The other Seven Realms had different environments. Some lands were barren, while others were lush and filled with green grass and green leafy trees, while some lands were just plain evil. Literally evil.

Yes, it was certainly an interesting land, much like the Seven Realms Maxin and his new companions had recently left.

Maxin found the docking bay, landing the Ebon Hawk as smoothly as possible. He didn't take pilot training for no reason. In fact, this was putting his skills to the test and he was glad that Melena took the time to guide him on some more lessons, even though she was his co-pilot.

Oh well.

Shortly after they landed and turned off the ship, Maxin followed Melena and Tack out of the ship. Tack didn't feel like transforming into a human just yet. In fact, he nearly forgot how to transform into any creature and person he wanted. Such was the nature of a shapeshifter when they'd forgotten how to do things.

"Tack, why don't you transform into a human? I'm sure it's safe here," Melena asked, curious.

"I've forgotten how to do it. Besides, how long do you think we'll be staying here?" Tack asked, walking around the area in search of something or somebody. He looked up at a dingy clocktower, standing a ways down the street and went inside, but not before telling Melena and Maxin, "I hear this guy does a lot of great things! We'll find our families, I'll transform into a human, our problems will be resolved!"

"Who is this guy?" Maxin asked, following Tack and Melena up the wooden stairs.

"You'll see," Tack said, making his way to the top step and entering the wood-paneled room with wood paneled walls and floors. There was an assortment of red blankets and red pillows scattered throughout the ledges and floor, as well as a wooden table with vials and a mortar bowl sitting on top of the table's surface. "Xanax, you in here?"

"Xanax?" Melena and Maxin asked, cautious.

"Oomph!" a man with brunette hair, down to his shoulders, and wearing strange red robes and a green felt hat, bumped his head on a beam. He moved out from his crawlspace to greet the trio. "Xanax, at your service!"

"Xanax," Melena said, thinking the name over. "What an odd name!"

"Can you help us out?" Maxin asked the wizard, curious. "We're looking for my dad. He's a red dragonoid who goes by the name of Parker Dooley. Have you seen him?"

"Ah!" He looked at Melena in intrigue. "You my dear are a sight for sore eyes. Let me tell you this much. I can help you solve you problems!"

"You can?" Melena asked in excitement. Tack and Maxin asked the same question with a look of disdain and confusion written on their faces.

"What can you help her with?" Maxin asked, worried. "What about my dad?"

"Ah!" Xanax approached Melena, determined to help her out. "You see, my dear, Xanax fixes everything. I'm sure we can find what you're looking for!"

"You're so helpful!" Melena smiled, enjoying this.

"I thought we were looking for my dad!" Maxin complained, not liking to be ignored.

"You – we will get to your problems soon," Xanax said, ignoring Maxin and kissing Melena's hand. "Now, let's get to work." He said, fiddling with some vials and pouring the contents into a mortar. He poured some blue liquid next into the mortar, watching the smoke fume. He smiled, picking up a small spoon and offering it to Melena, Maxin, and Tack. "Of course, I'm now a spiritual guide who lives here in this clock tower. Never mind that now. Drink up!"

The moment Maxin was given the drink, and drank it, he found his mind foggy and hazy. He was offered a spot on the floor, putting his head on top of a red pillow. The song Xanax sang was mesmerizing, so mesmerizing Maxin was nearly asleep in seconds. All that changed the moment he, Tack, and Melena stood upright on their own as if invisible hands were pulling them up. Maxin opened his eyes, watching a door materialize in the room, along with Xanax standing next to the door.

"A door! There's a door!" Melena said in excitement.

Maxin felt free… wait. Really? Okay, he needed to clear his head. Good thing he was waking up, allowing him to follow Melena and Tack through the open doorway and into a house with a stage covered in hay, surrounded by various people. Maxin stared in shock at the robed people wearing masks. There was a taller robed figure, staring at his children and his wife, who was a purple, female dragonoid.

"Who is this? Where are we?" Maxin asked Melena and Tack, confused.

"Welcome back, sister," Tack said to Melena, feeling awful about this place.

"We're back in the First World," Melena said, staring at her elder brother. "This was the day our father kicked us out."

"I'm sorry. What?" Maxin asked, confused.

