The Overending Read online

  The Overending

  By the same author:

  Helga: Out of Hedgelands

  Silversion

  The

  Overending

  WOOD cOW cHRONICLES

  Volume Two

  Rick Johnson

  Dedicated to Admiral Edit

  and her crew, who bring

  every voyage to safe harbor

  Smashwords Edition

  Text Copyright © 2014 Rick Johnson

  All rights reserved

  Images used under license from Shutterstock.com

  Cover design by Pepper Graphics

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  Book One

  SnowFire

  Book Two

  Klemés’ Mutiny

  Book Three

  Red Wind in the Canyon

  Book One

  SnowFire

  Save Us Both, Or We Die

  After rescuing PorNart-1604 from certain death on the sacred climb, Emil’s desperate escape from Maev Astuté—the great castle of the High One—goes better and worse than expected. Finding himself and PorNart on an out-of-control balloon blasted by ferocious winds and subzero cold, plunging deeper and deeper into rugged, unknown lands, a battle for life and deliverance begins...

  “YARRR. . .EEEOOOOW!” Emil howled, hanging on for dear life as he flew out of Maev Astuté into thin air. Frigid, ice-edged wind kicked him in the face as he sailed hundreds of feet above the jagged rocks below. His heart thumped so hard he thought it would blast out of his chest. Then, without warning—HUMMMPF-WHOOOMPF—an explosive blast of compressed gas inflated the airship, and sent it rocketing upward. The powerful shockwave of the balloon inflating nearly knocked the unconscious PorNart loose from Emil’s grasp. He briefly let go of the steering gear to pull his unconscious companion closer, relying on his strong legs to keep them aboard. Whirling like a top in the slashing wind, the balloon seemed to lurch in all directions at once. Emil could see various controls and equipment, but in his current situation, they were useless.

  Tumbling in the out-of-control airship, he pitched hard against the frame, a stab of pain shooting across the back of his head. Twisting sideways, he saw he had slammed into a lever: DEPLOY FOOT. Jagged gorges and glaciers raced past below as the balloon plunged deeper and deeper into the mountains. Fighting desperately to hang on and keep hold of his friend, Emil had little time to ponder. The brutal labor and bitter cold of the sacred climb, from which they had escaped, had already taken its toll. His strength was ebbing away in the numbing cold. While there was still time, he needed to act. “Oh, Ancient Ones, help me,” Emil gasped, struggling to fight back the nausea and cold that were on the verge of consuming his every thought.

  DEPLOY FOOT. Emil stared at the label for only a moment before using his head to move the lever. With a rattling jolt, a heavy canvas curtain shot up from beneath the frame and locked in place, forming an enclosure. Although open at the top, the enclosure surrounded the lower part of the balloon’s passenger area like a capsule.

  “YAR!” Emil yelled, “YAR! YAR! YAR!” Working as a beast possessed with new hope, he quickly lowered PorNart onto the violently pitching floor of the capsule. Collapsing beside him, panting and gasping, the exhausted Wood Cow for a long while simply rested. As he gradually recovered from his initial panic and exertion, he had no idea how much time had passed. Unsure how far the airship had traveled, he finally felt able to rise up and look out of the capsule.

  One glance at landscape ahead of the balloon pushed a dire reality to the center of his attention. The capsule had provided a life-saving respite, but Emil realized it was now a liability. The amazing frame and machinery attached under the balloon, while useful under normal conditions, now posed a threat. The balloon was too heavy to rise over a rapidly approaching mountain ridge. Unless it lost considerable weight, the balloon would crash.

  A crash would mean certain, perhaps instant, death. The only hope was to keep the spinning airship off the deadly peaks. His mind racing, even as nausea made him gasp for breath, Emil realized that survival required one desperate step.

  “PorNart, my friend,” Emil said, “I’m going to take a big chance and—I’ll either save us both, or we both die.”

