Sectaurs:
The Magic Gemstone
by Sonia Black
© 1985 Seven Towns Ltd.
The Royal Annual Ball is taking place at the Shining Realm and everyone is invited. Slikk's joking ways are popular among all the guests, with the exception of Belana. She took particular exception with the way Slikk made jokes at the expense of others. Put off by Belana's lack of sense of humor, Slikk proceeded to poke fun at her. Slikk's joke hurt Belana's feelings and infuriated Zak who then got into an argument with Slikk. Not wishing the celebration to be spoiled, Dargon called Zak and Slikk away and chided them for arguing. Angry at Slikk's behavior, Dargon asks Slikk to leave. The former thief complies, walking out with his tail between his legs.
His own feelings hurt, Slikk goes to Stellara's Tavern hoping she'd be able to cheer him up. There were only a few customers at the Pub at that time of night. . .two of whom were beginning to brawl. Typical of Stellara, she orders the two to take their fight outside. Slikk sits down, his head hung in disappointment, and tells Stellara what happened at the ball. Stellara laughs out loud and says, "Now the joke's on you." Annoyed Slikk attempts to change the subject. He admires a jewel on Stellara's belt and proceeds to tell her a story about a jewel that could make her the strongest warrior on Symbion. Fascinated by the prospect and always eager to hear a good story of adventure, Stellara asks Slikk to tell her more about the magic gemstone, while she closes up that is. Unknown to Stellara and Slikk, another pair in the bar listen earnestly to the story as they are asked to leave for closing. Stellara continued to listen to the Slikk's story as she locked up. Finally she suggested the two go after the gemstone. After all, Stellara used to be a soldier once and a fine good one at that, and capturing the gemstone sounded easy. Slikk wasn't so easily convinced and tried to talk her out of it. But Stellara would hear none of it. Attracted to the hunt for fortune and glory, Stellara convinced Slikk to go off in search of the gemstone. They didn't notice the two figures hiding in the bushes watching them. Without warning the hidden figures leaped from the bushes and ambushed Stellara and Slikk. They were Waspax's Sting Troopers. The Shining Realm Warriors were taken prisoner and escorted to Waspax where they were forced to tell the story of the Gemstone. The evil commander's eyes lit up when told of the gemstone's power. Waspax orders Slikk to show him where the gemstone is located. Slikk agrees to do so only as long as Waspax let's Stellara go. Waspax tells Slikk he's in no position to argue for anything. Slikk continues to argue saying that once he gives the location of the gemstone Stellara and Slikk will no longer be needed. Waspax continues to make threats and Slikk sees no choice but to tell him where the gemstone is. But the former thief adds, ". . .it will be a dangerous journey." Waspax's answer is simple. When dealing with dangerous missions, call for Skito. Waspax offers Skito 100 stuni for locating the gemstone and tells the group they will begin the search at dawn.
But as typical with Skito, the Sly One travels to see Spidrax before dawn to make an alternate bargain. He offers the General to lead him to the gemstone for 200 stuni. Spidrax laughs in Skito's face. After all, how did he know the backstabbing marauder wouldn't betray him as well. Skito was shocked at Spidrax's response. The gemstone could make the evil warlord the most powerful warrior on Symbion. Spidrax retorts sharply that he is already the most powerful warrior on Symbion. Disgusted, Skito stalks off back to Waspax's camp, with no one knowing of his departure. Early that morning, the group began their journey. Slikk and Stellara hadn't slept a wink all night, spending all the time trying to figure out a way to escape but no option seemed viable because they were constantly surrounded. Waspax and his troops traveled across the great prairie and would soon make their way to the desert.
Unknown to the group, another warrior was nearby, resting peacefully in the prairie grasses. It was Pinsor and Battle Beetle. Their rest was soon disturbed by the sound of movement. Pinsor looked through the tall grasses to see Stellara and Slikk surrounded by Waspax and his Sting Troopers. The old warrior immediately mounts Battle Beetle and begins to pursue them. Stellara and Slikk were thrilled to see Pinsor and suggested to Waspax that it was time to give up. "Battle Beetle can take on you entire troop," Slikk shouted. But Waspax would not give up. He ordered his troops to move faster and outrun Pinsor and Battle Beetle. Pinsor and Battle Beetle were right on top of them when a sudden wind storm whipped up the sand creating a massive storm. Pinsor and Battle Beetle were forced to retreat.
