by Dave Hazel
“So what the hell happened? Do we know if she is alright? Do we know anything?” Mykal demanded.
It was clear to them, especially Towbar, that Mykal’s heart was broken over the situation with the girl Doninka.
“Captain Diaz and Captain Oakenfold were near when the attack occurred,” Chick said. “From what Captain Diaz briefed me on, the attack happened while you were departing to go back to the world or just before you left, but you were back here in this area.”
“From what Diaz explained to me, my friend,” Towbar said. “Dragons flew into the Pass. There were four of them with evil riders on them and they flew straight to her position. This was not by chance, but a deliberate attack against the girl, the King’s daughter,” Towbar added and his voice rose in anger. “The twenty-one soldiers with her fought fiercely when the dragons and their riders surrounded her. She was captured as were the two who are missing. Thirteen were killed in the battle and so were four of Diaz’s men and seven of Oakenfold’s men.”
“When the creatures grabbed her,” Chick inserted himself into the explanation. “And I say creatures because they were not Sosos and they were not human, but some kind of creature.”
“I know. I saw them before I left. We killed a few of them,” Mykal said. “They were definitely not human.”
“Once they had the girl in their possession, our men backed off from firing on the creatures for fear of striking the girl,” Chick said.
“Well, that was New Year’s Eve. That’s almost a damn week,” Mykal gasped. “What have we done or what are we doing to get her back?”
“I just arrived here yesterday my friend,” Towbar replied. “It took more time for the Elves to decide how large of a force to send here than it took to get the leaders to agree to move to this part of the world. They have not committed completely to move here until those that are here inspect the lands and verify what I offer is a legitimate option to what they face now. Zizmon-Tarl’s forces and allies are encroaching on their lands as we speak. While our discussions took place, several skirmishes had broken out on the outskirts of their forest. The Elves know it is only a matter of time before a full scale war erupts. If the situation permits I am to return the Elvin leaders, who are here, back to their home. With their recommendations they will either approve of a mass exodus to this side of the world or stay to battle for their homeland.
“Over many years in their forest, more than a hundred and fifty years,” Towbar continued. “The situation has gradually increased that a full scale war will break out against them. They explained to me that they know all the nations who surround them are puppets of Zizmon-Tarl. The nations of evil peoples have grown tremendously while their population, the Elf population, had maintained only a minimal increase that has not kept up with the growing forces that surround them.”
“Wow, it sounds like they’re desperate,” Mykal said. “They’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. Did Starling, Leeno and Blair return with you?”
“Yes. They are acting as advisors to the Elvin leaders in the group that arrived here with me.”
Mykal suddenly expressed his frustration. “Well, whatta we gonna do about Doninka?” He asked and suddenly felt sick to his stomach because he knew he could have prevented her being taken captive by the enemy and what evil creatures Zizmon-Tarl has at his disposal. Before anyone answered he fired off other questions. “Okay, so if they went straight for her they had to have known who she was, but how? And if they did know who she was, the princess, daughter of King Loankore, whatta they gonna do to her? Or what are they gonna do with her? Will they blackmail your King? Has there been any kind of demands or anything from them bastards?”
“My friend, Major Chick and I were going to put together a plan,” the giant said sadly and looked defeated. “Now that you have returned here, we can all work together to come up with a strategy.” Towbar sighed. “I must admit my friend, this is very difficult for me,” he added and looked at both Mykal and Major Chick as if his admission of hurt emotions was to remain a secret. “I, personally, am responsible for her protection.”
“I hear ya. I’m shocked. I’m stunned. I don’t know what to say right now,” Mykal said.
“From the time she had been taken,” Chick said as if to take charge. “There has been no attempt to make a demand from what we can understand. I would agree that I think they know who they have in their possession. Once she had been taken, the Sosos pulled out of the Pass. Shortly after she had been captured they went back to their original camp location about two to three miles away from the Pass. So I would think there is going to be some sort of negotiations attempted. Otherwise it wouldn’t make any sense for the Sosos to give up all the ground they gained after all the loss of life they sustained.”
“Are you serious when you say they left the Pass?” Mykal asked. “They gave up all that ground they fought so hard to take? Do you know how many Sosos they lost to take that little bit of ground? And they just gave it up like that?” He asked with a snap of his fingers. Obviously they already knew it and Mykal had said all that just to make it clear in his mind that the Sosos backed away now that they had Princess Doninka in their midst.
“Oh yes,” Chick answered. “It was almost immediately after they took her. Our headquarters had been back here but the company commanders out on the front lines called on the radios and said they pulled back. We were leery of a trap so we waited and after it was clear they really pulled back, Towbar’s soldiers and the Dwarven warriors worked to remove the dead from the pits they filled. They moved all the bodies out to where the other bodies had been removed to. So the pits and the ground in front of the pits are cleared of the dead. If you go to the front, you will see we have our original position once again. And another amazing point to share is while the Sosos were returning they set off two different land mines that had not been stepped on the whole time they were out there. The men toward the front called and told us the Sosos looked back as if maybe we had attacked them, but they had been ordered to keep moving and on they went. They left the front of the Pass.”
