Finding Monsters (5 page)

“Please!” the squirrel said in disgust before he side stepped the clumsy move and smacked the hy
e
na’s hindquarters on the way by.

Ginger gave a running commentary on Sir Alastaire’s techniques. “He wounded the other two first see, and then went after the big one last. If he can get the leader to turn tail and run, the others will follow. Hyenas are powerful but not too bright, my dear. By the way, what brings you out here all alone?”

“I’m on a quest to become a monster,” Missy said. “I’m bound to my monster, Cha
r
lie, but because I am only a human, he is weak. If I become a monster, he will be strong again.”

Ginger patted Missy’s arm. “Sounds like you really fancy this monster of yours to go on such a dangerous quest.”

“I do,” Missy said, unable to hide a smile and the flush of her cheeks.

“And does this monster of yours return your affection?” Ginger asked.

“He does,” came a voice from the branches above them. Missy looked up to see a large swallowtail bu
t
terfly just out of reach.

“Charlie!” Missy beamed. “What are you doing here? How did you get here? I thought you were too weak to transform?”

The butterfly fluttered down and came to rest on her knee. “It’s complicated. I’m not really here. I sent my reflection to watch over you. I can see whatever it sees in this form, and right now, I see the squirrel has got the hyenas on the run.”

They all looked down to see Sir Alastaire giving chase to the three hyenas as they ran away, limping and whimpering. After a few minutes, Sir Alastaire r
e
turned to the tree with a smug look on his face.

“That was fantastic. Thank you,” Missy said.

“Remember your promise, girl,” Sir Alastaire said.

“Yes, of course!” Missy said. She pulled a fur skin pouch from around her waist and looked into the hollow from which Sir Alastaire first appeared. She scooped up the nuts in large handfuls and deposited them into her pouch. It barely shut around the load. She started her descent from the tree as the squirrels gathered their other belongings. Trying not to look down, Missy swung limb to limb, taking care to watch her foo
t
ing, but her hands lost their grip. She tumbled down the last few feet and landed with a thud, a few nuts spilling from her pouch. Charlie fluttered down to check on her.

“You ok?”

“Yes, my first tree climb. I guess coming down is harder than it looks,” Missy said as she gathered the spilled acorns and the ones she’d hurled toward the hyenas earlier. She rose to her feet, smoothing down her tunic and rubbing her bottom to r
e
lieve the sor
e
ness.

“You need a lot of work, Missy,” Sir Alastaire said. “Come on. I’ll teach you the fundamentals as we search for a suitable new tree.”

T
hey walked for hours toward the north. Sir Alastaire had a location in mind not far from a stream perhaps a day’s walk from their former residence. Mi
s
sy filled them in on her quest and her first assig
n
ment to challenge The Devil.

“I’ve heard of him alright. Nasty beast if you ask me and sorely ill tempered,” Sir Alastaire said. Missy thought about this for a few minutes, and then it dawned on her.

“You mean, he’s a Tasmanian Devil?”

“Course he is, what did you think? Anyway, you’ll need lots of training to fight against him.” He looked around for a suit
a
ble staff. He settled for the branch of an oak and set to trimming it as they walked. After his staff was prepared, they stopped in a shady grove. Ginger began making a light lunch for the group as Missy followed Ala
s
taire for her first lesson.

“Mind you, it takes years to learn to use a staff or any weapon well, so pay attention and learn quick if you don’t want to lose your head.” Alastaire showed her how to hold the staff and how to stand at a defe
n
sive position. He showed her the basic blocks and pa
r
ries needed in defense. Then he showed her the o
f
fensive moves of sweeps and glides. After an hour, Ginger called them to lunch. Missy sat near the wildflowers with Cha
r
lie. She ate a few small tart be
r
ries Ginger gathered during her training while Charlie sipped nectar. They rested for a few minutes more b
e
fore starting on their way. Missy practiced as she walked with Alastaire giving pointers as they went. As the sun started to fade, they found a small clearing surrounded by thickets to rest for the night. Missy and Charlie took the first watch as the squirrels nestled t
o
gether to sleep.

“Missy, you don’t have to do this,” Charlie said, his ner
v
ousness causing his voice to tremble.

“Yes I do, Charlie. I know what it’s like to be weak, for others to care for you and protect you from harm. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, especially if I had the power to change it. I have that power now, Charlie, and I won’t be a hindrance to you.” Missy’s eyes burned in resignation.

“I’ll love you no matter what the outcome, remember that.” Charlie smiled his little insect smile at her and she laughed.

When morning dawned, the group was already up and moving. They plucked berries and ate as they walked. Ginger found grubs for Missy, who initially declined them but was forced to eat a few at Sir Ala
s
taire’s stern orders.

“You can’t fight if you’re hungry, girl. Eat up. They’re good for you.”

She obeyed and swallowed them quickly to avoid tasting them. Small clicking noises emanated from Charlie. Missy threw him an evil look for laughing at her. As noon approached, they came to a stream lined with luscious trees on either side of its banks. However, a troll stood guard on the bridge, his hooded cloak pulled low over his face.

“I thought this only happened in fair
y
tales,” Missy said to no one in particular.

“He looks like a dimwit to me. Find out what he wants, Missy. If we don’t have it, fight him for our pa
s
sage.”

Missy stared at the misshapen creature, her jaw slack. “Me?”

