Without further ado,  I give you Chapter 3 of The Master’s Chronicles.  This is the last chapter that you will see.  As for the rest of the story, you will just have to wait until it’s published.

Just sit back and enjoy!

After they closed in prayer, Nicolas grabbed his shoulder belt and guided it around his waist.  The pants that Darlene gave him felt a little big on him, so he tightened the belt a few more notches.  With the sword securely resting in the scabbard, Nicolas was ready for action.

Nicolas thought about the prayer that they just said.  There was something about the prayer that gave him sudden doubts.  He wondered if the prayer that they said will even reach The Master.  With the events of his recent revival fresh in his mind, he knew that the prayers would reach Him, but a nagging doubt still lingered in his mind.  The Master told him to leave Tulin and he knew very well what happened next.  Prison.  Interrogation.  Death.  What would guarantee that their infiltration would be “safe”?  This puzzled Nicolas, and made him feel all the more uneasy.

Darlene gently nudged Nicolas in the side.  “What’s wrong, Nicolas?”

Nicolas, looking incredulous, shook his head and feigned a smile.  “Nothing.”

Darlene stared at him firmly and frowned.  “Nicolas.”

Nicolas shrugged his shoulders.  “I don’t know if this plan is going to work.”

Darlene and Donna exchanged glances.  Darlene sighed and took a step forward.  “Nicolas.  The Master is on our side.  Why else would He revive you?”

“I know, and I’m eternally grateful for Him doing that.  I just don’t understand the way He works.”

“We are not supposed to.  No Copian, not even the most learned, has ever begun to understand how He works.  All we can do is trust Him and follow Him.”

“He told me to leave Tulin.  I did just what He told me and I was captured and then imprisoned.  And….”  Nicolas gulped.  “You know the rest.”

“Maybe He wanted to bring you here.  Did you ever think about that?”

Nicolas scratched his head.  “Well, I guess that makes sense.”

Donna nudged Darlene’s arm.  “Darlene.  We really need to get going with the plan.”

Darlene nodded, and turned to Nicolas.  “I agree.  Are we going, Nicolas?”

Nicolas faced everyone and nodded back.  “Yes.  Let’s go rescue a princess.”

And so it was settled.  Darlene carried a satchel filled with provisions and supplies.  It contained a couple sweetspice rolls and a small wool sack filled with gold coins.  Nicolas added the Copian Scriptures to Darlene’s satchel and they were on their way.

Upon leaving Darlene’s house, a sudden rush of wind blew in their faces.  Torrents of rain accompanied the moderately strong gales.  Several puddles formed on the stone-covered streets.  Lightning came in a series of flashes, followed by the peals of thunder.

Darlene led, since she was well familiar with the streets of Saris.  They followed her, trudging their way down the streets, past houses that looked very much like Darlene’s.  They made occasional turns and passed a few trade houses every now and then.

Finally, Nicolas spoke up.  “Where are we going?  I thought we were going to the castle.”

Darlene nodded, and gave him a furtive glance.  “We are,” she whispered.  “We first need to meet with Ruby.  She knows where all the castle passageways are, remember?  She will guide us there and then we’re on our own after that.”

Nicolas gave a nod of approval and motioned Darlene to continue.  They continued on, clutching their arms to their sides, in a futile attempt to stay warm from the rain.  They passed a couple markets, when a beggar began following them.  He held out his hands, earnestly pleading for a gold coin.

Darlene sighed with empathy and gave him a small handful of gold coins.  The beggar gleefully leaped and ran off.

After trudging past a few more houses and making a couple more turns, they finally reached an alleyway, which consisted of two adjoining trade houses.  Both houses were dilapidated, and appeared to be abandoned.  At the end of the alley stood Ruby, who looked like a drowned rat.

Ruby merrily skipped around in the rain.  She was singing a song, using nonsensical words.  Most of them were “la”s, with the occasional “tra”.  Her singing changed to humming.  She hummed for while, and it took Darlene’s voice to snap her out of her trance.

