Forest Kingdom Trilogy 1 - Blue Moon Rising

banish him. One day, the Demon Prince will return. Even if it takes him hundreds of years, he'll be back.'
    Rupert and Julia waited patiently, but the King had nothing more to say. In all the time he was speaking, he never once raised his voice or looked up from the ground.
    'Well,' said Rupert finally, 'even if you're right, father, if it's going to take him hundreds of years to return, I don't see how it's any problem of ours. As long as we take care not to lose the rainbow sword ...'
    'Right,' said Julia. 'We've saved the Forest, and that's what matters.' She stopped suddenly, and looked at Rupert sideways. 'Rupert...'
    'Yes?' :
    'Can I ask you something?'
    'Of course.'
    'Why did you tell me earlier that the rainbow sword didn't work any more?'
    Rupert smiled shamefacedly. 'Just before I began the Rainbow Run,' he said carefully, 'the dragon told me that if I reached Rainbow's End, I'd find my heart's desire, but that it might not be what I thought it was. When I made the Rainbow Run, all I wanted was something that would help me save you and my friends from the darkness. And that's what I was given. When I tried to use the sword again, down in the Coppertown pit, I was just trying to save myself. So it didn't work. This time, I didn't care about myself any more, I just wanted to save you and the others from the Demon Prince. So the sword worked again.
    Simple, really, when you think about it.'
    'If it's that simple, why didn't you think of it sooner?'
    'I've had a lot on my mind recently.'
    They shared a smile, and then looked round as a long loud roar sounded on the morning air, silencing the singing birds. The air shimmered and broke apart, and out of an endless silver tunnel floated the High Warlock. He dropped gracefully to the ground, and the rent in the air slammed shut behind him. Rupert and Julia moved forward, grinning broadly, and took it in turns to clap the High Warlock on the back.
    Rupert finally stood back and took his first good look at the High Warlock's hair and felt his smile slip a little. The Warlock's hair and moustache were pure white and if anything he looked older and frailer than he had when Rupert first met him.
    'Well, sir Warlock,' said Rupert uncertainly. 'You're looking . . . uh . . .'
    'Yes,' said the Warlock dryly. 'I know. That's what being sober and respectable does for you.'
    Rupert laughed in spite of himself. 'All right, what happened to the Castle after we left? Last we saw, the courtyard was swarming with demons.'
    The Warlock shrugged nonchalantly. 'They didn't stay long enough to do any real damage. We all retreated inside the main castle and manned the barricades, and then the next thing we knew, the demons were attacking each other. Without the Demon Prince to hold the horde together, it didn't take long for the demons to revert to type, as mindless animals. Most of them died at each other's hands, and the guards drove out the rest without too much trouble. I doubt the survivors will last long in the Forest, now there's no darkness to hide in.' He stopped suddenly and looked searchingly at Rupert. Tell me, how did you kill the Demon Prince?'
    'With this,' said Rupert simply, showing the Warlock his sword. 'I found it at Rainbow's End; it calls down the Rainbow.'
    The Warlock gave him a hard look. 'Why didn't you tell me you had the rainbow sword?'
    'We're not actually sure the Demon Prince is dead,' said Julia quickly. 'King John says all we did was banish him.'
    The High Warlock frowned thoughtfully. 'With a creature like the Dark Prince, it's hard to be sure of anything. Since it was never born, it can't really die. I'd better look into the matter some more.'
    They stood in silence for a while, looking about them. The Forest was ablaze with colour once again, and from everywhere came the simple sounds of birds and animals and insects.
    'I'm glad to see your powers have returned to you, sir Warlock,' said Rupert eventually.
    'Yes,' said the Warlock wryly, 'it was rather a good teleport, wasn't it? Now that the Wild Magic is gone, the remains of my magic are back under control again.'
    'What was happening at the Castle when you left?' asked Julia. 'Did you take many losses?'
    'Some,' said the High Warlock. 'Mainly on the battlements. But most of us came through it pretty much unscathed. They'd just started clearing up the mess when I left.'
    That's going to take some time,' said Rupert.
    'Oh, I don't know,' said Julia. 'Harald'll keep everybody busy.'
    Rupert had to