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Escape From Manitou Island: Part 181 |
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(DISCLAIMER: This part, and all parts hereafter, are works in progress (WIPs) and have not been proofread or checked for plot inconsistencies. I've decided to present them "as is" for now, as there is a significant amount of unfinished material; yet this story has been on hiatus for a long while, I've forgotten certain details, and I have no plans to resume work on it any time soon. Please keep in mind while reading that details may change in the future. Should you spot an inconsistency, however, please feel free to point it out to me for possible correction.)
LYNX OUT OF WATER SWIM FOR YOUR life!! X'aaru and Mishupishu bolted away through the water tunnel, though they couldn't help looking back over their shoulders to see what would happen. Above the space they'd just vacated, the tunnel ceiling was crumbling and falling to pieces, and horrendous shudders and booming noises were passing through the walls, making the water itself vibrate. The two of them went a safe distance to watch the destruction unfold, their eyes wide with awe. I didn't know I hit it that hard! Mishupishu admitted, wincing at the throb that still passed through his skull. I think-- X'aaru managed to get out, before an awful CRACKing sound filled the tunnel, and a great hunk of frozen earth sank to the bottom, --maybe you didn't do it, after all!! Then, who did--? Mishupishu asked, just as the tunnel roof collapsed and caved in. They both held their breath; the tunnel was wide enough here that it wasn't completely blocked off by the ruins, and they could see the hole in the ceiling, the current changing as some of the water that had been coming their way now flowed upward through the new opening. They peered at this uneasily. Now that it's open, X'aaru murmured, where does it lead...? Mishupishu didn't get to answer, as something blinding suddenly shot down through the hole, striking the hunks of earth lying on the bottom and blasting them into millions of particles. The demon and the Lynx both let out startled noises, bubbles escaping them, and crowded even further back; the light vanished and they blinked furiously, unable to see for a few seconds. WHAT WAS THAT!! Mishupishu yelled. I--I can't see! X'aaru cried; he wasn't blinded any longer, but now the water was filled with silt and sand, and he couldn't see even a few strokes ahead of himself. He had to fight the desire to sweep his hands through the water to try to clear it, knowing that that would only make it worse, so they were forced to wait until the dirt had settled. Another blinding light shot down into the tunnel before this could happen, and although they couldn't see it clearly, it lit up all the floating particles around them, managing to illuminate the entire section of tunnel in dull brown before vanishing a second time. They gasped. Did you FEEL that--? X'aaru exclaimed. My fur is standing on end! I feel it too! the Lynx concurred. There's only one thing that feels like that-- The light descended a third time, and now the silt had settled enough that they could make out the lightning bolt that lanced through the opening, gouging into the tunnel bottom before disappearing. Another charge swept through the water and they shivered at the tingling feeling. A-Animiki! Mishupishu gasped. They're attacking us! OH! He turned to X'aaru, eyes wide. What do you think that something bad's happened up above? If the Animiki are attacking them? It must be awful--! X'aaru bit his lip--he actually wondered if it might be something else entirely, but didn't know enough about Animiki to be confident enough to say--but it was just as well, as lightning began striking down into the hole in rapid succession now, making it necessary to retreat even further. The water, previously growing colder, now began to heat up, and they quailed, praying that they wouldn't end up boiled alive. One last gigantic bolt slammed into the tunnel bottom, making the walls shake and crack, then withdrew, and the water was eerily silent but for the dull booming noises somewhere far outside. The demon and the Lynx held their breath, not even daring to speak. After a moment or so, Mishupishu's head shot up, nearly hitting the ceiling, and he gasped bubbles. What is it? X'aaru asked, alarmed. Oh! Mishupishu cried. There's a voice in my head! It's an Animiki, I know it is! Oh! It's going to spear me like a fish and slice me open and kill me!! His eyes scrunched shut and his mouth opened wide, revealing an unimaginable number of huge teeth, and he let out a blaat noise as he started sobbing. X'aaru furrowed his brow in confusion and tried to think of some way to comfort him. You! a strange voice suddenly said in his head, and he yelped and spun in a