“Can we eat the elf?” interrupted Tiny. “Please.”
“You will eat nothing, Tiny,” scolded Tokak. “I have warned you about running off. Besides, these humans have saved your life. That makes them friends and we don’t eat friends.”
“Even if they are elves?” Tiny pouted.
“Even if they are elves,” affirmed Tokak. “Besides, I am not sure she is an elf. It has been so long since I smelled one and the fire hurts my sensitive nose.”
“Are there other talkers?” Bakhai asked. “Other people who can talk to animals as I do?”
“There are,” Tokak nodded after a long pause. “It is not for me to talk of them though.”
“You mentioned tyriks,” interjected Rejji. “We heard stories about them. They are large spiders, aren’t they?”
“They resemble spiders,” agreed Tokak. “They are very nasty creatures. They eat trolls. You do not want to go where the tyriks are.”
“Where are these tyriks?” asked Mistake.
“In the jungle,” answered Tokak. “They are everywhere in the jungle. Avoid them if you wish to live.”
“But we are in the jungle now,” Mistake said, confusion evident on her face.
“Yes, you are,” nodded Tokak. “The jungle is not for humans. You are best to leave right away.”
“Is there a path that goes towards the Bone Mountains,” asked Bakhai. “We are on a quest to find the Sage of the Mountain and we believe that is where he is. Bad people await us outside the jungle. We would rather try avoiding the tyriks than return the way we came.”
Tokak squinted again at the Fakarans and after a long pause answered, “There are many trails through the jungle. Some lead the way you wish to go. I doubt you will survive the journey, but if certain death awaits you the other way, I will point one out in the morning.”
“That would be wonderful,” responded Rejji. “We are willing to take our chances in here. Perhaps you would like to join us on the journey?”
“We do not travel far from here,” Tokak replied. “We know this area well and it is our home. There are few tyriks in this end of the jungle and we like it that way. I will point you to the trail in the morning. You should get rest. You may need to run a lot tomorrow.”
Tokak grabbed Tiny by the arm and marched her out of the clearing. Unlike the pounding of the ground they heard when Tokak had come running, the two trolls moved silently.
“A lesson well learned,” sighed Rejji after the trolls had left. “I doubt we would be alive if I had killed TinyTokak. This certainly is a strange place.”
“She was so cute before she opened her mouth,” frowned Mistake. “I thought she was going to eat me.”
“She is still cute,” smiled Bakhai. “Her teeth are needed for what she eats. Funny how it looked like she barely had a mouth at first. Very interesting creatures. I should like to visit and talk more with them some day.”
“I think I will skip that trip,” chuckled Rejji. “Once is enough for me. She offers good advice though. Let us get some more sleep.”
The Fakarans settled down for the second time and drifted off to sleep. The morning was noted by a lightening of the jungle, rather than sunlight. The large trees blocked most of the sun, but it was light enough to travel safely, although everything was cast in a shadowy gloom. When the Fakarans awoke, the trolls were waiting for them. TinyTokak was munching on a small pig.
“Share that with your new friends,” instructed Tokak. “Have you no manners?”
Tiny’s sharp teeth receded from the pig and her mouth closed up to a small button. She sheepishly walked over to Rejji and held the pig out to him. Mistake came over and carved off a large section of the rump, which Tiny’s teeth had not yet reached.
“Thank you, Tiny,” smiled Mistake. “I think that is plenty for us. You enjoy the rest.”
Tiny beamed and hopped back onto the log she had been sitting on. Mistake handed the slab of meat to Bakhai and excused herself as she retreated into the jungle. Bakhai ran a couple of sticks through the meat while Rejji rekindled the fire. Tokak watched intently as the humans cooked the meat. Tiny seemed interested only in the remains of the pig she was devouring. Mistake returned and the three humans divided the meat and quickly finished their morning meal. Mistake took what was left of the slab of meat and stuck it in her sack while Bakhai and Rejji doused the fire with dirt.
Tokak led them along the small trail they had been on the night before. She was a tremendous storehouse of knowledge concerning the jungle and she pointed out plants and animals as they walked. She indicated which plants and animals were poisonous and which ones to avoid for other reasons, such as the plants that spit up streams of acid when you came near them. Tiny frolicked along, sometimes darting into the jungle, only to dart back out moments later. The little troll was a bundle of energy who almost always seemed happy and content. The small trail finally came to a slightly wider trail and Tokak stopped.
“This is as far as we go,” Tokak announced. “Follow this trail for many days. When it stops, try to pick a smaller one going in the same direction. Be wary though. This trail is wider because many creatures use it. Most of them will not be friendly to humans. The talker knows what I mean I think. Beware of the tyriks. It is a horrible way to die. The other animals will at least kill you quickly and efficiently.”
“Will we ever see you again?” asked Bakhai. “I would like to if that is permissible.”
“You are a friend now,” Tokak grinned with a smile that reached from ear to ear. “You are always welcome to visit. When you get close, we will know it.”
Without any further farewell, the trolls turned and went back up the small trail. The Fakarans walked briskly along the wide path. Droppings along the trail indicated that it was indeed used often by a variety of creatures, but whatever they were, they seemed to avoid confrontation. At one point, the Fakarans had to detour around a huge snake that had taken up residence on the trail. When high sun came, the orb was actually visible overhead. The group stopped for a rest and nibbled on the meat Tiny had given them.
They continued on for several hours until they came to a small stream crossing the path. As the pig meat had made them all thirsty, their water flasks were empty and they stopped to refill them. Mistake filled hers first and stood watching the small fish dart around in the stream. Suddenly, Bakhai yelped and dropped his flask into the stream as he swiftly withdrew his hand. His hand was bleeding in several spots.
“They bite,” scowled Bakhai. “Look at this. Must be seven bites all at once.”
Rejji quickly pulled his own flask out and capped it. He retrieved a long stick from the side of the trail and tried to move Bakhai’s flask to the edge of the stream. The school of small fish attacked the stick viscously and stripped the bark off of it in seconds.
“How are we going to cross it?” questioned Rejji. “Those fish will eat through to our bones.”
Bakhai tore a strip of cloth off of his food sack and wound it around his hand. Mistake reached into her sack and cut off a sliver of pig meat. She tossed it into the middle of the stream and it exuded an oily slick as it hit the surface. The school of fish darted to it in seconds.
“Get my flask and let’s cross quickly,” ordered Bakhai. “The meat will carry them downstream a bit, but I think they will be back for more.”
Rejji hurled his stick farther downstream and grabbed Bakhai’s flask. Together, the Fakarans dashed across the stream.
“That was quick thinking, Mistake,” Rejji said.
“I am just glad I didn’t decide to bathe in that stream,” she replied. “No wonder nobody ever leaves this place alive. There are so many things waiting to kill you.”
“Well they haven’t gotten us yet,” responded Rejji. “Let’s keep being cautious and maybe we can get through it.”
They continued along the trail, but Rejji noticed that the animals were not giving them as wide a berth as before. They seemed more curious and less fearful the longer they were on the trail.