The Warble

by Victoria Simcox

  “Where are we going, Prince Werrien?” Retzel asked.

  “I’ll explain later.”

  Werrien led them eastward through the forest. Taysha galloped at full speed, with Lisheng right at her tail, and once again Kristina kept her head down low behind Werrien’s back to avoid the many tree branches. After a while, the smell of smoke and the sound of voices filled the air again. Taysha and Lisheng slowed down, and Kristina lifted her head up to see that Werrien had led them back to the place where the gnomes and the dwarfs were preparing for battle.

  Looper, surprised to see them back, flew toward them. “What’s going on? Aren’t you supposed to be on your way up Mount Bernovem?”

  Werrien ignored Looper’s question and rode Taysha toward the gnomes and dwarfs, who were now busy dressing in their battle attire. “May I have your attention!” he called out. They all fell silent and looked up at Werrien. “I’m sorry to say that Rumalock, the one we have all known to be noble and trustworthy, has betrayed us.” The gnomes and dwarfs looked to each other, shaking their heads in disbelief. “I know this is very hard to believe, but it is true. He has stolen the Warble, and it is presently on its way up Mount Bernovem, where Ramon is planning to destroy it.”

  “But how could this be?” one of the gnomes said. “Rumalock is our leader and friend. He told us to meet him at the base of the mountain, to hold back the queen’s army.”

  “Listen, you were planning to defend Kristina and me, and as you can see, we are not on our way up the mountain to deliver the Warble. We’re here, before your own eyes.”

  The gnomes and dwarfs whispered among themselves, and then the same gnome who had spoken before said, “So what are we to do now?”

  “I ask you now to trust in me, for my mother, Lafinia, is the true queen, and I will be king after her.” Werrien had authority in his voice. The gnomes looked among each other, not knowing what to believe. “Do you wish to be free citizens once again, free to harvest the fairy blossom and prosper as you did once before, or do you prefer to be under Queen Sentiz’s power and barely get by?”

  “Of course we prefer to be free and prosper, but what you are saying about Rumalock—this is very hard for us to believe,” the gnome answered.

  “Well, I can’t force you to believe me, but just think; why would I, the true future king, want to do you any harm? Has my family done anything other than look out for your best interests?”

  The gnome who spoke before and an older male dwarf whispered to each other. Finally, the gnome said, “We will do as you wish, for we know you are the true Prince of Bernovem, and there has been no peace, justice, or happiness since your mother, Lafinia has been imprisoned.”

  “I will do everything in my power to make sure you don’t regret your decision.”

  “So what should we do now?” the gnome asked.

  “Follow Kristina and me to the base of Mount Bernovem. Once we are there, we will wait in hiding for Ramon’s army. Then, I will take back the Warble from Ramon, and Kristina and I will head up the mountain to deliver it to its resting place.”

  “And what about us?” a young dwarf man asked.

  “You will stay at the base with Ugan and Retzel, and keep Ramon’s army from coming after us.”

  “Prince Werrien?” A softer female voice spoke up from the crowd. She raised her arm so that Werrien could see her. It was Bronya, the girl gnome who had given him soup to eat earlier that evening. “My sister and I wish to give you and Kristina something.”

  Werrien looked curiously at her. “What is it?”

  The girls made their way through the crowd toward Taysha, and when they stood in front of her, each laid out on the ground a protective chainmail vest and a warm woolen cape, one for Kristina and one for Werrien.

  “Sorry they were not finished earlier,” Neela, the blonde girl gnome, said.

  Werrien and Kristina dismounted Taysha and tried on the vests. They fit perfectly.

  “Wow!” Werrien said, looking at Kristina.

  “Hey! Watch it!” Kristina looked slyly at Werrien. “I really don’t want to hear how I could pass for your little brother in this getup.”

  Werrien returned a sly smile. “I was just going to say that you look great!”

  Kristina smiled gingerly. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”

  Werrien turned to the two gnome girls. “Thank you, Neela and Bronya. This is very kind of you.”

  “There is something else,” Bronya said. She gestured to Retzel’s wife, Mitzi, to come out of the crowd.