“You’ve been practicing. You need to work on your fighting skills before you get to that devil anyway. We’re lucky. Most trolls are over ten feet tall. This one’s a runt in compar
i
son. Go on now.” Sir Alastaire nudged her forward.

Missy pulled out her staff and walked up to the troll. “E
x
cuse me, Sir. We need to pass please.” Good manners for all occ
a
sions, her mother used to say.

The troll eyed her with suspicion. “You need to pay, same as everyone else.” He scratched his armpit and waited.

“Pay what?” Missy asked.

“Gold,” the troll said reaching his hand out for payment.

“I’m sorry, Sir. We don’t have any gold,” Missy fished in her pockets for an
y
thing valuable but all she came up with was fur. “Perhaps we can pay you double on our way back?”

“Gold or leave,” the troll said as he watched for the r
e
sponse, his hand still ou
t
stretched.

“I’m sorry, Sir,” Missy said with as much bravado as she could muster, “but we must pass. Step aside or else.” She pulled her staff to the ready and braced herself.

“Ump,” the troll grumbled as he went to the ce
n
ter of the rickety old bridge to r
e
trieve his club. Missy watched him swing as he ambled closer. His massive arms, like clubs themselves, were long and powerful. Missy backed off the bridge until both were on solid ground. They circled, sizing up each other.

Horrified, Charlie fluttered in a panic around Alastaire’s head squawking. “Stop her! Help her!”

“Quiet, boy. Let’s see how she does,” Sir Alastaire said.

Ginger offered Charlie a hand to land on, then reassured him things would be ok.

The troll lumbered forward, swinging his club at Missy, but she jumped out of the way with ease. She swung at the troll’s legs and landed a solid hit, which didn’t seem to faze him at all. He turned and swung again. Missy deflected the blow and jabbed the cre
a
ture in the belly. He ‘umped’ again, and then swung his club toward her head. Missy ducked then jabbed at his knee. The troll jumped back and frowned, rubbing it.

“Please let us pass, Sir,” Missy urged him. She squared off again and readied herself for more.

He stood, still rubbing his knee and thinking it over. “Promise to bring gold?” he said.

“Yes. I promise,” Missy said with a small smile.

“Go then, remember your promise,” he said as he stood aside.

Missy thanked him and their party crossed the bridge to the other side. They walked until they were out of sight of the bridge, and then Sir Alastaire hooted.

“Missy you were brilliant! That troll didn’t know what hit him, literally. You did fantastic, but you still need a lot of work. You left yourself open far too much, and your swings were hal
f
hearted.”

“I didn’t really want to hurt him,” Missy admitted.

“No mercy, my dear. That Devil will show you none.” Gi
n
ger interrupted their conversation.

“Alastaire, look.” She stared in awe at a massive tree with branches so high no one could possibly climb it. She shrank to no
r
mal size then scurried up to have a better look. Alastaire followed as both checked out the tree for current inhabitants.

“Empty!” he yelled back. “We’ll take it.” Sir Ala
s
taire set to work on making a rope from vines in order to haul up their acorns while Ginger cleaned out a sizable hollow for their new home. When they finished, Ginger gathered them a feast of be
r
ries, nuts, and grubs. Missy tried cooking the grubs shish kabob style this time and found their flavor equally revolting but their texture tolerable. As Missy and Charlie pr
e
pared for first watch, Alastaire stopped them.

“I’ll do full watch tonight. We’re close to Devil territory now, and you’ll need a full night’s rest if you want to challenge him.”

“Thank you, Sir Alastaire,” Missy said as she and Charlie settled down under the large tree for the night.

“One thing I’ll say before I go. Try your best, Missy, and don’t give up, even if it looks hopeless. Never give up,” Sir Alastaire said. Then he turned and went up the tree to keep watch.

M
issy woke long before dawn. She slipped away from the tree and practiced using her staff, swinging harder and perfec
t
ing her stances. She pushed the dread from her mind and co
n
centrated on her tec
h
nique.

“You’ll do fine, Missy,” Sir Alastaire said.

Missy whirled around to stare at him. “I didn’t see you,” she said.

“You just remember what I told you; do your best and don’t give up hope.”

Within the hour, the squirrels, Missy, and Charlie were on the move. They crested a small hill overloo
k
ing a bustling valley. The Devil’s territory proved smaller than the Bullclan’s, but the population rivaled it. They saw deer, rabbits, and all sorts of smaller cre
a
tures as they made their way to the largest of the structures. A large, sturdy structure made of wood and stone in the middle of the Devil’s bustling encam
p
ment seemed to be everyone’s destination. Missy wrapped on the door with her staff.

A doe-headed female in a long flowing white dress a
n
swered. “What is your purpose here?”

“I’ve come to challenge The Devil,” Missy said.

The Doe’s eyes widened a bit before she opened the door and led the way to the fighting chamber. Missy admired the grac
e
ful, fluid movements of the doe. Her slender human figure caused the silky fabric to shimmer like a pool of water flowing over her body. What little skin was visible, gli
s
tened in shades of cocoa and honey.

The challenges had already begun as they entered the room. Many gathered around in a circle to watch as the Tasm
a
nian Devil laid waste to an over e
a
ger young badger. He was smaller than the devil but he held his own against him, until in his haste, he left himself open to a massive backhand that left him disoriented. Missy watched in sickening horror as The De
v
il, who stood nearly the size of a black bear, defeated the badger in no time. She glanced over at Sir Alastaire, who gr
i
maced at the swift defeat.