circle. Demon...whatever you are. Can you hear us? Huh--? Oh! X'aaru halted and looked upward, though he saw nothing. Are--are you the Animiki? B-because, if you are, please stop attacking!! I know he's a Lynx and all but he's good, really--! We are not attacking, the voice interrupted, and he fell silent. We tried to tell the Lynx this, but apparently he is not in the right mind for listening. Things have changed on the surface, and if you remain down here, you will likely never reach the west with your friends. OH! X'aaru cried again. His tail swished violently through the water. I think I know what you mean! The water was getting so much colder, and the earth is getting harder--is everything freezing over even more? Are we going to get stuck in ice? Be still and listen, the voice said, and he obeyed. Your friends are safe for the moment, it said, and he felt a bit of relief. They still make their way west, accompanied by the tribe of Kenu. Oh! He found his tribe again! Mishupishu, evidently overcoming his anxiety, said, and waved his spines. Hooray! However, the Wintermaker apparently vowed to make this journey difficult for everyone in the group and that includes you two as well. While flying we noticed the snow and ice spreading this way and came to try to find you a way out. You can no longer follow this particular tunnel west. Oh...but... X'aaru furrowed his brow again. But this is the only way we have to travel! He, that is. Mishupishu. I don't think he can crawl around on land, can you? Mishupishu's spines sank and the look on his face answered the question. The two of them stared at each other for a moment, then X'aaru sighed. Tiiku had gotten that exact same look before, so even though thinking of the pup made his heart hurt, he knew he couldn't just leave the Lynx behind. Do you know where there's another tunnel? he asked, racking his brain for ideas; thinking up things in the heat of the moment had never been his strong suit. I am afraid not, the voice said. This tunnel itself is artificial and is bound to end sometime anyway. There may be others, but at the moment we haven't the time to locate them. Your leader stated that all of you are to reach the west, whatever it takes. All of us...? Both of them said it, more to themselves than anything, and peered at each other, perplexed. Until now they'd thought that either one or both of them would be heading back. So... Demon-creature, the voice said. X'aaru, X'aaru corrected it, then blushed, for he felt that had been terribly rude of him. X'aaru, the voice said, sounding a little flustered now. You have the ability to travel about on land, yes? Can you exit this tunnel, through this opening, and be safe outside? Yes, X'aaru said. I can swim and I can walk and fly. But I'm not leaving Mishupishu behind. The Lynx's eyes grew wet--how X'aaru could tell this, he wasn't sure, seeing as they were underwater--and his muzzle quivered a little. We will take care of the Lynx, the voice said. But first, you will have to exit the tunnel. They shared one more look, this one more tense than the last. "Take care of"? What did that mean? Do...do you think they're going to let you out, then they're going to fry me? Mishupishu whispered in X'aaru's head, and his eyes grew wide with fear. Oh! They can't mean that! X'aaru reassured him. Otherwise they--well--they would've done it already, wouldn't they have? I mean, they're Animiki, right? They never miss their target? A brief pause. I guess that makes sense, Mishupishu admitted, though he didn't sound convinced. They can't possibly mean to kill you after all this! X'aaru said; then when that resulted in no change in the Lynx's gloomy expression, he looked upward toward the hole. Animiki! Um...I mean...Animiki? he echoed himself, realizing now that he had no idea of the name of the person he was speaking to, and again feeling dreadfully rude. Yes? the voice answered. Um... X'aaru hemmed and hawed a little, then took a breath and said, I--I demand that you not kill this Lynx for he is not only my friend but the friend of the mighty war-bird Kenu!! Then, Er--I mean, I request it...I mean, I'm asking ...pretty please...no offense...if it's all right with you. He made a face. There was another brief silence, this one much more awkward than the last. The Lynx will not be killed, the voice finally said, sounding rather peeved. But first, you must exit the tunnel. X'aaru hesitated. He gnawed on his lip, then swam over to Mishupishu and touched a hand to his muzzle. I'll just be going up outside, he said, hating how the Lynx's whiskers quivered. That's all! Swear to Gitchi! They say they won't kill you, then they must surely mean it, right? But they're not manitous, Mishupishu said miserably. Do Animiki always keep their word? I...I really don't know, X'aaru admitted, and paused in thought. But I mentioned Kenu, he said at