Chapter 8

The Leaf Bag Challenge

The same day that Maple and his battalion left, Oak Quercus and his band awoke at the inn. They were still struggling to come to terms with the previous day's events when Oak had loudly proclaimed his desire to reform Arbolarbre society and re-educate King Xidor Cèdre and his minions.

Oak woke up before anyone else. He sat down at his room’s massive cedar desk and wrote a letter to Prince Atord. He mentioned his desire for peace and to rescue the avians from the perils of war.

He got up once he was done and replaced his cherrywood chair. He went downstairs and rang the inn bell, waking everyone up.

The sound resounded throughout the building. "Ding, Dong, Ding, Dong...".

Oak sat at table number four and waited for the others.

Gradually, everyone woke up and joined him for lunch, waiters brought them pea soup.

"What's going on? Why did you ring that bell, Oak? Is this the end of the world?" Willow mused, grabbing his spoon to start eating soup.

Oak stood up from his wooden chair. He said in a loud voice. "No, but it could be. The prince's reinforcements will never arrive, Maple has gone to meet the prince in person to explain our decision and to denounce us... I’ve written a letter to the prince to tell him of our intentions for peace and to avoid war with him and the clergy."

Willow suggested between bites. "We should send it by carrier pigeon as soon as possible. Before we all die."

Oak sat down and placed a cylindrical container on the table. He had inserted the letter inside. "You're right, Willow. But I don't think a carrier pigeon would fly fast enough to deliver this message.” 

He got an idea. “ We need to send something that never gets tired and never stops to drink, eat or sleep, something like a firebird.”

"Animals, how awesome you are!"

A voice made contact with Oak and the image of a Firebird appeared in his head

"Why are you calling me?" the bird questioned.

"Bring our message, Firebird."

A few moments passed and then a powerful gust of wind shook the table.

Willow held back his bowl and kept it from spilling.

A large Firebird flew into the inn, flying through the open windows. It landed abruptly on the massive cedar table and looked at Oak with its beautiful eyes.

Hi, Papa Oak, is this the letter?

Yeah, bring it to St.Cèdre, give it only to Prince Atord.

I agree. 

The bird chirped.

It grabbed the cylindrical container with its talon and flew south towards the capital of St. Cèdre

All the guests watched the bird leave with curiosity. St.Cèdre was a few hours’ flight from Bouleauville and was the birthplace of the Cèdre Dynasty. Prince Bibacier Cedar, Xidor's and Prince Atord's great-grandfather, had the former palace of the former King Herbacum enlarged after being named the first king of the dynasty by the very important Arbolarbre Clergy, 

The ancient monarchy, direct descendants of Herbacum, had been decimated along with the majority of the population during the great white fungi plague. The fungus killed thousands of tree-men. In this troubled period of history, the clergy unjustly accused the former monarchy, the Ural dynasty of being responsible for the plague and had them executed.

The clergy's influence grew and it turned the Cèdre from a low-ranking noble family into monarchs loyal to vegetarianism. Now that Prince Atord had discovered his brother Xidor's treachery, the clergy wanted to help him in his plan to eliminate all traces of carnivorism. They also wanted to help him bring Oak to his senses...

As the guests watched the bird fly away, Oak tapped the table and brought them to their senses.

"Listen to me! Time is running out, every second that passes is a second that Xidor has the opportunity to capture an avian. We need to block access to the roads as soon as possible. We need to fight."

Willow's voice became high and shrill. Worry could be seen on his face. "Yes Oak, we must fight, but during the battles, you will have to shape each flame elemental without negative thoughts so as not to hurt us and especially not to hurt yourself..."

"But my sap is still so young!" retorted Oak.

"And you’re young too! Ignis had an old and powerful sap but he had the experience that came with it. You have none and you don't know your limits!"

"And how could I know them without anyone to guide me and help me experiment?" offended Oak.

Jonas remembered his late friend Moley. "Maybe my friends the golden moles could help you, they know how to prevent the wild consequences of magic."

"We don't have time to go to them, avians are in danger!" replied Oak.

