Exercise Your Imagination! Do you like stories with mystery and suspense? Well, if you do, keep reading and enjoy Eggcentricsagas. If you are just joining Eggcentricsagas, start from the beginning: A La Mano: Part 1-The Treasure
“Baba! Myrtle is here!” Zerlinda sang out from the front door.
Wiping her hands on a dishtowel, Ravenna walked into the living room. “Where’s Mason? Doesn’t he want to listen to story time?” she asked his younger sister.
“He wanted to, but he went with my grandpa to run errands,” Myrtle answered.
“Too bad,” Ravenna said. She looked over at Zerlinda and saw a big grin on her face.
Fall was here. Chilly outside, Ravenna thought it best to stay inside on this blustery day. “Let’s make some hot chocolate. Then we can sit by the fire and I will tell you about Cora’s journey,” she told the girls.
Holding hands, Zerlinda and Myrtle ran into the kitchen. Later, Magic curled up on the footstool in front of the crackling fire, and the girls took their places. When all had settled in the family room, Ravenna told her tale.
“Cora was rather displeased with the way the quest was going. She thought the Prince might have finished his tasks. Little did she know he was under Grey Woods wandering in the maze of the fairy world. Stopping and tossing her long, blonde hair back, she called to Owl with exasperation, ‘How do I find the mermaid?’ Displaying the coral jewelry in her hand, she added, ‘and what am I supposed to do with these?’
They had been following a track through the moonflowers alongside a marshy part of the Amber River. An airy, silvery mist had enveloped them. Curls of frosty fog swirled around her. A glum expression painted on her face, Cora said, ‘This gray, twilight environment isn’t good for my complexion. I miss the bright sun.’
The Owl suggested they reread the scroll to see if there were any clues. Pulling it from her pack, Cora read the last part of the scroll again out loud.‘Two and Three both live in the sky, but one has wings of Dark and the other has wings of Light. Use the Light to find the One in the Dark.’ Looking at Owl, she stated, ‘We know Two is Raven. Is Three a bird too?’ As she pondered this, she shooed a large dragonfly with luminous wings away from her face. Considering the lamp, she held it higher and questioned no one in particular, ‘Is this the light that I am to use to find the one in the dark? Who is the One?’ The dragonfly flitted around her head again. Swatting at it, she exclaimed, ‘This bug is bugging me!’
Zerlinda burst out laughing. “That’s funny, Baba. A bug is bugging her!”
Her grandmother smiled at her before continuing.
“‘To find the Mermaid, follow the Eye of the Unicorn,” said a high, shrill voice in Cora’s ear and then whirred away. It whizzed past again. ‘But take care as Dragon’s Breath has crept upon the land!’ The princess flashed her lamp toward her tormentor and adviser. The body and wings of the dragonfly caught and reflected the light. A shimmering rainbow.
Cora blurted out her sudden insight, ‘Wings of Light! A dragonfly!’ Then scratching her head, she uttered, ‘Dragon’s Breath? What’s that? What’s a Unicorn Eye?’
Unfortunately, the dragonfly had disappeared into the ever-growing fog. Cora didn’t enjoy plodding through the murky weather. Using her lamp for illumination only made the surrounding area gloomier. The creeping mist grew around and encapsulated the light. The dreary cloud seemed to penetrate her mind too, impairing her judgment, tearing her thoughts into wispy shreds of nothingness. Where was she? Where was she going?
‘Owl, where are you?’ she called anxiously. No answer returned from the freezing fog. The bird was nowhere. The princess trudged onward for lack of a better option when suddenly she found her feet immersed in icy water. Having wandered by accident into the river reeds, Cora turned and tried to retreat. Thick, sucking mud mired her feet, holding her in place. I must go on, she thought, or I will sink into the bog of bitter despair. Wearily, she pulled her feet up and continued to retreat to the shore. So cold, so cold…
Ravenna wrapped her shawl around her and pretended to shiver. “The princess didn’t know it, but the fog was the Dragon’s Breath. It was sucking the sunlight out of her.” Wide-eyed and listening closely, Zerlinda and Myrtle scooted nearer to the fire and huddled together.
