The Dwarf of Notre Dame Chapter 1

The Dwarf of Notre Dame
Chapter 1: Epilogue

    It was a beautiful morning in Paris, France. The sun was shining bright, a nice soft breeze was blowing, and white cotton clouds were drifting lazily by. The best of all, though, was the voice of a young man that could be heard throughout the air.

    Morning in Paris,
    The city awakes
    To the bells of Notre Dame.

    The fisherman fishes,
    The baker man bakes
    To the bells of Notre Dame!

    To the big bells as loud as the thunder!
    To the little bells soft as psalm…

    And some say the soul of the city's the toll of the bells…
    The bells of Notre Dame…

    The owner of the mesmerizing lyrics was a blonde, young man in a small,  traveling wagon. He wore a green t-shirt and a black, cloth ribbon around his head. His sky blue eyes sparkled as he sang his song, causing curious children to gather around him. Among the children was a girl with a brown, flowery dress. She elbowed her way through the crowd of children so that she was closest to the strange, singing man. She gazed up at him, completely enchanted by each word he let out.

    As soon as the young man hit his last note, he studied the group of children that had gathered in front of him. He grinned and began to speak. "Listen," he said, holding a hand up to his ear, "they're beautiful, aren't they? So many colors of sound, so many changing moods! But you know, they don't ring all by themselves." Suddenly, a little puppet popped up from behind the walls of his cart. The puppet had brown hair and a grey sweater. The children laughed as the puppet spoke. "They don't?" He asked the story teller.

    He patted the puppet on the head. "No, you silly boy! Look up there!" he directed, pointing at the looming tower of Notre Dame. All of the children followed his finger, staring at the tall building. "High up in the dark tower lives the mysterious bell ringer." Small gasps of wonder rose up from the small crowd, giving questioning stares to the young man. He only smiled again and continued his tale with his puppet.

    "Who is this creature?"
    "Who?"
    "What is he?"
    "What?"
    "How did he come to be there?"
    "How?"
    "Hush!" He scolded, hitting the puppet on the head with a stick. As the children giggled, the young man gave a sly look and put the puppet down. He gestured towards himself. "I, Martyn, will tell you. It is a dark tale…a tale of a man…and a monster..." The small girl beamed at Martyn, eagerly awaiting to hear the story of the bell ringer. Clearing his throat, he began to sing as he narrated...

_______________________________

    Dark was the night
    When our tale was begun
    On the docks near Notre Dame...

    A small boat floated gently along a slow river on a winter's night. Steering the boat was a green dinosaur wearing a dark cloak. The passengers also wore dark cloaks, though they were not dinosaurs. One was a man with blazing blue eyes and a black scarf wrapped over his mouth. The other was a woman who also has blue eyes, but had fiery red hair. In her arms was a small blanket wrapped around a small baby boy. The baby was crying loudly as they glided softly along. "Shut him up, Zoeya!" the man whispered sharply. "We'll be spotted!" Zoeya cradled the baby closer to her and rocked it back and forth. "I'm trying, Rythian!" she responded. She then caressed the infant and said in a whisper, "Hush little one." The baby slowly fell into a peaceful sleep, becoming quiet and calm.

    Three frightened gypsies slid silently under
    The docks near Notre Dame...

    The boat cautiously pulled up to the edge of the dock. Quietly, the three gypsies stepped out onto the snowy ground. Before they could run off, though, a fast-flying arrow shot towards them, just missing the dinosaur and hitting the boat instead. The gypsies looked around and saw at least ten guards surrounding them, all with loaded bows pointing directly at them. The guards hurriedly drew closer and encircled the small group.

    But a trap had been laid for the gypsies!
    And they gazed up in fear and alarm
    At a figure whose clutches were iron as much as the bells...

    A man, covered in shadow, floated up into view. Rythian analyzed his figure and recognized him immediately. Zoeya moved close to him, holding her baby tight. Rythian put his arms around her and let out with a gasp, "Ridgedog!"

    The bells of Notre Dame...

    Ridgedog landed gently on the ground and stepped out of the shadows. His hair was brown and slicked back, and he stood with a straight back. His blue coat billowed softly in the night breeze, and his brown eyes cold-heartedly stared down at his prisoners.

    Ridgedog longed to purge the world
    Of vice and sin...

    Rythian and Zoeya grabbed hold of each other with fright, only to be pulled apart by the guards. Four of them held back the dinosaur from helping his friends, who were struggling to break free of the hands grasping tightly to their arms.

    And he saw corruption
    Everywhere,
    Except within...

    The guards holding Rythian clamped iron cuffs onto his wrists. The dinosaur's limbs were tied together with heavy chains so he couldn't break free. Ridgedog merely gazed at them, his hate being shot like daggers. "Bring these gypsy vermin to the Palace of Justice." he ordered one of the guards. As the dinosaur and Rythian were hauled away, Zoeya managed to slip from her captor's grasp and tried to run for it, holding her child close. Her attempt was failed, however, when another guard grabbed her arm yet again. "You there," he barked out, "what are you hiding?" Zoeya's heart began to race, her head spun. They can't take away her baby, they can't. Ridgedog studied Zoeya's bundle and his face contorted with rage and malice. "Stolen goods, no doubt." he answered. "Take them from her!" Before any guard could act, Zoeya had kicked away the guard, punched another in the face with her now free arm, and dashed off into the night.

