Chapter Seven - A Stampede of a Party
"WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON THAT LITTLE SNAKE WHO KIDNAPPED MY DAUGHTER, I'LL TEAR HIS EYES OUT AND SHOVE THEM DOWN HIS THROAT SO HE CAN WATCH ME GUT HIM LIKE A FISH!"
"Ariana, be still!" Zephyr held Ariana back from flying off. "My darling dear, we must be smart with this."
"We must save Ellisa before those monsters hurt her!" Cobalt demanded.
"Prowlus is with her." Harper assured. "He'll protect her with his life." She looked down. Which is what worries me. I can't lose him.
"Bash won't kill them." Ash seemed to read Harper's mind. "He wants to draw out my mother to get his revenge."
"Queen Poppy?" Ariana asked in confusion.
"Yeah, she and Dad beat up him and his buddies years ago." Ash explained. "He found us and now he thinks holding us hostage will draw them out."
"I doubt this Bash fellow will wait until Queen Poppy arrives, seeing how she's days, maybe weeks away from us." Zephyr said. "Prince Ash, what are your orders?"
Ash jumped when he realized everyone stared at him. "Wait, me?"
"You do know these Party Crashers best, having heard the stories from your parents." Sir Tandeth pointed out. "Surely, you know the best way to fight them, my liege."
Ash wasn't so sure. The last time I tried to attack the Party Crashers, I had to be saved from the wing trolls. King Zephyr saved Harper from being really hurt or killed. Ash reached into his pack to pull out his mother's scrapbook. He searched for something related to the Party Crashers. He found the right pages: Archer's spying, and how he became a friend, Bash's invasion, kidnapping Mr. Dinkles, and the great sing-off that determined the trolls' freedom. Ash stared at the page depicting the sing-off.
"What are you thinking, Ash?" Gris asked.
Ash hummed in thought. "Well, this is how my mom beat them. I'm just wondering if the Party Crashers are still up to their old habits of looking for a good party."
"It sounds like those ruffians are not ones to give up on old trends." Cobalt said.
"Do you have a plan, my prince?" Sir Tandeth asked. "We will follow you."
That's what I'm worried about. Ash shut the scrapbook and tucked it away. As he did, he noticed a package at the bottom and pulled it out. The tag read 'From Aunt Satin and Aunt Chenille, and Bliss and Aka. Hope these help in some way.' Inside the package was colorful fabric and a sewing kit.
"If you don't have a plan, we'll take on Bash ourselves." Ariana said. "Gather the guards! We'll launch a full attack!"
"No!" Ash said quickly. "Bash might kill Prowlus and Ellie if we go in with swords raised. Or he might run off with them!"
"Then what is your plan?!" Ariana demanded.
Ash glanced to Cobalt, who had a knowing look in his eyes. A prince protects his people. Ash looked to Satin, Chenille, Bliss, and Aka's gift and he exhaled softly. "I think I know what to do."
"Launch another round!" Bash ordered.
"More fireworks?" a Party Crasher asked, confused. "We're going to run out at this rate!"
"We want to draw the pink queen to us." Bash said. "It's been an hour. That's plenty of time for her to decide surrender." He glanced to Prowlus and Ellie, tied up and resting right next to him, where he could keep his eyes on them.
"Bash! Someone's coming!" another Party Crasher called.
"Gather around and bring out your weapons!" Bash ordered. The Party Crashers only had large sticks sharpened at the ends with Bash's knife. He was the only one with a real weapon, and he was ready to use it. Over the years, he became more and more bitter from his defeat at Poppy's hands. The more bitter he became, the more violent he tended to act.
Three figures emerged from the trees, riding Steve. The crocodile growled a little at the Party Crashers, but his riders calmed him. The three riders looked like trolls, but they wore colorful, gaudy costumes complete with funky masks and butterfly wings.
"Greetings, friends!" one of the masked trolls waved.
"Since when are we friends?" Bash demanded.
"All are friends, and customers, to us!" the smallest masked troll said. "Would you be interested in our wonderful products?"
