Flance’s son stood in the midst of the men. His eyes reddened and puffed up as they filled with tears. Sterling watched in the shadows as his father lie crumpled on the floor coughing and trying to recover from Freelone’s punch. He wanted to run to his father’s side and rescue him. He felt it would not be wise. He quietly hid behind the men, not wanting any attention to turn to him.

  “Do you see what you did to these men? I want you to take a good look.” The king held Flance’s head up to force him to observe the suffering. Flance continued coughing. His throat was raw from the force of the hacking. As he peered at everyone, he chose not to say anything; he didn’t want to add fuel to anyone’s fire. Everyone looked furious enough. He knew that he was innocent, but at the moment that didn’t seem to matter. They had decided he was responsible for their condition and he was aware that there was nothing he could do to change it.

  Flance’s son could not take it anymore, he stepped toward the king.

  “Uh, hum, your holiest, um, dear king, um.”

  The king looked over at him. Flance’s son was about the same size as Thelton even though he had lost a lot of weight in the forest. He had a round face with short blond hair. He was the only man in the kingdom that had short hair. His dad had shaved it off awhile ago when it had become infested with lice. It was slowly growing back. His baby face didn’t have one speck of stubble on it. His body didn’t grow hair very well. The beards on the men had grown wild during their time in the forest, without a beard, he looked different from the rest of them.

  “Speak,” the king said.

  “Yes, thanks, um, I am here to testify that Flance did not do this to the men. I am his own son. I was turned into, um a tree as well as, um everyone else. He wouldn’t do that to me. I am all that he has.”

  The king turned and fully faced Flance’s son. “You are his son?”

  “Yes, um, yes your lordship. I am his son, and I promise he didn’t do it. He drank the whiskey, as well. If it was the whiskey that had been poisoned, then, um, he would have become a tree like the rest of us.” Flance’s son kept his gaze fixed to the floor. He was so nervous that he had a hard time speaking.

  “What is your name, boy?”

  “Sterling.”

  The men became angry behind Sterling. “He never touched the whisky,” the men called out. Someone knocked Sterling on the side of his blond head. The force made his ears began to ring. Sterling reached up and cradled his sore head.

  “He, um, he did. It was given to him by Royster.” Sterling said.

  “Where is this Royster?” the king inquired.

  One of the men stepped forward and bowed his head. “He didn’t make it.”

  The king’s face reddened. “You want me to take your witness alone, his own son? Is there any man here that can attest to Flance drinking his own whisky?”

  “He didn’t touch it,” someone yelled.

  “He drugged us with it,” another said.

  The men were enraged.

  “Um, your lordship, he really did drink, it. I promise you with my life that The Dragon Slayer did this to all of us. He was very angry and mean; he wanted the hunt to himself. My father, he loved the men and did much for them. He never would have hurt them. This was all done by The Dragon Slayer.”

  The king threw his hands over his ears. “Enough, Boy!” he screamed. His head felt like it would explode. He was still not ready to except the idea that Thelton could be evil. He wasn’t sure what to think about him rescuing Indy and running off. Maybe he had compassion for the creature, yes, that was it. Maybe he just didn’t want to see experiments placed upon her. He would be back, he would marry his daughter. They would forgive him, and all would be well. Thelton was a good man. He would prove himself.

  Sterling cowered back into the crowd of men.

  “Take him back to the dungeon, we will deal with him later,” the king said pointing to Flance. The guards dragged him out.

  “Now, let us work on healing our kingdom’s fine men.”

  …

  Sterling sat in his room. It was smaller than the one that Thelton used, but to Sterling, it was huge. He lay in between the nice sheets. He had never seen such luxury in his life. He wanted to be excited for his first experience in a castle, but his heart throbbed for his father. He kept having flashbacks of seeing him tied to the cave’s ceiling. He saw the sorrow in his father’s eyes when he was publicly displayed before the men. His father had taken it all, without even saying a word. He had always defended himself, he never kept silent. Sterling thought of him coughing, these images made him weep into his pillow. A squeak came from the heavy doors hinges. Sterling looked up with his blue eyes.