  Emil reached upward and grasped the anchor rope coiled and fastened overhead. Used only to secure an inflated balloon to the ground, the rope currently had no purpose. Uncoiling the rope, Emil wrapped it several times around PorNart’s body and knotted it securely. Taking the remaining length of rope, Emil looped it under his arms and knotted it in the same fashion.

  “Now for the tricky part,” Emil thought grimly. One by one, Emil removed the safety-lock pins from the latches connecting the balloon to the passenger enclosure with all its equipment. Then, he released one latch after another. SNAP! SNAP! SNAP! SNAP! The passenger capsule fell free from the sturdy ropes securing it to the balloon. In a short time, only two ropes remained. Swinging and bucking wildly, the heavy capsule tore free from the last two latches without any help from Emil. SNAP! SNAP!

  With the weight of the capsule gone, the balloon climbed rapidly. Charging upward, the balloon flew towards the saw-toothed ridge ahead with two figures dangling below by a single slender rope.

  Prepare for Impact

  Snow swirled around the balloon as it passed over the ridge with a few feet to spare. Sailing clear of the ridge, the mini-blizzard ended, and a breath-taking panorama spread out below.

  The seemingly unending wastes of snow and glaciers reached the summit of the ridge and went no further. The mountains suddenly ended, dropping off sharply as if a gigantic spade had simply turned the earth at a sharp angle, leaving the rest of the earth behind. Running like an immense rip in the earth, a snaggy line of dizzying clefts and crags traced the mountains’ edge.

  Emil scanned the landscape below. Running off to the horizon, the primeval rift was marked by steam issuing from vents. Gigantic hot water lakes, geysers shooting plumes, and steaming waterfalls spread out from the rugged edge of the fault. The constant battle between high country snow and ice, meeting fiery heat rising from deep underground, created perpetually flowing warm water streams. Hundreds of steaming rivulets combined to feed immense wetlands. Oceans of lush grass and reeds waved gently in the breeze. Here and there, gentle hillocks, planted with crops, rose above the wetlands. Steam clouds drifting across the land, shrouded the ground in places.

  “Warn your mothers, down there,” Emil howled, “we’re comin’ down!” In his earlier review of the balloon, Emil had noticed a rope labeled GAS RELEASE. “Must be for landing the balloon,” Emil thought. “I’ll just give it a little pull and see if I can bring us down real gentle-like.” Reaching for the rope, Emil found it was just out of reach. “Crut! Can’t reach it!” Emil panted.

  He gathered his resolve to make one mighty effort. With his strength fading and PorNart dangling below, he knew he’d likely get only one more chance. Griding his teeth with exertion, he pulled with all his strength on the rope from which he and PorNart dangled. Slowly, he pulled closer to the release rope. With one last heroic pull, he grabbed wildly at the release rope. Catching its end, he gave it a yank before dropping back to dangle helplessly.

  Emil’s determined effort was rewarded beyond his plan. “YEE
EEOOOOW! AWAAAHHH!” The entire rip panel tore free, and gas blew out furiously. The balloon plunged. Swinging crazily below the plummeting balloon, there was nothing Emil could do to prepare for impact.

  FUMPT-SLOOMP-SWASHT! When it came, the crash was completely unexpected. Landing amidst the thick reed forest, the cushioned impact was both relatively gentle and startling. Thin, resiliant reeds towered eight to twelve feet above the surface of water. Emil found himself sitting in warm water, floating on a bed of flattened reeds. Flexible and light, grasslike reeds moved like waves around the crashed balloon. For a moment, Emil simply sat dumfounded, enjoying the pleasant warmth gradually driving the cold from his body. “YAR! YAR! YAR!” he cried happily. “What a ride that was—and what a landing!”

  “Ohooo…wh…happen…?” Emil whirled to his left and saw PorNart laid out on flattened reeds just behind him. “Ohooo…” Although the groans of this friend snapped Emil’s attention back to the realities of their situation, he smiled. PorNart was conscious and making his first attempt to speak.

  Untieing the knotted rope, Emil freed himself and PorNart. The movement parted the mat of reeds, and Emil found himself standing in waist deep water. Reaching PorNart, Emil lifted the battered Coyote to an upright position, supporting him so that most of his body submerged in the deliciously warm water.

