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Glory Bound Books
presents
~ Once Upon A Twisted Tale ~
BOOK TWO
Chaos In The Clouds
by
Leah Berry and Cindy Knowlton
~ Storytellers for THE KING! ~
Copyright © 2002
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
***
CHAPTER SIX
~ An Army Of One! ~
***
...The sound of marching feet...
The Pack Rat Patrol was moving out! The rank and file had assembled, orders were issued and the march was under way ~
...But deep within a hollow tree...
RaToni The Rat had a problem! He couldn't decide which of his precious treasures to take along... and sorting through it was taking a lot of time!
...A place for everything...
Each kind of treasure had its own special room, and all were connected by tunnels far below where RaToni lived. The Hall Of Mirrors was lined with shiny silver gum wrappers that reflected dozens of smiling, sunglass wearing RaTonis in the candlelight's glow. It was here that he loved to bring choice treasures one by one, to see the images multiplied in the mirror-like rectangles that covered walls, ceiling and floor. He felt like a king as he sat enthroned on a mushroom, admiring his newest treasure. But what he needed wasn't here.
...The Long Gallery...
The Long Gallery was a narrow room of great length where RaToni had exercised his artistic talents to paint the portraits of all the truly great Pack Rats who were so very admired by him. Each portrait was framed by a shining silver circlet... his prized collection of pop top rings. But what he needed wasn't here, either.
...The Treasury...
The Treasury was a high ceilinged room where RaToni stored his collection of shiny metal coins. They were heaped into a tall cone-shaped mound and Toni, as his friends called him, loved to sit and polish them until the candlelight made them shine like the rays of the sun. But today he hadn't come to polish them. Carefully he selected two large coins with holes drilled at opposing sides. Using thin tendrils of strong, green grapevine, he strapped one coin onto his back and one onto his chest. There was nothing like a little armor to lift a soldier's spirits!
...The Vault...
Moving on he entered The Vault, a small room with only a few special treasures. Here a tiny sapling grew. Hanging from its branches were chains of gold and silver. At the end of each branch was an acorn top, held fast with pine tar. And nestled within, on beds of milkweed silk, were pieces of rock crystal, rose quartz and fools gold! One day, when it was time for RaToni to take a wife, he would give her this room for her very own. But for now, he chose a chain of gold with smooth round links and drew it over his head and across his chest... bandolier style.
...The Gizmo Room...
The Gizmo Room was packed with metal cans of assorted shapes and sizes. It was here that RaToni tinkered with inventing interesting new gadgets for himself. But he needed nothing from this room now.
...Tin Pan Alley...
Tin Pan Alley was a long passageway lined with lidded tins of all kinds. RaToni carefully selected a square metal pillbox and lashed it with more of the grapevine. Within minutes he had created a sturdy metal backpack to store his food supplies.
...The Sewing Room...
Hurrying on, he came to The Sewing Room. One day, it too would belong to his future wife. He quickly chose the things that he would need: a very large flat gold button which he strapped onto his head with grapevine, a small silver thimble that he placed into the backpack, and a length of braided tailor's thread roping that he slung over his shoulder. He was feeling the excitement of the hunt now! Only a few more things and he would be ready.
...The Armory...
Finally he came to The Armory, where his weapons were stored. Sharp pointy straight pins lined the walls, and mounds of B.B. shot were piled here and there. RaToni placed some of the shot into a small leather pouch, along with a sling-shot. Then he selected four long sharp pins, wrapped them in a large square of moleskin, tied the bundle with grapevine and lashed it to the top of the backpack tin. This would make a good strong tent! Then he went to a secret place within the room and extracted one of his most prized possessions... a diamond-topped gold toothpick! What a fine sword it would make! He pushed the gold stick through one of the round chain links and his uniform was complete.
...The Pantry...
RaToni had lined the walls of his home with tin to keep out the marauding armies of ants, millipedes and spiders. It also stopped the great earthworms from ramming their enormous tunnels through his house. The Pantry itself was doubly lined with tin, which helped to keep things cool. This was especially important because most of the room was filled with RaToni's two favorite kinds of food: Maple Nut Fudge and Cheese... glistening golden cheese in dozens of varieties and flavors! Some for eating alone, some for spreading on bread, some to make soups and souffles, and some to make cheese cake! Oh, it was a good life and RaToni was well blessed!
Now it was time to fill his backpack with the precious supplies. Thoughtfully he chose what he needed: a chunk of bread, a cube of cheese, a square of fudge, and sparkling grape nectar to fill the thimble. This he sealed with beeswax punctured by a small hollow straw. A silk napkin completed the supplies. Now he was ready!
...A tactical error...
Hurrying along, he stopped to admire himself in The Hall Of Mirrors... and lost all track of time! The walls reflected hundreds of armored RaToni soldiers ready for battle, a handsome sight that captured all of his attention. When he finally tore himself away to hurry to The March Point, the wood had a hollow, empty feel. He was all alone... they'd gone without him! The dust had long since settled from the passing of The Pack Rat Patrol.
No matter, he thought. The mission is to find and return THE KING's message. And since GOD is always with me, I am never really alone. And so he bravely set forth... An Army Of One!
~ And the wind was not pleased ~
***
~ The Tale Continues ~
CHAPTER SEVEN
~ A Gripping Situation ~
***
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