Azarine the Red
The late afternoon shadows made the forest seem even gloomier. The
little Wizard, trudging along under the rustling red trees, hands
thrust deep into his pockets, never had felt more depressed or
unhappy. He had hated to leave his friends with a Monarch as cruel and
untrustworthy as Bustabo. Still, he had the utmost confidence in Jellia
Jam. The Young Oz Miss doubtless had some plan in her clever little
head and had chosen this way for him to escape, meaning to follow with
the others at the first opportunity. Anyway, he reflected, dropping
down on a heap of fallen leaves and resting his back against a tree,
they had the kit-bag to help them, if worst came to worst. Perhaps if
he concentrated and thought very hard, he could recall the powerful
incantation for locating missing persons and articles.
But a Wizard without his books and equipment, is almost as helpless
as a doctor without his pills and medicine bag. Try as he would, the
Wizard could not remember the proper combination of words to bring
back the missing Princess. His short nap in Stratovania had rested him
a little, but he still was dreadfully weary from his gruelling flight
and the recent shocks and mischances. The loss of the Ozpril had been
the worst blow of all and now his tired brain simply refused to work.
So, sitting sadly under the tree, he munched the sandwiches from the
basket, drank from the bottle of cold tea and wished fervently for a
fire to warm himself, for his clothes were still damp and clammy from
the dive in Bustabo's lake. It comforted him a little to know that the
others were drying out and enjoying a good supper in the castle. But
it was no comfort at all to realize that Strut and his legions were
winging their way toward the Emerald City--the city _he_ had built and
lived in so long it seemed more like home than any place he had known
in America.
The Wizard crammed the rest of the sandwiches into the basket and
started recklessly through the forest, tripping over tough vines and
rocks, bumping into trees and peering desperately about for traces of
a Princess, or for any sign that might tell him in which direction
the Emerald City lay. From the slant of the ground he knew he was
travelling down the mountain, and the deep, red foliage told him he was
somewhere in the Quadling country of Oz. But with night coming on and
the shadows growing deeper and darker, he probably would lose his
way entirely and never get out of the forest at all. He felt uneasy at
leaving his comrades behind in the Red King's Castle. Was it better to
try to save Ozma and the Emerald City, or to stay in this forest and
help Dorothy and Jellia and the devoted friends who had embarked on
this unexpected adventure with him?
Stopping short, the Wizard pressed both hands to his forehead in an
effort to make up his mind. Night already had overtaken him and it
was now so dark, it was impossible to see more than a foot or so in
any direction. Occasional roars, the snapping of twigs and the gleam
of yellow eyes from the thicket, caused him no little anxiety. At an
especially savage roar, he suddenly stopped worrying about Ozma and the
others and began to do considerable worrying about himself.
How humbling for a Wizard to be devoured by a hungry beast. Backing
softly away from the approaching monster, he began looking sharply
about for a hollow tree, a cave or even a clump of bushes where he
might conceal himself. On the tip of his tongue and ready for instant
use was the magic word which would render him invisible. Fortunately
he did remember that. But the Wizard never wasted words, magic or
otherwise. Resolving to wait till the last possible moment, he
continued to back rapidly and cautiously. Then, unexpectedly from
behind him came another distraction--the clear ringing of a silver
bell. At the same time the gloom was pierced by a dancing ray of
light. Swinging round, the Wizard flung up both arms and not knowing
whether to dash into the teeth of the monster in front of him, or risk
the lowered horns of the huge beast behind him, the startled magician
uttered the word that rendered him invisible.
"Brr--rah!" raged the burly, bear-like creature, rearing up on his hind
legs. "Where is that pesky man-creature? I saw him a moment ago, but
now, though I still catch his scent, he has hidden from me. And why
must you, Shagomar, come horning in to spoil my supper? Why cannot you
mind your own business, Br-rrah!"
"I am minding my own business," roared the creature addressed as
Shagomar. "AWAY--you Entomophagus monster! Haven't I told you time
and again to keep away from the cave of the Princess? The very next
bug-bear that comes prowling 'round shall have a taste of my antlers!
Get on with you now, and after this--leave harmless travellers alone!"
The great red stag made a short rush at the ugly beast blocking his
path. Large as a Grizzly, half insect and half bear, it held its
ground uncertainly for a moment, then shuffled off into the darkness,
grunting angrily.
The Wizard, who had jumped hastily from between the two beasts, had
listened to the stag's words with lively interest and astonishment.
Huge and sandy, with antlers of tremendous breadth, the huge creature
now stood quiet as a statue. From one antler prong hung a flashing
silver lantern. From another dangled the bell which had so startled the
Wizard.
"Well, friend! Are you still there?" whispered the Stag, softly.
Instead of answering, the Wizard uttered the word that would make him
visible. "Come with me!" directed the Stag, showing neither surprise
nor curiosity at the Wizard's sudden reappearance. "You will be safer
with us in the cave. Surely you are a stranger on Red Top or you would
know it is dangerous to wander in this forest at night."
"Oh, I don't mind danger," said the Wizard, striding sturdily beside
the Stag. "I am used to danger--and I must reach the Emerald City
before morning! Ozma and her whole capitol are threatened by a band
of ruthless Airlanders, and unless I can give them some warning, the
Emerald City certainly will be captured by Strut of the Strat. I am
Ozma's Chief Magician, fallen by great misfortune into this forest."
"I thought you might be a Wizard," murmured Shagomar, pausing to nibble
at a few tender leaves. "And you say the Ruler of the whole Land of Oz
is in danger? Hah, well--we all have our troubles." Exhaling his breath
noisily, Shagomar looked off between the trees with a troubled frown.
"I cannot direct you to the Emerald City, but I'm sure the Princess can
help you."