last. If they're really Kenu's tribe, then they must know how much he likes you, and they'd never let something bad happen! Do you know what? I bet they need me out of the tunnel as they probably plan to start hitting the ground again to heat it up and make the tunnel longer so you can keep going west. That must be it. The Lynx's eyes grew. You think? His whiskers waved. Oh! That sounds wonderful! Much better than heading back! All right...I believe it. You go on. I'll be all right, I'm certain of it. X'aaru waved at him, trying to think of something good to say as farewell, but no words would come; it was just as well as Mishupishu merely waved him on again, so he turned and swam up into the opening cracked in the ceiling. It was a tight squeeze just getting through, and he winced and yelped repeatedly as the jagged edges scored his sides and limbs; his wings fared poorest, as big as they were, although he kept them pressed against himself as tightly as he could and used his tail to push himself along. He rather wished that the Animiki would make it wider for him, then berated himself for having such a ridiculous thought--he'd end up boiled into broth if they did that now--and endured the scrapes and scratches until he finally broke the surface, gasping and wheezing and spitting out glops of wet snow that pelted upon his head. He let out a surprised bark when he felt hands brushing the snow away and pulling at him; when he at last popped out, he lifted his head and shook himself off without thinking, only then blinking his eyes open to look around. A small group of older men and women stood around him, their silvery feathers sopping wet. X'aaru blushed again, lowering his head. "Erm...sorry," he said meekly. An old woman stepped forward, wringing the water from her long hair. She pointed at the hole in the ground--water was still surging from it, and making quite a mess of the snow--then up at the sky, X'aaru following her motions. "The rest of us are up there," she said. "Your friends are to the north. You'd best join them, for what we have to do is likely to be somewhat destructive." "I can't leave him behind," X'aaru insisted. "Can't I just stay nearby or something?" "Well..." She looked indecisive, then shrugged. "You can try flying about just above the clouds, though I would not recommend flying under them or among them, or staying on the ground. We need to open up a large section, and the chance is you could get hit." "I can keep out of the way," X'aaru said, remembering his time spent with Kenu. "But please do be careful not to hit Mishu!" "We have already warned him to retreat out of the way," the old woman said, and raised her arms; X'aaru knew to back off when she transformed, and she and the rest of the people ascended toward the sky, taking on cloud form. X'aaru watched them, then flapped his wings--grimacing at the sting but doing his best to ignore it--and clumsily rose after them. It was so much harder to fly when wet, especially with the snow snapping around him and sticking to his fur and feathers, but he couldn't bear the thought of heading back north on his own. He'd just managed to rise above the flashing clouds when they started hurling lightning bolts at the ground again, and through a break he was able to see the action from above this time. He stared in awe at the spectacle as the snowy ground was smashed to a pulp, water gushing up out of it at every new opening and turning the snow into slush. Within seconds there was so much of it that it looked like a small pond had suddenly formed in the middle of nowhere. The slushy water grew muddy the longer that the Animiki slammed their bolts into it, and it even began to bubble a little, though they stopped attacking when this happened so X'aaru didn't have to call out to them to be careful. When the water had apparently cooled they moved on to a section just west of this and started the tumult anew, repeating the process a few times until a great gaping basin of splashing, mucky, slushy water had formed. Every so often a fresh gout of water would spurt up into the air as parts of the tunnel beneath must have collapsed, and the demon whined a little to himself, hoping that Mishupishu was still holding on. After some time of this--it felt interminably long to X'aaru, though he knew it couldn't have been more than ten minutes--the tumult began to abate, until no more lightning struck the ground, although the clouds continued grumbling and roiling about. X'aaru held his breath as the water settled to a dull sloshing, then even that ceased, aside from the little ripples caused by the wind and by glops of slush occasionally falling into the hole. They all waited for so long that X'aaru was about to hurl himself down into the water just to see if the Lynx was all right, when a large bubble broke the surface and popped. Now even the