The woman considered further. Then she delved into her purse, brought out a ticket, and gave it to Breanna. She got up and walked away.

Breanna gave it to Jaylin. Jaylin looked at it. It was a ticket to Miami. At that point she began to be a little afraid.

"Is it true?" David asked, sounding awed.

"Yes. We have just saved her life."

"But how did the demoness know?"

"She went to a woman whose talent is to look forward in time and see the result of a decision. Her name is Ashli. She spent all night looking long-distance at every pa.s.senger on this plane, until she found one who was going to die on it. It was her decision to board the plane that made her fate."

"That seems like an awful lot of work by Ashli just to help someone she'll never know," Jaylin said.

"This is an awful important mission. If we don't save the Demon Earth, gravity will fade and all of us will suffer and maybe die within a month."

"Why not just tell the government and have it look for the Demon Earth?"

Breanna just looked at her, and Jaylin felt stupid. Of course the government wouldn't pay attention. It never did. Even if it believed in magic, which it surely didn't, except when it came to financing the economy. "I withdraw the question."

"This is Mundania," David said. That covered it all.

They boarded the plane without incident. Jaylin was able to trade seats with another pa.s.senger so she could sit with David and Breanna.

About an hour into the flight there was a b.u.mp in the air, and a sudden loss of cabin pressure. They gasped, but in a few seconds the pressure was restored and they were all right. "Loose hatch," the captain's voice came over the speakers. "The automatic seal caught it. We apologize for the inconvenience." He sounded as if this were routine.

Jaylin began to be a little more afraid. If a woman far away in Xanth could foresee this happening, and in effect act to change the consequences of it, how much worse must be the mission they were on! But that thought evoked another question. "Why not have Ashli find out where the Demon Earth is hidden?"

"Demons are something else," Breanna explained. "Way beyond the power of mortals to affect. The whole of the magic of Xanth is the mere leakage of magic from the body of the Demon Xanth, just as the whole of Earth's gravity is the leakage from the body of its Demon. We are like tiny ants in comparison. We can't even comprehend their natures, let alone control them in any way. That's why we have to have the Swell Foop to rescue the Demon Earth. Only with its mind-boggling power can we hope to accomplish anything."

"What does it do?"

"We don't even know. Just that each Ring of Xanth has such power as no mortal ever can wield alone, and it takes all six of them together to control the Swell Foop. It hurts my mind just to think about it too much."

"I'm getting scared."

"Join the throng," David said. "We might as well be fleas on an elephant."

She took his hand. "Hi, fellow flea!"

"Actually, more like germs on the flea on an elephant," Breanna said. "But it seems it's up to us. Once we get that sixth Ring."

The rest of the series of flights was uneventful. By the time they arrived in Florida, Jaylin knew both her companions pretty well, and was ready to do more than hold hands with David. She learned how he had sneaked a peek at lovely Chlorine's green panties at age twelve, and the forbidden sight had turned his eyes from brown to green and accelerated his maturation by a year. In the ensuing five years he had realized that there was more to a woman than underwear, but that original green image had never quite faded from his fancy. She made a mental note: When this business with the Swell Foop was all done, and she returned to Mundania, buy a set of green underwear. Even if she didn't care to show it, she wanted to have it.

"Actually, David's decent," Breanna remarked during one of their rest stops. "And his family is really nice. A girl could do a lot worse."

"You act as though I've already decided."

Breanna gave her another of those looks, and sure enough, Jaylin felt completely stupid. She would have to learn to mask her interests more effectively.

Mrs. Baldwin met them at the airport. "h.e.l.lo, Jaylin!" she said, as if they had known each other for years. "Are you okay with this?"

Okay with what? Had the woman already marked her as a future daughter-in-law? No, it must be the dangerous mission. "I am nervous as bleep," Jaylin confessed. She was picking up some of Breanna's mannerisms. "But I'm ready to try my best."

"You will be suffering jet lag," Mary said. "It may be best to go immediately on into Xanth, where they can give you a magic potion to make you all right."

"I'll take them to the portal," David said.

He did. He drove them to No Name Key. Then, as they parted, he took Jaylin's hand and gently drew her into him. She yielded, coming to embrace him. They kissed. She floated.

Nothing more was said, but a promise had been made. There would be more to this, by and by. They separated, and she and Breanna entered the compound.

"Funny how things work out," Breanna remarked. "It was similar chance when I met Justin."

"Do things really happen by chance?" Jaylin asked, still fl.u.s.tered by the impact of the kiss.

"I wonder."

Breanna led them through a picture in a gallery, and suddenly they were on Centaur Isle with a black horse trotting up to greet them. "This is Putre," Breanna said. "He's the zombie dream colt."

"h.e.l.lo, Putre," Jaylin said. "What a beautiful creature you are." Actually, any horse was beautiful, but she didn't feel the need to clarify that.

A little dark heart appeared above the horse.

"May I hug you?" Jaylin asked. She had a charge of love built up that had to be discharged.

The heart fractured into a cl.u.s.ter of smaller hearts, and these formed into the outline of a larger heart.

She took that as a yes. She went to hug his neck. The hearts fractured again, forming a cloud that enveloped the two of them.

"Now why do I think the two of you will get along okay?" Breanna asked rhetorically.

Jaylin was glad that hearts didn't show in Mundania; she would have embarra.s.sed herself more than once. But it was time to get down to business. "I don't have much experience riding horses," she said.

"You can't fall off him if he doesn't want you to," Breanna said. "Look-it's really urgent that you get that Ring of Void as fast as you can. Why don't you go after it now, and I'll find my own way back to tell the others?"

