The Summer Vacation
Chapter 39
Written by rachel76m
Edited by Don Kaufman

We wake up in the morning well rested. Today is my big test of winning the finals in the metal star throwing, the wrist bow darts, the staff fight and the spear throw. This is also my chance to bring in the points for the King Tierion’s Kingdom. There are at least two contestants from each of the kingdoms in the final four in most of the matches. But, I’m the only one in four of the matches. Sir Halgren is in the final four with the sword fight. The others from Thryson Kingdom each have a different contestant in the other matches.

After we get up and get dressed for the day, we walk down the stairs into the dining room. We are given a great morning repast from the chefs at the inn. When we get done, we all exit the inn and walk toward the arena. The royalty walks up to their seating area. The contestants walk into the arena. I see from the schedule posted it will be the metal stars first, then the wrist bow darts. We see a similar set up for obstacles like we had in the midsummer games.

We walk up and do the four throws to the half targets first with no obstacles. I get four bulls-eyes. Two other contestants get four bulls-eyes as well. The fourth one gets three bulls-eyes and one second ring. It is a three-way tie for first so far.

When I get to the corridor, I see something that I have never seen before. There are six half-targets near the far edge of the wall. But it is what is in front of the targets that I haven’t seen. I see a grid like a gate coming down to block your entrance into the outer courtyard.

“Uh . . . referee. Was this used last year?”

“It was, Richard. This will be a true test of accuracy. Since this is your first time seeing it, you can walk up close to it to determine your angles of throwing. This is also the same set up for the wrist bow darts.”

“Thank you, sir.”

A knight speaks up, “Be fortunate to get one bulls-eye, Richard. Most of us do poorly on this obstacle. We either hit the gate for zero points or get a second or a third ring.”

“So, what you are saying, the bulls-eyes wins, sir knight?”

“If you make two of them, you’re the winner.”

“Then let me figure it out.”

I stand back where I need to throw the stars behind the line. I crouch down to look at the bottom targets. I see the knee high targets are my knee height, and they all have to be under backhanded or thrown under handed like a bowling ball. A bowling ball, that’s an idea. That will be like the submarine fast pitch in baseball. Quisenberry was great doing that throw. The waist high targets will have to be done from the knees. Maybe not, a frisbee type throw should do it. The neck high targets can be over handed. I must make sure I lower my body to release at the target. I see the throws have to be very accurate to get through the gate openings. Then I see something that catches my eye. I see a half-opening near the wall on both sides for all six targets. I could skip the star there and hit the target. But will the star hit the target when it skips off the wall? If I throw the star flat, will it skip off the top of an opening and still hit the target? I must be sure of my angle of release for that to happen. What about side arm throws? Sigh . . . this is tough. I can see myself doing well here for the wrist bow darts at least.

I do some practice throws and pantomime the motions.

~~~000~~~

Telgon whispers to Durlond, “I see Richard has never seen this set up before.”

“That’s right, Telgon. The best score is definitely the winner this time. As long as he doesn’t hit the gate, he should do fine.”

“Let’s hope he does win. We’ll get a big score from the other Kingdom Ambassadors.”

~~~000~~~

“Okay, because of what happened last year, there is no need to run across the opening to hit two of the targets. All three throws will be done on the left-hand targets with the right arm. On the right side targets, it will be done with the left arm. It is your choice how to get the metal stars to the targets. Good luck, men.”

The crowd gets quiet. They cheer when a target gets hit by a metal star.

The first knight steps up. He throws the stars with his right-hand first. He hits the gate for the top target. He hits the second ring on the middle target. He hits the gate for the bottom target.

I’m up next. I start to look down to concentrate again. I look up and do some more pantomime throws to make sure of my release height for the top target. I do a baseball overhand throw and release the star. The star makes it through the gate opening and hits the second ring.

Everyone cheers out loud.

I step back further behind the line. I do a sidearm throw from left to right like a frisbee. It hits the bulls-eye through the opening.

Everyone cheers out loud again.

I do another pantomime throw for the under handed throw. I make sure I have to lower my body a little bit to make it a knee-high throw. Once I’m sure, I throw the metal star like the “Quiz”. The star flies through the air. It arcs a bit, but it still makes through the opening. I hit the second ring.

Everyone cheers out loud in a thunderous ovation.

I back away and look at the knights’ expressions. Some of them are surprised I did well.

“That’s good, Richard. Good luck with your left arm.”

“Thank you. The same to you as well.”

I look over and see a big smile on Sir Halgren, Amber and Cobalt’s faces. You’re half way there, Richard. You need one more set of good throws.

The other two knights were able to hit the second rings on two of the targets. They were able to hit one bulls-eye each. I can see that we are the best for this contest. Now we move to the other side to use our left arm. I’m second again to throw.

The first knight hits all three targets with his three throws. He hits the bulls-eye on one of them.

Everyone cheers out loud for his results.

I look at him with a smile. He is obviously a left-handed person. I know I’m not a left-handed person. Well, let’s try it and make a good show of it. Maybe I can skip the stars off the wall.

I get up for my first throw at the top target. I try my over handed throw. No way is that going to work. I know, I will do an underhanded throw and release it from that height. I know the angle will be right when I release it. I pantomime the new throw a few times. Once I’m sure of the throw, I do it for real. The star flies through the air. It passes through the gate opening and hits the line between the bulls-eye and the second ring.

The crowd cheers for my effort. Some will hope it is a bulls-eye.

I do the second throw like I did with the right arm. It flies through the opening and hits the second ring.

Everyone cheers out loud.

Now for the toughest throw. Just don’t hit the gate. This throw will have to be like I did for the midsummer games. I do some practice throws to make sure of the height release. Once I’m sure, I throw the metal star underhanded. I aim for the wall. It skips through the opening and hits the bulls-eye.

Everyone cheers out loud.

The referee comes up to verify my line hit. He then shouts out the results. “It is a bulls-eye!”

Everyone cheers out really loud that I’m ahead. The last two knights know they must hit at least two bulls-eyes each to catch my three bulls-eyes.

The third knight comes up, and he hits a bulls-eye, then the second ring and the gate for the last throw. The fourth knight hits the second ring for the top throw. He hits the second ring for the middle throw. He hits the gate for the last throw. We all congratulate each other. The crowd cheers that I won the metal star throwing contest.

We get ourselves rearranged for the wrist bow darts. I and another knight from the metal star throwing are in the final four. There are two different knights for the last pair in our group of four. We see a cloth pulled off a table. We see the mirrors are all the same this time. They are long handled with a small mirror like mine in my satchel. This time it is a level playing field for all four of us.

“We have been practicing like you do it, Richard. We’ll see who is the best.”

“That we will, sir knight.”

I see that I am last this time for the wrist bow dart finals.

The first three all did well in hitting the four open targets. They all have three bulls-eyes and one second ring each. I get into my concentration mode by looking down while they are shooting their darts. Once they get done, I look up and hit all four bulls-eyes in the center.

