by Ivory Autumn
Andrew rolled over on his belly, with his arms tucked under his chin, studying the ground in the moonlight. The ground looked alive with the rocks pulsing and moving with no aim in life except to never linger anywhere. Without warning, a rock struck him in the side of the head, so hard that it caused his head to tingle, and his vision to blur.
“Ohhh!” he growled, sitting up and throwing the beastly little rock away. “Talic, you’re going to have to share that pot.”
Talic let out a low muffled laugh as he lay with the cooking pot over his face. “No way! Two heads won’t fit in here at once. And there is no way I’m going to let you borrow it. My brains are more valuable than yours.”
“Sure they are,” Andrew retorted, envying Talic’s helmet of protection.
“They’re driving me MAD!” Gogindy let out an angry cry, grabbed one of the little rocks, and tried biting its legs with his sharp teeth. Even though the rock’s legs were hard, Gogindy managed to bite one of them. He laughed, holding the leg between his fingers. He tossed the squirming leg into his mouth, gulped it down, and burped. “Yum, yum! Not bad, not bad at all.” Highly pleased with himself, he threw the one-legged rock away in annoyance. A loud tremor rumbled as the rock hit the ground.
“What did you just do? Lancedon asked Gogindy in an accusing voice.
Gogindy trembled, and shook his head. “I’m not quite sure.”
Talic peered from underneath the pot, his eyes growing wide. “Look over there, guys.” He pointed towards the side of the canyon wall, where a mass of pop rocks broke away from a huge crumbly boulder, in a cloud of dust. The great rock shifted, away from the mountain, rolling down it and hitting the ground with a loud boom.
There was another loud thump and the earth rumbled again as another boulder broke away from the mountain. The pebbles that had given the travelers so much grief hopped away as if in fear, and an unsettling quiet hushed over the canyon.
“Run!” Gogindy cried, as more boulders broke away from the mountain, with a cracking, popping sound, hitting the earth with huge thuds, as if a giant was plucking them from the mountain and chucking the rocks at them. “RUN!”
Everyone ran to their horses and took off through the crumbling canyon. Huge boulders crashed down in front of them and behind. It was as if the very mountains wanted to bury them and crush them.
“Flags, stop!” Andrew cried, pulling the horse to a stop, just as falling boulder landed in front of them, missing them only by a few inches. Andrew swiftly steered the horse around the boulder, following behind Lancedon. Gradually they neared the boarders of the narrow canyon. Rocks tipped and fell over one another like well-placed dominos, crashing around the travelers, trying to keep them from leaving.
“We’re not going to make it out of here!” Freddie cried, grasping onto Andrew in fear. “We’re going to die!”
“No, we’re not going to die!” Andrew shouted, urging the horse forward.
The rocks above the opening of the canyon started to crumble and shower them with hard pebbles. “Yes…we…are!” Talic wailed.
“Faster, Flags, faster!” Andrew yelled. The horse lowered its head, as if it understood what Andrew meant, and galloped with all its might, zipping through the narrow opening of the canyon, with Lancedon leading the way. They made it out, just as a huge boulder crashed over the opening, filling the gap completely.
They stopped and stared at the blocked canyon pass, not believing they had actually made it out alive.
“That was close,” Talic gasped.
“Yes, it was,” Lancedon agreed.
Gogindy let out a huge gust of air and laughed. “Ha, ha. Never in my life have I almost been smashed by rocks that wanted to deliberately crush me! I will never look at an inert object the same way again. NEVER!”
“Neither will I,” Andrew said, wiping his forehead. “It just goes to show you that rocks have feelings too.”
Gogindy chuckled. “Only hard ones, to be sure.”
Talic crinkled up his nose and coughed. “Whoa, Gogindy, what’s burning? Have you been smoking one of Rhapsody’s old pipes?”
Gogindy frowned at Talic and growled. “Naturally, you’d be the first to accuse me of creating a fowl stink.”
“Don’t take it too harshly, Gogindy,” Andrew consoled. “Talic’s been father to some pretty bad smells in his time.”
