Chapter 14

Once again the reflection from the moons onto the lake is beautiful and the songs of the mermaids guide them to sleep. They awake with the feeling that Dakota’s destiny is one step closer to being fulfilled.

Dakota’s new friends, the catfish and Humphrey, have long since returned to the lake. They eat breakfast in silence all the while Dakota is admiring her beautiful new wand. It is the pearl white of a unicorn, but it also glitters with silver and pink sparkles. It is a straight wand but spirals as it goes to the point. It is exactly one foot long, but whose foot nobody knows for sure.

“You want to see it?”

“Sure!” Sorbo grabs it and starts shaking and yelling. Dakota’s eyes are big and then Sorbo stops shaking and smiles and says, “Just kidding! It’s beautiful,” he says, handing it back to her.

Her mouth is hanging open and she is looking at him through slatted eyes as she says, “Stupid! You scared me.”

“Sorry, little lady.” and then Sorbo grabs her and pulls her into his lap while tickling her and giving her little kisses on her cheek and ear.

She squeals in delight and then points the wand at him and says, “You are a frog.” and then all of a sudden Sorbo is a frog. Dakota screams and points the wand back at him and says, “You’re Sorbo again.” and then he is Sorbo again.

Sorbo sees her strange look and asks, “What?”

“Nothing!” she says, getting out of Sorbo’s lap and putting the wand in her little sack where she has been hiding Sorbo’s Distinguished Service Cross from him.

Sorbo turns to Katarina and asks, “What just happened?”

With big eyes Katarina shrugs her delicate shoulders and says, “I don’t know what you are talking about. I’ll go scout ahead.” and with that she is gone like a shot leaving pink sparkles in her trail.

Sorbo turns around and knows something just happened, but he doesn’t know what. As he is getting ready to ask Dakota again a frog croak comes out of his mouth first. Dakota gets a scared look on her face for a second and then she has to fight from laughing.

Sorbo looks at her through squinted eyes and says, “Okay,” he says it with elongated words. “I guess we should get back on the trail.”

As they are riding along they are riding on the north shore of the lake and it is a beautiful sight. As the days pass the Andromeda Mountains come into better focus, until finally after a full week of traveling the rocky peaks can be clearly made out.

“They are beautiful! How much further?”

“It is another four days until we reach the base of the mountains and then we will follow them around the base until we find the valley that leads up into the mountains and to my family’s cabin. That alone should take us a week.”

Dakota sighs. Her petite little body has been taking the rigors of horse riding for weeks now and she is more than ready to have a real bed to sleep in. Sorbo can see that the journey is starting to take its toll on her. It is starting to take its toll on him, too, but he would have it no other way for as the stretches and leagues pass by his gut gets smaller and smaller until once and again he is in peak physical shape. Every time they stop he exercises and practices with his sword and bow. He is once and again becoming the Warrior of Light he was destined to be. Even though his sword is way too heavy for Dakota to lift and maneuver, he starts telling her about foot work and thrusts and parries to begin the process of turning her into a warrior.

One night around the campfire Sorbo sees Dakota limping and rubbing her tush from the long day’s ride. He is already lying down on his left side watching the fire so he pats the ground in front of him and tells her, “I can see you are sore. Come here and lay down on your tummy.”

She comes over and lies down and folds her arms up with her hands on top of each other and she rests her head on her hands. Sorbo gently rubs her back. His hand is bigger than she is wide. The more he rubs the harder he massages into the muscles. She moans with gratitude. By the time her hair is stroked and her back, tushy and thighs are rubbed she is fast asleep. Every night without having to prompt her, Dakota is lying next to her knight and best friend gratefully accepting his help as the continuing days become easier for her.

One night when Sorbo is fighting to get a knot at of her lower back thigh Katarina flies over and says, “I think I can help.”

“Please,” says Sorbo, as Dakota had been yelling out in pain.

Katarina lands on Dakota and spreads her tiny hands above her and starts humming a beautiful tune. Soon her hands start to glow pink and then she places her hands on Dakota and the pink warm and soothing power goes into Dakota and soon her entire form is glowing with a pink tinge. Sorbo looks over at Dakota’s face and she is fast asleep with a divine smile on her pale and pretty face. She is facing him and the campfire is giving her a goddess glow and once and again Sorbo’s heart is lifted and years of torment drain away. He watches her angelic face as she sleeps and his belief in the beauty of the world is reaffirmed.

With the beautiful heart of Dakota to never be outdone she starts walking on Sorbo’s back to get the knots out for him. They are in the wilds of the Free Lands of Andromeda, winding their way through the Dakota Woodlands, which Dakota was named after, and even though the journey is rough they take comfort in each other. As long as they are together they feel safe. Even though Dakota’s family was murdered less than a month ago she once again feels safe in a world that has been turned upside down for her. That is as long as her knight’s hand is resting protectively on her or his arm is securely wrapped around her.

The Andromeda Mountains have disappeared behind the forest of trees only to reappear when they come to the top of a hill. By that measure they know that they are slowly getting to their destination and that they are still going in the correct direction.

Everyday Sorbo is impressed with this petite, delicate, pale, pretty, little eight-year-old sweetheart who shares her heart and mind so openly. Everyday Katarina teaches her something new about magic and Dakota hangs on her every word. If ever there is a point where she can’t comprehend something Andromeda comes to them and speaks with her with a patience that speaks of ages and wisdom.

By the time they reach the foot of the Andromeda Mountains, Dakota is using her wand to start their fires, do simple transformation spells, and shooting a power beam of energy or lightning, that as time goes by is becoming more and more powerful. She has chipped boulders and splintered parts of small trees catching them on fire. Then she quickly brings about a swirl of rain and puts the fire out.

As they stand at the foot of the mountains looking up at the trees that start to transform more into pine trees, the season has progressed and it is getting cold, even during the days. Sorbo figures it is at least a week into November. Very soon the first snows will fall. Yes that will slow them up and make things more miserable, but the real danger comes from when those first snows start to melt and create waterfalls down the same valley they have to go up to reach his family’s cabin.

“Sorry, sweet sweet, but we are going to have to start traveling day and night to reach our destination before the first snow falls.”

She looks up at him with her big trusting beautiful blue yes and says, “Okay.”

Sorbo picks her up and hugs the stuffing out of her and then lifts her back onto Hugs, their brown mare. They had been traveling so long and have met so many wonderful creatures that Sorbo has allowed himself to become a little lazy in his defenses.

It is on a cold starless night that the first signs of attack are about. It begins with a screech of ultimate rage and then there is a flash as something flies over them in the dark. Sorbo wraps his left arm around Dakota tighter and pulls out his sword with his right hand. Just then they hear wrestling in the trees as something is coming at them. They can hear the creak of its wings as it spreads them wide to get a better angle of attack. From out of nowhere the sphere of light reappears and a scorpion harpy gets highlighted in its glow. The scorpion harpy has its claws from its hands and feet extended and its scorpion tail stretched out to get them as they set atop Hugs. The harpy is surprised and even hurt by the light of the sphere and it momentarily loses its concentration. Sorbo parries the scorpion tail away from Dakota and as the harpy flies overhead it scratches Sorbo severely on the neck. With his sword Sorbo guts her and the scorpion harpy falls to the ground writhing until it dies.