Chapter 38 - Annala's Rescue

It was Annala.

Even in the dim light of the flickering campfire, Andres recognized this woman--the one who had treated him so kindly when he first arrived at Dor-ko’s prison. Her perfume cast a pleasant fragrance around them--an odd contrast to the grim, violent scene that had just transpired. Andres had no idea how she got there, but he sure was happy to see another friendly face. And he was happy for his friend Gregorex, who had been away from his girl for four years. They were reunited at last.

Everything else seemed to be still as Gregorex and Annala embraced. They held each other for what seemed like hours. Annala cried, while Gregorex constantly cleared his throat and stroked her hair. Finally, they faced each other and prepared to kiss. At that point, the silence was broken.

“Ahem...excuse me there, Gregorex. But we’ve got some bad guys to take care of.” It was Samek.

Andres turned back toward Annala. He saw her say to Gregorex, “Kindness is seldom sufficient, you know.” She then turned around and ran to Samek. “Oh Daddy, I wondered if I’d ever see you again,” she said as she buried her head in his shoulder. The gruff chief of the village of Cliffton then shed a few tears of his own.

Gregorex motioned to Andres to follow him. Andres did so, and they proceeded to tie up Oba and Amma. They tied their hands together behind them, and they tied their feet together as well. As the two villains slowly regained consciousness, Gregorex spoke up and said, “Well, fellas, I’d sure hate for you to be uncomfortable, so I’ll tell you what. I’m going to lean you up against this nice oak tree.” Gregorex then dragged both of them over to opposite sides of a tree and propped their backs up, so that they sat upright. Continuing, Gregorex said, “And because I want you to be able to get some rest, I’m going to tie you to this tree. That way, you won’t tip over and hurt your back or anything.” As he spoke, Gregorex took more rope and tied it around both of them, lashing them to the tree.

Oba shook his head violently, as though trying to realize what had just happened. Andres observed him move his shoulder, only to realize that his arms were completely immobilized. Andres chuckled to himself as he stared at his pathetic enemy. Samek’s blow had apparently dislocated Oba’s jaw, so that the bottom part of his jaw was crooked and twisted. Andres walked over and said, “Man, that looks sore. Can I help ease your pain just a bit?” He then playfully (but not too gently) rubbed Oba’s jaw. Oba, distressed at his helplessness, attempted to spit at Andres. But Andres was too quick; he caught the man’s spit in his hand, and then rubbed it on his jaw.

“All right, that’s enough fun, Andres,” muttered Gregorex. He then turned back to Korbi, who still lay on the ground where Andres had tied him up. Gregorex grabbed him and held him high in the air. He then carried him and pinned his back against a tree trunk. Shaking him, he bellowed out, “You traitor! How could you do this, you miserable wretch! You sell your accursed shoes and take our money, only to try and sell us out to Dor-ko and Slumbutter. How much did they pay you to turn on us? How much?”

Korbi’s eyes were wide with fright. Gregorex continued, “Oh, you human vermin! It’s nice to see you get rattled a bit. You’ve walked through life as though nothing can touch you--like you’re above everything, like nothing bothers you. I knew you hated me. You thought you could hide your contempt, but I saw through it. So you and Philip worked out your plan to have me captured. Yes, I know you were in on the whole thing! Well guess what, pal? It didn’t work! And now I’m going to give your sorry hindquarters a one-way ticket to the moon!”

Gregorex prepared to throw Korbi against the tree, but a hand reached out and grabbed his right arm. “Gregorex...please,” said Samek. “Don’t do something you’ll regret.”

Gregorex saw Samek, and the fire in his eyes diminished just a bit. “Okay, fine,” he mumbled. He then dropped Korbi, letting him plummet to the ground in a heap. Gregorex turned and walked away for a moment, before turning back and asking, “Do you know what this guy did to me?”

“I’m sure you’ll tell me, Gregorex. We’ll need some time to catch up. But in the meantime...” Samek turned back toward Korbi. He picked him up, set him on his feet, and untied his hands. He then grabbed his by the shoulders and faced him into the woodline. “Look out there, Korbi,” Samek said. “Our enemies and your friends are out there. I’m going to give you five seconds to get running. Tell your friends that two of their comrades are lashed to a tree, waiting to be freed. Tell your friends that we’ll be waiting for them. Tell them that they could throw their whole doggone army at us, and we’ll not move. Not one inch. Tell them that we don’t fear them, and that we look forward to the fight. And tell them that you’re coming alone, because you’re the only coward that didn’t dare to stand up to evil. Did you get that? Now get out of here!” Samek then propelled his foot into Korbi’s rear end. Korbi didn’t wait around. He took the hint and dashed off as fast as the dense forest would permit.

