This is my story so far... enjoy, ya'll!!! Prologue High above the reaches of Falconholme, Ito Bagman gazed into the sky. Next to him were his friends Gam Chubb and Tay Carther. Gam was gazing at the clouds and Tay was studying, as usual. Tay was always studying these days. He said it was to get into something called college. College? Ito wondered, what's a college? Do you buy stuff there? Or is it a sort of maze? Ito never asked Tay what college was. He didn't ask Gam either. It was tough having your best friends be a different species. "Ito," Gam called out lazily. "Look at that, Ito. That cloud looks like a tree!" A little later Gam spoke again, only this time, he sounded rather scared. "The cloud's still there, Ito. I never saw such a cloud before. It looks like someone in the trunk is looking at us! Look, Ito! It's getting lower! Ito! Look!" Gam was practically screaming in excitement now. Ito glanced up and froze. "Let's leave," he muttered. The boys backed away from the cloud-tree. Then they turned and ran down the hill faster than rabbits running for cover. * * * They sat panting in Tay's house. Ito leaned back against the wall and sighed. This day wasn't going well at all. Tay couldn't figure out what they had seen. "What cloud?" he kept asking. He seemed really confused as he said that he hadn't seen any cloud. Ito looked gravely at Gam, panting in the corner. Gam looked up and his gaze alighted upon Ito's. "What was that?" he asked. Ito didn't bother answering. Part One The Friendship Ito, Gam and Tay hadn't always been friends. For a long time in fact, Gam and Tay didn't know Ito existed. Ito knew they existed, though. He would constantly spy on them to see the funny things that humans did. "Gam," said Tay. "Gam!" "Wha?" Gam murmured groggily. "You woke me up." "Gam, don't you ever get the feeling someone's watching us?" "Don't be silly, Tay. No one knows we come here. Lately, you've been asking that every time we come here. Honestly, sometimes you are pretty strange." "Gam, I think someone's watching us. No animals live here, and yet those bushes moved and a twig snapped." "A bird" "There're no birds here, Gam!" "Well than go look" "I will." Tay got up and moved to the bushed behind them. Gam was just about asleep when he heard Tay cry out. "A skunk," Gam muttered, and fell into a deep sleep. "Who are you?" Tay called as he saw something move. "What are you doing here, and why are you spying on us?!" All of a sudden Tay realized it would be stupid of him to be shouting when it might just be an animal. Then he froze as he saw something that looked like bark emerge from the bushes. Sheepishly, Ito walked out from behind the tree. And looked puzzled as Tay screamed. Until he looked down and saw that he was still tree colored. "Oops." Ito changed his skin back to its regular color. "Is that better?" he asked in a dispassionate tone. Tay sat panting, staring at him. "Forget the who are you, what I want to know is what are you," he managed to get out. * * * "What do you think I am?" Ito asked. "Right now I have no idea what to think," gasped out Tay, who was acting like he had just run a few miles without stopping once. He had reason though, for all his life he had been taught not to believe in mythological creatures, magic, and the supernatural. Now, it appeared, someone from one of those categories was standing right in front of him. "Most people act like that when they see one of us," Ito agreed nonchalantly. "I have no idea why people act so strangely when they see an elf." As he said this, he was thinking, they'd have known I was here soon enough, anyway. Tay's breathing started to slow, and began to calm down. "An elf?," he asked. "I thought they were just lore." "Oh, no," Ito replied. "We're real, alright. We just try to keep out of your way as much as possible." "Then why are you standing here?" Tay enquired. "'Cause you guys are interesting. There're no boys my age where I live. Besides, you guys looked fun." "Oh," Tay said. He sat in silence for a while. Suddenly he realized something. "I forgot! I'm Tay Carther, and that snoring lump is Gam Chubb." "Hi. I'm Ito Bayman." "Hi Ito. So what's it like being an elf?" Ito burst out laughing. * * * That friendship had lasted for years. They never had a major fight, though they often would squabble, and wrestle with each other. Gam and Tay had grown so used to Ito, that they would often forget he was an elf. They would talk about things like school and college, completely forgetting he didn't