Diversion To Urasha
Chapter 24

As James rose higher and higher into the air, he could see the little island shrinking into invisibility. It was funny that it had taken days to get here, to the island, to the healing stone. Yet it would only take hours, or even less to return to the city.

James felt Chugga-Chugga spurting through the air, carrying him on his journey through the sky. It was getting dark now. The Urashan sun was beginning her journey back towards Urasha’s horizon. The sky was no longer a warm flourish of pink, but instead, it was a dreamy darkening purple.

Crystaline and Yullom were not far ahead, yet the journey back to the city just did not feel the same as the flight to the island. The flight to the island had been filled with excitement and elation. The journey back to the city felt rather depressing.

James winced as he recognised the familiar purple of the deadly ganzar pool beneath him. He had nearly died here, as had Crystaline. Morcees had died here. Poor Morcees, poor Borcees. Surely it would only be a matter of time until the chuggas would carry everyone over that devastating scene; the one which had caused everyone so much heartache. Was Borcees’ carcass still there? The dead gersher’s? James felt the warm neck of his creature friend - at least Chugga-Chugga had made it. The little blue fella was alive, and not so little anymore!

More minutes passed, and James’ eyes finally found the cliff with the little cave. Okay, so he couldn’t quite make out the cave, but James remembered that this was where he had truly befriended Crystaline. James felt sad as his eyes took in the destruction beneath him. This was also where Borcees had died, and where he thought he had lost his baby blue friend.

Just as it began to look as if the landscape beneath him couldn’t get any drier, James noticed the heavy band of purple emanating into his view. He instantly recognised what this was - the Urashan forest! James’ heart leapt, endeavouring to break free from his chest, and into the Urashan forest. The memories of this place, the surreal beauty of the trees, the glowing plants, the wildlife. The furleaves! The river! The gold fruit! This was where it had all happened. This was where James had met Chugga-Chugga. It was where he had befriended Crystos, and it was where he had started to truly get to know Crystaline. This place was where the magic had happened, and James just wanted to be back there in it, hidden away with Crystaline in amongst all those luminous trees and plants.

As the forest transformed into barren dullness, James’ heart began to throb unpleasantly. He could see the thick, black city wall. It was all over now. James’ stay here on this wonderful planet was about to reach its end.

James watched as Crystaline and Yullom began to sink through the darkening evening sky. He watched as the black wall grew larger and larger, and the purple sky seemed further and further away. James felt himself sinking through the sky, until eventually, he and Chugga-Chugga landed with the others, only metres away from the dormant Earthship.

Crystaline was the first to climb free from her chugga, watching the Earthship with a strained expression on her face. James freed himself from Chugga-Chugga, in sync with everyone else. James wondered if Crystaline was upset for the same reason as him? He wondered if she would miss him too? Perhaps she had realised that replaceing the stone for her father was in actual fact, a bad thing? It would mean that the mission had ended, that she and James would face separation.

James shook his head, hoping to shake some sense back into his brain. Okay, so he had gotten through to Crystaline. He had befriended her, gotten her to open up to him. But did she feel the same? As him? James placed his palm over his heavily beating heart. How did he even feel? That was the problem. The way that his heart felt now - it wasn’t normal, his heart had never ever felt like this before - ever!

Crystaline’s eyes continued to desperately, and strenuously flit between the Earthship, the chuggas and James. Something was definitely troubling her.

“What now?” Zach’s voice called out, causing Crystaline’s eyes to pause on him.

“What do you mean?” she whispered, trapped inside a bubble of her own anguish.

“What are we gonna do?” Zach pointed to the chuggas. “What about them?”

Crystaline’s eyes slowly shifted towards the five chuggas, and then her expression softened. “Chuggas,” Crystaline whispered. “Chugga-Chugga, Yullom, all of you, I can’t even begin to thank you enough. What you’ve done for me and my people, for us all, it means so much.”

“But you’ll come to the city, right?” James had taken a step to Crystaline’s side. “You’ll look after Crystaline and Crystos for me, won’t you?”

Chugga-Chugga took several steps towards James, until he was close enough to rest his large rubbery head inside James’ open hand.

