Oz 10: Rinkitink in Oz by L. Frank Baum
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when_they heard this bold speech a mighty laugh arose from_the band of warriors, and when it had subsided the captain said:

" you love to jest, my baby prince, and_the joke is fairly good . but why did you willingly thrust your head into_the lion's mouth ? when_you were free, why did you not stay free ? we_did_not know we had left a single person in Pingaree ! but since you managed to escape us then, it_is really kind of you to_come here of your own free will, to_be our slave . who is_the funny fat person with_you ? "

" it_is his majesty, king Rinkitink, of_the great city of Gilgad . he has accompanied me to_see that you render full restitution for all you_have stolen from Pingaree ."

" better yet ! " laughed Buzzub ." he_will make a fine slave for queen Cor, who loves to tickle fat men, and_see them jump ."

king Rinkitink was filled with horror when he heard this, but the prince answered as boldly as before, saying:

" we_are_not to_be frightened by bluster, believe me; nor are we so weak as_you imagine . we_have magic powers so great and terrible that no host of warriors can possibly withstand us, and therefore I call upon you to surrender your city and your island to_us, before we crush you with_our mighty powers ."

the boy spoke very gravely and earnestly, but his words only aroused another shout of laughter . so while the men of Regos were laughing Inga drove the boat we'll up onto the sandy beach and leaped out . he also helped Rinkitink out, and when_the goat had unaided sprung to_the sands, the king got upon Bilbil's back, trembling a little internally, but striving to look as brave as possible .

there_was a bunch of coarse hair between_the goat's ears, and this Inga clutched firmly in_his left_hand . the boy knew the pink pearl would protect not_only himself, but all whom he touched, from any harm, and as Rinkitink was astride the goat and Inga had his hand upon_the animal, the three could_not_be injured by anything the warriors could do . but captain Buzzub did_not know this, and_the little group of three seemed so weak and ridiculous that he believed their capture would_be easy . so he turned to_his men and with a wave of_his hand said:

" seize the intruders ! "

instantly two_or_three of_the warriors stepped forward to obey, but to_their amazement they_could_not reach any of_the three; their hands were arrested as_if by an invisible wall of iron . without paying any attention to_these attempts at capture, Inga advanced slowly and_the goat kept pace with_him . and when Rinkitink saw that he_was safe from harm he_gave one of_his big, merry laughs, and it startled the warriors and made them nervous . captain Buzzub's eyes grew big with surprise as_the three steadily advanced and forced his men backward; nor was he free from terror himself at_the magic that protected these strange visitors . as for_the warriors, they presently became terror- stricken and fled in a panic up the slope toward the city, and Buzzub was obliged to chase after them and shout threats of punishment before he_could halt them and form them into a line of battle .

all the men of Regos bore spears and bows- and-arrows, and some_of_the officers had swords and battle-axes; so Buzzub ordered them to stand their ground and shoot and slay the strangers as_they approached . this they tried to_do .Inga being in advance, the warriors sent a flight of sharp arrows straight at_the boy's breast, while others cast their long spears at him .

it seemed to Rinkitink that_the little prince must surely perish as he stood facing this hail of murderous missiles; but the power of_the pink pearl did_not desert him, and when_the arrows and spears had reached to within an inch of_his body they bounded back again and fell harmlessly at his feet . nor were Rinkitink or Bilbil injured in_the least, although they stood close beside Inga .

Buzzub stood for a moment looking upon_the boy in silent wonder . then, recovering himself, he shouted in a loud voice:

" once again ! all together, my men . no one shall ever defy our might and live ! "

again a flight of arrows and spears sped toward the three, and since many more of_the warriors of Regos had by_this_time joined their fellows, the air was for a moment darkened by_the deadly shafts . but again all fell harmless before_the power of_the pink pearl, and Bilbil, who had_been growing very angry at_the attempts to injure him and_his party, suddenly made a bolt forward, casting off Inga's hold, and butted into_the line of warriors, who were standing amazed at their failure to conquer .

taken by surprise at_the goat's attack, a dozen big warriors tumbled in a heap, yelling with fear, and their comrades, not knowing what had happened but imagining that their foes were attacking them, turned about and ran to_the city as hard as they_could go .Bilbil, still angry, had just time to catch the big captain as he turned to_follow his men, and Buzzub first sprawled headlong upon_the ground, then rolled over two_or_three times, and finally jumped up and ran yelling after his defeated warriors . this butting on_the_part of_the goat was very hard upon king Rinkitink, who nearly fell off Bilbil's back at_the shock of encounter; but the little fat king wound his arms around the goat's neck and shut his eyes and clung on with all his might . it_was not until he heard Inga say triumphantly, " we_have won the fight without striking a blow ! " that Rinkitink dared open his eyes again . then he_saw the warriors rushing into_the city of Regos and barring the heavy gates, and he_was very_much relieved at_the sight .

" without striking a blow ! " said Bilbil indignantly ." that_is_not quite true, prince Inga . you_did_not fight, I admit, but I struck a couple of times to good purpose, and I claim to_have conquered the cowardly warriors unaided ."

