The Lutin Chronicles
Chapter 7
Blood from a Stone
By Oren Otter

"I've got six squirrels." said Barga as she and Redfoot walked along the forest highway.  "How about you?"

"Two squirrels." replied Redfoot.  "But I've also got two rabbits and a hegehog.  AND I've got some wild parsley and a dozen tomatoes."

"You can keep the tomatoes." said Barga.  "I've got ten large mushrooms.  I'll take those over tomatoes any day."

"Well, fortunately, these aren't for you, they're for Splim.  Though I think I might come back and pick a few on my own time."

There were few lutins with whom Redfoot would rather be hunting and gathering than Barga.  It wasn't the fact that she was female, though, goodness knows, that didn't hurt.  Barga was the epitome of everything he liked in another lutin.  She was strong, but not overbearing.  She was independent, but not aloof.  She was firm, but not beligerent.  All in all, a rare combination in any race of goblin.  She also put the welfare of the troop ahead of her own.  She was the kind who helped others to do and be their best instead of putting others down to build herself up in the eyes of her superiors.

"Hey, black nightshade." Barga pointed out.  "Why don't you grab some of that?"

"Isn't that poisonous?"

"Not when it's ripe.  We had black nightshade hotcakes yesterday."  

Redfoot went ahead and put several stalks into his sack, berries and all.  When he was done, he sat on a rock to rest.  "Not a bad day's haul so far." he said.

"Ah, we can get twice this, easy." replied Barga.  Redfoot took a red citrus fruit from his pocket and began to peel it with his hunting knife.  "Hey, what's that?" asked the female.

"Blood lime.  You want some?"

"Sure.  Where'd you get citrus around here?"

"Trading post."

"I meant where do they grow?  The forest of darkness isn't warm enough for citrus."

"Ah.  Anhunger.  Gitch says it's the clay.  Makes it like there's two suns or something."

Barga bit deeply into half the fruit.  It was both sour and sweet, and it was sumptuous.  Redfoot stuck his knife into a crack in the rock and ate his half wedge by wedge, savoring every bite.  Finishing her half, Barga became aware of a dripping sound.  Turning to Redfoot, she saw that a rivulet of red fluid was emanating from the place he'd put his knife.  "Refoot... that rock is bleeding!"

"What?" Redfoot responded.  "Don't be daft, rocks don't... holy cheese curds, this rock is bleeding!"  The rock shook, causing Redfoot to scramble off of it.  It then began to move.

"I don't think it's happy." said Barga.  It was coming closer, and beginning to move faster.

"There's only one thing for two brave lutin soldiers like us to do." said Redfoot.

"Yeah?  What?"

"Run."

"I concur."  The two of them headed back up the highway as fast as their feet would take them.

The stone let out a low, mournful cry, unable to remove the knife piercing its body.

* * *

"I'm thinking right up there." said Fugu, pointing to a place high in the trees of Anhunger.  "From there, we can run pipes down and have running water in every home in the village."

"But how do we get the water up to the tank in the first place?" asked Chief Lo-Mahle.

"You'll have to haul the water up first.  After that, the tank will collect rainwater, but I can also build a windmill to pump wated up from the wells beneath..."

Lo-Mahle followed Fugu's gaze.  On the ground below, a rock was walking into the village.  Redfoot's knife was still sticking from it.  "What is this?" he asked, climbing down.

"I wouldn't..." Fugu began.

"It's a rock." said lo-Mahle.  "What's it going to do?  Sit there until I die of old age?"  The trag dropped to the ground and approached the rock.  In turn, the rock changed course and approached Lo-Mahle.  Both stopped within arm's reach of each other.  Feeling compassionate, the chief reached out to remove the knife.  That was when the rock lunged forward and came to rest on his foot, breaking it.  A gurgled shout escaped his throat.

"Ma... na..." the stone moaned.  Fugu jumped down and heaved the boulder off of Lo-Mahle's foot, then helped him to scramble up into the tree.  The rock pressed against the trunk, but the tree stood firm.  Other rocks had followed the first into the village.  Some were ambling slowly.  Some were rolling quickly.  Between them, they threatened to grind anyone foolish enough to set foot on the ground into paste.

"I hope you like lemon squirrel." said Lo-Mahle.  "Because you're not leaving here before lunch."

