“What about Food?” came a quiet but familiar voice from behind the two.

“Gehl!?!” Russe exclaimed shocked that he had managed to catch up,” What are you doing here?”

“Well Karna said I should at least try to go. I figured smelling you guys go might make me need to”

“ Umm ok, That’s a little weird Gehl.” Toboe said.” But I think you should go back.”

“Why?”

“ We’re……uhhh……_{Toboe a little help with an excuse please}

Toboe and Russe exchanged nervous glances. Several. Toboe not being able to think of anything else suddenly shouted out,  “WE’RE GOING TO FIND THE LAND OF THE MAGIC POTATOES!!!!”

At that Russe smacked himself in the forehead “ He calls that and excuse. He might as well have said we were going to  attempt to steal food from a brown bear or something. We’re in the middle of a swamp… *sigh*

Gehl got the same puzzled look Russe had , “Toboe are you alright? I don’t think they have potatoes around here. They might in town…but here uhhh…”

“Of course what was I thinking?” Toboe said slapping himself back to his senses,” All that we could find around  here are coconuts and palm trees. ~?”

“Anyway ,“Russe said trying to get off the topic of Toboe’s screw up,” We’re going somewhere that’s too dangerous for  you to go to. We’ll gather some food while you stay with Karna where its safer. Ok?”

“But won’t you guys need Karna too?” Gehl asked, “After all we all are around the same age and…” He dropped off being  the shy kid he was.

“Nah!” Russe said with his normal look of pleasure on his face,” We’ve had more experience than you in the  fighting/gathering food skill, so we don‘t need a mentor like Karna to show us the ropes anymore like you do-”

He got mad at me for talking about potatoes…when he’s making this sound like a RPG?? Toboe thought to his self  while Russe continued his explanation.

Gehl apparently bought the explanation because as soon as Russe finished he smiled and said as he turned to walk back  toward where Karna was,“ Oh OK! See you guys later then!”

There was silence between the remaining wolf pups…… until Russe spoke up , “Toboe.”

“Yeah Russe?”

“ Did Gehl seriously just buy the poor excuse for an explanation?”

“Yep. Scary isn‘t it”

“ Wow, What’s really scary is that he’s even more gullible than you X3”

******************
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Sweet relief at last,” Karna sighed as he walked back to the supposed meeting place. He  was a little shocked when he only found Gehl waiting for him. “Hey Gehl, Did you finally go?” he shook his head, “Well  that’s no good, speaking of which, Where are Toboe and Russe?”

Gehl shrugged , “ I don’t really know Karna. They said they were going to go look for some food because the sandwiches  you have are yucky”

Karna thought it was a joke at first and simply smiled and said, “ Oh really? And lemme guess they used this bathroom  stop as an excuse to get away from me?”

“ Yep!” Gehl smiled back still believing Russe’s bluff about being perfectly safe.

Karna soon saw that Gehl’s face held to much innocence to be lying……his laughter faded and was soon replaced by  thoughts of horror. He was about to start raving to Gehl about his mistake of letting them go. Nah, yelling at  Gehl’s not going to solve anything. Its not his fault anyway….I can‘t possibly find 2 kids in a swamp by myself  though…. Especially if I have to haul along a trouble magnet at about the same age. I have to do something….! BUT HOW  THE HECK AM I GOING TO EXPLAIN THIS TO THE PACK??  

“Gehl, I need you to stay right here, in this very spot while I run ahead and get the others. Okay Gehl? You think you  can do that for me?”

Gehl looked a little shocked that Karna was asking him to do something like that. All the other times things had gone  wrong on their journey Iris usually picked Gehl up and protected him from everything she could “Why Can’t I just come  with you Karna?” he asked thinking of Iris.

“ I’m a lot older than you Gehl, More developed, and fast. But not strong enough to carry you on my back or anything  like that. If you tagged along with me I’m afraid I might leave you behind and lose you….I couldn’t live with myself If  I was the reason you got hurt. “ He paused for a moment and to Gehl he seemed like the big brother he’d never had, “ I  might be tasking some dangerous shortcuts into the city. Jumping over wide gorges,  entering rival wolf pack territory,  and a bunch of other things you could get hurt in doing….. Like I said I couldn’t let you risk anything… so Gehl could  you please stay right here for and wait for me to get back?

Gehl thought about it for a moment. He looked up at Karna he had a look of fear in his eyes. Or at least that’s what it  looked like. He was obviously very scared for The others and himself, “ Okay Karna, I think I can stay,” he said with a  look of determination in his own eyes,” You won’t take very long, will you?”

