CHARACTERS

Before he leaves on his quest he encounters the Fairy Godmother disguised as a pauper girl. She gives him his new name together with words of encouragement and warning. To succeed he must find the magic within to reverse any spells cast upon him by the two most powerful witches who plague the people of Heart with their potions and spells.

The Marshmallow and Chocolate Series is the story of his adventures together with those of his traveling companions: a journey the forms the backdrop to Prince Garvan’s magical transformation into manhood and kingship.

The Council decides to send Sir Robert with the prince to find the ingredients for the antidote to the poisoned chocolate. He is also hoping to find his missing wife, a former member of the royal family of Arcadia. He is also meant to protect and guide the prince and to seek an effective alliance with the King of Arcadia. It is hoped that by combining superior Arcadian shipping with an effective Elysian army, they can defeat the wicked witches and the pirate influence on trade. He provides a steadying hand to the impetuous young prince but soon comes to realize who has the real leadership over the quest.

Despite all the precautions, her ship capsizes in a storm conjured up by the Dark Queen. She survives but is captured by slave traders and falls into the hands of the corrupt Abbot of Appleton. He eagerly trades her with his sponsor, the wicked witch, Draconia.

Imprisoned in the Dark Queen’s castle tower, Princess Helen spends the next four years in a trance-like state. Alone and under a wicked spell, she is fortified by her dream of rescue but when her Prince Charming finally arrives, she doesn’t recognize him.

The prince, who has pledged to return her safely to her family, coerces her to accompany Sir Richard and himself to leave the Dark Queen’s realm. Read on to find the magic of her inner journey as she travels with Sir David and Sir Richard to find the antidote to the poisoned chocolate.

Despite her initial dislike for her rescuer, will she fall in love with him and make a future together? And will her outer journey bring about her inner transformation into the beautiful and successful queen promised in the ancient oracles?

She devises the plan to brew the sadness potion used to poison all the chocolate traded from the Kingdom of Arcadia and goes along with her daughter’s alliance with the pirates. But her jealousy grows even stronger when she suspects that her daughter wants to cut her out of their plan and seize all the power and glory for herself.

Even though they can’t trust each other, neither Callistra or Draconia can live without each other. Callistra sees Draconia as a helpless child, and always wants to offer her suggestions and tell her daughter what to do. Draconia sees Callistra as a meddling old fool who cannot help herself and just has to have the last say and her way with potions and spells of all kinds.

Sir David takes her as a hostage and forces her to accompany them on their quest. As she interacts with Princess Helen, she is reminded of how much fun they can have together if she gives up her wicked ways. She reluctantly agrees to reform and help Sir Richard and Sir David but struggles to free herself from old ways of thinking and acting.

Is Callistra truly capable of reform? Can she turn her back on her daughter and assist David and Richard with their quest? Or will she continue to assist her daughter, thwart the quest and wreak ongoing sadness and misery on everyone around her?

Draconia is the embodiment of all the evil forces at work in the world of Heart, but is locked in a fierce inner battle and struggles to contain herself. She has a self-destructive, love-hate relationship with her overly-protective mother, Callistra, who in many ways, still sees her as a helpless child. It appears their envy and rivalry is so bitter they will do anything to get one-up on each other.

Draconia uses her vast powers of magic to manipulate events and people to suit her own purposes. If left unchecked, she will take control of everything and everyone. Not even her closest pirate ally, Admiral Doonotellya, should trust her because the more power she has, the more she wants. This puts her in direct conflict with other people who have similar objectives. But are they acting for her benefit or for themselves?

The two evil witches come up with all sorts of devious ways to waylay our heroes and lead them to their doom. Will they succeed and continue to wreak havoc on the world of Heart and beyond? Or will our adventurers find a way to protect themselves and succeed against the powers of magic that continually beset them?

His heartless bloodthirsty ways spell a grizzly end for almost all of his captives. His favorite punishment is to bleed his victims with many small cuts and then watch the frenzy and listen to their blood curdling screams as they are fed to the sharks at sunset. But little does he know that he is only being used by Draconia who will do anything to control the world of Heart. What will happen when he finds out that even he has been double-crossed and used and the witch he thinks he can trust.

Lady Nereid is asked to accompany Princess Helen home to the palace in inner Arcadia. Unfortunately, their ship is wrecked in a violent storm conjured up by the Dark Queen. Luckily, they both escape the disaster in a survival pod but Princess Helen and Lady Nereid are separated. Nothing is heard of either her or the princess and they are both believed to be dead.

