Our laboratory was getting pretty good at time travel; we had improved our
technique, particularly in communications, since my foray to Kalatot in the
sixth century. Now my mission was to determine whether the legend of Robin
Hood was anything more than a legend. Were the man, his band of merry men
and the mean Sheriff of Nottingham real people and did they live and behave
as the legends would have us believe?

As before, we researched the geography and selected a cave as close as
possible to a road that probably followed the ancient path through Sherwood
Forest. Like the last mission, George, a physician, accompanied me. So, with
our horses, communications gear (transmitting to a small receiver that would
be left in the cave), and other provisions (including some money minted
after the best model we had), we left on the journey thorough time.

It was cold and dreary when we arrived in the same cave about eight
centuries earlier. As expected, the modern road was built along the route of
this path, so we embarked toward the forest. The woods were dense and
foreboding -- an excellent setting for an ambush. There were lots of wild
life evident. We saw several rabbits, and caught a glimpse of one deer ahead
in the pathway.

We traveled for several hours, penetrating deeper into the forest. We were
beginning to wonder if we would see civilization again. Then, without any
warning at all, a man, dressed in drab clothing which blended in with the
forest, was standing ion the roadway with an arrow in his bow aimed at my
chest. I caught a glimpse of a second man in a tree about 10 yards ahead.

"Your money or your life," he said with authority. I threw him a bag of
coins, and George followed suite.

"Is that all you have?" he asked.

"Absolutely , " I lied, in my best imitation of his accent and
pronunciation.

As the thief was starting to leave, I asked, "Is Robin of Locksley your
leader?"

"Yes," he replied with a touch of sadness in his voice.

"I had heard that it was your custom to invite your victims to join your
band for a meal after you relieved them of their assets."

"We normally do, but Robin is very ill; I think he will die before the night
is over."

My friend knows the medical arts; perhaps, he could help."

There was a moment of silence, while the robber considered this suggestion.
"I guess we have nothing to lose; follow us," he said, as his partner jumped
down from the tree.

He led into an area where no formal path existed; our horses occasionally
stumbling over bushes and exposed roots. After we had gone a short distance,
he pointed to a small grassy area where we could tether our horses and
continue by foot. George took his medical gear, and we walked on about 200
yards were a group of men with solemn faces were gathered around an open
fire. He led us to the cave where a man, in his late 20's, lay on a blanket
on the ground, covered with blankets. A very attractive young woman was
wiping his brow with a damp cloth. The man clearly was burning with fever
and was quite ill.

George established that Robin had been coughing before getting really sick,
so he immediately listen to his chest with a stethoscope. "He has
pneumonia," George pronounced with certainty. "With my medicine, I believe
he will recover." The group assembled around Robin looked at him with
disbelief.

George got out a hypodermic needle and a strong antibiotic. After wiping
Robin's arm with the alcohol and administering the shot, he carefully stored
the used materials for disposal in the 20th century. Then he gave Robin two
timed release aspirin tablets, and suggested that he be given plenty of
water and a couple more aspirin tablets before the group went to sleep.

We were invited to eat some rabbit cooked over the open fire, and were given
a spot on the ground to sleep. The next morning, it was clear that Robin's
fever had begun to break, and George started a regime of oral antibiotics.
He warned the group that Robin would not be fully back to normal for several
weeks, but the band of "Merry Men" was merry again -- they couldn't believe
that Robin had been cured.

We stayed with the group during the next week, listening to numerous tales
of their exploits. Some were reasonably consistent with the 20th century
legends; others varied considerably. After Robin's recovery was assured,
Lady Marion returned to her estate as there were a number of business
related items to take care of.

The morning after Marion had returned to her home, one of her servants, who
was familiar with Robin's activities, came into camp with very disturbing
news. The Sheriff, knowing of the relationship between Marion and Robin and
hearing of Robin's potentially fatal illness, decided to make his move on
Marion's estate. That morning, the Sheriff had arrived at Marion's with a
group of his deputies. He stated that she had not paid the new tax that he
had imposed on her property several days before, and he was appropriating
her estate, and placing her under arrest. At the present, he had her locked
in her own bedroom. This was particularly concerning, because the Sheriff
was known to have the "hots" for Marion, and raping female prisoners was
very common.

Robin was still very weak, and arranging for Robin's band to storm Marion's
estate would not work. It was up to me to come up with a plan for her
rescue. We estimated that the Sheriff had duties (primarily acting in
judgement of debtors and other prisoners) that would take him into early
afternoon, so we only had a short time in which to work before Marion was in
real jeopardy.

