Chapter Three

Riddles and Dwarf Soup?

"If you're going, through hell keep on going

Don't slow down, if you're scared don't show it

You might get out before the devil even knows you're there"

It had been nearly five minutes since she asked the riddle, and I was still thinking. I was drawing a blank.. this was ridiculous. I was going to be eaten by a damn troll! A troll!

"You lose, the time is up!" She roared.

"No! Just.. wait! Repeat it!" I shouted, desperation coloring my tone.

"That's against the rules!" She hissed.

"No it isn't. We never made any rules." I snapped, "Repeat the riddle."

She ground her yellow teeth and growled, "What always runs, but never walks, often murmurs but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats?"

I thought and thought..

"This is an easy one! You lose!" She cackled.

She talked a lot, I learned.. always babbling.. babbling! Babbling! A babbling brook!

"A river!" Not necessarily a brook, but certainly related.

She hissed, punching the wall of the cave. I ducked as some fragment pebbles sprinkled from the ceiling, bouncing off of my head.

"My turn.." I nodded, grinning. But froze. I didn't know any riddles... unless.

"Why is a raven like a writing desk?" I asked, smiling. I didn't know the answer.. And I hoped she didn't either. If she did, I was screwed.

She thought and thought, her face twisting horribly in thought.

"Give up?" I smiled, feeling awfully proud.

She hissed, "Ask me another! Another!" She roared, stomping her foot.

"No. I cannot ask you another riddle when you haven't answered that one!" I shrugged.

"That's not fair! Not fair! I win! I always win!"

As she threw a tantrum I took my opportunity and ran my sword through her large gullet.

She let out a strained squeal, slapping me into the cavern wall. I thumped against the stone and flopped onto the ground, I stood slowly, my head dizzy.

She ran off down the tunnel, squawking and squealing.

I rubbed my dinged head and jogged after her. I found her with the others, they all surrounded her as she bawled, the trolls turned and roared at me.

"Oh hell.." I turned and ran as they chased me. Before they were mad but now they were furious. I ducked and rolled, and got them to actually run into the walls of the caves. Turning and nearly spilling myself on bunch of spears in a barrel, an idea clicked.

I snagged a few spears and wedged them in holes in the cavern walls. The spears jutted out, the sharp dagger like end poking out into the middle of the passageway. Some spears were near the ground, others almost to their heads.

After I had them placed in various quick curves. I knew I'd be able to get the dumber ones to run into the spears and skewer themselves.

"Hey!" I shouted, two of the trolls turned and stared at me.

"There she is!"

"Git 'er!"

They ran, I ran just slow enough to get them to think they almost had me, but at the curve I sped up and pressed myself against the curve itself as the trolls ran straight into the wall and (Yes!) skewered themselves.

I winced as they coughed and fell dead, there wasn't much blood. Which I was thankful for.. I wasn't sure how'd I react to a large amount of blood, and now was not the time to faint.

I silently roamed around and set up the same trap at other places. I found a sword in a corner of what looked like a trophy room. The blade was long and curved, very shiny. The handle was silver with a black wrap for a grip with silver embroidery. The scabbard was black with the same silver embroidery. The handle was longer, with my hands spaced and gripping it, there was still plenty of room for nearly two more hands. The blade was long, but not as long as the handle led you to think.

I tied it to my waist and felt much more partial to this sword than the banged up other one stuck in the trollop's gut. There also were a few more swords.. After I dispatched these trolls, I should bring these back to the cave and have Jake pick out two..

I slunk around, listening.

They were quiet, very quiet.

And I didn't like it.

Getting rid of the last two trolls was harder than the others. These were slightly smarter, but slower. So they were able to make it passed the spears.

I watched as one of the them fell due to the lower spears, I quickly grabbed a loose spear and drove it into the troll's neck. He gurgled a moment, then he fell dead and I took off again.

An enraged scream and I heard stomps after me, I knew the other troll had seen his fallen brother.

I felt guilty and I quickly squashed it. These creatures killed and ate families, innocent kids and animals. I gritted my teeth with renewed anger, grabbing another spear, I waited around the corner.

I heard the stomping and timed it, just as he stepped beyond me, I drove the spear into his back, straight through his ribs. He choked and fell to his knees, roaring and swung at me, again I was knocked into the wall.

I scooted and slid away, as he punched the ground just where I was not two seconds ago. His eyes rolled to the back of his head. I must have hit his lung.. He suffocated.. I frowned and shooed away the saddened thoughts and reminded myself that these were baby killers.

I growled softly... Only the trollop was left.

I found her in the wide room where they were asleep a mere hour ago.

She sneered, pulling the blade from her gullet and dropped it.

"You will need more than that to kill me, dwarf."

There it was again.. that word. "I am not a dwarf." I snapped.

I pulled my new sword from it's sheath, as I did this, the blade seemed to sing. I took a position, knowing that the position was generally used for when I wielded a katana.. but it should serve the same purpose, ..right?

"I will make you pay for what you did to my husbands." She growled, chomping her rotten teeth, "Dwarf."

Husbands? ..but she called them her brothers. Gross.

I didn't have much time to decipher if they really were her brothers or husbands.. or both. She ran at me, I dodged and ducked, quickly hacking at her ankles and back. Each time she swung her hand at me, I cut at her fists and wrists and when I could, I slashed at her gullet and neck.

She wasn't so quick, but she was smarter, she kept her limbs to her sides and only struck when she thought she could hit me. She only hit me a handful of times, knocking me across the vast room or into a wall. Luck was on my side as I dodged most of her strikes.

