Dormia (28 page)

"What kind of footprints are those?" asked Alfonso.

"No idea," said Resuza. "And I hope never to find out." She sniffed the air. "Smoke," she said. "There is a fire nearby."

"It's coming from over there," said Hill as he pointed off into the distance. "It looks like there's some kind of house by those evergreen bushes."

Everyone looked toward the spot where Hill was pointing. There, nestled amid a small grove of evergreen bushes, was a house built entirely of stone except for a bright-red front door, which was made of wood. The structure was just one story high, although at the rear of the house stood a narrow, extremely tall stone tower. The tower looked so thin and tall that it seemed as if a wind or even a breeze might topple it.

"I wonder who lives there," said Alfonso. "Should we go knock?"

Before anyone could answer this question, however, a rumbling noise came from inside the coffin. The coffin's door swung open and Spack poked her head out and looked around. "Well, well, look at those trees. If I didn't know better, I would say we've arrived at Straszydlo Forest."

"That's exactly where we are," said Hill. "And something tells me that it's not wise to stay near these woods at night."

"Why not?" asked Alfonso.

"It just seems like a bad idea," said Hill somewhat testily. He seemed unusually uneasy and this, in turn, put Alfonso and Bilblox on edge. "I can't quite put my finger on it," mumbled Hill. "But these woods seem—"

"Haunted," finished Spack.

"Haunted by what?" asked Alfonso.

"Your guess is as good as mine," replied Spack with a yawn. "But those woods are clearly..." This sentence tapered off into a snore. Once again, Spack was sleeping.

"Well," said Hill slowly, "let's not get too close. Evening is upon us..." A lonely howl rose from the forest.

"City folk often say that nature is haunted," said Resuza. "Maybe they're just not used to the fresh air."

"Maybe," said Hill. "But all the same, let's not try the woods now. Perhaps someone is home at that little house. We could all use some sleep under a roof."

Hill looked at Resuza. She had a concerned expression on her face. He asked her what was wrong.

"I think someone ought to stay outside tonight and keep an eye on things. Just to make sure," she said. She looked at Alfonso. "It's probably nothing," she continued. "But over the last day, I've had this strange sensation, as if I'm being watched. Of course, I've never seen anyone, but..."

"I'll stay outside," said Alfonso.

"Forget about it," said Hill. "We need to keep you and the bloom hidden."

"I'd do it," said Bilblox, "but I can barely see a thing."

"Let me do it," said Resuza. "I'm accustomed to living outside and, after all, you chaps are paying me for my services."

"I don't know...," began Alfonso.

"Don't worry, yer girlfriend will be fine," said Bilblox teasingly.

"Much obliged for your concern," said Resuza with a smile at Alfonso. "It's sweet of you—it really is—but I'll be fine."

"Okay," said Hill. "But be careful."

Resuza nodded, smiled at the group, and walked off into the murky twilight.

T
HEY APPROACHED
the stone house. Hill walked up to the red door and rapped his knuckles on it. There was no reply. He tried again, this time using his entire fist to pound on the wood. Moments later, the door swung open, and a frail, gray-haired woman in a dark red cloak appeared in front of them. She leaned heavily on a gnarled piece of wood that she used as a cane. Her arms were thin, bony, and covered with a thicket of white hairs. She had a long, angular, and sad-looking face, and her eyes looked oddly red.

"Why do strangers trouble me as night draws near?" asked the woman in a scratchy voice.

"Good evening, madam," said Hill with a slight bow. "We
are gentle travelers, in search of food and shelter. We can pay, of course."

"Why would I want to help you?" asked the woman. Her voice creaked like an unoiled hinge. "'Tis strange indeed to be wandering around these woods. What is your business?"

"Our business is a private affair," replied Hill with a smile. "But do not worry—we are only passing through. Tomorrow, we intend to cross this forest."

The old woman cackled heartily.

"Well," she said, "in that case, I'll never deny a man his last meal. And I suppose that we can provide some shelter as well. Come follow me. My name is Rosalina and I will introduce you to the other members of our household. You can let your huskies roam outside. They'll be scared enough of the forest not to wander too far."

