For a moment Brian can only stare at Gunyan. Then he shakes his head and looks to the ground.
<Why of every people do I have to meet him?>
�We meet again, Lakeman.
Brian started to remember his one of his first meetings with this guy. Gunyan had been jealous at him because his father, the Knight, had been �nice� to him.
�I cannot blame you for not trusting me. But my father has captured your three friends�� Gunyan looks in Brians eyes. �You will need my help if you want to free them.�
Brian shakes his head. �NO way I�m gonna trust YOU again.� He feels how his anger starts to grow. �You have betrayed me before and you will do that again.�
Gunyan looks to the ground. �I regret that� I�m starting to understand you more and more� we look like each other.�
�I AM NOT like you! You are a lair and a betrayer� you will take me to your father� maybe hoping for a little love.�
Gunyan flinches after this remark. When he looks up again Brian sees only pain in his eyes.
�You don�t know it�� whispers Gunyan, �it was his idea for letting you trust me� I would have done everything to have a little love from my father� but�,� tears are starting to flow over his face, ��when you escaped� he punished me, as if it was my fault�� on the same moment Gunyan shows his left arm to Brian. His hand is gone.
Brian looks shocked at Gunyan. �Did he??? Did your father�?� He doesn�t know what to say else.
Gunyan only nods yes and stares at the ground, while tears drop out of his eyes. Brian feels how his anger and his fear go away and he starts the feel pity for him. Slowly he walks by and puts one arm around Gunyans shoulder. Gunyan flinches under his touch, but then he starts to sob and puts his arms around Brian. So they stand for a couple of minutes while Brian strokes Gunyans back. Then Gunyan calms down and looks with two red eyes at Brian.
�Thank you,� is his simply reply.
Brian gives him a little smile. �You don�t have to thank me, silly� I�ll trust you.�
Gunyan smiles and says again �Thank you very much.�
______________
�Mick� hey Mical,� whispers Laughly. Mical is lying with his eyes closed, and his hands and feet bounded. A big wound is showing on his head. Laughly can�t come any closer then she is now, but she�s terrible worried; about her friend Mical, but also about Brian, who is lost in the woods right now.
�Frrrrr�..� Laughly has never heard Moy sound that mad, but she then understands why: the Knight is walking towards the place where they are lying. He walks until he stands next to Laughly.
�You are going to help me,� he says with a cold voice.
Laughly doesn�t even look at him when she answers him. �I don�t think so.�
�You better watch,� he says and with one of his claws he grabs her arm and pulls her on her feet. Laughly screams a bit, but she�s completely ignored by the Knight. He simply takes her with him and finally she can see where she is. They are still in the woods, �cause the clouds and fog are still everywhere, but they are in a little cabin at an open spot. He threw her back on the ground.
�What are you doing?� she yells at him.
The Knight bends forward to her and brings his face real close to Laughly�s.
�You are going to be my ticket to the other world, my dear. That Lakeman would try to save you, and then I will get him. And he will not be happy.�
�He is a lot smarter then you think he would be,�� snaps Laughly, but doubt start to grow in her heart. She know that Brian would be careful, but on this moment he�s still lost in the woods and it�s not really easy to find your way back in that.
�But there are some other things that will make him less careful,� hisses the Knight in her ear.
Laughly looks a moment in disbelieve at the Knight but then takes a decision.
�BRIAN!!! IT�S A TRAP!!! LOOK OUT FOR THE KNIGHT!!!� she screams as hard as she cans.
The Knight starts to laugh. �Screaming will not save your friend.�
Laughly is not paying attention to him, behind her she hears Moy, and she simply continues to scream.
�BRIAN, BE CAREFUL. THE KNIGHT IS HERE!!!�
�Yes, my dear, and not only is the Knight here, he�s mad too,� he grins at Laughly for a moment. �You better shut up now� before I get angry at you too.�
For a second Laughly is silent. �I�m not afraid of you,� she whispers. �LOOK OUT FOR THE KNIGHT!!! PLEASE LOOK OUT ---�.
The Knight hits her in her face with all the power he has. Laughly is knocked down, unconscious.
Chapter 21 � Blame
Brian was shivering. He and Gunyan had left the spot in the woods with the little fire and where now on their way to the Knight of the Dark. Gunyan was walking in front, but they were both very careful not to loose each other. A question has bothering Brian from the beginning and he finally found enough courage to ask it.
