(AN: Okay, we've got another long-ish one. It gets a little bit "political", but then again, this is closer to Wicked the book than Wicked the musical, so I can gets away with i! :D Something very important happens here...hint hint...the title has to do with it!)

Chapter Eleven - Kiamo Ko Again

The four of them stood almost stunned in the North Tower, having just witnessed the departure of the Lady Glinda. None of them knew exactly what to say. They still had so little to go on, and Glinda had only told them what had befallen in the woods (an event Kloxolk hadn't witnessed and therefore knew nothing about, and it meant little to him).

Ozma was uneasy. As much as she wanted to ignore the truth, she could see no way around it. She had one of the Golden Wonders, she had to tell the others about it. They could use it to keep track of the enemy, to make sure he couldn't find the other Wonders.

But there was another thing that made her uneasy. She knew that, for all of General Kloxolk's hard, stern exterior, he was right. She did not know how to run a country. She just wanted to party, have fun and have all the people love her. Was that too much to ask? Could she not enjoy herself and yet still be loved by all?

For the General, that was too much. And he would not cease from telling her that she was misleading her people.

And deep down inside, she knew that he was right. She couldn't lead her people. It slowly dawned upon her that she was ruining Oz.

And she didn't care. It would all blow over, she told herself. Something would happen, all of Oz would be set to rights, the people would get back to loving her, and all of this would be nothing but a bad dream.

She dismissed herself and walked off to her chambers to sleep. She couldn't stand the pressure.

"So," the green-skinned girl named Rain asked after a long silence that followed Ozma's departure. "How can I help?"

"You can help," Dorothy answered roughly. "by not ever talkin' 'bout that wicked ol' witch, the only other person with green skin. You give me th'willies, just lookin' at you."

"What witch?" asked Rain.

"The one you look like!" Dorothy all-but shouted.

"What is with you, your highness?" asked Kloxolk. "Can't you appreciate someone despite their skin-color?"

"This commin' from you?" she asked. "Hangin' out with Nomes and other filth."

"I beg your pardon?"

"You heard me." Dorothy said confrontation-ally. She then turned to Rain. "And you, don't talk. I don't even wanna see you again, s'that clear?"

Rain sighed, her face disappearing beneath her hood.

"We should be working together." Kloxolk said, sounding thoroughly annoyed with Dorothy and Ozma's petty behavior. "The destruction of that fortress is key."

"But how can we do it?" Dorothy asked.

"No magic can harm it," he said. "I know because the sorcerers of Ev tried on those that erupted back home."

"Wait, this happen'd before?" Dorothy asked.

"That was why I came to Oz," Kloxolk said. "We needed help against the rise of the crystals; black giants, the kind that make up that fortress."

"So what happens now?" queried the farm-girl princess.

"Only force can destroy those crystals, I presume." Kloxolk said. "But we must charge them en masse, or else we will be eaten away by the magic of those crystals. That's why I sent Aidan, Ruddrix and Boq to seek for aid. With enough man-power, we should be able to break the castle."

"What about Gilly-kin or Winkie-land?" asked Dorothy.

"I'm afraid Glinda's arrival prevented me from sending Khyorke to Gilikin..."

Almost immediately, the huge Hippogryph flew down into the landing.

"General!" he shouted. "I bumped into someone who said they saw you up here." He saw Kloxolk's surprised look. "Is all well?"

"Yes," the General responded. "I have a mission for you. Go to Gilikin and rouse the people to action. We need to assemble in the Emerald City as soon as possible."

"At once." Khyorke said, nodding and then taking off as soon as he had left.

The General pulled himself clumsily up into a standing position and turned to Dorothy.

"You're friends with the Tin Woodsman, am I correct?" he asked.

"Uh-huh." she replied.

"Come with me." he said, beginning his way down the steps. Then he recalled that he forgot something and turned around to the silent, black-robed figure.

"My apologies, miss. Please, come with us."

