“Come on,” Zakmeister beckoned to the others, and they all immediately raced to the outside entrance to the dungeons, where once they had gone to rescue the Epilogs. “We know how to get these poor souls out, but remember Braxton’s curse. I can deal with that while you open the lock.”
“It’s William Octobr’s son and granddaughter,” Nathan whispered. “I feel very sorry for them. Our ancestors.”
“But I still do not trust the blind man,” sighed Messina. “He wants the throne only for himself.”
Chapter Twenty-One
The thick wooden door leading to the dungeons beneath the palace, was double locked, then padlocked, and also then bewitched.
“Nothing to worry about,” laughed Zakmeister. “I shall have it open in moments. My brother may think he’s the genius magician in the family, but he has no idea how my own power has grown over the years. His feeble curse won’t stop me.”
He bent over the shadowed doorway, murmuring the words which would block the curse. No voice seemed to come from within, but when he lifted his hands and shouted the words to unlock the padlock, the young girl in the dungeons started to cry again, thinking that her gaolers were coming to hurt her once more.
Messina called, “We are here to save you. Don’t be frightened.”
The final lock burst open and Zakmeister marched in, saying, “Time for rescue my Octobr friends. Come on out into the daylight.”
They were suspicious of everyone and didn’t trust their rescuers, but the man and his daughter shuffled from the dungeon, up the dark stone steps and out to the grass studded courtyard overlooking the lake. Gazing around them, and at the group of people standing watching, finally the man stammered, “Who are you?”
“I,” said Messina, “am Messina, the rightful Empress of Lashtang. This is my beloved husband Bayldon, the empling, and my son, the empole.”
“It is the year 2018,” nodded Nathan. “A long time since you were empole and your father William was emperor.”
“I was an empole too, once,” sighed Ninester. “But I’ve lost count of going backwards and forwards in whole different years.” Still excited at seeing his mother’s previous bedroom, he continued to hop, even within the dungeon. “All empoles together,” he sang. “One, two, three! But see, I count very well, and you can tell my Papa I do all my lessons and I’m a good boy.”
The two released prisoners looked at him, puzzled, but Irima said, “A very good boy, my darling, and always have been, whatever your horrid Papa said.”
Zakmeister bowed to the man, smiling. “You are quite safe, sir. And I must tell you that your farther has been searching for you for months. But before we take you to a safe place, I should explain that the vile traitor Braxton who captured you is my wicked brother. But I shall never let him touch you again.”
Still bewildered and clearly in pain, the man, his hands now free, reached out for his daughter and she clung to him. Messina bent, smiling at her. “Let me remove these horrid collars and leads,” she said. “I do not believe you are dogs to be led.”
Nathan shook his head. He knew by now that Granny was the perfect parent, but Messina had no idea how to be the perfect mother. “She’ll be a great empress instead,” he grinned to himself.
Meanwhile the little girl was edging towards Irima. “My name’s Tansle, and I’m eight.” she murmured. “And that’s my dad. His name’s Hambrick, and Grandpa Octobr calls him Habby.” She paused, then whispered, “Are we really free now?”
Irima answered her, but Messina interrupted. “We have little time,” she said, leading them from the courtyard outside the dungeons and back into the palace to the main staircase. “Braxton is planning to travel into the modern England, to buy weapons. I must follow, and stop him. But I need someone to take you both into medieval England, where you will be safe from Braxton and the other villains, but away from here were the Hazletts will surely find you before William Octobr does. “Therefore,” and already she was climbing the stairs, “I will send Nathan with his father back to medieval London with you, where Nathan has friends who will house you. Zakmeister and I will follow Braxton. Irima and Ninester may choose whether to stay here in the empress’s chambers, or return to the cottage.”
On the turret at the top of the highest tower, they stood, gazing below at the vast spread of lake, now entirely iced over. The wind was howling and blowing through the piled snow. “Freezing,” muttered Nathan. “I agree with Braxton’s companion. Send us back to spring. Or,” and he smiled, “what about summer?”
