CHAPTER XI – THE REVELATIONS

The passage the trio were creeping through finally came to an end. Paweł reached the entrance first and got out, hoping to see Bożena. But he saw nobody in any close proximity.

He stood there all attention, holding the White Eagle on his shoulder. When Puss went out and later Kitty followed him, they both noticed Paweł staying in one place lost in his thoughts.

„What's wrong, Senor?" Puss rested his paw on Paweł's shoulder.

„Bożena." Paweł answered. „She's not here." And so he rushed out of the cave too.

Kitty tried to catch up and asked a bit ironically: „Maybe she's so mentally deranged that she ran out of the Dragon's Lair just like that?"

But Paweł didn't mind Kitty's moment at this point. He eventually moved out of the cave, hoping to get some answers as to what happened to Bożena.

„Senor, calm down, we will find your daughter!" Puss said as he ran just behind him. He knew at this moment himself that even though Bożena overreacted a lot and behaved just how her strong emotions dictated them to, she was still Paweł's blood after all.

Just as the three cats walked out to get an ounce of fresh air, Paweł began staring down at the town for some clues as to where her daughter might be.

But when Paweł went down the rocky pathway to get to the main settlement and gain some clues, suddenly the whole party was jumped by the same armed group of armed men dressed in justaucorps. Kitty quickly hid the crown behind her back and Paweł immediately drew his steel saber when suddenly many German mercenaries surrounded him and his companions.

„Halt, Herr Myetchko- Matchko- Herr Paweł!" Gerhart stepped in front of the group and aimed his flintlock pistol at him. „Halt, Herr Paweł!"

But Paweł only aimed his saber right at Gerhart and bared his a bit crooked teeth. „I won't let you stop me, not after I finally have the chance to restore Poland's great power! Now, make way or you will end like your brothers!"

Paweł was at this time more or less angry at this ambush and both Kitty and Puss knew it. They drew their own weapons when they were occupied more with Paweł and awaited for the outcome. They all really hoped that this would end peacefully, since a bloodshed was the last thing they wanted.

But Gerhart only aimed his pistol upwards and smirked. „Let me show you something which will make you more compliant, Herr."

He tilted his head briefly and Adolf, his young lieutenant, held a mediocre-sized cage in which Bożena was locked up, without her saber, bow, or any belongings. She was even without her poor black boots. At this time, she clawed and hissed at the young lad holding her, but she switched her attitude once she saw Paweł.

„Ojcze!" She cried and banged against the cage at his direction. „Ojcze! They got me! Don't listen to anything they say!" And then her face formed into smile and she bragged: „I've managed to slaughter two of them, ojcze. Good enough? Are you proud of me?" And she cried again while banging her fists against the cage: „ARE YOU PROUD OF MEEE?!".

Paweł immediately answered: „This is not the time to talk about it. Not at all. How did this all happen?"

Gerhart straightened his back and talked: „You have a simple deal. You hand over yourself or your Bożena immediately gets killed."

Then, Adolf pulled out a knife and put it between the bars in the cage. He was determined to stab Bożena lethally if Paweł did not comply. And Paweł himself knew about it.

Puss stared at Paweł briefly, trying to see which action he was going to take. But something broke in Paweł. The old cavalryman, the Polish Hellrider was now all vulnerable and all of his will to fight was lost from fear and care of his daughter.

That is why Paweł sighed deeply and slowly concealed his saber back into his sheathe while still being held at gunpoint. „You win. I am going with you, just do not hurt my daughter."

„I knew it!" Gerhart pointed his finger at Paweł and laughed. „I knew that it would work! The saber, Pollack. Go. Give me that. And your satchel and pistol too."

While gritting his lips with his teeth, Paweł untied the sheathe with the saber in it carefully, took off his bag and his Wunderwaffe pistol, and gently handed them in. Gerhart quickly snatched his weapon and small satchel and concealed them in his bag. Then, he put the pistol in another holster on his belt and motioned to one of his men to give another cage they had. Once it was opened, Gerhart tossed it to the ground.

„Tie this Herr up and place him in the cage." He ordered. „Supervise him."

And so it happened – Pawel politely agreed to be tied up and then he was put into a separate cage, along with the White Eagle. Once the cage was locked and thus the biggest threat was finally unable to cause further harm, Gerhart finally calmed down and was able to see the details.

„Nice eagle right there, I need to say." He commented, not being aware of the legend at all. „You guys have a similar one on your emblem. What a coincidence. Attention!" He yelled. „Bring them back on our carriage, we will be on our way!"

Just as the men began packing up, he turned back to both Kitty and Puss who were looking at Paweł with sadness and despair.

„You are free from this monster now." He explained and crouched down to get down to their level. „Relax."

„What kind of a monster?" Puss asked in disbelief. „He was a faithful soldier of his country! He is a loyal father to his daughter! Would you call somebody like that a monster?"

„He hasn't told you the truth, right?" Gerhart smirked. „Of course, that's what Pollacks do. They lie, they steal, they cheat… We might have got off of the wrong foot. But I promise you that everything will be clear once we will get going."

Both Kitty and Puss stared at each other briefly and then switched their gazes towards Gerhart again. They really needed to keep the tracak of the White Eagle and maybe as long as the mercenaries of the Teutonic Order were peaceful to them both, then they could possibly gather some precious info.

„Si, we'll go."

Gerhart clapped and rubbed his hands together. „Wunderbar! Would you like some wine for this journey in our carriage? Beer, maybe? Some milk."

„I'll go with leche and Kitty too." Puss smiled a bit and hugged Kitty closer.

„Perfect. Let's get going, then. We'll meet with the bigger scout group soon and they'll escort us back to our castle."

After some time, the whole Teutonic Order team got onto horseback and the carriage and made their quick journey towards North. They did not want to waste any time, so the pace of the horses was actually quite fast and the sound of their hooves hitting the ground was a frequent and rampant occurence. The cages with the Polish cats were loaded on the back of the carriage and safely tied up and guarded.

As both Kitty and Puss were drinking their milk in the carriage, Gerhart suddenly spoke up:

„Well done. Also, pardon my manners. My name is Gerhart von Konitz. What are your names?"