“Ruby! We’re ready!” Darlene shouted.

Ruby, out of her trance, now noticed Darlene and the rest of the party.  “Oh. So you are?  Let me get out of this rain and put some dry clothes on first.”

Nicolas, staring at Ruby, was unable to restrain his laughter.  “What was the singing all about?” he chuckled.

Ruby’s face blushed and she stared at Nicolas.  It was the kind of stare that could look directly into your soul.  “Can’t a girl take a shower in peace?” she snapped. “It’s really none of your business.  And you best stop laughing, or I will smack that smile off your face!”

Nicolas regained his composure.  “I’m sorry.  I just haven’t ever seen that side of you before. I usually see you…”

Ruby interrupted.  “And you won’t see that side again. Let’s get out of this rain already. I’m showered enough.”

Ruby led Nicolas, Darlene, and Donna into the abandoned trade house.  The place was in ruins.  There were broken tables, scraps of iron and metal tools scattered everywhere.  The rain came in from the holes in the ceiling.  A large pile of rags sat in one corner, while another pile of stitched up rags sat in the corner opposite to it. A small pile of bulging satchels sat in the middle of the room.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Ruby said with a smile.

Nicolas looked at the satchels sitting in the center of the room.  “Is that where you keep your money?”

Ruby stared at Nicolas and sighed.  She then let out a tiny chuckle.  “Nuh-ah!  Do you really think that I would store my money out here in the open?  My money is in a secret place, and I’m not telling!”

“Then what’s in all those bags?”

“Those?  They’re my magic stones.  I’ll let you touch those.  They’re actually pretty useful!  You should….”

“I know what they are.” Nicolas interrupted.  “I’ve seen them before.  I never use them because they’re too expensive.”

“And you should never use them either.”  Darlene said sternly.  “I try to encourage Ruby not to use them.  But alas, she uses them anyway.  I can only tell her not to use them, but I can’t make her do what I say.”

“That’s right!”  Ruby grinned.  “And I’m sorry to say that you’re really missing out. They’re so fun to use!  What’s the harm in using them anyway?”

Nicolas glanced over at Darlene.  “She’s right.  What’s wrong with these stones?”

Darlene’s scowl turned to a frown.   She then turned, facing Ruby.  “Ruby, you have already heard this several times before, so I am not going to tell you again.  Do you mind if I have a couple minutes alone with Nicolas?”

Ruby nodded.  “Sure.  Just go into the other room.  I can change while you’re talking anyway.”

“Thanks, Ruby.”

Darlene led Nicolas into the adjoining trade house.  It looked just like Ruby’s, only without the rags and stones.

“Now Nicolas,” Darlene began.  “Do you know why I have a problem with those magic stones?”

Nicolas shrugged his shoulders in confusion.  “No.  All I know is that they’re expensive.  That is why I never use them.”

Darlene took a step closer toward Nicolas.  “Fine.  I’ll tell you.  Those magic stones that you see everywhere are the work of the Cobra.”

“Cobra?”

“Yes!  Cobra!  If you read your Copian Scriptures more, you would know what I’m talking about.”

Nicolas thought about this for a moment. Where did I see this cobra mentioned before? After a while, his face lit up.  “Oh yeah!  I just read about it!  There was a cobra that that tricked the woman into eating the golden apple.”

“Yes.  And that cobra is another name for Ivion, the ultimate deceiver and master of lies.  Do you have any idea how those magic stones are made?”

“How?”

“Here’s how.  The followers of Ivion practice dark magic.  They chant incantations and practice witchcraft.  For those who don’t, they take the essence of their spells and store them in stones.  They originally did this for their own personal use but began selling them when they realized that other people could use the stones.”

“I thought that it was just another way for the king and the nobles to make more money.”

“That’s only part of it.  Most people today don’t know how dangerous they are.  And that’s exactly what Ivion wants.  He doesn’t want anyone to think that they’re dangerous.”

