by Sam Ferguson
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Ziegler asked.
Jason nodded. “Looks like it opens up just twenty feet from here. It’d be a bit of a squeeze, but not impossible.”
Griff came rushing back out, knocking Jason onto his rump, who had to struggle to keep the torch from falling. The animal ran up to Jonathan and gently took his pant leg in his teeth and pulled Jonathan toward the tunnel.
“I think we’re going in,” Jonathan said. It was indeed a tight fit. Jonathan had to slide his backpack and bow in front of him, but he could crawl through the tunnel. After about twenty feet, the tunnel spilled into a larger chamber. Once Ziegler and Jason came through, the light of the torch illuminated a grand area roughly forty feet wide and fifty feet long. The ceiling was well overhead and could easily accommodate all of them while they stood erect. At both ends of the chamber were several tunnels.
Ziegler quickly pointed to one. “That one seems to be going the most northerly direction from here. Let’s follow that one.”
“What made these tunnels?” Jason asked.
Ziegler shrugged. “Could be our elven friends, but I doubt it. The tunnels lack flair and pomp. More importantly, they lack any sign of security or defenses. I doubt any dwarves did it either, for the tunnel walls aren’t smoothed flat. Whatever made the tunnels, its either dead, or likely enough will be dead once Griff sniffs it out.”
As if in approval of Ziegler’s words, Griff turned and thumped its tail while it flicked its tongue in the air.
The group made their way to the tunnel and followed it through the mountain. Unlike the tunnels of the dwarves, this one didn’t descend deeper into the earth. Rather, it stayed flat, running smoothly through the mountain. It curved in a few places, but only slightly. The group saw no sign of life anywhere along the tunnel until it opened up into another large chamber. Then they saw strange huts built with wooden poles and ragged animal hides.
“Should I put the torch out?” Jason asked.
Ziegler shook his head. “No, if something is in here, we will need the light. Besides, look at Griff.”
Jonathan glanced to the animal and noted that it was still happily trotting along and didn’t appear to be alarmed by the discovery. Jonathan peeled off from the group and walked to the side where one of the smaller huts stood. He peeked inside and saw nothing.
“It’s empty,” he told the others.
Jason went to a second hut, and then a third, and then a fourth. “I don’t think anyone has been here for ages,” he said.
“Let’s see if there is anything useful we can take,” Ziegler said, but unfortunately they found nothing of use. There had been a coil of rope, but it fell to pieces in Jason’s hands when he picked it up. The animal hides were stiff and brittle, and the wooden poles were terribly frail with age.
The group moved along, finding a very impatient Griff waiting for them at the other end of the chamber. They walked for miles before coming to an incline in the tunnel that deposited them outside on the northern face of the mountain. All of them hesitated, staring up at the skies before leaving the safety of the cave.
“Do you think they’re still on the other side of the mountain?” Jason asked.
“Let’s hope so,” Ziegler replied. “Keep your eyes peeled for possible cover as we go. If Griff senses the gryphons before we do, then we run like mad.”
“Agreed,” Jason said.
Jonathan didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure he would run away with them. So far, Griff had never let them down. He was fierce, but also incredibly loyal, with an intelligence closer to a human’s than most other animals Jonathan knew. If anything, Jonathan would likely stand with Griff and fight. Fortunately, they didn’t see another gryphon. They descended the northern face of the mountain and trekked deep into the forest before making camp for the night.
Griff brought them a fresh deer, and they roasted what they wanted over a fire before the last of the daylight disappeared. Ziegler ate off to the side, strangely quiet and sitting with his back facing Jonathan and Jason. At one point, Griff even stopped eating to go and nuzzle Ziegler. The large man hardly noticed the animal as he continued to stare out to the darkening trees.
“What’s eating him?” Jonathan asked.
“Same thing as always,” Jason replied. “He blames himself for the others,” he said. “You know the tattoos he has?”
Jonathan nodded. “Yeah.”
“He blames himself for their deaths. He can put it out of his mind most times, but whenever someone else is lost, or if there is a close call where he thinks there isn’t a way out, he can’t help but think about it. It eats him up.”