Everyone cheers loudly that we all did well.

Now it is time for the corridor. I see the knights try to use the mirror like I do it. However, some of their arm angles are off for hitting the high target. They should get lower and aim through the gate opening that is below it. The first two knights hit the gate or miss the target completely.

The third knight apparently knows that. He gets lower to aim at the high target. He hits the center of the bulls-eye. The other two knights realized they should have done that as well. The third knight hits the last two bulls-eyes.

Everyone cheers for him.

I walk up and do my part. I hit all three targets right in the center. The crowd cheer there is a two-way tie so far in the corridor part. But, I’m ahead overall because of the four open half-targets.

We look at each other and smile.

“My only hope Richard is if you hit a second ring.”

“Then let’s find out if we tie or not, sir knight.”

The first two knights do better. They hit the bulls-eye two times and the second ring once.

The third knight comes up next. He hits all three bulls-eyes

Everyone cheers out loud. Some people hope I miss a bulls-eye.

This time a lot of people are yelling as a distraction. I look down to get into the right frame of mind. I load my left wrist bow gauntlet. I get down and aim through the gate opening below the straight on direction. I get the mirror in the right position and see the point aiming at the target. I release the dart and hit the center of the target. I hit the bulls-eyes two more times.

Everyone cheers out loud that I won it. We all congratulate each other that we did well in the contest. I walk over to Sir Halgren and we smile at each other. Amber and Cobalt fly over to sit on my shoulders and are very happy that I won again.

“Now it is time for the spear throw, Sir Halgren.”

“Yes, it will be tougher again. Let’s hope you do well again and be better than fourth coming into the final four.”

“That’s the hope.” I walk over to a nearby table. I pick up a mug of cold water to drink while we walk over to the spear throwing contest. I put the mug down on a nearby table. I start to swing my right arm in circles to loosen it up. I can see from the builds of these knights, they have upper body strength to really heave the spear. It will be a test on the spear target that will separate us. I must give it my all without reaching for my unicorn strength.

Since I’m fourth, I get to go first. I take a spear from the rack. I find my hand position on the spear. I walk up to the line and turn around. I take four long steps back. I turn around and look down the field and the line in front of me.

Everyone gets quiet. I breathe in and out a few times. Once I’m sure, I take the three steps forward. I release the spear, and my right foot lands behind the line. “Arrrghh!!”

Everyone cheers out loud to make it go further. The spear point sticks into the ground. The measuring crew verifies the distance. One of them yells it out loud, “The distance is 92.5!”

Everyone cheers out loud that I did well.

The next three knights do their throws. The second knight’s throw is 91.5. The third knight’s distance is 93.5.

The fourth knight comes up next, He gets set and steps forward, he tosses his spear.

But he soon hears an “Oooh” sound from the crowd.

He looks down and sees his right foot is beyond the line by about a third of his height. Darn it! The second throws better make up for it. He looks down and hopes for a good stick. The spear point sticks into the ground.

The measuring crew comes out to verify the distance. One of them yells out the distance, “This distance is 93.5. We subtract the fault distance. The distance is now 90.5!”

He looks at Richard momentarily and the other knight who did 93.5. I must go for the record to have a good average. The throw must be right this time.

I go up next for my second throw. Come on Richard. It is time for the best distance.

I take a spear from the rack. I get into position like I usually do. I look down the field and at the line. I breathe in and out a few times. I step forward three times and heave the spear into the air. “Arrggh!”

The crowd cheers wildly. They sense a further distance coming. It sticks into the ground. The measuring crew comes out to verify the distance. One of them yells it out loud, “The distance is 97.2! A new record!”

Everyone cheers and claps wildly. My average is now, 94.85. That means for the rest of the knights to be with one of my distance, they all must beat the new record distance or be within one of it.

The second knight comes forward and throws the spear 95.7. His average is 93.6. The third knight comes forward and throws the spear 96. His average is 94.75. The fourth knight throws the spear 97. His average is 93.75.

All of our averages are within striking distance of each other. We must do our best with the three throws on the target. I see it is the spider-web rope target that I saw in Thryson Kingdom. I get to throw last this time. This is because of my higher average.

The knight with 93.6 hits the target and earns two bulls-eyes and a second ring for 25 points. His total is 118.6.

The knight with 93.75 hits the target and earns two bulls-eyes and a second ring on his last throw for 25 points. His total is 118.75.

The knight with 94.75 hits the target and earns one bulls-eye and two second rings for 20 points. His total is 114.75.

I see that I must get 25 points to win the match. I pick up a spear and get ready for my throw. The crowd gets quiet as I get set to throw the spear. I look at the target, then the line. I look at the target again and remember where I have to aim it. I step forward three times. I toss the spear at the target. “Arrrghh!!”

The crowd cheers as it flies through the air. It hits just inside the second ring near the bulls-eye.

~~~000~~~

“That was very close, Telgon.”

“It sure was, Durlond. I think he will be on the mark the next time.”

~~~000~~~

“Come on, Richard. You can do it. Concentrate.” Sir Trenton mutters to himself.