“Are we in danger of them now?”

“No.  But if you touch the stone, you will absorb the magic contained inside it.  About five years ago, I touched one by mistake.  It was a fire stone, and I felt sick to my stomach the whole time I had the spell inside me.”

“Why doesn’t Ruby feel sick?”

“Nicolas, Ruby doesn’t really know the Master personally.  In my case, I felt sick to my stomach when I had that spell.  I believe that the Master was doing this to protect me from becoming addicted to them.  I used that fire spell as fast as I could on the ground, and I immediately felt better.  To this day, I have never touched another magic stone, and I try to keep away from them at all costs.”

Donna heard a noise in the distance, and glanced in the other trade house.  “Darlene….”

Darlene turned around.  “What is it, Donna?  I was talking to Nicolas….”  She then glanced at the other trade house.  “Oh.  Ruby’s done changing?  Thanks.  Let’s come back in, Nicolas.”

Nicolas followed Darlene back to the other trade house, with Donna trailing behind.

In the corner of the trade house sat Ruby, who had a smirk on her face.

Ruby approached Darlene and frowned.  “You had a bad experience.”

Nicolas looked at Ruby and gasped.  “Did she….”

Ruby nodded.  “I heard the whole thing.  How else do you think I get paid so well?  I have really good ears.”

Darlene sternly pointed her finger at Ruby.  “We discussed this before.  No amount of convincing….”

“….is going to make you use another magic stone.”  Ruby said in a worn out tone.  “And having discussed that before, I’m fine with that.  I still say that you’re missing out on all the fun.”

Nicolas’s stomach growled.  “Do we have any food around here?”

Ruby’s face lit up.  “That too is hidden.  I’ll let you have some, but it’s going to cost ya….”

Darlene motioned her hand over to Ruby.  “That’s okay, Ruby.  We brought our own food.”  She then opened her satchel and tore off a rather large piece of a sweetspice roll.  “Here.  Have this.”

Nicolas quickly grabbed the piece and ate it.  It was gone in seconds.  After that, Nicolas licked the crumbs and sweetspice off his fingers.  “That’ll do for now.”  He then looked at Ruby again, noticing that she was in the same rags as before.  “With all the money you have, can’t you afford decent clothes?”

Ruby shook her head.  “Why would I buy clothes?  I’m a streetear.  Streetears don’t make money by wearing nice clothes.  They wear rags, like this!  And for your information, this is a new set of rags.  I like my rags and I don’t want to wear anything else!  I have dressed like this since I was four, when my parents couldn’t find any decent clothes for me anymore.  I don’t tell you how to live your life, so don’t tell me how to live mine!”

Nicolas backed away from Ruby.  “Whoa….All I asked was a question….”

“And all I gave you was an answer.  Now, do you want to sneak into Saris castle or what?”

Darlene looked around the room and frowned.  “How do we get in?  I don’t see where the entrance would be, even if it was hidden.”

Ruby nodded.  “Exactly,” she whispered.  “We don’t want anyone finding these secret entrances, or the soldiers would seal them off.”

Nicolas looked around the room and shrugged.  “How are we getting to this room?”

“With a little fun.” Ruby said, giving her widest grin.

And with that, Ruby led them over to the center of the room.  She crouched down and grabbed two different satchels.  “Follow me…oh!  My rain shield is wearing out.  One second, everyone!”

Ruby reached into the satchel in her right hand scooped out a handful of magic stones.  The stones dissolved as each spell was absorbed into her body.

With each spell that was absorbed, a small magical shield grew over her head.  It was big enough for anyone who was nearby her to remain dry from the rain.

Donna and Nicolas stood underneath the shield, but Darlene backed away.

Ruby frowned.  “What’s wrong?”

Darlene scowled.  “I’m not standing underneath that shield.  I’d rather stay soaking wet then under that….that work of the cobra.”

Ruby shook her head and shrugged.  “Very well.  I’m not forcing you to remain dry but we need to hurry.  The rain shield spell doesn’t last long.”