“But that’s not fair. That isn’t his fault.”
Jason shrugged. “Of all the captains of the Ghosts of the Murkle Quags, he is the only one who has lived. The only survivor among a group of elite soldiers known for having the shortest life span during the war with the trolls. That isn’t something that leaves you when the war stops. It stays with you, like how a sunburn worsens even when you go inside. Except, sunburns heal. This kind of wound…” Jason let his words trail off and took another bite of food.
“That’s why you want to go home, isn’t it?” Jonathan asked. “It still hurts.”
Jason nodded. “I want to start my family and live my life the best I can, before I get burned the way he is. Before it’s too late.”
Jonathan nodded and started to take a bite, but then he stopped short and set his food down. “You are one of the bravest people I know,” Jonathan said.
“I’m no hero,” Jason said with a shake of his head. “Look at you, you came and saved me from the trolls. You’re the big brother now.”
Jonathan shook his head. “No, I’m not. I was scared, but I wasn’t burned like that. I wasn’t even burned like that this time, but you are. Yet you are risking your entire future for a friend. That’s more than what I did. I went out for my brother, but you are going after a friend, even though you know that simply surviving isn’t the only concern of war. Even knowing that you might have your soul burned by the hardship and the loss, you still came. You will always be my big brother.” Jason offered one of his boyish grins, but Jonathan could see the sadness behind his brother’s eyes.
“What about Miranda?” Jason asked, quickly changing the subject. “Will you go after her when this is over?”
Jonathan nodded. “I will,” he said. “Though, it feels weird. It’s like she’s gone.”
“She is gone, Reshem took her, remember?” Jason said.
“No, like she is a lot farther away than that. I don’t know how to explain it. Even when she went back to Lehemat I never felt like we were this far apart.” Jonathan sighed and looked out to Ziegler. “Think he will ever be okay?”
Jason shook his head. “He’s not just the only captain to survive, but if Raven is dead, he will be the only Ghost of the Quags to still be alive. I don’t think that’s something someone can get over in a lifetime.” Jason tossed the rest of his meat to Griff and watched the animal catch the morsel out of the air. “Let’s get some sleep.”
Jonathan still had quite a bit of meat to finish, but Jason made himself comfortable and turned away. The young archer wanted to apologize for pushing the subject. He hadn’t meant to make his brother feel uncomfortable. As the light faded away, he let the darkness and the silence envelope him while he finished his meal. Shortly thereafter he fluffed his backpack into a pillow as best he could and then tried to sleep. Griff came over to him and curled up against his back. The large lizard’s rhythmic breathing helped to ease Jonathan’s thoughts until he found his eye lids too heavy to keep open.
He slept peacefully and deeply, waking only when Jason kicked him softly to rouse him the next morning.
“Ziegler has seen movement,” Jason said softly. “Get up as quietly as you can and let’s get ready to move quickly.”
Jonathan nodded, yawned and stretched, and then pulled his backpack on and stood up. Up rubb
ed his eyes and looked to the trees and then froze. A great cat was staring back at him from the trees. Its face was easily as large as a man’s, if not bigger. Gray tufts of fur protruded out from the jaw and orange and brown stripes covered the rest of its head. Its ears twitched to the side, but its green eyes remained fixed on Jonathan. The young archer stood extremely still, afraid to make the slightest sound. He had heard of forest cats before, but never had he seen one before. They were rumored to be able to jump more than twenty feet from a standstill, and it was much close to Jonathan than that.
Jonathan’s fear turned to curiosity when the cat stepped out from behind the large oak tree. It didn’t walk upon all fours as the cats Jonathan had heard about from Pa’s tales of ravaged sheep decades ago. This one walked upright, as a man, and had clothes and weapons too.
CHAPTER 10
“Don’t move, don’t even make a sound,” Ziegler said as he approached Jonathan from the side. “It’s a Kottri.”
The cat-man cocked its head to the side as its eyes scanned over Jonathan.
“If you see one, then there are many more nearby, waiting in the forest,” Ziegler explained. “Don’t provoke it.”
