Kinderling 59

  In case you are interested in starting this story at the beginning, Kinderling 1 can be found here:

The Tricycle of Thought: Kinderling 1

Please don't judge the story or the writing too harshly, this story is written with little to no editing.  It is just meant to get me writing regularly for practice.  

Now back to our story, already in progress.

After hours of debate, the "War Council" was no closer to solving the problem.  Even with Baot and Daggi losing support from the Mountain King, it didn't appear that they would lose the platoons of Gorf soldiers that they already had.  Even one platoon would be enough to beat us.  We just had a bunch of scared villagers and the few surviving Kinderling militia members that managed to escape.  

The Elves were gearing up to leave the next day to crush the Mountain King, and the King of All made it perfectly clear that we would be on our own when it came to the village.  He wasn't mean about it, he just pointed out that he was already helping by removing the Mountain King's influence.  I had to admit he had a point.  I guess prestige can only get me help up to a certain point.

On his invitation, I spent the evening after the Kinderling "War Council" meeting broke up sketching runes and rune patterns below decks of the Star Sailor's Sky Ship.  They were fascinating and I felt like I was on the verge of understanding them.  Of course, I could only give half of my mind to the effort, which probably destroyed any chance I would learn anything of value.  The other half of my mind kept going back to our problem with Baot and his Gorf soldiers.

Late in the evening, disappointed from failing to really understand the runes, and failing to find an answer to the villages problems.  Worn out from a long day of worry.  I found myself at the door to my quarters.  Well, our quarters.  Mizzy and I having long given up trying to have separate rooms.  

Mizzy opened the door.

"I though I heard your footsteps."  Mizzy said.  "Only yours would be so quiet and contemplative."

With that, Mizzy took me by the hand and guided me into our rooms and held me while I cried in frustration.  

"The new day's dawn will look better, you'll see." 

I wished, not for the first time nor the last, to be able to share Mizzy's optimism.  Lying there in Mizzy's arms, I could at least feel my worries drain away.  At least we were safe in the garrison.  Baot could break his platoons of Gorf soldiers on the defenses of this place, and still we would be fine.  As long as Mizzy and my family was here, home was here.  What more could a Kinderling girl need?

I actually slept better than I had for months.

Early the next morning I stood at the end of the Outcropping that gave the Garrison at Outcropping it's name, waving goodbye to the Star Sailor, the Lady of Eastwood, the Elvin King of All, and all the others.  Even the former Elven Captain who tried to kill me was there, but I wasn't waving a fond farewell to that one, that one got nothing more from me than a "good riddance".

"You amaze me Tandy,"  Mizzy said, "We're seeing your friends off, and still I detect the hint of a scowl on your brow."

I sighed, "I know it's bad manners to say goodbye with anything but wishes for good fortune." Wishing someone good fortune as they leave, of course, being one of the most basic of Kinderling customs.  While I didn't know how that was supposed to work when sending friends off to war Mizzy was right, even the youngest Kinderling pouchling knew this.  "I'm sorry, but I still have the problem of what to do about Baot stuck in my head."

"That does seem a big problem,"  Mizzy smiled.  "But it's the best kind of big problem."

I looked at Mizzy like she was off her rockers.  "How can you say that?"

"Because it is.  It's a big problem, but it's way over in that direction somewhere and it can't hurt us here.  I mean sure, Baot could send his Gorf army to come get us, but he doesn't know where we are." Mizzy explained.  "Zon and his militia have been keeping a pretty close eye on the village, and so far Baot hasn't sent out scouts this direction.  I think the way you rescued me has Baot looking in the wrong direction.  I know you'll come up with some way to stop him.  "

 Never mind that Mizzy's "over in that direction somewhere" was completely off, she did have a good point.  The threat of Baot was far away - not all that far, but far enough anyway - and if he was looking in the wrong direction.

"Mizzy!  You are brilliant!"  I had to go find Uncle Zon.

Then Mizzy sighed in a way that told me she was afraid to tell me something.

"Ok, out with it."

 "Hmmm...  I know you are working as fast as you can, and I don't want to put more pressure on you, but Baot is getting paranoid and desperate, he has started torturing some the villagers that stayed."

That was a shock.  I didn't expect even Baot to go that far.  "How bad?"

"Zenna said she saw him put old Grandfer Burl in the middle of some of his Gorf soldiers and demanded that Grandfer Burl's family tell him where we were.  Of course they didn't know, we've been very careful.  Burl's son Stem told him something.  Zenna said she wasn't close enough to say what, but Baot must have already knew it was the wrong answer because Baot told his Gorfs that Grandfer Burl was food!.  They tore him apart and ate him!"

