The Land of Enchantria: Birth of the Sextet and Return of the Diamond Scepter

By Bill Dispoto and Rory Decker

In the land of Enchantria, there is an ancient prophecy handed down by the imperial wizard eons ago and passed down from generation to generation.

The prophecy states that, during an age of darkness in a year of a constant moon, to a mortal woman who is queen and a mortal man who is king will be born an enchanted boy child. This child, himself destined one day to be king, will have the power to bring light to all creatures great and small. He will right the wrongs done in the name of evil, he will restore the land to its earthly form, and he will forever drive the darkness from the hearts and souls of all beings.

Six beings, all born on the same day but to different lives, have their futures inexplicably and inexorably connected to serve the prophecy. Two princesses, one the golden-haired daughter of a good king and queen, and the other the raven-haired daughter of a witch-queen bent on revenge and power. Two half-bloods, both exiled from the tribes of their parents, find each other and form a lifetime bond of friendship and alliance, pledging to protect the child princess. And, finally, two mortal enemies born in the deepest reaches of the dark forest, one half-animal/half-man with only death and suffering in its heart, and the other a member of the gifted tribe, whose abilities will mean the balance of power between the powers of light and darkness.

As they grow, their lives are all set upon the same pathto locate and obtain a magical device of unspeakable power, the diamond scepter. It is said that the scepter can make a weak enchanter strong and make a strong enchanter invincible, but legend has it that the scepter also controls the mythical Iron Army, an undefeatable army of indestructible soldiers. Both sides want the scepterthe agents of the light want it returned to its rightful place in the Crystal City, but the agents of the darkness want its power to destroy the light and rule of Enchantria.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Oct 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524551315

Bill Dispoto

Dr. William (Bill) Dispoto is a former US Army officer, construction professional, and semiretired college professor who still resides in his home state of New Jersey. When he isn’t teaching an online graduate course in business ethics, organizational behavior, leadership, or management, Dr. Bill enjoys one of his many hobbies, including experimental cooking, motorcycling, and nature spotting. But Dr. Bill’s greatest passion is his writing. He has published several titles including the social commentary novel about obesity in America entitled Dangerous Toilets as well as the prequels to The Land of Enchantria series; the children’s picture books entitled The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors; and Blue Barry, the Dragon of Hammontown. All of Dr. Bill’s titles are available online at the Amazon bookstore and at his publisher’s website: createspace.com. Look for the second book in The Land of Enchantria series titled The Apprenticeship, Part 1 and The Gift of Third Sight coming in the fall of 2015, and the rest of the series coming in the future: —Book 3: The Apprenticeship, Part 2, and the Royal Wedding —Book 4: The Book of Dragons —Book 5: The Pestilence and the Darkness

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 by William Dispoto.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2016917205

ISBN:      Hardcover      978-1-5245-5133-9

                Softcover        978-1-5245-5132-2

                eBook             978-1-5245-5131-5

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 10/18/2016

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Contents

Chapter 1: A Mortal Hybridium and a Future Queen Are Born

Chapter 2: Meanwhile, in the Crystal City, an Enchanted Hybridium Is Born…

Chapter 3: . . . and in the Great Forest, Two Mortal Enemies Are Born

Chapter 4: In Qordashia, a Witch Is Born

Chapter 5: Three Friends Grow Up

Chapter 6: Evil has mounted the birds of pestilence…

Chapter 7: Return of the Diamond Scepter

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A Dedication

The author dedicates this book to Jennifer, Barbara, Jenna, and all of the wonderful doctors and nurses in the Baltimore, Maryland, hospital who put up with him for ten long weeks while he finished writing it!

A Thank-You

The author wishes to thank everyone who made this book possible including family, friends, the wonderful people of his hometown of Hammonton, New Jersey, and especially his loyal readers.

