Sir Tormund Ellis: A Documentary: Part Three

I think one of the things that stood out most to me about Tor was that he didn't treat me like some fragile little girl. I guess growing up in the castle with Uncle Hagan made me really jaded towards the idea of being cared for. Uncle and all the guards and all the other nobility used to think I was such a frail little Beekadoodle who couldn't handle herself, and they always treated me as such. (she scoffs) It was always so annoying... but Tor didn't care. He didn't see me like that. He respected me. He saw me as my own person, and he simply let me be me. It was really lovely. (she sighs wistfully)

But, er, I suppose I'm getting off track.

Anyway, I noticed that he had the twin of the amulet I was given by that Aisha in Faerieland, and I informed him of what she had told me — you know the story right? That the amulets were the reason why we were unaffected by the Darkest Faerie's control, and that they symbolised our being chosen to help stop her from taking over, all of that. He was so eager to get a move on, you know — eager to protect his kingdom, and his family, and save the world. His heart is truly that of a knight. I think that, even if he didn't have the official title, that fact would have remained the same.

So off we went towards Brightvale, hoping that my uncle would have something to say to help us out.

King Hagan (King of Brightvale. Species: Skeith. Colour: Green. Gender: Male.): Ah, my dearest Roberta, Fyora knows how worried I was to see her arrive back at the castle without Solarin and Seradar. Yes, I worried immediately about what peril could have caused her to be left alone, though never would I have guessed that so much travesty had transpired between the time I saw them off that previous morning and the time when she and the young knight arrived that afternoon. Such a twist of fate, that was.

The young knight who accompanied her, Sir Tormund... yes, I saw something very special in him. I had raised Roberta as my own since she was but a child, and Fyora knows how dear she is to me. Yes, yes, I must admit, I did coddle her, though I assure you it was out of nothing but the purest love and concern. I suppose even I, in all my great wisdom, could not see what a truly brave young fighter she was at heart. Perhaps that was simply because I was afraid of seeing her get hurt...

Ah, yes, my apologies, I am going off on a bit of a tangent, aren't I? (he chuckles) I suppose that when thinking about the events of those dark times, I still find myself focusing more on my dearest niece Roberta than much of anything else. Let me try to return to the subject at hand...

Sir Tormund, yes, yes. He had escorted my Roberta back to the castle and helped her fight off those hideous, tainted beasts that the evil faerie had sent after them. He walked with such nobility, and he had the true air of a hero surrounding him. Believe me when I say that I trust very few when it comes to keeping Roberta safe, but I knew I could rely on him — knew it with all of my scholarly heart. And, as always, I was correct in my judgment of his character.

Ah, and, well now, seeing how much Roberta adores him, I suppose I should be prepared to entrust him with her much more in the future, shouldn't I? (he chuckles)

Lady Roberta: Oh Fyora, you're kidding me... Uncle said that? (she blushes and buries her face in her hands) I'm so embarrassed...

King Hagan: Ah, but I must say, if ever there was a soul who I relied on to save this world, it would be that young lad. Such wisdom he had, and at such a young age! Truly impressive. Truly remarkable.

Lady Roberta: My uncle is so obnoxious sometimes... Ugh, whatever...

Well, after Tor and I had spoken to my uncle, Tor said that he needed to do something in the castle... Yeah, he did. That was strange to me, seeing as he'd never been to Brightvale before, and didn't know much about the kingdom at all. He told me that he had made a promise to someone that he needed to keep, and he asked me if I knew a noblewoman — a princess — named Dona. I said yes, and told him where she lived, and off he ran to her chambers. I didn't learn until much later that he was helping Dona and that prince she was always whining about reunite. That whole little side-quest took us on quite an interesting journey in of itself, you know... but I suppose I'll get to that later.

Voiceover: Note: Princess Dona was not available to be interviewed, for when our TruNeo® staff members informed her of the subject of our documentary, she dropped to the floor and began to weep, saying something about how Sir Tormund Ellis had "brought her loving heart back from the brink of despair" and how he "was a shining ray of hopeful sunlight through the black storm clouds tainting her once happy life" or... something...

TruNeo® wishes her the best and hopes that she stops crying soon.

Lady Roberta: So Tor and I went off to try to learn about those strange clouds that had taken over our neighbouring realms. You know, he might not be the most learned Lupe in Neopia — book-wise, at least — but he's incredible at problem solving. See, the books we needed to read to learn about the clouds and the Darkest Faerie were up on display in the castle library, far out of reach, and probably not really intended to be viewed casually. I would have had no idea how to make my way up to them, but Tormund figured it out, no problem.

