The city from my view.

A pulse on a vibrant Megalopolis.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

Campy looked at Vic, the troll and the witch. Vic had the face of desperation painted on him with sweat formed on his brow. The witch was scratching something under her dress with the pointed end of one of her fingernails and the troll was bent over a pool nearby gazing into the murky water.  He had lost sense of time and where they had been led to. On his bike, these things came naturally to him with the wind in his face and the sun on his back. But here, deep in a mountain in France, he was hopelessly lost.

Neither the witch or Boogabob seemed in any hurry of leaving their beloved cave. Campy yawned in a loud voice and then stretched. "You know guys, we could meet you at the cottage, and you two can take care of your business down here. Is there a map or something that will show us the way back?"

"You don't like it here?" Boogabob said in a surprised voice looking up from his pool of mud.
 
"We like it outside. Fresh air, wind in our face. What can I say but I feel like I'm in the biggest closet of my life."

"Relax big guy," the witch said and pulled from her dress a rat. "Follow him and he'll show you the door."

The rat jumped from her hand, came right up to Campy's feet before the rat stood and asked, "You afraid of rats too?"

"A talking rat. This is the strangest place I've ever been."

"And you don't think your strange?" The rat asked. He took the tip of his tail in his hand and used it to dig at his ears. "Witch lint gets into everything. Well, do you want to go see your precious outdoors?"

"Yeah we do," Vic said with a smile on his face.

"Follow me."

The rat took off, going  between Campy's legs.  It took Girlymann for a start but he quickly turned and followed the rodent with  Vic close behind him.  The pace was quick, there wasn't much time to look where they were going or where they came from. Although the rat didn't loose them, he didn't wait either at the crossing over the underground river or in the tight section of the cave but before long, there they were at the heavy oak door. A candle mounted next to the door burned bright.

To be continued.....

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

Campy wiped at the goo on his cheek but all that did was smear it in as a dark smudge. The breath of the witch was fetid, beyond fetid and Campy tried not to breath in her smell but it that was futile, she reeked of something most foul.

"That's not garlic." Campy said pulling out a handkerchief and covering his nose.

"Oh, I just made a brew and got a bit on me.  Sorry Deary." The witch patted at her dress that was splotched with things better left un-describe.  

Campy rocked on his heels, looking at his watch and Vic as he said, "Gee it's been fun, really, but how about we go back and Vic and me will be on our way."

The witch walked over to the troll while Campy talked and handed him a vial. Boogabob beamed and hurried to a pool on the far side, clicking his heels.

"No hurry Dearie, you and your friend here are hot. And I mean that." She couldn't leave her hands off Campy and squeezed his bicep.

Campy smiled and took his own hand to remove hers. She cackled again but kept her hand at bay. Campy was not amused.

"Deary, Jean Claude is offering an award for the both of you. There isn't a person out there that doesn't want your ass. So stay awhile, we won't bite MUCH." Oh did the witch screech at her joke.

Vic asked, "How much is the award?"

The witch glanced at Vic for a moment before she leaned her neck to peek at Campy's bodacious ass. "Let's say it's a King's ransom."

The troll had come back from administrating to a pool and stood next to the witch. "You're safe here, really. Nobody here is interested in money. Means nothing to us, but there are other things."

To be continued.....

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

When Vic turned, an icy chill ran down his spine. There, close to him, was a bugged eye ugly woman. Her nose came to a point and her wrinkled face had the slight taint of green found on a rotted corpse. And she stunk.

"Hello Dearie," the witch said.

With a weak and surprised wave, Vic responded, "Hello." 

Boogabob put his arms around the witch and Vic. "Guys, I want you to meet, Zab. Zab, this is Vic and Campy Girlymann."

The witch cackled and screeched. She clapped her hands and twirled and when she finally settled down walked up to Campy, two inches from his face, and said, "I've always wanted to meet you."

Campy's lipped twitched. He turned a tad pale before he said, "You bike?"

Zab's hand felt the contours of Girlymann's chest, his tight pecs, the perky nipples and cooed up to him while Campy gave his stoic best and remained still. 

"You're such a silly man, Campy,' then Zab flicked ten inches of her tongue from her mouth and lapped his cheek. It left a trail on his skin as if a garden snail had crawled on him.

 The troll said, before he burst into laughter, "I think Zab has taken a licking to you."

"Yeah, well, what can I say, "Curse thee fatal beauty. It's been my cross to bear."

To be continued....

Friday, January 13, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

Campy cleared his throat and took a glanced at Vic who looked pretty scared, "Trade secret huh?"

The troll smiled and walked to another pool where he pulled a gem from the murky water, "You could say that. It's the witches, made a bargain with them and they are very fussy about secrets." 

"Don't want to  cross a witch that's for sure. Say, we should get on our way, Vic here needs to get back to Belgium and I need to get on my bike and ride." Campy wished he was on his bike at the moment for the troll never answered but went to one pool and another. Sometimes, after inspecting the crystals he pulled from the water he would add a drop from one vial or another. And sometimes he would open a leather pouch and take a pinch of something that looked like salt and put that in the water.

