Greyfax Grimwald (19 page)

“A man,” gasped Otter, darting under Bear’s chair.

“Grrrr,” snarled Bear, baring his man-scaring teeth and laying his ears flat back on his huge head.

“Oh, stop it, both of you. I’m well aware of your distress, and am here to help you.”

Bear let one stubby brown ear pop up to hear this strange man, who did, after all, speak their language.

“Now, first off, we must leave this house and find a better hiding place. It’s no longer safe here, and if those powers that took Dwarf happen to return, we’ll all be in a fine fix.” And Froghorn looked from one to the other. “Well?”

“We could go to my house,” offered Otter, “only the ceiling is so low as to always be getting in the way of anyone taller than three or four feet high.”

“My cave should be quite secure. We’ll go there.”

“Fine.” And Froghorn followed the two animals out and down through the forest to Bear’s great cave, sunk in the side of a mountain near the river and concealed from view by blackberry bushes and rocks.

“This should be safe enough,” observed Froghorn, striding into the center of the rather gloomy cavern.

Otter had crawled upon Bear’s big table, and now studied the strange man that spoke so well in their language. There was something different about this man, and Otter thought for some reason he seemed exceedingly familiar. Something in the eyes, but he couldn’t recall exactly what.

“Our friend,” Froghorn said, “is captured and a prisoner in the palace of Darkness, if you are aware of anything of that nature. The Dark Queen found out somehow that Dwarf had some connection with Greyfax Grimwald, and that he might have some information that would prove valuable to their war on these worlds.”

Bear’s eyes widened in amazement and wonder to think that he, an ample bear, was caught up in anything so important as all the strange man was saying. Otter flipped backward off the table, and now stood full height, which was only three or four feet from tip to tail.

“Great Weir of Baccu, what on earth could Dwarf be doing fiddling around with anything this Dark Queen could want? I’ve always thought him a little eccentric, but I never thought he’d gone that far.”

Froghorn now removed the Arkenchest from beneath his cloak, and held it up to the two friends. “This box is what they were after.” He paused to let that information sink in. “Furthermore, they will stop at nothing to gain it.”

Bear padded over and reached out a paw to touch the box.

“May I touch it?” he asked softly.

“Not just yet. First I must have proof of your feelings, for I fear greatly the powers of darkness, and know they work in many guises. If you are true and just, you’ll agree to help me without desiring to know the box’s contents.” Here Froghorn paused again, and returned the Arkenchest to its hiding place in the, great folds of his cloak. “They shall, however, if you prove yourself, be revealed completely to you, if you still wish it so.”

“The box is of no interest at this moment, Gypsy, for we’ve still not discovered what you know of where Dwarf is, or if you do know, what there is to be done. I’m sure it’s a fine box and all, but don’t you think we should be trying to get Dwarf back? He has a lot of puff about him, but he is very clever at some sorts of things, like hiding places and all, and I’m sure he’d be of great help finding a safe place for your box.”

“Well said, friend,” and Fairingay walked to the table and sat; placing the box before them, and began.

“First, we must give you disguises.” And his hand went into his cloak and returned with an object that looked to Bear very much like a honeycomb, although Otter thought it had rather an appearance like a pond lily, but before they could decide, Fairingay ordered them to eat of it and close their eyes, turn around to their left twice, and say after him exactly the words he spoke, which they did.

“Now, Bear and Otter, you both have the power of one of the small secrets of my trade, which is that you may now move about under the illusion of men. You need only speak those words, and repeat the ritual, and you will be able to change back and forth at will. Later, naturally, you will be able to assume any form you wish, but all that’s of no importance.”

Bear looked at Otter, and instead of the gray little figure he knew, stood a regular, frightening man with long side-whiskers and rather an otter-like mustache, but a man nonetheless.

“Bear, you look all funny,” giggled Otter. “You’ve certainly changed.” And he went to wiggle his tail” and cover his nose with his paws, but to his surprise found hands instead, and no tail to wiggle at all.