clouds stopped making any noise; another bubble popped, then a bigger one, then after a few more moments, something poked out of the water. It looked like two fingers or sticks, though as soon as X'aaru reminded himself to judge the size of them by his distance away from the water, he realized that they must be the tips of Mishupishu's horns. As soon as he thought this, they grew longer until two small spires arose, then the very top of Mishupishu's head appeared above the water, his large yellow-green eyes glancing nervously left and right. He spotted the clouds overhead and his eyes grew, but X'aaru made sure to fly closer, flapping his wings hard and letting out a halloo so the Lynx could hear him. When he was spotted, Mishupishu reared from the water, his long neck rising into the air. "I'm--I'm alive!!" X'aaru let out his breath in great relief and spread his wings to coast down toward him, when the clouds started lowering so quickly that they promptly hid Mishupishu from his view, and he had to dodge back, startled. The Lynx saw them coming as well and his eyes bugged before he was lost from sight, though he let out a loud yell as the clouds converged over him like a giant gray blanket. X'aaru hovered in place, staring on at the scene in confusion; the Animiki surged around over where the watery hole was, roiling this way and that, and Mishupishu kept letting out startled cries from somewhere in their midst. The demon craned his neck and flew over to another spot to try to see, but he couldn't. His earlier impression had been right. They were covering Mishupishu up! "What--what are you doing--?" he called out, not wanting to be rude, but his anxiety was quickly overriding that. He darted aside. "What's going on--?" "X--X'aaru--?" Mishupishu cried. "What's going on? What are they doing?!" "I can't see!" X'aaru tried to fly closer, but a large birdlike head suddenly reared up from the nearest cloud, snapping at him, and he barked and fluttered back. Even from here he could feel the charge in their midst and he was leery of getting caught in it. But they'd promised that they wouldn't kill Mishupishu--so what were they doing? He gasped and cringed back when a bloodcurdling scream split the air, and it took him a moment to realize that it must be Mishupishu; he'd never heard such an awful sound come from him before. He whined and flew back and forth, back and forth, trying desperately to see what they were doing to him, when the cloudbank began to slowly rise. X'aaru ducked down toward the ground to look at the water. He blinked and his mouth fell open when he saw nothing there! "Where's--where's Mishupishu--?" he exclaimed, and only then, when another awful scream came from overhead, did he think to look up. X'aaru nearly hit the ground, he was so startled he almost forgot to flap his wings. The cloud-Animiki continued rising into the air, but they weren't the only things doing so. In the midst of the flashing cloudbank X'aaru saw a gigantic serpentine silhouette which writhed and coiled and screamed so loudly that he winced. It didn't even occur to him at first that he was looking at Mishupishu, just because the very thought was so strange; Lynxes belonged in the water, didn't they? They certainly couldn't walk, much less fly, so seeing him up in the sky like that was so bizarre that for a moment, he had no idea what to think. It was Mishupishu's catlike screaming that finally brought him to his senses, and he beat his wings and soared upward after them. He had to keep his distance, not from the clouds but from the Lynx this time, as both his head and his tail were swinging through the air with remarkable violence; his eyes flashed and his whiskers bristled, and he slashed at the clouds with his spines and his horns, though he didn't seem to be doing any sort of damage. X'aaru stared on in awe at the odd sight of bands of cloud wrapping around Mishupishu's body and then breaking away, over and over again as the Lynx coiled around and around. The clouds began moving northward, and he followed them, too bewildered to protest or even speak. Further north, the rest of the group halted to watch the looming cloudbank head their way at an unusual speed; Charmian shielded her eyes and frowned, confused by the Animiki's behavior. They were supposed to be helping X'aaru and Mishupishu--how, she didn't know, though Marten had kept them apprised of the Thunderbirds' attack on the ground--so why... Her own eyes grew as soon as she saw the same spectacle that X'aaru had already witnessed, and her mouth fell open. "Holy shit!!" she cried, voice cracking. Winter Born tugged on Thomas's sleeve. "Thomas, what's sh--" Charmian took several frantic steps backward and stumbled into them, Moon Wolf having to grab her arm to keep her from falling over. She pointed wildly at the sky as if they couldn't see. "What--what