The Pretty Princess, chapter 2 (the princess's story)

“Mat, I am not a giant fly.” Jason pleaded.
“You aren’t fooling me, you want to eat my head.” Mat Replied
“Why would I want to eat your head?”
“Because it is made of the most awesome cheese in the world.”
“I’ve had enough of this.” Jason said as he picked up a large rock and hurled it at mat. The rock struck Mat solidly on the head causing him to pass out. Jason then proceeded to tie Mat up until his bad trip could wear off. When he was done he sat down and was feeling pretty proud of himself yet he heard what sounded a lot like a woman crying. After a short search he found a beautiful woman with her hands covering her eyes quietly crying.
“Are you all right?” Jason asked.
The woman let out a startled gasp and then took a very defensive pose.
“Stay away from me, or I will disembowel you.” She screamed.
“Cool.”
“What do you mean cool?”
“Well, no one has ever threatened to disembowel me before, and I think that is pretty cool.”
“Well, that is wrong.”
“Probably, but I don’t really care. My name is Jason.”
“I am Kellie.”
“Why were you crying?”
“I have been on a quest. You see once a generation there is a Noble Knight born. In our generation he was born on July 27th, 1972. I have searched all my life for him, and finally I had found him. But now I have lost him. All of my companion have deserted me, and now my hope is lost.”
“We got separated from our companions as well, Mat and I will help you find him.”
“That would be wonderful.”

Thus begins the Princesses Story.

When Mat came to we all set out to try and find the Noble Knight. We roamed the green forest for a couple of days, but we couldn’t find Jason’s companions so we left the jungle. We eventually found a broad path and followed it for a couple of days. It was half way through the second day when we heard some singing. As we continued down the path the singing got louder and louder.
“I think we should get off the trail and scout ahead.” I said.
“That may be a smart move.” Jason said.
“Hiss.” Mat added. (Mat really hadn’t been the same since the shrooms, most of the time he thought he was an animal.)

We stalked through the woods, and found an encampment full of skeletons. These weren’t the normal kind of skeletons that just lie around decomposing, nor were they the type someone can go up to and point out interesting things on. These skeletons were doing everything, fishing, singing, washing clothes, and so on.

“I think we should avoid them.” I said.
“Skeletons are not fun to deal with I agree.” Jason said.
“Woof, woof.” Mat added
“Oh, No!” Jason and I said together.

Mat bounded out into the clearing and started to bite the closest skeleton’s leg. He was growling a trying very hard to get the bone free. Everything came to a halt. All of the skeletons looked in our direction, and a shout was raised.

“Humans!!!! Humans!!!!” Cried the largest of the skeletons.
“Don’t hurt us.” I pleaded.
“Don’t hurt us.” The skeleton said.
“What?” We both asked.
“We don’t mean you any harm.” I said. “Mat heal.” Mat left the skeleton alone and curled up at Jason’s feet. “I am Kellie, and these are my friends Mat and Jason.”
“My name is Kurt See. I am the leader of the skeletons, because I have the tallest bones. We started this colony to get away from humans, because all they ever do is hack us into little pieces, and then scatter our bones all over.”
“That is horrible.”
“I know, but that is how your kind is.”
“But that is not how I am!”
“Let me show you around.”

Kurt See showed me all around the compound. The skeletons had really built a nice village. He told me that they had lived here for several years, and would go out to find more skeletons to join them. He showed me all of the different stations and how they had set up a skeleton commune. He was a very light hearted fellow, very easy to get along with. After a few days I really started to relax, all the while the music continued to play.

“We should get going.” Jason said.
“Why? They are doing great work here, and Kurt is a great guy.” I said
“He isn’t a guy, and I don’t trust him.”
“You don’t trust anyone.”
“I trust my companions and my instincts, and my instincts say not to trust this skeleton.”
“Well, I am not leaving.”
“What about your quest?”
“What about it, the silly knight should be able to take care of himself!”
With that I stormed off. I sat in the woods to cool off. I wandered away from the camp until I could no longer hear the music. I sat and thought, and it occurred to me that I really should be looking for the Knight, that I shouldn’t be hanging out with some backwoods skeletons. Determined to get back on track I headed back to camp to apologize to Jason and set off. As I wandered back into camp I ran into Kurt.

