You all stood as the edge of the cliff and peered over it. Cher didn't wait for anyone to decide what to do. She threw herself off the cliff. Everyone except Elkin gasped while Cher plummeted downward; the view of her figure appeared smaller and smaller as she fell faster and faster.
"When is she going to brake!" uttered Byc as he put his hands over his eyes. About half-way down, Cher opened her wings and caught herself. Then she deftly glided the rest of the way to the bottom. "At a girl," said Elkin. Cher hovered a few feet above the figure and watched to see if it reacted to her presence. Since the figure didn't move, Cher landed a few feet away and cautiously walked up to it. She pushed the ferns aside and bent over to see if it was still breathing. Suddenly, Cher threw herself back, fanned her nose, and motioned for the rest of you to come down also.
"Alas," said Tara, "he must have perished. We are too late!"
"No!," said Byc, "he's still alive." No one stopped to consider how Byc knew this, because beneath Rollvag's feet a big, thick vine slid out of the woods under it's own power; over the lip of the cliff and down its face several feet.
"Rollvag?" asked Elkin. "Yes?" answered Rollvag with a perplexed looked on his face. Elkin continued:
"You are the most experienced climber of the group; why don't you rapell down?" At that point Rollvag understood what Elkin asked of him.
"Why, I'd be delighted, Sir," stated Rollvag with a bow and a sheepish grin.
"Good!," said Elkin plainly, "When you reach the bottom, the rest of us will take the goat trail down until we meet you."
Rollvag tied a cross sash of leather around his legs and waist (with help from Tara), lashed himself quickly to the vine, assumed a crouching position with his strong back pointed out over the cliff's edge, and briskly pushed off into the air. The vine screeched and lurched after him. Thirty feet lower, Rollvag bounced lightly off the cliff's face, and then he hopped his way on down to the bottom. Everyone watched, including Elkin, and he was greatly impressed.
Rappelling, of course, is fairly hard work; and that is why Rollvag was sweating as he reached the place where Cher was waiting for him. Cher spoke to him.
"Pretty good for a Freeman. I'm glad that I don't need a rope!"
"If you hurt one of your wings you would," retorted Rollvag.
"What's wrong with him, anyway?" asked Rollvag pointedly.
"He smells funny!" stated Cher.
"Like kissing a moose, I suppose?" laughed Rollvag.
"Very funny," answered Cher, "Now suppose YOU look him over while I scout around a bit." With that, Cher flew up to the top of a nearby, 120 foot tall maple tree. Rollvag bent over to laying form.
He was a young, well built man with short blonde hair, fair skin, and tattered clothing. He lay face down in the ferns. His right hand tightly gripped an ornate shrike. He wore a blue sash around his waist. It had a metal buckler with the name "Kip" inscribed on it. Rollvag rolled him to his side and placed the shrike a few feet away from his body just to be on the safe side.
Suddenly the young man grabbed his stomach and coughed up blood and flem. Undaunted, Rollvag took out a cloth and wiped the excess from around his mouth. "Hmm," Rollvag said to himself, "He must be hurt inside..." Ordinarily, the young man would have had a very handsome face, but just then it had a white discoloration.
Cher, who had just returned from scouting, looked down at the sight and said: "He must be very ill." Rollvag agreed. "I am no healer, but he looks badly. I only hope that Tara can do something with him." Cher changed the topic with her report: "There's no one in any direction, but boy you're going to be surprised at what's coming down the goat's trail!"
Kuros rode up proudly on a goat. A what? No, not a tiny, scrawny, old, billy goat; but a big, hefty, strong, white mountain goat -- and a bull at that! Kuros looked like a mountain prince, with his long blonde hair, green suit and spear. The goat was at least six feet at the shoulder with sharp, black horns. And who came along next but Elkin, Tara, Byc and Longsilver. They also rode goats. Four extra goats; one for Cher, one for Rollvag, and two for the packs; followed right behind them.
Kuros hailed Cher and Rollvag.
"Surprise greetings winged one and climbing fellow! We've brought some help! These goats happened along, so we climbed aboard! How's the... whatever he is?"
"Bad," stated Rollvag flatly.
Rollvag didn't have much confidence that the young man could be healed. Tara dismounted and ran over to where the man lay.
"He's got puemonia," said Elkin with his deep voice behind them.
"How do you know?" asked Longsilver.
"Believe me," said Byc, "Elkin is right."
"Well, how do you BOTH know?" emphasized Longsilver.
"Let's just say that both of us have seen it before." answered Elkin.
Rollvag just stood there with his arms folded. Tara reached down with her right hand and touched Kip on the forehead. As Tara held her pose and concentration, the color returned to Kip's face very slowly.
Elkin broke the silence. "You all must gather wood for a fire. We must warm him for at least a day before he can be moved very far from here; and then we might find out where he came from.