George and I headed into town, and approached the local baker. I purchased a
quantity of freshly-baked bread and headed for the Marion's estate, posing a
delivery man. I was admitted to the main house, and escorted to the kitchen
by a Sheriff's deputy. The cook, brought to the estate by the Sheriff, was
preparing a rabbit stew to feed the deputies. Since we were still equipped
with the compressed gas propelled tranquilizer darts that served us so well
on our last adventure, I quickly fired a short acting dart at both the cook
and the deputy from under my sleeve. Then I poured time-release sleeping
powder into the stew. The particles would be activated by stomach acid, and,
about an hour after eating, would put the recipient to sleep for a few
hours. Thus there was plenty of opportunity for all of the deputies to eat
their lunch before sleeping powder acted.

The cook and deputy woke up after a few minutes, both thinking they had
dosed off. I found a comfortable, secure place to wait for a few hours after
lunch.

In the early afternoon, I walked out into the court yard. Several Sheriff's
deputies were seen dozing off, so I opened the main door and signaled to
George by radio to bring Robin's band into the building. I suspected that
the Sheriff had a much more elaborate lunch that his deputies, and therefore
was still a threat to Marion. We quickly went to Marion's bedroom and found
two sleeping deputies guarding the door, which, since it was supposedly well
guarded, was unlocked.

We threw open the door and quickly realized the gravity of the situation.
Marion was tied, spread-eagled on the bed, completely naked. Having only
seen her at Robin's camp, I did not realize just how beautiful she was. Her
well formed, but sold breasts rose from her chest like two symmetric alpine
peaks, each proudly capped with sharply pointed nipples. Above her crotch, a
full bush of brown, curly pubic hair highlighted her young and inviting
womanhood. It was easy to understand any man's attraction to her.

The Sheriff was on his knees on the bed, also completely naked, and taunting
her with a clearly oversized cock. The head of the very erect penis peeked
past the foreskin like a one-eyed monster. As the door opened, the Sheriff
was rubbing his penis around her face, and over her tits. As she lay
completely helpless on her bed. it was clear he was teasing her before he
rammed his manhood forcibly into her cunt.

I had a sword in hand as the Sheriff jumped off of the bed, and I placed the
point lightly on his chest. George covered Marion with a blanket, and untied
her from the bed.

With the Sheriff backed against the wall, standing completely naked, I
looked down at his now flaccid penis and gestured toward it with my sword.

"Isn't your normal punishment for a crime cutting off the offending part of
the body?"

In spite of his nakedness and the coolness of the room, which was heated
only by a fireplace, he was sweating, but replied with a swagger, "I am the
only law around here; if you so much as touch me, I will have you hanged."

"You have never seen me before, and may never see me again. I can do as I
please without any concern about retribution from you." With that, I moved
the sword, George, with a gloved hand, grabbed his penis and pulled it out
so I could rest my sword at its base. The Sheriff probably considered
jumping me, but I suspect he was afraid I might slip.

With no support from his deputies, he now began to panic. "Please don't." he
screamed.

With my sword still resting on his stretched out, but soft, cock, I said,
"Now tell us about this special tax you assessed on Lady Marion's estate.
What was its purpose, and did you levy the tax equally on all estates?"

The Sheriff, still shuddering at the prospect of losing his manhood,
replied," This was a special tax against Lady Marion's estate. I knew that
she could not pay this large sum and that she had no defense, so I had an
excellent opportunity to obtain the property."

"Let's just say that this levy has now been canceled, and you will agree to
sign an order to that effect."

"I will agree to that - just let me go." With that, I moved the sword back
to his hairy chest, George released his none-too-gentle grip, and I pointed
toward a table with some writing instruments. "Write down the agreement to
cancel the tax."

The Sheriff just looked at the parchment and quill pen. "I can't write."

George wrote the agreement, the Sheriff dressed and we went to the room he
had been using for business. His mark for official papers was there, and he
"signed" the papers with a stamp. "Just remember, if you ever think about
changing your mind, you will never know when I will return," I advised.

In the meantime, Robin's men had been loading the sleeping deputies in a
cart, so we led the Sheriff to his horse and sent them all on their way.

Lady Marion returned with us to Robin's camp; her servants had been restored
to their positions to take care of the estate. I still couldn't help but
remember how beautiful she looked under the unflattering clothes she wore
for the trip back into Sherwood Forest.

That evening, around the fire, we discussed the overall situation. Lady
Marion an Robin (who was still weak, but recovering rapidly from his
illness) were profuse in their thanks for saving both of their lives. In
spite of the fact that we had failed to demonstrate any physical combat
skills (usually a test of acceptance for a group of this type), we were
fully accepted by the "Merry Men of Sherwood Forest."

