Elf Killers (26 page)

Fnana-fnyr got a faraway look and slid down the shaft of his spear with a plump to sit on a pile of skins.

"Dyr and Ninar-dern be big thunder," said Dyr-jiny. "The Dyrney need to juicy-champ their meat. We need to sew them up so the Dyrney-brutes can chant-dance them out to Dyr's rock to-be with us as we dance them to the Land of the Dead. When they start to rot, you can go looky-find Fnanar. If you-be new Thunder-man, you need to walk-like thunder. You stumble-walk."

Fnana-fnyr nodded.

"Here, champ-bite this," he said, suddenly taking a huge, dark brown cud of out of his mouth and planting it behind Fnana-fnyr's chinless lower lip as he squatted and began winding strips of freshly skinned hide about his ankle.

"Hooo-weee!" cried Fnana-fnyr as he chewed and shifted the wad about in his mouth.

"Dyr-gny-fn-gnyrr. Pucker-plant make you-stand thump-chest without wobble-walk."

Fnana-fnyr started to rise.

Dyr-jiny pushed him back down with a shake of his head. "You champ-bite until pucker-plant be all-gone. By then Dyr and Ninar-dern be all ready for the Land of the Dead." He turned and knelt by the carcasses, picking up his needle. "Ah-doo, ah-doo, ah-doo, ah-doo, ah-doo, ah-doo..."

Fnana-fnyr sat on Ninar-dern's furs and studied the backs of his hands while Dyr-jiny worked. He repositioned his lips about his teeth. This pucker-plant was awfully bitter. Jays scolded in the leaves outside the Hooter Cave.

At last Dyr-jiny was done. He put on a bear's head and picked up a tiny Elf skin drum, the only one possessed by any Dyrney. Fnana-fnyr could only remember having seen it when Dyr became Thunder-man. "You come-out when you hear me call-for you," he said as he walked out into the light.

"Dyr-jiny," said Fnana-fnyr, "Da no ever head-nod you be buttock. I no either think you be buttock..."

Dyr-jiny made no reply, but inside the bear's head he was grinning. He padded quietly across the soft dust around the fire pits and took up his position in front of Dyr's rock. Not a troll was in sight. From the mouths of the caves came rumbling snores, like so many sleeping bison. It had been a late day for them. He positioned his wee drum in the crook of his arm. Pop! pota-pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop... The snoring died away at once, but no one appeared in the open for quite some time, while inside the caves, every troll was feverishly daubing someone else with colored mud. Suddenly the first Dyrney danced in time, out into the open, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop..."Thunder-man!" cried Dyr-jiny, taking a great leap into the air. Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! pota-pop, pop, pop, pop... "Thunder-man! Thunder-man!" pop, pop, pop, pop... "Thunder-man! Thunder-man!" pop, pop, pop, pop... By now every single Dyrney, hair caked with mud, was outside leaping and bouncing with the drum, "Thunder-man! Thunder-man!" pop, pop, pop, pop... 

Suddenly, Fnana-fnyr raced to the top of his rock with a triumphant bound. "Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot!" he cried, sending echoes all up and down the Great Rock Wall as he pounded his chest with spit-slinging fury.

The multitude fell silent.

"Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot! Ooot-ooot!"

"Thunder-man! Thunder-man!" pop, pop, pop, pop... went Dyr-jiny as the whole hillside of trolls resumed bouncing.

A squirrel raced through the dry leaves down the steep slope, sounding like a much larger animal. He gave a frantic dodge each way before disappearing 'round the far side of a great maidenhair tree. In a moment, he trotted out along one of its limbs, far above the ground, dropping the acorn which he held in his mouth.

"Vyr-gan," moaned Fnanar, when the acorn bounced off his temple by his missing ear. He batted at the side of his wounded head and gave a sudden grunt from pain. He heaved himself onto his elbow only to cry out from sharp pains in his ribs and hips. He tottered on his elbow with his heavy breaths, looking about at his brutes, snoring away in their nests of leaves surrounding him on the hillside. He grimaced as he peeled away the leaves, matted with blood to the side of his face. With another cry of pain, he managed to get himself onto his hands and knees. The moment he quit stirring and crunching the rustling leaves, he heard Dyr-jiny's drum far away, up the slope.

