Chapter 17

Hey All! My deep apologies for taking so long. My job has been really busy lately, and I haven't had time to write what I outlined.

I am hoping to get two more chapters out this week.

I do not own anything from Wizard of Oz. The movies or the books, or the plays.

Glinda, Oran, and Oscar planned their strategy for attack on Aglas to free their friends. Glinda already knew that Dorothy was safe with the shape shifters, but was also moving ahead to Aglas with one of them.

Glinda had Ozma, Reginald, and Thoreon under a magic spell to keep them from causing more problems for Oz. The people of Oz had calmed down, and all armies were now waiting on orders to go rescue the former King.

"I wish you would send a message to Dorothy to stay put till we get there," Oscar said.

Glinda looked over at her husband and said, "Do you really think she would listen? Besides, she is in safe hands with the clan leader."

Oscar frowned but continued to look over their map. They didn't know how accurate the layout of Aglas was, but it would have to do.

"I am going to send a message ahead for the shape shifters to let us pass," Oran said.

"Good idea. They helped Dorothy out, but they might be intimidated with a whole army coming. Especially, with their leader being with Dorothy," Oscar said.

"How many men?" Oscar asked Oran.

"I have 10,000, and yours is counting about 30,000 that responded so far," Oran said. "The gargoyles sent about a 1000."

"Any word on Lion's or the other's well-being?" Leandra asked worried.

"From what I could see they are still arena fighting," Glinda said putting a hand on Leandra's shoulder.

Leandra scoffed. "That is just cruel. Lion can take out ten men at least. He was overpowered in the jungle because he wanted to let Dorothy get away."

"That is Ordaran's revenge," Oran said. "However, I think he is surprised at how well they are doing."

"Agreed," Glinda said.

Oscar went to speak to the advisors that were still sympathetic to Scarecrow about controlling Oz. Oscar took over with hostile intent, and in their laws is perfectly acceptable if current rule was not in the best interest of the people.

Glinda will stay behind to keep Ozma in check, and rule in their stead. She had no other choice, Oz would fall into chaos if someone was not there, and there would be a chance that Ozma and her family could escape from their spell.

Oran, and the others went to organize the armies, and Glinda went to check on her prisoners.

The jail cells were now surrounded by a force field that Ozma and the others had tried to break, but were unsuccessful.

Ozma and Glinda faced off, and Glinda finally said, "This could have all been prevented, but your greed got the better of you."

Ozma's eyes flashed angrily. "Haven't you ever wanted to have Oz move forward?"

Glinda scoffed. "With what, my dear? Cutting off our allies? Marrying the enemy, and having Scarecrow possibly die by his hands? What has that gotten you, Ozma?"

"I didn't think you would make it back here. Oran tricked me with Dorothy, and..."

"Stop, just stop, Ozma. You had an end goal in mind, and it didn't work out because Ordaran did not want to marry you, and he got what he wanted then dumped you," Glinda said."You and your family are not the victims here."

Ozma smiled. "I do have more family, Glinda. They will come for us."

Glinda smiled back. "I do realize that, your grace. However, jewels from Oz's greatest mines are worth more than your life apparently."

Ozma's face dropped, but she did not say another word to Glinda.

Glinda smiled and walked out of the dungeon area.

….

Dorothy sat atop of Boren who was in horse form. She did not like it all that he decided to accompany her. Dorothy was happy to have a horse now, it made the trip much faster, but she preferred a regular horse, not the shape shifter.

They were now one day out from reaching the borders of Aglas.

"Are you going to keep quiet the rest of the journey?" Boren asked through his horse mouth.

"I did not want to put you or your people in danger. I wish you had just let me go alone," Dorothy said pushing a stray of her auburn hair back behind her ear.

Boren snorted in horse form. "I had told you that I need to see what is going on with my own. This is not only your fight, Dorothy Gale."

Dorothy scoffed. "You weren't thinking that but days ago. You wanted to stay out of everything."

"I can change my mind, besides you need a guide, and then you are on your own," Boren said to her.

He didn't really mean that. He would stay with her until they would see what was happening. Her stubbornness absolutely infuriated him, but he had to admire her bravery.

He really did have other business in Aglas. He wanted to know if Ami was still alive or not.

"We should be coming upon the tavern in a couple of hours," he commented. "I will go back to human form then."