Samek turned around, only to see Gregorex with his hands atop his head, his eyes wild with disbelief. “How could you just let him go?” he asked, incredulous.

“I’m sorry, Gregorex, but what else could we do? If we brought him back to the village, then we wouldn’t be able to shut him up. He’d get everybody scared. I don’t want the people to know that there has been a traitor in our midst--not yet, anyway. A battle is coming, and I need everyone to be of one mind. We need to focus on the enemy, not on ourselves.

“Besides, we don’t have any place to hold prisoners. But hey...we’d better go check up on the others.”

Andres, Gregorex and Samek turned and walked back toward the campfire. Andres saw Pilch writing frantically with one hand while wiping his forehead with his other hand. “Oh my! Oh my!” Pilch kept uttering. “Too much activity! Too much activity! How can poor Pilch keep up with it all?” He then quickly looked up, glanced all around him, and started writing again, all the while mumbling, “Too much! Too much!”

“Relax, Pilch!” bellowed Samek. Andres wondered how anyone could relax in response to Samek’s stentorian voice. “Just write something like, ‘There was much fighting, and the good guys won.’ That’s enough detail. I don’t need my scribe dying of a heart attack just because there was too much stuff to write down.”

Pilch didn’t even look up. He continued to scribble as he replied, “Oh Samek, you just don’t understand the grave responsibilities of a proper scribe! And now look what you’ve done! I’ve started talking, and now I’ve got to write that, too! Oh my...”

As Pilch talked, Andres thought he noticed something missing. “Hey...wasn’t there someone sitting next to Pilch when we first got here?” he said.

Samek stopped and scratched his head. He then said, “Why yes...Old Ferd! Where in heaven’s name did he go? Did he die of a heart attack? Poor guy--this really is too much for that old man’s heart to handle!”

“He went to fetch some water,” came a woman’s voice from behind them. Andres turned around and saw Annala, helping to lead a man over toward the fire. The man was nearly doubled over; he was obviously in great pain. “While you were fighting the bad guys, my poor rescuer fainted and fell off our horse. He needs treatment right away.”

“Oh Babes, I’m sorry!” said Gregorex. “Let me help you!” Gregorex ran over and wrapped the man’s right arm around his shoulder. Together, Annala and Gregorex led him over to the fire. They gently laid him down near the log on which Korbi had been sitting. They stretched his feet toward the fire, and they propped his head and shoulders up on the log. Gregorex peeled off his cloak to serve as a pillow for the man.

Annala then began to pull away at the man’s shirt. On his left side was a wound, from which he had lost a lot of blood. The blood was caked on to this skin and to the shirt itself. She gently pulled the shirt away, causing the man to groan as she did so. Annala then turned to see a bucket of water being placed down next to her. Old Ferd had just returned, having filled the bucket from a nearby stream.

Gregorex asked, “Who is this guy?” As Annala tended to the man, she told her story.

“It didn’t take too long for the news of your escape to get to Slumbutter. That weasel came to my door and kicked it open. He burst into my room, waking me up as he yelled over and over again, ‘Tell me where he is! Tell me where he is!’

“‘I don’t know what you’re talking about!’ I told him. Well, he didn’t like that answer. He slapped me in the face, grabbed my hair, and yanked me out into the hallway. ‘You don’t know what I’m talking about, eh?’ he sneered. ‘Well, I think you know perfectly well what I’m talking about. Gregorex is gone, and you’re going to tell me where he is. And to help persuade you to talk, you’re going to spend some time in Chamber Tango.’

“I gasped when I heard him say that. Chamber Tango is the torture chamber. Guards will sometimes beat prisoners for hours at a time. They will beat them until the prisoners talk. I’ve heard that they do terrible things there...and I was about to find out first-hand.”

“The BEAST!” declared Gregorex. “If I ever get my hands on that man...”

“Calm down, Gregorex,” interrupted Annala. “We’re together now, and that’s all that matters.” She then reached out and squeezed Gregorex’ hand. Andres was amazed at how one touch from her hand could tame Gregorex. Andres didn’t think that anything in all of creation could have that kind of impact on the man.

