CLOUDLAND BOOKS
Book #2
Book #1
Book #7
Book #5
Book #6
Book #3
Book #4
I like to call Cloudland “soft fantasy,” in that it contains the mysteries associated with a different world without some of the upsetting themes sometimes found in this genre. Young (ages 6-11) readers will identify with the adventures of the Cloudland kids in a strange world in the sky, with surprising origins for our weather features like snow and lightning. The clever illustrations by the two artists I have worked with complement the development of the stories nicely. Believe it or not, the inspiration for these stories was a poem I wrote way back in high school. I hope you like them, and if you do, give me some online reviews. Book #7, Cloudland Threatened is out now!
“Wonderful book for children struggling to fit in.”
“What a wonderful depiction of the power of family, unconditional love, and how our differences make us unique. No two snowflakes are the same even if they look alike.”
J. Cato
Amazon Review of Cloudland
“Wonderful story for all ages!”
“Beautifully illustrated and a captivating story.
I need to get more copies to share.”
C. Fackler
Amazon Review of Return to Cloudland
AVAILABLE AT:
Book #1: Cloudland
Jane and Robbie are having trouble making friends after moving to a new town. When they ask their Uncle Josh for advice, he tells them an amazing story about how two twin Snowflakes from Cloudland handled an even bigger problem. The twins must overcome great obstacles to try to save their family, and they get help from someone who shouldn’t even be on Cloudland – a human from Earth! The story gives Jane and Robbie ideas for handling their own problem.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) Jane and Robbie
Jane and Robbie had a problem, a big problem. They had recently moved to a new town, and it seemed okay. But they just couldn’t seem to make new friends.
“We’re nice kids, right?” Jane asked Robbie. Before he could respond, she went on. “I just don’t know what to do.”
Nine-year-old Robbie sat on a bench with his legs outstretched in front of their Uncle Josh’s log-style house in the woods. His older sister Jane strode back and forth in front of him, her blond ponytail flipping up every time she turned. Both kids wore sweaters in the winter chill.
The morning sun reflected off a patch of snow here and there, which Jane stepped over as she paced. Her hands occasionally waved in the air when she spoke. She stopped and faced Robbie.
“What’s different about us?” she asked, shrugging her shoulders. “I mean, are we really so different from the other kids?” She stamped her foot.
Robbie crossed his arms and frowned but said nothing.
“Anyone on our street offer to play with you?” Jane asked with her arms out.
Robbie glanced up as he thought about it. “Not really, I guess,” he replied.
Jane threw her hands up. “I thought things would just work out.” She made a fist and smacked it into her palm. “But the good thing is, we’ve got some time now over winter break to come up with a plan.”
Robbie nodded his blond head several times before he repeated, “Yeah, we’ve got some time.”
A moment passed. Then both stared at each other at the same instant. “Uncle Josh!” they shouted. Scrambling up the steps and crossing the porch, they jostled each other trying to reach the door first. Robbie won and pushed open the door.
Trotting into their Uncle Josh’s living room, they found him settled in his easy chair in front of a crackling fire in the fireplace. A full white beard framed his contented face as he turned to reach for an open book on the side table. A cat was plopped down on the rug. The two children came to a stop in front of their uncle’s chair, and he looked up, smiling.
Jane cleared her throat. “Uncle Josh,” she began, “we’ve got a problem. We can’t seem to make friends at our new house.” Then, giving examples as she went, she described the situation back home. As Jane talked, their uncle’s face went from a smile, to a frown, to a more thoughtful look.
When she finished, their uncle turned to look at Robbie.
“That about covers it,” Robbie said, folding his arms and nodding.
Their uncle gave his beard a little tug and regarded each of the children in turn. “Can’t make friends,” he repeated. “Wondering how you’re different from others,” he mused. “Well, I doubt there’s much that’s different about you children. I don’t know of course, but I bet the children in your new town have grown up together and haven’t met many new folks like you. It may just take a little longer than you thought.”
At this point he put down his book and produced a pipe, tapping with his finger in the bowl of the pipe a few times. “Yes, I’m sure you’ll find a way to connect to these other children,” he continued. “But you know what? I’ve got a story that might help, about two little ones that really were different, my favorite story. Would you like to hear it?”
Jane’s face brightened, and Robbie gave a thumbs up.
“Okay, get comfortable,” said their uncle, “and I’ll tell it to you.” Both children plopped down on the rug at his feet.
2) The Story
Freezy and Breezy had a problem, a big problem. Snowflake children, they lived in a wonderful world in the sky called Cloudland. There was no problem with that. However, they were also identical twins. That was the problem. “No two Snowflakes may look alike,” their parents Burr and Lacey had told them. It was apparently an old law of King Nature who ruled Cloudland. For the umpteenth time, the twins were talking about it. “It doesn’t seem fair,” said Freezy to his brother. “It’s not like we asked to be different.” When he examined Breezy, sitting on a little square stool like a sugar cube, he saw the same white, flat body, with four pointed arms and two pointed legs sticking out. And he saw an identical smile on the frosty white face.
Yes, they looked the same, but apparently no one else on Cloudland did. Breezy floated over and studied himself in a little mirror. “Yeah, just because it’s never happened before doesn’t mean it’s wrong, does it?” he asked. “Mom and Dad say we have to keep it a secret, so people think there’s one kid, not two. It’s not fair. We can’t even go outside, one at a time, and play with the other Snowflake kids.” Freezy looked through the window at the many Snowflake houses in the distance. “Yeah,” he added. “I guess they’re right. Someone would eventually find out we’re twins.” “Uh huh,” said Breezy. “Mom and Dad say that Snowflakes always tell the truth, no matter what. All it would take is someone asking me about a conversation they had with you. How would I answer that?” “Yup, just one slip up,” said Breezy, “and if King Nature finds out we’re twins, it means the end of our family! That’s the law.” They both peeked at their little door and shuddered, as if huge King Nature was on the outside trying to get in. Fear wasn’t an emotion that came naturally to them, but they felt it now, imagining the powerful king they had never seen. Breezy floated over to check the lock on the door. Usually when they talked about their problem, a sense of panic would set in and the twins would change the subject. But this time was different, at least for Freezy. “Since we’re the problem, we need to fix this,” he said in a hushed tone. Breezy raised his face in surprise. “What did you say?” Freezy repeated it and then suggested, “C’mon, let’s think of something we could do about it.” “All right,” said Breezy. “I’ll try.” So the twins concentrated. They brought up one idea after another and discussed it. But they found a weakness with each one and rejected it. As this discussion dragged on, the difficulties led to frustration. Freezy kicked a book across the room. “Why is this so hard?” He whined. But Breezy kept thinking and thinking, and then an idea occurred to him. “What if we run away and hide where no one can find us?” he asked. “The secret would stay a secret, and Mom and Dad would be safe!”
Book #2: Return to Cloudland
Jane and Robbie thought their uncle’s stories about Cloudland were just stories. All that changed when they were brought by winds to Cloudland to do something about an evil power that had taken over the land. Alone in this unfamiliar world, they encounter strange creatures, get separated, and use their wits to deal with unexpected challenges. It all comes to a dramatic conclusion as they discover and confront a dangerous foe in King Nature’s castle.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) Strange Weather
A cold wind whistled through the pine trees, bending the branches and carrying needles and twigs along with it. Robbie’s exposed cheeks shone pink, made numb by the constant sting of the wind.
“You should have worn a hat,” he called to his older sister, Jane, in a mocking tone as he watched her blond hair flap furiously around her face.
Stopping and holding her shoulder-length hair in place with one hand, she scooped up a pinecone from the path and threw it at him. As the pinecone sailed past, he made a motion with his arms like he was swinging a baseball bat. “The next one doesn’t miss,” she called back with a laugh.
“Most fun I’ve had in days,” he replied. “This wind is driving me nuts! Nothing but wind, wind, wind! I’ll take some snow, rain, sleet— anything at this point but wind.”
