“You are familiar to me,” Sir Maron said, leaning forward in his saddle and looking Princess over. “You are named Princess, and you’re wanted for crimes in Mor Luin. There’s a bounty on your head.”
Princess gave a proper curtsy and then pointed to a shepherd’s crook lying in the grass nearby. “I suppose you’ll want to add that to my list of offenses,” she said with a grin. “I never could resist shepherd’s pie.”
Sir Maron kicked his mount forward, drawing his sword and charging at the two figures. Princess merely flicked her wand, however, and the horse rose up on its hind legs, neighing loudly as it fought to free itself from ground that had grown soft like quicksand. She moved her wand again and Sir Maron was flung from his saddle, flying twenty feet in the air before landing with a hard crash and rolling to a stop. Princess brought her wand around again and the earth hardened enough for the horse to pull itself free. “I’ve nothing against the horse,” Princess said as it cantered off to where Sir Maron had fallen, “but that is the last favor you should expect from me. Come at me again and I’ll kill you were you stand.”
Prince Conall slid off his horse and hurried over to where Sir Maron lay. “You’ll pay for that,” he threatened as he turned to attend to his friend. Princess shrugged.
“I’m to deliver Max Spencer and the Codex to the Tower,” she said, addressing the group. “You can’t stop me, of course. I’m a unicorn—the most powerful creature in all the Magrus. So give him up and you can leave with your pitiful lives intact.”
“Don’t you know what the Tower is doing?” Puff exclaimed from his spot on the small wagon. “They’re killing the dragons!”
A strange rumbling began beneath Max’s feet. He wondered if Princess was about to launch another spell. But instead, she turned and addressed the fluff dragon. “And here we add a fluff dragon to this motley assortment of travelers. Why should I care what happens to the dragons? They are far too full of themselves.”
“Because if the dragons disappear, the world will fill with ice,” Puff shouted back to her. “You should know that.”
“And why should that concern me?” Princess laughed.
Magar looked at the ground with a puzzled look. He was feeling the vibration too, but Princess either didn’t notice or didn’t care.
“I won’t be here to see it,” Princess continued. “I’ll be in the Techrus, eating humans. And all for this boy and his ancient book.”
Max could definitely feel the vibrations getting stronger.
“Of course, I don’t envy you,” Princess continued, obviously liking the sound of her own voice. “Who can say what Rezormoor Dreadbringer and the Maelshadow will do to the boy? I can’t imagine it’s going to be pleasant.”
The ponies shuffled as the vibrations grew stronger. Max began to hear something as well. Something that was large and moving in their direction.
“But for me,” Princess said, pointing her wand at herself. “A better deal has never been struck. So where were we? Oh yes, surrender the boy and the Codex of Infinite Knowability or die; it’s up to you. Either way, I’ll get what I want.”
Max thought about trying to use the Codex, but he knew it was futile. He also knew that Princess was right—there was no way they were going to be able to stop her. And he wasn’t about to let his friends get killed. At least Prince Conall was there to take them to safety. No matter what happened to him, his friends would be safe.
“I—” Max began to say, but then something caught his eye. It was a banner rising over the hill in the distance. With it, the rhythmic vibration increased severalfold. Princess whirled, taken by surprise. She cursed her human ears—they weren’t half as good as her unicorn ears. Ahead, the banner rose with others, followed by a long procession of knights riding on horseback.
“My father’s army!” Conall announced. He pulled the shaken Sir Maron to his feet.
“Mor Luin cavalry, to be sure,” Sir Maron agreed, wincing in pain as he spoke. He’d likely broken a rib or two.
“No!” Princess shouted, turning and raising her wand. But Magar stepped in front of her with his hands raised.
“Too many,” he warned softly. “And they’ll be supported by mages.”
Princess stamped her foot in frustration as the Mor Luin army approached. They numbered in the thousands, riding six astride in armor that glistened in the sun.
“We’ve made it past the border, then,” Conall said, smiling. “We’re home!”