Darlene shrugged and followed Ruby.  Nicolas and Donna stayed closely by her while Darlene followed at a distance.  Ruby led them a short distance into the other trade house.

Once there, Ruby stopped moving.  “Now this is the fun part,” she tittered.

Ruby reached into the other satchel and scooped out a heaping handful of magic stones.  The stones dissolved and her body began to glow as each spell was absorbed into her.  An aura then began to radiate from her body.  Tee hee hee hee hee….

The ground beneath Nicolas, Darlene and Donna began to lightly rumble.  The aura surrounding Ruby began to expand.  “This is so fun!” She giggled.  “I can’t believe you guys don’t like these things!”

Nicolas gasped, and began to look worried.  “Is what you’re doing safe?”

The glowing Ruby turned to face Nicolas.  “Of course it is!  I do this all the time!  How else can I lift these enormous slabs?  Tee hee!  Watch and learn!”

Darlene closed her eyes.  “Stop it!  Just stop it already!”

Ruby sighed.  “Do you want to get into the castle, or not? Just be quiet and stop ruining the fun!

Ruby stared at the ground and concentrated.  As she concentrated, a powerful shock wave lifted all the stones off the ground to reveal a small hole.

Darlene squinted her eyes open for a split second and screamed.  “Stop it, Ruby!”

Suddenly, a clank was made in the distance.  “Who’s that?!”

Ruby scowled.  “Great.  A soldier just heard us.  Hurry everyone!  Through the hole!”

Nicolas approached the hole.  “Will I even fit?”

“Yes!  Just go!  This psychic spell can only last so long!  Just hurry!”

Nicolas jumped through the hole.  It was a little wider than he thought it was.  Darlene and Donna quickly followed.

“Hey!” A voice shouted.  “Get back here! No! Stop!  Aaaaahhhhh!!!”

Ruby jumped down last.  “The stone slabs crushed him.  I was going to give you all directions, but Darlene had to ruin all the fun.”

Darlene stared at her and began to explode.  “Fun?  We almost got captured by a Saris soldier!”

“He would’ve heard us if you didn’t scream.   Now I don’t understand why you think these stones are so bad.”

Darlene sighed.  “That’s the problem, Ruby.  You don’t understand.”

“Let’s stop arguing and get to the castle.  After that, you’re all on your own.”

“Fair enough. Let’s go.”

Nicolas, Darlene and Donna all followed Darlene through the underground cavern.  As they were walking, a plague of numerous questions began filling Nicolas’s mind.  How were these caverns dug?  How long ago? Are these caverns used as sewers? The questions went on and on.

Darlene stared at Ruby and sighed.  She didn’t mean to argue or yell at her.  If only she knew the danger of those stones!  Then very quietly, she began to weep.  She knew it was okay to, since the cavern was dark enough, and no one could see her. Master, please open her eyes….

Donna quietly kept her pace with the others.  As she walked, a sudden sense of urgency overcame her.  Surely, the princess is still safe!  She quietly cupped her hands together and sighed.  I hope we’re not too late….

Suddenly, a noise was heard in the distance, followed by a voice.  “I think I hear them!”

“Where?” Another voice said.  “I don’t hear anything.”

“Just keep going.  We’ll find them.  They can’t get away!”

“Great….” Ruby sighed.  “They found us.  And we were almost to the castle, too!

“But don’t worry.  I know of a safe exit we can take, and it doesn’t require any magic stones.  We can reenter the cavern when the coast is clear.  Hurry!”

“There they are!” The voice shouted.  “I can almost see them!”

Ruby moved a stone tile and jumped up through the hole.  “Up here! Hurry!”

Nicolas, Darlene and Donna began proceeding forward, but were stopped by two Saris soldiers, that began to surround them.

“Don’t move any further, or we’ll cut you into pieces.” The Saris soldier said, brandishing his sword just inches from Nicholas.

Nicolas stared directly at the Saris soldier.  “Try me.”