A special thank you to all of the members of the literary community—agents, publishers, distributors, book stores—for without the incentive of their constant rejection of the author’s work this book may never have seen the light of day!

chapter1.jpg

Chapter 1: A Mortal Hybridium and a Future Queen Are Born

There is a prophecy… that in this world, during an Age of Darkness, in a year of a constant moon, to a mortal queen and a mortal king, will be born an enchanted boy child. This child, himself destined one day to be king, will have the power to bring light to all creatures great and small. He will right the wrongs done in the name of the darkness, he will restore this land to an earthly form, and he will forever drive the darkness from the hearts and souls of all men.

The Imperial Wizard

This does not bode well for me, she thought to herself as she looked down with love upon the face of her newborn son.

Priscilla had just given a quiet and private birth to her newborn and was sitting in an anteroom at the palace of the king and queen of the Kingdom of the Northern Territories. She looked down at her son—the telltale red-brown skin and crystal blue eyes, the firm chin—and she immediately knew who the father was. Hadn’t she only taken a single lover since she came into the full flower of womanhood less than a year ago? Who else could it be?

It was an Age of Darkness in Enchantria, a time of short days and long nights. The spellmasters claimed that these periods in Enchantria’s history, periods which occurred every five centuries or so, were simply the result of the laws of the world’s physical universe: the planets aligning and their rotation around each other. But most commoners believed that these ages were driven by the power of the Darkness itself, as if the Darkness was trying to impose its will on the people and secure its dominance over the power of the Light. During these ages, ages which could last from a few short weeks up to many years, death and evil prevailed. The longest Age of Darkness, which occurred more than one thousand years ago, lasted more than seventy-five years. The land of Enchantria lost almost half of its population, mortals and enchanters alike, during that age from disease, pestilence, murder, and war.

Births that occurred during an Age of Darkness were watched closely, especially the births of male children, mostly because of the prophecy. It was a prophecy handed down by the Imperial Wizard himself eons ago, but no one knew exactly what the prophecy meant. Everyone knew and understood the part about the Age of Darkness, but no one knew the meaning of the reference in a year of a constant moon. Spellmasters claimed it meant a year in which there will be NO moon, but the world of Enchantria had three moons, and the beings of Enchantria never knew a night without one or more of the moons showing in the night sky. Some claimed it meant a year of a constant full moon, but that was equally improbable. Each of Enchantria’s three moons had its own cycle and their phases were as constant as the rising of the sun itself.

But the most puzzling part of the prophecy—and the most unlikely occurrence—was the suggestion that an enchanted boy child would be born of a mortal father who was king and mother who was queen. This was, according to all the powers that existed in their world, an impossible event. Enchanted beings had enchanted offspring and mortal beings had mortal offspring—it had always been that way and would always be that way.

So the consensus among the scholars of their world was that the prophecy was simply a puzzle handed down by the Imperial Wizard, a riddle meant for only the wisest and most advanced thinkers to solve. The educated men and women among them studied and pondered the meaning of the prophecy for centuries and many possible solutions were suggested but none were proven, so to this day the prophecy remained a mystery, and unfortunately, to many it was considered a warning of darker days to come.

Priscilla was a handmaiden to the queen of the Northern Territories, the good queen Penelope, but last year, when all this started, she was a scullery maid in the palace kitchen. She was chosen from among all of the scullery maids to help serve the guests at the announcement party being held by Queen Penelope and King Jack, rulers of the Kingdom of the Northern Territories. The queen, a good, kind, and caring ruler, had just discovered that she and her husband the king were expecting their first child, and they invited rulers from all the kingdoms of Enchantria. Kings and queens from the western and eastern kingdoms came; even good king Bryce and his bride Queen Qristina from the southern kingdom of Qordashia were in attendance, despite the rumors of tension within their marriage.

The palace of the northern territories was more like a fortress than a palace; the walls protecting the palace were twenty-five feet high and more than twelve feet thick and made of solid quartz rock from the Deadspore Mountain range in the territory. There was a sentry lookout tower every fifty feet that was completely protected from the firing of arrows, catapults, and burning cubes with the exception of a six-inch firing portal that ran the length of each wall of the sentry point. To an enemy, the sentry lookouts were impenetrable; the guards could shoot out, but nothing fired at them could do any significant damage.