“That’s debatable,” a familiar voice bellowed behind them. They turned to see the dwarf king marching at the head of his own army. A seemingly endless line of dwarf soldiers stretched out behind him, the earth shaking as the two armies approached.
“Where did they come from?” Dirk said, swiveling back and forth in his saddle.
“More to the point,” Loki added, “how do we get out from being in the middle?”
Princess swung around again and slowly lowered her wand.
The dwarf king addressed Max. “We have found our thief and his band of troublemakers. I thought an army a bit much to catch so few, but now I see it was a fortuitous decision.”
“He is no thief,” Prince Conall replied on Max’s behalf. Three knights rode past Princess, the leader gleaming in gold-and-silver armor.
The dwarf king moved forward with two guards of his own as his army came to a halt. Each group of three rode to face the other before coming a stop, with Max and his friends between them.
“Curious, this,” the dwarf king said, addressing the lead knight. “Mor Luin marches an army into Thoran.”
The gold-and-silver knight removed his helmet, revealing a man with a hard face and gray hair cut short and near the same color as his eyes. “By my reckoning, it’s the Dwarven Nation that brings their army into Mor Luin,” the man replied. He turned to regard Conall. “I’m glad to see you are well, son.” Conall bowed.
“Father, it’s been a strange journey. But it’s good to see you.”
Princess watched, curious how Max and the Codex were mixed up in all of this. She’d had thoughts of making a run for it, but as many as forty mages had moved forward through the ranks of the Mor Luin army, many eyeing her warily.
“We have only come for the book, and we will be on our way,” the dwarf king announced. “It has always been our duty to keep it safe—a duty from which we have not been discharged. It’s a matter of honor, which is something Mor Luin understands better than most.”
“This boy saved my life,” Conall said to his father. “I’ve offered him sanctuary. Moreover, he is the last descendant of Maximilian Sporazo and carries with him the legendary Codex of Infinite Knowability.” A great murmur broke through the ranks of both armies at the mention of the Codex.
“Which, as I’ve said, has been our charge to protect,” the dwarf king insisted.
The Mor Luin king motioned to Princess. “And how is this one involved in all of this?” he asked. “She’s a criminal and wanted for numerous crimes.”
“I am doing the Tower’s business!” Princess exclaimed. “I’ve been charged with returning the boy and the book to their rightful place in Aardyre.” The Mor Luin king chuckled as he turned to Max.
“Well, you are certainly of interest to many in high places,” the king said. “My son, the king of the dwarfs, the Tower—”
“And Obsikar the dragon king,” Dirk added. “We’re, like, buds.”
“And dragon kings as well,” the king continued. “And now two armies face each other, each justified in their respective claims. This is how wars begin, young man. So what do you have to say?”
Max had had a hard time speaking in an assembly once because the entire school was looking at him. Now there were thousands of eyes watching him, and he could almost feel the weight of it. He cleared his throat and took a breath. “I don’t want there to be a war because of me,” he said. “But I have to finish what I’ve started, and I need the Codex to do that.”
“It will return with us,” t
he dwarf king said firmly.
“And I have offered him sanctuary,” Conall argued. “Mor Luin will rise to his defense if you try to take it.”
The dwarf king spat. “Then it will be war.”
“No!” Sarah shouted. She jumped off her pony and stood between the two kings. “Who was it that charged you with the Codex’s protection?” Sarah asked the dwarf.
“The World Sunderer himself. Maximilian Sporazo contracted with my ancestors centuries ago.”
“And with his death, who does the book belong to now?” she continued. “And don’t say the Tower, because if he’d wanted the Tower to have it, he wouldn’t have hidden it from them, would he?”
Princess opened her mouth to speak but then thought better of it. The circle of mages and knights were slowly closing in on her, watching.
The dwarf king scratched at his beard. “Aye, it makes sense that it wasn’t Sporazo’s intention to let the Tower have it.”
“Then who?” Sarah pressed. “And the answer to that question is found in the Codex itself.”
