The Great Grove Protection Spell - Part 1

Written by Wyldspace

[fade in, interior, kitchen, at sunrise] Esmeralda, a woman just into the age range that people call, "elderly", finishes pouring two cups of tea from an antique teapot at the kitchen counter and starts to sip contentedly, standing. Enter Rhiamon, an early middle aged woman walking smoothly with grace. She has a worried expression.
RHIAMON: I believe I had a prophetic dream. (Reaches for freshly poured teacup.)
ESMERALDA: About a fire destroying a field of dancing fauns and nymphs?
RHIAMON: Mmm. Rhiamon pulls a smart phone from a charger nearby. Enter Melicious, a young post millennial hard rocking woman with her smartphone already in front of her face.
MELICIOUS: D'y'all hearabout the brush fires? Headed this way.
Melicious takes a mug from the cabinet and fills it with coffee from an automatic pot in the background.
RHIAMON: It is calling. A sacred grove. Or field.
MELICIOUS: We're on fire duty? Let's get Leaf. Where to?
ESMERALDA: (Reding her tea leaves) An empty field to the north near one rocky crag.
RHIAMON: Yes, it looks a bit like that fiend from Fantasia.
MELICIOUS: Maybe about thirteen miles north north east of here as the crow flies.
ESMERALDA: Or the broomstick.RHIAMON: (Looks over Melicious' shoulder at her phone display) That could be it, yes.
MELICIOUS: ...says the fire is only a few hours from there. ...headed that way.
ESMERALDA: Trust your instincts.RHIAMON: We should summon Leaf and gather our sacred tools.
ESMERALDA: (whispers) Too late.
MELICIOUS: Leaf's phone is headed here.
RHIAMON: You mean Claude's phone?
MELICIOUS: Oh. Yes, Claude's phone. I don't think of them as two people any more. Thanks, Esmeralda.
[Exterior, sunrise, crane view] A car pulls up to the mailbox of Rhiamon's house. Claude gets out of the back seat, holding a smart phone in one hand, dressed for an evening of club hopping and dancing. He shuts the car door and the car drives off as he walks toward the opening at the left side of the house.
[Head to ground] Claude walks alongside the house to a gate to the back yard. He reaches for a gym bag that was left hanging on the fence and places it open in the ground. After a quick glance toward the street, he takes off his clothes and stores them in the bag, paying no attention to avoid wrinkling them. He reaches over the gate and unlatches it from the inside and opens the gate.
[other side of gate] Claude steps in and closes the gate behind him, latching it. [zoom out] In front of him is a large ornate round garden stepping stone with a five-pointed star on its surface. On the back porch stands Esmeralda now in an ornate robe.
[face to waist, from slightly below] Esmeralda happily sips tea and watches Claude.
[Head to knees, from slightly above] Claude looks around the back yard, standing with slightly less than average confidence that he belongs there, then sees Esmeralda. He crosses his arms and rubs his biceps as if cold.
[Flip between the previous two views during dialog.]
CLAUDE: Good morning, Lady Esmeralda. (He seems to enjoy using the title, "Lady".) Is Leaf here? I got the feeling he wanted to come out and play.
ESMERALDA: (Joyful) Blessed morning to you, young man. To work! Not play this time. We have an important mission this morning. (She glances at an unseen person in the back yard.) Leaf is very happy to see you. He is so fond of you.
CLAUDE: Well, I'm very fond of... being him, too. My ordinary life is such a drag compared to this. It's... magical, nothing short of magical.
 ESMERALDA: (smiles knowingly) No less, indeed. Well get on with you two then. (Claude nods to her in obedience and crouches down.)
[knees to ground] Claude places his toes onto the garden stepping stone at two points of the engraved star where there are impressions of hooves. He crouches down and places his hands onto two points of the star where there are impressions of hands slightly larger than his. Then he places his forehead on the fifth point of the star.
[mid view] Claude remains crouching and bowing on the flat pedestal. A playfully smiling ghostly transparent faun steps into view and leaps onto Claude, passing through him, and crouches down in the exact same pose. Claude lifts his head and stands, with Leaf, the ghostly faun, mimicking his movement. Gradually Claude fades to invisibility and the faun becomes solid and fully visible. He stands fully erect and proud, and looks at his hands with delight. The faun's feet end in hooves, he has a deer tail, he has small goat horns on his head and a goatee on his chin, and he is generally a bit more muscular and more hairy, although the hair in his head is military short, but otherwise Leaf looks very similar to Claude. He looks to the house.
[Continuous pan left] Rhiamon, Melicious, and Esmeralda are wearing various ornate magical vestments and leaving the house toward a three-seater rickshaw parked in the back yard. Melicious is hefting a heavy-looking cast iron cauldron. Rhiamon has several pouches dangling from her ornate belt and walks with grace. Esmeralda walks like an old lady, but she travels light.
[front of rickshaw] Leaf runs to the front of the rickshaw and finds a black leather harness has been attached to the two poles on the front. He hops over one pole, in the position to pull the rickshaw, but he is confused by the leather straps. Melicious walks around to help him.
