Unlikely Heroes

Elda sat upon a rock just off to the side of the road, not that it was much of a road, more of a dirt path way which passed through the woods, before the serpent´s tongue, were it veered in two different directions, to the left or to the right. So named because of the obvious resemblance it had to a snakes tongue. She had to admit to herself that she was lost, and had no idea what to do from here. She could not say just how long she had been sitting here and pondering this dilemma, but the sun was starting to get low in the sky, and she really did not wish to be here past dark. Sighing, she looked to the ground in front of her after realizing that she could stare at the serpent´s tongue all she wanted, but the answer would not suddenly come to her. She looked behind her wondering if she should just go back now, defeated, but what else could she have really excepted? What chance did she really have? When she thought of the way the others laughed at her, told her what a fool she was being, that she did not stand a chance it gritted her teeth, and she had been so confidant and determined with them she knew she could not return. Not now, and perhaps not ever if she never succeeded in what she set out to do. So she regained her conviction once more, but that did little to solve the current problem. Finally she decided she should let fate decide as she could not pick a direction for herself. The best way to do this seemed to be with the flip of a coin. Digging into her pouch she would pull out one of her copper coins, naming the left-hand side tails, and the right-hand side heads. She flipped and let the coin hit the dirt and then walked up to look at what was reveled. It seemed she would be going left. Picking up the coin and returning it she began to head off down the trail. "That was easy," she said aloud to herself and began to whistle a little tune as she walked.

It was about the time that Elda had begun to walk along the left-hand path that Barley Stonefoot walked down that very trail and none too quietly, with the rather loud clamor and clank of his armor, which now was tarnished and showed spots of reddish brown here and there which could only be rust. He was a tall man, coming to about 6´5" with thick arms and thick legs, but he was not young anymore and his age was beginning to show. He was also unfortunately in a state of denial about his declining years. He was a knight whom had recently been discharged for his eyes were going bad, and his reflexes turning slower, yet he still carried the title and thought the king a plum fool for letting go one of his best men, though in truth Barley had not been on the top of his game since his 50s and 60s and now he was a full 500 years old. He also did not understand why no one was willing to render his services. Perhaps the entire world had turned silly he thought, since he was no longer appreciated at his former employment he went off on his own to work free lance, but as of yet had not been able to get anyone to solicit his help. Even those that seemed to be in some distress and in need of help turned him down, and his price was hardly unreasonable. He did not do this for the money, but because it was what he loved to do, it was who he was. While he plowed down the dirt path kicking a small rock along in front of him as a bit of minor amusement he muttered to himself about what the world was coming to these days, when nobody wanted the help of a good knight anymore.

Elda could not be more surprised at what she would see walking toward her, and it so surprised her that it caused her to stop dead in her tracks. It looked like a man, but then it was not quite a man, or so it seemed to her. It, or he, or whatever it was, was indeed quite large. Each of its arms and legs appearing nearly as thick if not thicker then her whole body and it was rather tall, though not quite a giant, and most startling of all was its beard. A long gray beard grew downward in a twisting spiral to come to about his midsection, but what was more then that was the fact that his beard seemed to be covered in bits of green moss here and there. She was too stunned to say anything as she gapped while watching. She felt certain that it would come to stop once it drew closer to her, or address her in someway, but rather it did not, it seemed to just keep coming onward. She began to think that it would simply walk around her without so much as a passing greeting, but that would be most rude indeed. It was not until it was nearly too late that she came to realize it was not going to stop or go around, but did not to notice her at all, it was going to walk directly into her. Having just enough time to jump out of the way, as that was the last thing she had excepted, she let out a small cry as she lost her balance and fell upon the ground landing on her backside with a slight wince of pain.

Barley´s ears which stuck out a bit from his head, almost like that of an animal, and had tuffs of hair growing in them came to twitch slightly at the sound; at least his hearing was still good. One of his large hands came to fall over the hilt of the sword slung at his side as he spun around, searching for what he had heard, though all he could see was blurred colors and vague shapes. Giving a low grunt to himself as he called out, his voice was deep and gruff, "Who is there?" At first Elda was a bit intimidated as she looked up to the rather large figure, but she had come to realize his sight was probably poor. Being that he nearly plowed right into her, and now it appeared could not find her, though she was only a few feet away, and so she thought she could just slip away unseen, but then she was curious. She figured if worse came to worse she could out run him, seeing the strange creature up close she decided that it was likely a male. Trying to keep her voice steady and calm, "No one really, just me." At the sound of the voice Barley´s ears twitched once more and he turned to face a tree which was not too far off from where Elda was. "Me? And who is this me? Hmmm?" She watched in a bit of confusion, trying not to laugh, for he appeared to be talking to the tree, as if he thought that she was the tree. She took a moment to clear her throat, slowly coming to stand up at last as she spoke again. "I am over here, to the left." Barley frowned and turned around until he was facing her at last. Giving a squint to his eyes he leaned in closer to try and get a better look, now being able to vaguely make her out he nodded his head in satisfaction with himself. "Ah, right, well I am sorry if I frightened you." His hand had come to slide away from the hilt of his sword deciding she was not a likely threat.

Up close Elda could see just how ugly he really was, his nose was quite large and round reminding her almost of a door knob, and his eyes seemed too small and sunken in, almost disappearing under the heavy white brows of his. His face appearing a map of heavy wrinkles, and his lips were thick. When he spoke he revealed yellow jagged teeth, his fingernails were also quite yellow and long and the back of his hands were covered in a thick patch of white hair. She did not wish to confess that he had almost run right into her, as she thought that might embarrass so she said instead, "Oh, I just did not expect to see anyone else upon the road," she paused a moment before she could not help to add on, hoping it did not sound too rude, "What are you exactly....I mean I have not seen anything.....anyone, that ever really looked like you before." Though it was true beyond the people of her village there were probably many she had never seen the likes of before.

At first Barley looked at her in disbelief that she could ask such a thing, as if the answer should be obvious. His mouth drew down in something of a frown, while in his black little eyes there was a small glint, if it was amusement, or anger, or something altogether different she could not be sure. "I am a Gnord of course," he said with a bit of defense, and a hint of pride. Elda was taken aback by this and she could not help but to gasp. She had only ever read about Gnords in stories, but to actually meet one, a real life Gnord standing right in front of her, talking to her. She would never have imagined or dreamed of such a thing as that. "I thought that Gnords lived deep in the woods." Barley reached up with one of his hands and gave a tug upon his long spiraled beard as he nodded his head once, "Oh yes, they do, but you see every once in a while a Gnord decides to go out in the world, some just to travel and see the sites, while others take a trade to work." She considered this a moment concluding it made sense enough, but wondered what it was that he did, as from what she had read it was not likely a Gnord would need or use armor for protection, or even weapons really. "Well which are you?" He gave a wide grin at the question as a proud gleam came into his eyes "I am the second, if you must know I am Sir Barley Stonefoot," he spoke with a gentlemanly bow that caused a light clank of his armor. Elda could not help but to feel a mix of both amusement, disappointment, and perhaps even a faint hope. This is not at all what she thought a knight would be, for one thing he seemed old, quite old, knowing that Gnord years were not the same as human, he seemed he would be old even for a Gnord, and upon closer inspection she saw that his armor was dented in many places, along with the patches or red-brown rust, but then who was she to judge? With the way her luck had been going she had to take whatever chance she could, and this may well be her only opportunity and hope. She would step one foot behind her and move one arm across her mid-section and the other behind her back as she bent at the waist, keeping her head up in a practiced bow. "It is an honor Sir Barley Stonefoot; I am Elda the squire, though currently unattached, perhaps I might find place in your honorable and good service?"

Barley would cant his head just slightly to one side, those ears of his sticking in a sharp point for a moment as he pondered this. He was flattered at the idea of one wanting to learn from him, and he could not help a smile full of mirth. He told himself that who was there better to learn from then he? Besides it might be good to have some company upon his travels, and so he would reach up and place one of his large hands just upon her shoulder, clasping it lightly, but not too much as he did not wish to accidentally break anything, Gnords were known to be quite strong. "Then I do welcome you Milady Elda, you shall travel as my goodly and loyal squire, and great adventures we may embark upon."

Elda could not have been more surprised, it was not what she had expected; she did not think it would be as easy as that, and despite the first doubts she might have had, she still felt a flutter of excitement, and just perhaps he would surprise her. Perhaps there was more to him then what met the eye. After all if any should understand that it ought to be her. There was nothing particularly impressive looking about her, she was not exceptionally beautiful but nor was she especially ugly, but she was quite plain and average with nothing to set her apart from any other. Her hair was rather flat and straight black coming to about the mid of her back and most often tied back out of the way with a leather thong. Her clothing were the typical simply made, yet generally durable attire of the peasant class, and her own by now must be dusted over from the road, but there was yet more to her then met the eye. She could have used this to help aid her in her quest, but that is not how she wanted to go about things. It was rather something she preferred to keep to herself and restrained from unless in dire need, and her previous life in a small village had not warranted any such situations as that. She would come to stand more fully with a grateful smile and a bit of eagerness at the prospect. It was not exactly what she had in mind, but it was more then anyone else would have ever thought or believed. "It would be an honor to work in your shadow and learn from what you have to teach and to serve you loyally through good and bad times alike"