Hill, Alfonso, and Bilblox—who was carrying the coffin that contained both Spack and the Dormian bloom—followed Rosalina down a long, drafty hallway and into a large kitchen that smelled of freshly cut herbs and chicken broth. The smell was coming from a cast-iron pot that hung above a crackling fireplace. The walls of the kitchen were lined with shelves containing jars of pickled vegetables and fruit. Lying on the floor were several wooden crates filled with all manner of vegetables, including carrots, beans, and cabbage. The ceiling was lined with long wooden rafters from which hung burlap bags filled with dried and salted meats. In the center of the room was an old wooden table with benches, and on one of these benches sat a woman wearing a dark blue cloak who looked identical to Rosalina.

"The woman sitting there is my twin sister, Masha," explained Rosalina. "And the adorable little kitty sitting by the fireplace is our cat, Sam."

They turned their attention toward a low-slung chair perched directly in front of the fireplace, where the fattest cat that any of them had ever seen was sitting. It had to weigh at least a hundred pounds. Sam was so heavy that it was doubtful that he could, even in the most extreme of circumstances, use his small legs to move himself. His head rested limply on a half-eaten loaf of bread.

"These foolish travelers need a place to sleep and I have invited them to stay for the night," explained Rosalina. "Sam, do you think that my sister will object?"

Alfonso, Hill, and Bilblox glanced at the cat, as if expecting him to reply. He looked up, yawned, and began eating the loaf of bread.

Masha cleared her throat and declared, "Sam, my sweet fluffy kitten, if my younger sister has decided to welcome guests to our house, then I have no objection, unless you do."

Sam, who was licking the air with his splotchy pink tongue, did not reply.

"Good," replied Rosalina. "Then we shall have dinner together. Sam, do you think that my sister would agree to serving her chicken broth?"

"Sam," replied Masha, "please tell my sister that I am happy to do so."

"Oh good," said Rosalina. "If you will, Sam, please extend our sincerest thanks to my sister."

Bilblox, who was thoroughly confused by this back and forth, set down the coffin and inquired, "Don't you two ladies ever talk to each other—or do ya always talk to that cat first?"

"We find it much easier to talk to Sam," explained Masha politely. "He's very polite, and it helps
all of us
get along better. Plus, it keeps Sam's spirits up. He hasn't been eating well lately."

Bilblox looked confused, but nodded anyway.

They all sat down on the benches around the old wooden table and enjoyed a dinner of chicken broth and freshly made bread. After many nights of camping in the snow, it felt very good to be inside, near a crackling fire, sipping warm soup. Alfonso thought about Resuza, and hoped she was all right. It was terrible to miss such a wonderful meal.

Meanwhile, Rosalina was in the midst of a lengthy complaint about her nephew, Wenceslaus, and the infrequency of his visits. "It gets very lonely here," griped Rosalina. "If it weren't for Sam, I don't know what we would have done."

"So you haven't seen anyone besides us in quite a while?" inquired Hill.

"It's been years since I laid eyes on a man as handsome as yourself," said Rosalina with a suggestive smile.

Hill coughed on his soup.

"So you haven't seen any Dragoonya?" interjected Alfonso.

"Oh goodness no," replied Rosalina. "Like everyone else, they avoid the forest."

"What's the big deal with that forest anyway?" asked Bilblox. "Why is everyone so worked up over a bunch of trees?"

Masha—who had said very little up until this point—cleared her throat and declared solemnly, "It is dangerous, but you can survive as long as you follow the rules."

"What rules?" asked Hill.

The two sisters both looked at Sam nervously. The cat, perhaps sensing their gaze, yawned and then moved his head in a way that looked remarkably like a nod. With this approval, Rosalina began telling them about the forest.

"Straszydlo is a funny place," she began in a serious tone. "I always tell people who wish to enter that they must be
very careful.
A group of hunters once passed through here and we tried to tell them about the rules, but they paid no mind. The next day, one of the hunters—only one—pounded on our door. His clothing was tattered and soaked in blood. He wouldn't say what happened. Instead, he started weeping like a child..."

"I got no problems followin' rules," said Bilblox. "I'm a longshoreman—a union man—and you should see the stuff we gotta sign. Import, export, bills of ladin', insurance ... I can follow rules with the best of 'em and I'll make sure everyone else does the same."

