The Magic Airmobile
"Yes, that's it," said Conjo, nodding his round head so violently that
his three chins rippled like the steps of an escalator. "You have asked
me to do you a favor--a very great favor--so it is only just that I
should claim a reward. That's fair, isn't it?"
Conjo was regarding the Shaggy Man with eyes from which was gone the
somewhat foolish innocence.
The Shaggy Man considered uneasily. He was beginning to remember
Ozma's warning that Conjo was not to be trusted entirely. "What kind of
a reward could I give you?" the Shaggy Man asked.
Conjo's finger shot out, pointing toward the Shaggy Man. "That," he
said. "That in your pocket will be my reward!"
Involuntarily the Shaggy Man's hand went to his pocket in which rested
the Magic Compass Ozma had given him.
"You must be joking," said the Shaggy Man incredulously. "The Magic
Compass belongs to Ozma. And if I did give it to you how would I return
to the Land of Oz? No, what you ask is impossible."
Conjo's voice was wheedling. "Surely you don't think Ozma expected me
to repair the Love Magnet for nothing, do you? I can assure you that
Ozma will regard the trading of the Magic Compass for the repair of the
Love Magnet an excellent bargain. Actually the Magic Compass is, by
Ozma's standards, a minor bit of magic."
The Shaggy Man was perplexed. Perhaps Conjo was right.
"Supposing I do give you the Magic Compass--then how will I get back to
Oz?"
Conjo's eyes glowed. "Nothing to it!" he declared. "You can return to
Oz anytime you like--just as soon as I repair the Love Magnet, if you
wish. Of course I would be happy should you care to remain my guest for
a time, but the decision is entirely up to you."
"How do you propose that I return to Oz?" asked the Shaggy Man. "I
can't walk across the Deadly Desert, you know."
"Ha, ha--ho, ho, ho!" Conjo laughed. "Walk across the Deadly Desert!
Certainly not! He, he, he! You shall sail high across it--swiftly and
safely! Come with me! I have something to show you."
Conjo wriggled about until his fat little body emerged from the
cushions and silken coverings of the divan. As he stood up, the Shaggy
Man and his friends saw that the little man was dressed in a loose robe
of rich purple on which were embroidered stars, crescents, black cats,
and the signs of the Zodiac. All these designs were in the brightest
colors, while the robe flowed about him, secured by a golden cord tied
about his middle. On his feet were sandals woven of silver thread, with
toes that curled up like question marks.
"Come with me," repeated the fat little Wizard as he waddled to the
door, "and I will show you how you can sail away in a jiffy."
The Shaggy Man and the two children followed Conjo, while Twiffle
remained behind, busily arranging and straightening the royal cushions
and comforters of the regal divan.
In the great corridor, Conjo paused before a small door that opened at
his touch, revealing a cage-like little room.
"Step in," the Wizard invited his guests. "This is an elevator that
will whisk us to the roof of the tallest tower of the castle--an
improvement over the stairway, up which I find it difficult to whisk
myself in my present state of, shall we say--stoutness? Ho, ho, ho, ho,
he, he, he!"
Conjo beamed good humor and friendliness as the elevator shot
noiselessly upward. In a few seconds the door clicked, slid open, and
Conjo led his guests to the roof of the great tower. From this height
they could see that the Isle of Conjo was small indeed, for the blue
waters of the Nonestic Ocean were visible in any direction they looked.
The sun was a great red ball of fire in the west, but it would still be
several minutes before actual twilight set in.
"And here," said Conjo, leading them across the roof, "is the means by
which I propose you return to the Land of Oz."
The Shaggy Man and the children saw before them a most curious object.
It might have been the body of an automobile, except that it seemed to
have neither front nor back. Both ends of it curled up like a gondola.
Nor did it have wheels. The flat bottom rested solidly on the roof. To
all appearances it had no means of locomotion.
Conjo was regarding the strange object proudly. "Behold!" he said,
"one of my most ingenious creations--the Airmobile!"
"You mean to say," the Shaggy Man sighed, "that this thing is actually
supposed to fly through the air?"
Conjo looked hurt. "You see before you," he said resentfully, "the most
perfect means of air travel yet invented."
Tom broke in: "But how can it fly? It has no wings, no propeller, no
jets--nothing but places to sit down!"
Conjo regarded the boy pityingly. "Do you suppose I would rely upon
such clumsy and inefficient means of flying as propellers, wings, and
jets? The Airmobile is the perfect flying machine. It repels gravity."
"It does what?" asked the Shaggy Man.
Conjo stepped to the machine and opened one of the doors. "Look,"
he said. "See these metal plates on the floor of the ship? They are
gravity resistor plates. You must know," he went on patiently, "that
it's the force of gravity pulling objects to the earth that causes
things to have weight. Well, my gravity resistor plates overcome
gravity when exposed. Hence the ship has no weight whatever."
"Yes," said Tom, "I can understand that. But what makes it
move?--backward and forward and upward, I mean."
