Last year, Old Sam’s Inktober adventure began with a cloud that brought an envelope that put Old Sam and Josefien to sleep. They then woke up on the cloud ship of Queen Spider Heart. Old Sam’s help was needed to save the Cloud World from a grave danger. A whole adventure followed with Pedro Toad and his mother, Odette Oehoe and Wasam, the white cloud cat and counterpart of Old Sam in the Cloud World.
The most memorable part of the whole adventure was their meeting with Captain Ebeling and his water witches. Together they saved the Cloud World and story ended as usual with a very big party. This time with a lot of chatter cockles with witch’s cheese that didn’t even taste that bad, according to Josefien.
After the party, Old Sam and Josefien slept in the cloud castle. Captain Ebeling’s dragon boat is docked in front of the door. The next morning at breakfast, Old Sam and Josefien announce that they want to continue their journey.
‘Where do you want to go?’, asks Queen Spider Heart.
‘We were on our way to Old Sam’s Forest’, says Josefien.
´Yes,´ says Old Sam, ´and I still want to go there. I’d like to spend the night in my own tree again.’
‘How do we get back into our own world?’, Josefien asks.
´I’ll take you with my dragon boat,´ says Captain Ebeling, who has just arrived. Freshly washed, with his hair all over the place and with a large mug of coffee in his hand, he stands with the pair.
´That’s sweet,´ Josefien says as she takes a seat at the breakfast table, but Captain Ebeling shakes his head.
‘We’ll leave in fifteen minutes, otherwise we’ll miss spring tide’, he says, ‘so come with me to the boat quickly.’
Old Sam and Josefien jump off the table and quickly say goodbye to everyone. Old Sam and Josefien follow Captain Ebeling who deftly jumps on board and leads the pair to their cabin.
´You’re sleeping in the Master Storyteller’s hut,´ he says, ´he’s not here now.´
‘Where is he?’, Josefien asks.
‘He’s having adventures somewhere so that he can tell you about them later’, says Captain Ebeling, ‘but I’m going back on deck now because we’re about to leave. Just take a look around and I’ll see you up there.’
Captain Ebeling walks out of the cabin. Old Sam and Josefien hear all kind of unfamiliar noises coming from the deck in front of them. Then, suddenly, there is a noise in the cabin. It seems to come from the top bunk. Old Sam and Josefien take a cautious look and see something moving under a blanket.
´What’s that?´ says Josefien, looking at Old Sam with wide eyes.
´I have no idea,´ says Old Sam, ´but there’s only one way to find out.´
Josefien hides behind Old Sam as he sticks out his paw and opens the bed.
´Help,´ shouts the backpack lying there, ´don’t jump, you’re in danger, they’ve kidnapped me.´
Old Sam and Josefien have boarded The Round Whale, Captain Ebeling’s dragon boat. He has promised to take them back to their own world, so that they can continue their journey to Old Sam’s Forest. In their cabin, it turns out that there is a backpack under the blanket. A backpack that moves and calls for help. They are in danger and someone has been kidnapped.
‘What is this again?’, Josefien exclaims.
´I have no idea,´ Old Sam says.
‘Who was kidnapped?’, Josefien asks the backpack.
But it doesn’t move anymore and doesn’t make any noise.
‘Have we imagined this?’, Old Sam asks.
´No,´ says Josefien, ´I’m sure the backpack moved and shouted that we are in danger and shouted something about jumping.´
´Then we’ll go to Captain Ebeling,´ says Old Sam, ´I’m sure he knows who this backpack belongs to.´
Once on deck, Old Sam and Josefien are looking around a bit lost. It’s a hive of activity. It’s almost spring tide and the whole crew is working together to prepare the ship for the big jump.
´Hoist the mainsail,´ roars Captain Ebeling.
The Dragon Master runs forward, closely followed by the water witches, who pull the straps around the sail on their way to the mast. That falls down and that is the signal for the Dragon Master to hang on the lines with which the sail is hoisted.
‘That can be done faster’, the Water Witches cackle and they fly up with the sail.