“ I’ll be going as fast as my legs can take me.” Karna replied smiling and ruffling Gehl’s hair through his hat. “ So  don’t worry I’ll be back ASAP” And with that and a quick shift to his wolf form Karna dashed off keeping true to his  promise to go as fast as he could.

It didn’t take Gehl long to start feeling alone and vulnerable…. With every whisper of wind or a bird roosting in the  trees would come another shriek and a running away. Thus he ended up inching further and further away from the spot  Karna had asked him to wait. Sound after sound would freak Gehl out.. Eventually, he found himself completely lost. To  make matters worse the sun was sinking lower in the sky. ( His lengthening shadow even scared him once or twice. )

“Hello?” Gehl said feeling a desperate need for comfort, “ Is anybody there?” all that answer the little guy though was  a lone cry from a crow

*****************

*Further into the bog-like forest *

“Are we ever going to find anything to eat Russe?” Toboe wondered, “I mean we’ve been walking around searching for  hours.”

“ I don’t get it.,” Russe groaned, “We’re in a forest, if forest are truly the most bountiful of all places…WHERE THE  HAY IS ALL THE FOOD. ALL I CAN FIND IN THIS FOREST IS PALM BRANCHES AND MUD! Good Greif.”

“ Tell me about it,” Toboe sighed, “ This mud has completely ruined my shoes,”

“Switch to your wolf form then, no shoes to worry about then.”

“No , If I did that mud would get in between my toes and squish together every time a took a step,” Toboe shuddered,   “I don’t know which I hate more the feeling itself or the feeling if makes”

“ That’s  the best part though, the feeling I mean. It feels like your walking through a giant bowl of strawberry jam  or something. Mmmmmmmmmmm Jam. On Warm Toast with a piece of bacon wedged in the middle…….oh yum ~?”

“I thought you hated everything besides meat Russe?”

“Nah berries and stuff are good every once in a while,” Russe Answered continuing to fantasize, “Heck, even Karna’s  stinky sandwiches sound good when you get hungry enough. But, doesn’t it sound good Toboe. I mean the berry flavour of  the jam would compliment the meatiness without overpowering it…Mmmmmm…Doesn’t it sound great?”

Toboe’s stomach growled and his mouth began to water at just the thought, “ You know what would be even better Russe? A  juicy steak on the rare side with a light side of A1sauce….now that sounds good.

The boys fantasies were soon ripped from their minds when Russe spotted a shadowy silhouette moving throughout the  trees past the clearing they had stumbled into not too long ago.

“T-Toboe…… is that you?” Russe stammered hoping his friend had gotten ahead of him.

“ Is what me?” Toboe asked coming up beside him.

“ You mean that wasn’t you I j-just saw over there,” He Said nervously pointing to the spot where the figure had stood.

“N-no…” Toboe replied his voice also beginning to shake,” I thought that was you.”

“ If it wasn’t you…and it wasn’t me…it must be………..a Sasquatch.”

“lolwhut?” Toboe laughed nervously, “Don’t get too carried away there Russe. I mean its more likely something else.  Like a deer or maybe its Karna and Gehl , I mean they’d have to start searching for us by now right?”

“ I only saw one person, Gehl would be right on Karna‘s tail…. And there aren’t any deer in this region, especially at  this time of year…”

The figure passed by again lots closer, but not close enough to  make out much more, except for large projections  sticking out of the unknown creatures head.

“Still think it’s them?” Russe squeak grabbing on to Toboe’s arm…

“No, that dream was just taken away…A-a-t least it can’t be a Sasquatch or Darcia.”

“What if its an alien…and it kinds a way to unmask our human forms……then it dissects out our brains or puts probes into  us and use their minds to make us their slaves…Or they use us as spies to take over the earth ”

“ Russe, you seriously watched too much television at the hotel we stayed at last week. -__-” Anyways, Russe….if  something were to happen to one of us…. The other one of us should run and save their self.”

“ No, Toboe I couldn't do that. No matter what we have to stay together, no matter who or what that thing is.”

A large bush, not three feet in front of the “brave” duo rustled at about this point. Still paralyzed in fear neither  boy even thought about running…they just started to scream. Strange enough though, when the figure came out through the  bush, they screamed back, as loud if not louder and slightly higher in pitch.

“IT’S BIGFOOT!!!” Russe Screamed, “ NO AN ALIEN!!”

“NO ITS DARCIA!!! I KNOW IT IS~” Toboe screamed.

To be continued........ In Volume 3