Chapter Twelve
City of Armendora
Ned’s practice took one more day. Alyssa insisted that they should continue their journey—even though Armendora is not that far. Apparently, she’s worried about Gloria, her guardian and the time given by Helmcit is running out.
“We better hurry up,” said Alyssa, “or we will lose Gloria forever.”
“Calm down, Alyssa,” said Ned. “We are going there, okay?”
“How many times do you want me to calm down?” asked Alyssa. “I’ve had it, okay? I want to go there, with or without you!”
“Alyssa!” shouted Ned. “Wait! We are going there now, okay? I’ve finished my practices. It’s payback time. So, please don’t do this again or I’ll freak out.”
“Freak out?” asked Alyssa. “Why would you freak out?”
“Because I care about you,” said Ned. “I can’t live without you, you know. I love you so much. I can’t leave you wandering around fighting your stepfather/uncle alone.”
“Ned’s right, Alyssa,” said Lancelot. “We need to stay together to fight that wretched stepfather of yours. Otherwise, we won’t win and you’ll lose Armendora to him forever.”
“All right then,” said Alyssa.
“We’ll continue practicing along the way,” suggested Ned. “After all, I still need more practice and we are running out of time.”
“So, what are we waiting for?” said Alyssa. “Let’s go!”
As they continue their journey to Armendora, Ned practiced harder and harder, memorizing spells and enchantments that gets more and more complicated to perform. As Ned practiced, Alyssa gave Ned encouragement and support so that Ned gets stronger and stronger.
They stopped at many places for short rests. They spent a night at a nearby forest, not very far from Armendora. That night, Alyssa had a dream.
She was in the dungeon where her mother was locked up. But, her mother was not there. Instead, her father was in front of her, begging her to free him from the dungeon. “I don’t want to die in here,” her father begged. But, Alyssa couldn’t do anything except telling her father to calm down while she searched for the keys. When she found the keys, it was too late for her to save her father. Alyssa woke up, screaming. Luckily, neither Ned nor Lancelot woke up. So, Alyssa went back to sleep, hoping that the nightmare won’t bother her again. The next morning, she had totally forgotten about the dream.
Their journey to Armendora took about thirty minutes. When they arrived—in disguises as Alyssa was wanted for betraying her own kingdom—they went straight for the Castle. Ned looked around in amazement. The streets were full of shops on both sides. People passed by here and there, stopping at the shops while doing their daily shopping for groceries and daily necessities. The buildings were aligned in a way that was complicated. To Ned, it is really easy to get lost in such a city. But, with the help from Alyssa and Lancelot, they moved towards the Castle without any trouble. The buildings were old-looking and almost creepy; the only building that looked nice and in good shape was the Castle itself. Ned wondered if Helmcit was the one to blame for the old, creepy-looking buildings in Armendora. But, despite the creepy buildings, Armendora is full of life and chattering.
Lancelot, Ned and Alyssa passed through the city easily and unnoticed. As they turn at each junction, people seem to not notice that the most wanted suspect is among them—with reinforcement too. Even though people look curiously at them, nobody informed the guards about them. To the people of Armendora, seeing people acting curiously is common since the before Alyssa’s father became King. In Armendora, everyone was meant to be careful all the time as the crime rate is quite high. You might be beaten up just because you accidentally bumped into someone. You’ll be lucky if there’s a guard nearby. If not, you’ll end up in the hospital.
Throughout the journey to the castle, Ned can’t help himself thinking about his life. What had actually caused this to happen? What possible reason that made his parents left Armendora? He’s sure it’s not just the death of a brother that made her ran away. Was it something else? Could it have something to do with the kingdom itself? Or worse, because of Helmcit's cruel act? Question after question flew inside Ned’s head. None of them made sense, he thought. But, he needs to know. He has to.
He must know before it’s too late.