´Neat, witch darlings of mine,´ shouts Captain Ebeling, ´Dragon Master, secure that sail and hoist the jib.´
Everyone flies even further forward. Old Sam and Josefien look on with their mouths open. They completely forget that they wanted to tell the captain what happened in the cabin.
´Hold on tight,´ roars Captain Ebeling, ´spring tide is here, we’re going to jump.´
Everyone holds on tight to the first part of the ship they come across. The Dragon Master clasps the mast and the Water Witches cling to him. Captain Ebeling is firmly at the helm. Old Sam and Josephine quickly grab hold of the railing. The dragon boat lets itself be carried along on the spring tide and goes faster and faster. Until, with a big run-up, it jumps through a circle of light.
´Wow,´ shouts Old Sam, ´I’ve never experienced anything like it. What a strange feeling.’
´That’s not how it’s supposed to feel,´ shouts Captain Ebeling, ´and we’re not where we’re supposed to be. Dragon Master, get the compass. We need to find out where we landed before anything goes wrong.’
Old Sam and Josefien have experienced for the first time how a boat can travel to other places via spring tide. But something didn’t go right. They are not where they are supposed to be according to Captain Ebeling. The whole ship is in turmoil and the Dragon Master has to grab his compass to see where they are.
Old Sam and Josefien haven’t had time to tell them about the backpack they found in their cabin. A backpack calling for help and announcing that they are in grave danger. And he told me that someone had been kidnapped.
‘The backpack also said something about jumping’, Josefien says to Old Sam.
´Which backpack are you talking about?´ asks Captain Ebeling, who has ears everywhere on the deck of the dragon boat.
‘The backpack that was on the top bunk in our cabin’, says Josefien.
´That’s crazy,´ says Captain Ebeling, ´I thought the Master Storyteller had taken everything with him when he set out on his journey.´
´It’s crazy that he left without saying anything,´ says Klask, the chief witch of the water witches.
´Yes,´ says Sasun, ´he didn’t even bring a bottle of witches’ gold.´
´Then it’s quite strange,´ says Captain Ebeling, ´can you bring that backpack on deck? We have more space there than all of us in your cabin.’
Old Sam and Josefien descend back to the cabin. Arriving at the cabin, Old Sam climbs onto the top bunk and carefully lowers the backpack to the floor. Together they take the backpack to the deck.
´Witch darlings, look what’s in that backpack,´ says Captain Ebeling as he holds the helm tightly.
The water witches put the backpack on one of the benches.
´Yes,´ says Klask, ´it’s the Master Storyteller’s backpack.´
Carefully, she undoes the flap and opens the backpack.
‘Help, get me out’, it suddenly sounds from the backpack.
Everyone is frozen with fright. A voice in a backpack, how is that possible.
´I recognize that voice,´ the Dragon Master says and puts his hand in the backpack. Another hand grabs his hand and little by little the Dragon Master pulls another water witch out of the backpack.
´Najar, there you are again,´ the other water witches exult, ´we had already lost you, where were you?´
‘I was working on the cupboards in the Master Storyteller’s hut and suddenly I was gone. And now I’m back!´
´How did you end up in the Master Storyteller’s backpack,´ Old Sam says, ´and is there anything else in it?´
´Good question,´ says the Dragon Master and dives into the backpack again. To everyone’s surprise, something else comes out. The boots of the Master Storyteller. What are they doing there and where is the Master Storyteller?
Old Sam and Josefien are aboard Captain Ebeling’s ship. A ship that has been taken by the spring tide to an unknown destination. They tell the captain that the backpack they found in their cabin shouted something about not jumping. They take the backpack on board and the Dragon Master pulls out the missing water witch Najar. Plus the Master Storyteller’s boots. It’s a mystery how they’re in the backpack and the Master Storyteller isn’t.
‘Where has the Master Storyteller gone?’, Josefien asks.
´That’s really mysterious,´ says Klask, the witch-in-chief, ´but the question is also how you ended up in that backpack, Najar.´
‘Yes, Najar, tell me’, the other water witches shout in unison.
´I was working on the cabinets in the Master Storyteller’s cabin,´ says Najar.
