Baa-b's Mission

Baa-b's Mission

        Baa-b’s first assignment was to assassinate King Baa-d III of the Baa-dlands.
        See, Baa-b was a ninja sheep who lived in the Kingdom of Lamb. The Baa-dlands were an expanse of barren land across the border. The king, Baa-d, wanted to destroy the happy Kingdom of Lamb. The sheep of Lamb, obviously, didn’t want their kingdom to be annihilated, so Baa-b had to kill Baa-d.
        Baa-b had trained as a ninja sheep for almost his entire life, and now he finally had a chance to prove himself.
        He stood in the entrance to his shelter, a cheery yellow shed. His white wool was washed. A brown leather bag was slung over his shoulders. In the bag were just a few necessities: a silver mirror, apples, and a lot of hay.
        The Baa-dlands had only sparse vegetation, and Baa-b, dumb though he was, knew he’d need the last two items in his pack.
        Baa-b took a deep breath, then set out toward the Baa-dlands.

        “Oww,” Baa-b bleated plaintively as, for the tenth time, his hoof slipped into a crevice in the broken ground. The Baa-dlands were cracked and dry, with small bushes dotted here and there, and an occasional rock.
        A gigantic boulder loomed suddenly in front of Baa-b. He sighed and marched around it.
        His nose banged against something, and Baa-b reeled backward in surprise.
        It was a gate, the large wrought-iron portcullis of a castle that soared up as far as he could see. Enormous black spikes dug into the hard ground.
        Baa-b knew that this was what he was looking for: King Baa-d’s citadel.
        Luckily or not, the holes between the bars were large enough for a sheep to squeeze through. Baa-b had to remind himself that this was his mission before he worked up the courage to slip into the courtyard.
        There was a door set into the wall of the fortress. It was slightly ajar, and Baa-b slid through. He was in a large rectangular room. Twelve stairways split off of it, and in the center was a giant stone column with stairs encircling it.
        Baa-b started up the stairs.

        Baa-b leaned, panting, against the wall. He was at the end of the stairs, in front of a tall wooden door reinforced with iron.
        Once he recovered, Baa-b opened the door cautiously.
        The room was completely bare except for a gigantic four-poster bed. The curtains were drawn, and a loud snoring sounded from behind them.
        Baa-b crept to the bed, reaching for the dagger hidden in the wool on his shoulder. He pulled the hangings apart …
        … and the black sheep in the bed sat up, shrieking, “Guaaaards!”
        Instantly five armored sheep leaped through the door onto Baa-b!

        Baa-b was in jail. The guards had taken his pack and his dagger. He wasn’t chained to the wall, but the door was locked.
        “Hey, you! Yes, you, the guy with the silly-looking face!”
        Baa-b looked up. An ewe was glaring at him through the bars in the front of the cell.
        “Come on!” She unlocked the door.
        “Who are you?” Baa-b asked, getting up.
        “Baa-rbara,” she replied shortly. “I had to follow you to make sure you didn’t mess up. Now come on.”
        Still confused, Baa-b followed her to another room. In the room where weapons, all laid out on a table. Baa-b’s pack was there as well, and he lunged for it. Baa-rbara grabbed a silver-hilted knife.
        They hurried out to a staircase. Baa-rbara led the way down. At the end, she stopped suddenly. Baa-b nearly ran into her. He peeked over her shoulder and gasped.
        King Baa-d stood there, along with at least twenty soldier sheep. Baa-d smiled evilly, and said just one word: “Attack.”
        The soldiers jumped forward. Baa-rbara rolled away to the side, leaving Baa-b alone to face the oncoming warriors.
        He had no idea what to do. He scrabbled in his pack and pulled out the mirror. Then Baa-rbara called, “Your mirror! The sun!” At first Baa-b didn’t understand. Then he saw a beam of sunlight just to his left, shining through a window. He lunged into the light, holding out the mirror. It took him a moment to angle it properly, but when he managed it, the effect was instantaneous.
        The first-line fighters skidded to a stop, covering their eyes and shrieking. The sheep behind crashed into them.
        Baa-b aimed the mirror at King Baa-d, who doubled over with a shout. Baa-rbara leaped at him, raising her dagger to bring him down . . .
        After Baa-d fell, Baa-b and Baa-rbara fled from the castle while the soldiers were distracted. When they arrived back in the Kingdom of Lamb, they were welcomed with joy. Baa-b and Baa-rbara became great friends and never had to kill an evil king again.