“Kellie, how nice to see you.” He cooed in rhythm to the music.
“I was looking for Jason and Mat.” I said.
“Oh, they left.”
“When?”
“A little while ago.”
“Oh.”
“It really isn’t important they left is it?”
“No, I just wanted to…wanted to….hmmm.”
“Wanted to wish them good luck on their travels?”
“That must be it.”
“That is a good girl, wouldn’t you like to stay with us?”
“Stay?”
“Yes stay with us.”
The music flared up. My will was being taken from me. I closed my eyes just trying to clear my head. I started to think of the noble Knight. His blonde highlighted hair, his large frame, and those eyes…..
“I will not stay, you can’t keep me from him.”
“How did you break my spell?”
I grabbed a squeegee and swung it at his head knocking it clean off his shoulders. His skeletal body started to run to get his head, the rest of the skeletons started to advance upon me.
“Mat, Jason where are you?” I screamed.
“Kellie we are trapped behind the Laundromat.”
I ran behind the Laundromat and untied them both.
“Mat how are you?”
“Woof.”
“You are not a dog, you are a stampeding elephant. You are enraged by skeletons and will trample and scatter all you can find.”

Mat took off; he started bowling into the skeletons, knocking them to and fro. He wasn’t content just knocking them down, he would trample them under foot as well. Jason grabbed a baseball bat and started to wreak some havoc as well. Kurt See tried to stop Mat, but was trampled for his troubles; Mat trampled him so much that he knocked a big chip out of his tooth leaving quite a gap. We made quick work of the skeletons. I went over to Kurt See’s head.
“Why did you do this?”
“Ellen and Suella paid me to do it.”
“Who is Suella?”
“The true ruler of the land, a witch so foul that evil itself fears her.”
“Sounds lovely.”
“No, she is scary looking.”
“What do they want me for?”
“I don’t know, but I bet the Blob Andy could help.”
“Why should I trust anything you say?”
“Because, I truly liked you, and with my girlfriend away I needed a companion.”
“Where can I find the Blob?”
“Wherever you find food.”

We headed down the path and I pondered the words he had said. You find food everywhere. But the blob can’t be everywhere. As I was pondering an ugly green tire with bumps all over it knocked me over, as it fell on its side.
“Little help here.” It cried out.
“Are you the tire?”
“I am NOT a tire, I am a wheel, and not just any wheel, I am a witch’s wheel. I need help, if you could just put me upright I will be on my way.”

I helped the wheel upright and it wheeled off muttering “Tire indeed.” We continued down the path as walls started to rise on both sides of the trail. Soon the walls towered over us, and we started to hear the sound of thunder. As we looked up in the sky we noticed no storm clouds yet the thunder continued to loom. The sun was brightly overhead and yet the thunder got even louder, we moved closer to the edge of the canyon, and Mat brushed against the wall. When he touched the wall a great gush of water drenched us to the bone. We continued to the end of thunder canyon, never touching the walls again, but the thunder didn’t stop until we got to the end of the canyon.

We started to hear a heavy breathing sound. As we continued along the path the noise got louder and louder. As we turned a corner we saw a giantess. She stood at least ten feet tall, and was at least five feet around. A little red head doll sat beside her.
“YESH.” The giantess boomed.
“Beware, here comes some travelers.” The doll said.
“WHY ARE YOU HERE, YOU TRAVELERS? HUH.” The giantess boomed again, this time a spray of spittle came out.
“We are trying to find the Blob.”
“Why?” Asked the doll.
“I don’t know that it is any of your business, we don’t even know who you are.” I replied.
“I am Becky and the giantess is Heaver.” Said the red headed doll.
“I am Kellie, and this is Jason and Mat.” I said.
“HIM IS CUTE. “ Heaver said looking at Jason.
“Oh no.” Jason said.
“I LIKE HIM. I WANT HIM TO PLAY WITH.” Heaver boomed.
“Well, you can’t have him.” I said.
“WHY NOT?”
“Because he is not a piece of meat or a toy to play with.”
“All men are toys.” Becky said.
“We sit here on the trail and bring men to ruin. We tempt them, and then we play with them until we get bored, and then we feed them to the Aim.” Becky said.
“What is an Aim?” I asked.
Becky pointed to a thin machine.
“It looks a lot like a wood chipper.” I said.
“It is.” Becky replied.
“That is horrible.” I said.
“MAYBE, BUT IT IS A LOT OF FUN.” Heaver boomed.
“Well, we just want to pass, and find the blob.”
“No. We want your men.” Becky said.
“No! They are my companions, and I will not let you put them in a wood chipper.”
“PLEASE.”
“No.” I said.
“Then we will take them from you.” Becky said.
“The hell you will.” Jason said.

