Getting in to see the Wizard was no problem the second time. The guards knew who they were and didn't hesitate to let them in. Luke gripped the sword, a proud smile on his face, ready to face the Wizard. They entered the throne room where the same figure stood, still hidden behind his smokescreen and fire effects. "SO YOU HAVE RETURNED." The Wizard boomed.
Luke nodded and stepped towards him, no more fear in his heart. "Yes sir." He said, bowing his head slightly. "We got Anton's sword like you wanted." He placed the sword down at the steps of the throne.
"IMPRESSIVE." The Wizard said. "YOU MANAGED TO DEFEAT THE GREATEST ENEMY OF OZ AND SURVIVE."
Luke nodded and stepped back. "Yes sir, thank you." he said. "Now we'd like you to keep your promise, please. Could you please give us what we asked you for?"
"NOT SO FAST!" The Wizard said abruptly. Luke almost flinched and ran away, but managed to stand his ground. "I HAVE TO GIVE THIS MATTER SOME MORE THOUGHT. COME BACK TOMORROW."
"What? Tomorrow?" Luke asked in shock. "But we did what you wanted! You promised-"
"SILENCE, BOY!" The Wizard bellowed.
"Luke... " Lando said warningly.
"I AM THE GREAT OZ AND I SAY TO COME BACK TOMORROW!"
But Luke wasn't backing down. Luke had been hurt and traumatized, his friends almost killed, and he wasn't going to let everything they did go to waste! "If you are the Great Oz, then you should be able to give us what we want without any trouble!" He retorted. "In fact, you could've just-"
Luke cut himself off, his eyes wide. "Wait…" He quickly went over all the facts in his head, a hand on his chin like the Professor. He closed his eyes and began fitting the pieces together. Once he got one in place, all the rest seemed to fit together perfectly.
"IF THAT IS ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY," The Wizard said. "THEN I ORDER YOU TO-"
"I've got it!" Luke suddenly exclaimed.
"What is it Luke?" Sharon asked, confused by his outburst.
Luke turned to them. "It all makes sense now," He abruptly turned and pointed at the smokey figure, "You're a fake!" he accused with an authority and poise that the Professor would be proud of.
"Luke!" Sharon gasped.
"H-How could you say that?" Redoll asked desperately.
Luke glared up at the 'Wizard'. "If he was such a great and powerful Wizard, then he could've given us what we wanted when we first met him; but he couldn't." he said, beginning to climb the steps towards the throne.
"So when we came along, he decided to send us to kill the 'greatest enemy of Oz' when he could've just killed him himself." As he reached the top of the steps directly in front of the throne, the fire seemed to flare up considerably as if to scare him away, but Luke knew he had nothing to fear. "You were hoping we would get killed or give up," he continued, speaking directly to the Wizard. "Just so you wouldn't have to give us wishes that you can't even grant, because you're not a real Wizard!"
The fire and smoke seemed to flare up more than ever. Lando, Sharon, and Redoll had to keep themselves from running up towards him in fear. Luke kept his hard glare on the Wizard and soon the figure seemed to slump slightly. "You're a smart boy." A normal voice came from the figure. The Wizard raised his hand, "It's alright Paul, you can stop!" he called.
The fire quickly dissipated as a portion of the wall opened revealing a scary looking man with hair pointing upwards and a long mustache and beard. The man, Paul, pushed a button and the smoke was blown away; the Wizard was finally revealed. He was quite burly, with curly blonde hair and wearing a deep green robe. He stepped towards Luke, his hands in his pockets, "You're right, my real name is Alford; I may be the Wizard to the people here, but I'm not a real Wizard."
"You've got to be kidding!" Lando exploded.
"You've been tricking these people all this time?" Sharon said in disbelief.
"How could you do such a thing?" Redoll demanded, sounding much more confident than he ever had.
Luke sighed sadly, "Then I guess that means...we can't get what we want after all." He said sadly. "Lando's brain, Sharon's heart, Redoll's courage… you can't give it to them."
The Wizard, Alford, smiled slightly and placed his hand on Luke's shoulder, "I wouldn't say that." he said, leading Luke down the stairs. "I'm actually surprised that you chumps didn't realize that you had what you wanted all along."
