Chapter 4

"Smile Time"

Diana couldn't speak. She heard Sheila gasp in shock beside her, and the Thief was so surprised that she made no attempt to use her Cloak to vanish.

The two boys looked so similar to how the Acrobat remembered them; but so different to what she had expected.

Of the two, Eric caught her attention first. His hair was still cut short, and his superior expression was achingly familiar, all the way down to the smug curve of his top lip. He also still dressed in armour, just as she had somehow expected, but it wasn't the yellow breastplate and blue mail of the Cavalier. It was the colour of tarnished silver but it sparkled in the light when he moved. He had a black fur cape thrown round his shoulders, and black gauntlets; and in his right hand was a long, black Spear.

But Hank was very different, and Diana could hardly believe it was the same person. Only the piercing, blue eyes that gazed at her were the same as they always had been. His blonde hair was long enough to tie back, and he wore armour similar to Eric's, but brighter and with the emblem of a dragon's head embossed on the front. His cape was blue, the colour of early evening, as were his gloves. He carried no weapon that Diana could see.

Hank spurred his horse forward a few steps, so he was looking right down at Diana and the two others.

'So you are the Acrobat?' he said, a contemptuous and unfamiliar tone to his voice. 'You are Zandora's new Pupils?'

Diana lifted her head up, and glared at him. She looked him straight in the eye, knowing deep down who he was. She was here to help him, and help Eric. That was all that mattered.

'Yes, I am the Acrobat,' she said, holding her Javelin firmly in her hand. 'And who are you?'

Hank slid smoothly off the horse to the ground and stared back at her. There was no recognition at all in his eyes, and Diana was sure that she heard a quiet cry from Sheila.

'You don't know who I am?' Hank asked in amazement. 'You haven't heard of me?'

From behind him, Eric barked a laugh.

'If beautiful women do not know your name, then it seems your reputation isn't what it used to be, brother,' he said.

Brother! thought Diana, trying not to stare. Brother…?

She didn't dare look round to see what Sheila thought of this development. She could guess!

Hank smiled at her, and Diana felt compelled to smile back. It was a smile she recognised.

'You haven't been here very long, have you?'

'We've just arrived,' she replied.

'I told you so,' said Eric. 'That damned old Witch must have just left! We've missed her again!'

Hank ignored his "brother" and continued to stare at Diana.

'Perhaps,' he said smoothly, 'perhaps you should just give us your weapons so we can be on our way.'

She wanted to.

Though every part of her knew that it was a tremendously bad idea, she still wanted to. Seeing him like that, knowing who he was, she wanted to help him in any way that…

'Leave her alone!' growled Joseph. There was the hiss of a Sword as it cut through the air.

Hank regarded the other boy with a cold contempt.

'Paladin?' he said at last, looking at Joseph's clothes. 'Another Paladin with the Sword! Zandora really doesn't have any… imagination!' As Hank said the last word, he turned back to Diana and gave a smile, a different sort of smile this time. She knew he wasn't looking at her, but at her clothes (or lack of them) and she shivered. Hank had never looked at her quite like that before.

'I said leave her alone!'

As Joseph stepped up to her side, Hank took a step back, the cold expression back on his face.

'Enough!' said Eric sharply. 'This is not why we are here!' He levelled his Spear at the three of them. 'We are here for you.'

'No,' Diana replied instantly. 'You're not getting us, or our weapons!'

Eric looked surprised, and confused.

'Really, Acrobat?' he asked calmly. 'What make you think that?'

'You're not taking our weapons!' she said again.

'Oh? We're not?' He was still calm, but there was an edge of something else in his tone; anger perhaps, or maybe just confusion, she couldn't tell. That was strange, she was used to being able to understand Eric. It was disconcerting to know that he had the advantage. That had never happened to her before!

'No! you're not!' she said.

'Then… perhaps we would have to kill you.'

Though he spoke with a light tone, Diana had the unpleasant feeling that he actually meant it. Her discomfort only lasted a moment, as the tension was broken by a laugh from Hank.

'I think she believes, you, Eric!' he said, still laughing. 'You have such a way with women!'

Diana looked from one to the other. They had the same names! That son-of-a-bitch Venger had given them the same names!

'Hank!' she said suddenly.

'Oh, so you do know! How gratifying!' Hank turned to smirk at Eric, but the other boy wasn't looking at him. There was the sound of footsteps from close by, and a small group of about ten Orc soldiers appeared.

'Well?' demanded Eric. 'Where are they? Where are the others?'

'Other Young Ones gone,' said the Captain ruefully. 'Magician use Hat and all gone.'

For a moment, an ugly look of black anger flitted over Eric's face, but it was so fleeting that Diana almost missed it.

'But you got Tang, didn't you?' he said, his voice lowering to a growl. 'Tell me that you found Tang!'