  Princess Alashia entered the room. She wore her night robe even though it was the middle of the day. Her hair was combed straight down without any style or adornments. She had huge dark circles under her eyes. Despite her stressed face, she was divine to look at, a beauty beyond compare.

  Sterling wiped his eyes and sat up. What was the princess doing in his room?

  “Can I talk to you?” she asked.

  “Um, yes, yes of course.” Sterling swung his thick legs over the side of the bed. He straightened his clothes. The princess sat next to him. She was so close, her shoulder rubbed into his. He strained to breathe because he was so nervous.

  “Do you really believe that your father is innocent?”

  “Fully.”

  The princess just sat there thinking. She had so much going through her mind. Her very presence was electrifying to Sterling.

  “What is your name, peasant boy?”

  “Sterling.”

  “Sterling,” the princess repeated. Sterling liked the way his name rolled off her tongue.

  “Sterling, something terrible has happened. Something so, so horrible. You see, Sterling, I was supposed to marry Thelton The Dragon Slayer. We are so in love, a love that has never been felt by anyone before, a love so real and binding. The terrible thing is that he met this lady. Well, I am not sure one would call her a lady. She was some wild creature from the forest that looked like a lady, but she wasn’t, she was a beast. Look what she did to my hand.” The princess showed the scar.

  “I think that she is magical, she must be, for she had wings. They say she can fly and that she carried Thelton away. Yes, he was the one that rescued her from the dungeon, but I don’t think that he could help it. Like I said, she is magical and she casted a spell on him. She made him think that he was in love with her. It happens all the time, love magic. Anyways, he thought he loved her, but there is no way that he did because he is madly in love with me.” The princess began to cry. Sterling stared at her, not really sure what to do. He had never sat next to a girl before. She was more than a girl; she was the kingdom’s princess.

  “I need Thelton back. I can’t lose him, I can’t” she screamed through her tears. “Father is torn on his feelings. He is upset right now, as you can imagine. A part of him believes that the beastly woman has put a spell on Thelton, another part thinks that Thelton really is a bad man and that he left me for her.” She became intense, grabbing Sterling’s shirt top and began shaking him.

  “There is no way that he would leave me for her. She was huge, like a man. She was incredibly ugly and smelt horrible. Look at me, Sterling, I am beautiful, I steal all men’s hearts. He wouldn’t leave me for her.” The princess bawled and laid her head on Sterling’s shoulder. He sat stiff, having no idea how to comfort someone. Sweat drenched his underarms.

  The princess bawled for quite some time, finally she composed herself a little. Through her sniffles, she continued talking. “I need your help, Sterling. Father doesn’t want to think about Thelton right now, he says he has too many other things to concentrate on. I need you. Will you help me?”

  The princess put her face right into Sterling’s. She stuck out her bottom lip and stared into his eyes. He was mesmerized, she was so beautiful.

  “Um, yes, but why me?”

  “Because, I am going to make a deal with you. If you capture Thelton for me...”

  Sterling interrupted her as he sat up, “um, no. There is no way that I can or will capture that murderer for you.”

  “Murderer, Thelton is not a murderer! I never want to hear you say those words again.” Her nails dug into his shoulder. “I know that you blame Thelton to save your father’s life, and I can’t blame you for trying. But, you will never say it again, do you understand?”

  Sterling looked away.

  “Good,” the princess said. “I need you to capture Thelton for me and bring him back to the castle.”

  “No, no, no.” Sterling shook his head. “I can’t, he is um, very strong and very powerful. I just can’t, sorry Princess, you can ask one of the other men. Try um, Freelone, he loves Thelton.”

  “I need it to be you.”

  “Why?” Sterling asked.

  “Because, you have more to lose than anyone else. That means you will not fail.”

  “How so?”

