After all this exciting action, with gobbers, near death, a spider, baby gobbers, swimming and climbing and only the way back home left the adrenaline leaves and up comes a big tiredness. And hunger.
Water she got to swallow enough while diving out of the cave, but Clara finds, she forgot to bring something to eat. "I'm hungry. When do we get to eat." she starts to whinge.
Tarjun indeed finds some edible berries on the way, but this slows the walk down to half and it's only enough for two.
Once they are up to a safer area Jewel relaxes and starts to enjoy the walk. She passes on the berries, not really hungry. "I hope nothing has happened at home that would have our parents looking for us. We've been away longer than usual when we just play in the woods. Maybe tomorrow we should stick around closer. And maybe make our presence obvious, you know, checking to see if there are any other chores to do? If they ask we could pretend to be afraid that there could be other gobbers around?"
As it is slow going anyway Clara does what Tarjun does. And she finds even more edible berries on the way, so that anyone can have some. "You want some too?" she asks Jewel, just in case she is only playing big sister when she passed on them the first time.
"You're going to volunteer for chores? I have no idea which behavior could be more suspicious than that."
"True. We don't want to be too obvious. I'm thinking more like we do our regular chores, then we go out to play just a bit. Then maybe we get a little dirty and go in to clean up and see if there's anything else we can do. That shouldn't seem too suspicious...."
"I think we should maybe tell them the truth. Clara nearly DIED today. I don't want to risk her tomorrow. And the ghostie is going to be mad if we don't bring back it's ball. It's too hard for us!
"WHAT!?! If we tell them everything they'll take away the marble, lock the door again on the ghost and nobody will go to get his septer! I'd be fine talking with Gertrud about this, but not all of the parents! She seems more likely to help, like when she was teaching us to use weapons and hunt. "
"That's our adventure. The grown ups are not allowed in!" Clara protests, punching Tobar on his arm.
Jewel smiles at Clara's statement. This task belonged to the four of them. Jewel just hoped that it didn't prove to be too hard for them.
"Tarjun, Nobody said that the septer is magical. The ghost said it had something to do with his office, like a symbol of his rank. We know the marble has magic to locate it, but we don't know anything else."
"Nobody said it, but it is!" Clara states as a matter of fact. In her worldview that is a given, and there is no doubt.
"And we need rope and a big light and maybe a good idea how to fight lots of those little gobbers. I need to ask mom to tell us some stories of her fighting."
"Do your parents do fighting? Or are they only beating up wheat?" Clara teases Jewel and Tarjun.
"I don't know any stories of Mom or Dad fighting anything, but the farm tools could kill a gobber as good as a sword any day. I mean just think of what a pitch fork stuck through the gut would be like! But yeah I guess we could ask. With the gobber that just got killed it would be a valid question."
"Ok, lets talk to Gertrud and listen to her. We can't do this alone. I refuse to do this without telling SOMEONE"
"I'm NOT going to let Clara die because we're too stupid (or proud) to ask for help when we need it. We're just KIDS!!!!
Didn't you see that Clara nearly DIED today!!!!!
I don't care, I'm going to talk to Gertrud!!"
With that, he starts to walk towards Gertruds house.
"Tobar stop! I already said we should talk with your mother. But just her. The other parents will probably ground us til we're grown up, married and have kids of our own! And we should do it together. No lies or she'll just have more reasons to ground us."
"Now I'm the excuse to spoil all the fun. I don't have a single scratch anymore." Clara mutters.
"I'm not very good at lying anyway so yes, lets tell the truth.
And Clara, you're NOT spoiling our fun. You're probably the reason that we all will actually live"
"I never said, that I'm spoiling the fun. You're spoiling the fun." Clara fumes and runs off towards the house.
With a sufficient head start she arrives in the butchery where her mother works. "Mom, mom, mom, we found a ghost in the gave at our play castle. And he told, that gobbers stole his magic stick. And we found that gobbers and killed one, but the other ran away with the stick."
"That gobber fell in a river and now the magic stick is in a cave with lots of baby gobbers, not really gobbers, but little wrinkly thingies with large pointy ears who ride giant insects and you need to help us get that magic stick from them."
She leaves out the part where they opened the door to the crypt with the 'borrowed' key. And of course she leaves out the part where she was shortly inconvenienced by almost dying.
The other kids, but Tarjun, can hear what Clara tells her mum.
Gertrud stands there, the cleaver in hand, with gaping mouth. She puts thee tool aside and stares at the kids. What have I done.
She pulls over a stool and sits down. Picking up Clara and putting her on her lap she asks "What ghost? And what cave? Where is that?"
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Why do they never wait for me?!
Tarjun finally reaches the Johnsons's threshold once Clara has finished her story. He looks awkwardly at Gertrud, who is waiting for explanations.
"A ghost in the forest. He ain't mean, really, just... Kinda old and lonely. Gobboes stole his scepter -he told us it's like a really nice-lookin' stick-, and they all live in a gobbo cave. Underneath a lake."
Tarjun shifts uncomofrtably on his feet.
"Anyhoo, we really wanna help this poor ghost," he pleads. "Poor guy ain't done nothin' wrong, and he ain't gonna rest in peace 'til we help him with his unfurnished business. We just wanna have some advice on how to kill the gobboes without gettin' hurt. PLease?"
"Such fights are between the quick and the dead. If you don't want to get hurt you have to be faster than the enemy. Or you beat them by force of numbers." Gertrud answers.