Unknown to anyone in either country, some of the survivors find their way into the tunnels and are escorted to a fabulous underground city. Once they are admitted, they are told they can never leave. What will be her fate? Will our adventurers find and release her and her fellow captives? And if the gleaming city is as fabulous as it is made out to be, why would they possibly want to leave anyway?

King Cedric is worried and has trouble letting go of his old ways. And besides, his son and heir, crown prince Garvan, seems to be disinterested in the affairs of state. Some see King Cedric as an indecisive ditherer who can’t make up his mind. In some ways he is, but he is fundamentally a good person and the interests of the people are dear to him.

When he finds out that the witches have poisoned all the chocolate imported to Elysium, and are in cahoots with the pirates to control the trade of planet Heart, he realizes he must act decisively. But what can he do? He finally agrees to send the prince and one of his junior ministers on a quest to find the ingredients for an antidote to the poison and demands their speedy return so he can celebrate the anniversary of his coronation in style before he retires.

He is hoping that the quest will be the making of his disinterested son. Will the prince succeed in his mission and return to take his rightful throne? Will the parliament dissolve the monarchy and take full control? Or will the Dark Queen succeed and bring chaos and sadness to all the kingdoms of Heart?

When the pirate raids on the outer islands of Arcadia begin in earnest, the king and queen summon their only daughter, Princess Helen, home. She is to be accompanied by Lady Nereid. When they don’t arrive, rumors start to spread that they have been shipwrecked or captured by pirates and sold into slavery.

The king and queen are grief stricken and believe they will never see their daughter again. And worse, that they no longer have an heir to succeed them. Can their hope of rebuilding an island paradise come from the two ambassadors already on their quest from the Kingdom of Elysium?

Sven planned to take his salvage prize back to the Great Chan so he could copy and recreate its original features. But the ship disappeared in mysterious circumstances as it was about to be engulfed by a volcanic cloud. Luckily for Sven and his small crew, just before it was engulfed, they escape in what they think is an Arcadian survival-pod

But did the most advanced, most mysterious ship and the pod originate from Arcadia? The presence of the flashing ruby-red crystal mounted on the main-topmast, as well as its strange disappearing behavior, hint that this ship may have come from a different world. If so, which world? And will it ever return?

Although he never succeeded in getting his mystery ship home to Utopia, Sven survives and his detailed sketches of its advanced features prove to be invaluable. Inspired by what he has seen and experienced, he works with the Great Chan to create a fleet of sleek trading ships almost as fast as those of the Arcadian people.

After many years, Captain Sven has learned some of the secrets of Arcadian navigation, but even he could not match their navigation skills and seamanship. Sven has traveled widely and Yumie loves to hear his stories and entreats him to write them down for all to share. She even dreams of sailing the fabulous ship of Sven’s mysterious dreams for herself. But nobody else cares and whenever Sven mentions the fabulous ship, he is laughed at and scorned. In the end, he vows to keep these stories a secret and take them to his grave.

The Dark Queen suspects Captain Sven has secret knowledge which will give her even more power and will stop at nothing to extract it from him. Will Captain Sven keep his secrets or will the Dark Queen prevail and extract them by force in her sinister chamber of horrors? Or will the Jade Princess prevail and share his fantastic stories to spawn an interest in further voyages of discovery?

The jewel in the Great Chan’s crown is the development of trade in chocolate, tea, coffee and spices from Arcadia. People from all over Heart fall in love with his exotic flavored confections and spice scented teas and can’t get enough of them. Unless he suffers a serious mishap, his reputation, future success and the wealth of his family dynasty is assured.

As the Great Chan’s trading empire grows, it attracts the attention of the two wicked witches who plot to turn his success to their own advantage. Are their plans to poison the chocolate to take control of all the trade of Heart for themselves misconceived? Will they succeed in their evil plot or will their greedy plans come to nothing?

Although highly successful, the Great Chan’s efforts to build such a mighty trading empire have made him vulnerable. His plans and actions are in direct conflict with the aims of both Admiral Doonotellya and the Dark Queen, Draconia. Will cutting a secret deal with the pirates to transport slaves to work in the chocolate and confection industry work against him?