So the two of them took to the road together, and Elda did come to find Barley Stonefoot to be most fascinating. He told the most remarkable stories about his life, both as a Gnord and as a knight, and all the grand adventures he had engaged upon. After listening to him she had begun to doubt her first impression, as he did seem to have quite the record and much experience in his lifetime. What was even more awing was the way he seemed enthralled with the stories she told of her own life, for compared to his she thought they were considerably dull, and really there was little to tell. Typical life in one village is much the same in another, but even so he plagued her with questions about it and seemed to want to learn as much as he could. She did find it somewhat amusing.

Elda and Barley sat together before a camp fire within the woods just off from the road, perhaps about 50 or so feet into the trees. He wanted them to be far enough away that a passerby could not spot their fire, less they be ill meaning, yet not too far away that it would take up much time to return to the road in the morning. It was now there 3rd day of travel together. The smell of cooking food hovering in the air from the rabbit upon the spit which Elda had caught. Good hunting was one skill that even a child in a village had, but Barley seemed impressed, or perhaps he was just being nice. Elda could not be sure. "What are female Gnords like?" Elda had come to realize that in all his stories he had not mentioned anything of Gnord womenfolk, but surely they must have them, musn´t they? Barley seemed amused by the question and took a moment to ponder it over before he came to answer. "Well they are much like the men I suppose, they are usually a bit shorter, but tend to be faster, and just as strong. They are fairer then the men tend to be, but perhaps not quite the way women are here. They do have a good since of humor. Gnod womenfolk unlike here, tend to merry when they get older, anywhere around there 30´s to 80´s, though 30 would be quite young for a Gnord woman. When they are younger they work as the scouts watching the borders of the Gnord woods, they spend most their time away from the city, which you must understand looks nothing at all like a city here. It is made with the trees, instead of against them. Then when they get older they come back to the city to find a mate." She was most intrigued as she listened to him, and a part of her longed to see what this Gnord city looked like, and what the female Gnords, and younger Gnords might look like. "Do you have a mate?" She could not help but to ask, though it might have sounded rude she was most curious to know if he had had a Gnord woman of his own. He gave a mirthful laugh at her question and grinned in good humor before shaking his head slowly. "No, cannot say that I have, I left the city when I was still a lad, and never managed to find my way back." He gave a shrug of shoulders and poked the fire with a stick. She almost felt bad for him. It seemed say to her in a way, his leaving his home so young and never returning to see his family again, or woo a gril, she wondered if he missed those things, and if he would be too old now to have a mate were he to return, though she was also stuck by the fact that it seemed she did very much the same thing as he, and she wondered if she would ever long to see home again or if she would get caught up in the adventure and the world to really notice anymore. "Do you ever miss home, or wish you had found a mate?" He was silent for a moment, and at first she feared she had offended him or struck too personal a cord. Her eyes studying him within the firelight before he came to speak at last. To her relief sounding as jovial as usual, "Well I suppose it is the kind of thing every man and probably every woman misses from time to time, and not to say that home was not nice, and women agreeable, but it had never been enough to pull me back. Some Gnords do get mighty nostalgic and after working a trade for some 20 or 30 years, maybe more, maybe less they give it up and go back." It did make sense to her, and he did not appear to be truly lonely, or unhappy, and she imagined he must meet a good deal of interesting people upon the way, even if they are not of his own kind. He truly had a touch of wanderlust and an adventures heart or so she came to believe from what he said and what she observed.

Before she would have a chance to say anything else her attention was distracted as she heard something within the woods. It sounded close by and as if it were approaching, and quickly. Barley had heard the noise long before Elda with his sensitive hearing, but thought little of it at first, being they were in the woods it was apt to be an animal but he did notice the noise growing louder and more rapid. His reflexes were not what they use to be and so as he was still struggling to stand when the dark blur of a figure came darting out of the brush clipping by him just enough to cause him to loose his balance as he was not completely stable in the position of half standing and half rising. His leg taken right out from under him he fell back with an angry curse. Elda had barely time to react, as whatever it was was moving fast. Just in the nick of time she managed to jump up and pull onto the lowest hanging branch of a near by tree while the thing ran right under her and disappeared into the wood.

