They assessed their meager supply of weapons without slowing down. Illo, having run out of arrows, grudgingly held onto the dryad spear. Martin kept Podgin’s knife.
“I don’t know what you’ll be able to do with that fungus slicer,” said Illo. “Maybe you’ll surprise us with a vicious throwing arm.”
“I guess that leaves me to fend for myself with sticks and rocks,” said Elodie. “That’s fine with me. I’ve already faced trunders with both, and they haven’t taken me yet.”
“As long as no one gets bitten,” said Illo.
Martin started to recognize the lay of the land. They were somewhere between the cave and the old grotto. He shut his eyes to ward off those memories, but a third cry from Copper snapped them back open.
“She’s definitely caught our scent,” said Illo. “I bet she found her dead partner, too.”
“Which will make her all the more dangerous.” Martin urged them to move faster.
“Don’t worry, we’re almost at the badger den. Once the trunder sees how hard it is to snag us, she’ll give up. She’s just an animal, right?”
Martin shook his head. “I don’t think she’s hunting for food or sport anymore. She sounds pretty mad.”
“I wish you hadn’t said that,” said Elodie.
Illo hissed. “I smell her!”
She sped up, no longer relying on Elodie’s support. The ground dropped without warning, but Illo slid down without hesitation. Elodie and Martin followed her. They spilled into a clearing. A dark hole opened under the roots of an oak on the other side.
“Quick,” said Illo. “Get in!”
She threw herself into the den feet-first, vanishing under the earth.
Martin shoved Elodie after her. “I’m right behind you.”
Elodie slid down the loose dirt into the den, but Martin lingered at the lip. The den’s mouth was wider than Illo seemed to think. Wolf might not have been able to enter the den, but Copper would have no trouble squeezing through the gap. Just as he realized this, Copper’s scent floated into the clearing.
“What are you waiting for?” Elodie grabbed his leg. “Get down here. She’s coming!”
Martin searched the clearing for anything to make the gap smaller. “Give me a second.” He spotted a mushroom-riddled log under a green tree by the bank. He shook away from Elodie and ran to it, the knife secured in his belt.
“Don’t go there, you idiot!” Illo spat the words out. “That’s a…”
A shadow passed over the clearing.
Martin planted a foot against the tree for leverage and heaved the log off the ground. He tried to drag it to the den, but he couldn’t move. When he looked down, Illo’s unfinished warning made a lot more sense. Roots curled around one of his feet, anchoring him to the ground. Anklesnatcher.
“Cut yourself loose,” said Elodie.
Martin motioned for them to be quiet. Sweat coated his palm, but he grabbed the knife and got to work on the root. The blade barely made a dent.
“I’m going to help him,” said Elodie.
She crawled into the open, checked the sky, and darted across the clearing. She made it halfway. Copper ambushed her from below the trees, her body a red streak.
Elodie screamed as the trunder’s claws latched onto her shoulders. Copper swept her up into the high branches.
“Illo, the spear!” Martin yelled. “Use it!”
Illo watched from the badger den. “I’ve never thrown a spear in my life!”
In the tree, Elodie kicked and writhed, but Copper had her pinned against a branch. The trunder swiveled her head between Elodie and her prey on the ground, as if trying to decide which of them she would have the most fun finishing off.
Martin hacked at the anklesnatcher with the knife until the blade bent. He cast aside the useless weapon.
“Hey!” He waved his arms, drawing Copper’s attention. “Remember me? I bit you last time we fought. You should take me first.”
Copper loosened her grip, and Elodie slid off the branch. She hit the ground at the clearing’s edge. Martin called out to her, but she didn’t move. He didn’t have time to worry about her. Copper came at him.
Martin raised his arms. He refused to go out without a fight. He might have stood a chance if he were still a trunder. As a human, one bite would finish him.
Illo charged from the den, swinging the dryad spear like a club, but her leg slowed her down too much. Copper knocked her back with a single strike. Illo crumpled on the ground in a daze. The spear slid out of her grasp.
Only Martin remained standing—not that he had much choice. His arms dropped to his sides. There was nothing more he could do except hope Copper finished him quickly. As the trunder approached, he looked past her at Elodie’s unconscious face. He had failed her. He had failed them all.