Before the soldier could even react, Nicolas quickly grabbed his sword and knocked him back.

“I wouldn’t do that,” the other soldier warned.

“And why is that?”  Darlene said, as she raised her voice.

“There are more of us on the way.” The first soldier sneered.  “And if any of you move again or even speak, you’re all losing your limbs.”

Nicolas returned the sword to its sheath and nobody else even dared to say a word.

“Good.” The Saris soldier smiled.  “Now your sneaky little friend killed one of our ranks.  Fortunately, we were nearby.  I found your fox hole and entered it.”

“I went and summoned more soldiers.” the other soldier added.  “I then caught up with my comrade and led them on a hunt.

“And we caught ourselves a peasant and two adorable women!” The first one said with glee.

After exchanging glances, both soldiers roared with laughter.

Shortly after they laughed, more soldiers started entering through the cavern.

“We caught ourselves three runts!” The first Saris soldier shouted. “What should we do with them?”

“We should let our boss decide!” another one said.  “Let’s throw them in the dungeon!”

One of the soldiers that just arrived walked up to Nicolas and sneered at him.  “Nighty night!”

The soldier whacked Nicolas over the head with the hilt of his sword.  After that, everything went black.

______

©2012  K. L. Walker

With Ruby gone, they continued their discussion.  Donna sat down, and continued to listen to them.  At this time, Nicolas still was not ready to talk about his father.  He was, however, interested in learning more about Darlene’s parents.  With that, he sat his tea cup down.  “Where are your parents?” he frowned.  I would love to meet them.”

Darlene walked over to a table and grabbed a book.  “You should be able to some day.”  she said, with a small smile.  “They’re up in the heavens with The Master.”

Nicolas quietly sighed.  It bothered him how Darlene wasn’t sad about the loss of her parents at all.  Not one bit.  “They are?” he gasped.  “And you’re not sad or anything?”

Darlene gave Nicolas what he considered to be a look of acceptance.  She followed with a nod.  “I used to be sad, but only for a short time.  I stopped crying when I realized where they have gone.  I realized that they are not really dead at all.  They just migrated up to the heavens.”

Nicolas took another sip of tea.  “How can you be sad for a short time? Nobody deals with loss like this.  Tell me, Darlene.  How long did you cry?  When did this happen?”

Darlene threw her hands out at Nicolas and shook her head.  “It was a short time!  Why are you so fixated on sorrow?  It doesn’t really matter how long I cried.  I only cried for, I guess, a couple hours.  All this happened six years ago.

“How about you?  You already told me that they raided Tulin.  Did you lose your parents too?”

“What would it matter to you anyway?  For all you know, she could’ve escaped.”

“Who escaped?  Darlene frowned.  “Your mother?  I am sorry, but I have no idea who you’re talking about.”

Nicolas shook his head.  “Why do you need to know?” he scowled.

Darlene stared Nicolas directly in the eye.  “Nicolas,” she sighed.  “I know how painful it is to lose a loved one.  Yes, it hurts.  But refusing to share your loss will make the pain you carry inside even greater.”

Nicolas broke down.  “How do you even know they’re gone?  They could very well be safe.”

“For one thing, you refuse to share with me anything regarding your parents.  If they were fine, wouldn’t you feel better about sharing them with me?  I know that you want them to be safe, but denial is not going to make you feel any better.  Tell me, Nicolas.  What happened to your parents?”

“Fine,” Nicolas sobbed.  “I’ll tell you if it will make you stop bugging me about it.  I lost my mother.  Some Saris soldiers stabbed her to death while I was hiding in the closet.  My father died four years ago in the Tulin/Saris war.  What else is there to know?  They’re gone, okay?”

Darlene’s face became somber.  “Thank you.  Now I’ll tell you how my parents died.  But first, their backgrounds.  My parents were ambassadors.  Six years ago, they were given an order from King Saris to kill King Tulin.  They refused to carry out this order and the king ordered them executed.  I found this strange for the king to be acting like this.  Before that, he never behaved this way.

