Bastian Balthazar Bux has returned to the pages of the Neverending Story through the powers of the mystical AURYN, but now he has been granted the power of going into the pages of any story he wishes. But this new gift has awakened the Wicked Witch of the Southwest, who now seeks AURYN'S power for her own use.
Bastian and his newly collected group of friends, including Huck Finn and Mike Teavee, are the only ones who can stop her, but with AURYN currently in the possession of Tiny Tim and Bastian's team recruiting one final member, the Wicked Witch gets ever closer to her goal...
Knights of the Neverending Story #11
"The Oz War, Part 1"
Terrance had been worn out as he landed on Mike's shoulder. the airy had managed to get away from the owl by tricking it into crashing into a tree before returning to his friend.
"You look tired," Mike said as he poured some water into his hand for Terrance to drink from. "What have you been doing?"
"You wouldn't believe me," Terrance said as he drank as much water as he could. Bastian returned, followed by Huck and Nibs.
"Where's our new member?" Mike asked.
"He's not coming," Bastian said. "It's kind of... complicated. You guys don't know this book. I guess we came after some very... dark stuff went down. He's not interested in doing, well, anything."
"So we came all this way for nothing?" Huck asked as he kicked the air. "That's just great. The Childlike Empress said we needed someone magic, and we got sent here. Are you sure you got the right guy?"
"He's the only one here," Bastian said. "Frankly I kind of expected someone else- ANYONE else- but this is where we landed, so I have to assume that-"
"Bastian, look," Nibs said as he pointed at someone coming from the cabin. "Is that him?"
"Yeah, he's probably going to tell us to get lost," Bastian said.
"I'm in," the young man said.
"What made you change your mind?" Bastian asked.
"Because you might be able to give me something I want," he said. "I want-"
The Wicked Witch of the Southwest was completing her latest spell as she smiled evilly while looking into her crystal ball. Outside, her winged monkey minions were gathering around the castle, and thanks to a powerful duplication spell, their ranks were growing by the second.
"Glinda's powers continue to increase my own magic," the Wicked Witch said. "But still, I have yet to be able to open a door between worlds large enough to bring all under my rule. But that will change very soon."
The Wicked Witch waved her hands around the crystal ball, seeing the Tin Man put AURYN into his metal chest.
"Soon, the power of that amulet will allow me to conquer every world, starting with Oz," the Wicked Witch said as she stepped out onto her balcony, looking over her ever increasing army. "I dare not attempt a full siege of the Emerald City while they possess the amulet. So we will bring the amulet to us. I need a small group to complete a surgical strike!"
"I can't believe this is a real place," Tiny Tim said as he looked out over Oz from the top floor of the Emerald City Tower. The poppy fields were in full bloom as he took in the view. "It's far more beautiful than anything I've ever seen."
"How's the leg brace?" the Tin Man asked as Tiny Tim tapped on it.
"It's way better than having to use a crutch, but I miss having something to swing around," Tiny Tim said. "Especially with a witch gunning for us."
"If it's a weapon you need, I can gladly make you a crutch to swing at that witch," Tin Man told him.
"I think we need to focus on bigger things," Dorothy said as she stood at the door. "Like the Wicked Witch now having all of Glinda's magic at her disposal. If that amulet is as powerful as you two say it is, then it must be protected from her at all costs. If she got ahold of that, it would mean the end of Oz."
"The end of every world, actually," Tiny Tim said. "I just wish there was a way of contacting Bastian to let him know where we are."
"Dorothy, you still have the silver slippers," Scarecrow said as he thought up an idea. "They have the power to teleport its wearer anywhere they wish."
"Of course, you can take AURYN back to Bastian so that he may come here and defeat the Witch with its power," Dorothy said as she looked at Tiny Tim. "Between AURYN and the silver slippers, we may have a chance of stopping the Wicked Witch once and for all."
"Bastian, a word over here?" Huck asked as he led Bastian away from the others. "Can you do that?"
