An Abigail Dumpling Adventure: The Search for Gaul's Stone

By J.A. Sprouls

Why can't life be simple and exactly as it appears to be? For Abigail Dumpling, mild mannered kindergarten teacher, that is the million dollar question. Instead, she discovers the existence of other realms, creatures and magic. As the newly appointed caretaker of the Inspire Apple Orchard in an entirely different realm, Abigail discovers that life is nothing like it seems and nothing can be taken for granted. She finds a motley group of creatures, magical abilities and a very strong sense of Good and Evil in this new realm. To add to all that, she must find Gaul's Magical Stone before the Evil caretaker, Agnes, does. With Good and Evil clashing, magical creatures fighting and Abigail's mother interfering, things turn humorous and exciting very quickly. Oh, what an adventure it will be!

• Language: English
• Publisher: J.A. Sprouls
• Release date: Mar 10, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005807320

J.A. Sprouls

J.A. Sprouls lives in the beautiful and rather flat Plains of West Texas. As a former antique dealer whose business tanked along with the rest of the country's economy, she had to go out and get a real job. Writing, for her, has become a way to wind down after a long day and escape reality for just a short while. 'My Grandfather Is One Heck Of A Mummy' is the first in what will hopefully be a successful cozy mystery series. The second novel in the series, 'Mace Of Spades,' with 'Cowabunga Dead' as the third in the series. Another series that she has written is the Cryptozoology Series with two current books: 'Kamikaze Pigs' and 'Don Coyote.' She has even tried writing a youth novel series titled: 'Abigail Dumpling Adventures.' She has also written two non-series books: 'A Vision Touch' and 'Death Drives a Chevy.' She is currently working on her next novel and should soon be finished. She enjoys writing cozy mysteries with a humorous touch and hopes her readers enjoy reading them as much as she has enjoyed writing them.

Book preview

An Abigail Dumpling Adventure

The Search for Gaul’s Stone

By J.A. Sprouls

Published by J.A. Sprouls at Smashwords

Copyright J.A. Sprouls 2022

Cover Design & Illustrations Copyright J.A. Sprouls 2022

Discover other titles by J.A. Sprouls at Smashwords.com:

My Grandfather Is One Heck Of A Mummy

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/22897

Mace Of Spades

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/43569

Kamikaze Pigs

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/97712

An Accidental Pirate: The Adventures of Captain Pigtail McQueue

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154993

A Vision Touch

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/264127

Cowabunga Dead

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/346928

Don Coyote

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/392571

Death Drives a Chevy

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/455034

Armadillo Trackers

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/550519

Connect with Me Online:

Smashwords.com:

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jasprouls

My blog:

http://jasprouls.blogspot.com/

Smashwords Edition, License notes

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

Dedicated to my Mother and Sister/Editor

And Amazing Grace

For always being there!

Also in memory of Zane for his unconditional love and companionship!

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Abner the Messenger

Chapter 2: Pontius the Pilot

Chapter 3: Bog Orm the Bookworm

Chapter 4: Agnes the Evil

Chapter 5: The Orchard

Chapter 6: Nigel the Hob Nob Goblin

Chapter 7: Dust Bunnies

Chapter 8: Doodle the Horsefly

Chapter 9: Grass Burrbel

Chapter 10: Gnomes

Chapter 11: Light Ghosts

Chapter 12: Grumplings

Chapter 13: Amelia the Pixie

Chapter 14: Wood Elves and Woodlings

Chapter 15: Fingerlings

Chapter 16: Iphigenia, Mother

Chapter 17: Matilda the Primepire

Chapter 18: The Kolyers

Chapter 19: Web Lizards

Chapter 20: Progs

Chapter 21: The Attack

Chapter 22: The Muses

Chapter 23 Musings

Chapter 24: Life Is A Dump

Chapter 25: Grumplings Got Lungs

Chapter26: Agnes On The Move

Chapter 27: Looking For Stone In All The Wrong Places

Chapter 28: Dandy Lions

Chapter 29: The Book

Chapter 30: Into The Tunnel

Chapter 31: Escape

Chapter 32: The Beginning of a New Adventure

About the Author

Chapter 1: Abner the Messenger

Abigail Dumpling walked outside ready to do a little gardening to try to calm herself down. She had her gardener apron on and all the necessary tools in her apron pockets so she was ready to get to work. She looked around and decided to first head over to the apple tree to sit and rest for a moment. She sighed as she sat down under the apple tree that her father planted when the family first moved into the house. It was the first chance she had to take some time for herself since coming home three weeks ago. The shade of the tree felt cool to her and she shut her eyes and took deep breaths of the wonderful moist air. It reminded her of the times she and her father would come outside and plant all sorts of things; even ideas for whimsical stories and seeds of hope for the future.