“Hey,” Talic retorted. “I wasn’t accusing anyone of creating a bad smell. I just thought it smelled like someone had been smoking.”
Gogindy was not comforted. “It’s not like I’ve had a whole lot of time to smoke. Besides, it’s not healthy. It makes all our whiskers fall out. It’s not a pretty sight. I suppose less people would smoke if all their clothes fell off while doing it.”
Talic laughed. “Ha, ha that would be very funny!”
“No it would be very disturbing.” Gogindy wrinkled his nose and sniffed. “Pew there is a strange smell in the air. Oh my! Look. Over there. There’s something burning.”
They looked to where Gogindy pointed. The land was marshy, and choked with puzzle grass and cattails. Not far off they could see an oily black river, oozing under a rickety bridge, with steamy smoke rising over the water, hiding most of the bridge from view.
The smoke was thick and something behind it flashed at random, like lightning behind clouds of smoke, reflecting in the water.
“What are those misty flashes behind the smoke?” Andrew wondered.
Gogindy slid off Lancedon’s horse, and stared at the swirling smoke. “I have heard rumors that The Fallen One has awoken creatures from the ancient times. This is one reason our people are afraid to venture forth. A brave Twisker warrior told our clan of a place near our home that was once a safe haven. A place where the Twiskers used to fish, and frolic. However, he told us that our place of refuge had turned into a place of fire, and extreme danger. Of all the things our people fear the most, it is fire. For our whiskers can ignite very easily. This place was renamed Night-Light Pass. A place where dragon fireflies live above the river, eating the fish, guarding the bridge so none can pass. I did not believe this until now. The Fallen has been very crafty in keeping all peoples from venturing too far.
“Dragon fireflies,” Talic gulped. “Is there no other way to cross? Perhaps we should swim over to the other side, at a safer spot.”
Gogindy shook his head. “There is no other place to cross. Swimming is out of the question, for the water here is now cursed. Those who fall into it, will be turned into stone.”
“Stone?” Freddie murmured. “I’ve already had my fill of rocks today.”
Lancedon stared at the ominous river, the glow from the smoke and fire glinted in his eyes. “Come, let us cross. If we keep close together, we will be alright.” He drew his sword, and clucked to his horse.
They paused before the bridge, where an old sign was nailed to a wooden post that read: Beware of the Dragon Firefly.
“That is most comforting,” Freddie murmured, looking around him fearfully. But the thick smoke made it impossible for him to see anything else. The bridge looked old, too old. It was burnt in many places and most of its planks looked unsound. It creaked loudly when they started across it.
The bridge leaned uncomfortably to the right as they went, as if its beams had sunk unevenly into the ground. Through the smoke, they could see faint glimpses of the dragon fireflies, as they flitted through the smoke, darting over the water. Their bellies gave off an orange glow, as if a fire was smoldering deep within their chest. They were as big as hawks, with jagged see-through wings. Their eyes were yellow, and tough scales covered their entire body like knight’s armor.
The frightened horses let out ear-piercing whinnies, and reared up. Lancedon’s horse flared its nostrils, backing against the railing of the bridge, screaming in terror, as the dragon firefly blew flames into the air around them, and then looped around again to make a second pass. Talic, Andrew and Freddie were thrown from their horse onto the bridge. A perturbed dragon fir
efly lowered its head, and glided towards them, its yellow eyes gazing at them with smoldering wrath.
“Your bow, Ivory!” Lancedon cried. “Shoot it before it gets a second chance!”
Ivory's hands trembled as she drew back her bowstring, and aimed an arrow at the dragon firefly. It belched a river of churning fire, and smoke into the air. Sparks twirled in the air around them, like glowing rubies and orange diamonds. The flames were hot and she could feel the heat of the fire singe her arms and turn her cheeks red.
“Do it!” Lancedon shouted again.
She held her breath, and exhaled as she let the arrow loose. The arrow shot into the air with a sharp twang. The dragon firefly was so close to her that she could see the narrow slits of its iris shrink as the he arrow zipped into its open mouth and pierced its throat. It let out a shriek of pain, belching sparks into the air, careening downward. A trail of thick black smoke followed the falling creature, as it crashed onto the bridge, jerking and writhing, spitting sparks, and smoke as it died.