Then Jason started to flip out. His arms grew to twice their normal size, and his legs ripped out of his pants. In no time at all he was as tall as Heaver, but was full of muscle. He then walked over to Heaver and grabbed a hold of her. Jason and her grappled while Becky approached Mat.
“Mat you are Lion.” I said.
“Roar.” Mat replied.
“I am allergic to cats.” Becky stated and started to sneeze.
As Mat approached her sneezing got more intense. She continued to sneeze and sneeze. Her sneezing cause her to crash into to Heaver and they both tumbled in the Aim.
“That was gruesome.” I said.
“Too bad, I was starting to like her.” Jason said.

With the two girls gone we searched their campsite but didn’t find any clues. We did find a little cart that you could sit in. On the side of it was written the word Mine. We left it where it was though because it looked kind of lame.

“I am famished. I am going to go out and find us some food.” Jason said.

Jason was gone for about an hour, but when he returned his arms were loaded with food.

“I found a bush that had all kinds of food on it. I found this fried chicken. I found these cakes that shaped like an inverted cone; I found these hunks of cheese stuck on a stick.” Jason said, showing off all of what he had found.

“It looks good, but do you think it is safe?” I asked.
“It’s safe.” A voice croaked.

I looked where the voice had been, and sitting there was a green blob.
“My name is Andy, and I am famished.” The blob said. He then pulled a bucket out of somewhere and sat down on it, or in it, depending on how you looked at what he did.

“Where did you come from?” I asked.
“I protect the food bushes your friend found.”
“Protect them how?”
“I quality test them to make sure they produce tasty food.”
“How is that protecting them?”
“I do not let anything get picked before it’s time. Your friend has a very good eye, and harvested all ripe food. He did really well with the fried chicken; I am here to collect for the food.”
“We don’t have any money.”
“You don’t need any, this food is free for travelers, they just have to share with me.”
“We can do that.”
“Great let’s eat.”

We all sat down by Andy and shared the food. We ate and ate until we couldn’t eat another bite. Only Andy continued to eat, he ate until all of the food was gone. Then he let out a loud belch and continued to look around.
“Are you looking for something Andy?” I asked.
“Yes, I am looking for more food, you see I am always hungry, and no matter what I can’t seem to get enough food.” He replied.
“Jason could go to the bushes and collect more food.”
“That would be wonderful.”

I sent Jason off and after a little while he returned with even more food. This time he had chicken, pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, and even ice scream. Andy started to eat, with each bite he grew in size, the green blob getting bigger and bigger. He ate until the food was gone, and had almost doubled in size.

“More, more, more.” He pleaded.
“We can get you more, but aren’t you full?”
“I have never been full in my entire life. I will make you a deal; if you continue to feed me I will tell you where to find the Noble Knight.”
“How did you know I was looking for the Noble Knight?”
“Girl, I get around these parts, I know all of what is going on. There isn’t a bigger gossip than me.”
“Okay, we will continue to feed you.”

Jason and Mat went out this time and foraged for food. When they returned they had filled a blanket full of food and carried it between them. They spread it out before Andy like a picnic. Andy dove into the food, between bites he started to tell us where to find the Noble Knight.

“He has been trapped by the Suella. She has him trapped at her castle. She is searching for the Pretty Princess so she can stop them from freeing the land.”
“The Pretty Princess, who is she.”
“She is the one whom the Noble Knight will marry. You really don’t know, do you?”
“Know what?”
“Are you that naïve? You are the Pretty Princess.”
“Me, I am not anybody special; I just want to help the Noble Knight.”
“Look, you ARE the Pretty Princess.”
“If you say so.”
“Together you have the power to defeat Suella. The battle won’t be easy; Snaggletooth defends the castle with the help of her evil minions. But it is written that your true love can conquer anything.”
“I don’t think you are right about me, I am just Kellie.”
“You aren’t just anything; you are the Pretty Princess, that is why people follow you. That is why you have made it this far. You have beauty, strength, intelligence, and love. All of these are the qualities of the Pretty Princess.”
“But Brian is the Noble Knight, and I just want to save him.”
“Did you say Brian?” Jason asked.
“Yes, his name is Brian. He is the bravest man I have ever met.”
“Our companions name was Brian; he was searching for the Pretty Princess.” Jason said.
“Well, maybe I am maybe I am not, but I must save him.”
“You guys need to head down that trail and follow it West for two days, on the third day, Duck, and you will find Suella’s castle.” Andy said.