It was while roaming wonderfully through all these lovely memories that she was interrupted. Abigail was slightly startled but not enough to bother opening her eyes. She didn’t want to lose the visions and memories she had flooding into her mind.

I am so very sorry for the loss of your father. He was a good man and there are so few of those in this day and time, the voice said.

Thank you, that means a lot to me. He was good and honorable. I’m glad others knew this of him, Abigail said, secretly hoping this individual would leave her to her memories.

I apologize for disturbing your thoughts and I would gladly leave you to them if but I could. I’m afraid I have some important business to discuss with you. It concerns the wishes of your father, and it concerns you.

Abigail sighed again, only this time it was from exasperation not relief. She slowly stood and looked around for the person who was talking to her, but saw no one. She walked around the tree and looked this way and that, but there was no one around. She shook her head and decided she had been going nonstop on autopilot for so long and was exhausted to the point she was imagining things.

As she turned to go back into the house the voice spoke to her again. I realize that this may be a shock to your system but I think it might be best if you sit back down so that I may explain everything to you.

Abigail swung around, looking wildly about. She was sure she heard this voice but there was no one around. To herself she said in a slight murmur, You’re losing it, Abigail. Now you’re having a conversation with an invisible man. You need to try to sleep, forget about the nightmares and the crying they induce. You have to be strong for Momma, she needs you. She’s depending on you to be strong when she can’t be. So pull yourself together.

I’m not invisible or a figment of your imagination and I’m also not a man. Again, if you would, please, simply sit down and let me explain. It will make you feel less…well, insane. Or, then again, it might make you think you’re totally bonkers. But either way you MUST hear what I have to say. Your father also thought he was losing it when I first spoke with him. So you’re not alone.

Abigail twisted frantically, looked around, stepped back, lost her footing and sat down much harder than she wanted. Thankfully she had a rather well-padded tuckus, so it didn’t hurt too terribly much. Once down she decided to draw herself into a ball, making herself smaller and maybe overlooked by this disembodied voice.

You can roll up into a ball all you want but it doesn’t change the fact that I need to talk to you.

She began to rock back and forth and then suddenly felt something tickle her arm. Her head jerked up and saw this cute tiny worm. Oh, little worm it would safer if you go to your home wherever that is.

The worm looked at her, sat down and said, Actually, I’m a Minipede. And I really must talk to you.

With that said, Abigail grabbed a stick and started to whack at the little miniped while hollering mini-snake, mini-snake! at the top of her lungs. After chasing it around the yard for a few minutes she finally sat back down, and proceeded to faint, splayed out on the grass under the tree. It wasn’t until she felt these teeny weenie feet walking across her cheek that she slowly opened her eyes. There was a worm looking directly into her left eye. He smiled saying, Good, you’re awake. You are not imagining my talking to you because that is exactly what I am doing. And may I commend you on how you are handling this. Your father also chased me around the yard trying to whack me with a stick the first time I talked to him. He always said you were the one child of his that was most like him. And you have proven that your reactions are the same too.

Well, yes, everyone does say I’m just like him, was all Abigail could think of saying.

Yes, well, now, unless you want to alarm your fellow family members when they check on you, then by all means continue to lay here. But it would be best if you simply sat up and went back to the tree. I’d rather no one else eavesdrop on this conservation.

Maybe it was the shock, or maybe Abigail had just been through so much these past three weeks that she was numb, but whatever the case the shock had gotten to her and she began to mumble to herself. This is a dream. I can’t talk to and understand a teeny tiny wor., I’m definitely dreaming.

The minipede climbed onto the trunk of the tree and settled down. Again, I’m a minipede not a worm; if you want to go by Bog Orm’s name for me then it would be ‘Tinie Tinius Mini Sexus Legguiums Minipedius,’ but that’s neither here nor there. And no, you’re not dreaming and you can hear and understand me because you are a chosen one and you must have that ability to do what I am about to propose. I am from another realm. My name is Abner. Now then, different planes exist in all worlds and in those planes there are all sorts of realms. The realm I come from is a magical one. I, obviously, am a magical creature and a go between. That means I can go from this realm to the other realm. Not all magical creatures are able to do that. The ‘Magical Powers That Be’ chose your father as caretaker of a portion of the Inspire Apple Orchard. That orchard exists in the other realm. He traveled there regularly and took care of all the creatures that live in the orchard…

Abigail interrupted, No, he didn’t. He worked as an insurance adjuster. He went to work every weekday and sometimes I went with him when I was little. On the weekends we worked in the yard. So, no, you’re mistaken. He never left this plane, realm, world or whatever, for another, never!