Bayldon took his son’s hand, Nathan took Tansle’s, and she took her father’s. Messina stood before them and lifted her arms. Immediately the sky began to spin. Black clouds split into wisps, white clouds blew away and a glimmer of sunshine peeped through.
Nathan could hear his mother’s voice echoing through the mists.
“I link to the age-old-link, defined over the years and the place of definement of definition within the city of London. Bring the link into the year 1486, and the day defined the first day of June in that year. I, Messina Octobr, Empress of Lashtang, do order as I have defined.”
The fading echo buzzed in Nathan’s head, and he felt himself spin, fall, and then land. He blinked, opened his eyes, and discovered himself once more standing in Bandy Alley.
“Look,” called Tansle, “we lived here. Look, Papa, that was grandpa’s smithy. All burned down.”
Her father regarded it with a faint smile. “Shall we live here again? I will do my best to repair the shop and the rooms above if you think it is safe.”
“No, no,” said Bayldon, giving a faint sniff at the wrecked building. “Too many ruins. Lashtang – the palace – London – oh dear, dear, ruins everywhere.” He nodded at Nathan. “You have friends here, I believe, my boy. Perhaps you can lead us.”
Which is exactly what he did. Wearing a huge smile and feeling happy again for the first time in a long while, Nathan started marching down the little cobbled lanes towards Bishopsgate. The change in the weather was delightful, and after the freeze, everyone smiled at the warm sunshine. Even Hambrick, although still bent and limping, smiled up at the cloudless sky.
The Parry Mansion in Bishopsgate stood gleaming, its windows reflecting the early summer weather. Nathan ran up the steps to bang on the door, but before he could reach the knocker, the door was flung open from inside and Alice, Alfie, John, Poppy, Peter, Sam and Mouse all came rushing out to greet him. Both Poppy and Alice ran into his arms, and Mouse tried very hard to lick his ankle.
Hambrick and Tansle looked amazed and stood back while the others grabbed Nathan and dragged him into the entrance, but hesitated to drag the two strangers.
“New friends,” explained Nathan briefly. “I’ll explain in a minute, but food first, and you,” he grinned at Poppy, “have to tell me what you’ve been up to because it’s all your fault.”
“Always is.” Poppy laughed.
“And now,” called Alice, pointing to the long dining table in the grand hall,” I want to know everything.
Food was brought, for Hambrick and Tansle were starving. There was strawberry jelly with big chunks of fruit wobbling in the middle, egg custards with raspberries on top, hot baked bread, spiced slices of chicken with savoury stuffing, bacon wedges surrounded by roasted radish, almonds and plums, and large pewter cups of pear cider.
Bayldon, who had not previously travelled in medieval London, was fascinated by all the details, but the others were interested only in explanations.
“I want to know your story,” Nathan told Poppy.
“And we want to know yours,’ answered Alice.
“And you’ll never guess where we went,” said Peter.
“And Gosling has a story too,” mumbled Sam, ‘if only she could tell it, But she was hoping Hermes would come back for her.”
“I bin sailing with me dad. But you’s’ll never guess wot happened. And I reckon you two gotta have a right incredible story an’all,” said John, turning to
Hambrick, who was busy eating some of everything.
“Tis gonna be a long evening,” laughed Alfie. “Stories till bed.”
With summer on the doorstep, the days were long and dusk did not close in until after supper. Only Tansle, with Gosling to keep her company, went to bed early and the others stayed up talking until the full moon gleamed through the bedchamber windows, reminding everybody that tomorrow was another day, and there was now safety, comfort and plenty of time to talk and do anything they liked.
It was indeed the next morning over a hot breakfast that Peter remembered something he had forgotten. Falling into the ocean, being rescued by his own friends, being attacked by pirates and finally being saved by a dragon, had completely pushed other matters out of his mind.
“You’ll all love Wuz,” he told everybody. “Most of the dragons are so kind and friendly and Wuz is the best of all.”
“It’s a shame he went back to Sparkan,” sighed Alice. “We have cats, and we love them all, but a dragon would have been even better.”