"Do you feel you can't succumb to anger and strong emotions in the heat of battle? Do so or the elementals will rage and annihilate us all, even these dear avians."

Oak put his hands on his chest. "I understand, Willow. I'm going to hold back any strong emotions during battle, I don't want you to die because of me..."

Willow looked at Ergrimmir. "Someone will have to stay here to watch the inn and wait for Prince Atord's response. We need to make sure we don't get into an unnecessary war."

Ergrimmir got up and walked to the counter where he worked. In the middle of the journey, he told them. "I will stay here and inform you of the course of events. This inn is my whole life and I want to stay close to my wife."

Oak stood up again, walked over to Ergrimmir, and extended his hand. "Thank you, Ergrimmir for your hospitality. You did the right thing in abandoning Xidor."

Ergrimmir shook his hand. "See you next time, the road awaits," 

"Thank you Ergrimmir," said the gang as they got up from their chairs and brought him their empty soup bowls.

"See you next time," said Oak

The three companions and the twenty or so foot soldiers left the inn for adventure. They stopped when they arrived at a green patch of grass. "Wait here," said Oak.

"Animals you are awesome!"

A few moments passed and then several large firebirds appeared over the inn and landed in front of them.

"Get in."

The band boarded these and flew east toward the road that led from Oakvalley to Xidorville.

The landscape flashed before their eyes, the snow-capped mountains, the yellow hills that populated the land as well as the steep cliffs of the coast and the many temperate forests.

They located a dirt road that ran eastward through the many forests and hills. a horse-drawn caravan that looked exactly like the one Jonas was leading, lay on an open stretch of it. surrounded by some massive hardwoods.

A tree man in his thirties, wearing a blue hat and yellow jacket, held the horses' reins. A caravan!" cried Oak.

They dived at full speed towards the caravan, the Firebirds approached the driver and grabbed him in their talons.

"Huhuhu, aaargh," said the driver before he lost consciousness. His sudden lack of resistance surprised the birds, who dropped him. His body crashed to the ground and he died with a thud. Oak watched helplessly as he died. He began to shiver...

He's dead... I killed him... I'm a killer... But it was an accident... Yes, I'm not responsible... it was an accident...

"It was an accident, you're not guilty." comforted Willow.

"I know...." hesitated Oak.

The horses whinnied in fear and galloped away.

The caravan overturned and hit the ground, blocking the middle of the road from Oakvalley to St. Cèdre

Oak landed near the trailer and heard faint cries coming from inside.

"Help, help."

He ventured inside, popped the lock on the safe, and released the avian.

It was a small blue hawk with not very sharp talons. "Thank you... I’m Halcon" he said in a soft voice.

Oak smiled at him and took him gently in his hands "Hello, Halcon, could you lead us to Skyhigh? We can't defeat Xidor alone, we have to convince your king to join us."

The bird smiled weakly at him. "Of course, I’ll take you there, the Peacock King will be happy to meet you even if he is saddened by the absence of his late father, who called himself the miracle worker.

Halcon puffed up his chest. "If the Miracle Worker were among us, Xidor would already be defeated. Nothing stands up to him."

"Thank you," Oak tells him.

Oak moved closer to the trees and chanted. "Grant the plant a seed from the plain." He imagined the trees collapsing under their weight but couldn't help thinking of little squirrels dying crushed under. 

Not that!  The thoughts tortured Oak whose sense of guilt was magnified; the hunter was guilty of murder but not these innocent young squirrels. 

But the spell had already been cast, much to Oak's dismay. The young wizard made the trees grow out of proportion so that they could no longer support their branches. The oaks and birches uprooted and fell, blocking the rest of the road and dragging down young squirrels who cried out in panic, injured.

The image imprinted itself on Oak's mind, and he felt his heart clench and his shivers begin again. No.... 

Jonas saw Oak's confusion and pulled him out of his thoughts. "Maybe we'd better go see a druid! I know a good one in Monte Pico."

Halcon answered them not sharing the same pity for the squirrels. "There is no time, Follow me, I will take you to Skyhigh, my king owes you thanks and I must inform him that Xidor threatens us. But beware of Griffonnier and his griffin masters." 