The castle had six tower spirals of double thick quartz stone walls, the highest was the room of the sergeant of the guard and the only member of the king and queen’s guards who was permitted to share lodgings with the royal family. The other five towers were all part of the sleeping quarters of the royal family members; the king and queen had their own quarters, and two others were empty but designated for the royal children when they arrived. The final tower was for guests of the royal family.

The castle was simple in its design: the uppers rooms were all sleeping, dressing, and washing rooms for the royals, while the first floor was reserved for the grand ballroom, the palace kitchen, the king and queen’s office, and the royal private sitting room. Attached to the main palace were several other specialty rooms mostly for military use: there was a room reserved for armor and weapon storage; there was an ammunition magazine; and a military strategy meeting room for the king and his guard to plan attacks or the defense of the palace if necessary. Located alongside of the palace kitchen were cold rooms for the storage of vegetables and fruits, a bootcher shop for the preparation of meat and poultry, and a wet room for entry into the palace when the weather was intemperate.

Despite the austere and rather uninviting look to the castle, the king and queen had gone to great lengths to soften that image. Great sums of money had been spent to plant trees and blooming shrubs and flowers all along the castle walls. Garlands of vine and holly were strung along the walls and windows of the castle and reflective lighting was used against vast candle power to cast a warm glow on the castle. The lighting of the castle could be seen for miles on a clear evening.

The party was being held in the grand ballroom, a huge expansive place with vaulted ceilings thirty feet high and made of white granite to give the room a lighter appearance. There were tapestries from kingdoms all over the world hung on the walls, tapestries depicting life and culture from every walk of life, bright and colorful things that drew the eye and gave the viewer a sense of belonging and welcome. The king and queen had adorned the floor with the purple carpet this particular evening. It was a show of respect and acknowledgment since purple was the color of royalty and since nearly every guest attending that evening was a member of some royal family. The king and queen had decided to forego the formalities of their typical grand entrance and announcement. They sincerely wanted their guests to feel welcome this night, and more to the point they wanted them to feel like friends and equals in the castle. So as soon as the guests began to arrive, the king and queen formed a small receiving line at their front door and greeted their guests as they entered the castle.

The guests began arriving at dusk and continued to arrive until the sun was completely below the horizon. Once the party was closed and the guest list was checked and checked again to ensure that no uninvited guests had snuck into the castle, the doors were closed and the attendees proceeded to the ballroom where drinks were being served. There was wine and whiskey from several kingdoms, and many of the bottles that made up the drinkers’ choice were brought by the guests themselves. There was also grog, a form of cheap drink made from water, homemade beer, and rum. Under normal circumstances, at a royal function such as this, grog would not be on the menu. In fact, serving grog at an event like this would be almost akin to an insult to the royal palates. However, the hunter-warriors from the southern plains tribes who were in attendance this evening were fans of grog; in fact, they almost lived on the stuff when on hunting parties since fresh water was often hard to find in the dry season along the hunting fields of the southern plains. Since the hunters needed some sort of fluid sustenance during these trips and since grog had the added advantage of also providing caloric nutrition, however slight, the hunters always brought a good supply of grog along when hunting. For the purposes of this party, it was simply a show of respect to their non-royal guests to provide the drink they so loved!

While the guests helped themselves to drinks, the king and queen’s royal orchestra provided music for their guests. Most of what was played were classical waltzes and minuets, but like the palace staff who were informed to cater to the drink AND food preferences of ALL the royal guests this evening, the orchestra was similarly informed to cater to ALL of the guests’ musical tastes. Every so often, the orchestra would play a jaunty field jig or a country air played by a royal bagpiper. Despite their rough sound and slightly risqué and suggestive lyrics, the guests, ALL of the guests, seemed to be enjoying the evening: there was hardly a free inch of space on the ballroom dance floor all evening!

The food tables were overloaded with every kind of food imaginable, even some of the rarest delicacies from the kingdom and beyond. There was roasted beefalo, the great hairy and horned beast that roamed the southern plains; sautéed duck and goose; and grilled deer, corrabuck, and moose-elk. The table also included every fruit, root, and vegetable grown in Enchantria, some of them shipped in from the cold storage houses of the frozen lands of the far north. And finally the king and queen supplied, from their very own cellars, bottles and bottles of sweet ciders, rums, and brandies made from the fruits of Westlandia, known the land over as the very best in the world!

