Free Elf Killers by Carol Marrs Phipps, Tom Phipps Page B

pardon. I'm exhausted. No, I'm not doubting us, really. It'll be a very hard, dangerous struggle, but, we've already gotten through more than I'd ever imagined. I've a hunch that we've already been through the worst of it..."
    "Oisin!" cried Olloo as he came running. "We've got to help Kieran!" He paused for a couple of pants. "Lulach slipped over the side of the rock. Kieran has her, but he can't manage to pull her up. He may have hurt his leg. Come on!"
    Oisin sprang to his feet. They found Kieran stretched out on his belly on a narrow ledge, down the face of the east side, straining to hang onto Lulach's wrists. "If I can get down there feet first, I can lean back against the rock and pull her straight up," he said. "You go down at the same time, right over there and help him up."
    Olloo gave a nod. "Hoy, Kieran!" he hollered. "We're on our way down!"
    Soon Lulach was sitting in Doona's lap, shuddering with leftover sobs. Doona looked up for a moment with an admiring smile for Oisin.
    "It'll be a struggle," he said, staring out across the grass.  “Tea would be nice. We've got to find water first thing..."
    "Look!" cried one of the older boys as he waved to everyone and pointed off the south end of the rock. "Two shawkyn spooghey, right where we climbed up. They're trying to get up to us."
    "Don't worry, Mayl," said Olloo as he peered over the edge. "They may be long legged, but they can't climb rocks..." Suddenly he fell silent at the sight of two enormous black and white birds, twisting and yanking with their black-crested heads as they ripped off and swallowed great chunks of meat from the carcass of the young strike falcon Oisin had shot.
    "Looks like they forgot all about us, aye Olloo?"
    "I'll bet not," he said with a shudder.
    "Is there more than one kind of shawk spoogh? They're 'way bigger than the one they're eating."
    "No Mayl. The one they're eating is just a young one.”
    "But that means that they're eating their own kind. What sort of bird would do that?"
    "One we'll have to be right careful with, is all I know."
     
    Dyr was awake just before the shivering owl outside the Hooter Cave gave its first call of the evening. He threw back his quilt of Elf scalps and shuffled outside to the fire pit. He gave a glance about at the heavens. "Tonight we-go jump-bite grab-up-squeakers-at the endless eye-sting-water," he said with a decisive nod. "This-time maybe they no-be hee-hee-gone." He returned to where Fnarry-irrny still lay sleeping and yanked away the quilt, making her sit up with a gasp.
    He knelt over her as she grabbed for the cover. "Aah!" he said, pointing to his open mouth. "Aah!"
    "Has anyone whump-whumped the fire yet?" she said, turning away from him to wrap herself with the quilt.
    "No," he said as he thrust his face at her collarbone, pushing her off balance.
    "If that be your-face, it snuff-snuff like old bird-egg-smears and old-old rump," she said as she shoved him away with her foot. "I need fire for your grab-up-squeaker-meat..."
    "I'll whump-whump the fire," he said as he grabbed her by the hair and licked her neck, "but I be Thunder-man and I can make you see stars." He tramped out to find anything easy which he could toss on the coals.
    Fnarry-irrny thrust out her tongue at his back.
    Dyr stayed out by the fire, pitching in sticks and fuming until sows from further back in the Hooter Cave began arriving with larger pieces of wood to add. He stepped up onto his rock, folded his arms and ignored Fnarry-irrny as she went about muttering to herself, hopelessly scorching the roast.
     
    "You have diggy-fingered your nose at Dyr more than he can ever hum-de-dumdle, Fnanar," said Fnarry-irrny as she furtively looked out the mouth of the Hooter Cave. "Either giggle-grab one of your old humper-sows and move-out (we've got piles-and-piles of beads for-this) or head-smash Dyr and new-be Thunder-man. You be quick-quick scratchy-head. He'll be-back to thunder-thump you all to head-smash,