"I keep hearing about this famous tavern. I guess the food and the beer there are really good," Dorothy commented thoughtfully. "Along with the women that make their business there."

Boren laughed at her comment. "Yes, the Prancing Dragon. It has some fine women there, and many deals have been made there that were…..uh…not approved by the law of other lands," Boren said.

"You know this first hand?" Dorothy asked smirking with an eyebrow rose in question.

Boren really just wanted to take her to a room there and…

He shook his head. He needed to get those thoughts out of his human head.

She was married. Not only that, he was a king.

"I have had some good times there, yes."

"I am not surprised," Dorothy said a little disgusted.

"Jealous?" He asked teasing her.

Dorothy frowned at his question. "Jealous? Of what?"

"Of the freedom those women have? Of not being bogged down by rules, statuses, and other such things?" Boren asked her.

"Yes, of constantly wondering if you are going to get paid, raped or murdered while performing your duties? No, thank you. I would take my boring life any day," Dorothy answered.

"I can't argue that one, Dorothy Gale. However, I think you tell a lie," Boren said.

"What do you mean?"

"Your life has been anything but boring since meeting the Scarecrow King, correct?" He asked smiling to himself.

Dorothy stiffened, but she kept a straight face. " Yes, I contributed to the war for Oz, why?"

"Yes, and you killed the Witch King with that weapon you call a gun," Boren said.

"Yes, I did."

"Do you regret it?"

Dorothy sat and thought for a moment. "Not one bit."

Boren smiled again. Underneath that meek exterior was a warrior.

Dorothy was about to prove that to him once again.

Boren changed into a human again once they arrived at the Prancing Dragon Tavern. It was a big tavern with a few floors. The woods surrounding it were starting to thin out, as they got closer to the desert area of Aglas.

"Does this place know you here?" Dorothy asked the blonde man standing beside her.

"Yes, but I have a plan for you…"

Boren couldn't finish his thought as he caught Dorothy staring at two Aglas soldiers who entered the tavern.

"That happens all the time. Ordaran doesn't share his whores," Boren said.

"I know them. They were the ones who took Scarecrow," Dorothy said swallowing hard.

Boren swallowed hard. He would have to go with another plan, because they might recognize Dorothy.

Before Boren could tell Dorothy what he was going to do she was walking towards the tavern door.

"Dorothy, no!"

She ignored him, and continued on. Before he could reach her she was through the doors.

Dorothy looked around the darkened tavern, and people began to stare at her. She ignored the smiles, and leers, and went straight to the bartender. She did not hear Boren come in after her. If he wanted to be cautious that was fine. She was sick of being cautious. She had her friends, and her husband to rescue.

She would take it easy here, and work her way in. She had to get to those soldiers.

"What can I do for you, my lady?" The bartender smiled at her. It didn't get past Dorothy that he was missing some teeth.

Fingering her knife. "I am a thirsty traveler. Some beer please."

The bartender laughed. "Really? Do you have money?"

Dorothy leaned over the bar, and said, "Only if you ask nicely."

The men around her snickered a little, they did not believe her. The bartender continued smiling. "What would you like?"

Some of the men in the room began to lick their lips, and look her up and down. She noticed some eyed her ring.

The bartender leaned in to match her eyes. "I need payment then we can…..talk."

"Oh we'll talk alright, but first I need a drink," she said staring back at him.

Dorothy reached into her pocket and put an emerald coin into his hands.

The bartender looked at it and then her in surprise. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Why is a lady from Oz here?"

"My business is my own, but I have a question," Dorothy said. She still eyed the other men in the room.

"What?" The bartender asked smiling at the emerald in his hands, and giving Dorothy a mug of beer.

"You will tell me where those two soldiers went," Dorothy said taking another long drink of beer.

She was never much of a beer drinker, but it was cold and frosty, and felt good from the heat she had been enduring.

"Why? Do you want to join them? I have enough whores right now," the bartender said lowly.

Dorothy looked around and could see the men in the room leaning in to listen.

"A woman has a right to make a living however she sees fit, but no, that is not what I want," Dorothy said.

"Those soldiers pay me well for those whores. I don't need one from Oz interfering with my business," the bartender clearly not listening to Dorothy.

Dorothy rolled her eyes even though she was getting nervous with all the men that were in the room, and how they were eyeing her. She had no idea what happened to Boren, and was angry that he had apparently abandoned her.

