Hilda - Lycadea by Paul Kater

the page and stared out of his confines again. "This is the
book in which the Lycadean Prophecy is written down. If you, and
only if you, honoured Grimhilda, hear my words, then the New
Beginning is near. I shall now read the first words of the Lycadean
Prophecy."

12. On board the
Mimosa

    "William?" a voice asked as there was a knock
on the door. "Are you well?"
    The wizard knew it was Rebel, not just from
her voice. "I'm fine. You can come in if you want," he said as he
sat up on the bed. The two cats did not move a whisker.
    Rebel entered by opening the door and
stepping inside. She did not want to upset the wizard more by
popping in as he was already so shaken up by the disappearance of
Hilda. "Moro asked me to check on you. The Mimosa is picking up
speed nicely, we're in hot pursuit of the pyramid."
    "Oh. I guess that is a good thing." William
did not feel much better after that news.
    "We're travelling at roughly four times the
speed of light," Rebel said, "I think you would enjoy the view
outside, on deck."
    "On deck??" This was so weird an invitation
that William forgot his sombre train of thoughts. "At that
speed?"
    "Uhhuh," Rebel nodded, "looks really cool.
Want me to pop us out?"
    The wizard scooped up the two cats, who did
not protest against that treatment. "Let's go." He hoped that he
could also get a glimpse of the pyramid they were following.
    Rebel waited until the wizard was standing
before she moved them to the deck.
    The wizard, cats over his shoulders, looked
out to the stars. There were none. Instead, there were explosions
of light everywhere around the Mimosa, with long tails of sparkles
spreading out in all directions. "That's not how they pictured it
on television," he remarked.
    "They know nothing, wizard," Rebel commented.
"This is the real deal. At least from where we're standing."
    It was obvious that this was a very
subjective real deal. William nodded and walked to the side of the
ship, peering out into the distance. "Any idea where the pyramid
is?" he asked.
    "Ahead," Rebel said as she joined him. "Far
ahead. But we're catching up."
    Somehow William doubted that, but he did not
feel like arguing. Instead he wondered if there was a way that he
could make the ship go faster. He looked at the sails on the masts.
They hung there as if there was no wind at all, very true to life
as there was no wind at all. Then he realised that he had no idea
how fast they were going, so influencing seemed an impossible
chore.
    "I can show you something more of the ship,"
Rebel offered. "Moro's in the steering hut, I am sure he won't mind
if you have a look around there."
    "Might as well," the wizard said, as he still
pondered the way to speed up something that was already going
faster than he could imagine.
    "Come on then, you big lug," Rebel said as
she grabbed the sleeve of his robe and dragged him along.
    "What, no popping in and out this time?"
William wondered.
    "No. Walking is good for you," Rebel
lectured. She took him into one of the side-doors on the high stern
of the ship.
    They entered another very white and sterile
corridor, not as long as the one that led to the cabins. Rebel
showed William a kind of elevator that was nothing but a tube with
air. "Step in after me, and don't grab onto something," she said as
she stepped into the nothing. Some unseen force pushed her up.
    William hesitated for a moment, then he put
his hands on the backs of the cats and stepped into the tube also.
As if there was a floor of air under his feet, he was gently pushed
upwards for a while, until a hand suddenly grabbed hold of one of
his arms. The upward movement stopped and he exited the tube. "Holy
Bejeebus," he commented.
    "I thought so too, the first time Moro pulled
me from the tube," Rebel grinned. "We're at the main flight deck
here. Only Moro, Xander and I come here. And you now, of course.
The rest of the crew is scared of the place."
    "Scared? What's here to be scared of?"
William asked in wonder.
    "Nothing, but