    She ran...

    Zoeya was light on her feet as she turned sharp corners and dashed down abandoned streets. She held her baby close as she ran, not stopping for anything. Taking a risk, she turned her head to see if she was being followed. The only one behind her was Ridgedog himself, flying quickly so as to reach her. Turning back, Zoeya made a few more sharp turns, with Ridgedog close on her heels. She finally managed to loose him by slipping through a small opening in some iron bars. On the other side was Notre Dame itself in all of its artistic glory. Zoeya ran up to the large front doors and began pounding loudly on them.

    "Sanctuary, please give us sanctuary!" she cried out, hoping to get someone's attention. She looked around and once again saw Ridgedog, who had flown over the buildings and was now closing in fast. She turned to run again, only for her child's blanket to be grabbed by Ridgedog. Not wanting to give up too easily, Zoeya tried her hardest not to let go. They struggled, both pulling at the baby, until Ridgedog made the final blow. In a fit of hate and desperation, he kicked his foot with all his mite straight into Zoeya's head. She gasped, letting go in a daze, then collapsed onto the snowy, stone steps. Ridgedog didn't even need to get a closer look. He knew that she was dead.

    As he stared at the now lifeless Zoeya, the "stolen goods" in his hands began to cry. Puzzled, he lifted the crying bundle in his hands and studied it. "A baby?" Ridgedog pondered. Slowly, he lifted away the piece of cloth hiding the baby's face. He then covered it up again with a startled gasp. "A monster!" He looked around wildly in a panic. His eyes soon fell upon an old well, decaying and covered with winter frost. In that moment, Ridgedog knew what he had to do. He flew over to the well and stared down into its depths. He couldn't see the bottom, for it was hidden in shadow. This was perfect. He took the baby, gave it a final look of disgust, and held it over the opening to the shallow, watery grave below. As soon as he was about to let go, however, a voice shouted into the night.

    "STOP!"
    Cried Duncan, the archdeacon!

    Ridgedog turned his head to find the church's archdeacon, Duncan, running towards him with his hand held out in front of him. His white labcoat flapped in the breeze, and his messy blonde hair flopped in all directions. "This is an unholy demon!" Ridgedog retorted, not releasing the baby, yet neither bringing it back from over the well. "I'm sending it back to the Nether, where it belongs!" Duncan stopped in his tracks, looking at the baby carefully. He then looked around and spotted the fallen Zoeya. In horror, he ran over to her and propped her head on his knees. "What happened?" Duncan asked, completely shocked that a death had happened on the steps of the church. Ridgedog scoffed, finally pulling the baby away from the well. "Beats me." The archdeacon then gave Ridgedog a knowing look.

    "You killed her...she had innocent blood...right on the very steps of Notre Dame..."
    "I'm guiltless. She ran, and I pursued. It was only a mere accident."
    "This was no accident, Ridgedog. And now you would add this woman's blood to your own guilt!"
    "I have a clear conscious!"
    "You can say that for now! You can lie to yourself, you can lie to your minions, you can even lie to the whole city! But you can never run or hide from what you've done from the eyes!"
    "The eyes?"
    "The very eyes of Notre Dame!"

    Duncan pointed at the many statues placed along the walls of the church. Ridgedog stared at each one, his eyes finally resting upon Notch himself. A panic began to spread throughout him.

    And for one time in his life
    Of power and control,
    Ridgedog felt a twinge of fear
    For his immortal soul...

    "What must I do?" Ridgedog asked, not breaking his gaze on the statues. Picking up Zoeya, the archdeacon replied, "Care for the child, and raise it as your own." The words were enough to make Ridgedog look away in shock. "What? You mean I'm forced with this misshapen...?" He let out an exasperated sigh. "Very well. I'll raise him. On one condition," he added before Duncan could leave, "let him live with you in your church." Duncan stared at him in confusion. "Live here? In Notre Dame? Where?"

    Ridgedog looked up at large building, studying its every detail. "Anywhere, just so he's kept locked away where no one can see him." His wandering eyes rested upon the tallest part of Notre Dame. "The bell tower, perhaps. And who knows, Notch does work in mysterious ways..." Ridgedog looked down at the baby, who was once again sleeping peacefully. "Even this foul thing of a human may prove one day to be..." he paused, a devilish smile spreading across his face, "...of use to me."

_______________________________

    All of the children were frozen in place, completely entranced by the story. The flowered-dress girl was the most amazed, however, practically hanging from the edge of the cart just so she could be closer to Martyn. He finished his tale, leaving a long pause in between his next sentence. "And that is how the bell ringer came to be. Ridgedog gave the child a cruel name, a name of a certain fruit. Small, stubbish, and, to some people, hideous. Ridgedog named the child...Honeydew..."

    Now here is a riddle to guess if you can,
    Sing the bells of Notre Dame.
    Who is the monster and who is the man?

    Sing the bells, bells,
    Bells, bells, bells, bells,
    Bells, bells,
    Bells of Notre Dame!