"But I'd be lost here without you!" Jaylin protested, suddenly aware of the strangeness of the environment.

"Putre will take good care of you, and he knows where the Ring is, and where to find us once you have it. You can trust him."

Jaylin believed that. She just hadn't expected to be halfway on her own so suddenly. "Well-"

"Good enough. I hope you can figure it out quickly."

Jaylin climbed onto Putre's bare back, and it was surprisingly secure and comfortable. "You know where it is?" she asked uncertainly.

A speech balloon appeared above his head. "Only in a general way," it wrote. "It is in the Web."

"The Web?"

"Of the Internet."

"Oh, you mean like the Mundane Internet?"

"Like it, perhaps, but not part of it. This is the dream realm version. We must seek it in the gourd."

Jaylin didn't much like the sound of this, for all that there was no sound, just writing. "Must we?"

"It is where it is."

"But isn't that where all the bad dreams are? All the scary things?"

"Yes. But they will not hurt you. They will merely scare you."

"Oh, that's all right, then," Jaylin said weakly. She was trying for sarcasm, but was unable to rise to the occasion.

"I will take you there now," Putre wrote. And before she could think of a pretext to protest, he was off at a gallop, carrying her along.

She grabbed the curly mane at his neck to hang on, but really there was no need; she was staying securely on his back as if in a coasting easy chair. They moved along until he came to a green gourd lying on the ground. Then he dived-how that was possible for a horse she didn't know, but he did it-and they were on a collision course with the gourd. It seemed to swell up hugely, and they pa.s.sed right through. She didn't even have time to let out a proper scream.

Then they were in a pleasant open forest, not at all frightening. "What happened?" she asked, looking around.

"This is one of the dream sets," Putre's speech balloon wrote. "Where the elements of dreams are made."

"But this isn't scary."

"It's just background material. Dreams don't become frightening until they have effective plot lines. Every element has to be fashioned just right for best effect."

"I suppose," Jaylin agreed, relaxing. "What now?"

"We must find the Web. We shall have to inquire."

"Does that mean we have to find a scary thing to ask?"

"This looks like leprechaun territory. They aren't very scary."

"That's a relief! Okay, let's find a leprechaun."

Putre's ears perked up. There was the sound of hammering. He walked toward it.

They came to a glade where several little bearded men were working on some kind of platform. They were intent on their construction and didn't see the visitors.

"Uh, h.e.l.lo," Jaylin said tentatively.

The nearest little man jumped, dropping his hammer. "Oh! Don't give a person such a fright!" he exclaimed. "You're like to turn a man's beard white."

"We apologize, handsome leprechaun," Putre's balloon wrote.

"Yes, we are very sorry," Jaylin agreed. "Your beard is such a nice shade of red."

The little man looked at Putre, frowning. Then he looked at Jaylin, and the frown melted. "Why, sure and it's a cute Mundane la.s.s," he exclaimed. "What be the likes of you doing in a place like this?"

Putre made a small speech balloon angled her way. "He likes you. Maybe he'll help." That was the equivalent of a whisper.

She nodded. "I'm looking for the Web."

"La.s.s, you're in the wrong set! Gold we've got, but no web." He gestured around, and when Jaylin looked, she saw several crocks overflowing with bright gold coins.

"You really do have treasure!" she exclaimed, impressed. "I thought that was just a myth."

"It is a myth," the leprechaun said. "And we are it. Have you any idea how many people dream foolishly of gold they don't deserve? They never think of doing good honest work for it; no, they've got to try to steal it from us. Isn't that a shame?"

"It's terrible," she agreed.

The leprechaun angled his head. "Sure and I like the look of ye," he said. He turned to his fellow workers. "Anybody know the way to the Web?"

"Aye," one agreed. "I can point the way. But we have to test this set first."

"So we do. But maybe this sweet la.s.s can help us."

"Me?" Jaylin asked. "I don't know the first thing about dream sets."

All of the leprechauns nodded. "She'll do," the other said.

"I don't understand."

"That's why ye'll do, la.s.s," the first one said. "You aren't prejudiced. If it scares you, it must be good."

Jaylin realized that she had better cooperate, or they might not help her find the Web. "I'll try."

"It's like this. Pretend you're dreaming-of course you are dreaming, but you know what I mean-and you catch me and try to make me show you where my treasure is."

"Oh, I wouldn't do anything like that!"

"I said pretend, la.s.s. Think of yourself as a big mean man who doesn't care how he gets rich."

"I'll try," she said again. She got down from Putre, and the leprechaun went back to work. This time, instead of greeting him, she pounced on him, grabbing him by an arm. "Ha, I've got you, leprechaun!" she cried. "Where's your gold?"

He looked cowed. "Please, mister bad man, let me go! That treasure will do ye no good, believe me."

"No! I want it now. Or else." She had no idea what else, but it was the only threat she could think of.

"All right! All right. Don't hurt me. I'll take ye there." Then, in a low voice: "Don't let go of me, or I'll vanish. The bad men have mostly caught on to that by now."

She had been about to let go of him. Instead she renewed her grip on his arm. "Take me to your treasure!"

The leprechaun led the way to the structure, which was now conveniently shrouded in mist. Only a few bright golden coins showed around the edges of the mist, evidently fallen from some huge crock of gold. Jaylin knew that this was all a dream, and the money wasn't real, and even if it was real, she wouldn't take it, but still she felt a tinge of greedy excitement.

"It is in here," the leprechaun said, showing an oval-shaped opening in the mist. "Take a look."