Annala then continued. “When we got near a torch in the hallway, Slumbutter stopped. He saw a man standing on the opposite wall, reading something. Still holding me by the hair, he walked across the hallway and slapped the man with the back of his hand. The man dropped what he was reading and looked up, wide-eyed, at Slumbutter. ‘Hey Lackey!’ Slumbutter yelled. ‘I don’t pay you to read. I don’t pay you to think. I pay you to obey! Now take this woman down to Chamber Tango immediately! Lock her up, and tell her to wait. I will tend to her personally when I return!’ Slumbutter then thrust me into the man’s chest and walked away.

“As soon as Slumbutter’s footsteps faded away, the man quickly retrieved what he’d dropped, putting the paper into his pocket. He then grabbed my arm and said, ‘Follow me, ma’am.’ And we began walking down the hallway. We came to a stairwell and began to descend. It seemed like we descended forever, but probably that’s just because I was so scared. We finally came to a landing and walked down another hallway. This one was very dimly lit. I thought to myself, ‘This may be the last light that I ever see.’ The only sound that could be heard as we walked was the jingling sound of the man’s keys.

“Finally, we stopped in front of a door with a big ‘T’ written in red. The man reached for his keys, and I closed my eyes. I couldn’t bear to see the insight of this terrible room. I heard him insert the keys into the door.

“But instead of hearing the keys turn, all I could hear was a sobbing sound. ‘No more! No more! I can do this no more!’ said a voice. I opened my eyes, and saw the man crying. The man took the keys out of the door and threw them to the floor. ‘I’m done!’ he declared. ‘Listen--there is no time to lose. If you have any hope of surviving, you need to follow me right now!’

“I didn’t know what else to do. I didn’t know this man; I’d never seen him in my life. But I just nodded and said, ‘I’ll be right behind you.’

“The man led me back up two flights of stairs, until we came to ground level. Once there, we could see many of the black knights mustering--they were obviously getting ready for battle. The man grabbed my hand and led me through the door. ‘Do you know where we’re going?’ I asked. ‘Yes,’ he replied as he kept moving. ‘How are we going to get there?’ I asked. ‘I don’t know,’ replied the man. ‘I just know that right now, I’m a free man. I’ve been given a way of escape. If someone finds us and kills us on the way, well that’s the way it goes. I’d rather be killed as a free man than keep living as a slave. I wouldn’t even think of putting you in danger, except that Slumbutter would probably have killed you anyway in Chamber Tango. So let’s take our chances and hope for the best.’

“The man led me through crowds of black knights and other servants. Amazingly, no one asked us anything. That’s kind of the way it is in Dor-ko’s castle--everyone sees to themselves. They don’t take too much notice of anyone else. But just as we broke out from the crowds and seemed free to continue our escape toward the woods, a voice from behind us cried out, ‘Hey! Where are you going!’

“At that, my rescuer panicked. He just grabbed my arm and muttered, ‘Let’s run!’ And that’s exactly what we did.

“I knew we didn’t have much of a chance. As you can see, he’s quite heavy-set and he couldn’t run very fast. Though we had a bit of a headstart, the man that was pursuing us soon caught up with us. He grabbed my rescuer by the shoulder and spun him around. ‘You coward!’ he yelled. ‘I ought to take my sword and run you through this very instant.’

“I thought the rescue was over right there. My rescuer is a kind man, but I don’t think he’s a fighter. He just stood and stared. The other man drew his sword and--it looked to me, anyway--prepared to drive it through my rescuer’s heart. But before he could do so, some heavy hoofbeats shook the ground beneath us. A beautiful horse suddenly appeared, coming between us and the man with the sword.”

“That was Ranger!” Andres piped up. “That was Cable’s horse! We saw him when we were escaping ourselves! He must have gone back to rescue you!”

“Well,” continued Annala, “I was thankful for the distraction. I immediately yelled to my rescuer, ‘Let’s get on him and get out of here!’ The horse knelt a bit, as though knowing we’d need some help getting on. We mounted quickly--I was in front, and my rescuer was in the back. The horse quickly stood up and took off. I could hear his rear hoof smack our attacker in the jaw as we headed off. But after we’d gone a few steps, my rescuer said, ‘Stay down! I think we’ll get some arrows pretty quick!’ He then leaned over me. A few seconds later, I heard him groan. Sure enough, the man had let an arrow fly. It had struck my rescuer in the side. I urged him to hang on as we escaped into the woods.

“When we got out of range, we stopped briefly. I helped pull the arrow out, but we had time for little else. My rescuer said that he’d ride in front. ‘I’d hate for a beautiful face like yours to be hurt by all the branches that will come flying at us in these woods,’ he said. And then we were off. We stopped once at a stream to get a drink, but other than that we’ve been moving constantly. This horse--he’s amazing. It’s like he’s been guided this whole way.”

By the time Annala was done with her story, she had completed dressing her rescuer’s wound. Andres thought the man looked familiar, but he couldn’t quite place him. As he pondered over where he could have seen this man before, the sounds of approaching footsteps were heard in the woods. Gregorex immediately reached for his nearby bow. As he notched an arrow and drew back the string, he cried out, “Who is it! Declare yourself or die!”

“Hold your fire! It’s us!” came a familiar voice. It was Legs. He came crashing into the clearing, with Remmaline and Kaelanna behind him. Pipes followed close behind. With a quiet urgency in his voice, he declared, “Look, folks, we need to get inside the city gates right away. We just scouted out one of Dor-ko’s advance parties. They’ve got a platoon of cavalry that is not far away. If we don’t move quickly, we’re going to be cut off.”

While he spoke, Kaelanna quietly ran over to the man that had saved Annala. She burst into tears as she wrapped her arms around him and gave him as big an embrace as she could possibly give. She buried her head into his shoulder and said, “Oh, Daddy...I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.” For Annala’s rescuer, of course, was Fred the jailer.

Chapter 37 - Journey to Cliffton, Part 2

“What does it say?” asked Andres impulsively. “Just rip it open and find out!”

Gregorex turned and glared at Andres. “Look, if my old master is going to send a sealed message to someone, then he obviously doesn’t intend for me to look at it. So I’m not going to.” Gregorex then turned away and muttered, “That’s the problem with kids today. They don’t know enough to mind their own business.”

Andres heard every word, but pretended as though he hadn’t. Still curious, he asked, “How do you know that it isn’t addressed to you?”

Gregorex grabbed the scroll and shoved it in Andres’ face. “BECAUSE IT’S ADDRESSED TO ‘LORD SLUMBUTTER, THAT’S WHY!’ he bellowed. He then started to throw the scroll to the ground in disgust, but quickly checked himself. Instead, he took one last glance at the scroll’s seal. “Hmmm...that’s odd,” he mumbled.

“What’s odd?” asked Andres, who at times just didn’t know enough to stop asking questions.

“Let’s roll!” said Gregorex, ignoring the question. He mounted his horse and announced, “There is no time to lose, do you hear? We’ve got to get to Cliffton as soon as possible. The sun sets quickly around here, and we’ve probably only got another half-hour of daylight. I’m going to stick to the road. Follow me!” Without even turning to see if anyone was behind him, Gregorex tore off down the road, with Spartacus kicking up great clouds of dust as he galloped away.

Sensing great urgency, the others followed. Andres went next, followed by the girls. Legs and Pipes formed the rear guard. All of the riders spurred on their horses to move as swiftly as possible. But no one could keep up with Gregorex and Spartacus. The great white horse that towered above all others was soon lost in the distance.

Andres quickly got frustrated. He was in the front, but he didn’t really know where he was going. He strained his eyes to look for some sign of Gregorex ahead. He saw nothing. At first, he wanted to put on a good show for the girls and not admit that he was somewhat fearful of riding through this strange forest. But finally, as the group reached a hilltop, Andres brought everyone to a halt. He gazed down the road that descended before him and still saw no sign of Gregorex. He then tried to stand up on his horse in order to get a better view. However, just then a slight gust of wind blew over the high ground. Andres lost his balance and tumbled to the ground. Irritated beyond his wits end, he groused, “I give up! Someone else take the lead! I’m sick of this!”

“Hey, would you keep it down?” came a reply.

Andres turned around and looked at Legs and Pipes. “Did you just say something?” he asked.

“No, sir,” replied Legs. Pipes simply shook his head.

“Dummy...I mean, Your Majesty, I’m up here!” came the voice again. Andres turned to his right and looked upward. Perched in the midst of a towering oak tree was Gregorex. He held his index finger to his mouth, indicating for the others to be silent. He was straining to see something in the distance that had caught his attention. When he appeared satisfied, he quickly descended to the ground and dashed over to join the group.

“Look--something is going on, and we’ve got to find out what it is,” declared Gregorex, out of breath from sheer nervousness. “I just saw a small group of people leave the city gates, holding some torches. That’s unusual after dark--most of the time, people stay inside the walls at night. I want to take Andres and check it out. Legs and Pipes--I want you to stay here with the girls and guard the road. If Dor-ko sends some kind of advanced party to check things out, do whatever you can to delay them. Trouble is coming our way.” Gregorex then walked over to Legs and Pipes and shook their hands. “Gentlemen...I can’t thank you enough for getting me out of that miserable prison. I guess this is what we were saved to do--to stave off an onslaught of evil.”