Copper’s warm breath smothered him. Martin coughed and gagged, closing his eyes. He didn’t want to see those teeth coming at him.
Something burst in front of him with an ear-splitting crack. Copper snarled and pulled back, cut off by a cloud of dust. Martin shielded his face with his hand.
A floppy-eared figure emerged from the cloud with raised arms and a puffernut clutched in each fist. “Mustn’t hurt Bramble’s friends!”
Bramble hurled the puffernuts against the ground with all his might. Fresh billows sprang from the earth, enveloping the clearing in a nutty haze.
Copper swiped low, but Bramble was too quick. He hopped over her paw and pranced back to Martin. At the same time, the woods around the clearing rang with war cries. Four great badgers leaped from cover. Their dryad riders struggled to rein them in, then brandished their spears and surrounded the trunder.
Tum greeted Martin with a fierce grin. “Here we are, thundering in to save the day! No merriment or rest or sleep when fetid fangs are near!”
Root and Nim and Nettle filled the clearing with their own hollering voices. Copper spun this way and that, but everywhere she turned, a dryad spear pointed at her face. She bared her fangs and howled, but the badgers stayed put.
Bramble darted up the anklesnatcher and hopped onto Martin’s shoulder. “Bramble is happy to see the real Martin again. Bramble has been sorry, but Bramble has not wallowed anymore! Bramble went to find sticky-soldiers for rescue-help, and now Bramble can be Martin’s friend again!”
He scurried into the branches. There, he unloaded his whole pouch of puffernuts down the tree’s hollowed trunk. “Must let go of Martin!”
The anklesnatcher groaned and shuddered like an animal. Brown clouds erupted like volcanic ash from the hollow. The root around Martin’s shin shuddered once, then went limp.
While Bramble bellowed incoherently from the safety of the tree and the dryads held Copper in check, Martin sprinted to Elodie’s prone form.
Illo picked herself up by the badger den, but she could only crawl away from the fray. She held an arm to her ribs, unable to stand.
Elodie groaned and shook herself back to her senses. When she saw the chaos in the clearing, she jolted up. “What on earth? When did the dryads get here? Why is Bramble dancing in that tree?”
Martin held her down. “Are you hurt?”
“My head’s full of angry bees, but I don’t think anything’s broken. Don’t worry about me. We have bigger problems to deal with.”
The dryad’s circle was falling apart. The badgers refused to get any closer to Copper, whose claws flew with renewed fury. She caught Nettle’s badger in the flank, sending it spinning. Nettle flew off and the ring broke.
Copper went straight for Illo, her jaws ready to crunch. Both Nim and Root flung their spears, but the hopping badgers skewed their aim.
Tum alone kept control of his steed. He spurred his badger to cut off the trunder’s path. Trunder and badger collided like boulders. The badger squealed. Tum went flying. Copper found her feet, but instead of staying in range of the dryad spears, she took to the air and dived at Illo from above.
Elodie squeezed Martin’s arm. �
�We have to help!”
Then another winged shape blasted into the fight. It was Aguilax, and on his back rode Podgin, clinging to fistfuls of fur for dear life. His feet bounced straight behind him and sheer terror turned his nose white. Podgin reached into a sack strapped to Aguilax’s side and pelted Copper with fistfuls of puffernuts.
The trunder avoided the barrage of dust explosions and switched targets. Aguilax drew Copper away from the clearing, but Podgin weighed him down. The trunder closed the distance in seconds. Aguilax spun and twisted, trying to shake her off his tail.
Podgin lost his grip on Aguilax’s fur and started to slide off. He latched onto the puffernut sack. The sack popped open and its contents spilled out in one massive bombardment right in Copper’s snapping maw.
Choking and blinded, Copper fell to the ground.
Aguilax landed beside Martin and Elodie with a triumphant smile. “That, ladies and gentlemen, is a prime example of strategical execution. Fancy this,” he added as an afterthought. “It’s odd to see the two of you together. I quite like it.”
Then he took off again.
