Chapter 24

         Moments later, Sir Killion, followed by Lokey, returned to the Duke's presence carrying Pandora's lifeless body in his arms.

         "What happened?" Gerald asked, looking at them in genuine shock.

         "A minor complication, my lord," Lokey bowed. "The young woman took rather badly to my mental probes and collasped under the strain."

         "Will she recover?" Gerald asked.

         "I'm afraid she's dead, m'lord," Lokey responded. "No matter, however. That is, what you wanted eventually, was it not?"

         "Yes, I suppose so," said Gerald halfheartedly. "I just never realized... well...dispose of the body in the woods somewhere. I certainly don't wish to keep staring at it."

         "At least give her the right to a proper burial, my lord," Sir Killion protested.

         "Oh, very well...here, one of you men, take this girl's body out a few hundred yards and bury it. Then return here at once."

         "M'lord, I feel that I can..." Sir Killion began.

         "None of it, Killion, I need you and Tefrin here. We must plan our attack immediately," interrupted Duke Gerald. "Let's go." He stood up and walked toward his shelter while one of the soldiers he'd pointed to came and took Pandora's limp body from Sir Killion's arms and started off into the forest with it. Lokey and Killion exchanged the briefest of glances, then followed Gerald to his makeshift shelter to talk.

         A few moments after they'd entered the shelter, the soldier came running in, his face pale. "M'lord," he gasped. "I know not how to explain..."

         "Well, spit it out, man!" the Duke said irritably.

         "I was taking the lady's body out to bury when suddenly an angel appeared and told me to go about my business; that she'd take care of her body. Then it just lifted up and took the lady's body with it."

         "An angel? Are you mad? Angels take no truck with such common rabble!" Gerald retorted.

         "All I know is what I saw, m'lord and it was an angel, all right. She was dark and pretty and had wings...in fact, she looked like a big version of that fairy we saw the elf pick up from the lady before." Lokey and Sir Killion exchanged glances again, both of them knowing what fairy he spoke of.

         "Fairies and their nonsense, no doubt," Gerald sighed. "You've probably been duped by some passing wood fairy into giving up the body. Well, it can't be helped now. Dismissed." The soldier turned and left, leaving the three men alone. "Gentlemen, I think we can no longer afford to waste time here. We've got to move in on the location given to us by Pandora and take over as quickly as possible. Agreed?"

         "Very well, m'lord, if this is what you wish," Sir Killion replied. Lokey nodded and they rose as Duke Gerald stood.

         "Good, then let's move out," he said, turning on his heel.

         Sir Killion and Lokey lagged behind a moment as Killion whispered, "If we leave now, they might not have enough time..."

         Lokey shook his head. "They'll make it in time, Killion," he replied. "Crystal's survived greater odds. Pandora's in good hands."

 

         "Ian!!! Ian!!!" Dabble bounded almost directly into Ian, who glared down at him angrily. He backed up slowly, bumping into Magbert's boot and falling over it. Ian lifted him up the way one would a bug and held him up in front of his face.

         "This had better be important," he said slowly, "or your life won't be."

         "Pandorasbeencapturedandcrystalsentmetotellyouwheretheywereandplease don'tkillmeeeee!" Dabble yelled at the top of his lungs, then he closed his eyes and wailed in fear.

         "Did you catch all that?" Ian asked Magbert.

         "No, but I like how you made him squeal at the end," Magbert grinned. "Do it again."

         "No...wait...I'll say it again, just gimme a second...!" Dabble begged.

         "Time's up's," Ian said.

         "Nooooo, you gotta listen to me, this is important!" Dabble whined, as In experimentally hung him upside down by his feet. "Look, if you don't think this is important, you can eat me right here the second after I say it. Deal?"

         Ian and Magbert exchanged surprised glances. This was an incredibly daring move for Crystal's little brownie shadow. Something had to be wrong. "Talk," Magbert insisted, while Ian set him right side up again.

         "Crystal and I saw Pandora and she'd been captured by that Duke guy and he's holding her prisoner," Dabble gasped out.

         "If you're supposed to be back at the tree, how do you know all this?" Magbert asked.

         "We weren't, okay? We went to go take down a few guys on our own, but Pandora's in trouble and Crystal might be, too! We gotta go help them!"

