left standing. That was one thing that could say about the Bear people - they certainly knew how to enjoy themselves!
Inside the Palace, everywhere was in chaos, and it looked more like a rubbish tip than the home of a King, or now a Queen. There were empty barrels of ale, plates of half eaten food, and a whole host of other things strewn about. It looked as though the deposed Bear King must have had quite a temper tantrum, throwing everything about wildly in one of his rages. Instead of a life of luxury, the Sisters realised that their first duties were going to be domestic ones!
Fortunately, a group of helpers arrived now that the ceremony was over, all keen to do what they could to restore the Palace to some form of respectability. If the wooden front of the Palace was a mess, then the rear was even worse. The door which led into that part hung precariously from its hinges, and they could see the litter covered corridor which lead into the cave. Everywhere looked as though it had been looted, which brought thoughts of the treasury.
When they arrived, they found that it was completely empty, and the whole land was penniless, leaving nothing to rebuild the kingdom with. There was only one thing that they could do, and that was to summon an emergency Council meeting.
The first Council meeting during the rein of Queen Concordia, was not going to be an easy one, as they had to decide what to do about the Men, and the Self Appointed One. She had fought for justice, and to right the wrong that had been done to the Bear people. It was a dark deed, and in voting to reverse the former Bear King’s decision, they knew that it would weigh heavily against them in the future. The men would not just simply go away empty handed, as they would return in force, and the two kingdoms faced the prospect of war. Great diplomacy was needed, and her Queenship was going to be a bit of a baptism of fire!
They needed to have something with which to pay for repairs to the Palace, and to rebuild the kingdom, and even if they agreed to let the Men take everything of value in the kingdom, they would surely return, and there would be nothing left for them to take. It would then leave them in a position where their people would end up as nothing more than slaves, forced to work in the gold mines, and there would be nothing that they could do to about it!
The Council was very sombre, as the Chairman opened the proceedings.
“Despite the joy of the coronation, and the end of the rein of King Innocence, it is with great sorrow that we have to deal with the matters at hand.”
There were a lot of grunts and nods of approval.
“We have to decide whether to uphold the decision to let the Men take the entire contents of the treasury. If we do then we will be penniless, and risk them returning to take our people to work in the gold mines, or if we reverse this decision, then we risk conflict!”
The grunts and nods continued.
“However, we have all witnessed the return of the Great King, who we assume will lead us as he did before, and if there is conflict, then we believe this time we will be victorious!”
There was a muffled cheer from all of the elderly Bears gathered there.
“So, who is in favour of reversing his decision?”
Everyone put their hands up without hesitation.
“Those against?”
There were none.
“So, we therefore unanimously vote to reverse the decision!”
Yet more nods and grunts appeared in confirmation.
Roggie sat there impassively, wondering what he was going to do about it. At first, he had just gone along with things, fearing that the Sisters would not help him. When they mistook him for the Great King, he feared that if they found out the truth, then they would be very angry. Now that they were Queen and Princess respectively, combined with the fact that the whole Council also thought that he was the Great King returned, he did not know what to do. All he could manage was a nod, as he feared that if he did say anything, then he may say the wrong thing. The last thing that he wanted to do was to face the wrath of the whole Bear Kingdom, not to mention that of the Men as well!
What a mess!
More than ever he needed to seek the advice of the Wise Old Griffin, as he did not know what to do!
He could not stay in The Land of the Bears, return to his own lands, or go to The Land of the Men either. There was also talk of Dragons too, and he was rapidly running out of options. He looked really worried, and sat very uncomfortably trying not to show his uncertainties; after all, he was supposed to be a great leader!
The Council meeting was quickly brought to a close, and the Chief of the Royal Guard was summoned. When he arrived he was given orders to pursue the Men, and to escort Roggie to the ends of their lands.
The Royal Guards were quickly dispatched to retrieve the contents of the treasury, as the Men had disappeared as soon as they found out that the former King had been deposed. By now, they could be anywhere, and time was not on the Guards’ side...
Sixteen
The pounding of heavy drumming signalled the arrival of the new day, but alas, it was not coming from the enthusiastic drummers, who had been playing almost constantly way into the night. The pounding rhythms were coming from inside Roggie’s head, just like they had done the morning before. He had declared that he would never drink so much ale again, and yet his words had been hollow, but not quite as hollow as the void between his ears, which now pounded as if the drummers were playing inside.
He felt terrible, and the prospect of having to leave the comfort of a warm bed was almost as difficult to contemplate, as having to continue on his journey out beyond The Land of the Bears.
Having been here for a few days, he had really begun to like it, and wished that he could have been able to have stayed. Although it differed quite markedly from his own village, his stay here had changed any preconceptions that he may have had about Bears. They were really quite friendly, and not at all like he had been led to believe. It did help however, looking exactly like the Great King!
He knew that he could not keep up the deception for much longer, and the fact was that if they ever found out the truth, then they would not be nearly as friendly towards him as they had been. It was time to move on, despite the way that he was feeling.
The Royal Palace was a great deal tidier than it had been when he had first arrived, and the helpers had done a really good job, with everything now being spick and span. They had even prepared a room for him, and one which was very warm and comfortable, even more so than his burrow. Roggie had been overjoyed when they had presented it to him, and as he lay there, he wondered just how he had been able to find it again after all that drinking!
Rising slowly, he washed and dressed, before venturing out into the corridor. There were already welcome signs of activity, not to mention the smell of freshly cooked food. The one thing that he did desire above everything else however, was a cure for his hangover!
Roggie was in luck, as everything had been provided for him, and as he made his way down for a meal with the Sisters, there waiting for him was a bowl of something which smelt terrible. He grimaced as he swallowed it, and it tasted just as awful as the bowl the Chairman’s wife had given him the morning before. However, within a few minutes, it had already started to make him feel a little better.
It looked as though he was not the only one to be grateful for the hangover cure, as there were two Bears with very sore heads, who also sat around the table. They seemed to pick up a bit, as the cure worked wonders on them too. Gone were the white dresses, being replaced by trousers and shirts. There would be no ceremonies today, only hard work, as there was a kingdom to restore.
The helpers had also been kind enough to pack his bag with plenty of supplies, and he felt snug in his freshly laundered clothes. It was nice being a King, if only temporarily, and he wondered if he would ever enjoy such comforts again?
Roggie could have quite happily sat there for the rest of the day, and probably would have, if one of the Royal Guards had not appeared. He and some of his colleagues were here to provide escort, and looked r
eady to start the journey to the edge of their territory.
So, with several reluctant goodbyes, he left them to their duties, following the guards towards the large wooden doors, which marked the official entrance to the Royal Palace. Roggie felt his heart sink, as he looked back and waved, before venturing out into the sunlight.
It was another pleasant day, although his mood was sombre, as he did not really want to go. Somewhere out there was the Wise Old Griffin, who he knew he had to find, although he did not have the first idea of where to look.
With his hood over his face, he took one last look back towards the Palace to where Nooks and Cuddles had thanked him for all of his help, although Roggie felt as though he had done little to deserve it. Instead, it was he who had thanked them, as without their help, he may have remained buried by the debris which had followed him down the mountainside. That seemed like ages ago, as he turned his face away.
He did not know what a Griffin looked like, or where to find one. The village elder had no tales about them, and he did not know where to start. The Royal Guards, who were escorting him, seemed to know a little about them, or at least the fact that the one he probably sought, could be found at the other end of the path.
The little wooden houses soon disappeared, as the path meandered through the trees. It seemed endless as they trudged along, twisting and