The three of them had come to the lowest level of the North tower, and were making their way down the deserted North hall when a little girl in green passed them by.

"Hey, servant!" Dorothy called to her. "C'me'ere."

Jellia came as she was called. "Yes, princess?"

"Where's the Tin Man?" she asked.

"He's gone back to his castle in the Vinkus." the servant replied humbly.

"Is he mad?" asked the General. "That fortress is far too close! It's suicide!"

"Don't start that again!" Dorothy said. "Nobody dies in Oz, so what's there to worry about?"

"Have you heard nothing of what I said?" Kloxolk shouted at Dorothy, losing his patience. "That crystal fortress prevents Ozma's magic from working. Without it, death is quite possible. You need to get that through your head now before its too late!"

She gave a "huff" and turned her back on him.

"Lady," Kloxolk said, turning to the servant girl. "Can you tell me where the Wizard is?"

The girl, though shocked by his previous outburst, blushed a little and giggled at being called a lady. She then composed herself and thus replied:

"He's in the main throne room," she said. "I think he's having dinner."

"Good, I need to speak with him."

"Wait," Dorothy said, turning back to him. "I thought you didn't trust 'im."

"I don't! But he's had his thumb on the pulse of Oz for a very long time. He might be able to help." He then turned to them. "Princess, you must go to the Vinkus and persuade your friend to return to the Emerald City. It's not safe out there!"

Without another word, he stumbled his way down towards the main hall.

"Well, there's a fine 'how'd'ya do!'" Dorothy exclaimed.

"What happens now?" Rain asked.

"Hey!" Dorothy said. "What did I tell you about speakin'? Now come with me, we're goin' to Winkie-land." She then whistled and her dog Toto ran to her side. Picking him up in her arms, she left the Palace and set out on her way towards the Vinkus, with Rain following six steps behind.

One look back and the little black dog barked at the black-clad woman.

"Yeah, I know, Toto." Dorothy said to the dog. "She gives me the creepers. But better t'have 'er close, where I can make sure she's not doin' bad stuff than free on her own to do it, right?"

The dog gave a "woof" in agreement.

The sky was dark, for the clouds continued to possess the sky. Little to no light came through the dark reek up above, and the only light that was from without were camp-fires lit in the far corners of Oz, or a strange kind of pale, dead glow coming from the crystal fortress in the West.

The two figures were now far on their way out of the Emerald City, it turning into nothing more than a green haze behind them. They headed north-west, with the river on their left-hand. This was the Gilikin River, whose source was the great lake of Restwater, directly south of the Emerald City. It wound its way northwest for a long while, branching off into a few smaller streams and creeks along the way, before it bent north-east sharply a few miles north of Kiamo Ko. It then snaked its way across the mid-section of Gilikin, dividing the Lowlands and the Uplands of Gilikin, until it came to a rest somewhere on the far-eastern border of the Great Gilikin Forest.

However, they would not be going down the whole river. Just around where the river wound north-eastward, at the political border between the Vinkus and Gilikin, they would cross the Emperor's Bridge. This was a rather new addition, created not during the reign of Emperor Apostle Shell Thropp, but by the Tin Woodsman himself, who called himself "Emperor of the Winkies." The Emperor's Bridge served as an easy mode of access across the Gilikin River to the Emperor's Tin Castle, located in the mountains just west of the Wiccasand Turning.

They would cross the bridge and continue along the border until they came to the Emperor's Castle, which was the termination of their journey.

The West was still rugged in many ways, though it had become a little tame when the dandy Tin Woodsman ruled over the Vinkus. In fact, one might even say that the Vinkus had lost its fire with the ruling of Tin Man. The people were forced to adapt the Munchkin and Gilikin style of their rulers, and even permitted themselves to be called the pejorative "Winkie" rather than the correct Vinkan. The Emperor's Castle was a sign of outer influence upon the Vinkus, a sign that it was being slowly industrialized and overcome by the rest of "civilized" Oz.