"You saw what happened in Neverland with the Lost Boys," Bastian said.
"You also had more powerful magic helpin' you," Huck said. "This is dark stuff we're talkin' about here. Voodoo level stuff. You don't go messin' with that kind of dark magic."
"What other choice do we have, Huck?" Bastian asked. "We need this guy to stop the Wicked Witch. It'll all work out, I hope."
"What do you mean you're out of fairy dust?" Mike asked as he held Terrance upside down and gently shook him. "Come on, man, give up the stuff!"
"We're not in Neverland, and I don't have an endless supply!" Terrance shouted as Bastian and Huck returned. "Besides, I might have... relieved myself of the last of it while I was being chased by that owl."
"Without fairy dust, our new friend can't fly with us to Oz," Bastian said.
"Uh, guys?"
"Maybe we can fly back to Fantasia. It's connected to Neverland now, we can gas up and be on our way in no time," Nibs suggested.
"Guys?"
"Ain't no time for that, the Witch is gonna make her move any minute now," Huck told them. "Maybe we should-"
"GUYS!"
All heads turned toward the newest member of their group.
"I have an idea."
Tiny Tim removed his boots, leaving them in the corner as the silver slippers were brought to him. "Aren't those a little... girly?"
"It's true, a man has never worn them before, but they should work just as well for you," Dorothy told him. "As soon as the Tin Man returns, he will return AURYN to you. Then you just have to think of your friends and wish yourself to them."
"Right, then I'll bring Bastian and the guys here and we'll show that Wicked Witch what's what," Tiny Tim said as he sat down and put the slippers on. "Hey, they fit perfectly."
"And they will remain perfectly fit until you yourself either remove them and hand them to another owner, or you are defeated and the shoes are taken," Dorothy told him. "Take care of them, Tim."
"Hey, let's not get carried away. I'm not planning on keeping these things, once I get back with Bastian, they're all yours again, your majesty," Tiny Tim told her.
The Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Cowardly Lion all walked into the room. The Tin Man presented Tiny Tim with a shiny new crutch.
"Just in case you need it," Tin Man told him. "Now for AURYN."
Just as the Tin Man was about to open his chest to retrieve the amulet, the wall exploded, knocking everyone off balance. Before they knew what was going on, the Tin Man found himself flying out of the room, attaching to a large magnet being held by a squad of flying monkeys. The Wicked Witch was floating on her broomstick nearby.
"Hey!" Tiny Tim shouted. "Bring him back!"
"I'll return him in pieces once I have the amulet!" the Wicket Witch shouted as she saw the shoes on Tiny Tim. "The silver slippers!"
"That's right, double ugly!" Tiny Tim shouted. "And you can't take them unless you-"
A powerful blast from the Wicked Witch's simple flicking sent Tiny Tim flying right through the wall, where several monkeys flew in to retrieve him. Dorothy and the Lion quickly went to defend him, but the other winged monkeys kept them distracted. Tiny Tim was soon dragged out while unconscious.
"You're defeated, boy, the slippers are mine!" the Wicked Witch shouted as she pulled the slippers off of him while the monkeys held him. "Drop him!"
"No!" Dorothy shouted as the monkeys let him go. The boy fell toward the poppy field as the Wicked Witch just cackled as her. The rest of the winged monkeys returned to the air as the Wicked Witch stared down at the poppy field. She held out her hand and began to spread the field, covering the castle in the sleeping poppies.
"That should take care of Queen Dorothy and whoever else has any ideas of opposing me in the Emerald City!" the Wicked Witch shouted. "Back to the castle! We have an amulet to retrieve!"
The Wicked Witch and the winged monkeys flew back toward the castle as Tiny Tim lay cushioned by the expanded poppy field.
"The silver slippers and the amulet!" the Wicked Witch shouted as the Tin Man's chest was ripped open by the largest flying monkey she had. The Witch reached in and started pulling out random objects from the inside of him. Keys, toys, jewelry, tools, and many other things until a pile was laying on the floor. Finally, she pulled out AURYN, holding it in her hand. "At last."
