When Your Novel Strikes Back

by Heather Lawson

  Chapter the Tenth – Knights and Dragons and Dan, Oh My!

  “Well, if we wanted a quiet entrance we’re not going to get it now,” Dan said, looking at Ally accusingly.

  “Shut up Dan, at least she came down the wire,” Heather said. “Now, which way do we go?”

  “Let’s go this way,” Ayesha said, pointing towards a small turret that had a door on it.

  The group followed Ayesha as she made her way across the flat roof towards the door. She was just about to put her hand on the handle when the door burst open, sending her flying to the left, and several men in shiny armour filed out of the door carrying long swords and broad shields.

  “Ayesha!” Ally and Heather shouted, running over to make sure she was okay.

  “Halt! Who goes there?” one of the guards said.

  “Halt yourself, you just hurt our friend!” Heather replied, walking past the group of men.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry,” the same guard who had spoken said, his voice softening.

  He pushed his visor on his helmet up to reveal his face and bent down beside Ayesha too. He lifted her head and they watched as she opened her eyes again.

  “What happened?” she asked, gazing around.

  “You had a nasty bump,” the guard said. “Sorry about that.”

  Heather and the guard helped Ayesha to her feet again. She swayed slightly when they let go of her but she managed to stay on her feet.

  “What are you doing up here?” the guard asked them.

  “We were in that tower over there and this was the only place we could go from there,” Ally said.

  “But… how did you get in that tower? No one’s been in that tower for years,” the guard asked.

  “It’s a long story,” Heather said. “Look, can we just go? Please?”

  “I’m afraid we have to take you to the King now, you’ve trespassed and so he will want to have a word with you,” the guard said, placing a firm hand on Ayesha’s shoulder and leading her through the door that he and the rest of the guards had come through.

  Some of the other guards grabbed the rest of the group and forced them to follow the head guard down a spiralling staircase. The castle felt warm inside, several torches lined the walls and cast the corridors they walked down in a lovely golden glow.

  They soon found themselves standing in front of two very large, ornate doors. The lead guard knocked on the doors and waited.

  “Enter!” a booming voice called.

  “I don’t like where this is going,” Heather whispered to Ally, who was standing beside her.

  The doors creaked open and the group was marched inside the room by the group of guards. They made their way down a long red carpet that led them to the throne where the King was sitting. There was silence as they walked, broken only by the doors closing behind them. They came to a stop in front of the King, who glanced down at them with a horribly angry looking face. Ayesha gulped loudly. The guards took a few steps back and left the group standing alone in front of the King.

  The King leant forward in his throne, looking at each of them in turn.

  “Waha! They’re perfect!” he shouted, throwing his hands out to the side.

  Heather and Ayesha both jumped in fright, Ally took a few steps backwards from the King.

  “So… trespassing on my roof from a tower that even I haven’t been in? Mysterious indeed.”

  “Please, your majesty, we’re just trying to leave,” Heather said.

  “Leave?! But you only just got here!”

  “Yes, but we reall—”

  “No! No, I won’t have it.”

  “But…”

  “I have a job for you! You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

  Heather opened her mouth to argue but closed it, confusion forming on her face.

  “A job?”

  “Yes, it’ll be fun and exciting!”

  The King waved his hands in front of his face, trying to show just how exciting this job he had was.

  “With all due respect, we’d really rather just leave.”

  The King dropped his hands to his sides and let his face fall into a frown. He nodded to one of the guards and they grabbed Crast and Clay.

  “Now you strike me as the kind of people who would want to help their friends,” the King said. “So, if you don’t do this job for me, I will have your friends thrown into the dungeon of death.”

  “The dungeon of death?” Heather repeated.

  “Yes, it’s a dungeon… of death,” the King said, dramatically. “It’s where people go to die.”

  “Right.”

  “What is this job?” Dan interrupted, stepping forward so the King would see him better.

  “Man in tights! Good to see an eager soul,” the King said, clapping his hands together.

  Dan’s eager face fell into his signature pout at the mention of the tights.

  “I want you to accompany my bravest knights,” the King said, throwing his hands out dramatically again. “They will be going on a quest to slay the dragons!”

  “Dragons? Are you serious?” Dan said. “Ayesha, what kind of world did you throw us into?”

  “An awesome one!” Ayesha replied.

  Dan rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the King.

  “If we go with your men…”

  “My knights.”

  “Your knights, and help them slay the dragons, then you’ll let us all go?”

  “You have my word.”

  “Alright then, let’s go.”

  Dan turned to the others, expecting them to be eager to go.

  “Come on, you want to leave, don’t you?” he said.

  “We’re going because we want to see dragons, not because you want us to,” Heather said, pointing at Dan.

  “Then it’s settled! You shall leave at once!” the King said, clapping his hands together and then leaning back in his throne.

  The knights surrounded the group once more and led them out of the throne room. They walked in silence down corridor after corridor until they reached another set of intricately designed doors, much larger than the ones leading to the throne room. The lead knight pushed the doors open, revealing rolling country sides and a beautiful blue sky with a bright sun shining down on them. They stepped out of the castle, breathing in the wonderful scents around them. The group turned to look at the knights, waiting for them to show them where to go, but they didn’t seem to be moving.

  “So, when do we head to the dragon’s lair?” Ally asked.

  “We’re here already,” the knight replied, turning to look at her.

  He had been staring at a mountain to the right of them. It had a large entranceway cut out of it and what appeared to be a giant welcome mat sat in front of the cave.

  “It’s right next door to the castle?” Heather asked.

  “Yes,” the lead knight said, venturing onto the welcome mat. “It was here before the castle was built and the dragons have caused nothing but problems ever since.”

  “I see…” Heather said, turning to look at the others, who shrugged.

  They walked down the cave for what seemed like hours. Their footsteps echoed loudly all around them but the knights seemed to be ignoring the sounds they were making, they were watching the tunnel ahead of them intently.

  Finally, a soft orange glow met them as they rounded a corner and Ally, Ayesha and Heather finally caught sight of the dragons.