Klask sees Old Sam and Josefien looking a little strange.
‘I’m sure you’re wondering why a water witch is working on cabinets, she says.
Old Sam and Josefien nod. It’s also a bit weird to rummage through someone else’s cupboards.
‘Najar is the water witch of the cabinets,’ says Klask, ‘she has the ability to get a lot of things in a cabinet. Someone else can’t do that, but with her magic she can really fit everything in it.’
´And lose,´ hiccups the Dragon Master. He obviously has to think of something funny.
‘She even got the production of seven vegetable gardens in a cupboard the other day,’ explains Lien the water witch.
´Did you accidentally put the Master Storyteller in a cupboard?´ asks Sasun, the other water witch.
‘No, of course not,’ says Najar, ‘I really know what I’m doing when I’m working with cabinets.’
‘Probably,’ says Josefien, ‘but you can still make a mistake. An accident can happen at any time.’
´Or in a small cupboard,´ hiccups the Dragon Master.
´Stop it,´ Najar says, ´you should have cleaned up your green pajamas yourself and not left them between the meals.´
‘We thought it was fun’, Lien and Sasun say in unison.
´Witch darlings, stop,´ shouts Captain Ebeling, ´Dragon Master, have you looked where we are?´
The Dragon Master quickly pulls out his compass again and peers across the water to the horizon. Everyone watches him intently along. There is nothing to see at all. Just water and water.
´Mm,´ he says, ´I’m getting very strange coordinates. I don’t think that’s very good news.´
He picks up the map and points to where they are. ´No,´ everyone exclaims, ´not the Exotic Sea of the East.´
Old Sam and Josefien are aboard Captain Ebeling’s ship. A ship that has been taken by the spring tide to an unknown destination. They tell the captain that the backpack they found in their cabin shouted something about not jumping. They take the backpack on board and the Dragon Master pulls out the missing water witch Najar. Plus the Master Storyteller’s boots. It’s a mystery how they’re in the backpack and the Master Storyteller isn’t.
‘What’s wrong with the Exotic Sea of the East?’, Josefien asks.
‘Things disappear there’, Lien says, looking at Najar.
‘Then you mustn’t look at me,’ says Najar, ‘I’m from the cupboards, not from things that disappear into the Exotic Sea of the East.’
‘But what disappears into the Exotic Sea of the East?’, says Oude Sam.
´Sit down, everyone,´ says Captain Ebeling, ´and I’ll tell you what I know.´
‘Can’t we do that in the cabin?’, Lien asks, ’then I can make coffee and tea right away.’
‘Yes,’ Sasun shouts, ‘I’m sure we still have some stroopwafels on board somewhere.’
‘I know where to find them’, Najar says and she stumbles downstairs and immediately dives into a cupboard.
The rest also descend to the cabin and look for a place.
Captain Ebeling clears his throat and begins to tell.
‘On the Exotic Sea of the East, the water sometimes disappears in some parts. Ships run aground there. That is the work of the Tormentors. They then come on board and make things disappear. But not only things like supplies or ships, sometimes the crew disappears as well. Or part of the crew.’
´Isn’t that what happened to the Master Storyteller?´ asks Josefien.
‘That could just be the case’, says Captain Ebeling.
‘But the Master Storyteller disappeared a while ago,’ says Klask, ‘long before we were on the Exotic Sea of the East.’
´That’s right,´ says Captain Ebeling, ´I suspect we’ve had a tormentor on board for some time. He must have clambered on board somewhere.’
‘Oh,’ says Najar, ’that explains why it was so chaotic in my cupboards. Everything was constantly turned upside down. And I really couldn’t find some things anymore.’
´Mm,´ Klask says, ´I’m now wondering why some of our crew members didn’t return. Maybe that’s the work of the tormentors, too.’
Suddenly, a roaring sound is heard in the distance. It comes from outside. Captain Ebeling jumps up.
´Grab the binoculars, Dragon Master, ‘if it’s what I think it is, we’ve got a huge problem.’
The Dragon Master turns around from his spot on the couch and wants to grab the binoculars that are supposed to be there. But there isn’t.
