Ran moved past her, gazing toward the path ahead. “Go ahead, sit down. Eat and take a few minutes rest. We move soon and, with your short legs, you will struggle to keep up.”
After a break during which silence reigned, Rys signaled everyone up. “Time to go. Ran, scout ahead. Lapis.” She nodded toward the wolf, who stood, stretched, and eased over to stand beside Marzi.
Ryshara gestured toward the wolf. “You will ride Lapis. We must make time so we cannot set an easy pace.” She slung her bow around her neck and over one shoulder, adjusting her quiver to accommodate it. “Let us move. The cliffs and the Silver Sea beckon.”
◆◆◆
Several hours of hard travel had passed when Lapis came to a standstill. He gave a snort and a shudder. He leaned down and shook, tumbling Marzi onto the ground.
She sat there for a moment, glancing from one member of the party to another, looking for clues as to what had just happened. Rys and Elle both seemed focused on Lapis while Ran sat staring at Marzi with merriment in his eyes and an impish grin on his face. After a few seconds, he doubled over with laughter.
Marzi stood, brushing leaves and twigs off her tunic. “What?” she demanded. “What in the name of Pangrove is so funny, and why did that stupid dog throw me off his back?”
Ran’s boisterous laugh subsided to a chuckle. “You should take care how you speak. Stupid dog, indeed! You would do well not to insult him. Trust me, you need him more than he needs you.” He shrugged before continuing. “And the reason for the laughter? Well, he informed us that he was tired of carrying around the little rat.”
Elle and Rys burst out laughing. They each took a drink of water. Ryshara nodded toward Ran. “I guess that means that it is your turn.” She smiled and turned south, resuming their march.
Marzi stood staring, a little embarrassed at her outbreak but also annoyed at being treated like a child. Her indignation grew by bounds as Ran took two long strides, lifted her onto his shoulders, and tilted his head upward as he spoke. “Come, little rat.”
◆◆◆
As the sun made its transit into the western sky and shadows began to lengthen, the party emerged from the heavy timber and entered the more tightly packed brush. Rys ranged out ahead while Elle remained close to Ran and Marzi. After about an hour of traveling through the heavy bushes, they broke into a small clearing. Ran went down on both knees, allowing Marzi to hop off.
Ryshara glanced around the clearing, removed her bow and set it against a small bush, then tossed her quiver onto the ground. Elle leaned on her staff for a moment before kneeling.
Marzi looked at the three and then at Lapis. “I need to go, you know….” She pointed toward the bushes. Ran snickered and turned away.
Rys nodded. “Make it quick, please.”
As the Azyrean finished her business, she straightened her tunic and prepared to return to the group. She could hear the crashing of the waves, the feel and scent of salt and seaweed was heavy in the air. They were close to the cliffs. The wind coursed over the top of the brush, bending it. But the birds and insects were silent. This all had the ring of familiarity. She was just about to break out of the bushes when she heard a cacophony of voices from the clearing.
A lone, unfamiliar voice, floated in. “Please do not labor under the misconception that you can reach your weapons.”
Marzi peeked out from the bushes and saw six elves surround Rys, Elle, and Ran. Two of the elves held spears on Lapis, who watched them without moving. How did they get a jump on Lapis? She understood how one group of elves might sneak up on another, but getting close without a wolf detecting them, that took some skill.
The four elves confronting her companions held short bows, with arrows drawn. One of the females, apparently the leader, nodded toward them. “Get up. Slowly. It would give me no pleasure to kill you, but I assure you that I would not hesitate.”
Marzi stood frozen behind the brush. Should she also surrender? Or maybe she could help them escape. She watched as the strange elves led Rys and the others toward the sound of the ocean. One of the group picked up Ryshara’s bow, Elle’s staff, and Ran’s sword.
The Azyrean followed the party remaining far enough behind so that they wouldn’t hear her. The wind coming off the ocean blew into her face, assuring her that the party would not catch her scent, if they were able to do things like that.
