Herzog Ernst Page #2

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The princess gazed curiously at the

strange being who had spared her life.

What lay hidden beneath

those iron plates?

"Who are you?" the Princess asked.

"I'm Duke Ernest.

I'm looking for the Carbuncle Stone,

so I can go home.

And who are you?"

"I'm Atessa, Princess of the Agrippini.

Since you spared me,

I'm going to help you.

But we will have to overcome

five obstacles

in order to reach the land of the

Caliph, where the Carbuncle Stone is.

The road is long and dangerous.

First comes the land of the Pannochs.

One of the Pannochs

is a friend of mine. He will help us."

"Look!" cried the knights,

"Ernest is alive after all!"

"Stand aside, Ernest!"

Ordered the Black Knight,

"We'll show this strange bird

what a real knight is!"

"Wait!" cried Ernest,

"She's going to help us

find the Carb..."

"Attack!" cried the Black Knight.

"Stand aside, Ernest,

she's not one of us!"

"He looks quite nice, does Duke Ernest,"

the Princess thought quietly to herself.

The Pannochs arose

and blew up a fierce storm.

The Princess soon found her Pannoch

friend and told him Ernest's story.

She told him about

the knights' mission to find the Stone,

how Ernest had saved her life,

and how he had lost part of his armour.

"I must find the Stone,

or I can't go home. Please help me."

"Very well," said the Pannoch,

"Do you see that mountain?"

"It's the Magnetic Mountain. It attracts

everything in its proximity.

It exerts an irresistible pull

on anything that crosses this line.

It is also the home of the Rocs,

who devour everything they catch.

So be quiet:
They mustn't spot us!

But there's a tunnel

known only to us Pannochs

which bypasses the mountain

and leads to the land of the Ariaspers.

They'll be able to help you.

I'll gladly guide you there."

"A magnetic mountain?" thought Ernest,

intrigued, "I must take a closer look."

"Ernest!"

Cried the Pannoch anxiously,

"The knights have broken through

my line of Pannochs."

"Atessa, Ernest:

Into the tunnel quickly!"

The noise from the Magnetic Mountain

attracted the attention of the Roc.

Ernest and his companions

had left the tunnel.

To their horror,

the Roc was still searching for food.

But the young Rocs had eaten their fill.

So the Roc put the bundle containing

the three friends away for the next day,

high up on the great crag.

The night was chilly

and by morning Ernest had a nasty cold.

His sneezing woke a young Roc,

the most curious of the omnivorous birds.

He quietly crept over to the bundle

to see what was moving inside it.

"Psst," whispered Ernest,

"Please don't eat us.

I'm Duke Ernest and my friends

and I seek the Carbun... No, wait!"

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