“Cora desired warmth and sunshine, but it was nowhere to be found. She wanted a blanket or to curl up in a ball. Feeling so sleepy, her eyelids drooping, she thought, Perhaps, I should lie down, just for a moment.
A flutter of feathers hit her face before she sank to the ground. There were tinkling bells, and then a distant voice asked, ‘Whoo are you?’
The Dragon’s Breath seemed to have overcome her. The girl wasn’t sure how to answer, so she didn’t.
The call became more insistent. ‘Remember whoo you are. Wake up and follow the Unicorn’s Eye.’
Cora struggled to open her eyes a little, and far, far away, she saw a floating eyeball that seemed to watch her. She needed to follow before it went away. Mustering all her strength, the princess continued forward, not knowing if it was her salvation or her doom to which she marched.”
Pausing in her narrative, Ravenna took a couple of sips of her hot cocoa. The little girls imitated her and also took a drink. Even Magic got up, jumped down, and wandered into the kitchen. They could hear him lapping up water.
Retrieving the fire poker, Ravenna told the girls, “I need to stoke.” They moved aside for her to tend the fire. When it was blazing again, she returned to her armchair.
“I’m scared for Cora,” Myrtle said with a worried look. “I wouldn’t like to be following a floating eyeball in freezing fog.”
Zerlinda also had a concerned expression. “Baba, will she be okay?”
Magic, his thirst slaked, strolled into the family room again. Jumping up onto the footstool, he sat down on it. Then blinked his large, blue eyes at his mistress.
Ravenna addressed him, “What do you think, Magic? Will the Sun Princess survive?”
In reply, the big, black cat blinked his eyes again and then yawned. He proceeded to circle round and round. Eventually, settling into a comfortable ball atop his perch. Ravenna took another drink and resumed her story.
“The Princess was a little scared of the eye too, but she was also curious. It gave her the strength to pick up her pace. As she drew nearer, the girl saw it wasn’t just an eye that she was following. It was a real unicorn, a lovely, white horse with a delicate, spiral-shaped horn of pearly white. Appearing to show her the way, Cora didn’t realize that the Unicorn was a genuine gift. Not everyone is blessed to meet a unicorn along their Path.
She continued to follow it, and soon, the fog lifted. The silvery light remained, growing stronger and stronger until it was almost like the sun. As the light shone brighter, the Unicorn faded away until Cora could only see its eye again, and then it disappeared. The princess found she was at the seashore. Cora had returned to the little cove where she had previously disembarked.
There was a large boulder that Cora had not seen earlier. Atop it sat a mermaid. Beautiful reddish-orange hair cascaded down her back to her waist. There it touched her tail, covered in blue and green scales that sparkled like sapphires and emeralds. As Cora approached, the fish girl faced her with tears glistening upon her cheeks.
Knowing her royal manners, Cora introduced herself. ‘I am Cora, the Sun Princess.’ She inquired, ‘What is the matter, dear Maid of the Sea?’
‘I have lost Seahorse. She has swum away from me and taken my happiness.’
Remembering the coral jewelry and the guidance of the frog, Cora told the mermaid, ‘Mr. Frog said, that I should find you. You have been chosen to help me on my quest. I would like you to have these as a gift in return.’ The princess presented the jewelry to her.
Wiping away her tears, the mermaid cheered up. As she put on her new adornments, Owl appeared and landed on the rock next to the sea creature. Communicating with each other, hoots and hisses, then shrieks and whistles exchanged.
The mermaid smiled and addressed Cora, ‘Wait here. I have something for you. I’ll be back!’ She dove into the sea and disappeared under the deep, blue waves.”
Next: The Myth of Madame Mariposa No. 2: Part 2- The Tale of the Gnome
