Herzog Ernst Page #2

---

So be quiet:
They mustn't spot us!

But there's a tunnel

known only to us Pannochs

which bypasses the mountain

and leads to the land of the Ariaspers.

They'll be able to help you.

I'll gladly guide you there."

"A magnetic mountain?" thought Ernest,

intrigued, "I must take a closer look."

"Ernest!"

Cried the Pannoch anxiously,

"The knights have broken through

my line of Pannochs."

"Atessa, Ernest:

Into the tunnel quickly!"

The noise from the Magnetic Mountain

attracted the attention of the Roc.

Ernest and his companions

had left the tunnel.

To their horror,

the Roc was still searching for food.

But the young Rocs had eaten their fill.

So the Roc put the bundle containing

the three friends away for the next day,

high up on the great crag.

The night was chilly

and by morning Ernest had a nasty cold.

His sneezing woke a young Roc,

the most curious of the omnivorous birds.

He quietly crept over to the bundle

to see what was moving inside it.

"Psst," whispered Ernest,

"Please don't eat us.

I'm Duke Ernest and my friends

and I seek the Carbun... No, wait!"

The princess told the Roc

the entire story.

It aroused the Roc's curiosity.

He was also intrigued by the Carbuncle

Stone, which Ernest had told him about.

"All I know", said the Roc,

"is that you need a password

to enter the land of the Caliph.

I did hear the password once..."

"Then please help us," said the friends.

"Very well!" growled the Roc,

"Off we go!"

For the first time, Ernest touched

something with his bare hands.

He was astonished

at how soft and warm Atessa felt.

He wondered what it would be like

without any armour at all.

Ernest and his friends eventually

arrived in the land of the Shiopod,

a dangerous dragon.

"Do you see yonder dome?"

Asked the Roc.

Beyond it lies hidden

the land of the Caliph.

"But only

he who knows the password may enter."

"What are these strange stones, Roc?

Are they carbuncles?"

"They're poor creatures who were

turned into obelisks by the Shiopod

while they were trying to enter

the land of the Caliph."

"The Shiopod has been

trying to get in there for years.

But no one

will reveal the password to him."

"I wonder who this used to be?"

Thought the princess.

"Look! What's that?!" cried Ernest.

"The Shiopod!" cried the Roc, "Hide!"

The little Pannoch stepped forward and

shielded his friends from the dragon.

The friends sadly left behind the little

Pannoch who had saved their lives.

The Roc now tried the password.

"OI sonuf Virsig Gihu lod Graa?"

"Try it again!" cried the friends,

"Try it again, Roc!"

"OI sonuf Voorsig Guhu lad Naps??"

"OI sonuf Vaorsag Goho lad Nalpsz???"

"OI sonuf Vaorsag Goho lad Naplan????"

"OI sonuf Vaorsag Goho naplan lad naporum

sol monstrum lapis... exilis?????"

Errr..."LAPIS EXILIS!"

"So that's the famous password!"

Thought the Black Knight.

Ernest and his friends received

a friendly reception from an Ariasper.

"Please take us to the Caliph.

We seek the Carbuncle Stone."

"You're expected," said the Ariasper,

"Please follow us."

The knights had dismounted

and now tried the password themselves.

"OI sonuf Vaorsag Goho

naplan lad naporum...

"La... lap... iiieees... exillliiieees.

Lapiiieees exilliiieees... arrrhhgg...

"Mercy!" begged the Black Knight,

"Please spare me!"

"I will tell you how to get into

the Land of the Cali... arrrhhgg..."

The Land of the Caliph was very strange.

It was inhabited by strange creatures

who were wise and scholarly.

At last, the friends

arrived at the Caliph's palace.

Ernest explained

the purpose of his visit.

"Noble Caliph,

we seek the mysterious Carbuncle Stone,

which I, Duke Ernest,

must find in order to return home.

Please help me."

"What, you seek a carbuncle?"

Laughed the Caliph.

Look around you,

there are carbuncles everywhere.

They're nothing special here.

Take as many as you like."

"So this is the goal of our long

and perilous journey!" thought Ernest,

"The fabulous Carbuncle Stone."

But it suddenly seemed to him

that the princess's smile

shone a thousand times brighter

than all the carbuncles put together.

And it occurred to him that without

this accursed, uncomfortable armour,

life would be even more pleasant.

And so Ernest and the princess

became lovers,

something

they had both secretly wished for.

The Caliph put on a great celebration.

But Ernest and the princess

found a spot away from the others

and kissed and embraced each other

all night long.

Ernest felt fine: The sun was shining,

he had good friends, and he was in love.

But suddenly, he thought of home,

of his mother and his castle.

And had he not promised

to return with the Carbuncle Stone?

So Ernest decided to return home

with his friends and keep his promise.

But first, he wanted to use the

Carbuncle's powers to free the Pannoch.

The spell on the knights

was also lifted.

They stayed in the desert...

...while Ernest and his friends

began their journey home.

But an unwelcome sight

awaited Ernest at home.

Wasn't that the Emperor's flag

flying above his castle?

The Emperor was not pleased about

Ernest's return, unlike Ernest's mother.

"He has a carbuncle stone!"

Marvelled the knights, "Look!"

"Ernest!" cried his mother,

"You're back at last!"

"The Stone," whispered the Roc,

"Don't forget the Stone."

But just as Ernest was about to hand the

Stone to the Emperor, he stopped.

Wasn't that the Black Knight's brother,

the man he was supposed to have killed?

That's why he'd been sentenced

to find the Carbuncle Stone.

At that moment,

Ernest saw how he had been tricked.

"Seize him and put those strange

creatures in the zoo!"

Ordered the Emperor.

"Pannoch!" cried Ernest, "Help us!"

The little Pannoch stepped forward

and blew up a fierce storm.

But from the splinters of the

Carbuncle Stone, strange things grew...

The knights crawled out of their armour

and looked on in amazement.

"Please don't harm me!"

Cried the Emperor anxiously.

"Ernest shall rule over all my lands."

"That doesn't interest me,"

laughed Ernest, "I have other plans."

"My Mother shall steer our land's

destiny and lead it to new prosperity."

He bid his mother farewell and departed

with the princess and his friends.

Where they went, nobody knows.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes