The Three Furies (Erec Rex) (17 page)

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"Sorry, Danny. No, you're fine. I've just been . . . spaced out after getting run down by Harpies and having armed guards shoot at me."

June's hand flew to her heart and she gasped. "If I hear that one more time, you'll never be allowed out again. In fact, I don't think you should go anywhere. It's far too dangerous out there with people looking for you, hunting you down." She sat down and crossed her arms.

"I'm so sorry, modom," Jam said. "It was completely my fault. I should have been supervising him. It was wrong of me to let him go alone."

Erec did not say a word. Jam had not let him go alone, he just had gone without asking Jam. Which was what he would do again, if anyone tried to stop him. He had a quest to complete. He had to save Bethany. The dragon blood was in his pocket, ready. Everything was lined up as it should be. The only question was if Danny and Sammy should join him.

Little Zoey plopped on his lap, and Trevor lay on the floor next to him, his red hair flopping over his dark brown eyes. Trevor set down his Super A Team action figures and said, "Tell us about your next quest."

Everyone in the room looked at Trevor. He spoke so rarely that people were usually surprised when he did. Erec often wondered what was going on in Trevor's mind. He had a feeling the thought process was probably pretty complicated.

"Okay, Trevor. It doesn't seem too bad, really. I just have to go visit this King Augeas guy and introduce myself. Pretty boring, huh?" This seemed like a good time to play up how safe it was, for his mother's sake. "I'll say hi, then he'll say hi. I'll say, 'I'd like to introduce myself, your highness. My name is Erec Rex.' And he'll say, 'Well, hello there, young man. It's nice to meet you. Is there anything I can do for you before you go on your way?' I might ask him for a snack, then I'll be off." He smiled. "It's cake."

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Zoey giggled. "Cake. I want some cake." Aunt Salsa rushed over with a slice of cake on a plate for her, making her laugh more.

"One thing I don't understand," Erec said. "The Fates said I had to do most of the quest before saving Bethany. How can I do most of introducing myself? Should I say, 'Hello there, nice to meet you King Aug--'" He laughed. "And then later I'll come back and say, '--eas. My name is Erec Rex.'"

Aunt Salsa handed Erec a plate of cake and cookies. Zoey scooped a handful from his plate, getting more crumbs on Erec's lap than into her own mouth.

Jam cleared his throat. Clearly he wanted to say something about King Augeas, but was holding back to avoid being rude.

Erec did not want Jam to scare his mother with whatever terrible story he had about the king. But, at the same time, he was burning with curiosity. The Fates wouldn't give him as simple a quest as just saying hello to somebody, would they? He hoped they would, this time, because they knew he had to hurry for Bethany's sake. They were on his side, weren't they?

This quest sounded so simple, how bad could it be? Then again, he remembered some of the other quests he'd had. "Open Patchouli's eggs in Nemea" had sounded like opening Easter eggs, but it turned out that he had to hatch baby dragon eggs without getting attacked by their protective mother. He smiled, remembering that that was when he had saved Little Erec's life. And the quest, "Get behind and set it free," hadn't sounded bad at all, only a little confusing. It ended up being one of the most gut-wrenching ordeals he had ever gone through.

Finally, Erec's desire to know outweighed his worry about what his mother thought. It didn't matter, anyway. Nobody would be able to stop him from going. Not now.

"Jam, what do you know about this King Augeas? What's his story?"

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Jam looked relieved. "It's best that you know, young sir, before you go anywhere." To prepare for his story, he arranged a few pillows around himself on the couch. Erec and his siblings sat on chairs and the floor, ready to listen.

"Sirs and modoms, the story of King Augeas is told as a fable. I had myself believed that, like most tales, it was not true. That is, until I learned it was one of Erec's quests.

"Legend says that King Augeas was born wanting more. As a baby, he wailed each time he looked at his parents, as if disappointed that they were not good enough for him. As he grew up, as an only child and prince, he was spoiled by the entire court, demanding one thing after the next. He was never satisfied. The prince did not care for anybody but himself, so most people tried to steer clear of him. But he ordered the children of his servants to play with him, making them fetch things and obey his commands.

