Once upon a time the king of Oz wanted knowledge on the state of affairs throughout his kingdom. So he summoned the notorious Mo Rider and his three best royal riders , Sir Dogcow, TBB, and Hector the Pup.  The 3 royal riders appeared before the king but alas Mo no show.  Their task was to ride through the land and report on the wellness of the people and richness of the land. The royal riders mounted silver chests filled with the supplies needed for the journey onto their great steel horses and set off.

They headed north through Queensland and their travels were fruitful. Dogcow was knowledgeable about maps and therefor was the lead rider while TBB and Hector followed. Next, Dogcow guided them westward. They would need to venture through the forbidden zone known as the Outback in order to reach the township of Darwin in the far north. They encountered many strange and dangerous creatures as well as scorching heat but prevailed.

In heading south from Darwin to the hamlet of Katherine, the trio would be crossing the valley of termite mounds so Hector took the role of lead rider and Dogcow assumed the tail position. Little did they realize the error making this change in position. For you see, everything in life has a time and when that time arrives nothing can stop it. And from the moment the royal riders had left the palace in Oz, the weld joints on the harnesses on their great steel horses were reaching the end of their time. As fate would have it, halfway to Katherine, two weld joint's time had come and they ceased to exist. The silver chest mounted on Dogcow's ride which they held released, sending the chest tumbling unnoticed to the roadside, then coming to rest among the bramble. Had Dogcow been leading as per usual then the loss would have been noticed by his fellow riders, but alas he was last.

A long way south in the hamlet of Katherine, Goran, a hard working and humble man was loading his wagon in preparation for his weekly trek to Darwin. He bid farewell to his son Zane and headed north. Being accustomed to the journey, his pace was rapid. After some time he came upon a slow moving wagon so he pulled aside to overtake it. It was then he saw the plumes of dust rising from a group of riders coming toward him at tremendous speed. Goran quickly pulled back behind the slow wagon just in time to see a blur of riders pass by and disappear in a cloud of dust behind him. That was odd, he thought. Then he pulled out once more, this time successfully overtaking the slow cart and continuing north.

It wasn't much further up the trail that Goran's eyes caught sight of something shiny, reflecting the sun's light. It was a dangerous area to dismount but Goran stopped just the same and ran to the shiny object. It was a silver chest. Not wanting to chance a lengthy time from the safety of his wagon, he grabbed the chest and quickly returned to his wagon heaving it into the back. Then he proceeded once again northward. He now had time to ponder his strange but exciting find. After some reflecting he surmised the chest may possibly have fallen from the racing steel horses that flew past him earlier that morning. He further deduced that they were royal riders heading toward Katherine and would greatly miss the contents of this chest. Goran decided that very moment that he must get word to his son at once. So when he felt safe to do so, he pulled over and wrote a message, attached it to one of carrier pigeons and sent it aloft.

Meanwhile, back in Katherine, Zane was sweeping when he noticed the arrival of the pigeon. Curious, he collected and read the note. His eyes grew large in disbelief as he read the message. He laughed aloud to himself as he returned to his sweeping. "Yah, right," he thought, "watch for royal riders. Hah! In our town, hah!" Zane had heard tales of the royal riders but had never laid eyes on one, let alone three. "Even if they did come here their flight is so fast I would never have chance to hold court with them," he decided. And on he went cleaning, shaking his head.

Far to the south from Goran, our royal riders approached the hamlet of Katherine. At the edge of the town was a junction leading westward to Camooweal. Hector veered right at the junction leading the group away from Katherine. Little did he know he was leading the group further from any chance of retrieving the chest. The morning's ride had been long and the sun hot so it was time for the group to seek feed for themselves as well as their steel horses. As it turned out Hector saw no suitable station so he turned the group about, headed back to the junction and right into Katherine. There the riders came upon a station to refresh their machines. Afterward, upon the council of the proprietor, they rested their rides just up the way to feed themselves. Dogcow dismounted and immediately crossed the road to an eatery while Hector and TBB remained to disrobe some riding gear made heavy by the blazing sun.