"W-What?" Luke asked, catching everyone's attention.
"I'm not completely helpless you know." Alford said, rolling his eyes. "Claire gave me a crystal ball years ago; I have to know what's going on in the world." "First of all, the scarecrow." He faced Lando. "If you didn't have a brain then how did you come up with all those plans to get inside Anton's castle? You think all those ideas would have come from you if only had straw in your head?"
Lando frowned in bewilderment as he realized he was right. Despite being told he was smart, he felt pretty stupid for not putting the pieces together long ago. Alford walked off and grabbed a black bag from the corner of the room. "What's that?" Luke asked.
"Knowing you chumps, you'll want to be reminded in case you forget what you have." Alford muttered as he dug through the bag and pulled out a scroll tied up with a ribbon. "Here, this is a diploma." he said, handing it to Lando. "Where I come from, only people who are incredibly smart are given one, and I think you have earned it."
Lando grinned as he looked over the scroll, feeling the immense feeling of satisfaction one only got when they learned something life changing. "Thanks, mate." he said. "I feel smarter already."
Alford nodded and turned to Redoll who began to shiver a bit. "Stop that shaking, all that scaredy-cat nonsense is all in your head." he said.
"I-It is?" Redoll asked.
"Remember when you were being attacked by Anton's monkeys?" Alford asked. "You were willing to give up your own safety to save Luke, and you've still even got battle scars from it." He reached into his bag and pulled out a medal. "Where I come from, those who are very brave and save the life of another are given medals, and you definitely deserve this."
He placed the medal around Redoll's neck where the words courage were written in the middle of the medal. Redoll felt his adrenaline pick up in excitement; he no longer felt afraid! "Th-Thank you!" he said.
"And finally, Sharon, was it?" Alford asked, facing her. Lando cast him a suspicious look, "You bothered to remember her name and not ours?"
Alford ignored him. "You have always had a heart, even though you could never hear it." he said. "Ever since you met Luke you've shown him love and caring that someone without a heart could never do. When he was feeling down, you were there to comfort him. You feel for all of your friends, and that's a fact." He reached into his bag and pulled out a heart shaped clock. "You may not be able to hear your heart, but that doesn't mean you can't feel for others."
He put the clock around her neck and Sharon beamed. "Thank you so much!" she exclaimed. Redoll then looked at Luke and realized that he hadn't received anything. "What about Luke?" He asked. "Can't you give him what he wants?" Lando and Sharon nodded in agreement; Luke was the whole reason they were here in the first place. If anyone deserved to get their wish granted, he did.
"I don't think there's anything in that bag for me." Luke said with a sad smile. "Unless you have a puzzle that could lead me back to England."
Alford smirked, "Well, considering you blew my cover, I have no choice." he said. "The only way to get you back to England is for me to take you there."
Luke's eyes widened. "You? You can get me home?" he asked excitedly.
Alford puffed out his chest proudly, "Of course, I'm a Briton myself."
"But can you really find a way back?" Luke asked, still a bit skeptical of the man's skill and trustworthiness. This was the man who had fooled an entire world into thinking he was great and powerful after all.
Alford waved his hand like it was no big deal, "Simple, we'll go back the way I came." he said. "A long time ago when I was flying in my hot air balloon I got blown off course and ended up here."
"Really?" Luke asked. "That's almost what happened to me!"
"Yes, well I kept that balloon just in case I needed to make a quick getaway; Paul here agreed to help me when I first landed here." Alford continued, gesturing to the man still sitting behind the control panel. "I'll just get that old thing ready and we'll be on our way to England."
Luke's smile at this point was so wide it could light up the whole room. "Thank you sir! Thank you so much!" he said gratefully. "We're going home Trevor! We're really going home!" Luke exclaimed to the little dog. Trevor barked happily, his tail wagging wildly.
Alford rubbed his hands, "Well, we've got no time to waste!" he said. He waved to his accomplice. "Come on Paul! Let's get that balloon ready!"
WE HAVE A WINNER! Major props and kudos to The Mocking J for guessing the Wizard's identity of Dalston; please come down to claim your prize! Those who guessed Don Paolo will receive the complimentary prize for getting it half-right!
Two more chapters to go! It's time for Luke to go home!