That night, or the murky-black darker-than-darkness that used to be called night, the travelers slept in a broken-down barn that sat by itself. Dorothy had Toto nearby, while Rain, the green-skinned woman, huddled by herself on the other side of the barn. The little farm-girl snored away loudly, wholly oblivious that her friend was responsible for robbing the Vinkans of their old lifestyle.

The quickest way to get to the Emperor's Bridge would be to make a straight line there-to from the Emerald City. However, due to the severe lack of roads in this part of the country, the Eastern Vinkus, it was rather easy to get lost if one did not know the wagon-trails that the bolder adventurers used to take. Since Dorothy knew them not, she used the River as her guide. This was sound, for the River would lead them directly to the Emperor's Bridge...in time.

The downside to this plan was the tediousness of the voyage. A straight line across the many creeks that branched off from the Gilikin River was not something Dorothy had in mind, and Rain always kept a safe distance away from the water's edge: safe being far enough away that, if she did trip, she would not roll down into the water. Dorothy found this odd, until she remembered, despite trying to force the memory down, that the Witch, the only other green-skinned person she knew, was killed because of water.

Though the memory of the water turning into harmless snow that moment in the North Tower also reminded Dorothy that, even if she did have water to throw at Rain, it might not do any good.

At this, another thought came into Dorothy's head. It was not a memory, and so she did not suppress it. But there was something curious about the fact that the Wicked Witch, who would not have been called a witch had she not possessed some kind of evil, magical power, simply let the water devour her rather than doing something to prevent it, as Rain had done. This lead to the supposition that, perhaps, Rain had greater magical power than even the Witch had.

This made Dorothy very uneasy, for though she hated that green thing that reminded her of the Witch, it was the mere thought that she could have enough power to repay all those hurtful things Dorothy was doing to her that made the little girl cringe in fear at the sight of it.

Or maybe it was fear that made her cringe? The memory of the Witch and the realization that her past had come back to haunt her.

But she was without fault, she told herself. It wasn't her fault that her house killed the other witch, who was the green witch's sister. Nor was it her fault that her friends killed the wolves, the bees or the crows while they themselves were walking this very path to her castle. It wasn't even her fault that she threw the water: how was she to know it would kill the Witch? No, she reasoned, she was not at fault.

Then why did she feel guilt whenever she thought of the Witch or looked at Rain?

Perhaps that was the real reason she hated this new green girl. Not because she was ugly, for even her voice bespoke of beauty, but because looking at her made her feel guilty.

Something she did not want to feel.

Two more days passed as they continued on their journey. The Great Kells now rose up in sight on the other side of the River, erupting the now yellowing grass and turf of the Eastern Vinkus. The sun did not raise its face again, and the glow of the Emerald City was now almost a green star, flirting with the edge of the horizon.

They continued on their way, having successfully navigated around the many lakes the previous days and once again had the River on their left-hand. The high-mountains of the Great Kells loomed on the other side of the river, while endless plains of golden-green grass stretched to the right, far off to the small green star on the eastern horizon.

Suddenly, Toto started barking.

"What is it, boy?" asked Dorothy. "D'you see something?"

Toto barked again.

Looking in the direction, she saw that Rain was no longer behind them. Instead, she was walking off toward the left hand, to the River's edge.

"Hey!" Dorothy called. "Rainy! You come back 'ere this minute! D'ya' hear me?"

There was no response as the black-clad figure walked towards the River's edge. Silence hung in the air, broken only by Dorothy's calls.

"We ain't goin' that way!" she shouted. "Now come'on back 'ere a'fore somethin' bad happens! I ain't gonna wanna get you outta it, ya hear?"

Still there was no response. Dorothy almost wished that Rain wouldn't stop, that she would keep on walking and fall into the River. Perhaps, with all that water, she would melt away faster than she could scream. Or she would be washed away and Dorothy would finally be rid of all memory of green people forever.

