Diana pulled out her vaulting pole, searching for a way to follow our enemy. "Presto! See if you can get Aslan to help us."

I swallowed. "Why are you asking me? I only know him from books, and I think I got it wrong!"

"That's more than I know! Call him! Go get him! Do something!"

"We're not anywhere close! He'll be gone—"

"Don't lie! Just call him!"

It was an excuse, not a lie, but just to humor her, I shouted, "Help! Aslan!"

Bobby, Sheila and Diana joined in. Even Uni bleated with them.

Nothing happened. I blew a raspberry.

"Didn't hurt nothing." Diana pointed to the pterodactyl, now circling around to investigate the noise. "We at least got him interested. Hank, what about your compass?"

"It's just a compass. It's not a radio or a magic communication gadget."

"You sure? Sometimes—"

"Yeah. I'm sure. All it does is point. Looks pretty basic." He drew his bow, aiming at the flying creature. A magical glowing string extended from the ends, and when he touched his forefingers to it and pulled back, he nocked a blazing arrow.

Sheila grabbed his arm before he could loose the missile. "No! From this height you'll kill him!"

I secretly wondered if that would solve all our problems, but of course it was only a passing thought.

Hank lowered the weapon. "What do you suggest we do?"

Sheila frowned. Nobody but Hank had a long range weapon. Unless..."Presto...?"

I reached into my cap. "Magic hat, Eric's in trouble! Give us something to help on the double!"

Not my best rhyme. A long rope materialized in the hat. I pulled it out, and kept finding more and more of it. "Sorry. I'm a crummy wizard."

Diana put a hand on my shoulder. "Not necessarily. Try it again."

Hank smirked. "Hey, let me see that."

Moving fast, he grabbed the end, tied it around a rock, nocked it in his magical bowstring.

When he released it, the rock, bearing the rope, catapulted through the air, arcing over the horned figure's head.

The rock swung around its leathery mount and dropped.

As the rope made contact with the flying creature, the rock's trajectory changed, shooting around its belly and up once more.

The rope looped around and around. Hank gave it a yank, and it tightened, pulling the pterodactyl thing down and backwards.

The horned pilot turned his head to glare at us. At his distance, in the dusk, I could only see fangs and glowing red eyes.

He drew a large, nasty looking knife, sawing at the rope.

"Whooo!" A humanoid figure rose from the tree branches above us, spreading its wings.

The creature took to the air, unsheathing a broadsword as it soared after the pterodactyl.

Bobby readied his war club. "What is that thing?"

"Looks like...some sort of bird..." Hank nervously eyed the dark fluttering shape, still holding his golden bow aloft.

Uni mewled and scratched the dirt with her hooves, eyes searching the shadowy trunks above us.

The sword bearing creature swooped down on Eric's captor, slashing him across the back. A glowing flare erupted from where the blade made contact.

Like that scene from Star Wars where Vader kills Obi Wan, the horned guy just kind of...vanished, empty helmet and armor dropping from the saddle. Not sure we'd be seeing a ghost, however. The sword glowed like it had just absorbed energy or electricity from the enemy.

I also noted, in that brief flash, that the swordsman greatly resembled an owl. I suppose it explained the hooting sounds.

The pterodactyl thing, now missing a rider, flew erratically, flapping its leathery wings, shaking its saddle and gnawing on straps in an attempt to unencumber itself. It darted off into the shadows.

"Whooo!" A feminine sounding call this time, and right up in my ear.

Dark, couldn't tell what it was.

Our archer yelped as something carried him off into the understory, leaving only his bow and feathers behind.

"Hank!" Diana swung her pole, and another flying thing grabbed her.

Sheila draped herself and Bobby with her magic cloak, rendering themselves invisible.

I snatched the bow from the ground. Although not skilled with the weapon (nor a Ranger) over time I somehow had been deemed worthy of its magic. I pantomimed, and the glowing string appeared. "Diana! Hold on!"

Seconds later, a large winged creature picked me up. I came close to losing my glasses forever.

Uni wailed from the ground as he watched us being carried off.

I squinted, but couldn't see much in the dark. The thing, whatever it was, had thick muscles, covered in feathers and some downy substance like a fur coat. A beak, or a nose, glinted in the moonlight. "Who are you? Where are you taking us?"

"We are The Brood. You will be safe." The stranger didn't say much else.

"Presto!" Diana yelled. "Have you seen Bobby and Sheila?"

I glanced uncomfortably at the beak breathing down on me. "...No. Not here."

She sighed. "I guess, on the plus side, they don't want to kill us!"

The winged creatures carried us for miles above the forest canopy, to the point where I lost track of where we'd come from, or how to get back.

Clusters of tree houses emerged from the canopy now, like the Ewok village from Star Wars, but medieval style: Vaguely Bavarian styled timber frame construction, tiny wood and glass windows, steep gabled roofs. I spotted a few A-Frames among them. Hanging lanterns and braziers provided most the light.

Clank! A furry monster pounded metal on an anvil. Couldn't tell exactly what race or species in the dark.

Another building had festive decorations, and the faint strains of a wood flute and mandolin issued from within.

The bird things descended upon a barn-like structure at the outer edge of this treetop village, making a hooting call to a bird creature guarding its door.

The guard pulled the door open, and we glided into a rough sort of prison, rows of metal cages with hay strewn all over their floors.

I immediately got thrown into an open cage, Hank's bow and my cap confiscated, the door locked behind me. They threw Hank and Diana into adjacent cells, also snatching their possessions away. They found Hank's compass especially interesting.

Eric they imprisoned in a cage directly across from mine.

"Another fine mess you've gotten us into," I muttered.

"Me? What did I do?"

Diana scoffed. I just rubbed my face in frustration.