know the first thing about what they were talking about. Sometimes Ito would remind them about it, other times he would just store it up in his memory of things to ask them at a later date. Other times, they would ask him things they didn't know. Things Ito considered commonplace, such as unicorns, dragons, goblins, and ghouls. Ito wouldn't talk about ghouls to them, but he would tell them other things. Things like how to find a unicorn, and how to properly ride a dragon. Sometimes Tay and Gam would want to know about his life. They would ask him to tell stories about how he lived, what he ate, his biggest adventure, what the place he lived in was like. Once Tay asked about why Ito had followed them, and why he had said there weren't any boys his age in the village. Ito had told him about how everyone else had had a baby girl the year he was born. About how he had discovered Tay and Gam one day by going to the stream to fish, and about how he decided that they were really neat, so that he followed them. They would talk about other things, too. What adventures they should go on was a common thing to ask each other. Little did they know that adventure would sneak up on them. Part 2 Tag The three friends were sitting on their hill one spring day, thinking of something to do. "A running game," said Gam. "How about a game of tag?" They agreed, and it was decided that Ito would be "it".           Ito counted off while Tay and Gam ran. "10!" shouted Ito and he took off in hot pursuit of the others. They ran up and down the hill, and came to a wooded place. Strange, thought Ito, this wasn't there before. Oh, well, he added as he ran in after the others. Gam ran and ran as only he could. He couldn't let the others catch up with him. He barely noticed the forest as he raced inside. He had a reputation to maintain. Gam didn't notice the cloud following him. The strange tree-cloud that had scared them into running away from the hill they had been resting on before. If he had, he would have just wondered if he was imagining things. Maybe it was best that he didn't see the cloud. Maybe it was best that he didn't know what was going to happen. If he had, he might have scared himself to death. For what was coming for him would be more exiting than any adventure he had thought of, and scarier than any nightmare he had ever had. Tay ran through the woods. Every few minutes he would yell over his shoulder "come and get me!" He darted this way and that, laughing and getting himself totally lost. After a while, he slowed down. He had been wondering why no one was chasing him. Gradually, a sense of foreboding came over him. He started to glance over his shoulder, not to see where Ito and Gam were, but from fear. After a while he thought he saw a shape loom up in the distance. Tay screamed and ran for his life. * * * The fog came rolling in. Ito and Tay had crashed into each other near the edge of the woods and were now looking all over for Gam. "Gam!" they would call, 'Gam, where are you?" There was no response. Gam was nowhere to be found. Finally they gave up and looked at each other in despair. Their best friend had just disappeared. Then they realized something even worse. They had to tell his mother! "You tell her," said Tay. "You're the brave one. You would know what to say." "You have to tell her yourself," Ito replied. "She doesn't know about me, remember? She could have a heart attack if she knew that elves existed this late in her life!" "She knows," countered Tay. "We told her when we first met you. Of course she believes you to be imaginary, but she won't be so shocked that she keels over and dies." They continued on and on, not wishing to tell Gam's mother that he had disappeared. In the end it was decided that they would both go and tell her together. Part 3 Deception and Discovery Tay and Ito approached Gam's house cautiously. Ito had never met Gam's mother, and Tay had never seen his house before. Suddenly Ito whistled in admiration. "Boy, that's old." Those were the only words they exchanged on the road that led up to the house. It was now evening, and the trees that surrounded the house were still dead-looking, which added to the creep-factor. They worried about what Gam's mom would say. How she would act. What she would do. As they at last came up to the house, a door slammed open and a plump, hysterical lady burst forth. "Tell me the worst! Did he break his leg, his neck? Was he stealing something? Is he alive? Oh tell me, do!" This was not the reaction