„Puss… In Boots!" Puss answered while pointing at his actually well-made boots from Corinthian leather which probably distinguished him from others in close proximity.

Kitty blinked slowly and smiled. „My name's Kitty Softpaws. For a reason." Then, she lifted her paw up holding one of Puss' boots he had been just admiring and bragging about.

With a quick swipe, Puss took his boot and glared at her: „Do you need to keep doing that?"

But Kitty only shook her head and smiled, at which Puss sighed deeply but smiled too.

„I want to thank you both." Gerhart continued. „I want to thank you for actually dealing with this Polnischer Herr."

„Thank us?" Puss asked and tilted his head.

„Ja, thank you. You've literally kept this monster safe until we found him. Herr Leopold von Spielwduper will be very satisfied."

Puss just nodded slowly and gritted his lips. He knew what was going on and how this could end, but he decided to stay cool and keep to his role of the friend of the Teutonic Order just to throw them off guard at the right moment.

This monster in fact was now encaged and lying down on the side, being completely disarmed now from his saber, Wunderwaffe pistol and other dangerous items which he might have used. Only the White Eagle kept him company because Bożena was all locked up to in a cage next to him. At this time, she was curled up and looking at the top steel bars of her cage.

„Oh, and father?" Bożena suddenly spoke from the back of the carriage. „My keys dropped off of somewhere."

„Bożena, Bożena..." Her father told her as she shifted in the cage. „It doesn't matter now."

„Of course it matters!" She raised her tone now. „I looked for them in some places in Zakopane! Seriously, I needed to stop guarding this cave because of these stupid keys and then Filemon came in and told me he spilled the f***ing beans out to these fellas we are riding with right now."

„So Filemon betrayed you." Paweł summed up and later scoffed. „You probably do remember what I told you about strangers."

„I know!" Bożena pleaded. „But he actually helped me so far to get to you! Gosh, I was so stupid!"

Paweł only shrugged. „Maybe he needed money and just wanted to get bribed. People can make the worst atrocities for just money… Did he steal your keys too?"

„He swore up and down that he didn't have them." Bożena explained. „I didn't see any keys on him either."

Kitty raised his paws and, with a sigh, she spoke: „I took your keys."

Bożena shifted her gaze into a death glare right at Kitty. She promptly raised from her sitting position and got as close to the bars as possible.

„You?! YOU?!" The calico she-cat screamed and extended her paws armed with razor-sharp claws right at her. „HOW COULD YOU?! Did I have to leave this God-forsaken cave just because of you?! I was scared to death that I dropped it somewhere and somebody might have found it!"

Kitty did not have time for such discussions and did not let the guilt fall over her since it was clear that Bożena was not fully innocent there. Therefore, she spoke back:

„Or maybe if you had been actually KIND ENOUGH, then I wouldn't have stolen them from you? I mean, look." She shrugged. „You have some problems, girl. Serious problems. You might think you are somebody great because of your high status and probably some land that your father owns, but that does not really mean you should think you are some sort of golden cat, right? Right?"

That was when Kitty elbowed Puss' shoulder lightly and whispered: „I beg you, tell me that I am right, Puss."

But Puss only shook his head slowly for no and began to tell his own view: „I think you, ladies, are under influence of some strooong emotions."

Paweł finally decided to speak: „I see the whole quarrel is about my daughter. What I wish to state right now are my humblest apologies."

Everybody went more or less silent and decided to listen to him.

„Bożena has been like this since her birth, I swear I do not know whom to blame for that. But I know that is trying her hardest to become a true Polish Hussar. With the skills, honor, respect, dignity."

Gerhart smirked and cut his speech: „Right, right, unlike you, it seems… unfortunately."

Paweł bared his teeth at the German and Puss was also initally upset about how Gerhart responded. But after the initial shock, he managed to ask a question:

„Do you mean that Senor Paweł is dishonorable?"

Gerhart sighed and clapped his hands against his tights. „Oh… Dear Herr Puss. What lies has he told you so far?"

Then, he turned towards Puss and began:

„You see, how would you feel if a group of powerful warriors just raided your houses and killed your personnel? One day it happened to us. The private army of that fat Polish lady attacked the Ducal Prussian Southern lands and began robbing and killing everyone. I heard stories about how this Polnischer Hollenritter was slaying us left and right without mercy. Do you know that during these war campaigns he led executions among our troops? He was a part of them!"

Puss looked in a slight disbelief at Paweł who was now covering his face in his forearms while lying down. The Spanish cat was seriously dazzled and confused now, along with Kitty. Seeing that they got uneasy, Gerhart continued:

„He was nothing but an usurper. A false idol. They cheered him back in his God-forsaken Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, but in our lands, he brought us only terror and despair. Duh, he even killed our children off for his own satisfaction! Just to not preserve the 'dirty German bloodline', eh?!" That was when he addressed to Paweł.

Both Kitty and Puss glared at Paweł in complete disappointment. But Sir Mieszkogradzki only slowly raised his head and denied:

„I did not kill any children."

„Liar!" Gerhart yelled and punched the cage back. „You're a fanatic who thinks he is the best just because he has a horse and a saber and knows how to use both! Just like all of you, polnische Schweine."

Rage was now forming in Paweł's heart when in Bożena's it was already boiling hot. Out of a sudden, she exploded in furry and banged her paws against the cage:

„YER ONLY A PIECE OF SCUM WHO THINKS HE WON BECAUSE OF AN AMBUSH! YA DISHONORABLE SLICE OF ROTTEN MEAT! I WILL GUT YOU LIKE A FISH IF I EVER GET OUT OF HIS F***ING CAGE!"

She cried and yelled in all her might and it just didn't seem to end. The rate of the hooves racking the path was enough sound, therefore Bożena's screaming was really painful for the ears of the party.

„Can somebody shut her up already?" Gerhart ordered and somebody one of the horsemen rode up closer to the carriage and responded:

„Jawohl, mein Herr!" And so he grabbed a long yet sturdy stick, put it between the steel bars and pushed it once and very firmly. It jabbed Bożena's head and she fell down unconscious. Finally, there was awkward silence once again.