“This made me sad when I heard what the king did.  I quickly got over it since I knew that my parents both believed in The Master and obeyed the teachings of the Copian scriptures.

“Looking back at this, I have plenty to be thankful for.  My parents both began teaching me the Copian scriptures when I was 2.  They also inherited the wealth from my grandfather’s fief of inn properties.  In addition to that, they generously shared their wealth with the peasants.”

Nicolas shook his head.  “So you’re wealthy and rich, huh?  What’s a rich girl like you doing even wasting time on a peasant like me?”

“Wealth is a burden,” Darlene sighed.  “Fortunately one that I handle well.  Being wealthy doesn’t make me better than you.  In fact, I try to help those who are less fortunate.”

“Like your friend Ruby, right?  Do you have an unlimited supply of wealth?”

“Of course not.  When they killed my parents, most of the money went to the Saris treasury.  I hid all the rest around the house.  Fortunately, they let me stay in my parent’s house and allowed me to live here as long as I give my allegiance to the king of Saris.  In a way, I do have some allegiance to him.  I am concerned with his corrupt behavior and selfish motives, though.”

Nicolas scratched his head.  “How long has that Ruby been helping you?”

Darlene’s eyes lit up.  “Ruby?  She’s been helping me since she first became a streetear.  I was one of her first customers, and thank goodness for her!  I mean, how else would I be able to know what’s really going on in Saris?  They don’t tell us anything at all.  The only things they tell us are the things they want us to hear.  Ruby has told me everything.  Before the Saris/Tulin war, they told us that they were going to have ‘peace negotiations’ with Tulin.  That never happened.  They went to war with Tulin to gather the Seed Relic.”

“Wait a second!” Nicolas frowned.  “Ruby became a streetear after the Tulin/Saris war.  Where did she get this information?”

“She heard this from several informed people in Saris.  Ruby’s not the only streetear, you know.”

“But wouldn’t the people here be suspicious of Saris going against their word?”

“Like I said, they told us what they wanted us to hear.  Saris told us that Tulin responded with hostility when they made their ‘peace negotiations’ with them.  We were told that they were ‘forced’ to go to war with them.  Saris knows that they must keep the trust of their people.  That makes them easier to manipulate.  Thank goodness for Ruby, or I would’ve never known anything about this.”

This greatly angered Nicolas.  Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore. He stood up and slammed his fist on the table.  “I hate this land!!!”

“Don’t blame the people.” Darlene said.  “They aren’t the ones responsible for killing innocent lives.”

“How could I not blame them?”  Nicolas argued.  “They killed my father and my mother!! Saris is responsible for their deaths and I can never forgive them for it.  I hate Saris!”

“Who killed them?”

“Saris soldiers.”

“You’re accusing the wrong people.  The people of Saris, even the nobles, are naïve to the kingdom’s sinister plots.  Only a select few who get their news from streetears are aware of what’s going on.  The cavalry, dragoons, chivalry, and the Saris monarchy are the ones to blame.”

“Fine then! I hate all the rulers and soldiers of Saris!”

“I too, despise them.  They have committed treacherous lies and have deceived most of the people of Saris.”

Nicolas finally opened up to Darlene and the discussion continued.  He decided to share with her how his father was quite the fighter.  Nicolas choked, recalling the stories his father told about his service in the Tulin cavalry.  But he didn’t stop there.  He mentioned how his father became the leader of Diamondheart.

“After fighting in the cavalry, he joined Diamondheart,” he said.  “He quickly advanced to the highest rank in a fairly short period of time.  He traveled all around Copia, slaying beasts and protecting countless towns from numerous monsters.  With that, he made a considerable amount of money.”

“Doesn’t that make you wealthy then?”

“Not really.  He said that he tried it before I was born.  He preferred the simple life.  He said that money only complicates things.  With that, he sold the mansion, moved into a smaller house, and traveled around – giving all of his earnings to the peasants he met in various towns.  The books were the only items that he didn’t sell.  One book opened his eyes and he used that book and others to educate my mother.”

