The Adventures of Horace Tidwiddler by jlee smith (book suggestions txt) 📕

next to Horace and Aunt Matt. He told them he had heard there were slavers in this land but he had never believed it. He said they must be very careful and always be on their guard. Horace now knew his fear had a name, and it was slavers.
The next morning came early and Horace was not sure that he had even gone to sleep, he could not understand how people could do such a thing. Aunt Matt explained to Horace that just as there were good men in this world, there were also very evil men. Horace asked why would they do such a thing? “Gold”, replied Abbasonn, “Gold”. The concept of men selling other men was more than Horace could understand. For the first time in his young life he felt anger, a great burning anger. He knew his life had changed and it would never be the same.
The men had their morning coffee and the events of the previous night were discussed in great detail by all. It was questioned if it was even wise to continue the journey. However, it was decided that it could be just as dangerous to retrace their steps as it was to proceed so it was decided they should continue on to the gathering of the clan. Possibly there would be news in he next village. The men all had weapons and felt their numbers would provide some degree of protection. The new additions to their caravan were scattered out among the wagons and they set out down the trail through the forest. Uno was in the first wagon with Horace and Aunt Matt. He turned out to be a good traveling companion. He and Aunt Matt got along very well. She said he was a very polite young boy for his age. Horace thought he was to, Bruno and Blanco were again leading the procession.
It was around Noon when they arrived at the first little village. It was completely deserted. No one was there, only vacant houses, Abbasonn said this was not a good sign. The wagons continued on and did not even stop. Horace sat with Dylan in his lap as the wagons rolled slowly though the empty streets. Blanco had stopped playing his pan flute and just walked next to Bruno who was riding the unicycle very slowly. All that could be heard was the wagon wheels as they moved along the trail leading out of the village. Not a word was spoken till the village was far behind.
They came to the other two villages and they were both the same as the first, both were deserted. there was a full moon so it was decided they would continue on and not stop until they were safely in Mottlee. It was well after midnight when the lights of the City came into view. A feeling of great relief was felt by all when the caravan rolled into the center of the City. As they stepped from the wagons, they were met by a large crowd of people wanting to know what news they had brought? Had they met with any of the raiders? Had they any news of the people in the villages they had just traveled through? They were told that only deserted houses had been seen and it appeared everything had been abandoned. There were cries of disbelief and sounds of anger throughout the crowd. A large man stepped forward and introduced himself as Asok Uben. He stated he was head of the City Militia, Abbasonn introduced himself and told of the children they had found in the forest, The gypsy from the lead wagon asked if it would be possible for them to leave their wagons inside the city for the night. Everyone slept in the wagons that night. Horace did not mind the close quarters in the least, it was rather reassuring to have so many people near by.
The next morning Horace was surprised at what a large city Mottlee was. For some reason he had not pictured it to be this large. It had a large town square with buildings all around it. Several had more than just a single story. He was very surprised. Horace was standing by the wagon when Abbasonn walked up with the large man they had met last night. He said, “Horace, we may have some good new for you. This gentleman knows Ulee and his son, They live on a farm not far from here.” It took a moment for the news to sink in, Horace had come to feel he would never find them, He looked at Abbasonn and asked, “Can we go now?” Asok replied, “It would be wise to wait until they had this matter of the raiders under control. He also said that it should only be a short time before they had them in custody as he had information regarding their location. Abbasonn looked at Horace and said, “that’s good advise, and we should take it.” Horace hung his head and said, “You are right, a few more days couldn’t matter. It’s just, I’ve waited so long”. Abbasonn placed his arm around Horace’s shoulder and said, “I know my young friend, I know.”