* * *

Many, many years ago, Plinx and his kin wandered through the wilderness of the high plains.  Once, they had lived in Aelfwood, where food was plenteous and there was never want.  Life had been good, but tensions with the elves had erupted into all-out combat.  The tragso had been driven out of Aelfwood and forced into this abysmal existence.  Prey was scarce here, and fruit was hard to come by.  The tragso had to remain constantly on the move in search of food.  Worst of all, the sun was brutal and baked the skins of the normally forest-dwelling goblins.  They had taken to covering themselves with dirt in order to stave off the searing light.  Then the day came when Plinx made a wondrous discovery.  He looked out beyond the cliffs at the mountains' end and beheld a lush, green forest.  "Come!" he ordered his tribe.  "Come and see what I have found!"  When the other tragso beheld the endless expanse of trees, there was much rejoicing.

"Excellent!" praised Dockleaf.

"You have saved us!" exclaimed Jagro.

"We must go there at once!" said Wujjit.

"There is a problem." said Plinx.  "There are sheer cliffs between us and the forest.  How will we get down there?"

"We are tragso!" proclaimed Badgerclaw.  "Our hands are strong!  We shall climb down!"

"That is fine for you and I." said Plinx.  "But what of the elderly?  Wujjit would not be able to make the climb.  Neither would Hawkfeather nor Krag.  And what of our children?  Little Sundew and Brogle are not yet strong enough."

"Then we shall lower them down!" said Badgerclaw.

"With what?  We have very little rope.  It is not enough to cover the height."

Old Wujjit raised his hand.  "Those of you who are strong, make the climb.  Find vines in the forest.  Make for us a ladder that the rest of us may climb down in safety."

Badgerclaw and Plinx had to agree that Wujjit's plan was wise.  It would take a very long time, but they would build such a ladder.  As day by day it grew, the tragso men and young women brought back game and fruit to feed their families.  It was a happy time, for it was the foretaste of the plenty to come.

* * *

Kayrok was very pleased with what he saw as he rode down the pass.  In the past few months, more than six times the progress had been made than in the entire previous year.  "We can attribute our success to a number of factors." Smallbeard shouted over the noise of the machinery.  "The steam engine is just one.  The boys you brought in from Punishment, they've been amazing.  Foon, he blasts the rock with his lightning.  Umba, the blue fellow, he moves huge boulders with just his mind!"

Indeed, those two lutins had enormous powers.  They had been discouraged from using them during the rest of their time in the lutin army, including their time with Sergeant Oof, but Kayrok and Smallbeard encouraged them to let it all out, and they had accomplished amazing things.

"But the biggest contribution has been from Alice Gribblepot, the gnomish alchemist.  Look at this." he said, pouring a small amount of black powder from a bottle.

"What is it?"

"Charcoal, sulpher and saltpeter.  Three unimpressive ingredients by themselves.  But mix them in the right proportions and you get this.  In small amounts, it fizzles and burns.  In large amounts, it's like a volcano going off."

Alnalam stood astride the track and flagged the train to a stop.  "No go farther.  Big boom!"

Smallbeard beamed.  "Oh, Sir, you're in for a treat!"  The dwarf checked his pocket watch.  "It's just about two minutes until we blast.  Come.  We need to get behind shelter."  The two scurried behind a sheltering boulder.  Alnalam joined them and was barely obscured.  "When I say now, put your fingers in your ears and do not take them out for anything!"

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!" shouted a dwarf.  "Blast commencing in three... two... one..."

Far down the tunnel, a layer of rock ballooned off of the canyon wall, raining down like water.  Seconds later, the sound wave hit, echoing off of the canyon walls with such force that Kayrok felt all of his internal organs jump.  Smallbeard pulled the captain's fingers out.  "All clear, boss!  Shall we go take a look at the devastation?"

Zanzu was the first to arrive.  He was a zlerk, a type of goblin built for speed.  He had already surveyed the entire area by the time Kayrok arrived.  "Anything interesting, Zanzu?" asked Smallbeard.

"It looks like we've uncovered a cave, Sir." reported the zlerk.  Possibly a water cave."

"Would you like to come check it out?" asked Smallbeard.

"I wouldn't miss it."

Stepping over yard after yard of loose rocks, Kayrok and Smallbeard made their way into a large cavern.  There was a hole near the top of the cave where water and sunlight were pouring in.  The water fell into a pool in the center of the cavern where it fed some underground river.  The walls of the cavern shone a pale blue-green with phosphorescent minerals.  The air was warm, as if heated by some unseen sun.  The ground was littered with edible fungi, some of which glowed like the cave walls.  "Kayrok..." said Smallbeard, his voice filled with awe.

"Yes?" replied Kayrok, equally awed.

"I think we've found the location for the next dwarven village."

"Agreed."

* * *

"I think they're asleep." said Fugu, observing the way the rocks had stopped moving about and now were just slowly, no pun intended, rocking in place.  "I'm going to get down and go for help."

