Valvazor and the Glass Mountain

By Anthony Delaney

Good King Merek of the kingdom of Megonset had a problem. Despicable Prince Lugaid of the Principality of Gherran was intent on marrying his lovely daughter, Princess Perpetua. This would make him the Kingdom’s Prince Consort and complete the first step in his plan to unite Megonset with his principality of Gherran. He had decided to use subterfuge to do it, only because he could not do it by force. His partner in this plan was Megonset’s very own Donguy, 13th Earl of Fullmont.

As for Princess Perpetua, she was of marrying age but she seemed determined to marry no one. With that attitude Prince Lugaid saw his chance to marry the Princess by forcing her parents into a marriage of convenience. He would use his advantage as a Sovereign Prince and his knowledge of the kingdom’s laws to force the issue. How could the royal family resist him?

One day the Prince visited the Royal family under the pretext of bringing a gift of a fine horse for the King. As might be expected his visit quickly turned unpleasant when he all but demanded to marry Perpetua. Afterwards a very upset Perpetua ran from the castle to take refuge in one of her favorite places, the royal stables. There she met Lad, the young man who handled the horse Prince Lugaid had brought for her father. As circumstance would have it they met a number of times and developed a bond and fell in love.

King Merek had to find a way to say no to the Prince’s ambitions without offending him. A direct rebuke potentially held many dangers for the Kingdom yet he had to find an answer. The answer came to him one morning after a unique dream. Late at night, unable to sleep, he went to the castle kitchen to satisfy his sweet tooth. There, his chef Maximillian created a rich chocolate dessert and he ate every spoonful. When he returned to bed he fell into a deep sleep and dreamt of a turbulent chocolate sea from which rose a small crystal dome that turned into a glass mountain. He and caramelized sugar knights emerged and charged up its sides with the single aim of reaching the top. Next morning he awoke knowing he had the answer to all his problems. He’d have a contest. He’d build a glass mountain and knights would try to ride up it to win his daughter’s hand in marriage. To create a more flamboyant event he thought they should have to collect something from the princess as she sat on top of the mountain. He decided golden apples would do wonderfully. Perpetua would have three golden apples to hand to the knight that got to the top. The knight that won them would be the winner and the entire kingdom would enjoy the show. If you wanted to marry his daughter, you would have to compete.

Next morning he told Queen Mildred his idea. She thought it was completely crazy and blamed it on indigestion. At first glance it did seem crazy but the King and his Prime Minister Fendrel had an agenda. You see the mountain would be made so no one could win and without a winner everyone was safe. This would force Prince Lugaid into a competition he couldn’t win and with no other winners his ambitions would be thwarted. It would also give Princess Perpetua a chance to marry the man she chose. The only drawback was that the contest would have to be held every year until she married.

It was during preparations for the contest that problems began. Together, Prime Minister Fendrel and the King decided to search out Valvazor who lived across the Mandragore Meadow next to the dark Thraxhandleberry Forest. They needed his help. Unbeknown to them things had begun to unravel. Princess Perpetua and Lad had continued to meet; Prince Lugaid was not duped by the contest and devised a way to cheat to win. The Prince suspected Lad of seeing someone at the royal palace so confined him to empty stables during the contest. And Valvazor, who turns out to be Lad’s friend and helper, well he turns up in unexpected places. And as Prime Minister Fendrel tells King Merek, “Things are not always what

• Language: English
• Publisher: Anthony Delaney
• Release date: Nov 22, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005974480

Anthony Delaney

ANTHONY DELANEY grew up in California. He ran a bank there for six years, lived and worked in the Middle East for eighteen years and retired to the South of France where he lived for three more years. His return to the United States impressed upon him the need to find a focal point for his energies. He tried painting but was disappointed with his efforts. In 2009 he took a job with the Navy Museum in Washington DC where he wrote contracts for their operations. Although he loved his work and the museum, he felt that after two years it was time to move on. Now he lives in the Deep South and has a new point of interest. Always a lover of books, he has decided to learn the self-publishing business. To that end he wrote “The Nonsense Rhymes of A. Bootrus Walley” and "Valvazor and the Glass Mountain." He is working on another A. Bootrus Walley book, a collection of short stories and the thing closest to his heart, a murder mystery set in Champagne and Bordeaux, France.