Are both the witches and the pirates planning to double-cross him? Will he succeed and pass control of his very successful business empire to his daughter? Or will the forces of darkness succeed and control him and his vast business interests as well?

But Yumie dreams a different dream and has different ideas for her future. Having spent so much time on board her father’s flagship, she has developed a passion for fast boats and life at sea. She delights in music and poetry and loves to share the tales of adventure she hears from other merchants and travelers by writing them down and singing them as ballads.

Yumie is forced to escape in a survival pod when her father’s flagship is besieged by pirates. Will she escape the clutches of the pirates and the Dark Queen who intend to use her to control the Great Chan trading dynasty? Will she survive the pod without going crazy? If so, will she ultimately rebel against her father and his secret business dealings which go against her principles of fairness for all people? Will she chase after her dream? Will she perish on the high seas after a lifelong quest to avoid being captured by pirates? Or will she eventually come to command a bigger prize and sail the heavens in the mysterious ship with the flashing, ruby-red crystal fixed to the main-topmast?

At age eight, he is indentured to the greatest magician’s in the court of King Cedric. He has been sent by the Great Chan in the hope that in the long term, he will become so much a part of the court life of Elysium, he will act as an emissary to further his father’s business interests there.

But Martin dreams of different things. He develops a prototype device for personal communication. He gifts one to King Cedric and one to Sir David to assist with the quest. But unknown to others, he has earlier prototypes that still work and he can control their use by means of a large wall mounted screen made of the same material.

When the Dark Queen learns the capabilities of his magic new devices, she wants to control them for herself. And like other things she wants, she will stop at nothing to do so, especially if it means she will know exactly what the impudent young prince is up to in his quest for the secret of happiness. Will the Dark Queen succeed in her bid to control everything and everyone? Or will Martin’s magical powers prevail so he can assist Sir David with his sacred quest for the antidote to the sadness potion? Can he help locate and help Sir David rescue his missing sister?

For as long as anyone could remember, the inner islands of Arcadia had been shrouded by swirling mists of fog and cloud. The reason is a magnetic anomaly that causes light to curve. There is nothing straight anywhere in Arcadia and clocks sometimes appear to run forward and on other occasions, to run backwards. When you leave somewhere in Arcadia, you could in fact, arrive before you left. Was this the great illusion that made Arcadian ships appear to travel so fast?

After a huge volcanic eruption on one of the outer ring islands, the magnetic anomaly shielding Arcadia from the outside world started to break down. Soon after, raids by pirates, attracted by the lure of quick gold, began to occur. At first, the raids are sporadic and are confined mainly to slow and crippled trading ships. But as they begin to get more organized, their raids become more brazen.

Admiral Doonotellya organizes the pirates and cuts a deal with the Dark Queen. After he does, it is not long before they take control of their first outer island town. The prize, is control of the lucrative trade in chocolate, spices, tea and coffee. Will life in this magical kingdom of Arcadia ever be the same again?

But if Captain Sven, the Great Chan and Princess Yumie are real people, just as real as you and me, then it must be a real place. And if Utopian doubloons are minted from real gold, and the holds of Utopian ships carry gold for ballast, perhaps the rumors are true. Perhaps, the streets of Utopia really are paved with gold.

In his attempt to find and rescue the Jade Princess, will Sir David be enticed by to travel to Utopia in the mysterious ship that sails the heavens by itself? Will he follow his inner urge to explore unknown worlds? Will he become trapped and forced to sail the heavens forever in search of something he can never quite grasp and hold for himself? Or will he find a sense of inner peace and happiness and return to Heart to marry Princess Helen?

Nobody knows their significance. Were they meant to be passageways for the underwater survival pods? And what is the significance of the pattern traced out by the tunnels within the highly magnetic rocks that lie beneath?

The people of Arcadia knew of the tunnels but much preferred to go sailing than to be in an underground or underwater tunnel. Over many centuries, the tunnels were trusted less and they gradually fell into disuse. But not everyone has forgotten and when the pirate raids begin to affect daily life in the coastal villages and towns, many people take refuge underground and are not seen again. Whole towns are deserted, but where did the people go and will they ever come back?

Arcadian sailors went through regular launching drills, but their use was strictly reserved for emergencies only. No self-respecting Arcadian sailor would entertain the idea of using a survival-pod, no matter what the emergency. To do so was considered an admission of failure. To lose a highly prized Arcadian ship was a shame worse than death. So most would prefer to perish with honor than suffer the shame of admitting they had lost their ship.