I'll admit, it was quite funny watching Tor clamber and scramble his way up the bookshelves like a little Mynci, but impressive nonetheless. What was even more impressive was his managing to convince me to do the same! (she giggles) Fyora knows I would have never climbed all the way up to the ceiling of the library the way he had, but he made it actually look fun... which it was! That was some adventure.

And he didn't stop there with his little acrobatic tricks. You know that obstacle course in the city? He crushed it! It was really incredible to watch. I don't think that Grarrl running the place really knew what to think when Tor managed to beat even his greatest challenge.

Syd Dudley (Runner of the Brightvale Obstacle Course. Species: Grarrl. Colour: Blue. Gender: Male.): Curse that blasted kid — he nearly bankrupted me! Ain't nobody ever beaten my greatest runnin' challenge before that darned kid showed his smug face 'round town! Boy, when I sent him off on that last challenge, I thought for sure I was gonna get my money back — ain't no way somebody gon' beat my challenge! But then, what do I know, forty seconds later, out struts Little Mister Hero, smug-grinnin' with his hands on his hips, all triumphant-lookin'... Darned frustrating, is what it is! I don't care how many worlds you save, you take my money, you ain't a friend of mine!

Lady Roberta: Hoo boy, yeah, that was a ton of fun, exploring the city together, helping people out, playing games, checking out the shops...

But, when we started back out towards Bogshot... well, that's kind of where the fun ended...

(static)

(off-screen): No, I am not being difficult, you are being difficul—

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(off-screen): If you truly think you are going to get a name out of me, then you are by far the most foolish, idiotic, ignora—

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(off-screen): No, you nit, I am not handing you my sword — are you seriou—?

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(off-screen): Listen to me, I'm only going to be doing the bare minimum of this garbage so I can get my paycheck and leave, got it? I've got a hungry Gallion to feed, and let's just say death doesn't always put food on the table, do you understand?

And if you even think of listing me as a "friend" or some foolish nonsense like that, I will not hesitate to ki—

(static)

Name Withheld, AKA The Gelert Assassin (Definitely not a friend of Sir Tormund Ellis. Species: Gelert. Colour: Grey. Gender: Male.): That brat has given me far too much trouble than what he's worth. Honestly, is this really what you idiots are making a documentary about? Some dressed-up stories about a kid with a sword who strutted around the realm for a few days playing hero? Pfft. Idiotic.

Lady Roberta: Oh Fyora, you're interviewing that guy?

Ugh. Good luck. You'll need it.

The Assassin: Yes, I was hired to kill them, and, no, obviously I didn't do it.

Did I try? Well, I had my fun, let's just say that much.

But, yes, that yellow Lupe was a feisty little thing. You know, I do like that in a target, and it was definitely fun at first to provoke him and his little girlfriend into getting themselves in trouble, but... it got tiresome incredibly quick. There's only so much mischief one can cause before the charm of it all starts to fade — and that little Lupe had barely any charm to begin with, the little jackanapes...

I suppose I must give the kid some credit, though, as he was the one who always charged head-first into battle. The very second I graced the scene during those children's adventures, he was out for me, sword drawn, teeth gritted. Not like he ever accomplished anything with his fancy flailing, of course, but it was still entertaining. He was the hotshot, that's for sure, and she was the brains. I suppose they balanced each other out. Perhaps that is why they became so annoying towards the end...

Lady Roberta: Tormund really was the brave one when it came to that weirdo assassin. The two of them hated each other immediately. Personally, when that guy first showed himself on the road back to Meridell, I was hesitant to go after him, since his strength and, er... I guess confidence is a good word... Well, you know, his power in general was incredibly obvious. I guess I'm more of a strategic fighter, and I didn't see any way I would have been able to beat him. See, Tormund was the one who called out for him to show himself, and Tormund was the one charged head-first into a fight the second that he did, even though it was obvious that the Gelert was more skilled in combat and magic than either of us. Tor really had no fears. And it wasn't just with that assassin, either. He was like that during all of our quests through the realms.

The Assassin: I did follow them around for a while, yes. It was incredibly entertaining to watch them fall into each and every one of my little traps, I must say... (he snickers)

Hmm, although seeing them come out alive each time was definitely not. Hmph. But, acceptable losses, I suppose.

