My 8 E-books written over the years by Alina Udrea - HTML preview

Chapter 9: All the king’ s friends

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-Harry, have you seen Miiah? She said she needed some air but I can’t find her anywhere. I am concerned that something happened to her.-No, I haven’t seen her for the last half hour. I will ask Ulo.-What is all this commotion about? Asked Scar while Harry the Dwarf already took his axe ready to protect the king from whoever was about to barge through the castle doors. But to everyone’ s surprise it was Bratty, Mongo and Mean.

-What happened? Asked Scar. Where have you been Bratty?-Someone kidnapped me but thanks to these two gentlemen I am back safe and sound. Sorry for having missed the wedding party but it was beyond my powers and it wasn’t my fault. Where is Miiah? Is she upset with me?-No, nobody knows. We haven' t seen her for the last half hour. But with you telling us that you were kidnapped maybe this is what happened to Miiah too. We have to find her and save her. Who is with me for a possibly dangerous journey to save my queen?

-We all are with you Scar! Ulo, Mongo, Harry, Mean and Bratty all said without a shadow of a doubt in their souls ready to do whatever it took to save their friend and queen.

-But I need someone I can trust to watch over the kingdom while we are away. Ulo can pick locks so he will go. He is very useful to open doors and find and disarm traps. He is the best in the kingdom when it comes to these things. Mongo is as silent as a shadow and he can pick up her trail and we will also need magic to fight magic so Mean and Bratty can also come. Harry, you are a warrior and a good leader. I trust you with my life. But either you keep the kingdom safe while the rest of us go on this mission or if you go then I will have to stay. They need a warrior to protect them. Maybe it is best for you to go too and I will stay and protect the kingdom myself. The people will feel safe with me here so I guess this is the best option. And I will have Harry’ s brother Olekson by my side. He is as good as Harry, although a bit younger and less experienced. And although he is a also a dwarf, he is an inch taller than Harry, said Scar chuckling. Scar always liked to tease Harry about his stature. But he really loved the dwarf who was like a brother to him.

-Hah, I never noticed… grumbled Harry more to himself than for the others.

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-The people don' t even have to know that the queen has been kidnapped. It would only bring panic. You can tell them that she had to leave and see her parents because one of them is gravely ill until the rest of us can get Miiah back. Said Mongo always thinking ahead.

-You are right as always. Then God bless you all and I hope you will all return safely with my bride unharmed by your side. You will also need to take one of the cooks with you. I don' t suppose any of you can cook, can you?-Hmm, don' t look at me, said Bratty in a hurry. I may be a woman, but I am a mage, not a cook. I don’t even cook for myself, let alone for this whole bunch. It is going to be a cold day in hell before you will see me cooking!-Ok then, with that settled, I can let you take Adi the cook with you. Syngates stays here. He will have to rely on Eto until Adi returns. From what I' ve heard Eto is just as good as Adi when it comes to spices and cakes. Eto was Adi' s distant cousin and he was a bit edgy all the time. That is why Scar suggested taking Adi and not Eto.

Scar was an excellent leader and smart tactician. Scar never avoided wars

but he did everything in his power not provoke wars. He never started wars, he was content with what he had but when his kingdom was attacked he did everything to protect his people. This is why he decided it would be best for him to keep the kingdom safe in case Donn would be attacked and so he sent his most trusted friends to save Miiah . He knew that they wouldn’t return without her. He trusted each of them with his life. He didn't know Bratty that well yet but she was Miiah ‘ s friend so he could also trust her.

So the 5 friends gathered supplies for the journey. They took the best

horses from the royal stables and after a good night' s sleep they were on their way, Adi also joining them.

It was a foggy morning. Dew covered the grass and the ground was damp from last night' s rain. With the first rays of the morning sun they were already out the castle gates toward their mission to save their queen. It would probably be a long and dangerous journey but they were all prepared to die if they had to for their queen. They were ready to sacrifice their own lives for her. The mood was sad when Ulo finally broke the silence:

-Hey, lighten up. We are not going to a funeral. We are going to save Miiah so let' s be more optimistic! Then he sipped a bit of his favorite brew from a small bottle he always kept hidden in one of his many interior pockets of his

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long jacket. The other pockets were filled with all sorts of pick locks and screws. And of course a dagger.

- Ulo is right. The tracks show that they went this way, said Mongo although the others couldn’t distinguish anything in the damp soil. They travelled for a few hours till they realized the horses needed some rest and water. So they decided to find a river or a brook and make camp nearby.