"Where is that cave? Under what lake?" she inquires.
"The little gobbos are also in a whole MAZE of tiny passages. I'm afraid of getting lost, or being hit from all sides, or something like that.
The cave is <gives vague directions>"
Jewel follows along listening. The group has the story pretty good, and focused on what they need. She does add, "I don't remember the ghost saying that the septer, that's what he called the stick, was magic. But he said it was his something or other of office. Maybe when he gets it back he can go back to his resting place. We're just trying to help him."
"I guess we're visiting a ghost then." Gertrud tells. She gets up and takes off her apron. She collects her weapons, and the key to the crypt and leaves the house to visit that ghost.
A short walk and a nice chat with a ghost later, Gertrud is at a loss what to say. After a while of silent contemplation she tells. "I guess we need to do another 'training day' in the woods tomorrow. You make a list of what we need."
Then she leads back and as it is evening she brings the Branston kids home to inform their parents of the training and then she brings ehr own kids to bed.
"Our mom is the bestest mom ever!" Clara exclaims as they are alone in the sleeping room.
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For once, Tarjun is at a loss what to say. He certainly did not expect such a turn of events.
"Darn, it went better than expected," is his only comment. He nudges Tobar: "Hey, sorry for being kind of a douche. It wasn't a bad idea after all!"
Before he goes to sleep, he secretly makes a new try on a branch to shape it into a staff.
Once she is away from any adults Jewel gives a long sigh of relief. "Wow! We're not grounded yet and we're getting another training day!!! I need to take some time and build a weapon more suitable for me. Maybe a good hard-sharpened stick, a spear so I don't have to get so close to an enemy....
To Tarjun
"Yeah, mom is pretty good. I feel much, much better about the whole thing now. And no, you weren't being nasty. We could easily have been grounded for life!"
To Clara
"Yes she is!! I SO much want to be like her when I grow up!!"
"You want to be a girl?" Clara asks confused.
Jewel chuckles and joins the teasing. "He didn't say he wanted to be a girl. He just wants to be a mommy!" She smiles at Tobar, hoping that he realizes the teasing and laughing is because they all feel relieved over the events.
"You guys better all be careful or I'll unleash the on you!!
He tries for a deep spooky voice but the effect is rather ruined when he can't help himself and collapses into a fit of the giggles
"Come here you sweet kitty cat of doom." Clara calls Brina, holding out a piece of dried sausage. She grabs the cat and rolls on the floor with her, stroking the shiny black fur.
"Oh, no! She will devour me!" Clara teases, but it is clear that Brina is the one who is uncomfortable with this situation.
The next morning Gertrud prepares for an excursion into the woods and a cave. She packs two landerns, some oil, rope, lunch for five, a net, plus her usual equipment she takes along for hunting.
Then she collects the kids and leaves with them into the woods. Once they are out of sight she prompts Tobar "Now lead the way to that cave."
As the walk goes on for hours she says "So you went that far from the village all on your own." Not really a question. A rhetorical one at best.
As the group finally arrives at the lake and stares down into the water Gertrud asks "And where exactly is that cave now?"
"So we gotta climb down there." Gertrud says and gets out the rope. Tying two of them together it gets long enough to reach the bottom. But there is no climbing for the little ones. The secures them with the rope and lowers them herself. At a place where there is a dry landing.
Only Jewel gets to climb, but with the rope around her to secure her. Gertrud climbs down last.
Inquiring further about the dive she ties the rope around her own waist. Luckily she has the lamps in a waterproof bag anyway. "You hold on to that rope, I'll pull you through. Clara you take the place behind me and make some light." Putting a dagger between her teeth she enters the water and once every kid is ready dives into the lake.
Once inside and out of the water Gertrud looks around. "Seriously?" she voices her dismay as she is pointed to the tunnel to continue. While it is a minor inconvenience for the kids to keep their head down in these tunnels, there is no way Gertrud could walk there. And even on all fours it's a tight match.
Jewel glances at Gertrud and ducks her head a bit, "Sorry. We didn't think about the size while we were here. But it opens up ahead. But let me check before we continue...." Jewel pulls the marble out to verify that it still pulls in the expected direction.
"What are you doing there?" Gertrud inquires.
"Just trying to recover the septer. The ghost said that this was part of it, the little end I think, and that it would pull toward it." She holds it out to Gertrud, "Here. Just hold it for a moment and you'll see."
Gertrud takes the marble. "Now that's definitely magic." She hands it back. "Tobar send Brina in first. I'll 'go' second."
Brina takes the lead and Gertrud squeezes through next. For the kids it seems to take like forever until they reach the big cave, with Gertrud pressing through like a cork out of a wine bottle.
With some magical light the beauty of that swiss cheese of a cave wall can be seen. None of the mites is to be seen in the light.
Jewel moves out into the cave holding the marble and letting it lead. "Clara, if you could put your light overhead? Don't want the little gobber things sneaking in." She moves slow, scanning all of the openings ahead. "The marble pulls that way."
Jewel decides which way to go. Brina goes first, the others follow. As all emerge from the tunnel, you find yourself in a hatchery for ants. There are three mites (baby gobbers) busy here as well as two giant ants that take care of a dozen eggs that look like huge rice grains.
Gertrud recognizes the mites and the ants, but has no good plan to minimize the threat. But as the mites are no big threat she tells "I and Brina go for the ant. You go for the mites, if you have to go into melee."