´Najar, where did you put the binoculars?´ he exclaims.
‘I didn’t leave the binoculars anywhere’, says Najar, ’that’s ship’s stuff. I don’t clean them up. Besides, it’s hanging around your neck.’
Stunned, the Dragon Master looks down and sees the binoculars hanging on his stomach.
´Sorry, Najar,´ he says.
´I’m not going to lose everything,´ Najar grumbles a bit as everyone climbs back on deck.
´Where should I look?´ the Dragon Master asks.
´There,´ says Captain Ebeling, pointing to a dark thing in the distance.
The Dragon Master grabs the binoculars and searches the horizon until he finds it.
´It looks like a cloud,´ he says, ´but it’s not. I just don’t know what it is.’
´Give me that thing,´ says Captain Ebeling.
He picks up the binoculars and puts them in front of his eyes.
´It’s certainly not a cloud,´ he says, ´it’s a swarm of all kinds of strange creatures and it’s coming at us.´
The swarm has indeed changed direction and is now heading towards the dragon boat. As they get closer, the strange creatures become more and more visible. The water witches’ breath catches in their throats.
‘Oh no’, they exclaim in unison.
‘What oh no?’, Josefien exclaims, ‘who are they?’
´It’s a swarm of tormentors and they’re on a trek through the Exotic Sea of the East,´ shouts Klask, the chief witch. Panic comes through in her voice and the other water witches jump up and down.
‘Witch darlings, we have to get out of here as soon as possible’, roars Captain Ebeling.
But it’s too late. The swarm of tormentors accelerates and comes roaring towards our group of friends.
´What’s going to happen?´ shouts Old Sam.
´I have no idea,´ shouts Captain Ebeling.
´I do,´ shouts Klask, the chief witch of the water witches, ´grab whatever you can get your hands on, it’s going to be a wild ride.´
Klask is right. Everyone is just in time to grasp whatever they can grab. Captain Ebeling and the Dragon Master cling to the helm. The water witches, in turn, grab hold of them. No matter how big the panic is, water witches always want to stay as close as possible to their captain and dragon master. Old Sam and Josefien don’t think that’s a bad idea either and they wrap their tails around them.
With a roaring roar, the swimming with tormentors works its way around the boat. It’s a strange sensation. The moment the swim is all around them, all the noise cuts out. Our group of friends seems to be in a state of nothingness. They hold on and at the same time there is nothing to hold on to.
´Wow,´ Josefien exclaims, ´this is special.´
It’s such a strange sensation that Old Sam gets dizzy. He rolls his eyes and falls against the group.
´Hold him,´ Josefien shouts, ´Old Sam has a vision.´
The water witches put their arms around Old Sam and Josephine. Old Sam’s body is completely relaxed. The others are holding him. Then the roaring roar of the swarm is heard again as the last tormentors move on around the ship. The dragon boat dives down and falls to the ground with a big bang. Frightened, everyone falls on the deck with a thud. There they are. On the Dragon Boat where a whole swarm of tormentors has just traveled past.
´What happened here?´ shouts Captain Ebeling as he scrambles to his feet and glances over the railing.
´I think we’ve run aground,´ the Dragon Master shouts.
´You’re absolutely right,´ says Captain Ebeling, ´we’re high and dry here and we’re not going anywhere for a while.´
The rest of the crew also crawls to their feet while Josefien stays seated with Old Sam.
´I hope Old Sam wakes up soon,´ says Josephine, ´so he can tell you what he saw in his vision.´
At that moment, Old Sam raises his eyes.
´Where’s my passport?´ he asks, ´I have to travel.´
A swarm of tormentors has taken all the water around Captain Ebeling’s Dragon Boat with a roaring roar. In the calm of the storm, Old Sam has a vision. When he opens his eyes again, Josefien is sitting next to him. The Dragon Boat is at the bottom of the Exotic Sea of the East and everyone needs to recover from that heavy fall. The first thing Old Sam does is ask for his passport. He has to travel. Everyone looks at Old Sam with their mouths open.
‘A passport?,’ says Josefien, ‘we don’t have a passport at all, do we?’