With a final bite of food Andy burst into jets of green goo, and covered everything in the clearing. We heard a faint laugh and then he was gone completely. No goo was left anywhere.

“That was weird and disgusting.” I said.
“Let’s rest here for the night and head out with the first light of the morning.” Jason said.
“Moo.” Mat agreed.

We set out the next day heading west. That entire first day was uneventful. We simply walked and walked, and walked some more. We rested for the night, and the next day headed out again. About mid-morning we came upon a ravine, there used to be a bridge across it, but it hung down the side of the cliff. Next to where the bridge was anchored was a group of short red creatures. They all just sat there staring off into space.
“Hello.” I said.

None of the little creatures said a word. I noticed a sign by the creatures. The sign read “Drop on, to get by.”

“What do you suppose this means?” I asked.
“I don’t know.” Said Jason.
“Brock?” Mat added.
“I don’t like standing around though, it makes me nervous.” Jason said. Then he picked one of the red creatures and threw it over the cliff. “At least we will know how deep the chasm is.”

“Whee.” Said the red creature.

When it hit the bottom of the ravine the bridge moved a little. It had started to raise up to where it belonged.
“That is interesting. Let’s throw a few more.” I said.

As we tossed each one over the bridge raised even higher. Before we knew it all of the red creatures were gone, and the bridge was where it should be.

“Who would have thought that dropping demons would be a good way to cross the ravine?” Jason stated.

We continued walking for the rest of the day, and came to a clearing. We decided to camp in the clearing for the night.

“What do you suppose Andy meant when he said on the third day Duck?” I asked.
“I really don’t know.” Jason replied.
“Quack!” Mat added.
“I don’t think we need to be ducks Mat.” I replied.
“Maybe it will be obvious to us tomorrow.” Jason offered.
“I don’t know, he didn’t say where or anything, he simply said on the third day Duck.” I said.

We all drifted off to sleep thinking about the meaning of what Andy had said. We set out early the next day continuing west. The path seemed to stretch on forever.
“I don’t see any castle; I think we would be able to see it by now.” I said
“I agree, if it was only supposed to take three days to get there, we should see it by now.” Jason said.
“Maybe we missed something.”
“There hasn’t been anything on this path all day.”
“You are right, we haven’t seen anything, and the scenery seems to just repeat itself.”
“We must have missed something.”

At that moment I pulled out a rag and started to mop sweat off my brow, and then I dropped the rag. As I bent over to pick up the rag I saw an entire little kingdom off to the side of the path. When I stood up I couldn’t see it.
“Jason, Mat bend down and tell me what you see.”
“I see a little kingdom.” Jason said
“Neigh.” Mat added.
“Now stand up, and tell me what you see.”
“Nothing.” Jason said.
“Winnie.” Mat added.

So we all crouched down on our hands and knees, crawling toward the kingdom. As we got close to the side of the road all three of us slipped and tumbled into the kingdom. As we lay there a group of people approached us.

“Where are we?” I asked.
And then the whole world went black.

When I came to several small woman were standing around me. As the fog cleared from my head I realized that all of the woman were dressed like cats, and I was tied to the ground.