It was a strictly formal affair, and the royals in attendance did not disappoint: the guests were wearing some of the most beautiful clothes made anywhere in Enchantria. It was almost as if the Imperial Wizard himself had attended and with a wave of his great enchanted hand decided to wash the room with every color on the palette. There were bright blues and reds and greens, brighter than the colors of nature itself, brighter almost than the mortal eye could stand. The women wore long lavish robes made of silky materials and the men wore their short coats, knee pantaloons, short boots buckled with gold and silver, and laced shirts.

King Jack and Queen Penelope also spared no expense or extravagance when it came to the decorations festooning the palace interior. There were tapestries from faraway lands adorning the walls and floors in every room open to the visitors. Fine china and crystal was in use and on display for the guests to admire. The gifts that the royal family had collected over their years of reign; odd gifts brought by dignitaries and other royals who frequently visited the kingdom were brought out of their dusty storage to be displayed proudly for all to see. There were tribal masks captured from the savage tribes of the deep southern plains, animal skins from around the world of Enchantria, intricate carvings made from every kind of material known to humans—anything that a master carver could get a knife into was fair game for this craft—and fine jewelry and clothing, most not appropriate for a royal party, were set out on human figures made from wood for display and admiration.

Many of the attendees traveled with their children, but since this was a party meant for the adults, the children were immediately shuttled away to a playroom upon arrival and introduction. Queen Penelope insisted that someone attend to the children, and she remembered the scullery maid from her kitchen, the one named Priscilla. She remembered some months ago when she was visiting the kitchen on one of her periodic inspections of the palace staff there was a knock on the back door of the kitchen. When asked who was knocking at the back door of the palace, the queen’s chef politely told the queen that it was probably some homeless children who regularly came to the door looking for spare food scraps. The queen, who had a big heart and was a kind and compassionate ruler, was horrified at the thought of ANY of her subjects being reduced to begging for food. She ordered the chef to immediately answer the cries of the children and see to it that they were adequately fed and cared for. It was then that the queen met Priscilla; she advanced to the queen and respectfully introduced herself and offered to tend to the children. Priscilla said that she could easily take care of the children with the large amounts of food that the palace kitchen discarded every day. Priscilla offered to prepare some simple dishes from these scraps and throwaways and feed all of the children, with the queen’s permission and at her discretion. The queen thanked Priscilla and immediately gave her permission. The queen remembered with fondness and more than a few tears how gently and with such kindness Priscilla handled the poor children; how she introduced the children to the queen and how she told the children that by the queen’s generosity there would always be food for them three times a day. She remembered how Priscilla got the children to sit quietly while she cooked, telling them tall tales of knights and heroes, enchanters and hybridia, men and creatures of all kinds, all the time not missing a beat of her spoon or a stroke of her knife as she cooked all manner of delicious food for the children. The queen returned to her palace kitchen several more times, every time making sure to return at meal time to watch Priscilla do her culinary magic, watching in amazement as Priscilla cooked. She could make so much of so little, even when there was little to offer in the way of scraps for the children. Priscilla would add anything to the leftovers to stretch the food for the children—vegetable skins and bread scraps that were meant for the garbage, to be fed to the farm animals in the queen’s stables, the pigs, goats, and sheep. Priscilla would combine these scraps and with a little ingenuity and a pinch of spice here and there could create the most delicious stews, soups, and fricassees for the hungry children; and there was ALWAYS enough to go around, no matter how many children came to the door looking to fill their bellies!

So when the queen saw Priscilla serving her guests, she asked her if she would not mind playing nanny to the royal children for the evening. Of course Priscilla was thrilled and flattered to personally receive such a request from the queen and immediately agreed. But what she found when she got to the sequestered room where the children were being tended almost made her wish she hadn’t been in the queen’s favor!

