Uncanny Tales of Crush and Pound 7
Page 6
he pointed forward. “I’m going to jump. If we’re going to do this, then we’ll have to jump together on a count of three,” he explained and hoped Boulder comprehended. With a nod, Boulder acknowledged the request.
“One . . . two . . . three!!” Crush yelled as he sprung upward, and Boulder simply let go and rolled off the side of the eagle, plummeting downward. As the eagle took the first opportunity to escape, it flapped its wings and flew off into the sky. Crush watched as Boulder fell into the deep darkness of the thick forest below. With perfect form, Crush caught the limbs of the treetop and then scaled the tree downward into the gloom to find his friend. Climbing further and further down into the darkness that shaded the forest floor, Crush found that he would have to rely more on his other abilities and senses than he had anticipated. He sniffed the air to detect the scents of the surrounding area, and hints of familiar odors wafted into his sinuses. Boulder emitted the familiar scent as of two flint rocks striking each other in friction to make a spark, and Crush was getting hints of that strong odor over the smell of the leaves. He also detected the lingering strong odor of a filthy human, and that prompted Crush to be on his guard as he continued to descend into the dark forest. A great foreboding as thick as a fog lay over the countryside, and Crush stopped for a moment to listen for movements in the brush below. He could hear nothing except the occasional chirping of frogs, and this let him know that nothing large was lurking in the vicinity.
With a little more confidence Crush reached out and grabbed a slippery vine to help steady himself for the next step downward. When he let go of the limb in his other hand, the vine moved by itself and slithered out of his grip, leaving him to fall down through the foliage. He had inadvertently latched onto a serpent of some sort, and as he fell into the darkness, only one word came to mind.
“Crap!!”
Chapter 3
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Through the Forest