"Loud tree they rock-thump," he said with a pant. "Mudful hollow-heads. Juicy-champing Dung-man's debt-baby too-late. Arrdsey-phnyr-phey-fne already big-head-nods grab-up-squeakers to us from Gyrn's debt-baby..." Suddenly he went urgently wide-eyed. "Da be bushy-tail heart-thump?" He tried to stand at once and tottered, yelping with pain. 

Phnyr-phaf stood up at once to steady him.

"No grabby-grab, you dung-baby!" bellowed Fnanar, flinging out with his elbow to hit Phnyr-phaf in the mouth hard enough to send him sprawling in the leaves. However, the move was a bad one for Fnanar's broken ribs, for it threw him onto his painful hip before he toppled onto his side, straining for wind. 

"I big-head-nod your every-say," said Phnyr-phaf, scooting away as he wiped at his bloody mouth.

Gyrn carefully crawled on all fours, over to where Fnanar lay grimacing. "Uh, Thunder-man?" he said, trying his best to observe Fnanar's preferred protocol. "Will Fnana-fnyr now-be new sow-heart Thunder-dung? That no-be tree they rock-thump. That-be Dyr-jiny's grab-up-squeaker hide popper. He only pop-pop for new Thunder-man. But if you-be down-here, he must pop-pop for new Thunder-dung..."

"Ha!" woofed Fnanar, making Gyrn jump back. "Good! Fnana-fnyr just-be Thunder-dung. He always be cower-man. He-be always easy jump-kick. When he comes, I will jump-bite head-smash, head-smash him." And with a wild-eyed strained look he lunged up onto his feet to stand doubled over. "We go-back-to Thunder-camp," he said, grunting between his words as he struggled to straighten up. "We will juicy-champ, snawk-sleep and dance our head-nods to jump-bite the Sow-hearts for last-big crossy-arm head-nod. We will juicy-champ, juicy-champ grab-up-squeakers, grab-up-squeakers, grab-up-squeakers. I be Thunder-man and we-be big-big, big-big Dyrney Thunder-clan, Thunder-clan over walky-walky-walky and crawly-crawly-crawly. Arrdsey-phnyr-phey-fne swell-up crossy-arm head-nod say-so!" And with that, he staggered forth.

Gyrn and Phnyr-phaf shared a look with raised eyebrows and followed.

Olloo leant against the red sandstone of Carraig Faire, listening to the meadowlarks and the pounding of hammers from 'way up on the rock overhead as he idly studied the grazing sheep on the great common. He watched Rory appear beyond them, tugging and shoving at an auroch calf he was trying to lead to pasture with a halter for the first time. Oisin had spared the calf when he shot and butchered the cow. "Mercy," said Olloo, laughing out at the sight. "I don't know whether that thing will ever calm down like anything domestic. It certainly would be nice if she did. King Faragher and them were thoughtful enough to leave us a few unicorns and sheep, but they took every single cow-brute with them."

Baase emerged from the tall grass to the south and jogged up with springy steps, presenting the crown of his head for a scratch.

"It's a mercy you were never that kind of trouble," said Olloo as ran his fingers through the bird's feathers. At a peppering of pebbles from above, he looked up to see Roseen carefully climbing down the great rock. "Sometimes I can scarcely believe how pretty she is, Baase..."

At once, Baase planted a clear image of a magnificent female strike falcon in Olloo's mind.

"Who is she, Baase? You keep showing her to me."

Baase opened his feathers and gave himself a thorough shake before closing them again.

"Hello Baase," said Roseen, reaching down to take Olloo's hand as she hopped down. "Kieran, Oisin and Alister want you to come up and see what you think of the new guard house." She gave Baase a good scratch and a pat as she favored Olloo with an adoring smile.

"My word, Roseen. What do they need my opinion for? Alister knows more about building than I do, and Oisin's older..."

"Yes," she said, giving his arm a pat, "but as you well know, we're all in this together, and since you're in charge of the shawkyn spooghey, your opinion is particularly important."

"Well then, let's get up there," he said, heaving a sigh. "Just let me see to Baase for a moment." He paused briefly to think of hunting in Baase's mind.

Baase wheeled at once and dashed away for the tall grass.

Olloo watched his bond mate vanish into the big bluestem.

"What's wrong, Olloo?"

"Maybe nothing."

"But you're concerned, anyway," she said as she turned to the rock and started to climb.