“Yeah,” said Jane, “I really anticipated this winter vacation with Uncle Josh, but this wind sucks my energy.”
They were headed to their uncle’s house now. As she walked along, Jane pulled a ribbon from her coat pocket and, with some difficulty, tied her hair back in a ponytail. “Remember when we asked Uncle Josh about the wind?” she continued.
“Yeah,” said Robbie. He replayed the scene, assuming a serious face. “So, Uncle Josh stares up at the sky and he says—Ow!”
“What?” Jane said, turning to face him. “No, he didn’t.”
“Sorry,” responded Robbie, rubbing his forehead. “Got hit by a twig or something in the wind.” He resumed, lowering his voice like his Uncle Josh’s. “Old Mr. North Wind’s acting up, but I’ve never known him to carry on this long.” Robbie paused, “You know, the way he said it was like he actually had known Mr. North Wind.”
“He was talking about Mr. North Wind from his Cloudland stories of course,” offered Jane. “And I can see how this wind we’re having could remind you of mean, nasty Mr. North Wind blowing down Cold Wind Mountain in those stories.”
Memories of sitting at Uncle Josh’s feet in front of the fire as he told stories about Cloudland flooded them both. Many times, they dreamed of being in that strange world in the sky.
“Cloudland,” their uncle had explained, “was a wonderful land ruled by King Nature and his principal assistant, Professor Because. They belonged to a race of people, relatively few in number, called the Witherin, who have four arms and blue skin. In the central part of Cloudland were large villages where many Snowflakes and their children lived. There were nice creatures called Bumbles and not-so-nice Wag Wag birds, angry, bothersome things who hopped through the air and snorted and talked way too much. The Striped River was the most wonderful thing in Cloudland. It made beautiful tinkling music as it flowed from the Shiver-me Forest and through Cloudland like a crystal rainbow.”
“Right. While we’re on the subject of Cloudland,” said Robbie, rubbing his forehead again, “do you remember when we brought up rainbows with him?”
“Yes!” Jane said. “I sure wasn’t expecting his response. Did you see his expression when we said we couldn’t remember the last time we’d seen a rainbow?”
“Yeah! That was weird.” Robbie added, shaking his head. “He said, ‘Something’s wrong. Something’s terribly wrong. The pool must be dry. Or worse.’ What did he mean by that?”
“I’m guessing another reference to Cloudland,” continued Jane, “but I have no idea what it means.” She squinted, and through the trees could just make out the clearing where their uncle’s timber frame house stood. She pointed to it. “Looks like we’ll make it back before—” she stopped mid-sentence, her mouth hanging open, and tried to make sense of all the strange thoughts and feelings running through her head.
The wind had stopped!
Robbie stared at Jane with his mouth open too, then turned his head from side to side. Neither of them spoke but stood perfectly still, listening. Finally, Robbie said, “My ears are ringing. It’s like turning off the leaf blower after it’s been running for a while.”
“Yes, but—” Jane stared at the cabin again, then back at Robbie. “I got the strangest feeling when the wind stopped. We’d better go find Uncle Josh.”
Robbie nodded, and the two of them started jogging down the path toward the clearing.
2) Two Visitors
With the sudden drop in wind noise, the kids now heard sounds all around them; a bird chirping, their feet shuffling through leaves and dirt on the path, and the swish of Jane’s coat sleeve against her coat. The return of these sounds was reassuring to both. But as Jane’s breathing sped up from the jogging, she whispered to herself, “I just can’t shake this feeling that more has changed than just the weather.”
Robbie started huffing and puffing too. He looked over and saw Jane talking to herself, concern on her face. He tried to make small talk between breaths. “Uncle Josh said something—about soup for lunch today—that sound good to you?”
Jane didn’t answer but quickened her pace as they entered the clearing of their uncle’s house. It was a two-story house in a log cabin style, two dormers in a roof sloping back, with a wide porch running the length of the front. The kids leaned over for a moment or two with their hands on their knees to catch their breath. Then, trotting up the steps, Jane opened the door and tossed her coat in a chair. “Are you here, Uncle Josh?” she called.
“Sure am,” came a man’s voice from the back of the house. “Be there in a minute.”
Robbie came in, still breathing deeply and rubbing his hands together, and tossed his coat in the chair, too.
A tall man with a white beard, wearing a colorful sweater, came in from the living room. “How was the walk?” asked their Uncle Josh with a wave toward the door. And then seeing their red faces he added with a smile, “or should I say run?” Not waiting for an answer, he went on. “I need to make an introduction, and then I think an adventure awaits. You should go of course, I’m getting too old for this sort of thing.”
Before they could even guess what this meant, into the room stumbled two very peculiar creatures. Resembling white beach balls a couple of feet high, with legs and arms sticking out in every direction, they almost rolled into the room. ”Jane and Robbie, meet Legs and Roly,” said Uncle Josh. “You may remember them from my Cloudland stories.”
Jane and Robbie stared. Their mouths dropped open, and Robbie brought both hands to his face. Jane even thought to pinch herself. No, she wasn’t dreaming. She glanced up, and her uncle winked at her. He had the most wonderful smile on his face.
She answered his smile with a stunned expression and said, “Uncle Josh, I need a moment.” She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then she went on in a halting voice, “The whole Cloudland thing. The cabin in the Shiver-me Forest. Griffis. Was that really you? And the balloon?” At this point she remembered the picture of a balloon on his wall next to the door and studied it. “The stories—your wonderful stories—are actually true?”
Her uncle shrugged his shoulders and kept smiling at her. Robbie stared at the Bumbles, speechless.
Jane and Robbie meet the Bumbles
Legs—or was it Roly—broke the silence. “Good day,” he said in a rhythmic, soft-toned voice. “We are Bumbles from Cloudland, which we believe your uncle has told you about. I’m Legs, and this is my brother Roly. We are very pleased to meet you. However, I’m afraid there isn’t much time to get acquainted properly.”
At this point Roly spoke up. “If I may ask, you’ve surely noticed the strange weather? It is but one indication of serious happenings in Cloudland. Even as we speak, King Nature is in desperate trouble.” At this last statement, both Bumbles threw several hands over their eyes and shuddered.
“I guessed something of the kind,” muttered Uncle Josh.
Roly continued. “We didn’t know what else to do, so we came to our dear friend Griffis here for help.” Both Bumbles looked up at Josh, or Griffis as they called him.
“We found Mr. East Wind,” added Legs, “and he was eager to help. He was able to confer with Professor Because who provided advice. We waited until Mr. North Wind had to refill his wind supply, and Mr. East Wind brought us here. He’s with us now.”
Jane and Robbie turned their heads, inspecting their surroundings, but saw nothing.
“Legs and Roly tell me they’ll need to return before old Mr. North Wind cranks up again,” broke in Uncle Josh. “They gave me a quick summary of the situation up there. I think we can really impact things because no one will expect help from outside Cloudland.”
He paused and gazed at Jane and Robbie. “As I said, I’m not as young as I used to be. I know this all sounds too fantastic. But I do know that you, Jane and Robbie, are smart and resourceful. I have faith that whatever needs to be done, you can do it.”
Jane’s and Robbie’s eyes went wide. “Uncle Josh,” Jane said slowly, then paused. “Are you saying Robbie and I should, uh, go to Cloudland, with uh, Mr. East Wind, to uh, face who knows what?”
Their uncle put an arm around each of the kids and gave them a hug. “My dears,” he said, “I have a sense for these things. I certainly have concerns, but King Nature is very important to all of us, and I believe we can help him.” He quickly described what little he’d learned from the Bumbles about the situation on Cloudland and finished with, “I’m hoping you’ll go.” He stepped back and examined each of them in turn.
Jane and Robbie looked back at their Uncle Josh and then at the Bumbles. Slowly they turned and faced each other. The Bumbles moved closer to Josh and held hands.