“If he wins, Thryson Kingdom will be in the lead in total points.” Sir Valmar mutters to himself.

~~~000~~~

I take the second spear. I get ready to throw it. I step forward three times and heave the spear at the target. “Arrrghh!!”

The crowd cheers wildly that I hit the bulls-eye.

I pump my right hand downward a few times. “Yes! One more time!”

I walk over to the rack and pick up the third spear. Everyone holds their breath as I get ready for my third throw.

I concentrate again at the target and the line. I step forward three times and heave the spear at the target. “Arrrghhh!”

The crowd cheers wildly that I hit the bulls-eye again. I get hugged by the three other knights in our group.

“Well done, Richard. That was great.”

“Thank you. Each of you was great as well.”

“But it was that new record that did it for you. We just have to try harder the next time.”

“But I won’t be here next year or for quite some time.”

“That’s okay. You set a high standard for all of us. It just shows we need to keep making improvements each year.”

Sir Halgren gets near me and hugs me. Amber and Cobalt sit on my shoulder very happy. I walk over to the table and grab another mug of water to quench the thirst.

“Do I get a break before the staff fight, Sir Halgren?”

“You get a full mark break, Richard. There are other contests going on now. My sword fight is after the noon repast.”

I walk over to the break tent and sit on one of the benches with a table. Sir Halgren follows me inside and sits at the same table with me. I open my satchel and take out the bags of nuts and fruits. Amber and Cobalt open their bag and take out what they want to eat. A squire comes over and brings a bowl of cut up fruit pieces and a mug of fruit juice. “Thank you, squire.”

“You’re welcome, Richard.” He turns around to tend to the other contestants in the tent.

Sir Halgren whispers to me. “Do you have any new moves left to catch them off guard?”

“I do, Sir Halgren. Do you remember that triangle defense form I did in Thryson Kingdom?”

“I do, Richard. That is a very good defense. Is there a way to get around it if you see it from the other knights?”

“I know four moves to get around it and block their attempts if I’m not in a triangle defense.”

“Good, save it until you really need it. I think your athleticism, dives and rolls will be the key to win the staff fight. You will need to out maneuver them quickly. These three knights are very good as well. You’ll probably do some vaulting with the staff to get over their swings.”

“Sir Halgren, on the balance beam, have you seen a pair of them jump up at the same time to avoid being tripped?”

“Where each one swings their staff at the same time? I have, you’ll need a good sense of balance and be ready with another jump quickly as soon as you land.”

“I’ll need to remember that. Back on Earth, there is an individual contest for the ladies on the balance beam. They do graceful moves back and forth along the length of the beam. To make it a more difficult routine, they would do flips and somersaults in the air and still land on the beam when they get down.”

“Wow. I don’t know if you will be able to do that to get behind them. If you did, you can easily catch them off guard and get them off the beam.”

“It depends on how much room I have to jump over them and land on the other side.”

“That’s true, Richard.”

We keep quiet for the time being. I see Sir Halgren thinking really hard about his sword fight that is coming up.

“There are three like me in the final four, Richard. If the fourth knight makes it past his first round, he will be a good candidate for training to be an Elite Guard in his kingdom.”

“Or take one of you to the very end in the final fight.”

“That too, Richard.”

We get quiet again while we get our thoughts together. We go through the moves in our minds that each of us is thinking.

I’m trying to remember the different combinations that will set up for multiple hits by initiating a three or four move sequences to get them out of position for those hits.

“I need to stretch out my back, Amber and Cobalt. I’m going to lie on the bench here and slow down the heart some.”

“Okay, Richard.”

I reposition myself on the bench and lay down on it. “Oh, that feels good to straighten it out.”

Then Amber and Cobalt glide down and lie on my chest, soon their heart beats are in rhythm with me.

About a half-mark later, we get the call for the staff fight. Amber and Cobalt take off and fly up to the table and land on it. I get up and put the food bags into the satchel. I hand the satchel to Sir Halgren for safe keeping. He puts it on his shoulder. I walk over to the staff fight ring with the three other knights. I see they are a mixed group. One is thin and tall, another is like Sir Callahan, the other one is average in height. They are all muscular for their size and build. This will be a tough fight regardless who I fight against.

“We are to pair up and do the balance beam first. Then you will fight the same opponent for the ground fight. The winners and losers will then play each other. Again it is the total score with these two rounds that wins the match and contest.”

I get paired up with the tall and thin knight. We nod our heads to each other before we start.

“My name is Sir Halden. I’m from Svedean Kingdom. It is my honor to fight you, Richard. I have seen how you fight. You will be a challenge to me.”

“Greetings, Sir Halden. I have seen you fight as well. You represent a challenge because of your height advantage over me.”

We smile at each other as we step to our ends of the beam.

The referee yells out loud. “Get set . . . go!”

Everyone starts yelling for their favorite fighter. It doesn’t take long for him to reach me because of his long arms and height. I immediately have to jump up from his knee high swing at me.

As I come down, I do a surprise poke at his chest with my staff to back him away. He takes several steps back while I recover on the beam and regain my balance.

The crowd cheers that I’m able to do that move.

I spin the staff quickly and get ready for a block on either side of me.

He takes two steps forward. He swings his staff to my right side. I block the swing and use the beam to help me like I did before. I slide my staff along his staff while we struggle strength to strength. Soon, I’m close enough for a move. He senses something is about to happen.

I immediately swing the end of the staff up and hit him on his right side, the direction of his effort into my staff. He loses his balance and falls off the beam. He stands up to congratulate me.

Everyone cheers that I won.

“That was a good tactic, Richard.”

“Thank you, Sir Halden.”

We get out of the balance beam area and watch the next pair fight. It doesn’t take long for the big knight to knock off the other knight. He used his brute strength to go against his opponent’s strength.

We then step over for the ground fight.

~~~000~~~

“Richard is going to have trouble getting in close, Telgon.”

“I know, Durlond. He better have some extra moves to get him out of position.”

“He better have.”

~~~000~~~

Sir Halden and I walk into the ring. The referee shouts, “Get set . . . go!”

We start circling each other as we get closer while we spin our staffs.

He comes with a swing to my left chest high. I crouch down quickly to avoid the hit and leap forward while I dive. I hit him on the leg two times quickly. I immediately roll to my right keeping my staff parallel to me. I come to a stop after one roll. I block his hit. He brings his staff back for another hit. I roll again and come to another stop. I block his hit again. But he still sneaks two hits on me during that exchange.

Everyone cheers that I was able to get two hits and still block his hits to tie it up.

He backs away to let me stand up when I get near the edge of the ring. I get up and face him again.

“That was good, Richard. You got inside my reach.”

“Thank you, Sir Halden. I took what was available.” I can see Sir Halden is thinking really hard. He has to plan his moves better.

We circle each other again in the center of the ring.

Let’s try my four move combination. Then I see him position his staff for the triangle defense. Go ahead and try it, Sir Halden. I’ll give the obligatory swing for him to block it. He won’t expect what will happen next. I give a slight smile.

The crowd wonders how I will get past that defense.

~~~000~~~

“I hope he has something for this, Telgon.”

“I think he does, Durlond. Look at him smile. If Richard showed this defense that no one has seen, then he knows how to get around it.”

“Yes, he knows what to do.”

~~~000~~~

I swing my staff from my right side. He immediately comes in to hit my legs by extending his staff forward. I immediately hop to land on my right foot to avoid his hit. I do a quick flip while keeping contact with his staff which is now closer to his hands. I swing my staff in a full circle to bring it around. “Arrrghhh!” With my momentum, I’m able to get the staff out of his hands. The staff flies high in the air.

“No! I must get it!”

Everyone cheers and yells that I was able to disarm him.

While he runs after it, I hit him four times quickly. As soon as he catches his staff near the edge of the ring, he swings it around. I duck under his swing, I hit him two times before I roll away to safety.

“The score is now eight to zero in favor of Richard!”

Everyone cheers that I’m able to take a commanding lead in one maneuver.

I stand up to face him again. We smile at each other again.

Sir Halden laughs, “Hah, hah, hah . . . You are quick, Richard. I’m surprised you got the staff out of my hands.”

“Thank you for the compliment, Sir Halden. You still have a chance to earn some points.”

“That I do, Richard. So, let’s continue the match.”

~~~000~~~

“So, there is a way to get around that defense. He used that move to get the staff out of his hands.”

“The leap to the hop and flip avoided Sir Halden’s move and turned it to an advantage for Richard.”

“I love it! This is great battling!”