they expected. They'd expected remonstrances, angriness, even curses, but not this. They were totally unprepared for this little woman who feared the worst for her son. They took one glance at each other and lead Gam's mother in the house. Mrs. Chubb sat in a chair, sobbing for a while, but eventually calmed down. As she did, she looked up and saw Tay, a slim blond student. Tay was tall and looked the scholar, and was one. She saw a strange boy with him. The boy was as tall as Tay, had brown hair, and looked weather-beaten. He had a deep, brown tan and strange eyes that were at once gray and a thousand different colors. He looked like he belonged to the woods. Mrs. Chubb tried to place him among Gam's friends, but couldn't. She had never seen him before. Ito looked at Gam's mother, and for the first time wondered what it would be like to be a human, living happily and naively, and then to one day discover that everything you had thought to be fake was real. In a word, to have your whole world turn upside-down.  It wouldn't be the last time he wondered about it, though. Now he was going to have to tell Gam's mother what had happened, and to tell the truth, he really felt sorry for her. Finally, Mrs. Chubb broke the silence by saying to Ito, "I'm terribly sorry, but I don't know who you are." "Ito Bayman at your service." "Is this some joke?" she asked. "This has to be a joke. Gam would tell me about an elf named Ito Bayman, and elves don't exist. So what is your name?" "This isn't a joke. My names Ito Bayman, and I'm an elf. I'm sorry, ma'am but we have some terrible news to bring you. Gam disappeared. We were playing tag, when this wood showed up. Gam ran into it first, and he just vanished. We don't know who did it, but we're going to get him back. We just don't want you to worry ma'am. We're sorry." Mrs. Chubb turned to Tay. "Is that the truth, that he's telling me? Has Gam gotten into a stupid scrape? Is what he said really the truth?" Tay looked at her gravely and replied, "I'm afraid it is. Gam has vanished. We don't know why, but he has. And we are going to find him." * * * Gam's mother looked at them and sighed. "I think I might know why," she said wearily. Ito and Tay looked at each other strangely, and then looked at her. "Why?" Tay asked. "My son is part wizard. His father is a wizard. When Gam was born, I forbad him to come to the house again. I told him I didn't want him teaching my son how to be like him. I told him that I wanted a normal life, with a normal child. He got was furious when I said this, and he cursed me. His curse was that I was to lose the only thing I loved, just when I thought I was safe. He left in his carriage, which he had made to look like a cloud shaped like a tree. I thought I was safe when he left. I should have known neither Gam or I would be." At this, Mrs. Chubb burst out crying again. "What was the wizard's name?" Ito asked. "His name is Mehn Gamman. Gam was named after him." "Why didn't you tell Gam?" this time, the asking was by Tay. "I didn't want him to know of his father. After Mehn left, he became thoroughly evil. I didn't want my son to know that he had come from someone so evil." "So are you really married?" "I married Mr. Chubb when Gam was three years old. He died a year after that from a bronchial infection." "Oh." "We have to go now," said Ito. "We'll give you news of your son as soon as we can." "Thank you," replied Mrs. Chubb. Part 4 The Search Begins "All right," Ito told Tay. "Listen up, and listen good. We don't have much time, but I have a feeling that I might know what happened. I know someone who works for Mehn. This person has no scruples against killing someone. She's tough, rough, and never tell her that she fights like a girl. Aniset can kill people like a child can step on ants. She likes it, and believe me, you do not want to get in her way. Understand?" "Ay-ay, cap'n," Tay said. "And cut out the 'Ay-ay' crap" "So what are we going to do?" "We are going to do nothing. Gem is going to do the work. He can find out whether Mehn has Gam or not. See you in two days." As Ito ran off, Tay tried to remember who Gem was, and realized he should never even bother trying to figure out who Ito was talking about. * * *           Ito had a harder task at hand. He had to find Gem before he went on his vacation. All Gem had talked about for weeks was how he was going on a trip to the Ocean-Bottom Café. And Ito did not feel like traveling to the bottom of the ocean right now. C'mon, Ito his mind screamed at him, run faster, FASTER!!!           