The Great Blue Orb

By Kathy Ludwig

Three young cousins find themselves led into a different land where they meet King Gwynmawr. The King asks them to help him in a quest to find his missing Blue Orb and the children take the challenge. Throughout their journey, they are confronted with challenges presented by the weather, terrain and unfriendly spies. However, their near undoing happens when they choose comfort and good friends over their responsibility. The Great Blue Orb, is a fantasy with a gently presented message of trust and faith.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 6, 2013
• ISBN: 9781493146130

Kathy Ludwig

Kathy Ludwig was a self proclaimed author who enjoyed writing short stories and was in the process of writing her second book before she passed at age 61. Kathy was a loved daughter, sister, wife, mother, friend, and grandmother 'Mama'. When Kathy was laid off in her late fifties she decided to refocus and start writing again hoping to make her dream of being a nationally known author come true. She joined the 'Wright Writer's' club out of Dayton, OH. She wrote many short stories about her dog Diego, a Papichi, whom she named after her childhood crush Zorro! She would use her grandchildren and the "village" of West Alexandria, OH she lived in as her inspiration for characters and places in her books. Kathy's faith and family were her strength through unemployment and a battle against Breast Cancer...from which she was a SURVIVOR! Kathy's first full fiction book was to be introduced as a trilogy. Her family may finish the second book in her memory.

Book preview

Chapter 1

In the vast expanse of Everything That Is, the number of planets that circle far-flung stars are like sparkles in a pinch of fairy dust. The stars themselves are too many to be counted, and the planets cannot be seen for their distance from each other. There dwells a small star, circled by eight planets, both small and large. On one of the smaller planets, the land is divided into seven large islands and separated by five great seas. In the middle part of one of the great islands lies a small village.

Although the village is a speck of a spot on a speck of a planet on a small solar system in the vast expanse of Everything That Is, it marks the beginning of a great adventure for three brave cousins.

Emily, Makyla and Curtis were visiting Grandma. They loved staying with her in the big, old house, especially when they could all stay together. There was a sense of magic at Grandma’s. None of them could explain exactly what it was, but sometimes they could feel it in a corner of a room, or in one of Grandma’s special trinkets. More than once, they found something they had put away lying differently than they left it, or sometimes it had moved into a whole other room. Often they caught a glimpse through an open doorway of something grand like a throne room, or a great forest when they knew perfectly well that the only thing beyond the doorway was the kitchen, or the back porch. It wasn’t a bad kind of magic, but a kind that made them tingly with anticipation and expecting something wonderful to happen.

They spent the morning playing games in the parlor and were settling themselves at the big dining room table for lunch when Grandma made a suggestion.

It’s turned into such a nice day, said Grandma. I’m wondering, would you all like to take a walk down to the thrift shop? We can look for treasures and then go across the street for an ice cream.

The ice cream got Curtis’ attention although none of them were too keen on going to the thrift shop or the junk store, as they called it. Grandma found most of her treasured trinkets there. They never knew what she would consider a treasure and what she would consider just old stuff. Down at the junk store, Grandma often picked up and examined all kinds of things that the cousins thought were silly or just plain ugly. The children watched her turn them round and round in her hands. Somehow, feeling them seemed to be as important as seeing them. Sometimes she took home things that were tattered and worn and other perfectly nice things she would reject out of hand. They couldn’t figure it out. But once in a while they found a toy that another child had discarded, and Grandma usually bought it, if the price was right. So today Emily was first to say, Okay! Let’s go!

Makyla shrugged her shoulders and said, Why not? Curtis just nodded and smiled, thinking about the ice cream.

In the time it took for them to put on their sandals, Grandma had picked up her wallet and keys, put on her big sun hat, and was waiting for them on the front porch. Curtis challenged them all to a race and they ran the block and a half to the shop.

The door was standing wide open, welcoming visitors. Grandma was the last to arrive and stopped outside to check out a display piled near the entrance. Nothing looked promising, so they went inside.

After they’d been out in the bright sunlight, the store looked especially dreary and smelled musty, like an old attic. They blinked until their eyes got used to the dim light. Grandma was already strolling the aisles, looking for new treasures. Curtis, who beat everyone else into the store, was looking at an old toy truck. The paint was chipped, but still it might be worth taking home if he could find the front wheels.

Something in the back of the store caught Makyla’s eye, just the thing to make into a new pretend pet! Emily found an old, sad looking doll. Once upon a time, its blue eyes had opened and shut, but now just one eye worked. The hair, what was left of it, stuck out all over its head. She moved the doll back and forth to watch it wink at her with its one good eye and was just putting it down when Makyla called out, Em! Come look at this. Isn’t it strange?

Emily walked to the back of the store, where Makyla was holding something about the size of a football. Not to be left out, Curtis joined them. The object Makyla held was dusty and old, but there was something about it that drew their attention. They didn’t know why, but they felt a need to touch it. It was an old, homely, lamb but still they couldn’t take their eyes off of it. Made of porcelain, its face and legs were smooth and glossy. Its wool was made of chunks of clay that looked as if they had been pressed through a sieve. One time, when it was new, it must have been as white as snow, but now it was dusty and gray, its coat broken off in chunks.

The storekeeper watched them from the front of the store. Fortunately, this was not the kind of store where grownups are always telling kids not to touch stuff. He smiled, Do you like that lamb? Not many people see the wonder in it. It’s all in the eyes, you know.

Makyla frowned. How silly! They were just painted-on eyes, but Emily and Curtis were already staring into the lamb’s face. Together, they all held the lamb and tilted it this way and that way to see the eyes better in the dim light. As they looked, they became more determined to find the secret in the lamb’s eyes. So intent were they that they never noticed when the lamb started to grow. They didn’t think a thing of it when their fingers began to sink into the warm, soft fur of the lamb’s sides and back. They didn’t even think it was strange when they could feel the lamb breathing beneath their fingertips. Only when it started wiggling in their hands did they know something very strange was happening.

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Chapter 2

The cousins jumped back as the lamb wriggled free from their fingers and danced in a circle around them. Finally looking up, the children were amazed to see that they were no longer indoors but outside, with a clear blue sky overhead and a rolling meadow all around. The air was filled with the scent of wildflowers that caught on the edge of the breeze and teased their noses. The lamb was now as white as the fluffy clouds overhead. It continued its merry dance around and around them. Baaaa, it sang to them, Baaaaaa! as if it were dancing to its own song. It began to run away from them, then darted back again, out and back, out and back.

I think he wants us to follow him, Makyla said, taking a step or two after the lamb.

Do you think we should? asked Emily. Although she wanted to run after the frolicking lamb, she was good at following the rules and was pretty sure that a responsible grownup would advise them to stay put.

She looked from Makyla to the lamb and then to Curtis, who apparently didn’t think it was problem. He was already following Makyla. Emily’s brow wrinkled as she thought it over.

Well, if I stay here, I’ll be all by myself. No matter what, we should stick together. So, off they went, with Emily dragging