Melena and Tack ignored Maxin, turning their attention to the scene before them. Maxin hated to be ignored, but he guessed the only way to get his companions' attention was to face the scene before them. He turned his attention to the scene inside this hut, watching Melena and Tack, who was in his human form here, where he was a boy with light brown, curly hair and wearing red clothing. Their sisters were human, too, but were they always? Nonetheless, all the siblings were children here, while their parents apparently were the robed man wearing the mask and the female, purple dragonoid.

"Everyone is gathered here for a reason!" The Shaman of the Whills announced. "Everyone willing to meet this demand." He turned to Helen, asking her, "I'll give you one last chance to prove that you are a good dragonoid, shapeshifter, or otherwise."

"I've told you I'm a shapeshifter. What more do you want?" The purple dragonoid, Helen, asked, concerned. "I've been decent to you. I've helped us raise our children." She snarled. "You look at me with such disdain and horror. It's no wonder you decided to abandon us."

"Do you want our children to grow up mean and selfish? No? Then you should learn respect, Helen. Please, allow our children to take the escape pod. It's the only way to escape this world, the First World's, destruction," The Shaman of the Whills said, trying to reason with her.

Helen shook her head. "You know what they'll see? A father who is a coward. I'm taking our children out of this world! Then they'll see what kind of monster you are, Shaman!"

"You mean what kind of monster you've become," the Shaman said, annoyed. "Know this, Helen. If you so much as betray Parker Dooley, then I will have to assist him myself."

"Then consider this conversation over. Come along, children," Helen said, placing her hand on her children's heads, including on her stomach. A blue glow emitted from her scaly purple hand, causing each child to follow Helen willingly, as if they didn't remember anything that happened here.

"I've seen enough," Melena said, heading back through the door. Maxin followed Tack in the same direction, back to Xanax's room, unsure what to make of what they saw. As soon as the door was closed, Melena told her companions in annoyance. "I cannot believe our mother did that, Tack! If she is as evil as they've said she was, then we should have seen it! She's not here anymore, not among the living, at least."

"Helen the Shapeshifter lived as well as she did, but even she kept track of Maxin's parents, and we know her fate." Tack said, caringly. "Now, we must protect Maxin and help him find his father, as well as our sisters. It's important that we do this, Melena. We don't have to stay here anymore if you don't want to."

"But how are we to find them?" Maxin asked, confused. "We don't even know where my father and Qua'ra fled to."

"Well, if you're looking for assistance, I do have a way to help you out. Have you ever heard of Neverland? Gorgeous world – and unfortunately, Parker Dooley hightailed out of there before I had the chance to speak to him." Xanax said, out of curiosity.

"So, where did he go?" Melena asked, serious. "Maybe you know a shortcut."

"Ah. You'll have to check at Belsavis because let me tell you, he's not there either," Xanax said, laughing. "And no one can help you out, but me. So, it looks like you're out of luck."

"Where were they heading to last?" Maxin asked, curious. He received no answer. He told Melena and Tack, heading out the door, "Come on. It looks like we're galaxy hopping."

"Yeah, well I would start with Belsavis and go from there," Xanax said. "It's the closest you have to discovering that he's a prisoner in his own way."

Maxin stopped by the door leading out of Xanax's room. He faced the wizard, telling him, "Then we'll have to start there." He looked at Melena and Tack, saying, "Come on. He's not going to help us out anymore."

"Well, he did tell us about Belsavis. Let's start there!" Melena said, optimistically, following Maxin out the clocktower and back to their ship.

"Yeah, that sounds good," Maxin said, waiting until Melena and Tack were inside the ship, before joining them. The moment everyone was in the Ebon Hawk, Maxin raised the ramp, before fleeing into the cockpit. Ah! It felt good to be on the ship again!

"You ready?" Melena asked, taking her seat on the co-pilot's chair.

"Yeah," Maxin said, sitting on the pilot's chair. He didn't waste time. He pressed a couple of buttons, as well as lowered the lever, before the ship kicked into action. They were off into space! That was too short a trip! Well, he hoped the trip to Belsavis was brighter than this trip; at least that's what he hoped.

*.*.*

References:

Xanax is the wizard from ABC's television show, "Galavant". The Whills are from the "Star Wars" galaxy. Neverland is from J.M. Barrie's book and play "Peter Pan". Belsavis is one of the planets found in the "Star Wars" galaxy.