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Valvazor and the Glass Mountain

Copyright © 2017–2020 by Anthony E. Delaney

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form, in part or in whole, or any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the express prior written consent of the author.

This is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, or events used in this book are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, alive or deceased, events or locales is completely coincidental.

E-book formatting by Maureen Cutajar

www.gopublished.com

CONTENTS

Introduction

Map

Chapter I

Chapter II

Chapter III

Chapter IV

Chapter V

Chapter VI

Chapter VII

Chapter VIII

Chapter IX

Chapter X

Chapter XI

Chapter XII

Chapter XIII

Chapter XIV

Chapter XV

Chapter XVI

Chapter XVII

Chapter XVIII

Chapter XIX

Chapter XX

Chapter XXI

Chapter XXII

INTRODUCTION

The beginnings of this story, as I first heard it, go back a long way. When I was a little boy my mother told me stories at bedtime. Once in awhile she would read me a classic children’s story but most of the time she made them up. She was very good at it. She loved making this one up and always changed it slightly every time she told it to me. One day I was in a contemplative mood and began thinking about the stories she told. This one had always been a favorite of mine so I chose it to write down.

It always started out, once upon a time, there was a king. He decreed that his beautiful young daughter would sit atop a mountain holding three golden apples. The knight who rode to the top of the mountain and caught the apples she threw down to him would be the one to marry her. A lowly cinder lad who loves the princess mysteriously gets three suits of armor and three grand chargers. He rides up the mountain three times, catches the apples, and they live happily ever after. Part of the magic of the story was the plopity plopping of the knight’s horse’s hooves as Mom pounded the bouncing bed. That was mixed with the anticipation of the thrown and precariously caught golden apples, but I always knew Lad would win. For me it was great fun.

As I began to jot down the storyline I soon discovered it wasn’t that easy. As an adult I had a thousand questions that hadn’t occurred to me as a little boy seventy-four years ago. Every time I wrote something down I found myself asking why did the king do it, where was the bad guy, how did Lad get those very expensive suits of armor and magnificent horses. There were no answers. When I talked to my mother whose 96 now, she could no longer remember, even if she had ever known. I ended up starting out with a bedtime story she told me when I was a little boy that I couldn’t quite remember. So I made up questions and then answered them. In the end I wrote my own story.

I hope you find it fun to read.

—A.E. Delaney

CHAPTER I

Once upon a time there was a king and his name was Merek. Now King Merek could be impetuous and like some people, king or not, he sometimes made very hasty decisions. He once made an impulsive decision that turned out to be so stupendous its result shattered the Kingdom of Megonset’s reality. His Queen was named Mildred, and they had a lovely daughter named Perpetua, Pippa to her father. She was of marrying age and her parents eagerly looked forward to the day when she would marry. As loving parents, they wanted grandchildren to spoil. But to their disappointment, the Princess refused to consider any of the young suitors who petitioned her father for her hand in marriage. As you can imagine they weren’t very happy about that.

As for their kingdom of Megonset, it was wonderfully picturesque and the royal family lived in a castle perched atop a high hill. To them, it was the most perfect place in the world to live. From their high vantage point they had an ideal view of the countryside, with its meandering roads and livestock grazing contentedly in lush pastures. Off in the distance a road could be seen passing through the village of Tips Willow. This charming little village of cottages with steep gray tiled roofs, and tall red brick chimneys would ultimately prove to play a central role in the King’s hasty stupendous decision. Beyond Tips Willow, the road went by Fullmont Castle, the ancestral home of Donguy, 13th Earl of Fullmont. It continued on to the dark forests and hazy high mountains that marked the Kingdom’s border with the Principality of Gherran, ruled by Sovereign Prince Lugaid. This part of the Kingdom’s lands included the Earldom of Fullmont and so the Earldom to bordered the Principality of Gherran. And as circumstance would have it, through various marriages, the Kingdom’s Earl of Fullmont and the Prince of Gherran were also cousins. The surprise of what was to come would mark the Prince of Gherran as Princess Perpetua’s most determined suitor.

