A few days ago I was returning home from my morning walk when I spotted Cecile further down Dandelion Lane.
She was talking to the boy Herschel Deerheart. As the lad thanked her for something and ran off to join his friends, Cecile noticed me, waved and motioned for me to join her.
"I'm glad you're back," she said when I reached her side. "I've just been at number 18 and Morwenna told me she'd like a word with you. We may as well do that now."
Morwenna Deerheart lives in her compact home with her son Herschel and a youthful lodger called Kurtis Gribbit. Cecile visits periodically and we find Morwenna to be a pleasant lady despite her penchant for hobbies that some would consider a little unusual. When she's not running her small craft shop on Emerald Leaf Lane she delves into unconventional mysticism. Well, we all have our quirks. I wondered why she wanted to speak to me.
The door was answered by Kurtis and Cecile spoke before the young frog could greet us.
"Hello, Kurtis," she said. "I'm back - sooner than I thought - and I've brought my husband as Morwenna requested. Is she still available?"
"Come in pleaze," Kurtis said, looking at me with his one good eye. His prosthetic eye, gleaming like an emerald, appeared to watch me too. "Madame Morwenna is in ze back room. I'll take you through."
I was aware of Kurtis through the Seadog family. He likes to spend much of his time swimming in the river and he helps check the integrity of ships' hulls beneath the water line. Beyond that, I didn't know much about him. I remember Amos Seadog saying he was quite attached to Morwenna Deerheart.
As we entered the indicated room Morwenna rose to greet us. She seemed pleased to see me.
"Yes. It was you I saw."
o 0 O 0 o
"I'm grateful you're here, Jackson. You're probably wondering why so I won't waste time. It's about my crystals. Yes. My crystals. They are very important to me. You're probably aware that I don't like to let them out of the house."
We were indeed generally aware of Morwenna's reticence to share her "mystic stones". Her son had borrowed one for his school science project on strict instruction that it should never leave his possession. It said a lot about Arabella Treefellow's powers of persuasion that Xenophon had been allowed to borrow one for a short time in order to help penetrate Tall Tree Forest. I guessed that my part in that excursion was the reason my presence was requested.
"I know some people think me a little odd and wonder why I can't be more like my sister Rowena. The simple answer is that it's because I have an ability. An unusual ability. One aspect relates to my crystals. I can see things within them. That's why they're special to me."
Cecile attempted to move on the conversation. "I asked if they were like crystal balls, Jack, but Morwenna said no."
Morwenna nodded. "I can't see possible futures but I can see some events from the past. And I saw you, Jackson."
"What? In one of your crystals?"
"Yes. It was confusing. I'd never seen you in that crystal before. But then I realised. It was the one that Xenophon Treefellow borrowed - against my better judgement. You must have been involved somehow. I need to know what happened to change my crystal."
I was uncertain what she wanted to know. A general overview of my activities in Tall Tree Forest might be appropriate. Maybe it would help if I knew more of what she saw of me in the crystal - to give me an insight of how she sees things.
"Perhaps if you can describe what you saw when you saw me," I said, wondering if I was making sense, "then I can pinpoint what I was doing..."
"Hmm. I wouldn't ordinarily but I think we can do better than that," said Morwenna, an uncertain smile on her face. "Kurtis, can you bring Crystal Nineteen?"
Kurtis pulled open a large drawer and I caught a glimpse of the contents - rows of crystals catching the available light. There were certainly a lot of them. Cecile reacted almost immediately, standing to get a better look as Kurtis brought one to the slab-like table.
"However did you get so many?"
"I actually started with one I found in the Moonflowers shop. I had to buy it. When I asked Naomi Moonflower what it was, she remarked that it was probably ornamental and that a pig called Ricardo Porcini had brought it in. I wanted to know more so I sought him out. He had taken rooms at Minestrone House. That was a few years ago."
"And the rest?"
"All from Ricardo. He was new to the village and we enjoyed talking to one another. I provided some home cooked food and he thanked me by bringing me the occasional crystal. He said they were discards so I was welcome to them."
I recalled Xenophon Treefellow confirming that Morwenna's collection was imperfect when he borrowed the best to help find a path through Tall Tree Forest.
"They were more than discards to me," continued Morwenna."They allow me to channel." She paused. "By that I mean a way to communicate and bond with the crystal."
Kurtis went back to close the drawer before moving the selected crystal before her.
"Thank you, Kurtis," she said before continuing to explain the 'bond'.
"I can attune my mind to the flaw lines in the crystal. I follow the lines and can sense connections to past events; times and places. With effort I can pull back images and I am often able to interpret them and see what happened. Each crystal tells a different story."
She pointed at the translucent stone designated as Crystal Nineteen. "I had worked with this crystal and had extracted images that showed robed individuals bringing Sylvanians to out shores. I believed them to be members of the legendary Sylvanian Order."
