Chapter III

T.K. opened his bleary eyes briefly, then shut them again to allow himself to once again drift off to sleep. He'd had a long day yesterday, and in any event it was much too early to be awake. He was just starting to doze off when he abruptly stopped, coming at once wide awake. There was something about what he had seen, and his arm felt like it was draped across…

"Good morning," Kari whispered in his ear as she snuggled deeper into his embrace.

The young boy whirled off of her in alarm. So much alarm, in fact, that he tumbled right off the far edge of the bed. He had thought that he had safely positioned himself far enough away so that they wouldn't have made any... inappropriate contact during the night, but apparently his carefully contrived plan had failed him. "Uhm... g…good morning," he stammered, his eyes glancing just over the top of the bed at the girl. After a moment in which he tried (and utterly failed) to compose himself, he continued. "Uhm… just how long were we like that?"

Kari responded with a mischievous grin. "Oh, most of the night, I'd say. You were over on this side before I even fell asleep. I found it quite… cozy." The boy's cheeks turned a dark red, almost begging her to stop, but she was merciless in her continued assault on his discomfort and raised a single eyebrow. "And do you know that you talk in your sleep?"

His look was horrified, remembering what tacit confessions that the girl had gleaned from Sora when she'd done the same. "I do? Um, what…" he coughed. "What'd I say?"

"Well…" The somewhat naughty grin spreading across her face was like that of the Cheshire Cat's as she pretended to contemplate the question. "I understand that it's usually what you're dreaming about. What were you dreaming about last night, T.K.?"

Once again she had the delight of seeing his blue eyes widen in innocent dismay. "Uh, I… um... I don't exactly remember..." But of course, his stammering attempt to answer didn't fool her one bit. To cover it he continued quickly, "We, ah, we'd better go and find Killian so we can get this all cleared up." Their fervent welcome in this world had been almost completely explained in the text that had been written for them almost a century ago. Apparently the creatures of this world, the a'ladon as they called themselves, were under the impression that both he and Kari were divine beings of some sort.

The girl looked somewhat disappointed at the change of topics, but gave a shrugging nod to concede the necessity. "But like the book said, we just tell a few of them," she insisted. "Killian, Mylam, and maybe the other two from the party. The priest and the regent."

T.K. sighed. "But Kari, we just can't let these people go on thinking that we're something we're not. That's just wrong."

"But they've been so sad for so long," the kind-hearted girl protested. "That passage in the book and Perrin both made it sound like it's been decades, and now that we're here… well, you saw how happy everyone was at the party last night."

T.K. lowered his eyes in contemplation. He too worried about crushing the spirit of these people when their own arrival the night before had filled the creatures with such hope, but allowing them to think that they were gods… the possible ramifications were terrible. He glanced at Kari, who had her determination to help their hosts clearly written on her face. "Let's just see if we can get the four that you mentioned. If we can explain it to them, maybe they'll have some suggestions."

*****

The cloaked a'ladon looked up at the commander of the saurian creatures, who stood at least a head taller than him. "They're both at Killian's. That's the place I've got circled on the map. But I'll be there too, so instruct these brutes of yours not to kill anyone in the taking of her." He paused. Trusting even the smartest of these creatures to follow even simple instructions was evidently not a prospect that brought him pleasure. "As a matter of fact, tell them to leave their weapons behind."

"They're not going to like that," the other responded with a grunt. King Uriah had instructed him not to injure this annoying little creature, at least for the time being, but he wasn't certain that such an order included following his instructions.

"They don't have to like it," the furry creature hissed in response. "Just send a dozen of the smartest ones to get the goddess, the rest can tear the whole town apart for all I care. Just as long as they're well away from me." Surprisingly, it had even hurt him a little to hear himself say that, but hopefully, once enough of the people had been killed, they would give in to his reasonable suggestions and abandon the village no matter what the priesthood thought.

"And if the foreigners choose to fight?"

"I'd think that twelve of your best could handle it. Those two are not gods, no matter what everyone else thinks, and I've left orders for the manor's staff to be sent away. The creatures want a meeting with three of the others and myself, so it will be just the two of them and the four of us. That should be no problem."

The commander nodded. Intelligence was not high on the list of his people's qualifications, but he reasoned that he could find a dozen in his crew that could be persuaded not to kill anyone at the house, no matter how much they complained.

*****

Two pairs of eyes blinked in astonishment at the explanation by the human children that they were not, in fact, gods. Another tried his best, nervously, to feign astonishment, while the fourth and youngest simply did his best not to look smug.

"That... that cannot be!" Genel protested, his lips quivering and his eyes darting from one to the other in disbelief. "Our seers could not possibly have been so mistaken. For generations they have been witness to your holy battles with dark forces and your irrefutable command of angelic beings. Your liberation of the oppressed. How can you now claim that you are not gods?"

T.K. and Kari glanced sideways at one another. "Your seers weren't mistaken, sir. It's just been so long since they started telling you about us that the stories... well, just got out of hand. We have done a great deal of what they attribute to us, but it wasn't at all like they told you." Kari answered. "In all truth, we're really not the people you make us out to be. Actually we're just, well, kids."