-Ok, we can make camp here said Mongo. Who wants to gather some wood to start a fire?

-Mongo, are you trying to be funny? Laughed Mean. I am a fire mage in case you forgot. I could set the whole place ablaze if I chose too. So to start a camp fire is a piece of cake. And saying that he made a ball of fire which started floating in the air and emanating heat enough for them to get warm. Told you, a piece of cake…

-Ok, thank you Mean for saving us the trouble of gathering wood. Now we should all get some rest. Who wants to stand guard first? Asked Mongo as he didn’t want himself to be first on guard duty.

-Do I count? Asked Adi who now saw his opportunity to be more than just a cook. When he wasn’t cooking for the king he was playing in his yard with a wooden sword pretending to be a brave knight. He would hit his practice dummy till his hands couldn’t pick up the sword anymore. Then he would go to sleep dreaming of saving some damsel in distress.-I don' t see any harm in that, replied Ulo. If you see anything suspicious, wake us up. Just don’t fall asleep, ok boy?

-Yes sir!

Mean was the first who started snoring. Then the rest of the small group

also fell asleep. This was just the first day on the road and the first night spent under the stars with no ceiling above their heads. Mean was also the first to wake up. He looked around and he saw that everybody was still asleep, even Adi. He had fallen asleep on a rock with his head on his knees and he was snoring so loud that Mean thought it was no wonder he had waken up. He went and kicked Adi on his legs. Adi woke up startled.-What is it? What’ s wrong? And he looked at Mean and then it struck him. He had fallen asleep while he was supposed to have the first watch.-Oh my god, I am so sorry. I must have only slept for a minute or so. I wanted to stand on guard the whole night so the rest of you could sleep.

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Instead, I fell asleep! Please don' t tell the others or they will never let me do anything else than cook…

-Hmm, I don' t know… What the hell, we are all safe, not thanks to you, but the fact is that we are safe so I will let this slip this time.-Thank you, thank you so much!

-Enough talking, now make us something to eat, I am starving and so will be the others when they wake up.

-Right away! Answered Adi glad he was off the hook this time.-I will go and try to catch us some fresh meat, a hare or something, better than just the vegetables and the dried meat. Said Ulo and took some tools to try and make a rabbit trap.

-Ok, but don' t be long Ulo, we have a long road ahead. Said Mongo who didn’t think Ulo would have any luck with catching anything.-Hey, Bratty, can you tell us something about yourself? I think I speak for all because we don' t know much about you other than the fact that you are an ice mage and Miiah' s friend, said Mean more curious for himself than he was ready to admit.

- What would you like to know? There is not much to tell.- For starters, how did you meet Miiah?

- She found me in woods when I was just a girl. My parents had abandoned me when they saw that I had magic in me. They feared me so their fear couldn’t let them love me and they decided it was best for everybody if they took me to the woods and left me there. I was shivering with cold and I was hungry. I had been in the woods for two days when a wolf attacked me. I was too tired to defend myself, I couldn’t focus my magic powers. That is when Miiah appeared and she, believe it or not, tamed the wild beast. Then she healed my wounds and took me in to live with her. We’ve been best friends ever since.

- Ok Bratty. Nice to have you with us. Now let' s see what Ulo brings us. He can pick locks and disarm traps but I don’t know about catching wild animals. This domain is alien to him. Mongo winked at rest of the group. Meanwhile Ulo was setting a trap next to a berry bush. He was behind another bush when he suddenly heard a swish sound from a fired arrow that went right past him hardly missing his head. He turned around and saw a huge adder dropping dead behind him. It would have bitten him otherwise but it had an arrow shot through its head. Somebody had saved him. Who had fired that perfect shot? He hadn’t seen anyone while setting up the

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hare trap. He looked around but couldn’t see anyone. Then he thought that whoever fired the arrow could have killed him if he wanted but had saved him instead.

- Who' s there? He asked. Then he saw a slender silhouette descend from a nearby tree. He was covered in a long mantle and his head was covered by a hood.

- Thank you, stranger. You saved me. I was trying to catch dinner for me and my friends and wasn’t paying attention to the surroundings. May I know your name?

- Friends call me Deadly Arrows. Do you know why? Cause my arrows are deadly, they never miss their target. You will need my help to save the queen. I know where she is. She is in Arcania, Gelebron' s land. It is a barren land filled with perils. You will need me if you and your friends want to stand a chance to get there. I will be your guide.