         "Isn't Lokey..." Magbert began.

         "He was, but something may have gone wrong. She's not supposed to get caught, just spy on them to find out where they are," Ian said. "Where are they now?"

         "Crystal's with Pandora, but I don't think anyone knows and they're just west of here." Dabble replied.

         "Take us there," Ian said, grabbing up his sword and mace. "We'll just have to attack them directly instead."

 

 

         In fact, when Ian, Magbert and their band of nymphs caught up to Duke Gerald, there was not a direct attack. Ian led his group right into Gerald's camp with no fear whatsoever while astonished castle guardsmen watched them pass. Two or three tried to jump in front of him and challenge him with either sword or fists and he quickly dispatched them without missing a step. He marched up to Gerald, who sat in his makeshift throne facing them nervously.

         "Are you the Duke Gerald?" Ian asked.

         "I am," replied the Duke, flanked by Sir Killion on one side and Lokey on the other. "And you are?"

         "Ian," said he. "This is Magbert and these are our friends."

         "I'm Dabble," piped up the brownie from Magbert's top pocket. "Where's Crystal?" Magbert pushed him back down into his pocket with a groan.

         "These are nymphs," Gerald said, ignoring him. "Have you not heard my decree that all nymphs of Alkin Forest are to be my slaves?"

         "I have," shrugged Ian. "That's why I'm here. Pandora is my...significant other. Her friends are my friends, therefore, they come under my protection."

         "Protection?" echoed Gerald.

         "Meaning he and many others have decided to come to the defense of the nymph population," Magbert explained.

         "Right," nodded Ian, as if this were self-explanatory.

         "And we're looking for Crystal," shouted Dabble again. "She's a little sprite, about my height..." Magbert pushed Dabble back down again as Gerald began to laugh.

         "You can't be serious!" he said. "You march into my camp with your pitiful little band of nymphs, a gnome and some strange little man..." Dabble struggled mightily to get free of Magbert now, but Ian spoke for him.

         "He's a brownie," said Ian.

         "And you expect me to surrender?" Gerald finished.

         "Of course," said Ian, again looking as though this was a silly thing to say.

         "Take them all away," Gerald chuckled, waving to the guardsmen whom had completely surrounded them as they spoke.

         "I don't think so," said Lokey, pulling away his disguise and casting a paralyzation spell on the guards nearest him.

         "You!" exclaimed Gerald, realizing he'd been tricked.

         "Duke Gerald, weak-minded idiot," smiled Lokey, casting yet another spell that paralyzed another guard.

         Almost on cue, the nymphs with Ian and Magbert began to holler and scatter, clocking guards in the head with rocks and beating them with sticks. The guardsmen, caught somewhat off guard, were easy prey for Ian and his sword, Lokey and his spells and Magbert and his daggers.

         "My lord, this must stop!" said Sir Killion to Gerald, who sat watching the skirmish as if it were a play. "This is senseless!"

         Gerald frowned, realizing that despite his men's superior weaponry, these people were winning. "Let them go, Killion. You and I will return to the castle to regroup." He turned to leave and realized Killion wasn't following. "Killion, let's go!"

         "I cannot," said the knight. "I resign from your employ, sir."

         Gerald's face turned purple with fury. "You can't do that!" he yelled. "You are my guard captain, as you have always been!"

         "Wrong, my lord," said Sir Killion calmly. "I was your father's captain and were you truly your father's son in deed as well as blood, I would be yours as well." Sir Killion turned from him and Gerald, still livid with anger, turned as well, jumped on his mount and rode swiftly away.

         Meanwhile, the guardsmen, oblivious to the conflict between their superior officers, were beginning to chase the nymphs out of sheer lust. As they were spreading out too far, Ian, Lokey and Magbert were having a difficult time protecting them.

         "Gerald is gone," said Ian, "and the girls are getting too far away for a simple hack and swing approach. I do have my crossbow, however."

         "Split up," said Magbert to Ian. "I'll head east and try to stop as many as I can there. Lokey, you can go south and Ian can go north. The tree should be safe, so we'll just hope the ones we can't help can make it back there..."

         "Please," said Sir Killion, rushing up to them, "allow me to help."

