(Previous)
The
ground rippled around us and I went to
my knees. Lord Snow growled and dropped
to the ground, his ears back, his eyes staring ahead as the pupil expanded. I inched away from him.
The
ground still moved. I wanted to think it
was something simple, like an earthquake.
Or maybe a bog. Yeah. This was a bog and all we had to do was back
away so we didn't sink in. The others
were retreating fast. Lord Snow and I
needed to do the same.
Except
a bog wouldn't move upward in a mound until two huge eyes stared out from the
grass and flowered covered head.
The
the mouth appeared, yards across, surprisingly white teeth
It
smiled. "Hi there! Wow! I
haven't had visitors in a long time!"
I
glanced at Lord snow. He had frozen in
position, a growl coming out like a surprised cough .
"A
-- hello?" I offered. I was used to
things attacking me. This creature -- or
at least the head of this creature -- hadn't yet.
"Hello! He blinked and the smile wavered slightly. The head tilted, a few rocks tumbling down and
flowers bending to the side. "You
aren't from around here."
"No,
I'm not," I agreed. I tried to wave Lord Snow to back up, but he ignored
me. The others didn't scream as loudly
now. "I came through by accident. We're trying to reach the gate out of
here."
"Yeah. Not the most pleasant place, is it?" he
said with a dramatic sigh. "I went
and had a look a few years ago, not long after the disaster. It was bad enough before that with all those
buildings and not a bit of grass or trees.
But . . . But it was worse afterwards.
Even if it all crumbles down and becomes ground again, it will still be
worse. Nothing can change the evil that
happened."
"I'm
Mark," I said. He was
friendly. He hadn't tried to kill us
yet. He might have answers. "And you are?"
"Bog,"
he said. "Well, that's what people
mostly yell as they flee. Sometimes they
yell 'not a bog!' but I just stick with bog."
"How
about if I call you Bob instead," I offered.
"Bog
Bob! I like it!" The creature laughed with delight and the
ground trembled. Then the creature gave
a sigh again. "I suppose you want
me to let you through to the woods."
"We
had hoped to get that way to find the magic door," I said. "We need --"
People
screamed. I spun in time to see five
wyverns sweeping down on the people behind.
They were trying to reach cover while Maggie, Lady and people with bows
and spears fought them back. I started to
run; I could protect them, right? They
were in danger and --
And
they didn't need me.
Bob
Bog leapt out of the ground and flew across the sky, his huge body turning the
world to shadow around us. I had a
heart-stopping moment when I was sure hew as going to belly flop and crush us
all.
Instead,
he swatted wyverns out of the air, sending them crashing to the ground or
splattering against the side of the hill.
Then he flipped around and dove back into the ground. A bit of shifting, a few rumbles and his head
popped back up again.
"Thanks
Bog Bob," I offered. I brushed a
little dirt out of my hair where it had fallen.
Lord
Snow simply laid down with his head on his paws. He looked rather unsettled.
"Nasty
things, those Wyverns," Bob Bob said with a snarl of dislike. "Pets of those up in the sky, and
they're not much better even if they do look human enough. They should know by now not to let the nasty
things near me."
"You
saved the others. We are grateful,"
he said. "We need to head back and
go the other way --"
"No,"
Edmond said, coming at a trot. "We
can't go that way. There's a troll
village around the hill and worse beyond.
I take it we're not going this way?" He looked at the huge head
with a shake of his head. Lord Snow
still looked stunned.
"Bog
Bob is the guardian to keep us out," I began.
"Oh
no, that's not it at all," Bog Bob answered with a shake of his head. The ground trembled again and little stone
fell all around them. "I'm sorry if
I gave you that impression. I'm not here
to keep you from going in: I'm here to keep the others from escaping out of the
forest."
Well.
I
looked at the trees in the distance.
Maybe not far enough away, in fact.
Did I see something odd moving at the edge of the light?
"What
is in there?" I asked.
"Deathstalkers,"
he replied. "They were created when
the magic went loose, but I've got them trapped."
"We
will not be going in there,"
Edmond said. He even backed up a few
steps.
"Very
smart cat, " Bog Bob replied with a slight nod to Edmond. I had the feeling Edmond didn't much like
having his attention either.
"So
there is no way through the forest," I said.
"You
might survive if you're willing to sacrifice half your people to the
deathstalkers," Bog Bob suggested.
"No. That is not an option."
"Good,"
Bog Bob said. He tilted his head
slightly to the side and watched him as though waiting for something more to be
said.
"If we can't go around one side or the
other -- then how can we get past here?"
"Finally! Someone smart enough to ask the right
question!" Bog Bob shouted. The world
trembled and I feared he was going to jump up and down and kill us all. "The rest took off running before I
could even tell them about the Deathstalkers.
You can't fly so there's only one other way. You go under."
He
began to climb out of his hole.
To Be Continued. . . .
1000 Words
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