After about five minutes of walking, Marzi came to the edge of the brush. A stretch of grass about twenty meters wide remained between her and the edge of the cliff. The party ahead of her detoured toward the left and down a narrow path. Marzi waited until they were out of sight before scurrying over to the place where they had descended.
The trail was a narrow one, and steep. She listened for sounds, but the whistling of the wind and crashing surf obscured everything. The sun, rapidly descending to the right, would be gone within the half hour. Her dilemma—go now or wait until sunset. She decided to go right away. If they had guards on the path, no doubt they would remain after dark. At least by going down immediately, she had some hope of seeing where her friends were taken, not to mention the danger of descending in the dark.
About halfway to the bottom, the trail switched back and descended to the right. The angle of descent eased. Marzi continued, picking her steps carefully. She paused every few meters to listen, although the wind made that difficult. As she approached the bottom of the cliff, she could see a series of entrances to what looked like caves. Her three companions were pushed into the entrance on the right side. As far as Marzi could see, there were no guards posted outside. Within the cave would likely be another story.
She gingerly picked her way the last few meters to the bottom and crept to the far side of the opening. Huddling up against the side of the cliff, she strained her ears for any bit of sound from inside. She thought that she caught a word here and there but couldn’t be sure.
As the last of daylight faded, Marzi slouched down against the cliff and took out a strip of dried hare. She chewed and swallowed it, followed with a gulp of water. She decided to wait for a while and then try to enter by stealth, fully aware that she had no experience at such endeavors.
As the night deepened, she watched the faint flickering of torches light up the cave entrance. After what seemed like an eternity, she decided that it was either now or never. The time had come, although she hadn’t a clue as to what she would actually do.
She stood and stretched, stiff from sitting crouched for so long. She crept to the entrance and peered in as best she could. Still, the only things visible were flickering reflections on the wall. Taking a deep breath, she eased forward about a meter and stopped again. She heard muted voices. Glancing back toward the ocean, she moved forward, coming to a turn in the passage. Peeking around, she saw her three friends sitting, backs to a wall, chewing on what looked like dried meat. Lapis lay next to Rys, head on his paws.
Across the cave sat a group of about twenty elves, eating and talking quietly. As Marzi watched, one of them, an older female, stood and beckoned in her direction. “So, did you finally decide to join us, little one? Come in, please.”
Chapter 60: Tovi
The standoff dragged on for what seemed to Tovi like an eternity. The monstrous beast stood, glaring alternately at him and Klunk, appearing to be in no hurry to draw the showdown to a close.
But with each passing moment, Tovi’s paralyzing fear diminished slightly. If the dog had wanted to kill them, it would have done so. Still, there was no warmth or mercy in its eyes. “What do we do now?”
“Maybe I can fight it and win while you hold the others in place with the crystal.” Klunk’s words carried no enthusiasm.
Tovi was certain he saw a note of amusement in the beast’s eyes. He gazed up at the dog, who stood easily twice as tall as the Azyrean. “I don’t know, Klunk. He’s big and, well….”
At that moment, the animal turned and walked over to Klunk’s pack, sniffing around it.
Tovi saw a glimmer of
hope. “Maybe it’s hungry. You should give him the hares. Maybe he’ll go away.”
Klunk’s laugh carried no mirth. “If it wanted the hares, it could take them with no trouble.”
The dog stared at the two, then, once again, sniffed Klunk’s pack. They stood motionless and gazed at the curious but terrifying sight that was the huge rock dog.
The beast continued to repeat the cycle—sniff the pack and then stare at the two. After three times, it sat on its haunches next to the pack. The look of cruel amusement seemed a permanent feature of its face.
“It wants something. It’s just standing there waiting.” Tovi nudged Klunk.
Without speaking, the ogre reached over and retrieved a single wrapped hare from his pack. He opened the leaves and set the carcass down in front of the dog and then moved back to Tovi’s side.
The animal lowered its head and sniffed the hare but didn’t touch it. Instead, it sniffed the pack again and stared back at the two.