“Well, I thought Cloudland was just a story,” began Robbie, speaking slowly. “But here are Legs and Roly right in front of us. I don’t know what to say.”
“Me neither,” Jane replied, shaking her head. “I’m still trying to understand that this is real.”
“We do know a lot about Cloudland from Uncle Josh’s stories,” added Robbie, a bit more positively. “We’ll have that going for us.”
“Riiight,” said Jane slowly, and she crossed her arms and thought for a moment. She put her hands on her hips. “Robbie, I’m thinking that if Uncle Josh has this much faith in us, then maybe we should have some faith in him. What do you think?”
“Yep, I’m with you,” said Robbie, after a second or two. “Not sure what we’re getting into, but let’s do it.”
When the Bumbles heard that, they bounced around, trying to hug everyone with their short little arms. The kids couldn’t help but smile, and high-fived, more like low-fived really, Legs and Roly.
“Well I guess you’d better get your winter gear, then,” interrupted their uncle.
And in no time, they were outside with their winter coats and gloves on. Their uncle handed Jane a small sack. “Some trail mix and dried fruit for a snack,” he said. She stuck it in an inside pocket in her coat.
Now that they were ready to go, the kids said little, as a feeling of anxiety began to build up. This was really happening!
Jane hugged her uncle again and said, “If we’re not back when vacation is over, you’ll have to cover for us with Mom and Dad.”
“I will,” he replied, “but hopefully you’ll be back before then.”
At that, they glanced at the Bumbles nervously, wondering what would come next.
The answer came quickly. The air around them turned cloudy, and a rustling wind flapped their clothes and swirled around them like a soft whirlwind. A deep voice from somewhere in the wind said, “Don’t be afraid now.” But both of their bodies stiffened in surprise as they felt themselves being lifted into the air.
Book #3: Beyond Cloudland
King Nature needs help for a land no one knew existed, the neighboring world of Darkland. Bad things are going on there and they may be related to the disappearance of Robbie’s Uncle Josh. Robbie knows nothing of this until he and his friend Neely are summoned by the king and sent into Darkland. This weird land of perpetual half-light puts the boys in one dangerous situation after another. It’s a race at the end to escape two armies and see if they can restore some order, with the help of the most mysterious being of all.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) A Vision
The adventure started innocently enough.
Robbie had come with his best buddy Neely, short for Cornelius, to the winter carnival. Nothing special, just tents and thrill rides and game booths with different ways to take your money. A chain link fence kept kids from sneaking in, but didn’t stop the many carnival noises from carrying all over town. Robbie stepped carefully around mud from recent snow melt and smelled fresh hay, hot dogs grilling, and a faint odor of horse poop. A girl walking by hugging a teddy bear reminded him of his sister Jane, due home from school in a few days.
At that moment, a weird feeling began to take hold of Robbie. He shivered inside his coat. Did the temperature just drop? he asked himself. The carnival noise stopped. His vision became blurry to either side, but straight ahead he could see super clear, like through a telescope. As he stared, he could make out an object in the distance. It started moving toward him, seeming to float above the ground. How creepy! He blinked and could now make out a person, someone who began to appear vaguely familiar.
Then his body tensed and the hair on his arms stood up. The vision in front of him was his Uncle Josh! It was a vision so lifelike, Robbie took a half step forward and reached out to touch it. But his hand only touched air where his uncle’s face should have been. The face assumed a sad expression when Robbie pulled his hand back. As he watched, his uncle opened his mouth to say something. But instead, the vision began to break apart, the details of his uncle’s face slowly dissolving.
“Wait, Uncle Josh, don’t go,” begged Robbie, reaching out with both arms. “Please,” he added. But he couldn’t stop it. Before long, all traces of the vision had disappeared, and his perception of his surroundings gradually returned. Robbie felt empty, abandoned, and sick to his stomach. A longing for his uncle flooded over Robbie. Uncle Josh meant everything to him.
A picture of his uncle’s house appeared in Robbie’s mind. A house in the woods where he and his sister Jane spent vacations hiking, building campfires under the stars, and listening to their uncle’s stories. Then, almost a year ago, his uncle had disappeared. It was one of the worst days of Robbie’s life. I did just see his face, didn’t I? Robbie asked himself.
2) A Balloon Ride
Robbie continued to stare straight ahead and tried to shake off the chill he still felt. It was then he became aware that Neely had moved away a step and was watching him intently. Uh oh. I bet he’s wondering what just happened. But I sure don’t want to talk about it.
Robbie made a show of slapping his arms across his chest a couple of times and said, “Is it getting colder or is it just me?” Neely’s expression didn’t change much. Before he could say anything, however, Robbie asked, “So what do you want to do now?”
Neely’s puzzled expression slowly became a smile. They had already stuffed themselves on hot dogs and tried their hand at some of the arcade games. “More food?” chuckled Neely, peering over his glasses at the next food stand.
Robbie didn’t take him seriously and faked a punch at Neely’s shoulder. Robbie’s friend was a little chubby it was true, but he was fun to be around. He was the best joke teller in school.
Neely shrugged his shoulders, and they wandered on down the midway, the shadows from the tents thickening and spreading with the
rays of the setting sun. Colorful lights began coming on throughout the fairgrounds. Glancing up, Robbie saw some bright green fabric billowing in the wind. “It’s a balloon! Come on!” he said, grabbing Neely’s arm and starting to run.
Rounding one of the tents and dodging a cluster of little kids, they skidded to a halt in front of a stand selling hot air balloon rides. “Let’s go for a Ride! Very Safe Balloon!” said a sign, with a drawing of people on the ground holding a balloon with ropes.
“Let’s do it!” Robbie said.
“I’m not too crazy about that idea,” answered Neely, folding his arms and shaking his head.
“C’mon,” urged Robbie. “It’ll be cool. We’ll have a great view up there of the carnival and the whole countryside.”
“He’s right,” chimed in the balloon pilot. “Everyone’s amazed how quiet and smooth the balloon is and how far you can see. It’s completely safe, but trust me, it’ll be a ride you’ll never forget!”
Despite his reservations, Neely finally gave in. “You did say you were paying for this, right Robbie?” he added with a skeptical tone of voice. He glanced all around nervously. “I think I want to remember what the place looks like,” he muttered. “In case things don’t go as advertised.”
After receiving instructions from their pilot, they climbed into a large wicker basket. Lines from the basket went up to a golden cylinder that connected to an inflated balloon the color of a green lollipop. Held in a metal frame over their heads was a gas burner and a set of controls. “All set?” asked the man. “Here we go!” The pilot used a knob to open a gas valve and increase the flame size, like on a gas stove. This heated more air to keep the balloon at full inflation. The boys heard a chuffing sound and felt the heat on the back of their necks. As the lines tightened, the basket slid around on the ground and wobbled softly. Neely pressed his lips together and tightly gripped the edge of the basket.
“Here we go!” echoed Robbie excitedly, despite his nerves being a bit on edge.
Robbie felt a jerk and the balloon began to riseAn electric wench made a clicking sound, reeling out a line connected to the basket. Two other men each played out a line by hand anchored to the ground. The basket slowly rose to the top of the Ferris wheel. Too late, Robbie realized his Mom probably wouldn’t have approved.
Book #4: Cloudlands & Darklands
Blueworld has been struck by a dangerous lightning weapon, yet the rogue leader who developed it isn’t on Cloudland or Darkland. King Nature calls on the kids from Blueworld, but they are attacked by storm winds and separated. The girls fly between different lands to help put up a shield, and to provide coordination with the boys, prisoners in the rogue leader’s castle! They will battle new creatures and encounter life-threatening dangers in trying to bring down this madman before he strikes again. And to do it, they will have to team with their former Darkland enemy.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) Imani’s Project
Neely looked back over his shoulder at Robbie and said, “Hey Robbie, what happens to a frog’s car when it breaks down?” He waited. “Don’t know? It gets toad away. Get it? T-o-a-d.”