“You look rather stupid yourself,” growled Bear, and felt his new body carefully, running the somewhat awkward hands up and down his sides and over his face. It certainly felt queer to be a man, and he understood that sometimes they must act so strangely, with hands instead of paws, and no fur at all to keep j them warm.

“Now you both must go for help from one certain man that is now among the northern folk, in a place near where the two great rivers begin high in the mountains in a country known as Amarigin. This man has powers that will help us, and he must be told j what has happened here. He fights the Dark Queen’s armies upon those borders, and to some he is known as General Greymouse. He also has many friends among the elvish clan.”

“However shall we find such a man, Gypsy? We know nothing of this world, and have never gone j about as men.” Bear began disliking their mission very much, and was no longer sure what it was that I had drawn him on this foolish journey when he could be having a late supper or snoozing comfortably before his fire, without the least thought of any unpleasantries at all.

Otter, feeling much the same way, and not at all comfortable in the form of a man, asked Froghorn rather shortly, “Isn’t this whole business rather silly? I mean what can you hope to have but two ally animals walking about on two feet, not even able to get their own. supper, much less make some sort of ridiculous journey to someplace they have no idea where it is to begin with, much less find if they did? If there’s anything sensible to be done, it’s certainly not going around dressed as a man. And what has any of this to do with men, anyhow? Just because Dwarf got himself stolen certainly doesn’t concern anyone in the human world.”

“There you’re wrong, friend Otter. You ask true questions, but there’s more here than I can begin to explain to you at the moment. All I can say is that to get Dwarf back, it is necessary to seek the aid of the man I speak of.”

Otter, who had repeated the spell, now resumed his true animal form, and stood straightening his fur and wiggling his tail to make sure of its fit.

“And if it’s so important, why don’t you go, Gypsy? You’re a man, and need not go to all the bother of changing shapes whatever. Everyone should stick to his own, anyhow. Never was able to see the sense in pretending you’re something you’re not. Only leads to the worst sort of trouble,” grumped Bear.

A thick blue-green smoke filled the cave, and when it had gone, Froghorn stood revealed to them in his usual form.

“Shame on you, Bear. You don’t see sense in anything that doesn’t happen to agree with you at the moment.”

Bear was taken aback at the changes that had been occurring and quite confused at the entire proceeding.

“Froghorn Fairingay.”

Another flash, and Froghorn returned to the figure of their long-familiar friend, Froghorn the cat.

And leaping upon Bear’s shoulders, he said as matter-of-factly as possible, “Sometimes I even turn myself inside out, or upside down, as much as I detest the idea, but what must be done simply must, so there’s no two ways about it.”

Bear reappeared as Bear, and the three friends began making their plans, and Froghorn showed them the maps of where the Master lived who must help them. Otter was still not convinced that they and not Froghorn should go, until Froghorn showed him a glimpse into a memory from long ago, and his small brown eyes grew hazy at the picture of it and his heart saddened at what he saw.

“I’m truly sorry, Froghorn. I’m only a simple animal, and I suppose it’s quite a lot to ask of anyone if they don’t know anything much, and I don’t claim to be so smart anyhow. If we must do this, then I guess there’s simply nothing for it but to do so.”

“There’s the old fellow. And there’s really no one else to do it now but you and Bear. Everything depends upon it”

“What will you do, Froghorn? While we’re gone, I mean?” asked Bear, beginning to like the thought of this adventure, since it seemed no more than something that would last for only a few weeks or so, and then the whole business could be put away into some story or other and forgotten about.

“I seek the lady of Cypher, whose sister, the Queen of Darkness, holds our friend Dwarf in her frozen halls.”

“Well, if we must go, we must. Now I think I shall find myself a bite to eat. All this excitement has amply exhausted me, and I’m hungry enough to perish.” And Bear began to forage through his larder, laying out a cheese and two good-sized loaves of bread, a bottle of his best honey, and two tall glasses of cider for Froghorn and Otter.