´That’s right,´ says Old Sam, ´but with the trip we’re about to make, we do need it. It is a special passport. It shows the route we have to take.’
Old Sam looks everyone in the eye.
´Where’s The Master Storyteller’s backpack?´ he asks.
´Here,´ Najar says, pulling the backpack out of a locker on deck.
Old Sam takes the backpack and puts it on one of the benches on deck. On the front of the backpack is a large flap with a small pocket on top.
‘That’s where the passport is’, says Oude Sam.
´That’s not possible,´ says the Dragon Master, ´that bag is closed. I just felt that myself when I examined the backpack.’
´Oh,´ says Josephine, ´but Old Sam has magical powers. He often take things out of bags that no one else can reach.’
Old Sam brings his paw to the bag. It slides in by itself. When he takes his paw out again, he is holding a passport in a nice leather cover.
‘It shows the route we have to take’, says Oude Sam.
´How do you know?´ asks the Dragon Master.
‘That’s what the Master Storyteller told me in my vision,’ says Old Sam, ’this passport shows the starting point and the beginning of the route that Josefien and I have to take. When we’re on the road the next step in the route becomes visible.’
Do ‘I hear correctly that we are not going with you’, says Captain Ebeling.
´That’s right,´ says Old Sam, ´you have to stay with the Dragon Boat. I don’t know why, but that was the Master Storyteller’s assignment. And we have to bring his backpack with his boots.´
Everyone is silent for a moment after these words. Then Old Sam and Josefien say goodbye to everyone and hit the road. The backpack on Old Sam’s back. The crew of the Dragon Boat continues to watch until the two black cats, who hike along the edge of Exotic Sea of the East, have disappeared from their sight. On the way to an adventure with an unknown destination. What kind of adventures lay ahead for this special pair of cats?
Old Sam and Josefien said goodbye to the crew of the Dragon Boat. In his vision, Old Sam has met the Master Storyteller. He told him that he and Josefien had to go out together. The route they have to take is written in a passport that came from a secret bag in his backpack. A bag that only Old Sam could open with his magical powers. The pair are now walking along the edge of the Exotic Sea of the East to an unknown destination. With every step they take, a new step becomes visible. Slowly, the route unfolds.
‘Do you have any idea where we should go?’, Josefien asks Old Sam.
´No,´ says Old Sam, ´the only thing I do know is that we have to travel for a few days.´
‘After all that travelling on ships, I’ve almost forgotten how nice it is to walk,’ says Josefien.
´Yes,´ says Old Sam, ´indeed. All those clouds and water are nice, but a bit of solid ground under my feet is even nicer.’
Old Sam and Josefien continue to walk along the Exotic Sea of the East for quite some time. Every now and then they look at the passport to see if they are still on the right track.
‘We’ll get to the end of the Exotic Sea of the East in a minute’, says Josefien after their final check.
‘That’s right,’ says Old Sam, ‘I’m curious which way we should go.’
‘That’s crazy,’ says Josefien, ‘it looks like there’s something here.’
She points to the card in the passport. An arrow has appeared pointing to something on their route. As they get closer to the point on the map, the arrow begins to move back and forth. The closer they get to the point on the map, the more enthusiastically the arrow jumps up and down.
‘I think we really need to get to that point’, says Josefien.
´I’m sure of that,´ says Old Sam, ´the Master Storyteller had already warned me that the passport occasionally conjures up strange things. I think this is such a strange thing.´
‘Let’s go and have a look’, says Josefien.
Old Sam and Josefien walk on, straight to the point on the map where the arrow is pointing. When they are close, the arrow detaches from the passport and jumps towards the point. There it continues to jump back and forth until Old Sam and Josefien are also at that point.
‘And now?’, Josefien asks.
´I think we should dig,´ says Old Sam, ´it’s like I see something under the sand.´
Josefien takes a closer look. Old Sam is right. There is something under the sand of the beach at Exotic Sea of the East. The two start digging and slowly the outlines of something become visible. The sun shines down on them relentlessly as they continue digging. What is it that has been hiding under the sand?