“So the Copian scriptures changed his mind about wealth?”

“Actually, he had those views on wealth before he read the Copian scriptures.  He did tell me that the book made things clearer for him and he became even more humble as a result of it.  He told me that The Master is more important than any gold piece.

“After he spent a few years in Diamondheart, he was asked to join Tulin’s chivalry.  That was around the time I was born.  With that, our family moved into the castle and he served for about three years.  He then retired and moved back to the same smaller house that they lived in before.”

“Does that mean that he was forced out of retirement?”

“Exactly.  My father was ordered to fight in the Saris/Tulin war.  My father was thrilled at the idea of fighting for Tulin once again.  With that, he went off to war on a pegasus and I never saw him again.”

Darlene stood up and walked over to her bed.  She grabbed a book on the nearby night stand.  She opened up her book.  “You should join me.”

And Nicolas did.  Donna, however, didn’t want to participate since she wanted to start preparing dinner.  As she began preparing, they talked about the Copian scriptures for a while.  One topic that they discussed in particular was the Copian prophesy.  Nicolas didn’t understand the Copian scriptures as well as Darlene, but she was patient and clarified anything that he didn’t have a good understanding of.  They looked at Temler’s prophesy, who was one of several prophets that predicted the coming of the Master’s son: the MacMaster.  Darlene stressed that the MacMaster’s coming was soon, and expressed her excitement.

Darlene went into more detail regarding Temler’s prophesy.  She gave references to other scriptures, explaining that the MacMaster will be born from ‘one that has never lain with a husband’.  This confused Nicolas, and sounded impossible to him.  She continued with the passage from Origins I, which gave account of the creation of Copia and the temptation of Axis.  Using this passage, she explained how the MacMaster will undo the damage that Axis caused.  Nicolas, having recently read the beginning of Origins I, found this explanation new and interesting.

“He will be the perfect sacrifice to The Master.” she continued.  “As it says in the Copian scriptures, he will be ‘the shabbit’”

“What would he have to do with shabbits?”

“In our time, we have to make annual sacrifices to appease The Master for the wrongs that we have committed.  With MacMaster, he will die as the perfect sacrifice for all of our wrongs.”

“Man! You know everything!  How do you know all this?”

“I have studied this book for a long time.”

“But how do we know when this MacMaster is coming?  People have said that the son of The Master will be coming for years now!”

“You mean to tell me that you already know of the MacMaster?”

“I’ve never heard him called MacMaster before.  I only knew His name as the son of The Master.  I also can’t remember a lot of what I read.”

“You can’t remember because you don’t really apply what you read.”

Nicolas scratched his head and thought about what she told him.  “I guess you’re right.”

Darlene stared back down at the Copian scriptures.  “Do you want me to continue?”  she asked him.  “I can continue for as long as you wish.”

“I don’t know.  A lot of the stuff that I’m learning is kind of interesting.  How about as long as you wish?”

“Are you sure about that?  That could take hours.  Is that fine with you?”

“I don’t know if I want to study for that long.  You can teach me more later.”

Darlene closed her book.  “Very well then.  We can discuss more later.”

As Nicolas and Darlene were about to continue with their discussion, Donna came into the room.  “It’s done,” she said.  “Dinner is ready.  I’m sure you’ll both enjoy it.  Hurry now! You don’t want to eat it cold!”

Nicolas and Darlene followed Donna into the dining room.  The table was neatly set with all the food in its proper place.  The aroma of grilled flizard filled the room.  There was also a dish consisting of tomato, carrot, pickled radish, onion, potato, and cabbage with a hint of a rather strong spice.  There were two bowls of berries that were prepared: brambleberries and goldberries.  Sitting next to the berries was a plate full of sweetspice rolls.  A glass pitcher was filled with pachyow milk (a pachyow is an elephant-like cow), which sat at the center of the table.  The food was exceptional, and was something that a peasant could never afford to eat.  Nicolas was surprised, as he surveyed the display of culinary excellence.  “It all looks so good,” he finally said.  “Thank you, Donna.”