„So..." Gerhart explained. „For this whole time being, you've been with a war criminal, Puss in Boots. A war criminal who has raised a spoiled daughter by himself only to maim the Ducal Prussia and the Teutonic Order even further. I would appreciate it if you forgot the past and whatever you have done so far with this Polnischer Hollenritter and just noticed the truth itself. You are a great hero for handing him to us."

Gerhart pulled his hand forward to Kitty and Puss to let them shake it nicely. But they both could not believe what they had just heard. This Polish Hussar was for the whole time nothing but a war criminal. Puss' heart nearly broke apart when he heard this all. Indeed, he was a criminal himself, he even robbed a bank himself and is still wanted by the law in San Ricardo. But he wouldn't ever put himself to killing others, and especially not executing them. And certainly not killing children.

Puss nodded and shook Gerhart's hand and so did Kitty. The new alliance was made and they found new companions to work with. But then, Puss gave one last glare at Paweł. He was curled up in his cage and, for the first time in years, weeping softly to his sleep.

The journey took them more than a full day and they arrived in the evening at a rather unfamiliar yet enormous castle on a hill surrounded by forests. This had an impression of possibly being one of the best strongholds in Europe or at least it merely looked so. The horses finally slowed down their pace and stopped at the gate. Soon enough, the guards let them all in and they soon arrived to the stables.

After getting out of the carriage and dismounting their horses, they were all escorted safely through the courtyard. The castle from the inside had a different feeling – every building component seemed to be tall and powerful. On the watchtowers there was one or two guardsmen protecting the fortress. They were visibly prepared for anything there.

Once they took a glimpse of the richly furnished and decorated great hall, they all moved through the various corridors and stairs. It was a place to be admired – even though the castle seemed to be maybe dark and creepy while being lit only by some decorative torches, there were still many pictures and porcelaine on the tables and comfy-looking chairs.

Soon, they were all taken to nearly the top floor of the castle. After what seemed like miles of walking, they finally got right to the lord's tower. Gerhart politely knocked on the door and a firm voice ordered: „Betreten Sie." Therefore, he pushed the door open and entered a cylindrical room with a desk filled with papers on the right opposite of the door. And behind that desk there was no other person behind this all – Leopold von Spielwduper.

A blonde man in his 30s with a sharp jaw surely made an impression on all the cats gathered next to him. His black official coat with golden buttons and white puffed-up sleeves and neck only added the feeling that this individual had a fortune for sure. At the sight of his mercenaries and both Paweł and Bożena being locked up, he smirked genuinely, showing his one golden tooth. But this only caused Bożena to yell in fury again at him while Paweł was looking straight at his eyes with the gaze of death.

Gerhart eventually punched the cage firmly and yelled: „HALT DIE KLAPPE!" But then, he cleared his throat and said:

„Herr! We finally hunted down whom you asked for!"

Leopold folded his boney hands and dipped his head down in a sinister manner. „Wunderbar! I expected Heinrich und Klaus to do the job, but I am satisfied nonetheless!"

And then, he raised from his rich chair and walked proudly with his arms behind his back. He moved with such grace as if he was a peacock rather than a man.

„Paweł… Mieszkogradzki." Leopold spoke his name very clearly, but still with his German accent. Puss, along with Kitty, got a little surprised that this was so far the first not Polish person ever to pronounce Paweł's surname correctly. This must have meant something very crucial. After all, Paweł kept baring his teeth and growling angrily at Leopold, who then continued:

„You had your times of glory. Now your times of doom have come."

Then, he moved over to Bożena and smirked even wider. „And you even sired a beautiful calico daughter! Joke, she's not beautiful, she's ugly because of that white and ginger and black pattern. Seriously, why some cats look like this?" He stared at her in disgust now.

Soon afterwards, he noticed the White Eagle in detail locked up right with Paweł. Leopold stared in amusement and even held his breath as if it would disturb the presence of such a magnificent creature. „Impossible… I thought that… That it's not a legend. A simple story. Is it the White Eagle in itself?"

„Si. White Eagle." Puss confirmed. „Along with the Crown of Lech and Ring of Lech."

Then, Leopold turned on his foot to Puss and Kitty and bowed in front of them.

„Puss… in Boots, I presume?" Von Spielwduper asked out of politeness.

„Si." He responded, smiled quite a bit from slight confusion, and hugged Kitty closer. „And this is Kitty Softpaws, my fiance."

„They were Paweł's companions, Herr." Gerhart reported. „Polish scum always lies and deceives the rightful."

Leopold raised his eyebrows briefly and continued: „The Teutonic Order thanks you both, my pretty cats. Hand over these artifacts to me. These require great power and I know exactly where is their place. I've been trying to handle various magical artifacts. But White Eagle… White Eagle is so far one of the most powerful ones."

After understanding that Leopold von Spielwduper most likely knew what he was talking about, Puss gave him the Ring of Lech and Kitty handed over the Crown of Lech. Leopold smiled widely and even hugged these items as if they were his children. He most possibly was not any happier in his life. In a form of graditute, Leopold spoke to them:

„You had quite a reputation in Spain and now you've saved our Ducal Prussia and the Teutonic Order from destruction and collapse. Well done. I will think of your reward tomorrow. Right now, feel free to explore the castle!" He spread his arms out and honestly smiled. „What mine is yours for now. Go and take some baths, read books, enjoy some meals made by my best cooks! You earned it."

Then, he nodded to Gerhart and ordered: „Carry that hellspawn of a calico she-cat to the dungeons and lock her up. Make sure that Puss and his girl get what they want. Oh, and with you..." He pointed his finger right at Paweł. „I will talk with you personally."

At least an hour passed since they all got into the Prussian castle. Puss and Kitty were still on the top floors and trying to enjoy their time in a playroom filled with bookshelves, tables, chairs, and open spaces where one would practice dances, fighting techniques, or even play tag. While Kitty was enjoying herself by chasing a ball of wool, Puss was sitting down on one of the chairs, trying to rethink his life.

„I can't believe it." Puss finally spoke and that was at the same moment in which Kitty stopped playing and got up.

„Can't believe what?" She asked.

