Shelby and Shauna Kitt and the Dimensional Holes. P. H. C. Marchesi

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      “What do you do if you have to take the subway?” asked Marina, who had clearly decided she wanted to be part of the conversation.

      “He draws,” said Shauna.

      “Doesn’t that make you sicker, Shelby?” asked Marina, baffled.

      “I know it’s weird,” he said, feeling self-conscious, “but it’s the only thing that works. I’ve tried everything else.”

      “So draw inside the chopper,” said Marina. “No one will mind.”

      “I mind,” said Shelby. “I won’t be able to draw when we’re trying to close the dimensional holes!”

      “I understand what is worrying you,” said Lendox, rummaging inside his sling bag. “Most worrying, thankfully, is either unwarranted, or easily fixed.”

      Shelby had no idea what “unwarranted” meant, but he was pretty sure that Lendox was wrong. His motion sickness definitely did not fall under the category of something that was easy to fix.

      “I have something that will help you,” continued Lendox, ignoring Shelby’s skeptical look and pulling a dry and wrinkled brown leaf out of the bag. “This is called an agitex leaf. It will keep you free of motion sickness for about five hours.”

      “I’m supposed to eat it?”

      “Put it under your tongue. Do not chew.”

      Unimpressed, Shelby stared at the shrivelled leaf. Not wanting to offend Lendox, however, he put it in his mouth, and discovered that it had a very bitter taste. It was so unpleasant, in fact, that he decided he couldn’t take it.

      “Do not spit it out,” warned Lendox. “Be patient.”

      Being patient was not something that Shelby was very good at, so he waited, in total agony, until he began to feel a moldy, honey-like taste replace the bitterness.

      “Lendox,” said Marina, intrigued, “how did you know you’d have to bring that leaf? Don’t tell me you have motion sickness too?”

      “No,” said Lendox. “I am carrying a connectix bag. It establishes a connection to the medicine warehouse at the Healing Arts Academy in Palanix. Whatever item I want, I need only reach for.”

      “You’re a doctor?” asked Shelby, barely able to hide his disappointment. He had not given much thought to Lendox’s profession, but “doctor” did not seem nearly exciting enough for someone leading a heroic mission to save the planet.

      “Yes, I am,” replied Lendox. “Unfortunately, I have not been able to practice as much since I became vice consul.”

      “Can we see inside the bag?” asked Shauna.

      Lendox obliged them, and they all peeked inside. There was absolutely nothing.

      “No way!” cried an amazed Shelby. “Can I get one of those?”

      “I am afraid only a healer is allowed to have a connectix bag,” explained Lendox as they climbed into the helicopter. “One receives it upon graduation from the Healing Arts Academy.”

      “Too bad,” joked Marina. “It could make fashion history.”

      They all sat down, and the helicopter propelled itself upwards. Shelby glued his face to the window, half-expecting to feel his stomach churning, and feeling like the luckiest person on the planet when it didn’t.

      “Those leaves really work, Lendox!” he said, eagerly watching the untidy rows of tiny cars below. “I can’t believe it!”

      “Thankfully, agitex leaves do not require belief in order to work,” said Lendox, pleasantly. “You do not have motion sickness, Shauna?”

      “Nope,” she said, cheerfully. “Never had it.”

      “I noticed that you recovered remarkably fast inside the roomix. Most people take considerably longer the first time they ride in one.”

      “Shauna’s like that,” said Shelby, absent-mindedly staring outside.

      “Like what?” asked Lendox, intrigued.

      “She never gets sick,” said Shelby, finally turning his attention back to them.

      “Never?”

      “Never,” said Shelby. “One time my mom and I came down with this horrible flu, and she didn’t even come close to catching it.”

      “It’s not such a big deal,” said Shauna. “It was probably just one of those 24-hour bugs.”

      “I don’t think so,” said Shelby. “Mr. Ivanovich who lived above us got the same thing, and he was in bed for two weeks.”

      “So what?” asked Shauna, feeling her cheeks flush. “It’s possible for someone not to get a flu, you know.”

      “Yeah, but mom said she can’t remember you ever having been sick – not even as a baby.”

      “I wish I were like that,” lamented Marina. “I hate getting sick. I hate allergies even more.”

      She blew her nose and glanced sourly at Tippy, whose little white head had just stuck out of Shauna’s backpack.

      “I’m sure I’ve been sick at some point,” said Shauna, uneasily. She intensely disliked being the center of attention, and she could tell that Lendox, even from behind his sunglasses, seemed extremely interested in what Shelby had said. She tried very hard to think about when she might have been sick, but not even one instance came to mind. One time she and Shelby shared an egg salad sandwich at a deli, and Shelby had terrible food poisoning afterwards. She, however, was absolutely fine. She always told herself that she had eaten the good half, but now she wasn’t so sure. She began to think about all the instances in which she should have been sick, and was still scanning her memories when the helicopter landed on a runway.

      “Is that Airforce 1?” asked Shelby, spotting a large, white airplane parked across from them.

      “No, but it’s close,” said Marina, smiling. “Let’s go - you’ll see what I’m talking about in a sec.”

      Marina wasn’t exaggerating. The plane was the most luxurious place Shelby and Shauna had ever been in.

      “This place is like a hotel!” cried Shauna.

      “A five-star hotel,” said Shelby, comfortably sitting on one of the large chairs. “You guys have to try these!”

      “Very comfortable, indeed,” said Lendox, sitting next to Marina and clutching his sling bag. Shauna sat next to him, and noticed that he seemed nervous – even his voice sounded tense. Shelby and Marina, however, were too busy to notice: Marina was immersed in the list of entertainment channels, and Shelby was apologizing to the flight attendant for having accidentally pressed the button that had summoned him.

      “How come we need soldiers on the plane?” Shauna asked, seeing two sitting in a corner.

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