Three strangers met in the woods
one day at sunset. They had each traveled a great distance alone and agreed to
make camp together for the night and share their provisions among themselves.
The first was Frawd, a Dwarf from the mountains who leaned heavily on a cane as
he walked. The second was Amos, a Human hunter from the valley who wore a patch
over his left eye. The third was Tyrone, a Dragon with a broken horn and a weak
and shriveled right arm.
“Perhaps our
friend the dragon could oblige us with a fire,” suggested Amos.
“I’m sorry,”
said Tyrone. “But I have no fire. I lost it some time ago.”
“A dragon with
no fire?” said Frawd, who was far more compassionate than people expect dwarfs
to be. “That must be very difficult.”
“It is,” said
Tyrone. “You see, among dragons, the day we can first breathe fire is like…like
when a man’s voice changes or he starts to grow hair on his chin. It is sort of
a coming-of-age, you see. A dragon who cannot breathe fire is considered little
more than a hatchling.”
“How does a dragon
lose his fire?” Amos asked, preparing to light a fire the old-fashioned way.
“Perhaps the
same way a hunter loses an eye?”
“You’re right,
of course. With only one good eye, I cannot tell how far away my prey is. A
hunter with a handicap like that is no more use than—”
“Than a dwarf
who cannot work,” interrupted Frawd. “Ever since I lost the use of this leg, I
have been unable to work the mines. Working is very important to dwarfs, you
know. I am as much an outcast among my people as you two are among yours.”
“So, we are all
outcasts,” said Tyrone. “Perhaps it is fate that we meet.”
“Forgive me if
this is impolite,” said Amos, “but I’m still very curious about how you came to
be in this state. I’ve never heard of a dragon losing his fire before.”
“As far as I
know, I’m the first one to suffer such a fate. My story begins with a beautiful
dragon named Morina. I wanted to ask her to be my mate, but a bigger, stronger
dragon beat me to it. I challenged him to combat and lost…though not after
receiving these souvenirs,” he added, pointing to his injured horn and arm.
“But it was the internal injury that was the most terrible. You see, we dragons
make our fire with a special organ in our throats. Our own personal flint, you
might say. This other dragon damaged it in the fight. I have not been able to
produce so much as a smoke ring since.”
“Still, fighting
for love,” said Frawd. “At least that’s a noble pursuit. My injuries are due to
arrogance. As you may have noticed, I’m getting older, and I’m not as strong as
I used to be. But it’s so difficult for me to admit any kind of weakness. And
while working in the mine one day, my fellows and I came upon a long-abandoned
tunnel. Certainly dug by our ancestors and abandoned even before we were born.
The others wouldn’t dare step inside, but I was certain I was a match for
anything. Once inside, there was a rockslide and my leg was trapped. Without my
crutch I cannot move at all.”
“Trying to
reclaim your youth is understandable,” said Amos. “In my case, however...You
see, where I come from I am known as the greatest hunter of all. But a new
hunter came to our village…or should I say huntress. And she soon surpassed me in skill and talent. I am ashamed
to admit that the idea of a woman besting me infuriated me and I attempted to
play a trick on her and drive her out of my valley once and for all. I followed
her into the woods on a hunt one day, intending to create a false path and lead
her into the darkest, densest part of the forest where I felt sure she would
get lost. But I underestimated her skill and she sensed my presence almost at
once. Assuming I was either an animal or a threat to her safety…she fired her
arrow.”
“And that’s how
you lost your eye?”
“What? No, she
hit me in the leg. It hurt like all heck and as I was stumbling around in the
underbrush I fell on some thorny bushes.”
“And you poked
out your eye on the thorns?”
“No, the sound
of my thrashing alerted a wild boar and he gored me in the eye.”
Both the dragon
and the dwarf cringed slightly at Amos’ story. Eye stuff is always the worst,
isn’t it?
“But now, Gentlemen,”
said Amos, “I must ask if it has occurred to either of you, as it has to me,
that we all might be bound for the same destination?”
“The thought
crossed my mind,” said Frawd.
“You don’t mean
that both of you are also going to the Falls of Flicken?”
“The very same.”
It made perfect
sense that these three downtrodden souls would all be making their way toward
the legendary Falls of Flicken: an immense waterfall to the north which was
said to have healing powers to anyone who walked beneath its waters. No matter
how serious or old the injury or malady, one trip through the curtain of those
falls was said to cure anything, even if nothing else in the world could.
Except death.
Cuz, ya know…obviously, right?
So the three
strangers-turned-friends decided that very night to travel the rest of the way
together and help each other along whenever possible.