- How do you know all these? Have you been following us?- Yes, from the moment you left the castle gates. I will help you and in return I want to be hired as the king' s personal archer. I have no family and I am tired of living under the sky. So working for the king would be nice.- Ok, let' s get back to camp. Oh, but I haven’t caught any hare yet. Can’t get back empty handed.

- Watch and learn. Then he took an arrow from the quiver and aimed. His aim was true. A few seconds later a deer fell shot right between its eyes.- Ok, good enough for dinner?

- Beats the hare I was going to catch anyway…

Back at the camp they were all getting nervous cause Ulo wasn’t back yet when he finally got back, not with a hare but with a deer and another person.

- Who is this Ulo?

- He says his name is Deadly Arrows and he wants to help. He says he knows where Miiah is. I think there is no harm if he joins us. Any objections? But before anyone could answer, “ he” took the hood off “ his” head to reveal a pair of blue eyes and blonde hair and pointed ears and a pretty feminine face.

- A she elf! Oh my god Ulo! It is a woman! An elf! Said Bratty looking at her.- So what? I see you have a dwarf with you and nobody’s complaining about him. Got anything against elves?

- No sir, I mean Miss. But I thought you were a man, said Ulo not knowing

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how to react. Saved by a girl. What a shame.

- My real name is Alyss. That is what my friends call me. And as for my enemies, I am Deadly Arrows.

- So we will call you Alyss if that' s ok with you, said Ulo.- Unless you want to call me Deadly Arrows, ha-ha!!- So Alyss it is! Said Mongo. How do you know the land of Arcania? Have you been there?

- I was born there. It is a barren land. Nothing grows there. It is filled with giant snakes and scorpions. There are a few mining settlements where slaves work from dusk till dawn for Gelebron. They are guarded constantly by boggans, some sort of imps, his personal army. Every settlement has these boggans, a small army of them, with a ruler, a smarter and stronger boggan to command the mindless creatures. And of course there are the humans and the elves, enslaved into mining for Gelebron. They mine for precious gem stones all day long. They are only allowed two meals a day which usually consist of bread and water. When the boggan leader wants to have fun he throws them his leftovers and lets them fight for them. It is an awful life, just surviving and working all day long. But at his tower, Gelebron is surrounded by an army of demons, not boggans, which I am sure you guessed are far worse.

- How do you know all these Alyss? Asked Mongo.- I know because I was a slave there. Until the day I escaped. But unfortunately my friends remained there. I couldn’t save them. Truth is I will need your help to do that. You guys help me save them and I and my friends will help you save Miiah.

- Fair enough, Ulo agreed with the beautiful elf.

- So what is the name of the settlement where your friends are being kept? asked Bratty.

- Carrow. That is where they are. It is the largest of the mining settlements and it is well guarded. It has two boggan generals, unlike the other smaller settlements which only have one boggan general to supervise the other boggans and the slaves. If we manage to kill these two powerful beasts, the other boggans will surely scatter in fear. They can' t act on their own, they are always ruled by a general. So if we kill Hrung and Mordris, the two generals, then all the slaves from Carrow will be free. If we can' t kill them, then at least smuggle my friends out. An elfish family, Dee, a beautiful healer, her husband Al, their kid, Fakey and their daughter Rexxa, a very

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skilled archer. So will you help me?

- The more we are, the better chances we stand against Gelebron. Yes , we will save them and then we will go together and save Miiah. If anyone doesn’t agree with this plan, say now. But as Mongo didn’t receive any answers, he took it as a yes.

- Ok, then Alyss, I guess you will lead the way. You are the one who knows how to get there faster and you must also know the safest route.- We leave first thing in the morning, it is getting late. Let' s see what Adi has cooked for us, said Mean. They all agreed and after a good meal, they all went to sleep but Alyss who stood watch till she was too tired and she woke Bratty for next watch.

It was a cold night but Mean created another ball of fire to keep them warm. Each fell asleep dreaming of the many adventures they would encounter.

- Rise and shine! Come on, wake up. Time to go, Alyss said.- Morning already? Complained Bratty who was still sleepy. One by one they were soon all up. It was a beautiful warm autumn morning with a little breeze. The whole forest came back to life, it was teeming with all sort of animals and insects and the birds started chirping their usual morning song, already hungry and ready to hunt the unsuspecting insects.

- We have to head North towards the end of this forest till we reach a clearing. Then we will follow the stream until the road forks. There, at the crossroads, we will have to go on the left path. It is safer but a bit longer. If we turn right, we would encounter a band of vicious goblins. They are small creatures, always ready to plunder and loot everything and everyone they encounter. They are not strong as individuals but their strength is in their numbers. So I say we had better avoid an unnecessary confrontation with the little bastards. Said Alyss who seemed to know what she was talking about.