Ah, but when go you from this plane to another and then back, there is no time lost. At least on this end, that is. So when he left, you never realized it because there was no loss of time. But I bet you remember times when he headed to this tree and then came back to you breathless. That’s because travel between the two realms kinda takes your breath away. But I can assure you he traveled between the two realms and he specifically wanted you to take over his duties. That is why I’m discussing this with you now. We need a caretaker and we need you to begin training for the job immediately, he said.

Okay, let me get this straight. My daddy worked here on earth and also in another realm but failed to tell me or my mother of this extra job and we never knew about it because he never seemed to disappear, right? Abigail said flatly.

Exactly. I’m glad you have grasped this so quickly. Now, if you don’t mind we really should get to the orchard, Abner said, rubbing his first set of feet together like hands.

No, I don’t mind at all. Though I really should warn you, I intend to wake up from this dream any minute so I’ll not have the time to do that. Maybe in my dreams tonight. That’s it, visit me tonight and I’ll happily go with you, Abigail said with a big smile of relief on her face. She was relieved because she had finally figured out she wasn’t crazy, merely asleep, under the apple tree in her mother’s backyard. It was a pleasant dream, not a nightmare, making it an even greater relief. She had been haunted by dreams of her world crashing down around her and at the thought of a life without her dear father. So to have a dream about him that wasn’t the least bit horrible made for a very pleasant dream.

Suddenly, Abigail had a very sharp pain shoot through her upper left arm and she yelped in pain. Looking down she saw Abner clinging to her shirt sleeve and smiling.

See, you are not dreaming, he said smugly.

You bit me? Daggum that hurt! Oh, piddle, am I going to catch some sort of disease? Am I gonna start acting like a caterpillar? Ooo, will I have super powers like Spiderman?

I’m a minipede, as I do believe I have mentioned before. I’m not some sort of diseased vermin wandering around causing the plague, thank you very much. I had to prove to you I was real and that you are not dreaming. Now, I didn’t want to have to play tough but you have left me no choice. You simply must come with me back to the orchard. If we don’t install a new caretaker NOW, then Evil will overtake the entire orchard, Abner said in a rather exasperated tone.

Evil? Really? And you want me to go with you to face down this evil and overcome it? Abigail asked in an astonished voice. You do realize that I’m a massive scaredy-cat. I also have no athletic ability and therefore could not fight anything, at all, ever. I should also point out that I’m a pacifist. Make Love not War! I’m a kindergarten teacher for crying out loud! I can get gum outta your hair, well, if you had hair, and pull erasers outta your nose, but evil, no, I’m pretty sure I’d be abysmal at fighting evil.

Don’t be ridiculous. You don’t have to face down anything. We simply need to install you as the new caretaker so that the Evil side of the orchard doesn’t take advantage of your absence and take over the whole orchard. You will be in charge of the Good part of the orchard. Now, we really MUST be going NOW! Abner said impatiently.

Look, my father just passed away, I came back to help mother with the arrangements and whatever else I can help her with. Right now I’m helping with taking care of other family members who came for the funeral and decided to stick around for the reading of the will. I don’t have the time or the compunction to go with you, Abigail began explaining.

Again, you will lose no time here in this world. You will still have the same amount of time to do whatever it is you need to do. But we don’t have that luxury at the apple orchard. We need you there now, I simply can’t state this urgency enough, Abner puffed in frustration.

Abigail laughed and then said, This is certainly a strange dream. But it is a nice change of pace from what I have been dreaming.

Okay, fine we’ll go with that. This is a dream, an illusion and so it’s not going to hurt anything by coming with me, so let’s go, Abner conceded.

Well, all right. As a dream then, I’ll be more than happy to go with you, she said as she stood up and followed Abner around to the back of the tree.

Now then, see the knot on the tree. Reach your hand inside and you’ll find a knob. Turn that knob to your right until the door opens, Abner instructed.

Abigail did so and suddenly the tree knot dropped down and slowly expanded until a door appeared and opened up.

Wow, how cool is that? Abigail gazed at the door and rubbed the doorway with her hand marveling at the craftsmanship that it took to make such a door.

Abner grabbed a limb and swung it out wide from the tree and then came back towards Abigail, pushing her in the back through the doorway. Once through, the doorway closed up just as quickly as it had appeared.

Hey, why’d you do that?! Abigail exclaimed.

It was the only way to get you inside before someone came along and saw you entering a tree. I’m no expert but I do believe that a door in a tree is not normal in the real world, now is it? We must keep the entrance to this other realm a secret and we can’t do that if you insist on just standing there like a statue, Abner replied.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m inside the tree now, huh? So this other plane is inside the tree. It seems a little small and confined, Abigail said as she turned around in a circle looking up and down the inside of the tree.

