The End?
And so the Tenku Knights found themselves honored guests of the state. Following the demise of the Necromaster, a new government quickly stepped in to fill the void left by the tyrant, a benevolent government with the best interests of Zardoz and its people at heart. Though still anxious to find their way home, the four youngsters decided to stay for a few days, to rest, and to take part in a very special ceremony. In four days’ time, the Tenku Knights were to become Knights for real: Knights of Zardoz.
In preparation for the ceremony, the front hall of the Necromaster’s palace was cleaned in record time. The wreckage left behind in the final battle was removed, the floors swept and polished to a shine. New ornamentation was brought in, bright tapestries covering the drab stone and exposed machinery that reminded the people of Zardoz too much of the tyrant. A makeshift throne, constructed out of the few remaining scraps of wood left in the kingdom, was placed in front of the bricked-over doors to the pit that was once the Necromaster’s throne room.
And seated upon that throne, much to the Tenku Knights’ surprise as they entered on the day of the ceremony, was Hito, the orphaned child who taught Shiba such an important lesson about believing in himself.
“Hito!” Sakura shouted in delight, and raced across the throne room much faster than she was supposed to. She nearly swept the little boy up in her arms, but Golf raced forth to stop her.
“It is good to see you again, Hito,” Golf said. “Or should we call you ‘Your Highness’?”
“Hito is good enough for you, my friends,” Hito replied. “After all, you are the greatest heroes of the Realm.”
“But how’d you get to be king around here?” Harvey asked.
“Yeah,” Shiba Batsu added. “No offense, kid, but last time I saw you, you were living in a shack.”
“I was as surprised as any of you,” Hito told the heroes. “As you know, my parents were killed when I was very small. I remembered only my mother’s beautiful voice, which sang me to sleep at night in happier times. But two days ago, after you slew the evil Necromaster, Grand Vizier Kurakawa came to my shack and told me that I was the rightful heir to the throne! My parents were not killed by wild boars as Auntie told me, but were executed by the Necromaster when he took power.”
“It is true,” Grand Vizier Kurakawa, who was standing beside the throne, told them. “Young Hito was placed in the ghetto in the safe keeping of Captain Shinji, who disguised himself as an old washer-woman.”
Captain Shinji, who our heroes had until now only known as Hito’s Auntie, stepped forward from the Honor Guard to the throne’s left. He looked much less feminine in his uniform, and the Tenku Knights wondered why they had not noticed his thick five-o’clock shadow before now. “It was my honor to serve the throne,” he said in a deep baritone.
“But enough of this!” Hito cried. “We are here today to honor you, Tenku Knights, and to officially dub you all Knights of the Realm.”
Sakura wiped a tear from her eye. “I just weesh Tank could be here to be Knighted weeth us.”
“He will be honored,” Hito said. “A portrait of your fallen friend is being prepared that will hang here in the throne room for all time, a tribute to the man who gave his life that Zardoz could be free.
“But now, kneel here before the throne, my friends. It is time for you to accept your Knighthood.”
The picture blurred and became foggy as the Tenku Knights knelt before the throne, but the shadowy figure who stood over the scrying pool didn’t care. He had seen enough.
He smiled as he waved a bejewelled hand over the pool and the waters cleared. “So they become true Knights at last,” he chortled. He turned to his manservant. “Prepare the clowns, Malachi. It appears that we will have visitors sometime soon.”
The short, swarthy man he addressed opened the door to do his master’s bidding. In the light from the hallway beyond, the small man was revealed to be wearing the red-striped jacket and white straw hat of a carnival barker. He paused before leaving, and his small, pointed mustache stuck out at odd angles as a large, feral smile split his face. “So I did well this time?”
“Very well indeed, vile one. The Tenku Knights have proven their mettle. They’ve beaten their predecessor and will inevitably follow his lead to us... and their doom!”
And the cold, ugly laughter of the two evil men echoed from the walls...
