Chapter 14 Wow, I Don't Think We're Even Halfway
Sorcerer Kiaba Gruff's tower was an ominous threat where it absorbed all the light from the twinkling stars without giving off any glow of its own. In one room, a candle was lit, but even its light was struggling to keep the oppressive darkness away.
That candle was in Put'oh's room, obviously. His twin never needed light because his ink on parchment emitted a very soft glow that enabled him to read it. Also, if he were writing something, he had long since grown skilled enough to write pages without seeing what he was actually written. What was most miraculous was that he could read them when it was light once more.
Sitting on the bed nearby, Muggy swung his feet as a way to relieve the tensions that had been building up on him.
"Put'oh," he said suddenly, looking up and going still. "What if I told you that I have a job?"
"Doing what?" his brother replied calmly, flipping pages in his search for some obscure fact. Actually, he was looking up just how many stomachs cows had. People kept saying different numbers.
Nervously, the boy put his hands in his lap. His brother was busy, so this was certainly the best time to tell him. But then again, Put'oh was not Kiaba, who would hardly care less where Muggy was. Or so the boy believed.
"Oh, just readying bits of protective metal, holding various instruments, and trailing along my superior."
All right, genius mind at work:
Readying bits of protective metal…click: putting armor on someone.
Holding various instruments…click: carrying a fighter's weapons.
Trailing along his superior…click: going off with the said fighter and going into battles with them.
Wow, he is good.
Then again, he knows his brother and he knows what just happened recently on the ship—namely, who was there—and in the matter of five seconds, Put'oh's face was white and his entire attention was on his younger brother.
"You're not going to be a squire to Blaydelot. No. Never. I refuse to allow you."
Just five seconds…Muggy must have been doing a worse job than usual at masking his true intentions.
"But, Put'oh, I already promised!"
"No."
"You don't have control over me! I can do what I want! I'm a grown man! And there's nothing dangerous with squiring!"
"Yes, I do. No, you can't. No, you have about six more years. And squiring involves knights which involve danger. End of discussion."
"It never was a discussion." Muggy crossed his arms and slipped into the customary facial expression all Gruffs are capable of doing. A worthy glare. Not the Glare, but a good glare nonetheless. "A discussion consist of two people having a dia—"
"I know what a discussion is."
Hey, give the kid credit; he's got genius brothers. Shouldn't he have picked up something, if only dictionary meanings of every word in the alphabet?
"Then you should know we weren't having one." He stared at his brother, remaining remorseless as Put'oh rubbed his eyes and sighed.
"Look, Muggy, for one thing, you're in the middle of a lesson here. You can't just leave."
"I wouldn't!" The slightly panicked sound made his voice higher than usual, but Put'oh understood his feeling. There was no telling when Kiaba was listening in.
"Second, we don't even know where Blaydelot is."
"Right here."
Okay, the poor, strained heart of Put'oh had almost as much it could handle right then.
Apparently, being the only one who actually did know stealth, Blaydelot had snuck up to the tower and done the most foolish thing possible. He had tried to knock on the door. However, under pain of death, the guards refused to let him in and took everyone captive. Everyone except Blaydelot, who had managed to break free, mainly by fighting unfairly—kicking them with his steel boots. And now, he had cast a rope onto one of the lightning rods at the top of the tower (very nice aim) and climbed the wall to come in Put'oh's window. After all, there was no glass in place. But don't worry, Kiaba is in the middle of inventing it.
Of course, the presence of the knight thrilled Muggy to no end. It just made him more determined to become a knight and adventure on his own. Oh, yes, so many people had the Adventuring Bug.
Now, research has shown that it really was a bite of a bug that could make the blood restless and the brain slightly dimmer and more noncommittal. It was very possible that such an insect had bitten Muggy; it was even possible it had bitten Put'oh. But really, I doubt even a bug could make Put'oh go off on a whim recklessly. He was probably immune to such diseases, as well as his twin.
Anyway, Muggy, having jumped to his feet, looked like a four-year-old having spotted Santa Claus. Hands in triumphant fists, he knew Put'oh would not be able to hold him inside when this knight would come looking for him.
"Good evening. I was looking for Kiaba."