Then turning around and heading into the woods, Gregorex bellowed, “So let’s do it!” Andres quickly slid in behind Gregorex, and the two of them slipped back into the dense and darkening forest. The two moved slowly and stealthily, carefully avoiding stepping on small twigs and dry leaves and other objects that could reveal their movement. The deliberate pace nearly drove Andres crazy. He couldn’t stand the suspense, yet he didn’t dare to ask Gregorex any questions. When some torch light began the reach them through the trees, Gregorex signaled for the two of them to hit the ground and start crawling. Andres obeyed, of course, yet his mind immediately imagined a dozen rats crawling all over him. This was one of those times when the imagination is so active that it seems as though hours have gone by, when in fact only a few minutes have transpired.

Eventually Gregorex reached back and put his hand on Andres’ shoulder, bringing him to a halt. Andres looked below and to his right. About twenty feet to his front, the woodline stopped and there was a small clearing. In the midst of the clearing was a small fire pit, in which was crackling a small but growing campfire. Three logs, which served as benches, were distributed around the campfire. On the log closest to Andres, facing away from him and toward the campfire, sat two people. One of them appeared to be busy writing something. On the log to the right of the campfire, Andres could see the silhouette of a second person. Though the man was barely visible, he appeared to Andres to be a big fuzzy furball, with thick hair covering his entire body. On the log on the opposite side of the fire, facing Andres, was a fourth man, also sitting alone.

From the bench closest to Andres came a booming voice. “All right, Korbi, please explain why you’ve gathered us here. And it had better be good. You know as well as I do the dangers that can come from being outside the village gates at night.”

Gregorex nearly jumped at the sound of the voice. He whispered to Andres, “That’s Samek! He’s the village chief, and he’s also my master! It seems as though someone has called the assembly of Cliffton together. This is very odd...”

Andres started to ask a question, but he felt Gregorex put a hand over his mouth before he could say a thing. He kept his mouth closed and listened as the man on the opposite side of the fire spoke up. “Thank you, Samek. You of course know that I would never endanger anyone without good cause. You also know that I wouldn’t waste your time with an abundance of words. It is a great privilege to serve on this assembly, yet it is also a great responsibility. I take this responsibility seriously. I’m sure all of us do. But I have a grave concern, my fellow members of the assembly. It is a concern that...”

“Just get to the point!” bellowed Samek, clearly irritated with the speaker. “You can cram less substance into more words than anyone I know!”

Gregorex leaned over to Andres and whispered, “The second guy that spoke--his name is Korbi. He’s part of the assembly of Cliffton. I trust him about as much as I’d trust a hungry rattlesnake to watch my children...well, if I had any children, that is. Now shut up and listen!”

Andres wanted to be indignant at being told to shut up, even though he hadn’t said a word. But he was too fascinated with the drama unfolding before him to bother to respond. Korbi was the next to speak, “Your patience is overwhelming, Samek. I will get to the point as you have requested, without any further adieu. But please...spare me any further interruptions, as it will only delay the delivery of an important message for all of us. It is a message we all need to...”

“If you don’t get to the point this very instant, I will separate your head from your body with my bare hands!” Samek snapped. “At least then, I’d only have to listen to your head while the rest of your body did something productive for once!”

Gregorex again leaned over to Andres and spoke up. “I never liked that guy--never at all! He is always calm and cool. He never gets rattled. He does everything at his own pace, and he could care less about anyone besides himself. He has no concept of sacrificing for others. Now quit interrupting and listen!”

As his eyes adjusted to the descending darkness above and the emerging firelight below, Andres focused on Korbi. The man seemed completely oblivious to Samek’s rebuke. He paused a few seconds, then pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his eyes. “If you’ll pardon me a moment, Samek, this fire is irritating my eyes just a bit,” he said.

While Korbi dried his eyes, Gregorex whispered again to Andres. “That jerk! He’ll take his sweet time. Now, do you see that guy sitting next to Samek? His name is Pilch. He’s the clerk. He writes down everything that takes place at these meeting. He usually doesn’t say much, because if he did, he’d have to write it down. The other guy is Old Ferd. I think that ‘Old’ is part of his real name. I heard that he was covered in hair when he was born. I think he got a razor or something for his first birthday, so he could start shaving. He’s always looked old. He’s odd, but he’s a good guy. Now quiet down and listen!”