Klunk removed the remainder of the hares and set them out. “This one must be really hungry.” He moved again to Tovi’s side.
This time, the dog stood and approached Tovi, sniffing at the crystal, which he held at his side.
Tovi raised the shard out toward the dog, who sniffed it again and sat down in front of the two.
Klunk offered an idea, “Maybe it wants you to put the crystal away. The other dogs cannot move with it out like that.”
This seemed a bad idea to Tovi. “But if I do, they might all jump on us and kill us right away.”
Klunk laughed again, this time with more spirit. “If it wanted to kill us, we would be dead already. Try putting it away.”
Tovi pulled the crystal away from the dog and put it in his pocket.
Immediately, the large animal stood and turned to the rest of the pack, uttering a low growl. Each of the six animals gave a single shudder and then turned toward the group of cooked hares on the ground. The monstrous beast in front of them growled again. Each of the animals crept over and picked up a cooked hare and slunk away into the brush, leaving the ground bare where the food had been.
Tovi was not completely baffled. All of that, the actions of the enormous dog, had resulted in the other dogs getting the food. And now the huge one sat staring at the two of them.
“I guess that’s a good thing. The others went back into the bushes.” Tovi hung on to the small amount of hope he’d had.
Klunk said nothing. Instead, he eased closer to the large dog and sat down in front of it. And so, the two sat, face-to-face, in silence. The flickering firelight created an otherworldly feel that left Tovi speechless. After a moment, Klunk rose, went over to his pack, and retrieved his small food pouch. Returning to the large animal, he unwrapped the package and held out a small strip of dried hare meat.
The huge dog sniffed at the meat and then took it into his mouth, chewing it slowly, his eyes never leaving Klunk.
At that moment, much to the surprise of the Azyrean, Klik emerged from the pack where he had been hiding. He scampered over and perched on his hind legs in front of the beast.
The large animal lowered his head, inspected the squirrel, and then licked it on the head, turning his attention back to Klunk.
Tovi was dumbfounded. He would have bet everything he had on the big dog simply eating the squirrel. After all, the small rodent presented itself and was little more than a mouthful.
Klunk extended his arm so that his hand was directly in the dog’s face. The animal sniffed and then licked it. And it was then that the most amazing thing of all took place. The monstrous rock dog stood, walked over next to Klunk’s pad, and laid down, its head on its paws, and closed its eyes.
Tovi stared in disbelief. “Klunk. Am I right? Did you just get your pet?”
Klunk’s voice came out distant and distracted. “No. This beast is not my pet. But I think we are connected in some way.” He eased over and lowered himself onto the pad. He gently patted the animal’s head. “Sleep, Tovi. Tomorrow will be a long day back to the kraal and it will take me that long to figure out what to say about all this.”
Chapter 61: Tovi
As usual, Tovi struggled to keep up. Klunk and his newfound friend plowed ahead, the dog easily standing almost chest-high to the ogre. The pair cut an imposing sight. “Do ogres name their pets?”
“He is not my pet. I have no right to name him.” They had figured out before leaving this morning that the beast was indeed a male. “Besides, he probably has a name in his own language. He might take offense if I go against that.”
Tovi thought that didn’t make sense. After all, Klunk would ultimately have to call the animal something—not just dog or beast. An idea flashed across his mind and slipped off his tongue before he could stop. “Maybe you should ask him his name.”
Klunk chuckled, but it came out a reserved, almost nervous chuckle. “I do not know. So many things I do not know right now.”
Tovi understood that. He had long since lost track of everything he didn’t understand about his current situation. He didn’t even know how he got here in the first place. He’d thought it was just a weird accident, but the voice told him it wasn’t. And Klunk, this huge, hulking beast of an ogre, had befriended him rather than kill him. And the kraal had taken him in. And now here he was, walking along behind this giant ogre and huge rock dog, not having the slightest idea what it was all about.
The ogre’s voice brought him out of his thoughts. “We are going to have to tell the chief about the crystal.”