„Can't believe that he lied to us. From the whole time I trusted him. But now that he is nothing but a war criminal? Maybe the Polish are that way after all."

„Relax, everybody has their moments of doubts sometimes." Kitty tried to console him and walked up closer to him. „I think it's good it finally got solved. Who knows what Senor Paweł could've done to us later?"

„He's not Senor Paweł anymore." Puss denied and hung his head down. „If he really killed the innocent during some wars, he is a maldito Polaco. What would these Teutonic Order people do? They are probably trying to protect themselves from these wild Polish animals."

„You are right..." Kitty confirmed. „We have seen how Paweł behaved so far. Always so wild. Always so rather uncivilized despite his noble status. If noblemen act like that in Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, then how to the commoners act? Probably worse than that."

„Mhm… But, Kitty… What if it is all just a hoax? Maybe Paweł is not that bad?"

„I wouldn't think about it if I were you." Kitty clapped his shoulder and smiled. „Now let's go, I wanna try out a proper bath they have."

This effectively shook Puss out of his melancholic state and made him focus on the present. After all, all he cared about was his fiance Kitty. And that's why he followed her into the room where there was supposed to be a good bath they could try out. Who says that all cats fear water?

But Bożena did not have any luxuries for her. She was carefully and forcefully carried in a cage to the underground dungeons. There was mainly filth and darkness everywhere, and the only borders of this hell were stone walls with moss on them, as if nobody dared to clean these dungeons properly. Once she was escorted to one of the cells, the mercenaries opened it, opened the cage and with tremendous force they threw her in. Because of this, she began screaming even further and as the cell was quickly locked in a very firm way, she banged against the door and cried:

„OJCZE! OJCZE! WHERE ARE YOU?! DO NOT DARE TO TOUCH MY FATHER AT ALL! I WILL RIP YOUR EYES OUT, SHOVE THEM UP YOUR A**ES AND YOU WILL SEE S**T!"

But these men, each of them armed with a halberd now and dressed in dark justaucorps, just ignored these screams as they already got used to them. They walked out peacefully and made their way upstairs to regroup and await for further orders.

Bożena eventually sat down on the cold ground and began crying to herself. She lost everything. Not only her armor, her belt, weapons, or even her poorest boots her father could afford, but also her dignity and status. Now, she was nothing more than a prisoner on the mercy of her occupant. Knowing that this is a desperate situation, she curled up and tried to cry herself to sleep.

Paweł, however, was still in Leopold's main office at the top of one tower. His belongings, along with his saber and his bag, were on a stool next to Leopold. Paweł finally was allowed to leave his cage, only to be tied up to a plank, have his arms immobilized by metal chains with a lock, and have his body burnt earlier by the executioner standing next to Leopold's desk. To make things worse, he was held hostage by surplus two German musketeer troops. But he did not want to show any fear or despair. He just kept staring with firm and uncomfortable seriousness at his oppressor. Despite this seemingly bad atmosphere, the room had a feeling that it still was Paweł who was the most dangerous one in the entire room, despite being tied up.

Leopold at this time was only admiring the White Eagle standing on a horizontal wooden pole and gently petting the Crown and the Ring, now lying on his desk. Soon, he broke the awkward silence:

„This is your doom, Herr Mieszkogradzki. I know what you did to our people, I know what you did to MY VILLAGES. Now, you are finally going to pay. You even got ridiculed by your own companions. How does that feel?"

With his face partially covered in blood, Paweł raised his head up and smirked: „Not too bad provided that you gave them a nice lie."

„Alfons Ballstouchen?" Leopold turned to the executioner. He was a seemingly average man dressed in merely a dark shirt. His head was covered by long black hair and he also had a fancy short beard, evident cheek bones, and surprisingly large lips. The executioner suddenly hopped up and saluted:

„Ja, Herr?"

„Do it again, but this time make it really hurt." Leopold ordered.

„Jawohl!" And so Alfons grabbed the hot metal rod again and walked up to Paweł. But the Polish cat did not even flinch and so Alfons without any resistance put the melting red rod strongly against Paweł's chest. There was a hiss of Paweł's burning fur, smell of burning skin and muscles yet Mieszkogradzki only let out a growl and closed his eyes from this excruciating torture. It lasted for quite a while until Alfons eventually stopped pressing the metal rod and walked back to the desk. Paweł's breath began to be harder and deeper to regain his senses once again.

„Look, you are not the hero in this story." Leopold began explaining. „You are just a horrible cat who managed to do the wrong and you suddenly sprinkle it with your old Polish glory and honor and you think you are doing great. No! It does not work that way! We were working hard and doing great until YOU arrived on that damn horse and with that damn saber!"

„Then what did my mate Anna do to get her murdered? What did she do?"

Leopold buried his face in his hands and shook his head. „To maybe make you think, you know? Also, why do you care so much about her? You're a cat, you probably still have like 4 she-cats at your disposal."

„I don't." Paweł spoke to his teeth. „She was the only hope for me to live a normal cat life without the war and without the battles. But you took that from me. Stole that from me. KILLED THAT FROM ME!" Paweł violently jerked while being tied up. It looked as if his mask of a calm warrior was finally taken off and now the only thing they could all see was his rage. They all readied their weapons to prepare for a powerful outburst.

„She was the only one who could understand me, understand my struggles, my way of life. And she is GONE! GONE!" Tears mixed with blood fell down Paweł's cheeks. „I know I may have done terrible things, but I was only following my orders! I am not a criminal! I am a soldier and I follow the code!" As his rage calmed down just a litle bit, he managed to switch to a more important topic. „After all, you had your regular tribute to pay to Miss Hundziakówna, my sponsor lady. Why haven't you paid it?"

Alfons grabbed his metal rod again but Leopold stopped him. „Halt, Ballstouchen. He is right. Halt."

With a sniff, Alfons put the rod back and Leopold folded his hands. „But why would we even pay you? Why would pay a nation who is already starting to reek with corruption, with nepotism, and with slavery among its own people? This is complete nonsense! I bet that in a hundred and fifty years or so, you will finally stop existing as a country and Poland will fall!"