“Because, lil buddy,” James continued. “I have to go away for a while. Not forever, but for a while. Me, Zach and Phil do. We’re not from here, you see. We’re from a planet...” James grinned, “a blue planet, funnily enough, called Earth. You see, us three, we have to go to Nebowska, and then we have to go home, to Earth, and I need you, I need you guys to all look out for Crystaline and Crystos, just until I come back, okay?”

Chugga-Chugga’s watery eyes stared straight back into James’ soft blue eyes. Then the little blue fella gulped, swallowing down its need to cry.

“It’ll be okay, little fella,” James assured the chugga. “I will be back, I promise. This isn’t goodbye.”

Crystaline turned her strained face in James’ direction. “Isn’t it?” she whispered. “What makes you want to return?”

James’ breath hitched, just as his heart stopped beating. Crystaline’s golden irises, they were the most stunning, the most beautiful irises he had ever seen. “I just...I need to come back.” James was unable to break his eyes away from Crystaline’s.

“You might never see any of us again,” she whispered.

For a while, James just stared into the torn eyes of Crystaline. She eventually broke eye contact with him, turning her attentions to the chuggas instead.

Chugga-Chugga slowly backed away from James, rejoining his four creature friends. The baby blue chugga began to flap his marvellous wings, allowing them to carry him up into the air.

James and Crystaline both took a simultaneous step towards the flying chuggas, watching with sadness and awe as the five animals rose higher and higher into the air. Then, with one final graaoouul, the five chuggas shot through the sky, disappearing from view. That was it, they were gone.

James turned his head back towards Crystaline, watching as her face revealed her inner turmoil, once again.

“You three,” a troubled Crystaline began. “Your ship is fixed. There is no need for you to enter the city.”

“Er, I think there is,” Phil disagreed. “We need to get the others before we can leave, remember?”

“The others…” Crystaline whispered, as if remembering for the first time that Lottie, Lisa and Karl were on her planet too. “The others!” she said more audibly this time. “You don’t need to return for them. Crystos and I will send them over. Just get to your ship, please?”

As James watched Crystaline’s pleading eyes piercing right through his, he saw her gaze shift upwards, just as her mouth gaped open in horror.

James’ ears soon caught up with his eyes, registering the heavy deep sound of the wall opening behind him. When he turned around, he spotted the king, with Crystanaphy and six Urashan guards by his side.

“You have returned at last!” Cryston beamed, cupping his hands together, and twisting his mouth into his usual conceited smile. “A guard of mine spotted those chuggas flying in. It was then, that I knew you had returned to me.” The king paused momentarily, as if counting and calculating the numbers. “No Morcees or Borcees?”

Crystaline shook her head, her face still torn.

“Well now,” The king went on, sauntering towards his troubled daughter. “That is a shame. I mean, don’t get me wrong, there is no love lost between those two and I, but it is a shame that they never made it back. They clearly don’t share your skill, my precious daughter.” The king reached out his pale bony hand to Crystaline’s delicate little face. With his thumb, he stroked one of her cheeks. “Chuggas are such remarkable creatures, aren’t they? I should have known you’d replace them. You’re a relative of the mighty Crysteich, after all. And he never gave up, did he? He always brought home the prize. Do you have it, Crystaline? Do you have the healing stone?”

Crystaline nodded, her expression grave. She held out the healing stone for her father to see.

“Oh my!” the king’s awe-stricken voice sounded. “It really is quite something. Who may I ask was the first to behold this stone?”

James took a step forwards. “It was me. I found it in the sand.”

“Oh really?” the king beamed, eyes alight with something not quite right. “Well I must thank you, young…young...?”

“James.”

“Yes, young James. Joyce, if I remember correctly? I can’t even begin to articulate what you have done for me and my people, the good that will come from this. Guards!”

Before he could even react, James felt the intimidating sensation of Urashan bodies surrounding him and his friends. He could hear the muffled yells of Phil and Zach. Yet what got to James was not the horrified cries of his human companions. It was the look on Crystaline’s face. The one of complete anguish, agony and turmoil. The one of guilt. Then with a heavy blow to the back of his head, James was gone, knocked out cold.