“She is coming around.” One of the women said.
“Stand back, she looks like she could hurt us.” Said another.
“Who are you?” I asked.
A woman dressed like a calico cat stepped towards me.
“I am Amy, I am the leader of the kitties, and this is our kingdom. Why have you come here? We keep our kingdom hidden from dangerous travelers.”
“I am looking for the Noble Knight, and my name is Kellie.”
All of the woman hissed in unison.
“Why would you look for a man?” Amy asked.
“Because I love him.”
“Ha! Our kingdom was ruled by a man, but we overthrew him, and now we all are much happier. Let me introduce you to my sisters.”
Amy pointed to a rather portly tabby, which was no taller than herself and said, “This is Aimee.”
Then she pointed to a tiger striped woman, “This is Mary-Ellen.”
Then she pointed to an all black woman, “This is Tracy.”
Then she pointed to a portly hunched over alley cat, “This is Tanya.”
And lastly she pointed to a woman dressed like a wild cougar complete with a mouth full of sharp teeth, “That is Heather, be careful she bites.” Amy hissed.
“Why am I tied to the ground?”
“We wanted to restrain you until we could find out whether or not you are a threat to us.” Amy replied.
“Where are my friends?”
“They are locked up, with the former king and his magician.”
“Why do you all look like cats?”
“That is the reason we overthrew the king. It is a long story, and I am going to tell it to you.”
“Of course you are, the plot wouldn’t advance any other way.”
“Once the Kitty Kingdom was ruled by a nice young man named Deej. Deej was fair, and ruled with justice, but then he made friends with an evil wizard by the name of Bobcat. At first Bobcat did some good, he introduced public transit called the wild cat, it took you in circles around the kingdom. He built the catacombs, and the catapult to protect the kingdom. I don’t know if you see a pattern here, but the man was obsessed with cats. That is when he got a hold of Heather. Heather was just a poor little peasant girl, rather simple but pretty. Bobcat tricked Deej into letting him have Heather, and that is when he started his experiments. He tried to use his magic to turn her into a human, feline crossbreed. She took on aspects of a cat, including a very wild attitude. She bit Bobcat and ran off scratching up his lab on the way out the door. He hid his failure from Deej, but then he got a hold of Tonya. He had more luck with Tanya early on, she was very domestic, but the physical aspects of the cat never quite held. Then he got a hold of Tracy, she turned out more troll like than cat, although she definitely is playful like a cat. He took Aimee into his lair and turned her, she was almost right, but she was very skittish, and would never come to him. Mary – Ellen is when he almost got it right, but her eyes were wrong, she is cat with wolf looking eyes. I was his last experiment. He made me perfect. I am the right combination of feline and human. What he didn’t know is that he also gave me some of his magic as well.”
“You are a little pretentious aren’t you?” I interrupted
“No, I am purrtentious. As I was saying he didn’t know I had also received some of his magic as well. He forced the king to marry us to each other; I went along with it so I could learn his secrets. I learned all of his magic, and then I found all of the girls. I banded us together, and we made a plan to overthrow the kingdom. First we captured the king, and then we laid our trap for Bobcat. He walked into the room and I cast an infinium spell, an infinium spell locks the victim in their own mind. They can be locked in a friendly environment or an unfriendly one. You can guess which one Bobcat is locked in. Once we had both Deej and Bobcat locked up we started to take over the kingdom. Everyone fled and now we have our own utopia.”

“Aren’t you lonely?” I asked
“We have each other.” Amy replied.
“But you don’t have anyone to share your lives with.”
The other women let out a murmur.
“WE DON’T NEED ANYONE BUT OURSELVES.” She shouted, silencing all of the other women.
“That is sad.” I said.
“What is sad is your belief that you need some silly knight in your life. I can prove to you that he would just hurt you.”
“He would never hurt me, he loves me.”
“I will make a deal with you, if this knight chooses you I will let you and your friends go. But if he doesn’t you will stay here with us, grooming us and other things we demand.”
“I accept your bet, but if I win you will set the king Deej free, and let him rule his kingdom.”
“I know that your knight will fail so I accept.”
“How will you test him?”

“This pool will allow you to see what he sees in his mind. I will cast an infinium spell on him and project myself into his thoughts, and then I will try to lead him astray. When I get him to forsake or rebuke you I win.”
“Okay, but he is trapped at Suellas castle.”
“I know, now watch the pool.”

She started to chant and the pool of water turned from light blue to green and then became crystal clear. I then saw that the knight was being tortured in his dreams, demons surrounded him and poked him with sticks and pitchforks. Then the demons faded away and Amy appeared. She had taken away her cat appearance and looked like a normal woman. She was small, yet proportioned. She was wearing a satin dress that hung just past her knees, her hair was up in a ponytail and she swayed seductively. Brian fell to the ground panting from all of the torture. Amy approached him and pulled a sponge out of the air. She started to swab his brow, I could see him wince in pain my heart leaping out to him.