There were only about twenty children in the room but it seemed more like fifty. Children were running around everywhere and screaming. Young princes were pulling the hair of their princess counterparts, and those servants sent to the room to attend to each child did not know what to do: any servant who made the mistake of putting an angry hand on the child of a royal might just as soon find their head being removed from their body, but to allow their young charges to be menaced and bullied without intervening would be just as catastrophic and could end just as badly. Funny as it seemed but the grownups in the room looked more forlorn than the children, but Priscilla knew just what to do.

She stood in the middle of the room and in her best alto voice began singing a song, a song that she remembered her own mother singing to her whenever her mother wanted to get HER attention! She sang it loud and clear, completely ignoring the chaos that continued around her, until it began to take its effect. Children began noticing this strange woman standing in the middle of the room singing and they immediately quieted down and watched her. One by one the children stopped their ruckus and looked at Priscilla, until finally all of the children were quiet and peace once again dominated the room.

Priscilla finished her song and turned to the children and asked, Now children, who would like to hear the story about how your hosts, the good queen Penelope and her husband King Jack, met and fell in love? It is a wonderful story; a story filled with princes and dragons, trolls and enchanted horses, and magic! But you must agree to sit quietly here on the floor in front of me so that we do not disturb your parents; can you do that?

The children unanimously agreed and they all sat down on the floor and gathered around Priscilla as she began the tale, the legend of Queen Penelope and King Jack.

Once upon a time part there was a young princess named Penelope, born to King Joseph, the ruler of the Kingdom of the Northern Territories. He was a good and kindly king and he so loved his daughter, the princess, so he lavished her with gifts and beautiful clothes from kingdoms near and far. He also appointed several of the palace workers to tend to his daughter, and each had his and her own duty and set of responsibilities. There was a maiden who was responsible for waking the princess up in the morning, another to cook and serve her breakfast, and another to choose the princess’s clothes and get the princess dressed in the morning. There were other servants responsible for scheduling the princess’s day. From playtime to horse-riding lessons to her schoolwork with private tutors, nary a moment of the princess’s day was not scheduled and planned for her.

Well, can you imagine? Being so pampered and catered to that you almost never have to make any decisions for yourself? It may sound like a wonderful life, but when a child is raised like that, raised without the normal responsibilities of growing up, it can also cause many problems, like it did for princess Penelope.

As she grew, it became apparent to all concerned that the princess had become so accustomed to having her decisions made for her that she became unable to make decisions for herself. When she became a little girl and her servants would ask her what clothes she would like to wear, the princess could not decide, and the servant would decide for her. When asked what food she would like to eat or what toys she would like to play with, she simply could NOT decide! Why, even when she went out to the stables to ride her father’s horses, one of the things she liked to do most of all as a princess, she would spend long minutes puzzling over which stallion to ride. Her good friend Jack, the king’s stable boy, would sometimes help her. Jack was not a prince. He was just a commoner who had a talent for handling animals, even the most ornery and uncooperative! He was not handsome, strong, or rich, but he was kind to people and animals and he was very, very clever. There was not a piece of equipment that Jack could not fix or repair, and there was not a problem that Jack could not solve using only his wits.

He would ask the princess, "My princess, what kind of riding do you want to do today?

"If you want an exhilarating ride, riding fast over hill and dale, then take Victory. He is the fastest and strongest horse in your father’s stables.

"If you want to ride slowly and quietly, at speeds no faster than a canter, staying on the main trails and roads to enjoy the beauty of this day, then take Magnolia. She is the calmest and steadiest horse in your father’s stables.

But if you want to ride formally, like you were riding in a competition, trotting and jumping over the obstacles set up on your training path, then take Rodney. He is the best trained horse in your father’s stables.

Well, the princess’s problem went largely overlooked until her eighteenth birthday when the king decreed that it was time for the princess to choose a husband. He sent word out throughout the kingdoms of Enchantria that the royal families should send their princes to the Northern Kingdom as prospective suitors for the princess. Princes from far and wide, hearing about how beautiful the princess was, came to the palace to ask for the princess’s hand in marriage.

