The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

 At first, Campy began to laugh. He looked at Vic who also was on the verge of laughter. Their bellies were full and their heads heady from bottles of good wine.  Then the music began to play from here and there in the room and before either knew it, they stood from their chairs and started to dance.

Raccoons played flute, pixies on harps, badgers beat drums with a whole troop of hares playing bagpipes. The whole room filled with music as the witch danced with the troll, Campy with Vic and the rat did a rumba with a duck. They changed partners and danced some more and then they danced in groups until they danced out into the night and frolicked under the moon. Trails of fireflies flitted about in the air as the party danced and danced. It was a whirling, swirling, twirling shindig. But at sometime, in a no-time place, Vic and Campy woke on a grassy mound beside their bikes next to the dirt road that they had left to follow the trial.

They looked around in a daze when the first rays of dawn's light struck. There was no path that led to the forest, only the dirt road and their bikes next to the mound of grass and the oak trees that shaded them. There was no music, no laughter and no magic.

"What the hell happened?" Campy asked.

"I think I was dreaming, I...." Vic looked around and he looked confused. He felt like he had  a hangover.

"Jesus, I have hangover." Campy barked and then laid back in the grass.

"How can we have a hangover?" Vic asked.

"It must be, I had a hell of a night. Didn't you?"

Vic shook his head to clear cobwebs but nothing came back in order. He too laid back and watched the light play on the leaves overhead. Birds sang and the grass rustled in the breeze while they laid there getting their bearings. It was so peaceful and quiet before a stranger poked their legs with a stick.

To be continued....

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

Vic and Campy waited.  They took a nap and woke hungry and still waited before they heard noise coming from the interior of the cave. First the rat appeared then the troll and witch talking the whole way. When they saw Campy and Vic standing by the door none to pleased they stopped. The rat had a smirk.

"Couldn't you get in?" The troll asked.

"Eh, no we couldn't. Any idea how?" Camyp's teeth stayed clutched so tight the words were hard to get out.

"Didn't the rat tell you? Blow out the candle."

With that the witch did just that to the torch on the side of the wall. The door swung open immediately.

"Little trick of mine when I left the candle burning once to many times. Works well wouldn't you say?" The witch said with a cackle.

Campy and Vic were so glad to see the door open they didn't care any longer and went quickly inside the troll's cottage.

"Hungry?" Boogabob said.

"Famished," Campy answered with thirty-two teeth gleaming.

The witch and troll went to the kitchen, while the rat went to the dining room beckoning Campy and Vic to follow. They did, with a bit of hesitation.

"You guys look like you can take a joke." The rat said extending his paw out to shake the hand of each man.

They both did, and Vic said, " It's all so unfamiliar I feel like I' m in one of the fairy tales my dad read to me as kid.

"Fairies get way too much credit if you ask me." the rat said looking over the selection of wines in a rack next to the china cabinet.

"How about we start with a Pinot Noir, " he said holding up a bottle. "Then we'll slip into Cab and go for the Merlot with the cheese."

Both men started to salivate like Pavlov's dog.  "Can we help." Vic asked.

"Naw, I fucked with you two enough. Sit down and I'll get this open.  So tell me, what the hell brought you here?"

Campy thought for a minute and then said, " I guess chance."

"Oh, well there goes my bet, I was sure the muggins did it."

"Never met them." Campy answered.

The rat used his tail for a cork screw and had the bottles open and poured in no time. He brought everyone a glass before he sat down himself. In the meantime, the witch and troll brought in dates, nuts, cheese, crackers, grapes and apples. They had finished the Pinot and were ready for the next bottle when the rat saw they would need more and began to open the next bottle followed by the next. Soon, good cheer began to grow as the sun sat in the window of the dining room. Candles were lit and more food brought out, potted meat and crackers, sardines and bread with a dip of olive oil infused with garlic and herbs, and as they drank and ate, they laughed and sang until the moon came up and then they began to dance.


to be continued....

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

As Campy paced back and forth, he would turn once in a while and stare at the the iron gremlin. Sometimes catching the gremlin with a new face, sometimes not but that didn't matter anymore, it was how to open the door that mattered.

With a snap of his fingers, Girlymann announced, "Got it." He walked to the door and with his arms folded across his chest said, "Boo."