Finally, after a day's hard running, he got to Gem's house. He saw Gem just as he was stepping out of the door. "Gem," he panted. "Buddy, I am so glad I caught you. I need your help really bad. It'll only take a minute or so, so can you stay for that long?"           "Sure, man. What do you need help with."           "You know how Aniset has been crushing on you.?"           "Look, I am not fixing you up with her. That girl is dangerous."           "Look, I know that. I just need you to call her to find out if her boss has Gam or not"           "Anything for a pal like you, but who's Gam?"           "A friend."           "Woah, he isn't a human or anything, it he?"           "He's part wizard, can you do this or not?"           "I'll do it. Just give me a second to unlock my door."           "Thanks, pal."           "No prob, anytime. After all, who saved me from that ghoul a while back?" Gem looked back at Ito with a glint in his eye, "and you didn't exactly come out in one piece either, did you?"           "Could you just call her?"           "But of course. Right this way," Gem motioned Ito to come in with a grand sweep of his arm. Gem's house was a hollowed out tree, and it was filled with fascinating things. Normally Ito could look around it for hours, but he was almost dancing on his toes with anxiety now. Gem walked over to a circle of stones on the floor, and waved his hand over it. "Aniset Crelov, home," he said, and after a few seconds, Aniset appeared. "Hi Gem," she said coyly. Want to go somewhere tonight?"           "Sorry Ani," Gem coolly replied, "but we can get together in three days if you answer this question." He looked at her consideringly and added, "Truthfully."           "Sure Gem, what is it?"           "Does your boss have a kid named Gam?" he asked. "Dark, rather thickset?"           "Why," Aniset countered suspiciously, "is he your cousin or something?"           "No Ani. He's my friend's friend, and I need to know."           "Fine then, Gem," she said while making a face. "Yes, he's there. Now will you pick me up at seven or eight?"           "Eight all right with you?"           "Fine. I gotta go now. Bye Gemmy!"           "Bye."           After Aniset disappeared, Gem turned to Ito and asked if that was what he needed to know. After Ito assured him that it was, he said, "great", and left. "Ocean-Bottom Café, here I come!" he shouted as he walked down the path. * * * Ito ran all the way back to get to get to Tay's on time. He screeched to a halt outside Tay's door, where Tay was standing with all of his camping and hunting supplies. Always the efficient one, Ito thought ruefully. He draped himself against Tay's gate, panting. "Man, if you ran that fast all the time, Gam would have some competition," Tay said. "Does he have Gam?"           "Yes," Ito said. "So now all that we have to do is find him, get him back, and not get him or us killed, hurt, or fatally injured.           "Is that all?" Tay asked sarcastically.           "We can also pick up something to eat," replied Ito. "Now come on, we have to get moving."           "So, how do we know where to go?"           "Perhaps Mr. Scholar shouldn't ask an elf that."           "Oh, come on!"           "Fine. The way is described in an ancient chant" Ito paused as Tay snorted. "I know it sounds funny, but he is living in the home of his old master. And his old master's master's home before that. It is the way of that type. Just like it is the way of elves to stay away from snotty, annoying humans who only giggle and snort at everything they say Tay, STOP IT!"           Ito paused for Tay to stop giggling. After a few minutes he continued. "Now as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted," he said with a meaningful glance at Tay, "The chant is passed down from generation to generation, basically so we remember where to go to get him to pay his taxes. It goes something like this" Ito pauses for a minute to think of how to translate the melody. "Away down far where shadow grows, Where grasses dim, where lightning flows, A grassy place under a hill, The grasses fade, the wind is still, For fifty leagues, but evermore, You have to reach the open door, But when you do, Watch out, look fast, For your next step may be your last, One hundred tunnels intertwining, A thousand passages are winding, Twisting through the center more, Ever nearer to the core, But take the third fork, every left But watch out, do not be bereft, Of happiness