Rana Kane:
Thanks for reviewing.
well, let's hope they will make it in time ;)
You do? Oh, I'm glad to hear that. I considered to describe the castle a bit more but decided against it in the end. So, I let everyone get his/her own image of that castle...
yummy. I wonder right now how unicorn meat would taste like :D ah, whatever.
I'm pleased you like this little 'joke' :)
At first, I wasn't so sure if I should add a bit humor in it or not (since I tend to have a scathing/coarse/grim humor how do you call that btw?) but I couldn't resist to make a little joke about the 'dumb unicorn' which many fans don't like at all (I, myself, loved her when I first saw that show 'cause I adored unicorns. I found it just too cute how she was looking like in 'The traitor' when Hank leaves the group again to return to Venger's castle)

D.B. Cooper:
Thanks for your review.
Of course they won't abandon him! Well, I also don't think that they would... You're right!
Besides, I guess Sheila won't be pleased at all if Hank decides to let Bobby down. Anyway, if my brother was in this situation, I would do everything to get him back safely.
Yeah, do you want to vote what they'll do (first)? I'd be in favor of c) :D
Ah, well, here you go...

7.

"And you really believe that this is gonna work?" the Cavalier asked disbelieving.

"I dunno, but I couldn't think of something better. Sorry." Presto said.

"You don't have to be sorry; I think it's not a bad idea." Sheila meant reassuring.

"Ok, let's go then before the other Orc comes back." Eric decided.

"Are you ready, Presto?" Sheila applied to Presto.

"As if you ever could be ready for such absurd things... yeah." the Magician replied.

Sheila and Eric nodded. Then the Thief slipped her hood over and vanished.

Slightly trembling, Presto stepped into the chamber. The Orc hadn't noticed him yet.

"Um, hello Mr Orc. Are you up for some entertainment? Some music perhaps?" Presto asked with a wavering voice.

The Orc looked up puzzled and examined him.

"You're one of Dungeon Master's Pupils, aren't you?" occurred to the Orc.

"Yeah and I want to remain as that a while." the Magician retorted and threw the flute in the Orc's face.

The guard leaped up grunting and wanted to lunge at Presto but the boy turned around immediately and ran across the room, always being anxious not to come very close to the Orc.

"Just wait, boy, I'm going to get you!" the Orc snorted, already panting for breath.

"Hey, croc-face, catch me if you can!" Sheila teased the Orc and attracted his attention to her.

"Ah, I might have guessed that you won't come alone!" the guard gasped and really let up on Presto.

The Thief waved towards the Orc and stood still.
The Orc came closer but Sheila wasn't about to evade him.
When he was just a short distance away from her, she pulled up the hood as quick as lightning, stepping aside.

The Orc didn't see that coming and crashed into the wall.

"Owww..." Presto uttered and grimaced, almost sympathetically.

The Orc sank to the floor and stayed there unconscious.

"Perfect! I knew that we were gonna beat him." Eric vaunted and entered the chamber.

He was supposed to keep watch in front of the entrance.

"Good thing I've watched out that no other guard could disturb our plan."
The Cavalier stopped and looked at his friends in the hope of getting approval.

Sheila and Presto were looking at each other chuckling.

"Yeah. Way to go, Eric!" Sheila then complimented him yet, suppressing a fit of laughter with great difficulty.

"That's what I said... Ugh, gosh, Presto, don't puff in my ear like that!" Eric complained.

"Um, Eric..." Presto piped up, standing in the other corner of the room.

"What? Oh... OH." it began to dawn on Eric.

He cautiously looked over his shoulder and stared straight into the angry face of the other Orc.

"Uh-oh." Eric uttered and backed away a few steps.

"Well, look what we've got here! Have you been coming to keep company with the one over there?" the Orc asked smirking and pointed to Bobby in his cage with a nod.

"That's fine with me. I will take care of that." With those words he dropped the food he brought for himself and his buddy and darted at Eric.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Out of one of the innumerable rooms without doors - there apparently was put no value to any types of doors at building the castle - shone bright light, which couldn't possibly come from common torches.

The Ranger and the Acrobat sneaked to the entrance and peeped into the room attentively.

Against their expectations, the chamber was empty.
No single guard was there.
There was nothing in the room besides a bright, pulsating light which was floating weightlessly in the middle of the chamber.
The light enclosed the Barbarian's Club.

"The Club." Diana noticed.

"That's very strange. Why aren't here any guards?" Hank wondered and assured himself that no Orcs were hiding in niches or on the corridor.

"A trap?" Diana asked startled.

"Either that or..."

"...Venger hasn't expected us yet." Diana finished Hank's sentence.

"Exactly. So, what is more likely?" the Ranger pondered and stepped into the room hesitatingly. Diana followed him.

But nothing happened when they entered the chamber. They looked at each other surprised.

"Could it really be that Venger hadn't counted on us that early yet? Unbelievable!" Diana was astonished.

"Um, the missing guards here and on the corridors seem to be a sign for that at least. Well, whatever.
Let's take the Club and return to the others, so that we quickly can get out of the castle.
I'm afraid that it won't be so peaceful here for much longer." Hank reckoned and converged to the light.

He reached out and wanted to grasp the Club but he got a slight electric shock from the light's shell.

"Oh. So, we won't get it that easy." he remarked disappointed.

"Maybe from above..." Diana considered.

She took a short run and pushed off with help of her Javelin. But she bounced off the light bubble as well.
"That didn't work either." she stated sadly. "How are we supposed to get it out? Maybe Presto would have been more successful with a spell..."

Hank didn't reply anything to that but drew his Bow instead and then targeted directly at the Club and released an arrow.

The arrow ran through the light bubble without difficulty and touched the low end of the Club.
As a result, the Club was sent upwards where it slid through the light bubble as well, as Hank had hoped.

With a skilled jump the Acrobat caught the Club before it could hit the floor and give them away with that.

"Well done!" she admitted and grinned at him.

"Thanks. Now it was worth while that I've paid attention in physics for once. The leverage shouldn't be underestimated, anyway." he grinned back.

"So, and now let's quickly go back to the others." Diana said and turned towards the entrance.

They were about to leave the room when they suddenly heard footsteps coming towards them.

They paused at the entrance startled.

"Wait!" an Orc called and they already feared that they have been detected.

But this demand wasn't directed to them, as they noticed relieved, because the footsteps were slowed down and finally came to a halt.

They made sure cautiously if 'the coast was clear'.

They were lucky: the guard approaching them stopped at the corner to talk with another Orc apparently.

He turned his back on them so that they could leave the chamber unseen.

"Where are you going?" the Orc asked the other one.

"I'm to watch over the boy's Club." the waiting Orc replied discontented. "Order from the Master." he added.

"Uh-huh. I see."

Then the first Orc continued in a low voice, "The old mage really believes that the other Young Ones would be so stupid and invade the castle to save the little boy.
That's why we have to go to our positions, getting ready for them.
There I only thought to myself 'What does he want, they're just children. They hardly can be stronger than he.'
But I haven't said that to him. Nope.
After all, I'll be able to have a good tuck-in afterwards when the thing is done. I've just said..."

Diana and Hank, who have shortly overheard them, were looking at each other.

The Acrobat stuck out her tongue teasingly and grinned at the stupidity of the Orcs.

Then they turned around and sneaked back to the others.

They were hoping that the others already have liberated Bobby without difficulties, now only waiting for their return to run off as soon as possible.

They had to hurry up now, because it surely wouldn't be long until the Orc was about to notice the absence of the Club and raise the alarm.