Mizzy was getting hysterical at this point and all I could do was hold her and try to comfort her.  After she cried for a bit and got herself back under control she said.  "I knew Grandfer Burl.  He was the one that taught me about which herbs to smoke and what the benefits were.  Zon said they were traitors and got what was coming to them, but Tandy, they were just scared.  I talked to them before they bowed to Baot.  Grandfer couldn't take the cold damp of the caves.  So they did whatever Baot said so they could go home.  They aren't bad people, they were just scared."

"I suspect that most of the villagers that bowed to Baot did so for similar reasons.   Don't worry Mizzy, I'll figure something out.  I already think I have part of a plan."

That evening, I sought out Uncle Zon.  

"Mizzy tells me you have been keeping tabs on the village." 

"Yes.  I thought it would be wise to have a warning when Baot figures out where we were.  To my surprise, so far he still seems to be looking the wrong direction."  Uncle Zon said, "Probably still thinks he's chasing you and your mother."

"That's what I came to talk to you about."  I said,  "I think I have an idea if your militia is up to it."

Uncle Zon and I talked about the idea for a few hours, him trying to poke holes in my ideas and coming up with refinements.  Me poking holes in his refinements as well defending my ideas.  Then we took it to the "war council".

"I see where you are going with this Tandy,"  Mama said,  "But it's risky, and I don't see how it would make anything better."

"What happens to the Gorf Soldiers if nobody is there to command them?"  I asked, looking at Mother.

"I don't know."  She replied.

"I do." Said Mizzy.  "or at least I can guess.  When Daggi would take off the command bracelet or walked out of range, I couldn't move.  Tell them!"  Mizzy had brought Dobbo with her, and he looked uncomfortable.

"W-Well, before Baot abandoned me, I overheard him and Daggi talking about a master bracelet.  I didn't know what they were talking about at the time, but now it all makes sense.   If they have it finished, it would control all the harnesses.  There are also control bracelets that are more limited.  I think they can control only a small number of harnesses.  I saw the first few of those being tested.  Baot probably gave one to each of his people, and they are only able to control a small number of Gorf Soldiers, probably a squad, maybe a platoon but I doubt he would trust giving that much power to anyone."

"If that's true," I asked, "Why was Mizzy unable to move when we found her but the Kitchen Gorf kept cleaning the kitchen?"

"I don't know what you are talking about, Kitchen Gorf?"  Dobbo replied confused.

So I told him an abbreviated story of how we rescued Mizzy.  I didn't go into every little detail because, I'm ashamed to say, I still didn't completely trust Dobbo.

"AH...  I would be willing to bet that they did finish the master bracelet, and that was what was controlling the...  Kitchen Gorf.  As for Mizzy's harness, it probably wasn't linked to the master bracelet yet."  Dobbo explained.  "Baot is paranoid, the only one he completely trusts is that nephew of his, Beso.  Which I find absolutely hilarious since, unless he's changed, Beso is more interested in his social life than anything else."

"Social life?  Is that what you call it?"  I had to admit, hearing Beso's name again brought back the memory of the crying Kinderling girl that I saw coming out of Beso's office before we escaped.  As far as I knew, that Kinderling girl didn't make it to the garrison, so she's probably still in Beso's slimy clutches.  I guess my comment came out more heated than I intended because Dobbo cringed back and I found myself the center of some shocked attention.

"Sorry everyone.  Before we escaped, Baot was trying to force me to marry that slime Beso, and something I saw...   Never mind, not important right now, just Beso has a lot to answer for."

"I...  I'm sorry for ever having anything to do with the whole lousy lot of them."  Dobbo said, he sounded serious.  "And not just because Baot turned on me.  I should have realized what Beso would do with power if he ever got it.  I should have figured out what Baot was up to sooner and did something about it.  Everyone here has been so nice to me, I don't deserve it."  I was taken aback by how distraught Dobbo obviously was.  

"Yes, you should have!"  Mama surprised me by yelling,  "But the past is the past.  Should have, would have... None of that matters right now.  What matters now is what we do from here on.  I'm not absolving you of what you've done, but it seems to me like you've suffered enough already.  It's time to get up and move on."

Silence fell as Mama glared at the cringing Dobbo.  I couldn't help it.  I started giggling, not loudly, but  it carried through the silence.  Then I saw the shocked look on Mizzy's face at my giggles and could no longer stifle the laughter.  I know, I know, this was serious business.  There was nothing funny here.  But it all hit me as ridiculous.

Lucky for me, my laughter was contagious and soon everyone was laughing.  Even Mama, who almost never laughed couldn't escape it.  

Once the laughter finally died down, it was time to start working on my plan.