"Oh, I know who you are. You're one of them all right. Woodland Elf, sister to the forest nymphs. Yer one with the animals, they flock to ye. Do yer ever biddin'. Not like the true elves with your magic spells and all. Well, don't try any of your magic on me! It ain't gonna work, I ain't no one's slave!" He screamed and ran back to the stables stumbling the entire way in his terrified haste to escape.

Moving around the end of the bar, Jack opened the only thing in the tavern that appeared intact, the tall wooden door of the storage closet. The small room held several racks filled with an a.s.sortment of weapons and what appeared to be climbing equipment. The dim light from the main room landed on a long intricately carved double-sided broad sword. Just as Jack reached for it, a shout came from behind.

Jack spun to see three elfin warriors running toward him. Each wore the same dark green body armor as he and Nicole, only adorned with weapons. Each raised their swords above their golden heads as they rushed toward him. s.n.a.t.c.hing the broad sword, Jack freed it from its sheath and met the blows of the attacking soldiers without hesitation, his spirits soaring. Now it was his turn inherent traits to surface.

Knowing Nicole would be in serious danger if he tried to escape to the stables, Jack stood his ground. After all he was a barbarian, born to battle. Surprised at the speed and strength of his movements, Jack took control of the attack. Dodging the blows of his adversaries, he lunged at the closest warrior, driving his sword deep into the young elf s belly. A look of shock and intense pain came over the warrior's golden face. Blood poured from his mouth as he sank to the floor. This took Jack by surprise, shook him to his core. The distraction nearly cost him an arm as the two remaining elfs screamed in rage and doubled their efforts.

Unnerved, Jack lost his taste for blood and the battle turned into a defensive struggle. As Jack attempted to force the angry warriors back toward the entrance, a high pitched scream pierced the air. Nicole came crashing through a small boarded up window near the back of the tavern. Her pet.i.te form rolled as she hit the floor. Jumping to her feet, she rushed to Jack's defense armed only with the stable boys small knife. The two warriors separated. The one farthest from Jack met Nicole's incredible onslaught. Distracted by the unbelievable entrance Nicole had just made, Jack stood gawking as she joining the battle, completely unaware of the warrior's raised sword before him.

"Jack!" Nicole screamed, dodging the second warrior's savage a.s.sault.

Without thinking, Jack swung his sword forward and sliced open the elfs midsection as he ducked and rolled past the elf's advance. Anger and sorrow filled the older elf's face. He fell to the floor clutching at the pulsing flow of blood.

"That is so disgusting!" Jack muttered, then turned to find Nicole standing above the body of the third warrior, Nicole's chest heaved as her triumphant laughter filled the tavern. Before Jack could berate her for joining a battle in progress armed only with a knife, Hopper stormed through the tavern door waving a large tree limb over his head and shouting to his friends.

"It's over Hopper" Jack announced, soberly. Turning to the Inn Keeper, he growled, "You set us up!"

"No!" he gasped, scrambling away as Hopper moved toward him. "I swear it! Take yer weapons and escape while there's still time!" The frightened old man threw the gold coins Jack had tossed on the counter back to them, ducked under the bar and bolted for the door.

"Oh man! You killed these guys?" Hopper asked, astonished at the sight of the b.l.o.o.d.y corpses lying all around them.

"It was us or them." Jack didn't know why he was explaining.

"We kicked a.s.s!" Nicole jumped over the slain soldier and searched through the closet for her weapon.

"Hopper, it was so realistic." Jack managed tearing eyes away from the still form of the elf he'd just slaughtered. "I thought we were going to be searching for talismans, not slaughtering people." Looking at his b.l.o.o.d.y sword, Jack felt more like an amateur serial killer than someone on vacation.

"Let's get our supplies and be on our way. You heard him there could be more coming." Nicole said, returning from the closet with a small silver short sword. "This will do nicely, much better than that toy knife the boy gave me."

Hopper reached in, hoisted the climbing gear onto his back, grabbed a bundle of bed rolls and moved toward the door. "I'm heading back to check on Sarah, you get the rest."

"Nice club." Nicole called after him, laughing as she turned to s.n.a.t.c.h a large leather satchel from the closet. "The room behind the bar is probably the kitchen I'll check for food. You grab anything else that looks interesting."