“I am here to rescue you.” She said.
“Who are you?” He asked.
“I am the Pretty Princess.”
“No you are not.”
“It doesn’t matter, I am here to heal you, and get you away from the demons.”
“Do you know where the Pretty Princess is? I must rescue her.”
“You need to save yourself first.”
“I must….”
“Shhh.” Amy said as she placed a finger on his mouth. “You need to rest. I will help nurse you back to health, then you can search if you want to.”

She sat down on the ground and laid his head in her lap. Then she began to stroke his forehead. She continued to caress him gently, and soon he fell asleep. She talked to him while he slept. Telling him how much she cared for him, and how he should stay with her. She told him how she needed protection and that only he could keep her safe. She told him how bad off she would be without him. Then she told him how the smell of vanilla is the same as purity and innocence, and that he should be very aware of that scent. After saying that about vanilla the room was filled with the scent of vanilla, it oozed from every inch of the glassy pool. Then she bent down and kissed him on the forehead waking him with a smile.
“You look better.” She cooed.
“I feel a lot better, I feel like most of my energy has returned.”
“I was so worried for you.” She said as she let out a tremble.
“Don’t be worried, I am fine, and I will keep you safe.” He said as he hugged her.
“Ooh. That is so nice.” She said.
“I feel so strong with you in my arms.”
”Do you like my perfume?” She asked.
“It smells like innocence.”
“No silly, it is just vanilla.”
“Well, it smells very nice, it seems fitting for you.”
“My last relationship was so terrible he hit me and kept me in fear.”
“That is horrible, I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

She looked up at him directly in the eye, while placing her hand behind his head. She pulled him closer and started to kiss him. They started to kiss, and then hands started to roam. In the middle of making out with him she looked up at the pool as if staring at me and smiled. I wanted to cry, she was winning, my heart was breaking.
“Wait. This doesn’t feel right.” He said.
“Yes it does, we can stay together forever isn’t that what you want?” She asked.
“I….I…I am not sure.”
“You know what you want, I am right here, you can have me forever.”

The smell of vanilla flared up.
“I….I….I…”
“Stay, tell me you want me.”
“NO! I want the Pretty Princess, she is the one I love.”
“Fool!” She hissed

The demons appeared and started torturing him as the picture in the pool faded away. Amy re-appeared in the room.

“That man is stupid.” She howled.
“No, he loves me.” I said.
“Well, you can’t have him.”
‘We had a deal.”
“What are you going to do about it?”

Out of nowhere a word popped into my head.
“Truthtarium honestatia.” I blurted.

A green cloud coalesced around Amy and then struck her.

“How could you know such a powerful spell?” She asked.
“I have no idea.” I replied
“This spell holds me to my promise, and if I break my promise I will be physically tormented until I comply, and if I don’t eventually comply it will kill me. Only a powerful wizard would know such a spell. I give in, I will comply with our bargain. Girls let Deej and her companions out of the dungeon.”

The women shuffled off and returned a little while later.
“Jason are you okay?” I asked
“I am fine, but Mat thinks he is a cat, and he and heather have really hit it off. They ran off into the woods together.” He replied.
“As long as they are happy. Sire are you okay?”
“I am okay, but I don’t understand what is going on.”
“I think Amy here can explain it.” I replied.

Amy told the king the whole story about Bobcat. He looked ill by the time she got to the end of the story.
“I had no idea, I am truly sorry. I will make sure that he is properly punished.”
“I think the spell he is trapped in is proper enough.” Amy said.
“But I do not think that is justice. I want you to wake him so I can hold him accountable, but I will need your help in case he tries to use magic. Will you please help me?” Deej asked.
“I was wrong about you, I let him jade me, I would love to help you. By the way do you like my perfume?” She purred.
“Magicus protecto ultarium.” I bellowed.
Amy stared at me in shocked disbelief.
“You definitely should not know that spell, let alone be able to cast it, do you know what you have done?”
“I have restricted your magic, you will only be able to do the magic that Deej commands of you.” I replied.
“I am powerless.” She cried.
I walked up to her and slapped her across the face. “No, you are tamed.” I replied.
“Sire, she has become evil, but now you can control her, keep her on a short leash and you should be fine.”