"What Princess do you mean?" asked the Wizard, curious to hear what
Shagomar would say.
"Azarine!" whispered the Stag, looking around carefully to see that no
one was listening. "Azarine the Red--Ruler of Red Top Mountain!"
"But I thought Bustabo was ruler of the mountain! I just came from his
castle!" sputtered the Wizard. "He certainly told me he was King of the
Kudgers."
"King of the Kudgers--pfui!" The stag shook his head as if a bee
were in his ear, while his bell played a regular roundelay. "Bustabo
was, till a week ago, Chief Bowman in Her Majesty's Guard. Using his
position and his men to help him, he has wickedly seized Azarine's
throne, insisting that Azarine permit him to be the King of all the
Kudgers. When our little Princess refused, she was locked up in the
tower. But, with the assistance of a faithful servant, she managed to
escape, and has been hiding in this forest ever since. I, being an old
and trusted friend, have been looking out for her and will protect her
with horn and hoof until her own loyal subjects unseat this miserable
imposter!"
"Whew--so that's the way it is?" The Wizard thrust his hands more
deeply into his pockets. "Well, that settles _that_! I won't do it--no
matter what happens!"
"Won't do what?" questioned the Stag, looking down sideways at the
little man.
"Oh--nothing!" Kicking at a stone, the Wizard walked along in a
depressed silence. Surely no one ever had been in a worse dilemma. If
he managed by a trick or by force to carry Azarine back to the Red
Castle, Dorothy and his friends would be released instantly and all
of them speeded on their way to the Capitol. If he did not return
the Princess to the castle, his brave and faithful companions would
be flung off the mountain, Strut would conquer the Emerald City and
everything would be lost. LOST!
But when, a few minutes later, the Stag pushed through a cluster of
bushes that concealed the entrance to the cave, and the Wizard stepped
into the presence of Azarine herself, he knew he never would force her
surrender to the infamous Bustabo.
Seated pensively on a rough boulder beside a small fire was the
prettiest little Princess the Wizard had almost ever seen. Her hair,
long and red as Glinda's, fell in satiny waves to her feet. She wore a
little mesh cap of pearls and a white satin, Princess dress. A long,
red velvet cloak hung loosely from her shoulders. Not exactly the
costume for a cave, but vastly becoming. Azarine's pale and flower-like
face was sweet and gentle and, when she saw the wet and weary traveller
with Shagomar, she jumped up to welcome him as graciously as though she
still were mistress of her castle.
"Why, it's the Wizard of Oz!" she cried joyfully, after a second look
at the guest. "Oh, we _all_ know the Wizard of Oz! I have a picture of
you right over the grand piano in my castle. Wherever did you find him,
Shaggy dear? Has he come all this way to help us?"
"It will be a great pleasure and privilege, if I may," said the Wizard,
sitting on a rock opposite the Princess and placing his high hat
between his knees. "Just now, I happen to be in as much trouble as your
Highness. But perhaps--" the Wizard looked thoughtfully at the Stag
standing motionless at the entrance of the cave--"can Shagomar run?"
"Oh, yes! Terribly fast!" Azarine assured him, eagerly. "Faster than
eagles can fly, than water can fall down the mountain, faster than any
creature on Red Top. Shaggy can do anything!" Jumping up, the Princess
ran over to lean her head against the Red Stag's shoulder. "He goes to
the village each day and returns with food. He has brought me blankets
for my bed, pillows for my head, and has kept away the fierce Bug-bears
and all other wild beasts that roam the Red Wood. I don't know what I
should have done without him!" The Princess added softly, "Shaggy's
such a dear!"
"You're both dears!" agreed the Wizard.
"Are we?" Azarine twinkled her eyes at the Wizard, "But Shaggy's the
biggest, and we've always been friends, haven't we?" The Stag, looking
down at Azarine with his bright, steadfast eyes, nodded so vigorously
that the bell on his antlers rang a veritable medley, and the rays from
the silver lantern danced into every corner of the dreary cavern.
"Well then," the Wizard rubbed his hands briskly together, "Shaggy
shall carry us straight to the Palace of Glinda, the Good Sorceress of
the South. As Red Top Mountain is in the Quadling Country, her palace
must be somewhere quite near."
"Oh, it is! It is!" beamed Azarine. "I've often seen her lights, from
the towers on Red Top. It's just a mile or two from the base of this
mountain. I never have seen Glinda, but I have heard she is very good
and a Powerful Sorceress. Do you think she can force Bustabo to give me
back my castle and my Kingdom?"
"I know it!" declared the Wizard, picking up his hat and clapping it on
the back of his head. "But before we start for Glinda's, I must go back
and rescue my friends from that thieving Red Beard."
Marching forth and back before the fire, the Wizard related all
that had happened since he and his party had started off in the two
Ozoplanes. Hearing the strange tale, Azarine almost forgot her own
troubles. When the Wizard told how Bustabo had broken the winged staffs
on which they hoped to ride to the Emerald City, and of the wicked
bargain he had driven, the little Princess generously offered to return
to the Red Castle so that Ozma and Oz might be saved. But the Wizard
would not hear of such a thing. "No!" he decided--"Shaggy and I will go
back and manage, somehow, to release my comrades from the castle. Then,
we all can start for Glinda's together."
"Wait," whistled the Stag, who had been listening to the Wizard's story
with distended eyes and nostrils. "Wait, first I will fetch Dear Deer."
"Who in Oz, is Dear Deer?" inquired the Wizard, as Shagomar melted like
a shadow through the dark opening of the cavern.
"His wife," explained Azarine with an excited skip. "And that will be
just splendid, for Dear Deer shall carry all of your friends, and we
can ride Shaggy!"