Telgon’s dwarf group that is around him is cheering for Richard to go all the way.

~~~000~~~

We circle each other again while we catch our breath. Sir Halden comes in quickly from my left. I block his move. I swing my staff around to pin it. He backs away quickly to avoid the trap and hit.

We circle again for another parry.

There is no way for me to get inside again. He’s expecting it. I’ll have to do some acrobatic moves around him and see if he falls for it.

I immediately do a quick run to get behind him. He turns around to keep me in front of him. Then I launch into a dive roll to his left side. He hits my backside twice as I continue the roll. I stay crouched when I’m back to my feet. I swing my staff around to hit his lower legs. He jumps up to avoid it. I aim higher with the back swing and hit his legs as he comes down. I stand up and run away as he falls down to the ground.

“Ooof!”

“The score is now nine to two in Richard’s favor!”

Everyone yells and cheers that I’m one hit away from the win.

As soon as he gathers himself and sets his defense, I come in quickly. We start exchanging hits on the staffs very fiercely. He sneaks in five hits before my one hit at the end of the exchange of staff hits.

We stop to catch our breath. We are both panting hard. “Pant . . . pant . . . pant . . . !”

The referee comes into the ring. “The winner is Richard! The score is ten to seven!”

Everyone cheers out loud that I won.

We step out of the ring and step over to the table for a mug of cold water.

Sir Halgren steps up to congratulate me. Amber and Cobalt are happy that I won again.

“I need to watch this last match Sir Halgren, Amber and Cobalt.”

“Yes, you better, Richard. You need to see how good he is.”

We all turn around to watch the match. Sir Halden watches to see whom he will face for the runner up places.

Sir Berenson faces Sir Paxson on the beam. It doesn’t take long for Sir Paxson to knock off Sir Berenson from the beam. They leave the beam area and walk over to the ring for the ground fight.

The two knights face each other. They circle around each other while they spin their staffs. The big knight comes in quickly. The smaller knight defends himself pretty well. He blocks all of his hits. The big knight backs away quickly to catch his breath.

That’s his weakness. He hopes to over power his opponents before he loses his breath. He has not increased his endurance like doing long distance treks. Let’s see who wins now.

The two knights go at it again. The smaller knight comes in quickly to get him off his feet. He jumps up quickly. He comes down with an over head smash. The smaller knight rolls away quickly. He hits both of his legs quickly and stays out of reach.

They circle again. The large knight comes in for a fierce flurry of hits. He sneaks in three hits while the small knight hits him two times.

“The score is now four to three in favor of Sir Berenson over Sir Paxson.”

Everyone cheers... they are seeing a great match.

However, I see Sir Paxson laboring hard with his breath. I whisper to Sir Halgren. “Do you see Sir Paxson’s problem?”

“I do, Richard. He hasn’t increased his endurance. He just might lose.”

We continue to watch the match.

Sir Berenson comes in quickly with a flurry of slashes and swings. He pushes Sir Paxson back. Sir Paxson tries to block the hits as best he can. Soon, Sir Berenson pulls ahead as he connects with his hits. He backs away to catch his breath.

“The score is now seven to three in favor of Sir Berenson!” Yells the referee.

Sir Paxson, realizes his problem. He puts on his best face forward. The two come at each other again. Sir Berenson hits Sir Paxson three times. Sir Paxson was able to sneak in one hit before he lost.

“The winner is Sir Berenson by a score of ten to six! You now have a half-mark to get ready for the last two rounds.”

Everyone cheers. They expect a great match between Richard and Sir Berenson for the final match.

We walk into the tent for a short sit down break. I’m given a mug of fruit juice to get my body charged up again. I take out Amber and Cobalt’s food bag. They take out what they want to eat. I look at Sir Berenson while he looks at me.

I whisper to Sir Halgren, “I have a feeling we are going to have a big aerial and acrobatic type of fight.”

He whispers back, “It is possible, I think he is holding back what he knows.”

Amber whispers to me, “I saw him do your type of move, Richard. It will be like you said.”

“Hmm . . . okay. I will need to move into another frame of thinking. My instructors had me do this type of fight.”

“Good luck, Richard.”

I drink the rest of the mug slowly until we get called for the last fight. We exit the tent together. We hear the arena erupt into cheers for their favorite fighters.

“To the end, Richard?”

“To the end, Sir Berenson. Let’s put on a great fight for them.”

“That is what I’m thinking. Good luck, Richard.”

“The same to you, Sir Berenson.”

I step over to the table and get another mug of cold water. We turn around to see the consolation fight for the losers. It proved to be interesting. They fought really well for about a quarter-mark. Eventually Sir Halden knocks Sir Paxson off the beam.

I can see in Sir Paxson’s face he wants to do well in the ground fight to make up for his losses.

We walk to the ring to get ready for the balance beam. We step up to the end of the beam.

The referee shouts out loud, “Get set . . . go!”

We slowly step closer to each other. We swing our staffs at each other as we test each other out by doing the typical hits. We back up to get our thoughts together.

We step in closer in again. This time he pushes me back, he then swings his staff back and aims for my feet. Before his staff reaches the halfway point, I plant my staff on the beam and launch myself over him.

Sir Berenson can’t believe I tried for it. “Huh!?”

He continues the swing hoping to hit my staff while it is still on the beam. He misses my staff as I take it with me.

The crowd can’t believe what they are seeing. They get really quiet, they hope I land on the beam.

~~~000~~~

“That’s great, Richard. Now land on the beam.” Mutters Telgon.

~~~000~~~

“Come on, Richard. Land on the beam.” Mutters Sir Trenton.

“That’s a great move.” Mutters Sir Valmar.

~~~000~~~

I continue the flip over him in a midair somersault. I see the beam as I come down sideways a bit so I use the full width of the beam for my feet. I put my staff end on the beam as I come down to steady myself. I steady my balance as it is off a bit.

The crowd cheers wildly that I made it.

Sir Berenson is now out of position with his back to me. He tries to continue the swing and turn around at the same time.

I block his hit move. Now I put my staff end between his legs to trip him quickly off the beam. He loses his balance and falls off the beam.

Everyone cheers wildly that I won the balance beam fight contest.

~~~000~~~

“That’s incredible! He did it!” Yells King Tierion.

“I didn’t think it could be done, but Richard did it!” Exclaimed Queen Shiranna.

~~~000~~~

“That move definitely has my attention. It was almost graceful.”

“He still has to do the ground fight, Galena.”

“I know, Maon. If Richard wins the final fight, this will be talked about for a long time.”