Andres complied as he heard Korbi finally resume his discussion. “Thank you for waiting, Samek,” he said. “As I was saying, grave danger awaits us. Why, just this afternoon I was out in the woods, looking for any suspicious activity. Ever since our dear friend Gregorex disappeared, I have feared having no one patrolling these woods. I decided to take this responsibility upon myself, since I love this village and its people so dearly. It is why I feel so privileged to be a part of this assembly.”

Korbi paused and looked around the campfire. He appeared to try and look everyone in the eyes as he nodded his head. Gregorex started to gag. Andres whispered, “What’s the matter?”

Gregorex replied, “It’s a big pack of lies! That guy couldn’t care less about anyone in this village! And I’d venture to guess that he was part of the plot to get me captured! Oh, he just makes me want to throw up!”

“Well, stop gagging and listen!” replied Andres. Gregorex glared at Andres, but could say nothing. He turned his head back toward the distant campfire.

Korbi spoke again, saying, “During my patrol, I heard two men running through the woods. They seemed to be moving with great urgency. I did not recognize them, and therefore I was greatly suspicious. So I notched an arrow and bellowed at the top of my lungs, ‘Stop in the name of King Maximilian!’

“The two men were obviously startled by my bold instrusion. They looked over to the sound of my voice, and they saw me standing there with an arrow aimed at their very hearts. Both of them raised their hands in the air and said, ‘Please don’t shoot! We have news for the village of Cliffton!’

“I was intrigued by this, so I motioned for them to follow me. I have brought them here to meet with us this evening.” Korbi then raised his hands and clapped once. As the sharp sound rattled through the woods, a couple of figures emerged from the woodline on the opposite side of the campfire. Korbi slid to one side of his log, making room for the two strangers to sit down beside him.

Andres stared intently at these newcomers. One was extremely skinny. Andres thought his head resembled a banana. He had a long face and a tuft of hair on top that looked kind of like a banana stem. He sat next to Korbi. His companion was a huge hulk of a man. When he sat down, the other end of the log flipped up and sent Korbi and banana-face flying. The man grunted something and then sat down on the ground next to the log. Korbi and the skinny stranger brushed themselves off and sat down once more.

Korbi then spoke again. “Gentlemen, please meet my new friends Oba and Amma. They have willingly stayed so that they can deliver this message to you as eyewitnesses.”

The skinny man named Oba then spoke. “Thank you, Korbi, for the great privilege of appearing to this assembly. My brother Amma and I were out and about this morning, tending to our work and minding our own business. Weren’t we, Amma?”

The hulking man named Amma grunted and replied, “Hmmm...yep, working. We was working. Yep.” He then nodded his head vigorously yet said no more.

Gregorex whispered to Andres and said, “I’ve got a funny feeling about these guys. Shhhh....”

Oba then resumed speaking. He had a deep, smooth voice that seemed odd to Andres. He sure didn’t sound like some sort of woodsman. But then again, Andres wasn’t sure what a genuine woodsman would sound like. So he remained silent and listened to Oba. “As we were working, we happened to hear some loud and unusual sounds in the distance. We walked toward the sounds, and we realized that a road had been cut through the forest. Can you believe it--a road cut through these pristine lands? We were indignant and dismayed!”

Samek interrupted and asked, “If you two spend your days in the woods, how could you not notice that a road was being built in the woods?”

“Why, as I was saying, we were minding our own business,” Oba replied. “We don’t stick our noses where they don’t belong. We are humble servants of King Maximilian. But anyway, as I was saying, Amma and I looked out at the road and were greatly disturbed by what we saw. For marching down the road was a company of cavalry. And it seemed that they were flying the colors of Slumbutter and Dor-ko. We were greatly worried by this sight, but it was as though our feet were fixed in quicksand. We couldn’t move; we were paralyzed by fear. So we continued to watch.

“Well, behind the cavalry was a battalion of foot soldiers. Row after row of them marched down the road, in perfect step. What an intimidating sight. Wasn’t it, Amma?”

Amma grunted. “Hmm...yes. Scary it was. It was scary. Yep.” He nodded again as he fell silent.

Oba resumed talking. “After the battalion of infantry passed, we continued to stare as--lo and behold--some horse-drawn catapults came forward. They were bringing on the artillery! Obviously, the armies of Dor-ko were on a mission to bring mass destruction. So Amma and I put our heads together, and we figured that they were heading toward Cliffton. As we recovered from the shock of it all, our legs limbered up and we quietly moved back into the woods. We then found our horses and began riding with all haste to warn you.”