"Ooh, shopping!" a female Party Crasher gushed.
"No interested." Bash snarled.
"You wouldn't be interested in a few party-related things?" the third masked troll suggested, the voice indicating a female.
The Party Crashers looked to Bash with their best puppy dog eyes. He rolled his eyes. "Fine. What do you got?"
The short masked troll pulled out a large chart with a picture of Party Crashers playing with a stereo and chairs. "How about this musical game craze sweeping the forest? It's called Musical Thrones! See, what you do is—"
"Pass." Bash droned.
One of the taller masked trolls elbowed his partner, who stepped forward. "Then you'll like this! Confetibles!"
Prowlus perked up. He thought he recognized the voices, but now he knew for a fact that only one troll was familiar with an edible confetti invention. It's Harper!
"How many times has this happened to you?" the female masked troll asked. "You've just had a party, and it was a blast! But oh no! There's confetti littered all over the place! That's going to be a pain to clean up!"
"We never clean up after ourselves!" a Party Crasher pointed out.
"You'll never have to ever again with Confetibles!" the female masked troll declared. "It's all-natural, made from sugar sprinkles, so it tastes great!" She pulled out a bucket and tossed its contents over the Party Crashers.
One of the Party Crashers stuck out his tongue, catching a confetti piece like it were a snowflake. "Yummy!"
"Clean up is a breeze when all you have to do is snack on your decorations!" the tall masked troll said, tossing another bucket of the sprinkle confetti.
The Party Crashers snatched at the confetti that fell, gobbling up the pieces they managed to catch. Bash looked bored. "This is dumb."
"I don't think so, Bash." A female Crasher shrugged. "It's pretty ingenious."
Bash stared at the masked trolls. "You seem familiar to me."
"Familiar how?" the female masked troll shrugged.
"Where did you say you were from?" Bash asked.
The masked trolls collectively said, "Uh….." before the smallest one said, "Canada?"
"Remove your masks right now!" Bash ordered. He yanked on Ellie's hair and twisted it when the masked trolls hesitated. The masked trolls pulled off their costumes to reveal Ash, Harper, and Zephyr.
"Daddy!" Ellie cheered.
"Where is the pink queen?" Bash demanded.
"Funny story: she's actually back in Troll Village, like miles and miles away from here." Ash said.
"Then your friends, and you, are going to die." Bash pulled out his knife.
"Before you hurt anyone, here's a fun fact for you." Harper said. "Trolls aren't the only ones who like confetibles. Lots of critters enjoy them, too. Including a lovely creature known as a swag stag."
Ash pulled out a whistle shaped like a swag stag head. He blew into it, resulting in the call of the creature. In less than a minute, a herd of swag stags bounded into the area while Steve scurried off so the crocodile wouldn't scare them. The stags began grazing on the confetti bits in the grass.
"You think we're afraid of a bunch of deer?" Bash scoffed. "Especially with that stupid crocodile gone."
"Well, you might be afraid of him." Ash pointed out the largest stag of the herd. "That there is King Stag. Greatest and meanest of them all. I wouldn't mess with him."
Bash rolled his eyes and chucked a rock at King Stag. In response, the King Stag bellowed and galloped for the Party Crasher leader. This resulted in a full-on stampede of the swag stags, and the Party Crashers scattered.
"Ariana! Wing trolls! Let's get out of here!" Ash called. Zephyr carried Harper and Ash out of the chaos. Ariana and another wing troll grabbed Prowlus and Ellie while a handful of other wing trolls made sure the Party Crashers ran away from the kingdom.
"That was a brilliant plan, Ash!" Ariana said.
"Thank you!" Ellie called.
Ash pulled out a rolled-up cloth and stuck the swag stag whistle in one of the pockets. "Animal call whistles. Thanks Uncle Fuzzbert!"
When they all returned to the kingdom, there was massive applause at the sight of Princess Ellie safe and sound.