"Won't some one see the fire, Elkin?" asked Rollvag.
"I'll take care of that; but if you don't mind, I'll need the red rock that you're carrying."
"Well," slurred Rollvag, "If you say so...here."
Tara held herself still while every one else except Kuros gathered wood for a fire. "Try to get hardwoods!" admonished Elkin. Kuros tethered the goats in a small clearing near to the campsite, and then returned to watch Elkin.
Their elf mentor took the wood and built a small teepee. Then he put the red rock inside the teepee. Next, he waved his right hand over the wood and stone until they glowed red. Soon, a cheery, smoke-less fire puffed up brightly. Kuros, who was puzzled by the activity, asked Elkin, "Sir, is the wood really burning?"
"Yes it will," replied Elkin, "The energy in the rock makes the wood burn in a smoke-less, controlled way."
After about an hour, Tara finally got up from her labor. She looked tired and dejected, and she uttered, "Well, I did the best I could." Then she sat down next to the fire.
NOTE
Throughout the afternoon, you took turns as watchman. You all tried to be as quiet as possible. The weather at that time was very clear. The sun shined brightly. Off along the horizon, toward the North, cirrus clouds streaked across the sky. You all felt free in the fresh air and depth of the woodlands, but the feeling did not last...
The adventurers sat around and ate some of their trail mix with water. Suddenly, Byc stood up in their midst. His eyes grew wide and he shook with fear. He blurted out:
"I fear that we must move on... (pause) There is a danger approaching... (pause) Three beasts have entered the valley from across the Baldor mountains... (pause) They seek... (pause) They seek HIM..."
Byc raised a shaky finger at Kip and continued.
"Either they will destroy us... (pause) or we will destroy them..."
Then Byc lowered his head and closed his eyes. Needless to say, the other adventurers stopped their meal and glanced at Elkin with frightened looks on their faces.
Elkin stood up angrily and questioned Byc:
"How do you know this? You are in a peaceful valley. Even the bears do not go hungry here!" Kuros explained:
"Byc has a peculiar sense about him -- he is seldom wrong; and even if he is wrong, his vision is distorted only sightly."
"Hmm," said Elkin. Rollvag felt uneasy:
"Vision-Smision! You mystics give me the creeps!"
"Easy there 'vag," said Longsilver calmly. "I'd like to know what these things are, how much time we have before they get here, and how we can best meet them."
"What are they?" asked Kuros of Byc.
Byc went into a trance-like state again and said "Tzae... yes, Tzaenogs!"
"Great," interrupted Rollvag, "We're about to be attacked and Byc is talking gibberish!"
Elkin looked alarmed, but did not panic. "Quickly now, we must build a spiked barricade. Everyone but Tara must help. We can not move this Kip fellow, but at least we will have the cliff to our backs."
"Boy," said Rollvag carefully to Elkin, "You're really worried."
Byc said: "If you could see what I do, you'd be worried too!" Rollvag's eyes opened wide, and then he also went after a spiked pole.
"Now, now," chided Elkin as he reached inside one of his bags, "There is simply no time to waste. The poles can be cut with these." Elkin pulled out some small stone hand axes and gave one to each of them. (except for Tara) "Now," he said, "cut about a ten yarn length of a two pike pole; twelve of them, and bring them back here."
Kuros paused a second or two, and he looked for some encouragement from Elkin. "Elkin," said Kuros prayerfully, "it will be dark in an hour..." "Don't worry, Kuros," said Elkin as he returned Kuros' gaze. "The God in heaven will help us, if he wills...."
DESCRIPTION
With Elkin's direction, you constructed a small, five foot high, semi-circle barricade; with the open end against the cliff and the fire in the middle. Although tired and weary from the day's labor and hike, Elkin had you sit and rest in a defensive formation. Cher, Rollvag, and Longsilver sat just inside the fence with their spears resting in their right hands. These three faced outward. Behind them and in the second line sat Byc, Tara, and Kuros. This second line gripped their lutars tightly. They stuck their arrows in the ground beside them so they could stand up and fire rapidly. Kip lay quietly on the ground beside the fire, covered by several blankets for protection. It got darker.
"Kuros!" spoke Elkin quietly. "Hand me your diamond."
"Here," said Kuros just as quietly as he handed it to him. Elkin raised the diamond high. "Stand up archers... now! Front set your spears... At ready!" ordered Elkin.
First, you heard a loud sniff. Next came several growls, then a cough, then a wheeze. Then came the sound of crunching underbrush and several gruesome bellows. Frighteningly, three large, four footed reptiles with wicked looking teeth burst out of the brush and charged headlong at the barricade. Elkin cried out: "Ettin spayloc orb!" The diamond flashed a piercing, white light that banished the darkness around you. Although blinded, the Tzaenogs charged on...
(Q) What will you do?
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© Copyright 1999 by Abram Paradies.
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