" you and I together, Bilbil," said Rinkitink mildly ." but the next_time you make a charge, please warn me in_time, so_that I_may dismount and give_you all the credit for_the attack ."

there being no one now to oppose their advance, the three walked to_the gates of_the city, which had_been closed against them . the gates were of iron and heavily barred, and upon_the top of_the high walls of_the city a host of_the warriors now appeared armed with arrows and spears and other weapons . for Buzzub had gone straight to_the palace of king Cos and reported his defeat, relating the powerful magic of_the boy, the fat king and_the goat, and had asked what to_do next .

the big captain still trembled with fear, but king Gos did_not helieve in magic, and called Buzzub a coward and a weakling . at once the king took command of_his men personally, and he ordered the walls manned with warriors and instructed them to shoot to kill if any of_the three strangers approached the gates .

of_course, neither Rinkitink nor Bilbil knew how they had_been protected from harm and so at first they were inclined to resent the boy's command that_the three must always keep together and touch one another at all times . but when Inga explained that his magic would_not otherwise save them from injury, they agreed to obey, for they had now seen enough to_convince them that_the prince was really protected by some invisible power .

as_they came before_the gates another shower of arrows and spears descended upon them, and as before not a single missile touched their bodies . king Gos, who was upon_the wall, was greatly amazed and somewhat worried, but he depended upon_the strength of_his gates and commanded his men to_continue shooting until all their weapons were gone .

Inga let them shoot as_much as_they wished, while he stood before_the great gates and examined them carefully .

" perhaps Bilbil can batter down the gates, suggested Rinkitink .

" no," replied the goat; " my head is hard, but not harder than iron ."

" then," returned the king, " let_us stay outside; especially as_we_can't get in ."

but Inga was not at all sure they_could_not get in . the gates opened inward, and three heavy bars were held in place by_means of stout staples riveted to_the sheets of steel . the boy had_been told that_the power of_the blue pearl would enable him to accomplish any feat of strength, and he believed that_this was true .

the warriors, under the direction of king Gos, continued to hurl arrows and darts and spears and axes and huge stones upon_the invaders, all without avail . the ground below was thickly covered with weapons, yet not one_of_the three before_the gates had_been injured in_the slightest manner . when everything had_been cast that was available and not a single weapon of any sort remained at hand, the amazed warriors saw the boy put his shoulder against the gates and burst asunder the huge staples that held the bars in place .a thousand of_their men could_not have accomplished this feat, yet the small, slight boy did it with seeming ease . the gates burst open, and Inga advanced into_the city street and called upon king Gos to surrender .

but Gos was now as badly frightened as were his warriors . he and_his men were accustomed to war and pillage and_they had carried terror into many countries, but here was a small boy, a fat man and a goat who_could_not be injured by all his skill in warfare, his numerous army and thousands of death- dealing weapons . moreover, they not_only defied king Gos's entire army but they had broken in_the huge gates of_the city -- as easily as if_they had_been made of paper -- and such an exhibition of enormous strength made the wicked king fear for_his life . like all bullies and marauders, Gos was a coward at heart, and now a panic seized him and he turned and fled before_the calm advance of prince Inga of Pingaree . the warriors were like their master, and having thrown all their weapons over the wall and being helpless to oppose the strangers, they all swarmed after Gos, who abandoned his city and crossed the bridge of boats to_the island of Coregos . there_was a desperate struggle among_these cowardly warriors to_get over the bridge, and many were pushed into_the water and obliged to swim; but finally every fighting man of Regos had gained the shore of Coregos and then they tore away the bridge of boats and drew them up on their own side, hoping the stretch of open water would prevent the magic invaders from following them .

the humble citizens and serving people of Regos, who had_been terrified and abused by_the rough warriors all their lives, were_not only greatly astonished by_this sudden conquest of_their masters but greatly delighted . as_the king and_his army fled to Coregos, the people embraced one another and danced for very joy, and then they turned to_see what the conquerors of Regos were like .

chapter Eight

Rinkitink Makes a great mistake

the fat king rode his goat through_the streets of_the conquered city and_the boy prince walked proudly beside him, while all the people bent their heads humbly to_their new masters, whom they were prepared to_serve in_the same manner they had king Gos .

not awarrior remained in all Regos to oppose the triumphant three; the bridge of boats had_been destroyed; Inga and_his companions were free from danger -- for a time, at_least .

the jolly little king appreciated this fact and rejoiced that he had escaped all injury during the battle . how it had all happened he_could_not tell, nor even guess, but he_was content in being safe and free to_take possession of_the enemy's city . so, as_they passed through_the lines of respectful civilians on their way to_the palace, the king tipped his crown back on_his bald head and folded his arms and sang in_his best voice the following lines:

"Oh, here comes the army of king Rinkitink ! it isn't a big one, perhaps you_may think, but it scattered the warriors quicker than wink --

rink-i-tink, tink-i-tink, tink ! our Bilbil's a hero and so is his king; our foemen have vanished like birds on_the wing; I guess that as fighters we're quite the real thing --

rink-i-tink, tink-i-tink, tink ! "

" why don't you give a little credit to Inga ? " inquired the goat ." if I remember aright, he_did a little of_the conquering himself ."

" so he_did," responded the king, " and_that's the reason I'm sounding our own praise, Bilbil . those who do_the least, often shout the loudest and so get the most glory .Inga did so_much that_there_is danger of_his becoming more important than we_are, and so we'd best say nothing about him ."

when_they reached the palace, which_was an immense building, furnished throughout in regal splendor, Inga took formal possession and ordered the majordomo to show them the finest rooms the building contained . there were many pleasant apartments, but Rinkitink proposed to Inga that_they share one_of_the largest bedrooms together .

" for," said he, " we_are_not sure that old Gos will not return and try to recapture his city, and you_must remember that I_have no magic to protect me . in any danger, were I alone, I_might_be easily killed or captured, while if_you_are by my side you_can save me from injury ."

the boy realized the wisdom of_this plan, and selected a fine big bedroom on_the second floor of_the palace, in_which he ordered two golden beds placed and prepared for king Rinkitink and himself .Bilbil was given a suite of rooms on_the other side of_the palace, where servants brought the goat fresh- cut grass to eat and made him a soft bed to lie upon .

that evening the boy prince and_the fat king dined in great state in_the lofty- domed dining hall of_the palace, where forty servants waited upon them . the royal chef, anxious to win the favor of_the conquerors of Regos, prepared his finest and

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