“You nearly got a llama,” smiled Bayldon. “But I thought poor Alan would be more comfortable staying in Lashtang with Ninester.”
“Reckon there be plenty o’ room in the stables,” laughed Alfie.
“I still think a dragon would be better.”
“But there’s one thing about Sparkan I forgot to tell you,” Peter said. “Under the fig tree, right in the roots of the island where the rainbow passed, there’s a tunnel. It was properly made, not just dug out by wolves or rabbits or anything. I think Sparkan has its own secrets. I want to know what’s in that tunnel.”
“People say,” nodded Nathan, “there’s always a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”
“And a Leprechaun,” laughed Poppy. “But we got dragons instead.”
“We should all go there and meet the dragons.”
“And the wolves. They are lovely too.”
Here Hambrick looked up, frowning. “I cannot agree,” he said firmly. “The traitor Braxton kept one of those horrible things, and it threatened to eat me or my daughter many times. Three heads, all hungry, all slavering and all ugly. Even when it turned into a child it was ugly with hundreds of sharp teeth. I watched the child eating a chicken bone raw, dripping with blood.”
Nodding, Nathan said, “Yes, I know. Braxton called her Tansle but her name is Seed. The other two heads have separate names. The poor little girl is mute, and Braxton starved them all. When I met her she was really starving, she’d eat anything. But she didn’t eat me. Braxton kidnapped her from Sparkan.”
“He starved us too,” whispered Tansle. “And he slapped me and kicked me, and he beat my father.”
“I’m sorry,” muttered Nathan. “But it wasn’t Little Seed’s fault. He beat her too. She was covered in scars both as wolf and as child.”
“And what’s being done about it?” demanded Poppy, irate.
“Your mother,” Bayldon interrupted, “has a plan, as always, my dear. We heard Braxton say he was going to modern England to buy guns. Your mother and Zakmeister have gone after him.”
“We should all go after him,” complained Peter, removing his thumb from his mouth.
“And what about the three-headed wolf? Couldn’t that eat him up?” asked Sam as Flop escaped his arms and jumped on the table to lick up the remains of the scrambled egg.
“I told you, the lava wolves don’t eat people.”
“She’s been left safe with Granny,” said Nathan.
Both Hambrick and Tansle gazed at him in horror. “You’ve left that vicious beast alone with a little old lady?”
“It’s Granny who’s the vicious beast,” chuckled Nathan. “She’s no ordinary Granny.”
“But she might make Little Seed sick with too much cake,” giggled Poppy.
“I’ve no wish to ever travel to Sparkan,” sighed Hambrick. “It sounds a place of monsters and I’d never risk taking Tansle there. But we are both accustomed to medieval London as well as medieval Lashtang, and now modern Lashtang as well. We are travellers indeed.” Tansle smiled and nodded. “And if only we could be sure my father is safe, then I’d cheerfully make a new life here. Open a shop perhaps, or start a market stall.”
“Selling wot?” asked John, dubious.
“Another smithy, if my father would agree, since I’m no trained smith myself. But I could make toys, or be a tooth-puller.”
“Yuck. Too much blood,” Tansle mumbled. “But toys would be good.”
“William Octobr was a good wizard when he had his staff,” said Alice. “Could he magic up some money? And anyway, until everything is settled, you’re welcome to stay here in comfort, eat whatever you like, and make yourselves at home.”
The summery days passed without anyone counting. Tansle, although she was younger, made friends with everyone, loved to run after them, cuddle the cats, and listen to the long evening talks after supper. Bayldon and Hambrick eased gradually into a careful friendship but there was clearly a little envy from Hambrick, knowing that he would never now become emperor, and his time was over, while Bayldon’s time was yet to come.
It was a week later when Arthur Crinford came to see his son, and ask if he would like to come on his next trip sailing to France and Spain. When the steward let him in, Arthur was surprised to see two strange men sitting talking together on the garden bench in the sunshine. John took his father to meet Bayldon and Hambrick.
“Reckon I ain’t gonna come this time,” John said. “T’were a right good adventure last time, and I done loved the sea. T’were beautiful. I be happy to come another time, but now I got a lot o’ stuff to do wiv me friends. Sorry, Dad. Hope you doesn’t mind.”