"So the other children did not really like him. Only one boy treated the young Prince Augeas as a true friend, sharing secrets with him and inviting him on adventures. His name was Hector. Somehow, Hector was able to see through the prince's spoiled behavior, and his royalty, and glimpse the lonely child inside. So, over the years, the two became close. As long as Hector was serving the prince in some way, and the prince was able to brag to him about all of the cooks, servants, horses, and toys that he had--things that Hector could never afford--he was glad to have Hector at his side.

"Of course, if Hector was lucky enough to be given anything, Prince Augeas had to have the same thing, only better. When Hector got a book that he loved from his mother, Prince Augeas had to have an ornate copy of the same book, handwritten by the author. When Hector was given a cake and a celebration on his birthday, Prince Augeas demanded a feast in his own honor on Hector's birthday.

"But Hector did not seem to mind. He accepted that was the

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way it was with princes and servants. One day, as they approached twenty years old, Hector told everyone in the castle about his beautiful bride-to-be. She was a village girl named Arachne, and she had long golden hair with curls like spun silk. But, as Hector said, more important than her beauty, Arachne was kind. She always had gentle words and cookies for the children in the village, helped the elderly with their tasks, and sung sweetly if anyone needed cheering up.

"Prince Augeas immediately decided that he could not be outdone. He had the palace courtiers scour the surrounding countries for the finest and most educated princesses. Augeas wanted to find the most beautiful and graceful girl in the world, someone who would put Arachne to shame.

"For nearly a year, princesses were brought to his court for him to judge. Most were immediately sent away, but some were kept on. He held sewing tests, poise tests, races, cooking tests. Even if his future queen would never cook an egg for the rest of her life, he wanted to be able to say that she was the best. Each had to demonstrate hobbies, which were rated by the prince and his judges.

"Hector and Arachne were not allowed to marry until the prince had found his wife. Augeas said it would not be fitting for Hector to marry first, but they both knew the real reason. The prince would have been jealous. Finally, Augeas found a bride who was fitting in every way. Princess Lito had mastered seven languages, wrote poetry, wore clothing that she designed herself, and was as rich as she was beautiful.

"Prince Augeas arranged a simple dinner with his bride-to-be, Hector, and Hector's bride. He was sure that when they were all together, Hector would realize how foolish he had been to think that he could ever have anything half as good as the prince.

"But Prince Augeas was in for a surprise that evening. Princess Lito was gorgeous, poised, and well spoken. But when Arachne

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walked in, hand in hand with Hector, to meet the prince for the first time, she seemed to glow. She wore only a simple peasant dress. She was not worldly or sophisticated. But her kindness made her sparkle, and Hector only had eyes for her. He bowed to Princess Lito and wished his best to Prince Augeas, but it was clear that he would never want anyone more than his own Arachne. Even the prince had a hard time taking his eyes off her.

"Blushing, Arachne handed Augeas a wedding gift that she had made for him and Princess Lito. It was a woven silk tapestry that was more skillfully made than any Augeas had ever seen. Boiling with anger, the prince stormed out of the room. The next day he called the wedding off. Now he knew whom he had to marry, and it was not a princess after all. Only one girl was good enough now--the beautiful peasant who was engaged to Hector. So he sent word to her family that she would be his queen.

"You might think that Hector fought the prince, or that Arachne refused to marry him. But that is not the way kings and servants acted back then. For Augeas was no longer just a prince. His father had decided that the wedding would be the perfect time for him to step down and hand over his throne to his son. And if Hector gave Augeas problems it would have meant death.

"As Augeas stood in the chapel before the wedding started, a bedraggled old woman approached him. She told him that he would make a strong king and that his just rewards would come to him someday. Augeas had her thrown out, as he did not approve of beggars in his castle. But before she was dragged away, she told him that he would see her again in his dreams.

"It seemed that Augeas enjoyed the sad looks that his friend threw to his bride during the wedding. In fact, he gave Hector the task of carrying both rings down the long aisle of the castle chapel and handing them to Augeas and Arachne. After the wedding, King Augeas

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often would spend time with Hector, with Arachne right at his side.

