We approached the guard who stood watch at the front gate.
"Do you have news on the impostor prince?" he asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"Come with me."
And so he did. We went into the main lobby.
"That's him," said one of the guards. "That's the impostor prince!"
"After what happened to General tom," said another guard.
The guards pointed their spears at us and they marched us downstairs to a tiny cell in the dungeon.
"I will inform the king," said the guard. "You will stay here."
ooooooooo
"What kind of hospitality is this?' asked Hassan.
"They still seem to be mad at me for impersonating the prince," I replied.
We had been in this cell for minutes since our arrival at the castle.
"How long are we going to be here?" asked Barbara.
The same guard that led us to our cell showed up.
"I'm terribly sorry," he said. "I should not have put you in here; I misunderstood my orders. The king summons you all."
And so he led us fgrom the dungeon to the throne room. The King of Reidock was there, sitting on his throne. Shera was sitting next to him. We all bent on one knee.
"First of all," said the king, "I'd like to aspologize for my soldiers. General Tom was executed for his error in admitting you into the castle as the prince."
I suddenly understood. If Tom was dead, and Soldi was Tom's dream-world counterpart, it explained why Soldi never made it back to the dream world's Reidock.
"Let me explain what happened," he continued. " I ordered a final offensive against Mudo, so I got onto a ship and we set sail for his kingdom. Suddenly there was this mysterious light. When I regained consciousness, I was Mudo!"
"That explains a lot, sire," I said.
"Please come with me outside. I've a favor to ask you."
"Yes, my lord." We all followed the king outside to the walkway along the outer walls. We had a nice view of the city that surrounds the castle.
"In my abscence, the real Mudo has grown strong," said the king. "We must request the help of the Gent clan; they have this ship called the Ship of God. Their capital is in the northern mountains, beyound our borders. Here is a royal letter to the Elder of the Gent Clan. I will send a message to the northern border crossing and they will allow you to pass."
"We will do this, sire," I said, taking the letter.
oooooooooooo
About an hour after leaving the castle, we arrived at the northern border crossing. The flag of the Kingdom of Reidock flew proudly.
"The castle informed us of your arrival," said the guard. "Have a safe trip."
At oine end of the border crossing was a sign reading "THE GENT CLAN WELCOMES YOU". We crossed through the checkpoint and into the territory of the Gent Clan.
I looked at the magic map as it revealed in detail more territory. It was another two hours before we arrived at the town of Gent.
The town itself was smaller than Reidock and was located at the head of an inlet. The centerpiece of the town was this shrine perched on the bluffs next to the water. There were houses with huge yards on which people grew crops.
We mingled with the natives of Gent. We heard more about the Ship of God. We also heard something about the Pegasus, a flying horse, and how one of the horses in Gent was a descendant of the Pegasus.
We entered the Elder's house, which was right near the shrine. Inside, it was a small home, with a kitchen, dining room, and a bedroom.
"Sir," I said to the elder as we met in the dining room. "I have a message from the king of Reidock." I handed him the letter.
"So your king wants to borrow the Ship of God in order to attack Mudo's castle," says the Elder. "I understand his situation. Unfortunately, the Ship of God can only be piloted by a member of the Gent Clan. Even if I were to let you board the ship, it will not sail with any of you at the helm."
"I understand, sir," I replied. "Perhaps there is another way you can help us reach Mudo's castle."
"I'll have to discuss it with the Council," said the Elder.
We all went towards the front door. Suddenly, this kid appeared in front of us. He was dressed in this yellow robe and wore huge glasses; he carried this cane with him.
"Grandfather," said the kid.
"Hello, Chamoro," replied the elder.
"I see we have visitors," said Chamoro.
"They came to request the Ship of God, but only a member of the Gent Clan can pilot it."
Suddenly, I heard this voice.
"Chamoro," said the voice. "Travel with these people to Mudo's island."
"What was that?" asked Hassan.
I recognized the voice. It was the voice I heard at the Spirit Festival back in Lifecod in the dream world.
"Grandfather," said Chamoro. "Let these people take the ship. I will go with them."
the kid's grandfather looked at him. "Very well, my grandson," he said.
We all introduced ourselves to Chamoro.
"This is the Gent Cane," he said, hoplding the cane. "It can heal wounds. I also know quite a bit of curative magic."
"Shall we go?" I asked.
Chamoro led us outside to the shrine.
"Are you really going to break the seal on the divine ship?" asked a man standing in front of the door.
"Yes, we are," said Chamoro. "the Elder has authorized the use of the ship."
"Come on inside."
We all went inside and there was this huge wooden ship inside. It was suspended in the air by huge chains. We crossed a footbridge into the ship.
"Are you ready?" asked a man who toom the steering column.
The ship was then lowered and lowered until it hit the water below with a splash. I can sdee an exit leading outside. The ship then sailed out of the alcove and towards the inlet.
"Well, this is it," said Muriel.
I drew my broad sword, which I had picked up at Reidock just before leaving for Gent. As we approached the mouth of the inlet, I prayed a silent prayer.