“You saved us!” Talic exclaimed, kicking the repulsive creature off the bridge. It sank into the river, slowly turning into stone, causing the water to bubble and boil around it.
Ivory looked at the bubbling water in revulsion and turned away. “Ugh.”
“Take that, and THAT, you stupid fire belchers,” Gogindy shrieked, launching rocks at a dragon firefly that was minding his own business, busy catching fish. It was blowing fire over the
surface of the water, causing frightening black fish to splash up. Then it speared the fish with its arrow-like tail, and toasting it with fire as it ate.
Gogindy tossed another rock at the creature, as hard as he could. The rock hit it in the belly, knocking the fish it had been eating from its mouth. The dragon firefly struggled to regain its balance, belching a huge cloud of smoke. When it had regained its balance, it eyed Gogindy with vengeance. It let out a deafening cry, calling the other dragon fireflies to its aid. Hundreds of the dragon fireflies returned its terrible screams, soaring towards the intruders with vengeance, blowing fire and smoke over the bridge.
“You fool, Gogindy!” Lancedon cried, dismounting his horse, and holding his sword high. “Fool!”
“Save me, save me, oh save, save, save me!” Gogindy howled, slinking behind Lancedon's feet, in mortal terror. “I didn't mean to! Honest!”
“I ought to throw you to them!” Lancedon shouted, ducking as dragon firefly dipped down, spitting a river of fire and smoke over them.
Lancedon fell to the ground and covered his head waiting until the flames passed. The creature dove towards him again, with its head bent low. Lancedon quickly stood, slicing the dragons head off in one clean swipe of his sword, causing a burst of sparks to spew from its open throat, like hot coals blown into the air by a great wind.
“You saved me!” Gogindy cried, jumping up and down. “You saved, saved, saved, me!” He hugged Lancedon's feet and wrapped his three tails around them in a hug.
“Get off me!” Lancedon commanded, throwing him aside. “You foolish creature.”
“I'm sorry!” Gogindy whimpered, tears forming in his eyes. “It won’t happen again.”
“Somehow I don’t believe you,” Lancedon retorted, turning to his friends who were fighting a battle of their own, as the dragon fireflies soared over their heads.
“What shall we do?” Gogindy howled, cowering at the dragon fireflies diving at them from above. “There's so many.” His ears quivered from the deafening screeches of fiery creatures.
“Stay behind me,” Lancedon ordered, ducking as the creatures swooped down on him, like living, winged, orange coals, weaving in and out through the mist and smoke.
“I’m on fire!” Freddie cried, the back of his cape igniting as a dragon firefly came at him from behind dousing him in flames. He dropped to the bridge, nearly rolling off.
A second dragon firefly glided down, blowing an even stream of flames over the entire bridge, setting it ablaze. The dry, old wood combusted into a raging inferno, as if the bridge had had been doused in oil. The ancient boards started to pop and crackle as the flames ate away at them. Dragon fireflies called to one another in low murmuring, “Meeeawwws,” fanning the flames with their powerful wings. Suffocating smoke and fire filled the air. Andrew’s eyes stung. He coughed and wheezed, choking. The smoke was so thick that he could hardly see his hand in front of his face. A dragon firefly whizzed passed Andrew, knocking Ivory against the bridge railing, with its powerful wings.
“I've got you!” Andrew cried, grasping Ivory's hand and pulling her back onto the bridge.
“T…thanks,” she murmured, brushing soot away from her face. Her eyes grew wide. She pointed behind him. “Andrew. Watch out!”
Andrew whirled around, his muscles tensing. He raised his brilliant sword, Cosmo, and sliced the oncoming dragon firefly's belly open, causing sparks to rain down over their heads. Andrew stood there for one long moment, breathing hard. The sword made him feel so powerful, that he had almost forgotten where he was. Then covering his nose with his shirt, he started down the bridge, with Ivory beside him. But the flaming bridge had become almost impassable. Lancedon and the others were nowhere in sight.