“Wow! Are you kidding me?” Mykal barely whispered. He wasn’t really speaking to them, but trying to make sense of why they would give up the ground they fought so hard to take. They lost so much in blood and lives, but then the Sosos never valued life as Americans do. “They must think they really do have something to hang over King Loankore’s head. What do you think the King will do? He wouldn’t give in to any demands, would he?”
“I do not know my friend,” Towbar said with a sigh and shook his head.
“Whatta ya mean you don’t know?”
“That is his daughter my friend.”
“Towbar, you gotta be kidding me,” Mykal gasped. “First of all do you think they will honor any agreement they make? And what kind of an agreement would they make? Where we are from, we never, and I mean never negotiate with terrorists or you will have problems forever. Cuz once you buckle under their demands then all they gotta do is capture someone important any time they want and they got you by the short hairs.”
“Short hairs?” Towbar asked and looked confused.
Chick snickered and turned away since he understood what Mykal expressed.
“Forget that. It’s just a crude saying to make a point,” Mykal said and had to let out a slight laugh. “It means they got you where it hurts. He can’t negotiate with them,” he pleaded desperately to his friend to convince the king.
“Then they will kill her,” Towbar said.
“I understand what you mean Towbar, but they’re probably gonna kill her anyway,” Mykal said and it hurt when those words left his lips. “But if you give in to their demands, they’re gonna kill everyone else. You can’t let them win because they have someone near and dear to the King’s heart. Understand me when I say that Towbar, cuz I just fully realized and I fully understand how much I love that girl. I’m gonna make it my mission to try to get her back. I don’t know how, but I gotta rescue her,”
he said and realized his insides churned wildly.
“That is my desire as well, my friend,” Towbar said and sighed. “I fear one of the demands on the King would be for the King to step down from the throne and allow his son Locod to rule in his place. Hence at the moment of change there will be no blood shed. However, Locod would only be a puppet ruler for King Monahakald, the leader of all the Soso nations, thus in turn he would be a puppet on a string for the evil Zizmon-Tarl. That would make it easy for the evils from the other side of the world to be thrust upon us and enslave us making Zizmon-Tarl the ruler of all the world.”
“Towbar, you can’t let that happen. Forget that, we have to try to find her. If we can find her and rescue her then we’ll be back to where we were before and have to fight the evil bastards. And my government really doesn’t want them to win. Speaking of which, Major Chick, we have a serious problem.”
“What kind of a problem?”
“First of all, do you know a Marine Colonel Marc Fisher? He is a full bird colonel.”
“Yes, I know who he is,” Chick answered slowly as if he was thinking back in time. “I’m sure we have met on two or three occasions. Why?”
“He is with the group that is coming behind me and he’s gonna take over and take your spot as commander,” Mykal said. He watched Chick’s expression and though Chick didn’t respond vocally Mykal clearly saw Chick’s jaws tighten. “And just my dealings with him for ten minutes, he’s a friggin prick. I don’t like the guy at all, and I think we’re gonna have problems with him.”
“Why do you say that?” Chick asked.
“First of all, they gave us all we need, but to make a long story short, my DC contact is Percy. Percy said they will give us everything we need to defeat the Sosos but we have to be careful not to make it look like we’re going to conquer another nation so our build up is gonna be slow with the Presidential elections coming up in November and then once President Edmonds is re-elected then they will go all out. My fear is once they help us beat back the Sosos, they are gonna come here to rape Towbar’s land. Hell, they’ll take everything from Towbar’s world. But that’s neither here nor there right now. I just want you to be careful cuz he’s coming here and he’s gonna take over. He told me so himself. And he’s not playing games. I told you that so you can be on your toes. Don’t let him know about your arrangement with King Krago,” he whispered so Innes and Taylor couldn’t hear him.
“I see,” Chick said and seemed to sigh. “Well, he obviously outranks me, so there is nothing I can do about that, but the other thing,” he whispered in reference to his agreement with King Krago to take diamonds out of the mountain. “That is just between us.”
“I’ll need you to keep your eye on this friggin Colonel Fisher, cuz I’ll be busy with Towbar trying to see if we can rescue Doninka from the Sosos.”
“I do not think she is with the Sosos,” Towbar suggested.
“Why do you think that?”
“Because of our last mission to rescue your people from the Sosos, we successfully took your people right out from under the protection of the Soso army. I do not think he, meaning Zizmon-Tarl, will allow the Sosos to guard such a precious treasure.”
“What would he do with her then?”
“I believe, and I hope I am wrong, however, I believe he would take her back to the palace of King Monahakald deep into the Soso lands and I fear he may guard Doninka with his special creatures. That is just my guess. We successfully took their prized prisoners from the Sosos so I believe the dragons, their riders and the Things would be employed to prevent us from removing her from their grip. From King Monahakald’s castle deep in Soso lands he could make demands on King Loankore without the fear of your people taking her from him.”
“How in the hell are we gonna be able to track her down if that’s the case?” Mykal asked with an exaggerated sigh.
