Chapter 10

So Anthony, Natalee, Liseli and Tik-Tok continued heading east, searching for the other two Tiktoks and the Grimmerie if at all possible. We had been walking for hours, and the weather was really dreary. Cloudy and a bit dark, looking like it was going to thunderstorm. We were all following TikTok because he knew where his guards were, and also, we had not been in Ev, ever. After a long couple of hours, TikTok told us we needed to climb the mountains, and search for the Nome Kings Underground Dominion. It wasn't really underground, it was inside the mountains. And like the Emerald City's layout, the tallest mountain, which was well above the clouds, is where the King himself resided. In the mountains, the weather was much different. It was freezing, high winds, and snow covered. TikTok and Liseli were fine, but me and Natalee were shivering, and wearing shorts!

"Anthony can't you use your staff to get that shield around us again?" Natalee yelled over the howling winds. We could feel the ground shaking, which being entirely made of rock, made us feel like the Nomes were laughing at us. They certainly knew where we were. Anthony decided to be more theatrical in activating his shield so he held it up in front of him, and spun it in one hand as the familiar half blue and half purple shield engulfed them again. It wasn't warm, but it shielded us from the winds, the snow and most importantly, if we did meet the Nomes up here we would be protected. Higher and deeper we hiked in these winter death mountains, searching for where and what TikTok believed to be the entrance. Liseli asked to come into our shield and so I allowed my staff to protect her as well. We couldn't even enjoy the view from this height because the visibility was so poor from the snow.

"Just a little further, we can do it!" TikTok assured us. He knew we humans were getting tired of the weather, but we continued anyway. We knew that once we found the entrance to the Nome King's underground lair, we'd be fine, but until them we had to go through this ordeal by ice. The snow was up to our knees, and TikTok had to constantly swivel his arms around down in front of him acting like a horizontal drill, plowing away the snow and ice in front of us, creating the path for us to follow. Liseli was keeping an eye on Natalee's handbag, making sure her eggs were safe. Even though she knew they wouldn't hatch, they were still hers. So she ensured their safety for her own need, as well as that of the mission's. Natalee was freezing, being a more tropical person, she was having a very hard time, her lips were blue from the temperature, so Anthony held her very close to him. He was somehow always even a little warm, and wanted to make sure she was okay. Well, better than okay, he loved her very much, and wanted her to be fine. He knew she was still scared about the Nomes, but was very impressed.

"That day when that Nome slashed your back, I thought I was going to loose you. And then I had to fight the rest of the Nomes alone, I was terrified, and sad, and worried. I love you Anthony, it really scared me to think that maybe I was too slow at trying to heal you. Not to mention how terrified I still am of the Nomes. I really don't like the idea of being watched." Natalee confided.

"I love you Natalee, nothing will change that. I was scared for you too, I'm not trying to say that I don't think you can fight, on the contrary, you are very good. I was just horrified that something happened to me that put you in a spot where I couldn't help you. I don't know what I would do if anything were to happen to you." Anthony admitted. In his head, he said to himself that he knew exactly what he would do, after years of crying and depression, he would slowly loose his mind, never again able to smile or laugh. She was his life, his reason for going on, if that died, he would too.

We kept walking down the mountains for days it seemed. Eventually we reached a hollowed out cave, and I was able to deactivate my shield. Again we walked even further and deeper into the Mountainside until TikTok stopped abruptly. I knew he didn't wind down because I had already done it for him three times. Liseli was very relieved to be out of the elements and in somewhat warmer climate.

"Not the most intimat King is he? All secluded like this." She knew he was imprisoned here, but tried to make a joke anyway. In point of fact, The Nome King, having so many Nomes that do his bidding for him, has become so rich and magically powerful, he has actually turned imprisonment, into his own Kingdom, as is labled on the maps, Nome King's Dominion, not Prison, or jail.

"What's the matter? Have we reached the Nome King's Dominion?" I asked him. Tik Tok was frozen solid. All he said was,

"This is where the other two Tik-Toks were sent, but something seems wrong. And he was right. There was indeed something wrong with what they were seeing. It was dark and obviously there was something here that needed seeing, and it was also something that TikTok didn't recognize. Wrapped up in a large black cloth, was a decently thick black very old looking book. The letters moved around when you looked at them, so that it couldn't be read, and there were picures here and there, that must have depicted what these "words" were telling or instructing. When we picked it up and blew the dust off of it, Natalee and I grew stone cold, and I froze in fear, dropping the book with a deep thud in the echoing stone cave. This was the Grimmerie, unclothed in The Wicked Witch's old cloak.

"My god Natalee, it's still wet from the battle at Lake Chorge!" I was very freaked out, because it seemed staged to me, to have the most powerful source of black ancient magic right out in the open, and hidden in the books most loyal wielder's cloak too.

"You don't think the Nome King has her body and is trying to revive her with that book do you?" TikTok asked.

"No we saw her disentegrate, there couldn't be anything left of her!" Natalee said in self assurance. The thought that this Witch even might have the possibility of returning was sickening.

"Well if she disintegrated, wouldn't her clothes have been destroyed with her?" Liseli pointed out.

"Everybody stop! Elphaba died, the Grimmerie is here to tem,pt us into something let's drop it, and continue on." Anthony rationalized. He was freaked out too, but we were wasting time.

"Don't you want to take the Grimmerie?" asked Liseli.

"We can't read it, we have no use for it, and it's one more thing t carry." I reasoned. Natalee thought about it though.

"If we had the Grimmerie, we could either give it to Ozma, or we could destroy it, or we could try to use it our self, OR! We could just keep it away from the Nome King, just so he doesn't have it." Natalee suggested. She was intrigued by the endless possibilities of the Grimmerie, not because she was being corrupted, but just because she didn't want to have to fight the Nomes anymore, they still scared her greatly.

"We will take it to prevent the Nome King from having it. The less power he has, the better for us." TikTok agreed with me, and I picked up the Grimmerie from the Witch's cloak, which I left on the cave floor. Then as we continued walking, I turned around and single handedly aimed my Altar Staff at the cloak, and shot fire out at it. To only Liseli and TikTok's surprise, the cloak remained undamaged. So to further demonstrate the Witch's power, I shot a jet stream of water out at it, and it shriveled away. They were surprised but Natalee and I weren't. I walked back to catch up with them, and then we finally saw the still, motionless Royal Oz guards, now covered in dust, and completely wound down. Natalee sat down on a nearby rock and smiled with our continued success. Liseli landed on Natalee's shoulder, and TikTok patted me on the back as I wound them up with my Emerald key.