This chapter is more about closing the threads of the adventure.

Only one more chapter for this adventure.


A superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.

With Morganna dead, the palace courtiers and guards finally were free from the spell of lust. They had returned to their senses.

At first they were reluctant to accept Tony and Pepper's version of events. After all, there was a single body and a lot of blood in the room. No trace of a demon or a spell.

A few courtiers even suggested that Tony and Pepper were the villains here and had killed Morganna. However some f the palace cooks who had managed to resist the spell, supported Tony and Pepper's story. Pepper showed Queen Jacinta 's locket and this further proved their claim as the queen would not have given that locket to anyone.

Happy took on the responsibility of taking care of the kidnapped maidens. He collected them all in one place, took a roll call, grouped them by their place of origin and started to arrange for their safe transport back to their homes.

Tired but determined to find King John, Tony and Pepper searched the castle, with the help of the palace guards. But they just couldn't find him.

As they searched the basement levels again, Tony whispered to the dragon, I hope King John is still alive. I hope the demon did not eat him. If we do not find him, who will rule this Kingdom?

The dragon whispered back The witch could not have killed him as she needed his royal seal and presence to fully be the queen. She would not have had any reach outside this city if King John was dead. So he has to be alive. She's hidden him very well somewhere.

Pepper was looking at the scrap of parchment that displayed all the secret pathways in the castle. She exclaimed suddenly and ran to Tony 's side.

"Look Tony, there is a secret path leading outside the castle. Could Morganna have hidden King John in the city?"

Tony looked at the map. "It would not hurt to try there. We have searched here long enough."


They took half the guards and went down to the castle's winery, where the secret passageway was present between two giant oak casks of mead. It was a very narrow space between two firm walls and each person had to squeeze and walk sideways to pass through.

Being the most slender of the group, Pepper was the first to enter the passageway and exit it. As she waited for Tony to follow her, she looked around in shock at where the passage way had led them.

It was a dark, dingy tunnel with a stream of water separating the tunnel into two halves. The stream of water was sparse now, so Pepper could easily jump over it and land on the other side. Pepper wrinkled her nose as there was a faint smell of excretment in the air.

She grinned as she heard Tony swear vividly as he pushed himself through the narrow passage. He finally emerged, grumbling under his breath and helped the guard who was right behind him.

Then he looked around as well and exclaimed "We are in the sewers!"

Just then a firm but low voice was heard, booming in the tunnel. "I say, is there someone there? Coeee! Can anyone hear me?"

Tony and Pepper yelled at the same time. "Yes we are here. Where are you?"

"Hoi, I'm right here at the end of this blasted tunnel. Come down this side please. Oh I'm so glad someone is here."

Tony, Pepper and two guards who had managed to jump the stream, walked down carefully. Right at the end of the tunnel, the water flowed over the edge to end up in the city's river. There was a steel grill covering this exit such that only water could pass through.

Pepper stared at the grill, wondering from where the voice was coming. There was only wall and grill to see.

"Psst, up here."

She looked up and nearly screamed to see two bright sparkly eyes, embedded in masses of brown hair. The very hairy face smiled reassuringly.

"I can assure you, my friends, I'm harmless. I'm just very hairy. Can you let me out, please, I'd like to stretch my legs."

Pepper saw that the hairy being was caged in the ceiling of the tunnel.

Tony came up behind her and asked suspiciously, "Wait, wait, who, what are you and what are you doing here?"

Before the being could answer, the palace guard next to Tony gasped and fell to his knees. "King John" he muttered in awe.

Pepper gasped too. "You are King John?! Your highness, I'm so glad you are in one piece. We have been searching for you all over the palace."

Tony said, "Wait, let's get you out." He started to hit the lock of the cage's door, trying to break it with his sword.

Then a burly guard stepped forward with an axe and Tony hopped out of the way. The lock was broken and the king nimbly jumped down. He stretched himself all over. Pepper averted her eyes as the king was clad only in his drawers and covered in hair.

"Your highness," Tony asked gently, "The witch is dead."

"Oh thank god! That she devil bewitched me. What has she done to my kingdom?"

Tony hesitated and Pepper knew why. He said, "Let us go to your chambers, my king and talk. You need to rest."


King John insisted on talking with them as his barber trimmed his immense beard and hair. Apparently Morganna had hexed him with a hairy spell, so that no one would recognize him.