CHAPTER SIXTEEN - THE ANSWER MAN

It was almost dusk when Bruno returned to the city square. He was riding his unicycle and lots of children were running after him. He had made a complete circle of the square before he stopped in front of the four men seated on the grass. “Horace”, he said, “You are going to love it, I mean, really love it.” It was about this time that Horace saw Blanco walk from behind a building pushing a unicycle. It had a black leather seat with a blue support rod that ran down to the wheel. The wheel was bright red and the peddles were painted yellow. Horace could not speak, he had never in his life seen anything to compare with this, It was breath taking. He stammered, “Is this really mine?” “You bet it is”, said Blanco, and handed it to Horace. Bruno peddled up and said, “Come on, let’s give it a trial run.” Horace sat on the seat, balanced himself and with his foot on the peddle, pushed off. He and Bruno chased each other around the city square with fifty yelling children in tow, Horace thought this must be the best present he had ever received. After a couple of turns around the square, Bruno lead the way down a side street and out of town. Horace followed and so did the children.
The gypsies had moved the wagons to the edge of the city where there was grass and water for the animals. They had started cook fires and began preparing the evening meal. Abbasonn and the others walked up as Bruno and Horace arrived. A gypsy man was pouring coffee for everyone and offered cups to the new arrivals. The conversation around the fire concerned the City Militia and the hope that they would be successful in finding the slavers before they escaped. Everyone felt that it was a wise decision to wait a few days before the journey continued. Blanco stood and addressed the gathering. He suggested it would be a good idea to show their appreciation for the hospitality they had been extended. He suggested a performance the next evening. They all agreed and plans were made for the event. Horace was not quite sure what kind of a performance was to be put on but he knew it would be a grand one.
The next morning everyone in camp was busy setting up colorful tents and erecting various signs, The gypsy children were sent throughout the city to distribute fliers announcing the grand event to take place that very evening. Everyone was invited and it was all free. Horace watched as a large stage was erected at the far end of the camp. This was done under the watchful eye of Blanco. Horace, Dylan and Aunt Matt watched in total amazement as all of this was being done. Everyone knew exactly what their job was and how to do it. Aunt Matt said it reminded her of a bunch of ants running around. Abbasonn said he had never seen so much being done by so few people in such a short time. He was impressed. Horace was most impressed by the sign that Blanco and Bruno had erected on the stage. It read as follows: Sierra Blanco The Great, He Knows All, He Sees All. The Greatest Wizard That Ever Lived. And Bruno The Magnificent Dancing Bear. Horace looked at Aunt matt and said, “I didn’t know he was a wizard, no one told me.” She looked at Horace and said “Horse feathers.”
Large fire pots were set on each side of the stage and candles placed across the front of the stage. People began arriving in late afternoon and sat on the grass in front of the stage. By dusk, there were several hundred people waiting for the show to begin. A gypsy man walked out on the stage and introduced each act before it began. There were jugglers, dogs that did tricks and walked on their hind legs, people that could eat fire and there were all kinds of acrobats. There was a man that did all kinds of card tricks and could make things disappear and then reappear. But when the man introduced Sierra Blanco The Great and Bruno The Magnificent Dancing Bear, the crowd went wild, They cheered for a good five minutes. Horace clapped as loud as anyone. The crowd settled down as a pan flute could be heard playing. The music was coming from behind the stage. It grew louder in volume as Bruno slowly dancing to the music came on stage. He twirled and danced like he had a partner in his arms and he was dancing with her. The music was very slow and sounded like a waltz that Horace had only heard in his dreams. It reminded him of the gypsy girl with the long black hair. When the music stopped, the crowd clapped loudly to show their approval, Bruno bowed and exited the stage. In a moment he returned riding his unicycle, wearing a red vest on his chest and a black top hat on his head. He would ride the unicycle forwards then backwards, he would ride it backwards in a circle then stop and balance perfectly still, remove his top hat and bow to the crowd. He gave a wonderful performance. He left the stage while they were still applauding. Just at that moment there was an explosion at the center of the stage, a large cloud of white smoke and a little dwarf appeared as if from no where. He was dressed in the finest red silk robes that hung to the stage, He wore a tall red pointed cap on his head. His long white hair and beard fell almost to the stage. His eyes were bright pink and his face was ghostly white. The crowd fell completely silent.