Desperate to help his friends, Pinsor went back to the Shining Realm to find Dargon and the others. Dargon was in the middle of overseeing an archery tournament when Pinsor suddenly appeared with the news of the kidnapping. Mantor and Zak were with Dargon at the time and listened in on Pinsor's tale. The threesome immediately set out to form a search party to look for their missing friends. They raced out into the desert, but the sandstorm had erased all traces of the kidnappers tracks. Pinsor tells them Waspax and his cronies were heading South. Zak shudders. South leads to the Mountains which were filled with all kinds of dangerous plant and animal life. Few Sectaurs that traveled there ever returned. Mantor suggested they hurry before their friends joined the ranks of those lost.
The Knights of Prosperon made their way into the desert when the sun was still in it's zenith. Eventually, they drank all their water. With nothing to quench their thirst, they turn to Pinsor for help. Pinsor had an uncanny knack for finding resources in the most desolate of places. After a short period of time, Pinsor and Battle Beetle came back with good news. Not only had they found a watering hole, but Waspax's troops were there as well. The old soldier lead his comrades to the spot. Dargon orders his men to creep up on their opponents slowly. With their enemies in sight and their weapons trained squarely on their backs, Dargon orders Waspax and his men to turn around slowly. But it is soon revealed that the troops they have cornered are not Waspax and his Sting Troopers. . .it was Spidrax and his forces. Dargon was taken aback. Pinsor was so eager to find Stellara and Slikk that he had mistaken Spidrax's troops for Waspax. Disappointed, Dargon backed off and told Spidrax he was looking for Waspax. "If you see him," the Prince said, "tell him I'm after him." Spidrax uncharacteristically also backed off, telling the Shining Realm Warriors that he would leave without incident. As Pinsor filled his canteen, he watched Spidrax leave. He believed the old General was not telling them everything and perhaps even knew where Stellara and Slikk were.
Waspax and Skito were finally on the edge of the forest that lead to the mountains. Their hands still tied, Slikk and Stellara regarded the forest and its unknown dangers with fear. Now more than ever Slikk wished he had never mentioned anything about the Gemstone. They couldn't escape, their hands were tied, and they couldn't defend themselves against whatever lurked inside the wooded domain before them. Slikk insisted to Waspax that he and Stellara be untied and given weapons. They have to be allowed to defend themselves in order to get through whatever danger lay ahead. Waspax conceded. He didn't want to lose his guides before they reached the Gemstone. But the Commander also warned them not to try to escape. The Sting Troopers would be around them at all times. As they began their trek through the jungle, the twin suns of Symbion were beginning to set. It would be dark by the time they were in the middle of the forest.
The deeper they traveled through the forest, the more sounds of predatory creatures could be heard. A large cat-like creature sprang from the trees and landed on top of Waspax. Wingid instantly came to his master's aid, stinging the creature and then flying off. Skito, rapier in hand, raised his arm readying to strike at additional creatures that were beginning to appear. One of the predators wrapped it's tale around Skito's arm, causing the shocked marauder to drop his rapier. Toxcid and a band of Sting Troopers rushed to Skito's aid. Amazingly, Skito's soldiers got them all out alive and soon made their way to a clearing where they would rest for the night. Not needing their warrior skills for the moment, Waspax had Stellara and Slikk tied up once again. As he sat near a camp fire with Skito, Waspax contemplated his future rise to power once he obtains the gemstone come morning. Stellara, frustrated and wishing the whole horrible ordeal would finally end, turns to Slikk and asks if he's sure he know where the gemstone is. The young thief nods yes soberly.
