Kingdom of Nad
“Take the bed to the back entrance, some golems will help you off load. Paulo help him, I’m going to find our house sitters.”
“Si my King.” She waited for him to leave before muttering how annoying those three words were becoming. She had tried every language she could find, and while he seemed to understand, he always used the same response. At first she had worried that the other Kings at the spa were going to take advantage of his limited response, until she remembered that most other kings were men, and then she really worried. She ended up spending all her time in their bedroom. She smiled at the fond memory. Now she had to evict some squatters. She called in her golem army and marched into the castle.
“Did you sleep well?” Tricks asked, yawning and stretching.
“Like a rock.” Brain replied, knowing nothing about some rocks that had to stay up all night worrying that someone would enter their cave. “Did we..?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I wasn’t that drunk.”
“I was, you sure you didn’t take advantage of me?” He had to run. The shoe would have hit him squarely on the back of the head if he hadn’t run into the golem army.
“Hey what’s up statue guys?” Brain asked standing back up.
“Grab him.” Isabelle shouted, pointing at Brain. “And the other one.” She pointed at Tricks. “Wait,” she shouted. “Let them go.”
“Hi Bell.” Tricks said, “So this is where you got to.”
“Tricks, what the hell are you doing in my Kingdom?”
“I’ll explain later. Let me first introduce Brain, Brain this is Bell.” They shook hands, Brain did the whole kiss the hand thing and King Isabelle did the whole fan her face with her hand thing.
“Is this Brain?” She asked.
“None other, unfortunately.” Tricks replied.
“None other what?” Brain asked looking at Tricks puzzled.
“None of your business is what.” Tricks snapped. “Go organize some breakfast.” She waited until he left before speaking again. “Don’t mention, you know what? We don’t want to give him a bigger head then he already has.” Bell (I’m going to call King Isabelle the 5th Bell from now on as Tricks does) smiled.
“Same old Tricks.” They hugged. “I stopped at school a few months back, Tricks O'Shaunase is still carved on your desk.”
“Don’t ever say that out loud again.” she said, but smiled anyway.
“Say what?” They both turned.
“This is the rest of my party. Opie and Siege, Siege you’re looking positively visible this morning.” Siege blushed, Opie saw her discomfort and let go her hand.
“Nice to meet you Opie.” Bell said, “Shall we go see what’s for breakfast. I must go pay the Dragon rider, but I’ll join you in a minute.”
“Wait a second, that could be our way off this island, how long can you keep the dragon here?” Tricks asked.
“I’ll find out?” Bell replied.
“Can I come with you?” Opie asked a goofy look coming over his face.
“Of course, follow me.” Opie followed like a puppy going to suppertime; if he had a tail it would have broken many expensive vases.
“I can keep him here till lunch time.” she said sitting down at the breakfast table. “This is the man in my life, Paulo.” Paulo bowed deeply and then shook everyone’s hand, it went like this.
“Si my King. Si my King. Glad to make your acquaintance. Si my King.”
“What did you say, Paulo?” Bell said jumping up from her chair.
“Si my King?” He replied.
“No, when you shook Opie’s hand.”
“Si my King.”
“I think it’s me. Maybe Paulo has a weak spell cast on him and touching me cancels it out?” Opie said. “Come here Paulo try shaking my hand again.” They shook hands again.
“I think he could be onto something.” Paulo said, closely followed by Si my King when they let go hands.
“If you don’t mind helping out, could I borrow you a little later? I have a few questions to ask Paulo.”
“Any time.”
“Thanks. Now Tricks, let’s take a walk, we have some catching up to do. The rest of you can enjoy the pleasures of the castle.” They walked out. Paulo grabbed Opie’s arm.
“Would you mind holding my hand?” Paulo said when he had a firm grip on Opie. “But there are some books I want to get out of the library and I can’t find them. I need the Librarians help, but she’s all, ‘I’m not your king.’”
“Love to help out. What do you do here, apart from being Bell’s man?”
“Scroll keeper, don’t ask.” Then they were gone.
“All alone again.” Brain said.
“I’m still here.” Siege said.
“Oh, you want to go see a dragon?”
“Not really.”
“Me neither. Perhaps a game of chess?”
“No, I cheat.”
“Sorry. I think I’ll go make some energy…go see the potion library.”
“Have fun, I’m off for a bath.” They left. The golems came in and tidied up, muttering about ungrateful people and about how if only they could think, they would rule the world.
Tricks and Bell
“So you finally hooked up with ‘Mister Gorgeous’.” Bell said.
“No, not now.” Tricks replied. “I did, but that was long ago. Now we’re just friends.” Bell smiled, that all knowing smile that every girl knows how to do when they are about to say something really profound that everyone knows deep down to be true.
“But you want more than friendship.”
“Let’s not talk about that. How have you been?”
“Not so fast, what happened?” Bell said stopping and looking at Tricks. They were standing on the edge of the island; the castle was behind them, a cold breeze coming of the ocean. “I still remember bunking out of boarding school so that you could catch a glimpse of the long haired wizard.”
“You know, we had a thing, but he was so wrapped up in himself and his stupid inventions, and then my family got into a war and I had to leave. When I came back it was just different. You know?”
“Yeah, but there is nothing stopping you now.” Bell said as they reached the cliff.
“I’ll see. Maybe after this quest.”
“Tell me about this quest of yours. What are you looking for?”
“Promise you won’t laugh. We are looking for Da’Loose’s treasure.” Bell laughed, even though she promised that she wouldn’t.
“You don’t need the money, so why are you risking your life.”
“I had nothing better to do, besides someone has to look after the others.”
“You mean you have to look after Brain.” Tricks was silent for a long time.
“Yes, but I promised myself that no one would ever have that sort of power over me.” she said. “Enough about me, where on earth did you find Paulo? Didn’t you and what’s his name, Lord Hadalot, have a thing?” Bell laughed.
“You remember. That was just fun, the guy was too cheap. You know I didn’t know my parents, well it turns out that I was of royal decent. Can you believe it; Marge Snobbins would have been green with envy. Remember her and all her friends all trying to be all larny and things with their gold leaf invitations. What posers. There we were, you the richest woman in the land and me an actual king. What did they call themselves?”
“The Get a Royal Gang.”
“Oh yes,” They laughed. “I wonder what happened to them?”
“Marge married a fish monger. Well he owns a chain of fish and chips shops. Tons of money, but no lineage. I mugged her last year, just for old time’s sake, stole her deed to a baronship, I’ve got it in my pub, The Swill and Donkey. You should come and visit.”
“Don’t tell me you bought that old place?”
“You don’t buy the Swill, it adopts you.”
“True, how many times where we thrown out of there by Guness?”
“I might own the place, but he
still turfs me out if I get too rowdy.” Tricks said wondering how the place was coping without her.
“Do you ever see Sarah?”
“You’re not going to believe this, she has become Lady Laseer at Mrs Maude’s.”
“Old sceptical Sarah? Well stranger things have happened. I suppose you heard about Mary?”
“No, what?”
“She lost her legs in a cart accident, poor thing. She married a farmer, just like she always said she would. I don’t know the whole story, but she’s now in a wheel chair, causing all kinds of hell with the poor labourers.”
“The four of us should get together. Let’s meet at the Swill in say four weeks, that should give me enough time to finish off this adventure.”
“It’s a date, you get Sarah, and I’ll fly in Mary. Let’s get back inside, it’s freezing.”