Again the sisters looked at Sam rather nervously; and again the cat nodded as if he somehow was following the conversation.

"Well..., " said Rosalina. "Shall we move to the fireplace and talk this over?" The two old ladies stood up and walked over to the large, overstuffed leather chair where Sam was sitting. Each of them perched delicately on an arm of the chair and began petting Sam's head. Alfonso and the others followed them and sat down on various dusty pillows scattered across the floor. Rosalina withdrew an old wooden flask from her coat.

"Perhaps you gentlemen would enjoy a sip of our homebrewed spirit, finklegrog," she said. "It has a most pleasing aftereffect." Rosalina took a healthy gulp from the flask, smiled strangely, and then burped into the fire. Her burp caught fire,
giving off the appearance that she had just breathed fire like a dragon. "Any takers?" asked Rosalina.

"Yes please!" said Bilblox excitedly. He grabbed the flask eagerly and filled his mouth with the liquid. Instead of swallowing it and burping, he spit it into the fire. A massive plume of fire shot out from his mouth.

Rosalina and Masha tittered with laughter.

Hill shot Bilblox an annoyed look and pressed Rosalina to tell them more about the rules of the forest.

"All right," began Rosalina, "the first rule is the simplest: never, ever,
ever
set foot in the forest at night."

"That's right," added Masha. "At night the forest belongs to the Straszydlo. That's what I tried to tell those hunters, isn't that right, Sam?"

Sam looked up for a moment, as if he actually might say something, but instead he coughed up a good-size fur ball.

"Straszydlo?" inquired Alfonso. "Who are they?"

"They're the ones who live in the forest," explained Masha. Then she added in a hushed whisper: "They're the ones you don't want to
upset.
" She looked severely at Alfonso.

"The second rule is that you must always go alone," said Rosalina. "The Straszydlo have a fear of groups of people."

"I warned those hunters about that as well," added Masha. "But they paid me no mind."

"And then comes the third and final rule," said Rosalina. "And it is—by far—the hardest to follow."

"Quite true," added Masha. "This is the rule that usually gets people in trouble. And, the funny thing is, it's almost as simple as the other rules—"

"What is it?" demanded Bilblox.

"
Never
look back," both Rosalina and Masha said at once.

"That doesn't sound like such a big deal," said Bilblox.

"That's what they all say," replied Rosalina with a dark chuckle. "But just you wait until you have a Straszydlo right on your heels—so close that you can feel its steamy breath on the back of your neck. It happened to me once—never again!" Rosalina took another swig of finklegrog. Her eyes blazed with the heat of the fire.

"The worst is when they start talking to you," added Masha. "The Straszydlo can mimic the sounds that they hear, like parrots. Sometimes what they say is just harmless nonsense like,
What time is it?
But often what they mimic are people's last words—you know, what they said just before the Straszydlo finish them off. You can imagine the kind of awfully desperate things people say before they die ... Once I was in the forest, and a Straszydlo was following me, repeating all the while in a high-pitched woman's voice:
You aren't going to hurt me, are you? Please don't hurt me. Just one more moment, I beg you!
"

The entire group fell silent.

"What do these Straszydlo look like?" asked Alfonso finally. "How big are they?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," said Rosalina. "Anyone who has ever turned around to look hasn't lived to speak of it. But I can tell you this, from the size of the footprints that they leave, they appear to be quite large."

"How large are we talkin'?" asked Bilblox.

"Fifteen feet tall," said Rosalina. "If not taller. But they will leave you alone
if
you follow the rules."

"For us it will really come down to timing, won't it?" asked
Hill. "I mean, if we are not allowed in the forest at night then I presume we have to cross the forest within the span of a single day—between dawn and dusk."

"That's correct," said Rosalina.

"Is this possible?" asked Hill.

"Yes," said Rosalina. "I did it many decades ago, when I was a young girl. Back then, at least, the trail was clearly marked. It starts not far from here, near the place where the three boulders rest. From there, it travels quite some distance through rolling terrain. The trail is fairly straight. At one point, there is a stream crossing, but that shouldn't pose too much of a problem unless there's a heavy snowfall the night before. If you leave at the crack of dawn, you should be able to make it easily by sundown—and if not—well then, heaven help you."