"The leaf bag challenge, right?" replied Oak, trying to erase the image of the dying hunter and the wounded squirrels from his thoughts. 

The bird told him before flying south. "Yes, make sure to win it in front of the Peacock’s King or you may never enter Skyhigh."

Oak took off again with his Firebird and followed the little hawk. Oak's gang, who had been watching the whole thing, did the same. 

They flew for many hours, stopping only to block roads or apprehend caravans. They blocked the Ram's Road from St. Cèdre to Xidorville and freed many birdmen who had been held captive by Xidor's henchmen. The birdmen returned to their homes, their faces full of gratitude, and reported the events to the authorities in Skyhigh. Oak and his gang were heading in the same direction as them, due south.

They flew side by side with the avians, past snowy mountains, green valleys, and blue seas. "It's really hot all of a sudden. You might want to take off your winter clothes before you get a heat stroke." Willow exclaimed and pulled off his wool shirt.

A blazing sun glinted off the ocean over which they were flying. The warm southern winds, carried by the Al-Qitar desert, caressed their bark.

Oak replied to his friend, "You're right, Willow, we're coming up over Qitaria. Poor human beings, reduced to living in the desert like beasts... if only their king hadn't plunged into carnivorism..."

Oak and his tree-men stripped naked and flew shirtless across the skies of Qitaria, as the southern part of the peninsula was called, dotted with tiny villages inhabited by the wild man.

They flew over these small villages without stopping and crossed the ocean, following Halcon and flying hundreds of miles away from the coast of Qitaria.

Halcon guided them to an island in the middle of the ocean, where there was nothing but water and the big blue. The island, seen from the sky, was shaped like a large egg.

It was located off the Qitarian coast and had a mountainous and sharp relief, divided into lowlands and highlands. The lowlands were distinguished by their vast expanses of sandy beaches and paradise that opened up into a sclerophyllous forest and a lush green valley, dotted with olive trees, loquat trees, and holm oaks.

The island had a micro-climate that sheltered it from the normal seasons of Arbé, Poussé, Germé, and Floré. It had instead a short dry season and irregular rainfall.

The highlands began where paradise ended, in the middle of the island, where a vast mountain range covered with vegetation stood. There were no bridges, footbridges, or stairways to indicate the presence of an important city, but it was hidden at the top of the highest mountain, Monte Gildor. this Mount was named after the miracle worker, a descendant of the Peacock Dynasty. 

The city of 30,000 inhabitants stood on rocky ground and was full of wooden and bird's nest-shaped houses that stretched as far as the eye could see.

A vast wall several meters high surrounded it in the rare event that someone invaded.

The Peacock King's palace stood in the back part of the city and was distinguished by its brick structure covered with thousands of rainbow-colored feathers. Large walls surrounded it and blocked access.

The band hovered over the city, they witnessed a group of griffins with beige lion fur covered with brown feathers. They were blocking their path with their muscular bodies.; Avians quadrupled in size and muscle mass over their short lives of about forty years.

The largest of the griffins had a golden mane, unlike the others who had a gray mane.

The big griffin flapped his wings and came towards them.

He smiled at them.

Oak replied with a sly smile. "Hello, you must be Griffonnier? Why are you blocking our entrance to Skyhigh? Let us through!"

The big griffin grinned. "Tsk, tsk, pass can no one without winning the bag of leaves challenge. We summon you, the master griffins to the bag of leaves challenge. The first team that two duels wins, the victory wins."

He chuckled. "Uh-huh, Refuse you may, but pass you may not. Understand, we, for none, can against us prevail. Certainly not, a bunch of forest monkeys.

Jonas put his hands behind his back and exposed his bare chest. He smiled smugly. "Forest monkey? Good for you! The monkey is swift as the wind and shows a fearsome ferocity, we'll beat you to the punch. You and your stupid challenge."

Four gray hawks each brought a brown backpack with straps (the bag of leaves) and a wooden sword. 