The Kottri stepped closer and pointed at Jonathan. “You are like the other one,” he said in a strange accent. “You are here for him, aren’t you?”
Ziegler pressed Jonathan back with the flat of his hand and stepped between the young archer and the Kottri. “Have you seen another like us?” he asked. “An older man, thin, with gray hair.”
The Kottri nodded. “I have seen this man. He passed through here long ago.”
“Did he go north?” Ziegler asked.
The Kottri made a clicking noise with its tongue and seven more cat-creatures emerged from the woods. Each of them had bows drawn and pointed at the group. Griff was quick to put himself between Jonathan and the bulk of the Kottri warriors, but the animal didn’t pounce. It snarled its warning and thumped its tail.
“Do you know how to calm it down?” Ziegler asked.
Jonathan shook his head.
Several Kottri hissed at the cavedog.
“Please, don’t hurt him, he’s my friend,” Jonathan pleaded. “Put your bows away, and he will stop growling.” Jonathan knelt down beside Griff and petted the beast along the neck. “Shh, calm down, Griff.”
The Kottri watched the display for a few moments, and then put their weapons down upon the first cat-man’s signal. No sooner had they done so, than Griff closed his mouth and swished his tail back and forth.
“There, all better,” Jonathan said. “He’s very protective, but he won’t hurt friends.”
“Friends?” the first Kottri repeated. “We are not friends. The Kottri have no friends.”
“Why not?” Jonathan asked. “Everyone needs friends. We don’t mean any of you any harm.”
The cat-man raised its right hand and licked at its wrist. “There are no friends for the Kottri, except other Kottri. Humans, elves, they are all enemies. Not friends.”
“We mean no harm,” Ziegler said quickly. “We intend only to pass through to the north, after our friend. Remember, the old man with the gray hair? We are looking for him. He has been missing a long time.”
“He is dead,” the Kottri leader said. “Killed by the elves who live in the tower in the north.”
Ziegler balked and shook his head. “No, my friend would not be easy to kill. He has magic. It would take much to slay him.”
“He is dead,” the Kottri said. “All who go north are killed.” The cat-man rubbed its wrist over its face and then hissed as it looked to the north. “Beyond our village there are monsters made of stone. Any who get past those creatures are killed by the savage animals, the ones who have been turned mad by the elves’ magic. There are none who could survive.”
“We will,” Jonathan said determinedly. “We will not only survive, but we will kill the elves who live in the tower. We are going to rescue our friend, and we will put down any who stand in our way.”
“Is this true?” the cat-man asked.
Ziegler nodded. “It is.”
“Then you are all fools,” the cat-man said. “Kottri warriors cannot survive in the north, a fragile human would fare no better. You will be dead before you ever see the tower.”
“Then let us be off,” Ziegler said. “We’ll go north. If you are wrong, then we will kill our mutual enemy. If you are right, then you will be free of our presence for good.”
The Kottri stood there for a long while, studying the three men and the cavedog at Jonathan’s feet. Then, he shook his head. The other warriors brought their bows back up. Griff tensed and began to growl again.
“What is the meaning of this?” Ziegler asked.
“If I could believe you, then maybe I would let you go, but three humans cannot defeat those who live in the tower.”
“But you said they were your enemy,” Jonathan put in. “Let us go and fight them. What difference does it make to you?”
“After the old man passed through,” the cat-man started, “I was approached by some of the elves that live in the tower. They took my wife. They told me they would give her back in one year, as long as I never let another invader through my lands.”
Ziegler shook his head and put his hands up. “You see, that only means that the elves are scared. If they were strong, they wouldn’t kidnap your wife, they would have attacked your whole village.”
The cat-man shook his head. “No, I can’t risk my Teliah. You trespassers must die.”
“We could turn back,” Jason said quickly.
“Lies,” the cat-man snarled. “You would abuse our mercy only to find another way to the tower in the north. No. You will die here, and we shall eat your flesh.”
“Wait, wait just one moment,” Ziegler said as he pressed his hands into the air. “What if we promised to give you our weapons? Would that convince you to let us go?”