Samek then interjected. “If you rode here to warn us, why did Korbi say that you were running through the woods when he caught you?”

Oba paused for a moment, apparently perplexed. He looked over at Amma, who just shrugged. Andres had to chuckle to himself whenever he looked at Amma. The man looked like a giant apple, with the stem representing the man’s head. Andres didn’t figure you could squeeze too many brains into that tiny skull. But at the same time, the man was huge--Andres wasn’t eager to get into a fistfight with the man, who had to weigh over 500 pounds.

After an awkward silence, Oba spoke again. “Well, you see, Samek, we had barely gotten underway when those savages caught sight of us. They shot the horses out from under us. Those barbarians! I can still hear the cries of those poor horses as they struggled to hold on to their dear lives!” Oba then wiped a tear from his eyes.

Gregorex whispered to Andres, “It’s another lie! Do you remember those two horses that were running along without any riders earlier this afternoon? I’ll bet you anything that those two boneheads rode those horses and then just left them. They were probably too lazy to tie them up.”

Gregorex then went silent while Oba continued. “So we ran with all haste and will all the strength that was left to us, and we are glad that we appear to have beaten Dor-ko’s army. But we must warn you--this village is about to be overrun!”

Korbi started to speak, but Samek quickly interrupted and said, “You’ll have to pardon my skepticism, but...well, I somehow doubt that Amma over there could run for hours and hours without either causing an earthquake or collapsing from exhaustion.”

Amma hopped to his feet in anger. (To Andres’ eyes, it actually looked like he bounced to his feet.) He took a step toward Samek, but Oba quickly intervened. “Now calm down, Amma,” he said soothingly. “He just doesn’t know you. He can’t help it if he’s ignorant. Now have a seat and take some deep breaths.” Amma plopped back to the ground and obeyed, breathing deeply and loudly for all to hear.

Samek spoke again. “You know, Gregorex has been patrolling these woods for years. He never told me about two men that worked in the forest. That’s odd--Gregorex doesn’t miss much.”

Oba quickly replied, “Oh, believe me, we saw Gregorex from a distance many times. But whenever he came near, my brother and I remained in hiding. You see, I’m an apothecary. I make rare medicines from herbs from the woods, and I sell them to distant lands. I depend on complete secrecy in order to find just the right plants for my medicines. I make it a point not to be discovered.”

Gregorex leaned over to Andres and said, “Another lie! Do you think I’d miss those two lunkheads? I’ve never seen them, and that’s because they were never there! I’ll bet Amma doesn’t even know how to spell ‘apothecary’!”

“Why don’t you just walk up and expose them?” Andres whispered. “Samek will know they’re a bunch of frauds if you just show yourself.”

“Shhhhh!” Gregorex replied. “I’m the only one that’s allowed to talk here! Besides, I want to know what these guys are up to. If I show myself too soon, they may not play their hand. Let’s wait till the game is up. Just follow my lead...”

Gregorex and Andres redirected their attention to the campfire as Korbi spoke. “Samek, the way I see it, we have only one choice. We must surrender ourselves to the mercy of our adversaries. We must hoist the white flag at once. Perhaps Dor-ko will be merciful to us.”

“You’re a fool,” replied Samek. “I will never surrender.”

“Is it really so foolish?” said Korbi. “An entire army is coming our way. We are a small village--they are cavalry and infantry and artillery. It is suicide to stay and fight! Every last one of us will die against this onslaught! At least there is a chance that we’ll live if we surrender.”

“I’d rather die as a loyal servant of the king, than live as a slave to Dor-ko,” Samek replied.

“Now, you are being the fool!” retorted Korbi. “Really, do you think the king would expect you to fight against such overwhelming force?”

“That why he put us here, Korbi,” Samek replied. “He put us here to guard the southern approach to the kingdom. He put us here for this very reason! If we surrender, we lose the privilege of living up to the calling that he’s laid before us. I’m not going to live the rest of my life in shame. I’ve been given a job, and I’m going to do it. If you want to surrender, you go right ahead. But I’d rather have the word ‘courageous’ written on my tombstone than have the word ‘coward’ hung about my neck as a prisoner of Dor-ko.”

“But Samek, please think about this for a moment,” Korbi continued. “Surely the king couldn’t foresee this--a deliberate attack by a great force against a tiny village! Surely he would want you to spare the lives of your people surrender! And even as you tend to the welfare of your people, the king will certainly spare no effort to come and set you free later!”