Once the danger passed Elda dropped down from the tree and made her way over to Barley who was righting himself and still muttering under her breath in frustration. "Are you alright?" She asked with some concern. Having seen how it ran right past him she thought it might have injured him, but he appeared fine and shook his head to her question. Soon enough he was sitting upright once again. "I am fine, how are you?" She could not smirk a bit though she was still somewhat rattled as she wondered would that thing could have been and what if it were to come back. Almost as if he read her mind he spoke speak up once more. "Wild boar, they are the spawn of the underworld I swear sometimes." There was at least a touch of humor in his voice and she could not help but to chuckle a little. This would lead them both into hearty laughter that lasted a good half hour before dying down.

They would be upon the road for two more days before they would come out into Aldeion, it was a fair sized village, nothing compared to the cities, but not as small as some other villages could be. There was a tavern and an inn within the village, several shops, and a healthy marketplace, as well the houses that ranged in size, some being quite nice, others being simple dwellings. When they came into the village the people seemed to be welcoming and friendly enough, but then knights were usually always welcome and treated to certain luxurious and hospitalities when traveling.

Elda and Barley Stonefoot had settled into the inn and were now seated at one of the tables, it seemed there very presence was enough to draw in a handful of people into the inn. All of whom pretended to be looking at everywhere but the pair, and most particularly Barley, not just because he was a knight, but because he did look most strange indeed. Earlier Elda had done her part as squire to assist him out of his armor, so he might know better comfort while he ate. His armor left back up in the room they had requested, he now sat in what she could only presume to be typical Gnord clothing. Which consisted of a shirt that appeared to have been made from the vines of trees, and yet still allowed the body to move freely without any restriction, and did not appear to be uncomfortable, and a pair of pants, which upon the outside had the appearance and texture of tree bark, though within felt quite smooth and nice against the skin. As any good knight he still kept his sword upon his belt in the event of the unexpected, but then to a true knight there should be no such thing as the unexpected for all should in fact be expected so all things might be prepared for.

In the time which they had been together thus far, Elda had grown to be quite found of Barley despite any feelings of uncertainty and doubt she might have started with. He did have a good sense of humor, and a manner that was overall impossible not to like, not to mention a seemingly never ending patience and an equally never ending list of stories he was eager and willing to tell. Barely was in turn quite pleased to have someone he might share all his stories with. It was good to have someone to talk to again, so long he had traveled the road alone, and he did have to admit to himself it felt quite well to have someone that he knew looked up to him and was eager to learn from him. It made him feel appreciated once more. As well Elda did remind him somewhat of the Gnord womenfolk back home, a place he had not been in so very long, though she was quite a bit smaller. She did not intimidate him unlike many of the women he had met since leaving home, not that he feared any assault from the women, but rather he feared he might do them some injury whether it be bodily or otherwise. He found it difficult to speak to them, as Gnords had a certain way that these women did not seem to appreciate, as well they seemed so frail, though some he met were more stout then others, Elda seemed quite lively, easy going, and seemingly well rooted to the earth unlike other women who seemed always to be half in the sky or half in the water.

They would be halfway through their meal when it would be disturbed quite suddenly. First by a feeling of the earth trembling beneath their feet and making the foundations of the building shake, the tables and dishes quiver and the windows rattle. Earth tremblers as most came to call them usually meant one thing, but it was something so terrible and unbelievable that many did not want to think it so, and always tried to write it off from their minds as being something else, but this thinking tended to prove faulty, and it would be so now. The ripple of the earth would be soon followed by another sound. A sound almost like thunder but it did not come from above, it came from below, as if the earth was opening up, and indeed it was. Forced open, the ground would crack and groan before giving way, and that is when the screaming would begin, for out of those holes made within the earth there came forth the most vile, disgusting creatures ever to breath life.

