Enemies of the Kingdom

Chapter One

"This is the worst idea you've ever had," I hissed, "And you've had some pretty terrible ones."

"Robert, maybe she's right," John ventured uncertainly. "This really could be-"

"Shhh, you two! You'll wake up the entire forest," he responded in a furious whisper.

"I can practically hear you rolling your eyes," I muttered.

"How I ended up with a couple of lily-livered cowards for friends is still beyond me," Robert groaned quietly, creeping forward through the underbrush as we both reluctantly trailed behind him.

"Not doing stupid things," John defended, "is not the same as being-"

"For the love of all the saints, John, would you keep your voice down?"

"You're the one who keeps saying things to us," I pointed out.

Choosing to ignore that comment, Robert moved cautiously forward, crouched low to the ground.

"This is foolhardy," John started up again, his voice soft but strained, "If we were caught-"

Robert held up a hand to silence us.

The rhythmic beating of drums, the chanting of many voices in a foreign tongue, drifted through the night air. It was still distant, but it slithered through me, as if the sound came from my own bones. The smell of the trees and night were interrupted by the crackling scent of fire.

Turning his head back toward us, I could see Robert's teeth flash white in the darkness as he smiled.

"Come on, you two," he tossed his head in the direction of the drums. "It's not every day three Christians get to observe a pagan ritual."

As we approached the eerie sound intensified, growing impossible to ignore. It pounded through my skull, crowding out all other thought. I could feel my muscles tense with every step we moved closer, readying myself to run. The dense darkness lessened, and we could see, through the trees, at least twenty dark-robed figures surrounding a roaring bonfire, its flames leaping much higher than anyone's heads.

Robert moved to get closer, and John grabbed his arm, tugging him back.

"We can't get any closer," he hissed in his ear, "The fire's too bright. They'll see us."

Robert paused only a moment before grabbing the lowest limb of the tree we were concealed behind and hoisting himself noiselessly up. He motioned for us to follow.

"How am I supposed to climb a tree?" I murmured to John, motioning to my skirts.

He gave me a skeptical look and whispered, "Never stopped you before," as he mounted the tree after Robert.

Annoyed, inwardly fearing for my life, and hoisting my skirts, I followed after the two inconsiderate imbeciles.

When all three of us reached the top of the trunk where the branches start to feather out, Robert said, "Now, follow me. And be careful. Who knows if they're looking for human sacrifices tonight?"

"Funny," I muttered darkly.

Robert nimbly scampered out on one of the sturdy branches that extended in the direction of the bonfire.

"What is he doing?" I gasped to John.

The branch swayed as Robert approached the end, and, just when I thought the limb would break and send him crashing to his death, he carefully reached out and grabbed the branches of the next tree, meticulously transferring himself onto its swaying limbs. It was obvious now that Robert planned to get right up to the edge of the clearing, climbing through one tree to another.