Donna nodded with a smile, and motioned him toward his seat.  “You’re welcome,” she said.

“Grilled flizard pockets?” Darlene gasped.  “You’ve really outdone yourself this time, Donna.”

She nodded at Darlene.  “We do have a guest, right?  And you do know the proper etiquette when handling a guest.”

“Of course I do.  Thank you very much, Donna.”

Nicolas rubbed his stomach and scowled.  “What are we waiting for? I’m hungry!”

Darlene laughed in response to this, and they all began eating.  Before they began, Darlene said a blessing that she made years ago, around the time she lost her parents.  They then dug in, passing the food around the table, until everyone got their fill.  The flizard pocket was stuffed with a spicy sauce, which tasted strongly of dragon pepper, honey, and ginger.  As they were eating, they began to discuss what they heard from Ruby earlier.  Darlene especially wanted to talk about Princess Saris’s capture, considering this greatly concerned her.

“We have to do something,” she said as she reached for a sweetspice roll.  “Princess Saris gets executed tonight.  We should try to rescue her.”

Nicolas sighed, as he scooped another spoonful of goldberries.  “R…rescue her?  Are you out of your mind?  How do you expect to sneak into the castle?  There are guards everywhere.  I’ve been in there, and I’m NOT going back!”

“We have to, Nicolas.” she insisted.  “They are going to kill her!  If they captured her, she can’t be all that bad, right?”

Nicolas finished the rest of his brambleberries.  “Yes, but how do we get inside?  It would take a miracle to get inside there.”

“We have one.  Ruby knows the castle inside and out.  She could guide us to the underground passageways she uses to sneak around the castle.  Please Nicolas.  I need you to help me save her.”

Nicolas thought about it for a while.  An idea suddenly surfaced, which totally changed his attitude.  Revenge.  Those Saris idiots will pay for killing me.  “I’ll help.” he finally said, after finishing his pachyow milk.  “Those idiots have already killed me.  I won’t let them do the same to her.”

Donna, after finishing her vegetable dish cleared her throat.  “I’ll help too.” she said.  “I just think it’s crazy for a king to order their own daughter killed.  We can’t have her die.”

Nicolas moved his dishes forward.  “There’s one problem.”

Darlene frowned.  “What is it?”
“I understand how we are going to get into the castle,” he explained.  “But how are we going to escape with the princess?  We’ll be caught for sure!”

“I’ve haven’t really thought about the escape.  I guess that’s where things get a little dicey.  We might have to fight our way out, or something like that.”

“Fight our way out against a whole army of Saris soldiers?  Good luck with that!”

“There’s no other way that I can think of to escape with her.  I guess we get her into the underground passageways and try to escape from there.”

“I guess that would work.”

Nicolas and Darlene continued discussing the plan to rescue Princess Saris.  There were, however, still a couple of problems with the plan.  Nicolas didn’t know where they would escape with the princess.  Darlene suggested that they take her back to the house.  Nicolas didn’t like the idea, since everyone knew the princess and they would quickly be found out.  It was then decided that they would escape somewhere away from Saris, which would be discussed later.  In the middle of the discussion, Donna washed all the dishes from the dinner and put them away.  She then continued listening to the discussion of the plan, which Nicolas and Darlene were wrapping up.

When the plan was finally finished, Nicolas spoke up, getting Darlene and Donna’s attention.  “The time has come!” he announced.  “Let’s put this plan into action! What are we waiting for?”

Darlene frowned, and held up her hand.  “I think that we should pray first.”

Nicolas nodded.  “Okay.  We’ll do that first.”

So the three of them all joined hands and began praying for The Master to aid them in their plan to infiltrate Saris Castle and rescue Princess Saris.

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©2011  K. L. Walker