“What do you mean?” the Mor Luin king asked, leaning forward in his stirrups.
“The reason Max is so important to everyone is because he’s the only one who can read it,” Sarah answered. “And it’s not because he studied at some Wizard’s Tower. It’s because the book is a part of him—it’s in his blood. That’s how the book was designed. And that’s how you know who was meant to have it.”
The dwarf king considered Sarah’s words. “I saw him handle the book when he placed it in the chest,” he said. “No other can even touch it, let alone read from it.”
Sarah pressed on. “I’ve seen Max read from it many times. Before we came here I saw him use it to cast magical spells. And believe me, I was the biggest skeptic there was. I didn’t even believe in magic. But I’m telling you, he did it, and I saw it with my own eyes.”
“There is no deception in her,” Conall said, rising to Sarah’s defense. “We can take her at her word.”
“So what?” the dwarf king continued. “Maybe he is the rightful owner. But it doesn’t change the fact that it disappeared while under our watch.”
“You’ve already made up for that,” Sarah said. “You found it and returned it. That chapter of your history is closed.”
The dwarf king grunted as he considered Sarah’s words. “Even so, it does not change the fact that it was taken a second time.”
“But this is different,” Sarah said. “It wasn’t stolen; it was returned to its rightful owner. And we can put an end to it right now.” She walked over to Max and had him lean down so she could whisper in his ear. When she pulled away he stared at her with a strange look.
“That’s it?” he asked.
“That’s it,” she answered. Max turned to the dwarf king and cleared his throat.
“King, you have been steadfast in doing your duty. But now, as the last descendant of Maximilian Sporazo and the chosen keeper of the Codex, I thank you for your diligence and release you from your charge.” He looked at Sarah, who nodded that he’d done it right. The dwarf king scratched at his beard.
“Yep, that will do,” he announced. “Do you hear that?” he shouted to his troops. “Our honor is intact! Our mission is done!” A great cheer rose up from the ranks and the king bowed.
“Time for me to turn around and go home,” the dwarf said to the Mor Luin king. “And if you’d be so kind, please remove your armies from our land.”
The Mor Luin king bowed his head. “We shall be on our way even so, now that we have ridden to our borders and all is well.”
“Ha!” the dwarf king replied, and he nodded to Max as he turned and rode back to his army.
Max let out a breath and turned to Sarah. “I’m really glad the smartest person I’ve ever met is also my friend,” he said.
Sarah smiled. “And I’m glad the greatest wizard I’ve ever met is mine.”
“Well done,” the Mor Luin king said to Sarah as he tipped his head.
“She is impressive, isn’t she?” Conall added. That made Sarah blush. Max couldn’t understand how she could judo-flip dwarfs and back down an army without so much as breaking a sweat, only to have prince wonder-hair make her blush with a compliment. Girls made no sense, he decided.
“Now we’ll take charge of the unicorn and escort you to the borders of Kuste, if that is what you desire,” the Mor Luin king said. Max watched as Princess was forced to surrender, the mages taking the horn that served as her wand, and the knights placing her and Magar in chains. Suddenly the words of Bellstro came back to Max: You’ll need friends—old and new.
“What’s going to happen to her?” Max asked the king. He had a strange feeling about Princess.
“For her crimes she’ll likely be executed.”
“Dude, do you realize if Princess goes down now you’ve pretty much guaranteed the messed-up future we saw isn’t going to happen?” Dirk said. “No Robo-Princess, no frobbit hunts, no all of humanity being wiped out, none of it. It’s like we just saved the world—again!”
But Max couldn’t get Bellstro’s words out of his head. Nor could he escape the feeling that was growing inside of him. “What if I need a favor?” Max asked Conall. “You know, for saving your life and all that.”
“Yeah, the life debt,” Dirk added. “You always got to make good on the life debt.”
Prince Conall ignored Dirk. “I would do everything I could to see it happen, of course.”