He raised up from his chair violently and slammed the table. „The Crown and the Ring of Lech will provide me with unlimited power. And White Eagle's blood will most possibly provide me with immortality!"

„But that only works for people who don't want destruction, but merely prosperity. You read the whole legend, didn't you?" Paweł pointed out and coughed.

Leopold nodded to Alfons and then the executioner grabbed a wooden bat and reeled it backwards. He then powerfully struck Paweł in the ribs and apart from the wood hitting the skin one could probably also hear a familiar crack of bones. Paweł only grunted, coughed, and spit his blood on the floor.

„You fool!" Leopold shouted and pointed his finger at him. „Prosperity is all I want! Even if it means bringing your filthy country to the ground! Now, excuse us! Leave! Go! Now!" He gave an order to his troops.

The executioner and two musketeers left the room at a quick pace and closed the door shut. Leopold then picked up the Crown and the Ring of Lech and examined them properly.

„The time… has come." Von Spielwduper spoke and smirked to Paweł. „You've lost, Herr Mieszkogradzki. You have lost miserably and now you reap what you sow!"

He laughed a bit and finally put the Crown on his head. His heart began racing as he felt the immense power of the artifact and looked upwards with his eyes. A smile formed on his face, knowing that this was it and this was all he dreamt of.

But what he did not see was that blood was dripping from what the Crown touched on his head and bruises were forming on the head. Paweł looked at that with amusement, but also with hopes that maybe not everything is lost and maybe he still has some chances of winning. Maybe he lost the battle, but he will win the war.

Then, Leopold grabbed the ring and raised it upwards. „What?! What, Herr Mieszkogradzki?" He sounded confidently. „You look very confused right there! Isn't the power of the White Eagle blinding you?! Of course it is! Because it's very very powerfuuuul!"

And so he put the golden Ring on his ring finger and raised up his hands in power and laughed as a strange golden aura followed him and the room began to be warmer. He raised his hands up even higher and his chuckle soon turned into a maniac laugh.

The moment of Leopold's glory soon switched dramatically. His limbs began burning with powerful blue flames but it took him a while to realize that. When he did see the flames on his arms and legs, he screamed horribly in pain and the fire consumed his even further. Leopold fell on the desk and then on the ground, wiggling with all his might, trying to somehow stop the flames from turning his body into black dust. However, it was to avail. He kept on burning and burning until the screaming bloody murder stopped and Leopold was turned into merely a pile of dark ash.

Paweł had mixed feelings at this sight. Even though he wanted Leopold's death, he wanted to make it personal. But it did not happen. Instead, Leopold died in a painful way from his own pride, nothing else. He felt as if his stone heart finally got some warmth, knowing fully well that Anna was finally avenged.

The screams were heard by the Teutonic troops from earlier and they both rushed into the office, only to find Paweł still being tied up and Leopold lying as a pile of dust.

„Verdammt!" One of the guards yelled and drew his rapier. Paweł shifted his position, only to see him running towards him with his rapier reeled back. In the last moment, he bent to one side and as the mercenary slashed his sword, he also broke the plank in half and released Paweł unharmed.

After realizing what the musketeer had done, Paweł grabbed one steel writing nib and threw it powerfully at his face. The nib got thrown into his eye and he died immediately. But his companion drew his sword too and rushed at Paweł who know rolled to the dead musketeer and grabbed the big rapier into his own paws. The fight was surprisingly short the remaining guard got violently murdered by Paweł. While still panting heavily from the torture and the fight, he moved past the pools of blood and searched Leopold's desk. Once he found some rich alcohol, he opened the cork and said:

„Time to heal." And so he drank three quarters of it and poured the rest on his nasty burn wounds. He hissed from pain slightly and threw the bottle away, only to look further. In one of the shelves, he finally found a document which would maybe help him. He examined it thoroughly and put back his belt, arm cape, boots, saber, and his bag lying down on a stool nearby. After that, he rolled the document and put it into his bag.

Once he noticed that his double-barrelled pistol was gone, he drew his primary weapon and flipped it a few times in his paw. The saber was made mainly out of steel and solely prepared for exhausting combat. It had a partially closed lighter-colored handle and a gently curved blade. Once he knew that everything is alright with his weapon, he dashed out of the room and at a quick pace he moved through long hallways.

„Bożena, where are you..." He kept on muttering and asking as he walked.

Bożena at this time was still in the dungeons. She finally stopped crying and now was just lying down in complete silence, only the cracking of the torch burning was the ambient sound. Soon, she wiped the tears from her cheeks and licked her paws. She began cleaning herself from this journey and the filth in the dungeons. The feeling of sorrow and hopelessness started to overwhelm her.

Suddenly, Bożena found her pinch of hope when she heard the entrance to the dungeon being opened and two men stepping inside. One of them was walking right up to her cell and the lack of hope violently switched to unbreakable will to fight back. It was the first window of opportunity for her to get out of this place and she was definitely going to use it.

Bożena dashed right next to the door and waited for it to open. Once the lock turned and the door finally let in some more light, she kicked it with full force. The door hit the guard's head upon impact and dazzled him greatly, which then Bożena used to grab his scalping knife and kill him messily. Unfortunately, the second guard heard the commotion and rushed in the cell's direction to apprehend her. He opened the door further and walked in with holding his rapier so tightly his palm nearly began to sweat. Just after noticing the corpse of another mercenary, he suddenly was shot in the head. The perpetrator was nobody other than Bożena who had picked up a loaded flintlock pistol from the previous guard and just used it to her advantage. Without wasting much time, she snatched a scalping knife from one of the mercenaries and rushed out of her cell straight into the corridor.

„ICH HORTE SCHUSSE!" One of the Germans from the floor above recognized the gunshots and ran towards the dungeon exit, audibly with other troops.

She ran far from the exit to a wall nearby which had a few coats and hats hung upon it. However, there was a mediocre opened crate next to one of the tables. She looked inside it and there she found all the equipment she earlier found on herself. The only thing missing, however, was her armor.