“Well, Telgon, you’re right. Richard has definitely set a high standard today. We’ll make some good coin with the other Regional Ambassadors if Richard should win.”

~~~000~~~

I get down off the beam to help him up.

“How long did it take to learn that, Richard?”

“About two years, Sir Berenson. That was my fourth successful attempt to land on the beam.”

“I see. You took the chance to do that maneuver. It was a fifty percent chance of landing on the beam correctly.”

“That’s right, Sir Berenson. Good luck in the ground fight.”

“The same to you, Richard.”

We leave the balance beam. I get greeted by Sir Halgren.

“You did it! That was an amazing display of quickness, control and balance.”

“You flew like a fairy when you did that, Richard.”

“I think you will see more of that in the ground fight, Amber.” I look at Sir Halgren again. “It took a lot of practice in doing in-line somersaults like that. I did it on the ground first between two ropes first. Once the mechanics were memorized, I moved to the balance beam on the ground. We had a lot of cushions around to protect us if we fall off the beam.”

“I’m sure you had a lot of falls.”

“I did, Sir Halgren. The feet and ankles took the brunt of the shock. Fortunately these boots helped keep them strong.”

We are given another quarter-mark rest before Sir Halden and Sir Paxson do their fight on the ground.

They enter the ring together and get set in their positions. The referee shouts out loud, “Get set . . . go!”

Sir Paxson and Sir Halden circle each other. They get closer with each round. Because of Sir Halden’s extra long reach, Sir Paxson realizes he will have to play smart and level headed. He can’t just bull rush into him, unless he has the opening to go inside. He will have to be patient with each encounter.

Soon Sir Halden comes with a side swing to Sir Paxson’s left-hand side toward his knees. Immediately, Sir Paxson jumps up and hits him on the arm as it goes past him. He blocks his back swing as Sir Halden tries to get back at him. They break apart to think about the next move. They smile at each other while they circle each other again.

The crowd cheers for both fighters.

Sir Paxson comes in spinning his staff quickly as he approaches Sir Halden. He uses it as a shield as he approaches him. Sir Halden backs up, then Sir Paxson deftly swings the end of the staff toward Sir Halden’s right side. Sir Halden blocks it. Sir Paxson hits the other end of his staff on Sir Halden’s leg. Sir Halden retaliates and hits Sir Paxson on the arm. They break apart to get their bearings again.

“The score is now two to one, in favor of Sir Paxson!”

Sir Halden tries the triangle defense. Sir Paxson tries to figure out what to do next. I must get some hits in while he hits me. I know I can’t flip like, Richard. But I do have the strength to trap his staff.

Sir Paxson keeps his distance until he is ready to move in. He taps his staff end on the end of Sir Halden’s staff a few times. Sir Halden keeps steady as he tries to figure out Sir Paxson’s moves.

Quickly, Sir Paxson moves in on Sir Halden’s right side of his staff. Sir Halden extends his staff end to hit Sir Paxson two times on the leg. Sir Paxson, then keeping his staff connected to Sir Halden’s staff, he swings a big arc to trap Sir Halden’s staff end down. Sir Halden struggles to keep it from happening. Soon, Sir Halden’s staff end is trapped on the ground. Sir Paxson takes the other end of his staff and hits Sir Halden three times.

They break apart to get ready for the next parry.

“The score is now five to three in favor of Sir Paxson!”

The crowd cheers that Sir Paxson is doing much better.

Sir Halden comes in quickly to gain the advantage. Sir Halden abandons the triangle defense to get back in the lead.

Sir Paxson blocks all of his hits successfully. Now, Sir Halden is losing his cool. Sir Paxson senses this as he sees the expression on his face. Sir Paxson hits him three times while Sir Halden hits him two times.

“The score is now eight to five in favor of Sir Paxson!”

The crowd cheers that Sir Paxson is about to win.

Sir Paxson and Sir Halden smile at each other.

“Let’s end this, Sir Halden.”

“I’m not done yet, Sir Paxson.”

They circle each other again looking for their advantage. Sir Paxson holds his ground as Sir Halden comes in again. They exchange a flurry of staff hits. During the exchange, Sir Halden gets in one hit to two hits from Sir Paxson.

They break apart to catch their breath. The referee announces the winner. “The winner is Sir Paxson with a score of ten to six!”

Everyone cheers out loud. Sir Paxson looks at the scores and sees he will earn second place at least. There is no way that Sir Berenson can pass him if he should win. Sir Halden and Sir Paxson leave the ring to make room for the last staff fight of the Regional Festival.

Sir Berenson and I walk into the ring. The crowd cheers for a great fight. Once we get into position, the referee shouts out loud, “Get set . . . go!”

We start circling each other as we get closer. We spin our staffs a few times. I come in quickly with a side swing. He dives over it and rolls to safety. He gets up to face me again.

“So, it is to be a flying type match as well, Sir Berenson.”

“Yes it is, Richard. Let’s see who can out maneuver whom.”

“Let’s find out, Sir Berenson.”

We smile at each other while we circle around each other.

~~~000~~~

“I just heard them down there. They will be flying and running around to out maneuver each other.”

“This will be fun to watch, Telgon.”

“It sure will be Daglan. Let’s just hope Richard wins in the end.”

