Chapter 8
"Richard, my good boy, you astound me!" said the Wogglebug suddenly. He and Richard had been discussing tactics for the unexpected proposal of going to kill the Witch of the West. And Richard had mentioned something that had caught both the Wogglebug and Jack Pumpkinhead off guard so much that Jack almost started laughing. The Wogglebug just tapped his finger against his mouth, twitching his antennae thoughtfully.
Then, the door next to them flung open, and Dorothy came stumbling through, the rims of her eyes turning pink as she slumped down upon the steps.
Wogglebug stood up quickly, followed by Richard and Jack. "Dear Dorothy," exclaimed the Wogglebug. "What on earth happened? Was it the Wizard? Was he unkind to you?"
Dorothy shook her head as she wiped her hands across her cheeks. "No, no, Mr. Wogglebug, he was not unkind, although he was truly as terrible as they say he is. He said that we would only get our wishes granted if he we did something for him. We must destroy the Witch of the West."
At this, the Wogglebug looked from Dorothy to Richard, a certain gleam in his eye that combined both shock, and yet amazement. He then looked to Dorothy, using his finger to wipe any tears falling from her eyes.
"Come and sit down close to us, Dorothy," the Wogglebug said gently, helping Dorothy to her feet. "We have been talking whilst you were with the Wizard, and Richard has proposed a most unusual tactic against the Witch. Actually, he was the first to guess at what the Wizard would ask us to do in order for our desires to come true." He turned his gleaming eyes to Richard. "And it would seem his prediction has come true after all."
Dorothy also looked at Richard as she was set down beside Jack Pumpkinhead, who also put his arms comfortingly, though clumsily, about her. "How did you know what he would say?" she asked. "How did you ever guess?"
Richard shrugged. "I've read stories about this place," he answered. "I know these things."
"He is a most extraordinary young man," Wogglebug praised him. "But he has stated that the most unusual thing will get rid of the Witch for us. We won't even need to use any weapons or advanced magic against her. We need only to make her touch water, and she shall become like water."
Dorothy choked on the last of her tears, coughing a little. "I don't believe it," she gasped. "Is that all we need to do? Please don't tell me you're joking, Richard."
"No, no," he said. "We just have to find some way to get to the Witch, and dump a bucket of water on her. As long as we all go to her together."
"How can that work?" pondered Jack Pumpkinhead. "I never imagined it was that simple to kill a witch."
"I suppose we shall only have to see," added Wogglebug. "I cannot imagine Richard wanting to lead us astray, so therefore I will be trusting his word." The great insect stood up, looking towards the gates far off in the city. "Then, why don't we begin our next journey into the West?"
The rest of the group stood up, with Dorothy staying close to the Wogglebug. She had stopped crying, but she was weary from her encounter with the Wizard. Toto barked as if to encourage his mistress to be strong. Jack moved to the other side of Dorothy, smiling down at her when she watched him cross over to her. But he did not forget Richard, for he put an arm around the boy's shoulder, also smiling. Richard blinked back at Jack, before he looked ahead to the gates, where the little green guardian had gone back. Upon the group's arrival, the guardian unclasped their green glasses, and wished them well on the next part of their adventure.
As always, they all stayed together, with the Wogglebug taking up the lead, with Richard and the compass behind him. But this time, they took no road. Rather, they walked through the fields, through trees, keeping to the direction of the west while the sun started to set. Occasionally, the Wogglebug would lighten the determined, tense mood of the group by pointing out something of beauteous nature, or anything unusual that he guessed his young friends had never seen before. At one point, he even found a strange but vibrant flower, and gave it to Dorothy to wear in her hair. She gratefully accepted the gift, and often, she would reach up to play with the soft petals, stroking them between her fingers. Each time, she smiled, her cheeks brightened with the setting sun.
But the group could not go on walking forever. When the sun had gone down, they picked a soft spot close to a cluster of trees with glorious white flowers sprouting between the fruits, and Dorothy shared her bread once more for supper. Afterwards, the Wogglebug bade Richard and Dorothy to sleep, while he and Jack Pumpkinhead kept watch.
And then, from far off in the distance, there came the sound of many pairs of feet bounding through the underbrush. Wogglebug suspected it must be some animal coming through the forest close by, but when he could suddenly see many pairs of eyes glinting through the night, all of which were turning towards him and his friends, he stood up.
"Jack, wake Richard and Dorothy," he said.
But his command came too late, for there came abounding several great wolves, all snapping and clamping their horrible teeth. Wogglebug reached beside him for a stick, throwing it this way and that to fend off the wolves. Jack was scrambling up into the tree with the white flowers, and was throwing the ripened fruits. But Richard and Dorothy were just awakening, coming to find out what chaos was ensuing around them. Toto started barking, and something small and silver started spinning across the space, causing wolves to fall here and there.
Richard backed away from the wolves, while he watched the compass, which had become like a tiny fighting machine, spinning its chain like a whip, and the surface becoming so hot that flames actually spurred from within. It flew so fast that it soon became like a comet, setting whatever it touched on fire.
Thinking quickly, Richard raced for the compass, careful not to reach for it should it come back for him. "Hey! Compass!" he yelled. "Set the ground on fire! A straight line! In front of the wolves!"
The compass stopped right where it was in the air, and then turned to the wolves, which were coming in reinforcements while Jack and Wogglebug tried their best to fight them off. But one wolf had gotten past the Wogglebug's stick, and had bitten upon his tough exoskeleton. The great insect had flinched, but the wolf's teeth had been hurt more by the impact, so that the Wogglebug could bonk the wolf over the head with his stick.