Samek paused briefly before he replied and said, “Look, Korbi. I don’t think you’ve got any business tryiing to read the king’s mind. This is what I know: King Maximilian--may he reign forever!--has given me a mission. That mission is to watch for the enemy and to protect Freedom Pass. The king didn’t ask me to figure out what was best myself and then do it. He just asked me to serve and obey. Doggone it, that’s what I’m going to do. And if I were you, I’d be awfully careful about thinking that you know better than the king. You’re treading on some dangerous ground.”

“So you’re not going to surrender, then?” asked Korbi.

“I’d rather die,” replied Samek.

“Hmm...very well, then,” said Korbi. “Let me make one more appeal.” Korbi then raised his right hand and snapped.

At that signal, Amma again bounded to his feet. He then dove over the fire and grabbed Samek, throwing him to the ground. Andres was astounded at the agility displayed by the man. Samek fought furiously, but he was no match for the hulking mass of Amma.

Pilch just moaned as he wrote furiously, carefully documenting all that was taking place. Old Ferd got to his feet and started to try and help Samek, but Oba and Korbi quickly reached down and grabbed their bows that had been hidden behind the logs. They quickly notched their arrows and pointed them right at Old Ferd. “Don’t move another inch, old man,” Korbi sneered. “Or you’ll make your grave right here.”

Soon Amma got to his feet. Both arms were wrapped around Samek in a smothering bear hug. Samek’s arms were pinned to his side. He was completely immobilized. His face was red as he struggled, but it was to no avail. Oba put his bow down and picked up a hatchet. He walked over to Samek and smiled. “Well, look who’s helpless now,” he said.

Andres saw Gregorex reach for his bow and aim it toward Oba. “Can you get a shot at him?” Andres whispered.

“No, I can’t!” Gregorex muttered under his breath. “I can’t get a clean view! Samek keeps moving! If I shoot, he might shift and get in the way! I can’t risk it!”

Andres looked and saw Korbi hold the hatchet up to Samek’s neck. He strained his ears to hear Korbi say, “Where is all your brave talk now? Look--I’m the one about to sever your head from your body! But I’ll tell you what. If you just give the word to surrender, I’ll let you go free. You don’t need to go through this, Samek! Just give the word! And we can all live!”

Samek continued to fight Amma’s bounds, to no avail. But as he struggled and thrashed, he declared, “Go ahead, Korbi! You’re a fraud, and you’ve always been a fraud. But I’m not going to follow in your footsteps. The king gave me a job, and to my dying breath I’m going to do it. You can cut me into a thousand pieces if you want. But when you do, every piece will be crying out loyalty to the king. And each of those pieces will call the people of Cliffton to fight against you. And if you slaughter them as well, their lost lives will call out to others to fight against you. In the end, you cannot win. So go ahead and kill me! It’ll only seal your own doom.”

Korbi glared at Samek. He seemed to come unhinged. The man who was unflappable had become rattled by Samek’s steadfastness. “You senseless fool!” he cried out as he drew back the hatchet. But before he could swing it at Samek’s neck, a sound came rattling through the forest. “Stop! Stop!” cried a shrill voice. A horse then came bounding out of the woods at a full gallop.

Amma turned toward the noise. Gregorex yelled “Duck!” Samek lowered his head, and Gregorex let the arrow fly. It glanced off Amma’s head, knocking him to the ground. Andres, who’d been following Gregorex’ lead, also let an arrow fly at Korbi. The arrow struck Korbi in his hands, jarring the hatchet loose and causing Korbi to cry out in agony. Gregorex cried out, “Let’s go!” He and Andres vaulted from their position in hiding and rushed toward the campfire. Gregorex ran to Amma. When he saw Amma reach to rub his head, he smacked him in the jaw and knocked him out cold. Andres ran over to Korbi who was grabbing his hand and writhing in pain. He jumped on the man, rolled him over on his stomach, and pulled his hands behind him. He then pulled some rope out of his cloak and tied his hands together. Meanwhile, Samek leaped toward Oba, who’d been so dumbstruck that he’d forgotten about the arrow that was in his hands. Samek promptly hit him with an uppercut that sent him airborne. He landed to the ground, senseless.

All eyes then turned toward the horse that had emerged from the woods. Andres quickly recognized it as Cable’s horse, Ranger. Atop the horse were two riders. The one in the front was a large man, while the one in the back was a woman. She quickly slipped off her horse and rushed toward Gregorex.

“I told you I would find you,” she said.