"Be careful." said the chief.

Gently, gingerly, the lutin lowered himself to the ground, where he tiptoed through the village toward the road.  He had just gotten to the point where he thought he might be able to walk normally when someone came the other way, singing loudly.  "Dar wuz killed in Killadar and Barsh, he died in Barsh.  Thunk in Thunkenby wuz killed out in the Thunken marsh.  Mugu jumped into the river Mugu back in June.  Urni's ash is in the urn and Toom is in the tomb."  The singer was none other than Gerf, who was very helpfully bringing a magic lamppost for Fugu to install at Anhunger.  Fugu whirled around to see that the rocks were now wide awake and some of them were rolling their way very quickly.

"Gerf!  Run!" shouted Fugu, breaking into a sprint.  Gerf obeyed.  "No, Gerf, the other way!"

"Where are we going?" asked Gerf.

"Away from the rocks!"

Gerf looked back, noticing the animate stones for the first time.  "Hi, Rocks! he called.

"Gerf, drop the lamppost." Fugu ordered.

"Okay." Gerf replied, letting to lamp go.  

The lutins continued some distance before Fugu noticed that the sound of the rocks had stopped.  They clustered around the lamp as if expecting it to do something.  "We've got to tell Kayrok about this." said Fugu.

"Okay." said Gerf brightly before returning to his song.  "Grugglefunk, he lost his life when ambushed from behind, a sharpened keeper's pickaxe was the last thing on his mind."

* * *

Dwen, a young lady trag and her baby, batflight, were the last two down the ladder.  In the shaddow of the mountains lay a ten mile wide strip of grass and scrub, but beyond that, a gorgeous, green and inviting forest.  "We'll camp here for tonight." said Plinx.  "Tomorrow, we'll make our way to the forest."  He sat down next to Dockleaf in front of the fire and held her hand.  Before them, a wild mouse deer was roasting on a spit.  It was a meager feast for so many, but it was much more than they'd had in many a month.  "I've found a perfect place for our village." said the chief, quietly.  "It's just like our home in the south.  There are oranges and avacados, and even sugar cane."

"I love sugar cane." said Dockleaf.

"It will be perfect.  You will want for nothing.  He placed his hand on her stomach.  "And our little Mana will grow up to be the chief of a mighty nation."

Dockleaf smiled.  The future looked very good.

* * *

Fugu animatedly reported the incident of the moving rocks to Kayrok at Camp Dimtorch.  Many who were listening laughed heartily at the tale.  "That's enough." said Kayrok, harshly.  "Fugu is not a man given to wild, fanciful flights of the imagination, and I've seen far stranger things in my time.  Point, get me Smallbeard.  We're going to go get Jun, then the four of us are going to investigate."

"Five of us." said Hornbeam.  "If Lo-Mahle is severely injured, he'll need a medic."

"Good thinking.  All right, the five of us, then.  Booli, saddle us up some ponies."

* * *

Naj took aim with his bow.  Carefully, he waited for the deer to step into just the right spot.  The arrow flew.  The deer fell.  Naj went to claim his prize.  There was anough here to feed the village, yet the hunger was overpowering, driving Naj insane.  He sunk his teeth into the animal's flesh and began eating it raw.

"We must do something." said Greech as he watched his son tearing into the deer like a feral dog.  "The hunger will drive us all mad, Lo-Mana."

"What do you want me to do?" asked the chief.  "No one knows why this hunger has come upon us."

"It is a curse from the gods." said Vorgo around a mouthful of herbs.  "We have abandoned the lands they gave us to the elves, so they have cursed us with unending want."

"Not all of us subscribe to your superstitions, Vorgo." Lo-Mana said.  "Besides which, our fathers left the south not because they wanted to but because they were forced."

"You assume the gods make a distinction."

"If they're not intelligent enough to make the distinction, they're pretty dumb gods."

"You blaspheme!"

"I do.  A fat lot of good any of them have done us."

"We must leave this place." said Greech.  "The hunger began after we moved here.  Perhaps if we leave this place, the hunger will in turn leave us."

"Running from your problems is never the answer." said the chief.  "The hunger is a sickness.  It will pass.  We will stay."

Greech bowed his head, sadly.  He did not want to disobey the chief, but these were desperate times.  That night, Greech would steal away into the woods, and he would take half the village with him.

* * *

Kayrok and company came to the point where Gerf had dropped the lamppost.  It was still there, and the rocks were still gathered around it.