I remembered Mulder Honey-Fox referring to the Order when he outlined the lore of the land to both Darcy and me. Could Morwenna really see them? Visions of the past?
"And you can see them in your mind?" I breathed.
"Not any more. Instead I can see trees fading in and out of focus. I can see something flying over trees. And I can see you. It is as if the crystal has been retuned. I want to know how. And before I decide whether or not I should even try to reverse the change I need to know the significance of the new events depicted."
She was clearly disappointed with the change to her beloved crystal but after a brief pause she shook herself and smiled at Kurtis. "Can we show them, dear?"
"Are you zertain, Momo?" the young frog said. "I thought you zaid it might not be wise to reveal my... skill."
"Not in general, but something tells me we can trust Cecile and Jackson. Whilst I don't mind presenting myself with a certain mystique they should appreciate that you might not."
"Okay. If you're sure."
o 0 O 0 o
Kurtis placed the crystal in the centre of the slab that acted as a table, clambered up and pressed his head gently against the crystal. Cecile and I looked at each other with an expression of "what's happening now?" - and I doubt we could have predicted what did happen.
The emerald eye glimmered briefly. I wasn't sure I'd really seen it but Cecile later confirmed it. The crystal then began to glow with a subtle green light. Morwenna watched our reactions - probably because she knew what was coming next.
The air above the frog shimmered and solidified into a moving image.
It was a forest of trees where the trunks and branches were fading and reappearing in different places. I recognised the phenomenon - it was what I had seen in Tall Tree Forest.
Cecile opened her mouth to speak but Morwenna hushed her. "Wait..."
After two minutes or so of this, Kurtis moved a little to one side and we were treated to the aerial views I had seen from Cecil Walnut's Skyrider flying machine.
Another shift and my own face appeared, concentrating on something.
"Enough, dear," said Morwenna, "thank you," and Kurtis lifted his head. The image instantly disappeared. Task completed, Kurtis left the table.
"As you may have surmised, you have seen samples of the images I was able to extract from the crystal, and dear Kurtis was able to project them for you to see."
"That was... amazing," said Cecile. "It was like watching a movie at Grayson Newcastle's theatre."
"Kurtis does show things well," said Morwenna with an element of pride. "But I want to know what these events signify, and how did my crystal re-tune itself to record them. Can you explain, Jackson?"
I decided to summarise what I knew.
"There is something that pervades Sylvania. It's almost like magic. Some call it wild energy and there's even a theory that it helped make us into Sylvanians. Maybe it did; maybe it didn't. I don't understand it. Nevertheless it looks like it can do all sorts of things. Make the chocolate mine, for example. It's usually hidden underground but it surfaced in Tall Tree Forest, affecting it and making it almost impossible to walk through." I paused. "Am I rushing things?"
"No. Go on. Tall Tree Forest."
"Yes. Well, the wild energy makes paths through the forest loop back on themselves. The Treefellows knew that the crystals were capable of adjusting the way wild energy works. They can be made to issue a sound to help guide those adjustments. I was asked to twist and turn the crystal so that the wild energy was diverted in such a way that a stable path was made through the forest."
"Is that ze path to Chunglewood?" asked Kurtis.
"Yes. Except the crystal couldn't create a long enough path. We tried again from above using Cedric Walnut's flying machine. That time it worked. Xenophon was able to get some less flawed crystals and we used on of those to created a suitable path."
Morwenna sighed with relief. "Then the images make sense. Crystal Nineteen served a worthwhile purpose. Ricardo's people can travel beyond Tall Tree Forest."
Her expression changed. "But how was my crystal altered to show this?"
I offered a theory. "Xenophon had a pendant that activated the crystal. I did the twisting and turning to create temporary paths. Afterwards, Xenophon deactivated it. And..."
Morwenna nodded vigorously. "And obviously that somehow switched the images. A pendant you say? I wonder what that is made of?"
Cecile had no hesitation in answering. "A tiny fragment of Dreamstone, apparently."
"Ah. That makes sense," said Morwenna. I suppose we shouldn't have been surprised she was aware that the Dreamstone wasn't a myth. "Actually, it have a theory that are a few critters who can be somehow affected by touching a piece of Dreamstone. People who become 'sensitives' by coming into contact with it. I might be an example."
"Might I be?" said Kurtis.
"I don't know, dear. Do you remember touching a shiny stone?"
"No. Ze only stone I know is my green eye."
"It does look impressive," said Cecile.
"I know. I found it when swimming in Sweetwater Lake and decided it would make a good eye. Once it had been shaped by Fennec's Jewellers I had it fitted by ze doctors at ze hospital."
I didn't mention that the depths of Sweetwater Lake might be affected by wild energies. Had Kurtis acquired his skills by prolonged contact with his emerald eye? I told myself to stop this conjecture. I didn't want to add any more fantastic elements to the day. My mind was already whizzing with possibilities.
