further away. The roar grew to near unbearable levels and just when the three thought it couldn’t get any worse they felt a vibration rumble through the air.
WHHHHUUUUUUSH!
A jet of molten lava spat from the rift, searing everything in its path, igniting the hardy cacti that grew in the canyon and turning sand and stone to glassy slag. With a final shriek the unstable Portal collapsed in on itself and blinked out of existence.
Charlie, ears ringing so hard that she thought she might now be deaf, stared at the devastation in shock. Wincing and blowing through her pinched nose to relieve the pressure in her ears, she staggered over to her friends.
‘That, er … that didn’t go too well.’
Crumble stared at her like she was mad. ‘That’s perhaps the worst understatement I’ve ever heard! “Didn’t go too well! Didn’t go too well!”’ he parroted and shook his head in wonder.
Charlie, still unable to hear, nonetheless got the gist of what he was saying. ‘I don’t think I should try that again.’
‘You think?’ choked Crumble. ‘Look, definitely no more Portals to the Western Mountains! We’re going to go to another village and we’re going to get a qualified answer before we attempt anything like that again. I do not want to burn off my eyebrows or get burned alive for that matter before I turn sixteen!’
‘What?’ said Nibbler and stared around with dazed eyes. ‘Did someone say it was time to see the Queen?’
Crumble rubbed at his head in frustration as Nibbler staggered on unsteady feet and Charlie continued to alternate sticking her fingers in her ears and puffing on her nose.
‘But what Queen?’ asked Nibbler with a concerned look on his face. ‘Will we be there in time for tea?’
Crumble clapped his hands to his face and groaned. Grabbing Nibbler by a wing in an attempt to stop the dragon walking into a pile of smouldering lava, he took hold of Charlie with his other hand and dragged them to a safe part of the canyon.
He pointed his finger at Charlie. ‘No more Portals! We’re going to walk to Shidden Vale. It’s a bigger town than Opal Hold and it’ll take us the rest of the day to get there, but NO MORE PORTALS!’ Finished with Charlie, he stuck his finger directly beneath Nibbler’s nose. ‘And there is no Queen!’
‘Really?’ asked Nibbler whose hearing was returning, or at least returning at a faster rate than Charlie’s. ‘But what about the tea and biscuits?’
‘Argh! There is no tea and biscuits! Look, just help me pack up our stuff. The sooner we get out of here and on the road to Shidden Vale the better.’
Taking charge, Crumble prodded the two into action and fortunately it was only an hour later that Charlie’s hearing fully returned to her.
‘What do you think that was?’ she asked. ‘What do you think caused that noise and all that brimstone and fire?’
‘I don’t know what it was or what caused your Portal to fail,’ said Crumble, ‘but it’s safe to say that you stumbled across Bane’s barrier to travelling.’
‘But it was so weird,’ continued Charlie. ‘The Portal felt like it was going to shake free from my control and –’
‘Charlie?’
‘Yes, Crumble?’
‘I think there are always going to be mysteries in life and for now, until we get any answers from someone in the know, this will have to be one of those mysteries that you’re going to have to learn to live with.’
‘Hhmpf.’
They walked in silence for a while. Leaving the red sandstone canyons behind them, they entered a flat land covered in wind-rounded boulders and dotted with strange incandescent trees that glimmered softly in the sunlight. Giant bumblebees the size of beach balls drifted from thorny bush to cacti flower, and insects unseen, but very much heard warbled a constant tune that followed the companions as they walked through the landscape. They came to a slow-flowing river that brought with it a sweet scent. Nibbler – still thinking about tea and biscuits – was fascinated by the brightly coloured birds that would dive into the water in search of silvered fish.
Eventually they joined a road and could soon see Shidden Vale appearing round a bend in the late afternoon sun. And just like Opal Hold, here too Charlie was mesmerized by the strange architecture: bold statues and crystal gardens that lined the streets.
‘Let’s try not to get into any more fights this time,’ advised Crumble with a worried look. ‘Let’s get in and out of the