         "Haven't you done enough?" demanded Magbert, but Lokey silenced him.

         "No, no, Magbert, he's on our side," Lokey explained. "Pandora swears by him."

         "What can you do for us?" Ian asked.

         Almost simultaneously, Magbert and Dabble asked, "And have you seen Crystal?"

         "Crystal took Pandora out of here about 30 minutes ago when we passed her off as dead," said Lokey.

         "Crystal or Pandora?" Magbert frowned.

         "Pandora," said Lokey. "I cast a spell on her to simulate death, then Crystal scared off the guys who were going to go bury her and carried Pandora off, hopefully back to the tree. It sounded harebrained at first, but the little mothwing actually had a pretty good plan."

         "Let's just hope she can make it that far," Magbert said.

         "Let me try to call back as many of the duke's men as I can," said Sir Killion, pulling out a small horn. "Some of them may pretend not to hear me, for obvious reasons."

         "Soldiers are soldiers everywhere," agreed Lokey.

         "Most of them will honor this call to duty," said Killion, putting the horn to his lips and blowing three time, twice short and once long.

         "What about me?" demanded Dabble, poking out of Magbert's pocket.

         "What about you?" Magbert shrugged, about to push him back down.

         "Forget it," said Dabble, dodging Magbert's suppressing hand. He leapt out of the pocket and to the ground. "I'll go west back toward the tree," he added, springing off before anyone could stop him. "Besides, somebody's gotta be looking for Crystal."

         "Hey!" Magbert yelled, but Ian stopped him.

         "Let him go," he said. "We've got nymphs to save."

         "But Crystal will be upset..." Magbert began.

         Lokey shook his head. "If he can't take care of himself, he doesn't deserve to be with us, right?"

         "Right," shrugged Magbert.

         "So let's go," Ian replied. The three headed in opposite directions.

        

 

         Crystal sank to the ground in exhaustion, Pandora's lifeless body in her arms. The enlargement spell was fine for some things, but her enlarged wings couldn't carry both her own weight and that of Pandora's as well. She had been travelling for most of the day, walking some and flying some, and she was sure she was headed in the wrong direction. That didn't mean she wasn't still in danger, however, so she knew they had to keep moving. Pandora wouldn't wake up again until Lokey took the spell away from her, so Crystal also had to keep carrying her. She stood up again and began to walk tiredly through the woods in the failing light.

         After a few moments, she heard the sound of hoofbeats behind her. Hurriedly, she tried to hide behind a tree, but tripped and fell, landing across Pandora's stomach. As she tried to get back up again, the Duke Gerald came trotting through the foliage near her. Upon seeing them, he slowed to a halt and dismounted with a smile.

         "Well, isn't this a surprise?" he said, eyeing both Crystal and Pandora. "Stealing the body, are you?"

         Crystal had no answer for him, so she remained silent as Gerald slowly advanced on them. Even trying to cast a spell now would take energy away from her enlargement spell and she couldn't risk that. "Come now, angel, if that's truly what you are, what do you need with my dear sister?" Gerald said.

         "What do you need with her?" Crystal asked, surprising him to stop.

         "So you do speak!" he said. "No angel, I'm sure. What are you, an oversized fairy of some sort?"

         "Sprite," she corrected, then immediately regretted it. Gerald smiled, realizing now that Crystal was probably no threat to him.

         "Ah, isn't that sweet?" he said, advancing on her again. "And are you taking care of Pandora? You shouldn't need to do that if she's dead, right?"

         "Don't come any closer," Crystal said threateningly.

         "I'm just trying to help you, dear lady," he said soothingly. "You look so tired, I just want to help you..."

         "Stay away!" Crystal warned him tremulously. She sang a quick tune to push him back and he fell to the ground a few yards away. It had bought her some time, but not enough. He picked himself up and laughed a little as he looked at Crystal, whom had shrunk a little from her use of magic. Instead of being nearly 5 feet, she had gone down to 4 feet.

         "Is that all you have in you, lady?" he said. "There won't be much left of you at that rate." Crystal frowned angrily at him and he changed tack. "No need to be afraid of me, I'm here to help you," he said.

         "You're trying to take her away and make her your slave," said Crystal, scooting backward and dragging Pandora with her.

