"Strangers In The Mist"

part I

cheetah the furry/JG

1-15-97 to ? ?

Background: This story details the events unknown to humans surrounding young Gowain’s discovery in the Northern Mountains, near Ursalia. As stated by Cavin: "…he startled a strange, bouncing creature, who accidentally dropped a gummi medallion…"

Breathing hard, the gummi looked about warily before entering the stone-covered passage built by his ancestors. A light was farther down the dark passage and waiting at the light was an older gummi he had grown increasingly familiar with these last few days. Crowned and yellow-furred, he kneeled before his king.

"I’ve failed, Your Majesty." His voice bore heavy regret.

The crowned gummi slumped some at this sad news. "You didn’t find it?"

The other raised his head to meet eyes. "No, Your Highness. I found it, but I failed in returning with it. It was where Yolli hid it. I’d just closed the secret door and stuck in my pocket when she spotted me. She wasn’t as easy to outsmart this time. I barely got away and hid in the bushes below the cliffs to see if she followed. A rockfall startled me and… I thought it was her, Sire. But as I bounced overhead, I saw through the dust that it was a human child who’d fallen. Knowing she couldn’t be far behind, I didn’t stop. When I thought it was safe, I reached in for the medallion and found the hole it fell through. It must’ve got torn in our first encounter. I went back right away but it was gone. So was the boy. I found her again but she had neither the medallion nor the boy. He must have picked it up."

"At least that monster didn’t get her hands on it. Did the boy see you?"

"I think… Maybe." The other gummi rose. "I know I can find the boy and get the medallion back, King Elderberry."

"No, Blurri. Human curiosity and greed will bring him back here. We can’t chance you being seen by going after the boy at this point. Where there is one human child, there are many humans. When he comes, we’ll meet him on our own court."

"But what if she finds him first?"

The gummi king smiled wryly in the dim situation. "Then we’ll just have to do something. Come. We must return to Ursalia."

A green-furred gummi was first to greet their return from her post at the hidden entrance to the once-heavily-populated gummi capitol. The warrior-clad gummi bowed as her King approached.

Elderberry waved her up. "There’s no time for formality in disaster, Lorri. Seal this entrance and join us in the main hall."

He turned to the other beside him. "Blurri, you’ll find Blammi, Muddi, and Sir Thornberry in the lower levels. Bring them to the main hall. I’ll find the others and meet you both there."

With a nod to them both, King Elderberry started on the task. Lorri and Blurri also separated, he striding quickly down the corridor.

He found Blammi, Sir Thornberry, and Muddi searching the lower levels for any lost passages. Such were common after the Ancients’ Fall brought Ursalia to it’s knees. After being rebuilt, the lost tunnelways were forgotten completely. Lady Malicea, however, had somehow gotten the blueprints to their ancient relics and all had to be sealed or destroyed by other means. It was a terrible waste. All of it…

Blurri met eyes with the three gummies as he strode in. "We’re to meet in the main hall; now."

Turning on his heels, he led the way. The others followed with intrepidation, Blammi siding up beside him.

"Was it there?" the deep-voiced and muscly plum-furred bear asked.

Blurri nodded. "I… I lost it, to a human boy."

"Then let’s get it back!" Blammi declared.

"King Elderberry wants us to wait."

"Why?" queried Muddi from behind him. The green-brown gummi was frowning his puzzlement.

"We can take the young whippersnapper." Sir Thornberry added.

Blurri looked at the old gummi knight. "But can we also deal with the other humans who’d probably see us?"

"Sure we can." Blammi answered too quickly.

"And then every human would know where we are."

Just like he’d seen his King’s wisdom, they now saw it, as well. Living so far from humans had made them too lax, too complaisant. Human habitation had spread faster and become closer than any gummi could have realized. And now Ursalia was empty but for a brave few rounding up what they could of the treasures of gummi history that could never be left to invading humans.

When they entered the main hall, quite a large and well-decorated room despite desertion, King Elderberry was waiting, along with Lorri, Durri, and Koffi. Blurri, Muddi, Sir Thornberry, and Blammi met them.

"So, how are we gonna get it back by wait’n?" the oldster asked of his king.

Koffi, brown cream-furred, looked worried at this news. "Don’t tell me she’s got the last medallion!"