The castle on top of the hill had long since been transformed from an intimidating fortress into an elegant palace. The old fortress’ chambers had sparsely covered granite walls filled with roughhewn furniture and dank fireplaces. But, now it had richly decorated rooms filled with elegant furnishings and on the walls hung refined tapestries and fine paintings. Some of those paintings where of the royal family’s ancestors and lined the walls of a special gallery near their royal apartments. The old castle’s thick rough oak plank doors had been reworked and now were covered with magnificent carvings with inlaid wood. In some places they were even covered in gold.

The King’s ceremonial guard now stood watch where knights in battle-scared armor once stood, and they wore dashing uniforms of luxurious fabrics dyed in the King’s royal colors. Their tunics were deep scarlet with billowing scarlet and silver stripped sleeves. They wore black pantaloons tied at the knee with scarlet ribbon and black knee-high boots with glistening silver buckles. Their helmets were a dramatic style made of polished steel called Morion helmets. The helmets’ dome that covered their head had a curled metal brim whose center was just over their ears but rose to a point in both the front and back. Down the top of the helmet’s center was a raised area displaying the royal coat-of-arms. The guards looked so regal; they had good reason to carry themselves with pride. Yet, with no real soldiering to do, they also got quite bored. And as everyone knows, a boring task can make it difficult to stay awake. So these splendid looking soldiers, so proud of their appearance, perfected the skill of dozing or daydreaming while standing guard.

The incident that set the King on his way to making his quick, stupendous decision began on a lovely spring day. For the guards this day started like any other. They had settled in at their posts with no hint of anything to upset their usual day-dreamy, dozy routine. Then, an extra ordinary thing happened. Without warning came a loud swish and an ear-shattering bang. The doors to the royal apartments suddenly burst open and banged against the wall sending an explosion of sound echoing down the long solemn portrait gallery. The dozing sentries were jolted awake in a flash. They were caught off guard, and their hearts thumped wildly and the halberds they held, those long poles topped with ornamental axe heads, wobbled about.

The guards just started regaining their composure when Queen Mildred came charging through the doors. Scurrying after her came Princess Perpetua, trying to catch her. Their hurried footsteps were muffled by the rustling sound of their dresses sweeping across the marble floor. A moment later came the scuffle and rustle of Lady Orberreta and Lady Phyona, two of their three ladies-in-waiting. They had also been caught off guard by the Queen’s sudden rush into the portrait gallery and were doing their best to catch up yet still look dignified. All together, they made quite a picture as they hurried down the hall.

Lady Orberreta was first through the door after the Queen and Princess. She was a tall, stout woman with wild, curly, firebrick red hair that she wore in a contorted bun on top of her head. She made a bright picture as she dashed through the door because she had a passion for color, and she embraced all the colors in the rainbow. She even insisted on all her dresses being made of rainbow colored material. With her imposing stature, her shocking hair, and her colorful clothes, she seemed to use up all the space in any room she entered.

Close beside her trotted Lady Phyona who was a unique individual in her own right. She was a short, slight little lady with stick straight hair the color of straw. It was forever flying about in little wisps so she kept it pulled back into a small bun at the nape of her neck. Unlike Lady Orberreta who wore every color in the rainbow at once, Lady Phyona wore only pink. She had clothes of many textures and styles, but everything was in shades of pink. In fact, it was said that even her unmentionables were pink although the source for that was never pinned down.

It was some minutes before Lady Prysyllah, the most senior of the royal family’s ladies-in-waiting, would follow the others through the door. She believed that because of her age and shining crown of silver hair, she should never hurry. To hurry was simply undignified, unladylike, and below her station in life. Let the others clamber if they must but scrambling was not her way. Where the other ladies had dashed into the portrait gallery, Lady Prysyllah strode into the gallery with a hint of ceremony.