“Not in the least,” his father told him. “Perhaps you can join me later this year when I plan on sailing to Italy for the last trading trip of the year before the weather gets too stormy. But frankly, this time I shall be glad to get away myself.”
“Sommint wrong?” asked John.
“I cannot say exactly wrong,” said Arthur, trying to remain polite, “but my mother has returned to live with me, and that becomes rather difficult at times.”
“Them nuns threw her out?” John sniggered.
“No, no.” Arthur smiled. “But she claimed to be unhappy there, and I felt responsible, you see, so I brought her home with me. Perhaps not an entirely wise decision.”
“Do she still reckon I ain’t yer boy?” John demanded.
With a faint blush, Arthur nodded. “I do not listen. I walk away. But she continues to shout about what a fool I am to accept you. Don’t worry. I know perfectly well that you’re my son. I wish I could find the original midwife.”
“You’s me dad,” John said. “Nuffin’ else matters.”
Hambrick, who knew nothing of John’s search for his father, and Arthur’s long search for his son, joined the conversation with a slight frown. “I do believe,” he said, “that parents should always be obeyed. I have told my daughter many times how she must behave. Sadly her mother died during the invasion which lost my father his throne, but she was always strict, just as my father was with me.”
Interested, Arthur said, “Your father was a king, sir? How amazing. In what country, may I ask?”
“Lashtang,” said Hambrick without hesitation. “Now ruled by the usurpers and traitors, the shoddy wizards and cruel Hazletts.”
Even more surprised, Arthur said, “I have sailed to many different countries in the world, sir, but I have never heard of Lashtang. Is it in the far east, perhaps?”
“Of course not,” answered Hambrick. “It’s in the sky.”
Bayldon interrupted quickly. “And I believe, Mister Crinford, that your own country has recently been invaded, and the usurper now sits on the throne of England? It was, I gather, a similar situation in Lashtang.”
Tansle and Poppy were sitting on the grass playing cat’s cradle, and Alice came out with more wool to enlarge the game for three people. But Poppy dropped her wool and looked up at
Arthur, saying loudly, “John’s granny is a horrid old woman. I didn’t know who she was but I went to work for her once, and she made me a slave. Her and her maid were really nasty. She’s been nasty to John too.”
“Medieval beliefs, sighed Bayldon, “were very different. Spare the rod and spoil the child, they said. Everybody thought children should be beaten and made to obey. Most of them started work at about eight years old.”
“That’s when I started – well,” John paused, mid-sentence, “well never mind wot I started. I wanted to be a cook. But I doesn’t no more.”
“You used to cook sometimes in the old abandoned warehouse,” Alice laughed, “and I can just remember what an awful mess you made. You burned everything.”
“Best burnt sausages yous ever ate,” grinned John.
“My father was emperor,” Hambrick interrupted again, “and I always obeyed him. I wish I could find him now.”
This puzzled poor Arthur Crinford even more, and he sat back, closing his eyes and wondering if he would ever really understand what all these strange people were talking about, how they managed to jump into the sea just in front of his ship in the wide ocean, and even more amazing, how they had managed to find a remarkably friendly dragon.
Chapter Twenty-Two
He had not wanted to do this with Hambrick, Tansle and Arthur Crinford watching him, but later that afternoon Nathan stood in his bedroom, the window wide open to the sunshine, and held up the Knife of Clarr.
“Send me the Messenger of Clarr,” he said to the beam of light shining from the blade. And then, as an after-thought, “As long as he’s not sick, terribly busy, or asleep.”
Hermes arrived within the hour and was leapt upon by Gosling who immediately nestled into the goose’s thick white neck feathers, and waddled through the front door to the great hall where everyone was seated, stretched in the last rays of sunshine. He cocked his head at Tansle and Hambrick, ignored the patient steward who was still not accustomed to having to open the door to geese, and sat at Nathan’s feet. “My illustrious Lord of Clarr,” he said with reverence, “I am here at your command.”
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