'Baby Dragon left with Young Ones,' said the Orc. 'Tang gone!'

He gazed levelly at the Orc Captain, and said:

'You will be the one to convey this news to our Father.' The Orc shuddered and looked around at its fellows. Eric looked round to the three friends, his anger muted for the moment.

'Well, Acrobat, Paladin and Thief,' he said. 'You will still come with us.'

Diana looked round at the Orcs. If they were to fight just the Orcs, they would probably win; she had face these kind of odds before and she was sure Joseph would be able to hold his ground.

But what about Eric and Hank? Eric had the Spear, but Hank seemed unarmed. And they were so supremely confident as well, as if they knew they could win anyway, regardless of the weapons or anything else. There was no guarantee in this strange new Realm that everything would go right; she didn't even have a riddle to help her.

But more importantly than that, this was their chance.

They had to find Eric and Hank, and they had found them. Now her two missing friends had been found, they had to stay close.

This was a golden opportunity to help them. All they had to do was find a way to get everyone back to the Crystal and get through it, safely back to their own world.

Diana risked a quick glance round at the Thief. She gave a small nod. Now they just had to…

'What if we don't want to,' said Joseph suddenly, making his Sword look more obvious. 'What if we would rather go our own way!'

Eric shook his head. His expression was blank as he spoke.

'You are new to this world, so I will forget your insolence this time. But you will come with us. Our Father wishes that you accompany us.'

Diana laid her hand on Joseph's arm.

'We should go,' she murmured, trying to give him a Significant Look so he would understand. 'We should go with Hank and Eric.'

'Them?' he said incredulously, realisation dawning on him. 'These are the ones you…'

Joseph looked stunned, and Diana took advantage of his silence.

'We will come with you,' she said. 'But we are keeping our weapons!'

Eric paused for a moment, then nodded.

'Very well, if you insist. But my brother and I are more than capable of acting as your escort, without your intervention!'

Diana regarded him in stunned silence.

'Escort?'

'Yes. Escort. To the Castle of our Father.'

'Escort? We're not prisoners, then?'

At that statement, Eric actually looked offended! An offended Eric was not something she had seen very often at all! Maybe even ever!

'Well,' she said, quickly moving on, 'what about our friends?'

'What, indeed,' said Eric. 'But there is nothing we can do to help them now.'

'What?' That wasn't the answer the Acrobat had expected.

'We must hope that they find shelter and safety. And we must hope they find it quickly, too.'

'What?' asked Sheila, speaking for the first time. 'What do you mean?'

'This world is an extremely dangerous place,' said Eric. 'Alone, without escort, your friends will soon discover this fact.'

'But Bobby!' said Sheila in a sudden panic. 'I've got to find him!'

'He'll be safe with Presto and Ray,' said Diana quickly, trying to keep her voice low so as not to let Hank or Eric hear.

'But…'

'He'll be ok.'

Sheila didn't look convinced and was about to say something when she looked back to Hank. After a moment of staring at him, she gave a terse nod.

Hank mounted his horse, and the group started to slowly move off, Hank in the lead, and Eric at the rear.

Diana stayed close to Sheila and Joseph, trying to get the chance to talk in relative privacy. But there were too many Orcs. And Eric was close by.

'Do you think Bobby will be ok?' asked Sheila. She still sounded very worried. But not why had started this, there wasn't much of a way they could back out, even if they had really wanted to.

'Presto and Ray will make sure of it,' said Diana. 'They know what they're doing. They'll keep him safe.'

'That's not what I'm worried about,' admitted Sheila.

Diana smiled.

'And they'll keep him out of trouble too,' she said.

Joseph gave her a quick frown.

'Well, I hope you know what you're doing,' he whispered to her. 'This seems more like a trap to me.'

'It will be ok,' she whispered back. 'It will be ok.'

The path ahead of them sudden widened out as they crossed the crest of the hill. Before them was a valley of grey stone that looked as though it had been gouged out of the surrounding landscape by a giant hand that had scattered the stones into the air. Right in the centre of the valley, about five miles away was a thick, black Castle surrounded by a moat, though whether is was in fact a moat of water and not tar, as it looked like from far away, Diana couldn't be sure.

The Castle itself was more like a fortress of nightmares with steep spires and spikes than the usual fairytale-style castles that they had been used to in the Realm. There were rows of window along the side of it, as well as a truly huge set of metal double doors, as the entrance to the castle at the other side of a narrow bridge across the black waters.

Even Venger's Prison of Agony look positively friendly compared to this. Diana drew a shapr breath.

'This is our home,' announce Eric proudly. 'This is the Fortress of Venger.'

'And what were you saying…?' the Paladin whispered to her.

'It will be ok…' she repeated. 'It will be ok.'

I hope.