THE POET written by Tiny Chapter One - The Meeting With a big KRAK the immense stone club hit the table, splitting it in half. Spineripper was really enjoying himself, the humans had stood up with quite a fight. Especially the men around the cart, they had fought really hard, some of the clan had even suffered some slight wounds from the combat. Now he was chasing the round man who had been hiding under the table in the cart. He had looked eminent, but now he was just a crawling figure on the ground in his colorful clothes begging them to let him go. But he would make a great snack before the feast. The engagement was over and the ground in the clearing was crimson red of remains from the battle. Here and there a troll sat chewing on a bone. Spineripper was really happy with the loot, it was full of gems and quite a lot of the yellow metal crap that the humans seemed to value so much. He couldn't understand why, couldn't be eaten and wasn't good for anything, but they usually kept it just to annoy the humans. But the gems were really good, nothing is tastier than a fine diamond or jewel. Yes the troll have teeth that excel even diamonds in strength. There was also about 10 tasty horses. Yes it would be fine feast tonight. There was also a few of them fragile things that his brother Akrug liked so much. Akrug never wanted to come with them on their plunders. He just sat in his cave looking into one of the fragile things or boks as he called them, or walking about in the forest without bashing any of the animals. That is the most strange thing about Akrug, he never bashes anything not even wild boars. Meanwhile back in the cave Akrug sat reading one of his many books. He had never cared much about going around bashing things and then eating them. It seemed so pointless. And for eating live things, he couldn't even bring himself to eat flowers so he was on a constant diet of stone. He had a codex that he would never kill anything. So there he sat chewing on a piece of granite shrugging to the thought of what his clan probably was doing to some innocent people who had been unfortunate enough to be in their way. But that was just the way things are. He couldn't help feeling superior. He had an insight into things in a way the others of clan could only dream of. And his brother Spineripper who was head of the clan often asked him for advice on what to do. Spineripper is a natural leader, looking very ferocious and grim. Around his neck he wears a necklace made of Vertebrae from his victims, it went around his neck 3 times as it was now and he was still going strong. He also has the biggest club in the whole clan. A three arms long branch with a big sharp stone through it. Trolls lurching In the forest waiting for, the humans perched upon great white horses, the unaware coming food for the day the upcoming bashing feast! Da Hunt - Akrug BoneSpitter Akrug put the book down when he heard the first sounds of the coming trolls, they sounded really cheerful and satisfied. The looting must have been good. He replaced the book in the shelf. His little cave stacked with books in bookshelves and in piles on the floor, in a corner there was some hay for sleeping on. He had also a table in the middle of the room, with a candle and a chair. It all smelled of stone. Unlike the others caves he had neither unfinished bones lying in corners nor raw meat stacked somewhere in a corner and was lacking the general stench of rotting meat and shit. He carefully stuck his head out of the cave opening. They were all back, some of them limping but otherwise they seemed to be okay. Spineripper was up front carrying a big chest that looked very heavy. - Hey Spineripper, what's in the chest? ,he called out as they came within hearing. - In mah box? Juz da loot. ,Spineripper answered. "An sum of dem boks you like so much." - Oh good, well I'm going to take a walk in forest now, you can drop the books outside my cave. - Uh… shure I make dat latah. Now we FEAST! Are ye sure ye don't want enny food? We got sum horshes. - No I don't think so, but thanks all the same. He always tried not to be near the trolls when they started feasting. It made him feel sick and he didn't enjoy being bashed by drunken trolls. Because a drunken troll is just about the most dangerous thing there is. Especially if he has drunken some of old Maltbasher's spirits. Oh feast oh feast oh feast of carcass oh feast of bashed remains oh feast of crimson soup oh feast of crunchy bones Da troll feast - Akrug BoneSpitter Akrug's favorite place was a tarn that resided deep in the forest. He could sit for hours looking into the dark waters. It was as dark as night, like if light couldn't even touch it, it only bounced off. Akrug has a lot of friends, most animals loved him because he helped them, and so they helped him, by telling him tales of things outside the forest, that he couldn't see from his mountain. They told him of fair maidens and great kings, grim dragons and great battles against the green goblins and their kin. And of magick and great sorcerers that traveled through the kingdom seeking knowledge and power. Akrug really wanted to talk to a sorcerer, and often told his friends to tell him if a sorcerer was near. So that he could go and have a chat with him. But there never seemed to be any around, they were always elsewhere. Sometimes when sitting up on the mountain top at night he could see great sparks of magick crashing down somewhere followed by a big bang. Once the magick struck outside his cave, but before he got out the sorcerer had vanished. What is magick? A great blast from heaven? The hatching of a bird? A fish swimming upstream in a river? Day being conquered by night? Or perhaps the gift of speech. Magick - Akrug BoneSpitter Today he sat all alone looking into the tarn, when suddenly there was a loud SNAP somewhere behind him. A faint "Oh buggers!" could be heard from the same direction. Akrug sat all still by the tarn, after a few minutes a man stepped out into the clearing. He wore a very colorful robe and on his head he wore a pointy hat. In his hands he held a very embellished and very broken staff. It had been broken in half. The man didn't notice Akrug in his rage and kept on mumbling a lot of phrases that shouldn't be mentioned here. - Excuse me, are you perhaps a wizard? ,Akrug asked cautiously. - Who said that? Come out so that I can see you! - I am here, and you don't have to be afraid I am not like the others. ,Akrug said Standing up. He was almost twice as wide as the man and a lot taller. -Uh oh… please don't, can't you just let me go away? - I just said you shouldn't be afraid of me. I don't bash things and I certainly don't eat anything that's been alive. But are you? - So you're not one of them who I saw bashing my lord. Am I what? - Yes I am. But not one of them. I mean we are in the same clan but I don't plunder and loot. Are you a wizard? - Aha and Yes, and if you do anything that makes me feel threatened I am gonna turn you into a frog! - Oh I would enjoy that. But even better would be a bird, so that I could fly away and see other kingdoms and perhaps even a king or a maiden princess. - Oh, well actually I can't do any magick because my staff is broken, and I lost my scrolls when the trolls attacked us. - Well my brother brought me back some books from their plunder today, your books might very well be there. If you'd like you could come with me to my cave and hear some of my poems. And we could get your books. - Wait a minute, your home. Isn't that their home? And if I come won't they bash my head in and eat me? - Well of course they would, they are trolls, but they can't bash you if they cannot see you. So just stay with me and nothing will happen. - Oh well ok then. But remember if you do anything strange I'll turn you into stone! Oh, well ah, Buggers… well just please don't. - Ok I won't. Now let's go, it's a long way home. A drafty cave, A swaying treetop, A damp hole in the ground, A hollow oak, A great castle, What is home exactly? Home - Akrug BoneSpitter End Of Chapter One