“If we have to venture into the Soso lands I would not know where to go,” Towbar replied. “However, Starling, Leeno and Blair, all the Elves for that matter, said they would march upon the Soso lands if it came down to that,” Towbar said with a frown. “They said they would do that in order to show King Loankore they are allies with us against Zizmon-Tarl and his puppets such as the Soso king. Conversely my friend, I do not think they understand the danger in their suggestion. As Major Chick said previously, they believe there are more than a million warriors out before us,” he added and nodded to Major Chick.
“We do in fact believe there are far more than a million that have laid siege to the Pass opening,” Major Chick replied.
“So what happened to the dragons and the Things that were behind the Soso lines when I left?” Mykal asked. “The pilots flew overhead and they were back there waiting to get into the battle.”
“I do not know my friend,” Towbar answered.
“After the girl was captured the enemy pulled back,” Chick said. “There hasn’t been an attack since then. They must still be back there.”
“They could be back behind the Soso lines or Zizmon-Tarl could have taken them back to his part of the world,” Towbar suggested. “Until we scout the area it would be impossible to know for sure. However my friend, I am of the belief Zizmon-Tarl would have left his creatures here to maintain control over and to guard Doninka.”
“Major Chick, the rest of our reinforcements will be getting here in a little while. I will let you look at my book,” Mykal said and handed Chick his three ring notebook. “They didn’t classify this as a secret item just to keep from drawing attention to it, but it is classified Top Secret. It is filled with all the information of what we’re bringing here. You will be getting one of these when they get here. It lists everyone and everything we brought with us. They really want us to win and after the election they will send whatever we need. My contact said we will turn this into a real military installation. They’re not screwing around, but this Colonel Fisher seems like he’s gonna be difficult,” Mykal said and paused. He wasn’t sure if he should say what he was about to utter. “I’m going to be busy cuz I’m not gonna rest until we find Doninka, but I want you to keep me informed of what’s going on and I want you to tell me if Colonel Fisher becomes a problem.”
“A problem?” Chick asked and looked up from the notebook. “What do you mean Myk?”
“I like the way you run things and he’s obviously going to take over so I don’t know what’s gonna change around here.”
“Mykal, I appreciate your concern.” Chick started to laugh. “I’m a Marine Corps officer. He outranks me. There is nothing I can do. I’ve been in similar situations in the past. It is a part of the military. I will be honest and say I’m a little disappointed since I was told from the start I would be in charge of this operation. The truth of the matter is I am dedicated to my Corps. If my superiors believe someone is more qualified than I, I will submit to that authority. As you know, that is the way the military rank structure works. Colonel Fisher may have a better way of running things, and I will just have to accept it,” Chick added and tried to hide the look of disappointment that washed over him.
“That’s what I mean, let me know if he’s gonna be a problem for you,” Mykal said and felt awkward because he didn’t want to make it obvious that he was about to threaten Colonel Fisher. Mykal knew he wouldn’t have to do anything other than have Towbar ensure Towbar’s soldiers have an accident take place. ‘What the hell am I thinking?’ He wondered and glanced down at the ring he believed was going to create more problems for himself.
Chick stared at Mykal as if trying to understand what Mykal was suggesting. “But to be fair to those above me, the operation in essence did change so they didn’t pull the rug out from under me so to speak.”
“But I don’t want you to lose your position as the top dog.”
“Mykal, I’m a Marine,” Chick cut him off and held his hand up to stop him. “When I’m given orders by those above me, I will carry out my orders to the very best of my ability. Unless this Colonel
Fisher is planning to give our resources over to the enemy, I will have to obey orders.”
“Yes Sir,” Mykal snickered out of admiration. He knew he never had it in himself to be that dedicated to the military he was once a part of. “But, I will say for the last time,” Mykal whispered so Innes and Taylor couldn’t hear him. “If you ever feel he becomes a problem for you, then just let me know.”
“Will do Myk,” Chick said and nodded his smile to show he appreciated where Mykal’s heart was in the matter. Major Chick stuck his head outside of the tent and invited Major Innes and Captain Taylor in.
“Okay, with that being said,” Mykal rejoined with a loud clap of his hands as if to change direction, “what are we doing to find Doninka? What do we know for sure? Has anyone spoken to the six injured men to see if they know anything? Do we know anything about the two that were captured with her? Is there anything in their past that would show them to be men who would turn against the throne or be in cahoots with Locod, and that’s if the King’s son is behind this,” he added and looked at Towbar.
“My friend, I know all twenty-one men involved,” Towbar said with a straight faced seriousness. “I handpicked them because of their loyalty and trustworthiness. I know the heart of man is fickle and I know men can be bought, however I would stake my very life on the fact that they did not turn against the throne. I took great care in selecting men to protect Doninka. I do not say this lightly. I say this because I do not want to waste precious time investigating paths that will lead nowhere.”
“You’re right, I agree with you. I don’t wanna waste time, but I don’t understand what’s going on. Sir,” Mykal turned to Major Chick. “From what you heard does it seem like they know who they have? Or did those creatures just grabbed some random girl and two men and then--”