- Alright Alyss. You will be our guide. We trust you to lead us to Gelebron' s tower and so to Miiah. Said Harry. Although I wouldn’t mind splitting a few goblin skulls with my axe. While saying that Harry started sharpening his axe until it shone in the sunlight.

- No, Alyss is right. We had better go left. Said Ulo.- All right. We will follow that path until we get to a huge bush. Behind it lies a secret tunnel which will take us directly to Arcania, near Carrow. Then we

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will save my friends and together we will save Miiah. If there are no objections, I would suggest going as we established. It is getting dark and I wouldn’t like to meet some stray goblins on our way. The weather is also turning stormy so let' s try to reach the tunnel before dark. This way we can camp there, protected from the cold and the storm.

Then they all followed Alyss. By the time they reached the crossroads they

were already exhausted. Bratty was the first to complain:- I need a break. I am too tired to go on. And I am hungry. Adi, wouldn’t you like to cook something for us before we go on?

- Bratty, please, let’s hurry to the tunnel. The storm will be pretty bad. You can eat and rest once we get there. And this is no place to have breaks. The goblins I told you about have a shaman leader and he is even more greedy to loot and plunder. He usually sends two scouts to find out if there is anyone to be attacked. So let' s stick to the plan and get to the safety of the tunnel. Said Alyss feeling bad for poor Bratty.

- I am not afraid of some goblins. I will turn them to popsicles. But ok, I can’t stop the storm that seems to be coming so I agree even if I don’t like it. So let' s move people!

- I could also turn them to ashes but I agree with Alyss and Bratty, said Mean not wanting to be less brave than Bratty.

- And I could turn them into dinner!! Laughed Adi to himself. He didn’t dare say it aloud though.

- Ok, then pick up your bags and let' s go. It started raining already. We will be soaking wet by the time we reach the entrance to the tunnel. And Alyss was the first to listen to her own words and started moving again. In another hour and a half they were all inside the tunnel around a cozy fire and eating some hares which Alyss had shot earlier. Then they agreed on having a good night' s rest before setting out again. They had to leave their horses at the tunnel entrance though as the tunnels weren’t big enough in some places for them. So from now on they had to go on foot. That was a big drawback as it meant they had to carry their own bags from then on, not having their horses anymore.

Next morning they were all refreshed and started their journey again

wondering what else was there to encounter and also wondering what was lurking in the depths of the tunnel which seemed to never end.- Alyss, any idea if the tunnel is inhabited? Any dangers we should know about? Asked Mongo.

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- You must have read my mind, added Harry. Should I have my axe ready?- Yes, this tunnel is swarming with wraiths. They are the ghosts of every knight that has lost his soul in these tunnels and they aren’t friendly. So be prepared. Here we will need magic to fight these abominations. So Mean, Bratty, here is your chance to prove yourselves. My quiver is magical, and so are my arrows. I can never remain out of arrows, each time I take an arrow out of the quiver, another one takes its place. And I can also kill wraiths with my arrows. But I am afraid that Ulo, Mongo and Harry' s weapons are useless against them. So we' ll rely on my arrows and Bratty and Mean' s magic. And stick close to each other so we don’t get lost in this maze of a tunnel.

- How come you didn’t say anything about these damned ghosts last night before we went to sleep?

- There was no need to get you worried then. They never come that close to the tunnel entrance. They can’t stand daylight. And they are afraid of fire. I kept watch all night to make sure the fire wouldn’t die out.

Ulo felt the need for a drink. He took a sip from his bottle and then he

took another swig. He was nervous, just as Mongo and Harry were at the thought that they wouldn’t be able to defend themselves against this foe. Now they were all very happy that they had two mages with them and an archer with magic arrows. They were hoping to get to other side and to Arcania without meeting these ghosts but they weren’t that lucky. They soon stumbled upon four of them.

Alyss was the first to see them. She quietly drew a magic arrow and she shot it at the one that was closest to them. The moment the arrow pierced it, the wraith wailed in agony and vanished. It was Bratty and Mean' s turn now. Bratty shot ice shards at one and Mean fireballs. All four wraiths were dead, released from their agony.

- That wasn’t so bad, said Adi.

- We were that good, Bratty corrected him.

They all laughed to relieve the stress. After a few more wraiths being sent back to the hell they had come from, our heroes finally arrived at the other end of the tunnel, they had made it to Arcania. Now they had to go to Carrow and save Alyss' s friends.

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