"That doesn't belong to you!" the Tin Man shouted.
"Pipe down!" the Wicked Witch said as she thought about it. "Hmm, that's not a bad idea. Monkeys, take him to the boiler room! We'll melt him down and use him to rebuild my personal bathroom next week!"
As the Wicked Witch looked at AURYN and the slippers, she started to think. "The amulet's true owner won't be too far behind. This... Bastian Balthazar Bux could be a potential threat to me. Monkeys! Get the gas masks so the poppies don't affect you and return to the Emerald City, I have need of one more thing!"
Some time later, in the sky over the Emerald City, a light blue flying Ford Anglia appeared in the sky before coming to a halt in the forest near the castle. Bastian, Mike, Huck, Nibs, and Terrance tumbled out, along with the driver of the car. Once they were all on the ground, the car just honked and took off into the air again, until it was nothing but a twinkle in the sky.
"Never one for goodbyes, that one," George Weasely said as he stood up, having grown his red hair out to cover the missing ear on his left said. "Lucky for us the car was within summoning distance."
"Are we in the right place?" Nibs asked. "Is this Oz?"
Bastian looked up into the night sky. "I suppose so. The Childlike Empress said our love would lead us where ever we needed to go, so this must be it."
"Then where's Tom? And Tiny Tim?" Huck asked. "TOM!"
"Shh," Bastian said as he pulled Huck back. "We don't know what the situation is here yet. And without AURYN, we don't have real protection from-"
"Protego Totalum!" George said as he held up his wand, creating a protection spell around the group. "That should buy us a little time to come up with a plan."
"Okay, first thing's first," Bastian said. "We find out where Tom and Tiny Tim are. We find Tiny Tim, we find AURYN."
"Well, we should be within spittin' distance of AURYN right now, maybe it'll sense you're here," Huck told him. "You know this place better than anyone, where would they go?"
"Well, if Tom managed to get away, and if Tiny Tim got to safety, then I'd say... the Emerald City," Bastian said. "Let's find the nearest yellow brick road and get moving."
As soon as the group stepped out of the forest, Mike spotted a large structure in the distance. "Hey, Bastian, what's that place?"
"That's odd, the shape kind of reminds me of the Emerald City, but that place is blood red," Bastian told him. "It kind of looks like it's covered in poppies."
"Poppies make me sneeze," Huck said.
"You're adorable when you sneeze," Nibs told him.
"Hey, hey, hey, none of that!" Bastian told them. "We've got enough on our plate without you two pawing at each other. Besides, if I'm right, those poppies won't make you sneeze, they'll make you sleep. And it looks like we might be too late if the Emerald City is covered in them."
"George, can you cast a spell? Maybe get rid of the poppies?" Mike asked.
"We're talking miles and miles of poppies, I'm not that good," George told him. "I can cast a protection spell to keep the pollen from affecting us."
"Then do it," Bastian said. "We're going in and finding out what the hell happened."
The monkeys returned with Tiny Tim, dropping the unconscious boy off at the Wicked Witch's feet.
"Just a little scratched, but nothing that'll keep him from obeying my orders," the Wicked Witch said as she looked at her winged monkeys. "Leave us! I require all my concentration for this."
As the winged monkeys left the room, the Wicked Witch just gave a hideous smile as Tiny Tim started waking up.
"Oh, good, you're awake. Now the real fun can begin," the Wicked Wich said as she started waving her hands around in circular motion. "Powers of darkness, powers of evil, take this boy's mind and bend it to my will. Powers of chaos, powers of the night, take this boy's body, and twist it to my sight!"
From outside of the chamber, the guards at the door heard the sounds of clothes ripping, while Tiny Tim screamed in murderous pain before dead silence filled the air seconds later. After a few more seconds, the Wicked Witch's evil laugh filled the air.
TO BE CONTINUED...