“Then let’s hope.”

~~~000~~~

We each come with opposite side swings at each other. We dive over them and miss each other completely. I turn around quickly and pole vault over him before he recovers. He hits my staff as I bring it up with me. I land on the other side of him. I hit him quickly two times before he has a chance to retaliate. I keep running forward to a corner of the ring to get out of his reach.

Everyone cheers out loud. They are seeing a great match.

“Richard is ahead two to zero!”

I step forward as we start circling each other and to catch our breath. This time I see his legs crouch down quickly for a high leap at me. He hopes to come down with an overhead smash. I jump up to meet him in the air. Our staffs clash as we pass each other. No one got hit in that pass. We land on the ground safely.
He turns around quickly, hoping to hit me. I move my staff above me and down to do a sword type block on my left side. He hits it, but he comes with his other end and hits me twice on my right side. We back away quickly to regroup.

“The score is now tied two all!”

“I love it, Richard. This is the way it should be done.”

“Yes, it is exhilarating to see us evenly matched.”

We smile and laugh while walk around again for another parry.

The crowd cheers like crazy. They are enjoying the match as much as we are.

Once we get our breaths back, we go at it again. We come and do the traditional hitting of the staffs. After the fourth hit, Sir Berenson changes direction quickly and tries to trip me. I jump up quickly to avoid the hit. He comes back and hits me on the legs two times.

“The score is now four to two in favor of Sir Berenson!”

We back away to regroup again.

I have to get ahead during one of these parries. Come on, Richard. Do a maneuver he hasn’t seen yet.

I decided to get set for the triangle defense. Let’s see how he handles this set of moves.

Sir Berenson also gets into the triangle defense as well. Just as soon as he gets set, I go after him real quickly.

I extend my staff and try to hit his body on his left side. He blocks it. I then continue to plant my staff end down, I vault over to his left side.

“What?!” He swings his staff around to hit me on the right side.

I block that hit. Now his backside is exposed to me. I hit him quickly in four places on his body. He continues and hits me once. We back away to regroup.

“The score is six to five in favor of Richard!”

Everyone yells that I’m ahead. There is also another large group from Sir Berenson’s Kingdom yelling just as loudly. He is from Trillion Kingdom.

We circle each other again while we smile at each other.

“That was a nice set up, Richard.”

“Thank you, Sir Berenson.”

“I take it you know a few more moves based off that defense.”

“I do, Sir Berenson. To the end?”

“To the end, Richard.”

This round turned into an acrobatic round. We cart wheeled, dived and rolled to get out of reach of the staff. We block each other hits effectively. There is no change in the score during that round.

We try to catch our breath as we walk around in circles, trying to find that opening. I think I can tire him out. That will create the opening I need. He just might be thinking the same thing.

Sir Berenson comes in with another swing to my left side. I block the hit, I swing my staff around to trap his end down. He slides his staff down to hit my hands. I immediately move to my left to avoid the hit. I hit him on the leg as I make my escape. He continues the swing of his staff to hit my leg as well. I dive forward to his back side. He turns around to keep me in front of him. As soon as I get up, he hits me on the back side.

“The score is seven to six in favor of Richard!”

We circle each other again. This time we do the standard approach. We can both see that are very tired now. We continue to hit our staffs. Sir Berenson sneaks in two hits. I follow it up and block his third hit attempt. I hit him back quickly two more times.

We break apart while we catch our breath. “Pant . . . pant . . . pant . . .”

“The winner is Richard, with a score of ten to nine!”

Everyone shouts out loud for a great fight. We nod our heads to each other while we smile weakly at each other. We exit the ring.

The final score tally is Sir Halden is fourth with 18 points. Sir Berenson is third with 19 points. Sir Paxson is second with 21 points. I win with 25 points.

We walk up to the royal seating area side by side. We give a quick bow to the kings and queens there. The stand up and applaud us for doing a great fight. The royalty members all nod their heads at us.

I turn around to meet Sir Halgren.

“That was a great fight, Richard. You outlasted him to the end.”

“Yes, all that running around, diving, jumping and rolls will tire you out. You just have to build up your endurance for that kind of fight.”

Sir Halgren hands my satchel back to me. I put it on my shoulders. Amber and Cobalt glide over and sit on my shoulders. They hum a merry tune as we walk back to the inn for the noon repast. We stop by our kingdom campsite to check in with the horses. They congratulated me on winning another contest. We make sure they have plenty of food and water before we leave.

I get congratulated by many people along the way. Then I see Telgon’s group approaching me, as well as Sir Trenton and the rest of the Legion Commanders.

“That was a great fight, Richard. We earned some great coin with our fellow Regional Ambassadors.”

“I did the same with the Legion Commanders and their commanders as well.”

They all laugh together. The Legion Commanders pay up to Sir Trenton and his commanders.

“You realize this puts your kingdom in the lead so far, Sir Trenton.”

“I know, Sir Paladin. There are still two more weeks of contests in the other two kingdoms.”

“That should give us plenty of time to catch up with you.”

“That’s true. We’ll catch up with you during that time.”

“We’ll see, my friends.”

Everyone laughs together as we go our way to get our noon repast at a nearby inn.

After the noon repast we get to witness Sir Halgren’s sword fight. It turned out to be an exciting set of matches. The lone knight in the group did well in defeating his opponent. He won ten to seven.

Sir Halgren just barely wins his match against a fellow Elite Guard. His score ten to nine.

They are given a rest before they face each other. The knight did really well against Sir Halgren. However, Sir Halgren won ten to nine. The three other Elite Guard Knights congratulate him on doing well in the sword fight. They don’t tell him who he fought against. That will be told to him by his Legion Commander when he gets invited to participate in the training sessions to be an Elite Guard member.

The rest of the day was nice and relaxing for me. I walk around to see what they are selling at the portable shops. I tried to find a small gift that will fit in my satchel really easy. I found an intricately carved stone art work done by a dwarf stone cutter. He sold it to me for a gold piece. The object is a dwarf dragon sitting on top of a mountain. There is a small cave opening in it as well. He was able to do it in one stone piece. He packed the carving into a box for me to keep it safe. The box is about half-foot square with a depth of four inches. He put some good packing material into so it won’t move in the box.

“That is a nice carving, Richard. That will help you remember Twainor.”

“It will be, Cobalt. It will help you as well when you see it. I do have a plan to help remember the unicorns for you two.”

“What is it, Richard?”

“If I can get a brush to their manes. It should collect some loose hair from their manes. I should be able to do something with that.”

“Yes, that would be great, Richard. You can have it mounted on small wooden plaques. We have never seen Avel’s loose hair go bad. We use it and make a simple belt or shirt that we keep close to us all the time.”

“I see, that way you’re not far from remembering his scent.”

“That’s right, Richard.”

“We’ll do the same when we trim your hair. It will help your own fairies to remember you always.”

“We can do it for the other fairies who are there as well.”

“That’s interesting. I’m sure some of them have forgotten what a unicorn smelled like.”

“I’m sure some of them did, Richard.”

We continue walking around and enjoying the day. I then hear word it is time to be in the arena to receive the ribbons for my wins and pennants for Thryson Kingdom.

I walk back to the arena and gather in a group off to the side. The arena is still full from the events that took place after Sir Halgren’s sword fight. As each group gets called up to stand before the royalty members, the crowd cheers out loud for the contestants.

When I receive my ribbons, I get some more cheers than the other contestants do. Once the individual contestants receive their ribbons. The Legion Commanders and the Dwarf Chief Warriors come forward with Kingdom banners in their hands. One by one they receive the pennants for the points earned during this time. Thryson Kingdom is ahead in points above all other kingdom at the moment.

We’re all told the next phase of the contests are in King Thranton’s Under Kingdom. Most of the vendors stay where they are at near the arena. They pack up to set up their booths near the Bay Arena. Most of the choice sites are already taken by some vendors who planned ahead to be in the Under Kingdom.

The racing events were fun to watch in the Under Kingdom. Needless to say, the dwarves did have the home field advantage. The dwarf dragons had a great time to do some tunnel flying. There was one thing the royalty did when it came time for the noon repast. We had a large meeting in the Grand Cave. All of the royalty members are sitting on chairs and thrones on the stage.

“Chief Warrior Grandwal, bring in The Four for judgement.”

“Yes, my King.”

Chief Warrior Grandwal turns around and leaves the stage. Then the four dwarves are brought in for judgement. They are escorted by Chief Warrior Grandwal and four dwarf warriors.

Soon everyone sees that Draknor and two of his friends are glowing like the Illuminae fish. The fourth one is not glowing at all. They have their heads down in defeat.

The crowd murmurs when they see their changes.

“Draknor, Glavne and Yertaug there is still further punishment for the three of you. Draknor, you will spend your days on the same island that Ruald is on.”

Draknor looks up quickly. “How long, King Thranton?”

“You will be there until he dies. He only has a year or so left in his life. You will tell him why his second plan to destroy the kingdoms didn’t work.”

“Yes, King Thranton. What will I do for food?”

“Hopefully, Ruald will show you how it is done. More than likely you will be building your own shelter far from him.”

“Why is that, King Thranton?”

“You’ll soon find out after spending your first night there. Also, Ruald will probably be glad he has someone who can do some magic for him.”

“I understand, King Thranton.”

“Glavne and Yertaug, you will be living on the next largest island near theirs for a year only.”

“Yes, King Thranton. King Thranton, we don’t know how to live on an island.”

“This is where you will need help. The fourth one whom you deceived to join you, will be there living with you for a year as well.” King Thranton looks at the fourth one. “Gapher, what did you learn in the past year while up here?”

“I was trained by several of the navy captains from Ringol Kingdom, my King. I learned basic island survival skills and how to keep calm. This is especially true since there are no mountains on these islands. I also verified what we do in trading with the Upper Kingdoms. I learned if Draknor’s plan had succeeded, we would be starving within two years.”

“So, do you agree to the terms, Glavne and Yertaug?”

The give a weak smile, “Yes, we agree to the terms. Thank you, my King.”

“Gapher is coming along with you, because he was part of your conspiracy.”

“Yes, my King.”

“When the year is up, you two will join the mining teams.”

“Yes, my King.”

“Gapher will then be restored in good standing with his fellow countrymen.”

“And for you Draknor, when Ruald has died, you will let us know when that happens.”

“How am I going to contact you?”

“You will be given a contact crystal. Use it for emergencies only. For example, if a severe storm system comes your way. We’ll then react accordingly and help everyone.”

“Thank you, my King, for your kindness.”

“When you come back, you will join the mining teams as well.”

“Yes, my King.”

King Dryden speaks up next, “The wizards who agreed to deliver these four to the western islands, please come forward.”

Then two wizards step onto the stage. Draknor puts his hand on one of them. The other three put their hands on the other wizard. The wizards put their hands out and recite the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye.

The rest of the day is spent in doing some more contests. All of the shops in Harsten and the nearby enclave communities did excellent sales and business. All of the inns were filled to capacity.

Even the healing centers were able to handle the extra people who came to the events. Morani appreciated the efforts by the mining crews in expanding the rooms, beds and operating rooms. All of the centers had extra help from the Upper Kingdom healers and Mystic Order members who came in to help relieve their usual staff.