"Niki," Jack called after her quietly as he moved back to the closet and grabbed a set of long knives and a couple of empty water skins. "How did you learn to fight like that?"

"Same way you did." She answered nonchalantly. "Instinct."

"But you didn't know you could do that when you busted in."

"I'm the elf warrior, remember? And you needed help. What was I going to do? Stand outside and oh and ah like a frightened little mouse?" She called from the kitchen.

"Didn't it bother you when you killed that elf?" Jack moved to the doorway of the small pantry and watched as Nicole stuffed skins of wine, chunks of bread, cheese and dried meat into the satchel.

"Why should it?" Nicole winked as she stuffed the last of the food in the satchel and he headed for the door. "It wasn't real, Jack."

Hopper hit the gra.s.s with a grunt of frustration, "I'm telling you Nicole, he doesn't like me!"

"Nonsense, Hopper, he's just testing you. Give it one more try. This time, hold on with those long legs of yours; take control, don't let him push you around." Nicole offered smiling brightly at him from atop of the speckled gray stallion.

"Maybe I should test my club on its stubborn skull." Hopper muttered, approaching the large black stallion with a deep growl.

"That's the spirit." Jack called to him as he mounted a young tan mare and stuffed his broadsword into the narrow sheath attached to the saddle. "Give him one of your famous upper cuts, Hopper. Let's see how he likes it."

"He'll do no such thing? Sarah called out as she struggled to mount on top a small white mare. "You can do it Todd, squeeze him with your legs. That's how you can hold on."

"Maybe Sarah could zap him just a little." Jack teased.

"Now that's an idea." Hopper turned to smile at the tall beauty as he grabbed hold of Wind's black mane.

"With my luck I'd turn him into a buffalo." Sarah laughed.

"Now that's the best idea yet." Jack added, bracing himself as Hopper climbed on top of the stallion again. "If he can't stay on this time, I say we have buffalo steaks for supper."

"You could make an instant enemy with a comment like that, Barbarian." Nicole Answered her smile vanishing.

"Pardon me, Wind, you old blow hard!" Jack rolled his eyes. "I believe my partner's forgotten about that black fun coat she has hidden at the rear of her closet back in St. Louis. Suddenly she's become quite the animal activist and now apparently a vegetarian to boot."

"That's it Hopper, now use the reins to guide him." Nicole said concentrating on Todd and ignoring Jack.

Hopper's ma.s.sive legs hung just far enough below the stallion's belly to allow him to latch his feet together. With this accomplished there was no dislodging him. The stallion quickly ceased its resistance and allowed the huge troll to steer him back toward the others.

"Does he have the same effect on you in that position, Sarah?" Nicole grinned wickedly as Sarah blushed more. deeply than her crimson locks.

"Which way wizard?" Jack quickly interceded before Hopper had a chance to respond.

"The map shows the mountains running along the southern border of the village." Sarah answered, quietly. "There's a creek that dumps into the river near the base of the mountain. That's where our first goal is." Sarah urged her horse closer to Hopper, "Nicole, fix the front of your vest before anything pops out and shocks us all."

The elf's laughter filled the small patch of woods as Nicole turned her horse toward the south and led the way.

"Who's riding shotgun?" Hopper called after the others as they fell in line behind Nicole.

"Looks like you have that honor." Nicole called back to him, her sultry voice echoing through the trees.

"Good idea, Hopper." Jack added. "That Inn Keeper turned to jelly at the sight of you. It's probably best that you stay hidden."

"Okay I'll hang back a bit. But if things get hairy, I'm coming in." Hopper glanced at Sarah's disappearing form. "Keep an eye on her Jack. I don't want her to miss out on this adventure."

"Don't worry, Todd nothing's going to happen." Sarah called back to them.

A pair of dark blue eyes stared silently from the brush beside Sarah. The silent lithe figure moved swiftly back into the shadows of the forest to disappear unnoticed by the adventurers.

Chapter Four.