Earlier, it had been plain to see the Queen was flustered but her ladies-in-waiting were not sure why. They noticed she had been anxious all morning and nothing they did seemed to ease her apprehension. They knew Earl Donguy had asked for an audience with the King on behalf of the Prince and that the King had asked the Queen to attend. They thought this might be the reason for the Queens unease. The King had found the Earl’s answers to his questions evasive, even cagey, so with his curiosity piqued, and his suspicions raised; he agreed to the meeting. He wanted to know what the two men were up to. After giving the situation much thought he had decided that Queen Mildred needed to be there with him. He knew she would not be pleased, but he felt it important that she knew first-hand what was going on with the two men.

Queen Mildred did not care for dull court audiences where the King and she received dignitaries. She particularly avoided them where Prince Lugaid was involved. To her, he was a dreadfully disagreeable man, and he never failed to make her feel uneasy. She understood why the King had asked her to join them, but this did not keep her from feeling flustered when she thought about it. Her husband understood how she felt about the man because he felt the same.

Once it was decided that the Queen would attend the audience, she decided that Princess Perpetua and their ladies-in-waiting should attend also. She felt their presence would give her comfort and moral support. As a rule, they would not attend such an audience but than again, given half a chance, neither would she.

Yet, it was a real surprise to everyone when she jumped up and crashed through the doors of her apartments into the palace portrait gallery. Stunned, Princess Perpetua and their ladies-in-waiting had jumped up and rushed to follow. Although Lady Prysyllah was also startled, she took the time to collect herself before she followed her queen and the others. She refused to be rattled. But, this did not mean she did not share her Queen’s concern about the upcoming audience with Prince Lugaid and his cousin, the Earl of Fullmont.

As she followed the others down the hall Lady Prysyllah became aware of a clicking sound at her feet. She looked down and saw the court’s dog that had been dubbed Sir Mortimer of the Darting Tongue following her. She reached deep into a pocket of her elegant flowing gown and tossed him a treat. He was a cute, tiny, mixed-bred little dog, mostly Chihuahua, with long skinny legs, an upturned nose and bat-like ears. Years ago a scullery maid found him shivering and starving at the palace kitchen door. She brought him in, warmed him up, and asked the palace chef, Maximillian, if she could feed him. Before it was decided what to do with him, Princess Perpetua discovered him, and adopted him. She was the one who gave him the name Sir Mortimer of the Darting Tongue. She was convinced it was the perfect name for a dog that was always on the lookout for a good place to lick. When he got near a target, his tongue began to dart in and out. He had started his court life as her puppy and soon everyone at court had adopted him. He was a clever little fellow and was quick to learn he could mooch treats from almost anyone. One of his most endearing traits was his affectionate embrace of almost, but not quite, everyone.

Whenever Prince Lugaid visited the kingdom he stayed with his cousin Donguy. He much preferred staying with him instead of at the palace because he found being an official guest of the crown too restrictive and transparent for his liking. The Queen found it disturbing that recently he was visiting Donguy more often and staying much longer than ever before. She had always felt a little indifferent toward the Earl, but the recent flurry of visits from his cousin had raised her suspicions. Yet, Donguy was the Earl of Fullmont, descending from a long line of the kingdom’s loyal noblemen. As such, he deserved to at least be treated with courtesy and respect. She worried that he felt more allegiance to his cousin than to the King and Megonset. What also troubled her was the fact that Donguy’s Fullmont estates bordered those of the Principality of Gherran. No, she did not feel good about today.

Hurry up, hurry up, the Queen loudly whispered. She appeared flustered which was unusual. She was a stately and graceful woman who, under most circumstances, was quite a calm person. I don’t trust Lugaid as far as your father can throw him, she said to her daughter. He’s an unscrupulous scoundrel, a bully and a brigand in a prince’s clothes. He’s so greedy and ambitious. I think he’d do anything to get what he wants. After a short pause, with more pique she added, You know at times your father can be quite a gullible man and with Lugaid you must always be on your guard. We should hurry. We need to be there before they arrive.