What images were held in those other crystals? Before I could fire up my imagination, Kurtis proffered a suggestion to Morwenna.
"Momo, as Mister Jackson has helped explain Crystal Nineteen, might he know about Crystal Five?"
"That doesn't follow, dear..."
"Pleaze? He might, and I do want to know."
She appeared to consider. "Alright. Perhaps it won't do any harm. Jackson, Cecile - would you mind looking at the images I've extracted from another crystal? See if it means anything to you?"
Cecile agreed readily and I went along with her enthusiasm, waiting whilst Kurtis exchanged the crystals and resumed his position to give us another show.
o 0 O 0 o
This time, I didn't have direct involvement with the images we saw but I associated them with something Darcy had covered in this blog. He had expanded upon it so I felt I had sufficient knowledge to relate the key points.
"Who or what is that?" breathed Cecile.
"I don't know," said Morwenna, "but the feelings I had retrieving those images were amongst the most intense I have had channeling crystals. Significant."
"You zee? It doesn't look Zylvanian," said Kurtis.
"I don't think it is," I said, trying to pull together what I'd learned from Darcy and his old blog entries. "I think that may be a creature called the Packbat."
"You told me something about that," said Cecile. "Wasn't he supposed to be badly behaved? Un-Sylvanian?"
"Was it a monster?" said Kurtis, turning his head. The projected image disappeared.
"Kurtis, dear," said Morwenna. "Calm down and let Jackson speak. I admit I am curious. The Packbat, you say?"
I tried to summarise what I remembered.
"I think the Packbat came from another world, very different to ours. They had dabbled in dangerous technology and fenced it off when it became hard to control. The Packbat and his companion stumbled into a forbidden area and it resulted in an instability that connected to a pocket of wild energy in our world. There was a breach and they fell through into Sylvania. As I understand it, the ripples of that event had consequences all over Sylvania. Maybe that's why your crystal gave you intense feelings, Morwenna."
"Wow," said Kurtis.
"What sort of consequences?" said Morwenna.
"Locally? I think a burst of energy helped create the chocolate mine. And the timing coincides with Woodzeez people becoming stranded in Tall Tree Forest and that led to the establishment of Chunglewood. There could be more but I don't know."
"What happened to ze Packbat?" said Kurtis.
"I don't know that either. I've heard there had been unconfirmed reports of sightings, usually in swamp land areas, but not for some time. Maybe he's found a way home. Maybe he's still out there but living a quiet life."
"Might Mulder Honey-Fox know?" asked Cecile.
"More of a chance than me. And I'm sure he would be interested in the way both you, Morwenna, and young Kurtis interact with your crystals."
"I think I will pass on that," said Morwenna, gesturing the idea away, and then addressing her young associate, "Kurtis, whilst I remember, will you go and check the potatoes in the oven? They will need turning."
There was a fleeting look of confusion on his face but he acknowledged the request and left the room. As soon as the door closed, Morwenna whispered to us hurriedly.
"I don't want Kurtis's abilities to become public knowledge. My skills are hidden in that only I can see the visions I extract from the past. His are not hidden - and I don't them to be a reason he would be treated any differently. I need to protect him."
"We are Sylvanians," I said. "He will still be accepted, no matter what..."
"Jack," said Cecile, gently interrupting, "We must respect Morwenna's decision. We already know there are unusual aspects to our world but most Sylvanians don't. What position would Kurtis be in if people came to associate him with that weirdness?"
She turned to Morwenna.
"We're honoured you've shared your skills with Jackson and me. Please be assured Mellowdene won't hear of it from us," said Cecile. "Not even our children. Brendan would want to know all about your super powers. Probably make a game out of it."
There was some laughter about this. Herschel must have discussed Brendan with his mother. And yet 'super powers' wasn't too far from the truth. It was like a fantasy story where Sylvanians had acquired extraordinary abilities. They had been affected in some way - be it contact with the Dreamstone or by exposure to wild energies, who could tell? I supposed it might only affect a few individuals - 'sensitives' as Morwenna called them - as I think I'd have heard otherwise. Besides, I'd have noticed if Cecile or Darcy had acquired super powers.
Another question came to mind. As unofficial keeper of Mellowdene's chunk of Dreamstone, should Kelvin Waters be made aware that a tiny number of Sylvanians could be 'enhanced' if they embrace this mystical mineral? It would take a subtle approach. Not an easy decision.
As for the crystals, I admit I was curious as to what other knowledge could be revealed. It is certainly Mulder Honey-Fox's area of interest and he would be eager to learn more. You've probably deduced that Darcy will find out about it when updating the blog but he is a deeply ethical mouse despite his drive as a reporter. He will respect the privacy of our mystical Morwenna. Cecile was right. Revealing these visions of the past had to be her choice. They are her crystals after all.
I felt like going on another walk.
o 0 O 0 o