It scared me how much I relied on luck.. I needed to rely on my strength and speed.. things I knew, not things that could or couldn't come through.. because one day, that luck was going to run out.

And where would I be then?

She punched me into a wall and ran at me. I rolled away and stood swiftly, she kicked my sword away and I swallowed.

"Damn.."

"What is your name..? Perhaps I'll create a soup after you." She laughed, resting her hands on her gullet.

"It's Jenna!" I shouted.

"Jenna the Dwarf!" She ran at me, thinking since I had no visible blade.. that she had me. But she was wrong.. I wasn't fighting for myself. My brother needed me. I was fighting for him.

As she swung at me, I leapt into the air, using her fist as a step up. I landed each foot on her shoulders, I yanked my daggers out of my waistcoat and quickly buried the blades into her eyes with an enraged cry.

In a flash she was dead. She fell and I hopped away before she could crush me.

I pulled my daggers out of her skull, seeing her eyes stuck to the blades, I squealed and freaked out. It took me some time to build up the courage to get them off, I wiped the blades clean on some nearby fabric. I put the blades back into their scabbards on my back beneath the waistcoat.

I sighed, my body ached and I was tired.

I had no idea I would have ever had to fight trolls for survival..

.`.`.
` `

I walked around the cave for hours, grabbing what I wanted and what I knew Jake would have wanted. I piled the things at the mouth of the cave. Several beautiful, intricate swords, just as intricate daggers. A gorgeous gray-silver bow with runes etched and matching quiver full of arrows. Several cloaks, traveling bags, and two shields. I had found another bow and quiver set. I found an amazing saddle and added that to the pile. I found a few other things, cookware, a guitar, a flute, even a few empty books.

Stepping out into the wilderness, I had forgotten how disgusting it smelled in there until I inhaled the fresh wild air out there.

I sighed, glancing around and remember that my horse- pony- had left me.

I whistled and called softly, afraid something else would come instead.

Hearing nothing, I went back inside, one last round.

I found something that I hadn't found the first time around. It was a carrel, deep inside, full of sheep, cows, and horses! They all looked well fed and healthy, despite living in a troll den.

"Well now.. I'm glad I came back.. I'll let them know that you're here, all right? They'll come get you." I smiled and rubbed a goat's nose. I wanted the goat. My greediness reared it's head, but when you go from everything to nothing in a heartbeat, you want to fill that emptiness up. And I knew Jake would get a kick out of it.

"How would you like to come home with me?" I rubbed the goat's head and he seemed to nod. I unhitched the carrel and let him out, and surprisingly, he stuck close to me. Seeing one of the horses and glancing to the pile of stuff, I nodded, "All right. Two of you. One for Jake.. one for the stuff, and if that runaway of a 'pony' gets back, she'll be mine again."

I went and found another saddle and bridle, and blanket and grabbed the set I had already found, I carried them back. I quickly saddled two horses, one was large and brown with bits of white in his mane, tail, and rump. The other was a large fluffy looking gray horse. Saddling them was easy since Boran had shown me how to saddle the white pony this morning.

I led the two out, the goat following. I packed the stuff onto the large gray horse, who seemed to not care at all. Seeing as how we had horses now, I gnawed on the inside of my cheek and nodded, feeling awfully greedy. I ducked around the troll den and found several saddlebags.

Now I was prepared, I walked towards the old path, the goat at my heels and the horses at my side.

It was awfully strange. the forest seemed the breathe a sigh in relief at the death of the trolls. The birds sang, and the bugs chirped, the wind blew gently and the air was full of honeysuckle and lilac!

Hearing a noise ahead of me, I saw my pony burst through the bushes.

"Hiya, girl." I tied the reins of the large gray to the brown's saddle, then the brown's reins to the white pony's saddle.

I hope I did that right..

I mounted my pony, who was rather small compared to the others. At my goat's bleat, I paused. I hopped off, stuck the goat on the saddle, and climbed back up and sat the goat on my lap. The goat stayed quiet and chewed on something.

I rode for what seemed forever, the sun beginning to set and finally I was back. I entered the village's front gate and earned many glances but none as severe as before. I guessed it was the clothes.

I rode right into the backyard of the Inn where the stables and well was.

The Inn's kitchen door swung open and Jake flew out, "Oh wow! You did it!"

"Duh, you doubted me?" I chuckled as he ran to my side.

"That's a goat!" he gushed.

"Yep, he's our pet." I nodded, smiling. The goat leaped down and stared up at Jake.

Jake pet him and the goat grunted softly, "I think he likes me." Jake grinned happily.

"I hope so." I slid down, and winced. I was not cut out for this lifestyle. Everything hurt, hell I think the morrow in my bones hurt.

The bartender and Boran walked out, admiring the horses and loot on the big gray's back, "Amazing."

"I knew you could do it." Boran smiled, puffing at his pipe, pride danced in his storm gray eyes.

"Sure." I chuckled, "Oh! There are sheep, horses, and cows in the troll's den. I wasn't sure what to do with them, so.. they're there. Straight back and in a corral." I said to the bartender who nodded.

"We shall go there first thing tomorrow. And is this what you have chosen?" He gestured to the stuff.

"Yes... I felt it was proper. There is a lot of gold and other treasures in there, but I only took what we need." I nodded, remember the gold and gems and my heart soared with sore greed. But we didn't need shiny things, we needed beds and blankets..

"Thank you.." Boran smiled, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"You're welcome." I smiled back, blushing.

I looked to Jake who was petting the large gray horse.

Maybe.. just maybe, this new world wasn't going to be so bad afterall.

Author's note:

You go, cowgirl. Stick around!

Rodney Atkins, "If You're Going Through Hell"