We had solved a short term problem, but the long range problem still
remained. King Richard, captured on his way back to England from the
crusades, was still being held hostage in Mediterannia. There was apparently
little effort on the part of his half-brother, Prince John, to raise the
ransom; Prince John was enjoying his tyrannical rule. Now the word came that
Prince John had declared Richard lost forever, and was going the have
himself inaugurated as King. The ceremony had been set on a Sunday in three
weeks.. With King John in permanent control, the Sheriff of Nottingham, and
others like him, would consolidate their power. Robin of Locksley and his
band of Merry Men would remain outlaws.

It seemed time for a rescue mission.

We returned to the twentieth century and completed our planning for the
rescue venture. One of the biggest problems was geography; i.e., figuring
out exactly where Mediterannia was and where King Richard was likely to be
held. A scouting team of two linguists who were scholars of the language in
that area made a preliminary excursion, and from rumors, folk tales, etc.
believed that they could pinpoint the twentieth century equivalent of King
Assaba's castle. They also spread the message that the ransom money was
going to be secretly delivered, so that King Assaba would not completely be
caught by surprise.

A team of four was ready to make the trip through time. We took a our
horses, a cart with several chests of coins which would pass the preliminary
tests of the time for gold. Only when they were melted down would the
deception be discovered, which, if everything went according to plan, would
not be a problem since we planned to leave with Richard and the coins.

We arrived in a secluded area about two kilometers from King Assaba's
castle. We waited around in our staging area so we would arrive in mid to
late afternoon; our plan depended on staying overnight, but not giving them
enough time to melt down sample coins.

We announced our arrival at the edge of the moat. Seeing only four of us,
the draw bridge was lowered and we entered the castle. George and one of the
linguists went to care for the horses, together with the chests of coins, I
with the other linguist, entered the King's reception hall. The chests were
opened and the coins were examined. "We must melt some of the coins before
we will release King Richard. I will give an order to heat the furnaces
overnight, so you and your pages will be our guests for the evening."

"I must see King Richard and identify a particular birthmark before I turn
the coins over to you," I stated emphatically. King Assaba reluctantly gave
the order to bring King Richard to the chambers.

After about a half hour, he was brought in, looking weak, tired, and
disheveled. It was clear that King Assaba expected him to die in his
dungeon. I walked over to the prisoner, and as I raised hi tunic to look for
the birthmark, I pinned a homing transmitter to the garment. "Do not lose
this pin, and don't eat any food tonight. We will come for you during the
night," I whispered to him.

Over my protestations, they took him back to his cell, and the chests of
coins were taken away, probably (we hoped) to the royal treasury. We were
shown to our rooms, which were very comfortable and luxurious. We would be
called when it was time for the banquet to be prepared in our honor.

In the meantime, George and the other "page" were taking care of the horses
and the cart in which we had brought the chests of coins. When they
complained about being hungry, they were shown into the royal kitchen, where
the banquet and separate meals for the guards and staff were being prepared.
Following the same procedure that we used in Lady Marion's kitchen, the
time-release sleeping powder was added to the stew for the guards and staff.
We couldn't spike the banquet food, since we would have to eat that to be
polite.

The banquet was very elaborate. We were careful not to eat or drink anything
that the King and his entourage were not eating. To say that we didn't trust
them was an understatement, and I'm sure that they did not trust us, either.
The entertainment was great!! The belly dancers also did an elaborate strip
tease. By the end of the dance they had on only the barest of G-strings and
the tassels on their nipples. I always have marveled at how exotic dancers
can get those tassels to twirl in opposite directions at the same time. As
part of the dance, the dancers would move suggestively to each of the
guests, sometimes gently massaging our crotch; others would take our hand
and slide it under the G-string and, their hand on top of ours, they would
massage their clit. Eating the meal, with all of the excellent wine and
sweets, was very difficult with the numerous distractions.

After the banquet, we returned to our chambers. I checked in with George by
radio, and he confirmed that our plan was on schedule. In another couple of
hours, the guards and staff should be zonked, and the King and other banquet
participants should be retired to their chambers.

There was a knock at the door, and one of the prettiest young dancers
entered. She couldn't speak English, and I could not speak her language, but
it was clear why she was there. I still had a couple of hours, so I might as
well enjoy them!

She slowly and seductively undressed herself until she stood before me with
all of her womanly features fully exposed. She walked around me for several
minutes, rubbing her own breasts, gently squeezing her nipples. Then she
took me by the hand, and led me toward the bed. She lay on the bed, spread
her legs, and started fingering her clit, and working her finger into her
vagina. My erection was about to burst my pants!!

She got up and slowly started undressing me. I was careful to make sure that
my shirt, with the compressed gas tranquilizer dart system and some
miniaturized radio equipment, was not far out of reach. Soon, I was lying
naked on the bed as she was gently massaging my entire body. She had an
extraordinarily gentle and seductive touch as she massaged my back and
buttocks, turned me over and massaged my chest, gently squeezing my nipples,
tickled my abdomen, ran her fingers around my scrotum, and finally up and
down my fully erect shaft.