"Kids?" Killian's brow furrowed for a moment, then his eyes widened in horror. "You mean kits... children?"

T.K. affirmed this with an apologetic nod. "Actually, Mylam," he indicated the prince, "and his friend Perrin seem to be a couple of years older than we are."

Even Mylam and Brennan weren't prepared for that last statement. "But the tales of you both have existed for generations," Genel insisted fervently. "Since long before my time. How then is it that you are, as you claim, younger than my granddaughter?"

T.K. chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. "There's a friend of ours, who if he was here could probably explain that a little better than I can, but I can at least guess at that answer. We've found that usually, in one world, time passes much faster than it does in others."

"T.K.," Kari whispered. "Does that mean when we get back that no time will have passed? Or that we'll have been gone for years?"

The boy blinked, not having considered that point until that moment. "I... I don't know, Kari."

Now Genel and Brennan were had moved away from the others and were in the middle of a rather animated discussion. Mylam stared at his grandfather's back with a noticeably smug expression on his face.

The two continued their argument for some time, until the large doors to the room that they were in were suddenly thrown open. "Grandfather!"

"Perrin?" Genel responded, turning to the girl.

The girl was panting frantically. "Grandfather! They… they're back!" she exclaimed.

And then, in the distance, each of the others could hear the clarion call of the alarm bells tolling. "In the name of the g--" Genel began reflexively, then stopped and looked towards the humans. "They cannot be here again! This is much too soon!"

Killian rose from his seat, stoically calm in the midst of sudden panic. "Mylam," he nodded to the boy. "Go and see that the household staff is armed and the doors and windows shuttered. The rest of you, into the cellar."

"But there's no one else here!" Perrin interrupted, her paws fidgeting together nervously as she inched closer to Mylam's side.

"Child?"

"All of your servants are gone! No one answered the door when I arrived, and the rest of the house is completely deserted!"

Killian's brow was creased with concern. "But where did they all--? Very well. Everyone to the cellars. Lord Takeru, Lady Hikari, please follow Mylam."

"I don't think that will be necessary," hissed a guttural voice from behind Perrin. The girl bounded, alarmed, into the room and very nearly into Mylam's arms. The young prince put his furry paw around her and drew his blade (either a very long knife or very short sword) from the scabbard at his side. T.K. moved Kari behind him as well, his eyes scanning the room for some quick method of escape.

A large squad of the malevolent and foul-smelling creatures entered the room at Perrin's heels; a dozen of them flanking a larger one who was evidently their spokesman (or spokescreature). "Lay down your arms," he demanded, his forked tongue flicking forward to taste the air. "Surrender the girl to us and we may let you live." The stumbling emphasis that he placed on the word 'may' gave that particular alternative a rather nonsensical quality.

The eyes of both T.K. and Mylam met briefly, and then the pair nodded to one another in understanding. Now that the misconception that the two humans had actually claimed to be gods had been settled it would no longer be an impediment to the two becoming friends. Unfortunately, it seemed that it might now be too late. Which of the two girls the creatures had in mind had not been specified, but neither boy had any intention of letting the lizard-like invaders take either of them.

Mylam leapt forward with a shrill cry, throwing his small body in among the lizards and brandishing his little weapon in a manner benefiting a berserker. T.K. blinked. It was either the bravest or the most incredibly stupid action that he had ever seen in his life, since each of the creatures towered over the small a'ladon. And then, a moment later, he realized what the purpose of the prince's attack had been.

"Kari!" T.K. said frantically, pressing the girl towards the door at the rear of the room. "Take Perrin and go!"

"No! T.K.--"

"Kari, he can't stall them by himself. They don't want any of us, they want one of you. You've got to get her out of here!"

The brown-haired girl was indecisive for a moment, then kissed the boy quickly and darted back to the frightened Perrin. "Where does that door go?" she asked Killian, pointing to an oaken door in the far wall as T.K. placed himself between the Saurians and the others. Interestingly enough, Kari had noticed that none of their attackers was armed.

The old creature glanced back over his shoulder, then nodded. "Come, let's go," he said to the others. Genel moved to take his granddaughter by the paw, but Brennan shook his head. "You four go. I'll stay with the boys."

Killian started to object, then nodded again as he led the two girls and the priest from the room. He'd come to the same conclusion as T.K. and Mylam. When the Saurians staged an all-out assault, they held nothing back. This was a force meant to capture, not to kill, if ever he'd seen one.

T.K. was just slightly taller than the green-scaled creatures and was exceedingly less bulky, but threw himself into the battle with as much recklessness as Mylam had. In order to give the others time to flee, he had to make the Saurians see him as a threat. The boy was now matched against four of the creatures, and without hesitation he chose the one on the far right and charged, driving his shoulder deep into its midsection and taking it off its feet. T.K. rolled off the creature and to his feet in an instant, then brushed his blond hair out of his eyes to take stock of the situation.