Tovi trotted ahead to get closer to them. “Why? You didn’t use it to tame the dog.”
“I did not tame the rock dog. But we still have to tell the chief. We cannot keep this a secret.”
After a couple of hours of hard trekking, Klunk led the way into an oasis. “We rest here. Drink and eat.” He dropped his pack and walked over to fill his skin at the small pond. The dog moved to Klunk’s side and drank.
Tovi opened his pack and took out his food pouch. He had four strips of meat left, along with some nuts and carods. After a moment’s consideration, he took the meat over to Klunk. “Here, this is for the dog. Klik will get some nuts and I’ll eat the carods. You want some?”
The ogre smiled. “Thank you. I have a few nuts and carods. I will be fine. But meat for the dog is good.” He accepted the strips. Sitting back against a tree trunk, Klunk gazed at the magnificent animal lapping water from the pond. When it came to his side, the ogre offered the strips of meat, of which it took two, leaving the other two in Klunk’s hand.
Tovi shook his head. Things got weirder with every passing hour.
Klunk rested his hand on the dog’s back as it lay down beside him. “And so, what is your name? By what do I call you?”
The animal glanced up at the ogre and offered a low growl.
Klunk burst out laughing. “Ah, so you want to be called Growl?”
The dog growled again and lowered his head onto his paws.
The ogre shrugged. “Then Growl it is.”
Chapter 62: Tovi
The party returned to the kraal as the sun bade goodbye on the third day. As they strode through the gate that marked the village entrance, the stares of the young male ogres shifted dramatically from Klunk to Growl, their eyes wide. But what Tovi found most interesting was the behavior of the pets sitting beside the boys. The dogs cowered and backed away, their heads low and tails tucked between their legs. They moved around behind their masters and lay down.
Tovi chuckled, keeping his voice low. “I guess you were right when you said you’d get a pet that would put theirs to shame. Awsie.”
Klunk didn’t respond but rather kept moving toward his hut. Tovi glanced up at him and then at the young ogres who watched their every move. This was not the reaction he’d expected from his friend. He had hoped for some boasting or maybe a little show of pride. Instead, Klunk plodded on toward his home, almost as if he were embarrassed.
They mounted the stoop to the hut and Klunk
paused to look down at Growl. “Maybe better not to take him inside. I will tell Mamaw and she can come out.” He pulled the door covering aside and entered. Tovi remained outside with the beast, who had lain down, head on its paws.
A moment later, Klunk and his mother emerged. The look on her face said everything. Her eyes widened, and her hand went to her chest as she appeared to catch her breath. “Og, this is… I have never seen….” Her stare shifted between her son and the animal.
“His name is Growl. He comes from the mountains in the sun.”
“You do not have him leashed?” The tone of the words reflected her confusion.
“It is safe. He is safe.” Klunk knelt on one knee and stroked the dog’s head. “But I will need to change my tasks. We will require much more meat than I can get with the hares.”
Mamaw nodded without speaking, all the while watching Growl.
Tovi noticed that Klunk had not once referred to the animal as his pet. As he gazed at the ogre, he noticed that Klunk appeared to be worried. His brow seemed permanently furrowed, and he rarely smiled.
His mother’s voice broke the uncomfortable silence. “Your meal will be ready soon.” She turned and went into the hut.
Klunk sat on the stoop, his hand on Growl’s head. Neither made a sound or moved.
Tovi dropped down on the other side of the dog. “You don’t seem happy. You finally got your pet. You should be glad.”
The ogre glanced at Tovi, then down at Growl, and finally out into the dying light of day. “I told you already he is not my pet. He does not belong to me. I did not choose him. He chose me. If anything, maybe I belong to him.” He laughed but it carried no joy.
“Still, he is a good, well, whatever you call him.” Tovi stopped himself from using the word pet.
When Klunk laughed this time, there was a note of warmth in it. “Yes. That is true. He is, I do not know how to say, wonderful. But this is not because of anything I did. He was wonderful before he met me. And I am lucky to have him with me. I know that.”
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