the HELL are they doing?!" she yelled. "You said Mishupishus can't get around out of water--!!" "I thought they weren't going to hurt him or anything!" Marten agreed, shielding his own eyes from the sudden onslaught of wind. X'aaru came soaring down from the sky, landing hard and causing a gout of snow to smack against them so they sputtered. "Ch-Charmian!!" he wailed. "What are they doing--? I thought they were going to help us west!!" Charmian could think of nothing to say as the clouds slowed down almost overhead, and they all stared upward at Mishupishu's struggling form with wide eyes. The Lynx was letting out the most awful sounds; Charmian had heard a stray cat wailing once, and it had kept her up all night, but that had been nothing compared to this. Human! Demon! Anybody!! a voice called out in their heads, and their mouths all snapped shut at once. You said you all wished to reach the west, it went on. This is the only way we know of to get you there. Perhaps we'll find a decent river or lake to place him in, or another tunnel--but if he continues to fight us, we will drop him on land. He will not survive if he keeps this up! Charmian clapped her hands to her mouth; she didn't even have the time to feel stupid that such an idea hadn't occurred to her, before whirling toward Kenu. He'd apparently gotten the same thought she had, though, as he was already lifting his arms and starting to glow. "I will go and stay by my friend's side and let him know all will be well! He'll listen to me for sure!" They watched as he transformed into his Thunderbird shape and, flapping his wings, arose, making the rest of them have to brace themselves to avoid being bowled over. The clouds were low enough that Charmian and the others could watch with ease as Kenu reached the other Animiki; he didn't change fully into clouds or merge with the others, and she wondered if such an ability grew as Animiki did, or if it was just easier to stay in bird form. Whatever the case, he moved into place beside Mishupishu even as the Lynx continued writhing and twisting and howling in fear, and Charmian hoped that he wasn't being hurt, even on accident. "LYNX!" Kenu bellowed, and the other clouds rumbled as if in response; Mishupishu went stiff, whiskers quivering and teeth bared, tears flooding his eyes. "BEHOLD! I, THE GREAT WAR-BIRD KENU, YOUR FRIEND, HAVE COME TO YOUR AID!" "M-m-make them stop!!" Mishupishu wailed. "Make them let me go! They dragged me right up out of the water! I can't get around without water! I'll be stuck out here! I'll die, I know I will! I thought they promised not to kill me!!" His mouth opened wide and everyone knew to cover their ears; for once the noises he let out were about as loud as the Animiki's, and much harsher to boot. Augwak in particular was tearing at his ears and making the most awful face imaginable. "It's--it's like--gouging one's claws on rocks!!" he wheezed. "Or fingernails on a blackboard," Charmian hissed between clenched teeth. Thomas was covering up his own ears, also grimacing. "A blackboard the size of Africa!!" Even Kenu made a face. "DO I REALLY SOUND THIS BAD WHEN I YELL?" he called out to those on the ground, as if those in the sky couldn't hear. "IF SO THEN I PROMISE TO TONE IT DOWN IN THE FUTURE!" He coughed--letting out a dull boom--and spoke to the Lynx again. "BEHOLD, GREAT WATER LYNX! IT IS I, KENU, YOUR FRIEND, AND MY ANIMIKI WILL NEVER HARM YOU!" His eyes flashed and he let out a harsh cracking sound. "HEY!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HIM ANYWAY?! BE CAREFUL!!" The Lynx must be put back in water, the voice said. But he can survive outside it until then. There is no other way west. You wanted everyone to reach there, didn't you--? "OH!" Kenu's beak opened wide. "I CAN'T BELIEVE I WAS SO SILLY! HEY, MISHU!--ER--GREAT LYNX!" He drifted closer. "STOP FIGHTING! DID I NOT JUST TELL YOU MY PEOPLE WON'T HARM YOU? HAVE I, THE GREAT KENU, EVER LET YOU DOWN?" "They pulled me out of the water!!" Mishupishu cried. "What am I supposed to do? I can't go west like this!!" "AND THIS IS JUST THE PROBLEM MY PEOPLE WILL RESOLVE!" Kenu bellowed. "BEHOLD, MY FRIEND LYNX! MY PEOPLE WILL CARRY YOU WEST IN THEIR MIGHTY CLAWS, AS GENTLY AS IF YOU WERE ONE OF THEIR OWN!" "Oh my Gawd," Charmian said, rubbing her ears. "I hate thinking of the Animiki concept of gentle--" And this time it was Thomas who elbowed her in the ribs, albeit only lightly, cutting her off. "BUT FIRST, YOU MUST AGREE TO STOP FIGHTING THEM!" Kenu flapped his wings and the air vibrated. "IF YOU CONTINUE TO DO SO, THEY WILL SURELY DROP YOU, OR AT LEAST TEAR AT YOUR SIDES, AND THEN YOU WILL NEVER MAKE IT WEST IN OUR COMPANY! AND I, THE GREAT KENU, REFUSE TO CONSIDER THIS ALTERNATIVE!" He flapped his wings again. "JUST KNOCK OFF ALL THE MOVING AROUND ALREADY!! FOR GITCHI'S SAKE, YOU'RE