"No." Blurri answered, feeling his failure doubled. "But she knows I found it. A boy picked it up… I was careless. He might have seen me."

"And we will wait for the boy’s curiosity to bring him back, hopefully alone, before we take action in that matter." the King answered Sir Thornberry. "I don’t think she’d risk being seen by a whole human village either so the medallion should be safe, for now. Blurri; you, Durri, and Blammi will go find his home and keep watch only. And try to find where she’s taking rest but be very cautious."

Blurri gave a nod. "We’ll be gone within the quarter." He and his group left to gather a few supplies.

King Elderberry turned to those remaining. "The rest of us must come up with a way to get the third medallion back and defeat her."

On the trail of the boy, Durri led. He was most excellent in his abilities—almost bizarrely so. Using only his eyes, nose, and brain, he’d once tracked a lost button from inside Ursalia to where it had washed down a mile in a stream in spring and finally sat frozen in ice at winter, an in half a day!

"Do you think you can find the boy?" Blurri asked, still upset and angry over his holed pocket. It was affecting his thinking, for he did not consider an insignificant button anywhere near the importance of finding one of Ursalia’s three Great Gummi Medallions.

The cocky, blue-furred bear just looked at him and smiled. "I’m the best. You know that. YOU could even track this one." he added, smiling bigger, but then he turned serious. "Maybe you should. I can track down Lady Malicea while you find the boy and I’ll meet up with you there."

Blurri and Blammi reluctantly agreed to the split before continuing toward the nearest human village. Durri ran back the way they’d come.

"Maybe I should go with him." Blammi suggested as an afterthought.

"Too late. He’s already gone." And, as Blurri said, there was no trace of the blue-furred tracker.

Within the main hall in Ursalia, King Elderberry and the others were still discussing how to get the third medallion away from the plaguing half-kyne, Lady Malicea, when the Watch gave a cry for assistance, running into the room.

"Blurri and Blammi are back! Durri’s hurt."

The gummies in question entered in quite a tired rush, supporting Durri on either side.

"What happened?" asked the King as all hurried to help.

Blammi handed the injured friend to Muddi and Lorri, nearly growling. "I should’ve gone with him!"

"He thought he could track her faster if we split up, Blammi and I after the boy and he after her. Well, he found her." Blurri answered.

They lay Durri on the ground, who said with a weak smile, "I… I can track, but I never… was a good fighter."

"Muddi, Blammi; bring some bedding and cloth."

"Right away." Muddi answered his King. He and Blammi hurried out to do so.

King Elderberry moved closer to Blurri and asked quietly. "How badly is he hurt?"

"I… I don’t know. Healing and medicine are two things I have no experience with."

"I, too, know little. I don’t think any here have a great abundance of that knowledge either."

"I do think he requires a healer. He’s in more pain than he’s showing."

King Elderberry nodded. "Then we’ll have to let him sleep until we find one. Get the slumber powder from the supply room."

Blurri nodded and left. The King moved closer to Durri. He knelt and saw the deep pain beginning to show on his face.

"I…told them already where she’s… made camp. She wears the medallion around her waist."

"Lie still, Durri. You’ve done a tremendous job." his King commended.

Blammi and Muddi returned, the plum-furred gummi carrying an entire bed into the hall! Blurri entered just as Durri was placed comfortably.

King Elderberry took the small container from Blurri’s outstretched hand, poured a little into his palm, and blew it lightly toward Durri. The wounded gummi was sound asleep in seconds.

The gummi king sighed deeply and turned back to the others as he rose. "I’m afraid we haven’t been as successful in thinking up a way to get the third medallion away from her. Even if one of us were a wizard, we couldn’t use the other two to call the third here. She placed a protection spell around herself with her own magic so we can’t touch it or her. She must be forced to take it off before we can get to it."

"I see." Blurri sighed.

"Then we’ll come up with a way to make her take it off."

Thornberry nodded a second to Blammi’s decree.

A commotion startled them. Blurri, Blammi, Lorri, and Sir Thornberry crept closer to the door outside the hall, from which the noises came.

"This the one with the trap?" Lorri asked.

Sir Thornberry answered. "Yep." He stepped closer, sword ready. Grasping the handle, he opened the door quickly. A violet-furred female gummi dangled ungracefully upside-down from within a net.

"Jazzi??" the four chorused.