  Mitzi came toward them carrying two more protective vests, as well as a shiny, round steel container. She laid them on the ground as well. “These are for Retzel and Ugan.”

  Retzel and Ugan dismounted Lisheng to dress in their vests.

  “What is the steel container for?” Kristina asked curiously.

  “I made it especially for Raymond, to keep him protected, if the enemy shoots arrows at him,” Mitzi said.

  “Very cool!” Kristina said. She took Raymond from Retzel and placed him in it. On the top of the container was a mesh lid that Raymond could push open with his nose to stick his head out. “How do you like it, Raymond?”

  “Well, it’s not as comfy and warm as being inside your vest, but I suppose if it will protect me, it will do,” his voice echoed out the top of it.

  “How does he like it?” Neela asked.

  “He likes it just fine,” Kristina answered.

  “I think we’d better get moving if we want to beat Ramon’s army to the base of the mountain,” Werrien said.

  “How do you suppose we can beat them when Ramon is already on his way,” Ugan asked Werrien.

  “Well, now that I’m not following Rumalock’s directions, I think I might know a shorter and faster way than the way they are going,” Werrien said.

  Retzel hugged his wife, Mitzi. “Everything will be better soon,” he said softly.

  All the men gnomes and dwarfs mounted ponies to begin their journey to the base of the mountain. They rode off, following Werrien and Kristina; their heavy-hearted wives and children stood watching until they disappeared into the forest.

  32

  Werrien Kristina, the dwarfs and gnomes were all desperately hoping that they’d make it to the base of Mount Bernovem before Ramon’s army did. The closer they got, the colder the air grew, and so they stopped briefly to put on the warm capes that the gnome girls had made for them. While doing so, Raymond poked his head out the top of his container to sniff the crisp air, and a snowflake landed on his nose. “Is this the same stuff I saw falling out your bedroom window?” he asked Kristina.

  “Yes, it is, Raymond,” Kristina answered, smiling at him.

  “What is it called?”

  “It’s called snow.”

  The thought of the snow falling outside her bedroom window suddenly saddened Kristina, for it reminded her that if the Warble wasn’t brought to its resting place, she and Raymond wouldn’t be going home. And even though she had made more friends in Bernovem than she had ever made at home, she couldn’t imagine never being able to go back and see her family again. Thinking about it was more chilling than the icy wind blowing in her face.

  The ground was covered in snow when they arrived at the base of the mountain, and there were no footprints to be seen, nor any other signs that Ramon’s army had gotten there before them. Werrien brought Taysha to a halt and then jumped down off her to look for a place where they all could hide and wait for Ramon’s army to arrive. As he disappeared into the surrounding forest, Kristina stayed with Taysha and their army of gnomes and dwarfs. She looked up at the moon that was shining brightly. It made the snow on the ground seem like it was covered by millions of tiny diamonds; so pretty that she closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the fresh air to savor the moment. However, while her eyes were still closed, she suddenly felt the wind swoosh over her head. Taysha reared up, and Kristina opened her eyes to see Roage standing in the snow, a few feet ahead of her. “Th
e next time you come swooping down to scare the wits out of us; could you at least give us a warning?” she said angrily.

  Raymond poked his head out of the top of his container. “Just as I suspected!” He narrowed his beady eyes. “It’s that sneaky bird again. Can’t a fellow get a bit of shut-eye without being thrown on his head?”

  “If there was time to greet you formally, I would have, but unfortunately there is not. Ramon’s army is less than a mile away from here, so you had better start preparing for their arrival,” Roage said.

  Werrien ran back to them. Then Roage turned to Werrien and said, “Ramon’s army will be coming this way in a matter of minutes.”

  “Thanks for the warning,” Werrien said, and he got back on Taysha. He turned her around to face the gnomes and dwarfs. “I have found a place for you to hide. Follow me.” He led them to a ravine that was big enough for all of them, as well as their ponies, to hide. Then he jumped down off Taysha and turned to Kristina. “You will have to stay here until I return, and when you see me coming back, be prepared to flee with me.” Then he turned to Lisheng. “I’ll need you to be standing by Taysha. I will ride you.”