Among the princes who came to the palace was Prince George, the strongest prince in the land. He could wrestle dragons with his bare hands and would have tug-of-war contests with teams of horses just for fun!

There was Prince Stephen, the handsomest and best dressed prince of the land. His good looks made princesses swoon and his lavish clothing was the talk of all Enchantria!

There was Prince David, the richest prince in all the land. His family had rooms of gold, silver, and jewels. Why, there was even gold thread spun into his cloak that he wore over his clothes!

The princes brought wonderful gifts to the princess, trying to win her favor—gifts of beautiful clothes, fine and delicious foods, and gold and jewels. But as it was her nature, the princess just could NOT choose from among the princes. Each was wonderful in his own way, but she could not choose.

Word spread throughout the kingdom about the princess’s dilemma. The wild animals of the fields and forest would whisper to each other about the poor princess who simply could NOT choose, until one day word reached the deepest and darkest part of the Northern Woods and the cottage of the three trolls.

They were three brothers, all masters of the troll tribe. There was the black troll, master of the rocks. He could summon rocks so big and heavy that not even the strongest mortal man could move them!

There was the silver troll, master of all things steel. He could fashion anything from steel, and the enchanted weapons he made—swords, daggers, and spears—were deadly in the hands of those who wielded them!

And there was the gray troll, master of paper, but not just simple paper. His enchanted cloaks of paper were all but indestructible. He could wrap anything up in his enchanted cloaks of paper and it could not escape. Why, he could even make things disappear if he wanted them to!

The trolls heard of the princess’s trouble by listening to the whisperings of the wild animals of the forest who lived around their cottage. The troll brothers lived together but mostly alone. Their only visitors were the enchanters and mortals who came to seek their enchanted rocks, cloaks, and weapons, but none ever stayed long or became friends. So the trolls devised a plan. They would send their most beautiful enchanted horse to the kingdom. Once the princess saw the horse and climbed aboard to ride it, the horse would swiftly return home and the princess with it! Once they had the princess at their mercy they would keep her as their slave, to cook and clean for them, to be released only when she could decide which prince to marry! Knowing that she was incapable of choosing, the trolls were confident that they could keep the princess forever!

So the trolls cast a spell on their most beautiful white horse, Clarion:

Go from this place, travel the roads to the castle of the king…

Cast a spell upon the princess… of you she will sing…

. . . she will whisper, she will shout of your wondrous beauty…

But return with the princess to be sure… that is your duty.

The trolls sent Clarion to the palace of the Northern Kingdom to capture the princess. They didn’t have to wait long, for one day as she was walking through a beautiful green meadow of tall soft grass Princess Penelope spotted Clarion from across the field. It was the most beautiful horse she had ever seen, more beautiful even than any of the stallions that her father, the king, had in his stables. The horse was standing in the middle of the field, next to a red apple tree, feeding on the sweet apples that had fallen to the ground. She approached the horse carefully and quietly, not wanting to frighten it away! When she reached the horse, she couldn’t help herself but to stroke the horse’s soft mane. It seemed so calm and friendly. She reached up to the apple tree and took down several apples and offered them to the horse, which hungrily gobbled them up. The princess laughed at the horse and decided that she just absolutely HAD to ride this magnificent animal! So while the horse feasted on the apples that she had picked for him, she carefully jumped up on its back . . .

And it was then that the spell cast on Clarion did its evil work… the horse immediately bucked, and ignoring the meal of sweet apples, began to run toward the darkness of the woods of the great forest with Princess Penelope on its back, hanging on tightly. The princess remembered what her father had told her one day when she was young:

My dear, mark me well… you are NEVER to enter the great forest by yourself. There are evil and unfriendly creatures living there that might do you harm… so promise me that you will never venture into the forest without an escort.

She tried and tried again to jump from the back of the beautiful white horse, but the animal was moving too quickly, she feared if she jumped she might be killed. So instead she held on to the horse with all of her might as the horse ran deeper and deeper into the forest. The princess could sense eyes on her, the eyes of unholy and vicious creatures hidden from view behind the trees, bushes, and undergrowth that marked the trail upon which they were traveling. She prayed that the horse would not stop until they had reached some sort of civilization, the dwelling of some friendly subject of the kingdom from whom she could seek help.