~~~000~~~

The two groups fly westward over the ocean. Soon they see the islands where they are taken to. They all see the wrecked fishing fleet and the skeletons of sea dragons in the water near ships.

They all appear on that island first.

“Look at this and remember it. This is where it all started before the First War. Ruald ate the sea dragon meat. He could have contacted someone for help, but he didn’t.”

“I can see now how our plot became entwined with his own.”

“Yes, his plans were far more reaching than yours, Draknor.”

“Draknor, here is the emergency contact crystal in case you need to reach someone for help.”

Draknor takes the crystal and puts it in his pocket. “Thank you, kind wizards.”

“First of all before we leave, you will need to meet some sea dragons.”

The wizard yells out to the ocean. “Brachen and Chorzan! Will you please come here?”

Then two sea dragons come swimming in closer to greet them. The four dwarves try to hold their ground. They stand shaking with fear as they see their immense size.

“Greetings, wizards. Who are these four dwarves?”

“Why are three of them glowing like the Illuminae fish?”

“These three dwarves whom are glowing, have been eating the Illuminae fish at the bottom of the Abyss for a year as part of their punishment.”

“Ahh . . . That explains that.”

“These three plotted to cause a civil war and divide King Thranton’s Under Kingdom. They had planned to rule all of the Under Kingdom.”

“What is their connection to Ruald?”

“Draknor here.” A wizard points to him. “Received four bombs from Ruald many years ago. If the four dwarves they replaced in King Thranton’s Inner Circle had exploded in the Abyss, the entire continent and the other regions would have great land quakes and fire mountains erupting. Perhaps a continent would sink below the waters.”

“Ruald had already sent three people to the Abyss with bombs inside them before Draknor did.”

“Yes, the quakes would be felt in our oceans as well.”

“How come this didn’t come to pass, wizard?”

“Ruald threw down the Master Wizard Galfnir with a bomb within him first. However, Galfnir was able to seal the bomb and make it safe. But he had surprise while falling down in the Abyss. He saw Ryujin glowing brightly at the bottom. He was able to catch Galfnir safely.”

“I see, so Ryujin did a good thing that day to save Twainor.”

“Yes he did, Brachen. Then when each person was thrown down, Galfnir was able to seal the bombs and Ryujin caught them. They remained there until they passed away. They had additional injuries inflicted by Ruald and Draknor.”

“That is a great story, wizards.”

“Draknor will be here with Ruald until he dies. The other three will be on the other island for a year only.”

“That sounds good, wizards. Why is the fourth dwarf not glowing?”

“He was deceived by Draknor. He has learned the truth and verified what would happen if Draknor had succeeded. He will help the other two dwarves cope on the other island.”

“Excellent. Then we know what to say to Draknor and Ruald at sunrise and sunset.”

“You three will soon find out what we do to add to Ruald’s punishment. Listen and learn what happens here.”

“Y . . . ye . . . yes . . . sea dragons.”

“Just to let you know. The Outside Helpers will be sent home at the end of the Regional Festival.”

“Can you arrange it so that we can see them off as well?”

“I’ll bring the idea up to King Dryden. Once a decision has been made, we’ll let you know in plenty of time.”

“Thank you very much, wizards.”

“We’ll take these three to the other island now. Take care until we meet again.”

“Take care, wizards of Twainor.”

The three dwarves put their hands onto the wizards’ shoulders. They recite the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye.

The two sea dragons stare at Draknor with great anger.

“How dare you jeopardize our lives like that?”

“If it wasn’t for Ryujin’s kindness, you wouldn’t be here!”

Then both of them roar with great anger at Draknor. “Roooarr!!” “Roooarrrrr!”

Draknor turns around really scared and runs into the thick part of tree and bush growth on the island. “No! Ruald didn’t tell me everything! That is the truth!”

He keeps running blindly until he is on the other side of the island. Then the two dragons appear again in front of him and do the same thing. “Roooarr!!” “Roooarrrrr!”

Draknor comes to a stop. He looks at them, really scared now.

“You are still responsible, Draknor!”

“You killed for wealth and title!”

Draknor turns around and runs back into the island jungle scared. “Arrggh!!! Leave me alone!” Draknor can’t get in any more white from fear if he could. He keeps running until he sees Ruald sitting near his campsite. Draknor stands before him. “Pant . . . pant . . . pant . . . !”

Ruald is a lot more grayer and older looking now. He looks very tired. Ruald looks up at him. He then continues to make repairs to his fishing net. “So, my fellow conspirator has joined me at last. I’m not surprised. I see you are glowing like the Illuminae fish. You’ll have to build your own shelter far from me.”

“I don’t know how to build one. Your shelter is well made.”

“Well, you better get a closer look at it and remember it. There is no way I’m going to help you build your own.”

“What about food and water to eat and drink?”

“I’ll show that to you later. You’re going to be following my rules while you are here. Can you do some magic?”

“I can, Ruald. I was given a contact crystal for emergency calls only.”