She reached for my hand and guided it to her soft, moist womanhood. I
explored all of those regions, tweaking her clit, and working my fingers
into her wet, almost dripping, vagina. Finally, she guided my penis into her
vagina, and she provided some action and moves that I hadn't felt before. As
she squeezed her vaginal muscles around my erection, I exploded with a
virtual geyser of semen.

After this experience, she offered me a glass of wine that had been provided
in my chambers. I noted that she did not take a glass for herself, so I
refused also. She was very insistent; I thought she might try to force me to
drink it. I strongly suspected that it was drugged or poisoned. Finally, I
reached for my shirt, and popped a long-acting dart into her arm. I placed
her, sleeping soundly, on the bed and finished dressing..

It was time for our operation to begin.

By radio, we arranged to meet in the courtyard; but when I prepared to
leave, the door was barred from the outside. Now, there was no question
about the intentions of our hosts (our captors ?). I again contacted George
by radio, and he located us quickly from the homing transmitters and
unbarred the door.

Our first stop was the royal treasury, located by a homing transmitter in
the cache of coins that we had delivered to the kingdom. The two guards were
quietly dozing away. In addition to our cart, we borrowed two more from the
stables, and emptied the treasury. King Richard was located from the homing
device that I pinned to his garments, and his guard was also sleeping.. We
unbarred the cell door, and called in. King Richard emerged along with two
cellmates. We found horses for his cellmates, and gave them a generous
portion of the kingdom's real gold coins and instructions to get as far away
as they could once free of the castle.

After lowering the drawbridge, we headed for our time transfer zone. But,
before we moved out, we left one more reminder. George and his colleague had
craftily arranged some explosives under the main beams of the drawbridge and
the small emergency drawbridge in the rear of the castle. With one touch to
the radio control, the drawbridge simply collapsed in the center. The
explosion, although not overly noisy, was probably loud enough to wake King
Assaba and the others who had been at the banquet so that they could
helplessly discover that the kingdom was now penniless.

We all rested for a while before our journey through time. King Richard was
given a sedative; he would sleep through the whole experience. A jet was
waiting for us in the 20th century to transport us from the Mediterranean
area back to England. While in the aircraft, medical researchers took some
blood samples from the king for their studies. When we reached the cave we
used for the entry point to Sherwood Forest, we beamed back to the twelfth
century, arriving about a day after we left!!

We took the King to Robin's camp to plan our strategy for his return to the
throne. He had no army left and no band of loyal supporters. But, alas, our
planning was overtaken by events. The news came that Prince John was going
to declare his half-brother lost forever, and, on the following Sunday, was
going to have the Archbishop crown him as the King. We carefully planned the
steps we would take on that fateful day, considering each contingency. With
a flair for the dramatic, we planned to disrupt the ceremony at a critical
time.

Coronation Sunday arrived. Posing as workmen preparing for the ceremony, we
had hidden bows and arrows in a little known alcove in the cathedral during
the week, Robin's band, supplemented by some trusted men who were known to
be loyal to King Richard, drifted into the Cathedral as casual spectators,
and, gradually, so as not to attract attention, retrieved their weapons and
took positions along the balcony. The King, dressed in a common clothes,
found a seat with the townspeople in the rear of the Church.

Prince John's big day had arrived. The trumpets rang out; the ceremony
began. Just as the Archbishop was about to place the crown on Prince John's
head, a cry rang out from the back of the Church,

"Make way for King Richard, the King of all England."

"Who dares interrupt this ceremony? " Prince John called out, "Guards, seize
this man."

There was a rustling sound in the balcony as King Richard, walking down the
aisle now dressed in nobleman's clothing, pointed to the balcony. The entire
balcony was ringed with men pointing arrows at Prince John's guards.

The Archbishop was dumbfounded and completely confused. Prince John, who now
recognized his half-brother, made one last futile gesture, "You must show
your birthmark."

King Richard led the Archbishop behind the curtains on the side of the
pulpit. Shortly they returned, and the Archbishop pronounced,

"The King has returned, all hail the King!"

A rousing cheer went up from all but a few of spectators. The general
populous had enough of Prince John's oppression, but there were those who
had profited handsomely and now knew their day of reckoning was near.

"You, my brother, will be held accountable for your actions while I was
away. I also declare Robin of Locksley and his followers to be free men and
order that his estates be returned to him."

Within a matter of minutes, the loyalty of the King's guards and of the
general populous had been restored. John and his followers trembled with
fear as they considered their future. For John, he was so near his moment of
triumph when the world almost instantly collapsed around him.

Our work was done -- it was time to return to the world of international
conflicts, budget deficits, high taxes, homeless people, and other real
problems.