“Thank you so much for freeing me and helping restore my kingdom. I understand that you are looking for Suella’s castle. All you have to do is head down that road, her castle is the large black building at the end of it.”

Deej had pointed at a wide black brick path that lead into a gloomy forest and beyond the forest you could see the castle.

“When you get there you will find a hidden door on the east side of the moat. It is well hidden but look for the brown frog. Thanks again, and good luck.” Deej said.

Jason and I rested in the kingdom for the night. They held a big feast in our honor, and all through the night we could hear how well Mat and Heather were getting along. Early in the morning we had breakfast and then set off down the path.

As we traveled the path the forest started to loom over us. The dark trees lined the side of the path. We heard a loud crashing noise as the ground shook. The shaking got more intense, and we saw two trees running straight at us. Before they reached us they ran off the side of the path and we heard a buzzing noise. We cautiously walked down the path to where the noise came from and we saw a mill.
“Imagine trees racing to a mill.” I said

We continued down the path a small pixie came running by pulling a wagon full of dynamite.
“Looks like that guy is transporting a disaster.” Jason said.

The trail opened up unto a clearing where an ominous black building sat in the middle of it. The castle was huge, a wide moat circled the entire castle. The drawbridge stood closed.
“Deej said to go to the east side of the castle and find the brown frog.” I said.
“Over here would be the east side, let’s see if we can find that frog.” Jason said.

We searched all over and couldn’t find the frog anywhere.
“I don’t know, I can’t find it anywhere.” I said.
“I know but it has to be here somewhere.” Jason replied.

As we sat there looking and wondering an ugly looking hobbit came up. He was short, and had a hunched back. His feet stuck out of his shoes, and had a huge odor. His whole body was covered in hair, and all of his clothes were covered in stains.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“HUH” He replied.
“Your name what is your name?”
“Name. I am you.”
“You who?”
“No need to whistle. I am just you. People always say you go clean this, you go get that.”
“Oh, we are trying to get into the castle do you know how to get in there?”
“I only know the way to the Commiscary. You push the frog on this tree, and it leads into the bowels of the commiscary.”
“What is the commiscary.”
“It is where you put all the misfits and make them work really hard.”
“That is awful.”
“No, it is a job, I ain’t complaining, they feed me and I have a roof over my head, plus it beats potty patrol. Have you ever met any of them?”

The hobbit walked over to the tree and lifted a knot up, under the knot was a carved brown frog. He pushed it, and a doorway slid open in the tree. A dark stairwell led downward. We followed You down the stairs. We walked downward for what seemed an eternity, and then the stairs came to an end. Before us was a path that led into a hot, loud, commotion filled place.
“Here it is, the Commiscary.” You said.

The path opened to a vast kitchen area. Many Hobbits and trolls strolled around the kitchen each one doing their own job. Some were stirring pots others were stacking boxes, but all of them stayed busy.

“I have work to do.” You said as he slipped off into the commiscary.
“Thank you.” I said.
“This is the scariest thing I have ever seen.” Jason said.
“Well, now what do we do?” I asked.
“Get through here and head into the castle.” Jason replied.
“I see a staircase over there.” I said.
“Let’s get out of here.”

Jason and I made it through the commiscary without getting swept up in it’s frantic pace. We made it to the stairs and headed up one flight. It felt like a whole different world, the noise stopped, and the castle was brightly lit. Tapestries hung all over, each one depicting a person being humiliated or subjugated. One showed a witch stepping on the backs of prisoners like a bridge as she crossed a stream.

“That is horrible.” I said.
“I think that is Suella in the picture.” Jason said.
“Well, she is horrible.” I said
“Yes I am. I am the most horrible in all the land.” Suella said.
“Where did you come from?” I asked
“It is my castle. Do you not think I know what is going on in my own castle?”
“I thought there might be a chance.”
“Well, I know, besides my insipid nephew Deej warned me you were coming.”
“Why would he betray me?”
“A little persuasion goes a long way.”
She then started to cackle and cast a spell. The air around Jason and I started to shimmer and coalesce, suddenly we were frozen in place.
“That will hold you. With both of you trapped in an Infinium spell I have nothing to worry about. You fools thought you could defeat me. I am the Suella!”