The Hey Arnold! Fantasy Adventure Epic [COMPLETED]

Chapter 6

"Nice going, Helga," muttered Gerald. The four of them were thrust into a dungeon cell in the basement of the kingdom at the command of Princess Rhonda.

"Put a sock in it, bucko," was Helga's reply.

"What do we do now?" asked Phoebe, who was sitting in the corner.

Arnold stood up and slammed his fist in the palm of his hand. "Now we think of a plan to get out of here."

Helga reclined on the bars of their cell. "Hate to break it to you, football-head, but we're currently each serving a life sentence in Casa de Wellington. It will take nothing short of a miracle for us to get out."

Suddenly, the ground began to shake, causing Arnold to topple to the ground and onto Helga. Helga pushed him aside and looked to the ceiling above. "What the heck was that?"

"An earthquake?" surmised Gerald.

Phoebe shook her head. "Negative. The seismic signature was not conducive to an earthquake."

"Then...what HAPPENED up there?" repeated Arnold.

"Hellllp! Put me down, you big oaf! Somebody, anybody....HELLLLLLP!!!!!"

The four of them ran to the window of their cell just in time to see a giant lumbering away from the castle, with the hapless Princess Rhonda clutched in his hand. Her screams could be hear even as the giant disappeared behind the hills.

"Welp, I guess that's it for her," quipped Helga. Phoebe, Gerald and Arnold gave her a dirty look. "What? If we're lucky, maybe her successor will grant us pardons! And speak of the devil..."

There was the sound a lock jiggling and a door being unhinged. A tall girl in a coat of armor approached the cell. She immediately gasped and bowed when she caught sight of Helga.

Helga shooed her off. "N-now now, enough of that..." she said, laughing nervously.

"Forgive me," said the tall girl, getting back on her feet.

"Helga, why did she just bow to you?" asked Gerald suspiciously.

"Because...because it's not everyday someone is in the presence of someone who's sold as many fireworks as Phoebe as I. I'm pretty famous in these parts – I just don't lie to brag. Right, Phoebe?"

Arnold and Gerald turned to look at Phoebe, who just shrugged.

"Excuse me," said the girl. "Which one of you are the one called Arnold?"

Arnold raised his hand. "I am. Tell me – what happened upstairs?"

"A most heinous act of royal burglary; our precious queen has been stolen by the Madam-Fortress-Mommy Giant."

"Come again?" asked Gerald.

"It's his name. We don't know his actual one, so we just call it by what it yells."

"It's a giant that yells Madam Fortress Mommy?" said Arnold dubiously.

The girl nodded, then gasped. "How rude of me; we haven't been properly introduced. I am Patricia of the Strong Arms, Head of the Royal Guard for Princess Rhonda."

"Well, a fine job you've done so far, Patty" said Helga drily.

"Yes, well that's precisely why I came down here," she turned to Arnold. "I've heard a rumour that you're on a peacekeeping mission and were sent by the Lady of Perfection to find the Messiah."

"That's right," said Arnold.

Patty smiled. "I knew it. Her Majesty Princess Rhonda may not believe it, but I am very much a follower of the Lady of Perfection, and I trust that if she brought you here, it was for good reason."

"What do you mean?"

Patty unlocked the cell door and held it wide open. "I believe you were brought here to vanquish the giant once and for all and save our beloved Princess. I'll grant you freedom in exchange for your service, and I'm sure once Princess Rhonda is back home, she'll pardon you for your troubles."

"W-wait a minute," said Gerald. "You want us to slay a GIANT. No offense, but that's a little outside of the realm of my expertise."

"Actually, you wouldn't be necessary," Patty explained. "Arnold is the one with the blessing from the lady. He should be able to handle it alone."

"Who? ME?" asked Arnold incredulously.

"What?!" Helga butted in. "You can't be serious! You can't expect him to go all by himself? As the land's top firework entrepreneur, I insist that you let me go with him as his escort."

"But Helga—" Phoebe said, worried.

"Besides, if the football-head fails and winds up a greasy little smear on the giant's cave walls, I figure you'll need someone alive to come back and tell the tale."

"Good point," said Patty. "Then it's settled. You and Arnold will follow the trail left by the Madam-Fortress-Mommy giant. If you leave now, you should reach his lair just before dusk."

"And what about us?" asked Gerald hopefully. But when Arnold and Helga exited the cell, Patty quickly shut the door and locked it again. "Hey!"

"Hey! What gives?!" asked Helga indignantly.

"Sorry," said Patty. "I know you're trying to help us, but you're still technically our prisoners. But I promise you'll all be set free when the job is done."

Helga rolled up her sleeves and looked at Arnold. "Well, what are we standing around for then? Let's get a move-on, football-head!"