Then, to her astonishment, she saw the water's surface turn to ice even as Rain's boots touched the surface. Slowly, steadily, the black-clad woman inched her way across the surface of the water, walking on a sheet of ice.

"Uh..." Dorothy moaned, fearful as she witnessed yet another act of Rain's great power. Or was it disappointment that she wouldn't be rid of that green-skinned person so easily.

"I just said we ain't goin' that way!" she called back. "Stop!"

But nothing she said would deter the green-skinned woman from crossing the River. She was already half-way over, there would be no stopping her once she reached the other side.

Fine, thought Dorothy. Let her go. I couldn't care less. I never wanted her here to begin with, she's a waste of space.

But the world was dark, and the shadows seemed to leer at her from behind everything, even the blades of grass. Without the warmth of the sun or any companion other than Toto, the beautiful land of Oz seemed very menacing to her.

"Let her go, Toto." Dorothy said to her dog, who hadn't made one attempt to follow Rain. "We're just gonna sit here and not go wit'her, no matter what."

The little farm-girl threw herself upon the ground, with Toto at her side.

Getting smaller and smaller, Rain was now on the other side of the River. But the sheet of ice still kept the "River bridge" intact.

A frustrated and very unlady-like grunt came from Dorothy's lips as she got back to her feet and ran towards the River, shouting: "Wait fer me, please!"

A long way and many skids and cuts later, all of them on Dorothy's feet from slipping on the ice, she finally caught up with Rain.

"What in tarnations is in yer head, ya dumb thang?" she scolded the green-skinned woman. "Didn't I tell ya we ain't goin' this way? Now c'mon, let's get back over b'fore..."

Turning back behind her, she saw that the ice-bridge had melted. The River resumed its rightful course.

"Lookit what'choo did!" she scolded. "Now we can't get back across nohow!"

Rain paid no attention and walked on towards the west, towards the mountains.

A whimper escaped Dorothy's lips when she looked up and saw what lie at the top of those mountains.

"Now you listen here, missy," she said, trying to sound authoritative. "You stop this minute! We ain't goin' up there, to that there castl' and that's that!"

No response, except for the silence as the black-clad figure continued on her chosen path.

In her frustration, she picked up a rock and threw it at Rain's back. This got the black-clad woman's attention, for she turned around and stopped.

"Are you messed up in th'head?" she asked. "We ain't goin' that way! We gotta go back. We gotta find the Tin Man! Only because that dad-gum Gen'ral told us to. I don't know why, though. He's been so bossy since we got back. Maybe we should just ignore his dang orders 'n go back to th' Emerald City. I miss a warm bed and good food. Can't believe you didn't pack no food wit'choo. I mean, it's not like..."

"Would you please shut up?" Rain asked, her sweet voice sounding angry.

"Hey!" Dorothy shout back. "I told ya I don't want no talkin' outta ya!" She reached down, picked up another stone and threw it at Rain. To her great surprise, it flew back and hit her on the shoulder. "Ow!"

Rain hadn't been hit. In fact, much to Dorothy's annoyance, she was smiling.

Once again, she set off towards the castle, with a sore Dorothy following at her tail.

Now getting very fearful with each step closer to the castle.

It didn't seem harmful at all, and she was curious as to why Dorothy got very uptight about it. It was very irrational, Rain thought, to be afraid of something so innocent-looking, albeit a little dark against the blackening sky.

Up the sides of the mountain they went, a steep way it was too. Only Rain, it seemed, had no trouble getting to the top of the mountain. Dorothy, however, was stumbling and kept scraping her knee and tearing her dress. Rain had learned half-way up the mountain-side to just drown out all the sighs and groans that complaining Dorothy uttered from below.

They had now reached the top, and could have a better view of the castle. The gates were left open, and it seemed very run down and left to rot, though the castle seemed to have plainly refused to fall into great decay.

"What is that place?" Rain asked, regardless of what Dorothy would say.

The little girl, with Toto in her arms, was now at her side, trembling visibly and shaking as she spoke. She didn't even care that Rain was talking. In fact, all things considered, it was a beautiful and friendly voice. She would have loved listening to it...

If it didn't belong to someone so...green.

"I ferget the name," she said, trembling. "Its...uh...Kee-Ah-Mo-Ko, or sumthin' like that."

"What an interesting name."

"C'mon, please." Dorothy whined. "Let's get outta here!"

But an overwhelming desire had come upon the green-skinned girl to go inside and explore the castle. As if pulled by some will other than her own, or perhaps in conjunction with her own, she began walking towards the castle-gate.

They came upon a very run-down place, for the castle hadn't had inhabitants in almost a hundred years. Rain made her way through the halls curiously, looking at everything that she saw with great intent. Despite its broken appearance, there was some heart left in this dreary old castle.

Dorothy, on the other hand, was afraid. Memories of this place haunted her like ghosts. And newer, even worse memories, haunted her of this place, specifically the East Tower. She didn't like it when she and Ozma went there, and it wasn't any better now.

It was even worse now, for she had someone who reminded her frightfully so of the previous owner of this castle.

They were now walking down one of the many hallways of the castle. It was long and silent, and their footsteps echoed as they walked down the stones. Dorothy's heart was pounding fiercely beneath her chest, for she feared something bad was going to happen any second, and she could feel the hairs on her arm raise up as she began to relive a frightening memory.

Rain suddenly tripped over a bucket that was lying upon the floor. As she slowly rose to her feet, her attention was brought to the floor, where she saw some old, black clothes sitting in a pile on the floor before her.

"Oh, dear Lord." whined Dorothy in a half-whisper.

"What happened here?" Rain asked curiously, getting up to look at what she saw. Dorothy was trembling and kept her mouth shut, all the while fearing to say the wrong thing but wanting to just grab that thin, black-clad green arm and run out as fast as her trembling legs could carry her.

As Rain finally got up and was brushing herself off of the dust that was on the floor, she noticed the hat Glinda gave her was lying on the ground.

"Hmmm." she said curiously. It had been a while, and she had forgotten all about the hat. She put her fingers around it, and discovered that it was warm to the touch. Perhaps because it had been snuggled so close to her body that it was warmed by her, she wondered.

"Please put that down!" Dorothy begged.

"Why?" Rain asked, picking it up and examining it. "Glinda told me to keep it with me always." She then pushed off the hood, and a smile crept across her green-lipped face. "Besides, it's a rather nice-looking hat."

Dorothy whimpered fearfully, but managed to squeeze a very weak smile in return, fearing what was coming next. Rain put the hat on her head, and smiled a lovely, green-faced and truthful smile at Dorothy. It made the little girl sick to her stomach to see something so green and ugly smile (though she knew Rain was anything but ugly). But an even worse feeling overtook her when she saw the hat on her head.

She barely kept a scream from escaping her lips.

Rain looked almost exactly like her.

"How do I..."

But before Rain could say 'look', she collapsed. It sounded like she was gagging. Dorothy dare not touch her, for something was freezing her where she stood. A few moments of gagging were followed by writhing, as if in great pain. Once again Dorothy's body refused to move.

After all, she thought, if she was dying, why should I try to help? I never liked that hideous green face before.

But another thing was rooting her little feet into the ground.

Fear.

Rain's face suddenly came up to look, staring directly into Dorothy's eyes. She could see that something was wrong, for a change had come. Slowly and gradually, the green face started to change. It was still green, but the youth and freshness, or 'loveliness' of Rain's face started to melt away. The full, brown eyes began to narrow and became piercing and metallic blue.

Then she fell to the floor. She moved no more.

All was silent.

(Cliffhanger! Ask your questions in the review below!)