  “It will be an honor for me,” said Lisheng.

  Ugan and Retzel dismounted Lisheng.

  Then Werrien turned to them. “I’ll need you two to be the leaders of this army. When you see me running back this way, make sure the rest of the gnomes and dwarfs have their bows and arrows ready. Ramon’s army will most assuredly be right on my tail. Also, stay down low in the ravine until I run past you. Then give the rest of the gnomes and dwarfs the go-ahead to rise up and launch their arrows.” Lastly, he turned to Roage and said, “When I go now, I’ll need you to fly ahead of me, and let me know the whereabouts of Ramon. Then, after I take the Warble back from him, fly back to Ugan and Retzel and let them know I am on my way back.”

  “As you wish,” Roage said.

  After he gave out the orders, Werrien ran back to the place where Kristina and their army had waited previously for him. He hid behind a tree, and Roage flew off, to see how far off Ramon’s army was. Not long after, Roage came back, but before he could report, Werrien heard the sounds of Ramon’s army approaching, and shortly after, he saw the fire from their torches. “Did you see Ramon among them?” Werrien whispered to Roage, who was now sitting in the tree directly above him.

  “Yes, he is on a gray horse at the head of his army,” Roage said.

  “Did you happen to notice whether or not he was carrying the Warble?”

  “Not exactly, but he was holding a small leather sack on his lap.”

  “Well, I’ve probably got only one shot at this, so I hope it’s in there. Now all I have to do is figure out a way to get it from him.”

  “I’ve got an idea.”

  “Oh, yeah? At this point I’m open to anything.”

  “Here’s what I’m thinking: When Ramon’s army is directly in front of us, I’ll make noise in the branches. That way, they’ll stop and Ramon will come over here to see what it is.”

  “Then what?”

  “I don’t know. You’ll have to come up with the rest.”

  “I don’t have anything better planned, so let’s give it a shot, and see what happens.”

  When Ramon was directly in front of them, Roage began to make a ruckus in the tree. Then Werrien picked up a stone and threw it at Ramon, hitting him on his leg.

  Ramon shouted, “Halt!” His troop came to a standstill. All was silent as he looked around suspiciously, wondering who had thrown the stone at him. Roage shook the branches again and brought Ramon’s attention directly to the tree where he was sitting and where Werrien was hiding. “There’s someone in the trees over there.” Ramon pointed to the exact spot they were hiding. “Malodor, get off your horse, and go see what is causing the ruckus.”

  “Now what are we going to do? He’s sending a zelbock to come and look,” Werrien said.

  “I’ll quickly fly somewhere else and make more noise,” Roage said.

  “Okay, go!”

  Roage flew to another tree and began to hop on the branches to make more noise. It caught Ramon’s attention again.

  “Stop, Malodor! It is coming from over there.” Ramon pointed to the trees.

  Malodor turned and walked toward it, and when he was almost there, Werrien threw another rock at Ramon, this time hitting him on his buttock.

  “There is more than one of them,” Ramon yelled, as he began dismounting his horse. Werrien poked his head around the tree to see Ramon coming toward him with the leather sack dangling from his belt.

  All Werrien had was a knife that a dwarf had given him. He drew it out and stood very still on the opposite side of the tree. His heart began to pound faster as Ramon neared him. Just as Ramon stepped to the other side of the tree, Werrien quickly reached out with his knife and cut the ties of the leather pouch. Ramon looked down to see the sack drop into Werrien’s hands and before Ramon could reach out to grab him—or the sack—Werrien was on his way, running back toward his army.

  With fumbling hands, Ramon reached for his battle horn, and when he finally managed to get it to his lips, he blew on it so hard that his angered face turned dark purple. The zelbocks, who had been preoccupied watching Malodor try to figure out what was in the other tree, turned their attention back to Ramon. “After him, you idiots!” Ramon yelled furiously. “Can’t you see he’s getting away with the Warble?”

  The zelbock’s quickly mounted their horses and charged in Ramon’s direction. They ran straight at him, and he fell backwards into a thorn bush, one that he himself had planted years earlier. When his rear end hit the sharp thorns, he let out a shrill scream.