  “They are going to kill your father in a few days. If you bring me back Thelton, I will release your father to you.”

  Sterling’s eyes widened. “You really would?”

  “I would, I promise,” the princess said.

  Sterling’s face dropped. “I would like my father free. The problem is that Thelton is too strong for me. He is a so powerful. I wouldn’t stand a chance.”

  The princess became lost in thought. She looked at Sterling’s frame noticing that he was close to the size of Thelton. His muscles were definitely smaller than Thelton’s. Sterling was right, though, he looked so young and innocent. Her lover would tear him to shreds. She thought for awhile, her face illuminated as she got excited.

  “Your right, I can’t send you to bring him in. However, you can capture the girl he is with. If you bring her to the castle he is sure to follow. Once we have him here, we can have the wizard rid him of his love curse.”

  Sterling thought of going against Thelton, there was no way. Thelton was so strong and clever. He knew this from personal experience.

  “Princess, I really would like to help, but I just don’t think I am, the um, right guy. I am not clever, and I am not strong.”

  The princess pouted her lip. “Please Sterling,” She took extra attention to pronounce his name. “You can do this.” She traced her finger across his cheeks.

  Sterling stood up. “I can’t.” It sickened him to tell the princess no, but he feared Thelton more than he feared her.

  The princess stood up as well. She was angry. “Fine, don’t help. You’re right. I will find someone that is actually brave. But you can say good bye to your daddy. I will make sure his execution is horrible.”

  The princess had succeeded. She struck his nerve.

  Sterling looked down at the ground. “I will do it. I will capture the girl in return for my father. Do you, do you promise me on your kingdom that you will free him?”

  “On the kingdom,” the princess said.

  Chapter 17

  Thelton felt like he was walking on a cloud.

  “I kissed her. I kissed a woman!” No wonder so many men went crazy when they were in love. It was wonderful, it was magical, and it was a dream. All Thelton could do was think about the kiss. He kept his eyes on Indy and would smile at her whenever she would look at him. She rarely returned the smile. In fact, she didn’t seem moved at all by the kiss. Thelton felt a little troubled by her lack of change. The kiss had changed him, why not her?

  That night when he led her to the room, she wouldn’t go in.

  “Come on, Indy; it’s getting cold. Let’s go in where it is warm.”

  Indy didn’t move. Thelton grabbed her hand and pulled at her. She growled at him.

  “What are you doing, women?” he asked. “One minute you are snuggling me, the next growling.”

  Indy pointed to the sky. “Fly.” She said.

  “Fly, fly, fly! Where are you going to fly at this time of night? And look at you, you are all dolled up. You can’t fly in a dress like that. Come on, let’s go to bed.”

  Thelton walked into the room. Indy didn’t follow. She folded her arms. She was tired of sleeping in the stuffy rooms. She could hear the crickets and insects of the night. She wanted to be out in it. She just stood there.

  Thelton went in the room and sat on the bed. It creaked to his sudden weight. He could see Indy through the open door. The cool night air blew into the room.

  “Listen, this is not working. I am not sure what is in your head, but you need to dismiss it. Stop your silliness and come inside.”

  Indy turned her back to the door. She didn’t know what the human was saying. He was going on again with all his talking. Sometimes she wished he would just be quiet. She rarely knew what he was saying, but he was always talking. She enjoyed being with him, but suddenly she was feeling like she wanted some space. Her chest was tightening, for she felt pressure in it.

  Indy took her claws and tore at the back of her dress. Threads tangled out everywhere. She ripped apart the back seems and her wings had more room. She stretched them open, it felt really good. She looked into the room where Thelton sat on the bed. She looked to the sky. Suddenly, off she went into the darkness.

  Thelton looked out the door in time to see her fly off. He ran out of the room with all his might. He was too late. He watched her fly away.