Dorothy leaned in again, and said, "I guess you didn't hear me correctly. I am no whore, and I want to know where those two soldiers are."

Suddenly, a cat wrapped its tail around Dorothy's leg. Dorothy jumped a little startled that she hadn't noticed it before. Snickers came from the men around her, but she gathered herself quickly.

She looked down and glared at the cat, but then noticed his yellow eyes. Her eyes widened, but she cleared her throat and looked back at the bartender.

"I ain't tellin' some whore from Oz where those soldiers are," the bartender growled a little.

Dorothy's eyes narrowed in anger and she replied, "Yes, you will."

The bartender smiled sarcastically and said, "What will you do if I don't tell you?"

Dorothy rubbed her finger against the glass, and said, "You don't want to know."

The bartender nodded, and a couple of men began to approach Dorothy, she grabbed her knife, and went to defend herself when the men stopped short and stepped away. She heard a gurgling noise in behind her, and turned to see the bartender getting very red as a cobra was wrapped around his neck.

"You will tell the lady, nice and quiet where the soldiers are," the snake hissed to the bartender.

The bartender struggled and tried to get his men to attack, but it was obvious to Dorothy these men feared shape shifters as she began to hear murmurs around her.

"They'll kill me," he said trying to breathe through Boren's strangle hold.

"Just show us, and they'll never know," Boren hissed again.

But, the bartender didn't need to tell them. Dorothy heard a drunken singing begin to resonate from upstairs. There were 3 floors to this tavern and she surmised it was coming from the third floor.

Before Boren could do anything Dorothy turned to him, and said, "I am going up."

She could here Boren begin to protest, and she then watched as he turned to a bear and the men began to clear the tavern.

She reached the room where she could hear the singing come from, and recognized the song as the one they sang in their language when they took Scarecrow away.

She didn't even knock and just opened the door. The soldiers stopped their drunken singing and looked at her in confusion.

They began to speak the Aglas native language to her, and both laughed. The two girls that were with them looked at Dorothy in confusion.

"Do you speak the common language?" Dorothy asked as she walked into the room.

"Who are you woman?" The one asked still sitting with the half-naked woman on his lap.

"Someone who needs something," Dorothy said ignoring the girls for right now.

She noticed both swords were on the table. They didn't even attempt to pick them up. They were either too drunk or not worried about her. They should be.

Dorothy reached into her pocket again, and threw the emerald coins to the girls. She smiled knowing the money was more than what the soldiers were paying her.

"Leave us," she said as the two women rushed to the money.

The women looked back at the soldiers, looked at the money, looked at Dorothy and left without another word.

The soldiers stood, but were shaky. Dorothy smiled at them.

She approached one who was about her height. His head was bald, and he smelled like booze.

"Where is the Scarecrow King?" She asked. She could see the glaze of alcohol in his eyes, and smell the booze on his breath.

"Like I am going to tell you Oz whore," he said with a smile.

Dorothy eyed the swords, and said, "You will tell me, or you will die."

Dorothy knew the soldier was not fast enough, and as he reached for the sword she brought her knife from its sheath in one swift move and brought it down into the soldier's wrist. She felt a little sick she felt and heard the crack of bone, and the movement of skin, but she did what she had to do.

The one soldier scream in agony and fell to his knees in pain. The other soldier was so drunk he could not react fast enough, and suddenly a hawk flew into the room and began to peck and claw at the other soldier who also cried out in pain. Boren changed into a human and had a knife at his throat before he could react.

"You better tell the lady where the King of Oz is," he said breathlessly.

Dorothy looked over at Boren in thanks as she twisted the knife a little and made her soldier cry out once more.

"I want to know if he is alive. If you lie, then I twist the knife again. There are a lot of veins in the wrist, and that means a lot of blood loss if you don't get help right away," Dorothy said with no emotion.

The other soldier Boren was holding began to sob a little. "His friends and him are fighting," he said.

"Fighting?" Dorothy asked worried about all three.

"They fight for Lord Ordaran in his arena," the other gasped in pain.

"The Oz king is alive, and so are his friends."

Dorothy swallowed hard as she took in the news. She tried to hold her herself steady.

"I know this fighting, Dorothy. If Scarecrow and his friends survived this long in the arena then we will have a better chance of getting them out," Boren said.