Why worry? What problem can Prince Lugaid cause us? asked the Princess naively.

Princess Perpetua kept adjusting her gown, trying to keep it straight as she hurried to keep pace with her mother. Not far behind, they could hear their ladies-in-waiting as their shoes slapped against the marble floor. They were doing their best to catch up yet maintain their dignity.

Well just you mind what I said about him, said the Queen. Your father and I believe he’s trying to increase his land holdings by doing whatever it takes to gain control of Megonset. That would combine his lands with ours. If that ever happens, we have little doubt that he would threaten the Kingdom of Arelwyn to the west of us. He might even look south to threaten the kingdom of Yaliwyr. But, he needs Megonset to do it. We’re much larger and more powerful than Gherran so your father doesn’t think he’ll try to take us by force. He thinks he will try to take Megonset by subterfuge. The Prince has been visiting the Kingdom way too often for no apparent reason. And everyone knows there’s not that much brotherly-love between him and his cousin. They’re a bit too chummy for my money, even if they are related. We believe they’re hatching a plot of some sort. We’re just not sure what. But whatever it is, it’s can’t be good.

Can’t father put some pressure on Prince Lugaid in someway to stop him from being threatening? And Donguy is an Earl, a peer of the realm. Why doesn’t Father just strip him of his title and banish him?

Its not that simple, answered the Queen. We don’t have much leverage. Because Gherran and Megonset border one another, throwing our weight around might hurt people on both sides of the border. That would never do. We might find a way to constrain the Prince’s ambitions but stripping Donguy of his title! Well that would be almost impossible. Since time immemorial his father and all the previous Earls of Fullmont have been valiant supporters of the kings of Megonset. Your father just can’t strip a peer of his title for just any old reason. But, if he’s colluding with his cousin to do something against the kingdom and we catch him in the act, well that’s a different story.

We think the Prince will try to take control of the kingdom by trying to marry you my dear. But, your father will deal with that when it happens. There’s one thing for sure, the Queen said with added emphasis. There has to be something more going on between Lugaid and Donguy than just being cousins. They have to be watched. It won’t be easy, and you can believe that.

Oh Mother, why would the Prince be interested in me? As for marrying him, I could never love him!

Who said anything about love my dear? muttered the Queen.

For a moment Princess Perpetua paid no attention to her Mother’s comment. He’s old and pompous. He’s frightening and gives me the shivers, and he’s just plain mean. He’s terrible, all horses and fighting. I didn’t like him the first time I met him and I don’t feel any better about him now. I’ve heard it said he has only two emotions, greed and anger.

Well, the Queen turned to look at her daughter. Holding out her arms, she took the few steps needed to reach out and put her arms around her. She whispered, Well dear, things in life don’t always turn out just the way we want or even how we plan them. And anyone who has been on this planet long enough will agree with me that things are not always what they seem. We have a responsibility to protect the kingdom. If Lugaid sees marrying you as a way to take control of Megonset, then we must see you married to someone else and deny him that option. And your father says he will see you married soon. He wants to be a grandfather. Love or no love. The Queen added with just a little reproach in her voice, You haven’t been interested in any of the suitors who’ve come calling. Some of them were good looking, and I thought quite satisfactory.

Turning away, the Princess snapped, That’s terrible. It makes marriage sound like a business. I don’t want to think of it that way. I’d always imagined that I would marry for love.

Well that’s all well and good but not always the way things happen. And in a way marriage is a business and a sound one is good for everyone. If you’re lucky Perpetua, you may get love and happiness. Just look at your father and me, said the Queen gently but firmly. Come along now, she said. Then she whispered, I have it on good authority that Lugaid has other emotions besides anger and greed. He does well with envy and jealousy to. But to be fair, I know he has a soft spot for his pet marmot. He simply adores it. Takes it with him everywhere. The dumb thing sleeps seven or eight months a year. Can’t see it myself. No telling what catches some peoples fancy?

Queen Mildred let out a mischievous little giggle. Then together, arm and