One day when Samantha Rings, a perculiar girl with long, wild, wavy hair, woke up to the pitter patter of rain on her window sill something mysterious was in the air. Samantha crept down stairs to find her older brother Danny asleep at the kitchen table. “Wake up Danny you’re such a slob sometimes you do know that, don’t you?” shouted Samantha irritably.

“What? Oh yeah, aaahhh, I’m up,” yawned Danny. Just then Mrs. Rings walked into the room with a worried look on her face.

Flustering around, every now and then peeking out of the window to the cold concrete on the floor, she said, “Children me and your Father have just checked the weather report and it seems we are going to have a flood, a bad, bad flood so I’m going to keep you home for today is that OK?”

“Yeah fine,” chorused Samantha and Danny, who seemed not to have taken in a word of what their Mum just said. Mrs. Rings’ face seemed to look a bit less worried at these words.

“May I go out into town with Chloe later on?” asked Samantha.

“No you cannot and just to be safe you’ll be locked in your rooms today and I don’t want another word from either of you is that understood?” she questioned.

“Yes Mum,” Samantha muttered as she climbed the steep steps up to her room. Once she was there she gathered all the long pieces of material, tied them together, flung them out the window and climbed down. She sprinted as fast as she could unseen to town where her best friend Chloe was waiting for her.

“You’re late!” said Chloe.

“Sorry Chloe my Mum said there was goin’ to be a flood and she locked me in my room!” replied Samantha getting more and more appalled of her Mum as she talked. They walked and gossiped for quite a while before the wind started whistling, the rain started falling and shrieks came from all around them for before they knew it the ghostly green water was up to their waists! Suddenly everything went black then there was a whirl of colour all around her. She felt weightless but terrified as she drifted around the whirl pool of colour. After approximately 10 minutes she felt herself lift 50 feet and then drop to a soft cushiony ground but it soon turned hard and cold as ice.

Samantha drooped and then stumbled to her feet. She backed up not knowing something was behind her. “Aaaaggghhh,” came a harsh voice behind her.

“Oh, oh I-I’m s-sorry who are you?” stammered Samantha, looking back at a dreadful man in about his late twenties with sleek, black, greasy hair.

“Me? I’m the greatest hoonjle in all Ultemiare! Everybody knows me, and may I ask who may you be?” he answered.

“I’m Samantha Rings from Penryn you know England. What’s a hoonjle? Where’s Ultemiare?” she replied.

“You live on Earth don’t you? I know what you are you are an Earthling. You are on the planet Ultemiare and a hoonjle is someone who fights off enemies. We might aswell call ourselves friends I guess.”

“Oh yes, but could you please help me find my way back to Earth?” Samantha asked.

You need to get to Queen Calibria she will help you but on your quest you will face many enemies and hold-ups so I will escort you!”

“Oh thank you but what is your name?” questioned Samantha.

“Skacene,” he said back. They didn’t talk until they came to a long, wide ditch, which was filled with silvery, cloudy substance. Samantha leaned closer apparently hypnotized by it. She could see something in it. Without warning Skacene grabbed the collar of her shirt.

“What did you do that for?” asked Samantha.

“You would have drowned in there! The Andalusies hypnotized you,” he replied.

“Brrrrr crrrr srrrrrr mrrrrrr,” came the sound of the Andalusies. Splash! One of the Andalusies jumped out of the substance onto the ground and amazingly formed legs!

“Hello,” said one of the beautiful, female Andalusies. “I’m called Mira don’t look so frightened I won’t hurt you. I promise.”

“I’m Samantha. Why couldn’t you talk properly under the water?” she asked.

“We have to use code under water so enemies can’t find us!” Mira replied. Samantha looked confused but decided to play along.

After they’d talked for a while Samantha asked, “Come on our quest with us, oh pretty please!”

“Of course I’ve really taken a liking to you! I’ll carry you across this ditch,” she said. And so once more they set off again on their miraculous journey. They went past wide open meadows, forests with petrifying sounds, villages filled with friendly creatures, shops and homes but the most beautiful sight they saw was when they were in a strange place it was the sky; crystal sapphire with silver, fluffy clouds as if they would drift away with any breeze. Finally they set up camp and slept the night. Samantha dreamed of many, many happy things, which would await her. It was soon morning; Samantha woke up to the ruby, scarlet sky twinkling down on her. Skacene and Mira were not there so she went on a search to find them.

“Check over there she must be somewhere!” cried out a gruff voice from behind one of the very large tents as large as a mansion! Samantha peeked her head round to see who it was and saw an army dressed in black and gold; her eyes fell on a group of boys who seemed to be about 12 years old. One of them shouted something Samantha could not quite work out and started running towards her with tremendous speed! She ran! He was gaining on her. What could she do? She was helpless her friends had been captured! Suddenly, he gripped her tiny wrist and Samantha fell to the ground. She felt him loosening his grip and he put her down on the ground feeling hopeless. It was obvious how the poor boy felt about her!

“Are you OK?” he asked nervously. There was no reply. Samantha was held hostage for a few days and the boy had told the general that he would treat her like a slave just so he could be near her. He didn’t treat her like a slave though not one little bit. One day all the tents were knocked over by no other than the great Dragon Prince Tahoma. Terror was in the air and the prisoners were left. The army had swept away but a few mangled dead bodies lay on the ground.

“I have come to save you so you needn’t be afraid!” said Tahoma grandly as he flew down to see them.

“Thank you so much,” answered Samantha. They all climbed onto his scaly, red back and went on the journey of a lifetime! They flew high above the tree tops as the wind whipped their cheeks but it was too much fun to notice it hurt. After a few days the castle of Queen Calibria came in to sight and, oh, how tall it was even from a distance. They struggled through rough winds, lightening and blizzards on their way but (finally) they made it!

“My Father the King of Dragons will be on guard so I will distract him while you sneak in!” bellowed Tahoma through the wind.

“Oh thank you you’re so kind,” replied Samantha instantly.

“Yes, to repay you I will give you this,” said Skacene as he handed Tahoma a necklace- which appeared to have a ruby at the bottom- engraved with symbols of an ancient language. Tahoma just nodded and swept to distract his Father. All the party of unusual friends saw (as they crept in) was Tahoma talking and his Father breathing fire. They silently tip-toed up the marble, spiral stair case and found a great room and at the end was an emerald green throne actually made out of emeralds.

“Excuse me but I’m looking for Queen Calibria” murmured Samantha.

“What do you want with her?” asked Queen Calibria sharply.

“Well I’m err an Earthlin-” said Samantha.

“An Earthling well we better get your back to your own planet then. Here take this. When you say I want to go home it will take you there,” announced Queen Calibria.

“Thank you,” said Samantha as a tear trickled down her face. “Goodbye Skacene. Goodbye Mira I’ll never forget you. Thank you for helping me! I want to go home.” Suddenly, Samantha was whisked back into the whirlpool of colour and, as she had done before, landed right on her front doorstep, on Earth.