“Your weapons?” the cat-man replied.
Ziegler nodded. “We could give you our swords. Just let us take one bow and one knife so we can hunt along our way to the south. We’ll depart the forest in peace. What do you say?”
The leader of the Kottri looked to the others, then back to Ziegler.
“You would forsake your friend so easily?”
“Like you said,” Ziegler started with a shrug, “no one lives if they go north. If the elves took your wife after he went north, then he is likely dead.”
“I am getting married soon,” Jason put in. “Just let me return back to my fiancée.”
Ziegler then pointed to Jonathan. “And this one is only a boy, still a long time away from even reaching his twentieth year. Show mercy.”
“You will tell others,” the cat-man reasoned. “You will come back with more humans.”
“Why?” Ziegler asked as he spun around to address all of the Kottri. “What should I do that for? There is nothing to be gained from it. My friend is dead. Let me return home and tell his family. Let us go in peace, and we shall leave you in peace.”
The Kottri leader snarled and the others put down their bows.
“Give us your weapons, and give us your food.”
“Our food?” Ziegler asked.
The Kottri nodded. “Keep your water, but give us your backpacks and supplies.”
“Why would you want those?” Ziegler asked.
“It will hasten your exit if you are not supplied well enough to travel around us to the north. If you try to hunt near our village, we will find you.”
“If it will buy your trust, then I will give you our food as well,” Ziegler said with a defeated look on his face. “Then, please let us go now, so we may find food before night falls as we journey south.”
The Kottri nodded. “Take your weapons off, slowly. No tricks, or you will die a most agonizing death, and we will eat you raw.”
Ziegler glanced to Jonathan, then back to the leader. “Fair enough.”
The large man slowly unlatched his swor
d belt. He then took Jason’s sword and piled their knives on the ground as well. He then removed the backpacks from the others and placed them into a pile at their feet. “I can take the water?” Ziegler asked as he pointed to a bag on the ground.
The Kottri nodded.
Ziegler bent down and pulled a water skin out of the backpack. He lifted it up to Jonathan, and the young archer took it in hand. Ziegler then found the other two and likewise handed them to Jonathan. He then took the knives and dropped them all into one backpack.
“Now give the supplies to Fernak,” the leader said, indicating a large black and gray striped Kottri warrior.
Ziegler nodded and scooped up all the supplies into his arms. The other Kottri warriors put their bows away, but watched Ziegler carefully. The large man kept his head down as he walked to the group of warriors with the weapons and bags in his arms. The swords were balanced on top of the backpacks, presumably so that Ziegler would not have to touch the weapons.
“Here you are,” Ziegler said in a quiet voice as he offered the items to the large Kottri warrior. “Take these, and we shall go in peace.”
The Kottri warrior took the items, quick to grab the swords first. Ziegler then let out a shout.
“NOW!”
The warrior lashed out quick as a snake and jabbed two fingers in the Kottri warrior’s eyes. He then pounced to the right and pulled a knife from a second Kottri’s belt and stabbed the cat in the abdomen before yanking the blade upward, spilling the Kottri’s guts out onto the ground. Ziegler then spun back around and jammed the bloody knife into a third Kottri’s neck.
By this time, Jonathan had dropped the waterskins and fired an arrow, slaying a Kottri that was running toward Ziegler’s back with a pair of wickedly curved knives in hand. Jason picked up the waterskins and used them like flails, swinging them by the straps and crashing down on a Kottri’s head and neck. The creature fell to the ground, groaning and crying out in pain.
The Kottri leader lunged toward Jonathan then, leaping gracefully through the air, but the young archer was ready for him. He fired an arrow that sank deep into the leader’s chest and then stepped out of the way to let the cat-man crash to the ground. He then readied another arrow and fired upon the Kottri furthest to the left. At the same time, Griff took down the sixth Kottri warrior. Ziegler moved like a ghost, seeming to float over the ground as he advanced on the first Kottri, who was still grabbing at his eyes and snarling. The warrior exposed his neck to Ziegler, which made him a very easy target for the experienced captain.