         "Well, I can't do that unless..." Suddenly, a thought came to him, stopping his advance again. "She isn't really dead, is she?" When Crystal didn't answer, he began to move quicker this time. "Give her to me."

         "No," said Crystal, sliding back again. She sang another quick tune, causing Gerald to fall further back and herself to go from 4 feet high to little more than 3 feet.

         "Give her to me, you little wood gnat or I'll kill you both myself!" Gerald leapt up and ran at her and Crystal practically screamed a quick tune that tossed him back even further this time, but put her only at brownie height. Gerald tried again and Crystal repeated her tune.

         This time when Gerald returned from Crystal's last push (which had sent him running distance away), she had disappeared from view. He knelt down next to Pandora and searched around until he found Crystal again, hiding near Pandora's neck under her hair. She was completely out of breath from her magic use and was sprite-sized again. She hadn't the energy to grow back or push him away again, nor had she the size to move Pandora out of harm's way, although she had tried magically to do so. He looked down at both of them with a smirk. "Out of ammunition, little gnat?" he said. "Never mind. I'll keep Pandora in a lovely coffin, far away from any magic users who might want to take her little death spell away and you under lock and key as my special toy." He reached down to pick her up and Crystal, too tired to stop him, took a deep breath and screamed as loud as she could, hoping beyond hope that someone might hear her.

         Suddenly, Gerald and the huge hand that was about to lift her up disappeared. With a confused frown, Crystal fluttered weakly up to Pandora's chest to look around for him until, to her surprise, she found him. He was still standing next to Pandora, but now he was the height of a brownie himself. This was still taller than Crystal, but it was certainly better odds, she knew. With a smile, she reached for her belt and pulled out her dagger.

         "Tables are turned now, aren't they?" came a voice. Both Crystal and Gerald looked around for the speaker and Crystal was more than surprised to find Vixen and 10 other large brownies standing behind the once high and mighty young duke.

         "It's about time!" gasped Crystal, with a relieved smile.

         "Better late than never, sister," came Vixen's reply. "You weren't worried, were ya?"

         "Oh, noooo," said Crystal sarcastically.

         "Who are you?" demanded Gerald, his voice now high and squeaky. "What have you done to me?"

         "Brought you down to size a little," Vixen said. "It's time you learned to appreciate the smaller magic folk in your area, my friend. Like take this beauty, for instance." Vixen twirled around so Gerald could get the full view of her brownie features. "I am an unused natural resource."

         "I demand that you grow me back this instant!" the Duke said. Vixen shook her head, then snapped her fingers. Three of her brownie associates jumped Gerald and pinned him to the ground. She minced over and grabbed his head by his hair.

         "Wrong answer!" she said merrily. "I can see I'm going to have lots of fun training you to worship me." She snapped again, and the three brownies tied up the angry young duke despite his protests. Vixen walked over to Crystal with a grin.

         "I'll take him off your hands for ya, if you don't mind," she said, over his yells.

         "All yours," Crystal smiled. "If you can help me and Pandora get back to the nymph tree. I'm sure everyone worried about us."

         "Deal," said Vixen, proffering her hand.

         "Thanks," said Crystal, taking it. "For everything."

         "Consider us even," said Vixen. "Of course, since bargaining with you is always such a pleasure, feel free to wheel and deal with me anytime."

         "I will," Crystal nodded, "but not today. All I want to do now is get back to that nice warm jewelry box of Pandora's for some uninterrupted sleep."

         "Let's hit the road, then," said Vixen. She flicked her wrist, creating a small apple in her hand that she casually crammed into Gerald's still shouting mouth. She patted his cheek, saying "You're so cute when you're angry!" then snapped her fingers at her men. One of them threw Gerald over his shoulder, while another ran up to Crystal.

         "We'll carry her for you, miss," said he, pointing to Pandora. Vixen waved a hand and Pandora's body shrunk down to a brownie-manageable size.

         "Somebody carry Crystal, too," said Vixen. "She's one of us now." Two brownies ran up to lift Crystal off her feet and she smiled at Vixen.

         "Membership does have it's advantages," she said.

         "You know it," grinned Vixen, leaning back in her own brownie made seat.

Previous Next
Back To Alkin Forest
Home