  The effect of the gentle warmth was nearly immediate. Soon PorNart opened his eyes and gave his friend a weak smile. “I think…I must be…dead,” he said, “I was…killed several times…feels like.”

  “Yar, old fellow,” Emil chuckled, “you’ve been through a lot and, I ‘killed’ you a few times myself—trying to save you.

  Speed

  Emil and PorNart lounged in the warm water for some time, letting the warmth gradually drive the cold from their bodies. The sun was dropping toward sunset when Emil finally roused himself. Checking over PorNart again, Emil found that, although his life was no longer in danger, he was still very weak.

  “We’ll stay here overnight,” Emil said, “and let you rest a bit more before we try to make our way out of this place. In the morning, we’ll make for the hill I saw coming down—can’t see it now for the reeds, but we landed close by it. Once we get to dry land, should be easier to get going again.”

  “Aye,” PorNart replied with a soft chuckle. “Or, if we stay here, perhaps the mosquitoes will carry us away.” With the day ending, the pesky insects were out in force, buzzing and biting from every side.

  “We’ll bundle up in the balloon,” Emil said, beginning to work with the folds of the collapsed balloon. “We’ve just got to get through the night. One good night’s rest and I’ll be ready to help you through this mess of reeds. We’ll get to solid ground and look for help.”

  Working quickly, ignoring the biting mosquitoes as much as possible, Emil first pulled the collapsed balloon out flat. The sturdy balloon fabric, spread over the reeds, made a relatively good sleeping surface. Not exactly solid, but firm enough to wriggle across, Emil and PorNart were soon stretched out upon it. So long as they did not stand or sit, keeping their weight distributed evenly, the thick bent reeds supported the makeshift platform enough to keep them above the water.

  “We’ll have to do without food for now,” Emil said, his stomach rumbling, “but we’re not short for water!”

  After Emil had helped PorNart ease into place and settled himself, he carefully pulled the edge of the balloon over them both. The sturdy material provided relief from the mosquitoes and the weary beasts immediately fell asleep.

  “ROAAARRRR!” Startled awake by the bellowing roar, Emil shuddered on the edge of panic. “ROAAARRRRR!” Vibrating through his body, the deep, powerful roar hit Emil like a punch in the stomach.

  “What is it?” PorNart cried.

  “Shush, you fool!” Emil retorted in a harsh whisper. “I’m not sure what it is, but we sure don’t want it finding us!”

  “ROOAAARRRR!” Regaining some control over his fear, Emil listened. The hideous roaring seemed not to be as near as he first thought. Listening carefully, he could tell that, whatever was making the sound was still a good distance away. A much fainter splashing of water accompanied the roaring, as if some great beast was coming through the reeds. The fearsomely powerful roaring was so loud as to seem near at hand, but the splashing was faint and clearly more distant.

  “Quiet, now, friend,” Emil whispered to PorNart. “I’m going to put you on my back. Are you strong enough to keep hold around my neck? If you can hold on, we’ll make a break for it before that thing gets here.”

  “Aye,” PorNart replied, “I’m feeling stronger—I can hold on.”

  As Emil straightened up to stand in the water, he sank nearly to his knees in mud, with water reaching to his waist. It would not be easy to get away quickly or quietly. Nevertheless, they had no choice but to try.

  “Come on, friend,” Emil signaled to the Coyote, allowing PorNart to climb on his back. “Ready,” PorNart said, locking his arms around Emil’s neck, and grasping the sides of Emil’s back with his knees. Despite the additional weight, Emil found that he did not sink deeper into the mud. It would take all of his strength to deal with the mud, reeds, and water, but he could make progress slowly.

  “ROAARRRRR!” The terrible bellowing came again as a prod to action.

  “Here we go,” Emil breathed, parting the reeds and sloshing his first tentative steps. The dark night, made even deeper by the tall reeds surrounding them on every side, was relieved only by a half moon overhead. Trying his best to guess the location of the nearby hill he had noticed as the balloon came down, Emil slogged forward.

