do our best to secure his well being?” inquired General Gregor.
“General,” smiled Konic, “I learned a great many things when I traveled with the Alcea Rangers. Let me answer your question with another question. If it was young Alexander Tork that we were talking about, would you seriously be considering locking him in a room to protect him?”
“He would never stand for it,” frowned General Gregor. “I would have no more chance of keeping him locked up than…”
“My point exactly,” smiled Konic. “Just keeping Arik alive is not enough. He has the Ancient Prophecy to fulfill. All that we can do is support him and advise him. Give him the straight facts. Give him your best advice. Offer him anything that he wants.”
“Then step back and get out of his way,” nodded Oscar as he smiled. “You have much wisdom yourself, Konic Clava.”
“I do see what you are saying, Lord Clava,” sighed the general, “but I have just witnessed the death of a queen that I was extremely fond of. She died in a palace, which has access restricted to it. It has a full roster of three thousand Red Swords, each of who is sworn to protect her life with his own. To make matters worse, someone who was already dead killed her. The only way I can think of performing my duty towards Prince Arik is to sneak him into the city and hide him away somewhere.”
“Then let that be your advice to him,” countered Konic.
“What would your advice be?” asked General Gregor.
“To be careful,” Konic replied after a moment’s hesitation. “To seek the advice of those you trust, but above all, remember your goal and make steady progress towards it.”
“I think you leave too much to chance,” the general shook his head. “As a military mind, I like to have a solution to each problem before it occurs.”
“If man was capable of such feats,” smiled Konic, “nothing would need changing in our societies. There will always be a problem for which we have not planned. Today is a good example. I think the more prudent approach is to be prepared as an individual. Know you capabilities and limits, and seek to know the same of your opponents.”
“Philosophy will not hasten the return of Arik,” interrupted Oscar. “I will leave the discussion to you two gentlemen on what our advice to Arik should be. I am going to get the fairies to begin searching for their Bringer.”
Chapter 7
Concentration of Evil
Alex heard the tinkling of the alarm wire that he had run around the campsite. He rose silently and grabbed his sword. Arik and Tanya rose also while Jenneva got up and gently woke Prince Darok.
“I am going to be the bait,” Alex said softly. “I will stand in the moonlight in the center of the clearing. Jenneva, I want you to put a physical shield over me until the first intruder enters our campsite. Darok, I want you to go with Jenneva and protect her from attack. Pay special attention to anyone trying to circle around behind her.”
Silently, Jenneva moved away from the sounds until she found a large tree for protection. Darok took up position behind her. Tanya moved to the right side of the clearing. She leaned her sword against a tree and filled her hands with three Lanoirian Stars. Arik went to the left and duplicated the preparations. Alex stood squarely in the center of the clearing with his large sword leaning against his leg. Three Lanoirian Stars also filled his hands.
With a nod from Alex, the four unicorns spread out at the sides of the clearing. Everyone waited silently. Within moments, the sounds came closer, and it became evident that over a dozen bodies were moving directly towards the campsite. The unicorns moved quietly into the forest. Prince Midge eased off of Arik’s shoulder and flew into the trees towards the sounds.
Alex studied the areas of the forest before him where the moonlight filtered through the trees. Standing in the moonlight himself, Alex searched for the first sign of who the intruders
“General,” smiled Konic, “I learned a great many things when I traveled with the Alcea Rangers. Let me answer your question with another question. If it was young Alexander Tork that we were talking about, would you seriously be considering locking him in a room to protect him?”
“He would never stand for it,” frowned General Gregor. “I would have no more chance of keeping him locked up than…”
“My point exactly,” smiled Konic. “Just keeping Arik alive is not enough. He has the Ancient Prophecy to fulfill. All that we can do is support him and advise him. Give him the straight facts. Give him your best advice. Offer him anything that he wants.”
“Then step back and get out of his way,” nodded Oscar as he smiled. “You have much wisdom yourself, Konic Clava.”
“I do see what you are saying, Lord Clava,” sighed the general, “but I have just witnessed the death of a queen that I was extremely fond of. She died in a palace, which has access restricted to it. It has a full roster of three thousand Red Swords, each of who is sworn to protect her life with his own. To make matters worse, someone who was already dead killed her. The only way I can think of performing my duty towards Prince Arik is to sneak him into the city and hide him away somewhere.”
“Then let that be your advice to him,” countered Konic.
“What would your advice be?” asked General Gregor.
“To be careful,” Konic replied after a moment’s hesitation. “To seek the advice of those you trust, but above all, remember your goal and make steady progress towards it.”
“I think you leave too much to chance,” the general shook his head. “As a military mind, I like to have a solution to each problem before it occurs.”
“If man was capable of such feats,” smiled Konic, “nothing would need changing in our societies. There will always be a problem for which we have not planned. Today is a good example. I think the more prudent approach is to be prepared as an individual. Know you capabilities and limits, and seek to know the same of your opponents.”
“Philosophy will not hasten the return of Arik,” interrupted Oscar. “I will leave the discussion to you two gentlemen on what our advice to Arik should be. I am going to get the fairies to begin searching for their Bringer.”
Chapter 7
Concentration of Evil
Alex heard the tinkling of the alarm wire that he had run around the campsite. He rose silently and grabbed his sword. Arik and Tanya rose also while Jenneva got up and gently woke Prince Darok.
“I am going to be the bait,” Alex said softly. “I will stand in the moonlight in the center of the clearing. Jenneva, I want you to put a physical shield over me until the first intruder enters our campsite. Darok, I want you to go with Jenneva and protect her from attack. Pay special attention to anyone trying to circle around behind her.”
Silently, Jenneva moved away from the sounds until she found a large tree for protection. Darok took up position behind her. Tanya moved to the right side of the clearing. She leaned her sword against a tree and filled her hands with three Lanoirian Stars. Arik went to the left and duplicated the preparations. Alex stood squarely in the center of the clearing with his large sword leaning against his leg. Three Lanoirian Stars also filled his hands.
With a nod from Alex, the four unicorns spread out at the sides of the clearing. Everyone waited silently. Within moments, the sounds came closer, and it became evident that over a dozen bodies were moving directly towards the campsite. The unicorns moved quietly into the forest. Prince Midge eased off of Arik’s shoulder and flew into the trees towards the sounds.
Alex studied the areas of the forest before him where the moonlight filtered through the trees. Standing in the moonlight himself, Alex searched for the first sign of who the intruders
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