At the earliest hours of dawn, Waspax had his troops heading for the mountains to retrieve the gemstone. They traveled non-stop and by mi-day Waspax was becoming impatient with Slikk and demanded the thief lead the evil commander to the gemstone. Slikk lead the group up the mountain higher and higher, ledge after ledge. He lead them so far, in fact, that Stellara began to worry that Slikk had forgotten where the gemstone was. But finally Slikk pointed to something shiny sticking out of a nearby crevice. Excited by the site of it, Waspax reached out for the stone when he suddenly felt a knife pressed into his back. . .put there by Skito. Skito ordered Waspax aside so the backstabbing marauder could get the gemstone himself. Wingid flew in to save Waspax, but was stopped quickly by a blast of venom sent by Toxcid. Skito had his men tie up Waspax as Waspax shouted cries of Treason. Skito laughed as he attempted to pry the gemstone loose with his rapier. Suddenly, out of no where, Spidrax and his soldiers had Skito surrounded. Waspax initially thought Spidrax arrived to assist him. Back Spidrax revealed his true colors. . .he was there to collect the gemstone for himself. Spidrax's lack of interest in the gemstone was merely a false impression. The General had been using Skito to lead him to the gemstone the entire time, and he didn't have to pay one single stuni. Now Skito was tied up next to Waspax as Spidrax stepped forward to claim the treasure. The evil warlord tried to wrestle the gemstone from the crevice himself with no success. He then ordered Spiderflyer to get it for him. Spiderflyer's front claws were incredibly powerful and he could crush anything with them. The General's steed was in the process of crushing the rocks in front of him to free the gemstone when a sight above froze him dead in his tracks. It was Dargon and the Knights of the Shining Realm. Quickly the warriors of Prosperon descended down on top of the Dark Domain troops. "I knew you were up to no good when we saw you at the watering hole," Pinsor shouted at Spidrax. Pinsor quickly freed Stellara and Slikk and the two joined the battle. Spidrax had Spiderflyer pick up a huge boulder and hurl it at Dargon. When it smashed at the Prince's feet, the gemstone appeared freed from the rubble. Seeing it, Slikk yelled to Dargon to grab the stone and not let go of it. As soon as Dargon took hold of the gem, Spidrax and his troops put up their hands and surrendered. The Shining Realm Troops tied up Spidrax and his warriors and left them on the mountain as they headed home. Dargon turned to Stellara and Slikk and asked why Waspax had kidnapped them, and what was it about the gemstone that prompted Spidrax and his troops to surrender so quickly. Zak and the others leaned in, eager to hear the story as well. Stellara excitedly told the whole story, not leaving a single detail out. Slikk couldn't get a word in edge wise. Slikk and Dargon fell behind the group. His head hung in shame, Slikk turned to Dargon and told the Prince a personal secret. The young thief had made up the whole story about the gemstone's power. "When I started to tell Stellara the story, she loved it so much that it just grew bigger and bigger. It was all a joke! Before I knew it, it was completely out of hand." At first Dargon didn't know what to say, but, shaking his head, he turned to Slikk and chastised him once again for the consequences his jokes brought, "You were wrong to play such a joke, Slikk. These jokes of yours always cause us problems...But," Dargon added slyly, "there is one good thing. Spidrax and Waspax believe in the gemstone. They do not know that it is just a worthless stone that shines brightly in the sunlight. They believe we have a powerful weapon. They will not bother us for a long, long time." Dargon held the gemstone up and smiled. He turned to Slikk, and, with a smile on his face, Dargon laughingly told the thief not to worry. . .the Prince would gladly keep his secret.
Commentary
I have to tip my hat off to Sonia Black, where ever she may be today. For a children's hardcover book, this was a well thought out, entertaining read, even for an adult Sectaurs fan. Granted it's a bit hard at times to translate something written at an eight-year-old's reading level, but still, there were a lot of good ideas that went into this story. But most attractive is a great intro into Slikk's character, one of the few characters that, like Galken, Stellara, and Devora, was originally approved by Seven Towns Ltd, but never made it as a an action figure and never had an official description in the Style Guide (although, like the others, he is listed as an approved character in the Style Guide). It's times like this when I really wish I could find somebody who worked on Sectaurs and find out why only the original eight characters were released. Why wasn't it taken further with Galken, Stellara, Slikk et al? They would have made great characters and great action figures. Maybe if they had been released Sectaurs would have made it and become a successful series like GI Joe, The Transformers, or He-Man. But for now, we're left to wonder at the Rosetta Stones left behind for us. Slikk was a former thief who became a Knight of the Shining Realm (the story behind that would have been interesting). He has a quick mind and a "well intentioned" sense of humor that gets him and his friends into a great deal of trouble, as evidenced from this story. We know he has an interest in Stellara, and Stellara one in him (from the various books, there seemed to be a triangle between Stellara, Slikk, and Pinsor. Stellara liked Slikk's creativity and Pinsor's incredible strength, but Pinsor and Slikk disliked each other with a passion and fought for her attention constantly). As a warrior, Slikk can apparently hold his own just fine, although we never find out what his weapon of choice is. With his creativity for making up stories, we can only imagine what Slikk's capacity for strategy might be like, and the creative angles such a mind could take. A children's book it may be, but it is still an entertaining read, and a good look into one of Sectaurs "lost" characters.