Robbie shook his head while chuckling. The two of them walked along the side of a road, each holding a large bag and stopping occasionally to pick up a piece of trash with their gloved hands. They had just moved past a car parked on the shoulder when Neely told his joke.
Robbie took another step or two. Then he noticed a small pine cone, scooped it up and tossed it at Neely, hitting him in the back.
“Ow,” yelled Neely, as he whipped around to see a big grin on Robbie’s face. “Okay dude. Game on!” he called, smiling. He found and launched a pinecone of his own at Robbie.
“Stop it! Stop it!” commanded a girl’s voice up ahead of them.
The boys turned their heads to see Neely’s younger sister, Imani, standing twenty feet away with her hands on her hips.
“If you’re just gonna play around, then I don’t need your help,” she continued.
“Now ’Mani,” replied Neely soothingly, “we were just having some fun.”
“You can have fun later,” she answered abruptly. “This service project is important to me and I need it done right.”
“Sorry Imani,” piped up Robbie. “I kinda started it. But look,” he added, holding up his open bag, “we’re getting lots of trash. We really think your spring break girls’ club project is important. Don’t we Neely?” he asked, nodding at his friend.
“Sure do,” responded Neely, bobbing his head up and down and smiling. “Say, this reminds me of a joke . . .”
Imani threw up her hand to stop him and scowled at her brother. She then turned and smiled sweetly at Robbie. “I do appreciate your help, Robbie. Very nice of you to volunteer.”
“Actually,” corrected Neely, raising the index finger of his glove, “I’m the one who—”
A glare from Imani stopped him short.
Robbie looked from Neely to Imani, coughed and said, “Well, another twenty minutes should about get the job done.”
They picked up their bags and started down the road again with Imani in the lead. They were dressed in sweatshirts, coats and gloves. The morning had opened up into a beautiful spring day, but the air remained a little chilly, especially out of the sun. The road wound through a heavily wooded area that gave off a nice pine scent. Only an occasional passing car interrupted the quiet of the woods as they moved along.
Then Imani stopped, looking ahead and shading her eyes with her glove. “There’s someone standing at that intersection,” she said. She peered closer and then jerked her head around. “Robbie, isn’t that your sister Jane?”
“Naw, can’t be,” he replied, jogging up to where Imani stood. “She’s at that weather camp, not due back for a few days.”
Then the girl up ahead called to them. “Hey guys! I thought I’d find you here.”
“Well, I’ll be,” whispered a surprised Robbie.
Lugging their large bags, the three of them awkwardly trotted down the road to join Jane.
When the kids, a little breathless, got to where Jane stood waiting, everyone hugged. “We didn’t expect you back this soon,” said Robbie.
“Yeah,” replied Jane. “But something came up.” She paused for a moment, looking at each of them as if trying to decide what to say next. “Did you hear about the lightning storm in Europe that caused a bunch of damage?”
“Yeah, it’s all over the news,” answered Neely. “Killed some cattle and birds, started some fires, that sort of thing. Pretty weird.”
Jane looked at them again, especially Robbie and Neely before she responded. “My mentor at weather camp, Dr. Simmons, told me nothing like it had ever happened before, ever. I called our Uncle Josh, Robbie, and… he said… Cloudland may need help!”
2) Josh’s Place
Robbie and Neely opened their eyes wide and exchanged looks.
But it was Imani who spoke up. “Uh, Cloudland? What’s that?” she asked.
The three older kids looked a bit uncomfortable, waiting for someone else to answer.
“So, Imani,” started Neely.
But Jane quickly interrupted him. “Guys, our uncle’s house isn’t far, I just came from there. Imani, if it’s okay with you, let’s walk over there and I, uh we, can explain on the way.”
Imani gave them all a puzzled look. Then she glanced up and down the cross street where they stood, her two black braids swinging back and forth. “I suppose that’d be okay,” she said. “We can leave our trash bags here. Another work crew is coming up this street to collect ‘em.”
“Sounds like a plan,” offered Neely.
They tied a knot in each bag and grouped them together on the side of the road. Then they took off their reflector vests and put them with the bags. Imani inspected everything and seemed satisfied. Jane started down the road they had been on and everyone followed. After a hundred yards or so, they turned into a narrow lane. Branches from trees on either side grew over the road, creating a pretty tunnel effect.
“So,” Jane began, picking up the conversation again, “first things first. Robbie and Neely, Uncle Josh believes we can expect King Nature to send for us!”
“Whoa!” Robbie replied.
Neely whistled.
Imani cleared her throat. “What in the world are you guys talking about?” she asked, her voice now revealing a trace of irritation.
Jane started to answer, but Neely held up his hand. “Let me try, Jane,” he offered.
He looked up in thought for a second as they walked, leaves and pine needles crunching under their feet, and then turned to Imani.
“Little sis,” he started. She frowned, but he went on. “Do you remember a year or two ago, during the winter carnival, I kinda, well actually when Robbie and I kinda disappeared for a few days?”
“Yeah…” she replied slowly. “Never understood what happened then.”
“Mm-hmm,” Neely said. “Now, here’s the hard part. I’ll just go ahead and throw it out there. We went to a land up in the sky called Cloudland.” He pointed up at the clouds, mostly blocked by the trees, flipping his eyes upward and then down at Imani. “There’s a lot of strange people and things there, ruled by King Nature. And a land next door called Darkland. And our weather comes from there—.”
“Wait a minute, hold it!” Imani stopped him, standing still and putting up her hands. “You can’t be serious?”
“But he is, Imani,” added Robbie, with his arms out, “I know it sounds like too much to believe.”
Imani looked up at Jane, and Jane smiled back and put her arm around her. Then she looked ahead and started them walking again.
“You’re probably thinking if something like this was true, you’d know about it, right?” Jane asked.
Imani nodded.
“We all thought that, too,” Jane continued, “until we saw it for ourselves.”
They were entering a clearing, in the back of which stood a two-story log cabin-style house. A porch ran along the front, partially blocked by a growth of lilac bushes in need of trimming. A breeze carried their pleasant scent toward the walkers. Up on the porch, a man rocked lazily in one of several rocking chairs scattered around.
“Uncle Josh!” yelled Robbie, and he started to jog toward the house. The rest of the group followed at a slower pace.
Josh stood up and waved. Tall, with white hair and beard, he wore jeans and a tan coat with a furry collar. Robbie scampered up the front steps and the two of them hugged.
“Hello, welcome!” called Josh, as the rest of the group arrived. “There’s some bottles of water on the tray there if anyone’s thirsty,” he said, indicating a small table on the porch. He went to Jane and Neely and gave each of them a hug.
As he reached Imani, Neely spoke up. “Mr. Griffis, I think you’ve met my sister, Imani?”
“Yes, very pleased to see you again, Imani.” Josh said, shaking her hand. “Have you been able to keep that brother of yours in line since I last saw him?” he asked with a wink, nodding at Neely.
Imani giggled and said, “Oh no, Mr. Griffis, that’s too big a job for just one person.”
Everyone laughed.
Jane trotted up the steps for a bottle of water and her manner turned serious as she stepped back down. “Uncle Josh, about that really bad lightning blast a few days ago. You believe it means there’s problems on Cloudland. We were just starting to talk about Cloudland to Imani.”
“Okay, let’s start there,” he replied, sitting down on the porch steps.
He turned to Imani. “Imani,” he began, “I know this is going to sound crazy. But suppose I told you there’s a land up in the clouds that we mostly aren’t allowed to see. Let’s just say it’s magic. It’s where a lot of our weather comes from and there are blue-skinned people and other strange creatures that live there.”
He waved his arm at the other kids. “Each of us has been up to Cloudland,” he added, “to assist King Nature, who rules there.”
He paused and watched Imani, whose mouth and eyes were wide open. “Pretty unbelievable, right?” he asked. “Give me a sec, Imani, and we’ll talk some more about this.”