Old Sam and Josefien have said goodbye to the Dragon Boat and her crew. The Master Storyteller’s passport indicates the route they must take. Their journey along the Exotic Sea of the East has brought Old Sam and Josefien to the point where they are now digging. Slowly the contours of something buried under the sand become visible. Meanwhile, the sun is shining relentlessly on the two of them.
‘It’s so hot’, says Josefien.
´Yes,´ says Old Sam, ´too hot for me. I really couldn’t live here. I rather be in my own forest, at least it’s nice and cool there.’
Old Sam and Josefien have now dug away the top layer of the sand. A dark piece of fabric becomes visible. It covers something. Something that suddenly moves, now that the sand is gone.
‘Who’s waking me up?’, a voice suddenly shouts.
Old Sam and Josefien are shocked and both jump backwards with a big leap. In their haste, they stumble over their own feet and fall over. Two sparkling eyes peer out from under the piece of fabric. Apparently it is such a funny sight that the voice, which belongs to the sparkling eyes, can only do one thing and that is laugh out loud. All that laughter makes the sand fall off the rest of the fabric. Slowly the shape that belongs to the sparkling eyes becomes visible.
‘Who are you?’, Josefien asks when she is over the first shock. With such eyes and such a smile, it can only be a good person, is her conclusion.
´I’m Norbie,´ the voice says as he jumps to his feet, ´nice to meet you, Old Sam and Josefien.´
Old Sam and Josefien look at Norbie in amazement. It is a special appearance. Norbie is not much taller than Old Sam and Josefien and has a dark hooded cloak wrapped around her. Two sparkling eyes and cheerful curls stare out from underneath it. A pair of tough and weathered boots peek out from under the cloak.
´How do you know who we are?´ asks Old Sam.
´That’s what I heard from the Master Storyteller,´ says Norbie, ´who told me that two black cats, named Old Sam and Josefien, were coming. He has sent me out to help you with the next part of your journey.´
´Okay,´ says Josefien, ´and where is the next part of the journey going?´
´To those mountains over there,´ Norbie says, pointing to a point in the distance.
Old Sam and Josefien look at the huge gray mountains that loom on the horizon in the distance.
´Are you sure you can help us?´ asks Old Sam as he looks at the apparition again. How can such a small person know so much of such large mountains.
´I’m sure of that,´ Norbie says, ´I’m a member of the nomadic people who travel between mountains and water, between worlds and other realms. Autumn is coming, so my people have already left for the next destination. I had to wait for you to protect you from the dangers we face in the Great Grey Mountains.´
Slowly, more footsteps become visible on the map. Who comes to strengthen our company and is it a friend or foe that bites.
Old Sam and Josefien have just met Norbie. Norbie is a member of a nomadic tribe who travel between the beach of the Exotic See of the East and the Great Grey Mountains they see looming on the horizon. Autumn is coming, and his people have already departed. The Master Storyteller has asked Norbie to wait for Old Sam and Josefien to save them from the dangers that lurk in the Great Grey Mountains. What a strange story and as usual, Josefien is full of questions.
´The Master Storyteller has disappeared,´ she says, ´so how can he ask you to wait for us?´
´In the same way that he told Old Sam where to find the passport with the route,´ Norbie says.
´Have you had a vision too?´ asks Old Sam.
´Yes,´ says Norbie, ´we were sitting around the campfire together on a beautiful evening. I was staring into the flames for a bit and suddenly the Master Storyteller appeared. He spoke to us and asked you to help.´
‘Wow,’ says Josefien, as only Josefien can say, ‘how special. But where is the Master Storyteller now?´
´I don’t know,´ Norbie says, ´he didn’t tell us. I must help you to travel through the Realm of the Great Gray Mountains. Take a good look, Old Sam, you’ve seen them before.´
Old Sam takes a closer look.
´Indeed,´ says Old Sam, ´that was in the adventure where the Mother Tree was kidnapped. The Great Grey Mountains are as high as the sky. We couldn’t fly over it, so we travelled to the White Country via the Arctic Ocean.’
‘Can we walk through the Great Grey Mountains?’, Josefien asks.