Just as the dragon had said, Morganna could not kill the King immediately but did not want anyone to know she had imprisoned him. So she kept him caged up and from time to time, would come with food and taunts.

King John was astounded by their tale of Morganna's spells and depravity. He trembled with rage at being told of her murders, both courtier and maiden alike. Then he broke down in tears when Pepper told him that his beloved Queen Jacinta was no more and handed him her locket.

Tony looked at the king who was openly weeping, not ashamed to display his grief in front of others. The man loved his wife.

The dragon murmured, When one dies they are gone but those who are left behind, they linger with grief. He is a good man, he will grieve for Jacinta but he will honor her memory.

An elderly courtier patted the King comfortingly. He composed himself and rose majestically, eyes still red.

"I am ashamed of falling under that witch's spell. And of not being there for my people and so many innocents dying under my watch. But I will make amends as best I can."

He promised a sum of money for each fallen maiden and courtier's families. He also promised to send his troops to the neighboring villages to ask for details of any missing girls and help them identify if they were kidnapped by Morganna.

King John cleared his throat. "Now to our noble champions who came to our aid unsolicited and freed us from that witch and her evil. Step forward please."

The room cleared in the middle. Tony and Pepper stepped forward and Tony pulled Happy to stand along with them.

The King stood next to Happy. "Hereald, is it? Noble serf from Lorinthia, for helping Carinthia, I gift thee four acres of field land for your own."

The crowd gasped as the King had effectively made Happy a landowner, a reward like no other.

Hereald bowed deeply and stepped back.

The King stood next to Pepper and smiled charmingly at her. He took her hand in his and kissed it. The crowd started to murmur and Pepper flushed. She was still in her lad disguise with floppy hat and baggy clothes. The King whispered to her, "Milady, before the crowd gets the wrong idea, perhaps you should let down your hair?"

She nodded and took off the hat and shook out her hair, reddish gold tresses gleaming in the light. Shocked whispers were heard and Pepper looked around nervously. Tony was distracted initially, as always by Pepper's open hair. The crowd's noise roused him and he stepped closer to her protectively, hand on sword hilt. But before he could speak, the King raised his hand and the crowd quietned.

"It is unconventional for a woman to fight alongside men and that too, defeat her opponent successfully. But we cannot churlishly deny this lady her accolades. Your name, my lady?"

"Virginia." she whispered and he said loudly, "To Lady Virginia for her bravery and skill on the battle field, I gift her a 100 gold coins and the finest mare from my stables, Aurora the White."

The crowd gasped as the mare in question, was a rare breed from over the mountains and dear to the King.

Pepper curtsied charmingly, very pleased with her gift.

The King nodded and moved to Tony. "Your good name, Sir?"

"My name is Anthony Edduard Stark."

The king huffed at them. "I have been a visitor to King Leoric's court and I have seen you there and I remember your full title."

Tony tensed and the dragon chortled. He knows who you are.

"Lord Anthony Stark, sole heir to the Stark line, knight of the iron legion. Your reputation precedes you."

The crowd started whispering again.

Tony said firmly "I am no longer a lord nor a knight. Just an ordinary landowner."

"Anthony, you may be many things but you are not ordinary. Seeing that, I would like to reinstate your noble stature and offer you a place in my Kingdom as a knight of Carinthia."

The crowd gasped and cheered and Pepper looked at Tony with wide eyes.

A chance of a lifetime. He offers you the chance to ascend once again into the realm of nobility and service to a king. The dragon mused. What say you Tony?

Tony wondered, How does one politely refuse a king?

Tony ignored the dragon's booming laugh in his head and said evenly, "Your highness, indeed your generosity knows no bounds. But regretfully I must decline..." The crowd gasped while the king looked at him thoughtfully. "I have ... I have a different path to follow in life and a courtly existence is not part of it. I'm truly sorry."

Tony looked straight at the king who was regarding him curiously. The monarch nodded regally and said, "I cannot command your loyalty and service but if not a knight, let me regard you as a friend of Carinthia as you have helped her in dire times. Friend, would you accept the dagger of Aramiah as a gift? Along with the holy rock from the sky?"

Once again, the crowd went wild and Tony bowed deeply.

It is a good gift ... bejeweled, beautifully, deadly... the dragon mused. How ...