Nothing happened. The iron gremlin held the iron ring in stone silence and the door stayed fast when Campy tried to pull it open.

"Shit, I was sure that was it."

"Maybe it's some witch curse, some kind of spell. How would you know what to do then?" Vic asked and got up to dust the dirt off his butt.

"Could be, I wouldn't doubt it. I guess the only thing is to wait and hope they come back soon."

And wait they did. They told stories of bike rides and bike people. Vic said he missed his girlfriend and Campy his boyfriend back in Italy. They talked of riding in storms and days made as if in heaven. Vic's gal always had champagne for him at the end of the tour, and told him how clever he was and how important to the team.

"She makes feel like a million, even though I carry water to the winners."

"Donatello, he was once a great racer, but an accident ended his career. Yet he is not bitter and if you didn't know him, you would think he was just another bike mechanic. He's much more than that though, and I sit in awe of him yet he treats me like a king."

Vic sat back down with his back leaned against the wall of the cave. "Do you think we'll ever get home, Campy?"

"We'll get out of this. I don't know how but we will. "

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The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

Vic looked at the clasp to see where he cut his finger and noticed that the gremlin no longer had a smirk on its face but bared what looked like a sharp little teeth, only they were iron.

"Campy, I'm sure that clasp was grinning when I last saw it, now it bares teeth."

Girlymann looked at the clasp but noticed it wasn't teeth but a pouting face with the lips sourly closed.
"Take another look."

Vic turned and saw what Campy saw.  "I'll be damned. That clasp is alive Campy." Vic then used his knuckles to knock on the gremlin's head. Nothing happened.

The two men stared at the clasp, waiting to catch the moment it changed but the clasp simply stared back with its pouty face like an iron clasp would.

"This is the queerest damn place. Queerer than a sultan's harem." Campy said while he looked around.

Vic didn't look around. He stared right back but when he blinked, the gremlin changed to a sly smile across his iron face.

"Look." Vic said.

Campy turned and did look but shrugged it off. "I'd be surprise if we weren't inside a dragon at this point. He turned to the gremlin and with his hand, gave a slight tug to the iron ring. The door didn't budge.

"We know you can hear us. Why won't you let us in?" Campy asked.

The gremlin stayed fast. Not a change in his expression.

"Maybe it's a secret word." Vic said.

"Makes sense. Now all we need is to know what the word is. That shouldn't be too difficult."

Vic stared at Campy to see if he was joking but it didn't look like he was and asked, "Any idea what it might be?

Campy studied the gremlin and the door. He paced for a while in thought. Vic sat down on his haunches and doodled on the earthen floor with his finger.

To be continued.......

The Adventures of Campy Girlymann in the Land of Trolls

When Campy turned to thank the rat he saw only the tail disappear into the dark of the cave. With relief, he turned his attention to the oak door. There was an iron ring fastened to the wood but when he pulled on it, the door didn't budge.

"Vic, see if you can find a latch or something." Campy said as he studied the door.

The Belgian did just that with a methodical look to see where the latch to the door might be. They ran their hands over the surface, felt with their fingertips along the thin edge around the door but could not locate any type of lock for the door. The only thing was the iron ring held in the grasp of what looked like a gremlin's iron hands. The little iron figure clasp wore a grin.

Girlymann was losing his patience. He gave the door a hard rap and then tug on the iron ring with both hands but the door didn't budge. Campy then placed one foot on the wall and tugged using his mammoth leg muscles as leverage. Still the door remained fast.

They both stopped their study of the door to ponder. There had to be a way and Campy searched his memory for a clue when they first entered and the door was shut behind them. All he could remember though was the eerie creaks and groans the door made as it opened and then shut after they entered. But nothing about how the troll opened the door.

Vic had sat on the floor thinking, when he turned to Campy and said, "I swear I saw that troll put an iron key into a lock on the other side but there isn't one here that I can see."

Campy thought a moment and said, "You're right, maybe it only works one way, but how do you get back if there's no keyhole on this end?"

Vic had got up from the floor and studied the gremlin clasp that held the iron ring. He put his finger on the mouth of the figurine and was immediately bit on the tip of his finger.

"Ouch! Shit what was that?" Vic looked closely at the end of his finger and found puncture wounds from teeth as if a small animal had bit him.

To be continued......