The small group of cheerful explorers traveled several miles through the forest before coming to a narrow road. The beaten dirt path led them swiftly toward the mountains. Nicole began to sing a soft, haunting melody in a strangely compelling language no one understood. Shortly afterward, the animals began to appear. The others noticed the small creatures of the forest pausing a short distance from the narrow trail, watching them as they pa.s.sed. As they pushed deeper into the wilderness, the animals grew bolder, approaching the trail yet staying just out of reach. Nicole began to halt their procession as a deer or small ground creature appeared to greet them. Cooing softly, she would bring them near. Dismounting, Nicole would kneel and reach out to them. Nearly all responded, coming to her side to be caressed and fussed over.

'Nicole, I'm thrilled you're making new friends." Jack groaned, as she stopped for yet another animal embrace. "But I think I can speak for the others when I say 'cut it out!'

You're driving me crazy!''

"l'm sorry if my conversations with these simple beasts has annoyed you, Barbarian, but they've guided us toward our destination." Nicole answered softly then casually leapt back onto her horse allowing the small red fox to run back into the brush.

"They've been talking to you?" Hoppers deep voice carried through the trees.

smiled softly at him.

"Is there any possible way to get directions without dismounting?" Jack countered, frowning at Hopper.

"That would be rude." Nicole replied and sent her horse into a gallop down the path.

Sarah suppressed a grin as they followed the impish elf deeper into the forest.

The trees grew to immense proportions and the thicket more dense, filling the forest with deep shadows. Hopper moved forward, wanting to be closer to Sarah under the darkness of the giant trees.

"It smells like rain We should keep our eyes open for a safe place to wait out a the downpour." Hopper announced, searching the dense canopy of overhead for any sign of the sky.

"Let's keep going." Jack countered. "The sky was clear the last time I caught a glimpse of it. Besides you can't smell rain until after it falls, Hopper."

"I'm telling you, I smell rain." Hopper glared at Jack's broad shouldered back.

"It's not rain." Nicole called back to them. "We've reached the river."

Glancing ahead Jack could see a break in the trees showing only a clear blue sky. He asked, "Are you sure?"

"We're on a bluff." Nicole moved her horse aside, allowing Jack a view of the large cliff that overlooked a wide river winding through the forest. "I'm afraid the trail's washed away." She added motioning to the side of the incline. A hint of what was once a sloping trail dropped off into a mess of dirt and rock near the center of the descent.

"It's steep, but I think we can make it." Jack declared as he urged his horse closer to the edge. "I'll go first, when I'm down, follow me one at a time." He called over his shoulder and headed down the slope toward the sandy base near the edge of the river.

The trail pitched severely at the far edge of the bluff. Jack urged his horse over the edge and the mare began a controlled slide down to the base. The loose dirt was soft and unstable. Reaching the base he called up to Nicole. "Stay away from the inside edge. The cliffs giving way."

Without hesitation, Nicole urged her stallion forward and down the slope. Sarah and Hopper followed without incident. Moving upstream along the rocky edge of the river the small group rode in silence. Four pairs of eyes searched the distance in antic.i.p.ation. Nicole was the first to hear the roar of the ma.s.sive waterfall where several creeks fed into the river. The adventurers moved into the trees and approached from the cover of the forest. They cleared the trees and stood in awe at the beauty of the scene.

Three separate streams dumped into a pool at the top of the falls. The water cascaded over a wide glittering white rock bank framed by layers of dense fern-like ivy filled with large blossoms of purple and burgundy flowers. The waterfall was not part of the main channel of the river. Instead was part of the joining of yet another smaller channel that dumped into the river at a sharp angle. The ma.s.sive boulders surrounding the edge and the base of the falls caused a large deep pool of foaming water that bubbled over into the mainstream. The falls were not of ma.s.sive height but the wide rocky cliff was varied such that it caused a deafening roar as the swiftly moving water pounded into the surface of the many tiers of staggered boulders.

"This is incredible!" Hopper bellowed, barely audible over the roar of the falls. "It looks too good to be real." He smiled gleefully and jumped off his horse to examine the structure more closely.

Nicole slid off her stallion and headed toward the far edge of the boulders near the base of the falls. "It's solid, I can't see any opening behind the falls." She yelled to no one in particular.

Jack appeared next to her stuffing his sword in his belt. "It must be on the other side." He turned and waved Hopper and Sarah near.

"How do we get across?" Hopper frowned, taking in the depth of the bubbling pool. It looks to be at least 30 feet deep here and the current is something we don't want to deal with."