Josh turned and addressed the other kids. “The lightning storm was incredibly powerful; the experts can’t explain it. Something is out of control up there… and King Nature will be sending for our help.”
“Uh, uh,” stuttered Imani, “what in the—”
“Yeah, I know,” Neely interrupted her. “I had the same reaction myself, the first time. But at least Robbie and I were already headed up to Cloudland so I could see stuff happening. It wasn’t just someone telling me something weird.”
Robbie jumped in with a question. “Why do you think King Nature will be sending for us? And if he does, how soon do you think that will happen?”
Before Josh could answer, there came a crackling noise like static on a radio, with puffs of wind scattering petals from the flowers. Then a larger burst of wind flattened their clothes against their bodies.
Everyone turned, and up through the trees they could see a grayish, whitish cloud-like thing coming toward them. Jets of air shot here and there, shaking the tree branches and dropping a few pinecones.
Imani moved up against Neely. She shaded her eyes and squinted. “Weird. I think I see something in the middle of that cloud. A couple of things,” she observed, just above a whisper.
Book #5: Battle For Cloudland
This modern-day fairy tale follows young friends and their adventures in a fantasy land featuring endearing mythical creatures In this fifth installment, Uncle Josh is sick, and a diseased Mr. North Wind wants to shut down Cloudland. The Blueworld kids are a key part of the resistance, but they know a final battle awaits, deep inside Cold Wind Mountain. What they don’t know is a new enemy, the Wind Demon, has the ability to completely destroy Cloudland! Young readers will enjoy the Cloudland drawings, bighearted heroes and larger-than-life adventures. The series makes for a fantastic fantasy read.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) Surprise Attack
Kligger looked around the large cave area, what they called the tunnel node. In one direction, the bright light of the cave revealed the round opening of a tunnel maybe twice his height. A couple of Windwheels slowly rolled into it, talking to each other as they headed toward their main work area at Dr. Forsure’s wind caves. Across the cave on the other side, a similar if not identical tunnel ran in the direction of Mr. East Wind’s cave. Inside and almost filling this second tunnel rested a large clear bag, rounded on the end.
Kligger ran his fingers through his long, white hair and swung his gaze across the cave toward Rilkit, the other Windwheel working this delivery. A little bearded guy on wheels, Rilkit’s blue face sweated in the dim light. He nodded toward Kligger and pumped one of his four fists.
“It’s a go!” called Rilkit.
Kligger nodded and waved, then rolled with his leg wheels over the smooth floor. Many years of use had turned the floor from a brilliant white to a streaky gray. He stopped in front of a box-like control panel set in the wall. Sized for the Windwheels, all its switches and dials were within easy reach, none higher than four feet off the ground. As was his habit when operating the controls, Kligger pulled his blue and grey, two-peaked cap down snug on his head. He opened a safety cover and tapped a round button with his fist and a thick, circular plate lowered into position at the tunnel entrance with a slight grating sound. He heard a muffled bump as the plate sealed the tunnel behind the large bag.
Kligger checked around the cave again and got a wave from Rilkit. Satisfied, Kligger flicked his eyes left and right one more time, grabbed a T-shaped handle on the end of a switch extending from the panel and moved it up. He heard a hissing sound for several seconds as he held the switch up, then a whoosh followed by a slight rumbling sound going down the tunnel. The switch dropped back down as he released it.
“Bag of winds for ol’ Easty man!” called Kligger. “Job’s done, let’s close up and go home.” He pushed a button on the other side of the switch and the large tunnel plate began moving back up.
Just then, a muffled boom came from somewhere above them.
“What’s that?” asked Rilkit, jerking his head up to look at the ceiling.
“Dunno,” answered Kligger. “Almost sounded like it came from one of the access shafts.” He rocked back on his wheels and cocked his head to listen.
With a crash, a cover swung down from a hole in the ceiling behind Rilkit. Something dark emerged from the hole and began descending the access ladder, using its arms. Five or six feet from the ground, it dropped and bounced up on two wheels.
“What the—” Rilkit yelled. His cry was cut short as the creature charged into him, long arms reaching for his throat.
Kligger stared in horror. This new creature was definitely some kind of a Windwheel, only taller and stronger, with darker blue skin.
Fear gripped Kligger in a shudder. He should help, but he couldn’t move. He watched Rilkit struggle in the bigger Windwheel’s grasp, then slump over.
Another of the creatures dropped to the cave floor, the eyes in his repulsive face squinting, unused to the bright light.
What were they?
Then Kligger remembered. He had never seen one, but other Windwheels had. These were Windwheels from Mr. North Wind’s caves in Cold Wind Mountain!
Kligger shook himself. “Move, you silly Windy!”
As he turned, another creature crawled out of the shaft. Bigger by half than the others, it had legs, not wheels. And as its body emerged, a terrified Kligger saw some wrinkled wings unfolding from its back!
“Seize him!” the thing croaked in a loud voice.
Kligger spun around and raced to the control panel. Forgetting everything else, he yanked on the emergency lever and hit the destruct button. He heard a cranking sound and saw the blocking plug dropping into place in the tunnel to the wind caves. He saw nothing more.
2) Uncle Josh’s Sickness
“Too bad about Uncle Josh,” said Jane, glancing at her brother Robbie. The two of them relaxed on rocking chairs on the rustic front porch of their uncle’s house. The regular creaking of the rockers broke the silence of the surrounding woods.
“Yeah,” answered Robbie. “He looks really sick. He said he’d been feeling weak for some time before he went to the hospital.”
Jane squinted at the sun’s glare on a patch of snow and closed up her coat against the chill. “I guess the doctors didn’t find anything specific,” she said.
“Well, all we know is they sent him home and told him to take it easy,” said Robbie.
Jane looked back toward the front door. “Tough seeing him like this.”
They rocked without talking for a moment, listening to a sudden breeze moving through the woods.
Robbie stopped rocking. “Jane,” he said, with an intensity in his voice that caused Jane to look up. “Call me crazy, but I swear Uncle Josh’s skin has a faint bluish color. Have you noticed that?”
She paused a moment before answering. “Yeah,” I couldn’t put my finger on it but now that you mention it, yeah, there is a bluish tint. Weird.”
Her gaze swept out across the front of the house. “And speaking of weird,” she continued, “Is that Neely I see coming up the lane?”
“Ha, funnyyy,” drawled Robbie, getting up and looking in that direction. After a few seconds, he added, “Looks like Imani is with him.”
“Hello the house!” yelled a boy about Robbie’s age, waving and coming into the clearing around Josh’s house. He wore a black knit cap and coat and the sun glinted off a pair of glasses. His younger sister left his side and trotted up to the porch, pulling off the red knit cap that had been jammed down around her dark face and black braids. Jane stood up and they hugged.
“Thanks for calling,” Robbie said to Neely as they bumped their gloved fists. “We told Uncle Josh. He’ll be happy to see you.”
“Sure thing,” said Neely, his breath visible in the frosty air. “Parents were out running errands. They’re going out of town for a week. Dropped us off so we’ll just walk back.”
“That’s odd,” said Robbie. “Our parents are gone, too.” He smiled. “You don’t suppose there’s some secret parent convention going on somewhere, do you?”
“Good one,” chuckled Neely. “Say, I’ve got a joke.”
Imani turned on Neely with a frown on her face and grunted. “No Neely, not now,” she said. Then, turning to Jane, she asked, “What’s the latest?”
“Not good,” Jane responded. “Still weak, moving around but keeping to his bed a lot. We’ve set up a cot in his living room. He likes that.”
“Cool,” said Imani. Her eyes moved along the front of the house and then settled on the front door, studying it. “Uh, before we go in to see him, I wanted to bring something up.” She hesitated. “Both Neely and I have noticed that your uncle’s skin looks . . . well, kind of bluish. Have you seen that?” She looked at her brother and he nodded his head.
“Hmmm,” answered Robbie. “We were just talking about that. Seems like that would be important, but none of the hospital information mentioned it. Got any ideas?”
