, this has nothing to do with the rest of the smurfs!" Handy cried. "I don't want anyone to get in trouble on my account!"
"You're always helping us with our problems, Handy!" Smurfette said. "Remember when you built that smurfy machine that watered my flowers for me when I got the smurfy flu?"
"And the wheelsmurfer you built for me when I broke my leg?" Hefty added. "Smurfette's right—we owe you. And smurfs need to stick together. Your problems are our problems."
Handy was momentarily grateful for the Gift's glow. It was helping to hide the fact that he was blushing—from the feel of it, he was as red as a smurfberry. "Well," he said quietly. "When you smurf it that way..."
"Smurfy!" Papa Smurf said. "Smurfette, Hefty, Grandpa—will you all go?" All three nodded. "Good! I will go as well. Given the dangerous journey we have ahead, we may want to find at least two others to go as well."
"Will any of them want to go Papa Smurf?" Handy asked, worried. "From the sounds of it, Brainy has made sure that they don't think it's safe to be around me anymore."
"I'm sure that once we explain everything to them, they will come around," Papa Smurf told him. "Let's go smurf up some help!"
Meanwhile, elsewhere:
"She WHAT?!" thundered Yoric. Above the dark, sprawling castle, the sky seemed to shudder, and it sparked with crimson. Yoric growled, and with a snarl pulled his Gift back in. The Abyss Rock family's Gift had always been very sensitive to emotion—an unfortunate weakness.
"I'm s—s—sorry, my lord," the Sycophent stuttered. He had the mottled brown skin, yellow eyes and crimson robe that all of Yoric's sycophents wore, so Yoric had no idea who this one was. Not that it mattered—they all served the same purpose. He had created them to follow his every order. The wretched creature went on. "E—esa of Elm P—p—peak really did find a Carrier. Rowan and Fhlau saw it happen."
"And why," Yoric asked icily. "Did they not kill this Carrier on the spot?"
"T—they would have been caught in the--," the sychophent stopped short.
"Ahh," he said. "They were afraid of getting hurt were they? Couldn't handle a small natural disaster for the sake of their lord?" Yoric smiled as he said this, but his eyes were flashing red. The sychophent quivered and whimpered, and was about to say something else, but someone else cut in first.
"Perhaps this has worked out for the best, my lord," Carmena said, walking into the throne room. She was Yoric's advisor, not a sychophent, and so she looked at Yoric with a calm stare, as opposed to the expression of fear on the sychophent's face.
"OH?" Yoric said. "And what, my dear, do you mean by that?" His voice was still angry, but not in the firey way in which he had spoken to the sycophant. He had a great deal more respect for Carmena—and for her beauty. Long, silky blue-black hair, creamy pale skin, eyes as black as pitch—and just as emotionless.
"What I mean, my lord," Carmena said. "Is that rather than simply get rid of the Elm Peak Gift, perhaps you could find—another use for it. I have been working in the laboratory for many hours, and I believe I have found a way to finally succeed at what your Great-Grandfather tried to do many years ago."
Yoric's eyes sparkled, and he leaned forward in his chair. This was news! "You mean—his idea of blending--,"
"Yes, my lord," Carmena replied with a small smile. "A way to take the Elm Peak Gift for yourself, and add it to your own. With two Gifts my lord, you would be invincible! However, in order for this procedure to work..." she trailed off.
"I need to get that Carrier," Yoric finished. "Alive." For a moment the room was still; Carmena stood with her hands folded behind her back, the sychophent silently shivered, and Yoric sat with his chin in his hand, looking thoughtful. Then Yoric stood.
"Carmena!" he barked. "Do you know the identity of the Carrier?"
"Yes," she replied. " The sychophent Rowan overheard his friends talking about him. He is not a human—he is a little blue creature known as a smurf. Handy Smurf is his name. He should be easy to spot—he has the Gift-light about him."
"Excellent! You!" Yoric turned to the sychophent. "Gather my best warriors! We have a Carrier to catch!"
"Y—yessir!" the sychophent stammered. "What shall we do with him when we catch him, my lord?"
"Have you not been paying attention you fool?" Yoric said in disgust. "I want him captured alive! We'll bring him back here!" The sychophent squealed and dashed out the door.
"We, my lord?" Carmena inquired.
"Of course," Yorid replied, heading for the door. "I can't entrust something as important as this to those ugly brown rats. I'll get the Carrier—they can take care of his friends. And you, Carmena, can ready the lab for the procedure." He smiled as he reached his armoury, and chuckled as he selected his best staff—oak with a large ruby set in the top. Then he laughed—a chilling, blood-curdling laugh that made anyone who heard it shake in fear.
"Handy Smurf," he muttered. "You will be mine."
Outside the castle, the clouds stirred and parted to reveal a blood red sun.
Dun Dun DUUUUUUUNNNNNN!!! Please review!