  “Get back here, where are you going? Get back here! You can’t take off like that. Get back here now!” Thelton was jumping at the sky. She was gone. Would she come back? Since they met, they had hardly been apart. When they had been separated while she was in jail, it had killed him. He didn’t want to lose her. He had sacrificed so much for her. Where was she going?

  Sterling put his new sword in its sheath. His father had given him a few of his old rusty swords. They were of little value for fighting.

  The princess stood in front of him. She had gotten ready for the day and her looks were brilliant to behold. She instilled in him a great deal of desire. Sterling had a hard time not getting lost in her blue eyes.

  “Maybe if I brought the wild woman back, the princess would be in my favor. She would find out for herself what a horrible person Thelton was. She would pick me.” Sterling imagined her falling in love with him instead of Thelton. “Yes, we would marry and then I would live in the castle.”

  “…and then that is it.” The princess said.

  Sterling realized he had missed everything the princess had said. He was lost in her beauty.

  “Do you have any questions?”

  “Um, no, I um, I think I got it.” Sterling hated how her stammered around her.

  The princess placed a kiss on his cheek. His face became hot. He would do this mission for her. He wanted her to be pleased with him.

  “Oh, and one other thing,” the princess said. “No one is to know of our deal, do you understand.”

  “Yes.”

  …

  The princess led Sterling through a secret passage under the castle.

  “I can’t have anyone seeing you with me. I have loaded you up with supplies from the royal armory. Everything needed to be done in secret. If I am going to let Flance free, there is no way I can be caught having any connection to him or his son.” It wouldn’t be hard for her to free Flance, but it must remain the utmost secret.

  The banging of the door ricocheted off the outer walls of the castle. Sterling glanced back at the secret door in the castle wall. It was already closed. He had hoped to steal one last glance of the princess. His emotions were whirling around inside him. So many new and crazy things had just happened. He had been in a castle! He had the princess talk to him and even kiss him on the cheek. She spoke his name. These things elated him. On the flip side of it, his heart throbbed at the images of his father. He mustn’t get distracted from the true nature of his mission. He was to free his father. And of course, there was fear. He had always been a skittish boy. He feared everything. He had relied on his father to defend him. It was the first time in his life that he was alone. He could not fail. He would fail. Oh, the emotions.

  Sterling had no idea where to go. “Where does one find a legendary dragon slayer that is in hiding?”

  Sterling had heard the men talking at the castle. He had heard about Thelton and everything that had happened. Some of the information had been falsified, but most was true. Thelton had rescued the strange woman. He had walked away from the kingdom. Well, actually, he had flown away from it. Where would he go? How could the woman fly? It was all so strange. The hardest thing for Sterling to figure out was why Thelton would leave anyone as beautiful as the princess. Sterling would sell his soul for her.

  As he looked at the closed door, he felt hopeless. “I don’t even know where to start. There is no way I will find Thelton within the next couple of days. My father will be dead before I even find Thelton or the woman.” Sterling’s heart dropped. “I have already failed before I have even started. But I can’t just leave my father to die without trying. I am not going to quit. If nothing else, maybe I can win the princess’s heart. That would be worth it, wouldn’t it?”

  Sterling tried to think of what he knew about Thelton.

  “He loves the Vegus forest, everyone knows that. Would he be stupid enough to hide out in it? Maybe in the past he would have found refuge in the forest, but I don’t think he would now. The secrets of the forest are now known by many. Maybe he would go to the Flankton forest, maybe that’s where he is. No; of course not. He wouldn’t be irrational enough to be in the tri-kingdoms while everyone was looking for him.”

  Sterling felt so lost. Which direction should he go? It didn’t matter. He had little hope for success.. The forest was so large. He could even go to the right forest or right kingdom and still miss finding Thelton. He would be hiding somewhere deep.

  …

  Sterling drew his new shiny sword out and pointed it straight ahead. It was heavy and kept weighing down his arms. He closed his eyes and spun in circles. When he finally stopped, he opened his eyes. His sword was pointing in the direction of Arlisaine.

 

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