“Sooo . . . ” Imani began, glancing at each of them, and appearing reluctant to finish the thought.
“Sooo . . . ” she said again, “if they don’t know anything here that’s causing it, do you think it might have anything to do with Cloudland?” She looked down, a little embarrassed. “No, probably not,” she whispered, shaking her head.
Silence followed her statement, as each of the others looked at her in thought.
“You know,” said Jane, softly, “you may be onto something, girl. We’ve been there, but we know so little about Cloudland, and only what Uncle Josh has told us about his time there—”
“And his time in Darkland,” interrupted Neely. “Sorry,” he said, looking at Jane. “That may be important, too.”
“Absolutely,” answered Jane. “Not sure where we’re going with this. But Uncle Josh spent a lot of time on a totally different world. Now he’s come down sick and the medical people here can’t figure it out.”
“’Course, we’ve spent time there, too,” Robbie reminded her.
“Yeah, but only for a short time,” Jane said and paused. “We’re stuck with just guesses at this point.”
“Unless,” Imani said. “Unless, well, do you think this would be important enough to try to get ahold of Cloudland?
“Hey,” said Neely, “You may be onto something little—”
“What the—” interrupted Imani. As she said this, she pulled a large coin out of her pocket and held it up. It sparkled golden in the sunlight, a coin or medallion about three inches across with strange writing, symbols, and pictures on it.
“It’s vibrating!” said Imani, alarm in her voice. The other kids gathered around her and stared at the coin. With each vibration, the coin made a buzzing sound and gave off a pulsing blue glow.
“Whoa,” Robbie whispered.
“I carry this with me a lot,” said Imani, “Ever since King Nature gave us one when we were up on Cloudland. Never had it do this though.” She held the coin up flat so they could see it better.
Imani squinted as she studied the coin. “See this?” she asked, pointing to one side of the coin with the shape of two fists facing each other. “Remember when King Nature gave us these coins, he put two of his fists together?
“Yeah, so?” answered Neely.
“I wonder . . . ” Imani said, and she held the coin in both hands while she pushed on each of the fists with her thumbs.
The two fists smoothly slid together.
Slowly, the blue glow expanded into a round shape above the coin and an image emerged, like in a hologram.
In a moment, the image sharpened. They saw the face of Professor Because!
Book #6: Cloudland & Darkland Exposed
Lightning has struck a volcano eruption on the Vanuatu Islands, causing Darkland & Cloudland to become visible! An old foe is behind this, and if he can trigger a bigger eruption, it will have dire consequences for the whole planet. The kids form two teams to deal with dangers and superstitions at the volcano, and the evil madman on Darkland. But standing in the way of both teams is one of the most terrifying creatures they have ever faced.
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) Evil Thoughts
A short (by human standards), slender individual sat on a flat stone and stared up at the overcast sky. He wore a single garment that dropped down over his feet, a thin robe with long sleeves for his four arms. The individual, known as a Witherin, had a bald head and a short, pointed gray beard. The features of his blue-skinned face were lined and hard, the down-turned corners of his mouth suggesting some cruelty in his character.
As he continued to look, the shifting haze in the sky periodically revealed and hid a huge blue sphere covering much of the horizon. But it wasn’t clear if the Witherin, with his unfocused gaze into the distance, even took notice of this impressive sight. Totally absorbed in thought, he occasionally whispered to himself to reinforce events running through his mind.
It has been over a year, almost two, but the memories gnaw at me as if it were yesterday. Even now, my blue skin darkens with hate, as images from those memories burn to life in my fevered mind. Images of a brilliant concept to address Blueworld’s weather problems, a concept that was ruined by interference from the shortsighted rulers of Cloudland and Darkland. And, yes, images of some busybody intruders from Blueworld, of all places. But this time it will be different.
Back then, I had set things up perfectly. King Kradyn was a fool, of course, but a useful fool, who allowed me to scheme and experiment with the powerful lightning forces of Darkland. Kradyn liked to boast, proclaiming the fiction that he, the king, was the inventor of the lightning weapon. No matter. His boasting took the focus away from me, Zintor, the REAL genius.
I had painstakingly developed all aspects of the concept. It was no mean feat to get the Trodes to flood a specific area of the Lightning Woods with enriched energy. As a result, the Lightning Trees that drank this energy developed unheard-of levels of lightning power. And when I coupled this to an array of light rods . . . well, I had something special! We have sent lightning down from the Darklands to Blueworld throughout all the ages past, of course. But this was something different. This was weather with a purpose, weather with superior thought behind it!
For many years, I have watched from a distance as the people on Blueworld slowly choked the life out of their environment. Pollution in all its diverse forms had spread steadily, relentlessly, to many additional areas of their planet, bringing with it rising temperatures. In one corner of Blueworld ice is melting; in another, lands are flooding; in another, large areas are drying up.
Since Blueworld is unaware, or because Blueworld is unaware of the secret mysteries of Darkland and Cloudland in the skies above it, it is also unaware of the harmonious weather balance that exists between these worlds. Weather patterns based on this balance that have existed for eons cannot easily respond to constant change, now a characteristic of Blueworld’s environment.
For this reason, I developed my elegant solution. The cleansing effects of lightning in the atmosphere are well known. So, I reasoned, more powerful and more frequent lightning storms should, over time, begin to clear up Blueworld’s air. And that is just what Kradyn’s and my lightning weapon would have accomplished.
But along comes King Rydzat from home base Darkland. Too late to stop our test, yet successful in shutting down our whole operation. And those brats with their sleeping dust! I still do not know how they got involved, but when I woke up, they were on their way back to Blueworld. My blood still boils when I think about it.
After it was all over, I never found out what happened to Kradyn. Maybe he was dealt with by the Old One. I shudder if that was the case.
But my assistant Zeggitz and I were put through a rehabilitation program by Rydzat. Laughable! It had no effect on us. I guess our acting was good enough that they thought we had straightened out and were ready to be “good guys” again. So, they sent us off to another Darkland for the king here to babysit us. Guess she had better things to do. She does not have a clue what I’m up to.
Because now I am back and better than ever. I have built up a team down here in no man’s land, between the Lightning Woods and the Forbidden Zone. More importantly, I have built up a stockpile of lightning rods. I am far away from the meddling eyes of Kings Nature and Rydzat . . . and Blueworld interference, for that matter. And, with a little tweaking and testing, I am almost ready to unleash the most powerful weather event of all time. Are you ready Blueworld?
2) A Garden Walk
“So, do these trees remind you of anything?” Robbie asked Neely, looking up from under his ball cap at the towering trees in all directions.
Their day had started with an absolutely delightful morning, the sun beginning to warm up the crisp, refreshing air. Jane (high school), Robbie & Neely (junior high), and Imani (6th grade) gazed here and there at unusual and beautiful plants and flowers as they made their way through the City Botanic Gardens in Brisbane, Australia.
“Uh,” Neely said, looking at a paper map of the garden, “says here they are Cuban Royal Palms.”
“No, stupid,” responded Robbie, “I said remind you of. Don’t you think they kinda look like Shiver-me trees?”
“Well, now that you mention it, I guess they sorta do,” Neely replied. “Tall, spikey trunks going up to a bunch of leafy stuff. Course, everything here is crazy colorful, as opposed to the whites and blues of Cloudland.”
They continued to walk along, making new discoveries, like a collection of different kinds of bamboo, a very interesting ornamental pond, and fig, macadamia and other trees planted in the 1800’s. Robbie and Neely were especially interested in a 200-year-old cannon made in Scotland.
“You know,” said Imani. “I just think it’s so cool our parents decided to attend their conference in Australia, and it included this side trip for family members.”
“I know, right?” Jane said. “The planned tours and stuff have been good, but it’s nice to have a little free time on our own. Of course, I think our sponsors agreed to that because one of our group is a little older, and more mature.”