Poor Podgin lay on the ground, sneezing and wheezing like a stricken duck. Puffernut dust coated him from head to toe. “Never again,” he sputtered. “Never again.”
In the clearing, Copper thrashed wildly, scattering the dryads like twigs. Two of the badgers were down. The others tossed their riders and fled. The dryads shouted after them to no avail. They were no match for the trunder without their steeds, and even Aguilax’s constant dives and slashes couldn’t slow her down.
“She’ll rip them all to shreds if we don’t do something,” said Elodie. “We can finish this now while she’s distracted.”
Martin kept his hand on her arm. “How?” Then he saw it. Illo’s dryad spear, half buried in leaves away from the fight. “Look. Think we can make it?”
Elodie nodded.
“I can’t use it, though,” said Martin. “Not with one hand. If I still had the knife...”
“I can do it. I know I can. All I need is a clear path.”
“No. I won’t...” He dropped his protest. True strength flamed in her earnest gaze. “You’re right. You can do it.” He squeezed her hand. “I’ll go first.”
“And I’ll be right behind you.”
“On my count?”
She nodded again.
Martin shifted to a crouch. “One.”
Copper struggled to grip Illo’s kicking feet.
“Two.”
Aguilax dived one more time. Copper batted him away, and he couldn’t fly again.
“Three.”
They ran. Elodie went for the spear. Martin bellowed and charged straight at Copper. He struck her under the wings with all the force of his body behind his shoulder. Man and animal fell to the ground. Martin threw himself over Copper’s wings.
Elodie sprang onto the trunder, the dryad spear raised high. She yelled and drove the weapon down.
Copper shuddered once, then moved no more.
The stunned silence that followed lasted five solid seconds. Then a different kind of clamor lit up the clearing.
The dryads ran from hiding, pumping their fists and belting out a victory chant. Bramble scampered down the anklesnatcher and proceeded to dance circles around the fallen trunder. His ears bounced as he thumped his furry chest as if he had slain the beast singlehandedly.
Aguilax trotted over, looking immensely proud of himself despite the many bashes he had received. Illo dug her way out of the den and stumbled to him. Aguilax leaped into her open arms, and she hugged him against her chest.
Sitting up was enough of a celebration for Podgin. He rubbed puffernut dust from his nose, beard, and hands, along with an assortment of twigs and leaves. Then he surveyed the clearing and harrumphed.
Martin lay over the trunder’s wings until he was absolutely sure she wouldn’t spring back to life. Then he untangled himself and stood. Elodie beamed up at him from her knees. She still gripped the dryad spear, lodged deep in the trunder’s side.
Martin pried Elodie’s fingers loose and pulled her up. Her arms trembled, but her smile only brightened. Martin wrapped his arms tightly around her. Elodie rested her cheek on his chest.
Neither of them spoke. Nothing needed to be said.
17. The Hardest Words
The rest of the morning kept everyone busy. General Tum and his soldiers set aside a few minutes to mourn their two fallen badgers. Then they pushed them into the empty den and scraped dirt, leaves, and sticks over the opening.
“They were brave, even if they weren’t very bright, and they deserve a much nobler burial,” said Tum. “But we haven’t got a shovel. And who knows? Maybe they were little cubs in this den years ago.”
Then Tum explained all that had happened in the dryad palace after Elodie’s escape. “King Prickle was a nuisance for a few days,” he said. “He stayed in the pantry hall and only poked his head out now and then to shout at passersby. One day, he got up and left. A squad of my soldiers saw him cross the Minnowchuck and wander north. He’s been missing ever since, though I imagine he’ll come back when we least want him to. Nevertheless, with King Prickle gone, I reinstated myself as general. Being a general gets dreadfully boring without foes to vanquish, so I was thrilled when Bramble hopped into the palace pleading for help. Without him we would have never heard of your plight.”
“Yes, he saved our lives, in his own way,” said Elodie. “I’m afraid I ruined your spear, Nettle.”
Nettle beamed. “It’s okay. General Tum gave me a new one!” And he raised it proudly.
“Stop waving it around,” cried Tum. “You’ll chop someone’s nose off!” He cuffed Nettle on the head. “Anyways. Our job here is done. We’ll be on our way, though we’ll have to find the other badgers first.”
“Thank you for coming to help us,” said Elodie. “You four are the most gallant warriors I know.”
The dryads grinned at each other like nervous schoolboys. Nettle turned as green as tea leaves.
Tum bowed low. “Perhaps we’ll meet again someday.”
With that, Tum and his band left the clearing. Nettle turned once to wave, then they were gone.
Martin, Elodie, and the others had no desire to stay near the fallen trunder any longer, so they began the long trek home. Illo and Aguilax led the way with Bramble tagging along. Podgin followed at a sneeze-free distance. Martin and Elodie came last, too weary for much conversation.
They stopped at the banks of the Minnowchuck close to noon. No one disagreed with Illo’s suggestion to rest there before crossing, so they hunkered down in a shady bend.
It was then that Elodie took Illo aside. The two girls ambled downriver until they were out of earshot. Elodie motioned them to sit over the water.
Martin felt a tight pinch in his chest. He knew what they were talking about. Aguilax and Podgin watched as well, curious.
After a bit of conversation, Illo stiffened. Her legs stopped swinging, and her face went cold, staring blankly at the river. Elodie said a few more words, her hand on Illo’s shoulder. Then she rejoined the others. Her head hung low, and Martin could tell she was trying to keep her face from puckering up.
“What was that all about?” Podgin asked.
Elodie shook her head. Martin ran his fingers through his hair. He explained to Aguilax and Podgin what had happened during the night. Aguilax grew still when Martin told them of Nayadu’s revelation and sacrifice, but Podgin’s mouth dropped open. Martin ended, toeing at a rock between his feet.
For a while, no one spoke.
“I should have known who she was,” said Podgin. “It wouldn’t have been that hard to figure out if we’d kept our eyes open.”
Aguilax said nothing. His chin sank to his paws, and his wings drooped. Elodie laced her fingers through Martin’s. They waited.
The better part of an hour passed before Illo moved. She chucked a few rocks into the river, then made her way back to the group. Everyone watched h
er, though no one seemed to know what to say. Illo strode up to Martin, her lips tight.
Martin stood. He opened his mouth, trying desperately to think of something comforting.
Illo pulled back a clenched fist. Martin flinched, but Illo’s arm went slack halfway through her swing. A sob caught in her throat, and she buried her face in her hands and cried. When she recovered enough to wipe her face with her sleeve, she turned back to Martin.
“Fella did what she knew was right. How can I hold that against you?” She said no more.
When they were all ready, they found a fordable stretch not far upstream. By the time they made it back to the cottage, having decided to go straight there instead of Podgin’s house, growling stomachs filled the silence between them.
Illo held the door open for the jaded troop to file through. Martin, Elodie, and Podgin claimed chairs around the table, trying not to look at the remaining empty seats. Aguilax got comfortable in the windowsill. Bramble dropped face-down on the table with his limbs and ears spread out like wheel spokes. Soon he was snoring like a wood file.
As she had so many times before, Illo put water on and passed out cups of soothing tea. She went through the motions, but Martin could tell her mind was far away. She retrieved an arrow from her room. Then she sat at the table, letting the steam wash over her face.
“I want to bury her,” she said after a while. Her voice was strained. “I know we can’t, but...I need to. Out back, in her garden.”
They did as Illo asked. Behind the cottage, Illo cleared away a circle of earth beside the flattened vegetable patch. Martin and the others gathered around her. She drove her arrow into the dirt.
“It’s pathetic, I know,” she said, her head bowed. “But it’s all I’ve got for now.” Her shoulders trembled.
Martin led everyone else indoors, where they finished their tea and set about cleaning up bits of debris left by the trunders, if only for the sake of getting something done.
When Illo rejoined them some time later, her eyes were red. “I understand a lot more now. Since the time she saved me from the sage viper, Fella had a heart for other people. I never asked why. To me, she was simply an older sibling. It was her job. But she was so much more than that, wasn’t she? I don’t blame her for hiding the truth all those years. Fella had to be a watcher for the woods and a sister for me. I never made it easy for her, but she just kept giving.”
Where the Woods Grow Wild Page 24