"We could go upstream along this smaller river and see if there's a shallow area to cross." Sarah offered.

"All right, you stay here and keep looking I'll head upstream." Jack ordered, heading for his horse.

"Who decided you were in charge?" Nicole challenged showing a part of her old personality since they arrived. "I don't think we should separate. What if we're attacked?"

"I thought you loved to fight." Jack answered, without looking back.

"I do and I'm good at it." Nicole grinned, "But Strong said to stay together. "

"Well then . . . are you coming?" Jack mounted and urged his horse toward the river bend.

"Hopper?" Nicole looked at him expectantly.

"We'll be fine."

With that, Nicole whistled for the speckled stallion, leaped onto its back and raced after Jack.

Jack searched the trees for signs of the Elf Warriors as they reached a wide the turn in the river. Just ahead was a wide area where the river slowed. It looked fairly manageable. Nicole caught up to Jack as he entered the river. She tapped him on the shoulder and motioned toward a small patch of writhing water. "Water Moccasins, best to stay clear of them. "

Jack's eyes narrowed as he realized her suggestion was a bit too late. The current moved more rapidly than he expected and it was carrying the snakes directly at them. "Move!" He shouted as Nicole drove her horse into the water ahead of him. Jack urged his mare into the deep water near the center of the stream. The horses slowed, as they struggled to swim against the strong current. Glancing over his shoulder, Jack drew his sword. They weren't going to make it.

Suddenly, Nicole reined her horse and pushed behind him.

"Keep moving," She ordered, placing herself between Jack and the snakes. She 'began to sing a slightly different version of the same haunting melody she sang to the forest creatures.

"I don't think elves are snake charmers." Jack said as he reached back to grab the reins of her horse. Ignoring him, she continued to sing. The snakes went limp in the water just as they reached them and floated silently past. Jack yanked on the speckled stallion's reins and urged the horses up the embankment without a word. Turning back to watch the serpents disappear downstream, Jack motioned for them to continue.

Sarah and Hopper came into view as they rounded the bend. Jack galloped up to the edge of the falls and dismounted to inspect the rocks. Hanging on to the flowering vines that cascaded over the edges of the falls, he peered behind the rushing waters. "No cave here." Jack announced, turning back to find Nicole gazing into the depth of the frothy pool.

"Nothing on this side." Hopper's deep voice shouted across the water.

. Climbing down from the giant white rocks, Jack stared into the bubbling water. The image of the snakes came back to him. Glancing at Nicole's sober reflection in the water, he spoke as quietly as the falls roar would allow. "I guess I owe you an apology."

"Why?" Nicole glanced up to meet his gaze.

"That song of yours, it kept me in the game." He smiled softly, studying the deep green eyes that stared at him. "That's the third time you've come to my rescue."

"Let's just stick to the activities of today. Anyway, I'm sure you'll have a chance to repay the last two favors very soon. That is, if things pick up. I expected a little more excitement than a simple treasure hunt this has turned out to be."

"Find the cave. I bet there's plenty of excitement waiting for us inside." Jack said, kneeling beside the pool.

"It's down there." Nicole pointed to a shadow at the bottom of the water.

"Awesome." Jack grinned glancing across at Hopper and Sarah. They were also examining the pond, and arguing. Jack and Nicole navigated the river once more. The group unsaddled their horses and spread their saddle blanket on the ground. Sarah emptied the contents of the two leather satchels she'd taken from Nicole's horse on to the blankets. Dining on cold leg of lamb, rye bread and hard cheese they discussed the churning waters of the pool.

"It's too deep and the waters too rough to make it down and back in one breath, much less take the time to search for . . . whatever it is that's supposed to be down there. " Sarah explained pa.s.sing the leather flask of sweet wine to Hopper. "It's dangerous enough searching a cave with diving equipment, let alone one deep breath of air."

"Maybe it's not a cave, it could be a nook or crevice in the rock that just looks like a cave. We have no idea what that dark area is down there. We could be on the wrong path completely." Hopper added, draining the last of the red wine.

"Maybe we've got the wrong waterfall." Sarah suggested. "We've got the right falls, there isn't another one on this side of the mountains."