“What, you? Cringe,” Robbie said, pretending to gag with his hands wrapped around his throat.
“Whatever,” said Imani, rolling her eyes. “Anyway, I always wanted to see Australia.”
“Which reminds me of an Australian joke,” said Neely. “Why do mother kangaroos hate it when it rains?”
“I don’t wanna know,” answered Imani with a frown.
“Because the kids have to play inside,” said Neely with a smile. “Get it?”
An unrecognizable sound came from Imani.
“And now that I’m on a roll,” Neely continued, “why aren’t Koalas actual bears? Waiting. Waiting. Because they don’t meet the koalifications.”
The other three kids responded with a collective groan.
“You’re welcome,” said Neely, laughing. “Yeah, Robbie, interesting stuff here, everywhere you look.” He turned toward Imani. “In fact, little sis, I think you might appreciate a brief science lesson.”
Neely smiled as Imani screwed up her face in a grimace at his use of the term “little sis.” Before she could reply, however, he quickly continued.
“As you know,” he said, mimicking the more learned tone of a professor, “we are in the southern hemisphere here, which causes differences from things back home. The weather, for instance. It’s summer back home but winter here and kind of chilly.”
“Well duh,” snorted Imani. “I—”
Neely interrupted her before she could say anything more. “And have you noticed that the water in the toilet bowl swirls in a different direction than back home?”
Imani smirked and coughed. “Gross! Okay, I’ve noticed it, so what?”
“Well,” continued Neely, “it’s due to something called the Coriolis effect, a response to the Earth’s axis of rotation, which shifts the movement of objects in opposite directions for the northern and southern hemispheres. Ergo,” he finished, with his finger in the air to emphasize the point, “toilet bowls swirl in different directions.”
Imani frowned at him for a moment, shaking her head, then turned slightly and winked at Jane. Regarding Neely again, Imani assumed her own important-sounding speaking style.
“But have you noticed, Professor Neely,” she said, “that the flush water here enters the toilet bowl from a different side than the ones back home? Ergo (she stretched out the word), the direction of the swirl is mostly due to the way that water is forced around the bowl.”
“Boom!” shouted Robbie, laughing out loud and thrusting his fist toward Neely, then opening his fingers to simulate an explosion. “Bro, she nailed you on that one!”
Everyone smiled at each other, except Neely, who just looked embarrassed. Neely and Imani had just played a round in the universal brother/sister contest of one-upmanship, and Imani had clearly scored. As Neely’s face changed from embarrassment to concentration, it was clear that he was now thinking about how to come up with something to tip the balance back in his favor…
Book #7: Cloudland Threatened!
This modern-day fantasy follows young friends and their adventures in a magical land featuring fantastic creatures and weather-related themes. In this seventh installment, Jane is held hostage by her weather mentor to force Cloudland to create a colder climate. But things get totally out of hand when someone on Darkland changes the Northern Lights into living light monsters. Alone in freezing Greenland, battling sea creatures raised by a giant waterspout, and fighting a crafty villain in a cavern on Darkland are some of the challenges the kids will face. They must stop this weather madness but also meet the even greater challenge of keeping Cloudland a secret. Young readers will enjoy the mix of science and magic with this larger-than-life adventure.
Book #7, Cloudland Threatened is out now!
Available in paperback (Amazon) and eBook at the online stores above.
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1) A Discovery
Six delicate creatures floated across a white landscape of crystalline valleys and mounds that twinkled in silvery, reflected light. The creatures, eight inches or so in length, wore flowing robes or soft jackets and trousers, suggesting clothing styles of long ago. On the back of each grew a wonderful appendage, a large icy sheet of a unique shape containing a pattern of symmetrical holes.
Off to the left in the distance, occasional hills bathed in faint purple could be seen, and ahead, a spot of shimmering colors blended with the horizon. As they floated and talked, one of them suddenly pointed, directing their attention to something dark against the white background. Exchanging curious glances, they quickened their pace. Arriving at the spot, they discovered a cylinder lying on the ground, about a foot in length with gray sides and black end caps. One end connected to several cords that snaked over to a large, shapeless mass they hadn’t noticed before. Investigating the mass, it turned out to be a heap of rubbery material, silver-white in color, that draped over and completely covered a raised hump in the ground.
“What is this?” spoke up one of the creatures, running his hand along one of the cords.
“I don’t know,” responded another, who cautiously walked up to the cylinder and tapped it with her hand. “Sounds hollow like a tube. And this definitely isn’t from Cloudland.”
The rest of the creatures murmured in amazed agreement with that statement as each moved around, inspecting the strange objects.
“We must take these things to Queen Naurentz,” said a third. “She will want to investigate them. But that big silver thing will be too heavy to carry.”
Two of the creatures began to examine the cords more closely, lifting and pulling on them.
“Watch out,” said one of them, “We don’t know what those cords are for.”
“Understood,” said the other. “Oh look, they are attached to a ring on the cylinder, and I think maybe it unscrews. Help me with it.”
The two of them tugged at the ring, and it slowly began to unscrew until it and the cords dropped away from the cylinder.
“So,” said a female in a blue robe, “let me suggest that some of us take this tube to the queen, and the others go to the Striped Lake to tell South Wind. Maybe she can get some Pawbers to carry that big bag or whatever it is to the castle.”
The group agreed with this idea, except they all wanted to take the tube to the queen. Various arguments arose, but it became apparent no one wanted to miss what looked like it could be an exciting adventure going to the castle. Finally, after some arguing and squabbling, four of the creatures picked up the cylinder and floated away, while the other two, with disgusted backward glances, floated toward the colors straight ahead in the distance.
The four with the tube, two on either side, soon came upon bands of color flowing like a river and meandering in a southward direction. To say bands of color did not do justice, however, to the exquisite slushy lines of bright colors deeply tinted like a rainbow. And this Striped River resonated with gentle sounds resembling the jingling from a music box. Shortly thereafter, bright glittering light flashed and flickered in the distance. Coming closer, they could see the light reflecting off a glassy building of many towers, the queen’s castle, perched in the sun on the river’s bank. The creatures floated with their package above a bridge over the river, across a lawn of light blue and up a broad staircase. At the large entrance to the building, several individuals in uniform stood guard. Each of them, known as Witherins, was the size of a small human, and had four arms and blue skin.
One of them raised a hand and addressed the creatures in a friendly voice, “What brings you Snowflakes to Queen Naurentz’s castle?”
The Snowflakes showed the Witherin their cylinder and gave a brief explanation, all talking at once. He listened patiently, nodding his head, and then turned, signaling them to follow him. Moving at a slow pace through several corridors, they eventually approached and passed through another guarded doorway and entered a large, elaborately decorated room. Glittering lamp fixtures dropped down from the ceiling, splashing light on the highly polished floor and silvery tapestries on the walls. Clustered in groups on either side of the room was a collection of some of the strange inhabitants of this land. These included more Witherins, some small round white things with multiple arms and legs sticking out in all directions, elf-like creatures with a wheel on either side of their bodies, and bluish animals resembling bears standing up on their back paws.
A Witherin woman sat on a beautifully carved chair on a raised platform at the far end of the room. Wearing a long, sleeveless jacket over a dark blue dress, her hair falling to her shoulders, she leaned to her left in conversation with a plainly dressed, gray-haired Witherin man. As the Snowflakes’ Witherin escort cleared his voice to speak, the Witherin woman and man turned and looked at them with inquisitive expressions.
“Queen Nauarentz, Master Rumilnuk,” called out the escort. “Something strange and unexplained has appeared in Cloudland. It was found by these Snowflakes,” and he indicated the hovering group of Snowflakes with one of his arms.
“Please, bring it here,” responded the queen, waving them forward as she stepped down from her platform.
The four Snowflakes glanced at each other nervously, as none of them had ever been this close to the queen. Then, each taking a deep breath, they floated, perhaps a little hesitantly, across the floor to the queen’s throne.