“Then I don’t want you to hurt Princess,” Max continued. Princess turned at the mention of her name, and the group of guards and mages surrounding her paused. “I want you to forgive her and Magar for what they’ve done.”
“Amnesty?” the king said. “You would ask this for her?”
“Max, what are you doing?” Sarah asked.
“Yeah, dude,” Dirk added, “you’re supposed to ask for a castle or magic sword or something.”
“I’m just tired of feeling like I’m always the pawn in somebody else’s game,” Max said, looking at Princess. “And I kind of think maybe I’m not the only one. I think if we offered her the chance, she would help us.”
“It is not her nature,” the king declared. “She is a creature of evil and driven by her appetites.”
“But, I don’t know,” Max struggled to say, “maybe she doesn’t have to be.”
“Father, if this is what Max wants, I owe him my life,” Conall said, although he didn’t sound like he enjoyed saying it.
Max slid off his pony and walked over to Princess. It was strange just walking up to her after their last meeting in a roaring stadium. She had been a metallic monster then, and Max could only hope he wasn’t making a terrible mistake.
“You and I really did fight once,” he said to her. “The magic in the Codex was just too strong and you lost. I know it’s kind of hard to believe—I have a hard time believing it, and I was there. But the thing I remember is that you were really angry. Like you were just miserable on the inside, no matter how powerful you’d become. You spent all those years trying to be something that maybe you never were. I think you don’t have to become that if you don’t want to. And if not, you could totally help us now and do something . . . good.”
Princess stared at Max, his words sending her head spinning. She’d always been evil, but nobody had challenged her to actually be happy. And what if he was telling the truth? He’d seen what she’d become. There was no reason in the world the human should help her, and yet he was. He had won, but then instead of claiming victory he had reached out to save her. She’d never had anybody do that before. And as she considered it, she felt something new take root inside of her.
“You are not at all what I expected, Max Spencer,” Princess said. “Why do I have the feeling you’ve just beaten me for a second time?”
“I don’t want to beat you,” Max replied. “I want you to help us defeat Rezormoor Dreadbringer and save this world. Both of you.”
“Yes,” Princess
said, thinking it over. “I believe Magar and I could help with that.”
The Mor Luin king sighed and waved his hand. “Then I pardon them of their crimes and they’re free to go.” The king then turned his gray eyes on Max. “But when the unicorn turns on you, don’t forget you were warned.”
“What the snuff!” Dirk exclaimed, running up to Max as Princess and Magar were unchained. “You don’t let the bad guys get away! Now you’ve messed everything up—plus I doubt we’ll get any experience points.”
“It’s my call,” Max said, and that was the end of that.
The army turned north and Max and his friends joined the caravan of knights, squires, mages, and supplies. They rode for a long time in silence, each to their own thoughts.
Later that night Loki excused himself from their cooking fire. He snuck through the various tents looking for a wagon he’d caught sight of earlier. It wasn’t a wagon that carried supplies or armaments, but something more important: pyro pigeons. It took the fire kitten a while to find it, dodging soldiers and horses along the way, but to his delight he found it unguarded and hitched away from the main camp. Nobody wanted a wagon full of pyro pigeons accidentally exploding nearby.
He moved through the shadows, climbing the wooden spoked wheel and up to the cage that held the birds. He whispered to the nearest in flametongue, the language spoken by those born of fire.
“I have a message for you to deliver,” he said, opening the cage enough for the pigeon to climb through. The bird listened and then nodded its head. It wore a magical inscription band that captured Loki’s message. When he was done, the bird took flight and disappeared into the dark sky above. Loki made his way back to camp and settled in for the night, a strange smile spreading across his face.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
RISE OF THE MONSTERS
THE FOUR STOOD SILENTLY IN the temple of the Maelshadow: the dwarf high mage, the Kraken, Rezormoor Dreadbringer, and the head of the Guild of Toupee Makers. It might have been a more ominous sight had they not been offered an assortment of cheese and crackers. Then again, the toothpicks were black, which was something one didn’t normally see at parties.
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