Regardless, that headstrong little Lupe always seemed to be the one to start trouble. Trouble for them, mind you. Between you and me, I didn't bother to waste my best tricks on them, for I knew I didn't need to. That Lupe got himself and his girlfriend into more peril than they needed to be in. It was quite hilarious, if I'm being honest; seeing his overwhelming audacity never fail to be their downfall. If he hadn't so blindly charged at me each and every time I showed myself, they probably would have "saved the world" much, much sooner. Just shows you how much his so-called "bravery" is worth.

Lady Roberta: Well, anyway, the first place we went after learning about how we could go about defeating the Darkest Faerie was Bogshot, because we needed to seek out the bridge builder Brendel. Bogshot's actually not as terrible a place as I thought it would be. Not like it's pleasant or anything, but, it's still rather homey. Well, I mean, it was after the clouds had dispersed.

Fautt Thorel (Apothecary for Bogshot Village. Species: Lupe. Colour: Red. Gender: Male.): Honestly, the most surprising thing to me about those children when I first saw them was the fact that they weren't sick... or purple. It was the strangest thing, really. They had somehow bypassed the serpent's plague — or, well, I suppose it ended up being that faerie's plague in the end. But, those are just little details. I still don't exactly know how they did that, though. The, er, not-being-sick thing. Guess I forgot to ask, or figured I didn't really need to anymore considering I later heard they were heroes of time and all that, saving ancient civilisations and whatnot. Quite the story, isn't it?

Ah, the Lupe, yes, yes. Quite a feisty little thing, isn't he?

The Assassin: That's what I said!

Fautt Thorel: He surely does have the heart of a hero. He saw the people of my village suffering and he immediately asked how he could help. Didn't even bother him when I said the only thing he could do was to venture deep into the swamp and fetch some bogberries. He just asked where and how many. Even when I said that the swamp was probably too dangerous for the two of 'em to venture into, seeing as they weren't born in the village, he and that little Acara said they'd take the risk. Such bravery they had. I've never seen anyone else ever act so brave.

The Assassin: No, I didn't try to kill them in the swamp, though it would have been easy to. I just... had some fun with them. Poisoned them a bit, sent some vicious, Neopet-eating Sludgies after them, left them abandoned on a toxic island — just simple things. (he shrugs) Not like it mattered to them. That little Lupe didn't care about the poison or the petpets. He still just charged right at me like he thought he could actually do some damage.

Pfft. Pathetic.

Lady Roberta: Again, Tormund's crazy problem solving skills came in handy while traversing the swamp. Seriously, I never would have thought of using lilypads as a method of transportation. How cool is that? If it wasn't for all the terrifying monsters that were swarming us at any given moment, that would have been a pretty cool adventure. Uh, but, unfortunately, the monsters were a thing that definitely existed, so...

Fautt Thorel: He and the sorceress came back with the bogberries right quick, and I whipped up some medicine, and the town was saved. Incredible! Such heroes they were. We probably all would've been sick and dead if it weren't for them. And they didn't stop there, either — one of the villagers, Hank, the old oaf, he went and got himself sick off of poison tubers, but those two heroes went off to rescue him, too, getting me the ingredients I needed for his special medicine. I hear they saved one of the little village boys from a pack of wild Sludgies, too. Pretty impressive, I must say. Pretty darned impressive.

Brendel Ballard: I gots my medicine and I gots all better, and I remember thinking, Fyora, I wish to thank the gentle soul who saved me and my lovely village... and then in walks my buddy, that ol' bridge-hoppin' farm boy! Well, he was a knight when I saw him again then, a'course, but he still got that funny li'l way a movin' around 'bout him, heh. Boy, was I sure glad to see him again. I tell ya, I knew he was special, but I didn't realise just how special 'til after he got them berries to ol' Fautt and then came'n got me afterwards. Should'a known he would'a been the one to save my behind one day, ho-ho! Somethin' special, that's fer sure.

So he 'n' his little lady come up to me an' they says that the Brightvale bridge was still out! You best believe I got on that right away, ah-ha! When a hero tells ya to go fix a bridge, by Fyora, you go'n fix that bridge! (he laughs heartily)

I got that bridge fixed for him right quick, and then off they went to their next big adventure. I'll bet they had a lot of fun wherever the storm did take them. They always had such smiles about 'em. Yep, bet it was a lot of fun.

Lady Roberta: Yeah, no, where we went next was definitely not fun...

The Assassin: Heh, well I had fun watching them suffer...

Lady Roberta: Oh, Fyora, the memories...

We'll be right back after these messages...