"The praise is not for us." Ariana declared. "Let your cheers be directed to Prince Ash, for his great plan, and to his friends, for their teamwork!" She and Zephyr bowed to Ash. "I'm indebted to you, Ash."
"Well, we might have led the Party Crashers here, so it was the least we could do." Ash said.
"We've run into nuisances like them before." Cobalt assured. "You risked your safety to save our princess, so you have our thanks."
"It's official: you're all staying here for a night." Ariana declared. "And don't try to refuse. I'm really stubborn."
"She is." Cobalt agreed.
"Best to go along with it." Zephyr added.
Ash looked to his friends for confirmation, and he nodded. "Okay. Thank you."
The next day, after a full night's sleep and a hearty breakfast, the travelers prepared to leave. Ariana and Zephyr insisted they restock their rations before leaving.
As Ash checked his bag for everything they needed, he heard a knock at the door. "Come in!"
Cobalt pushed open the door and rolled in. "All packed?"
"Yep." Ash slung his bag over his back. "We're heading north, I think. Just through the forest."
Cobalt nodded musingly. He glanced to the door and wheeled himself closer to Ash. "I have a request, young prince."
"What's up?" Ash asked.
"Since you seem to be on quite the adventure, traversing almost the entirety of the forest, I'd like you to keep an eye out for Erika." Cobalt requested.
Ash stared at the old king in surprise. "You think we'll find her out there?"
"I don't know for sure, but you are the only hope I have, at the moment." Cobalt said. "I have to see her again. So, please, find Erika, if you can."
Ash wasn't sure if he could, but he did inherit his mother's helpful nature. "I'll do what I can."
Cobalt escorted Ash back to his friends. The wing trolls bid the travelers a fond farewell as they left. Gris walked with Steve beside him. Ash and Sir Tandeth rode Steve, and Prowlus and Harper rode Ebony as she flew just above Gris's head.
"What did Cobalt say to you?" Gris asked Ash. "You looked kinda worried when you came back from packing."
"He just asked us to keep an eye out for Erika and Icestorm." Ash explained. "Try to convince them to come back, if we can."
'I doubt we can.' Prowlus signed. 'I heard they never even said goodbye to their families before they ran away.'
"We don't have to look for them, Ash." Harper assured. "It's your choice."
Ash shrugged. "I'll think about it. For now, which way should we go?"
"As a wise old friend once told me: if you don't care which way you go, it doesn't matter which way you go." Sir Tandeth said.
Ash stood on Steve, shut his eyes, and spun around a few times. He opened his eyes and pointed in a random direction. "That way!"
They traveled that way for the rest of the day, encountering friendly critters and having a picnic lunch overlooking a picturesque valley. They even traveled when night fell, and only stopped after they were completely exhausted.
"What a day!" Harper sighed. "Sometimes it's nice to just wander."
"It did help me think more about my colors." Ash said, scribbling in a notebook as he ate his dinner. "I think we can try finding other things I'm good at and see if it brings out anything."
"Do not lose faith, my liege." Sir Tandeth assured. "Your eyes are colored, so that must mean your colors are in you somewhere."
"Yeah. Good point." Ash said.
"Let's not worry about it now." Gris yawned. "I'm hitting the hay. Goodnight, everyone." The rest of the travelers soon followed suit, leaving only Ash lying on his back and staring at the stars.
"Psst. Eclipse." Ash whispered.
The ghost sorceress appeared next to Ash. "Yes?"
"Can you do me a favor?" Ash requested. "Can you go out and see if you can find Erika and Icestorm?"
"Of course. But why?"
"I think they're out there, somewhere; and, despite being together and being in love and all that, I think they need a friend. I don't know if we will find them or if they're even alive, but it'd be nice to give Cobalt a definite answer about his granddaughter."
Eclipse smiled and lightly tousled Ash's hair. "You're so kind, my darling. All right. I'll search as fast as I can and let you know what I find."
"Good luck." Ash watched Eclipse turn into a ball of light and disappear. He settled into sleep, wondering if Erika and Icestorm did the same somewhere in the forest.