Rogues of The Story

Chapter 12: Lost Companions

Philip grabbed the girl's arm in a panic. "Destroyed?" he repeated. "You must take me there! Please!"

"Alright, alright!" she said. "Don't rip my arm off. Come with me, now!"

The two of them sprinted through the battlefield. Nobody really bothered them, probably because they couldn't determine if they were friend or foe. Also, they weren't attacking anyone else; that might have had something to do with it as well.

As they ran, Philip figured he owed the girl something. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Goldilocks," she answered, her thick British accent overpowering the name.

"Whoa, you're British? I always thought Goldilocks was German."

The girl shot him an annoyed look from in front of him. "Just Goldie is fine. And no, I am not German. Now come on."

Sensing that Goldie was not very fond of being told she was German, Philip fell silent. He did have to wonder why she had come to help him. After all, he'd never spoken to her before, and as far as he knew, neither had Martin or Mimi. Perhaps she was just being kind. Whatever the case, he hoped she was wrong; how could Martin and Mimi have survived the destruction of their prison cell?

If they were dead, Philip promised himself that he would abandon Merlin, even turn him in to the Guardians if necessary. No matter what it cost Philip, he would do it. What good was his life without Mimi? Strangely enough, he found himself praying for both her and Martin as well. The boy was supposed to be his protégé, but he hadn't done a very good job of protecting him.

Goldie pulled Philip along, and they ran inside the castle. The sounds of battle faded away behind them as the door slammed shut after they had gone through. "Come on, this way," Goldie urged him.

Philip kept going, not slacking his pace at all. Goldie was lagging behind a bit, but he continued pulling her along. When they came to a crossroads, he would demand their direction and she would give it to him. It didn't take them long to reach the destroyed segment of the castle that Goldie claimed Merlin had imprisoned Mimi and Martin in. "Well," she said, putting her hands on her knees and panting. "There you are. There's no getting through there. I'm sorry, your friends are probably dead."

Philip started shoving aside stones from the path. "Where was the cell?" he demanded.

"This was the door," Goldie said, indicating where Philip was standing. "The whole cell is completely destroyed. It almost seems ... planned."

Philip didn't even want to dwell on that. He kept pulling on the stones, desperation echoing through him like a ringing bell. "Please. You must help me!" he exclaimed. "I must get them out."

"It's hopeless," Goldie protested, but started helping him anyway.

The Guardian kept tugging on the stones, but nothing would budge. To his shock, tears streamed down his cheeks as he realized they were buried under there. "No, no!" he said. "They can't be dead ... Goldilocks, they can't be dead."

The girl looked at him in an almost-pitying way. "I'm afraid they are," she answered. "There's no possible way anyone can survive that kind of pressure on top of them. I'm sorry."

Philip looked at her, still trying to wrap his head around what had happened. Goldie's eyes went wide when a roar echoed through the large hole on the outside of the wall—past the rubble—and she grabbed Philip's arm. "Duck!" she said, and yanked him down.