With a sigh, Bożena quickly put on her belt and boots as she heard the footsteps becoming louder and louder. Then, she tied her saber to her belt and hid behind the crate, hoping that the mercenaries would just leave this time. Even though she was a hothead, she learnt her brutal lesson from earlier and did not want to take on any large group, especially in an unknown castle. Her main goal was survival and she fully realized that.

Bożena heard three men coming to the dungeons and checked the area. Once they discovered the two murdered guards on the floor, one of the party quickly ran upstairs to raise the alarm. That made Bożena quite angry, to be honest and exact. She knew, though, that the rest two of the guards were getting closer, so stood by and waited for them. Once they showed up, and checked that the table was clean, they moved past it and Bożena climbed up on it. She picked up a glass cup lying nearby and with all her might she threw it at the mercenary the farthest from her. It hit his head and he nearly fell down from the impact as the closer guard looked around, looking for the threat. Bożena used that chance and she violently murdered him by jumping on his back and repeatedly slashing and stabbing his back with her saber. But when the other guard got to his senses, she first cut his leg deeply with all her rage. As he fell down, she yelled angrily and did the same for his guts, resulting in a messy and rather gory effect. At last, she finished him with a cut to the neck.

Since Bożena had a young and healthy body, this was not a huge physical challenge for her. However, she was still a cat and cats are not good at all in endurance. This fighting and running for some minutes surely raised her heartrate and made her panting with her tongue hanging out. Nevertheless, she still had the will to fight and get out. And so she did, by concealing her saber, grabbing a loaded flintlock from one of the Germans and running nearly at the speed of a cheetah for the stairs leading her out of this underground hell.

Paweł was walking through the hallways like a tank, wielding a saber and being covered in blood. But as he walked downstairs, he heard a familiar voice of Puss and Kitty. They were seemingly happy and they even laughed and joked in one of the rooms nearby. Paweł felt his heart squeeze violently, not from the hardships or the fight from earlier, but from the fact that his both comrades saw him as nothing but a murderer. He needed to explain everything to them and gain his honor back.

His walk switched to a run and he finally got to the room where the voices where coming in. Now, as they became clearer, he could really confirm they belonged to Puss and Kitty. He did not want to waste time. He violently kicked the door open and noticed that Puss, along with Kitty, were literally living the dream.

The room was dimly lit by candles on silver candlesticks and the floor was made out of decent yet rare stone. There were a few tables and cupboards with tons of relaxing equipment and commodities, like hot rocks, soap, and tools to take care of hair and skin. The two cats in question at this moment looked very content. Puss was having a massage by a castle maid and Kitty as being brushed by another one. Duh, Puss even very soon rolled over to his back and purred while smiling:

„Yes… Yes… Give me belly rubs, give me belly rubs, do it..."

„Puss..." Kitty stretched. „I can't remember the last time I was brushed."

Paweł stared once at Puss and then at Kitty and he did so a few times. But when his patience ran out, he yelled to everybody in the room:

„GEHEN SIE RAUS! SOFORT!"

The maids screamed in terror and left the pleasure room in panic. Puss and Kitty were confused at first, but then noticed what was the reason for this commotion. Paweł Mieszkogradzki himself was standing next to the door, but this time from the slight exhaustion, painful torture, and armed with a saber, he looked like a demon.

Kitty and Puss jerked up when they first saw him, but after getting his scent from a distance, they realized that it was Mieszkogradzki in the flesh. Puss hopped off of the table he was being massaged on and put his boots back on, albeit very carefully. But while doing so, he stared at Paweł with anger.

„You kill the innocent as a soldier of your country and you come back here to ruin our fun?! Who are you?!"

„There is one thing you need to know." Paweł started the conversation calmly yet he still held his saber in his paw.

„No way! I don't talk to traitors like you!" He was finally done and then he put his belt back on his hips and the cavalier hat on his head.

„The only traitor who is in this God-forsaken castle was Leopold von Spielwduper!"

„...Was?" Puss asked and then Kitty slowly put her boots and belt back on too. „What do you mean by 'was'? You murdered him too, didn't you?"

„I didn't, it was-"

„I spit on bandits like you. You know what…? You really remind me of Humpty Alexander Dumpty! But at least he wouldn't kill anybody! And you also know what?"

Puss took a deep breath and spoke as clearly as he could: „You are nothing but just a maldito Polaco."

He aimed his sword at Paweł and began circling him. Since Kitty saw it was getting tense, she also grabbed her foldable rapier and slowly approached and watched the scene from a safe distance.

„Do you think I am afraid of you, Polaco?" Puss asked proudly. „You're going to stab our backs and let us end just as Senor Leopold who granted us these luxuries? I mean, look at you! Not only you are poor despite being a member of your nobility, but you also have NO HONOR AT ALL!"

Paweł seemed to finally lose his temper and got into a sparring position while aiming his saber at Puss. „Revoke that. I am a cat of honor and all these Germans placed the seed of lies into your heart."

„This is for all the people whom you killed, bastard!" And so Puss rushed at Paweł.

One might think that this fight was intense and hard. But it wasn't. Paweł only reeled his leg backwards and powerfully kicked Puss between his legs as he was charging at him. He instantly dropped his weapon, held the private place and winced from pain as he dropped on the floor.

Kitty finally got into combat too, so she approached Paweł with her rapier, ready and determined to fight with the member of the legendary Polish cavalry. But he only aimed the tip of his saber at her throat and warned her:

„If I really wanted your death, you'd be dead a long time ago. Drop your weapon, I just want to talk."

Suddenly, all of Kitty's will to fight was lost and she couldn't find out what to say to Paweł. She opened her mouth, slowly raised her paws up, and dropped her sword.

„Alright..." Kitty tried to calm him down. „Tell us what you want to say. Just… Just relax."

Paweł switched his gaze between the two and waited for Puss to finally get up from the huge pain. When he eventually did, Paweł searched his satchel and pulled out a rolled document.

„I was not a raider. I was not a bandit. I was not a marauder." He spoke carefully and clearly. „This is what I have found in Leopold's desk after he died."

And so he unrolled the paper. However, its content did not persuade neither Puss nor Kitty at all.

„S-Sorry… I don't understand German." Kitty admitted.

Paweł pointed at the „2500 Denars" in the middle and spoke: „You do recognize this number, tak?"

„Si, si." Puss and Kitty agreed.

„This is the yearly price Herr Leopold von Spielwduper needed to pay to Miss Hundziakówna to let his castle exist as Teutonic Order's property in silence." And so he now pointed at the molten plastic seal proving that the document was valid.

„Yearly price…?" Puss asked in disbelief. „He seems to be very rich and has his own army. What is just 2500 Denars per year?"

„Tak, you are right." Paweł confirmed and was slowly becoming more content that they understood. „And he still did not elect to pay it and even multiplied his own forces. Miss Hundziakówna needed to react and thus she sent me along with other Hussar comrades to deal with the potential rebellion. The action was a success, but he still did not pay and… indeed… he killed my mate Anna for that."

Puss and Kitty were now heartbroken. They were unsure of what to believe. To just confirm it all, Puss came up directly to Paweł and asked him:

„But did you execute people? Did you really kill German children?"

Then, Paweł folded the document, stuffed it back in his satchel, and held his paw right to his heart.

„On my nobleman honor, I swear to you that I would never ever kill any unarmed person not posing a threat to me, my family, and my country. And definitely not any helpless child. The people in question who were really murdered were the insurgents and mercenaries who wanted to secede from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. They already killed some of our men and we couldn't let it loose."

„You do swear it, si?" Puss asked to be sure.

„I swear with all my heart." Paweł confirmed.

A smile formed on Puss' face and he manly hugged the larger cat on his chest: „Then welcome back to the crew!" He announced happily.

Kitty just sighed and put her sword back into her belt. „I… Uh..."

Then, Paweł turned to Kitty and asked: „Tak? What would that be?"

„I think..." Kitty still tried to find the right words for this. „I think I owe you an apology..." And then she added: „Senor Paweł."

He clapped her shoulder a few times and Puss added with a bit of happiness: „Si, si, I owe you an apology too!"

But Paweł only smiled lightly: „The best apology right now would be to retrieve the White Eagle, the artifacts, head straight to Warsaw, and deliver them to the King. He will pay you better than Leopold for sure."

„Wait, wait!" Puss tilted his head. „What happened to Senor Leopold, then? Did you kill him? Tell me now."

Paweł sighed. „Once he put on the Crown and the Ring of Lech, he died from incineration. Trust me, you wouldn't want to see that."

„Oh, good that you tell us" Puss clapped once and made his way to the door. „We will handle it more carefully now. Where are the artifacts?"

Paweł slowly shook his head. „They are still in Leopold's office. I wished to get Bożena safe first."

„Alright, so we are set!" Puss snapped his fingers. „You, Senor Paweł, go for your daughter, and I go for the artifacts. Let's go!"

„We meet at the main gate!" Paweł ordered lastly.

And so they all spread out to accomplish their tasks.

Bożena at the same time was trying to survive the mercenaries trying to hunt her down in the palace. Even though Leopold's forces were not that numerous, they could still pose a significant threat. But as she walked further, she heard a familiar neigh. It was not just a horse neigh for her. It was the neigh of her own horse!

She could not believe her ears and that is why she looked out of the window to check the source. And there it was – the two loyal horses of Mieszkogradzkis were standing right at the unguarded wall of the castle. But as she saw them, she heard the steps of incoming Paweł. She turned her head to the sound and she noticed her father being in one piece. And even though he was seemingly tired and more or less wounded, she still was even happier than when she saw him back in Zakopane. She ran up to him and hugged him with tears in her eyes.

„Ojcze..." She whispered. „I was so scared that you would not come back.

„I was TERRIFIED that I would lose you." He admitted. „How did you escape the dungeons?"

She let go of the hug and smiled while holding his paws. „Well. I have a good teacher. And this teacher is you, ojcze."

Paweł smiled and nodded. „Thank you. What was that noise from the window? Are those our horses?"

„Tak, ojcze!" She smiled widely. „They will help us with escaping!"

„You will lead the horses, I will go through and open the main gate. Then, you will lead the charge."

He hugged his daughter closer and firmly whispered: „And you will take your armor on and use it."

Bożena's eyes widened and her fur even bristled a bit as she began to hyperventilate from happiness. „TAK!" She yelled and raised his saber upwards.

But this moment did not last forever. Soon enough, a few mercenaries came to the from both sides of the hallway. Yet even in this situation they did not feel fear. They had together after all. The power of two.

„Quick, go." Paweł ordered. Bożena very enthusiastically nodded and jumped out of the window. It was not too tall, thankfully, and she safely landed right on her own horse's saddle. When she saw her father starting to run and fight the Germans on the way, a tear fell down her eye and she saluted at this sight.

„Mój ojciec..." She whispered and then she suddenly smacked her reigns and the horse went upwards only on its hind hooves. She aimed her saber upwards and yelled like a maniac:

„HAJDA NA WROGA! BIJ W NIEMCA, BO TO CUD!" And so the horse began running as fast as it could towards the main gate.

Puss and Kitty had a more pleasant mission. All they needed to do was to carry the White Eagle and its artifacts safely back to the main gate. It should not have been hard, given that they were not seen as the enemies by the castle personnel.

As they were getting closer to the ground floor and the great hall, they suddenly stopped to see the castle troops running in different directions. When a few of them came right into their way, the mercenaries stopped and looked with curiosity at the White Eagle artifacts.

„Wait, wait, wait, my guests." One of them asked. „Where are you going now? And what is this jewelry you are carrying?"

But Puss was prepared for situations like these, he carefully handed over the White Eagle to Kitty and then…

And then he grabbed his hat, put it down, and held it in both of his paws next to his chest. He made his great eyes soon afterwards and the giant irises reflecting the light soon nearly melted the guards' hearts.

The Germans held their chests and a loud „Aaaawwwwww!" soon filled the hallway. Some of them even dropped their weapons.

„Go through, go through." Seemingly the most experienced of the guards said and all of the armed men just made the way. They certainly did not want to question the guests, especially if they were cute. Puss and Kitty nodded their heads as a sign of thanks and ran forwards. They had no more guard encounters afterwards.