I'm not going to sell the dagger, my friend. It is very valuable I know but I cannot sell a king's gift. Tony told the dragon firmly, knowing that it preferred money to jewels and praise.


The next day, the entire population of the city gathered, to say goodbye to their beloved Queen Jacinta.

The streets were lined with mourners all shrouded in black, clutching rosemary and tulips. The funeral procession marched by solemnly, lead by King John, followed by the knights, elite infantry, courtiers and palace guards. There was nothing left of the Queen but ash, so the coffin was empty, save for her locket. The page boys stood at mid points on the street, swinging heavy lamps of incense.

The mood of the crowd was somber and some were openly weeping. Queen Jacinta was loved by one and many, for her kindness and strength and her generosity, especially in times of famine and drought. Flowers were gently thrown from the rooftops and balconies of the buildings overlooking the street.

Tony stared moodily at the procession from his vantage point. He and Happy were on horseback, on a bridge that ran parallel to the main street on which the procession was moving. Tony wanted to go home. He was tired for many reasons, mentally and physically. He also had a nasty hangover from his... activities on the previous night.

But he could not leave. He had promised King John, he would stay for another day. The King wanted to discuss Morganna's wickedness and Tony wanted to talk about it as well as it would be good to have the support and interest of a monarch like King John.

But this funeral depressed him and brought back a lot of unpleasant memories. I have been to so many funeral processions, you would think, I would be used to it. But no, I still feel the same... melancholy, sadness, grief.

He absently tapped his arc and then felt the scar on its left. A deep gash, courtesy of Morganna's nails. It will heal thanks to the yarrow root but the mark will remain on my skin. I am sure of it.

Then he tensed as he remembered who used the yarrow root. He shifted in his saddle, willing himself to block out the memories of last night.

Happy was busy thinking of what had happened to the Chamber of Bone. The King wanted it destroyed but it was on the lowest level of the castle, so breaking the room was not possible. Tony had suggested burning everything in it and barricading it from the outside. The King was so pleased that he went one step further and wanted the key to the room, melted in front of him, so no one could ever reenter that room.

Tony sighed deeply as it began to rain lightly. The falling rain, the endless sea of black, seemed to echo the dark thoughts in his head. I know why I am sad, I just... do not want to think about it.

Happy asked absently, "Tony, where is Pepper? Is she still sleeping? I thought she would want to be here for Queen Jacinta."

Tony grimaced. Now what should I tell Happy?

He turned to Happy with a blank face. "Pepper left today morning for the village. She did not want to stay in Carinthia for another day."

Happy looked at him askance. "She left, on her own, to ride back alone... why could not she have waited? I mean, we could have gone with her, if you could not leave, at least I would have left..."

"Happy!" Tony cut him off. He did not want to hear Happy's thoughts on the subject as they so closely mirrored his own concerns about Pepper running off alone back to the village. The dragon chortled. You need not bother about Pepper any more, Anthony. She is an independent woman.

"Happy, let us not talk of Pepper any more, alright?"

Happy widened his eyes comically in horror. "What did you do now?"

Tony scowled at him, now angry because Happy had brought up the one thing he was trying very hard, not to think of. He sighed deeply. "Happy, I will explain about Pepper... soon... on the ride home, I promise."


It was a beautiful day. There was a light drizzle but the birds were singing, flowers were in bloom and the landscape was picturesque.

Pepper could not appreciate the road on the way to Carinthia because she was hiding in the donkey cart. And she could not do so now because her heart was too heavy.

Aurora nickered at her and she smiled and patted the great but delicate head of the beautiful horse that King John had gifted her. When she saw Aurora, it was love at first sight.

This was truly is a beast like no other, with its snowy white body, offset by a golden mane and tail. It had feathery tufts of hair around its hooves and pink soft nose. To add to its physical beauty, Aurora was so gentle and well-behaved. She moved like a cloud, fast but floating across the earth and responded to even the slightest command.

Pepper stroked the horse's mane thoughtfully. At least, if nothing else, I have this horse. Once again, King John, I thank you with all my heart.

She sighed deeply, the thought of what she was going to do, saddened her.

"But I have to do it." She said out loud to herself. "Come on, beauty," she gently urged the horse, "let us ride fast, so we reach Stark Keep by dawn."