Dorothy slept on a pile of hay and was blanketed by straw. Put there by her guard, the man who took the sword given to her by Helen. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, disappointed that she was still here in this alien world. That man was holding a rabbit on a stick above a small fire. She looked at him, and saw that he was quite handsome.
"What's your name?" she asked.
"Star Corn" he replied.
"That's a funny name!" Dorothy laughed.
The meat tasted well. Soon they were up and Star Corn held Dorothy firmly by the wrist and took her along the golden path. Totem was busily running in and out of the yellow grasses either side of the path. By the time the sun was up, it was growing warmer, and the three moons faded from view. They walked miles. Star Corn picked some strange roots and ate one raw. He offered one to Dorothy. A root the colour of honey and shaped like a heart with red stalks, nothing so much looked like that at home. She found it hard and spiced as a radish. Star Corn let her open her rucksack sometimes to sip from the bottle of water, and she shared this with him.
"Soon it will climb," Star Corn told her. His strong hand tightly around her wrist.
They soon left behind the yellow fields and came to green slopes, crowned with high silvery mountains veiled in fine mist. It was an easy walk to begin with, but further on the path snaked up a steep hill and curved around a massive rock wall. They travelled far, and the golden path turned brittle, leading them through mountains that soared to low clouds.
They soon arrived to a crossroads where three colourful paths intersected. The golden path contrinued ahead, curving upwards towards the mountains. There was a red path leading right down the hill and fading behind stone arches. A blue path snaked off further towards the left and disappearing around corners. Dorothy wondered where those paths led to.
"Come on," Star Corn urged. "We keep going on the yellow path."
Dorothy and Star Corn walked along the golden path. Totem wandered around behind them and caught up, carrying a dead bird in his jaws that he was going to eat.
They climbed up the golden path leading further up the mountains. Banners appeared here and there, all flapping in the soft breeze. Each flag showed a sigil of a green apple against blue.
"We must be in the outpost of the Fruit Mountain," Star Corn said. "An order of warriors."
Dorothy just wanted to go home. As she and Star Corn followed the golden path, they arrived to more dangerous heights. The path narrowed between walls, and sharply curved out alongside a steep wall. It was enough to make Dorothy feel sick. Totem remained close by.
"Your animal is very graceful," Star Corn commented as Totem just made it ahead of them and climbed steps leading up into a small orchard. A narrow path through trees of apples in shades of red and green. Some apples on the trees were speckled. Dorothy was tempted to pick one and she felt so hungry. As if to read her mind, Star Corn wanred her not to eat them. "They're poisonous" he said.
"Stop right there!!!" commanded a very angry voice above them. Leaning over a rock several feet up, was a knight dressed in pure steel armour, with a gleaming closed helmet on his head. He held a broadsword and a shield displaying the apple sigil of the Fruit Mountain.
The knight leapt down from the rock and landed in front of them. He was big, taller than Star Corn, and his armour reflected tiny sunlights. Dorothy was scared.
"I'm escorting this girl to the city where she can face trail for the death of a pincess Meng!" Star Corn blurted out. Dorothy was about to protest her innocence when the knight threatened to kill Star Corn if he didn't let her go. Star Corn released Dorothy then.
"Go back to the fields, farm boy!" the knight said. "I will take over from here."
Star Corn turned and started to go back, when Dorothy called out to him.
"Star Corn! Don't go! You've got my sword!"
"The sword doesn't belong to you!" he said as he walked away, leaving her.
The knight grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along the golden path, up through another orchard of poisonous apples. He was hot to the touch as the sunlight always glared on his armour.
"You're now in my charge," he said."I will take you to the city, for killing princess Meng!"
"I didn't kill her!" she cried. "Let me go!"
The knight flung her over his shoulder and carried her upwards while Star Corn descended the mountain, his job done. Now Dorothy was being arrested by a knight. Totem followed.
(End of Part 3. To be continued in Part 4).
This story was written by me and it's loosely based on the "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" adventures by L. Frank Baum.
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