Eventually, they reached the great hall and later entered the courtyard. But what they saw there really surprised them both. A guard suddenly fell down to his death from the higher gate tower. There was also a loud bang coming from it and finally nobody other than Paweł Mieszkogradzki, now holding a pistol in his paws like a carbine and reloading it.

Quite soon after this, a decent-sized unit of German mercenaries flooded the courtyard, each of them armed with either a good pike, a halberd, or a musket. They all aimed their weapons at the cat in the window. From this small crowd, Gerhart himself went to the front and spoke loudly:

„It is over, Herr Paweł Myetchk- Meshk- Ghadzk- Myeshkogha- F***! I meant – Herr Paweł! Put your paws in the air and give in your arms! We promise you a quick and painless death after that! You have our word!"

„Tak… Sure..." Paweł smirked and suddenly jumped off from the window back inside to the tower. Some of the musketeers fired off their weapons because of the reflex and thus wasted their precious ammunition. Paweł did not mind this at all and pulled the lever, allowing the gates to be opened. The Germans froze in fear and tugged their weapons closer.

After all, at the opposite side of the gate, Bożena Mieszkogradzka in her Hussar armor and on her horse. The light reflected by the full moon only made this armor shine and make the enemies tremble in fear further. What was interesting was that she also had a bear skin on her armor – a typical yet admirable accessory for Polish Hussars during these times. She also had an enormously long lance – approximately six meters long, very light and very lethal. Bożena alone managed to inject fear into the enemies' lines. So what would a hundred of these Polish Hussars do?

Just when paweł was done reloading the flintlock, Bożena charged at the enemy with a familiar Polish war cry of brutal rage: „KUUUUUUURWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

„FORM A SQUARE! FORM A SQUARE!" Gerhart yelled to his men but many of them had legs out of wax from the fear and frequently changed positions in panic.

But when they finally managed to sort of ready themselves, it was already too late. Paweł shot one of the aiming musketeers in the head and Bożena went through all of the soldiers like a knife goes through butter. One of them got impaled on her lance while the rest was crushed under the Hussar horse's powerful hooves. Panic settled in the German lines as they began running away crying in every direction nearly as if a herd of sheeping running away from a blood-thirsty wolf. Seeing that her lance was broken from the impact, Bożena dropped it and drew her mighty saber. That was when she began slicing and dicing every single one of the soldiers on the courtyard.

Puss and Kitty just watched this scene as if they were in a theatre. Kitty leaned on a wall nearby and slowly nodded her head. But Puss at the same time was very amused that such a Polish lady could defeat many of them on a horse alone. And that she, all by herself, turned fierce soldiers into helpless people running away in fear.

And Puss was not going to stay on the fence. He drew his sword and rushed at the remaining soldiers, hoping to help Bożena even just a bit. Paweł walked down the stairs to join the party too. When Kitty saw that everybody wanted to prove themselves, she shrugged, put on her fancy mask, grabbed her sword, and began fighting too.

At a decisive moment of the battle, Gerhart grabbed the stolen Wunderwaffe pistol, stretched both of the hammers, and aimed at the charging Bożena. He fired from both of the barrels, but it was too soon – she was still too far and the bullets missed her by inches. Seeing that he has no other way out of this, Gerhart just stood there in one and so Bożena ceased his life with her saber as she rode her horse at full speed right next to him. After the kill, she smiled in her zischagge at the now dead Gerhart and continued the bloodshed.

All the unlucky Germans who were still on the courtyard died miserably. After the great battle, everybody was panting from exhaustion, yet their hearts were filled with fulfillment. Bożena soon hopped off of her horse and took off her zischagge, revealing her face.

Puss slowly walked up to her and raised his eyebrows. „Senorita, senorita… That was a great job!" He clapped her shoulder and Bożena smiled at Puss. Finally she was being noticed and respected for what she did.

Then, while still wearing the red żupan tunic and the Hussar armor on herself, she raised her paw in front of Kitty and formally said: „Looks like… I think… Uhh… I owe you an apology. I'm just so stressed out sometimes."

„Sure thing." Kitty lightly smiled and shook her paw. „And hey – I think you dropped your keys!" And there she finally gave the keys back to Bożena who was now very amused and happy.

„Thanks." The calico she-cat grabbed them and put them on her belt.

„Looks like..." Paweł started. „We all made our way. Let's go forward, then. No time to waste."

But suddenly, an audible sound of horse's running was heard. They all made themselves ready, but soon Paweł just straightened himself up and said:

„STOP! STOP! They are our own!"

And he was right. A familiar banner was seen from the bottom of the hill. Soon, a few men dressed in żupans, steel varmbraces, and fur hats rode into the castle on horseback, a few of them holding torches in this rather dark night. At first, Puss and Kitty were scared that these were another enemies, but as Paweł and Bożena began cheering and hugging each other, the fear soon left their hearts.

The one cavalryman with moustache and the richest-looking żupan immediately opened a rolled scripture and said:

„Dear Panie Mieszkogradzki! I am light cavalry comrade Janusz Nowacki and I came here with my retinue by Miss Hundziakówna's order to safe you and escort you safely back to freedom!"

„Excellent." Paweł responded while walking up to see the cavalrymen better. „How did you know that we were there?"

„Many commoners in the częstochowskie voivodeship reported that some German-looking men were having you imprisoned. After Miss Hundziakówna got the message, he sent us to buy you out, sir!"

„Looks like you don't need money, then." Paweł commented. „I wish to be escorted to the Wilhelm's Tavern along with my comrades and my daughter. It was an exhausting journey and we want some rest first."

„Perfect." Janusz responded. „Hop on our horses, we will move right now."

All of the cats looked at each other in a circle and smiled as they nodded slightly once. The journey was about to end peacefully, hopefully.

After gathering all the lost gear, Paweł soon mounted his horse, Bożena took her armor off and mounted her horse, and both Puss and Kitty just said at the back of the cavalrymen's horses. The artifacts were hidden in a sack and guarded carefully whereas the White Eagle stood calmly on Paweł's right shoulder.

They all took a glimpse of the castle, once powerful and manned, now empty and abandoned. That was the moment when they fully realized what they could all do as an organized team with the right ideas.