For some reason the creatures seemed to have been caught unprepared for the boys' counterattack. Mylam was fighting brilliantly, and, despite being badly outnumbered, had wounded one of their assailants. But now a band of four had now regrouped and backed him into the corner of the room where the young creature was just able to keep them at bay with his small weapon. Another four, including the leader, had followed Kari and the others out the side door through which they had escaped, and the one that he himself had tackled was still down and retching on the floor. But that still left another three that were now advancing on him.

T.K. glanced all about him as he backed quickly away from the group, looking desperately for anything that might be construed as a weapon. He saw the group of creatures in the corner swarm Mylam under, knocking his little blade away from him. "Brennan!" he shouted, vaguely recalling that the boy's regent had opted to remain with them. "Get the--"

The young human never finished the request, for at that moment something heavy struck him in the back of his head. His vision blurred and his ears rang as he fell forward to his knees and into the waiting darkness.

*****

An abnormally loud creaking sound and unnaturally bright light brought him back to consciousness some time later. The back of his head still throbbed with pain and his entire body cried out in agony. Apparently the Saurians had been none too gentle with him after he'd fallen.

The boy tried to move his hands to shield his eyes from light that was much too bright for eyes so long in darkness, but for some reason he found that he could not. Something was preventing him from moving his hands at all. "Who's there?" he called out, and winced. Even his own voice sounded too loud...

"Shhh!" hushed a penetrating male voice, dimming whatever light he had brought with him.

"Mylam?" the human boy whispered.

The dim illumination highlighted the features of the young prince as he stared down into the boy's face. Mylam's reddish fur was matted together in several spots with even redder blood, and quickly he pulled out the weapon that he had used in the battle and knelt to saw away at the leathery bonds around T.K.'s wrists. "What happened?" the human asked, glancing to the side.

Mylam gave a frown that meant nothing good. "My uncle happened."

The answer was worse than cryptic. "What?"

"Brennan. He's betrayed us. He was the one that struck you from behind." Mylam finished sawing the bond from at the other boy's hands and moved to free his feet as well. T.K. rubbed his wrists to restore circulation and sat up. "Where are we?"

"In the cellar."

"Why are we whispering?"

The a'ladon's eyes narrowed, but his anger was not with the human. "Because the household staff has now returned, and Brennan has officially branded me a traitor. You're supposed to be dead, and soon will be if we don't get out of here soon." He finished his work on T.K.'s feet and sheathed his small blade. "I've no idea how long he was planning this, but he's given the others over to the Saurians and declared martial law in the village… what's left of it."

The younger boy could've done without the rest. "Kari?" he demanded.

"And Perrin. I saw them being taken away with my own eyes, and couldn't do anything to stop it. My grandfather and hers are captured as well... or dead. I'd guess the latter. Brennan won't let them live knowing what they know. Now we'd best get out of here. Brennan doesn't like to leave loose strings, and I'd rather not be here when he decides to rectify this one."

T.K. hopped down from the table on which he had lain, trying to ignore the uncomfortable tingling sensation as blood came rushing back to his feet. "So where do we go?"

Mylam raised an eyebrow at the nonsensical question. The human's eyes locked with the other's and he nodded, his brow still furrowed in anger. Of course, he was going after Kari. "Just making sure we're of one mind here. Do you know where they're taking them?"

Mylam lowered his head in shame, unwilling to meet T.K.'s eyes for a moment. "I do. We... we've always known where they take our people. But we've never had anyone make an effort to go after them before."

The human looked inquisitively at his rescuer. "And now you want to? I've told you that I'm no god, and you can probably see for yourself that I'm not the one in the paintings all around this place."

"But I already knew all of that, Takeru. My mother was the seventh child of a seventh child, and had the gift of Sight as well. She knew the truth, no matter how much the priesthood tried to bury it. I've never believed that you're a god, but there is something about you," he paused, as if he would decipher the other's character with his eyes. "And I do believe in Takeru's Vows. That much of the stories is true, at least?"

The boy nodded. "I have said those things to Kari. It wasn't as poetic as when you spoke them to Perrin, but I have said them."

Mylam started to ask a question of the other, then stopped. "So you do know. My grandfather would have forbidden it had he found out, but--"

"He was there with us, Mylam. He saw the whole thing too."

The other's lips quivered for a moment, and there was a dazed look in his eyes. "And... and he said nothing. Then he would have allowed us--.." He shook his head slowly, the realization of an opportunity missed too painful to speak about in that moment. He looked up. "And then you throw yourself, weaponless, into a fight against a dozen Saurians. That was either the bravest or the most foolhardy thing that I've ever seen."

T.K. nodded. "I thought the same about you."

"I'm going to trust that it was bravery." He placed his paw in T.K.'s hand firmly, his blue eyes mirroring the human boy's own. "I am going to fulfill my vows. Will you come with me to fulfill your own?"

I promise to set your life above my own, and in all things defend you... It was more than a spoken promise. It was the way he'd lived his life since he'd met her, sometimes without knowing why. He would not surrender her to whatever evil the Saurians had planned. He nodded at the other boy and shook the paw once, firmly. "To fulfill my vows," he answered.