BEING A BIG BABY!!" "What would calm him down? Try to imagine being in his place!" Charmian exclaimed to the others standing behind her. "What would work best for a Lynx--?" She looked from one face to another, though they all just stared back at her stupidly. She thought to look to Mishosha at last, but he merely crossed his arms and gave her a look that plainly said he wasn't going to offer anything. She scowled. "Well, SOMEBODY has to know something!" She whirled toward Little Wind--he was sitting in the snow some distance away, still looking drained from his vision--and waved at him so abruptly that he flinched. "Your fireball, will it be okay up in those clouds? Will the Thunderbirds shock it or put it out or anything--?" Little Wind blinked. "I--I don't think so," he said. "They're not making any rain or lightning or anything," Winter Born said, shielding her eyes as she stared upwards. "I think they're being as careful as they can!" Charmian waved upward. "Send your fireball up there then! Maybe that'll calm him down. It can keep him company along with Kenu, and keep a lookout the way it was before. Is that too much to ask--?" Little Wind blushed but started pushing himself to his feet. "No," he said in a voice that was halfway sullen, halfway guilty sounding. He waved his own hand and the fireball drifted toward him; at another gesture it flew upward into the mass of roiling clouds, becoming little more than a tiny glowing speck next to Mishupishu's head. The Lynx was no longer thrashing, though he still wailed and cried, no matter what encouragement Kenu tried to offer. After a moment or so though, his mewing started to die down and the flood of tears cascading from his eyes abated somewhat; he opened his eyes a crack to look at the fireball hovering there, and snuffled a few times. The two of them just stared at each other. Charmian shifted from foot to foot. "Well--?" "I told it to tell him to keep calm and he can come west with us," Little Wind said. "And it'll try to find some water for him to swim in. If there's a tunnel, then it can find it, better than those Animiki can." "MISHU!" Charmian yelled at the top of her lungs, making the Lynx peer down at her. "DO YOU PROMISE TO KEEP CALM NOW?" Mishupishu snuffled again. "I...I guess I'll t-try," he stammered, whiskers trembling. "If--if they'll be careful!!" He saw the cloudy claws of one of the Animiki wrapped around his middle and mewled. "DO NOT FEAR, FRIEND LYNX!" Kenu boomed. "I WILL MAKE CERTAIN YOU COME TO NO HARM." He flapped his wings and circled back. "AND I WILL CARRY YOUR TAIL MYSELF!" This, at last, seemed to calm Mishupishu down, though he still cringed and whimpered as the clouds began to shift and turn westward, taking him with them. Kenu grasped hold of his tail and carried it aloft as if he'd just caught the world's most impressive fish; the little fireball nestled itself between the Lynx's horns, and they all began moving off as everyone else watched. Every time the clouds boomed or flashed a little, Mishupishu let out a yelp and quivered, but other than that he seemed to be holding up rather well considering the circumstances. "Note to self," Charmian said, watching the clouds drift off. "Never go fishing for fun. I hate thinking what that must feel like!" "Can we get going, now?" Manabozho prompted. "Since that big dumb thing is taken care of? OW!! What--?!" He ducked and put a hand to his head as something scampered away from him, and Marten leapt into Peepaukawiss's arms for safety. "That's what KENU would've done if he were here!" he said. "Just consider ME his temporary replacement!" Charmian ignored them as they started sticking out their tongues and making gestures at each other. "I hope this is the last leg," she murmured, adjusting her pack as she turned to step into the snow. "And I can't wait until all this snow is gone!" She remembered what the Animiki and Little Wind had said about it ending not far from here, and her heart rose. She couldn't believe how sick she was of the color white. Thomas opened his mouth, then shut it. Charmian blinked at him as he got a very odd look, for a very odd sound had just come, and she wondered how he'd even done that. Then they both realized that the noise wasn't coming from him but from some distance behind and to the north of them. Everyone started turning to see what it was. At first there was nothing really to see, but after a few moments, Charmian noticed that the horizon was growing hazier and more difficult to distinguish from the sky. She wondered why they would be getting fog, when the distant noise struck a chord of memory, and right on cue she felt her skin prickle as a new iciness filled the air. You really didn't think I'd quit that easily, did you? Kabebonikka's voice asked, just as the horizon was filled with innumerable crazily spinning whirlwinds. |