"King Augeas did eventually grow tired, though, of the sad longing in his bride when she was around Hector. Even though he didn't like seeing him go, he decided to send Hector away. A regiment of soldiers was heading south into the dreaded Sludge Lands of Nequid. Each of the soldiers had been chosen because they had made mistakes in the past, or their commanders did not like them for one reason or another. It was a highly dangerous mission, and they were sent as punishment more than any real threat to Nequid. Hector was made the commanding leader of the troops. Soon after they marched south, word came back that they had been quickly overpowered. None of them returned.

"Augeas never forgot that first night he had met Arachne. He enjoyed bragging about his wife's weaving skills. After hearing about Hector's death, she spent most of her time at the loom. King Augeas told anyone who would listen that Arachne could weave better than Minerva herself. Minerva was the most powerful sorceress of her day. People thought of her as a goddess. One of her special skills was that she could weave the finest fabrics from her loom.

"Before long, Minerva showed up at the palace, wanting to see Arachne's work for herself. Arachne tried to make light of her skills. But King Augeas kept building her up, goading Minerva into a challenge between them. Minerva was only too happy to agree--for a price. She was sure she would win more land from the king.

"So Arachne and Minerva sat at their looms for a day, and at the end their work was inspected. Even the sorceress had to admit that Arachne's cloth was perfect and the artwork devastatingly beautiful. Arachne had woven a scene of the sun setting over a castle, with a lone soldier trudging into the woods in the distance.

"Like King Augeas, Minerva did not take losing lightly. She congratulated Arachne, then bestowed her own gift upon her, which

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would let her spend the rest of her days weaving silk. The witch turned her into a spider, and then vanished before the king could retaliate.

"King Augeas fell into despair. His only friend was gone, and his wife nothing more than a web spinner in the corner of his chamber. But then one day the king had a great surprise. His old friend Hector returned. Hector was dressed in finery. Amazingly, he did not bow before him when King Augeas demanded it. After being taken captive, Hector had befriended the king of Nequid and become his best advisor. When the king fell ill, with no sons of his own, he passed his crown on to Hector. He was now king of an even larger land than Augeas. Hector's beautiful wife and queen had traveled with him to meet his old friend.

"Augeas was beside himself. How could Hector have more than he did? He had more money, a larger, more bountiful kingdom, and a wife instead of a spider on the wall. And worse, there was nothing that Augeas could do about it.

"That night, the old woman whom he had thrown out of his wedding came to him in his dreams. She offered a way to lord over King Hector once again. More than that, he could rule over everybody, even kings and sorcerers. He would be the king of kings. Augeas agreed, glad to take whatever power he was offered. So, in his dreams, he took the official oath to become the Nightmare King.

"They say that he vanished that night from his bed. He was sent to rule alone in the dark shadow lands that form the border between our world and the realm of dreams. Under his command are hordes of restless-thought monsters and unsatisfied dark-vision hounds that can break into our world through our nightmares. The unlucky few in his dominion are the only humans unlucky enough to meet King Augeas where he lives now. They are enslaved in a nightmare in his lands forever."

A rapt silence followed the end of Jam's story.

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Erec's eyes widened as he remembered his quest.
"What?"

"I'm sorry, young sir. Did you not hear--"

"No. I heard, Jam. I just ... There must be
another
King Augeas somewhere, right?"

Jam cleared his throat politely. "Not that I've heard."

Everyone was quiet during dinner until Mrs. Smith's gravelly voice boomed through the room. "Still there, I see? I have people
all over
looking for you two, Danny and Sammy. This hiding out is a bad idea. I need to find you." Her voice became wheedling. "Do you two know that you're making life very hard for your dear friend Dumpling? How am I going to do all the nice things I planned for you children if you don't come to me? You need to
trust
me. I'm your friend. Right?"

The twins looked at each other in horror, neither wanting to answer.

"Well," Mrs. Smith roared, "if that's the way you want it, then
fine
. My job's not an easy one, I'll tell you that. But I will find you two, if it's the last thing I do. The Shadow Prince is on the move, and I want to be ready."

"You hear that?" Erec sat up straighter. "She's admitted it. She works for Baskania, and she wants to capture the twins because--" He stopped himself, not wanting to explain his logic that Danny and Sammy were King Piter's missing triplets.