Chapter 10

 

 

Giselle found herself seated at the bride and groom’s table, chatting with King Roger and his wife, Queen Marie. Nem-Nemon was across the table from her chatting with Mother Poinsettia, whilst Crimson Bone had gone off with Stone-Fist and Iron-Ear in search of an ale.

 

She was picking at some food, not really hungry after being spooked by Henbane’s visit when another wizard of the Dark Order suddenly came up to the table and bent to whisper to Nem-Nemon. He must have said something interesting because they both suddenly looked at her, their gaze intense. Then the wizard suddenly vanished, conjuring himself away somewhere and Nem-Nemon crooked a finger at her.

 

Giselle got up and went around to him.

 

‘I think we have a way to help you, princess,’ he said.

 

‘You have?’ she asked hopefully.

 

He nodded.

 

‘Will you go and round up Crimson Bone and the dwarves,’ he said. ‘We’ll conjure back to my castle and I’ll tell you all about it.’

 

Giselle ran off eagerly to find them, wondering what he had thought of. She also wondered whether it had anything to do with the other wizard. She soon found the trio, all enjoying foaming tankards of ale as they watched a juggler tossing flaming daggers into the air.

 

‘Nem-Nemon says we’re leaving,’ she said as she rushed up to them.

 

‘What… now?’ Stone-Fist said, eying his fresh tankard a little wistfully.

 

Giselle nodded.

 

‘He… he says he’s found a way to help me,’ she replied a little breathlessly.

 

‘If it means an end to Henbane, let’s not dillydally about it!’ Stone-Fist said and he quickly drained his tankard.

 

They made their way back to the table and joined Nem-Nemon who was talking with Mother Poinsettia.

 

‘It sounds like a very unusual scheme,’ the witch was saying. ‘But it would rid us all of Henbane.’

 

‘My thoughts exactly, Mother,’ Nem-Nemon said and the witch then turned to Giselle with a smile.

 

‘Well, it’s been very nice to meet you, my dear,’ she said. ‘Come and visit me when you’re free of Henbane.’

 

‘Thank you, Mother,’ Giselle said. ‘I will.’

 

‘What’s the plan, Nemon?’ Stone-Fist asked, keen to know what the wizard had come up with.

 

‘I’ll explain once we’re back at my castle,’ he replied mysteriously.

 

* * *

 

They quickly conjured back to the wizard’s castle and Nem-Nemon left them there, saying he had to conjure elsewhere to see about the plan. Crimson Bone decided to go down to the Jolly Jester to see how his ship was. But as they walked through the castle they heard a commotion of loud voices. It was coming from the courtyard where Nem-Nemon played croquet and they headed out a door to it.

 

They found nearly the entire crew crowded about the croquet lawn, a gabble of voices in the air as they discussed a game going on. To Giselle’s surprise, Blacky the Midnight Dragon had woken up again and was leaning down from the cliff top, his attention on the game as well.

 

They found Bloat Belly and the pirate Wartface in the middle of a game.

 

‘Hey, skipper!’ Bloat Belly greeted him. ‘You’re just in time to see me wipe the lawn with Wartface’s nose when I win this game.’

 

‘It’s not over yet!’ Wartface said, though he didn’t sound all that confident.

 

Bloat Belly grinned and striking the black ball, sent it skimming across the lawn and hitting a peg in the middle.

 

‘Ha!’ he crowed in delight. ‘I win!’

 

‘Excellent shot!’ Blacky growled above them.

 

‘How long have all you lot been playing?’ Crimson asked.

 

‘Nearly all day, skipper,’ Wartface replied. ‘We played a knockout competition and the whole crew got a game in. It came down to Bloat Belly and I and he just beat me two games out of three.’

 

‘It’s been very entertaining,’ Blacky said above them. ‘I sometimes wake up and watch when Nemon’s playing with folk. It’s hard being so big as I’d love to play it myself.’

 

‘Will you be off looking for some coal now that you’re awake again, Blacky?’ Giselle asked him.

 

‘I might… I’ll doze a bit again and think about it,’ he replied.

 

Giselle smiled. That would mean he might doze for a week or year before deciding.

 

‘Are we leaving, skipper?’ asked a pirate named Diggler.

 

‘Not quite yet,’ Crimson replied. ‘How’s the ship? Someone watching her.’