         

"Two players chosen by each team will participate in the leaf bag duel. Each player will carry a bag of leaves on their shoulders and must keep it on their shoulders at all costs."

"How do we lose, how do we win?" questioned Willow.

A hawk threw a bag of leaves into the air; another hawk went to pick it up.

"Like this... The first participant to drop his bag of leaves will lose the game. It’s forbidden to hurt the opponent. The winner of the first game will play again during the next game. I shall referee this one." 

The other hawk returned with the bag of leaves and dropped it on Oak's back.

Oak remembered Halcon's words and turned to the hawk standing two inches from his face. He spoke with sincerity and confidence. "I’d like the king to attend the game. He’ll see the interest we have in your culture. He may even congratulate your griffin masters for defeating us... But I’d like to talk to him, whether we win or lose."

"The king knows about the help you gave to the avians... He thanks you from the bottom of his heart." said the hawk kindly.

"Then why do we have to participate in your event?" said Oak, dryly.

The hawk bowed to Oak, hand on his chest, and said. "Tradition... His Majesty will be notified of your arrival."

The Bag of Leaves challenge has been around since the founding of the avian city when the Great Owl, the first queen of the kingdom, decided to create a system to train male avian children in combat. The females were exempted because, in the eyes of the first avians, their lives were considered more important. Among the avians, women dominated all spheres of society except the military. 

The hawk took off like a bolt of lightning toward the city that lay just below them. The open-roofed, bird's-nest-shaped buildings were visible and appeared tiny. The falcon emerged from one of them several minutes later and returned with a big smile on his face.

"The king will come shortly, he is eager to see your game. This is the first time in a very long time that friends of our people have entered the island. Recently, only enemies have come to bother us."

The referee stood amongst the players and asked them a question." Declare your team members."

"We’re the Forest Monkeys, Oak and Jonas will take part in the duel,” Willow said.

"But I have no experience with swords," Oak said. 

"Me, neither," replied Willow.

"Masters of the skies we are, will I participate with Griffon #3," said Griffonier.

The four falcons brought wooden backpacks and swords, handing them to each fighter except Oak who was already carrying the bag of leaves.

"1,2,3, Combat"

In midair, Oak engaged Griffonnier in combat.

He raised his sword and swung it around...

Griffonnier grasped the pommel of Oak's sword.

He gave it a sharp blow, making it drop.

"What a neophyte! Dominate you I will."

Oak's sword fell and landed hard on the city's pavement, shattering into pieces.

Even before Griffonnier moved his arm to seize Oak’s bag of leaves, the young man let out a sigh and lowered his arms. "I give up, Griffonnier won... I can't do anything else."

"Oak don't give up, you can still win," Jonas said.

"No. That's enough for today."

The little hawk shouted. "Oak gives up, Victory to the masters of the skies! Will Griffonier be able to repeat his feat?"

"Pff, so easy. Using only one arm I can beat the one called Jonas."

"1,2,3, Fight!"

Jonas and Griffonnier exchanged blow after blow, their wooden swords clashing against each other.

Minutes passed without either of them managing to touch the enemy's bag of leaves. The fight was so captivating that the spectators did not see time pass, nor did they hear the beating of the bustards' wings, nor did they feel the strong gusts of wind and the typical orange perfume of the peacock king...

A melodious voice came from behind them and startled them. "Don't let go forest monkeys, you can still win even if you have lost feathers."

Jonas and Griffin stopped fighting and turned around to see the Peacock King and a carrier pigeon. The carrier pigeon exclaimed, "The peacock king has arrived! All hail the king!"

A few meters away from them, the peacock king was seated next to many nobles (mostly women) on a large procession of great bustards spread in a circle of 35 individuals. Their backs acted as seats for the aristocracy. The peacock king waved a flag embroidered with a tree-climbing monkey while the aristocrats ate mushroom sandwiches and watched the confrontation.

        

The Peacock King’s arrival comforted Jonas's heart and he tried everything.

The latter leapt from his Firebird and jumped on Griffonnier.

He swung his sword down.

His sword slipped into the strap of the bag of leaves.