As our party traveled north
together, all was going well. Then, all of a sudden, Amos held out a hand, signaling
for the others to stop. “Did you hear that?” he whispered.
“I don’t hear
anything,” said Frawd.
“I do.” Then he
inhaled deeply. He was smelling for something. “There is another hunter in this
forest.”
“So what? We’re
not animals…well, not wild ones,
anyway.”
“Thanks,” said
Tyrone.
“You don’t
understand,” said Amos. “I’ve heard of the hunter who lives in these woods. He
has a violent temper and has sworn to kill any trespassers who try to hunt on
his territory. Even if we could convince him that I’m not trying to hunt here,
he might not believe it. Trust me, we need to pass through these woods
quickly.”
“I can fly,”
said Tyrone. “But dragons’ wings are not built for long trips, which is why I
was walking to the falls instead of flying. And they’re usually just strong
enough to carry the dragon’s weight.”
“Do you think
you could manage?” asked Frawd.
“Just long
enough to get out of the woods? Yes.” And he wrapped an arm around the man who
wrapped an arm around the dwarf and the dragon took off into the sky. Sure
enough, the hunter Amos had heard (and, apparently, smelled) fired an arrow at
Tyrone after he broke above the tree line. Luckily, it missed, and Tyrone was
able to reach the far side of the forest and safety.
“How do you
feel?” asked Amos.
“A little worn
out,” admitted Tyrone. “Could we stop and rest for a bit?”
“Of course,”
said Frawd. “You saved our lives back there. It’s the least we can do.”
“I never
would’ve flown away in the old days,” said Tyrone. “Back when I had my fire…and
both my arms…I wouldn’t have been afraid of some lousy human…no offense, Amos.”
“I was the same
way when I was younger,” said Frawd. “As a matter of fact, that’s why I dug
into that cavern where I got hurt. To prove I was still not afraid of anything.
But, trust me, sometimes in life it’s better to just walk away. Or fly as the
case may be.”
“Maybe you’re
right. Say, I meant to ask,” he added, turning to Amos. “How did you know there
was a hunter in the woods?”
“I know what a
man sounds like when he’s trying to make as little noise as possible,” said
Amos. “But it was the smell that gave him away. Hunters sometimes cover
themselves in pungent flowers and plants so that animals can’t pick up our
scent. It works on animals, but not on me. The thing that smelled like stinkweed
was moving. That’s how I knew it wasn’t stinkweed, but a hunter trying not to
be traced.”
“Wow! You must
be the best hunter in the world!”
“I don’t know
about that. Admittedly, losing my eye has made me appreciate my other senses a
bit more.”
For a moment,
they all sat in silent thought. When Tyrone was feeling better they continued
on their journey. And it wasn’t long before they arrived at the legendary Falls
of Flicken! That famed waterfall of magical healing water! That
glorious…spectacular…tiny little…it was a spring. That’s all it was. Just a
little trickle of water passing over some rocks.
“These,” said
Frawd, “are the Falls of Flicken?”
“I guess some of
the stories were exaggerated,” said Tyrone.
“Well…are they
at least magical?” asked Amos. To find out, Frawd cupped some of the water in
his hands (which took a very long time, as you can imagine) and splashed it on
Tyrone’s bad arm. They all three stared at it. Nothing happened. It was clear
that the Falls of Flicken did not have healing powers. They had come all this
way for nothing.
Sadly, the
travelers went their separate ways, readying themselves for the rest of their
unhappy lives…but that’s not quite how it happened. They met again, these three
companions. Once more, years later, as they did the first time, by chance on
the road and shared what had happened in the meantime:
When Tyrone got
to his home, everyone was still laughing at how spectacularly he had been
beaten and teased him about his lack of fire. Except one very pretty girl dragon
who didn’t like guys who were always fighting and preferred the sensitive,
gentle type who looked before he leaped. She felt bad for what Tyrone had been
through and became a very good friend to him…and a very good wife!
When Frawd
arrived home, he was asked to take over the position of Chief Dwarf. His years
of experience and wisdom, not to mention the bravery he showed in trying to
mine that abandoned tunnel, made him perfect for the job!
When Amos got
back to his village, the huntress who had shot him, thereby indirectly causing
his injury, felt terrible for what she had done. And she admitted that while
she was a good shot and had a keen eye, she needed training on some of the
subtler aspects of hunting. Listening carefully, recognizing smells, things
like that. Amos agreed to teach her and, about a year later, to marry her!
So, you see, even though all three of our friends thought their lives
were over, all that their injuries really meant was that they had a chance to
start new lives. Lives that were very long and very happy…all thanks to the
Falls of Flicken!
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