Author's Note: Okay, after posting the first chapter I realized that I likely completely confused anyone who hasn't read the book. So. On that note, here's just a little bit of vital information from it you need for that chapter and this one.
If you're one of my regular readers and you're wondering why I'm not updating as much as I have been, it's because my show is opening in three weeks, which means I no longer have a life. ^_^
Tiktoks-sentient machines
The Clock of the Time Dragon-a mysterious clock that supposedly shows people their destiny. Also the leader of the tiktok movement.
The Vinkus-Also known as Winkie Country (although that's a huge insult) it's the home of three tribes of people (yes, winkies): the Scrow, the Yunamata, and the Arjiki (of whom Fiyero was prince)
Kumbricia- The first witch, whom many believe to be the origin of evil in the world.
Thanks to Liv for suggesting the moldy cheese in the last chapter.
Chapter 1
Glinda peered out the window of the wagon over Boq's shoulder, making him shift uncomfortably. The land outside had turned greener since they'd gone through Kumbricia's pass, but it was still unnaturally dry. The droughts seemed to be spreading and were no longer only affecting Munchkinland, but all the rest of Oz as well. Glinda surveyed the rolling rows of tents that made up the Scrow camp and shuddered. She turned to Boq.
"Imagine living without running water."
Boq shrugged.
"I can imagine worse things."
She gave him a strange look.
"Like what?"
Boq rolled his eyes, wondering how he'd ever thought she was the only thing in the world capable of bringing him joy.
"Plenty of things."
They'd gotten on the caravan only a day after receiving the cryptic message from Yackle. Boq had remembered that Elphaba had told him of her secret stronghold in Kiamo Ko, and the entire incident was too suspicious for either of them to ignore. The journey had been long, but not particularly hard mainly due to the fact that the party was small and the caravan leader capable. The local tribes had been peaceful lately, though no one would admit that it was due to the large group of Gale Forcers patrolling the area. The Yunamata had let them pass without a meeting, but a delegation of Scrow had requested (the polite word for demanded) that Boq and Glinda along with the caravan leader go to their religious shrine and meet with the princess.
Glinda looked at Boq tentatively.
"Are we actually going to do this?"
"What?"
"Meet with them."
"I don't see that we have a choice. . ."
She shifted uncomfortably and tried to the millionth time to beat the dust out of her enormous skirt. Boq coughed and waved his hands in front of his face in a fruitless attempt to dispel the cloud of dust Glinda had stirred up. He glared at her.
"Don't you have some kind of spell you could do for that instead?"
She glared back, crossed her arms over her chest and made a stubborn little "hmph" noise that was somewhere between a squeal and a grunt.
"I most certainly would not use magic for such a trivial thing."
Boq shook his head, thinking for what seemed the millionth time that he would never understand women.
Just then, the caravan leader called for them. Glinda looked fearfully at Boq for a moment, then grabbed the one plump bag she'd been permitted to bring on the journey and made her way to the front of the wagon without so much as glancing behind her to see whether or not Boq was following. He muttered a little to himself, then followed after her.
The ground beneath the wagon was cracked and dry, a clear reminder of the desperate status of the country's water supply. Boq grimaced silently. The drought had made him think of his crops on the farm back home, which brought his mind back to the reason he'd gone to the Emerald City in the first place. Milla and the children. He felt a pang of guilt at abandoning his mission and yet at the same time he'd known it was hopeless. At least here they might be able to accomplish something, if the old gypsy had been telling the truth. But with the current times, the warning had simply been too ominous to ignore.
Boq jumped down from the mouth of the wagon, the impact of his feet on the bone dry earth sending up a fresh puff of dust. He cleared his throat, then turned and offered his hand to Glinda. She took it and stepped daintily down beside him, aided by the advantage of an extra four inches of height.
"There's our welcoming committee," Boq muttered to her dully.
The party of Scrow approached them slowly and stopped a respectful few yards away. There were three of them, dressed in loosely spun brown tunics, their faces and hands stained a sickly yellow by the ever-present dust. Only their large, searching brown eyes seemed alive. The tallest among them, the leader it seemed, tentatively approached Boq and Glinda.
"Travelers," he greeted in a dry, scratchy voice that seemed perfectly suited to their surroundings, "Princess Nastoya of the Scrow requests your presence."
The party turned and began to walk away. Boq and Glinda followed, the caravan leader close behind. They nearly had to run to keep up as the three Scrow strode through the camp, and the small group reached the cave housing the Scrow shrine in mere minutes. The mouth of the cave was small and dark, closed off by a curtain woven from dried blades of grass. The caravan leader began to look jumpy, which only served to make Boq and Glinda nervous too. The three Scrow guides conferred for a few moments in a foreign tongue, then the leader turned back to them and pointed to the caravan leader.
"You stay here. The Princess wishes to speak to those two only."
They entered the cave hesitantly, blinking in the sudden darkness. The cave was dark and dank, smelling of incense and the flames of ritual fires. The princess sat on a low-backed chair in the middle. She was small and withered, her face wrinkled and hardened by years of hardship and the merciless rays of the afternoon sun. She regarded them with the gaze of one wizened by more pain than any soul should ever have to bare.
"Master Boq of Munchkinland, and Miss Glinda of the Arduennas, I do believe," she said with a quiet precision, causing them to jump slightly and then take a step closer to each other. "What is your purpose here?"
"To help a friend in need," Boq said boldly, then softer, "And to find my family…if they aren't…gone already."
"How did you know our names?" Glinda asked suspiciously.
The princess waved a hand dismissively.
"News gets to me. Even all the way out here. More news than you would think. I presume you know of the uprising in the Emerald City."
Boq nodded.
"The tragedy will not stop until the government has been restored. You yourselves are no longer safe there."
Boq looked alarmed.
"What are you saying?"
"There are ears everywhere Master Boq. You are both powerful, and that is known. If you go back, you will be next to disappear."
"So what do you suggest we do?" Glinda asked, her voice rising in pitch.
"It would not be the first time you have. . .stood up to the government, if I am not mistaken."
"You want us to found a resistance?" Boq asked incredulously.
"If you choose to call it that. Or you could call it a research project, as you did before. What's important is that your mission be the same. Namely to cause a change."
Boq looked at the ground.
"But before was different. Before…" he trailed off and sighed sadly.
The Princess nodded.
"That brings me to your purpose here. Come."
She turned and knocked six times on the wall of the cave behind her. They stared in amazement as the rock crumbled and fell away, revealing a secret room. They followed her to the door and looked in.
A figure lay deathly still on a bed in the middle of the room. The blankets had been arranged carefully and scented candles burned on altars all around the room. Boq felt his head begin to spin as he looked. Beside him, he heard Glinda gasp.
The figure's skin tone was decidedly green.
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