 

‘Sharkbait and some others who lost early are with her,’ Diggler replied. ‘We finished the repairs, though she’ll need a new rudder soon. It took a beating during that witch’s storm.’

 

‘Well, we’ll see to that at the closest port we get to once our business here is finished,’ Crimson said.

 

It was getting dark now, the day drawing to a close. The pirate crew headed off through the castle back to the Jolly Jester. Giselle and the others headed toward Nem-Nemon’s study, but on the way they came across a pirate standing like a statue in a corridor. Dink was sitting on his shoulder and whispering in his ear.

 

‘Oh, troll’s breath!’ Crimson Bone cussed. ‘Bruiser’s under her glamour.’

 

‘Push off, Dink!’ Stone-Fist said, swatting at the mischievous fairy who took to the air with an angry hum.

 

‘He likes my stories!’ she protested.

 

‘Everyone likes a fairy story when you put a spell on them!’ Iron-Ear growled. ‘We’ll be telling Nem-Nemon about this.’

 

Dink gave a squeal of fright and flew off in a cloud of scattered fairy dust. Crimson Bone put a hand on Bruiser’s shoulder.

 

‘Wake up, Bruiser!’ he said.

 

The pirate suddenly shook himself as if coming out of a trance.

 

‘Skipper! Where… where am I? What happened?’

 

‘Nem-Nemon’s fairy put a glamour on you, Bruiser,’ Crimson scolded. ‘How many times have I told you lot not to wander around his castle alone.’

 

‘Gosh, skipper… I only went to the toilet!’

 

‘When did you leave?’

 

‘I was the first to loose at croquet… just a few minutes ago.’

 

‘It’s almost night, Bruiser!’ Crimson laughed. ‘You’ve been standing here all day listening to that damn fairy.’

 

Everyone laughed at that and Bruiser went quite red in embarrassment.

 

‘Where is she?’ he growled. ‘I’ll pull one of her wings off!’

 

‘Don’t be stupid!’ Crimson said. ‘If you go after her, she’ll just snare you again.’

 

They decided to see Bruiser safely through the castle as the pirate was still a little woozy from Dink’s glamour. Once that was done they returned to Nem-Nemon’s study and found he had returned. With him was the wizard Giselle had seen speaking with him at the wedding. They were both were leaning over a map on the desk.

 

‘This is Seb-Sebek,’ Nem-Nemon said. ‘He’s the president of the Kingdoms Council of Wizards and was at the wedding when Henbane turned up. He’s come up with an idea of how we can rid us of her and we’ve just returned from the Kingdom of the Moon where the plan will put into action.’

 

‘So what is this plan?’ Stone-Fist asked.

 

Seb-Sebek smiled in that dark way that only wizards seemed to be able to do and proceeded to tell them what he had in mind. Giselle, Crimson Bone, Stone-Fist and Iron-Ear listened in mounting astonishment at the bold, if not mad sounding scheme. At the end Crimson Bone gave a hearty laugh.

 

‘This’ll teach the old hag a lesson!’ he said.

 

Stone-Fist and Iron-Ear were pleased too, happy to see the end of the witch. Giselle however was rather unsure about the whole thing. It sounded very risky for her and she said so.

 

‘Yes, it will be dangerous, princess,’ Nem-Nemon agreed. ‘But anything we do against Henbane would be risky. But if this works, she won’t be bothering anyone ever again.’

 

He taped the map with a finger.

 

‘This is a map of Moonton, the capital of the Kingdom of the Moon,’ he said. ‘We’ll leave you four in this building in some storerooms under street level. Henbane will arrive and locate you. When she does you have to make it look like you’re fleeing her and lead her into the building across the street.’

 

‘That won’t be too hard,’ Iron-Ear said. ‘She’ll be after our blood after all the trouble we’ve given her.’

 

‘I’ll put some countering spells on you that will protect you from any great harm,’ Nem-Nemon said. ‘But you need to get her to the third floor and this spot near this wall. Once she’s there, I’ll conjure you all away and the trap will be sprung.’

 

‘Are you sure it will work?’ Giselle asked, still a little nervous.

 

Seb-Sebek smiled darkly again.

 

‘It’s been used before,’ he replied. ‘It will work, no matter how powerful she is.’

 

‘So when do we go?’ Stone-Fist asked.

 

‘Tonight!’ Nem-Nemon replied.