Greatly disappointed, Muggy's entire body deflated. While it relieved Put'oh somewhat, his heart was continuing to pound madly, and he still worried the knight would return for his youngest brother.
"Well, he's not here. So just go back the way you came."
Going over to help him along, Put'oh started herding the knight back to the window. But, of course, Muggy slipped by him and stood in the way.
"I'll show you where he is! But you'll have to speak with him yourself."
"I will. And thank you."
Put'oh, rather too close to the knight for his own comfort—why was there a scent of spice in the air?—backed away, looking hard at the Sir Blaydelot covered in a cloak. He must have been quite strong to pull himself up at all, but at least he had discarded his armor. This was the first time the knight had been without it, and Put'oh was getting suspicious…
But, perhaps anticipating where Put'oh's gaze was going to go, the knight maneuvered by, following Muggy. Then, making certain the cloak was adequately covering him completely, Sir Blaydelot followed the boy out of the room.
"I don't believe it."
"He got us in this mess and then he left us graying from the stress!"
"For once, I agree with your dumb rhymes and even about your hair." Tanner gave a huge sigh, which was echoed in turn by Earl and then The Sir Prince Axel.
In a dungeon, under the tower (now, isn't that a little creepy? Kiaba has his own dungeon…), and being watched by clones (doesn't that sound familiar?), the group out to rescue the Princess Tranquility was at an impasse.
"He'd better be planning on rescuing us."
"I knew it! I never trusted him from the start! He wants to usurp my reward. Remember when he took our money? I bet he's off to have a good time with it."
"I don't know what you're so worried about, Axel. You had the least. Was there even two cents from you?"
"Hey! Just because the monarchs took away my adventuring spirit which would give me glories and turned me into a prince without the monetary benefit doesn't mean I will always be so poor! And my name is 'The Sir Prince Axel!'"
Mostly to head off an argument in which all three would get into, Kun sighed. He said, "Actually, Sir Blaydelot was a great help to us so far. And he used the money fairly for the ship, dinner, and gave me the rest. He said I had given the most anyway."
The others did indeed fall silent. Then, from Tanner, "You have the money?"
"Yup."
"There goes the conspiracy."
"No, he could just be dumb as are some," Earl de Vlin said, thrusting his nose in Axel's direction.
All right, he may have been vapid, but the ex-knight knew when people were criticizing him, and he wouldn't stand for it. Within seconds, a scuffle had started. Startled, Barleyo moved aside to give them more room, his chains rattling.
Oh, yes, he had been the easiest for the guards to snare. He already had his own chains on and everything.
Kun. I want to come out. The world needed saving, didn't it?
The young man would have started, but he was used to such requests as these. He thought back, You always want to come out. Can't I be in control of my body for an entire day for once?
There was a pause from the voice in his mind. Then, No. Can't I be out for an entire day? We have to share this body, and I think you're hogging it!
Me! It's my body! Get your own!
I can't. But there is a way…if you would just learn how to summon me the other way, I could be present in a spirit-like form while you are still in control of your body. Adding somewhat sulkily, he said, It'd be better than being stuck in this stuffy hat all day.
I don't know what way you're talking about. I only know to twirl this hat three times over my head, flip it upside down, push the top out the bottom, sniff the interior, put my hand inside, crumple it around my hand, turn it back right-side out, and drop a dandelion inside.
There was a mind-sigh. All right, I'm not allowed to tell you—against the Fairy Tale Code 947—but I can give you a hint. How do you normally summon djinnis?
Blinking rapidly, Kun was not certain. He leaned over to Barleyo. "How do you summon a djinni?"
"A genie?"
"No, a djinni."
"Sounds like genie to me."
"Well, they're pronounced the same. But I'm sure he said djinni." Don't ask.
"Well, if they're the same as genies, you normally rub the lamp." Barleyo didn't even seem to notice just what Kun was referring to, or even how out of place it was to mention a "he" when no one had been talking to him.
That was no help. Kun had no lamp. Well, he had his hat that would look like a lamp shade had they been invented, but he wasn't sure that counted. But, despite it all, feeling foolish, he raised a hand and rubbed one part of his white hat.
And…
Nothing happened.