"Why do they like the lamp so much?" asked the commander.  No one had an idea.  Kayrok suddenly saw something worrisome.  "One of them has been wounded." he said.  "That knife.  That's Redfoot's knife."

"Redfoot and Barga were on gathering detail." said Point.  "They hadn't returned by the time we left camp."

"Through the woods." Kayrok ordered.  Look for any sign of Redfoot and Barga."  But as the lutins, dwarf and cyclops moved, they caught the attention of the rocks, who began moving toward them.  "Back off."  Kayrok ordered.  But it didn't do any good.  The rocks picked up speed.  Jun let a magic missile fly.  It hit the closest rock.  A cloud of dust was thrown into the air.  When it settled, the rocks were not gone.  In fact, they looked to be larger.  One by one, they unfolded into a humanoid shape.  The one who had been stabbed pulled the knife out of its shoulder and threw it.  The projectile threatened to hit Smallbeard square in the chest.  Kayrok acted in the nick of time, and the blade of the knife sunk into his right hand.  Kayrok stifled a cry and ordered a retreat.

* * *

Lo-Mana was livid when he awoke and found that Greech had betrayed him.  His wife, Takka, tried to calm him down, but to no avail.  Lo-Mana went out and slew a rabbit.  He returned to the tree with his face dripping blood, but calmer.

"My precious one," said Takka.  "I will never leave you.  But I beg you to consider what Greech has said."

"The hunger is a disease.  It will pass."

"Our children are not safe, my husband.  Hillbreeze has gone missing.  They say her father has eaten her.  Karona has also disappeared.  How long will it be before someone tries to eat our own Merak?"

"No one will eat Merak." said the chief, stubornly.  "I will protect him."

"But how can you promise me the hunger will not drive you mad?  You may eat him when you do not know what you are doing."

Lo-Mana turned and looked lovingly at Takka.  "It is not for no reason I am chief.  My will is strong.  I will not eat our child.  He will be protected."

"I wish I could believe you."

* * *

"We must kill the monsters!" cried a gnome.

"No, we must find out what they want!" countered a dwarf.

"They want to kill us!  They already killed redfoot and Barga!"

Kayrok was losing control as the crowd around him was whipping into a frenzy.  "We don't know that!" he shouted, but the din had gotten so loud no one could hear him.

"SHUT UP!" boomed a thundrous voice.  Everyone fell silent.  Alnalam looked down at Kayrok and said "Go ahead."

"We don't know that they killed Barga and Redfoot.  We don't know that my hand and Lo-Mahle's foot were deliberate attacks."

"Respectfully, Captain, we can't take that chance." said Smallbeard.  "Even if they're not evil, those monsters are bad news.  They could kill any one of us, even the giants, with a careless gesture.  We can't let them get near us.  And since they come after us every time we approach, we must kill them."

"How?" someone shouted.

"With this!" Smallbeard held up an arrow.  Near the tip was a  packet of black powder with a fuse.  "We blast them the very same way we blast the mountain."

"There has to be another way!" Kayrok insisted.

Sujan stepped up beside the commander.  "Smallbeard is correct." he said simply.  "The stone creatures do present a very real threat.  Your first duty in this situation is to protect the people under your command."

Kayrok stared at Sujan, but finally had to concede.  "Fine." he said.  "But this feels so wrong."

* * *

Captain Kayrok wasn't sure whether he was leading an army or a lynch mob.  They found the rock monsters moving toward Anhunger.  Their path was painfully clear, as many trees had been downed simply for standing in the monsters' way.  The village wouldn't stand a chance.

"Hey!" Kayrok called when the creatures were in view.  The rearmost monsters stopped and turned to look, followed by the rest of them.  The group paused only for a moment before turning around and coming for the mob.

Alnalam was the first to attack, picking up a fallen tree and swinging violently.  It hit one of the monsters and sent it flying.  This enraged the rest, who began to pummel the giant with their huge stone hands.  Alnatak came to his brother's rescue, picking up one of the monsters and throwing it at the others, knocking many of them down.  Kayrok decided to take advantage of the moment.

"Ready!" Please, Vertarbna, if there is any other way, show me now.  "Aim!" Please, vertarbna, I don't want to do this. "F..."

"STOP!" called a voice from beyond the monsters.  It was Lo-Mahle, carried by two other tragso.

"Hold your fire!"

* * *

"I will not leave my husband." said Takka.  "This is the only way."

"Do all of you feel this way?" asked Feru, the mage.  Many voices spoke their consensus.  "The spell will reverse when the hunger is gone." he explained.  "But it may be weeks, or it may be centuries.  We don't know.  If too much time passes, the magic of the spell may dissipate, and you will be trapped forever."

"There is a way to fix that." said Feru's apprentice.  "If the magic is gone, the effects can still be reversed if more magic is introduced.  We can make it so that when they begin to regain consciousness, they will seek out the nearest, strongest source of magic and use it to reverse the spell."

"Let it be so." said Feru.  He made the necessary adjustments, then held out his hands toward the group of tragso and spoke the incantation.  Takka kissed her baby as her skin crackled and hardened into stone.

"NO!" screamed Lo-Mana, jumping into the clearing.  With blinding quickness, he slashed Feru's throat and stabbed the apprentice.  Yanking his son away from Takka, he carried him outside the spell's influence.  Despite his hopes, killing the mage did not halt the spell.  Lo-Mana watches as, eyes filled with sorrow and arms outstretched toward her baby, Takka transformed.  Her features disappeared one by one until his once lovely goblin lady was changed into a stone.  Lo-Mana screamed.  The child wailed.  Takka and the other tragso didn't respond, for they had all become stones.

* * *

"They are not coming after you!" lo-Mahle explained.  "You are all wearing magic charms.  The stones were attracted to those.  Jun, will you please step forward, slowly?"

The mage did as he was bade, reluctantly.  "What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"Flood the creatures in a magic bath.  Don't hurt them.  Just wash them with eldritch energy."

Jun complied.  The monsters soaked it up.  Then, bit by bit, the stone began to flake away, turning to dust as it fell.  As it did, it revealed the faces of tragso.  The one whom Redfoot had wounded now bore a small scar on her shoulder as the only remnant of the injury.  She looked at the tragso chief.  "Lo-Mana?  Is that you?"

"No.  I am Lo-Mahle.  I'm... you're my grandmother, Takka!"

"Grandmother?  My... it HAS been a long time!"

"But..." said Kayrok.  "If you're not monsters, why did you break his foot?"

"I was a rock." replied Takka.  "I mistook my grandson for my husband, and in my haste, rushed to embrace him.  It never occurred to me that I might injure him."

"And the knife?"

"Hurt." said Takka.  "Once I was able to pull it free, I just wanted to get rid of it.  I apologize for throwing it in your direction.  As a rock monster, I wasn't thinking very clearly."

"But you killed Barga and Redfoot!" shouted one of the lutins.

"Whom?"

"The one who wounded you." said Kayrok.  "And his companion."

Takka looked around to the other former rocks.  "We didn't kill them." she assured, somewhat confused.

"Then where are they?"

* * *

"Home at last!" declared Barga.  Now let's get to the infirmary and get that sprained ankle properly seen to."

Redfoot felt a wash of relief, only to have it vanish at the sight on a completely empty camp.  "Barga?  Where is everybody?"

* * *

The rails had been finished.  The trains, for there were three, now, ran in a circuit throughout the major towns of the federation.  The aqueduct had been extended halfway to Spiritfell.  The tragso, with their population more than tripled, realized that Anhunger could no longer hold everyone.  The village of North Hunger had thus been hastily constructed on the south side of the highway.

Norebo was enjoying a hot soak in the trading post pool when Udge walked in, stripped down and slid into the water a few feet away.

"Evening." said the philosopher.

"Evening." said the spy.

"Have you got a moment?"

"Are you going to harass me again?  I'll tell him when I'm ready to tell him."

"It's not that." said Udge.  "You know, when you bring a lot of people in on a secret, it's hard to keep it a secret."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Onju.  Rugi.  Jun.  Fugu.  Ravenpelt.  Ben Oakenstaff.  Splin."

"What about them?"

"I know what you're doing, and I know why."

Norebo stared at Udge.  "You are far to smart for a mortal lutin." he said.

"Nonetheless, that is what I am.  I don't know everything."

"So you have a question."

"Yes.  When?"

"Not for a long time, yet."

"Will it be as bad as it seems?"

Norebo didn't want to answer, but it was useless to hide the truth from Udge.  "Yes."

"What can I do?"

"If you truly wish to help, the best you can do is teach.  Your mind is amazing, Udge.  Use your mind to spread the light to others."

"I shall."

"The other thing you can do is move two inches to your left.  You're blocking the hot water inlet."

* * *

Cranky had made a remarkable discovery.  While he was arranging the stones with which he was going to build his new home in the freshly discovered cavern, he found that some of the stones were warm to the touch, and others, obviously, gave off light, but when the two were brought together, they produced a light that flooded the whole cavern with brilliance.  The dwarf laughed to himself.  He knew that something wondrous was destined to take place in this cave.