"Relax, I'm almost finished here, and besides Jean Claude and his goons are still looking for you."

"Oh, I'm sure they are but how do you know?"

"Witches." Boogabob said matter of factually. 

Vic spoke up then and said, "You seem to know a few witches then."

The troll had finished his inspection of the pools and came back to where Campy and Vic stood. He got right up in Vic's face and said, "Yeah I do. That a problem?"

Vic answered fast, "No problem. No really, I had a friend that was a witch. She said she was a good witch though."

"Well, they're all good til' you cross them. What coven she in?"

"Coven? I really don't know. I didn't think she was serious, I mean I didn't think there were witches."

"Well there is. Wanna meet one?"

"Yeah sure. But I don't want to take anymore of your time. You've been so nice, showing us around."

At that moment, Vic felt someone tap on his shoulder from behind him.

To be continued......

Monday, January 9, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

The massive opening swallowed the three as they stepped forward into a new section of cave. The troll seemed impatient with the pace of Campy and Vic who, with only the light coming from their candle lanterns, looked about as they followed Boogabob.

With a hurried wave every few steps, the troll motioned them on, "Come, come. Not much further."

Already Campy missed the daylight, the smell of a fresh breeze and the song of birds. In the bowels of the earth, it smelt dank and the only light came from a single candle. And instead of songbirds, the eerie high pitch whistle from bats with the flutter of their webbed wings whizzing by.

After a while, they took a turn into a smaller tunnel, narrow and curved. It seemed they went in circles and caused Campy's gut to cringe with anxious interpretation. The troll seemed to feel right at home and they had to tell him to slow down a bit, in case they missed a turn. But when the three made the next bend, a room appeared glittering with light, as if the stars were caught and brought down deep underground. The chamber shimmered in light and colors.

"Ain't it pretty?" The troll asked.

With their mouths dropped opened, the boys agreed it was while they gazed at all the lights. Some pools of water formed here and there and when a stalactite dripped water onto the still surface from above, it glowed in iridescent light until the pool went quiet and the light dimmed to await another drop. Other pools though changed colors with the drip, and yet others glowed on and on as another drop followed close by.

"What a show," Campy said and Vic nodded in approval.

"Yeah, I kind of like it myself, " Boogabob said smiling as he looked around too.

The troll walked over to one of the glowing pools. He reached into the pool and fished around before pulling out a crystal and then brought it back to Campy and Vic.

"Something I've been working on, " he said before he held it up for their inspection.

The crystal was different colors on each side and yet clear enough to see through. Boogabob held it out but didn't let go of the crystal, "I'm still working on it so it's kind of delicate."

"You make these?" Campy asked.

"I think a better word is that I design them. The cave's water actually makes the crystals," He said before holding up the gem to inspect it very closely.

"It's amazing. To grow crystals that beautiful." Campy said.

"How do you design them?" Vic asked as  he gazed in a pool of colored light.

The troll laughed and then placed the crystal back in the pool. He took from a pocket a vial of some kind of liquid the color of blood and poured a few drops in the pool before he said, "If I told you, I'd have to kill ya."

He then chortled in a very sick way and looked menacingly at the boys.

To be continued.....

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

It took a moment before the two men were use to seeing by candlelight, and when their eyes adjusted the troll was no longer by the door. When they looked around, they found him in front of them. Just a moment before he was in back, yet neither one felt him go by. His eyes seemed to glow in the dark as if a florescent green light shown from behind them. It made the troll look menacing. For a moment Campy thought even hungry with the way the troll smiled and licked his lips.

"Follow me, and watch your head, there are sections that aren't as large as others." He said before he turned and began down a slight grade into the mountain. 

At first, the entrance was more like a bored tunnel but after walking for a while, the tunnel opened into a wide space, a section of natural cave with stalagmites and stalactites came in view in all shapes and sizes. There was a stream also and Campy suspected it was the same stream that ran by the cottage where they started but he wasn't sure since he had lost all direction of where they were. They had walked uphill for a while but  there were down sections as well, and now in this wide open area, it was hard to tell where east or west lay much less if they were up or down from where they started.

With a very concerned look, Vic asked, "Where are we?"

Boogabob stopped in his path and turned, "In a cave, where do you think you are?"

"Well, I know it's a cave, but where are we?"

With his chin resting in the cup of his hand, the troll contemplated the questioned for a while before he answered.  "We are, exactly, two degrees north of center of the mountain. This here is only one chamber of many."

Vic's look was vacant but he didn't ask anything further about where they were and the troll continued along, what looked like, a well worn path to the stream and at one point they crossed on flat stones set in the stream. They wound through the columns of mineral deposits that went up toward the ceiling and down toward the floor of the cave. The massive stone edifices stood there silent with the only noise of the slow drip that came from the tips of the mineral deposits.

Ahead was another tunnel, only this one looked part of the cave and the light from the candles seemed to be absorbed by the black coldness of the opening to the tunnel.

to be continued....