A/N: Shout outs to my anonymous reviewer and James Birdsong! Glad you liked it. More trouble ahead. ;) Thanks!
Chapter 38
"Flying Monkeys!" Someone on the ground shouted and pointed. There was some panic in the people gathered in the streets, which was not exactly unexpected, given the bad reputation that Morrible had let percolate. These people had been in line to get some supplies from the Gale Force along with medical checkups. They were using an empty bakery for supplies and the empty fabric store next to it for the medical exams.
"At ease!" Sergeant Duncan barked at them. It wasn't the right phrase, but it was the only thing that popped into his head. The scrambling for cover ceased and the lines slowly reformed.
"Sergeant, urgent news from the Captain," Chistery explained after he and his brothers landed. The Flying Monkey handed the officer the note, complete with address.
"Has anyone here seen a man called Buğra?" Duncan wanted to know.
"What do you want with him?" One of the men asked.
"He could be in trouble. He didn't show up to the meeting that the Captain was holding today," the Sergeant gave him a look. A murmur went through the lines.
"What?" Duncan asked the group.
"Buğra left to go to the meeting," the man who'd received the look explained.
"To the Yellow Brick Road. My guess is that somehow his trip wasn't in the direction of the meeting," the Sergeant told Chistery. The Flying Monkey and his brothers quickly took to the skies, while the Sergeant mounted his horse and followed them.
Fiyero had ordered that guard stations be set up along the Yellow Brick Road as they made their way into the heart of Munchkinland. His original intention was to make sure that anyone coming along the road could be directed to supplies and medical care. Now it seemed that they may be useful in tracking down this lost Munchkin.
Chistery scanned the road and looked around at the surrounding countryside. Their quarry possibly had a couple hours head start and may already have attempted to leave Munchkinland. While the guard stations were supposed to redirect people to locations of the closest supply and medical area, that didn't mean a driver couldn't reroute off the Yellow Brick Road, like Jinjuria did.
It was getting later in the day, so at the next guard station, Chistery swooped down to speak to the soldiers. They quickly told him that they hadn't seen anyone all day. The Flying Monkey frowned. It wasn't that he expected the guard station to be busy, but they had no leads on what happened to the missing Munchkin and possibly what could have happened to him.
"No good?" Duncan asked when the Flying Monkeys found him. He had been a little way behind them searching the brush.
"Nothing," Chistery shook his head.
"I think it's safe to say that this poor guy ran into Lord Nipp. I didn't figure him for a killer but given the fact that he's looking at substantial jail time or worse…" Duncan shrugged before continuing,
"It'll be dark soon. I suggest you get back to the Captain and explain the situation. In the morning we can do more. Have him send a letter via Bird to Lady Glinda. Our Munchkin may be heading toward the Emerald City. I can't think of anywhere else that our Munchkin could be going. What a better place to blend in than with other Munchkin refugees?"
"Wouldn't he get noticed?" Chistery wondered.
"Probably not by the average Munchkin citizen. His bigger problem would be the Gale Force and Vinkun troops or even Lady Glinda. Still, he knows that he can't go anywhere else because he'll stand out. There are Munchkins who live in the Emerald City full time. To most, he won't stand out," Duncan pointed out. Chistery nodded before bidding the Sergeant a good night.
To Be Continued…