Young Writers Society

"Alright I will tell you about it. There were trees stretching for miles beyond sight to the north and west, though to the east there was a large range of mountains. But to the south not more than a few miles I could see the waters of some lake or ocean stretching on for miles and miles beyond the edge of sight. After I was up on my perch for a short time I saw a large flock of bird flying toward us over the mountains. It was rather strange. While I was still watching them you two began hollering up at me to come down though!"

"Well it's nice that you waited so long to tell us about all these things isn't it?" RP asked.

"It took my breath away, so I wouldn't haven been able to tell you anything!" Racen retorted.

RP folded his arms across his chest and rolled his eyes upward toward the blue skyline.

"Hmm," Wold said thought thoughtfully before biting at an annoying flea. "Our objective is to get out of this forest somehow, right?" she asked. "It seems to me that going up into the foothills of a large mountain range wouldn't help our plight much. There are more animals to kill in a forest than the mountains; so it seems to me that we should head south toward the sea. There are bound to be some people there that would be willing to help us. We might even get passage on some ship that could take us where we need to go, wherever that is."

Racen agreed with Wold wholeheartedly. If nothing else we will be able to see the sea! But RP disagreed. He thought that they should head to the mountains.

"Who knows! There might just be a community of dwarvish miners there! They would give us the food that we need and they might even offer their protection. I say we go east!"

"But there's no certainty that there will be any miners there, much less that we can find them and be protected they might even try to kill us somehow! Besides, the mountains will be colder than going by the sea. We don't have thick clothing like Wold's fur you know!"

"Still, what kind of food would we eat?" RP asked incredulously stamping his pickaxe on the ground for emphasis. "We can't catch fish without a boat or any fishing rods, you know!"

"I am sure I could dig up a few clams," Wold said. "It shouldn't be that hard to do."

"That might work," RP said reluctantly. "But we can't live on a diet of clams for a week!"

"Why don't we put it to a vote?" Racen suggested. "That way we won't have to sit here all day arguing about it. We might as well get it over with as quickly as we possible can after all."

"That's unfair!" RP exclaimed. "You know very well that I am at a disadvantage since Wold is siding with you! That's two versus one. Why don't we flip a coin or something like that."

"Well for one thing we don't have a coin." Racen pointed out. RP bored his eyes into her.

"That would leave it up to chance whether we would go east or south." Wold said.

"I am perfectly fine with that wolf!" RP said testily. "I honestly don't care where we go as long as there is plenty of food and I am not forced into going somewhere that I don't want to go."

"Actually I do have a coin in my pocket," Racen said. "We could use it if you insist RP." She pulled out a shiny bronze coin with the image of a cherry tree on it. "Heads or tails, RP?"

"You decide," he said brushing Racen off "I honestly could care less. It doesn't matter much."

"We will have tails," Racen said setting the ring on top of her thumb the coin spiraled up into the air rising several inches above her fist before falling down to the earth with I dull thud. The cherry tree facing upwards. "Well, I guess you won RP." Racen said before stooping down and retrieving the coin from a pile of bristling dead pine needles. The dwarf smiled.

"Well let's go back to the cave and gather our supplies." He said asserting his authority.

Racen sighed. I hope I don't regret this! I should have just insisted on going south!

"Don't forget your bow, Racen," Wold said gently. Racen jerked to a halt. And looked back.

"Thank you for reminding me, Wold. I almost forgot about that! I wouldn't want to forget it and then remember that I had lost it! I would never forgive myself!" She ran back to the tree and slung it across her back.

When they were all back at the cave they split the materials between each other. RP ended up carrying the most food out of other two in the trio because he was the strongest. Thankfully he didn't make a big scene about having to carry more than his share! That is a blessing.

"You lead the way RP," Racen said. "It was your idea to come this way after all." RP agreed.

"That is fine with me. Just to let you two know, I go at a pretty fast pace and I don't wait for any of those who are lagging behind; so you'd better keep up. Now let's get goin'."

With that the three unlikely companions start trekking cross country toward the nearest trail in the direction of the Deor Mountain Range. This was identified on the map (given to them be the author) that Racen held in the folds of her clothing. Ever so often RP would call and halt and ask Racen if he could have a look at the map. These halts were the only respite that the party had. Racen and Wold learned to take advantage of these halts rather quickly.

After they had been on the road for nearly six hours RP called for another halt it was only the third halt that they had made that day. Racen and Wold collapsed on the ground almost at once. It was just a little after noon and they were already exhausted from traveling, especially as it began to warm up in the pine forest.

Whew! I am hardly even hungry for lunch right now! Racen wiped office sweat running down onto her cheeks and forehead.

"You two better hurry up and get out whatever you are going to eat or else you will have to eat on the fly," RP said. "We will stop for forty five minutes to let your food settle a little bit, but that only gives you about twenty minutes to eat you know. Hurry up." Racen sighed and rolled over onto her back. I just don't feel like getting up and eating anything just yet.

"I suppose he is right," Wold said shaking her fur. Drops of sweat went flying everywhere.

"Good grief, Wold!" Racen exclaimed. "Don't do that! People generally don't really enjoy it if they are getting another person, or animals, sweat flying in their face you know."

"Sorry," Wold said apologetically. "I didn't think about it that way." Racen's eyes softened.

"No. I suppose you wouldn't. But come. Now isn't the time to be quibbling. We should start eating, like RP said. After all we don't have much time as it is. Walking all that distance makes one grow awfully hungry you know. I am tired of course, but I am even more hungry."

"Your right," Wold said extending her body in a good stretch. "Now that you mention it I am rather hungry. In fact, I am as hungry as a Wolf!" She said, her eyes glinting like diamonds.

"Hahaha!" Racen chuckled. "That's a good one. I never thought about it that way before!"

"If you two ladies don't stop yakking and laughing then you will never be able to eat!"

"Oh, stop being a stick in the mud!" Racen exclaimed putting her hands on her hips.

"The only one who will be stuck here in the mud is you if you don't hurry up." RP retorted.

Racen looked at RP as if he were madman and shook her head back and forth. Why doesn't he just get a life? I mean seriously...it's almost as if he is intentionally being obnoxious to annoy me. I'm not quite sure why though. It's not as if I am trying to annoy him or anything like that.

Racen pulled out an average sized loaf of bread and cut off several slices. She didn't have any butter or anything to put on it, but at that point she was too tired to care. She was more tired and thirsty to care about what her food tasted like at that point. After each bite she would take a sip out of her canteen. By the time she finished eating she had consumed the entire bottle.

"Where is the nearest stream?" Racen asked RP who was now the map with his right hand as it rested on his knee and his canteen in the other hand. "I am out of water already."

"I don't know," RP said. "But the question is, where is the nearest spring with pure water. I can see dozens of springs and small rivers but it is likely that most of them are impure."

"Well don't we have something that will make them pure?" Racen asked impatiently.

"No. Not here at any rate. We will have to put up with being thirsty or risking becoming sick."

"Well why didn't you tell us that in the first place! You were the one who wanted us to come this way in the first place; so you should've taken that into consideration beforehand, RP!"

"Listen," he said defensively. "You will just have to go thirsty for a while. How far is it to the mountains from here. Two or three days journey? Well I am sure you can abide being thirsty for that long. Once we get there, there will surely be a number of good springs with pure water."

"I have no idea how long it was to the mountains, but elves have farther eyesight than you or Wold have. I would say it is at least forty to fifty miles away. It will be a long trek to go without a drop of water you know. I could live with water for a week without doing much activity..."

"Well if any of us becomes sick it will be up to them to get to the mountains alone because I am not going to risk all of our lives for the sake of one!"