“I shall be gone before long, and it’s most likely I shall not see you again until you have found Greymouse. It is a long journey, and hard, but I’ve been among you for quite enough time to know you will not fail me. Remember all I’ve told you, travel cautiously, and our next meeting shall be hastened.” He whirled, was Froghorn Fairingay the wizard once more, whistled a long high note, and in an instant Pe’lon had sped from his waiting in Cypher to the door of Bear’s cave to carry his master away upon his journey.

Froghorn saluted them with a nod and was gone, leaving Otter and Bear perplexed and feeling the least little bit as if they’d been deserted.

“At any rate, Bear, we shall get a chance to see the lady of Cypher when we return. I’ve always wanted to see her.”

Bear, souring on the whole adventure as soon as Froghorn had gone, took another mouthful of cheese, and said grumpily, “When? When? You mean
if
we return. Why couldn’t we have gone to fetch the lady, and Mr. Magical Fancy Pants gone off galivanting after this fellow we’re supposed to find?”

“It’s no use, Bear. You heard him. We’re the only ones left to do it.”

“I dare say,” snapped Bear, “since he’s going to be so tied up on that other errand. Then of course there’ll be no one left to do it but us.”

“I wonder how the water is there?” mused Otter, half aloud, already thinking of a strange new river. “Or if they have any water there at all?

“I’m simply wondering if we shall ever have any f peace and quiet anymore, without all this to do. We ‘ must, we absolutely must, get Dwarf back, and interested in some nice tame hobby like gardening or lawn tennis, instead of his infernal obsession with all that philosophy and mystical stuff and poppyrot.”

Bear belched a long hiccup, covering it with his paw. “And this all has me upset again, and now I’m going to have a terrible stomachache just thinking about it all.”

“I’m off to pack now, Bear. I’ll throw together a nice lunch for tomorrow, and perhaps we shall find a new berry spot for dinner, or who knows what might happen? My goodness, Bear, it shall certainly be exciting, no matter what.”

“At our expense, no doubt,” said Bear dourly. “And I never knew a good thing yet come from any such goings-on as this.”

“Oh, Bear, you’re much too quick to think the worst. And you know we must get our poor Dwarf back. I shudder to think what they might be doing to him now.”

Bear, softening his harsh scowl, looked at Otter a moment before speaking.

“How dreadful of me, Otter. I’d quite forgotten to think about that. Of course, we must go first thing in the morning.” And after another moment, “I rather miss his puffing about, you know.”

Far into the night the two friends prepared for their impending journey into the world of men.

D
eep inside the frozen place, away from all light accept the cold fire that burned like a pale yellow coal in the eyes of his guardian, Dwarf trembled and ached over his whole body. His clothes were only those that he’d worn to bed the night he was captured and carried away by Cakgor. Bundled in that great silver-black wolfs jaws, he’d wept and chattered with cold, and looking down and all around him, he saw nothing familiar, but the darkness that grew deeper and stiller, until at last he was dropped at the foot of a huge throne inside a structure that he could not see. His breath came in cold streams, leaving fingers of ice before him. A very small light gave off him, enabling him to see a few feet around him, but all he saw or felt was the icy hall, and silence. After Cakgor left him, he began to feel a little better, and gathering all his dwarfish stubborn courage bred into him over the lives in his home, he puffed up a tiny bit, cleared his throat, patted his foot twice, and was startled at the huge amount of noise these actions produced.

“Ahem,” he said softy. The cold echo came back from what seemed a very long distance away. His heart was bursting with the difficulty he was having breathing the frozen air, and to speak seemed almost an impossible chore, but his curiosity began overcoming his fright. When nothing happened he started again. “Hmmph harrumph.” Still only the frozen silence. Dwarf, always being a polite person, despite his frequent huffing and cartwheeling when upset, called out in a very small but somewhat reassured voice, since he’d heard nothing since Cakgor left.