CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FOUR
Trelio didn’t mind going underground. He liked the novelty of travelling there. What he soon realised was that he still felt the location of the key. When he held the magical wand it naturally moved to point to where the key was.
As he, Krolith and Kolan entered the Troglodyte Kingdom once again, they travelled as quickly as possible. This time the Troglodytes ignored them as they weren’t dressed like prisoners any more.
As they arrived in the Goblin Kingdom, Trelio became concerned.
“What’s the problem?” said Krolith, seeing Trelio’s concern.
“The key isn’t getting any closer! It’s moving away from us as fast as we are following!” said Trelio.
“Hopefully Larros will stop at some point!” said Kolan.
“I am not sure he is in the Goblin Kingdom any more,” said Trelio.
Following the direction of the wand, the group soon found themselves leaving the Goblin Kingdom by an unfamiliar tunnel. Lining both sides of the tunnel were the gruesome hides of various creatures, including humans, hung up on display.
“Orcs!” said Kolan.
“Do we really want to enter the Realm of the Orcs?” asked Krolith.
“Well, that’s where Larros and the key are,” said Trelio.
“They’ll eat us alive!” said Kolan.
Feeling like he had abandoned his quest for the key, Malcolm boarded the ironclad ship with Roubar, Klinto, Hilary, Madeleine, Princess Candera and King Frederick.
Malcolm hated going underground and was glad not to have to travel there again. He trusted Trelio, Krolith and Kolan to return with the key if possible, and without Casper he was no use in terms of magic or fighting in a confined space.
Roubar was doubtful that the High Priest would provide any assistance. He was pleased King Frederick had decided to come with them, as it gave him the option to say it was a royal request.
Hilary and Madeleine were becoming progressively more worried about Klinto, who was showing signs of illness. His skin had changed colour and was covered with brown blotches and he was sneezing continuously. When asked though he said he was all right and they shouldn’t worry.
Klinto was very embarrassed. Something that all male Dwarves suffered with was the “time of toil”, an event that hit every male Dwarf around every two years: for a few months they were affected with a recurring ailment that made them useless. This time it had come early before he had made a planned return to the Dwarven Kingdom. He hoped it would be a mild case and he could get through it. Female Dwarves were unaffected by the toil and this helped to explain why in Dwarven society the women were dominant.
Princess Candera and King Frederick talked at length for the first time about the death of their father. King Frederick said that unlike his father, he had absolutely no problem with her relationship with Madeleine. He had seen some dreadful things while he was a slave and he was still getting used to being free. He told Princess Candera that if he ever became a proper king again he didn’t want to be a dictator; he had seen the perils of being at the beck and call of one person when he was a slave.