�Gunyan? Are they still� alive?�
Gunyan turns around. �I cannot promise you that they are not hurt, but I know one thing for sure; they are not death. My father wants to use them� to get you.�
�I don�t understand� why is your father so desperate to get me?�
Gunyan sighs. �You are for him a way to get to other worlds. He wants power, and he is convinced that he will get his power in your world and maybe even more then that. A person from the lake is the only one who ever can find the door. We can search as much as we want, but only when we are with a lakeman we can see the door ourselves. Else it�s just air for us.�
Brian felt how a strange feeling started to settle in his stomach. He was starting to doubt Gunyan again. Gunyan had enough reasons to hate his father, but didn�t he had reasons the hate Brian too? It was almost his fault that Gunyan had last his left hand.
<Don�t start to blame yourself for that too Littrell. It�s already worse enough that you are starting to blame yourself for what happened to Laughly and Mical and you cannot use this. It�s NOT your fault.>
�I�m going crazy here,� whispers Brian softly, so that Gunyan not hears him, �I�m having a conversation with myself!�
<You have been crazy your whole live so you cannot be saved anymore.>
Brian can�t help but smile a little, �Being crazy is not that bad.�
�What are you saying?�
Brian hadn�t noticed that he said the last thing out loud. �Nothing, just talking to myself.�
Gunyan gives him a strange look and then says, �We have to be very quite from now on� we are close to my father.�
Brian nods in agreement and tries to be as silent as possible, without falling forward or something like that. While they slowly walk forward Brian starts to see what�s on the open spot in the forest. He sees a little cabin and a small fire� and a little figure lying next to that fire: Laughly. Brian feels how is anger is rising and he makes a move to run to Laughly, but Gunyan grasps his arm.
�What are you doing?� he hisses.
Brian looks bewildered at him, but then calms down.
�This is what he wants you to do, just without thinking trying to save your friends. We need to have a good plan first, then you've got a change of saving your friends.�
Brian thinks for a moment, but then agrees. He follows Gunyan to a spot nearby, where they can softly talk with each other.
�We need a very good plan, because my dad is not stupid��
�I didn�t like the way Laughly lay there, she looked so small�so fragile. Do you think that he keeps Mical and Moy in the cabin?�
�I�m almost sure for that,� says Gunyan with a small frown, �I guess dad uses that girl because he believes that you have got a special bound with her.�
Brian thinks about that last remark. He loved them all. All three had become very close to him and meant a lot to him, but was it different with Laughly? Was his love different for her?
�I don�t know if I have a special�� he falls silent.
<Who am I kidding? I am starting to feel� more for her than is best for both of us.>
�Your right. But now we firstly need a brilliant plan��
Gunyan nods in agreement.
They both fall silent. Brian stares into nothing thinking of a good plan.
<I�ve never been good in this kind of stuff� > Suddenly he starts to miss his friends very much.
<I�m sure that Kevin would know what to do now� he always seems to know the right solution�>
�I think I can attract my dad�s attention away from his prisoners.�
Brian let the words sick in for a moment but then he shakes his head.
�Too dangerous for you!�
But Gunyan doesn�t pay attention. �I�ve got it� I go to the girl. I�m sure my dad will see me and will come to talk to me. You can go into the cabin then and save your other friend and that� Winkle.�
�First of all. There will probably be more people than only your dad around and secondly��
�You don�t know my dad� He�s arrogant. I�m sure he thinks that he can handle it on his own. That�s always the way he likes best, �cause I think the only person that my dad trust is himself.�
For a moment Brian says nothing, then he continues. �Secondly how do we get Laughly� and I still think it�s too dangerous for you.�
Gunyan sighs. �I don�t think he will do anything to me.�
�He cut off your hand!�
A painful silence follows. �I�m sorry. I shouldn�t have said that,�� stammers Brian.
Gunyan gives him a little smile. �I still believe that my dad loves me, and that�s something that keeps me going.�
Brian looks at the boy in front of him. He feels how pity fills his heart.
�Laughly� I will lead my dad away from her, saying that I found you. Then you can take her away with you.�
�No� you will get hurt.�
�I will not get more hurt then I already am� and I want to do something back� for betraying you.� Gunyan looks at the ground.
Brian is silent for a moment. Then he speaks again. �I really appreciated that, but� you don�t have to do that��
�I�m gonna do it if you are going to help me or not!�
Brian shakes his head. ��Are you even listening to what I�m saying.�
Gunyan gives him a huge smile. �No.�
�I still don�t agree, but� I assume it�s the thing we need to do.�
<I�m not going to leave him with his father�>
�Let�s go then.�
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