‘Yes,’ says Norbie, ‘you can. But know that the Great Grey Mountains can also move, so the question is whether The White Country is still on the other side.’
´Or the wild Waterland, or Ravenland,´ says Old Sam, ´they are close to The White Land.´
´That’s right,´ says Norbie, ´nothing is certain. But enough procrastination, we have to get on the road.’
The passport in Old Sam’s hand suddenly starts to tremble and falls open to the floor. A map of Old Sam’s world becomes visible. They see the Exotic Sea of the East, where they are now. The journey they have made is visible on the map. Cat’s paws walking towards the Great Grey Mountains. New steps become visible. This time two pairs of cat paws and 1 pair of footsteps. Norbie’s footsteps Indeed, they are heading in the direction of the Great Grey Mountains. But what lies behind it is not visible and will remain a mystery for a while.
‘Before we go any further, I’d like to eat something,’ says Josefien, ‘we also had snacks with us, didn’t we?’
Old Sam dives into the backpack, but suddenly pulls back his cat’s paw very quickly.
´Ouch,´ he exclaims while holding on to an apple with a big bite out of it, ´I’ve been bitten.´
Slowly more footsteps become visible at the map. Who is joining this company and is it friend or foe that bites.
Old Sam and Josefien hear how the Master Storyteller has made himself visible to Norbie’s nomadic people through a vision. In this way, he was able to ask for their help to guide Old Sam and Josefien safely through the area of the Great Gray Mountains. In the meantime, the passport shows that they have to set off towards those Great Grey Mountains. When Old Sam wants to grab some snacks from the backpack, he is bitten. He quickly withdraws his cat’s paw, but the damage has already been done.
´Ouch,´ he shouts again and looks at his cat’s paw in bewilderment. Fortunately, there is nothing to see there, but it clearly hurt.
‘What was that’, Josefien shouts.
´I don’t know,´ says Old Sam, ´something bit, not very hard, but it did.´
Norbie grabs the backpack, opens the lid and peers inside.
´Come out,´ Norbie shouts.
‘Come out?’, says Josefien surprised, ‘surely no one can be in there.’
´Oh yes,´ Norbie says, ´shoot you.´
A small figure crawls out of the backpack and jumps to his feet with a big leap and shows his white fur with black and brown spots. Old Sam and Josefien have never seen such a small dog.
‘Who are you?’, Josefien asks.
´I’m Jack, JR, secret agent, nice to meet you. JR is my codename.´
‘Where are you from?’, Old Sam asks.
´I was looking for the Master Storyteller,´ JR says, twinkling in his eye, ´when I was suddenly so happy to crawl out of a backpack with this charming young lady.´
With a smooth movement, he grabs Josefien’s paw and gives a gallant kiss.
´Behave a little,´ Norbie says, ´we’re not here to flirt.´
´That’s true,´ says JR, ´but it does make the world a little happier.´
Josefien chuckles and Old Sam has a big smile on his face. He secretly likes it when others think his Josefien is a beautiful lady.
´I see,´ Norbie says, ´but tell me, did you find him?´
“Well,” says JR, “I’ve travelled along mountains and along water until I came to a far, far and remote land. There I found the boots of the Master Storyteller, but not the Master Storyteller himself. I sent his boots back through a Jump Gate because I hoped he was here. But while I was doing that, something went horribly wrong.”
Old Sam and Josefien meet JR, a small dog with twinkling eyes. Jack, Jack Russel, as he puts it, secret agent, codenamed JR. He went in search of the Master Storyteller and found his boots in a far, far and remote land. He tried to send it back through a Jump Gate, but while he was doing so, something went horribly wrong.
‘What went horribly wrong?’, asks Old Sam.
‘And what is a Jump Gate?’, Josefien asks.
‘Our nomadic people not only travel between mountains and water’, says Norbie, ‘but some of our people also travel back and forth between different worlds. To get there, they use Jump Gates. This allows you to travel through a kind of In-Between World to another world.’
‘What kind of world are we in now?’, Josefien asks.