"What are they talking about?" Dorothy asked. She had to hold it together. What was Ordaran making them do?

"Lord Ordaran keeps his people distracted with arena fighting. It is to the death. I lost many of my clan from it," Boren said to her.

Dorothy was horrified by what she was hearing. Men fighting to the death for entertainment? Ordaran was an absolute monster.

Dorothy looked down at the soldier who looked back up to her with pleading in his eyes.

She leaned into him and said, "You will not die today if you get help quickly when I pull the knife out. Where do Scarecrow and my other friends go after the fights are finished?"

The soldier was sweating and began to pass out a little, but he answered, "The prisoners are held in a cell block below the arena."

Dorothy pulled the knife out and the soldier screamed in pain. His eyes then rolled into the back of his head and he fell to the floor. Dorothy reached into her bag, and did the best she could to stop the bleeding.

Boren waited patiently. He knew at that moment watching Dorothy still help the soldier despite what he and his people were doing to her husband that he was in love with her. He immediately regretted the thoughts he was having. There was more to her than he could have ever imagined. She was a married woman who was looking for her husband yet he could not help it. He wanted it to be him in the Scarecrow's place. This woman from Oz, the little girl from a place she called Earth was much more than she admitted to everyone around her, and even herself.

She turned up to the other soldier and said, "He will live. Do you want to live?"

The soldier nodded slightly despite the knife still at his throat.

Dorothy stood and got face to face with him. "Then you will go back to your whores, and we will be on our way correct?"

The soldier looked defeated. "Yes," he muttered.

"I think we should tie him up," Boren said to her.

" I think you're right. I have plenty of money to keep them quiet for a while," she said smiling slightly.

Boren chuckled.

That was what they did. They paid off the bartender, and the rest of the group to keep the soldiers occupied for a while.

They walked outside, and Boren turned to her and said, "I wish you hadn't done that."

"What?"

"This is no place for a lady," Boren said. "I wish you had let me follow through on our original plan."

Dorothy turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I am still alive am I not?"

Boren shook his head in frustration. "I can't protect you from everything, Dorothy Gale."

"I never asked you to come with me, Boren," Dorothy said putting her hands on her hips.

"I told you I have business to take care of there myself," Boren said to her.

"You didn't till I suddenly came along," Dorothy said with a slight smirk.

"Without me you would never have made it," he insisted.

Dorothy shook her head, and said, "I hate putting another's life in danger if I don't have to."

"I don't need your protection, as you have seen," Boren shot back.

"Then why are you here, Boren?" Dorothy asked.

Boren fought it for a couple of weeks now. Dorothy Gale the alien from a star called Earth and a land called Kansas as she said. The girl who accidently killed two witches, but then killed their brother to save her husband. The Scarecrow King whom she said she had been in love with since she was a child, and her main reason for coming back to Oz.

How could he compete with that?

She was able to bring a dead strawman back to life and make him human again.

She was known as a savior. She tirelessly searched for her husband now, and even lost a child along the way.

He asked himself again how could he compete with that?

Boren looked down at the ground, and sighed. He then looked back up at the auburn haired woman standing before him.

"I can protect you, but I can't make you feel for me what I feel for you," he said.

Dorothy's eyes widened in realization, and she began to open her mouth to try to say something, but Boren never gave her the chance.

He looked down again and morphed into horse form.

Silently, he walked over to her, and could not look at her face. She tried to talk to him, but he remained quiet. He could have walked away at that moment. He could have left Dorothy Gale standing there gawking at him, but no, he would not. They had gotten to know each other, and he could not do that. His honor would not allow it. His pride would not allow it. He did have business in Aglas, and his name was Ami.

Then after they rescued Dorothy Gale's Scarecrow King and her friends he would leave her life forever.

They were silent the rest of the ride into Aglas. He could see the city in the distance. As the sun set something caught his eyes.

"Dorothy?" He said getting her attention. She had been lost in her thoughts that she sat up at attention.

"Yes? Boren?"

"I am seeing fires and smoke in the distance," he said.

Dorothy gasped as the city began to focus. She could see in the distance that there was smoke in the air. She wondered what was happening.

"Is this area guarded?" She asked.

"No, there are walls, but I know a way in," Boren said.

He could feel Dorothy stiffen. She was ready, and so was he.