The Odyssey plunged headlong into the forest, bursting through the canopy with a bone-mangling SMAAAASH! Elizabeth yowled as it spun wildly into the branches, twisting and rolling and tossing everything about. After an eternity and a half of tumbling like an acrobat, the airship finally came to rest in a bed of creaky trees.

　　When Elizabeth dared to open her eyes she found herself confronted by the most spectacular mess. All manner of scientific instruments, maps, charts and something-or-other-ometers lay scattered like confetti around the inside of the pod. Every available surface was sploshed with the gloopy remains of experimental tea, and it was impossible just by looking at things to know which way was up.

　　"Whoever said flying would be good for my fear of heights", groaned Izzario, with a sideways glance at Barnaby, "clearly didn`t think about the crashing part". He unfastened his straps and began checking to see if any of his bones were actually broken.

　　As soon as it had been established that the worst of their injuries somehow amounted to no more than a few scratches, a whopping bruise and a host of frazzled nerves, Luella began to help them climb down, fixing a line with a careful mixture of ropes and branches and luck.

　　"The engines must have been damaged during our escape from the North Star", Barnaby supposed, as he began trying to plot some sort of route using an old brass compass and map. "I think the blast from that gunship overscribbled the campagulator".

　　"That`s exactly what I thought", Aelgren agreed, removing a twig from his beard.

　　The chatter of birdsquawk flew above their heads as they gathered up their bits and pieces and set off into the trees.

　　"The most important thing to know about the Caradeen forest", said Barnaby, from the front of the line, "is what not to do. To the well-trained eye this place can be your greatest friend, but there are a thousand dangers that await the unwary".

　　"I think he means you", said Izzario, from the rear of the pack, prompting Aelgren to mutter something uncomplimentary in reply.

　　Elizabeth, sticking close to Luella, tucked in her arms and elbows as she tried to follow the instructions. She had no idea how she was supposed to remember them all. Was she allowed to go near a nest of spotted thrish or not? Was it safe to eat the roots of the dungbush, or was that just another poisonous thing guaranteed to make your hair fall out within minutes? And what was it that she had to do if she found a humming wormsnake - stand very still, run away as quickly as possible, or sing?

　　Actually, upon further reflection, it might have been all three.

　　Barnaby came to a sudden halt, twirling smartly around. "Elizabeth - are you listening?"

　　Elizabeth froze. Evidently she wasn`t.

　　"I think so", she said, hopefully.

　　"Good. Oh, and just one more thing - watch out for the Vo-Hallin".

　　Barnaby gestured to where a ginormous bird, bigger than any that Elizabeth had seen, soared between the dollops of cloud in looping figures of eight.

　　"The Freelanders call them the Kings of the Air. They shouldn`t give us any trouble, but it`s a good idea to stay on your guard. They have been known to . . . well, you know?"

　　Elizabeth wasn`t entirely sure that she did know, but decided that it was probably best not to think too much about it.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

　　Besides, it was taking a feat of immense concentration just to make sure she stayed on her feet. Branches, stones, roots and earth were conspiring to make every step a treacherous undertaking. Even following Luella there were at least three occasions when she almost slipped and twisted her ankle, and she was certain that she would have fallen headlong into a ditch if Aelgren hadn`t snatched her up like a puppy by the scruff of her neck in time.

　　The whole experience was turning into one sorry mess after another.

　　So she was not in the slightest bit surprised when after several hours of wandering about Luella finally said: "We`re lost".

　　Barnaby checked the needle on the compass with a furrowed, bewildered brow. "What do you mean?"

　　"Look". Luella pointed to a fat sprouting fungus, with bright red and yellow stripes, that was curling in a spiral around the wide trunk of a tree. "We passed this way an hour ago".

　　"No we didn`t".

　　"Yes we did. I think we`re going in circles".

　　Barnaby twizzled back and forth between Luella and the giant mushroom, knelt down amongst the ferns and spread open the map. "This", he said, tracing a line on the right hand side, "is the route we were taking from Solace . . . So this" (he tapped a splodge of green), "is where we probably might be now".

　　"Probably might be?" shot Luella. "Could you be slightly more precise?"

　　"Well I can`t be completely certain. The co-ordinates are difficult to - "

　　"Ach, we`re lost", Aelgren agreed.

　　"No", snapped Barnaby, irritably. "We are not lost. Our exact location is undetermined, that is all!"

　　Elizabeth felt as if she was going to sink right under the ground. She was cold, tired, covered in scratches, hungry and thirsty and thoroughly fed up. Her despondency began to hit critical lows as the others squabbled and bickered.

　　Elizabeth criss-crossed her fingers exactly seven times, floated off into her numbers and . . .

　　The world rippled.

　　And then she was looking at herself. Only she wasn`t looking at herself in a reflection-in-a-mirror sort of way, but in the sort of a way that you would look at another person who was actually really there.

　　Elizabeth frowned. And saw herself do it.

　　Well that`s a bit strange, she thought. And heard herself think it too.

　　Only it wasn`t her. Even though it was.

　　"What`s going on?" one of her asked.

　　The rest of the group had stopped arguing and were now staring in her direction.

　　"Soul splitting, how curious", said Izzario, tipping his head to one side, like a crow.

　　"Soul splitting?" both Elizabeths echoed, gazing at each other in bafflement.

　　"You say that like I`m supposed to know what it is", one of them said, reproachfully.

　　"Which I don`t", added the other.

　　"It`s magic", Izzario explained. "And quite strong too, by the looks of it".

　　"But . . . Magic isn`t . . . There`s no such thing as . . . Which one of me is real?"

　　"You`re both real. You`re both you. And yet, at the same time, neither of you are really you. Not the whole you anyway".

　　"Right. So how do I go back together again?"

　　"I don`t know".

　　"But you must have some idea. I can`t stay looking like this!"

　　The two Elizabeths gawped helplessly, neither one of them knowing what to think or feel or do. It was without any doubt the weirdest thing imaginable. And every last bit of her was a freaked out, scrambled up mess.

　　So Elizabeth did the one thing that made any sense.

　　She ran.

　　Her feet were lurching, scrambling madly, taking flight into the forest without a thought as to where they would stop, their only goal to get as far away as possible.

　　She ran so hard that she almost flew right off the hillside. Which came to an unexpected end in a jutting spike of rock.

　　Elizabeth stood overlooking a sweeping gorge alive with a carpet of trees, her entire world spinning dangerously out of control.

　　Odd-shaped thoughts swirled from a place at the bottom of her mind.

　　The clouds. The traffic lights. Dad`s voice . . .

　　She was still gazing blankly into space when the others came running to find her.

　　"Just leave her alone for a bit", Luella was saying. "She`s been through a lot. All this must be very hard to take in".

　　"Actually, I think she`s coping rather well", said Barnaby.

　　Aelgren grunted his approval with a forthright trudge in Elizabeth`s direction. "Are you all right lassie?" he whispered, wrapping a tree trunk arm around her.

　　Elizabeth felt as though her insides had been scooped out and thrown away. The emptiness spread all the way to the marrow of her bones. It seemed to go on forever.

　　She barely even noticed that Barnaby was holding up a spyglass. And was utterly unaware of him studying the depths of the forest below.

　　In the end it was the sound of his voice that regained her attention, pulling her back to the surface of things with a rush of majestic surprise.

　　"What in skull`s teeth is that?"