GAME OF TRUST

THE ORDER OF THE PRINCE.

"I was told that the Prince took them with him." The soldier replied.

"Well, it seems like the commander has no choice." Alonso said, putting on a weird smile.

"But why will Tory take them with him?" Oakinshield wondered.

"I believe you know the answer to those questions?" Said Alonso.

"Commander! You have no option. Bring the Prince back as soon as you can so we would proceed with the king's trials." Commanded queen Kate.

"But my lady…"

"This gathering is over." Kate said, cutting Oakinshield short of his words, then she stood up and left the throne room followed by other members of the council except for Oakinshield and Alonso.

"Do what you must in order to back my son." Alonso said, looking directly into the eyes of Oakinshield for a while and then he too left as he murmured silently to his hearing alone.

"It's only a matter of time before he steps down from the throne, all these will soon be over." Oakinshield assured himself and then he also left to prepare his men for the task.

Back to the eastern part of the kingdom, Tory had successfully brought Merry, Alvat and Clifford home just as he had promised, he also brought Phil and Bilbo with him.

Nicolas and the others welcomed them and they all took their seats. After a long conversation, Nicolas asked, referring to Tory. "Who are these men you brought with you?"

And Tory replied pointing to the direction where they sat. "These are my friends whom my father got arrested, so I decided to bring them with me." He paused, took a deep breath and then continued. "Well the main reason why I have brought them is that they are the only ones except for the commander who can talk me into going back to the palace when I'm not ready, and I don't want that."

"You mean the commander is the only one left in the palace who could make you return? So if he comes now you are going to return with him?" Victoria asked.

"Yes I will, but that depends on the reason he will give to me. Well that is nothing to worry about because I know he will never come for me." Tory replied with confidence.

"How sure are you that he won't come?" Olivia asked.

"I'll say we celebrate and stop talking about him leaving us." Merry suggested.

"That is a great idea, Tory has kept to his words in bringing them back safely." Nicolas contributed, so they all sang joyful songs together all through the night.

As the sun rose the next morning, Oakinshield arrived at the place of Nicolas with a few soldiers to take Prince Tory with him as he was instructed.

Coming out of the house, Tory asked as he saw Oakinshield. "Commander, what brings you to this place? For if it to take those whom I have released back with you, then I'll say you've better return and tell my father that you did not find us for I won't let you take them back."

"My Prince, I am not here for them, rather I have come to escort you back to the palace although the prisoners will have to come with us." Oakinshield answered.

"Well, I have a message for the king."

"And what is this message you speak of?"

"Tell my father that they are not coming back else he wants to wage war against me. These people have done nothing wrong for them to be imprisoned." The Prince replied authoritatively.

"I see, but you must know that this order did not come from your father, rather it came from queen Kate." He responded.

"It seems like I will for the first time disobey her orders." Tory said in a low voice.

"You must know that she has sent for you only for some reason." Said the commander.

"Then what are the reasons why she has sent for me?" Ha asked.

"Your father the king is about to be tried and has demanded that you should be present while he defends himself, so it is on this account that your presence is needed at the palace." Answered the commander.

"So what does this have to do with those whom I have set free?"

"Those were the orders that you returned with them so I have no right to change it."

On hearing, Alvat drew closer to Tory and whispered into his ear saying. "If the command came from the queen then we are willing to come with you. I realized while we were captured that she is a good person and will not pass judgement wrongly."

After hearing the words of Alvat, Tory still resists until he gets a signal from Bilbo, Phil, Merry and Clifford which interpret that they would return with him since it was Kate's that gave the order.

"Now you shall pass this message to the queen and tell her this…. If I am to come with them, they won't be coming as prisoners instead they shall come as friends. If she refuses, then the trial can proceed with my absence." Troy ordered.

"You know I don't take orders from you, my Prince."

"Then I see you are ready to fight against me because I won't return with my friends as prisoners."

Seeing the boldness of the Prince, Oakinshield had no choice but to return with his message back to the palace.

"My lady, the Prince, has agreed to come with me only on one condition." He said as he entered the throne where Kate was left alone.

"And what is his condition?" Alonso asked while he entered the hall following the commander.

"Your son has agreed to cone if only those whom he had taken with him come as friends and not prisoners." Oakinshield replied.

"Well he can come alone for I hold nothing against them." Kate replied.

"No! They have to come with him in whatever way he want, all I know is that I want them here." Alonso opposed.

"My lady, what do you say?" Oakinshield asked.

"Do as he says, let us grant him the benefits of the king." She replied.

"Yes my lady." He said as he bowed and then left again from the place of Nicolas.

Alonso left the palace with haste as something crossed his mind, no one knew where he was heading nor did they have any idea of where he was going.

Now he was seen in the midst of outlaws as he communicated something to their leader in a gentle voice.

"Can you tell me the reason why you want us to kill them?" Asked the man Alonso was talking to.

"Please do not get me wrong… I want the young men dead, and not all of them." Alonso replied.

"The question still remains, why do you want them dead?" The man asked again.

"The reason is simple, I have seen them wage war against me in my visions. So I have to stop it before it comes to pass." Alonso replied.

"What you asked for is difficult but I and my men will execute it." Said the man, and then he paused for a moment. "I must tell you that there is every tendency for others to be affected."

"Do what you have to do but let no harm come to the Prince. Here is the reward for the task, make sure that they do not live to see this day " Alonso replied as he handed over a sack of coins to the man and then returned back to the palace.

Now Oakinshield and his troop were according Tory and his friends back to the kingdom when suddenly they were attacked by outlaws who came out from nowhere and it resulted into fighting.

With the help of the soldiers which Oakinshield brought with him, the mission of the outlaws was not successful. Fili and Clifford sustained a slight injury while Alvat's garment was torn because they were the targets of the outlaws.

At the end of the fight, they took the leader of the outlaws with very few of his men captive.

While they numbered themselves, Phil noticed a scar on the chest of Alvat which looked familiar, so he asked. "Where did you get this scar?"

"Why do you ask?" Alvat replied as he immediately covered his body.

"Commander, Bilbo there is something you need to see." Shouted Phil.

"What is it Phil?" Answered Oakinshield and Bilbo in unison as they both drew near.

"There is a scar on his chest and I'll love him to show it to you." Said Phil referring to the commander and Bilbo.

"Show it to us son." Said Oakinshield to Alvat.

Then Alvat slowly opened his chest again for them to see. With shock they both chorused. "Where did you get those scar?"

"I don't know." Alvat answered, then he looked at Merry and continued. "I've had them since I was a child, maybe my father would know how." He included, still staring at Merry.

Then to Merry, Oakinshield asked. "How did he get that scar?"

And the young men were surprised because of the way they inquired about the mark.

With fear of being punished if he lied, Merry answered slowly. "Even I do not know how he got those scars, I found him years ago when he was still an infant with them so I took him in as my son. That is all I know, hope there is no problem?"

Hearing those words, Oakinshield, Phil and Bilbo looked at each other with smiles on their faces. Then Oakinshield replied, "there is no problem, just that the scar looks exactly like the ones we've seen before."

"Well, I think he is actually the one we all presumed dead." Bilbo added. "And how sure are you concerning this you speak of?" Asked Clifford.

"The scar on his chest is the same as one which we know of, and your father had just said he was found years ago, so he probably is the one we speak of." Phil answered.

"I know who I am, and these are my brothers. Your suspicions are wrong for I am not whom you see me as." Said Alvat as he got tired of hearing the words which Oakinshieid, Bilbo and Phil spoke of.

Despite what Alvat said, they still continued as Phil said:

"The story you need to know began many years ago…."