evermore, For dangerous creature, old of lore, Wander there, waiting to feed, On unwary souls who don't take heed, But keep on going, unto the twisty cracks, Where glaciers fell and broke their backs, But keep on walking, never heed, Their dangerous, false cries of need, At the end of tunnels winding, If still existing, you'll be finding, Fifty pits in fifty wells, Fifty snakes and fifty fells, Pass them all, if still alive, Watch out, but heed me, do not dive, Into ravine, where waters flow, But poisons leach into its' tow, If this trial you survive, You're at the end, you have survived Go to the room that's to the left, To face the master, or what's left If he packed up and moved away, Make up a chant, just leave today"           "Wow," Tay said as the last note trailed off into the distance. "That sounded so beautiful. But so hard. Fifty pits, and fifty snakes, ugh. And what's a fell?"           "It is hard, Tay. But it's not impossible. After all, the tax collectors do it every year, and most of them come back alive! But then again, they also collect taxes on other planets and in other dimensions, so I guess that they can survive almost anything" Ito paused and looked up, but then seemed to remember what Tay had asked. "Oh, you asked about a fell? A fell is a creature kind of like a snake. It can speak, though, and will try to lure you into it's pit so that it can feed it's young."           "Ugh!"           "No, actually its babies consider human a delicacy!"           "Stop it, you lug!"           "Call me lug again, why don't you?"           They continued squabbling as they made their way down the road. Part Five Unexpected Encounters           "Still bickering, our bored heroes continued down their treacherous path, encountering numerous obstacles, many diversions, cold feet, and not an inn for miles folks! Well, it looks like our heroes will still be walking all night and it"           "SHUT UP, TAY!!!!!!"           "Geeze, Ito, a guy just tries to have a little fun All right, I'll shut up. I won't say a word. Not a peep out of me. No-siree, I'll keep nice and quiet. As a matter of fact I take the cake in shutting people up. Quiet Tay is what they call me. Yep. I can shut up. Just say the word and I'll"           "SHUT UP, TAY!!!!!!!!!!!"           "Fine." Suddenly, a giggle broke through the quiet. Not a loud or piercing giggle, just the giggle of an overly amused person, thought Ito, trying to analyze the sound. And probably a girl. Oh, no! I recognize that giggle! "Tay," he whispered, "if you want this venture to succeed, if you want to rescue Gam, if you want me to retain my sanity, run!!!!" "Oh no, you won't." A clear voice rang out of the trees they were passing. "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay right there." "Griffin!" Ito exploded. "Griffin, if I have told you once, I have told you a billion times to leave me alone!" Griffin sauntered out of the grove. Tay gasped. Tall and slim, her short blond hair was ruffled by the wind as she walked up laughing. But it wasn't that that made Tay gasp. Nor was it the boyish clothes she wore that not one girl in his village would even think of wearing. It was her tail. Long and sleek, it looked like a big version of a cat's tail. Covered with spots and waving lazily, it looked strong and powerful, and, most strangely, it looked good on her. She walked right up to Ito, and squared off at him. "You forgot the party," growled. "Erm," Ito managed to gulp that out before she went on. "You forgot the special party for your mum and dad that I worked weeks on, and baked for, and arranged for, and did everything for! You forgot to come when you were supposed to, and you embarrassed me in front of everybody for not even showing up late. You didn't show up at all!" Tay gasped as her body began changing. She slowly morphed into a rather large griffin, and then she casually knocked Ito down. With her talons on his chest to keep him down she growled at him, "you forgot your mum and dad's anniversary party. Meanwhile I, your cousin, had to excuse you to everyone! Don't you dare do that ever again!" Much quicker, she changed back, stood up and casually swatted some dust of her leather jerkin. Ito then noticed her tail. "Lose the tail, Griffin, you'll scare every human we meet up with besides Tay here." "I can't," she smugly replied. "I'm wearing a pair of pants with a tail hole in them." That's all for now.. I'll add more as I get more. Drop me a line and tell me how you liked it. >smiles<