"Oh, that," sniffed Conjo. "These are gravity _resistor_ plates. They
not only overcome gravity, but _resist_ it. The power of resistance
forces the machine upward. The more surface of the plates you expose,
the higher you will go. And you will notice," Conjo continued, reaching
inside the ship and pressing a button, "that the metal plates are
mounted on rods through their middle so that they may be operated
like flaps or fins--and they rotate. Thus, if you tilt them in one
direction, the resistance to gravity forces you ahead in one way; tilt
them in the other direction and you travel in the opposite way. Rotate
them, and you can veer to right or left."
"If it works, it is wonderful," said the Shaggy Man doubtfully.
"Oh, it works to perfection," assured Conjo. "If it were not so late
in the day, I would propose a little trip. As it is, I suggest that we
go downstairs for dinner. Then I will have to leave you to examine the
Love Magnet. We will all arise early in the morning, at which time you
will have the pleasure of a journey over the island in my Airmobile."
Twink guessed that Conjo's dinner must have been prepared and served
by magic, for there were no servants in the grand dining room into
which their round little host ushered them. But the food was quite as
elaborate and rich as the dining room itself. The Shaggy Man and the
children were hungry and they ate heartily. Even so, they could not
help noticing that Conjo ate nearly twice as much as the Shaggy Man.
Shaggy was gratified to find a large bowl of rosey-cheeked apples in
the center of the table, which made the meal a perfect one for him.
Conjo sighed with content, wiping his lips on a fine damask napkin.
"Inhospitable as it may seem," he apologized, "I must leave you now
to see if the Love Magnet can be repaired. I will examine it in my
laboratory and tell you tomorrow if it can be fixed. Please give me the
Love Magnet."
This the Shaggy Man did and Conjo waddled to the door, pausing to say,
"Twiffle will show you to your rooms. I hope you sleep well. I know I
shall, after I finish this work." Conjo was already yawning as he left
the dining room.
A few seconds later Twiffle appeared in the doorway and invited Shaggy
and the children to follow him.
The sleeping rooms to which Twiffle led them up the marble stairway
were on the second floor and were beautifully furnished with every
convenience and comfort. Twink and Tom's room contained two inviting
beds, and Twink noticed that pajamas of just the right size had been
carefully laid out. Conjo seemed to think of everything.
"See you children in the morning," said the Shaggy Man as he entered
his room which adjoined that of Twink and Tom.
The Shaggy Man found his bed soft and luxurious, so he slipped off his
shaggy clothes, carefully arranging them on a chair so that not one
frill or furbelow was out of place, put on the pajamas which Conjo had
also provided for him, and slipped into bed. Instantly the light faded
from the room. More magic, thought the Shaggy Man a bit uneasily, for
it had appeared to him that the light was an ordinary electric one
which he might switch on and off at will. But moonlight was beginning
to fall through the window, so the Shaggy Man sighed with content and
in a minute was sound asleep.
It was several hours later when the Shaggy Man stirred, and then sat
up, wide awake. What had awakened him? He was sure he had heard a
clicking sound--like the door of his bedchamber closing. The moonlight
revealed that the door was closed just as he had left it. Shaggy
glanced at his clothes on the chair. He leaped from bed and searched
through the pockets of his clothing. He gave a gasp of dismay.
The Magic Compass was gone!
What was this? In another pocket, Shaggy found a hard metallic object,
the Love Magnet, perfectly repaired with no trace of its ever having
been broken.
The Shaggy Man sat down on his bed and thought hard. What should he
do? For some reason Conjo had evidently entered the room, slipped the
repaired Love Magnet into Shaggy's pocket, removed the Magic Compass,
and left the room. It was the clicking of the door that Shaggy had
heard. And Conjo had slightly disarranged Shaggy's clothes--that had
called his attention to them.
What did all this mean? Shaggy was sure now that Conjo was not the
jolly, straightforward person he pretended to be. Perhaps he was not
exactly evil, either, but he was so vain and scheming and selfish
that he would bear watching. Then a sudden thought struck Shaggy and
made him extremely uneasy. He had come to the Isle of Conjo of his own
accord to seek out Conjo. But it was Conjo himself who had brought
Twink and Tom there. Why? Were the twins in danger? What was Conjo's
purpose in taking them from their home? It was up to him, thought the
Shaggy Man, to find out and protect them if Conjo meant them harm or
had some crazy plan that would endanger them.
Shaggy unhappily concluded there was nothing he could do now. In
the morning he would find out if the Airmobile was everything Conjo
claimed. Then he would try to discover Conjo's plans for Twink and Tom.
Perhaps Twiffle could enlighten him. Shaggy sighed. Well, at least he
did have the Love Magnet.
The Shaggy Man lay down on the bed and tried to sleep. After a long
time he drifted into a fitful slumber broken by dreams in which Conjo
sailed through the air, clutching the Love Magnet, and Twink and Tom
were transformed into dolls, no larger than Twiffle. In his dream the
Shaggy Man seemed to be bound with ropes to his bed, powerless to stop
any of Conjo's mischief, while Twiffle tugged at his bonds saying,
"Wake up, Shaggy Man, wake up!"
Shaggy opened his eyes and stared. There was Twiffle at the side of his
bed, shaking him and saying:
"Wake up, Shaggy Man, wake up!"