Andrew could hear the faint sound of Gogindy's mournful wails. He glanced behind him, anger, and fear gleaming in his eyes.
A dragon firefly was swooping about Gogindy's furry body, blowing flames over Gogindy’s singed whiskers.
“Help!” Gogindy cried, frantically patting down his flaming whiskers. “Oh…Hellllpppp!”
“You go, Ivory,” Andrew commanded, above the roar of the flaming bridge. “I’ll help him.”
Before Ivory could protest, he disappeared into a thick wall of smoke and flames.
~~~~
Chapter Twenty
A Bad Dream
“Andrew!” Ivory wailed, smoke and fire swirling around her. “I’m not leaving without you!” She peered over the side of the flaming bridge at the water. How she wished she could jump into it. Being turned into stone sounded much better than being burned into a pile of ashes.
When she thought she could wait no longer, Andrew appeared through the smoke, carrying Gogindy in his arms.
“Ivory, run!” Andrew shouted, tripping over the crackling boards of the bridge toward the other side.
A loud popping sound filled the air as the bridge moaned under their weight, collapsing from behind as they ran. The falling boards turned to stone the second they touched the water. Just as they neared the shore, the front part of the bridge gave way and disappeared into the water, sinking very literally like a ‘rock.”
“Jump!” Lancedon called from the shore. “Jump!”
Without waiting to ponder what would happen if they missed the shore, they jumped, leaping over the gaping water. They landed safely onto the shore, their feet just inches away from touching the water. Lancedon pulled them in closer to safety, watching as the bridge collapsed completely, disappearing beneath the water, turning into stone.
“I'm forever in your debt, Andrew,” Gogindy exhaled loudly, “a slave of yours and Lancedon's for life.”
Andrew smiled weakly. “I'm supposed to be freeing slaves---not recruiting more.”
“Well, if I can’t be your slave, then I'm your most devout follower for life.”
“Then follow us further inland,” Lancedon retorted. “Before you provoke anymore of those blasted dragons.”
Gogindy nodded. His whiskers bobbed up and down as he did. “Your word is law, oh prince. Though to be absolutely honest, I don’t think it is in a Twisker’s kind nature to provoke anyone.”
Lancedon glared at the Twisker and shook his head. “I think otherwise. Now come, you take the lead, Gogindy. I want to watch you, to make sure you don’t do anything foolish.”
“A Twisker can never be foolish.”
“You are more prideful than a peacock!”
“Me, more prideful than a peacock? How ridiculous. Besides, whiskers are far more su
perior to feathers.”
Lancedon chuckled, and moved on ahead, leading the horses further inland. “My point is proven.”
“I don’t see how that proves anything,” Gogindy protested, muttering to himself as he followed Lancedon into a shady alcove. Once there they made camp. Freddie got his flute out, and blew a wispy melody on it, like that of lonely wind chimes, and harps. Ivory flitted around, like a red haired sprite, doctoring everyone’s burns, and washing sooty faces with a rag and the water in her canteen.
Freddie was burned the worst. His shirt was scorched, and he had red patches of blisters all over his neck. Ivory worked her magic, placing a soothing herb paste on his burns until he was made as comfortable as could be expected. They all lay on the ground, sleeping, listening to the swishing of the river and the odd melodic purr of lion bugs that occasionally roared when an intruder entered their domain.
When Andrew awoke in the morning, the sun was already high in the sky. He could smell the mouth-watering aroma of food cooking. His stomach growled hungrily.
“What's cooking?” Andrew asked, getting up and watching with interest as Freddie stirred a spoon in a pot over the fire. The thing inside the pot looked horrible.
“Fish,” Freddie said. “Gogindy went fishing bright and early and brought us back the spoils.”
“Where'd he go fishing?” Andrew wondered, “In a sewer? That thing does not look like a fish. It looks like a…monster.”
“He caught it in a nearby stream. It doesn’t look all that tasty. But it’s not as bad as it looks.”
“Oh. That’s good. Because, it sure looks like cow pie.”