[Side view, head to waist] Rhiamon offers a hand to help Esmeralda climb into the seat. Upon sitting, Esmeralda draws a magic wand from her sleeve and gently waves it around, happily chanting to the rickshaw.
[return] Melicious finishes strapping Leaf into the harness. He squats and stands tall, watching the rickshaw tilt up and down. He pulls the handle poles to left and right. He looks to Melicious with thankfulness. She grabs a strap of the harness and pulls him closer and gives him a peck on the cheek kiss and heads to the seat. Leaf is happy with the treatment.
[Side view in seat] Rhiamon is staring at her phone intently as Melicious sits in the middle seat. Melicious pulls out her smartphone too and taps at it.
[Rear view from slightly above] Leaf is looking over his shoulder and waiting to start pulling the rickshaw. He wags his small tail impatiently.
[Leaf PoV] Rhiamon and Melicious are pointing to Leaf and speaking, but they are pointing different directions, each seeming to be getting different directions from her phone. Esmeralda contents herself with weaving three black strings.
[closeup] Leaf blinks a couple of times blankly. Eventually he turns forward.
[Top wide view] Leaf pulls the rickshaw to the back of the yard, slowly gaining speed. The air around the rickshaw warps and wavers like the hot air in the desert does.
[Leaf PoV] The bushes at the end of the yard part to reveal the grassy verdant park beyond.
[face] Leaf is a bit confused, but becomes determined to continue. Behind him, Rhiamon and Melicious continue to direct verbally and by pointing fingers this way and that, which Leaf obviously cannot see, while Esmeralda continues to peacefully wave her magic wand with no concerns.
[Leaf PoV] The park gives way to a landscape of green and brown fractal patterns in 3D. [pull back above the vehicle] Leaf pulls them through the strange landscape.
[face to chest] Leaf's determination fades and he begins to wonder if this is safe and worry. He glances back and sees the same mixed messages from the witches.
[above the vehicle] The landscape has become a more colorful psychedelic 3D fractal pattern. Leaf and the vehicle begin to roll over sideways as if running along a wall.
[faces] Rhiamon and Melicious are genuinely worried. Esmeralda placidly hands her weaving to Melicious. She has weaved a black whip. Melicious and Rhiamon look at each other then at Leaf. Melicious swings the whip forward.
[feet] Leaf's hooves are running on a bizarre colorful ground. The end of the black whip swings by and trips him. His surprised face drops to the ground.
[Wide side view] The rickshaw is stationary in a swirling psychedelic world which starts to fade away, replaced by the view of a city downtown. The vehicle is parked on top of a tall office building.
[closeup] Leaf lays on his chest and looks at the gravel and concrete in disbelief.
[Head to waist] The three witches look around in amazement. Only Esmeralda appears pleased with the outcome. Rhiamon and Melicious look at each other then stand. Esmeralda follows suit.
[waist to thigh] They turn around and lift the seat revealing a storage compartment. Melicious takes a bundle of more leather straps out from among several bags and containers in the compartment.
[Helicopter view circling the vehicle from afar] The city is gleaming in the morning sunshine. The rickshaw looks out of place.
[Head to chest] Leaf is standing now, wondering. Melicious holds up a bridle for Leaf to out in his mouth. Two long black reigns dangle from it. He opens his mouth and accepts it.
[wide view rooftop] The three are seated again with Melicious holding the reigns. She shakes the reigns up and down. No effect. She shakes them again. Leaf does not respond.
[faces to waist] In the seat, Rhiamon now holds both smart phones while Melicious holds the reigns. Esmeralda, with a mischievous grin, swings the whip.
[closeup] Leaf's buttock is struck by the end of the whip. <crack> He thrusts his hips forward.
[closeup] Leaf is shocked, them mischievously pleased. He tilts his head forward.
[Head to toe] A utility door opens and a janitor steps out with a mop and bucket. [zoom in] A cigarette is smoking in his mouth. He is startled at what he sees.
[wide view, janitors rear] He watches the rickshaw start rolling forward pulled by a focused faun and three witches happily waving to him as they pass. They fade to transparency, slowly disappearing just as they approach the edge of the roof.
[Head to chest] The janitor is dumbfounded. The cigarette falls out of his mouth, gaping in disbelief.
[wide view vehicle] Leaf pulls the rickshaw tumbling through psychedelic fractal images, this time with more confidence.
[face and shoulders] Leaf gazes at the wonders around as he runs. Melicious pulls on both reigns. Leaf slows to a walk as his head is pulled back a bit. The background fades to a verdant pasture in morning light.
[Exterior, wide crane view] The fatigued but still enthusiastic faun, Leaf, pulls the rickshaw to a stop in a large verdant grassy field. Far to the east is a mountain crag. with the sun rising behind it and dark smoke just beginning to rise from behind. The crag is a shape similar to Chernabog from Fantasia.
[Head to thigh, pan right] Rhiamon, the graceful and fairly gothic woman, scans the area with concern. Melicious, the punk-rock modern witch, helps Leaf out of the leather harness fastening the rickshaw to him. Esmeralda, the elderly classical Dianic witch, carefully steps down from the seat.
[circle around] Rhiamon walks and searches for something.
THE STORY IS CONTINUED IN:

Effect

In part 1, we see a transportation spell used. The casters do not know the scienetific underpinnings of the effect; they only know it works, with great potential danger of becoming lost forever.
The "consecrated" rickshaw and its occupants are adjusted "out of phase" with our dimension toward another parallel dimension. The trick is: They are only adjusted approximately half-way there, which saves a bit of energy versus full dimension-hopping.
The parallel world was selected for having no common structures to this world and no intelligent radio-frequency transmissions. As such, a vehicle half-way between the worlds can travel through space where solid objects occupy either alternate world (but not both!), giving a mushy ground to the in-between "place".
Even more importantly to our protagonists, technological items from our world in the in-between "place" can (barely) receive and interpret radio transmissions from our dimension (with no interference from the other) sufficient for GPS-related devices to function to the point that the vehicle can move to a desired point in our world (passing through solid matter as desired) then (as long as any existing fluids occupying the space in our world can be pushed aside) can be adjusted back fully in phase with our dimension to return home, located in the desired destination.
To witches who focus exclusively on the pragmatics, it allows unseen travel from one point to another regardless of the obstacles in between.

Source

Unbeknownst to the spellcasters, the effect is actually generated by the underground Nanobot Control Ring.
Humanity will publicly learn of the existence of the ring only 500 years later after independently developing similar technology, after which secrecy is no longer an objective of the NCR.