Immediately, the compass zipped down to the ground, flames sparking from its surface like a great star, as it left the ground blazing from the fire. The wolves that had come late drew away from the flames, and those that remained were quickly finished off by Jack and the Wogglebug. Once they had stopped swinging their weapons, Richard motioned for his friends to run, and run they did, until the fire had gone from behind them.
Finally, they stopped behind a few trees, catching their breath, hoping that danger had passed.
"I could not see the wolves watching us until just moments before they attacked," said the Wogglebug. "I wonder if they were sent by someone to take us."
"I should like to think not," said Jack. "I don't like to think that the Witch herself could be watching us traveling."
"I hope that will be the last of her tricks," Dorothy breathed, clutching at her basket and at Toto.
Suddenly, something large and black zipped past Richard's face, scratching at his cheek. A thin line of red stretched on his skin, swelling with blood.
"Richard!" Dorothy gasped, just as another black mass of feathers scraped her face. She screamed, nearly dropping her assets on the ground.
Wogglebug clutched at his stick, swinging it around as more and more shadows of black feathers started to fly around them. Jack looked around, but he could not find a tree with any fruit that he could throw, so he also picked up a stick, trying to fight the same way as the Wogglebug.
"Away with you!" the Wogglebug was yelling, as the compass was starting to fly again. It fought the same way as before, whipping its chain and lighting itself on fire. Sometimes, it latched its chain around one crow's foot, and threw it against a tree, knocking it out dead. But the compass could not hold that tactic against so many crows, and eventually the crows all went for the compass, pecking and sweeping their wings around it, trying to put out its flame.
Richard went for the distraction quickly. He yanked a stick from a tree near him, and reached as high as he could to the crows. One, he knocked into a tree, and the next he threw to the ground. Dorothy joined him, as did Jack Pumpkinhead, and the Wogglebug. Together, while the compass still glowed with fire and flung its chain to and fro, the crows were brought to the ground, laying with broken wings and snapped necks.
But almost right then afterwards, there came a buzzing through the trees, and the group could see a giant swarm of bees approaching.
Thinking fast, Richard pointed at the bees. "Hey! Burn them!" he cried at the compass.
As before, the compass became a mass of flames, twirling and whirling through the swarm. Even its long chain became like a sword of fire, tearing through the bees like they were wet paper. In the meantime, Richard and his friends turned away from the bees, going further and further away.
"Oh, dear heavens!" Jack gasped. "Please, no more."
"I'm afraid you cannot do anything to change that, Jack," said the Wogglebug. "The Witch may not stop attacking us until we give in to her. But we cannot give up. We must keep going. The compass seems smart enough that it can catch up to us once it is through with the bees."
The others ran on ahead, but Richard had to keep looking behind him. He did not want to leave the compass behind, since it had now done so much for him. He wanted to stay and help it, to keep his eye on it while he still fought. So he took up his stick again, prepared to fight should anything more come to harm him.
But just seconds before he had thought to pick up his stick, the compass had flung away the last of the bees it had burned, floating down triumphantly, with the last of its fire dying away into sparks.
Richard did not know how to react; whether he should take the compass's chain, as he did before when it was being a regular flying instrument, or take it like a tender butterfly and hug it to him. He did want to thank the compass for being so helpful, though.
He decided to smile at it, while the compass came down to him with its silver surface cooled enough for him to take hold of. The chain wrapped softly around his wrist, and started to pull Richard in the direction his friends had gone.
They were far ahead at this time, perhaps half a mile or so beyond where they had been viciously attacked. But they continued forth, moving fast, afraid to go back to sleep since so many things had come for them. Still, their weariness was showing. Toto hardly barked anymore. Dorothy was slowing to a walk, and Jack Pumpkinhead was moving more lankily than ever. Even Wogglebug was moving slowly, having to lean his hand against a tree so he could breathe again.
"Simply unimaginable," he murmured. "I should have realized that witch would be a mighty force to be reckoned with."
"Uh, Mr. Wogglebug, I think we all knew that from the very start," said Richard bluntly. "But we should get somewhere where she won't be able to see us."
Wogglebug pulled in a long breath. "I do not know how to say if we will ever be safe again from the Witch," he said, "since she may know that we are on our way to her."
"Here comes something again!" Jack yelled.
Everyone looked where he pointed, and this time, the blood of everybody in the company ran cold. Creatures with great sweeping wings were coming through the sky, faster than perhaps the bees or crows had. Richard looked quickly at the compass, not knowing how perhaps the little instrument could withstand battle against that number of opponents. He recognized who they were, and where they came from—the winged monkeys who would try to take Dorothy and the others captive in the Witch's castle. Dorothy was the one they really wanted, so he would have to do something quick to get her out of sight.
He turned to her, grabbed her hand and the compass at the same time, and gave a little jump. "Fly!" he yelled, and he never felt his feet touch the ground for another moment.
Dorothy cried out a little as the compass took her and Richard high into the sky. She was now clinging to Richard's arm, then to his waist. Richard tried to hang onto her and the compass at the same time, but the chain was wrapped tightly about his hand. He trusted the compass not to drop him, but he was anxious about getting Dorothy away from the winged monkeys, whom he could hear had gotten to Wogglebug and Jack Pumpkinhead. Richard felt a pit in his stomach for not being able to save them from the monkeys, but he felt better knowing that he could at least watch Dorothy. Together, they would be able to stop the witch.