Chapter 2: On reaching the castle
The sun was glowing pink on the horizon as two large sillouettes trotted up the wooden doors of castle Obble Urlie. The first hopped down off the donkey which he was riding and knocked thrice upon the door. "Dismount your stallion," he ordered Vince who obeyed.
A little piece of wood was slid back to reveal a gap in the door. A pointy face, much like that of a hedgehog peered through, "What brings ye hither?"
"We need to speak to the king. Is the king here? Have you seen him with your eye?"
"You seek council with the great one?"
"Erm, yes, that is so," the knight was becoming agitated.
"The king will not converse with none until his lady wife is returned to him from the tower of Aruk Moon forest," and with that, the pointy slid the wood back into place.
The knight turned to Vince, "Come now. Place yourself back onto your Stallion. We must search with our searching powers for the king's wife."
Vince sighed for he was tired, "Look syntax, I've gotta get back to the zoo. Fossil's gonna be going loony."
But the knight was not listening to him. He was waving at someone with a large sack, who was trudgeing up the path towards them. "Wishton! Wishton! How is your toe? Where is your yeast?"
The man had reached them, "I am fine, sir," he lumped the sack onto the floor. The sack wriggled and then something came out of it. It was Howard, "Ge' off me! I'm Howard Moon, jazz maveric, poet and writer of many novels. You can't put me in a sack! I'll eat the sack and wash it down with some orange squash! Watchena! I know Karan doo," he looked around, "Vince? What are you doin…"
"Silence. We must find the king's wife."
"Howard! Thank God. This guy's nuts," Vince walked over to Howard, "Come'n. Let's get out of here. My hairs gonna need some serious conditionin' after this."
The knight laughed and pointed out that they didn't know the way back. He then, somehow managed to pursuade them to assist him on his journey.
So they made their way to the Aruk Moon forest like four icy pinacles on steeds of honour. They only rested once and that was for water. They stopped at a stone well with a little wooden bucket. The rim of the bucket was ordained with miniture silver angels. "Ahh. The pixies of goatey." Howard nodded with a fake look of knowledge.
"Aren't they angels?"
"No, Vince. Angels have halos. They don't have halos ergo they are pixies."
Vince pointed at their dresses, "That robe is clearly 19th century angel style. No way is that pixie. Their folk-meets-ethnic look would be easily distinguishable."
"Calm down little man."
Vince twiddled with a little chain which he add attached to his zoo uniform and looked up sweetly like a baby turtle, "I'm just getting' funny cause I'm soooo hungry. Have you got any food Howard?"
"I did make a lettuce sandwich just before Wish wash here stuffed me in a bag."
Vince's face lit up, "well have you got it with you?"
"Are you high? I didn't think to myself, 'hey, some man in leather slippers is putting a bag over me…quick, I better grab that sandwich' did I?"
"Yeah well I don't like lettuce anyway…have you got any sweets? You know, some Saturn zingers, Pluto gummies, Mercury crunchies…" Vince broke off and entered a reverie which was cut short by Howard.
"Woah there, plastic fence! Don't be drawn in by the sugary sensation. Lettuce sandwiches are healthy. Is that a word you're familiar with? Healthy? Well, lettuce has, er, protein in it and it scrubs you out like an old bread bin."
"That's not good."
"I think you'll find it is…"
" No, that's not good," Vince was pointing towards a large mass of tangled, blackened trees whos leafless branches twisted grossly like crooked fingers. The forest spread for miles and the dark path which the knight and Wishton were heading for seemed the only entrance into the thick wooden mesh.