“That was nice of them to do that. I suggest you start working on your shelter. I feel a change in the air. It is going to rain tonight.”

“What?”

“Don’t worry about getting wet. You can use the magic to dry out your clothes tomorrow. We’ll talk some more. We have plenty of time for that. If you can’t make a roof in time, I suggest in getting several large palm type leaves for your covering. Use the magic to create your own fire. I won’t be sharing my fire with you.”

“O . . .okay, Ruald.”

Draknor takes a closer look at Ruald’s shelter. He sees the floor is elevated off the ground for the sleeping area. He sees the roof and walls are well made to keep the wind and rain off. He sees that Ruald was able to use one of the trees as his anchor point for his shelter.

Draknor turns around and starts to look for a safe place to put up his shelter.

~~~000~~~

On the other island, Gapher gets the other two organized quickly in getting their first shelter put together.

Then they hear in the distance what the sea dragons is saying to Draknor. They shudder to think if the sea dragons did that to them. Then they return to the task at hand to get ready for their first night on the island.

“We’ll make it better each day. Right now, we need to get ready for tonight. I sense a change in the air. Look at those clouds in the distance.”

“Yes, I see them, Gapher.”

“Those will be storm and rain clouds when it gets here. If we get wet tonight, we can use the magic to dry out our clothes. We’ll try a fire for tonight. If it goes out tonight, we’ll have to plan it better.”

“I’m glad you were taught how to do this island survival, Gapher.”

“I am too, Yertaug. Once we get our shelter put together and secure it to the ground. We can start doing our first search for food and water.”

“Yes, Gapher.”

They get busy quickly in building their shelter under Gapher’s instructions and guidance.

~~~000~~~

The two wizards appear back in the Grand Cave. They give news and the request for the sea dragons to see the Outside Helpers one more time before they leave.

“That is a good idea. But where can we do it for all of the sea dragons?”

“We can do it in Ringol Bay here. There is more than enough room for them all.”

“Can Eingana get into the bay here?”

“She’ll have to be in the middle part of the bay where it is the deepest. The opening between the two arms of the bay is deep enough for her to get inside. We dredge that opening from time to time to allow our deepest ships that draw water to pass in and out.”

“That’s good. Then send word to her and her sea clans about being there on the last day of the Regional Festival.”

All of the wizards and sorceresses in attendance in the Grand Cave shout out loud, “Yes, King Dryden.”

Even the dwarf dragons roar in approval as well. They will get word to the other dragons who came here for the Regional Festival as well.

We spend our second night in the Under Kingdom really comfortable. We wake up in the morning and get ready to move to the Bay Arena to see that portion of events there for two days.

~~~000~~~

Later in the day, Ruald shows Draknor where he keeps the fish. Draknor is amazed at the simple idea of the sand maze and the net to trap the fish.

They both grab a woven basket to catch the fish in the holding area. It doesn’t take long for them to get the fish into the baskets.

As they are walking back near the northern point of the island. Draknor notices something on the horizon coming their way very fast.

“Ruald, I don’t think that is a rain storm coming our way from the east.”

“Huh?” Draknor looks to the east. “Oh no! I’ve been out too long again!”

“What’s wrong, Ruald?”

“It’s the colorful light display at sunset. Run!”

“Run?!”

Ruald starts running down the beach. He drops the basket onto the beach. Draknor follows him. Soon the light display is upon them. He sees Ruald curling up on the ground in fear. He has his hands upon his face to cover his eyes.

Draknor sees a dark black shadow around Ruald. The colorful streams don’t touch his body. The colorful display interacts with Draknor like he has seen it before. But when a blue filament touches his body, it pulses that color briefly. Soon Draknor appears as a multicolored, polka-dotted dwarf.

“What is going on here? Why is there a black shadow around Ruald? Why am I glowing like this?”

Then they hear the voices from the ocean.

“How dare you jeopardize our lives?!”

“You ate sea dragon meat!”

“No! No! Leave me alone sea dragons!”

Then Ruald looks up when the colorful display ends. He sees Draknor glowing with the colored dots on him.

“A ghost has come to haunt me!”

Ruald runs into the jungle to find his campsite to hide.

Draknor runs behind him. “It’s me, Ruald! I’m Draknor!”

“No, you’re not! You’re a ghost to haunt me! Leave me alone!”

Ruald gets to his campsite. He gets inside his shelter and put the palm covers over him. He tries to shut out voices he is hearing.

The dragons yell again, “Draknor! You killed four dwarves to gain wealth for your own greed!”

“No! No! Leave me alone!” Draknor runs through the jungle and appears on the other side and sees the wrecked fishing fleet and the sea dragon skeletons. He gets very scared when he sees two real sea dragons appearing before him.

“You’re guilty just like Ruald, Draknor!”

“You would have caused the death of thousands of people on Twainor. More than Ruald had planned!”

He turns around to find his shelter and runs very scared. “That’s not true! Ruald didn’t tell me everything!”

“You’re guilty, Draknor! Guilty!”

Draknor finds his campsite. He throws the palm leaf covers over him. He covers his ears to shut out the voices.

Then the rain storm comes to the islands.

During the night, Draknor hears Ruald scream the entire night. He doesn’t get much sleep. He decides to stay where he is at.

“I think I will stay here. If Ruald saw me glowing as I approach him tonight, he would think I’m a ghost whom has come to haunt him from his bad dreams. Oh. . . . What have I done? The sea dragons are right. I did it for greed.”

Draknor whimpers as he tries to get some sleep through the night.

~~~000~~~

The other three on the nearby island are high and dry under their shelter while it is raining. They hear Ruald and Draknor screaming on the other island.

“I’m glad we’re not there, Yertaug.”

“Same here, Gapher. I’m glad it was Draknor who injured those four dwarves we tried to replace.”

“Yes, I saw the look in his face once. He had a look of pure enjoyment while he was hurting one of them.”

Then the dragons appear near them on the shore.

“Is that true, dwarves? Draknor was the only one who injured those four dwarves you replaced?”

“It is true Brachen. He threw them down into the Abyss one by one as well.”

“Thank you for telling us that. Enjoy your sleep. We’ll be here again at sunrise to do it again to them.”

“Thank you for telling us that, Chorzan. You two have a good night’s sleep as well.”

The two dragons slip back into the water to get their sleep for the night.

The dwarves slowly fall asleep under their shelter. The rain runs off their palm thatched lean-to roof. They were able to find a good slope of ground just inside the tree-line. They put many layers of palm leaves on the ground and on the sides. Yertaug and Glavne are surprised they are very dry for the night. They will make a better shelter with a raised floor while they are there.

They did find some fruit trees on the island, but no fresh water source is found on the island yet. Gapher did tell them, he has some ideas how to collect rain water from the rains and put it into simple barrels from tree stumps that are lined with palm leaves and with a cover. He will also show them how to catch fish without too much effort. It is similar to how Ruald has his sand maze.