They were known as Hodgenobblers, and they lived exclusively underground in vast tunnels which they marched through, being generally nomadic in nature. They were incredibly ugly, with brown thick skin which appeared to be in a state of decay sagging off their bodies, jagged long teeth almost like tusks protruded from their lips, their noses were no more then large holes in their faces, their eyes almost invisible, as they were no more then two black pinpoints, which their flesh almost grew completely over, they had long thick nails meant for digging through the earth and were nearly hairless, with only a few coarse hairs which dotted their bodies. In addition to that they also smelled like death itself. They usually traveled in large numbers, but were not truly social, and did not seem to really get along with one another or take any notice to each other. They did it only for the power of being able to outnumber those they descended upon. Hodgenobblers were almost completely blind, but had an acute sense of hearing and smell, they traveled underground until they heard the signs of a village above then they would burst forth from the earth and overtake the village, dragging the victims down with them to feast upon.
Even as Elda and Barley were upon their feet before the scream, and out the door just after it, chaos and mayhem had already began to in sue. The people of the village ran in a panic of fear, not truly knowing where to go, and were quickly ran down by the Hogdenobblers. Barely would be quick to draw his sword, but instead of rushing into battle with it he turned to Elda and tossed it to her. "HERE!" He bellowed to her, as she caught the sword within her hand a bit clumsily perhaps as she was not yet quite trained, looking confused as to just what he was doing, he would waste little time. "Get the people to safety." With that he strode forward into the mess, and tossed back his head giving a mighty bellow that seemed it would carry for miles, and shook the earth itself. This would indeed catch the attention of the Hogdenobblers, and several of them turned to Barley and began to charge forward at him. One thing Gnords did have was an incredible raw physical power, though mild-mannered and slow to temper, woe be it to the one who awakened their rage.
Barley crushed the skull of the first creature to reach him with a single fist, dropping him dead instantly, another was lifted into the air and dashed upon the ground, its neck broken under his boot. One of the Hodgenobblers had attached itself to his back, clawing and biting. He reached behind him and grabbed hold of it to peel it off his back and hurl it like a rag doll through the air where it would splatter against the side of the nearest building, which was some 20ft away. At the same time Barley had sent his foot into another of the creatures, which caused it to fly back some 10ft and whither upon the ground in pain. Though this was a most impressive and even somewhat frightening sight, Elda would waste no time. She began to do her best to restore order among the people as she would start to gather them up as quickly as she could, and shout to them instruction, so they would not be scattered and made easy game, but not all of the Hodgenobblers were so occupied with the Gnord, and she found use for her sword. At least she did have a natural quickness as she dodged their strikes and would not hesitate to thrust her sword within them, twisting the blade to worsen the wound as she did so before pulling out. When the sword would be withdrawn, it was not blood upon the blade, but a thick dark, near black substance that seemed to ooze. While she got the people organized in a line and walking toward the barn to take shelter she did her best to keep the Hodgenobblers away from them, but it was not easy work.

Once the people of the village had been herded into the barn and locked within, there were only the two of them, Elda and Barley for the Hodgenobblers to focus on. Barley was still fighting his heart out, and holding his own, there was a large swarm around him and he would not be able to hold it off forever, and she was getting tired as she dodged attacks, and slashed with her sword. She knew what had to be done, or else they would come to their end, and then it would not take long for the creatures to break into the barn, but first she needed to make some space for herself. Her eyes scanned the area before seeing just what she needed and fending off the nearest Hodgenobbler she turned and darted, though it was not long before two others were bearing down after her, she dodged between two buildings into an alley where she climbed up upon a couple of old carts and used that to help pull her up on the roof. The ones who pursued her would stand below confused and unable to figure out how to get up, if they tried to use the crates their weight would likely break them. Once she was upon the rooftop she stretched out her arms with her palms facing up and closed her eyes. She began to feel the air and draw energy around her. The clouds would slowly start to move in and darken the sky and she reached out for it with her own energy force and probed around until she found what she was looking for. There came a the low rumbling sound of thunder, as the electricity within the clouds began to gather and she drew down the lightning, directing where it would strike with the precision that an archer shoots his arrows. A hail of lighting came from the sky. The sleek electrical bolts struck the Hodgenobblers where they stood and instantly frying them. The heavy smell of burned flesh hung in the air, to the point that it was almost nauseating, but more and more the bodies of the Hodgenobblers began to litter the ground. The assault seemed to cause a panic in those that still remained, and they withdrew from their attack and began to run back to their holes and dive into the earth, going underground where it would be safe. Once the last of them had disappeared from sight, she waited a tense moment before doing anything to make sure that was it, and they would not come back. Then slowly she lowered her hands, as she let go of the energy and the clouds began to break up and move on again, with a sigh she would make her way back down.

9:48 PM - 2/9/2006 - post comment

Great Writing

After you left me a comment, I decided to check out your blog. Great writing, very interesting to read. Have a great weekend.

Dariana - 3:12 AM - 2/10/2006

Thank you

Thank you, I am glad you enjoyed it

SilverWind - 8:07 AM - 2/10/2006

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