He removed the bag from Griffonnier's shoulders who glared at Jonas.

"Just this is not, win you can't!"

Jonas fell into the air.

His Firebird picked him up.

He gave Griffonnier a big, wry smile. "You're losing, smooth talker!"

Griffonnier gave Jonas the finger and nodded twice.

Jonas ignored him and contemplated his sword, shaking it to drop the bag.

Griffon #3, Griffon #4, and Griffon #5 sprinted, hit Jonas head-on, and retrieved the Griffin bag. The impact caused the tree man to lose his balance and almost fall off his mount.

Oak reached out and grabbed Jonas's arm to keep him from falling.

Jonas was bleeding. The avians' talons had lacerated his large dorsal muscle and affected his motor skills.

The tree-man tried to point at Griffonier with his finger, but his arm could not move.

Jonas snarled. “Cheater. It’s forbidden by the rules of the game. Do something! It can’t go unpunished! We played with you out of respect for your customs! I didn’t know that violence permeated these.”

The peacock king raised his leg and pointed it at Griffonier. "Master Griffins! You dare, even in front of your king? Gratuitous violence has never been part of our culture. The game is over. You may have won the game, but you have lost my support."

The peacock king pretended to kick them. "I sentence you to exile, get the hell out of here before I decide to clip your wings."

Among the avians, the condemnation to exile and the wings amputations were common punishments for the male traitors. They were normally dropped in the Qitarian desert with their wings clipped. Many dangers awaited them there including the wild man. As for the females, they were imprisoned. 

This city is ours, we’ll return. Fall you will peacock king. I, Griffonier will be king of the avians. Thought the traitor. 

The king's will was done and the Griffins left the city. The four falcons escorted them away. In doing so, the monarch had sown the seeds of discord.

Once Griffin left, the Peacock King beckoned the bustards to approach Oak and Jonas.

The bustards flew painfully toward the Firebirds. The peacock king gave an embarrassed smile to the two companions.

"Young people, I apologize for their behavior. I designed the leaf bag duel as a fun challenge to gauge our guests’ resolve."

He added confidently." Your persistence was obvious, and you won me over... hats off to you. Welcome to Skyhigh!"

"Thank you," Oak replied.

The peacock king spat toward the ground. "Joye has informed us of King Xidor's plans. A few days ago we captured two of his spies, they were loitering on the island. They are planning who knows what and still refuse to talk."

Oak put his hand on the king's shoulders. "Let us chat with them, we'll make them spill the beans. We had captured a man who worked for Xidor, but he didn't survive the trip..."

It's a good thing that I didn't catch another one, he’d have died too...

"It's no great loss... I'll send you to question those spies... Go to the royal dungeons at once!" said the peacock king.

"Okay, but to whom are you going to tell what the spies will reveal to us" replied Oak. 

"I’ll share the information with Prince Atord, the enemy of my enemy is my friend... And I’ll greatly need the help of a friend like him to get rid of Xidor."

No great loss, how can he say that a life is a life... This man was like Jonas... Oh, Jonas, you are the proof that forgiveness works... Aaah, the peacock king will tell Atord and Atord will kill Xidor... why always violence and not forgiveness.

His face contorted with rage, Jonas rectified." I refuse to go to the dungeons, I’m in dire need of care. You see these lacerations? It's your fault, you and this stupid game.” He shouted. “ WHO IN HIS RIGHT MIND MAKES A FOOL OF HIS GUESTS!? Send me to the hospital... You have a hospital, don't you?"

The peacock king patted him on the back, causing him to grimace with pain. "So be it, you're going to the mental hospital. I won’t tolerate you speaking to me like that. I saved you from Griffonier and this is how you repay me. This game has existed since the world began and will continue to exist for centuries to come. I won’t lift a finger to save you no matter what happens to you.

Soldiers escorted Jonas to the mental hospital which lay deep in the city. For his part, the Peacock King personally guided the rest of the guests to the merchant quarter where the inns and taverns were located as well as the royal dungeons.

Oak and Willow entered the underground prison complex and saw an array of faces, all unknown but one. 

Karel.