´We are now in the third world and our people travel back and forth between this world and the fifth world,´ Norbie says.
‘Why don’t you travel to the In-Between World?’, Josefien asks.
´Yes,´ says Old Sam, ´and where have the first and second worlds gone?´
´The first and second worlds disappeared a long time ago,´ Norbie says, ´no one knows what happened to them. And the In-between world, well, is a kind of in-between world. Time doesn’t exist there and things get lost.’
´That’s why I was there,´ says JR, ´to see if the Master Storyteller might be in the In-Between World.´
´I’ve never heard of an In-Between World,´ says Old Sam, ´nor of Jump Gates.´
´No,´ says Josefien, ´I only know your twin tree, Old Sam, that you can travel between. But that’s only in our world.´
‘You’ve lost something, haven’t you?’, Norbie asks, ‘something you couldn’t find for a long time and then suddenly it was there again.’
‘Yes,’ says Josefien, ’that’s right. Most recently with the cookie jar. Suddenly, it was there again. Empty, but it was there again.’
‘That cookie jar has just been lost in the In-Between World,’ says Norbie, ‘it can sometimes take a while before something like this comes along again a Jump Gate that goes to our world.
´I was hoping to meet the Master Storyteller on my travels from the third to the fifth world,´ says JR, ´but alas, I only found a pair of boots. When I sent it back through the Jump Gate, I was also gripped by something in the In-Between World. And I ended up in this world in a backpack.’
Old Sam and Josefien think it’s a strange story. Meanwhile, the whole group is so busy with the conversation that they no longer pay attention to their surroundings. Nothing moves there. Until, suddenly, a figure appears on the horizon.
Old Sam and Josefien are sitting with Norbie and JR on the deserted beach at the Exotic Sea of the East. They have just heard that the nomadic people, of which Norbie is a part, travel back and forth not only between mountains and water, but also between the third and fifth worlds. They do this through Jump Gates and the In-Between World. That’s a world where time doesn’t exist and things get lost.
JR hoped to find the Master Storyteller by traveling back and forth between the third and fifth worlds. But he only found a pair of boots. When he wanted to send it back to our world, he was seized by something in the In-Between World and ended up in the Master Storyteller’s backpack. A backpack that Oude Sam and Josefien have with them.
Our foursome is so busy talking to each other that they don’t notice that a figure appears on the horizon. A shape that comes their way with big strides. It’s a man. A dark cloak wrapped around his shoulders, his face hidden under the hood. He doesn’t try to be quiet at all and just walks towards our foursome. Josefien is the first to notice him.
´Who’s that?´ she exclaims, pointing in the direction of the man.
Old Sam, Norbie and JR turn around and see the figure as well.
´I don’t know,´ says Old Sam, ´but he walks straight towards us. Should we be worried, Norbie?´
Norbie takes another good look. JR joins him. He suddenly starts barking very loudly, runs towards the figure and jumps up on him.
The man lifts JR up and presses him to his chest.
´Hey old pal,´ the man shouts out happily, ´that was a long time ago. I’m so glad to see you again.´
Old Sam and Josefien breathe a sigh of relief. Such a greeting can only mean good people. The man puts JR back down. He jumps around him as he walks towards the rest of the group. With one last big step, he comes to a halt.
´So, old Sam,´ says the man, ´at last we meet.´
Old Sam looks at the man in surprise.
´How do you know who I am?´ he asks.
´I’ve heard your name many times and have heard others tell me a lot about your adventures. I’ve even seen you walking, but I didn’t have time to come and say hello to you. But I have met you already in a different way.´
The man looks at Old Sam and takes off his hood. He has a weathered face. Such a face of someone who spends a lot of time outdoors and has been through a lot. Fun eyes sparkle behind glasses and look at Old Sam.
“I’ve seen you in my vision,” says Old Sam, “you’re the Master Storyteller.”
“That’s right,” says the man, “I’m glad I found you. Roaming worlds and collecting stories is what I love to do most. Because stories need to be told and heard. But a great danger is looming. Silent voices have escaped from the In-Between World. And now all our stories are in jeopardy.
See you tomorrow!
With love from InK