  Werrien heard it, but he didn’t look back; instead, he looked up to see Roage flying above him. “How far back are the zelbocks?” he yelled up to him.

  “Maybe a few hundred yards.”

  As the zelbocks grew nearer, Werrien could hear their horses’ hooves pounding the forest floor. Finally, the top of the ravine came into view, and Roage flew on ahead to warn the gnomes and the dwarfs that Werrien was almost there.

  “Quick, get ready to launch your arrows as Werrien runs past you. The zelbocks are right behind him,” Roage called out to them.

  Kristina was sitting on Taysha, with Lisheng by her side, when Werrien ran past the ravine and jumped on Lisheng. Then the gnomes and dwarfs launched their arrows, and the zelbocks did the same. After the arrows were used, they went at each other with swords, flails, pikes, and clubs. Kristina and Werrien could hear the spooky cries and screams of the battle behind them, and Werrien wished he could have stayed to help. Still, he knew that Kristina needed his help to deliver the Warble.

  Eventually, the sound of the battle faded and soon after, they reached the base of the mountain.

  ~ ~ ~

  Queen Sentiz and Rumalock were already at the top of the snowcapped mountain, in a warm tent, waiting for Ramon to deliver the Warble. As the fierce winds tossed the snow outside their tent, Rumalock sat looking through the Book of Prophecy. “The battle has started,” he said to the queen, who sat wrapped in her bear stole, drinking a steaming-hot cup of tea.

  “Wonderful. It’s about time that son of mine does something I can be proud of,” she said.

  More words began to pop onto the page. “Ramon’s name is coming up, just as you mention him.” Rumalock smiled impishly.

  “What does it say?” the queen asked excitedly. Before Rumalock could answer, she stood up. “Wait—I am so smart, let me tell you what it says. Ramon has caught the two wretched hoodlum children and is presently on his way up the mountain to destroy the Warble.” She took a sip from her cup, leaving a large amount of red lipstick to run down the sides of it.

  “Well, no, it does not say that, Your Majesty. It says Werrien has taken the Warble from Ramon. Then it goes on to say that Ramon fell in one of those thorn bushes you had planted, one he had planted himself, and he is presently trying to pull thorns out of his bottom.”
Rumalock chuckled softly.

  The queen fell silent and stared straight ahead. The blood seemed to drain from her already-pale face, and her thin, red lips shriveled up, like she had just sucked on a sour lemon.

  “I’m so sorry to have read that Werrien has the Warble,” Rumalock said, sensing her tension.

  The queen’s head didn’t move, but her eyes shifted to meet his. “How dare you laugh at this situation,” she said through clenched teeth. Then she reached over and ripped the prophecy book away from him. She ran her fingernail down the page to the spot he had just finished reading. More words began to pop up, and when she read them, her nostrils flared, and her eyes looked like they would pop out of her head. “No! This can’t be!” she wailed, dropping the book on the floor. Her mood turned to anger again, and she took up her tea mug and violently smashed it on the floor in front of Rumalock. Rumalock quickly scurried to pick up the shattered pieces, while the queen fell back into her chair, taken over by despair. “Oh, what am I to do now?” She ran her long fingernails down her face, as she usually did when distressed.

  “I might have a good idea, my queen.” Rumalock cautiously picked up the prophecy book.

  “And what might that be?” the queen asked calmly, while blotting her lipstick with her handkerchief.

  “What about the three other children?”

  “What about them, you idiot? Isn’t it clear to you that they have already been captured?”

  “Yes, of course, Your Majesty, but may I ask why is it that you had me bring them here, instead of leaving them in the prison at Treachery Island?”

  “You dwarfs are so stupid. I had you bring them here in case we needed them to blackmail the girl, if all else fails.”

  “Well, that is precisely my point. Don’t you think we should do it, now that the other children have taken back the Warble?”

  Queen Sentiz fell silent again as she soaked in what Rumalock had just said. She twisted up her pale face and drummed her long red nails on her chin. Then she sat up, cleared her throat, and said, “I have a brilliant idea.”