Back in the shop, Zane headed outside to dump some garbage. He stopped to talk with a couple friends when noise from the street outside the shop caught his attention. His brain went slightly numb for just a second and then his senses returned. He then looked again in disbelief. Was this real or just some false vision?  There, in front of his very shop were two royal riders and three magnificent steel horses, and one mount was obviously light of its load. Zane remembered his father's note and knew he had to act, and now. So he approached the gentleman.

"Excuse me sires, I have news regarding the lost silver chest," was all he could conger the courage to say.  TBB turned and chortled, "Surely you jest boy as we have no such worries here!"  "Beggin' ya pardon sire but look there," retorted Zane with an ardent outstretched arm pointing at Dogcow's mount.
 

Both Hector and TBB casually glanced in that direction and were taken aback to find indeed their cargo was light one silver chest.  Hector moved to examine the scene more closely while TBB raced across the road to inform Dogcow about the unfortunate news.

When the two returned, Dogcow learned first hand they truly were missing one silver chest. Clearly the harness had faulted and Dogcow asked, "And the boy claims to have news?"
"Yes," came TBB's reply.  "So, what say you boy, speak quickly !" implored Dogcow .
Zane quickly explained the contents of the note from his father.

Then Dogcow inquired, "And when shall your father return?" questioned Dogcow .
"Not for a forte hour your majesty," came the reply.  Dogcow turned to the others with his decision , "We have no other choice than to make camp in Katherine this eve and wait the return of this boy's father. Let us make ready. Tell me boy where you reside."  Zane informed them,"on the road leading to Camooweal, turn right at the second boab tree. We are not 100 paces on the left."  "Tell your father we shall meet when the light first breaks upon the new day." said Dogcow .

Then Hector chimed in, "We are of good fortune that the chest has been found, however, even after its return there is still the matter of the broken harness. Although we can proceed attaching the chest by other means it will be more ideal to restore a functioning harness."
"Surely you're not saying a small hamlet such as this has the means to repair the steel harness?" TBB challenged while Dogcow nodded.

An audible cough and "Humph, humph," can from Zane's direction. The royal riders stopped their discussion to notice the young boy still in their presence.  "You have more to say, boy?" Dogcow said indignantly.  "I know of such men", said Zane. "What say you lad?", said Hector with interest.  "In the east of town there is the House of Hohn where men make metal of many shapes."  Hector noted, "Could it be our good fortune grows yet further?"  TBB added, "If these men do as the boy says then the Gods are truly looking down upon us."

Dogcow turned to the boy, "What is your name?"  "I am Zane, son of Goran!" Zane replied.
Then Dogcow continued, "You have served us well with your knowledge.  You will not be forgotten. Until the morrow then."  Zane grinned from one large ear the other. He also would not forget this day.  He watched as the royal riders departed. They waved, as did Zane.

As promised the riders appeared at Goran's dwelling as dawn broke. Goran and Zane already waiting. Goran presented the silver chest.  "You are a loyal subject, Goran, for which you must be recognized," proclaimed Dogcow.  "From this day forward you shall be known as Goran the Great of Katherine."  And he ceremoniously dubbed the genuflected man.  The men exchanged details of the whole affair then the royal riders were on their way to the House of Hohn.

It was there that a young blacksmith named Brandon was put in charge of the service.
"And can you make good of this mess?" he was asked.  "Most definitely sires," he answered.  All the while knowing it was the only answer as to decline would surely mean the loss of his scrotum sac.

​

Without further delay Brandon set to work. When completed the king's men came to examine his work.  They were impressed beyond belief.  "You are truly skilled" came Hector's observation.  "Your work exceeds that of our finest blacksmith in the palace of Oz, we are greatly indebted to you!", and from his purse Dogcow provided him with rubbles numbering 66 as that number ensures good luck.

The royal riders were finally on the road again with their cargo intact and their spirits lifted. They rode on happily ever after and they reported to the king that his kingdom is plentiful and the people thriving.

The End

(Or is it?)