Rumors around the docks were that you could end up anywhere, or in any reality, if you relied on one of the ancient pods. But it may be a risk worth taking if you were staring down the barrel of a pirate gunship. Survivors of a trip in one of the pods were hard to find. And usually, those that did survive were disoriented or were considered crazy when they returned.

What would you do if you were threatened and your most likely fate lay at the end of a pirate plank? Would you seal yourself in a pod (one that most people wouldn’t trust) and let yourself be submerged beneath the seas, perhaps never to return? Or would you take the risk that you could cut a deal with the pirates and save yourself from a grizzly end?

The diverse coastline of Elysium consisted of rocky headlands interspersed with sandy beaches made up of sand and rock fragments of all shapes, colors and sizes. Many of these vibrantly colored particles were unstable, and as they weathered they gradually changed color. And as the beaches consisted of both old and new sand grains of different sizes, with the waves constantly tumbling and sorting them, they produced bizarre shadings and banded patterns as they cycled from wet to dry. It was as if the landscape of the seashore was constantly being repainted.

As some rock particles weathered, they released minerals which were absorbed by the algae and caused them to glow eerily at night, especially when the clouds dispersed and let the moonlight through. The majority of these minerals quickly passed out of the ecosystem. But sometimes the effect was cumulative and the waters glowed more brightly than usual.

Depending on how much seafood the Elysian people ate, they also glowed in the moonlight and if you went out at night, it was extremely difficult to hide. By the time they were adults, almost everyone from Elysium, no matter how far they lived from the sea, had a rather pleasant aura. So, you could always tell someone was from Elysium. They all had a healthy green glow in the moonlight. And they looked a lot like what we imagine aliens would look like here on Earth.

But who is to say who is an alien and who is not...?

On Heart, the sun rises in the direction we would call west and sets in the east. By a similar logic, the direction we consider to be north is the same as our south and vice versa. And while we would initially be confused if went there for a visit, we would soon get used to its quirky behavior. To the people of Heart however, this is not a problem because that’s what they grew up with.

One of the most curious thing about Heart is that nobody knew how it got its name. But I know, so I’ll tell you. The planet takes its name from the distinctive heart shaped arrangement of the island kingdom of Arcadia. But you could never tell that unless you had an accurate map, and no one on Heart had ever drawn one. You might also know if you had been into space and visited there. But since nobody on Heart had ever been into space, how could they know?

The other odd thing about this curious parallel planet is why its name has the same letters as the name for our planet, the planet Earth. Why do you think that is? For any number of reasons, perhaps we could be living on planet Heart and they could be living on planet Earth? How would we ever know? And what would happen if we could cross over from one curious planet to the other, without even going into space? That would be really something to tell your friends and family about, wouldn’t it?

“Look mum, here is a photo of me visiting ancient Heart!!!”

“Don’t be silly, John! That looks like somewhere I’ve visited on Earth. It looks like any old island. It could just as well be Fiji or one of the Cook Islands in the middle of the ocean. Prove to me that this mythical planet Heart really exists and you really went there...”

I can’t really do that, so you’ll just have to trust and come there with me. Can you?

Imagine if you entered a dark black tunnel thinking it would take you from London to Paris. You could go today and come back tomorrow. Or the next day. The important thing is that you could make the journey and you could come back. That’s believable.

But what if when you arrived, you found that you could never go back Imagine how you would feel if you couldn’t go home to your friends and family. You are now trapped in a distant land. There are people who think, dress, talk and behave differently. You can do anything you want? Everyone is happy. Or at least they appear to be. It sounds like heaven. But if you are trapped doing the same old, same old things, with people you don’t want to be with, it could be a living hell.

Welcome to Nuther World where there is only one rule. You can come in, but you cannot go out. Once you are there you have to stay. So you had better get used to it. You’ll be there for a long, long time.

But perhaps time is an illusion. Perhaps you won’t stay there very long at all. What if you could go back inside the mountain and arrive before you left? Now that would be weird.

This is one of the secrets of Nuther World, where you can do anything you like, as long as you respect the rights of others who share your reality. There are others, but the old monks warned me not to share them too freely, so I am not telling you.

But I want you to imagine. Come with me to Nuther World. Trust me and I’ll show you the way out. I won’t let you stay there by yourself. Now imagine.

If you could do anything, anything at all with your life, what would it be?