No, this isn’t the other realm; this is the way station to the other realm. Each plane has a travel station. This is the travel station, pod, car, or whatever you want to call it. We call it the Traveler, and it takes you to the plane of the Inspire Apple Orchard Realm, Abner explained.

Chapter 2: Pontius the Pilot

That is correct and I am Pontius, your pilot on the journey to the Inspire Apple Orchard. And may I say it is a pleasure to finally meet you Miss Abigail. Your father talked of you often and fondly, said a little skinny man with batwing type ears and really big feet who was standing next to Abigail. His face reached her knees and he had a very big smile on his face.

Oh, really, I had no idea. Um, nice to meet you, I guess.

Oh, it is indeed a nice thing to do, meeting me that is, Pontius giggled at his little comment. He had a high squeaky voice but a happy disposition. Abner, you’ll need to leave now, unless you intend to go to the orchard with us.

Oh, yes, have a good trip and please do try to understand the importance of this caretaker’s job, Miss Abigail. I’ll be seeing you on your return, Abner said and then turned to go outside through a small hole in the wall.

Wait! You’re leaving me? Abigail hollered.

Yes, but Pontius will take very good care of you. In fact, it’s in his scientific name: ‘Pilotesus Take Careofus Gouffus Humorus Does Suckus.’ I’ll see you when you return. Have a safe trip and do keep an open mind. That’s very important, you know. With that said, Abner disappeared through the hole.

Abigail wasn’t sure just what she needed or was supposed to do now so she looked to Pontius for guidance.

All right, if you’ll please take a seat, Pontius said as he indicated a small seat against the wall. If you’ll please fasten your seatbelt and please don’t remove it until you are told you may do so. Please keep your hands in your lap. Yes, I know you’re going to want to reach out to the lovely bright lights and try to touch them, but unless you want to keep your hands permanently attached to your body, don’t do it. You may get a little nauseous, just breathe deeply and don’t even think of hurling in the Traveler. The instruments are sensitive and I’m pretty sure vomit will mess things up. It might help to close your eyes too. In case of a problem your seat becomes a floatation device, oxygen will drop down from the ceiling for you to put on, but to be perfectly frank, if anything does happen then you’d probably be better off putting your head between your legs and kissing your tuckus goodbye, because you’re gonna die so it’s really a waste of time to use any of that stuff. Okay, are you ready? Pontius said in a far too happy tone after pointing out that she might die if there was a problem.

Abigail watched as Pontius sat down in another chair and buckled in. He proceeded to flick on some lights to the control panel. He pushed a number of buttons and moved several levers and said, Hang on, here we go. All the while he did this, Abigail was silently praying that a problem didn’t occur.

Really, Abigail thought, why couldn’t she have a cute white bunny take her down a hole instead of this strange person and his warnings of doom? So far, Abigail was thinking, this dream sucks and not in a cute fuzzy butt type of way.

There was a lot of shaking and suddenly the sensation of plunging straight down, as if on a roller coaster. Too bad Abigail hated roller coasters. She squeezed her eyes shut as tight as possible and took deep breaths. She very carefully moved her hands down to the side of the seat, gripping it with a death hold. As the shaking lessened, Abigail opened her eyes and saw bright twinkling lights. They were hypnotizing and there was an overwhelming desire to reach out to touch them. But since she had a fondness of having hands attached to her body she resisted that desire. Finally the shaking stopped altogether and the lights faded into darkness, there was a slight jolt, and then nothing.

Okay, we’re here so you may unbuckle yourself and stand. Though I would suggest you do so slowly. Your legs may be a little wobbly and I certainly don’t want you to fall. I might never get you back up, considering the vast difference in our sizes, Pontius smiled at Abigail as she slowly rose to test her legs, then quickly sat back down when she realized how weak they were.

So, did my father handle the travel here easily? Abigail asked Pontius.

Well, not at first. It took a few trips before he was finally able to stand without having to sit back down. But then he became a real realm traveler and could stand with no problem. I’m sure you’ll be just like him. From what he said, you, of all his children, were the most like him. That’s why you were the one he recommended to take his place. He knew you’d be back home after he died and you would go out to the apple tree to sit. Though I will say Abner was getting very nervous about your taking so long to do that. Time on this plane is continuous so a lot of time has come and gone since his passing. It’s not like it is in your realm, where it stands still.

Oh, I didn’t know. I’m afraid I don’t know a lot about any of this. In fact, I’m still hoping it is a dream, Abigail explained.