"Yea. Maybe a bit. I've been seeing a strange strike falcon, not one of ours..."

"Is it out there now?" she said, looking out across the Strah. "Should you 'ave let Baase go out on a hunt?"

"I don't reckon he's in danger..."

"Where's it been showing up? Near the mews, the houses?"

"In my head..."

"Oh!" she said, recovering from a startled look. "You mean Baase put the thought picture in your head?"

Olloo nodded. "He keeps doing it, but he's not giving me the slightest clue about it. I don't even know if it's a real bird. You reckon he's dreamed her up?"

"Her?"

"Yea. I'm pretty sure about that, but I can't begin to tell you why. Maybe he's made sure that I understand that. You sure can't tell the sexes apart on looks alone. But that really bothers me..."

"Why?"

"What if he is after a mate in the wild? What would that do? Everything I've seen leads me to think that they mate for life..."

"Oh, I see," she said, taking his hand and squeezing it. "You've been so attached to him."

"It could be worse than that. It could undo everything we're doing here." 

Roseen paused to catch her breath at the top of Carraig Faire. She looked far out over the Strah and pictured her own Caggey.

"Well there you are," said Kieran roundly. "We'd nearly decided you all needed some supervising. We were just on our way." 

"You seem to be doing well enough," said Olloo as a faint blush came and went. "I can't imagine what you'd really need me for up here."

"Your approval, Captain."

"Captain? How's that?"

"Lord of the mews, captain of the entire defense of Baile Tuath," said Oisin, as he, Kieran and Alister grandly doffed their hats and bowed. "We need you to inspect our work."

Olloo threw back his head and laughed out at the sight of them. "If you must, but I'm no lord and captain."

"Very well, Professor," said Alister with a completely serious face as he gestured toward a small rugged shed with windows and shutters on all sides. "Right this way."

Olloo peered in the door at a built-in bunk and a tall stool, nodding at the things he saw.

"What we haven't got yet is some provision for a bell..." said Alister.

"Bell? Where would you get a bell? Making the nails was the hardest part of all this, wasn't it?"

"Very well, maybe someone could fashion a horn..."

"To warn the trolls that we see them? You've got a bunk. We need two people up here at a time, one of them for a runner to warn everyone. That way we'll have an element of surprise in our favor. Anyway, this is a perfect watch house. You all did a grand job."

"Well now, see, Professor?" said Kieran. "That's why we needed your opinion."

"I give up," said Olloo with a laugh as he took Roseen's hand and turned away, leaving the three of them to hammer at final things, here and there.

They walked the length of the great rock, gazing out over the Great Strah. "Lord, Captain...Professor..." said Olloo shaking his head the moment they were beyond hearing.

"They were teasing you, of course, but they still meant what they said, Olloo," said Roseen.

They climbed down the far end of the rock, enjoying the peace of the late afternoon. "You saw the swing Brenden was making?" he said when they neared the bottom.

"Yea."

"Well, he's got it up in the grape arbor. Would you like to try it out with me, this evening after supper?"

"I'd love to..."

Suddenly two strike falcons wending through the grass toward the rock caught his eye. "Look 'ee yonder," he said with a nod.

Roseen took her bow from her shoulder.

"No, no," he said, resting his hand on her arm, "It's all right. It's Baase and I'm right certain that's the very bird he's been showing me."

"Oh Olloo...but how do you know? I can barely see their heads through all the big bluestem."

"He just flashed a dream picture of her in my thoughts."

Baase stepped out of the tall grass and looked straight at Olloo before turning back and vanishing.

Roseen saw Olloo's stricken look and hugged him soundly, hoping he would take some measure of comfort from her.

"I'm fine now, Roseen. Really," he said at last. "The shadows are starting to get long and we both have chores."

Roseen took his hand as they stepped off the great rock with a bound. "Olloo," she said, "I would really enjoy trying out the new swing, but I'd understand if you don't feel like it."

He came to a stop with a sigh, glancing away into the grass before looking into her eyes. "You just plainly seem to understand me, Roseen. And you're generous. And I want more than anything to sit in that swing with you tomorrow evening and watch it grow dark. But this evening when I'm done with my chores, I think I want to study the tall grass until it's pitch black out. But you already see how it all is, and it really makes me want to swing with you all the more."