“May I?” the Witherin man asked the queen as he stepped forward with a hand outstretched.
“Careful,” cautioned the queen. “Make sure it is safe.”
The Witherin man, Rumilnuk, took the cylinder and hefted it with two hands, slowly rotated it to look for any markings, and carefully peered at both ends.
“I am reasonably confident that it poses no danger,” he said, nodding to the queen. He continued, “One end appears to have a locking mechanism.”
Looking at the queen again and then back at the cylinder, he carefully squeezed and then twisted on the end until a small plug came free in his hand. He looked into the cylinder, and as those in the room held their breath, he inserted a finger. Slowly, he drew out a roll of paper, unrolled it and held it up so the queen could also see.
“It was written by someone from Blueworld,” he announced in a clear voice that carried throughout the hall.
There were several gasps and even some cries in the audience.
Queen Naurentz held up her hand and began to read the note aloud.
My name is Doctor Simmons. I will make this brief. I am a meteorologist, a weather scientist. And through observation and scientific experiments, I have discovered your land’s existence up in the clouds.
There were more loud cries of alarm now throughout the room, and the noise of conversation began steadily increasing.
“Quiet, please. Quiet,” ordered the queen, and the noise began to subside. The queen continued reading.
You are aware, I am sure, of the climate issues on our planet, especially the rising temperatures. I have some ideas that, with your assistance, I believe can address these issues. And let me be clear, this is not a request. If you do not cooperate with me on this, I will tell the rest of MY world everything I know about YOUR world. I await your reply. S.
At this last statement, the throne room again erupted in voices filled with panic.
“Quiet! Silence!” the queen called again, and slowly the noise in the room began to decrease.
“There are some numbers at the bottom of this note,” she said to Rumilnuk, pointing to them. “Do you know what they mean?”
Rumilnuk studied the numbers for a moment and then nodded his head several times.
“I believe these are what the Blueworlders call coordinates,” he answered, “Blueworld map coordinates. This would presumably tell us where he is if we were to contact him.”
The queen looked up slightly, resting her chin on one of her hands in thought. The room was quiet as she concentrated for a moment or two.
Turning to Rumilnuk she issued an order, “Set up a Vidau ray communications channel with King Kestottis in Darkland. Highest priority!”
2) At the Mall
The four kids sat with their drinks at a table in the food court at the mall. The scene around them looked like a typical Saturday with families and kids wandering through, some carrying purchases and most of them talking in loud voices. Three of the four kids engaged in conversation, but Imani quietly sipped at her drink with a bit of a sad face, oblivious to the chatter around her.
Her older brother, Neely, peered over and gave her a slow wave. “Hello, Earth to Imani,” he said. “Still with us? Why so down in the dumps?”
Imani looked up at him and then back down. “I don’t know,” she said in a soft voice. “It’s just that I’ve been thinking about things. Thinking about what I want to do as an adult. You know, career choices.”
“But . . . I thought that was kinda settled,” offered Jane, the oldest in the group. “You’ve talked a lot about being an Environmental Engineer. And that seems like a pretty good fit for you. You’re smart and really tuned into nature.”
“Yeah, I know,” said Imani, putting her hands on her head. “And it’s probably still a good choice. But things change so fast, and like there’s just too much information to process anymore, right?” She paused. “I’ve been having, I don’t know, some anxiety attacks thinking about this.”
“Whoa,” said Jane’s younger brother, Robbie.
“Yeah, whoa,” added Neely. “You shouldn’t be piling on all this pressure now, little sis’, you’ve got a lotta time to figure this out.”
“Like I know—” Imani started.
“Look,” Neely interrupted. “I think the way to get you out of this funk is a few jokes.”
“Uh, no, that’s the last thing I need,” Imani said, frowning and shaking her head.
Neely ignored her. “Why are spiders such know-it-alls?” he asked. He paused. “Duh, because they’re always on the web.”
The groans from the others didn’t deter him. “What is red, orange, and full of disappointment?”
“Your jokes?” asked Imani with a little grin.
“Good try,” said Neely, flashing a big smile. “No, the answer is a school pizza. Now, why can’t you hear a pterodactyl in the bathroom? Wait for it, wait for it. Because it has a silent pee.”
“Oh, gross,” said Jane, looking like she had just smelled something bad.
Imani raised her hand, “OK, I’ve got one,” she said. “Why did God create man before He made a woman?” She waited while the others thought and then shook their heads. “Because we all need a rough draft before the final version.”
She and Jane laughed and high fived with both hands while Neely and Robbie exchanged mildly disgusted looks.
“OK, ‘Mani,” responded Neely. “That wasn’t bad for a novice. But the main thing is you seem to be back in the land of the living again.”
Imani gave him a pensive look. “Maybe so,” she said. She then waved her drinking cup around at the rest of them. “And what about you guys? What are your career plans? Of course, I guess we all know about Jane’s.”
“Absolutely,” Jane answered. “Still pretty solid on the idea of being a meteorologist. Always been fascinated by everything weather. I think it’s getting more important all the time, and of course our Cloudland experiences add a lot to that. And speaking of weather, I’ve got a cool opportunity coming up. Robbie already knows this, but I got invited by my weather mentor, Dr. Simmons, to attend this huge weather conference up in Montreal, Canada. Mom and Dad said I could go.”
“Wow, that’s awesome,” Neely said, giving her a fist bump.
“Yeah, pretty excited,” Jane said. “Dr. Simmons is no longer with his university. He’s launched his own company that’s doing really well and will cover most of the cost of me going. He’ll be presenting a paper on some theories and research he has on climate change.”
“That is so rad,” Imani said. Then turning toward Robbie, she asked, “What about your career plans, Robbie?”
Robbie puffed out his cheeks and blew some air out. “Well,” he answered after a moment, “I don’t think my plans are that far along. Maybe do something that requires knowledge but also working with my hands? Like, I might study Kinesiology in college or maybe train to be an EMT . . . or even a nurse.”
This last statement caused Neely to give him a weird look. “A nurse?” he asked, emphasizing the word nurse. “Seriously bro’?”
The two girls stifled a giggle.
Robbie shrugged his shoulders. “What?” he said, looking around. “Like, I didn’t say that was my TOP choice, just something I might think about. Like there’s a lot of dudes in that field doing cool stuff like flying on rescue helicopters.”
Imani spoke up. “As for me, Robbie, I think that sounds pretty sensible. I certainly wouldn’t worry about what Neely says on the subject. And speaking of my pompous sibling, what are your plans, dear brother?”
“Pompous? Say what?” Neely said in a condescending tone. “Well, if you really must know—"
“I must, I must,” interrupted Imani with a smirk.
Neely gave her a disgusted look, and then a large CRASH came from behind them! All the kids threw up their heads, startled, and looked around. It turned out it was only someone who had dropped a tray of dishes. The kids grinned at each other sheepishly.
“Whoa,” said Neely, “it looks like this bunch is a little jumpy around loud noises.”
“You think?” said Imani, with a hint of a smile. “It’s not like someone might be shooting at us, like on the rim of a volcano or something.”
The other kids smiled back at her, remembering that was exactly what had happened in their most recent adventure [CLOUDLAND Book 6: Cloudland & Darkland Exposed].
“OK,” said Neely. “As I was saying, as far as a career choice I think something physics or engineering related. If I had to pick something now, I’m pretty interested in robotics, and artificial intelligence, AI. That field is just exploding, and there are so many careers it will be impacting. Yeah, definitely considering that.”
“Good choice,” Robbie responded.
“Well,” said Imani, drawing a box out of a bag lying on the table, “if you can drive us home, Jane, I want to see how this bracelet I picked up goes with my other bracelets.”
“Oh, before you leave,” said Robbie, holding a hand up, “I almost forgot my big news. Our Uncle Josh got ahold of me, he’s coming down for a visit pretty soon, maybe in a couple of weeks. And Jane, he’s bringing your medallion…