The princess got her wish. As Clarion reached the center of the forest, the deepest and darkest part of the forest, there was a cottage, and the horse stopped running. Penelope jumped down from the horse and approached the cottage. It was a simple cottage, but there was a soft glow coming from within and smoke curling up from the cottage’s chimneystack, so she could tell that someone was home. She decided to take the chance and knock on the door and ask the owners for help.

Please help me, said the princess after knocking on the door. I am Princess Penelope, daughter of Joseph, King of the Northern Territories, and I am lost. A beautiful white horse brought me to your cottage and I need your help to get back home to my castle. If you help me, I know my father would reward you handsomely for your assistance.

But instead of people, it was three ugly trolls who answered the door, all smiling with menace and evil in their hearts. The three trolls said to the princess:

Welcome, dear princess, to the cottage of the three master trolls of the forest. Your life now belongs to us and you will do our bidding. You will clean for us, cook for us, and do chores for us until the day you are able to choose a husband from among the princes attending your father at his castle. In fact, if you can make your choice right now we would be glad to put you back on Clarion and have him take you safely back to your father. Can you choose?

AHA, the princess thought to herself. They have made a mistake, thinking that I cannot make a decision for myself! Why, all I have to do is choose ANY of the princes. How will these trolls know if I actually marry the one chosen?

But try as she might, the princess could NOT make such a choice! Even though it meant forfeiting her life and freedom, try as hard as she could to choose she could not make the choice; each time she was about to speak the name of one of the princes she would change her mind. So sadly she entered the cottage of the three trolls as she was ordered to do.

It wasn’t long after the princess was kidnapped that the king received word of her plight. He sent word out throughout the kingdom for men willing to risk their lives to rescue the princess. Soon after word was sent out, princes George, Stephen, and David asked for a meeting with the king:

Your highness, we would like your permission to go from your castle and enter the great forest to rescue your daughter. All we need are three strong and reliable horses from your stables and we will be off. In return for our service, all we ask is the hand of your daughter in marriage to the prince who is successful in bringing the princess back safely.

The king immediately agreed and sent them to his stables to choose their horses. The princes met Jack, the king’s stable boy, who assigned the princes the king’s three best horses. But what they didn’t know, what NOBODY in the kingdom knew except Jack himself, was that Jack was also in love with the princess. He asked the princes:

My great princes, please allow me to accompany you on this dangerous quest. I can tend to the horses and fix your equipment when it is needed. Please allow me to be your squire on this journey.

The princes agreed. They knew they needed someone to do the common things, things that were below their station as princes, like cook meals for them and fetch water for them and take care of their animals. So Jack saddled his own horse and accompanied the princes into the dark forest.

For two days and nights they followed the princess’s trail from the grassy meadow through the dark forest. The creatures that called the forest home watched with interest as these interlopers passed through their forest, but none of them attacked or confronted the travelers. The most interested creatures were the evil Yeenoks. They watched eagerly as the four friends passed through the forest, their sharp white teeth glowing in the darkness. Several times one of the Yeenoks would try to attack one of the travelers but each time was stopped by the leader of the pack, the mother gray Yeenok. She knew there was a reason for these men to be invading the territory of the forest, but she also knew that now was not the time to attack and kill. That day would come soon, but it was not today.

After two days and nights of traveling, the four companions came upon the cottage of the three troll brothers. They jumped down from their horse and it was Prince George who spoke first:

Hear me, master trolls, I am Prince George, the strongest prince in all the lands, and I challenge you to a battle. The winner shall claim the princess as his prize!

The three trolls came out of their cottage to confront the intruders while the princess watched from the window of the cottage. There was some quiet arguing among the three brothers concerning who would battle Prince George, and it was the black troll who won:

"Ahh, my young prince, said the black troll, I see that you are both brave and strong, but are you strong enough to fight the magic of the black troll, master of the rocks?"

And with that the black troll summoned a huge black boulder and hurled it at the prince. It was too big and heavy for even Prince