  Grim determination strained Emil’s face, as he struggled through the tangle of reeds and sucking mud. Breathing hard, but trying to keep his ragged breath as silent as possible, he pushed through the reeds. The hideous bellowing continued behind him, but did not seem to gain on them. As the minutes ticked by, with no sign of solid ground, Emil wondered if they would be able to find their way out of the endless reeds. At last, though, he caught sight of moonlight glinting off a clear stretch of water. Pushing ahead, he broke into a narrow lane, free of reeds, running off to the right.

  “Yar!” Emil breathed quietly. “A passage through the reeds ‘as been cleared by some beast. Well, no time to worry about whether that beast is friend or foe—that howling monster behind us gets first attention.”

  Splashing into open water, Emil was able to pick up the pace. Despite this encouraging change in fortunes, Emil wondered if they were perhaps walking into more trouble. “Who could live in such a watery waste?” he thought. “Why would they be here?” It was not hard to imagine unpleasant possibilities. “Slavers. Bandits. Smugglers…” he thought. “Well, now, friend,” he whispered to PorNart, “we’ll just slip a little lower in the water—no need to call attention to ourselves. Now, not a sound, just low and quiet as we can.”

  To Emil’s surprise, the narrow watery alley did not continue more than a hundred yards. At that point, a small dock appeared ahead of them, clearly outlined in the moonlight, with the hillside rising behind it. Holding his rising excitement in check, Emil slowed his progress and ducked back into the reeds. Not wanting to walk into a trap, he and PorNart tried to avoid all motion and sound as Emil peered at the area around the dock. No movement was apparent. Satisfied that the dock was completely deserted, Emil eased back out into the open water. Moving silently, still low in the water, the two desperate beasts approached the dock.

  Reaching the dock, Emil and PorNart ignored the wooden ladder, instead choosing to slip toward shore using the dock as cover. Reaching shore, they found a wide and well-worn path through the dense reeds lining the shoreline. Not wanting to leave soggy footprints on the path, they went a bit further down the shore before scrambling up on the dry land beyond. In dread of being detected, they scurried like land crabs up the slope of the hill into the shelter of a grove of trees. Collapsing, they exchanged happy grins and rested for some moments, catching their bre
ath.

  Suddenly feeling uneasy, Emil looked at PorNart. Something was not right—both of them sensed it. “The roaring has stopped,” Emil whispered. PorNart nodded. Why had the hideous roaring suddenly stopped, after going on without interruption for so long?

  The question did not long await its answer. Having gained enough height on the hill to see over the dense reeds, Emil and PorNart both could see a terrifying sight approaching on the watery alley. A gigantic crocodile—perhaps thirty feet long—was swimming toward the dock, pulling a long, narrow boat behind! A lamp hanging at the prow of the boat cast a light on a muscular young female Wolf standing in the boat, holding a long pole. The Wolf wore short breeches, leather shirt, and a cocked hat. A quiver of arrows and longbow hung across her back.

  “ROAARRRRRR!” The crocodile let out a deafening bellow as it scuttled up on shore. Emil was astounded at the speed with which the huge reptile moved once on land—pulling the boat far up on the land as if it were a toy. When the crocodile stopped, the Wolf jumped out of the boat and patted him on the head, saying something too faint for Emil to hear.

  “By the Ancients!” Emil breathed. “I’m glad we stayed ahead of that fellow—at least so far.”

  As the new arrivals came up on dry land, an intense odor accompanied them. Without a doubt, the horrendous smell came from the crocodile. Each time the massive beast opened its jaws, a wave of disgusting smell rolled out. At first, the odor nearly caused Emil and PorNart to gag. Struggling to keep their stomachs under control, the unhappy beasts realized that to throw up now would be, far more than unpleasant, dangerous. And, as if to increase their misery, a cloud of mosquitoes swarmed the poor beasts. Unable to slap at the biting insects, Emil and PorNart buried as much of their faces as they could in the sand.